just remember: decibel levels depend upon how close you are to the source of the noise.
That's why the noise threshold so many cities & towns cite is laughable. The decibel level at 1' isn't the same as 2' which isn't the same as 3', and so on. With a car's stereo, the decibel level at 10' and 100' aren't the same.
Remember, the original concept was for three trilogies. The only "characters" throughout all nine movies: c3po and r2d2. I think once the degree of dedication and imagination became obvious, feature creep entered the picture.
When IV, V, and VI, came out, they were revolutionary in many ways - and everyone points to the F/X. Unfortunately, F/X is the first thing everyone uses to defend or sell I, II, and III. "Oh! The F/X are terrific!" "Yeah, but the story stinks". We heard this for I and II. After being burned by I and II was released, "of course the F/X are better, but the story problem from I doesn't exist here!". Enter the theatre for II and you find out why the sign outside said, "Bring your vacuum cleaner - get in for 1/2 price!" (because this movie sucks). What's everyone saying about III? First: F/X. Second: F/X. Third: F/X. Oh, the story is better than I+II put together. Yeah, right. If I p%ss in a cup and tell you it's lemonade, would you fall for it? Lots of people seem to be.
It would seem the the NPR's new term "Wookie Hookie" has been pretty accurate in terms of people sneaking out. To save money, the best bet is to take clients out for the afternoon and charge it to the boss so you don't have to pay for someone else's lemonade yourself. I got burned by I, skipped II until it was rentable, and will likely do the same for III.
The biggest tragedy is Lucas had so much going for him despite how little directorial experience he had and after IV,V, VI, seemed to have burned out on the experience before trying to eke out I, II, III.
Screw bills....we'll drop pennies [xmission.com] on them.
MythBusters has already shown a penny dropped from an extremely tall building won't do much to someone standing on the street.
How many pennies would it take to do damage to someone and how you would keep them close enough together to actually do damage? (put them in sandwich baggies?) And how many people could you inflict some serious damage to with a single payload? I think they (MythBusters) would say, "This Myth is busted.".
I truly believe low-space flight has the same motivation as letting the Hubble go to seed: they're tired and bored with all of the old toys and games - they're trying to justify asking Santa to put a new, bright, shiny toy under their Christmas Tree come December 25th. That is as simple[1] as it gets.
If I paid you the same pay as the pilots and you were given a VW Bug to drive around the Indy 500 track here in Indianapolis, how long would it take for you to get bored and wish you had a different car or a different track and basically needed something something to relieve your boredom?
Simpletons will say if the pay is right it won't matter.
They can stay in the IT field (for lying) and continue to "not be bored": ==> Go to Directly to Data Entry ==> Do not pass Go! Do not collect $200.
________________________________________
[1]"Make things simple, not simpler." -Erasmus
You mean like the guy who showed up on Dr. Phil for a 2nd time today? He was considered the "Worst Husband in the US". He was the one who told his wife to shut her suckhole and respect what the told her to do because he was the man of the family and she should do everything his way. This included how she brushed teeth. The Mrs. (on the first visit) made some comment about how she showered:
Dr. Phil: "He shows you how to shower?"
Mrs: "No, he just tells me I do it wrong."
Dr. Phil: "She stands up for him!"
Apparently, Dr. P got through to him but even more, the comments from all of the readers on the messageboards basically said he wasn't worth whatever it cost to buy something used to wipe him out and it really hurt his feelings enough to see the error of his ways.
When he came back on today, he was as laid back as someone who was p%ssy-whipped like someone who had been part of a two-week daily test of Cialis.
My point is that if it is (or must) be declared, you'd better have a good defense on your side. And that means arranging one in advance. Another student or a parent will not do. You're looking at severe legal consequences[1], no matter how small the scale you perceive it and now benevolent you consider your efforts.
This is why I said grabbing the media and giving them an opportunity to be in on this from the beginning. No matter what the school does, the media has the ability to supercede the school's actions and can bring a lot more pressure than you and a peer can.
It's one thing to be looking at this from a set of young eyes and an entirely different one for those of us who are probably old enough to be your parents and providing you [free] advice. This isn't just from what might happen.
If you cannot get the media, I'd schedule a meeting with your parents, the principal, and a couple of teachers you know do not "travel in the same circles" and perhaps some who do not even know you as a student. This would make them a bit more objective than "Johnny was such a good student. I know he'd never do anything wrong." You need someone impartial there. I'd also consider having a video camera there along with someone who actually knows how to run it and doesn't run into a situation like True Lies. Also, don't focus on the keyboard & screen, but the people in attendance - the dialogue, etc.. And during the activities, it would be good to describe what is being done (not character-by-character) in general for the record on the camera.
Regardless of the hurdles you have to jump before preparing evidence, if you do it alone, you have nothing to show your intentions. You may have good rapport with your principal and they will thank you. But if you don't...you may be the next one to Free{your name here}!
You'd be surprised how many I knew.
If it's for the bragging rights and not for the purpose of doing right, then whatever happens as a result is just deserts.
I hope the English teacher(s) got a shot at you as well: "I spend time".
The better thing to do [both then and now] would be to have someone from the media with the informer. If the "powers that be" choose not to "go along with it" while it's on the record, then that still leaves the door open for the story to explain what's possible, what's been offered, and what's been refused...and by whom. You cannot win 1 vs. the world. Adding the media to equation, particularly one who knows what they are doing, can even the stakes a bit.
The question begs: do you have to report these problems or is it a case of bragging rights - even if you are the only one who knows - so you will have cool stories on slashdot, blog entries, or magazine articles in the future?
As always, you have to pick your battles. But when you are forced into a battle, you have to decide which weapons to use and how. That's where the media is inserted into the equation.
I can claim to have created an apt quote before it became popular:
"The World's Biggest Secret Club."
For the most part, the only people who knew what it was were those who were connected. Yes, there was an expectation something like it would come to being at some time, most people still didn't know it existed.
...which was triggered by using SpamCop.
SpamCop tells you your average time between the timestamp of the spam message and when you report it.
Add to this situation:
The suggestion original story said the tapering might be because some reported errors have been publicized ala: "Gee, it's not flawless so it's no better than IE".
Why not apply the SpamCop theme to FF bugs? No one in their right mind has ever claimed software is without bugs and
the OS world certainly hasn't said that. In fact, one of the assets has been any reported bugs can be worked with because
there's a confirm|fix|release development team available twenty-four hours/day. Contrast this with Microsoft's preferences of keeping all announcements
offline until they've had a chance to ponder problems on a longer-term scale.
Why not put this resource (global coverage) to use for better promotion (and bragging rights?)
Why not try something fairly accessible (e.g. whereever it's going to be the most prominent for anyone visiting
the site, particularly if they are first-timers or press, and provide the option of a rundown - a very, very simple fashion (or an option as to what degree or
scale of information the user wishes to see) - you aren't wanting to scare anyone off - quite the opposite. You want this information to be a selling point. You'd want it along the lines of and probably sorted by most recent at the top:
I think masking a RFID in your right forearm will come back to haunt anyone who tries to do it. There will obviously be certain sites; e.g. practically any free-standing object which should perform "tracking" tasks - identify those who aren't "showing up". Those will be taken aside to determine why they don't show up on the grid as part of a discussion. If you've removed yours and you're lucky, they'll insert a replacement; if your funnycount exceeds a particular count...perhaps a small scar on the right frontal area; if you aren't being funny and they aren't kind about providing a replacement...(Soylent Green is made of people
(Was it here?) There's a couple of Mexican gov't officials who have voluntarily had RFIDs inserted into their forearms to be used for security identifcation - access through doors, etc. where biometrics would normally be the primary identification.
BTW, Soylent Green is one of about fifty movies I've got on a list to be schlocked. Previously predicted victims which all have come true (so far): Rollerball, Flight of the Phoenix, The Longest Yard, Animal House, Willie Wonka. (If you can't come up with an original idea, let's take an old one, update it, trash it with second-rate actors, and re-release it). I need to put these on a blog.
In terms of regulating Internet businesses.......don't anyone wet their pants or get a woody because this will provide a method for sticking it to the big, bad phone companies and bypass the high prices, rules & regulations, entrance laws & prices, just remember...those big, bad phone companies have big-ass PACs, political connections, and any other form of resource which would help define a plutocracy. And most of all, don't think they are going to take this lying down. The 911 issue is nothing - not even a pea shooter across the bow.
Before it's said & done, regulations will start rolling in a direction where it's clear the Internet phone firms are on a downhill slide and we'll see M&A (mergers & acquisitions) for the firms who have assets worth purchasing. The rest are going to sit on the side wondering where they went wrong...
What would you do if you had a girlfriend you were trying to break up with who started doing this stuff [to you]? This is separation anxiety[1]. It's being done to manipulate you. If you start feeling wishy-washy or give any indication of it (including telling anyone else there, you're going to encourage it because he'll know it's working.
[1] toddlers have the same problem when Mommy, whom Timmy has relied upon being there all of the time, is stepping out for the evening.
Talk to your co-workers about everything after you've left over drinks some night. After you'e had a week or two to jump into your new job and your old office has settled down a bit. And if you are part of a herd departure (en masse), you can form a support group between those of you who have managed to get out to another job and supporting those who are still caught in the tar pit. Eventually, you can routinely have a "survivors' meeting" and keep an eye on what's going on - how many ads they've run and how long they've stayed open, etc.
If he's going to trash you in front of everyone, it's like the old philosopher whose students come in and say, "Teacher! You won't believe the things they are saying about you on the streets!" "What are you going to do?" "Nothing. I live such that no one will believe it."
Ever hear the phrase, "Wrestle with a pig and win-or-lose, you get dirty." ?
The other thing you're doing is showing everyone else they can leave on their own as well. If you buckle under, they're going to feel as though they can't leave, either. Be a good example for everyone else. (unless you hate their guts)
All but two or three states (sorry, I can't tell you which they are) have employment at will laws. This means they can walk in and can you sans notice and you can do the same to them. The issues of bias & discrimination then come in when you have to figure out if it was because of something they shouldn't have used.
Counter-offers.
These are worthless. You've made a commitment to someone else for a particular amount of money, etc. Backing down on that only shames you. And when your current employer finds you can be bought, you know what they think about you:
A man walked up to a girl and asked her, "Would you sleep with me for $1M?"
"Yes!" she said.
"Would you sleep with me for $25?"
"What kind of girl do you think I am?"
"We've already established that. Now we're arguing price."
Now. If you're ever in the driver's seat with your current employer and they make you a deal you can't resist, what's going to happen to you when they don't need you anny more?
Oh, one other thing: exit interviews. Depending upon the circumstances, they can serve different purposes. If they've taken your feedback and general ideas over your time there and put it into effect, then an exit interview is a time to open up and provide feedback. If, however, you're getting out of there because you are getting out while you can before the pr%ck you are working for goes postal, an exit interview will largely be used to let you blow off steam and let you vent, hoping you won't air dirty laundry in the future, as that goes two ways: how they function as a company (business-wise) and how they work internally (employee-wise) - both can hurt a business' reputation in the public eye...horribly. If they are suddenly so interested in your feedback as an ex-employee, why weren't they routinely soliciting it as an employee - particularly once you start[ed] showing yourself to be a source of good ideas?
All-in-all, it's a small, small world. You never know when something good or bad is going to come back and benefit or haunt you. It's as if the movie cameras are always running. I've had placement services contact me asking if I was the one who {did something good because someone passed good words} and they've contacted others because I've told them about {someone I know who has done well with...}
Whatever those people smoking, pass it down the line.
There isn't a ban on federal funding for stem cell research. Some strains, families, chains - whatever the proper term is, are already available so they have been grandfathered.
One of the debates in the science, and specifically the genetic branches is how viable those cells are for ensuring genetic diversity for true research. I'd liken it to the question of "How many people (and how many of each gender) would you need on a deserted island in order for them to reproduce without introducing any genetic funny business. Many who will be planning the various projects believe there's not enough to go around and anything they do will not be comprehensive.
In terms of states funding their residential scientists, California is not doing so well financially. Ah-nold is starting to find the honeymoon is over and he better find a way to get the financial house in order.
As a side note, I'm waiting to see some research as to whether my guess about stem cells could be used to cause cancer. After all, stem cells can be used pretty much as a "one size fits all." So why couldn't something along the lines of things we know triggers cancer: chemicals, radiation, smoking (which does have some radiation as well), heredity, bacteria (when all else fails) drive them into becoming cells running hog wild.
Most spam still originates from within the US. And I'm not talking about people who are in the US, sign on to hardware in China, then send crap back here.
There are enough US ISPs willing to accept easy money from spammers and have no intention of cutting the cable until|unless they lose money as a result of maintaining that connection.
Re:we're almost able to replace their eyes!
on
Robots to Help the Blind
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Once there's enough resolution for the blind to use the artificial eyes, those who benefit the most will be those who most recently lost their sight. Essentially, the ability to adapt to and benefit the most will be increase with a ratio corresponding to the length of time since they lost their sight.
One of the things which babies' bodies learn as they are growing up as infants, is for their eyes to grow & focus; something which is gradual and not a shock to them.
Imagine someone who was born blind and is hooked up. What do you think they will see and how well will their brain cope with it? And when the shock sets in, how will they deal with that? Once someone realizes what's going on, they'll disconnect it. Then they'll find out they have to progressively work through the process of learning to see - just as infants do. Otherwise, I believe they'd rather be blind rather than live in a world of painful chaos.
Regardless of how many of them there are, how many (a percentage will do as an alternative to headcount) of them get to see an unfiltered Internet?
It's well-documented there are watchers in chat rooms who redact material real-time which is "against policy", some horrendous filters which screen practically everything but spam, and I'll bet the only address they're allowed to connect to with FTP is 127.0.0.1.
Sheer numbers and population percentages mean nothing when there's nothing to look at. Trust me: the Chinese will have a better chance at seeing CineMax sans filtering at midnight before they get an unfiltered connection to the Internet.
The patent description could just as easily be real-time or semi real-time.
That means the definition of web pages would have to be made.
Would IMs qualify? The UI as a form might qualify as a web page and the communication between users of different web pages would seem to fit. IRC with a web twist? How about games which are played by two (or more) players across web forms? No matter how common the game would be, it would qualify.
There are going to be a lot of unhappy people who are going to have to install a coin slot into a USB port and plop a little silver via PayPal[1] in just to play Hearts against each other.
There's a lot of prior art here.
[1] once Amazon enforces a forthcoming patent for users outbidding each other and takes PayPal as a settlement from eBay.
Holy Crap. Where in Hell's Bathroom does he come up with these ideas?
Guess what? He's come forward in time from the 60s and 70s and invented the BBS!
What will he think of next?
smoke signals?
telegraph?
telephone?
car phone of the 70s?
radio?
jungle drums?
cell phones?
tv (black and white will do)?
the 40 lb. Compaq "portable" PC (before they went bankrupt the first time)?
He just has too much time on his hands.
I used to say this:
"Someday we'll find Microsoft has patented the alphabet and every time we sit down at the keyboard we'll find ourselves paying royalties."
I guess I'm wrong. Maybe Jeff will beat Microsoft to it?
Remember the "Be Like Mike!" commercials?
I think we'll see a remake as "Be Like Jeff!"
(When we're discussing Jeff and Bill, I have a very hard time clicking the [Submit] button. I do too much submitting to them as it is)
...he would often stay after work to get it just right...
Many of us are proud to have code which looks "just right" and works "just right", but there's a lesson many people learn the hard way: "The perfect is the enemy of the good. -Voltaire. There's a fine line between that and "Does it run?" (without regard to how well it runs, how efficient it runs, does it scale, how well the architecture has been designed to accommodate future versions, etc.) Not to mention decision time: "Do you want it fast, right, or cheap? (pick two)
--Indiana barely passes Daylight Saving Time into law
--The new dome & convention center will be [partially] paid for by charging the surrounding counties a 1% tax on all served, commercially prepared food. Some in the legislature have called this the "donut" plan. I prefer to call it, "Alice Taxing the Brady Bunch" in an editorial written before they decided this "innovative" plan. That tax has a sunset - thirty years! The current dome has a 1% tax on food in "Alice's square" right now with a long sunset and the money is being used for unknown purposes. This means Alice will be taxining food an extra 1% on local food.
--And finally, we allow these goobers to file spurious lawsuits.
Slashdot Mirror
just remember: decibel levels depend upon how close you are to the source of the noise.
That's why the noise threshold so many cities & towns cite is laughable. The decibel level at 1' isn't the same as 2' which isn't the same as 3', and so on. With a car's stereo, the decibel level at 10' and 100' aren't the same.
Wikepedia's Decibel & Acoustics info
I guess they don't teach this in high-school physics any more?
(or was this an attempt to make a quick joke with inaccurate information?)
It could have been worse!
Remember, the original concept was for three trilogies. The only "characters" throughout all nine movies: c3po and r2d2. I think once the degree of dedication and imagination became obvious, feature creep entered the picture.
When IV, V, and VI, came out, they were revolutionary in many ways - and everyone points to the F/X. Unfortunately, F/X is the first thing everyone uses to defend or sell I, II, and III. "Oh! The F/X are terrific!" "Yeah, but the story stinks". We heard this for I and II. After being burned by I and II was released, "of course the F/X are better, but the story problem from I doesn't exist here!". Enter the theatre for II and you find out why the sign outside said, "Bring your vacuum cleaner - get in for 1/2 price!" (because this movie sucks). What's everyone saying about III? First: F/X. Second: F/X. Third: F/X. Oh, the story is better than I+II put together. Yeah, right. If I p%ss in a cup and tell you it's lemonade, would you fall for it? Lots of people seem to be.
It would seem the the NPR's new term "Wookie Hookie" has been pretty accurate in terms of people sneaking out. To save money, the best bet is to take clients out for the afternoon and charge it to the boss so you don't have to pay for someone else's lemonade yourself. I got burned by I, skipped II until it was rentable, and will likely do the same for III.
The biggest tragedy is Lucas had so much going for him despite how little directorial experience he had and after IV,V, VI, seemed to have burned out on the experience before trying to eke out I, II, III.
They haven't been brainwashed by M$ yet.
They're known as Summer Interns.
Screw bills....we'll drop pennies [xmission.com] on them.
MythBusters has already shown a penny dropped from an extremely tall building won't do much to someone standing on the street.
How many pennies would it take to do damage to someone and how you would keep them close enough together to actually do damage? (put them in sandwich baggies?) And how many people could you inflict some serious damage to with a single payload? I think they (MythBusters) would say, "This Myth is busted.".
I truly believe low-space flight has the same motivation as letting the Hubble go to seed: they're tired and bored with all of the old toys and games - they're trying to justify asking Santa to put a new, bright, shiny toy under their Christmas Tree come December 25th. That is as simple[1] as it gets.
If I paid you the same pay as the pilots and you were given a VW Bug to drive around the Indy 500 track here in Indianapolis, how long would it take for you to get bored and wish you had a different car or a different track and basically needed something something to relieve your boredom?
Simpletons will say if the pay is right it won't matter.
They can stay in the IT field (for lying) and continue to "not be bored": ==> Go to Directly to Data Entry ==> Do not pass Go! Do not collect $200.
________________________________________
[1]"Make things simple, not simpler." -Erasmus
You mean like the guy who showed up on Dr. Phil for a 2nd time today? He was considered the "Worst Husband in the US". He was the one who told his wife to shut her suckhole and respect what the told her to do because he was the man of the family and she should do everything his way. This included how she brushed teeth. The Mrs. (on the first visit) made some comment about how she showered:
Dr. Phil: "He shows you how to shower?"
Mrs: "No, he just tells me I do it wrong."
Dr. Phil: "She stands up for him!"
Apparently, Dr. P got through to him but even more, the comments from all of the readers on the messageboards basically said he wasn't worth whatever it cost to buy something used to wipe him out and it really hurt his feelings enough to see the error of his ways.
When he came back on today, he was as laid back as someone who was p%ssy-whipped like someone who had been part of a two-week daily test of Cialis.
I agree it must be reported.
My point is that if it is (or must) be declared, you'd better have a good defense on your side. And that means arranging one in advance. Another student or a parent will not do. You're looking at severe legal consequences[1], no matter how small the scale you perceive it and now benevolent you consider your efforts.
This is why I said grabbing the media and giving them an opportunity to be in on this from the beginning. No matter what the school does, the media has the ability to supercede the school's actions and can bring a lot more pressure than you and a peer can.
It's one thing to be looking at this from a set of young eyes and an entirely different one for those of us who are probably old enough to be your parents and providing you [free] advice. This isn't just from what might happen.
If you cannot get the media, I'd schedule a meeting with your parents, the principal, and a couple of teachers you know do not "travel in the same circles" and perhaps some who do not even know you as a student. This would make them a bit more objective than "Johnny was such a good student. I know he'd never do anything wrong." You need someone impartial there. I'd also consider having a video camera there along with someone who actually knows how to run it and doesn't run into a situation like True Lies. Also, don't focus on the keyboard & screen, but the people in attendance - the dialogue, etc.. And during the activities, it would be good to describe what is being done (not character-by-character) in general for the record on the camera.
Regardless of the hurdles you have to jump before preparing evidence, if you do it alone, you have nothing to show your intentions. You may have good rapport with your principal and they will thank you. But if you don't...you may be the next one to Free {your name here} !
[1] Free Kevin!
You'd be surprised how many I knew. If it's for the bragging rights and not for the purpose of doing right, then whatever happens as a result is just deserts.
I hope the English teacher(s) got a shot at you as well: "I spend time".
The better thing to do [both then and now] would be to have someone from the media with the informer. If the "powers that be" choose not to "go along with it" while it's on the record, then that still leaves the door open for the story to explain what's possible, what's been offered, and what's been refused...and by whom. You cannot win 1 vs. the world. Adding the media to equation, particularly one who knows what they are doing, can even the stakes a bit.
The question begs: do you have to report these problems or is it a case of bragging rights - even if you are the only one who knows - so you will have cool stories on slashdot, blog entries, or magazine articles in the future?
As always, you have to pick your battles. But when you are forced into a battle, you have to decide which weapons to use and how. That's where the media is inserted into the equation.
I can claim to have created an apt quote before it became popular:
"The World's Biggest Secret Club."
For the most part, the only people who knew what it was were those who were connected. Yes, there was an expectation something like it would come to being at some time, most people still didn't know it existed.
...which was triggered by using SpamCop.
SpamCop tells you your average time between the timestamp of the spam message and when you report it.
Add to this situation:
The suggestion original story said the tapering might be because some reported errors have been publicized ala: "Gee, it's not flawless so it's no better than IE".
Why not apply the SpamCop theme to FF bugs? No one in their right mind has ever claimed software is without bugs and the OS world certainly hasn't said that. In fact, one of the assets has been any reported bugs can be worked with because there's a confirm|fix|release development team available twenty-four hours/day. Contrast this with Microsoft's preferences of keeping all announcements offline until they've had a chance to ponder problems on a longer-term scale.
Why not put this resource (global coverage) to use for better promotion (and bragging rights?)
Why not try something fairly accessible (e.g. whereever it's going to be the most prominent for anyone visiting the site, particularly if they are first-timers or press, and provide the option of a rundown - a very, very simple fashion (or an option as to what degree or scale of information the user wishes to see) - you aren't wanting to scare anyone off - quite the opposite. You want this information to be a selling point. You'd want it along the lines of and probably sorted by most recent at the top:
Bug#i Reported: TimeStampj Confirmed: TimeStampk Fixed: TimeStampl available: TimeStampm Confirmed: TimeStampn Total Elapsed Time: TimeStampo
I think masking a RFID in your right forearm will come back to haunt anyone who tries to do it. There will obviously be certain sites; e.g. practically any free-standing object which should perform "tracking" tasks - identify those who aren't "showing up". Those will be taken aside to determine why they don't show up on the grid as part of a discussion. If you've removed yours and you're lucky, they'll insert a replacement; if your funnycount exceeds a particular count...perhaps a small scar on the right frontal area; if you aren't being funny and they aren't kind about providing a replacement...(Soylent Green is made of people
(Was it here?) There's a couple of Mexican gov't officials who have voluntarily had RFIDs inserted into their forearms to be used for security identifcation - access through doors, etc. where biometrics would normally be the primary identification.
BTW, Soylent Green is one of about fifty movies I've got on a list to be schlocked. Previously predicted victims which all have come true (so far): Rollerball, Flight of the Phoenix, The Longest Yard, Animal House, Willie Wonka. (If you can't come up with an original idea, let's take an old one, update it, trash it with second-rate actors, and re-release it). I need to put these on a blog.
In terms of regulating Internet businesses.... ...don't anyone wet their pants or get a woody because this will provide a method for sticking it to the big, bad phone companies and bypass the high prices, rules & regulations, entrance laws & prices, just remember...those big, bad phone companies have big-ass PACs, political connections, and any other form of resource which would help define a plutocracy. And most of all, don't think they are going to take this lying down. The 911 issue is nothing - not even a pea shooter across the bow.
Before it's said & done, regulations will start rolling in a direction where it's clear the Internet phone firms are on a downhill slide and we'll see M&A (mergers & acquisitions) for the firms who have assets worth purchasing. The rest are going to sit on the side wondering where they went wrong...
Win2K? IIRC, That's going out of service in June (2005).
tick....tick....tick...tick...tick...
oops. I didn't mean to use the name "Timmy" for separation anxiety when the original story was by Timothy.
I agree completely - and will add more:
What would you do if you had a girlfriend you were trying to break up with who started doing this stuff [to you]? This is separation anxiety[1]. It's being done to manipulate you. If you start feeling wishy-washy or give any indication of it (including telling anyone else there, you're going to encourage it because he'll know it's working.
[1] toddlers have the same problem when Mommy, whom Timmy has relied upon being there all of the time, is stepping out for the evening.
Talk to your co-workers about everything after you've left over drinks some night. After you'e had a week or two to jump into your new job and your old office has settled down a bit. And if you are part of a herd departure (en masse), you can form a support group between those of you who have managed to get out to another job and supporting those who are still caught in the tar pit. Eventually, you can routinely have a "survivors' meeting" and keep an eye on what's going on - how many ads they've run and how long they've stayed open, etc.
If he's going to trash you in front of everyone, it's like the old philosopher whose students come in and say, "Teacher! You won't believe the things they are saying about you on the streets!" "What are you going to do?" "Nothing. I live such that no one will believe it."
Ever hear the phrase, "Wrestle with a pig and win-or-lose, you get dirty." ?
The other thing you're doing is showing everyone else they can leave on their own as well. If you buckle under, they're going to feel as though they can't leave, either. Be a good example for everyone else. (unless you hate their guts)
All but two or three states (sorry, I can't tell you which they are) have employment at will laws. This means they can walk in and can you sans notice and you can do the same to them. The issues of bias & discrimination then come in when you have to figure out if it was because of something they shouldn't have used.
Counter-offers.
These are worthless. You've made a commitment to someone else for a particular amount of money, etc. Backing down on that only shames you. And when your current employer finds you can be bought, you know what they think about you:
A man walked up to a girl and asked her, "Would you sleep with me for $1M?"
"Yes!" she said.
"Would you sleep with me for $25?"
"What kind of girl do you think I am?"
"We've already established that. Now we're arguing price."
Now. If you're ever in the driver's seat with your current employer and they make you a deal you can't resist, what's going to happen to you when they don't need you anny more?
Oh, one other thing: exit interviews. Depending upon the circumstances, they can serve different purposes. If they've taken your feedback and general ideas over your time there and put it into effect, then an exit interview is a time to open up and provide feedback. If, however, you're getting out of there because you are getting out while you can before the pr%ck you are working for goes postal, an exit interview will largely be used to let you blow off steam and let you vent, hoping you won't air dirty laundry in the future, as that goes two ways: how they function as a company (business-wise) and how they work internally (employee-wise) - both can hurt a business' reputation in the public eye...horribly. If they are suddenly so interested in your feedback as an ex-employee, why weren't they routinely soliciting it as an employee - particularly once you start[ed] showing yourself to be a source of good ideas?
All-in-all, it's a small, small world. You never know when something good or bad is going to come back and benefit or haunt you. It's as if the movie cameras are always running. I've had placement services contact me asking if I was the one who {did something good because someone passed good words} and they've contacted others because I've told them about {someone I know who has done well with...}
Score: 5? Insightful? ????
WTF?
Whatever those people smoking, pass it down the line.
There isn't a ban on federal funding for stem cell research. Some strains, families, chains - whatever the proper term is, are already available so they have been grandfathered.
One of the debates in the science, and specifically the genetic branches is how viable those cells are for ensuring genetic diversity for true research. I'd liken it to the question of "How many people (and how many of each gender) would you need on a deserted island in order for them to reproduce without introducing any genetic funny business. Many who will be planning the various projects believe there's not enough to go around and anything they do will not be comprehensive.
In terms of states funding their residential scientists, California is not doing so well financially. Ah-nold is starting to find the honeymoon is over and he better find a way to get the financial house in order.
As a side note, I'm waiting to see some research as to whether my guess about stem cells could be used to cause cancer. After all, stem cells can be used pretty much as a "one size fits all." So why couldn't something along the lines of things we know triggers cancer: chemicals, radiation, smoking (which does have some radiation as well), heredity, bacteria (when all else fails) drive them into becoming cells running hog wild.
You might want to attribute your quote.
Abraham Lincoln
Most spam still originates from within the US. And I'm not talking about people who are in the US, sign on to hardware in China, then send crap back here.
There are enough US ISPs willing to accept easy money from spammers and have no intention of cutting the cable until|unless they lose money as a result of maintaining that connection.
Once there's enough resolution for the blind to use the artificial eyes, those who benefit the most will be those who most recently lost their sight. Essentially, the ability to adapt to and benefit the most will be increase with a ratio corresponding to the length of time since they lost their sight.
One of the things which babies' bodies learn as they are growing up as infants, is for their eyes to grow & focus; something which is gradual and not a shock to them.
Imagine someone who was born blind and is hooked up. What do you think they will see and how well will their brain cope with it? And when the shock sets in, how will they deal with that? Once someone realizes what's going on, they'll disconnect it. Then they'll find out they have to progressively work through the process of learning to see - just as infants do. Otherwise, I believe they'd rather be blind rather than live in a world of painful chaos.
Right.
What about the average family size?
How many kids are Chinese couples permitted to have?
Any Catholic and Mormon Chinese couples have got to be twisting in the wind over what to do with family planning.
Regardless of how many of them there are, how many (a percentage will do as an alternative to headcount) of them get to see an unfiltered Internet?
It's well-documented there are watchers in chat rooms who redact material real-time which is "against policy", some horrendous filters which screen practically everything but spam, and I'll bet the only address they're allowed to connect to with FTP is 127.0.0.1.
Sheer numbers and population percentages mean nothing when there's nothing to look at. Trust me: the Chinese will have a better chance at seeing CineMax sans filtering at midnight before they get an unfiltered connection to the Internet.
Okay, I reread the patent information.
My previous message dealt with persistence.
The patent description could just as easily be real-time or semi real-time.
That means the definition of web pages would have to be made.
Would IMs qualify? The UI as a form might qualify as a web page and the communication between users of different web pages would seem to fit. IRC with a web twist? How about games which are played by two (or more) players across web forms? No matter how common the game would be, it would qualify.
There are going to be a lot of unhappy people who are going to have to install a coin slot into a USB port and plop a little silver via PayPal[1] in just to play Hearts against each other.
There's a lot of prior art here.
[1] once Amazon enforces a forthcoming patent for users outbidding each other and takes PayPal as a settlement from eBay.
Holy Crap. Where in Hell's Bathroom does he come up with these ideas?
Guess what? He's come forward in time from the 60s and 70s and invented the BBS!
What will he think of next?
smoke signals?
telegraph?
telephone?
car phone of the 70s?
radio?
jungle drums?
cell phones?
tv (black and white will do)?
the 40 lb. Compaq "portable" PC (before they went bankrupt the first time)?
He just has too much time on his hands.
I used to say this:
"Someday we'll find Microsoft has patented the alphabet and every time we sit down at the keyboard we'll find ourselves paying royalties."
I guess I'm wrong. Maybe Jeff will beat Microsoft to it?
Remember the "Be Like Mike!" commercials?
I think we'll see a remake as "Be Like Jeff!"
(When we're discussing Jeff and Bill, I have a very hard time clicking the [Submit] button. I do too much submitting to them as it is)
Besides, when reading this:
...he would often stay after work to get it just right...
Many of us are proud to have code which looks "just right" and works "just right", but there's a lesson many people learn the hard way: "The perfect is the enemy of the good. -Voltaire. There's a fine line between that and "Does it run?" (without regard to how well it runs, how efficient it runs, does it scale, how well the architecture has been designed to accommodate future versions, etc.) Not to mention decision time: "Do you want it fast, right, or cheap? (pick two)
I'm hanging my head in shame...
--Indiana barely passes Daylight Saving Time into law
--The new dome & convention center will be [partially] paid for by charging the surrounding counties a 1% tax on all served, commercially prepared food. Some in the legislature have called this the "donut" plan. I prefer to call it, "Alice Taxing the Brady Bunch" in an editorial written before they decided this "innovative" plan. That tax has a sunset - thirty years! The current dome has a 1% tax on food in "Alice's square" right now with a long sunset and the money is being used for unknown purposes. This means Alice will be taxining food an extra 1% on local food.
--And finally, we allow these goobers to file spurious lawsuits.