easiest would probably be modifying an existing virus to be more virulent and have longer incubation periods. a blood borne disease turned into an airborne disease would be far more effective, particularly with HIVs long incubation periods. Africa is a good example with most over 30 having AIDS and decimating the working class.
 

1. lots of game servers with 3d cards on all desktops
2. lots of reading material and dimmable multizone lighting with color temp controls in room and automatic color temp selection from warm to cold white following day/night cycles.
3. tv + blu ray players
4. large wallscreen with cool maps for impressing clients
5. 2 machines on each desk - one for entertainment, the other for continuous display of net stats and ssh
6. central server with helpdesk ticket display and network map with the ability to switch it to the wallscreen
7. multiple zone climate control with controls on the wall easily accessible
8. fridge with healthy snacks + microwave
9. water dispenser
10. cleaning staff for once/day cleaning.

right. it should be something between an exokernel and a microkernel. abstract out device drivers but keep core stuff in the microkernel like cpu drivers and memory access. something where people can own the device but not screw around with the machine itself. the usb userspace driver model is a great example. now if we can only abstract out everything without ending up with HURD like idiots running the show.

linux should become more modular ... dare say like HURD where individual contributors can own their own slice completely and implement it the way they want as plugin modules rather than monolithic blocks. yes i know about the whole kernel wars but linux grown up. its time for it to be a microkernel and attract developers for long term viability. a monolithic block of code was fine to bootstrap it but not anymore. we have multicore processors with fat pipes ... things microkernels were built for. ipc overhead is negligible if your ipc is your L3 cache.

The gilbert problem is the reading from the toyota ECM when the two redundant APP (accln pedal position) signal circuits are shorted together (main and sub), From the toyota camry VSRM :
DESCRIPTION
This ETCS (Electronic Throttle Control System) does not use a throttle cable. The Accelerator Pedal Position (APP) sensor is mounted on the accelerator pedal bracket and has 2 sensor circuits: VPA (main) and VPA2 (sub). This sensor is a non-contact type, and uses Hall-effect elements, in order to yield accurate signals, even in extreme driving conditions, such as at high speeds as well as very low speeds. The voltage, which is applied to terminals VPA and VPA2 of the ECM, varies between 0 V and 5 V in proportion to the operating angle of the accelerator pedal (throttle valve). A signal from VPA indicates the actual accelerator pedal opening angle (throttle valve opening angle) and is used for engine control. A signal from VPA2 conveys the status of the VPA circuit and is used to check the APP sensor itself. The ECM monitors the actual accelerator pedal opening angle (throttle valve opening angle) through the signals from VPA and VPA2, and controls the throttle actuator according to these signals.

FAIL-SAFE
The accelerator pedal position sensor has two (main and sub) sensor circuits. If a malfunction occurs in either of the sensor circuits, the ECM detects the abnormal signal voltage difference between the two sensor circuits and switches to limp mode. In limp mode, the functioning circuit is used to calculate the accelerator pedal opening angle to allow the vehicle to continue driving. If both circuits malfunction, the ECM regards the opening angle of the accelerator pedal as being fully closed. In this case, the throttle valve remains closed as if the engine is idling.
If a pass condition is detected and then the ignition switch is turned off, the fail-safe operation stops and the system returns to a normal condition.

VPA and VPA2 are coming from the PCM with .5-1.1v at one of the sensors and 1.2-2.0v at the other when the pedal is at its relaxed position. When there's force at the pedal, one sensor will operate between 2.6-4.5v and the other at 3.4-5.0v.

Toyota specs normal voltage for both the VPA sensors between between .4-4.8v for VPA, and .5-4.8v for VPA2 with a .2v deviation between the 2 sensors. Anything out of those ranges will trigger a DTC

An internal short could occur within one or more of the paths from the circuits leading to the ecm. That could lead to a situation where the computer cannot detect its own failure.Therefore, when the system gets conflicting information, it arbitrarily ignores half the conflicting information. It does not know which of the circuits are lying or if they both are lying and shorted together. different resistance values will lead to arbitrary acceleration. Having the brake override it is a stopgap, but fixing the real problem (perhaps with a third circuit in voting mode which will require replacing the entire circuit path) or reversed sensors or log and opposing log sensors.

There might also be emi problems with induced magnetic fields in the CTS pedal assembly which detects induced emf as acceleration since it relies on induced emf to operate in the first place and is made of plastic. replacing with conventional denso rather than cts will also help.

IT is not THE fix. it is a failsafe for THE fix.
The REAL problem is the reading from the toyota ECM when the two redundant APP (accln pedal position) signal circuits are shorted together (main and sub), From the toyota camry VSRM :
DESCRIPTION
This ETCS (Electronic Throttle Control System) does not use a throttle cable. The Accelerator Pedal Position (APP) sensor is mounted on the accelerator pedal bracket and has 2 sensor circuits: VPA (main) and VPA2 (sub). This sensor is a non-contact type, and uses Hall-effect elements, in order to yield accurate signals, even in extreme driving conditions, such as at high speeds as well as very low speeds. The voltage, which is applied to terminals VPA and VPA2 of the ECM, varies between 0 V and 5 V in proportion to the operating angle of the accelerator pedal (throttle valve). A signal from VPA indicates the actual accelerator pedal opening angle (throttle valve opening angle) and is used for engine control. A signal from VPA2 conveys the status of the VPA circuit and is used to check the APP sensor itself. The ECM monitors the actual accelerator pedal opening angle (throttle valve opening angle) through the signals from VPA and VPA2, and controls the throttle actuator according to these signals.

FAIL-SAFE
The accelerator pedal position sensor has two (main and sub) sensor circuits. If a malfunction occurs in either of the sensor circuits, the ECM detects the abnormal signal voltage difference between the two sensor circuits and switches to limp mode. In limp mode, the functioning circuit is used to calculate the accelerator pedal opening angle to allow the vehicle to continue driving. If both circuits malfunction, the ECM regards the opening angle of the accelerator pedal as being fully closed. In this case, the throttle valve remains closed as if the engine is idling.
If a pass condition is detected and then the ignition switch is turned off, the fail-safe operation stops and the system returns to a normal condition.

VPA and VPA2 are coming from the PCM with .5-1.1v at one of the sensors and 1.2-2.0v at the other when the pedal is at its relaxed position. When there's force at the pedal, one sensor will operate between 2.6-4.5v and the other at 3.4-5.0v.

Toyota specs normal voltage for both the VPA sensors between between .4-4.8v for VPA, and .5-4.8v for VPA2 with a .2v deviation between the 2 sensors. Anything out of those ranges will trigger a DTC

An internal short could occur within one or more of the paths from the circuits leading to the ecm. That could lead to a situation where the computer cannot detect its own failure.Therefore, when the system gets conflicting information, it arbitrarily ignores half the conflicting information. It does not know which of the circuits are lying or if they both are lying and shorted together. different resistance values will lead to arbitrary acceleration. Having the brake override it is a stopgap, but ixing the real problem (perhaps with a third circuit in voting mode which will require replacing the entire circuit path) is the REAL FIX. I suspect 2012 and onwards toyotas would have a third path and faraday cage/denso replacement for the magnet assembly in the plastic accelerator pedal (which is another problem with EMI which might lead to acceleration) which i am not going to go into here.

So, YES OP you should definitely install the update. Its the only thing standing between you and death if both the APP circuits short.

yes you should. they should be able to provide you a device to give you captions for the duration of the movie. its the cost of doing business like handicap signs and wheelchair accessible entry locations.
this is not an inconvenience that 0.1% of the population are hoisting on 99.9% of the population. This is a necessary affirmation that the majority will take care of the minority when the minority needs help to function in society. it is a recognition that we do not leave people behind just because they are disabled and we cater to those who need it. I am completely in agreement with the DoJ here. Civilization demands a higher standard from those who would introduce devices such as the kindle without making additional services available to help the less fortunate. If you are going to introduce e-readers in PUBLIC SCHOOLS then you damn well provide handicap accessible services to the public as a cost of doing business just like the school does or you leave the business to someone who can.

i 3'd omni. the scifi stories were awesome (like gravity's angel about the SSC) and i still keep a bunch of issues lying around.

Just wait until China's government develops a fantastic new infrastructure (China's government is much less inept than our own, and very interested in tracking dissidents), and then gets other friendly governments (like the USA's) to join them in implementing it.

I definitely have some fond memories of looking through my dad's stacks of OMNI. Of course, I also liked looking through his stacks of Penthouse...

OMNI had a lot of neat-o stuff, like some pretty awesome paper airplane designs. It was also the first place I saw a stereogram, which at the time was just an array of black and white dots, but started showing up everywhere a few years later, in colour, as those "Magic Eye" pictures.

Didn't care too much for all the supernatural stuff, but I always liked that montage scene in the middle of Ghostbusters where the dudes start showing up on magazine covers, and an OMNI cover goes by with pictures of their proton packs and ghost traps.

Have you not been paying attention? Hell, I'm only 35, and I can easily remember the days when air travel was, while a little cramped, a fairly relaxing experience. Now, it's pure hell.

I also don't remember the budget deficit being pushed to such historic highs before Reagan, or badly-managed banks and financial institutions being bailed out with taxpayer dollars instead of being allowed to go bankrupt, like any other business when it screws up.

Since there's lots of cases of people being thrown in prison for "contempt of court" (an extremely vague notion completely up to the discretion of any judge), I don't think it's farfetched at all for you to be thrown in jail for refusing to give up your encryption keys.

Well yes, but that's because it's a crappy song to start with. You take something with a little more substance like all of the pre 80s Moody Blues, or Jars of Clay - Who We Are Instead / Good Monsters / Much Afraid. That right there is timeless and just flat out doesn't get old. I could cite several more examples, but if you've heard the albums I'm talking about you probably get the point. For all of the pomp and overachivement that marked Queen's music it never really got much below the surface of selling records. Slick production and much marketing hype does not a good album make. I see a lot of what is being put out today in the same way. I'm all for innovation, but the electronica just doesn't do much for me. I find it cold, lifeless, and without depth or meaning. It's not that no one is making good music it's just that marketing is what determines what is popular rather than what's good.

See here and here for the reasons why. To summarize:

• Monty made MySQL; licensed it under a dual license (GPL + MySQL Commercial License)
• dual license structure worked well for MySQL AB - prevented commercial competitors, fostered community around GPL version
• Monty sold MySQL AB to Sun for $1B without changing the license. No compliants; he worked for Sun.
• Sun seems to be under the gun and going to get sold off - Monty quits, tries to fork MySQL as MariaDB. Wants to build a new "MySQL AB" under another name; but the dual license prevents it.
• See opportunity to force Sun to change the license so he can keep his money from the sale, while still getting all the code, possibly also the commercial code, and redo MySQL AB
• Monty's looking to do a "rinse-repeat".