Nonsense. Anybody can be a censor. There's no requirement for it to be governmental in nature.
If I own a newspaper and refuse to publish cartoons of that Mohammed bloke then I am censoring. If I run a popular website and remove pro-Microsoft comments from external posters then I am censoring. If I bleep out naughty words on the radio then I am censoring. If I black out sexual organs on a video before distributing it then I am censoring.
This word has more than one use. Censorship can be practiced by anybody.
Support for ID cards is not complete even in the UK parliament. A significant percentage of the UK population is against them, and has contacted MPs to let them know.
On other technology matters individual activism can also make a difference. The Government seemed surprised and concerned by the general reaction to EU attempts to introduce software patents, and made active attempts to ensure the issues being raised were addressed and resolved. Admittedly there's a lot more they could (and some would argue, should) have done.
My MP seems more interested in earning significant sums from anti-social companies than he does in representing my interests. He and I have significantly contrasting views on various aspects of proposed and actual Government policy. At the same time he has pursued publicly issues I have raised directly with him, and I have to assume attempts to represent the views of his constituency as a whole. (I can't expect him to always do what I want when I'm surrounded by utter morons who keep asking him to do with things.)
So do make your views known. Be polite and courteous, think about how best to get your viewpoint understood and acted upon, and sometimes it'll work.
Personally I think it's ugly, underspecced and overpriced. Thus its success to me must be because of its marketing, and its excellent integration with iTunes.
There are more elegant, more capable and cheaper devices on the market. They don't have the marketing spend that the iPod does, they don't have the U2 tie-ins, they don't have the mindshare. People don't know whether they've got equivalent usability because they don't know the products exist. (The fact that Apple are transgressing against Creative patents on the usability features strongly suggests that the iPod isn't unique in being usable in this particular market.)
I'm curious that you consider 'primarily marketing' to be an insult. What are you getting so defensive about?
The initial post was that people were posting ill-informed opinion five years ago about the iPod. I am merely highlighting that many of the points they raised were very accurate, and that the iPod has succeeded despite those deficiencies. Forgive me for looking objectively at a product and not joining the fashionable trend of the moment.
If someone is running a bittorrent site and they have set up categories such as "TV Shows" or specific show names then I can't see how anyone can claim that they are offering something neutral.
You appear to be under the misapprehension that nobody can legally distribute TV shows through bittorrent. Not all TV shows are restricted from distribution by current copyright law.
The specific show names are asking for trouble though, yeah:)
Yeah, it's almost getting to the stage where adding "I have a four digit Slashdot ID" is worth adding to your CV.
My skillset is currently very much in demand pretty much everywhere, which is nice. But there are some specific jobs being actively recruited for in Australia at the moment, so it's a shame I'm not ready to move just yet:)
I still love the AO approach. Everybody dressed differently, and everyone carried around a set of social clothing (or 7. hey, my cute girly character _needed_ three styles of sunglasses and four chique dresses!)
Interesting comparison. The weapons in use at the time I was given the advice were the 7.62mm SLR (think semi-auto version of M16) and the SA-80. We did have some.303s but they were rendered inoperable and were used for drill and display purposes.
Given how easily bits fell off the SA-80 I'm not surprised we were encouraged to be gentle with them:)
Heh, I'm considering getting my next job in Australia. I'm British, I don't want to emigrate, but a 6 month contract in another country would be fun, different and interesting.
I just need guarantees on broadband access, Liverpool matches on TV and no overlap with the Ashes.
LOCK clip into place by slamming it with the heel of your hand
So the guys working in the armoury on an RAF base were lying when they told me to never ever slam the magazine (clip) with your hand as you risk causing damage to the magazine, the receiver or the ammunition, increasing your chances of a jam?
DVDs, CDs, jeans and other non-electrical goods have all had similar rulings on them. No warranty issues there.
Plus of course, if I choose to buy cheaper overseas then I forego the extended warranty period. My choice, if the EU lets me. At the moment they don't let me.
Your point on warranties does help explain the price differential. It does not explain why I am prevented from purchasing the lower cost option, especially when the product is identical.
I'm the other way (so are many programmers I know).
If I'm programming then music helps me get into the flow by giving my ears something to listen to that requires no conscious brain activity. By providing a dominant sound the other office noises dissolve into background.
Once in the flow it doesn't matter what I'm listening to. I can go through an entire album and realise I haven't heard half the songs in the middle - even though I may have been typing away in time to them.
Strangely the nature of the music doesn't seem to matter. Rock, indie, classical, even Cyndi Lauper (don't ask).
I still live in Nottingham, and there are still a lot of smaller non-chain pubs with some great music and a nice atmosphere. I've personally not seen any fights in Nottingham, although you do hear about them a lot.
Coventry on the other hand, I've seen a couple of fights and been involved in two. One was helping break up a brawl in the bar I worked in, and the other was getting assaulted on the way home from that bar (another night).
Have you been out in a British town on a Saturday night? Several hundred thousand people in an area the size of downtown San Diego? A significant percentage of whom are from out of town? A significant percentage of whom are fully intending to get drunk/high/laid? A small percentage of whom are intending to get violent? A small percentage of whom aren't intending to get violent but sure aren't going to stand around watching when it does kick off? Sorry, your doorman know all those people?
As for learning to defend yourself, please. You defend yourself against a heavily drunk idiot and his 18 mates. Enjoy the hospital stay, because a lot will happen in the 2 minutes before a dozen burly doormen come and save you.
Slashdot Mirror
This is tying the knot in a doggy sense of the term. Yes, the American public gets to play the role of 'bitch'.
whether they want to cold-bloodedly slaughter a significant percentage of the US population
Where do I sign up?
Nonsense. Anybody can be a censor. There's no requirement for it to be governmental in nature.
If I own a newspaper and refuse to publish cartoons of that Mohammed bloke then I am censoring.
If I run a popular website and remove pro-Microsoft comments from external posters then I am censoring.
If I bleep out naughty words on the radio then I am censoring.
If I black out sexual organs on a video before distributing it then I am censoring.
This word has more than one use. Censorship can be practiced by anybody.
some of the claims given about the ID Cards Database is enough to make me laugh at times
Same here, although I'd use "cry" not "laugh".
I don't think you can just blame EDS either. There are many equally incompetent organisations performing similar services.
I too want to land a £10bn contract to fuck over an entire Government department and then just walk away going "Oh well."
That's a very defeatist attitude.
Support for ID cards is not complete even in the UK parliament. A significant percentage of the UK population is against them, and has contacted MPs to let them know.
On other technology matters individual activism can also make a difference. The Government seemed surprised and concerned by the general reaction to EU attempts to introduce software patents, and made active attempts to ensure the issues being raised were addressed and resolved. Admittedly there's a lot more they could (and some would argue, should) have done.
My MP seems more interested in earning significant sums from anti-social companies than he does in representing my interests. He and I have significantly contrasting views on various aspects of proposed and actual Government policy. At the same time he has pursued publicly issues I have raised directly with him, and I have to assume attempts to represent the views of his constituency as a whole. (I can't expect him to always do what I want when I'm surrounded by utter morons who keep asking him to do with things.)
So do make your views known. Be polite and courteous, think about how best to get your viewpoint understood and acted upon, and sometimes it'll work.
Personally I think it's ugly, underspecced and overpriced. Thus its success to me must be because of its marketing, and its excellent integration with iTunes.
There are more elegant, more capable and cheaper devices on the market. They don't have the marketing spend that the iPod does, they don't have the U2 tie-ins, they don't have the mindshare. People don't know whether they've got equivalent usability because they don't know the products exist. (The fact that Apple are transgressing against Creative patents on the usability features strongly suggests that the iPod isn't unique in being usable in this particular market.)
I'm curious that you consider 'primarily marketing' to be an insult. What are you getting so defensive about?
The initial post was that people were posting ill-informed opinion five years ago about the iPod. I am merely highlighting that many of the points they raised were very accurate, and that the iPod has succeeded despite those deficiencies. Forgive me for looking objectively at a product and not joining the fashionable trend of the moment.
If someone is running a bittorrent site and they have set up categories such as "TV Shows" or specific show names then I can't see how anyone can claim that they are offering something neutral.
You appear to be under the misapprehension that nobody can legally distribute TV shows through bittorrent. Not all TV shows are restricted from distribution by current copyright law.
The specific show names are asking for trouble though, yeah
The thing is, the iPod (especially that initial release) was lame.
It did have shitty battery life (and battery issues). It didn't have a PC version of iTunes. It wasn't groundbreaking.
That it's been successful is due primarily to marketing, and because Apple did bring iTunes to the PC.
Rather than deride the comments from Slashdot posters, consider whether the feedback provided was used by Apple to help make the product a success.
Ok, you made me go and research. The 7.62mm SLR was the L1A1, and indeed absolutely nothing to do with the 5.56mm M16. Sorry for misleading people.
The SA80 still feels like a toy gun in comparison though
Yeah, it's almost getting to the stage where adding "I have a four digit Slashdot ID" is worth adding to your CV.
My skillset is currently very much in demand pretty much everywhere, which is nice. But there are some specific jobs being actively recruited for in Australia at the moment, so it's a shame I'm not ready to move just yet
Why keep out the Cthulu fans? Writhing tentacles will draw in that large Hentai market..
I still love the AO approach. Everybody dressed differently, and everyone carried around a set of social clothing (or 7. hey, my cute girly character _needed_ three styles of sunglasses and four chique dresses!)
Interesting comparison. The weapons in use at the time I was given the advice were the 7.62mm SLR (think semi-auto version of M16) and the SA-80. We did have some
Given how easily bits fell off the SA-80 I'm not surprised we were encouraged to be gentle with them
Heh, I'm considering getting my next job in Australia. I'm British, I don't want to emigrate, but a 6 month contract in another country would be fun, different and interesting.
I just need guarantees on broadband access, Liverpool matches on TV and no overlap with the Ashes.
And the food is not that unhealthy either.
You clearly haven't visited some of the kebab shops I frequent.
LOCK clip into place by slamming it with the heel of your hand
So the guys working in the armoury on an RAF base were lying when they told me to never ever slam the magazine (clip) with your hand as you risk causing damage to the magazine, the receiver or the ammunition, increasing your chances of a jam?
Push it firmly into place. Don't slam it.
DVDs, CDs, jeans and other non-electrical goods have all had similar rulings on them. No warranty issues there.
Plus of course, if I choose to buy cheaper overseas then I forego the extended warranty period. My choice, if the EU lets me. At the moment they don't let me.
Your point on warranties does help explain the price differential. It does not explain why I am prevented from purchasing the lower cost option, especially when the product is identical.
I'm the other way (so are many programmers I know).
If I'm programming then music helps me get into the flow by giving my ears something to listen to that requires no conscious brain activity. By providing a dominant sound the other office noises dissolve into background.
Once in the flow it doesn't matter what I'm listening to. I can go through an entire album and realise I haven't heard half the songs in the middle - even though I may have been typing away in time to them.
Strangely the nature of the music doesn't seem to matter. Rock, indie, classical, even Cyndi Lauper (don't ask).
Personally I hate our current firearms legislation.
I think I do prefer it to permitting the average weekend city-pub denizen carry a concealed weapon.
(some of them carry one anyway. guess who are most likely to be involved in violence)
people do stop breathing, unconsciously
Sorry, I'm having a quiet giggle to that one.
I find wearing ear moldings for more than a few hours a day irritates the insides of my ears.
Which is frustrating, because I do notice the benefits from my hearing aids. And I can take the batteries out if I want to stop listening to people
I still live in Nottingham, and there are still a lot of smaller non-chain pubs with some great music and a nice atmosphere. I've personally not seen any fights in Nottingham, although you do hear about them a lot.
Coventry on the other hand, I've seen a couple of fights and been involved in two. One was helping break up a brawl in the bar I worked in, and the other was getting assaulted on the way home from that bar (another night).
Oh, I do apologise. I hadn't realised you meant we ought to break the law and carry illegal firearms for self-defense. How foolish of me.
If I could make a suggestion that would solve your problem: Leave Coventry.
Seriously, the place is dire.
Have you been out in a British town on a Saturday night? Several hundred thousand people in an area the size of downtown San Diego? A significant percentage of whom are from out of town? A significant percentage of whom are fully intending to get drunk/high/laid? A small percentage of whom are intending to get violent? A small percentage of whom aren't intending to get violent but sure aren't going to stand around watching when it does kick off? Sorry, your doorman know all those people?
As for learning to defend yourself, please. You defend yourself against a heavily drunk idiot and his 18 mates. Enjoy the hospital stay, because a lot will happen in the 2 minutes before a dozen burly doormen come and save you.