In fact, the meaner you are, the smaller your audience.
Tell that to Rush Limbaugh. Being mean, nasty, and simplistic works. I wish it didn't, but it does. Bush didn't win beat Kerry, Gore, or McCain by being honest and straightforward.
ETS research scientist David Williamson... noted that the software interfaces were not likely to change to look more like Outlook or any other program. In fact, they were purposely designed to be vendor-neutral. This, he said, places the emphasis on the task and not the technology.
"We went to great efforts to make it not like any commercial product," said Williamson. "There are already plenty of commercial product certifications out there that can measure how adept you are at using software. But what we're trying to target is providing only the minimal software functionality that's required to get the task done."
The ETS people at least understand one thing many employers don't: the important computer skills are independent of the various tools used to carry them out. We've all heard (or experienced) horror stories of applicants being turned down for a web developer position because they don't have experience with a specific piece of software (Dreamweaver, for example). Many employers can't grok the fact that someone who knows how to code pages in a text editor will learn Dreamweaver or whatever in-house application is being used in 10 or 15 minutes. Someone who is competent at database admin will be equally competent with MySQL, dBase, or - the most common case - the customized proprietary software that only exists at your company. It's time employers stopped looking at paper certs for competency with specific pieces of software and started looking at actual skills. Maybe ETS can help them do that.
It's interesting that Ubuntu, a binary distro based on slow old Debian, has Gnome stable on 2.10.1, while we bleeding-edge Gentoo users are still on 2.8....
Trust me, you're better off. Gnome 2.10 drove me to KDE.
"I, for one, do not buy into this Lou Dobbs racist/nationalist claptrap that says that we can't trust foreigners."
That is not even close to what Lou Dobbs is saying. It has nothing to do with trust and everything to do with regulation and law enforcement.
I think you're in that parallel universe where Spock had a beard. Air America's problem is that it isn't mean spirited enough. As for MoveOn, they do great work and are by no means "nasty". Telling the truth isn't "nasty".
You paint a picture of an evil corporate-controlled society with black helicopters and spotlights swarming in the night to take away your cherished freedoms.
Yes yes yes.
Even if the FBI had never done anything illegal or unethical, we would still be justified in distrusting them, just as we should distrust anyone who the law gives authority over us.
If there is a possibility for power to be abused, it eventually will be abused by someone. That's why the US government contains constitutional checks and balances and that's why smart people distrust all authority figures.
My dad asks me if he should pirate photoshop. I told him no.... So he asks me what should he do. So I told him about GIMP. His response was why would he use inferior tools.
You get what you pay for. Your dad doesn't want to pay full price for a full-featured app, but when presented with a free option, complains that it's "inferior". There's no such thing as a free lunch.
But if there are other companies who want the contract, why not give it to one of them instead of to a company with a proven track record of misdeeds and dishonesty.
I myself don't have a problem with the RIAA going after people who share music illegally.
What I have a problem with is the RIAA going after people who make technology available that has legitimate uses in addition to illegal uses and insisting on DRM crap that limits how I can listen to music I paid for.
I've seen the same problem
on
Firefox Hacks
·
· Score: 1
And often when I browse out of the temp directory it loses the name of the file I was trying to save.
Wait a minute... you mean you don't refuse to release the albums your artists have recorded, and then demand they pay back the recording costs for the album you aren't making money on because you refused to release it? No wonder you're a small label, you're doing it wrong!
Just kidding, people like you are the good guys, and digital music distribution just might help you be the wave of the future.
In my experience the weakest point in any audio cable is where the wire is soldered to the connector. (The second weakest is the shielding around the cable.) I don't really care what kind of metal the connector is made of; I care about how well the connector-cable connection will handle bending and twisting. Good cables have a sleeve at that point that helps reinforce the connection.
I believe DRM in any form is ridiculous, but I would tolerate it better if I could, for example, play music I bought from iTunes on my Nomad or play music I bought from Napster on my iPod.
They should, and they probably will... but commercial VOIP is a pretty new technology (as far as being offered to a large number of people). It will take the 911 providers and VOIP providers time to adapt, as with any new technology; indeed, it took several years and lots of negotiations among providers, regulators, and privacy advocates before 911 providers had the ability to triangulate the location of a 911 call from a mobile phone; the feature still isn't available in all areas.
But of course, the more pressure the public puts on them the faster they will adapt.
One thing standing in the way is the very nature of VOIP: it is designed to be portable, not tied to a particular location.
Peter John said his daughter was hysterical after the robbery and didn't see a nearby cell phone.
Mr. John made the decision to save money by signing up with an unregulated telephony service. Traditional phone services are required to provide enhanced 911 service and they charge the customer for it (it's a line item on your bill). VOIP is unregulated; that's one reason it costs less. But you can't have it both ways. I'm sympathetic to the urge to limit the spread of regulations that hamper innovation and increase costs, but with less regulation comes more responsibility for the consumer to know what they are buying.
Slashdot Mirror
No one said the state should provide the security. Yes, Joe Sixpack should "pay someone to do it" - he should pay his ISP, in this case Telstra.
IOW, the parent was suggesting that some ISPs start doing for real what AOL claims to do in their commercials but doesn't.
In fact, the meaner you are, the smaller your audience.
Tell that to Rush Limbaugh. Being mean, nasty, and simplistic works. I wish it didn't, but it does. Bush didn't win beat Kerry, Gore, or McCain by being honest and straightforward.
The ETS people at least understand one thing many employers don't: the important computer skills are independent of the various tools used to carry them out. We've all heard (or experienced) horror stories of applicants being turned down for a web developer position because they don't have experience with a specific piece of software (Dreamweaver, for example). Many employers can't grok the fact that someone who knows how to code pages in a text editor will learn Dreamweaver or whatever in-house application is being used in 10 or 15 minutes. Someone who is competent at database admin will be equally competent with MySQL, dBase, or - the most common case - the customized proprietary software that only exists at your company. It's time employers stopped looking at paper certs for competency with specific pieces of software and started looking at actual skills. Maybe ETS can help them do that.
It's interesting that Ubuntu, a binary distro based on slow old Debian, has Gnome stable on 2.10.1, while we bleeding-edge Gentoo users are still on 2.8....
Trust me, you're better off. Gnome 2.10 drove me to KDE.
"I, for one, do not buy into this Lou Dobbs racist/nationalist claptrap that says that we can't trust foreigners." That is not even close to what Lou Dobbs is saying. It has nothing to do with trust and everything to do with regulation and law enforcement.
...it's a stupid name that's already been taken: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/radio/services/th ecurrent/
Good radio station though. Maybe I should warn them that I slashdotted the site with their web feed...
I think you're in that parallel universe where Spock had a beard. Air America's problem is that it isn't mean spirited enough. As for MoveOn, they do great work and are by no means "nasty". Telling the truth isn't "nasty".
You paint a picture of an evil corporate-controlled society with black helicopters and spotlights swarming in the night to take away your cherished freedoms.
Look out a window.
Yes yes yes. Even if the FBI had never done anything illegal or unethical, we would still be justified in distrusting them, just as we should distrust anyone who the law gives authority over us. If there is a possibility for power to be abused, it eventually will be abused by someone. That's why the US government contains constitutional checks and balances and that's why smart people distrust all authority figures.
My dad asks me if he should pirate photoshop. I told him no.... So he asks me what should he do. So I told him about GIMP. His response was why would he use inferior tools.
You get what you pay for. Your dad doesn't want to pay full price for a full-featured app, but when presented with a free option, complains that it's "inferior". There's no such thing as a free lunch.
To look at a cell using a microscope you have to take it out of the living thing it belonged to.
And I'm sure Apple's stance on this has absolutely nothing to do with secret clauses in their agreements with Microsoft. Nothing at all.
But if there are other companies who want the contract, why not give it to one of them instead of to a company with a proven track record of misdeeds and dishonesty.
I myself don't have a problem with the RIAA going after people who share music illegally.
What I have a problem with is the RIAA going after people who make technology available that has legitimate uses in addition to illegal uses and insisting on DRM crap that limits how I can listen to music I paid for.
And often when I browse out of the temp directory it loses the name of the file I was trying to save.
I agree with your first two paragraphs and I'm glad you replied to the silly "dicking around" comment. But then you had to go ahead and say
People go into construction because they are not intelligent enough to become programmers.
Construction (if you're good at it) requires a fair amount of intelligence and skill. No need to slag another profession while defending your own.
Wait a minute ... you mean you don't refuse to release the albums your artists have recorded, and then demand they pay back the recording costs for the album you aren't making money on because you refused to release it? No wonder you're a small label, you're doing it wrong!
Just kidding, people like you are the good guys, and digital music distribution just might help you be the wave of the future.
In my experience the weakest point in any audio cable is where the wire is soldered to the connector. (The second weakest is the shielding around the cable.) I don't really care what kind of metal the connector is made of; I care about how well the connector-cable connection will handle bending and twisting. Good cables have a sleeve at that point that helps reinforce the connection.
Odd how people have to be so dramatic about small steps in the right direction...
So true, and not just about software. I think Chuck D said it best:
"Don't believe the hype".
Saddam destroyed them before we could get to them.
... 1993, according to the CIA.
Long before
If we don't fight terror, the next attack might make September 11 pale in comparison.
Exactly. And that's why we should be fighting terrorist organizations like al Qaida, isntead of Iraqis.
Why did September 11 happen?
Because Bush and his people ignored Richard Clarke and others who warned that al Qaida was planning an attack in the United States.
Inaction let it happen - we can not stand idly by.
The opposite of "inaction" is not "attacking any target we feel like, even if it is completely unrelated to any threats against us".
It's not enough to take ANY action. We need to take actions that will actually accomplish our goals. Attacking Iraq was detrimental to our goals.
I believe DRM in any form is ridiculous, but I would tolerate it better if I could, for example, play music I bought from iTunes on my Nomad or play music I bought from Napster on my iPod.
Well, if you really should uninstall before you update, why doesn't the updater uninstall before it reinstalls?
Lots of other installers do this; why not Firefox?
They should, and they probably will ... but commercial VOIP is a pretty new technology (as far as being offered to a large number of people). It will take the 911 providers and VOIP providers time to adapt, as with any new technology; indeed, it took several years and lots of negotiations among providers, regulators, and privacy advocates before 911 providers had the ability to triangulate the location of a 911 call from a mobile phone; the feature still isn't available in all areas.
But of course, the more pressure the public puts on them the faster they will adapt.
One thing standing in the way is the very nature of VOIP: it is designed to be portable, not tied to a particular location.
They get them by browsing to web sites that use them, right-clicking the icons they want, and choosing "Save image as..."