Movies move the unconscious

Subject: Folding@PS3

Just wondering if any consideration has been given to energy consumption in a time where laws are passed addressing TV stand-by levels...

Enal

Subject: AMD shoots up the semiconductor charts

If you look at amd's Q4 2006 earnings report, AMD said they made $5.65B in 2006 and $5.85B in 2005. The real numbers tell a different story. Hector probably had some pressure on him over his 2006 pay of $16M. I wonder what it cost him to have isuppli fudge AMD's numbers?

http://www.amd.com/us-en/assets/content_type/DownloadableAssets/ResultsQ406. pdf

Bruce

Subject: AMD shoots up the semiconductor charts

Mike,

A letter posted on your site today by "Bruce" opines that iSuppli "fudged" AMD's 2006 revenue figure because it doesn't match the figure published by AMD in its earnings press release.

The variation between the number listed in the AMD report and iSuppli's estimate is due to a difference in the way AMD's 2006 acquisition of ATI is accounted for.

In its release, AMD says it started accounting for revenues from the ATI acquisition in late October 2006.

iSuppli's standard methodology is to combine revenue for two merged companies for the entire year during which a merger occurs, not starting from the date of the merger. We apply this methodology even-handedly for all companies.

Thus, iSuppli is counting AMD's revenue as the combined revenue of AMD/ATI for all of calendar 2006--while AMD is doing it for about two months of the year.

ATI had revenue of about $2 billion for the year. However, AMD lists ATI as contributing only $398 million to the bottom line in 2006.

iSuppli affirms the accuracy of its AMD revenue estimate and would be please to answer any inquiries regarding its market-share estimate methodologies.

Regards,
Jonathan Cassell
Editorial Director and Manager, Public Relations
iSuppli Corporation

Subject: Swinging Publishers...

Good day.

A few months back, I purchased a game called Titan Quest.

While a mostly enjoyable playing experience so far, this game seems so typical of recent releases; launch with buggy crap that needs patching before it can be played at all. It released as ver 1.00. It's not at 1.30 and it still has issues. I tried to play it right out of the box and it was impossible, literally. I never got more than 5 minutes out of it before a crash and sometimes a hard boot.

My machine far exceeds the recommended specs of the game and, at times, it is barely playable. What happens to the poor shmoo who buys this thinking his minumum spec rig will play the game. He's just pissed $40 or so away...forever. Why...? Because you can't return software.

So even when our intrepid consumer follows the proper instructions, does everything correctly, buys a retail copy he is screwed...and there's nothing he can do about it. Besides, for being a good retail purchaser, he gets the added bonus of being treated like a criminal, as in, guilty until proven innocent. Nice.

If you buy a toaster and it doesn't work, you take it back and get a new one or your money back. If they sell it knowing full well it won't work, that's fraud. You, as a consumer, are protected in virtually every retail purchase you make, except software.

I literally laugh out loud when I read about publishers of software whining that they're losing billions of dollars because of pirates.

Here's a wacky idea. Maybe they could put out something worth paying overpriced retail for. Perhaps, they could actually deliver on what they promise on the packaging.

I am one of those idiots who, generally, pays retail for software. For that, I get stuck with a piece of crap that doesn't work as I purchased it and I have to spend hours of my own time to make it work, if possible at all.

I am completely, 100%, totally behind software pirates. I cheer them on with every fibre of my being. Most publishers are lying, fraudulent piles of crap. Go out of business. I don't care about you. You really should, in any case. If your product deserves a market, maybe someone else will step in and offer something just like it with the exception that it's worth buying. If not, I can probably live without it.

And publishers wonder why the pirates are flourishing. They should wonder more why they aren't swinging from lamp posts. Burn in hell, you bastards.

Joe Canucklehead

Subject: LED backlights have more tricks up their sleeve

"The main advantages of LED Backlight are half of the width of regular lamp-ones, and 30 per cent lighter. The LED Backlight will allow unified picture quality across the panel and dark spots should not be noticeable, while lowering the power consumption."

Not to mention *reliability*. Our small PC-fixit-shoppe frequently replaces backlight inverters. LED backlights do away with inverters entirely, and are probably more durable then cold cathodes anyway.

LED backlights, flash storage, and MagSafe clone power jacks are going to put our notebook repair department out of business!

Nils

Subject: Plagiarism?

Sounds like this so called "prophet" has been watching too many films! http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0111735/plotsummary

An asteroid splits into three pieces, and crashes to earth along the same line of latitude. Maybe he just adapted this to fit his own hair brained ideas?

Craig

Subject: Calling Jobs' DRM bluff? An Open Letter to Steve Jobs

Hi Mike,

I don't know if you feel this in for the Inquirer, but I can always pitch a good cause in vain ;)

http://www.defectivebydesign.org/actions/open_letter/steve_jobs

It'll be interesting to see if Jobs will hold up to his previous Anti-DRM stance. More background here:

http://max.romantschuk.fi/blog/_a49509/an+open+letter+to+steve+jobs+drop+drm +in+itunes/

Cheers,
Max Romantschuk

Subject: That was funny!

Gotta love Andrew's articles. It's a good thing his name appears in the main page, now I know which posts are surely good.

mycelo

Subject: More on patents

The biggest objection I have to software patents is that software is already adequately protected by existing intellectual property laws.

Microsoft could think of something new, and using the pretty low standards of the US patent office today, file for a patent on it. They then take that idea and turn it into a program and that's protected by copyright. Since the program isn't open source, that implementation can probably also be claimed as a trade secret of Microsoft's!

I don't see why software should get more ways to protect itself than books and music (which can't be patented) or a better mousetrap (which can't be copyrighted)

Regardless of the merits of the recent patent suits against Microsoft, I applaud them, not because I hate Microsoft, but because they are the largest software firm, one that files many software patents today, and one that threatens to start using those patents against others. Or already is, depending on your viewpoint of the MS-Novell deal.

If Microsoft has to cough up a few billion dollars for patent suits, they may lose their enthusiasm for software patents and become one of the leading proponents of eliminating them. In the end, it is only the patent trolls and lawyers that will win this game, and hopefully Microsoft is starting to realize this, as a few billion dollars is real money even to them!

Doug

Subject: WTF ?

Never posted anything in the Enq. yet today I used the flame author because ... Dude, You rock :)

How funny can this be ?

It's not acctualy a flaming but ... what the hell ...

I'm too old for this ... :P

Nelson

Subject: Personal take on that psu

That psu rox. It is near silent operation even under load. I have 3, 120mm Nexus fans undervolted in a case, one on cpu, one in front, and one on the rear. They make more noise than this psu. Rock stable voltage, etc. just had to comment on how amazing this psu. It is a favorite now on silentpcreview.com. It is built by Seasonic, but seasonic themselves have no compartive psu to this. Theres has an extra 60mm fan that blasts when load increases as an extra booster, which sux for silence.

cable system is nice on it as well, and, it weighs very. pwnz

James

Subject: Glenn is a riot

Great letter about gaming there. Very interesting how Glenn goes on and on about how PCs are expensive to upgrade and consoles are no-brainers.

Yeah, but the whole house falls down when he says he has a MAC. Sorry Glenn, but you just cut your own feet out from under you. You see, when you're on a platform that has 1% (at most) of the games made on the planet, your credibility in talking about gaming issues is to be taken at that same percentage.

I have owned a PC since the first IBM. I have bought no less than 200 games over all those years (still have 160 jewel cases to show for it). And guess what Glenn ? I'm still here, still upgrading my PC, and still buying games. And I'll continue to do so whatever happens, because I happen to like gaming on a platform that is more innovative than anything else that has ever been invented.

The casual gamer buys a PC, and when his games no longer run, either he stops gaming or he buys a new box. Not everybody upgrades, true, but not everybody runs to consoles either. PCs are cheap today.

And if you want to play, you don't own a MAC. Period.

Pascal

Subject: Hacker Pirate Scum

To MJH's response ...

Corporatization of hacking is meaningless, it's just hackers working for a paycheque instead of in their darkened basement ... a hacker is a hacker, get rid of the hackers, and you get rid of the security problems. Your point is SHOT DOWN.

Why is it that pirated copies of Windows are freely available to anyone in China ... yet non pirated, freely distributable copies of Linux are not? huh? huh? If China is really so closed as to block linux, then you bastards wouldnt be using windows for everything either! ... especially considering how much more Windows let's the average computer user do compared to Linux! Your point again is SHOT DOWN.

Perhaps if you taught your students properly China might improve ... and not be the world leader in copying everything software or hardware with no regard for anything.

Ken

Subject: Everywhere Girl vs Henry Earl

Take a look at the following Wikipedia entry for Henry Earl:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_earl

I first heard of this guy a few years ago via Fark, and now he has his own wikipedia page.

Perhaps EG should have been mentioned on Fark. Apparently that's enough to pass for wikipedia celebrity status.

Geoff

Subject: AGP has legs yet

Jeff Fu is quite the man to bank on. The industry wanted to write off PCI graphics cards way back when only to bring back new offerings.

For all the PCI Express systems being sold out there, it will be quite a while before they get or need upgrades. Meanwhile there are a huge number of speedy enthusiast/gaming PC's that will benefit from faster AGP cards now. Throwing in DX10 support and he'll have a considerable market all to himself. Until others feel the deja-vu and catch on of course.

Rich