I wanted to add an interesting addendum to my comment. As my name suggests I work for the Industrial side of the MilitaryIndustrialComplex, Going through school as a Computer Engineer I've had to identify quite a few resistor values and it was never an issue for me. It was just those damned dot tests (Ishihara?)
This is probably just an odd circumstance but my department (About 15 people) has 4 colorblind-deficient engineers. It might be a coincidence.
Or did our lack of color coordination in grade school subject us to taunting and resulted in our gravitation to technical(geeky) fields?
I am also color 'deficient'. When I found out, it was one of the most depressing things I've had to experience. I was applying to a military academy and was damned sure that it would wash me out. Thankfully I was able to get a waiver, but it was pretty upsetting (If any of you have applied to one of the military academies then you know just how many hoops you have to jump through).
What bothers me the most about this disorder, is that people really don't understand it. They hear colorblind and automatically jump to the conclusion that you not only can't tell what color their shirt is (First question they ask) But then they also question nearly every aspect of your life. Several have gone so far to suggest that I shouldn't even go near a car.
The best part is, despite it being used as a tool to disqualify you from jobs and past times, it really isn't qualified as a disability.
It comes with all the downsides (Job lockouts, social annoyances), and none of the 'perks' that normally offset the drawbacks. And the real burn is that 99% (If not 100%) a color deficient person and the people around them would never know.
I read the article, and I reread the article after your comment. I will however concede that I did not watch the video because I was at work. Are you referring to their claim of how small the ink droplets are so it can dry fast? There was also mention that it holds a lot of ink compared to normal inkjets. A large reservoir would of course be necessary, but just because it holds more ink, doesn't mean my concerns are invalid. What if I don't print for a day or two? Do I risk drying up or clogging the channel between that reservoir and the nozzles?
The ink is cheap, according to the article, but until it actually comes to market, I really can't be sure of that claim. Trust me, I would love for this technology to succeed. But like most of us here, I've not had the most favorable opinion of inkjets for efficiency. I may just be jaded from too much gouging from the current inkjet leaders.
I'm a bit curious to know how they plan to keep the efficiency of this printer up. Now, I'm not an expert (Heck, barely familiar) on the ink used in inkjets, but wouldn't there be some issue with the length of the path the ink has to take from the reservoir to the print heads?
I'm sure there are ways around it, but I just can't see why I would want to use an inkjet where I previously used a laser (bulk office printing). The fear of the cartridge cost is enough to make me very wary of this tech.
That was the first thing that came to mind for me as well. The only thing I can think of would be that for some reason this planetoid was composed of all that was left on the rim of the solar system.
I'm out of the DRM loop, so please pardon me if this is a naive question.
Is DVI hindered by DRM? Could I just build a home theater using DVI and couple that with Optical inputs for sound to create a DRM free, high-resolution theater?
Seriously... how dumb of a point is that? What they should've pointed out was explosions etc in space, even then though I think you could argue if the camera is set up in a ship, another ship explodes, you might hear a rumble as the shockwave hits the ship with the camera in it.
But what generates the shockwave? A shockwave is a compression of a fluid (typically air). It is the fluid that propagates the shockwave and in the absence of any medium to propagate it there will be no shockwave.
The only way you could 'feel' an explosion in space is if some of the material from the exploding craft, is propelled into your craft. Though I suppose if there were an extremely significant amount of photons produced, you could actually experience some forces on the 'camera' craft. (It has been a while since my E&M physics courses, someone can explain that effect to greater detail I'm sure)
Lets put objects falling through the air on a scale based on their drag.
Bowling Ball-=============-Feather
Less Drag-==========-More Drag
Of course, in a vacuum everything would accelerate at the same speed and your complaint would be valid, but as long as the object falling is more to the right of the human being on the drag scale, given enough distance, the person would catch up to it.
The person catches up to the object
BB-====Human Being=====Object from plane====-Feather
The person does not catch up to the object
BB-======Object from plane====Human being====-Feather
It's not so easy to pad. Especially for such a public penalty. No defense contractor in today's world would risk losing billions in potential contracts if such padding was discovered. Over 4.3 Million?
I don't think many workers are worried about losing their jobs for bringing up security flaws or waste. There are always anonymous methods to report things like that.
I'm a bit curious to see what they mean by 'reverse hacker'. It is one thing to observe what happens in your sphere, but if you start mucking about, especially in restricted areas/networks it IS asking for trouble.
I suppose though, this deals more with the 'whistleblower' type reports. Thankfully I've never been in any situation where activites like that would be necessary, but to be honest, I'm not sure how things get escalated to that level. I've always had a method available to report even those directly in charge of me. I think the major problem here was the grey-hat nature of his 'reverse hacking' left him with no official avenues to report what he found.
What makes you think that a new crop of engineers is the solution? Most of the engineers from the 60's have long since retired. There was a generation of engineers between the last moon landing and today.
And as far as creativity is concerned. If you tell me that I'm going to be sitting on top of a rocket and shot at the moon. I'd rather the focus be on reliability rather than creativity. Get me there, get me back.
One of the main issues, is that we really have to relearn most of what we knew in the 60s. Once we relearn that, then we can start with the creativity.
You yanks are all bleating on about how bad this is and how high these figures are. What makes you think your own government is being any less nosy about your affairs? Ignorance is bliss:)
Just because there is something worse going on elsewhere doesn't change the fact that it is wrong.
Let's say 10-20% of the people in my state are malnourished. Can I ignore that unpleasant fact simply because there are more people starving in Somalia?
It is a bad idea to ignore good advice simply because you don't like the source.
I've had so many negative experiences when dealing with governmental customers. While there is a lot of blame to be laid on the large companies, I can't fathom (or rather I don't want to) how much money has been wasted by people who really don't understand what they want, or how much it will cost to actually get what they want.
I've spent months doing work only to have it erased by the customer, worked another month, only to have them revert back to the origin. Only then do they discover that you can't just 'go back' once production has started without huge costs.
Or maybe they do understand it, but just don't care.
I recently moved to a home that did not have cable currently installed. Since I am out of range for DSL, I call the cable company to have them install a line. It takes 1 week for him to come, and they narrow it down to noon-5pm (waste of a work day)
1. The guy arrives and tells me he doesn't have enough cable to hook up a line. Grudgingly I accept. He tells me to call the office and schedule a survey.
2. I call the office, and they tell me it will take 3-8 weeks for the survey to be done. Not seeing an option I agree to wait.
3. The day of the survey.... no one shows up but they don't tell me.
4. The next day I'm waiting for the tech that will perform the work the survey crew indicated (I still don't know they didn't show up) 5pm rolls around, and I call Time Warner. They tell me the tech will be there at 7pm. Now it's 8pm and I call again. They assure me he will be there. I wait until 9pm. I call Time Warner back, and they inform me that because the Tech couldn't reach me on the phone, he didn't come up to my house. I am amused and ask them what number they called since I don't have a phone other than my cell. Turns out the Dumbass tech called the phone number that HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HOOKING UP! Raging, I call again to have them schedule another visit.
5. Another week later, the tech rolls up, informs me that he is a substitute and can't perform the work. I maintain my cool, but lay into their tech support. I am now at a total of 3 days missed work because of their incompetance. And, I haven't had a phone or internet connection for over a month.
6. I get a call back from Time Warner. They will hookup a line properly but here is the catch: It will cost me $1400, and take 6-12 months to perform.
Time Warner if you have anyone reading this, I will personally see to it that I convert every user of your service to Satellite and DSL. Never before was I treated so improperly by a company, strung along and insulted.
I would really like to know some details about this festival. Where is it held, and why on earth are there Americans bringing firearms outside of the country? It seems very circumstantial. Afterall, I could mention how the local biker conventions went off without a hitch, but that is neither here nor there.
You mention 'sneering' americans. I think you may be going to the wrong festivals if that is your experience. Accuse us of being ignorant, fat, obnoxious, loud, but don't try to paint us as some evil Snidely Whiplash characters. You just seem to be exaggerating.
I would have to say that of my complaints regarding the FF series, the complete lack of art direction seems to rank in the top 5. In my mind, I can only chalk it up to an attempt to please the changing market and retain its hold as the staple RPG.
Rounding out my top complaints.
5. Story: There is little to no story to bring the characters together, it is the off chance that some story element brings them together. Most often, this section is cut out and they either start together, or just head in the same direction.
4. Obtuse mechanics: The little side games have got to go. Rather than insert them as interesting content to discover as you play, they are often overdesigned and lacking in context. Compounding their odd mechanics is an utter lack of instruction in the mini-game's operation. By the time you puzzle out the controls enough to bypass this story roadblock, you never want to have to do it again.
3. Anemic art: Either it is androgynous, or the attempts at 'personalizing' the characters result in goofy clothing design, unexplained tattoos, or other absurdities (yes mr 8 foot sword, I'm looking at you)
2. Now face my true form: You haven't reached the end of the game until the planet is about to be destroyed by a godlike being. Or worse.
1. Whiney, brooding, dark, assholes don't make for good lead characters. Heck, if there was even character progression beyond the lame 'sexual tensions' that seem to be all the rage.
0. Whack-a-monster: In addition to the mini-game, people don't often play RPGs to get their FPS fix. Just let us click through the menues w/o resorting to street-fighter combos.
David: Now you know what we are, now you know what you are. You'll never grow old, Michael, and you'll never die. But you must feed! , the creepy doctor from Dark City, and the son of Donald Sutherland.
I think his voice will match.
If it looks like a Don Bluth film, I'm gonna cringe
Why would you say that exactly? Not that I am disagreeing with you, but "The Land Before Time" was showing at a diner I grabbed lunch at yesterday and I ended up in a conversation about animation styles. I would like to hear your take on the Don Bluth stuff and see if it meshes with my own.
It is obviously well behind the times, but there were interesting features that marked it as Don Bluth for me. I'm not quite sure if they were actually flaws, or 'features'. Anyone have any comments?
Slashdot Mirror
I wanted to add an interesting addendum to my comment. As my name suggests I work for the Industrial side of the MilitaryIndustrialComplex, Going through school as a Computer Engineer I've had to identify quite a few resistor values and it was never an issue for me. It was just those damned dot tests (Ishihara?)
This is probably just an odd circumstance but my department (About 15 people) has 4 colorblind-deficient engineers. It might be a coincidence.
Or did our lack of color coordination in grade school subject us to taunting and resulted in our gravitation to technical(geeky) fields?
I am also color 'deficient'. When I found out, it was one of the most depressing things I've had to experience. I was applying to a military academy and was damned sure that it would wash me out. Thankfully I was able to get a waiver, but it was pretty upsetting (If any of you have applied to one of the military academies then you know just how many hoops you have to jump through).
What bothers me the most about this disorder, is that people really don't understand it. They hear colorblind and automatically jump to the conclusion that you not only can't tell what color their shirt is (First question they ask) But then they also question nearly every aspect of your life. Several have gone so far to suggest that I shouldn't even go near a car.
The best part is, despite it being used as a tool to disqualify you from jobs and past times, it really isn't qualified as a disability.
It comes with all the downsides (Job lockouts, social annoyances), and none of the 'perks' that normally offset the drawbacks. And the real burn is that 99% (If not 100%) a color deficient person and the people around them would never know.
I read the article, and I reread the article after your comment. I will however concede that I did not watch the video because I was at work. Are you referring to their claim of how small the ink droplets are so it can dry fast? There was also mention that it holds a lot of ink compared to normal inkjets. A large reservoir would of course be necessary, but just because it holds more ink, doesn't mean my concerns are invalid. What if I don't print for a day or two? Do I risk drying up or clogging the channel between that reservoir and the nozzles?
The ink is cheap, according to the article, but until it actually comes to market, I really can't be sure of that claim. Trust me, I would love for this technology to succeed. But like most of us here, I've not had the most favorable opinion of inkjets for efficiency. I may just be jaded from too much gouging from the current inkjet leaders.
I'm a bit curious to know how they plan to keep the efficiency of this printer up. Now, I'm not an expert (Heck, barely familiar) on the ink used in inkjets, but wouldn't there be some issue with the length of the path the ink has to take from the reservoir to the print heads?
I'm sure there are ways around it, but I just can't see why I would want to use an inkjet where I previously used a laser (bulk office printing). The fear of the cartridge cost is enough to make me very wary of this tech.
Yet perhaps his /. post has influenced this anonymous contributer. I was considering donating to NPR, now I'll have to check out this situation.
My God. It's just like our own.
That was the first thing that came to mind for me as well. The only thing I can think of would be that for some reason this planetoid was composed of all that was left on the rim of the solar system.
How far from the Sun could we expect to keep finding planets? Has anyone come up with an 'Outer Limit' for holding an object in orbit?
Why would anyone want to claim the Randi Foundation Prize? Don't you know what happens to the guy that did(will)?
I'm out of the DRM loop, so please pardon me if this is a naive question.
Is DVI hindered by DRM? Could I just build a home theater using DVI and couple that with Optical inputs for sound to create a DRM free, high-resolution theater?
Seriously... how dumb of a point is that? What they should've pointed out was explosions etc in space, even then though I think you could argue if the camera is set up in a ship, another ship explodes, you might hear a rumble as the shockwave hits the ship with the camera in it.
But what generates the shockwave? A shockwave is a compression of a fluid (typically air). It is the fluid that propagates the shockwave and in the absence of any medium to propagate it there will be no shockwave.
The only way you could 'feel' an explosion in space is if some of the material from the exploding craft, is propelled into your craft. Though I suppose if there were an extremely significant amount of photons produced, you could actually experience some forces on the 'camera' craft. (It has been a while since my E&M physics courses, someone can explain that effect to greater detail I'm sure)
Lets put objects falling through the air on a scale based on their drag.
Bowling Ball-=============-Feather
Less Drag-==========-More Drag
Of course, in a vacuum everything would accelerate at the same speed and your complaint would be valid, but as long as the object falling is more to the right of the human being on the drag scale, given enough distance, the person would catch up to it.
The person catches up to the object
BB-====Human Being=====Object from plane====-Feather
The person does not catch up to the object
BB-======Object from plane====Human being====-Feather
Is that more clear?
It's not so easy to pad. Especially for such a public penalty. No defense contractor in today's world would risk losing billions in potential contracts if such padding was discovered. Over 4.3 Million?
I don't think many workers are worried about losing their jobs for bringing up security flaws or waste. There are always anonymous methods to report things like that.
I'm a bit curious to see what they mean by 'reverse hacker'. It is one thing to observe what happens in your sphere, but if you start mucking about, especially in restricted areas/networks it IS asking for trouble.
I suppose though, this deals more with the 'whistleblower' type reports. Thankfully I've never been in any situation where activites like that would be necessary, but to be honest, I'm not sure how things get escalated to that level. I've always had a method available to report even those directly in charge of me. I think the major problem here was the grey-hat nature of his 'reverse hacking' left him with no official avenues to report what he found.
What makes you think that a new crop of engineers is the solution? Most of the engineers from the 60's have long since retired. There was a generation of engineers between the last moon landing and today.
And as far as creativity is concerned. If you tell me that I'm going to be sitting on top of a rocket and shot at the moon. I'd rather the focus be on reliability rather than creativity. Get me there, get me back.
One of the main issues, is that we really have to relearn most of what we knew in the 60s. Once we relearn that, then we can start with the creativity.
You yanks are all bleating on about how bad this is and how high these figures are. What makes you think your own government is being any less nosy about your affairs? Ignorance is bliss :)
Just because there is something worse going on elsewhere doesn't change the fact that it is wrong.
Let's say 10-20% of the people in my state are malnourished. Can I ignore that unpleasant fact simply because there are more people starving in Somalia?
It is a bad idea to ignore good advice simply because you don't like the source.
If my login wasn't clue enough...
I've had so many negative experiences when dealing with governmental customers. While there is a lot of blame to be laid on the large companies, I can't fathom (or rather I don't want to) how much money has been wasted by people who really don't understand what they want, or how much it will cost to actually get what they want.
I've spent months doing work only to have it erased by the customer, worked another month, only to have them revert back to the origin. Only then do they discover that you can't just 'go back' once production has started without huge costs.
Or maybe they do understand it, but just don't care.
Allow me to add my cable horror story to the mix.
I recently moved to a home that did not have cable currently installed. Since I am out of range for DSL, I call the cable company to have them install a line. It takes 1 week for him to come, and they narrow it down to noon-5pm (waste of a work day) 1. The guy arrives and tells me he doesn't have enough cable to hook up a line. Grudgingly I accept. He tells me to call the office and schedule a survey.
2. I call the office, and they tell me it will take 3-8 weeks for the survey to be done. Not seeing an option I agree to wait.
3. The day of the survey.... no one shows up but they don't tell me.
4. The next day I'm waiting for the tech that will perform the work the survey crew indicated (I still don't know they didn't show up) 5pm rolls around, and I call Time Warner. They tell me the tech will be there at 7pm. Now it's 8pm and I call again. They assure me he will be there. I wait until 9pm. I call Time Warner back, and they inform me that because the Tech couldn't reach me on the phone, he didn't come up to my house. I am amused and ask them what number they called since I don't have a phone other than my cell. Turns out the Dumbass tech called the phone number that HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HOOKING UP! Raging, I call again to have them schedule another visit.
5. Another week later, the tech rolls up, informs me that he is a substitute and can't perform the work. I maintain my cool, but lay into their tech support. I am now at a total of 3 days missed work because of their incompetance. And, I haven't had a phone or internet connection for over a month.
6. I get a call back from Time Warner. They will hookup a line properly but here is the catch: It will cost me $1400, and take 6-12 months to perform.
Time Warner if you have anyone reading this, I will personally see to it that I convert every user of your service to Satellite and DSL. Never before was I treated so improperly by a company, strung along and insulted.
I would really like to know some details about this festival. Where is it held, and why on earth are there Americans bringing firearms outside of the country? It seems very circumstantial. Afterall, I could mention how the local biker conventions went off without a hitch, but that is neither here nor there.
You mention 'sneering' americans. I think you may be going to the wrong festivals if that is your experience. Accuse us of being ignorant, fat, obnoxious, loud, but don't try to paint us as some evil Snidely Whiplash characters. You just seem to be exaggerating.
First-Degree murder is no excuse for improper etiquette. It's somewhere in Emily Post, I'll go find it.
You have pretty much hit the nail on the head.
I would have to say that of my complaints regarding the FF series, the complete lack of art direction seems to rank in the top 5. In my mind, I can only chalk it up to an attempt to please the changing market and retain its hold as the staple RPG.
Rounding out my top complaints.
5. Story: There is little to no story to bring the characters together, it is the off chance that some story element brings them together. Most often, this section is cut out and they either start together, or just head in the same direction.
4. Obtuse mechanics: The little side games have got to go. Rather than insert them as interesting content to discover as you play, they are often overdesigned and lacking in context. Compounding their odd mechanics is an utter lack of instruction in the mini-game's operation. By the time you puzzle out the controls enough to bypass this story roadblock, you never want to have to do it again.
3. Anemic art: Either it is androgynous, or the attempts at 'personalizing' the characters result in goofy clothing design, unexplained tattoos, or other absurdities (yes mr 8 foot sword, I'm looking at you)
2. Now face my true form: You haven't reached the end of the game until the planet is about to be destroyed by a godlike being. Or worse.
1. Whiney, brooding, dark, assholes don't make for good lead characters. Heck, if there was even character progression beyond the lame 'sexual tensions' that seem to be all the rage.
0. Whack-a-monster: In addition to the mini-game, people don't often play RPGs to get their FPS fix. Just let us click through the menues w/o resorting to street-fighter combos.
It is a pickle to be sure.
Figure out a test and tell how to prevent my Migraines and I'll give you a million dollars.
David: Now you know what we are, now you know what you are. You'll never grow old, Michael, and you'll never die. But you must feed! , the creepy doctor from Dark City, and the son of Donald Sutherland. I think his voice will match.
If it looks like a Don Bluth film, I'm gonna cringe
Why would you say that exactly? Not that I am disagreeing with you, but "The Land Before Time" was showing at a diner I grabbed lunch at yesterday and I ended up in a conversation about animation styles. I would like to hear your take on the Don Bluth stuff and see if it meshes with my own.
It is obviously well behind the times, but there were interesting features that marked it as Don Bluth for me. I'm not quite sure if they were actually flaws, or 'features'. Anyone have any comments?