If you have their fax number, especially if it's an 800#...
Take 4 sheets of black construction paper and tape them together end to end so they will feed through your fax machine. Once the first sheet is through, quickly tape it to the last sheet to create a continuous loop.
If they use conventional fax, use up their paper and toner. If they store faxes electronically, a continuous loop should eat up some storage;)
Founder of the GNU Project!!!! Wrote the first extensible Emacs text editor! Principal author of the GNU Compiler Collection! Also wrote the GNU symbolic debugger (gdb)!
You're absolutely right in saying that eBay operates like a street corner. With their recent aquisition of PayPal, they've put themselves in a position where they could make a difference when buyer/seller conflicts arise, but they choose not to.
The "feedback" system only works to a certain extent. My personal preference is to deal only with sellers that have 90% or higher positive feedback with over 60 completed transactions, but a recent auction that I participated in left my wallet $720 lighter and eBay/Paypal didn't do a thing about it. Their policies have so many loopholes that they can weasel their way out of paying a dime of their 'buyer protection policy. They charge a fee to refund any amount of money to you. And if you take any amount of time to try to work out an agreement with the seller who stiffed you, your buyer protection period runs out and you're screwed.
What does eBay care if their customers get ripped off. They still make their $3+ per auction. Same thing with PayPal. Their customers can screw as many people as is possible before PayPal freezes their account. All a seller needs to do in order to utilize PayPal services again is to open a new bank account and get a new email address.
I'd say "boycott eBay" but in 75 auctions, I've only been burned once. I wish there were more safeguards for both buyers and sellers. It's not worth the cost of going to court to sue the seller. My legal fees would easily exceed the $720 I lost.
more high profile 'hackers' explaining their driving influences. Raven Alder bashing script kiddies and suggesting that users learn how to use their toys is a good way to start. I wouldn't argue for a second with a girl that is as cute as Bjork and could audit my security.
This attitude that Linux is fine the way it is really rubs me the wrong way, and it's what keeps me from adopting it.
I paused "Kill Bill: Volume 1" DVD playing in Xine on my Thinkpad A31 with an Intel 82801CA/CAM AC'97 Audio Controller to reply to this absurd post.
What keeps you from adopting it is that you are afraid of the unknown. You're afraid that your skills aren't developed enough to successfully administer a Linux based system.
I'll be the first to say that Linux isn't for everyone. It's definitely not for you. I, personally, have banished MS from my computers. I enjoy the stability of Linux, and I enjoy learning something new about my systems almost every time I use them.
I have yet to encounter a sound card that I couldn't configure. and if I did encounter such a beast, I wouldn't blame the kernel developers, I'd blame the sound card manufacturer for not supporting the Linux community.
The author of the original article mentioned that the sound card worked for a few minutes, but then stopped working. If it worked at all for any length of time and his 'phone support' tech wasn't able to keep it working, that becomes the fault of the phone support person or is due to his inability to follow instructions (commonly referred to as 'PEBCAK')
As a network admin for an ISP, I can say that SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS REASON I delete logs after 5 days. When the local police or FBI calls asking if we have logs for a certain period of time I happily say "Nope, we delete logs after 5 days" and send 'em packing. I can't afford to have any of my servers taken for evidence. 5 days of logs is just enough to deal with the trivial issues that commonly arise, and just short enough that no government agency will be asking me for them (ain't beaurocracy grand)
Keeping the anonymity of our clients is one of the few luxuries that an ISP has left. If I began handing out my customers names to ever government agency that demanded them, this ISP would go out of business quickly. Who wants an ISP that will sell them down the river? Word of mouth spreads quickly, and I like my job!
I figure, it's none of my business what you do with your connection. As long as you don't attack my infrastructure I won't stop you. If you get caught doing something illegal, I didn't help catch you. You have nobody to blame but yourself.
Until they pass a law requiring me to keep these logs, I'll continue to delete them.
--- and real power returns to the god-like system administrator of old
When one of my end users calls and says "Why can't I...", I take great satisfaction in saying "Because you can't, have a nice day." God-like system administrators aren't so bad...as long as I'm one of them.
What I'm saying, is that (either, take your pick) common end users are not linux-competent enough to administer their own machines or that the administration of any given linux distribution has not achieved a level above user-hostile. I haven't installed a distro (yet) that doesn't require manually editing at least one conf file.
For me, it's great....I have 100% control over how the system performs, however, if my mother used linux....I wouldn't give her the root password.
Is linux ready for the corporate desktop (where end users frequently don't have rights to change the background image and administrators are already in control) yes. Is it ready for the general consumer, no.
The problem with 'picking out the best' is that it's an individual choice as to what 'the best' is.
I, personally, prefer the Mozilla browser to Konquerer (included with KDE). And while KOffice is maturing, I still prefer OpenOffice. That preference can't be thrust onto others as there will be differing opinions of 'the best' than mine.
This is why auto manufacturers offer different colors and options. Not everyone will be satisfied with red paint, or need a 10 disc cd changer, or want the leather interior.
The best aspect of linux is that the developers have not assumed that 'one size fits all' because it doesn't. There is no reason to limit users to a single application when 7 alternatives exist. Leave it to the user to decide which is 'the best' and allow them to use it.
There is much discussion about getting Linux to the desktop. I believe that Linux isn't ready for the consumer desktop. In the corporate desktop, however, it's going to be the responsibility of a saavy admin to decide which applications are the best and provide them to the end users.
In the corporate environment, it won't be a matter of choice, and your request is granted. Like M$ environments, all of the decisions will have been made for you. Your only job will be to remain a robot.
I would consider flash as a good alternative to powerpoint. As Macromedia has plans to release flash authoring tools for linux, this may be an option in the near future.
What ever happened to using HTML for presentations? I can't count the number of times I've created a presentation in HTML, posted it to one of my companies intranet servers where it becomes available to me during my presentation and remains available as reference.
HTML vs Powerpoint
HTML advantages over Powerpoint: Compatible with any system with an installed web browser Many editors available (even MS Word and OOo Writer) in most every OS
Didn't I say that the battery in the m515 is probably half the size of the entire toshiba pda-watch......hmmm....
These pda's eat a lot of juice while running, but seem to last a long time while powered down and only maintaining memory state. We're talking about a device that has a touchscreen....perhaps a tap of the screen can activate the clock.
Leave the geeks to their machines, let the rest of us rule them from management.
Philosophize about how HR found all that pr0n on your computer, and how your letter of resignation got emailed to the CEO. He who controls the data, controls the department.
After working in many help desks, I can safely say "THANK GOD IT'S NOT ME."
I can hardly stand Windows users who can't figure out how to right click, I'd fly off the deep end if trying to explain something like editing a conf file.
Ok ma'am, I'd like you to type "nano -w/etc/X11/XF86Config-4".....no...ma'am...please..ty pe "N-A-N-O"....no...that's "N like Nancy, A like Apple, N like Nancy, O like Orange".....oh....yes, I understand now....please turn your computer on. That's the button with the I and O on it.....No, not the I and O buttons, it's a single button with an I and an O on it. Wait...you're at home and your laptop is on your desk at work? No, I can't explain this so you can take notes. Please call back tomorrow. *click*
The battery in your palm m515 is probably 1/2 the size of the entire toshiba pda-watch.
Assuming that the unit is 1/2 battery and is more energy efficient than your m515. Also assuming that the backlight is not always on (as is not required with moderate light for a reflective display). Perhaps battery life could be boosted to 7 hours.
If the unit has an instant-on-time-only button/feature (press a button to see the time for 15 seconds), perhaps the battery life might be as much as 12 hours.
My Clie n610c will last for several days if I only turn it on once in a while to jot a note or get a phone number. I imagine that if I had this toy....I'd be doing a lot more with it than just notes/numbers/time.
Bottom line......I'd buy one. I don't date much anyway.
Ignorant? hardly. Arrogant? maybe. Hated? only by you. I'd venture to say that among the users whom I deal with regularly, I'm universally loved.
Yes, I can change a head gasket...and transmissions....clutches.....freeze plugs....power steering/fuel/oil/water pumps. There's a big difference between operating a vehicle / knowing its/your limitations and being a mechanic.
I don't consider myself a mechanic....but I can and very often RTFM, which is a concept that 98.72% of the computer owning public doesn't grasp (slashdotters are with the 1.28% of the rest of us).
Lets apply a different analogy to my 'elitist' statement. How about operating a firearm? Should there be manditory training prior to using or purchasing a firearm? I believe there should be. Firearms are generally complex machines which are inherently dangerous. If one does not know how to operate that machine, should one be allowed to use or own that machine?
Besides being difficult to operate, early personal computers were extremely expensive (I recall spending a couple hundred dollars for 4MB of RAM). Those two reasons alone kept most people from owning computers. People simply didn't spend that kind of money on an appliance they didn't know how to operate.
I'd prefer to see Internet Appliances in place of PC's in most cases. They're functional enough for the average user (the average being not computer literate), and they are difficult to break.
This will probably get modded down to 'troll,' but I've had it up to my eyeballs with people attempting to compute beyond their ability.
Call me an elitist...but I don't think that computer ownership should be as high as it is.
In my job, I spend a good portion of my week explaining to 'network administrators' what it means to 'right click.' Hell, some of these people can't even say the word 'computer' (compurtur, puter, thingy, tv)
I'm suprised that some of these people can breathe, yet they tell me "I'm not computer illiterate, how do I build a website" and "why can't I connect, my machine says 'no dial tone' why did you turn off my phone service!"
You have no idea how often I rewrite webpages posted on my servers because it's easier than explaining to my customers why their pages don't display properly. They'd rather upload a website that looks like $#!+ than pay somebody to do it right.
I remember a time when owning a computer indicated that you had some technical ability.....now it just means that you walked too close to the computer department at wal-mart.
THEY'RE AN ABORTION? The pro-life groups will have something to say about this. If my mother knew I had one of these drives....I don't know what she'd say.
Seriously though.....if this is causing such a problem for the consumers....maybe we should institute study time and a test before allowing people to buy computer hardware. If you can't understand how to use the technology or its limitations, should you be allowed to buy it?
Now that I think about it......isn't this how we determine elegibility for drivers licenses?
While I can understand the companies reasoning behind banning personal equipment in the workplace, you could try explaining exactly what hardware you require in order to perform your function.
If you are not allowed to use your personal cell phone, explain the consequences of removing that piece of technology from the mix.
For example, explain that the instant notification of server problems allows you to respond to issues more quickly. Elimination of that notification can result in lengthy downtime and reduced productivity (use buzzwords that upper management can understand).
If they still refuse to allow you your personal equipment, request a company provided cell phone.
If that fails.....let there be downtime, I'm sure the attitude of 'the man' will change once he loses access to the information your 'personal technology' protects.
Your take is that it's lame?
I agree, and I should know.
I recently left a company that makes client adapters for this hardware (pcmcia cards and desktop adapters). While supporting this hardware, I learned that it's really a lot of hype.
The documentation states that the maximum download speed is 1.5Mb. Sounds good on the surface...but actual download speeds depend on ambient radio noise, the shielding on your system processor, proximity to the nearest properly equipped cell site, the size and quality of your antenna and any of the other things that normally effect your cellular service.
1.5Mb......I saw 1.1Mb once or twice, but never 1.5Mb. For those of you who live in the boonies and want to use this service rather than your ISDN, don't bother. The upload speed leaves a lot to be desired. 114Kb is the maximum upload speed (I never saw anything faster than 80Kb).
The author of the original article neglected to mention that this was deployed over 2 years ago by Monet Mobile Networks (http://www.monetmobile.com) in Minnesota and South Dakota.
The good points are:
1. where it's available, the service is stable.
2. it beats dial-up for browsing the web.
3. It's capable of being mobile (expect drops)
The bad points:
1. It's not cheap
2. The coverage areas are poor
3. no linux support (that I know of)
4. Slow upload speeds
While entering a war that we're not initially involved in (vietnam, korea) evokes a distaste for war and the draft, entering a war that begins with an attack on our soil or territory (pearl harbor) will bring a patriotic response from the population.
I don't know if you've read the papers recently, but there are threats of attack from al quaida (did I speel that right?) and our actions in the middle east may invoke an all-out war. If this occurs, the military will need to be prepared to ramp up. That's what we're seeing now.
The military hasn't begun drafting....they've begun preparing for a possible special draft.... I'm happy to see that our military is looking ahead.
In addition to the fine advice presented above, I'd suggest avoiding 90 degree angles within your conduit. Flexible conduit would be even better, but it's sometimes cost prohibitive.
One thing that I plan to do when wiring my house (looking to build later this year), is to choose strategic locations for wireless access points which will be in the ceiling of the house and garage as well as the front and back porch (please use encryption).
Think about putting power into your attic or into closets which border several rooms which may have computers. If you're going as far as me, you may want to put that circuit on a UPS.
If there's a tornado and it takes out the power lines, cows flying through the air and such...I want to still be able to post on/.:P
Slashdot Mirror
leave it to an anonymous coward.....
FYI: Richard Stallman has done a great deal for modern computing.
(looks around nervously)
;)
If you have their fax number, especially if it's an 800#...
Take 4 sheets of black construction paper and tape them together end to end so they will feed through your fax machine. Once the first sheet is through, quickly tape it to the last sheet to create a continuous loop.
If they use conventional fax, use up their paper and toner. If they store faxes electronically, a continuous loop should eat up some storage
Founder of the GNU Project!!!!
Wrote the first extensible Emacs text editor!
Principal author of the GNU Compiler Collection!
Also wrote the GNU symbolic debugger (gdb)!
You're absolutely right in saying that eBay operates like a street corner. With their recent aquisition of PayPal, they've put themselves in a position where they could make a difference when buyer/seller conflicts arise, but they choose not to.
The "feedback" system only works to a certain extent. My personal preference is to deal only with sellers that have 90% or higher positive feedback with over 60 completed transactions, but a recent auction that I participated in left my wallet $720 lighter and eBay/Paypal didn't do a thing about it. Their policies have so many loopholes that they can weasel their way out of paying a dime of their 'buyer protection policy. They charge a fee to refund any amount of money to you. And if you take any amount of time to try to work out an agreement with the seller who stiffed you, your buyer protection period runs out and you're screwed.
What does eBay care if their customers get ripped off. They still make their $3+ per auction. Same thing with PayPal. Their customers can screw as many people as is possible before PayPal freezes their account. All a seller needs to do in order to utilize PayPal services again is to open a new bank account and get a new email address.
I'd say "boycott eBay" but in 75 auctions, I've only been burned once. I wish there were more safeguards for both buyers and sellers. It's not worth the cost of going to court to sue the seller. My legal fees would easily exceed the $720 I lost.
Yes, Kst is better....
but, when referring to something KDE, shouldn't they spell conquer with a "K"?
more high profile 'hackers' explaining their driving influences. Raven Alder bashing script kiddies and suggesting that users learn how to use their toys is a good way to start. I wouldn't argue for a second with a girl that is as cute as Bjork and could audit my security.
This attitude that Linux is fine the way it is really rubs me the wrong way, and it's what keeps me from adopting it.
I paused "Kill Bill: Volume 1" DVD playing in Xine on my Thinkpad A31 with an Intel 82801CA/CAM AC'97 Audio Controller to reply to this absurd post.
What keeps you from adopting it is that you are afraid of the unknown. You're afraid that your skills aren't developed enough to successfully administer a Linux based system.
I'll be the first to say that Linux isn't for everyone. It's definitely not for you. I, personally, have banished MS from my computers. I enjoy the stability of Linux, and I enjoy learning something new about my systems almost every time I use them.
I have yet to encounter a sound card that I couldn't configure. and if I did encounter such a beast, I wouldn't blame the kernel developers, I'd blame the sound card manufacturer for not supporting the Linux community.
The author of the original article mentioned that the sound card worked for a few minutes, but then stopped working. If it worked at all for any length of time and his 'phone support' tech wasn't able to keep it working, that becomes the fault of the phone support person or is due to his inability to follow instructions (commonly referred to as 'PEBCAK')
That is true, however, my most recent encounter with law enforcement was regarding filesharing from an IP over 5 months ago.
So much for swift justice.
As a network admin for an ISP, I can say that SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS REASON I delete logs after 5 days. When the local police or FBI calls asking if we have logs for a certain period of time I happily say "Nope, we delete logs after 5 days" and send 'em packing. I can't afford to have any of my servers taken for evidence. 5 days of logs is just enough to deal with the trivial issues that commonly arise, and just short enough that no government agency will be asking me for them (ain't beaurocracy grand)
Keeping the anonymity of our clients is one of the few luxuries that an ISP has left. If I began handing out my customers names to ever government agency that demanded them, this ISP would go out of business quickly. Who wants an ISP that will sell them down the river? Word of mouth spreads quickly, and I like my job!
I figure, it's none of my business what you do with your connection. As long as you don't attack my infrastructure I won't stop you. If you get caught doing something illegal, I didn't help catch you. You have nobody to blame but yourself.
Until they pass a law requiring me to keep these logs, I'll continue to delete them.
--- and real power returns to the god-like system administrator of old
When one of my end users calls and says "Why can't I...", I take great satisfaction in saying "Because you can't, have a nice day." God-like system administrators aren't so bad...as long as I'm one of them.
What I'm saying, is that (either, take your pick) common end users are not linux-competent enough to administer their own machines or that the administration of any given linux distribution has not achieved a level above user-hostile. I haven't installed a distro (yet) that doesn't require manually editing at least one conf file.
For me, it's great....I have 100% control over how the system performs, however, if my mother used linux....I wouldn't give her the root password.
Is linux ready for the corporate desktop (where end users frequently don't have rights to change the background image and administrators are already in control) yes. Is it ready for the general consumer, no.
The problem with 'picking out the best' is that it's an individual choice as to what 'the best' is.
I, personally, prefer the Mozilla browser to Konquerer (included with KDE). And while KOffice is maturing, I still prefer OpenOffice. That preference can't be thrust onto others as there will be differing opinions of 'the best' than mine.
This is why auto manufacturers offer different colors and options. Not everyone will be satisfied with red paint, or need a 10 disc cd changer, or want the leather interior.
The best aspect of linux is that the developers have not assumed that 'one size fits all' because it doesn't. There is no reason to limit users to a single application when 7 alternatives exist. Leave it to the user to decide which is 'the best' and allow them to use it.
There is much discussion about getting Linux to the desktop. I believe that Linux isn't ready for the consumer desktop. In the corporate desktop, however, it's going to be the responsibility of a saavy admin to decide which applications are the best and provide them to the end users.
In the corporate environment, it won't be a matter of choice, and your request is granted. Like M$ environments, all of the decisions will have been made for you. Your only job will be to remain a robot.
I would consider flash as a good alternative to powerpoint. As Macromedia has plans to release flash authoring tools for linux, this may be an option in the near future.
What ever happened to using HTML for presentations? I can't count the number of times I've created a presentation in HTML, posted it to one of my companies intranet servers where it becomes available to me during my presentation and remains available as reference.
HTML vs Powerpoint
HTML advantages over Powerpoint:
Compatible with any system with an installed web browser
Many editors available (even MS Word and OOo Writer) in most every OS
Powerpoint advantages over HTML:
Clippy
If anything the Toshiba is half the size.
Didn't I say that the battery in the m515 is probably half the size of the entire toshiba pda-watch......hmmm....
These pda's eat a lot of juice while running, but seem to last a long time while powered down and only maintaining memory state. We're talking about a device that has a touchscreen....perhaps a tap of the screen can activate the clock.
Leave the geeks to their machines, let the rest of us rule them from management.
Philosophize about how HR found all that pr0n on your computer, and how your letter of resignation got emailed to the CEO. He who controls the data, controls the department.
BOFH LIVES!
After working in many help desks, I can safely say "THANK GOD IT'S NOT ME."
/etc/X11/XF86Config-4".....no...ma'am...please..ty pe "N-A-N-O"....no...that's "N like Nancy, A like Apple, N like Nancy, O like Orange".....oh....yes, I understand now....please turn your computer on. That's the button with the I and O on it.....No, not the I and O buttons, it's a single button with an I and an O on it. Wait...you're at home and your laptop is on your desk at work? No, I can't explain this so you can take notes. Please call back tomorrow. *click*
I can hardly stand Windows users who can't figure out how to right click, I'd fly off the deep end if trying to explain something like editing a conf file.
Ok ma'am, I'd like you to type "nano -w
The battery in your palm m515 is probably 1/2 the size of the entire toshiba pda-watch.
Assuming that the unit is 1/2 battery and is more energy efficient than your m515. Also assuming that the backlight is not always on (as is not required with moderate light for a reflective display). Perhaps battery life could be boosted to 7 hours.
If the unit has an instant-on-time-only button/feature (press a button to see the time for 15 seconds), perhaps the battery life might be as much as 12 hours.
My Clie n610c will last for several days if I only turn it on once in a while to jot a note or get a phone number. I imagine that if I had this toy....I'd be doing a lot more with it than just notes/numbers/time.
Bottom line......I'd buy one. I don't date much anyway.
Ignorant? hardly. Arrogant? maybe. Hated? only by you. I'd venture to say that among the users whom I deal with regularly, I'm universally loved.
Yes, I can change a head gasket...and transmissions....clutches.....freeze plugs....power steering/fuel/oil/water pumps. There's a big difference between operating a vehicle / knowing its/your limitations and being a mechanic.
I don't consider myself a mechanic....but I can and very often RTFM, which is a concept that 98.72% of the computer owning public doesn't grasp (slashdotters are with the 1.28% of the rest of us).
Lets apply a different analogy to my 'elitist' statement. How about operating a firearm? Should there be manditory training prior to using or purchasing a firearm? I believe there should be. Firearms are generally complex machines which are inherently dangerous. If one does not know how to operate that machine, should one be allowed to use or own that machine?
Besides being difficult to operate, early personal computers were extremely expensive (I recall spending a couple hundred dollars for 4MB of RAM). Those two reasons alone kept most people from owning computers. People simply didn't spend that kind of money on an appliance they didn't know how to operate.
I'd prefer to see Internet Appliances in place of PC's in most cases. They're functional enough for the average user (the average being not computer literate), and they are difficult to break.
This will probably get modded down to 'troll,' but I've had it up to my eyeballs with people attempting to compute beyond their ability.
whew, I left california just in time
Call me an elitist...but I don't think that computer ownership should be as high as it is.
In my job, I spend a good portion of my week explaining to 'network administrators' what it means to 'right click.' Hell, some of these people can't even say the word 'computer' (compurtur, puter, thingy, tv)
I'm suprised that some of these people can breathe, yet they tell me "I'm not computer illiterate, how do I build a website" and "why can't I connect, my machine says 'no dial tone' why did you turn off my phone service!"
You have no idea how often I rewrite webpages posted on my servers because it's easier than explaining to my customers why their pages don't display properly. They'd rather upload a website that looks like $#!+ than pay somebody to do it right.
I remember a time when owning a computer indicated that you had some technical ability.....now it just means that you walked too close to the computer department at wal-mart.
THEY'RE AN ABORTION? The pro-life groups will have something to say about this. If my mother knew I had one of these drives....I don't know what she'd say. Seriously though.....if this is causing such a problem for the consumers....maybe we should institute study time and a test before allowing people to buy computer hardware. If you can't understand how to use the technology or its limitations, should you be allowed to buy it? Now that I think about it......isn't this how we determine elegibility for drivers licenses?
While I can understand the companies reasoning behind banning personal equipment in the workplace, you could try explaining exactly what hardware you require in order to perform your function.
If you are not allowed to use your personal cell phone, explain the consequences of removing that piece of technology from the mix.
For example, explain that the instant notification of server problems allows you to respond to issues more quickly. Elimination of that notification can result in lengthy downtime and reduced productivity (use buzzwords that upper management can understand).
If they still refuse to allow you your personal equipment, request a company provided cell phone.
If that fails.....let there be downtime, I'm sure the attitude of 'the man' will change once he loses access to the information your 'personal technology' protects.
Your take is that it's lame? I agree, and I should know. I recently left a company that makes client adapters for this hardware (pcmcia cards and desktop adapters). While supporting this hardware, I learned that it's really a lot of hype. The documentation states that the maximum download speed is 1.5Mb. Sounds good on the surface...but actual download speeds depend on ambient radio noise, the shielding on your system processor, proximity to the nearest properly equipped cell site, the size and quality of your antenna and any of the other things that normally effect your cellular service. 1.5Mb......I saw 1.1Mb once or twice, but never 1.5Mb. For those of you who live in the boonies and want to use this service rather than your ISDN, don't bother. The upload speed leaves a lot to be desired. 114Kb is the maximum upload speed (I never saw anything faster than 80Kb). The author of the original article neglected to mention that this was deployed over 2 years ago by Monet Mobile Networks (http://www.monetmobile.com) in Minnesota and South Dakota. The good points are: 1. where it's available, the service is stable. 2. it beats dial-up for browsing the web. 3. It's capable of being mobile (expect drops) The bad points: 1. It's not cheap 2. The coverage areas are poor 3. no linux support (that I know of) 4. Slow upload speeds
While entering a war that we're not initially involved in (vietnam, korea) evokes a distaste for war and the draft, entering a war that begins with an attack on our soil or territory (pearl harbor) will bring a patriotic response from the population.
I don't know if you've read the papers recently, but there are threats of attack from al quaida (did I speel that right?) and our actions in the middle east may invoke an all-out war. If this occurs, the military will need to be prepared to ramp up. That's what we're seeing now.
The military hasn't begun drafting....they've begun preparing for a possible special draft.... I'm happy to see that our military is looking ahead.
In addition to the fine advice presented above, I'd suggest avoiding 90 degree angles within your conduit. Flexible conduit would be even better, but it's sometimes cost prohibitive. One thing that I plan to do when wiring my house (looking to build later this year), is to choose strategic locations for wireless access points which will be in the ceiling of the house and garage as well as the front and back porch (please use encryption). Think about putting power into your attic or into closets which border several rooms which may have computers. If you're going as far as me, you may want to put that circuit on a UPS. If there's a tornado and it takes out the power lines, cows flying through the air and such...I want to still be able to post on /. :P