A 5 year old girl down the street swears like a sailor. Her parents don't care. They say, "No, its ok for her to say that. She's not in school."
She has an influence on my 6 year old son. He's never heard those words in our house, either said out loud or on TV or games. Yet a neighbor who knows our values called us and said, "I just heard your son say 'mother f***er' and I thought you'd like to know about it."
Absolutely we'd like to know about it. But what do you do? Give your child a list of words never to say? Not let him play with other kids whose families have different policies on games and movies their kids can play and watch?
Its not enough to simply not watch those movies or play those games. We as a society are affected negatively when this type of "media" becomes mainstream.
When RH changed their business model it hurt a lot of people because prior to that, there was paid support available for the free product. We felt waylaid because we used RedHat Linux as the foundation for our critical applications. We knew we could pick up the phone and call (for a fee) if we were stuck and we felt secure with a reasonably long life cycle of security updates and support.
For example, a product my company created required 80+ hours of testing for minor version changes in critical software components. With 5 people on staff, that was an incredible expense, therefore we craved stability. Then, RHL was gone. *poof* just like that. We thought we could count on them and they changed the game on us.
I don't dislike RedHat's new business model, but I felt that after such a sudden and unexpected change in their support policy I could not trust them any longer. Later that year Ubuntu came out and I began experimenting with it (and debian). Now I have Ubuntu LTS which is supported by the vendor for 5 years, and I can call the nice guys in Montreal whenever I have a problem.
Try the homepage now. We've simplified things and will update the mirror list frequently until the excitement dies down.
Please note that if you use Ubuntu now, you can update very easily, but don't use dist-upgrade. Instead:
Before you start
* You can only directly upgrade to Ubuntu 7.04 ("Feisty Fawn") from Ubuntu 6.10 ("Edgy Eft") (see UpgradeNotes)
* Be sure that you have all updates applied to Ubuntu 6.10 before you upgrade
* The latest version of Update Manager (0.45.2) must be installed before you upgrade. Otherwise, you will receive an Authentication failed error. See [WWW] here for instructions how to check if you have the required version.
You can easily upgrade over the network with the following procedure.
1. Open System -> Administration -> Update Manager
2. A button on the top of the window will appear, informing you of the availability of the new release
3. Click Upgrade
4. Follow the on-screen instructions
By the way, the above isn't a troll, I'm just lamenting that we in the Linux development world don't have a great portfolio of tools to attract developers from outside the world of computer science. Windows has Access, VB, Visual Studio, Borland Builder and etc.
Even in their marketing material, "programmers" and related terms are often more prominent than "users." Bill & co realized early on that the way to get users is to get software that users want/need. They've been courting developers since the beginning and I've never seen (historically speaking - since I was born about the time Altair came out) that they deviated from that plan. Apple didn't start this model until OS X came out and even Linux is only just starting to lower the barrier to entry for developers of *desktop software*. (that's not entirely true, actually, but we in the Linux community have generally treated trolltech/QT like redheaded step children so if you don't count them the previous statement is passable)
No kidding... I guess it's not that big of a deal that people are routinely and systematically murdered by the police without a trial in some countries (like Vietnam) for having religious documents in their possession or some rulers aims at complete genocide of people groups (Sudan). Forced abortions in China? Nothing compared to what Bush has supposedly done.
This is a fine article with a horribly pretentious title. Or the article's publisher has their priorities completely out of whack.
Change from 'password1' to 'Password1' - this is now mixed case alphanumeric > 8 chars. How much more secure can you get than that?
I know, I know, I shouldn't have said anything... now there will be a sudden rush to slashdot's 'change password' page since I just exposed half the passwords here.
I'm in the same boat. Been there for years, and it's frustrating.
Ideal: put $10,000 - $15,000 in the bank for emergency use and go with a super-high deductible ppo. Your rates will be low, maybe about $150/month. This will save you about $300 per month which you can use for medical expenses when you need it. If your family is reasonably healthy, you shouldn't have $300/mo that often (but it will happen sometimes - so be prepared). In the end you come out better because you get to pocket the money you budget for medical expenses if you don't use it.
Next best thing: I went with Farm Bureau (www.fb.com) - I'm not a farmer, but they help self-employed people get insurance. The rates were the most reasonable I could find, and there was a person I could go talk to. They also do retirement planning and other types of insurance - most importantly, they have good rates on long-term-disability, which you should definitely have if you're self employed and you care about the long-term needs of your family. They also have life insurance at fair rates, but I got a better rate through my home/car insurance company (allstate).
They are true microcontrollers with very low clock speeds and very low amounts of storage and memory. Do they mean linux can now run natively on an ATMEGA
No, it looks like this is a new platform. Something different, to compete with ARM - you can tell because they talk about core licensing and IP in the description (ARM's biggest weakness, in some peoples opinion). The benefit here appears to be more horsepower per clock cycle, which should lower power consumptions (more MHz == more power usually).
I've never heard of it... a quick peek on their website shows:
For example, the AVR32 can execute quarter-VGA MPEG4 decoding at 30 frames per second (fps) running at just 100 MHz while comparable architectures require 260 MHz and more to decode the same movie stream.Sounds sweet... how do I get one? Free samples?
Of course Akamai is going to say that... they're business model revolves around bringing data closer to web surfers in order to speed up busy sites.
That's kind of like two years ago (or so) when RedHat released a whitepaper saying linux has a lower TCO while simultaneously Microsoft released a whitepaper saying windows server has a lower TCO.
The only difference is, there's no one out there selling a service or product that slows down website access to provide a contrasting viewpoint. Well, none except maybe these guys.
I worked at Best Buy for the '96 Christmas season... some big console was released that year and people waited and waited outside the doors for that release. I don't even remember what the console was.
We sold out instantly, most of the people left without one.
One week before Christmas we received a huge supply. People who waited until the last minute to get their gifts all went home happy. How's that for irony?
Two comments: Be honest with your new potential clients - if they still want to work with you as you transition, they'll be more understanding.
Second: I remember when my team, which started out with me as a contractor, then me as a full-time staff member, then more people as time passed... reached the right level of staffing and were able to move from what I call "reactive mode" where we were constantly rushing from one emergency to the next, to what I call "proactive mode" where we were actually addressing potential problems before they became problems. Obviously, there is always going to be some surprises, but once you're adequately staffed and trained life is soooo much easier.
Try a hiring agency for work-to-hire people. That way, you can overstaff a little while you get caught up and trained, and then when your head is above water, keep the best of the bunch and let the other's contract run out.
Work-to-hire contractors often are the hardest working bunch, and they're highly motivated to keep their skills up. And, even though they seem expensive compared to hiring your own, it's not too bad of a deal since you don't have to cover their taxes, benefits and etc. So, for example, if you'd pay an employee $24/hr and instead you're paying the agency $33/hr you're really about breaking even because of the hidden costs of having an employee.
"Due to its advanced 45nm process technology, Yorkfield XE is able to pack a total of 12MB L2 cache (2 x 6MB L2) and still achieving a much smaller die size and higher clock speed of 3.43-3.73Ghz"
I know what the law says. Wouldn't you say the above statement puts this discussion into the realm of Moore's law?
Create a little circuit that you place hidden in stores that data logs bluetooth devices. Once a day, walk into the store with your palm pilot and download the database and sell it to the advertisers.
Sound hard? Nope. Go to sparkfun and buy the bluetooth smd module for $50 that has 100 meter range (enough to cover a 28,000 square foot store). Spend $50 on a SD card data logging module with real time clock and then $25 - $30 for a micro controller and power supply. Once a min, sweep the store for bluetooth and create a log. Then you'll know not only the ids of the devices but also how long they were in the store. Assuming that your bluetooth module is 80% idle, 15% recv and 5% transmit, the whole thing would only use about 25mAh. A lipo battery could run it for 2 - 3 days if external power wasn't available.
Get really crafty and you could probably triangulate which area of the store they're in.
We actually discussed this topic quite extensively recently here: http://www.servomagazine.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t =4949
Originally, my boss Pete suggested that we use saliva - that would make entering the building a matter of simply licking the sensor.
Later on (in the discussion linked above) we thought it might be even better to try and grab some DNA from urine. That way, you could kill two birds with one stone - gain entrance to the building and relieve your bladder all at once. If your company does periodic drug screening then you could just integrate that into the process too.
Still, nothing beats the simplicity of just licking the sensor.
hullabalucination: Check out aptana http://www.aptana.com/ for the implementation phase. It has a preview tab so you can tweak your CSS and html and get pretty fast feedback. Even better, it has CSS/HTML/JS auto completion so you don't have to switch back and forth between your different files as often.
I plan on documenting this process soon, because I know a lot of people ask about it, but here's what I do:
* Get the newest version of inkscape that you can, they really are adding excellent new features with each release
* Open a new doc and assuming 1024x768 target browser size set the document to 1000x600 px. For 800x600 go for 760x600px
* Use the layers tool in Inkscape to separate portions of the document
* Create a layer on the very top called "slices" and in this layer, create rectangles that are 10% opaqe or so that cover individual elements that will become images in the final product. This layer will usually be hidden.
* Periodically save your document out as png... remember, most people have a screen res of *96 dpi* not 72.
* When you want to save individual components, for example the logo in the example above, show your "slices" layer, click the square that covers your logo so that it's selected, then hide the slices layer. The square will be selected but hidden. When you choose export, it will export just the visible portion of the image you have selected.
I'm happy to give more details, I'm newz2000 on irc.freenode. I don't have a lot of time to chat, but ping me and I'll help out if I can.
Once we get guasian blur in inkscape I'll probably stop using photoshop. (Yes, I run photoshop in Linux - using crossover office)
I was at jupiter images today and thought to myself, "If you take an image w/out paying for it, make a few changes here and there, isn't it a derivative work? Aren't I free to use my derivative works however I see fit?"
I fully expect Jupiter to feel that its not OK... So how is it different taking a picture of Barney and modifying it from taking a stock photo and modifying it?
I'm so glad that AMD became a powerful player in the desktop PC and server market... not because I love AMD but because now we are really seeing some earnest competition and innovation. Before, we were happy with Moore's law, but then AMD beat Intel to 1GHz and the ensuing struggle for mind and market share has brought about some truly phenominal changes.
Keep up the excellent competition... maybe we can have a third player jump in with some new ideas? IBM? Sun? Let's see you what you have...
It was a chance meeting between physicist Freeman Dyson and number theorist Hugh Montgomery in 1972, over tea at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study, that revealed a stunning new connection in the story of the primes--one that might finally provide a clue about how to navigate Riemann's landscape. They discovered that if you compare a strip of zeros from Riemann's critical line to the experimentally recorded energy levels in the nucleus of a large atom like erbium, the 68th atom in the periodic table of elements, the two are uncannily similar.
Ah, but was it chance? Maybe there's a mysterious relationship between prime numbers, zeta and this "chance" meeting?
Slashdot Mirror
We are influenced by those around us.
A 5 year old girl down the street swears like a sailor. Her parents don't care. They say, "No, its ok for her to say that. She's not in school."
She has an influence on my 6 year old son. He's never heard those words in our house, either said out loud or on TV or games. Yet a neighbor who knows our values called us and said, "I just heard your son say 'mother f***er' and I thought you'd like to know about it."
Absolutely we'd like to know about it. But what do you do? Give your child a list of words never to say? Not let him play with other kids whose families have different policies on games and movies their kids can play and watch?
Its not enough to simply not watch those movies or play those games. We as a society are affected negatively when this type of "media" becomes mainstream.
When RH changed their business model it hurt a lot of people because prior to that, there was paid support available for the free product. We felt waylaid because we used RedHat Linux as the foundation for our critical applications. We knew we could pick up the phone and call (for a fee) if we were stuck and we felt secure with a reasonably long life cycle of security updates and support.
For example, a product my company created required 80+ hours of testing for minor version changes in critical software components. With 5 people on staff, that was an incredible expense, therefore we craved stability. Then, RHL was gone. *poof* just like that. We thought we could count on them and they changed the game on us.
I don't dislike RedHat's new business model, but I felt that after such a sudden and unexpected change in their support policy I could not trust them any longer. Later that year Ubuntu came out and I began experimenting with it (and debian). Now I have Ubuntu LTS which is supported by the vendor for 5 years, and I can call the nice guys in Montreal whenever I have a problem.
At night they vacuum the carpet and mop the kitchen floor.
Try the homepage now. We've simplified things and will update the mirror list frequently until the excitement dies down.
d Version for information on how to upgrade.
Please note that if you use Ubuntu now, you can update very easily, but don't use dist-upgrade. Instead:
Before you start
* You can only directly upgrade to Ubuntu 7.04 ("Feisty Fawn") from Ubuntu 6.10 ("Edgy Eft") (see UpgradeNotes)
* Be sure that you have all updates applied to Ubuntu 6.10 before you upgrade
* The latest version of Update Manager (0.45.2) must be installed before you upgrade. Otherwise, you will receive an Authentication failed error. See [WWW] here for instructions how to check if you have the required version.
Note: If you have a version of Ubuntu which was released before Ubuntu 6.10, please see http://wiki.ubuntu.com/Installation/UpgradeFromOl
Network upgrade for Ubuntu desktops (recommended)
You can easily upgrade over the network with the following procedure.
1. Open System -> Administration -> Update Manager
2. A button on the top of the window will appear, informing you of the availability of the new release
3. Click Upgrade
4. Follow the on-screen instructions
By the way, the above isn't a troll, I'm just lamenting that we in the Linux development world don't have a great portfolio of tools to attract developers from outside the world of computer science. Windows has Access, VB, Visual Studio, Borland Builder and etc.
Even in their marketing material, "programmers" and related terms are often more prominent than "users." Bill & co realized early on that the way to get users is to get software that users want/need. They've been courting developers since the beginning and I've never seen (historically speaking - since I was born about the time Altair came out) that they deviated from that plan. Apple didn't start this model until OS X came out and even Linux is only just starting to lower the barrier to entry for developers of *desktop software*. (that's not entirely true, actually, but we in the Linux community have generally treated trolltech/QT like redheaded step children so if you don't count them the previous statement is passable)
No kidding... I guess it's not that big of a deal that people are routinely and systematically murdered by the police without a trial in some countries (like Vietnam) for having religious documents in their possession or some rulers aims at complete genocide of people groups (Sudan). Forced abortions in China? Nothing compared to what Bush has supposedly done.
This is a fine article with a horribly pretentious title. Or the article's publisher has their priorities completely out of whack.
It's hard to imagine that a frail newborn reptile's skeleton/body could survive the large amount of time needed to be fossilized without decaying.
"...and we'll all be gay when Johnie comes marching home." Its also interesting the way it ends with, "and girls want one too."
Change from 'password1' to 'Password1' - this is now mixed case alphanumeric > 8 chars. How much more secure can you get than that?
I know, I know, I shouldn't have said anything... now there will be a sudden rush to slashdot's 'change password' page since I just exposed half the passwords here.
I'm in the same boat. Been there for years, and it's frustrating.
/month. This will save you about $300 per month which you can use for medical expenses when you need it. If your family is reasonably healthy, you shouldn't have $300 /mo that often (but it will happen sometimes - so be prepared). In the end you come out better because you get to pocket the money you budget for medical expenses if you don't use it.
Ideal: put $10,000 - $15,000 in the bank for emergency use and go with a super-high deductible ppo. Your rates will be low, maybe about $150
Next best thing: I went with Farm Bureau (www.fb.com) - I'm not a farmer, but they help self-employed people get insurance. The rates were the most reasonable I could find, and there was a person I could go talk to. They also do retirement planning and other types of insurance - most importantly, they have good rates on long-term-disability, which you should definitely have if you're self employed and you care about the long-term needs of your family. They also have life insurance at fair rates, but I got a better rate through my home/car insurance company (allstate).
No, it looks like this is a new platform. Something different, to compete with ARM - you can tell because they talk about core licensing and IP in the description (ARM's biggest weakness, in some peoples opinion). The benefit here appears to be more horsepower per clock cycle, which should lower power consumptions (more MHz == more power usually).
I can't wait to see!
I've never heard of it... a quick peek on their website shows: For example, the AVR32 can execute quarter-VGA MPEG4 decoding at 30 frames per second (fps) running at just 100 MHz while comparable architectures require 260 MHz and more to decode the same movie stream.Sounds sweet... how do I get one? Free samples?
Of course Akamai is going to say that... they're business model revolves around bringing data closer to web surfers in order to speed up busy sites.
That's kind of like two years ago (or so) when RedHat released a whitepaper saying linux has a lower TCO while simultaneously Microsoft released a whitepaper saying windows server has a lower TCO.
The only difference is, there's no one out there selling a service or product that slows down website access to provide a contrasting viewpoint. Well, none except maybe these guys.
I worked at Best Buy for the '96 Christmas season... some big console was released that year and people waited and waited outside the doors for that release. I don't even remember what the console was.
We sold out instantly, most of the people left without one.
One week before Christmas we received a huge supply. People who waited until the last minute to get their gifts all went home happy. How's that for irony?
Two comments:
Be honest with your new potential clients - if they still want to work with you as you transition, they'll be more understanding.
Second:
I remember when my team, which started out with me as a contractor, then me as a full-time staff member, then more people as time passed... reached the right level of staffing and were able to move from what I call "reactive mode" where we were constantly rushing from one emergency to the next, to what I call "proactive mode" where we were actually addressing potential problems before they became problems. Obviously, there is always going to be some surprises, but once you're adequately staffed and trained life is soooo much easier.
Try a hiring agency for work-to-hire people. That way, you can overstaff a little while you get caught up and trained, and then when your head is above water, keep the best of the bunch and let the other's contract run out.
Work-to-hire contractors often are the hardest working bunch, and they're highly motivated to keep their skills up. And, even though they seem expensive compared to hiring your own, it's not too bad of a deal since you don't have to cover their taxes, benefits and etc. So, for example, if you'd pay an employee $24/hr and instead you're paying the agency $33/hr you're really about breaking even because of the hidden costs of having an employee.
I've said it before, I'll say it again: This is exactly why competition rocks. Soon, we'll say Moore was no prophet, he was a pessimist!
Create a little circuit that you place hidden in stores that data logs bluetooth devices. Once a day, walk into the store with your palm pilot and download the database and sell it to the advertisers.
Sound hard? Nope. Go to sparkfun and buy the bluetooth smd module for $50 that has 100 meter range (enough to cover a 28,000 square foot store). Spend $50 on a SD card data logging module with real time clock and then $25 - $30 for a micro controller and power supply. Once a min, sweep the store for bluetooth and create a log. Then you'll know not only the ids of the devices but also how long they were in the store. Assuming that your bluetooth module is 80% idle, 15% recv and 5% transmit, the whole thing would only use about 25mAh. A lipo battery could run it for 2 - 3 days if external power wasn't available.
Get really crafty and you could probably triangulate which area of the store they're in.
We actually discussed this topic quite extensively recently here: http://www.servomagazine.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t =4949
Originally, my boss Pete suggested that we use saliva - that would make entering the building a matter of simply licking the sensor.
Later on (in the discussion linked above) we thought it might be even better to try and grab some DNA from urine. That way, you could kill two birds with one stone - gain entrance to the building and relieve your bladder all at once. If your company does periodic drug screening then you could just integrate that into the process too.
Still, nothing beats the simplicity of just licking the sensor.
hullabalucination: Check out aptana http://www.aptana.com/ for the implementation phase. It has a preview tab so you can tweak your CSS and html and get pretty fast feedback. Even better, it has CSS/HTML/JS auto completion so you don't have to switch back and forth between your different files as often.
Inkscape is a great tool. I recently revised the www.bazaar-vcs.org website. My SVG mock-up is here: http://people.ubuntu.com/~mnuzum/projects/bzr/BZR% 20Concept2006-07-26-1.svg (open it in inkscape for the real effect).
I plan on documenting this process soon, because I know a lot of people ask about it, but here's what I do:
* Get the newest version of inkscape that you can, they really are adding excellent new features with each release
* Open a new doc and assuming 1024x768 target browser size set the document to 1000x600 px. For 800x600 go for 760x600px
* Use the layers tool in Inkscape to separate portions of the document
* Create a layer on the very top called "slices" and in this layer, create rectangles that are 10% opaqe or so that cover individual elements that will become images in the final product. This layer will usually be hidden.
* Periodically save your document out as png... remember, most people have a screen res of *96 dpi* not 72.
* When you want to save individual components, for example the logo in the example above, show your "slices" layer, click the square that covers your logo so that it's selected, then hide the slices layer. The square will be selected but hidden. When you choose export, it will export just the visible portion of the image you have selected.
I'm happy to give more details, I'm newz2000 on irc.freenode. I don't have a lot of time to chat, but ping me and I'll help out if I can.
Once we get guasian blur in inkscape I'll probably stop using photoshop. (Yes, I run photoshop in Linux - using crossover office)
I was at jupiter images today and thought to myself, "If you take an image w/out paying for it, make a few changes here and there, isn't it a derivative work? Aren't I free to use my derivative works however I see fit?"
I fully expect Jupiter to feel that its not OK... So how is it different taking a picture of Barney and modifying it from taking a stock photo and modifying it?
I'm so glad that AMD became a powerful player in the desktop PC and server market... not because I love AMD but because now we are really seeing some earnest competition and innovation. Before, we were happy with Moore's law, but then AMD beat Intel to 1GHz and the ensuing struggle for mind and market share has brought about some truly phenominal changes.
Keep up the excellent competition... maybe we can have a third player jump in with some new ideas? IBM? Sun? Let's see you what you have...
Ah, but was it chance? Maybe there's a mysterious relationship between prime numbers, zeta and this "chance" meeting?