* Posts by Mark

120 publicly visible posts • joined 4 Oct 2007

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Data-sniffing trojans burrow into Eastern European ATMs

Mark

Figures

Diebold, Windows. WTF? Which retard in the banks decided this was a good purchase?

EC pressure on Microsoft grows

Mark

For Fuck's Sake

"And I notice Apple is barely mentioned, don't they do the same with Safari? The EU are being idiotic."

Twat, just utter twat. You are always treated differently when you have a monopoly. There's no point clamping down on anti-competitive pricing of a corner store is there when you can go after Tesco et al?

As for anyone who dares to mention "how do you download a browser when you don't have one?"

How about a script on the desktop that's called "Download Firefox Browser" that uses something like wget followed by an install? Can't tell me there's nothing in the windows/msi ecosystem that can't do this simple task. Same for IE and Opera etc so the user has to make a conscious choice. If they choose IE then so be it, they only have themselves to blame. The point is that the OS uses %browser% not IE.

The problem is not so much the forced bundling of the application (in this case IE, tomorrow who knows what?) but in how that monopoly is then exploited. That is the point with Microsoft. It wasn't just the bundling of IE it was the fact that you couldn't remove the fucking thing, that MS then defaulted to it from other apps, that the non-compliance with web standards forced sites to be written explicitly for it because it came on every desktop etc etc etc.

"Here's a rant at 'Europe' in general: It's not like microsoft and intel (who is also under the gun ) are forcing the EU to buy their stuff. Europe (or any other country/continent/planet for that matter) is free to develop its own know-how including processors and operating systems , and have its own hardware and software manufacturers."

One of life's great thinkers aren't we? At least grow a set and stick a name to the tripe you espouse. Say it like you mean it.

Sony X-Series Walkman

Mark

@Robert E A Harvey

"stream .ra from iplayer over the wifi?

make sheduled recordings from the FM radio? While you are listening to something else?

I notice it does not include DAB radio, an increasing omission in consumer gadgets. I reckon DAB is dead if it can't be crowbared into something like this."

Fuck me dead, you don't want much do you?

Doesn't include DAB radio? Hasn't this system just been abused with stations using poxy quality settings such that sound quality is often perceptibly worse than FM?

Take a look at this page...

http://www.which.co.uk/advice/dab-plus-explained/index.jsp

especially the bit about the new DAB+ standard. Maybe that's a good reason why nobody's bothered yet? DAB is dead. Creation of DAB+ will see to that. Australia for one has gone with this so it seems that the UK was too early an adopter or went in half-arsed and it's now fallen by the wayside/taken off too late.

In the end this is a bloody mp3 player and it does the job exceedingly well. Maybe they should reduce the price a touch but I think people's expectations are getting as out of hand when it comes to features in technology - a bit like house/share price expectations were. The old "if it doesn't <insert ridiculous expectation here> then I certainly won't be buying one" tripe.

If it doesn't have the kitchen sink functionality that you deem necessary then don't buy it but please leave your unrealistic expectations/marginal requirements at the door.

One thing it should do is force Apple to up their game to keep ahead and, as a consumer, that can only be a good thing.

Revealed: Full specs on SEAL Team Six multimedia setup

Mark

Special Farces

"It is generally thought, for instance, that it was DevGru snipers who killed three Somali pirates standing next to a captive US merchant skipper in a small lifeboat last month. The frogman-commandos apparently hit all three men in the head with simultaneous single shots fired from the deck of a US destroyer nearby, having earlier arrived on the scene by parachuting into the sea."

News articles reported the lifeboat was pulled to within 40m of the ship. Whilst a rolling sea would add difficulty, I'd wager most run of the mill (so to speak) snipers would make the shot from 40m. If they're that elite at least quote something a touch more fitting that they've achieved. No Iranian hostage campaigns either.

Getting real about Linux on the desktop

Mark

@Definitely not ready for power users, especially developers!

You can upgrade Ubuntu in place. Trust me, I've done it twice so far with no ill results.

Mark

One problem

The article mentions the benefits of running a multiple OS environment on the desktop - apart from, of course, the massive increase in costs associated with building, supporting and maintaining 3 standard operating environments.

Most enterprises I've worked in buy their machines from one manufacturer to a standardised spec in order to minimise the work in having a SOE. All machines that start life in a standard way makes desktop support easier.

I can pretty much guarantee that the desktop support people will not be experts in 3 OSes.

Also, I can't think of many corporates that would run 3rd party apps on WINE. Geez, some software isn't even supported on a VM let alone this. Bloomberg, Reuters 3000 etc are windows apps and WINE isn't an option. Other industries than finance will have their own must-have apps that won't move. Excel to Open Orifice? Please. The users that can't switch are the ones that finance the damn thing and need all the VBA shit that goes with it.

@Sooty - hallelujah someone that understands that just because it can be theoretically done doesn't mean corporates will.

Hell, even the Vista fuck-up hasn't moved them onto something else - just made them consider things. Doesn't bode too well does it? Why would you dick about re-writing all your software for a year or 2 just to get the same functionality on a different OS? Meanwhile your competitors are increasing the functionality of their bespoke apps.

There's good reason Linux made it into the enterprise on servers - most apps are loosely connected to the client and users aren't allowed onto them. Desktops have users pissing about with them and the standard operating environment rules.

You want desktops? Hunt down Government - local, state, federal etc. They have an obligation to be open and standardised as they exist off of tax dollars (although corporates have joined that party of late).

Apple counts $1bn for mystery data center

Mark

Heart's in the right place

The theory about attracting companies to low income neighbourhoods is a sound one using tax breaks. However this looks like someone is taking a backhander given how few jobs would be created.

Net closes on NZ bank error fugitives

Mark

Good use for the remaining money

Hire a hitman to eliminate the stupid c*nt sister who obviously posted a "I'm just off to visit my outlaw relatives hiding in Hong Kong" status update. Facebook is a site managers should use to find which employees to retrench in a downturn.

Great Australian Firewall may be optional

Mark

Muppet

Conroy truly is a twat.

Ubuntu brings Google Android apps to netbooks

Mark
Jobs Horns

More illegalities?

"DigiTimes said the companies had "reached a consensus" to limit the size of a screen for netbooks running Windows to 10.2 inches. The move means OEMs that go over this size would not qualify for the low-priced versions of Windows 7 - Starter Edition - for netbooks."

Would this not constitute yet more market manipulation for the EU to fine?

Oz man fined for drink-drive rumpy-pumpy

Mark

@Winkypop

A toyota hilux is also termed a ute and that's definitely a pick-up truck (as is a Navara and a Triton etc) so the translation stands. Holden utes are the strict preserve of tattooed fuck-knuckles.

I mean, what kind of a prick buys a 6 litre lowered suspension work vehicle to drive to a building site? Proper tradies drive 4wd utes. Mind you, look at the company that makes them - Holden, a GM subsidiary. Keep the Govt cash coming eh?

Regarding the story, he must be the first ute driver to not be a wanker.

IR35 tax is a huge failure

Mark
Stop

Stop whining

Not the contractors, all the others. Instead of whining about how little tax they pay and how much money they get why don't you just STFU and do it yourself if you're good enough? It's open to everyone provided you can get yourself a contract. However you may need to give up the security of the corporate teat from which you regularly suckle.

I used to regularly see this kind of abuse directed towards contractors where I worked and it was mostly from people who should have considered themselves bloody lucky to be employed.

The only time I've ever found it justified is when someone has very little ability and is sat around earning a good rate. Then again, best of luck if they can get away with it. Who wouldn't want to be overpaid?

Google turns analytical engine inwards

Mark

Say what?

"The longer the average block of holiday, the happier the staff, apparently"

Who thought that shit up? I take long blocks of holiday precisely because I don't want to be at work. Calling in sick is for filling in the gaps.

Twats.

Microsoft IIS hole fells university server

Mark

Why use IIS?

Perhaps they have stuff built with .Net? Large organisations tend to use it as they have things like WCF web services etc that are a fuck sight easier to build and deploy than poxy servlets. Perhaps they make use of sharepoint internally?

@Nordick:

"The reason companies use IIS is because they have lazy CIOs managing lazy network admins who have to cater to lazy web "designers" who throw up .ASP crap using a crappy web "design" programme that craps out bloated code that will only work in a crappy browser that does not comply with accepted standards and that only runs on a crappy operating system created by a company with crappy business practices, crappy ethics, crappy programmers, and crappy quality control."

Bitter sir? A touch twisted also? Not likely to be employed by a large company that doesn't want dozens of different architectures laying around requiring maintenance all because the buzzword junky at the top fell for the latest fad or the developers want what they think is the bees knees (rails anyone?)? I think so. In the early part of this decade big companies were building on Java as MS had nothing. Now new projects get put together in C# etc because MS is on their desktops and it all works out that little bit easier for them. Java on the desktop? No thanks. Like it or not .Net is pretty bloody good considering it's parentage.

Worldwide GPS may die in 2010, say US gov

Mark

Where's Lewis?

"The report cites the failure of the US Air Force to successfully complete the current GPS IIF satellite program, which has cost $870m (£550m) more than originally estimated and is now three years behind schedule."

Let the man know that even the yanks perform monumental fuck-ups with their acquisitions. MOD had to get inspiration from somewhere. Perhaps the USAF out-sourced to the MOD?

Six months on, Macs still plagued by critical Java vuln

Mark

@TeeCee

"I'm intrigued as to how exactly Apple's later interpretation of a Java release is always "better" than the vanilla Sun version."

Maybe in the same way that IBM's and Blackdown's JVM on Linux are better than Sun's.

I don't know whether it is the case but those other 2 consistently manage to better Sun on Linux

Apple to look to software to differentiate multiple iPhone models

Mark

Likely move

I think the most likely differentiation is corporate vs home user. One where the phone can be configured, enabled/disabled, and locked down from a distance and the other where you do what you want with it (subject to the will of Jobs). The blackberry-esque control mechanism is probably what corporates are waiting for before they let the management have their new shiny toy. This is a massive market for sales for apple, given the number of portable devices lost and broken by pointy haired bosses, and a route into the enterprise (albeit a limited one).

Microsoft slings out Office 2010 technical preview

Mark

Ribbon issues

One problem with the ribbon is that it busts the user defined menus of addins. Some may find that a small inconvenience but it is utterly unnecessary.

Microsoft to EU: Cut me down, and Google will rule the world!

Mark

@Lee

"***Linux is actually not any good when all is said and done though. If you disagree ask yourself why people and companies believe a product that will cost them a lot of money and comes with very restrictive license terms is better value than one that is both free and free."

Several reasons:

1. MS is the incumbent OS, what people have used, what they're used to etc

2. Inertia on the part of users - if they use it at work then they'll generally stick with the familiarity at home. Do not estimate the inertia of users to relearning.

3. Try buying a PC without an MS OS on it - before you answer this think about where ma and pa will buy their machine (PC World etc) or Dell (didn't they do Linux at some point)

4. Where noobies can find help - if your home machine screws up and it's windows then just about anyone will have a crack at fixing it whereas they'll be quite a few blank stares if you say it's <insert distro here>. Also most linux help is on forums which is a PITA if the problem is network connectivity - I had such a problem with Network Manager for a USB mobile broadband device when my landline went down and was screwed until it came back and I could sort the machine out for next time (when it worked perfectly).

You can tell this is mostly on the money by the fact that despite having to fork out annual payments for software to "keep their system safe" which often cripples it (Norton, I'm looking at you) then still getting screwed by viruses they stick with Windows.

When it comes to software, inertia rules. Not just OSes but commercial packages etc as well (Word instead of open office etc). People just don't want to spend the time relearning even if there are obvious benefits. MS rely on this and OEM bundling.

Aussie censors implement six degrees of separation policy

Mark
Black Helicopters

Not blocked though

I'm (unfortunately) on a telstra (the great BT satan equivalent) connection and could navigate to the site and page of the banned link.

What's the point of issuing a take-down notice for a link if the country's largest ISP is still allowing you to visit the site? Nothing surprises me with this place any more.

Police want new remote hard drive search powers

Mark
Unhappy

FFS

So some dipshit plod wants to search my hard-drive remotely do they?

Am I going to get phone call to ask me to turn on the machine and leave it attached to the internet? Firewall and anti-virus off preferably?

Would they also like me to install Windows so my system fits in with the tools they have for hacking and the vulnerabilities they'd like to exploit rather than use a funky file system they don't know jack about?

What do they plan doing if they come across a file ending .tc et al?

Do I need to make sure my external hard drives are permanently attached?

This fucksmack's wet dream has so many faults it's barely worthy of the effort involved in utter contempt. These pricks should stop watching Hollywood tripe and get out there catching granny bashers, burglars, rapists, murderers i.e. uphold the law in general not look for low hanging fruit.

Wankers.

ASBO woman cuffed over raucous rumpy-pumpy

Mark

@Adam

Personally I think it's 2 - interfering with a witness, namely tramp stamped fuckstick husband Steve.

Adobe users imperiled by critical Reader flaw

Mark

What?

Who the fuck uses Adobe Reader on Mac or Linux? Why on earth would you install that shite when you already have alternatives - preview on Mac to name but one?

UK agent leaves secret drugs info on bus

Mark

Stupidity

What this twat did was nothing short of utterly moronic. Not sure about recommendations of TrueCrypt use - doesn't it require more than bog-standard privileges on windows in order to mount a volume? However there is this USB stick (a touch pricey but the tax-payer's paying / saved cash in long run etc) called IronKey which is hardware encrypted and sealed to prevent chip inspection. Google it, it would seem like a good idea for these civil service muppets.

Flying-rifle robocopter: Hovering sniper backup for US troops

Mark

@Re: Benefits

"Ah, no. Because it's smaller than a traditional sniper (not to mention sniper+copter combo), it can get closer to the target while still presenting a smaller target to the person it's trying to kill.

So no, it certainly doesn't need a sniper-like range."

My point was that if it needs to get closer than a traditional sniper it is therefore within the range of one. If it's to be small enough to not present a reasonable target to a non-sniper (M16 wielding or equivalent) it's going to be pretty small, need to get damn close and therefore be carrying a much punier weapon. Its lethal range with a rifle and it's size will be intrinsically linked due to recoil and weight etc.

It's all about trade-offs and if that platform spec given above is true it ain't exactly stealth personified. More like a hovering Reaper drone without the range - unless you fit a bloody great barrel + high speed round to it.

Mark

Benefits?

Whilst I acknowledge some of the claimed benefits I'm left wondering how advantageous they are versus how much of a kit purchasing pork barrel this is.

For this craft to be of any use it would surely need to have a sniper-like range (barrel to target). Therefore the craft would be a reasonable size - possibly human torso sized in order to carry the kit and handle the recoil.

Thus it would be a sizable target in itself. As it has to fly it's therefore a good sized target in good visibility and vulnerable to enemy ground fire is it not?

Like I said, I can see some benefits (possibly) but I'm not sure they're as concrete or of a scale that the salespeople will doubtlessly state.

Judge sends Blockbuster to court over Facebook Beacon Borking

Mark

@Mike, post 1

Not sure whether you're a Yank or not Mike but could you confirm (IANAL style) whether this would be the case in the UK as just about every fucker reserves the right to shaft you post contract signing with you pulling up your own trousers or getting sued.

I'm interested in knowing whether these ISP/Telco-style contracts are actually enforceable or just a big-stick threat with no substance?

Researchers dissect world's first Mac botnet

Mark
Stop

@Missing the point

"The point of this is not that the malware was installed through the use of warez, the point is that the Macs in question had nothing to protect themselves from this infection."

No Barry, it is you that is missing the point. I've installed warez on a VM before to check for malware. The VM concerned had up-to-date firewall and anti-virus software on it, the OS was XP. The warez concerned was loaded with malware and the AV and firewall did FUCK ALL about it.

The moral of the story is that you won't get software to protect against the idiot in front of the machine - that's the job of the power off button. If you're a moron and install bad software as root then nothing is going to protect you.

Clock starts ticking: Office 2010 will definitely ship in... 2010

Mark

VBA

Will they finally replace VBA with C# and provide those users (mainly big corporates) that extensively use things like Excel with something useful for once? Or will it still be the same old VBA to COM interop bollocks that it always has?

Google throws secret auto-updater to open sorcerers

Mark

Updaters

I much prefer the linux approach of package sources and updater - my experience being Ubuntu and it's synaptic package manager. That way you can monitor for updates of third party software and system software or turn it off if you please. Also have options regarding critical updates etc.

The problem is, if everyone and their dog installs an updater, you'll end up with hundreds of the poxy things sitting around on the system if somethings not worked out. If this is where Google wants to take this then fair play to them else they're part of the problem.

Seagate shows off HDD-to-TV media player

Mark
Thumb Down

Nope

So, let me get this right, it does a similar thing to the WD HDTV but takes a hard drive in a proprietary dock and doesn't have an HDMI output. I'd go with the more sensible WD product that is advertised using their drives but you don't have to buy one if you don't want and it has 2 USB sockets.

Why the iPhone's megapixelage alone won't matter

Mark

Cameras

@Woo! Let's prejudge!

I think what the poster is getting at is that if the existing 2MP camera produces shit images then upping the pixel count is unlikely to make it any better - the thing is like a pin-hole camera as it is and all they'll be doing is upping the pixel density.

@@Chris Branch

"Care to state which law of physics?" - The one that makes the amount of light entering increase with aperture I'd guess. Small lens means small aperture. Small aperture means very little light entering. Very little light entering means greater amplification of sensor signal which gives a noisier image. This is part of the source of the shit image. Pixel density, and hence how prone a sensor is to noise (leakage into adjacent photo sites etc), will be another factor.

In short its camera is shit and is likely to stay that way without a major rethink.

Acer rides little netbooks to big profit

Mark

Common sense

At last a company gives the consumer what they want and then realises the profits. Qu'elle surprise. About time someone did it though.

BT network 'vulnerable to Chinese attack'

Mark
Alert

Priceless

Truly priceless. What more is there to say?

The Pirate Bay punts BitTorrent cloaking device

Mark

@Ohh honestly get a grip!

"Dont underestimate the power of the recording industry."

You're shitting me right? They have failed miserably at combating this. Lots of high profile legal ballsups dragging kids and grannies through the courts. They've paid off their buddies in Govt to right new laws that will still have little chance of success at defeating online piracy. At least the music industry had a short moment of clarity and decided to provide non-DRM music.

Online piracy is like terrorism in that it needs to be defeated in part by hearts and minds not purely by the use of heavy ordnance. You can't keep coming up with big stick laws whilst trying to sell people vastly overpriced DRM encumbered shit. There has to be some incentive for them to go legal. End of.

As for...

"If society begins to understand and believe that you freetards are criminals (basically thieves) and we begin to ostracise you the world will become a better place. Personally, I treat you chaps like drunk drivers... I shop you and feel all the better for it."

You sir are an ignorant twat with over-simplistic views of the problem. Sure, some people are ponces (every society has them) but the vast majority would be won over by quality at a reasonable price (non DRM of course). The industry just wants to run it's historic rip-off model ad-infinitum though.

When you dribble on about being a law abiding member of society who believes in the rule of law etc just remember that it's now illegal to protest outside of Parliament so best hope you never have a grievance eh?

Elgato Turbo.264 HD hi-def H.264 encoder

Mark

iLoon

I might be considered a partial iLoon but even I can see that if the output quality is gash you may as well use Handbrake and leave it overnight to do the job. It would be good though if you could get something like this as some sort of co-processor that Handbrake et al could control as they all seem to have a better grasp on settings for transcoding.

Windows Home Server fixes bugs with Power Pack 2

Mark

Linux vs Windows

I think I must have awoken in a parallel universe. Linux losing and corrupting data? Software RAID 5 using mdadm on Ubuntu works perfectly. rsync backs things up. The likeliest route to failure for a Linux server is

1. A user who doesn't know WTF they're doing.

2. Hardware failure.

I have never in my life had to do so little maintenance on a machine since I setup my Linux home server. It just sits there and works. I wasn't a Linux geek but a bit of time searching the ubuntu forums yields great results.

WHS should be used by those who want point click and problems. It's MS and you know where that gets you in the end. If you want zero knowledge computing you should have paid extra and bought into the Apple universe. It's built on a *nix/BSD base and far more secure.

For the record mine is running firefly, webmin, <bittorrent variant>, SAMBA and anything else I choose to add for free. I also stopped running desktop Windows due to the maintenance overhead.

I just can't see how backing up data from a flakey bug riddled malware attracting OS to a machine running a different OS from the same vendor really makes sense. At least XP/Vista to Linux offers protection against the spread of malware. You just know the "access your data anywhere" part is going to end in tears.

Before anyone points out it's based upon Windows Server 2003 sp(?) - I know, but the primary reason their server OSes tend to be more secure is that they don't have home users dicking about on them. This one does so all bets are off.

iPhone 3.0 adds cut-and-paste, search, new dev toys

Mark

Can't wait...

until there's a viable alternative to this locked-down dictatorial 30% of your graft is ours for the taking fashion accessory. Their attitude really is taking the piss.

BBC Click paid cybercrooks to buy botnet

Mark

FFS

Stop your incessant whining. These numpties whose machines had been subjugated in order to infect/affect others will have switched on to a screen telling them they've got a machine full of crap. This will, hopefully, have educated them to the dangers of what they were doing (lack of patched system, bad downloading and installing, etc etc) and if they've any sense they will get their shit sorted out. Same goes for those ordinary users that watched the program.

I think far more good will have come out of this than the outlay of a couple of k of license payer funds - if you're pissed at that then you should definitely be confronting them about how much that twat Ross gets paid.

There's far more shit produced and far more money wasted than this, an informative program for once, at the BBC.

How to backup and restore your netbook

Mark

Maybe I'm missing something

But isn't this sort of jobby something that linux live CDs were supposed to cover?

At least that way you get a full functioning system with internet capability for help etc - especially if the restore has failed. I believe Fedora and/or Ubuntu can be USB stick installations.

iPhone 3.0 gossip lassos MMS, tethering, cut-and-paste...

Mark

A few points...

@David Halko

"Excellent battery life"

You sure about that David or are we talking about battery life next to another juice sucking leach? The 3 people I know that have one charge it nearly every day. That's what most people would term shite battery life unless you're comparing it to a laptop or "compared to what it can do". However the primary function is to make calls and it sucks if the battery is flat.

@Damian Skeeles

In response to a question of why pay more for tethered or bluetoothed data access you wrote "Erm - because laptops are capable of using vastly more data than iPhones?"

Is it not the case that if you have a data allowance, you have a data allowance and where the fuck it goes after it's hit your phone is your business and not the concern of the network provider. If I had say a 3GB allowance and I wanted to access it via tethering to a laptop, so what?

@Mac Phreak

"How is the lack of MMS embarassing"

Err...

1. Because it's basic functionality and if you include SMS and a camera, why not MMS?

2. It's widespread throughout Europe yet Apple look to the shitty US market for features (God help us)

3. If you said a great, super, fantastic, state of the art email it can only be viewed on a computer or a smartphone etc rather than the 80+% of mobile phones actually in use.

4. Email is free and MMS is not - valid but hardly the point if you're communicating with friends that chances are don't own a smartphone.

5. If the "it's just so yesterday's tech" is your argument then why have SMS? Why have a shit camera? Why have no cut-and-paste etc.

I'll by an iphone when it's actually practical to have and use to the extent it's price justifies rather than when it's like a Dell computer - great at some things but with corners cut elsewhere.

Apple 24in iMac (March 2009)

Mark

Memory

WTF is it with Apple and their ridiculous memory upgrade fees? Same with their authorised sales outlets too (not talking Apple stores). I know users are welcome to get their own and install it, as I did with my Macbook, but some machines like the mini are warranty voiders. It really does take the piss when they've had the premium on the original sales. I know there will be responses regarding "you made the choice etc etc" and "single vendor ecosystem" but are Mac users really so fucking gullible? Maybe that's self-answering as the dweeb in the mac outlet really thought I'd be going for the memory upgrade from them at 2.5x the price of DIY.

Side Note: When upgrading your own mac memory make sure you buy memory (for last years crop of macbooks anyhow) that has CAS 5 timings. I bought memory from a well-known major player that said it was compatible but it used CAS 4 timings. It'd get detected when paired with one of Apple's CAS 5 units but not as 2xCAS 4 sticks. Apparently this is hit and miss so be warned.

W@nkers?

I think I am detecting that Apple maybe less trustworthy than MS in it's behaviour as it already seems to be moving to a customer rape-and-pillage model after it's recent increase in popularity when it's still a very minor player. Surely you leave that shit to when you've cornered a bigger slice of the market, no? That said my system stability and lack of constant maintenance keep me happy for now and my data is only entrusted to the penguin for safe-keeping.

Gates retakes rich list top spot as Zuckerberg slides off chart

Mark

Now now

Let's not have all this money envy amongst some of us. You will generally note that these billionaires tend to piss their fortunes out in philanthropic acts so I don't begrudge them a penny.

If Bill G (and his arsehole company) has made shit loads of money but then chooses to make the lives of millions of the World's poor more liveable in retirement then what's wrong with that - I don't think arguing the counter-case of "if it wasn't for them they wouldn't be so poor etc etc" has much legs as it's generally Governments that allow the mass fiscal fucking of the poor.

Interesting to note in a Bloomberg article how much charities are suffering in the downturn as much of their money was donated by Hedge Funds etc. Several even dedicate their funds to charity (Robin Hood foundation, TCI etc).

Microsoft's R&D chief: the people problem with innovation

Mark

What?

"Rick Rashid, leader of Microsoft's vast, multi-billion dollar R&D operation, said he could foresee cloud computing some years back.

The challenge as a technologist, though, has been in anticipating the finer details of how the cloud and its related technologies - the data center, replication, and synchronization - will be adopted by people and organizations."

I predicted it even before that in the midst of a drunken slumber and I couldn't foresee the finer details either. Bollocks.

I'll be sure to post in a few years time about some of the other current tech-buzz happenings that I foresore but wasn't sure about the fine print thereof. Tit.

Vista to XP 'downgrade' lawsuit revised

Mark

Maybe

Maybe if they allowed people to but the hardware sans OS then either allow you to put your own on there or have a choice of Vista/XP at appropriate cost then they'd have no case to answer. Must-have windows installs seem borderline legal to me.

Are they saying that there is a $130 cost for returning your Vista license (getting refunded) and then buying an XP license? That would make the XP license pretty pricey.

I don't think it's clear-cut either way on this one.

Microsoft courts enterprises with Windows 7

Mark

@Coming to a network near you soon

"I don't give a crap what any of you say but as soon as Windows 7 is released people will start to buy boxes and laptops with it on including in the enterprise.

I have been Beta testing Windows 7 in a corporate environment and preparing for it. It runs well on moderate hardware (unlike Vista) and supports our in-hose software."

Corporates buy hardware then image their standard operating environment onto it. What it comes with is wholly irrelevant.

Unless all of the corporates' specialist software runs on it from the get-go it ain't happening no matter how many chairs Balmy Balmer throws. This didn't happen with Vista because they ballsed the release up - any sign of it being right this time?

Most corporates also take the infamous sp1 stand-point. Whilst they don't want to be on an unsupported OS they don't want to be on the first cut either.

Corporates also have the option (at least where I've worked) of support for XP beyond normal road-maps courtesy of volume licensing and bespoke agreements. It's expensive but it can happen.

As I've stated before - try getting corporates to commit to massive outlay whilst they're hemorrhaging staff and cash in a downturn and see how well your company goes.

Mark

Several issues

1. The economy isn't looking too good so fat chance major enterprise is going to be bothering.

2. The compelling reason to change OS would be to move to 64-bit computing, seeing as the guts of the PC are already there. The problem is that there aren't really the drivers or 3rd party apps written for it - chicken and egg situation. Natural candidates such as Matlab are already there but this is pretty specialist even in the enterprise. You might as well go 32 to 64 if you're moving OS anyhow.

3. Windows 7 seems to be a ponced up interface on Vista - lipstick on a pig. Enterprise users are sceptical after Vista (10% takeup) much like ordinary users are. There's still nothing compelling. Try forcing business to outlay big bucks in a downturn and see how your company goes.

4. Why? Just simply why would you?

Apple Mac-sprucing bores fanbois

Mark

Jobsian tosspots

They give the mac mini a mini dvi, display port and firewire 800 yet leave the macbook with usb and mini dvi only. Tossers. Absolute tossers.

BT wins pricing control over faster broadband

Mark

@High Fibre Diet

I also remember something about BT being willing to fibre up homes or provide some whizz-bang service provided the Gov would allow them to provide TV as they were currently prevented from doing so (in the 80s I think). Tories said no, BT said bollocks to innovation.

I think if one does a little looking BT have provided quite a few technical innovations - customer service just isn't one of them.

Sony DSLR-A900 Alpha 900 digital SLR

Mark

fishman and dapprman

Absolutely on the money both of you. IS in lenses is far superior as at long focal lengths (500mm) where you need it most the Sony system can provide the least compensation - The CCD can't move far enough. You're also right about users upgrading having bought into a system - the most important part about this sector of the market.

As for the nay-sayers criticising the inclusion of live view and HD recording on the 5D Mk II...

Live view is very handy for macro photography.

HD recording is aimed primarily at journalists. Quality-wise it beats my HV30 camcorder, I'm guessing because of the extra lens quality in front of the sensor.

Yes I have one and, no, I've never looked to either of these features to justify the purchase. I've found the HD facility great when I don't wish to take both on holiday.

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