Make certain things about accounts operate only through telephone or mail. E.g. once you have sold more than a certain amount through eBay (say, $1000, or 100 transactions, or whatever), then some changes to your account (including new offers, perhaps over a certain value) will result in issuing a mailed note to you so you know something is going on with your account.
From the article: "It's true that there is a huge amount of similarity, but the difference are huge," Snyder said. "You will never ever have a little human trapped inside a mouse or monkey's body."
Just remembering people I've worked with, I think we already have mice and monkeys trapped inside humans.
And, sadly, all the old IPv4 gear can't simply be shipped to Third World countries for a big tax break -- well, it could, but it won't work if everyone else is switching to IPv4. Back to the haves and have-nots.
You show me code that the output of which can't be predicted or determined, and I'll show you evidence of a bad coding practice.
Did I say the output of code couldn't be predicted? I just said "some things" can't be predicted -- because your software will be used in ways or environments or in conjunction with things completely outside your frame of reference. And while all your output may be perfectly valid, there may be vulnerabilities that never existed in your sandbox, in fact should not be possible, but exist nonetheless.
From the article: "You could be the most secure operation in the world, but if you have applications that were developed using bad coding practices, you're open to exposure," said Braunstein.
While this is true, it is also possible that software developed with good coding practices can still have vulnerabilities -- because some things you just can't predict or determine. All you need to do is overlook one itty bitty thing and it becomes a weak link, but I still wouldn't call it "bad coding practices".
So maybe this particular device wouldn't work with hair. If not hairs, it seems like we leave a trail of other useful matter that could be used. Would it work with spit on a toothbrush, snot on a tissue, a band-aid over my paper cut, lipstick on a drinking glass, discarded condoms...?
Forget fingerprints and retina scans -- how long before my computer will require my personal DNA authorization to log in? (Actually that wouldn't work. Someone could just steal a few hairs off my pillow and log into my computer!)
I'm curious... how adjustable is the post-processing focusing? E.g. depth of field, f/stop, etc. Do you basically get to adjust ANY of that after the image is recorded?
Second: some thoughts. You're already thinking of African funding sources if you are working with the Tanzanian government and universities. Do they have "funds to spare" or do they see this as an important project that is still worth investing in even if it is not "health" or "emergencies"? If it is the latter, then you're on your way already. And Swahili is spoken by millions upon millions of people; someone, somewhere, has to be able to fund this. Obviously many African organizations (like orgs in other parts of the world) don't care too much about an online dictionary, but some of them (particularly cultural and educational institutions) should be very interested.
What kind of funding are you asking for, anyway? Hosting? Translations? Staffing? Publishing?
From the article: "We've done all the programming work that's possible, and I can envision hitting the print key in about two years," Benjamin said. You've done ALL the programming work that's possible? Clearly you are not dreaming big enough.
FTA: Biersteker and Benjamin have applied for several grants, including one from the National Endowment for the Humanities. But they won't know anything until the spring, so they need stopgap funding. Why are you looking for American sources? Why not find a few AFRICAN ORGANIZATIONS to pay for it? If this is so useful to those who speak Kiswahili, then it shouldn't be hard to find a few African businesspeople or governments to back this thing. (...and I speak as someone who works with nonprofits in Africa, and can think of a few possible agencies that I will pass it on to.) At least he's looking to a Tanzanian university for some options (see below).
FTA: Benjamin returned with a new vision; he's calling it "Kamusi in a Box," a Swahili instruction CD-ROM kit for Internet-less villages. He's also interested in other learning projects, including some with the University of Dar Es Salaam. Hmm. I hope he checks the market first... unless he expects to include it with Negroponte's $100 laptop.
Nice emphasis on "ASS" there. Very subtle. Same for the repitition of "Office to OpenOffice."
But at least you're right that I should have said "Microsoft software" instead of the more specific "Microsoft Windows". When schools standardize on Windows (instead of Linux or Mac OS X), they also standardize on MS Office, and the justification is generally "because that's what they'll use in the real world." Like they have any idea what they'll use in after graduation. Or what OS's and word processing software will look like in ten years when the kids finally graduate from college.
Then again, more than once I've heard a school administrator refer to Office as Windows, or in fact just say "I'm sending you this document in Microsoft format" -- not even understanding that there is an actual difference between Windows, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Same thing happens (to a lesser extent) with Photoshop and Acrobat -- "How do I save this in Adobe format?"
From the article: The city is also responsible for IT matters in its primary and middle schools. There, it has installed Open Office on 2,150 computers, and plans to bring the total to 3,500 by the end of March, it said. French high schools are run directly by central government.
B-b-b-but those poor kids won't learn how to use Microsoft Windows! How will they ever succeed in the real world?!
(This is sarcasm, folks, regarding a commonly-cited reason for American school systems to standardize on Microsoft Windows.)
From the article: In any event, even when multitaskers can't keep track of the professor, it probably doesn't matter much. In lectures at large universities, especially in the humanities and social sciences, class time is usually taken up by the broad outlines of the subject. The real learning occurs when we bear down and pore over the hundreds of pages assigned every week....
As someone who has been through graduate school, and taught there, and have a spouse and siblings doing the same, I'll say this: the major problem is that CLASS IS USUALLY A WASTE OF STUDENT'S TIME. Most professors/instructors blather on about stuff that is not terribly important, then assign a truckload of readings and exercises to complete outside the class. You could get this much more cheaply from do-it-yourself books... because many educations are becoming do-it-yourself anyway.
I make a point in my classes (multimedia programming, graphic design, color theory, etc.) of lecturing with interesting examples, enough to illustrate the subject matter for the week, but after that the kids can go -- even if I've used only half the class time or less. I stay in the classroom the entire allotted class time so that students are free to stay to ask questions or have studio time or whatever.
From the article: "Their production version promises to be much faster than tape, but we've not seen that yet," Tarasoff said.
So we're reading an article about an executive excited about a prototype demo to his bosses involving technology that won't be available for a year or more??? If that's acceptable, then I have a lot of articles to write!
From the article: "Label executives have made multiple arguments for flexible pricing. They argue, for instance, that almost all retail businesses have different price points for different products." Who decides the price points, however? Who decides which albums/songs are popular vs. less popular? Would Apple decide, or the music companies? Is it "according to traffic on iTunes" -- e.g. when more people buy it, the price goes up, like a stock -- or "measured by radio play or CD sales or Billboard ranking", or "what the record companies are declaring as popular"? What's the reference???
From the article: "IT professionals will be able to consolidate the total number of servers running 64-bit (processors) and users will be able to have bigger mailbox size."
How big are these mailboxes that you need 64-bit processing space??? *boggle*
Clearly, we need to develop an AIM Slashbot to automatically install itself on AOL executive's computers and interrupt their days with snippets of the wit and wisdom of Slashdot posters.
FTA: "Leeds said applications and the way they are distributed change so often that companies like Yahoo have a difficult time keeping up. A certification program, he said, will allow Yahoo to keep monitoring a partner's practices."
Uh... how will a certification program help? Does Leeds mean that they will only certify specific version releases?...that if the company releases an upgrade or patch, that each one will have to be re-certified? Won't this just slow down software releases?
And how long before another company (say, MS or IBM) starts their own certification? Then we'll have competing certification systems. Even without this, it would be better if the open source community started a democratic rating system....
"Some pledged patents are of little or no value." Right. Primarily, IBM (and others) gain some PR joy by releasing these patents either shortly before they expire, or namelessly in a group so the statistic (more than 500!) sounds better. .
"So far the quantities of patents involved have been negligible compared to the total number of issued software patents, and even to the number held by the "generous donors."...Richard Stallman likens software patents to mines in a park: If there are 90,000 mines in the park instead of 100,000, it's still far from being a safe place to walk." Right. Of course, it begs the question: how many of the 90,000 are actually dangerous? Sure, there are zillions of software patents out there, but how many of them are actually desirable to anyone else? .
The real question is, how do you reward software ingenuity and creativity if you cannot patent something? Is it enough to make money? That's somewhat meaningless in the OSS community, where fame/notoriety/goodwill may be more important.
Interesting that this made it to the Wall Street Journal. (nostalgia) My first video game was Zork I running on an Osborne I, and I still remember figuring out to give Marvin "tea" and "no tea" in Hitchhiker's.... (/nostalgia)
I do think this is an unfair statement (FTA): "The plots of the games are often as minimalist as the graphics: To win, players must solve a series of puzzles, like finding the key to a castle door."
How is that less complex than any of today's graphics-intensive games? If anything, text adventures are more complex, because you have to read and use your imagination instead of simply killing villians and "walking" over their corpses to collect power-ups or keys or whatever. It's still "find the key to the door," just more literary than visual.
From the article: "Analysts say the payment would alleviate a cash shortage at Daum, which acquired Lycos Inc. last year and has been suffering heavy costs linked to restructuring efforts at the U.S. portal."
So, what was this lawsuit about? How does this settlement help anybody but Daum and Microsoft? I'm glad the KFTC is still looking into this; there doesn't seem to have been any real improvement in the Korean market through this settlement, or any wins for the end user (unless you're a Daum shareholder).
Blogging is the modern digital version of a diary or journal... many people who would not keep one on paper are lured to do it online. This is actually a good thing, because it preserves thoughts and other ideas about a person that might have disappeared otherwise.
The real question is, what happens when a blogger dies? Will someone preserve their blog somewhere for their family/friends to peruse through? Will there be a Library of Blogress where everyone's "published" scribblings are preserved, for future researchers to find and document?
From the article: "Sony's move is the latest effort by the entertainment companies to rely on controversial 'digital rights management' (DRM) technologies to reverse a steady drop in sales that the industry attributes in large part to piracy facilitated by online music and movie file-sharing networks like Kazaa and Limewire."
Yeah, because installing secretive, privacy-invading software on your computer is sure to stimulate CD sales.
And the uninstall process is a privacy invasion too... you gotta fill out an online form, check your email for a URL to ANOTHER online form, then get the uninstaller. And while the uninstaller gets rid of the XCP2 Aurora, it simultaneously installs another DRM (MediaJam). Nice. Sony, how I love thee. You're so sinister.
Okay, so we've spent a gazillion dollars launching this thing into space... then we use it to lure an asteroid off course so it doesn't hit Earth... THEN WHAT??? Our spaceship now has a gigantic asteroid following it around!
Slashdot Mirror
Make certain things about accounts operate only through telephone or mail. E.g. once you have sold more than a certain amount through eBay (say, $1000, or 100 transactions, or whatever), then some changes to your account (including new offers, perhaps over a certain value) will result in issuing a mailed note to you so you know something is going on with your account.
From the article: "It's true that there is a huge amount of similarity, but the difference are huge," Snyder said. "You will never ever have a little human trapped inside a mouse or monkey's body."
Just remembering people I've worked with, I think we already have mice and monkeys trapped inside humans.
And, sadly, all the old IPv4 gear can't simply be shipped to Third World countries for a big tax break -- well, it could, but it won't work if everyone else is switching to IPv4. Back to the haves and have-nots.
You show me code that the output of which can't be predicted or determined, and I'll show you evidence of a bad coding practice.
Did I say the output of code couldn't be predicted? I just said "some things" can't be predicted -- because your software will be used in ways or environments or in conjunction with things completely outside your frame of reference. And while all your output may be perfectly valid, there may be vulnerabilities that never existed in your sandbox, in fact should not be possible, but exist nonetheless.
From the article: "You could be the most secure operation in the world, but if you have applications that were developed using bad coding practices, you're open to exposure," said Braunstein.
While this is true, it is also possible that software developed with good coding practices can still have vulnerabilities -- because some things you just can't predict or determine. All you need to do is overlook one itty bitty thing and it becomes a weak link, but I still wouldn't call it "bad coding practices".
So maybe this particular device wouldn't work with hair. If not hairs, it seems like we leave a trail of other useful matter that could be used. Would it work with spit on a toothbrush, snot on a tissue, a band-aid over my paper cut, lipstick on a drinking glass, discarded condoms...?
Forget fingerprints and retina scans -- how long before my computer will require my personal DNA authorization to log in? (Actually that wouldn't work. Someone could just steal a few hairs off my pillow and log into my computer!)
I'm curious... how adjustable is the post-processing focusing? E.g. depth of field, f/stop, etc. Do you basically get to adjust ANY of that after the image is recorded?
First: thanks for responding. That's very cool.
Second: some thoughts. You're already thinking of African funding sources if you are working with the Tanzanian government and universities. Do they have "funds to spare" or do they see this as an important project that is still worth investing in even if it is not "health" or "emergencies"? If it is the latter, then you're on your way already. And Swahili is spoken by millions upon millions of people; someone, somewhere, has to be able to fund this. Obviously many African organizations (like orgs in other parts of the world) don't care too much about an online dictionary, but some of them (particularly cultural and educational institutions) should be very interested.
What kind of funding are you asking for, anyway? Hosting? Translations? Staffing? Publishing?
From the article: "We've done all the programming work that's possible, and I can envision hitting the print key in about two years," Benjamin said. You've done ALL the programming work that's possible? Clearly you are not dreaming big enough.
FTA: Biersteker and Benjamin have applied for several grants, including one from the National Endowment for the Humanities. But they won't know anything until the spring, so they need stopgap funding. Why are you looking for American sources? Why not find a few AFRICAN ORGANIZATIONS to pay for it? If this is so useful to those who speak Kiswahili, then it shouldn't be hard to find a few African businesspeople or governments to back this thing. (...and I speak as someone who works with nonprofits in Africa, and can think of a few possible agencies that I will pass it on to.) At least he's looking to a Tanzanian university for some options (see below).
FTA: Benjamin returned with a new vision; he's calling it "Kamusi in a Box," a Swahili instruction CD-ROM kit for Internet-less villages. He's also interested in other learning projects, including some with the University of Dar Es Salaam. Hmm. I hope he checks the market first... unless he expects to include it with Negroponte's $100 laptop.
Nice emphasis on "ASS" there. Very subtle. Same for the repitition of "Office to OpenOffice."
But at least you're right that I should have said "Microsoft software" instead of the more specific "Microsoft Windows". When schools standardize on Windows (instead of Linux or Mac OS X), they also standardize on MS Office, and the justification is generally "because that's what they'll use in the real world." Like they have any idea what they'll use in after graduation. Or what OS's and word processing software will look like in ten years when the kids finally graduate from college.
Then again, more than once I've heard a school administrator refer to Office as Windows, or in fact just say "I'm sending you this document in Microsoft format" -- not even understanding that there is an actual difference between Windows, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Same thing happens (to a lesser extent) with Photoshop and Acrobat -- "How do I save this in Adobe format?"
From the article: The city is also responsible for IT matters in its primary and middle schools. There, it has installed Open Office on 2,150 computers, and plans to bring the total to 3,500 by the end of March, it said. French high schools are run directly by central government.
B-b-b-but those poor kids won't learn how to use Microsoft Windows! How will they ever succeed in the real world?!
(This is sarcasm, folks, regarding a commonly-cited reason for American school systems to standardize on Microsoft Windows.)
From the article: In any event, even when multitaskers can't keep track of the professor, it probably doesn't matter much. In lectures at large universities, especially in the humanities and social sciences, class time is usually taken up by the broad outlines of the subject. The real learning occurs when we bear down and pore over the hundreds of pages assigned every week....
As someone who has been through graduate school, and taught there, and have a spouse and siblings doing the same, I'll say this: the major problem is that CLASS IS USUALLY A WASTE OF STUDENT'S TIME. Most professors/instructors blather on about stuff that is not terribly important, then assign a truckload of readings and exercises to complete outside the class. You could get this much more cheaply from do-it-yourself books... because many educations are becoming do-it-yourself anyway.
I make a point in my classes (multimedia programming, graphic design, color theory, etc.) of lecturing with interesting examples, enough to illustrate the subject matter for the week, but after that the kids can go -- even if I've used only half the class time or less. I stay in the classroom the entire allotted class time so that students are free to stay to ask questions or have studio time or whatever.
From the article: "Their production version promises to be much faster than tape, but we've not seen that yet," Tarasoff said.
So we're reading an article about an executive excited about a prototype demo to his bosses involving technology that won't be available for a year or more??? If that's acceptable, then I have a lot of articles to write!
From the article: "Label executives have made multiple arguments for flexible pricing. They argue, for instance, that almost all retail businesses have different price points for different products." Who decides the price points, however? Who decides which albums/songs are popular vs. less popular? Would Apple decide, or the music companies? Is it "according to traffic on iTunes" -- e.g. when more people buy it, the price goes up, like a stock -- or "measured by radio play or CD sales or Billboard ranking", or "what the record companies are declaring as popular"? What's the reference???
From the article: "IT professionals will be able to consolidate the total number of servers running 64-bit (processors) and users will be able to have bigger mailbox size."
How big are these mailboxes that you need 64-bit processing space??? *boggle*
Clearly, we need to develop an AIM Slashbot to automatically install itself on AOL executive's computers and interrupt their days with snippets of the wit and wisdom of Slashdot posters.
FTA: "Leeds said applications and the way they are distributed change so often that companies like Yahoo have a difficult time keeping up. A certification program, he said, will allow Yahoo to keep monitoring a partner's practices."
Uh... how will a certification program help? Does Leeds mean that they will only certify specific version releases? ...that if the company releases an upgrade or patch, that each one will have to be re-certified? Won't this just slow down software releases?
And how long before another company (say, MS or IBM) starts their own certification? Then we'll have competing certification systems. Even without this, it would be better if the open source community started a democratic rating system....
The points that are most valuable (IMHO):
- "Some pledged patents are of little or no value." Right. Primarily, IBM (and others) gain some PR joy by releasing these patents either shortly before they expire, or namelessly in a group so the statistic (more than 500!) sounds better.
- "So far the quantities of patents involved have been negligible compared to the total number of issued software patents, and even to the number held by the "generous donors."
...Richard Stallman likens software patents to mines in a park: If there are 90,000 mines in the park instead of 100,000, it's still far from being a safe place to walk." Right. Of course, it begs the question: how many of the 90,000 are actually dangerous? Sure, there are zillions of software patents out there, but how many of them are actually desirable to anyone else?
The real question is, how do you reward software ingenuity and creativity if you cannot patent something? Is it enough to make money? That's somewhat meaningless in the OSS community, where fame/notoriety/goodwill may be more important..
.
Interesting that this made it to the Wall Street Journal. (nostalgia) My first video game was Zork I running on an Osborne I, and I still remember figuring out to give Marvin "tea" and "no tea" in Hitchhiker's.... (/nostalgia)
I do think this is an unfair statement (FTA): "The plots of the games are often as minimalist as the graphics: To win, players must solve a series of puzzles, like finding the key to a castle door."
How is that less complex than any of today's graphics-intensive games? If anything, text adventures are more complex, because you have to read and use your imagination instead of simply killing villians and "walking" over their corpses to collect power-ups or keys or whatever. It's still "find the key to the door," just more literary than visual.
From the article: "Analysts say the payment would alleviate a cash shortage at Daum, which acquired Lycos Inc. last year and has been suffering heavy costs linked to restructuring efforts at the U.S. portal."
So, what was this lawsuit about? How does this settlement help anybody but Daum and Microsoft? I'm glad the KFTC is still looking into this; there doesn't seem to have been any real improvement in the Korean market through this settlement, or any wins for the end user (unless you're a Daum shareholder).
Blogging is the modern digital version of a diary or journal... many people who would not keep one on paper are lured to do it online. This is actually a good thing, because it preserves thoughts and other ideas about a person that might have disappeared otherwise.
The real question is, what happens when a blogger dies? Will someone preserve their blog somewhere for their family/friends to peruse through? Will there be a Library of Blogress where everyone's "published" scribblings are preserved, for future researchers to find and document?
"...compatible with OpenGL and Direct Draw..."
So video games will be 3D with this, big deal. When can I read Slashdot in 3D? Or better -- when can I moderate in 3D?!
From the article: "Sony's move is the latest effort by the entertainment companies to rely on controversial 'digital rights management' (DRM) technologies to reverse a steady drop in sales that the industry attributes in large part to piracy facilitated by online music and movie file-sharing networks like Kazaa and Limewire."
Yeah, because installing secretive, privacy-invading software on your computer is sure to stimulate CD sales.
And the uninstall process is a privacy invasion too... you gotta fill out an online form, check your email for a URL to ANOTHER online form, then get the uninstaller. And while the uninstaller gets rid of the XCP2 Aurora, it simultaneously installs another DRM (MediaJam). Nice. Sony, how I love thee. You're so sinister.
Okay, so we've spent a gazillion dollars launching this thing into space... then we use it to lure an asteroid off course so it doesn't hit Earth... THEN WHAT??? Our spaceship now has a gigantic asteroid following it around!