Make a polite phone call to the person who made the original offer and tell them what happened. Maybe they can straighten things out. If they can't fix it, or they don't admit they promised it, you have learned something useful about a possible future employer with no risk to yourself or reputation.
Other people have addressed the thin client/ stripped down linux install questions. Frankly, I don't think it matters too much. Just secure it and make sure you can re-install it in 10 keystrokes or less. You can do that with redhat and kickstart.
Some other things to think about:
Printing is a god-awful pain in the butt. Alot of people will want to print out results. Many will try printing 145 page manuals. Some will try printing A4 by accident and stare at the printer dumbfounded as it asks for A4. (on an HP, just hit the big green button twice to print on letter instead.)
I'd suggest limiting the number of pages the printer can print at a time. You may want to search around for some good print management software. I don't know of any good open source quota software. I've had to craft my own cruft onto cups.
Also, consider putting the printer somewhere you can keep a good eye on it. On our expensive printers, we epoxy a padlock hasp to the outside so people don't go digging through on thier own.
Also, please THINK about ergonomics. I'd suggest:
Adjustable height monitors.
At least one adjustable height table for wheelchair users.
At least one "natural" style keyboard.
If you do get Suns, make sure to DEMAND the standard PC caps lock / ctrl key layout. Anything else will confuse people.
Order backup keyboards and mice when you do your original order.
"The reason they got so much hell from corporate customers is that they have dedicated IT professionals who've already done all the testing and can't afford two hours on the phone to get some replacement hardware sent out. The IT dept will simply switch to a new vendor if that kind of crap persists."
Actually, larger firms can get a deal with Dell where an in-house tech can order parts under warranty on a website. I would go nuts if my company didn't have that option.
I forgot to mention... a longer focal length also gets you lower coma, which is an off axis abberation. It makes stars on the edge of the field look like seagulls.
IAAATM (I am an amature telescope maker, working on my third design)
There isn't much to see here. This is an old concept, one with advantages and disadvantages.
The main issue is that a folded design allows for a lower eyepiece height when you have a long focal length.
A long focal length mirror is faster to make (less grinding) and easier to figure (making a high quality mirror is easier when it is shallower).
The problem with a long focal length is you end up needing a ladder. You also lose the ability to get the brightest images (exit pupils of 7mm) when you go over an f/6.
The folding also introduces loss of contrast... from both the big secondary and the MAJOR baffling problem. You run the risk of extra star light entering the eyepiece and washing out the image when the eyepiece is pointed up.
So this design is nothing more than what this designer wanted for trade offs. There is no major design advances that lets an ATM do something they couldn't do before.
For more designs, check out: http://members.efn.org/~mbartels/tm/ul-dobs. html (scroll to the bottom)
and specifically another folded design... http://www.irony.com/Ed/astro/18inch/ -Jeff
"some of the ire toward PayPal is because you only hear about the bad things that happen"
Wrong.
People should expect that every once in a while there will be a problem with a monetary transaction. When a transaction goes bad, and THEN there is no infrastructure there to fix things, THAT's when people stand up and scream.
Here's the problem though:
I have NEVER heard of a successful intervention by PayPal customer service.
Yes, and I hear pretty good things about ViaVoice, but the simple fact is that it is proprietary. You can't distribute it without paying IBM. You can however write open source interfaces on top of it.
Until it is free it just isn't that compelling as I've had great results from Dragon Naturally speaking and I use Windows on my faster machines because it is greedier for resources.
It works great for dictating into an SSH connection to my linux box.
Strangely enough, I have found some goverment agencies to be among the best I have ever encountered as far as customer service goes.
For instance the Registry of Motor Vehicles in Massachusetts is AMAZING. I mean we are talking LL Bean level service, with feedback forms, door greeters and under 5 minute waits.
The current edition, sphinx 2 appears to be good only for limited vocabulary work such as interactive menus. Hopefully they will release sphinx 3 and it will be usefull as a dictation engine.
You are correct, it does say that "contributors to GNU" don't have to live by that rule.
However, that section does imply that those who need special proprietary software may not work for the FSF.
and
In a preceeding paragraph it says that "Aside from (writing a free replacement) , we feel there is no possible excuse for installing a proprietary program. "
Both of which means to me that Stallman feels that a world of only free software is more important than a world where everyone can use that software.
On this page the FSF states that "we cannot install any proprietary program on our computers except temporarily for the specific purpose of writing a free replacement for that very program".
I guess they don't want disabled programmers working on free software for them.
I have ulnar neropathy. My arms are pretty toasted from computer use. For the majority of my work (writing, quality assurance, and documentation) I use proprietary speech recognition software. Until there is a free replacement, I will continue to pay for and use such software.
When Stallman refuses to work with or talk about proprietary software I hear him say that he feels my possible contributions aren't worth anything.
As such I refuse to work on gnu projects, and put my efforts towards other open source and free projects.
They USED to have the best service in the industry. I recently had to cancel credit card charges from them becuase they sent me the wrong monitor, and I couldn't reach them by phone or e-mail. Thier phone system hung up on me after 20 minutes, and they refused to answer e-mail which they acknowledged recieving.
Thank god for American Express. We shall see if Dell will answer to them.
Duuuuuuuuuuude. You clearly have not been to Sears lately! I usually hit Filenes first for clothes beacuse they are cheaper AND a nicer store. Sears is nice for appliances, but they still have a lot to work on.
Trash Talk
Ah yeah, here we go again
Damn! This is some funky shit that I be laying down on your ass.
This one goes out to all my homey's working in the field of
evolutionary science.
Check it!
Verse 1
Fuck the damn creationists, those bunch of dumb-ass bitches,
every time I think of them my trigger finger itches.
They want to have their bullshit, taught in public class,
Stephen J. Gould should put his foot right up their ass.
Noah and his ark, Adam and his Eve,
straight up fairy stories even children don't believe.
I'm not saying there's no god, that's not for me to say,
all I'm saying is the Earth was not made in a day.
Chorus
Fuck, fuck, fuck,
fuck the Creationists.
Trash Talk
Break it down.
Ah damn, this is a funky jam!
I'm about ready to kick this bitch back in.
Check it.
Verse 2
Fuck the damn creationists I say it with authority,
because kicking their punk asses be me paramount priority.
Them wack-ass bitches say, "evolution's just a theory",
they best step off, them brainless fools, I'll give them cause to fear me.
The cosmos is expanding every second, every day,
but their minds are shrinking as they close their eyes and pray.
They call their bullshit science like the word could give them cred,
if them bitches be scientists then cap me in the head.
Chorus
Trash Talk
Bass!
Bring that shit in!
Ah yeah, that's right, fuck them all motherfuckers.
Fucking punk ass creationists trying to set scientific thought back 400 years.
Fuck that!
If them superstitious motherfuckers want to have that kind of party,
I'm going to put my dick in the mashed potatoes.
Fucking creationists.
Fuck them.
If this is anything like labview from Nationial Instruments, it could be pretty cool. I did a ton of work with labview while programming some data aquisition projects. You draw a box for loops, all data runs in pipelines, you create input output connections for your custom components (i.e. functions). It's fun : ) If it was open source I'd still be using it.
One thing I've thought of is that the visual input/output model might match input and output pipes in unix.
I'm on the bind-users mailing list, and here are some of my comments:
Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 20:39:35 -0500 (EST)
From: Jeffrey C. Albro
To: bind-users@isc.org
Subject: Re: PRE-ANNOUNCEMENT: BIND-Members Forum
On Wed, 31 Jan 2001, Cricket Liu wrote:
> > This is not an open source but a full/partial disclosure issue.
>
> No, it's not. No one is arguing that the vulnerabilities shouldn't
> be disclosed and disclosed fully. The question is when.
I agree. However, the "when" part needs to be laid out MUCH more
clearly. If a vulnerability is found on the first of the month, and the
main bind tree is patched by the seventh of the month, how long do you
wait for vendors to patch their (assuming they have forked to some
extent) version? To the 14th of the month? How long will a viable fix of
the main source tree be held in secret?
> Surely you can understand the need to patch critical pieces of
> infrastructure such as the root, gTLD and ccTLD name servers
> and to prepare patched binaries of BIND for various operating
> systems before the vulnerability becomes widely known.
Of course. But how long do you give downstream developers? Do you give
them N days, and when N+1 appears will the forum embarrass paying members
of your group? If everyone signs an NDA, no-one can squeal. Can a time
limit be put on the NDAs?
I believe this idea can help solve security problems faster, with less
advertisement of the exploit, but steps need to be taken to make sure that
is actually what happens.
Slashdot Mirror
Uh, did everyone forget Hanlon's Razor?
Make a polite phone call to the person who made the original offer and tell them what happened. Maybe they can straighten things out. If they can't fix it, or they don't admit they promised it, you have learned something useful about a possible future employer with no risk to yourself or reputation.
-Jeff
But here's what I don't get...
Given how well AMD has been doing lately, especially with thier high end chips... why didn't they go with AMD?
-Jeff
Nope. See my notes at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Sender_ID
Other people have addressed the thin client/ stripped down linux install questions. Frankly, I don't think it matters too much. Just secure it and make sure you can re-install it in 10 keystrokes or less. You can do that with redhat and kickstart.
Some other things to think about:
Printing is a god-awful pain in the butt. Alot of people will want to print out results. Many will try printing 145 page manuals. Some will try printing A4 by accident and stare at the printer dumbfounded as it asks for A4. (on an HP, just hit the big green button twice to print on letter instead.)
I'd suggest limiting the number of pages the printer can print at a time. You may want to search around for some good print management software. I don't know of any good open source quota software. I've had to craft my own cruft onto cups.
Also, consider putting the printer somewhere you can keep a good eye on it. On our expensive printers, we epoxy a padlock hasp to the outside so people don't go digging through on thier own.
Also, please THINK about ergonomics. I'd suggest:
Adjustable height monitors.
At least one adjustable height table for wheelchair users.
At least one "natural" style keyboard.
If you do get Suns, make sure to DEMAND the standard PC caps lock / ctrl key layout. Anything else will confuse people.
Order backup keyboards and mice when you do your original order.
Hope these tips helped!
-Jeff
Try:
dig gmail.com txt
I doubt they will be meaningless. UPC codes have a manufacturing code built in.
There's even a UPC database online.
-Jeff
"The reason they got so much hell from corporate customers is that they have dedicated IT professionals who've already done all the testing and can't afford two hours on the phone to get some replacement hardware sent out. The IT dept will simply switch to a new vendor if that kind of crap persists."
Actually, larger firms can get a deal with Dell where an in-house tech can order parts under warranty on a website. I would go nuts if my company didn't have that option.
-Jeff
I forgot to mention... a longer focal length also gets you lower coma, which is an off axis abberation. It makes stars on the edge of the field look like seagulls.
-Jeff
IAAATM (I am an amature telescope maker, working on my third design)
. html
There isn't much to see here. This is an old concept, one with advantages and disadvantages.
The main issue is that a folded design allows for a lower eyepiece height when you have a long focal length.
A long focal length mirror is faster to make (less grinding) and easier to figure (making a high quality mirror is easier when it is shallower).
The problem with a long focal length is you end up needing a ladder. You also lose the ability to get the brightest images (exit pupils of 7mm) when you go over an f/6.
The folding also introduces loss of contrast... from both the big secondary and the MAJOR baffling problem. You run the risk of extra star light entering the eyepiece and washing out the image when the eyepiece is pointed up.
So this design is nothing more than what this designer wanted for trade offs. There is no major design advances that lets an ATM do something they couldn't do before.
For more designs, check out:
http://members.efn.org/~mbartels/tm/ul-dobs
(scroll to the bottom)
and specifically another folded design...
http://www.irony.com/Ed/astro/18inch/
-Jeff
Dagnabbit!
This looks dumb, and a good way to hurt your back.
I want a home version of prop cycle!
-Jeff
To bad any promise of any kind from Dell is dependent upon getting someone on the phone who gives a shit.
I had to file against Dell in small claims court becuase they wouldn't admit they sent me the wrong monitor and wouldn't take it back.
-Jeff
"some of the ire toward PayPal is because you only hear about the bad things that happen"
Wrong.
People should expect that every once in a while there will be a problem with a monetary transaction. When a transaction goes bad, and THEN there is no infrastructure there to fix things, THAT's when people stand up and scream.
Here's the problem though:
I have NEVER heard of a successful intervention by PayPal customer service.
That's what people are screaming about.
-Jeff
Yes, and I hear pretty good things about ViaVoice, but the simple fact is that it is proprietary. You can't distribute it without paying IBM. You can however write open source interfaces on top of it.
Until it is free it just isn't that compelling as I've had great results from Dragon Naturally speaking and I use Windows on my faster machines because it is greedier for resources.
It works great for dictating into an SSH connection to my linux box.
-Jeff
Strangely enough, I have found some goverment agencies to be among the best I have ever encountered as far as customer service goes.
For instance the Registry of Motor Vehicles in Massachusetts is AMAZING. I mean we are talking LL Bean level service, with feedback forms, door greeters and under 5 minute waits.
-Jeff
The current edition, sphinx 2 appears to be good only for limited vocabulary work such as interactive menus. Hopefully they will release sphinx 3 and it will be usefull as a dictation engine.
-Jeff
Thanks!
It looks like GNOME is making great strides towards accessibility.
However, I am currently not using the Linux desktop very much. When I start using GNOME more often, I will definately lend a hand!
-Jeff
You are correct, it does say that "contributors to GNU" don't have to live by that rule.
However, that section does imply that those who need special proprietary software may not work for the FSF.
and
In a preceeding paragraph it says that "Aside from (writing a free replacement) , we feel there is no possible excuse for installing a proprietary program. "
Both of which means to me that Stallman feels that a world of only free software is more important than a world where everyone can use that software.
-Jeff
I guess they don't want disabled programmers working on free software for them.
I have ulnar neropathy. My arms are pretty toasted from computer use. For the majority of my work (writing, quality assurance, and documentation) I use proprietary speech recognition software. Until there is a free replacement, I will continue to pay for and use such software.
When Stallman refuses to work with or talk about proprietary software I hear him say that he feels my possible contributions aren't worth anything.
As such I refuse to work on gnu projects, and put my efforts towards other open source and free projects.
-Jeff
Dell has gotten too big for their britches.
They USED to have the best service in the industry. I recently had to cancel credit card charges from them becuase they sent me the wrong monitor, and I couldn't reach them by phone or e-mail. Thier phone system hung up on me after 20 minutes, and they refused to answer e-mail which they acknowledged recieving.
Thank god for American Express. We shall see if Dell will answer to them.
-Jeff
Duuuuuuuuuuude. You clearly have not been to Sears lately! I usually hit Filenes first for clothes beacuse they are cheaper AND a nicer store. Sears is nice for appliances, but they still have a lot to work on.
-Jeff
Sure, some people would die, and things would be annoying for a while, but it would probably only put humanity aback 50 years or so.
Why?
Because the people who built the stuff in the first place would still be here. Doing something you already KNOW you can do is not a big barrier.
-Jeff
Check out: http://www.mchawking.com/music.html
For crazy sh1t like this:
Fuck the Creationists
Trash Talk
Ah yeah, here we go again
Damn! This is some funky shit that I be laying down on your ass.
This one goes out to all my homey's working in the field of
evolutionary science.
Check it!
Verse 1
Fuck the damn creationists, those bunch of dumb-ass bitches,
every time I think of them my trigger finger itches.
They want to have their bullshit, taught in public class,
Stephen J. Gould should put his foot right up their ass.
Noah and his ark, Adam and his Eve,
straight up fairy stories even children don't believe.
I'm not saying there's no god, that's not for me to say,
all I'm saying is the Earth was not made in a day.
Chorus
Fuck, fuck, fuck,
fuck the Creationists.
Trash Talk
Break it down.
Ah damn, this is a funky jam!
I'm about ready to kick this bitch back in.
Check it.
Verse 2
Fuck the damn creationists I say it with authority,
because kicking their punk asses be me paramount priority.
Them wack-ass bitches say, "evolution's just a theory",
they best step off, them brainless fools, I'll give them cause to fear me.
The cosmos is expanding every second, every day,
but their minds are shrinking as they close their eyes and pray.
They call their bullshit science like the word could give them cred,
if them bitches be scientists then cap me in the head.
Chorus
Trash Talk
Bass!
Bring that shit in!
Ah yeah, that's right, fuck them all motherfuckers.
Fucking punk ass creationists trying to set scientific thought back 400 years.
Fuck that!
If them superstitious motherfuckers want to have that kind of party,
I'm going to put my dick in the mashed potatoes.
Fucking creationists.
Fuck them.
Actually, that would mean that the program is no longer open source.
The open source definition states:
"The license must not discriminate against any person or group of persons."
Besides, what if the company actually changes it's ways? Do you want to go back and change all your documentation?
-Jeff
If this is anything like labview from Nationial Instruments, it could be pretty cool. I did a ton of work with labview while programming some data aquisition projects. You draw a box for loops, all data runs in pipelines, you create input output connections for your custom components (i.e. functions). It's fun : ) If it was open source I'd still be using it.
One thing I've thought of is that the visual input/output model might match input and output pipes in unix.
-Jeff
I'm on the bind-users mailing list, and here are some of my comments:
Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 20:39:35 -0500 (EST)
From: Jeffrey C. Albro
To: bind-users@isc.org
Subject: Re: PRE-ANNOUNCEMENT: BIND-Members Forum
On Wed, 31 Jan 2001, Cricket Liu wrote:
> > This is not an open source but a full/partial disclosure issue.
>
> No, it's not. No one is arguing that the vulnerabilities shouldn't
> be disclosed and disclosed fully. The question is when.
I agree. However, the "when" part needs to be laid out MUCH more
clearly. If a vulnerability is found on the first of the month, and the
main bind tree is patched by the seventh of the month, how long do you
wait for vendors to patch their (assuming they have forked to some
extent) version? To the 14th of the month? How long will a viable fix of
the main source tree be held in secret?
> Surely you can understand the need to patch critical pieces of
> infrastructure such as the root, gTLD and ccTLD name servers
> and to prepare patched binaries of BIND for various operating
> systems before the vulnerability becomes widely known.
Of course. But how long do you give downstream developers? Do you give
them N days, and when N+1 appears will the forum embarrass paying members
of your group? If everyone signs an NDA, no-one can squeal. Can a time
limit be put on the NDAs?
I believe this idea can help solve security problems faster, with less
advertisement of the exploit, but steps need to be taken to make sure that
is actually what happens.
How is the conflict of interest solved?
-Jeff
>
> cricket
>
>
>