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User: krgallagher

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  1. Much Ado About Nothing on Le Guin Peeved About Earthsea Miniseries · · Score: 1
    From the Slate Site:

    "When I sold the rights to Earthsea a few years ago, my contract gave me the standard status of "consultant"--which means whatever the producers want it to mean, almost always little or nothing. My agency could not improve this clause. But the purchasers talked as though they genuinely meant to respect the books and to ask for my input when planning the film."

    Is Ursula K. Le Guin that niave? More likely She is just trying to do a little image control with her own fans. The film and television industries have a long history of trashing literature for the sake of market share. If she could not get guarantees in the contract why did she sign? Obviously she was greedy and deserves whet she gets.

  2. Re:Anti-Spam Laws? on Do Unsubscribe Links Stop Spam? · · Score: 1
    " Doesn't that violate some states anti-spam laws?"

    Yes, it violates Federal law. This is from the article:
    "Bulk e-mailers are required to honor list-removal requests under the U.S. CAN-SPAM law. But still it's common knowledge that clicking an unsubscribe link or handing over your e-mail address on a junk e-mailer's remove page is insane. The U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) warns that unsubscribe links are "often just a method for collecting valid addresses that are then sent other spam." The FTC has sent warning letters to at least 77 marketers for their failure to honor unsubscribe requests."

  3. Re:How many people... on Do Unsubscribe Links Stop Spam? · · Score: 1
    "expect the unsubscribe link to work?"

    It really depends. If it is a legitimate company, I expect unsubscribe to work. Since I do a lot of E-commerce, I end up on a lot of email lists. Unsubscribe has always worked on them. But we are talking about spam here. I don't even read spam. I delete it unopened.

    I use Yahoo for mail and most of it gets filtered before I even see is. I delete my bulk email without looking and I delete anything from an unknown user without opening. The only way a spammer will reach me is by spoofing some email address like "customerservice@sony.com" and even then I am cautious about opening it

  4. Re:Firefox? on Do Unsubscribe Links Stop Spam? · · Score: 1
    " I had to fire up Internet Explorer to read the article, as the ads didnt work in firefox"

    They worked perfectly for me. Maybe you nee to update or add plugins.

  5. Re:I only have 2 passwords on Password Security Not Easy · · Score: 1
    ' 2 passwords, none of them are words, easy to remember."

    Yeah I have several. None are words. All include letters and numbers or special charachters. They are all easy enough for me to remember. I use them according to the level of security I think I need for that system. As time goes by I add new ones and drop the older ones with everything moving down the security scale when I do.

    My last job had me on a two month password cycle with no repeats. In no time I had run out of imaginative passwords. That is part of how I remember them, I think they are clever. I used to dread the "Your password will expire in 5 days" message. I would spend the next few days trying to come up with something I could remember and would not mind giving up in two months.

    Fianlly the day came that I forgot a password and had to call IT. The IT person reset my password to "password" and then the system would not let me change it again for 24 hours. That was when I stopped caring.

  6. Re:Local Web Site Ads on Firefox New York Times Ad, Soon · · Score: 3, Insightful
    "New York Times article idea may not be the most effective because many of the New York Times readers are still reading newspapers because they haven't figured out the Internet yet."

    It depends who the target is. If you are targetting Corporate "Suits," then the newspaper add makes sense. You would be surprised how many IT decisions are made by non-technical people in big corporations. If they see it in "the legitimate press" then it adds credibility.

  7. Re:War on China on China Bans Game Recognizing Taiwan Independence · · Score: 1
    And the winner is:
    " They make the most of the shit we buy"

    The US has a larger trade imbalance with China than with any other country in the world. If we went to war with them, our standardof living would colapse. Americans would never stand for that.

  8. Re:If they succed . . . on No Honor Among Malware Purveyors · · Score: 2, Insightful
    "This lawsuit is about some adware going outside the boundaries of their advertised function, and removing other adware and only telling the users by the fine print of the EULA."

    But that is how most adware gets installed in the first place. If the fine print of the EULA is good enough to authorize an install, it should be good enough to authorize a removal. It is, after all, the end users computer. These companies act like they own the computer instead of the end user.

  9. Is this a crime? on Programmer Built Vote-Rigging Demo for Florida Politician · · Score: 0
    Isn't this kind of like the argument about file sharing applications. There is no crime in writing or owning the software. The crime would be in using it to actually rig an election. Maybe Representative Feeney wanted a proof of concept for the purpose of drafting legislation.

    Hey, it could happen.

  10. Can't imagine how this passed the house on Anti-Spyware Products Don't Live Up to Promises · · Score: 2, Interesting
    From the article:

    " Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass (SPY ACT) (H.R. 2929): ... Among other things, it also outlaws taking over a PC for the purpose of sending unsolicited information to others (setting up a zombie PC); changing a browser's home page or otherwise loading pages other than those the user intended to request;"

    Seems to me that would outlaw pop-up advertisements completely. There is no way this is going to become law.

  11. Re:Quit: NOT! on Ridge, Homeland Security Head, Steps Down · · Score: 1
    "With the draft reinstated."

    Not likely. All the upper echelon of the millitary remebers the draft. Believe me when I say they are much happier with a voluteer force. Any commander would rather lead a group of motivated volunteers than a group of unmotivated draftees. If they start having problems getting enough they will increase the education incentives and signing bonuses.

  12. You think you have problems on What Do People in the IT Field Do for Side Jobs? · · Score: 1
    Wow you people whine a lot. My first career was as a carpenter. I have a degree in refrigeration. I work as an application developer. My relatives call whenever anything breaks! My last trip to visit my parents I fixed a broken light fixture, replaced a broken window, and fixed Mom's printer.

    To be honest I really do not mind. It can be a little annoying when i am out of state and I get support calls, but that is what friends and family do. We support each other. I cannot tell you how many times I have needed help myself and someone has stepped up to help me without a single complaint.

    The one thing I do find annoying is that this free support that we provide is the reason companies get away with such poor quality support services. No one I know calls support first. They call me first. In fact, they will call me to call their support for them, because I can understand the support people better. That is just sad.

  13. Why isn't this illegal? on Failing Grades For Most Anti-Spyware Tools · · Score: 3, Interesting
    I recently began cleaning a friends computer of spyware. There were over 1,400 objects found by Adaware,and according to the article Adaware missed 25% of the infections. To make matters worse, even after eight reboots, running Adaware between each reboot, I still could not remove all the infections. I even tried mannually editting the registry. Now, thanks to this article, I may not have to reinstall the OS.

    What I do not understand is how can this be legal. To me this is no different than a trojan (the viral type not the condom.) Maybe it does not self-replicate and spread, but it still hijacked my friends computer. I thought that the malicious or destructive control of a computer without the users consent was illegal according to federal law. Why is it the the government will go after script kiddies, but does not go after the corporate goons who are no better? Oh, wait, I forgot. Script Kiddies do not make political contributions. I'm going to email my congressman.

  14. Re:Why Sky*Web*? on Mass Transit Meets The Incredibles · · Score: 1
    "But they're still talking about the stations being a mile apart. Which means an average of a one-mile hike and a max of a two mile hike if your starting location and destination are exactly between stations."

    If stations are a mile apart and you are a mile from your station, you are at the next station. If your origin and you destination are both at the midpoint of two stations then they are half a mile from the station. So...an average of a half mile walk with a maximum of a one mile walk.

  15. My first encounter with the patriot act. on U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft Resigns · · Score: 1

    I went to the bank yesterday to deposit some money so I could pay some bills. The teller asked for some ID. I was only makig a deposit. I've never been asked for ID before unless I was making a withdrawl. When I asked her why she needed ID, she said "It's part of the patriot act." Really blew my mind.

  16. Re:Drug control policy on Round-Up Ready Coca Plants · · Score: 3, Insightful
    " The simple fact is: Where there is enough demand, there will also be enough supply. If you want to control illegal drugs, the demand is what you really need to be looking at."

    The problem is you cannot control the demand either. It is a basic desire among humans to want to alter their perceptions. One of the earliest "games" children enjoy is spinning in circles until they are dizzy. The reason thrill rides are so popular is because of the adrenaline rush they provide.

    If you look at the behaviors of addicts who are cut off from their supply, they simply turn to other substances. Often time incarcerated addicts will go as far as to drink cleaning solutions to get a buzz off the chemicals. Is this a better solution?

  17. Re:Canis familiaris on Round-Up Ready Coca Plants · · Score: 1
    " Can drug dogs still smell it?"

    It depends on how well you pack it.

  18. Re:It's like Aliens Vs. Predator... on Election Day Discussion · · Score: 1
    "As usual, I'm voting for Libertarians and marijuana reformers."

    I watched the debates during the Democratic primary. I think it was an MTV sponsored debate, all the questions were asked by young adults. That was one of the questions asked of the candidates, "Have you ever smoked marijuana?" I do not remeber what Kerry or Edwards response was. Most of the candidates admitted that they had and that they had even inhaled. And still it is a crime in this country to engage in an activity that most of our elected officials have done.

  19. Voting Machines on Election Day Discussion · · Score: 1
    I actually voted two weeks ago. My state allows early voting so I voted the first day it opened.

    This is the first time I used an electronic voting machine. The election official led me to a touch screen panel and entered an authorization number to allow me to vote. Then she gave me a quick explanation of how it worked. I immediately asked her where the printout came out. She explained that there was no printout. So I asked "How do you do a recount?" I got a puzzled look and an "I don't know."

    I really enjoyed voting electronically. I guess it is the geek factor. I just wish there had been a machine set up that I could play with. I really would have liked to see what would happen if I skipped a vote or tried to screw it up some other way. Still my vote is too important to me to play around on the live machine.

    I must say that the actual voting process itself was very easy. The ballot was 4 pages long and I had no trouble navigating it and even going back to review my choices in some local races that are particularly important to me. At the end of it the machine showed me a single page with all my choices in every race. When I pressed "vote" I was very confident that I had correctly entered my choices. My one complaint is that lack of paper printout. There should be a piece of paper that I can drop in the ballot box to ensure that my electronic vote matches.

  20. Re:This "story" is click bait on Pre-Election Discussion · · Score: 1
    " Judges cannot 'impose gay marriage from the bench'. They can only rule that a law (or legal action taken by a government body) banning gay marriage contradicts the Equal Protection clause in the Constitution. Which it does."

    Personally I believe that marriage is a sacred oath and not a licensing issue. I believe the government shoul not be allowed to perform marriage under the separation of church and state. Instead all state licensed unions should be exactly that, a civil union, offered to all citizens in any combination they desire.

  21. I represent that figure on IT (And Other) Salaries On The Rise In The U.S. · · Score: 1

    I just got a healthy raise. Granted I had to change jobs to get it, but that does not disprove the article. In fact it proves that salaries are up and there are more jobs available.

  22. Re:one omission on IT (And Other) Salaries On The Rise In The U.S. · · Score: 1
    "if they are only hiring a small percentage of grads, you'd expect them to make more, wouldn't you?"

    No actually I would expect them to make less. It is a supply and demand thing. If the supply remains constant but the demand decreases, then the price per unit falls. More simply, if there are more people applying for the same job, somebody is desperate enough to accept less money for the position than everyone else.

  23. Re:What should, but won't, make it on Vehicles of Tomorrow? · · Score: 1
    "With some relatively straightforward doctrinal changes, it would be pretty easy to maintain miles between any two airborne objects."

    I've heard this argument before. The problem with it is that humans will still tend to live in close knit social groups. If the skys are so big, why do we need air traffic controllers? It is because ultimately everyone is travelling to a limited number of ground based destinations.

  24. Re:What should, but won't, make it on Vehicles of Tomorrow? · · Score: 1
    "Honestly, the technology exists right now to automatically drive my car along a freeway."

    Here is an article from PC Magazine back in 2003 on this subject. I think this is a great idea, and I believe this is where the future of automobiles is going. "Pedestrian recognition systems" and "Adaptive Cruise Control" are just first steps in that direction. Besides if you really want a flying car, you better expect it to fly itself. Look at the idiots on the road these days. Would you trust them in the air?

  25. No Registration Link to article on Animal Robots · · Score: 2, Informative

    Here is a no registration link to the article. This link was generated by New York Times Link Generator.