Organized enough so I can find things when I need them.

Organization must be functional. Organization for the sake of organization is a waste of time and energy.

...lazy laura

The best perk for me has always been interesting work in a congenial environment. Everything else is secondary. It helps to be a senior person, so my tasks are usually along the lines of "Figure out $newtechnology. Find a way for the company to make money with it."

I've worked for a number of companies who did the "we pay less but we're such a great place to work!" thing. Someday I'd like to at least visit a "we pay lots but it sucks to work here" company, just to see what it's like.

...laura

You guys have it all backwards the fact that it's a $4 textbook should prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the issue was not "gouging" by textbook manufacturers as some are insinuating. The price of the book was well within the purchase ability of anybody who wanted one.

If the book was $400, you guys would complain that piracy is justified because it's gouging. If it's $4 you complain it's justified because it's trifling.

In all seriousness, Back when I first went into science and engineering about 20 years ago, I thought it was because it was an ethical pursuit with basically honest and noble people.. unlike, say, finance or lawyering. I am not exaggerating nor trolling when I say that more than a decade of reading the lamest possible pseudophilosophical justification of copyright infringement in slashdot fora have well beaten that naivete out of me.

I'm such a cheap drunk that I voluntarily observe a limit of zero when I'm driving. I remember one night when I was tired and hungry and managed to get completely blasted on one can of american beer. :-)

For flying the limit is zero as well, with the requirement of eight hours from the last drink to takeoff.

The real solution is social: make it utterly unfashionable to drink and drive.

...laura

Honestly, how is this crap even slightly insightful when he starts with an absolute statement that is trivially disprovable with any number of european and antipodean examples?

Note that his claim isn't a nuanced on that gun bans don't work everywhere.. it's some a rant claim that they work precisely nowhere, which is self-evidently false.

"fucking retarded?" fucking retarded is making a claim that " gun bans have NEVER worked and will NEVER work" that is self-evidently false and acting like a blowhard in your cock-sure wrongness.

of course, i'm sure you'll now play games with what your definition of "work" is, but it doesn't matter. reasonable people know you're full of it.

somebody who cannot afford $500 on a phone should not be buying a $500 phone with effectively high interest rate payments spread over 2-3 years.

For some reason, developers are going to flock to build cheap games for this substandard performing platform. Furthermore, gamers are going to use this for some reason because...

This thing has cue:cat scale flop written all over it. We won't hear about it again after the media hype dies down, as, simply, except for people who find that they can repurpose the hardware, nobody will buy the thing.

/ just like linux on the desktop.

where exactly is your regression analysis showing those ads 'just don't work?' data please, or your comments are just so much wishful thinking / pseudo internet expertism.

/ nevertheless "+5, insightful" on slashdot, apparently :(

For my immediate family my computer-savvy Mom does first-level tech support. I'm second-level support.

Most of us use Macs, so the tech support requriements are minimal. :-)

...laura

Customers have choice. If you make content available under reasonable terms, they may be your customer. If not, they won't. I decided a couple of years ago that the cable company's terms were unreasonable, so I cancelled my cable. With over the air HD, internet streaming and DVDs, I don't miss it.

While many tv shows people have mentioned are from U.S. cable tv networks, I've seen top-quality stuff from other sources. Recent faves include Borgen and Scott & Bailey, both from "regular" (albeit European) TV channels. Who would have thought Danish parliamentary democracy would make such gripping drama? And Janet and Rachel can arrest me any time they like. :-)

I've watched Borgen on DVD, and am currently streaming S&B on youtube. When ITV get around to releasing series 3 on DVD I'll buy it. Reasonable terms, remember.

...laura

While I think of it: a few years ago I was talking to people about some recent historical events, and the subject of 11 September 2001 came up. One person had an interesting response:

"Give me a break. I grew up in Northern Ireland."

...laura

The news coverage leaves a lot to be desired, IMNSHO.

Something terrible happened. People were hurt. People died. Not good.

The authorities are investigating. As they should.

They caught the pricks. They wasted one in the process. Good.

The hysterical saturation coverage of all of this, however, gives these sick fucks and their filthy ilk exactly what they want: free publicity, plus public fear.

I've tried to avoid the coverage. It's difficult at times...

...laura

I follow a simple rule: as soon as somebody uses the term "fiat currency", i stop paying attention to them just like i stop paying attention to people who use terms like "libs" or "personal lord and savior."

Double Bullshit, karma-whore.

Of course, there are plenty of problems for which excel is not suitable, such as when the data sets get too large. However, for quite a few other real world problems, it is far more than adequate. Anyway, this is slashdot so note how this was sold as an "Excel error" when clearly it was an operator error.

I view the point as moot: almost all food already is genetically modified, through selective breeding. Many things we eat bear little resemblance to their wild ancestors.

I'm more concerned about companies asserting intellectual property rights to food.

I'm also concerned about the "oppose everything" mentality. Some day something will come along that really is worth opposing and people will tune out because the tinfoil hat brigade have cried wolf too many times.

...laura