Jeffrey Nonken 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (1260)

• On the post: Don't Read Andrew Keen's Book – You'll Harm His Identity

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 02 Jun, 2012 @ 12:24am

  Re: Re: Re: Re:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b6Dj_TzSpQ

• On the post: Don't Read Andrew Keen's Book – You'll Harm His Identity

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 02 Jun, 2012 @ 12:22am

  Could lead to dancing!

• On the post: If People Won't Pay A Monthly Fee For Facebook, Why Would They Pay For Newspapers?

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 29 May, 2012 @ 04:43pm

  I'm not their reader either. I'm a 55-year-old professional.
  
  Guess that leaves out a lot of the baby-boomers. Granted, that's not a very large demographic.
  
  I'd say their target demographic is "people who are willing to spend money on our paywall." With that kind of demographic you can be dismissive of an awful lot.
  
  Because everybody else aren't their readers anyway.

• On the post: Funniest/Most Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 28 May, 2012 @ 12:29pm

  Re:

  All-or-nothing thinking. You lose. Please play again!

• On the post: Fearmongering About Cyberwar And Cybersecurity Is Working: American Public Very, Very Afraid

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 15 May, 2012 @ 11:34am

  Re: Y2K all over again

  I'm a programmer by profession. I always told people the fears were insanely exaggerated. Even if it doesn't know the date (most don't anyway) your microwave will continue to cook your food. And as I'm now working with airplane simulators I can assure you that even if your GPS goes wonky (it won't), airplanes won't fall out of the sky because there are multiple backup systems including radios (which don't care what time it is), standby instruments (which have no electronics) and the good ol' Mark 1 Eyeball. The "fall out of the sky" fear assumes that computers are in charge of the airplane and cannot be overridden. Nonsense and balderdash.

• On the post: Fearmongering About Cyberwar And Cybersecurity Is Working: American Public Very, Very Afraid

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 15 May, 2012 @ 09:20am

  http://arstechnica.com/security/2012/05/ca-social-services-office-looses-hundreds-of-thousands-of-recordson-microfiche/
  
  Because Chinese hackers are the real danger here.

• On the post: It's Amazing The Lengths 'Music Supporters' Will Go To In Trying To Trash Success Stories

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 10 May, 2012 @ 03:40pm

  Ummm. In the past, fans would spend money on records, CDs, tapes, concerts, T-shirts and mugs -- and get ABSOLUTELY NOTHING BACK FOR THEIR INVESTMENTS.
  
  Enjoyment? I don't get it. Who cares about that? If there's no monetary return, what's it worth?
  
  Now, of course, you can expect a fast 2:1 back in short order if you invest wisely. Because, you know, that's what being a fan is all about.

• On the post: Pirate Party Gets Its First Mayor

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 10 May, 2012 @ 02:13pm

  It doesn't matter whether he's just jumping onto the bandwagon. The fact that there's a bandwagon to jump onto is significant in itself.

• On the post: USTR Insults The Intelligence Of Legal Scholars After They Challenge Him On Lack Of TPP Transparency

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 10 May, 2012 @ 02:05pm

  I'm from the government, and I'm here to help you.

• On the post: FAA Warns Guy Who Filmed Birds Striking Plane Engine

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 08 May, 2012 @ 11:13am

  Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:

  Oh look, it's a dogmatic rant with suggestions of violence.
  
  How cute.

• On the post: FAA Warns Guy Who Filmed Birds Striking Plane Engine

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 08 May, 2012 @ 11:11am

  Seems to me that one bird was more danger to the airplane than all the passengers and their electronics.
  
  Maybe the FAA should send the bird a threatening letter!

• On the post: Do You Owe Your Crappy Shave To Patents?

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 08 May, 2012 @ 10:19am

  Re: Re: Re: Re:

  I got my Gillette adjustable about 8 years ago on eBay.
  
  I've tried a few different blades. For me, the Personna worked well for several years, the Feather Platinums are awesome but I object to the plastic dispenser (I consider it environmentally wasteful), and the Astra feel like they're tearing my skin at the corners (they're not, but I keep looking for blood). I'm working through one of the variety packs on Amazon right now and the Sharks and the Lords seem OK. (Gods. Sounds like a crappy gang movie.)
  
  Keep in mind that I never really shaved until I was in my late 40s so I'm probably doing it all wrong. :) But like others, I too prefer a soap and brush, and I'm planning to stick with my trusty ol' safety razor.

• On the post: Pirate Party Wins Again In Germany

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 07 May, 2012 @ 07:17pm

  Cool. Some of my ancestors came here from Schleswig-Holstein, Denmark.

• On the post: Kuwait Says Social Networks Must Be Regulated To 'Safeguard The Cohesiveness Of Society'

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 04 May, 2012 @ 09:06am

  OMG!

  It could lead to dancing!

• On the post: Pirate Bay Block Initiates Streisand Cascade, Drives Record Traffic

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 04 May, 2012 @ 09:04am

  Mwah hah hah hah hah!

  IN. YOUR. FACE.

• On the post: Social Reader Apps: Better Than Paywalls, But Still Walls

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 01 May, 2012 @ 09:15am

  I signed up for one or two at the beginning, but after a while I have to wonder: is there anybody on Earth who doesn't have control over my FB account? ... Besides me, I mean.
  
  Whenever I see one of these now, no matter how tempting or interesting, I just cancel and move on.

• On the post: Freakonomics Obsession With Patents Strikes Again: Says If More Women Got Patents The Economy Would Grow

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2012 @ 10:34am

  "...the assumption that there's a causal relationship between more patents and economic growth."
  
  There is! It's an inverse squared relationship.

• On the post: NBC Universal Caught Using Infringing Graphic From Apple, Probably Won't Learn Anything

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 31 Mar, 2012 @ 10:39am

  "...the real point of these stories is not to laugh at the hypocrisy..."
  
  ...that's just a bonus. :)

• On the post: National Highway Transportation Safety Agency Says You Can Keep Your GPS — As Long As It's Completely Useless

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 29 Mar, 2012 @ 05:19pm

  Re:

  Because life just isn't that simple.
  
  Just pull over and check the map.
  
  Much better than having a voice talk you through the navigation.
  
  Confused?
  
  Can't imagine why.
  
  You know what's really fun? Driving around major cities with narrow one-way streets, bad traffic, construction, detours, trying to find a hole in the wall you've never seen before in an unfamiliar neighborhood with poor signage... it's easy to say "just pull over" but it can take 15 minutes just to find a place, and another 20 to get back for another look. (After two passes I gave up, skipped the interview, and went home. I wasn't even sure I was on the correct street...) Or take Pleasant Ave. in Wyndmoor, PA, which has three separate, disconnected sections in less than a mile. Maps don't make that obvious... but a GPS will guide you directly to the correct place. Miss a turn and didn't notice? The GPS will prompt you, and if you managed to miss it, will guide you through an alternate route.
  
  By the way, you don't use the GPS to read a map in real time. You use a GPS to guide you through turns. That's why it's called "turn-by-turn navigation." Generally it either displays a moving map with you on it (while you're cruising), which just gives you a general feel of where you are, or a display of the upcoming turn. There's some other information about how far or how long to the next maneuver, but if you're spending a lot of time reading that, maybe you shouldn't be driving at all? The odd glance is all that's needed. And the GPS will prompt you verbally. The amount of visual attention you need to pay is minimal.
  
  Using a GPS is just exactly unlike reading a map.

• On the post: National Highway Transportation Safety Agency Says You Can Keep Your GPS — As Long As It's Completely Useless

  

  Jeffrey Nonken ( profile ), 29 Mar, 2012 @ 04:09pm

  The stupid! It burns!

Next >>