DIGITAiLor - Slashdot User

Why Programmers Need To Learn Statistics 572

Posted by Soulskill on Saturday January 09, 2010 @06:36PM from the because-they-suck-at-poker dept.

David Gerard writes "Zed Shaw writes an impassioned plea to programmers: Programmers Need To Learn Statistics Or I Will Kill Them All. Quoting: 'I go insane when I hear programmers talking about statistics like they know s*** when it's clearly obvious they do not. I've been studying it for years and years and still don't think I know anything. ... I have taken a bunch of math classes, studied statistics in grad school, learned the R language, and read tons of books on the subject. Despite all of this I'm not at all confident in my understanding of such a vast topic. What I can do is apply the techniques to common problems I encounter at work. My favorite problem to attack with the statistics wolverine is performance measurement and tuning. All of this leads to a curse since none of my colleagues have any clue about what they don't understand. I'll propose a measurement technique and they'll scoff at it. I try to show them how to properly graph a run chart and they're indignant. I question their metrics and they try to back it up with lame attempts at statistical reasoning. I really can't blame them since they were probably told in college that logic and reason are superior to evidence and observation.'"

Whatever Happened To Second Life? 209

Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday January 05, 2010 @06:30AM from the i-blame-ralph dept.

Barence writes "It's desolate, dirty, and sex is outcast to a separate island. In this article, PC Pro's Barry Collins returns to Second Life to find out what went wrong, and why it's raking in more cash than ever before. It's a follow-up to a feature written three years ago, in which Collins spent a week living inside Second Life to see what the huge fuss at the time was all about. The difference three years can make is eye-opening."

Comment MOD PARENT UP! Re:Errrm, folks, what's the big (Score 2, Insightful) 273

by DIGITAiLor on Thursday February 07, 2008 @09:34PM (#22344086) Attached to: The Future of XML

Cheers, Qbertino. This is the best explanation of XML's raison d'etre I have ever heard.

I think what people might hate most is DTDs. That makes sense. Even their creator says they suck. There are many ways around them... Lisp can be one big full-service XML processor. Easily. With happy ending and no need for the DOM or SAX.

The bottom line is, XML is nothing (literally) until you spec YourML. And most people don't have a need for that! So it seems useless to them. If you are writing markup languages for application spaces that don't have them it's a godsend. And it is leading to improvements and much-needed standardization.

I've never understood why seemingly rational people whine about XML. It's like whining about mathematics. They're like that for a reason; their intrinsic structure provides their utility. It's not some arbitrary syntax decision that you can whine about. Don't like how modulo works or the concept of recursion? It's AXIOMATIC, baby. Don't like close tags? They're there for a reason.

As for a SQL replacement... have you checked out Berkeley DB XML? Have you found anything promising that you like?

Does It Matter Where Open Source is Based? 100

Posted by Zonk on Friday July 07, 2006 @05:04PM from the good-anywhere dept.

munchola writes "CBR has created a map of current open source software providers that contradicts the recent assertion of Alfresco's Matt Asay that "open source is not a Silicon Valley phenomenon". That statement has prompted a debate about the importance of location, involving Asay, Robert Scoble, and Dana Blankenhorn. A closer look shows that open source is very much a Silicon Valley phenomenon."

House Committee Approves 'Net Neutrality' Bill 198

Posted by Zonk on Friday May 26, 2006 @12:39PM from the hold-the-celebrations dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Ars Technica is reporting that the US House Judiciary Committee approved a bill yesterday that will prevent broadband providers from charging extra fees to websites for delivering their content to users." Ars's response is only guarded optimism, unfortunately. From the article: "The fate of the bill is not clear, as there are now two competing bills vying for the attention of the House floor. HR 5252, the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement Act, was overseen by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and is expected to be considered by full House. That bill is seen by some proponents of 'Net neutrality as being too weak, particularly after a Committee vote tossed aside an amendment put forth by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) that would have enshrined the principle of network neutrality into US law. There is speculation that today's bill, HR 5417, could be proposed as an amendment to HR 5252."

Critical Security Hole Found in Diebold Machines 306

Posted by Zonk on Friday May 12, 2006 @08:13AM from the want-my-money-back dept.

ckswift writes "From security expert Bruce Schneier's blog, a major security hole has been found in Diebold voting machines." From the article: "The hole is considered more worrisome than most security problems discovered on modern voting machines, such as weak encryption, easily pickable locks and use of the same, weak password nationwide. Armed with a little basic knowledge of Diebold voting systems and a standard component available at any computer store, someone with a minute or two of access to a Diebold touch screen could load virtually any software into the machine and disable it, redistribute votes or alter its performance in myriad ways."

The World's Largest Scavenger Hunt Returns 102

Posted by CowboyNeal on Friday May 12, 2006 @02:27AM from the still-haven't-found-what-i'm-looking-for dept.

mresolver writes "University of Chicago students have once again emerged from the library after a long winter to participate in the world's largest scavenger hunt. The multiple day event is famous for the working breeder reactor that students managed to build during the 1999 hunt. This year, the official list (PDF) includes a superconductor, working wood refrigerator, hot air balloon made to Montgolfier specifications, one-way funhouse mirror, and a walk-in Kaleidoscope."

SCOTUS To Hear Patentable Thought Case 394

Posted by Zonk on Sunday March 19, 2006 @01:45PM from the get-out-of-my-head dept.

skayell writes "The Supreme Court of the United States will hear a landmark patent case involving whether or not thoughts and relationships are patentable. Michael Crichton's essay in the New York Times attempts a thoughtful summary of Metabolite's primary assertion: they not only own the connection between homocysteine levels in the blood and vitamin B12 deficiency, but also any thought connecting the two."

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