Another problem with current crop of touch keyboards is that you can't "touch type". You can't rest your fingers on home row, they all more or less start typing letters when you do that. Physical keyboard with mechanical feedback obviously does not have that problem.
That's the deal breaker for me, with a real keyboard you can FEEL where you are without looking. I love my iPad but after 25 years of touch typing I find I have to use an external keyboard to actually be productive typing on it for anything non-trivial.
People who use their computers for a living will probably still use the ancient input devices regardless of what consumers are doing.
Indeed... I am an iPad owner and consumer as well as a professional software developer. There are lots of things that can be done without a keyboard but touchscreens will have to improve a hell of a lot before anyone with professional typing skills will consider writing anything non-trivial with one.
So they noticed a glitch in the system - one that allowed them to get a Jackpot without it being reported or investigated. They then went worldwide with this to get as much money as they could before getting caught.
Which AFAIK is fraud, plain and simple.
When exactly did Slashdot go from "News For Nerds" to "Emo Whiner Central" ?
Having said that a 9 year old system with a northwood cpu and 256/512MB of ram would need the same $50 in upgrades... 2GB RAM and a modern video card. The directx video card requirement kills a lot of old laptops, but its a minor and inexpensive upgrade on a desktop.
A matter of perspective perhaps. If all you are going to do is browse the web and run Word it might be tolerable. Given what I do with computers I would rather give up computing entirely rather than try to run Win7 on a P4, the license alone costs more than the computer is worth.
I gave my sister an old Dell Optiplex Pentium 4 (Prescott system dated 2003, 3GHz+). I spent $50 on it get it up to 2GB of RAM and dropped in a 7400GS video card. My brother in law plans on dropping in a new hard drive and trying windows 7 in it.
And it -more- than meets the specs. I could see an even older unit pulling it off. Really, 32-bit Vista and 7 run on just about anything, as long as the video card is remotely modern and you've dumped ram into it, in my experience at least.
That would be an upgraded 7 year old system, not a 9 year old system. Average system configurations changed radically between 2001 and 2003 due to the uptake of WinXP.
As for a world where 99% of the population has no more viruses (thinking computers will be immune from crashes in our lifetime is wishful thinking), well what's wrong with that for MOST PEOPLE? The fact that you think of it as horrific shows you care not a whit for the poor average user who doesn't undertstand how to maintain a computer, but only about your own selfish needs.
As one of the average slashdot unwashed I spend far too much of my time fielding computer questions from family and friends. If a PC was as easy to use as an iPad I would be a VERY happy camper indeed.
I'm not trolling or anything, I'm honestly really curious what the value in dumping all this money into R&D for this issue is? Will we really gain deep insights into AI that we don't already have by doing this?
Cheaper than outsourcing support to India? (And potentially more accurate?)
You could say the same about buying a hotdog, a carton of milk, or going to a movie theatre. Why pay for that if you can also find someones leftovers in the trash can, you can also drink water from the tap, or you can also watch regular TV at home?
I couldn't have said it better. This is the fundamental problem with kdawson's argument, comparing the $1 to $5 iOS apps with professional software applications is like comparing a street vendor hotdog to a $25 steak dinner.
What you have just described is currently called software engineering not computer science. (My degree was CS with a software focus and my job title is software engineer, though I prefer to call myself a software alchemist)
I always assumed that chemistry was only about making bombs from whatever you could find in your garage, MacGyver style. I'm very thankful that high school did me the favor of showing me how boring chemistry could get, teaching me that pursuing the subject further in college would not be worth my time or interest.
I strongly suspect your local SWAT team is equally grateful.
It's web-based and written in PHP, obviously, which doesn't suit everyone. It's also a latecomer to the ajax stuff and (while it does dynamically load content) still considers pop-up windows a valid part of a web UI. Not pretty. However, I've had great experiences managing a genealogy database with it, as well as printing some nice charts.
Where are my mod points when I need them?
Forget the stand alone crappy apps, just put it on the web. We have been using this for years and I Can't find enough good things to say about it.
The NSA know their stuff, I see this talk not as someone admitting that they are compromised, but as someone talking shop.
Correct. Any intelligence organization of any value always assumes they could already have been compromised, and not just electronically. Every task, every group, every department is compartmentalized and separately secured both physically and in terms of networking.
Mr. Moore falls prey to a common mistake in ethical reasoning. He says that the actions of certain states are "carried out in our name and with our tax dollars". Politicians are not anyone's agents in a legal or ethical sense, regardless of whether some of us choose to participate in the exercise in legitimacy-creation known as 'voting'. If they claim to act in "our" behalf, they are making the same mistake Moore makes, or (more likely) they are liars. Once my taxes are confiscated under threat of violence by the state, I have no ethical responsibility for how they are spent, and no standing to complain. If I am waylaid by a highwayman, and later monitor his spending habits and discover that he is using some of his funds to commit immoral acts, do I whine or hang my head over my imagined guilt? Hardly.
So the people are not responsible for the actions of the government that they elected? The founding fathers must be spinning in their graves.
But then the invariable laws of the office privilege and status bullshittery set in. Because it is impossible that Department Head A gets something and Dufus B doesn't.
The whole concept of, "If I make an exception to the rules for you, I will have to do it for everyone" is such bullshit - both as an excuse not to make an exception and as a justification to do it for everyone else. Management like that might as well be replaced by a robot for all the value they add.
Slashdot Mirror
[This thread my contain irony and/or sarcasm, please help Slashdot by moderating it as insightful.]
What would be the percentage of "Facebook penetration" amongst the /. users ?
If it's penetration you're after, Craigslist is far superior.
That's what she said?
(Yes, I will go to hell for this...)
Another problem with current crop of touch keyboards is that you can't "touch type". You can't rest your fingers on home row, they all more or less start typing letters when you do that. Physical keyboard with mechanical feedback obviously does not have that problem.
That's the deal breaker for me, with a real keyboard you can FEEL where you are without looking. I love my iPad but after 25 years of touch typing I find I have to use an external keyboard to actually be productive typing on it for anything non-trivial.
People who use their computers for a living will probably still use the ancient input devices regardless of what consumers are doing.
Indeed... I am an iPad owner and consumer as well as a professional software developer. There are lots of things that can be done without a keyboard but touchscreens will have to improve a hell of a lot before anyone with professional typing skills will consider writing anything non-trivial with one.
"and if you find an error that you can exploit, you may find yourself facing Federal charges for doing so"
If it's an exploit maybe you shouldn't be doing it.
Particularly an exploit against an industry with historic ties to the mob.
So they noticed a glitch in the system - one that allowed them to get a Jackpot without it being reported or investigated. They then went worldwide with this to get as much money as they could before getting caught.
Which AFAIK is fraud, plain and simple.
When exactly did Slashdot go from "News For Nerds" to "Emo Whiner Central" ?
Having said that a 9 year old system with a northwood cpu and 256/512MB of ram would need the same $50 in upgrades... 2GB RAM and a modern video card. The directx video card requirement kills a lot of old laptops, but its a minor and inexpensive upgrade on a desktop.
A matter of perspective perhaps. If all you are going to do is browse the web and run Word it might be tolerable. Given what I do with computers I would rather give up computing entirely rather than try to run Win7 on a P4, the license alone costs more than the computer is worth.
I gave my sister an old Dell Optiplex Pentium 4 (Prescott system dated 2003, 3GHz+). I spent $50 on it get it up to 2GB of RAM and dropped in a 7400GS video card. My brother in law plans on dropping in a new hard drive and trying windows 7 in it.
And it -more- than meets the specs. I could see an even older unit pulling it off. Really, 32-bit Vista and 7 run on just about anything, as long as the video card is remotely modern and you've dumped ram into it, in my experience at least.
That would be an upgraded 7 year old system, not a 9 year old system. Average system configurations changed radically between 2001 and 2003 due to the uptake of WinXP.
"How do I watch my vacation video on this?"
Good question. Camera kit works ok for digital cameras, have not tried video...
As for a world where 99% of the population has no more viruses (thinking computers will be immune from crashes in our lifetime is wishful thinking), well what's wrong with that for MOST PEOPLE? The fact that you think of it as horrific shows you care not a whit for the poor average user who doesn't undertstand how to maintain a computer, but only about your own selfish needs.
As one of the average slashdot unwashed I spend far too much of my time fielding computer questions from family and friends. If a PC was as easy to use as an iPad I would be a VERY happy camper indeed.
(Meanwhile my 9 year old XP-PC is still going strong and is upgradeable to Seven
*blink*
You must be joking, what are the specs on that box?
... at least half the time. Way to ruin my day Slashdot.
I'm not trolling or anything, I'm honestly really curious what the value in dumping all this money into R&D for this issue is? Will we really gain deep insights into AI that we don't already have by doing this?
Cheaper than outsourcing support to India? (And potentially more accurate?)
Answer: Who is marrying Who.
First base?
You could say the same about buying a hotdog, a carton of milk, or going to a movie theatre. Why pay for that if you can also find someones leftovers in the trash can, you can also drink water from the tap, or you can also watch regular TV at home?
I couldn't have said it better. This is the fundamental problem with kdawson's argument, comparing the $1 to $5 iOS apps with professional software applications is like comparing a street vendor hotdog to a $25 steak dinner.
Tell me is something eluding you sunshine? Is this not what you expected to see?
What you have just described is currently called software engineering not computer science. (My degree was CS with a software focus and my job title is software engineer, though I prefer to call myself a software alchemist)
I always assumed that chemistry was only about making bombs from whatever you could find in your garage, MacGyver style. I'm very thankful that high school did me the favor of showing me how boring chemistry could get, teaching me that pursuing the subject further in college would not be worth my time or interest.
I strongly suspect your local SWAT team is equally grateful.
This is also where departments separate the men from the boys (and women from girls).
And the large furry creatures from Alpha Centauri from the small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri.
It's web-based and written in PHP, obviously, which doesn't suit everyone. It's also a latecomer to the ajax stuff and (while it does dynamically load content) still considers pop-up windows a valid part of a web UI. Not pretty. However, I've had great experiences managing a genealogy database with it, as well as printing some nice charts.
Where are my mod points when I need them?
Forget the stand alone crappy apps, just put it on the web. We have been using this for years and I
Can't find enough good things to say about it.
I'll call your Firefly and raise you one Farscape.
Firefly > Farscape > Waterboarding > SGU
The NSA know their stuff, I see this talk not as someone admitting that they are compromised, but as someone talking shop.
Correct. Any intelligence organization of any value always assumes they could already have been compromised, and not just electronically. Every task, every group, every department is compartmentalized and separately secured both physically and in terms of networking.
The founding fathers never got a chance to read Noam Chomsky's Manufacturing Consent.
True. I weep for the American Dream.
Mr. Moore falls prey to a common mistake in ethical reasoning. He says that the actions of certain states are "carried out in our name and with our tax dollars". Politicians are not anyone's agents in a legal or ethical sense, regardless of whether some of us choose to participate in the exercise in legitimacy-creation known as 'voting'. If they claim to act in "our" behalf, they are making the same mistake Moore makes, or (more likely) they are liars. Once my taxes are confiscated under threat of violence by the state, I have no ethical responsibility for how they are spent, and no standing to complain. If I am waylaid by a highwayman, and later monitor his spending habits and discover that he is using some of his funds to commit immoral acts, do I whine or hang my head over my imagined guilt? Hardly.
So the people are not responsible for the actions of the government that they elected? The founding fathers must be spinning in their graves.
But then the invariable laws of the office privilege and status bullshittery set in. Because it is impossible that Department Head A gets something and Dufus B doesn't.
The whole concept of, "If I make an exception to the rules for you, I will have to do it for everyone" is such bullshit - both as an excuse not to make an exception and as a justification to do it for everyone else. Management like that might as well be replaced by a robot for all the value they add.
You have clearly never been a manager.