Comment Re:Netflix (Score 2) 324
I think you are right. Netflix and the Olympics were the only two reasons that anyone I know ever installed it.
Comment Combo (Score 2) 62
I want to see Asimo riding atop an Alpha Dog.
Just preferably, not towards me with a "kill all humans" sign.
Comment Still not so sure (Score 1) 125
Fed16 smells a bit too Unity-ish for me. The desktop is being further relegated to nothing more than wallpaper and not a productive space (not storage space mind you!). I feel like at this point the Gnome 2 look and feel is gone with the larger distros. The king is dead; long live the king.
I am giving Mint a try, but their 12.x plans to produce a hybrid Gnome 2 + 3 environment sounds like a clustersmack waiting to happen. Sigh. I think I miss right-clicking for Properties most of all.
Submission + - New Facebook Rule: Go &^%$ Yourself (foxnews.com)
Velcroman1 writes: It's being called "The Facebook Rule," and it's designed to shut you and me out of at least one social network. Wildly hyped private firms like Facebook want to raise more private money without going public — or divulging all their secrets and potentially giving some control to outside shareholders — but keep running up against the "the 500 rule," a regulation that says a private company like Facebook, Twitter, or Foursquare that has issued private stock to 500 or more investors must either make their financial records public or go public. Late last month, the House Financial Services Committee approved "The Facebook Rule," which would allow up to 1,000 investors (rather than the current 500) to hold shares in a private company before the business is required to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission and go public, and make it harder for you and me to get in on those deals.
Comment iOS Maps app (Score 1) 141
So would this affect corporate users such as with Apple's Maps app on iOS? If so, I guess that could be another reason for their recent maps company acquisition.
Comment Re:Power users should like usability and ease.... (Score 1) 798
The lack of right-clicking to alter properties, bring up additional menus, add panels, etc.. was the last nail in the coffin. And I hate that. I have really enjoyed Ubuntu over the years, and this rapid departure from a usable UI has left me very disappointed with the Ubuntu team.
I am now going back and trying other distros to see if I can find one I like again. damnit.
Comment Do it sooner rather than later (Score 1) 1797
I say go for it. The "edu bubble" is going to be one of the next big things to pop.
I do find it odd to hear some of the Occupy members in a fervor over student loan debt. That they asked for. Not everyone should go to an expensive private college. They should be allowed to do so, if they can pay for it; but that should not be the government's concern. That is not being mean. That is just reality.
My only concern about the government leaving the student loan area would be the likely uptick in "corporate apprenticeship" type programs. You could end up with a generation indebted to a Company Store rather than Uncle Sam.
Comment Public (Score 1) 557
I don't think we can really trust non-profit schools either if they have a desire to grow or become nationally recognized. They can still push through those that should never have graduated just to get more student notches on their belt when they apply for federal grants.
Comment Payback (Score 2) 317
I see it as a small bit of payback because of meth heads like him I can't buy a simple damned sudafed tablet anymore without a freaking act of congress, strip search, and a blood sample.
Windows Phone 7 Sales Continue To Struggle 351
rtfa-troll writes "Even with the pre-Christmas buying rush, Microsoft is already desperately offering a new buy one get one free offer similar to the ones they gave for the KIN. According to the article, 'Windows Phone 7 devices can't even manage two per cent of the fortnight's sales.' These aren't official Microsoft figures; they come from online shopping sites. But since Microsoft official sales figures seem subject to manipulation, this is perhaps one of the better guesses we will get at the success of Windows Phone 7 until well into next year. This also strongly backs up other reports of deeply disappointing phone sales. Even Microsoft supporters have been wondering for a while whether it's time for Ballmer to go. If the sales reports are true, then he may be pushed before he jumps."
Boeing Gets $89M To Build Drone That Can Fly For 5 Years Straight 271
coondoggie writes "One of the more unique unmanned aircraft concepts took a giant step toward reality this week when the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency inked an agreement with Boeing to build the SolarEagle, a plane capable of remaining at heights above 60,000ft for over five years. Boeing says the first SolarEagle under the $89 million contract could fly as early as 2014."
The Hidden Security Risk of Geotags 175
pickens writes "The NY Times reports that security experts and privacy advocates have begun warning consumers about the potential dangers of geotags, which are embedded in photos and videos taken with GPS-equipped smartphones and digital cameras. By looking at geotags of uploaded photos, 'you can easily find out where people live, what kind of things they have in their house and also when they are going to be away,' says one security expert. Because the location data is not visible to the casual viewer, the concern is that many people may not realize it is there; and they could be compromising their privacy, if not their safety, when they post geotagged media online."
Stupid Data Center Tricks 305
jcatcw writes "A university network is brought down when two network cables are plugged into the wrong hub. An employee is injured after an ill-timed entry into a data center. Overheated systems are shut down by a thermostat setting changed from Fahrenheit to Celsius. And, of course, Big Red Buttons. These are just a few of the data center disasters caused by human folly."
Comment Shell-ish (Score 1) 264
The Major is just around the corner.
The Perfect Way To Slice a Pizza 282
iamapizza writes "New Scientist reports on the quest of two math boffins for the perfect way to slice a pizza. It's an interesting and in-depth article; 'The problem that bothered them was this. Suppose the harried waiter cuts the pizza off-center, but with all the edge-to-edge cuts crossing at a single point, and with the same angle between adjacent cuts. The off-center cuts mean the slices will not all be the same size, so if two people take turns to take neighboring slices, will they get equal shares by the time they have gone right round the pizza — and if not, who will get more?' This is useful, of course, if you're familiar with the concept of 'sharing' a pizza."
