Posts by Fibbles

Rumoured 'GarageBand for e-books' to bulldoze textbook biz

Correct me if i'm wrong but it sounds like Apple is releasing a tool that allows you to create media-rich websites and then lock them down in a horrible pdf style format. Which part of this is supposed to thrill me?

Honda NSX reborn as a hybrid

He's suggesting a diesel generator with an electric engine by the sound of it, not an actual diesel engine. Having the electric driving the wheels would be fast, responsive and develop enough torque to spin the planet under the car...

Foreign sabotage suspected in Phobos-Grunt meltdown

Speculation

Call me cynical but if they were about to lose their investment because they were fast approaching deadlines on agreements with ESA and the expiry dates of some components, is it not possible that Roscosmos deliberately launched a duff probe so they could claim the whole thing back on insurance?

Her Majesty's £444m court IT system can't even add up fines

Title contains too many expletives to be published.

I'm not a huge fan of bean-counters and lawyers but the government really needs to start using some when negotiating these large IT contracts. Somebody with some clue about IT would also be helpful.

Actually... who the hell is negotiating these things at the moment? The 16 year old tea-boy who was only supposed to be there for work experience?

Microsoft gives up on proprietary 2D barcode, accepts NFC

Re: There's a damn good reason the MS one ain't flying

The reason is even simpler than that. QR codes can be printed on pretty much anything cheaply in black and white whereas Microsoft's tag requires full CMYK.

Six cuffed in £1m student readies phishing probe

Is it really necessary to add the word 'cyber' to anything that happens on the internet? Criminals are criminals, regardless of what technology they use.

Iran displays video footage of captured US spy drone

Am i the only person here who reads other news sources?

The Americans have confirmed the plane is genuine. They also said that they considered several plans for retrieving/destroying it. In the end they shelved the plans as Iran was likely to view any such action as an act of war.

Mars rover Curiosity autographed by Obama

If i remember correctly...

I submitted my name to go on that (or maybe I'm getting confused with some probe, it was a few years ago). It's quite a nice feeling knowing that a nuclear powered tank with lasers will soon be trundling around Mars bearing my name. That said, if the accepted every name submitted it should also be trundling around bearing every meme the denizens of 4chan could think of.

Scientists probe Earth's core, make mystifying discovery

Silicon? Pah!

My money is on carbon nano tubes. They seem to be popping up everywhere these days.

Coders are creatives too: Where's our love?...

Graphic Designer / Illustrator here...

Any chance you can stop reducing my job to paint by numbers? It's pretty insulting and shows a complete lack of knowledge about the field. Graphic design is not a job everyone can do despite your suggestion. I'm not paid minimum wage and my colleagues are not doing this job because they couldn't get work at the tesco checkout.

If programmers want to call themselves creatives nobody is going to stop them. Personally though I've always hated the term. It tends to be used by managers who like to explain away what I do as the result of some sort of magical power that i've been imbued with. I'd much rather they recognise the years of hard work and practice that have gotten my skills to this point.

If you want people to have respect for your profession maybe you could stop being so damn condescending about everyone else's?

Pass the wine, dear. Yes, that papier-mache thing

Re: Vic

"Probably. But given the potential for liability issues from chipped or inadequately sterilised bottles - or even just the threat of such litigation, even if entirely unfounded - it currently makes no business sense to do that. "

Tell that to the milkman who collects my empty bottles for re-use twice a week.

re: paper milk bottles

Pretty much. Unfortunately for the eco types though TetraPak have a whole mountain of patents covering their waterproof cardboard containers. What I understood from the article was that GreenBottle were simply producing cardboard boxes with sealed plastic bags inside to hold the wine. I'm not a wine drinker myself but I'm pretty damn sure I've seen this sort of thing in Sainsbury's before containing cheap plonk. The only discernible difference I can think of between that and GreenBottle's product is that these new cartons use recycled cardboard (even then I'd be surprised if existing boxes of wine didn't use recycled cardboard to keep costs down).

Eggheads crack open web troll brains

What's so wrong with ethical relativism?

"The main outcome was that of the four traits they tested for, the strongest correlation with cyber-smearing was a belief that ethics are relative and that there is no objective right and wrong"

Ethics are always subjective and in my opinion anyone who views the world in a purely black and white, right and wrong manner is incredibly suspect.

Credit card companies plan to sell your purchase data to advertisers

I'm guessing you won't buy from anybody who doesn't have a firm grip and steady gaze during a handshake either? It's the only way to tell you're not being ripped off!

Also, cash loan? I've seen pre-aproved junk mail credit cards that charge less interest...

iPad baby baffled by paper magazine

Misread 17S as 175. I deserved those downvotes.

Re: Clearly...

I'm not sure your math is quite right there... unless you're suggesting that from now on Apple will be releasing an ipad a month for the next 15 years?

AMD spills secret to World Record clock speed

Probably because it'd toast the processor.

<- The one with crumbs in the pockets.

Facebook lets users have separated social, er, Circles

@ a well wisher

Ignoring the fact that these lists have been part of Facebook for some time and all that's changed is they're now easier to access and edit. Are you seriously trying to suggest Google invented ordering your contacts by social groups? Every email program I've used since the 90's has come with at least the basic work, friends, and family categories to organise my contacts into.

Windows 8: First contact with Microsoft Touch

@ Uwe Dippel

You're kind of missing the point. I was hoping Windows 8 on ARM wouldn't just be limited to tablets.

> Only Metro apps will be sold in the market place.

> Only apps from the market place will run on ARM

What happened to this amazing virtualization layer everyone was talking about that would allow all your old windows applications to run atop ARM? Did I dream it? Or was it only ever speculation?

Fujitsu Stylistic Q550 Windows 7 tablet

Considering most professional graphics tablets have between 1024 and 2048 levels of sensitivity this tablet doesn't really seem like it'll be fit for that purpose. There's also the issue of what the screen feels like to draw on. The article says it has a matt finish which is of course good but I wonder how it'll compare to Wacom's faux paper finish that they apply to their Intuos tablets and Cintiq monitors.

If this were a sub £200 tablet it might be worth considering for designers. For all it's limitations though (low stylus sensitivity, non-changeable nibs, unnatural screen finish and it's lack of power that will likely make photoshop / illustrator / painter run at a snails pace) I can't really see anyone being willing to pay the better part of a grand to use it as a graphics tablet.

Does stylus have pressure sensitivity? If doesn't it's going to be of no use to graphic designers and illustrators.

Spamhaus victorious after 5-year fight with mass mailer

So...

... a legit UK company has to pay damages to a US company that was breaking US law. All on the orders of a court that had no jurisdiction over the UK company in the first place.

Am I the only one that's a tad confused?

Hands on with Acer's Aspire S3 Ultrabook

"the - a first time for a Windows machine? - large touchpad placed centrally in the wrist rest area"

I'm typing this on an ancient Compaq laptop that seems to prove it's not the first for a windows machine.

Also, what use is it having a large 4:3 trackpad on this Acer when the screen is 16:9?

Domino's to serve pizzas on the Moon, apparently

17 quid for one pizza is not cheap...

They are tasty though so it's always wise to have some bogof vouchers to hand.

Samsung's iOS rival gets multitasking and HTML5

Multipass!

Surely Bada being scrapped would be "Big Bada Boom"?

I'M SO ANGRY!

EVERYTIME I GET OUT MY IPHONE 4 IN PUBLIC PEOPLE ARE NO LONGER SURE IF I'M COOL OR NOT BECAUSE AT A GLANCE IT CAN BE CONFUSED WITH A SAMSUNG GALAXY!

SAMSUNG NEED TO STOP PRODUCING RECTANGULAR PHONES WITH ROUNDED CORNERS IMMEDIATELY! I PAID A HELL OF A LOT OF MONEY TO BE COOL AND I'M SICK OF THEM RUINING IT!

Apple wins (another) Samsung Android injunction in EU

Now that Apple...

...have been slapped down for this 'look and feel' nonsense I hope Meizu will finally release their M9 in Europe. Top end android phone with the kind of low price you'd expect from an obscure Chinese manufacturer. It does look a little too much like an iphone 4 for comfort though.

Here lies /^v.+b$/i

I may only be an amateur programer...

but I am a fully fledged Geordie and I still have no idea why you'd put that on a tombstone.

Oxford adds woot! to dictionary

Hate to break this to you...

... but they're both in common usage, Jeggings are leggings designed to appear as if they made of denim. A mankini is a skimpy bit of swimwear for blokes (see Borat).

Tbh though, the COED has been adding very questionable words for years now. I'd stick to the good old fashioned OED. It's got a lot more heft to it which should come in useful next time you hear someone use the word 'sexting'.

Dog fight game bitten with pro-PETA virus

re: Good for PETA

Dog fighting and computer games containing dog fighting are not the same thing. Also, GTA isn't the cause of gang crime. Also, also, have you ever played Pokemon? You may be in for a shock.

UK Govt refuses to ban shale gas 'fracking'

Frack this...

... I'm off for a glass of fire-water.

Sorry, time travelers, you’re still just fiction

Re: Yes...

And I suppose Columbus just wanted to see the edge rather than find a shorter route to China by crossing the Atlantic? The idea that the majority of people thought the Earth was flat is a myth. Some thought it was egg shaped but certainly not flat.

Asda offloads affordable Archos fondleslabs

Re: Not Widescreen

My mistake, i should have looked more carefully. The icons do look stretched though.

Can someone please explain...

... why they're using a resolution with a 4:3 aspect ratio on a widescreen panel?

Mole says Apple A5 chip runs too hot for iPhone

Can't tell if troll...

I'm seriously hoping that you don't really think the A5 chip is the size of an A5 piece of paper...

Facebook's 'awesome' plan to hook up with Skype?

If you'd ever actually used it

You'd know most people on facebook are only 'friends' with people they know in real life* rather than casual internet acquaintances. The purpose being to keep in greater contact with people you may only otherwise see on a saturday night or whenever. They can also already see each other through the photos they share.

*Admittedly some of these will be through very old and spurious connections, ie "we went to the same school 16 years ago and we've never talked since but add me as a friend please".

Yeah because...

Microsoft and Ebay are well known for their scruples...

Sony to launch PlayStation 4 in 2012, say moles

Most games don't support it properly

That'd be because console FPS's have all sorts of helpers to make aiming actually possible with an analogue stick. If you play the same game on a console with a mouse and keyboard you're not only going to get the benefit of those helpers but also that added accuracy of the mouse. In short it'd make online play incredibly unbalanced.

Aussie retailer accuses UK shops of HDMI 'scam'

Can't stop laughing...

"i stated many times to my customers: if you can't see/hear the difference between cheap and more expensive cables you're lucky one and you can save money."

That should read:

"i stated many times to my customers: if you can't see/hear the difference between cheap and more expensive cables you're not delusional and you can save money."

Eco investors demand (even) more sweeteners for low carbon energy

Reasoning behind Germany getting out of nuclear power?

The reasons are pretty simple; public ignorance and a governing party (already non too keen on anything nuclear) wanting to do the popular thing to improve their re-election chances.

There have only ever been 4 serious nuclear accidents in Germany:

- 7 Dec 1975, Greifswald (East Germany), An electrical fire (started by an incompetent electrician) destroys control lines and coolant pumps in this first gen Soviet reactor almost inducing meltdown. However everyone follows protocol, the fire service responds quickly and the pumps are repaired. No nuclear material is released and nobody dies.

- 4 May 1986, Hamm-Uentrop, A fuel pebble became lodged in a pipe at the experimental THTR-300 reactor. Gas flow was increased to dislodge the pebble which also led to the mobilization of radioactive dust (usually present in the cores of pebble-bed reactors). Due to human error a valve was left open and this dust was released into the surrounding environment. This caused a small amount of radioactive contamination (0.1 Gbq) in a 4 km2 area around the plant. Nobody died.

- 17 Dec 1987, Hesse, Workers overlooked a valve that had not been closed. Radioactive cooling agent was discharged into the annular space. The surrounding area is unaffected and nobody dies.

- 24 Nov 1989, Greifswald (East Germany), Three of six cooling pumps are switched off as a test at the first gen Soviet reactor. A fourth pump fails and control of the reactor is temporarily lost causing damage to ten fuel rods. No nuclear material is released and nobody died.

Nobody has ever died in a nuclear accident in Germany, and all it's 'major' accidents were caused by human error. Despite this the government has decided to decommission all of it's nuclear facilities. Why? Well, because after watching a group of reactors in Japan withstand two natural disasters of a degree they were never designed for, and that Germany will never face, they've declared that nuclear is unsafe.

You couldn't make this shit up.

re: ok, so:

Buy your own sodding turbine then rather than have everyone else subsidize it. Unlike the thorium fast breeders which I would like to see our government building, a wind turbine is something anyone can install on their own property. Only most people don't because they're expensive and fecking useless.

Violin tunes up for billion dollar flash gig

Somebody might want to tell Larry

Turtle != tortoise

Lulzsec gets hacking downunder

What are you talking about?

Laughing at the misfortune of others has been a common passtime for millenia. I'm not saying that it's right but it's hardly new.

Duke Nukem flack eats words over threat to reviewers

Titles are pointless

Maybe if their PR team had sent out copies of the PC version for review rather than the horrendous 360 port they wouldn't be in this position? I doubt we'd have seen any ratings above 75%* but the reviews may have been a bit more balanced (something along the lines of that done by PC Gamer).

*That's a review percentage, not a real world percentage where mediocre games get 50% and perfection gets 100%

NHS trust issues nurse jub flash alert

I know you're trolling but...

It was actually the BBC camera crew that got shouted at.

Duke Nukem Forever

Downvoted?

Heaven forbid I suggest this site review games on the platform they were designed for rather than base their conclusions on poorly implemented ports...

Sigh...

Oh look another reviewer complaining about graphics issues and clunky controls. Wtf do you people expect when you play one THE pc fps's on a sodding console? DNF was never going to be a masterpiece after it's torturous development but the amount of undeserved hate this game has received is ridiculous.

MeeGo and Mango promise mobile web delights

Problem?

I'm failing to see what benefit developing meego provides intel. I'd originally assumed it was a misguided effort to get their chips into nokia phones. TBH I really can't see them convincing the people who might have a use for this system to abandon ARM.

New Mac scareware variant installs without password

grammer...

Seriously?