Spy vs Spy was GREAT! I knew every map in that game, and back then I had a near photographic memory for crap like that. So I could set booby traps and totally destroy my friends, but I could also be watching their screen and know exactly where they had left traps for me. I never lost!
Pity I didn't apply those sorts of memory, attention and study skills in my algebra class at the time...
I used to work at a shop where we built small cyclotrons (for medical use--generating tracers for use in CAT/PET scans) and the controlling units were PDP-11s. Of course, that was before my time. But the evidence was still there when I arrived there. I saw a PDP-11 chassis apparently linked to one of the new machines in my first few days there, and I thought, that's odd. Looked around the side and saw that there was a stack of three or four 486s in there (this was in the late mid-80s).
Don't know what they did with the guts of the thing, but they certainly got a bunch of use out of the chassis.
Man, I miss 8-bit computing. Back in the good old days, you just peeked and poked (or LDA'd and STA'd) wherever the heck you wanted. Ask the system for resources? Bah! If I practiced poor memory management and ran out or overwrote something, cool things would happen. Text would change shapes or colors. The screen might change color in the middle. The joystick would work backwards and the tape drive would have a life of its own.
Back in those days, when I knew the entire 6510 assembler command set and the entire C64 kernel jump table by heart, I could do ANYTHING. I could even debug programs after assembly and correct for assembler errors. 032 212 255? No way!! That's 032 21*0* 255, or JSR $FFD2, the "print character to screen" routine. Let's just shave a bit off one of those bytes and we're good to go...
Now there are so many languages and so many implementations of each... And so much hardware to support and abstraction layers... It's not that it's harder... it's just not as much fun anymore... Maybe I'll get a C64 emulator and type in the development kit from Compute!'s Gazette again!
> What part of "the right of the people to keep and bear
>arms, shall not be infringed" do you not understand
If you are going to quote the second ammendment, you may want to quote the whole thing:
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
I am neither for nor against any particular interpretation of the second ammendment, but for many years I thought that it ensured specifically the part that you quoted. However, the full text of the article brings into question the context of the right to keep and bear arms, and anyone whom you turn to your side by misquoting may easily go the other way when they learn the full text of the ammendment, just out of a feeling of having been misled.
Along the same lines, there are several interpretations to the word "free". He could mean "unfettered", or "unmetered". Or he could mean, "You're paying taxes anyway, you may as well get something for it rather than nothing." While I understand and appreciate your argument, a more precise statement such as "every resident will get unlimited wireless access to the internet using tax dollars they are already paying, though we are going ot have to cut back on other important social programs in order to do so" would be seen as weak and equivocating. You've seen how people treat Kerry whenever he gives an answer other than "Yes", "No" or "Kill, kill, kill!"
We elect politicians for a reason: we believe they understand our needs and will represent us honestly. If they do not do so, we ideally vote them out. Personally, I think that unfettered access to wireless Internet is a wonderful idea for every municipality. While some competing ISPs would not like it, it would be great for the economy in a lot of ways, not the least of which is that it would be a boon to low income students who might not have other ways of getting on the net, but might be able to buy an iBook with built in wireless.
This would make Internet part of the SF infrastructure, much like the sewer. 150 years ago, some SF mayor might have given a State of the City address in which he promised that all residents would have free access to flush toilets, knowing that was going to help make SF a world-class city. Of course it was going to have to be paid for, but it didn't mean it wasn't a good idea that he shouldn't have tried to sell as best as he could.
Anyway, I'm glad to see you're all fired up for November 2nd. Don't forget to vote.
I remember dialing in with a 9600 baud modem to do my CS 60A (scheme) homework at UC Berkeley and only getting 2400 baud because of the answering modem's speed most of the time.
And then once I got on, the slowdown was that our new superfast server (danube, IIRC) was bogged down running poorly written interpreted, recursive, memory-hogging programs by 500+ students all trying to get in under the wire.
If they want to get a good simulation of battling against an ad hoc local army which has no centralized command, they should consider letting people from the public command small numbers of opposing (i.e. defending local) troops.
Bush's suggestion that the only problem with the war currently was that we "won too quickly," that the enemy was supposed to stand, fight and be killed instead of retreating and coming back with car bombs the way they have, is ridiculous. It shows how out of touch he and his advisors are with the real world. All you have to do is look at American history: George Washington lost just about every battle he fought in, but the tactic of fight, retreat, and live to fight another day won the war.
Since they seem to be unwilling to learn from history, before our beloved administration engages in another wasteful bloodletting, maybe the high end of the chain of command should take a moment to see how regular people would fight if thrown into the situation.
Heck, make sure some 10-14 year olds are able to play. They're brutal! I remember when Warcraft came out, those little snots would pull some amazing tricks to kick butt right out of the gate. Remember the Grunt Rush offense?
Doesn't need anything explicit. Just public nuisance stuff, and it doesn't even need to be a criminal lawsuit. If someone turns off the tube right before the final home run of game seven, I'm sure that some sheister lawyer could figure out a way that the people who were there at the sports bar just to see it could sue that person.
Of course, it's likely that person would have already "paid"...
When I'm working out at the gym, treadmilling away with my iPod on to drown out the overwhelming hip-pop soundtrack that defines the 24 hour fitness experience, there are six TVs in line of site. Typically, the three showing sports have the subtitles turned on, but the three showing news or "other" (oprah &c) do not.
When asked to fix it, the employees invariably say that the person who handles that is off that day. If I could fix it myself with such a device (or program for my treo, which has IR capabilities) I'd be glad to do it.
There are so many IR-capable palm devices out there that if the guy making it really wanted to have an impact on the world, all he'd need to do is develop a software app and offer it for free. Anyone? Anyone?
Messages that are intended to change the way people think about things need to be delivered fast and hard. Think commercials. Or kids book. Or comic books. Grab them, get an emotional response, associate an old behavior with bad feelings, associate a new behavior with good feelings.
I have not read the book, but based on the description, it sounds like it will be seen as most effective by people who already know what they are doing. With large numbers of anecdotes and not enough focus, it falls firmly under the heading of preaching to the choir; the only people who will probably slog through this book will be people who understand its importance before even opening it up. I've got friends who not only use easy-to-guess PIN numbers and passwords, but when participating in a conversation about the importance of security, they'll even announce their information proudly, as if it's some sort of joke. You don't change those sorts of attitudes with a textbook.
Maybe security philosophy would be better spread through viral means such as a really funny movie (think the original South Park Xmas Jesus vs. Santa video), or a bunch of jokes that people tell. Here's one that would work on an old friend of mine: Q- What do you get when you take the area code away from your phone number? A- Your ETrade password!
Forget about DVD, forget about HD! One of my faves is a work that's still in progress over at ASCIIMATION. Barely better than a flip book, this is clearly a labor of love on the part of the creator. Check it out!
Anyone remember the first "dactyl attack" game in the arcades. Huge helmet, a ring that keeps you in place, and a "walk" button on the gun to move forward. It was the best thing at the time, but totally unnatural. If this can really do true--or nearly true--360 degree tracking in 2d and eventually map to uneven terrain, that'd be awesome.
What might be interesting for uneven terrain would be something like those old "pin art" toys you could get at Headlines or Yarmo Zone. You know, the ones with 1000 pins on a rack in square formation, and you would reset them by dumping them all to the back, and then pushing something--your face or a fist or something uneven--into them, and on the other side you'd get a pin sculpture of your hand or whatever.
It wouldn't work for everything (i.e. simulated overhangs in a climbing situation), but if you had something like that on a huge scale, maybe covered with some sort of flexible surface, you could simulate some pretty interesting terrains if you had the computer determining the pin positions.
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Pity I didn't apply those sorts of memory, attention and study skills in my algebra class at the time...
Just kidding... if they have Raid on Bungeling Bay on this thing, I'm totally buying it!
Don't know what they did with the guts of the thing, but they certainly got a bunch of use out of the chassis.
s/rom/rome/
my bad.
Can someone say "Carpal Tunnel Syndrom"? That's begging for a repetetive stress injury, if you ask me!
consider it done... It may appear to be from "AAA Counters".
It's on its way, to the email address (minus triples) listed on your post! It may be from "AAA Counters".
Want an invitation? I've got a couple of extras..
"Please vacate the room. You have 15 seconds to comply."
...and now, shame on us, too.
Back in those days, when I knew the entire 6510 assembler command set and the entire C64 kernel jump table by heart, I could do ANYTHING. I could even debug programs after assembly and correct for assembler errors. 032 212 255? No way!! That's 032 21*0* 255, or JSR $FFD2, the "print character to screen" routine. Let's just shave a bit off one of those bytes and we're good to go...
Now there are so many languages and so many implementations of each... And so much hardware to support and abstraction layers... It's not that it's harder... it's just not as much fun anymore... Maybe I'll get a C64 emulator and type in the development kit from Compute!'s Gazette again!
...was this set up by SCO, Microsoft or one of the anti-virus folks who want to prove that Linux isn't without its weaknesses...?
>arms, shall not be infringed" do you not understand
If you are going to quote the second ammendment, you may want to quote the whole thing:
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
I am neither for nor against any particular interpretation of the second ammendment, but for many years I thought that it ensured specifically the part that you quoted. However, the full text of the article brings into question the context of the right to keep and bear arms, and anyone whom you turn to your side by misquoting may easily go the other way when they learn the full text of the ammendment, just out of a feeling of having been misled.
Along the same lines, there are several interpretations to the word "free". He could mean "unfettered", or "unmetered". Or he could mean, "You're paying taxes anyway, you may as well get something for it rather than nothing." While I understand and appreciate your argument, a more precise statement such as "every resident will get unlimited wireless access to the internet using tax dollars they are already paying, though we are going ot have to cut back on other important social programs in order to do so" would be seen as weak and equivocating. You've seen how people treat Kerry whenever he gives an answer other than "Yes", "No" or "Kill, kill, kill!"
We elect politicians for a reason: we believe they understand our needs and will represent us honestly. If they do not do so, we ideally vote them out. Personally, I think that unfettered access to wireless Internet is a wonderful idea for every municipality. While some competing ISPs would not like it, it would be great for the economy in a lot of ways, not the least of which is that it would be a boon to low income students who might not have other ways of getting on the net, but might be able to buy an iBook with built in wireless.
This would make Internet part of the SF infrastructure, much like the sewer. 150 years ago, some SF mayor might have given a State of the City address in which he promised that all residents would have free access to flush toilets, knowing that was going to help make SF a world-class city. Of course it was going to have to be paid for, but it didn't mean it wasn't a good idea that he shouldn't have tried to sell as best as he could.
Anyway, I'm glad to see you're all fired up for November 2nd. Don't forget to vote.
It's just one letter away from 133T!
And then once I got on, the slowdown was that our new superfast server (danube, IIRC) was bogged down running poorly written interpreted, recursive, memory-hogging programs by 500+ students all trying to get in under the wire.
Sigh. The good old days.
Bush's suggestion that the only problem with the war currently was that we "won too quickly," that the enemy was supposed to stand, fight and be killed instead of retreating and coming back with car bombs the way they have, is ridiculous. It shows how out of touch he and his advisors are with the real world. All you have to do is look at American history: George Washington lost just about every battle he fought in, but the tactic of fight, retreat, and live to fight another day won the war.
Since they seem to be unwilling to learn from history, before our beloved administration engages in another wasteful bloodletting, maybe the high end of the chain of command should take a moment to see how regular people would fight if thrown into the situation.
Heck, make sure some 10-14 year olds are able to play. They're brutal! I remember when Warcraft came out, those little snots would pull some amazing tricks to kick butt right out of the gate. Remember the Grunt Rush offense?
I thought the title said something about "sleazy drivers". Time for bed.
Of course, it's likely that person would have already "paid"...
When asked to fix it, the employees invariably say that the person who handles that is off that day. If I could fix it myself with such a device (or program for my treo, which has IR capabilities) I'd be glad to do it.
...if Bungie were still independent. There was a time when the gaming community loved and respected them. Then they became one with the Borg
I have not read the book, but based on the description, it sounds like it will be seen as most effective by people who already know what they are doing. With large numbers of anecdotes and not enough focus, it falls firmly under the heading of preaching to the choir; the only people who will probably slog through this book will be people who understand its importance before even opening it up. I've got friends who not only use easy-to-guess PIN numbers and passwords, but when participating in a conversation about the importance of security, they'll even announce their information proudly, as if it's some sort of joke. You don't change those sorts of attitudes with a textbook.
Maybe security philosophy would be better spread through viral means such as a really funny movie (think the original South Park Xmas Jesus vs. Santa video), or a bunch of jokes that people tell. Here's one that would work on an old friend of mine: Q- What do you get when you take the area code away from your phone number? A- Your ETrade password!
Forget about DVD, forget about HD! One of my faves is a work that's still in progress over at ASCIIMATION. Barely better than a flip book, this is clearly a labor of love on the part of the creator. Check it out!
What might be interesting for uneven terrain would be something like those old "pin art" toys you could get at Headlines or Yarmo Zone. You know, the ones with 1000 pins on a rack in square formation, and you would reset them by dumping them all to the back, and then pushing something--your face or a fist or something uneven--into them, and on the other side you'd get a pin sculpture of your hand or whatever.
It wouldn't work for everything (i.e. simulated overhangs in a climbing situation), but if you had something like that on a huge scale, maybe covered with some sort of flexible surface, you could simulate some pretty interesting terrains if you had the computer determining the pin positions.