Posts by SW

BOFH: There's a fatal error in the blinkenlights

Never thought I would see the day when they were...

Out BOFH'd by Uber-BOFHs.

Cloudflare's bot bouncer blocks weirdo browsers

Even blocking Chrome on a Chromebook

How's that - can't get more "corporate" that a Google browser on Google hardware - yet still blocked me this morning.

France, UAE to drop €50B on AI mega-datacenter. Still nowhere near America’s $500B bet

Re: One Gigawatt ?

We just added our most powerful nuke plant at Flamanville onto our grid this winter.

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/france/article/2024/12/21/france-s-most-powerful-nuclear-reactor-connected-to-grid-after-17-year-build_6736344_7.html

Also wind is increasing, in 2022 we added 2.1GW capability through both offshore & onshore - more on the way. 2023 wind generation contributed over 50TWh.

https://analysesetdonnees.rte-france.com/en/generation/wind

The older nuke plants can be turned down to provide power to these new datacentres.

India's Moon orbiter was shifted suddenly to avoid Korea's and NASA's craft

Acronyms

Is there a specific US department that does nothing but come up with acronyms ?

MADCAP !!!

Artemis II Orion service and crew modules slotted together at last

Re: Is the minivan an approved Reg unit of volume?

I expect it's using the European convention on numbering which has the comma in place of the decimal point. Still catches me out and i live in the EU

Brit watchdog slams Microsoft as it clears $69B Activision Blizzard buy

CMA: "You can't talk to us like that, don't you know who we are...!!!"

MS/AB: "We know exactly who you are Little Englander Man" and look ---- "We got what we wanted all along - but at what wasted cost just to make a government quango feel important"

China's top EV battery maker announced a breakthrough, but top boffin isn't convinced

I thought the US liked battery cars...!

Quote...

And according to the US Department of Transportation, typical home, workplace and public level 2 chargers can take a battery from FULL TO EMPTY in anywhere from four to ten hours.

UK warned not to bother racing US, EU on EV subsidies

Aptronym or lucky coincidence?

Byline - Jude Karabus or maybe that should be Jude Car_or_Bus

UK becomes Unicorn Kingdom, where AI fairy dust earns King's ransom

Re: Unicorns...

*goes to look at UK Passport - yep there it is, a Donkey with a Strapon on its head.

Zoom's end-to-end encryption isn't actually end-to-end at all. Good thing the PM isn't using it for Cabinet calls. Oh, for f...

What a way to fail...

Hahaha - using a video conferencing system based in the country that you want to do a "fantastic" trade deal with and there's no guarantee that they're not already listening in.

Boeing aircraft sales slump to historic lows after 737 Max annus horribilis

When is a Max not a Max

Ryanair will also NOT be calling them a 737-Max

Traffic lights worldwide set to change after Swedish engineer saw red over getting a ticket

Go with the railway signal system.

Red / Amber / Double Amber / Green

Linky revisited: How the evil French smart meter escaped Hell to taunt me

Re: They can pry the pitchfork from my cold dead hands before we allow one in...

They can't (depending on your circumstances) force them on us here in France. It is not against the law to refuse them access INTO your house to install one. They can only force one on you if your meter is an external one - but there are arguments that you can restrict their access if they have to come ONTO your property (i.e. garden) to do it.

They can pry the pitchfork from my cold dead hands before we allow one in...

I wouldn't mind but all this garbage spouted about how they make your life easier is kangaroo testicles.

Here in rural parts of L'hexagone we report our own meter readings via that new fangled thing called l'internet. But we are supposed to have a bi-annual visit from the man with an electronic clipboard to take our readings. However, he always calls when we're out, leaves a card saying will be back a demain at the same time when we're of course out again.

So, how do we rural residents of France get around this, well we don't let one of those infernal green boxes inside, no - we simply write the reading on the card left and hey presto the "official, has to be done" reading is completed for another six months.

Ah well, back to the vin de table.

After Amazon's Bezos exposes Pecker, National Enquirer pushes back, promises to probe itself

You'll be needing us old ones then.

Yup, VPN required - probably something to do with GDPR.

British egg producers saddened by Google salad emoji update

Vegetable Salad - that's no vegetable

So why's there a fruit in there...???

Half the world warned 'Chinese space station will fall on you'

Hmm, wonder what could go wrong with an attempted missile strike against it. Wonder what happens when the thing misses its target and then goes off hunting for another nice lump of orbiting metal to hump with?

Full shift to electric vans would melt Royal Mail's London hub, MPs told

Nice ROE

""Other factors included the expense – Tesla's entry-level Model 3 vehicle is $35,000 (£28,50) and there's no second-hand market.""

Damn, at that price (ROE) I'm putting in my order now :) :) :)

Vegemite tries to hijack Qantas name-our-planes competition

Re: Doh!

Bugger - ya beat me to it...

Have an Upvote...

Confidence in £70m customs system has 'collapsed', warns Treasury Committee

You'll be needing us old ones then.

When the new system goes completely TITSUP and CHIEF rolls over and plays dead as well, you'll be needing those of us who remember the old manual declaration days.

Anyone got a manual typewriter and a stack of SADs (C88) forms available...?

Shine on, you crazy Eind minds: Boffins fire out 43Gbps infrared 'Wi-Fi'

There goes the mobile phone case industry...

And don't keep the device in your pocket whilst waiting for that urgent email - denim the scourge of infra-red wifi aficionados.

Scotsman cools PC with IRN-BRU, dubs it the 'Aye Mac'

Yup - Even out here in the Middle East

METRE-LONG DINOSAUR POO going under the hammer

Never mind the quality and length

How much of an eye watering girth was it - El Reg units only please

Reg Latin scholars scrap over LOHAN's stirring motto

Latin is a language...

Ah, that brings back memories (although it certainly does not bring back any knowledge of the subject).

I remember taking Latin for one year at High School, we had a teacher who's accuracy with the blackboard eraser was lethally accurate, but I digress. My point being that it brought back this...

Latin is a language, as dead as dead can be

It killed the ancient Romans

And now it's killing me.

Curabitur in maxima eruditorum commentariis.

Dubai to get huge climate-controlled domed city and giga-mall

We already have 100MW of solar power here with a heck of a lot more to come.

Re: Power usage..

@Andy Tunnah - It's already under construction. Reactor vessel construction this year and expected fueling in 2016.

F1? No, it's Formula E as electric racing cars hit the track

Phnaar alert

Shame that Qualcomm used a 2009 registered pair of vehicles for their promo video - a 2006 motor would have provided even more snickering.

Speed of light slower than we thought? Probably not

Re: One of these things is not the same as the other...

Zero - unless it's one of those new fangled electric horseless carriages.

Beautiful balloon burst caught on camera

Is that the 'globe' of helium that remains for a few frames?

Fantastic quality images.

As per subject, is that the helium that remains visible for a while?

Mystery of Guardian mobos and graphics cards which 'held Snowden files'

PPE

I trust that the appropriate level of Personal Protective Equipment was donned by those in the room at the time of this destruction.

Can just imagine a belted and braced Health and Safety Executive of the Grauniad insisting on it.

Happy first anniversary, Curiosity!

Human or not?

"leaving an awful lot of boffins – and countless interested homo sapiens"

Leaves me to wonder what species the boffins are

Chinese 'nauts return to Earth after vigorous space coupling

Re: You came in that thing?

Wow, cramped or what - my car's bigger.

? Was the taikonautess sat in the middle - fnaar fnaar

Speech-to-text drives motorists to distraction

Re: They missed an obvious distracting task to measure...

Another bug bear of mine is those idiots who drive with their frikkin' dogs on their lap/roaming free in the front of the vehicle.

If you think that's bad you should try it out here in the Middle East - it's more often the case of children sitting on the driver's lap (crunchy airbags is the nickname) !!!

As for using the mobile, well local attitude is that if you can't drive/mobile/eat/scratch/smoke at the same time then maybe you ought not be on the roads.

Me, handsfree and voice operated works perfectly well.

Self-explanatory icon for this = usual result of the local driving style.

The bunker at the end of the world - in Essex

Don't forget the Mistley Anti Aircraft Operations Room

Also in Essex...

Used to play around the site when I was a kid, we lived in the village.

Not as impressive as the Kelvedon Hatch one but still of interest... http://www.subbrit.org.uk/rsg/sites/m/mistley/

Was fun trying to get through the fencing around the facility.

TARDIS materialises in Sydney

Re: Second picture, girl in TARDIS dress...

And if they are bigger, then she would no doubt respond thus...

"Are you pleased to see me or is that a Sonic-Screwdriver in your pocket?"

Emergency spacewalk as ISS takes a leak

Let me guess, you're probably of a similar opinion about man's exploration in the other direction, I believe they also use the 'man in a can' method to research the oceans.

Duh.

VTOL hybrid flying car promises the skies

Re: All I can say is V22 Osprey not a friendly aircraft

And we all know that ducted fans are absolutely shit at decapitating hoards of rampaging enemy cluttering up your intended landing site - now that's the real reason for open blades.

Re: I don't see the point

The 'point' is in making a product that has an envisaged market.

There are always people out there who want (must have) the latest gizmo irrespective of the cost - what's so wrong with providing them with the objects of their desire?

If I had the money, space, acquired skilset then I'd be interested.

New NASA rover lands in frigid alien hell tomorrow

Re: Optional accessories?

But is it not likely that the shark would/could be at the controls initially via the WIFI control link - I don't think it was mentioned exactly who's got hold of the joystick.

(we need a shark icon methinks)

Optional accessories?

Looks like there's plenty of room to add further equipment on to it.

Hm, frickin lasers spring to mind - can never have enough frickin lasers on an autonomous vehicle.

Why next iPhone screen could be made of SAPPHIRE - and a steal...

Never mind the quality - feel the width !

"elephant's tampon girth"

Do I see a new candidate for inclusion in El Reg measurement standards?

Dubai splurges on 700hp, 217mph Lamborghini police cruiser

Saw it last week

Whilst I was poodling around the touristy areas of DXB. Would hate to be in it (or anywhere near) when it comes across one of the gazillions of speed humps on the roads (other than Shk Zayed) at high speed. Why do you think they prefer the 4x4s out here?

Also read that this wasn't going to be used to chase perps just to show that Dubai is back in the game - finance speaking.

Inside Adastral: BT's Belgium-sized broadband boffinry base

Low tech badging

For such a high-tech facility I feel a little 'let-down' by such a low-tech visitor badge.

Where's the gizmos? Was there an RFID chip?

Wasn't this the location where one famous (but can't remember his name right now) had a chip implanted so that the building would open/unlock doors for him?

Is UK web speech regulated? No.10: Er. We’ll get back to you

Re: Pile of c**p being disseminated by the media

DJ, you just got yourself a +1 for the new term...

"Demoncratic society"

Someone will most certainly be demonised for this.

Reader slain? 'Even the Google apologists on G+ are p****d off'

Transferring from a supposedly non-popular aggregator

Ha, just imported my subscriptions into theoldreader.com

Result =

Thank you for uploading your OPML file. We will soon start importing your subscriptions, which might take up to several hours depending on the amount of feeds you have.

There are 20536 users in the import queue ahead of you.

===========

Yep, that's 20k users in front of me, all coming from a supposedly under utilised service !!!

Google shreds Reader in new round of 'spring cleaning'

Re: iGoogle

Thunderbird and many other desktop software I'm sure are capable.

But that method doesn't work when you use multiple-devices during the course of the day.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Subject says it all.

/Goes to cry into his beer/

Elon Musk's 'Grasshopper' hover rocket scores another test success

Strange URL

What gives ?

Quote... http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/03/12/miracle_anti_ageing_drug_australia/

Where's the anti ageing story?

Was this a 'manned' or a 'mannequined' trial...?

A beer to the guy standing just above the engines that went up and down without even losing his hat !