Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2008 February 9

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February 9

Coding Theory

I have recently been introduced to coding theory with an interesting application but I have a question regarding a concept I learned. Let's say that I am trying to transmit a small message, like 10011 but it gets corrupted along the way. So I decide to replace all ones with 11 and all zeros with 00. So my message becomes 1100001111. This is an error detection algorithm but not error correction. So in order to discover AND correct an error, I decide to replace 0 with 000 and 1 with 111 so now my message becomes 111000000111111. Now, this procedure can detect and correct errors (assuming that there is one error per block of three). I also read somewhere that this procedure can be used to detect TWO errors also instead of detecting one error and then correcting it. My question is, how is this possible? For example, I understand how the detection and correction of one error works, but how can this detect two errors? What if I send the original message as 111000000111111 and receive 11100011011? How can I tell that there are two errors in it (in the middle zero, going from 000 to 011)? For all the recipient knows, the original byte was 1 (going from 111 to 011) with only one error. Secondly, this algorithm triples the size of a message. The message will take longer to upload and download. Is this worth it? Thirdly, does this algorithm rely heavily on the fact that it is statistically impossible that you can't have two errors in the same triplet? Because if I send the message 111000000111111 and then receive 111011000111111, I can just fix the message to 11011. Just to let you know, I consider myself a above average computer user. I have some background in programming and I am a graduate student in Math so feel free to throw in as much math as required to explain this. Thanks! A Real Kaiser (talk) 03:46, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

It does detect two errors. If 000 becomes 011 (two errors), then you detect it as an error, do you not? It is not two-error correcting because of the reason you stated. --Spoon! (talk) 03:52, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

In case the above isn't clear: to say a code detects n errors means that if (at most) n errors occur, then you can tell that there has been an error. It doesn't mean that you can tell exactly how many errors occur. The code 1 -> 11 0 -> 00 is not two-error-detecting, because it's possible for two errors to turn 00 to 11 in which case you don't know there's been an error at all.

In answer to your other questions, the codes you're considering here are laughably bad. They make your messages three times longer, and as the length of your message increases, the probability of an undetected error occurring somewhere tends to 1. The cornerstone of coding theory is Shannon's theorem, which says that there is always a code which multiples the length of messages by some constant k (depending on how bad the communication channel is), and such that the probability of an uncorrected error occurring tends to 0 as the message length increases. Algebraist 12:11, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I think you've made a mistake here. With more repetitions the chance of an uncorrected error goes to 0, not 1. It's a very inefficient use of the channel, but it's fine if you have bandwidth to spare. -- BenRG (talk) 17:31, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I didn't mean 'as the number of repetitions increases', I meant what I said: 'as the length of the message increases' (for a fixed number of repetitions). Algebraist 19:03, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I figured I was missing something. Sorry. -- BenRG (talk) 14:51, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Codes with that level of redundancy can be useful in practice. NASA used a (32,6) Reed-Muller code for Mariner 9, which has an expansion factor of more than 5. This is a much more sophisticated code with much better error resiliency than the repeat-five-times code. Even massive repetition is sometimes used, though. An example is the P subchannel on CD-Audio discs, which indicates a track change by a burst of no less than 14,400 one bits. CDs are designed to tolerate a fairly high raw error rate, but even so this seems a bit excessive. Most players ignore the P channel and use the Q channel instead, which encodes much more information in a more sophisticated format but still relies on massive redundancy. The audio data uses cross-interleaved Reed-Solomon coding. -- BenRG (talk) 16:16, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Wine / Ubuntu

hey..I am usig Ubuntu Linux...its fantastic!! i wanted to know, how to use Wine on it, I have not been able to download and install wine on it..pl help! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Davidbreina (talk • contribs) 05:10, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

You can install wine using Add/Remove Software or using Synaptic under System | Administration. Or, if you need the cutting-edge releases that may not be fully tested for Ubuntu, follow the directions at http://www.winehq.org/site/download-deb.

Once you have installed wine, you can install programs by downloading the .exe installer file and opening with wine. —BradV 05:52, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

how to run the application using wine?? please help!! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Davidbreina (talk • contribs) 09:23, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

hey can u plzz temme how to uninstall the things that are installed using Wine?? thanks.. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Davidbreina (talk • contribs) 09:47, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Under the main program meny in ubuntu, there should be a wine section where you can find an entry called "Wine Software Uninstaller". You can also launch it from the command line by typing "wine uninstaller". I'm very glad that you like Ubuntu! It's really neat, ain't it :D 83.250.205.56 (talk) 18:48, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Thank you very much..It is really good..I wanted to Know how to play a VCD on the unbuntu OS, i tried playing using VLC..even that was not possible! Please tell me what to do, i installed totem player, and the error on it is "there is no input plugin, to handle the location of this movie". How can i play VCDs directly from the CD? please help!

Enable Medibuntu by following these instructions, do sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install w32codecs in terminal and it should work. Otherwise open it with totem and it should be able to find the correct codec now. --antilived^{T | C | G} 10:15, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

I did all that you have asked me to do..but still i cannot play (*.dat) video format on TOTEM and also on VLC. I want to know how to play that format. Pl.instruct me on the steps how to make the format ditected directly from the CD media. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Davidbreina (talk • contribs) 12:30, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Visual Boy Advance.

if it is loading in a sort of loop, like, first 1% then (insert random number from 2-99)% then 100% and then sometimes 101%, is there something wrong with it? and in that case how should i solve it?Then, when i try to close it and then open it up again, it says "loaded battery". i'm using version 1.7.2. (it's been loading for at least 1/2 an hour) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.156.88.207 (talk) 07:03, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

The "Loaded Battery" message is normal after the first time you use a rom. It refers to the fact that many GameBoy cartridges have a battery that save information from one play to the next. "Loaded battery" indicates that the emulator has loaded this information from the disk (from a seperate file from the rom, but with a similar filename.) to simulate the battery functionality of the emulated cartridge. This process should be essentially instantaneous but the message should stick around long enough for you to read it.

As for the first part of your question, it is completely normal for emulators to fluctuate a little around 100% speed. I'm afraid I'm not familiar with how VBA reports this to the user, but is there a way to make it give you an average emulation speed? That would be much more valuable.

Also, be aware that if you're playing pirated commercial games, some of them may have copy protection that completely flummoxes the emulator. APL (talk) 17:12, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

SATA to PATA adapter?

Hi, I got an old pc with Intel Glly Board (details here)and P4 processor. I need a new hdd. The board doesn't' support SATA and Parallel ATA hard disks are hard to come by. Is there some sort a cheap adapter to fit a SATA hdd on to it?--Sagitter (talk) 11:58, 9 February 2008 (UTC)--Sagitter (talk) 11:58, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

You may be able to find a PCI card with some SATA ports on it. Useight (talk) 19:48, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Google Earth

If I put a geotag into a Wikipedia, how long before it appear on Google Earth? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Swithlander (talk • contribs) 12:41, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Google Earth / Google Maps comparison

I'm currently not using Google Earth because I'm quite happy with Google Maps. This question is about the "sattelite images" of Google Maps (which really are aerial photos, at least in populated regions), vs Google Earth. Has anyone here checked the two against each other, with regards to resolution at various locations, currentness of imagery etc.? I Did some googling and checked the articles Google Earth and Google Maps, but didn't really find an answer. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 13:30, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I'm fairly sure they use the same data sets, though sometimes I have gotten the impression that they were not updated at the same time (for awhile things that would be "censored" in one—like nuclear reactors or the Vice President's house—would not be "censored" in the other. I don't remember the details though). --98.217.18.109 (talk) 15:51, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

virtual keyword in programming

There is a keyword called virtual in programming such as in Virtual function or in Virtual method table. Usually, programming keywords are straightforward for me to understand, as they are self-explanatory (such as const, goto, private...). But I don't see why someone came up with the keyword virtual for the actions this keyword implements. Has anyone an idea? Thanks, --Abdull (talk) 13:24, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

The American Heritage Dictionary says it well - "virtual ... Existing or resulting in essence or effect though not in actual fact, form". The virtual keyboard isn't a real keyboard - it works like one, but doesn't exist in actual fact. -- Finlay McWalter | Talk 13:30, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

The question was about virtual functions, not virtual keyboards etc. Virtual functions are functions which may or may not be defined in the class in which they appear, and they may be redefined in child classes, i.e. they are polymorphic. I agree that "virtual" is not a good choice of name for these functions. "Polymorphic" would have been better. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 13:41, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Wait until you get to static. :( --Sean 16:04, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

const is not as sensible a name as you think. C++ allows an implementation to treat a const int as really constant for optimization purposes (that is, the value can be cached), but it forbids an implementation from assuming that a const int * points to a constant int. That is, in code like

   extern void bar();
   
   void foo(const int * p) {
       printf("%d\n", *p);
       bar();
       printf("%d\n", *p);
   }

the implementation must reload *p after the call to bar, because it might have changed. If const really meant const, the conversion from int * to const int * wouldn't be type safe. Stroustrup, who introduced the const keyword, was originally going to call it readonly but changed his mind, I believe because const was shorter. It would make more sense if const int * was a pointer to a truly constant int, mutable int * was a pointer to a mutable int (like C++'s int *), and int * was a pointer to an int of unknown mutability (like C++'s const int *).

Regarding virtual, I wasn't able to find any official explanation from Stroustrup on the web, but I assume it came from the idea that virtual things "aren't really there". When p is a B*, it looks like p->foo() is invoking B::foo(), but if B::foo is virtual then it might really be calling something else. -- BenRG (talk) 17:06, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Thank you all for your comments until now, especially for BenRG's Bjarne research.

BenRG, wouldn't it make even more sense if const int * always pointed to the same int (therefore, fixing the pointer), with this pointed to int being of unknown mutability?

I think your explanation for virtual could be what the inventors of the virtual keyword had in mind when they introduced it! --Abdull (talk) 11:09, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

A constant pointer to an int (you can modify the int through it but can't change which int it points to) is written int * const in C and C++. This does make sense in the context of C's less-than-wonderful type syntax. In the system I mentioned, int * const would be a constant pointer to an int of unknown mutability, which is written int const * const or const int * const in C or C++. Of course, if you're going to make a backward-incompatible change like that, you should also change everything else about C type syntax, which even K&R admit was an experiment that didn't pan out so well. -- BenRG (talk) 15:11, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Significantly Prettier and Easier C++ Syntax is one proposal along those lines. --Sean 16:47, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

For what it's worth, it's trivial to avoid the extra load, if that's what you want:

   void foo(const int * p) {
       const int q=*p;
       printf("%d\n", q);
       bar();
       printf("%d\n", q);
   }

Any optimizing compiler worth a single bean will obviously optimize q out. --Tardis (talk) 01:59, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

PDF to HTML/DOC

Hello please tell me a free PDF to HTML or DOC convertor ,yes i know there are many but please tell me which i use for best output,I mean output has the same formating as the PDF.If some one has used.thanks....usman khan —Preceding unsigned comment added by Usmanzia1 (talk • contribs) 13:44, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Zamzar is a site that produces fairly accurate conversions. Unfortunately, the site seems to have developed pop-ups since the last time I visited, and it tends to spam your inbox something awful, so you may want to use a disposable email. I'm sure others will be able to name similar services without the disadvantages.--Kateshortforbob 15:28, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I don't care if you can toss 12 naked Scotsman off the Eiffel Tower - converting PDF to HTML is a BAD idea. Weasly (talk) 16:15, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes, PDF is not meant to be converted back to editable format. If you know the author, you could try to ask them for a source file. It works much better. Kushal^t 19:55, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Network bridging...........

Hi...I have a laptop with a wireless network card. I use this to connect to other laptops in ad-hoc mode. I also have a wired LAN which I use frequently. Is there any way to bridge both the networks?? I know that wireless and wired LAN can be somehow bridged in XP but I don't know how to do that. Also is there a special way for the same in Vista?? I want to bridge the network so that I would be able to play multiplayer games with users of both the LANs simultaneously. Please help... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Piyushbehera25 (talk • contribs) 16:54, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

The control panel thing was good but I was not able to connect to both the networks simultaneously.Please suggest another way... I don't really understand what you're trying to do and how to help without more information about this game. Bridging is unlikely the answer you're looking for (Network Bridge for more details). Most games use a Client/Server system, whereby all the clients connect to a central server that hosts the game. So as long as you're the one hosting the game, and you can communicate with users in both networks, then there shouldn't be a problem, as the server app. should be able to communicate with all users (clients). The simplest solution to your woes is to put every user on the same subnet. By connecting to two networks, Window's routing table should be updated automatically to allow you to access both networks simultaneously (try testing with ping). It does not however allow users from one network to communicate with each other without a network bridge or router. Tetsuox (talk) 10:08, 5 February 2008 (UTC)

Ya I tried that but it does not work always(although the subnet of all users are equal) especially if there is a user running Vista i.e. if I host a game server users of any one network not both are able to see it...how to solve this problem. I also want that users of both the networks be able to connect to each other(I wanted to know about network bridge for that matter). Please suggest some method..

Opening URL in links with an external program in Firefox

I have an unorthodox way of listening to mp3-files in my web-browser: I open them using a little script that starts downloading them (using wget) and then opens the partially downloaded file in VLC (which starts playing instantly, while the file is downloading). I'm using xubuntu, btw. I do this for several reasons: I have a slow connection and intermittent connection to the internet so I can't just stream them, because then the audio-file would be choppy (the sound would go out when there is too much traffic, and it would tie up my connection for the length of the sound-file, not the length of the download). If the connection shuts down, it continues playing for as long as it has downloaded, so I can fix it without the file stopping playback. And as a plus, I have all my clips I've listened to in a neat directory, if I ever want to listen to them again. This solution isn't for everyone, but it works very well for me, and I really like it.

However, it has one drawback. When you click on a link to an mp3-file in firefox, it downloads it and then opens the program you've assigned to deal with mp3s. This is obviously not what I want, I would like it to just send the URL to my script so it can download the thing (and start playing immediately). Right now, what I do is that I right click the link, press "Copy link location", and use the command line to launch the script. It's not a huge hassle, but it would be fantastic if I could tell firefox just to do that on its own. Any ideas about how to accomplish that? 83.250.205.56 (talk) 18:42, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

I think it is possible to write a small program that will start the download in wget and open the downloading file in VLC once the percentage count reaches a certain number. However, you could also try to set Firefox to open .mp3 with the external application wget and then manually open the file with VLC. What do you think? Kushal^t 19:52, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Maybe I wasn't entirely clear about what I want. This is the script I use (it's called "mp3player", due to my total lack of originality):

#!/bin/sh
wget -c -O ~/mp3s/`expr match "$1" '.*/\(.*\)'` $1 &
sleep 7
vlc -q ~/mp3s/`expr match "$1" '.*/\(.*\)'`

(the regexes simply strips away everything before (and including) the last slash)

So if i want to play an mp3 with the url "http://example.com/somemp3.mp3", I type in "mp3player http://example.com/somemp3.mp3", which launches wget, starts downloading it (or continues downloading it, if it was interrupted, hence the "-c"), sleeps for a few seconds (so that wget has time to resolve and download a small chunk), and then starts up VLC. My download speed is poor, but it's still higher than the mp3s bitrate, so it can start directly, pretty much. However, if I set firefox to open mp3-files using it, firefox will download the entire thing to a temporary location and then opens it with my script. I use this mostly for podcasts, so that can easily take up to 20 minutes. What I would like firefox to do instead is to not download the file, but instead send the url directly to "mp3player", without downloading it. As I said, right now I copy the links location and open it using the script, but I would like that to be automatic.

I was toying with the idea of making a custom protocol handler (like "mp3://example.com/somemp3.mp3") that launched the file and then writing a greasemonkey script that converted all the links in a page that ended in "mp3" to that way, but I couldn't get the protocol to register, even though that should be pretty easy. So I'm wondering if someone else has a suggestion 83.250.205.56 (talk) 20:25, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Check out FlashGot, which lets you configure an external download manager. Also, "basename" does the same thing as the "expr" you're doing. --Sean 22:36, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Even simpler than basename: in bash, which "sh" actually is on your system, you can write ${1##*/} to strip up to the last slash without even using backticks. --Tardis (talk) 16:18, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Mozplugger should be able to do what you want. You'll need to edit a config file, but if you can write shell scripts the config syntax should be no problem. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 01:33, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

PDF Files

Does anyone know how to do this ... or even if it can be done at all? Say that I have 10 pages in a report ... Pages 1 through 9 are in a single PDF file ... and Page 10 is a single page in M.S. Word. Can I somehow bring that lone Page 10 from M.S. Word into the PDF file ... so that all 10 pages are all included in one single document? If so, how do I do that? Or is this something that can't even be done? The long story short is ... the first 9 pages are coming from one source ... and they (all 9) can be converted into a PDF file as a whole unit. And that last page (page 10) is coming from a different source ... and it can also (separately) be converted into a PDF file. But, the ten pages as a whole unit cannot be converted into a PDF file as a whole --- since they are coming from different sources before PDF conversion. So is there a way to join together somehow the two separate PDF files into one file, with all ten pages together? Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 20:19, 9 February 2008 (UTC))

There's [Pdftk] which is free software, and of course the commercial Adobe Acrobat if you want a user-friendly interface. 84.239.133.86 (talk) 20:34, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

What about printing off the pdf and the word, and then shoving the 10 pages back through the scanner. Or is that just way too analogue? Joesydney (talk) 02:11, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Yeah, that's pretty analogue, especially when there is PDF merging software available for free. --98.217.18.109 (talk) 16:34, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for all the replies. Number 1 ... I never knew that there even was free software available to do PDF merges. Good to now know. Number 2 ... No, I would never even consider the "analogue" re-scanning of 10 pages. It's a much longer document, and the 10 pages was just a hypothetical example for the purposes of this question. Thanks to all for the input. Much appreciated. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 22:59, 10 February 2008 (UTC))

Thanks to 84.239.133.86 for the link to Pdftk. Exactly what I've been looking for myself. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 20:22, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Thinking of switching to an Imac computer

Good afternoon,

I presently do home office work (MS Office) and some image manipulation on a pair of home based PC's...a laptop and a desktop. Netwoked wirelessly. The desktop is 7+ years old. The newer laptop recently died and was resuscitated.

Seeing as how the desktop PC will need to be replaced, and a history of occasional PC related difficulties (yes it IS still running after 7 year) what advise can one give about switching out both computers to MAc's? I'm told they are more reliable.... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.206.194.206 (talk) 21:12, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Hardware is a commodity these days. There's no reason to think a Mac would be more or less reliable than some other brand if you're talking about hardware. The OS is another story- many people think OS X is more stable than Windows, but even Windows is getting better all the time. I've had a Mac for a couple years now and I can't say it's perfectly stable- it has crashed on me a couple times that I remember. The best reason to switch to a Mac would be if you prefer them. Have you tried one lately? If you like it, go for it. If not, you already know Windows can do the job you need done. Friday (talk) 21:17, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Also try out a more user-friendly Linux distribution like Ubuntu (Linux distribution) in addition to the two, you might end up liking Ubuntu more than either of the two proprietary systems. --antilived^{T | C | G} 22:54, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Um, but of course if anything goes wrong you'll not only not have anyone to turn to for help but you'll be stuck recompiling the kernel on your own. Linux is free if you believe your own time is worthless. --98.217.18.109 (talk) 15:37, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

This is getting off topic but why are you recompiling the kernel anyway? I don't think you get any more help in Windows or Mac, for once I have no idea where to ask other people that has as good a SNR as Ubuntu Forums. I just had to reinstall Windows (last reinstallation: September) because it randomly throws "destination unreachable" and break my internet, and I had to spend the whole afternoon chasing drivers, updates, useful apps (Firefox, foobar, AVG etc.), integrating them using nLite (believe me it's even more of a hassle doing it other way around, installing drivers twice) and didn't finish until 8pm. Then I reinstall my Ubuntu (haven't reinstalled since Dapper days, so that puts it nearly 2 years), and I have a usable system by 10pm. Which wastes more time? --antilived^{T | C | G} 04:52, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Macs are decent hardware, in a solid, well-built, and (usually) attractive package. OS X itself is also far closer to idiot-proof than Windows as few malware applications target it; from what I've seen that's almost the only reason people have less malware issues with it these days, as the vast majority of that crap seems to actually be executed by the user. In any case, if all you're doing is light computer usage, a new Apple computer is going to be overkill. Just get a used one, or a cheap non-apple PC. -- Consumed Crustacean (talk) 09:41, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

I would say the only reason for getting a Mac is preference. If you would prefer to get a Mac, by all means, please go ahead. The operating system is well packaged. Even though there are some kinks that need to be ironed (such as running applications natively on Intel chips), there are workarounds to them. However, before getting a Mac, please look at other alternatives, most notably, Ubuntu. Kushal^t 23:28, 9 February 20 08 (UTC)

• Ignore anyone who says 'Macs are more media friendly/better spec/better machines' etc. They are very similar to PCs these days. The BEST reason for switching to mac is if you like the way it is organised/ the way the OS works. I use macs and I like the way the folders work, the way it does operations and the logic behind OSX. Please use a mac, try some stuff out, and if you find yourself more at ease, more productive, etc, then make the switch. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.139.90.67 (talk) 23:40, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

The main reason that Mac hardware is thought of as more "solid" is that there are a relatively limited number of configurations possible. With a PC, there are unlimited configurations as there are many "clones" being sold out there (one OS has to deal with an infinite number of possibilities), but because Mac hardware is developed in a proprietary way by the people who develop the software they have more control over exactly how each system is set up. This proprietary model, though, is what makes Macs more expensive than PC equivalents.

I've never had trouble with Mac hardware except in laptops, which can be more difficult in general as they are more susceptible to damage and danger than desktops.

The OS is pretty stable. I'm trying to think of the last time I had a kernel panic on this machine—I'm not sure I ever have. (My last machine, a laptop, had a faulty logic board—a common complaint with iBooks—and I got them all the time.) Individual programs, of course, sometimes crash (none more than Firefox, dare I say it), but I suspect that has as much to do with the programs as it does the OS, if not more.

On the whole I'd say the big advantage of Mac desktops is that they are very easy to run. Much easier than any Windows machine I have ever owned. Programs do not get installed in strange places, you are usually able to figure out almost immediately where everything is and should be, and you won't ever end up in the situation where suddenly you find that two dozen little widgets have colonized your computer without you knowing it. You don't, at the moment, have to worry about viruses or spyware. (With a Windows machine, you can spend a lot of time making sure that doesn't happen. Again, it depends on how much your time is worth and whether you are confident in your ability to keep up with the maintenance. Obviously the very computer savvy people who will write replies on here will probably have no problem with it; I have found that the average person, however, cannot keep up and thus sees real system slowdown very soon after getting online.) If you buy 3 years of Applecare with it (I recommend it) then you really don't have to worry about most hardware-related problems or software-related problems. If these things are valuable to you, then I'd recommend getting a Mac. (While a Linux machine can satisfy some of these requirements, in my experience they require doing a lot of nuts-and-bolts work to maintain, playing around in bash and knowing how to compile packages. If those very words sound scary to you, then you should probably avoid it as an OS. It's a great thing for hobbyists but I'd point people who don't have that much free time to other operating systems.) Macs cost a bit more but you do get something for the money. --98.217.18.109 (talk) 15:47, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

I hate to say it but I'm leaning more and more towards this point of view. People who know what they're doing don't need macs (though sometimes like them anyway, to my bafflement) but for the average stupid user- and the average user is very, very, very, very stupid, macs really are fantastic. The whole idea of OS X is sensible defaults that can't be changed- which is exactly what users need. I guess people who know what they're doing find that refreshing or something? :D\=< (talk) 23:10, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

recording music on a dvd blank disc

i want to place some music on a cd. i don't have any blank audio cds but i have some blank dvd-r (16x). can i put misic on these and use them in my cd player?68.11.133.123 (talk) 21:31, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Not likely, a CD player has a CD reader, not a DVD reader. The machine would not know how to read from it, and would just spin it at different speeds (just like when putting a DVD in a CD reader). -- ReyBrujo (talk) 21:35, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

If your player supports DVD-Audio then you can probably burn a DVD-Audio disc. If it supports something like MP3 then there's a chance it might be able to read files off DVDs. But CD audio definitely not. The CD format was designed at a low level for audio, and computer data (CD-ROM) was layered on top of that years later. The DVD format was designed at a low level for computer data. So CD audio is a kind of "unformat" which has no DVD equivalent even in principle. -- BenRG (talk) 22:53, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Linux

I am look at putting "distribution" of the Linux OS on a Dell '98 or '95 with a Pentium III processor. There are a long list of "distributions" and I have no idea how to choose which one I should use. Maybe some of you will have some knowledge in this area and could recommend which I should get? Thanks, Zrs 12 (talk) 22:33, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Xubuntu. --antilived^{T | C | G} 22:52, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Do you have the link at which I could obtain it? Zrs 12 (talk) 23:08, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Antilived gave you the Wikilink to Xubuntu. However, let me give you the link to the selection page at the xubuntu website. Just choose which mirror you are closest to and download it. Hope that helps,

Regards

Kushal^t 23:22, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Yep, got it. Downloading it right now. Thanks, Zrs 12 (talk) 23:29, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

Great! Kushal^t 02:52, 10 February 2008 (UTC)  Done

I use xubuntu as my primary OS and my computer's not at all underpowered.. xfce is supposed to be lean, but it's not a miracle worker on ancient hardware like blackbox is. Try fluxbuntu :D\=< (talk) 13:49, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Unreal Engine 2, 2.5 and 3 system requirements

What are the system requirements to Unreal Engine 2, 2.5 and 3 respectively? I can't find them online...

Also: any simple stripped-down version I can level-edit and walk around in just to see what it looks like? I'm thinking a couple of megabytes... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.122.91.85 (talk) 23:50, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

The Unreal Engine itself doesn't have any system requirements because its basicly just a set of tools for creating a game. Its how those tools are used that define the system requirements for a game. Game engine has a list of open-source game engines you can use, since the Unreal engine is commercial and unavailable for private use (unless you can pay them ungodly sums of money, probably six figures). Be aware that its a bit more complicated than level-editting and without a background in programming its likely to be slow going. Mad031683 (talk) 17:01, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

sound direction software

Hi. I remember stuff for macs that sends any sound to anywhere. For example, itunes could go out the built in speakers, and a skype can go through a wireless headset. Anyone remember?81.150.247.152 (talk) 23:59, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

AirPort? —BradV 03:29, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Its more likely that it is a third party application. Kushal^t 06:54, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

• I dont know about Skype, but Apple released airtunes http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/ which will wireless beam your iTunes to any jack input connector. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.139.90.67 (talk) 12:10, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

There should be a software workaround for this. I am thinking along the lines of: Skype can talk with the computer over Bluetooth and iTunes can use the built in speakers.

Isn't the audio hardware that comes with most Macs (which could vary depending on model, of course) good enough to allow two channels of communication? Kushal^t 15:11, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Correct, Kushal, it was 3rd party. This is a macbook. "I am thinking along the lines of: Skype can talk with the computer over Bluetooth and iTunes can use the built in speakers." Correct. That's what I mean.81.150.247.152 (talk) 23:47, 10 February 2008 (UTC)