I agree that your comments were not the troll bait typically seen here. With that said, you may know a lot about programmin, not so much in inspirational speaking. Giving a list of accomplishments is one thing, name dropping is another. there is a balance, but by the time I was halfway through your OP I was getting turned off, not on. "I do not think I was special". But you were.
With the millions of programmers out there, how many have the connections to work at the UN, or Disney. How many have the opportunity track to be at the top of the heap? I think what gets me is that by listing the accomplishments the wayy you did, you set a bar that is impossible for many, very hard for others because there is limited space at the top. You wnat to encourage, life people up? then find out where they are in life, in programming, and tell them that being the best, doing one's best will get you much further then not. Bottom line is that your post sounded more arrogant even though you may be a decent person.
When I read the article I was amazed at this young man, not for what he create4d (which is okay), but that while working a primary job, did this in his spare time. Time will tell if it was his best, but without a slashdot effect, I would not think he'd gain so much opportunity as he has right now.
So, you make a valid point about TV, games can impact the early steps in career development, but you missed the mark in making a positive statement. Just keep in mind thatto lift someone else up, you have to show them the best *they* can be, and not the best that you are. I've sailed for 27 years, had a fellow out the other day who jsut started to learn. He knew I was accomplished, but as we raced, I never mentioned anything about my skills, I praised his good efforts, I corrected his mistakes, and at the end of the day, he was excited about sailing , and going out again.
Congradulations on getting so much opportunity so young in life. It is a blessing you best be thankful for.
I very much agree. At 45 (a young 45) I feel like I am still able to provide insight and creativity to the business world. I work to keep up with the shifting snads of technology, but what experience has shown me is that the more it changes, the more it is still the same....or worse.
Today, innovation is more about marketing and getting to market then on solid foundations of incremental improvement. granted that there are times when something can come alongthat truly changes the course of the industry, but when I read these tripe debates on which is the better language of the month (Ruby, No Pearl, No PHP, no C++, no VB, no LISP) I see folks that miss the point. It is not the language stupid, it is what you do with it, how you shape it, how soild is it's structure.
Youth, of which I still eel some, may be great and all nighters, gulping Jolt, and cranking out code, but if the code is crap, what good was the effort. these days, when given a project play my time for a normal work day, I enjoy my life outside work and I get the projects done on time.
the article was, is, and will be crap. It has nothing to do with the physical age of a person, it has to done with the ability of the mind to see the Concepts, the potentials, the ideas and that is ageless.
"They" realize this, "they" are just to cught up in the "look what *I* can do to linux" mentality to see the forest from the trees.
I read many of the postings in this current dupp'ed Linux vs MS debate. The same basic themes if how great Linux is in customizing, how Windows registry sucks, how distros are not consistant, how unsecure windows is foe the current batch of script kiddies.
let's start with a simple axiom, Linux will *never* be like windows. Unless Microsoft changes it's business model, releases the source code, and abdicates all patents, Linux and Windows will not be the same. yet, for all the free stuff lyaing around in Linux world, and most people love free stuff, Linux has not made much inroads into the user market. Why?
Simplicity.
To add to the Parent's thoughts, "Want to play a game you like? Can't find it in Linux, no problem we have it for Windows. What to downlaod a cool free program? yes, but where's my shortcut in Applications? Where my desktop icon. I do not feel that most of the general population is stupid. I have a brother who flies commercial jets. he is not stupid, but put him in front of a windows computer and ask him to find a free media player, downlaod it, install it and get it running and he can do that is less then 15 minutes. I, as a many many year software developer tried to do the same thing last weekend (I am attempting to understand Linux) and the end result was I never could find that damn application even after I took the RPM package install defaults. Where the hell did it put XMMS?
I, a long time user of Windows do not want Linux to *be* Windows. What I want us consistancy is visual usage. Applications install without manual steps. Access to software is not a confusion of install instructions with 5 choices of download files, most that look like "xmdf-123-fre.tar.rpm". Windows may not be consistant under the hood, but since 3.0, I could double-click on setup.exe file and in short time run a program.
which Enterprise? TOS, NG, X. For space and comfort NG had the best layout. I could see the main viewer as an awesome projection screen, the science station hooked to a semi automated dumb waiter that pulls snacks from a freezer, heats them up and delivers them on deck.
kinda, the thing is to start to structure the music by genre, style so people can better locate the style/sound they like and or go to a specific artist. If itunes costs me.99c for regular pop tune, then perhaps an indie can cost less if they are recording and producing without the overhead of the RIAA machine.
Again, this is the beauty of the internet. Create it, record it, deliver it wihtout the "machine" pimping it. Instead it is the talent, and word of mouth (like/.) that makes it happen.
From tfa..."In the past eight days she has entertained more than 250,000 fans worldwide"
From 70, to 62000, to 250,000 listeners. What an incredible way to build a base before she (and the band) go out and do tours. This is also just what RIAA *does not want to happen*. Young unkown band gets found not by some way over paid agent of musical darkness, but by the people themselves. A great example of what the interent *can* do for the masses and the individual.
Next step for this band and others to follow; produce and deliver an Album (as in collection of songs, not vinyl) that can be offered to those 250,000+ fans and growing without ever burning one CD. TCO to the band, nada for RIAA. The biggest obstacle I would see is they (and any band) would have problems booking gigs in larger venues without greasing the wheels of the venue promoters who are most likely in the pockets of the music industry.
IAOASD (I am only a software developer) so I may only see the rose through my glasses, but this could be the mouse that roared.
You are the British soldier that Ganhdi stood against in his struggle for India's independence. You are the man screaming in the face of a young black girl as she climbs the steps hoping for a better life in a country that says she is second class. You are the voice of a woman that screams religious epitaths during a private, loving funeral for a fallen american soldier.
So much anger, so much hubris it blinds and warps reason. Your comments are the reminder we have not crawled far from, us humans, the primate nature where blind following was deamed acceptable; reason was shattered by rocks, clubs, swords, words, and now laws.
Your world is very simple, and very scary. I pray I never have to live in it though sadly, it is not so far away. There is nothing more to say to you for your statements establish the tone of your message; one of chaos.
I would think that as a member of a school board, SHOUTING is not the best way to get across an idea.
As to the rest, you state absolutes like "the act does not hurt anybody but the bad guys", or democracts lie, yet there is nothing absolute in life other then death. Democrates lie? Please. They all lie. It is how bad the lie, or what harm comes from the lie that matters. Again...they.all.lie. That is the first rule ofa politician. Try it some time ata school board meeting. Tell the full truth and see how long you last. A former president lies about sex, a current president lied about reasons to start a war, wire-tapping, awareness of impending disaster and more. When lies cause suffering to many, those are the ones to truly question.
While your district may have improved, many more across the country have not. WHy is it that the state of Mass. has recently considered not accepting money from the Feds? Because the NCLB program is not as good as thier own state initiative. See, no absolutes here. Some things are good, some things are bad. However, a closed mind is the worst for it blinds the eyes from seeing the whole picture out there in life.
I could say more, but just so you know, I will vote democratic (D) this year and I will have flet like I did something good for our country. If an attack occurs tomorrow, I will vote (D). If one occurs two years from now I will vote (D) until such point as I feel the demcratic party has failed this country. Then I will find the next party that believes that "We The People" actually means something and takes less lip service to it. Please remember the shouting part next time an angry mom is screaming at you at a board meeting. Good day
Nor do I think that of you. You expressed your thoughts well and though I may disagree in principle, there comes a moment when we still have to question. I believe it was Reagan who said "Trust, but verify". Those who inact laws are not above them nor can they use National Secutiry in every case to justify actions outside the law. In the case of wire taps, FISA was there to ensure checka and balance, oversight and FISA was dismissed. Congress was dismissed and even now no consise evidence has been shown that FISA could not had been utilized.
Look at the current issue with the Port sale. Even the president did not know till after this deal was in place and on a matter such as this I would think all Government leaders would be made aware so to quell the concerns of the public. Again, people behind the leader were making decisions, making choices outside the framework that your quotes refer too.
It would seem it is not so much about giving up freedoms. No doing anything illegal is not the measure we should use to determine whether or not to give up liberty. It is about holding the People in Power to the laws, to the checks and balances *in place* so that while they do their job protecting the population, they are also not undermining the laws that protect us from chaos.
With that said, after the fall, don't shoot everyone that comes near the homestead, I still think most people are good, politicians not withstanding.
"love freedom, but I am willing to give some up if it means my wife and daughter are safer as a result. This happens all the time."
I figure you are already set in your ways on this topic, but I cannot let a statement like that to go on and appease others.
How much? How much freedom are you willing to give up? Quantify it for me so I can understand. Are you willing to carry ID cards all the time, that can't be that bad right. But you know, those ID cards can be duplicated, lost, stolen. Maybe we can get a RFID, but recently it's been shown to be hackable and those terrorists could steal your information.
Would you be willing to give up "some" of your freedom for a permanent tattoo. And just to help things go smoothly, the tattoo can be done on a visible part of the body. Back of the neck lets say. Maybe in the form of a barcode.
maybe that seems extreme, but the problem with "giving up" a little freedom here, a little freedom there tends to give more personal responsibility to the controlling body and less to the individual. You used examples of speeding. There are places in Europe where you can drive way over 100 mphs and not get a ticket. From experience I can say that their speed limits are more for safety then here in the U.S. Most towns coffers depend on tickets for revenue. You never had a right to go 100 mph, 55/60/whater is just an arbitrary number established to pull in dollars. Would you feel safer driving at 45 or 35 mph on the highway?
I will concur that as a society we have abdicated some aspects of privacy. When I fly I am searched. However, that is a choice. If I drive drunk, that is a choice and while I disagree with the statutes, I accept that I am choosing to fly (and be searched) or drive drunk (and face a DUI). In the issue regarding wiretapping by the NSA, there is no choice. Someone else *made* that choice and invaded the privacy of an American citizen. This is akin to the NSA busting down the door of a "suspected" terrorist with no warrant and saying it is legal because of the War.
It is not legal. The Police, the NSA, nobody in power can just "choose" to invade your privacy without due case, without judicial oversight. To give that up is not giving away a little freedom, it is giving away the core that this country was founded on.
At issue here is not whether bad guys should be monitored, tapped, or busted into. Most citizens, right/left/centrist would feel that if people are committing crimes the law needs to take action. the *issue* is that an agency(s) were directed to step outside the law, step outside the checks and balances this country stands for and accuse citizens without just cause.
This.Is.Wrong.
From the way you wrote your comment I figure you are entrenched in the idea that giving up these small freedoms will make you fee safer. Why? Because allowing the Government to break the law will catch more terrorists? With the current state of affairs in the world, there is an endless supply of people to join the cause so I doubt it would reduce the number of evil doers. Will it thwart plans to perform a terrorist act? How plans do you think these guys have? More then one or two I suspect. So we stopped an attack on LAX; they may have 4 ways to blow Boulder Dam, 6 ways to bring the northeast corridor to a halt, 10 ways to disrupt (aka kill) people in crowds. I felt "safer" flying three weeks after 9/11 because every person on that plane knew...knew that if a terrorist stood up and said "This is a high...." Bam, pow, uff and he would be on the floor with 10 bodies holding him down. Today I fear to fly not because of the terrorist, because the government has done nothing to really stop the problem why that man is on the plane.
before you give up your freedoms (which by the way are mine as well and I do not give them up so easily) why not ask the government what it is doing to stop the hatred that feeds terrorists. Ask the government to work on having this country not be such a target for hate
Someone already got my Mulligan joke idea so I'll move onto my other thought. Just yesterday I researched and wrote a small program to show the projectile trajectory of an object. IANAG but I understand that golf club faces have different face angles to change the loft of the ball. Drivers have low face angles, 9 irons high.
So what intrigues me (other then why the guy needs a tee in space) is when he hits the ball, how will the face angle change or set the trajectory (orbit?). Granted, this is a shameless commercial plug for a golf company, but it can provide a good lab for young physics minds to try and calculate the orbit. I read some posts that talked about the golf ball traveling 23 or 27 thousand mph. That must be one hell of a swing. I would think the relative velocity of the ball would be similar to that on earth. If he hits it in retrograde orbit I would be more worried about the thing slamming into a working satellite.
Since they are going to have a transmitter in the ball (rendering it illegal to use in PGA tours, but making it easier to find in the rough) it will be interesting to track. The next commercial idea in space I'd like to see...solar sails. North Sails, coupled with NASA sponsor a sail ship race from Earth to the Moon. Don't give a damn if they splash Coca Cola signs all over the place if it means something other then reseach is done in space.
You call him a troll? Okay, in the last 4 months I have installed:
Ubuntu SUSE Fedora Mandriva and will Knopix next
Every single install did not go smooth and I do not have some obscure system. It is a slighter older Dell p3 600. Okay, I get through the various partioning issues and now I have my Cool Linux OS installed. can it talk to my XP systems. Some yes, some no and if I did not know about samba...no to all. Can it play the MP3s on my XP box if it sees it? No! Oh, I can copy them over, but they will not play. Yes, I know *now* that I have to somehow install a mp3 codec....tried that, could not figure out how to get to work.
I understand that these distro are free and as such may not have all the beels and whistles of a commercial version (thinking of Fedora in this case), but if I have to plunk money down on an OS that I feel confident will install and play my music, play my games, provide a straight foward development environment...It will be Windows.
Turns out, I would like to add Linux to my skillset, but after two decades of working in this industry, I am not real fond of having to go backwards, figure out how the damn carborator works when I mainly want to drive. Linux is a tinker's playground and I respect that, but mainstream? I boils down to two things....click and go install of applications, and support of mainstream games without.....without compiling, manual setting of menu items, and reconfiguring of drivers/kernels, and hardly ever ever having to go into a console.
and yet, you do not see the high tech laser weapon, the real time 24/7 satellite security watch (yes they oggle my wife, but a small price for security), and the fact that as a USCG Licensed Capt (that's real) I know about pirates and you would not get close enough to get the second shot off before I use a very illegal, but effective launcher against your woossy twin 60s.
I can dream:-) safely.
"In today's networked world the vast majority of us are still held to an arbitrary requirement for face time"
I view it as industrial age management in an information age world. I agree with all you say. My boss sits 800 mile away yet the local office has a policy of 8 to 5. I never viewed programming as an 8 to 5 job, but nevertheless this time frame is set in stone. The problem then is that when I am creative, maybe at 8 pm, maybe at 6 am I will not do anything about it because I still ahve to do my time. If I was a consultant or business owner I know I'd put more hours in, butr I would still feel like I control those times. The factory is dead, management is still trying CPR.
True, but the moment is fleeting. Long term work at home is still the better work environment these days. besides, most of the gossip you can trust will come from those you work closest with home or in the office. You'd still get the juice, maybe not in real time. If I even smelled a merger rumor I'd be updating my resume.
So, when you are downsized/rightsized/job challanged and you have to look for the next paycheck, what happens when you can't find that great telecommute job anymore. If you are not a consultant/contractor but working for a company you have a rare position. Most coporations still do not understand the positive benefits of work at home nor do they know how to manage it.
I had what you have. I was happier, more productive, and just as much a team player as those in the office. I got downsized and now I work for less, I drive 30 minutes or more to work in cube even though I have broadband at home and VPN to the office. I am the only client server developer in a floor full of Mainframe support programmers, my boss resides three states away, yet they will not let me work at home.
Despite the slashdot article about increased IT jobs in the US, the technical worker these days cannot request better work conditions *because* of the implied threat of offshore workers. I know, I've tried.
I envy your deck, boxers, and beer. Pray you don't lose that nice position because I will bet you one of those beers you will not find it so easy to get another job with the same benefits.
As a side note, I have to laugh at the Intel/Microsoft commercials that promote the idea you can take the office with you anywhere. Were that so, why do even those companies require most of their development staff to live in Seattle; drive to the campus to work. If they believe their own marketing, prove it and show the rest of the technology world that it can work.
the perfect telecommute spot, a 40+ sloop with a KVH autotracking satellite dish providing broadband capability, chilled vodka and a loving wife sunning on deck....Ah...At least I can dream.
normally used as "Shut The F#$k Up". Like "Dude", it can be used in the pegorative manner "God you are Stupid, STFU!" or as an exclamation or startlement. Elaine in Sienfield used the cleaner version at times, "Shut Up", to punctuate her suprize. STFU would emphsize more extreme surprize. I took the original poster statement more towards exclaim then dismissiveness.
I read the summary three times and I jsut can't figure it out. Maybe I'm art challanged or something, but my imagination has live people bumping into each other while where goggles and gloves. Those who distain wearing the accoutremonts of VR will have a great chuckle seeing the "live" folks" trying to interact with VR folks. I hope there is a video of this after it's over for that is the only way it will make sense to me.
If this was the case why not send his remarks (as you recollect) to a local news media. At the very least you may be doing a good thing by trying to help bring these back door coersions to light. At best it gets picked up by the media (local then national) so even more people then those addicted to/. become aware of how much we/thary are losing by those who are meant to represent them.
Every now and then I read these types of comments on this site and I wonder why those who are upset by what they hear do not do something with the information. Yes, for the record, I would try to report something like this to some media group (tv/paper/radio) in the hopes the word is spread.
An unsubstantiated report from gP Reuters states that Google is considering the acquisition of the United States of America. A senior management source who would not be quoted said that this is clearly in keeping with the company motto "Do No Evil". Google sees the purchase of the USA as a chance to continue their practice of buying half finished or poorly built products and improving on the product. The first order of business will be to restructure the government to provide quicker response with minimal flash and attention getting.
Google a spokesman pointed out that much of the country has already been converted over to a marketing/advertising platform. They feel Google can improve the scatter gun advertising that is somewhat haphazard in TV, Radio, and magazines. they continued, "Interested in taking a ride to Grandma's house? Road signs will now start to display targeted advertising relating to what best fits Grandma's needs". When pushed about the various ongoing conflicts the US is involved in Google stated that by purchasing the US, wars will be eliminated from the business plan as they are bad areas for advertising. One other minor result of the purchase will be the total destruction of Microsoft as an American corporation. "Google cannot abide having such evil in its land".
"If I have the responsibility to protect the USA, I'm going to do what I can to accomplish that, right up to (but not over) the edge of what I can do legally. Because I'd have to be responsible to obey the law too."
But that is the point. I agree with the emphisis on legally. Nothing stopped this Administration from obtaining warrants, nothing stopped this Administration from getting warrants after the fact. Even with that broad spectrum of options the Administration chose to not even bother to try and work with the existing laws. Of course we should defend and protect, but that which we are also trying to protect is the rule of law. To ma, that is the purpsoe of our Goverment. When *it* feels that it can supercede without eventual oversight then We The People have truly lost control of those we intrust to protect us.
If you feel that strongly about ensuring our protection then help Us get our goverment back by standing up and saying I do not accept lawless actions and support those who not only want to protect this country, but want to protect it's laws as well.
Until it happens to you? I guess it is no big deal if the police try to catch the thief who stole your neighbor's widescreen because hey, it doesn't effect me, it's not like the thief killed anyone.
The big deal is that there laws that are meant to protect the citizens of this country. The law does not differentiate between ordinary citizens or idiots that may accepts calls from Al-Qaeda. The president is not above the law and he must answer to it as any American citizen must when they break the law. Just because past leaders did is not a valid argument to ignore the present actions of this leader.
This is not about internation calls versus domestic calls. it is about due process, it is about working within the law so that we not only protect the citizens of this country, but we protect the basic tenents this country was founded on. I for one feel that this be strongly investigated to determine not if the president broke the law, but who else was culpable, and how far has this program gone in tapping into American citizens without 4th amendment protection.
Consider also that if an American citizen was arrested because of these illegal wiretaps, the case could be dismissed because the Goverment had not filed the proper warrants.
As a recent college grad what bills do you have that lock you into a dead-end job? If they are anything more then the basics (car, student loan, apt) then I would give up the broadband, cable, going out to eat, buying cool toys for a while and figure out how to live on a tight budget. If you are that trapped in a job then there are other issues then the job pulling at your life.
As one poster alluded to, if you can slashdot, you can look for jobs on Monster, Dice, Career builder, etc. Do you have a plan for looking? like setting a goal of sending out x number of resumes a day or week. Are you willing to relocate? It may improve your chances
If you have family, quit the killer job, get something part time and start hitting the pavement or ether. The only thing keeping you locked in this "horrible" job is you. If it is that bad, get out now otherwise, stay in, build time, learn how to time manage so that maybe you are not working so much overtime, and sometimes just say no. The worst they'll do is fire you and in todays climate, it could be either that or downsized. Take care of Self first for no job is worth an early start to unhappiness.
Oh? From what I read many of those people were pulling huge hours, maximum stress with the intent on making huge profits, not so much a solid long term product. I'll accept that if you have 5, 10 15 companies all trying to capitalize on roughly the same thing, some will lose no matter even if they have a good product or service.
Some of the folks that worked for.coms could have been putting their heart and soul into the work and not have a good leadership group to balance the needs of the employees, customers, and VCs. I will still stand on the statement that happy employees will generally make for a better company, a positive customer base, and a stronger economy. People who feel good, feel like they have a stake in the company, feel like they future will be more inclined to spend money. For those folks who made the $$$ during the.com bubble, what did they do with the money? Save or spend.
"Here's a hint for all you future entrepreneurs: the only thing that will keep you profitable is to keep your customers happy and offer them a consistency in your performance -- product quality and customer service. Ignore the trends, the fads and trying to sell everything to everyone."
I would suggest that the best thing to keep you profitable is to keep your employees happy and offer them a positive, stimulating workplace in which to grow. There have been many stories over the years that I've heard which showed when a company focused on keeping the employee happy and motived, this translated into better customer satifaction and profit. Employees that come to work with a desire to do good, to contribute are people that come through the door with ideas on how to make the company better, with a desire to help the customer because they want that customer to like (believe) in their company.
Look at a company like Southwest airlines; right in their mission statement (http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/mission.html) page they publicly state the way they will treat their employees. The first quarter after 9/11 they where the only major carrier that continued to earn a profit. Some of that success must come from the three pronged framework of employee - customer - employer. By putting the customer first, it is a small step to putting the shareholder first and that leads to management looking at employees as numbers on a profit loss statement instead of valuable resources to help grow the company. Of course it is important to keep the customer happy, but it is short sighted to think it stops there.
Overall, I have the same feelings about Sony today. I avoid purchasing any of their products, but now that is in the forefront of my mind when I do want to buy something, I see how many product lines they are into. I purchased a 42" Samsung widescreen recently and now am glad that it was a good choice.
Slashdot Mirror
I agree that your comments were not the troll bait typically seen here. With that said, you may know a lot about programmin, not so much in inspirational speaking. Giving a list of accomplishments is one thing, name dropping is another. there is a balance, but by the time I was halfway through your OP I was getting turned off, not on. "I do not think I was special". But you were.
With the millions of programmers out there, how many have the connections to work at the UN, or Disney. How many have the opportunity track to be at the top of the heap? I think what gets me is that by listing the accomplishments the wayy you did, you set a bar that is impossible for many, very hard for others because there is limited space at the top. You wnat to encourage, life people up? then find out where they are in life, in programming, and tell them that being the best, doing one's best will get you much further then not. Bottom line is that your post sounded more arrogant even though you may be a decent person.
When I read the article I was amazed at this young man, not for what he create4d (which is okay), but that while working a primary job, did this in his spare time. Time will tell if it was his best, but without a slashdot effect, I would not think he'd gain so much opportunity as he has right now.
So, you make a valid point about TV, games can impact the early steps in career development, but you missed the mark in making a positive statement. Just keep in mind thatto lift someone else up, you have to show them the best *they* can be, and not the best that you are. I've sailed for 27 years, had a fellow out the other day who jsut started to learn. He knew I was accomplished, but as we raced, I never mentioned anything about my skills, I praised his good efforts, I corrected his mistakes, and at the end of the day, he was excited about sailing , and going out again.
Congradulations on getting so much opportunity so young in life. It is a blessing you best be thankful for.
I very much agree. At 45 (a young 45) I feel like I am still able to provide insight and creativity to the business world. I work to keep up with the shifting snads of technology, but what experience has shown me is that the more it changes, the more it is still the same....or worse.
Today, innovation is more about marketing and getting to market then on solid foundations of incremental improvement. granted that there are times when something can come alongthat truly changes the course of the industry, but when I read these tripe debates on which is the better language of the month (Ruby, No Pearl, No PHP, no C++, no VB, no LISP) I see folks that miss the point. It is not the language stupid, it is what you do with it, how you shape it, how soild is it's structure.
Youth, of which I still eel some, may be great and all nighters, gulping Jolt, and cranking out code, but if the code is crap, what good was the effort. these days, when given a project play my time for a normal work day, I enjoy my life outside work and I get the projects done on time.
the article was, is, and will be crap. It has nothing to do with the physical age of a person, it has to done with the ability of the mind to see the Concepts, the potentials, the ideas and that is ageless.
"They" realize this, "they" are just to cught up in the "look what *I* can do to linux" mentality to see the forest from the trees.
I read many of the postings in this current dupp'ed Linux vs MS debate. The same basic themes if how great Linux is in customizing, how Windows registry sucks, how distros are not consistant, how unsecure windows is foe the current batch of script kiddies.
let's start with a simple axiom, Linux will *never* be like windows. Unless Microsoft changes it's business model, releases the source code, and abdicates all patents, Linux and Windows will not be the same. yet, for all the free stuff lyaing around in Linux world, and most people love free stuff, Linux has not made much inroads into the user market. Why?
Simplicity.
To add to the Parent's thoughts, "Want to play a game you like? Can't find it in Linux, no problem we have it for Windows. What to downlaod a cool free program? yes, but where's my shortcut in Applications? Where my desktop icon. I do not feel that most of the general population is stupid. I have a brother who flies commercial jets. he is not stupid, but put him in front of a windows computer and ask him to find a free media player, downlaod it, install it and get it running and he can do that is less then 15 minutes. I, as a many many year software developer tried to do the same thing last weekend (I am attempting to understand Linux) and the end result was I never could find that damn application even after I took the RPM package install defaults. Where the hell did it put XMMS?
I, a long time user of Windows do not want Linux to *be* Windows. What I want us consistancy is visual usage. Applications install without manual steps. Access to software is not a confusion of install instructions with 5 choices of download files, most that look like "xmdf-123-fre.tar.rpm". Windows may not be consistant under the hood, but since 3.0, I could double-click on setup.exe file and in short time run a program.
which Enterprise? TOS, NG, X. For space and comfort NG had the best layout. I could see the main viewer as an awesome projection screen, the science station hooked to a semi automated dumb waiter that pulls snacks from a freezer, heats them up and delivers them on deck.
kinda, the thing is to start to structure the music by genre, style so people can better locate the style/sound they like and or go to a specific artist. If itunes costs me .99c for regular pop tune, then perhaps an indie can cost less if they are recording and producing without the overhead of the RIAA machine.
Again, this is the beauty of the internet. Create it, record it, deliver it wihtout the "machine" pimping it. Instead it is the talent, and word of mouth (like /.) that makes it happen.
From tfa..."In the past eight days she has entertained more than 250,000 fans worldwide"
From 70, to 62000, to 250,000 listeners. What an incredible way to build a base before she (and the band) go out and do tours. This is also just what RIAA *does not want to happen*. Young unkown band gets found not by some way over paid agent of musical darkness, but by the people themselves. A great example of what the interent *can* do for the masses and the individual.
Next step for this band and others to follow; produce and deliver an Album (as in collection of songs, not vinyl) that can be offered to those 250,000+ fans and growing without ever burning one CD. TCO to the band, nada for RIAA. The biggest obstacle I would see is they (and any band) would have problems booking gigs in larger venues without greasing the wheels of the venue promoters who are most likely in the pockets of the music industry.
IAOASD (I am only a software developer) so I may only see the rose through my glasses, but this could be the mouse that roared.
Music is not bad either.
(sigh)...
You are the British soldier that Ganhdi stood against in his struggle for India's independence.
You are the man screaming in the face of a young black girl as she climbs the steps hoping for a better life in a country that says she is second class.
You are the voice of a woman that screams religious epitaths during a private, loving funeral for a fallen american soldier.
So much anger, so much hubris it blinds and warps reason. Your comments are the reminder we have not crawled far from, us humans, the primate nature where blind following was deamed acceptable; reason was shattered by rocks, clubs, swords, words, and now laws.
Your world is very simple, and very scary. I pray I never have to live in it though sadly, it is not so far away. There is nothing more to say to you for your statements establish the tone of your message; one of chaos.
I would think that as a member of a school board, SHOUTING is not the best way to get across an idea.
As to the rest, you state absolutes like "the act does not hurt anybody but the bad guys", or democracts lie, yet there is nothing absolute in life other then death. Democrates lie? Please. They all lie. It is how bad the lie, or what harm comes from the lie that matters. Again...they.all.lie. That is the first rule ofa politician. Try it some time ata school board meeting. Tell the full truth and see how long you last. A former president lies about sex, a current president lied about reasons to start a war, wire-tapping, awareness of impending disaster and more. When lies cause suffering to many, those are the ones to truly question.
While your district may have improved, many more across the country have not. WHy is it that the state of Mass. has recently considered not accepting money from the Feds? Because the NCLB program is not as good as thier own state initiative. See, no absolutes here. Some things are good, some things are bad. However, a closed mind is the worst for it blinds the eyes from seeing the whole picture out there in life.
I could say more, but just so you know, I will vote democratic (D) this year and I will have flet like I did something good for our country. If an attack occurs tomorrow, I will vote (D). If one occurs two years from now I will vote (D) until such point as I feel the demcratic party has failed this country. Then I will find the next party that believes that "We The People" actually means something and takes less lip service to it. Please remember the shouting part next time an angry mom is screaming at you at a board meeting. Good day
"I do not think of myself as a coward."
Nor do I think that of you. You expressed your thoughts well and though I may disagree in principle, there comes a moment when we still have to question. I believe it was Reagan who said "Trust, but verify". Those who inact laws are not above them nor can they use National Secutiry in every case to justify actions outside the law. In the case of wire taps, FISA was there to ensure checka and balance, oversight and FISA was dismissed. Congress was dismissed and even now no consise evidence has been shown that FISA could not had been utilized.
Look at the current issue with the Port sale. Even the president did not know till after this deal was in place and on a matter such as this I would think all Government leaders would be made aware so to quell the concerns of the public. Again, people behind the leader were making decisions, making choices outside the framework that your quotes refer too.
It would seem it is not so much about giving up freedoms. No doing anything illegal is not the measure we should use to determine whether or not to give up liberty. It is about holding the People in Power to the laws, to the checks and balances *in place* so that while they do their job protecting the population, they are also not undermining the laws that protect us from chaos.
With that said, after the fall, don't shoot everyone that comes near the homestead, I still think most people are good, politicians not withstanding.
"love freedom, but I am willing to give some up if it means my wife and daughter are safer as a result. This happens all the time."
I figure you are already set in your ways on this topic, but I cannot let a statement like that to go on and appease others.
How much? How much freedom are you willing to give up? Quantify it for me so I can understand. Are you willing to carry ID cards all the time, that can't be that bad right. But you know, those ID cards can be duplicated, lost, stolen. Maybe we can get a RFID, but recently it's been shown to be hackable and those terrorists could steal your information.
Would you be willing to give up "some" of your freedom for a permanent tattoo. And just to help things go smoothly, the tattoo can be done on a visible part of the body. Back of the neck lets say. Maybe in the form of a barcode.
maybe that seems extreme, but the problem with "giving up" a little freedom here, a little freedom there tends to give more personal responsibility to the controlling body and less to the individual. You used examples of speeding. There are places in Europe where you can drive way over 100 mphs and not get a ticket. From experience I can say that their speed limits are more for safety then here in the U.S. Most towns coffers depend on tickets for revenue. You never had a right to go 100 mph, 55/60/whater is just an arbitrary number established to pull in dollars. Would you feel safer driving at 45 or 35 mph on the highway?
I will concur that as a society we have abdicated some aspects of privacy. When I fly I am searched. However, that is a choice. If I drive drunk, that is a choice and while I disagree with the statutes, I accept that I am choosing to fly (and be searched) or drive drunk (and face a DUI). In the issue regarding wiretapping by the NSA, there is no choice. Someone else *made* that choice and invaded the privacy of an American citizen. This is akin to the NSA busting down the door of a "suspected" terrorist with no warrant and saying it is legal because of the War.
It is not legal. The Police, the NSA, nobody in power can just "choose" to invade your privacy without due case, without judicial oversight. To give that up is not giving away a little freedom, it is giving away the core that this country was founded on.
At issue here is not whether bad guys should be monitored, tapped, or busted into. Most citizens, right/left/centrist would feel that if people are committing crimes the law needs to take action. the *issue* is that an agency(s) were directed to step outside the law, step outside the checks and balances this country stands for and accuse citizens without just cause.
This.Is.Wrong.
From the way you wrote your comment I figure you are entrenched in the idea that giving up these small freedoms will make you fee safer. Why? Because allowing the Government to break the law will catch more terrorists? With the current state of affairs in the world, there is an endless supply of people to join the cause so I doubt it would reduce the number of evil doers. Will it thwart plans to perform a terrorist act? How plans do you think these guys have? More then one or two I suspect. So we stopped an attack on LAX; they may have 4 ways to blow Boulder Dam, 6 ways to bring the northeast corridor to a halt, 10 ways to disrupt (aka kill) people in crowds. I felt "safer" flying three weeks after 9/11 because every person on that plane knew...knew that if a terrorist stood up and said "This is a high...." Bam, pow, uff and he would be on the floor with 10 bodies holding him down. Today I fear to fly not because of the terrorist, because the government has done nothing to really stop the problem why that man is on the plane.
before you give up your freedoms (which by the way are mine as well and I do not give them up so easily) why not ask the government what it is doing to stop the hatred that feeds terrorists. Ask the government to work on having this country not be such a target for hate
Someone already got my Mulligan joke idea so I'll move onto my other thought. Just yesterday I researched and wrote a small program to show the projectile trajectory of an object. IANAG but I understand that golf club faces have different face angles to change the loft of the ball. Drivers have low face angles, 9 irons high.
So what intrigues me (other then why the guy needs a tee in space) is when he hits the ball, how will the face angle change or set the trajectory (orbit?). Granted, this is a shameless commercial plug for a golf company, but it can provide a good lab for young physics minds to try and calculate the orbit. I read some posts that talked about the golf ball traveling 23 or 27 thousand mph. That must be one hell of a swing. I would think the relative velocity of the ball would be similar to that on earth. If he hits it in retrograde orbit I would be more worried about the thing slamming into a working satellite.
Since they are going to have a transmitter in the ball (rendering it illegal to use in PGA tours, but making it easier to find in the rough) it will be interesting to track. The next commercial idea in space I'd like to see...solar sails. North Sails, coupled with NASA sponsor a sail ship race from Earth to the Moon. Don't give a damn if they splash Coca Cola signs all over the place if it means something other then reseach is done in space.
You call him a troll? Okay, in the last 4 months I have installed:
Ubuntu
SUSE
Fedora
Mandriva
and will Knopix next
Every single install did not go smooth and I do not have some obscure system. It is a slighter older Dell p3 600. Okay, I get through the various partioning issues and now I have my Cool Linux OS installed. can it talk to my XP systems. Some yes, some no and if I did not know about samba...no to all. Can it play the MP3s on my XP box if it sees it? No! Oh, I can copy them over, but they will not play. Yes, I know *now* that I have to somehow install a mp3 codec....tried that, could not figure out how to get to work.
I understand that these distro are free and as such may not have all the beels and whistles of a commercial version (thinking of Fedora in this case), but if I have to plunk money down on an OS that I feel confident will install and play my music, play my games, provide a straight foward development environment...It will be Windows.
Turns out, I would like to add Linux to my skillset, but after two decades of working in this industry, I am not real fond of having to go backwards, figure out how the damn carborator works when I mainly want to drive. Linux is a tinker's playground and I respect that, but mainstream? I boils down to two things....click and go install of applications, and support of mainstream games without.....without compiling, manual setting of menu items, and reconfiguring of drivers/kernels, and hardly ever ever having to go into a console.
and yet, you do not see the high tech laser weapon, the real time 24/7 satellite security watch (yes they oggle my wife, but a small price for security), and the fact that as a USCG Licensed Capt (that's real) I know about pirates and you would not get close enough to get the second shot off before I use a very illegal, but effective launcher against your woossy twin 60s. I can dream :-) safely.
"In today's networked world the vast majority of us are still held to an arbitrary requirement for face time" I view it as industrial age management in an information age world. I agree with all you say. My boss sits 800 mile away yet the local office has a policy of 8 to 5. I never viewed programming as an 8 to 5 job, but nevertheless this time frame is set in stone. The problem then is that when I am creative, maybe at 8 pm, maybe at 6 am I will not do anything about it because I still ahve to do my time. If I was a consultant or business owner I know I'd put more hours in, butr I would still feel like I control those times. The factory is dead, management is still trying CPR.
True, but the moment is fleeting. Long term work at home is still the better work environment these days. besides, most of the gossip you can trust will come from those you work closest with home or in the office. You'd still get the juice, maybe not in real time. If I even smelled a merger rumor I'd be updating my resume.
So, when you are downsized/rightsized/job challanged and you have to look for the next paycheck, what happens when you can't find that great telecommute job anymore. If you are not a consultant/contractor but working for a company you have a rare position. Most coporations still do not understand the positive benefits of work at home nor do they know how to manage it.
I had what you have. I was happier, more productive, and just as much a team player as those in the office. I got downsized and now I work for less, I drive 30 minutes or more to work in cube even though I have broadband at home and VPN to the office. I am the only client server developer in a floor full of Mainframe support programmers, my boss resides three states away, yet they will not let me work at home.
Despite the slashdot article about increased IT jobs in the US, the technical worker these days cannot request better work conditions *because* of the implied threat of offshore workers. I know, I've tried.
I envy your deck, boxers, and beer. Pray you don't lose that nice position because I will bet you one of those beers you will not find it so easy to get another job with the same benefits.
As a side note, I have to laugh at the Intel/Microsoft commercials that promote the idea you can take the office with you anywhere. Were that so, why do even those companies require most of their development staff to live in Seattle; drive to the campus to work. If they believe their own marketing, prove it and show the rest of the technology world that it can work.
the perfect telecommute spot, a 40+ sloop with a KVH autotracking satellite dish providing broadband capability, chilled vodka and a loving wife sunning on deck....Ah...At least I can dream.
What the heck is "STFU"?
f u
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=st
normally used as "Shut The F#$k Up". Like "Dude", it can be used in the pegorative manner "God you are Stupid, STFU!" or as an exclamation or startlement. Elaine in Sienfield used the cleaner version at times, "Shut Up", to punctuate her suprize. STFU would emphsize more extreme surprize. I took the original poster statement more towards exclaim then dismissiveness.
I read the summary three times and I jsut can't figure it out. Maybe I'm art challanged or something, but my imagination has live people bumping into each other while where goggles and gloves. Those who distain wearing the accoutremonts of VR will have a great chuckle seeing the "live" folks" trying to interact with VR folks. I hope there is a video of this after it's over for that is the only way it will make sense to me.
This must be the modern version of a masked ball.
If this was the case why not send his remarks (as you recollect) to a local news media. At the very least you may be doing a good thing by trying to help bring these back door coersions to light. At best it gets picked up by the media (local then national) so even more people then those addicted to /. become aware of how much we/thary are losing by those who are meant to represent them.
Every now and then I read these types of comments on this site and I wonder why those who are upset by what they hear do not do something with the information. Yes, for the record, I would try to report something like this to some media group (tv/paper/radio) in the hopes the word is spread.
An unsubstantiated report from gP Reuters states that Google is considering the acquisition of the United States of America. A senior management source who would not be quoted said that this is clearly in keeping with the company motto "Do No Evil". Google sees the purchase of the USA as a chance to continue their practice of buying half finished or poorly built products and improving on the product. The first order of business will be to restructure the government to provide quicker response with minimal flash and attention getting.
Google a spokesman pointed out that much of the country has already been converted over to a marketing/advertising platform. They feel Google can improve the scatter gun advertising that is somewhat haphazard in TV, Radio, and magazines. they continued, "Interested in taking a ride to Grandma's house? Road signs will now start to display targeted advertising relating to what best fits Grandma's needs". When pushed about the various ongoing conflicts the US is involved in Google stated that by purchasing the US, wars will be eliminated from the business plan as they are bad areas for advertising. One other minor result of the purchase will be the total destruction of Microsoft as an American corporation. "Google cannot abide having such evil in its land".
"If I have the responsibility to protect the USA, I'm going to do what I can to accomplish that, right up to (but not over) the edge of what I can do legally. Because I'd have to be responsible to obey the law too." But that is the point. I agree with the emphisis on legally. Nothing stopped this Administration from obtaining warrants, nothing stopped this Administration from getting warrants after the fact. Even with that broad spectrum of options the Administration chose to not even bother to try and work with the existing laws. Of course we should defend and protect, but that which we are also trying to protect is the rule of law. To ma, that is the purpsoe of our Goverment. When *it* feels that it can supercede without eventual oversight then We The People have truly lost control of those we intrust to protect us. If you feel that strongly about ensuring our protection then help Us get our goverment back by standing up and saying I do not accept lawless actions and support those who not only want to protect this country, but want to protect it's laws as well.
I don't really understand what the big deal is.
Until it happens to you? I guess it is no big deal if the police try to catch the thief who stole your neighbor's widescreen because hey, it doesn't effect me, it's not like the thief killed anyone.
The big deal is that there laws that are meant to protect the citizens of this country. The law does not differentiate between ordinary citizens or idiots that may accepts calls from Al-Qaeda. The president is not above the law and he must answer to it as any American citizen must when they break the law. Just because past leaders did is not a valid argument to ignore the present actions of this leader.
This is not about internation calls versus domestic calls. it is about due process, it is about working within the law so that we not only protect the citizens of this country, but we protect the basic tenents this country was founded on. I for one feel that this be strongly investigated to determine not if the president broke the law, but who else was culpable, and how far has this program gone in tapping into American citizens without 4th amendment protection.
Consider also that if an American citizen was arrested because of these illegal wiretaps, the case could be dismissed because the Goverment had not filed the proper warrants.
As a recent college grad what bills do you have that lock you into a dead-end job? If they are anything more then the basics (car, student loan, apt) then I would give up the broadband, cable, going out to eat, buying cool toys for a while and figure out how to live on a tight budget. If you are that trapped in a job then there are other issues then the job pulling at your life.
As one poster alluded to, if you can slashdot, you can look for jobs on Monster, Dice, Career builder, etc. Do you have a plan for looking? like setting a goal of sending out x number of resumes a day or week. Are you willing to relocate? It may improve your chances
If you have family, quit the killer job, get something part time and start hitting the pavement or ether. The only thing keeping you locked in this "horrible" job is you. If it is that bad, get out now otherwise, stay in, build time, learn how to time manage so that maybe you are not working so much overtime, and sometimes just say no. The worst they'll do is fire you and in todays climate, it could be either that or downsized. Take care of Self first for no job is worth an early start to unhappiness.
Oh? From what I read many of those people were pulling huge hours, maximum stress with the intent on making huge profits, not so much a solid long term product. I'll accept that if you have 5, 10 15 companies all trying to capitalize on roughly the same thing, some will lose no matter even if they have a good product or service.
.coms could have been putting their heart and soul into the work and not have a good leadership group to balance the needs of the employees, customers, and VCs. I will still stand on the statement that happy employees will generally make for a better company, a positive customer base, and a stronger economy. People who feel good, feel like they have a stake in the company, feel like they future will be more inclined to spend money. For those folks who made the $$$ during the .com bubble, what did they do with the money? Save or spend.
Some of the folks that worked for
"Here's a hint for all you future entrepreneurs: the only thing that will keep you profitable is to keep your customers happy and offer them a consistency in your performance -- product quality and customer service. Ignore the trends, the fads and trying to sell everything to everyone."
I would suggest that the best thing to keep you profitable is to keep your employees happy and offer them a positive, stimulating workplace in which to grow. There have been many stories over the years that I've heard which showed when a company focused on keeping the employee happy and motived, this translated into better customer satifaction and profit. Employees that come to work with a desire to do good, to contribute are people that come through the door with ideas on how to make the company better, with a desire to help the customer because they want that customer to like (believe) in their company.
Look at a company like Southwest airlines; right in their mission statement (http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/mission.html) page they publicly state the way they will treat their employees. The first quarter after 9/11 they where the only major carrier that continued to earn a profit. Some of that success must come from the three pronged framework of employee - customer - employer. By putting the customer first, it is a small step to putting the shareholder first and that leads to management looking at employees as numbers on a profit loss statement instead of valuable resources to help grow the company. Of course it is important to keep the customer happy, but it is short sighted to think it stops there.
Overall, I have the same feelings about Sony today. I avoid purchasing any of their products, but now that is in the forefront of my mind when I do want to buy something, I see how many product lines they are into. I purchased a 42" Samsung widescreen recently and now am glad that it was a good choice.