Posts by Thomas Hook

Sussex police try new tactic to relieve snappers of pics

Evidence is evidence

So, the police seize evidence of an assault (one human being having their human rights violated by another) and this is a Bad Thing? Let's not forget this could be key evidence in securing a conviction and would be questioned by the defence if it was allowed to leave the scene (where it could be edited/altered).

No journalist I've ever met (which numbers in the hundreds) would ever give up their camera for the good of another human being when they have an editor to report to later that day, so I'd say the police having that power is vital.

Mine's the coat with 'media impartiality?' written on it.

USB stick with anti-terror training found outside police station

Bandwagon full - please catch next one

No document that was an "essential reference for all officers" (Star article) would be "top-secret" (again, Star Article). The vast majority of bobbies have SC clearance, which means Restricted at best, with occasional, supervised Top-Secret access (which does not include everyone being given it on a USB drive!).

Come on El Reg, this article has more holes than a golf-course, apply some of your usual logic rather than just jumping on the anti-police and data-loss bandwagons.

The iPhone 2.0 update - don't do it, kids

Yup, really dont do it.

I was full of glee to have iTunes tell me the new amazing software was ready, Download went fine and the firmware installation was smooth enough, but then came the horror. Upon iTunes trying to do anything with the phone it comes up saying 'iTunes store connection timed out, we are unable to process your request'. All the poor little iPhone can do is sit there telling me to connect it to iTunes...oh and make emergency calls. Do you think 'Apple Support' are available on 999?

Grand Theft Auto 4 queue man stabbed in head

Pippa Funnel is MY favourite game.

"Some anti-GTA IV campaigners have already jumped on both incidents as proof that such games are too violent for society."

As Au Contraire said, they hadnt even played the game yet! If anything it's 'proof' (in the apparently new definition of the word in common usage) of the exact opposite.

Surely it's more likely the case that the sort of sociopathic violent person who is capable of stabbing someone in the head over a dispute in a queue is more likely to be attracted to a game like GTA IV than -say- 'Pippa Funnel - take the reigns'.

So, when one of these people finally goes postal and takes out a whole bunch of poor people, what game are you more likely to find in their home, GTA-IV or 'everyones favourite no-holes barred horse-fest'?

It's not the game that made a knife-weilding maniac. Millions of people play violent computer games without turning into sword-swinging psychos, and concentrating on banning games takes away from the real debate on how we identify and help people with much deeper problems.

Next week: 'Anti-Diary groups say looking at cheeee makes you fat'

(Paris because I bet Pippa Funnel is her favourite game as well)