cgWerks

Klaus prognosticated the next big threat the world would face would be cyber-attacks, which would make Covid-19 look like child's play. I guess we have more 'fun' to look forward to (until we get to owning nothing and being happy with it, that is).

sflocal said:

I'm reminded of a scene from the mini-series "Ozark" where the thieves stole millions of dollars of Marty's drug money only to realize that they can't essentially do anything with all that cash without getting caught.

I suspect these criminals were of the same gene pool.

I think that's one of the big misperceptions about cryptocurrencies. People often say they are just used for illegal matters, as they aren't traceable.
It's quite the opposite, they are insanely traceable (the very nature of block-chain). It's just that they are relatively anonymized (up to the point where the powers that be want to figure out what belongs to who).

MplsP said:
True - making it 11.5 mm thick raises some issues, but only if you make them so. Heck, they could have just made it a USB C cable.

A USB-C cable could be pulled out way too easy. It works with laptops that have batteries, but would be a bad idea for powering a desktop.

rcfa said:
Not getting updated, but complemented.

I doubt the M1 versions will go away just because the M1X versions get introduced, unless Apple will transition to a much more aggressive upgrade cycle across its entire product line, or a repositioning of the MacMini line.

I'm guessing (and hoping) this will be a Mac mini Pro or something like that. Basically, it will have more cores, but a dramatically more powerful GPU (16/32 instead of 8 cores). If it is much of anything other than that, I'll be pretty bummed. I also kind of hope the renderings aren't accurate, as even with the higher efficiency of Apple Silicon, they'd still need some cooling potential with that many cores. Apple always seems to shrink things a bit too small for heavy use in terms of heat dissipation (aside from the Mac Pro).

aaron sorenson said:

I don’t understand why ppl think it will get the M1 iMac’s mag safe but they wouldn’t integrate the Ethernet port into it and put one in the back of the mini  

That is a really good observation, and question.

entropys said:
That would be inefficient and expensive, and in a mini, chew up valuable real estate. Particularly on a server farm, maybe not so bad on a single server, but would it not be better to have a UPS and as big a battery to power other stuff, seperatey?

A UPS wouldn't do any good if you pull the plug.

Xed said:
I posted a comprehensive article that shows the efficacy of mRNA vaccines in comparison to the less effective alternatives. Clearly that was too much for you to understand.

That wasn't very comprehensive at all. I'd look for a few more sources, and up-to-date info. Those numbers have been dropping, especially in regard to the variants. BTW, those are relative risk reduction, not absolute.

Xed said:
They wear them to help prevent the spread of germs, which is why you should wear a mask during a pandemic instead of calling it a fake virus at the top of your lungs. 

Do you know what aerosol means in regard to virus transmission?

Xed said:
Telling certain people that the US vaccine supply may go to another, less (um) white country will surely encourage some to get it. LOL

I think all those people already got it.

Alex_V said:

Numerous studies have shown the effectiveness of masks. There are many demonstrations on YouTube showing how masks of all types dramatically impede ...

Just so people are aware, there are 3 main types of studies.
There are double-blind and placebo controlled studies, that if done correctly, likely show something to be the case or not to be.
There are theoretical / model type studies, which try to make some point which *might* be possible to apply to a situation.
There are observational studies (w/o controls) which attempt to create a hypothesis which can be tested.

The first type, in regard to masks, show little to no effect, along with some negative effects.
The second type is what is being talked about above, but that doesn't necessarily translate to the real world.
the third type is the pro-mask data we have so far since Covid, but correlation doesn't necessarily equal causation.

tmay said:
Reason enough that the rest of the world should not rely primarily on China for personal protective gear, but have multiple supply chains. Countries have also learned that they must have some internal production capability for these, as well as supply caches, all for the next pandemic.

This podcast covers the Congressional testimony concerning the failure to prepare in terms of PPE. It was a quite bi-partisan effort, surprise, surprise.
https://congressionaldish.com/cd215-covid-19-testimony/

Alex_V said:
* China contained the disease pretty well. So their demand for PPE was limited. 

* You’re right: it was foolhardy to export PPE to China when everyone could see (from Feb/Mar 2020) that this disease was on its way. 

They continued the news and information about it pretty well, but there is some evidence they were dealing with it long before the rest of the world even knew about it.
Canada also shipped off a bunch of our PPE to China. I don't know if it was just a matter of open-market dealing, or responding to their call, or what.

dysamoria said:
I see people coughing and sneezing plenty enough. Then there are the plague joggers huffing away on trails an sidewalks (I do not huff like these guys when I jog, so I don’t know WTH that’s about). There’re also people who don’t have “inside voices”; talking like they’re at a crowded concert, blowing enough air at you that you can feel it. These people also tend to stand too closely.

One random strong exhale can blast you with infectious particles. That’s why people are supposed to cover these potential events by wearing masks on their faces. It’s not a magical barrier; it’s just one step of “filtration”; one more step against potential exposure. There are supposed to be many steps but people can’t be bothered to engage with almost any consideration for others.

Fair point, since masks can impact droplet transmission, they could help some for those kind of situations. The main problem (overall) is that Covid-19 also spreads via aerosol. So, maybe it gives protection in some situations, but also a lot of false comfort.