I'm a software developer and a friend, who is develops hardware solutions, and I teamed up with a small sewing company, which we are also friends with, to discuss wearable electronics. We spent an entire day pouring over documents, examples, internet content, blogs, existing products etc. to come up with marketable ideas such as complete products, hobby components, kits anything and anything else except we just couldn't come up with anything.
You were trying too hard.
Want wearable? This is wearable. An artistic, eco-conscious statement that transcends old-skool geekery yet subtle enough to appeal to the common man.
You're basically correct, but to be fair, reporting (or "under-reporting") is often a complex topic. That said, the operative term is Discouraged Worker.
Of course, you can dual-boot Linux on it or run it in VMWare. But you knew that, right?
There was a Perl/Macbook related post to the freebsd-questions mailing list a few months back from someone trying to deal with package management problems for a client. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth, a solution was found and rejoicing was heard.
The solution? Installing FreeBSD in VMWare and calling it a day.
I remember doing a reverse lookup on my ATT (then SBC) DSL account years ago. When I discovered my name was shown (for all the world to see), I called ATT to complain and they replaced my name with "Private Customer".
A year or so later, I upgraded to a 5 static IP account, had ATT delegate the/29 to me, and started hosting my own DNS, mail, web, etc. services. Now, a simple WHOIS not only listed my name, but my address and telephone number as well!
Somehow, the new setup made more sense, and felt more acceptable.
>>>Hitting reply-all on old emails destroys threading on pretty much all clients that support it.
(1) Don't care because it saves me typing ~50 emails. (2) Not if you change the subject. Then it starts a new thread.
First, you may not care, but you're writing for the benefit of the addressee, not yourself.
Second, changing the Subject doesn't do squat, modulo what some email clients do with that change. Threading is based on the References header.
Third, your opinions are being posted to web forum. Is your use of email quote delimiters pulled out of the same bag of silly tricks, or haven't you figured out the HTML options offered by Slashdot?
Personally, I'm annoyed by lazy and inconsiderate people. I'm even more annoyed having to manually re-edit the message (break the thread), and invent a Subject line for the sender so I know WTF the email is really about. Why there's so many of you out there is anyone's guess.
But I guess Apple and Solaris isn't a typical "home" network...
Substitute Solaris with NexentaStore, and it's no more unusual than mine, which includes Free and OpenBSD, Windows, and Linux.;-)
Still, the article is an interesting one in that it describes in fair detail what the issues are and makes it clear what everyone (ISPs, hardware manufacturers, consumers, etc.) is up against.
Relying on Soekris boxes running FreeBSD, for example, may give me the right to a chuckle, or even be dismissive, but the gnashing and wailing of teeth going on in the real world is interesting to read about, irrespective of whether it penetrates my cloud of smug.
And as a FYI, rock and roll didn't die in the 70s. Everyone who's anyone (BSD users) knows that rock and roll died in the early 90s when the Pixies broke up.
Procrastination is a lot more enjoyable with an empty bladder.
Depends, I think.
When I was a kid, the winters were cold and the house felt colder. Learning to "procrastinate" (until the morning) was a challenge, but preferable to getting up out of warm bed to stumble my way into a freezing cold bathroom.
To this day I still sleep like a baby through the night. Unless, of course, I'm interrupted by the sounds of somebody else stumbling their way to the bathroom.
If they can do it well and do it cheap, then I'm all for it.
Jeff Bezos was on the Charlie Rose Show (a PBS news/interview program) a year or two ago and mentioned that a large portion of Amazon's sales are from footware. The follow up to his own comment was "Who knew 5 years ago we were going to be selling shoes?"
So, yeah, if they can do videos along with everything else, good for them.
Your comments may be correct, but file paths (in general) have always been a problem in Windows, and the problem still exists today. If a *nix programmer has to do anything on Windows, getting into the habit of escaping the "escape character" is the first step to becoming productive, and pre-requisite for learning the finer points of the voodoo quoting necesary on WIndows. A trivial example I have handy:
I've seen and written much worse. The fact that in recent years some Windows commands accept a forward slash (in place of a backslash) in certain limited contexts is hardly a consolation for this nonsense.
I'd suggest cutting the *nix programmers some slack.
Students rights? Seventh and eighth graders don't have or need rights.[1]
Instead of asserting that students of that age should be making their own judgments (the consequences of which only an adult could appreciate), I'd suggest we ask why it is that a child isn't doing what they were TOLD TO DO (by either or both their parents and the school).[2]
The problem, as I see it, is a lack of parenting. The excuse (parents are routinely too busy, overworked, and stressed) may have widespread appeal, but it's a lousy excuse. We've all heard that the best indicator of a child's success is a talented and qualified teacher, right? What's missing from that statement is the qualifier "outside the home".
Combine lousy parenting with a convenient excuse, and you've got the present day situation in which the responsibility of parenting has shifted to the school. The school, of course, deserves its own excuse (we're too overworked, too underfunded, etc.), so it should come as no surprise that some schools would seek out a technological solution.
So, yeah, it is (and is supposed to be) about thinking of the children. The problem in this case, however, is that a technological solution cannot possibly solve what's really a social problem. To the extent it can help, I'm all for the idea of electronic monitoring for problem cases, as absurd as it is. A better approach, the best approach, would be for the parents to start being parents and get involved.
------------------ 1. At least not the sort you're thinking of.
2. I'll remind any school-aged Slashdot snowflakes reading this that parents do indeed have such rights.
Slashdot is basically a lightweight BBS with graphics and UI as convenience features. It would not lose anything by being translated into a text-only medium.
I'd go farther and suggest that reading Slashdot using something other than a web browser (think usenet/email client with proper threading support) would be an improvement. At least for the reader. For the corporate overlords, it would most likely mean a loss of advertising revenue, so this mutt user isn't holding his breath.
There's probably still an entry in the FAQ that describes the dilemma.
You can't reasonably expect the enemy boats to sail exactly at the focus point of your death ray... or to either come closer or go further away in case they are not at the focus point of your death ray.
They sold you a book, which you bought in good faith... [t]hen they removed it, without consulting you, and it's currently unclear if they even refund you, which is irrefutably THEFT
I guess it was inevitable that someone would use the Magic Word. Amazon's license agreement, explicitly makes clear that digital content is "licensed", not "sold".
1. Digital Content
Use of Digital Content. Upon your download of Digital Content and payment of any applicable fees (including applicable taxes), the Content Provider grants you a non-exclusive right to view, use, and display such Digital Content an unlimited number of times, solely on the Kindle or a Reading Application or as otherwise permitted as part of the Service, solely on the number of Kindles or Other Devices specified in the Kindle Store, and solely for your personal, non-commercial use. Unless otherwise specified, Digital Content is licensed, not sold, to you by the Content Provider. The Content Provider may post additional terms for Digital Content in the Kindle Store. Those terms will also apply, but this Agreement will govern in the event of a conflict. Some Digital Content, such as Periodicals, may not be available to you through Reading Applications.
A better discussion, however, would be one that relates to the specific issues before the court (i.e., the basis of the appeal, rather than the results of a Slashdot popularity poll). From the Wall Street Journal:
The high court said it will review a $290 million patent-infringement judgment against Microsoft that barred the company from selling certain versions of its Word software. A key question in the case is whether proving a patent invalid should require "clear and convincing evidence" or merely a preponderance of evidence.
Federal courts use the stricter "clear and convincing" standard. Big high-tech companies and others say that bar is too high, leading courts to uphold dubious patents and making it costly to defend against patent-infringement lawsuits.
On the other hand, digressions in the form of unsolicited snarkiness can be fun. If we're going to go down that route, allow me to start:
Clear and convincing? You can't handle "clear and convincing, Monkeyboy!"
The standard of living is substantially higher - for everyone - than it was 90 years ago. How rich some people is has nothing to do with how much better off everyone is.
I'd suggest you do some reading or research before asserting the above so glibly. The Elizabeth Warren lecture entitled The Coming Collapse of the Middle Class would be a good start, though her research and the focus of what's presented, uses (IIRC) "50 years ago" as a baseline for comparison.
I know someone from an Eastern European country who did her PhD here and was told if she went back to see her family after finishing she would not be allowed back into the US for 6-9 months minimum. She has spoken English since she was about 3 years old. Why should we punish her for doing her research (and contributing to American science) here?
Going a bit off topic here, but as a FYI...
My understanding (from personal experience) is that once you open an application, you are not[1] allowed to leave the country until it's finalised. The length of time for the process (whatever form it takes) to run its course is highly variable, and it isn't at all unusual for it to exceed statutory or reasonableness standards (think 15 years for a green card and you'll get the picture). However, one can put through a parole request (yes, the form really does say PAROLE OF AN ALIEN or some such nonsense in all caps and in bold at the very top). If granted, you are allowed to leave for a short duration. IIRC, it's a "once-only for family emergencies" type of thing.
As for fast-tracking those coming to the US for doctoral research, tbat's an excellent idea. In the interim, however, I'd happily settle for not seeing high school honour students detained or deported for immigration violations^H^H^H^H^H^H paperwork errors. The system is rife with inequities, and the climate so political, that I see little hope for any sane merit-based policy to prevail.
----------- 1. Actually, you're free to leave at any time, but doing so typically terminates your application, leaving with you no practical hope of obtaining legal residency in the future.
I agree generally with your sentiments, but I think your points are tangential to what the article is about. That said, here is one example of a setup [standard "no affiliation" disclaimer goes here] that doesn't present any of the issues you describe.
Slashdot Mirror
You were trying too hard.
Want wearable? This is wearable. An artistic, eco-conscious statement that transcends old-skool geekery yet subtle enough to appeal to the common man.
No idea as to whether any of the buttons work.
Couldn't you just google "David Hasselhoff" and see what sites turn up?
You're basically correct, but to be fair, reporting (or "under-reporting") is often a complex topic. That said, the operative term is Discouraged Worker.
Recently discussed on Bruce Schneier's blog ("Identifying Tor Users Through Insecure Applications"):
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2011/03/identifying_tor.html
There was a Perl/Macbook related post to the freebsd-questions mailing list a few months back from someone trying to deal with package management problems for a client. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth, a solution was found and rejoicing was heard.
The solution? Installing FreeBSD in VMWare and calling it a day.
The poster was Randal Schwartz.
I remember doing a reverse lookup on my ATT (then SBC) DSL account years ago. When I discovered my name was shown (for all the world to see), I called ATT to complain and they replaced my name with "Private Customer".
A year or so later, I upgraded to a 5 static IP account, had ATT delegate the /29 to me, and started hosting my own DNS, mail, web, etc. services. Now, a simple WHOIS not only listed my name, but my address and telephone number as well!
Somehow, the new setup made more sense, and felt more acceptable.
They did, and it was called a velarium. The real question is what, aside from inventing the velarium, have the Romans ever done for us?
If it helps, on the same site as the article:
"Microsoft Bob, the Program That Didn't Change the World"
First, you may not care, but you're writing for the benefit of the addressee, not yourself.
Second, changing the Subject doesn't do squat, modulo what some email clients do with that change. Threading is based on the References header.
Third, your opinions are being posted to web forum. Is your use of email quote delimiters pulled out of the same bag of silly tricks, or haven't you figured out the HTML options offered by Slashdot?
Personally, I'm annoyed by lazy and inconsiderate people. I'm even more annoyed having to manually re-edit the message (break the thread), and invent a Subject line for the sender so I know WTF the email is really about. Why there's so many of you out there is anyone's guess.
But I guess Apple and Solaris isn't a typical "home" network...
Substitute Solaris with NexentaStore, and it's no more unusual than mine, which includes Free and OpenBSD, Windows, and Linux. ;-)
Still, the article is an interesting one in that it describes in fair detail what the issues are and makes it clear what everyone (ISPs, hardware manufacturers, consumers, etc.) is up against.
Relying on Soekris boxes running FreeBSD, for example, may give me the right to a chuckle, or even be dismissive, but the gnashing and wailing of teeth going on in the real world is interesting to read about, irrespective of whether it penetrates my cloud of smug.
I think the OP is correct.
And as a FYI, rock and roll didn't die in the 70s. Everyone who's anyone (BSD users) knows that rock and roll died in the early 90s when the Pixies broke up.
Procrastination is a lot more enjoyable with an empty bladder.
Depends, I think.
When I was a kid, the winters were cold and the house felt colder. Learning to "procrastinate" (until the morning) was a challenge, but preferable to getting up out of warm bed to stumble my way into a freezing cold bathroom.
To this day I still sleep like a baby through the night. Unless, of course, I'm interrupted by the sounds of somebody else stumbling their way to the bathroom.
Jeff Bezos was on the Charlie Rose Show (a PBS news/interview program) a year or two ago and mentioned that a large portion of Amazon's sales are from footware. The follow up to his own comment was "Who knew 5 years ago we were going to be selling shoes?"
So, yeah, if they can do videos along with everything else, good for them.
I've seen and written much worse. The fact that in recent years some Windows commands accept a forward slash (in place of a backslash) in certain limited contexts is hardly a consolation for this nonsense.
I'd suggest cutting the *nix programmers some slack.
Students rights? Seventh and eighth graders don't have or need rights.[1]
Instead of asserting that students of that age should be making their own judgments (the consequences of which only an adult could appreciate), I'd suggest we ask why it is that a child isn't doing what they were TOLD TO DO (by either or both their parents and the school).[2]
The problem, as I see it, is a lack of parenting. The excuse (parents are routinely too busy, overworked, and stressed) may have widespread appeal, but it's a lousy excuse. We've all heard that the best indicator of a child's success is a talented and qualified teacher, right? What's missing from that statement is the qualifier "outside the home".
Combine lousy parenting with a convenient excuse, and you've got the present day situation in which the responsibility of parenting has shifted to the school. The school, of course, deserves its own excuse (we're too overworked, too underfunded, etc.), so it should come as no surprise that some schools would seek out a technological solution.
So, yeah, it is (and is supposed to be) about thinking of the children. The problem in this case, however, is that a technological solution cannot possibly solve what's really a social problem. To the extent it can help, I'm all for the idea of electronic monitoring for problem cases, as absurd as it is. A better approach, the best approach, would be for the parents to start being parents and get involved.
------------------
1. At least not the sort you're thinking of.
2. I'll remind any school-aged Slashdot snowflakes reading this that parents do indeed have such rights.
Agreed, but the problem with that argument is that an hour later you're hungry for ... and you wind spending ... ah, nevermind.
I'd go farther and suggest that reading Slashdot using something other than a web browser (think usenet/email client with proper threading support) would be an improvement. At least for the reader. For the corporate overlords, it would most likely mean a loss of advertising revenue, so this mutt user isn't holding his breath.
There's probably still an entry in the FAQ that describes the dilemma.
What if you taunted the enemy first?
They sold you a book, which you bought in good faith ... [t]hen they removed it, without consulting you, and it's currently unclear if they even refund you, which is irrefutably THEFT
I guess it was inevitable that someone would use the Magic Word. Amazon's license agreement, explicitly makes clear that digital content is "licensed", not "sold".
LOL. Good one.
A better discussion, however, would be one that relates to the specific issues before the court (i.e., the basis of the appeal, rather than the results of a Slashdot popularity poll). From the Wall Street Journal:
On the other hand, digressions in the form of unsolicited snarkiness can be fun. If we're going to go down that route, allow me to start:
The standard of living is substantially higher - for everyone - than it was 90 years ago. How rich some people is has nothing to do with how much better off everyone is.
I'd suggest you do some reading or research before asserting the above so glibly. The Elizabeth Warren lecture entitled The Coming Collapse of the Middle Class would be a good start, though her research and the focus of what's presented, uses (IIRC) "50 years ago" as a baseline for comparison.
How about
Did that help, or hurt? ;-)
I know someone from an Eastern European country who did her PhD here and was told if she went back to see her family after finishing she would not be allowed back into the US for 6-9 months minimum. She has spoken English since she was about 3 years old. Why should we punish her for doing her research (and contributing to American science) here?
Going a bit off topic here, but as a FYI ...
My understanding (from personal experience) is that once you open an application, you are not[1] allowed to leave the country until it's finalised. The length of time for the process (whatever form it takes) to run its course is highly variable, and it isn't at all unusual for it to exceed statutory or reasonableness standards (think 15 years for a green card and you'll get the picture). However, one can put through a parole request (yes, the form really does say PAROLE OF AN ALIEN or some such nonsense in all caps and in bold at the very top). If granted, you are allowed to leave for a short duration. IIRC, it's a "once-only for family emergencies" type of thing.
As for fast-tracking those coming to the US for doctoral research, tbat's an excellent idea. In the interim, however, I'd happily settle for not seeing high school honour students detained or deported for immigration violations^H^H^H^H^H^H paperwork errors. The system is rife with inequities, and the climate so political, that I see little hope for any sane merit-based policy to prevail.
-----------
1. Actually, you're free to leave at any time, but doing so typically terminates your application, leaving with you no practical hope of obtaining legal residency in the future.
I agree generally with your sentiments, but I think your points are tangential to what the article is about. That said, here is one example of a setup [standard "no affiliation" disclaimer goes here] that doesn't present any of the issues you describe.
Mac OS X is actually based on the mach kernel, which, along with OS X's userland is a certified implementation of UNIX. /pedantic
Yes, but from what I've seen, the userland seems to be mostly FreeBSD. /mildly pendantic