With bike transport, you had better also factor in the cost of growing your own garden, taking care of your own cows and chickens. etc. Because you can forget getting any food from any distance away before it spoils.
Bill Gates' business practices are certainly worthy of controversy, but your characterization of his charitable activities is grossly unfair. He has done *way* more in real-world terms for Africa than either Woz (who has done some charity work, but characteristically for rather odd causes and in a haphazard way) or Steve Jobs (whose only significant charity work is raising funds for his own bank account). I, for one, would consider both Bill Gates and Warren Buffet as pretty good role models for a kid planning on being a CEO or business leader. They've put their money to FAR better use than the vast majority of other ultra-rich CEO's in history and have chosen to set up charitable foundations rather than just hand their money on for their spoiled kids to squander.
And, what's more, a well-bribed legislature has every motivation to find a way to pass it. And there are a million sneaky ways to pass legislation "under the radar" if legislators are so motivated (they'll probably tack into onto a bill called the "Aid For Grandmothers of Soldiers Killed In Combat Act").
Yes, but there are so few of them and the competition is so intense that I would argue it's probably even less reasonable than "I want to be a professional actor." There are thousands of professional actors making a living at it. I would venture to guess that professional, full-time gamers (outside of Korea) probably number in the dozens (hundreds at the most).
I've worked with coders who should never have been coders.
I was in a programming class once and a fellow student asked me how I had solved a particularly difficult programming problem we had been given. I excitedly told him how I had come up with a clever solution that I was particularly proud of and about how I had awoken my roommate jumping up and down with delight when I did it. My fellow student just stared at me blankly, clearing not getting why I had been so excited at coming up with a unique solution to the problem. And that is when I knew that I was meant to be a programmer and he wasn't.
Coding isn't something someone else chooses for you, it's something you choose for himself. And it has NOTHING to do with him being a gamer. Relating "He likes to game" with "He will like to code games" is no less absurd than relating "He likes to game" with "He will like to be an electrician." Gaming and coding are two completely different things, only tangentially related by the thinnest of connections. At the very most, you might tell him that there is code behind his game. But if he is 14 and doesn't know that, he's probably too stupid to ever be a coder anyway (well, he might still be qualified to code for EA).
My advice? Politely tell your friend to ask his son what *HE* wants to do with his life. If the kid's answer is something reasonable (i.e. not "rap star," "sports legend," or "professional gamer"), then your friend should help the kid explore *that* profession, and not just assume that he's destined to be a programmer just because he likes to game. Programming is not the kind of thing you get into because some putz friend of your father's goads you into it.
Ironically, when I got into coding, my parents tried to goad me *OUT* of it (because I would code for hours at a time and they wanted me to at least go outside). Now that is how you know you're meant to do something!
Fine, but you have to break the news to that guy who can't accept change that he was incorrectly taught that there are 9 planets for his entire life. Now there are 13 (and counting).
There is no polite way to tell someone that the science directly conflicts with the religious/political/social tenets that they've been taught were sacred since they were a child. It's not the understanding that's the problem. It's the *implications* that people have a hard time accepting. Some people just can't handle the idea that Pluto's original classification as a "planet" was a mistake, after having been taught that it was a planet for their entire lives. Uncertainty is scary. And the idea that new science can come along and just yank away your most basic beliefs at any time is just too much for most common folk to bear.
Even a murderer sees himself as a good person. Everyone is the hero of his own story (in his own mind). So why would it surprise you when a bigot doesn't see himself as a bigot, or when an anti-intellectual doesn't see himself as an anti-intellectual, or when a sexist doesn't see himself as a sexist for using "himself" and "his" exclusively in his writing?
It's a shame you had to physically mod the Xbox to get it. If MS had allowed for easy and legal installation of something like this, the Xbox would have taken off like a rocket (and the 360 too for that matter).
The 5-year-rule is based on generations measured in releases between new consoles, not in the total lifespan of a console. And if you read my post, you'll note I said *modern* MMOPRG's. The closest thing we've had to one of those was the 360's godawful port of FFXI, which was just a crappy port of the PS2 version (which was already obsolete even five years ago). This generation of consoles is so locked down (both in hardware and in terms of PSN and Xbox Live) that it seems to be impossible to develop MMORPG's for them. Many developers have tried and failed (and then commented on how both MS and Sony seem almost openly hostile to MMORPG's).
Sony only broke the 5-year rule by one year (PS2 2000, PS3 2006), the PS3 can't support modern 3-D (what they showed was a half-assed, proprietary, pseudo-3D mash-up--the PS3 doesn't and can't meet the real spec without new hardware), no modern MMORPG has yet been released for any console (the PS3 and 360 have both had MMORPG's "coming soon" for a long time now and neither has ever actually delivered), true 1080p is still very rare on both consoles (mainly because it's almost impossible to pull off on such old hardware), and it doesn't really matter which controller is better because both are trading on the Wii motion controller fad that has long since lost its luster. I don't care if you're a Sony fanboy (as you appear to be), or a MS fanboy, or a Wii fanboy for that matter. Consoles are dropping the ball here, and it threatens to push them squarely back into the "toy" category and push hardcore gamers back to their PC's for the "real" experience.
Sometimes we need to toughen up those pansy-ass dolphins, birds, and turtles. If we hadn't cuddled them for so long they wouldn't be going extinct. Adversity breeds strength.
And the same goes for you, Pandas. You're next! Oh, you'll be mating up a storm when we finish.
Well, business majors are another breed. They're usually all convinced they're Gordon Gekko by about junior year at university. They think they're the sharks, when they're really still just the castrated guppies.
Warner Brothers and other studios paid good money for those Congressmen, it's hardly fair that they should turn around and make laws that could be used *against* the studios. I may be old, but I remember a time when Congress used to respect its bribes.
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I don't think any of those patchwork tunnels would survive a mild earthquake, much less a nuclear blast.
With bike transport, you had better also factor in the cost of growing your own garden, taking care of your own cows and chickens. etc. Because you can forget getting any food from any distance away before it spoils.
Poor old guy didn't realize they were just after his underpants.
It's because of the golden rule: "He who has the gold makes the rules."
The big media companies have a LOT of gold.
Bill Gates' business practices are certainly worthy of controversy, but your characterization of his charitable activities is grossly unfair. He has done *way* more in real-world terms for Africa than either Woz (who has done some charity work, but characteristically for rather odd causes and in a haphazard way) or Steve Jobs (whose only significant charity work is raising funds for his own bank account). I, for one, would consider both Bill Gates and Warren Buffet as pretty good role models for a kid planning on being a CEO or business leader. They've put their money to FAR better use than the vast majority of other ultra-rich CEO's in history and have chosen to set up charitable foundations rather than just hand their money on for their spoiled kids to squander.
And, what's more, a well-bribed legislature has every motivation to find a way to pass it. And there are a million sneaky ways to pass legislation "under the radar" if legislators are so motivated (they'll probably tack into onto a bill called the "Aid For Grandmothers of Soldiers Killed In Combat Act").
Yes, but there are so few of them and the competition is so intense that I would argue it's probably even less reasonable than "I want to be a professional actor." There are thousands of professional actors making a living at it. I would venture to guess that professional, full-time gamers (outside of Korea) probably number in the dozens (hundreds at the most).
Mr. Jones, we've told you before that you're not allowed to use the internet. Please return to your room.
10 PRINT "FUCK"
20 GOTO 10
I was in a programming class once and a fellow student asked me how I had solved a particularly difficult programming problem we had been given. I excitedly told him how I had come up with a clever solution that I was particularly proud of and about how I had awoken my roommate jumping up and down with delight when I did it. My fellow student just stared at me blankly, clearing not getting why I had been so excited at coming up with a unique solution to the problem. And that is when I knew that I was meant to be a programmer and he wasn't.
Coding isn't something someone else chooses for you, it's something you choose for himself. And it has NOTHING to do with him being a gamer. Relating "He likes to game" with "He will like to code games" is no less absurd than relating "He likes to game" with "He will like to be an electrician." Gaming and coding are two completely different things, only tangentially related by the thinnest of connections. At the very most, you might tell him that there is code behind his game. But if he is 14 and doesn't know that, he's probably too stupid to ever be a coder anyway (well, he might still be qualified to code for EA).
My advice? Politely tell your friend to ask his son what *HE* wants to do with his life. If the kid's answer is something reasonable (i.e. not "rap star," "sports legend," or "professional gamer"), then your friend should help the kid explore *that* profession, and not just assume that he's destined to be a programmer just because he likes to game. Programming is not the kind of thing you get into because some putz friend of your father's goads you into it.
Ironically, when I got into coding, my parents tried to goad me *OUT* of it (because I would code for hours at a time and they wanted me to at least go outside). Now that is how you know you're meant to do something!
Fine, but you have to break the news to that guy who can't accept change that he was incorrectly taught that there are 9 planets for his entire life. Now there are 13 (and counting).
And not only do bigots not see themselves as bigots, they also mod down posts unfairly.
There is no polite way to tell someone that the science directly conflicts with the religious/political/social tenets that they've been taught were sacred since they were a child. It's not the understanding that's the problem. It's the *implications* that people have a hard time accepting. Some people just can't handle the idea that Pluto's original classification as a "planet" was a mistake, after having been taught that it was a planet for their entire lives. Uncertainty is scary. And the idea that new science can come along and just yank away your most basic beliefs at any time is just too much for most common folk to bear.
You're wrong. God told me so.
Even a murderer sees himself as a good person. Everyone is the hero of his own story (in his own mind). So why would it surprise you when a bigot doesn't see himself as a bigot, or when an anti-intellectual doesn't see himself as an anti-intellectual, or when a sexist doesn't see himself as a sexist for using "himself" and "his" exclusively in his writing?
It's a shame you had to physically mod the Xbox to get it. If MS had allowed for easy and legal installation of something like this, the Xbox would have taken off like a rocket (and the 360 too for that matter).
If a species has to be taught how to mate and then actively coerced to mate by another species, I think that nature MEANS for them to go extinct.
The 5-year-rule is based on generations measured in releases between new consoles, not in the total lifespan of a console. And if you read my post, you'll note I said *modern* MMOPRG's. The closest thing we've had to one of those was the 360's godawful port of FFXI, which was just a crappy port of the PS2 version (which was already obsolete even five years ago). This generation of consoles is so locked down (both in hardware and in terms of PSN and Xbox Live) that it seems to be impossible to develop MMORPG's for them. Many developers have tried and failed (and then commented on how both MS and Sony seem almost openly hostile to MMORPG's).
Sony only broke the 5-year rule by one year (PS2 2000, PS3 2006), the PS3 can't support modern 3-D (what they showed was a half-assed, proprietary, pseudo-3D mash-up--the PS3 doesn't and can't meet the real spec without new hardware), no modern MMORPG has yet been released for any console (the PS3 and 360 have both had MMORPG's "coming soon" for a long time now and neither has ever actually delivered), true 1080p is still very rare on both consoles (mainly because it's almost impossible to pull off on such old hardware), and it doesn't really matter which controller is better because both are trading on the Wii motion controller fad that has long since lost its luster. I don't care if you're a Sony fanboy (as you appear to be), or a MS fanboy, or a Wii fanboy for that matter. Consoles are dropping the ball here, and it threatens to push them squarely back into the "toy" category and push hardcore gamers back to their PC's for the "real" experience.
Sometimes we need to toughen up those pansy-ass dolphins, birds, and turtles. If we hadn't cuddled them for so long they wouldn't be going extinct. Adversity breeds strength.
And the same goes for you, Pandas. You're next! Oh, you'll be mating up a storm when we finish.
So you're saying that Mac's/iPads/iPods don't come with Safari pre-installed? Huh, I always thought they did, just like Windows.
Wow, that's the equivalent of someone responding to a post of /. with "What is the 'Star Trek' everyone keeps mentioning?".
Well, business majors are another breed. They're usually all convinced they're Gordon Gekko by about junior year at university. They think they're the sharks, when they're really still just the castrated guppies.
Warner Brothers and other studios paid good money for those Congressmen, it's hardly fair that they should turn around and make laws that could be used *against* the studios. I may be old, but I remember a time when Congress used to respect its bribes.