One place I worked (at dot com salary levels) I was to be administering servers in a remote site through a VPN. It took them 4-5 months to get the VPN up and working, so I did other (non-job description work) until it got up and running. Then a few months later, I ordered a cheap server box (around $2000) that was to be a primary project. My box was diverted to another emergency function, and I again sat around waiting for a new box. The box could not be obtained for a few months due to it's cost ($2000), so they would rather have me sit around at dot com salary levels doing little, rather than just buy the new box and get me busy.
At another place I did put a box in my office to act as a server, just to keep IT denial of service away.
I remember reading his dispatches on Compuserve or some other BBS (we both had TRS-80 100s) during the "Computing Across America" days (early 80s). Then I saw him several times at Sun Microsystems when he was building Behemoth in the bike lab there. I've been tracking his progress on and off ever since. Besides his books, newsletters, websites and news mentions, he was also featured in the cyberpunk hypercard stack.
Steve was the first guy to make me see that it was possible to work and live without being tied to geography. He was also the first guy I ever saw use a satellite-based internet connection. Go to microship.com and read the article on gonzo engineering and see the list of other technomads. Then find your own way to work outside the cubicle!
One of the most workable plays is "Our Town" by
Thornton Wilder. It's scenery is composed of
a ladder and a few chairs. The story, Plot,
characters, philosophy/poetry and acting is what
does the trick. I'm waiting for the movie where
all the actors do their thing in front of the blue screen, and they don't bother filling in the blue with anything.
"The most interesting thing in a virtual world is another person" - Jaron Lanier
I like paper books so much that my hobby is bookbinding. However, being currently out of shelf space and being determined to read/reread classics, I have discovered that the many free/public domain texts schlep nicely via makedoc and a docreader onto the palm. Now:
*I can set a font size for my comfort
*read in the dark
*keep a large book in my shirt pocket
*hit a single button to turn the page
I also have the computer read to me while I am working on binding books:-)
I read "crime and punishment" on the palm. I already had a paperback copy of "The Idiot", which I read afterwards. The experience of book absorption was pretty much the same.
So will e-books ever replace print? NEVER
Do e-books have their place YEP!
Will I pay top dollar for e-books? NEVER
I work for a shop in a similar situation and we use Clearcase. It's not free (especiall not as in beer), but it's hard to beat for features and flexibility. Plus we can run a multiplatform system (Unix server, Unix X and shell clients or Windows cmd or gui clients - web clients also an option). So it keeps both the techies and the non-techies happy.
The problem(s) with this article and with the game:
There are lots of games out there which have metaphysical elements (ever grabbed that pentagram in quake.1?). No one ever suggests that these metaphysical elements are some sort of vast pagan conspiracy or working out of a didactic device. People who create worlds/games/etc. are reflecting elements of their worldview, which is normal while being creative. Some people would rather grab a cross for invincibility than an upside down pentagram. Some people would rather blow away barney than growling demons (barney may be the same / more evil:-)). Choices are nice.
As other posts have mentioned, Katz is being rather condescending to Christian Geeks. In this case I can't blame him for one thing. The Christian mass-media industry tends to cater to a mindset well below the lowest common denomenator. This DOES sound like a rather silly game - perhaps the game equivalent of a "Christian Romance Novel" (try not to barf!), when what Christian Geeks really want is the gaming equivalent of Dostoyevsky!
Copying a game like Doom with a Christian theme is really changing nothing (why not just change Doom Wads/wallpaper etc.?). If a "game" reflects Christian themes, it should be something creative - e.g. how about an interactive "Chronicles of Narnia" for kids? Imaginative or Historical, and hopefully avoiding formulaic bluntness and obvious Theological axes. Sure you can war against demons, but give me the subtle and tricky demons of "The Screwtape Letters" and not just a red dude with a pitchforked nail gun!
While such silliness deserves some criticism, Katz is offbase in using it to suppose that Geeks, Christians, and the love of freedom are somehow opposed (or inherently linked) to each other. My personal heroes have all tended to be Christian Geeks such as St. Paul Florensky - a scientist who made original contributions in physics, biology, mathematics engineering, philology, philosophy and theology (and predicted the advent of cybernetics before anyone else in Russia). He was also opposed to any form of "standardized thinking" which is what forms the basis of the media's evaluation of the net, and Katz' reaction to it.
Consider the "cost" - of real handwriting recognition software - needs ram, needs cycles, and needs lots of time to learn your not-so-consistent handwriting style. Do you still want a Newton?
I was up and running with Graffiti in 10 minutes, and found it intuitive enough to not have to look up about half the characters, and added special characters and punctuation, etc. easily. It later occurred to me, that as efficient as graffiti is, it probably has a fairly small footprint because of it's simplicity, and this makes it *fast*.
Pilot was the first PDA to get it basically right the first time.
Slashdot Mirror
I can see the movies now:
A L I E N 5:
F O R E I G N
D R I V E R
"In Space, No One Can Hear You Whistle"
Statistical and Scientific Data will become more relevant as soon as all my friends take this cool quiz on facebook!
cool! Soon it will evolve to the point where it will ignore its owner and never make up its mind whether it wants to be inside or out.
"I do not know with what kind of weapons World Web 3.0 will be fought, but World Web 4.0 will be fought with sticks and stones"
-Albert Einstein-
One place I worked (at dot com salary levels) I was to be administering servers in a remote site through a VPN. It took them 4-5 months to get the VPN up and working, so I did other (non-job description work) until it got up and running. Then a few months later, I ordered a cheap server box (around $2000) that was to be a primary project. My box was diverted to another emergency function, and I again sat around waiting for a new box. The box could not be obtained for a few months due to it's cost ($2000), so they would rather have me sit around at dot com salary levels doing little, rather than just buy the new box and get me busy.
At another place I did put a box in my office to act as a server, just to keep IT denial of service away.
We'll need to do core dump analysis.
I remember reading his dispatches on Compuserve or some other BBS (we both had TRS-80 100s) during the "Computing Across America" days (early 80s). Then I saw him several times at Sun Microsystems when he was building Behemoth in the bike lab there. I've been tracking his progress on and off ever since. Besides his books, newsletters, websites and news mentions, he was also featured in the cyberpunk hypercard stack.
Steve was the first guy to make me see that it was possible to work and live without being tied to geography. He was also the first guy I ever saw use a satellite-based internet connection. Go to microship.com and read the article on gonzo engineering and see the list of other technomads. Then find your own way to work outside the cubicle!
For when the big EMP hits.
"EMP - it's the only defense we have against the machines" - Morpheus
"EMP - it's the only defense we have against the infidels" - some future Ayatollah
Now that CG is so advanced as to remove all but props and actors, I want to see a new movie version of "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder!
One of the most workable plays is "Our Town" by
Thornton Wilder. It's scenery is composed of
a ladder and a few chairs. The story, Plot,
characters, philosophy/poetry and acting is what
does the trick. I'm waiting for the movie where
all the actors do their thing in front of the blue screen, and they don't bother filling in the blue with anything.
"The most interesting thing in a virtual world is another person" - Jaron Lanier
What a dumb crook!
Why doesn't he just steal your computer and then master his own set of your collection?
I like paper books so much that my hobby is bookbinding. However, being currently out of shelf space and being determined to read/reread classics, I have discovered that the many free/public domain texts schlep nicely via makedoc and a docreader onto the palm. Now:
:-)
*I can set a font size for my comfort
*read in the dark
*keep a large book in my shirt pocket
*hit a single button to turn the page
I also have the computer read to me while I am working on binding books
I read "crime and punishment" on the palm. I already had a paperback copy of "The Idiot", which I read afterwards. The experience of book absorption was pretty much the same.
So will e-books ever replace print? NEVER
Do e-books have their place YEP!
Will I pay top dollar for e-books? NEVER
Clearcase does, as of version 4.1 have MS Word support.
I work for a shop in a similar situation and we use Clearcase. It's not free (especiall not as in beer), but it's hard to beat for features and flexibility. Plus we can run a multiplatform system (Unix server, Unix X and shell clients or Windows cmd or gui clients - web clients also an option). So it keeps both the techies and the non-techies happy.
The problem(s) with this article and with the game:
:-)). Choices are nice.
There are lots of games out there which have metaphysical elements (ever grabbed that pentagram in quake.1?). No one ever suggests that these metaphysical elements are some sort of vast pagan conspiracy or working out of a didactic device. People who create worlds/games/etc. are reflecting elements of their worldview, which is normal while being creative. Some people would rather grab a cross for invincibility than an upside down pentagram. Some people would rather blow away barney than growling demons (barney may be the same / more evil
As other posts have mentioned, Katz is being rather condescending to Christian Geeks. In this case I can't blame him for one thing. The Christian mass-media industry tends to cater to a mindset well below the lowest common denomenator. This DOES sound like a rather silly game - perhaps the game equivalent of a "Christian Romance Novel" (try not to barf!), when what Christian Geeks really want is the gaming equivalent of Dostoyevsky!
Copying a game like Doom with a Christian theme is really changing nothing (why not just change Doom Wads/wallpaper etc.?). If a "game" reflects Christian themes, it should be something creative - e.g. how about an interactive "Chronicles of Narnia" for kids? Imaginative or Historical, and hopefully avoiding formulaic bluntness and obvious Theological axes. Sure you can war against demons, but give me the subtle and tricky demons of "The Screwtape Letters" and not just a red dude with a pitchforked nail gun!
While such silliness deserves some criticism, Katz is offbase in using it to suppose that Geeks, Christians, and the love of freedom are somehow opposed (or inherently linked) to each other. My personal heroes have all tended to be Christian Geeks such as St. Paul Florensky - a scientist who made original contributions in physics, biology, mathematics engineering, philology, philosophy and theology (and predicted the advent of cybernetics before anyone else in Russia). He was also opposed to any form of "standardized thinking" which is what forms the basis of the media's evaluation of the net, and Katz' reaction to it.
Consider the "cost" - of real handwriting recognition software - needs ram, needs cycles, and needs lots of time to learn your not-so-consistent handwriting style. Do you still want a Newton?
I was up and running with Graffiti in 10 minutes, and found it intuitive enough to not have to look up about half the characters, and added special characters and punctuation, etc. easily. It later occurred to me, that as efficient as graffiti is, it probably has a fairly small footprint because of it's simplicity, and this makes it *fast*.
Pilot was the first PDA to get it basically right the first time.