Posts by Leigh Smith

Who are the biggest electric car liars - the BBC, or Tesla Motors?

Poor old beeb

Doesn't matter what the BBC does some licence fee payer with an over-developed sense of entitlement will complain about bias and/or favouritism. The BBC must be pro and anti everything by now.

I watched this on the BBC and if anything they went out there way to focus on the positives and downplay electric vehicle weaknesses. It was positive and upbeat all the way through. This was more of a 'look what is possible' rather than 'electric cars are shitty'. Highlighting that, despite being designed for short local journeys, electric vehicles can manage a long journey if you have the time. I plan to get an electric vehicle for my commute (just 10 miles each way) but I know I would need to rent a petrol car for the odd occasion I need to go more the 50 miles away from home. Everyone gets that so the BBC were only really telling the truth.

Compare to Top Gear where they completely fabricated an electric vehicle running out of power in their tests. Just to make a point and not a cynical attempt to pass of electric car as unreliable, obviously. Oh wait that is the BBC too, perhaps the paranoid fanboys are on to something.

David Attenborough dino doc shows limits of 3D TV

I will surely not be the first or last to post this

Pterosaurs are not dinosaurs.

Bye-bye to bizarro bye-laws, says UK.gov

What a fantastic idea!

Local Councils with the ability to make laws without oversite.

UK iPad ship date slips

Mine is still good for the 28th

Called up today to check on my order (not triggered by this, it was an non-delivery matter) and I was informed that my order was on course to be delivered by the 28th. Sounds to me like new pre-orders will be June 7th because of a high number of pre-orders.

I know you guys were worried I might not get my iPad in time for my Birthday but there is no need to panic just yet.

Cartoon Law goes live

RE: orly?

"I can prove that 100% of previous crimes (especially paedophilia) were committed by people that can or could breathe. It is obvious that breathing does in fact lead to disgusting criminal activity and should be either stopped completely or at the very least be grounds for total surveillance by the police"

Or as Judge Death would put it "The crime is life, the sentence is death!"

Channel 4 to become Channel 3D tonight

Not worth the effort

Eight whole programmes, only one of which I have even a passing interest it. Wow. That coupled with the whole dealing with 3d card board glasses while having to wear actual spectacles and I think I'll just pass.

Most gamers fat and miserable, finds study

@Some Beggar

Most *people* hyper-sensitive about accusations of being fat and miserable, finds comments section survey.

Fixed that for you.

Stephen Hawking both British and not dead

To paraphrase...

I'd rather have the NHS and not need it, than need the NHS and not have it.

In your face right-wing nut-jobs from across the pond.

Hain breaks ranks with Cabinet over McKinnon extradition

Politicians should not override the law?

I would agree if it wasn't for the fact the government has clearly being putting pressure on the judiciary and its own members to make sure McKinon *is* extradited. And that the government happily interferes with or breaks the law whenever it suits its own purposes.

If this case has done nothing else it has helped highlight the abusive relationship this country is in with the USA. One has to wonder what the US government have over the the Labour Party that keeps them so strictly in line?

Beeb and co offload failed Kangaroo platform

Thanks

I'd like to again offer my thanks to the Competition Commission for protecting us consumers from what would have been a useful and worthwhile product. Cheers.

Spider-Man director to helm World of Warcraft

Spoilers

Apparently the film will 2.5 hours long but the first 2 hours is the protagonist killing some mangy looking wolves over and over again. The last half an hour will involve the protagonist's attempt to escape the lag of Ironforge.

Kent Police clamp down on tall photographers

@Professor Quatermass

Suit up!

Hero: HTC names third Android smartphone

Impressive

All the best things about a HTC phone without the main negative, Windows CE (or whatever they are calling it this week). Plus a version of Android that doesn't look like Gnome's deformed offspring. Baring horrible reviews I think this will be the phone I swap my iPhone for at the end of the the year.

Britain looks to export net censorship model to Europe

How about?

How about negative infinity points for foisting the IWF on the British public?

One fifth of humanity deprived of Milky Way

Cancer? Yeah right!

The scene - Two scientists sit in a office across the desk from a slimy looking individual in a cheap suit.

Slimy PR Guy: "What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Astronomer 1: "We can't see the stars because of all the light."

Astronomer 2: "And our campaign to get people to see the error in annoying us and confusing moths is not working. Even calling it 'Light Polution' hasn't helped."

Slimy PR Guy: "Well what you need to do is to create a spurious link to cancer. Something that sounds a bit scary but is vague enough you can easily deny it later. I'd make it a woman's cancer, that will really freak out the masses"

Twitter suffering chronic banality, diagnoses Dr House

So?

I agree that Twitter is a waste of time and utterly without point. So are a lot of things people do to amuse themselves. Like, for example, writing articles and comments on the internet about how you don't get the latest internet fad and how it is a big waste of time. Not judging, just saying.

Geeks make least selfish lovers: Official

No mystery

When sex isn't easy to get you try harder when you get the opportunity. Same reason ugly birds give the best blowjobs.

Lame Mac 'email worm' limps into view

Fail!

From Sophos - More Information:

"OSX/Tored-A is written in RealBasic and contains "Infected and boted by OSX.Raedbot.B"."

Who writes a worm/virus/trojan in RealBasic?

Mac and Linux Bastilles assaulted by new attacks

Interesting

Some posters are concisely and knowledgeably explaining why this isn't that big a deal and that the El Reg is being a bit of a FUD merchant. Other posters are posting about how Mac/Linux users are living in denial because they seem to know what they are talking about. Lets hazard a guess at the OS choices of those two separate groups.

Meanwhile we all await the next flaw in a Microsoft program/OS that causes your Windows/IE machine to become a spam zombie simply by visiting the wrong website.

How gov scapegoats systems for man-made errors

@Sillyfellow

"hows about the school and educational system just admit they made a mistake and apologise."

Because that would mean admitting culpability and opening the door to being sued.

Google in Chrome rebetafication

For those after Chrome adblocking

Try adsweep. It is a GreaseMonkey script that can be used in Chrome. It is not as feature packed as adblock but I find it more handy than proxy based solutions.

Windows app store breaks old ground for Microsoft

Well

If this turns out to be anything but another case of Microsoft copying someone else's idea but missing the point I will be quite surprised.

MPs vote to keep addresses private (theirs, not yours)

Guy Fawkes and his cohorts had the right idea!

You mean commit an act of indiscriminate violence that would kill hundreds of innocent people as well as the enemies you want rid off, start a Civil War and force the whole country to become Catholic after France and Spain help you win? I'm not sure that would help very much to be honest.

DEC 'hacker' questions McKinnon political bandwagon

The to cases ain't exactly similar are they?

"Cuthbert now wants to know why he wasn't shown any support from politicians of the kind lent to McKinnon by Johnson."

Because a £1000 fine and a change of job is not the same as a show trial* in a US court followed by a few years in a US prison. Also, maybe, people don't find 'hacking' the US government quite as disreputable as hacking a charity website.

*Anyone who honestly believes McKinnon will get anything like a fair trial in the US lives in cloud cuckoo land.

Universal thaws out The Thing

I'm siding with the AC on this

"You're complaining that it's being remade because remakes are inevitably shite and because the last remake was good...?"

Kinda hypocritical don't ya think?

Microsoft's IE 8 beta adds 'special' list

Cost?

I wonder how much it costs to get on this list of compatible web sites?

OcUK puts £10K bounty on the heads of DDoS varmints

Disgruntled customer?

I guess their 'customer service' finally upset the wrong person.

Tesla takes Top Gear test to task

No way!

Clarkson and Top Gear fudging a car test to confirm their pre-existing bias? I don't believe that for a second. They would never stoop so low. Yeah right! They make some great TV but I wouldn't use their car 'reviews' as a basis for a purchase let alone take them as an unbiased examination of the car. Personally I think they should just stick to their stupid stunts and let someone who actually knows about cars do the reviewing.

Raids net police £1m in pirate game and movie discs

Well

I guess anyone who knows a copper in the Dudley has Xmas sorted.

Entire class fails IT exam by submitting in Word format

What a crock!

"We have offered evening tuition to the students to provide the opportunity for them to still achieve the qualification and a number have already taken this up."

So the kids have to do extra work because of a teacher cock up? Nice. How about they just get the kids to resubmit their work in the correct format or just accept the Word versions and stop being a bunch of tedious jobsworths?

Daily Mail punts Georgina Baillie filth

I assume that...

...the person responsible will be water boarded until they admit being at fault and apologise. Then that person will surely be burnt at the stake, their estate confiscated and their family thrown out onto the street. That is the only fitting way to deal with smut peddlers.

Manuelgate's goth vampire stripper fades from MySpace

Say it aint so?

The British press are a bunch hypocrites who will say and do anything to sell papers? no way!

BBC's speak you're branes collapses under Brand-Ross sex outrage

Ridiculous

What bothers me is that the biggest news story in the country for the last 3 days is that two Radio DJs upset an old man. What the hell?

This has obviously been stirred up the commercial press to take a swipe at the BBC. Until the likes of ITV, SKY and the tabloids decided this was going to be the world's most important development the BBC had all of two complaints. Once the story broke Sach's received and accepted an apology. Naturally the press successfully stirred up outrage amongst the Daily Mail readers of the world and on seeing a bandwagon rolling on by the politicians couldn't help but throw themselves at it. Brown and Cameron must have been falling over each other to jump on it first.

Naturally of course it was revealed today by the some of those responsible for starting this shit storm that no lies where told in those answerphone messages. I found it very Interesting how ITN and Sky News initially described her as a dancer and singer and not as a kinky Satan fetish stripper. I'm sure Sach's is already fully aware that he has a depraved tart as a Granddaughter so I doubt it was protect his sensibilities. No it was just to paint the BBC in the worst possible light . Rupert Murdoch must have creamed his pants when he got wind of this news story.

If this had been on a local commercial radio station nobody would have have cared or noticed. If Sach's hadn't been in Farty Towels nobody would have cared either.

Run Mac OS X on a PC

Got the t-shirt

Tried it a few times on different hardware but never got more than 70% of it working. Like the author says you eventually get bored trying to get everything to work. Still it is fun tinkering like back in the good/bad old days. At least for a while anyway.

University offers one-day Jedi course

Really?

I think you will have to go a very long way to find any Star Wars fans who think the prequels are as good as the originals. Probably to a galaxy far far away.

The Google-isation of all the net's access points

I seem to be lost

Excuse me I was looking for The Register's article slagging off Google's new web browser and ridiculing the hype. You know something that poured scorn on open source, made fun of the comic book and generally mocked all involved. All I seem to able to find is this oddly positive and optimistic article. Clearly I am in the wrong place. Can someone give me directions?

Home Office bankrolls plastic plod 'documentaries'

Save some cash

Why not save some money and forgo the OFCOM investigation and just jump right to the inevitable conclusion that the Government didn't do anything wrong.

Doctor Who fans told to lay off Hamlet

Hypocrisy time!

Excuse me is the comment section where people who cream their knickers over centuries old plays that they have seen dozens of times show utter contempt and disdain for those who do the same for contemporary entertainment? It is? Jolly good!

Why haven't I been told to stay away? As an X-Men fan I feel somewhat left out by not being subject to the sneering of the upper-classes, the educated and El Reg hacks. Can someone kindly disrespect my choice of entertainment just because they don't like it so I do not feel so left out? Thank you kindly.

Elonex shows off second Small, Cheap Computer

No word on pricing?

Those who pre-ordered an One or One+ get the opportunity to upgrade to the new models at no additional cost. The One-t will eventually retail for for £179 and the One-t+ at £199. That is quite a saving for the sake of a £10 deposit.

Dixons admits 'it's even worse than you thought'

PC World is good for...

...emergency hardware purchases and the very occasional bargain. Whether either of those is worth the risk is debatable.

Slashdot website down

This is terrible!

I've been so bored this morning that I actually did some work.

BBC vs ISPs: Bandwidth row escalates as Tiscali wades in

Entanet

@Chris

I too would like to give props to Entanet and its resellers. You know exactly what you are paying for and you get a damn good service at a reasonable price.

@Tom

So what do you do on the internet that is so damn valuable it should not be hindered by other people having the nerve to use it? How dare they have different interests and priorities to you. Just who do they think they are? I bet you have problems with kids on your lawn too.

IE8 to follow web standards by default

Sure it will!

I'll believe it when I see it.

US government forces military secrets on Brit webmaster

Typical

Gary should thank his lucky stars that they haven't demanded his head for circumventing US national security because the UK government would have handed him over without a fuss.

New Bond movie is Quantum of Solace

What does it mean?

A "Quantum of Solace" is apparently "The smallest unit of human compassion that two people can have." according to a character in the original Fleming short story of that name.

See: http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=973639

Illegal immigrants spared the gamma-ray scanner

Shocking!

The French using a dirty underhand trick that makes like easier for them at the expense of the UK? That almost never happens all the time.

Royal Society: UK gov needs to grow a biofuels policy

Bad idea.

"The British government must set policies to ensure that the current drive towards biofuels does not make a bad situation even worse."

If they stick their oar in they are guaranteed to make a bad situation worse. Probably best that they don't get involved.

Monitor maker aims s.book sub-notebook at Asus Eee PC

At that price...

...you might as well just get a laptop.

UK censor to appeal against Manhunt 2 verdict

The BBFC busy bodies

The BBFC should not be allowed to refuse certification. The most they should be able to do is give something an 18 certificate.

Why are books not subject to the same rating system films and video games are?

Newly-homeless kids get free iPod

@Dan Collett

Why? Because it is Apple and this The Register. The Register's hacks are heavily influenced by the Dvorak school of IT 'journalism'. This school of thought works on the basic premise that if you need page views you slag off Apple. The more unfair the story is, the further away from the truth it is and the more snark you fill it with the bigger the resultant increase in hits.