Why don't we think of some things considered "inappropiate for minors" that has not been pulled off the shelves:
Alchohol
Cigarettes
R-Rated movies
Pornographic materials (videos and magazines, where imagery considered graphic is covered by a white plastic slip - this is in the malls where minors hang out all the time!)
Should all this be pulled off the shelves? NO! Personally, I have no problem with enforcing good identity and age verification practices as with the items listed above and any other items with similar regulations in place; however, "inappropiate for minors" is quite vague, and giving the government the ability to make that judgement and pull it off of store shelves is quite an abuse of power in my opinion. That would thwart sales to adults looking to legitimately purchase this for their own entertainment. I find it disturbing to see children being used as a tool to obtain more power.
Barton's bill would give the Federal Communications Commission authority to enforce net neutrality principles and set fines of up to $500,000 for violations.
Democrats also complained that the bill did not commit providers to spread their services to lower income and minority areas.
The White House said in a statement that it supported the bill and its language on video franchising. But on net neutrality, the administration said the FCC has the power to address potential abuses. "Creating a new legislative framework for regulation in this area is premature," the statement said.
Personally, I'm not so optimistic that the FCC would use its power to address such abuses. Besides, $500,000 only makes for pecuniary humor compared to how much telcoms would gain from financially raping corporations like Google, Yahoo!, etc...
Personally, I feel the design was quite well thought-out. Here's what I noticed:
The subtle gradients and rounded corners add some graphical zing while maintaining a simple, clean, and familiar look.
While some may complain about "wasted space," I must argue that the additional padding makes things easier for me to read and find.
The search bar at the top - it's 'bout damn time! I know it is a community of savvy individuals, but how many people scroll all the way down the page when looking for the search box? Clearly, one could hit the end key on the keyboard, but still, I think it should be more prominent being that it is a useful navigational tool, so I'm very happy to see it in that new design.
The gray bar with functional links (i.e. log in, create account) is great, as it sets the functional links apart from topical links on the left.
Here's what I think could be improved upon:
A more prominent RSS link would be nice, as it is tucked away at the bottom. I admit I don't have any numbers in front of me, but I suspect a good deal of the/. community uses this feature.
As a frequent visitor to/., I often find myself looking for articles from the previous day (say, an article from the weekend which I would like to share with a co-worker). It would be convenient to have a "Yesterday's News" link at the top of the page
I understand that this is how things are on the current site, and simply persisted in the new graphical makeover.
In an unrelated story, sales of the book, "Beavis and Butt-Head Ensucklopedia" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beavis_and_butthead# Books) have recently sky-rocketed.
Slashdot Mirror
Does it have a speaker that yells, "shwing!" every time you see an awesome pair of breasts?
Applications would include large print like billboards one would see off of 42nd street, not far from lexington in NYC, NY...
Why don't we think of some things considered "inappropiate for minors" that has not been pulled off the shelves:
Should all this be pulled off the shelves? NO! Personally, I have no problem with enforcing good identity and age verification practices as with the items listed above and any other items with similar regulations in place; however, "inappropiate for minors" is quite vague, and giving the government the ability to make that judgement and pull it off of store shelves is quite an abuse of power in my opinion. That would thwart sales to adults looking to legitimately purchase this for their own entertainment. I find it disturbing to see children being used as a tool to obtain more power.
Personally, I'm not so optimistic that the FCC would use its power to address such abuses. Besides, $500,000 only makes for pecuniary humor compared to how much telcoms would gain from financially raping corporations like Google, Yahoo!, etc...
I could just imagine what that would be like...
Ker-plunk... zzzzz "OW! $#%!"
Personally, I feel the design was quite well thought-out. Here's what I noticed:
Here's what I think could be improved upon:
I understand that this is how things are on the current site, and simply persisted in the new graphical makeover.
Here is my wishful thinking at its best...
[Motorola]: while wearing a big ring, punches Verizon on the forehead
[Verizon]: ouch, what the?!
[Motorola]: Unity!!!
(Gotta love Chappelles Show)
-d0t
In an unrelated story, sales of the book, "Beavis and Butt-Head Ensucklopedia" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beavis_and_butthead# Books) have recently sky-rocketed.
You lie! It must take a software developer to use a utility such as Synaptic to install/update a commonly used application.
Is it just me, or is there some irony here? http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http:/ /www.live.com