The problem here is a question of energy STORAGE not generation. Until we have better batteries, or some other form of storage, that are comparable to hydrocarbon storage roof top solar will still not be as practical for a lot of transportation needs.

Mind you I'm not saying this is a great idea, especially if beats require "quality" arable land. But if by chance they are viable on land that is not great for other, edible, crops, then it might not be such a horrible idea. IIRC that is why everyone is/was so enthralled with switch-grass.

We need something a bit more sustainable and more carbon neutral to bridge the gap till we get a suitably dense storage medium for automotive use.

Umm yeah, right up until 4c .. then it reverses the contracting and starts to expand. By 8c the density is the same as at 0c and continues to drop (read: expand) as temp further increase.

Only if you plug them in. My Dish 722 is NOT plugged into a phone line nor into a network. So no reporting back. They tried to charge me $5 for that fact. I asked them what plugging in got me. Response: "it allows you to order PPV programs without having to use the internet." To which I said, "Oh so if i make it easier for myself to spend money with you, you'll stop making me spend $5 every month?" They repeated their initial response a few more time, I reworded mine to mirror theirs, and I now do not pay the $5 fee. In fairness they might not even charge it anymore. But for a few years they did, and I didn't pay it and they still have no idea what i watch or how i watch it.

Not to mention, even if it DID ... it would have to lower it a LOT and your score would already have to be on the margain to be bumped down into a new rate range. But alas, it is NOT true.

Yes x100. My sister was an outstanding teacher for 18 years ... with math as a specialty. Then she got divorced and realized, "Oh crap I can't afford to keep teaching without someone else supplementing my income." So she went back to serving food, was soon tapped to be a local and then regional trainer, and soon after put into the management program. Now she's making a decent living wage without the physical demands (her age made lugging trays around for 8 hours / 6 days a week unsustainable). The ultimate irony IMO is that her teach abilities, and her work ethic, are what drive her rise to management so quickly. I don't know what number $$$ would have conviced her to stay in teaching, but it was a not even a difficult calculation to make when she was looking to rebuild her life.

"don't complain about a lack blah blah blah ..."

The only reason is because I made a phone call from work. For many people that is the only reason they use landlines is because they are on their desk at work. Probably would have been a useful option for clarity. Otherwise my answer would have been over a year ago.

"In broad strokes yes" ... the point about my analogy is that OP says that it is not some parasitic relationship. She wants data to help better sell her product. That is fine, but don't sell it as some altruistic attempt to help the customer. It is a business trying to improve their targeted marketing. Call it what it is, and suddenly it doesn't sound quite so innocuous. At least to me it doesn't.

But the galling part about it, because I agree fully anonymous data is fine with me, is her attitude that it is "her data". It is NOT her data. It is the retailers and it is mine.

So if they don't "know ANYTHING about [me]" then exactly what are we talking about? What data is being used to make this widget / art better "for me".

You specify "where there are large numbers of fans" but that isn't all she is asking for. Whats more, the attitude that it is "her data" breeds the idea that she is 1) entitled to it and 2) implies that there is more than just 'fan location data' she feels entiteled to. I personally disagree and since it is MY data, and MY relationship with the retailer, not hers. In fact, I might intentionally choose a retailer based on their attitude about collecting data about me (read: they don't and when/if they do they don't share it).

I honestly do get her / your point about customer feedback and info being very useful for a business. But lately the attitude about their "right" to the data is just getting annoying and I for one am not willing to just accept it. Resistance may be futile, but I will still resist.

So by that same logic, it benefits me when Company X learns everything about me so they can create a better Widget for me to buy? Because that is exactly what you just said. The only difference is that I've removed "artist" from the equation to acknowledge there is nothing special about an "artist" in this equation.

Specifically you are correct with regards to "first sale". Generally you are not with regards to the "relationship". That is to say, I paid the rights to have music streamed to me in consideration for monies paid. What I did not pay for is a relationship. What's more, if that data IS provided then I expect some consideration in return. Pandora should not have to provide it free of charge, so they should get a discount on royalties paid, and in return I should not have to pay as much for the service be it fewer ads or lower fees.

I get her point. She is an artist trying to make a living. As an artist (her not me) I believe she genuinely wants to know who her fans are so she can engage with them more and expand her fan base. Artists want to be seen/heard/etc. That is a very personal thing for an artist. As a person trying to make a living out of it, I also understand her desire to use that very same data to help her market herself.

What she doesn't get is that it isn't her "right" to know who I am without my explicite agreement. She doesn't have to sell to me, and I don't have to buy from her. We BOTH have the right to demand terms bilaterally.

miss-edit: ... is NOT entitled to old world revenue

To be blunt, I don't give a shit. UW's Basketball program is not entiteled to revenue. It is entitled to use old world revenue streams. And it is not entitled to protection of those revenue streams through threats of force (read: the courts). They are 100% entitled to revoke media cred, that is their right and their choice. However, when the "modern world" routes around their choice in a legal and moral (yes moral) manner, they do not have the right to prevent it. Well yes in some ways they do, they can ban cell phones from the stadium, employ jammers (where legal), add a EULA to all tickets saying you agree to not tweet and then agressively enforce it via force (again, read: the courts) etc. But they will also have to live with the consequences of said actions from further circumvention all the way to loss of ticket sales.

A "hairline crack" in a correctly designed pressure vessel will do nothing but leak. Otherwise known as leak-before-break. It will only explode (from the pressure, fatigue, corrosion) if it is poorly designed. Now of course the danger from ignition of the leaked gas is another issue, but that is an issue we already have with gasoline since gasoline fumes are extremely flamable.

I'd post a link but all the good articles seem to be .pdf and I figure it is bad form to post a link to a document. Search "leak before break" if you're interested.

Also a recipie for the dog to be shot by the mono-toothed-redneck-pieces-of-shit.