It says I'm wrong? Ok, now I have to go read the thing and see what they're talking about.
I've been building PCs for 14 years, and I'm quite positive the smaller thread screws in the parts bags get used for the floppy drives and the CD-ROM drives, etc. etc.
Maybe they're assuming you have a larger variety of screw sizes than most PC cases I've seen ship with?
I'd say you're pretty much correct in your points for Linux (and against Windows) on the desktop.
One small point of contention might actually be the need for anti-virus software, though. More and more, I'm finding that the most popular, commercial Windows anti-virus packages cause numerous compatibility issues, slow down the machine considerably, and *still* don't even catch many of the newer trojan horse programs and virii! It's becoming arguable that if you're a reasonably competent computer user (don't open every email attachment you get without question, etc.), you'd be just as well off to skip the anti-virus software on Windows and take your chances!
Now, what I *would* do is download a freeware program like SpyBot and run it regularly to cleanse any ad-ware/spyware that might have gotten on your PC. That's the stuff that many people mistake for a virus, and which is more likely to wreak havock with your Internet access and system itself.
For the record, I have one Windows PC over here that's been running for over a year with no anti-virus software on it - and I just recently put some on it and did a full scan, and it found absolutely nothing. This machine is used daily, connected to a full-time DSL connection, and my wife even playing mult-player online games on it regularly. So yes, it's quite possible to run Windows and not "instantly get a virus".
Digital cable isn't bad if you can get a good deal on it, or if you're forced to deal with it due to obstacles to satellite signal reception. Satellite is generally a better value though. If you're heavily into sports, DirecTV has a little more to offer, while if you're not, Dish seems like a slightly better option.
One thing to consider is that as DirecTV and Dish have added more programming, they've had to split it up over multiple satellites. Back when I first set up my DTV dish, I only had to point it in one place and I was done. Nowdays, they want to set things up so at least two satellites are being picked up at once, and the receiver switches between them as needed. Someone across the street from me has tall trees in their yard that block out my reception on one of the additional satellites -- so I can't ever get some of the newer channels they added. (Luckily for me, it's not yet a big issue. The stuff I'm missing is nothing I'd watch anyway.... but it will become a BIG problem if I upgrade to HD and want the special HD stations they added.)
Just FYI, too - there have traditionally been lots of people getting satellite because they had intentions of hacking it and getting "all the channels" for the price of just a basic subscription (or in some cases, without one at all). Right now, it's a *rough* time for people trying to go that route. DirecTV, in particular, has gotten VERY aggressive at prosecuting vendors of the programming/hacking tools needed to pull it off. Dish recently sent down card/firmware updates that knocked out some of the long-standing commercial "hacked cards" you could slip in your receiver and unlock all the programming. The folks supporting these hacks have largely sold their U.S. or Canadian operations to off-shore groups of unknown trustworthiness, too.
Actually, I wasn't able to see this guide because the site has apparently exceeded their bandwidth allotment with all the/.ing.
But what I was personally hoping to read on there was an explanation for all the odd little plastic pieces that usually come in the bag of screws/fasteners with a PC case.
I never had any confusion on using the proper screws for things (floppy drives and CD-ROM drives generally use the smaller of the two most common size screws in the bags, hard drives and PC cards screw in with the larger size, and short/stubby screws are typically for fastening down a motherboard). But I've never really seen what to do with those L-shaped plastic fasteners (typically white or beige colored, and you usually only get 1 or 2 with a parts bag)? They look like you're supposed to slide the edge of a motherboard into them and then they snap down onto the case somehow, helping hold the board in place -- but I've never seen anyone really make use of them. Boards stay in just fine by screwing them down (with brass fasteners below the board), or in some cases, in combination with the white plastic "stand-offs" that snap into the holes on the motherboard and hook into the slots cut into the case for them.
If I was trying to convince my current boss to use Linux, I sure wouldn't waste time having him read this particular article. It's full of generalities, and barely any statistics or facts to back them up.
I could summarize it in one or two sentences, really. "Linux is being used by more and more companies. Government is starting to see a benefit to it also!"
Big deal! The "boss" is going to want a list of popular applications that are compatible with it, proof that setting up security permissions and file/folder/printer sharing to Windows workstations is easy, and so on.
Well, look at it this way. It has to beat the old versions of RealPlayer blinking that obnoxious icon in the system tray (that NEVER goes away) telling you a newer version is available. (And so many of us run that older 8.0 version because it was the last RealPlayer version that didn't load your PC up with useless jukebox player crap, etc. etc.)
But yeah, like someone else said, there are ways around the update nag. Setting the clock into the future before installing and then setting it back works well. If you *do* decide you'll just break down and buy the thing, it's not that horribly expensive either. I think $29.95, and that covers all future Quicktime releases too.
You know what? That's a very neat trick - but many of the people who would like it the most aren't savvy enough to mess around with killing things out of the process list until they get it right.
This sounds like a great opportunity for a software developer to write a little utility that does all of this automatically. Just called it "RealPlayer to WinAmp" or something.....
You make a good point, but I will say this: I think the I.T. crowd's "I'm only going to code/admin systems/develop web sites/etc." attitude makes some sense, when you consider the state of the industry in recent years.
Basically, you've had a boom/bust cycle, so now it's "survival of the fittest". There was a lot of "dead wood" to get rid of in I.T. Lots of people suddenly became "computer experts" almost overnight, in a race to grab some of the easy money in the late 90's and 2000. Now, everyone's playing a game of chicken... Who's going to give up under pressure first and bail out? The people who know they want an I.T. career, and want it badly enough, are going to hold fast to what they want and not settle for anything else.
Meanwhile, most of the wanna-be's are getting out, and switching to jobs elsewhere. Good. It needed to happen.
Actually, although I'm really impressed with how well TeamSpeak works (still a beta, after all!), I can see where it creates as many hassles as extra fun/enjoyment.
My wife is a big Shadowbane addict, and the "clan" she's in insists on everyone using Teamspeak at all times - because it's their "secret weapon" to defeat the enemies. (It's much faster to call out targets and warn people someone is sneaking up on them, than to try to type all of that to each other while playing.)
Problem is, it creates lots of extra stress. Instead of just enjoying the game, you've constantly got people barking out orders at you over your PC's speakers (or headset), and multiple people are demanding things faster than you can respond. (Summon me, now!! Hey, can I get a summon here!? Guys, I tried to tell you - I'll do it as soon as my spell becomes available again! Huh, what was that? Someone else was talking over you... can you hurry up and summon me!!)
I didn't say "Slashdot readers should accept what these guys did as morally right." I'm just pointing out that they did shows a considerable amount of selective scamming - which I have to think was intentional.
The bottom line is, whatever you choose to do (or not do), say (or not say), you have to be comfortable with it in your own mind. Some folks just don't seem to have any conscience at all, so they go about doing whatever pleases them - with no guilt. (Murder someone just for fun? Why not!) Most of us, though, have our own personal definition of what's morally right and wrong - and we try to act within those boundaries.
I think these guys fall into the latter category. Stealing from government is a prime example of something you can look at from two, opposite ways. If you've worked honest jobs and watched a large part of your income get involuntarily sucked away by the govt. - you might consider stealing from them to be equivalent to getting back what you earned in the first place. (This viewpoint depends to large extent on how strongly you believe government is wasting/misusing the money you're being forced to contribute to them.)
Like so much "computer security" out there, I think this is one of those devices that could generate lots of revenue - but ultimately, is a waste.
If they're smart, they *won't* put in a back door, because any hint of its existance leaking out would totally destroy their sales.
The bigger issue is, why are corporate PBX's getting hacked in the first place? I'd say it's mainly due to lack of knowledge of their functionality by their owners!
99% of businesses I've run across have a fairly complex PBX system installed, yet they pay hourly fees to a 3rd. party company to do maintenance and updates to the system. (EG. We understand our city added a new phone prefix that our PBX needs to know is "local". Can someone come out and reprogram it so it knows not to treat this as long distance anymore?)
Most PBX functions can be password protected, preventing easy modification/enabling of features - but I'm willing to bet most companies still have the passwords set to system defaults, or some password the main servicer of that brand of PBX's in their city uses for all the systems they work on.
Instead of shelling out a bunch of money for some PBX firewall, companies would do better to send a few of their I.T. people (or heck, even the "administrative assistants" who put the phone in "night mode" before they leave each night and so on) to training, so they can maintain their own PBX.
Re: Depends on who you "rip off" though....
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Three Blind Phreaks
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· Score: 1, Informative
It looks to me like these 3 guys were being rather selective in who they scammed. The credit cards they stole were from a phone sex mogul, and so one could morally make a decision that "If you're wasting your money on phone sex hotlines, you deserve some hassles with your credit card...."
Their "big target" was the govt. sponsored radio/propaganda station.... again, not exactly like charging phone calls to the general public or a small business.
True... but the white spot issues seem to have been resolved now. My 15" Powerbook hasn't had any, and the issue, in general, seems to be quieting down. People sending back Powerbook 15"'s with the white spots on them are receiving replacement notebooks with a revised lid (more reinforcement behind the LCD panel, apparently). On the ones that had the spot problems, you could apply a small amount of pressure to parts of the lid and see the LCD display deform where your fingers were pressing down. The revised ones no longer do that.
Battery life on the Powerbooks isn't anything great (but in line with the typical PC laptop). I get roughly 2 hours out of mine. Sure, more would be better, but I usually just plug in my AC adapter anyway. I like having a laptop so it's easy to get it from point A to B, where I set it back up on a table or desk.... Even in the car, I have one of those adapters that plugs into a cigarette lighter to power the laptop.
... And if you're not a half-witted zombie, you'll buy whatever product offers you the best value for your dollar. Choosing all of your purchases around the "I want Microsoft to lose money!" mentality makes little to no sense, unless you own one of their direct competitors.
I see quite a few Mac users with *Microsoft* mice attached to them. Know why? It's because these folks *liked* the MS mouse and thought it was a decent buy. So what? More power to them. Buy the products that are worthwhile, and don't waste your money on the others - and even a giant like Microsoft could eventually start modifying their offerings so they're more attractive.
I wouldn't willfully buy another copy of Windows myself, yet I'd consider most of their input devices (game controllers, keyboards, etc.) as good quality, competitive products.
Well, I can't defend Apple on the iBook problems. Quite frankly, it's a disgrace that they #1, released a product with an issue this major that wasn't caught pre-production, but #2, refused to openly admit there was a problem and issue a recall or official fix.
That being said, defective hardware comes from every manufacturer, sooner or later. People loved IBM's hard drives (quiet, great performance, etc.) until they screwed up and released those Deskstar models that constantly crashed. Next thing you know, everyone started calling their whole product line "Deathstars" and wanted no part of them. Toshiba constantly releases flawed laptops, but their strategy of "change models every few months" seems to prevent a critical mass of complaints about any single issue. (Almost every Satellite S405 series eventually had issues where it would seem like it was dead. Turned out the little switch that gets depressed when the lid is shut would get stuck down - so it would think it wasn't supposed to turn on the display and boot normally. That's just one small example of a flaw in their products.)
Years ago, Apple made the Powerbook 5400 series that could catch itself on fire... so problems in their notebook line isn't really anything new.
Still, they generally have some of the most thoughtfully designed and elegant + useful laptops on the market. I've just learned to do lots of research before purchasing. That's why I went with a new Powerbook 15" instead of an iBook model. It's apparent to me the iBooks have too many design issues Apple hasn't addressed/completely solved yet.
Quite frankly, Linux always feels pretty "rough around the edges", and I'm not sure that'll ever really go away. (Some of it is probably inherent when you're talking about an OS developed by anyone, anyplace on the globe, who feels like contributing some code to it.)
The Mac with OS X is the polar opposite of this, with a stunningly beautiful GUI and some of the most original GUI-related concepts I've seen on any platform. (Even Gnome and KDE couldn't seem to resist sticking to the Windows-esque concept of some sort of START type button in a corner of the screen with menu windows popping open from it, listing the applications you can launch. OS X bypassed that completely with the "dock" idea.)
If you really are a command-line "power user" in Unix OS's, then yeah, Mac OS X is currently not really for you. The thing is, I suspect relatively few of us really work from the CLI as much as we like to think we do. (I know for example, I have several good friends who are nearly Linux zealots, and they constantly like to point out the powerful things that can be done from the shell prompt. They're quite right, except I still see their machines running X and a window manager most of the time. Unless your system is primarily a server, being remotely accessed but not generally used locally, a GUI is usually more pleasing to the eye, and is the environment people would rather be in. (If nothing else, people like having nice looking pictures as their "wallpaper", instead of staring at a blank screen with white text and a blinking cursor on it.)
I think of Mac OS X as "Unix for the rest of us", sort of how the original Macintosh was supposed to be the "computer for the rest of us".
I think we're pretty much in agreement, really. By definition, a computer isn't ever going to be "creative" - because it lacks true intelligence.
I think to an extent though, this may not really make a difference. If we're able to code in enough raw data so it can randomly choose/utilize elements of musical "style" of various composers, and use human intervention in the sense that we listen to the results, and selectively accept/reject portions of the resultant "song" until we like what comes out - why wouldn't that song "speak" to others? People always attach their own emotions and thoughts to what they hear, making it "greater than the whole". The songs we fondly remember are usually tied to pleasant experiences we had while listening to them.
I think the computerized composer (with a little human intervention and assistance along the way) could be used as a tool to speed up/ease the process of making music -- and the results could surely be much more respected than bland "elevator music".
Actually, you're probably correct. I'd always heard (and swear I read at least once in an auto magazine) that some of the early '84 Fieros had Chevette engines in them -- but I never saw one that did. (I had a few friends who owned '84 Fieros and they had the usual Pontiac engine in them.)
Perhaps this rumor got started because of it being done for some pre-production model?
Well, the other side of the "accessories sold seperately" coin is - you could get stuck paying for items you don't want or need, if it's all bundled in at one price.
I'd never use an armband with a portable music player, for example. I tend to put them in my inner coat pocket in the winter, and other times, just leave them in my car, on my desk at work, or wherever I want to use them.
Even the remote, which I thought was a "must have" option for my iPod at first, is little more than a toy to me now. (As often as not, I use my iPod to listen to music in my car - so I can't make use of their wired remote in that scenario anyway. I just have a Griffin iTrip plugged into the top of my iPod.) It's fine for when you're actually using the earbud headphones -- but I don't find it that much more of a problem to just reach down and use the iPod's controls themselves for volume or to skip tracks.
As they say, "There's no such thing as a free lunch." When you buy something with "free bonus accessories" in the box, you can be sure you paid for them in the price of the item.
You know, I also owned a Fiero (bought a used 1986 SE model from the original owner), and I really liked the car. Yeah, I had the problems with the sticking parking brake too, but only once during the winter (snow and ice), when it was almost understandable it might act up. The brakes themselves were an occasional problem in general, though. (They had extremely thin rotors, due to the small clearances available for them, so they'd warp easily - and weren't usually possible to be "turned" and salvaged. If they warped, you were looking at a new set.)
Despite that, it was a car with "character" - which is more than I can say for most of the egg-shaped boring shells on wheels GM/Ford/Chrysler crank out year after year.
The well known and feared "engine fire" problem was *only* on the 1984 models, and was simply due to an oil line that was run too close to hot engine parts. The recall fix was simply to re-route the line, and then voila - no more issues.
Now, I also know that back in '84, Pontiac was throwing 4 cylinder engines sourced from the Chevette into the first Fieros - because of a shortage of parts.
So basically, yeah - this was a car that suffered from a lot of cost-cutting and not enough pre-sale testing/troubleshooting on its initial release. But for anyone who waited a year or two to buy, it wasn't really a bad little vehicle at all. I went with the V6 in mine, and think that was a wise move. I had about 160,000 miles on mine when I traded it in, and the original engine and automatic transmission were still working just fine.
I'll tell you though, Pontiac has lost all respect from me in the customer service dept. anyway. I bought a brand new Firebird/Trans-Am from them back in '98, and it was total lemon. I had it in the shop as often as on the street. The dealerships were uncooperative with me from day 1, refusing me a loaner rental car (despite that supposedly being Pontiac's policy when your car is in for warranty work), denying problems were their fault when they clearly were, etc. etc.
Even back when I owned my Fiero, Pontiac dealers were rude and basically told me my car was unsafe and not worth repairing, when I wanted them to service it. (I had better luck getting a few repairs, like sticking power door locks, fixed at a Chevy dealership!)
Perhaps I misunderstood the gist of what you were saying. (I got the idea you were writing off the synthetic vocal software as not worthy of use in legitimate, creative works of music.)
Still, you make the assertion that a computer will never be capable of creating a piece of music that humans will find enjoyable without our manual intervention.
I'm not so sure. I do agree that computer lack intuition and therefore can not possibly be "self aware" that what they're creating, musically, is going to be considered a piece humans will find worthy of listening to repeatedly.
But music itself is all about math, at its core. I think it will become more and more possible to analyze the math behind the styles of various musicians and digitally program the rules they use to compose into the computer. Then, the computer will be able to write music using those same rules - and emulate that artist's style. (In a very rudimentary sense, the software called "The Jammer Pro" attempts to do this already. You can select a studio musician and MIDI instrument to assign to them, and have it randomly compose licks at the click of a "compose" button. If it sounds good, you can keep it... if not, click again until you hear something you like. Different musicians have unique styles used by the software.)
Now, at best, I suspect users will have to run such an application over and over again until something pleasing to the ear finally comes out. But is that so different than with human composers? Most musicians I know just "jam out" with friends until they hit upon something they like, and then they build on that through trial and error.
I hate to say it, but Norton Anti-Virus doesn't exactly inspire much confidence with me to begin with.
I've removed a *bunch* of back-door trojan horse programs (MovieWorld and so forth) from Windows PCs that were running Norton AntiVirus 2003 with all the latest signature updates being "Live Updated". The freeware AVG Anti-Virus personal edition found them, as did a relatively unknown scanner called Avast.
Why is it people have to pay $30+ per year for a subscription renewal for a big-name, commercial scanner that can't even find things the freeware packages find and remove?
Your argument is no more credible than the curmudgeons who said that an electric piano sounds so unlike a real piano that it's a total waste, and nobody would ever perform a legitimate creative work using one.
Think "new tools at an artist's disposal", and "dawn of a new type of digital instrument" instead. If you want this software to sound good in your music mix, you're going to have to invest a considerable amount of time and effort setting it up properly and recording it properly. Therefore, it takes *talent* to make it useful.
Not only that, but the male and female "singer" Yamaha is offering are only the first 2 of what promises to be a whole slew of virtual singer software packages one can purchase. It stands to reason that the first 2 would be the most "generic" - since they're mostly there for proof of concept purposes, and to cover as wide an audience of potential customers as possible.
As a hobbyist-musician myself, I think this is a great step forward. It's not going to *replace* real singers any more than drum machines replaced drummers. Instead, it will provide more options to people trying to create different sounds, plus help musicians work on "rough drafts" of songs without all the other musicians having to be present.
(Actually, with drum machines, I find that real drummers do the best job programming them. I think it will be similar with this software. A real vocalist will know exactly what inflections and volume changes should be programmed in to make the virtual vocalist sound best in an application.)
Wow, I was completely with you on the list of good artists until you got to Lucinda Williams.
Honestly, what's the deal with this woman, and how did she get so popular recently?
I got one of her CDs as a free giveaway, years ago, when an alternative rock radio station in town had a tent set up at a free concert. (Basically, they had a box full of CDs that didn't fit their format, so they were happily giving them out to any takers.)
I tried to give it a few listens, and the music pretty much put me to sleep. Just seemed like typical slow, modern country music - and didn't inspire me at all.
I put it on eBay though, and it was sure snapped up quickly. Since then, I see people mention her name all the time in lists of their "favorites" - and I'm at a complete loss. The people listening to her are often not even listing any other folk or country music artists, which is the part I guess I find most puzzling.
The tracks I've bought via iTunes so far have been exclusive tracks, not available at any record store. (For example, I downloaded a live, "unplugged" type performance by the band "Live" not long ago.)
But this aside, as people move to using digital music players more and more, purchasing music on CD becomes more inconvenient than useful. (You have to "rip" it to another format like MP3 before you can even use it.) I'm already to the point whrere my music CD collection exists merely as backup archives. I have a Rio MPEG Car player in my car with everything in MP3 format on its internal hard drive. I own an iPod for music on the go. (I use it to play over an unused FM radio station with the "iTrip" add-on when I'm in my other car that doesn't have an MP3 player in it.) The Rio MPEG car pulls out and attaches to my home stereo's AUX inputs for use at home.
Also, voting with your wallet, as a rule, is overrated. So often, I see calls for a boycott of this or that, and you know what? It almost never works. Even if you convince a full HALF of all consumers not to buy a product or shop at a particular store, that other 50% that disagrees with you will keep doing so, and that's enough to keep the business or product viable.
(As an example, I see billboards up all the time in town, begging people not to patronize WalMart or SAM's, because they're non-union. Know what? Those places don't seem too concerned.)
Slashdot Mirror
It says I'm wrong? Ok, now I have to go read the thing and see what they're talking about.
I've been building PCs for 14 years, and I'm quite positive the smaller thread screws in the parts bags get used for the floppy drives and the CD-ROM drives, etc. etc.
Maybe they're assuming you have a larger variety of screw sizes than most PC cases I've seen ship with?
I'd say you're pretty much correct in your points for Linux (and against Windows) on the desktop.
One small point of contention might actually be the need for anti-virus software, though. More and more, I'm finding that the most popular, commercial Windows anti-virus packages cause numerous compatibility issues, slow down the machine considerably, and *still* don't even catch many of the newer trojan horse programs and virii! It's becoming arguable that if you're a reasonably competent computer user (don't open every email attachment you get without question, etc.), you'd be just as well off to skip the anti-virus software on Windows and take your chances!
Now, what I *would* do is download a freeware program like SpyBot and run it regularly to cleanse any ad-ware/spyware that might have gotten on your PC. That's the stuff that many people mistake for a virus, and which is more likely to wreak havock with your Internet access and system itself.
For the record, I have one Windows PC over here that's been running for over a year with no anti-virus software on it - and I just recently put some on it and did a full scan, and it found absolutely nothing. This machine is used daily, connected to a full-time DSL connection, and my wife even playing mult-player online games on it regularly. So yes, it's quite possible to run Windows and not "instantly get a virus".
Digital cable isn't bad if you can get a good deal on it, or if you're forced to deal with it due to obstacles to satellite signal reception. Satellite is generally a better value though. If you're heavily into sports, DirecTV has a little more to offer, while if you're not, Dish seems like a slightly better option.
One thing to consider is that as DirecTV and Dish have added more programming, they've had to split it up over multiple satellites. Back when I first set up my DTV dish, I only had to point it in one place and I was done. Nowdays, they want to set things up so at least two satellites are being picked up at once, and the receiver switches between them as needed. Someone across the street from me has tall trees in their yard that block out my reception on one of the additional satellites -- so I can't ever get some of the newer channels they added. (Luckily for me, it's not yet a big issue. The stuff I'm missing is nothing I'd watch anyway.... but it will become a BIG problem if I upgrade to HD and want the special HD stations they added.)
Just FYI, too - there have traditionally been lots of people getting satellite because they had intentions of hacking it and getting "all the channels" for the price of just a basic subscription (or in some cases, without one at all). Right now, it's a *rough* time for people trying to go that route. DirecTV, in particular, has gotten VERY aggressive at prosecuting vendors of the programming/hacking tools needed to pull it off. Dish recently sent down card/firmware updates that knocked out some of the long-standing commercial "hacked cards" you could slip in your receiver and unlock all the programming. The folks supporting these hacks have largely sold their U.S. or Canadian operations to off-shore groups of unknown trustworthiness, too.
Actually, I wasn't able to see this guide because the site has apparently exceeded their bandwidth allotment with all the /.ing.
But what I was personally hoping to read on there was an explanation for all the odd little plastic pieces that usually come in the bag of screws/fasteners with a PC case.
I never had any confusion on using the proper screws for things (floppy drives and CD-ROM drives generally use the smaller of the two most common size screws in the bags, hard drives and PC cards screw in with the larger size, and short/stubby screws are typically for fastening down a motherboard). But I've never really seen what to do with those L-shaped plastic fasteners (typically white or beige colored, and you usually only get 1 or 2 with a parts bag)? They look like you're supposed to slide the edge of a motherboard into them and then they snap down onto the case somehow, helping hold the board in place -- but I've never seen anyone really make use of them. Boards stay in just fine by screwing them down (with brass fasteners below the board), or in some cases, in combination with the white plastic "stand-offs" that snap into the holes on the motherboard and hook into the slots cut into the case for them.
If I was trying to convince my current boss to use Linux, I sure wouldn't waste time having him read this particular article. It's full of generalities, and barely any statistics or facts to back them up.
I could summarize it in one or two sentences, really. "Linux is being used by more and more companies. Government is starting to see a benefit to it also!"
Big deal! The "boss" is going to want a list of popular applications that are compatible with it, proof that setting up security permissions and file/folder/printer sharing to Windows workstations is easy, and so on.
Well, look at it this way. It has to beat the old versions of RealPlayer blinking that obnoxious icon in the system tray (that NEVER goes away) telling you a newer version is available. (And so many of us run that older 8.0 version because it was the last RealPlayer version that didn't load your PC up with useless jukebox player crap, etc. etc.)
But yeah, like someone else said, there are ways around the update nag. Setting the clock into the future before installing and then setting it back works well. If you *do* decide you'll just break down and buy the thing, it's not that horribly expensive either. I think $29.95, and that covers all future Quicktime releases too.
You know what? That's a very neat trick - but many of the people who would like it the most aren't savvy enough to mess around with killing things out of the process list until they get it right.
This sounds like a great opportunity for a software developer to write a little utility that does all of this automatically. Just called it "RealPlayer to WinAmp" or something.....
You make a good point, but I will say this: I think the I.T. crowd's "I'm only going to code/admin systems/develop web sites/etc." attitude makes some sense, when you consider the state of the industry in recent years.
Basically, you've had a boom/bust cycle, so now it's "survival of the fittest". There was a lot of "dead wood" to get rid of in I.T. Lots of people suddenly became "computer experts" almost overnight, in a race to grab some of the easy money in the late 90's and 2000. Now, everyone's playing a game of chicken... Who's going to give up under pressure first and bail out? The people who know they want an I.T. career, and want it badly enough, are going to hold fast to what they want and not settle for anything else.
Meanwhile, most of the wanna-be's are getting out, and switching to jobs elsewhere. Good. It needed to happen.
Actually, although I'm really impressed with how well TeamSpeak works (still a beta, after all!), I can see where it creates as many hassles as extra fun/enjoyment.
My wife is a big Shadowbane addict, and the "clan" she's in insists on everyone using Teamspeak at all times - because it's their "secret weapon" to defeat the enemies. (It's much faster to call out targets and warn people someone is sneaking up on them, than to try to type all of that to each other while playing.)
Problem is, it creates lots of extra stress. Instead of just enjoying the game, you've constantly got people barking out orders at you over your PC's speakers (or headset), and multiple people are demanding things faster than you can respond. (Summon me, now!! Hey, can I get a summon here!? Guys, I tried to tell you - I'll do it as soon as my spell becomes available again! Huh, what was that? Someone else was talking over you... can you hurry up and summon me!!)
Bleah... no thanks.
I didn't say "Slashdot readers should accept what these guys did as morally right." I'm just pointing out that they did shows a considerable amount of selective scamming - which I have to think was intentional.
The bottom line is, whatever you choose to do (or not do), say (or not say), you have to be comfortable with it in your own mind. Some folks just don't seem to have any conscience at all, so they go about doing whatever pleases them - with no guilt. (Murder someone just for fun? Why not!) Most of us, though, have our own personal definition of what's morally right and wrong - and we try to act within those boundaries.
I think these guys fall into the latter category. Stealing from government is a prime example of something you can look at from two, opposite ways. If you've worked honest jobs and watched a large part of your income get involuntarily sucked away by the govt. - you might consider stealing from them to be equivalent to getting back what you earned in the first place. (This viewpoint depends to large extent on how strongly you believe government is wasting/misusing the money you're being forced to contribute to them.)
Like so much "computer security" out there, I think this is one of those devices that could generate lots of revenue - but ultimately, is a waste.
If they're smart, they *won't* put in a back door, because any hint of its existance leaking out would totally destroy their sales.
The bigger issue is, why are corporate PBX's getting hacked in the first place? I'd say it's mainly due to lack of knowledge of their functionality by their owners!
99% of businesses I've run across have a fairly complex PBX system installed, yet they pay hourly fees to a 3rd. party company to do maintenance and updates to the system. (EG. We understand our city added a new phone prefix that our PBX needs to know is "local". Can someone come out and reprogram it so it knows not to treat this as long distance anymore?)
Most PBX functions can be password protected, preventing easy modification/enabling of features - but I'm willing to bet most companies still have the passwords set to system defaults, or some password the main servicer of that brand of PBX's in their city uses for all the systems they work on.
Instead of shelling out a bunch of money for some PBX firewall, companies would do better to send a few of their I.T. people (or heck, even the "administrative assistants" who put the phone in "night mode" before they leave each night and so on) to training, so they can maintain their own PBX.
It looks to me like these 3 guys were being rather selective in who they scammed. The credit cards they stole were from a phone sex mogul, and so one could morally make a decision that "If you're wasting your money on phone sex hotlines, you deserve some hassles with your credit card...."
.... again, not exactly like charging phone calls to the general public or a small business.
Their "big target" was the govt. sponsored radio/propaganda station
True... but the white spot issues seem to have been resolved now. My 15" Powerbook hasn't had any, and the issue, in general, seems to be quieting down. People sending back Powerbook 15"'s with the white spots on them are receiving replacement notebooks with a revised lid (more reinforcement behind the LCD panel, apparently). On the ones that had the spot problems, you could apply a small amount of pressure to parts of the lid and see the LCD display deform where your fingers were pressing down. The revised ones no longer do that.
Battery life on the Powerbooks isn't anything great (but in line with the typical PC laptop). I get roughly 2 hours out of mine. Sure, more would be better, but I usually just plug in my AC adapter anyway. I like having a laptop so it's easy to get it from point A to B, where I set it back up on a table or desk.... Even in the car, I have one of those adapters that plugs into a cigarette lighter to power the laptop.
... And if you're not a half-witted zombie, you'll buy whatever product offers you the best value for your dollar. Choosing all of your purchases around the "I want Microsoft to lose money!" mentality makes little to no sense, unless you own one of their direct competitors.
I see quite a few Mac users with *Microsoft* mice attached to them. Know why? It's because these folks *liked* the MS mouse and thought it was a decent buy. So what? More power to them. Buy the products that are worthwhile, and don't waste your money on the others - and even a giant like Microsoft could eventually start modifying their offerings so they're more attractive.
I wouldn't willfully buy another copy of Windows myself, yet I'd consider most of their input devices (game controllers, keyboards, etc.) as good quality, competitive products.
Well, I can't defend Apple on the iBook problems. Quite frankly, it's a disgrace that they #1, released a product with an issue this major that wasn't caught pre-production, but #2, refused to openly admit there was a problem and issue a recall or official fix.
... so problems in their notebook line isn't really anything new.
That being said, defective hardware comes from every manufacturer, sooner or later. People loved IBM's hard drives (quiet, great performance, etc.) until they screwed up and released those Deskstar models that constantly crashed. Next thing you know, everyone started calling their whole product line "Deathstars" and wanted no part of them. Toshiba constantly releases flawed laptops, but their strategy of "change models every few months" seems to prevent a critical mass of complaints about any single issue. (Almost every Satellite S405 series eventually had issues where it would seem like it was dead. Turned out the little switch that gets depressed when the lid is shut would get stuck down - so it would think it wasn't supposed to turn on the display and boot normally. That's just one small example of a flaw in their products.)
Years ago, Apple made the Powerbook 5400 series that could catch itself on fire
Still, they generally have some of the most thoughtfully designed and elegant + useful laptops on the market. I've just learned to do lots of research before purchasing. That's why I went with a new Powerbook 15" instead of an iBook model. It's apparent to me the iBooks have too many design issues Apple hasn't addressed/completely solved yet.
Quite frankly, Linux always feels pretty "rough around the edges", and I'm not sure that'll ever really go away. (Some of it is probably inherent when you're talking about an OS developed by anyone, anyplace on the globe, who feels like contributing some code to it.)
The Mac with OS X is the polar opposite of this, with a stunningly beautiful GUI and some of the most original GUI-related concepts I've seen on any platform. (Even Gnome and KDE couldn't seem to resist sticking to the Windows-esque concept of some sort of START type button in a corner of the screen with menu windows popping open from it, listing the applications you can launch. OS X bypassed that completely with the "dock" idea.)
If you really are a command-line "power user" in Unix OS's, then yeah, Mac OS X is currently not really for you. The thing is, I suspect relatively few of us really work from the CLI as much as we like to think we do. (I know for example, I have several good friends who are nearly Linux zealots, and they constantly like to point out the powerful things that can be done from the shell prompt. They're quite right, except I still see their machines running X and a window manager most of the time. Unless your system is primarily a server, being remotely accessed but not generally used locally, a GUI is usually more pleasing to the eye, and is the environment people would rather be in. (If nothing else, people like having nice looking pictures as their "wallpaper", instead of staring at a blank screen with white text and a blinking cursor on it.)
I think of Mac OS X as "Unix for the rest of us", sort of how the original Macintosh was supposed to be the "computer for the rest of us".
I think we're pretty much in agreement, really. By definition, a computer isn't ever going to be "creative" - because it lacks true intelligence.
I think to an extent though, this may not really make a difference. If we're able to code in enough raw data so it can randomly choose/utilize elements of musical "style" of various composers, and use human intervention in the sense that we listen to the results, and selectively accept/reject portions of the resultant "song" until we like what comes out - why wouldn't that song "speak" to others? People always attach their own emotions and thoughts to what they hear, making it "greater than the whole". The songs we fondly remember are usually tied to pleasant experiences we had while listening to them.
I think the computerized composer (with a little human intervention and assistance along the way) could be used as a tool to speed up/ease the process of making music -- and the results could surely be much more respected than bland "elevator music".
Actually, you're probably correct. I'd always heard (and swear I read at least once in an auto magazine) that some of the early '84 Fieros had Chevette engines in them -- but I never saw one that did.
(I had a few friends who owned '84 Fieros and they had the usual Pontiac engine in them.)
Perhaps this rumor got started because of it being done for some pre-production model?
Well, the other side of the "accessories sold seperately" coin is - you could get stuck paying for items you don't want or need, if it's all bundled in at one price.
I'd never use an armband with a portable music player, for example. I tend to put them in my inner coat pocket in the winter, and other times, just leave them in my car, on my desk at work, or wherever I want to use them.
Even the remote, which I thought was a "must have" option for my iPod at first, is little more than a toy to me now. (As often as not, I use my iPod to listen to music in my car - so I can't make use of their wired remote in that scenario anyway. I just have a Griffin iTrip plugged into the top of my iPod.) It's fine for when you're actually using the earbud headphones -- but I don't find it that much more of a problem to just reach down and use the iPod's controls themselves for volume or to skip tracks.
As they say, "There's no such thing as a free lunch." When you buy something with "free bonus accessories" in the box, you can be sure you paid for them in the price of the item.
You know, I also owned a Fiero (bought a used 1986 SE model from the original owner), and I really liked the car. Yeah, I had the problems with the sticking parking brake too, but only once during the winter (snow and ice), when it was almost understandable it might act up. The brakes themselves were an occasional problem in general, though. (They had extremely thin rotors, due to the small clearances available for them, so they'd warp easily - and weren't usually possible to be "turned" and salvaged. If they warped, you were looking at a new set.)
Despite that, it was a car with "character" - which is more than I can say for most of the egg-shaped boring shells on wheels GM/Ford/Chrysler crank out year after year.
The well known and feared "engine fire" problem was *only* on the 1984 models, and was simply due to an oil line that was run too close to hot engine parts. The recall fix was simply to re-route the line, and then voila - no more issues.
Now, I also know that back in '84, Pontiac was throwing 4 cylinder engines sourced from the Chevette into the first Fieros - because of a shortage of parts.
So basically, yeah - this was a car that suffered from a lot of cost-cutting and not enough pre-sale testing/troubleshooting on its initial release. But for anyone who waited a year or two to buy, it wasn't really a bad little vehicle at all. I went with the V6 in mine, and think that was a wise move. I had about 160,000 miles on mine when I traded it in, and the original engine and automatic transmission were still working just fine.
I'll tell you though, Pontiac has lost all respect from me in the customer service dept. anyway. I bought a brand new Firebird/Trans-Am from them back in '98, and it was total lemon. I had it in the shop as often as on the street. The dealerships were uncooperative with me from day 1, refusing me a loaner rental car (despite that supposedly being Pontiac's policy when your car is in for warranty work), denying problems were their fault when they clearly were, etc. etc.
Even back when I owned my Fiero, Pontiac dealers were rude and basically told me my car was unsafe and not worth repairing, when I wanted them to service it. (I had better luck getting a few repairs, like sticking power door locks, fixed at a Chevy dealership!)
Perhaps I misunderstood the gist of what you were saying. (I got the idea you were writing off the synthetic vocal software as not worthy of use in legitimate, creative works of music.)
Still, you make the assertion that a computer will never be capable of creating a piece of music that humans will find enjoyable without our manual intervention.
I'm not so sure. I do agree that computer lack intuition and therefore can not possibly be "self aware" that what they're creating, musically, is going to be considered a piece humans will find worthy of listening to repeatedly.
But music itself is all about math, at its core. I think it will become more and more possible to analyze the math behind the styles of various musicians and digitally program the rules they use to compose into the computer. Then, the computer will be able to write music using those same rules - and emulate that artist's style. (In a very rudimentary sense, the software called "The Jammer Pro" attempts to do this already. You can select a studio musician and MIDI instrument to assign to them, and have it randomly compose licks at the click of a "compose" button. If it sounds good, you can keep it... if not, click again until you hear something you like. Different musicians have unique styles used by the software.)
Now, at best, I suspect users will have to run such an application over and over again until something pleasing to the ear finally comes out. But is that so different than with human composers? Most musicians I know just "jam out" with friends until they hit upon something they like, and then they build on that through trial and error.
I hate to say it, but Norton Anti-Virus doesn't exactly inspire much confidence with me to begin with.
I've removed a *bunch* of back-door trojan horse programs (MovieWorld and so forth) from Windows PCs that were running Norton AntiVirus 2003 with all the latest signature updates being "Live Updated". The freeware AVG Anti-Virus personal edition found them, as did a relatively unknown scanner called Avast.
Why is it people have to pay $30+ per year for a subscription renewal for a big-name, commercial scanner that can't even find things the freeware packages find and remove?
Your argument is no more credible than the curmudgeons who said that an electric piano sounds so unlike a real piano that it's a total waste, and nobody would ever perform a legitimate creative work using one.
Think "new tools at an artist's disposal", and "dawn of a new type of digital instrument" instead. If you want this software to sound good in your music mix, you're going to have to invest a considerable amount of time and effort setting it up properly and recording it properly. Therefore, it takes *talent* to make it useful.
Not only that, but the male and female "singer" Yamaha is offering are only the first 2 of what promises to be a whole slew of virtual singer software packages one can purchase. It stands to reason that the first 2 would be the most "generic" - since they're mostly there for proof of concept purposes, and to cover as wide an audience of potential customers as possible.
As a hobbyist-musician myself, I think this is a great step forward. It's not going to *replace* real singers any more than drum machines replaced drummers. Instead, it will provide more options to people trying to create different sounds, plus help musicians work on "rough drafts" of songs without all the other musicians having to be present.
(Actually, with drum machines, I find that real drummers do the best job programming them. I think it will be similar with this software. A real vocalist will know exactly what inflections and volume changes should be programmed in to make the virtual vocalist sound best in an application.)
Wow, I was completely with you on the list of good artists until you got to Lucinda Williams.
Honestly, what's the deal with this woman, and how did she get so popular recently?
I got one of her CDs as a free giveaway, years ago, when an alternative rock radio station in town had a tent set up at a free concert. (Basically, they had a box full of CDs that didn't fit their format, so they were happily giving them out to any takers.)
I tried to give it a few listens, and the music pretty much put me to sleep. Just seemed like typical slow, modern country music - and didn't inspire me at all.
I put it on eBay though, and it was sure snapped up quickly. Since then, I see people mention her name all the time in lists of their "favorites" - and I'm at a complete loss. The people listening to her are often not even listing any other folk or country music artists, which is the part I guess I find most puzzling.
The tracks I've bought via iTunes so far have been exclusive tracks, not available at any record store. (For example, I downloaded a live, "unplugged" type performance by the band "Live" not long ago.)
But this aside, as people move to using digital music players more and more, purchasing music on CD becomes more inconvenient than useful. (You have to "rip" it to another format like MP3 before you can even use it.) I'm already to the point whrere my music CD collection exists merely as backup archives. I have a Rio MPEG Car player in my car with everything in MP3 format on its internal hard drive. I own an iPod for music on the go. (I use it to play over an unused FM radio station with the "iTrip" add-on when I'm in my other car that doesn't have an MP3 player in it.) The Rio MPEG car pulls out and attaches to my home stereo's AUX inputs for use at home.
Also, voting with your wallet, as a rule, is overrated. So often, I see calls for a boycott of this or that, and you know what? It almost never works. Even if you convince a full HALF of all consumers not to buy a product or shop at a particular store, that other 50% that disagrees with you will keep doing so, and that's enough to keep the business or product viable.
(As an example, I see billboards up all the time in town, begging people not to patronize WalMart or SAM's, because they're non-union. Know what? Those places don't seem too concerned.)