Whenever I fill out these types of surveys/registrations/etc., unless there is a bonafide reason for me to give real information, I won't. Even giving the correct income bracket is too much for me; I usually adjust it one up or down. Same thing with my age.
Just because these surveys claim people aren't really concerned about privacy because they give out "personal information", it doesn't mean the information they gave is actually personal. It just means they gave out information. There is no way to verify the information is accurate.
And if someone did give out something personal, such as a password for chocolate, they can still just change it. Or maybe they have a setup where you need a smart card to use their account. Just because they give out so-called "personal" information doesn't mean they're stupid.
I can understand having a free, online book to check out first. It lets you decide whether the book is worth purchasing or not; sample chapters don't cut it because you may miss out on related info that clarifies the chapter or you simple aren't interested in that particular chapter.
However, reading a book on a computer isn't the most comfortable. I have some old D&D books in ebook form and it's literally a pain to read them on the computer. You have to keep in approximately the same position to read it; even with a laptop you're still limited in how you can view the screen.
It makes sense to me to offer a free ebook. If the information is useful, I'll buy the real book because it's more portable than a computer (even an ebook reader) and I can read it where-ever and how-ever I want.
My personal favorite for reviews is Epinions.com. Usually I'll look for the negative reviews (1 or 2 stars) because these are usually more realistic, especially when it comes to movies.
But I still look to see if the same complaints are common between them. If not, then I figure the complainers are the type that will gripe about anything.
I'm leery of 5 star reviews because they are usually fluff. But I also read the reviews to see if the content matches the star value. If not, then I ignore that author.
Plus, the forms to fill out for a review pretty much require people to consider both pros and cons so hopefully it will slow them down from 5 star and 1 star posts.
You just have to setup the code on your site to not track the clicks. You can then click all the ads on your site but it won't hurt you because no one gets money, hence no one can claim click fraud.
Okay, I'll admit it would be cool to quit a job to "play games" all day. But IMO this guy was an idiot for doing this when a baby is on the way.
I'm sure he had great benefits while working at eBay (he should based on his position and salary). Now he has no benefits and has to pay for everything out of pocket. And since he's making $5 less per game than he expected, he's probably not making any more than he did when he had a real job.
I'm sure it's nice being home to "help out", but many of us know how that really ends up. The family always butts into your "party time" and you end up w/ less time to do your own things. For him, that means less $.
Ya know, if parents were taking an active role and watching TV with their kids, rather than plopping them in front of it, the problem would go away. Well, maybe if the parents also taught their children to be smart.
I was never dumb enough, nor have I known anyone who was stupid enough, to pull on a TV nor climb the furniture it was on. It just never occured to me. Hell, if the kids are getting crushed by TV's, maybe it's just Darwinism at work.
Not to mention the fact that the article gave incredibly low numbers that it's really more of a moot point. More kids are injured by shopping carts than falling TV's.
When I was looking for a cell phone several years ago, I looked at Verizon, Cingular, AT&T, and Sprint. Cingular had limited coverage, AT&T didn't have anything I was interested in (and I think they were slightly overpriced), so it was down to Verizon and Sprint.
The Verizon people really pushed hard for the sell but I was able to get away w/o buying. I looked at the pamphlets and compared to Sprint and realized that Verizon wanted me to pay nearly $20 more per month for fewer minutes and several options that Sprint provided for free cost $5/month with Verizon, not to mention that at the time Sprint offered free cell-to-cell calls but Verizon wanted an extra $5-10 for that.
Then I talked to several people and heard enough horror stories that I stayed away from Verizon. And nowadays I'm even more glad that I didn't go w/ Verizon. They really don't care about their customers, just the money. And they'll do whatever they can to keep it coming, even if you leave.
On a side note, I guess it's slightly better that they use your phone number for reporting purposes than your SSN, though they probably have that too. But at least you can change your number when you stop using Verizon.
Or at least they hate the white, western world. In the Fortune article, the kid admitted that one of the reasons he did it is because "white people can afford it." Or the people feel it's simply payback for what the white-devil slavemasters have done to them.
It's amazing that the rest of the world hates "the West" simply because of the poor way the US has treated everyone else. And the hate these other people have for us is simply political; on an individual basis they don't care about Americans. It's just what America does when it gets involved in other countries politics.
It's amazing what corp and govt can get away with when they say it's for the safety of the nation. Having worked in a military intel center, there's actually very little that needs to be classified.
I think a better way of doing this would be to follow the best leadership example: tell the people why you're doing something and most of the time they won't have a problem. It's only when you say, "Just because", that people start giving you a hard time.
So, all the Administration needs to do is say, "This is considered a National Security matter because of these reasons...". Of course, most of the reasons will be BS but at least they aren't using a "no comment" style of dodging questions.
I've always wondered about this. How do you determine how many listeners radio has? I know they have phone polls; I actually took one several decades ago. But how accurate are they?
Is it determined by the potential audience, i.e. there are X number of people living in all the cities we broadcast in, therefore it's assumed Y percentage of them listen to us? Does it include Internet streaming or podcasts?
Most importantly, how does CBS know that X number of Stern listeners left when he moved? It can't be based on the number of Sirius sign-ups that occured at the same time. Well, actually it could if you're a marketer, but sign-ups could also be due to discount pricing, special bundle deals, the phase of the moon, sunspots, etc.
I really don't care if the radio stations die or if new music doesn't get played. There is an extremely small amount of new music that I like.
The vast majority of my collection is stuff from the 80's and 90's plus large amounts of Euro-tunes. Most of it you won't hear on normal radio anyways.
There's only one radio show I listen to regularly and that's Coast to Coast AM, 'cause ghost stories kick butt. And even if the radio station stopped playing it, I can always get the podcasts and streaming audio files from the web site.
If few people care about which OS they use but only about the programs, then why do so many people cringe at the idea of using Linux or OS X? Everytime someone asks me to help fix their computer, I tell them to install Linux or get a Mac. They give me the "deer in the headlights" look and say it's too difficult to learn something that isn't Windows. Apparently many people do care which OS they use.
On a side note, don't these people realize they had to learn Windows before they became proficient? Same thing with a different OS. Not to mention that every Windows update makes enough changes to the UI that it takes upwards of a week to learn where everything is; think of the change from Classic Windows to the XP scheme.
Most people fail to realize exactly what purpose the security cameras serve. Cameras don't prevent crime, they only make it easier to find the culprit. They may serve to deter crime, but seriously, no one knows how much because you can't quantify it.
Look at Britian. Remember that story a few years back about the two adolescents who "kidnapped" another boy, led him to some train tracks, then bashed his brains out w/ rocks? The street CCTV cameras didn't prevent the crime but police were able to trace the route the kids took after the kidnapping.
In summary, installing cameras rarely prevent a crime, so you're children won't be any safer if they're in an area under surveillance. Proper education is still the safest route.
Regarding the pirated XP version, why did you pirate it? If you have a problem w/ Bill Gates and Co. then use an alternative OS like Linux or OS X. That will piss them off even more than if you pirate.
What I mean is, even if you didn't pay for XP, you're still contributing to Windows install base (not market share since you didn't buy it). You know, the 90%+ computers that run Windows. That's one of the reasons they aren't pushing hard for big-league pirates to be put away; the more people who use their software, the more people get locked in.
Even if you got the OS for free, you're now more likely (in their eyes) to use other MS services and products, like Windows Media Player, MSN, Visual Studio, etc. Even if you never buy another thing from them, you're one less statistic for alternative software and one more for "Big Brother".
If the mobile operators want the politicians to do something, then legislation should make the operators responsible for allowing the information to "escape" and prosecute them. As stated previously, the people doing the theft should be held accountable, but so should the mobile companies for leaving the info "laying around".
The article only touched lightly on it, but auto-steering seems even more dangerous than braking/cruise control. AFAIK, most of the current models use the road markings and painted lines to tell if the car is in the middle of a lane.
So what happens if you're driving down one of those back roads where it's not maintained well and the lines are barely visible? Also, are they blinded by headlights from oncoming cars? Can they change lanes for you?
On the contrary, this is really innovative for computers, specifically laptops. How many people have broken a computer, crashed a HD, or otherwise damaged a laptop due to an accidentally pulled power cord?
Why do the ISP's have to retain the data? If the gvt. wants the data so bad, then make a law that the ISP's have to provide copies of their data to the gvt. Then the gvt. can pay to store the data.
ISP's shouldn't have to shoulder the burden of an unfunded mandate, especially if there's no proof that it will make a difference.
I wanted a Powerbook for Xmas but told my wife to hold off until the new Mactel laptops came out, in the belief that the older PowerPC versions would drop in price.
If you check the Apple site, you'll see that both the 15" models are $1999. So much for the big discounts. But, now I know it's better for me to just get the latest and greatest.
On the post: Turns Out People Say They're Concerned About Privacy, But They're Not
How do they know the data is real?
Just because these surveys claim people aren't really concerned about privacy because they give out "personal information", it doesn't mean the information they gave is actually personal. It just means they gave out information. There is no way to verify the information is accurate.
And if someone did give out something personal, such as a password for chocolate, they can still just change it. Or maybe they have a setup where you need a smart card to use their account. Just because they give out so-called "personal" information doesn't mean they're stupid.
On the post: Another Free Book Example; Oprah Book Give Away Keeps Actual Sales Strong
Re: Why Sales are Up
However, reading a book on a computer isn't the most comfortable. I have some old D&D books in ebook form and it's literally a pain to read them on the computer. You have to keep in approximately the same position to read it; even with a laptop you're still limited in how you can view the screen.
It makes sense to me to offer a free ebook. If the information is useful, I'll buy the real book because it's more portable than a computer (even an ebook reader) and I can read it where-ever and how-ever I want.
On the post: We Already Suffer From The Paradox Of Choice, Now We're Paralyzed By The Ubiquity Of User Reviews
Epinions
But I still look to see if the same complaints are common between them. If not, then I figure the complainers are the type that will gripe about anything.
I'm leery of 5 star reviews because they are usually fluff. But I also read the reviews to see if the content matches the star value. If not, then I ignore that author.
Plus, the forms to fill out for a review pretty much require people to consider both pros and cons so hopefully it will slow them down from 5 star and 1 star posts.
On the post: If Your Clickfraud Scheme Fails, Sue Google
AdSense does let you click your ads
On the post: Slaving Away At Online Poker
Loser!
I'm sure he had great benefits while working at eBay (he should based on his position and salary). Now he has no benefits and has to pay for everything out of pocket. And since he's making $5 less per game than he expected, he's probably not making any more than he did when he had a real job.
I'm sure it's nice being home to "help out", but many of us know how that really ends up. The family always butts into your "party time" and you end up w/ less time to do your own things. For him, that means less $.
On the post: Cell Phones: Safe. TV Sets: Killers
So, where are the parents?
I was never dumb enough, nor have I known anyone who was stupid enough, to pull on a TV nor climb the furniture it was on. It just never occured to me. Hell, if the kids are getting crushed by TV's, maybe it's just Darwinism at work.
Not to mention the fact that the article gave incredibly low numbers that it's really more of a moot point. More kids are injured by shopping carts than falling TV's.
On the post: Verizon Explains How Telling Credit Agencies About Your Slow Payment Is A Gift
Looked, but didn't touch
The Verizon people really pushed hard for the sell but I was able to get away w/o buying. I looked at the pamphlets and compared to Sprint and realized that Verizon wanted me to pay nearly $20 more per month for fewer minutes and several options that Sprint provided for free cost $5/month with Verizon, not to mention that at the time Sprint offered free cell-to-cell calls but Verizon wanted an extra $5-10 for that.
Then I talked to several people and heard enough horror stories that I stayed away from Verizon. And nowadays I'm even more glad that I didn't go w/ Verizon. They really don't care about their customers, just the money. And they'll do whatever they can to keep it coming, even if you leave.
On a side note, I guess it's slightly better that they use your phone number for reporting purposes than your SSN, though they probably have that too. But at least you can change your number when you stop using Verizon.
On the post: Life And Times Of A 419 Scammer
They hate the US
It's amazing that the rest of the world hates "the West" simply because of the poor way the US has treated everyone else. And the hate these other people have for us is simply political; on an individual basis they don't care about Americans. It's just what America does when it gets involved in other countries politics.
On the post: Telco's Non-Denial Denials Of Sharing Call Records
All in the name of
I think a better way of doing this would be to follow the best leadership example: tell the people why you're doing something and most of the time they won't have a problem. It's only when you say, "Just because", that people start giving you a hard time.
So, all the Administration needs to do is say, "This is considered a National Security matter because of these reasons...". Of course, most of the reasons will be BS but at least they aren't using a "no comment" style of dodging questions.
On the post: Searching For Howard Stern's Lost Listeners
How do they determine listeners?
Is it determined by the potential audience, i.e. there are X number of people living in all the cities we broadcast in, therefore it's assumed Y percentage of them listen to us? Does it include Internet streaming or podcasts?
Most importantly, how does CBS know that X number of Stern listeners left when he moved? It can't be based on the number of Sirius sign-ups that occured at the same time. Well, actually it could if you're a marketer, but sign-ups could also be due to discount pricing, special bundle deals, the phase of the moon, sunspots, etc.
On the post: Radio Stations Claim Payola Probe Limiting New Music
I don't listen to FM anymore
The vast majority of my collection is stuff from the 80's and 90's plus large amounts of Euro-tunes. Most of it you won't hear on normal radio anyways.
There's only one radio show I listen to regularly and that's Coast to Coast AM, 'cause ghost stories kick butt. And even if the radio station stopped playing it, I can always get the podcasts and streaming audio files from the web site.
On the post: Market Share Pales In Importance To Smugness For Mac Zealots
No one cares about OS?
On a side note, don't these people realize they had to learn Windows before they became proficient? Same thing with a different OS. Not to mention that every Windows update makes enough changes to the UI that it takes upwards of a week to learn where everything is; think of the change from Classic Windows to the XP scheme.
On the post: Local Governments Requiring Businesses To Spy On Patrons?
The problem w/ cameras
On the post: Maybe Bring Your Own Mouse To The Internet Cafe
Simple solution for the paranoid.
On the post: File-Sharing Students Say The Ads Made Them Do It
Re: It's not too hard to believe...
What I mean is, even if you didn't pay for XP, you're still contributing to Windows install base (not market share since you didn't buy it). You know, the 90%+ computers that run Windows. That's one of the reasons they aren't pushing hard for big-league pirates to be put away; the more people who use their software, the more people get locked in.
Even if you got the OS for free, you're now more likely (in their eyes) to use other MS services and products, like Windows Media Player, MSN, Visual Studio, etc. Even if you never buy another thing from them, you're one less statistic for alternative software and one more for "Big Brother".
On the post: Like Clockwork -- Operators Spin Own Info Leak As A Government Problem
So kick 'em in the crotch
On the post: How To Make The Obvious Sound Scary
How about auto-steering?
So what happens if you're driving down one of those back roads where it's not maintained well and the lines are barely visible? Also, are they blinded by headlights from oncoming cars? Can they change lanes for you?
Just curious.
On the post: Fryer Art Threatens Apple Patent Application
Re: No Subject Given
On the post: UK Politician Shrugs Off Data Retention Costs
Why is it the ISP's job?
ISP's shouldn't have to shoulder the burden of an unfunded mandate, especially if there's no proof that it will make a difference.
On the post: Apple, Intel Get Cozy Quickly
Where's the price drops?
If you check the Apple site, you'll see that both the 15" models are $1999. So much for the big discounts. But, now I know it's better for me to just get the latest and greatest.
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