The bottom line is, whenever the government tries to "help" the consumer/voter/public, the government ends up making things worse while making taxpayers pay for their disasterous efforts. The government should have no place regulating ANY businesses, let alone the technology industry with its incredible competition. The entire concept of "monopoly" has become absurd these days anyway. No one has to use Windows. Period. Windows is cheap, it's easy to use, and it's widely supported. So what. There are hundreds of industries that have somehow miraculously overcame the Windows monopoly (Hollywood, advertising agencies, printers, graphic design firms, to name a few). Many of the readers on this site also miraculously overcame the Windows "monopoly" by using linux distros and macs. How is this possible if windows has a "monopoly"? It's insane that we've confused true monopolies with a majority market share. At least you have the option to use another OS. Try telling your government that you have the option of not paying your taxes. Then you'll learn what a REAL monopoly is.
It's even more insane that we think it's evil and anti-competitive when a company is willing to give away something for free. Remember back in the day when Netscape Navigator cost $50 and then Internet Explorer came out and was free? It's still free. In fact, all the good browsers are free, including firefox. Free browsers were popularized by Microsoft! So what if Netscape went down...YOU got a free browser. I'll let any company die, if it means that I get a better product at a lower price. Hell, that is the nature of competition! I know that company's have ulterior motives when giving away something for free, but so what? They are in business to come up with creative ways of expanding their business in the face of competition. Someone wins, someone doesn't make as much money as the winner, and some lose. But when we allow governments to tell businesses how they can compete, I gaurantee it is the consumer that will lose.
I know you're all thinking that I am a big pro business guy, but I'm not. In fact, I'm the opposite. I HATE that businesses can lobby the government to pass certain rules and regulations and tariffs so that they will have the upperhand and won't have to compete in the free market. If you want to say someone is anticompetitive, how about saying Real Networks, and Quicktime, etc are anti-competitive? Their products weren't good enough (or better enough to justify switching to them) to compete in the free market, so they ask big government to stifle their competition (Microsoft). Now THAT'S pretty damn anti-competetive if you ask me. And don't tell me that these companies wanted to "level" the playing field. Why the hell should it be level? Why should the consumer suffer the fate of lowest common denominators? Besides, Microsoft had a "monopoly" with Internet Explorer, but their market share is receding at the moment Why? Because the government stepped in with regulation? No. Because the Mozilla Firefox team makes a better freaking browser! Not once did you hear the firefox folks grumble about Microsoft's "monopoly." They just made a great product, and great products always win. And guess what, after years of stagnation, IE is finally gearing up for another release (I wonder why)...and it will probably be pretty good. Then firefox will get better...and the cycle will continue forever. The consumer always wins in this unregulated scenario. Another example: Gmail gives away 1 gig. Now yahoo gives it away. Yahoo and Hotmail dominate web based email, but I gaurantee you that gmail's better interface and featureset will take a big chunk out of hotmail's "monopoly."
Government's trick you into thinking that certain businesses are all powerful and monopolistic, but in reality, it is the governments that have all the power. Politicians just sell pieces of that power to the highest bidding businesses/lobbyist...but we blame the businesses not the politicians! We blame companies that seek power, not governm
I have the same EXACT problem with my dad. He is always calling me on the phone (usually earlier than he should), and I end up snapping after 10 minutes because his 15+ years of using a computer seem to vanish everytime he talks to me.
Me: "Ok, now go to the file menu--" Dad: "Where's that?" Me: "Jesus Christ dad, you KNOW where the file menu is!"
I'm not joking. This is a guy that opens files in Word all day long, but when he talks to me, the "file" menu doesn't exist. I get quite angry because it's not like he doesn't know how to use a computer...he's been using one for longer than I have. It becomes really irritating I suppose because we have taken to time to actually go through all the menus, all the options, the documents, and god forbid, the freaking help file. We have taken the time to google for answers, to browse through forums, and to keep our knowledge up to date and relevant. I guess my point is: if people want to use a computer, then they should LEARN how to use it! You can't drive a car without crashing unless you LEARN how to drive safely. You don't have to know how to take a tight corner at 90 miles an hour, but you should know where the freaking brake pedal and accelerator are before you leave the driveway.
And now, with the massive amount of spyware/adware/malware etc out there, it seems increasingly important that computer users become more responsible before our networks become overly conjested with cyber sewage. If only we could have a public broadcast everyday urging people to secure their computers by seeking professional help (or simply by reading and adhering to a security website). The idea that there are not professionals out there is absurd. Open the phonebook, look under "Computer Services" etc...and the list is several pages long. People are either lazy, tightfisted, or stupid. The same people that let their computers become breeding grounds for viruses and spyware are probably the same people that don't get oil changed regularly and then wonder why the mechanic hands them a bill for 2 grand.
I have tried to persuade my dad to spend a weekend really trying to understand his computer, or at least the programs he wants to use. I often wonder if his comprehension goes anywhere beyond the "save file" and "open file" functions. He might as well use notepad. But seriously, most people just aren't interested. They really do just want to "check their email" and browse the occasional website...and that's it. Most people couldn't care less how the thing works, so long as it works when they want it to. That would be fine, if they didn't look so shocked when I present them with a bill.
I understand that the producers of the show want you to THINK it's set in Newport Beach (which I used to live in by the way), but the show is actually filmed in LA.
Some Proof
I knew it wasn't Newport Beach because I used to go to both the Newport and Balboa piers all the time when I lived in OC, and those piers are definately not the piers used in the show. I think they film beach/pier shots at Hermosa Beach, which is part of LA county.
So, Bzzz, I'm not wrong.
Yep. I was in California back in October on vacation (I live in the Caribbean), and I saw a bunch of movies. I could have sworn I saw the trailer already.
Actually, The OC is not set in OC, it's set in LA. What a sham.
Oh, it's also one of the worst shows in the universe. Strangely, Smallville is even more cringeworthy. It's set in Canada.
Slashdot Mirror
The bottom line is, whenever the government tries to "help" the consumer/voter/public, the government ends up making things worse while making taxpayers pay for their disasterous efforts. The government should have no place regulating ANY businesses, let alone the technology industry with its incredible competition. The entire concept of "monopoly" has become absurd these days anyway. No one has to use Windows. Period. Windows is cheap, it's easy to use, and it's widely supported. So what. There are hundreds of industries that have somehow miraculously overcame the Windows monopoly (Hollywood, advertising agencies, printers, graphic design firms, to name a few). Many of the readers on this site also miraculously overcame the Windows "monopoly" by using linux distros and macs. How is this possible if windows has a "monopoly"? It's insane that we've confused true monopolies with a majority market share. At least you have the option to use another OS. Try telling your government that you have the option of not paying your taxes. Then you'll learn what a REAL monopoly is. It's even more insane that we think it's evil and anti-competitive when a company is willing to give away something for free. Remember back in the day when Netscape Navigator cost $50 and then Internet Explorer came out and was free? It's still free. In fact, all the good browsers are free, including firefox. Free browsers were popularized by Microsoft! So what if Netscape went down...YOU got a free browser. I'll let any company die, if it means that I get a better product at a lower price. Hell, that is the nature of competition! I know that company's have ulterior motives when giving away something for free, but so what? They are in business to come up with creative ways of expanding their business in the face of competition. Someone wins, someone doesn't make as much money as the winner, and some lose. But when we allow governments to tell businesses how they can compete, I gaurantee it is the consumer that will lose. I know you're all thinking that I am a big pro business guy, but I'm not. In fact, I'm the opposite. I HATE that businesses can lobby the government to pass certain rules and regulations and tariffs so that they will have the upperhand and won't have to compete in the free market. If you want to say someone is anticompetitive, how about saying Real Networks, and Quicktime, etc are anti-competitive? Their products weren't good enough (or better enough to justify switching to them) to compete in the free market, so they ask big government to stifle their competition (Microsoft). Now THAT'S pretty damn anti-competetive if you ask me. And don't tell me that these companies wanted to "level" the playing field. Why the hell should it be level? Why should the consumer suffer the fate of lowest common denominators? Besides, Microsoft had a "monopoly" with Internet Explorer, but their market share is receding at the moment Why? Because the government stepped in with regulation? No. Because the Mozilla Firefox team makes a better freaking browser! Not once did you hear the firefox folks grumble about Microsoft's "monopoly." They just made a great product, and great products always win. And guess what, after years of stagnation, IE is finally gearing up for another release (I wonder why)...and it will probably be pretty good. Then firefox will get better...and the cycle will continue forever. The consumer always wins in this unregulated scenario. Another example: Gmail gives away 1 gig. Now yahoo gives it away. Yahoo and Hotmail dominate web based email, but I gaurantee you that gmail's better interface and featureset will take a big chunk out of hotmail's "monopoly." Government's trick you into thinking that certain businesses are all powerful and monopolistic, but in reality, it is the governments that have all the power. Politicians just sell pieces of that power to the highest bidding businesses/lobbyist...but we blame the businesses not the politicians! We blame companies that seek power, not governm
I have the same EXACT problem with my dad. He is always calling me on the phone (usually earlier than he should), and I end up snapping after 10 minutes because his 15+ years of using a computer seem to vanish everytime he talks to me.
Me: "Ok, now go to the file menu--"
Dad: "Where's that?"
Me: "Jesus Christ dad, you KNOW where the file menu is!"
I'm not joking. This is a guy that opens files in Word all day long, but when he talks to me, the "file" menu doesn't exist. I get quite angry because it's not like he doesn't know how to use a computer...he's been using one for longer than I have. It becomes really irritating I suppose because we have taken to time to actually go through all the menus, all the options, the documents, and god forbid, the freaking help file. We have taken the time to google for answers, to browse through forums, and to keep our knowledge up to date and relevant. I guess my point is: if people want to use a computer, then they should LEARN how to use it! You can't drive a car without crashing unless you LEARN how to drive safely. You don't have to know how to take a tight corner at 90 miles an hour, but you should know where the freaking brake pedal and accelerator are before you leave the driveway.
And now, with the massive amount of spyware/adware/malware etc out there, it seems increasingly important that computer users become more responsible before our networks become overly conjested with cyber sewage. If only we could have a public broadcast everyday urging people to secure their computers by seeking professional help (or simply by reading and adhering to a security website). The idea that there are not professionals out there is absurd. Open the phonebook, look under "Computer Services" etc...and the list is several pages long. People are either lazy, tightfisted, or stupid. The same people that let their computers become breeding grounds for viruses and spyware are probably the same people that don't get oil changed regularly and then wonder why the mechanic hands them a bill for 2 grand.
I have tried to persuade my dad to spend a weekend really trying to understand his computer, or at least the programs he wants to use. I often wonder if his comprehension goes anywhere beyond the "save file" and "open file" functions. He might as well use notepad. But seriously, most people just aren't interested. They really do just want to "check their email" and browse the occasional website...and that's it. Most people couldn't care less how the thing works, so long as it works when they want it to. That would be fine, if they didn't look so shocked when I present them with a bill.
I understand that the producers of the show want you to THINK it's set in Newport Beach (which I used to live in by the way), but the show is actually filmed in LA. Some Proof I knew it wasn't Newport Beach because I used to go to both the Newport and Balboa piers all the time when I lived in OC, and those piers are definately not the piers used in the show. I think they film beach/pier shots at Hermosa Beach, which is part of LA county. So, Bzzz, I'm not wrong.
Yep. I was in California back in October on vacation (I live in the Caribbean), and I saw a bunch of movies. I could have sworn I saw the trailer already.
Jesus, I hope he doesn't make more. George Lucas is the worst thing to happen to Star Wars since, well, George Lucas.
Actually, The OC is not set in OC, it's set in LA. What a sham. Oh, it's also one of the worst shows in the universe. Strangely, Smallville is even more cringeworthy. It's set in Canada.