You made me go read a Techdirt article. I don't do that anymore. Bad/.
Mike is a hypocritical jerk who likes the sound of his own typing, apparently. Occasionally he even has a point, but usually he belabors stuff so much the point gets lost in the miasma. Most often things break down into the fanboys ("Is too!") and the haters ("Is not!") camps, and nothing much comes of it. Are there any filters on/. for Techdirt articles?
So, I replied before actually reading TFA, but I went back to read it and - the guy's right. 100% correct. And I had an epiphany. The iPad is actually something cool, not a fanboy money-grabbing POS. Well, maybe it's that too. But, from my understanding, it is this one piece deal, not a bunch of wires connecting monitor, keyboard and mouse, not something you open up and install new shit in when the old shit runs 10 milliseconds slower now. Just "Here, this does cool stuff, and no, you can't really dick with it." Now, I got no notion about the software, so that probably sucks, but the idea of the hardware is cool.
I know too much about the internal structure of my PC. And I'm still running XP, because it's good enough for my purposes. Did we really need Vista? Is Windows 7 that much of an improvement? Or did MS just want to make another few billion dollars? I suspect most problems with computers is the latter. "Sure, you've got 10 pixels _now_. But wouldn't you like to have _11_ pixels?" No, no I would not.
Man I hate you pricks that use AdBlockUserBlocker. Seriously, how are websites going to have decent discussions if we don't allow ALL users to appear in the forums. You are hurting the forum and the site, and trying to get a good discussion for free. YOU'RE KILLING THE INTERNET!
Yeah, I could have moderated you, but thought I'd agree with my 2 cents. I run Kaspersky, and it IS mostly free. I pick it up at Fry's when it's on sale, and there's a rebate (for the upgrade, so I guess I paid something at one point). But it's, if not 100% free, pretty cheap, usually gets pretty good marks on the various comparisons, and seems to be keeping my computer safe. And the license has been for 3 copies, so all the computers I have run it. For maybe $10-20 bucks to start, and not much more than $10 a year after that, if anything. I had been using AVG, I find I like Kaspersky a little better. But I have sent money to AVG in the past, I'm not averse to paying for good software.
"have to draw heavily on AI vision research. Straightforward arithmetic isn't going to produce anything that looks like the Dalai Llama"
I guess I'd have to disagree with you if indeed, as the article claims, there are some programs that actually get this correct. It is a constructed image, sure, but just so that it can point out the bug. The scaling algorithms in most programs don't actually scale, like slipping a magnifying glass over the pic or something. They do math to the image, and they do the math in a way that some images give goofy results. However, there are programs that do this math to an image and return expected results. No AI needed.
Wow, Xfinity! That sounds great. Where do I sign up? I want better service, faster internet and cheaper prices, and Xfinity sounds like it fits the bill. It's got an "X" in it, so it must be ten times better than what I have now.
I mean, I don't want to have to drive all the way to South Carolina if I can avoid it. Especially with gas prices the way they are now, and subversive equipment costs going through the roof.
Okay. They'll just need to keep it forever, not the extra day. I think we can get Congress to go along with that change. Homeland Security might object, but hey, they can't have everything.
Yet.
All stores and restaurants will have to keep logs of every customer that comes in, whether they buy anything or not, including full video of them while they were in the store. Microphones must be set up at every table in the restaurant to record all dinner conversation. All of this data must be kept for ever and a day, and available to anyone who appears to be in law enforcement. Why is real life any different than the web?
Use Linux Emacs, that always works Buy a Mac Switch to Windows 7 Switch back to Window XP Just quit and find another job Keep a documentation trail to CYA Smile and nod, smile and nod You're doing it wrong anyway Laptops? Nobody needs a laptop! Backups? Nobody needs a backup! Why is the CEO such a jerk? All CEOs are jerks I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Nothing I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Showed the CEO a better way I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Got fired, so just shut up I worked at a company once only we didn't have computers Ask Slash-Dot, they'll know what to do... oh, wait...
I remember when grandma read Robinson Crusoe to me from her Kindle. What fond memories! Tapping on the screen to get to each page, updating the bookmark, powering down the Kindle when we were done for the night. Maybe when she dies, I can have her license to the "book". It's transferable, right?
Hey, destroying all nature would be bad. And I'm not a dirty hippie. Of course there's a middle ground. I wondered why the humans just couldn't ask the Na'vi where they could get some of that rock. How can you say there's no... oh, wait, I see what you did there.
As near as I could see from their web site, they offer 11 courses, one or two of which were "pending". Might be a deal if you need some of those 11, but you aren't getting a degree that way.
If this is indeed the case, that an internet station is just like a "regular" station, then how many can someone have? I am picturing this:
"This is all The Beatles 'Strawberry Fields Forever', all the time!" "This is the Foo Fighters 'The Pretender', all day and all night!"
One station playing the same song over and over. Or even just the same album. Actual over-the-air radio stations couldn't afford to do this, but with the Internet, it would be fairly easy. You could "tune in" to the station, record it once and have the song/album. And since it's "just like a radio station", no worries, right?
The movie did have a few, what I consider minor, plot holes, and I'm beginning to think that all movies probably do. However:
1) Kind of the whole point. They are f-ing ALIENS. We just don't know their story. That's practically the whole point of the movie, and not a plot hole. In fact, it was a good reason to like the movie. Aliens, that we don't understand. Who'da thunk?
2) See #1. Also, They are f-ing ALIENS. Who knows how they do things? I can think of a bunch of reasons why it was like it was, but I don't know for sure because they are ALIENS. Instead of "warrior race K" or "intelligent race V" or "sneaky race F".
3) Yeah, a device to move things along. I wasn't too bummed by it, but it could have had a number of believable explanations. This was maybe the one thing that should have been changed. My main problem with it was that you'd think that having fuel would be kind of important enough to have carried along a gas can on your trip across the stars.
4) A bit gory, but fine for the type of movie it was. I thought it fit.
5) Shaky cam - don't know why people keep bringing this up as it did not bother me at all, when usually it does. Of course, YMMV.
Wanted to say that the "shaky cam" did not bother me. Usually I can't stand movies that do that. I did not even notice it in this movie. It was not anywhere near as bad as say Blair Witch or Dog Town, two movies I could not watch at all without getting ill. Much of the movie is not "shaky cam", and what is is more like a news broadcast, like "Cops" say.
I would say don't avoid it just because of this, I'm usually sensitive to it and didn't notice it.
It is otherwise a pretty good movie. It got so much right, it's actually a Sci-Fi movie, with actual aliens and not humans with bumps on their heads. And the funny thing about aliens, is that they're alien. Watching the movie, you don't really know why the aliens do half the stuff they do. No voice-over explanations giving their original star or 5-year mission, no "this is why they did this". Just a lot of WTF. The effects are fantastic, and worth it just for that.
It has a story, and thus necessarily things happen that move the story along. There are a few plot points that are there just for the story and you might wonder about later. But for the most part the story makes sense.
I mentioned the weed-wacker because in fact I haven't actually used it in years. But I have one. I can in fact own things that I don't use. I can own software that I don't use. So it is legitimate to say that, sure I have it, but I don't use it. That was my point.
Slashdot Mirror
You made me go read a Techdirt article. I don't do that anymore. Bad /.
Mike is a hypocritical jerk who likes the sound of his own typing, apparently. Occasionally he even has a point, but usually he belabors stuff so much the point gets lost in the miasma. Most often things break down into the fanboys ("Is too!") and the haters ("Is not!") camps, and nothing much comes of it. Are there any filters on /. for Techdirt articles?
So, I replied before actually reading TFA, but I went back to read it and - the guy's right. 100% correct. And I had an epiphany. The iPad is actually something cool, not a fanboy money-grabbing POS. Well, maybe it's that too. But, from my understanding, it is this one piece deal, not a bunch of wires connecting monitor, keyboard and mouse, not something you open up and install new shit in when the old shit runs 10 milliseconds slower now. Just "Here, this does cool stuff, and no, you can't really dick with it." Now, I got no notion about the software, so that probably sucks, but the idea of the hardware is cool.
I know too much about the internal structure of my PC. And I'm still running XP, because it's good enough for my purposes. Did we really need Vista? Is Windows 7 that much of an improvement? Or did MS just want to make another few billion dollars? I suspect most problems with computers is the latter. "Sure, you've got 10 pixels _now_. But wouldn't you like to have _11_ pixels?" No, no I would not.
So wait, how much would 11 cost me?
I've been a programmer/software engineer for mumbly-mumbly years now, and I hate computers too. Preaching to the choir.
Man I hate you pricks that use AdBlockUserBlocker. Seriously, how are websites going to have decent discussions if we don't allow ALL users to appear in the forums. You are hurting the forum and the site, and trying to get a good discussion for free. YOU'RE KILLING THE INTERNET!
or it didn't happen. Right? Amiright? I slay me. Seriously, though, the article was just a bunch of words. Pretty pictures, that's what I want.
Yeah, I could have moderated you, but thought I'd agree with my 2 cents. I run Kaspersky, and it IS mostly free. I pick it up at Fry's when it's on sale, and there's a rebate (for the upgrade, so I guess I paid something at one point). But it's, if not 100% free, pretty cheap, usually gets pretty good marks on the various comparisons, and seems to be keeping my computer safe. And the license has been for 3 copies, so all the computers I have run it. For maybe $10-20 bucks to start, and not much more than $10 a year after that, if anything. I had been using AVG, I find I like Kaspersky a little better. But I have sent money to AVG in the past, I'm not averse to paying for good software.
And what was obvious from that data, was that we need a vaccine against driving.
"have to draw heavily on AI vision research. Straightforward arithmetic isn't going to produce anything that looks like the Dalai Llama"
I guess I'd have to disagree with you if indeed, as the article claims, there are some programs that actually get this correct. It is a constructed image, sure, but just so that it can point out the bug. The scaling algorithms in most programs don't actually scale, like slipping a magnifying glass over the pic or something. They do math to the image, and they do the math in a way that some images give goofy results. However, there are programs that do this math to an image and return expected results. No AI needed.
Wow, Xfinity! That sounds great. Where do I sign up? I want better service, faster internet and cheaper prices, and Xfinity sounds like it fits the bill. It's got an "X" in it, so it must be ten times better than what I have now.
Can't wait until it's available in my area.
I mean, I don't want to have to drive all the way to South Carolina if I can avoid it. Especially with gas prices the way they are now, and subversive equipment costs going through the roof.
Okay. They'll just need to keep it forever, not the extra day. I think we can get Congress to go along with that change. Homeland Security might object, but hey, they can't have everything. Yet.
All stores and restaurants will have to keep logs of every customer that comes in, whether they buy anything or not, including full video of them while they were in the store. Microphones must be set up at every table in the restaurant to record all dinner conversation. All of this data must be kept for ever and a day, and available to anyone who appears to be in law enforcement. Why is real life any different than the web?
Use Linux ... oh, wait...
Emacs, that always works
Buy a Mac
Switch to Windows 7
Switch back to Window XP
Just quit and find another job
Keep a documentation trail to CYA
Smile and nod, smile and nod
You're doing it wrong anyway
Laptops? Nobody needs a laptop!
Backups? Nobody needs a backup!
Why is the CEO such a jerk? All CEOs are jerks
I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Nothing
I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Showed the CEO a better way
I worked at a company once with this exact same problem and here what I did: Got fired, so just shut up
I worked at a company once only we didn't have computers
Ask Slash-Dot, they'll know what to do
I remember when grandma read Robinson Crusoe to me from her Kindle. What fond memories! Tapping on the screen to get to each page, updating the bookmark, powering down the Kindle when we were done for the night. Maybe when she dies, I can have her license to the "book". It's transferable, right?
Hey, destroying all nature would be bad. And I'm not a dirty hippie. Of course there's a middle ground. I wondered why the humans just couldn't ask the Na'vi where they could get some of that rock. How can you say there's no ... oh, wait, I see what you did there.
You missed the part where they said he COULDN'T EVEN ACCESS IT HIMSELF. They had to do more than just an undelete.
Of course that was censored, because originally it was "tits".
Damn! Now I need a new password...
You need to get to the point. Maybe put it in a ringtone? Eh, I don't have the time
As near as I could see from their web site, they offer 11 courses, one or two of which were "pending". Might be a deal if you need some of those 11, but you aren't getting a degree that way.
If this is indeed the case, that an internet station is just like a "regular" station, then how many can someone have? I am picturing this:
"This is all The Beatles 'Strawberry Fields Forever', all the time!"
"This is the Foo Fighters 'The Pretender', all day and all night!"
One station playing the same song over and over. Or even just the same album. Actual over-the-air radio stations couldn't afford to do this, but with the Internet, it would be fairly easy. You could "tune in" to the station, record it once and have the song/album. And since it's "just like a radio station", no worries, right?
Letter of the law vs. spirit of the law?
The movie did have a few, what I consider minor, plot holes, and I'm beginning to think that all movies probably do. However: 1) Kind of the whole point. They are f-ing ALIENS. We just don't know their story. That's practically the whole point of the movie, and not a plot hole. In fact, it was a good reason to like the movie. Aliens, that we don't understand. Who'da thunk? 2) See #1. Also, They are f-ing ALIENS. Who knows how they do things? I can think of a bunch of reasons why it was like it was, but I don't know for sure because they are ALIENS. Instead of "warrior race K" or "intelligent race V" or "sneaky race F". 3) Yeah, a device to move things along. I wasn't too bummed by it, but it could have had a number of believable explanations. This was maybe the one thing that should have been changed. My main problem with it was that you'd think that having fuel would be kind of important enough to have carried along a gas can on your trip across the stars. 4) A bit gory, but fine for the type of movie it was. I thought it fit. 5) Shaky cam - don't know why people keep bringing this up as it did not bother me at all, when usually it does. Of course, YMMV.
Wanted to say that the "shaky cam" did not bother me. Usually I can't stand movies that do that. I did not even notice it in this movie. It was not anywhere near as bad as say Blair Witch or Dog Town, two movies I could not watch at all without getting ill. Much of the movie is not "shaky cam", and what is is more like a news broadcast, like "Cops" say.
I would say don't avoid it just because of this, I'm usually sensitive to it and didn't notice it.
It is otherwise a pretty good movie. It got so much right, it's actually a Sci-Fi movie, with actual aliens and not humans with bumps on their heads. And the funny thing about aliens, is that they're alien. Watching the movie, you don't really know why the aliens do half the stuff they do. No voice-over explanations giving their original star or 5-year mission, no "this is why they did this". Just a lot of WTF. The effects are fantastic, and worth it just for that.
It has a story, and thus necessarily things happen that move the story along. There are a few plot points that are there just for the story and you might wonder about later. But for the most part the story makes sense.
I mentioned the weed-wacker because in fact I haven't actually used it in years. But I have one. I can in fact own things that I don't use. I can own software that I don't use. So it is legitimate to say that, sure I have it, but I don't use it. That was my point.
What the fuck was yours?
Mine says "Occasionally", but yeah, that's a problem. Truecrypt, or whatever program, needs to fix that.
Okay, how about like others have said, put Truecrypt on a USB drive and only use it that way. "Wow, it's on this USB drive? Forgot I had that."