It will take a drop in price before solar panels finally hit the big time
I currently live in Texas and have had a summer electricity bill of over $400 for one month, last year. It won't take TXU's "increased prices due to demand" *cough* gouging *cough* much more, for me to splash out 8 grand for 2 large solar cells just to power a mid-size stand alone Cooling/heating unit....
The lower the cost of the panels just recoups my investment earlier, but its almost worth doing for the sheer smugness gained by not paying the electric company summer ransom.
>>>..open-access network would deprive taxpayers of billions of dollars...
Sure, some taxes might be lost during the SALE of those bands... but it would save the taxpayers TRILLIONS of dollars by providing a true level playing field which promotes competition and innovation instead of treating 'locked-in' customers like fish in a barrel.
Yep. That is what makes it so dangerous... you can actually install this OMGWTF anonymous reporting spyware yourself!/sarcasm.
seriously though, I think I recall knopmyth had installed by default - not sure.
Anyway, I do have popularity-contest installed on all my machines because I want the apps I use represented in the chance they gain more support upstream.
>>> I would hate for my distro once installed to transmit data anonymously to my distros HQ much like M$ does with its WGA crap.
Then you, and only you, might want to think twice about installing this package:
POPULARITY CONTEST
When you install this package, it sets up a cron job that will anonymously submit statistics about your most used packages periodically to the developers.
This information helps us make decisions such as which packages should be promoted and so be in standard installs.
Homepage: http://popcon.ubuntu.com/
and if that didnt work , i'm sure TPB would have attracted the tax man, and if they were clean, Occupational health and safety (or equivalent).. until some random health officer finds an expired tub of yogurt in the fridge, or a parking warden finds their car parked 1cm over the line, they'd get shut down that using some obscure 18th century law...
My point is that if you throw enough sh*t, some of it will stick. There is a sig floating around slashdot that quotes along the lines of "give me 5 lines from the most honest man, and I will find a reason for him to hang"... or words to that affect....
I just want the phone part to work on other networks, I'm not worried about the video mail etc. Its the camera, wi-fi web browser and decent music player, plus the great UI that I'd like. I also dont care what services the other companies decide to offer for the iPhone, weather its just calls or voicemail, videomail and all that. If they are competitive on price, coverage, features, or service, then they'll capture some of the market.
Verizon is a CDMA carrier, not GSM. The phone will never work with Verizon. Do you feel like you would like to be the support person explaining this on the phone to the customer that just bought a $500 paperweight and believes it is his right to have the phone work for him?
If a Verizon rep sold a GSM phone then damn sure the customer should get an explanation from customer support!
So then the guy goes down the street to T-Mobile (a GSM carrier) and gets a SIM card. The phone now works. But the really nifty voicemail feature doesn't work. Neither is there a button on the phone that works with the voicemail features that T-Mobile has. Would you like to be the support person at T-Mobile or Apple that gets to explain this? Again, the customer just spent around $600 for something that does not work completely.
You just proved my point. There is no need to lock it to a carrier because the carriers that do offer all the services will get the most iPhone customers anyway.
As for spending money on something that does not work completely that is what the American cell-phone market has been doing for years - and the average consumer honestly just does not realize it. Those that have lived outside the USA (UK, NZ, AUS) will know exactly what I mean.
And as for your comment about me not understanding consumer electronics, you are 100% right. I have lived in the USA for three years and still don't understand how consumers put up with it. I've lived in those countries I listed above for enough time to speak from actual experience (more than 2 years each) and with exposure to a wide range of markets I can honestly say those other markets have more consumer choice in the phone vs carrier game. In the USA the different companies offer choices that you can take or leave, but the real choice is not up to the consumer.
Portelligent estimates that the cost of the materials used in the iPhone add up to about $200 for the 4-gigabyte version, which sells for $499 and about $220 for the 8-gigabyte version, which sells for $599. Their estimate doesn't include costs of final assembly, but it does give some insight into the gross margin on the device. Historically Apple's gross margins have run ball park of 50% plus or minus a few points. "We had taken a speculative stab at what the costs would be back in January, when the phone was first announced and we were pretty close to the mark,"
"...and simply 'fail the credit check' with ATT and go month to month on the go phone plan."
I still want, no need, the ability to connect to another network. I travel enough to need the ability to put a SIM card in for the country I'm in at the time. So i'd love to use your technique to get my hands on the phone, but will certainly need the (inevitable) hack to use another SIM.
I've been looking for a device that has wi-fi web, phone, and all the features the iPhone offers (including cool factor) but gives me freedom. Closest I can get is the Nokia n95 or the open-Moko. Am still looking though.
I personally think it is fair that a telco wants you to sign up for a 2 year contract when they give you a subsidized phone, especially when they want to give you an expensive phone at (what appears to be) a bargain.
What I think is a little unfair is paying full price for the device and being locked in for 2 years to a company that appears is not subsidizing the phone. AT&T must have wanted the lock-in for them to justify spending money on the extra services the iPhone offers such as video mail, which they would have made money on anyway if they were first to market or offered the best service.
In a truly competitive market the iphone would be free to connect to any telco (and because the phone meets FCC requirements they should not legally be allowed to turn the customer away). Problem is, the Telco's are too accustomed to locking down their services and features and couldn't bear the customer having a choice.
As I understand it, the Zap2-it xml feed was set up due to 'scrapers' reading feed of their website. I believe the most likely resolution to the zap2-it problem will be web-scrapers once again. But, as someone else put it: will likely create an 'arms race' of scrapers vs anti-scraping defenses.
It would be great if someone like TitanTv released their EPG data in XML format, even for a small fee - and the polls on the Zap2-it labs show users appear to be willing to part with average of $5 a month for reliable accurate data.
The big question remaining: If someone *cough* big-media *cough* put pressure on zap2it labs to close their xml service, then getting the information from another reliable source might be rather difficult.
But as I said earlier, it would be very interesting to see the BPI (or RIAA) argue a price per song in lost sales when the song was distributed free in the first place.
>>> as well as the surging popularity of downloading music from the internet
It is important to note that "downloading music from the internet" includes iTunes and other legitimate online sales. I think we all know the RIAA et al, like to pitch it as all downloaded tunes are illegally downloaded to skew their figures and gain sympathy with lawmakers.
Giving his music away FREE by this particular method of distribution likely means those agencies that try to collect fees from 'transmission / broadcast' cannot do so. (if it was streamed, then media sentry (or equivilent) might try to charge him for distribution). Bundling with the sunday news means he can do it for the cost of the actual media which might actually be free for him if an advertiser picks up the tab.
If he gives this away free, then sharing it on p2p might not* be against the law. If this sells more Prince CD's, then other artists might follow making it pretty untidy for the record companies and their 'illegal to share music even if its Public domain or Copy-left etc.
[* depending on any shrink-wrap agreement on the cover of the CD. ]
Slashdot Mirror
It will take a drop in price before solar panels finally hit the big time
I currently live in Texas and have had a summer electricity bill of over $400 for one month, last year. It won't take TXU's "increased prices due to demand" *cough* gouging *cough* much more, for me to splash out 8 grand for 2 large solar cells just to power a mid-size stand alone Cooling/heating unit....
The lower the cost of the panels just recoups my investment earlier, but its almost worth doing for the sheer smugness gained by not paying the electric company summer ransom.
I've gone with tracfone and think they're fine.
See this link for a Motorola 170 for $99 ready to go.
>>> ..open-access network would deprive taxpayers of billions of dollars...
Sure, some taxes might be lost during the SALE of those bands... but it would save the taxpayers TRILLIONS of dollars by providing a true level playing field which promotes competition and innovation instead of treating 'locked-in' customers like fish in a barrel.
>>> If you know of any nations whose legislation permits the formenting of armed revolt against the state, I'd be interested to hear about it.
I can see the headline now: "Man sues Government for constitutional right to be a terrorist"
Interesting idea, but where would the money go?
Administering the system that monitors they've paid on-time, and the takes them to court when they don't.
>>>the only course is to wait for a revolution.
You'll be waiting a long time my friend. Anyone vocal enough to suggest starting a revolution becomes the enemy.... or disappears.
For some reason I always sing along to the English subtitled words...
>>> yea, but don't you have to opt into that??
/sarcasm.
Yep. That is what makes it so dangerous... you can actually install this OMGWTF anonymous reporting spyware yourself!
seriously though, I think I recall knopmyth had installed by default - not sure.
Anyway, I do have popularity-contest installed on all my machines because I want the apps I use represented in the chance they gain more support upstream.
Then you, and only you, might want to think twice about installing this package:
>>> they decided to take another route
and if that didnt work , i'm sure TPB would have attracted the tax man, and if they were clean, Occupational health and safety (or equivalent).. until some random health officer finds an expired tub of yogurt in the fridge, or a parking warden finds their car parked 1cm over the line, they'd get shut down that using some obscure 18th century law...
My point is that if you throw enough sh*t, some of it will stick. There is a sig floating around slashdot that quotes along the lines of "give me 5 lines from the most honest man, and I will find a reason for him to hang"... or words to that affect....
Now that the tape is probably going to be used in proceedings, will it be available for public viewing under some official information request?
Or will they just charge the Jury and Court audience $8 to view the tape?
I just want the phone part to work on other networks, I'm not worried about the video mail etc. Its the camera, wi-fi web browser and decent music player, plus the great UI that I'd like. I also dont care what services the other companies decide to offer for the iPhone, weather its just calls or voicemail, videomail and all that. If they are competitive on price, coverage, features, or service, then they'll capture some of the market.
You just proved my point. There is no need to lock it to a carrier because the carriers that do offer all the services will get the most iPhone customers anyway.
As for spending money on something that does not work completely that is what the American cell-phone market has been doing for years - and the average consumer honestly just does not realize it. Those that have lived outside the USA (UK, NZ, AUS) will know exactly what I mean.
And as for your comment about me not understanding consumer electronics, you are 100% right. I have lived in the USA for three years and still don't understand how consumers put up with it. I've lived in those countries I listed above for enough time to speak from actual experience (more than 2 years each) and with exposure to a wide range of markets I can honestly say those other markets have more consumer choice in the phone vs carrier game. In the USA the different companies offer choices that you can take or leave, but the real choice is not up to the consumer.
People who do this for a living came to a different conclusion
FTA's:
"...and simply 'fail the credit check' with ATT and go month to month on the go phone plan."
I still want, no need, the ability to connect to another network. I travel enough to need the ability to put a SIM card in for the country I'm in at the time. So i'd love to use your technique to get my hands on the phone, but will certainly need the (inevitable) hack to use another SIM.
I've been looking for a device that has wi-fi web, phone, and all the features the iPhone offers (including cool factor) but gives me freedom. Closest I can get is the Nokia n95 or the open-Moko. Am still looking though.
I personally think it is fair that a telco wants you to sign up for a 2 year contract when they give you a subsidized phone, especially when they want to give you an expensive phone at (what appears to be) a bargain.
What I think is a little unfair is paying full price for the device and being locked in for 2 years to a company that appears is not subsidizing the phone. AT&T must have wanted the lock-in for them to justify spending money on the extra services the iPhone offers such as video mail, which they would have made money on anyway if they were first to market or offered the best service.
In a truly competitive market the iphone would be free to connect to any telco (and because the phone meets FCC requirements they should not legally be allowed to turn the customer away). Problem is, the Telco's are too accustomed to locking down their services and features and couldn't bear the customer having a choice.
IMHO of course.
Panasonic have had a gel 'bag' protecting their hard-drives in their Toughbooks for some time. Surely they've suitably protected their IP.
I even managed to find a picture of one on Ebay
FTA: Why is it called an "air bag" if it is filled with liquid?
Hey cool. Thanks for the link.
As I understand it, the Zap2-it xml feed was set up due to 'scrapers' reading feed of their website. I believe the most likely resolution to the zap2-it problem will be web-scrapers once again. But, as someone else put it: will likely create an 'arms race' of scrapers vs anti-scraping defenses.
It would be great if someone like TitanTv released their EPG data in XML format, even for a small fee - and the polls on the Zap2-it labs show users appear to be willing to part with average of $5 a month for reliable accurate data.
The big question remaining: If someone *cough* big-media *cough* put pressure on zap2it labs to close their xml service, then getting the information from another reliable source might be rather difficult.
True. you are correct.
But as I said earlier, it would be very interesting to see the BPI (or RIAA) argue a price per song in lost sales when the song was distributed free in the first place.
>>> Just because he is giving away CDs for free doesn't mean he is giving away his copyrights
You are 100% right according to wikipedia: Free does not mean public domain.
But it would be very interesting to see the BPI (or RIAA) argue a price per song in lost sales when the song was distributed free in the first place.
>>> as well as the surging popularity of downloading music from the internet
It is important to note that "downloading music from the internet" includes iTunes and other legitimate online sales. I think we all know the RIAA et al, like to pitch it as all downloaded tunes are illegally downloaded to skew their figures and gain sympathy with lawmakers.
I think i'll stick to engineering...
>>Prince should just open his own online store
Giving his music away FREE by this particular method of distribution likely means those agencies that try to collect fees from 'transmission / broadcast' cannot do so. (if it was streamed, then media sentry (or equivilent) might try to charge him for distribution). Bundling with the sunday news means he can do it for the cost of the actual media which might actually be free for him if an advertiser picks up the tab.
If he gives this away free, then sharing it on p2p might not* be against the law. If this sells more Prince CD's, then other artists might follow making it pretty untidy for the record companies and their 'illegal to share music even if its Public domain or Copy-left etc.
[* depending on any shrink-wrap agreement on the cover of the CD. ]
>>e. coli is a bacteria, not a virus....
didnt know that. Cheers.
stupid podcast!
ah, I see. I do now. Didn't think that is what you meant. Now that you mention it.
Prosecutor: So how do you propose your DNA got into the grassy knoll?
Me: the CIA made it and planted it there.
Court: *chuckes and whispers* 'deluded crackpot'.....