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Mintz

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CS student working for a contractor

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Yeah, because StackOverflow.com is a shining example of Jeff's ineptitude.

Jeff declares bold, out-there statements probably more than his fair share, but he's sparking beneficial conversations that get people talking (even if it's about how wrong he is). You might think his conclusions are brash and useless, but he's contributing to the programming community more than he's hindering it. Personal putdowns aren't helping anybody, no matter how witty they are.

"Don was responsible for the LM P60's (Lunar Descent), while I was responsible for the LM P40's (which were) all other LM powered flight". Two men were able to write all that code and understand its operation.

Is this probably why we don't use more advanced technology for space flight today; it's too complex? I've always wondered just how much more we could accomplish if we used modern computing technology in space shuttles, but if safety is of the utmost important, maybe the complexity is a bad thing?

Interesting. I didn't expect Netflix to have a "fun" atmosphere like Zappos or anything, but it's funny to hear about a trendy web company with little, if any, character.

I wonder why the employees are required to wear the red Netflix t-shirts. It's not like they need to look presentable for customers or anything...

I bought a Kindle for my technologically-inept mom, and she loves it. Things like the font, screen color, etc. don't bother her, because she focuses on the bigger picture: thousands of books on a portable device that's supported by the world's largest internet book retailer. That is, she says, the next logical step for books to take.

This really bothers me. It's like the U.S. is a football team, and we train one of these immigrants; we make them hit the gym, show them the ropes, teach them the intracacies of the game, let them know some good techniques, then say, "Now get out of here, we don't want you to play for our team."

The irony of you saying "almost everything I ever inherited was crap in one way or another" is that somebody probably said the exact same thing about your code. I bet you write amazing code, but when given a choice, programmers would rather have the joy of creating their own code than trying to interpret someone else's.

I think the purpose the author shared this technique for is when you need to constantly comment/uncomment a block of code for testing.

I agree with you, though. Once you're done with your experiment, reset the commented lines to something more conventional.

I'm afraid of not having enough money in my savings account should I need to use it. I'm a college student with a part time job, and I have some money in savings, but if my car's transmission went out, I'm hosed. I have no idea how I would fix my car and keep paying for rent/utilities/food without going into debt.

I guess you could say I'm afraid of going into debt and not being able to get out of it because of circumstances just out of my control.

This is more than just an updated .gif, this is Google committing itself to its product. Good to see.

[dead] 17 years ago

It's funny how the things your parents tell you when you're really little always seem to stay the same, no matter how old you get.

Am I the only going, "duh?" It was only a matter of time. I can things of a few reasons why web ads are more expensive:

1. People actually watch the web ads. They're only 15-30 seconds, so you don't have time to get up, use the bathroom, grab a drink, etc. It's a trivial amount of time that provides little opportunity to do anything else.

2. How many people watch the ads is more statistically trackable on the web. Who knows how many people are watching the Simpsons when it comes on? Someone could have just left the cable box on, someone might watch it through an antenna, a bunch of people could be watching it from the couch or one guy could be on the couch. How many people watched this show on Hulu? Well, we had 34,746 streams within the past week, and an overwhelming majority of them are probably one person at a computer.

3. You can decide if you like or dislike the ad. Ad companies can now be sure that they're not wasting money advertising Viagra to a teenager.

4. Hulu is insanely popular. It's one of the top-trafficked streaming websites last time I checked TechCrunch. People actually WANT to watch the show they're looking for, which, when joined with point #3, means the ads are even MORE tailored to the consumer. Convincing you to buy something you're already kinda interested in is way easier than selling ketchup popsicles to a woman in white gloves.

Summary: Web TV is finally getting the attention it has always deserved (since broadband became feasible for the majority of America, anyway).

Java is very closely related to C#, and I've used a lot of C# lately at my job. You say you'd like to focus on web-based languages. Well, VB and C# are the primary languages for ASP.NET, which is a big part of linking databases to the web.

Even if you wind up using Ruby more than anything else, knowing how ASP.NET interacts with the web won't hurt.

I can't even remember how I managed my life before Google Calendar. Texting reminders to myself, settings tasks that need to be checked off, having a simple interface to see how my week/month is laid out... it's a lifesaver.

A Life Offline 17 years ago

I personally can't fathom giving up all the technological advances that we as a race are using to better ourselves and our lives. Isolating yourself can only help so much, but permanently shifting your lifestyle so that it's more comfortable will work better in the long run.