I get up at 6:15, get myself ready for work, eat breakfast, get my kid ready for daycare, go to work, get home, make dinner or feed the kid, spend quality time with him, put him to bed, and by that time it's 9 PM or later. I have 2 hours left in the day to do anything else I need to do (pay bills, manage some household stuff, etc.) and then I'm back in bed.
You have a kid... this implies you have had sex.
Speaking for a large portion of the slashdot population...
What's it like?
Seriously, though, I'm in the same boat. What I've discovered is that there is unused time to at least go for short walks (lunchtime, for example -- 10 mins (maximum) to eat, 20 minutes to walk around the parking lot/campus. I've also discovered that 4:30 AM is a great time to go for a walk -- I bring a bottle of water, and this wake-up ritual has replaced my early-morning coffee. It's amazing how much more energy I have throughout the day if I begin with some moderate exercise. I suppose an exercise bike would serve the same purpose, and give me a better workout while allowing me to still catch the news.
Is it any surprise that people value the right to vote differently?
Obviously, since voter turnout is less than 50%, over half the people in the US value the right to vote less than the amount of effort and time required to actually vote.
Consider that, from a logical perspective, VALUE(right to vote) == SUM{[IMPACT(act of voting)]/[(COST(act of voting)]}.
Only when elected government commits truly heinous acts, or actions that directly affect the person in question, does the impact of the act of voting get large enough to make the value of the right to vote very high. This is magnified by the dilution of votes -- if you are in a state with 10 million people, ask yourself -- how much does your vote really count?
The present government corruption in both the U.S. and U.K. started when secret violence was authorized as a way of protecting oil investments of British and U.S. investors.
I'm a cynic, so that colors what I have to say... but I disagree.
The present government corruption began as soon as our hairy forebears realized that people in positions of power would abuse those positions of power when given gifts. This can probably be traced back to the first time Ogg gave more meat to Oggette and her little Oglodytes simply because she was willing to grab her ankles for him.
It's human nature to try to twist the political structure to one's own ends, and it's a failure of modern society that 'the people' don't insist upon fairer means of government.
Any government that can act in secret cannot be a democracy, because citizens cannot participate in things that are unknown to them.
Very good point. However, I'd add that far too many people are willing to let this happen -- how many people follow the order, "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" without question?
In addition to a secretive government being undemocratic, a population disinterested in the workings of government cannot produce a democratic government.
Steve Jobs was famously quoted as saying industry alliances always fail because there are just too many competing interests. He challenged people to name some successful industry alliances.
OPEC. RIAA. MPAA.
Can anyone name some successful computer industry alliances composed of competing members?
Oh, computer industry alliances.
Let's see... IEEE Computer Society? The Linux Foundation? Not sure if we could call those industry alliances, but at least for the IEEE, isn't a standards group a kind of industry alliance?
I think one reason specifically that computer industry alliances fail is that there has been a 800-lb gorilla in the room that does not want those alliances to succeed -- and is an order of magnitude larger than 20 4-lb gorillas or 4 20-lb gorillas working together. Were control of the industry a little more distributed, I think we'd see alliances be more successful.
Angle is important
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Lap Desks
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· Score: 3, Interesting
I like the ones attached to the side of hospital beds for eating on. It's kinda hard to sneak one out unnoticed[1], especially since you need to do it from someone else's hospital room (so it's harder to trace to you).
Two mods are required: Adding facility to tilt[2] (instead of just swivel) and adding a padded wristrest (for ergonomics as well as to keep your laptop from sliding onto your lap).
[1] Or, if you're lucky, find one at a surplus store. [2] Easy enough to add a locking hinge.
I have no idea if something similar is available commercially for cheap. But it can't be too hard to RYO using the swivel & tilt arms used to mount TVs... as long as you have a sturdy chair to mount the frame to.
1. The iPhone hasn't been around that long, it will take time for users to become acclimated 2. The iPhone may be used by a lot of people that care less about typos in their texts.
So before one can say this study shows that the UI for the iPhone is flawed, it's important to normalize the results for both 1 and 2.
Try the study again in 2 years, among people who have been texting on their phone of choice for >2 years who represent similar cross-sections of the texting population at large. Then perhaps we can come to useful conclusions.
Last time I checked Google was an American company, bound to America Laws...
And yes, I'm European.
Sorry, your ignorance makes you sound American.
Companies that do business in a region or country are bound by the laws of that region or country.
Google is bound by US law -- but for the business it does in the EU, it is also bound by the EU. The EU can say, "If you want to do business here, you need to abide by our laws."
They can also say, "If you want to bring your monopoly here, you can pay X in fines for the privilege, or get rid of your monopoly."
I'm aware of what he meant, but my initial scan read a little differently, so I decided to run with it and make a little joke. Sorry my intent was unclear.
I can't find myself fearing fearless mice. Why? Because there was most likely a very good reason for the mice that they are afraid of cats and large things that can eat them... I just can't seem to worry about these things getting loose and breeding in the wild.
Well, first off, how do you know they won't enable a large population of predators (say, wolves, or owls) to thrive until the fearless mice all get eaten; then you have a surplus of hungry owls and a scarcity of prey... sure hope you don't have mouse-colored hair and venture outside at night, Mr. "I ain't afraid of no mice".
Second, I think we can all recall the abundance of articles about mice engineered to be super-strong, super-endurant, super-visioned, and super-aggressive. Honestly, the only reason I've been unafraid until now is that I know^H^H^HH^knew that mice were scared of cats, so I could just put my furry catsuit on and I'd never get attacked.
Now we learn that they can engineer fearless mice -- think of the recombinant possibilities!1! Fearless AND superstrong?
I believe elephants foresaw the coming of the fearless destroyer mice legions (or simply remember the last time it happened, since they never forget) -- we should take a cue from them and be afraid of mice. Be very afraid.
Because he is supposed to represent ARIZONA, not Illinois.
This kind of reasoning abounds, but it's not really correct. In your example, McCain was not elected to represent the people of Arizona. He was elected by the people of Arizona to uphold and defend the Constitution (read the Senate oath of office) -- and by extension, represents the people of the US, not just the people of AZ.
Petty bickering over pork projects is one of the causes of the bloated situation we have now. Regional disputes also are not good for the country.
Every Senator should have the best interests of the entire country at heart -- and while their state of origin will influence their thinking, they do not represent just the state that voted them into the Senate.
You should only be able to donate to a candidate whose causes you believe in, not to entice him to change his views.
And how exactly are we to police the intent of the donor?
Your cash donation from another state should NOT trump my vote in my own state.
It doesn't. What trumps your vote in your state is the votes of others in your state who listen to marketing efforts more than you do.
I'm in agreement with you that money has too much impact in politics. I don't, however, agree that limitations on the flow of money into a campaign are the be-all and end-all of solutions. I think it'd be far more fruitful to limit the amount of money spent by candidates on media -- but of course, then we run into even more free speech issues.
The real solution, in my mind, is to break the stranglehold of the oligarchic media companies. Distributed control of popular media is the key, and this is why the free internet is under attack.
We're not going to get copyright reform. Here's another two reforms we need before copyright reform is possible but won't get either:
You should not be eligible to contribute to a candidate you're not eligible to vote for. I should not be able to contribute to John McCain unless he runs for President, or moves to Illinois and aomeone from Arizona shouldn't be able to contribute to Obama unless Obama m,oves to Arizona or runs for President.
You should not be allowed to "contribute" to more than one candidate in any given race. "Contributing" to more than one candidate in a race is simply a badly hidden bribe.
So in essence, you're saying that we should replace votes with cash donations. And to keep things fair, you can only bribe one candidate, not multiple candidates.
You should be able to donate to as many candidates as you like. What if you want Candidate A to get elected, but you really like the message of candidate C? Why can't you support both if you like?
The US Fed (Congress) has likely "create" too much money and diluted the US currency. Thus giving the appearance of a higher price. When really it is the currency buying it that has lost value.
The US Fed != Congress. The Treasury Department controls currency, and that department is an Executive Branch department. Also, the Fed (Federal Reserve Board) != the Treasury Department.
Also, the price (in USD) is higher, period. It doesn't just appear higher, it is higher in USD. You're right that this is more a reflection of the weakening dollar than anything else.
Finally, it's important to note that it's not currency creation that has diluted the money supply, it's lending. The impact of the volume of consumer loans issued by the banking industry is much greater than the impact of the variation in currency printed.
Electric cars are not really efficient requiring coal or natural gas in many places to generate it. And there are losses in recharging and discharge.There are also many gains from centralized, instead of distributed, combustion. A 1.5L engine simply is not as efficient as a full-sized power plant. You lose much more energy as heat, for example -- in a power plant, that heat is what drives electricity creation, whereas in a petrol engine the heat is a waste product.
Car companies like composites and plastics because they can make the cars cheaper. And sell it as "green". People don't look at the chemical lists used in it's creation. The result is you're paying a lot for the preception of being green.
You know where those composites and plastics come from? Oil. There is a huge supply of cheap plastic today because its precursors are byproducts of fuel production from crude. Yes, there are chemicals used to make it -- just as there are chemicals used to process steel. I have no idea which process (plastics production or steel production/reclamation) is more environmentally damaging -- but unless you can back it up, you shouldn't claim that steel is greener than plastic.
Re:Foie Gras is some nasty shit...
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Chefs As Chemists
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· Score: 1
Wow, Mr. internet tough guy. You still fail at reading comprehension.
I didn't write that you have to kill an animal if you want to eat them. I wrote that you need to be psychologically capable. Apparently even the second time around, when I pointed it out, was too much for you to handle -- are you that daft for real, or just being willfully obtuse?
Summary: You have time to troll on slashdot, but no time to bother reading comments. Not only that, but your trolling is weak and amateurish.
I have more money, and less time than most people to have to deal with the unwashed massAnd yet you have time to read slashdot and post inanity. Something tells me that not only do you have plenty of time, but that you yourself are a member of the massive unwashed.
Net neutrality is like saying that the airline can't sell you a first-class ticket, and then bump you down to coach unless you win a bidding war with another guy in first-class after you're on the airplane.
Or it's like paying up-front for first class on every flight you take, only to be bumped down to coach sometimes, depending on what airport you're flying into, and whether that airport has paid their 'passenger priority fee'.
Or it's like paying for Amtrak first class non-stop to Timbuktu and then being seated on a Greyhound bus that stops in Oswego first.
Or maybe it's like pay for a limo to the airport and a bus with only three wheels shows up at your door, and the driver is Otto from the Simpsons.
Or maybe it's like buying a twelve-speed bike and finding that only three gears work, and they shipped it with a banana seat and a shopping basket instead of the high-quality shock absorbers you paid for.
You misunderstand. He was not given the opportunity to resign. He was canned, and not for purely performance-related reasons (instead, for violating company policy in some manner).
This is not about hiding it, it's about how MS chose to terminate him, and how, not whether, they chose to publicize it.
Slashdot Mirror
It'll work with Linux as soon as someone writes a walker for it.
/Table 19, your pizza's ready. Don't forget to tip your waitress.
Speaking for a large portion of the slashdot population...
What's it like?
Seriously, though, I'm in the same boat. What I've discovered is that there is unused time to at least go for short walks (lunchtime, for example -- 10 mins (maximum) to eat, 20 minutes to walk around the parking lot/campus. I've also discovered that 4:30 AM is a great time to go for a walk -- I bring a bottle of water, and this wake-up ritual has replaced my early-morning coffee. It's amazing how much more energy I have throughout the day if I begin with some moderate exercise. I suppose an exercise bike would serve the same purpose, and give me a better workout while allowing me to still catch the news.
Democracy is an education in every mind.
Is it any surprise that people value the right to vote differently?
Obviously, since voter turnout is less than 50%, over half the people in the US value the right to vote less than the amount of effort and time required to actually vote.
Consider that, from a logical perspective, VALUE(right to vote) == SUM{[IMPACT(act of voting)]/[(COST(act of voting)]}.
Only when elected government commits truly heinous acts, or actions that directly affect the person in question, does the impact of the act of voting get large enough to make the value of the right to vote very high. This is magnified by the dilution of votes -- if you are in a state with 10 million people, ask yourself -- how much does your vote really count?
The present government corruption began as soon as our hairy forebears realized that people in positions of power would abuse those positions of power when given gifts. This can probably be traced back to the first time Ogg gave more meat to Oggette and her little Oglodytes simply because she was willing to grab her ankles for him.
It's human nature to try to twist the political structure to one's own ends, and it's a failure of modern society that 'the people' don't insist upon fairer means of government.
Very good point. However, I'd add that far too many people are willing to let this happen -- how many people follow the order, "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" without question?
In addition to a secretive government being undemocratic, a population disinterested in the workings of government cannot produce a democratic government.
Everyone knows the root of reponds is pond, which is a body of water, often man-made, smaller than a lake.
We also know that bodies of water reflect light off their surface, and further, we know that to reflect means to consider.
To pond is to consider.
A ponder is one who considers.
To repond is to reconsider.
Reponds means reconsiders.
Perhaps you'd like to repond your assumption that reponds is not a perfectly cromulent word?
Oh, computer industry alliances.
Let's see... IEEE Computer Society? The Linux Foundation? Not sure if we could call those industry alliances, but at least for the IEEE, isn't a standards group a kind of industry alliance?
I think one reason specifically that computer industry alliances fail is that there has been a 800-lb gorilla in the room that does not want those alliances to succeed -- and is an order of magnitude larger than 20 4-lb gorillas or 4 20-lb gorillas working together. Were control of the industry a little more distributed, I think we'd see alliances be more successful.
I like the ones attached to the side of hospital beds for eating on. It's kinda hard to sneak one out unnoticed[1], especially since you need to do it from someone else's hospital room (so it's harder to trace to you).
Two mods are required: Adding facility to tilt[2] (instead of just swivel) and adding a padded wristrest (for ergonomics as well as to keep your laptop from sliding onto your lap).
[1] Or, if you're lucky, find one at a surplus store.
[2] Easy enough to add a locking hinge.
I have no idea if something similar is available commercially for cheap. But it can't be too hard to RYO using the swivel & tilt arms used to mount TVs... as long as you have a sturdy chair to mount the frame to.
Good point.
But it's also important to note two things:
1. The iPhone hasn't been around that long, it will take time for users to become acclimated
2. The iPhone may be used by a lot of people that care less about typos in their texts.
So before one can say this study shows that the UI for the iPhone is flawed, it's important to normalize the results for both 1 and 2.
Try the study again in 2 years, among people who have been texting on their phone of choice for >2 years who represent similar cross-sections of the texting population at large. Then perhaps we can come to useful conclusions.
Companies that do business in a region or country are bound by the laws of that region or country.
Google is bound by US law -- but for the business it does in the EU, it is also bound by the EU. The EU can say, "If you want to do business here, you need to abide by our laws."
They can also say, "If you want to bring your monopoly here, you can pay X in fines for the privilege, or get rid of your monopoly."
I'm aware of what he meant, but my initial scan read a little differently, so I decided to run with it and make a little joke. Sorry my intent was unclear.
Second, I think we can all recall the abundance of articles about mice engineered to be super-strong, super-endurant, super-visioned, and super-aggressive. Honestly, the only reason I've been unafraid until now is that I know^H^H^HH^knew that mice were scared of cats, so I could just put my furry catsuit on and I'd never get attacked.
Now we learn that they can engineer fearless mice -- think of the recombinant possibilities!1! Fearless AND superstrong?
I believe elephants foresaw the coming of the fearless destroyer mice legions (or simply remember the last time it happened, since they never forget) -- we should take a cue from them and be afraid of mice. Be very afraid.
I think your definition of luxury is different than mine.
I'd like to be a fly on the wall during those performance reviews...
Petty bickering over pork projects is one of the causes of the bloated situation we have now. Regional disputes also are not good for the country.
Every Senator should have the best interests of the entire country at heart -- and while their state of origin will influence their thinking, they do not represent just the state that voted them into the Senate.
It doesn't. What trumps your vote in your state is the votes of others in your state who listen to marketing efforts more than you do.
I'm in agreement with you that money has too much impact in politics. I don't, however, agree that limitations on the flow of money into a campaign are the be-all and end-all of solutions. I think it'd be far more fruitful to limit the amount of money spent by candidates on media -- but of course, then we run into even more free speech issues.
The real solution, in my mind, is to break the stranglehold of the oligarchic media companies. Distributed control of popular media is the key, and this is why the free internet is under attack.
You should be able to donate to as many candidates as you like. What if you want Candidate A to get elected, but you really like the message of candidate C? Why can't you support both if you like?
Also, the price (in USD) is higher, period. It doesn't just appear higher, it is higher in USD. You're right that this is more a reflection of the weakening dollar than anything else.
Finally, it's important to note that it's not currency creation that has diluted the money supply, it's lending. The impact of the volume of consumer loans issued by the banking industry is much greater than the impact of the variation in currency printed.
Wow, Mr. internet tough guy. You still fail at reading comprehension.
I didn't write that you have to kill an animal if you want to eat them. I wrote that you need to be psychologically capable. Apparently even the second time around, when I pointed it out, was too much for you to handle -- are you that daft for real, or just being willfully obtuse?
Summary: You have time to troll on slashdot, but no time to bother reading comments. Not only that, but your trolling is weak and amateurish.
Or it's like paying for Amtrak first class non-stop to Timbuktu and then being seated on a Greyhound bus that stops in Oswego first.
Or maybe it's like pay for a limo to the airport and a bus with only three wheels shows up at your door, and the driver is Otto from the Simpsons.
Or maybe it's like buying a twelve-speed bike and finding that only three gears work, and they shipped it with a banana seat and a shopping basket instead of the high-quality shock absorbers you paid for.
Where's bad analogy guy when you need him?
You misunderstand. He was not given the opportunity to resign. He was canned, and not for purely performance-related reasons (instead, for violating company policy in some manner).
This is not about hiding it, it's about how MS chose to terminate him, and how, not whether, they chose to publicize it.