I'm the complete opposite. My PC has been relegated to storing and serving media and other services to the TV, tablet and smartphone. Tablet and phone are for internet access and the odd phone call and sms. I switched to buying my hardware outright and use cheap rolling month contract data-focussed mobile plans. Started with the Nexus 4, will never sign up to a 24 month contract ever again. The only task I haven't been able to move away from the PC yet is programming.
Mac + WINE? Ubuntu + WINE? I'm guessing that this desktop software would be pretty bog standard Winforms stuff? What about Windows 7 Pro with the built in XP VM? Sometimes even that XP Compatibility screen works.
What are the better alternatives? Honest question, I love VS (inc C# and Linq) but I hate Windows. It would be great to have something as good as VS for Ubuntu.
I would say by 2012 myself. Not a single person I know uses a desktop machine at home any more. They already use consoles for gaming, set top boxes for media consumption and phones/pads for internet access. The only desktop I use is at work for windows development. At home I have a desktop which is now in charge of recording TV, serving it back up. All the storage I moved onto one of the shockingly good NAS boxes (which are actually full blown servers in all but name). I think Linux/UNIX won the desktop by making it irrelevant, because it's what every person runs on their phone, pad, NAS, router, TV and (soon to be) console.
All week we've been marvelling at the machine gun advances in practical materials science. All nanotechnology scale stuff, all stuff that sounds too good to be true but they have commercial prototypes available, not just theory and lab experiments. I'm starting now to just expect someone to crack things like room temperature superconductors any day now. Then(apparently) we'll be able to ditch our classic electronics that mostly turn electricity into heat.;)
We're actually living in an era which will have BBC documentary seasons made about it in 100 years time.
We're supposed to have all that super 3G stuff here in the UK but I've yet to see it. Although admittedly my N4, at 2Mbps up and down is at least twice as fast as my old HTC Desire. A friend with a 3G stick up in her loft gets 5Mbps down with regular 7Mbps 3G stick.
OK, comparing lossy compression algorithms (especially duffers like mp3) at crappy bit rates to eye wateringly expensive playback mechanisms is obviously biased.
So. Thought experiment.
(Assuming near-perfect recording equipment, including the digitizers and supremely competent engineering) (Assuming well set up very high quality play back equipment) (Assuming you meant 48kHz 16bit PCM)
Do you think there will be any distinguishable difference between fresh vinyl and 48kHz 16bit audio? What about the super high resolutions? (24bit and up to 96kHz, the mastering resolutions) What about 320kbps CBR mp3?
(I'm not trolling, I really am attempting a proper discussion, I know, it's weird, this is slashdot)
Because at this point the argument that FLAC exists and space is cheap comes into play. Why lossy compress anything at all anymore? Except portability?
I was taught 16bit resolution is above the resolution of the human ear. Is this still considered true? Many people seem to this it's not and that's why we have 24bit now but I thought 24bit was for mastering, mitigating rounding errors for multi track recoding when you mix it down to the final product.
Why can't people just say Vinyl Is Fun and be done with it? I collect 16mm film but I do it because Projectors R Fun. Not because it looks better than a blu-ray. (35mm would be a different story, but I would have to sell too many kidneys to afford it)
People should just invent 128bit ADC/DACs and be done with it. More numbers than atoms in the universe? I think that'll do it!;)
"We originally intended to include RSS support by default as a native feature of Google Chrome (and we still might in the future) but we decided instead to implement this as an extension. This decision was made based on our philosophy of trying to limit ourselves to adding only the UI features that a vast majority of users need and allow each user to customize the browsers to fit their needs with Extensions. Given that most people are not familiar with and don't consume RSS feeds, we thought that RSS support would be a better fit as an extension, at least to begin with."
So there you go folks, Google have decided RSS is dead. Kind of fair point, I guarantee the only people I know who know what an RSS feed is are the developers sitting in this room with me. Not a single member-of-the-80%-public I ask will know what an RSS feed it or how to subscribe to one. Then know how to Like thinks on Facebook. That's it.
Of course if it had had decent support hard wired in to Android/Chrome then people would be using them, albeit without technical knowledge of what they were doing I think.
OK, I don't get it. Why would you retire something that has a purpose which has not been usurped by anything else? They're retiring it so one could assume that there IS something that is better, or at least more popular. What, in Google's services or somewhere else, has replaced or improved upon the ability to cloud-store a selection of RSS news feeds so I don't have to have them stored purely as bookmarks on a local machine?
Chrome perhaps? That's got cloud-stored bookmarks, maybe it's getting/got RSS support like Firefox?
Blocking/Jamming GPS is probably quite simple. The spec is well documented and I guess all you have to do is make lots of noise on the same frequency? And when I say lots, getting the signal to noise ration high enough to corrupt something that is so faint anyway is probably quite simple. Spoofing however, I suspect is not. I would guess that the signal is very heavily signed.
If I can't buy 2nd hand on the xbox I may seriously consider stumping up for a PS4 Dead Space 1 - Awesome Dead Space 2 - Urgh, really? Dead Space 3 - Gears Of War with buckets on their heads.
My nexus 4 has wireless display (miracast). If I can use a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse combination that's pretty close to being a desktop. Of course Ubuntu will have productivity software out of the box. Libreoffice and such. And weren't they going to run side by side anyway? And would my phone be a Steam Box with Ubuntu on it? Because that would be epic. Download half life 2, miracast, kbd and mouse.
Also form factor. 5.25" drives is an interesting idea, but cases are eschewing 5.25" bays. But they do have stacks of internal 3.5" bays, maybe they will design double height 3.5" drives?
Yes, I know. I would be fascinated to know the real efficiency percentage of the drax power station. Shame they didn't state it in the documentary, they talked about getting and extra 1% saving 1000s of tons on coal, but no overall figure. I bet it's much better that the original 1% of the industrial revolution steam era. It just made me laugh watching europes largest most advanced coal power station shoveling coal into boilers. Fundamentally they are all the same unsustainable power source though. We're just making it last longer!
Slashdot Mirror
I take it you don't have access to BT's FTTC?
Yeah sure, just explain your reasoning why and I'll leave you to your rock-banging.
I'm the complete opposite. My PC has been relegated to storing and serving media and other services to the TV, tablet and smartphone.
Tablet and phone are for internet access and the odd phone call and sms.
I switched to buying my hardware outright and use cheap rolling month contract data-focussed mobile plans.
Started with the Nexus 4, will never sign up to a 24 month contract ever again.
The only task I haven't been able to move away from the PC yet is programming.
Sadly, we can rarely afford their silence... .
Mac + WINE?
Ubuntu + WINE?
I'm guessing that this desktop software would be pretty bog standard Winforms stuff?
What about Windows 7 Pro with the built in XP VM?
Sometimes even that XP Compatibility screen works.
What are the better alternatives?
Honest question, I love VS (inc C# and Linq) but I hate Windows.
It would be great to have something as good as VS for Ubuntu.
I would say by 2012 myself.
Not a single person I know uses a desktop machine at home any more.
They already use consoles for gaming, set top boxes for media consumption and phones/pads for internet access.
The only desktop I use is at work for windows development.
At home I have a desktop which is now in charge of recording TV, serving it back up.
All the storage I moved onto one of the shockingly good NAS boxes (which are actually full blown servers in all but name).
I think Linux/UNIX won the desktop by making it irrelevant, because it's what every person runs on their phone, pad, NAS, router, TV and (soon to be) console.
All week we've been marvelling at the machine gun advances in practical materials science. All nanotechnology scale stuff, all stuff that sounds too good to be true but they have commercial prototypes available, not just theory and lab experiments. I'm starting now to just expect someone to crack things like room temperature superconductors any day now. Then(apparently) we'll be able to ditch our classic electronics that mostly turn electricity into heat. ;)
We're actually living in an era which will have BBC documentary seasons made about it in 100 years time.
Ain't it cool? :-)
So we need VDR as well then? Variable dynamic range?
And I don't have shit earbuds.... :'(
It sounds like we need something better than dumb PCM.
Why hasn't anybody invented storing audio as vectors yet?
We're supposed to have all that super 3G stuff here in the UK but I've yet to see it.
Although admittedly my N4, at 2Mbps up and down is at least twice as fast as my old HTC Desire.
A friend with a 3G stick up in her loft gets 5Mbps down with regular 7Mbps 3G stick.
OK, comparing lossy compression algorithms (especially duffers like mp3) at crappy bit rates to eye wateringly expensive playback mechanisms is obviously biased.
So. Thought experiment.
(Assuming near-perfect recording equipment, including the digitizers and supremely competent engineering)
(Assuming well set up very high quality play back equipment)
(Assuming you meant 48kHz 16bit PCM)
Do you think there will be any distinguishable difference between fresh vinyl and 48kHz 16bit audio?
What about the super high resolutions? (24bit and up to 96kHz, the mastering resolutions)
What about 320kbps CBR mp3?
(I'm not trolling, I really am attempting a proper discussion, I know, it's weird, this is slashdot)
Because at this point the argument that FLAC exists and space is cheap comes into play.
Why lossy compress anything at all anymore? Except portability?
I was taught 16bit resolution is above the resolution of the human ear.
Is this still considered true?
Many people seem to this it's not and that's why we have 24bit now but I thought 24bit was for mastering, mitigating rounding errors for multi track recoding when you mix it down to the final product.
Why can't people just say Vinyl Is Fun and be done with it?
I collect 16mm film but I do it because Projectors R Fun. Not because it looks better than a blu-ray.
(35mm would be a different story, but I would have to sell too many kidneys to afford it)
People should just invent 128bit ADC/DACs and be done with it. ;)
More numbers than atoms in the universe? I think that'll do it!
"We originally intended to include RSS support by default as a native feature of Google Chrome (and we still might in the future) but we decided instead to implement this as an extension. This decision was made based on our philosophy of trying to limit ourselves to adding only the UI features that a vast majority of users need and allow each user to customize the browsers to fit their needs with Extensions. Given that most people are not familiar with and don't consume RSS feeds, we thought that RSS support would be a better fit as an extension, at least to begin with."
http://www.kunocreative.com/blog/bid/71409/Google-Chrome-s-RSS-Support-Problem-and-How-To-Fix-It-sort-of
So there you go folks, Google have decided RSS is dead.
Kind of fair point, I guarantee the only people I know who know what an RSS feed is are the developers sitting in this room with me.
Not a single member-of-the-80%-public I ask will know what an RSS feed it or how to subscribe to one.
Then know how to Like thinks on Facebook.
That's it.
Of course if it had had decent support hard wired in to Android/Chrome then people would be using them, albeit without technical knowledge of what they were doing I think.
OK, I don't get it.
Why would you retire something that has a purpose which has not been usurped by anything else?
They're retiring it so one could assume that there IS something that is better, or at least more popular.
What, in Google's services or somewhere else, has replaced or improved upon the ability to cloud-store a selection of RSS news feeds so I don't have to have them stored purely as bookmarks on a local machine?
Chrome perhaps? That's got cloud-stored bookmarks, maybe it's getting/got RSS support like Firefox?
"By contrast, the larger frontal brain regions of Homo sapiens led to the fashioning of warmer clothes and the development of larger social networks."
Onesies and Facebook allowed us to beat Neanderthals!
Did they only have sweaters and myspace then?
Pong wasn't written, that was back in the day everything was practically soldered
So it probably really was done on a breadboard.
Blocking/Jamming GPS is probably quite simple. The spec is well documented and I guess all you have to do is make lots of noise on the same frequency?
And when I say lots, getting the signal to noise ration high enough to corrupt something that is so faint anyway is probably quite simple.
Spoofing however, I suspect is not. I would guess that the signal is very heavily signed.
*switches to yum*
If I can't buy 2nd hand on the xbox I may seriously consider stumping up for a PS4
Dead Space 1 - Awesome
Dead Space 2 - Urgh, really?
Dead Space 3 - Gears Of War with buckets on their heads.
But I'll still buy it because sucker.
Except - SECOND HAND!!! WOO!
My nexus 4 has wireless display (miracast). If I can use a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse combination that's pretty close to being a desktop. Of course Ubuntu will have productivity software out of the box. Libreoffice and such. And weren't they going to run side by side anyway? And would my phone be a Steam Box with Ubuntu on it? Because that would be epic. Download half life 2, miracast, kbd and mouse.
http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/
Choose your os, or none at all.
Even customise your laptop.
I did not.
I'm going home now.
Yes it is.
Right up until the point it isn't any more.
That's kind of the point of ground breaking science isn't it?
Also form factor. 5.25" drives is an interesting idea, but cases are eschewing 5.25" bays.
But they do have stacks of internal 3.5" bays, maybe they will design double height 3.5" drives?
Not digital linear pudding then... :(
Yes, I know. I would be fascinated to know the real efficiency percentage of the drax power station.
Shame they didn't state it in the documentary, they talked about getting and extra 1% saving 1000s of tons on coal, but no overall figure.
I bet it's much better that the original 1% of the industrial revolution steam era.
It just made me laugh watching europes largest most advanced coal power station shoveling coal into boilers.
Fundamentally they are all the same unsustainable power source though.
We're just making it last longer!