I seem to remember a time when Microsoft made a product announcement when they figured out that there was either a viable alternative to their product, or some computer hardware platform without a M$ OS.
Then when they released, there was huge press coverage with fanboy-like praise for a mediocre product and gigantic marketing campaigns (connection?) that left the underfunded competitor in the dust despite the competitor's superior product.
Like it or not, I see that happening again with IE7.
I'm also thinking someone at M$ has probably recommended IE7 to be a huge memory/bandwidth/CPU sucking hog with DRM hooks into the system as far as they can get them.
Then, Microsoft gets to say they are protecting their users because they delivered a more secure browser. And...
(Cue gameshow announcer voice now!)
The best way to enjoy more security is to buy a new Dell/Intel PC!!! Ohhh... Ahhh... (cue applause) Your new computer will have all these great Media Conglomerate entertainment "features" you couldn't get on your old PC because your old PC was just too old... wash, rinse, repeat.
Taxes:
There was a time in American history when taxes and the benefits of those taxes were not directly correlated. That is what you are saying when you claim "Totally different and doesn't apply."
Americans had enough of that British policy and started a revolution.
Subsidies:
If you subsidize a wealthy class they will tend to believe that money just falls out of the sky and spend it just as wisely. I have a feeling in your magical world this wouldn't happen. But, the problem is History has shown that the wealthy class tends to be overthrown by the group left out of the magical thinking party.
Closing:
Now if you really did study Economics you would know it is a social science. Which is the study of the interaction between individuals and society. See there's a whole "Society" thing you haven't worked into your grand tax scheme.
Your stats regarding who pays taxes are correct. But, the rest isn't factual in any way and probably justifies some strongly held irrational beliefs:
What you tax you get less of:
This intellectual ideal fails the second it's applied to what's going on in the world. (reality) Do you want less education, roads and civil defense? Because that is what happens when you apply your ideal to reality.
What you subsidize you get more of:
Subsidies radically distort ruthlessly efficient free-market forces and typically create excess supply that demand never meets. Then more subidies are required to balance supply and demand and it all never seems to work as planned.
In my experience working for a Taiwanese OEM/ODM, the Chinese OEM's are not interested in quality-oriented design features unless their biggest customer demands or somehow provides it.
They aren't very interested in providing anywhere near the level of customer service of an American company either.
They see huge profit margins if they remove those quaint American features called "quality" and "service."
Am I only person that believes that a Harvard education is somehow "better" than most? It's irrational, but it's still there.
When you are competing with other Ivy leagueres for a high-paying job in a mature industry I think your statement is true.
An Ivy-league education is a powerful symbol of wealth and status that will open doors to more wealth and power for you than my State College education will ever do.
I'm not crying about it, I have to aquire my wealth and power a different (non-traditional) way.
Michael
1. How much will it cost? Axalto smart cards are still very expensive even for 10,000+ card orders. (A rough estimate about $7 a card for 10,000) Ouch!
2. Where's the infrastructure to handle this? Card issuing and management is still a double-secret custom application that will cost as much as the cards.
3. Based on the press release, (couldn't RTFA) it sounds like Axalto has a library that sends commands back to their existing smart card. Putting an application on the card to do this doesn't seem very smart because of the lack of computing resources on the card.
Good luck to them.
The Animation Guild (TAG), local 839 of the IATSE. They represent animators, TDs, writers, etc. at Disney, Warner Bros., DreamWorks, Cartoon Network, Sony Pictures Animation, Nick, Universal, and a bunch of smaller studios. We've been around for 52 years, and we've fought the same issues you're all dealing with now.
The first step is for EA employees to sign representation cards. Those cards indicate an interest in being represented by TAG in collective bargaining.
When about half of the EA employees have signed rep cards, the company is required to hold a secret ballot election in which the everyone votes. If the majority vote yes, the company is required to bargain with the union.
There's a reason the most stable and successful studios in feature and TV animation have almost all been union. When we have our rights respected, we're more creative and productive. Unfortunately, company executives usually don't respect us unless they're forced to.
Call Steve Hulett at (818) 766-7151. He's the Guild's business agent, and he can meet with you, get you rep cards, and answer your questions. We've already gotten a smattering of rep cards from EA, but the problem is that most people in the games industry don't know about the Guild, and don't know what their rights are, so they stay silent.
Site was very slow, probably/.'d Here's the text:
The Incredible Shrinking Profit Margin
Passion, anger, humor and realism are the order of the day at a lively NARIP panel on how major labels want more from artists and do less. One prediction: "Britney Spears is over."
Reported by Scott G
"Been there, done that, still doing it, but with new budget parameters."
That seemed likely to be the summary of the National Association of Record Industry Professionals' (NARIP) "Incredible Shrinking Profit Margin" program, a look into how major labels are providing fewer services while attempting to grab a piece of artists' publishing, merchandising, touring and more.
Boy, was I wrong.
The session was funny, lively, controversial, cynical, hopeful and exciting. Before the session, it seemed that this topic would lead to a gloomy recitation of low sales figures. But the three panelists mixed facts and a fantastic amount of passion into their presentations - so much, in fact, that they would have goosed an audience even if they'd been discussing the phone book.
Who's Who on the NARIP Panel:
Participating in the discussion were Darryl Franklin (Business & Legal Affairs for Interscope, A&M, Geffen and DreamWorks Records), entertainment attorney Dina LaPolt (LaPolt Law) and Carol Peters (Peters Management Syndicate). Each has an excellent track record (see bios at the end of this story) and each brought a unique perspective to the evening's presentation.
Negotiating a Record Deal:
A prime attraction for this event was a mock negotiation of a major label contract for an up-and- coming band. Each panelist played himself in a hypothetical conversation. While this elicited excellent information and insights (along with much humorous banter), the hoped-for effect of the audience being a fly on the wall didn't always work because all three panelists kept stepping out of their mock negotiation with asides to the audience. The information was great; no one complained.
In fact, NARIP President and panel moderator Tess Taylor rarely needed to ask follow-up questions, as the panel launched into responses in a freewheeling yet coherent onslaught of ideas, fee ranges and controversial deal points.
Some selected gems:
Franklin, on the ephemeral nature of the record industry: "Britney Spears as a pop artist is over."
LaPolt, on the next big area for artist/producer/publisher/record company profits: Mobile phone rights. "Know the four parts of mobile phone rights: master, sync, image, and Java games."
Peters, on the change from physical to digital sales: "Who is the traditional market for records? 14-24 year-olds. It's ironic, but the core record buyers are not buying records."
Franklin, on the profit-taking of phone corporations when their services offer downloads: "Phone companies take 50% of all downloads." Another observation raised a few eyebrows: "The phone could replace the iPod."
LaPolt, on fees that game companies pay to license songs: "They're tiny. Incredibly tiny. And it's inefficient. EA (Electronic Arts) will clear 60 masters, then use just 15 songs in a game, all at low rates. And they want to pay these low rates on a buyout basis, with no share of revenue, no points, and no step-deals."
Peters, on the current state of affairs in the recording industry: "The record business right now is like musical 'Survivor'."
Franklin, sending a warning to MTV: "There's a new video channel in town. Watch for Fuse TV."
LaPolt, on the future: "There is new music coming, real diversity of music, and it will be a rebirth of the record industry."
The Bottom Line:
The LaPolt Law handout on "Traditional Major Label Royalty Computation" was itself nearly worth the price of admission as it revealed the formula used by record companies to retain a much higher amount of money than might otherwise be expected from the way the artist contract is worded. There's a reason major label artist payments are known as a "penny rate."
In addition, the NARIP-supplied "iTunes Artist-Producer Royalty Calculation" sheet was fa
Let's influence a few suckers whose opinions are changed while they waste their lives watching TV and get them to vote against GW.
There's nothing like an angry mob's lack of thought process to do the voting for the Democrats. Republicans would try the same thing if they had the opportunity.
Please, Don't pretend party X wouldn't stoop so low. American politics is bloodsport. Bare-knuckle, no-holds barred, no trick too dirty.
I for one highly value people like him. I just wish they all worked exclusively for causes I believed in!
Slashdot Mirror
I seem to remember a time when Microsoft made a product announcement when they figured out that there was either a viable alternative to their product, or some computer hardware platform without a M$ OS.
Then when they released, there was huge press coverage with fanboy-like praise for a mediocre product and gigantic marketing campaigns (connection?) that left the underfunded competitor in the dust despite the competitor's superior product.
Like it or not, I see that happening again with IE7.
I'm also thinking someone at M$ has probably recommended IE7 to be a huge memory/bandwidth/CPU sucking hog with DRM hooks into the system as far as they can get them.
Then, Microsoft gets to say they are protecting their users because they delivered a more secure browser. And...
(Cue gameshow announcer voice now!)
The best way to enjoy more security is to buy a new Dell/Intel PC!!! Ohhh... Ahhh... (cue applause) Your new computer will have all these great Media Conglomerate entertainment "features" you couldn't get on your old PC because your old PC was just too old... wash, rinse, repeat.
Mod me flamebait/off-topic/whatever now.
Taxes: There was a time in American history when taxes and the benefits of those taxes were not directly correlated. That is what you are saying when you claim "Totally different and doesn't apply." Americans had enough of that British policy and started a revolution. Subsidies: If you subsidize a wealthy class they will tend to believe that money just falls out of the sky and spend it just as wisely. I have a feeling in your magical world this wouldn't happen. But, the problem is History has shown that the wealthy class tends to be overthrown by the group left out of the magical thinking party. Closing: Now if you really did study Economics you would know it is a social science. Which is the study of the interaction between individuals and society. See there's a whole "Society" thing you haven't worked into your grand tax scheme.
What you tax you get less of:
This intellectual ideal fails the second it's applied to what's going on in the world. (reality) Do you want less education, roads and civil defense? Because that is what happens when you apply your ideal to reality.
What you subsidize you get more of:
Subsidies radically distort ruthlessly efficient free-market forces and typically create excess supply that demand never meets. Then more subidies are required to balance supply and demand and it all never seems to work as planned.
Finally, though off-topic, see this objective look as to what segments of society benefited the most from tax year 2002 cuts http://www.numberboy.org/taxcut/1taxcutresults1.0d w.html
(numberboy.org)
In my experience working for a Taiwanese OEM/ODM, the Chinese OEM's are not interested in quality-oriented design features unless their biggest customer demands or somehow provides it.
They aren't very interested in providing anywhere near the level of customer service of an American company either.
They see huge profit margins if they remove those quaint American features called "quality" and "service."
It's not going to happen.
When you are competing with other Ivy leagueres for a high-paying job in a mature industry I think your statement is true.
An Ivy-league education is a powerful symbol of wealth and status that will open doors to more wealth and power for you than my State College education will ever do.
I'm not crying about it, I have to aquire my wealth and power a different (non-traditional) way. Michael
1. How much will it cost? Axalto smart cards are still very expensive even for 10,000+ card orders. (A rough estimate about $7 a card for 10,000) Ouch! 2. Where's the infrastructure to handle this? Card issuing and management is still a double-secret custom application that will cost as much as the cards. 3. Based on the press release, (couldn't RTFA) it sounds like Axalto has a library that sends commands back to their existing smart card. Putting an application on the card to do this doesn't seem very smart because of the lack of computing resources on the card. Good luck to them.
The first step is for EA employees to sign representation cards. Those cards indicate an interest in being represented by TAG in collective bargaining.
When about half of the EA employees have signed rep cards, the company is required to hold a secret ballot election in which the everyone votes. If the majority vote yes, the company is required to bargain with the union.
There's a reason the most stable and successful studios in feature and TV animation have almost all been union. When we have our rights respected, we're more creative and productive. Unfortunately, company executives usually don't respect us unless they're forced to.
Call Steve Hulett at (818) 766-7151. He's the Guild's business agent, and he can meet with you, get you rep cards, and answer your questions. We've already gotten a smattering of rep cards from EA, but the problem is that most people in the games industry don't know about the Guild, and don't know what their rights are, so they stay silent.
Site was very slow, probably /.'d Here's the text:
The Incredible Shrinking Profit Margin
Passion, anger, humor and realism are the order of the day at a lively NARIP panel on how major labels want more from artists and do less. One prediction: "Britney Spears is over."
Reported by Scott G
"Been there, done that, still doing it, but with new budget parameters."
That seemed likely to be the summary of the National Association of Record Industry Professionals' (NARIP) "Incredible Shrinking Profit Margin" program, a look into how major labels are providing fewer services while attempting to grab a piece of artists' publishing, merchandising, touring and more.
Boy, was I wrong.
The session was funny, lively, controversial, cynical, hopeful and exciting. Before the session, it seemed that this topic would lead to a gloomy recitation of low sales figures. But the three panelists mixed facts and a fantastic amount of passion into their presentations - so much, in fact, that they would have goosed an audience even if they'd been discussing the phone book.
Who's Who on the NARIP Panel:
Participating in the discussion were Darryl Franklin (Business & Legal Affairs for Interscope, A&M, Geffen and DreamWorks Records), entertainment attorney Dina LaPolt (LaPolt Law) and Carol Peters (Peters Management Syndicate). Each has an excellent track record (see bios at the end of this story) and each brought a unique perspective to the evening's presentation.
Negotiating a Record Deal:
A prime attraction for this event was a mock negotiation of a major label contract for an up-and- coming band. Each panelist played himself in a hypothetical conversation. While this elicited excellent information and insights (along with much humorous banter), the hoped-for effect of the audience being a fly on the wall didn't always work because all three panelists kept stepping out of their mock negotiation with asides to the audience. The information was great; no one complained.
In fact, NARIP President and panel moderator Tess Taylor rarely needed to ask follow-up questions, as the panel launched into responses in a freewheeling yet coherent onslaught of ideas, fee ranges and controversial deal points.
Some selected gems:
Franklin, on the ephemeral nature of the record industry: "Britney Spears as a pop artist is over."
LaPolt, on the next big area for artist/producer/publisher/record company profits: Mobile phone rights. "Know the four parts of mobile phone rights: master, sync, image, and Java games."
Peters, on the change from physical to digital sales: "Who is the traditional market for records? 14-24 year-olds. It's ironic, but the core record buyers are not buying records."
Franklin, on the profit-taking of phone corporations when their services offer downloads: "Phone companies take 50% of all downloads." Another observation raised a few eyebrows: "The phone could replace the iPod."
LaPolt, on fees that game companies pay to license songs: "They're tiny. Incredibly tiny. And it's inefficient. EA (Electronic Arts) will clear 60 masters, then use just 15 songs in a game, all at low rates. And they want to pay these low rates on a buyout basis, with no share of revenue, no points, and no step-deals."
Peters, on the current state of affairs in the recording industry: "The record business right now is like musical 'Survivor'."
Franklin, sending a warning to MTV: "There's a new video channel in town. Watch for Fuse TV."
LaPolt, on the future: "There is new music coming, real diversity of music, and it will be a rebirth of the record industry."
The Bottom Line:
The LaPolt Law handout on "Traditional Major Label Royalty Computation" was itself nearly worth the price of admission as it revealed the formula used by record companies to retain a much higher amount of money than might otherwise be expected from the way the artist contract is worded. There's a reason major label artist payments are known as a "penny rate."
In addition, the NARIP-supplied "iTunes Artist-Producer Royalty Calculation" sheet was fa
Let's influence a few suckers whose opinions are changed while they waste their lives watching TV and get them to vote against GW.
There's nothing like an angry mob's lack of thought process to do the voting for the Democrats. Republicans would try the same thing if they had the opportunity.
Please, Don't pretend party X wouldn't stoop so low. American politics is bloodsport. Bare-knuckle, no-holds barred, no trick too dirty.
I for one highly value people like him. I just wish they all worked exclusively for causes I believed in!
michaelpapet.com
For me, it's great.
I had somethings on my laptop not work right out of the box, but it wasn't hard at all to make it right.
The last distro I tried was buggy in ways I could not fix.
I'm not the kind of user interested in doing too much to the system other than install the packages I want, so I recommend it.
Michael
Network/telecommunications is much cheaper and widely available in North America than smart cards.
Very little smart card payment processing technology has been actually implemented as well.
Right now in the U.S. debit/credit card fraud is such a small part of the overall use of debit/credit cards that the issuing banks are paying for it.
If fraud and lack of security were such a big issue in the U.S., Visa/MC would have moved away from magnetic stripe to smart cards a LONG time ago.
So switching to contactless, (payment systems are not all RFID) gives the card companies a "new" product. Security be damned.