NASA Pondering Two Public Contests To Build Small Space Exploration Satellites

coondoggie writes "NASA today said it was looking into developing two new Centennial Challenge competitions that would let the public design, build and deliver small satellites known as Cubesats capable of operations and experiments near the moon and beyond. The first challenge will focus on finding innovative ways to allow deep space communications with small spacecraft, while the second focuses on primary propulsion for small spacecraft."

Beta

[RyanFenton]

I'll join the crowd and help post in every thread that pops up, and upvote all the other comments I can find doing the same.

Slashdot Beta is not fixable - it is trash code that should be abandoned as a "lessons learned" exercise. It's not even a close decision - it's pretty much unanimous amongst the users - the ones that provide 90+% of any meaningful content on this particular site in particular.

If this advice that everyone is giving isn't honored by the local 'beta' admins, I believe it's time to start communicating with the people in charge, and pulling the levers of power a bit - and hopefully get these folks a stern talking to about what they were throwing away.

Shorter version: THE BETA SUCKS. LOSE IT.

Ryan Fenton

Beta. Suicide. Difference?

[stastuffis]

I've been coming to this place for a while, mostly for the discussion.

I don't post much at all, but without an effective and easy way to consume/produce comments, this place is fucking worthless.

DOWN WITH BETA.

Re:Beta

[Bob9113]

I *LOVE* Slashdot. That's why I have spent so much time creating comments that I hope add value to the discourse, and put so much effort into my otherwise tenuous self-restraint regarding flaming. I come here to read comments, and to add value to the comment trees. I am happy for Dice to make a profit selling ads on the content our community creates by playing host.

That is a really good trade for all of us, Dice. Don't screw it up.

As for my personal #1 gripe: Don't require Javascript to read comments. OpenStreetMaps is content that begs to be browsed dynamically. Reading a comment tree is an almost entirely static endeavor. Keeping Javascript disabled on most sites is something I'm guessing a large portion of the audience here does. And remember: The audience creates the content. Lose one, you lose the other.

The Spirit of Mohdri Dragon [wired.com] Lives!

Beta blows

[sharky611aol.com]

So I guess I still haven't been forced over to the dark side yet, but I went to try it out again to just see if it still sucks as bad as last time. And yup, it does. Completely unreadable, absurd amount of scrolling, ridiculous forced spacing, asinine column widths. Seriously, what's it going to take to make this die?

There will be no more real discussion here until..

[drussell]

This Beta garbage dies in a burning ball of galactic-temperature-infused inferno...

I should have seen this coming for months and set up a slashdot clone we could all move to... Hmm, shortsighted!

Shut it off... Turn it off NOW! Bad, BAD experiment!

Beta is to Slashdot as Windows 8 is to MS

[Chewbacon]

Nuff said. You're just pouring gas on a fire with your base. Slashdotters are apparently happy with the site as is and appreciate its familiar usefulness. Beta fucks it up. FUCK BETA.

Agreed

[Anubis350]

I feel like the beta is being pushed simply because it's new, and they're ignoring that it's not *better*. I've seen this before: after enough money's been invested in something a company will move forward with it whether it is actually good or not simply to avoid admitting they were wrong and the New Thing needs work.

I hope Dice doesn't keep pushing this without substantial changes. Outside of outraging their user base it will cost them in destroying /.'s brand and following - what they definitely paid more for than whatever they've thrown at the beta dev.

Re:Beta

[arth1]

Not to mention the new design just displays the same data more spaced out.

No, it doesn't. It hides much of the data, making it difficult to get to, and impossible to get to without losing the context.

It seems deliberately discussion-unfrendly, and like many others, I come here for the discussions.

I left when the last beta was forced on us a couple of years ago, and it took a while before I came back - and that was only because someone posted how to trick the settings into displaying the working format.

But the new beta is ten times worse - completely unusable, and in a format only an MBA and his designer girlfriend could love. It's not for nerds who like to discuss, and post more than 160 characters.

Sorry, DICE, but Slashdot's user base is what makes it attractive. Alienate the user base, and you end up with nothing. Then the advertisers won't like you either.

And no, you won't attract fresh blood. Fresh blood doesn't come to sites that don't provide anything special. What was special here was the userbase, and that userbase [b]will[/b] be gone, unless you fire the incompetent nincompoop who decided on deliberately alienating the one asset the site has.

Re:Agreed

[LordFlower]

I just spent a little time with Beta again to see if I'd acclimate.

Well, if it were some other site I'd shrug my shoulders, but I like being able to see more information on a single view as is possible on Classic.

It feel claustrophobic. I'm out when Beta is in.