Imagine trying to communicate with a space station orbiting Jupiter and having to wait for a 35 to 52 minute delay with each question.
Considering that very scenario is done every day, it's not a hard concept to imagine. The few probes we have out in that neck of the solar system, and beyond, send us their data and we send them new information or adjustments. The folks at NASA and other space agencies deal with this scenario all the time.
Then again, there was that episode of Stargate where they were experimenting with a captured Goauld spacecraft and O'Neil and Tilk (sp?) got stuck when it shut down. I'm glad they built into that episode the time difference between there and Earth and had them use zulu time to coordinate their activities.
As mentioned in this article (at least 20 times), it all depends on the organization. In some, helpdesk is it. You don't go much further. In others, they want to promote people.
In my case, I did an 18 month stint supporting a proprietary case management system (for the State court system). By the time I left, I knew every screen in the app and when people would call in with a question or a problem, I didn't have to look at the screen to know what they were talking about.
I took that knowledge and went into a program (still with the State) where you served one year and did rotations in networking, helpdesk, programming and web design at different agencies. At the end of the year, you were placed with an agency.
Since then, I've kept learning new skills (despite the best efforts of some of those around me to prevent that) and have been working my way up the food chain. I'm trying to get into a management position to bring some organization to things but am still being thwarted.
Helpdesk is what you make of it. Either you do well and get ahead or you sit on your ass and bitch about stupid users.
You could always entrust that process to someone who you believe would carry out your wishes.
Then again, that doesn't take care of your online accounts. They would need to take care of those as well. Which goes back to what I previously said: write down your information so someone can get to your stuff. In your case, the person would log onto your accounts, delete the information then close the accounts.
You beat me to the punch. Having worked in the financial sector for a time, a death certificate should do the trick.
The catch will be is if the person signed up for accounts but didn't use his real name, address, etc. Then you may have a problem. Otherwise, submitting the certificate (more than likely official copies) should suffice to prove to the various places that the person is truly dead and you are doing a port mortem of his accounts.
The family should be the ones contacting these places as they are next of kin.
I know it's asking for trouble, but this is why all your accounts including username and password should be written down and stored in a separate location. Regardless if it's suicide or getting run over by a wildebeast, someone, somewhere, will need to be able to get into your accounts to clear things up.
Just to pile on, about 2 years or so ago I drove my parents down to the Dulles branch (my mom suggested we go so I drove). The real issue was that there were some ham related (as in amateur radio) satellites and exhibits on display and she wanted to surprise my dad when he saw it (K3SZH for anyone that is interested).
In the same room as the shuttle, they have a cut away of a V2 rocket engine bell which allows you to see the channels the liquid fuel went through when it cooled the bell before being consumed. They have a whole host of other craft from WWII in the same room.
As a side note, in that same room there is the original model of the spacecraft from Close Encounters in a glass case. If you look closely at it, you can see some of the quirky items the designers put on it knowing they wouldn't be seen in the movie. What kind of quirky items? How about a graveyard, some aircraft and a street scene.
All in all, the Dulles annex is a must see with all the planes and other items they have, literally, hanging around. Even if you're not into aircraft and related matters, the engineering of the devices is something to see. Wear comfortable shoes and be prepared to walk up and down stairs.
And yes, as one of the posters above commented, it does cost to park at the annex but is free to enter. Except for the $8 Quarter Pounder at the McDonald's inside.
That said, if one does a search for Intelligent Design, as far as I can tell, every article/web page/whatever tries to use one of two arguments about ID: either the Bible is used as an explanation for ID because obviously if it's in the Bible, it must be true or that there must be a an intelligence to why things are the way they are.
In the first case, that argument then puts the ID supporters into the realm of backtracking on their claims that ID is not religious-based. If it's not based on religion, then why bring the Bible into it? In the second case, ID supporters never answer who that designer is or how one tests for it (I'm presuming that a being capable of creating matter from nothing doesn't have a sex). If you can't test or show if such a being exists, how can one claim that such a being did the designing?
Further, Evolutionary theory does make predictions which have been tested, the classic being what I have already mentioned; the fossil tree of horses and humans. Despite your contention that there are gaps, there are none. There is a sufficient number of intermediary fossils to show how earlier life forms evolved into what we have today with more being found on a yearly or every-other year basis.
Not that I am aware of unless the manufacturer (Dell, HP, etc) has it preinstalled. It was not included on my parents PC which is about 2 years old from Dell.
How do (normal) people manage to whatch YouTube?
As the author of the article suggested, the user gets a message they need to install Flash, they click the link and it installs. That's all they need to know and want to do. They don't want to have to type in obscure commands just to see the video of their next door neighbor's daughter flashing her tits on Spring Break. They just want to click and watch. And click and watch. And click and watch. And click and watch.
By the way, since ID does not predict future change to species there is nothing to test.
Nor does Evolutionary theory. Then again, ID doesn't propose anything that can be tested so there's no point trying to pawn it off as something which has any scientific merit.
In fact, your comments show exactly why ID isn't science. During this whole discussion, not once have you or anyone supplied any evidence to support ID as being a scientific endeavor.
Instead, and this is what the fundies keep trying to do, is show supposed holes in Evolutionary theory and then claim, "See! See these holes? Therefore, ID must be included."
I'll repeat what I said in someone's journal post: I will offer $1 million to anyone from the ID crowd who can submit any evidence to support ID as being scientific. The evidence cannot be based on the bible or any other religious text. The evidence must be submitted to three separate committees whose members have no relation to ID. If any one of those committees agrees that the evidence presented has merit, I will pay the prize.
Just as with James Randi's prize, no one will claim this prize either.
Evolution is a good explanation of "accepted" evidence. One cannot test it, therefore it isn't science.
Right. Because the fossil record of both horses and humans do not show examples of intermediate changes from non-horses and non-humans to todays creatures.
And I suppose astrology is a science because it's so well "tested".
'By watching an 'unprecedented view' of a black hole in the process of expelling mass, they were able to confirm their theory, predicting where and when bursts of energy would be detected."
Note to all ID supporters, this is how real science works. Propose a theory which can be tested, then go about trying to disprove the theory.
Okie. I was using your term of reporter as opposed to commentator or analyst. Yes, analysts, in any subject area, should be independent.
I only pick on Fox since they are the most egregious of the news organizations. Certainly every news organization has its problems but I know that when it comes to reporting, CNN and NBC will generally give the most independent reports. The two folks I mentioned are highly regarded in the industry for reporting things as they are and not simply spouting the line.
Nobody's forcing Fox to put pentagon-briefed persons on the tube.
If Fox was doing its duty, they'd hire reporters that are independent from the pentagon.
Fixed that for you.
For the record, both CNN and NBC use their own reporters who are independent from the Pentagon. Both Jamie McIntyre (CNN) and Jim Miklashevski (NBC) report on Pentagon news both from what the PR department says, as well as from their own sources who either corroborate or dispute the official line.
I can't speak for ABC or CBS but I'm reasonably sure they use independent reporters as well.
Take the hard drive out and mail it to whatever location you are going to. When they turn on your laptop and can't figure out why nothing comes up, just tell them there's no drive in it.
The search should be over at that point. Unless because of doing so they hold you for more questions.
"Why did you take out the hard drive in your computer?"
"I don't want you to read my personal stuff."*
*This is the same reason George Bush has given for why he doesn't use email. In his case, you represents the media.
How many people do you know that would jump on an opportunity for a manned mission to mars?
Me! Let's go NASA. My bags are packed and everything is in order. I can leave on Sunday (have a yard sale on Friday and Saturday).
Just to be the first to do it.
My point exactly. I told my dad this same thing on our way back from a ham fest a month ago. I would love to be the first human to set foot on Mars. No traffic, no idiots to deal with, red women to ogle. It would be a blast!
go down in history as a great pioneer.
Yeah, that too. Just think, a statue of myself, arm outstretched, reaching for the stars. I'd probably have a high school named after me.
Heh. I knew the way you meant it but it feels good to use some of my semi-geek* knowledge of Star Trek now and then.
*I'm not a true geek. I consider myself a geek-in-training. I can't code to save my life nor quote lines from Monty Python but if you want someone who likes to learn new things, is organized, adaptable and able to communicate what the goal is and get out of your way, I'm your man.
I read about games being put on "indefinite hiatus", or just being cancelled with the company essentially throwing their hands up in the air and saying "ain't gonna happen."
Road to Moscow comes to mind. After playing the V for Victory series (and still have the original discs), this 'upgrade' to the deployment and combat system was something to look forward to. However, like DNF, the publisher and designer kept putting out, "Coming soon", "Delayed Release" and other related comments. Finally, the fateful announcement came.
The code still exists, as far as I know, but isn't being used.
Was there a planet that Kirk/Picard/Janeway didn't leave in a fundamentally different state after turning up?
Yes. Two episodes of TNG come to mind and they illustrate the Prime Directive. I don't know the names of the episodes (and too lazy to look them up) but here are their descriptions.
The first involved Riker being found out while on a mission to make contact with a civilization that was beginning space exploration. The actress who played Lillith is the female doctor who realizes what he is and wants to hump him at every opportunity (no argument from me). In the end, Picard meets with their leader and is asked not to return until the people are ready for the fact that there are other beings in the universe.
The second involves Deanna's mother and her infatuation with David Ogden Stiers (Charles Emerson Winchester III). On his planet, when people reach a certain age, they are required to commit suicide. Deanna's mother can't come to grips with this and begs him not to go through with it. She even asks for Picard to offer him asylum. Picard refuses and things go on.
In both cases, while contact had been made, the balance of the civilizations was not upset. One could argue that in the first case, the fact that certain people knew about these visitors fundamentally changed things but since only a select few knew, the general populace went about their business none the wiser.
Personally, I think those two episodes, along with the one where Picard has to convince a group of pre-industrial people he is not a god despite his "powers", are the three episodes which best illustrate the Prime Directive and some of its permutations.
How many IT projects have you worked on where the company hires one of these huge consulting firms, spends millions of dollars, and still has problems after all is said and done?
Not worked on but have been the unfortunate recipient of having to use them. First it was SAP. What a horrible piece of shit. Nearly every day we get calls from people who can't access the system and it's because the system can't handle all the requests from people processing travel vouchers, time requests, etc.
Now I have to go through an ERP project in a vain attempt to bring some semblance of organization to our products and how they are delivered. We're at $40 million and counting and I can guarantee there will be numerous problems with our suppliers and clients once it's implemented. But it's only taxpayer dollars so it's not real money.
The rest of your comment is spot on. That is exactly what happened in our current case. That and our CIO is completely incompetent at his job and lacks any semblance of organization. But he can sell ice to Eskimos in January.
True, though I never intimated that, but let's be honest, what did Panama have that could have possibly posed a threat to the F-117? I'm fairly certain a Chinook could have been used to drop bombs on targets in Panama.
The Gulf conflict was the first real test of the planes stealthiness.
Yes. So far as I am aware, it was never designed for air-to-air combat. Rather, it was to be used as it was in the first days of the 1990 Gulf conflict during Bush I's tenure: to hit high value, heavily defended targets.
More information on the role of the F-117 can be found at Frontline, AirToAirCombat.com, FAS as well as other sources on the intertubes. Last link has pictures of the aircraft as well as pictures and a non-Flash video of the aftermath of the only F-117 to ever be shot down. In this case, over Serbia.
Slashdot Mirror
Considering that very scenario is done every day, it's not a hard concept to imagine. The few probes we have out in that neck of the solar system, and beyond, send us their data and we send them new information or adjustments. The folks at NASA and other space agencies deal with this scenario all the time.
Then again, there was that episode of Stargate where they were experimenting with a captured Goauld spacecraft and O'Neil and Tilk (sp?) got stuck when it shut down. I'm glad they built into that episode the time difference between there and Earth and had them use zulu time to coordinate their activities.
As mentioned in this article (at least 20 times), it all depends on the organization. In some, helpdesk is it. You don't go much further. In others, they want to promote people.
In my case, I did an 18 month stint supporting a proprietary case management system (for the State court system). By the time I left, I knew every screen in the app and when people would call in with a question or a problem, I didn't have to look at the screen to know what they were talking about.
I took that knowledge and went into a program (still with the State) where you served one year and did rotations in networking, helpdesk, programming and web design at different agencies. At the end of the year, you were placed with an agency.
Since then, I've kept learning new skills (despite the best efforts of some of those around me to prevent that) and have been working my way up the food chain. I'm trying to get into a management position to bring some organization to things but am still being thwarted.
Helpdesk is what you make of it. Either you do well and get ahead or you sit on your ass and bitch about stupid users.
Apparently I did. Good catch. Just goes to show that even with proofreading and using spellchecker in Fx, things still slip through.
You could always entrust that process to someone who you believe would carry out your wishes.
Then again, that doesn't take care of your online accounts. They would need to take care of those as well. Which goes back to what I previously said: write down your information so someone can get to your stuff. In your case, the person would log onto your accounts, delete the information then close the accounts.
You beat me to the punch. Having worked in the financial sector for a time, a death certificate should do the trick.
The catch will be is if the person signed up for accounts but didn't use his real name, address, etc. Then you may have a problem. Otherwise, submitting the certificate (more than likely official copies) should suffice to prove to the various places that the person is truly dead and you are doing a port mortem of his accounts.
The family should be the ones contacting these places as they are next of kin.
I know it's asking for trouble, but this is why all your accounts including username and password should be written down and stored in a separate location. Regardless if it's suicide or getting run over by a wildebeast, someone, somewhere, will need to be able to get into your accounts to clear things up.
I was wondering how a computer game which is no longer manufactured could suddenly have its sales take off.
Just goes to show you how something can mean different things to different people.
Just to pile on, about 2 years or so ago I drove my parents down to the Dulles branch (my mom suggested we go so I drove). The real issue was that there were some ham related (as in amateur radio) satellites and exhibits on display and she wanted to surprise my dad when he saw it (K3SZH for anyone that is interested).
In the same room as the shuttle, they have a cut away of a V2 rocket engine bell which allows you to see the channels the liquid fuel went through when it cooled the bell before being consumed. They have a whole host of other craft from WWII in the same room.
As a side note, in that same room there is the original model of the spacecraft from Close Encounters in a glass case. If you look closely at it, you can see some of the quirky items the designers put on it knowing they wouldn't be seen in the movie. What kind of quirky items? How about a graveyard, some aircraft and a street scene.
All in all, the Dulles annex is a must see with all the planes and other items they have, literally, hanging around. Even if you're not into aircraft and related matters, the engineering of the devices is something to see. Wear comfortable shoes and be prepared to walk up and down stairs.
And yes, as one of the posters above commented, it does cost to park at the annex but is free to enter. Except for the $8 Quarter Pounder at the McDonald's inside.
Talk Origins
That said, if one does a search for Intelligent Design, as far as I can tell, every article/web page/whatever tries to use one of two arguments about ID: either the Bible is used as an explanation for ID because obviously if it's in the Bible, it must be true or that there must be a an intelligence to why things are the way they are.
In the first case, that argument then puts the ID supporters into the realm of backtracking on their claims that ID is not religious-based. If it's not based on religion, then why bring the Bible into it? In the second case, ID supporters never answer who that designer is or how one tests for it (I'm presuming that a being capable of creating matter from nothing doesn't have a sex). If you can't test or show if such a being exists, how can one claim that such a being did the designing?
Further, Evolutionary theory does make predictions which have been tested, the classic being what I have already mentioned; the fossil tree of horses and humans. Despite your contention that there are gaps, there are none. There is a sufficient number of intermediary fossils to show how earlier life forms evolved into what we have today with more being found on a yearly or every-other year basis.
Not that I am aware of unless the manufacturer (Dell, HP, etc) has it preinstalled. It was not included on my parents PC which is about 2 years old from Dell.
How do (normal) people manage to whatch YouTube?
As the author of the article suggested, the user gets a message they need to install Flash, they click the link and it installs. That's all they need to know and want to do. They don't want to have to type in obscure commands just to see the video of their next door neighbor's daughter flashing her tits on Spring Break. They just want to click and watch. And click and watch. And click and watch. And click and watch.
Nor does Evolutionary theory. Then again, ID doesn't propose anything that can be tested so there's no point trying to pawn it off as something which has any scientific merit.
In fact, your comments show exactly why ID isn't science. During this whole discussion, not once have you or anyone supplied any evidence to support ID as being a scientific endeavor.
Instead, and this is what the fundies keep trying to do, is show supposed holes in Evolutionary theory and then claim, "See! See these holes? Therefore, ID must be included."
I'll repeat what I said in someone's journal post: I will offer $1 million to anyone from the ID crowd who can submit any evidence to support ID as being scientific. The evidence cannot be based on the bible or any other religious text. The evidence must be submitted to three separate committees whose members have no relation to ID. If any one of those committees agrees that the evidence presented has merit, I will pay the prize.
Just as with James Randi's prize, no one will claim this prize either.
Right. Because the fossil record of both horses and humans do not show examples of intermediate changes from non-horses and non-humans to todays creatures.
And I suppose astrology is a science because it's so well "tested".
Note to all ID supporters, this is how real science works. Propose a theory which can be tested, then go about trying to disprove the theory.
Now go ahead, flame me. My karma can take it.
Okie. I was using your term of reporter as opposed to commentator or analyst. Yes, analysts, in any subject area, should be independent.
I only pick on Fox since they are the most egregious of the news organizations. Certainly every news organization has its problems but I know that when it comes to reporting, CNN and NBC will generally give the most independent reports. The two folks I mentioned are highly regarded in the industry for reporting things as they are and not simply spouting the line.
Does anyone need that much porno?
To which the answer is a resounding, YES!
If Fox was doing its duty, they'd hire reporters that are independent from the pentagon.
Fixed that for you.
For the record, both CNN and NBC use their own reporters who are independent from the Pentagon. Both Jamie McIntyre (CNN) and Jim Miklashevski (NBC) report on Pentagon news both from what the PR department says, as well as from their own sources who either corroborate or dispute the official line.
I can't speak for ABC or CBS but I'm reasonably sure they use independent reporters as well.
Take the hard drive out and mail it to whatever location you are going to. When they turn on your laptop and can't figure out why nothing comes up, just tell them there's no drive in it.
The search should be over at that point. Unless because of doing so they hold you for more questions.
"Why did you take out the hard drive in your computer?"
"I don't want you to read my personal stuff."*
*This is the same reason George Bush has given for why he doesn't use email. In his case, you represents the media.
Me! Let's go NASA. My bags are packed and everything is in order. I can leave on Sunday (have a yard sale on Friday and Saturday).
Just to be the first to do it.
My point exactly. I told my dad this same thing on our way back from a ham fest a month ago. I would love to be the first human to set foot on Mars. No traffic, no idiots to deal with, red women to ogle. It would be a blast!
go down in history as a great pioneer.
Yeah, that too. Just think, a statue of myself, arm outstretched, reaching for the stars. I'd probably have a high school named after me.
Yup. Swedish engineered camera with German lenses. Pretty much the best of both worlds. For your information.
Heh. I knew the way you meant it but it feels good to use some of my semi-geek* knowledge of Star Trek now and then.
*I'm not a true geek. I consider myself a geek-in-training. I can't code to save my life nor quote lines from Monty Python but if you want someone who likes to learn new things, is organized, adaptable and able to communicate what the goal is and get out of your way, I'm your man.
Road to Moscow comes to mind. After playing the V for Victory series (and still have the original discs), this 'upgrade' to the deployment and combat system was something to look forward to. However, like DNF, the publisher and designer kept putting out, "Coming soon", "Delayed Release" and other related comments. Finally, the fateful announcement came.
The code still exists, as far as I know, but isn't being used.
You mean like this and this?
No, what would make you think there is a problem with cables being tangled or mislabeled?
Yes. Two episodes of TNG come to mind and they illustrate the Prime Directive. I don't know the names of the episodes (and too lazy to look them up) but here are their descriptions.
The first involved Riker being found out while on a mission to make contact with a civilization that was beginning space exploration. The actress who played Lillith is the female doctor who realizes what he is and wants to hump him at every opportunity (no argument from me). In the end, Picard meets with their leader and is asked not to return until the people are ready for the fact that there are other beings in the universe.
The second involves Deanna's mother and her infatuation with David Ogden Stiers (Charles Emerson Winchester III). On his planet, when people reach a certain age, they are required to commit suicide. Deanna's mother can't come to grips with this and begs him not to go through with it. She even asks for Picard to offer him asylum. Picard refuses and things go on.
In both cases, while contact had been made, the balance of the civilizations was not upset. One could argue that in the first case, the fact that certain people knew about these visitors fundamentally changed things but since only a select few knew, the general populace went about their business none the wiser.
Personally, I think those two episodes, along with the one where Picard has to convince a group of pre-industrial people he is not a god despite his "powers", are the three episodes which best illustrate the Prime Directive and some of its permutations.
Not worked on but have been the unfortunate recipient of having to use them. First it was SAP. What a horrible piece of shit. Nearly every day we get calls from people who can't access the system and it's because the system can't handle all the requests from people processing travel vouchers, time requests, etc.
Now I have to go through an ERP project in a vain attempt to bring some semblance of organization to our products and how they are delivered. We're at $40 million and counting and I can guarantee there will be numerous problems with our suppliers and clients once it's implemented. But it's only taxpayer dollars so it's not real money.
The rest of your comment is spot on. That is exactly what happened in our current case. That and our CIO is completely incompetent at his job and lacks any semblance of organization. But he can sell ice to Eskimos in January.
True, though I never intimated that, but let's be honest, what did Panama have that could have possibly posed a threat to the F-117? I'm fairly certain a Chinook could have been used to drop bombs on targets in Panama.
The Gulf conflict was the first real test of the planes stealthiness.
More information on the role of the F-117 can be found at Frontline, AirToAirCombat.com, FAS as well as other sources on the intertubes. Last link has pictures of the aircraft as well as pictures and a non-Flash video of the aftermath of the only F-117 to ever be shot down. In this case, over Serbia.