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Comment Curved Computer Screens (Score 1) 261

The slight curvature also reduces visual geometric distortion. When you watch a perfectly flat TV screen, Soneira explained, the corners of the screen are farther away than the center so they appear smaller.

I have a 30" computer monitor at work, and while I like it better than my old dual-screen setup, I've noticed this issue with windows placed close to the edges. I wonder if there are curved computer monitors in the works, or if this is just for huge TVs. The main problem mentioned with curved TVs (distorted view for anyone off-center) would rarely be a problem with a screen that usually only has one viewer, and it would fix the edge distortion problem.

Comment Translation: (Score 1) 361

Mozilla would have preferred to see the content industry move away from locking content to a specific device (so called node-locking), and worked to provide alternatives.

Instead, this approach has now been enshrined in the W3C EME specification. With Google and Microsoft shipping W3C EME and content providers moving over their content from plugins to W3C EME Firefox users are at risk of not being able to access DRM restricted content (e.g. Netflix, Amazon Video, Hulu), which can make up more than 30% of the downstream traffic in North America.

Translation: We don't like this, but if we boycott it we are going to lose users to browsers run by companies more concerned about keeping media companies happy so they can keep licensing content.

Comment Re:Privacy only works when it's in your own hands (Score 1) 300

This is why I've never bothered with do-not-track settings. Not only is it wholly unenforceable, but it seems like a giant "Look at me!" sign. Given that the vast majority of people don't even know do-not-track exists and never change the default settings on any program, surfing with the do-not-track flag on seemed like a great way to tell the people I really don't want tracking me that I'm technically literate enough that they should pay closer attention to me.

Comment Re:Wanted (Score 1) 336

The surrounding metro areas may not have the dirt cheap rent like the city, but it is still going to be *much* cheaper than places like San Francisco. And if don't want an hour commute into the city, try living some place closer to the city than Troy.

Comment Re:Wanted (Score 3, Insightful) 336

Note that this article is about "metro Detroit", not "Detroit". Plenty of safe places to live in the Detroit metro area, especially on a tech worker salary, they're just outside the city proper. And even if the jobs were in actual Detroit, it's still possible to commute from outside the city. But whatever, it's an article mentioning Detroit, let's just bash Detroit.

Comment Re:Still getting outflanked (Score 1) 130

I'm not familiar enough with the inner workings of a CDN to say specifically, but I'm pretty sure something similar can be set up for live events. Instead of sending a single copy of an old show to a CDN to be distributed to all the downstream end users, a single live stream could be sent to a CDN equivalent and that could be forwarded to all the end users. Of course, I'm just a lowly end user spitballing here, so maybe I'm missing a huge hang up that would prevent this from happening.

Comment Still getting outflanked (Score 1) 130

I'm not surprised that the cable and satellite TV companies want to their branding and interface in front of Amazon and the like. But I thought the point of these boxes was so that eventually you don't need the cable and satellite TV companies and get everything steamed over the internet to the set-top box. Cable and satellite TV companies can't control the interface if you don't use their services.

Comment Re:Chromecast? (Score 1) 117

People are plugging the smartphones and tablets into the wall regularly due to regular use already, very rarely will you want to use it and have it be dead. And if you already have and use a smartphone or tablet, another remote is just another thing to get lost. And given my experience with the first generation Roku, I'll take a multitouch screen over arrow keys at least until the remote comes with a keyboard.

Comment Re:Chromecast? (Score 2) 117

Good lord what a moronic piece of drivel. It screams "I have no idea how this product works, but I won't let that stop me from bashing it!"

  • Are you the only person in the world without a charger in your house? If the battery on you phone or tablet gets that low, you can charge it while watching the show.
  • It is possible to share smartphones and tablets. Somehow multiple people can control a TV despite only one remote control.
  • Any device can control any Chromecast connected to the same wifi network. And can stop, pause, or rewind a program started by another device.
  • And the worst, most blatant example that you have no idea how the product you are bashing works. When it comes to streaming shows from the internet like on Netflix or HBOGo or whatever, Chromecast doesn't actually stream from the device that started the program. The device gives the Chromecast the location of the stream, and the Chromecast accesses it directly. If you need to run to the grocery store, it keeps playing even if you take your phone with you.

A someone that easily uses a Chromecast with my wife and children, you need to shut up until you learn about what you are bashing.

Comment Re:Fuck Google... (Score 3, Insightful) 117

And this is why you should buy a dumb TV and just use it as a display for smart devices. Whatever is added on to the TV is usually obsolete or dead long before the TV and can't be replaced, but a box or stick can. This has been the way to do it since they started coming out with TV/VCRs, and it's even more true more that input devices are advancing so much more rapidly.

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