OT - Spaceship

While I applaud the flight,I find that some of the other teams competing are much more interesting and innovative than Rutan's group.Unfortunately,Paul Allen chose to fund the more cumbersome attempt.Check out the Armadillo group or TGV Rockets. Ain't heard of them?Neither have investors or other patrons. It's a shame too.

Armadillo? Are you kidding me? Regardless of their enthusiasm, they aren't competent engineers. I'd call them hobbiests, at best. Rutan is a proven thing, a genius beyond his peers.

What about John Caramack, owner of ID software (Doom, Quake, etc..) wasn't he funding a space project, too?

Whatever

And how did you determine that?

I've been reading their logs. Their work is largely of an enthusiastic, advanced hobbiest nature. The engineering and fabrication problems they are experiencing would never be acceptable to an effort with the daunting requisites of this project.

In spirit I agree with the sentiment that it's a shame they can't be funded to some extent. Perhaps they can explore further grants from corporations for subcomponents.

Of course it's unacceptable.And make no mistake,engineers make plenty of "unacceptable" attempts at solving problems. Talented "enthusiasts" can also be innovators.History is filled with 'em. Burt Rhutan was once one such. All engineering is composed of successes AND failures.

Fat chance of that.It would seem that the media coverage has already decided to cover the winner-exclusively.

Of course engineering is of success and failures, but there are measures. I'd not want to finance a group who plans to strap a human being into a rocket who cannot accomplish some elementary tasks, or who have the temerity to ask for special dispensation from saftey requisites as they have to.

The media does not write grants. You are out of touch. You are speaking to the fame and fortune bullshit. It's about research, development, expertise, engineering advances and those things happen outside the media.

Out of touch with what? The media does have the power to focus attention and interest.

That's exactly what it is, bullshit.And it exists.And it plays a significant part in funding People can still be impressed by presentation..In this country,money follows money No coverage,no awareness.It's as simple as that.

That's correct,as far as it goes.There's very little that's completely new under the sun. New materials,application of those materials and funding research drives engineering. But there are still progress that is made outside of the the "official channels". Even by enthusiasts.

Read what I wrote and join reality. Killfile.

You like to make an ass out of yourself a lot, don't you? *sits back, pops popcorn*

On Thu, 24 Jun 2004 00:18:47 GMT, "David V.N." scribbled this interesting note:

This is exactly right. My father-in-law, back in the late sixties, had the germ of an idea for a searchable data base that to this day is not excelled for speed. Ever since he has tried, as a small businessman, to develop and market that project. I've seen it. It does exactly what it advertises. Some may have heard of D the Data Language. It and he have been written up in some computer science textbooks. He has been able to earn a living off his idea but it never has performed in the market place the way it should have. Why? I dunno. Ask Microsoft. After they listened to his presentation they tried to copy it and got it wrong!:~) But the fact that Microsoft is able to market substandard products and make gobs of money makes the point well, don't you think? Money does indeed follow money.

-- John Willis (Remove the Primes before e-mailing me)

Don't get me started ;) Reinventing 1983 technology has really worked for them, witness portions of the .NET CLR...

OMG, auto repositioning of UI elements just like [pack] found in Tk.. Oh, that's just so new!

I see now.If you're disagreed with,your ears close. That's handy,I bet. My condolences.

Don't completely write him off. There's entertainment value there. ;-)