12/29   Where can I buy boxes to carry soap for travelling?
        \_ grocery store
           \_ yes, they have those small travel size products like toothpaste
                and soap containers.

12/29   Anybody tried hacking amazon's gift certificate system?   they send
        these out to all of their customers, I'm wondering if there's a way
        to crack their code.   -pissed at amazon
        \_ at least they honor they gift certifcates.  http://buy.com wouldn't
           accept their own gift certificates, so i had to shop elsewhere
        \_ Go away, crybaby.  Shop elsewhere.
        \_ so if you shopped at a brick-and-mortar store and had an unpleasant
           experience, you'd condone stealing from them?  or trying to figure
           out a way to break into their cash registers?  or maybe forging
           paper gift certificates?  wtf?  if you don't like them, don't buy
           from them.
                \_ what's really pathetic is that his "bad experience" is that
                   his order got screwed up (probably by him) and amazon
                   "only" gave him a $10 credit for it.  -tom

12/27   has anyone gotten the AOL AIM plugin for bitchx to work?

12/27   Temptation Island on Fox.  Why is it not surprising anymore.

12/27   "The intelligent minority of this world will mark 1 January 2001
        as the real beginning of the 21 century and the Third Millennium,"
        British-born Clarke said in a statement from his home in Colombo.
        \_ What the hell would Clarke know about "intelligent"
                \_ He's surrounded by dirt cheap servants on a beautiful
                   tropical isle and worth millions and gets quoted anytime
                   he feels like it.  You're whacking off to net porn and
                   posting on the motd.  I'll take his life over yours.

12/26   Am I the only one in thinking that the brunette lady in
        Freaks and Geeks is kinda cute?
        \_ She's hot. I saw her first. GO away. FInd someone else!
           \_ fine.  I saw Natalie P. first.
              \_ Linda is a real woman. Natalie is an underage child.
                                         \_ not any more she ain't
        \_ No. Go away.  No one else watches.
                \_ You should.  It's a cool show, but they've showed them
                   all now, so not much point watching if you've seen them
                   already.
        \_ which one?  Lindsay?  Bill's Mom (aka Ivanova from B5)? Millie?
           \_ Lindsey?
              \_ LindsAy Weir? aka Linda Cardellini?
                 \_ yes to all.
              \_ She does full frontal in Hexina.
            \_ I first saw Bill's mom in The Hidden for free in Wheeler.
        \_ I first saw her in Good Burger, so there.
        \_ pics?

12/24   Hey people.  Things are going to be more expensive than you're
        used to.  Consumer items.  Stuff like that.  Be careful with your $
        next year.
        \_ are you saying inflation is here?
           \_ Merry Christmas!
        \_ What are you babbling about?  I get to see the pricetag before I
           buy something.

12/24   Happy [ Chanukah | Christmas | Kwanzaa | Solstice | Linuxmas ]
        \_ it will be good to see the real millennium finally.
                \_ get a life
                   \_ this was a great tv show while it lasted!

12/22   I 0wn the Noise Tanks.  And the Love Shockers.  And
        Cube, the hot goth babe.  So there.

12/21   Soda will briefly be down for maintnance at a yet unspecified time
        after Christmas.  This is your advance warning.  -root

12/20   Why can't clean tissue paper be recycled with "mixed paper"?  It seems
        like tissue paper is made of the same fiber, just less packed.
        \_ To be wary of your "clean" tissue paper is not unwise.

12/20   Do tulip or iris bulbs last more than one season?  I bought a bunch
        of bulbs and I'm planting them.  I'm wondering if I'll have do to
        it over again next year because they will all die.  Thanks.
        \_ tulips don't naturalize in the Bay Area, it doesn't get cold
           enough.  Irises might.  Daffodils do.  If you want, you can dig
           up your tulip bulbs and put them in the refrigerator for a month
           and re-plant them.  -tom
           \_ tom is right about tulips -- they require a deep freeze
                       \_ axiom 2?
              to bloom (around here, one has to refrigerate them for 6-8
              weeks before planting).  they can last another season around
              here if you let the tulips bloom, and then wait until their
              leaves wither after their blooming period (this is when nutrients
              store up in the bulb and is valuable).  Then, you dig them
              up and store them in a cool, dry, dark place until fall, when
              you once again, refrigerate/chill them, and start over.  You
              don't, fortunately, have to do this with irises, which do
              naturalize quite nicely in the Bay Area (but every couple of
              years, irises prefer some "thinning out" -- otherwise they
              don't rebloom very well).  If you want bulbs
              that naturalize well, I second tom's recommendation of daffodils,
              and I add a recommendation for narcissus (paperwhites), which
              do not require a deep freeze, are low maintenance, and
              bloom readily throughout the winter months (mine are blooming
              right now, and there are more of them than last year).  --chris

12/20   Any *runtime* reason why include java.stuff.here may be better than
        include java.stuff.* ???
        \_ None.  The bytecode is the same.  It's just a matter of good style.
        \_ the first way limits the number of things that are available in
           the namespace to just the contents of java.stuff.here, some people
           like this better since it force the programmer to understand the
           effect of imports. In the old days importing a single file was
           slightly faster than importing all of the entries in a directory,
           so some old timers stick with method 1.

      _
  \__/ .\/ tweet tweet
  /     /\
  \____/
   | |
  /\ /\

12/20   Remove your own motd entries after they're posted over 3 days!

Help, I'm empty and I can't be updated! -motd

        2.3.42 or higher.  I'd appreciate if someone would drop a copy in
        /tmp or provide a URL.  Thanks!  (Why?  It's ugly.  You don't want
        to know).
        \_ I don't want to tell either.  It's ugly.

12/18   For those internet voting fans, please read the following:
        http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram-0012.html

12/18   want a 6100/66 with monitor?  know someone who does?
        email me - danh

12/17   Has anyone used XPExtreme Programming at their jobs Any comments?

12/17   http://www.nypost.com/news/18952.htm Le Pore viciously attacked by
        right wing nutters.

12/17   http://www.academia.org/mumiac-censorship.html
        More right wing lies about a great man and the bastion of freedom,
        my school, UC Berkeley.

12/17   What did 164 students think about the final this semester?
        \_ how many people were caught cheating this semester?
        \_ It's great. I love exams generated by ambiguous grammar G. So many
           ways to generate the exam parse tree and so many ways to answer

12/15   Senior release architect position available at webMethods.  See

12/13   http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/348/nation/Dysfunction_found_in_land_of_Pooh+.shtml

12/13   Anyone taken cs263 and 264? feedbackP
        \_ As you must realize, by saying "feedbackP" you're looking for a
           true or false as to whether someone has feedback.
        \_ I'm soliciting feedback from csua grad students who are too stingy
           to share any info. That means ali dpet nweaver and many others
        \_ #t

12/13   Need to kill a login process, kill -9 has no effect, killing
        the ppid says operation not permitted.  Its state is IEs+. Ideas?
        \_ try strace or truss on the process and see what its doing.
        \_ not really helping.  The process appears to be associated with
           a newmail process running under PPID 1.  Is that possible?
        \_ I guess you need to reboot soda.
        \_ -HUP
           \_ doesn't work.

12/12   hola, is anyone aware of a good book/reference/intro paper to
        optical switching? --psb
        \_Depends on how technical you want to go.
                  \- why dont you give me a ptr. have knowledge of physics and
                  networking but not a specialist in optical stuff. --psb
        \_ I'm sure you already know all that's important.  --psb #2 fan!

12/12   Anybody tried planting ginkgo from seeds?  I followed the procedures
        from a book.  It has been a month and nothing is happening!  And no,
        I do not want to buy a ginkgo tree from a nursery.  I collected ~200
        seeds and I am determined to grow a Ginkgo forest from it.
              \_ so do it already.  you have 200 fucking seeds.
        \_ There was a neverending ginkgo thread a month or two back on the
           motd.  You need like both genders or something.
           \_ yes, I started that thread.  I know the procedure; I just want
              to know if anybody has ever succeeded in growing one from a
              seed.

12/12   anyone ever test driven a maserati 3200gt?  I've heard good
        and bad things about it, but I'm not sure which to believe.
        \_ forget it, just the honda prelude 2001, base model.  Good
           power with a decent price...
        \_ get a mitsu. 3000GT twin turbo or a lancer evol 6.
          \_ And how do you plan on getting a Lancer into the US? Change
             some VINs and slap a Mirage badge on it?
        \_ Sunlight on chrome, The blur of the landscape, Every nerve aware..

12/11   for sale: Planescape: Torment.  $5.  email me.  - danh
        \_ I live again!

12/11   Why does .hushlogin not seem to work anymore?  It worked yesterday.
        I haven't changed my shell or anything else in ages.
        \_ ssh

12/11   G*D D**N IT

12/11   what should/can i do when my boss pisses me off?
           \_ offer him/her sex.
        \_ threaten to quit.  demand a Lego desk.
        \_ walk around your office pretending to be edward norton from
           "fight club".
        \_ One former coworker used to piss on the toilet seat because
           he hated his job but didn't have the guts to find another.
           Only the three of us (the boss, him, and me) used that men's
           room on that floor, so it was pretty obvious who it was.

12/11   I need to hang an outdoor light on a brick wall.  I drilled a hole but
        I can't use a nail or screw to secure it because the hole is bigger
        than the nail/screw.  Drilling a smaller hole won't help because I
        can't nail/screw through brick.  Is there a standard way to do this?
                -homeowner
        \_ Buy a new house
        \_ There are little plastic inserts you can get for just this sort
           of thing.  You can get them at walmart or a hardware store.
        \_ You could buy the small cements from home depot to fill the hole
        \_ Proper planning prevents piss poor performance. Damn it, think
            before you start drilling holes.
           \_ Screw first! Ask questions later. But wear (eye) protection.
              \_ eye protection is optional - Bill C.
           \_ How do you drill a hold on concrete that *exactly* fit your
              nail/screw?
              \_ You read the packaging for the "Plastic Anchor with
                 Screws" package from Elco, which can be purchased at
                 OSH.  It tells you the drill bit size that you
                 need.  Masonry bits make the drilling go faster.
                 \_ as does using a proper hammer-drill.

12/11   Stop inserting your comment at the top of the thread and
        indenting everyone else's.  Stop fucking it up.
        \_ and could people please try to keep their comments within 80
           columns?
                \_ And not tabbing so far to the right of the previous
                        thread posting.

12/9    Al Gore or The Unabomber?  You decide!
        <DEAD>www.washingtonpest.com/quiz_MGI.html<DEAD>
        \_ Spelling corrected by the motd spelling daemon
           \_ Sorry for spelling their names wrong.  I'm not up on every
              last detail of this generation's terrorists.
              \_ the public schools are failing us again!
              \_ If you can read well enough, check out _The_Real_Terrorists_
                 by Noam Chomsky, as a beginner course in reality.

12/8    Lots of little kids
        Running around Berkeley
          \_run-ning a-round berk-el-ey???
        Shoot them in their heads.

n12/8   Is there such a detacheable X terminal? I would like the ability to
        detach my current X and continue working at home... is that feasible?
        \_ vnc
        \_ There are a few things that will do this: the vncserver for X
           will give you a detachable, reattachable X session; but it's not
           encrypted, but you can always ssh to the machine and do a
           vncviewer localhost.  "xmove" has a form of this, and there's also
           at least one more whose name escapes me.  In reality, I've never
           found any of these very useful, probably because I've never had
           a very low bandwidth X program that was essential to detach (just
           end up using "screen" usually..)  --dbushong
           \_ huh?  Vnc is plenty damned fast.
              \_ It's about as fast as running the apps remotely not in VNC
                 ...which may be fast enough for you..  --dbushong
                 \_ I've played netrek over VNC.  It's faster than that.
        \_ <DEAD>www.uk.research.att.com/vnc/sshvnc.html<DEAD> - paolo

12/8    Is Unitek just another Taos?  Comments on both?
        Compare:
            http://www.taos.com/careers/apply/apply_content.html
            http://www.unitek.com/forms2/skills.htm
            \_ This one is hard to read.

12/7    Does ipf have the blocking on uid/gid capabilities of ipfw?

12/7    How do you auto generate table of contents in Frame Maker?

12/7    I want to be long like ranga. ----troll

12/7    I want to be cool like ranga. ----troll

12/6    Has anyone ever thanked someone who actually gave helpful information
        on the motd?  For those who have never been thanked, well, here's
        thanks to you.

12/6    Is there a way to locate alumni from Econ department (undergrad)?
        something like the engineering department alumni directory...
        \_ sorta. who are you looking for? how long ago?
                \_ how?  a good friend of mind.  last year.
                  \_ do you realize you want to go for her now?  Should
                     have gotten her number then. haha
        \_ gimme $100, i'll find him  - mario

4/250   jobs must go!
        \_ where?

12/5    Recently spotted bumper sticker (from rec.humor.funny):
                                                \_ a self-cancelling newsgroup
                                                   name.  -tom

        WWJD?
        JWRTFM
        \_ Yup, he did when he was a child to the Jewish priests. It's in
           there.
        \_ Ok, I'm clueless. Explanation?
           \_ It's not that hard.
           \_ WWJD = What Would Jesus Do?
              \_ Yes, but what would Brian Boitano do?
                 \_ You mean, what _wouldn't_ Brian Boitano do?
                    \_ women. he wouldn't do women.
                      \_ he'd do yer mom.
                         \_ I wouldn't do boitano - yermom
                         \_ I wouldn't do him. - yermom
        \_ JWRTFM = Jesus Would Read the Fxxxing Manual?

4/249   I'm looking to buy a Palm M100.  Anybody know of any special deals?
        As in, a dot com going out of business and liquidating all their
        inventory.  Thanks.
        \_ stuff like this gets taken home, not liquidated. - former dot
           com'er.

12/4    Work kind of sucks.  In fact, it seems like most of the work
        people do is of no long term significance.  Why can't we
        do without it?
        \_ Nothing anyone does is of any long term significance:
           if you consider a long enough term.  --PeterM
        \_ Walden.  Been there.  Done that.
        \_ Because most people need to pay rent/mortgage, eat, etc.
           \_ If nobody had to work, the few necessary things like
              food and shelter could easily be taken care of.
        \_ because idle hands are the devil's work. Eg: idle people
           become drug dealers.
           \_ Just like idle CPUs.
        \_ capitalism is based on the many shouldering the burderns of
           the few.
                \_ Say what?  Care to explain?
                   \_ It means that you slave away, to keep 'da man' in
                      blow and ho's.
                      \_ just 'cause u not a playa dont mean u gotta
                         be a hater. - #1 stunna

12/1    Anyone besides me going to Usenix in New Orleans? -crebbs
        \_ me
           \_ he asked if anyone besides 'me' was going. He already
              knew that you ('me') were going.

12/2    what is this REBOL language stuff?
        \_ Exactly.

12/01   How come there is /usr/bin/Mail and /usr/bin/mail, identical?
        Why not symlink or something?  Make a little more pr0n space?
        \_ try 'ls -i', then read 'man ln' about hardlinks.
           \_ ah, so desu.  never saw a hardlink before.  - clueless

12/01   Do gay men have a desire to have kids?
        \_ You can try asking yourself first.

11/30   http://www.ilovebacon.com/jokes/110900c.shtml

11/29   Should my valet accept butterfly knives?

11/29   New office combo on Mon 11/27; mail librarian if you need it.

11/28   Hey I know someone knows this.  Sun sells Forte C++ Enterprise
        and Personal eds.  They say the Personal ed. is one user, one
        machine.  I know this means node locked, but can different
        users login and use CC at different times?  The Personal ed. doesn't
        have a this-user-only lock does it?  Thanks.

11/28   http://www.clonejesus.com

11/28   Overheard on wall.log:

        Doesn't james baker remind you of the emporer in star wars?

        Seems to me liberman looks more like senator palpatine than
        baker.
        \_ http://www.ilovebacon.com/jokes/112800b.shtml
           the picture says it all.
              \_ On a related note, the following is quite funny:
                 http://www.ilovebacon.com/media/112800.shtml
           \_ Lieberman and Teller really look alike.  I wonder whether
              those two can still pull the rabbit out of the hat.
        \_ what about Gore and Commander Riker?
           \_ Data maybe, not Riker. Cheney looks a little like Picard.
        \_ Leiberman looks more like one of those chinese fighting dogs with
           the tons of loose skin, giant wrinkles of flesh and floppy jowls.
        \_ at least we all know who gw looks like:
           http://gwbchimp.8m.com

11/28   http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20001127/hl/drinking_water_study_1.html

11/27   Anybody seen "Mamma Mia!" the musical?  How was it and would you
        recommend it?  Thanks.
        \_ i think people on the motd are more likley to have seen
          "yermom-a-mia!"
        \_ You're welcome.  -mamma mia
                 \_ reviews were generally very good.
        \_ happy brainless show
        \_ That's pretty much what I've seen in reviews.  Nice, esp if
           you like Abba, but nothing deep.  Ask me after sunday -jor

11/27   Why is the _t appended to things like pid_t and uid_t?
        \_ Stands for "type"?  -- yuen
        \_ AKA coding practice.
        \_ It stands for terrorist.  AKA stands for AK Assault rifle.
                \_ That's AKA_r.  Duh.
           \_ ENOAMMO

11/27   I've been bored recently.  Can someone please post a list of
        classic MOTD flame wars?  Thanks!

11/26   Is it possible to convert from RealPlayer format and .MOV format
        to ASF format?
        \_ Yes.
           \_ How?
                \_ mov2asf
                \_ above poster is asshole.
                \_ http://www.vcdhelper.com/convert.htm
                   \_ cool.

>4/240  April never ended.
        \_ Does that mean no more birthdays?  Do we all stop aging?

11/21   There will be a new office combination on Monday Nov 27th.
        Email librarian@csua if you think that you need the combo.

11/25   http://www.besttoilets.com/sf/index.html

11/23   What's the deal with /var/mail now?  30 MB homedir good, but
        quota -v shows 0k allotted for /var/mail.
        \_ That wasn't supposed to happen; could you please mail root?
                   \_ I got the message.  I fixed this.  --PeterM

11/21   Disk quotas raised to 30M soft 35M hard.

11/22   How come our e-mail addresses now say
        user@soda.csua.berkeley.edu instead of user@csua.berkeley.edu? I
        have to go fix my listing in a bunch of mailing lists now.
        \_ No wonder I am not getting a bunch of emails I am supposed
           to get.

11/21  Where do I dump my /usr/contrib stuff?

11/21  hand-count must be counted, but it will not be enough!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-)

11/21   There will be a new office combination as of Monday the 27th of
        November.  Email librarian@csua if you think that you need the
        combo, and be prepared to explain why.

11/21   pitiful troll attempt deleted.

11/21   Does anyone here have an Aibo?
        \_ I do. -- canny

11/19   http://www.myfavoriteheadache.com  - Geddy Lee's new album.

11/19   Anyone know anything about Kleiner Perkins Financial Group?
        We're trying to get them to give us money (my company).
        \_ They're (supposedly) the best. The best, Jerry, the best.
        \_ they back like half our clients.. supposedly provide
           very good guidance and management as well. -shac

11/20   Where are the old parts for Mark ($current-version - 1)? Are they
        free? I'm interested in the video card.                 -gamer
        \_ Uh,I think it's an 8M diamond stealth or something lesser.
           No sane gamer would want it.  --PeterM
           \_ Unless he's a minesweeper.

11/20   Who's John Galt?
        \_ I am John Galt. -- Jong Galt.
        \_ Ah, but who is anyone?  Who are you?  Who am I?  Best not to dwell
           on such things, lest the horror of the void consume you.
           \_ I am the one.
        \_ I'm Tiger Woods...

11/20   Read the MkVI FAQ linked to on the main webpage before mailing bug
        reports to staff@csua.  Complaints on wall/motd will be ignored.

11/19   Gore's concession speech:
        http://www.newaus.com.au/us163casey.html

11/19   "I disagree with you so you're a troll!  NYAH!"  You're a baby.

11/19   Sorry I disagree with you.  Reply, don't censor.  I'm sorry I
        sometimes use the "F" word (facts) and you don't have an intelligent
        (or any other) response, but deleting my motd posts doesn't help
        your cause.  [reposted again]  Deal with it.
        \_ what a surprise, a troll wants people to reply to him.

11/19   Can libpng be installed?  I wouldn't mind installing it myself but I
        don't have permissions.

11/18   Free mini fridge. see http://www.csua.berkeley.edu/~gabriel/fridge.html

11/18   ALGOR the choice for criminals everywhere:

        http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2000/11/18/141511.shtml
        \_ Gee, if you were a criminal, would you vote for George
           "Fry them all, innocent, retarded or not!" Bush?

11/17   Overtime baby! (brought to you by Omnisky)

11/17   The wonderful press.  Now running each other over for parking spots:
        http://www.newsblues.com/Stories/shep_smith.htm

11/17   How to blackmail your way to high office in 3 easy steps:
        http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/editorial/16294.htm
        \_ If the whole Monica Lewinsky scandal has taught you
           anything, it's that blackmail is more likely to get
           you in trouble than it is to get your victim in trouble.

11/17   Does anybody have a pet anaconda?  I just caught 2 mice. - tpc
        \_ aspolito will take them off your hands.
                \_ someone beat you to it - tpc

11/17   Does anybody have a pet snake?  I just caught a mouse. - tpc

11/16   I miss cowthink. Hmph.

11/16   Remember kids, no free speech for people we disagree with!  Carry on.

11/16   so who snatched the donated Vodoo 3 card that was donated and replaced
        it with a Diamond Stealth 3d?
        \_ Both are crap.  Who cares?

11/16 <blithering idiot vwapped>

11/16   I'm not wearing any pants.
        \_ Then can I touch you?
           \_ Damn Cletus. Wha'dya hav to pak in fant of ma parents?
              \_ Aw shunks, Arelene, they's my parents too!

11/16   When geeks are presented with a new toy, politics becomes boring.

11/16   Mail bug reports to staff@csua.  Complaints on wall/motd
        will be ignored.

11/16   Any reason why http://www.csua.berkeley.edu/.../somedir doesn't check for
        somedir/index.shtml?
        \_ probably a one line fix in apache configuration, bug root

11/16   Where did inews move to?

11/16   Plonk.

11/16   Nation opposes recounts.  Will of the People is to let it stand.
        http://www.gopbi.com/partners/pbpost/epaper/editions/today/news_8.html
        --Palm Beach Post.

11/16   FL Attorney General oversteps bounds:
        http://www.news-journalonline.com/2000/Nov/16/POL1.htm

11/16   Props to all the rootstaff who helped with MkVI.  Thanks.
        \_  thanks mconst, mikeh, nevman, jon and brg especially.
                \_ and peterm and dbushong

11/16   "The Sixth Cumming",

        Grinding and screeching in the mechanism
        The wallers cannot read the walls;
        Things fall apart; the drives cannot hold;
        Mail anarchy is loosed upon the world,
        The e-filled tide is loosed, and everywhere
        The ceremony of internet is grown;
        The new lack all conviction, while the old
        Are full of passionate insanity.

        Surely a revolution is at hand;
        Surely the Sixth Coming is at hand.
        The Sixth Coming! Hardly are those words out
        When a vast image out of Corporate Abyss
        Troubles my sight: somewhere in halls of AMD
        A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
        His gaze bright and intense as the sun,
        Is bearing the great prize, while all about him
        Reel shadows of the enamored undergrads.
        The darkness drops again; but now I know
        That two long years of duty done
        Are passed to nightmare by the laws of Moore,
        And what machine, its hour come round at last,
        Slouches towards 340 to be born?

        -- Phillip "The Bloody Awful Poet" Nunez
        \_ For real?
                \_ How dare you doubt.  Phillip for President.  -John

11/14   Can't we all just get along?

11/13   Word just in that Gore has demanded a soda recount: Is it Nader..
           Trader:  1
           Traitor: 0
           Trevor:  0
           Vader:   5
           Crater!  9
           Masturbator: 1
           kchang: see Masturbator

11/13   http://www.upside.com/texis/mvm/graveyard/index
        I don't know whether it's disturbing or satisfying.
        \_ Check out http://www.fuckedcompany.com  -John
             \_ that site is funny shit.

11/13   http://www.newsmax.com/showinsidecover.shtml?a=2000/11/12/121754

11/13   When I was in grade school, one year a new kid from Florida joined
        our class.  The only thing I remember about him is that he was taught
        that pi = 3.  This was 5th or 6th grade.  -N'04!
        \_ Actually, many physicists use 3 for pi and 10 for g when doing
           quick calculations.  For the most part, calculations are
           considered legit if they're within an order of magnitude.
           \_ the most severe case of this is theoretical astrophysics. usually
              they let pi, the speed of light, planks constant and a slew of
              other constants be one so they can just focus on the *form*
              of the equations.  it all depends on what you're trying to do.
              i'd much rather have someone use 3 or 3.1 and know why that's
              ok in a certain situation than use 3.141592653589793238 for
              finding the area of a circular birthday cake ten inches across
              and not understand why that's pointless. of course this has
              nothing to do with the above post, but i think it's an
              important issue appropos of the proliferation of calculators
              in classrooms today.
              \_ speed of light = 1, okay, that just involves changing your
                 measurement units.  But pi = 1?  So it mever causes problem
                 when the circumference of a circle is as long as its diameter?
                 \_ Usually, they don't let p or h (h bar) or some of the other
                    constants equal 1, they just lump them together as a constant
                    factor. The only value I've seen set to one is c. ----ranga
                \_ I don't think they were calculating stellar distances or
                   looking for the form of the equation in my former classmate's
                   Florida 4th grade classroom.

11/12   Transcript of the election night coversation between al and george
        http://www.mediatrip.com/shows/phone_flash.html

11/12   Oh my god, to do anything other than a fourth degree hyperbolic
        integration of the third moment would be absurd!! Absurd!!
        \_ thank you ali
          \_ not me. i don't even know what this bozo is babbling about. -ali

11/11   what's up with ucsee.eecs?
        \_ It was accidentally switched off.  It is back on now.

11/12   I love little ditties like this one:
        http://www.newsmax.com/commentmax/articles/Richard_Poe.shtml

11/11   what's up with ucsee.eecs? Partha?

11/10   I once knew a man from Nantucket.

11/10   Not really news, but; Gore Lies Again.
        After claiming "We'll abide by the result of the official count,
        whatever it is", now that he's lost.. AGAIN.... he's threatening
        to sue.
        http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/Election_Main.html

11/10   Real pictures of real protestors in FL.
        http://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a3a0b768f3649.htm
        Very dramatic.  Check it out.
        \_ The last pic is quite funny.

11/9    There are ambiguities all over Aiken's exams. The guy can't write
        a fuckin straightforward exam. He must be from Palm Beach.
        \_ Can I get a "do-over" on his exams until I like the results?
           \_ I want to "do-over" my undergrad grades until I like them.
              Should I sue the regents in a friendly court?

11/9    http://www.newaus.com.au/us162cw.html  Australian site pretty much
        nails it perfectly.

11/9    Congratulations to Dusty Baker, National League Manager of the Year.
        \_ "Year," of course, referring to just the regular season.

11/8    [Ridiculous non-political mostly-geekish stuff purged]
                -motd pro-politics god
                \_ fuck you. this is the motd.
                        \_ Fuck you, this is RICE!
                        \_ Yes.  It is.  And your point is?

11/07   truely amazing:
        http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/p/nm/20001029/en/mdf126644.html
        \_ Uh, NOT something I would've wanted to see.
        \_ What's useful about that?  If they were able to push instead of
           pull the truck with their things, it'd be something really useful.
        \_ what good is kung-fu in this day and age when you have AK47s?

11/6    TMTA tomorrow
        \_ T&A?  Where???
           \_ Good sir, please place your right-hand on your chest and your
              left hand on your butt.
        \_ I repeat "TMTA"

11/6    Berkeley Student Forging first meeting at the dumpsters behind

11/6    Wedding gift ideas under $200. Unique but not weird. Help?
        \_ Race of the couple? White? Asian? Mixed? Whitewashed Asian?
                \_ White, East Coastian
                      \_ uh-oh, picky white people. NG.
                      \_ Is that New Englander, New Yorker, Mid-Atlantic
                         or what?
        \_ if they have a registry, just look at the registry.
           (yes, it is not unique, but at least they get what they asked for)
        \_ The most annoying gifts are the "unique but not weird" gifts.
           Why would you do this?
           \_ I agree.  Just buy something off their registry.
              You're helping the newlywed couple to start off their lives
              with some gifts of necessity, not some gift that may amuse
              you.
                \_ The registry is really only for people who don't know the
                   couple well.  If you're close, you should buy them
                   something real.  -tom
                   \_ though it helps to keep the couple from receving three
                      KitchenAid Mixers. --Jon
        \_ Go to Gump's.  Or get them a gift certificate to a day spa.
                \_ Thanks. This seems to have what I was after.
                   \_ you're welcome. i have had some good luck there
                      finding unusual but tasteful gifts. --chris
        \_ Cash, the Asian way. Asians HATE gifts, they know gifts are cheap
           (you know, vase, glassware, etc)
                \- by "asian" do you mean chinese/oriental? indians prefer
                gold. --psb
                    \_ Speak for yourself. Indians prefer cash, gold is
                       not sufficiently convertible.
                   \_ oriental is not PC when referring to people. It's just
                      as bad as using Asian. (South)East Asian is more proper.
                   \_ Yes, give GOLD for their wedding.
                   \_ If Asian, you must give 18K gold, otherwise it's
                      just as bad.
                      \_ 18K gold will get you spit on. 22K or higher
                         only.
                         \_ 22K weights a tons and are two soft.
                            \_ 18K is to impure to use as a convertible
                               currency in most asian countries, which
                               is why 22K or higher is prefered.

11/6    <DEAD>joel.editthispage.com/stories/storyReader$51<DEAD>
        \_ point?
        \_ Good read.  -!og

11/6    Berkeley Student Foraging first meeting at the dumpsters behind

11/3    Which dictionaries are starting to incorporate computer terms
        as real English terms? (simple things like email, or scalability).
        \_ websters and oxford both integrate modern terms, but the
           interval of updates is long.

11/3    To the person who said on the motd yesterday (s)he was impressed with
        how the SIA girls stayed calm and helped the passengers after the
        crash, there's an article stating otherwise:
        http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20001103/2806811s.htm
        Was there an article that praised the crew members?  URL please?
        \_ Whee!
           \_ you wont be saying that after i kick you in the nuts!

11/3    Old crap deleted in bulk.  -motd trash collector

11/1    Does anyone know how the pumpkin on top of the campanile got
        there?
        \_ i kicked it in the nuts.
        \_ Read the dailycal. --Galen

11/1    Oh no! It's back down to 93%! Hurry, fill it back up!
        /dev/da0e     1270240  1091467    77154    93%    /var/mail

10/30   Are there any 24 hr oil change places in/around Berkeley?
        (much bullshit deleted) \_ no, and none exist in the bay area.

10/31   /dev/da0e      2540480  2317744    19498    99%    /var/mail
        \_ No cause for alarm, we're not at 100%.

10/31   $20 off $100 at amazon photo, exp. 11/12/2000, P2RF-AZK92G-M4LK4C -pld

11/1    I need to dig a square hole around 3 feet deep and 4 feet on the side.
        (This is for planting a big tree).  Anybody know of a tool besides
        shovel and pick axe to do this?  I'm looking to rent something
        manual or motor-powered.  Thanks.
        \_ Besides dynamite and a steam shovel?  Try calling one of
          the "Big-4-Rents type places.  But really, you need the
          the "Big-_-Penis type places.  But really, you need the
          exercise, and it'll be fun.  Just jump in there.
           \_ Do not try to operate one of these with instruction.
        \_ back hoe.
           \_ Do not try to operate one of these without instruction.
           \_ Instructions? Just whip it out and stick it in the back hoe.
           \_ Instructions? Just whip it out and stick it in the back of a hoe.
        \_ You want an augur (sp?)  They're cool as hell, but will
           make a round hole.
           \_ dumbass! he said square hole! can't you read?
              \_ Shit for brians!  He doesn't need a square hole, even if
                 he says he does.  He's going to fill it back in anyway,
                 unless his goal is to have a dead tree.
        \_ That's only 48 cubic feet.  You're pretty lazy.
        \_ That's one big tree d00d!

10/30   We don't care about slashdot, and we know Nader's a crackpot.
        \_ [Comments deleted]

10/30   Is it just me, or it seems that Aiken's exams, called language(A),
        are generated by ambiguous grammar G? The guy is an absolute dickhead
        \_ He's too 'l33t 4 u d00d!
        \_ It's just you.
        \_ Dickhead is an absolutist term, yet dickheads are never absolute.
        \_ I have yet to meet a non-"absolutist" dickhead.

10/30   This looks like it was shot at Cal (It think you can clearly see wheeler
        in some of the opening scenes). Anyone know when/if it was filmed here?

        http://qt.stream.aol.com/qt/moviefone/2000/b/boysandgirls.mov
        \_ Yes, it was shot here last year.  -tom
        \_ You must be an old grad. This thing made so much noise around here
                                \_ grad is presumptious
                                \_ that's presumptuous
           that it was impossible to miss
           \_ I graduated in 97.

10/27   Dude, the Aiken/Widom family is SICK:
        <DEAD>www.widom.com<DEAD>
        \_ No, just slightly odd.

10/27   The Asus CUSL2 is a pos.  Don't buy it.  If you did buy it, and it
        works for you, please say so.
        \_ I bought three for new PCs, and they all work fine; a co-worker
           bought one for his P133 upgrade, and it works fine. -jctwu
        \_ What's POS about yours?
           \_ I don't know about the poster, but my roommate had to return
              two of them because of bad motherboards. 1/3 seems pretty
              shitty to me, but he's a Modern Dance major, so maybe he just
              shitty to me, but he's a major, so maybe he just
              fucked shit up...
                \_ Fuck off bitch.
              \_ The BH6 when it was the overclocking choice was real good;
                 I noticed a drop in quality as it became really popular.
                 Could be same thing has been happening with the CUSL2.
        \_ Make sure you're using PC133 DIMMs (check serial nos).  Although
           they're supposed to work with PC100s, it didn't work for me one
           time.

10/26   Summary:
        * Guns don't kill people, bullets kill people.  And fortunately
          a lot of those people are gun owners.

10/26   [comment about url deletion deleted.  moron]

10/26   Career Fair in MLK Student Union today.  11am-4pm.  Lots of startups.
        \_ lots of dotcoms, not many startups under 100 ppl

10/25   Dice, lice alt.sex.* is over-run with nothing but ads.
        i.e. all the "job" postings are really just recruiters.
        Where to go these days to look at real tech. jobs?
        (or at least a place that allows you to filter out
        recruiters/given posters)
        \_ http://craigslist.org...and of the "big" resume posting boards,
           only http://hotjobs.com prohibits "3rd party recruiters" or "agencies"
           to post jobs or search resumes.  --chris (who is a recruiter)
                \_ don't forget http://guru.com, the site that will hopefully
                        reduce the number of hapless recruiters. I've used
                        both craig's list and http://guru.com and have gotten
                        plenty of mileage out of both.
        \_ /csua/pub/jobs/webMethods
        \_ Recruiters aren't that bad if you handle them like sharks...
           I've gotten some pretty cool jobs recently 'cause I've violated
           my "no recruiters" rule.  Give it a shot, just don't waste too
           much of your time or expect them to lay their cards on the table.

10/24   Vote:
        User Friendly:  ....
        Dilbert:        ..
        Megatokyo:      .
        Crack-ho magzn: .
          (yermom, that is)
        Kevin and Kell (http://www.kevinandkell.com .
        Blondie:        .
        Blondie's: .....
        \_ fat slice >> blondies.

10/24   Gotta love people getting their trolling ass-panties all in a twist
        about recursive directory-tree searches.  Geez Louise!
        \_ I like panties!