Exactly how lazy/self entitled do you have to be to want this?
Part of the problem is that there's no standard for power connectors. We all seem to be moving to 5V because of USB but the connector still isn't decided.
PS: Micro USB is a rubbish connector for power. Far too small and fiddly in use. No connector should take three attempts to connect it so make them round. Center pin connectors aren't needed any more with modern wall warts so something like a headphone jack would be good.
I've been using the dictation button on the new iPad and it works great. Much better than typing for bulk data input.
Don't you feel silly sitting there talking at a machine instead of typing? Imagine a whole room full of people doing it, all trying to correct the errors caused by everybody trying to shout louder than everybody else.
How well does editing work? Don't you miss having an easy way to select text, copy, paste, etc.
Maybe if you learned to type properly you'd be faster...
And if you check your bags they get charged by weight as well, making it impossible to know how much the flight costs until you are actually on the plane.
You could be weighed every time you fly and that's the weight they use next time you buy a ticket. Simple!
You'd get people dehydrating themselves and getting ill as a result to get in the 'next band down' (stupid, but still more lawsuits to deal with).
We're not talking massive differences, maybe $1 for every five pounds of weight. The difference between normal/dehydrated would be $1 or so. Not worth it no matter how mean you are.
You'd have to rely on people's own weighings on their own scales for initial ticket purchase - then there would be endless arguments about scale accuracy etc. when they got to the airport and you wanted to surcharge them because their scales didn't match yours (or they'd 'cheated')./p>
OK, let's see. How about if the first time you fly you pay normal price but you have to get weighed at the airport. Next time you fly, that's the price you pay. You know in advance exactly how much the ticket costs.
Each time you fly you get reweighed for the next time around. The only way to beat the system is with fake ID (which is a crime).
You could get underweight people teaming up with overweight people. That way the seating works out better, too. The people sat next to the fatties chose to be there. Win-win.
What I wanna know is: If saving a few pounds adds up to so much fuel then why aren't they weighing passengers and charging them accordingly? How come an extra bag costs me $50 but the 350lb guy pays the same fare as a 120lb guy?
My answer to this is very simple: more than once a day is too fast, and it should be forbidden.
Just add a mandatory commission to all trades. The HFT will be unprofitable, long term investments won't be affected much. Plus the 1% get to pay more taxes for playing their games. Win-win.
what's going on is someone put out a big pre-order for Microsoft stock and so the HFT guys are buying stocks at a lower price than that only to turn over and dump them almost instantly as the order actually comes through netting fractions of a penny.
That would be "insider trading" and it's illegal.
The solution to this is to put a fixed tax on all stock trades. Make it unprofitable to buy/sell in this way.
... will actually provide some feedback for him that a 7 yr-old would like.
So will "Scratch" - the thing that's on the Pi desktop by default. It's the program the 7-year-old used to create his game in the video a few posts above.
If you're poor (really really poor), then Raspberry pi is the way to go....
...the best choices would be an old office computer from where the questioner works, or used machine from a friend, or a clearance sale/open box.
Completely disagree.
Seven-year-olds need toys. A seven-year-old is going to be way more interested in a cute little PCB that you can hold in your hand and plug things into than an old beige box from an office.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Raspberry Pi pretty much what you're looking for?
Two weeks ago I'd have said "no", but last week I got one of my own and I'm not so sure. They have far more potential than I would have imagined from the raw specs.
Today I'm going to say "yes", for three reasons: a) You get a very visual, direct contact with the machine, you can even see/touch the PCB! (after grounding yourself...) Very good for zombie apocalypse. b) You're also not going to be treated as a pure consumer of apps. Hands-on is essential (be prepared to help with the apt-get side of things). c) If it doesn't work out like you imagined you only lost $35, it's no big deal. The keyboard/monitor will be useful for other things or you can cobble together a PC from old parts and he'll have a Pi and a PC to play with.
Slashdot Mirror
Exactly how lazy/self entitled do you have to be to want this?
Part of the problem is that there's no standard for power connectors. We all seem to be moving to 5V because of USB but the connector still isn't decided.
PS: Micro USB is a rubbish connector for power. Far too small and fiddly in use. No connector should take three attempts to connect it so make them round. Center pin connectors aren't needed any more with modern wall warts so something like a headphone jack would be good.
But they're so pretty and shiny! How can they possibly be bad??
I've been using the dictation button on the new iPad and it works great. Much better than typing for bulk data input.
Don't you feel silly sitting there talking at a machine instead of typing? Imagine a whole room full of people doing it, all trying to correct the errors caused by everybody trying to shout louder than everybody else.
How well does editing work? Don't you miss having an easy way to select text, copy, paste, etc.
Maybe if you learned to type properly you'd be faster...
If they had an easy option to plug in a keyboard and a stand to hold the screen up, they would essentially *be* a laptop.
For only twice the price! ...and with a small screen, no removable storage and a pain to carry around.
And if you check your bags they get charged by weight as well, making it impossible to know how much the flight costs until you are actually on the plane.
You could be weighed every time you fly and that's the weight they use next time you buy a ticket. Simple!
You'd get people dehydrating themselves and getting ill as a result to get in the 'next band down' (stupid, but still more lawsuits to deal with).
We're not talking massive differences, maybe $1 for every five pounds of weight. The difference between normal/dehydrated would be $1 or so. Not worth it no matter how mean you are.
You'd have to rely on people's own weighings on their own scales for initial ticket purchase - then there would be endless arguments about scale accuracy etc. when they got to the airport and you wanted to surcharge them because their scales didn't match yours (or they'd 'cheated')./p>
OK, let's see. How about if the first time you fly you pay normal price but you have to get weighed at the airport. Next time you fly, that's the price you pay. You know in advance exactly how much the ticket costs.
Each time you fly you get reweighed for the next time around. The only way to beat the system is with fake ID (which is a crime).
You could get underweight people teaming up with overweight people. That way the seating works out better, too. The people sat next to the fatties chose to be there. Win-win.
The problem isn't the patent system, it's the patent office getting paid for every patent they grant, not for how many they reject.
Those who live by the patent, die by the patent.
What I wanna know is: If saving a few pounds adds up to so much fuel then why aren't they weighing passengers and charging them accordingly? How come an extra bag costs me $50 but the 350lb guy pays the same fare as a 120lb guy?
They're junk... give them away if you can find someone who wants them.
If he starts giving them to random people they could end up on eBay.
OTOH it seems to me like he already found some people who need them...
My answer to this is very simple: more than once a day is too fast, and it should be forbidden.
Just add a mandatory commission to all trades. The HFT will be unprofitable, long term investments won't be affected much. Plus the 1% get to pay more taxes for playing their games. Win-win.
what's going on is someone put out a big pre-order for Microsoft stock and so the HFT guys are buying stocks at a lower price than that only to turn over and dump them almost instantly as the order actually comes through netting fractions of a penny.
That would be "insider trading" and it's illegal.
The solution to this is to put a fixed tax on all stock trades. Make it unprofitable to buy/sell in this way.
The FBI obviously had something on Blue Toad and sent the black SUVs round to pay a visit.
We could use Comic Sans instead of that ugly old font.
Que pesar
What to weigh?
Teething problems. They released a new board last week to help with this.
I got into computers through games, and the fact that my C64 had a built-in programming language.
When you power on a Raspberry Pi the desktop icons aren't Internet Explorer and Adobe Reader, they're "Scratch" and Python.
(With the official OS, obviously....)
... will actually provide some feedback for him that a 7 yr-old would like.
So will "Scratch" - the thing that's on the Pi desktop by default. It's the program the 7-year-old used to create his game in the video a few posts above.
Kids love them.
End of thread.
Everybody stop reading now. Seriously.
Of course, they never show the ones that picked Coke.
Doesn't matter. The point is that not everybody picks Coke. Some people do prefer Pepsi.
If you're poor (really really poor), then Raspberry pi is the way to go....
...the best choices would be an old office computer from where the questioner works, or used machine from a friend, or a clearance sale/open box.
Completely disagree.
Seven-year-olds need toys. A seven-year-old is going to be way more interested in a cute little PCB that you can hold in your hand and plug things into than an old beige box from an office.
fuck no, it's not.
I'm interested to know, do you own a Raspberry Pi...?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Raspberry Pi pretty much what you're looking for?
Two weeks ago I'd have said "no", but last week I got one of my own and I'm not so sure. They have far more potential than I would have imagined from the raw specs.
Today I'm going to say "yes", for three reasons:
a) You get a very visual, direct contact with the machine, you can even see/touch the PCB! (after grounding yourself...) Very good for zombie apocalypse.
b) You're also not going to be treated as a pure consumer of apps. Hands-on is essential (be prepared to help with the apt-get side of things).
c) If it doesn't work out like you imagined you only lost $35, it's no big deal. The keyboard/monitor will be useful for other things or you can cobble together a PC from old parts and he'll have a Pi and a PC to play with.
Seriously, a 7-year-old has too much to learn about almost everything.
This. I predict 99% of the people who are going to reply below this line will have no idea what a 7-year-old is like.
Expose him to computers, sure, but don't try to make them a central focus in his life.
Give him his own PC, and he's likely to still want to use the same one as dad or mom.
This as well...
iPad ... has more apps for kids than any other platform I know of.
Um, the App store will be one of the first things to fail when the Zombie Apocalypse comes...