Not the first, but nonetheless impressive!
on
Playing The Escape
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· Score: 2, Insightful
Interactive experiences for adults have been around for awhile and aren't anything new, and have been popular in several cities for a long time [5-wits.com], for example. This one sounds pretty damn cool and seems really reminiscent of those awful (but curious) Cube movie they play constantly on the Sci-Fi channel.
I've gotten used to the fact that when anything comes to NYC, even if it's not new it automatically becomes newsworthy. Hopefully, it will get more people going to these places and build up more of an industry for something that is really just on the cusp of becoming popular. Lord knows, we could use more interactive (read: physical) forms of entertainment in this country.
Not only did we invent and build it -- we paid for it.
"We" (Americans) didn't invent it. It was a much more impressive collaboration from people from many countries, not the least of whom is Tim Berners-Lee [Wikipedia.org].
I'll agree that we funded it, and greatly helped it come to fruition but let's not make it look like "We" think it was the singular efforts of one country and one people that birthed the Internet as we now know it. To do so not only makes "Us" look quite egocentric.
I don't believe any one country should control the internet, but am I behind what the UN/EU is doing? Not really, but at minimum it'll get people thinking about the implications the internet has had on countries with access to it and hopefully build efforts to expand it to other countries. Am I for the dismissive rather antisocial tactics currently employed by our Government? Nope, because nothing good has yet to come of it.
This battle will be stretched out for years and hopefully politicians in the meantime will become more educated to how the internet operates and how technically it is very difficult for one country to "control the internet."
Not only is it available in multiple major metropolitan (Sorry NYC folks, you'll have to ZipCar [ZipCar.com] this one as well) areas, but you can order from restaurants online and have it delivered to you.
Sure, DiningIn.com not free but as far as I can tell all this service does is make it so you don't have to use a phone to call in your take out order and that doesn't seem that useful to either consumers or restuarants - little wonder it's failed before, I would guess.
I find your comment interesting especially since ATRAC is heavily criticized for being a mediocre compression scheme and is almost universally hated among audiophiles (especially the Bass-loving ones) for either making Bass into a deep clanging sound or making it feel like empty booms, either way robbing the Bass of richness.
Perhaps you are not as discerning as you'd like to feel?
It's still a significant drop down from the previous search appliance that sells for over $30,000. I don't think it's significantly out of place for many small businesses. Heck, there are single-user workstations that are about that price. This could easily make it's initial cost back quickly in increased worker efficiency.
Your theory has a great ring to it. And perhaps it will be the case here.
BR>
On the other hand, previous experience shows us that this is not necessarily the case as I know personally plenty of people in the US who recieved defective/unreliable PS2s - where your theory certainly did not apply. This continued until about two years after it's launch. Now, PS2's seem pretty rock solid. I can't speak on behalf of the new mini-PS2 but as for the 5001-series regular PS2's they are greatly improved over the older series and are much more reliable.
But that doesn't mean we should forget it took Sony a very long time for Sony to get the kinks worked out. Not to mention Sony's penchant for inconsistently provided replacements on defective/in-warranty broken units.
What if some of the more popularly "abused" Open-source projects added a stipulation that commercial or freeware products that rebrand it must include a pre-defined (dimensions, design, location, etc) "Powered By" logo on the splash screen. Include this requirement for promotional ads and the product site and you might cut down on some of the more sketchy uses of GPLed software.
Although to be truthful I don't know what effect this might have on people adopting Open-Source since for some reason companies legitimate or not seem intent on hiding the Open-Source nature of their products generally. I'd have to hear more about the public perception of Open-Source to really understand why they do that.
Apple is pissed for several reasons. First and foremost because the iPod isn't just a music player, it's a bundled music solution, since techies love that word. You get a fantastic sexy little jukebox and the elegance of having it work with iTunes, nearly transparently.
I doubt it's "competition" Apple is all that concerned about since Real wont steal too many customers on their own. It's bundling. What do you think Microsoft will pressure PC companies into shipping instead of iTunes? Yeah, something that claims "compatibility" with all systems.
Apple wants everyone to experience the elegance of the integration with iTunes and the iPod. They want you to synch your music with iTunes, and buy your music with iTunes. Then being so impressed with how nice and impressed how everything works go out and buy a Mac. Think Trojan Horse, only it's a mid-to-long term strategy for Apple.
Apple is also undoubtedly concerned about having to support Real's song delivery system since people having trouble getting music onto their iPods will blame Apple. Real's notoriously secretive UI-unfriendly software will undoubtedly
I agree with Apple opening up the iPod. But I also believe the style in which Real did this was totally disgusting. I had little respect for Real before this, and even less afterwards. No matter how much they claim the moral ground this is an act of desperation. An act that while is a movement in the right direction for the industry was riddled with pettiness and beligerence. And is clearly being done to save a company that created it's own destruction with it's inferior software and horrible policies towards it's users.
Let's get this passed so we don't have to worry about anyone monkeying around in quite possibly one of the most important elections this country has seen in decades-with two very divergent paths for the American people.
For a linguist you seem to have some of your facts out of whack in regards to the French language.
-French is the most widely taught second language in the world, after English.
French is the third most taught language in the United States (For most of our history it was the second until whites finally recognized the higher prevelance of Spanish) Personal quips should never be used in place of facts.
French is still somewhat considered the language of diplomacy (Both English and French reign here) and is also considered to be one of the essential languages for International business (Among, not surprisingly English, German, Japanese, and Mandarin). France is also the second-largest international investor behind the US.
French and English are the two working languages The United Nations, UNESCO, The International Monetary Fund, The International Labour Bureau, The International Olympic Committee, The 31-member Council of Europe, and The European Community.
French is the dominant working language at The European Court of Justice, The European Tribunal of First Instance, The European Court of Auditors in Luxembourg, The Press Room at the European Commission in Brussels, and the International Red Cross (Where it is also the Official Language).
You might also have forgotten that French-speaking Africa has an immense population and a geographical area larger than the United States. And behind English is the most taught second language in the United States If you were looking for a job with the State Department you'd find overwhelmingly they look for people with proficiency in French as a second language. The closest second language had a third as many jobs and was looking for Spanish speakers. So I'd say it's plenty useful for working for the US Government and in diplomacy.
French is a very useful language to know, as is English and I agree with you on your statements on English. I'm just sick of people and their whole Anti-French attitude, it's just bigotry wearing a clown nose - especially from my fellow Americans who for being so rich and educated certainly hold a strong anti-foreigner mentality more than I've seen in almost any other non-homogenized society.
The source I used is here [intstudy.com], and those facts are also mirrored on other pages about the French language on study programs and Higher Education institutions around the world.
Did it cross the author's mind that it wasn't that they had marked public areas, or the manner of the advertisements but that their message was to encourage drinking to groups that parents and thusly politicians view as high-risk when it comes to alcohol consumption?
Make your own conclusions about the choices college students make but I think it is in poor taste to advertise alcohol at College students especiall since College students have plenty of more important things to worry about then what booze to pick up this weekend. Not to mention the social, societal, and health issues that binge drinking causes.
So drink responsibly. And think twice before you advertise to a group that parents obsess over because they've just left the nest.
See what a great idea sharing your credit card and personal information is with pirates.
And then come back do a Slashback about how much you were screwed. The rest of us will find alternative means to enjoying music while supporting the artist and making sure the RIAA knows *just* what we think of them and their disgusting abusive practices.
I didn't read the article, but I was wondering if someone could clarify whether Microsoft really does use typing monkeys to write out their source-code.
Maybe Longhorn will be that Shakespearan play everyone's been talking about.
500 Million through Sub-contracting.
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Linux in Iraq
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· Score: 1
The same news program also quickly mentioned that Small Businesses only had a chance working as Sub-Contractors for the Corporate Giants.
The Government Mandated that 10% of the rebuilding effort be given to Small Businesses. But Small-Businesses were unable to compete with the Cronism from the White House (Toward Halburton towards example) and the massive amounts of money for bidding.
But let's not kid ourseves, it wasn't an equal playing field for Small Businesses to get in there and do work, they are being entirely sub-contracted through the larger Corporations.
Nokia lost it's chance with both Nintendo and Sony having shown their offerings and strutted their stuff who will even care for an updated design to the N-Gage?
Not many considering the only time gamers really talk about it is how cool "it could have been" and how ugly it is. Making it less ugly doesn't increase it's chances in a market which since the original's launch is clearly going to see some strong competition in the "high-end" portable gaming market.
So your one of those people who desperately clings to the belief that The Vietnam War -- was infact nothing more than a "Conflict" or perhaps you prefer "Police Action" instead of conflict?
In the end it's just an argument of semantics. Whenever you have a lot of people shooting weapons at eachother it's a War with or without Congress. We've bombed 27 different countries since our Last War without declearing war. But we were actively killing.
It doesn't even matter because using War as an excuse to rob essential Civil Liberties is a rediculous excuse. Let's spit on the faces of our Founding Father's because we can compromise our ideals just because we're killing people.
Maybe you're just playing Devil's Advocate or trying not to sound like you're more concerned about privacy than curbing crime.
All but perhaps the dumbest or most oblivious "criminal" would certainly avoid committing crimes on a street that has signs saying there is surveillance watching them. Even more so if Cameras are placed conspicuously.
It's not even a matter of psychology it's basic logic. Why even risk the potential of being caught or having your face caught on tape when you can go a few blocks down and do whatever you're trying to do with no electronic witnesses? Methinks you'd be a stupid criminal.
People feel safer people who are already afraid feel safer with surveillance around, the same way people favor brightly-lit streets with traffic. Some may feel uncomfortable fearing a City-wide Big brother system (And justly so), which is why Safe Streets are a good solution for those on both sides of the argument. It creates a network of streets that people can walk home on and feel safer doing so.
Surveillance is only as good or bad as it's used by those who have access to it. Suriveillance is not a bad or evil thing by nature. But it has been proven as a deterrent to crime in the areas it's used. However, all it does is just move that crime elsewhere but then we need to get into why our Country has such a stunning problem with crime and violence and get into some touchy complex cultural stuff. It's not a silver bullet to the major problem of crime in this country but it goes a long way for people who are afraid.
This came up in Boston in the post-9/11 aftermath and one of the more intelligent suggestions were to construct surveillance networks along so-called "Safe Streets" in addition to various areas (Government buildings, etc) that needed extra security. The streets would have signs on lamposts denoting their "Safe Street" designation. Routes would be designed so that people worried about their safety could take a route along these roads. While it doesn't fix the knee-jerk reaction some of the Privacy buffs have it is a good compromise between safety and privacy. It provides a safer environment along those routes, and the signs would act as a deterrent and warning as well.
The RIAA is very excited about their newly discovered way to stifle fair-use and beat down consumer rights.
They seemed to have forgotten that two years ago Finger Print scanners were tricked by then a little known Japanese cyptogropher named Tsutomu Matsumoto. This pretty much stalled adoption of finger-print scanners indefinetely since supporters were unable to prove they could outsmart his meddling.
I'm sure those who want to will find an even easier way of defeating it on a hardware/software level rather than resorting to copying finger-prints. But still you think the RIAA themselves would follow security news.
"How will Apple respond?"
By hacking Windows Media Player 9's DRM themselves because the so-called L33t haxx0rz seem too lazy to do it themselves and seem to only want to damage Apple's ability to "protect" the Industry's Intellectual property, which only makes Microsoft's push to control everything more convincing as they hold the unbroken DRM seal.
And for the architecturally challenged he is probably the most famous and respected architects in the world. Not everyone likes his style, but no one doubts his influence and every architects desire to be as talented and lucky as him. He's also designed some of the most famous buildings in the world like the Guggeinheim and the Der Neue Zollhoff in Germany. He is highly respected in his field, but like any artist not everyone will appreciate your art. Considering he is highly stylistic where most in his field are far too compromising on creativity and go for an unfortunate embellished utilitarianism.
...Okay, that was over ten years ago what are they doing now?
We can all compile nice big lists of the recent contributions that the big three Technical Colleges in the country have been up to...where is UIUC?
FYI, I've never even heard of this place and considering I work at a Science Museum I get my fill of urudite scientific papers crossing my desk and I haven't seen one by or referencing anything by UIUC in a long time.
Slashdot Mirror
Interactive experiences for adults have been around for awhile and aren't anything new, and have been popular in several cities for a long time [5-wits.com], for example. This one sounds pretty damn cool and seems really reminiscent of those awful (but curious) Cube movie they play constantly on the Sci-Fi channel. I've gotten used to the fact that when anything comes to NYC, even if it's not new it automatically becomes newsworthy. Hopefully, it will get more people going to these places and build up more of an industry for something that is really just on the cusp of becoming popular. Lord knows, we could use more interactive (read: physical) forms of entertainment in this country.
Has the poster never heard of Diningin.com?
Not only is it available in multiple major metropolitan (Sorry NYC folks, you'll have to ZipCar [ZipCar.com] this one as well) areas, but you can order from restaurants online and have it delivered to you.
Sure, DiningIn.com not free but as far as I can tell all this service does is make it so you don't have to use a phone to call in your take out order and that doesn't seem that useful to either consumers or restuarants - little wonder it's failed before, I would guess.
How do you like them apples Motorola!
Delaying this thing purposefully for revenge on Motorola for leaving Apple high and dry with the languishing G4 processor seems most Jobsian to me.
I find your comment interesting especially since ATRAC is heavily criticized for being a mediocre compression scheme and is almost universally hated among audiophiles (especially the Bass-loving ones) for either making Bass into a deep clanging sound or making it feel like empty booms, either way robbing the Bass of richness.
Perhaps you are not as discerning as you'd like to feel?
It's still a significant drop down from the previous search appliance that sells for over $30,000. I don't think it's significantly out of place for many small businesses. Heck, there are single-user workstations that are about that price. This could easily make it's initial cost back quickly in increased worker efficiency.
Your theory has a great ring to it. And perhaps it will be the case here.
BR> On the other hand, previous experience shows us that this is not necessarily the case as I know personally plenty of people in the US who recieved defective/unreliable PS2s - where your theory certainly did not apply. This continued until about two years after it's launch. Now, PS2's seem pretty rock solid. I can't speak on behalf of the new mini-PS2 but as for the 5001-series regular PS2's they are greatly improved over the older series and are much more reliable.
But that doesn't mean we should forget it took Sony a very long time for Sony to get the kinks worked out. Not to mention Sony's penchant for inconsistently provided replacements on defective/in-warranty broken units.
What if some of the more popularly "abused" Open-source projects added a stipulation that commercial or freeware products that rebrand it must include a pre-defined (dimensions, design, location, etc) "Powered By" logo on the splash screen. Include this requirement for promotional ads and the product site and you might cut down on some of the more sketchy uses of GPLed software.
Although to be truthful I don't know what effect this might have on people adopting Open-Source since for some reason companies legitimate or not seem intent on hiding the Open-Source nature of their products generally. I'd have to hear more about the public perception of Open-Source to really understand why they do that.
Apple is pissed for several reasons. First and foremost because the iPod isn't just a music player, it's a bundled music solution, since techies love that word. You get a fantastic sexy little jukebox and the elegance of having it work with iTunes, nearly transparently.
I doubt it's "competition" Apple is all that concerned about since Real wont steal too many customers on their own. It's bundling. What do you think Microsoft will pressure PC companies into shipping instead of iTunes? Yeah, something that claims "compatibility" with all systems.
Apple wants everyone to experience the elegance of the integration with iTunes and the iPod. They want you to synch your music with iTunes, and buy your music with iTunes. Then being so impressed with how nice and impressed how everything works go out and buy a Mac. Think Trojan Horse, only it's a mid-to-long term strategy for Apple.
Apple is also undoubtedly concerned about having to support Real's song delivery system since people having trouble getting music onto their iPods will blame Apple. Real's notoriously secretive UI-unfriendly software will undoubtedly
I agree with Apple opening up the iPod. But I also believe the style in which Real did this was totally disgusting. I had little respect for Real before this, and even less afterwards. No matter how much they claim the moral ground this is an act of desperation. An act that while is a movement in the right direction for the industry was riddled with pettiness and beligerence. And is clearly being done to save a company that created it's own destruction with it's inferior software and horrible policies towards it's users.
Call and get your Local Reps to Co-sponsor the "Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act" or HR2239.
e ers/hr2239_effort.asp/
For more information go here: http://verifiedvoting.org/resources/hr2239_volunt
Or to read the bill in full: http://www.theorator.com/bills108/hr2239.html
Let's get this passed so we don't have to worry about anyone monkeying around in quite possibly one of the most important elections this country has seen in decades-with two very divergent paths for the American people.
Here's the source again, sorry. http://www.intstudy.com/articles/practicalfrench.h tm
For a linguist you seem to have some of your facts out of whack in regards to the French language.
-French is the most widely taught second language in the world, after English. French is the third most taught language in the United States (For most of our history it was the second until whites finally recognized the higher prevelance of Spanish) Personal quips should never be used in place of facts. French is still somewhat considered the language of diplomacy (Both English and French reign here) and is also considered to be one of the essential languages for International business (Among, not surprisingly English, German, Japanese, and Mandarin). France is also the second-largest international investor behind the US.
French and English are the two working languages The United Nations, UNESCO, The International Monetary Fund, The International Labour Bureau, The International Olympic Committee, The 31-member Council of Europe, and The European Community.
French is the dominant working language at The European Court of Justice, The European Tribunal of First Instance, The European Court of Auditors in Luxembourg, The Press Room at the European Commission in Brussels, and the International Red Cross (Where it is also the Official Language).
You might also have forgotten that French-speaking Africa has an immense population and a geographical area larger than the United States. And behind English is the most taught second language in the United States If you were looking for a job with the State Department you'd find overwhelmingly they look for people with proficiency in French as a second language. The closest second language had a third as many jobs and was looking for Spanish speakers. So I'd say it's plenty useful for working for the US Government and in diplomacy.
French is a very useful language to know, as is English and I agree with you on your statements on English. I'm just sick of people and their whole Anti-French attitude, it's just bigotry wearing a clown nose - especially from my fellow Americans who for being so rich and educated certainly hold a strong anti-foreigner mentality more than I've seen in almost any other non-homogenized society.
The source I used is here [intstudy.com], and those facts are also mirrored on other pages about the French language on study programs and Higher Education institutions around the world.
Did it cross the author's mind that it wasn't that they had marked public areas, or the manner of the advertisements but that their message was to encourage drinking to groups that parents and thusly politicians view as high-risk when it comes to alcohol consumption?
Make your own conclusions about the choices college students make but I think it is in poor taste to advertise alcohol at College students especiall since College students have plenty of more important things to worry about then what booze to pick up this weekend. Not to mention the social, societal, and health issues that binge drinking causes.
So drink responsibly. And think twice before you advertise to a group that parents obsess over because they've just left the nest.
See what a great idea sharing your credit card and personal information is with pirates.
And then come back do a Slashback about how much you were screwed. The rest of us will find alternative means to enjoying music while supporting the artist and making sure the RIAA knows *just* what we think of them and their disgusting abusive practices.
I didn't read the article, but I was wondering if someone could clarify whether Microsoft really does use typing monkeys to write out their source-code.
Maybe Longhorn will be that Shakespearan play everyone's been talking about.
The same news program also quickly mentioned that Small Businesses only had a chance working as Sub-Contractors for the Corporate Giants. The Government Mandated that 10% of the rebuilding effort be given to Small Businesses. But Small-Businesses were unable to compete with the Cronism from the White House (Toward Halburton towards example) and the massive amounts of money for bidding.
But let's not kid ourseves, it wasn't an equal playing field for Small Businesses to get in there and do work, they are being entirely sub-contracted through the larger Corporations.
Nokia lost it's chance with both Nintendo and Sony having shown their offerings and strutted their stuff who will even care for an updated design to the N-Gage?
Not many considering the only time gamers really talk about it is how cool "it could have been" and how ugly it is. Making it less ugly doesn't increase it's chances in a market which since the original's launch is clearly going to see some strong competition in the "high-end" portable gaming market.
So your one of those people who desperately clings to the belief that The Vietnam War -- was infact nothing more than a "Conflict" or perhaps you prefer "Police Action" instead of conflict?
In the end it's just an argument of semantics. Whenever you have a lot of people shooting weapons at eachother it's a War with or without Congress. We've bombed 27 different countries since our Last War without declearing war. But we were actively killing.
It doesn't even matter because using War as an excuse to rob essential Civil Liberties is a rediculous excuse. Let's spit on the faces of our Founding Father's because we can compromise our ideals just because we're killing people.
Maybe you're just playing Devil's Advocate or trying not to sound like you're more concerned about privacy than curbing crime.
All but perhaps the dumbest or most oblivious "criminal" would certainly avoid committing crimes on a street that has signs saying there is surveillance watching them. Even more so if Cameras are placed conspicuously.
It's not even a matter of psychology it's basic logic. Why even risk the potential of being caught or having your face caught on tape when you can go a few blocks down and do whatever you're trying to do with no electronic witnesses? Methinks you'd be a stupid criminal.
People feel safer people who are already afraid feel safer with surveillance around, the same way people favor brightly-lit streets with traffic. Some may feel uncomfortable fearing a City-wide Big brother system (And justly so), which is why Safe Streets are a good solution for those on both sides of the argument. It creates a network of streets that people can walk home on and feel safer doing so.
Surveillance is only as good or bad as it's used by those who have access to it. Suriveillance is not a bad or evil thing by nature. But it has been proven as a deterrent to crime in the areas it's used. However, all it does is just move that crime elsewhere but then we need to get into why our Country has such a stunning problem with crime and violence and get into some touchy complex cultural stuff. It's not a silver bullet to the major problem of crime in this country but it goes a long way for people who are afraid.
This came up in Boston in the post-9/11 aftermath and one of the more intelligent suggestions were to construct surveillance networks along so-called "Safe Streets" in addition to various areas (Government buildings, etc) that needed extra security. The streets would have signs on lamposts denoting their "Safe Street" designation. Routes would be designed so that people worried about their safety could take a route along these roads. While it doesn't fix the knee-jerk reaction some of the Privacy buffs have it is a good compromise between safety and privacy. It provides a safer environment along those routes, and the signs would act as a deterrent and warning as well.
The RIAA is very excited about their newly discovered way to stifle fair-use and beat down consumer rights.
They seemed to have forgotten that two years ago Finger Print scanners were tricked by then a little known Japanese cyptogropher named Tsutomu Matsumoto. This pretty much stalled adoption of finger-print scanners indefinetely since supporters were unable to prove they could outsmart his meddling.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1991517.stm [BBC.UK]
I'm sure those who want to will find an even easier way of defeating it on a hardware/software level rather than resorting to copying finger-prints. But still you think the RIAA themselves would follow security news.
Is it just me or did I not wake up to a world where JPEG was still the dominant format for digital pictures.
And yet Sony's new product lacks support for the most widely supported graphical format. Does anyone else find this bizarre?
"How will Apple respond?" By hacking Windows Media Player 9's DRM themselves because the so-called L33t haxx0rz seem too lazy to do it themselves and seem to only want to damage Apple's ability to "protect" the Industry's Intellectual property, which only makes Microsoft's push to control everything more convincing as they hold the unbroken DRM seal.
And for the architecturally challenged he is probably the most famous and respected architects in the world. Not everyone likes his style, but no one doubts his influence and every architects desire to be as talented and lucky as him. He's also designed some of the most famous buildings in the world like the Guggeinheim and the Der Neue Zollhoff in Germany. He is highly respected in his field, but like any artist not everyone will appreciate your art. Considering he is highly stylistic where most in his field are far too compromising on creativity and go for an unfortunate embellished utilitarianism.
...Okay, that was over ten years ago what are they doing now? We can all compile nice big lists of the recent contributions that the big three Technical Colleges in the country have been up to...where is UIUC? FYI, I've never even heard of this place and considering I work at a Science Museum I get my fill of urudite scientific papers crossing my desk and I haven't seen one by or referencing anything by UIUC in a long time.