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DLD 5/2/08 - Ancient History

Ksl_facepalm_tiny by doctorK on

I missed last night's A's massacre of the Orange County Rodentia (and the resulting game threads with all the Cuck Fust hate) because Mrs doctorK and I went to the Computer History Museum in Mountain View to hear a talk on the successful building of the Babbage Difference Engine #2, which is widely considered to be the first digital computer design. The lecture, by Doron Swade and Nathan Myhrvold, was extremely interesting and entertaining. During the Q&A session, I couldn't help but check on the A's/Rats game - when I saw that Cust had made an error that led to 5 unearned runs, I could very easily imagine the vitriol being spewed out against him.  Anyway, I took a few (execrably bad) shots of the Babbage machine with my camera phone, just to give everyone an idea of what the AN servers would've looked like 150 years ago.

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via farm3.static.flickr.com

The box on the end of the thing is the printer.

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via farm3.static.flickr.com

Here's the thing from the side, showing all the gears and cams used for addition.

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via farm3.static.flickr.com

The front-end of the machine, where the operator would turn the crank to run the thing.

This exhibit will open May 10th and remain at the museum for the next year.

Speaking of ancient computing history, three of the museum's fellows are Butler Lampson, Charles Thacker, and Ken Thompson. All three of these guys worked for my dad on Project Genie at Berkeley during the 1960's. A nice write-up on Project Genie, which was the conversion of a SDS 940 minicomputer into a time-sharing system, was in last fall's Forefront, the Berkeley engineering alumni magazine, which naturally is no longer linked on their web site.

Enough ancient history - dump away!

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Power Rankings

Eric Mack is actually the dumbest this week… or is he?

Let them eat crow next week….

ESPN ranked the A’s the highest… irony? Perhaps… A’s #5

Dumb (but, look at his logic… maybe he is the dumbest)... A’s #11

Dumber (Aram, whoever he is at FoxSports)... I had a hard time choosing who was dumbest, but, at least, Aram is starting to smell it)... A’s #12

Dumbest (Donovan at SI.com just don’t get it yet), but he will… A’s #12

Where do you rank the A’s? Where’s my poll function in comments, when I need it?

Foolsh, the most insane regular poster on AN since oaktoon left - salb

by FoolshGame22 on May 2, 2008 12:53 AM PDT   0 recs

At this moment in time, and this moment only...

1- DBACKS
2- RED SOX
3- CUBS
4- ANGELS
5-BREWERS
6-ATHLETICS
7-RAYS
8-CARDINALS

"You have to have a catcher or you'll have all passed balls."- Casey Stengel

by Gaijin_Suketto on May 2, 2008 1:46 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

the ESPN one was the only one posted today

the next closest was the 29th, and I believe the other two were posted last week.

I put on my robe and wizard hat.

by Zonis on May 2, 2008 9:27 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

New ESPN power rankings out today...

A’s up to #2:

Relievers Santiago Casilla and Andrew Brown have combined to pitch 30 1/3 scoreless innings, giving up 15 hits and nine walks to go with 30 K’s.

by calgbear on May 2, 2008 9:30 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

OK

Even I know that’s insane.

They’re not the second best team in baseball. Although maybe it’s just “who’s playing the best right now,” in which case the ranking is semi-justified.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on May 2, 2008 10:19 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Power Rankings are stupid in a sport

which plays a 162 game season. As a snapshot they really can only make the writer look stupid, as teams are grossly misrepresented and ping-pong up and down the charts as sample size pigeons come home to roost.

Power rankings, done well, can be a useful tool in football, for those who enjoy a little wagering now and again.

There is an A in Whimsy.

by FreeSeatUpgrade on May 2, 2008 10:34 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

can't some things just be for fun

not everything has to be a useful tool for analyzing and categorizing future, past, and present performance.

part of the fun in sports has always been debating on a general level which team is better. they are fun and spur debate, and if the writer of them is dumb, that just spurs even more debate.

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 10:52 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I want more of this.

Journalists - and their readers - have a hunger for this sort of stupid who’s-up-who’s-down gossipy silliness. If they could get more of it out of sports, maybe they’d do less of it in politics.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 2, 2008 10:58 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

No, it's not a good point.

I assume (hope! pray!) he’s kidding.

You think there’s some sort of sliding scale of public discourse inanity, whereby an increase in vapid pointless garbage spewed by ESPN might correspond to a downturn in boorishness at CNN/ABC/FOX/Pick Your Outlet?

Boy, you’d think we’d have reached that threshold by now. But you never know – maybe just one more Lindsay Lohan expose or Jayson Stark “Rumblings & Grumblings” column, and nuanced foreign policy debates will be all the rage on MSNBC.

by 74mk on May 2, 2008 11:48 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I always spew garbage when I pick my outlet

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 2, 2008 11:50 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Lindsey Lohan exposes are bad all around

Its not good for Lindsey Lohan, it’s not good for teenage America, and its not good for all the people obsessed with them. Arguing about which team is better than which on the other hand is pretty harmless, if pointless.

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 12:44 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Right.

It’s the

iglew: “If they could get more of it out of sports, maybe they’d do less of it in politics.”

you: ”... good point.”

part I was objecting to.

Also: I’m pretty sure Jayson Stark columns are, in fact, bad for teenage America.

Though now I think iglew was perhaps saying something utterly different than what I initially perceived.

Instead of: “We need more power ranking crap, because then there’d be less crap in politics.”

It might have been: “I agree, FSU. Maybe if we eradicate crap like power rankings, there will be a corresponding diminishment of crap in politics.”

Which is way less insane, and way more in keeping with his normally erudite postings.

I did kind of relish my overreaction, though (teeth clenched, thudding fingers perilously close to damaging various letters on the keyboard).

by 74mk on May 2, 2008 1:17 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

"normally erudite"??

Actually, no. I was saying the first one … but it was tongue in cheek.

Hey, here’s an idea. Maybe if we can have more “who’s hot, who’s not” stuff in fashion magazines and Hollywood gossip rags, then there’d be less of it in sports and politics!

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 2, 2008 3:48 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

actually, I'd say that Power Rankings are better for a 162 game sport

because all Power Rankings really say through out the season are a) who’s hot, b) who do people think are good at that time and c) who’s over/under performing.

Its just a ‘fun’ snapshot throughout the season.

I put on my robe and wizard hat.

by Zonis on May 2, 2008 11:41 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

well...

BP apparently thinks the A’s are pretty good… maybe even #2 good:

May 2, 2008
Prospectus Matchups
Fun with Playoff Odds (subscription required)

by Jim Baker

When looking at BP’s Postseason Odds report, it is important to remember that it is not written in stone. Just last year, several teams undid sure things going in either direction. Take this year’s surest thing, the Arizona Diamondbacks, for instance. At one point well into the 2007 season, they were showing an 11 percent chance of making the playoffs. They destroyed those odds, as you’ll recall. This year, they’re running at a percentage that is nearly reciprocal to that. Here are the four clubs that are currently showing a better than 50 percent chance of getting into the Final Eight:

80.3: Arizona
68.9: Oakland
53.9: Chicago (AL)
52.1: Tampa Bay

Interestingly, Donovan updated his SI.com power rankings today, as well, and he hasn’t moved the A’s up much; yet, has leapfrogged the Rays, Phillies and Dodgers above them. So, I still think he’s the dumbest.

Foolsh, the most insane regular poster on AN since oaktoon left - salb

by FoolshGame22 on May 2, 2008 1:58 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Honestly

Who cares.

I got all torqued off yesterday reading the Tri Valley Herald/Media News Group’s Art Spander talking about how the Giants are on the upswing. I fired off a letter, they asked to print it, i said sure… now it is tomorrow and I think… who cares what these writers think?

I’d rather they dissed the A’s except for one thing. It feeds the perception that the A’s have a bad team and no one for casual fans to come out and watch and hurts the team at the turn styles.

by jeffro on May 2, 2008 9:54 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Woohoo

I love me some computer history with my baseball.

by CarneyStewHendu on May 2, 2008 4:47 AM PDT   0 recs

Swisher vs. Cust

First, Cust:

.222 AVG, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 24 Walks, 27 K’s, .423 OBP, .347 SLG

Second, Swisher:

.226 AVG, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 23 Walks, 22 K’s, .381 OBP, .344 SLG

Who knew?

More than just ANtics: http://www.louisgray.com/live/

by louismg on May 2, 2008 8:27 AM PDT   0 recs

Swisher has been in the leadoff spot which limits RBI's

plus playing center field which is a harder position and might tax a hitter more. BUT he plays in a better hitters park.

still very interesting comparison.


You have to include smiley faces - Poppy
;- ) :- ) :-O : -> : -] : -}

by micdog2001 on May 2, 2008 11:52 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I don't get the arguments

Lead off hitters have one at bat where they have a limited RBI chance. I imagine that every hitter in a line up comes up at least once a game with no one on base in front of them. It is guaranteed to happen to at least one hitter 8 times a game.

Swisher has played center field before. It isn’t entirely new to him.

I think the truth is that Swisher and Cust are remarkably similar hitters. Guys who walk a lot, don’t hit for average and have the potential to hit 30 or some home runs a season.

by jeffro on May 2, 2008 12:17 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

no, they are hamstrung by leading off

and then by coming up after the bottom of the lineup, which generally sucks at getting on base.

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 12:45 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Presented without comment:

link

During the game, Young worked with Nationals massage therapist Tatiana Tchamouroff, who focused on his hip flexor rather than his back.

“All of a sudden, he felt instant release,” Bowden said. “She found the spot.”

by 74mk on May 2, 2008 8:52 AM PDT   0 recs

This non-comment is worthless without pictures...

Tatiana Tchamouroff:

"I'm going to take a camera crew and march into Billy Beane's office and demand to know why instituting his newfangled cost-saving measures means that the run manufacturing plant had to get shut down." FJM

by Elvez on May 2, 2008 9:11 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

That's what Tatiana said.

The meaning of life is not so much 'found,' as it is 'made.' --Opus

by The Dogfather on May 2, 2008 10:25 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I guess you know her better than I.

The meaning of life is not so much 'found,' as it is 'made.' --Opus

by The Dogfather on May 2, 2008 10:44 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I bet she has sharp knees

"Evidently, a large number of people said, 'We really need more vermin at the ballpark, Artie.'" - Nick (AN), 10/7/07

by doctorK on May 2, 2008 10:16 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Happy endings all around

I am Ray Fosse's man crushes for Clay Wood and Jason Kendall.

by franks a lot on May 2, 2008 9:15 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

SPRING BREAK, WOOOO!

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on May 2, 2008 10:20 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Where's Vanna White?

Do you think Nathan Myhrvold wakes up in the morning and thinks “I’d like to buy a vowel”?

Sincerely, Stan Wojciehowicz, Lodz

by As Fan in the Bronx on May 2, 2008 9:02 AM PDT   0 recs

Someone at Ellis Island dropped a consonant

In Poland, that name would be spelled “Wojciechowicz”.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 2, 2008 11:01 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Or as 0akFoSho would say

LSILN

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 2, 2008 4:04 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I DEMAND

That SB Nation create Roller Derby blogs—with photos, of course.

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."

--Bilbo Baggins

by kaweahkaweah on May 2, 2008 9:07 AM PDT   0 recs

On KNBR right now

Gary is putting his own anti-blog bias out there right now and his producers are trying to give him some firejoemorgan-style education. I’m tempted to call in myself.

Brainless Automaton #439

by rubin sierra on May 2, 2008 9:14 AM PDT   0 recs

I didn't call ...

but I did e-mail. Patrick, one of the producers, was making a better argument than I could make in my e-mail so I sort of cut myself off and wrote “PATRICK IS NAILING IT RIGHT NOW.”

Two minutes later I hear Gary telling the boys: “Stop circling the e-mails; I can decide which part of the e-mails to read! Thin Tim is circling the e-mails; one that says “Patrick is nailing it right now” in all capital letters … sheesh.”

I feel special; not only was my e-mail read; it was circled.

Brainless Automaton #439

by rubin sierra on May 2, 2008 11:09 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Radnich

GR is a strange guy. I can understand his viewpoint on sports, he is not a fan of a team in general, he is just a guy is is paid to discuss sports. He has no passion for sports. He doesn’t follow a team. And he generally belittles those who do. He is all about entertainment. I am not in the car for his show much but but it can be annoying at times. At least many of the other hosts are actual fans of a team, sure its the Giants, but they at least care. Tolbert is the guy who pisses me off during baseball season, I expect to hear Giants 24/7 on KNBR but when he starts talking Angels the world really seems twisted.

Enjoy the game

by DCinWC on May 2, 2008 10:10 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

i think he's just an angels fan

i was listening to other day and he was talking up the a’s, but it was only in passing, and really on to like denigrate the giants. like the giants suck blah blah blah blah …giants….giants….giants….and the a’s, beane always seems to have them winning, just when you think you are down…giants suck ….giants…..angels.

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 10:32 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

yeah i almost called too.

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 10:30 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Wow do I feel old, that is the first pc I ever worked on. :)

Actually when I first became a computer tech. I was working on a Zenith 386 with a 20 meg Maxtor hard drive that was almost as big as a laptop. To fix it when the heads froze, we used to perform the 3 foot drop, That would free up the heads long enough to copy the information off the old hard drive, onto a 5 1/4 in floppy drive.

by theblackpearl on May 2, 2008 9:56 AM PDT   0 recs

maybe someone should try that on Crosby or Zito when their heads freeze up

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 2, 2008 11:10 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

remember how much that 20 meg hard drive cost?

or 4 MB ram upgrade?

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 11:15 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!

Don’t you people know what May usually does to the A’s?

stat-addled alien overlord

by salb918 on May 2, 2008 10:26 AM PDT   0 recs

May, or May-Treanor?

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 2, 2008 11:10 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

humorous pictures

"Don't be an ass!" --Bill King

by batgirl on May 2, 2008 11:36 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Fire Brimley NOW!!!!!!!

I am Ray Fosse's man crushes for Clay Wood and Jason Kendall.

by franks a lot on May 2, 2008 11:58 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

cues Marvin Gaye

Let’s Get It On

Jeremy was safe. He jumped over the tag.

by mrrickyg on May 2, 2008 10:48 AM PDT   0 recs

Jon Heyman mentions our favorite team!

With something other than derision!
Link

Anonymous A’s: Oakland GM Billy Beane challenged me to name their stating lineup in a recent phone conversation. (Hint it included two Jacks and, before Frank Thomas arrived, no kings). Still, nobody’s playing harder and few are playing better than the A’s, whose 18-12 record is tied for the best in the majors.

"God doesn't pay attention to your cute little hypotheticals." -- Jeff from LL

by oblique on May 2, 2008 11:05 AM PDT   0 recs

Two Jacks, no Kings

and now that Piazza has retired… well, I think you get the idea.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on May 2, 2008 11:13 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

If his marriage and having a kid is truly a sham

in order to hide his sexuality, then that’s a sad sad commentary on Mr. Piazza’s insecurity and our society as a whole.

"You have to have a catcher or you'll have all passed balls."- Casey Stengel

by Gaijin_Suketto on May 2, 2008 2:17 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Oh, he's probably not really gay

but I couldn’t pass that straight-line up.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on May 2, 2008 3:32 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

He still gets it wrong

Gnats != Nats

"Evidently, a large number of people said, 'We really need more vermin at the ballpark, Artie.'" - Nick (AN), 10/7/07

by doctorK on May 2, 2008 11:20 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

but wait! there's more!
Second Best Trade: The six-for-two swap that moved Dan Haren (4-1, 3.13) to Arizona for several talents is a move both teams would gladly make again. Dana Eveland and Greg Smith are already in Oakland’s rotation, and center fielder Carlos Gonzalez looks ready in Triple-A.

"The Athletics at Fremont" is noxious

by ArakSOT on May 2, 2008 11:43 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Of course CarGon is ready

He’s already on the DL.

"Evidently, a large number of people said, 'We really need more vermin at the ballpark, Artie.'" - Nick (AN), 10/7/07

by doctorK on May 2, 2008 11:48 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

At 20-8

Arizona is better than all three of them.

So it goes.

by jeepers on May 2, 2008 12:18 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I was wrong, there are still more things that can be put in a pizza crust!

"Don't be an ass!" --Bill King

by batgirl on May 2, 2008 11:43 AM PDT   0 recs

Mmmm

But I thought the shrimp crust looked even better.

The candy and the baseball all night long :)

by Englishmajor on May 2, 2008 12:04 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

i didn't get in on the game thread or post game thread

but I wanted to mention to someone who cares (unlike my wife) that of the 20 hits last night only 2 went for extra bases right? I wonder how that ranks against other 20+ hit games. Anyone want to play detective?


You have to include smiley faces - Poppy
;- ) :- ) :-O : -> : -] : -}

by micdog2001 on May 2, 2008 12:00 PM PDT   0 recs

anyone want to play doctor?

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 2, 2008 12:06 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I looked at the boxscore this morning (NRAF)

and thought the same thing: “We hit 18 singles?”

"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s

by Nick on May 2, 2008 6:50 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

"astronomically small"

Methinks Will has got his telescope turned around the wrong way.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 2, 2008 4:03 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

More April honors for the A's...
It is a strangely constructed team that holds 3½-to-4 designated-hitter types (Jack Cust, Mike Sweeney, Daric Barton, Thomas), that does not steal bases (of course) or hit home runs or catch the ball consistently, that does strike out a ton, but gets a little something out of everybody. It’s worked for a month.

made me laugh

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 2, 2008 1:57 PM PDT   0 recs

Ugh
Also gone: Nick Swisher, Mark Kotsay, Marco Scutaro. And on they go.

Whenever a writer uses the departure of Mark Kotsay as a reason for the A’s to no