Posts by David 132

One-year countdown to 'biggest Ctrl-Alt-Delete in history' as Windows 10 approaches end of support

Re: They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login

You must be aware that half the GPOs are, these days, completely ignored unless you have the LTSC or Enterprise versions of Windows :(

Re: Making the decision for me --

Some person at Microsoft is reading your comment and thinking, "how come we don't use the space taken up by progress bars to show adverts? Who wouldn't love to watch an ad for cool, refreshing Pepsi instead of having to watch a boring green progress bar? Perhaps we could surprise and delight our users by unexpectedly changing their mouse-cursor to well-known corporate logos?"

Some time ago, as I commented here on the Reg at the time, I saw red when my one Windows 10 PC yet again rebooted overnight, destroying my day's work in the process, and I nuked its entire Windows Update subsystem, hacking out Registry keys with the fervour of a gardener dealing with Japanese Knotweed (albeit, rather more permanent success).

As a result I haven't been bothered by updates ever since; no crapware/shovelware being foisted on me unexpectedly, no nags to update to Windows 11, no sudden degrading of Windows components.

Yes, it's out of date and possibly vulnerable; you're all welcome to try and hack it. It's located at 192.168.0.1 - go nuts! :)

Re: And we all know what that means...

And with that infuriatingly and inappropriately chirpy "Copilot just got installed! Check it out!"?

Smart homes may be a bright idea, just not for the dim bulbs who live in 'em

Re: Abrilliant article that I will reference in future

Well, aren’t you a clever dick.

BBC weather glitch shows 13k mph winds in London, 404℃ in Nottingham

Older readers chuckle at the reference; younger readers have no idea what you’re talking about :)

Re: Only 13k?

And yet that temperature was never actually found.

Tesla Cybertruck recalled again. This time, a software fix for backup camera glitch

>Exactly, when you feel a thud, you've reversed far enough. ;-)

^ Found the Parisian :)

Re: Robo Cyber Trucks

But have you ever met a nice South African?

My Volvo will helpfully obscure 95% of its backup camera display, mid-reversing, with such top-priority unmissable messages as “connection lost with bluetooth phone”.

Grrr.

Re: Robo Cyber Trucks

> Shoot 'em off Jim !

Ahem. “Scrape ‘em off Jim”, I think you’ll find.

Everyone needs a hobby. Mine is memorizing the lyrics to cheesy 80s novelty hits.

All together now, “Hold a chicken in the air, stick a deckchair up your nose, fly a jumbo jet and then bury all your clothes…”

If Dell's Qualcomm-powered Copilot+ PC is typical of the genre, other PCs are toast

Re: Is it my age ...?

The Dragon 32 emulator showed the machine to be a riot of migraine-inducing shades of magenta/puce/cyan, and extremely blocky low-res graphics. So in other words, exactly the same as every other British built-down-to-a-budget micro of that era. Didn't try any development on it so I can't really offer an opinion on 6809 vs. 6502 or Z80, sorry.

Re: Is it my age ...?

Not that this is your fault, and it's grossly unfair and iniquitous that for some reason I hold you responsible, but... your comment has just sent me down the 8-bit emulation rabbit hole, and before I knew it, I found myself downloading a Dragon 32/64 emulator, playing its games, and reading far more information about that platform than is healthy.

I had already done the above for the ZX81, Spectrum, and QL, some years ago :)

Re: Function keys on a touch bar?

I didn't downvote you - everyone's entitled to their opinion, and wouldn't the world be boring if we were all the same? - but, judging by the downvotes, you do seem to be in a minority here :)

Re: Function keys on a touch bar?

And, in a rare and neat instance of Reg comments going so far into a surreal flight of fancy that they arrive back where they started, obligatory XKCD!

Re: the hot little jets of air it quietly emits

The laptop blows, but the OS sucks. So it cancels out. No hovering or hoovering, alas.

Smart TVs are spying on everyone

Re: Buy a non smart TV - if you can find one

>Or do the new ones automatically connect to any open network they can find?

I don't believe so (that would probably be a step too far for even Smart TV manufacturers - or am I too optimistic?) but I have heard that some models are now obscuring the screen with obnoxious "Finish setting up your TV now!" (or equivalent) pop-ups until they're connected.

Linus Torvalds declares war on the passive voice

Re: He's right, of course

>is there a technical term for a pointer that points to itself?

May I nominate, "an Ouroboros Pointer"?

Office 2024 unveiled for Microsoft 365 refuseniks

Re: But the important parts are not fixed.....

>…22.8 or 22.8.94, which is the 22nd September (1994)…

Really? Those wacky Germans. I’d have interpreted that as 22nd August, but what would I know :P

Fresh court filing accuses Oracle of creating 'maze' of options 'hidden' in 'contract'

>I found the previous owners had removed the heater/lamp from the bathroom leaving (I think) three red and two black wires dangling from the ceiling...

You were lucky. An old UK friend of mine bought a house, and the previous owners had not only removed the ceiling light fittings - bulbs, pendants, shades and all - but they had "thoughtfully" dealt with the problem of bare dangling wires by twisting the blue & brown wires together and wrapping them in electrical tape.

My friend got a shock - appropriate term - when he took possession of his new home in the gathering gloom of an autumn afternoon, and turned the first light on!

As for myself, well, the first house I bought I found that the sellers had removed, amongst other things: the loo rolls and holders, the wall-mounted toothbrush holder in the bathroom, the (cheap, vinyl) shower curtain, and pretty much all the lightbulbs.

By contrast, the first house I bought here in the States I got a ride-on lawnmower thrown in by the seller because he "didn't have any use for it".

Not sure where you get your information, or which part of the US, but here in the PNW it's absolutely the case that major appliances (washer, dryer, fridge, and yes even microwave) are considered part of the sale, unless the seller and buyer explicitly negotiate otherwise.

And as for sheds being considered moveable... nope, not in any property transaction I've been involved in or even heard of.

Re: Simple answer

It was in microdot form in the dot of the ‘i’ in the words “Sign Here” on the contract.

This is Oracle, remember.

Microsoft throws in the towel on HoloLens 2

Re: Half-hearted

Aaargh, this pattern used to drive me mad at my former employer.

They'd launch an exciting new platform/industry-initiative/protocol.

They'd get lots of industry partners onboard - peripheral vendors, OEMs, ISVs - with the usual "we think this is the best thing since sliced bread" canned quotes for the launch.

And then, a year or two later, when the product in question wasn't - contrary to the marketeers' more fevered hopes - an industry-dominating multibillion-dollar business, well, my employer would cancel it, leaving all those partners with unsold stock and unexpected revenue-stream gaps, and having to explain to their customers why the Next Big Thing was, in fact, the Last Silly Hype.

And my employer would do this again, and again, and again, burning more credibility and goodwill every time.

And they wondered why, over time, industry partners became progressively less willing to sign up to stan for their latest initiative ("it's going to be HUGE! Trust us! We TOTALLY won't cancel this one after 18 months!!!") - and why their own reputation as industry leaders just didn't exist any more.

(I suspect the smarter ones among you can hazard a guess at who the employer in question was, but I'm past caring.)

Re: Good riddance!

>Who wants to attend a meeting in VR with some Roblox type avatar?

...apart from Mark Zuckerberg?

After 3 years, Windows 11 has more than half Windows 10's market share

Re: But why not just make 10 better?

<xkcd>For $2000, I’ll build you one that goes to 12!</xkcd>

Bending the rules with flexible non-silicon 32-bit RISC-V chip

Re: Err

What, a smart e-ink crisp packet that when it's been emptied, can be reprogrammed to say "Prawn Cocktail" rather than "Cheese & Turnip" and be re-used?

Genius!

Re: Fine, no Crysis

It can maybe run “Guess the number I’m thinking of”.

US Army orders next-gen robot mule to haul a literal ton of gear

Missed opportunity

Why didn’t they call that first-gen S-MET “Big Trak”?

Starfish Space to tackle orbital junk for NASA with SSPICY Otter

"Spicy Otter"?

Like the Indian restaurant that had "Tarka Dhal" on the menu. Anyone querying it was told "well, it's like ordinary, mild Dhal, but a little 'otter..."

Yes, that's my coat, thanks. I'll take it and leave. I think that would be best for all concerned.

Bring the joy of train delays home with your very own departure board

Re: a very realistic product

Just up the road from me here in the US, there's a strip-mall, and the large roadside signs declare it to be named "Market Centre".

I pointed this out to my (USAian born-and-bred) grandmother-in-law once, and she confessed that she'd never ever noticed the British spelling, in over 30 years of driving past it; subsequent conversations with colleagues here have shown that no-one has any clue as to why it's spelled that way.

And I still get asked to "say something with your wonderful accent!" whenever I go grocery-shopping, but that's a whole other saga.

Re: Cool.

Mine were forever telling me "Don't take the cork off your fork".

Icon, because I didn't listen.

Public Wi-Fi operator investigating cyberattack at UK's busiest train stations

Re: CheckPoint's remarks

No, no. These are super serious security people with years of experience.

It was "swordfish".

That doomsday critical Linux bug: It's CUPS. May lead to remote hijacking of devices

Re: WTF is a WiFi router?

Oh, to facilitate them in listening to their "popular beat combos"?

Microsoft cash to help reignite Three Mile Island atomic plant

>...but a PPA does not mean they control the plant, just that they purchase the power.

It's almost as if the clue's in the name. Power Purchase Agreement.

Still, a clue like that is far too subtle to deter some commentards who are clearly determined that nuclear == explodey-boom-doom.

IBM scores $45M zinger from Zynga in patent wringer

Re: Software and business patents

Yeah, but it's Zynga... this is definitely one of those wasp vs. scorpion "can't they both lose?" scenarios.

Apple AirPods Pro 2 can be sold as hearing aids, says FDA

+++ Jelly Jelly Jelly +++

Out of Cheese Error

Hi Mum Is Testing

+++

Google Chrome gets a mind of its own for some security fixes

With Manifest v3, I'm not sure that UBO has any decent access to websites or the browser any more anyway.

I'm sticking with Firefox here.

The future everyone wanted – in-car ads tailored to your journey and passengers

Re: Based on Your Journey

PDX? Or merely a street-number coincidence?

Re: MBA's

>Marketeers, MBA's, and advertisement peddlers all belong on the B Ark.

No. Those on the B Ark ultimately survived.

I think you mean "Disaster Area's all-black Stunt Spaceship".

Set the controls for the heart of the sun, etc.

Apple debuts iPhone 16, Watch Series 10, assorted AirPods

Once upon a time, there was a thriving third-party ecosystem in find-everything applets for the original Mac OS 8.

The best known of these was a program called "Watson"; purchasers loved it, because it made it super easy to find anything (apps, documents) on a Mac.

Then Apple themselves introduced similar functionality, and with great creativity, named it "Sherlock".

At a stroke, it destroyed the third-party market for such tools.

Hence the term "Sherlocking" - shorthand for, "other people are making a quiet living adding this functionality to Apple products, and now Apple see revenue that isn't theirs and want it."

FTC urged to stop tech makers downgrading devices after you've bought them

Re: If it requires an app to function or control

I could “move myself” when brushing my teeth, but it seems like it’d be much less effort, and less exhausting, to keep my head motionless and move the toothbrush instead…?

Re: Car thing

>Am I hopelessly outdated because I remember bad treatment and avoid it in future?

Possibly, but you're not alone. I still have Mazda and Barclays Bank on my personal boycott list, because of actions they took almost 40 years ago that affected my family.

Some families, generation to generation, pass down valuable antiques, or photographs of sentimental value. I pride myself on my carefully-nurtured selection of heirloom grudges :)

Re: Reminds me of TV sets

I believe it's a form of picture frame freqency smoothing, interpolating frames between those actually transmitted, to smooth and "improve" motion.

Gives an unsettlingly smooooooth motion effect, which isn't to everyone's liking, but is reminiscent of certain daytime soap operas.

Either that, or next week I will wake up and it'll turn out that this whole comment was just a dream.

Re: Reminds me of TV sets

>20" HDMI cable [...] The HDMI cable runs downstairs to the basement...

Dolls' house?

Or inadvertent mix-up of feet and inches?

If every PC is going to be an AI PC, they better be as good at all the things trad PCs can do

Re: But what...

And a Co-Pilot key on the keyboard! Don’t forget that!

Re: they have a purple LED

Oh, Hush.

White House thinks it's time to fix the insecure glue of the internet: Yup, BGP

>Remind me ... how many billions in crap currency have become lost, stolen or strayed in the last ten years?

I'm certain you already know about this one Jake, but:

https://www.web3isgoinggreat.com

$75.054 Billion as I write this, and ticking ever upwards.

Re: File size limits are a thing of the past!

Well, in the spirit of sharing and friendliness, if anyone wants access to all my data, I am at IP address 127.0.0.1 and my main drive is designated “C:” - help yourselves!

Firefox 130 lands with a yawn, but 131 beta teases a long-awaited feature

Re: Nice curves

> and Ed25519 is definitely my favourite signature algorithm,

Personally I'll stick with Ed209.

"Sign this email! You have 30 seconds to comply! You have 25 seconds to comply!" ...etc...

It's an older standard, but it certainly gets results.