Since the only (ok, maybe not) thing I'm much more qualified in than the average from what is presented sometimes in the mainstream media is IT, I can only judge the media based on the IT news they are reporting.
Based on that, the mainstream media fails to pass the most simple factchecks.
You and everyone else would be highly offended and possibly out for blood if it were legal to approach adults on the sidewalk in front of their house, show one's genitals and then say "Buy viagra, see what it does for me!".
In other words, the comparison isn't a good one. IRL != Email.
Also, why are lawmakers trying to protect kids at all costs? That is a parental responsibility. A kid should be only protected by laws where it cannot be routed around - like the paedophilia-banning law(s).
If you would have said what you've said in a bit more polite manner, your post would have been rated insightful not flamebait, because you're making a lot of good points.
Yeah, you see you're right. Technology is not a magical wand to 'solve' military and political problems. Problems coming from the mind, like terrorism can only be fought in the mind.
Take this device, for example, it is just a device. On the other side, there is a human, a much more adaptive, thinking evolving "device". As soon as that human learns of this technology, he will find a way to counter it or even turn it against the user of the device.
Anti-terrorist measures cannot be technical or military. Terrorists will be blowing things up until the motivations of their attacks are thoroughly investigated, and not dismissed like by Bush's "they hate our freedom" phrase.
"Well, I'm not sure about DVD quality, but on television (especially football games) I notice a clear difference between regular and high-def. What do you make of that?"
Just like you do between DivX and DVD on a PC, but the screen is limited by pixels and we are limited by our eyes/brain and while you might have noticed the regular -> high-def jump, high-def to ultra-high-def might not be equally noticeable.
Until there is a big enough screen affordable to the regular user to make content like that clearly better than content on a DVD, they can continue pounding salt.
"I do not want a harddrive in my phone. My phone gets more abuse than any other gadget I have. Granted its cheaper than using flash but hell I would rather pay for something that isn't going to possibly be toast when it bounces once off the pavement."
I'd try dig if they would write a proper interface for comments. I come to slashdot for the comments, the discussion. If Digg can replace that, by all means I'd frequent that place, but currently any kind of discussion sucks on Digg.
"Not that it's a good thing. It shouldn't be possible to sign away your "moral rights" to the music. But that's the current legal situation in the US."
I disagree with that completely. You see, in Hungary exactly such is the situation: You cannot sign away the "rights" to your music. There is also an added measure, that you cannot not ask payment for your music, which conveniently a civilian agency called Artisjus enforces after deducting a certain percentage for their "efforts", want it or not, according to the current legislation.
That situation results in this nonsense: Let's suppose that you want to give music away for free on your homepage. Artisjus demands from you around 50 cents for each download. They then deduce around 10% of the total you payed to be able to put your own music for free on the website and make some trickery with charts etc, and in a lucky case you get around 10 cents back from Artisjus as your "profit". That is all in the name of protecting the artist using early 20th century legislation which was supposed to prevent artists being pressured into signing their rights away over music they made.
This stupid law killed my favorite amateur music compilation which was housed on some popular hungarian IT magazine's CD back in 1998.
Trust me, you don't want the government to protect you. In the end it will be perverted and used against you.
Slashdot Mirror
Since the only (ok, maybe not) thing I'm much more qualified in than the average from what is presented sometimes in the mainstream media is IT, I can only judge the media based on the IT news they are reporting.
Based on that, the mainstream media fails to pass the most simple factchecks.
Hah! That's nothing! I've been watching Deep Space 9 ten years ago!
"it would have to be a LOTR-size eagle. Maybe Gandalf called in an airstrike?"
Oh yea, I'm on slashdot baby.
On the other hand...
You and everyone else would be highly offended and possibly out for blood if it were legal to approach adults on the sidewalk in front of their house, show one's genitals and then say "Buy viagra, see what it does for me!".
In other words, the comparison isn't a good one. IRL != Email.
Exactly. I noticed a bad tendency of opt-out lists in the USA lately.
Things like http://www.leavemychildalone.org/ Shouldn't be happening because the list should be opt-in anyway.
Also, why are lawmakers trying to protect kids at all costs? That is a parental responsibility. A kid should be only protected by laws where it cannot be routed around - like the paedophilia-banning law(s).
If you would have said what you've said in a bit more polite manner, your post would have been rated insightful not flamebait, because you're making a lot of good points.
Bush will decleare atheism.
Paris Hilton will stop being famous.
Microsoft will produce quality software
Linus Torvalds will soon to begin working at SCO.
No way!
My clone wants to go to the Island!
Yeah, you see you're right. Technology is not a magical wand to 'solve' military and political problems. Problems coming from the mind, like terrorism can only be fought in the mind.
Take this device, for example, it is just a device. On the other side, there is a human, a much more adaptive, thinking evolving "device". As soon as that human learns of this technology, he will find a way to counter it or even turn it against the user of the device.
Anti-terrorist measures cannot be technical or military. Terrorists will be blowing things up until the motivations of their attacks are thoroughly investigated, and not dismissed like by Bush's "they hate our freedom" phrase.
Yeah. although I have trouble fitting the monitor vertically on my desk... ;)
"Well, I'm not sure about DVD quality, but on television (especially football games) I notice a clear difference between regular and high-def. What do you make of that?"
Just like you do between DivX and DVD on a PC, but the screen is limited by pixels and we are limited by our eyes/brain and while you might have noticed the regular -> high-def jump, high-def to ultra-high-def might not be equally noticeable.
Let me expand on that.
Until there is a big enough screen affordable to the regular user to make content like that clearly better than content on a DVD, they can continue pounding salt.
Yeah. Americans didn't like ARM that time in the past.
They didn't like how Analog Rights Management was done - by the british.
You won the right to post the parent post. Gotta love temporal mechanics ;)
"/* Heavy wizardry */"
(If you know Perl, you'll understand)
We can say now that Linux is truly ready for desktop because it catched up to Windows in these important features aswell!
Sigh. The statistics were flawed the first time they were posted to /., no need to repeat that bag of bad science.
You confused dangerous with stupid.
Fuck off braindead mods, I only made a cynical point, didn't troll.
In the future do a better job, idiots.
"I do not want a harddrive in my phone. My phone gets more abuse than any other gadget I have. Granted its cheaper than using flash but hell I would rather pay for something that isn't going to possibly be toast when it bounces once off the pavement."
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah cheaper blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah.
Yeah, but not everyone can be you, Linus...
...for bitchslapping most of the posts to "Offtopic".
I'd try dig if they would write a proper interface for comments. I come to slashdot for the comments, the discussion. If Digg can replace that, by all means I'd frequent that place, but currently any kind of discussion sucks on Digg.
DUPE!
Retract the story taco while you can.
"Not that it's a good thing. It shouldn't be possible to sign away your "moral rights" to the music. But that's the current legal situation in the US."
I disagree with that completely. You see, in Hungary exactly such is the situation: You cannot sign away the "rights" to your music. There is also an added measure, that you cannot not ask payment for your music, which conveniently a civilian agency called Artisjus enforces after deducting a certain percentage for their "efforts", want it or not, according to the current legislation.
That situation results in this nonsense: Let's suppose that you want to give music away for free on your homepage. Artisjus demands from you around 50 cents for each download. They then deduce around 10% of the total you payed to be able to put your own music for free on the website and make some trickery with charts etc, and in a lucky case you get around 10 cents back from Artisjus as your "profit". That is all in the name of protecting the artist using early 20th century legislation which was supposed to prevent artists being pressured into signing their rights away over music they made.
This stupid law killed my favorite amateur music compilation which was housed on some popular hungarian IT magazine's CD back in 1998.
Trust me, you don't want the government to protect you. In the end it will be perverted and used against you.