Normally I'm all about accuracy, but a progress bar that shows 0% for some time is quite disconcerting.
It makes me think the process has either halted or is waiting for me to do something, especially because it's right at the start.
I'd much rather see it at 10% right away.
And if you consider the time it takes the user to download the installer, click through the launcher, etc, then they're probably more than 10% along anyway.
The user's experience is more important to the user than the accuracy of a progress bar. If they leave the process feeling good about what happened, you've done your job.
I'm not advocating for a completely random indicator and I believe the time between 10% and 75% (or 90% if you prefer) should be as accurate as possible. But the inside and outside 10% should be gimmies for various reasons.
I think the classic geek mistake is being made here... that just because it isn't right for them, it's not right for anyone.
I don't own an X-Box (I have a PS3), but after hearing about all of the interactive and extended things it can do, I'm really wishing I would have bought the X-Box instead years ago.
I love the idea that it can act as a simple extender for my Windows-based home network. I know the PS3 can do this, but I've never been able to get it to work perfectly.
I love that I can control the Xbox now with a Windows Phone, using Smart Glass.
I'm interested in how the games and achievements from my Windows Phone can interact with the X-Box.
Lately I use my PS3 more for Amazon Prime videos than anything else. And I've spent more money on DLC, movies, and songs than I have on video games by a factor of 100.
These are all things that might be viewed by some people as wasteful, non-essential, non-gamer things. But to me, they're important.
The public opinion of the Progress Bar would be considerably more favorable if programmers would simply treat 100% as if it were 75%.
In other words, do all the stuff you have to do, measuring progress and whatnot, but when you're actually at 80%, report yourself at 60%. Likewise, when you're at 95%, say you're at 70%.
Then, only when you really are completely finished, you jump from 75% to 100% in under a second.
What would a company like Mozilla have to do to offend our privacy concerns anyway?
Companies like Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Yahoo have all kinds of information on us. It's part of their business model to walk that fuzzy line between privacy and profit.
But Mozilla, with a browser and a few other auxiliary apps, plus a website that very few people even use beyond downloading apps, just doesn't have the capacity to piss people off like the other companies do.
I might as well say that New Egg has an excellent privacy record when compared to Microsoft and Google. Or The Onion. Or the florist down the street.
It would be really interesting to see, say, the diary of Anne Frank posted in a blog format -- verbatim, possibly with historical photos added.
Or the scientific journals of Darwin.
Also semi-off-topic: I once wandered into an IRC channel and found the entire cast of Hamlet (as bots) going line by line through the script complete with/me-style actions.
Maybe Facebook could let you organize your social media contacts into different "lists" and let you share content based on which "list" a person in. They could keep the membership of those "lists" private so no one knows which circle they are in or who else in in that circle.
If we're on the topic of wishlist requests for tablets, I think it would be rather cool to have a tablet (or phone for that matter) with an RF and IR transmitter.
My Harmony One remote control is quite awesome, but there are times when I'd be thrilled if I could control my entertainment system with my phone or tablet instead.
And I'm not talking about Smart Glass or Apple TV. I'm talking about actually changing inputs, master volume, radio stations, pressing pause on the DVD player, etc. There are some of us still using devices from the Stone Age of 2009.
When bringing up Switzerland in a discussion about gun control, you're being dishonest unless you also point out a few things:
1) For someone to have a gun, they need to serve three months in the military where they'll be evaluated and trained
2) The population of Switzerland is smaller than that of New York City. Sample size matters.
3) The poverty in Switzerland is half that of the United States.
And finally, Switzerland's voters are increasingly in favor of tighter regulations and ending the military-gun-at-home policy.
I'm also a bit unclear about some of the ammunition laws in Switzerland. While guns are easy to come by, it seems the ammo is more controlled than it is in the United States. And, the free ammo that the militia get only contains 50 rounds, sealed and numbered.
Granted it's cheap, but anyone considering this should really just get an iPad.
The Model A might have a USB port, but it totally lacks apps and does not have a Retina Display. The onboard storage is so limited, why even bother? And without WiFi, it's nearly useless. Not to mention the base of accessories the iPad already enjoys.
Seriously, a $35 Raspberry Pi and an $899 Surface Pro... all anyone needs is an iPad.
Heh. Okay. So first, that's a Cyber Monday deal. Not sure if you can count that against the list price of another item. But whatever.
The X230 for $920 has a HDD, not the SDD that the Surface Pro has. Further, there is no Bluetooth, only a 3-cell battery, it has Windows 7, the keyboard is not detachable to my knowledge, and appears to only have the one camera.
Don't get me wrong. I love Lenovo. But you cannot say the Surface Pro at $899 is too expensive, and point to the Lenovo X230T as a better alternative.
Many people seem to be confused that this is some kind of privacy invasion, with Microsoft sharing your search queries with all of your friends.
No. You must specifically log in to so.cl and perform a search. It is only these searches which are made public and (if you allow it) to your social networks.
The site is definitely geared to students and to help them collaborate on search results. It even offers features similar to Pinterest and a video chat room surrounding specific terms.
Everyday people often choose convinience over security. They forego data encryption, they have simple passwords, and they don't think twice about their privacy implications.
Agreed. While most people probably wouldn't think about stealing something with three dozen guards around, this is a huge personal security loophole.
Every time I travel I see the opportunity to steal someone's stuff. If someone is "detained" for a second scan, their stuff is always left availble.
I've even had security guards attempt to hand me laptop bags asking, "Is this yours?" It belonged to someone who was still on the other side of the body scan.
Add that your personal items (keys and wallet, mostly) are in the little bin as well, and I'm surprised that not more theft happens this way.
Your comment reminded me of my old laptop and cell phone, both which had IrDA.
I never even thought about it, of course, until one day I set my cell phone down exactly line-of-sight to the laptop and both of the devices lit up and started talking to each other. The laptop even made a funny zap noise. Freaked me out.
You need to use your windows live account, check your email through Live messenger, you want to use Internet explorer, don't you.
Hello. I am using Windows 8.
I did not need to provide my Windows Live login for anything. While it is suggested, it certainly wasn't required.
I am using the built-in email, calendar, and messenger apps. All of them allow connectivity to multiple services including Exchange, Facebook, and more. (Yes, I can even see my Facebook contacts and events integrated into the various apps.)
And while Windows 8 certainly ships with IE 10, you're not forced to use it. I could have easily installed Firefox and tabbed it to the Metro screen if I wanted.
Slashdot Mirror
Normally I'm all about accuracy, but a progress bar that shows 0% for some time is quite disconcerting.
It makes me think the process has either halted or is waiting for me to do something, especially because it's right at the start.
I'd much rather see it at 10% right away.
And if you consider the time it takes the user to download the installer, click through the launcher, etc, then they're probably more than 10% along anyway.
The user's experience is more important to the user than the accuracy of a progress bar. If they leave the process feeling good about what happened, you've done your job.
I'm not advocating for a completely random indicator and I believe the time between 10% and 75% (or 90% if you prefer) should be as accurate as possible. But the inside and outside 10% should be gimmies for various reasons.
I'd be thrilled, except that I still have at least $200 invested in PS3 Rock Band DLC alone.
I think the classic geek mistake is being made here... that just because it isn't right for them, it's not right for anyone.
I don't own an X-Box (I have a PS3), but after hearing about all of the interactive and extended things it can do, I'm really wishing I would have bought the X-Box instead years ago.
I love the idea that it can act as a simple extender for my Windows-based home network. I know the PS3 can do this, but I've never been able to get it to work perfectly.
I love that I can control the Xbox now with a Windows Phone, using Smart Glass.
I'm interested in how the games and achievements from my Windows Phone can interact with the X-Box.
Lately I use my PS3 more for Amazon Prime videos than anything else. And I've spent more money on DLC, movies, and songs than I have on video games by a factor of 100.
These are all things that might be viewed by some people as wasteful, non-essential, non-gamer things. But to me, they're important.
The public opinion of the Progress Bar would be considerably more favorable if programmers would simply treat 100% as if it were 75%.
In other words, do all the stuff you have to do, measuring progress and whatnot, but when you're actually at 80%, report yourself at 60%. Likewise, when you're at 95%, say you're at 70%.
Then, only when you really are completely finished, you jump from 75% to 100% in under a second.
Complaints gone.
What would a company like Mozilla have to do to offend our privacy concerns anyway?
Companies like Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Yahoo have all kinds of information on us. It's part of their business model to walk that fuzzy line between privacy and profit.
But Mozilla, with a browser and a few other auxiliary apps, plus a website that very few people even use beyond downloading apps, just doesn't have the capacity to piss people off like the other companies do.
I might as well say that New Egg has an excellent privacy record when compared to Microsoft and Google. Or The Onion. Or the florist down the street.
It would be really interesting to see, say, the diary of Anne Frank posted in a blog format -- verbatim, possibly with historical photos added.
Or the scientific journals of Darwin.
Also semi-off-topic: I once wandered into an IRC channel and found the entire cast of Hamlet (as bots) going line by line through the script complete with /me-style actions.
Except that Windows RT comes with Microsoft Office, for free, already installed.
I get your point, though. But the same argument can be made for so many other things.
Grandma bought $app (for Mac OS) because she has an iPad and knows that it's made by Apple.
Grandma bought $app for her Android (v1.23) tablet because she knows that it runs Android. Except it is only supported on v4.56.
Yes, there is a lot of confusion in the marketplace. But Microsoft does not have the monopoly on it.
How many of your Android tablet apps will run on your desktop/laptop?
Every Windows RT app that I've bought works on both my Surface RT and my two Windows 8 machines.
And the purchases and settings are automatically sync'd.
It's okay. We'll totally have flying cars by then.
Maybe Facebook could let you organize your social media contacts into different "lists" and let you share content based on which "list" a person in. They could keep the membership of those "lists" private so no one knows which circle they are in or who else in in that circle.
Oh wait. It does.
Yeah okay. I'm pretty much in love with my Harmony, and I don't think IR and RF are going away any time soon.
And gee, adding a dongle to my tablet, or a BT-to-IR transmitter, sure sounds a lot easier than just having a tablet with built-in IR.
You can have your dream list, and I can have mine. :)
If we're on the topic of wishlist requests for tablets, I think it would be rather cool to have a tablet (or phone for that matter) with an RF and IR transmitter.
My Harmony One remote control is quite awesome, but there are times when I'd be thrilled if I could control my entertainment system with my phone or tablet instead.
And I'm not talking about Smart Glass or Apple TV. I'm talking about actually changing inputs, master volume, radio stations, pressing pause on the DVD player, etc. There are some of us still using devices from the Stone Age of 2009.
The Start search feature is just as it was before... except for most situations you might already BE at the start menu.
When you press the Windows key, you're always taken to the start menu. Always.
Once there, just grab your keyboard and start typing. The Start menu instantly jumps into search mode, just as it was in Windows 7.
You can type:
* app names
* files
* paths
* control panel names
And you can also use it to search *inside* any equipped app such as your email client, the web, stocks, etc... with the push of a down arrow.
It's everything Windows 7 Desktop Search offered, but better.
When bringing up Switzerland in a discussion about gun control, you're being dishonest unless you also point out a few things:
1) For someone to have a gun, they need to serve three months in the military where they'll be evaluated and trained
2) The population of Switzerland is smaller than that of New York City. Sample size matters.
3) The poverty in Switzerland is half that of the United States.
And finally, Switzerland's voters are increasingly in favor of tighter regulations and ending the military-gun-at-home policy.
I'm also a bit unclear about some of the ammunition laws in Switzerland. While guns are easy to come by, it seems the ammo is more controlled than it is in the United States. And, the free ammo that the militia get only contains 50 rounds, sealed and numbered.
Granted it's cheap, but anyone considering this should really just get an iPad.
The Model A might have a USB port, but it totally lacks apps and does not have a Retina Display. The onboard storage is so limited, why even bother? And without WiFi, it's nearly useless. Not to mention the base of accessories the iPad already enjoys.
Seriously, a $35 Raspberry Pi and an $899 Surface Pro... all anyone needs is an iPad.
#OnSlashdotEverythingIsInferiorToIPad
Heh. Okay. So first, that's a Cyber Monday deal. Not sure if you can count that against the list price of another item. But whatever.
The X230 for $920 has a HDD, not the SDD that the Surface Pro has. Further, there is no Bluetooth, only a 3-cell battery, it has Windows 7, the keyboard is not detachable to my knowledge, and appears to only have the one camera.
Don't get me wrong. I love Lenovo. But you cannot say the Surface Pro at $899 is too expensive, and point to the Lenovo X230T as a better alternative.
Yes, and there's only like 20 business people in the world. Maybe 30. This product is doomed.
You DO realize that there is a market for "business people" who want more than just a cheap tablet, right? They'll get the Surface Pro.
And fo those who want a iPad-like device, but in the Windows system, there's the Surface.
$1030 for an X230T? That sounds like a pretty amazing price. They're listed right now (on NewEgg and Amazon) for just over $1300.
Many people seem to be confused that this is some kind of privacy invasion, with Microsoft sharing your search queries with all of your friends.
No. You must specifically log in to so.cl and perform a search. It is only these searches which are made public and (if you allow it) to your social networks.
The site is definitely geared to students and to help them collaborate on search results. It even offers features similar to Pinterest and a video chat room surrounding specific terms.
Everyday people often choose convinience over security. They forego data encryption, they have simple passwords, and they don't think twice about their privacy implications.
Criminals are often no different.
Don't even get me started on baggage claim...
Agreed. While most people probably wouldn't think about stealing something with three dozen guards around, this is a huge personal security loophole.
Every time I travel I see the opportunity to steal someone's stuff. If someone is "detained" for a second scan, their stuff is always left availble.
I've even had security guards attempt to hand me laptop bags asking, "Is this yours?" It belonged to someone who was still on the other side of the body scan.
Add that your personal items (keys and wallet, mostly) are in the little bin as well, and I'm surprised that not more theft happens this way.
Take us to JFK Airport, Warp 7.
Engage!
Your comment reminded me of my old laptop and cell phone, both which had IrDA.
I never even thought about it, of course, until one day I set my cell phone down exactly line-of-sight to the laptop and both of the devices lit up and started talking to each other. The laptop even made a funny zap noise. Freaked me out.
You need to use your windows live account, check your email through Live messenger, you want to use Internet explorer, don't you.
Hello. I am using Windows 8.
I did not need to provide my Windows Live login for anything. While it is suggested, it certainly wasn't required.
I am using the built-in email, calendar, and messenger apps. All of them allow connectivity to multiple services including Exchange, Facebook, and more. (Yes, I can even see my Facebook contacts and events integrated into the various apps.)
And while Windows 8 certainly ships with IE 10, you're not forced to use it. I could have easily installed Firefox and tabbed it to the Metro screen if I wanted.