Posts by 45RPM

Raspberry Pi guys want you to go topless in the heat

@John

That's just pedantry. Technically, a case can't provide any electronics. It's just a box. I know SATA would be provided via USB and therefore be rather slow. But I don't mind - I just want the flexibility to add more storage neatly. When I want plenty of computing power I don't use my Pi. When I use my Pi I don't worry too much about performance - but it'd be nice if it could all be a little neater.

My dream case would be something like the Amiga 600's, but with an internal hard drive and an optical drive instead of the floppy.

@Nigel11

When I said 'Room for a couple of expansion cards' I meant Raspberry Pi expansion cards - not PCI. Simple things like the RTC board and so forth. I wasn't very clear there, was I?

As to SATA, there is already at least one case which offers this (Plusberry Pi), but it isn't easily available.

There was also a board available in a very limited way which made the original Pi ITX compatible - with back panel and SATA.

Using the Pi board as the core has the great advantage of allowing me to fiddle around with RISCOS whilst enjoying minimal power consumption.

So those are my reasons. My objection to the 'official' case is that it does nothing that the other third party cases do already - so I can't really see the point. There's a lot of demand (just search the forums) for cases which will take a spinner internally. This isn't it.

@Bronek

'zackly. I want a relatively cheap, low power consumption, device for running RISCOS on.

I can still see a use case for something like this running Linux though. Power consumption of an ARM based NAS is significantly lower than that of an Intel based system.

Yawn. Yet another case which only pays lip service to expansion. So far the only really useful cases are the (marginally expandable) MediaPi and (difficult to get hold of) PlusBerry. What I want in a Raspberry Pi case is:

Ease of purchasing

A case which puts all the ports on the back of the unit

Built in power

Built in SATA and space for at least one hard disk. A second SATA and space for an optical drive would be nice.

Room for a couple of expansion cards

And yes, I'd be prepared to pay thirty or forty quid for it. Frankly, I'd settle for an easily available board to make it ITX compatible.

If I get hit by a bus, Linux will go on just fine says Linus Torvalds

What about other forms of death? Would Linux survive if Linus were to eat a poisoned Apple or fall out of a Windows? I think we should be told…

Paper driving licence death day: DVLA website is still TITSUP

Re: Good planning

@Mad Mike

It would be wonderful if Big Bangs could be avoided entirely, but with the best will in the world (and even with careful planning) sometimes they are unavoidable. That doesn’t seem to be the case in this particular instance of course - but who knows? I don’t have all the information.

Planning is all very well, but sometimes you need ahellavalottaluck too. Several years back, I managed a migration so large that, beforehand, my boss told me ‘if you muck this up, you’ll be front-page news. If it all goes well, no one will know about it’. Big motivational speaker that man. I succeeded (so you didn’t hear about it), but skirted close to the shoals of fuck-up on a few occasions that weekend (unforeseen circumstances and whatnot). I therefore have some insight to what these guys are going through - and I have a good deal of sympathy for them. Even if I don’t understand why they needed to do it at all.

Cynical Apple says it'll gouge less cash from iTunes strummers' sales

Re: Cynicism

@DougS - I know the masthead. I've been coming here long enough. But, rather like incessant swearing, continual cynicism a) loses its impact (meaning that you've nowhere to go when cynicism is actually deserved) and b) gets very very boring.

I want The Register to be great. Not boring.

Re: Cynicism

The watch doesn't float my boat, any more than Nike trainers or a Gucci handbag. I'm not sure I'd go so far as to call it crap though - especially since some of its users are buying my software. I'm sure it's very useful for someone - so that it isn't my cup of tea or yours isn't very important in the grand scheme of things.

What a twatty headline

Why does everything that Apple does have to be cynical or bad in some way? Jesus, if El Reg wants to be taken seriously it should really try being objective- and doing a little more research.

Personally, and I have a vested interest here, I hope that this is so - it would be fantastic news for me. As an app writer, I get a nice income from Apple (and, honestly, even at a 30/70 split it works out very nicely for me - because I don't have to worry about setting up my own ecommerce system, security and so forth - I just need to do what I'm good at. Writing software and banking cheques) - but if I could have 75, 80 or even 85% that would be incredible.

The problem, when trying to make an income in this game, isn't Apple or Microsoft or even Google. It's all the freetard lusers who think that software should be free and that developers don't deserve reward for their efforts.

Intel imagines chips in nappies to create the Internet of sh*t things

We always used reusable nappies with our tots. It wasn’t particularly onerous, and the smell of a used disposable is far worse than the smell of a washable waiting to be washed - so our bathroom was always a good deal more pleasant that the bathrooms of our disposable toting pals. With a paper liner, the turds can be hoofed straight into the crapper, and a washable wrap prevents any leaks. A absolute doddle. The big con is that disposables are somehow more convenient - which they aren’t.

As for checking, there are occasions when the nappy might be soiled - but there’s no associated smell to warn the parent that mayhem has occured. This is more of a problem with reusables because they aren’t full of distressingly bad smelling chemicals. The child might not be bothered by the load - and hence no audible warning either. In this case, if there is cause to suspect I always used the mark 1 dipstick (otherwise known as an index finger). After all, if it comes out clean then theres no cause for concern - and if it comes out wet or brown then you were going to have to change the nappy (and hence wash your hands) anyway.

Hardcore creationist finds 60-million-year-old fossils in backyard ... 'No, it hasn’t changed my mind about the Bible'

Re: Evidence.

…or incompetent. In mans terms, wouldn't that be akin to making a 40 year old car - an Allegro, or an Avenger say, and trying to sell it as brand new?

If there is a God, and if He enjoys fuckin' with people's minds that much, I'll take me chances with the other fella. Sure, it'd mean putting up with the oddly placed red hot poker - but at least he's sincere. At least you could trust him.

That EVIL TEXT that will CRASH your iPhone: We pop the hood

I'm getting an overpowering sense of déjà vu here. Didn't this, or something very similar, happen last year too?

Carry On Computing: Ten stylish laptop bags for him

My last bag was Ally Capellino. It looked great - but it was flimsy as hell and wore out within a couple of years. It's been replaced by a bag from a brand so forgettable that I've forgotten what it is. Point is, the replacement is far cheaper - and seems to be wearing far better.

You pays yer money - but doesn't necessarily gets yer quality.

UK data watchdog: Massive fines won't keep data safe

Nothing will keep data safe

If the government passes laws to mandate the inclusion of back-doors in all encryption systems then nothing will keep data safe - and having a watchdog will be pointless and a waste of money. It's like installing a state of the art security system and then leaving the key under the flowerpot.

Jeb Bush: Repeal Obamacare and replace it with APPLE WATCHES

Yup. Dribbling imbecility, and a lack of interest in anyone but the rich, clearly runs in the family.

Amstrad founder Lord Sugar quits 'anti-enterprise' Labour party

I hope he doesn't join the Liberal party. They've had a bad enough week as it is, and the shock might finish them off.

Relax, it's just Ubuntu 15.04. AARGH! IT'S FULL OF SYSTEMD!!!

Works more slowly, in my experience, than 1410 in VMWare - although I'm heartened to see that performance on real hardware is comparable. I'll give it a bash on my PC - just as soon as I find a spare moment.

Apple Watch fanbois suffer PAINFUL RASH after sweaty wristjob action

Re: Huh?

@AC

making fun of Samsung for the size of the Notes?

Yup. I remember. That was me. But large phones just aren't my cup of tea. As far as I'm concerned, if the device has to resort to an ugly hack to make it usable (temporarily shrinking the size of the screen, moving the screen down and so forth) then it's a bad design.

For my money, a phone has to be usable one handed. If I'm standing on a bus (for example) I'm going to need my other hand to be free so that I can hang onto the strap. Similarly, I might be coming home from a shopping trip, trying to find my car. I don't want to have to put my shopping down, or fall over, in order to use my phone.

For the record, I did buy an iPhone 6. The normal sized version. It is, without a shadow of a doubt, the worst phone I have ever used. Whenever I pick up my old iPhone 4, the old iPhone feels well designed, the perfect size, and comfortable to use (if rather slow).

I hope that Apple comes to its senses and releases a phone with a sensible screen size (4 inches or smaller) in the next refresh - but I suspect, given the roaring trade that they're doing with their silly flappy paddle hand phablets, that they won't.

The Apple Watch: Throbbing strap-on with a knurled knob

Re: Ahem

@DocJames Sorry sir. I didn't proofread. How many lashes for that error?

@Bleu Digital means that a device performs its calculations using two discrete states - on or off, 1 or 0 - binary. In the case of a digital watch, the timekeeping is done using a microchip with a quartz oscillator - and, helpfully, the display is set of seven segments, displaying the actual numbers (or digits - satisfying the other, looser, definition of digital).

I suppose that, technically, many 'analogue' watches are digital (in that they use a microchip with a quartz oscillator to perform the actual timekeeping). But they fail to satisfy the other definition of digital in that the time is displayed using sweeping hands, and the numbers that the hands point to are almost vestigial. In fact, many don't have numbers at all - or have pared down the numbers to 12, 3, 6 and 9.

A purely mechanical watch fails to satisfy either definition of digital.

Re: You have an

@Bleu You've never heard of Seiko Kinetic then? http://www.seiko.co.uk/discover-seiko/technology/kinetic

Re: No Silicon Heaven?

For is it not said that the iron shall lie down with the lamp?

Yup. I’ll stick with my Seiko, which:

- Is recharged by having one off the wrist (so, in my case, never runs out)

- Works perfectly without being pared to anything other than my wrist.

- Can’t reply to notifications

- Looks amazing

- Can tell if I’m dead or not. If it stops working then things aren’t looking too rosy for me either.

- Well, no. I don’t need to recharge it just yet - but, now that you mention it I don’t mind if I do. Where’s the tissues?

Fap fap fap fap fap…

To sum up…

…It’s beautifully made, but ultimately shit. Promising shit, but shit nonetheless. So a bit like the first iteration of every other Apple product.

That’s the thing about Apple. Unfashionable as it is to say it, they do make some amazing products - both hardware and software. It’s just that the first, and often second and sometimes third, versions are crap. Once they get into their stride, amazingness is the result. Honestly, and having seen the latest versions of Windows, I’d say the same of Microsoft too - it’s just that it took them a little longer to reach tech nirvana.

Um. What comes after nirvana? I think that sentence might need a little rework.

Tests show HTC, Sammy phablets BEND just like iPhone 6 Plus

In other news…

It has been discovered that a glass will break if you drop it on the ground and that plastic melts if you heat it up too much. Jesus. This shouldn't come as a surprise, let alone be news, to even the thickest of punters. Look after your stuff and you'll have years of good service from it. Abuse it and it will break.

Is this what Windows XP's death throes look like?

Re: @ThatGuy - Oh wow...

@AC "Remember, Windows it's like the belly-button. You don't have to do anything to get it and it actually is pretty difficult to avoid getting one.”

It’s an amusing aphorism, but slightly flawed. Windows didn’t come with my Asus or DFI mobos. It didn’t come with my Mac, or with my Raspberry Pi. I chose to buy a copy (because development, and I’m an OS whore - I’ll go with all of them), but I had to go out of my way to get it.

Granted, most people will get Windows just because they bought a PC - but it’s very easy nowadays to opt out of having any Microsoft software on your machine. But, and I realise that this view is controversial, I have to say that Microsoft software today is, IMO, better than it’s ever been.

Re: @45RPM

@AC

"And hand over even more personal data to google than the bastards steal already? No thanks."

I'll up vote that. I agree with you. But I'm not most users - and I suspect that you aren't either. I'm not a member of FaceBook for exactly the same reason, and I stay out of the cloud.

Thing is that most people don't care - the argument about security has been had, and the geeks lost. Government, Google and Facebook won. Most people are delighted to abdicate responsibility for their digital lives, handing it over lock, stock, the f*cking lot to someone else. And, if they're going to do that anyway, surely it also makes sense for them to save a few bob over a 'proper' computer with a 'proper' OS and buy a ChromeBook instead?

I've played with ChromeOS. The latest versions are very nice indeed. Very easy. Perfect for someone who doesn't care about IT and couldn't give a shit about security either. Just not for me.

Re: Oh wow...

@Archaon

I'm not a gamer, so please indulge my curiosity. Why wouldn't a console do? Surely it depends on the game type? I mean, something like Civilization wouldn't work on console, I see that. And I'm told that big FPS games don't translate well either. But is it not the case that, for some games, a console might be preferable?

Off topic, I know.

Re: Oh wow...

@AC

Distro Anarchy? Oh! You mean choice. But this really is a case of having your cake - and eating it. If you want the ultimate flexibility in your OS, with your choice of tools, then you can roll your own (or possibly find one pre-rolled by someone who shares your aims.)

If you'd rather forgo the 'Anarchy*', you can choose Mac OS X or Ubuntu (and others, I'm sure), to benefit from a stable platform, maintained by someone other than yourself, but still enjoy the benefits of Unix and Linux power. If you don't need that much power, the ChromeOS (another Linux variant) has your back.

I suspect that you don't really care that much though. You're a dyed in the wool Windows fanboy, and you don't want to investigate, much less use, anything else. But that's your loss, kiddo.

*your words

Re: Oh wow...

Yup, it's fair to say that there aren't that many intelligent, independently-minded, people in the world. Which is why most people use Windows. Windows is adequate, there's lots of it about (like the common cold), and so yer average luser will put up with it without pondering whether another OS might be more suited to their needs.

From what I've seen, the average (just the basics) user would be better served by a nice ChromeBook. A gamer probably does need Windows (although a console might do nicely too). And power users should, and do, turn their thoughts to some kind of Linux / Unix variant.

A Quid A Day for NOSH? Luxury!

I didn't mean 'Politics be damned' because damn politics, or because I don't think that this is a worthwhile debate. I meant 'Politics be damned' because politics tends to be a heated and divisive subject (and heated and divisive is pretty much the definition of El Reg forums too), and I feel that it shouldn't really detract from the gist of this article. We're all of a different stripe - and this is an excellent and worthy cause.

Politics be damned, left or right I think we can all agree that this is a laudable cause and laudable challenge. I've done it as well, years and years ago, and nothing short of desperation would induce me to do it again. But I will be throwing some money in the pot to support the have-nots.

Thumbs up Tim and thumbs up El Reg.

Layla enjoys a Sanskrit makeover: Clapton set to become one of several Gods

Heh Heh. The first bit of Layla looks like a willy. Snigger.

BBC: We'll give FREE subpar-Raspberry-Pis to a million Brit schoolkids

Re: bbc pi is 8bit amtelmega 32u4

I know. Luxury. I started programming on a Z80 with 1K RAM. Kids today. Don’t know that they’re born!

Re: Why?

@Anonymous Coward

Because Why Not? Seriously, the BBC does excellent work - no other TV company like it. The radio alone is worth paying the TV License fee for. That the BBC also runs educational programs, and wants to engage the kids in something a little more useful than fragging baddies on a games console seems thoroughly worthwhile to me.

It’s almost a tradition now to bitch about the BBC, and then the Gumbys in HM Gov’t pick up the refrain - and I worry for the future of this most august institution. The day we lose the BBC is the day that we, in the United Kingdom, become just a little bit less British. We’ll certainly have one less thing to be proud of - and, in an age when the things that we have to be proud of are being sold off every day, that would be a very sad thing.

Re: why does every small computer get compared to the Raspberry Pi?

@Pete 2

Or, indeed, a Raspberry Pi (any more than it'd make sense to compare it to LEO, or a PC, a Playstation, Cray or Mac.)

Don't get me wrong - I think that it's a great initiative - but it's being 'advertised' in a rather misleading manner.

This is a Pi-Alike in exactly the same way that a skateboard is a Ford Fiesta. They'll both get you from A to B, but the latter will do it far more comfortably, faster, and carrying more luggage. I’ve never considered a skateboard to be a small car - so why does every small computer get compared to the Raspberry Pi?

RIP Sir Terry Pratchett: Discworld author finally gets to meet DEATH

Well damn. That's put a dampener on my day. My condolences to his family and friends, and I hope that one of them will nurture the Discworld - and that this won't see the end of his amazing creation. I also hope that Death, for Terry, is everything he hoped he would be.

Can't pay $349 for an Apple Watch? Get a Chinese knockoff for less than $50

I think that the real money will be made for the counterfeiters by cloning the straps rather than the device itself. If the cloners can make accurate, compatible, replicas of the real deal then they'll coin it in. After all, why spend £600 or more on an Apple Watch when you can buy an Apple Watch Sport, and replace the tacky strap with a high quality copy of the steel bracelet or leather strap?

I'll bet that a lot of people who buy an Apple Watch wouldn't want a clone watch - but a clone strap is an entirely different kettle of fish.

Thought Apple was kidding about diversity? Here's 50 MEEELLION reasons you're wrong

@David 138

I agree entirely. It they're spending the money on attracting minorities into IT through advertising the benefits of a technology career, through funding courses and education, through internships and so forth then it's money very well spent.

If, on the other hand, they're just going to spending the money paying lip service to the right thing then they might just as well give it to me.

I suspect though, and I hope, that they'll be doing the former rather than the latter.

Thumbs up - and well done Apple. It makes good business sense too, I suspect, because (if you're a 'minority') where would you rather work? Somewhere that supports and encourages you, or somewhere that shrugs its collective shoulders. This move might give Apple a larger selection of applicants to choose from. Maybe.

Apple Watch: HOT WRIST ACTION plus slim $1299 MacBooks - and HBO TV

18 hour battery life? Ah… No.

I wish them all the best of course. They've done no harm to me (or any of the haters here either), and I wouldn't wish failure on anyone (except Donald Trump. And anyone who makes Muzak. And… aw, shit. You got me. I do wish failure on quite a lot of people, but none of them in the tech business. Probably), but 18 hours?

When it can go for at least as long as a pebble it'll be worth reconsidering. When it can go as long as a Seiko Kinetic I'll stop considering and reach for my wallet. Until then, it's a statement of intent from Apple - and as much use as any Mk1 Apple product.

Interesting, by the way, that they didn't mention how waterproof it is. A 'sport' watch that can't go swimming ain't much of a sport watch.

Ex-cops dumped on never-hire blacklist for data misdeeds

Re: @45RPM

@Symon

You must be the good cop then. I can tell. You're giving me time to get my trousers on.

Of course, before 1983 if you'd suggested that the police were anything less than 100% trustworthy then you could have expected a nasty accident when coming down the stairs. Allegedly. I've seen Life On Mars!

Bite my shiny metal Ask: Java for OS X crapware storm brewing

In common with their bosses? In my experience, the bosses (the ones who sign off on the budget) all have Macs - and they force their minions to use cheap ass Windows Dell machines. Not saying whether that's right or wrong (actually, I am saying - I reckon that users should be able to choose the platform that they're comfortable with, provided that they can demonstrate the technical know how required to support themselves). The point is that the bosses are running the shiny shiny. The minions have Windows. FTFY.

How many Androids does it take to change a light bulb?

Re: IoT? WoT?

@Anonymous Coward

Yup. Surprisingly I do have friends - I try to get rid of them by being as curmudgeonly and contrary as possible, but they do seem to accumulate. But we’re of an age where we’re no longer impressed by the electric light, and where parties no longer consist of getting pissed amid a desperate whirlwind of trying cop off with the prettiest girl… an acceptable girl… any girl… anyone… the dog. Parties nowadays consist of getting pissed whilst talking about our latest penis extensions / mid-life crisises, whilst standing in the utility room (because that’s where the kegs of beer are). Our wives, meanwhile, are in the kitchen, getting pissed on wine, and talking about schools*.

* guessing. I have no idea what they’re talking about really.

IoT? WoT?

I realise that this is probably just pure ludditism, but I can’t see the point of the internet of things. It’s just more stuff to go wrong, more stuff to keep patched and up to date, potentially an exciting new security risk, and more toxic waste at the end of its life. All for no benefit whatsoever.

Who cares if the light bulb can be ice blue or whore-house red at the swipe of an app. It won’t materially change my life, any more than a fridge that’ll warn me if something’s about to go out of date (usually I’m quite aware of what’s in my fridge - after all, I bought the feckin’ stuff).

Sorry. Bit grumpy and tired this morning - and I’m the person who couldn’t see the point of colour in a TV, remote controls or 1080p (so my track record on being right is pretty bloody piss poor). On that basis, anything I don’t like, or can’t see the point of, is likely to be the greatest thing ever.