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Comment Re:On the subject of games (Score 4, Interesting) 200

Well, to be fair there's a lot more to SC2 than just build-orders. :-) Build orders are mainly concerned with the "macro" aspect of SC2 gameplay, which is base management and economy, and they're also relevant only in the opening. Everything past the 7 or 8-minute mark is beyond build orders. Good micro (unit-level manipulation of movement and actions), harassment of workers, and timed expansions all kick in after that point, and those become the difference between winning a game and losing a game.

Also, there is an element of "good practices" in SC2. Rushes, especially "all-in" rushes (referred to by TFA) are generally considered bad practice. Beating your opponent every time is cool, but this is usually indicative of a game imbalance that Blizzard will probably patch at some point down the line, at which point you'll rapidly fall in the leagues as you lose to high-level players clued in on countering that or who simply have the good practices to beat it (like early scouting, etc.).

The other (more important) factor is that a gamer specializing in an all-in rush deteriorates his/her gameplay, because he won't have the variety to compensate for a failure of that rush. A rush usually means a sacrifice of something or the other (the tight game-mechanics of an SC2 opening means there's always an opportunity cost; to get that extra army, your economy suffers, or to get those extra resource-collectors, your army will be smaller). All-in rushes, and rushes in general sacrifice some thing or the other which a good opponent can exploit if he/she manages to push back the rush. Someone over-playing one tactic will lack the skills to compensate for its failure, so varying one's game by mastering different build-orders and plays is the better way to do this (if slower).

Submission + - Tech Sector Slow to Hire (nytimes.com) 1

Iftekhar25 writes: The New York Times has a frontpage article about soaring unemployment rates for IT in the US (6 percent) despite a tech sector that is thirsting for engineering talent. It reads: '[Many] high-tech companies large and small say they are struggling to find highly skilled engineering talent in the United States. "We are firing up our college recruiting program, enduring all manner of humiliation to try to fill these jobs," said Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin, an online brokerage agency for buying and selling homes that is based in Seattle and San Francisco. "I do think we're still chasing them, not the other way around."'

Comment Stupid Flamebait Topic... (Score 1) 436

This is a stupid, flamebait, troll's topic. "iOS and OS X will merge, THEREFORE... all apps will be solely distributed by Apple in a walled garden."

Where's the logical connection there? How do you get from one to another? Why not conclude that since iOS and OS X will merge, the app distribution model will completely open up like on OS X? Mac OS X doesn't even have an activation key, for goodness sake. Apple is the patron of many an open source project, including WebKit which is the most prolific rendering engine on mobile devices. No, no, the geek outrage on /. is reserved for the App Store.

If anything, Apple has shown itself to be responsive to the market. From opening up the SDK, to multitasking, to a host of other issues, they wear their ignorance on their sleeve and they have shown themselves to be responsive, and when the market speaks, Apple will, I believe, listen.

If it doesn't, it will fade away into obscurity like many tech companies before it. Sheesh.

This topic (and most of the ensuing Apple-hating group think on slashdot) is sheer bullshit. I got karma to burn, make my day.

Comment Re:I'm a Muslim... (Score 4, Informative) 677

I agree with you on that but it's during these times that Muslims least want to be identified as such. Muslims watch the same news you do and we have a pretty good idea what's going through the average person's mind. And it's not your fault either, that's the admission: if I was not a Muslim I'd be pretty mad at Muslims too (in fact even as a Muslim I'm fairly annoyed).

And so the moderates are kind of, I feel from personal experience, in limbo. Now is the worst possible time I can imagine to have to admit being even remotely associated with people I deeply disagree with and, in fact, have very little in common with.

It's really a weird spot to be in. They're a half a world away, I disagree with them (and honestly kind of dislike them), but somehow I need to dissociate myself from them.

It's an unenviable position to be in for any reasonable person, Muslim or not. All reasonable dialogue is drowned out by shouts of exclusion from both sides. The best time to talk is usually after the full-throated yelling has ended, and is best demonstrated by actions rather than words.

These things really set back that long term, grassroots dialogue back. Depressing.

Comment I'm a Muslim... (Score 5, Interesting) 677

And even if I am offended (which I reserve the right to be), I don't think any of this should be happening (i.e., censorship). There has been defamatory material on the prophet for centuries, and in fact were around even during his time. This is nothing new; anyone as prominent as him had to have grown pretty thick skin to get anything done.

His followers 14 centuries on, however, can't seem to follow in his footsteps even half as much as they claim they do.

Every time something like this comes up, I try to dig a hole and disappear best I can. Yet another dysfunctional government like Bangladesh or Pakistan come up with a way to do their magical rabble-rousing and distract from the real issues at hand: economic development, education, and healthcare. All of which they are failing *miserably* at.

This is all *political*. Almost all Muslims (both in the "West" and in the "East") have no beef with anyone or anything, and just want to go ahead living their lives. These idiots in government, who can't even ensure their citizens get basic utilities like garbage collection and electricity, are spending their energy on some drawings, which is perverse on multiple levels.

The minority here is basically speaking for the majority. And honestly... the majority (like me) are looking to dig their own holes as well. We don't want to stick our heads out because we don't want the confrontation. This isn't something we particularly care about. I honest to goodness don't want to argue about the merits and demerits of my faith with some of the slashdotters on here, who are convinced that Muslims "don't belong."

But someone's gotta say it. Most of us are not like this. Most of us just want to get on with our lives. Please don't let the vocal minority dominate the debate. This is political distraction tactics and has little or nothing to do with free speech, Facebook, or the prophet.

Movies

Emmerich Plans Foundation As a 3D Epic 283

spuke4000 writes "Roland Emmerich, the writer/director/producer behind Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, and 2012 is planning to adapt Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. The plans include using technology developed for Avatar including 3D and motion capture technology. When asked about using this technology Emmerich responded: 'It has to be done all CG because I would not know how to shoot this thing in real.'"
Music

EMI Sues Beatles Usurper Off the Net 358

blackest_k sends along a Wired piece on EMI's successful suit to get Beatles music off the Net. Here is the judge's ruling (PDF). "A federal judge on Thursday ordered a Santa Cruz company to immediately quit selling Beatles and other music on its online site, setting aside a preposterous argument that it had copyrights on songs via a process called 'psycho-acoustic simulation.' A Los Angeles federal judge set aside arguments from Hank Risan, owner of BlueBeat and other companies named as defendants in the lawsuit EMI filed on Tuesday. His novel defense to allegations he was unlawfully selling the entire stereo Beatles catalog without permission was that he — and not EMI or the Beatles' Apple Corp — owns these sound recordings, because he re-recorded new versions of the songs using what he termed 'psycho-acoustic simulation.' Risan faces perhaps millions of dollars in damages under the Copyright Act. And copyright attorneys said his defense was laughable and carries no weight."
Google

Dashboard Reveals What Google Knows About You 260

CWmike writes "Ever wonder exactly what Google knows about you? Google took a step today to answer that question with the unveiling of Google Dashboard, which is designed to let users see and control the copious amounts of data that Google has stored in its servers about them. 'Over the past 11 years, Google has focused on building innovative products for our users. Today, with hundreds of millions of people using those products around the world, we are very aware of the trust that you have placed in us, and our responsibility to protect your privacy and data,' Google said in a blog post today. 'In an effort to provide you with greater transparency and control over their own data, we've built the Google Dashboard.' Dashboard is set up so that users can control the personal settings in each Google product that they use. Google said the tool supports more than 20 products, including Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Web History, YouTube, Picasa, Talk, Reader, Alerts and Google Latitude. Consumer Watchdog said in a statement today that it applauds Google for giving users a single place to go to manage their data. But at the same tine, the group also came down hard on Google, contending that it needs to give users a vehicle for stopping the company from collecting any personal data."

Comment Re:ISS spotting (Score 1) 183

If you've got a Twitter account, Twisst is a wonderful service which will send you a message, giving you about a day's warning to the next overpass. Since it gets your city from Twitter, it directly gives you a time and direction to look towards. It's a lot of fun, and very easy to remember to watch out. Check it out.

Transportation

Toyotas Suddenly Accelerate; Owners Up In Arms 1146

cyclocommuter writes "Some Toyota owners are up in arms as they suspect that accidents have been caused by some kind of glitch in the electronic computer system used in Toyotas that controls the throttle. Refusing to accept the explanation of Toyota and the federal government (it involves the driver's-side floor mat), hundreds of Toyota owners are in rebellion after a series of accidents caused by what they call 'runaway cars.' Four people have died." The article notes: "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has done six separate investigations of such acceleration surges in Toyotas since 2003 and found no defect in Toyota's electronics."
Displays

Android Phone Turned Into Virtual Reality Goggles 103

andylim writes "After years of hype surrounding virtual reality, including the classic '90s movie The Lawnmower Man, few of us can claim to have experienced virtual reality at home. But what if you could build your own virtual reality goggles without having to spend a fortune? Using an HTC Magic and Google Street View, Recombu.com made a simple pair of virtual reality goggles that let you immerse yourself in distant locations. As the article points out, you can also use these goggles with augmented reality apps — although you probably don't want to walk around with them all day long."

Comment Re:Seriously? (Score 1) 235

Nope, that's because the people who would use Perl to "throw together a website" are now using PHP and its libraries instead, and good for them. People interested in writing games, applications or well-designed websites (to say nothing of its core "throw together a script or one-liner" market) still use Perl.

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