"how many servers and workstations they could cram into a mobile semi-trailer lab"
I'm guessing the answer was lots and lots...... there are quite a few technical challenges as you say, power, cooling, and making sure that the machines survive the journey, too.
It would be a neat side business if Google went into providing server farms and data centers for other businesses; as other people have mentioned they have a lot of smart people working on the associated problems.
Hey, it could save their asses if this whole internet thing doesn't pan out:)
I'm working on a nightclub site here in Ireland; I'm thinking of making some free content for bebo or myspace that we'd gibe away for free from our site- certainly a flashbox of some description, or a piece of video and possibly a sensible theme for one of those two sites, if that's possible. I can't imagine selling a skin or piece of content to someone, but I see it as a useful way to give someone something that is associated with your brand.
I'm also considering creating a chatroom accessible from a bebo/myspace page that would link people to our site.... I'd just need to get a socket server sorted and write myself an app:0'
The thought of creating content that is going to be used on sites like bebo/myspace fills me with a certian amount of disgust, but I've got a client to serve and if this'll bring in users, then so be it:)
Don't worry, i'll be muting and pausing any video we include;)
Superb post man......... I just discovered Picasa's new features today when I downloaded the update- the tagging feature using Google Earth is brilliant - it feels a little fiddly at first, but after a few minutes I had tagged hundreds of my shots (only another 19,000 to go, then.... no, seriously, I need some kind of batch function)
Anyway, I havent probed all of the possibilities yet, but I'm sure there's a service where you can upload your JPEGs to a site which will automatically place them on a google maps map etc. It's also a big boon in that it tags your local, original file with the geolocation so that any exports or backups you make will have that information on them.
Hehe, yea the name's a private joke- you know the bit in Batman Returns where The Penguin has a bunch of, well, penguins with the rockets strapped to their backs? We were watching it at home and my sister asked what type of penguins they were. Well........ I just replied, deadpan..... 'stunt penuins, stupid'.
Hey, wasn't sure if they were making another Forza game for the XB360- Forza itself is a great reason to own an XB 360;
I found it much more immediate than any of the GT games, and the online play (y'hear that sony!) was great.
Anyway, it sounds as though PS3 owners would be much better off just getting an old copy of Grand Turismo and playing *that* until Sony get off the LSD.
Get your facts straight. You can rip to MP3 and WMA without applying any kind of DRM; when you first set up windows media player it even asks you if you want to turn on the content 'protection' system.
I use WMP to rip to mp3, and I see no reason not to, as it produces exactly the same result as any other ripper with half the fuss.
1024 * 576 is squarepix PAL DVD resolution, it usually make it onto the disc at 720 * 576
I wouldn't pay for content at any lower a resolution than that, to be honest:0'
Maybe he's Einstein reincarnated, and is going back to continue where he left off in his old job. Expect his 'universal theory of everythihg' to be wrapped up in time for his 30th birthday.
Honestly, I think _quality_ streaming TV is just a pipe dream.
Exactly, exactly, exactly! TV over t'internet needs to learn to crawl first- technology writers talk about IPTV and TV over the web as though it's something that can be deployed in the next few years, or as if it's something that isn't going to cost trillions of dollars to roll out. We don't have the means to deploy that kind of network yet, nor do we need to.
We currently have a way of deploying streaming video to hundreds of millions of TV sets across the globe at the same time; it's called satellite and cable TV, and although it costs a bundle to put up there, one satellite can serve (hundreds of?) millions of homes with the same content all at once, and it doesn't mean putting lines in the ground to every home. Oh, and if 6 differnet people want to watch 6 different programmes, well then that's okay, since all you need is 6 different receivers, not 6x as much bandwidth on your cable connection.
Can you imagine what it would take to stream live video to the 1 billion people who watch the World Cup? Or the hundreds of millions of people who watch the superbowl? That kind of information infrastructure is as far beyond the capabilities of our current series of tubes as I care to imagine.
In the meantime, a much better solution is video recording that has a satellite/cable/terrestrial connection for watching and recording TV that's on right now, plus an internet connection (for downloading video that you missed, scheduling and interactive services) . It's a lot more practical than everything-over-IP, and gives enough bandwidth for HD programming, which is somethign we're supposed to be working towards, right?
Precisely. If Google are using this money to lobby for net neutrality, to stop pressure on themselves to reveal private information about their users, and to clear the way for free municipal wifi, then how is this any less than fighting fire with fire.
Heh, living in Galway city center (the Irish west coast), it's pretty clear there is a drink problem here and the UK, but not in the same way that fits the stereotype (old drunken souses).
It's the youth that the drinking problem is with here. Our legal drinking age is 18, which means most young people will start drinking in public places at about 16 (if not younger), and more like under 14 in public parks for the less well off sections of the population (of course these are in themselves big generalisations).
There is an epidemic of binge drinking among youth here and in the UK. Underage drinkers drinking as much as they can in as short a time as possible on street corners, in parks and at friends' houses. It's seriously unhealthy and there are occasional cases of liver damage appearing in relatively young drinkers.
I wonder if these tweaked machines would be more efficient and cost effective at doing rendering for 3D graphics than the usual cluster of Xeon machines that most offices tend to use. If so, it might work out extremely well for Apple (and artists everywhere), who could see orders from architectural offices (very common users of small (possibly beowulf;) ) clusters) and animation studios.
I certainly wouldn't mind a few of these for the teeth i'm rendering
Slashdot Mirror
"how many servers and workstations they could cram into a mobile semi-trailer lab"
:)
I'm guessing the answer was lots and lots...... there are quite a few technical challenges as you say, power, cooling, and making sure that the machines survive the journey, too.
It would be a neat side business if Google went into providing server farms and data centers for other businesses; as other people have mentioned they have a lot of smart people working on the associated problems.
Hey, it could save their asses if this whole internet thing doesn't pan out
Unfortunately, the blink tag remains very much in use :'|
They won't get a rumble during the games, but I predict a shock when they go to buy a console and some games and check their bank balances afterwards.
Sorry, couldn't resit.
I'm working on a nightclub site here in Ireland; I'm thinking of making some free content for bebo or myspace that we'd gibe away for free from our site- certainly a flashbox of some description, or a piece of video and possibly a sensible theme for one of those two sites, if that's possible. I can't imagine selling a skin or piece of content to someone, but I see it as a useful way to give someone something that is associated with your brand.
:0'
:)
;)
I'm also considering creating a chatroom accessible from a bebo/myspace page that would link people to our site.... I'd just need to get a socket server sorted and write myself an app
The thought of creating content that is going to be used on sites like bebo/myspace fills me with a certian amount of disgust, but I've got a client to serve and if this'll bring in users, then so be it
Don't worry, i'll be muting and pausing any video we include
Superb post man......... I just discovered Picasa's new features today when I downloaded the update- the tagging feature using Google Earth is brilliant - it feels a little fiddly at first, but after a few minutes I had tagged hundreds of my shots (only another 19,000 to go, then.... no, seriously, I need some kind of batch function)
:D
Anyway, I havent probed all of the possibilities yet, but I'm sure there's a service where you can upload your JPEGs to a site which will automatically place them on a google maps map etc. It's also a big boon in that it tags your local, original file with the geolocation so that any exports or backups you make will have that information on them.
Anyway, good post
Or..... all your base are belong to froogle ^^
Hehe, yea the name's a private joke- you know the bit in Batman Returns where The Penguin has a bunch of, well, penguins with the rockets strapped to their backs? We were watching it at home and my sister asked what type of penguins they were. Well........ I just replied, deadpan..... 'stunt penuins, stupid'.
Anyway, it's as good a signin name as any ^^
I can see it now........ you're on the phone to Dell/IBM/Whoever, and they're offering you all the crap they always want to sell you
: "Also, sir we'd like to offer you our disaster recovery blanket for the low, low price of $24.95, including shipping"
: "Disaster recovery blanket..... what exactly do you mean by that"
: "Well, sir..... it's a fold up fire blanket, you know just in case........."
: "Just.... just in case of what, exactly?"
D/I/W
Customer
D/I/W
Customer
D/I/W : "In case of fire, sir"
Customer : ".................umm...............!"
*click*
Nice one, this was the exact quote I had in mind when I saw the article ^^
Hey, wasn't sure if they were making another Forza game for the XB360- Forza itself is a great reason to own an XB 360;
I found it much more immediate than any of the GT games, and the online play (y'hear that sony!) was great.
Anyway, it sounds as though PS3 owners would be much better off just getting an old copy of Grand Turismo and playing *that* until Sony get off the LSD.
Assuming there'll *be* any PS3 owners.
Parachutes ^^
Someone needs to fix their funny/flamebait detector. I thought your post hit the nail right on the head :)
Read my post again. I said 720 * 576 was what made it onto the disc.
Get your facts straight. You can rip to MP3 and WMA without applying any kind of DRM; when you first set up windows media player it even asks you if you want to turn on the content 'protection' system.
I use WMP to rip to mp3, and I see no reason not to, as it produces exactly the same result as any other ripper with half the fuss.
640 * 480 is low res if you've got a DVD player.
:0'
1024 * 576 is squarepix PAL DVD resolution, it usually make it onto the disc at 720 * 576
I wouldn't pay for content at any lower a resolution than that, to be honest
Maybe he's Einstein reincarnated, and is going back to continue where he left off in his old job. Expect his 'universal theory of everythihg' to be wrapped up in time for his 30th birthday.
Evil geniuses and rap artists.
Same thing, on a certain level, I suppose.
Honestly, I think _quality_ streaming TV is just a pipe dream.
Exactly, exactly, exactly! TV over t'internet needs to learn to crawl first- technology writers talk about IPTV and TV over the web as though it's something that can be deployed in the next few years, or as if it's something that isn't going to cost trillions of dollars to roll out. We don't have the means to deploy that kind of network yet, nor do we need to.
We currently have a way of deploying streaming video to hundreds of millions of TV sets across the globe at the same time; it's called satellite and cable TV, and although it costs a bundle to put up there, one satellite can serve (hundreds of?) millions of homes with the same content all at once, and it doesn't mean putting lines in the ground to every home. Oh, and if 6 differnet people want to watch 6 different programmes, well then that's okay, since all you need is 6 different receivers, not 6x as much bandwidth on your cable connection.
Can you imagine what it would take to stream live video to the 1 billion people who watch the World Cup? Or the hundreds of millions of people who watch the superbowl? That kind of information infrastructure is as far beyond the capabilities of our current series of tubes as I care to imagine.
In the meantime, a much better solution is video recording that has a satellite/cable/terrestrial connection for watching and recording TV that's on right now, plus an internet connection (for downloading video that you missed, scheduling and interactive services) . It's a lot more practical than everything-over-IP, and gives enough bandwidth for HD programming, which is somethign we're supposed to be working towards, right?
What about Chuck Norris? I've heard impressive things about him on t'internet.
That was a game made from a movie. They sometimes work.
You hit the '/' key with your wrist?
:p
Impressive
Precisely. If Google are using this money to lobby for net neutrality, to stop pressure on themselves to reveal private information about their users, and to clear the way for free municipal wifi, then how is this any less than fighting fire with fire.
Doesn't sound too damnned evil to me.
Think of all those people unable to get one due to them being sold out and getting a Wii to keep the kids happy.
;)
Lemme fix that : Think of all those people unable to afford a PS3, and getting a Wii because to keep the kids even happier
Heh, living in Galway city center (the Irish west coast), it's pretty clear there is a drink problem here and the UK, but not in the same way that fits the stereotype (old drunken souses).
It's the youth that the drinking problem is with here. Our legal drinking age is 18, which means most young people will start drinking in public places at about 16 (if not younger), and more like under 14 in public parks for the less well off sections of the population (of course these are in themselves big generalisations).
There is an epidemic of binge drinking among youth here and in the UK. Underage drinkers drinking as much as they can in as short a time as possible on street corners, in parks and at friends' houses. It's seriously unhealthy and there are occasional cases of liver damage appearing in relatively young drinkers.
I wonder if these tweaked machines would be more efficient and cost effective at doing rendering for 3D graphics than the usual cluster of Xeon machines that most offices tend to use. If so, it might work out extremely well for Apple (and artists everywhere), who could see orders from architectural offices (very common users of small (possibly beowulf ;) ) clusters) and animation studios.
I certainly wouldn't mind a few of these for the teeth i'm rendering