Thunderbird is not dead. The rumors of its demise are based on horrific misunderstanding of a press release. I want to say that it was a willful misunderstanding but that would be speculation. It's separating from Firefox but not from Mozilla. It's so that Thunderbird can continue to use the add-on architecture without limiting (placing a technological deficit on) Firefox.
As the framework for Firefox is changing and is *not* changing for Thunderbird, this means they'll not be required to do the extra work at making the two compatible. Thunderbird is to keep its current extension mechanisms and has just moved to being under the purview of Mozilla, as a sole project, instead of being tied in with the browser. It is still actively being developed. There are no plans to kill Thunderbird. There are no plans to cut it adrift from Mozilla. There are no plans to stop developing it.
I know, I know... That takes away a reason to be outraged and it takes away some fear, uncertainty, and doubt. However, as of this current time, Thunderbird is safe and nobody plans on changing this. People completely and totally misinterpreted the press release (which wasn't all that cryptic and didn't say the things people claimed) and I really am inclined to think this misinterpretation is willful. Again, Thunderbird isn't going anywhere - at this time. There have been zero announcements that indicate any such plans.
I don't think it's quite copypasta. They seem to mix up the verbiage now and again. You can go into any Firefox thread from the past six months or so, CTRL + F, and search for "caniuse" and find it, nearly verbatim, in all of them. Well, you might not be able to - you may need an account for it to show the domain name. If that's the case then I think "seriously losing market share" might be in most of them?
So, I don't think it's quite copypasta and I don't disagree with the moderation of the post. Not at all... I do disagree with how they moderated narcc's post.
That's just the first one I opened from the tag search. I'm pretty sure I've seen it before. For a while, it was worded a little differently and shorter. I'm not sure how long they've been using this one but I'm pretty sure it's copypasta.
I'd go look for more but I have to be busy again today. This being busy thing is not acceptable but the rewards should be worth it. Still, I'm retired. Busy is for those who still have to do stuff. Feel free to look for more. I just used the 'caniuse' search. Hopefully someone notices and fixes narcc's moderation - if they actually care about it. I tend to see negative moderation as a badge of honor or as an indicator that I did not articulate well enough so I don't really give a shit. Then again, I'm not even sure if it's possible for me to have a bad karma? I had one guy claim he was going to fix that for me but he gave up.
At any rate, copypasta has a place and can be topical. Who here hasn't quoted some famous quote or something? Most of us have, from Franklin to the Simpsons. So, I don't mind that. This is also one of the reasons why I refuse to moderate.
Do you work for Mozilla? If Mozilla's going to jump on a bandwagon, how about a bandwagon that is headed in the direction of making an adequate browser?
That said, I don't think anyone has noticed besides you and I. I think your moderation is unfair. For the moderators: That really *is* copypasta. Well, I think they mix it up a little bit each time. However, it's largely the same each and every time.
Well, then it boils down to this all being Microsoft's fault and screw them and the horse they rode in on. Also, it was probably done by SJWs! And underpants gnomes!
Nah, I was on a roll. It's a sign of mental illness to tie your identity to a product you had no hand in making. When you start thinking irrational thoughts because of a perceived deficiency in that product, it's time to get mental health assistance.
Alright, so it was a little rough but my point remains the same.
Double click on the word - this will highlight it. Right click on the word and select search, this will open search in a new browser tab. You can even set up a variety of search engines as you go, they'll make it much easier for you.
Is a mere 110,000 potential customers actually worth the capital investment costs? Is it worth the ongoing support? Out of that group, how many are likely to purchase and what is it going to cost go get them to make those purchases? Compound that with how much is it going to cost to develop the product, divide it by the projected number, and does it make sense for any reasons other than idealism?
Those are questions, not assertions. I really have no idea. I do not have the domain knowledge to even begin to speculate authoritatively.
I might also add that, sort of, Moore's Law is still in effect. The law is about transistor count and not about a guarantee of faster speed (which it can be). And while I've seen folks argue against the transistor count aspect, they seem to not be paying attention very well. What has gone up, even if not so much in the machines you and I are buying, is the core count.
I think it was just a couple of weeks ago when AMD submitted a patch that indicated that they're going for up to 32 cores. Unfortunately, many (most?) things aren't actually optimized to take advantage of multiple cores and hyper-threading. Most people don't compile their own stuff and throw in the switch to optimize for however many cores they have and that's only valuable if the code itself will benefit from it - or so I'm given to understand.
At any rate, computers are (as you say) getting faster. They're already fast enough and we, the plebeians, aren't going to be spending that much money on our desktops. I've not crunched the numbers - I've not even looked at them, but they're constantly improving and adding more cores. Those cores are fitting in the same amount of space. That means that Moore's Law (not as tasty as Cole's Law) is still probably fairly accurate.
I usually run benchmarks on new hardware. Those numbers are still going up. Even though I refresh often, the numbers are still going up. I have an addiction and refresh more often than is necessary (at least a couple of times a year - probably more often but I'm not going to admit to anything) and the numbers continue to go up or, at least, can go up if I want them to. I really don't know why I bother refreshing so often. I don't even bother with the cutting edge any more. I haven't even bought the most recent generation of GPUs in a long time. I don't need it. I do fine with a $200 GPU. Hell, I do fine with on-board graphics.
But yes, you're very much right. The speeds and capabilities (which is something more than speed) are still increasing. I just think we're old enough to remember the seemingly larger jumps from the heady days of 1990 to 2010. Man, those were exciting times. They're desensitized us and conditioned us to expect more and to be less able to see it unless they're really drastic. Find someone who's never used a PC newer than one built in 2005 and give them a computer built in 2015. They'll probably explain the difference to us better than we can explain it to ourselves.
And wireless, and touch-pads, and extra keyboard functions, and back-lighting controls, and more...
Unless I'm reading you wrong and your post is sarcasm then I'm gonna have to guess you're either really new to Linux or don't actually use Linux. Visit any of the forums, visit any of the support pages. There are hardware support issues aplenty. You might say the pages abound with hardware support issues.
Visit AskUbuntu, the Linux Mint forum, Linux Questions, Arch forums, etc etc etc... Subscribe to the mailing lists, read their archives, etc...
No, there are plenty of issues with hardware and Linux. It's usually resolvable but the problems do exist. I say this as a Linux user. It's not like I'm just making it up.
At the same time, today, I hardly ever have hardware issues that I can't just figure out with a quick Google. More often than not, I don't have any hardware issues at all. That's a matter of selecting certain components and being willing to accept that things like sleep don't work when I close my laptop lid. I didn't really like (or use) that feature anyhow so it's no big deal to me.
I don't need to use the buttons on the keyboard to control the monitor's brightness. If it doesn't work and I need it then I'll just find the command, alias it, and make adjustments via the terminal.
I'm not a gamer, I don't care if I have the most FPS. I'll just use the open source drivers for my GPU - thanks. I don't need the proprietary stuff because the most graphics intensive thing I'm going to do is watch a documentary. Maybe, just maybe, I might open GIMP. Probably not though - I'm good for stick figures.
I don't worry about one of those pen and tablet things to draw on. I've never actually found a printer that didn't work, eventually. I don't buy the three-in-one nor do I print things that need exact colors for the purpose of photography. So, I'm good there too.
I've come across a few distros that, for whatever reason, don't like certain hardware - that's okay, I'm flexible. I'll find another OS on there. Back home I have, for example, one particular desktop (not much different from another - with the exact same GPU) that doesn't like Mint. For some reason, the screen tears a couple of times and it drops me into TTY. To top it off, it won't restart Xorg or whatever it was. So, that one went into the bit bucket and I tossed another distro on and, sure enough, it was good to go.
Then, I could go back through my own history... The above is just today, right now, that I can think of - and limited by how much effort I'm willing to put into thought. I've seen loads of complaints. I don't really have any problems because I'm not actually usually impacted by it. It's just that it would be dishonest to say that Linux doesn't have some device driver shortcomings. I've even come across a USB drive that would not, for the life of me, work with any of the distros that I had installed - while it worked fine in any non-Linux OS that I had access to, as well as working just fine with BSD. (It was some iOmega device, as I recall.)
It's not as bad as it used to be. Not at all. It is usually something that can be fixed but it's not always peachy and fine right from the go. If you've never had any "bigger hardware support issues" with Linux then perhaps you're fairly new to the OS or you're just not trying hard enough. Then again, it might be the other way around and you're a true guru who doesn't have problems because you're really, really good at writing your own drivers or the likes.
>...it seems to be the PC guys that are fussy about looks over performance.
No, it seems like the "PC guys" are fussy about choice, but you know that. It's tough to admit, surely. They can choose an external or an internal solution. You don't get that *choice* at all. It's cute that you try to get in some sort of perceived slight or negative remark but, really, we're not that dumb. Well, I'm not - I can't speak for the rest. I'm not sure how you define "PC guys" but I'll see if I can help you out.
Just because it works for you and is your preferred method (which it probably isn't but you're compelled to say it is because you need affirmation and you've tied your self-worth and identity to a brand) does not actually mean that it works for everyone or that it is their preferred method. Trying to claim it's about looks is just plain silly and I doubt anyone's dumb enough to fall for it.
No, I suspect the PC users care about being able to make choices. That's something you gave up when you decide to use an Apple. You decided to limit your other choices. That's fine but tying your identity to it, seeking affirmation, and attempting to claim some sort of superiority for having done so is just plain silly and childish. You've tied yourself and your identity to something you've no control over, did not contribute to, and have ceased to be rational about that choice. It is rather telling, unfortunately.
It's sad that you've got a frail ego, low self-worth, and few meaningful accomplishments in life. If those things were a bit different, a bit improved, you might not have to bolster yourself-image with a bunch of code you didn't write, a device you didn't create, and a brand you have no control over. Your choice of OS is not significant, important, or meaningful. I know that's rough to hear but the sooner you realize this the better off you'll be.
Get a dog, climb a mountain, run a race, lose a few pounds, brush your teeth, take a shower, get a real friend, go on a date with someone you think is cute, whatever... But do something, something meaningful and an accomplishment that makes you feel good about yourself. Relying on getting an ego boost from your computer is really kind of sad. Seriously, that's not a slight nor is my intent to be derogatory.
It really is kind of sad to see a grown adult tie so much of their identity to something they've no control over. It's like blind patriotism or being proud of accomplishments that you didn't contribute to. Life would be so much more meaningful for you if you actually accomplish something you can be proud about. I'm baffled as to why you might feel superior for having chosen to have fewer choices.
There are lots of reasons to like Apple but to tie your identity to it enough to cause delusions and irrational thinking is indicative of poor mental health and a frail ego. That you'd twist logic so far, just to make a perceived slight, really does demonstrate your unhealthy mental process and that sort of process doesn't happen without reason. There's almost always a cause, it could be as simple as a chemical imbalance. I don't know how old you are but if this sort of thing keeps up and you find that you're unable to control it then you might want to seek professional help.
It's like arguing over who is using the better programming language instead of using quantifiable metrics to determine which of you wrote the better program. It's like thinking that rooting for a certain sports team makes you a better person. It's like thinking that believing in a certain deity makes you a better person - even if that belief doesn't mean you've changed your behavior. Seriously, I wish you luck but get help with that.
Both your comment and his are rough! I mean rough! True, but rough.
Then again, let's be clear... In my opinion:
They make fine hardware. I'm just not impressed with it. It's definitely good for what it is. I'm pretty sure that they could do better, especially at their prices and volume. By better, I mean higher specs with regards to speed and storage capacity. The OS is fairly capable, I've no complaints there and I've used it enough to know that I'm pretty sure that they're more than just appliances. The thing is, the vast majority of people use them like appliances and that's okay too. It's what they want, it's what they want to do, and it's probably good that they have the freedom to decide that sort of thing. Having OS X is good in that it gives people options.
Due to extenuating circumstances, I've purchased a whole lot of Apple hardware. I'm not even a fan of Apple! However, I've probably purchased more Apple devices than anyone here unless they're in charge of provisioning a large company and doing the purchase orders for them. But, where it comes to spending my own money on Apple devices, I'm pretty sure I've exceeded the number purchased by anyone in this entire thread - maybe even combined.
But...
Here's the thing? I go through a lot of hardware. I have my reasons! It's not an addiction! Err... Anyhow, I go through a lot of hardware and I'm really not able to recall the last time I was well and truly impressed. It hasn't been for a while. I think the last time I was impressed was when I jumped to a quad-core system that was 64 bit and had 8 GB of RAM. Other than that, the jump to an SSD was a meaningful moment.
Other than that? I can't really think of anything recent that has impressed me. I don't notice much of a difference between this year and last year's computers. I don't even notice much of a difference between this year's and the ones from four years ago. I don't even notice much of a difference after I get past 16 GB of RAM. I really don't? I'm not a gamer so that's not something I'd notice. I don't even bother buying bleeding edge anymore. At least not most of the time. Frankly, for what I do, I've got ample hardware that is good enough. I've not had anything impress me for quite a while now.
Maybe that's part of the problem? I bought a really, really nice mobile workstation from a company called Titan Computers. It's the X4K with everything maxed out except for the OS, I provided that on my own. I paid a small fortune for it - I'd not spent that much on a laptop in years. Given that my previous laptops lower specs than the new one, I'm a bit impressed with it but not overly so. I'm impressed that it is in a laptop but I'm not impressed in the nature of the beast - I can get (and have) that in desktops. I'm not sure that I'm expressing that well. It is impressive but only because it's in a laptop - and it's not that impressive because I could have bought the same damned thing (pretty much) a few years ago and just opted to not bother - because it's not that much more impressive.
So, we're not seeing anything impressive because we're acclimated to the scene. If we could see today's hardware back in, say, 2000 (or 1995) we'd be pretty damned impressed. They're good computers, they're excellent computers. We're desensitized, so to speak, so we're not thinking of them as good computers but, really, they're fantastic machines.
And yes, that goes for Apple. They do make good computers. They make fine computers. We're just not impressed because there haven't been any great leaps forward in what seems like a long time and many of us were there for the days when we'd refresh every single year and we were impressed with how much change had occurred during that cycle. I dunno? That's kind of what it seems like to me. I'd go on to try to explain it a bit better but I'm actually a bit time constrained.
I'll be the first to admit it. There are a number of actions I do not take because of the consequences and the fact that they're unlawful acts. No, rape is not among those acts but there are plenty of others.
An example might be, I'd love to evacuate everyone and then blow up a building. That would be awesome! I'd love to drive through downtown Washington, DC and run over the cars parked on the side of the road. That'd be more fun than anything I'd ever done! I'd like to buy a chain-gun and use it at a county-fair shooting gallery. I'd like to blow up a variety of things and with a variety of different explosives.
Oh, I'd not want to hurt anyone by doing so. I'm not keen on putting anyone in the hospital or killing them. That doesn't mean I'd not love to blow some stuff up.
When I was a kid, we'd take empty CO2 cartridges and fill them with gunpowder and put a "Chinese" waterproof fuse in it. Then we'd use them like little grenades and blow reasonably good sized holes in the ground. And it was awesome. I'd love to do that again but I'm prohibited from doing so - it is against the law.
I could probably, given a few hours, come up with hundreds of things that I do not do, quite specifically, because they're against the law.
You're not one of those people who think that all laws are there as moral absolutes, just, or right - are you? Right now it's illegal for someone to fly a remote control helicopter within something like 50 miles of DC. Are people immoral for wanting to do so? Are they not doing so because of some higher calling or are they not doing so because it's a stupid fucking law and they don't want to suffer the consequences?
I don't think the BATFE actually gives any of those products away. It might be a more interesting society if they did but they do not currently have that in their mandate. I'm not exactly sure what kind of political changes we'd have to undergo before the BATFE is tasked with provisioning.
Pre-pushback seems to be fairly easy to accomplish. They simply make the citizens powerless and kill enough of those who did push back and that sends a message to others who might have been inclined to keep pushing. Sure, they could have tried reeducation and technological solutions - indeed, they did. However, they discovered good old-fashioned violence and threats of violence work better than other processes. The added bonus is that bullets are probably cheaper.
As an aside, it makes me wonder what the mental health of the North Korean citizens will be like after the fall of their regime. Chine's mostly cowed and not nearly as bad as they used to be. However, North Korea has a whole lot of "catching up" to do and a lot of rights and liberties that will be quite foreign concepts to them. I am not a psychiatrist so I don't know what it entails but I imagine the vast, vast majority of N. Korea's citizens are quite severely traumatized and will have a hard time adapting to a less restrictive environment.
I used to be a drinker. I'm also an automotive enthusiast. I've probably, given all the guilty years, driven while intoxicated more often than I've driven sober. 'Tis sad but true. I've zero at-fault accidents but I have been hit while at a stop light. I had a speeding ticket back in the mid-1970s. I have no moving violations. I have two parking tickets, one was when I was not the driver but had let someone use my car - but I'm accountable for both. The second of those tickets was my fault for not taking the time to understand the several signs and parking there anyhow. I accept responsibility for that.
I've woken up still dressed and found my car out of gas and with a dead battery from leaving the lights on. I'd no clue how I got home but there were no dents or reports of accidents so I presume I did not get into any. That's probably the worst of the events. Well, that and driving across a town square. In my defense, I guess I'm not the only one to have done so and in the fog and rain it looks like a road.
It's unlikely that every instance of drunk driving is going to ruin a life. The idea that it will do so is absurd and demonstrably wrong. It is also essential to add that I was very, very lucky. I have no idea how I don't have an OUI. I've never had one. I no longer drink so I no longer drink and drive. After a number of events similar to the example listed above, I opted to quit drinking. I had to and it sucked but I'm doing fine. I've reached the point where I was comfortable having two drinks during the holidays and haven't actually had any desire to drink since but I figure I should remain alert to my past.
Oddly, I was a functional addict for years. It was after retiring that I stopped being functional. My consumption didn't increase much. My behavior changed a lot. I became a "sloppy drunk." I have no idea why it worked like that.
Either way, I'd never drink and drive again (I don't imagine). It's crazy to think that all drunk driving results in accidents. That's simply not true. You might just as well believe in Santa Clause. This is not endorsing drunk driving but is a warning against it. Chances are good, most people aren't that lucky and the risk is simply too high. The worst thing I learned was that I could close an eye and only see one road and one lane instead of seeing double. Yes, I have used that. Yes, I do regret my decision to do so.
Don't drive drunk. It's just not worth the risks and you're not just risking your own life. I've done it. It was stupid, irresponsible, and risky.
I've long-since moved away and use uMatrix. It's completely open and, unless I'm missing something in the code (I've checked the source - I'm pretty sure), there's nothing amiss there. It's got a bit of a learning curve but it's slight and easily doable. If I can learn it, I'm sure you can. You can then get rid of anything and everything on a site. It's pure whitelist-based.
I like to describe it as being akin to an old-school software firewall except limited to just your browser. However, as you can import and export both rules and settings, it makes it very portable. It's really nice and means you don't need to use NoScript and all the rest. Basically, unless you intentionally change it then anything not explicitly allowed is blocked. Once configured, it makes a handy tool. I've given my settings and custom rules sets to people before to get them started. I have the backup/import process sort of automated and mirror copies to a couple of private places online.
It's the same guy that makes uBlock origin, I've emailed 'em a couple of times. They won't even accept donations, put it that way. You can see his GitHub page here: https://github.com/gorhill/uMa...
You can actually do a lot of what you can do with uMatrix by just using uBlock. On top of that, he also makes another extension called HTTP Switchboard. For the most part, all three are very similar but have slightly different goals and slightly different interfaces. At this point, I've been quite happy with his work. Just to be on the safe side, I sometimes remember to grab copies of the source that way, if things go south, I've got a way to fork from before things went south or the option to keep using the older versions.
All-in-all, there are tools out there that you can place a degree of trust in. It may take some research. I've no idea why you'd take my word for it but, if you want, my word is given that I both trust the uMatrix and uBlock code and author, for the time being, and am happy with the results. The best thing is that you can not rely on my word and just check the source yourself.
I think it's important to note that I'm actually a bit skeptical. I can, and do, set up Wireshark or push things through a hardware firewall and check the logs for suspicious activity. I can say, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that I've never seen any unexpected or suspicious traffic which can be traced to either of those two applications. I have not examined or made much use of the third program, HTTP Switchboard, so I will not opine on it except to say that, at this point, I've no reason to distrust it because of having used his other applications and finding them performing as advertised and only as advertised.
Again, I only offer much of an opinion on the two and, as always, I encourage others to research and find their own solutions. In the case of Ghostery, specifically, you'd probably be better served seeking an alternative. For that, and to replace NoScript as there's no reason to run both, I recommend uMatrix. It even does HTTP referrers and whatnot. You can utilize blocking via HOSTS file inclusions and import them from multiple sources. I find them both quite handy, reliable, and trustworthy.
There are many, many ways to use a VPN. This is even do-able in just the browser itself. If one's goal is to bypass geolocation restrictions, and isn't really all that security minded, then one need only look at the many services offered. Many of them are free. Some of the free ones have various restrictions, such as bandwidth restrictions. Needless to say, there are ways around those restrictions - such as multiple accounts. I guess, I'd rather call those "proxies" instead of "VPNs" as they're not really a VPN for the whole system. I think proxy is a more accurate term but nobody asked me.
I pay for a couple of them, actually. I use them for different things. I even have one at home that I run but that's for an entirely different reason and isn't actually used as often as it probably should be. There's a free one called Hola*** but I recall reading that they were selling their accumulated data, or something along those lines. If you're just using it for bypassing the restrictions then it might be an option for you to consider. There are many, many options. (My recollection of Hola was slightly off - I've included some more details at the bottom.)
The most applicable one that I pay for is SurfEasy. SurfEasy is run by the folks who own Opera. I use it to see what the web looks like for other people as well as to appear to be from other places. It's a bit of anonymity in some regards and it used to work with my cell phone but doesn't actually work with it anymore because I've changed phones. So, I just use the browser extensions. I get unlimited data and I've yet to have a problem with it. There are probably hundreds of choices. There are probably hundreds of free choices. There are many, many paid choices.
You can just use regular old proxies if you want. There are proxy lists all over the place. As you're not (I hope) planning on doing secure things through it then that's an option. If you're just browsing content that's restricted because your IP address indicates you're from the wrong area then, by all means, I'd certainly consider that a reasonable risk to take. Obviously, you don't do banking on it. I'd not even log-in with a regular Google account on YouTube for this though I am not sure how they'd go about compromising an encrypted stream and grabbing personal information from it. It's still better safe than sorry and I suppose they might be able to do something with just the associated cookies? I'm not really sure.
At any rate, there are lots of options out there. As you're just trying to view content, you can probably accept a few more risks concerning data interception. If you're using the free services then I'd make sure to use the more reputable companies if you're planning on doing anything that you want to keep truly private. Seeing as it probably doesn't matter that you wanted to bypass the restrictions for the BBC iPlayer, you're probably good to go with most any VPN out there that has an end-point in the UK.
I'm a bit low on time or I'd go dig out a few links for you. Just search for "free VPN" or "VPN" or "proxy" at your favorite search engine AND check those same search terms at your browser's extension/add-on site. You'll find a whole bunch of services that offer this at low and no cost. Depending on how much you want to pay and what you want for security, there are a bunch of choices. Tor, for example, is not the appropriate tool for this job but VPN Gate is probably just fine for your needs.
Here, I'll get you a link to the VPN Gate site. They're run by a university in Japan, free, and have lots of options - including many (most?) that work with Linux or any OS that is supported by OpenVPN. Depending on your OS, you may not even need any additional software at all. Anyhow, the link to this one: http://vpngate.net/
I kind of figured/knew that you were. I thought I'd elaborate and make it more clear if you weren't really sure what I meant. I haven't re-read my post but if there's any "you" in there, it's the generic you and not you personally. Ah well... Sorry if there was any confusion. I'll make up for it by writing a small novella for you. I'm actually lacking time again today so this cannot be all that lengthy. You don't really *have* to read it, of course, but I'll see if I can think of anything interesting or informative to add. If nothing else, at least it's something for you to read and something for me to write while I wait for a phone call.
I really enjoyed going to Somalia. I did a lot of Africa throughout 2011. In 2007, I won the life-lottery and sold my business. One of the things I'd done for work was travel - a lot. But, most of that travel was in the US. So, I wanted to see more of the world and I did. Before I went there, the State Department called tell me about how it was a dumb idea to go there.
This has happened more than once but some are more pressing than others. With Somalia, the guy on the phone actually swore at me and called me a, "Fucking idiot." That's verbatim. "If you go to Somalia, you're a fucking idiot." He told me that they'd be unable to help me if things went south. All told, I've probably spent a bit over 10 months in Africa and right around one in Somalia. I've been contacted by the State Department a few times but they've only sworn at me once. I've never had an issue while abroad but I tend to make sure that I follow the rules, official and unofficial.
I don't do tours but I often hire a guide. Why would I want to hang around with tourists? Depending on where you're going, a guide may actually be less expensive than an actual tour with a tour group. That probably sounds a bit strange but it has been true many times. I've also found that guides are more likely to help me find the more interesting things. They'll help you in ways that a travel agency or tour group simply will not, at least not the reputable ones.
One of the neat benefits of having dual citizenship (I'm a Canadian citizen by grace of heritage) is that I can just drive across the border and fly out of Canada. I also have a Canadian passport which enables me to mix and match or visit places that are (or were) technically illegal to visit. That's not really required most of the time and we're now allowed to visit Cuba. Soon we'll be able to go to Cuba as tourists. You could also just put a cut/folded piece of paper in your passport and certain countries would stamp the paper instead of the book itself. (That's actually the method I used to get to Cuba. It's the defacto 'undocumented' method if you travel to Israel and travel to other countries in the Middle East.)
I'm kind of over my travel thing, at least on that scale. I still travel but I've stayed closer to home lately. I've driven all around North and South America. I was in the process of doing that, starting last September, when I bumped into a nice younger woman in Buffalo, New York. We bumped into each other by accident and, like Velcro, she just sort of stuck. Having satisfied my wanderlust, we've decided to stay in Florida until spring when we'll go home to Maine. This has been one of the more interesting journeys. An interesting aside (to me) is that I actually took this particular trip because someone from this site suggested that I do so. I have been unable to contact them to extend my thanks or to invite them to some festivities but I was lucky enough to get a few other site participants to come celebrate the New Years festivities with us.
At any rate, I mostly like to drive anywhere that I go now. There are obvious exceptions to that rule but it has reached the point where flying in and out of the US is a bit more effort than it is worth. Charter is an excellent option if the destination is close enough and won't result in a much longer travel times. This is especially true if there a
That's true too but not really the intent of my response. They have a whole lot of government - it's just not the legitimate government, not recognized, and not one by or for the people. It's not a representative government, not at all. It's not a good government, not even remotely. But they're governed pretty damned hard.
It's strange that people say it. It's like saying North Korea doesn't have a government except Somalia's full of small, regional, Kim Jong Un-esque people. They've got paperwork to go from one region to another, with applicable filing fees. They've got taxes. They've got regulations - boy have they got regulations. They've got a hierarchy, judges, enforcement, and even have fines.
They're not elected. They take their position by force and threat of force. They hold that position by disallowing access to resources and with a monopoly on violence. They are every bit a government. They're often not that large, comparatively speaking, but they're powerful and they're certainly governing. They're not governing well (by any definition that I can think of) but they're certainly governing.
It's not lawless, that I can assure you of. Oh, there are lots of laws. I don't believe they're all written down - nor do I think they've got justice systems that are anywhere near what we might call just. They probably have something akin to an appeals process - but I'm not sure that it actually works or is based on concepts of justice like you're familiar with.
No, they've got too much government. I know that sounds really odd to say but it's true. Most of the government isn't official or recognized by other States but it's surely governance. It's authoritarian, dictatorial, oppressive, and horrible for the people but they're well and truly governed. A regular citizen can not, for example, go on a shooting spree and get away with it. No, no... Not at all. Depending on who they shoot, they'll die in any one of a number of different ways. One of the more "interesting" ways to die is to have a tire filled with gasoline thrown around their neck and set alight. Yeah, it's not pretty.
It's not mob justice. Not at all. They're war lords. They're governors by every definition and they certainly seem to enjoy governing. I observed that, for the most part, people seemed resigned to accept it. I'm not really an expert or anything but many of them (they don't really all have uniforms - but some do, depending on where you are) seemed to be armed. I suppose they could try an insurrection, and I understand that many areas do change hands on a frequent basis, but the void is simply filled with new draconian assholes who war over the area and take power and take their turn abusing people. Sometimes areas will merge, break apart, etc... It's actually pretty dynamic.
I was there in 2011, I spent about a month in Somalia and the surrounding areas. It's not as dangerous as they might make out. I hired a "guide" ahead of time, carried enough cash to pay but not enough to make murdering me or kidnapping me of interest, and paid my "documentation fees." My "guide" included his "friends" for much of the time but were unable to cross the real country borders with me. It's actually a beautiful country and the vast majority of people are really impoverished and desperate but otherwise nice.
I'm not gonna say something stupid and suggest you go visit, no. I will say that it's not at all like the movies or media portray. There is an official government. I didn't see much of them. Well, if I did then I didn't notice them outside of the airport and at the border. I did see lots of government agents - but they were not agents of the official government. Even in a single urban area, there may be multiple factions. It's all a bit confusing to an outsider but it's dishonest to say they're ungoverned. Well, not dishonest for you - but dishonest for those who do who should know better. They may not be the official government. They may not be a government we legally recognize. They might be horrible governments and all that but they are, truly, governments. There's a lot of 'em, many of them even have their own flags and other assorted decorations/symbols. (I know there's a word for that stuff, it's slipped my mind.)
It's not hard to understand why Caltech and M.I.T. want everyone to be proficient in mathematics. But it's not easy to see why potential poets and philosophers face a lofty mathematics bar. Demanding algebra across the board actually skews a student body, not necessarily for the better."
Err... We educate to a certain standard because of societal needs. We, as a society, do not need (nor can we afford) more poets and philosophers. They're both noble and worthy things and great to have but you should probably have a day job. Unless, of course, you're going to be a "Philosopher of Mathematics."
Having said that, I'm sort of inclined to agree with the guy. The average person will never need Algebra II. They might need Algebra I and I think that's a fine point to stop - as mandatory goes. Obviously, Algebra II should be an option. One might even say that it should be a mandatory option, if such a thing exists.
So, what to fill that space with? How about a real Computer Science course but an entry level one? No, I do not mean programming. I do not mean learning to use an office suite. I don't even think computers should be a part of this course, at least not in the initial, basic, mandatory level(s). It should include things like safe hex, basic principles, history, vocabulary, and things like that. A high school graduate should understand the concepts of a firewall well enough to configure one, know what TCP/IP is, understand what an ACK is, know who Knuth is, know about Colossus, know about Babbage, know what binary is - and how it is used, understand protocols such as HTTP and FTP, understand the concepts of data storage and manipulation, what an OS is - and the choices between them, as well as having an understanding of the actual function of the hardware components that comprise the average desktop.
There's a lot more to add to that list, it should have a basic and advanced option, it should keep going into further levels, and it should be vendor agnostic. I'm reasonably sure that there are people here who are smarter than I and are able to refine the list of requirements. In this day and age, the concepts of things like data and computer security are essential knowledge, safe hex is important. Hell, we could go so far as to include some concepts on netiquette and privacy - again, not pressuring but to ensure that the options are known as well as the risks and rewards are known.
There's no reason for a graduate to not know how to configure a router from *any* vendor and be able to find and use the security settings. There's no reason for them to not know how their computer works. There's no reason for them to not understand the concepts of networking and the terminology associated with it. There's no reason for them to not know the typical file-types and what they're referencing. There's no reason for them to not know the history of computing and to understand the concepts of data processing, from CPU to RAM to storage. None... These are essential knowledge in today's world and we'll be better for it as a society.
Again, it shouldn't be programming nor should it be learning how to use a browser. Office shouldn't enter into it, nor should LibreOffice or OpenOffice. It should have jack squat to do with making a web page - but they should understand what (really) a page is - and how to go learn how to make one, as well as why they work and what markup (for example) means. No, they shouldn't be learning about how to use JavaScript libraries, but they should be learning what one is. They should be able to use something like uMatrix and know what the connections are, what they're doing, what risks are associated, and how to make an informed decision about what code they allow to run on their system.
I hate to use the word because of the connotations with the verbiage but they should be, in every sense, empowered. They should be empowered to utilize the freedoms associated with informed consent. They should be enabled to underst
If you want to do that then the blame lies rather squarely on the colonization and subsequent division or property perpetuated by the League of Nations. Then again, to be frank, much of the circumstances are due to that. However, the blame lies squarely with the people chopping off heads.
You can try to blame the US if you want but that's only looking at a very small piece of history and kind of silly. It's a bit like the AGW deniers selectively cherry-picking years and data-sets to say that no warming occurred for 19 years. You can do that but there are plenty of us who are well aware of the reality and, in case you're unaware, the US wasn't actually a part of the League of Nations.
So, if you won't blame the perpetrators (which is kind of strange but it's your logical fallacy so I implore you to run with it and be proud of doing so) then you might as well blame Europe, their colonization, and their placing of both rulers and boundaries where none had been and none where they had been. If you want to go back far enough then you might as well go back to the Crusades which, I guess, you can try to blame on the Muslims but that'd be silly.
No, no it's quite squarely the way it is because of European meddling. The attempt to blame the fallout on the US is amusing but is typical. The US has been cleaning up after their messes for years and years and years. But hey, it's easier to blame the US rather than accept responsibility for their actions, attempt to do something about it, and actually blame the perpetrators. Good call! It's less risky for their health too. Cowardice and unaccountability seem an awful lot like bliss.
Did you just call Somalia 'ungoverned?' Hmm... You've never been to Somalia, have you? Somalia is *over-governed* by any definition. It's not a representative government, it's not a good government, it's not government that is recognized by the UN, but government it is and there sure is a lot of it. They've even got paperwork, treaties, trade agreements and the likes. They've got judicial, executive, and legislative powers. No, Somalia's *very* governed. It's kind of strange that people don't think so.
I think I might have thought of a way in (or at least a different way to try) but I'm unsure of the technical details. At some point, there's the chip that sends a message to erase the data or to encrypt it with garbage. That has to travel over some sort of bus. Get a model of the same phone, observe the signal that is sent when that is intentionally done on the second phone, and the interrupt it. This does nothing for the time delay but I'd give even odds that such is overlooked and a simple reboot will start the cycle over again when the limit of 10 is reached.
The signal is sent, if I understand correctly, from a second chip. Interrupt it and don't let it get sent at all. This may not work, not necessarily, I can think of a few kludges in the way but they might not be there - and we've no real way of knowing as we're not Apple engineers. But... It does seem like it's worth trying. The signal may be encrypted itself (can that be found or is it turtles all the way down?), the phone may stop after 10 and a reboot may not reset that - it's hard to tell what it'll do in a failure - there might be a way to interrupt and replay directly at the bus line, and a few other things.
I'd go into more detail but I am soon off for the day. I'll be busy again today. Yay... Go me... Then, I may be off on one of two adventures. Or not... It really depends.
At any rate, someone with more skill than I can think about it further. If successful, I only ask that you not blame me. I don't have a problem with the FBI having the data, not at all. What I do have a problem with is the judge ordering the company to write software. What I do have issue with is the judicial overreach. In the end, I'm hoping the backlash from this results in an unemployed ex-judge but I suspect that's more than I will get.
Those liberties weren't going to erode themselves, it's a good thing we've got judges to help 'em out.:/
Slashdot Mirror
Thunderbird is not dead. The rumors of its demise are based on horrific misunderstanding of a press release. I want to say that it was a willful misunderstanding but that would be speculation. It's separating from Firefox but not from Mozilla. It's so that Thunderbird can continue to use the add-on architecture without limiting (placing a technological deficit on) Firefox.
As the framework for Firefox is changing and is *not* changing for Thunderbird, this means they'll not be required to do the extra work at making the two compatible. Thunderbird is to keep its current extension mechanisms and has just moved to being under the purview of Mozilla, as a sole project, instead of being tied in with the browser. It is still actively being developed. There are no plans to kill Thunderbird. There are no plans to cut it adrift from Mozilla. There are no plans to stop developing it.
I know, I know... That takes away a reason to be outraged and it takes away some fear, uncertainty, and doubt. However, as of this current time, Thunderbird is safe and nobody plans on changing this. People completely and totally misinterpreted the press release (which wasn't all that cryptic and didn't say the things people claimed) and I really am inclined to think this misinterpretation is willful. Again, Thunderbird isn't going anywhere - at this time. There have been zero announcements that indicate any such plans.
I suspect you'll not be offering them an apology.
I don't think it's quite copypasta. They seem to mix up the verbiage now and again. You can go into any Firefox thread from the past six months or so, CTRL + F, and search for "caniuse" and find it, nearly verbatim, in all of them. Well, you might not be able to - you may need an account for it to show the domain name. If that's the case then I think "seriously losing market share" might be in most of them?
So, I don't think it's quite copypasta and I don't disagree with the moderation of the post. Not at all... I do disagree with how they moderated narcc's post.
Let me go look, I've got a free minute...
Here one that appears to be verbatim:
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/...
That's just the first one I opened from the tag search. I'm pretty sure I've seen it before. For a while, it was worded a little differently and shorter. I'm not sure how long they've been using this one but I'm pretty sure it's copypasta.
I'd go look for more but I have to be busy again today. This being busy thing is not acceptable but the rewards should be worth it. Still, I'm retired. Busy is for those who still have to do stuff. Feel free to look for more. I just used the 'caniuse' search. Hopefully someone notices and fixes narcc's moderation - if they actually care about it. I tend to see negative moderation as a badge of honor or as an indicator that I did not articulate well enough so I don't really give a shit. Then again, I'm not even sure if it's possible for me to have a bad karma? I had one guy claim he was going to fix that for me but he gave up.
At any rate, copypasta has a place and can be topical. Who here hasn't quoted some famous quote or something? Most of us have, from Franklin to the Simpsons. So, I don't mind that. This is also one of the reasons why I refuse to moderate.
Do you work for Mozilla? If Mozilla's going to jump on a bandwagon, how about a bandwagon that is headed in the direction of making an adequate browser?
That said, I don't think anyone has noticed besides you and I. I think your moderation is unfair. For the moderators: That really *is* copypasta. Well, I think they mix it up a little bit each time. However, it's largely the same each and every time.
Well, then it boils down to this all being Microsoft's fault and screw them and the horse they rode in on. Also, it was probably done by SJWs! And underpants gnomes!
Nah, I was on a roll. It's a sign of mental illness to tie your identity to a product you had no hand in making. When you start thinking irrational thoughts because of a perceived deficiency in that product, it's time to get mental health assistance.
Alright, so it was a little rough but my point remains the same.
Double click on the word - this will highlight it. Right click on the word and select search, this will open search in a new browser tab. You can even set up a variety of search engines as you go, they'll make it much easier for you.
Is a mere 110,000 potential customers actually worth the capital investment costs? Is it worth the ongoing support? Out of that group, how many are likely to purchase and what is it going to cost go get them to make those purchases? Compound that with how much is it going to cost to develop the product, divide it by the projected number, and does it make sense for any reasons other than idealism?
Those are questions, not assertions. I really have no idea. I do not have the domain knowledge to even begin to speculate authoritatively.
I might also add that, sort of, Moore's Law is still in effect. The law is about transistor count and not about a guarantee of faster speed (which it can be). And while I've seen folks argue against the transistor count aspect, they seem to not be paying attention very well. What has gone up, even if not so much in the machines you and I are buying, is the core count.
I think it was just a couple of weeks ago when AMD submitted a patch that indicated that they're going for up to 32 cores. Unfortunately, many (most?) things aren't actually optimized to take advantage of multiple cores and hyper-threading. Most people don't compile their own stuff and throw in the switch to optimize for however many cores they have and that's only valuable if the code itself will benefit from it - or so I'm given to understand.
At any rate, computers are (as you say) getting faster. They're already fast enough and we, the plebeians, aren't going to be spending that much money on our desktops. I've not crunched the numbers - I've not even looked at them, but they're constantly improving and adding more cores. Those cores are fitting in the same amount of space. That means that Moore's Law (not as tasty as Cole's Law) is still probably fairly accurate.
We're just not noticing 'cause we're not buying 32 core CPUs and the improvements, at this scale, seem a bit trivial. I was babbling about that in an earlier post. For the most part, and for the average user, the state of the compute hardware is Good Enough©. It's more than Good Enough© now and has been for quite some time. Just because it's good enough and just because we're not noticing it doesn't mean that it's not getting faster.
I usually run benchmarks on new hardware. Those numbers are still going up. Even though I refresh often, the numbers are still going up. I have an addiction and refresh more often than is necessary (at least a couple of times a year - probably more often but I'm not going to admit to anything) and the numbers continue to go up or, at least, can go up if I want them to. I really don't know why I bother refreshing so often. I don't even bother with the cutting edge any more. I haven't even bought the most recent generation of GPUs in a long time. I don't need it. I do fine with a $200 GPU. Hell, I do fine with on-board graphics.
But yes, you're very much right. The speeds and capabilities (which is something more than speed) are still increasing. I just think we're old enough to remember the seemingly larger jumps from the heady days of 1990 to 2010. Man, those were exciting times. They're desensitized us and conditioned us to expect more and to be less able to see it unless they're really drastic. Find someone who's never used a PC newer than one built in 2005 and give them a computer built in 2015. They'll probably explain the difference to us better than we can explain it to ourselves.
And wireless, and touch-pads, and extra keyboard functions, and back-lighting controls, and more...
Unless I'm reading you wrong and your post is sarcasm then I'm gonna have to guess you're either really new to Linux or don't actually use Linux. Visit any of the forums, visit any of the support pages. There are hardware support issues aplenty. You might say the pages abound with hardware support issues.
Visit AskUbuntu, the Linux Mint forum, Linux Questions, Arch forums, etc etc etc... Subscribe to the mailing lists, read their archives, etc...
No, there are plenty of issues with hardware and Linux. It's usually resolvable but the problems do exist. I say this as a Linux user. It's not like I'm just making it up.
At the same time, today, I hardly ever have hardware issues that I can't just figure out with a quick Google. More often than not, I don't have any hardware issues at all. That's a matter of selecting certain components and being willing to accept that things like sleep don't work when I close my laptop lid. I didn't really like (or use) that feature anyhow so it's no big deal to me.
I don't need to use the buttons on the keyboard to control the monitor's brightness. If it doesn't work and I need it then I'll just find the command, alias it, and make adjustments via the terminal.
I'm not a gamer, I don't care if I have the most FPS. I'll just use the open source drivers for my GPU - thanks. I don't need the proprietary stuff because the most graphics intensive thing I'm going to do is watch a documentary. Maybe, just maybe, I might open GIMP. Probably not though - I'm good for stick figures.
I don't worry about one of those pen and tablet things to draw on. I've never actually found a printer that didn't work, eventually. I don't buy the three-in-one nor do I print things that need exact colors for the purpose of photography. So, I'm good there too.
I've come across a few distros that, for whatever reason, don't like certain hardware - that's okay, I'm flexible. I'll find another OS on there. Back home I have, for example, one particular desktop (not much different from another - with the exact same GPU) that doesn't like Mint. For some reason, the screen tears a couple of times and it drops me into TTY. To top it off, it won't restart Xorg or whatever it was. So, that one went into the bit bucket and I tossed another distro on and, sure enough, it was good to go.
Then, I could go back through my own history... The above is just today, right now, that I can think of - and limited by how much effort I'm willing to put into thought. I've seen loads of complaints. I don't really have any problems because I'm not actually usually impacted by it. It's just that it would be dishonest to say that Linux doesn't have some device driver shortcomings. I've even come across a USB drive that would not, for the life of me, work with any of the distros that I had installed - while it worked fine in any non-Linux OS that I had access to, as well as working just fine with BSD. (It was some iOmega device, as I recall.)
It's not as bad as it used to be. Not at all. It is usually something that can be fixed but it's not always peachy and fine right from the go. If you've never had any "bigger hardware support issues" with Linux then perhaps you're fairly new to the OS or you're just not trying hard enough. Then again, it might be the other way around and you're a true guru who doesn't have problems because you're really, really good at writing your own drivers or the likes.
> ...it seems to be the PC guys that are fussy about looks over performance.
No, it seems like the "PC guys" are fussy about choice, but you know that. It's tough to admit, surely. They can choose an external or an internal solution. You don't get that *choice* at all. It's cute that you try to get in some sort of perceived slight or negative remark but, really, we're not that dumb. Well, I'm not - I can't speak for the rest. I'm not sure how you define "PC guys" but I'll see if I can help you out.
Just because it works for you and is your preferred method (which it probably isn't but you're compelled to say it is because you need affirmation and you've tied your self-worth and identity to a brand) does not actually mean that it works for everyone or that it is their preferred method. Trying to claim it's about looks is just plain silly and I doubt anyone's dumb enough to fall for it.
No, I suspect the PC users care about being able to make choices. That's something you gave up when you decide to use an Apple. You decided to limit your other choices. That's fine but tying your identity to it, seeking affirmation, and attempting to claim some sort of superiority for having done so is just plain silly and childish. You've tied yourself and your identity to something you've no control over, did not contribute to, and have ceased to be rational about that choice. It is rather telling, unfortunately.
It's sad that you've got a frail ego, low self-worth, and few meaningful accomplishments in life. If those things were a bit different, a bit improved, you might not have to bolster yourself-image with a bunch of code you didn't write, a device you didn't create, and a brand you have no control over. Your choice of OS is not significant, important, or meaningful. I know that's rough to hear but the sooner you realize this the better off you'll be.
Get a dog, climb a mountain, run a race, lose a few pounds, brush your teeth, take a shower, get a real friend, go on a date with someone you think is cute, whatever... But do something, something meaningful and an accomplishment that makes you feel good about yourself. Relying on getting an ego boost from your computer is really kind of sad. Seriously, that's not a slight nor is my intent to be derogatory.
It really is kind of sad to see a grown adult tie so much of their identity to something they've no control over. It's like blind patriotism or being proud of accomplishments that you didn't contribute to. Life would be so much more meaningful for you if you actually accomplish something you can be proud about. I'm baffled as to why you might feel superior for having chosen to have fewer choices.
There are lots of reasons to like Apple but to tie your identity to it enough to cause delusions and irrational thinking is indicative of poor mental health and a frail ego. That you'd twist logic so far, just to make a perceived slight, really does demonstrate your unhealthy mental process and that sort of process doesn't happen without reason. There's almost always a cause, it could be as simple as a chemical imbalance. I don't know how old you are but if this sort of thing keeps up and you find that you're unable to control it then you might want to seek professional help.
It's like arguing over who is using the better programming language instead of using quantifiable metrics to determine which of you wrote the better program. It's like thinking that rooting for a certain sports team makes you a better person. It's like thinking that believing in a certain deity makes you a better person - even if that belief doesn't mean you've changed your behavior. Seriously, I wish you luck but get help with that.
Both your comment and his are rough! I mean rough! True, but rough.
Then again, let's be clear... In my opinion:
They make fine hardware. I'm just not impressed with it. It's definitely good for what it is. I'm pretty sure that they could do better, especially at their prices and volume. By better, I mean higher specs with regards to speed and storage capacity. The OS is fairly capable, I've no complaints there and I've used it enough to know that I'm pretty sure that they're more than just appliances. The thing is, the vast majority of people use them like appliances and that's okay too. It's what they want, it's what they want to do, and it's probably good that they have the freedom to decide that sort of thing. Having OS X is good in that it gives people options.
Due to extenuating circumstances, I've purchased a whole lot of Apple hardware. I'm not even a fan of Apple! However, I've probably purchased more Apple devices than anyone here unless they're in charge of provisioning a large company and doing the purchase orders for them. But, where it comes to spending my own money on Apple devices, I'm pretty sure I've exceeded the number purchased by anyone in this entire thread - maybe even combined.
But...
Here's the thing? I go through a lot of hardware. I have my reasons! It's not an addiction! Err... Anyhow, I go through a lot of hardware and I'm really not able to recall the last time I was well and truly impressed. It hasn't been for a while. I think the last time I was impressed was when I jumped to a quad-core system that was 64 bit and had 8 GB of RAM. Other than that, the jump to an SSD was a meaningful moment.
Other than that? I can't really think of anything recent that has impressed me. I don't notice much of a difference between this year and last year's computers. I don't even notice much of a difference between this year's and the ones from four years ago. I don't even notice much of a difference after I get past 16 GB of RAM. I really don't? I'm not a gamer so that's not something I'd notice. I don't even bother buying bleeding edge anymore. At least not most of the time. Frankly, for what I do, I've got ample hardware that is good enough. I've not had anything impress me for quite a while now.
Maybe that's part of the problem? I bought a really, really nice mobile workstation from a company called Titan Computers. It's the X4K with everything maxed out except for the OS, I provided that on my own. I paid a small fortune for it - I'd not spent that much on a laptop in years. Given that my previous laptops lower specs than the new one, I'm a bit impressed with it but not overly so. I'm impressed that it is in a laptop but I'm not impressed in the nature of the beast - I can get (and have) that in desktops. I'm not sure that I'm expressing that well. It is impressive but only because it's in a laptop - and it's not that impressive because I could have bought the same damned thing (pretty much) a few years ago and just opted to not bother - because it's not that much more impressive.
So, we're not seeing anything impressive because we're acclimated to the scene. If we could see today's hardware back in, say, 2000 (or 1995) we'd be pretty damned impressed. They're good computers, they're excellent computers. We're desensitized, so to speak, so we're not thinking of them as good computers but, really, they're fantastic machines.
And yes, that goes for Apple. They do make good computers. They make fine computers. We're just not impressed because there haven't been any great leaps forward in what seems like a long time and many of us were there for the days when we'd refresh every single year and we were impressed with how much change had occurred during that cycle. I dunno? That's kind of what it seems like to me. I'd go on to try to explain it a bit better but I'm actually a bit time constrained.
I'll be the first to admit it. There are a number of actions I do not take because of the consequences and the fact that they're unlawful acts. No, rape is not among those acts but there are plenty of others.
An example might be, I'd love to evacuate everyone and then blow up a building. That would be awesome! I'd love to drive through downtown Washington, DC and run over the cars parked on the side of the road. That'd be more fun than anything I'd ever done! I'd like to buy a chain-gun and use it at a county-fair shooting gallery. I'd like to blow up a variety of things and with a variety of different explosives.
Oh, I'd not want to hurt anyone by doing so. I'm not keen on putting anyone in the hospital or killing them. That doesn't mean I'd not love to blow some stuff up.
When I was a kid, we'd take empty CO2 cartridges and fill them with gunpowder and put a "Chinese" waterproof fuse in it. Then we'd use them like little grenades and blow reasonably good sized holes in the ground. And it was awesome. I'd love to do that again but I'm prohibited from doing so - it is against the law.
I could probably, given a few hours, come up with hundreds of things that I do not do, quite specifically, because they're against the law.
You're not one of those people who think that all laws are there as moral absolutes, just, or right - are you? Right now it's illegal for someone to fly a remote control helicopter within something like 50 miles of DC. Are people immoral for wanting to do so? Are they not doing so because of some higher calling or are they not doing so because it's a stupid fucking law and they don't want to suffer the consequences?
I don't think the BATFE actually gives any of those products away. It might be a more interesting society if they did but they do not currently have that in their mandate. I'm not exactly sure what kind of political changes we'd have to undergo before the BATFE is tasked with provisioning.
Pre-pushback seems to be fairly easy to accomplish. They simply make the citizens powerless and kill enough of those who did push back and that sends a message to others who might have been inclined to keep pushing. Sure, they could have tried reeducation and technological solutions - indeed, they did. However, they discovered good old-fashioned violence and threats of violence work better than other processes. The added bonus is that bullets are probably cheaper.
As an aside, it makes me wonder what the mental health of the North Korean citizens will be like after the fall of their regime. Chine's mostly cowed and not nearly as bad as they used to be. However, North Korea has a whole lot of "catching up" to do and a lot of rights and liberties that will be quite foreign concepts to them. I am not a psychiatrist so I don't know what it entails but I imagine the vast, vast majority of N. Korea's citizens are quite severely traumatized and will have a hard time adapting to a less restrictive environment.
I used to be a drinker. I'm also an automotive enthusiast. I've probably, given all the guilty years, driven while intoxicated more often than I've driven sober. 'Tis sad but true. I've zero at-fault accidents but I have been hit while at a stop light. I had a speeding ticket back in the mid-1970s. I have no moving violations. I have two parking tickets, one was when I was not the driver but had let someone use my car - but I'm accountable for both. The second of those tickets was my fault for not taking the time to understand the several signs and parking there anyhow. I accept responsibility for that.
I've woken up still dressed and found my car out of gas and with a dead battery from leaving the lights on. I'd no clue how I got home but there were no dents or reports of accidents so I presume I did not get into any. That's probably the worst of the events. Well, that and driving across a town square. In my defense, I guess I'm not the only one to have done so and in the fog and rain it looks like a road.
It's unlikely that every instance of drunk driving is going to ruin a life. The idea that it will do so is absurd and demonstrably wrong. It is also essential to add that I was very, very lucky. I have no idea how I don't have an OUI. I've never had one. I no longer drink so I no longer drink and drive. After a number of events similar to the example listed above, I opted to quit drinking. I had to and it sucked but I'm doing fine. I've reached the point where I was comfortable having two drinks during the holidays and haven't actually had any desire to drink since but I figure I should remain alert to my past.
Oddly, I was a functional addict for years. It was after retiring that I stopped being functional. My consumption didn't increase much. My behavior changed a lot. I became a "sloppy drunk." I have no idea why it worked like that.
Either way, I'd never drink and drive again (I don't imagine). It's crazy to think that all drunk driving results in accidents. That's simply not true. You might just as well believe in Santa Clause. This is not endorsing drunk driving but is a warning against it. Chances are good, most people aren't that lucky and the risk is simply too high. The worst thing I learned was that I could close an eye and only see one road and one lane instead of seeing double. Yes, I have used that. Yes, I do regret my decision to do so.
Don't drive drunk. It's just not worth the risks and you're not just risking your own life. I've done it. It was stupid, irresponsible, and risky.
About that Ghostery...
https://www.google.com/search?...
I've long-since moved away and use uMatrix. It's completely open and, unless I'm missing something in the code (I've checked the source - I'm pretty sure), there's nothing amiss there. It's got a bit of a learning curve but it's slight and easily doable. If I can learn it, I'm sure you can. You can then get rid of anything and everything on a site. It's pure whitelist-based.
I like to describe it as being akin to an old-school software firewall except limited to just your browser. However, as you can import and export both rules and settings, it makes it very portable. It's really nice and means you don't need to use NoScript and all the rest. Basically, unless you intentionally change it then anything not explicitly allowed is blocked. Once configured, it makes a handy tool. I've given my settings and custom rules sets to people before to get them started. I have the backup/import process sort of automated and mirror copies to a couple of private places online.
It's the same guy that makes uBlock origin, I've emailed 'em a couple of times. They won't even accept donations, put it that way. You can see his GitHub page here:
https://github.com/gorhill/uMa...
You can actually do a lot of what you can do with uMatrix by just using uBlock. On top of that, he also makes another extension called HTTP Switchboard. For the most part, all three are very similar but have slightly different goals and slightly different interfaces. At this point, I've been quite happy with his work. Just to be on the safe side, I sometimes remember to grab copies of the source that way, if things go south, I've got a way to fork from before things went south or the option to keep using the older versions.
All-in-all, there are tools out there that you can place a degree of trust in. It may take some research. I've no idea why you'd take my word for it but, if you want, my word is given that I both trust the uMatrix and uBlock code and author, for the time being, and am happy with the results. The best thing is that you can not rely on my word and just check the source yourself.
I think it's important to note that I'm actually a bit skeptical. I can, and do, set up Wireshark or push things through a hardware firewall and check the logs for suspicious activity. I can say, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that I've never seen any unexpected or suspicious traffic which can be traced to either of those two applications. I have not examined or made much use of the third program, HTTP Switchboard, so I will not opine on it except to say that, at this point, I've no reason to distrust it because of having used his other applications and finding them performing as advertised and only as advertised.
Here's a link to the source for all of his projects:
https://github.com/gorhill
Again, I only offer much of an opinion on the two and, as always, I encourage others to research and find their own solutions. In the case of Ghostery, specifically, you'd probably be better served seeking an alternative. For that, and to replace NoScript as there's no reason to run both, I recommend uMatrix. It even does HTTP referrers and whatnot. You can utilize blocking via HOSTS file inclusions and import them from multiple sources. I find them both quite handy, reliable, and trustworthy.
There are many, many ways to use a VPN. This is even do-able in just the browser itself. If one's goal is to bypass geolocation restrictions, and isn't really all that security minded, then one need only look at the many services offered. Many of them are free. Some of the free ones have various restrictions, such as bandwidth restrictions. Needless to say, there are ways around those restrictions - such as multiple accounts. I guess, I'd rather call those "proxies" instead of "VPNs" as they're not really a VPN for the whole system. I think proxy is a more accurate term but nobody asked me.
I pay for a couple of them, actually. I use them for different things. I even have one at home that I run but that's for an entirely different reason and isn't actually used as often as it probably should be. There's a free one called Hola*** but I recall reading that they were selling their accumulated data, or something along those lines. If you're just using it for bypassing the restrictions then it might be an option for you to consider. There are many, many options. (My recollection of Hola was slightly off - I've included some more details at the bottom.)
The most applicable one that I pay for is SurfEasy. SurfEasy is run by the folks who own Opera. I use it to see what the web looks like for other people as well as to appear to be from other places. It's a bit of anonymity in some regards and it used to work with my cell phone but doesn't actually work with it anymore because I've changed phones. So, I just use the browser extensions. I get unlimited data and I've yet to have a problem with it. There are probably hundreds of choices. There are probably hundreds of free choices. There are many, many paid choices.
You can just use regular old proxies if you want. There are proxy lists all over the place. As you're not (I hope) planning on doing secure things through it then that's an option. If you're just browsing content that's restricted because your IP address indicates you're from the wrong area then, by all means, I'd certainly consider that a reasonable risk to take. Obviously, you don't do banking on it. I'd not even log-in with a regular Google account on YouTube for this though I am not sure how they'd go about compromising an encrypted stream and grabbing personal information from it. It's still better safe than sorry and I suppose they might be able to do something with just the associated cookies? I'm not really sure.
At any rate, there are lots of options out there. As you're just trying to view content, you can probably accept a few more risks concerning data interception. If you're using the free services then I'd make sure to use the more reputable companies if you're planning on doing anything that you want to keep truly private. Seeing as it probably doesn't matter that you wanted to bypass the restrictions for the BBC iPlayer, you're probably good to go with most any VPN out there that has an end-point in the UK.
I'm a bit low on time or I'd go dig out a few links for you. Just search for "free VPN" or "VPN" or "proxy" at your favorite search engine AND check those same search terms at your browser's extension/add-on site. You'll find a whole bunch of services that offer this at low and no cost. Depending on how much you want to pay and what you want for security, there are a bunch of choices. Tor, for example, is not the appropriate tool for this job but VPN Gate is probably just fine for your needs.
Here, I'll get you a link to the VPN Gate site. They're run by a university in Japan, free, and have lots of options - including many (most?) that work with Linux or any OS that is supported by OpenVPN. Depending on your OS, you may not even need any additional software at all. Anyhow, the link to this one:
http://vpngate.net/
Actually, a friend sent me a few links the other day...
http://www.vpnbook.com/
https://www.vpnme.me/
And SurfEasy:
> I was agreeing with you.
I kind of figured/knew that you were. I thought I'd elaborate and make it more clear if you weren't really sure what I meant. I haven't re-read my post but if there's any "you" in there, it's the generic you and not you personally. Ah well... Sorry if there was any confusion. I'll make up for it by writing a small novella for you. I'm actually lacking time again today so this cannot be all that lengthy. You don't really *have* to read it, of course, but I'll see if I can think of anything interesting or informative to add. If nothing else, at least it's something for you to read and something for me to write while I wait for a phone call.
I really enjoyed going to Somalia. I did a lot of Africa throughout 2011. In 2007, I won the life-lottery and sold my business. One of the things I'd done for work was travel - a lot. But, most of that travel was in the US. So, I wanted to see more of the world and I did. Before I went there, the State Department called tell me about how it was a dumb idea to go there.
This has happened more than once but some are more pressing than others. With Somalia, the guy on the phone actually swore at me and called me a, "Fucking idiot." That's verbatim. "If you go to Somalia, you're a fucking idiot." He told me that they'd be unable to help me if things went south. All told, I've probably spent a bit over 10 months in Africa and right around one in Somalia. I've been contacted by the State Department a few times but they've only sworn at me once. I've never had an issue while abroad but I tend to make sure that I follow the rules, official and unofficial.
I don't do tours but I often hire a guide. Why would I want to hang around with tourists? Depending on where you're going, a guide may actually be less expensive than an actual tour with a tour group. That probably sounds a bit strange but it has been true many times. I've also found that guides are more likely to help me find the more interesting things. They'll help you in ways that a travel agency or tour group simply will not, at least not the reputable ones.
One of the neat benefits of having dual citizenship (I'm a Canadian citizen by grace of heritage) is that I can just drive across the border and fly out of Canada. I also have a Canadian passport which enables me to mix and match or visit places that are (or were) technically illegal to visit. That's not really required most of the time and we're now allowed to visit Cuba. Soon we'll be able to go to Cuba as tourists. You could also just put a cut/folded piece of paper in your passport and certain countries would stamp the paper instead of the book itself. (That's actually the method I used to get to Cuba. It's the defacto 'undocumented' method if you travel to Israel and travel to other countries in the Middle East.)
I'm kind of over my travel thing, at least on that scale. I still travel but I've stayed closer to home lately. I've driven all around North and South America. I was in the process of doing that, starting last September, when I bumped into a nice younger woman in Buffalo, New York. We bumped into each other by accident and, like Velcro, she just sort of stuck. Having satisfied my wanderlust, we've decided to stay in Florida until spring when we'll go home to Maine. This has been one of the more interesting journeys. An interesting aside (to me) is that I actually took this particular trip because someone from this site suggested that I do so. I have been unable to contact them to extend my thanks or to invite them to some festivities but I was lucky enough to get a few other site participants to come celebrate the New Years festivities with us.
At any rate, I mostly like to drive anywhere that I go now. There are obvious exceptions to that rule but it has reached the point where flying in and out of the US is a bit more effort than it is worth. Charter is an excellent option if the destination is close enough and won't result in a much longer travel times. This is especially true if there a
Ahem... Everything is a branch of mathematics, even if they don't know it, won't admit it, or are doing it wrong. *nods*
I, err... I might be a little biased.
That's true too but not really the intent of my response. They have a whole lot of government - it's just not the legitimate government, not recognized, and not one by or for the people. It's not a representative government, not at all. It's not a good government, not even remotely. But they're governed pretty damned hard.
It's strange that people say it. It's like saying North Korea doesn't have a government except Somalia's full of small, regional, Kim Jong Un-esque people. They've got paperwork to go from one region to another, with applicable filing fees. They've got taxes. They've got regulations - boy have they got regulations. They've got a hierarchy, judges, enforcement, and even have fines.
They're not elected. They take their position by force and threat of force. They hold that position by disallowing access to resources and with a monopoly on violence. They are every bit a government. They're often not that large, comparatively speaking, but they're powerful and they're certainly governing. They're not governing well (by any definition that I can think of) but they're certainly governing.
It's not lawless, that I can assure you of. Oh, there are lots of laws. I don't believe they're all written down - nor do I think they've got justice systems that are anywhere near what we might call just. They probably have something akin to an appeals process - but I'm not sure that it actually works or is based on concepts of justice like you're familiar with.
No, they've got too much government. I know that sounds really odd to say but it's true. Most of the government isn't official or recognized by other States but it's surely governance. It's authoritarian, dictatorial, oppressive, and horrible for the people but they're well and truly governed. A regular citizen can not, for example, go on a shooting spree and get away with it. No, no... Not at all. Depending on who they shoot, they'll die in any one of a number of different ways. One of the more "interesting" ways to die is to have a tire filled with gasoline thrown around their neck and set alight. Yeah, it's not pretty.
It's not mob justice. Not at all. They're war lords. They're governors by every definition and they certainly seem to enjoy governing. I observed that, for the most part, people seemed resigned to accept it. I'm not really an expert or anything but many of them (they don't really all have uniforms - but some do, depending on where you are) seemed to be armed. I suppose they could try an insurrection, and I understand that many areas do change hands on a frequent basis, but the void is simply filled with new draconian assholes who war over the area and take power and take their turn abusing people. Sometimes areas will merge, break apart, etc... It's actually pretty dynamic.
I was there in 2011, I spent about a month in Somalia and the surrounding areas. It's not as dangerous as they might make out. I hired a "guide" ahead of time, carried enough cash to pay but not enough to make murdering me or kidnapping me of interest, and paid my "documentation fees." My "guide" included his "friends" for much of the time but were unable to cross the real country borders with me. It's actually a beautiful country and the vast majority of people are really impoverished and desperate but otherwise nice.
I'm not gonna say something stupid and suggest you go visit, no. I will say that it's not at all like the movies or media portray. There is an official government. I didn't see much of them. Well, if I did then I didn't notice them outside of the airport and at the border. I did see lots of government agents - but they were not agents of the official government. Even in a single urban area, there may be multiple factions. It's all a bit confusing to an outsider but it's dishonest to say they're ungoverned. Well, not dishonest for you - but dishonest for those who do who should know better. They may not be the official government. They may not be a government we legally recognize. They might be horrible governments and all that but they are, truly, governments. There's a lot of 'em, many of them even have their own flags and other assorted decorations/symbols. (I know there's a word for that stuff, it's slipped my mind.)
What gets me is this:
It's not hard to understand why Caltech and M.I.T. want everyone to be proficient in mathematics. But it's not easy to see why potential poets and philosophers face a lofty mathematics bar. Demanding algebra across the board actually skews a student body, not necessarily for the better."
Err... We educate to a certain standard because of societal needs. We, as a society, do not need (nor can we afford) more poets and philosophers. They're both noble and worthy things and great to have but you should probably have a day job. Unless, of course, you're going to be a "Philosopher of Mathematics."
Having said that, I'm sort of inclined to agree with the guy. The average person will never need Algebra II. They might need Algebra I and I think that's a fine point to stop - as mandatory goes. Obviously, Algebra II should be an option. One might even say that it should be a mandatory option, if such a thing exists.
So, what to fill that space with? How about a real Computer Science course but an entry level one? No, I do not mean programming. I do not mean learning to use an office suite. I don't even think computers should be a part of this course, at least not in the initial, basic, mandatory level(s). It should include things like safe hex, basic principles, history, vocabulary, and things like that. A high school graduate should understand the concepts of a firewall well enough to configure one, know what TCP/IP is, understand what an ACK is, know who Knuth is, know about Colossus, know about Babbage, know what binary is - and how it is used, understand protocols such as HTTP and FTP, understand the concepts of data storage and manipulation, what an OS is - and the choices between them, as well as having an understanding of the actual function of the hardware components that comprise the average desktop.
There's a lot more to add to that list, it should have a basic and advanced option, it should keep going into further levels, and it should be vendor agnostic. I'm reasonably sure that there are people here who are smarter than I and are able to refine the list of requirements. In this day and age, the concepts of things like data and computer security are essential knowledge, safe hex is important. Hell, we could go so far as to include some concepts on netiquette and privacy - again, not pressuring but to ensure that the options are known as well as the risks and rewards are known.
There's no reason for a graduate to not know how to configure a router from *any* vendor and be able to find and use the security settings. There's no reason for them to not know how their computer works. There's no reason for them to not understand the concepts of networking and the terminology associated with it. There's no reason for them to not know the typical file-types and what they're referencing. There's no reason for them to not know the history of computing and to understand the concepts of data processing, from CPU to RAM to storage. None... These are essential knowledge in today's world and we'll be better for it as a society.
Again, it shouldn't be programming nor should it be learning how to use a browser. Office shouldn't enter into it, nor should LibreOffice or OpenOffice. It should have jack squat to do with making a web page - but they should understand what (really) a page is - and how to go learn how to make one, as well as why they work and what markup (for example) means. No, they shouldn't be learning about how to use JavaScript libraries, but they should be learning what one is. They should be able to use something like uMatrix and know what the connections are, what they're doing, what risks are associated, and how to make an informed decision about what code they allow to run on their system.
I hate to use the word because of the connotations with the verbiage but they should be, in every sense, empowered. They should be empowered to utilize the freedoms associated with informed consent. They should be enabled to underst
Ah, my favorite (and only line that I remember) from Waiting for Godot...
"Hmm... It'd give us an erection."
If you want to do that then the blame lies rather squarely on the colonization and subsequent division or property perpetuated by the League of Nations. Then again, to be frank, much of the circumstances are due to that. However, the blame lies squarely with the people chopping off heads.
You can try to blame the US if you want but that's only looking at a very small piece of history and kind of silly. It's a bit like the AGW deniers selectively cherry-picking years and data-sets to say that no warming occurred for 19 years. You can do that but there are plenty of us who are well aware of the reality and, in case you're unaware, the US wasn't actually a part of the League of Nations.
So, if you won't blame the perpetrators (which is kind of strange but it's your logical fallacy so I implore you to run with it and be proud of doing so) then you might as well blame Europe, their colonization, and their placing of both rulers and boundaries where none had been and none where they had been. If you want to go back far enough then you might as well go back to the Crusades which, I guess, you can try to blame on the Muslims but that'd be silly.
No, no it's quite squarely the way it is because of European meddling. The attempt to blame the fallout on the US is amusing but is typical. The US has been cleaning up after their messes for years and years and years. But hey, it's easier to blame the US rather than accept responsibility for their actions, attempt to do something about it, and actually blame the perpetrators. Good call! It's less risky for their health too. Cowardice and unaccountability seem an awful lot like bliss.
Did you just call Somalia 'ungoverned?' Hmm... You've never been to Somalia, have you? Somalia is *over-governed* by any definition. It's not a representative government, it's not a good government, it's not government that is recognized by the UN, but government it is and there sure is a lot of it. They've even got paperwork, treaties, trade agreements and the likes. They've got judicial, executive, and legislative powers. No, Somalia's *very* governed. It's kind of strange that people don't think so.
I think I might have thought of a way in (or at least a different way to try) but I'm unsure of the technical details. At some point, there's the chip that sends a message to erase the data or to encrypt it with garbage. That has to travel over some sort of bus. Get a model of the same phone, observe the signal that is sent when that is intentionally done on the second phone, and the interrupt it. This does nothing for the time delay but I'd give even odds that such is overlooked and a simple reboot will start the cycle over again when the limit of 10 is reached.
The signal is sent, if I understand correctly, from a second chip. Interrupt it and don't let it get sent at all. This may not work, not necessarily, I can think of a few kludges in the way but they might not be there - and we've no real way of knowing as we're not Apple engineers. But... It does seem like it's worth trying. The signal may be encrypted itself (can that be found or is it turtles all the way down?), the phone may stop after 10 and a reboot may not reset that - it's hard to tell what it'll do in a failure - there might be a way to interrupt and replay directly at the bus line, and a few other things.
I'd go into more detail but I am soon off for the day. I'll be busy again today. Yay... Go me... Then, I may be off on one of two adventures. Or not... It really depends.
At any rate, someone with more skill than I can think about it further. If successful, I only ask that you not blame me. I don't have a problem with the FBI having the data, not at all. What I do have a problem with is the judge ordering the company to write software. What I do have issue with is the judicial overreach. In the end, I'm hoping the backlash from this results in an unemployed ex-judge but I suspect that's more than I will get.
Those liberties weren't going to erode themselves, it's a good thing we've got judges to help 'em out. :/