Comment Re:lower royalty rates negotiated (Score 1) 268
Yeah, but then you'll just have to pay the 14 cent per song fee. Unless you never plan on playing any songs...
Comment Re:I guess (Score 1) 268
the reason people on the net generally refuse to pay 0.99 for things (like porn sites) is not thrift, but fear. Usually, it's a scam. Pandora is not a scam, so I'll gladly pay.
Or maybe because it is available free by other means. Pandora is a little different because you can make the argument that you're paying for the recommendation service.
We Rent Movies, So Why Not Textbooks? 398
Hugh Pickens writes "Using Netflix as a business model, Osman Rashid and Aayush Phumbhra founded Chegg, shorthand for 'chicken and egg,' to gather books from sellers at the end of a semester and renting — or sometimes selling — them to other students at the start of a new one. Chegg began renting books in 2007, before it owned any, so when an order came in, its employees would surf the Web to find a cheap copy. They would buy the book using Rashid's American Express card and have it shipped to the student. Eventually, Chegg automated the system. 'People thought we were crazy,' Rashid said. Now, as Chegg prepares for its third academic year in the textbook rental business, the business is growing rapidly. Jim Safka, a former chief executive of Match.com and Ask.com who was recently recruited to run Chegg, said the company's revenue in 2008 was more than $10 million, and this year, Chegg surpassed that in January alone."
Comment Re:Publishers have had it too easy (Score 2, Informative) 468
The way textbooks are pushing above $100, I'm not surprised. Publishers have made a mint and have tried their best to hamper the second hard market. This is a positive change.
How is this positive? With DRM now they can charge what they want, and all you get is a PDF that expires in a year, that you can't read without lugging a laptop and charger wherever you go.
Also, has anyone actually tried to read books on a computer? It's pretty painful after a while.
Comment Re:"convert regular 2D movies to 3D" (Score 1) 135
When did eyes start processing sound as well as light?!? Or is this some sort of next-generation eye that will work with these glasses we won't need for the 3D laptops which don't yet exist?
I have synaesthesia, you insensitive clod!
Comment Re:At $31 per album (Score 2, Insightful) 291
Couldn't you just buy a bunch of your own and sell them at the concert?
Unless there's some evil clause in the contract prohibiting reselling, it seems like it would work.
What OS and Software For a Mobile Documentary Crew? 229
jag7720 writes "I am part of a new project that will be filming a documentary. The project HQ will be in the US but it will take us around the world and will last approx 18 months. I am the IT guy and will be responsible for most if not all aspects of hardware and software (not to include editing). We are probably going to use Google mail/calendar/docs and unlocked BlackBerrys for communications. Computers use will mainly be for communications and writing. I am a huge advocate of Linux and Open Source and I want to use it if possible. What would you recommend for an OS platform for a project like this and why? Linux? Mac? Win?"
Comment RTFA!!! (Score 3, Informative) 413
So, there's actually no full-on windows XP installation. It's application level support that wraps XP applications so that they work with Win7. Patching, antivirus, etc can all be handled by Windows 7.
Seriously, this sounds a lot better than XP's lame "compatibility mode" for Windows 98 and older that never seemed to work anyway.
Seriously, this sounds a lot better than XP's lame "compatibility mode" for Windows 98 and older that never seemed to work anyway.
Comment Re:Who needs to hunt down textbooks in Finland? (Score 1) 356
Duplexing laser printers are actually quite cheap now. A few of the entry-level ones even have a driver that emulates duplexing by printing the odd pages first, then prompting you to reload the stack and print the even pages.
Yeah, but it still looks like shit compared to the actual textbook. If you factor in binding it, etc, they have you by a large margin due to economies of scale.
Comment Re:Sure it will. (Score 1) 469
Guess where I have done the most networking recently? Online. Just like everyone else in the Facebook/LinkedIn/MySpace age. These are college-aged students we're talking about here. They are all into that shit. The boundaries have been blurred for 10 years, now they favor online.
Classmates, sure. But I'm not gonna Facebook friend my professors...
LinkedIn seems to be a more professionally oriented version of Facebook, so I'll have to check it out.
Comment Re:Bad time for movies (Score 1) 448
Yes, but OP can watch DVDs whenever they want on their TV.
In addition, you know, to the stuff you usually do with a TV, like channel-surfing.
In addition, you know, to the stuff you usually do with a TV, like channel-surfing.
Comment Re:Sure it will. (Score 5, Insightful) 469
It seems to me that online degrees do not garner anywhere near the same amount of credibility that is given to a traditional degree. As a current engineering undergrad that has taken some online courses in high school, I can imagine using online learning to supplement classroom education, but it certainly cannot replace it. Labs and hands on learning require physical presence.
Also, by learning online, you're missing out on a lot of networking opportunities that you'd otherwise have with professors and other students. You can get to know professors over the internet, but it can't replace face to face conversation.
Also, by learning online, you're missing out on a lot of networking opportunities that you'd otherwise have with professors and other students. You can get to know professors over the internet, but it can't replace face to face conversation.
Comment Re:203 decibels? (Score 2, Informative) 323
Wrong. 20dB is 10x the power.
Comment Re:I know this is slashdot..... but XP (Score 1) 432
...so if anyone has seen anything similar and has an idea about how to solve the problem that'd be good too!
I saw something like this on my girlfriend's Macbook Pro. I thought maybe the video board was toast, but a fresh reinstall of OSX has it working ok now.
Comment Re:It seems ironic... (Score 1) 1147
You could've saved a lot of money by upgrading the memory yourself. It's also possible to replace the hard drives in the MBP, though it requires a decent amount of work.
Of course, that's still no excuse for Apple to overcharge on upgrades.
Of course, that's still no excuse for Apple to overcharge on upgrades.
