* Posts by Wize

1553 publicly visible posts • joined 13 Mar 2008

Does Gmail's tarted-up tab makeover bust anti-spam laws?

Wize

Re: Alternate Email Addresses

@dale

They have to know they both hit the same inbox first. That doesn't work with all domains.

Even if they did, they might leave them in, as your spam filter may be checking for the presence of the + field.

Google also ignores dots in the user name.

Nude swimmers warned of GONAD-GOBBLING FISH ON THE LOOSE

Wize

Maybe its being circulated by the chain mail swimsuit company

Isn't there another fish in those areas that will swim up a guy's stream of wee and lodge itself in their 'eye'?

Xbox 180: Microsoft scraps mandatory Kinect policy

Wize

Re: "You have the ability to completely turn the sensor off in your settings,"

You need a plastic shield.

Cameras can see through cloth. Put you phone on record in your shirt pocket if you don't believe me.

*puts head in hands * Now try it with the camera facing outwards.

The heat sensors can be stopped by a sheet of plastic or glass. You can only see heat through a window if its glowing hot.

First manufacturer to make a nice moulded clip on cover? Maybe a bit of padding to dampen the mic too.

Feds arrest rogue trucker after GPS jamming borks New Jersey airport test

Wize

Re: Crumbs

"A bit of an Achilles heel there if a $100 device can cause havoc with an airport.

Systems need to be hardened from malicious attacks and it was fortunate that this was stopped in time."

You can't make everything bomb proof (maybe not the best phrase to use with planes)

There was a few incidences of pocket lasers being pointed at planes coming in to land at my local airport.

Its cheaper than the jammer and caused more problems.

Chubby-chasing sex trolls ran me offline, says fashion blogger

Wize

"...always asking herself: "How likely are these photos to turn on some creepy guy and make him desire to tell me about it?"

Keep in mind that some of these 'people' would get excited at a cigarette burn in a fur coat.

Any photograph will get their attention. She could be demonstrating a suit of knights armour (the normal male variety, not one specifically sculpted to the female form) and still get such comments.

The only way not to have people commenting on your photographs is not to put them out there in the first place, which defeats the aim of advertising.

NSA to world+dog: We're only watching 1.6% of internet, honest

Wize

"Here at Vulture South we write in a word processor (Lotus Symphony)..."

Do you use Lotus Notes too?

Web ad giant (Google) pops Adwords into Maps for iOS and Android

Wize

Re: Adverts on maps?

Imagine driving round an unfamiliar part of the UK. The main A road suddenly hits a city ring road. Junctions are marked for local town names, but not being from that area, you can't tell which one is to the north and which one is to the south, and end up making a lap round the ring road before you escape.

I had a paper map, but no where convenient to pull over and check, especially when presented with the town named junctions. A friendly voice from a phone telling me to "turn left" at an appropriate point would have helped immensely, however it was back in the days before mobiles.

I have had problems at junctions that look different to even the most up to date maps, on one occasion causing me to be late for a job interview even though I had researched the route the night before.

I do not look back on that technology level favourably.

Wize

Re: Adverts on maps?

That are never get automatically updated. That would fill a small van to get down to the street level for every single road in the UK. That don't have a built in GPS to help locate which of the many pages you are currently on.. That don't shout out directions when you are busy driving.

By the way, you can download maps in advance and use them with no mobile signal.

Cameron demands Brits BOYCOTT angry-troll-infested websites

Wize

Re: Sorry Dave but it's not always nice out there

"Sadly your average kid up to about 15 doesn't have enough life experience to know to fully handle some situations"

You teach kids not to walk up dark alleyways in the scary part of town.

You teach them not to talk to strangers.

Why not teach them what to do if someone is, say, making unreasonable comments anonymously?

Wize

"Perhaps parents should teach children that life ISN'T ONLINE! More respect given to those without a social media presense."

Isn't that akin to saying "In my day, music had proper lyrics."?

Many things are moving towards social media. Breaking news on Twitter, job searching on LinkedIn.

Wize

Getting too much grief on a website filled by anonymous idiots?

Why not delete your account. They can't reach you anonymously. They have to do it in person.

Perhaps children need better education in social media and how to deal with problems.

Facebook to get IN YOUR FACE with video ads

Wize

Zuckerberg is remembering a little bit about why ad-blocking software came about. ie adverts were making noises.

He forgets the other reasons they started, adverts were moving, causing a distraction and that some are in line with the text you are trying to read.

Encroach in any of those three areas and people will block them.

Chrome, Firefox blab your passwords in a just few clicks: Shrug, wary or kill?

Wize

Re: Firefox already does what he asked

If something manages to get control of your computer (a bit of mallware, for example) one of the first things it can send home is configuration file for your browser (I've moved it around myself when moving to a new machine as it contains your passwords, shortcuts etc)

If you have set a master password, the file won't be much use to whoever has 'borrowed' it giving you a chance to find and remove the mallware before it records the keystrokes of a password being entered (which you won't anyway as they are mostly stored)

Gives you that little bit more breathing space should your machine be compromised from outside.

Posh potty owners flushed by dodgy Bluetooth password

Wize

Re: A tad over-engineered?

My battery is flat. I can't use the toilet till I find a charging cable and give it a few minutes to get a little bit of a charge.

Power cut and its time to dig a hole in the garden.

Why not just use motion sensors for proximity and a side arm for bum washing controls?

They don't recognise us as HUMAN: Disability groups want CAPTCHAs killed

Wize

Re: I'm all for choice...

No one has mentioned KittenAuth yet

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/04/12/kittenauth/

Need an audio equivalent for the blind/partially sighted.

Airports' passport controls SHUT DOWN by 'malware' - report

Wize

Sounds helpful if you want to sneak someone past passport that may be flagged by the system, or is that giving ideas to the bad guys that they might already have.

Google Glassholes can't take long walks off short piers thanks to Merc app

Wize

"Tech companies are zeroing in on cars as one of the great unexploited markets."

There is a lot of exploitation going on. Look at the price to update a built in satnav for example.

Fed up with poor Brit telly and radio output? Ofcom wants a word with YOU

Wize

Re: FM vs DAB

FM works fine. And if you turn on several radios in your house, they are all in sync. (Handy when doing the housework at the weekend)

Can't do that with DAB.

If your signal is a little bit out, you can still hear the station. So a little interference is annoying, but won't be a big problem.

DAB is all or nothing.

I had a 3rd floor flat in the city. I had clear views in all directions. The DAB alarm clock could only pick up a signal in the kitchen. Ziltch in the bedroom. How it is supposed to work in the street below is anyone's guess.

'Wandering Dago' tuck truck ejected from NY race track

Wize

Re: *Italian* American ?

Tempted to go awoooooga awooooooga but you are correct.

It is owned by Italy but many American Italians remember back when it was a lot more regional, although it happened before their lifetime (kind of like the way some people go on about winning the world cup long before they were born)

Wize

Re: In Australia

"Its just a naaaaame"

Hooker in Dudley man's car 'just helping to buy tomatoes'

Wize

Re: Good Pricing!

"...20 quid sounds very cheap based on how its portrayed on TV."

The price is probably proportional to the number of teeth the prostitute has.

London Mayor shows off GIANT BLUE COCK in busy square

Wize

Needs to be moved to Scunthorpe

to further fowl the search engines.

Devolo dLAN 500 AV Wireless Plus: Triple-tech connectivity for the home

Wize

Re: @Malcolm 1

"Ideally, all these devices would come in top/bottom socket variants..."

Or, as seen in some power strips these days, a rotating plug/socket (could keep the socket at the front on the same section as the plug at the back and only have 2/3 wires from it internally)

Confirmed: Driverless cars to hit actual British roads by end of year

Wize

>> If faced with a queue of cars, how will it know if they are waiting for traffic lights to change round the bend or if it a line of parked cars at the side of the road?

>One idea is that the cars will talk to each other.

That only works if all cars are equipped. What if those stationary cars are not?

Wize

Surely there are a lot of situations that it won't handle properly.

If faced with a queue of cars, how will it know if they are waiting for traffic lights to change round the bend or if it a line of parked cars at the side of the road?

Temporary restrictions. Some times it is difficult enough for a human to follow these signs with partially hidden signs for diversions. An "Access to Tesco only" in the middle of your route might cause problems if you are driving from one city to another and stopping at your local Tesco on the way home. Some road work signs are even hand scrawled with spray paint.

Can it tell the difference between a policeman waving a car round an accident and a thug waving your car into a dead end?

Can it make the right judgement on a partially flooded road?

And as for idiot that pull out in front of you on the motorway just as you are about to pass them. As a driver of many years I often have a sense about another driver that is going to do something stupid. Not so easy to build that intuition into a car.

I assume there may be circumstances where it will drop to human control (eg parking in a muddy field for a festival) but since these occasions will be few and far between, the human may have forgotten how to drive the car.

Apple surrenders in 'app store' trademark suit against Amazon

Wize

If they claim that their users are smart enough to know the difference...

...does that mean they will have to drop the Samsung lawsuits where they claim Samsung are copying the look of their devices and may cause confusion with users?

Every Friday is rat-out-your-boss-for-software-piracy Friday

Wize

I thought the day that most employees had enough would be...

...Monday. "Do I want to work on this crap all week or should I make a quick call?"

Though most won't want to shop their company. If the place gets shut down, how will they get paid?

Probably the majority are on Friday as, for most, its the last day of their notice period.

At last: EU slashes mobile roaming fees

Wize

Vodafone

Vodafone are pulling a fast one with their roaming packages.

For £3 per day, you can use your own tarrifs from back in the UK.

Or you can pay 28.8p per minute to make a call, 7.9p to receive a call and 8.9p per text.

If you only want to send a few texts, it looks cheaper without their package.

http://www.vodafone.co.uk/shop/pay-monthly/travelling-abroad/

Win 8 user? Thought that was a CAPTCHA? R is for ruh roh

Wize

Re: IE8

"Are you sure you want to move your mouse to the right? [Yes], [No]"

Reminds me of an example of bad programming where the software author has not bothered putting custom text on the Yes/No buttons, of which there are many examples today. The best one I can roughly remember was:

The reactor has gone in to melt down and will explode in 10 seconds unless you do something. The only way to shut it off is to open the vent valves. However I was too lazy when programming this so have not changed the text on the buttons below. However, pressing YES will override the automatic opening of the vent valves and you really want to press NO to let them open on their own.

[YES] [NO]

PlayStation 4 is FreeBSD inside

Wize

Re: Eadon is dead!

Tantrum? I missed all the fun

PC makers REALLY need Windows 8.1 to walk on water - but guess what?

Wize

Re: It's not that hard to see the problem

"It's the fact that since 2007 or thereabouts folks just don't need to upgrade like they did."

Unless you are doing something that is processor intensive, you don't really need to.

The average user surfs the net and writes the odd letter. So, as long as it can display funny cat videos, it should be fine.

It is also the downfall of PCs. Phones and tablets do the surfing now and not many write anything longer than a tweet, so they don't even need a keyboard.

Nuke plants to rely on PDP-11 code UNTIL 2050!

Wize

Re: if it aint broke....

Do they have spare parts?

I've seen circuit boards that are in use well beyond their supported life. Some of them do not survive power cycling as the capacitors have leaked.

Flash flaw potentially makes every webcam or laptop a peephole

Wize

Still looks like a bug in flash

"Because the dialogues are on the same page as the adversary's code, they can overlay things, make it opaque, and so on, to effectively hide the dialogue warning."

Surely you would have to then click the warning dialog box to accept before they had access to your webcam, or is Adobe saying they let them have access then they put up a warning dialog box to tell you its already happening?

HP sacks English employees to bag Scots gov jobs cash

Wize

It doesn't usually make big news when...

...it all heads south.

People only get upset when these changes are not in their favour.

Wize

Re: English Taxpayers

"Why dont the English get a vote on an independent Scotland?

"Because many would vote for it to be independent..."

If the PM wanted to keep Scotland in the UK, why did he head north of the border and campaign for a 'NO' vote?

That is a red rag to a bull for the Yes vote.

Google launches broadband balloons, radio astronomy frets

Wize

Who needs spy satellites

I wonder if it will give them clearer pictures of everything they don't have remote access to

http://what-if.xkcd.com/32/

How NSA spooks spaffed my DAD'S DATA ALL OVER THE WEB

Wize

Re: DCMA Takedown

Companies have had their servers taken away for scrutiny after lesser claims of copyright theft. Doable with the DoD? Could see someone trying to walk out of there with a box of servers.

Facebook, Microsoft beg Feds: Let us tell users what YOU asked for...

Wize
Big Brother

Do you not watch Person of Interest?

Airbus imagines suitcases that find themselves

Wize

I've never liked airport security

They drone on about you having to be responsible for your bag and keep it with you at all times. That you've made sure that no one has interfered with it.

Once you get off the plane and its thrown on to a conveyor where anyone can help themselves to.

Same with the scanners going in to departures. You are expected to throw your laptop, phone, keys, money etc in a tray. You then get held up at the metal detector because of someone with more piercings than skin is getting a pat down while your tray of goodies is sitting unprotected for the world to see.

Techies finger Bradley Manning for US secret files database breach

Wize

Re: Have we met?

The enemy is seen as anyone outside America (and many inside). Thus the need for Prism and the ability to spy on us all.

Boffins hide cute kitty behind invisibility shield

Wize

The first video looks like it could be a picture stuck to the back of the glass.

The second looks like the box is a synchronised video screen, thus it looks a slightly different colour.

Just looks like the effect you get with Transparent Desktop (littletinbox.co.uk)

Sneaky new Android Trojan is WORST yet discovered

Wize

Re: What Security?

"Kaspersky want to SELL you a malware solution for a problem that CANNOT exist. There is no means of any software installed with user priveledge gaining root access without manual user intervention."

And if a typical thick user stumbles across a website telling them they can have a pink pony dancing around on their lock screen by following a few steps, some will do it. Even if those steps are to give the app root control.

LinkedIn snarfing contacts from Exchange

Wize

Re: Why

Doesn't matter what you disable, your employees will want to see that data via their web based account.

And if they can see it, anyone with their username/password and a note of the web server's address can see it.

Same goes for any email system.

Smart TVs riddled with DUMB security holes

Wize

Re: Sigh**

Its only a 'tiny' threat till it gets exploited.

Imagine one of your friends wanting to use your wifi at your house on their phone/tablet (could be just to check in on the office as they are on call). Your TV could be infected if their phone is compromised. Then you'll have an almost permanently infected device the wrong side of your firewall.

HTC woes prompts 'leave now' tweet from former staffer

Wize

Re: removable battery

Its a design 'feature' that has put me off along with its lack of removable memory. Otherwise I would have chosen their new offering over the Samsung S4

Microsoft reveals Xbox One, the console that can read your heartbeat

Wize

Mattrick demonstrated starting up the console by saying "Xbox on,"...

Does "Xbox off" turn it off?

Lots of fun until you are watching a film or TV show via Netflicks or LoveFilm and one of the characters shouts at their kid "Turn that xbox off and go do your homework"

Life on Mars means subsisting on grim diet of turd-garden spinach

Wize

"Earthbound farmers are known to be at "high risk" of suicide, which might indicate that they're the sort to fancy going to Mars and never coming back to Earth."

Last thing you want on a dangerous mission like that is to have someone suicidal along. They might take out everyone, even by accident, when they decide to shake off their mortal coil.

My god, what's that STENCH belching from your iPhone?

Wize

Re: I can see the future...

I remember one drunken conversation down the pub to do with smells being transmitted down the phone. The majority of smells would be someone farting down the phone. So why not just detect the sound of a fart and slide the lid off a box containing a turd. Would make a cheap solution to the problem.

Boffins plan to drop €250,000 TEST-TUBE BURGER on London

Wize

Re: Too much methane

Bang goes my idea of fitting flare stacks (as per oil rigs) to burn off the excess methane.

Or, with a pilot light, it could make them flame throwers. Might be more effective to use as a perimeter defence than guard dogs.

Ah well, my plans have gone up in smoke. At least I didn't go on dragons den with it.