I've seen some info about servers being transported to the US for the prosecution, which means those, at least, weren't in the US to begin with. But I didn't immediately find any info if some were already operating here.
Is this surprising? That different people have different needs? If you don't order that often, it's a net loss.
I tried prime a while back when it cost even less, and it wasn't worth it for me. Their streaming content was mostly available elsewhere, and their interface was much worse than others, while constantly trying to shove additional-cost content in my face.
Tracking isn't inherently bad. It's a question of value and disclosure.
For example, a 5% discount and tracking all my purchases? No thanks. But $10/month all you can watch? For someone who likes to see a lot of movies, this might well be a good trade.
As for myself, having to make the purchase at the theater is a deal-breaker. Having experienced the convenience of reserving seats ahead of time, I don't think I'll ever go back to the old way.
To use a specific example, the problem is ISPs partnering with Nextflix to slow down competitors to Netflix. That's pretty overt, but it could also be something like the ISP offering a package where Netflix doesn't count towards your data cap, but Netflix competitors do count towards that cap. Different technique, similar results.
Now multiply by every other company that relies on the internet to reach customers, and you have a way for entrenched business to artificially limit competition and stifle innovation.
ISPs shouldn't get to meddle with the free market's of other industries/services/content.
It's not clear to me why anyone thinks ISPs exist in a healthy free market. (I'm not even sure it's possible, for that matter.)
Furthermore, it's not clear to me why anyone thinks it's a good idea to allow ISPs to meddle with EVERY OTHER ACTUALLY FUNCTIONING free market that already exists on the internet.
If you want to protect free markets, we should prevent ISPs from picking winners and losers, no? Don't we want the market to do that?
In hindsight, I've noticed this myself, but never really gave it much thought.
It also explains an annoyance I've found in games.
Over the years, game have increasingly added more and more navigation features to lead you to your goal. And it seems the more "hand-holdy" they become, the less I can remember where I'm at, where I'm going, how to get there, or what the overall area layout is like. And if I'm not alone here, player's then rely more on the waypoins, etc. And this in turn, seems to cause developers to become ever more helpful with navigation aids. And so on.
I've always attributed this to some kind of fundamental difference between real and virtual worlds. As I'm always thinking about how I'm never this lost in real life, how can I be so turned around in the game? So this make perfect sense.
Additionally, I wonder if this explains the difference between rotating and static minimaps. The rotating maps give me a better indication of how to get to a specific spot, but lead me to have zero understanding of the area. Whereas static maps let me understand the area, and I've apparently learned how to use them to get to a specific spot. (Though this might also be influenced by my upbringing in a time before smartphone maps.)
So I find it interesting that the very things to help you navigate might make you worse at it. Which is also why the minimap is so crucial to getting a feel for, and understanding the area. For me, it seems to counter-act the disorienting effect of over-reliance of navigation aids. So when developers decide that they don't want to have a minimap for reasons, yet still include all the hand-holding, I now understand why this is the worst-case for actually understanding the area.
It seems the solution would be then, if you're against minimaps and want to encourage more natural exploration, you should also remove most of the navigation aids as well. Anything more than perhaps a compass, and a maybe a goal direction on that compass, will actually make players more lost, and have less of an understanding of the world you've created.
Well, as menu price increases, you're theoretically getting a higher level of service and food/drink expertise. This isn't always the case, but I'm not expecting the Olive Garden server to have detailed knowledge of the food and preparation. Whereas, if I'm at a world class establishment on Las Vegas strip, I would expect the server to be able suggest the perfect wine, and have detailed knowledge of the menu, and be able to customize an experience tailored to individual guests.
Not everyone, wants or uses this level of service, but that's what you are paying for.
Additionally, as menu price goes up, you're going to see a higher percentage of those tips being paid out to assistants, bussers, bartenders, etc. I've see places where the server ends up with only 65% of their tips after they've "tipped out" to others. This is normal.
Service industry jobs and environment vary vastly, but typically, there are a couple good days to work, and the rest range from meh to awful. But the thing is, you probably have to work a few bad days with the good days, so your average drops quite a bit.
That said, some servers are at poverty level earnings, and some are $100K+. It varies quite a bit. Typically, higher menu prices mean more for the server (despite less tables and a higher percentage of tips they pay out to assistants) but state laws and unions have a big effect on earnings too.
Have you used phone navigation recently? Google not only tells me which side the lane is on, but will tell me which turn lane to use, if it matters.
For example, if I'm turning left and there are 3 left turn lanes, but will immediately after need to turn right, or otherwise be in the right lane, it will tell me to "use the 3rd turn lane from the left" or something like that.
I completely agree.
If anything, I feel Netflix is under-priced. It has its faults, certainly, but for how I use it, it's a bargain.
I find it's organized well, and predicts pretty accurately if I'll like something I've never heard of.
I like a good portion of the original content. It's convenient, streams reliably, and easy to access from all my devices.
More importantly, it's add free, unlike hulu. And the user interface is still vastly superior to Amazon (Despite the fact I consider the newer look a downgrade - but it's not really a big deal.) Amazon is overly cluttered, and they can't seem to help themselves from inserting additional cost content along with stuff that's included with prime. Very annoying.
I wonder if there might be some differences when using another language.
I say this because I'm reminded of a question posed to me by a foreign colleague (at the time) who was writing documentation for software.
He wanted to convey that the user should look for a button on the left side of the screen, but he was questioning that the proper form might be to refer to it as the right side of the screen, since it was the screen's right.
His logic went something like this:
Which way are you facing? And which side is your right?
Which way is the screen facing? And which side is its right?
Ok, so to refer to that button, you would look to the right side of the screen.
And there was a certain logic to that view, despite that every single user would get confused by the instruction, as they would assume (rightly so) that the instructions were written from the user's frame of reference.
I don't find your linked stolen scenes to be a very convincing example.
The only similarity it bears is that there were 3 people walking through a formation of soldiers, which on its own seems to be a pretty generic event.
As to how that event was portrayed, the scenes could have hardy been more different...
The emotion was different, the camera work was different, the pacing was different, the overall event was different, the scope of the event was different, the arrangements were different, etc. The list goes on.
If there is a social contract that says I'm obligated to watch ads to support content. Then they have a social contract to not make the ads overly annoying.
I can live with 2-3 30 second spots in a show. Probably even 60 second spots if it means less frequent breaks.
Hulu has been pushing it lately.
It seems to vary between between shows. Some shows have two 30 sec spots per half hour, some have four. I once saw an hour program with 13 breaks. That's just too much.
Also, they have begun using those annoying pop-up ads superimposed over clips. The ones with the terribly small 'x' box to close it.
But the biggest problem is that I get the impression that they are selling themselves to studios on the premise that putting limited content will drive people to watch shows on TV. And that just seems backwards to me.
If content owners refuse to release whole, up to date seasons, and if hulu continues to add more and more adds, the whole effort is going to implode as they push people to illicit sites - sites that get better every day now.
I have seen this discussed before, and every time, aiming seems to be a big problem. Except it doesn't have to be, with the right set up.
That is, if you use mirrors that are mirrored on both sides, and have a hole in the middle.
See, then all you have to do is hold the mirror up to the sun in such a way that the mirror casts a shadow on your own body. Then, looking at your reflection in the back of the mirror, simply line up the the reflected hole in the shadow with the hole in the actual mirror, while you can see the target through the hole.
The mirror is then at the proper angle. Keep using the hole to aim, and keep the shadow lined up, and you can easily track the target.
I saw a diagram of the geometry on-line somewhere, but I can't seem to find it now. It would make it a little easier to understand, if you can't parse my description.
Sometimes though, you HAVE to take a class that your overqualified for.
I ended up in such a situation myself. I was required to take the class. I had no choice in the matter, and I had no opportunity to test out of it.
Never mind the fact that I had taught some of the material porfessionaly in the past. Also note that attendance was required. Miss two classes and you're already down a letter grade.
Do you know how fustrating it is to drag yourself to class at 8:00 in the morning to hear the professor (and dean of the department) call an.exe an 'executive'?
It took me a bit of watching, and I thought the snake hit the ground and scurried off the screen. But after further review, I believe the part where the snake looks like it radicaly changes direction, is NOT where it hits the ground. I think that's the point where the snake catches the the air and is actualy gliding.
It was more apparent in one of the later videos where the camera followed it.
Slashdot Mirror
DID MegaUpload host data in the US though?
I've seen some info about servers being transported to the US for the prosecution, which means those, at least, weren't in the US to begin with. But I didn't immediately find any info if some were already operating here.
There's no reason he can't be flirting with multiple women at once in a single 10 min block.
Is this surprising? That different people have different needs? If you don't order that often, it's a net loss.
I tried prime a while back when it cost even less, and it wasn't worth it for me. Their streaming content was mostly available elsewhere, and their interface was much worse than others, while constantly trying to shove additional-cost content in my face.
Tracking isn't inherently bad. It's a question of value and disclosure.
For example, a 5% discount and tracking all my purchases? No thanks.
But $10/month all you can watch? For someone who likes to see a lot of movies, this might well be a good trade.
As for myself, having to make the purchase at the theater is a deal-breaker. Having experienced the convenience of reserving seats ahead of time, I don't think I'll ever go back to the old way.
They're only about 10 years too late. They really need to slow down with this extremely reckless rate of change.
That's not the problem.
To use a specific example, the problem is ISPs partnering with Nextflix to slow down competitors to Netflix.
That's pretty overt, but it could also be something like the ISP offering a package where Netflix doesn't count towards your data cap, but Netflix competitors do count towards that cap. Different technique, similar results.
Now multiply by every other company that relies on the internet to reach customers, and you have a way for entrenched business to artificially limit competition and stifle innovation.
ISPs shouldn't get to meddle with the free market's of other industries/services/content.
It's not clear to me why anyone thinks ISPs exist in a healthy free market. (I'm not even sure it's possible, for that matter.)
Furthermore, it's not clear to me why anyone thinks it's a good idea to allow ISPs to meddle with EVERY OTHER ACTUALLY FUNCTIONING free market that already exists on the internet.
If you want to protect free markets, we should prevent ISPs from picking winners and losers, no? Don't we want the market to do that?
Perhaps some new meta brand of sarcasm? I hope?
No. Production stopped in 2011.
It's always important to ask, "What evidence would change your mind?"
If the answer is, "Nothing." Then there is a big problem with the ideology.
In hindsight, I've noticed this myself, but never really gave it much thought.
It also explains an annoyance I've found in games.
Over the years, game have increasingly added more and more navigation features to lead you to your goal. And it seems the more "hand-holdy" they become, the less I can remember where I'm at, where I'm going, how to get there, or what the overall area layout is like. And if I'm not alone here, player's then rely more on the waypoins, etc. And this in turn, seems to cause developers to become ever more helpful with navigation aids. And so on.
I've always attributed this to some kind of fundamental difference between real and virtual worlds. As I'm always thinking about how I'm never this lost in real life, how can I be so turned around in the game? So this make perfect sense.
Additionally, I wonder if this explains the difference between rotating and static minimaps. The rotating maps give me a better indication of how to get to a specific spot, but lead me to have zero understanding of the area. Whereas static maps let me understand the area, and I've apparently learned how to use them to get to a specific spot. (Though this might also be influenced by my upbringing in a time before smartphone maps.)
So I find it interesting that the very things to help you navigate might make you worse at it.
Which is also why the minimap is so crucial to getting a feel for, and understanding the area. For me, it seems to counter-act the disorienting effect of over-reliance of navigation aids. So when developers decide that they don't want to have a minimap for reasons, yet still include all the hand-holding, I now understand why this is the worst-case for actually understanding the area.
It seems the solution would be then, if you're against minimaps and want to encourage more natural exploration, you should also remove most of the navigation aids as well. Anything more than perhaps a compass, and a maybe a goal direction on that compass, will actually make players more lost, and have less of an understanding of the world you've created.
That kind of unspoken benefit works plenty good in bars too, and comes in handy when they are busy. I would think in delivery food as well.
Well, as menu price increases, you're theoretically getting a higher level of service and food/drink expertise. This isn't always the case, but I'm not expecting the Olive Garden server to have detailed knowledge of the food and preparation. Whereas, if I'm at a world class establishment on Las Vegas strip, I would expect the server to be able suggest the perfect wine, and have detailed knowledge of the menu, and be able to customize an experience tailored to individual guests.
Not everyone, wants or uses this level of service, but that's what you are paying for.
Additionally, as menu price goes up, you're going to see a higher percentage of those tips being paid out to assistants, bussers, bartenders, etc. I've see places where the server ends up with only 65% of their tips after they've "tipped out" to others. This is normal.
Service industry jobs and environment vary vastly, but typically, there are a couple good days to work, and the rest range from meh to awful. But the thing is, you probably have to work a few bad days with the good days, so your average drops quite a bit.
That said, some servers are at poverty level earnings, and some are $100K+. It varies quite a bit. Typically, higher menu prices mean more for the server (despite less tables and a higher percentage of tips they pay out to assistants) but state laws and unions have a big effect on earnings too.
Have you used phone navigation recently? Google not only tells me which side the lane is on, but will tell me which turn lane to use, if it matters.
For example, if I'm turning left and there are 3 left turn lanes, but will immediately after need to turn right, or otherwise be in the right lane, it will tell me to "use the 3rd turn lane from the left" or something like that.
I completely agree.
If anything, I feel Netflix is under-priced. It has its faults, certainly, but for how I use it, it's a bargain.
I find it's organized well, and predicts pretty accurately if I'll like something I've never heard of.
I like a good portion of the original content.
It's convenient, streams reliably, and easy to access from all my devices.
More importantly, it's add free, unlike hulu.
And the user interface is still vastly superior to Amazon (Despite the fact I consider the newer look a downgrade - but it's not really a big deal.) Amazon is overly cluttered, and they can't seem to help themselves from inserting additional cost content along with stuff that's included with prime. Very annoying.
I think the point is that the person with the pen is able to garner more support from friends and allies, and thus more swords.
I say this because I'm reminded of a question posed to me by a foreign colleague (at the time) who was writing documentation for software. He wanted to convey that the user should look for a button on the left side of the screen, but he was questioning that the proper form might be to refer to it as the right side of the screen, since it was the screen's right.
His logic went something like this:
Which way are you facing? And which side is your right?
Which way is the screen facing? And which side is its right?
Ok, so to refer to that button, you would look to the right side of the screen.
And there was a certain logic to that view, despite that every single user would get confused by the instruction, as they would assume (rightly so) that the instructions were written from the user's frame of reference.
The only similarity it bears is that there were 3 people walking through a formation of soldiers, which on its own seems to be a pretty generic event. As to how that event was portrayed, the scenes could have hardy been more different...
The emotion was different, the camera work was different, the pacing was different, the overall event was different, the scope of the event was different, the arrangements were different, etc. The list goes on.
Not that symbol. Check the last photo. The one with the giant hanging banners.
I can live with 2-3 30 second spots in a show. Probably even 60 second spots if it means less frequent breaks.
Hulu has been pushing it lately.
It seems to vary between between shows. Some shows have two 30 sec spots per half hour, some have four. I once saw an hour program with 13 breaks. That's just too much.
Also, they have begun using those annoying pop-up ads superimposed over clips. The ones with the terribly small 'x' box to close it.
But the biggest problem is that I get the impression that they are selling themselves to studios on the premise that putting limited content will drive people to watch shows on TV. And that just seems backwards to me.
If content owners refuse to release whole, up to date seasons, and if hulu continues to add more and more adds, the whole effort is going to implode as they push people to illicit sites - sites that get better every day now.
CONFIRMED: Mod parent up.
That is, if you use mirrors that are mirrored on both sides, and have a hole in the middle. See, then all you have to do is hold the mirror up to the sun in such a way that the mirror casts a shadow on your own body. Then, looking at your reflection in the back of the mirror, simply line up the the reflected hole in the shadow with the hole in the actual mirror, while you can see the target through the hole.
The mirror is then at the proper angle. Keep using the hole to aim, and keep the shadow lined up, and you can easily track the target.
I saw a diagram of the geometry on-line somewhere, but I can't seem to find it now. It would make it a little easier to understand, if you can't parse my description.
I ended up in such a situation myself. I was required to take the class. I had no choice in the matter, and I had no opportunity to test out of it.
Never mind the fact that I had taught some of the material porfessionaly in the past. Also note that attendance was required. Miss two classes and you're already down a letter grade.
Do you know how fustrating it is to drag yourself to class at 8:00 in the morning to hear the professor (and dean of the department) call an .exe an 'executive'?
It was more apparent in one of the later videos where the camera followed it.