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User: grug0

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Comments · 48

  1. And in other news, on Drink Coffee, Support Mozilla · · Score: 5, Funny

    crack dealers are giving half their profits to SCO. Say dealers, "They're some of our most loyal patrons, it only seems fair."

  2. This system could be exploited on The Distributed Library Project · · Score: 5, Informative

    What's to stop a whole bunch of people giving themselves high ratings and good feedback, and then stealing other people's books?

    I suggest they use something like the Advogato trust metric to maintain the integrity of their system. This allows bad "nodes" to be isolated and damage to the system avoided.

    I also think that there should be penalties, like at any library, for having overdue books. Get a bad rating from one person is just a slap on the wrist.

  3. This could be dangerous on Spray-On Computers · · Score: 5, Informative
    Inhaling small particles of silicon dioxide, which is used as a coating on silicon chips, can lead to silicosis. Silicosis causes damage and scarring of the lungs, and possibly death.

    The idea of spraying silicon chips directly onto patients should be approached with caution.

  4. Re:DO NOT CLICK ON PARENT LINK on Cindy Smart Knows Better Than To Say Naughty Words · · Score: 5, Funny
    Cindy should be programmed to recognise goatse and tubgirl.

    We don't click those kind of links... That's a bad link.

  5. Just like the Japanese on Japanese Robot on Diplomatic Tour · · Score: 5, Funny

    Soon they'll be churning out small, cheap, efficient politicians that will take the jobs of American politicians. Washington will end up like Detroit.

  6. Re:Anti Semitism? on RIAA/MPAA vs. xMule Author, EarthStation 5 · · Score: 1

    More likely it's a Palestinian kick at the American establishment that provides aid the Israeli military to the tune of a billion a year.

  7. Re:MBA? on Linux Guru Alan Cox Takes A Year Off · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Yeah, America is just so darned under-productive and economically lagging behind powerhouses like Europe and Japan.

    To get back to the point, perhaps the guy wants to round out his education and skills. I know many people who find specialising in science and technology alone stifling.

  8. Re:They dont have to, who cares? on Chinese Government to Use Only Local Software · · Score: 4, Insightful
    From the article:

    A new policy by China's governing body will rule that all ministries buy only locally-produced software at the next upgrade cycle.

    They haven't banned foreign software per se, rather they have banned buying foreign software. It is an important distinction.

    One Microsoft is enough!

    That's a ridiculous assertion. The government will be using the Red Flag Linux OS, which is hardly going to create the next Microsoft.

  9. Re:"An Universe"? on The Death of A Universe · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Although it pains me to say it, I believe "it's" has now become an acceptable way to write the possesive of "it," for example, given that nearly everyone does it.

    So what benefits are there for having one rule for the 'it' pronoun and another for every other noun? I've been corrected many times on this issue, and I'm genuinely curious as to the origin of this rule and why it's supposed to make more sense.

  10. Re:SlashNot? on XFree86 Fork Gets a Name, Website · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Well thanks for assuming I live in your timezone, that I want to do any of these things and that you know better than me about how I can spend my time.

  11. Re:Northeast? on One Worldwide Power Grid · · Score: 1
    Every reporter's going to have some sort of bias, whether they admit it to themselves or not. They're only human. And the counterpoint is, the less involved they are, the less accurate their facts may be.

    Sure, but this is the information age. Accuracy of information is less of a problem when there are a multitude of sources to choose from. The problem isn't so much getting accurate data as piecing it all together into a representative whole.

    I'd personally rather know what a reporter's bias is up front, so I can decide for myself how many grains of salt I should take with any particular claim.

    Maybe, but even if you know somebody's bias you cannot know what information they are concealing or downplaying. This would only work if you had two wildly opposing sources.

  12. Re:Northeast? on One Worldwide Power Grid · · Score: 1
    Likewise, if I want to read American perspectives on anything, I'm not going to be reading the BBC.

    Personally, I think the best strategy is the opposite. The less involved and close to an issue a reporter is, the less likely they are to be influenced by bias.

  13. Re:The Internet model on One Worldwide Power Grid · · Score: 1
    I'll look forward to the day I can have a box on the side of my house into which I can plug whatever sources of electricity I choose.

    Um..nobody's stopping you from doing this now.

  14. Re:I think this is very dangerous. on One Worldwide Power Grid · · Score: 1
    Not to mention the fact that some unscrupulous countries may try to pass off low quality power as higher quality power and cheat their neighbours. Nowadays, a lot of private energy companies make a quick buck by using cheaper sawtooth wave power rather than the sine waves.

    The RMS voltage is still the same but the sharp points of sawtooth waves can damage sensitive components. In fact sawtooth power can decrease the lifespan of electrical appliances.

  15. Re:since it's a "film book"... on Doug Chiang's Robota · · Score: 5, Informative

    Why not link to the faq while you're at it?

  16. Re:very familiar on Doug Chiang's Robota · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The reason that the hero with amnesia archetype is so common is because it solves the biggest problem of science fiction writing: exposition. Having the hero suffer from amnesia places him in the same position of unfamiliarity as the reader, and both can be "educated" at once by the writer.

  17. Sounds familiar on Doug Chiang's Robota · · Score: 2, Funny
    It is a time of conflict

    Of persecution

    Under robot rule

    A hero without memory

    A ragtag group of warriors

    Defy the robots to save humanity

    And discover the terrible secret of the robots

    Hold on a second, shouldn't that be the terrible secret of space?

  18. Re:Cut down on MS crap please, it's not interestin on Microsoft's Smartphone 2003 SDK Released · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I'm sorry but Slashdot is "News for Nerds" not "News for Fanatics". Microsoft, like it or not, controls a large amount of the market and their technologies should be reported on like any other companies.

  19. Re:Awh, poor gates, off on another trip. on China Upgrades from Microsoft Office · · Score: 0
    Can anyone with an understanding of chinese or with better googling skills confirm this (that wps office2003 runs only on linux)?

    I've said it once and I'll say it again - no it doesn't, in fact it appears to only run on windows.

  20. Re:microsoft is dying and gates is leaving the shi on China Upgrades from Microsoft Office · · Score: 0

    How on earth is 6 million shares "most of Bill and Steve's holdings"? If Bill sold most of his holdings, MSFT stock price would plummet and it'd be all over the news. It might even have ripple-on effects on the economy.

  21. Re:How long before Ballmer is on a plane? on China Upgrades from Microsoft Office · · Score: 0

    I don't think Ballmer would try to directly engage the Chinese Government. Instead the US government will probably drop hints about possible retaliative trade practices unless the Chinese Government gets back in the Microsoft fold. It could even become a WTO issue.

  22. Re:International Competition for Microsoft on China Upgrades from Microsoft Office · · Score: 2, Informative
    Wrong, wrong, wrong. WPS Office 2003 is for Windows, not linux. So this isn't a victory for Linux, as the Chinese Government will run the office suite on windows.

    And protectionist anti-competitive policies for buying software is hardly something to celebrate. Governments should buy the best tool for the job, not try to prop up local industries.

  23. Re:the equation on India Plans Moon Mission by 2008 · · Score: 0

    Let me introduce you to a little friend of mine. Irony, Sivaram. Sivaram, Irony.

  24. Re:hmm on iWorkstations? · · Score: 0

    Wow, that Apple advertising sure worked on you! It's not surprising, though, as advertising costs account for %30 of the price of an iMac.

  25. Re:No offence... on iWorkstations? · · Score: 0

    Dull? How about thrifty. Style costs money, and it's a low priority for me out of necessity. If I was rich, sure I'd buy the most stylish, impractical stuff. But I'm not.