At my school the preferred study tool is a blackboard. Consider the display area! I bought a shiney new Toshiba notebook when I started with CD-RW and all sorts of gizmos but after 3 years here is my advice: You won't use it as much as you thought you would.
I went to law school and found the notebook was too bulky to sit on the desks properly but useful for self-study later in my room, especially given its compact size. I then went to maths/physics lectures and found I couldn't use Texmacs properly because I only had a yukky celeron processor that couldn't handle the stress. And in the odd programming project, forget about it! I borrowed my boyfriend's processor. Rather than getting around with work on CD-RWs, I found I lent them to friends to store movies portably in CD wallets.
Now consider the hassle you're going to go through trying to find drivers and software for your funny little screen. And how the software you do want will be less flexible than just grabbing another pen or turning the page.
Get a nice computer, absolutely, but travel light on campus with a little spiral-bound notebook for notes from each subject, all stored with note paper etc. in one of those folders with a zipper. At home you can have a clever filing system and I found that it helped to have a different coloured document envelope for notes for each current assignment.
Don't even get a laptop before checking that your library has data points and so on. I assumed mine would and they still don't. Other aussie universities have campus-wide wireless or nice unix labs and we get the dregs and pretty scenery. I usually manage to grab a desk near a power point (they need to plug in the vacuum cleaner somewhere I guess) and work there which helps because I live way off campus. Usually I'm only in the library preparing notes anyway and use paper. A tablet would be utterly useless to me.
I do enjoy my palm pilot, but I don't use it as a study tool, rather as a very clever and flexible organizer.
"...A Decent Office Suite For Linux That Can Interoperate Flawlessly With Microsoft Office..."
Actually, I would go so far as to say that the target market aren't actually interested in a "sufficient" product. As observed, Office is way too much bells and whistles for most users and doesn't work that well. The point of the exercise is to assure people that they can now buy the "correct office suite" and have it run on this "alternative operating system".
I think the main point to bear in mind is that the chipping isn't usually done by amateurs. It is done by tuning houses who specialize in a particular brand (eg Honda, BMW) and then change the priorities of the engine from, say, first fuel efficiency, then quietness, then vroom, to first vroom, then noisiness, then fuel efficiency.
If anyone felt like tinkering with and learning this technology they would not do themselves any damage if they kept it confined to the track, but of course that would depend on the track chosen. Eventually when the changes are proven, they can be made live.
Like the big wings and new suspension kits, it requires understanding of the principles involved and of course much experimentation not to look like an ass or to be dead.
IANAL but after a semester and a half in australian law school...
Common law prevents the need for new stupid laws to deal with every eventuality because judges look at what has gone before and try to apply old decisions to new situations in a way that makes sense, by applying the reasoning rather than the decision. This allows for clever decisions. "Common sense" comes into it with the principle of "equity" which tries to treat everyone well, rather than just equally.
However, Australia is only a common law country in practice. If Howard or anyone wants to enact a law about something, then this new law trumps the common law unless the High Court can find a good reason that the case in question falls outside the reach of the Act in question.
The reason we often just let common law deal with things is that it can. However, as we are seeing now, Howard can introduce a Bill to change the common law to anything he wants. If it gets through the House of Representatives and the Senate, then it's the law (although it can be repealed or reviewed of course).
Australian common law offers NO protection against any stupid law enacted by parliament. The need to prevent this sort of thing is as immediate and urgent as it appears.
The worst thing of all is that if you were to go and poll artists and writers, they would say that they don't want their work locked away forever anyway! So who is benefiting from this law? Huh? Once you make your buck do you want people to be able to circulate and enjoy your work? Of course you do. That's why patents are so short!
Unfortunately, as noted above, nothing will be done about this if nobody knows about it. So I guess it falls to us, those who know, to get the information moving. Letterbox-dropping is a good start, but needs to be combined with a great website describing the alternatives (for those who weren't in the covered area) and a few well-placed phone calls to various news places. "We are computer and science professionals and students. We are nervous about IP law because of these reasons. We have networked through a website for nerds and linux fans. We are dropping 1000 fliers each and posting bills at these universities. This law affects these people in these ways." Local papers will probably accept article submissions, so if you get a few people from one local paper area, they can take photos of each other and write an article. A few phone calls to talkback radio might do the trick, but better yet, try to be featured or find a lawyer (or even an interested patent clerk) to answer some questions people might have. Does anyone else have any ideas for circulating information on the importance of IP law?
I agree. Something moderately geekey but nice. You can go for a date to a museum that has a display you've been meaning to see, or to your local mini or lego town (We have cockington green in canberra a whole model town I love but my geek thinks it's lame...) or say a bike ride to a place that has a cool view... something a little different but still romantic!
And cook. They love it when you cook for them. Try to make something unusual like quiche or shepherd's pie which is truly satisfying (and works well with brown lentils for all you vegetarians) and travels and can be reheated, or flavoured pancakes for breakfast (just chuck your favourite jam or a banana in the blender with a cup of flour and one of milk and an egg).
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I went to law school and found the notebook was too bulky to sit on the desks properly but useful for self-study later in my room, especially given its compact size. I then went to maths/physics lectures and found I couldn't use Texmacs properly because I only had a yukky celeron processor that couldn't handle the stress. And in the odd programming project, forget about it! I borrowed my boyfriend's processor. Rather than getting around with work on CD-RWs, I found I lent them to friends to store movies portably in CD wallets.
Now consider the hassle you're going to go through trying to find drivers and software for your funny little screen. And how the software you do want will be less flexible than just grabbing another pen or turning the page.
Get a nice computer, absolutely, but travel light on campus with a little spiral-bound notebook for notes from each subject, all stored with note paper etc. in one of those folders with a zipper. At home you can have a clever filing system and I found that it helped to have a different coloured document envelope for notes for each current assignment.
Don't even get a laptop before checking that your library has data points and so on. I assumed mine would and they still don't. Other aussie universities have campus-wide wireless or nice unix labs and we get the dregs and pretty scenery. I usually manage to grab a desk near a power point (they need to plug in the vacuum cleaner somewhere I guess) and work there which helps because I live way off campus. Usually I'm only in the library preparing notes anyway and use paper. A tablet would be utterly useless to me.
I do enjoy my palm pilot, but I don't use it as a study tool, rather as a very clever and flexible organizer.
Actually, I would go so far as to say that the target market aren't actually interested in a "sufficient" product. As observed, Office is way too much bells and whistles for most users and doesn't work that well. The point of the exercise is to assure people that they can now buy the "correct office suite" and have it run on this "alternative operating system".
If anyone felt like tinkering with and learning this technology they would not do themselves any damage if they kept it confined to the track, but of course that would depend on the track chosen. Eventually when the changes are proven, they can be made live.
Like the big wings and new suspension kits, it requires understanding of the principles involved and of course much experimentation not to look like an ass or to be dead.
Common law prevents the need for new stupid laws to deal with every eventuality because judges look at what has gone before and try to apply old decisions to new situations in a way that makes sense, by applying the reasoning rather than the decision. This allows for clever decisions. "Common sense" comes into it with the principle of "equity" which tries to treat everyone well, rather than just equally.
However, Australia is only a common law country in practice. If Howard or anyone wants to enact a law about something, then this new law trumps the common law unless the High Court can find a good reason that the case in question falls outside the reach of the Act in question.
The reason we often just let common law deal with things is that it can. However, as we are seeing now, Howard can introduce a Bill to change the common law to anything he wants. If it gets through the House of Representatives and the Senate, then it's the law (although it can be repealed or reviewed of course).
Australian common law offers NO protection against any stupid law enacted by parliament. The need to prevent this sort of thing is as immediate and urgent as it appears.
The worst thing of all is that if you were to go and poll artists and writers, they would say that they don't want their work locked away forever anyway! So who is benefiting from this law? Huh? Once you make your buck do you want people to be able to circulate and enjoy your work? Of course you do. That's why patents are so short!
Unfortunately, as noted above, nothing will be done about this if nobody knows about it. So I guess it falls to us, those who know, to get the information moving. Letterbox-dropping is a good start, but needs to be combined with a great website describing the alternatives (for those who weren't in the covered area) and a few well-placed phone calls to various news places. "We are computer and science professionals and students. We are nervous about IP law because of these reasons. We have networked through a website for nerds and linux fans. We are dropping 1000 fliers each and posting bills at these universities. This law affects these people in these ways." Local papers will probably accept article submissions, so if you get a few people from one local paper area, they can take photos of each other and write an article. A few phone calls to talkback radio might do the trick, but better yet, try to be featured or find a lawyer (or even an interested patent clerk) to answer some questions people might have. Does anyone else have any ideas for circulating information on the importance of IP law?
A tie! Men either love them or if they don't they really need to be edumacated!
I agree. Something moderately geekey but nice. You can go for a date to a museum that has a display you've been meaning to see, or to your local mini or lego town (We have cockington green in canberra a whole model town I love but my geek thinks it's lame...) or say a bike ride to a place that has a cool view... something a little different but still romantic! And cook. They love it when you cook for them. Try to make something unusual like quiche or shepherd's pie which is truly satisfying (and works well with brown lentils for all you vegetarians) and travels and can be reheated, or flavoured pancakes for breakfast (just chuck your favourite jam or a banana in the blender with a cup of flour and one of milk and an egg).