It's actually unbelievably odd that I saw this article up here on/. I am a CS major at RIT(Rochester Institute of Technology) and there is a pilot going on here with a few teachers, using a "clicker" to answer multiple choice type questions during the lecture. I find that the clickers are a great idea, inspiring more students to answer questions due to being anonymous. It totally eliminates the blank silence after the prof. asks any sort of question. As a matter of fact it actually helps hold my attention more and really lets the teacher spend more time on the topics people aren't understanding rather than what he thinks students should understand.
But there are some drawbacks, one primarily being the cost($60 is awful considering the other expenses associated with class), and the other being that the technology is in it's infancy and the software is definitely a few releases from being truly ready for primetime.
This technology can really take off, if the clickers become a part of the desks, or worktables or whatever and are totally funded by the university. Ultimately the price and the glitchy software will hold this back from being well implemented in schools even though it has some clear advantages.
Nothing to match the PSP's music and movie playing abilities (third party add-ons don't count)
How about the Play-Yan? This is a Nintendo made product, though it hasn't made it's way stateside(it's on it's way), I know plenty of people who have imported it.
Well on an attempt to actually sound positive, this level looks amazing. HL2 was such an awesome game and looked absolutely beautiful, and this really shows the future of games. This is the next generation and this single level will really show off this new HDR Valve has put together for us.
Now if I only had a better PC to really play this thing. Well I'll just have to wait until I get some cash.
The only thing that really bugs me about this whole post is the fact that he calls them firefox "flaws" when all he is stating is what he would like more. If you want to talk about a "flaw" state how the app doesn't include the options for you to make it how you would like it. But the thing that bugs me twice as much is the fact that he can make firefox work the way he wants it with a few simple extensions.
Maybe I just like firefox the way it is but this guy just came across to me as a total IE whore. Opening things up in new windows is the reason I switched to firefox in the first place. Tabbed browsing is awesome, and I would seriously have to smack someone if it opened the same page in the new tab when I hit ctrl+t. I always hated how IE did that.
Sometimes I think I'm the only person who absolutely loved the gamecube controller. It fits my hands so perfectly and the trigger shoulder buttons have always been a pleasure to have around. As a matter of fact, if I could take the gamecube controller and somehow merge it with the N64 controller I'd be in heaven.
On another note I have total faith in Nintendo to reveal something completely new. Even if it does seem gimmicky at first they will support it and show the masses why it is so great. When it comes to innovation Nintendo never disappoints.
I used to be on the same page as you with the whole "Windows isn't that bad" mentality, but let me tell you the first time I touched Mac OS X I fell in love. As a matter of fact, unless Vista really blows me away I don't think I'll ever go back to a PC. Give Mac a try sometime, you may be pleasantly surprised. And by the way, I totally agree, Linux isn't all it's cracked up to be.
If there is any debate I am totally sick of it's this one. Wind Waker at first site was an atrocity to me. I was waiting for what was shown in Spaceworld 2001. Even though I was disappointed I still followed the game and purchased the day of release. When I played the game for the first time my jaw literally hit the floor. The visuals were stunning in their own right. At this time I realized Zelda is Zelda no matter what the graphical style. Wind Waker is a gem and because of the media craving blood and gore it was overlooked by far too many. It takes true maturity to fully realize what Nintendo did. They created a living cartoon. They really showed off the potential of cel-shading. I loved Wind Waker and I am sure I will love Twilight Princess.
I guess my two cents here is that just because it looks 'kiddy' doesn't mean it isn't a beautiful game. I honestly wish Nintendo would spawn off a new Zelda line and do two games. One that follows Link as a child in cel shaded graphics and one which follows an adult Link with realistic graphics. All I can ever think about is how awesome it would've been to play Ocarina of Time with child Link in a cel-shaded Hyrule and an adult Link in the Dark very realistic Hyrule. Sometimes I think I am the only one who saw the potential of Wind Waker. Oh well.
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It's actually unbelievably odd that I saw this article up here on /. I am a CS major at RIT(Rochester Institute of Technology) and there is a pilot going on here with a few teachers, using a "clicker" to answer multiple choice type questions during the lecture. I find that the clickers are a great idea, inspiring more students to answer questions due to being anonymous. It totally eliminates the blank silence after the prof. asks any sort of question. As a matter of fact it actually helps hold my attention more and really lets the teacher spend more time on the topics people aren't understanding rather than what he thinks students should understand.
But there are some drawbacks, one primarily being the cost($60 is awful considering the other expenses associated with class), and the other being that the technology is in it's infancy and the software is definitely a few releases from being truly ready for primetime.
This technology can really take off, if the clickers become a part of the desks, or worktables or whatever and are totally funded by the university. Ultimately the price and the glitchy software will hold this back from being well implemented in schools even though it has some clear advantages.
Nothing to match the PSP's music and movie playing abilities (third party add-ons don't count)
How about the Play-Yan? This is a Nintendo made product, though it hasn't made it's way stateside(it's on it's way), I know plenty of people who have imported it.
Well on an attempt to actually sound positive, this level looks amazing. HL2 was such an awesome game and looked absolutely beautiful, and this really shows the future of games. This is the next generation and this single level will really show off this new HDR Valve has put together for us.
Now if I only had a better PC to really play this thing. Well I'll just have to wait until I get some cash.
The only thing that really bugs me about this whole post is the fact that he calls them firefox "flaws" when all he is stating is what he would like more. If you want to talk about a "flaw" state how the app doesn't include the options for you to make it how you would like it. But the thing that bugs me twice as much is the fact that he can make firefox work the way he wants it with a few simple extensions. Maybe I just like firefox the way it is but this guy just came across to me as a total IE whore. Opening things up in new windows is the reason I switched to firefox in the first place. Tabbed browsing is awesome, and I would seriously have to smack someone if it opened the same page in the new tab when I hit ctrl+t. I always hated how IE did that.
Sometimes I think I'm the only person who absolutely loved the gamecube controller. It fits my hands so perfectly and the trigger shoulder buttons have always been a pleasure to have around. As a matter of fact, if I could take the gamecube controller and somehow merge it with the N64 controller I'd be in heaven. On another note I have total faith in Nintendo to reveal something completely new. Even if it does seem gimmicky at first they will support it and show the masses why it is so great. When it comes to innovation Nintendo never disappoints.
I used to be on the same page as you with the whole "Windows isn't that bad" mentality, but let me tell you the first time I touched Mac OS X I fell in love. As a matter of fact, unless Vista really blows me away I don't think I'll ever go back to a PC. Give Mac a try sometime, you may be pleasantly surprised. And by the way, I totally agree, Linux isn't all it's cracked up to be.
If there is any debate I am totally sick of it's this one. Wind Waker at first site was an atrocity to me. I was waiting for what was shown in Spaceworld 2001. Even though I was disappointed I still followed the game and purchased the day of release. When I played the game for the first time my jaw literally hit the floor. The visuals were stunning in their own right. At this time I realized Zelda is Zelda no matter what the graphical style. Wind Waker is a gem and because of the media craving blood and gore it was overlooked by far too many. It takes true maturity to fully realize what Nintendo did. They created a living cartoon. They really showed off the potential of cel-shading. I loved Wind Waker and I am sure I will love Twilight Princess. I guess my two cents here is that just because it looks 'kiddy' doesn't mean it isn't a beautiful game. I honestly wish Nintendo would spawn off a new Zelda line and do two games. One that follows Link as a child in cel shaded graphics and one which follows an adult Link with realistic graphics. All I can ever think about is how awesome it would've been to play Ocarina of Time with child Link in a cel-shaded Hyrule and an adult Link in the Dark very realistic Hyrule. Sometimes I think I am the only one who saw the potential of Wind Waker. Oh well.