I've seen a fair number of fibre cables destroyed by people wanting to "pretty up" the server room by bundling the cables with that spiral plastic "hose" crap. And I've seen a few zip-tie'd cables. There's a *reason* why we make those yellow trays/conduits.
Unless it's laced with arsenic, they'll just chew right through that too. And that stuff is far less dense than wallboard and cement they already chew through.
(I have a few cans of *toxic* foam sealer, but it's intended for bugs. It will stop an entire colony of ants, but it won't kill a mouse/rat before it's eaten it's way through it.)
The terms of the coupon program are very clear. One coupon per device. You can buy two receivers at the same time and use both, but using both on one box (i.e. $80 off) is illegal and should be caught by the system -- the serial number is supposed to be provided to use the coupon, but this being run by the.gov, you could probablly get away with buying cat food with those coupons at wal-mart.
The current status of the workplace is not a valid argument when speaking about teaching in schools
It is if your purpose is to prepare them to enter that workplace. While software applications will continue to change and evolve, they don't change that much that quickly. You don't work one day with Word 6 and the next day be "upgraded" to Word 2007 on Vista. There have been a half dozen versions of Word over 15+ years. If you knew/know Word 6, then Word 2008 will not be totally alien to you. Actually using a wordprocessor goes much futher than simply typing; that can be done with just about anything (I'm doing it right now in the middle of a web browser.)
In '94 I was a senior in college. What were all the prospective employers asking for? Microsoft office proficiency -- even from engineering students who had been using Interleaf(!) and FrameMaker for years.
Governments are slow moving beasts. For all I know, they still use Wordperfect. The agencies I've worked with sent docs in FrameMaker format.
Are you sure about that? were they taken from your mailbox or pocketed by a postal worker? I think it's just far more likely the USPS lost or misdelivered them -- it happens.
If it's sites you frequent (while on "broadband") then it's merely annoying. But if you have to load all the graphics and sh**loads of flash crap everybody has to have on their homepage these days, then yeah, it's a horrible experience.
I once tried to manage my parents phone service from their house. Bellsouth has sooooo much bullsh** in their webpages that your session will timeout before you can fetch the entire page via modem. The IR interface to my cellphone was faster. (and infinitely more expensive.)
Speaking from experience, if you are building a lab/computer room... OVER. BUILD. You can never run too much power to a rack. While you can have "too much" cooling, it's better than not having enough later on when you cannot add more without taking the lab apart. (too much cooling means the compressor will short cycle... it'll end up pulling the heat out of the space too quickly and then cycle back on too often. It increases the wear and shortens the life of the compressor.)
15 years ago Microsoft wasn't even such a big player in the office field
Where were you 15 years ago? That would be 1994. While Microsoft was not as big back then, they were plenty big in the office market... DOS, Windows 3.11, and Windows NT were everywhere you turned. Mac's were popular as well. What were the big office apps... Microsoft Word and Excel. Even on the MAC! Sure, there were alternatives but that's what you heard and saw everywhere you went. In '95 I was working for an ISP who would send out floppies with either mac or windows (3.11) TCP/IP software for your dialup access. 9 out of 10 floppies went to windows users. Today, ISPs blindly assume you run windows completely ignoring the fact there are non-windows systems in the world. Rarely do I see office environments that don't use the Microsoft Office suite.
Apple's been around for 25 years, yet we still live in a Windows/PC world. Will that still be true in 15 years? I don't know, but I think it would be a safe bet.
So? Assign them to each student in the same manner as textbooks. No one is suggesting handing out 4000$ Lenovo T61's. Small, cheap, laptops will do just fine for classwork. It's not like they will be running complex simulations on these things. In fact, if I can find a new battery for less than a new laptop, I'm planning on giving my 10 year old Sony Vaio to my niece for school work.
(And having played with an OLPC -- and watched *actual* children play with it, I'd say they could do better with an Eeeeeeee PC or Sony Netbook.)
The modern web (even the not so modern web) is a seriously painful experience on a "56k" modem.
The bit about the job hunt is refering to the entire process... finding the job seeker(s), communicating with them, filling out applications/submitting a resume, etc. Sort of the interview itself (which isn't always in person, btw.) at some point in the process, there's a very high probability of internet involvement. Most places don't advertise job openings in print (newspapers, journals, etc.) anymore. You'd have to randomly walk in or call to know those places had openings -- and the only sort of people I know who do that sort of thing are headhunters, and they rarely use anything more than email these days.
They have been recently. Until a few months ago they were rare around here. And I don't recall them mentioning the coupons. But that's probablly on the web site they point everybody to.
The problem is that most of the coupons were sent out long before the people who really need them knew about them. And now that people are running around like the sky is falling, there aren't so many coupons to be had.
And, seriously, how are they going to verify that? Call up every cable company and satellite provider to run every name and address past them?
I'd bet the vast majority of coupons have been sent to people who don't need them -- they can aford a $40 converter box, and very likely don't need one anyway. The people who really could benefit from it, don't even know about the coupon program.
According to Visa and Mastercard policies, it is illegal for the terminal to record the number -- either in print or memory. If you see anyone still printing the card number on your receipt, report them immediately. Once the transaction is processed, they have a transaction ID and authorization code and no longer need the card number.
I'd recommend writing the verification number down somewhere else and removing it from the card.
Right. And you're certain of the security of that wireless device? And the device to which it's transmitting? And the dialup link it's using to talk to the bank?
All it takes to obtain a CC# is to simply SEE. THE. CARD. I don't need a card reader. And I don't even need to handle it. If I can see both sides of the card, it's even better because then I have the verification number as well.
I know enough about the banking and credit card industries to laugh when they talk about security. If you knew what I do, you'd probablly keep all your money in cash stuffed inside rabid ferrets.
Why do people cling to this as "security"? Even if the AP isn't broadcasting it, it will still appear, UNENCRYPTED, in packets crossing the network. And by the fact that it isn't broadcast, any wireless clients will have to actively search for it -- by broadcasting an UNENCRYPTED probe request. Even the PoS broadcom card and driver in my windows laptop can see "non-broadcast" networks.
The FCC has nothing to do with microwave ovens. First off, they aren't supposed to be radios -- the microwaves are supposed to say, you know, INSIDE the oven. And the second thing, microwaves operate at a specific frequency because that's the frequency at which water molecules vibrate; the FCC doesn't have f*** all to do with it. The ISM band is what it is because there are lots of natural sources of RF/EM in that frequency range.
5GHz is limited more by walls and other obstructions. Line-of-site through empty air is about the same as 2.4GHz -- hundreds of feet. The issue with 5GHz is the smaller wavelength is more readily absorbed by things. But that's also a benefit as it keeps your wifi in your house and your neighbor's wifi in their house.
Doesn't do much good to trick the AP into "Japan" mode when the cards in the laptops are hardwired to "US". No amount of registry tweaking and "for japan" drivers will change that. (annoying as, being a laptop, it can find itself anywhere in the world.)
I don't know what you expect an "N router" to be -- and since there's no finalized standard, no one else does either. 802.11n encoding works on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios. 5GHz gear is rather rare, so if that's what you wanted, you should have looked closer at the box.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. WRONG. The only correct thing you've said is that the 610 has internal antennas.
802.11n works at 270Mbps on both 2.4G (B) and 5G (A) radios. BOTH require 40Mhz wide channels. Many devices default to 20Mhz because it's simpler to setup. (40Mhz limits which channels you can use.)
The WRT600N has *2* radios; exactly *2* mini-PCI cards -- you can see them through the air vents. It has *6* antennas; you only see 3 on the outside. And DD-WRT, while "functional", is still experimental on the 600N. The GUI won't setup wide-channel mode unless "N-only" is selected, but you can set it up from the commandline just fine.
Slashdot Mirror
I've seen a fair number of fibre cables destroyed by people wanting to "pretty up" the server room by bundling the cables with that spiral plastic "hose" crap. And I've seen a few zip-tie'd cables. There's a *reason* why we make those yellow trays/conduits.
Unless it's laced with arsenic, they'll just chew right through that too. And that stuff is far less dense than wallboard and cement they already chew through.
(I have a few cans of *toxic* foam sealer, but it's intended for bugs. It will stop an entire colony of ants, but it won't kill a mouse/rat before it's eaten it's way through it.)
The terms of the coupon program are very clear. One coupon per device. You can buy two receivers at the same time and use both, but using both on one box (i.e. $80 off) is illegal and should be caught by the system -- the serial number is supposed to be provided to use the coupon, but this being run by the .gov, you could probablly get away with buying cat food with those coupons at wal-mart.
It is if your purpose is to prepare them to enter that workplace. While software applications will continue to change and evolve, they don't change that much that quickly. You don't work one day with Word 6 and the next day be "upgraded" to Word 2007 on Vista. There have been a half dozen versions of Word over 15+ years. If you knew/know Word 6, then Word 2008 will not be totally alien to you. Actually using a wordprocessor goes much futher than simply typing; that can be done with just about anything (I'm doing it right now in the middle of a web browser.)
In '94 I was a senior in college. What were all the prospective employers asking for? Microsoft office proficiency -- even from engineering students who had been using Interleaf(!) and FrameMaker for years.
Governments are slow moving beasts. For all I know, they still use Wordperfect. The agencies I've worked with sent docs in FrameMaker format.
Are you sure about that? were they taken from your mailbox or pocketed by a postal worker? I think it's just far more likely the USPS lost or misdelivered them -- it happens.
No. One coupon, one device.
If it's sites you frequent (while on "broadband") then it's merely annoying. But if you have to load all the graphics and sh**loads of flash crap everybody has to have on their homepage these days, then yeah, it's a horrible experience.
I once tried to manage my parents phone service from their house. Bellsouth has sooooo much bullsh** in their webpages that your session will timeout before you can fetch the entire page via modem. The IR interface to my cellphone was faster. (and infinitely more expensive.)
Speaking from experience, if you are building a lab/computer room... OVER. BUILD. You can never run too much power to a rack. While you can have "too much" cooling, it's better than not having enough later on when you cannot add more without taking the lab apart. (too much cooling means the compressor will short cycle... it'll end up pulling the heat out of the space too quickly and then cycle back on too often. It increases the wear and shortens the life of the compressor.)
Where were you 15 years ago? That would be 1994. While Microsoft was not as big back then, they were plenty big in the office market... DOS, Windows 3.11, and Windows NT were everywhere you turned. Mac's were popular as well. What were the big office apps... Microsoft Word and Excel. Even on the MAC! Sure, there were alternatives but that's what you heard and saw everywhere you went. In '95 I was working for an ISP who would send out floppies with either mac or windows (3.11) TCP/IP software for your dialup access. 9 out of 10 floppies went to windows users. Today, ISPs blindly assume you run windows completely ignoring the fact there are non-windows systems in the world. Rarely do I see office environments that don't use the Microsoft Office suite.
Apple's been around for 25 years, yet we still live in a Windows/PC world. Will that still be true in 15 years? I don't know, but I think it would be a safe bet.
Roaming profiles are a nightmare - period. Don't use windows and you'll be much happier, but that's a laughable suggestion.
(Even on a wired, gigabit connection, it can take a small eternity to sync a roaming profile.)
So? Assign them to each student in the same manner as textbooks. No one is suggesting handing out 4000$ Lenovo T61's. Small, cheap, laptops will do just fine for classwork. It's not like they will be running complex simulations on these things. In fact, if I can find a new battery for less than a new laptop, I'm planning on giving my 10 year old Sony Vaio to my niece for school work.
(And having played with an OLPC -- and watched *actual* children play with it, I'd say they could do better with an Eeeeeeee PC or Sony Netbook.)
The modern web (even the not so modern web) is a seriously painful experience on a "56k" modem.
The bit about the job hunt is refering to the entire process... finding the job seeker(s), communicating with them, filling out applications/submitting a resume, etc. Sort of the interview itself (which isn't always in person, btw.) at some point in the process, there's a very high probability of internet involvement. Most places don't advertise job openings in print (newspapers, journals, etc.) anymore. You'd have to randomly walk in or call to know those places had openings -- and the only sort of people I know who do that sort of thing are headhunters, and they rarely use anything more than email these days.
They have been recently. Until a few months ago they were rare around here. And I don't recall them mentioning the coupons. But that's probablly on the web site they point everybody to.
The problem is that most of the coupons were sent out long before the people who really need them knew about them. And now that people are running around like the sky is falling, there aren't so many coupons to be had.
And, seriously, how are they going to verify that? Call up every cable company and satellite provider to run every name and address past them?
I'd bet the vast majority of coupons have been sent to people who don't need them -- they can aford a $40 converter box, and very likely don't need one anyway. The people who really could benefit from it, don't even know about the coupon program.
Like an ID cannot be forged as well? If the person doesn't know you, then They. Don't. Know. You. No amount of "photo id" can *prove* who you are.
According to Visa and Mastercard policies, it is illegal for the terminal to record the number -- either in print or memory. If you see anyone still printing the card number on your receipt, report them immediately. Once the transaction is processed, they have a transaction ID and authorization code and no longer need the card number.
I'd recommend writing the verification number down somewhere else and removing it from the card.
Right. And you're certain of the security of that wireless device? And the device to which it's transmitting? And the dialup link it's using to talk to the bank?
All it takes to obtain a CC# is to simply SEE. THE. CARD. I don't need a card reader. And I don't even need to handle it. If I can see both sides of the card, it's even better because then I have the verification number as well.
I know enough about the banking and credit card industries to laugh when they talk about security. If you knew what I do, you'd probablly keep all your money in cash stuffed inside rabid ferrets.
So you're saying the FCC can regulate PHYSICS. Nice try.
Why do people cling to this as "security"? Even if the AP isn't broadcasting it, it will still appear, UNENCRYPTED, in packets crossing the network. And by the fact that it isn't broadcast, any wireless clients will have to actively search for it -- by broadcasting an UNENCRYPTED probe request. Even the PoS broadcom card and driver in my windows laptop can see "non-broadcast" networks.
The FCC has nothing to do with microwave ovens. First off, they aren't supposed to be radios -- the microwaves are supposed to say, you know, INSIDE the oven. And the second thing, microwaves operate at a specific frequency because that's the frequency at which water molecules vibrate; the FCC doesn't have f*** all to do with it. The ISM band is what it is because there are lots of natural sources of RF/EM in that frequency range.
5GHz is limited more by walls and other obstructions. Line-of-site through empty air is about the same as 2.4GHz -- hundreds of feet. The issue with 5GHz is the smaller wavelength is more readily absorbed by things. But that's also a benefit as it keeps your wifi in your house and your neighbor's wifi in their house.
It used to be $25k. And no, they won't come hunting you down unless they have a reason -- i.e. you're interfering with licensed user.
Doesn't do much good to trick the AP into "Japan" mode when the cards in the laptops are hardwired to "US". No amount of registry tweaking and "for japan" drivers will change that. (annoying as, being a laptop, it can find itself anywhere in the world.)
I don't know what you expect an "N router" to be -- and since there's no finalized standard, no one else does either. 802.11n encoding works on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios. 5GHz gear is rather rare, so if that's what you wanted, you should have looked closer at the box.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. WRONG. The only correct thing you've said is that the 610 has internal antennas.
802.11n works at 270Mbps on both 2.4G (B) and 5G (A) radios. BOTH require 40Mhz wide channels. Many devices default to 20Mhz because it's simpler to setup. (40Mhz limits which channels you can use.)
The WRT600N has *2* radios; exactly *2* mini-PCI cards -- you can see them through the air vents. It has *6* antennas; you only see 3 on the outside. And DD-WRT, while "functional", is still experimental on the 600N. The GUI won't setup wide-channel mode unless "N-only" is selected, but you can set it up from the commandline just fine.