Posts by PhilipN

Firefox is dead to me – and I'm not the only one who is fed up

Re: unsupported browser

I have never got over the loss of the spinning globe in Mosaic.

Taiwan thumbs its nose at Beijing by blocking chip exports to SMIC and Huawei

"losing TSMC to the Chinese"

Say what? Some ethnic confusion here.

And assuming you meant Mainland China why would it cost the West anything? In a way like rare earths it is the golden goose and although controlling supplies (OPEC-like - cough! cough!) China has not cut them off. I do not see anything different from TSMC similarly coining it like mad.

The launch of ChatGPT polluted the world forever, like the first atomic weapons tests

Today's Guardian : Thousands of UK university students caught cheating using AI

I am shocked and appalled at the decline in standards. I mean - getting caught!

Ease the seat back and watch some video in your car with next Apple CarPlay

Why would you need to scroll? Can play anything you like in my car as long as it is The Fall.

A good example of when new is not better

Used to be with muscle memory you'd reach out and adjust the radio, the ventilation etc etc without your eyes having to leave the road, except sometimes for an instant.

Now you need to look, focus, tap, scroll, re-scroll, tap the back button etc etc in between avoiding collisions.

Apple goes glass whole as it pours new UI everywhere

Re: I'll reserve judgement...

Reserve longer. Tried the Beta (yeah I know I know) on a recent Mac Pro + the Apple Display and it totally *****ed up and booted into nothing but a blank screen.

Reverting to Sequoia was an even bigger p in the a because of onboard security etc etc

But if Apple cant even get the graphics right in a Beta on their own hardware .....

China orders trial of aged care robots that can cook, clean, and provide emotional support

Re: "provide emotional support"

How long before the World catches up with Ray Bradbury (at least creaking memory cells tell me it was him) who, as aired in these very columns some considerable time ago, wrote decades ago of a Desperate Housewife who took on a tall handsome but wholly robotic butler and ended up doing what comes (cough! cough!) naturally. There was at least one other El Reg aficionado who remembered the tale.

Huawei founder says USA overestimates its semiconductor prowess

Playing to the crowd

He knows Trump's negotiating team, now in London, will see this.

Ukrainians smuggle drones hidden in cabins on trucks to strike Russian airfields

Who built/supplied the drones?

No mention in the mainstream media. Built by Ukraine? Then who supplied the parts/technology?

Why is China deep in US networks? 'They're preparing for war,' HR McMaster tells lawmakers

Re: "They're Preparing For War" - Complete Rubbish

That was Dr. Strangelove's Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper.

Couldn't even type that without descending into fits of schoolboyish giggles.

Re: "They're Preparing For War" - Complete Rubbish

Guy sounds like Col. Nathan R. Jessup (A Few Good Men).

American science put on starvation diet

Re: Thicker than thick

Thanks for the reminder. Ahead of his time in announcing the death of political satire by a quarter of a century.

Chip designers latest casualties in US-China trade war

Who needs Pepsi and Coca-Cola?

https://www.fentimans.com/products/curiosity-cola

Empire of office workers strikes back against RTO mandates

Ah yes - Flexitime

So last century.

China spawns an x86 supercomputing monster, with an AMD connection

Re: Interesting

Only way to get those sanctions removed is if China continues to supply the World with discoveries, inventions and garden flowers as it did for centuries but otherwise reverts to the Middle Ages.

Trump threatens to add formal Apple Tax on top of the 'Apple tax'

Woz

Apple may have stood a chance to rediscover its origins in production if Woz were still around. Now - forget it. No way they could even by a factory to assemble (sic) phones. There isn’t one.

No-boom supersonic flights could slide through US skies soon

Comfort

My Uncle flew Concorde a few times Blighty to Caracas (and back). Hated it. He was 6 foot 3.

70-knot winds so far blamed for yacht disaster that killed Brit tech tycoon Mike Lynch

Whichever way you look at it

- a tragedy for (what's left of) the family who still have to face the vultures from across the pond.

A horrible last few minutes of life - and just imagine knowing your daughter is on board.

Trump says he has a problem if Apple builds iThings in India

“plants …. China ..”

Foxconn’s, not Apple’s. I doubt whether Apple even has manufacturing amongst its skill set. And it takes years to learn.

Qatar’s $400M jet for Trump is a gold-plated security nightmare

"new embassy"

When the US Consulate in Hong Kong was rebuilt there was not a single local labourer on site - or in sight.

"raising legal and ethical questions"

Well ... no s.., S.....

Trump ends Biden-era dream to cap US AI chip exports

"flowery language and nebulous promises"

Welcome to the White House 2025

US, China agree to roll back tariffs – but only for 90 days

So where is we at ...

China continues hell for leather to aim for 100% self-reliance.

The American consumer continues buying tat.

Overseas sellers load up the next three months' shipments to the USA with the equivalent of the usual 6-months' worth. Including Christmas tinsel.

Did I just wake up from a bad dream?

Nvidia boss gets 45% pay bump, but is the billionaire happy?

Wrong comparison

Bloke like him never has to pull change out of his own pocket for anything.

Us poor people have to fork out a good chunk of our monthly pittance and scrabble for coins down the back of the sofa just to live, you know on stuff like food etc

Apple exec sends Google shares plunging as he calls AI the new search

IOS now has AI?

Who knew?

90-second Newark blackout exposes parlous state of US air traffic control

90 seconds -

- about how long it will take Trump to blame Biden. No - make that 9 seconds

Feeling dumb? Let Google's latest AI invention simplify that wordy writing for you

Coincidence

Piece alongside others quoting tech leaders from Palantir AMD et al spouting the very gobbledegook this app "may" simplify.

One such piece also mentioned the shuttering of the Department of Education. Who needs the DoE when you've got the G-Men?

Chinese carmaker Chery using DeepSeek-driven humanoid robots as showroom sales staff

Waiting for the day when …

“it” can tie its own shoelaces which I surmise is the first complex series of movements we learn as infants.

When it can do that, I’m sold.

Signalgate lessons learned: If creating a culture of security is the goal, America is screwed

A no s* S* moment.

Reported today that Trump may finally realise what we have all known for months that he is being played by Putin. Now if he were only to hire some independent advisers instead of a bunch of gaga sycophants telling him what he wants to hear...

Build your own antisocial writing rig with DOS and a $2 USB key

Nice one, Liam

But ... "editing two plain-text files"... you mean config.sys and autoexec.bat? When it took 2 minutes to re-boot to see whether those changes worked?

You are trying to make my hands tremble, aren't you?

How to stay on Windows 10 instead of installing Linux

Re: At least somewhere things are looking up...

Saw that. Liam has a little Greek.

Trump blinks: 'Substantially' lower China tariffs promised

Re: Looks like China Learned the Lessons of the Opium Wars

Is why China does not trust the British up until today. See how fast they are rushing into trade deals with the UK …?

Still browsing like it's 1999: Fresh tools that keep vintage Macs online and weirdly alive

Re: Quality HW

Check with OCW or eBay to see if it can be revived. I’ve treated mine to a new backplane, video, other bits.

Otherwise it’s a solid piece of furniture - great for standing on when I’m painting the ceiling.

Re: grrrrrrr

And the coolest pic to go with it.

Lynx web browser

Ahhh....swoon.... the last time surfing the Web actually felt fast.

Re: Quality HW

Two cheese-grater Mac Pros here, one at home one in the office. Back-ups and archiving. I would not trust any of that new-fangled stuff for the job.

Pentagon needs China's rare earths, Beijing just put them behind a permit wall. Oops

Re: New Lyrics for the 21st Century.

How apposite. British creativity, now owned by the US.

Sorry - your point was ...?

US senator warns 'China is cheering' for proposed NASA budget cuts

Rational thinking in process so pay attention

... just as long as it derives from the topic's juxtaposition with China.

Infosec experts fear China could retaliate against tariffs with a Typhoon attack

"impede US government decision making"

Well that could only be a good thing for every body right now

Brit universities told to keep up the world-class research with less cash

Going to be shot down in flames but many academics work really hard...

... others.....don't.

Pharmacist accused of using webcams to spy on women in intimate moments at work, home

Re: Boys will be boys (Leavitt)

And coal is clean* as evry fule no

*AND beautiful

Musk's DOGE muzzled on X over tape storage baloney

70-year-old technology

Where would old Sci-Fi movies be without randomly spinning tapes in the background .... fond sigh

Introducing Windows on arm. And by arm, we mean wrist

"delightful pointlessness"

When AI and robots manage this then I shall become a believer.

Bill Gates unearths Microsoft's ancient code like a proud nerd dad

Boot code

Creaking memory human variety but didn't Paul Allen say they forgot to write the boot code so he had to write it on the plane going to meet the customer?

Signalgate storm intensifies as journalist releases full secret Houthi airstrike chat

Times change (not for the better)

The canker at the heart of the Nixon administration was the perverted ethos and spin of PR.

In the case of the Trump administration it is the ditto ditto ditto of social media.

Jeff Bezos can now taunt Elon Musk: I'm building a moon rover for NASA, when can Tesla do that?

"a location humans have never visited in person .."

Nicely trips off the tongue.

Almost like saying "We haven't been to Bognor yet this year."

China bans compulsory facial recognition and its use in private spaces like hotel rooms

In other news, today's Times >

https://www.thetimes.com/article/8c9dbecc-3936-4aa2-b574-dd16f4271f15

"UK’s first permanent facial recognition cameras installed in London

Live facial recognition cameras will be placed on two roads in Croydon city centre despite backlash from privacy campaigners"

Photoshop FOSS alternative GIMP wakes up from 7-year coma with version 3.0

Says ...Lord Elpuss (cough! cough!)

Political poker? Tariff hunger games? Trump creates havoc for PC industry

"..policies.."

Spitefully throwing one's weight around is a policy?

Oh - yeah. I suppose it is, really.

SUSE doubles down on AI and Multi-Linux Support to prove it's still in the game

Will re-visit S.u.S.E.

Fond memories of a door-stop size case with - was it 4 or 6 CD's inside?