That's the whole point.:) There can't really be many different general purpose devices in the long-term.
The PC combines a typing machine, a Minitel-like device, a digital e-mail device, a book reading device, a digital photo-album, an IP-phone, a teleconferencing device, a video playing machine, a music player, a gaming console, a VR simulator, etc., etc., etc.
Asking someone to name a general-purpose electronics device aside from the PC is cheating. There can be only one!
PDAs - devices like the Palm Pilot - are no longer relevent to the market.
Doesn't mean PDAs died. Yes, there is almost no growth and may be even decline (depending on whether you classify things like Treo as PDAs with phone capability or smartphones). Yes, in terms of market share they are being supplanted by phones. But the form factor still has some benefits and it's likely that PDAs will continue to sell. I am currently thinking about getting a Tablet PC or a Palm, but I definitely won't be content with a smartphone (with the possible exception of Treo). I want a bigger screen and a thin light device, while I don't need a good phone at all. That's why I want to get a PDA (to replace my trusty old Palm IIIxe), not a phone with calendar.
I think that anything that the US government may say about human rights issues should at least be taken with a grain of salt, but preferably just dismissed as imperialist propaganda. I'm serious. I was born in Soviet Union and I live in Russia now. If we sit together for a day, I can show you with figures, facts, references and cross-references how what the US was telling about the Soviet Union was disingenuous lies and distortions.
Soviet Union was a very different country from what you may be accustomed in the US. Contrary to what most Americans believe, in many regards it was a country of free and happy people. Sadly, no matter what I say, it's probably not enough to have any effect on someone who was told for decades that communism is evil. But the truth is that life under socialism is better than you can expect under comparable conditions (i.e. don't compare Cuba and Norway) with capitalism. The majority of people in Russia today think positively about Soviet Union. Less than 20% think that way about present Russia (according to two largest polling companies).
I am sure that life in Cuba is no picnic. And it's clearly worse than life in Florida. But I suspect that for the majority of Cubans it may be better than they can expect to have tomorrow if Fidel dies and Cuba is forced to move to capitalism. It's not a matter of capitalism vs. communism - it's first world (and exploitation of other countries) vs. third world (not having anyone to exploit).
What is worse - working in a factory in Cuba or working in a sweatshop in China or Vietnam (forced to work 80+ hours a week for 10-20 cents/hour)? US attacks on Cuba is nothing other than cold calculated lies.
You admit that Cuba may be better than many other countries, but then you buy wholesale into American lies that it should still not be tolerated. Why not if it works better than whatever system they have in Haiti? Because the government jails some people that work to illegally overthrow the social order? Do you think the US government would look kindly on people trying to install a communist regime in the US in close cooperation with a foreign power?
It worked in USSR rather well, despite being "incorrectly applied" and stuff. But people always find something to moan about. Can you believe that in 1980s about 40% of the Soviet people claimed that they didn't drink enough milk, despite per capita milk consumption being 50% higher than in the US?
Pussies. They believe the lies that once they get rid of communism, every one will live like they do in Holliwood movies. Guess what, after the national economy was "privatized" millions of people were instantly impoverished.
Communism actually does work, but there is too much opposition to the idea in the West for it to be tried soon. A random American pisses boiling water when you mention communism to him. Still, the more advanced our technologies become, the more promising socialist and communist models become. Open source is just one example.
And if not for communists, these nice buildings would still be occupied by nice friendly rich people. And all poor people would be somewhere away from them. Please don't say that Cuba had prosperity, it didn't. The only difference is that there was a class of plantation owners, fabricants and the like and now there isn't.
You don't need to guess. Go to Haiti, which is an hour flight from Cuba and is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere (without a communist "dictator" and a US embargo). Or visit some of the former USSR republics and look how they "prosper" without senile communist dictators.
Abandoning socialism for free market capitalism doesn't work by itself. On the contrary, it destroys economies and condemns millions of people to poverty. It's not a popular subject and is certainly not covered by the business media in depth, but if you check out statistics even for the relatively successul Easter European countries, you would be surprised to see the changes from the socialist times.
If the transition is accompanies with billions of dollars in investment, then the economy may grow fine, like it happened in, say, Estonia. But the negative impact of privatisation and destruction of welfare systems can be too much to compensate with that growth.
Any country is repressive. Does that mean that no countries should be tolerated? I mean, China is repressive, Israel is, India and Pakistan are, France and Italy are repressive too, Russia definitely is, so are Chile and Haiti. What do you have against Cuba in particular? Why single it out?
I wonder if it's illegal to fake fingerprints. Can I be punished for something if I glue such thing on my finger(s) and give that to, say, immigration guards in the US airport? Do they ensure that the fingerprints are not fake? Can they do anything to me? Not that I plan to go to the US when it's in such a sorry state, just curious.
Seriously, it's amazing how low would those Indian engineers sink in order to get their mess of pottage. I guess, 65 years ago Rajit Gadh would probably be working in Germany for a system of tagging Jews with RFID tags.
Disgusting. I wonder why corporate whores like Katie Dean never ask these "researchers" if they are not ashamed to look in the mirror. The world makes me sick. Now please excuse me while I go read something by Richard Stallman and listen to Chomsky's lectures.
You should read between the lines. China will grow somewhat economically in the next five years. So it would make sense to claim that instead of not selling 5 dollars worth of software per capita BSA will be not selling 50 dollars worth of software per capita. By multiplying the amount of software not sold by population BSA arrives at the estimated losses from piracy.
President Merkin Muffley: But this is absolute madness, Ambassador! Why should you *build* such a thing?
Ambassador de Sadesky: There were those of us who fought against it, but in the end we could not keep up with the expense involved in the arms race, the space race, and the peace race. At the same time our people grumbled for more nylons and washing machines. Our doomsday scheme cost us just a small fraction of what we had been spending on defense in a single year. The deciding factor was when we learned that your country was working along similar lines, and we were afraid of a doomsday gap.
President Merkin Muffley: This is preposterous. I've never approved of anything like that.
Ambassador de Sadesky: Our source was the New York Times.
The Air Force believes "we must establish and maintain space superiority," Gen. Lance Lord, who leads the Air Force Space Command, told Congress recently.
"Mr. President, we must not allow a mine shaft gap!" (listen)
As usual, unjustified militarism to feed the military industrial complex. Paranoid fantasies, irrational aggression, these Pentagon people are just mentally sick, no better than General Jack D. Ripper.
"Space superiority is not our birthright, but it is our destiny," he told an Air Force conference in September. "Space superiority is our day-to-day mission. Space supremacy is our vision for the future."
"Uh, so let's get going, there's no other choice. God willing, we will prevail, in peace and freedom from fear, and in true health, through the purity and essence of our natural... fluids."
"RTFM!" was never more appropriate. Seriously, there is no good way to introduce all this advanced functionality to the user without the user playing an active role. I mean, Opera has a very good documentation, it has great tutorials. If you don't make the effort of at least checking all menu items, can you really blame the software? I mean, do you really want Opera to add an annoying "Tip of the day" alert or a Clippy lookalike that would go all "It looks like you...." every minute?
Look, as everyone keeps telling console lovers all the time, you should not by a PC if a console does everything you need. With a PC you pay for additional functionality, such as printing, support for hi-res displays, Internet browsing, support for custom peripherals, etc. If the next generation of consoles provides all that functionality, they will have no other choice but cost as much as a comparable PC. Sure, Sony buys the components for PS3 wholesale, but so does Dell.
But seriously, where did you get the idea that PCs were upgradeable anymore? I don't know. It just seems to me that way. Sure, the case/mobo/cpu combo may need to be changed from time to time, but you can reuse everything else. Can you reuse anything from a console?
The solution is simple - start with low resolution. That way you don't need expensive hardware and can start working on the code right away. Then, in 1 year you may have a functioning system and there will probably be some cameras that you could use.
My system struggles with realtime playback of the full-bitrate HD MPEG. Check your setup. I have a 1.6GHz P4 and it plays HD MPEG4 (DivX, WMV, MOV) in 720p without any problems (Win 2k). MPEG2 should certainly not be a problem.
A PC by any other name would smell just as sweet. If you put everything you want from a PC into a console, it's going to cost as much as a new PC and would essentially be a non-upgradable, non-customizable PC in a pretty box. What's so great about that?
By the "wanna sniff little girl panties" Japanese. Wrong, by moviegoers all over the world and by MPAA rating commissions.
By geek loser white guys who are into animated kiddie porn Wrong, by members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Or, which is more likely - that the rating system is screwed up. Wrong.. I guess all the same it's because the majority of people do no consider panty shots of little girls a horrible abomination.
So the deliberate drugging rape and sodomy of a little girl is a "mistake"? Do you think it wasn't? And Polansky wasn't charged with drugging rape or sodiomy, only with "statutory rape" (which isn't really rape), actually, because the mother of a little girl asked to drop the charges. The girl's little son actually thinks that "it's "cool" that mom's been on TV" and the girl doesn't feel angry or hateful and thinks Polansky "is a really good director".
And for starters, I'm saying the 12-15yr olds shouldn't be having sex - not that that makes it right for you to go in and exploit that and them for your own selfish pleasure. This is not up to you, so STFU. They do have sex, they will have sex and the society thinks it's ok. So shut up about that, would you?
You wiggled out of that one. Just because someone wants to do something or is doing something doesn't make it right. First, it's not for you to decide. Second, something not being right doesn't mean it should be a crime. Being a moron on Slashdot is not right, but I am not trying to charge you with that in the court.
According to your argument it wasn't wrong to give little 9 year old Drew Barrymore drugs cause she wanted them and she was already doing them. You are a moron, sorry. You wouldn't know logic if it bit you in the ass. Don't try to draw analogies, they are too complex for your simple mind. Answering the correct question - in the hypothetical situation where it was legal for Drew to possess and use drugs, where it was legal for adults to distribute drugs, it would be ok for an adult to give drugs to Drew.
Exemptions and exceptions in the law are made for age-appropriate behaviour. That does not mean that it is OK nor should those laws be expanded to let YOU in. Are you an idiot? I wasn't talking about that. Try to read my posts at least 4-5 times, you don't seem to get it on the first reading.
I think you'll find most people think 12 is too young to be fooling around. The wackos want their kids locked up til marraige. The normal people expect some kind of peer experimentation. Sickos like you want anyone to have a fair crack at em. You don't make any sense.
Well, mate - that's what the law says now - and I didn't write the laws. Society did. You're the one trying to change em for your own selfish purposes. Are you stupid or what? I was saying that it's legal for kids to have sex and it is. RTFL.
Yes there absolutely is. No question. Well, since I am questioning it, there IS a question. And you haven't yet explained what difference there is. I guess it's because you are a moron and can't realise that you are not making any sense. Whoever programmed your little brain did a decent job at deleting any capabilities for logical reasoning that you might have had at some point.
Heck, there are serious emotional and psychological differences between the 15 year old and the 18 year old, never mind the 15 year old and the 25 year old. As well as between the 18 year old and the 60 year old. And your point is?
This would be the "objective" group of researchers that included a kiddy diddler in their midst? Rind's study has been debunked. One of its major "findings" was asserted with no corroborating data, the notion of "consent" was mishandled - that study has been debunked on its own failings not hysteria. Oh, really? Wasn't it Congress that did the debunking with it's damnation declar
Even though it would be extremely beneficial for all, large scale co-operation with NASA or ESA is out of the question. It requires the "go" from the government and some $$$, but this isn't a priority for the Russian government. They simply don't care about science, spending about 1% of the GDP (as opposed to 2-3% most countries spend and 4% that USSR spent). The number of scientists in Russia more than halved in the past 10 years. Sadly, you can't expect to get much from the Russian space industry.:-(
So what? He's still a voyeuristic pederast like many of his contemporaries. Walt Disney made some nice films but it didn't change the fact that he was a virulent anti-Semite. The difference is that Miyazaki's films are considered great films for children and the whole family. They are usually highly acclaimed and rated G in the US, meaning that the majority of people do no consider panty shots of little girls (at least in animation) a horrible abomination. You are in the minority.
Would this be the same Hollywood that supports Roman "drugged and raped a little girl" Polanski? First, I'd say that the good of his films overweights one mistake. Second, what the society and the media did to Geimer was much worse than what Polanski did.
That doesn't make it right to exploit that for selfish purposes or to get kids involved in stuff they have no business in either. My three year old son would really like to ride my Harley Davidson. He's not old enough to yet, not legally and he doesn't have the balance to stay on, never mind the neck strength to keep from being killed or worse in an accident. So like a mature adult, I say NO. Logical fallacy again. We are not talking about 3-year old kids riding HDs. We are talking about 12-15 kids, who already have sex with each other, having sex with an adult. They are already "invoved in stuff". What you are saying doesn't make any sense.
No, it is a big deal. What people do vs what they should do are two different things. Who are you to decide? Children have sex, it's legal and it's accepted by the society (except by the same wackos who oppose gay marriage too). So it's not a big deal (you don't get to decide what is and what isn't a big deal - society does).
No, I said age appropriate - not acceptable or good. It's one thing to be 15 and with someone of the same age group. It's another to be 29 trolling for 14 year olds. Logical fallacy again. I was talking about how there is no significant difference for the kid to sleep with another 15 year old or with a 25 year old.
You naive fool. I will find the studies and present them to you. But suffice it to say this sort of thing leaves lifelong scars. Ask Alanis Morrissette, who regrets being tossed around, as a willing 12 year old, between groups of predatory men even though she was willing at the time. Of course, you can find studies. It's because the society is outraged at correct science and tries to ban controversial research such as Rind's study. So any researcher demonstrating that sex with children is not as horrible as anyone believes is going to have almost as much respect as Polansky. That doesn't change the reality - there are many cases, where there is no trauma. There is extremely strong correlation between coercion and trauma. If the child is not forced, but is allowed to do what he/she is comfortable with, there is usually no trauma. This is reality, this is a fact, no matter how much you may dislike it.
Murder isn't always bad, either, but we've a law against it for a damn good reason. Same as for laws that protect children. Are you really incapable of thinking rationally or does it just look that way? Murder is always bad, that's why we have a law against it. There can be extenuating circumstances, but it doesn't change the fact that murder is bad. Furthermore, the whole point that you seem to be unable to comprehend is that the existence of laws against something doesn't make it always bad. Sex with children is one such case. I am not arguing that it's legal, because it's usually not, I am arguing that it's not bad. If you can't understand what we are talking about and insist on something totally obvious and unrelelated, you are clearly stupid.
Physically ready != emotionally ready Thank you, Captain Obvious. But they are emotionally ready too. The fact that they do have sex proves that they are ready. Except, of course, by your own definition of ready, which means someone isn'
Don't quote the Japanese at me. As a culture it's sick.
Hayao Miyazaki makes some of the most family friendly and most touching films. His Spirited Away was awarded Oscar for Best Animated Film. It's not Japanese culture that is sick, it's American. A sick mixture of sexual innuendo and sexual inhibitions. Britney Spears is OK, salivating for Olsen twins is just fine, but panty shots of girls are sick. Psychiatrists have a name for it - it's "schizophrenia".
There's something wrong with anyone trying to take children and put them into adult situations. I agree with you here. But what if a child is willing to get into that situation himself. Look, sex between children is normal. Normal, mentally and physically healthy kids can have sex as early as at 12-15 years. This is a fact of life, they do fuck that early. Boys and girls, sometimes boys and boys as well as girls and girls. And they have group sex too, you know. This is reality. Good, old-fashioned, physical reality, not just some pedophilic wet dreams. I am not saying that all kids do it, I am not saying it is always beneficial, what I am saying is that this is happening and apparently it's no big deal.
So what if some kid wants to have sex with a consenting adult? How is the sex different? All the arguments that you can state against it apply equally well in the situation of sex between children. And we have already established that it is ok, fine, legal and acceptable, even if not very good.
sex is an adult thing - not a game
Why is that? Because you say so? Kids can have sex just fine and they do. And for many of them it's a game. And usually there are no bad consequences. In most cases there is no pregnancy, in most cases there are no STDs. In most cases there is no lifelong trauma.
Only in prison, maybe. If it's against your will. You might want to read up on the subject. Yes, it is possible to have consensual sex with men, even if you are not gay. You can be bisexual or even straight.
So, so you're saying in ten years if you get your way the idea of a forty year old with a twelve year old will be just another lifestyle choice?
No, I am not. It won't happen very soon, because some western societies are so preoccupied with pedophiles. That doesn't change the fact that sex with children is not always bad.
But kids are not physically or emotionally ready for this kind of thing, and they certainly aren't economically ready for some of the lifelong repercussions of their actions. This is a logical fallacy. In fact, several fallacies.
First, kids are ready for sex in the sense that they are having sex all the time. Second, readiness is not a prerequisite. Some adults are not emotionally or economically ready for sex and its repercussions, but they are still allowed to have it. Third, the repercussions do not necessarily have to follow. If you use a condom or another contraceptive option, you can avoid pregnancy and I don't know what else you need to be economically ready for. Conclusion - you argument is thrice false.
In certain groups I travel in, you would not have been able to finish that sentence. I choose not to travel in such groups. I very much like the environment I am (and was) in and I do not intend to radically change it. I am aware that there are a lot of people and groups that I wouldn't like (or would outright hate), but I am confident in my ability to generally avoid them. And when I can't, I will take heed of what I am saying, thanks for the advice again.
And many groups of people will hurt you or worse for making those kinds of statements. Because this isn't some intellectual game or some airy conjectures about life - this is people's lives. No, not because of this. But because they are simple-minded illiterate morons, who are programmed a certain way and don't have a functional brain in their head. But as I said, I don't find the company of such people intellectually or emotionally stimulating, so I let them stay in their ghettos or wherever they usually hang.
2008 - Widespread use of systems which facilitate multimedia communication from anywhere in the world using pocketbook-size portable terminals.
2009 - Realization of an environment in which the unlimited utilization of high-capacity networks (150 Mbps) for around 2,000 yen/month or less is possible.
2012 - Practical use of card-size wireless communication instruments capable of changing specifications, such as center frequencies, band width, modulation method, and error correction method, by software operations.
2013 - Widespread use of a portable multimedia wireless terminal operating at about 100 Mbps which can be used throughout the world.
2014 - Widespread use of 10 Gbps optical subscriber systems in homes.
2016 - Practical use of optical communication systems capable of transmitting signals through multiplexed 1,000 channels at 100 Gbps over a single optical fiber.
Now, were you saying that the analog TV stations will be turned off in 2025? Sure about that?
Most seeing is done BETWEEN the eye and the brain, in the visual cortex (which is usually considered a part of the brain). Of course, when we are talking about engineered cat's eyes (natural ones will keep falling out of human eye sockets), this is a moot point, since we can engineer them to see diagonals.
Slashdot Mirror
That's the whole point. :) There can't really be many different general purpose devices in the long-term.
The PC combines a typing machine, a Minitel-like device, a digital e-mail device, a book reading device, a digital photo-album, an IP-phone, a teleconferencing device, a video playing machine, a music player, a gaming console, a VR simulator, etc., etc., etc.
Asking someone to name a general-purpose electronics device aside from the PC is cheating. There can be only one!
PDAs - devices like the Palm Pilot - are no longer relevent to the market.
Doesn't mean PDAs died. Yes, there is almost no growth and may be even decline (depending on whether you classify things like Treo as PDAs with phone capability or smartphones). Yes, in terms of market share they are being supplanted by phones. But the form factor still has some benefits and it's likely that PDAs will continue to sell. I am currently thinking about getting a Tablet PC or a Palm, but I definitely won't be content with a smartphone (with the possible exception of Treo). I want a bigger screen and a thin light device, while I don't need a good phone at all. That's why I want to get a PDA (to replace my trusty old Palm IIIxe), not a phone with calendar.
I think that anything that the US government may say about human rights issues should at least be taken with a grain of salt, but preferably just dismissed as imperialist propaganda. I'm serious. I was born in Soviet Union and I live in Russia now. If we sit together for a day, I can show you with figures, facts, references and cross-references how what the US was telling about the Soviet Union was disingenuous lies and distortions.
Soviet Union was a very different country from what you may be accustomed in the US. Contrary to what most Americans believe, in many regards it was a country of free and happy people. Sadly, no matter what I say, it's probably not enough to have any effect on someone who was told for decades that communism is evil. But the truth is that life under socialism is better than you can expect under comparable conditions (i.e. don't compare Cuba and Norway) with capitalism. The majority of people in Russia today think positively about Soviet Union. Less than 20% think that way about present Russia (according to two largest polling companies).
I am sure that life in Cuba is no picnic. And it's clearly worse than life in Florida. But I suspect that for the majority of Cubans it may be better than they can expect to have tomorrow if Fidel dies and Cuba is forced to move to capitalism. It's not a matter of capitalism vs. communism - it's first world (and exploitation of other countries) vs. third world (not having anyone to exploit).
What is worse - working in a factory in Cuba or working in a sweatshop in China or Vietnam (forced to work 80+ hours a week for 10-20 cents/hour)? US attacks on Cuba is nothing other than cold calculated lies.
You admit that Cuba may be better than many other countries, but then you buy wholesale into American lies that it should still not be tolerated. Why not if it works better than whatever system they have in Haiti? Because the government jails some people that work to illegally overthrow the social order? Do you think the US government would look kindly on people trying to install a communist regime in the US in close cooperation with a foreign power?
It worked in USSR rather well, despite being "incorrectly applied" and stuff. But people always find something to moan about. Can you believe that in 1980s about 40% of the Soviet people claimed that they didn't drink enough milk, despite per capita milk consumption being 50% higher than in the US?
Pussies. They believe the lies that once they get rid of communism, every one will live like they do in Holliwood movies. Guess what, after the national economy was "privatized" millions of people were instantly impoverished.
Communism actually does work, but there is too much opposition to the idea in the West for it to be tried soon. A random American pisses boiling water when you mention communism to him. Still, the more advanced our technologies become, the more promising socialist and communist models become. Open source is just one example.
And if not for communists, these nice buildings would still be occupied by nice friendly rich people. And all poor people would be somewhere away from them. Please don't say that Cuba had prosperity, it didn't. The only difference is that there was a class of plantation owners, fabricants and the like and now there isn't.
You don't need to guess. Go to Haiti, which is an hour flight from Cuba and is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere (without a communist "dictator" and a US embargo). Or visit some of the former USSR republics and look how they "prosper" without senile communist dictators.
Abandoning socialism for free market capitalism doesn't work by itself. On the contrary, it destroys economies and condemns millions of people to poverty. It's not a popular subject and is certainly not covered by the business media in depth, but if you check out statistics even for the relatively successul Easter European countries, you would be surprised to see the changes from the socialist times.
If the transition is accompanies with billions of dollars in investment, then the economy may grow fine, like it happened in, say, Estonia. But the negative impact of privatisation and destruction of welfare systems can be too much to compensate with that growth.
Any country is repressive. Does that mean that no countries should be tolerated? I mean, China is repressive, Israel is, India and Pakistan are, France and Italy are repressive too, Russia definitely is, so are Chile and Haiti. What do you have against Cuba in particular? Why single it out?
I wonder if it's illegal to fake fingerprints. Can I be punished for something if I glue such thing on my finger(s) and give that to, say, immigration guards in the US airport? Do they ensure that the fingerprints are not fake? Can they do anything to me? Not that I plan to go to the US when it's in such a sorry state, just curious.
Only 57 years left until the Tycho Uprising.
Seriously, it's amazing how low would those Indian engineers sink in order to get their mess of pottage. I guess, 65 years ago Rajit Gadh would probably be working in Germany for a system of tagging Jews with RFID tags.
Disgusting. I wonder why corporate whores like Katie Dean never ask these "researchers" if they are not ashamed to look in the mirror. The world makes me sick. Now please excuse me while I go read something by Richard Stallman and listen to Chomsky's lectures.
You should read between the lines. China will grow somewhat economically in the next five years. So it would make sense to claim that instead of not selling 5 dollars worth of software per capita BSA will be not selling 50 dollars worth of software per capita. By multiplying the amount of software not sold by population BSA arrives at the estimated losses from piracy.
President Merkin Muffley: But this is absolute madness, Ambassador! Why should you *build* such a thing?
Ambassador de Sadesky: There were those of us who fought against it, but in the end we could not keep up with the expense involved in the arms race, the space race, and the peace race. At the same time our people grumbled for more nylons and washing machines. Our doomsday scheme cost us just a small fraction of what we had been spending on defense in a single year. The deciding factor was when we learned that your country was working along similar lines, and we were afraid of a doomsday gap.
President Merkin Muffley: This is preposterous. I've never approved of anything like that.
Ambassador de Sadesky: Our source was the New York Times.
The Air Force believes "we must establish and maintain space superiority," Gen. Lance Lord, who leads the Air Force Space Command, told Congress recently.
"Mr. President, we must not allow a mine shaft gap!" (listen)
As usual, unjustified militarism to feed the military industrial complex. Paranoid fantasies, irrational aggression, these Pentagon people are just mentally sick, no better than General Jack D. Ripper.
"Space superiority is not our birthright, but it is our destiny," he told an Air Force conference in September. "Space superiority is our day-to-day mission. Space supremacy is our vision for the future."
"Uh, so let's get going, there's no other choice. God willing, we will prevail, in peace and freedom from fear, and in true health, through the purity and essence of our natural... fluids."
"RTFM!" was never more appropriate. Seriously, there is no good way to introduce all this advanced functionality to the user without the user playing an active role. I mean, Opera has a very good documentation, it has great tutorials. If you don't make the effort of at least checking all menu items, can you really blame the software? I mean, do you really want Opera to add an annoying "Tip of the day" alert or a Clippy lookalike that would go all "It looks like you...." every minute?
Look, as everyone keeps telling console lovers all the time, you should not by a PC if a console does everything you need. With a PC you pay for additional functionality, such as printing, support for hi-res displays, Internet browsing, support for custom peripherals, etc. If the next generation of consoles provides all that functionality, they will have no other choice but cost as much as a comparable PC. Sure, Sony buys the components for PS3 wholesale, but so does Dell.
But seriously, where did you get the idea that PCs were upgradeable anymore?
I don't know. It just seems to me that way. Sure, the case/mobo/cpu combo may need to be changed from time to time, but you can reuse everything else. Can you reuse anything from a console?
The solution is simple - start with low resolution. That way you don't need expensive hardware and can start working on the code right away. Then, in 1 year you may have a functioning system and there will probably be some cameras that you could use.
My system struggles with realtime playback of the full-bitrate HD MPEG.
Check your setup. I have a 1.6GHz P4 and it plays HD MPEG4 (DivX, WMV, MOV) in 720p without any problems (Win 2k). MPEG2 should certainly not be a problem.
A PC by any other name would smell just as sweet. If you put everything you want from a PC into a console, it's going to cost as much as a new PC and would essentially be a non-upgradable, non-customizable PC in a pretty box. What's so great about that?
By the "wanna sniff little girl panties" Japanese.
Wrong, by moviegoers all over the world and by MPAA rating commissions.
By geek loser white guys who are into animated kiddie porn
Wrong, by members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Or, which is more likely - that the rating system is screwed up.
Wrong.. I guess all the same it's because the majority of people do no consider panty shots of little girls a horrible abomination.
So the deliberate drugging rape and sodomy of a little girl is a "mistake"?
Do you think it wasn't? And Polansky wasn't charged with drugging rape or sodiomy, only with "statutory rape" (which isn't really rape), actually, because the mother of a little girl asked to drop the charges. The girl's little son actually thinks that "it's "cool" that mom's been on TV" and the girl doesn't feel angry or hateful and thinks Polansky "is a really good director".
And for starters, I'm saying the 12-15yr olds shouldn't be having sex - not that that makes it right for you to go in and exploit that and them for your own selfish pleasure.
This is not up to you, so STFU. They do have sex, they will have sex and the society thinks it's ok. So shut up about that, would you?
You wiggled out of that one. Just because someone wants to do something or is doing something doesn't make it right.
First, it's not for you to decide. Second, something not being right doesn't mean it should be a crime. Being a moron on Slashdot is not right, but I am not trying to charge you with that in the court.
According to your argument it wasn't wrong to give little 9 year old Drew Barrymore drugs cause she wanted them and she was already doing them.
You are a moron, sorry. You wouldn't know logic if it bit you in the ass. Don't try to draw analogies, they are too complex for your simple mind. Answering the correct question - in the hypothetical situation where it was legal for Drew to possess and use drugs, where it was legal for adults to distribute drugs, it would be ok for an adult to give drugs to Drew.
Exemptions and exceptions in the law are made for age-appropriate behaviour. That does not mean that it is OK nor should those laws be expanded to let YOU in.
Are you an idiot? I wasn't talking about that. Try to read my posts at least 4-5 times, you don't seem to get it on the first reading.
I think you'll find most people think 12 is too young to be fooling around. The wackos want their kids locked up til marraige. The normal people expect some kind of peer experimentation. Sickos like you want anyone to have a fair crack at em.
You don't make any sense.
Well, mate - that's what the law says now - and I didn't write the laws. Society did. You're the one trying to change em for your own selfish purposes.
Are you stupid or what? I was saying that it's legal for kids to have sex and it is. RTFL.
Yes there absolutely is. No question.
Well, since I am questioning it, there IS a question. And you haven't yet explained what difference there is. I guess it's because you are a moron and can't realise that you are not making any sense. Whoever programmed your little brain did a decent job at deleting any capabilities for logical reasoning that you might have had at some point.
Heck, there are serious emotional and psychological differences between the 15 year old and the 18 year old, never mind the 15 year old and the 25 year old.
As well as between the 18 year old and the 60 year old. And your point is?
This would be the "objective" group of researchers that included a kiddy diddler in their midst? Rind's study has been debunked. One of its major "findings" was asserted with no corroborating data, the notion of "consent" was mishandled - that study has been debunked on its own failings not hysteria.
Oh, really? Wasn't it Congress that did the debunking with it's damnation declar
Nice appeal to emotion you have there. Can't be rational? Stay out of the discussion.
Even though it would be extremely beneficial for all, large scale co-operation with NASA or ESA is out of the question. It requires the "go" from the government and some $$$, but this isn't a priority for the Russian government. They simply don't care about science, spending about 1% of the GDP (as opposed to 2-3% most countries spend and 4% that USSR spent). The number of scientists in Russia more than halved in the past 10 years. Sadly, you can't expect to get much from the Russian space industry. :-(
So what? He's still a voyeuristic pederast like many of his contemporaries. Walt Disney made some nice films but it didn't change the fact that he was a virulent anti-Semite.
The difference is that Miyazaki's films are considered great films for children and the whole family. They are usually highly acclaimed and rated G in the US, meaning that the majority of people do no consider panty shots of little girls (at least in animation) a horrible abomination. You are in the minority.
Would this be the same Hollywood that supports Roman "drugged and raped a little girl" Polanski?
First, I'd say that the good of his films overweights one mistake. Second, what the society and the media did to Geimer was much worse than what Polanski did.
That doesn't make it right to exploit that for selfish purposes or to get kids involved in stuff they have no business in either. My three year old son would really like to ride my Harley Davidson. He's not old enough to yet, not legally and he doesn't have the balance to stay on, never mind the neck strength to keep from being killed or worse in an accident. So like a mature adult, I say NO.
Logical fallacy again. We are not talking about 3-year old kids riding HDs. We are talking about 12-15 kids, who already have sex with each other, having sex with an adult. They are already "invoved in stuff". What you are saying doesn't make any sense.
No, it is a big deal. What people do vs what they should do are two different things.
Who are you to decide? Children have sex, it's legal and it's accepted by the society (except by the same wackos who oppose gay marriage too). So it's not a big deal (you don't get to decide what is and what isn't a big deal - society does).
No, I said age appropriate - not acceptable or good. It's one thing to be 15 and with someone of the same age group. It's another to be 29 trolling for 14 year olds.
Logical fallacy again. I was talking about how there is no significant difference for the kid to sleep with another 15 year old or with a 25 year old.
You naive fool. I will find the studies and present them to you. But suffice it to say this sort of thing leaves lifelong scars. Ask Alanis Morrissette, who regrets being tossed around, as a willing 12 year old, between groups of predatory men even though she was willing at the time.
Of course, you can find studies. It's because the society is outraged at correct science and tries to ban controversial research such as Rind's study. So any researcher demonstrating that sex with children is not as horrible as anyone believes is going to have almost as much respect as Polansky. That doesn't change the reality - there are many cases, where there is no trauma. There is extremely strong correlation between coercion and trauma. If the child is not forced, but is allowed to do what he/she is comfortable with, there is usually no trauma. This is reality, this is a fact, no matter how much you may dislike it.
Murder isn't always bad, either, but we've a law against it for a damn good reason. Same as for laws that protect children.
Are you really incapable of thinking rationally or does it just look that way? Murder is always bad, that's why we have a law against it. There can be extenuating circumstances, but it doesn't change the fact that murder is bad. Furthermore, the whole point that you seem to be unable to comprehend is that the existence of laws against something doesn't make it always bad. Sex with children is one such case. I am not arguing that it's legal, because it's usually not, I am arguing that it's not bad. If you can't understand what we are talking about and insist on something totally obvious and unrelelated, you are clearly stupid.
Physically ready != emotionally ready
Thank you, Captain Obvious. But they are emotionally ready too. The fact that they do have sex proves that they are ready. Except, of course, by your own definition of ready, which means someone isn'
Don't quote the Japanese at me. As a culture it's sick.
Hayao Miyazaki makes some of the most family friendly and most touching films. His Spirited Away was awarded Oscar for Best Animated Film. It's not Japanese culture that is sick, it's American. A sick mixture of sexual innuendo and sexual inhibitions. Britney Spears is OK, salivating for Olsen twins is just fine, but panty shots of girls are sick. Psychiatrists have a name for it - it's "schizophrenia".
There's something wrong with anyone trying to take children and put them into adult situations.
I agree with you here. But what if a child is willing to get into that situation himself. Look, sex between children is normal. Normal, mentally and physically healthy kids can have sex as early as at 12-15 years. This is a fact of life, they do fuck that early. Boys and girls, sometimes boys and boys as well as girls and girls. And they have group sex too, you know. This is reality. Good, old-fashioned, physical reality, not just some pedophilic wet dreams. I am not saying that all kids do it, I am not saying it is always beneficial, what I am saying is that this is happening and apparently it's no big deal.
So what if some kid wants to have sex with a consenting adult? How is the sex different? All the arguments that you can state against it apply equally well in the situation of sex between children. And we have already established that it is ok, fine, legal and acceptable, even if not very good.
sex is an adult thing - not a game
Why is that? Because you say so? Kids can have sex just fine and they do. And for many of them it's a game. And usually there are no bad consequences. In most cases there is no pregnancy, in most cases there are no STDs. In most cases there is no lifelong trauma.
Only in prison, maybe. If it's against your will.
You might want to read up on the subject. Yes, it is possible to have consensual sex with men, even if you are not gay. You can be bisexual or even straight.
So, so you're saying in ten years if you get your way the idea of a forty year old with a twelve year old will be just another lifestyle choice?
No, I am not. It won't happen very soon, because some western societies are so preoccupied with pedophiles. That doesn't change the fact that sex with children is not always bad.
But kids are not physically or emotionally ready for this kind of thing, and they certainly aren't economically ready for some of the lifelong repercussions of their actions.
This is a logical fallacy. In fact, several fallacies.
First, kids are ready for sex in the sense that they are having sex all the time. Second, readiness is not a prerequisite. Some adults are not emotionally or economically ready for sex and its repercussions, but they are still allowed to have it. Third, the repercussions do not necessarily have to follow. If you use a condom or another contraceptive option, you can avoid pregnancy and I don't know what else you need to be economically ready for. Conclusion - you argument is thrice false.
In certain groups I travel in, you would not have been able to finish that sentence.
I choose not to travel in such groups. I very much like the environment I am (and was) in and I do not intend to radically change it. I am aware that there are a lot of people and groups that I wouldn't like (or would outright hate), but I am confident in my ability to generally avoid them. And when I can't, I will take heed of what I am saying, thanks for the advice again.
And many groups of people will hurt you or worse for making those kinds of statements. Because this isn't some intellectual game or some airy conjectures about life - this is people's lives.
No, not because of this. But because they are simple-minded illiterate morons, who are programmed a certain way and don't have a functional brain in their head. But as I said, I don't find the company of such people intellectually or emotionally stimulating, so I let them stay in their ghettos or wherever they usually hang.
From Japan's NISTEP report (2001).
- 2008 - Widespread use of systems which facilitate
- 2009 - Realization of an environment in which the unlimited utilization of high-capacity networks (150 Mbps) for around 2,000 yen/month or less is possible.
- 2012 - Practical use of card-size wireless communication
- 2013 - Widespread use of a portable multimedia wireless
- 2014 - Widespread use of 10 Gbps optical subscriber
- 2016 - Practical use of optical communication systems
Now, were you saying that the analog TV stations will be turned off in 2025? Sure about that?multimedia communication from anywhere in the
world using pocketbook-size portable terminals.
instruments capable of changing specifications, such
as center frequencies, band width, modulation
method, and error correction method, by software
operations.
terminal operating at about 100 Mbps which can be used throughout the world.
systems in homes.
capable of transmitting signals through multiplexed
1,000 channels at 100 Gbps over a single optical
fiber.
Most seeing is done BETWEEN the eye and the brain, in the visual cortex (which is usually considered a part of the brain). Of course, when we are talking about engineered cat's eyes (natural ones will keep falling out of human eye sockets), this is a moot point, since we can engineer them to see diagonals.