I took the 4MB image and passed it through Elements using the following filters: Inverse (to make the dots show up better -- like astronomers do with star field plates), Despeckle, Despeckle.
What remains are some very "strong" dots between code group 1 and code group 2. In fact, there is the impression of a "tail" or something similar to the right. There are very few dots interspersed with code group 1 and code group 2, most of which I dismiss as artifacts left by the fax process.
This examination also shows that the symbol for E actually includes the dot, which I hadn't really noticed as much before.....I had dismissed them as just artifacts, but you can easily see that all E symbols include the dot and in the same location. Whereas the symbol for 6 does not include a dot, so we dismiss the one from row one as spurrious. The symbols for 5 and 8 may or may not include the dot and the symbol for 0 is assumed to include it because it resembles the letter i (even though the symbol for 9 shows that "tick" marks alone can represent a symbol).
Does this get us anywhere? I don't know. but I think there is a code between group 1 and the hex group that makes use of the dots. I'd like to see some attempts to match the dots from the hex with the dots in the "image" to see if something shows up.
I would suspect that most here that are interested in this puzzle don't have any thoughts of open source vs closed source while they ponder a solution. Many (like myself) are some of the smartest people in their family and likely their circle of friends...and possibly even broader communities (not the Goatse guy, obviously). They seek a solution because it would provide further evidence of their mental superiority. It's a form of validation; much like responses and mods to your slashdot posts provide a form of validation. Everyone wants to be accepted, even those of the world that have been shunned by "normal" groups (these people are usually called Nerds, Dorks, Geeks, etc.)......this is just another way for these people to acheive it.
I used PXE Boot to install Ubuntu on this laptop and now it sits next to the bed for late night surfing / remote desktop access to other machines.
Here's the link on how to PXE install Ubuntu from a Windows host: http://hugi.to/blog/archive/2006/12/23/ubuntu-pxe-install-via-windows (it's from 2006, so it references Edgy Eft, but you can pick whichever release you want). I'm sure the info can be extended to many other distro's, if Ubuntu isn't your cup of tea. But the instructions worked great.
Now, try as I might, I haven't figured out how to get Windows to install via PXE even after reading / following most of the instructions I've found online (I'd like to have certain games on this laptop). But for my purposes, Ubuntu is fine.
Sure, lock it down inside of a virtual machine.....oh you mean on one of these underpowered laptops.....
Still, the idea behind a clean image that can't be written to might be the way to go......figure out how to make a bootable Windows 98 CD....or make a disk that will restore a ghost image "quickly".
I think the problem is that they were looking for specific data. They still have to look at every row....the striping just makes it easier to identify the other columns once you find the data.
Find the rows in the table where the tax rate is greater than 9%. Now list the names of the states with a tax rate greater than 9%. The striping really only helps in the second part of that process.
Exactly. I save my useless comments for places like Slashdot.:D
I have written "lengthy" comments about how much of a hack something was or references to better ways of doing something, but none of them ever needed to reference Satan (maybe sacraficing live chickens, but never pacts with the devil).
In a grid tie system, your panels / turbine are connected to your house in parallel with the grid. You wind up with two inputs to your house. If you take one out, the other continues to produce power......and the power can just as easily flow from your panels to Joe Electrician as it can to your TV. The inverter senses that one power source has been lost and throws a switch to isolate it from the system. This also works the other way.....when your panels aren't producing power, I'm pretty sure you don't want the grid sending any power to them....which would turn into heat (I assume)-- and thus reduce the usable life (I assume).
Covers all sorts of programs -- from rebates on more efficient A/C or solar installations to low interest loans for energy improvements.....and a lot in between.
If you aren't tied to the grid, I would think it would be easier to plan for and manage the impulse load than it would be to "waste" the base load.
"Honey, if you want me to finish the deck, I need you to stop watching soaps for about 30 minutes......" as opposed to "Honey, would you rather me keep the drill charged for all of your projects or run your A/C?"
Not that those are true power offsets, but the idea behind the statements are the same. If I'm running my own grid, I would think that I would want to eliminate base load so that I can 1) size my system smaller (cheaper) and 2) have more capacity diverted to storage / be available for usage spikes.
That's pretty much the message they give now for people: reduce your base load in order to save the environment.
Actually, isn't power tools a good case for NOT cutting the cord? Why charge up a device that you use "periodically" when you could just have one that is "always ready" and never "runs out of juice"? I have a corded drill that is more powerful than most cordless drills and doesn't have a constant draw while the battery is being charged. Sure you have to deal with load spikes, but you reduce the non-spiking load to zero.
Maybe someone (other than me) will run the numbers on charging a 12v cordless drill vs using a simple corded drill. Include initial full charge and assume a 30 minute session with the drill (which isn't 30 minutes of continuously running the drill).
Most processing involving multiple rows will be more performant on the database (assuming it's writting in set-based logic instead of cursors, but even then, saving on return trips from the network may even make that a better performer).
Consider this pseudo-code at the app layer.
Select ROWSET from DB Foreach row, perform some update Update ROWSET in DB
now consider that call as a proc call that does a single, paramterized UPDATE.
And most nightly batches should live on the DB for that same reason.
And in order to support all of that logic, there are some basic business rules that should be defined at the database level.
Also, definitions for computed values should be considered for definition as database functions. While not required, it makes reporting simpler (define once, reuse many -- at both the app and reporting layers).
Since the DB is the common layer, code that will be used from multiple places (app layer 1, app layer 2, web service A, web service B) you might consider pushing certain code to the db.
It's always on a per case basis, but there are valid reasons for business logic to live in the db. But I'm not DB bigot that believes that all code needs to live in the DB.....and I'm not an App bigot that thinks all code needs to live in the App. I think code needs to go in the right place for the situation and priorities.
My comment was more about Access providing the fundamentals of a database engine with which to teach, not that the content of the course was more or less adequate for teaching. That's usually just as much a factor of the curriculum as it is the individual professor.
I really think he is looking for Free (as in beer -- at least free for the library to use) programs regardless of license and source status. Many people use the term OSS incorrectly when they mean free....it comes from those people that lumped them together as F/OSS. I personally look for free first when I look for software to accomplish a task. If it's open source, that's great, but I rarely plan on making mods myself (but am capable if necessary).
Was your degree CS or MIS? My degree is CS and for me database classes were electives (which I didn't take).....in fact, I've learned through the school of "trial by fire"....a friend of mine has an MIS degree and he did get exposed to databases as a required class (might have just been Access, but the fundamentals are there).
I think the main reason that most CS courses don't require it is that CS is a very broad discipline that could be used for embedded programming, OS programming, game programming, etc. MIS is focused on business solutions which are very database heavy. So the broad case doesn't require a class that might not be used in the focus you choose and the narrow case requires it because it is fundamental to your focus.
ALTER SESSION only changes the value for that one session. To affect multiple users, you need ALTER SYSTEM privs which (should be) very tightly controlled. Each connection would need to reset the NLS parms each time they connect for this to matter. So, really, it's only a good way to try to get some of your own code executed.
And while the doc doesn't say it, you could put an anonymous block in there, so you don't need privs to create anything....you just rely on the privs of the connection to execute code.
Slashdot Mirror
I took the 4MB image and passed it through Elements using the following filters: Inverse (to make the dots show up better -- like astronomers do with star field plates), Despeckle, Despeckle.
What remains are some very "strong" dots between code group 1 and code group 2. In fact, there is the impression of a "tail" or something similar to the right. There are very few dots interspersed with code group 1 and code group 2, most of which I dismiss as artifacts left by the fax process.
This examination also shows that the symbol for E actually includes the dot, which I hadn't really noticed as much before.....I had dismissed them as just artifacts, but you can easily see that all E symbols include the dot and in the same location. Whereas the symbol for 6 does not include a dot, so we dismiss the one from row one as spurrious. The symbols for 5 and 8 may or may not include the dot and the symbol for 0 is assumed to include it because it resembles the letter i (even though the symbol for 9 shows that "tick" marks alone can represent a symbol).
Does this get us anywhere? I don't know. but I think there is a code between group 1 and the hex group that makes use of the dots. I'd like to see some attempts to match the dots from the hex with the dots in the "image" to see if something shows up.
Layne
Maybe the double S is to show the hidden mapping for the S symbol.....as E.
Does EFC mean anything?
I would suspect that most here that are interested in this puzzle don't have any thoughts of open source vs closed source while they ponder a solution. Many (like myself) are some of the smartest people in their family and likely their circle of friends...and possibly even broader communities (not the Goatse guy, obviously). They seek a solution because it would provide further evidence of their mental superiority. It's a form of validation; much like responses and mods to your slashdot posts provide a form of validation. Everyone wants to be accepted, even those of the world that have been shunned by "normal" groups (these people are usually called Nerds, Dorks, Geeks, etc.)......this is just another way for these people to acheive it.
Layne
Ebay has a couple for around $200 that includes pretty much everything you'd really need.
Layne
I have a Dell Latitude D400 without an optical drive (got for free, so hard to complain). http://www.dell.com/downloads/us/products/latit/d400_spec.pdf (PDF link)
I used PXE Boot to install Ubuntu on this laptop and now it sits next to the bed for late night surfing / remote desktop access to other machines.
Here's the link on how to PXE install Ubuntu from a Windows host: http://hugi.to/blog/archive/2006/12/23/ubuntu-pxe-install-via-windows (it's from 2006, so it references Edgy Eft, but you can pick whichever release you want). I'm sure the info can be extended to many other distro's, if Ubuntu isn't your cup of tea. But the instructions worked great.
Now, try as I might, I haven't figured out how to get Windows to install via PXE even after reading / following most of the instructions I've found online (I'd like to have certain games on this laptop). But for my purposes, Ubuntu is fine.
Layne
Sure, lock it down inside of a virtual machine.....oh you mean on one of these underpowered laptops.....
Still, the idea behind a clean image that can't be written to might be the way to go......figure out how to make a bootable Windows 98 CD....or make a disk that will restore a ghost image "quickly".
Layne
/me passes his working RLL controller over to grampa.
Layne
In this case, it's ISOlation.....the cat was recovering (possibly from being "fixed").
Layne
Totally unrelated, but right after reading this post, I got an e-mail from the animal shelter I volunteer at....here are the cats adopted yesterday:
ID Kennel # Outcome Type Animal Name Weight
CAT A496283 AB - 05 ADOPTION RABBIT 6.5
CAT A503957 AB - 27 ADOPTION BEAUREGARD 8.75
CAT A505787 AB - 28 ADOPTION JIMMY SMITS 2.5
CAT A507051 ISO 1 - 15 ADOPTION OREO 6.25
CAT A507677 AB - 30 ADOPTION COCONUT 9
CAT A507806 CONDO ADOPTION BANDIT 2.25
CAT A507808 CONDO ADOPTION FELICITY 2.00
CAT A507807 CONDO ADOPTION FIONA 2.25
Layne
I think the problem is that they were looking for specific data. They still have to look at every row....the striping just makes it easier to identify the other columns once you find the data.
Find the rows in the table where the tax rate is greater than 9%. Now list the names of the states with a tax rate greater than 9%. The striping really only helps in the second part of that process.
Layne
Exactly. I save my useless comments for places like Slashdot. :D
I have written "lengthy" comments about how much of a hack something was or references to better ways of doing something, but none of them ever needed to reference Satan (maybe sacraficing live chickens, but never pacts with the devil).
Layne
In a grid tie system, your panels / turbine are connected to your house in parallel with the grid. You wind up with two inputs to your house. If you take one out, the other continues to produce power......and the power can just as easily flow from your panels to Joe Electrician as it can to your TV. The inverter senses that one power source has been lost and throws a switch to isolate it from the system. This also works the other way.....when your panels aren't producing power, I'm pretty sure you don't want the grid sending any power to them....which would turn into heat (I assume)-- and thus reduce the usable life (I assume).
Layne
I posted this above, but figured you'd see it if I replied to you here: http://www.dsireusa.org/
Layne
And then, there is this: http://www.dsireusa.org/
Covers all sorts of programs -- from rebates on more efficient A/C or solar installations to low interest loans for energy improvements.....and a lot in between.
Layne
If you aren't tied to the grid, I would think it would be easier to plan for and manage the impulse load than it would be to "waste" the base load.
"Honey, if you want me to finish the deck, I need you to stop watching soaps for about 30 minutes......" as opposed to "Honey, would you rather me keep the drill charged for all of your projects or run your A/C?"
Not that those are true power offsets, but the idea behind the statements are the same. If I'm running my own grid, I would think that I would want to eliminate base load so that I can 1) size my system smaller (cheaper) and 2) have more capacity diverted to storage / be available for usage spikes.
That's pretty much the message they give now for people: reduce your base load in order to save the environment.
Layne
Actually, isn't power tools a good case for NOT cutting the cord? Why charge up a device that you use "periodically" when you could just have one that is "always ready" and never "runs out of juice"? I have a corded drill that is more powerful than most cordless drills and doesn't have a constant draw while the battery is being charged. Sure you have to deal with load spikes, but you reduce the non-spiking load to zero.
Maybe someone (other than me) will run the numbers on charging a 12v cordless drill vs using a simple corded drill. Include initial full charge and assume a 30 minute session with the drill (which isn't 30 minutes of continuously running the drill).
Layne
And this is why you put gaps in your line numbering......
Said another way: only elite BASIC programmers numbered their lines by one's......at least until the RENUMBER command (some implementations).
Layne
And when you had to type in the ML listings from RUN magazine, if you screwed up, just start over.......
Layne
Slashdot's router still has nothing to do with us killing the servers that host the articles......you could have just queued up some submissions.
Layne
Most processing involving multiple rows will be more performant on the database (assuming it's writting in set-based logic instead of cursors, but even then, saving on return trips from the network may even make that a better performer).
Consider this pseudo-code at the app layer.
Select ROWSET from DB
Foreach row, perform some update
Update ROWSET in DB
now consider that call as a proc call that does a single, paramterized UPDATE.
And most nightly batches should live on the DB for that same reason.
And in order to support all of that logic, there are some basic business rules that should be defined at the database level.
Also, definitions for computed values should be considered for definition as database functions. While not required, it makes reporting simpler (define once, reuse many -- at both the app and reporting layers).
Since the DB is the common layer, code that will be used from multiple places (app layer 1, app layer 2, web service A, web service B) you might consider pushing certain code to the db.
It's always on a per case basis, but there are valid reasons for business logic to live in the db. But I'm not DB bigot that believes that all code needs to live in the DB.....and I'm not an App bigot that thinks all code needs to live in the App. I think code needs to go in the right place for the situation and priorities.
Layne
My comment was more about Access providing the fundamentals of a database engine with which to teach, not that the content of the course was more or less adequate for teaching. That's usually just as much a factor of the curriculum as it is the individual professor.
Layne
I really think he is looking for Free (as in beer -- at least free for the library to use) programs regardless of license and source status. Many people use the term OSS incorrectly when they mean free....it comes from those people that lumped them together as F/OSS. I personally look for free first when I look for software to accomplish a task. If it's open source, that's great, but I rarely plan on making mods myself (but am capable if necessary).
Layne
Ethics debate.....this is a public library, not a for-profit company. They aren't selling anything. So, are they commercial?
Layne
Was your degree CS or MIS? My degree is CS and for me database classes were electives (which I didn't take).....in fact, I've learned through the school of "trial by fire"....a friend of mine has an MIS degree and he did get exposed to databases as a required class (might have just been Access, but the fundamentals are there).
I think the main reason that most CS courses don't require it is that CS is a very broad discipline that could be used for embedded programming, OS programming, game programming, etc. MIS is focused on business solutions which are very database heavy. So the broad case doesn't require a class that might not be used in the focus you choose and the narrow case requires it because it is fundamental to your focus.
Layne
ALTER SESSION only changes the value for that one session. To affect multiple users, you need ALTER SYSTEM privs which (should be) very tightly controlled. Each connection would need to reset the NLS parms each time they connect for this to matter. So, really, it's only a good way to try to get some of your own code executed.
And while the doc doesn't say it, you could put an anonymous block in there, so you don't need privs to create anything....you just rely on the privs of the connection to execute code.
Layne