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User: PatPending

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Comments · 553

  1. Re:Just wondering on Donald Knuth Worried About the "Dumbing Down" of Computer Science History · · Score: 2

    Quote:

            People frequently ask me why I picked such a title; and in fact some people apparently don't believe that I really did so, since I've seen at least one bibliographic reference to some books called "The Act of Computer Programming."

            In this talk I shall try to explain why I think "Art" is the appropriate word. I will discuss what it means for something to be an art, in contrast to being a science; I will try to examine whether arts are good things or bad things; and I will try to show that a proper viewpoint of the subject will help us all to improve the quality of what we are now doing.

            One of the first times I was ever asked about the title of my books was in 1966, during the last previous ACM national meeting held in Southern California. This was before any of the books were published, and I recall having lunch with a friend at the convention hotel. He knew how conceited I was, already at that time, so he asked if I was going to call my books "An Introduction to Don Knuth." I replied that, on tile contrary, I was naming the books after him. His name: Art Evans. (The Art of Computer Programming, in person.)

            --via Preface of "Literate Programming" citing Knuth's Turing Award speech in 1974

  2. Re:Non-mobile version of the article on Donald Knuth Worried About the "Dumbing Down" of Computer Science History · · Score: 1

    This will take care of your first two suggestions:

    Right click on page; From pop-up menu choose Web Developer -> CSS -> Disable Styles -> Disable All Styles.

    (YMMV may vary depending on your browser and your installed extensions.)

    An alternative is to edit their CSS to address the first three of your points.

    My point is: there are plenty of tools you can use to make web pages appear how you would like them to appear, such as: browser extensions; custom style sheets (e.g., Firefox's userContent.css); and GreaseMonkey.

  3. Re:The cost of consonants on Apple Developing Curve Screen iPhones and Improved Sensors · · Score: 1
    Is the possessive apostrophe particularly expensive these days?

    "...told Bloomberg that Apple next iPhone models will come with..." and "...would be Apple largest iPhones."

    Why not "Apple's next iPhone" and "Apple's largest iPhones?" Because as girlintraining posted elsewhere,

    "Dice doesn't have dedicated slashdot editors anymore. They are editors of a dozen or so sites. Really now, what kind of quality do you expect now that they've sold out and now monetize the web synergies to create a new market paradigm of customer-focused informational advertisements?"

  4. Re:Will they... on India To Launch Mars Orbiter "Mangalyaan" Tuesday · · Score: 1

    Will they be building the first Martian call center?

    Judging by the time I spend on-hold with their phone support, one would think the call is being routed via Mars!

  5. Re:Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday June 26, 2012 @1 on Japanese Researchers Build Rock-paper-scissors Robot That Wins 100% of the Time · · Score: 4, Informative

    Dice doesn't have dedicated slashdot editors anymore.

    Dice doesn't have dedicated editors anymore.

  6. Re:Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday June 26, 2012 @1 on Japanese Researchers Build Rock-paper-scissors Robot That Wins 100% of the Time · · Score: 1

    You have to duplicate your flag in order for the dupe to be considered a dupe.

  7. Re:Story not a dup on Japanese Researchers Build Rock-paper-scissors Robot That Wins 100% of the Time · · Score: 1

    Oh, c'mon! You're pulling my leg, right?

  8. Re:Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday June 26, 2012 @1 on Japanese Researchers Build Rock-paper-scissors Robot That Wins 100% of the Time · · Score: 1

    We'll have to wait until the robot that detects duplicate posts about duplicate stories is completed.

  9. Once again... on Japanese Researchers Build Rock-paper-scissors Robot That Wins 100% of the Time · · Score: 5, Funny

    Since Rock-Paper-Scissors dates back to the time of the Chinese Han Dynasty, the Japanese built this in order to diplomatically resolve the dispute with China over the Senkaku Islands.

    Actually: in Japan, there's a "strip-poker" variant of rock-paper-scissors. The loser of each round removes an article of clothing. The game is a minor part of porn culture in Japan.

    Once again, porn drives innovation!

  10. Up in flames? on How Elon Musk Approaches IT At Tesla · · Score: 1

    I wonder if this Telsa product will go up in flames?

  11. Two patent applications, lots of figures on The World's First Supercavitating Boat? · · Score: 1
    The fine article links to only one of the patent applications. There are actually two (with lots of figures):

    20120097086 FLEET PROTECTION ATTACK CRAFT AND UNDERWATER VEHICLES (39 figures) and

    20110226173 FLEET PROTECTION ATTACK CRAFT (36 figures)

  12. Re:One major hurdle to overcome prior to productio on New Film Renders Screen Reflection Almost Non-Existent · · Score: 2
    Each product with this coating will have this warning prominently displayed:

    WARNING: DO NOT PLACE NEAR MOTHBALLS

  13. Re:SONY "do not patronize" on New Film Renders Screen Reflection Almost Non-Existent · · Score: 2

    Or Sony could moth-ball it.

  14. One major hurdle to overcome prior to production on New Film Renders Screen Reflection Almost Non-Existent · · Score: 2

    Before Sony can commercially produce this, they have to overcome one hurdle: how to stop a device with this coating from gravitating to bright lights!

  15. Re:Moth-eye on New Film Renders Screen Reflection Almost Non-Existent · · Score: 5, Informative

    I'll see your Wikipedia reference and raise you two USPTO patents granted to SONY for this:

    8,027,090 and 7,633,045.

    Note: according to another of SONY's patents, moth-eye can also be used to record info on optical media:

    "Today, there are seven primary methods by which information can be recorded on optical media. All methods heat the recording layer to a certain temperature. The methods are known as ablative, alloying, bubble-forming, moth-eye, phase-change, dye/polymer and magneto-optic which cause or could cause some mechanical deformation of the substrate."

    P.S.

    Unlike TFA these patents include detailed drawings and SEM photographs.

    P.S.S.

    I remember when the authors of tech articles did this kind of background research. Sigh.

  16. Re:Well... on Rare Operating Apple 1 Rakes In $374,500 At Sotheby's Auction · · Score: 1

    Assuming a 4% rate of inflation, in 35 years a new Apple computer will cost about $11,045.

  17. Re:Well... on Rare Operating Apple 1 Rakes In $374,500 At Sotheby's Auction · · Score: 4, Interesting

    $666.66 in 1976 had the same buying power as $2,710.75 in 2012.

    Now, as then, that'll buy you Apple's latest and greatest computer.

    (Actually it's $2,799.00 but still remarkably close given this span of 36 years!)

  18. Note: not for XP on Adobe Releases Sandboxed Flash Player For Firefox · · Score: 4, Informative

    From Adobe's news release:

    [Emphasis added]

    The restrictions we apply to this sandboxed process come from the Windows OS. Windows Vista and Windows 7 provide the tools necessary to properly sandbox a process. For the Adobe Reader and Acrobat sandbox implementation introduced in 2010, Adobe spent significant engineering effort trying to approximate those same controls on Windows XP. Today, with Windows 8 just around the corner and Windows XP usage rapidly decreasing, it did not make sense for the Flash Player team to make that same engineering investment for Windows XP. Therefore, we've focused on making Protected Mode for Firefox available on Windows Vista and later.

  19. Re:Gaisler VHDL style on Ask Slashdot: Sources For Firmware and Hardware Books? · · Score: 1
  20. New? It's been going on since at least 2003 on Photoacoustic Imaging Uses Sight, Sound For Cancer Detection · · Score: 5, Informative

    This research has been going on since at least 2003.

    (Note: don't bother clicking the URL at the bottom of the page -- it's currently 403. I did send the webmaster an email about it.)

    So the submission links to a blog? And no images! Oh, my.

    Here is a link to a research paper -- with images! Multiscale photoacoustic microscopy and computed tomography

  21. Re:vice president for worldwide content protection on After Megaupload, MPAA Targets Other File Sharing Services · · Score: 4, Funny

    Heh. Reminds me of a story from the sixties about General Motors. A customer called GM to complain about his car.

    The phone operator asked what was wrong and the guy said a mirror was defective.

    "Which mirror?" she asked.

    "The side mirror" he replied.

    "Which side?"

    "The passenger side."

    "I'll connect you to the Vice President for Passenger Side Mirrors."

    Dunno if it's true or not. My grandfather worked in the US auto industry for 30 years and had lots of interesting stories to tell...

  22. Re:better get on Software-Defined Radio For $11 · · Score: 1

    And it's hackable, too: Slashdot submission or the original article, Dot-dash-diss: The gentleman hacker's 1903 lulz

  23. Re:Now think in American. on Why Are Fantasy World Accents British? · · Score: 3, Informative

    Imagine The Lord of the Rings where all the Hobbits had Brooklyn accents.

    Fah gedda boudit

  24. Re:Strongly worded letter on Judge Allows Bradley Manning Supporter To Sue Government Over Border Search · · Score: 1

    Awesome! Thank you!

  25. Re:Inconsistent? on Judge Allows Bradley Manning Supporter To Sue Government Over Border Search · · Score: 5, Informative
    Oh, for goodness sake, RTFA:

    Under the "border search exception" of United States criminal law, international travelers can be searched without a warrant as they enter the U.S. Under the Barack Obama administration, law enforcement agents have aggressively used this power to search travelers' laptops, sometimes copying the hard drive before returning the computer to its owner. Courts have ruled that such laptop searches can take place even in the absence of any reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing.