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darasen

115 karma · joined September 29, 2011

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darasen··on Was Theodore Kaczynski the Zodiac Killer?
No. That is a really long ad for a book by a "Zodiologist and Kaczynski theorist"

"The odds of any single criminal bearing all the qualities outlined above has been conservatively estimated at more than one in two billion" According to whom? Even if accurate, that isn't particularly sound evidence of anything.

darasen··on The House just voted to wipe out the FCC’s landmark Internet privacy protections
There is no difference. The rule, passed along party lines by democrats in the FCC, heavily favored companies like Google and Facebook who are constantly using your data.

Those who prefer a smaller government and objected the the FCC'c huge over reach that this rule was part of.

darasen··on Why digital natives prefer reading in print
>Aside from looking at the ink, none of these things actually have to do with reading..

Actually they do, comprehension and memorization are parts of reading. Events (like reading) that engage more senses engage us more deeply and enforce comprehension and memorization.

darasen··on Prosecute Torturers and Their Bosses
Sorry, I can not take any organization seriously that complains of "torture" while fully supporting the act of siphoning out an unborn child's brain.
darasen··on Books that have stayed with us
I will gladly admit I thought Lucifer's Hammer was great. One of my favourites from my favourite author.
darasen··on Sistine Chapel
Let us not forget that this concept doesn't just apply to Christianity, or religion in general, though.

Monet struggled with the Académie des Beaux-Arts fot painting the way they thought people should paint.

There is a long history of Ballet dancers in the USSR who struggled because they good communists.

Today character assassination is the norm for for so many people (especially in the arts) who don't strictly adhere to progressive politics.

I attended an art school for time where I was frequently shunned for dressing well, (apparently you can't be an "artist" if you wear slacks and dress shirts,) and adhering to Christian principles.

Look at the movie Moms' night out. Highly panned by critics because because the characters are not "feminist" enough. Yet highly rated by the audience.

darasen··on Good Poker Players Aren't Lucky
There is a reason that the top players happen to very good at math.
darasen··on Brendan Eich Steps Down as Mozilla CEO
Just remember free speech and an open mind are encouraged. Unless you disagree with the LGBT agenda.
darasen··on FTL: Advanced Edition
I remember Escape Velocity very fondly, not only was it fun it was the first mac application I dug into. I made it so my ship could launch cows.
darasen··on Size Comparison - Science Fiction spaceships
Wouldn't the AI in Asimov's "The Last Question" top that chart.
darasen··on I Asked 1000 Americans to Name a British City Other Than London
Given I follow English football Manchester was my first thought. I'd have laughed if Midsomer made the list.
darasen··on He got 1%, we can't hire him
I disdain idiotic psych "tests". The mentality of "here's a few questions and now I know how you think or what kind of person you are" is, frankly, insulting.
darasen··on Yahoo tops Google in US traffic
Given that there is an entire industry centered around gaming search (primarily Google) is anyone surprised search has suffered?
darasen··on DC, Maryland: Speed Camera Firms Move To Hide Evidence
"Why is this privatised? Too easy to abuse."

Because the government never participates in abuse?

darasen··on Creator of xkcd Reveals Secret Backstory of His Epic 3,990-Panel Comic
xkcd truly elevates the web comic genre to an art form. Mr. Munroe really should be considered for a Hugo or a Reuben.
darasen··on A future made of Glass
What I don't get: In a time when we are very aware of government tracking programs we are being asked to strap a GPS and camera to our heads so that Google can track us constantly?
darasen··on Dora, Diego, SpongeBob and Other Viacom Shows Leave Netflix
I would mourn the loss of Wonder Pets and Avatar is actually a great shoe for adults even. At least there is Phineas and Ferb (funnier than most sit-coms).

Odd taste aside there are so many streaming services now with so many different licenses it is becoming hard to find one with my favourite shows. And I still have a hard time getting the best BBC shows in a timely manner (Sherlock, Doctor Who, etc...)

darasen··on OReilly offers 50% discount on ebooks in celebration of 'Day Against DRM'
If I wanted to learn a new topic, such as Python, in general what series are considered better? ie Head First, Missing Manual, Novice to Ninja...

Any opinions ?

darasen··on Unlocking Cellphones Becomes Illegal Saturday in the U.S.
I still want to know why a completely unelected government official gets to decide what is and isn't illegal.
darasen··on Dungeons & Dragons Classics - Every edition available again
I have a great justification, a son and nephews. Actually I have never stopped role-playing in ~35 years.

That said, Where's TOMB of HORRORS !

darasen··on Anonymous takes down over 550 Israeli sites, wipes databases
Of course Hamas could always stop intentionally putting rocket launchers by playgrounds. But that wouldn't suit their agenda.
darasen··on Show HN: 5000 best movies
Case in point The Matrix at 13th. Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet: 1052.
darasen··on The Rules of Storytelling According to Pixar
While I will grant that Tim Burton can be clever I have never seen anything of his that carries the same emotional weight of Pixar's best works. Toy Story 3 was an amazing success and pulled off being a very emotional film while being a comedy/adventure. I know many people who cried or nearly cried toward the end who are parents with kids leaving their childhood behind. The first several minutes of UP are amazingly melancholy. The "dance" in space from Wall-E is downright beautiful and Wall-E's devotion to the girl robot when she is broken is rather heartwarming.

Incidentally according to BoxOffice Mojo Wall-E made 521 Million dollars.

darasen··on Study: Teens Think Your eBooks Are Lame, Prefer Actual Books
I own a Sony PRS-T1 and have it rooted as well so that it runs Android. The Sony also allows me to handwrite notes into the document.
darasen··on MPAA Just Won't Quit: Argues Links & Embeds Are Infringing
I hate to lose rep but I must say that I can see the point where embedded content is concerned. Hear me out.

Certainly I understand the technical argument being made against the MPAA here. But, when I provide the descriptor (embedded video) at the cost of surrounding said video with ads then I am certainly attempting to profit from the inclusion of the video. If said content is copyrighted I can understand the copyright holder being displeased with others trying to profit from my work.

To be fair the average user (not average HN user) never says "I saw this awesome video via myVidster (site mentioned in article) though the content was hosted by and embedded from ...". The content is almost always associated to where it is found.

That said I wholeheartedly think the MPAA and RIAA need to be drug into the 21st century, even if it is kicking and screaming like a three old in cereal aisle of Wal-Mart.

darasen··on One more way MS will engage with the open source and standards communities
Reading the article it seems that the primary objective is to get the open source community behind Windows 8 and the windows phone.

"..work with the PhoneGap/Cordova and jQuery Mobile and other open source communities to support Windows Phone.."

Seems to be a rather one way street to me. When they stop claiming the rights to Linux and perhaps make Silverlight work in Linux I may believe they support open source.

darasen··on Go to Trial - Crash the Justice System
didn't have access to anti-depressants so she became addicted to crack? That is quite a leap.
darasen··on Leaked: Police Plan to Raid The Pirate Bay
There seems to be a confusion between the terms representation and voting rights.
darasen··on Books every self-taught computer scientist should read
As a self taught programmer were I to read all of the books "every programmer should read" I would never have time to actually program.
darasen··on Author Steven Johnson on what e-books are missing: "Skimming."
That would be helpful for many Sci-Fi and Fantasy novels as well. Especially the ones where people get bent out of shape if pronounce something wrong.

Full disclosure: I read Tolkien for years before I discovered that elvish names with C such as Celeborn or pronounced with a K sound.

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