Comment It's all AI (Score 1) 93
if(A) then {
B
} else {
C
}
Look, ma! I done used artificial intelligence!
Comment Re:Apple IIe (Score 1) 857
I started with a TRS-80, but then we got a
My early hacking was on Ultima IV. I used a sector editor to find the inventory and change it around.
Good times.
Comment Wizard's First Rule (Score 1) 339
People are stupid.
Comment Re:It doesn't take 7 billion people (Score 1) 396
> Since there is not new territory,
Under the oceans? Space?
Comment Re:The cost of doing business (Score 1) 267
is there any OTHER reason to be a slumlord with dangerous buildings & offering disingenuous accommodations to customers who you are legally & commercially responsible for?
Yes. You are an evil greedy bastard who cares more about lining your own pockets than the welfare of your fellow humans. There are plenty of people like that in the world.
Comment Re:The cost of doing business (Score 1) 267
And some people design businesses around breaking laws with penalties low enough that the endeavor is still profitable - and the laws keep out "honest" competitors. And some of these sorts of businesses get big enough and profitable enough that they can keep politicians from enacting laws with real teeth.
Comment Re:The cost of doing business (Score 2) 267
"Better" for the owner, not necessarily better for society at large.
Some people see breaking the law as inherently bad and avoid doing it on principle. Some see the penalties involved as a tax, on the off-chance you get caught.
Do you always drive the speed limit? 5 over? 10 over? 20 over? At some threshold - assuming there are police around to catch you - driving over the speed limit becomes more expensive than it is worth, below that threshold, most people speed. Same applies to business. Many business owners (some may call them unscrupulous, or criminals) will break whatever laws they want as long as the reward for doing so is greater than the penalty for being caught. Others may call them shrewd businesspeople.
Comment The cost of doing business (Score 3, Insightful) 267
The fines were $1000 per incident. Let's assume each unit rents for $1000/wk. And since there are multiple units in these buildings, a single ad could cover several units. I'll make a giant assumption of 10 units per building, and an occupancy rate of 50%.
(10x52x1000)/2 = $260,000. A $17,000 fine may cut into profits a bit, but it is hardly punitive. At $5,000 a pop, that starts to be enough to discourage the behavior. But even then the venture appears, if not wildly profitable, still better than having the units sit empty.
Comment See auto manufacturers and racing (Score 5, Interesting) 293
Porsche, Audi, Mercedes, BMW, etc. don't make race cars and compete in things like 24 Hours of LeMans, WRC, etc. because those cars and those events make them money. They do it because 1) It provides a venue to show off cool new technology 2) It provides them marketing cachet, name recognition, and bragging rights.
Apple has lost sight of this. Apple is happily making Corollas & Caravans - which sell large volumes and make a profit. But it has forgotten the high-performance end of the bell curve where the bragging rights are earned and new tech is shown off.
Comment Not News. Doesn't Matter (Score 1) 279
Every tabloid web site picked up and ran with this story. What's it doing on
Lack of Penis Bone In Humans Linked To Monogamous Relationships and Quick Sex, Study Says (theguardian.com) 279
The penis bone can be as long as a finger in a monkey and two feet long in a walrus, but the human male has lost it completely. According to a new report published in Proceedings of the Royal Society, the lack of a penis bone in human males may be a consequence of monogamy and quick sex. The Guardian reports: Known as the baculum to scientists with an interest, the penis bone is a marvel of evolution. It pops up in mammals and primates around the world, but varies so much in terms of length and whether it is present at all, that it is described as the most diverse bone ever to exist. Prompted by the extraordinary differences in penis bone length found in the animal kingdom, scientists set out to reconstruct the evolutionary story of the baculum, by tracing its appearance in mammals and primates throughout history. They found that the penis bone evolved in mammals more than 95 million years ago and was present in the first primates that emerged about 50 million years ago. From that moment on, the baculum became larger in some animals and smaller in others. Kit Opie who ran the study with Matilda Brindle at University College London, said that penis bone length was longer in males that engaged in what he called "prolonged intromission." In plain English, that means that the act of penetration lasts for more than three minutes, a strategy that helps the male impregnate the female while keeping her away from competing males. The penis bone, which attaches at the tip of the penis rather than the base, provides structural support for male animals that engage in prolonged intromission. Humans may have lost their penis bones when monogamy emerged as the dominant reproductive strategy during the time of Homo erectus about 1.9 million years ago, the scientists believe. In monogamous relationships, the male does not need to spend a long time penetrating the female, because she is not likely to be leapt upon by other amorous males. That, at least, is the theory.
Comment Re:Oh No! Trump opened his mouth again! (Score 1) 756
Unfortunately, the Your Logical Fallacy Is site doesn't "two wrongs make a right" or "moral equivalence" as choices.
Comment Re:Oh No! Trump opened his mouth again! (Score 4, Insightful) 756
Sure he's a sexist scumbag but he's no worse than any of his predecessors or his opponent, both in context of his personality and history.
Your logical fallacy is... Bandwagon.
Comment Deflection (Score 5, Insightful) 756
"Earlier today, the US government removed any reasonable doubt that the Kremlin has weaponized WikiLeaks to meddle in our election and benefit Donald Trump's candidacy," said Clinton campaign spokesperson Glen Caplin. "We are not going to confirm the authenticity of stolen documents released by Julian Assange who has made no secret of his desire to damage Hillary Clinton."
Interpretation: It's all true, but the people revealing it are mean and want to hurt us so you should ignore whatever it is they've revealed. See ad hominem attack.
Comment Insurance Liability (Score 1) 135
The insurance liability for something like this would be astronomical. We already have roads and understand and accept the risks associated with them. With this you have the risk of running into buildings, trees, power lines, etc. Roads are at least well-defined travel ways, the sky not so much. Then you have the risks of falling out of the sky & damaging things below - and the occupants are pretty well dead, so add a few million for them.
Even if fuel & vehicle costs were negligible I could easily see $5 million liability insurance being reasonable for each flight.
