"If the kids are less intelligent than a previous generation, it's the fault of the people raising the generation, not the "politically correct" climate"
That says a lot, but because of the "lemming factor", the "politically correct" (sounds like an oxymoron to me!) influence affects parenting due to peer pressure. I have heard of some schools doing away with grades (A's, B's, C's, etc.) and switching to a "satisfactory " and "unsatisfactory" evaluation system so that the less capable ones can feel better about themselves- it's all about image and substance no longer matters it seems.
To me, this is ubsurd. Humans are competitive by nature, and competition seems to drive progress and learning- Darwin had a point.
Good point! It seems that in trying to "make better for our children" we are depriving them of the learning experiences we enjoyed (mostly) growing up.
The article is zeroed in on the UK, but I think this treend is present across the board- at least I see the same happening here in the USA. (side note: the fact that none of the comments are "UK bashing" so far is a pleasant surprise, as this is NOT just a UK problem-proud of you/.ers!)
It seems to me that the more "capable" our technology becomes, the more we depend on it instead of what's between our ears- and want tech/gov't. to take responsibility off of our hands....we seem to be trying to run away from personal responsibility as fast as we can.
Back in the early 90's, I was employed at a university in the Veterinary Medicine department as a Vet. Technician. Part of my job was teaching the 4th year veterinary students lab techniques, and clinical protocals...a lot of things required basic math skills (calculating dosages of medications, etc.)- most of these students could not calculate a basic dosage problem without a calculater! I was trained to do these in my head, as that was the only reliable method (batteries going dead, cow stepping on calculater, etc.) to get this done in the "real world". (for example: dog needs drug "X" at 5 milligrams per kilogram of dog's wt., dog wt.= 15 kilograms-BASIC MATH!)
I have since gotten over being shocked at this, now I concentrate on not "crippling" my stepdaughter with this newage attitude. Yes, she still gets heavily exposed to new technology, but I try to give her a sound foundation to work from so the technology is not the "only" way to get something accomplished.
If I am going to spend $8000 on a ovenfridge, then I want to be able to "call it up" and have it bring the cold beer and hot pizza to me, otherwise not interested.
Yeah, guilty as charged, but actually for some weird reason it was the flashback to Jamie and Adam making such a big deal about the wetsuits that probably had more to do with it than Scotty. The mental image of Jamie and Adam as slaves started there. ( I don't think they had introduced Scotty and Kari into the show yet). But, yeah....you have a point.
And as far as Mythbusters, I would ratherthe gals hosted the show, they would get more airtime (sorry, can't help being a guy). That did bring a scary thought to mind- remember an episode where Jamie and Adam had to get into neoprene suits (wet suits? don't remeber exactly) for the show, and Jamie was remarking about how "kinky" it made him feel?
Well, that episode came to mind and my twisted mind immediately thought...Jamie in latex, the Dominatrix Scotty ordering her latex clad slaves around- scary....
I am fully aware of the Iraq agenda. I did not feel that was on "topic" for the discussion at hand.
I was referring to GWB only because he is in office. What I am talking about is basic emotional response to a sudden catastrophic vulnerability exploit. Your response is seemingly intended as flamebait/troll, as I took pains to point out that anyone in the Administration of the day would be freaked and reeling from something like this.
If you want to get back in the discussion, fine, I'm game...if you want to persist with turning it into your rant, well, piss off- I don't have time to waste on foolish crap. Good day:)
I guess I'm too idealistic to gracefully accept individual rights, freedoms, other basic human rights all becoming lower priority than *the right to profits* that is so common of a mantra anymore....**AA, MS$, Sony, SBC, DRM, etc.
Bring it on, Dominion and Borg, we seem to be waiting with open arms and numb assholes (with no trace of lube).
There is nothing new or newsworthy here. Propaganda has been around as long as language, and as long as we try to communicate, there will be propaganda. That's why "spin doctors" that are good at it are always in big demand. Nuthin to see here.
Thanks for the answer. I have a basic/fundamental understanding of the BIOS, I just did not know for sure if BIOS was "technically" firmware, but I thought it was- seemed the same to me, just needed assurance my deductions were not misguided here.
I agree about the physical lockout being A Good Thing (tm)- as I posted earlier, my Soya mobo can get the BIOS flash from website from Windows using Internet Explorer! Truly this scares me, but at least I can backup my current BIOS to floppy, so if something bad happens, I at least have a chance if the chip is still "flashable". Not foolproof by a long shot, but better than nothing I guess.
"...wasn't at ground zero, and something like that must have really messed with a lot of people's minds."
Uhmmmm....Thanks. I had not looked at this from the perspective you presented. I can now get a glimpse into some VERY frightened and insecure people. Let's look at this from GWB's Administration's point of view (not getting sidetracked by who is in office- bear with me): you (as in current administration) are in charge of and responsible for the security/well being of the nation....suddenly there are FREAKIN' airliners (full of your people no less) being used as "guided missles" against your cities and especially the Pentagon! This has to be serious to the Pres. and Admin. in office, I imagine even Kerry (if he was in office instead of GWB) would freak out! (note:not trying to start debate/flameware by implying Kerry would react the same or different)
There are some interesting aspects here I had not considered, it seems very much what is called "fear biting" in veterinary medicine... the dog that most often bites the vet tech or vet is the usually really friendly, small, active lapdog that "never even growled at anyone before". They find themselves in strange (thus frightening) circumstances, don't know what to expect, and suddenly bite the first object that comes in range.
Anyway, again- thanks for a new (to me) viewpoint- I don't agree a lot of times with the way things seem to be going, but the better I can understand what is happening, the better I can help make needed changes- that goes for all of us (I hope!).:)
Another example in agreement with you: with AMD's socket 939 mobo's, a BIOS flash enables dual core processor support. I would rather be able to flash my BIOS to upgrade to dual core instead of having to replace mobo and processor.
Just asking, but is flashing a BIOS really any different than a firmware upgrade? Seems the same to me (more chance for *disaster* with BIOS I would imagine), at least on the surface...the reason I even brought this up is last year I bought a refurb DVD burner (4X), it came with a paper directing me to mfr's website for free firmware upgrade to "turn it into" an 8X burner, which I used and rejoiced!
"I thought it was a damn good idea and still wonder why more Mobo manufacturers don't do this."
Probably due to that insidious "convenience over security" attitude most lusers want. Many of the newer mobo's even have Windows based utilities to flash the BIOS from the "desktop" (my Soya SY-P4VTE mobo has this awful hole^H^H^H^H^feature.)
Not defending this *feature*, just trying to answer your question.
"And that is SWG's NGE biggest failure. It took a game from the crowd that could read a manual and turned it into a simpleton game."
Disclaimer: I don't play MMO's, just not that interesting for me, but to the point: you are so right. I have noticed this trend with many games. I suspect it is meant to "open up the potential market", and not improve gameplay.
RTFA, or RTFM?...this is/.:) Just kidding! (sort of) I personally derive a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction in acquiring difficult goals/skills in playing a well thought out and implemented game....that is why I still keep a Win98se bootable partition on my PC- just so I can still play "Su-27 Flanker 1.5 Squadron Commander's Edition". Damn...had to learn the Russian alphabet just to make sense of the cockpit/controls, then about a mont before I could figure out how to land the plane! (yes, I did RTFM, but if you have ever played this sim, you know what I mean- it was complex-had real Flanker pilots and engineers working with the developers for accuracy/realism of flight engine and aircraft capabilities, and if I remember correctly, some of our Blue Angel's pilots also contributed, and it shows!)
Correct! (at least IMHO) It seems to me that IF you provide something the customers are willing to pay for, the profits usually come flowing in (assuming a practical business model), but most customers will resist to various degrees having something "forced" on them just to bolster profits because of a poor business model.
It's hard to sell something that few customers are wanting/willing to pay for, and much easier to profit from selling them something they are willing to pay for. Seems pretty simple until you throw greed into the equation.
For me, anything ANY part of Sony says is a moot point- after the "rootkit debacle", I have zero trust and faith in them, so nothing they can say has any meaning to me. They made their bed, let them LIE in it. (pun intended)
Re-read his post, you didn't get it the first time around (hint:the very last statement he made: "What I will give him is that I personally doubt that this pressure took the form of the White House calling up Houston. (There is certainly no evidence of that.) But they didn't have to.").
Having also worked for NASA (Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD from mid 1975-1978) I agree 100% with him- this is (or was) the way the PHB's thought.
Slashdot Mirror
Natalie, here I come with a bucket of hot grits!!! .....huh?..Oh, those stars... ;)
Rats!!!
I knew it was too good to be true!
That's the beauty of science, update your theories when new data is recieved.
"If the kids are less intelligent than a previous generation, it's the fault of the people raising the generation, not the "politically correct" climate"
That says a lot, but because of the "lemming factor", the "politically correct"
(sounds like an oxymoron to me!) influence affects parenting due to peer pressure. I have heard of some schools doing away with grades (A's, B's, C's, etc.) and switching to a "satisfactory " and "unsatisfactory" evaluation system so that the less capable ones can feel better about themselves- it's all about image and substance no longer matters it seems.
To me, this is ubsurd. Humans are competitive by nature, and competition seems to drive progress and learning- Darwin had a point.
But think of the children![sarcasm] :)
/.ers!)
Good point!
It seems that in trying to "make better for our children" we are depriving them of the learning experiences we enjoyed (mostly) growing up.
The article is zeroed in on the UK, but I think this treend is present across the board- at least I see the same happening here in the USA.
(side note: the fact that none of the comments are "UK bashing" so far is a pleasant surprise, as this is NOT just a UK problem-proud of you
It seems to me that the more "capable" our technology becomes, the more we depend on it instead of what's between our ears- and want tech/gov't. to take responsibility off of our hands....we seem to be trying to run away from personal responsibility as fast as we can.
Back in the early 90's, I was employed at a university in the Veterinary Medicine department as a Vet. Technician. Part of my job was teaching the 4th year veterinary students lab techniques, and clinical protocals...a lot of things required basic math skills (calculating dosages of medications, etc.)- most of these students could not calculate a basic dosage problem without a calculater!
I was trained to do these in my head, as that was the only reliable method (batteries going dead, cow stepping on calculater, etc.) to get this done in the "real world". (for example: dog needs drug "X" at 5 milligrams per kilogram of dog's wt., dog wt.= 15 kilograms-BASIC MATH!)
I have since gotten over being shocked at this, now I concentrate on not "crippling" my stepdaughter with this newage attitude.
Yes, she still gets heavily exposed to new technology, but I try to give her a sound foundation to work from so the technology is not the "only" way to get something accomplished.
"Not since Marie-Antoinette played milkmaid has looking simple and honest been so fake and complicated."
:)
For some reason, your sig raises many questions. (not trying to flame or troll-really interested for some unknown reason)
I am too curious not to ask:
what?, where?, why?, how?, which way did they go George?
I am fascinated, yet kinda' scared.....How did this come about?
I really would like to know!
And this is different from /. ?
You must be new here.
Good point!
Now the question seems to be:
How to bring this up to the voting public effectively?
Timely and excellent quote!!!!
We need to keep in mind those principals this country was formed with and re-establish them in our present, sorry state of affairs.
The people that created the document quoted were both visionary and intelligent IMHO, we can't throw all of that out for Orwell's 1984.
How 'bout when the toaster is running linux- on RAID:y e/)
(http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/12/01/raid_on_r
If I am going to spend $8000 on a ovenfridge, then I want to be able to "call it up" and have it bring the cold beer and hot pizza to me, otherwise not interested.
Yeah, guilty as charged, but actually for some weird reason it was the flashback to Jamie and Adam making such a big deal about the wetsuits that probably had more to do with it than Scotty. The mental image of Jamie and Adam as slaves started there. ( I don't think they had introduced Scotty and Kari into the show yet).
But, yeah....you have a point.
LOL! Wish I had mod points for you (funny and insightful)!!
I miss Scrapheap Challenge!
And as far as Mythbusters, I would ratherthe gals hosted the show, they would get more airtime (sorry, can't help being a guy). That did bring a scary thought to mind- remember an episode where Jamie and Adam had to get into neoprene suits (wet suits? don't remeber exactly) for the show, and Jamie was remarking about how "kinky" it made him feel?
Well, that episode came to mind and my twisted mind immediately thought...Jamie in latex, the Dominatrix Scotty ordering her latex clad slaves around- scary....
LOL!
Funny how alcohal can make the improbable seem like a good idea at the time!
But then you will also need a PHB Ken doll to "keep her in line".
I'll join the crowd....Ditto here.
I don't see any other possible response, what could be confusing here?
I am fully aware of the Iraq agenda. I did not feel that was on "topic" for the discussion at hand.
:)
I was referring to GWB only because he is in office. What I am talking about is basic emotional response to a sudden catastrophic vulnerability exploit. Your response is seemingly intended as flamebait/troll, as I took pains to point out that anyone in the Administration of the day would be freaked and reeling from something like this.
If you want to get back in the discussion, fine, I'm game...if you want to persist with turning it into your rant, well, piss off- I don't have time to waste on foolish crap.
Good day
I guess I'm too idealistic to gracefully accept individual rights, freedoms, other basic human rights all becoming lower priority than *the right to profits*
that is so common of a mantra anymore....**AA, MS$, Sony, SBC, DRM, etc.
Bring it on, Dominion and Borg, we seem to be waiting with open arms and numb assholes (with no trace of lube).
There is nothing new or newsworthy here.
Propaganda has been around as long as language, and as long as we try to communicate, there will be propaganda.
That's why "spin doctors" that are good at it are always in big demand.
Nuthin to see here.
Add my vote for Linus also- Linux was more humanatarian (by intent) than anything those two money grubbing control freaks are known for.
Thanks for the answer. I have a basic/fundamental understanding of the BIOS, I just did not know for sure if BIOS was "technically" firmware, but I thought it was- seemed the same to me, just needed assurance my deductions were not misguided here.
I agree about the physical lockout being A Good Thing (tm)- as I posted earlier, my Soya mobo can get the BIOS flash from website from Windows using Internet Explorer!
Truly this scares me, but at least I can backup my current BIOS to floppy, so if something bad happens, I at least have a chance if the chip is still "flashable". Not foolproof by a long shot, but better than nothing I guess.
"...wasn't at ground zero, and something like that must have really messed with a lot of people's minds."
... the dog that most often bites the vet tech or vet is the usually really friendly, small, active lapdog that "never even growled at anyone before". They find themselves in strange (thus frightening) circumstances, don't know what to expect, and suddenly bite the first object that comes in range.
:)
Uhmmmm....Thanks. I had not looked at this from the perspective you presented.
I can now get a glimpse into some VERY frightened and insecure people.
Let's look at this from GWB's Administration's point of view (not getting sidetracked by who is in office- bear with me): you (as in current administration) are in charge of and responsible for the security/well being of the nation....suddenly there are FREAKIN' airliners (full of your people no less) being used as "guided missles" against your cities and especially the Pentagon!
This has to be serious to the Pres. and Admin. in office, I imagine even Kerry (if he was in office instead of GWB) would freak out! (note:not trying to start debate/flameware by implying Kerry would react the same or different)
There are some interesting aspects here I had not considered, it seems very much what is called "fear biting" in veterinary medicine
Anyway, again- thanks for a new (to me) viewpoint- I don't agree a lot of times with the way things seem to be going, but the better I can understand what is happening, the better I can help make needed changes- that goes for all of us (I hope!).
Another example in agreement with you:
with AMD's socket 939 mobo's, a BIOS flash enables dual core processor support.
I would rather be able to flash my BIOS to upgrade to dual core instead of having to replace mobo and processor.
Just asking, but is flashing a BIOS really any different than a firmware upgrade? Seems the same to me (more chance for *disaster* with BIOS I would imagine), at least on the surface...the reason I even brought this up is last year I bought a refurb DVD burner (4X), it came with a paper directing me to mfr's website for free firmware upgrade to "turn it into" an 8X burner, which I used and rejoiced!
"I thought it was a damn good idea and still wonder why more Mobo manufacturers don't do this."
Probably due to that insidious "convenience over security" attitude most lusers want. Many of the newer mobo's even have Windows based utilities to flash the BIOS from the "desktop" (my Soya SY-P4VTE mobo has this awful hole^H^H^H^H^feature.)
Not defending this *feature*, just trying to answer your question.
"And that is SWG's NGE biggest failure. It took a game from the crowd that could read a manual and turned it into a simpleton game."
/. :) Just kidding! (sort of)
Disclaimer: I don't play MMO's, just not that interesting for me, but to the point:
you are so right. I have noticed this trend with many games. I suspect it is meant to "open up the potential market", and not improve gameplay.
RTFA, or RTFM?...this is
I personally derive a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction in acquiring difficult goals/skills in playing a well thought out and implemented game....that is why I still keep a Win98se bootable partition on my PC- just so I can still play "Su-27 Flanker 1.5 Squadron Commander's Edition". Damn...had to learn the Russian alphabet just to make sense of the cockpit/controls, then about a mont before I could figure out how to land the plane! (yes, I did RTFM, but if you have ever played this sim, you know what I mean- it was complex-had real Flanker pilots and engineers working with the developers for accuracy/realism of flight engine and aircraft capabilities, and if I remember correctly, some of our Blue Angel's pilots also contributed, and it shows!)
Correct! (at least IMHO)
It seems to me that IF you provide something the customers are willing to pay for, the profits usually come flowing in (assuming a practical business model), but most customers will resist to various degrees having something "forced" on them just to bolster profits because of a poor business model.
It's hard to sell something that few customers are wanting/willing to pay for, and much easier to profit from selling them something they are willing to pay for.
Seems pretty simple until you throw greed into the equation.
For me, anything ANY part of Sony says is a moot point- after the "rootkit debacle", I have zero trust and faith in them, so nothing they can say has any meaning to me. They made their bed, let them LIE in it. (pun intended)
Re-read his post, you didn't get it the first time around (hint:the very last statement he made: "What I will give him is that I personally doubt that this pressure took the form of the White House calling up Houston. (There is certainly no evidence of that.) But they didn't have to.").
Having also worked for NASA (Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD from mid 1975-1978) I agree 100% with him- this is (or was) the way the PHB's thought.