Y2HH

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 09:49 AM) The one thing its missing is the ability to have a remote module to detect temperature where a nest isnt located. I REALLY need that in my new house and havent found anything yet that I like. I think eventually with the google stuff maybe it will be able to use the phone to do this? Who knows. other than that its pretty f***ing awesome. It learns how you like the temp and sets it. If you are gone, it turns it down. Its rock solid hardware with reliable software. Though there are no cheap remote modules for this, you can buy additional nests or even their new smoke detectors that can do this. Their smoke detectors tie into the nest and they share info about your house between them.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 09:46 AM) What are your thoughts so far about the Nest? I was very interested in buying it when I first read about it, but my company (the power company in Nevada) has a program where we distribute other smart thermostats to customers for free, so it didn't make a ton of sense to shell out the cash for the Nest. Do you think it is head and shoulders above most other smart thermostats out there? It's overpriced, but it's very useful -- it tells you exactly how long you've used your heat/air every day, compiles it into a list so you know. It tells you why you had to use more or less due to weather, or if you're saving energy...but for me it's most useful ability to controlling it remotely. Coming home from a road trip and being able to fire up my heat/air so it's at the desired temp BEFORE I get there is much better than having to leave it run until I get home, or coming home to a freezing house. Also, it looks cool.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 09:37 AM) Yeah well thats the rub right? Having GPS enabled on your phone tracks some data about you that most wont like. You can always turn it off. Having Wayze or googlemaps etc is going to concern the folks that hate sharing any data about location etc. I am betting connecting it to their monitoring stuff wont be mandatory, but who knows. The way of technology is going to be using your device (phone) as your ID and because of that software will be able to know where you are pretty much all the time. BMW is developing and testing software that will adjust your car based on what you are doing, where you are planning to go, where you have been etc. All based on data mined from your phone and its data. *I have a nest too* It's one thing to use that data to make whatever product it is I'm using operate to my specifications/habits...it's another thing entirely to compile that data so you can sell advertisements...which is what Google does with their multitude of free apps. The Nest is a premium priced product, and as I said, I have no concern about them using the information the Nest knows to OPERATE the Nest, but anything beyond that, IMO, should open them to massive litigation. They at least have some sort of argument when talking about free apps you don't have to use. But when talking about something I paid for...I have a bit of an issue with it...unless they start giving me Nests and cars for free, they can f*** themselves.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 09:24 AM) Well what do you mean by privacy? The hardware has a cryptic key based on internet security standards that is accessed by the software on the internet. Its very secure. The next piece becomes your device as the identifier similar to what auto manufacturers will be rolling out in the next few years as ways to enter your car and identify you as a user. This stuff is already in place in other forms, its just another way to do it. Right now the nest depends on movement etc to detect where you are in the house and your patterns but pretty soon it will be able to know when you are close to home based on google maps and will be able to start your heater or AC so its comfortable when you get in. I can get really deep into this as its my field. We've already developed this technology to go so far as installing a kegerator in our office that knows who you are, what your last beer preference is and your allotted amount per day after work. I don't mean security/encryption of the data. I mean the use of it. Disclosure: I own a Nest thermostat. My chief concern is because Google as a company isn't what Nest was as a company, Google is primarily an ad company that mines personal data from people. To make it a finer point, my Nest is a product that does a very specific thing -- I want the Nest to know I'm home so it knows to turn my heat or air on -- NOT because I want Google to know I'm home, or how long I'm home, or how many times I enter my living room. I think these concerns are very real in the face of what Google is and does. What I do in my home is MY business -- NOT Googles. If this data is ONLY used to operate my thermostat, I have no issues with it...but if it's compiled/saved/stored for any other reason, I have a big problem with it. I also don't feel that's out of line, this isn't Chrome or some free app Google gave me...I paid almost 300$ for this.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 09:09 AM) "Integration" takes next to nothing for the Nest which makes it attractive. You make the Nest device either OAuth aware for authentication or use OpenIDConnect on their software to connect your google account with the monitoring service. Poof, Nest now uses your google profile as a way to detect who you are and further on down the line, where you are, what you are doing, etc. Thats why it was so smart. I expect this, but it won't happen for a long time, or at least until they stop pretending they want to run Nest as a separate entity. This also opens up a whole new slew of privacy concerns. It's one thing to expect privacy on the Internet...it's another animal to expect it in your home. I foresee a LOT of issues with this, issues that could become very costly for Google. I was only pointing out Nest, because he opined that Google wanted out of the hardware business...but I don't think that's the case.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 08:47 AM) The reason Motorola sucks isnt the products, its the management chain and a great deal of the employee base. Its not a very innovative company and its completely saturated with horrible politics and inept management. A lot of those managers were replaced by high ranking Google execs and managers -- who they lost in this sale. Those former Google employees are now Lenovo's. Google laid off THOUSANDS of Motorola employees as part of their house cleaning to get their own people in there.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 08:48 AM) Google bought Nest because its getting into the home automation market and Nest is one of the most forward thinking companies out there on that topic. Integrating your identity (google) with your home preferences etc is where they would like to go. I bet they buy doorbot or something of that nature next. Oh, I know why they did it on the surface, mostly based on wall-street analyst guesses, IF they actually do those things. Based on the failed Motorola acquisition, it's a bit harder than just snapping up a company and it becoming a part of Google. This will take years to materialize, IF it materializes at all. As of right now, Nest is remaining a separate entity, just like Motorola was...and until that changes, none of that's happening.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 07:06 PM) I'm really surprised about them selling it like that. On one hand, I'm not surprised that Google didn't really want to have a fully-fledged hardware company. That's not really their deal. Margins are not high enough. But why take what looks like a loss, even with them keeping some patents and selling the set-top box separately? Most analysts saw Motorola as a company that was really on the rise and I agree. Moto X is a good phone that had a really right-headed development philosophy, focusing on end user-oriented software improvements over benchmarking. The Moto G has to be a contender to completely dominate the low end market. Why sell now? If what you said about not wanting a fully-fledged hardware company, they wouldn't have just bought Nest for 3+billion, who are a hardware company, as they sell no software other than the software packaged with their hardware, not to mention the robotics companies. If you ask me, Google should have kept Schmidt in charge longer, as since he's left, Brin/Page have acted like kids in a candy store with unlimited amounts of money to spend. In addition to buying Nest, they've bought a plethora of other businesses they have zero knowledge or experience in, including militarized robotics companies. They did buy things that make sense, like Waze, but after incorporating Waze's tech into Google Maps ... they kept Waze running/updating/making their own app, which is confusing. The idea should have been to get Waze users to use Google Maps, instead of operating two independent applications, which costs money for no reason. IMO Google is expanding by acquisition faster than they can keep up with. Everything I've seen them acquire so far is run half-assed, and very slow to change/adapt, and Motorola was no different. They've also shown a penchant for massively overpaying for companies nobody else is seriously bidding on. Motorola was only on the rise in peoples minds, as their phones were making strides, but in reality, it was losing money at an accelerated pace, to the tune of almost 300M per quarter/1+billion per year (double what it was losing when they acquired it). Oh, let's not forget their failed offers to buy Groupon for 6 billion and Snapchat for 4 billion. They should be thankful neither of those were accepted. I think the Motorola acquisition was a knee-jerk reaction to the Rockstar purchase of Nortel patents, only Motorola's patents are largely useless, and they've had no luck enforcing them, as case after case has been tossed in favor of Microsoft/Apple because almost everything Motorola patented, they did so under standards essentials. Getting rid of Motorola was a smart idea since they weren't serious about Motorola anyway, as Motorola had no technological or software advantages over any other Android maker...making it a race to the bottom.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 05:27 PM) I don't have HD televisions in my house to watch s***ty, low-definition streams that cut in and out. Totally this.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 01:18 PM) $100 is way overboard, maybe $20 or so on average. 4 or 5 bud lights aren't going to break the bank. For two people?! I can't go to a bar/pub by myself and spend less than 20$, and that's what I spend before I'm about to play an actual league hockey game. Going out to watch a game?! That's like 2-4 hours depending on the sport...and 4-5 bud lights isn't all I'd be drinking, not to mention eating...plus tip.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 10:48 AM) And ultimately much more expensive. This is exactly it. You save 100-200$ a month by cutting the cord (minus fees for Netflix, Hulu, or whatever else you use to cover your bases), and then end up spending way more than that to go out and watch a few games a month elsewhere. I can't speak for anyone else here, but when a buddy invites me over to watch a game, I don't come empty handed...and if you go out to a sports bar to watch it, forget it...you could blow through 100$ for two people watching a 2-4 hour game on food/drinks easily.

QUOTE (Iwritecode @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 01:06 PM) I’d rather cut my yard with a pair of dull scissors than shovel or snowblow any amount of snow.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 10:21 AM) UVerse has been having DNS issues all morning. Some sites would load, others would not. I had to switch my computer to GoogleDNS (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4). Searched Twitter, and it appears to be nation wide. That's always a good temporary fix for DNS issues, but using global public DNS entries like Google can make Netflix and other streaming services slow to a crawl because of how it works. While what I'm about to explain is not always a problem, it CAN become one at certain times. If you use Google (or other public DNS servers) for DNS, depending on the physical location of those DNS servers, issues can arise due to where they send you. Taking Google for example, because their DNS servers are in California, you will be routed to the local Netflix data store in California, so you'll essentially be streaming all the way from California, whereas using your ISP's local DNS servers would have routed you to a more local Netflix data store.

QUOTE (TaylorStSox @ Jan 25, 2014 -> 10:40 AM) It happens on multiple sites. I also have problems with my iPad crashing and shutting down both in Safari and other apps. It happens at least once a day. I would get an occasional crash in 6, but since updating to to 7, it happens all time. After looking around, it seems to really common. Apple is supposed to come out with an update soon that fixes it. If you are talking about the springboard crashes, yes, they're fixing that...I just wonder what's going on with that since it doesn't seem to affect everyone, I don't have this issue on my iPad (not jailbroken) or my iPhone (which is jailbroken), nor does my wife's phone seem affected.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jan 25, 2014 -> 11:35 AM) Does iOS still throttle third party browsers? This is one of those kinda/sorta things. iOS uses WebKit2, Chrome uses Blink (a fork of WebKit), so HTML/html5 render at the same speeds across both (browsers HAVE to be WebKit or they're not allowed on iOS). What apple doesn't allow is 3rd parties to use its Nitro JavaScript engine, so the only stuff that runs slower is jvscript, and even that's mostly placebo. My phone is jailbroken and I use Nitrous, which enables the Nitro engine for any/all third party browses and other apps that use jvscript, and to be perfectly honest, I don't see a difference in speeds...and I wish I did since I paid for Nitrous. The only time I can tell it's faster is if I run an artificial benchmark and I see the numbers with nitrous on vs off, but in real world usage, I just don't notice anything. :/

QUOTE (Tex @ Jan 25, 2014 -> 08:46 AM) It's been a long time since I needed to use either one. I don't think this is much of a poll...this is almost like asking would you rather have cancer or be healthy? It's pretty obvious which will win. You added in a 3rd option after I cast my vote. Originally it was lawn vs snow.

QUOTE (TaylorStSox @ Jan 24, 2014 -> 04:06 PM) Does Safari crash all the damn time on iOS7 for anyone else? My God it's frustrating. Nope. I actually went back to Safari because of how slow Chrome has become on iOS. Haven't had any issues since (iPhone 5 and Mini Retina). Is there a specific website you go to that crashes? Maybe it's the website, I can try it and see if it crashes other iOS devices.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jan 24, 2014 -> 02:11 PM) So a colleague of mine at work was doing pull-ups on one of those bars you put in your door frame or whatever, and the thing came loose and he fell on his neck and permanently damaged his spinal cord, causing what appears to be paralysis from the waist down, with some basic movement in his upper body. Everybody who uses these things make certain it is really in there correctly and provides the appropriate stability necessary. I have never used one because I never felt safe using them, but I know several of you probably do, so please be careful. That's terrible to hear. I feel the same as you, used one once and immediately thought, "yea...no.", and never used one again.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 12:56 PM) No. In fact it's the exact opposite. Over the last 800,000 years, there have been cycles of 100,000 years of ice cover followed by about 20,000 years of melting before the ice sheets refreeze. This cycle has clocked perfectly with "solar insolation over canada" - the amount of sun hitting Canada. When that peaks, it changes the stability of that ice sheet, ocean currents change in response, CO2 spikes, and the ice sheets collapse. It has happened >5 times on this cycle. The peak of solar insolation over Canada was 8,000 years ago. It is actually declining right now and has been for a long, long time. If the globe were repeating what it had done in the last 5 cycles there would be the beginnings of advancing ice sheets in Canada and in mountainous regions in Europe right now. They wouldn't be at their peak, but at this time in previous cycles there is clear evidence for the beginnings of ice sheet formation (changing compositions of ocean water, requiring removal of enough ice to change the composition of the ocean). There is good research to suggest that the reason why we're not in that cycle is humanity. Starting when the ice sheets collapsed, humanity became a feedback in the climate system. When humans expanded too far, cut down too many trees or put too much CO2 into the atmosphere, the end result wound up being climate shifts and droughts that killed off a lot of people or forced them to leave areas. The climate of the last 8000 years has actually been remarkably stable compared to what we see in the geologic record and it's very unique compared to the processes controlling the climate over the last million years. So...we've made things slower/more stable than they otherwise would have been? Not sure I'm understanding.

Other than light reading here and there, I still won't pretend to know much about the actual science behind global warming/climate change, but would it be fair to say that seeing as that we're coming off an ice age (~11k years ago), this warming period is expected, however, perhaps we've accelerated it during the industrial age? To put it another way, it's like winter changing to summer -- it's going to get warmer -- but we've made this change happen faster than it normally would have?

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Jan 15, 2014 -> 12:14 PM) Chipotle /thread Fail.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 14, 2014 -> 10:17 AM) I'll be climbing this sucker in the summer, Mt. Rainier. Beautiful... But not much of a challenge for you, since you can simply reach up and touch the top of the mountain from the ground...

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 14, 2014 -> 09:25 AM) You and I can't be internet friends anymore. I love fishing, even fly fishing...but ice fishing sucks.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 14, 2014 -> 08:27 AM) e.g. a $6000 Nikon might have 'only' 16.2MP, but that doesn't mean it's inferior in any way to a $200 point-and-shoot with 40MP. It's misinformation at it's best (or worst), depending on how you want to look at it. Just like the mhz race was bulls***, as depending on the architecture, a dual core 1.2ghz processor could be faster than a 4 core 2.3ghz processor. The same goes for cameras, as the MP race means less than nothing when taken by itself, and relies on the misinformed to gain traction. The size and quality of the sensor means much more than how many low quality pixels you can record.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Jan 14, 2014 -> 06:46 AM) I think I'm going to sound extremely conservative yet fairly liberal at the same time here, but whatever. I don't think abortion should be legal for any reason other than the endangerment of the mother's life after 12 weeks. I also think that there should not be any "opt-out" period for men. You stick it in there, you are responsible for the result, whatever the woman chooses. I also think that states are far too lax in enforcing child support payments. Don't even bother making the man (or woman in the extreme minority of cases) responsible for sending payments. It should come out of your paycheck, just like FICA and taxes. Massive fines for employers who knowingly skirt the rules. A lot of them don't have jobs, so exactly what paycheck are you talking about? And how do you fine a person with no money? I mean, you can fine them, or even jail them, but that doesn't solve the issue, and the payments still don't materialize.