Biology plays a significant role in one's abilities, perhaps 95%. I could do bike training for 10 hours a day 10 years and not be anywhere near Lans Armstrong's abilities in that area.
I'm not really surprised by the findings, politically incorrect as they may be. I bet if they compared persons diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome with the rest of the population, they would find that Aspies have higher IQs in average. (Incidentally, Autism has been said to be a "extreme form of maleness.") IQ tests generally measure analytical/mathematical intelligence, so that's not surprising. But intelligence is not one-dimensional as most people suppose -- i.e. you're either smart or dumb. A relatively more sophisticated yet still parroquial view of things includes the concepts of "street smarts" vs. "book smarts." It's far more complicated than that, though. Have they compared the emotional intelligence of women vs. men by any chance? I didn't think so.
Offering someone a job, even at what you consider to be a crappy wage, isn't enslavement.
The idea that wage somehow makes slavery not be slavery is an illusion. Note that slaves have always been given something, such as food and a place to sleep. That's not the point. When you basically have no choice but to work for one guy or entity day in and day out, then you're a slave. Unfortunately, that's how the world works for the vast majority.
But it is fairly rare for the average Latin American to be fluent in English. Even though English is generally taught in schools, that can only get you as far as understanding a little, more in written form than verbally. And yes, the legal immigrants from Latin America (e.g. those going to college there as I did once) are more likely to speak English fluently that the illegal immigrants. And it would be fairly rare for a fluent English speaker in Latin America to be willing to accept a job as, say, a call center operator. (Could happen, but the available pool is likely very small.) As far as programming goes, many of the talented programmers who speak English are already in the US.
a number of business sites are saying Latin America is the new India for outsourcing. They have similar timezones to U.S., speak English, and are even a relatvely short plane trip away. Who knows, might be a more attractive spot to immigrate to than south asia too, for those willing to follow the work
I can speak to that as a consultant in the market you refer to. The timezone part is absolutely an advantage. The difficult part is finding talent who are able to communicate well in English. A lot of times it's possible to have the actual programmers do little of the communication with the client, and have them take English classes on the side. (Call center kind of work probably wouldn't do well in Latin America.)
And that last point is always said with almost an air of superiority, like there's an underlying "I didn't do well at math and I'm successful, why did you waste your time?".
Good point. It's a cultural problem to a large extent. Kids who like Math and Science are considered geeks, nerds, etc. (There's a case to be made that there exists a genetic/neurological phenotype which is both good with analytical thinking, and not that good socially.) Geeks aren't popular, hence many stay away from Math and Science. I bet it's not the same in Asia for the most part.
Americans like entertainment and instant gratification, and think the more of that they have the better they will be.
And yet, Americans are very workaholic, taking much shorter vacations than their european counterparts. So I'm inclined to conclude that the decline in science is not due to complacency or laziness, but instead to a cultural/economic shift, a shift of priorities perhaps. Take, for example, enrollment in Computer Science. It's on a downward trend because of the dotcom bust mostly. Technology in general has been impacted by the NASDAQ. It could very well be a temporary dip.
I know most "Americans" (US citizens) don't know this, but there's actually no country called America. America is a continent, and is composed of North America (Mexico, US and Canada), Central America, and South America. When Columbus discovered America, he did not discover the US, as many people assume.
While AJAX is certainly progress (though it's been around for years) I really don't see HTML/Javascript going much further and staying with us as the future of web/application development unfolds. They are relatively brittle, error prone languages lacking in capability. You can do a lot with them, but then again, you can do a lot with Assembly language and BASIC too.
What if you need to produce, say, a huge operating system, or a system requiring a million lines of code? (Open source is theoretically an answer, assuming the system is interesting enough to potential contributors.) You can't always use only good developers for a project. You need to go for the "long tail" effect.
I disagree. Browsers need to move in that direction, and likely will, but using a proper security infrastructure, i.e. a sandbox similar to that in Java or.NET. I believe 10 years from now HTML will be like the BASIC of the web development world.
The thing is, XAML is the new Applet and AJAX is the new Javascript (yes I know it IS javascript, but sort of working at a higher level than before) with pretty much the same path before them.
Applets are a good reference point to discuss this. Why couldn't applets compete with HTML/Javascript, considering that they have access to the entire Java API and all the capabilities of Java (with security restrictions of course) ? There are many reasons, such as the fact that they didn't a good job integrating it in the browser so it seems a bit broken. But consider also that applets require a programmer with some knowledge of object-oriented programming to build the GUI, compile, package, and deploy it. After making a change, repeat the steps. HTML can be written by virtually anyone (most web designers I pressume don't know much about programming in general) and does not require compilation or packaging. The thing is, XAML is closer to HTML than to applets, notwithstanding mistakes MS has made or will make regarding its usability. But in general, XAML doesn't need to have the shortcomings of applets. Note that there are many people who seem eager to start developing webapps in XAML -- so it will happen.
That's at least how long a new technology takes to be adopted. Maybe Linux distributors and Sun are already thinking about it (I'm of course referring to the Avalon stuff and its potential impact on web app development.) But maybe it will take that long for them to react, and by then it might be too late. Sun is probably the only company in a position to do something about it (perhaps necessarily with the help of the OSS community) since I believe MS must ship a JRE with Windows. If not, it's game over, given MS's deployment power, and Avalon will need to be ported to Linux (people have already expressed interest in doing this) however badly and fairly incompatible as it may turn out.
Just my read on the situation. I could of course be wrong.
I tend to agree that there's some pressure in the open source community to stick with the standards and existing open source systems. What we already have is good enough to compete with what they throw at us -- sort of thing. There's no need to build something new. Contribute to what exists instead of building something new. Meanwhile, MS is thinking 'F*ck the standards. Let's build something bigger and technically more impressive that will kill the standard stuff.'
I would not underestimate Longhorn. It could be quite significant to Linux and Java both, and I don't believe either camp grasps that at this point. It will become clear in 3-5 years.
I find the BSD License to be simpler. Surely that must be a factor making the BSD the second most popular license at SourceForge. But then again, I usually go for the simplest approach possible (but not simpler.) You might call that laziness.
More and more Java apps are getting built, so that takes care of that. Hopefully a Java Desktop will catch on, so that takes care of the familiarity. Developer participation shouldn't be a problem. What would be cool about a Java OS, for example, would be the opportunity to implement true orthogonal persistence. (I think PCs, logically, shouldn't have two separate memories -- main and secondary. I should be able to use all space available as 'memory'.)
There was a JOS project a while back, which is dead I think. (I started a leJOS project myself about 5 years ago, which is still quite actively used, but that's a slightly different thing.) There's another project I saw just today... JNode.
Re:The greatest fear of the Open Source community
on
Longhorn Preview
·
· Score: 1
Even if that were to happen, i.e. MS basically giving up, Linux is still a Unix system, and Windows is Windows.
This seems to be a new site, right? Found this in their FAQ:
Q: Will Sun make Java Technology Open Source?
A: Sun's goal is to make Java as open as possible and available to the largest developer community possible. We continue to move in that direction through the Java Community Process (JCP). Sun has published the Java source code, and developers can examine and modify the code. For six years we have successfully been striking a balance between sharing the technology, ensuring compatibility, and considering the needs of a growing installed base of more than 2.5 million Java developers who depend on us. We are certainly evolving Java through the JCP to a model that works for all involved but that also ensures compatibility. Cross-platform compatibility has always been the key to Java's success and integrity; a notion we feel was protected by Microsoft's agreement in January 2001 to settle the lawsuit regarding Java technology.
Well, it does matter. You may be a consultant who charges by the hour. In this scenario being quick is good for your reputation but it can cost you too. If you're a full-time employee, you are supposed to work 40 hours/week regardless of how quick you are.
Working too many hours is not healthy. Downtime is necessary. I think one should have a month of downtime a year.
Slashdot Mirror
Biology plays a significant role in one's abilities, perhaps 95%. I could do bike training for 10 hours a day 10 years and not be anywhere near Lans Armstrong's abilities in that area.
I'm not really surprised by the findings, politically incorrect as they may be. I bet if they compared persons diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome with the rest of the population, they would find that Aspies have higher IQs in average. (Incidentally, Autism has been said to be a "extreme form of maleness.") IQ tests generally measure analytical/mathematical intelligence, so that's not surprising. But intelligence is not one-dimensional as most people suppose -- i.e. you're either smart or dumb. A relatively more sophisticated yet still parroquial view of things includes the concepts of "street smarts" vs. "book smarts." It's far more complicated than that, though. Have they compared the emotional intelligence of women vs. men by any chance? I didn't think so.
The idea that wage somehow makes slavery not be slavery is an illusion. Note that slaves have always been given something, such as food and a place to sleep. That's not the point. When you basically have no choice but to work for one guy or entity day in and day out, then you're a slave. Unfortunately, that's how the world works for the vast majority.
But it is fairly rare for the average Latin American to be fluent in English. Even though English is generally taught in schools, that can only get you as far as understanding a little, more in written form than verbally. And yes, the legal immigrants from Latin America (e.g. those going to college there as I did once) are more likely to speak English fluently that the illegal immigrants. And it would be fairly rare for a fluent English speaker in Latin America to be willing to accept a job as, say, a call center operator. (Could happen, but the available pool is likely very small.) As far as programming goes, many of the talented programmers who speak English are already in the US.
I can speak to that as a consultant in the market you refer to. The timezone part is absolutely an advantage. The difficult part is finding talent who are able to communicate well in English. A lot of times it's possible to have the actual programmers do little of the communication with the client, and have them take English classes on the side. (Call center kind of work probably wouldn't do well in Latin America.)
Good point. It's a cultural problem to a large extent. Kids who like Math and Science are considered geeks, nerds, etc. (There's a case to be made that there exists a genetic/neurological phenotype which is both good with analytical thinking, and not that good socially.) Geeks aren't popular, hence many stay away from Math and Science. I bet it's not the same in Asia for the most part.
And yet, Americans are very workaholic, taking much shorter vacations than their european counterparts. So I'm inclined to conclude that the decline in science is not due to complacency or laziness, but instead to a cultural/economic shift, a shift of priorities perhaps. Take, for example, enrollment in Computer Science. It's on a downward trend because of the dotcom bust mostly. Technology in general has been impacted by the NASDAQ. It could very well be a temporary dip.
I know most "Americans" (US citizens) don't know this, but there's actually no country called America. America is a continent, and is composed of North America (Mexico, US and Canada), Central America, and South America. When Columbus discovered America, he did not discover the US, as many people assume.
While AJAX is certainly progress (though it's been around for years) I really don't see HTML/Javascript going much further and staying with us as the future of web/application development unfolds. They are relatively brittle, error prone languages lacking in capability. You can do a lot with them, but then again, you can do a lot with Assembly language and BASIC too.
What if you need to produce, say, a huge operating system, or a system requiring a million lines of code? (Open source is theoretically an answer, assuming the system is interesting enough to potential contributors.) You can't always use only good developers for a project. You need to go for the "long tail" effect.
I disagree. Browsers need to move in that direction, and likely will, but using a proper security infrastructure, i.e. a sandbox similar to that in Java or .NET. I believe 10 years from now HTML will be like the BASIC of the web development world.
Applets are a good reference point to discuss this. Why couldn't applets compete with HTML/Javascript, considering that they have access to the entire Java API and all the capabilities of Java (with security restrictions of course) ? There are many reasons, such as the fact that they didn't a good job integrating it in the browser so it seems a bit broken. But consider also that applets require a programmer with some knowledge of object-oriented programming to build the GUI, compile, package, and deploy it. After making a change, repeat the steps. HTML can be written by virtually anyone (most web designers I pressume don't know much about programming in general) and does not require compilation or packaging. The thing is, XAML is closer to HTML than to applets, notwithstanding mistakes MS has made or will make regarding its usability. But in general, XAML doesn't need to have the shortcomings of applets. Note that there are many people who seem eager to start developing webapps in XAML -- so it will happen.
Just my read on the situation. I could of course be wrong.
I tend to agree that there's some pressure in the open source community to stick with the standards and existing open source systems. What we already have is good enough to compete with what they throw at us -- sort of thing. There's no need to build something new. Contribute to what exists instead of building something new. Meanwhile, MS is thinking 'F*ck the standards. Let's build something bigger and technically more impressive that will kill the standard stuff.'
I would not underestimate Longhorn. It could be quite significant to Linux and Java both, and I don't believe either camp grasps that at this point. It will become clear in 3-5 years.
How do you request to have a project added there?
I find the BSD License to be simpler. Surely that must be a factor making the BSD the second most popular license at SourceForge. But then again, I usually go for the simplest approach possible (but not simpler.) You might call that laziness.
I tend to agree. The next Mosaic is out there somewhere getting off the ground :)
There was a JOS project a while back, which is dead I think. (I started a leJOS project myself about 5 years ago, which is still quite actively used, but that's a slightly different thing.) There's another project I saw just today... JNode.
Even if that were to happen, i.e. MS basically giving up, Linux is still a Unix system, and Windows is Windows.
Is XAML going to be available in the Longhorn beta?
Scientists found that reading Slashdot all day actually makes you more productive. Go figure.
Q: Will Sun make Java Technology Open Source? A: Sun's goal is to make Java as open as possible and available to the largest developer community possible. We continue to move in that direction through the Java Community Process (JCP). Sun has published the Java source code, and developers can examine and modify the code. For six years we have successfully been striking a balance between sharing the technology, ensuring compatibility, and considering the needs of a growing installed base of more than 2.5 million Java developers who depend on us. We are certainly evolving Java through the JCP to a model that works for all involved but that also ensures compatibility. Cross-platform compatibility has always been the key to Java's success and integrity; a notion we feel was protected by Microsoft's agreement in January 2001 to settle the lawsuit regarding Java technology.
I take it that's a 'no.'
It does require being a geek. I was programming BASIC at about 12 or so too.
Working too many hours is not healthy. Downtime is necessary. I think one should have a month of downtime a year.