The causal sets approach to quantum gravity is based on a universe without real numbers (essentially, we assume spacetime is a scattering of discrete points). Of course, it has no experimental evidence and makes fewer predictions than the likes of string theory or LCG.
I can also scan all of my music scores (I sing in a chorus) and load them up in a PDF reader - then use the tablet to bring up any of a hundred charts in our extended repertoire to work on or polish, even when standing on the risers - not something that can be done with a laptop. Same goes for a piano - can't put most laptops on a music stand.
We're talking about netbooks. I've got one with a hinge that lets you turn the screen around and fold it down, at which point you've got something shaped just like a tablet, only slightly thicker. But I can also fold the screen up, and then it's something you can put on a table in front of you to watch a movie on. Or turn it back around, and then you've got a keyboard you can type on. I didn't actually get a touchscreen model, but if that's something you find useful then they exist.
Small form-factor is good, touchscreen is useful for some people, long battery life is good. But you can get all of these, and cheaper, without sacrificing the keyboard. (I don't get how your cell data price can be different - take the SIM out of the tablet and put it in the netbook, what difference does it make?)
I think phones and tablets will soon be most people's main computer. They will dock them with big screens and keyboards when they want to work on something that requires it.
Phones maybe, leaving the keyboard out makes sense it that form factor. But I can't see why you wouldn't put a keyboard on something tablet-sized - if it's just a matter of the sleek design, sooner or later someone will figure out how to fit a slide-out one in the tablet form factor.
Practically, the government *can't* watch you all the time, or really at all, unless you are the subject of some investigation worth those resources
Trouble is, if the government does something I don't like, and I start taking (perfectly legal) political action against that, I become someone "worth" watching. So surveillance capability is something to worry about now; otherwise, when something directly problematic comes up, you're a dissident and it's too late.
I can see the likes of the LHC or the AEA using something like this - they generate enough data. But if it were a "good guy" why would they keep it secret?
Maybe not need, but most people will, sooner or later, want to write something, even just an email or status update. And doing that on a touchscreen is slow and unpleasant compared to using a keyboard.
I love having a powerful computing device in a small form-factor. But when it's already 10" I can't fathom why you'd leave the keyboard off.
Commuting is the perfect place to use them. I use my netbook perhaps one day in three to watch videos or play games on the train, and quite often I'll do the same thing during lunch (I don't like staying in the office, and even if I did, I'm not sure they'd be happy with me watching videos or gaming on company machines).
Ok, here are my big complaints for things that were working in 3.5:
The system tray still doesn't work. KDE4 apps appear in it, but KDE3 or non-kde apps don't. So for an application that keeps running in the system tray when you close the window (e.g. skype), you then have no way to close it.
There's no way to set a default transparency for foreground windows. That was there in 3.5, I filed a bug about it, but five minor versions later it's still not there.
Even movie streaming, which I can do with it propped up on the treadmill's magazine stand at the gym (try to get a netbook to do that)
Easy, all you need is a slightly fancy hinge. I can also put my netbook on the nightstand and watch it from bed without having to hold it, try that with your tablet.
The problem with java IMHO is that it gives the bright young things a lot of fun toys to play with and opportunities to create write only source code.
Exactly wrong. The big (in fact almost the only) thing java has going for it is that its strong typing and verbose, rigid syntax limit how clever you can be, and mean the structure of any piece of java code remains clear. You can do a much better job of write only source in either C++ (operator overloading, unmanaged memory) or dynamic languages (reuse the same variable for different types, play with all the funny-looking operators in the syntax).
It's mostly Disney doing that, and they know they can make money off their back catalogue (partly because they're selling to children and there's always a new generation of those). More generally, a lot more people are willing to buy content from e.g. the '80s, than want products from then.
Because products *in general* tend to have no longevity, as far as they're concerned.
dotcoms have taught us that however big a product is right now, it could be dead in two years. Companies deduce from this that future value is worth nothing.
People don't plunk down $500 because it's cool. They plunk down $500 because they're confident that they're going to get the product they want. They plunk down $500 because it's the right price for a product they want or need.
The fashion industry shows otherwise. There are plenty of $1000+ dresses out there, and while there are aspects where they're objectively better than a $100 one, it's more a status symbol than a functional buy. And I think there's some element of that in apple products.
Wow, you're right, I should just ditch my phone and go buy an ipod.
iOS is beating android on tablets. iOS is beating android on ipods. But iOS is losing to androids on phones. And it makes sense to make these comparisons separately.
I can carry my 7" netbook around with me just whenever, and it can do all the things you list, as well as running full-scale programs if I want them. (Which capability I mostly use to play 90s PC games, but it could be used for anything). I can understand wanting a device this size, but I can't see why you wouldn't put a proper keyboard on it, and make it compatible with existing software.
I know that. But IIRC it announces in the splash screen that it's using Java, and so it's still one of the things I think of when I'm trying to think of "java desktop app". Seriously, if it's possible to write a snappy, performant desktop app in Java, why can't I think of any?
Slashdot Mirror
The causal sets approach to quantum gravity is based on a universe without real numbers (essentially, we assume spacetime is a scattering of discrete points). Of course, it has no experimental evidence and makes fewer predictions than the likes of string theory or LCG.
Nope. Home machine and work machine, entirely separate.
Happens for me on two different distros. Wish I was making it up.
I can also scan all of my music scores (I sing in a chorus) and load them up in a PDF reader - then use the tablet to bring up any of a hundred charts in our extended repertoire to work on or polish, even when standing on the risers - not something that can be done with a laptop. Same goes for a piano - can't put most laptops on a music stand.
We're talking about netbooks. I've got one with a hinge that lets you turn the screen around and fold it down, at which point you've got something shaped just like a tablet, only slightly thicker. But I can also fold the screen up, and then it's something you can put on a table in front of you to watch a movie on. Or turn it back around, and then you've got a keyboard you can type on. I didn't actually get a touchscreen model, but if that's something you find useful then they exist.
Small form-factor is good, touchscreen is useful for some people, long battery life is good. But you can get all of these, and cheaper, without sacrificing the keyboard. (I don't get how your cell data price can be different - take the SIM out of the tablet and put it in the netbook, what difference does it make?)
I think phones and tablets will soon be most people's main computer. They will dock them with big screens and keyboards when they want to work on something that requires it.
Phones maybe, leaving the keyboard out makes sense it that form factor. But I can't see why you wouldn't put a keyboard on something tablet-sized - if it's just a matter of the sleek design, sooner or later someone will figure out how to fit a slide-out one in the tablet form factor.
Practically, the government *can't* watch you all the time, or really at all, unless you are the subject of some investigation worth those resources
Trouble is, if the government does something I don't like, and I start taking (perfectly legal) political action against that, I become someone "worth" watching. So surveillance capability is something to worry about now; otherwise, when something directly problematic comes up, you're a dissident and it's too late.
I can see the likes of the LHC or the AEA using something like this - they generate enough data. But if it were a "good guy" why would they keep it secret?
Except no. If you've been following this story, it wasn't just defacing their website, the attackers got the crown jewels this time.
So only buy DRM-free. It worked with music, eventually.
I love having a powerful computing device in a small form-factor. But when it's already 10" I can't fathom why you'd leave the keyboard off.
Commuting is the perfect place to use them. I use my netbook perhaps one day in three to watch videos or play games on the train, and quite often I'll do the same thing during lunch (I don't like staying in the office, and even if I did, I'm not sure they'd be happy with me watching videos or gaming on company machines).
The system tray still doesn't work. KDE4 apps appear in it, but KDE3 or non-kde apps don't. So for an application that keeps running in the system tray when you close the window (e.g. skype), you then have no way to close it.
There's no way to set a default transparency for foreground windows. That was there in 3.5, I filed a bug about it, but five minor versions later it's still not there.
right slashdot?
Even movie streaming, which I can do with it propped up on the treadmill's magazine stand at the gym (try to get a netbook to do that)
Easy, all you need is a slightly fancy hinge. I can also put my netbook on the nightstand and watch it from bed without having to hold it, try that with your tablet.
The problem with java IMHO is that it gives the bright young things a lot of fun toys to play with and opportunities to create write only source code.
Exactly wrong. The big (in fact almost the only) thing java has going for it is that its strong typing and verbose, rigid syntax limit how clever you can be, and mean the structure of any piece of java code remains clear. You can do a much better job of write only source in either C++ (operator overloading, unmanaged memory) or dynamic languages (reuse the same variable for different types, play with all the funny-looking operators in the syntax).
It's mostly Disney doing that, and they know they can make money off their back catalogue (partly because they're selling to children and there's always a new generation of those). More generally, a lot more people are willing to buy content from e.g. the '80s, than want products from then.
dotcoms have taught us that however big a product is right now, it could be dead in two years. Companies deduce from this that future value is worth nothing.
Looks like we just slashdotted your site.
People don't plunk down $500 because it's cool. They plunk down $500 because they're confident that they're going to get the product they want. They plunk down $500 because it's the right price for a product they want or need.
The fashion industry shows otherwise. There are plenty of $1000+ dresses out there, and while there are aspects where they're objectively better than a $100 one, it's more a status symbol than a functional buy. And I think there's some element of that in apple products.
iOS is beating android on tablets. iOS is beating android on ipods. But iOS is losing to androids on phones. And it makes sense to make these comparisons separately.
Citation needed
I can carry my 7" netbook around with me just whenever, and it can do all the things you list, as well as running full-scale programs if I want them. (Which capability I mostly use to play 90s PC games, but it could be used for anything). I can understand wanting a device this size, but I can't see why you wouldn't put a proper keyboard on it, and make it compatible with existing software.
I know that. But IIRC it announces in the splash screen that it's using Java, and so it's still one of the things I think of when I'm trying to think of "java desktop app". Seriously, if it's possible to write a snappy, performant desktop app in Java, why can't I think of any?
Their craft are IIRC all derived from early Russian models. If the rings haven't changed since then, they'll be compatible.
Haha, if java doesn't scale why is it the defact standard for any large enterprise?
Because 10 years ago it was the best tool for the job.