Damn, I left out load screens that fly by really fast then get stuck at 100% saying, "Initializing" for about 45 seconds. It's always the perfectionist games where you have to load a quicksave every 5 seconds too. Far Cry, I'm looking in your direction...
I'd like to see the brain readings when a console game gets started up. Nothing like seven unskippable splash screens in a row to really affect the enjoyment of a game.
I beleive there is a way to disable that annoying behavior. It might be new to XP SP2 since I have never seen it before I patched Windows. I'm on a 2000 machine now at work and can't find the option (of course without any SP2 changes, since 2000 has been left behind for things like IE and WMP).
I believe Winamp as of 2.8 or whereabouts included the gap removal feature as part of the out-of-the-box DirectSound output plugin. Devices that can do it are rare, but I've heard the Rio Karma is capable of it.
WMP has a few other issues to work out, like not cutting off the first second of WAV files every so often and not stumbling over itself when seeking WAVs. Things that worked right in Windows 3.1 are now suddenly difficult.
What phone companies need to realize is that phone are becoming more and more like small personal computers. They have their own set of multimedia capabilities. Take sound for example. First it was a piezoelectric 1 bit speaker, then FM polyphonic sound, now PCM audio. Hell, in Japan, I've seen quite a few phones that have TV tuners. Point being that they now have capabilities similar to desktop computers and need the same freedoms to operatate like them. That includes unrestricted data transfer, creation (ringtones, backgrounds, java games). Imagine being able to store files on your phone in a format not initially supported by it, but then having somebody write software to handle it. (Obvious/. examples being PNG backgrounds and Ogg Vorbis ringtones)
I hope Verizon either adapts or dies in regards to this.
What I don't see is how their business model suffers when a phone's feature exists by default and an extra effort is needed to reduce functionality. They're the ones setting the price, anyway. (since the firmware is being crippled by Verizon, not the OEM, right?)
It's not like it's a customer service issue. They use flashcards for that anyway.
Looks like mainframes could be getting cheaper if more companies get their hands on manufacturing them. Looks like Microsoft will have to find a different way to inflate the TCO of running Linux than the current strategy: running Windows 2003 Server on an e-Machine versus Linux on Giant Fucking Mainframe 7000 on the single processor kernel.
Let's suppose a lot of equipment gets ruined should this huricane pass through. Isn't most of the money spent on research and planning, not the building of spacecraft? For NASA, the actual building has to be the least of their burdens, especially if it's not the first time building it (because of advantage of hindsight after building it once has to be a great help).
I live in rural Japan, but not necessarily out in the boonies. Even with 8 Mbit ADSL (or supposedly), my cap still seems to be at 50 KB/sec for downloads anywhere outside Japan, which really is closer to 400 Kbit in all practicality.
Oh, how I long for the days when I had cable modem in the U.S. and downloads were ten times faster than what I get here. Of course, I can probably get 100Mbit fiber in my area, but I'm a cheapass and would rather not spend the extra $20 per month.
Yeah, it was Classic Winamp which went from early betas, to 1.x, and was rewritten to Visual C++ around 2.x or so. It was version 4 that never existed.
They managed to make the same mistake twice: They released a crappy version 3, but redeemed by continuing development on 2.9, but later screwed up again by discontinuing both and putting out 5.
The new one should have been called Winamp 10 to reflect the memory footprint relative to 2.91, the version I still use.
I bet the comfort level has changed drastically, depending on your job, since about 1997. We, of course, had plenty of options for niceties, since this was an Air Force deployment from last year. Actually, we were the ones bringing internet and phone service to the site, which was plenty for maintaining sanity out there.
I packed disposable razors, but had about 12 NiMH batteries and a charger for things like my portable MP3 CD-RW player:)
While I wouldn't go out of my way to back up DVDs for home use, I would definitely back them up if I wanted to travel with them, leaving the valuable originals at home in case something happens to my bags. Also, being in the military, DVDs and desert winds don't mix...obviously. (Also learned Playstation 2 DVD trays break very easily in the desert. About 2/3 of the units people brought out broke.)
My point is that when you're deployed for 4-12 months, or even a couple years (I'm Air Force, thank goodness), you gotta have some movies to watch to kill time while on a 12 hour shift, but I'm not going to wreck original DVDs doing it.
I babied the CDs I brought with me to the desert. We weren't exactly roughing it, since we had tents with A/C. Even then the CDs came back a little scratched. The DVDs people brought got destroyed, mainly because they were being borrowed from each other.
I guess I should also add, before everybody replies, that I'm aware that Disney has a fairly generous replacement plan for their DVDs. Glad to see Disney, of all large, bullying corporations, leading the way for this.
Slashdot Mirror
Damn, I left out load screens that fly by really fast then get stuck at 100% saying, "Initializing" for about 45 seconds. It's always the perfectionist games where you have to load a quicksave every 5 seconds too. Far Cry, I'm looking in your direction...
I'd like to see the brain readings when a console game gets started up. Nothing like seven unskippable splash screens in a row to really affect the enjoyment of a game.
I beleive there is a way to disable that annoying behavior. It might be new to XP SP2 since I have never seen it before I patched Windows. I'm on a 2000 machine now at work and can't find the option (of course without any SP2 changes, since 2000 has been left behind for things like IE and WMP).
I believe Winamp as of 2.8 or whereabouts included the gap removal feature as part of the out-of-the-box DirectSound output plugin. Devices that can do it are rare, but I've heard the Rio Karma is capable of it.
WMP has a few other issues to work out, like not cutting off the first second of WAV files every so often and not stumbling over itself when seeking WAVs. Things that worked right in Windows 3.1 are now suddenly difficult.
I guess I should rephrase that. It's more about the handling of large amounts of data.
I think it has to do with the idea of transferring large amounts of something between places- in this case, it's data.
Holy crap, a link to Goatse has been modded insightful. Thus, the final objective in opening the gates to Hell has been accomplished. Doom is at hand!
What phone companies need to realize is that phone are becoming more and more like small personal computers. They have their own set of multimedia capabilities. Take sound for example. First it was a piezoelectric 1 bit speaker, then FM polyphonic sound, now PCM audio. Hell, in Japan, I've seen quite a few phones that have TV tuners. Point being that they now have capabilities similar to desktop computers and need the same freedoms to operatate like them. That includes unrestricted data transfer, creation (ringtones, backgrounds, java games). Imagine being able to store files on your phone in a format not initially supported by it, but then having somebody write software to handle it. (Obvious /. examples being PNG backgrounds and Ogg Vorbis ringtones)
I hope Verizon either adapts or dies in regards to this.
What I don't see is how their business model suffers when a phone's feature exists by default and an extra effort is needed to reduce functionality. They're the ones setting the price, anyway. (since the firmware is being crippled by Verizon, not the OEM, right?)
It's not like it's a customer service issue. They use flashcards for that anyway.
I may get burned for this (as I just lost my +1 karma bonus today for it), but may I refer you to this comment?
Looks like mainframes could be getting cheaper if more companies get their hands on manufacturing them. Looks like Microsoft will have to find a different way to inflate the TCO of running Linux than the current strategy: running Windows 2003 Server on an e-Machine versus Linux on Giant Fucking Mainframe 7000 on the single processor kernel.
Let's suppose a lot of equipment gets ruined should this huricane pass through. Isn't most of the money spent on research and planning, not the building of spacecraft? For NASA, the actual building has to be the least of their burdens, especially if it's not the first time building it (because of advantage of hindsight after building it once has to be a great help).
I live in rural Japan, but not necessarily out in the boonies. Even with 8 Mbit ADSL (or supposedly), my cap still seems to be at 50 KB/sec for downloads anywhere outside Japan, which really is closer to 400 Kbit in all practicality.
Oh, how I long for the days when I had cable modem in the U.S. and downloads were ten times faster than what I get here. Of course, I can probably get 100Mbit fiber in my area, but I'm a cheapass and would rather not spend the extra $20 per month.
The results are in on the goat.cx OCR scan:
O
New technology will soon be revealed that will instruct Slashdot users on the proper spelling of "lose".
The USSGN (Union of Slashdot Spelling and Grammar Nazis) is expected to stage protests against the new product in the interest of keeping their jobs.
Yeah, it was Classic Winamp which went from early betas, to 1.x, and was rewritten to Visual C++ around 2.x or so. It was version 4 that never existed.
They managed to make the same mistake twice: They released a crappy version 3, but redeemed by continuing development on 2.9, but later screwed up again by discontinuing both and putting out 5.
The new one should have been called Winamp 10 to reflect the memory footprint relative to 2.91, the version I still use.
Well, I beleive they use the Debian/FreeBSD strategy. I think even the space shuttle still uses 70s era tape drives.
What about the Atlas 3 and the Atlas 4? Did these guys take counting lessons from the RIAA?
No, they took it from these guys.
I bet the comfort level has changed drastically, depending on your job, since about 1997. We, of course, had plenty of options for niceties, since this was an Air Force deployment from last year. Actually, we were the ones bringing internet and phone service to the site, which was plenty for maintaining sanity out there.
:)
I packed disposable razors, but had about 12 NiMH batteries and a charger for things like my portable MP3 CD-RW player
While I wouldn't go out of my way to back up DVDs for home use, I would definitely back them up if I wanted to travel with them, leaving the valuable originals at home in case something happens to my bags. Also, being in the military, DVDs and desert winds don't mix...obviously. (Also learned Playstation 2 DVD trays break very easily in the desert. About 2/3 of the units people brought out broke.)
My point is that when you're deployed for 4-12 months, or even a couple years (I'm Air Force, thank goodness), you gotta have some movies to watch to kill time while on a 12 hour shift, but I'm not going to wreck original DVDs doing it.
I babied the CDs I brought with me to the desert. We weren't exactly roughing it, since we had tents with A/C. Even then the CDs came back a little scratched. The DVDs people brought got destroyed, mainly because they were being borrowed from each other.
Yeah, reading that quote makes me wonder what he got on the reading comprehension portion of the SAT exam.
That's a relief. I've always been worried about my Cognac becoming loose.
Cheap imitation glass wants to be free!
(Sorry, couldn't resist)
I prefer to eat my glass, thank you very much.
Seriously, oops. I would have probably been fine if I had said, "glasses," not "sunglasses."
I guess I should also add, before everybody replies, that I'm aware that Disney has a fairly generous replacement plan for their DVDs. Glad to see Disney, of all large, bullying corporations, leading the way for this.