Very good point. The reason is that I am exceptionally hard on watches. Exceptionally hard. I don't know why, but I am clumsy and careless. In all seriousness, when I used to buy plastic watches, they lasted an average of one month, no kidding. I'm not being a snob about plastic watches or anything. Just being practical. Stainless steel or titanium watches with a mineral crystal (or even sapphire, but I haven't found one of those yet) will last much longer on my wrist. A plastic one will not.
Does anyone else really see an odd paradox here in that all the watches have analog dials with digital displays for the caller ID and Bluetooth? Some of the most modern technology coupled with the most archaic. I don't know why, but it's very hard to find a decent watch that is digital only. (NOTE: My search automatically excludes anything made of plastic, anything non water-resistant or anything that has calculator buttons.) I don't think I'm odd (well, OVERLY odd...) but am I alone in thinking that it's peculiar that it's the 21st century and the majority of us are still reading watch dials that were invented 500 years ago? I understand the romanticism of wanting to know how it was done in the old days (similar to knowing how to shave with a straight razor, navigate by the stars or shoot a bow & arrow) but why is it that 98% of all non-plastic watches are still analog? Sure, I know how to read an analog watch, but why should I have to? It's extra work. I can glance at a digital watch, and I know instantly what time it is. No calculating, no trying to figure out which number the little hand is pointing at. No counting up by 5's. Just a 1/10 second glance tells me unambiguously what I'm looking for.
After an exhaustive search, I found this and so far I like it, but is it possible that it's the only decent watch that's all digital? I found a couple more (Ammon, Quiksilver and RipCurl come to mind) that were designed as surfer watches, but I really don't need to know when the tide is coming in here in Ohio. So I put this question to other time geeks out there. Are there other decent watches that are digital only? I don't like the analog/digital combo watches. Lots of wasted space that I don't care about. Just a reasonably plain, waterproof, easy to read watch that tells me the time and date at a glance, with a stainless steel case and a mineral quartz face. Am I wanting too much?
Wow... Here in the United States we may not speak English very much good, (OK, that was intentional) but I like to think there are at least some of us that would never use such a derogatory term about someone we've never met. At least I'm making an attempt to learn about other cultures rather than insulting them.
I'll gladly admit to the former and flatly deny the latter. I actually looked for the article that I thought I read, and couldn't find it anywhere. Perhaps I dreamed it. I was not attempting to offend anyone, and was not attempting to troll. (although somebody with mod points apparently thought otherwise...)
So, and I'm being absolutely serious here, what would I need to do if I were interested in looking into moving there? Would I need to find gainful employment first? Would I need to contact the state department for a work visa? How long should I expect the process to take?
I am an educated, highly valuable IT employee (systems engineer) so I don't think it would be incredibly difficult to find someone who wanted my services, but I don't even know where to start. And yes, I am fed up enough with life here in the US that I would really consider moving to another country.
I have never been to Sweden, but I recall reading an article recently that the Swedish were growing increasingly intolerant of foreigners who didn't speak Swedish. The article even mentioned that some local official was trying to pass a (completely unenforcable) law making it illegal to speak any other language on the street.
Unfortunately, I don't think it's that easy to move to Sweden, especially if you don't speak Swedish. I guess I'll have to pull out all those old Muppet Show tapes and start learning...
Ungersh veer hurne, a-gede hu genish gadoo. Yay bursht der horne bersh ter mmmm BORK BORK BORK!
Woohoo! Now there will never be another terrorist attack ever again! And to think, all we had to do was give up our rights and essential freedoms! I'll bet our forefathers are smiling down on us from the heavens.
Wait, isn't this the same show where some 10 year old kid was soldering his computer because it was broken? Now, I know they were trying to illustrate that he was a smart kid and all, but you can't fix a computer that was made any time after 1982 with a soldering iron. I really think they should hire consultants to read through the script before they put in stupid things like that.
I know some geek is going to respond saying he soldered his computer and made it work, but realistically, it's not something that you can do. Some script writer thought it would sound good...
OFFICER: You are an enemy combatant. You're under arrest.
PERSON: Why?
OFFICER: There is a very good reason, but it's classified.
PERSON: What evidence do you have?
OFFICER: Oh, we have lots of evidence, but it's classified.
PERSON: Who accused me of these crimes?
OFFICER: Sorry sir, we can't tell you that. It's classified.
PERSON: When can I go home to my family?
OFFICER: When you've been tried and found innocent.
PERSON: How long will that take?
OFFICER: When the war is over.
PERSON: Can I at least call my wife and tell her I'm OK?
OFFICER: I'm sorry sir, you aren't allowed to contact anyone.
This could happen to you. Maybe you did something awful, but maybe you didn't. Maybe you just said something in a forum that was critical of the person in charge. You don't know. Nobody does. You could be in jail for years, and not know any more than this. No lawyer. Your family doesn't know where you are. You don't know why you're being detained. And they don't have to tell you anything.
This new law would make the above scenario perfectly legal.
I'll give a nickel to the first person that can diagram that first sentence...
Re:Toilet seats are a terrible comparison
on
Self Cleaning Mouse
·
· Score: 1
but if they'd exercised moderation in all things from the start
I don't know where you're from, but here in the USA, we don't do anything in moderation. It's against national policy or something.
Seriously though, most of the problems that we face as a culture stem from the fact that we take everything too far. Think fast food, playground safety, automobile size, etc. If we just tried to balance things a little better, I don't think we would have so many problems. With a few notable exceptions, most things aren't really bad in moderation, and almost everything is bad if you do it too much.
The South Park spoof of LotR was absolutely hilarious. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend getting your hands on it. If I recall, the title is something like "The Return of the Lord of the Rings to the Two Towers Video Store" or something. Classic.
I think you misunderestimate my knowledge of Dubya. I know as much truth about him as any other American, probably more than most. However, contrary to the popular saying, knowledge is not power. Knowing that he is a disingenuous cheater who would do anything to increase his power doesn't give me the ability to do anything about it. Voting him out of office will only put another disingenuous cheater right back in his place. Republicans and Democrats only create the illusion of choice, but in reality, it doesn't matter. The last person to truly challenge the established power structure in Washington was H. Ross Perot, and he mysteriously dropped out of the election just when it looked like he had a real chance to win it. Then, he later re-entered the election when it was clear he had no hope of making a comeback. Now, I know the media painted him as a indecisive kook who couldn't make up his mind, but do you really think he would spend all of that money to run, only to drop out of his own free will when he really stood a chance at winning? Once you have drawn the most likely logical conclusion, you have to ask yourself, do you really stand a chance against those forces? Our forefathers had balls and they risked a lot, but they actually had a chance at succeeding.
I think you and I are very much alike in our beliefs. The main difference is that I consider myself a realist. Risking everything for a real benefit is one thing, but risking it all with no chance of succeeding only to be branded a nut, or worse, a terrorist, just doesn't make sense to me.
You and I would get along very well if we had a couple beers together. I'm not certain, but I think that you are probably a few years younger than me, because I used to be full of the same idealism that you have. Now, I have a wife and kids. I love them dearly, but picking up and moving to another country involves a LOT more than just packing a few bags and going to Europe. Trust me, I have looked into the option in earnest. Now, the most I can do is post inceteful (not to be confused with insightful) messages on Slashdot. **sigh**
OK, people seem to be slamming my post, but nobody's offered a real alternative. Do you know what's involved in immigrating to another country? Have you ever looked into it? People who say "if you don't like it, leave" have obviously never looked into actually getting a work visa to move to another country and try to earn a living. My job has no offices overseas, so I would basically have to get a job in the other country before I could even apply for a visa. In addition, my wife's line of work involves national and local certifications, so she would have to go to school a minimum of two years to obtain said certifications, and again, we would have to live in that country first.
It's easy to say "if you don't like it, leave." It's another matter entirely to actually do it.
Do you honestly believe a Democrat controlled Congress would be any different? Personally, I do not. Any laws they pass, they will have to follow themselves, which they won't want. Maybe we can be hopeful, but I'm not holding my breath.
I wasn't going to post in this thread, but "The Man" probably already has a file on me, so I'll go ahead and excercise my first amendment rights and comment.
My comment is this: so what? The president cheated. It seems pretty clear that something fishy was going on in the 2004 election. I am from Ohio, I saw as our shameful Secretary of State (possibly our future governor) stood by his man and took 3rd party candidates off the ballot to make it easier for his master to get re-elected. As much as I didn't want Bush re-elected, I accepted the "truth" like everyone else did. I was even suspiscious. But what's going to happen? Is the Republican controlled Congress going to investigate? Is the Republican appointed Supreme Court going to invalidate the election two years after the fact? Is an armed militia going to march down to the White House and give control back to the people?
No. None of this is going to happen. As much as our commander in chief goes around waving his flag and talking about how we are "spreading freedom" across the globe, we have lost our freedom in this country. Even if this article is 100% true, nothing will ever come of it. You know why? There are two ways of dealing with those who dissent. One way is to kill them all. Stalin did this, and it worked for a while, but he tends to be frowned upon by history. The other way is to just ignore them. What are they going to do? Post an angry article in their blogs? Write a letter to their congressman? Write and host a satirical fake news show? Even worse, are they going to show the fat cats in Washington and run for office themselves? At the end of the day, nothing will happen. Don't think that the Democrats are any better. The illusion of politics is that you actually have a choice. You don't. All the people in power just take turns passing it around to each other. They pretend to disagree about the issues, but they all have one thing in common. They all want to wear the crown and carry the sceptre. The most devious ones make it to the top, and the others end up getting jobs as high paid lobbyists or fade out of existance.
So here is what I'm choosing to do. I'm not stupid enough to fight the system. It's like swimming against a rip tide. You swim and swim against the current, and you never get anywhere. Eventually it takes you out to sea, and you die. Instead, I'm going to make the best life I can for myself and my family. I stand up for my rights where I can. I write my congressman, and read about the issues, but I don't fool myself into thinking I can make a difference. Most importantly, I put blind faith in the idea that what goes around comes around. I am not a member of an organized religion, but I'm not arrogant enough to think I know how the universe works. I think there are other facets to our existance that we can't even begin to comprehend. I believe that in some way, in some form, the people who do evil in this world face subsequent consequences in the next. I strive to be the best person I can in this one, and hopefully I will be rewarded. If not, hey, at least I didn't waste my whole life on this Earth stressed out about something I can't do anything about. Sometimes, the blue pill isn't all that bad.
Pinging netflix.com [216.35.131.200] with 4831838208 bytes of data:
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200126ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200160ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200100ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200111ms TTL=49
Ping statistics 216.35.131.200:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 259200100ms, Maximum = 259200160ms, Average = 259200124ms
Not trying to be a troll here, but I just purchased a computer (refurbished) for $399 that will (should) run Vista just fine, in Super Deluxe Aero Glass mode, or whatever it's called. You're not the first person I've heard proporting the rumor that it will require a new $3000 computer, but from what I can tell, that's just not true. Even with my 1.5 year old computer, I will just need to get a new video card, and it should run fine, too.
There's a Firefox plugin that does the same thing. Stealther claims to do the same thing, but what I don't know is how well it really covers its tracks. A forensic investigation into a hard drive can easily reveal browsing history, even if one cleans his or her history and deletes cookies, etc. I have heard of a browser that actually "shreds" this information (similar to Eraser but I can't seem to find any information on this browser.
You clearly don't understand the complexities of the Internet.
You see, the Internet is not something you just dump something on. It's not a truck. It's a series of tubes. And if you don't understand those tubes can be filled and if they are filled, when you put your message in, it gets in line and it's going to be delayed by anyone that puts into that tube enormous amounts of material, enormous amounts of material. Ten movies streaming across that Internet and what happens to your own personal Internet? I just the other day got, an Internet was sent by my staff at 10 o'clock in the morning on Friday and I just got it yesterday.
Hopefully, they will digitally edit out all of the phasers and replace them with communicators. That could show our youngsters today once and for all that violence isn't a solution to our problems. Maybe while they're at it, they could change Kahn into a gelatinous alien blob instead of a human actor. That would be much better, too.
OK, to explain to those who didn't get the reference... When E.T. the Extra Terrestrial was re-released on DVD, they edited out all of the guns when the police were chasing Elliot and replaced them with Walkie-Talkies. Apparently Speilberg didn't want to convey violence to children or some stupid crap. When they re-released Star Wars, they replaced Jabba the Hutt (originally filmed with a human actor) with a gelatinous blob (the Jabba we all know and love from ROTJ) and the effect was notoriously sloppy and wasn't well received by the Star Wars fan base.
Now how about some mod points to make up for the person who modded it troll thinking I was serious... (Hey, my humor isn't always funny... or maybe ever funny, but it's still not trollish.)
Slashdot Mirror
Very good point. The reason is that I am exceptionally hard on watches. Exceptionally hard. I don't know why, but I am clumsy and careless. In all seriousness, when I used to buy plastic watches, they lasted an average of one month, no kidding. I'm not being a snob about plastic watches or anything. Just being practical. Stainless steel or titanium watches with a mineral crystal (or even sapphire, but I haven't found one of those yet) will last much longer on my wrist. A plastic one will not.
Does anyone else really see an odd paradox here in that all the watches have analog dials with digital displays for the caller ID and Bluetooth? Some of the most modern technology coupled with the most archaic. I don't know why, but it's very hard to find a decent watch that is digital only. (NOTE: My search automatically excludes anything made of plastic, anything non water-resistant or anything that has calculator buttons.) I don't think I'm odd (well, OVERLY odd...) but am I alone in thinking that it's peculiar that it's the 21st century and the majority of us are still reading watch dials that were invented 500 years ago? I understand the romanticism of wanting to know how it was done in the old days (similar to knowing how to shave with a straight razor, navigate by the stars or shoot a bow & arrow) but why is it that 98% of all non-plastic watches are still analog? Sure, I know how to read an analog watch, but why should I have to? It's extra work. I can glance at a digital watch, and I know instantly what time it is. No calculating, no trying to figure out which number the little hand is pointing at. No counting up by 5's. Just a 1/10 second glance tells me unambiguously what I'm looking for.
After an exhaustive search, I found this and so far I like it, but is it possible that it's the only decent watch that's all digital? I found a couple more (Ammon, Quiksilver and RipCurl come to mind) that were designed as surfer watches, but I really don't need to know when the tide is coming in here in Ohio. So I put this question to other time geeks out there. Are there other decent watches that are digital only? I don't like the analog/digital combo watches. Lots of wasted space that I don't care about. Just a reasonably plain, waterproof, easy to read watch that tells me the time and date at a glance, with a stainless steel case and a mineral quartz face. Am I wanting too much?
So, and I'm being absolutely serious here, what would I need to do if I were interested in looking into moving there? Would I need to find gainful employment first? Would I need to contact the state department for a work visa? How long should I expect the process to take?
I am an educated, highly valuable IT employee (systems engineer) so I don't think it would be incredibly difficult to find someone who wanted my services, but I don't even know where to start. And yes, I am fed up enough with life here in the US that I would really consider moving to another country.
I have never been to Sweden, but I recall reading an article recently that the Swedish were growing increasingly intolerant of foreigners who didn't speak Swedish. The article even mentioned that some local official was trying to pass a (completely unenforcable) law making it illegal to speak any other language on the street.
Unfortunately, I don't think it's that easy to move to Sweden, especially if you don't speak Swedish. I guess I'll have to pull out all those old Muppet Show tapes and start learning...
Ungersh veer hurne, a-gede hu genish gadoo. Yay bursht der horne bersh ter mmmm BORK BORK BORK!
Woohoo! Now there will never be another terrorist attack ever again! And to think, all we had to do was give up our rights and essential freedoms! I'll bet our forefathers are smiling down on us from the heavens.
Wait, isn't this the same show where some 10 year old kid was soldering his computer because it was broken? Now, I know they were trying to illustrate that he was a smart kid and all, but you can't fix a computer that was made any time after 1982 with a soldering iron. I really think they should hire consultants to read through the script before they put in stupid things like that.
I know some geek is going to respond saying he soldered his computer and made it work, but realistically, it's not something that you can do. Some script writer thought it would sound good...
This is NOT an exaggeration:
OFFICER: You are an enemy combatant. You're under arrest.
PERSON: Why?
OFFICER: There is a very good reason, but it's classified.
PERSON: What evidence do you have?
OFFICER: Oh, we have lots of evidence, but it's classified.
PERSON: Who accused me of these crimes?
OFFICER: Sorry sir, we can't tell you that. It's classified.
PERSON: When can I go home to my family?
OFFICER: When you've been tried and found innocent.
PERSON: How long will that take?
OFFICER: When the war is over.
PERSON: Can I at least call my wife and tell her I'm OK?
OFFICER: I'm sorry sir, you aren't allowed to contact anyone.
This could happen to you. Maybe you did something awful, but maybe you didn't. Maybe you just said something in a forum that was critical of the person in charge. You don't know. Nobody does. You could be in jail for years, and not know any more than this. No lawyer. Your family doesn't know where you are. You don't know why you're being detained. And they don't have to tell you anything.
This new law would make the above scenario perfectly legal.
I'll give a nickel to the first person that can diagram that first sentence...
Seriously though, most of the problems that we face as a culture stem from the fact that we take everything too far. Think fast food, playground safety, automobile size, etc. If we just tried to balance things a little better, I don't think we would have so many problems. With a few notable exceptions, most things aren't really bad in moderation, and almost everything is bad if you do it too much.
The South Park spoof of LotR was absolutely hilarious. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend getting your hands on it. If I recall, the title is something like "The Return of the Lord of the Rings to the Two Towers Video Store" or something. Classic.
I think you misunderestimate my knowledge of Dubya. I know as much truth about him as any other American, probably more than most. However, contrary to the popular saying, knowledge is not power. Knowing that he is a disingenuous cheater who would do anything to increase his power doesn't give me the ability to do anything about it. Voting him out of office will only put another disingenuous cheater right back in his place. Republicans and Democrats only create the illusion of choice, but in reality, it doesn't matter. The last person to truly challenge the established power structure in Washington was H. Ross Perot, and he mysteriously dropped out of the election just when it looked like he had a real chance to win it. Then, he later re-entered the election when it was clear he had no hope of making a comeback. Now, I know the media painted him as a indecisive kook who couldn't make up his mind, but do you really think he would spend all of that money to run, only to drop out of his own free will when he really stood a chance at winning? Once you have drawn the most likely logical conclusion, you have to ask yourself, do you really stand a chance against those forces? Our forefathers had balls and they risked a lot, but they actually had a chance at succeeding.
I think you and I are very much alike in our beliefs. The main difference is that I consider myself a realist. Risking everything for a real benefit is one thing, but risking it all with no chance of succeeding only to be branded a nut, or worse, a terrorist, just doesn't make sense to me.
You and I would get along very well if we had a couple beers together. I'm not certain, but I think that you are probably a few years younger than me, because I used to be full of the same idealism that you have. Now, I have a wife and kids. I love them dearly, but picking up and moving to another country involves a LOT more than just packing a few bags and going to Europe. Trust me, I have looked into the option in earnest. Now, the most I can do is post inceteful (not to be confused with insightful) messages on Slashdot. **sigh**
So you're suggesting armed rebellion? No thanks, I have too much to live for.
OK, people seem to be slamming my post, but nobody's offered a real alternative. Do you know what's involved in immigrating to another country? Have you ever looked into it? People who say "if you don't like it, leave" have obviously never looked into actually getting a work visa to move to another country and try to earn a living. My job has no offices overseas, so I would basically have to get a job in the other country before I could even apply for a visa. In addition, my wife's line of work involves national and local certifications, so she would have to go to school a minimum of two years to obtain said certifications, and again, we would have to live in that country first.
It's easy to say "if you don't like it, leave." It's another matter entirely to actually do it.
I wonder if my Diebold Voting Machine key will open my hotel minibar! Just imagine... the most powerful key in the world...
Do you honestly believe a Democrat controlled Congress would be any different? Personally, I do not. Any laws they pass, they will have to follow themselves, which they won't want. Maybe we can be hopeful, but I'm not holding my breath.
I wasn't going to post in this thread, but "The Man" probably already has a file on me, so I'll go ahead and excercise my first amendment rights and comment.
My comment is this: so what? The president cheated. It seems pretty clear that something fishy was going on in the 2004 election. I am from Ohio, I saw as our shameful Secretary of State (possibly our future governor) stood by his man and took 3rd party candidates off the ballot to make it easier for his master to get re-elected. As much as I didn't want Bush re-elected, I accepted the "truth" like everyone else did. I was even suspiscious. But what's going to happen? Is the Republican controlled Congress going to investigate? Is the Republican appointed Supreme Court going to invalidate the election two years after the fact? Is an armed militia going to march down to the White House and give control back to the people?
No. None of this is going to happen. As much as our commander in chief goes around waving his flag and talking about how we are "spreading freedom" across the globe, we have lost our freedom in this country. Even if this article is 100% true, nothing will ever come of it. You know why? There are two ways of dealing with those who dissent. One way is to kill them all. Stalin did this, and it worked for a while, but he tends to be frowned upon by history. The other way is to just ignore them. What are they going to do? Post an angry article in their blogs? Write a letter to their congressman? Write and host a satirical fake news show? Even worse, are they going to show the fat cats in Washington and run for office themselves? At the end of the day, nothing will happen. Don't think that the Democrats are any better. The illusion of politics is that you actually have a choice. You don't. All the people in power just take turns passing it around to each other. They pretend to disagree about the issues, but they all have one thing in common. They all want to wear the crown and carry the sceptre. The most devious ones make it to the top, and the others end up getting jobs as high paid lobbyists or fade out of existance.
So here is what I'm choosing to do. I'm not stupid enough to fight the system. It's like swimming against a rip tide. You swim and swim against the current, and you never get anywhere. Eventually it takes you out to sea, and you die. Instead, I'm going to make the best life I can for myself and my family. I stand up for my rights where I can. I write my congressman, and read about the issues, but I don't fool myself into thinking I can make a difference. Most importantly, I put blind faith in the idea that what goes around comes around. I am not a member of an organized religion, but I'm not arrogant enough to think I know how the universe works. I think there are other facets to our existance that we can't even begin to comprehend. I believe that in some way, in some form, the people who do evil in this world face subsequent consequences in the next. I strive to be the best person I can in this one, and hopefully I will be rewarded. If not, hey, at least I didn't waste my whole life on this Earth stressed out about something I can't do anything about. Sometimes, the blue pill isn't all that bad.
C:\>ping netflix.com
Pinging netflix.com [216.35.131.200] with 4831838208 bytes of data:
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200126ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200160ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200100ms TTL=49
Reply from 216.35.131.200: bytes=4831838208 time=259200111ms TTL=49
Ping statistics 216.35.131.200:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 259200100ms, Maximum = 259200160ms, Average = 259200124ms
Not trying to be a troll here, but I just purchased a computer (refurbished) for $399 that will (should) run Vista just fine, in Super Deluxe Aero Glass mode, or whatever it's called. You're not the first person I've heard proporting the rumor that it will require a new $3000 computer, but from what I can tell, that's just not true. Even with my 1.5 year old computer, I will just need to get a new video card, and it should run fine, too.
There's a Firefox plugin that does the same thing. Stealther claims to do the same thing, but what I don't know is how well it really covers its tracks. A forensic investigation into a hard drive can easily reveal browsing history, even if one cleans his or her history and deletes cookies, etc. I have heard of a browser that actually "shreds" this information (similar to Eraser but I can't seem to find any information on this browser.
You clearly don't understand the complexities of the Internet.
You see, the Internet is not something you just dump something on. It's not a truck. It's a series of tubes. And if you don't understand those tubes can be filled and if they are filled, when you put your message in, it gets in line and it's going to be delayed by anyone that puts into that tube enormous amounts of material, enormous amounts of material. Ten movies streaming across that Internet and what happens to your own personal Internet? I just the other day got, an Internet was sent by my staff at 10 o'clock in the morning on Friday and I just got it yesterday.
Now how about some mod points to make up for the person who modded it troll thinking I was serious... (Hey, my humor isn't always funny... or maybe ever funny, but it's still not trollish.)