At first I read "Operation Spam Zombies" such that the word "spam" was a verb. This introduces lots of interesting possibilities for the intent of the operation:
-An operation through which zombies' computers are spammed with junk mail.
-An operation involving feeding zombies the nation's supply of spam, so that they satiate their hunger for flesh.
-An operation involving throwing spam at zombies for some reason.
Correction: Megatokyo *was* really good, until Fred became the sole writer. Then the random humor almost vanished, replaced by Piro's constant girl troubles. *yawn*
I still read it every day, and it still has its interesting/sometimes funny parts (the Largo storylines), but I cringe every time Piro complains about calling one of his potential female love interests.
Warlocks wouldn't have the Destruction tree if they were meant totally for support. My old 'Lock (on a PvP server, retired because I got tired of the kiddies and moved to RP) was fully Destruction-specced, and she was two feet of gnomish fiery death.
"Currently, the balance is in favor of file swappers..."
Yep, with draconian laws like the DMCA in place, people being sued through quasi-legal methods by the **AA, and DRM that is increasinly becoming more restrictive (and in many cases denying the consumer the right of fair use,) those evil file-swapping pirates obviously have the upper hand on those innocent lobbying collectives.
Oh, wait, we ARE talking about Bizarro World, aren't we?
"How do they suggest that these items generate income when its equally made available for free as a download by people who have no financial attachments to the creation of the work?"
Competition.
If the free downloads have low quality, offer high-quality movies. If they take an hour to download, give it to the consumer in a half-hour or less. If the freebies have long queues, make a queue-free service.
They DO hate our freedom! And they clearly do not realize that, for freedom to remain, sacrifices must be made. Sacrifices of our freedom. So, freedom must be sacrificed for freedom to endure. It makes so much sense, doesn't it?
"This will get Blu-Ray players into peoples home like the playstation did with dvds."
Doubtful. Why would people have a reason to upgrade *all* their cherished DVD's, which they spent oodles of cash on, just so they can play them on their *gaming console*? And what's so wrong with DVD's anyway that a new standard is needed?
"no further evolution will occur unless humans can be separated into isolated groups."
Actually, there are still a few isolated groups of humans living in the world today - the two that immediately come to mind are the bushmen and pygmies of Africa. Does this mean that "civilized" men are doomed to be an evolutionary dead-end, while groups that seem primitive in our eyes will make the next leap forward?
I'm sorry, but, while a good conspiracy theory, this is about as silly as Battlestar: Galactica getting sued because of its similarities to Star Wars back in the day.
Essentially, there are several archetypes (one could even call them "stereotypes") of the sci-fi genre that a great many filmmakers and writers have adopted for their own use. Motifs such as the villain being the hero's father, a spiritual father figure to the hero, and mystical overtones (such as the Force) can be found ALL OVER sci-fi movies and literature. Lucas was not the first to adopt them, and he undoubtedly will not be the last.
But, of course, the fact that these archetypes are being used over and over again by no means means that they cannot be used *well.* Peoples' fond memories of the original SW movies, the plot/characters of which were somewhat cliche as far as sci-fi movies go, only proves the point. Luke was the naive hero, Han the roguish "wild card", Leia the "damsel in distress", Vader the evil villain. What matters, however, is that Lucas honed each part to near-perfection, such that the characters were so believable and *human* that they didn't *seem* like stereotypes. I believe that it's this element that is sorely missing from the prequels, but that's another rant altogether!
"Your ad hominem comparision of libertarianism to fascism is telling"
My comparison is not only not ad hominem (although I did call you with quite deserved epitetes later) but merely stated the obvious.
Okay, let's compare the two.
Fascism: A governmental system in which the State, usually under the direction of one or a small group of individuals, holds absolute power, usually over political decisions, and often over the economic means of production and distribution as well.
Libertarianism: A governmental system in which the State is reduced to its basic functions of protecting the people under its oversight from other people, and enforcing contracts.
No; I'm saying that anyone who subscribes to a political philosophy which gives the O.K. to "noble lies" such as what occurred in the Iraq debacle cannot be trusted to tell the truth.
Read up on philosopher Leo Strauss, widely considered to be the godfather of the neoconservative "persuasion," for more information.
...but then I noticed the advertisements on the side. One of them boasts of "the ultra Left-slanted stories on TV [and] in the newspapers. Another advertises a T-shirt featuring a photo of George W. Bush framed by the message "Take That Hippy - Four More Years." Yet another proclaims, "Iraq's chances of thriving are much better than most of the media would have us believe."
As much as I would like to think that this guy is a gung-ho promoter of free speech, read in between the lines. He's a neocon, or at least a neocon sympathizer, which makes anything he says highly suspect.
Surely this must be a prelude to the severe curtailing of our freedoms, needless wars against foreign countries, and yet more lies from the government that is supposed to serve us! Surely an Orwellian future is upon us! Beware, for Big Brother is wa-
(Remainder of comment deleted by United States Ministry of Truth.)
I agree with a few of the previous posters that this review seems more like a PSP-advertisement-in-disguise than anything else. The reviewer pays lip-service to many of the DS's main selling points (wireless multiplayer, GBA compatability, stylus/touchscreen gaming) while similarly glossing over many of the PSP's serious faults (expensive, short battery life, spotty controls, huge load times on many games, the fact that it takes an IQ of 150 or over to actually get MP3's to play on the thing.)
And what's this about the lack of good games for the DS? Has the reviewer even played Feel The Magic, WarioWare Touched!, or the excellent port of Super Mario 64 (which alone should dispel the myth that the DS can barely produce good 3D graphics)? And that's not even mentioning the dozens of good GBA games that you can play on the unit.
Oh, wait, I just checked the review and found that it's from G4. I guess I shouldn't have set my expectations so high.
Agreed; haven't they heard that the new fad is i's?
With that in mind. I think the EU should hire Apple for a redesign of their laws. The result can be called iEuropean Union, or iEU for short, which, despite the fact that attempting to pronounce "iEU" will probably cause seizures in most people, will be *so* much more trendy than that whole passe "e" thing.
The fact that juornalistic sources are not revealed allows for the free flow of information perhaps more than anything else in our society. If such standards were not in place, no one would ever reveal anything controvercial, for fear of retribution from individuals or groups.
For that reason, I'm siding with the EFF, et al. on this one. They are most definitely in the right here.
On another note, however, I will be interested to see how many Apple fanbois rush to the defense of their pet company despite the fact that if one replaced "Apple" with, say, "Microsoft," they would all be up in arms about it.
Slashdot Mirror
-An operation through which zombies' computers are spammed with junk mail.
-An operation involving feeding zombies the nation's supply of spam, so that they satiate their hunger for flesh.
-An operation involving throwing spam at zombies for some reason.
The possibilities are endless!
I still read it every day, and it still has its interesting/sometimes funny parts (the Largo storylines), but I cringe every time Piro complains about calling one of his potential female love interests.
Warlocks wouldn't have the Destruction tree if they were meant totally for support. My old 'Lock (on a PvP server, retired because I got tired of the kiddies and moved to RP) was fully Destruction-specced, and she was two feet of gnomish fiery death.
But this is going WAY OT. (ducks the mod's)
OMG t3h r0xx0r!
Yep, with draconian laws like the DMCA in place, people being sued through quasi-legal methods by the **AA, and DRM that is increasinly becoming more restrictive (and in many cases denying the consumer the right of fair use,) those evil file-swapping pirates obviously have the upper hand on those innocent lobbying collectives.
Oh, wait, we ARE talking about Bizarro World, aren't we?
Competition.
If the free downloads have low quality, offer high-quality movies. If they take an hour to download, give it to the consumer in a half-hour or less. If the freebies have long queues, make a queue-free service.
That IS what capitalism is about, isn't it?
They DO hate our freedom! And they clearly do not realize that, for freedom to remain, sacrifices must be made. Sacrifices of our freedom. So, freedom must be sacrificed for freedom to endure. It makes so much sense, doesn't it?
Oh, wait...
Actually, the proper English is "think differentLY." But I suppose that would defeat the purpose of the statement.
Hmm... brainless, concerned only with consuming, attack anyone who isn't like them... anyone else willing to bet that they voted Bush?
(Aww, c'mon, it's just a harmless joke... *ducks the "troll" mod's*)
Doubtful. Why would people have a reason to upgrade *all* their cherished DVD's, which they spent oodles of cash on, just so they can play them on their *gaming console*? And what's so wrong with DVD's anyway that a new standard is needed?
Actually, there are still a few isolated groups of humans living in the world today - the two that immediately come to mind are the bushmen and pygmies of Africa. Does this mean that "civilized" men are doomed to be an evolutionary dead-end, while groups that seem primitive in our eyes will make the next leap forward?
Really? Tell me, then, how much money in merchandising was made off of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Or how about Blade Runner? Farscape? Firefly?
The best sci-fi is non-marketable.
Essentially, there are several archetypes (one could even call them "stereotypes") of the sci-fi genre that a great many filmmakers and writers have adopted for their own use. Motifs such as the villain being the hero's father, a spiritual father figure to the hero, and mystical overtones (such as the Force) can be found ALL OVER sci-fi movies and literature. Lucas was not the first to adopt them, and he undoubtedly will not be the last.
But, of course, the fact that these archetypes are being used over and over again by no means means that they cannot be used *well.* Peoples' fond memories of the original SW movies, the plot/characters of which were somewhat cliche as far as sci-fi movies go, only proves the point. Luke was the naive hero, Han the roguish "wild card", Leia the "damsel in distress", Vader the evil villain. What matters, however, is that Lucas honed each part to near-perfection, such that the characters were so believable and *human* that they didn't *seem* like stereotypes. I believe that it's this element that is sorely missing from the prequels, but that's another rant altogether!
Jar Jar Binks?
Star Wars Episode 7: George Lucas Demolishes Our Fond Childhood Memories of the Series Even More In Order to Make a Quick Buck.
Does he die? Please tell me he dies.
My comparison is not only not ad hominem (although I did call you with quite deserved epitetes later) but merely stated the obvious.
Okay, let's compare the two.
Fascism: A governmental system in which the State, usually under the direction of one or a small group of individuals, holds absolute power, usually over political decisions, and often over the economic means of production and distribution as well.
Libertarianism: A governmental system in which the State is reduced to its basic functions of protecting the people under its oversight from other people, and enforcing contracts.
How, exactly, are these two comparable again?
Read up on philosopher Leo Strauss, widely considered to be the godfather of the neoconservative "persuasion," for more information.
As much as I would like to think that this guy is a gung-ho promoter of free speech, read in between the lines. He's a neocon, or at least a neocon sympathizer, which makes anything he says highly suspect.
(Cue random follow-up poster linking to robosapienlinux.com)
(Remainder of comment deleted by United States Ministry of Truth.)
And what's this about the lack of good games for the DS? Has the reviewer even played Feel The Magic, WarioWare Touched!, or the excellent port of Super Mario 64 (which alone should dispel the myth that the DS can barely produce good 3D graphics)? And that's not even mentioning the dozens of good GBA games that you can play on the unit.
Oh, wait, I just checked the review and found that it's from G4. I guess I shouldn't have set my expectations so high.
With that in mind. I think the EU should hire Apple for a redesign of their laws. The result can be called iEuropean Union, or iEU for short, which, despite the fact that attempting to pronounce "iEU" will probably cause seizures in most people, will be *so* much more trendy than that whole passe "e" thing.
For that reason, I'm siding with the EFF, et al. on this one. They are most definitely in the right here.
On another note, however, I will be interested to see how many Apple fanbois rush to the defense of their pet company despite the fact that if one replaced "Apple" with, say, "Microsoft," they would all be up in arms about it.