Okay, I would not have butted in, were it not your use of the word "stealing" to describe people who connect to an open wireless AP. WTF?
Solution 1: If the guy doesn't care enough to even read the documentation of his AP, most of which are configurable from your webbrowser, then I don't see how he can complain about people connecting to it. It's easy enough that it's described in a little booklet, you do not need a CS or IT degree to do it.
Solution 2: That is legally true. However, ISP TOSes are really not something I hold with great respect. Most will forbid the use of uploading on P2P even if the content is legal, and I've seen RoadRunner TOSes that said "no servers", which if interpreted strictly enough could mean no dedicated game servers.
Solution 3: It's pretty funny hearing people complain about "stupid people" running open APs, because the only open wireless APs I've run into were either from FreeGeek, the college, or some Slashdot-reading friends who wanted to share their connections. Yes, believe it or not, there are people who believe in not being assholes about their connection.
Problem 4: As many as Bob wants to, duh. There is no point in arguing about "how many people" get to connect to Bob's connection, because the more concurrent users you have, the more each person's connection gets slower. It's a self-regulating system, with a maximum usage limit based on Bob's connection speed.
Solution 5: There will always be a market for ISPs, the only question is how many, and how much do they charge. I would hope that the inefficent, poorly thought out ISPs would go out of business. In your example, if an entire apartment building can be served by one cable modem, there is clearly underutilization of the infrastructure, and the ISP deserves about one household's worth of revenue. Wiring up all the apartments to get them to use the equivalent of one cable modem would be wasteful, excessive infrastructure, just for the purposes of billing more. If the company requires that kind of ineficcency to operate, they should go out of business, and be replaced by either:
- A more efficent private company with slower individual connections, who will sell to more households
- A neighborhood co-op with group bandwidth purchases or peering agreement
- Publicly-owned utility
I've seen all three kinds work with utilities (gas, water, electric), so I don't see it as unreasonable that an extortionist ISP go out of business.
Again, if the entire apartment block requires just one cable modem's worth of bandwidth, then that's all they should have to get. Your solution would be like forcing everyone to buy an SUV for their commute, and banning carpooling, because "It's not fair to the auto industry."
I believe that we should charge by data use, not households served as ISPs do now. I know my water and electric bill are charged by usage, and if I let my neighbors use my hose or electricity, the utility doesn't care as long as I'm willing to foot the bill for their usage.
Yes, but what about the oft-overlooked demographic of female gamers? MMORPGS seem to have a much highger rate or female participation than tabletop RPGs, and perhaps higher than normal video games.
I think it's the immersion in a fantasy world that attracts them - I don't think sci-fi is as popular among women as mideval-style fantasy is.
And hey, who says "sci-fi" has to mean gunfights? I'd love to see a series where everyone uses a lightsaber-type weapon. Just wish they'd make a Halo MMORPG...
In our topsy-turvy legal system, connecting to an open wireless AP is probobly illegal:( I know the connections at FreeGeek have large legal discaimers before you access anything.
When you put up an open wireless node that should, by itself, count as permission to connect to it. It's not as if the hardware is incapable of doing so.
Your neighbors should have the right to expect that a AP will not mangle their data any more than a normal internet router would. Also that open wireless AP means you have permission to access it.
What I really don't get is why someone who knows squid an iptables was doing leaving open an wireless connection if he didn't want to have strangers access it. It's guys like this that give us geeks a bad name. Messing with the internet connection of some guy you gave access to is not how you deal with these things.
It's Summer. Nothing happening. What time would be better to draw this to the front line?
Uh... you must have missed the War In The Middle East, which pushed off of the front page the War In The Middle East, which itself grabbed headlines away from the War In The Middle East, which is making everyone forget the Impending Nuclear War In The Middle East. Or the heat wave that is about to turn America into the Middle East.
Nice time to invest in camel futures.
Either way, I don't think "Local man gets sued for downloading 'Meet The Fockers'" is going to be on any front page anytime soon:)
Gameplay isn't everything. There are these things called 'movies', which are basically no gameplay and all story - or sometimes, all special effects and no story. They still manage to entertain.
Hell, there are more to games than just gameplay ans story, too. I've played games just because I liked the music and art, like Jet Grind Radio, or character designs like Zelda Wind Waker and Pikmin.
JGR and Rez were interesting because they had a 'feel' or 'aura' that I liked, and I mostly played them to immerse myself in the world created by them. They both had passable gameplay and some story, but the main thing about them was that they made you feel like you were a very cool, skilled character in a interesting world. That kind of immersion is what draws me to a lot of games.
Why do I play Rogue Squadron instead of Random_Space_Shooter? Because I get to fly an X-wing. Why Pikmin instead of some other puzzler? Because the characters are so darn cute, and I want to imagine these guys running around in my garden (yes, I am a guy). Playing Pikmin actually reminded me of playing with Legos as a kid, or keeping fish as pets. That kind of thing is the appeal that drives games like Nintendogs, Sims, or Animal Crossing.
I can deal with crappy play mechanics as long as it doesn't prevent me from progressing. But imagine if there were a game with good gameplay, but terrible story. Take the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas game. Now imagine Disney or McDonalds releasing a clone, where you do all the same things, but all the actions have been changed to 'kid-friendly' versions. Instead of carjacking, you ask people nicely, and they give you their car. Instead of getting a blowjob, you get a nice shoulder rub that increases your health. Your missions include delivering burgers, squirting people with a water gun, and other wholesome activities. All the game actions would be the same, it would just be presented in a completely different manner. It would suck.
Also, the old adventure games typically had gameplay that was not so good, but relied on story, humor and drama to keep things going. Unfortuantely, the majority of the gaming public seems to agree with the "story sucks" sentiment, so we are not seeing those anymore. I think 'Trace Memory' for the DS is the only old-fashioned adventure out there right now. Man, I wish they would release a new Roger Wilco or Kyrandia game.
Uh... you *are* aware that the constitution can be amended, right?
Also, the actual electors are independent and if they all get together and agree to vote for this way, they can do so. State laws govern how some of the electors vote, but the majority of them are not required to vote in any way that represents the actual count. I don't see this as any more seditious than moving to another part of the country specifically to change the politics there (which the libertarians are doing with the Free State Project).
Oh, and sedition laws are not constitutional. Show me where in the Constitution it says you can't try to overthrow the government or secede.
Now, you guys modding down 0racle need to get some perspective. He's harsh, but he does have a point.
I had BeOS for x86. It was a nice OS, but that's all it was - a nice OS. It just did not have the application support that people needed.
I remember the web browser had the usual problems with plugins, no good Office replacement, plus and no real games. Even more so than MacOS.
It did have very good performance with video and other multimedia, but it did not get decent marketshare in the field. Be did not make a good video editor for it, and its marketshare was too small for Adobe to port their video editor software. IIRC, Amiga still had a bigger presence in the film industry than BeOS did in its heyday. I know my friend who did anime fansubbing still used an ancient Amiga and had never heard of BeOS. Lots of shows like Babylon 5 and SeaQuest did special effects on Amiga Video Toasters, how many did so on a BeBox?
As for consumers viewing video on a PC, the storage and bandwidth available to PCs in the mid-90s did not really give them the ability to get large, high quality video files over the internet or from friends, so Windows and Mac were adequate for the small videos they had available then. This was really before DVDs became big, and VCD never took off over here.
BeFS was interesting, and it could have been revolutionary if they had really explained it well and marketed it. Unfortunately, they were busy trying to sell themselves as the "Multimedia OS", and went under around the time they decided they were really an "Internet Appliance OS" company.
Mirror? Yeah, it's in the bathroom. I just stop shaving, grow some acne, and make sad-looking faces at it until it resembles MySpace.
You could also try putting in your bathroom a boombox with shitty music and wallpaper that doesn't align properly, and hang crappy pictures of your friends on the walls. Then start writing your diary on the toilet paper. Congratulations, you have MySpace!
Only 5% of world leaders are massuers. Only 5% of governors of California are film stars. Only 5% of beer is alcohol. Only 5% of Slashdot stories are dupes. Only 5% of a woman's body is different from a man's. Only 5% of English soccer fans are hooligans.
Sometimes, it's the exceptions that make things interesting:)
I think this really shows what's wrong with the US system of government, though - it's nearly impossible to form coalitions across party lines, the two parties try to lock everyone else out, and you have a duopoly on power. This is helped by people such as yourself, who run away from anything that is not centrist, especially if it's leftist.
It's getting so ridiculous that I wish you guys would change the system to a pralimentary model with a Prime Minister instead of a President. The system seems to be unable to sustain a viable third party, possibly because of "winner-take-all" type systems at many elections, and no party-based proportional representation.
Look at Israel, with 12 parties in the Knesset, or Japan with 7 parties represented, or the UK with 13 parties in Parliment.
In particular, Japan which is a very capitalist country still manages to have 7 Communist Party MPs, which is probobly roughly how much far-left sentiment is in the country; the UK has 5 MPs from Sinn Fein, which is a separitist party; and Israel has both an Arab party and an Retired people's party. The US currently has two parties and 2 independents in Congress. For a country that claims to be regionally, racially and culturally diverse, this is rather strange. Have you guys ever had a Libertarian, Communist, or Green Party member in Congress?
The US system that forces only two parties to represent the vast range of political opinions and beliefs is killing you through mediocrity and homoginization. Screw third parties, you guys really need about 4 or 5 parties to properly represent you. A Left party, a Labor party, a Capitalist party and a Chirstian party, and maybe a Libertarian party.
All the conversions seem to have confused people about what the original posters were saying... You guys are converting backwards. You should be doing a US to UK conversion.
allusionist: posts data about his car, in US gallons Tim Browse: Calculates MPG correctly, but assumes data and output is in UK gallons - "Holy shit, you get only 25mpg(UK)?"
Tim did get the correct result for US MPG, but assumes it is in UK MPG. The conversion thus has to be from the US MPG to UK MPG in order to compare with Tim's old car's 35mpg(UK). In actuality, the allusionist gets 25mpg(US), which would be about 30mpg(UK).
Or you could convert Tim's old car's 35mpg(UK) to US MPG, which would be about 29mpg(US)
It sounds like they were using completely robotic(i.e. AI-run) probes in that test you talk about, which would not have gone as badly towards the probe if it had been a remote-operated machine, like the current Mars rovers. The Mars rovers had entire teams of scientists analyzing and directing the mission.
Using humans to explore Mars would not be very efficent at all. The amount of mass needed to sustain human life, and to bring it back to Earth are staggering compared to what you can do with a robotic mission where you can leave everything at the landing site except a sample return. Humans are not made for a freezing (near)vaccum enviornment with no water. Why send an animal with artificial aids as crutches(rebreather, water recycler, habitat), when you could send a robot that's in its native enviornment?
Look at all the equipment they lugged to the Moon to sustain human life, and they were there for how long? A few days! Shortest time was 21 hours for Apollo 11, 74 hours for Apollo 17. Imagine what you could do on a Moon mission where you brought an equivalent mass of robotics, and only needed to take back the samples. Apparently the largest amount of samples brought back to Earth in one mission was about 250 lb., so you could probobly at least triple that.
The mission itself could last for months, with no rush to get things done before a deadline of running out of supplies. Plus no pressure of losing lives if you do screw up. I would argue that it would be cheaper and more scientifically useful to use remotely-operated rovers and probes instead of sending humans.
Who among you is pathetic enough to post a comment on a slashback article on a Friday night?
Hey, I only came here because I thought SGI had come up with a Gizmo to make Dells explode:) I thought, "Finally an SGI product I'd buy!" but no, they're only selling stupid OpenGL.
Well, how do you know there isn't a market for Viking Mars Landers, huh? HUH?
Why, just the other day I got an offer from the President of Nigeria himself offering me several used Viking Mars Landers at a bargain price. I just need to post a deposit, and he'll sell me several of those relics from the Nigerian Space Program. I've been thinking about it, but I think I will take the rival offer of pristine, still-in-box Mars Global Surveyors from China instead...
The other factor is race and gender, which most here probobly wouldn't have thought of because they're white males.
A Asian friend of mine once went to consult for an American branch of a Japanese company, and when he got there, everyone assumed he was from the head office in Tokyo and treated him with extra deference and respect, even though he was 1) Not even an employee, just a contractor, 2) Born in Mississippi, and 3) Spoke with perfect American English.
The funny thing is, when he met the Japanese execs they were kind of racist/standoffish, him being an Chinese-American and all... but around the white/black/latino employees, he was treated very well because they didn't want to risk pissing off someone from the home office, and assumed any Asian was:)
I'm guessing you could pull off something similar with American/European companies in non-white countries if you're white. Be sure to either dress in a nice suit or carry a clipboard, though:)
Bart Simpson: "Hello, I'd like to be included in the song please. Last name Diekoff, first name Aikatmai."
Jessica Simpson: "OOOh, baby, I want you so bad, Aikatmai Diekoff!... Damnit! Listen, you little saw-headed twerp, if I ever catch you, I'm going to shove my Botox needles down your eyeballs and sic my Pomeranian on your ass!"
Look, I'm as pedantic a person when it comes to that as anyone - I would prefer simply calling it "copying", not piracy. That said, you're going to have to accept that what he describes is 1) The accepted term in current language, and 2) Against current US law.
Now, the more interesting point that need to be made again and again is that DRM is not a computer security issue. It's a consumer convienence issue. This means that, unlike a server or encrypted file where if the security is breached once it's considered a total loss because the data is in the hands of "bad guys", it doesn't matter if a few hackers crack DRM and publish instructions for how to get around it, as long as most consumers either don't find out or it's too inconvienient for them. How many owners of DVD players know about DeCSS?
They don't need to keep it secure against hackers like an OpenBSD box, they just need to make it hard enough to be worth spending $10 at Wal-mart for a DVD.
Hey, speaking of amusing but uninformative MP3s (just kidding, guys...:-) ), when are you guys at Slashdot going to restart Geeks In Space, or at least restore the archives? In case you haven't noticed, many of the old MP3s are missing from thesync.com. It's wierd, some of the MP3 files seem to have been replaced with a tribute page for a deceased person sometime in 2004.
Can you please host the whole archive of shows again?
And new shows would be good, too. I'd love to hear Cliff rant on about the name Wii, or Taco get cranky over Vista.
And to not be totally offtopic... I can't be the only one who thinks it won't be the same without the shadows in the corner. Especially not without the robots. What I would love to see, though, is a group of totally insane people like the cast of SeaLab 2021 commenting on the movies.
I have finally seen it: The Worst Idea On The Internet.
I always thought it would come from Bush, Ballmer, or Bin Laden, but congratulations, Wal-Mart, you've won! Yes, because we all know that teens are clamoring to be associated with that haven of cool, the Wal-Mart Supercenter! They'll hang out all day in chat rooms monitored by a giant smiley face that threatens to "Roll back trolls"! They want clever, yet unoffensive nicknames like 'The gr33tr' and 'mop_guy_99'! They'll argue all day over whether they should get the 80-pack of Charmin or the 120-pack of generic brand toilet paper!
What teen wouldn't mind saying in the halls of their school, "I'll see ya on The HUB, dude!" "ya, see ya later, HUBSTER"?! (tragically these two kids were beaten to death with Abercrombie & Fitch merchandise a few moments later)
Seriously, I can imagine the Gap or Abercrombie, maybe even Starbucks doing this, but.... Wal-mart?!?!
I can only imagine that the kind of teen that would use Wal-mart for a social networking service are the ones who go there barefoot and pregnant because they thought Saran Wrap was a contraceptive. That and the guys who argue over Coors Lite vs. Miller Lite.
It sounds totally bizarre to me in the US, but apparently hoodies (the sweatshirts with hoods) have become culturally associated with gangs or something, and (conservative?) people in the UK want a crackdown on them.
It supposedly has something to do with being used to hide criminal's faces from security cameras. So a pervasive surveilance state led to criminalization of something that was not a problem before, to accomadate the needs of surveilance.... A nice downward spiral.
It's still totally bizarre to see something that is not even close to being a political issue over here treated as if it's a major cultural/crime problem. Next time a friend from the UK comes over, I must remember to take them fox hunting in hoodies:)
The internet is still capable of bypassing most censorship, the problem is when you use it like any other mass media and expect it to push information at you. Sometimes you need to go looking for information, but it still is acessible.
And the thing about democracy? That's why most free countries have a constitution with defined government powers and protected rights, along with an independent judiciary.
Slashdot Mirror
Okay, I would not have butted in, were it not your use of the word "stealing" to describe people who connect to an open wireless AP. WTF?
Solution 1: If the guy doesn't care enough to even read the documentation of his AP, most of which are configurable from your webbrowser, then I don't see how he can complain about people connecting to it. It's easy enough that it's described in a little booklet, you do not need a CS or IT degree to do it.
Solution 2: That is legally true. However, ISP TOSes are really not something I hold with great respect. Most will forbid the use of uploading on P2P even if the content is legal, and I've seen RoadRunner TOSes that said "no servers", which if interpreted strictly enough could mean no dedicated game servers.
Solution 3: It's pretty funny hearing people complain about "stupid people" running open APs, because the only open wireless APs I've run into were either from FreeGeek, the college, or some Slashdot-reading friends who wanted to share their connections. Yes, believe it or not, there are people who believe in not being assholes about their connection.
Problem 4: As many as Bob wants to, duh. There is no point in arguing about "how many people" get to connect to Bob's connection, because the more concurrent users you have, the more each person's connection gets slower. It's a self-regulating system, with a maximum usage limit based on Bob's connection speed.
Solution 5: There will always be a market for ISPs, the only question is how many, and how much do they charge. I would hope that the inefficent, poorly thought out ISPs would go out of business. In your example, if an entire apartment building can be served by one cable modem, there is clearly underutilization of the infrastructure, and the ISP deserves about one household's worth of revenue. Wiring up all the apartments to get them to use the equivalent of one cable modem would be wasteful, excessive infrastructure, just for the purposes of billing more. If the company requires that kind of ineficcency to operate, they should go out of business, and be replaced by either:
- A more efficent private company with slower individual connections, who will sell to more households
- A neighborhood co-op with group bandwidth purchases or peering agreement
- Publicly-owned utility
I've seen all three kinds work with utilities (gas, water, electric), so I don't see it as unreasonable that an extortionist ISP go out of business.
Again, if the entire apartment block requires just one cable modem's worth of bandwidth, then that's all they should have to get. Your solution would be like forcing everyone to buy an SUV for their commute, and banning carpooling, because "It's not fair to the auto industry."
I believe that we should charge by data use, not households served as ISPs do now. I know my water and electric bill are charged by usage, and if I let my neighbors use my hose or electricity, the utility doesn't care as long as I'm willing to foot the bill for their usage.
Yes, but what about the oft-overlooked demographic of female gamers? MMORPGS seem to have a much highger rate or female participation than tabletop RPGs, and perhaps higher than normal video games.
I think it's the immersion in a fantasy world that attracts them - I don't think sci-fi is as popular among women as mideval-style fantasy is.
And hey, who says "sci-fi" has to mean gunfights? I'd love to see a series where everyone uses a lightsaber-type weapon. Just wish they'd make a Halo MMORPG...
"I am a graduate student of Mechanical Engineering at a reputed University in the United States."
:)
"reputed University"? It's said to be a University? Like what, University of Gorgonzola?
Obviously not an English major... Hopefully this means you actually spent your time studying in your field
In our topsy-turvy legal system, connecting to an open wireless AP is probobly illegal :( I know the connections at FreeGeek have large legal discaimers before you access anything.
When you put up an open wireless node that should, by itself, count as permission to connect to it. It's not as if the hardware is incapable of doing so.
Your neighbors should have the right to expect that a AP will not mangle their data any more than a normal internet router would. Also that open wireless AP means you have permission to access it.
What I really don't get is why someone who knows squid an iptables was doing leaving open an wireless connection if he didn't want to have strangers access it. It's guys like this that give us geeks a bad name. Messing with the internet connection of some guy you gave access to is not how you deal with these things.
It's Summer. Nothing happening. What time would be better to draw this to the front line?
:)
Uh... you must have missed the War In The Middle East, which pushed off of the front page the War In The Middle East, which itself grabbed headlines away from the War In The Middle East, which is making everyone forget the Impending Nuclear War In The Middle East. Or the heat wave that is about to turn America into the Middle East.
Nice time to invest in camel futures.
Either way, I don't think "Local man gets sued for downloading 'Meet The Fockers'" is going to be on any front page anytime soon
Gameplay isn't everything. There are these things called 'movies', which are basically no gameplay and all story - or sometimes, all special effects and no story. They still manage to entertain.
Hell, there are more to games than just gameplay ans story, too. I've played games just because I liked the music and art, like Jet Grind Radio, or character designs like Zelda Wind Waker and Pikmin.
JGR and Rez were interesting because they had a 'feel' or 'aura' that I liked, and I mostly played them to immerse myself in the world created by them. They both had passable gameplay and some story, but the main thing about them was that they made you feel like you were a very cool, skilled character in a interesting world. That kind of immersion is what draws me to a lot of games.
Why do I play Rogue Squadron instead of Random_Space_Shooter? Because I get to fly an X-wing. Why Pikmin instead of some other puzzler? Because the characters are so darn cute, and I want to imagine these guys running around in my garden (yes, I am a guy). Playing Pikmin actually reminded me of playing with Legos as a kid, or keeping fish as pets. That kind of thing is the appeal that drives games like Nintendogs, Sims, or Animal Crossing.
I can deal with crappy play mechanics as long as it doesn't prevent me from progressing. But imagine if there were a game with good gameplay, but terrible story. Take the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas game. Now imagine Disney or McDonalds releasing a clone, where you do all the same things, but all the actions have been changed to 'kid-friendly' versions. Instead of carjacking, you ask people nicely, and they give you their car. Instead of getting a blowjob, you get a nice shoulder rub that increases your health. Your missions include delivering burgers, squirting people with a water gun, and other wholesome activities. All the game actions would be the same, it would just be presented in a completely different manner. It would suck.
Also, the old adventure games typically had gameplay that was not so good, but relied on story, humor and drama to keep things going. Unfortuantely, the majority of the gaming public seems to agree with the "story sucks" sentiment, so we are not seeing those anymore. I think 'Trace Memory' for the DS is the only old-fashioned adventure out there right now. Man, I wish they would release a new Roger Wilco or Kyrandia game.
Uh... you *are* aware that the constitution can be amended, right?
Also, the actual electors are independent and if they all get together and agree to vote for this way, they can do so. State laws govern how some of the electors vote, but the majority of them are not required to vote in any way that represents the actual count. I don't see this as any more seditious than moving to another part of the country specifically to change the politics there (which the libertarians are doing with the Free State Project).
Oh, and sedition laws are not constitutional. Show me where in the Constitution it says you can't try to overthrow the government or secede.
Now, you guys modding down 0racle need to get some perspective. He's harsh, but he does have a point.
I had BeOS for x86. It was a nice OS, but that's all it was - a nice OS. It just did not have the application support that people needed.
I remember the web browser had the usual problems with plugins, no good Office replacement, plus and no real games. Even more so than MacOS.
It did have very good performance with video and other multimedia, but it did not get decent marketshare in the field. Be did not make a good video editor for it, and its marketshare was too small for Adobe to port their video editor software. IIRC, Amiga still had a bigger presence in the film industry than BeOS did in its heyday. I know my friend who did anime fansubbing still used an ancient Amiga and had never heard of BeOS. Lots of shows like Babylon 5 and SeaQuest did special effects on Amiga Video Toasters, how many did so on a BeBox?
As for consumers viewing video on a PC, the storage and bandwidth available to PCs in the mid-90s did not really give them the ability to get large, high quality video files over the internet or from friends, so Windows and Mac were adequate for the small videos they had available then. This was really before DVDs became big, and VCD never took off over here.
BeFS was interesting, and it could have been revolutionary if they had really explained it well and marketed it. Unfortunately, they were busy trying to sell themselves as the "Multimedia OS", and went under around the time they decided they were really an "Internet Appliance OS" company.
Try to install embedded Linux on a clerk, and you'll be arrested before you can graft the ARM chip into her. Or so I've heard.
Mirror? Yeah, it's in the bathroom. I just stop shaving, grow some acne, and make sad-looking faces at it until it resembles MySpace.
You could also try putting in your bathroom a boombox with shitty music and wallpaper that doesn't align properly, and hang crappy pictures of your friends on the walls. Then start writing your diary on the toilet paper. Congratulations, you have MySpace!
Only 5% of world leaders are massuers.
:)
Only 5% of governors of California are film stars.
Only 5% of beer is alcohol.
Only 5% of Slashdot stories are dupes.
Only 5% of a woman's body is different from a man's.
Only 5% of English soccer fans are hooligans.
Sometimes, it's the exceptions that make things interesting
Note that I did not say he was stupid, hence I post as AC.
:)
You might want to work on your sneaky disguise skills, Mr. Davis
I think this really shows what's wrong with the US system of government, though - it's nearly impossible to form coalitions across party lines, the two parties try to lock everyone else out, and you have a duopoly on power. This is helped by people such as yourself, who run away from anything that is not centrist, especially if it's leftist.
It's getting so ridiculous that I wish you guys would change the system to a pralimentary model with a Prime Minister instead of a President. The system seems to be unable to sustain a viable third party, possibly because of "winner-take-all" type systems at many elections, and no party-based proportional representation.
Look at Israel, with 12 parties in the Knesset, or Japan with 7 parties represented, or the UK with 13 parties in Parliment.
In particular, Japan which is a very capitalist country still manages to have 7 Communist Party MPs, which is probobly roughly how much far-left sentiment is in the country; the UK has 5 MPs from Sinn Fein, which is a separitist party; and Israel has both an Arab party and an Retired people's party. The US currently has two parties and 2 independents in Congress. For a country that claims to be regionally, racially and culturally diverse, this is rather strange. Have you guys ever had a Libertarian, Communist, or Green Party member in Congress?
The US system that forces only two parties to represent the vast range of political opinions and beliefs is killing you through mediocrity and homoginization. Screw third parties, you guys really need about 4 or 5 parties to properly represent you. A Left party, a Labor party, a Capitalist party and a Chirstian party, and maybe a Libertarian party.
Jesus Christ, what a clusterfuck of conversions.
All the conversions seem to have confused people about what the original posters were saying... You guys are converting backwards. You should be doing a US to UK conversion.
allusionist: posts data about his car, in US gallons
Tim Browse: Calculates MPG correctly, but assumes data and output is in UK gallons - "Holy shit, you get only 25mpg(UK)?"
Tim did get the correct result for US MPG, but assumes it is in UK MPG. The conversion thus has to be from the US MPG to UK MPG in order to compare with Tim's old car's 35mpg(UK). In actuality, the allusionist gets 25mpg(US), which would be about 30mpg(UK).
Or you could convert Tim's old car's 35mpg(UK) to US MPG, which would be about 29mpg(US)
It sounds like they were using completely robotic(i.e. AI-run) probes in that test you talk about, which would not have gone as badly towards the probe if it had been a remote-operated machine, like the current Mars rovers. The Mars rovers had entire teams of scientists analyzing and directing the mission.
Using humans to explore Mars would not be very efficent at all. The amount of mass needed to sustain human life, and to bring it back to Earth are staggering compared to what you can do with a robotic mission where you can leave everything at the landing site except a sample return. Humans are not made for a freezing (near)vaccum enviornment with no water. Why send an animal with artificial aids as crutches(rebreather, water recycler, habitat), when you could send a robot that's in its native enviornment?
Look at all the equipment they lugged to the Moon to sustain human life, and they were there for how long? A few days! Shortest time was 21 hours for Apollo 11, 74 hours for Apollo 17. Imagine what you could do on a Moon mission where you brought an equivalent mass of robotics, and only needed to take back the samples. Apparently the largest amount of samples brought back to Earth in one mission was about 250 lb., so you could probobly at least triple that.
The mission itself could last for months, with no rush to get things done before a deadline of running out of supplies. Plus no pressure of losing lives if you do screw up. I would argue that it would be cheaper and more scientifically useful to use remotely-operated rovers and probes instead of sending humans.
Who among you is pathetic enough to post a comment on a slashback article on a Friday night?
:) I thought, "Finally an SGI product I'd buy!" but no, they're only selling stupid OpenGL.
Hey, I only came here because I thought SGI had come up with a Gizmo to make Dells explode
Well, how do you know there isn't a market for Viking Mars Landers, huh? HUH?
Why, just the other day I got an offer from the President of Nigeria himself offering me several used Viking Mars Landers at a bargain price. I just need to post a deposit, and he'll sell me several of those relics from the Nigerian Space Program. I've been thinking about it, but I think I will take the rival offer of pristine, still-in-box Mars Global Surveyors from China instead...
The other factor is race and gender, which most here probobly wouldn't have thought of because they're white males.
:)
:)
A Asian friend of mine once went to consult for an American branch of a Japanese company, and when he got there, everyone assumed he was from the head office in Tokyo and treated him with extra deference and respect, even though he was 1) Not even an employee, just a contractor, 2) Born in Mississippi, and 3) Spoke with perfect American English.
The funny thing is, when he met the Japanese execs they were kind of racist/standoffish, him being an Chinese-American and all... but around the white/black/latino employees, he was treated very well because they didn't want to risk pissing off someone from the home office, and assumed any Asian was
I'm guessing you could pull off something similar with American/European companies in non-white countries if you're white. Be sure to either dress in a nice suit or carry a clipboard, though
Bart Simpson: "Hello, I'd like to be included in the song please. Last name Diekoff, first name Aikatmai."
... Damnit! Listen, you little saw-headed twerp, if I ever catch you, I'm going to shove my Botox needles down your eyeballs and sic my Pomeranian on your ass!"
Jessica Simpson: "OOOh, baby, I want you so bad, Aikatmai Diekoff!
Look, I'm as pedantic a person when it comes to that as anyone - I would prefer simply calling it "copying", not piracy. That said, you're going to have to accept that what he describes is 1) The accepted term in current language, and 2) Against current US law.
Now, the more interesting point that need to be made again and again is that DRM is not a computer security issue. It's a consumer convienence issue. This means that, unlike a server or encrypted file where if the security is breached once it's considered a total loss because the data is in the hands of "bad guys", it doesn't matter if a few hackers crack DRM and publish instructions for how to get around it, as long as most consumers either don't find out or it's too inconvienient for them. How many owners of DVD players know about DeCSS?
They don't need to keep it secure against hackers like an OpenBSD box, they just need to make it hard enough to be worth spending $10 at Wal-mart for a DVD.
Hey, speaking of amusing but uninformative MP3s (just kidding, guys... :-) ), when are you guys at Slashdot going to restart Geeks In Space, or at least restore the archives? In case you haven't noticed, many of the old MP3s are missing from thesync.com. It's wierd, some of the MP3 files seem to have been replaced with a tribute page for a deceased person sometime in 2004.
Can you please host the whole archive of shows again?
And new shows would be good, too. I'd love to hear Cliff rant on about the name Wii, or Taco get cranky over Vista.
And to not be totally offtopic... I can't be the only one who thinks it won't be the same without the shadows in the corner. Especially not without the robots. What I would love to see, though, is a group of totally insane people like the cast of SeaLab 2021 commenting on the movies.
Dude, don't ruin our childish fanasies with your boring "facts"! It would be so cool, like... TYRANNOSAURS IN F-14s!!!!
I still bust out at that comic. Ah, Bill Waterston, I miss your genius.... Full comic here
Oh.... My... Gawd....
I have finally seen it: The Worst Idea On The Internet.
I always thought it would come from Bush, Ballmer, or Bin Laden, but congratulations, Wal-Mart, you've won! Yes, because we all know that teens are clamoring to be associated with that haven of cool, the Wal-Mart Supercenter! They'll hang out all day in chat rooms monitored by a giant smiley face that threatens to "Roll back trolls"! They want clever, yet unoffensive nicknames like 'The gr33tr' and 'mop_guy_99'! They'll argue all day over whether they should get the 80-pack of Charmin or the 120-pack of generic brand toilet paper!
What teen wouldn't mind saying in the halls of their school, "I'll see ya on The HUB, dude!" "ya, see ya later, HUBSTER"?! (tragically these two kids were beaten to death with Abercrombie & Fitch merchandise a few moments later)
Seriously, I can imagine the Gap or Abercrombie, maybe even Starbucks doing this, but.... Wal-mart?!?!
I can only imagine that the kind of teen that would use Wal-mart for a social networking service are the ones who go there barefoot and pregnant because they thought Saran Wrap was a contraceptive. That and the guys who argue over Coors Lite vs. Miller Lite.
May Cthulu help us all.
If you think he's kidding about the hat-wearers, check out some BBC articles on clothing issues they have over there:
:)
Brothers banned from wearing hoodies
Mall bans hoodies, baseball caps
(Conservative leader) Cameron to make 'hoodie' appeal
Archbishop woos hoodie generation - this one has a funny picture of an archbishop giving a sermon in a hoodie.
It sounds totally bizarre to me in the US, but apparently hoodies (the sweatshirts with hoods) have become culturally associated with gangs or something, and (conservative?) people in the UK want a crackdown on them.
It supposedly has something to do with being used to hide criminal's faces from security cameras. So a pervasive surveilance state led to criminalization of something that was not a problem before, to accomadate the needs of surveilance.... A nice downward spiral.
It's still totally bizarre to see something that is not even close to being a political issue over here treated as if it's a major cultural/crime problem. Next time a friend from the UK comes over, I must remember to take them fox hunting in hoodies
Hey, at least you've proven the fact that you don't need to know anything to spew your opinions on the internet...
Howto bypass internet censorship:
http://www.zensur.freerk.com/
The internet is still capable of bypassing most censorship, the problem is when you use it like any other mass media and expect it to push information at you. Sometimes you need to go looking for information, but it still is acessible.
And the thing about democracy? That's why most free countries have a constitution with defined government powers and protected rights, along with an independent judiciary.