amatheus

The code will close the file in case of a panic?

What kind of integration? At Desktop level VMWare Fusion is very integrated into OS X.

you could click the buttons with your thumb behind the space bar. In fact, I guess for typing it would be better if you kept the fingers on the keyboard, so why not make the keyboard keys touch sensitive?

I would guess most of the users simply don't install any plugins or addons. So in that case listening to them would simply mean not changing anything.

I guess a way to protect from this would be to set some forwarding at the web server level, so that any url for static files would forward to its canonic representation. After the forward I think the file shouldn't be downloaded again.

I think the key here is "works reasonably well". Nothing at this level will be as market-defining as "works perfectly" which is what Apple aims.

It was my understanding that the author is not disputing that culture is important. What I got he's trying to say is: - Culture is not always the reason something happens - Culture is not used as an explanation when something happens related to some countries. I think this point is valid. I'm reading 'The Second Sex' and Simone de Beauvoir talks about how machism is a way to turn the women into the _Other_, to put men into the center, as something neutral. I think it's the same thing with culturalism; it's not that somethings may be caused by culture but it's turning other cultures into Other, it's putting our culture as if it were something neutral, the standard.

The thing I keep thinking when I hear about windows 8 is: how should a new windows application be developed? I think it's very confusing. If I were to start an application now, would I do it for desktop or windows RT? If I create for desktop then it will look bad with windows 8, with all the start screen swapping.

Maybe you know different people than I, but most of the non-technical computer users I know, when asked about where is a document, will answer "Oh I saved my curriculum in Word" instead of a folder.

There's one thing I don't understand. When you execute code automatically, what do you do about side effects? If I have code that write, read or delete a file for example.

It's great. I wonder if it would be possible to switch colors? You would start with green for example, then change to red and the fluids start to mix the colors?

Apologists? I thought the term was fanboy - at least that's how an Apple "apologist" would be labeled here.

The level of trust on Google that some people have is really astonishing. I think the problem is, for all their "do no evil" mantra, as they need the feel to keep growing (in other areas, as search is already theirs), I can't believe they will always choose the "do no evil" path.

What I think is a big problem is, how much Google will be able to do before its public perception starts to change?

On the other hand, lots of people in this thread are saying google's policy is the right thing in this case. Would they say the same if apple was refusing an app with a middle finger icon? A book? A song?

I think they're both wrong, but I understand that having something open for all, you'll get adults but children too, and as a parent your definition of objectionable content for your children may differ. But for me, simply removing the content is wrong. Maybe better parental control technology may make the situation better.

Not that I am saying you're wrong, but he could be denying this to avoid giving a tip to Google, couldn't he?

I think that in the first part Fry is being very sloppy with his language, if not actually wrong, although I think I understand what he meant with it. I think what he means is more in the sense of PC open computing, like, you throw in whatever parts there are in marketplace and the thing is meant to work; like in, Google makes Android but don't know what specific hardware it will work on.

Maybe that's because your interactions with this account weren't deleted. Maybe you still were mentioned in walls, or people you chatted with still had the history of messages. That's just a guess, I don't work at facebook, but I think even if they delete everything, they won't delete every piece of data you may left on other people's profiles.

Now, if Apple and HTC reach a cross-licensing agreement that includes these patents, could apple later sue another android manufacturer using them?

Frankly, I can't understand what's your point with this phrase. I think he obviously meant Google paid 12.5 billion for Motorola — a handset maker with rapidly declining sales, no recent profits, and misguided management - _only for the patents_. He's not ignoring the most salient factor in the deal; he's just reaffirming that, to get to the patents, Google paid 12.5 billion for the whole, including the bad parts that he's highlighting.

Shouldn't this be solved by automatic saving apps' settings? In Lion, shouldn't I be supposed to put an application somewhere and it will stay there even after I quit it? I've installed Lion but had no time to play with it, will try this when I get home.

I would love it if it had support for source code listings too.

I've read a very good book on the subject, Pink Brain Blue Brain, in which the author writes about what are the really physical differences between genders and which are social differences (basically nature vs. nurture). A good read for anyone trying to understand where science stands as of today on the gender gap questions.

The main theme of the book is, there are differences, but not as dramatic between genders as between two individuals; and much of the differences may be alleviated by paying attention to stereotypes when raising or educating children.

Well, I'm pretty sure I'm in minority here. After abusing tabs for a long time I decided to switch back to windows and I must say I'm very happy. Now when I Command-Tab in Safari I get a new window. These windows pile on the desktop, so eventually I must do something about them, either read, bookmark, when it's something I want to read soon I just drag the page icon to the desktop. And I think that's better for me personally than having hundreds of tabs open. Usually I'll go clicking and filling the desktop and at some point, start to read and close the accumulated windows.

But I try to avoid web applications for mail, rss and anything I can find a decent desktop app, so maybe my way of dealing with windows wouldn't apply to someone who wants to check gmail all day.

Well, I always hear there are iPhone shortages, so it would annoy users too. I'm still waiting for the iPhone 4 to come to Brazil and would be VERY annoyed if there was a new delay on top of the already long lag between the iPhone 4 launch in the US and in the Brazil.

I think he simply doesn't see any real benefits (for Apple) in open sourcing it. Surely the occasional geek will benefit, but there simply isn't that much market pressure for Apple to feel the need, neither other benefits, like it gets with the open source darwin.

The fundamental thing I think you're missing is that the assertion that open source benefits users, hacker and the company is not undisputed. Apple's stance on the matter, for example, are almost the opposite; for Apple it may benefit hackers, but it's bad for users (who may suffer unneeded complexity and confusion) and it's bad for Apple; at the least, it's a distraction and waste of resources to release an open-source version with the polish it ought to take, at the worst it may enable things Apple wouldn't want, like facilitating competitor's devices ability to fake as an iPod.

Not that I think Jobs is actively thinking about it, I'm pretty sure something like this doesn't crosses his mind. If asked maybe he would say 'go get another mp3 player then, or use Windows/Mac OS X'.

By the way I'm not saying I think Apple is right or wrong, just saying what I think are it's motives.

There's a definition to atheism I've read once that I think it's the best way to define what atheism means to me: An atheist doesn't believe in god the same way he doesn't believe in santa claus, or werewolves. It's not that he can positively proof god does not exist, only that there's no reason, given current evidences, to believe.

I think that, with the tablet, apple will try to redefine the computer experience for people less used to computers -- they'll try to make the computer more like the iPhone, make it simpler by dropping features.

I think it will maybe run one application at a time, have no hierarchical file system, things like that.

But, I don't think it will use the same iPhone apps. It will be a different platform, very similar to the iPhone but not equal; apps will be much more sophisticated, and there will be more emphasis on creating content than consuming content.

constructive solid geometry seems good, but boundary representation looks better.

I've found some resources: - an online course on Geometric Modelling

http://people.bath.ac.uk/ensab/G_mod/FYGM/

- a book about boundary representation

http://www.amazon.com/Boundary-Representation-Modelling-Tech...

I think these will suffice to start.

Thanks for the comments!

I have a desktop and a notebook. I put my personal projects on Dropbox, plus some other things, use imap with Mail, rss with NetNewswire, so everything syncs and it works really well - I get the mobility when I need but use the desktop at home (I don't think I could stand using a notebook at home). I think you could have problems if you use applications you can't sync between the too, or projects with really large files that are hard to sync. My only gripe with my setup is browsing; I'm working (well, sort of, when I have time) at some utility to save snapshots of my tabs and send them between the computers, so I can close the notebook with tabs open and get the same tabs on the desktop.