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Comment: Nothing New Here (Score 1) 141

by Prototerm (#40553707) Attached to: YouTube-MP3 Ripper Creator Takes On Google

When I was a teenager, I made copies of streaming audio all the time ... using a reel-to-reel tape recorder and a pair of alligator clips attached to the speakers of a table radio -- all to capture the latest "top 40" pop tunes in glorious monophonic sound. That was back in the sixties, and the music world didn't come to an end because I didn't spend money I didn't have in the first place, nor did the huge multinational music companies crash and burn in bankruptcy. However, later on, when I *did* have money to spend I collected thousands of record albums and 45's. Even later, I re-purchased everything on CD's.

Tell me again why this sort of recording activity is *costing* companies money? Seems to me that it's more of an investment in the future.

Comment: New Jersey Just FInished Removing Them (Score 1) 1173

by Prototerm (#36652964) Attached to: Roundabout Revolution Sweeping US

Until the 1990's, the main route between Philadelphia and Atlantic City had at least two Roundabouts. The earliest time I remember seeing them was during the late 1950's as a passenger in my parent's car. So, this is not a new invention this side of the Pond, but an old one that has been tried and abandoned after decades of use. I had the opportunity to drive this route before they were both redesigned, and I can tell you that the design is only effective when traffic is very minimal. It's extremely hazardous with high traffic volume.

The State of New Jersey clearly knows this, as does any American driver who has experienced what I believe is a misguided attempt at a "Can't we all get along" society. If you've ever seen the original Death Race 2000 movie, or played the Carmageddon series of video games, then you know what the highways are like in the Philadelphia area.

Properly configured traffic lights are much preferred to the risk of physical harm the Roundabout represents.


Comment: The real reason behind this change (Score 1) 591

by Prototerm (#36241200) Attached to: Mozilla Labs: the URL Bar Has To Go

Everybody's supposed to be using a touch-screen tablet or smartphone these days. Didn't you get the tweet? Why else do you think Gnome 3 and Unity were invented? Next up, Windows 8 with an enlarged version of the Win Phone 7 tile interface to replace that old computer-desktop GUI.

Bandwagon, anyone?

Comment: Blu-Ray is Useless for Some (Score 1) 1162

by Prototerm (#35871990) Attached to: Why Has Blu-ray Failed To Catch Hold?

Blu-Ray is pretty much useless for me, and not just because of the high disk cost or DRM-created issues.

First, all the televisions in my house are standard definition, the largest being 32 inches diagonal, the remainder 12 inches. Without large high-def screens, there's just no point as up-converted DVD's look fine. I suspect a lot of people are in the same boat.

Second, my son and I watch all our TV/movies on our computer screens, in a tiny window while we're doing something else. Now, what is the advantage of Blu-Ray once again?

Blu-Ray was invented by electronic companies to get us to re-purchase all of our movies, nothing more. If that works, they'll re-release them again in 3D. If it doesn't work, they'll blame piracy for the failure.

Comment: The Wildwood Solution (Score 1) 531

by Prototerm (#33362584) Attached to: Toyota Adds External Speakers To Warn Pedestrians

I'm reminded of the Tram Cars that traverse the boardwalk in Wildwood, N.J.. Anyone who has ever vacationed there knows well the sound of a woman calling out (via a recording) "Watch the Tram Car, please", since they've been doing that (with the same woman's voice) for at least 50 years now. Since the woman is still alive that recorded it all those years ago, it'd be a hoot to hear her voice coming out of every Prius that passes by.

Comment: Math Skills Handy But Nkt Required. (Score 1) 609

by Prototerm (#31609092) Attached to: Math Skills For Programmers &mdash; Necessary Or Not?

I've been a professional (and quite successful) programmer for nearly 30 years, and am not too shy to admit that my math skills are practically non-existent. However, that being said, an equally poor memory has polished my *logic* skills to the point where I'm quite adept at designing and understanding computer software (particularly those written in C and assembly language). Although these days, I have the most success (and fun) writing "impossible" SQL queries.

So, I suppose the lesson here is that you can't really generalize that math is vital for computer programmers. Unless you include *logic* as math (and I never have -- it's really a very different animal IMHO). After all, that's why God created computers in the first place, right? To do the math *for* us.

Comment: The Problem is Third-Party Ads (Score 4, Insightful) 1051

by Prototerm (#31390568) Attached to: Ars Technica Inveighs Against Ad Blocking


1) animation (any kind)
2) sound and/or music


Comment: Alternative Schemes (Score 1) 683

by Prototerm (#31353816) Attached to: Ubuntu Gets a New Visual Identity

As long as it's not blue and grey. God, I really *hate* desktops that are in shades of blue. It's cold and depressing. Not that the new orange and purple is much better. But at least, you can change it to anything you want.

I use a custom scheme that most of my friends find awful (of course *they* run some variant of Windows so the feeling is mutual). While I dislike the traditional Ubuntu brown and orange, I do like a brown palette. So, here's my preferred combination:

Base Theme: Clearlooks
Icons: ubuntu-sunrise
Wallpaper: Custom dark woodgrain
"Selected Items": medium brown (#752A2A), or for those who dislike brown, dark green (#005830) works
"Windows": medium tan (#D8C0A0)
"Input boxes": off white (#F0E0D0) to reduce eyestrain in terminals and text editors.

Comment: No Digital Inputs Available (Score 1) 466

by Prototerm (#30075324) Attached to: MPAA Asks Again For Control Of TV Analog Ports

Hollywood lives in a fantasy world where everyone buys the latest and greatest equipment as soon as it comes on the market. The reality is that there are a lot of people who do not have digital HDMI equipment, don't need it, and don't want it. And don't kid yourselves that this new restriction will be limited to those new movies. The moment Cable companies have the ability to turn off your analog outputs, there will be whole cable networks that will switch them off 24/7 (with the option to have them switched back on for $15 a month). Starting, of course, with the new Comcast/NBC cable networks.

Here's a message for the FCC: Please nip this in the bud now.
