Want to read Slashdot from your mobile device? Point it at m.slashdot.org and keep reading!

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×

Submission + - Why Printers Get No Respect (wsj.com)

Submitted by Crash McBang
Crash McBang writes: Out of Ink, Out of Luck, Why Printers Get No Respect — Fussy and prone to paper jams, the printer has been trying tempers in offices and homes since the dot-matrix days when paper came in perforated accordion stacks. As other gadgets, from flat-screen monitors to wireless mice, have sprinted ahead toward gasp-inducing irresistibility, one electronic gadget has failed to thrill: the printer.

So, slashdotters, who gets more TLC in your corner of the world? The PC or the printer?

Submission + - Trouble Sleeping? Maybe it's your computer (cnn.com)

Submitted by Crash McBang
Crash McBang writes: Suspecting that light at night was keeping him from a good night's rest, J.D. Moyer decided recently to conduct a little experiment with artificial light and his sleep cycle.

The sleep-deprived Oakland, California, resident had read that strong light — whether it's beaming down from the sun or up from the screens of personal electronics — can reset a person's internal sleep clock.

So, for one month, whenever the sun set, he turned off all the gadgets and lights in his house — from the bulb hidden in his refrigerator to his laptop computer.

It worked. Instead of falling asleep at midnight, Moyer's head was hitting the pillow as early as 9 p.m. He felt so well-rested during the test, he said, that friends remarked on his unexpected morning perkiness.

So, what do Slashdotters do to get a good night's rest?

Comment In order of preference (Score 3, Insightful) 520

by Crash McBang (#31963186) Attached to: Best Seating Arrangement For a Team of Developers?

1 - office w/door, see joel on software for an example
2 - cubicles w/entries facing a common area
3 - bullpen, desks in middle of room

Above all, have the team and management agree on a daily 2 to 3hr 'core time' when there are no conversations, pages, phones, meetings, or other distractions.

If everybody buys into core time, the cubes vs. offices, etc. will become a non-issue.

Comment My Experiment (Score 1) 706

by Crash McBang (#31802228) Attached to: Should Kids Be Bribed To Do Well In School?

We told the kids that they would get $1 for each 0.1 GPA point, e.g. a 3.5 GPA would get you $35.00.

Straight As got you $40, plus I would buy you anything you want, within reason. The 'within reason' part helped develop negotiating skills, an important thing to have for any adult :-)

Once they figured out what money was, what a GPA was, and how to figure their wages, they were off and running.

The first kid graduated from HS and went into business for himself, he now has several employees and is a 'computer consultant' and wireless ISP provider. He owns his own house at age 30, something I was not able to do at his age.

The second kid graduated from college with degrees in Marketing, Business, and French, on a volleyball scholarship, spent two years in France pretty much working and is now married and living in Alaska.

The third kid dropped out of HS, plays the guitar, WoW, and works at Subway. He's 20something and lives at home.

The fourth kid graduated HS, works two jobs, has her own apartment, and wants to become a fashion consultant.

So I guess the money thing works as long as the student makes the connection between money and work :-)

Slashdot Top Deals

Software production is assumed to be a line function, but it is run like a staff function. -- Paul Licker

Close