[olug] from slashdot: Credit Card-Size Hard Drive Can Hold 5GB

[Jonathan Warren]

Just read the article and your right it is probably vaporware.  Not that I beleive it is impossible but they don't have any pictures of the prototype.  Seems to me if you want to store something that small flash memory is still the way to go.  I just checked their site and there aren't any real photographs of anything.  

I am curious why you beleive the war with Iraq has anything to do with oil?  I honestly beleive the only oil angle is that countries who are getting dirt cheap oil from Iraq, like Russia and France ( supposedly so Iraq can buy food ), don't want to change the leadership.  Personally I like that we are taking a lead in the UN instead of just being the puppet big stick like under our former Presidents "leadership".  If Sadam truely has weapons of mass distruction ( and I can't imagine he doesn't ) I say take him out.  Our president's job is to guarentee our right to freedom.  Iraq posses a risk to our freedom IMO.

If you want electric cars to be successful you need to make them more affordable than gas powered vehicles.  Creating a product doesn't create a market.  If you want to help create a market than become an early adopter yourself.  combustion engines are popular because we can buy gas for so little.  I don't see myself ever "choosing" to pay more to drive.  Just my 2 cents.

-Jon W

On Tue, Jan 21, 2003 at 06:59:32AM -0800, Eric Penne wrote:
> Credit to slashdot but the link is from PCWorld.
> http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,108816,tk,dn011603X,00.asp
> 
> 
> I'll walk out onto a big strong limb here and claim this to be the
> latest thing that everybody will want but nobody will be able to
> purchase.
> 
> Vaporware I tell you, Vaporware!  I don't have any inside information
> or anything like that but this really sounds like a load of crap in my
> shoe.
> 
> Where do these companies find the venture capital to fund this sort of
> thing.
> 
> <soapbox opinions (feel free to debate me)>
> We are going to have a war with Iraq.  Bush has it in his head, so be
> it.  It's mostly for oil but there is a little twinge of world peace at
> hand if Saddam is out.  
> 
> I'm not blasting anybody in particular after this part or I would be a
> hypocrit.  We need to curb our use of oil (foreign and domestic).  Too
> many cars, not enough pollution prevention.
> 
> For under $15 million, a viable (130 mile highway range) battery
> electric vehicle could be produced and sold for about $20,000.  One of
> the big costs with vehicle production is crash testing so it may take
> $20 million.  It costs a lot to crash test a prototype. :)
> 
> That same $15 million could be used to fund the changeover for 3 normal
> car lines to use hybrid (like the Honda Civic).
> 
> BOOM!  Helping the future!  Less War with oil barons.
> 
> How many car lines could've been developed with all the money thrown at
> hyped up crap during the dot com boom/bust.  Enough to satisfy
> everybodies tastes.  Hybrid SUVs, fully battery electric SUVs, hybrid
> cars, battery electric sports cars, etc.
> </soapbox>
> 
> Instead of looking for a viable company building a real world useable
> product, these venture capitalists are throwing money at hot air and
> wet dreams.  Toss out some new buzzwords: Credit Card size, DVD, hard
> drive, and security.  What do you get?  Prolly $10 - $15 million in
> funding.
> 
> I think I need to come up with my own buzzwords for the venture
> capitalists.  Can anybody help me come up with some?  If I get a$5 -
> $10 million, I'll donate 20G to OLUG for improvements.  I might even
> build a building dedicated to OLUG meetings.  I'd hire everybody on the
> list without a job for about 40G/year.  We wouldn't have to do anything
> except hire a good marketing person to kick out some pretty graphs
> occasionally to keep the investors happy.  I wonder how long we could
> survive on the money?
> 
> Eric
> 
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