Random thoughts.... [Tech Edition]

How do you allocate calculations to graphics cards in the first place? I didn't think you could make software that's not video related to force it's calculations onto the graphics card.

Folding@Home pretty much pioneered the use of GPUs for distributed computational load. It's been around for quite a while.
 
One of the common ways to measure graphics card performance is FLOPS, floating-point (decimal number) operations per second.

I'm sure this is a gross oversimplification, but lets say you know the dimensions of a 3D object and want to draw it on flat paper. You need to use math to scale and skew the object's shape based on perspective.
 
AT&T is throttling me when I have the VPN on. If I change locations, (where the VPN says I'm from) it's ok. If it's left on "auto" I go from having almost a megabyte download to 170KB/s. fuck off ATT.
 
Can't it be the VPN node that's overloaded?
 
Didn't think about that...
 
Scam spam is getting really outlandish nowadays

I seek your assistance to safe keep two military trunk boxes of values
that is of great benefit to we both. Do not panic as i do not pose any
threat to you neither do i mean harm on you whatsoever. Be patient to
hear details as soon as i see your reply to this my direct Email



Does anyone really fall for this, at all, ever? Two military trunks of values? Why yes, I'd love to be in trouble with the military.
 
Scam spam is getting really outlandish nowadays

[/FONT]Does anyone really fall for this, at all, ever? Two military trunks of values? Why yes, I'd love to be in trouble with the military.

A trunk of values? What, if you open the trunk it has a piece of paper inside that says "Be a gracious host" or "Respect your elders"?
 
Does one of them have the launch codes?
 
A trunk of values? What, if you open the trunk it has a piece of paper inside that says "Be a gracious host" or "Respect your elders"?

It's really just his collection of Penny Saver mailers. It's loaded with values!
 
Scam spam is getting really outlandish nowadays




[/FONT]Does anyone really fall for this, at all, ever? Two military trunks of values? Why yes, I'd love to be in trouble with the military.

Sadly, yes. Usually older people.
 
AT&T: Forced arbitration isn?t ?forced? because no one has to buy service


To avoid AT&T arbitration, your only choice is to not be a customer.

AT&T is denying that its contracts include "forced arbitration" clauses, even though customers must agree to the clauses in order to obtain Internet or TV service.

"At the outset, no AT&T customer is ever 'forced' to agree to arbitration," AT&T Executive VP Tim McKone wrote in a letter to US senators today. "Customers accept their contracts with AT&T freely and voluntarily; no one 'forces' them to obtain AT&T wireless service, DirecTV programming, or other products and services."

AT&T was responding to concerns raised by Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), and Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who previously alleged that AT&T's use of forced arbitration clauses has helped the company charge higher prices than the ones it advertises to customers.

While AT&T is correct that no one is forced to sign up for AT&T service, there are numerous areas of the country where AT&T is the only viable option for wired home Internet service. Even in wireless, where there's more competition, AT&T rivals Verizon and Sprint use mandatory arbitration clauses, so signing up with another carrier won't necessarily let customers avoid arbitration. One exception is T-Mobile, which offers a way to opt out of arbitration.

The terms of service for AT&T Internet and DirecTV require customers to "agree to arbitrate all disputes and claims" against AT&T. Class actions and trials by jury are prohibited, although individual cases in small claims courts are allowed. AT&T doesn't offer any way to opt out of the arbitration/small claims provision, so the only other option is not buying service from AT&T. By contrast, some home Internet and TV providers such as Comcast offer a method for opting out.
Senator: It?s still forced arbitration

Franken was not convinced by AT&T's response. In a statement provided to Ars, he continued using the phrase "forced arbitration" to describe the AT&T customer contract clause. AT&T claimed that its arbitration clause is "customer-friendly," but Franken said, "There?s nothing ?friendly? about AT&T?s take-it-or-leave-it contracts that eliminate consumer choice and take away Americans? ability to resolve legal disputes with their telecom provider in a court of law. Further, forced arbitration agreements that prohibit customers from banding together as a class deter consumers from seeking justice and allow widespread wrongdoing by powerful corporations to go unchecked."

An arbitration clause can only truly be customer-friendly if it "is entered into voluntarily after a dispute has arisen?and after a customer has fully considered their options?to ensure that Americans are not deprived of their constitutional rights," Franken said.

The Democratic senators wrote to AT&T three weeks ago after a CBS News investigation that described "more than 4,000 complaints against AT&T and [subsidiary] DirecTV related to deals, promotions and overcharging in the past two years."
412 arbitration cases for AT&T since 2015

AT&T said in its letter that "the CBS story has it wrong" because "AT&T is fully committed to honoring its deals, offers, and promotions."

Customer complaints about not receiving the correct promotional prices are "rare," AT&T said. "For example, during 2015, 2016, and through the ?rst four months of 2017, on average approximately 0.03 percent (i.e. 3 out of 10,000) of new DirecTV, U-verse and Mobility customers lodged complaints alleging overcharges related to promotions with AT&T?s dedicated customer complaint resolution teams," AT&T said.

There have been 412 arbitration cases with AT&T customers since the start of 2015, and most were settled before a hearing, the company told the senators. AT&T said it "has a very strong incentive to provide settlements satisfactory to the customer" because AT&T pays customers' arbitration fees and at least $10,000 to "customers who win more in arbitration than AT&T?s last written settlement offer."

"The relatively small number of cases that actually reach an arbitration hearing therefore does not provide any evidence that the dispute resolution process is not fair or is not used," AT&T said. "To the contrary, it demonstrates that the process is working just as intended?satisfactorily resolving consumer claims without the need to initiate an arbitration."

Franken recently proposed Senate legislation that would invalidate mandatory arbitration clauses. But he didn't say if he plans to take any further action at the moment.



Fuck ISPs! When are we going to stop putting up with shit like this?
 
I thought we didn't want internet monopolies?
 
When Google Fiber is rolled out nationwide.

Google is backing off Fiber due to the government's inept implementation of 'Net Neutrality' among other things. It's also why Verizon has bailed out of most of their FIOS plant and AT&T have bailed out on many Gigapower plans. Costs to create these networks have increased and the way the Feds began implementing their version of Net Neutrality a couple years ago means that they didn't expect to make that money back in what they expected to be a reasonable amount of time. Google has even cancelled Fiber installs in cities they're already in.

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Fuck ISPs! When are we going to stop putting up with shit like this?

Pssst - it's not just ISPs doing this forced arbitration idea. There's a LOT of service providers and businesses that bury that clause in their terms of service/sale contracts/other documentation. Since career politicians from both parties are bought and paid for by large donors who benefit from these clauses, don't expect them to end any time soon.

But to directly answer the question: Once we impose term limits on all politicians at all levels of government and get rid of "politician" as an actual career.
 
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Google is backing off Fiber due to the government's inept implementation of 'Net Neutrality' among other things. It's also why Verizon has bailed out of most of their FIOS plant and AT&T have bailed out on many Gigapower plans. Costs to create these networks have increased and the way the Feds began implementing their version of Net Neutrality a couple years ago means that they didn't expect to make that money back in what they expected to be a reasonable amount of time. Google has even cancelled Fiber installs in cities they're already in.
It's even worse for FiOS, in NYC they are only in neighborhoods where Optimum is, anywhere Time Warner is they are not allowed to roll out services because TWC successfully got a court order stopping them for violating some shitty act that basically grants cable companies specific areas they get to have monopoly in.

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I thought we didn't want internet monopolies?

But everyone loves Google!
 
...because TWC successfully got a court order stopping them for violating some shitty act that basically grants cable companies specific areas they get to have monopoly in.

While in other areas courts have determined that FIOS isn't a cable company, the fact that cable companies get a local monopoly at all (and they do in pretty much every state) is another thing that desperately needs to go away.
 
While in other areas courts have determined that FIOS isn't a cable company, the fact that cable companies get a local monopoly at all (and they do in pretty much every state) is another thing that desperately needs to go away.

That and vertical integration of cable companies and content.
 
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