This is a pointless debate. The question of if the other person should be using a computer in this particular situation is neither here nor there. In reality, you're going to be faced with this exact problem many times in the workplace (with laptops - often for legitimate reasons - being brought into meetings, seminars and even one-to-one conferences.) It's not going to be in your power to stop this happening.

Learning to cope with this and being productive is therefore an important life skill. Yes, it might suck. Suck a lot. But many things you have to put up with in life do...

Technically it just "borrowing without asking first" (at least under English and Welsh law.) You'd have to show reasonable intent to permanently deprive someone for it to be theft.

I'm curious. If they put up a sign that says they have the right to search your bag, do they actually have that right?

Why would you need to lend someone the first chapter? That's the "sample" chapter, that's normally free anyway....

Business-wise I would agree Apple is pretty innovative, but from a geeky technology standpoint they're kind of meh.

I think some of the technologies from apple - for example Grand Central Dispatch, chunks of WebKit, etc, are very cool bits of tech.

Is this the "wish for more wishes" option? With my one free trip on the Time Machine I shall go back in time and give myself the plans to build my own time machine?

Why not? Just rotate the Feynman diagram by pi

With the butterfly, duh!

you bribe the wrong guy and you get portion of led into your head.

How cyberpunk.

It's always more fun to do this with real people (sort by height, for example). The London Perl Mongers tried this as a drinking game: You get enough people down the pub (or, in one this case, outside a bar in portugal during conference season) and apply booze. Then bubble sort them as a group (lots of shouting Stay! Switch!.) Add drinking penalties when people screw up the algorithm. You get the idea.

There's a video on the internet somewhere. Free pint to the first person to find it.

I saw that excellent security documentary with Steve Martin about the dangers of being listed in the phone book.

That wasn't Steve Martin, that was Arnold Schwarzenegger. If I remember correctly it wasn't just a pain for Linda Hamilton, but her roommate and date had an even worse time of too.

Slashdotters constantly seem to think that a $80K developer in the US is much better the $10K developer in India

I think most slashdotters actually think that that a $80K local developer is much better the $10K developer in place with different time zone outside of the normal management chain and support system.

I personally suspect (though I admit that I have no evidence to back it up) that projects originating in India oprobably are equally good as those originating in the US.

The english just like to complain about the weather. Well known fact.

(For the record, I'm english)

In the UK a parking ticket is not "in trouble with the law". It's not the police that issued it, just the local council. Sure, the police get involved if you don't pay it, but it's not a criminal offence to park in the wrong place. This is why it's called a "Penalty Fine Notice"

I have no idea what Jennifer Aniston looks like!

She's got a certain flair.