Posts by JB 273 publicly visible posts • joined 8 Jun 2007
I'd bet my last pound that the 24 hours in question is PST, as most people downloading this will be on the west coast of the USA. So if you're really that keen on helping them out to get the record, start downloading at 8am on the 18th in the UK.
As for plugins/add-ons, the really important one, AdBlock+, works with FF 3.0, that's all I needed to know!
Like someone said, what's the difference between a removable SD card and a removable tape/CD/MiniDisc? I remember seeing SanDisk players with SD card slots about 3 or 4 years ago. On the whole, it's a great idea, especially for all the tiny SD cards lying about in my drawer (I have a 16Mb in there!)
I like the idea of these internet radio boxes, but they're just too expensive. I found a much cheaper solution, a short-range FM transmitter for about 50 quid. I've got mine connected to the PC, can listen to anything, on any FM radio in the house (and about 200 feet around the house!) If these internet radio boxes were cheaper, I'd probably get one tomorrow
I love these pre-BT phone books, especially all the pages at the front with old-fashioned sounding info about using the phoen and all those recorded services (remember Dial-a-Disc?), so i was looking forward to checking out these old phone books online.
I'm rather disappointed at the service, though I do realise there may be restrictions placed on the genealogy company who provide the info. You can't look for info about an address only, you have to provide a surname; and if you want to see a scan of the pages, you have to pay.
Oh well, I'll just have to think wistfully of the day, many years ago, when I went into Telephone House in my town and stood looking at the glass case with all the UK's phone books lined up inside! Well, i was only 5 at the time! :)
Well, not quite; the hardware is usually pretty funky, and I'd happily carry one around. But why oh why do they all rely on proprietory software to transfer media? I guess the answer is that the U in USB stands for Unprofitable. Manufacturers: when you start making devices that are simply USB mass storage devices that will work on any operating system, I'll dump my 3-year-old Iriver H320 and shell out on one of yours!
This sounds like a fantastic idea. Can't say I'd b glued to it all evening, but I can imagine it's one of tose things that you just find yourself watching while channel-surfing.
@policing on the cheap: This scheme is a sort of modern version of the days before we had a police force, when the community regulated crime. Of course back then people were out in the streets, and sorted out any bad behaviour. I think it's sad that society has given up on self-regulation and is leaving it all to teh cops. We have a role in regulating antisocial behaviour too, whether you like it or not.
@unbelievable: "What I do outside is my business..." what are you talking about? What you do outside is everybody's business, especially everyobe in your immediate vicinity. What more can you say.
Offshoring is just another synonym for greed in my book. I actively avoid outfits that use Indian call centres now, though it's getting harder and harder as time goes on. I always come away frustrated and slightly embarrassed after having dealt with an Indian call centre.
As for this takeover, just another phase of consolidation. You'd hope that when there are only a handful of huge ISPs, there would be at least one you could rely on. Somehow I doubt it very much. The only advantage I can see is that we wouldn't have to go back 10 or so years to the days when there were about 600 ISPs and you took your life in your hands choosing one that wouldn't go bust two weeks later.
Please, will someone with shedloads of money set up a sensible ISP we can rely on, so we don't have to take our chances with all the rubbish on offer at the moment.
I agree with the first Anonymous Coward - let the manufacturers and supermarkets foot the bill or reduce the packaging. We're told that all this packaging is necessary so that the product reaches the customer in optimum condition. Crap! It's for the convenience of the supermarkets, so they can keep it on the shelf as long as possible. I always make a point of buying fruit and veg loose, why sell potatoes or apples in little polystyrene trays wrapped in cling-film? I'll be sending my bin bill to Tesco!
This whole idea is...erm....rubbish! (Well, someone had to say it!)
I was with Telewest for 4 years before the VM takeover. Great service, free customer support, top speeds just fine. Now i'm on the 10 meg service, get at best 5mbit in the small hours and 2.4mbit in the evenings if I stick my little finger in my ear and stand with my feet exactly 10.3cm apart facing east. I will be cancelling my services in December when I move to California. I hope the services are better there, but I've now discovered my American fiancee has Comcast cable...:(
...environmentally speaking. How un-green is this! I know CDs aren't exactly enironmentally friendly when disposed of, but USB connectors? Will there be some kind of recycling scheme for these devices, so you can dispose of them responsibly once you've decided it's full of crap? One hopes it can be like the old cassette albums and singles, with a USB version of putting sticky tape over the recording tab holes! That's the style, Music Industry - give everyone anything except what they really want!
I like the sound of that, and at that price I'd have two! One question, though - is this a true USB mass storage device (could it be used like a USB flash drive), or does it have some software built into the player that does the job?
Whatver the answer, I'm just glad Sony are beginning to wake up, and hope that future players go with this option.
I've always wanted a Sony MP3 walkman; the hardware is fantastic. But the deal-breaker for me is that God-awful SonicStage software! Why can't Sony wake up and let us have USB Mass Storage (yes, I know that's alot to ask!). Until then, I'll stick with my venerable Iriver H320 that I can use on my Linux machine!
Perhaps camera manufactuers will come up with a device you strap to your forehead and it takes pics whenever you think "ooh, that's a nice view". Or humans with an SD card slot in the back of their heads, so you just have to blink to take a picture? This is all getting a bit silly, these features that even casual snappers don't use are being shoved into cameras just to please the marketing departments.
It's all very well preaching to us to go green by using more energy-efficient appliances, but they're so damned expensive. Recently, our fridge-freezer gave up the ghost, so i found myself in the store looking for a new one. We're on a rather limited budget, so couldn't afford £500+ on A-rated gear - the best we could afford was a C-rated fridge that would look good in a doll's house. Energy-saving lighbulbs are also dear, though they do last for years, i suppose (perhaps they should do that for batteries - it's criminal the number of batteries we throw away into landfill).
I could go on and on, but won't.
But, one last thing...with the EU (and even California) considering a ban on incandescent lightbulbs, when will the manufacturers come up with a low-energy bulb that doesn't make the room feel like a morgue and doesn't stick out of the top of your lampshade? :)
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