Not only is this a lame attempt at security through obscurity, but if there trully is a terrorist threat here, why aren't they trying to outlaw the publication of such information rather than just trying to make it voluntary?
If they really consider it such a threat, the DHS should not be satisfied with just 'optional', but apparently they are.
I smell bad influence here.
Are you sure you're not confusing copyright, trademark and patent? Look and feel would generally be a trademark thing because you are trying to keep people from passing their application off as yours.
Customer confusion issues..
I can't really copyright general output... otherwise everything I printed or displayed on my screen would be copyrighted, whether it was dynamically generated or not. Doesn't make sense.
I could see it being a patent issue if the interface was a novel and inventive idea (or these days, just anything sent to the USPTO)
I've had my DDR pad now since about December. I wasn't overweight before.. I'm not now.
It can be a hell of a work-out. Takes me about 3-5 minutes to get into a serious sweat, and twenty minutes of heavy play puts me in a state equivalent to a 1-hour high intensity martial arts workout.
I've managed to pass almost all 'Heavy-mode' songs on DDR Max2. (I can sight-read many 8 and 9-bar songs).
Becoming decent at the game is all about recognizing patterns and divorcing yourself from the 'this-foot-that-square' thought process. It's important to consider the four arrows as tied to the appropriate spatial squares and not to a particular foot.
That said, it's taken me several months to get really proficient at heavy-mode songs. Sure, I could stammer my way through some of them before, but that's not the point.
As you improve, you'll notice that lower modes don't provide a workout anymore. I used to get drenched in sweat on simple Standard-mode songs... Not any more... you really need to keep pushing the envelop on the speed and difficulty of songs you attempt to continue receiving the benefit of exercise.
I bought a big pad... probably 30lbs. The plastic step-pads have almost all boken now, which I have replaced with lexan polycarb stuff. This has resulted in dead spots around the edges of the squares as the lexan is a little more flexible than the original plastic.
Moral of this story... be careful of the plastic used in your DDR pad!
I worked as a radio operator for US Windpower in 1991. Every day there are some 10-40 work crews in the fields doing maintenance on these towers.
There are very strict regulations for the reporting of killed or injured birds. Every time a bird is found, a local 'expert' is brought in the verify the species and take it to a shelter if it is injured.
I was kind of annoyed and surprised by how seriously everybody took it.
In the three months (summer job) I worked there, there was one dead bird and one injured bird discovered.
Average working crew was hitting probably 5-10 towers per day.
US Windpower is the largest operator of windmills in the altamont pass by a wide margin.
-Brian
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Not only is this a lame attempt at security through obscurity, but if there trully is a terrorist threat here, why aren't they trying to outlaw the publication of such information rather than just trying to make it voluntary? If they really consider it such a threat, the DHS should not be satisfied with just 'optional', but apparently they are. I smell bad influence here.
Are you sure you're not confusing copyright, trademark and patent? Look and feel would generally be a trademark thing because you are trying to keep people from passing their application off as yours. Customer confusion issues.. I can't really copyright general output... otherwise everything I printed or displayed on my screen would be copyrighted, whether it was dynamically generated or not. Doesn't make sense. I could see it being a patent issue if the interface was a novel and inventive idea (or these days, just anything sent to the USPTO)
I've had my DDR pad now since about December. I wasn't overweight before.. I'm not now. It can be a hell of a work-out. Takes me about 3-5 minutes to get into a serious sweat, and twenty minutes of heavy play puts me in a state equivalent to a 1-hour high intensity martial arts workout. I've managed to pass almost all 'Heavy-mode' songs on DDR Max2. (I can sight-read many 8 and 9-bar songs). Becoming decent at the game is all about recognizing patterns and divorcing yourself from the 'this-foot-that-square' thought process. It's important to consider the four arrows as tied to the appropriate spatial squares and not to a particular foot. That said, it's taken me several months to get really proficient at heavy-mode songs. Sure, I could stammer my way through some of them before, but that's not the point. As you improve, you'll notice that lower modes don't provide a workout anymore. I used to get drenched in sweat on simple Standard-mode songs... Not any more... you really need to keep pushing the envelop on the speed and difficulty of songs you attempt to continue receiving the benefit of exercise. I bought a big pad... probably 30lbs. The plastic step-pads have almost all boken now, which I have replaced with lexan polycarb stuff. This has resulted in dead spots around the edges of the squares as the lexan is a little more flexible than the original plastic. Moral of this story... be careful of the plastic used in your DDR pad!
I worked as a radio operator for US Windpower in 1991. Every day there are some 10-40 work crews in the fields doing maintenance on these towers. There are very strict regulations for the reporting of killed or injured birds. Every time a bird is found, a local 'expert' is brought in the verify the species and take it to a shelter if it is injured. I was kind of annoyed and surprised by how seriously everybody took it. In the three months (summer job) I worked there, there was one dead bird and one injured bird discovered. Average working crew was hitting probably 5-10 towers per day. US Windpower is the largest operator of windmills in the altamont pass by a wide margin. -Brian