Before buying any more fast food, check out Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. I'm reading it right now, it has lots of interesting information about the fast food industry that might effect your desire for their food.
Of course there is also Super Size Me the movie about the guy who ate nothing but McDonald's for a month & the effects on his body. I haven't seen it yet (I'm waiting to finish "Fast Food Nation" first) but I hear it's good.
I see from the information about the "Qonos" Linux based calc that it uses an XScale (ARM) processor - like the Zaurus's do.
If it's using the same OS, on very similar hardware, the Zaurus would be a good development/prototype platform. And, it would give us Zaurus owners a good calculator option.
When I first signed up for an account at Wells Fargo, I was shocked that they used my Social Security Number as a user ID (with no way to change it) and only accepted numeric passwords. (I think it may have initially only allowed 4 digit passwords, akin to the ATM PIN, but they lengthened it later).
So, I sent them an e-mail explining the issue, and asking to be allowed a longer password with letters, numbers, and symbols.
I got back a form letter assuring me that my security was their highest priority, and I have nothing to worry about. I tried calling and talking to a human to explain the problem, but didn't get much further.
I checked back last year some time, and they had changed it to allow real username/passwords ( 4-5 years after I initially saw the problem ).
But, they made no effort to contact customers and suggest they change their accounts. It was just there for those that looked into their account settings. I'm sure you'll still find a high percentage of users that have their SSN as user-id and their four digit ATM PIN as their password.
I am surprised that the review was this bad. I don't own one of these, but I have been following some discussions about them on avsforum.com, thinking I may soon buy one.
On avsforum, there are certainly complaints, and people asking for more features, but nothing as bad as this guy's review.
Also, I think the review may have been a bit aggressive. The advertised features of the Roku are for display of digital images and audio - in an HDTV environment. The other things this guy reviewed are not part of the advertised features, they are third party applications and extensions. These extensions are encouraged by Roku.. they talk quite a bit about their open Linux platform. But, you can't really condemn Roku because of bad third party apps.
He also says that the third party apps had a distinct beta feel. Well, that's because they are beta apps.. or even alpha. If Roku provided the apps, they made a tactical error. If the guy downloaded them himself, he didn't read the descriptions very thoroughly.
Based on what I have read from Roku users, my feel for the product is this: The core feature set of HD display of images via flash or network connections works well. As does playback of MP3/AAC audio files over the network. The third party apps - to stream HDTV captures or DVD VOB files is in its infancy. They work for some people, but are not mature or reliable enough for common use. I am waiting for HDTV streaming and control before I buy one. I would like to use the Roku for playback of HD files captured with a MyHD PCI card - the combination giving something close to PVR functionality (record one program, while watching another).
My $40 Netgear access point is silent and very small and has all the features I want, Id like to see someone put together a linux based wifi router for that sort of money
Actually, there are some Linux based AP's for not much more than that. I'm not talking about x86 boxes, with a Wifi card and software to act as an AP. There are cheap hardware AP's that use Linux, and can be extended & modified.
The one I use is the Linksys WRT54G. It's an 802.11G AP, running Linux, and there are several open projects creating firmware updates with nice feature extensions. At the minimum, it allows you to ssh into the box and modify the firewall settings to do exactly what you want.. which is a bit leap over closed AP's.
VIA keeps bumping up the speed of their processors. Their newest core is reported to use 3W @ 1GHz. The newer cores also have performance improvements, so it should be faster at the same clock speed too.
The AMD chips are Geode cores, which are not known for blazing performance. It would be intersting to see a comparison among the C3, Geode, Pentium-M, and Transmeta chips. Raw performance and performance per watt would be nice to know.
By default, Google mail has images turned off. You have to click a link at the top of the message to force it to load the images.
Most other mailers also have a way to turn off image loading because spammers have been using this tracking technique for a long time. If mailers don't allow image blocking yet, I'm sure that a service like this will get them to add that trivial feature.
My goal with my HTPC was to integrate it into my home theater as much as possible. That means using all of the components from a basic infrared remote.
My MyHD HDTV PCI receiver card came with an IR receiver, so that was not a problem. There are many remote control options for the various DVD player packages.
An app like Girder can combine many applications and PC control functions for IR control.
For the things that I cannot do via remote, VNC from my laptop lets me have full control. Or, a basic wireless keyboard/mouse are handy in rare occasions.
From the article: Lois Boland, director of international relations for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, said that open-source software runs counter to the mission of WIPO, which is to promote intellectual-property rights.
"To hold a meeting which has as its purpose to disclaim or waive such rights seems to us to be contrary to the goals of WIPO," she said.
They obviously don't get it.
Or, maybe I don't.. Is there a broader assumption behind "intellectual property rights"? Is this assumed to be only the right to restrict your IP as much as possible? Or, the right to protect the IP of big businesses only?
Wouldn't the right to control how my IP is used, and demand that it remain open, and any changes remain open, fall neatly into Intellectual Property Rights? Perhaps Lois should read the GPL some time.
I wouldn't say they have exactly warmed up to Linux. They continue their schizophrenic act, and can't decide whether it's good for them or bad.
THe half-assed strategy doesn't say a lot for their executive management.
And, while doing this, they have been none too subtle in their spreading of FUD around the SCO thing. They keep making statements about Sun/Solaris being the safe bet, being glad that SCO can't revoke their license, and various other statements meant to create doubt in customers use AIX or Linux.
And, that's fine.. if they want to play the FUD game, and expect their customers to still trust them, then good luck. But, don't play both sides of the game, spread Linux FUD, and sell your own hardware to benefit from Linux?!?
This is a great feature to integrate.. The antenna is a bit cumbersome though. What are they physics of GPS antennas? Will it always need to be something this large, and not directly embedded in the case of the PDA (like the 802.11 antennas placed along the LCD display on laptops)?
It seems like the chips to do GPS are pretty well minimized. But, if the antenna needs to be large, that will be a practical limit on thue usage of GPS.
This PDA is nice.. But I think I'll wait a couple generations for that PDA that can do fast/broad wireless internet access along with GPS (with long battery life, and a bigger screen)..
What many people here don't understand is that it is about more than just how much id makes, or how many people use the linux version.. id will make a buttload of cash no matter what happens. But, the distributors and retail stores need to make some good $$ on the Linux version for them to be interested in carrying future titles.
Unfortunately, with the current state of Linux 3D, I fear that this is a futile effort. Q3 is only viable in Linux with a Voodoo card. I don't think this is a large enough subset of users to make a good showing. Hopefully, when XF86 4.0 is out, Q3 will be viable on most video cards.
On the other hand.. while your throwing your support in for id, throw it in for another linux friendly vendor, 3Dfx.. Pick up a new Voodoo4 or Voodoo5 card along with your Linux version of Quake 3.
I will be waiting for the Linux retail version to run it on my Voodoo3 powered machine.
Slashdot Mirror
Before buying any more fast food, check out Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. I'm reading it right now, it has lots of interesting information about the fast food industry that might effect your desire for their food.
Of course there is also Super Size Me the movie about the guy who ate nothing but McDonald's for a month & the effects on his body. I haven't seen it yet (I'm waiting to finish "Fast Food Nation" first) but I hear it's good.
I see from the information about the "Qonos" Linux based calc that it uses an XScale (ARM) processor - like the Zaurus's do.
If it's using the same OS, on very similar hardware, the Zaurus would be a good development/prototype platform. And, it would give us Zaurus owners a good calculator option.
When I first signed up for an account at Wells Fargo, I was shocked that they used my Social Security Number as a user ID (with no way to change it) and only accepted numeric passwords. (I think it may have initially only allowed 4 digit passwords, akin to the ATM PIN, but they lengthened it later).
So, I sent them an e-mail explining the issue, and asking to be allowed a longer password with letters, numbers, and symbols.
I got back a form letter assuring me that my security was their highest priority, and I have nothing to worry about. I tried calling and talking to a human to explain the problem, but didn't get much further.
I checked back last year some time, and they had changed it to allow real username/passwords ( 4-5 years after I initially saw the problem ).
But, they made no effort to contact customers and suggest they change their accounts. It was just there for those that looked into their account settings. I'm sure you'll still find a high percentage of users that have their SSN as user-id and their four digit ATM PIN as their password.
I am surprised that the review was this bad. I don't own one of these, but I have been following some discussions about them on avsforum.com, thinking I may soon buy one.
On avsforum, there are certainly complaints, and people asking for more features, but nothing as bad as this guy's review.
Also, I think the review may have been a bit aggressive. The advertised features of the Roku are for display of digital images and audio - in an HDTV environment. The other things this guy reviewed are not part of the advertised features, they are third party applications and extensions. These extensions are encouraged by Roku.. they talk quite a bit about their open Linux platform. But, you can't really condemn Roku because of bad third party apps.
He also says that the third party apps had a distinct beta feel. Well, that's because they are beta apps.. or even alpha. If Roku provided the apps, they made a tactical error. If the guy downloaded them himself, he didn't read the descriptions very thoroughly.
Based on what I have read from Roku users, my feel for the product is this: The core feature set of HD display of images via flash or network connections works well. As does playback of MP3/AAC audio files over the network. The third party apps - to stream HDTV captures or DVD VOB files is in its infancy. They work for some people, but are not mature or reliable enough for common use. I am waiting for HDTV streaming and control before I buy one. I would like to use the Roku for playback of HD files captured with a MyHD PCI card - the combination giving something close to PVR functionality (record one program, while watching another).
My $40 Netgear access point is silent and very small and has all the features I want, Id like to see someone put together a linux based wifi router for that sort of money
r t54g
Actually, there are some Linux based AP's for not much more than that. I'm not talking about x86 boxes, with a Wifi card and software to act as an AP. There are cheap hardware AP's that use Linux, and can be extended & modified.
The one I use is the Linksys WRT54G. It's an 802.11G AP, running Linux, and there are several open projects creating firmware updates with nice feature extensions. At the minimum, it allows you to ssh into the box and modify the firewall settings to do exactly what you want.. which is a bit leap over closed AP's.
Some good info on mods for this AP are here: http://www.seattlewireless.net/index.cgi/LinksysW
VIA keeps bumping up the speed of their processors. Their newest core is reported to use 3W @ 1GHz. The newer cores also have performance improvements, so it should be faster at the same clock speed too.
The AMD chips are Geode cores, which are not known for blazing performance. It would be intersting to see a comparison among the C3, Geode, Pentium-M, and Transmeta chips. Raw performance and performance per watt would be nice to know.
By default, Google mail has images turned off. You have to click a link at the top of the message to force it to load the images.
Most other mailers also have a way to turn off image loading because spammers have been using this tracking technique for a long time. If mailers don't allow image blocking yet, I'm sure that a service like this will get them to add that trivial feature.
My goal with my HTPC was to integrate it into my home theater as much as possible. That means using all of the components from a basic infrared remote.
My MyHD HDTV PCI receiver card came with an IR receiver, so that was not a problem. There are many remote control options for the various DVD player packages.
An app like Girder can combine many applications and PC control functions for IR control.
For the things that I cannot do via remote, VNC from my laptop lets me have full control. Or, a basic wireless keyboard/mouse are handy in rare occasions.
From the article:
Lois Boland, director of international relations for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, said that open-source software runs counter to the mission of WIPO, which is to promote intellectual-property rights.
"To hold a meeting which has as its purpose to disclaim or waive such rights seems to us to be contrary to the goals of WIPO," she said.
They obviously don't get it.
Or, maybe I don't.. Is there a broader assumption behind "intellectual property rights"? Is this assumed to be only the right to restrict your IP as much as possible? Or, the right to protect the IP of big businesses only?
Wouldn't the right to control how my IP is used, and demand that it remain open, and any changes remain open, fall neatly into Intellectual Property Rights? Perhaps Lois should read the GPL some time.
I wouldn't say they have exactly warmed up to Linux. They continue their schizophrenic act, and can't decide whether it's good for them or bad.
THe half-assed strategy doesn't say a lot for their executive management.
And, while doing this, they have been none too subtle in their spreading of FUD around the SCO thing. They keep making statements about Sun/Solaris being the safe bet, being glad that SCO can't revoke their license, and various other statements meant to create doubt in customers use AIX or Linux.
And, that's fine.. if they want to play the FUD game, and expect their customers to still trust them, then good luck. But, don't play both sides of the game, spread Linux FUD, and sell your own hardware to benefit from Linux?!?
This is a great feature to integrate.. The antenna is a bit cumbersome though. What are they physics of GPS antennas? Will it always need to be something this large, and not directly embedded in the case of the PDA (like the 802.11 antennas placed along the LCD display on laptops)?
It seems like the chips to do GPS are pretty well minimized. But, if the antenna needs to be large, that will be a practical limit on thue usage of GPS.
This PDA is nice.. But I think I'll wait a couple generations for that PDA that can do fast/broad wireless internet access along with GPS (with long battery life, and a bigger screen)..
What many people here don't understand is that it is about more than just how much id makes, or how many people use the linux version.. id will make a buttload of cash no matter what happens. But, the distributors and retail stores need to make some good $$ on the Linux version for them to be interested in carrying future titles.
Unfortunately, with the current state of Linux 3D, I fear that this is a futile effort. Q3 is only viable in Linux with a Voodoo card. I don't think this is a large enough subset of users to make a good showing. Hopefully, when XF86 4.0 is out, Q3 will be viable on most video cards.
On the other hand.. while your throwing your support in for id, throw it in for another linux friendly vendor, 3Dfx.. Pick up a new Voodoo4 or Voodoo5 card along with your Linux version of Quake 3.
I will be waiting for the Linux retail version to run it on my Voodoo3 powered machine.