Posts by Stuart 22

Re: There is no breach

The bigger issue is allowing a retailer to store card details so you can cut 3 nanoseconds off placing your order or having to hunt for the last pocket/wallet you *think* you left the real card in.

I'm surprised a few retailers do have my credit card details ready despite not wanting them stored. Whether it's because the checkbox was well hidden or I checked when I meant not too (or t'other way round) I've no idea. But it would be good if GDPR could force them to make you go through a few more hoops if you really, really wanted this facility.

Re: I still highly doubt there ever was a machine with 2GB running Windows 95.

"Price rocket after Kobe earthquake"

The first generation of RAM-raiders made it much worse. The high cost led to the robberies and I made a good few bob replacing RAM for an office full of PCs that had lost their memory over the weekend. The extra demand drive up the price even further which, of course, made knicking more an even more lucrative attraction.

It was a bonus if the RAM-raiders were amateurs. New motherboards all round.

Re: So what's with the ban on horse-drawn conveyance in the drive-through?

I normally avoid Costa. But in these days when nicer cafes are shut it would still be nice to have something hot and vaguely sharing a name with coffee when out on a long ride (on a bicycle, not a horse). But we too are banned from their drive-thrus.

It's elf & safety apparently. We constitute a greater danger to them and their other clients than folks in cars. And I thought it was the other way round. Silly me!

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/costa-coffee-release-full-statement-on-why-cyclists-cant-use-drive-through-lanes-457280

Re: Comments?

Zen customer here. 60Mb + /29 IP delegation for not a lot more.

Good news is CS are brilliant, actually know more about internetty stuff than me and don't need scripts. Bad news is that's mostly wasted 'cos their service has been flawless for 15 years.

Worth paying the dosh just for the smugness and the knowledge we can only be out-smugged by A&A. But I ain't that rich.

Re: Gullibility is no excuse.

" Ever tried teach your parents or grandparents to use technology?"

Bit difficult 'cos they are all dead. But I do try teach my kids and grandkids ... some of whom do make some unwise decisions over new tech imho.

But then what do I know? I mean its not as though we invented or helped develop this computery/interwebby stuff - Oh, I forgot, we did ;-)

Re: Buy more cars - drive them less

We bought one last August. Our mileage doubled overnight because it was just such a more pleasant experience than the old oil guzzler. That include a trip to Scotlnd & back (from London).

Mind you it's dropped to near zero since March 16th. My little app shows I've run on just one recharge since then. Range hasn't been a problem but then I didn't need to check my eyesight. YMMV.

Re: Please El Reg ...

Oh and how long do we have committed support for Android 10/11/12?

Of greater relevance for those of us who wait a year to get it or a competitor for near half price in their bin-clearance sale and then expect it to do 3 or more years service.

Just asking for a Mr Scrooge ...

Re: DoH

I converted to Vivaldi long ago - so when I reverted to Chrome/Chromium on new Linux/Android devices I was shocked to see adverts re-appearing despite having a pi-holed network. It was sneakily checking 8.8.8.8

Result - Vivaldi quickly installed alongside our old friend Firebird - in case Vivaldi becomes similary 'infected'. The claim the Google is trying to enforce it on me for my own good is a little suspect methinks.

This is a good move to lose the love of Chrome/Chromium. They thought that as the No1 browser it is invincible. Will hubris (and bloat) rather than ad-blockers be their eventual nemesis?

Re: The good old days...

Nope, its cheaper to use my mobile at home than the landline. It's been strictly incoming and broadband carrying for the last decade or so.

The next outgoing landline call is likely to be when I contract Covid-19 as 111 is blocked on my mobile as a 'premium' number. Go figure ...

Re: My actual webcam costs $5000...

Errr ... my Logitech C920 cost £28.95 a couple years back from Amazon. It does Zoom great so I thought I would get another for downstairs. Back on Amazon the current price was now £79.99 before going oos.

Wow, if Amazon hadn't stopped the price gouging goodness knows what it would have been. Workaround is to unplug, walk downstairs, re-plug.

Buying £79.99 worth of Logitech shares should have been the sharp move back in February. What price time machines?

Re: Shame on you, Kieren

"I don't care that non-charities use it."

I do care that non-charities/non-commercial persons use it. But not enough that banning others would be a benefit. The issue is that doing a hard segmentation of tlds costs money in administration and introduces silly anomalies in whatever policy is enacted.

Most written policies (like battle plans) fail with the first contact with the ememy as Nominet registrars know too well. I speak (as a registrar) when it comes down to registrant verification that means many small community organisations are not permitted to register *.org.uk domains and hence go to .org.

Keeping .org fees low should be the prime aim for those registrants who want to spend the money doing better things than lining some obscure owner's pocket.

Re: This may be a really obvious question.

I presume the pizza box receiver will distribute the connection by wifi, Hence $90 per unconnected village in the developing world could look attractive compared to building 3/4/5G infrastructure. Especially if the government/NGO buys in bulk and/or subsidises.

Bundled with a free solar panel powered Tesla battery bank?

I'm on a 35 month old Lenovo P2. Still with brilliant battery life. Why change? In self- isolationist mode I'm reduced to using it - AS A PHONE*

Proper camera for photos, tablet for a more decent sized screen and a PC for real work. Mobility and size count for nothing at home. Looks like for me it's going to be at least a 12 month episode so I'll be thinking of replacing my 48/60 month old P2 with a neat 6G jobby if I'm ever allowed out again. Not that anyone wants to talk to me nowadays ...

* Mobile calls are cheaper than landline on my tariff.

Re: Unusual not the right word

Be interesting to see if there are any differences by demographic. Here we never subscribed to Netflix despite the nudging from TV to tablet. iPlayer/ITVHub/All4 more than satisfied our needs - for free. Since the Covid-19 so many great institutions have been streaming their best content for free - we've never had time to watch even iPlayer for weeks.

We've watched more operas in London, New York, Paris, Vienna, Brussels virtually than we have been to real ones in the UK for years. Indeed I'm sold on watching them on screen. It's a better experience imho than viewing and listening from the 'Gods'. You see so much more detail and you can pause for a pee-break - a real bonus for us bladder weak self-isolating old fogeys.

We're so sad that we don evening dress when enjoying the posher venues ... well that smart TV might just be phoning home with pictures!

Re: Sad to see it go

AFAIR we sold the entire stock to a certain International Computer company.

But I do have a spare bigger and probably faster 2GB micro-SD card that came with my very first t-mobile smartphone. Say, as you are a fellow Vulture-fan I'll knock off the vat and p&p.

Re: Personal IP rights?

"He could sue (or threaten to sue) because the old company has no right to his personal IP."

Dunno what jurisdiction(s) would apply but I'd bet a big load tht it would cost a big load and, if succesful, he might get his data back or destroyed and it would take another big load to get costs. Not something worth betting on for the average person.

Re: For most people Covid 19 is a disaster

"The tweet also disclosed the Zoom meeting ID was 539-544-323, and fortunately that appears to have been password protected."

Why didn't the reporter mention what happened when they tried 1234 ... ?

Re: AI with worker drones

Strange how many countries have a policy of when a road wears out to simply strip it back to the foundations and relay it completely. It may be costly but you never see any patching so one wonders if it turns out cheaper in the long run on repairs to road and vehicles.

Lose less data with your iPhone

Thank goodness he was using an iPhone - with almost any Android he would have had to shell out for the extra 256GB off his SD card ...

Re: Ominous

I'm even more amazed at being able to get reliable VPSs at a fraction of DigitalOcean's prices - like a 4Gb/40Gb system for less than a fiver. Stuff that 10 years ago was costing me a bargain $99/month for those who remember RackShack and Head Surfer.

Hence I'm not surprised DigitalOcean are being squeezed and having to layoff. Hosting is a cruel business.

Re: "given that the rocket is lost during the test anyway?"

"They're going to use both systems so there's redundancy in case of a problem with one."

I suspect that's the problem of having a monopoly supplier who can charge what they want and deliver when they can be bothered. NASA have been there before.

The trick is to have competition but not driving the one that gets behind into cutting corners (as with the A320Neo and 737 Max). The answer, at least in part, is to have very heavy hands-on regulation/supervision. Hopefully NASA will go against their master's doctrine on this.

"I nominate the entire Boeing board and the upper management echelon of the FAA to be on this so-called "test flight""

I remember possibly an apocryphal story before the certification of the Boeing 747. A problem was sudden flame-outs on the P&W engines which wasn't being addressed. The CEO of Boeing introduced the issue with the CEO of P&W on a test flight while they went through the procedure to induce one - well four on a 747 but luckily they all restarted. It got sorted. Those were the days when the 737 was already in widespread service and in 53 years Boeing had progressed from this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_247

Imagine if they had just strapped a couple of GE Leaps under the wing and a prayer of a 247 Max instead of going to all that trouble and expense of a type change ;-)

Re: Wow, thats's really too fast ....

But if its something big I'd be using wifi surely? Pretty fast and cheaper. And where there's no wifi there won't be any 5G.

"Sorry, are they proposing to reduce to rural-level connectivity to almost the entire population?"

Nope, the opposite. Presumably as it is all shared infrastructure - if you can get coverage from one operator you will be able to get coverage from t'other three (oops!).

Not as in this part of london where it's a postcode lottery of which networks you get and which you don't. Which means if the caller is on another network the call has a double chance of failing.

Re: "experiencing intermittent service"

No probs here. Presumably when they switch me to the £6/month tariff it also went to the top of the call priority list. So, even during a nuclear attack I should still be able to check the speaking clock (020 7043 1320 for people of a certain age).

Sad. I was hoping you had found a utility company that connected one's plumbing to a fine Chardonnay winery rather than a boring local reservoir. I really don't get this tap-water thing. A nice vintage shower would be a bonus.

Thames Water really ought to get into the added-value business ....

Yes, I rather like the *buntu approach. A major LTS release every two years on a predictable date. That's when I upgrade my client kit. There is a six monther for those who prefer to die on the bleeding edge. Meanwhile my servers upgrade (or rather re-image) after 4/5 years (that's 2xLTS versions). Simples.

You feel, no YOU KNOW you are in control of upgrading rather than being at the random mercy of an unpredictable supplier (why is my only Windows kit refusing to offer the upgrade from 1809?).

Re: Good. Another year for people to move away from Windows

"My only gripe with Debian Linux being that infuriating Libre Office software that won't let me install Apache Open Office"

Easy way to avoid clashes is to run the other application in a VM. Virtualbox is free and you could use it on the Debian machine to try out Debian 10 and put OO on that. Remember to tick the copy'n'paste boxes so you can copy between and you can even use the same document store.

My Kubuntu 18.04 LTS also runs Windows 2000 in a VM for some really ancient legacy stuff and to remind me of the time MS knew how to produce a really neat low footprint OS with a nicer GUI. It's never run faster or better. Bit sad more recent Windows only apps turn up their nose and refuse to run.

Re: There is no "case for Mars"

"The only possible advantage to Mars would be if you terraform it, and we are so far away from such technology it isn't even worth consideration at this point."

Nope, dead easy. Just reverse engineer what we are doing to this planet.

Re: Those were the days

I think the University of Essex was one of the first to bring Dartmouth interactive BASIC to the UK masses in 1970. Well it felt like that - on a roomful of teletypes connected to a DEC-10. This is the future we stuttered ten times a second.

So cool after years of punchcard driven Fortran 4.

Re: Another nail in the coffin of electric cars and Li-ion batteries

"Let me get this straight. You're thinking about spending many tens of thousands of Dollars/Pounds/Euros/Yen on an electric car that takes a goodly fraction of an hour to charge at a high speed charger and probably requires rewiring your house if you plan to charge it at home?"

The latest generation of eCars are knocking on 200 miles before a recharge. An hour break at a service station after that is good - not bad - if only for the safety of other road users. At home then you'll probably want to charge it overnight to get the best rate - that's usually eight hours to most people so why go to the expense of installing a fast-charge system unless if installation is trivial and/or subsidised?

Frankly I value my life rather more - and getting rid of ICE pollution here in London should extend and make it more enjoyable. YMMV ;-)