Electric is included in my rent!

I'm closing on a house in less than a week though, so I'll just have to vote again once I do...

>> And Evolution is still a theory because fossil can only prove a species existed not that it turned into another. That can't be proven empirically.

Gravity is still a theory, too.

Speciation has been observed, but I'll concede the point that it hasn't been observed in dinosaurs.

I also made the biggest mistake of my life at a young age. It was somewhere about 4th grade (I was ~11 and I'm 29 now). I'd rather not go into details here, but I'm still dealing with it, too. FWIW, you're not alone :)

(Actually, I'd rather go back to a week before I did this and scare myself away from doing it, but since that's not what this poll is about, I voted option #1).

As with any project like this though, it's a good idea to double your budget for unexpected costs (~$12,000) and then double it again if you need someone else to do the machining** work.
...
**I have no idea what this would realistically cost. Anyone know better than me?

FTFM.

Hell, we already have computing devices for most of the stuff you discussed, and it doesn't make amateurs into decent shooters.

I think OP was thinking more along the lines of a benchmount rifle than augmenting a standard rifle. In that case, this idea is feasible (but the price is probably a bit low). Let's do a very rough breakdown:

M14 (.308) - $1800*
Laptop - $1000
Optics - $2000 (good optics are easily $1000, and making is adjustable to read mirage, etc might double the price).
Servos - $300?
Stock material - $500?
Various gears / connection hardware - $500?
Fabrication costs - $0 (if you DIY).
Programming - $0 (if you DIY)
Total: ~$6000

*You could use a Barrett .50 for $8000 but the M14 shoots quite well at 1000yd

As with any project like this though, it's a good idea to double your budget for unexpected costs (~$12,000) and then double** it again if you need someone else to do the work.
So let's say $25,000 for a computer-controlled, 1000yd capable benchrest rifle, with lots of budget padding.
**I have no idea what this would realistically cost. Anyone know better than me?

Of course, you could always bring costs down by starting small (decent .177 airguns are ~$300) and learning from your mistakes before moving up to larger calibers.

I love the idea of a hackerspaces, and I'd love to visit one on a regular basis, but the closest one is about a 90 minute drive (according to this link).

So I've been considering starting one (there would probably be plenty of interest in the region I live in - Albany, NY-ish), only I have no idea where to start - I've never been to one, and I'm not sure how much money I might lose in the process.

Do any /.ers know anything about starting a hackerspace? What kind of equipment should I get first? How much space would I need? What would I probably do wrong?

I realize I'm being lazy by asking here, but I only got the idea recently (I only heard about hackerspaces earlier this year) and haven't really had much time to research the concept.

Okay, serious question time: how do I tell the RIAA that I'm in the same boat as you?

I never click the buy button in Pandora because I listen mostly from work, but I do write down the song names and look them up later. So how can I let the RIAA know about this? I suspect there are lots of people who do something similar.

When did you take driver's ed? When I took it (1998), there was no such rule.

As soon as the ads stop delivering viruses, I'll stop blocking them.

The Epic Fail comes from the fact* that they used a cluster of PS3s to actually compute the private key.

* Not really, but it WOULD make it funnier