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User: pkbarbiedoll

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  1. Fred Saberhagen's Berserker series on Ask Slashdot: Good, Forgotten Fantasy & Science Fiction Novels? · · Score: 1

    Enjoyed reading these.. the early editions were standard sci-fi, though he wrote a few later on that were rather dark. I believe that the Berserkers were the inspiration behind the Borg.

  2. No correlation on Brain Scan Can Detect Autism In Infants · · Score: 1

    My IQ is in the normal to upper normal range (119) and I am diagnosed Aspergers. Quite convinced that had more been known about this neurological disorder in the 70s & 80s, I would have been DX'ed at a much earlier (and more helpful) age.

    So no, there isn't a correlation between high IQ and Aspergers. We (aspies) are no more gifted than neurotypicals, though you may hear more about brilliant people on the autistic spectrum due to the phenomenon being seen as interesting or cool by society in general.

  3. Re:Why no right-thinking person believes in free t on Where Next-Generation Rare Earth Metals May Come From · · Score: 1

    >> Perhaps you just haven't met the right Liberals or perhaps you failed to hold up your end of the conversation. If you want to speak to a Liberal you should be prepared not just for a political discussion, but for a philosophical one as well. Many people just tune out when the discussion turns to philosophy. Also try talking to a Liberal who is more intelligent than you are. Not less. You might actually learn something.

    Fixed your comment.

  4. Re:Had high hopes for Linux Mint 12 on Linux Of the Future May Be About Which Environment, Not Which Distribution · · Score: 1

    Good to know. Any clue on adding the top panel, where I like keeping sysmon displayed (as well as my app launchers)? Desktop shortcuts are a relatively minor inconvenience. Probably the new method of disallowing them helps me keep a cleaner workspace. But the missing top panel (or ability to add launchers to it) is killing me. Now I have to go to Menu - search search search clicky, any time I want to launch a shell or my ide.

  5. Had high hopes for Linux Mint 12 on Linux Of the Future May Be About Which Environment, Not Which Distribution · · Score: 2

    But found two deal killers.. in general:

    1) No Power Management application. I see some tutorials on manually editing conf files to tweak power settings, but why not install DOS 6.22 while I'm at it. Ubuntu 10.04 has a Power Management tool that works well, and allows me to choose how I want my system to respond, rather than having someone else dictate power configuration that does not fit my needs.
    2) No way to add application icons to the desktop. At least not easily.
    3) No way to add/configure upper panel (that I can find).

    I tried the Gnome "2" fork MATE, but still no power management tool, however I was able to add shortcuts to the desktop (which were retained when I logged back in under Gnome 3). I couldn't find how to add a top level panel (as I have in Gnome 2), and the menu grid seems like a copy of gnome 3.

    I looked at a few screenshots of Cinnamon but it looked a lot like Gnome 3 as far as the menu grid goes. I don't want to have to type names of applications I may not recall off the top of my head. That is one reason why graphical menus exist in the first place.

  6. Re:what about cinnamon? on GNOME 3: Beauty To the Bone? · · Score: 1

    kde-ish?

  7. Re:Oh yes, software on America's Future Is In Software, Not Hardware · · Score: 1

    Define "we". And is that before or after the mass peasant uprisings?

  8. About that "home fabrication".... on America's Future Is In Software, Not Hardware · · Score: 1

    Someone's got to pay for the home first. With no jobs, how will the masses buy these wondrous homes you lust after?

    Or should we simply cull the masses so the need for jobs does not result in the inevitable peasant uprising?

  9. Can't wait to get out of my contract with T-mobile on AT&T Stops T-Mobile Merger Bid With the FCC · · Score: 1

    My final 2-year ends January and I won't be looking back. T-mobile has proven to me that they have the worst customer service and are pure evil when it comes to overages. On top of that their standard pricing is nothing to be excited about. Coverage is spotty to OK around Atlanta, but drops 10 minutes off of main interstates in rural areas.

  10. I don't like having to move my mouse halfway across the country to use an application's menu. Double cursed if you have dual monitors.

  11. And this is why I hate the Mac UI on Ubuntu 11.10 ('Oneiric Ocelot') Released · · Score: 1

    I love the idea of Macintosh, but the desktop is frankly horrible.

  12. That's the beauty of globalization. on Apple's Chinese Suppliers Accused of Causing Significant Environmental Damage · · Score: 1

    As long as we can continue buying cheap electronic devices, we won't give two shits what happens to the countries or people who actually produce the goods. That's the beauty of globalization. We're so far removed from the actual costs of our insatiable appetite for cheap consumer goods, it never dawns on us that our comfort comes at the cost of another's cancer or starvation.

  13. Who said anything about unlimited budgets? on Why Amazon Can't Manufacture a Kindle In the US · · Score: 1

    I make less than 50k a year. Don't preach to me about living on a budget. I know first hand.

    I also learned how stupid it was to pay inflated prices for slightly less expensive and moderately more junky chinese tools. That has nothing to do with the idea of spending a little more to ensure that we continue to have some semblance of a middle class in this country.

    Buy your cheap Harbor Frieght ratches, air tools, welders and see how long they last before making the inevitable trip to the chinese tool graveyard - the county landfill. Which I might add, is another reason to spend just a little more to avoid contributing to that particular problem.

  14. And if you're too lazy for google... on Why Amazon Can't Manufacture a Kindle In the US · · Score: 1
  15. Are you really that dense? on Why Amazon Can't Manufacture a Kindle In the US · · Score: 1

    because you clearly haven't looked

  16. That's because you haven't looked. on Why Amazon Can't Manufacture a Kindle In the US · · Score: 1

    If you stumble through the wal-marts and targets - sorry, you won't find many American made goods if any. That's because these box stores, the Dollar Generals, the Home Depots, are all about making as much profit as absolutely possible, without regard to the communities that support them.

    Most of my tools are now US made. It took a little looking at first, but it's really not that difficult. There's even a website to help: http://google.com/

    Many (not quite most) of my clothes are American made. Yes I pay a little more, but then I should. Shoes shouldn't cost $19. Your savings come at the expense of slave-wage labor. Your savings are another's exploitation.

    There are so many sites specifically devoted to buying US made goods. Have a look and put your money where your mouth is.

  17. I'm panicking! on Google+ Already At 10 Million Users · · Score: 1

    Because I don't have an invite.. pkbarbiedoll@gmail

  18. Why is there an elephant standing in your room? on US Competitiveness Chief Immelt's GE Tax Bill: $0 · · Score: 2

    Bullshit again. There will always be need for highly skilled workers, that much is obvious. Those highly skilled workers are being paid big bucks to increase efficiency and production with fewer and fewer resources, I.E., employees and payroll.

    Increasing the education levels of the West's population will not solve the jobs crisis. Protectionism is the only defense we have against being obliterated by cheap labor pools. We're fine with blowing human flesh to bits in the middle east, but it is unthinkable to engage in trade war to protect one's own economic interests. Unless you are a highly successful multinational.. then game the system and its players to your heart's malcontent.

    Globalization is dying. Why can't you Friedmanites realize this?

  19. annnd why is faster access needed by the medical on Two-Thirds of US Internet Users Lack Fast Broadband · · Score: 1

    industry? Why, I believe it has something to do with telemedicine and the soon to be heard cry from the PTB that American doctors are paid too much (nevermind the ridiculous cost of tuition, student loans, ect). Solution = outsource their asses. Set up a semi interactive TV & PTZ camera grid in front of an examination chair. Hire cheap trained labor to draw blood and perform other menial tasks. The Indian/Taiwanese doctor on the other end of the cameras will examine and collect data via clinic monkey.

    Huge cost savings for the healthcare industry. Disaster for those (in America) working in the medical industry who will see their livlihoods and careers be rendered obsolete in a matter of 3-5 years.

    The technology already exists, and is already being used in small numbers (rural settings). Keep your eye on the prize.. anyone with a brain sees where this is heading.

    Ditto for education.. kids don't need broadband in class, that won't save U.S. education system money. Put a remote instructor on a huge LCD screen in front of the class, with a trained monkey for any direct interaction.. paper? nope.. everything submitted online.

    Obviously won't affect 100% of clinical / education jobs, but bet your ass this is what the PTB's envision.

  20. Isaac Asimov on America Losing Its Edge In Innovation · · Score: 0

    Highly respected and loved by Americans of all ages...of course his time ended decades ago.

    We've replaced Asimov (and others like him) with Glenn Beck and the Home Shopping Network.

  21. Does nothing to illustrate income inequality on Watch 200 Years of Global Growth In 4 Minutes · · Score: 1

    I saw this a couple weeks ago, and while the evidence appears to damn the west for hoarding wealth, the presentation does not measure income distribution across individual countries. While America may appear to have lots of cash, the growing reality is that the "lots of cash" belongs to a scant percentage of the population.

    It would be interesting to see a similar presentation that takes this important marker into account.

  22. Ron Paul supports Wikileaks on Michael Moore Posts Julian Assange's Bail · · Score: 1

    Last I checked, Ron Paul is not a liberal.

  23. Something tells me on Voting Machines Selecting Default Candidates · · Score: 1

    the GOP might be expecting a big surprise on Nov. 2nd. The electorate may have just had enough of the shrill, deregulatory, extremist robber barons filling the GOP ranks this cycle.

    So what better way to try and neutralize a potentially negative outcome than screech "Desperation" and accuse voters of committing fraud by voting non-GOP. God forbid, you guys spent so much MONEY on this election. I'd be worried too!

  24. This progressive on Voting Machines Selecting Default Candidates · · Score: 1

    agrees with your comment.

  25. asterisk on Solar Power On the White House · · Score: 1

    with panels made in China. Uniquely American!