Search results

I'm sure everyone here is intimately familiar with Moore's Law, which basically states that computing power will double every 18 months or so. Of course, it was never a law in the strict sense, but merely a means of predicting the evolution of computers which thus far has been fairly reliable...

My condolences, Jake. It's at times like these that life can seem unfair. I can only hope for you and your sister that time will heal the pain and leave you with only cherished memories of your brother-in-law.

I'm already disturbed about one thing I just read regarding the 9/11 memeorial ceremonies. They are planning to have the names of the victims read by celebrities. Nothing wrong with reading the names, but I feel it would have been more appropriately done by either the families of the...

Correct, that's exactly what I'm referring to, and I think what Macromedia is doing should be made illegal. They're trying to pester people to the point that they just give in, and that's 100% wrong. If it's any consolation, I feel that PA and DRM(if it's implemented) will be the beginning of...

AdShield blocks popups just fine. I guess the stupid box from Macromedia isn't considered a popup. BTW, the site I was looking at is www.frostytech.com, which is one of the few sites that uses the proper methodology to test heat sinks. They apply known heat sources of 50W and 100W, and...

Yes, indeed it is. Boiling point is the point at which the vapor pressure of the liquid exceeds the pressure of the surrounding environment. As you raise the temperature of a liquid the vapor pressure goes up, and the temperature at which the vapor pressure exceeds the ambient air pressure is...

I didn't realize the media in Australia was as bad as in America. It's true that the media attention lavished on 9/11 can be a bit much at times, but it's also true that the same event probably would have received just as much coverage regardless of where it happened just by virtue of the fact...

I'm not sure whether this belongs here or in Technical Support, but I figured here would be better here since the problem is not with my computer. The problem is that everytime I go to a site that has a Flash ad I get a stupid pop-up box asking me if I want to download Flash 6 from Macromedia...

Thanks for those pictures. I remember standing right next to tower 1 overlooking West Street facing the Winter Garden with my mother and brother on July 4 two years ago. I never imagined that 14 months or so later everything would be gone. I even remember us casually discussing what a mess...

A little food for thought-if glass was indeed also a supercooled liquid like pitch, then the glass funnel also would have dripped(or at least distorted) over the years. I heard a while ago that old window panes are distorted due to the manufacturing process, as that link by Mercutio mentions...

After I finished laughing hysterically at those pictures, I noticed the person added two messages in German. Can anyone here translate? I think he might be apologizing or something. Occasionally my brother sells things on eBay. Once somebody selling the same item as him linked to one his...

Actually, the higher thermal conductivity of CU will mean that for a given heat flow rate(and air flow rate), the temperature of the bottoms of the fins will be lower than for equivalent sized AL fins, which in turn will keep the heat sink base cooler. Just a more roundabout way of saying what...

The thermal conductivity of copper is higher, so it also dissipates heat better than aluminum, all other things beings equal. That is wherein the difference lies. Since copper is much heavier than aluminum, copper heatsinks are generally smaller than aluminum heatsinks for the same processor...

I've mentioned in another thread that the US should reduce it's defence budget, although I think any savings should go first into paying down the debt and then once all of the short-term bonds are retired, a tax cut. Sure we could come up with a trillion dollars, but I would use it to build a...

Very true Mercutio. You do know what happens when you point this fact out, don't you? Then the so-called black leaders say you're blaming the victim. I would say if any one thing would benefit these people, it would be leaders who will finally tell it like it is, and stop excusing failure...

Given the types of people who frequent this forum(i.e. above average intelligence), I don't think you'll be able to find anyone here who actually thinks this is a good idea, regardless of color. This is how intellectually bankrupt this whole idea is. The only types of people this idea will...

Interestingly, I was considering starting a thread on this very subject, but decided against it because of the undoubtably strong reactions it would generate on both sides of the debate. Anyway, I'm glad you started it here rather than on SR, where it would certainly soon be out of control. I...

I feel likewise. Unfortunately, Jason is aptly named. Like the main character in the awful Friday The 13th movies, he keeps coming back just when you think he's gone for good. Regardless of how he behaves in the future, I think the damage is already done, and he's left a bad taste in the...

That thought has entered my mind from time to time. It seemed like he only had a few dozen posts not too long ago, and now he has more than me. Most of his "contributions" are just as worthless as Jason's, although maybe 5% of Jason's posts actually are worth the electrons they use. BTW, I...

Tora Bora refers to the region containing the caves in Afghanistan where Bin Laden hid. I think it means "black earth" loosely translated. I'm not sure if we used our largest FAE bombs there. In any case, even they can't penetrate to a depth of a few hundred meters like a tactical nuke can...

I think it's a good idea but honestly I haven't had the time(or desire) to read that thread. I've been trying to limit the time I spend online and it's far too easy to get sucked into these types of discussions. Additionally, I think I've discussed terrorism ad nauseum and said everything that...

Am I the only one here who knew this thread was about Mark's computer? The title caught my attention, but once I saw that Mark was the author, I knew he was fine, but suspected the worst about his computer. My condolences, Mark, on losing an old friend. No matter how many times this happens...

If this happened in the US, they probably would sue whatever group is responsible for tracking near Earth objects. Not that you could track every rock in the sky anyway, but the lawyers would still proceed with such an unreasonable lawsuit, and a stupid jury would probably actually award money.

The ones by me are OK. I'll admit that the generic colas taste the worst but I don't drink cola anyway. I guess so. I didn't know who Christina Aguilera was until I saw her at the 2002 Winter Olympics closing ceremonies, believe it or not. She's just another Britney Spears knockoff(or vice...

Well, that's true. The thing is when I talk about astronomy I usually tend to use the words "a bit" unless one thing is larger than another by an order of magnitude. Two orders of magnitude is much larger, etc. This is because there is such a huge range of scale once you study the universe...

That's true, but the diameter is also a bit larger. The escape velocity of a planet is proportional to the mass and inversely proportional to the radius. In fact, the equation is Vesc = (2 * G * M / r)1/2 Here's a table of planetary properties: Note that the escape velocity for Mars is 5...

Shows how much attention I pay to advertising. I knew she was doing commercials for one of the two big soft drink companies, so I figured I had a 50% chance of getting it right. :wink: Oh well. Win some, lose some.

I think GE would get the nod. Not everyone likes or buys Coke, but nearly everyone uses electricity. I personally don't care for Coke or any cola. It doesn't agree with my digestive system, and with a name brand like Coke, you're paying twice what a generic store brand costs due to their...

That equation is only part of it. Here's something I found related to the discussion at hand: http://www.wikipedia.com/wiki/Boltzmann_distribution The Maxwell-Boltzman equations determine the distribution of velocities that gas molecules have at a given temperature. In case you can't follow...

That's not 100% true. There is a certain amount that goes into space, and the hotter the earth is, the greater the amount. Lighter gases, such as hydrogen, have long ago left the atmosphere except in trace amounts because the earth's gravity is too weak to hold them. The exact rate that a gas...

Tannin, Thanks for some very interesting reading and the history lesson. It sounds like a fun way to spend a weekend to me, and you're helping the ecosystem besides. Although I've never been to Oz, I know all about hard soils. Shortly after I got out of college, my mother and I got the idea...

P5-133XL, Thanks for your input on this topic. Interesting discussion. I just have a few minor points to address here: Yes, this is a good idea as well. I didn't suggest it because you mentioned that separating the children from their parents would be destructive. Just based on some...

I think everyone here is aware of that. The problem is that, despite welfare, the children of the poor are not given the tools to break the cycle of poverty, and thus parents on welfare frequently leads to the children being on welfare. To an extent, the system is set up this way(to encourage...

Thanks, Coug. I almost fell out of my chair laughing. :lol: :lol: :lol:

This guy makes Micheal Jackson look tame by comparison. P.S. It's one thing impersonating a cat online(as I do sometimes). Quite another to want to make yourself look like one. It must hurt like hell when he wipes his behind. :o

It is not be a lack of supply that will cause the sudden rise in prices, it will be a fairly quick spike in demand that occurs just at a time when oil is harder to find. India and China combined have over 2 billion people now, probably another billion in twenty years. They are rapidly becoming...

The whole point of a consumption tax is that it would permanently reduce revenue and force government to keep small, and that is why I'm in favor of it. I want to get rid of big government permanently. Putting aside the issue of welfare spending, why does the US need to spend as much on...

LPG is just another fossil fuel. Given the figures Mercutio quoted, it's doubtful the oil reserves in the Middle East will last even 25 years. Once China and India become more industrialized, oil prices will rapidly skyrocket as demand increases by tenfold. This will happen within two...

You mean you have to be able to go to 60 in a nanosecond? Fire up the warp drive, Scotty, I'll need warp 9 in two minutes! Seriously, I think you forgot to add how many seconds you considered unacceptable. I know all about New Jersey's highways. They're awfully designed outside of the...

Fair enough. I suggested that I could build something that works in my garage. It would take a design team and massive R&D $ to make something that could be mass produced. Regarding what the public wants, I tend to think the general public is easily influenced, so the automakers(and other...

:lol: :lol: :lol: (Sorry about the cheap way to up my post count, but I thought this was funny without adding any comments of my own)

Exactly, especially as regards the first point. LPG may not produce the noxious emissions of gasoline or diesel fuel, but it still produces CO2. While global warming due to CO2 is a source of debate, the other disadvantages you mentioned of using LPG are valid enough not to phase in its...

It's not what I feel is socially responsible, it's what must be done, period. Do you have any idea of the health costs caused by pollution, the damage acid rain causes to structures, the aggravation(road rage) caused by the sheer number of vehicles on the road? Truth be told, I would rather...

A lot of truth is that speech. Some of our leaders would be wise to read it.

I have one question about all this. I don't care how much people like SUVs, the simple fact is that they are irresponsible and the automakers should not be building them. If they didn't exist, people would buy something more sensible, and there is no reason at all why they should be exempt...

A consumption tax(sales tax) instead of an income tax is a good idea, and would receive popular support if: 1)It was at most 10%, not the 40% you mentioned, since that would create less incentive to evade it. Combined local and state sales taxes may not exceed a total of 5%, so at most you...

Too bad it's only a satire. I really wish legislators would actively try to discourage people ffrom purchasing SUVs. This line from that page sums it up beautifully: Since the fuel crisis in the 1970's, I would have expected cars to continually get more fuel efficient and less polluting, and...

No. It was second hand. In fact, until the 386 came out, I really didn't consider PCs to be anything more than expensive toys which were pretty limited in what they could do. The 386 was powerful enough that you could do a fair bit of useful stuff on it. The problem was, at the time it came...

Thanks for the tip, but I know those tricks like the back of my hand. :) Don't forget, I got started on PCs with a 386-40 in 1999, so I had to learn all that. I've gotten as much as 635K free with QEMM and DOS 5.0 on my 386. The machine I'm asking about has around 623K free in pure DOS mode...

My current "best" machine is a PII-450 running on an AX6B M/B(440BX chipset). DMA33 transfers work fine in Windows, but not in DOS. Yes, they are set in the CMOS but apparently that doesn't make them active unless the appropriate driver is loaded. Why do I even care if I have Ultra33...