This is the first totally optical network, which is pretty awesome... it involved a number of companies and government organizations working together, here is a quote from the site:
Cisco Systems Canada Co., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, will provide Cisco '12000's' which will in turn deliver the density, scalability and performance required to enable new multimedia applications for the new economy. JDS Fitel, a world leading supplier of fibre optics, will supply the key optical components needed to develop this optical Internet. Newbridge Networks, a world leader in communications networking, and Cambrian Systems Corporation, a Newbridge affiliate company, will provide leading-edge asynchronous transfer mode infrastructure equipment and advanced photonic networking solutions enabling the delivery of differentiated Internet Protocol services and other advanced, high-bandwidth applications. Nortel, the world's leading supplier of high-capacity optical networks, will supply infrastructure equipment for the project, enabling bandwidth-intensive IP traffic to be carried directly over optical channels on the WDM network.
What they need now is applications for the network, if you're a student, tell your prof and see if you can't get something started!
All I can say is this thing is sweet! Here are the details from the site, for those too lazy:
o approx 250 hours of songs o IEEE-1394 connector for extra storage units o auto detect song title, artist, etc (if stored on CD) o smooth fade between songs and beat matching for DJ-like transitions between songs o "CustomDJ": "...an intelligent agent that watches how you listen to music. As it learns about your listening habits, it will automatically play the songs you like at the right time and day of the week." o touchscreen remote o 3 stereo (analog) outs - play different selections in different rooms at the same time!
Plus its good looking. Costs $699 - $999 depending on when you want this thing and which promotional offer you take.
Are there any software mp3 players that have the beat matching and DJ abilities this has? Those are the kind of features I would put in a design of my own - can't do that on a CD player (without having your own personal DJ:)
I personally don't like using *nix systems, so here's a different point of view for all you die-hard Linux fanatics.
Linux doesn't have an interface problem! It is an OS for techie's and people who really like to do things "the hard way" because it helps them learn about and understand their machine. Yes, it would make life easier for the majority if Linux had a nice GUI that anyone could use, but that is not what Linux is about... (and as far as I'm concerned Linux can rot in it's techie cult grave).
Let the nerds, the geeks, and the computer obsessive have their operating system that requires hard work to use. They like it like that!
The problem is that Windows and MacOS need a lot of work, but these are the operating systems that need UI work, because that is they're intended for mainstream use (and someday they might even be able to run for over an hour without crashing).
I must disagree. We must have very different tastes in literature.
I bought Cryptonomicon the instant it came out and was amazed at how bad it was. It's wildly uneven -- there are parts that really make the book worth reading, but there are huge chunks of it that are just baaaaaad. Pages on pages on the frequency of masterbation, masterbation v. sex. I thought these comments were really funny, and actually a really good insight to just how geeky/mathematically inclide Waterhouse was. Throughout the book you are given glimpses of how Waterhouse perceives the world, and the masterbation graphs, etc are just another way to really see how different Laurence really is then a "normal" person. This helps to explain his "super" abilities (crypto, inventing the digital computer, etc).
A long, pointless trip on the West Coast. This could have been handled better, but Neal took this time further develop the relationship between Amy and Randy, and to tell his readers that some of the simplest seeming problems (dividing up the heirlooms) are in fact exceeding difficult mathematical problems. (Which helps to explain crypto).
But what really disturbed me was the women. They don't ever do anything more than lay the men frustrate them by not doing so. I think that you have to give some slack here. As you mentioned, the book was told from a male perspective. Thus, since all males are insensitive, boorish, sex fiends Neal's portrail of women from males viewpoint isnt to far off:)
Ok, I don't really buy that either.
I agree that the women are not the major characters in the novel, and spend relatively most of their time engaged in sexual pursuits, but I don't think Neal has a sexist attitude towards women. Some examples:
Shaftoe's women is disfigured so he kills himself. Wrong. Shaftoe kills himself because he knows he's deadman anyways (the wounds from the landing were fatal), and just wants to get it over with. If thought he could surive he would have made a herculean effort (for his son).
Also remember the Glory was a rebel leader, not just a love interest.
Amy Shaftoe is the big romantic interest of the book; the climax of the relationship is when she climbs into a jeep, screws the big guy, and leaves. Perhaps Randy's climax was then, but the books? I enjoyed the Amy character; she reminded me of some of my open minded neofeminist female friends. A nice mix between tough, tender, thoughtful, and brash.
In any case, the setting and topic of the novel suggested a mainly male point of view (unfortunately). UNIX hackers typically come in only one flavour (male), as did the soldiers in WWII. I think Neal did an excellent job portraying their side of the story.
I definitely have to agree, it is *so* much better the second time... especially after partying all night (1:15am showing:)
The amount of detail and love that has been put into all of the scenes can only be appreciated after seeing it again.
I was so surprised, the first time I enjoyed it, but spent alot of time cringing at all of the bad scenes. The second time I actually loved Jar Jar and all the corniness (gotta love the bat-utility belt thang at the end - they all rise up at exactly the same time and pace!).
This is a movie that grows on you, and now that I think of it, so too do A New Hope and Jedi... not so great the first time but they get better everytime you watch em.
Dont complain about the pricing, from what I hear about rates in the states DSL and cable is both comparatively cheap up here.
Be thankful for what you have... and actually Shaw aint bad... the quality of the service can be poor (just like the reception on your TV), but when it works it flies, the cable modem is fast enough... most sites are much slower than I am. Until the nets pipes are improved a cable modem isnt the weak link.
Yes, handguns, assault rifles and the like are designed for one thing: causing phyiscal harm to human beings. But causing harm is sometimes necessary. In the US we have a right to self defense...
I don't see the link between self defense and killing another person... that has been culturally been bred into Americans. If no one had guns, non-lethal means of protection would work fine...
So go ahead and sue MS now, but what happens when a security flaw shows up in Linux? ( it cannot be!). But it has happened and will happen again... who then is responsible for the damages?
This is not a question tha can be easily answered by "Sue Microsoft!", you must consider the larger picture.
Slashdot Mirror
This is the first totally optical network, which is pretty awesome... it involved a number of companies and government organizations working together, here is a quote from the site:
What they need now is applications for the network, if you're a student, tell your prof and see if you can't get something started!
How sweet it is to be Canadian!
All I can say is this thing is sweet! Here are the details from the site, for those too lazy:
:)
o approx 250 hours of songs
o IEEE-1394 connector for extra storage units
o auto detect song title, artist, etc (if stored on CD)
o smooth fade between songs and beat matching for DJ-like transitions between songs
o "CustomDJ": "...an intelligent agent that watches how you listen to music. As it learns about your listening habits, it will automatically play the songs you like at the right time and day of the week."
o touchscreen remote
o 3 stereo (analog) outs - play different selections in different rooms at the same time!
Plus its good looking. Costs $699 - $999 depending on when you want this thing and which promotional offer you take.
Are there any software mp3 players that have the beat matching and DJ abilities this has? Those are the kind of features I would put in a design of my own - can't do that on a CD player (without having your own personal DJ
I personally don't like using *nix systems, so here's a different point of view for all you die-hard Linux fanatics.
Linux doesn't have an interface problem! It is an OS for techie's and people who really like to do things "the hard way" because it helps them learn about and understand their machine. Yes, it would make life easier for the majority if Linux had a nice GUI that anyone could use, but that is not what Linux is about... (and as far as I'm concerned Linux can rot in it's techie cult grave).
Let the nerds, the geeks, and the computer obsessive have their operating system that requires hard work to use. They like it like that!
The problem is that Windows and MacOS need a lot of work, but these are the operating systems that need UI work, because that is they're intended for mainstream use (and someday they might even be able to run for over an hour without crashing).
*contains spoils*
:)
I must disagree. We must have very different tastes in literature.
I bought Cryptonomicon the instant it came out and was amazed at how bad it was. It's wildly uneven -- there are parts that really make the book worth reading, but there are huge chunks of it that are just baaaaaad. Pages on pages on the frequency of masterbation, masterbation v. sex.
I thought these comments were really funny, and actually a really good insight to just how geeky/mathematically inclide Waterhouse was. Throughout the book you are given glimpses of how Waterhouse perceives the world, and the masterbation graphs, etc are just another way to really see how different Laurence really is then a "normal" person. This helps to explain his "super" abilities (crypto, inventing the digital computer, etc).
A long, pointless trip on the West Coast.
This could have been handled better, but Neal took this time further develop the relationship between Amy and Randy, and to tell his readers that some of the simplest seeming problems (dividing up the heirlooms) are in fact exceeding difficult mathematical problems. (Which helps to explain crypto).
But what really disturbed me was the women. They don't ever do anything more than lay the men frustrate them by not doing so.
I think that you have to give some slack here. As you mentioned, the book was told from a male perspective. Thus, since all males are insensitive, boorish, sex fiends Neal's portrail of women from males viewpoint isnt to far off
Ok, I don't really buy that either.
I agree that the women are not the major characters in the novel, and spend relatively most of their time engaged in sexual pursuits, but I don't think Neal has a sexist attitude towards women. Some examples:
Shaftoe's women is disfigured so he kills himself.
Wrong. Shaftoe kills himself because he knows he's deadman anyways (the wounds from the landing were fatal), and just wants to get it over with. If thought he could surive he would have made a herculean effort (for his son).
Also remember the Glory was a rebel leader, not just a love interest.
Amy Shaftoe is the big romantic interest of the book; the climax of the relationship is when she climbs into a jeep, screws the big guy, and leaves.
Perhaps Randy's climax was then, but the books? I enjoyed the Amy character; she reminded me of some of my open minded neofeminist female friends. A nice mix between tough, tender, thoughtful, and brash.
In any case, the setting and topic of the novel suggested a mainly male point of view (unfortunately). UNIX hackers typically come in only one flavour (male), as did the soldiers in WWII. I think Neal did an excellent job portraying their side of the story.
They tried that is Phantom menace with disasterous results... when the orbital supercomputer is blown up your 'bots all shut down.
CONTAINS SPOILERS
:)
I definitely have to agree, it is *so* much better the second time... especially after partying all night (1:15am showing
The amount of detail and love that has been put into all of the scenes can only be appreciated after seeing it again.
I was so surprised, the first time I enjoyed it, but spent alot of time cringing at all of the bad scenes. The second time I actually loved Jar Jar and all the corniness (gotta love the bat-utility belt thang at the end - they all rise up at exactly the same time and pace!).
This is a movie that grows on you, and now that I think of it, so too do A New Hope and Jedi... not so great the first time but they get better everytime you watch em.
So?
Go see it again.
Dont complain about the pricing, from what I hear about rates in the states DSL and cable is both comparatively cheap up here.
Be thankful for what you have... and actually Shaw aint bad... the quality of the service can be poor (just like the reception on your TV), but when it works it flies, the cable modem is fast enough... most sites are much slower than I am. Until the nets pipes are improved a cable modem isnt the weak link.
Doesnt it strike you as odd that the parents of the children quoted in Katz article havent called heir lawyers?
If that kind of crap was ever pulled on me, my parents would be screaming mad and be fighting for my rights.
If that protest didn't work then are there not laws governing the rights of children?
I thought what happened in Colorado was sick, but now I see that the killings were just a sad fact of a sick society.
I feel sorry for the people in the US, as they blindly scream out "Freedom!" and "2nd amendment" their true freedom has already been taken away.
Yes, handguns, assault rifles and the like are designed for one thing: causing phyiscal harm to human beings. But causing harm is sometimes necessary. In the US we have a right to self defense...
I don't see the link between self defense and killing another person... that has been culturally been bred into Americans. If no one had guns, non-lethal means of protection would work fine...
To all those that believe that the available of firearms had little to do with the killings, I have to ask one question...
Why hasn't there been the same sort of violent killings in Canadian and British schools?
The US is has its share of psychotics, as do we... but the availability of guns in the US allows these people to easily become killers.
If Americans would take a look around they would see that some of us have figured out the truth. The gun laws of US are part of the problem.
So go ahead and sue MS now, but what happens when a security flaw shows up in Linux? ( it cannot be!). But it has happened and will happen again... who then is responsible for the damages?
This is not a question tha can be easily answered by "Sue Microsoft!", you must consider the larger picture.