Posts by Sampler 1083 publicly visible posts • joined 16 May 2007
like current renewables (solar, wind and tide) will this also need fast ramping (and thereby low performance/higher polluting) gas powerstations to help fill in the need?
As otherwise I like the idea, the images on the link didn't seem like they took up a great footprint either.
Whilst the americans and british may quibble over which is the best type of Bacon (though the american's are wrong, as usual) one thing I've truly come to miss since arriving in australia is real bacon =(
Australian Bacon is more like ham, it's already partly cooked and, if like me, you like your Bacon to still be oinking when you slip it between two soft white buns with a little HP sauce then this just won't do.
Fortunately, there is some salvation, as a few supermarkets carry "English Bacon", however it's very overpriced and there's usually only one option.
Yorkshire Puddings, fish and chips, curry (don't even get me started on what passes for curry in Sydney compared to Bradford) are all things I miss (and maybe the family) but Bacon, Bacon is the constant reminder I'm far from home, a day's journey (and a thousand bucks) away from where my heart is..
Save twenty bucks* on a picture by using a grands worth of software?
*ok, maybe stick a nought on that - maybe, I never got as far as graduating as I attained the position I was studying for whilst in my first year, so not sure of the actual cost, still, I doubt it's near the price Adobe ask for their application, though, I suppose whilst you're actively investing time and effort circumventing one copyright...
In a 'couple of decades' I'd like to think the need for VR goggles will be redundant as we can all slip on a headband and have the images directly transferred to our brains, sort of like a lucid dream.
I'd've thought the advertising giants would be investing heavily into having direct access to peoples heads too..
..hmm, time for my own ipo...
Do you think someone should tell him you can turn those options off?
Though I guess not having the option to browse the internet and stare at cat pictures all day helps with the focus, all that incest* doesn't write itself..
(*I've only watched the first episode of GoT but presuming it's a common theme judging by it being the majority of the pilot)
woah, that's some vitriol for a bad joke (mine, that is, not windows phone as a platform)..
I'd used Windows Mobile HTC's since I stopped using Nokia's and stayed with HTC when they went Android so I personally feel I have some experience for my "full of shit" comment - windows phone offers nothing over andriod and has a whole lot of negatives to go with it, personally feel they shot themselves in the foot with windows phone, windows mobile wasn't all that bad to use.
Nokia's famous build quality is arguable on their classic devices, more like nostalgia, have seen many fail (like the slider on my 7110, the camera on my 7650, keyboard on the 7610 (though my 6210 was fairly stable)) and friends who have the newer devices it's much the same.
I've used windows phone and there's nothing it has over Android, windows phone and Nokia are both good partners as they're both examples of companies poised to have swiped up the new mobile market that the iPhone is accredited with but both fumbled with ball disastrously, would I really want to spend money on a platform that'll be thrown out and incompatible with the next on the whim of the company (ie windows mobile 6 not compatible with phone 7 not compatible with 8). Looks like app developers feel the same. Also, hows that youtube app coming along..
You're welcome to your opinion, but when it leads to calling people names on the internet to defend it you really should really look at your values and readjust your life's priorities.
If the they keep having to resort to petty suits and apparently lies to strangle the competition it reflects that they fear the competition and are not sure in their own product.
Which having to use an iPhone5 for six months before I could cajole my boss into letting me pick my own Android device (plumped for an Xperia Z1, not as good as my OneX UI wise but the tech's nice) I can quite see.
I've not had an iPhone before that point, maybe they were once ahead of the curve, but definitely not now, "annoyingly restrictive" is my lasting impression.
Aww, with both Samsung and Sony going waterproof I was hoping HTC would too (and include wireless charging as that seems a no-brainer to go with the waterproofing).
My OneX is getting close to needing to be updated and the Xperia Z1 work have handed out kind of shows that up, however I'm not sold on Sony's UI and would like to stick with HTC, having used sense since the Windows Mobile days I'm kinda used to it ;)
This was my first thought when I came to the country and saw they were introducing Opal cards but already had paypass infrastructure in place, surely a pre-authorisation of maximum fair when you swipe in and then exact charge when you swipe out?
Though this doesn't generate the large amounts of cash to sit in the Opal card accounts and gather interest I guess.
Also, where's my NFC phone app to replace the card?
One thing that struck me is recently we had to overhaul our privacy laws to notify our customers we store their data overseas (as our company is based out of the UK it's cheaper for us to borrow their infrastructure than to plant local servers - if albeit a little laggy).
So one week they make it so it's better for businesses to host data within the country (as you need to inform a customer data is going overseas which may alarm the weak minded) and the next they're saying we have to hand it over in a legible format if they ask for it.
Well, bravo.
Second thing, I've just been reading this sad news:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/03/18/romania_ransomware_murder_suicide/
I wonder if there's call for a fake CryptoLocker ransomware actual encryption, so you can claim your hacked and can't access the data yourself =)
Each to their own, I liked how Sense improved the windows mobile experience and still enjoy it on android with none of this lag you speak of, but then I've always gone for the flagship models (Prophet, Kaiser, Rhodium, Desire, Desire Z and now a OneX). It's actually made me resistant to purchasing a phone from another provider, especially when seeing stock android on my partners Nexus4, even though it's time to pick one up - maybe I'll wait for the new model mentioned in the article.
One thing I do like is the Galaxy S4 Active and Experia Z1 are both waterproof, a feature I hope HTC will 'innovate' into their next model, I'm getting the Sony for a work phone so we'll see how living without Sense UI goes along..
I like the idea, it has an HDMI input so still useful as a monitor, if the keyboard and mouse can be used on other devices too that means you have a handy set to go with your pc, just want to browse something quickly and not boot up the rig, chrome in your monitor, computers busted, chrome in your monitor to google fixes.
Yeah, your phone can do this, but still nice to have the big screen, if it's not going to add a lot to the price, then I'd be happy for monitors to include chrome os as standard. Actually, I'd like that for "smart tv's" too whom all seem to have their own build with disparate apps - if something like chrome or android became standard across TV's that would help the ecosystem and potentially even make them useful, rather than just having my PI wired to the back of one using the USB to power it and a spare HDMI to view it.
Will we be recompensed for the cost of downloading these adverts? I know this isn't a big issue for folk who have unlimited/high data allowances and plenty of wifi failover - but not all places are equal.
With any luck I'll be getting the internet fitted today in my apartment, I've been in Australia for three months and have had to rely on mobile data access (neither home nor work have wifi or any open/pay for services available - hell work have 35GB limit on internet fullstop, for an office of seven). The best data packages I've seen are 2GB allowance a month and north of $80 a month.
Not being made of money (especially as changing countries is expensive) I've been trying to get by on 500mb (with unlimited free Facebook & Twitter) and it's been a bind, even careful use has me down to zero a week before the end of the month.
Looks like I'll be switching to the native mail client with pop/imap instead of the gmail app then.
Back in 2007 I was on my second HTC which was still using mini-usb, they changed to micro when I got my fourth as it was around the time the EU decided that was the way to go and stuck since - so if you're claiming anyone had commonsense when it came to chargers you'll have to look at the fallen.
(yes, I know they had their own version of mini-usb but that was just for their dongles and a standard adaptor would work perfectly fine)
Oddly though, the lightening connector on my works iPhone5 is about the only thing I like about it, good size and doesn't mind which way around you stick it in (not that that's a massive issue, just nice not to try and connect, turn it around, try it again, turn it around, straight in...every...time..)
Well, that's one lost sale, I was contemplating an S4 Active as my next phone; I use sports tracking a lot and putting my OneX in a baggy for swimming or even cycling and running (in case of rain) is a bit of a chore, so a naturally water proof phone would be ideal.
Not ideal if I can't use it when I visit home in the UK and don't want to pay the high cost of my Australian sim and simply want to swap out to a prepay. I brought my OneX to Aus and swapped the sims without an issue when I emigrated, I guess I'm back to sitting and waiting to see if HTC make a waterproof One.
I'm guessing it's not a massive market that A) has this need and B) will be aware when buying their next phone but I can imagine this'll tarnish Sammy's image and lose more than just my sale.
..if you're going to buy a 5c you're not likely to be that bothered to camp over night (like the loons outside the Bondi Junction store I walked past last night, glass front adorned in duck-taped black-out curtains in a very cheap looking manner) or those who queued around two blocks for the CBD store and were on my works doorstep when I came in this morning.
You'll probably wait until Sunday, as you can't afford to take the time off work to get the latest shiny shiny and have to wait until your one free day in the week to pay for the lowest entry point your months of scrimping allows you to get..
It's nice to think we'll get a tipping point where machines can do everything and usurp us all, but as the past few decades have shown, such robots are short coming.
Instead, it's going to be a matter of degrees - train drivers are already being replaced, next the drivers as google car (or whoever) replaces taxis, truckers and bus drivers. Pilot's after now drones are proving reliable (plus, imagine the sales pitch, who can hijack a plane with no stick?).
Machine's will start to replace most manual labour jobs given time, anything production line has mostly switched to bots already, I could foresee more people going when their role becomes cost efficient.
But Doctor's, going to be a while before they're redundant and I can't imagine many volunteering in the new work free utopia, or at least I wouldn't feel comfortable being operated on by someone who's biggest qualification is they're stupid enough to work when they could be exercising their minds with bigger issues as the world's now their oyster.
Hell, even what I do, the lofty title of Data Account Manager for a Market Research firm (basically, move numbers around and try not to lose any) can be vastly automated, as I've already started writing my own scripts, but there's still an area of critical thinking involved where judgement calls have to be made and until you've got an AI that can do that (ie, a long way off) I'm still going to be a slave to the wage.
So we're going to end up in a world with fewer and fewer jobs due to increasing automation but still be a long way from a work free utopia, at which point I believe we all go to hell as the proletariat do what they do best and think with their fists against those deemed valued enough to be employed and it all gets burned to the ground.
The upshot with that though is at least we can all go back to work.
I've seen a similar idea before - that though had a block you kept in your pocket which was essentially the phone - radios, cpu, memory etc.. and connected via bluetooth to a screen, one was the size of a regular phone and acted as it (mic's, speaker and it's own power), another was tablet size and then scaled to a desktop at home.
All connected to the same block, the same source, so apps and experience was sync'd across the devices.
I liked the sound of that, it has the benefit of this system (can replace screen/camera without replacing the rest, or visa versa) but has the added benefit of everything sync'ing along.
Wouldn't it have been a good idea to add a USB socket or an extra micro USB cable coming out of the PiHub's power supply so you can directly power the Pi without losing a port on the USB hub or having to use a separate adapter - as this is being marketed to use with the Pi?
Also, making it a Pi case would also be a winner, so four additional USB ports below the Pi board, holding the board in place by taking the lower USB socket.
fugly offspring of a PS2 and a VCR
Nice PS3 touch sensitive button to switch on too
I owned every UK games console released since (and including) the NES before I emigrated to Aus and there's not a thing that's made me want to buy a current generation games console since I got here and the next generation leaves me so far actively disliking it.
Think I'll hang out more at SG bar in Sydney who have an Atari 2600 (with original wooden veneer finish) set-up and running in the back
"Siri search for x"
They mention they only share the patent with other company (seemingly there own) so this patent isn't licensed to Apple who's technology clearly infringes on it.
Well, may be not to sue Apple but at least to be held in the warchest incase Apple try and sue them or their customers again?
I've been served at the drive-thru on my bicycle before but also refused at a different "restaurant" so it seems to be a poorly implemented policy. When cycling through France I was once asked to take my bike outside the store too.
Though I suppose you have to be a special type of retard to think taking a horse in is a good idea.
Let's face it, for the cost, why don't they have two guys, one does the job, the other watches.
They're rotated on a regular basis to prevent familiarity and prevents one doing something they shouldn't, healthy paranoia on whether the other guy will grass you in will keep the guys in line.
Or is that a little low tech?
Plus if you've got two they can work as a soundboard and increase efficiency.
I had Sky broadband for a day exactly for that reason. I got an offer, six months three and then the ongoing price being half what I pay Be* it seemed too good to be true - it was.
The naff little sagem router they gave me look like it came out of a kinda surprise. I googled how to dump the firmware to get the login details I needed to use my own router, an N-Spec wifi with gigabit switch (mobile broadband's ace) to no avail so I called them.
Ten minutes on the phone to a customer service monkeh asking for my PPPOA details (or whatever they were) - no, not the router login details, I was informed you're not allowed to use your own device "for better customer service" - I was only calling customer service because they were stopping me doing what I wanted!
It honestly had never occurred to me they'd pull such a dick move, especially as I'd been with Be* for so long, they have a similar policy, they issue a relatively bland router but they also let you use your own. You call customer services, they ask are you using the Be* router, you tell them no and they tell you to plug it in and call back - why couldn't Sky do that?
It has the same benefits to the company of a generalised platform so they don't have to hire intelligent people for the call centre, just those capable of clicking responses on a screen and reading out the next but it has a vastly greater end user experience.
I asked to be put through to cancellations, which they were more than happy to do as it was something they could actually do and put down as an achievement for the day. Cancelled not only the internet but the phone and television (was moving over to the phone with the internet, had the TV for a few years).
Called Be* back up, sobbed it was all such a big mistake and they not only welcomed be back but gave me two months free to sooth the pain. Can't recommend them highly enough either - the service when I've contacted them with enquiries has been superb, never had any peak slowdown (though I guess it's subjective form exchange to exchange) and not had any problems - even used it for remote working that I had a job for eighteen months, two days at home a week without any trouble.
I was hoping for something to replace my aging TX2050 - this looks the part but the CPU & Storage aren't worth the price tag. Plus I'm still not keen on Windows 8 (and for all those who say "have you used it on a touch device", yes, I used it on the TX2050), can always roll back to 7 I guess (driver dependent).
I tried using the consumer preview on my tablet pc (traditional, actual laptop with a swivel touchscreen, not one of the keyboardless/oddless trendy things floating around today) and didn't get along - even though I was probably in the target audience having touchscreen ability I just found it too much hassle to do anything with the new UI making simple tasks harder for a person who's used to desktop work and I think the longest I lasted before rebooting to the win7 partition was two hours. It was just easier in every aspect to do what I wanted.
But that's me, others may differ and I can see it being a hit with the people who don't really know how to use a computer - ie most folk.
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