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User: Tungz10

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  1. Re:Coke machines anyone? on Dynamic Pricing Returns · · Score: 1

    I'd rather willingly pay $5 for a Coke than have it cost $1 but not be available. Supply and Demand equalize, everybody wins. Here's something that's actually questionable.

    How about when movie theatres FORBID you to bring your own food and drink inside, thus creating their own monopoly where they rip you off?

    Well, it's not as if they can enforce it.

  2. Re:Damaged tiles on What does it take to make the Space Shuttle Fly? · · Score: 1

    I'll bet it's Ajax, but they paid a lot more for it.

  3. Re:What do you do with all these? on CD-R Prices Could Triple This Summer · · Score: 1

    So DVD movies cost about $1.00 now instead of $0.50? (Including labels and envelopes). Hell, it costs more to rent one from Blockbuster!

  4. Re:What do you do with all these? on CD-R Prices Could Triple This Summer · · Score: 2

    5-10 copies of the Gig [1-2 CDs each] for use by the band members to improve future performances.

    So are you trying to tell me that the Gig can be anywhere from about 500 to 1500 Megs? What happened to standards!

  5. Re:Well, it's official. Napster is day-uhd. on What Are Microsoft And Napster Talking About? · · Score: 1

    The SEC or Department of Justice should go after the RIAA for abusing their monopoly powers, but the artists should still be allowed to sign whatever contracts they want.

  6. Re:New definition for BSOD on Space Station BSOD · · Score: 1

    You're confused with the fact that to maintain a lower orbit, you must move faster (so centrifugal force cancels out gravity). But if you slow down, there is less centrigual force, gravity which is stronger the closer you get to earth pulls you down.

  7. That's obvious. on Playing With IT, And Why It Matters · · Score: 1

    Usually this is due to a lack of a good MIS person.

    That is because if they were good, they wouldn't be MIS.

  8. Re:But then what about "compressible" files. on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    The challenger offered a random file of *ANY* size. I would have paid 100 bucks just to force him to make (and upload) a 100 terabyte file for me to "compress" (yeah right)

  9. But then what about "compressible" files. on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    So you're running them through an external compressor (perhaps it removes strings with runs or something of the sort).

    The problem is that you are reducing the size of compression resistant files very slightly, however you have no way to represent non-compression resistant files.

    So if the random number generator happened to spit out three zeroes in a row, and your compressor would try to eliminate them, you could NOT compress the file (even increasing the size) because your decompressor ONLY decompresses "uncompressable" files.

  10. Re:The problem on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    He said "file size". He did not say "disk usage"

    If I took a piece of paper and cut it into pieces, the sum of the parts is equal to the whole, and that's what the challengee did IMO. It doesn't matter if the representation just so happens to use up more space, the challenge specified that OS was not important.

  11. Re:Intriquing on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    What I'm thinking of, is wouldn't it be possible to create a minimalist compression algorithm that tended to not affect the file size, but might deviate it in either direction by about 1% ?(enough to cover the overhead of the decompressor).

    Of course, on average it would increase the size of the file, but as someone posted much earlier, all you have to do is decrease the total length by a single bit 1 out of 50 times.

  12. Re:Here is a Real Challenge on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    Out of curiosity is the offer still valid now that someone has won it? Not that I think I'll solve it anyway...but this looks like fun.

  13. Re:Another tack... on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    The trick to that one is that there are infinitely many equivalent versions of the DeCSS source. You can add/remove whitespace, change the order of a few commands, etc.

    So you take a whole bunch of mathematical numbers, and you take a whole bunch of versions of the source code, there's very likely to be a match.

    BTW, Mathematics is an extremely high level language. I'll bet that if you were to actaully write a program to efficiently generate that prime number, it would be larger than (or very close to) the size of the DeCSS source itself.

  14. Re:PAY UP MIKE on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    Grant? It was not "philanthropic" so to speak. Mike accepted the $100 he should be prepared to pay up.

  15. Mike needs to pay out on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    If he just offered $5000 to whoever could meet the challenge, then I'd say that intent was very important, he could argue that the "compression" scheme was not practical...he shouldn't have to pay.

    But he had no objection to accepting the $100. Money has already changed hands. Now that he lost the bet, he wants to just call the whole thing off and return the $100? I don't think so.

  16. Nope. on How I Completed The $5000 Compression Challenge · · Score: 1

    There are so many random files, that the length of the number of the compression resistant file would be very close (although slightly less) than the length of the file itself.

    However, there should be no way for the decompressor to generate compression resistant files in order to enumerate them. If the files are compression resistant, they would have to be stored bit-for-bit inside the source of the decompressor, enlarging it.

  17. That's kind of heavy on This Laptop Will Self-Destruct · · Score: 2

    They may want to consider attaching 15,000 handcuffs at 2 pounds apiece.

    I'm sure handcuffs don't weigh that much. 900 grams, tops.

  18. A simpler solution on This Laptop Will Self-Destruct · · Score: 1

    Just build a handle into the stupid thing AND HANDCUFF IT TO YOURSELF!

  19. Food, Sex or Cars? on How to Build a Fad Website: AmIHotOrNot · · Score: 1

    So when is someone going to make a web implementation of that SNL gameshow Food, Sex or Cars?

    Here's the transcript if you don't know what I'm talking about.

  20. Re:pros and cons on Solar Clothes · · Score: 1

    CON: It's a friggin sweater! Who wants to wear a sweater on a warm sunny day?

  21. It's not bogus. on Yahoo! To Start Selling Porn · · Score: 1

    It just proves that 43% of rapists are liars.

  22. Re:cause/effect on Yahoo! To Start Selling Porn · · Score: 1

    Hasn't it been estimated before that 5% of felons are wrongly convicted?

    Now how does THAT fit into your statistics?

  23. Our favorite porn exploitation. on DoubleClick Banner Ad Patent Busted · · Score: 1

    Did porn also pioneer SPAM before anyone else?

  24. The reason is more obvious on DoubleClick Banner Ad Patent Busted · · Score: 1

    The reason that porn dvds have more features is not that porn is more innovative than regular movies.

    Regular movies are created for a regular screen in a regular theatre. The dvd doesn't do anything that the screen can't do.

    Porn movies are often shot straight for DVD, so they can put the extra dvd stuff in there.

    With a regular movie there's no real need for multiple angles anyway. I would like to movies as the director intended. Besides, with all the stunts and camera tricks they pull, it wouldn't be practical to shoot from simoutaneous angles.

    Porn is the "real thing". no sleight of hand or anything so extra camera angles are practical.

  25. Re:A dream about printable circuits on How Printable Computers Will Work · · Score: 1

    Why not get semiconductor tatoo ink?