All the companies mentioned have put out their share of crap. Just the same, each of them has put out at least ONE decent product as well. Really though, the article is all about consumer brand preferences, and isnt a fair measure of quality. (BOSE for example)
Myself I like Sony, and I dont buy CD's so that whole rootkit thing hasn't bothered me. Just the same, I have had a few junky Sony products. (How about a Clie that only does about half of what it says it can on the box, or a discman that begins playing cds at about half-speed two weeks after the warranty is out.)
Best strategy. Look at the product in-store if possible. Never buy something you cant return, and examine every feature, every structural component. How many of you have ever resorted to using electrical tape to hold your remote control batteries in? Guess what, the one you bought wasn't built to last, just look pretty.
I had a chance to look into a several concepts I haven't previously learned about. For example aleph numbers, which I'll admit only caught my eye because the word "aleph" had been used in several science fiction pieces I have enjoyed. Mathematical concepts relating to infinity can get pretty thought provoking and this is certainly one of them. I cant explain it after only ten minutes of absorption, so I highly recommend doing some learning for yourselves. Godel's Theorem, I am also struggling desparatly to understand but it's implications intrigue me greatly.
Anyway, I sincerely want to thank the poster for showing me the way to many things I may ponder over. Thank you, and I wish many nights of brain-strain upon you as well.
If Bush's USA came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: ET's labeled terrorists, Billions of dollars into waging war against terror, rainbows, and other abstract concepts. Earth destroyed just before Bush realizes that the ET's have no oil anyway.
If France came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: France surrenders. Everyone else enjoys peaceful relationship with the ET's, but France surrenders anyway.
If the U.N. came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: Aliens leave after five minutes of listening to the arguing. Arguing continues until sun finally burns out.
If Canada came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: "You guys want a beer, eh?" Shortly after, ET's help set up inter-stellar transmission network so they can watch hockey every saturday night.
Many distrobutions = Good, (more competition, more innovation).
HOWEVER, the catch is that the answer to the above question is not a unanimous "Yes, here's how and it'll work for most if not all distrobutions." Why? Too many variables to account for. To be almost universal across the linux distro, you'd have to release at least three different binarys (which at most covers a dozen or so of the most common distros). To make it completly universal across all linux distros, you'd have to release your source codes and provide detailed instructions to compile for some of the more difficult distrobutions AND be prepared to make adjustments and help people with new flavors of linux every day.
How many times have I found a reasonably popular piece of software for linux, and been detered by a compile process that was either too complicated (and undocumented) or that produced a binary that just didn't work. I personally shy away from any software that has to be compiled unless I REALLY want it. Sure, two times out of three it moves along painlessly, but when there's a problem it can sometimes be a *badword* to figure out. How many times have I found a great looking linux application only to discover that they dont release ANYTHING for my distrobution and maybe only even for some obscure distro. It's a pain in the hindquarters.
Alternativly, you could release your games online in flash. I realise that isn't the BEST business model and that it's NOT universal across all platforms, but you have a standard that works for a large number of Linux distrobutions AND Mac AND Windows.
We need a single standard for software under linux... and a full-featured set of libraries to go with it. Whereby if a coder chooses to write for all linux platforms he'll know that if it works for one, it'll work for everyone who complies with the standards and keeps their libraries up-to-date. If that coder chooses to code specifically for some special feature found only in one or two distros, so be it... but at least the divide wont HAVE to be there.
As is said, the mouse is not for everyone and everything. It's a tool for manipulating the GUI, but like any tool it CAN be overused AND it is encouraged to be overused. For example... how many people don't know and use the ALT-Tab key combo for switching between multiple open windows? I occasionally catch myself navigating my cursor to the taskbar either in Windows or KDE, but a quick flick of two buttons will usually be done faster than my mousing can find the right item. Same for closing an open application. I haven't clicked on an "X" since Windows 3.1, because I know it's a waste of time.
How about tabbed browsing? Do you know the shortcuts to switch and close tabs? Trust me, using the mouse to select a link is terrific (imagine trying to do it without one), but switching tabs is so much easier and less distracting if you can just flick a couple buttons.
Mice are great for clicking your way through a webpage, games, and for manipulating or selecting sections of text. They're not disposable, they have very little learning curve, and they ARE an improvement over the prexisting methods... but we overuse them for the most part.
Now something I havent seen much of in this thread, and the reason I have posted, is what can be done to improve the situation.
Well, for one, YES, a software designer should take into account predecessor software and make it easy for the old-hands to migrate over to the new system AND make it easy for the new-hands to get into it. In fact, they should go one step further and make it EASIER for BOTH groups AND the new machines should be ergonimical in the same old space unless you're willing to renovate the service counter at all locations. A simple touch screen eliminates the need for adding a mouse. The keyboard and screen should be as close together as possible (even ATTACHED). My ideal desktop interface would be an ergonomically-shaped keyboard with a 17" LCD touchscreen growing out of it at an adjustable angle.
Note: I work in retail myself... our system is terrible. Over fifty keystrokes and at least a dozen clicks all over the screen before we can even BEGIN each sale.
I've tried everything short of going out and buying a compartmentalized purse.
I've used a laptop-bag, a briefcase, several standard backpacks, a cd player case, a couple different camera bags, a zippered binder with extra pockets sewn in, a zippered business card folder with extra pockets sewn in, a crown royal bag (hey it was halloween), a jacket with extra pockets sewn in.
Nothing is overly comfortable for numerous pieces of gadgetry... though stooping to wearing a backpack is often the easiest solution and what I do now is carry my backpack as well as be sure that I'm wearing a good belt and that I have one of the smaller cases IN the backpack in case I want to ditch the big bag someplace safe and go lighter for a while.
All that said, you and I are both not approaching the problem from the BEST angle. It'd be better to reduce the load by seeing what gadgets and property you REALLY need to bring with you, and then getting a gadget that does the job of most or all of the remaining units. For example, I gave up an mp3 player and big clunky pda for a smaller sleeker pda that plays mp3s. Love that cell phone? Want a camera handy all the time? Carry a camera phone? Do you REALLY need to bring that microcassette recorder with you to the mall? Is there ANY logical reason for dragging that PDA keyboard with you when you know damned well you're going to be too busy to touch it all day?
This cheat DOES work... but it's rather suspicious to the admins when you do it. Like a thirty-second leap from a terrible download-upload ratio to a godlike ratio won't go unnoticed...
That said, I had no problem TESTING it, but I contacted the admins of my favorite tracker and told them what I did, why, and got them to reverse it. They'll be watching for it now and banning anyone who tries it.
Seven levels of the same product... wont that immediatly confuse consumers? What real need is there for five different mid-level products?
Why not just sell ONE version of the product? You could offer up seven or more preset configurations at install time, and make everything customizable.
I guess I've lost respect for Vista already.
That sort of business worked ok for me in high school... but by the time college rolled around... I realized that my regular clients began to BLAME me when things went wrong. Like, I was supposed to immunize them from being stupid I guess. Not only that, but new clients were increasingly harder to find as more and more people were getting into the business or doing it for friends and family for free.
Now, if I had been a data recovery expert (for example, able to extract a few files off of a fire-dammaged hard disk) or if I'd invested in some expensive media equipment and offered a more diverse service... I might have done better.
If you want to start earning money in this way I would advise getting yourself together a respectable team, and targetting businesses that depend on a lot of technology. Not only repairing/managing their systems, networks, and solutions... but coming up with new systems, networks, and solutions. Again, diversify.
I use the twist ties left over from a package of trash bags. Personally, I find they do a terrible job of holding the bag closed and just tying a knot in the plastic does it much better. They're great for tying cables though. Tie back all the cables so they're just a little longer than "long-enough" (so you can shift things around). They're easy to remove and a little creativity goes a long way. For instance, thread one around two pushpins and use the resulting tie to hold wires in place against the back of your desk. Reduce, reuse, recycle.
Though you probably wont have this luxury... I have three power outlets in this room, and through luck of unusual wiring, each on a separate breaker. Anyway, I use one good 8-outlet surge protector coming from each one and I use those 24 outlets to help organize my power cables. Everything stored underneath the working area of my desk, including the printer, camera dock, wireless mouse dock, and cpu is plugged into one of those. Everything that is on top of the desk runs off a surge protector clamped to the back of the table (PDA dock, monitor, speakers). Everything else is on a 1'x1'x7' shelving unit (wireless router, DSL modem, etc.). I drilled holes in the back of it to allow cables to come out, and that surge protector is located at chest-level on the back of the unit for easy acess and neatness.
I find my biggest problem is that during QUICK repairs and changes, neatness is forgotten. I changed a hard drive recently, and I know that a couple wires are tugging on each other due to carelessly being tangled during the work. Two others had to be untied to remove the CPU in the first place, and they never got tied again, so now FOUR cables instead of the usual 2 touch the floor and get in the way when I roll my desk around.
I've been relatively unharmed thus far. Sure i've had a few run-ins with malware, spyware, adware etc... but nothing I couldn't have simply lived with... and nothing that I haven't been able to defeat. So far my toughest experience was with a worm that was eating all my system resources and for some reason couldn't be removed by Norton... Luckily I'd prepared backups the day before because I was planning to do a fresh install of windows anyway. Most of my other experiences with malware etc, were "hey I didn't even notice the symptoms" moments when Avast! let me know about them. Personally, if I dont see a problem... then there's no problem. Generally though, my computer checks out clean.
I know my way around windows and dos and the internet, but I wouldn't consider myself a computer expert since I know very little about programing and networking.
So if I'm no expert, why am I unharmed? Well, I've got the good sense to use a decent virus program (Avast! free and recomended, google it), a spyware tool (spybot), a firewall (both hardware and software), and an automated backup utility.
All that software of course could sit on your hard drive unused and you'd be better off which is why I've developed the good habits of manually activating a virus or spyware check every now and then, keeping my desktop, menus, and programs organized and free of crap, not falling for "britany_spears_naked.exe," and backing up frequently. Hey, a spindle of cd's is well worth the cost when you consider how much easier it is to back up your files than to re-create them after a disaster.
I firmly believe we should be free to share media with one another. No restrictions. I think society would be better off. Don't ask me to explain that philosophy, please I'm damned tired of pointing out that sharing art, music, and other kinds of ideas without restrictions is what freedom should mean if our societies are going to progress.
Anyway, the minute I can't get free music/movies, through radio,tv, filesharing or other... Guess what? I won't listen to music or watch movies. Maybe you don't believe I can, but I do it most of the time anyway. It's what primitive man did before they invented chanting or drums. Even if I were to get tired of living a music-free life, I could make my own. I've got a lot of pots and pans and a big wooden spoon. Hell, I'd even make my pots and pans spoon band's music and videos available for free to download and share.
The PSU in my machine here says it's CSA tested and certified. I have no idea what the safety standards they test are for that type of device... but perhaps that's why I've never seen one screw up. Not that stuff doesn't get by them sometimes, I had a yorx stereo explode on me.
Of course, I wouldn't blame no-name parts first. Wouldn't it be negligence such as leaving it on in a stuffy enclosure for eight years without even dusting the outside of the case (and forget about the inside)?
I always kept my computers clean, and allowed clearance all around them for air flow. The desk I'm using now has a spot for the CPU but it's closed in on all sides but the front and a small slot in the back for the wires. I use that space to hold books so my computer can breath on top of the desk.
Dont even get me started on hard drives. Bad hard drives are why I personally keep the local chain stores out of stock of blank media. I back-up all documents, pictures, music, etc more often than I shave... and I burn off an image of my hard disk at least once a week.
just go with the el-cheapo PSU, and insure the PC against fire... let that sucker burn. By the time it gives out, you're likely in the market for an upgrade anyway.
Mice? No. Bugs... yes. Actually took apart an 8088 looking for the source of a buzzing noise. Given what I just said... take a wild guess what the noise was? A FRICKIN HUGE B! I did more dammage to the machine trying to kill that B with my screwdriver than my mom did to the inside of her VCR with a healthy spray of lysol.
meh... Staples sold me this box... and I bought the extended warranty. If this hunk of metal gets vaporized, they'll replace it with a new unit of the same or closest higher value than my original investment...
Just like the $3200 laptop my friend had whose hard-drive failed three times... they gave up trying to repair it, and just replaced the whole unit with a new $3200 laptop almost 3 years later! I aint much for pre-built pc's but you can't beat staples' waranties. Too bad they cost extra, or more people might actually have them.
Am I seriously the only one who's been around computers since his birth in '82 and has NEVER EVER, NOT ONCE SEEN A DEAD POWER SUPLY? I've fried cpu's, ram, a co-proc., a CMOS battery, and nearly every other component or accessory... but why is it I haven't seen even one power-supply go?
I feel left out.
Could he really patent the edible paper/ink process? I've seen paper made of sugar before... and I'm pretty sure I've seen someone else use cornstarch paper and food-safe dyes to put celebrity pics on cookies. Im not sure I was reading the article right but it sounded like he filed a patent. Too bad, because I want open-source printable snackage.
The idea to use a 3d printer to print out food isn't a big leap either. I remember when I first heard about the technology, the show I was watching mentioned that the models that had been created were made of cornstarch and could actually be eaten if you really felt like it.
Either way, I hope his ideas lead to something cool. The 3d printer idea could be refined with some good research. It wouldn't be as magical as Star Trek's solution to food in space... but it might reduce the amount of storage our astronauts need for food supplies on long trips. If it could print out a steaming hot hamburger, even if it took half an hour and it's not a very good one, I'd buy one and use it frequently.
If I had to make all the choices for everyone in the biotechnology field... I'd make it my first order of business to find someone else to do the job instead. There's a lot of tough decisions and strange new ethical questions on the horizon and I do not have any good answers.
That said, looking back on it a hundred years from now, we'll probably be wondering what all the fuss was about. Maybe our great great grandchildren will experience life-spans well into the three-digit range and enhanced senses and abilities. Perhaps in the future they would not bat an eye at producing animals full of human organs for use in transplants. Heck, perhaps our great great grandchildren will be given pets with enhancements such as a life-span matching that of it's owner or the ability to help with homework (rather than eat it).
The mouse with a "human" brain? I doubt you'll have to worry about Pinky and The Brain becoming a reality show. Though it might have human brain tissues, and it might even produce a similar brain structure to that found in humans... such a creature could not think the same way us humans do. To make the point I'll totally disregard the fact that our brains just wont fit into that creature. Even if you could build a mouse with an exact replica of a human brain, it's body is different and therefore it's perception of the world changes.
Where do we draw the line? I personally feel that, for most things, lines should be drawn in hind-sight. A lot of the things we are afraid of could be possible... but they might not be all bad either. So some fool doctor on an island creates a bunch of chimeric monstrosities with qualities similar to both humans and the animals they came from... are they happy? No? Well, maybe there's one line. But remember, that was a movie, and not real life. The story could play out differently with just a few tweaks. When we actually do that in reality, then we should decide.
Not that it hurts to be cautious, but I personally wouldn't care if my bacon contained human genes because the pig was designed in a lab to provide both food and viable organs for human patients. It's the sum of all our genes that makes us human. I'd be concerned if the pig was also given an intelect, hands, and whipped into slavery... but that's all far from what we see here now.
Caution, but don't judge what's wrong or right until it has actually been done. We need to understand genetics. If not for any reason other than to understand ourselves.
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All the companies mentioned have put out their share of crap. Just the same, each of them has put out at least ONE decent product as well. Really though, the article is all about consumer brand preferences, and isnt a fair measure of quality. (BOSE for example) Myself I like Sony, and I dont buy CD's so that whole rootkit thing hasn't bothered me. Just the same, I have had a few junky Sony products. (How about a Clie that only does about half of what it says it can on the box, or a discman that begins playing cds at about half-speed two weeks after the warranty is out.) Best strategy. Look at the product in-store if possible. Never buy something you cant return, and examine every feature, every structural component. How many of you have ever resorted to using electrical tape to hold your remote control batteries in? Guess what, the one you bought wasn't built to last, just look pretty.
I had a chance to look into a several concepts I haven't previously learned about. For example aleph numbers, which I'll admit only caught my eye because the word "aleph" had been used in several science fiction pieces I have enjoyed. Mathematical concepts relating to infinity can get pretty thought provoking and this is certainly one of them. I cant explain it after only ten minutes of absorption, so I highly recommend doing some learning for yourselves. Godel's Theorem, I am also struggling desparatly to understand but it's implications intrigue me greatly. Anyway, I sincerely want to thank the poster for showing me the way to many things I may ponder over. Thank you, and I wish many nights of brain-strain upon you as well.
If Bush's USA came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: ET's labeled terrorists, Billions of dollars into waging war against terror, rainbows, and other abstract concepts. Earth destroyed just before Bush realizes that the ET's have no oil anyway. If France came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: France surrenders. Everyone else enjoys peaceful relationship with the ET's, but France surrenders anyway. If the U.N. came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: Aliens leave after five minutes of listening to the arguing. Arguing continues until sun finally burns out. If Canada came into contact with an extra-terrestrial species: "You guys want a beer, eh?" Shortly after, ET's help set up inter-stellar transmission network so they can watch hockey every saturday night.
Many distrobutions = Good, (more competition, more innovation).
HOWEVER, the catch is that the answer to the above question is not a unanimous "Yes, here's how and it'll work for most if not all distrobutions." Why? Too many variables to account for. To be almost universal across the linux distro, you'd have to release at least three different binarys (which at most covers a dozen or so of the most common distros). To make it completly universal across all linux distros, you'd have to release your source codes and provide detailed instructions to compile for some of the more difficult distrobutions AND be prepared to make adjustments and help people with new flavors of linux every day.
How many times have I found a reasonably popular piece of software for linux, and been detered by a compile process that was either too complicated (and undocumented) or that produced a binary that just didn't work. I personally shy away from any software that has to be compiled unless I REALLY want it. Sure, two times out of three it moves along painlessly, but when there's a problem it can sometimes be a *badword* to figure out. How many times have I found a great looking linux application only to discover that they dont release ANYTHING for my distrobution and maybe only even for some obscure distro. It's a pain in the hindquarters.
Alternativly, you could release your games online in flash. I realise that isn't the BEST business model and that it's NOT universal across all platforms, but you have a standard that works for a large number of Linux distrobutions AND Mac AND Windows.
We need a single standard for software under linux... and a full-featured set of libraries to go with it. Whereby if a coder chooses to write for all linux platforms he'll know that if it works for one, it'll work for everyone who complies with the standards and keeps their libraries up-to-date. If that coder chooses to code specifically for some special feature found only in one or two distros, so be it... but at least the divide wont HAVE to be there.
As is said, the mouse is not for everyone and everything. It's a tool for manipulating the GUI, but like any tool it CAN be overused AND it is encouraged to be overused. For example... how many people don't know and use the ALT-Tab key combo for switching between multiple open windows? I occasionally catch myself navigating my cursor to the taskbar either in Windows or KDE, but a quick flick of two buttons will usually be done faster than my mousing can find the right item. Same for closing an open application. I haven't clicked on an "X" since Windows 3.1, because I know it's a waste of time. How about tabbed browsing? Do you know the shortcuts to switch and close tabs? Trust me, using the mouse to select a link is terrific (imagine trying to do it without one), but switching tabs is so much easier and less distracting if you can just flick a couple buttons. Mice are great for clicking your way through a webpage, games, and for manipulating or selecting sections of text. They're not disposable, they have very little learning curve, and they ARE an improvement over the prexisting methods... but we overuse them for the most part. Now something I havent seen much of in this thread, and the reason I have posted, is what can be done to improve the situation. Well, for one, YES, a software designer should take into account predecessor software and make it easy for the old-hands to migrate over to the new system AND make it easy for the new-hands to get into it. In fact, they should go one step further and make it EASIER for BOTH groups AND the new machines should be ergonimical in the same old space unless you're willing to renovate the service counter at all locations. A simple touch screen eliminates the need for adding a mouse. The keyboard and screen should be as close together as possible (even ATTACHED). My ideal desktop interface would be an ergonomically-shaped keyboard with a 17" LCD touchscreen growing out of it at an adjustable angle. Note: I work in retail myself... our system is terrible. Over fifty keystrokes and at least a dozen clicks all over the screen before we can even BEGIN each sale.
I've tried everything short of going out and buying a compartmentalized purse. I've used a laptop-bag, a briefcase, several standard backpacks, a cd player case, a couple different camera bags, a zippered binder with extra pockets sewn in, a zippered business card folder with extra pockets sewn in, a crown royal bag (hey it was halloween), a jacket with extra pockets sewn in. Nothing is overly comfortable for numerous pieces of gadgetry... though stooping to wearing a backpack is often the easiest solution and what I do now is carry my backpack as well as be sure that I'm wearing a good belt and that I have one of the smaller cases IN the backpack in case I want to ditch the big bag someplace safe and go lighter for a while. All that said, you and I are both not approaching the problem from the BEST angle. It'd be better to reduce the load by seeing what gadgets and property you REALLY need to bring with you, and then getting a gadget that does the job of most or all of the remaining units. For example, I gave up an mp3 player and big clunky pda for a smaller sleeker pda that plays mp3s. Love that cell phone? Want a camera handy all the time? Carry a camera phone? Do you REALLY need to bring that microcassette recorder with you to the mall? Is there ANY logical reason for dragging that PDA keyboard with you when you know damned well you're going to be too busy to touch it all day?
This cheat DOES work... but it's rather suspicious to the admins when you do it. Like a thirty-second leap from a terrible download-upload ratio to a godlike ratio won't go unnoticed... That said, I had no problem TESTING it, but I contacted the admins of my favorite tracker and told them what I did, why, and got them to reverse it. They'll be watching for it now and banning anyone who tries it.
Seven levels of the same product... wont that immediatly confuse consumers? What real need is there for five different mid-level products? Why not just sell ONE version of the product? You could offer up seven or more preset configurations at install time, and make everything customizable. I guess I've lost respect for Vista already.
That sort of business worked ok for me in high school... but by the time college rolled around... I realized that my regular clients began to BLAME me when things went wrong. Like, I was supposed to immunize them from being stupid I guess. Not only that, but new clients were increasingly harder to find as more and more people were getting into the business or doing it for friends and family for free. Now, if I had been a data recovery expert (for example, able to extract a few files off of a fire-dammaged hard disk) or if I'd invested in some expensive media equipment and offered a more diverse service... I might have done better. If you want to start earning money in this way I would advise getting yourself together a respectable team, and targetting businesses that depend on a lot of technology. Not only repairing/managing their systems, networks, and solutions... but coming up with new systems, networks, and solutions. Again, diversify.
uh... congrats on making yourself look like an idiot.
I use the twist ties left over from a package of trash bags. Personally, I find they do a terrible job of holding the bag closed and just tying a knot in the plastic does it much better. They're great for tying cables though. Tie back all the cables so they're just a little longer than "long-enough" (so you can shift things around). They're easy to remove and a little creativity goes a long way. For instance, thread one around two pushpins and use the resulting tie to hold wires in place against the back of your desk. Reduce, reuse, recycle. Though you probably wont have this luxury... I have three power outlets in this room, and through luck of unusual wiring, each on a separate breaker. Anyway, I use one good 8-outlet surge protector coming from each one and I use those 24 outlets to help organize my power cables. Everything stored underneath the working area of my desk, including the printer, camera dock, wireless mouse dock, and cpu is plugged into one of those. Everything that is on top of the desk runs off a surge protector clamped to the back of the table (PDA dock, monitor, speakers). Everything else is on a 1'x1'x7' shelving unit (wireless router, DSL modem, etc.). I drilled holes in the back of it to allow cables to come out, and that surge protector is located at chest-level on the back of the unit for easy acess and neatness. I find my biggest problem is that during QUICK repairs and changes, neatness is forgotten. I changed a hard drive recently, and I know that a couple wires are tugging on each other due to carelessly being tangled during the work. Two others had to be untied to remove the CPU in the first place, and they never got tied again, so now FOUR cables instead of the usual 2 touch the floor and get in the way when I roll my desk around.
I've been relatively unharmed thus far. Sure i've had a few run-ins with malware, spyware, adware etc... but nothing I couldn't have simply lived with... and nothing that I haven't been able to defeat. So far my toughest experience was with a worm that was eating all my system resources and for some reason couldn't be removed by Norton... Luckily I'd prepared backups the day before because I was planning to do a fresh install of windows anyway. Most of my other experiences with malware etc, were "hey I didn't even notice the symptoms" moments when Avast! let me know about them. Personally, if I dont see a problem... then there's no problem. Generally though, my computer checks out clean. I know my way around windows and dos and the internet, but I wouldn't consider myself a computer expert since I know very little about programing and networking. So if I'm no expert, why am I unharmed? Well, I've got the good sense to use a decent virus program (Avast! free and recomended, google it), a spyware tool (spybot), a firewall (both hardware and software), and an automated backup utility. All that software of course could sit on your hard drive unused and you'd be better off which is why I've developed the good habits of manually activating a virus or spyware check every now and then, keeping my desktop, menus, and programs organized and free of crap, not falling for "britany_spears_naked.exe," and backing up frequently. Hey, a spindle of cd's is well worth the cost when you consider how much easier it is to back up your files than to re-create them after a disaster.
I firmly believe we should be free to share media with one another. No restrictions. I think society would be better off. Don't ask me to explain that philosophy, please I'm damned tired of pointing out that sharing art, music, and other kinds of ideas without restrictions is what freedom should mean if our societies are going to progress.
Anyway, the minute I can't get free music/movies, through radio,tv, filesharing or other... Guess what? I won't listen to music or watch movies. Maybe you don't believe I can, but I do it most of the time anyway. It's what primitive man did before they invented chanting or drums. Even if I were to get tired of living a music-free life, I could make my own. I've got a lot of pots and pans and a big wooden spoon. Hell, I'd even make my pots and pans spoon band's music and videos available for free to download and share.
The PSU in my machine here says it's CSA tested and certified. I have no idea what the safety standards they test are for that type of device... but perhaps that's why I've never seen one screw up. Not that stuff doesn't get by them sometimes, I had a yorx stereo explode on me. Of course, I wouldn't blame no-name parts first. Wouldn't it be negligence such as leaving it on in a stuffy enclosure for eight years without even dusting the outside of the case (and forget about the inside)? I always kept my computers clean, and allowed clearance all around them for air flow. The desk I'm using now has a spot for the CPU but it's closed in on all sides but the front and a small slot in the back for the wires. I use that space to hold books so my computer can breath on top of the desk.
Dont even get me started on hard drives. Bad hard drives are why I personally keep the local chain stores out of stock of blank media. I back-up all documents, pictures, music, etc more often than I shave... and I burn off an image of my hard disk at least once a week.
just go with the el-cheapo PSU, and insure the PC against fire... let that sucker burn. By the time it gives out, you're likely in the market for an upgrade anyway.
Mice? No. Bugs... yes. Actually took apart an 8088 looking for the source of a buzzing noise. Given what I just said... take a wild guess what the noise was? A FRICKIN HUGE B! I did more dammage to the machine trying to kill that B with my screwdriver than my mom did to the inside of her VCR with a healthy spray of lysol.
meh... Staples sold me this box... and I bought the extended warranty. If this hunk of metal gets vaporized, they'll replace it with a new unit of the same or closest higher value than my original investment... Just like the $3200 laptop my friend had whose hard-drive failed three times... they gave up trying to repair it, and just replaced the whole unit with a new $3200 laptop almost 3 years later! I aint much for pre-built pc's but you can't beat staples' waranties. Too bad they cost extra, or more people might actually have them.
Am I seriously the only one who's been around computers since his birth in '82 and has NEVER EVER, NOT ONCE SEEN A DEAD POWER SUPLY? I've fried cpu's, ram, a co-proc., a CMOS battery, and nearly every other component or accessory... but why is it I haven't seen even one power-supply go? I feel left out.
Could he really patent the edible paper/ink process? I've seen paper made of sugar before... and I'm pretty sure I've seen someone else use cornstarch paper and food-safe dyes to put celebrity pics on cookies. Im not sure I was reading the article right but it sounded like he filed a patent. Too bad, because I want open-source printable snackage. The idea to use a 3d printer to print out food isn't a big leap either. I remember when I first heard about the technology, the show I was watching mentioned that the models that had been created were made of cornstarch and could actually be eaten if you really felt like it. Either way, I hope his ideas lead to something cool. The 3d printer idea could be refined with some good research. It wouldn't be as magical as Star Trek's solution to food in space... but it might reduce the amount of storage our astronauts need for food supplies on long trips. If it could print out a steaming hot hamburger, even if it took half an hour and it's not a very good one, I'd buy one and use it frequently.
If I had to make all the choices for everyone in the biotechnology field... I'd make it my first order of business to find someone else to do the job instead. There's a lot of tough decisions and strange new ethical questions on the horizon and I do not have any good answers.
That said, looking back on it a hundred years from now, we'll probably be wondering what all the fuss was about. Maybe our great great grandchildren will experience life-spans well into the three-digit range and enhanced senses and abilities. Perhaps in the future they would not bat an eye at producing animals full of human organs for use in transplants. Heck, perhaps our great great grandchildren will be given pets with enhancements such as a life-span matching that of it's owner or the ability to help with homework (rather than eat it).
The mouse with a "human" brain? I doubt you'll have to worry about Pinky and The Brain becoming a reality show. Though it might have human brain tissues, and it might even produce a similar brain structure to that found in humans... such a creature could not think the same way us humans do. To make the point I'll totally disregard the fact that our brains just wont fit into that creature. Even if you could build a mouse with an exact replica of a human brain, it's body is different and therefore it's perception of the world changes.
Where do we draw the line? I personally feel that, for most things, lines should be drawn in hind-sight. A lot of the things we are afraid of could be possible... but they might not be all bad either. So some fool doctor on an island creates a bunch of chimeric monstrosities with qualities similar to both humans and the animals they came from... are they happy? No? Well, maybe there's one line. But remember, that was a movie, and not real life. The story could play out differently with just a few tweaks. When we actually do that in reality, then we should decide.
Not that it hurts to be cautious, but I personally wouldn't care if my bacon contained human genes because the pig was designed in a lab to provide both food and viable organs for human patients. It's the sum of all our genes that makes us human. I'd be concerned if the pig was also given an intelect, hands, and whipped into slavery... but that's all far from what we see here now.
Caution, but don't judge what's wrong or right until it has actually been done. We need to understand genetics. If not for any reason other than to understand ourselves.