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Comment Re:Same old song and dance (Score 0) 332

Public Utilities are also run by commercial companies in most of the United States. Verizon, AT&T and Comcast are good examples of that. Most of these American companies must also apply to a governmental board for rate increases. However, these governmental boards usually consist of current, future or ex-employees of said monopoly, who are usually motivated to approve and rate increases. Also, since they are allowed to make a percentage of their fixed asset investment, they will often inflate those investments as much as possible in order to increase their costs, which increases their profits (as a dollar amount). I once knew someone who worked for the local telephone company who told me that he was instructed to throw or give away all his tools every couple of years because the company would purchase new ones (usually the same tools form the same supplier). This usually happens before a rate increase to help justify the increased cost.

Comment Sure (Score 1) 719

Snowden should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize because absolutely nobody would of even suspected the NSA of spying on the internet and requesting communications corporations to hand over their logs. Nor would anyone ever suspect said corporations from handing their logs over to a powerful government agency. That is, until Snowden came along...

Comment Re:really?? (Score 0) 1134

You need to improve your reading comprehension. You must of missed the "targeted at the consumer market" part. Most "consumers" (such as my technically illiterate sister) have no clue about command lines, so that is a valid point. However technical savvy people, such as those found on /. (including myself) will prefer that the command line be retained.
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Survey Shows That Fox News Makes You Less Informed 1352

A survey of American voters by World Public Opinion shows that Fox News viewers are significantly more misinformed than consumers of news from other sources. One of the most interesting questions was about President Obama's birthplace. 63 percent of Fox viewers believe Obama was not born in the US (or that it is unclear). In 2003 a similar study about the Iraq war showed that Fox viewers were once again less knowledgeable on the subject than average. Let the flame war begin!
Nintendo

Wii 2 Unlikely For 2011, Maybe In 2012 303

An anonymous reader writes "As discussed on Slashdot earlier this year, the lack of a next-generation Wii may be hurting Nintendo. That doesn't seem to concern the company's US chief, Reggie Fils-Aime, who said this week that a Wii 2 might not appear until 2012. He wants to sell a few million more consoles before a successor is launched. So, no Wii 2 for 2010 or 2011 — meanwhile, the PS3 and Xbox consoles get motion control support and other content enhancements. What does that mean for the success of Nintendo's gaming console business? Has the innovator been out-innovated due to a sluggish product roadmap?"
Sci-Fi

Large, Slow Airships Could Move Buildings 184

Algorithmnast writes "The Economist has a short article on using big, slow-moving airships to move large objects without the need to dismantle them. The company mentioned, Skylifter, refers to the lifting ship as an 'aerial crane,' not a Thor weapon. It could easily help move research labs to new parts of the Antarctic, or allow a Solar Tower to be inserted into an area that's difficult to drive to, such as a mesa in New Mexico."
Businesses

Game Prices — a Historical Perspective 225

The Opposable Thumbs blog scrutinizes the common wisdom that video games are too expensive, or that they're more expensive than they were in the past. They found that while in some cases the sticker price has increased, it generally hasn't outpaced inflation, making 2010 a cheaper time to be a gamer than the '80s and '90s. Quoting: "... we tracked down a press release putting the suggested retail price of both Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64 at $69.99. [Hal Halpin, president of the Entertainment Consumer's Association] says that the N64 launch game pricing only tells you part of the story. 'Yes, some N64 games retailed for as high as $80, but it was also the high end of a 60 to 80 dollar range,' he told Ars. 'Retailers had more flexibility with pricing back then — though they've consistently maintained that the Suggested Retail Price was/is just a guide. Adjusted for inflation, we're generally paying less now than we have historically. But to be fair, DLC isn't factored in.' He also points out all the different ways that we can now access games: you can buy a game used, rent a game, or play certain online games for free. There are multiple ways to sell your old console games, and the competition in the market causes prices to fall quickly."
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Woman Trademarks Name and Threatens Sites Using It 273

An anonymous reader writes "Be careful mentioning Dr. Ann De Wees Allen. She's made it clear that she's trademarked her name and using it is 'illegal... without prior written permission.' She even lists out the names of offenders and shows you the cease-and-desist letter she sends them. And, especially don't copy any of the text on her website, because she's using a bit of javascript that will warn you 'Copyright Protect!' if you right click on a link."

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