there comes a point where one discovers that a job is a means to an end, and not the means. I used to live for the next project, the cool new "thing". If you work in corporate USA that moment is so rare is is better to try for the lottery. Find somethng outside of work and life for that. Company X, the best place in the world to work, will can your ass the moment the numbers do not add up for keeping you.
Start up a company and one day you'll experience the moment when you need to "downsize" and those that had the rose colored glasses will get them stripped off their eyes.
I've spent 28 years in the IT industry, from mainframes, to minis, to Client Server, and what I have learned the most is that the love of a woman far outways a fucking promotion, the joy of doing something you enjoy far outways making the boss happy on Sunday fucking afternoon, that taking time for ones self has a better life expectancy then dieng a slow death for the fucking "Company".
Best places to work for? I had two and they got sold, chewed up and turned into shit holes, so please stop thinking that dragging you're ass to a cube every day, even if they had piano playing in the lobby is going to bring some sort of satisfaction in life. Google is no better no worse then the sweat shop in china. They just give you shinier trinkets to distract you.
Six months ago I rescued a horse from possible auction to slaughter. Today she is healthy, happy, and helping me learn to ride. The job helps me help her have a better life. That is more real, more a sense of accomplishment then pleasing some exec in an irovy tower. Piano bars, flex time, treats tossed from on high as our mouths hang open...slight of hand. To quote Mr Heston "Soylent green is Man"... Better to live outside of the job then think it will define you.
There is not best place to work other then that which fills the soul, and makes us feel like we did goo that day. a janitor may be a king compared to most IT professionals.
This is an excellent idea. I am not a business oriented mind, but I can see the good potentials in the basic plan. Certainly there is the potential for exploitation, but with some oversite those negatives could be minimal against the gains for developing communities.
I was amazed that in a world where I can talk to anyone with a few clicks of a mouse I cannot talk to those "farmers" and offer 50 cents or 1 dollar for the same number of golds. I save big time, he/she gets a better cut. I see it as a big "farmer's market" where the laborer is allowed to go direct to market without the huge overhead of mid-level distributors.
I am tired of the exploitation of the worker in this world. I beleive in making money, I feel capitalism is a good thing for growth and innovation. Sadly today we see mainly greedism. In the movie Wall Street the main character says "Geed is Good". No, Greed is the worst thing for a capitalistic society. Greed stifles, exploits, and diminishes the human spirit in the labor force. Capitalism at its best provides people from laborer to innovator a chance to improve life, find the level of work life that makes them comfortable. the Business World has reduced humans back to chattel at worst, indentured servants if lucky, while the very top remain detached from the general sufferings of the world.
The Internet levels the playing field in theory and it just takes decent honest folks to help make the first bridges connecting worker more directly to consumer. I hope someone with good values and business savy takes up the challenge. That I had the knowledge, connections, and money I would try that model out.
I suppose you should be looking for another ISP. If they are blocking websites then they no longer are common carrier, but are taking responsiblity for content reaching your home (eyes). Unless I am mistaken they are still not the government and cannot simply stop the flow of information.
At the least it would be a required change of service on your part, at the worst people can now sue (yuck ugly taste in my month) AT&T because they did not fully protect the children.
If what you say is true, waste no time, drop them, find a way to sue them, unless you wish to baaa your way into censorship.
(to think years ago i use to work for them...i need a shower)
"But, of course, most women would rather call it rhetoric.. rather than psychology."
Most women would call it our problem to deal with. At times they are worse then debugging an infinite loop that only occurs in a certain moment, but you cannot duplicate that moment ever again. A man who says "I understand her/women" is either a fool, about to be majorly suprised, dead, or gay.
These days I would rather be dazed and confused, understanding of "Yes Dear" in it's fullest sense with someone rather then proclaiming my *freedom*, I can play their game while flying solo.
People, like programs are not infallible. In an affair, at somepoint the subconscious begins to leaves clues so the affiar can be revealed. Asked someone having an affair if they would confront their sponse directly with the news and the response would be some variation of "Hell No". yet, watch them long enough and slip ups, mistakes in the stories, items left out by accient get more frequent.
A lie is to hard to maintian for a long time. No one is perfect in the cover up.
How is looking up someone in a database, run by the government, going to stop employers from hiring an illegal immigrant? If the employer actually cares then they will be doing enough background check to have a reasonable sense of the prospective's legal status. An employer who wants low cost help will not check, because they know enforcement is minimal and repercussions light.
Instead of a database (which would take some time to establish and most likely be full of data holes) how about immigration officers doing the leg work and visit employers that are suspected of illegal hiring practices. How about fining or arresting employers that hire illegal immigrants, by actually investigating how they hire and who they hire.
I am not a fan of illegal immigrants. To break the first law (illegal entry) indicates to me they have less respect for the countries rule of law and care first only for themselves. An illegal immigrant continues to turn a blind eye to other laws and regulations (driving, insurance, housing) as they continue to live outside the law. They could be good decent people, but they are living a lie. In doing so they mock the principle of what our country stands for in democracy, law, and justice. In one recent news piece the husband/father remarked how it would be cruel to send him back and leave his family. Yet, was it not as cruel to place his family (the wife is illegal as well) in jeopardy with the law?
However, it is the employers in this country that provide the foundation for continued growth of people crossing the border without permission. Like the brainless war on drugs, going after the addict does nothing to stop more addicts getting into the system, yet we lock up pot smokers while the supply chain remains. it would be wonderful if the various branches of this comatose government worked together to research, investigate, arrest, and prosecute employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants instead of building some lackluster database that does nothing more then mess up people's lives who fall through the chasms in the data. We will spend billions in building a fence, but will not spend the same billions building investigative teams that reduce the incentive for illegal immigration...employment.
Truly I hear faint fiddling behind the sound of pompous blowhards chewing on grapes while spewing innocuous mandates like "build a database", "we will have victory", or "it will make you feel safer". Same tune, different fiddler.
Yet the philosophical question is where did those ideas come from? Is it just genetic? It is meta-physical (from God)? Is it self-awareness and recognition of other "selves"?
I'm not trying to make you accept the supernatural, but to understand that others do and they are not crazy, fringe, or extreme. For myself, I believe in God. I cannot give you a scientific reason for my belief. I cannot "prove" God (that's up to you and Her to figure out), but my Faith feels "right". I cannot see an Idea, but it is one of the most powerful forces on this planet. I cannot "see" God, yet His presence can be felt in the simple act of kindness to a stranger, in my darkest moment knowing I have a new day tomorrow, new opportunities to experience.
I am not an Apostle, a disciple trying to covert you or anyone to my view. I just want to state my belief tbat a Faith in God is not about religion, supernatural miracles, mumbo jumbo; it is about accepting something greater then myself; accepting that it is more the just nature that shapes our spirit.
So much more could be said, but I'll leave it at that. Glad to know another out there understand (in what ever way) that we are all made of the same stuff.
No, that is the fundamental message of Paul or Peter, two founders of the catholic church. A great message if you wish to control the followers. Read the gospels, focus on the message of Christ and you find a much different meaning.
Chirst's teachings were about relationships; between each other, ourselves, and with God. His was a message of hope, love, and forgivness. Read the Tao, you'll see the same message. Read Budha you'll find similar meaning. Gof is not understood in the mechanics of religion, God is felt/experienced in how we treat ourselves and each other. When I see another human I see a piece of God, a part of me. I may describe myself as a christian as I was raised with that understanding, yet my Faith extends past the dogma of religious control to the more complex simplicity, the harder path of Loving one's neighbor even when you do not like them very much.
"Access? Don't fucking get me started"....sigh, why not get started, you did on most of the others.
I'm no fan of Office or of OO.o. Both are tools and as such open to personal opinion for their good and bad traits. However, when you slam something give me an alternative Ican review, test, and try as comparison. I've done well received presentation with Powerpoint. Not many have the time to create "video", not does video work for a teaching or instructional medium.
Do you know of a better tool then powerpoint that is simple to use, costs little, allows high res images, and wont take forever to create a result? Not busting, that is a serious question. Same thing with Word or Publisher. Cite other tools and I'll taste test to see if I have the same view.
Telling me it sucsk is only half the job, tell me the better solution and why; that give more cred to the statements.
Two points come to mind as I read your post and others that talk about how protests are ignored. The first thought addresses the last point you make in that despite the protest the government continued on and passed a law. I feel they did so because they felt there would be no public backlash where it counts the most, at the voting booth. Protests are a way of collectively voicing an opinion, but it is the vote that matters. If the public wants to gain the attention of the politician, protest, then vote such that those who appose the majority will no longer represent "the people", but be sent home (or to a nice lobbyist job). In my country we can only get 30 or 40 percent of the voting public to cast a ballot. We bitch, we moan, we chaff under the fur-lined handcuffs that hold us in place whiled getting screwed, but we do not enact our strongest protest, the vote.
As to my first point, it relates to protest and visibility. There are two movements that come to the forefront for me in regards to protest and creating change. In your own country, Gandhi and the movement for independence, in my country Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement. I am sure there are others (South Africa and Mandela), but what I find common are that these movements had leaders who stood on the front line of change. They took the beatings, the arrests, the ridicule, and continued leading by example till change was made. In leading this way they inspired others to make the same sacrifices, even if those sacrifices affected their personal lives. I respect Cindy Sheehan immensely, but at a critical moment when she could have sparked a strong anti-war protest into a national movement (starting at Crawford TX), she went home to take care of a family member. By the time she got back to Crawford the movement was fading and her position as inspiring leader was past.
That takes me to the other point about protest and my three examples. King, Gandhi, Mandela; these leaders never stopped. It was not one protest, maybe two. It was time and time again walking into the face of the adversary. It was peaceful, non-violent so that what ever hate was spewed at them, they absorbed it, turned it around and said, it's okay, we are still here. The media is not at fault, it is the lack of commitment by any leader, and any group to place themselves and others in moments, in places that will bring attention again and again and again.
The people in eastern bloc countries who had protested crooked elections changed their governments this way because they never went home till they were heard and satisfied. King changed civil rights in this country by marching, sitting, walking, and talking non-violent resistance against discrimination all the time. I watch the riots, the angry mobs at G8 summit meetings, at war rallies and I ask, does meeting violence with violence work? Perhaps people are more fearful of the angry mob then the immoral government. What happened to the 150K people in Melbourne? Did the come back the next day, and the next, and the next? If not then why would the government feel compelled to effect change? Here today, gone tomorrow is how *they* see us, not the other way around.
A basic example of the difference in protest; two people walk up to a customer service counter to complain. The first screams, shouts, insults, berates, and vents all the anger and frustration inside demanding something be done. The louder the voice, the less help is forthcoming so finally the customer walks out, nothing gained. The second person walks in, explains the problem, backs up the statements with facts, continues to ask questions when rebuffed, remains calm and respectful, but does not stop, does not walk away. By staying this customer maintains attention to the complaint so finally customer service must address the problem if they wish to take care of others.
Protest can be loud, it can be visible, but it must remain in a way that the sleeping majority will not only take notice, but respond in positive support.
Yummy, can i skip the lima beans and still maintain the highly enriched hydrogen mix. I really do like lima beans and would enjoy trying this (cough) recipe (cough) on my frends and family. Their internal tummies...er..engines would love it!
Oh my, what a good chuckle you gave me this morning. A telco company backing their product for any extended period of time...for free?...Tried to get my mind around the concept, but seems it is harder to grasp then imaginary numbers.
I think any major corporation that says "We stand behind our product" is really saying "We stand behind you, please bend over, this wont hurt a bit".
The original snippet was vb.net beacuse is uses the Length property, a feature not found in VB. As to horrible? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Having seen many a programming language in my career the horrible thing is missing the beauty in each language.
And to some extent that's my point. The game reflects a trend or tendency, but allows more "sacrifice", more altruism because the consequences do not reflect back to the real world. However, in an extreme moment, I bet you will think of an action that may help save many even if in the end it costs you. Whether it is acted upon I would hope you never discover, but eventhe thought shows the root personality.
I am nore sure throwing one's self on a handgrenade is altruistic, brave, dumb, or some combination of all three. A game may not determine that level of giving. Can we ever measure how we will react given an extreme moment. Soldiers are trained to help save their fellow team members for one day it may be returned. People in general are not required to have the same connection with others. As a recent very public act I recall the passengers on FLT 93 and the actions they took in the end. If asked a hypothetical before boarding "would you do x,y z?" they may not have responded the same to the same scenario as played out in real life. Games measure broad directions, not specific acts.
However, I tend to think of my self as an altruistic person and when I play WoW I find I like to help fellow guildmembers, Strangers on the Alliance side, and occasionally even a Horde player as a nice surprise. For me, giving, helping make me feel better whether it is in a game or in real life.
I wonder though, Now What? So we identify this spot in the brain. Can it be adjusted, removed, added in if missing? So we muck around with this chemically and have the world in giving Peace? The first step is identification (if you accept the facts), but the how, what, why...that will be the truly fasinating debate.
In the mean time, I will continue to help my fellow humans (real or electonic) and not worry if I have too much, too little, or just the right altruism in my brain.
And buggy whips were consistant across the spectrum of carriage, wagon, horse movement. If we just look at today your thoughts I agree with. Technology and time are cruel to devices, processes that do not change.
THere will come a time when there will not be a command line interface. Typing characters will either take to much time, or not be needed. Typing is a slow method of conveying complex task requests. Granted, one could type LS and get a list of files quickly, there may be three other steps that follow the simple one that end with "Analyze the data found in this file and compare it to world figures".
Perhaps I have more imagination, but I can see an IT world that is much more computer driven. I was more appalled when in STar Trek they would continue to push buttons to make the ship go forward. I mean, in 300 years they have a computer that holds all the information in the universe, creates holo images, but a guy still sits and pushes buttons to move the ship. Perhaps that is the command line interaction you speak of exampled 300 years in the future. ME, I'd rather say to the computer, "Ahead warp factor two, destination Rigal 4" or if I did not want standard routing, "Warp factor tow, Mark 356, zed 090" or to really test the system, "burn rubber for the fun planet".
as a visual person, I prefer GUI, as a social person, I prefer to talk. That last thing I want to do is type in commands. I traded my buggy whip in a long time ago, just pull it out when I am forced too by cranky horses.
I'm not sure I get your point. The Wright brother's built a kite with an engine that on first flight stayed in the air less then the wingspan of A 747. Today Air France is in final testing for a Air Ship (it is hard to call it a plane) that comes close to 1M lbs and can cross the Atlantic with 500 people on board.
The first boats ever created to carry man must have been nothing much more then a log and today we have ships the size of a small island that are self sustaining.
Shall we take a look at the first car, train engine, etc etc etc.
Progress is started with the first step and these fellows have taken that first step. it is possible to see down the road that this small step will be improved, enhanced, and grown into a viable option for transportation. maybe the first model is lacking in features, but it is more than a "clever gadget". Your clever little gad-about-town was also once just a gleam in a designer's eye, a rough working proto-type that improved over time. Perhaps a more supportive, positive eye towards new inventions would be helpful, but then this is/., a somewhat rare commodity in this rather cynical room.
Another thought to consider is income. In "western" countries there is genneraly more capital to spend on CDs or DVDs. Also the infrastruture for selling CDs/DVDs is more established. People are use to buying items in stores, not on street corners or kiosks. If RIAA dropped prices to reasonable levels I feel that piracy would drop some as well in other countries, because in the end, folks are not so focused on where it came from, but what it costs.
I also just thought that another reason for less bootlegged CDs being sold in "western" ounties is a better opportunity to download. Here again, I'd rather download the purchse something off the street. Granted in theory the act is not much different, but it is safer more anonomous pulling tunes down from a site in Russia then actually facing a human and handing over my silver.
I agree with the general principle these days the RIAA pushes crap music RIAA only cares about RIAA, ignore everything else Production allows the Artist to produce their music but....
RIAA has the marketing ability to make that artist visible. Without the ability to market the artist may not ever move past a local or regional level. WHat I would love to see is Artists Co-oping into a marketing company to help promote their own. Put some top names on the the list to get visibility and have them help get new talent on the map. After that it is up to the artist to convince the masses thay are good. Artists contribute a portion of their earnings to a common pool to help promote and advertise other artists. This style of shared help has helped in the food industry and even in resturants around the country. RIAA could be pushed aside if artists started to work together.
I have to differ with you on this. I work in a evelopment environment were each member of the teamis in a diferent state. Though I have a office building I can go to to "work" I work mostly from home. I collaborate with colleagues using phone, IM, or remote connection to demostrate. We sher files, code, and ideas without the need for the traditional face to face. While I would like to meet those I "work" with in person it does not impact my ability to network and do my job.
These days I am less a manager and more a developer, but I see how my manager has adpated to this new environment and has gotten good results from his people. maybe there are folks who cannot work from home because of distractions (I am not one), but performance is measured not by the time I keep in a cube, but how well I meet my deadlines, satisfy my customers, and help improve the bottom line of the company. Considering the crapping work conditions of my company office, I do better by working at home. I will admit I am old school enough that I try to maintain a regular schedule, but flex does not stop the ability to schedule meetings either live or phone. it is about time the IT industry move to the 21st century and changed management styles to take advantage of the technologies that allow people to work from any where and still get the job done.
Slashdot Mirror
there comes a point where one discovers that a job is a means to an end, and not the means. I used to live for the next project, the cool new "thing". If you work in corporate USA that moment is so rare is is better to try for the lottery. Find somethng outside of work and life for that. Company X, the best place in the world to work, will can your ass the moment the numbers do not add up for keeping you.
Start up a company and one day you'll experience the moment when you need to "downsize" and those that had the rose colored glasses will get them stripped off their eyes.
I've spent 28 years in the IT industry, from mainframes, to minis, to Client Server, and what I have learned the most is that the love of a woman far outways a fucking promotion, the joy of doing something you enjoy far outways making the boss happy on Sunday fucking afternoon, that taking time for ones self has a better life expectancy then dieng a slow death for the fucking "Company".
Best places to work for? I had two and they got sold, chewed up and turned into shit holes, so please stop thinking that dragging you're ass to a cube every day, even if they had piano playing in the lobby is going to bring some sort of satisfaction in life. Google is no better no worse then the sweat shop in china. They just give you shinier trinkets to distract you.
Six months ago I rescued a horse from possible auction to slaughter. Today she is healthy, happy, and helping me learn to ride. The job helps me help her have a better life. That is more real, more a sense of accomplishment then pleasing some exec in an irovy tower. Piano bars, flex time, treats tossed from on high as our mouths hang open...slight of hand. To quote Mr Heston "Soylent green is Man"... Better to live outside of the job then think it will define you.
There is not best place to work other then that which fills the soul, and makes us feel like we did goo that day. a janitor may be a king compared to most IT professionals.
This is an excellent idea. I am not a business oriented mind, but I can see the good potentials in the basic plan. Certainly there is the potential for exploitation, but with some oversite those negatives could be minimal against the gains for developing communities.
I was amazed that in a world where I can talk to anyone with a few clicks of a mouse I cannot talk to those "farmers" and offer 50 cents or 1 dollar for the same number of golds. I save big time, he/she gets a better cut. I see it as a big "farmer's market" where the laborer is allowed to go direct to market without the huge overhead of mid-level distributors.
I am tired of the exploitation of the worker in this world. I beleive in making money, I feel capitalism is a good thing for growth and innovation. Sadly today we see mainly greedism. In the movie Wall Street the main character says "Geed is Good". No, Greed is the worst thing for a capitalistic society. Greed stifles, exploits, and diminishes the human spirit in the labor force. Capitalism at its best provides people from laborer to innovator a chance to improve life, find the level of work life that makes them comfortable. the Business World has reduced humans back to chattel at worst, indentured servants if lucky, while the very top remain detached from the general sufferings of the world.
The Internet levels the playing field in theory and it just takes decent honest folks to help make the first bridges connecting worker more directly to consumer. I hope someone with good values and business savy takes up the challenge. That I had the knowledge, connections, and money I would try that model out.
"I'm sorry comrade, but I'm afraid I can't do that."
Not quite...
"I'm sorry comrade, In space, gyroscopes, turn you"
sigh, life is balanced again.
I suppose you should be looking for another ISP. If they are blocking websites then they no longer are common carrier, but are taking responsiblity for content reaching your home (eyes). Unless I am mistaken they are still not the government and cannot simply stop the flow of information.
At the least it would be a required change of service on your part, at the worst people can now sue (yuck ugly taste in my month) AT&T because they did not fully protect the children.
If what you say is true, waste no time, drop them, find a way to sue them, unless you wish to baaa your way into censorship.
(to think years ago i use to work for them...i need a shower)
"But, of course, most women would rather call it rhetoric.. rather than psychology." Most women would call it our problem to deal with. At times they are worse then debugging an infinite loop that only occurs in a certain moment, but you cannot duplicate that moment ever again. A man who says "I understand her/women" is either a fool, about to be majorly suprised, dead, or gay. These days I would rather be dazed and confused, understanding of "Yes Dear" in it's fullest sense with someone rather then proclaiming my *freedom*, I can play their game while flying solo.
People, like programs are not infallible. In an affair, at somepoint the subconscious begins to leaves clues so the affiar can be revealed. Asked someone having an affair if they would confront their sponse directly with the news and the response would be some variation of "Hell No". yet, watch them long enough and slip ups, mistakes in the stories, items left out by accient get more frequent.
A lie is to hard to maintian for a long time. No one is perfect in the cover up.
How is looking up someone in a database, run by the government, going to stop employers from hiring an illegal immigrant? If the employer actually cares then they will be doing enough background check to have a reasonable sense of the prospective's legal status. An employer who wants low cost help will not check, because they know enforcement is minimal and repercussions light.
Instead of a database (which would take some time to establish and most likely be full of data holes) how about immigration officers doing the leg work and visit employers that are suspected of illegal hiring practices. How about fining or arresting employers that hire illegal immigrants, by actually investigating how they hire and who they hire.
I am not a fan of illegal immigrants. To break the first law (illegal entry) indicates to me they have less respect for the countries rule of law and care first only for themselves. An illegal immigrant continues to turn a blind eye to other laws and regulations (driving, insurance, housing) as they continue to live outside the law. They could be good decent people, but they are living a lie. In doing so they mock the principle of what our country stands for in democracy, law, and justice. In one recent news piece the husband/father remarked how it would be cruel to send him back and leave his family. Yet, was it not as cruel to place his family (the wife is illegal as well) in jeopardy with the law?
However, it is the employers in this country that provide the foundation for continued growth of people crossing the border without permission. Like the brainless war on drugs, going after the addict does nothing to stop more addicts getting into the system, yet we lock up pot smokers while the supply chain remains. it would be wonderful if the various branches of this comatose government worked together to research, investigate, arrest, and prosecute employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants instead of building some lackluster database that does nothing more then mess up people's lives who fall through the chasms in the data. We will spend billions in building a fence, but will not spend the same billions building investigative teams that reduce the incentive for illegal immigration...employment.
Truly I hear faint fiddling behind the sound of pompous blowhards chewing on grapes while spewing innocuous mandates like "build a database", "we will have victory", or "it will make you feel safer". Same tune, different fiddler.
Yet the philosophical question is where did those ideas come from? Is it just genetic? It is meta-physical (from God)? Is it self-awareness and recognition of other "selves"? I'm not trying to make you accept the supernatural, but to understand that others do and they are not crazy, fringe, or extreme. For myself, I believe in God. I cannot give you a scientific reason for my belief. I cannot "prove" God (that's up to you and Her to figure out), but my Faith feels "right". I cannot see an Idea, but it is one of the most powerful forces on this planet. I cannot "see" God, yet His presence can be felt in the simple act of kindness to a stranger, in my darkest moment knowing I have a new day tomorrow, new opportunities to experience. I am not an Apostle, a disciple trying to covert you or anyone to my view. I just want to state my belief tbat a Faith in God is not about religion, supernatural miracles, mumbo jumbo; it is about accepting something greater then myself; accepting that it is more the just nature that shapes our spirit. So much more could be said, but I'll leave it at that. Glad to know another out there understand (in what ever way) that we are all made of the same stuff.
No, that is the fundamental message of Paul or Peter, two founders of the catholic church. A great message if you wish to control the followers. Read the gospels, focus on the message of Christ and you find a much different meaning.
Chirst's teachings were about relationships; between each other, ourselves, and with God. His was a message of hope, love, and forgivness. Read the Tao, you'll see the same message. Read Budha you'll find similar meaning. Gof is not understood in the mechanics of religion, God is felt/experienced in how we treat ourselves and each other. When I see another human I see a piece of God, a part of me. I may describe myself as a christian as I was raised with that understanding, yet my Faith extends past the dogma of religious control to the more complex simplicity, the harder path of Loving one's neighbor even when you do not like them very much.
"Access? Don't fucking get me started"....sigh, why not get started, you did on most of the others.
I'm no fan of Office or of OO.o. Both are tools and as such open to personal opinion for their good and bad traits. However, when you slam something give me an alternative Ican review, test, and try as comparison. I've done well received presentation with Powerpoint. Not many have the time to create "video", not does video work for a teaching or instructional medium.
Do you know of a better tool then powerpoint that is simple to use, costs little, allows high res images, and wont take forever to create a result? Not busting, that is a serious question. Same thing with Word or Publisher. Cite other tools and I'll taste test to see if I have the same view.
Telling me it sucsk is only half the job, tell me the better solution and why; that give more cred to the statements.
Two points come to mind as I read your post and others that talk about how protests are ignored. The first thought addresses the last point you make in that despite the protest the government continued on and passed a law. I feel they did so because they felt there would be no public backlash where it counts the most, at the voting booth. Protests are a way of collectively voicing an opinion, but it is the vote that matters. If the public wants to gain the attention of the politician, protest, then vote such that those who appose the majority will no longer represent "the people", but be sent home (or to a nice lobbyist job). In my country we can only get 30 or 40 percent of the voting public to cast a ballot. We bitch, we moan, we chaff under the fur-lined handcuffs that hold us in place whiled getting screwed, but we do not enact our strongest protest, the vote.
As to my first point, it relates to protest and visibility. There are two movements that come to the forefront for me in regards to protest and creating change. In your own country, Gandhi and the movement for independence, in my country Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement. I am sure there are others (South Africa and Mandela), but what I find common are that these movements had leaders who stood on the front line of change. They took the beatings, the arrests, the ridicule, and continued leading by example till change was made. In leading this way they inspired others to make the same sacrifices, even if those sacrifices affected their personal lives. I respect Cindy Sheehan immensely, but at a critical moment when she could have sparked a strong anti-war protest into a national movement (starting at Crawford TX), she went home to take care of a family member. By the time she got back to Crawford the movement was fading and her position as inspiring leader was past.
That takes me to the other point about protest and my three examples. King, Gandhi, Mandela; these leaders never stopped. It was not one protest, maybe two. It was time and time again walking into the face of the adversary. It was peaceful, non-violent so that what ever hate was spewed at them, they absorbed it, turned it around and said, it's okay, we are still here. The media is not at fault, it is the lack of commitment by any leader, and any group to place themselves and others in moments, in places that will bring attention again and again and again.
The people in eastern bloc countries who had protested crooked elections changed their governments this way because they never went home till they were heard and satisfied. King changed civil rights in this country by marching, sitting, walking, and talking non-violent resistance against discrimination all the time. I watch the riots, the angry mobs at G8 summit meetings, at war rallies and I ask, does meeting violence with violence work? Perhaps people are more fearful of the angry mob then the immoral government. What happened to the 150K people in Melbourne? Did the come back the next day, and the next, and the next? If not then why would the government feel compelled to effect change? Here today, gone tomorrow is how *they* see us, not the other way around.
A basic example of the difference in protest; two people walk up to a customer service counter to complain. The first screams, shouts, insults, berates, and vents all the anger and frustration inside demanding something be done. The louder the voice, the less help is forthcoming so finally the customer walks out, nothing gained. The second person walks in, explains the problem, backs up the statements with facts, continues to ask questions when rebuffed, remains calm and respectful, but does not stop, does not walk away. By staying this customer maintains attention to the complaint so finally customer service must address the problem if they wish to take care of others.
Protest can be loud, it can be visible, but it must remain in a way that the sleeping majority will not only take notice, but respond in positive support.
Yummy, can i skip the lima beans and still maintain the highly enriched hydrogen mix. I really do like lima beans and would enjoy trying this (cough) recipe (cough) on my frends and family. Their internal tummies...er..engines would love it!
In Soviet Russia, Ivan smiles at you!
(I'm so sorry, it's early Saturday morning, can't control all brain functions)
Oh my, what a good chuckle you gave me this morning. A telco company backing their product for any extended period of time...for free?...Tried to get my mind around the concept, but seems it is harder to grasp then imaginary numbers.
I think any major corporation that says "We stand behind our product" is really saying "We stand behind you, please bend over, this wont hurt a bit".
The original snippet was vb.net beacuse is uses the Length property, a feature not found in VB. As to horrible? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Having seen many a programming language in my career the horrible thing is missing the beauty in each language.
Anyway, way off topic and time by now.
You called me out. I wanted to troll for C++/Ruby/PHP/Python/C#... oh hell the list is endless programmers who hate .net.
/. users that have numbers less then 4 digits. :-)
variation:
FuckWith(User) = IIf(Len(UserId)5,False,True)
No matter how you write it, the business spec is dont 'fuck with
If Userid.length = 4 Then
FuckWith(User) = False
Else
FuckWith(User) = True
End If
Or for older folks
If Len(Userid) = 4 Then
FuckWith(User) = 0
Else
FuckWIth(User) = 1
End If
or in the grand language
IF Lengthof User Is Less then 5 Then FuckOff
Else Perform 0500-FuckMe
And to some extent that's my point. The game reflects a trend or tendency, but allows more "sacrifice", more altruism because the consequences do not reflect back to the real world. However, in an extreme moment, I bet you will think of an action that may help save many even if in the end it costs you. Whether it is acted upon I would hope you never discover, but eventhe thought shows the root personality.
I am nore sure throwing one's self on a handgrenade is altruistic, brave, dumb, or some combination of all three. A game may not determine that level of giving. Can we ever measure how we will react given an extreme moment. Soldiers are trained to help save their fellow team members for one day it may be returned. People in general are not required to have the same connection with others. As a recent very public act I recall the passengers on FLT 93 and the actions they took in the end. If asked a hypothetical before boarding "would you do x,y z?" they may not have responded the same to the same scenario as played out in real life. Games measure broad directions, not specific acts.
However, I tend to think of my self as an altruistic person and when I play WoW I find I like to help fellow guildmembers, Strangers on the Alliance side, and occasionally even a Horde player as a nice surprise. For me, giving, helping make me feel better whether it is in a game or in real life.
I wonder though, Now What? So we identify this spot in the brain. Can it be adjusted, removed, added in if missing? So we muck around with this chemically and have the world in giving Peace? The first step is identification (if you accept the facts), but the how, what, why...that will be the truly fasinating debate.
In the mean time, I will continue to help my fellow humans (real or electonic) and not worry if I have too much, too little, or just the right altruism in my brain.
Actually, slashdot is true toform and dup'ing the news. This http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/01/0 3/2344241 was posted on Jan 3. Even repeated it is a cool story.
And buggy whips were consistant across the spectrum of carriage, wagon, horse movement. If we just look at today your thoughts I agree with. Technology and time are cruel to devices, processes that do not change.
THere will come a time when there will not be a command line interface. Typing characters will either take to much time, or not be needed. Typing is a slow method of conveying complex task requests. Granted, one could type LS and get a list of files quickly, there may be three other steps that follow the simple one that end with "Analyze the data found in this file and compare it to world figures".
Perhaps I have more imagination, but I can see an IT world that is much more computer driven. I was more appalled when in STar Trek they would continue to push buttons to make the ship go forward. I mean, in 300 years they have a computer that holds all the information in the universe, creates holo images, but a guy still sits and pushes buttons to move the ship. Perhaps that is the command line interaction you speak of exampled 300 years in the future. ME, I'd rather say to the computer, "Ahead warp factor two, destination Rigal 4" or if I did not want standard routing, "Warp factor tow, Mark 356, zed 090" or to really test the system, "burn rubber for the fun planet".
as a visual person, I prefer GUI, as a social person, I prefer to talk. That last thing I want to do is type in commands. I traded my buggy whip in a long time ago, just pull it out when I am forced too by cranky horses.
I'm not sure I get your point. The Wright brother's built a kite with an engine that on first flight stayed in the air less then the wingspan of A 747. Today Air France is in final testing for a Air Ship (it is hard to call it a plane) that comes close to 1M lbs and can cross the Atlantic with 500 people on board.
/., a somewhat rare commodity in this rather cynical room.
The first boats ever created to carry man must have been nothing much more then a log and today we have ships the size of a small island that are self sustaining.
Shall we take a look at the first car, train engine, etc etc etc.
Progress is started with the first step and these fellows have taken that first step. it is possible to see down the road that this small step will be improved, enhanced, and grown into a viable option for transportation. maybe the first model is lacking in features, but it is more than a "clever gadget". Your clever little gad-about-town was also once just a gleam in a designer's eye, a rough working proto-type that improved over time. Perhaps a more supportive, positive eye towards new inventions would be helpful, but then this is
Another thought to consider is income. In "western" countries there is genneraly more capital to spend on CDs or DVDs. Also the infrastruture for selling CDs/DVDs is more established. People are use to buying items in stores, not on street corners or kiosks. If RIAA dropped prices to reasonable levels I feel that piracy would drop some as well in other countries, because in the end, folks are not so focused on where it came from, but what it costs.
I also just thought that another reason for less bootlegged CDs being sold in "western" ounties is a better opportunity to download. Here again, I'd rather download the purchse something off the street. Granted in theory the act is not much different, but it is safer more anonomous pulling tunes down from a site in Russia then actually facing a human and handing over my silver.
I agree with the general principle these days the
RIAA pushes crap music
RIAA only cares about RIAA, ignore everything else
Production allows the Artist to produce their music but....
RIAA has the marketing ability to make that artist visible. Without the ability to market the artist may not ever move past a local or regional level. WHat I would love to see is Artists Co-oping into a marketing company to help promote their own. Put some top names on the the list to get visibility and have them help get new talent on the map. After that it is up to the artist to convince the masses thay are good. Artists contribute a portion of their earnings to a common pool to help promote and advertise other artists. This style of shared help has helped in the food industry and even in resturants around the country. RIAA could be pushed aside if artists started to work together.
I have to differ with you on this. I work in a evelopment environment were each member of the teamis in a diferent state. Though I have a office building I can go to to "work" I work mostly from home. I collaborate with colleagues using phone, IM, or remote connection to demostrate. We sher files, code, and ideas without the need for the traditional face to face. While I would like to meet those I "work" with in person it does not impact my ability to network and do my job. These days I am less a manager and more a developer, but I see how my manager has adpated to this new environment and has gotten good results from his people. maybe there are folks who cannot work from home because of distractions (I am not one), but performance is measured not by the time I keep in a cube, but how well I meet my deadlines, satisfy my customers, and help improve the bottom line of the company. Considering the crapping work conditions of my company office, I do better by working at home. I will admit I am old school enough that I try to maintain a regular schedule, but flex does not stop the ability to schedule meetings either live or phone. it is about time the IT industry move to the 21st century and changed management styles to take advantage of the technologies that allow people to work from any where and still get the job done.
Well Thank You, Now I will never hear the end of it from my boss. Just the other day I said his idea was as crazy as proving 1=2. Damn!
Now if I can convince him that:
Less Work + More Pay = Greater Productivity
But I fear this is a far greater equation to prove true then the validity of nullity.