Comment Restaurants (Score 1) 225
Most of the comments here are thinking too hard. In the US it's still common practice to give the waiter your credit card which they then take to the back of the restaurant to run it. Easy theft.
Comment On by default (Score 1) 128
Nevermind the fact that it is enabled and active by default on all versions of Microsoft/Office 365.
Comment News that matters? (Score 2) 28
Honestly. I'm not sure why I even come here anymore. It's either crypto or politics. I'm pretty sure most of the nerds left long ago.
Comment Re: Educate not Babysit (Score 1) 115
My first grader has more homework than I had throughout middle school.
Submission + - Renewable Microgrids show promise in real world (wired.com)
joemite writes: Wired Reports. Basalt Vista is designed to be an all-electric community that produces as much power as it uses. Each home comes outfitted with an electric vehicle charger in the garage, a large battery pack in the basement, and a roof covered with solar panels. The homes are linked together as a microgrid, a self-contained electricity distribution network that can operate independently of the regional electric grid. Their energy systems work together to balance the energy load across the neighborhood—the solar panels harvest energy, plugged in EVs can store electricity as needed, and large battery packs can supply power when the sun isn’t shining.
“Traditionally, we’ve delivered electric service over a one-way transmission and distribution grid from centralized power plants to relatively passive consumers,” says Bryan Hannegan, CEO of Holy Cross Energy, a small nonprofit utility that services Basalt, Aspen, and other nearby communities in Colorado. “That architecture is changing dramatically and consumers are now producing as well. Power plants are no longer large and centralized; they’re numerous and distributed.”
“Traditionally, we’ve delivered electric service over a one-way transmission and distribution grid from centralized power plants to relatively passive consumers,” says Bryan Hannegan, CEO of Holy Cross Energy, a small nonprofit utility that services Basalt, Aspen, and other nearby communities in Colorado. “That architecture is changing dramatically and consumers are now producing as well. Power plants are no longer large and centralized; they’re numerous and distributed.”
Comment Wall Wart? (Score 1) 297
I've never heard of the term Wall Wart. Is this really a common term?
Submission + - A Researcher Made an Organic Computer Using Four Wired-Together Rat Brains
Jason Koebler writes: The brains of four rats have been interconnected to create a "Brainet" capable of completing computational tasks better than any one of the rats would have been able to on its own.
Explains Duke University's Dr. Miguel Nicolelis: "Recently, we proposed that Brainets, i.e. networks formed by multiple animal brains, cooperating and exchanging information in real time through direct brain-to-brain interfaces, could provide the core of a new type of computing device: an organic computer. Here, we describe the first experimental demonstration of such a Brainet, built by interconnecting four adult rat brains."
Explains Duke University's Dr. Miguel Nicolelis: "Recently, we proposed that Brainets, i.e. networks formed by multiple animal brains, cooperating and exchanging information in real time through direct brain-to-brain interfaces, could provide the core of a new type of computing device: an organic computer. Here, we describe the first experimental demonstration of such a Brainet, built by interconnecting four adult rat brains."
Comment Let's have a poll to see where the polls should go (Score 1) 150
Let's have a poll to see where the polls should go, why not? Based on the comments, returning it to the previous location would be the likely winner.
Comment Re:"seems i should be paying less..." (Score 1) 208
You know what they say about assumptions...
Comment Re:So what your saying is (Score 1) 208
Well played, sir, there is a ~ $8-10 difference between 2005 and 2015 on $50 ... though I do believe all other aspects of technology have increase in speed and storage by orders of magnitude. So for $60 I should be getting a couple hundred Meg.
Comment Re:It's nonsense. (Score 2) 208
You make a good point... carrier grade equipment capable of routing this amount of data sustained is quite expensive... and probably only deployed at the backbone.
Comment Re:Your internet sucks (Score 1) 208
The problem is I live in the mountains about 5 miles from town. I am LUCKY to have Comcast. The other option is a wireless ISP that delivers about the same service for the price, just in a less reliable way.
I guess I do have CenturyLink as an option, for $25 I could get 1.5 Mbit... hardly unreasonable for the year 2000.
Submission + - Comcast planning a 2Gbps service (pcmag.com)
joemite writes: There's been a lot of talk about Google's 1Gbps "gigabit" Internet service, but Comcast said today that it is planning a 2Gbps service, beginning in Atlanta.
Submitter note: All of the ISPs seem to be "out-doing" each other in terms of offering faster and faster service, but why can't they compete on reasonable rates for "slower" speeds? My 5Mbit service from Comcast is currently costing me $50/month, about what it was 10 years ago. Seems that if they can push a 2 Gigs for a few hundred dollars, I could get at least get 50Mbit for what I'm paying now.
Submitter note: All of the ISPs seem to be "out-doing" each other in terms of offering faster and faster service, but why can't they compete on reasonable rates for "slower" speeds? My 5Mbit service from Comcast is currently costing me $50/month, about what it was 10 years ago. Seems that if they can push a 2 Gigs for a few hundred dollars, I could get at least get 50Mbit for what I'm paying now.
Submission + - AT&T Giving Away Nokia 900 Due To Software Glitch (torontosun.com)
joemite writes: On early Wednesday, Nokia said it had found a software bug in the new Lumia 900 smartphone, its big hope to take on Apple's iPhone, and was effectively giving the model away until it is fixed... It is offering anyone who has bought a Lumia 900 phone, or who buys one by April 21, a $100 US credit to their AT&T bill. The operator sells the phone for $99.99 with a two-year contract.
Both Microsoft and Nokia still have big hopes for this phone. The bug apparently causes a random data connection drop. Nokia plans to push a patch the phone later in April.
Both Microsoft and Nokia still have big hopes for this phone. The bug apparently causes a random data connection drop. Nokia plans to push a patch the phone later in April.
Comment Lunch is YOUR time. I Get In Shape (Score 1) 475
If it is mandatory to eat lunch with your teammates, then fine. But then it is not a required work break. Most places, unless you are salaried, by law you are required to take a break from work. i.e. it is your time and work cannot dictate what you do during this time. (As long as you come back on time and are still sober :) )
I've used my lunch hour as an opportunity to hit the gym 1-3 times a week. Nothing too intense. But I've been doing this for about a year now and it's amazing how much it has made a difference in my mood especially in the winter. An introvert myself, it also allows me to not have to talk to anyone for a while.
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