Posts by Chris jones

Time to move on from Chinook to the real MoD cock-ups

Speed Difference?

What speed difference? 9mph? Hardly a gaping chasm of difference.... Coupled with the Chinook's ability to work at higher altitudes, it's far superior reliability and it's vastly better lift capacity, it starts to look quite promising for the chinook.

The Merlin saga is typical of UK government procurement processes. Every Tom, Dick and Harry has had their say on what they'd like the vehicle to do in their own little fantasy world, which the gov't/MoD tries to get the supplier to fullfil on (Who proptly rub hands and say "oooooh that'll cost you") and we end up with an aircraft that is hideously expensive, massively behind schedule and a jack of all trades and a master of none.

Apart from it's fancy engine management systems it's hard to see what the merlin can do that it's more capable and less expensive competitors can do.

US imposes 72 hour pre-reg for Visa waiver travellers

@ Ryan Meier

Thanks for your concern Ryan, don't worry though, we won't be holding our breath.

With Bush II (Sorry McCain), HillDog© or Obama to choose from there isn't much hope of any meaningful change over there.

Black Helicopter: 'Cos the Americans love 'em!

US bank loses unencrypted data on 4.5m people

Hit Them Where it Hurts!!!

This takes the pee pee yet again. How many times does this need to happen before banks will wake up and smell the proverbial coffee (Or in the banks case when will they smell the shit hitting the fan??).

Those affected need to hit them in the only place that hurts for large American Corporations, the bottom line. Hit their profit margin very hard and they'll soon sit up and take notice. A class action lawsuit from 4.5 million people should do the trick.

When will the US administration stop spying on it's own populace and bring in some laws to protect them instead?

Flames; 'Cos whoever at the bank took the decision to send the unencrypted details of 4.5 million people, via a third oarty courier, should be burned at the stake in Times Square. I'll bring the petrol...

NHS IT four years late and over budget

Is anyone THAT suprised by this?

This entire fiasco is a prime example of how things go wrong when you design software/solutions by committee. When will this goverment (and I say this as a public sector employee myself) learn that designing stuff by committee doesn't work if the people on the committee are: A) Clueless, B) So clueless they don't realise they're clueless, C) Lack the balls to stand up when someone suggests something competely useless, utterly pointless and insanely expensive.

Paris, 'cos she's almost as clueless as the monkeys employed by the Department of Health.

@ Bernard

So you've worked in public sector IT then??? :-)