Apparently the long term spin-off benefits from the Hadron Collider experiment are bound to solve this problem, so I'm not sure why anybody should be concerned about this...
(Although the impact on shares in the dog food market cannot be ignored.)

If anybody has posted this before I apologise but I thought some may find this interesting:
(I bet he is actually drawing with a mouse in his left hand!)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yl9rmoj_kNE&feature=related
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Jackson,
I was under the impression the bloke had retired in 1988.

• My information obviously needs an upgrade.

http://www.solidsmack.com/3dvia-launches-shape20-just-a-google-sketchup-clone/2008-09-16/

@unknownuser said:

today the investment that goes into the icons on the screen is greater than what went into AutoCAD

You have to bear in mind that sometimes the icons may represent the major part of the annual upgrade...
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I just noticed there a list button with more movies at the bottom of the media player. The footage with the whales is quite amazing.
Surely this technology is the way forward? It's like standing within the movie.

Kwisten, I use Firefox too. When I right click on the media it shows the standard Flash settings menu. When you installed Quicktime did you not assign it as your default Flash media player?

When I read this first section of an interview with John Walker, one of the founders of Autodesk, it struck me how simmillar the beginnings of the gorilla was to the humble beginnings of Sketchup. Scary in a way because it makes you wonder where GSU will be in 10-15 years time. Brought back so many memories of hardware platforms and operationg systems and acad versions I used over the years.
http://through-the-interface.typepad.com/through_the_interface/2008/09/an-interview-wi.html
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Kwisten,

• quicktime movie? I think it runs on the Flash player. Do you have it installed?

There is a quiet revolution going on with 3D engines for Flash popping out all over the place.
And some of the applications are really interresting:
http://www.cornflex.org/?p=1

Would it not be something to have a 360 degree camera animation export in Sketchup?

More applications here:
http://blog.papervision3d.org/category/demos/

You are right Alan, I should not have neglected to include the expenses on dog food.

Alan, you deliberately distort my statements in order to make your point.

Let me use an analogy that will hopefully make my position clear:
As the head of my household my father can decide to spend a part of family budget on stocking the family library with the most current books on space exploration, physics and alternative technologies. Knowledge is a good thing, there is no disputing that. Then he can spend some more on a very expensive security system for the family home. I may reason that is the right and honourable thing to do to protect the family. He can use more of the money to finance and support the neighbourhood watch. I may reason that is a reasonable thing to do for the common good of the community. It is not difficult to find justification for supporting my father in all this.

But if I have even one brother at home who is going to bed hungry and a sister who isn't getting the best medication , then it brings his administration of the household resources into question. It certainly would not be good enough if he takes the position that there will always be sick and hungry children. At the end of the day this is not an either-or argument, it is one of balance, priority and responsibility. If I challenge my father on this, is it acceptable that my other brothers and sisters who are well fed and healthy should dismiss and ridicule my position?

While S. David King is not a specialist in quantum physics, he is a specialist on global warming. The focus of his statements are about global warming, not particle physics, and from this perspective it is important not to dismiss his arguments. He is certainly more qualified than you or I to take the position that he has.

@unknownuser said:

Toxic, you accuse those of us who support this project of being unscientific...yet you are the one who is taking the media-twisted opinion of one man and holding it up against the opinion of tens of thousands of others.
I'm not sure what your point is Alan. Do you mean that my inclusion of the article in my post is 'unscientific' or that the point of view in the article is 'unscientific'? Maybe you would like to restructure your argument so I can understand your point. (But then I had difficulty understanding the connection you made between the Nasa space program and the cost of dogfood too.)

Where did I suggest that he was making the either/or argument?! I think your eagerness to contradict me is undermining your judgement.
If you watched the television interview today you will know that the underlying theme to his argument is that the challenges of global warming requires a reorientation in thinking from everybody in every sphere of life , and that he was making a call on the scientific community to make a simmillar shift in focus in this regard. He was also calling on top students contemplating a carreer in the field of qp to reconsider their focus and apply their minds in areas that represent current challenges instead. That is something I can understand and support.
I am dissapointed that you would distort his position in the way that you do, as if he is some lone vigilante on a personal crusade. I'm not sure who the tens of thousands are that you refer to but I think you will find that there are many more who shares and supports his point of view.

@unknownuser said:

If we would leave every decision to be made by the masses we wouldn't get any research done, do you feel you understand quantum mechanics? Ordinary peopel can't vote on things they can't fully understand.
Toxic I have a question, what could a quantum mechanics specialist do to stop world hunger or climate change?

Marian,
That's my point exactly - how can you support something that you do not understand? Do you understand fully what has been initiated today?
It strikes me that those of you so in favour of scientific research formulate your support in a completely unscientific way, without real knowledge of the subject, minimal research and and only a theoretical promise of practical benefit. If any scientist where to support a theory on this basis he would be rediculed in the intellectual community.

Also, clearly you did not read or understand the point made in the article.
-( But then he is only the previous chief scientist of the UK so he probably could have nothing of merit to contribute to the discussion.)

But I tend to agree with you: The quantum mechanics specialists will contribute nothing to stop world hunger, climate change, malaria, aids or any of the major challenges we are faced with.

While the content from Formfonts is of excellent quality, I am beginning to feel more and more that the recognisable FF content in presentation drawings detract from developing a personal graphic style. When most practices are using the same 3D 'entourage' (man do I hate that word), it contradicts the visual message that the drawing and the design has a unique quality. From this point of view it may be worth considering spending some time developing elements with a 'look and feel' that augments the presentation style of the particular practice or designer. (I know there are many thousands to choose from but they are very recognisable nonetheless.)

Another sad naive shortsighted ignorant (who clearly has no understanding of the full impact of the cost of dogfood on the planet):
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7603257.stm
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Circumstantial evidence gentlemen. Demonstrate to me that you have a technical understanding of what is going on today.
Or are you supporting an idea that you do not understand?

@unknownuser said:

Seems like a bit of a bargain really

Remus,
I am very interested to know what the 'possible huge advances' are that you are talking about.
I challenge you explain in to us in technical detail what these benefits could be, seeing that you have quantified the yield of these in terms of the investment.

Go on, convince me that you understand the underlying scientific issues that you so confidently support.

Chango,Marian
It is simmilar justification that gave us the first atomic bomb.
If you think that this experiment will explain 'how the universe works', you are decieving yourselves.

Remus,
You can take that position from the comfort of your personal circumstances.