You have the option of not buying an iPhone. You have the option of not developing applications for the iPhone. If you work for a company that develops applications for the iPhone, you have the option of leaving that company.
These are options that the slaves on the plantations simply didn't have.
I guess you should feel lucky that you equate the iPhone development model with slavery. It shows that you're lucky enough to never have experienced the real thing.
I think 'mass exodus' was maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but there have been instances of developers moving in that direction:
Already, Cool O' Meter developer Tseng and Exposure developer Fraser Speirs have sworn off iPhone development. And Williams told us, "I downloaded the Android SDK. I'm not sure I will do anything on the platform, but Apple's actions over the past few months has made me actually think about it. Six months ago, I couldn't have imagined that."
You only have a good degree of legal recourse if you use a credit card. Use a debit card, as many people do, and any recourse you have is basically at the discretion of your bank.
It's all about choosing the right tool for the job. If you're concerned about card fraud then you put up with the extra fuss required to get a credit card.
Likewise, if you're concerned about things like your email provider disappearing, then you're going to choose a provider that will link to your existing domain name, and that will let you make backups of your existing data.
But just because one particular 'cloud' service doesn't meet your needs doesn't mean that none of them do, and just because you need that certain level of security doesn't mean everybody does.
If I worked in marketing and was given a netbook to sell, I'd probably target non-laptop users - people who don't own a computer at all right up to those who have a modern desktop at home, but no mobile solution for casual web browsing and email. People who don't have a real need (or the budget) for a smartphone, but would quite like something that they could carry around the house with them rather than being tied to a desk.
I think trying to market it as an out-and-about internet and email solution is a non-starter. You'd be better off with an iPod Touch.
I would make a joke about how this accidental release won't actually happen until tomorrow, but if there's anywhere that a story won't be put out early, it's Slashdot.
Plus, if the Fascists take over then it will take them a whole week to print and issue "papers".
A week? Don't say that, it makes them sound so efficient that people might actually consider them a more credible government than the one we have at present!
A large part of the problem is the decentralised nature of government data. One department may know something, another department may know something else. You end up with the need to transfer data between departments, and that's when accidents happen.
The solution to this could be a more centralised system, and that's what the government should be marketing the ID database as. It would seem foolish to complain about the government's record on data storage and then oppose the solution (not that that would stop anybody I suppose).
Off-topic, I know, but I'd never seen this before, and I found it quite funny.
Trademarks are not verbs.
CORRECT: The image was enhanced using Adobe® Photoshop® software.
INCORRECT: The image was photoshopped.
Trademarks are not verbs, therefore verbs are not trademarks, therefore 'photoshopped' is not a trademark, and can therefore be used freely. Or am I applying logic where none applies? (Yes, I know, trademark law probably covers stuff like this.)
The purpose of patents is to ensure that inventions are published, and not lost simply because the inventor disappeared, failed to publish or actively kept it a secret. To give inventors an incentive to publish, they are granted a limited period of monopoly on that invention, in order to profit from it.
That period is 20 years, not the 8000 years you seem to think it is.
I agree that 20 years is far, far too long a period for software patents, and possibly for other fields as well. And I think that patents in general are overly liberally granted (especially by the USPTO, less so elsewhere in the world). But I believe that this is an indictment of the current patent system, not the concept of patents.
It also really bugs me that they haven't used a standard headphone jack. I know this is not a problem unique to this handset, but it annoys the hell out of me that manufacturers can't just use the standard jack size. I don't want multiple different headphones, one for each device, I want one set which I can use with all of them.
With a lot of phones where physical size is a constraint, a standard 3.5 mm jack is just too big to fit into the phone. It's not just the size of the jack itself, it's the need for a separate charging and docking port. With a custom connector, you can fit all of these into one port that is smaller than the standard jack. If music is a secondary feature on your handset, this might make sense.
Sony Ericsson's approach with its Walkman range of phones is relatively sensible (notwithstanding the fact that the custom connector they use is really awful). An in-line remote is provided, which connects to the phone via the custom connector and provides a 3.5 mm jack to plug your headphones in.
I can understand why some people might not like it (one extra thing to carry around, extends the cable too far, etc.), but for me it's a no-brainer, especially on touch-screen phones where the alternative is to take the thing out of your pocket to skip a track. I'm actually really disappointed that the iPhone doesn't come with something like this (unless you're willing to use the supplied headphones).
I'm getting all nostalgic about my old minidisc player now...
Nobody's forcing you to re-buy anything, your DVD player won't self-destruct in a fit of jealousy once a BR player is sitting next to it. Not to mention that any BR player worth its salt will play DVDs as well.
HDCP is, of course, another matter... although I'd contend that owning an HDTV without it places you firmly in 'early adopter' territory.
Those copyright notices annoy me, because the only time you see them is when you're watching a legitimately-bought/rented copy.
The Mac OS X DVD player has a nice feature though, that lets you return to your previous position on the disc when you insert it (a bit like inserting a VHS tape - minidiscs had a similar system, to replicate the functionality of cassettes). It also has the (unintended?) effect of skipping all the copyright notices.
Of course, it gives you the option when you insert the disc to start from the start... I'm very careful to never select that option even if I'm watching from the beginning. It's far quicker to jump to my previous position and then use the menus to rewind to the start.
I know that it's possible in XP because I checked before posting. Unlock the taskbar, and drag the toolbars around the screen. It's not quite as flexible as in Ubuntu, as the start button, clock, notification area and application 'tabs' all have to be on the same bar. But stuff like quick launch, search field... basically anything in the 'Toolbars' menu can be dragged to different parts of the screen.
I think you've been able to do that since 98, as that was when the quick launch bar was introduced. If I'm wrong, then I stand corrected:)
How often is a driving licence required in daily American life? Here in the UK, we don't have to carry it when driving; if pulled over we just have to present it at a police station within 5 days.
An RFID chip isn't much good to anybody if it's sitting in a safe at home.
Just what we need, more grossly underpowered "eco" fad cars that are unable to accelerate to highway speeds causing bottlenecks and traffic jams.
This wouldn't matter if people in more powerful cars would actually use slip-roads properly. It frustrates me to no end, in my little 1.1 petrol Citroen, when the BMW in front of me does 40 down the slip-road, joins the motorway, and then accelerates up the uphill climb while I'm forced to thrash the gearbox.
This is all despite the fact that my car is perfectly capable of reaching 60 on the slip-road (the speed that the inside-lane traffic, mainly lorries, is going to be doing).
Shit, I'm going to need to translate this.
Slip-road -> on-ramp,
Petrol -> gasoline,
Motorway -> divided highway?,
Inside-lane -> outside lane,
Lorry -> truck.
Admittedly the first thing I thought of when I saw the headline was, would the average American fit in a Fiesta? The only redeeming feature of the film Loch Ness was the scene where Ted Danson tries to squeeze himself into one of the 80s/early 90s models (which admittedly were a lot smaller than the current models).
Slashdot Mirror
You have the option of not buying an iPhone. You have the option of not developing applications for the iPhone. If you work for a company that develops applications for the iPhone, you have the option of leaving that company.
These are options that the slaves on the plantations simply didn't have.
I guess you should feel lucky that you equate the iPhone development model with slavery. It shows that you're lucky enough to never have experienced the real thing.
I think 'mass exodus' was maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but there have been instances of developers moving in that direction:
You only have a good degree of legal recourse if you use a credit card. Use a debit card, as many people do, and any recourse you have is basically at the discretion of your bank.
It's all about choosing the right tool for the job. If you're concerned about card fraud then you put up with the extra fuss required to get a credit card.
Likewise, if you're concerned about things like your email provider disappearing, then you're going to choose a provider that will link to your existing domain name, and that will let you make backups of your existing data.
But just because one particular 'cloud' service doesn't meet your needs doesn't mean that none of them do, and just because you need that certain level of security doesn't mean everybody does.
You could touch-type on it, if you had really small hands.
(A comment that could be made about most netbooks, incidentally.)
I can't comment on the E61i, but the E61's keyboard is really horrible to type on. The E71's keyboard is a massive improvement.
If I worked in marketing and was given a netbook to sell, I'd probably target non-laptop users - people who don't own a computer at all right up to those who have a modern desktop at home, but no mobile solution for casual web browsing and email. People who don't have a real need (or the budget) for a smartphone, but would quite like something that they could carry around the house with them rather than being tied to a desk.
I think trying to market it as an out-and-about internet and email solution is a non-starter. You'd be better off with an iPod Touch.
I would make a joke about how this accidental release won't actually happen until tomorrow, but if there's anywhere that a story won't be put out early, it's Slashdot.
A week? Don't say that, it makes them sound so efficient that people might actually consider them a more credible government than the one we have at present!
A large part of the problem is the decentralised nature of government data. One department may know something, another department may know something else. You end up with the need to transfer data between departments, and that's when accidents happen.
The solution to this could be a more centralised system, and that's what the government should be marketing the ID database as. It would seem foolish to complain about the government's record on data storage and then oppose the solution (not that that would stop anybody I suppose).
Off-topic, I know, but I'd never seen this before, and I found it quite funny.
Trademarks are not verbs, therefore verbs are not trademarks, therefore 'photoshopped' is not a trademark, and can therefore be used freely. Or am I applying logic where none applies? (Yes, I know, trademark law probably covers stuff like this.)
You completely miss the point of patents.
The purpose of patents is to ensure that inventions are published, and not lost simply because the inventor disappeared, failed to publish or actively kept it a secret. To give inventors an incentive to publish, they are granted a limited period of monopoly on that invention, in order to profit from it.
That period is 20 years, not the 8000 years you seem to think it is.
I agree that 20 years is far, far too long a period for software patents, and possibly for other fields as well. And I think that patents in general are overly liberally granted (especially by the USPTO, less so elsewhere in the world). But I believe that this is an indictment of the current patent system, not the concept of patents.
This is a bit like criticising Windows XP based on an article about Windows 95, isn't it?
No, you can't. TruPhone is available though.
With a lot of phones where physical size is a constraint, a standard 3.5 mm jack is just too big to fit into the phone. It's not just the size of the jack itself, it's the need for a separate charging and docking port. With a custom connector, you can fit all of these into one port that is smaller than the standard jack. If music is a secondary feature on your handset, this might make sense.
Sony Ericsson's approach with its Walkman range of phones is relatively sensible (notwithstanding the fact that the custom connector they use is really awful). An in-line remote is provided, which connects to the phone via the custom connector and provides a 3.5 mm jack to plug your headphones in.
I can understand why some people might not like it (one extra thing to carry around, extends the cable too far, etc.), but for me it's a no-brainer, especially on touch-screen phones where the alternative is to take the thing out of your pocket to skip a track. I'm actually really disappointed that the iPhone doesn't come with something like this (unless you're willing to use the supplied headphones).
I'm getting all nostalgic about my old minidisc player now...
I agree. I also think that 160kb/s MP3s are just fine, but a whole lot of people will insist on nothing less than 'lossless'.
Unless you're using a laser turntable...
Nobody's forcing you to re-buy anything, your DVD player won't self-destruct in a fit of jealousy once a BR player is sitting next to it. Not to mention that any BR player worth its salt will play DVDs as well.
HDCP is, of course, another matter... although I'd contend that owning an HDTV without it places you firmly in 'early adopter' territory.
Those copyright notices annoy me, because the only time you see them is when you're watching a legitimately-bought/rented copy.
The Mac OS X DVD player has a nice feature though, that lets you return to your previous position on the disc when you insert it (a bit like inserting a VHS tape - minidiscs had a similar system, to replicate the functionality of cassettes). It also has the (unintended?) effect of skipping all the copyright notices.
Of course, it gives you the option when you insert the disc to start from the start... I'm very careful to never select that option even if I'm watching from the beginning. It's far quicker to jump to my previous position and then use the menus to rewind to the start.
I know that it's possible in XP because I checked before posting. Unlock the taskbar, and drag the toolbars around the screen. It's not quite as flexible as in Ubuntu, as the start button, clock, notification area and application 'tabs' all have to be on the same bar. But stuff like quick launch, search field... basically anything in the 'Toolbars' menu can be dragged to different parts of the screen.
I think you've been able to do that since 98, as that was when the quick launch bar was introduced. If I'm wrong, then I stand corrected :)
I realise you're taking the piss, but...
Not new to Windows. I'm pretty sure you've been able to do this since Windows 98.
Thanks... having learned my multiplication tables by rote in primary school, I was wondering what 'forty five of population' meant...
Oh, and the author needs a battering for talking about sentence parsing in a sentence with a missing definitive article.
How often is a driving licence required in daily American life? Here in the UK, we don't have to carry it when driving; if pulled over we just have to present it at a police station within 5 days.
An RFID chip isn't much good to anybody if it's sitting in a safe at home.
We're squabbling about which Greek-derived term to use, based on the language we're currently using?
It's true what they say about arguing on the internet, apparently.
If you want to accelerate, why not change down a gear?
This wouldn't matter if people in more powerful cars would actually use slip-roads properly. It frustrates me to no end, in my little 1.1 petrol Citroen, when the BMW in front of me does 40 down the slip-road, joins the motorway, and then accelerates up the uphill climb while I'm forced to thrash the gearbox.
This is all despite the fact that my car is perfectly capable of reaching 60 on the slip-road (the speed that the inside-lane traffic, mainly lorries, is going to be doing).
Shit, I'm going to need to translate this.
Slip-road -> on-ramp,
Petrol -> gasoline,
Motorway -> divided highway?,
Inside-lane -> outside lane,
Lorry -> truck.
Admittedly the first thing I thought of when I saw the headline was, would the average American fit in a Fiesta? The only redeeming feature of the film Loch Ness was the scene where Ted Danson tries to squeeze himself into one of the 80s/early 90s models (which admittedly were a lot smaller than the current models).