Slashdot Mirror


User: Pantero+Blanco

Pantero+Blanco's activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
918
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 918

  1. Re:Ummmm why? on MS Proposes JPEG Alternative · · Score: 1

    I downloaded it from the direct link another poster gave and converted it to .odf. I'm fairly sure their "license agreement" isn't valid, since it didn't even prompt me to agree in any way; they just stuck it on the document.

  2. Re:This Equates to... on Web Release of the Open Movie Elephants Dream · · Score: 1

    I think the score for the "big corporations" is somewhere in the thousands, actually. It's nice to see this sort of thing, but don't expect the big players to roll over and die anytime soon.

  3. Re:*boggle* on Open Source is 'Not Reliable or Dependable' · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "We can rely that there will be security updates and we can depend upon them utterly."

    More like "we can rely that there will eventually be security updates for most security holes and that we can usually depend upon them". It often takes Microsoft a ridiculous amount of time to fix flaws.

  4. Re:Nice FUDdy title on Open Source is 'Not Reliable or Dependable' · · Score: 1

    Read the full quote from the article. Murray did indeed say that "commercial" software was more reliable than OSS (which doesn't make sense, since software can be both). According to him, the reason people use OSS is because it gives them a nice warm feeling from sharing.

    He's presenting a false choice, trying to convince people that they can't have both dependability and openness at the same time. That is FUD.

  5. Re:Stupid article on The AT&T Whistleblower's Evidence · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Then why is AT&T's defense "We were forced to do it by the Government" instead of "We didn't do it"?

  6. Re:He's not a whistleblower! on The AT&T Whistleblower's Evidence · · Score: 1

    When the people you're blowing the whistle on are the majority of the "authorities", that doesn't work too well. Call it "leaking", "snitching", or "pineappling" if you want, but it doesn't change the facts.

  7. Re:...as good as the Dungeons and Dragons movie? on More Details on The Warcraft Movie · · Score: 1

    He was probably talking about the first one, which had nothing to do with the game other than the name. It was horrible in every possible way...The plot was corny and the acting was some of the worst I've ever seen (seriously, I've seen schoolkids do better).

    I guess no one involved was willing to point out that having a black actress play a wood elf was a mistake.

    "Shouldn't she be trying to kill them?"
    "Nah, dude, she's, like, a wood elf or something."
    "But she's black..."
    "What are you, a racist?!"

    Hopefully, the Warcraft movie will turn out better, but...From what I've seen of movies based on fantasy games, I'm not expecting it to.

  8. Most Fantasy Races are Based on RW Cultures on Stereotyping the Horde · · Score: 1

    Cultural borrowing happens in almost every fantasy game, book, and movie. Read some David Eddings novels if you want examples that knock you over the head. The only fantasy races that AREN'T based on real-world culture(s) are the ones that are completely inhuman like demons, undead, etc. Even then, the styles associated with them are generally a mock-up of a real-world culture.

    Frankly, I liked Warcraft better when the orcs and trolls WERE evil. No one could say the games were out to make a political point; it was simply strategy mixed with classical fantasy.

  9. Re:Favorite Character Submission Contest on Super Smash Brothers Wii, Featuring Solid Snake · · Score: 1

    Bonus points if they give Super Macho Man a spinning punch attack...I had so much trouble with that.

    Incidentally, nice nick. You startled me a bit there.

  10. Re:Good luck, ATF is still around-American crackpo on The NSA Knows Who You've Called · · Score: 1

    From what I understand:

    Basically, the ATF wanted a particular white separatist to act as an informer on a white supremacist group. They harassed him constantly after he refused, and eventually surrounded his house with several hundred agents. At one point during the hostilities, an FBI sniper shot one of the man's sons as well as his wife.

    Eventually he surrendered and was brought to trial on several accounts, including the killing of one of the agents surrounding his house. It was decided that he had acted on self-defense during the killing; the only crime he was convicted of was missing a court date.

    It was undoubtedly a massive slot-up, but there's debate about whether the killings were the fault of the sniper or the ATF itself.

  11. Re:How biased can this website get? on Microsoft Customers Balk at Hard Sell · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "Geez, why not change the title to "Pick on Microsoft AT ALL COSTS." Is there ANYONE that doesn't balk at a hard sell? Why not post something about how horrible car salesmen are? What about telemarketers that don't hang up and keep up the pressure on you even if you're trying to be polite and hang up the phone nicely? So an overzealous saleswoman gave someone the hard sell. So what? Happens all the time in many many different industries."

    I've never had a car salesman try to sell me a car by claiming I stole the one I'm driving from his lot...There's a huge gap between a "hard sell" and a baseless accusation... And a baseless accusation aimed at getting money out of someone is generally considered extortion.

  12. Re:Get over it on China Employs Campus Internet Overseers · · Score: 1

    Ever heard of the Second World War? Sovereign countries who make incredibly oppressive laws generally don't stay happy with being "sovereign countries" for long. It's not like there's any question about whether China wants to conquer, because China has already shown that it doesn't care about the sovereignty of other nations with its conquest of Tibet and refusal to recognize Taiwan's independence.

    Even if that wasn't the case, I don't really care about a government's "rights" next to those of actual people. If a government is no longer beneficial to those that it rules and isn't even trying to be, it deserves to die.

    There are only two ways this can end. Either the people of China rebel and overthrow their government, or China decides that it's no longer content ruling itself and occasionally oppressing its neighbors and engages in a (cold or not) war with the West.

  13. Re:I really doubt it. on HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray - Is It All in the Name? · · Score: 4, Insightful

    There's one major difference between this and the two situations you cite.

    The format that DVD replaced was ancient. The gap between VHS and DVD was huge, and DVD offered many features that VHS did not. And I'm not sure MP3 replaced an old technology so much as it filled a void.

    There's not that much of a gap between DVD and Blu-ray/HD-DVD.

  14. Re:Just say what you mean on Torvalds Has Harsh Words For FreeBSD Devs · · Score: 1

    Especially since, in the area everyone involved is in, there aren't many (if any) "incompetent idiots". "Incompetent idiots" couldn't put together an OS on anything close to the level of *BSD _or_ Linux.

    It's like one world-class athlete who just came out close in a competition with another calling the other a "no-talent weakling".

  15. Re:Humanities neverending war against limits. on ISP Rise Against P2P Users · · Score: 1

    The contract that I signed with my ISP didn't have the catch phrases the parent posts are talking about. They've yet to try any of the "dirty tricks" as well. Whether or not you'll ever find a _major_ ISP like that is another question...Keeping individuals happy is much more important when your customer base is a few cities.

    Also, Canute didn't order the tide back out of arrogance...quite the opposite. He did it to prove that even the power of kings had limits (and because he'd gotten tired of flattery).

  16. Re:I don't get it. on Missing Link Found Between Human Ancestors · · Score: 1

    I know you were joking, but isn't a creation that is initially simple, yet is able to augment its intelligence and ability, more impressive than something that is created to perform at a static level for all time?

  17. Re:No, no, no... don't ask any women on An Editorial Melee About Female Gamers · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Complaining about women who act like sluts isn't misogynistic. The main thing that seems to have sparked off this rant are the "camwhores" who try to use the combination of video games and sexiness to attract fanboys*. On this point, I certainly agree with the author.

    The majority of what I consider "female gamers" aren't like that, but silent majorities often get ignored.

    *I find these far more annoying. I run into them all the time both online and off; they always rave and drool over some chick in a skimpy outfit holding a controller, and then act like there's something wrong with me because I don't. They're twice as loud if the chick's Asian, for some reason.

  18. Re:You have to feel for the guy on RMS Views on Linux, Java, DRM and Opensource · · Score: 1

    How is he not "letting you make your own decisions" about those things? He speaks against them, but he's not sending thugs to your house to force you to do things his way or trying to get laws passed to make them illegal. That's like saying someone's infringing on your freedom by saying "don't buy from Brand X, they kill kittens".

  19. Re:OMG! on Slashdot Design Changes for Wider Appeal · · Score: 5, Funny

    "I heard that Linus and Richard might try to sneak in! They're sooooo cute! *SQueaL!*"
    Oh, but Mitnick has that adorable bad boy thing going on!

  20. OpenVMS? on HP Lets User Take Linux for a Virtual Spin · · Score: 2, Informative

    "It allows free-of-charge access to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and Novell SuSE Linux and other open source operating systems like Debian, FreeBSD and OpenVMS."

    Last I checked, you could run OpenVMS for free under a hobbyist license, but it wasn't anywhere close to being open source. Did I miss something?

  21. Re:Criminalizing _down_loading on Germany Accepts Strict Piracy Law · · Score: 1

    Both uploading and downloading copyrighted material (unless you own a copy or have permission from the author) is illegal in the US. The RIAA/MPAA only sue uploaders, though, becuase it's harder to prove that a downloader is infringing (he may already own the work, for all they know). If Germany's a Berne Convention or WTO member, the same applies there.

    The "crucial change" is that it will be a criminal offense instead of just a civil one, and it will be punishable by a prison sentence instead of just a fine or lawsuit.

    The standard "I am not a lawyer" disclaimer applies, of course.

  22. Re:I Wouldn't Call Her a Luddite on Professor Bans Laptops from the Classroom · · Score: 1

    Get used to the clicking noises. If you're going into anything office or IT related, you're going to be hearing them most of your life.

    And no, I never used laptops to take notes. I've been in classes where people did, and it frankly didn't bother me. I don't care what the person two seats over is looking at.

  23. Re:I Wouldn't Call Her a Luddite on Professor Bans Laptops from the Classroom · · Score: 1

    I have been. I just don't feel like I have to watch every screen in a room. And if the typing bothers you...You're probably going to have problems in the workplace.

    Do you ever use a computer lab? Does it bother you then too?

  24. Re:Man I'm torn. on Professor Bans Laptops from the Classroom · · Score: 1

    Why didn't you ask ahead of time instead of waiting?

    I think requiring notes to be turned in is kind of a stupid thing for a professor to do, but surely you saw this problem coming ahead of time?

  25. Re:I Wouldn't Call Her a Luddite on Professor Bans Laptops from the Classroom · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You're comparing watermelons to peanuts. The boombox disturbs OTHER people; the laptop doesn't. If a college student wants to listen to heavy metal on a private mp3 player with headphones the whole time, let them.

    The job of a post-secondary teacher is to present information in the best way they can; receiving it is the choice of the student.