rayzoredge

I believe that sexuality is based on genetic composition... which really means that sexual preference isn't a choice, although it may seem like one. The choice nowadays is to recognize yourself as a homosexual or a bisexual (coming out of the closet). All this crap about it being a bad thing sprouts from religious beliefs and political standing and it's not correct to say if it's a right or wrong thing.It's correct to say that it isn't exactly ideal to try to procreate being homosexual (since it's really not going to happen), but other than that, what's not to like? I find that bisexual and homosexual individuals are as friendly, nice, cool, and fun as anyone else. They are no different than anyone else aside from their sexual orientation.Sure, no one would like to be hit on by a homosexual of their same gender, but is that really true? Take it as flattery. One thing that I'm guilty of is the whole trend on using the word "gay" as a derogatory term. It sucks that a mass of people look down on h*omo- and bisexuals... people need to open their eyes instead of following their d*mn books and just listening to what their peers say, if you catch my drift.Then again, that applies to a lot of things...

Sometimes when I boot up Windows or when the OS just has to have a hiccup with Explorer, I get the infamously-humorous error message that states that Windows Explorer must be shut down in order to protect your computer. After confirming it, the Dr. Watson Post-mortem Debugger ALWAYS hangs and prevents Explorer from automatically-restarting, forcing me to go to the Task Manager and killing drwtsn32.exe (which would be the Dr. Watson Post-mortem Debugger) in order to set things right.Not only is it annoying, but I'm also curious as to why this happens. You know... other than the reason that Windows sucks. I'm running Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2.

It seems like a lot of time has passed and things change, possibly including her feelings for you.That's the worst-case scenario, anyway.I think that if you really want to pursue it, think about actually being friends again and then later if it bothers you still to sit down and talk to her about it. Don't sound desperate or needy... I know how it might be very compelling to drop down a maturity level and almost whine and beg, but if you are mature about it and if you respect her choices and answers, I think that you will find your answers and learn to move on, with or without her. If there's something about what happened in the past that bothers her, maybe you guys can just remain friends or even work something out.Remember to be mature. If she doesn't reciprocate your feelings, the world hasn't ended. Try to be understanding and supportive of her decisions even if it does hurt... and move on. Don't let it kill your performance in life; you're at one of the most presitigious schools in Australia for a reason. Don't let this ruin everything.Then again, if you guys get back together, that would be awesome too. Keep us posted on what's up.

I would think (in my opinion anyway) that it doesn't take up actual physical space, but rather CHANGES the spaces that the data occupies on the disk.The traditional hard drive is composed of a set of circular plates coated with a thin layer of magnetic material with a magnetic head that reads and "writes" data onto these plates. The read/write device actually operates closely to the plate, making changes and reading data at a very miniscule scale (back down to the very basic machine code of binary - 1's and 0's).More data would mean more magnetic changes to the platters in the hard drive. If I were to save what I typed here in a text document, the changes to my hard drive would consist of a LOT of 1's and 0's that translate into the ASCII characters (8 binary digits for one character, I believe) that you are seeing right now, all correlated and stored somewhere on the hard drive. (Sometimes this data is scattered about, which is why your hard drive becomes fragmented - which really means that parts of files are scattered everywhere on the hard drive, making access time to the complete file slightly longer than if the file fragments were all together.)The reason why we have space limits is the fact that each grain of data (which holds one binary digit) can only be so small, which we can further "shrink" as technology advances and when we can literally squeeze more room onto a platter within the hard drive. Right now I believe with the advent of nanotechnology and even biotechnology, hard drive capacities can only get bigger with the same amount of space.As for flash memory (USB sticks, SD cards, etc.), the workings are a little different. Data is stored by electrons within the chipset... which confuses me on how my 4GB USB stick survived a laundry wash . The application of voltage is what changes data on flash memory, and each chipset constantly holds a charge that keeps data from being lost. (RAM is essentially memory storage, but it is cleared of all data as soon as you power down the system and it loses electrical current. Technology advances are now utilizing forms of RAM to create super-fast hard drives by constantly providing a source charge.)So in short, technology in miniaturization would be our limiting factor on capacity when it comes to expanding it.

I say it's worth it if you like to play video games. Good luck finding one, though.All these Wii "problems" with the wrist strap breaking and all that... not only has Nintendo reequipped the Wii-motes with new, more durable ones, but why the heck are people letting go of the darn thing anyway? C'mon now, people... it's not really a problem with the Wii. PEBKAC... or in this case, it's a bio-interface problem. The only problem that I would find with the Wii is the fact that you can get carried away... which might be the reason why people are being retarded and literally throwing their controllers at their TVs. You also need a lot of space in front of your TV as you'll be getting up to play games like Wii Sports and Rayman: Raving Rabbids, but there are more passive games like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.In my opinion, the Wii is a clear winner over the other two other consoles in terms of fun and value. It's a new way to play video games, throwing a whole new level of interactivity into the mix. The Wii isn't just for party games, or strictly for gamers, or just one person. It's for everyone. Literally. There are games like Mario Party and Warioware and Raving Rabbids for multiplayer fun; Zelda and Super Paper Mario for solo play; and there is enough of a game library to appeal to all ages and audiences. Just the Wii Sports bundle is probably enough to keep a family entertained for a while.To look back on what it would cost you: $250 for the console, plus $60 for each Wii-Mote/Nunchuk controller combo and $50 for most games... which does come out to be pretty expensive if you go all out, but it still beats the Xbox 360 ($300-400) and definitely the PS3 ($500-600) when it comes to gaming value. Not to mention that you have the Virtual Console, which allows you to purchase and play games for the Genesis, the TurboGrafx, the NES, SNES, and N64... basically most past consoles, if you want to go back to playing the classics. It is also backwards compatible with GameCube games.If you're going to get one, good luck. I believe there will be a restock in late November or early December or sometime around there to cope with the holiday demand, but they won't be letting them go for less than $500 since they want to bundle it with controllers and a ton of games... but that's if you want to shop online. Try to hit up your local Best Buy or Walmart after knowing the restock date.

I don't know if I could live in an area where creepy-crawlies are prevalent. Not scared of spiders, centipedes, snakes, or whatnot, but why get freaked out in the middle of the night by one ON you or have to remember to shake your shoes/boots every morning or have to constantly live in a slight state of paranoia? I don't know about most people, but I'm easily startled by surprises... especially ones where I automatically think of poisonous or potentially-hazardous or painful biting things.

Just to add on:Post quality definitely trumps quantity. I don't know about most of the other members here, but post "rank" (Super Member, Premium Member, etc.) is becoming less significant to me as I see "higher-ranking" posters post one-liners, irrelevant information...If you're going to utilize Xisto's web hosting service, go for quality. Be careful when using content from other sites and sources (copyright infringement), quote when in doubt, and post in topics that you can comment or contribute to.Grammar and spelling is nice too. Welcome to the Xisto community.

Check your messages.

It's hard to choose between the two, as I like both for different reasons.Cats are awesome because they're cute, cuddly, small, and they don't want constant attention from you (as in that they go out doing stuff and explore by themselves). Dogs are great because you can actually play with them, be less gentle (in terms of firmness, I guess... not sure how to word it), they'll follow you around, and if you have a lot of love to give, they're always by your side. Cats poop inside; with dogs, you usually have to let them out. Most dogs will show that they love you all the time; cats will purr and rub against you, but won't be physically with you all the time.I'd personally would like a cat and a dog one day... right now, I have a Siberian Huskey named Angel.

Yikes. Touchy subject. Cloning would be a great thing if you are referring to creating organs (such as a compatible liver, heart, skin, etc.) for transplants that can save lives. It's really not a person... just a part of a person that you would be creating. Sure, Nature never intended for us to create people, much less parts of people, but then again, Nature never intended for us to do a lot of things.Cloning actual PEOPLE, on the other hand, might make for a sticky issue. It would be interesting to bring back people from the dead, so to speak, by replicating cells from, let's say, a deceased family member and in essence giving "that" person a second chance at life. (Think of how the parents of Gage in Pet Semetary may have considered this option.) It would also be rather be strange to have multiple "selves" of someone... although there really wouldn't be much difference in the larger picture of things (each clone would be his/her own person outside of genetic identity, not a complete physical AND psychological copy), I would think that it could cause complications on a personal level to know that there are multiples of "you." Not to mention that our population as a species would climb with more mouths to feed, heads to shelter, etc.

That link doesn't say anything about the issue... it's just a "project" aimed at asking Yahoo to add it back. I wonder how long ago this has happened... considering the possibility that Iran is probably getting flak about being the next country to start something. (Not sure on the full story... don't quote me on that. Yes, I'm ignorant of world news... ) If it was rather recent, I'm thinking that a hacker probably got rid of the country as a selection because of this reason. It just wouldn't make sense to get rid of that selection based on anything... even proportional "lack" of use (compared to the other country mirrors). It would create a stink that no company would want.

Alienware was bought out by Dell...With Alienware, you're mostly paying for the name. The designs they have are absolutely crazy and usually top-of-the-line. Each system is moreso tailored towards gaming performance than anything else... but they will do just about anything you want it to do (if it's a gaming rig). Like everyone is saying, they will cost you an arm and a leg. Unless you REALLY want to have a high-performance PC with the Alienware name, I'd stay clear.Dell is a very dummy-proof choice. Computer enthusiasts will have to agree that they are one of the most convenient when it comes to people who have next to no knowledge of a computer... but things like cheap parts, limited performance caps, and the fact that the BIOS is locked down can piss off a tech-savvy user. They are relatively cheap and great for everyday use... with lag-free gaming out of this realm of use. I hear that the XPS line is nice... albeit a bit pricey.The best bet, really, is to design and build your own PC, component by component. It's really not that hard and very satisfying to be able to create your own desktop tailored to YOUR wants... not to mention that you have complete control over what's in your PC. There are tons of websites that will help you out... and really, it's not hard.But if you want a pre-built PC, I would personally suggest HP or Dell. So far, I have no real personal complaints about either... yet.

I'm sure Boston's going to take the day off to celebrate their homecoming. Imagine the crowds that will be at the airport just to congratulate them and welcome them home!

The sick thing is that he will be fed, clothed, have a bed to sleep in, and whatnot... all paid by tax dollars.The good thing is the whole psychological torture that he may be going through... just by being imprisoned, and of course having to survive the experience without being sodomized himself...I like George Carlin's idea of imprisonment. Throw all the rapists into one jail so that they can rape each other; throw all the murderers into another and have them kill each other; etc. Okay, that would be inhumane, but it was a funny skit. I'm sure all of the anti-military buffs love the new ammunition for their "campaign."

Congratulations dude!Is the cookie monster gene a recessive trait in your family blood?Otherwise...Is your nephew really your son, and you'll be the uncle and father of your nephew son? Or did someone from Sesame Street knock up your sister?

From experience, I can safely say that Norton Antivirus seems to be good. Only reason why is because I haven't gotten a virus in the longest time... going by these guidelines, of course. So I'm not sure if Norton isn't detecting anything, or if I'm truly virus-free. I'd like to believe in the latter. From what I hear, Spybot, Ad-Aware, Avast, and AVG are good anti-virus/anti-malware programs. You can find all of those free to download on Download.com. (I believe Avast has gone commercial, however.) The only firewall program that I hear about most frequently is ZoneAlarm. Of course, I'm just trying to spread the "good" word; I have no personal experience with these programs. Personally, I only have Norton Antivirus and the Windows Firewall from SP2. I don't have it set on auto-protect; I merely scan questionable files and do a manual system scan once in a while. Nothing yet.

VLC trumps every other video player in terms of functionality... because it plays EVERYTHING.Usually when I can't play a certain video file with Windows Media Player 11, VLC picks it up and makes it work. Not even region-specific media is prevented from playing, which somehow was an issue with WMP11 with my U.S. copy. As for music, I would have to go with Windows Media Player 11 simply because I love the eye candy and the functionality it has as a music player. I used to use MusicMatch 10 but swapped over because WMP11 loaded up more quickly and looked nicer.

I was going to reply to this topic, then spun off and made my own topic on how to avoid and get rid of viruses. Clicky

Viruses, spyware, malware, adware, and all that extraneous bull that we have to deal with nowadays are becoming more frequent. Obviously we don't want this crap on our computers so I advise you take precautions. * Avoid downloading anything from sites or people you don't know. Duh. * Don't even bother looking at attachments in spam. Duh. * If you receive an e-mail from someone you don't know, don't click on any of the links. Duh. * Anything other than a multimedia file or a text file is able to harbor extra crap you're not going to want. This includes EXE's, ZIP's, TAR's, and even Microsoft Office documents (which would hold macro viruses). Check the extension of the file before downloading it. * Although I say that multimedia files (MP3's, AU's, MPEG's, MP2's, WAV's, RAM's, WMV's, WMA's, JPG's, GIF's, TIF's, etc.) and text files (TXT's) do not harbor viruses, there is the possibility that an executable (EXE) was renamed with a multimedia extension to disguise it. Obviously, these files won't run correctly if they are left with an incorrect extension; however, the file will still be infected and may spread if run. (I'm not very sure about how viruses CAN work... some immediate infect files on your computer on a COPY command, which in essence happens WHEN you download them. More when I start edumacating myself on programming...) * Also, I've learned of a new exploit in the NTFS file system (which is now becoming commonplace with most computers today; Google "NTFS" for more information) that allows for text files to contain extra bits of code that are read by a computer without the user's knowledge. This really isn't much to worry about as I have yet to learn of any cases where this exploit has been used, but be wary. (Scanners will NOT detect this kind of exploit in text files.) * Download files ONLY from trusted sites and peer-reviewed sites, such as Download.com. Avoid using peer-to-peer (P2P) programs such as Limewire, Kazaa, and Morpheus. Usually, users of P2P programs aren't out to be malicious, but the files themselves (that are downloaded from peers) may be infected with tons of *BLEEP*, and of course there's always that random jerk. * Look out for bundled software. Sometimes you are willingly and knowingly letting spyware and adware onto your computer. Such is the case of some "free" screensavers, games, and even published games like Battlefield 2142. * DO NOT allow any web site that utilizes Javascript to perform a "free scan" of your computer that makes you download a file in order to do so. A lot of these programs are bull and simply harbor spyware/adware which makes it so that you can't browse the Internet, asking you to purchase software to get rid of the spyware/adware that YOU just downloaded. It's a cheap scam and it works, apparently, considering that most computer-illiterate people would think that it would be good to get the software to get rid of it. * If you ABSOLUTELY need your friggin' porn, do NOT download any dialer programs that offer "free" exclusive access when you dial some number with your modem. Just snag the pictures and the video, people. Or don't even download it at all... just stream it. - If you have been infected... Scan your computer for adware, malware, and spyware using updated definitions and Norton Antivirus, AVG, Avast, Spybot, and/or Ad-aware. (Some of these programs can be downloaded at Download.com.) Sometimes, your computer really can't be saved, thanks to Trojans that like to replicate dummy viruses, malware that slips under the radar, or what-have-you. In these cases, you may have to resort to backing up your personal data and performing a reformat/reinstall... sometimes having to wipe your drive clean up to 7 times to make sure nothing is on the hard drive. - Keep in mind to practice safe downloading practices. This includes downloading files, accepting certificates, installing ActiveX controls... anything that involves any actual change to your computer. And when in doubt, don't download it. It's all common sense and a bit of knowledge, really. Be an Internet ninja and avoid malware in the first place. Remember, prevention is key!

The world makes me sick.Some of these people seriously are either unfit to be parents or shouldn't be breeding anyway.Adding an overrated, underestimated substance into the mix doesn't help at all.I hope he gets the maximum punishment he can get. And I have no sympathy, because if he was such an innocent person open to accidents and impaired judgment, he would have known to not drink excessively around his children. Or even at all.And if he was an upstanding individual with this one slip-up, I'm sure he still deserves the guilt on his head for choosing to drink around his kids plus the legal punishment bestowed on him.And lawyers really need to look inside their own black hearts to see how they can live to defend such scum (if he was really unfit to be a parent).Gah.

Vista has a problem connecting to native XP networks and I believe it lies within the TCP/IP settings. If I remember correctly, Vista has moved on with IPv6 whereas XP still uses the older IPv4 standard.With that said, try disabling the TCP/IP with IPv6 in your network adapter settings to see if that makes a difference.Hope this helps. Otherwise, you'll have to dig through the mess of results from Google...

Conflict of interest. Employers don't like the idea that you will be distracting yourself with flings in the workplace, and even worse, have it affect your work. People tend to slack off to go out and hang out with their interest more often, or waste company time and resources e-mailing each other, or not even think about work at work, spending the entire day e-flirting and spending extra-long breaks. From a management perspective, they don't pay you to socialize. As for this situation, I suppose that you might be doing an all-right thing seeking another job for this girl. But at the same time, you're making a dangerous move. Do you really see something going with this? Is it worth your career, taking a hit for pay and benefits? (Hopefully the next job you snag has better pay and benefits... that way you'll be moving up instead of down. ) I hate to bring up the other side of it, but do you really think that this has a future? Then again, you never know until you try. I'm assuming you've already talked to her and found out for sure that you both think you have something going on.

You also have to remember that CRT's are large and bulky... and heavy. It's not fun having to move your TV around. I think LCDs are the way to go, simply because they feature most of what we want to see in a TV and complete the modern home theatre of today (except for the videophiles). Over time, some LCDs have become close and almost match the visual quality of a plasma. The numbers don't match, but if you can't really notice a difference, why bump it up? Then again, most of you have already put out the differences between the two... Just keep in mind, however, that from the time of the original posting, plasma has gotten a lot better in the burn-in department (as Zinrgy said, and some plasmas can simply "wash out" burn-in), but LCDs have also improved drastically with visual acuity and accuracy, producing better color, and even increasing its available screen size. I really don't think the average joe is going to really notice the difference between a high-grade LCD and a plasma after glancing at it. Of course, we'll recognize the CRTs... In the future, we will still have both technologies, I'm sure, as LCD has its limits on screen size (for the time being). Not to mention that the consumer market needs variety.

I'm not sure what it's called, but there is a feature in Linux that is similar to Add/Remove Programs that gives you a buttload of options for programs to install, which include most equivalents for Windows-only software.Also, for those programs that you absolutely have to have, you can always utilize the Windows environment emulators (Wine and Cadega, I believe).If the encyclopedia is all that you're wanting to keep, why not just go online?

Windows 98 SE is still a rather stable and awesome operating system that you can rely on, but get with the times! You may have to actually bump up some specifications with the installation of XP (if you want to run it flawlessly), but I'm sure you'll be okay with the upgrade. Plus, at least it's not as much of a dinosaur as 98 SE. Microsoft is extending its support for XP past the expected date (when Vista was supposed to completely take over), so you will be safe with XP for a while. Plus, I'm sure developers will still be developing software for XP for quite some time to come. See if you can snag Windows XP Professional SP2. It would be, in my opinion, the equivalent of Windows 98 SE in stability, compatibility with hardware, and functionality. I can almost safely say that Windows XP Professional SP2 would be the best operating system that you can have out of the Windows family. (I had to specify that since I know someone will want to throw out the argument of 'nixing. ) - As for software support, don't expect anyone to develop programs for the Windows 98 era, much less 95 or 3.1. They've been abandoned with the assumption that everyone else has moved on. Also, why spend time to create a program that only a select few can use?