billybob

60 ms·

571.
by billybob 16y ago
"Maybe they should make it so that degree can be legally reposessed by the bank ... and any future employer, seeing lack of degree would know to inquire about the details." This wouldn't work. They can't repossess the knowledge in your head
572.
by billybob 16y ago
Agreed - "economic rationality" is an extremely narrow concept. As an example, it's "rational" to buy yourself a car or an ice cream cone, because you get utility or enjoyment out of it. It's "irrational" to give money to others, because...
573.
by billybob 16y ago
Whether you'd like people to change their definition of personal privacy is a very different question from whether it's OK to invade their privacy. I mean, if I'm poking you in the face with my finger and going 'nya-nya-nya,' and you ask me
574.
by billybob 16y ago
No, you want to compare that proportion with the proportion of amateur filmmakers who never went to school and became great filmmakers. In other words, does film school increase your chances?
575.
by billybob 16y ago
I think it's more fun to make emphatic use of "figuratively." As in, "wow, we FIGURATIVELY kicked their butts!"
576.
by billybob 16y ago
Surely statistics can be used to correct for this - compare affluent, educated, health-conscious women in both categories, for example?
577.
by billybob 16y ago
"And quite frankly, as part of an army of formula fed humanoids, I'd like to think we all turned out just fine." The woman you describe was rude, and I'm sure you did turn out fine. But the impetus for the debate is scientific evidence on w
578.
by billybob 16y ago
I can't tell if you meant "they've all stunk lately, but this REALLY stunk," or "this was the exception."
579.
by billybob 16y ago
"I'm inclined to think that someone who thinks about something full-time is statistically more likely to guess correctly about it than someone who doesn't." If the system they're thinking about is a system defined by other people also think
580.
by billybob 16y ago
"Now, it’s true that there are task manager apps in the Android Market. But they are not necessary. The Android system doesn’t come with one and doesn’t need one... There are a lot of things I like better about the iPhone than Android. The
581.
by billybob 16y ago
Or to put this in HN terms: lack of lockin = "fail faster."
582.
by billybob 16y ago
What I took away from this is "don't use these in an if statement." Even if I understand how the precedence is different, it isn't obvious at all. It would be better to use more parens to make the evaluation order explicit. The other uses s
583.
by billybob 16y ago
"That may be part of the problem with loyalty to Android. If everything is in the cloud, there is nothing tying me to a Google device." ...Which is exactly why I'd like to get a Google device. And to the loyalty point: you don't HAVE to kee
584.
by billybob 16y ago
I can't find any way to skip it with my player. And yes, I could mute the previews. Just like they could wear earplugs for my polka concert.
585.
by billybob 16y ago
Next thing I want: to make it ILLEGAL to manufacture any DVD or player that FORCES consumers to watch previews. I'm serious. I just sat through 10 minutes of previews the other night for movies like "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel."
586.
by billybob 16y ago
"Defeating a lawfully obtained DVD’s encryption for the sole purpose of short, fair use in an educational setting OR FOR CRITICISM." Sure, I'm going to blog about this movie. Lemme in. Seriously, "lawfully obtained" should be the only quali
587.
by billybob 16y ago
Maybe. But once you learn it, would you be set for life? Or would you have to relearn a bit the next day? It's interesting to combine the idea of trial-and-error learning with "save that strategy in permanent memory."
588.
by billybob 16y ago
Clearly, everyone makes choices, which is why you have inspiring rags-to-riches stories and tragic "how did they go so wrong" stories. But a big part of your environment is your culture. The Indian immigrants in Jersey City, I suspect, stil
589.
by billybob 16y ago
A great article. Bloggers who fancy themselves New Journalists would do well to read it and learn.
590.
by billybob 16y ago
"How do they get the data" doesn't seem mysterious once you give them your logins. "Is this safe and why or why not" is the question I'd be much rather have answered.
591.
by billybob 16y ago
I haven't taken a course, but have read (most of) "How to Win Friends and Influence People." While what you describe sounds creepy, there are good principles in there, and you don't have to take it so far. For example, he points out that mo
592.
by billybob 16y ago
Hilarious. :) I hope that's how you meant it.
593.
by billybob 16y ago
Joel Spolsky has blogged about the process for launching these sites, and there is a sort of trial period to see whether it will fly or be closed. He has also said that each site will have its own logo, branding, etc. Maybe this one hasn't
594.
by billybob 16y ago
Well, your first wish has some small fulfilment. I had been thinking of getting a Droid, but after reading about this, I no longer trust Motorola. Any idea if HTC is better?
595.
by billybob 16y ago
The future of news, as I see it: traditional media mostly dies, leaving a giant vacuum that part-time enthusiasts can't fill. People don't know what their local and regional government is up to because research is mostly boring, and who wan
596.
by billybob 16y ago
Dumb question - what's PAM? To me that means "phone as modem"...
597.
by billybob 16y ago
Is this indicative of a trend, or of users going "hey, I've never seen an ad here before, what's that all about?"
598.
by billybob 16y ago
I think it's ridiculous to rename dates just to remove their religious connotations, especially when the reference point is still the (slightly inaccurate) birth of Christ. If someone wanted to start with a new system, where year 0 is the B
599.
by billybob 16y ago
Media piracy and fake Kevlar vests are completely different issues. A few random points that should be considered about media piracy: 1) Copyright exists to encourage the creation of new works - ie to benefit the public, not the creators pe
600.
by billybob 16y ago
Isn't this at least partly the manufacturer's fault? I think Ubuntu is trying to work with PC makers to get drivers written and tested before the hardware ships. Maybe it's a bit chicken-and-egg to get that to happen - people won't buy Linu

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