FreeCol is pretty fun.

Sometimes my scroll lock key switches desktops on my KVM, and sometimes my scroll lock key keeps me from scrolling off of the screen if I'm using synergy.

My OS is increasingly becoming just Firefox.

Was there an entry on how you are all hyper-sensitive and narcissistic and therefore prone take wide-sweeping generalizations personal? 'Cause there should be...

You've sort of muddled the comparison, due to the differences in addressing schemes.

Typing in "example" and being redirected to http://www.example.com/ is more like dialing 555-555-5555 and the country code being inferred, so you actually call 1-555-555-5555 (in the US, since I'm an insensitive clod). You might have meant to call China, but seriously, you probably didn't.

Further still, what IE is doing is essentially connecting you to your preferred operator (Debbie?) whenever "the number you dialed is no longer in service."

As a soon-to-be-graduating software engineering student, I would say that finding our own solution to this problem was always a useful exercise in every pair/group I've been in. And the solutions were ALL different, depending on the needs of the group.

You teach Java, stick to that. If you include more tooling in your class than just an IDE, you run the risk of coupling the tools and the language in the minds of your students, which will in turn make it difficult for them to transition into a job where the tooling is significantly different.

You'll also expand your job description to be tech support for whatever tool you choose, and you'll have to accept whatever problems and problem-generated excuses that tool generates. If you are tool-agnostic, you can be more of a hard-ass when an assignment is late or incomplete.

How many articles have there been ridiculing someone from some company or government agency that lost some data? OP did say it was for work, afterall. If he worked for me, I'd give him a raise for caring.

Maybe we're not afraid of the 'average thief' anymore, we just don't want pretentious slashdotters talking shit about how that would have never happened to them because they have X software on Y OS on Z hardware bla bla bla. And since we do all talk shit, maybe we're the people to ask for a solution.

or maybe not.

Fundamentals of Logic Design - Roth. Designed for a self-paced course taught at the University of Texas at Austin, so actually geared toward your needs. http://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Logic-Design-C-Roth/dp/0495073083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247594924&sr=8-1

my original comment was about the inappropriate use of the word baseband.

My argument here is that the ASDL signals are sent at a frequency higher than the voice traffic, not the baseband, since ADSL does not have a baseband. The use of the word "baseband" implies that ADSL data is analog, and it is not. It is digital. Yes, it's a nit-picky argument, but I clarified that the reason for this is because the original article (if you can call it that) was a rant about people using technically incorrect terminology.

OK, now you're referring to the IEEE 802.3 medium naming convention, which differentiates between "baseband" and "broadband," "baseband" meaning only one signal is sent at a time, whereas "broadband" means channelization is used to send multiple signals at once. ADSL over phonelines would therefore be "broadband," since there is definitely channelization going on, making the use of the term "baseband" still inappropriate.

The use of the word "baseband" is entirely inappropriate. Baseband refers to the frequency range of the original analog signal prior to modulation. It is only applicable when modulating an analog signal, such as upshifting an audio signal. ADSL is digital, so there is no "baseband." What you are referring to is the voice channel.

Lest we forget, we were originally discussing the incorrect usage of technical terms.

To go one step further with the explanation:

ADSL takes digital signals and modulates them into an analog signal. This analog signal is what is sent across the wires. This signal happens to be sent at a frequency much higher than voice traffic, as mentioned above, so that the two traffic flows can be split and handled separately. So there is, in fact, an AD converter, as well as DA.

The phrase "ADSL is solely digital" is not technically incorrect either, it's just digital traffic that is keyed with analog signals. For example, with FSK (Frequency Shift Keying), which is used in military radios to transmit digital data over radiotelephone ("walkie talkie") frequencies, one frequency is used to encode a '0' and a different frequency is used to encode a '1'. The signals sent are sinusoidal (analog) waves, but the data sent is still purely digital.

That's what SHE said!

If you're looking to hire an artist, ask for a portfolio. If you're looking for a coder, give them a few challenges during their technical interview.

Either way, seems an interview and some knowledge of the person's work will expose their skills and deficiencies, who cares what they call themselves?