Again with the Astronomers? Astronomers have nothing to do with time zones. Time zones are political, not scientific. So is UTC when it comes down to it. However, it was not designed the way it was on a whim. So we just need to buck up and switch computers to TAI.
Tablets are an alternative to paper, but they are far from a practical alternative. You can't fold them up and put them in your pocket. You have to continually charge them to use them. You can't use them in cold weather. It's prohibitively expensive to give tablets away as promotional material. They don't make good bookmarks.
Addendum: The last minute of the last day of any month can be lengthened or shortened by one second. However, there is a first preference of June or December, and a second preference of March or September.
Of course it would be a lot easier if the astronomers would let us know a few years in advance rather than six months, but then the offset between TAI and UTC could exceed 0.9 seconds, and as we all know that would bring Ragnarok.
Predicting earthquakes, land slides, massive storms, icebergs, and other events that alter the rate of rotation of the Earth by looking at the stars is a job for astrologers, not astronomers. Also, by definition, TAI and UTC differ by an integral number of seconds, and they currently differ by 35 seconds - far more than your battle inducing 0.9 second threshold.
There are three important time systems in play here. TAI, UT1 and UTC. TAI is a count of SI seconds based on atomic clocks situated around the world. UT1 is the count of "solar" seconds based on the angle of the Sun to the Prime Meridian. Because it is based on the rotation of the Earth, which can vary for a multitude of reasons (earthquakes, icebergs, etc), UT1 "seconds" are variable in length, However, unlike TAI there will always be exactly 86400 seconds in a day.
UTC is a compromise time scale. It uses SI seconds, like TAI, but there are occasional adjustments made so that it remains synchronized to within one second of UT1. These adjustments come in the form of leap seconds (or skip seconds).
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS) has the responsibility of adjusting UTC. The last minute of the last day of the month can be lengthened or shortened by one second in order to keep UTC and UT1 in step. By agreement, the first preference is to adjust in June or December. The second preference is to adjust in March or September. So far, there has been no need to adjust using a skip second, or to adjust in any month other than June or December.
Why do that? Why not just fix the code to properly handle leap seconds and skip seconds the way they are defined now. Or, if it so all fired important, use TAI instead of UTC and use PTP instead of NTP.
There are regular intervals at which leap seconds *CAN* be applied (The last day of March, June, September and December may be one second longer or shorter than other days). However, leap seconds and skip seconds are not always applied. They are irregular because the turning of the Earth is irregular.
When your toaster costs 20 dollars, how long can it take to take it apart, find the fault and put it together again, before it becomes a huge waste of time?
How long would it take to go to the mall or go online and comparison shop different toaster models? Some things are a huge waste of time no matter how you handle them.
As far as I know, downloading music for personal use is still legal in Canada due to the side affects of the media levy on blank CDs...
That's only for music (not films, tv shows, etc) from artists registered with the Canadian recording industry. Furthermore, it doesn't cover downloads, but copying to the blank media. In other words, the only thing it protects is that Celine Dion mix disk.
Poles? Are you nuts? One good ice storm and your internet could be out for days. Infrastructure like that should be buried - out of reach of weather, reckless drivers, etc.
The problem with IPv6 is that edge devices (cable and dsl modems and the like) are only now hitting the shelves in IPv6 capable models. We could have, and should have been IPv6 capable long ago, but the last mile infrastructure was not there, and still is not there.
By that same logic, if I define singing as something only an individual can do, therefore choirs cannot sing. Thus the Hallelujah Chorus is a figment of my imagination.
Slashdot Mirror
In the '60s we had enough workforce and disposable income to build rockets with western engineers right here and do it right.
Western engineers like Wernher Von Braun and his buddies?
Again with the Astronomers? Astronomers have nothing to do with time zones. Time zones are political, not scientific. So is UTC when it comes down to it. However, it was not designed the way it was on a whim. So we just need to buck up and switch computers to TAI.
Tablets are an alternative to paper, but they are far from a practical alternative. You can't fold them up and put them in your pocket. You have to continually charge them to use them. You can't use them in cold weather. It's prohibitively expensive to give tablets away as promotional material. They don't make good bookmarks.
Addendum: The last minute of the last day of any month can be lengthened or shortened by one second. However, there is a first preference of June or December, and a second preference of March or September.
Of course it would be a lot easier if the astronomers would let us know a few years in advance rather than six months, but then the offset between TAI and UTC could exceed 0.9 seconds, and as we all know that would bring Ragnarok.
Predicting earthquakes, land slides, massive storms, icebergs, and other events that alter the rate of rotation of the Earth by looking at the stars is a job for astrologers, not astronomers. Also, by definition, TAI and UTC differ by an integral number of seconds, and they currently differ by 35 seconds - far more than your battle inducing 0.9 second threshold.
There are three important time systems in play here. TAI, UT1 and UTC. TAI is a count of SI seconds based on atomic clocks situated around the world. UT1 is the count of "solar" seconds based on the angle of the Sun to the Prime Meridian. Because it is based on the rotation of the Earth, which can vary for a multitude of reasons (earthquakes, icebergs, etc), UT1 "seconds" are variable in length, However, unlike TAI there will always be exactly 86400 seconds in a day.
UTC is a compromise time scale. It uses SI seconds, like TAI, but there are occasional adjustments made so that it remains synchronized to within one second of UT1. These adjustments come in the form of leap seconds (or skip seconds).
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS) has the responsibility of adjusting UTC. The last minute of the last day of the month can be lengthened or shortened by one second in order to keep UTC and UT1 in step. By agreement, the first preference is to adjust in June or December. The second preference is to adjust in March or September. So far, there has been no need to adjust using a skip second, or to adjust in any month other than June or December.
The protocol allows for a "skip second" as well as a leap second. The clock could legitimately go 23:59:57, 23:59:58, and then 00:00:00.
You cannot redefine the second without rewriting all of science.
Why do that? Why not just fix the code to properly handle leap seconds and skip seconds the way they are defined now. Or, if it so all fired important, use TAI instead of UTC and use PTP instead of NTP.
There are regular intervals at which leap seconds *CAN* be applied (The last day of March, June, September and December may be one second longer or shorter than other days). However, leap seconds and skip seconds are not always applied. They are irregular because the turning of the Earth is irregular.
There may be attractive alternatives, but there are no practical alternatives to paper.
Coast-to-coast probably means a fuel stop in between. But unless this is a rather large "bizjet", it's not going to take you to London.
For some values of London
When your toaster costs 20 dollars, how long can it take to take it apart, find the fault and put it together again, before it becomes a huge waste of time?
How long would it take to go to the mall or go online and comparison shop different toaster models? Some things are a huge waste of time no matter how you handle them.
VPN doesn't mean what you seem to think it means.
As far as I know, downloading music for personal use is still legal in Canada due to the side affects of the media levy on blank CDs...
That's only for music (not films, tv shows, etc) from artists registered with the Canadian recording industry. Furthermore, it doesn't cover downloads, but copying to the blank media. In other words, the only thing it protects is that Celine Dion mix disk.
So? Water does not affect fiberoptic cable, especially cable designed to be buried.
Poles? Are you nuts? One good ice storm and your internet could be out for days. Infrastructure like that should be buried - out of reach of weather, reckless drivers, etc.
Hate to break it to you, Stan, but your Mother's maiden name and your year of graduation are public record.
Yay! Only 75 more years until I can study Calculus for free!
October of next year??? It's been all over Canada for, like, five years or more already.
I think it's about time we implemented some sort of single use credit card system.
Living in the Mediterranean, he probably doesn't have a job at all.
*IF* you can call that livin... Oh, wait... Never mind.
You've never watched a snow storm come in on radar, have you?
"How the devil did the Post Office get my email address?" would be one of the first questions to pop into my mind.
The problem with IPv6 is that edge devices (cable and dsl modems and the like) are only now hitting the shelves in IPv6 capable models. We could have, and should have been IPv6 capable long ago, but the last mile infrastructure was not there, and still is not there.
By that same logic, if I define singing as something only an individual can do, therefore choirs cannot sing. Thus the Hallelujah Chorus is a figment of my imagination.