I read the shorter article (many words = enemy), and I can't help but wonder how the gov't actually intends on enforcing this issue. Are they really hiring programmers of thier own to look at the code? If not, would the average gov't employee know what he/she is looking at? Even if they were given some sort of a design document (hehhe) would they even be able to determine the true intent or implementation?
Yes, finally our world will be safe from rogue chess players. Now the US can spend its resources on petty topics, such as the economy, drugs, unemployment, invading other countries, etc, etc.
I could see how this could be used to perform some "detective" work elsewhere - connect via RF instead of serial, and now you have a surface checker that is not limited to 7ft from the PC (this assumes, of course, that it is not really a glove on your hand either). But could it be modified to enter areas that are too dangerous for humans to enter? Mount it on a small roving robot, and maybe it could inspect those pesky tiles on the space shuttle??
My current company does not pay for any of those things - no internet, cell phone, etc. They don't even pay for internet access for everyone inside the company building. I tend to think of this as absolute cheapness on the companies' part, since these tools can help dedicated employees do better jobs. Real performance evaluations will weed out those that aren't dedicated.?
Luckily, I am currently hiding at a customer site. After that... well, anyone need a couple of software contractors?
It sounds like most of the responses to the parent (and the parent itself) is responding to personal experiences. Usually, we get into a situation that is either so hideous or so great that it is remembered for a long time. It is quite necessary for developers to interact with other people, esp. when they are on a team. On the flip side, it is absolutely important for developers to have some time to themselves, without listening to every other conversation in the building.
So I would say that we should all beware of the guy in the room, if he is in there all the time, but let him be in there a good portion of his time.
I frequently get calls from people with similar situations - they have to run IE, Kazaa, and every other file sharing program under the sun, and then wonder why the PC gets infected. And even though I charge for cleaning the machines, it just gets tiresome to constantly do the same process to the same machines.
But some of the problem is a lack of understanding that there really are other browsers available, and they really can be used under Windows. Like it or not, the average Joe doesn't know what Opera or Firefox is, even though most of us have grown to love them. Even if you explain to them the benefits, they often say "Well, I am used to this, so I will just stick with it - it seems to work ok."
My horrible experience should be a warning to others...
- Only managers could get big cubicles with window seats. Therefore, the managers that did basically nothing all day could look out the window. It was, however, a blessing in disguise, since the windows were so cheap they froze and cooked you in the winter and summer, respectively.
- No internet access to the average developer. I think we all know why this is bad.
- Low cubicle walls. These allow noise pollution to surround you. And the best part is when the person that answers the incoming phone calls is in the next cubicle.
- Cheap motivational posters. We all know these are not worth the paper they are printed on, and they imply that management doesn't respect the intelligence of the employees.
- The printer (notice that *printer* is singular)being located on the other side of the building.
- Cubicles are an adequate way of dividing up office space, but if you are going to put > 1 person in a cube, let those people agree on thier cubemate. Nothing is worse than spending 8+ hours a day with a person you cannot stand. Notice I didn't say to allow people to choose cubemates, but approve them.
But if this thing has a laser pointer attached to it, and it has the accuracy to point at the right button to press, why couldn't it just press the button itself and skip the astronauts?
I don't typically work on these all-or-nothing type of systems. I usually work on embedded controllers, so we have the ability to put, say 10 units into the field for trials. Given the English air troubles and now this, isn't there a way to deploy a system such as this where it can be tested with real-world loads but not be the only system in use? Our controllers are not placed directly on the assembly line on the first day out, just for this purpose.
Is there a real reason for these types of devices? Why do I need a cell phone that mangages email addresses, takes pictures, surfs the web on a postage-stamp size screen, etc.etc.? How about making it so that my phone can work nearly everywhere first? It doesn't work at my house, I can't go *inside* any buildings like walmart and still recv a call. Maybe if it did its original function well, we wouldn't need 5000 other features.
If you were really good, you could write a human emulator while you were at work - then it could play the game for you, and you could spend the time with the SO. Both issues solved!
I would think that the military would get someone (or themselves) to roll a Military version of Linux. Then they could control deployment of the software for various purposes a bit easier. Make sense?
I went on a service call to a home user. They proceeded to tell me that they bought a Dell 8 months ago, and hadn't opened it all that time. When they did open it and set it up, it wouldn't boot. They contacted Dell, and Dell tech support informed them that "hard drives need to be used frequently or they stop working."
One of the difficult things associated with Windows is that you can't always get online to download the updates. Where I live, the majority of people still use dialup, and gathering the Windows updates is like sucking peanut butter through a straw. The other problem is that alot of people don't know what updates really are, and how they can affect their pc. Also, try getting the most recent patches for an OS that is not the most current one (or shockingly, one not connected to the internet). MS makes it really hard to download and install updates on a machine that is not running the latest OS and has a slow (or no) connection to the internet.
I worked for a company that provided this 'service' to its employees. Once the paper (ugh) timecards were filled out and entered into the database, a manager would open the database and tweak the numbers until they came out ok. She was found out, but the entire issue was glossed over.
Slashdot Mirror
I read the shorter article (many words = enemy), and I can't help but wonder how the gov't actually intends on enforcing this issue. Are they really hiring programmers of thier own to look at the code? If not, would the average gov't employee know what he/she is looking at? Even if they were given some sort of a design document (hehhe) would they even be able to determine the true intent or implementation?
Yes, finally our world will be safe from rogue chess players. Now the US can spend its resources on petty topics, such as the economy, drugs, unemployment, invading other countries, etc, etc.
Well, only non-medicinal drugs.
I could see how this could be used to perform some "detective" work elsewhere - connect via RF instead of serial, and now you have a surface checker that is not limited to 7ft from the PC (this assumes, of course, that it is not really a glove on your hand either). But could it be modified to enter areas that are too dangerous for humans to enter? Mount it on a small roving robot, and maybe it could inspect those pesky tiles on the space shuttle??
and guess what starts this friday.
M$ starts making quality software?
Surely I jest.
...our new wind-driven, remote exploratory vehicle overlords.
My current company does not pay for any of those things - no internet, cell phone, etc. They don't even pay for internet access for everyone inside the company building. I tend to think of this as absolute cheapness on the companies' part, since these tools can help dedicated employees do better jobs. Real performance evaluations will weed out those that aren't dedicated.?
Luckily, I am currently hiding at a customer site. After that... well, anyone need a couple of software contractors?
It sounds like most of the responses to the parent (and the parent itself) is responding to personal experiences. Usually, we get into a situation that is either so hideous or so great that it is remembered for a long time. It is quite necessary for developers to interact with other people, esp. when they are on a team. On the flip side, it is absolutely important for developers to have some time to themselves, without listening to every other conversation in the building.
So I would say that we should all beware of the guy in the room, if he is in there all the time, but let him be in there a good portion of his time.
I frequently get calls from people with similar situations - they have to run IE, Kazaa, and every other file sharing program under the sun, and then wonder why the PC gets infected. And even though I charge for cleaning the machines, it just gets tiresome to constantly do the same process to the same machines.
But some of the problem is a lack of understanding that there really are other browsers available, and they really can be used under Windows. Like it or not, the average Joe doesn't know what Opera or Firefox is, even though most of us have grown to love them. Even if you explain to them the benefits, they often say "Well, I am used to this, so I will just stick with it - it seems to work ok."
My horrible experience should be a warning to others...
- Only managers could get big cubicles with window seats. Therefore, the managers that did basically nothing all day could look out the window. It was, however, a blessing in disguise, since the windows were so cheap they froze and cooked you in the winter and summer, respectively.
- No internet access to the average developer. I think we all know why this is bad.
- Low cubicle walls. These allow noise pollution to surround you. And the best part is when the person that answers the incoming phone calls is in the next cubicle.
- Cheap motivational posters. We all know these are not worth the paper they are printed on, and they imply that management doesn't respect the intelligence of the employees.
- The printer (notice that *printer* is singular)being located on the other side of the building.
- Cubicles are an adequate way of dividing up office space, but if you are going to put > 1 person in a cube, let those people agree on thier cubemate. Nothing is worse than spending 8+ hours a day with a person you cannot stand. Notice I didn't say to allow people to choose cubemates, but approve them.
But if this thing has a laser pointer attached to it, and it has the accuracy to point at the right button to press, why couldn't it just press the button itself and skip the astronauts?
I don't typically work on these all-or-nothing type of systems. I usually work on embedded controllers, so we have the ability to put, say 10 units into the field for trials. Given the English air troubles and now this, isn't there a way to deploy a system such as this where it can be tested with real-world loads but not be the only system in use? Our controllers are not placed directly on the assembly line on the first day out, just for this purpose.
Is there a real reason for these types of devices? Why do I need a cell phone that mangages email addresses, takes pictures, surfs the web on a postage-stamp size screen, etc.etc.? How about making it so that my phone can work nearly everywhere first? It doesn't work at my house, I can't go *inside* any buildings like walmart and still recv a call. Maybe if it did its original function well, we wouldn't need 5000 other features.
"enough for a car, a vacation home and a friend, for example..." /. Who here has all of that stuff?
They can't be referring to anyone on
If you were really good, you could write a human emulator while you were at work - then it could play the game for you, and you could spend the time with the SO. Both issues solved!
If the OS can't be released on time, at least the virus that exploits the OS can be released on time!
... you insensitive clod!
I would think that the military would get someone (or themselves) to roll a Military version of Linux. Then they could control deployment of the software for various purposes a bit easier. Make sense?
I went on a service call to a home user. They proceeded to tell me that they bought a Dell 8 months ago, and hadn't opened it all that time. When they did open it and set it up, it wouldn't boot. They contacted Dell, and Dell tech support informed them that "hard drives need to be used frequently or they stop working."
The real reason for this much email space is for the next version of Office - so that users can attach a Word document.
Astonishing!!
One of the difficult things associated with Windows is that you can't always get online to download the updates. Where I live, the majority of people still use dialup, and gathering the Windows updates is like sucking peanut butter through a straw. The other problem is that alot of people don't know what updates really are, and how they can affect their pc. Also, try getting the most recent patches for an OS that is not the most current one (or shockingly, one not connected to the internet). MS makes it really hard to download and install updates on a machine that is not running the latest OS and has a slow (or no) connection to the internet.
And, in the robots' off-time, they can also teach the nations youth proper language:
Kid: Shut you face!
Lingo: No, shut up your face.
I'm a bear, you insensitive clod!
I worked for a company that provided this 'service' to its employees. Once the paper (ugh) timecards were filled out and entered into the database, a manager would open the database and tweak the numbers until they came out ok. She was found out, but the entire issue was glossed over.