Well, I'm sure the spec calls for encryption (as it would never get accepted otherwise)....
Then again, run a sniffer on your corporate/college network, and take a look at all those fools who use IMAP and POP without ssl to get their email. It's no better.
(Hint: if you're forced to use one of these systems (like I am), make sure you're not using a password you care about -- and don't even bother to make it cryptic)
I don't know, maybe if you're too lazy to mail it in, you probably shouldn't be voting in the first place?
I can understand not being able to get to the polls, but if you want to vote, and putting a stamp on something (actually, I doubt they even need a stamp) and throwing it in your mailbox is too much effort, then you really need to re-examine your 'drive' to vote.
Re:Electronic voting ... where's the code?
on
Indecision 2002
·
· Score: 2
There's quite the difference between software that is purchased as to software that is designed, with your tax money.
The NAAWP has secured an 80-acre park about 40 miles from Charleston, in beautiful West Virginia, for our annual white heritage day event. There are limited RV hook ups for large campers, so contact us now to secure your spot! There are plenty of tent sites available, and an additional 30 acres of primitive tent camping for those who wish to go it alone! The owner of the park WILL be providing firewood for campfires.
West Virginia, RV's, and Acres of Land....
You'd think that 'white' heritage would include the running of the bulls, oktoberfest, and Palm Sunday...
Oh wait. This must mean 'american' heritage, and that has nothing to do with whites.
These guys aren't just leaning, they convincing people to bend over.
Re:A bone to pick with the dept.
on
Indecision 2002
·
· Score: 2
Candidates who agree with my views get elected.
Really? Do you know them better than you know yourself? What if they change their mind? Nothing stops them.
Sucks for them that the system rewards cornball values like citzenship and responsibility instead of snideness and cynicism...
If responsibility doesn't include objectively challenging each and every view that the candidate has, then you're right.
(Hard Fact: it's impossible for the above scenario to happen)
Re:A bone to pick with the dept.
on
Indecision 2002
·
· Score: 2
I've been having this argument with a colleague at work, he disagrees with me, and believes in teh voting process.
Voting on individual issues is fine, don't get me wrong on that.
Voting for candidates is a whole different story entirely:
Your vote does not matter in this situation. In the end, you're voting for a guy who is by no legal obligation to support campaigning claims or follow any guidelines whatsoever. He speaks for your district or your whole state, depending on what (working) position he takes.
Nothing keeps him in your ideal view of what you want in the state, nor does he truly reflect your ideas. You are welcome to email/write/whatever him, but for the next 2-6 years you are stuck with him no matter what he does.
The only way to truly get your idea across is to run and be elected for the office you wish to use to utilize your goals.
And if that isn't scary enough, add in the electoral college, the fact that there is no requirement on voter education, and campaign contributions, and well, you have a system that is indefinately flawed beyond repair.
(Note, some of you will argue that the electoral college is the answer to voter education. The answer to voter education is through mandated education, not limiting the base of voters to a select few. end of story.)
As for the issues, when you do actually vote on them (say, the assisted suicide law in oregon or the california medicinal marijuana law), the minority that YOU elected gets to challenge it, even though it was passed by the same people who voted THEM into office.
So, I do not vote. Granted, some of you will balk at this and think that I'm simply ignoring the issues, and you're right. What reason do I have to trust the current politicians in office, or any new ones? Give me ONE reason, and back it up with a law or mandate. I do not have any.
So, while you will keep complaining about the things that your elected polticians pass, I will keep complaining about the election process altogether, which is the real issue.
Because, y'know, the best product should always get the support of the market. That's why Excel is so popular.
Do you know what the terms 'subjective' and 'ad hoc' mean?
Excel is the most popular program, and therefore superior because of it's support -- yet I know a good portion of people who, because they don't know how to use tables in Word, use excel to forma t documents.
Then again, how often do you hear of:
1) A user installing multiple office suites on thier machine (especially in a corporate environment where the bottom line is essential), because they actually want the "best" word processor, the "best" spreadsheet, etc?
or,
2) A user installing a single office suite on their machine, and then installing a competing standalone product (a dated example: lotus) because it's superior?
or,
3) A company doing a mass-retraining effort of all of their employees to use a different office suite?
There is no "best" product. Support and Knowledge is all that matters.
We have a guy at work who is pushing Ocaml to work on a web project we need. Ocaml, IMO, is a superior language in many regards to what we currently use (although I have issues with the syntax.... at least lisp has more than indentation to visually support scope:), but this is the question that everyone keeps asking:
"Who's going to maintain this after this guy leaves?"
The point is, is finding people who know word and excel is easy. If you don't use that software, you're probably going to have a period of retraining.
Retraining costs people money and time, one way or another.
The job of a lawyer isn't that it's enforcable, but that it's enforcable enough to keep it out of court.
I mean really, who calls up their lawyer everytime they're given a EULA? And second, who calls them when they've been told the EULA has been violated?
I'm sure there are some, but they are in the distinct minority simply because:
1) Those who do not have the money to fight giant corporations don't, and 2) Those who do are so protective of their money it's better to cut your losses and run.
So, unless you're getting pro bono help by someone worth their weight in bar admissions, it's just not happening.
This is the same thing that happened with the Q3A IHV test.... Who cares, the alpha is probably so shrouded in debugging and lack of content it's not worth the time to download.
The really, really sad thing about the Q3A IHV test was that people actually DESIGNED MAPS for it. I wonder if the same is going to happen for DOOM 3?
(Sorry Guys, I'm blowing away my mods to post on this)
note: I hate the stalemate^Wwar on drugs.
But, anti-drug laws actually mean something when it comes to interstate commerce. They are being smuggled, and usually, being sold. Therefore, they can be called commerce, even if it's not taxed or whatever.
Actually Neverwinter does a good job with story and teamplay... I play on a persistent world (kind of like everquest, but with actual plot), where there are tons of quests to complete and baddies to beat. Often the DM's will step in and setup a special quest just for that night.
It's nice to finally see a game that doesn't completely (I'll be the first to admit, it does exist for some people) run to click click death syndrome and completely sacrifice the story in the process.
The company that I work for was recently bought out by a larger company.
Over the last year that I've been there, we have hired on a ton of new staff, made profits grow steadily, and we're just finishing the buyout of another company this month.
Both of the founders are in line, the CEO and the President of the company. Our parent company decided to keep them, which was the best decision that they could have done.
It would be particularily nice if others could get past his name and just FOR ONCE, consider the content....
(Given your posting history though this is the exception to the norm - you're getting better though, see the sharp glass post)
Perl has a lot of advantages that many consider faults:
1) typeless language (although that's going away..) 2) reference-counting garbage collector (read: very easy to control if you know what you're donig, although not the fastest thing) 3) very quick to learn, excellent gateway language for system adminstrators 4) highly hackable. 2 line hacks in perl can result in 200 or more lines of C, or even more in java (I am not experienced in C#) 5) closely tied to the unix system. there are many builtins that make ease of use 6) the most important thing -- NOTHING, not even the GPL, is required of you to extend or modify perl. (note that i said MODIFY, and not 'build a compatible version of') -- this is an integral part of what makes a lot of perl programmers happy. it's also one of the main reasons that you're hard-pressed to find ANY modern unix machine missing perl out there anymore. 7) I almost forgot -- there is not a language (perhaps besides awk), that has the text-processing power that perl has, from a combined ease of use standpoint, power, and a speed one. lex/yacc generators are probably faster (in C at least, and definately more powerful) but then again, lex and yacc are not easy tools to use to do small parsing jobs.
Granted, perl flies in the face of 99% of what you're going to learn getting a CS degree. OO is incomplete (or non-existant depending on how you look at it). perl6 is supposed to fix that, but that's where I think it's trying to be too much.... but I have no interest on pressing my opinion on the matter.
perl at it's heart is a task-oriented langauge. it makes text processing easier than anything I've ever used.
On a lesser side, perl programming is really easy, nad has a large community (before it was a require ment for new languages to have).. so therefore it allows a lot of people to use it as a testbed for new ideas and experiment with it (see POE for a perfect example of what I'm talking about.
I personally don't think perl is a very multi-purpose langauge. Of course, I'd look at something like C or given my recent persuasion, LISP for something like that. Things like Perl/Tk are perfect examples of bad choices a developer makes when he wants to write a program.
If you read through what he's really doing, he's eliminating the entire 'killer app' of unix (the c library and unix api) to reduce file size.
Then, he goes on to compromise the ELF standard by putting his code in unused places in the ELF standard, as used by linux (ELF, IIRC, comes from solaris originally, so it's not something linus invented), in some cases areas that are ignored for intel only, and then relocating to that point in the binary to execute his code.
90% of the optimizations after moving to assembler rely on the fact that his program is only of a certain size. The only exception to the rule that I noticed is the setting of eax to 1 using xor against it's original value (0).
I'm sure that there are some things that gcc could pull from this, but this is really just experimentation to see what COULD happen, not what's really usable.
Notice that the stages where he gets the real improvements are:
1) When he drops the c library and starts using raw assembler to handle the exit code of the program
2) When he starts replacing parts of the ELF format with code which is later relocated to by the program header.
As soon as gcc starts taking the effort of the C library, it loses all portability (which, last I checked, is the real killer feature of gcc, not speed or optimization). I won't even get into the insanity of reducing a program from 200 to 45 bytes by relocating your code into the actual ELF header.
Slashdot Mirror
Well, I'm sure the spec calls for encryption (as it would never get accepted otherwise)....
Then again, run a sniffer on your corporate/college network, and take a look at all those fools who use IMAP and POP without ssl to get their email. It's no better.
(Hint: if you're forced to use one of these systems (like I am), make sure you're not using a password you care about -- and don't even bother to make it cryptic)
Personally, I'm just getting sick of using XML where smaller, leaner protocols would do a lot better.
Seriouly, Has anyone heard of lex and yacc these days?
(as my colleagues would note, I'm guilty of throwing XML at things that really don't need it too.)
No, but with the power of aa-lib and aaQuake (i think that's what it's called), you can play it in a n eshell. :)
EMACS IS THE OS, ALL YOUR S-EXPRESSIONS BELONG TO US
I don't know, maybe if you're too lazy to mail it in, you probably shouldn't be voting in the first place?
I can understand not being able to get to the polls, but if you want to vote, and putting a stamp on something (actually, I doubt they even need a stamp) and throwing it in your mailbox is too much effort, then you really need to re-examine your 'drive' to vote.
There's quite the difference between software that is purchased as to software that is designed, with your tax money.
From the site....
The NAAWP has secured an 80-acre park about 40 miles from Charleston, in beautiful West Virginia, for our annual white heritage day event. There are limited RV hook ups for large campers, so contact us now to secure your spot! There are plenty of tent sites available, and an additional 30 acres of primitive tent camping for those who wish to go it alone! The owner of the park WILL be providing firewood for campfires.
West Virginia, RV's, and Acres of Land....
You'd think that 'white' heritage would include the running of the bulls, oktoberfest, and Palm Sunday...
Oh wait. This must mean 'american' heritage, and that has nothing to do with whites.
These guys aren't just leaning, they convincing people to bend over.
Candidates who agree with my views get elected.
Really? Do you know them better than you know yourself? What if they change their mind? Nothing stops them.
Sucks for them that the system rewards cornball values like citzenship and responsibility instead of snideness and cynicism...
If responsibility doesn't include objectively challenging each and every view that the candidate has, then you're right.
(Hard Fact: it's impossible for the above scenario to happen)
I've been having this argument with a colleague at work, he disagrees with me, and believes in teh voting process.
Voting on individual issues is fine, don't get me wrong on that.
Voting for candidates is a whole different story entirely:
Your vote does not matter in this situation. In the end, you're voting for a guy who is by no legal obligation to support campaigning claims or follow any guidelines whatsoever. He speaks for your district or your whole state, depending on what (working) position he takes.
Nothing keeps him in your ideal view of what you want in the state, nor does he truly reflect your ideas. You are welcome to email/write/whatever him, but for the next 2-6 years you are stuck with him no matter what he does.
The only way to truly get your idea across is to run and be elected for the office you wish to use to utilize your goals.
And if that isn't scary enough, add in the electoral college, the fact that there is no requirement on voter education, and campaign contributions, and well, you have a system that is indefinately flawed beyond repair.
(Note, some of you will argue that the electoral college is the answer to voter education. The answer to voter education is through mandated education, not limiting the base of voters to a select few. end of story.)
As for the issues, when you do actually vote on them (say, the assisted suicide law in oregon or the california medicinal marijuana law), the minority that YOU elected gets to challenge it, even though it was passed by the same people who voted THEM into office.
So, I do not vote. Granted, some of you will balk at this and think that I'm simply ignoring the issues, and you're right. What reason do I have to trust the current politicians in office, or any new ones? Give me ONE reason, and back it up with a law or mandate. I do not have any.
So, while you will keep complaining about the things that your elected polticians pass, I will keep complaining about the election process altogether, which is the real issue.
Because, y'know, the best product should always get the support of the market. That's why Excel is so popular.
:), but this is the question that everyone keeps asking:
Do you know what the terms 'subjective' and 'ad hoc' mean?
Excel is the most popular program, and therefore superior because of it's support -- yet I know a good portion of people who, because they don't know how to use tables in Word, use excel to forma t documents.
Then again, how often do you hear of:
1) A user installing multiple office suites on thier machine (especially in a corporate environment where the bottom line is essential), because they actually want the "best" word processor, the "best" spreadsheet, etc?
or,
2) A user installing a single office suite on their machine, and then installing a competing standalone product (a dated example: lotus) because it's superior?
or,
3) A company doing a mass-retraining effort of all of their employees to use a different office suite?
There is no "best" product. Support and Knowledge is all that matters.
We have a guy at work who is pushing Ocaml to work on a web project we need. Ocaml, IMO, is a superior language in many regards to what we currently use (although I have issues with the syntax.... at least lisp has more than indentation to visually support scope
"Who's going to maintain this after this guy leaves?"
The point is, is finding people who know word and excel is easy. If you don't use that software, you're probably going to have a period of retraining.
Retraining costs people money and time, one way or another.
The job of a lawyer isn't that it's enforcable, but that it's enforcable enough to keep it out of court.
I mean really, who calls up their lawyer everytime they're given a EULA? And second, who calls them when they've been told the EULA has been violated?
I'm sure there are some, but they are in the distinct minority simply because:
1) Those who do not have the money to fight giant corporations don't, and
2) Those who do are so protective of their money it's better to cut your losses and run.
So, unless you're getting pro bono help by someone worth their weight in bar admissions, it's just not happening.
An IHV test limited to 12FPS?
This is the same thing that happened with the Q3A IHV test.... Who cares, the alpha is probably so shrouded in debugging and lack of content it's not worth the time to download.
The really, really sad thing about the Q3A IHV test was that people actually DESIGNED MAPS for it. I wonder if the same is going to happen for DOOM 3?
(Sorry Guys, I'm blowing away my mods to post on this)
note: I hate the stalemate^Wwar on drugs.
But, anti-drug laws actually mean something when it comes to interstate commerce. They are being smuggled, and usually, being sold. Therefore, they can be called commerce, even if it's not taxed or whatever.
Actually Neverwinter does a good job with story and teamplay... I play on a persistent world (kind of like everquest, but with actual plot), where there are tons of quests to complete and baddies to beat. Often the DM's will step in and setup a special quest just for that night.
It's nice to finally see a game that doesn't completely (I'll be the first to admit, it does exist for some people) run to click click death syndrome and completely sacrifice the story in the process.
no, it's more like
m-a-r-k-e-t-i-n-g
most likely the software that you have to install includes spyware, which is a great way to make money in this wonderful, statistic-driven world
Well when you can script and automate everything, instead of pointing and clicking your way to RSI...
OF COURSE YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE MORE FREE TIME.
I would like to point out that it was a reseller that did that, not oracle.
Not to say that they weren't involved, of course.
The company that I work for was recently bought out by a larger company.
Over the last year that I've been there, we have hired on a ton of new staff, made profits grow steadily, and we're just finishing the buyout of another company this month.
Both of the founders are in line, the CEO and the President of the company. Our parent company decided to keep them, which was the best decision that they could have done.
It would be particularily nice if others could get past his name and just FOR ONCE, consider the content....
(Given your posting history though this is the exception to the norm - you're getting better though, see the sharp glass post)
Perl has a lot of advantages that many consider faults:
1) typeless language (although that's going away..)
2) reference-counting garbage collector (read: very easy to control if you know what you're donig, although not the fastest thing)
3) very quick to learn, excellent gateway language for system adminstrators
4) highly hackable. 2 line hacks in perl can result in 200 or more lines of C, or even more in java (I am not experienced in C#)
5) closely tied to the unix system. there are many builtins that make ease of use
6) the most important thing -- NOTHING, not even the GPL, is required of you to extend or modify perl. (note that i said MODIFY, and not 'build a compatible version of') -- this is an integral part of what makes a lot of perl programmers happy. it's also one of the main reasons that you're hard-pressed to find ANY modern unix machine missing perl out there anymore.
7) I almost forgot -- there is not a language (perhaps besides awk), that has the text-processing power that perl has, from a combined ease of use standpoint, power, and a speed one. lex/yacc generators are probably faster (in C at least, and definately more powerful) but then again, lex and yacc are not easy tools to use to do small parsing jobs.
Granted, perl flies in the face of 99% of what you're going to learn getting a CS degree. OO is incomplete (or non-existant depending on how you look at it). perl6 is supposed to fix that, but that's where I think it's trying to be too much.... but I have no interest on pressing my opinion on the matter.
perl at it's heart is a task-oriented langauge. it makes text processing easier than anything I've ever used.
On a lesser side, perl programming is really easy, nad has a large community (before it was a require ment for new languages to have).. so therefore it allows a lot of people to use it as a testbed for new ideas and experiment with it (see POE for a perfect example of what I'm talking about.
I personally don't think perl is a very multi-purpose langauge. Of course, I'd look at something like C or given my recent persuasion, LISP for something like that. Things like Perl/Tk are perfect examples of bad choices a developer makes when he wants to write a program.
>Standards are well and good but they are insignificant compared to what the browsers will actually render.
Yep, I'm sure it doesn't matter in lynx, w3m, links, or oh, i don't know, any other browser that doesn't display images.
What's this? aural and braille readers don't show images either?
What on earth did you think the ALT tag was for in the first place?
Somewhere between slackware and debian.
I mean really, it's just a little more than slackware with some (really nice, using it here and at home) ports management.
Gentoo run-level management KICKS YOUR ASS.
If you read through what he's really doing, he's eliminating the entire 'killer app' of unix (the c library and unix api) to reduce file size.
Then, he goes on to compromise the ELF standard by putting his code in unused places in the ELF standard, as used by linux (ELF, IIRC, comes from solaris originally, so it's not something linus invented), in some cases areas that are ignored for intel only, and then relocating to that point in the binary to execute his code.
90% of the optimizations after moving to assembler rely on the fact that his program is only of a certain size. The only exception to the rule that I noticed is the setting of eax to 1 using xor against it's original value (0).
I'm sure that there are some things that gcc could pull from this, but this is really just experimentation to see what COULD happen, not what's really usable.
Notice that the stages where he gets the real improvements are:
1) When he drops the c library and starts using raw assembler to handle the exit code of the program
2) When he starts replacing parts of the ELF format with code which is later relocated to by the program header.
As soon as gcc starts taking the effort of the C library, it loses all portability (which, last I checked, is the real killer feature of gcc, not speed or optimization). I won't even get into the insanity of reducing a program from 200 to 45 bytes by relocating your code into the actual ELF header.
You forgot the truly great thing about NWN:
If I want to play on a private server, I can.
Yes, but can you name one that changed actual law? Suing is easy these days, hell, half of the cases never even make it to court.
But a case HAS to go to court to reverse law.
Thank you, drive through.
That's pride, fuckin' with you.
You've obviously never seen the damage that a deer will do to your car, have you?