For the anecdotal record, I installed the RC on my ye olde underpowered XP laptop (512 MB RAM) and with the bare bones, stripped down setup it runs about the same as it did using XP. If nothing else, the fact that I've left it on for 3 months underscores my lack of desire to return to XP.

Yeah, I was too lazy to remove Vista from a new machine I ended up with (it works well enough) so I jumped on the Win7 RC. It works great, just be wary regarding Homegroups. When they work they are easy as pie and useful, but if they get screwed up they can take down everything they touch.

No love for the minions?

Realistically, who isn't going to delete the W7 files off the USB drive when they're done so they can use it for other things? Should you ever need to reinstall, you'll have to buy another one. A clever win/win for Microsoft.

The core files I use on a daily basis do not take up more than a few GB. For anything beyond that I do use my web server, but for the vast majority of my usage Dropbox (or LiveMesh or whatever) works & is easier.

Good to know, I'll have to give it another shot!

This is just my two cents, but it seems it could be great for the /. community. I think it is too "difficult" for the unwashed masses. ("What do you mean I have to pay extra to access my data all the time?") I use the free version of Dropbox for my basic file syncs and it's simply seamless *BUT* it is constantly in contact with the server as I update files or move them around, admittedly sometimes on a whim. As you pointed out, that bandwidth would be hell on your proposal. If *I* wanted to, I could use my Dropbox bandwidth more conservatively, but I think that is beyond the typical user.

If aimed correctly, say at /. users, it could make sense. I know I would be interested personally, but I would be hesitant to suggest it to my luddite family members as they'd probably end up accidentally using too much expensive bandwidth.

And if somebody knows of a service already offering this, post it!

Not the same as USB. When I forget my USB thumb drive, I can log in to my Dropbox account via the web interface from any computer as long as it has net access. Can it be done on its own? Sure, but Dropbox is ridiculously easy to use and the basic account is free. Obviously I am adding my endorsement. ;) I tried LiveMesh too, but it would crash from time to time so it is no longer on my system.

I can't remember the authors, but there was a study that found people rated their MMO relationships highly while they were playing the game, but a few months after quitting rated those relationships as unimportant. MMO relationships seem strong while you're immersed in the game, but on average, MMOs are not (yet?) a substitute for RL relationships.

Hera?

Eventually it ought to, geocachers do the same thing with trackable items. :)

Agreed. And you should be looking not just at the topic area, but specific faculty. If you're interested in specialty XYZ, you want to be taking classes from the leading instructor of XYZ. Not only do you get the obvious benefit of learning about your favorite specialty, but when somebody in industry who knows nothing about XYZ needs to hire somebody, they'll often get in touch with the top names (or somebody who knows them). Guess what? If you're a strong grad student working with that expert, you should be able to get hooked up with the overflow and be working on your favorite topic before you're done with classes.

A "good school" is a general resume boost for your first job. Training under a subject matter expert can boost you throughout your career. Follow the key expert, not the school/program.

Of course, but we can make educated guesses off of the things they find valuable today. ;)

I know nothing about the field of data preservation, but is there a Darwinian pruning of data that occurs? Do we really need to keep copies of ALL of our data for thousands of years, or do the truly "vital" emails/books/stone tablets have a much greater lifespan because they have actual value?

I agree it was silly -- at least a few thousand people would have resisted and wanted to stick with technology! On the other hand, if you've ever unplugged from the cloud for a significant length of time you'll notice that technology really isn't that important to our lives, we just think it is because we're immersed in it.