Slashdot Mirror


User: srothroc

srothroc's activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
233
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 233

  1. Re:Like tank wars on Angry Birds and Parabolic Instinct In Humans · · Score: 1

    Scorched Earth was the big game for me, but before I found it on some BBS, it was gorillas.bas...

  2. Re:before you do it on Extinct Mammoth, Coming To a Zoo Near You · · Score: 1, Insightful

    What about things from the mammoth? Just playing devil's advocate, here. What if it turns out that people or animals are terribly allergic to mammoth fur and it can travel on the wind? What about mosquitoes and pests -- how will it affect them, or the ones they bite after the mammoth?

  3. Re:Competition again? on Verizon To Offer iPhone Users Unlimited Data · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Verizon offering unlimited data is, in fact, one of the effects of competition. In order to compete with AT&T and offer a compelling argument for going with Verizon, they have given you -- the potential customer -- unlimited data. That's a win in my book.

  4. Re:Preorder now! on Minecraft Reaches Beta Status, Price Goes Up · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It was written; you were paying for a product that existed at the time, with the bonus being unlimited future updates. Beta purchasers are not eligible for the unlimited future updates, unfortunately. A lot of people, me included, obviously thought that the game as it was in its nascent alpha stage was worth the 10-15 USD (depending on the exchange rate) being charged for it.

  5. Releases. on Minecraft Reaches Beta Status, Price Goes Up · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The summary fails to mention the spectacular fail.

    The release that was supposed to inaugurate the beta also created a bunch of bugs for both single- and multi-player modes, including dupe bugs, which he was trying to fix.

    The patch that followed the beta release was supposed to fix those bugs, and didn't. Minecraft remains almost unplayable for me in single- or multi-player mode; my friends can't even connect to the server anymore.

    I understand that "beta" is just a milestone, but this is really inauspicious.

  6. Re:I must say on Canadian Supreme Court To Decide If Linking Is Publishing · · Score: 4, Informative

    http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/12/07/hyperlink-supreme-court-defamation-libel.html There's a decent one by the CBC. This story doesn't seem to have been picked up much, though.

  7. Re:That's one heck of a "long goodbye" on Goodbye, VGA · · Score: 1

    VGA, HDMI, and DVI on mine.

  8. Re:Already in Japan. on Rear-View Cameras On Cars Could Become Mandatory In the US · · Score: 1

    They do, but drivers I'm with just don't use them. I mean, I usually ride with older drivers (40s) and these cameras are relatively new, so it may just be force of habit.

  9. Already in Japan. on Rear-View Cameras On Cars Could Become Mandatory In the US · · Score: 1

    There are a lot of these in Japan, but they're not mandatory; they're part of an upgrade package and use the screen that people use for the navigational GPS system. They're especially nice for backing up at night since the area behind you is illuminated and there's a grid overlaid on the view that adjusts itself when you move the steering wheel -- that way, you can see where your car is going a lot easier than you can by leaning out the window.

    On the other hand, most people I know who have this camera don't seem to use it; they just use their rearview mirrors or just look back normally.

    I really don't think that making them mandatory will help all that much; it'll just raise car prices and many people will probably ignore them in favor of looking around like they always have (or haven't). And aren't we trying to get people to STOP looking at screens while driving?

  10. Re:Except that under the U.S. Constitution... on Texas Supreme Court Cites Mr. Spock · · Score: 2, Informative

    Not everyone thinks like that, though. A lot of people seem to think more along the lines of "Damn, I could go for some sheep tonight... and seriously, there are a million sheep! What are the odds that I'LL be the one taken?"

  11. Re:Atmosphere on International Effort Brings an Open Standard For Docking In Space · · Score: 1

    I've been wondering why we don't use an oxy-helium combination, actually. Does anyone know?

  12. Re:Bad puns aside... on Pirate Electrician Supplied Power To 1,500 Homes · · Score: 1

    Either it was expensive or people love to make "easy" money. I'm guessing it was the latter, really; there are no mass electricity thefts that I know of.

  13. Re:Only 20 light years??? on Earth-Like Planet That Could Sustain Life Found · · Score: 1

    children will probably grow different too: shorter, more muscular, maybe stronger bones

    Or they could be born premature due to gravity exerting enough force when a pregnant woman stands up to "pull" them out. Or perhaps they wouldn't be born at all. Or perhaps they would be born and many would die due to an inability to breathe properly. Or they could never progress past the crawling stage. Or or or or.

  14. Re:The chances are pretty much zero on Earth-Like Planet That Could Sustain Life Found · · Score: 1

    I always thought it was the magma beneath the plates.

  15. Why China? on NASA Head Ignores Congress, Eyes Cooperation With China · · Score: 1

    Not only do we have problems with them industrially and diplomatically (politically and in terms of human rights), but we also have stronger ties to, say, JAXA or the ESA. We've actually cooperated with the ESA for several missions before, so it's not unprecedented. If it's to get a developing nation into space, why not... India? China seems like the worst of all worlds.

  16. Re:Lie to them on Best Education Path To Learn Video Game Programming? · · Score: 1

    I have to disagree; a specific course like Full Sail or Digipen will give you access to non-academic resources, like game companies recruiting, alum connections, and developer connections that you may not normally have in a regular CS or CSE course.

  17. Re:Weve seen that argument before on HDCP Master Key Is Legitimate; Blu-ray Is Cracked · · Score: 2, Interesting

    most people aren't pirates

    Really? I would be very hard-pressed to name even one person that I personally know who has never downloaded a movie, a song, or a game that they did not buy.

  18. Re:They cost $50,000 and come out in the year 2050 on Construction of French Fusion Reactor Underway · · Score: 1

    It's more like a real world situation if you use O-I-V-A-I-Z-M-I-R to get bonds and a military installation...

  19. Re:How many wireless charging systems do we need? on Fujitsu Eyes Wireless Gadget Charging For 2012 · · Score: 1

    "eventually" -- that's the problem.

  20. Am I a cyborg? on September Is Cyborg Month · · Score: 1

    I wear glasses and have a cochlear implant, so I've been mechanically enhanced. Does that make me a cyborg, or are those two enhancements too ordinary? What about a pacemaker?

  21. Lack of Qualified Managers on Leaders Aren't Being Made At Tech Firms · · Score: 3, Interesting

    And this is why tech types always complain about their managers -- none of their own are getting the training they need to rise up and manage. Frankly, tech types cast such a stigma on management that the number of people who actually want to do that is very small, which is a major mistake.

  22. Fewer exams doesn't necessarily mean fewer finals. on Harvard Ditching Final Exams? · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It's worth noting that it says "three-hour exams," and nothing else. There are other courses that could have other kinds of finals -- for example, engineering courses with comprehensive final projects or liberal arts courses with final papers/presentations and the like. In some ways, it makes more sense for students to work on a final project that utilizes the skills they're supposed to have learned in real-world situations -- especially for engineers.

  23. Re:Big deal. It doesn't really work. on How To Make Authentic Lightsabers · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Yes, they never fought well at all... Chloe Grace-Moretz's few months at a circus school and martial arts training easily trumps Ray Park's decades of kung fu and wushu experience.

  24. Re:backups are important. on What 'IT' Stuff Should We Teach Ninth-Graders? · · Score: 2, Informative

    Algebra and trig, okay -- calculus? Integrals? I don't know what school you went to, but I haven't seen a public school that teaches that stuff earlier than, say, AP Calculus, which is usually a 12th-grade course.

  25. Re:Only Priuses? on Toyota Adds External Speakers To Warn Pedestrians · · Score: 1

    It says "in Japan." The thing is that, in Japan, the driver is always, irrevocably, 100% in the wrong for hitting a pedestrian; this may be one reason why Toyota is offering the option.