Posts by bombastic bob 7482 posts • joined 1 May 2015
With my stupid ideas of salary tied to what the employee brings to the company, I would probably bankrupt every multi-billion international corporation in a month.
This kind of thinking (i.e. salary tied to what the employee brings to the company) seems to work well for smaller companies. They can't afford to become top-heavy bureaucracies with internal power struggles and territorial disputes. So they do what YOU suggest, instead...
"So what's the point of shifting everything around into a place that's still a Control Panelly sort of space?"
It's about the CONTROL, and not the "Panel" we're used to (for windows 7 holdouts, anyway). Micros~1 will FORCE YOU to like "Settings" by MAKING you use it!
(it's kinda like holding your dog's nose in whatever it was he did that you do not like. He probably won't get the message, other than "you are bigger than me and can do this")
Once people have tasted freedom, taking it away will result in a HUGE backlash.
'Perestroika' backfired for the USSR, but for a slightly different reason. When USSR-ians got a taste of capitalism and freedom, they wanted MORE, IMMEDIATELY. HK already had this to some extent, and now way LESS. Taking what little freedom they had away like that isn't going to have good consequences.
I expect a LOT of China's citizens quietly rebelling, in subtle yet significant ways, so as not to be the nail that sticks out that gets the hammer. And in HK, I expect it to get _EVEN_ _LOUDER_. At some point, you just "press F-it". Something about not being able to govern against the will of the people, and when there's NO HOPE and nothing left that has not already been taken away, many will "press F-it" and do what desperate people do... reminding us of Tiananmen Square.
" it will be a big job to move to another language; although this task might attract developers who aren't interested in being maintainers."
Before creating and jumping onto a new bandwagon, a bit of recent history: Kotlin uptake isn't happening at the rates that Google might want, for Android development, and it is ALSO important to keep your existing staff from quitting over having to spend month(s) re-learning and _ESSENTIALLY_ becoming like N00Bs again for a while...
Yes. I'm CONFIDENT it is true: Experienced coders like the results of being experienced, knowing what the code should look like, avoiding what would otherwise be the drudgery of going over insignificant details and nuances of "new shiny" lingo, and getting FREQUENTLY OUTRAGED at perceived UNNECESSARY errors and warnings. Those tedious 'learn new instead of using experience' things while STILL getting the fixes and new features done on time keep programming from being *fun*... and if it's not *fun*, and you are volunteering, you tend to *QUIT*.
Learning is fun if you're NOT under the gun. Taking a month (or more) off from anything resembling productivity and getting things accomplished... NO THANK YOU!
So if Java coders (for Android) are holding back on a switch to Kotlin, even for NEW projects, maybe not such a good idea to switch from C to Rust.
(being old enough, I have seen a lot of "new shiny" lingo hype, most of which sputtered and flamed out quickly, and the TIOBE index is FULL of them)
Saying that the next generation will want to use a "not C" language, one NOT intended by its very nature to be the language of OS kernels [think early days of UNIX and the 'B' lingo, which became 'C'], is rather CONDESCENDING in my view. It assumes that future kernel programmers won't be able to comprehend the need for a lingo that's ALREADY very close to the assembly code, and can even be hand-tweeked to generate efficient assembly, if you understand enough about how the compiler works and the way it generates code.
It would also be assuming that assembly isn't being used, assuming that garbage collection and excessive validation are allowable, and that complex operations should be "programmed inside the language" where they're almost GUARANTEED to generate less-than-optimal solutions for MOST problems that require things like threads and process control in general.
We have SEEN the results of "this kind of thinking": WINDOWS
How long does it take to open up a "File Open" dialog box these days? Then go back to Win '95 or even Win 3.1, and that less "functional" file open dialog box that DID! NOT! USE! OBJECT! ORIENTED! HELL! on EVERY! STINKING! FILE! ENTRY! popped up SO fast you're like "what?"
And that's my point: when EVERYTHING is being done using "we have fast CPUs now" as an excuse, with bureaucratic top-down "everything is an object as a member of a collection" kinds of thinking, you end up with GROSS inefficiencies that nobody knows how to fix any more... because we're NOT using a lingo like 'C' any more... one that reminds us of how the CPU actually WORKS, because it's low-level enough to be close to the machine code!!!
[and it has the decency to support "native integer" types, particularly UNSIGNED integers]
Seriously, though, give "the next generation" some credit. We, the experienced kernel programmers of the world, should MENTOR them, and turn them into proficient C coders instead!
[then they'll look back and say "why the HELL dd I ever *FEEL* (the 'F' word) that we could program a kernel in RUST ???]
[there] "isn't anything more significant that would entice me to upgrade."
stability and reliability would be reasons, but weren't mentioned (or I missed it).
LTS on its own _might_ be a reason.
Otherwise, "upgrades/updates are highly overrated" (too much feature creep).
Not sure why they aren't building the chrome package themselves, or simply using Debian's. In fact, maybe they can just ask Ubunto nicely for a copy of the build environment, tweek out the package manager install, and go from there... ?
when it comes to credit cards, in the USA credit sales can be reversed within 30 days [as I recall]. Debit cards can NOT, however (which is why I use no debit cards online). in the EU and UK I understand that there's more of an "all sales are final" approach, but I'm not that familiar. Still I think it's a function of the banking laws as to whether a 'charge back' or 'reversal' is even possible. An associate of mine worked in the banking industry and explained it to me a few years back, but I'm certainly no expert, IANAL, YMMV, and all that. So yeah check your local banking laws to see what rights you have for getting stiffed on payments without goods delivered...
"The safety of people should come a long way before any profit."
This is pretty much the principal that the FAA and the airline industry in general lives by.
As a result, if a plane has a design problem, or if any aircraft crashes for ANY reason, it's HUGE news and a lot of effort goes into finding out WHY and then doing something about it to keep it from happening AGAIN. End result, best safety record EVAR.
So I'd say the answer to your question is 'yes'. (I'm pretty confident the 737 Max will end up with a much better safety record than anything else on the planet, simply so that Boeing can compensate for their complete screwup and re-prove themselves to the world)
the term 'troll' (spelled that way) is just a geeky pun [I thought everyone knew that...]
Old school gamers should remember "the troll bridge" [another pun and reference to an old kids' tale about a troll and 3 goats and a bridge]. Then 'trawl' sounds like 'troll', making it good PUN-ishment.
So multi-reference pun "for the lulz". You're welcome. Captain obvious says so.
considering how Micros~1's phone OS has been such an *EPIC* failure, the award for "late to the party" REALLY belongs to Micros~1 !!!
And when you consider that the encrypted DNS providers are probably SNOOPING on everything themselves, it's kinda pointless outside of a public wifi or "behind the filtering firewall" setting. Oh, but you get to CHOOSE who snoops on you! O...K...
what was also "sub-optimal" (apparently) was the JUDGE who would have to approve an arrest via an arrest warrant, AND any bail setting in an arraignment that would leave him sitting in jail awaiting trial...
"wrongful arrest" does happen from time to time, which is why we have judges and courts to minimize it. But if the "evidence" of facial recognition is being used to BYPASS normal rules of evidence, and incarcerate people (even if it's awaiting trial), then it's GOT to STOP.
Instead, fingerprints, DNA, and "unexplained income" from the fencing of stolen property, OR the actual stolen property itself - those things would be REAL evidence. Apparently they didn't have any of those.
NOTE: a search warrant may be fine, based on facial recog, but that would just authorize them to LOOK for "the REAL evidence". Not the same as arrest+jail.
(from the article)
Lyft argues that AB5 is poorly drafted and has destroyed thousands of jobs.
And, they're right. People like musicians and handymen are probably the hardest hit by this. You know, the kinds of things that people do OUTSIDE of a corporate+payroll environment, the kinds of which have been done "since civilization", from services like cleaning and gardening, to a clown at your kid's birthday party, and the accountant that fills out your tax forms. Most often these people ARE independent contractors, now apparently ILLEGAL because you didn't pay the payroll taxes, offer them insurance, paid vacations, minimum wage, and deduct various 'withholdings' from their paychecks and THEN distribute those withholdings to the multiple tax authorities, etc. etc. etc.. The 16 year old kid who babysits your offspring is an independent contractor, too. So much for earning money when you're a kid... [the list of things WRONG with AB5 is huge]
And, apparently, all of this was done to "get" Uber and Lyft. No need to ask 'why' either. 'Gummint'. It's what they do.
have you seen a photo of it? The blades are long and wide and apparently fold up nicely for the trip to Mars. I think the total rotor diameter is over 1 meter, and they would have had to construct them from super-light-weight material, maybe like model airplane wings? [yeah I used to build those when I was a kid, paper and balsa wood]
Although i would expect carbon nanotubes from NASA...
(duckduckgo search, "mars helicopter photo", lots of hits, some with people so you can get a size reference)
"now that Oracle want to start charging a per-user annual fee for the runtime."
wouldn't OpenJDK fix that? It comes with OpenJRE [in case you were not already aware] for the runtime, and it's iicensed under the GPL. There are also Linux distros using something called 'IcedTea' so that they can get pure-GPL-compatible builds of OpenJDK and OpenJRE for the package system (apparently there's some minor proprietary component for some of the java classes without IcedTea being in there).
So if Oracle wants to license their java run-time "per user" for commercial use, with their 'Oracle JDK' binaries, let them. We still have OpenJDK, it's "fork-able", and GPLd.
someone forgot to finish the 2D FLATTY ADWARE "The Store": version before the update shipped...
(the respons was SUPPOSED to be "it's in The Store" and then, like games, make everyone download the ad-ridden crippled FLUGLY version of what used to be a useful tool...)
But they were caught, and had to quickly put it back while whistling in the air like nothing happened...
good observation - I was going to comment on this.
in short, metals are typically embrittled as temperature goes down. So failure at low temps is typically brittle fracture, which tends to be catastrophic. Ductile failure, at higher temperatures, can cause swelling before it finally bursts, but in essence the dynamics of the test change considerably when you drop temperature down to LOX levels.
A fairer test might be liquid nitrogen to avoid explosive reactions with O2
6502 systems like Apple and C64 might just get more attention if there's a compiler that supports them. OK emulation, especially emulation with an RPi, might be the way to get these environments to work, but there's enough ancient-computing-hardware fandom out there, it might just work...
maybe simh ? xmame ?
"willing to work for 35% of market prevailing wages."
I'm not 100% convinced of the 35%, but it is already pretty much well known that people brought in under H-1B (or similar) visas might be willing to accept positions at a lower wage, in exchange for being brought in under such a visa (it's like competition, right?).
Seriously, though, if the USA has an unusually high unemployment rate, for whatever reason, importing more people to do work (potentially at a lower wage) is NOT helping...
Question: which candidates are supported by Siicon Valley mega-corps, the same ones who've allegedly colluded with one another to 'not recruit one another's employees' to keep overall wages low? (I know there was an El Reg article about this a few years ago) What is THEIR standing on H-1B (and other) work visas?
think about it - multiple private companies trying to offer space-related things, which maybe in 5 years or so would be actual space craft launching with private citizens in them, to an orbital getaway.
Could it help to pay for a "hotel wing" to the ISS? Maybe. One of those inflatable add-ons perhaps. Inflatables. Heh. And a new level to achieve for the mile-high club.
All good! (think of the history of flight in general, and we're on a good path right now)
I am not at all convinced that Bush 41 would have lost in a traditional 2-way race.
More than likely, he would not have lost. But if Sanders were to play the role of Ross Perot in 2020, he'd siphon away the already pathetic number of votes for Biden, making it even MORE laughable when Trump wins in November. Polls aside, they were 20 points off 4 years ago at this time in the race, and that was NO coincidence [many people believe that these political polls are deliberately used to drive Republican voters away from casting their votes, by depressing them or making them believe their votes won't count, so they stay home... and so the wording of the questions is carefully crafted, or the population samples are deliberately 'not representative'].
Trump is an efficiency-thinking business guy, and goes for the win in an efficient and planned way. So a clear margin in the electoral college is how you win, NOT the popular vote, and THAT will be the strategy. Again. The Trump 2020 campaign really just started 2 days ago. With the lamemainstream media against him in ALL ways possible, often deliberately stretching anything even remotely resembling truth into outright lies and falsehoods, while simultaneously leaving out ANYTHING that even REMOTELY resembles 'good news', it's a wonder that his numbers are as high as they are at the moment, except to simply say that MOST of us aren't fooled by it, not one bit. But there are a few I think that are losing hope, with the latest assault of doom, gloom, and daily pessimism. That should turn around VERY quickly (Trump's best talent, infectious optimism).
Huawei is trying to appear like they're not making any bets. But if I were them, I'd plan on 8 years of Trump, Republicans dominating elections across the USA (again), manufacturing leaving China, and more tariffs. Then again, they COULD become more open about things, particularly when it comes to the security concerns (China government snooping via any networks Huawei owns, for example), go out of their way to respect intellectual property (even for domestic products), and become the friendlier, more honest, more customer-oriented company we'd like them to be.
"Nazis _were_ socialists."
Correct (government takeover of businesses is one of the characteristics that defines socialism).
I expect that if Nazis hate socialists, they hate themselves, but they hate OTHERS MORE (like Daleks) and so "EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!"
(there should be a Dalek icon. Cybermen are their 'rival enemies' and so I can't really use the terminator icon, now can I?)
What was the inspiration of using an inverted red triangle?
because it's shaped like the down button on an elevator/lift ?
there's a lot of missing context here... and a LOT of unnecessary overreacting.
Strangely, this triangle-thing is being said about one of the most Israel-supporting U.S. presidents EVAR.
"when you go actively looking for them, you see them 'everywhere'"
Just like conspiracies.
To a hammer, everything is a nail. etc.
icon, because, nothing says "conspiracy" like black helicopters
(if it had been 666 we'd be laughing at it)
Yet, 8 is perfectly symmetrical. It can be cut 4 different ways to produce perfect symmetry.
(those who do not get the reference, you're missing out on something awesome)
And don't forget how many CPUs have had 8 bit words (including microcontrollers), along with the standard 'Byte'.
I've also seen '88' used a LOT in COBOL code, in the DATA section.
It sure is a stretch to make a big deal out of 8 and 88... it's almost like you HAVE to be WANTING it to "mean something" that can THEN be used for UNDO CRITICISM.
(and pointy-down triangles are OFTEN used for elevator/lift buttons and indicator lights... "going down")
Title is a short quote from the article, a 'reveal'.
That particular organization (and its funder) are well known for political bias and related activities.
Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and others have exposed them many times for who they are, what they do, how they operate, and so on.
big FACEPALM icon since it's *THEM*
tree harvesters re-plant their forests (unless they WANT to go broke!). In some cases I believe it's require by LAW. Canada produces a LOT of lumber (/me sings the lumberjack song), and I'm pretty sure that the leftovers from the saw mills end up in paper mills, along with a lot of recycled paper. It's an efficient business, NOT like a bunch of humanoid termites swarming a forest and turning it into mud.
Seriously, it's a true *RENEWABLE* resource. We don't lose 8 billion trees. In fact, I'm pretty sure we're GAINING trees, because of re-planting and putting out forest fires, etc..
OK this is the joke: a sign has an OS failure report on it instead of the usual content
(and windows is infamous for this happening too often on our personal computers)
It's a bit like The 3 Stooges, but I laugh at them, too. And if I shave my head and beard, I look like Curly. Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk Woobwoobwoobwoob...
icon for irony
now there's not only the system registry, and the user's registry, but also the task scheduler (which I've only looked at long enough to dislike it, especially when compared to something straightforward like crontab), in addition to a common startup directory and a user startup directory. All of these have the ability to start processes automatically on bootup.
So yeah. need to check all those things. Or maybe there's a background service that's running on startup for Edge now, and for some *weird* reason it spawns on the desktop...
sad icon, because this really happens [apparently]
master with main across its services
I don't mind calling it 'main'. I mind why it's being changed.
There have been too many instances of this already. My overall comments and opinions remain the same, regarding activism forcing (read: bullying) the rest of to comply with ever-changing "rules".
That last part is why I do NOT like it.
From the article: It's hard to argue against the change because Secure boot is a more-than-useful way of ensuring that servers boot into know and trusted environments..
It's not THAT hard to argue against this. LINUX. FREEDOM to put the OS of YOUR choice on the hardware YOU pay for. And NOT require us to use hardware that RESTRICTS us with "featuers" like 'secure boot'.
Now... if the requirement to BE ABLE TO DISABLE IT is included with secure boot "by default", then I won't object to it. But I'm not seeing this in the article. Shouldn't it be? Remember, it's NOT the case for ARM devices that run windows to REQUIRE the ability to disable secure boot... [that was part of the licensing thing from a decade or so ago, remember? x86 devices needed to have secure boot "disablable", but *NOT* ARM !!!]
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