In the first, I could see it as being a cadaver, fair enough. But the second post seems to clarify the intent of the first one, especially with the use of the word "still".

As to why they called the cops rather than inviting her in for a 1:1, hard to say. Perhaps they feared violence toward their counselor, or didn't want the liability and just turned the information over to the authorities, or just overreacted?

Again, they very well may have overreacted, or maybe their response was not the optimal one, but the two postings paint a picture that I guess they felt couldn't be ignored.

Actually, no, it hasn't.

When I was in High School, the campus had an open layout. DOZENS of entrances to dozens of buildings. Completely impossible to put metal detectors in every entrance because every classroom was a separate building.

We also had a smoking section.

In short, the school trusted their students, even to the point of allowing them to make their own informed decisions regarding smoking.

Now, with Columbine in the mix, would I have felt safer with all the metal detectors, cameras, etc in place?

FUCK no. If something similar had happened at my High School, I would have had dozens of EXITS to get away from any danger. Instead, today, we have High Schools that are basically a trap for anyone caught inside during such an attack. Now, attackers only have to cover a couple exits to keep their victims from escaping.

These are all standard device classes (ATAPI, DDC, USB mass storage, USB HID, and USB mass storage respectively) that need only the class driver that comes with the operating system. Of what you listed, only video cards and internal modems need specific drivers. I'd add scanners, sound cards, and printers to the list. I bought a Microtek ScanMaker 4850 USB flatbed scanner back when I used only Windows, and SANE's web site acknowledges that it's a paperweight under Linux. And even though dial-up is almost dead, Wi-Fi cards have driver issues much like internal modems did *cough*Broadcom*cough*.

We've upgraded to soft clay tablets and pointy sticks from hand painting on cave walls. There was a great debate on the merits of the permanence of the new technology until Ugh pointed out that the clay tablets harden if you leave them on the fire and that you can also take them with you when moving to the summer caves.

she is studying mortuary science; Of course her posts are dark.

What next? Man studying at clown school thrown out because his facebook posts were too evil?

have a read of kim stanley robinson's mars trilogy. that's *exactly* what happens.

And I'd prefer to have the same stamina that I had when I was nineteen, too. I mean, it'd be cool if I could get absolutely smashed, and be fine the next day. I'm sure my SO would like it if I had the same stamina in the bedroom, too. I can't and I don't. There's a natural progression when it comes to a career, and being involved with managing other people is a part of that.

I'd probably ask about what my new job duties would be, and see if they fit with my desires, otherwise, it's a shot in the dark as to whether to take the job, fight to keep your current position, or find a new employer.

And be willing to accept whatever trade-offs come with it? That includes salary stagnation, and competition with younger people who might be more intellectually curious than you are, and expect a much smaller salary than you do.

One of the things that constantly bothers me when interviewing older workers is the fact that, in many ways, tech is no longer a joy....it's all job. I've found myself in that position more and more as I get older; building a Linux kernel is now tedious instead of exciting. I haven't had a GNU/Hurd install in years.

Interviewed a CCNA one time; when I asked him some questions about IPv6, he got defensive, then tried to convince me that it was never going to happen, and anyone looking at it was wasting his time.....

Needless to say, we had requirements from the customer for IPv6 work, and were trying to put together a team to address the project. Ended up hiring a 24 year-old without a degree or a cert, who was genuinely interested in where the technology is headed. Oh, and he wanted 60% of the salary (even without the military retirement, which the old guy had coming in, too.).

The fluidity of the IT sector and the associated 'black magic' it is to non-techies allowed many people to be 'managers'. Since Mgmt didn't understand the tech, put a somewhat techy person into the Manager role.

This is why many technical people don't take mgmt seriously.

Good managers are worth far more than their weight in gold, but they are also few and far between unfortunately. Especially when IT is involved.

Incidentally, you can sign up for experts exchange and get access to the answers without paying. You just need to sign up as an expert and post some useful answers that help other people regularly.

I prefer the stackoverflow model where you take what you need and then get rewarded to give back (with points, etc).

I detest Experts Exchange for the single reason that when I desperately need an answer, I'm not in a position, time-wise, to build up a reputation on an information exchange site... however, I've visited and answered many questions at stackoverflow and been voted up... after I got the help/hints that I needed when I was desperate.

Then again, stackoverflow isn't in the business of restricting knowledge (that their users created) for money.

That's nothing - the EarthQuake Repellent Deluxe that I use hasn't failed yet here in Michigan. I've been trying to get a refund on their StateEconomyGoingToHellInAHandbasket Repellent, however.

All I know is that after my friends watched me play Carmageddon they would never let me drive.

I would like to offer you the services of my law firm. It has been shown that all tin cans, when used in conjunction will string, as been shown to increase your rate of neck cancer. Even though corporations would rather keep this important information confidential from the general public, we feel that it is left to us to get the victims of this senseless violation of public health their just rewards. It has also been shown that using tin cans with string increases your carbon dioxide foot, so please feel free to feel ashamed. Your few moments of fun and enjoyment has just sunken another polar bear. Worry not, oh brother, the Earth Father, Al Gore, is willing to trade you some emissions caps to help alleviate your gross negligence.

Every developer knows that documentation is important. You know what else is important? Core functionality. Protecting against buffer overflows. Preventing seg faults. It's a bit of a catch-37 (which is not quite as ironic as a catch-22): without proper functionality, the system is useless; without documentation the functionality is inaccessible and the system is therefore useless. So do you spend your time implementing or documenting?

Stale and missing documentation is a legitimate criticism of Linux, just as it is a legitimate criticism of Windows and the majority of both open source and proprietary software you're liable to encounter. The main difference is, you're not paying for anything with (most) Linux. Plus, open source developers are frequently accessible on mailing lists and IRC channels, so if you have a question, you can ask the horse himself, instead of his outsourced stable boy. Last but certainly not least, it's open source, so crack open the code and start figuring it out yourself. Or if you can't, you can always go back to those mailing lists and IRC channels and find someone who can (or more likely, already did).

Even if "feats of strength" are different from normal achievements, I don't think you can be considered to have beaten the game if you don't have them all as well.

In other words, there's stuff this guy hasn't done.