True. But I have purchased DVDs and software on ebay, some are blatently copies but some sell as the real deal only to be fake - these are what piss me off.
I buy used DVDs because I don't care if I'm the first person to see it or not and I can get a title for 33% of retail this way but about every third DVD I get turns out to be a pirated copy. To be fair some of these are really high quality BUT some are filmed at the multiplex in glorious shakeycam (TM) with added foreign subtitles (non removable) thrown in at no extra cost.
I want to pay a "fair" price. A fair price for used or OEM software is not the same as a CDR with a photocopied licence code.
"If the ad makes you stop and look at it, they win."
If you stop and look then the ad has fulfilled the first part of it's job - it has caught your attention. Now that you are looking the ad has to be able to increase your awareness of the brand/product in question - how many times have you thought "that was a cool advert, I wonder what it was for"? Thirdly it has to translate awareness into sales - you have to go and buy the thing.
So the order of events of a successful ad should be, "WTF is that?", "Oh, its for [insert brand/product]", "I will buy that".
So they only win if you get to the third stage. A poor ad could alienate potential customers and even lose sales.
RSI - stop it or you'll go blind!
on
Preventing RSI?
·
· Score: 4, Funny
Since I stopped visiting "adult" web pages my wrist RSI has greatly improved!
The UK is getting two new full size carriers in a few years, second in size only to the Nimitz class IIRC but they will not be nuclear powered. As part of the development the French have the option to purchase a carrier of the same design too.
True. With soldiers increasingly being "networked" by new tech are there any plans for gun/helm cameras? More importantly should there be?
Ethics become more blurred when you are under fire. Cameras have already recorded infringements such as Abu Graib (spelling?) and the British troops beating up a few kids. And it IS necessary to stop blatent abuses but at what point would soldiers and marines be put at more risk because their hands are tied by political correctness? Soon there would be lawyers on the battlefield - finally an argument in favour of friendly fire!
Seriously though, as always the best solution is to try to avoid physical conflict as much as possible. Some wars cannot be avoided, some are fought for the "right" reasons. BUT too often they are avoidable, have dubious legality and they always cost lives.
Whilst these robots (more like RC cars with guns - best selling new gizmo for next Christmas!) take soldiers and marines out of harms way which is a very good thing this is balanced by making combat operations more like a video game - arguably not such a good thing.
The problem is it "could" dehumanize the person that the operator can see as the "target". If someone is charging you firing an AK47 then hey just shoot him but it isn't always black and white, especially if the enemy are insurgents not uniformed troops.
There are plenty of issues to consider but hopefully as long as the operators have sufficient and appropriate training, the weapon's targetting is correctly calibrated and the cameras provide a clear enough picture before a decision to fire is made then it is on balance a good thing.
It could even let soldiers make better decisions before firing as they wouldn't have the distraction of bullets flying past them.
It is still very early in deployment so I guess we just have to wait and see.
But of course what we all really want to know is how long before we get the sentry guns from Aliens!
Just because you have been given a key to a building by an employee does not mean you are not guilty of trespass if you go ahead and use it. Same deal here.
Seizure may be going too far though - all depends on the specifics of the case.
"From the rumors that have been floating around, they're trying to make it All Things to All People, which is the surest way to please few of them."
Very true but it does offer a foot in the door for blu ray (Heck it walks right in to the living room!) just as PS2 did for DVD. Not many people besides kids probably still use the PS2 as their primary DVD player because better cheaper models are available now (videophiles will always buy top end equipment early too) but it boosted sales back then.
Sony want a blu ray in every home and PS3 is their surest bet, when someone buys it in November (March '07 for US? June '07 for Europe?) they need to reassure themselves (and their family!) they have spent their money wisely. What better way of doing this than getting a couple of movies too. "Sure it was expensive honey but it plays HD movies too so it has really saved us money".
Yes it will be weaker than a dedicated blu ray player that is a given but it will be the cheapest way of getting one early and you get to play games too!
Pro war? Hmmm how did you determine that? My post was written with a certain amount of irony that I thought (obviously wrongly) was quite clear. However if you have difficulty detecting humour let me help.:-) Better?
BTW where is "Somaly"? Unless you mean Somalia of course.
Governments still like to look like they run the world when really the world has been run by multinational corporations for decades. Governments just feel they have to be seen to flex their muscles every now and again with trading regulations or small wars to try to prove they still matter (the wars usually help their military industries anyway).
Successful businesses just adapt their strategies accordingly (strategically placed donations to political parties is one example!).
The French have a poor track record in wars (small or otherwise), this only gives the French Government trade laws as an option when trying to boost their popularity. Anything not French is fair game be it Apple or Microsoft as the French government plays on national pride. The French are "pro freedom" because it is not a technology that French companies control just as the US Govt take the opposite approach because the companies involved are predominently American.
Movies are rated by age, some games are legally, others are voluntarily. The easy solution is to put an age classification on all games. Then if some parent bitches about a game turning their little Johny into a psycho, prosecute them for letting little Johny play an adult game! If the kid bought it himself, prosecute the idiot that sold it to him.
I am an adult gamer and I get pissed off with hearing people just wanting to score political points by jumping on the "violent games are bad bandwagon". I would be happy if games were rated.
There should be a range of operating systems/browsers as this will aid education. Open source to open student's eyes to alternative software but M$ too so that when they get a job they can use the software that their employer probably uses!
In the UK, schools/colleges previously used bespoke hardware/software solutions to teach IT which were of questionable value when faced with a computer in a real work environment.
Slashdot Mirror
It is legal for individuals (and companies?) to re-sell OEM licenses in Europe under the 1991 European Computer Software Directive.
e m_windows_copies_you/
Here is a link to the story:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2002/05/08/selling_o
Europe does tend to stand up to MS no matter what Bill puts in his EULA.
True. But I have purchased DVDs and software on ebay, some are blatently copies but some sell as the real deal only to be fake - these are what piss me off.
I buy used DVDs because I don't care if I'm the first person to see it or not and I can get a title for 33% of retail this way but about every third DVD I get turns out to be a pirated copy. To be fair some of these are really high quality BUT some are filmed at the multiplex in glorious shakeycam (TM) with added foreign subtitles (non removable) thrown in at no extra cost.
I want to pay a "fair" price. A fair price for used or OEM software is not the same as a CDR with a photocopied licence code.
...and other Government agencies for a little homeland security project.
ipods adapted so all audio output is in mono. Graphics on imacs converted to 16 color. Mac mouse to only have one button... oops.
"If the ad makes you stop and look at it, they win."
If you stop and look then the ad has fulfilled the first part of it's job - it has caught your attention. Now that you are looking the ad has to be able to increase your awareness of the brand/product in question - how many times have you thought "that was a cool advert, I wonder what it was for"? Thirdly it has to translate awareness into sales - you have to go and buy the thing.
So the order of events of a successful ad should be, "WTF is that?", "Oh, its for [insert brand/product]", "I will buy that".
So they only win if you get to the third stage. A poor ad could alienate potential customers and even lose sales.
Since I stopped visiting "adult" web pages my wrist RSI has greatly improved!
The UK is getting two new full size carriers in a few years, second in size only to the Nimitz class IIRC but they will not be nuclear powered. As part of the development the French have the option to purchase a carrier of the same design too.
True. With soldiers increasingly being "networked" by new tech are there any plans for gun/helm cameras? More importantly should there be?
Ethics become more blurred when you are under fire. Cameras have already recorded infringements such as Abu Graib (spelling?) and the British troops beating up a few kids. And it IS necessary to stop blatent abuses but at what point would soldiers and marines be put at more risk because their hands are tied by political correctness? Soon there would be lawyers on the battlefield - finally an argument in favour of friendly fire!
Seriously though, as always the best solution is to try to avoid physical conflict as much as possible. Some wars cannot be avoided, some are fought for the "right" reasons. BUT too often they are avoidable, have dubious legality and they always cost lives.
Because I already have a PC and I crave a new toy! :-)
Whilst these robots (more like RC cars with guns - best selling new gizmo for next Christmas!) take soldiers and marines out of harms way which is a very good thing this is balanced by making combat operations more like a video game - arguably not such a good thing.
The problem is it "could" dehumanize the person that the operator can see as the "target". If someone is charging you firing an AK47 then hey just shoot him but it isn't always black and white, especially if the enemy are insurgents not uniformed troops.
There are plenty of issues to consider but hopefully as long as the operators have sufficient and appropriate training, the weapon's targetting is correctly calibrated and the cameras provide a clear enough picture before a decision to fire is made then it is on balance a good thing.
It could even let soldiers make better decisions before firing as they wouldn't have the distraction of bullets flying past them.
It is still very early in deployment so I guess we just have to wait and see.
But of course what we all really want to know is how long before we get the sentry guns from Aliens!
Just because you have been given a key to a building by an employee does not mean you are not guilty of trespass if you go ahead and use it. Same deal here.
Seizure may be going too far though - all depends on the specifics of the case.
--
(I never read facts - they spoil my arguments)
"From the rumors that have been floating around, they're trying to make it All Things to All People, which is the surest way to please few of them."
Very true but it does offer a foot in the door for blu ray (Heck it walks right in to the living room!) just as PS2 did for DVD. Not many people besides kids probably still use the PS2 as their primary DVD player because better cheaper models are available now (videophiles will always buy top end equipment early too) but it boosted sales back then.
Sony want a blu ray in every home and PS3 is their surest bet, when someone buys it in November (March '07 for US? June '07 for Europe?) they need to reassure themselves (and their family!) they have spent their money wisely. What better way of doing this than getting a couple of movies too. "Sure it was expensive honey but it plays HD movies too so it has really saved us money".
Yes it will be weaker than a dedicated blu ray player that is a given but it will be the cheapest way of getting one early and you get to play games too!
Halo 3 release delayed until November.
Pro war? Hmmm how did you determine that? My post was written with a certain amount of irony that I thought (obviously wrongly) was quite clear. However if you have difficulty detecting humour let me help. :-) Better?
BTW where is "Somaly"? Unless you mean Somalia of course.
And that would have been the totally incompetent British generals? They were as big a factor in losing the war as George Washington was in winning it!
Governments still like to look like they run the world when really the world has been run by multinational corporations for decades. Governments just feel they have to be seen to flex their muscles every now and again with trading regulations or small wars to try to prove they still matter (the wars usually help their military industries anyway).
Successful businesses just adapt their strategies accordingly (strategically placed donations to political parties is one example!).
The French have a poor track record in wars (small or otherwise), this only gives the French Government trade laws as an option when trying to boost their popularity. Anything not French is fair game be it Apple or Microsoft as the French government plays on national pride. The French are "pro freedom" because it is not a technology that French companies control just as the US Govt take the opposite approach because the companies involved are predominently American.
It uses time travel to ensure it is always on time - the journey may take 7 years though!
That's when they are releasing the remake of The Omen. If it is as bad as the remake of The Fog then it will be a really BAD Omen!
Movies are rated by age, some games are legally, others are voluntarily. The easy solution is to put an age classification on all games. Then if some parent bitches about a game turning their little Johny into a psycho, prosecute them for letting little Johny play an adult game! If the kid bought it himself, prosecute the idiot that sold it to him.
I am an adult gamer and I get pissed off with hearing people just wanting to score political points by jumping on the "violent games are bad bandwagon". I would be happy if games were rated.
"Get. a. fucking. life." - Posted on Slashdot. The irony is so thick you can cut it with a knife!
But the point is "plain text" - not a term that is used for postcards BUT for email.
More like "Deep Blue Sea".
Would it be like leaving your TV on standby? - no big deal on its own but once a few million people do it the extra energy used is considerable.
Having said that I'm not sure how much if any extra power that this would use or heat it would produce. Anyone got any idea?
I'll shut up now and get my coat!
The auto industry or government agencies will probably offer them jobs.
In related news... The students that declined job offers from the government have all died in a tragic school bus accident.
The breakthrough is not when someone develops a highly efficient alternative to petroleum but when they survive long enough for it to come to market!
There should be a range of operating systems/browsers as this will aid education. Open source to open student's eyes to alternative software but M$ too so that when they get a job they can use the software that their employer probably uses!
In the UK, schools/colleges previously used bespoke hardware/software solutions to teach IT which were of questionable value when faced with a computer in a real work environment.