Slashdot Mirror


User: theschles

theschles's activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
9
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 9

  1. Re: Why not update your JRE? on Oracle Discontinues Free Java Time Zone Updates · · Score: 1

    Correct. A key point most are missing here is that tzupdater tool's purpose is to update TZ data on an existing java runtime. Install latest java runtime and you don't need this tool.

    And "refactor" of your code to latest java is typically a bit of testing effort. It's not like there are frequent compatibility breaks version to version...

    I at first thought that was true. See http://developers.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=3839675&cid=43947687 (the first response to subject "For JDK6"). Latest JRE doesn't have the latest timezone data.

  2. Re:For JDK6 on Oracle Discontinues Free Java Time Zone Updates · · Score: 1

    Son of a gun, Todd, you're right.

    http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/tzdata-versions-138805.html

    Timezone Tzdata Version
    Introduced in JRE Update Release
    TZUpdater Version
    Main Changes in this Timezone Data Release

    tzdata2013c
    1.3.56
    Palestine observed DST starting March 29, 2013.
    Changes in Paraguay's DST rules.

    tzdata2013b
    1.3.55
    Haiti uses US daylight-saving rules this year, and presumably future years.
    Paraguay will end DST on March 24 this year.
    Morocco does not observe DST during Ramadan;try to predict Ramadan in Morocco as best we can.

    tzdata2013a
    1.3.54
    Chile's 2013 rules, and we guess rules for 2014 and later, will be the same as 2012, namely Apr Sun>=23 03:00 UTC to Sep Sun>=2 04:00 UTC.
    New Zones Asia/Khandyga, Asia/Ust-Nera, Europe/Busingen.

    tzdata2012j
    1.3.53
    Libya moved to CET on Nov 10th weekend, but with DST planned next year.

    tzdata2012i
      6u38
      7u10
    1.3.52
    DST changes in Cuba to first Sun of Nov.

  3. IT vs CS experience on Ask Slashdot: CS Grads Taking IT Jobs? · · Score: 1

    I started out in IT after graduating with a Bachelor's of Business Administration in Information Systems. Sneaker-net / phone support / ripping apart computers / etc. I worked my way up to server admin (earning MCSE in the process) with a dabbling in network admin (earning CCNA in the process). Programming wasn't anywhere near a major part of my work other than shell scripting.

    But I saw the writing on the wall: the systems were becoming more and more stable; it was easier and easier to defend against computer attacks; it took less IT people to support more and more users/servers. IT also is an expense -- and expenses are to be minimized in the business world.

    Hence I went back to school, got a BS and then a MS in Information and Computer Science so I could become a revenue source -- and finally fix the bugs that I had been finding. The problem was, though, that my decade-long IT experience meant nothing in the programming industry, other than leadership experience because I had become a supervisor and then a manager while working in IT.

    So I started out as a junior programmer; after 3 years of learning a heck of a lot that they DO NOT teach in school, I finally had enough programming experience to land a job as a lead contract engineer. After 7 months of that, I'm now a senior developer at my current position.

    IT experience is almost completely different than CS experience; only at a small company will there be overlap. At medium to large companies, specialization is the key and often the IT folks and CS folks don't trust each other.

    So be careful. If you do end up taking an IT job -- hey, you have to eat -- make sure to get some programming in on the side. Join an open source community and start contributing code -- it's valuable experience that will get you portfolio material for when you apply for a CS position.

  4. I contacted Verizon and was told to drop dead on Verizon Doubles Early Termination Fee and More · · Score: 1

    I sent the following fax to Verizon yesterday. A Verizon exec yesterday afternoon called me back who said that "it was a business decision to require a data plan for all smartphones."

    They're willing to let this 10+ year customer go. When my wife and I change carriers to something with a less pricey plan, I will send them pictures of us ex-Verizon customers enjoying our new smartphones.

    Please send faxes to Verizon explaining that requiring a data plan is wrong. Maybe they'll listen if more people complain.

    Thank you for your assistance.

    BEGIN FAX:

    Lowell McAdam
    President & CEO
    Verizon Wireless, Inc.
    VIA FAX: 1-949-286-7570

    Subject: why can I not get a Windows Mobile, Android, or Blackberry phone without a data plan?

    Dear President and CEO McAdam or To Whom It May Concern,

    My name is [name redacted]. I have been a Verizon Wireless customer since Verizon bought AirTouch San Diego back in the late 1990's.

    My wife and I both need cell phones for phone calls, SMS, and MMS. My enV and my wife's VX8300 handle these functions well.

    In addition to carrying our phones, we've both been also carrying around Palm Pilots. Why? Because our BREW-based don't offer -- and there are apparently no apps that offer:
    - calendar applications that can display daily and weekly information well on the screen, as well as make it easy to set up appointments (the ones listed don't seem to cut it)
    - a task manager
    - the ability to back up the calendar and task manager data

    Now I'm a software developer; I have both a Bachelors of Science and a Masters of Science in Information and Computer Science from UC Irvine. So I don't think I'd have a problem writing BREW apps to handle those functions. But there's a $400 entry fee to get BREW apps approved even though I only want to write programs for our personal phones. I sent an email through your customer service page to you asking if there is some way to get around this ridiculous expense; so far, I have not heard back.

    We recently went to our local store ([city redacted], CA). We looked at the BREW-based phones; none of them offer the improved calendar that I'm seeking, a task manager, or the ability to back up the calendar and task manager data.

    We poked at the Windows Mobile, Android, and Blackberry phones. My wife likes the calendar on the Windows Mobile 6.1 phones and I'm going to try to find a Windows Mobile 6.5 phone for her to play with. But all three of these types of phones require a $30 monthly data plan -- which would be $60 a month total -- on top of the $70 a month for our current phone plan. We have cable Internet at home; both of us agree that we can do without Internet or email on our phones.

    I emailed your customer service team (the reply came back with the code [code redacted]). Basically, they told me nothing I didn't know.

    So I am now faxing you, appealing to you to figure out a way for us to not have to purchase a monthly data plan. We are truly considering moving to a different service as our 2 year contract is up at the end of this month.

    Please let me know if there is anything you can do to help. You can reach me on my Verizon Wireless cell phone at [number redacted].

    Thank you,

    [name redacted]

  5. Tecra M4 saved my tuchus as a MS student on Best Tablet PC For Classroom Instruction? · · Score: 1

    I can tell you that as a MS in ICS student, I wouldn't have passed my courses or comprehensive exam if not for my Toshiba Tecra M4 combined with JPG exports of classroom slides and M$ OneNote. (drag and drop the JPG slides into OneNote, then mark them up -- all while recording using OneNote)

  6. Re:any of the contestants here? on DARPA Grand Challenge Updates · · Score: 1
    As the team leader of a team that was eliminated at the site visit because our car didn't work (and then 2 weeks later we finally got it working consistently without a hitch), I'm kinda bummed that 4 (and probably 5) teams will complete the race. We were hoping that there would be a 2007 race.


    We started with zero funding and a small team of undergrad students in July 2004 - our first funding was $3,525, which we received in January 2005. Needless to say, we busted our butts and used a ton of ingenuity and we're proud to say that we can turn any car into a fully autonomous vehicle that will complete DARPA's site visit rules with about $14,000 (kinda cheap compared to CMU's rumored $3.5 Million for the March 2004 race).


    Now that there won't be a 2007 race (unless some mass disqualification occurs or DARPA just decides to be nice), we're aiming to recenter ourselves and aim for areas and applications that nobody else has done before.

  7. Re:Free Software / Open Source Project(s)? on DARPA Grand Challenge A Real Race At Last? · · Score: 1
    Hi Danda,

    At this point, my assumption is that we will not be open sourcing. However, allow me to make a few recommendations about how to get started: The key is to get knowledgeable. Read everything you can on the topic at hand:

    • articles on the grand challenge (a 2004 IEEE article called "Sand Trap" and a Popular Science article from the same year were both great)
    • The team technical reports from the 2004 race - and any that come out from this one
    • Red Team published a great analysis of what happened to their vehicle in the 2004 race
    • Books on AI, algorithms, robotics, servo motors
    • Check out team websites - they've got pictures and videos galore (including ours http://www.teamxar.com/)
    • CMU has all of the lecture docs on an autonomous robotics course published on their site

    Next, talk to professors and students in AI, algorithms, systems theory, control theory, sensors, embedded systems, etc.

    Also learn how to build simulations - you'll find that this is much cheaper in the long run than crashing things, and it's a good marketing tool!

    Sell your project whenever the opportunity arises. My wife can't stand it, but it gets people interested, and people know people who have equipment and money that they're willing to give you. Beg to borrow stuff. Beg to keep it longer.

    Build a web page and keep it updated with photos and videos of your progress (we've been guilty of not doing this, and it may have hurt us)

    And just remember the famous phrase: Invention is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. In reality, you're going to have to re-invent some portion of the wheel along the way, simply because nobody else has. Hence I'm writing brand new code from scratch in Java for our SICK LIDAR because nobody else has done it before.

    That's all I can think of right now off the top of my head.

  8. Re:Forza entry? on DARPA Grand Challenge A Real Race At Last? · · Score: 1

    Hey, if you can persuade Berlusconi to give us a half-a-million USD, I'm sure we (UC Irvine TeamXAR http://www.teamxar.com/) could slap the name Forza Italia on the side of it...

  9. Re:Free Software / Open Source Project(s)? on DARPA Grand Challenge A Real Race At Last? · · Score: 1
    There's a lot of open source software out there that can be used as part of an autonomous robotic system. For instance, there is CMU's CARMEN http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/~carmen/ as well as Player/Stage http://playerstage.sourceforge.net/

    However, as with all open source software, caveat emptor. We ourselves (University of California, Irvine's TeamXAR - I'm the team leader) found that CARMEN does not fail well, and in fact had to give it a few kicks each time we started it up.

    Note also that the finalists (and possibly semi-finalists) will need to issue team technical reports, so while that probably won't include code, key details will emerge.

    I should also state before I get a flurry of questions that we ourselves did not make the cut for the 40 semi-finalists for the September 2005 National Qualifying Event.

    We had built a ton of software since our team's inception in July 2004, but did not touch a real car we got a message from DARPA effectively stating "Hi! We'll be there in about a month for a site visit. See you then!"

    As to be expected, as we (a core group of 6 undergraduate students plus a few extra helpers) pulled nearly a month-straight of all-nighters to get something to show the reviewers from DARPA, not only was Murphy's Law present at our site visit, but we learned Murphy's Corollary: Murphy likes to work overtime. Nothing worked.

    Three weeks later, the car was tooling around our site visit course, but of course, three weeks too late.

    If you're interested in following our progress, hop to our website at http://www.ics.uci.edu/~darpagc/ or http://www.teamxar.com/

    - Phil