On commercial tech transfer park of major university campus, experience was similar. Many startup businesses started off with full Linux, servers and desktops. But as they expanded, the desktops moved to Windows and Mac. They kept the Linux servers. The Linux desktops provided too many issues. Exception was scientific and technical companies where the users preferred Linux for their special applications.

On the other hand, a moon mission interfaced a host of complex systems including the lives of the astronauts. Difference is the level of integration of QA into the project.

"... a conspiracy so immense and an infamy so black as to dwarf any previous venture in the history of man." But this quote is from Senator Joe McCarthy back in the 1950s. Look up Joseph McCarthy in the Wikipedia if you don't know who that was. Yep, I was a young boy back then; really that old. Seen all this before. Beck is just a pale shadow of what happened in those days. Sigh. Wish I could go back there, Senator Joe and all!

I don't see the Chinese ticking off a major oil supplier. China has nothing to win and much to lose in doing so. Stux (sounds like Tux) looks to me like the work of Nixie! Nixiepixel. Mother of All Evil.

Patent attempt is a waste of money, but the "zeal" and "company loyalty" demonstrated by wasting time and money while increasing hatred for Microsoft will undoubtedly get someone a nice promotion. This is the way corporations work ... and the military, educational establishments, and governments.

Youtube and look up Guild Wars 2 Manifesto. GW 2 out within the next year, no monthly fee, no ripoff company store. Been playing GW 1 for the last 5 1/2 years. Geek game, playable solo, rather a challenge; need to be able to read forums and the wikis. Excellent music, graphics rather like playing inside an oil painting. Lots of quests, missions. But beyond that even more to do if you are a self starter. Only game I play these days, whether I have a few minutes to spare or an evening. Guild Wars 2 will be a much different game from either GW 1 or WoW. Keep an ear open for GW 2 release info.

Command and Conquer Renegade! Really liked Renegade. If anyone could get the rights and do a remake with the quality of Borderlands, and multiplayer they would rule! But it won't happen. Sigh.

No sense of achievement for me in "finishing a game." Been there done that. These days I only play for fun. It is in the playing of a game that there is the fun. The ending only gets in the way. Then too, most new games have nothing new for me. I often watch a few minutes of game play on YouTube and decide I would be equally bored with the game itself in a few minutes. So, I have my favorites. I play those very much and an awful lot! But none of my favorites are the sort of games that hold up an ending as a shining goal.

100% agree except it's really Activision these days with their unspeakable CEO who holds gamers in contempt. No more for me either.

Shirt pocket mini notebook. Larger notebooks. Sticky notes. Random sheets of paper. Index cards, lots of these! Chaos, but I know where everything is. In my profession, I use a Rolodex program, but all the really important contact info goes onto a paper Rolodex.

Was big fan of games produced by the old Blizzard. But once they became Activision, decided to move on. Not a boycott, just seemed the right thing to do. Life is better now.

This is why the Ruling Ring had to be destroyed in Lord of the Rings. Even Caesar Nero started out as a good guy. Power corrupts and the more power the more corrupt.

I pre-ordered it. Regret it, as do many others who fell for the hype. See Civfanatics Civ V forum. Game barely out of beta. Lots of technical issues. Freezes, crashes, causes hot wind like unto a hair dryer to blow out the back of your computer. AI said to suck. I would not know. Could not get it to stay up long enough to find out! For anyone wishing to play Civ, Civ IV BTS (recommended) or Civ 3 Complete is a much better deal if only because they have full expansions, are at mature patch level, and they work!

I am in favor of licensing citizens without criminal records to own firearms. However, before you leave the gun shop the gun owner should have valid certificates from certified gun safety training schools. Add a tax about equal to the price of the firearm. Use that money to enforce licensing. Add to this expensive fines for violation of hunting or gun use regulations with payment of property damages. Want to shoot an insulator? Go right ahead, but the fine for that would be $20,000 plus all expenses for repair plus court costs, plus paying for the time spent by law enforcement on the violation. Oh. And for malicious destruction of property, the license to own firearms is permanently suspended and all firearms confiscated.

Paypal is for small sums only. Never trust them with an amount you cannot afford to lose.