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More technological horror stories from the news media...

M

msbae

Commodore
...and no, I'm not making this up, either.

First, we have a Japanese computer game featuring rape and forced abortions causes public outcry...

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...apegame_10int.ART.State.Edition1.4cb6294.html

Second, the Germans deny a Saudi man a patent on a GPS Microchip with Cyanide inside for 'disposing of undesirables.' I don't even want to think about why this Saudi went to Germany of all places to patent that...

http://io9.com/5259933/germans-deny-patent-for-gpspoison-microchip

Ethical Guide for Robot Warriors in the Works... and the robot looks like a miniature version of one of Skynet's HK's too.

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/05/18/robots-ethics-war.html

Someone with very little good sense and lots of spare time builds a Flamethrower out of Lego Technic... This one is actually pretty cool.

http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/working-flamethrower-made-with-lego-technic

Why Linux ain't ready for the Desktop... and why it doesn't look like it will compete with Windows or MacOS anytime soon. Nerds of the world begin to foam at the mouth...

http://linuxfonts.narod.ru/why.linux.is.not.ready.for.the.desktop.html
 
YUP! just as I thought, the Japanese ''RAPE & ABORT'' game is OLD news! (and DALLAS is just now covering this? what took them so long?)
 
msbae said:
Why Linux ain't ready for the Desktop... and why it doesn't look like it will compete with Windows or MacOS anytime soon. Nerds of the world begin to foam at the mouth...

http://linuxfonts.narod.ru/why.linux.is.not.ready.for.the.desktop.html
Click to expand...

Some of that's right, but some of it is very questionable.

2.5 No double buffering.
Click to expand...
Pretty sure that's just wrong.

4. It should be possible to configure everything via GUI which is still not a case for too many situations and operations.
Click to expand...

Hmm....there are arguments both ways. Personally I feel that it's perfectly acceptable to leave some things to the command-line, so long as the commonly-used functionality can be configured via "wizards".

I do think the "GUI-way or the highway" mentality is too Windows-centric in general. There are benefits to other approaches.

A lot of the other points are not given in enough detail to really argue with. And some of them are correct.
 
Linux has it's uses. It's for power-users not the average home consumer.

Frankly the internet was a far better place before they started letting the average person off the street use it.
 
I'm a Ubuntu user, no MS OS...

I see no problems.

Terminal ain't that hard! Especially when Linux forums have all the clues needed. People just need to decide what's really needed and do it.
 
Garrovick said:
I'm a Ubuntu user, no MS OS...

I see no problems.

Terminal ain't that hard! Especially when Linux forums have all the clues needed. People just need to decide what's really needed and do it.
Click to expand...


Best part of Linux? I need a program, I type (more or less :D) Sudo Get Me A Copy Of ______ and a few moments later I have an open-source program as good as if not better than the MS version (if there is one) FOR FREE.
 
TheWifeOfBrian said:
Best part of Linux? I need a program, I type (more or less :D) Sudo Get Me A Copy Of ______ and a few moments later I have an open-source program as good as if not better than the MS version (if there is one) FOR FREE.
Click to expand...

Well to be honest, I have one small tiny problem with my ipod. Bookmarking audio books and podcasts. One day...
 
Mallory said:
Oh, those wacky people at DARPA. What will they come up with next?
Click to expand...


Troop-transporting torpedoes could travel at speeds of up to 100 knots thanks to a phenomenon called supercavitation. This occurs when an object moves fast enough to vaporise the water around it into a single enveloping bubble.
With virtually no contact between the torpedo and the water, drag is reduced by up to 70%. But tests so far have been restricted to un-manned drones...
 
goldbug said:
Mallory said:
Oh, those wacky people at DARPA. What will they come up with next?
Click to expand...


Troop-transporting torpedoes could travel at speeds of up to 100 knots thanks to a phenomenon called supercavitation. This occurs when an object moves fast enough to vaporise the water around it into a single enveloping bubble.
With virtually no contact between the torpedo and the water, drag is reduced by up to 70%. But tests so far have been restricted to un-manned drones...
Click to expand...

Link please.
 
msbae said:
The Feds screw-up again and let a document listing the locations of all our Nuclear Material loose on the internet...

http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2009/06/internet_to_the_government_no.html

Looks like China & Terrorists will have no trouble developing a list of targets... [/Facepalm]
Click to expand...

Actually that information is not secret at all it's just the anti-nuclear lobby making noise again.

The document itself was classified, as part of an internal project that was classified. The information itself was not.

Heck you can look up the location of all former and active nuclear sites with Google, not hard to do.

Better to have that information out and about so people are informed of what is around them than keep it all secret and have them scared shitless every time a fire alarm goes off.
 
miraclefan said:
YUP! just as I thought, the Japanese ''RAPE & ABORT'' game is OLD news! (and DALLAS is just now covering this? what took them so long?)
Click to expand...
old news maybe, I had not heard it before, still I kinda sized with the "equality" folk on this one, which isnt normal for me.
 
Marc said:
msbae said:
...and no, I'm not making this up, either.

First, we have a Japanese computer game featuring rape and forced abortions causes public outcry...

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...apegame_10int.ART.State.Edition1.4cb6294.html
Click to expand...

Read a news report that the Japanse software regulators has banned such games but there's one little problem - the ban is voluntary so has zilch weight in law.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/06/05/2590975.htm?section=justin
Click to expand...

That sounds like the Japanese equivalent of the ESRB's A-O rating, meaning you'd have to be 18 to buy the game. Retailers here won't even sell games with A-O ratings, which is why they're virtually non-existent. However, Japanese culture is unusually obsessed with sexuality in it's many forms, including child porn, rape and prostitution. Something tells me such games will still be made for that market.
 
A TV Remote that just wants to be held...

http://www.geekologie.com/2009/06/weird_gel_remote_is_limp_when.php

M$ offers free Virus Protection... as long as you let Big Brother analyze your system...

http://www.physorg.com/news163952558.html

China's computers at risk to hackers because of Government-mandated software... Who didn't see that coming?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8094026.stm

Italian Physicists think Warp Drive might suck the Earth into a Black Hole. I think we need to do more research...

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/06/11/warp-drive-engine.html

A few Stealth cars built by the Air Force... as recruiting tools.

http://www.geekologie.com/2009/06/stealth_dodge_challenger_built.php
 
A remote ... that gets "hard" when it knows you are around? Well, that's not ripe with joeks at all. ;-)


Next thing you know they'll apply this new found weird tech into dildos.
 
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