Dude, China has the largest standing military in the world. If you still think they're poorly equipped, you might want to read up on this. As for training, the rampant nationalism in China just might make up for any deficiencies. Considering how well America faired the last they were involved in military action in Asia, I'd say you are a wee bit overconfident in the U.S.'s military strength.
It's a shame when history repeats itself, particularly since the US was founded on better ideals than China.
Is "freedom and liberty for all!" really better ideals than "wealth and security for all!"? I think they both just cater to different value systems and happened to be convenient for rabble-rousing at the time.
Do you know anyone who goes to the threatres and records a copy of the film for their "personal private use"?
Besides, a movie ticket is a license to view the film once. If you want to do it multiple times you need to buy a different kind of license, called a DVD.
Then surely you must also value the liberty of the company to use whatever format they damned well please:P
It also makes sense because it makes the system more useful and, potentially, cheaper, for the user.
Doubtful. Using an "open" format would mean that you don't get to keep much of the information specifically produced by that camera (histograms, exposure, white balance, etc.), which is the whole point of shooting in RAW. That is definitely not more useful for the user. You could always convert to a format without the benefits of the proprietary RAW format, like TIFF, later, but you can't add the extra information that the camera can save into the RAW.
So what? The images are mine, I want them in an open format where I will not depend on dcraw reverse-engineering files...
Fine, shoot in jpg then. Of course, that means postprocessing is going to be extra painful for you, and the final product isn't going to be nearly as good, but that's the cost of an "open" format which does not support the full capabilities of the camera.
Having said all of that, unless you really like to zoom in close or make huge prints, you don't need that kind of resolution. Today's 8Mpel cameras are fine for most users, and even the 1.3-2Mpel cell-phone cameras are good for web-shots if you don't zoom.
That's like saying you don't really need blade servers with 16 cores because beige box PCs are fine for most users, and even eees are good if you don't play games. Or that you don't need trucks because minivans are fine for most families, and even sedans are good if you don't have kids.
These things are made for professional digital film production and billboard/poster shots. They're just not meant to compete with the consumer P&S/prosumer/DSLR segment; if anything, they're made to take a bite out of the digital medium format/large format market.
They're modular with themselves - that is, you can exchange modules for other bits made by RED. I don't see how this has anything to do with using open file formats, which makes it modular with other people. Why would you expect otherwise, anyway? Nearly all high-end camera makers use their own proprietary RAW formats.
Born and raised in the PRC, baby. First ten years of my life, and two years back there more recently. Perhaps you could enlighten us on your own experiences with the country?
Anyway, I agree with your statement; many people would exploit anything to benefit themselves. But that doesn't invalidate my point that the citizen for the most part are content with the current government.
Oops, looks like Slashdot doesn't like Chinese character entry. For those interested, the book's title is "Shang Xia Wu Qian Nian".
I also want to add a tidbit to address your last point. Who's to say that the PRC is not "normal"? Normal by whose standards? As far as the average citizen is concerned, their life is perfectly normal, and not many of them give a damn about what Westerners think is normal.
As for your friends from Hong Kong and Taiwan, how exactly were they oppressed by the PRC government? Taiwan is a separate country created by the remnants of the Guomindang, and Hong Kong still retains its own government and economy under the "One Country, Two Systems" policy. Neither entity has been governed by the PRC, so how would those people you mention have been oppressed?
Before the Communists was the Guomindang, which was pretty much composed of a bunch of warring warlords. Life wasn't exactly easy. Before the Guomindang were, as you say, the Qing (who were Manchurian, by the way), and they were weak and corrupt to the core, the very reason it was overthrown. Ans so it went all the way back to the Seven Kingdoms; with a few exceptions, almost every dynasty in China's history met its demise due to the oppression of the people, leading to the rising thereof (if you are interested in more details, I suggest giving äSää"åfå - I believe the English version is called Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History - a good read. It's publicly available online and a very easy read on the highlights of China's history from the creation myths to the twilight of the Qing dynasty). Compared to those days, the current regime is easy street.
I think the current administration understands that its foundations were built on the dissent of the people (the very reason Mao, a peasant out of dirthole, was able to gain power was by promising his fellow peasants a better life), and if the people grew dissatisfied with them, they'll be out of business in a very short time. And that's the fundamental reason for all the censorship - they have to be seen as the benevolent protectors of the people. Culturally, China is simply not ready for a political atmosphere like in the West where people openly criticize the government, precisely because of the history of uprisings, including some very recent ones. The sentiment that "if things get real bad, we'll just kick them out, just like all the imperial guys before them" is still very strong (which is an interesting contrast to America, where people still pretend they can overthrow the government, but the government's attitude is the exact opposite:P) is still strong. And before anyone stages the "but the government is better equipped!" defense, I must point out that there are a lot of people in China, and this has been the deciding advantage against many better-armed opponents, e.g. in the Sino-Japanese war and the Korean war. The Chinese government just can't afford to be seen as the bad guys.
I personally have never felt oppressed, and my parents have never complained about the government. In fact, they love it so much they could usually rationalize any negative press about the government away. Trusting the government to do the right thing was a way of life; for most people it was the only way they knew and they lived happily by it. Of course, the media usually projects the government in a rather positive light, but hey, it keeps the people happy. The only thing I dislike the Chinese government for is the education system, where nationalism and reverence of communist heroes were ingrained at an early age.
From TFA, the Chinese government is not limiting anyone's leisure activities, rather Chinese doctors have formally defined Internet addiction. This is likely a product of the cultural sentiment of abhorring excess in any form and living life by a framework of rules (three square meals a day, eight hours of sleep, etc.), which prolonged hours surfing the web obviously tends to disrupt. Another factor is since the Internet is a rather new development in China, most users are teens and 20-to-30-somethings. People beyond this age group tend to be very traditional, and tend to look down on all the shiny new technology stuff that they don't get (isn't this a problem in the West too? Maybe to a lesser degree.) I know my mother always bugs me when I'm watching too much TV/on the computer too much/reading too many books (I used to average about ten a week back in high school, so I guess that qualifies as excess for her), and it certainly doesn't have anything to do with the government.
I don't quite understand your question regarding the status quo.
My family left China because my father thought he could have better opportunities in America, and later Canada. How wrong he was. He's back in China now, and won't stop going on how about how his old buddies have all struck it rich during the rapid economic development, and how he could have been a lot better off it he stayed behind. Personally I think I've become a more well-rounded person than if I had stayed in China, but I wouldn't mind living or working there once I complete my degree, especially since fluency in English could apparently command quite a premium.
Bullshit. Speaking as an ex-average Chinese, the average Chinese doesn't feel oppressed at all. Government control of everything is and always has been the norm, even before the communists. In fact, nationalism is so ingrained in the culture that the people often feel the government is justified in doing most of the things Western audiences get their panties in a knot over.
I don't understand why this is such a difficult concept. The bitrate is still variable, but the range it varies over can be manually restricted. When you restrict the top to 320kbps, it's called 320kbps VBR. Where is the contradiction?
320kbps VBR does exist, it's where the maximum bitrate is 320kbps, but could be say, 32kbps for silence. You can do this in LAME with the -B switch. I believe this is the default setting when you specify VBR, but it's there to allow you to restrict the maximum bitrate to a lower value for some perverse reason.
You could be very Free in one of those African countries with defunct governments. Sure, nobody's going to provide you with clean drinking water, but at least you don't have to pay taxes!
Yeah but that's SOCIALISM (which is evil, by the way. For everyone who's currently enjoying the benefits of a country that takes care of its citizens.)
Wait, so on one hand the argument is "Linux is great because it supports lots of devices!", and on the other it's "But it doesn't support shitty devices, so you better check before you buy!"
How does that justify the lack of support? I mean, people above are gushing about how Linux is great because it supports ancient, obscure hardware, but now that a piece of hardware isn't supported it's suddenly crap?
Slashdot Mirror
But information wants to be freeeeeee! :(
Dude, China has the largest standing military in the world. If you still think they're poorly equipped, you might want to read up on this. As for training, the rampant nationalism in China just might make up for any deficiencies. Considering how well America faired the last they were involved in military action in Asia, I'd say you are a wee bit overconfident in the U.S.'s military strength.
It's a shame when history repeats itself, particularly since the US was founded on better ideals than China.
Is "freedom and liberty for all!" really better ideals than "wealth and security for all!"? I think they both just cater to different value systems and happened to be convenient for rabble-rousing at the time.
The ice cubes from that water are crystal clear, and the water tastes fantastic (rather, doesn't taste like anything).
I don't think the clarity of ice cubes has anything to do with the quality of the water, unless you're making it out of piss or something.
Do you know anyone who goes to the threatres and records a copy of the film for their "personal private use"?
Besides, a movie ticket is a license to view the film once. If you want to do it multiple times you need to buy a different kind of license, called a DVD.
I think GP is trying to point out that your link doesn't actually contain the main text of the book.
Because I value liberty?
Then surely you must also value the liberty of the company to use whatever format they damned well please :P
It also makes sense because it makes the system more useful and, potentially, cheaper, for the user.
Doubtful. Using an "open" format would mean that you don't get to keep much of the information specifically produced by that camera (histograms, exposure, white balance, etc.), which is the whole point of shooting in RAW. That is definitely not more useful for the user. You could always convert to a format without the benefits of the proprietary RAW format, like TIFF, later, but you can't add the extra information that the camera can save into the RAW.
So what? The images are mine, I want them in an open format where I will not depend on dcraw reverse-engineering files...
Fine, shoot in jpg then. Of course, that means postprocessing is going to be extra painful for you, and the final product isn't going to be nearly as good, but that's the cost of an "open" format which does not support the full capabilities of the camera.
Having said all of that, unless you really like to zoom in close or make huge prints, you don't need that kind of resolution. Today's 8Mpel cameras are fine for most users, and even the 1.3-2Mpel cell-phone cameras are good for web-shots if you don't zoom.
That's like saying you don't really need blade servers with 16 cores because beige box PCs are fine for most users, and even eees are good if you don't play games. Or that you don't need trucks because minivans are fine for most families, and even sedans are good if you don't have kids.
These things are made for professional digital film production and billboard/poster shots. They're just not meant to compete with the consumer P&S/prosumer/DSLR segment; if anything, they're made to take a bite out of the digital medium format/large format market.
They're modular with themselves - that is, you can exchange modules for other bits made by RED. I don't see how this has anything to do with using open file formats, which makes it modular with other people. Why would you expect otherwise, anyway? Nearly all high-end camera makers use their own proprietary RAW formats.
What's the point of supporting an OS whose only advantage is gaming.
Gee I dunno.
Born and raised in the PRC, baby. First ten years of my life, and two years back there more recently. Perhaps you could enlighten us on your own experiences with the country?
Anyway, I agree with your statement; many people would exploit anything to benefit themselves. But that doesn't invalidate my point that the citizen for the most part are content with the current government.
Oops, looks like Slashdot doesn't like Chinese character entry. For those interested, the book's title is "Shang Xia Wu Qian Nian".
I also want to add a tidbit to address your last point. Who's to say that the PRC is not "normal"? Normal by whose standards? As far as the average citizen is concerned, their life is perfectly normal, and not many of them give a damn about what Westerners think is normal.
As for your friends from Hong Kong and Taiwan, how exactly were they oppressed by the PRC government? Taiwan is a separate country created by the remnants of the Guomindang, and Hong Kong still retains its own government and economy under the "One Country, Two Systems" policy. Neither entity has been governed by the PRC, so how would those people you mention have been oppressed?
Before the Communists was the Guomindang, which was pretty much composed of a bunch of warring warlords. Life wasn't exactly easy. Before the Guomindang were, as you say, the Qing (who were Manchurian, by the way), and they were weak and corrupt to the core, the very reason it was overthrown. Ans so it went all the way back to the Seven Kingdoms; with a few exceptions, almost every dynasty in China's history met its demise due to the oppression of the people, leading to the rising thereof (if you are interested in more details, I suggest giving äSää"åfå - I believe the English version is called Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History - a good read. It's publicly available online and a very easy read on the highlights of China's history from the creation myths to the twilight of the Qing dynasty). Compared to those days, the current regime is easy street.
:P) is still strong. And before anyone stages the "but the government is better equipped!" defense, I must point out that there are a lot of people in China, and this has been the deciding advantage against many better-armed opponents, e.g. in the Sino-Japanese war and the Korean war. The Chinese government just can't afford to be seen as the bad guys.
I think the current administration understands that its foundations were built on the dissent of the people (the very reason Mao, a peasant out of dirthole, was able to gain power was by promising his fellow peasants a better life), and if the people grew dissatisfied with them, they'll be out of business in a very short time. And that's the fundamental reason for all the censorship - they have to be seen as the benevolent protectors of the people. Culturally, China is simply not ready for a political atmosphere like in the West where people openly criticize the government, precisely because of the history of uprisings, including some very recent ones. The sentiment that "if things get real bad, we'll just kick them out, just like all the imperial guys before them" is still very strong (which is an interesting contrast to America, where people still pretend they can overthrow the government, but the government's attitude is the exact opposite
I personally have never felt oppressed, and my parents have never complained about the government. In fact, they love it so much they could usually rationalize any negative press about the government away. Trusting the government to do the right thing was a way of life; for most people it was the only way they knew and they lived happily by it. Of course, the media usually projects the government in a rather positive light, but hey, it keeps the people happy. The only thing I dislike the Chinese government for is the education system, where nationalism and reverence of communist heroes were ingrained at an early age.
From TFA, the Chinese government is not limiting anyone's leisure activities, rather Chinese doctors have formally defined Internet addiction. This is likely a product of the cultural sentiment of abhorring excess in any form and living life by a framework of rules (three square meals a day, eight hours of sleep, etc.), which prolonged hours surfing the web obviously tends to disrupt. Another factor is since the Internet is a rather new development in China, most users are teens and 20-to-30-somethings. People beyond this age group tend to be very traditional, and tend to look down on all the shiny new technology stuff that they don't get (isn't this a problem in the West too? Maybe to a lesser degree.) I know my mother always bugs me when I'm watching too much TV/on the computer too much/reading too many books (I used to average about ten a week back in high school, so I guess that qualifies as excess for her), and it certainly doesn't have anything to do with the government.
I don't quite understand your question regarding the status quo.
My family left China because my father thought he could have better opportunities in America, and later Canada. How wrong he was. He's back in China now, and won't stop going on how about how his old buddies have all struck it rich during the rapid economic development, and how he could have been a lot better off it he stayed behind. Personally I think I've become a more well-rounded person than if I had stayed in China, but I wouldn't mind living or working there once I complete my degree, especially since fluency in English could apparently command quite a premium.
Bullshit. Speaking as an ex-average Chinese, the average Chinese doesn't feel oppressed at all. Government control of everything is and always has been the norm, even before the communists. In fact, nationalism is so ingrained in the culture that the people often feel the government is justified in doing most of the things Western audiences get their panties in a knot over.
I don't understand why this is such a difficult concept. The bitrate is still variable, but the range it varies over can be manually restricted. When you restrict the top to 320kbps, it's called 320kbps VBR. Where is the contradiction?
You should really just uncompress it to a wave file if you're a REAL audiophile :P
320kbps VBR does exist, it's where the maximum bitrate is 320kbps, but could be say, 32kbps for silence. You can do this in LAME with the -B switch. I believe this is the default setting when you specify VBR, but it's there to allow you to restrict the maximum bitrate to a lower value for some perverse reason.
What? Is Flash incapable of playing a MP3 file? Or does it detriment the quality somehow?
You could be very Free in one of those African countries with defunct governments. Sure, nobody's going to provide you with clean drinking water, but at least you don't have to pay taxes!
Christ, get a sense of humour.
...What the hell?
Yeah but that's SOCIALISM (which is evil, by the way. For everyone who's currently enjoying the benefits of a country that takes care of its citizens.)
Wait, so on one hand the argument is "Linux is great because it supports lots of devices!", and on the other it's "But it doesn't support shitty devices, so you better check before you buy!"
Smooth.
How does that justify the lack of support? I mean, people above are gushing about how Linux is great because it supports ancient, obscure hardware, but now that a piece of hardware isn't supported it's suddenly crap?