Since we're talking about discoveries that may lead to faster computers, these are the solutions it may use:
  * Texas A&M Research Brings Racetrack Memory a Bit Closer -> http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/10/12/01/0552254/Texas-AampM-Research-Brings-Racetrack-Memory-a-Bit-Closer
  * SanDisk, Nikon and Sony Develop 500MB/sec 2TB Flash CardSanDisk, Nikon and Sony Develop 500MB/sec 2TB Flash Card -> http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/10/12/01/1322255/SanDisk-Nikon-and-Sony-Develop-500MBsec-2TB-Flash-Card

My great-grandchildren will have screaming fast cell phones!

Dan

Great, now I know I'm even WORSE at solving it than ever...

Dan

...and with the price of flash memory so low, it would be pretty easy to hide a little digital camera to snap photos of the person as they put the card in and/or stood in front of the machine. It would be easy to download those too and if they saw a few with the manager and a customer standing and pointing at the machine they would know that the gig was up and to just walk away.

I'm really thinking the cash idea is the way to go from now on. :-(

Dan

At most gas stations the price setting is done remotely from inside the building (probably along with the big digital sign price too).

Dan

Seconded. Just a year ago I upgraded from my 4+ year old laptop with a 17" 1920x1200 resolution screen (LOVED IT!) to a new 18" laptop with 1920x1080. I thought I wouldn't notice those missing 120 lines...boy was I wrong.

My only options at the time (taking other requirements into consideration) were to drop down to a 16" screen (and missing some other features), or go up to this laptop that's trying to be a portable home-theatre system...and that's the crux of this problem.

The display industry is so facinated on the HDTV aspect that they think EVERYTHING needs to max out at 1920x1080, or the cinema spec of 16:9. My wifes new desktop came with a 1600x900 screen and it really sucks. With all the menubars that IE and Firefox insist on putting at the top, and then the big taskbar at the bottom you end up having a narrow band to read in. Add in the fact that most sites put adds down the left and right sides, and the effective usable resolution of the screen is about 640x480.

And don't get me started on the "glossy" screens that are standard today...yech.

Dan

Now they can give those birds a rest!

Dan