Interestingly, as a tier-2/regional operator, these cache devices are hard to get because they fill a certain role. We have worked with Netflix to try and get the caching device, and it just doesn't do any good if you have less than 3-4gbps of pure Netflix traffic. It does not work because the caches have to ... populate the cache! They do this regularly, and the do it overnight -- but it is an absurd amount of data, especially when there are multiple bitrates. I am told that the cache runs > 1.5gbps to populate, almost nightly. So if you don't push significantly more than that, it is not a cost winner.

As a transit provider/local ISP/bandwidth buyer, 3+gbps is a lot of traffic. We found it mildly more attractive to buy a 10gbps wave to a Netflix-available peering point and peer directly with them than to buy 2+gbps of transit from Level3/Cogent/HE, especially factoring in last mile costs.

Also of note, my own traffic engineering testing shows that Netflix *strongly* prefers Hurricane Electric (as of last fall), then Cogent, then Level3.

There is a really horrible hole between 1gbps and 10gbps of consumption that there isn't a good solution for. Netflix knows about it, but it is a very difficult target to hit -- it may be cheaper to buy transit, or it may not be, but hardware isn't the answer. This same situation exists for all CDNs - limelight, edgecast, akamai, L3.

As usual, peering is the answer. Our customers pay us to bring them Netflix ... so we buy a wave and backhaul it hundreds of miles to satisfy them. It'd be ridiculous for me to charge Netflix when my customers are asking for it!

This. Pilot G2 ultrafine (.38) are fantastic! Very narrow tip, tough, gel ink so no blobbing, instant drying. Very nice.

Like most people on /. I carry a phone that has a handy-dandy built-in notes app and a calendar.

I use those tools, and with the aid of categorizing things as (not)?urgent|important (thanks 7 habits!), I do a great job of staying on top of my life -- from learning to play the guitar to today's work deliverables.

Things that are *important* get stuck into my Notes for the day, and added to my to-do-list when I get to a computer. Urgent or time-sensitive things get calendared for a specific time with notes attached immediately.

Another huge thing I do is /routine/. If I water the lawn every morning at 7:00am, I don't ever wonder what I'm doing at that time of day: I'm watering the lawn. Same goes for checking my email -- I do that on a very set schedule so that I can focus on whatever else in the meantime.

I think it was in Memento where it was said that Habits and routine make life livable. Throw in some discipline and you should never forget to buy your girl flowers ever again :D

This is nothing new. Hosted/PBXs have been getting blown up by dedicated/VPS/cloud/whatever for ages now, all attempting to call farawayistan or $asian_country. Drop at the edge, drop at the edge.

RK

Minesweeper is serious business!
http://tinyurl.com/2ah8xc

Do what I did - call them up and give them hell for such a BS practice.

Every single card I have done so gave me a *LOWER* rate than I had before, and 2 of them increased my credit limit at the same time.

I think they're doing it to pad their income by gouging their ignorant/non-informed customers where they can ... but they also -reeally- want to keep their good, paying, happy customers.

I believe this is almost entirely due to the state of the higher education system. Computer Science seems to be focused on two things: proving the the professor is smarter than everyone else in the room, and teaching people how to claim the work of the smartest person they are working with.

As long as professors are required to do more research than teach, and allowed to teach without being taught how, the value of a college degree will continue to decline.

As to your point, few people with a computer science degree have ever been taught anything. The professors get away with not teaching a damn thing by using the "group project" system where they can be sure that those in the class that know what they are doing, have good research skills, or a talented friend, will do all of the work for the group. This allows 50% or more of the students to pass their class without understanding a thing. It's just another memorize key facts and puke experience for most of them.

Instead of complaining about how people ask for help, or how they train others, show them the right way. It takes a little time and patience, but it does wonders for the group.

Yes, your state is so very progressive that Prop 8 passed easily. Add that to your comment and it begins to look like California is a bunch of people that hate everyone, but expect those people to pay for what they consume.

Apparently, I was wrong about the meaning of progressive. Of course, so is the Democratic party.

I hate the politicization of words, 'they' never bother to look them up first.

Wow, the summary is totally right for once - watching the screencast makes the features actually seem desirable.

Normally you just download the software and are sort of pleasantly surprised when you find a new feature, or similarly disappointed when there are none. In this case, it actually makes me /want/ to download FF3 and get to having some of those neat widgets.