Comment Re:Oh noes (Score 1) 534
Sounds like the plot line to Avatar...
Comment Re:Missing option: (Score 1) 485
Hmm - I've switched a small elementary school to Google Apps, and my opinion of it is *slightly* different.
Don't get me wrong - Google Mail just plain rocks. There's no getting around that. But the calendar, chat and docs integration is just kind of just meh. Why do I have to switch web sites to view a calendar? And Docs, well, it just plane sucks compared to Office Online. I'm sure it will eventually get better, but geez - its been a beta product for *years* and while improving, still has a long way to go. And Office 2007 has been out for a while. Support the damned format already.
But my biggest gripe - Where the F* is Google Groups for Apps users? How friggin' hard would it be to integrate an email group for my teacher's classroom, without going out to plain old google groups - As an admin, not being able to do *anything* with email other than setting up distribution groups is just plain wrong. And asking one of my teachers to set this up? No thank you - they're there to teach, not be techies.
So yea, great compared to our old email system. Replacing Small Business Server or Office any time soon? Never.
First Looks at The Gimp 2.5 446
desmondhaynes writes "The GIMP team announced today the first release from the 2.5 development series. It is true that this version is unstable, but a little bird told me to give it a try and see what's it capable of. First of all, let me tell you that its interface is quite redesigned and I think that some users will have problems adjusting with it, but that's just my two cents. On the other hand, version 2.5.0 of The GIMP includes some hot new features, like the integration of GEGL (Generic Graphics Library) which will finally get support for higher color depths, more colorspaces and eventually non-destructive editing."
The D&D Designers Answer Your Questions 211
In January we had the chance to ask the designers of Dungeons and Dragons Fourth Edition a few questions about the new version of the classic tabletop game. The Wizards of the Coast Community Manager, Mike "Gamer_Zer0" Lescault put our questions to members of the development team, including: Andrew Collins, Chris Perkins, Scott Rouse, and Sara Girard. Some of the questions weren't quite answered in as much detail as I would have liked. That said, they've given us a great opportunity to follow up on their responses. If you have a follow-up question, put it in a comment below (one question per comment please). We'll pass on five of the best, and the designers will answer your question on-camera at the Dungeons and Dragons Experience at the end of this month. We'll post the video to the site early in March. This is a great chance to put a face to some legendary designer names, and get your unanswered issues resolved. Get asking.
Saving in OOXML Format Now Probably A Bad Idea 150
orlando writes "Much drama is unfolding prior to the OOXML Ballot Resolution Meeting in Geneva, currently schedule for the end of February. After that there's a subsequent 30 day period while countries can still change their vote. As a result, Bob Sutor is recommending that saving your documents in OOXML format right now is probably about the riskiest thing you can do, if you are concerned with long term interoperability. At this point nobody has the vaguest idea what OOXML will look like in February, or even whether it will be in any sort of stable condition by the end of March. 'While we are talking about interoperability, who else do you think is going to provide long term complete support for this already-dead OOXML format that Microsoft Office 2007 uses today? Interoperability means that other applications can process the files fully and not just products from Microsoft. I would even go so far as to go back to those few OOXML files you have already created and create .doc, .ppt, and .xls versions of them for future use, if you want to make sure you can read them and you don't want to commit yourself to Microsoft's products for the rest of their lives.'"
Submission + - How to avoid hiring an American
netbuzz writes: "Keep this video in mind next time someone like Bill Gates complains that they just can't find qualified American workers to fill key tech jobs. "Our goal is clearly not to find a qualified U.S. worker," a marketing executive for a law firm tells his audience. And what's the advice for those employers who fail to achieve that goal and are confronted with a qualified American: "find a legal basis to disqualify them."
http://www.networkworld.com/community/?q=node/1642 1"
http://www.networkworld.com/community/?q=node/164
U.S. Billionaire Heads to Space Station 208
TurnAround writes "According to an International Business Times article, a Russian rocket carrying the American billionaire who helped develop Microsoft Word roared into the night skies over Kazakhstan Saturday, sending Charles Simonyi and two cosmonauts soaring into orbit on a two-day journey to the international space station.
Climbing on a column of smoke and fire into the clouds over the bleak steppes, the Soyuz TMA-10 capsule lifted off at 11:31 p.m. local time, casting an orange glow over the Baikonur cosmodrome and dozens of officials and well-wishers watching from about a mile away."
Journal Journal: Hero of the day: Dr. Neal Waters and the Middlebury
Great minds produce great art. And what else could blunt a great mind better than misinformation!
PS3 Breaks Records in UK Launch 131
Aided by racing titles MotorStorm and Formula One, the PlayStation 3 had the best UK console launch ever, according to Joystiq and MCVUK. This generation saw the Wii kick off with 105,000 units and the Xbox 360's sell through 70,000. The PSP still holds the record at 185,000 for a portable console, but I imagine Sony's pretty happy about this either way. "With plenty of consoles left in the 220,000 strong initial shipment, it would appear that a strong supply is the key to launch victory. Will sales remain brisk in the foreseeable future? We'll find out soon enough, but until then, expect some elaborately spun responses from Sony's competitors. Perhaps UK journalists ought to return those stacks of beer to Microsoft -- then again, alcohol already seems a likely explanation for steering the Xboat to the wrong continent."
Submission + - Sun Java DST patch bug
GroupCaptain writes: "Sun posted a bug report concerning its DST patch on March 6th. http://bugs.sun.com/bugdatabase/view_bug.do?bug_id =6530336. The late breaking nature of this is clearly an issue for many. Have others been reporting this?"
Submission + - Java DST Patch Breaks DST
Christopher_G_Lewis writes: "This is just coming out, but Sun's DST patch "may break backward compatibility for the Eastern, Hawaiian, and Mountain time zones, under certain circumstances."
DST: Daylight Saving Time Changes (2007)
There's a Sun alert, but only for subscribed members: Sun Alert 102836 for Java.
The introduction of Olson Timezone (TZ) data, version 2005r or greater, may break backward compatibility for the Eastern, Hawaiian, and Mountain time zones, under certain circumstances.
This issue is also outlined in Sun BugIDs 6466476 and 6530336, listed at:
6466476
6530336"
Submission + - NASA Astronaut arrested on suspicion of kidnapping
Submission + - Vista eats 684 megabytes of RAM for no reason?
JAB Creations writes: "We all know Vista is memory hungry but can anyone here please explain to me why Vista with all of it's services, startup applications, and virtual memory disabled still uses 684 megabytes of memory when it's critical processes only add up to 20-30 megabytes tops? This was using Vista Ultimate 64-Bit edition. Bad programming? Intentional waste to force "upgrades"? Both? Get ready to reinstall XP if you bought the upgrade version and infected your computer. Adding death to injury DirectX 10 has yet to materialize in to a game (or an affordable video card for the masses) and 3D audio is missing for the vast majority of us right now (in Vista) anyway. Time to test more Linux distros!"
Submission + - MS posts .NET 3.0 to Microsoft Update
punkrokk writes: "I was installing a test server and found .NET 3.0 in windows update.
The Microsoft NET Framework 3.0 is the managed code programming model for Windows. Version 3.0 enhances version 2.0 with new technologies for building applications with visually compelling user experiences, seamless communication across technology boundaries, and the ability to support a wide range of business processes."
Submission + - Jim Gray is Missing
K-Man writes: "Jim Gray, Turing Award winner and developer of many fundamental database technologies, was reported missing at sea after a short solo sailing trip to the Farallon Islands near San Francisco. The Coast Guard is still searching for his vessel, and there have been no distress calls or signals of any kind."
