[copied from another reply to a comment about it being grayscale]

True, that particular one is. They do sell color versions though, like this one with 1536 x 2048:

http://www.superwarehouse.com/EIZO_RadiForce_R31-BK_20.1_Black_LCD_Monitor/R31-BK/p/1503373

ASUS VW192T+ 19", 1680 x 1050, $120
http://www.superwarehouse.com/ASUS_VW192T+_19_Widescreen_LCD_Monitor/VW192T+/ps/1562122

ViewSonic VX1940w 19", 1680 x 1050, $150
http://www.superwarehouse.com/ViewSonic_VX1940w_19_Widescreen_LCD_Monitor/VX1940W/ps/1504859

Or if you want really high resolution (and have too much money):
EIZO RadiForce GS310-CL Single Head 20.8", 2048 x 1536, $6k
http://www.superwarehouse.com/EIZO_RadiForce_GS310-CL_Single_Head_20.8_LCD_Monitor/GS310-CL-SH-MMP3P/ps/1543964

Hawaii is now banned also.

You aren't going to trample the sovereignty of my state because you are too lazy to self report your out of state purchases to comply with your laws.

California charges a lot for energy. Where I live in SoCal it is tiered:

$0.115 / Kwh for the first 600 Kwh
$0.131 / Kwh for 600-780 Kwh
$0.259 / Kwh for 780-1200 Kwh
$0.378 / Kwh for 1200-1800 Kwh
$0.440 / Kwh for 1800+ Kwh

Of course, the primary electric consumer for me is the AC which pretty much eats up the first and second tier by itself in the summer time (I even have a modest (2200 sq ft), newer (2005), energy efficient house (yeah right, lying construction company)). So I'm pretty much stuck with $0.259 / Kwh for all my additional electronics (computers, TV, stereo, etc). Luckily it is just my wife and I and we had just ~$1800 in electric bills last year. I imagine kids (especially teenage kids like Lyod in the article) would increase the average monthly electric use significantly. I can't imagine cooling a larger house...

From the Article:

"Starting with high school math and science books, this initiative paves the way for easier access to free digital texts in California's schools."

"And now California has put out an initial call to content developers, asking that they submit high school math and science digital texts for our review."

My understanding of the Governor's message is that he is calling for solutions from content developers--anyone who is willing to create textbook material--for online or digital use. This is more than just a shift to a different medium, it is a direct challenge to the textbook monopolies. I'm sure current publishers will fight to maintain their stranglehold on the economy and politics of textbooks, and they may succeed in doing so, but this at least opens the door for more competition.

I hope...

I've always thought that California is too large to be a state. Seriously, too many people for a single state. The state has to manage too many minute details for it to be fair to all 36 million residents (yes, California is almost 12% of the nation's population and more people than all of Canada). It should be broken into several states that distribute the population somewhat evenly.

I've never viewed the community service requirement as "volunteerism". I've always thought of it as a way to expand a student's view of the world with a method that cannot be done in a classroom. I'm sure it fails to teach some students, and I'm sure some kid's parents are better able to expand their kid's view, but for the majority I think it is a good thing. My sister's kids were actually very excited to spend some time with the local fire department and help educate others about fire safety.

I've always thought of it as an extended field trip. A chance to see that there is more to education than classroom lecture and testing.

The problem with this argument is that printouts are not likely to be used multiple years in a row. The cost of a hard bound book is distributed over a period of many years (sometimes as much as 15), whereas you'll be reprinting almost every year.

My take on it is this:

Average junior high books:
Language Arts
Science
Math
Social Studies
Maybe Foreign Language/Art/or Music

At $100 a book, that's $500 per student initial investment. Expected lifespan, say 7 years? So rounded up to ~$75 per student per year.

At $250 per netbook, that's half the initial investment. Expected lifespan, say 3-4 years? So rounded up to ~$75 per student per year.

So their is probably minimal cost savings.

Primary benefits: Increased technology in the classroom, constantly updated online textbook material, saved some trees
Drawbacks: Stolen/damaged netbooks, netbook lifespan may be optimistic, school network infrastructure will need upgrades also

Can anyone think of more pros/cons?

Given the trend toward technology in the workplace, I think it's a good idea. But I don't think it will save money.

I never purchase new games anymore. Interestingly, it's not because I can't afford to drop $60 on the game, but because I just can't see the game being worth $60. For $60 I get 20 hours of content, maybe 30, I'm taking a risk on not liking the game, not being able to return it for a full refund, and encountering bugs or game play issues that are silly and frustrating. Not to mention the irritations of DRM.

I'd much rather wait a year or more and buy the game at $20 new on sale. I still get the same content, I get the benefit of a year's worth of reviews to decide if I like it, and most bugs and game play issues have been fixed. I just finished Mass Effect, loved it, and bought it new for $20 instead of $59 when it was released.

Publishers have definitely priced themselves out of my market and what I'm willing to spend on entertainment. Even though I can easily afford to pay more, I won't because it offends my sense of reasonable value. I think the turning point for me was around $40... anything more than that just seems like they are gouging me. I probably purchase 10-15 games a year, so assuming 10, if they priced at $40 they would get $400 from me, instead, I wait and they only get $200 from me.

Many Universities and third party vendors already have full access to Microsoft source code. You better believe that the US government and Department of Defense have access as well.

64GB of memory has been supported for a LONG time, especially with server class hardware. Usually requires a Xeon or Opteron processor.

From 2005: Opteron based: http://www.digitimes.com/mobos/a20050729PR208.html

Xeon based: http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=9&l2=39&l3=712&l4=0&model=2147&modelmenu=2

How about 256gb? http://www.supermicro.com/Aplus/motherboard/Opteron8000/MCP55/H8QMi-2+.cfm

Warning! Windows 7 allows people to steal your identity! *

* if you have browser cookies enabled and password caching and they have physical access to the keyboard.