Energy is just *one* of the ways we use petroleum today. Petroleum by-products are in almost everything. If it hits $250 a barrel, we're going to have a LOT more to worry about than our gasoline.
There used to be a "rule of thirds" advocated by some historians of the French Revolution. For a revolution to happen, you needed at least 1/3 of the population to actively support it, no more than 1/3 actively opposed, and around 1/3 to be neutral (less if you had more than 1/3 supporting).
I never read the original comic book, so I don't really get all the fanboy angst over altered endings and such (or why it really even matters). But I'm a pretty harsh critic of superhero movies (I can probably count all of them I don't hate on one hand, with a slightly longer list if you include *all* comic book adaptations) and I thought it was a great film. The acting was a bit spotty in parts, but the story and direction were pretty flawless. It's one of the few comic book adaptations that not only got me into a theater, but also made it into my DVD collection.
BTW, one of the best superhero movies of late is one no one has probably even heard of: Special. Great ending on that one.
Great superhero movies: Superman I, Mystery Men, The Watchmen, Special. Everything else is mostly unwatchable dogshit.
Actually, I run Firefox and discovered recently that auto-update had stopped working for some reason. When I tried to update through Firefox, it reported that I had the latest version. When I did a manual check, I saw that I was running version 3.6.6. Checked the site and the latest version is actually 3.6.13. Had to download and install manually. Not sure what the problem was there, but just goes to show that even a technical user running Firefox can get out-of-date.
Actually, the thing I noticed was that he had the most trouble with abstract categories like art and fashion. I guess a computer can't really appreciate a painting.
Considering the numbers we're talking here, it's more accurate to say that almost *no one* is a vindictive jerk. And yes, that does surprise me. If a significant number of IT people are using these backdoors for nastiness they're either covering their tracks very well, or the companies are keeping quiet about it (both possibilities, I suppose).
The problem is that Sony, being the control-freaks that they are, will likely take steps that will punish *you*, even though you're completely innocent. Don't have your PS3 connected to the internet? Sorry, all future games require online validation before you can play them--and no refunds. Have limited hard drive space? Sorry, all games now require partial installation to the hard drive. Got an older PS3 model? Sorry, a PS3 Slim model is required to play this title. Haven't updated your system software in a while? Sorry, all games now require the latest PS3 update to run. Wondering why you're suddenly perma-banned for no reason? Sorry, we got a false positive that you were running unauthorized software--tough luck, buddy.
Mesh also requires the cooperation of a lot of people, each of whom is taking a considerable risk. Take your example of freenet, for example. How many people are really willing to install freenet if they know that someone might use it (and their associated IP address) to download child porn? There is no way I would install it on my system ("I didn't actually download it myself, I run freenet" may or may not work in a court of law, but I would hate to have to find out). It might be pretty hard to set up a mesh network if the local government lets it be known that anyone found with the mesh client on their computers will be imprisoned.
Even though that's the case (and I'm actually surprised the number isn't higher, considering my own experiences), the real revealing thing about this is that the VAST majority of IT professionals are professional enough not to take advantage of this or to retaliate against former employers. With the exception of a few high profile cases, almost all IT workers do not use these backdoors for sabotage, theft, etc.
Even if you get your last mile via some mesh wifi setup, it still all going through a trunk line at *some* point. One way or another, it's all eventually going to the Man.
There is an old saying I heard somewhere once: "Everyone is the hero of their own story." That is, everyone thinks *they're* the good guy. Whether they are to an outside observer depends upon that observer's perspective.
I will say this much, Barr's actions clearly crossed an ethical line, especially considering this was a private corporation with no police authority, no warrants, and no oversight.
Sadly, the era of R-rated blockbuster franchises (like Die-Hard and Lethal Weapon) is probably over. Blockbuster costs have gotten so out-of-control and studios have become so cautious that a PG-13 rating has become an almost universal contractual requirement for any budget above the $40 million mark. This is especially true for original intellectual properties, with no built-in fanbase. It's getting harder and harder to make an original movie (not based on any existing comic book, not a remake or sequel, etc.), with a big budget, with an R rating. These days if you pitch an original script that needs an R-rating, it had better be cheap or you're going to get laughed out of the room at any studio (unless your name is Steven Speilberg or you've already got a big slate of A-list stars on board, and even then you had better do a helluva pitch).
But, with that said, a lot of great films are still getting made (with lower budgets) and occasionally an R-rated blockbuster still slips through the cracks (like The Watchmen). But it's usually only under unusual conditions (it would have been all but impossible to do a PG-13 version of The Watchmen).
I can summarize my take on libertarianism and why it's laughably misguided with a solid nerd reference here: the TV show "Firefly." That show, IMHO, represents the purest representation of a libertarian utopia (or, more accurately, dystopia) that you're going to find. The rich live like kings, the poor wallow in the dirt, and a middle class is all but non-existent. But hey, they're FREE right, with no pesky government telling the outer worlds what to do? The powerful have the freedom to own slaves, lord over everyone else like gods, and pretty much do whatever they want to. The poor have the freedom to die. Hell, the rich even got the dumbass poor to FIGHT for it in a war. The REAL motto for the browncoats should have been "Fight for the right for the rich to exploit and abuse you all they want, with no government to stand in their way!"
Every libertarian dreamer always thinks that, in a world with no government, they'll be one of the 1% that will have everything. It never occurs to them that they'll be one of the shit-outta-luck 99% that have no power, no money, no anything.
You slashdot whiners still don't understand what a small and ineffectual minority you are.
Hi, you must be new here.
Lecturing Apple about their business practices makes you sound like the disenfranchised nerds that you are.
Do you think for a second that I think that Steve Jobs gives a rat's ass about what I (or pretty much anyone else) says about him? He wasn't the audience.
Predicting Apple's demise is just wishful thinking
Not sure who's comment you're referencing there, but I never predicted any such thing (quite the opposite, in fact).
And characterizing Apple's customers as shallow, young, cool-seeking buffoons just makes you look jealous.
No, that's highlighting the level of misguided hero worship going on here. That's just one of the crowds that's most obnoxious about it.
I started reading slashdot years ago, because the comments generally were insightful and thought-provoking. Now the comments just make me want to give you a figurative slap in the face.
You mean that you started to read it back when all the criticism was directly solely at MS. Now that people are actually criticizing the great hero Steve Jobs, suddenly you've decided that/. has become shallow, huh?
Yes, if only someone would make an alternative OS to Windows. Until they do, I guess we can at least console ourselves with the fact that it's not a closed system, with MS deciding what software we can install on it or not.
Slashdot Mirror
Energy is just *one* of the ways we use petroleum today. Petroleum by-products are in almost everything. If it hits $250 a barrel, we're going to have a LOT more to worry about than our gasoline.
There used to be a "rule of thirds" advocated by some historians of the French Revolution. For a revolution to happen, you needed at least 1/3 of the population to actively support it, no more than 1/3 actively opposed, and around 1/3 to be neutral (less if you had more than 1/3 supporting).
I never read the original comic book, so I don't really get all the fanboy angst over altered endings and such (or why it really even matters). But I'm a pretty harsh critic of superhero movies (I can probably count all of them I don't hate on one hand, with a slightly longer list if you include *all* comic book adaptations) and I thought it was a great film. The acting was a bit spotty in parts, but the story and direction were pretty flawless. It's one of the few comic book adaptations that not only got me into a theater, but also made it into my DVD collection.
BTW, one of the best superhero movies of late is one no one has probably even heard of: Special. Great ending on that one.
Great superhero movies: Superman I, Mystery Men, The Watchmen, Special. Everything else is mostly unwatchable dogshit.
Actually, I run Firefox and discovered recently that auto-update had stopped working for some reason. When I tried to update through Firefox, it reported that I had the latest version. When I did a manual check, I saw that I was running version 3.6.6. Checked the site and the latest version is actually 3.6.13. Had to download and install manually. Not sure what the problem was there, but just goes to show that even a technical user running Firefox can get out-of-date.
Perhaps you should write Steve Jobs and Steve Ballmer a nasty letter.
Wait...they make an xbox controller dildo?!? Oh, happy days!
Considering the abuse that most IT workers take from their companies and bosses, I'm again surprised. ;-)
Actually, the thing I noticed was that he had the most trouble with abstract categories like art and fashion. I guess a computer can't really appreciate a painting.
Imagine paring Watson 5.0 with a really advanced voice-to-text app. You could get very close to a computer that could pass the Turing test.
Well, at least we can sleep well knowing that a machine will never take over the world and start a nuclear war.
Considering the numbers we're talking here, it's more accurate to say that almost *no one* is a vindictive jerk. And yes, that does surprise me. If a significant number of IT people are using these backdoors for nastiness they're either covering their tracks very well, or the companies are keeping quiet about it (both possibilities, I suppose).
The problem is that Sony, being the control-freaks that they are, will likely take steps that will punish *you*, even though you're completely innocent. Don't have your PS3 connected to the internet? Sorry, all future games require online validation before you can play them--and no refunds. Have limited hard drive space? Sorry, all games now require partial installation to the hard drive. Got an older PS3 model? Sorry, a PS3 Slim model is required to play this title. Haven't updated your system software in a while? Sorry, all games now require the latest PS3 update to run. Wondering why you're suddenly perma-banned for no reason? Sorry, we got a false positive that you were running unauthorized software--tough luck, buddy.
Mesh also requires the cooperation of a lot of people, each of whom is taking a considerable risk. Take your example of freenet, for example. How many people are really willing to install freenet if they know that someone might use it (and their associated IP address) to download child porn? There is no way I would install it on my system ("I didn't actually download it myself, I run freenet" may or may not work in a court of law, but I would hate to have to find out). It might be pretty hard to set up a mesh network if the local government lets it be known that anyone found with the mesh client on their computers will be imprisoned.
Even though that's the case (and I'm actually surprised the number isn't higher, considering my own experiences), the real revealing thing about this is that the VAST majority of IT professionals are professional enough not to take advantage of this or to retaliate against former employers. With the exception of a few high profile cases, almost all IT workers do not use these backdoors for sabotage, theft, etc.
Even if you get your last mile via some mesh wifi setup, it still all going through a trunk line at *some* point. One way or another, it's all eventually going to the Man.
That's where the oversight comes in (or rather, it's *supposed* to).
There is an old saying I heard somewhere once: "Everyone is the hero of their own story." That is, everyone thinks *they're* the good guy. Whether they are to an outside observer depends upon that observer's perspective.
I will say this much, Barr's actions clearly crossed an ethical line, especially considering this was a private corporation with no police authority, no warrants, and no oversight.
Yeah, what would he know about what the military was up to? He was just one of its commanding generals.
Sadly, the era of R-rated blockbuster franchises (like Die-Hard and Lethal Weapon) is probably over. Blockbuster costs have gotten so out-of-control and studios have become so cautious that a PG-13 rating has become an almost universal contractual requirement for any budget above the $40 million mark. This is especially true for original intellectual properties, with no built-in fanbase. It's getting harder and harder to make an original movie (not based on any existing comic book, not a remake or sequel, etc.), with a big budget, with an R rating. These days if you pitch an original script that needs an R-rating, it had better be cheap or you're going to get laughed out of the room at any studio (unless your name is Steven Speilberg or you've already got a big slate of A-list stars on board, and even then you had better do a helluva pitch).
But, with that said, a lot of great films are still getting made (with lower budgets) and occasionally an R-rated blockbuster still slips through the cracks (like The Watchmen). But it's usually only under unusual conditions (it would have been all but impossible to do a PG-13 version of The Watchmen).
I can summarize my take on libertarianism and why it's laughably misguided with a solid nerd reference here: the TV show "Firefly." That show, IMHO, represents the purest representation of a libertarian utopia (or, more accurately, dystopia) that you're going to find. The rich live like kings, the poor wallow in the dirt, and a middle class is all but non-existent. But hey, they're FREE right, with no pesky government telling the outer worlds what to do? The powerful have the freedom to own slaves, lord over everyone else like gods, and pretty much do whatever they want to. The poor have the freedom to die. Hell, the rich even got the dumbass poor to FIGHT for it in a war. The REAL motto for the browncoats should have been "Fight for the right for the rich to exploit and abuse you all they want, with no government to stand in their way!"
Every libertarian dreamer always thinks that, in a world with no government, they'll be one of the 1% that will have everything. It never occurs to them that they'll be one of the shit-outta-luck 99% that have no power, no money, no anything.
You slashdot whiners still don't understand what a small and ineffectual minority you are.
Hi, you must be new here.
Lecturing Apple about their business practices makes you sound like the disenfranchised nerds that you are.
Do you think for a second that I think that Steve Jobs gives a rat's ass about what I (or pretty much anyone else) says about him? He wasn't the audience.
Predicting Apple's demise is just wishful thinking
Not sure who's comment you're referencing there, but I never predicted any such thing (quite the opposite, in fact).
And characterizing Apple's customers as shallow, young, cool-seeking buffoons just makes you look jealous.
No, that's highlighting the level of misguided hero worship going on here. That's just one of the crowds that's most obnoxious about it.
I started reading slashdot years ago, because the comments generally were insightful and thought-provoking. Now the comments just make me want to give you a figurative slap in the face.
You mean that you started to read it back when all the criticism was directly solely at MS. Now that people are actually criticizing the great hero Steve Jobs, suddenly you've decided that /. has become shallow, huh?
Don't like it? Well fuckin' tough.
Yes, if only someone would make an alternative OS to Windows. Until they do, I guess we can at least console ourselves with the fact that it's not a closed system, with MS deciding what software we can install on it or not.
Not only that, but I know more than most.
Help I'm an Apple Store employee with no sense of humor!
Yeah, but what phone do you use if you want to have sex with *women*?