Comments

Re: A Common Trend (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Microsoft staff cuts extend to Silicon Valley research lab on 2014-09-24 13:01 (#2SW5)

Chrome box/book

Wait and see (Score: 2, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in KDE 5 has been released on 2014-07-18 19:28 (#2JK)

Bleh. More Windows 1x style flat icons. It looks like that might be fixable through themes though. I hope this version kicks butt because lately I've been tiring of the weight of KDE; enough so I could see myself dropping it and LXQT certainly has my attention.

That calendar looks like a substantial improvement though.

Lua (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Programming languages: where to begin? on 2014-07-01 20:06 (#2AF)

I've been surprised by how often I see lua crop up in different places as an extension language. World of Warcraft mods, nmap scripting, nginx integration just to name a few. I've never had much luck learning languages just to learn them, but I find lua already involved with many things I already use, so I can do interesting and useful things with it.

Re: ZFS (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in BSDNow Episode 42: Devious Methods on 2014-06-24 16:46 (#291)

Still not convinced with Raidz myself, but I don't have large disk arrays. With FreeBSD 10 I went with a 3 way mirror on a server and it was cake to set up (compared to the pain the ass it was to set up before). The layout isn't exactly what I wanted, but it's more than enough for what I need.

Re: Really? The console? (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in FreeBSD's new console project is almost ready for primetime on 2014-06-24 16:44 (#290)

I'm supposing you never downloaded a file with foreign characters then. I have this problem in Gentoo a lot. I download two files with distinct names, but all I see in a file listing is "??????". I wouldn't say the console is horrid in FreeBSD, but it's outdated and small problems like that have been piling up over time.

Maybe not lousy... (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in FreeBSD's new console project is almost ready for primetime on 2014-06-24 16:40 (#28Z)

I've never had a problem with the FreeBSD console, and vidcontrol works well enough to change the text size etc. REALLY looking forward to being able to switch away from X11 to a terminal on my laptop though.

Re: Not a Big One (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in OpenSSL CCS Injection Vulnerability on 2014-06-06 12:43 (#211)

Since the major browsers use something other than SSL it's not a big deal as far as browser security no. Some utilities (can) use Openssl like wget, and anything secured using stunnel is vulnerable. My only worry is patching my mail servers, some of which talk to each other using TLS only and assume the connection is secure.

SP3 (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Surface Pro: too late, not enough on 2014-05-22 14:30 (#1VN)

For a higher end device with 9 hours battery life it's interesting. Personally I can't think of any application needing an i7 that better done on a laptop. At this point (and I'm find this view increasingly common even among regular people) I only use Microsoft products if I have to.

Fahrenheit 451 (Score: 2, Insightful)

by tempest@pipedot.org in When dystopia comes, it will look like: on 2014-05-20 16:35 (#1SV)

I see a lot of Fahrenheit 451 in society already.

Just in time (Score: 2, Funny)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Screw you, Cloud Computing. Bring on Fog Computing! on 2014-05-20 14:06 (#1SK)

This is good news for me as I get older. Now as dementia sets in with people saying "you're in a fog", I can claim I'm just doing my job.

Do it yourself (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Where do you get your desktop artwork? on 2014-05-20 13:46 (#1SJ)

I use screenshots from games I play. I may subdue the colors and blend it with a texture.

No contest (Score: 2, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in What Is Your Offsite Storage Solution? on 2014-05-16 17:51 (#1P1)

tarsnap

Re: who is the switzerland of tech (Score: 4, Informative)

by tempest@pipedot.org in NSA 'Upgrade Point' Implants Backdoors on Hardware on 2014-05-16 14:47 (#1NT)

There's a slight difference here. If I order hardware from a European (or wherever) manufacter I trust, the NSA can still intercept and plant back doors. You can't trust ANYTHING in the United States. While I still don't trust Cisco, it seems unlikely the NSA has direct access to the company if they're redirectiong hardware to mod shops. Which is good news in a way.

Re: vim (Score: 2, Insightful)

by tempest@pipedot.org in WordStar and Old Software Too Good to Stop Using on 2014-05-14 13:55 (#1KG)

I actually enjoy using vim, so when it came to writing I stuck with the tried and true. It's convinient that I can use it locally, or remotely. Setting up custom syntax highlighting is something I've taken to as well. I'm a very weak writer, and I've tried to avoid certain words I'm prone to overusing by highlighting them. Word completion is a surprisingly useful feature too.

You need to use what you're comfortable with - which could even be a typewriter. Clippy offering to fix your purple prose does you no favors in staying focused and immersed. I find it really sad how so much software has become fustrating to use. I see so much productivity lost compared to many of those old school DOS applications focused on getting things done.

Although sometimes you just need to let go and move on. I still use Paint Shop Pro 5, but I realize some tasks take a huge amount of effort when they really shouldn't (if I used something more advanced).

Feature request (Score: 3, Informative)

by tempest@pipedot.org in WYSIWYG Editor on 2014-05-13 13:46 (#1J7)

When replying to a post and using preview, it would be helpful to have the comment youre replying to still visible above it.

Re: And now ... page two (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Saving Nintendo the Ars way on 2014-05-13 13:11 (#1J4)

If they spend more on hardware (and cut profit margins), then what? Then theyre only on a level playing field with Sony and Microsoft. Thats not enough to dig them out of their hole. Im supposing Im in the minority, but graphics got good enough in the PS3 gen, and the Wii-U is a little better than that. I see "next gen" videos, and it looks mostly the same to me.

Nintendo really needs third party support, but its not clear how to get companies to do it. Ive got Ninja Gaiden and Tekken on the Wii-U, but my other non Nintendo options are pretty darn limited in what interests me. I think Bayonetta 2 could have been the life perserver for the system, but its not due til around next Christmas which may be too late.

Not related to the article, but I totally disagree with their critisizms about the controller (aside from the no multiplayer issue which is rediculous). Id put the Wii-U controller as my second favorite of all time behind the Wavebird. I want Fatal Frame with this controller so bad. Which reminds me I have to offer up sacrifices in hopes it wont be region locked / Japan only.

Re: Playing the devil's advocate (Score: 2, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Linode Invests $45M In Slower Hosting on 2014-04-22 15:28 (#155)

I'd be surprised if there are any hosts offering 8 cores at $20 a month. That's insanely over provisioned in my opinion. Although I'm not sure what the competition is doing either. This looks far better deal than what I'm paying, although I'm happy where I'm at and Linode doesn't offer FreeBSD hosting anyway.

Re: Confusing article (Score: 2, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in ISC Ends BIND Development and Renames it Bundy on 2014-04-18 14:28 (#149)

I'm assuming it's the same for isc-dhcp server. It looks like Bind 10 had a dhcp server bundled in there, which is now broken out into a project called Kea. I got rid of Bind years ago, so I'm more curious about whatever Kea is.

Update Schedule (Score: 3, Insightful)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Audit of TrueCrypt disk encryption software reveals low source code quality on 2014-04-16 13:53 (#13F)

Perhaps Truecrypt can be considered mature software, but I highly doubt (with all that it does), that there aren't bugs requiring fixes. The last release was early 2012, and about one per year before that. With all that it does, I'd expect a far more frequent update releases. Truecrypt has always worked well for me, but I wonder how much the project is stagnating.

Re: Not an Apache/MIT license (Score: 2, Informative)

by tempest@pipedot.org in NASA Releases Over 1000 Projects as Open Source on 2014-04-11 13:26 (#11W)

Comments at the top of the code show it to be public domain, isn't that counter to any kind of license?

Can't print at home (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in When I want to print something, I... on 2014-04-08 15:10 (#10K)

I've used PCs since the late 90s and I've never owned a printer. Over the course of a year I print about 30 pages for my own use, mainly tax forms and flight information. I save my home stuff as PDF on the rare occasion I need records, but I've noticed I print very little at the office either. Usually I print to PDF if I need to send a document... then they print it. Yay for the paperless office.

Re: 100 on the first day (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Logo Contest and Other Updates on 2014-04-01 14:18 (#XE)

I lurk on slashdot unintentionally. After so many years of reading the comments, the same arguments would pop up all the time and I could pretty much predict the circle jerk. It's at the point where I don't feel it's worth the effort to contribute.

Netscape Navigator Button (Score: 5, Funny)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Pet peevs of website design on 2014-03-31 23:17 (#WT)

I'm always tempted to put best viewed in Netscape Navigator 3 on my pages, just for the "get off my lawn" power it has.

Least of my problems (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in When someone near me says "Daylight Savings Time" instead of "Daylight Saving Time" I ... on 2014-03-13 18:45 (#HQ)

I struggle to even say Daylight Savings time instead of referring to it like "fast time" and "slow time" like my grandmother did.

Like the sliders! (Score: 3, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Expandable Comments on 2014-03-06 17:43 (#9Z)

Is post moderation starting from 0 intentional? If so, I'm curious why you chose to buck the slashdot legacy trend.

Re: Nice (Score: 4, Insightful)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Munich standardizes on Kolab for its groupware on 2014-03-05 16:01 (#9P)

The problem is "average" companies tend to be very different. I think non windows setups work best in medium sized companies with one to three tech staff. If they're too small they don't have the resources to get Linux in place. Too big and existing infrastructure (inevitably Microsft) is too far entrenched. The key to the process becomes getting the top decision maker on board with moving to that system. Most managers are too apathetic to care about things that are already "working fine", and don't want to move into unfamiliar territory.

The biggest block I've typically experienced are people demanding Windows/Office. Calc is no Excel, and I'll concede that, but many people insist on using MS Word but could just as well be using freaking Wordpad for all the functionality they used. That kind of thing. Where I work I've given up trying to migrate off of Windows due to various special purpose programs, but I've been doing well on the server side. I don't like the over complexity of Exchange, but have to admit it's been pretty good to me. Still, I'd really like to get us off of it, although our love affair with "Public Folders" will probably never allow that.

Re: What came before (Score: 3, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Munich standardizes on Kolab for its groupware on 2014-03-04 19:07 (#9F)

Well if they switched to Linux last year and they're only now going to Kolab, they must be using something in that gap. Although now that I think on it, maybe they're just toughing out the loss in functionality temporarily. Or they stuck with Exchange (assuming that's what they used) and are interfacing with that, which I'd be interested to know how that went.

Re: Open architecture (Score: 2, Insightful)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Google's Modular Cellphone on 2014-03-04 15:39 (#9B)

"It seems that everyone in the phone industry wants to keep everything as proprietary and locked-down as possible"

I think that's the reason this won't go very far, not in the US anyway. Phone vendors want to keep the idea of phone + phone plan together. They want the upgrade to be an incentive to stick with contracts, so I'd think the last thing they'd want is a modular phone that allows a person to swap out the radio module for $30 and go with another vendor.

Personally I'd like to see this happen. I was shopping around for a SMALL Android Phone and hardly any qualified for what I wanted. The Sony Xperia looked like a well rounded phone in the profile I wanted, but each model missed a different key feature I wanted - really, it's like they read my mind and omitted a different thing on each phone model to piss off me specifically. If I could have taken the features I wanted and glued them together, I would have bought one.

What came before (Score: 2, Interesting)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Munich standardizes on Kolab for its groupware on 2014-03-04 14:20 (#9A)

Assuming they had the typical corporate setup, I'd assume before they had something like Outlook/Exchange before they migrated last year. So what are they using now?

Who's Cloud (Score: 2)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Corporate World excited about desktops in the cloud on 2014-03-03 16:30 (#92)

"A great end user experience across any device".

What device has a good desktop experience other than an actual desktop? I find it hard to believe corporations are excited about any form of desktop, and most companies I know of are happier to be rid of them and certainly aren't concerned about replicating the desktop experience on other things. (Isn't that what Microsoft always wanted with their Pocket PC line which was never popular?)

Re: Probably won't help Wii U (Score: 4, Informative)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Nintendo to Discontinue Online Play for Wii and DS on 2014-02-28 15:12 (#8A)

I'd say its a matter of cost cutting, but I wouldn't say it's unique to Nintendo. I bought Grand Tourismo 5 a week ago, the DLC voucher is only good for another two months and will then be unavailable. After 2 years availability of online play is fairly iffy. It seems like game companies have caught on that you can showcase online play as a feature, then pull the plug earlier to push purchases closer to the release date. You don't have to put up with the never ending resale market, or people like me who wait at least a year for the price to drop to $20.

Think I'd rather print printers so it's printers all the way down (Score: 2, Funny)

by tempest@pipedot.org in New Zealand customs believe we'll all soon be 3d printing gold, gems, drugs in our living rooms on 2014-02-27 19:09 (#7M)

The nice thing about a printer that creates gold is the quick ROI. Beat that HP!

Re: meme explanations (Score: 1)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Who do you love? on 2014-02-26 15:34 (#71)

Been on Soylent for a few days, and made an account here today. Things look rosy and nice there right now, but I wonder how long that will last before it gets infected by the bad mojo that took down slashdot (if ever). I think the nature of articles makes a huge difference in what kind of reader is retained, so it's quite possible soylent (or pipedot) may go down the same unfortunate path. If either one gets political I'll go to the other one.

Re: Current state of market is changing (Score: 3, Informative)

by tempest@pipedot.org in Time Magazine thinks iOS won the app war on 2014-02-26 15:23 (#6Z)

I recall a study showing IOS more profitable to develop apps for by a wide margin. Has that changed? Android also has issues with vendors never upgrading their os version, while IOS users are almost always within the last two releases (good or bad).
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