What The Pandora Stands For...

[Bosbeetle]

I dont know what is stands for I know what is stands on and that is on the shoulders of giants

Atari, commodore, amiga, ZX spectrum, MSX, Armstrad, NES, SNES, SMS, N64, PSX

And we aim for the sky

 

[SomeGuy99]

Everyone is unique. We are all the same. <- It sounds contradictory, but both are 100% true, at least to me. You can break down the statements if you like, and see that there is more to it... but they still seem contradictory.

You just describe shortcomings of communication, that's all.

Is that not the bread and butter of philosphy though? It all becomes semantics eventually.

 

[Bosbeetle]

Meh. Dialectic Materialism is for the birds. Not all things are logical, or if they were, we'd be only half as interested in the universe as we are.

/me flips through zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance and mentions something about quality.

 

[mali]

Is that not the bread and butter of philosphy though? It all becomes semantics eventually.

We can discuss stuff like that if you are interested I created a thread on Off Topic a while ago(find the thread by searching my topics in my profile).

 

[vadsamoht]

Everyone is unique. We are all the same. <- It sounds contradictory, but both are 100% true, at least to me. You can break down the statements if you like, and see that there is more to it... but they still seem contradictory.

You just describe shortcomings of communication, that's all.

Is that not the bread and butter of philosphy though? It all becomes semantics eventually.

Yes, in a sense. And then someone will create another barely comprehensible system to cover it, and then someone will find an incredibly obscure counterexample, and the cycle continues, but the semantics cannot be ruled out totally, because we simply use language in a way that is too advanced to be forced into a mathematical structure.

EDIT:

We can discuss stuff like that if you are interested I created a thread on Off Topic a while ago(find the thread by searching my topics in my profile).

Yeah, I realise we sorta hijacked the thread. I'll be quiet now.

 

[SomeGuy99]

Is that not the bread and butter of philosphy though? It all becomes semantics eventually.

We can discuss stuff like that if you are interested I created a thread on Off Topic a while ago(find the thread by searching my topics in my profile).

I know from experience that those sorts of conversations go on forever, and never really satisfy anybody involved.

Why not!

Um, maybe. I dunno.

Edit:

The reason I'm not sure is that for me, Philosphy feels like a trap. It's a trap for people who think too much. The abstract strands of it basically never end, and never go anywhere... it doesn't seem to apply to anything, and yet one becomes more and more absorbed in it and unable to escape from the quagmire of ideas.

I'm still a philosophical person, but I don't engage in the sport of philosophy with other people. That's when philosophy addicts will push each other too far and create a fun vacuum.

There are so many schools of thought, that I never felt I was coming closer to any kind of truth. I only felt I was exercising my mind.
You can tell I was an only child.

 

[vadsamoht]

Is that not the bread and butter of philosphy though? It all becomes semantics eventually.

We can discuss stuff like that if you are interested I created a thread on Off Topic a while ago(find the thread by searching my topics in my profile).

I know from experience that those sorts of conversations go on forever, and never really satisfy anybody involved.

Why not!

Um, maybe. I dunno.

I'm not satisfied by that response.

 

[SomeGuy99]

I'm not satisfied by that response.

Why do you feel that way?

 

[vadsamoht]

I'm not satisfied by that response.

Why do you feel that way?

Must be my childhood issues.

 

[SomeGuy99]

I'm not satisfied by that response.

Why do you feel that way?

Must be my childhood issues.

Okay, that's interesting. Tell me more about that.

 

[mitosis]

So, my fellow Mad Group Members (Pandora Madmen?)... we should meet up on a ventrilo or teamspeak server some time so we can REALLY have some discussions.

That said, I'm gonna stop the hijacking now and try to steer this ship back on course:

TJFBryant, I never said this yet but I thought what you wrote was very poetic and true about the philosophical (oooh man there I go with that "P" word) significance of the Pandora.

Of course, being a Pandora Madman (or is Mad Group Member better?) I also agree with SomeGuy99 when he points out that, to a lot of people who DON'T know or care about the community or deeper philosophical meaning of the Pandora it's just a "cool and unique gadget that could be better"

Now for the disclaimer: I do NOT share the sentiment that the Pandora is "just a cool and unique gadget that could be better" ...but I'll bet most of the general public would. And by general public I mean the "thinks internet explorer IS the internet" type folks.

edit: put his real screen name in there instead of "OP" ...it's more personal that way.

 

[vadsamoht]

Of course, being a Pandora Madman (or is Mad Group Member better?) I also agree with SomeGuy99 when he points out that, to a lot of people who DON'T know or care about the community or deeper philosophical meaning of the Pandora it's just a "cool and unique gadget that could be better"

Now for the disclaimer: I do NOT share the sentiment that the Pandora is "just a cool and unique gadget that could be better" ...but I'll bet most of the general public would. And by general public I mean the "thinks internet explorer IS the internet" type folks.

Firstly, I doubt the `general public' you speak of will ever even know that the Pandora exists, and the few that do probably won't be interested. Like you, I also think that the pandora is more than just a unique gadget, BUT that's no reason to stick you fingers in your ears every time someone mentions a problem/etc. All the more reason for us as a community to emphasise its uniqueness.

I'm not satisfied by that response.

Why do you feel that way?

Must be my childhood issues.

Okay, that's interesting. Tell me more about that.

*Lies down on couch*

 

[mitosis]

Firstly, I doubt the `general public' you speak of will ever even know that the Pandora exists, and the few that do probably won't be interested. Like you, I also think that the pandora is more than just a unique gadget, BUT that's no reason to stick you fingers in your ears every time someone mentions a problem/etc. All the more reason for us as a community to emphasise its uniqueness.

Woah... who said anything about sticking fingers in ears? Jeeze that was the point of the disclaimer, to AVOID any baseless accusations like these... altho maybe you're just saying so and not really saying it to me... in which case I don't care, say what you wanna say and ignore the rest of what I have to say.

If that WAS intended to be a jab at me I protest, sir. You do not know my qualms or how I doth keep my tongue in check!

If I were to truly speak my mind on some of the issues pertaining to the hardware you would all think that SomeGuy99 was a paragon of kindness compared to me. Alas, as a licensed Amateur Radio operator I strive to stay within the good code of conduct for communication as established in the gentleman's agreement and know how futile such things would be. So don't go thinking I'm a fanboi just because I think the Pandora is more than just a unique gadget.

If you'd ever met me IRL you'd probably be sick of hearing about the Pandora by now, so I know there's quite a few members of the "general public" as I describe it who know what the Pandora is. Additionally, I work in high-tech electronics manufacturing... I, of ANYBODY, could really point out some flaws in the device if I deemed it necessary. Don't think I'm ignorant just because I DON'T.

 

[vadsamoht]

Firstly, I doubt the `general public' you speak of will ever even know that the Pandora exists, and the few that do probably won't be interested. Like you, I also think that the pandora is more than just a unique gadget, BUT that's no reason to stick you fingers in your ears every time someone mentions a problem/etc. All the more reason for us as a community to emphasise its uniqueness.

Woah... who said anything about sticking fingers in ears? Jeeze that was the point of the disclaimer, to AVOID any baseless accusations like these... altho maybe you're just saying so and not really saying it to me... in which case I don't care, say what you wanna say and ignore the rest of what I have to say.

If that WAS intended to be a jab at me I protest, sir. You do not know my qualms or how I doth keep my tongue in check!

If I were to truly speak my mind on some of the issues pertaining to the hardware you would all think that SomeGuy99 was a paragon of kindness compared to me. Alas, as a licensed Amateur Radio operator I strive to stay within the good code of conduct for communication as established in the gentleman's agreement and know how futile such things would be. So don't go thinking I'm a fanboi just because I think the Pandora is more than just a unique gadget.

If you'd ever met me IRL you'd probably be sick of hearing about the Pandora by now, so I know there's quite a few members of the "general public" as I describe it who know what the Pandora is. Additionally, I work in high-tech electronics manufacturing... I, of ANYBODY, could really point out some flaws in the device if I deemed it necessary. Don't think I'm ignorant just because I DON'T.

No, it wasn't a jab at you at all, but some of the other sections of the community. Apologies.

 

[mitosis]

No, it wasn't a jab at you at all, but some of the other sections of the community. Apologies.

Ok good I figured as much, just had to make myself clear in case it wasn't so. No apologies necessary!

edit: in fact, I do that a lot myself as well... use something someone said as a launching point for my commentary even though none of it is actually aimed at the quoted person. That's why I was suspecting that you weren't even talking at me with that... I do it too.

 

[Mr.Confuzed]

I'd like the madmen to know that I'm just as crazy as you, but I don't want to talk about it.

 

[trix]

I wasn't around for the planing stages of the Pandora, but I heard about it in Late '09, loved the community aspect of it (which is why I am all about the Gentoo OS, the community), and loved more the vids of what this thing can do.

The community and heart described by the OP are great! However, that is not what I am paying for. It IS what leads me to believe, quite confidently, that this device will be around for years and years and keep getting better and better, but it's not what I paid for. The community and heart are why I am willing to wait sooo long with my money in limbo, but the actual price tag I paid is for the physical piece of hardware (and software, and software potential) that I will receive, eventually. However, minor issues aside (and everything I've seen to me is pretty minor) this device is /exactly/ what I have been waiting to find for far longer then this device has been around. As much as I love linux, as much as I love retro gaming, this thing is the perfect pocket laptop, gameboy, mp3 player, etc etc all in one sexy awesome package. What it can do already is EXACTLY what I need a device for. The only other gadget even slightly comparable I have owned (and I stress the word slightly) is an iPhone 3G that I modded the hell out of. And not only did I end up breaking it out of frustration so I don't even have that anymore, I hated the shoddy ps1 emulation, virtual keyboard, no buttons, mediocre battery life, etc etc etc. I could list my problems with it a mile long. One time I sat down and thought of all the things it should have been instead of a phone (which is the part of it I used least... cuz I could not afford the $90 USD per month AT&T contract), amazingly this device has all that and so much more. And, is CHEAPER!

Long story short, even without the community and heart, this is the best device out there for what I need. By far. And that's from a pure physical device standpoint. Add in the community, the heart, the linux OS, the open source and open hardware, and I can't ever understand how anyone could compare anything else to it favorably. If you can, then you didn't want this for the right reasons anyway.

- trix

 

[SomeGuy99]

*Lies down on couch*

Tell me about your mother.

 

[Dunny]

Pandora stands for Possibly Amazing New Device Of Real Awesomeness.

D.

 

[bzar]

(awesome text)

My thoughts exactly. Though I will code for the pandora

Edit: I think I've gone a bit mad in recent years. For some reason, my mind will quite happily accept a total contradiction. It's difficult to explain, but I seem to be under the impression that knowing any kind of truth means accepting two contradictory ideas simultaneously. It really doesn't make sense when I explain it in words, but the contradiction itself feels so much more true than either 'idea' does.

Yes, I've definitely gone mad... :huh:

This made me immediately think of...

In the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, doublethink is the act of simultaneously accepting as correct two mutually contradictory beliefs. It is related to, but distinct from, hypocrisy and neutrality. Its opposite is Cognitive Dissonance, where the two beliefs cause conflict in one's mind.

EDIT: