knipknap - Slashdot User

Comment Re:Why don't you have anything? (Score 1) 485

by knipknap on Saturday July 12, 2008 @02:37PM (#24165557) Attached to: How To Show Code Samples?

I honestly believe that 90% of the really good programmers would be able to provide this easily. A certain level of expertise can only be reached by working on your own code just for research and fun. Combine this with several years of experience, and I'm sure that you've got to have significant amounts of high quality code lying around. Like the original poster said, it's not asking for code that was written specifically for the job application, it's asking for code that you have already written.

What's Keeping US Phones In the Stone Age? 925

Posted by kdawson on Thursday July 26, 2007 @11:05AM from the too-much-for-not-much dept.

knapper_tech writes "After seeing the iPhone introduction, I was totally confused by how much excitement it generated in the US. It offered no features I could see beyond my Casio W41CA's capabilities. I had a lot of apprehension towards the idea of a virtual keypad and the bare screen looked like a scratch magnet. Looks aren't enough. Finally, the price is ridiculous. The device is an order of magnitude more expensive than my now year-old Keitai even with a two-year contract. After returning to the US from Japan, I've come to realize the horrible truth behind iPhone's buzz. Over the year I was gone, US phones haven't really done anything. Providers push a minuscule lineup of uninspiring designs and then charge unbelievable prices for even basic things like text messages. I was greeted at every kiosk by more tired clamshells built to last until obsolescence, and money can't buy a replacement for my W41CA." Read on as this reader proposes and dismissed a number of possible explanations for the difference in cell-phone markets between the US and Japan. He concludes with, "It seems to me more like competition is non-existent and US providers are ramming yesteryear's designs down our throats while charging us an arm and a leg! Someone please give me some insight."

Teens Actually Do Protect Their Online Profiles 137

Posted by Zonk on Friday April 20, 2007 @11:39PM from the wisdom-of-the-young dept.

Thib writes "A study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project reveals that the majority of teens pay attention to what they are revealing about themselves in their online social profiles. For instance, while many routinely use their first name or include a picture, 'fewer than a third of teens with profiles use their last names, and a similar number include their e-mail addresses. Only 2 percent list their cell phone numbers.' The study comes to light just as state legislatures once again begin to mutter about the dangers of online predators. From the article: 'According to Pew, 45 percent of online teens do not have profiles at all, a figure that contradicts widespread perceptions that the nation's youths are continually on MySpace.'"

Women Are Fleeing IT Jobs 578

Posted by Zonk on Friday April 20, 2007 @09:40PM from the different-priorities dept.

Lucas123 writes "An alarming number of women are currently abandoning IT jobs that require workers to be on-call at all hours, according to a story in Computerworld. One study cited in the article states that by 2012, 40% of women now working in IT will leave for careers with more flexible hours. 'I think women in that regard are at a real disadvantage,' said Dot Brunette, network and storage manager at Meijer Inc., a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer and a 30-year IT veteran. She noted that companies can fail to attract female workers, or see them leave key IT jobs, because they fail to provide day care at work, or work-at-home options for someone who leaves to have a child.'"

Politicians Have Poor Grasp of Technology? 349

Posted by Zonk on Friday October 27, 2006 @10:33AM from the but-i-thought-they-were-all-knowing dept.

Alfred Lee Deon writes "Chris Patten, a former EU Commissioner, was speaking at the three-day conference in Nice, France, on European business and technology. 'Many politicians don't understand the technology issues that could affect government IT schemes,' he said.' Politicians have no sound grasp of technology issues — but politicians don't necessarily have a profound grasp of any issue.' He was especially critical of UK's government's ID card scheme — a scheme he felt would not achieve one of its possible objectives of making borders more secure."

The GIF Format is Finally Patent-Free 369

Posted by Zonk on Friday September 29, 2006 @02:04PM from the happy-birthday dept.

tonymercmobily writes "Not many people noticed that the GIF file format is only now free from patents, as of the 1st of October 2006. Quick recap: first in 1999 Unisys tried to extort money from users and developers. Then, in 2003 the world hoped that the saga would finally be over. Then, in 2004, it was IBM's turn. Now, the SAGA seems to be over for real! Does anybody find Unisys' page on GIF as hilarious as I do...?"

Gonzales Says Publishing Leaks Is A Crime 889

Posted by Hemos on Monday May 22, 2006 @08:36AM from the battle-of-the-legal-wars dept.

loqi writes "The NY Times is reporting on a statement from US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales declaring that journalists may be prosecuted by the federal government for publishing classified information. On the 1st amendment ramifications: "'But it can't be the case that that right trumps over the right that Americans would like to see, the ability of the federal government to go after criminal activity,' he said. 'And so those two principles have to be accommodated.'" So our 1st amendment rights don't trump the right of the federal government to violate them?"

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