Posts by Jack Sprague

Pentagon spends $442m on 'multiple kill' space interceptors

re: anon and Russia

I believe that the video and article actually address your concern. Russia has technology that makes intercept problematic. But we are still in a MAD stance with them. A few interceptors one way or another makes no difference. Ditto with China in about a decade. BUT, Iran, North Korea and China for the next few years can only put up limited numbers of warheads, and accompany them with a small set of decoys. This is the operational realm that MKV is aimed at helping. If anybody takes a whim, to send a ballistic missile our way, or maybe even towards Europe. I think it would be nice to be able to knock it down. Or if you doubt the efficacy of the systems, at least make the shooters think twice that you can probably block their shot. Makes it easier to deal with them and NOT start a war tossing nukes.

Did the width move for you, darling?

New Format Still a Downer

Its been a few days, and the Reg has relented on two of the issues, but still insists on 'fixed-width' as a pillar of their new look and feel and control. I don't care fixed vs. variable EXCEPT for the effect it has on my scrolling requirements. THIS NEW FORMAT SCROLLS TOO MUCH. I know that most readers have their desktops with the fancy scroll wheel, and that may make things easier. BUT scrolling on my laptop is still a keyboard thing, and going down ALL the time, to sort through the main page, or to see every story, is just BAD DESIGN. Especially when you have limited yourself to the big gray sidebars for 'look and feel' reasons. Usability for the readers (ME!) is at least as important as the new ad-space, and I feel VERY shortchanged.

Going from unhappy to FLAME.

OMFG, what have you done?

New Format Downer

I will give the changes time, but to me, it looks like a sell-out. The ads all became bigger, and the available space to search for stories became smaller, and with much more need to scroll. A bit of a bother, and I will have to use my other news sites more often till I get used to the new format. The new icons for comments are also way too cute, in a bad way.

Endeavour space shuttle returns home

Greatest Living Spacecraft

I applaud the returning crew of Endeavour for a splendid job all around. It is remarkable that mankind has actually built the capability to launch things of that size, with payloads that big. And attach them to growing structures already in orbit. Work for almost a fortnight, and then land with more crew than originally lifted off. The Space Transportation System may not be everything we wanted when the first test article was named Enterprise, but the shuttle is by far the most capable and effective spacecraft yet developed. It is a very big shame that NASA and the US congress have decide to trash all that capability and go back to 'throwing rocks' like everybody else. No disrespect to all the other manned space systems out there, but a ballistic boost and ballistic reentry doesn't have nearly the flash and appeal that the winged orbiter brings to spaceflight.

Thumbs up for the job well done, thumbs down for the future plans with Aries.