As a friend of mine once pointed out, if Canada ever joined the US, the Presidency and the HofR would be dominated by the Democratic party for at least the next two decades. Canada would have more electoral votes than any state but California, and enough left-leaning congressional districts to tip the balance. In Canada Obama would be considered a moderate conservative, and Rick Santorum would be institutionalized and kept under heavy government-subsidized sedation.

Apple is doomed, I tell you. DOOOOOOOMED.

Sooner or later. Unless a big-ass meteor crushes the Earth, in which case we're all doomed and I'm right on a technicality.

>When all is said and done, right now Apple is rather aggressively destroying value as it tilts at windmills.
>Sure, they might get away with it in the short term or figure out a way of avoiding it in the long,
>but eventually this sort of behavior catches up with a company.

A useful link [techdirt] to send to anyone defending or even ambivalent about SOPA. It's legislation designed by a lobby group to service their agenda, and damn any unforeseen consequences. If you think the RIAA and MPAA give a shit about the free speech and due process of *others* balanced against their desire to maximize profits, you've been asleep for the last twenty years.

The real question is, has Blink been translated into Persian? If so, I'm afraid we're sunk!

Thanks, Anne McCaffrey, for introducing generations of slashdotters to the joys of Pern.

So when you're drugged into unconsciousness and then ass-raped you'll be just fine with that. Silence = consent, after all. Right.

Here's hoping you get to put those principles of yours to the test!

Growl's a good product. I have used it for years. Somehow paying $1.99 for a piece of well-written software that helps me get stuff done seems...reasonable.

it's a bit faster.

And a bit explodier.

Jesus H. Christ.

He created a short, informative video that synthesizes complex statistics into a compelling visual display and over a million people have watched it on Youtube in the last MONTH but no, you don't think he knows much about presentation. Maybe you can give him lessons and make him better at what he does? If we could just harness your ego to power electricity we could power the continental United States.

He's had a real impact on health in the developing world. He's made a huge difference in the lives of real people using -- yes! -- science and statistics, and now he's reaching a huge audience with clever and insightful presentations that attract audiences in the hundreds of thousands.

Oh, but he wasn't able to impress you. And you've accomplished...what, exactly?

Oh, MrHanky. So indignant and so totally clueless. It's almost like you are sounding off about something you know nothing about. If only there were some web site or something where you could learn about the device before making stupid comments.

It will stream mpeg-4 and h.264 files from my computer to my TV. I don't actually know if I need a gizmo to do this, as it's not too hard for me to plunk my laptop beside the TV and attach a simple cable, but for some people it might seem like a worthwhile device.

If you could stop foaming for a second and educate yourself before you spout off, maybe you won't come across as such an idiot.

Yes, the device is a fail at doing things it was never designed for. Most devices are. My pencil, for instance, is an epic fail when my toilet gets clogged.

That's a shitty analogy.

Do you really expect app developers to target all these obscure, unsupported, docs-written-in-mandarin slabs of fail ?

I have a nagging sense your question is rhetorical.

I can build a relatively high-end gaming computer for that much. There's no reason a pad should cost that much.

Sure, you go do that. Oh, and give it a touchscreen while you're at it. And a battery that lasts for 10 frickin' hours. And make it weigh a pound and a half. For $500.

What exactly is your point? I could build a deluxe two-story treehouse for $500, and it would have more in common with an ipad than your "relatively high-end gaming computer."

*latest*, dammit, LATEST.

I'm drinking too much.

Or maybe not enough.