It sounds like you never aspired to striking it rich, nor becoming senior management. It sounds like you want a secure job that will last you until you retire.

IMHO, this transition forces you to find a family-owned business or a private company who doesn't focus solely on the bottom line. It does limit your options, but who cares? It sounds like you don't want 100x options, but you want a stable job until retirement.

In that case, go ahead! Keep learning, keep your skills up to date, and you will do great! Just don't expect a high wage, or to get paid like you are an industry veteran. You pay will be comparable to an entry-level programmer (or a bit better). Don't beg for promotions, stay low-cost, and you will do fine.

I disagree. The backlash being created at this very moment is enough to convince management NOT to include it.

I will bet there are many people within M$ who disagree with the "Always On" requirement, and this is ammunition for their counter-argument. If it wasn't for this twitter-gaff, you might see Always-On, but because it happened, we will probably see this requirement removed.

I have my PC connected to a 57" plasma 1080p HDTV. I love Steam, and I tried to play games on the TV using steam before big picture. I could not read the text unless I was 5' away, and that was primarily because it was massively pixelated.

This format would help deliver sharper text for my HTPC. I would love it.

Once legislation is passed, there will be a huge boom in the commercial sector for UAV's. We need laws that will protect the citizens, yet open the air for commercial endeavors. Here are a few examples:

Radio strength mapping (UAV + radio + data logger to determine radio coverage, such as cell phone or Wi-Fi)
Physical Power line monitoring and maintenance (UAV+Camera)
Building surveys (Contractor/consultant uses a UAV to examine the exterior of a building, looking for thermal leaks or structural cracks)
Advertising (Get those impossible images without hiring a helicopter)
Agriculture: Property monitoring without installing extensive CCTV system.

There are many uses for commercial UAVs. I hope the laws will allow start-ups to compete with the large organizations.

While that is good to know, I'm more interested in the rumor that xbox 360 games may run on Windows 8. Unfortunately, it may include a monthly fee like XBL.

http://www.insideris.com/more-xbox-360-games-on-windows-8-details/

I grew up in a heavily conservative environment. Each new piece of technology was seen as a new way for the devil to attack, signaling the arrival of the anti-christ. This included...
Credit cards: Banks want you to use credit cards because it assigns you a number, and numbering the people was something that the anti-christ did.
ATM Machines: Something about not carrying cash was evil. Not sure what that was about.
RFID: They want to implant them into your body. The resulting scar was the mark of the beast.

If they couldn't find a rational reason to explain their fear of a new technology, they blamed it on the anti-christ.

Have you ever gotten a copyright infringement letter? If not, then this probably won't apply to you.

Read the last two paragraphs of the article.

Essentially, after 6 notifications where they contact you about your infringing activities, they will throttle your internet, and possibly disconnect you until you contact them and have a chat about copyright laws.

While I don't like the thought of being disconnected, I really don't like the thought of the government getting involved. (Protect IP Act, anyone?)

This does look promising.

If they truly allow group video conferencing using a browser, I will certainly use it.
If they truly implement voice chat, I would gladly replace Skype, possibly even Vent. (Depends on how it gets implemented)
If they implement group chat that works across cell platforms, I will certainly use it. I would love to use something like this to organize weekly spontaneous events instead of massive text messages. (Email is too slow and unreliable for the last-minute changes, phone calls takes too long.)

However...
This must be painfully easy to use, no special invites and 10 day waiting lists. If this thing gets rolled out using small groups, it will die.

I truly hate this statement. We DO NOT understand outer space more than our oceans.

We don't understand outer space enough to ask the proper questions. People are making assumptions that planets outside of our solar system are composed of 118 elements, and that is all. (Just another hunk of rock/gas)... This is a dumb assumption to make.

Our oceans are finite, so there are a finite number of questions to ask. Space, to our understanding, is infinite. Therefore, we will never understand outer space as well as we can know our own oceans.

I HATE ads. HATE.

I am willing to pay more for ad-free TV. Hulu seemed like the perfect platform, but they wouldn't shut up and take my money. Cable companies offer DVR's for an extra $5 to $10 a month, which seems equivalent to paying for TV without ads.Why can't Hulu do the same? I never did Hulu+ because it still contained ads.

Businesses are so focused on selling ads that they forget about just using paid subscriptions. Sure, ads provide income above and beyond the subscription, but if you are trying to grow, you need to offer something better than what everyone else does.

Life is too short to spend it watching ads. That is why I love watching old shows using Netflix.

You forgot all of the extra safety equipment that must be included to compensate for the full wattage range. That will increase the cost.

While I fully support a standard connector, I hope they realize that this will increase the electricity consumption of these devices, along with increasing the price of each charger.

With that being said, I significantly prefer convenience over efficiency, so I am looking forward to what they come up with.

They will get asked for money on a yearly basis.

I'm not going to say this is the start of the end, but it certainly shows that people are no longer "excited" about the social network world.

People are noticing real-world consequences to the privacy issues, reducing the amount of interesting stuff that people will post. I've run into employer issues, I've had relatives with relationship issues, and I've read enough about legal issues to be wary about what I post. Add in the number of businesses embracing Facebook, and you start to see why "social networks" have reached a saturation point.

It still has its uses. It is more personal than email (great for keeping your family updated on life events). It is easier to control reoccurring events, such as birthday parties and pick-up games in the park. It is also easier to ignore people on Facebook than through email. I will continue to use it about as regularly as I use my email, but that doesn't mean I like it.

Good rant... until you said "Lunatic Right".

Can you just say "Lunatics"? There is no reason this should be a "party" issue, and using terms like this only encourages party politics. You may be right, but that doesn't mean that it helps the situation.