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Comment Word parsing (Score 1) 219

by wagr (#38435042) Attached to: IBM's Five Predictions For the Next Five Years

To parse the words carefully:
4) Within 5 years, it will become popular within the US to say there is no digital divide - there is no such thing a class divide in the first place.
I think reality will look more service caps that limit the average user to software updates, streaming a movie per week, and playing a few hours of a browser game per month.

Comment Someone is surprised (Score 1) 105

by wagr (#38434864) Attached to: Ready For Your Payroll Software Update?

I am actually surprised this is newsworthy. This one is not a change at all.
We've been dealing with changes in taxation since we designed our first retail product in 1986. When we added employee time tracking and more tax reports, the number of tax rules multiplied by about 3. If congress doesn't pass an extension, then we post a small update notice and all our sites (in the US) will have it within a minute, or the next time they launch our software.
You want to talk newsworthy, convince all local governments to use the same tax rules, preferably the same tax rate. Then I wouldn't be spending my Decembers and Januaries rooting around bulletins, making tiny rate changes to our tables.
My family has learned to not bother inviting me home for the holidays.

Comment Inertia (Score 1) 990

by wagr (#37229408) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: Could We Deal With the End of Time Zones?

I personally would love it. I hate arranging conference calls only to have one person miss, no matter how I phrase the invites. "That's 9 am Mountain time, which is 11 am for you, Steve." Means Steve will call me at 7:10 Mountain time and say, "Where is everyone?"

But why not: Inertia. TV producers will bandy about some straw man like, "Shows are used to delaying by an hour for Central, two for Mountain, and the odd hour out for the West. The common announcement that "x will be shown at y:00, z:00 West Coast" will have to be changed to "x will be shown at y:00, y-1:00 Central, y-2:00 Western, and some other time West Coast." The additional seconds it takes to say that will result in less advertising which will destroy our economy." That cable, satellite, DVR, and streaming have already made that argument pointless will not be understood by said producers or the politicians who listen to them.

Besides, enough voters don't understand. Remember, we're smart and in the minority.

Comment The 39% are delusional (Score 1) 286

by wagr (#35142096) Attached to: Only 39% Curse At Their Computers?

On a counter-argument: am I to believe that 39% of you waste imagination and breath on cursing a computer? Save it for lesser life forms like politicians, marketing directors, and news commentators. Won't you be sorry when computers discover revenge.
Power

CA's First Molten Salt Energy Plant Approved 270

Posted by timothy from the high-on-sodium dept.
An anonymous reader writes "This year we've seen molten salt power plants start to pick up steam around the world, and now the technology is heating up stateside — California just approved its first molten salt energy plant. Designed by SolarReserve, the plant uses heliostats to focus thermal energy on a power tower filled with salt, which is able to reach very high temperatures (over 1000 degrees Fahrenheit) and can hold heat for an extraordinary length of time. Heat from this reserve of molten salt can then be pumped through a steam generator to provide on-demand energy long after the sun has set."
Censorship

The French Government Can Now Censor the Internet 419

Posted by Soulskill from the think-of-le-children dept.
Psychophrenes writes "A new episode in French internet legislation — French ministers have passed a bill (original in French) allowing the government to add any website to a black list, which access providers will have to enforce. This black list will be defined by the government only, without requiring the intervention of the legal system. Although originally intended against pedo-pornographic websites, this bill is already outdated, as was Hadopi in its time, and instead paves the way for a global censorship of the 'French internet.'"
Advertising

Should Wikipedia Just Accept Ads Already? 608

Posted by CmdrTaco from the or-gimme-a-tote-bag dept.
Hugh Pickens writes "Large images of Jimmy Wales have for weeks dominated each and every page on Wikipedia, making Wales arguably the single most visible individual on the planet. Now Molly McHugh writes that Wikipedia is once again pleading for user donations with banners across the top of its site with memos from purported authors and this week, Wales stepped up the shrillness of his rallying cry by adding the word 'Urgent' to his appeal. Wales attempted the same request for donations last year, and failed to meet the company's goal until Ebay founder Pierre Omidyar donated $2 million and Google stepped in with another $2 million gift to the foundation. This time around the foundation is approximately $7 million short of its 2010 fundraising goal, and Wikipedia analysts are saying the site would be better off with a marketing scheme as Alex Konanykhin of WikiExperts explains that the donations-only, no-commerce model restricts Wikipedia to relying exclusively on free volunteers, losing opportunities to involve qualified professionals who charge for their time in addition to the thirty staff members already on the Wikimedia payroll. 'Advertising is not cool. You're not as cool if you have advertising. But you know what else is not cool? Begging,' writes Jeff Otte. 'We do not care if there is advertising on Wikipedia, so long as it is not ridiculously invasive. So please, replace your sensitive mug with a Steak 'n' Shake ad or something, and start making advertisers pay for people to have stuff for free and not feel bad about it. It's the Internet's way.'"
The Internet

Giving the Blind Better Web Access 168

Posted by samzenpus from the web-for-all dept.
crimeandpunishment writes "Decades ago, the breakthrough for the disabled was making buildings wheelchair accessible. Today, it's making their world Web-accessible. Disabled groups are hailing new legislation Congress has sent to the President. Among other things, the measure will give the blind greater Internet access through smart phones, and require devices like iPhones and Blackberrys to be hearing-aid compatible. 'It breaks down barriers for all of us,' says Mark Richert of the American Foundation for the Blind."
Security

Map Based Passwords 169

Posted by samzenpus from the getting-directions-to-your-password dept.
smitty777 writes "Discovery is running an article on passwords based on a very specific location on a map. Instead of showing UID and Password fields, the user would simply click on a very specific spot on Google Earth, for example. I wonder how you would make that secure? Also, if you forgot, would you get a message saying 'Your password is the third flamingo on the left on the lawn of Aunt Bessie's house'?"

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