I used to use one of those cases for holding DVDs, with the leafs pulled out, because I couldn't find a laptop case small enough for my eeePC 701. Even portable DVD player cases were a bit big.

I agree; I used mine for field-programming microcontrollers all the time. It's basically a portable terminal. I had a TRUE netbook in the original eeePC which was seriously light and small enough to be a piece of gear like a Fluke meter. The $300 generation of netbooks is just an uncanny valley and it doesn't surprise me they are going away. I also blame the Netbookflation on Windows. I want my $200 eeePC back, only with a full size (touch?) screen and the bit more horsepower and storage which would be obligatory nowadays just due to technology advancement. I'm surprised nobody is selling something of the sort as a toy or a kid computer.

While we are sharing anecdotes, I have 2 Aspire Ones. I bought the windows versions but installed Linux. Mine is a 1st generation one with the extended battery. Will not die. I fell on it skateboarding and now the battery has to be taped in, but I cannot notice a significant decrease in battery life, even though it's over 2 years old and was my main computer for a long time. I've taken it apart a few times and lost some screws so it's kind a flexy but it just won't die. I did replace the network card with an Intel card after the first card stopped working. The bios zero'd out on me and I had to reflash it.

My wife's is a newer generation Aspire one. The screen is bigger but the keyboard is worse. Hers has constant problems with the wifi card locking up, forcing a reboot. I even changed the card. I think there must be a hardware bug in these things with the wifi.

I also had an original eeePC and I loved it, because it was a true netbook. I would love to have a modern equivalent with a (touch?) screen that actually fills the screen and a bit (just a bit) more horsepower/storage. The eeePC literally fit in my jacket pocket, I loved it but sold it while it was still worth something when the newer netbooks started coming out. I'm looking at the Transformer and Chromebook, but they are expensive.

"Regulated" is a governmental euphemism that came to mean what it does because instead of saying "We are going to pass laws to control X", the government consistently comes up with more palatable (like "we are going to regulate(old meaning) X") to hide the true nature. Over time, now "regulated" actually means "controlled by law". People eventually wise up to the new meaning.

There should be a special category for language changes caused by government euphemism. I predict the following future usages:

Current word:True political meaning, eventually becoming common meaning after people wise up
Liberated:Invaded
Stimulated:Taxed
Fair:Socially Engineered
Racist:Fair
Encourage:Force
Rich:Not dependent on government
Peace:War
Slavery:Freedom

http://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ATF-shoestring-machine-gun-2004.jpg

Why not just call it the Ministry of Truth?

How many people did not die in the Clackamas Mall shooting a couple days ago? Apparently a bystander who was legally carrying a handgun for defense confronted the shooter, but did not fire due to presence of bystanders. Handgun vs. rifle is a very frightening disparity, btw.

http://easybakegunclub.com/blog/1968/Concealed-Carry-Hero-at-Portland-Mall---The-Full-S.html

How many people didn't die that would have? Hard to say, but I'm sure all we will hear in the news is about the shooter how the incident proves we need to ban guns.

It's not newsworthy when an unknown number of deaths are prevented by gun use.

Mod parent up; I used TIEMU on my original EEEpc in grad school despite having a TI-89. It requires ROM image, readily available from TI's website, and perfectly emulates. The only gripe I had was the keyboard mapping was strange in some way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzanna_Hupp

TFS says pixels are '2D picture elements'. In what way are pixels 2-dimensional?

If anything I would say that monochrome pixels are 1-dimensional and 3-color pixels are 3-dimensional.

"The cut-all-costs approach has a problem: there is always someone in a poor country ready to work for lower wage. Being competitive this way means making workers poorer and poorer."

How does giving work to someone who wants it make them poorer?

If someone is willing to work for a lower wage, then that person needs the work worse. Right? Shouldn't we always give the work to that person? Then both parties benefit the most? So you are saying that instead we should give the work to people who will only do it for a higher wage, and therefore, do not need the work as much? Why?

Because the the poorer people who will do the job for less are not Americans and don't matter?

I think you mean "Being competitive this way means enriching poor workers in shithole countries instead of enriching (by a smaller marginal factor btw) 1st-world citizens of socialist democracies and leaving the poor workers in the fields where they belong". There are many people who will agree with you on that, so you should just say what you mean.

I appreciate the critique. I am always looking for input on my internet technique, and will try to do better in the future.

The latter. Most process tools have their own positive-pressure air purification system with their own HEPA filters constantly purging at least the small bit of atmosphere in the tool that the wafers are exposed to in between the FOUP and the process chamber. After opening the tool for maintenance you simply allow some time for it to purge and then run your best particle-check test and if it comes out clean you figure it's good. The process chamber itself, whether it's a wet process or a thermal/plasma process, typically after opening that up you have a purge/coat/in-situ clean/flush/burn-in routine that you run before running production.

It's still important for the general fab atmosphere to be controlled for temperature, humidity, and chemical contaminants (chlorine etc).

My point was that cleanroom technology has hit its peak and is not advancing. We will never see 250,0000 square foot class .01 cleanrooms. It is an arms race that has been abandoned for good reason.

I also think that Moore's law is dead; I don't think that means computers are obsolete now.