According to your line of reasoning, the release of Linux 2.4 will be no big deal and not worth reporting on Slashdot, because it will be an very small, incremental change over the last 2.3.x kernel.
Re:It just looks bad to extroverts
on
LonelyNet
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· Score: 1
I've been thinking along the same lines, and I do agree with you that a large part of my own lack of aptitude at socializing is due to a high level of inhibition. I've tried at times to speak more freely as you've suggested, but I've found that while I can keep this up for a short period of time, I can't keep this up for any significant amount of time, especially with people I'm not familiar with - it's emotionally draining and I find myself running out of energy... and I suppose this is a classic sign of introversion.
But I think there's more to the puzzle than that. I enjoy arguments like this, debating and arguing with people as I'm doing now on Slashdot, and with people in tune with me, I can keep this up for hours. But I've found over the years that most people aren't interested in this sort of conversation; the type of conversation and activities that they enjoy are different from the type of conversation and activities that I enjoy. It's a theory I have that perhaps there aren't really introverts or extroverts - it's just that there a more of some type of people than others, and for people in the majority, it's easier to find people with common interests, and it becomes a kind of vicious feedback loop where the people in the minority become increasingly withdrawn.
Re:Look for something amazing from this project
on
New Desktop for Linux
·
· Score: 2
Easy to use == less them spent working around and configuring stuff == more efficient, more time to get on with my life == Good.
-Being able to drag and drop components from different applications is easy to use. Interoperability is good. -Being able to plug and play peripherals without wasting time configuring them is easy to use. -Being able to use an application without having to learn arcane, but ultimately completely arbitrary commands is easy to use.
There're few things sicker than trying to get people to go into a field in which they genuinely have no interest in, just to satisfy economic pressures or whatever. My government back home does that - they're trying to get more women into engineering because there's a need for engineers.
You don't know what you're asking for. A warning for you, these things come in packages: a society which does what you're suggesting is a very dictatorial, authoritarian society with limited respect for individual dreams and desires - it is in such a society which I lived for most of my life, and it is not good.
our society seems to be blind to the fact that, men & women are DIFFERENT. Statistically, we *DO* think differently. The generalization about women being more for details, men being more for abstract thinking is true as a STATISTIC, not a rule.
Am I saying women can't handle CS? No.. I'm saying that statistically, it doesn't interest them.
You're not demonstrating much capability for abstract thinking yourself here.
1. Statistically there are fewer women in CS. 2. So generally, women aren't interested in CS and will never be interested in CS.
The first statement is a fact, the second statement is merely your hypothesis, your attempt at assigning a cause to an observed phenomena.
Many of them know nothing about computers--there is a new intro course that teaches the most basic of basics (things that no other respectable CS school would find necessary to teach).
And many of these people do turn out to be highly competent programmers. They are not so much unqualified as lacking in knowledge of CS, and the purpose of a university after all is to teach and expose students to new ideas and concepts.
Ha ha ha. It's just a bunch of Javanese getting killed in an earthquake. Even funnier than the earthquake in Taiwan which caused RAM prices to go up (oh my!) - at least that mattered. Hahaha.
That's easy to say. But it's just not easy to make a gradual learning curve. By putting a GUI in place people learn to expect to *always* have their GUI. Before you know it they won't use anything else. Unfortunatly easy means having GUIs, wizards that do all the work for you, etc. Basically all the lower level stuff hidden out of view. This really defeats any type of learning.
You're approaching this entirely from the viewpoint of a technical person. I don't see how it is important that most people learn how to use a command line interface - it really is of little fundamental significance, unless you're a computer person.
I started off on an XT with DOS and am glad of it. I had to use the command line. I had to understand how it worked. If I didn't start off like that I really don't think I'd have had such a easy time learning the more low-level stuff.
It may help you learn more about the low-level computer stuff, but will it help you learn more about racoons?
Time spent learning how to use the arcane syntax of the command line interface means less time to do what you're using the computer to do in the first place (e.g. surfing the web learning more about racoons); the computer should help you do what you want done as efficiently and transparently as possible, and for most people, this can be better done through a good GUI - there's no reason to force them to learn how to use CLIs.
You're right, but the response on/. to people who point out problems, or would like to see feature X in open source software often seems to be: here's the source, fix it yourself, if you don't know how to do that (99.9% of people), you're an idiot, so shut up.
But yes, this is just the Slashdot mentality speaking - real open source projects I'm familiar with are much more responsive.
The prepetrator may have had a beef agains Buy.com specifically ("I got yer restocking fee right here, buddy") and screwed around with them on the day of their IPO, and hit the others so as to make it look like random vandalism
IMO, buy.com was pretty lucky that the DOSers decided to hit yahoo before hitting them, otherwise their stock price would have been much more badly affected. ("hey, if they can take down yahoo, they can take down anyone right? So it's not really our fault; market, don't blame us").
Alright, I just installed rh 6.1 about a week ago and I haven't managed to figure out how to get my printer working. It's a HP laserjet II compatible. I've tried the printtool utility and tried to follow the directions on the redhat homepage but the computer isn't talking to the printer. Any suggestions?
That's wrong. Mergesort is O (n log n) worst case. Worst case quicksort is Omega (n^2).
Right, I forget. But the point remains that worst case or average case analysis doesn't tell you everything you need to know about the algorithm's performance - even though (as you point out) quicksort has an inferior worst case performance, it performs better 'in practice'.
If all you can do is compare two keys at a time, to tell which one is bigger, then any sorting algorithm has a worst case of O(n lg n). And, since there are already algorithms that achieve this worst case, yes, we've found the best there is.
Not really. Quicksort has the same worst case and "average" (from a analytical, random input standpoint) performance as mergesort, but yet quicksort performs better "in practice". Worst case or even average case analysis doesn't tell you everything.
I'm currently taking John Koza's (the inventor of GP) class on genetic programming at Stanford, and his company has built a 1000 node beowulf cluster to solve GP problems. Genetic programming is a powerful, generic, and highly parellizable method of solving difficult problems - GP has already managed to produce some patentable designs, and distributed.net could make potentially make a real contribution to humanity if they were to apply themselves to GP or GA.
Ah, but software companies are claiming more than copyright protection. They're claiming that through the device of the shrink wrap license, you have entered into a contract with them where you agree not to reverse engineer the software.
You're offtopic, but you're absolutely right. It's stupid to have the default display mode 'flat' and 'oldest first'. The worst thing about this is that it makes Slashdot bewildering and incomprehensible for newcomers. And oh, get rid of 'html formatted' as the default posting format.
Slashdot Mirror
I've never understand why the fact that fuel cells use explosive fuels is a problem. Isn't gasoline as or more explosive than o2 and h2?
According to your line of reasoning, the release of Linux 2.4 will be no big deal and not worth reporting on Slashdot, because it will be an very small, incremental change over the last 2.3.x kernel.
I've been thinking along the same lines, and I do agree with you that a large part of my own lack of aptitude at socializing is due to a high level of inhibition. I've tried at times to speak more freely as you've suggested, but I've found that while I can keep this up for a short period of time, I can't keep this up for any significant amount of time, especially with people I'm not familiar with - it's emotionally draining and I find myself running out of energy ... and I suppose this is a classic sign of introversion.
But I think there's more to the puzzle than that. I enjoy arguments like this, debating and arguing with people as I'm doing now on Slashdot, and with people in tune with me, I can keep this up for hours. But I've found over the years that most people aren't interested in this sort of conversation; the type of conversation and activities that they enjoy are different from the type of conversation and activities that I enjoy. It's a theory I have that perhaps there aren't really introverts or extroverts - it's just that there a more of some type of people than others, and for people in the majority, it's easier to find people with common interests, and it becomes a kind of vicious feedback loop where the people in the minority become increasingly withdrawn.
Easy to use == less them spent working around and configuring stuff == more efficient, more time to get on with my life == Good.
-Being able to drag and drop components from different applications is easy to use. Interoperability is good.
-Being able to plug and play peripherals without wasting time configuring them is easy to use.
-Being able to use an application without having to learn arcane, but ultimately completely arbitrary commands is easy to use.
There're few things sicker than trying to get people to go into a field in which they genuinely have no interest in, just to satisfy economic pressures or whatever. My government back home does that - they're trying to get more women into engineering because there's a need for engineers.
You don't know what you're asking for. A warning for you, these things come in packages: a society which does what you're suggesting is a very dictatorial, authoritarian society with limited respect for individual dreams and desires - it is in such a society which I lived for most of my life, and it is not good.
our society seems to be blind to the fact that, men & women are DIFFERENT. Statistically, we *DO* think differently. The generalization about women being more for details, men being more for abstract thinking is true as a STATISTIC, not a rule.
Am I saying women can't handle CS? No.. I'm saying that statistically, it doesn't interest them.
You're not demonstrating much capability for abstract thinking yourself here.
1. Statistically there are fewer women in CS.
2. So generally, women aren't interested in CS and will never be interested in CS.
The first statement is a fact, the second statement is merely your hypothesis, your attempt at assigning a cause to an observed phenomena.
Many of them know nothing about computers--there is a new intro course that teaches the most basic of basics (things that no other respectable CS school would find necessary to teach).
And many of these people do turn out to be highly competent programmers. They are not so much unqualified as lacking in knowledge of CS, and the purpose of a university after all is to teach and expose students to new ideas and concepts.
I guess moderators have never heard of satire.
Ha ha ha. It's just a bunch of Javanese getting killed in an earthquake. Even funnier than the earthquake in Taiwan which caused RAM prices to go up (oh my!) - at least that mattered. Hahaha.
That's easy to say. But it's just not easy to make a gradual learning curve. By putting a GUI in place people learn to expect to *always* have their GUI. Before you know it they won't use anything else. Unfortunatly easy means having GUIs, wizards that do all the work for you, etc. Basically all the lower level stuff hidden out of view. This really defeats any type of learning.
You're approaching this entirely from the viewpoint of a technical person. I don't see how it is important that most people learn how to use a command line interface - it really is of little fundamental significance, unless you're a computer person.
I started off on an XT with DOS and am glad of it. I had to use the command line. I had to understand how it worked. If I didn't start off like that I really don't think I'd have had such a easy time learning the more low-level stuff.
It may help you learn more about the low-level computer stuff, but will it help you learn more about racoons?
Time spent learning how to use the arcane syntax of the command line interface means less time to do what you're using the computer to do in the first place (e.g. surfing the web learning more about racoons); the computer should help you do what you want done as efficiently and transparently as possible, and for most people, this can be better done through a good GUI - there's no reason to force them to learn how to use CLIs.
You're right, but the response on /. to people who point out problems, or would like to see feature X in open source software often seems to be: here's the source, fix it yourself, if you don't know how to do that (99.9% of people), you're an idiot, so shut up.
But yes, this is just the Slashdot mentality speaking - real open source projects I'm familiar with are much more responsive.
What the article actually says:
-could cost as low as $149
-Up to 1 GHz CPU
Which of course says absolutely nothing at all.
The prepetrator may have had a beef agains Buy.com specifically ("I got yer restocking fee right here, buddy") and screwed around with them on the day of their IPO, and hit the others so as to make it look like random vandalism
IMO, buy.com was pretty lucky that the DOSers decided to hit yahoo before hitting them, otherwise their stock price would have been much more badly affected. ("hey, if they can take down yahoo, they can take down anyone right? So it's not really our fault; market, don't blame us").
No. The correct response is, "Here's the source, have a nice day". That's why it's called open-source, isn't it?
User: I need this feature, can you do this for me?
Commerical software company: Sorry, no, that's not on our release schedule.
Open source software developer: Take the source and fix it yourself you idiot!
The end result in both cases? Same. Both say : Screw you, the user.
Alright, I just installed rh 6.1 about a week ago and I haven't managed to figure out how to get my printer working. It's a HP laserjet II compatible. I've tried the printtool utility and tried to follow the directions on the redhat homepage but the computer isn't talking to the printer. Any suggestions?
That's wrong. Mergesort is O (n log n) worst case. Worst case quicksort is Omega (n^2).
Right, I forget. But the point remains that worst case or average case analysis doesn't tell you everything you need to know about the algorithm's performance - even though (as you point out) quicksort has an inferior worst case performance, it performs better 'in practice'.
If all you can do is compare two keys at a time, to tell which one is bigger, then any sorting algorithm has a worst case of O(n lg n). And, since there are already algorithms that achieve this worst case, yes, we've found the best there is.
Not really. Quicksort has the same worst case and "average" (from a analytical, random input standpoint) performance as mergesort, but yet quicksort performs better "in practice". Worst case or even average case analysis doesn't tell you everything.
I'm currently taking John Koza's (the inventor of GP) class on genetic programming at Stanford, and his company has built a 1000 node beowulf cluster to solve GP problems. Genetic programming is a powerful, generic, and highly parellizable method of solving difficult problems - GP has already managed to produce some patentable designs, and distributed.net could make potentially make a real contribution to humanity if they were to apply themselves to GP or GA.
Well the judge who granted the MPAA injunction doesn't think so.
This is good stuff. Never have I seen such poetry on slashdot.
Ah, but software companies are claiming more than copyright protection. They're claiming that through the device of the shrink wrap license, you have entered into a contract with them where you agree not to reverse engineer the software.
No, but it doesn't matter, because Linux won.
You're offtopic, but you're absolutely right. It's stupid to have the default display mode 'flat' and 'oldest first'. The worst thing about this is that it makes Slashdot bewildering and incomprehensible for newcomers. And oh, get rid of 'html formatted' as the default posting format.
I've tried mozilla (m13), and it is slow. It'll probably get better, but it's not really suitable for use now
I know I can't put up with it. I just installed Linux recently and most annoying thing is to have to use Netscape. I'm back with NT now.