Posts by Martin Summers

Stranded in space: Starliner crew to remain in orbit even longer as SpaceX faces delays

Re: "We'll be in and out within 20 minutes."

"OK, looking at how "extended" other missions are (Voyager) they should consider themselves lucky, no?"

Only there's no holodeck or replicators to keep you occupied, nor any chance of a wormhole sadly.

Coder wrote a bug so bad security guards wanted a word when he arrived at work

I am also with Octopus and have been allowed to set my direct debit to what I want it to be. I have been in debit with them for a couple of months now but that will go back to credit. They've not complained or forced it up. They're actually a very good and decent company.

Oracle gets Big Red reality check after financials fail to impress

Re: Perhaps...

They basically are, don't forget they've not ditched them, they're starting again from out of the box defaults.

Judge hands WP Engine a win in legal fight with Automattic

Re: Spam anyone?

Erm no, why on earth would it?

WhatsApp finally fixes View Once flaw that allowed theft of supposedly vanishing pics

Re: It's a Meta service...

"If you don't want someone to be able to keep a copy, maybe think twice about sending it to them in the first place? ”

There is a use case whereby you send an image or screenshot of something that your recipient does not wish to have in their camera roll. Sending it as a one time only view stops the image from going into the camera roll or being accidentally seen by someone overlooking your recipients phone. It might sound useless for actual privacy, but it does have some use. If you are going to send a picture of your private parts to someone then expect zero privacy.

Wubuntu: The lovechild of Windows and Linux nobody asked for

Re: PSA: Do not donate to this

Anyone remember Lindows? Yeah, exactly.

Badass Russian techie outsmarts FSB, flees Putinland all while being tracked with spyware

Re: "Always keep a second passport"

This guy is probably best off using paper cups and string at the moment.

British hospitals hit by cyberattacks still battling to get systems back online

It will be their remote desktop infrastructure for providing access to clinical systems. Likely someone's credentials were nabbed and there was no 2FA on it.

Judge again cans Musk's record-setting $56B Tesla package

Why should anyone care what he gets. It's not going to impact on anyone but Tesla investors and the company itself and the investors drank the Kool Aid. The investors particularly know what the bloke is like and they can deal with making a shitty investment decision if his pay packet makes the company go tits up in the future. Isn't investment all about risk? Well suck it up then!

Eurocops take down 'secure' criminal chat system known as Matrix

If anyone was that concerned about it then they'd read the entire article and get the facts rather than jump to conclusions that are incorrect.

Telco security is a dumpster fire and everyone's getting burned

Re: Wherever you are, this story includes you.

Aww, hey, you're not just noise. You're important to someone, even if that someone is yourself, that's just as relevant. You don't have to be 'someone' to validate being alive.

Ransom gang claims attack on NHS Alder Hey Children's Hospital

Re: No mercy for vermin who attack healthcare

Completely agree with you. No doubt some of these places are being used as shields, but targeting them is not the answer. The innocent are never considered in matters of war or targeted attacks. It's easy to launch an attack from a far off place coldly and clinically and never see, understand or feel the hell unleashed.

Line them up against a wall and shoot. No mercy for vermin who attack healthcare in particular.

Abstract, theoretical computing qualifications are turning teens off

Re: Doing the impossible

My HND in computer science consisted of project management and 'learning' Java, along with Visual basic. None of those things floated my boat and I never understood Java or got the hang of VB. 2 years of my life wasted. I didn't realise at the time I really should have just gone and got a job. University certainly isn't for everyone, and it certainly didn't teach me anything I needed for my current career in IT, which I'm also regretting taking as a path!

Re: Wow, so many surprises!

It gets worse. A number of generations of infant and primary school kids now only use iPads in their education rather than PCs. Can't wait until that severely fucks things up for employers.

Indonesia tells Apple $100 million investment isn't enough to lift iPhone 16 sale ban

What are they going to do, block smuggled devices on their cellular networks? Go after citizens with one? If they rank top of the premium market then premium spenders will get hold of one.

Otherwise, Apple sets up local assembly and charges the extra for removing their centralised reduced cost benefit on top if they are forced down that path.

Swedish authorities probe Oracle Cerner health record rollout

Elementary

It's Oracle. Another day, another famous constipated detective.

Mysteries in polar orbit – space's oldest working hardware still keeps its secrets

Re: To throw my consipracy fuel on the fire...

I'm going with the theory that alien life popped round and changed the batteries.

EU buyers still shunning pure electric vehicles, prefer hybrids

The only attractive EV option at present is a milk float.

Oh my gosh, what a surprise that is. This is presented as if it should be a shock. Have you seen how many people don't have their own drives to charge fully electric cars?

NIST trains AI to hear the 'oh crap' moment before batteries explode

Is it really AI? Or is it code running a comparison from an input to a database of sounds? It's like saying Voice recognition is AI.

The implications of AI suggest it could decide something wasn't the sound it was looking for the next time around. If something is 'intelligent' then it is possible for it to make different decisions at different times. This is one of those situations I'd probably prefer it was 100% consistent.

Yet more AI pie in the sky to attract attention.

Brit telcos to clash in high-speed mmWave spectrum showdown next year

Re: 3G Auction

But then what happens? We who use mobile devices pay through the nose to have them connected via fresh air. There needed to be a trade off, not a greedy money grab. Big business or not, these operators provide services that pretty much all of use, including government. They've spent money on spectrum where we could have had network investment instead.

Officials warn of Russia's tech-for-troops deal with North Korea amid Ukraine conflict

Re: Catch 22 for the Light Entertainment Edification of Pwnd General Populations

"Aww, leave amfm alone - he/she/it has been around these parts longer than you have!"

Are you sure? I remember when they used to have Cash & Carrion and I bought an el Reg Polo shirt. I also remember when amfm didn't have the 1 at the end of his handle! I lurked a long time before I started posting ;-)

Re: Catch 22 for the Light Entertainment Edification of Pwnd General Populations

Bad bot

Another official four-day week pilot kicks off in the UK

"... and nobody ever does bugger-all about it."

Because human beings, especially those in charge of businesses, have a deeply ingrained behaviour of fucking over other human beings. Essentially it comes down to three words, "why should they".

Everyone is too scared to implement the changes because they might lose their profits. No-one remembers that profit doesn't matter a jot when you've burned yourself out or got to the end of your working life and eventually drop dead.

Reddit CEO thanks AI for helping the site finally turn a profit

Re: FFS

Ah but mentions of AI in a positive way keeps people's share prices ticking along just nicely. AI is just the latest buzzword for share growth because they've run out of actual growth demanded yearly by the markets.

Say hello to the epi-bit, a new approach to DNA data storage

And soon after commercial realisation, we will see the first biological real computer virus?

Just got to go vaccinate the PC...

Musk claims Cybertruck has become profitable at last

Look up whistlindiesel on YouTube. You'll soon find out how shoddily built the truck is!

Drone maker DJI sues Pentagon over ‘Chinese military company’ label

"While such scenarios seem like hollywood conspiracies, I would have said the same about exploding hundreds of pagers and walkie talkies 6 months ago."

Absolutely. Nothing is beyond the realms of possibility or fanciful any longer. It actually could happen. It's just a matter of how pissed off someone gets to decide to do it. It then shows their hand and they will find it difficult to pull off again, which is why we don't see many real world examples.

You have to ask though, how many attacks you wouldn't dream are possible have actually been intercepted by security services. We'd probably have our minds blown if we knew about them. Which is why we don't. There's already enough fear in the world as it is!

Microsoft says its Copilot AI agents set to tackle employee tasks in November

These claims. I simply don't believe them.

Openreach reveals latest locations facing the copper chop

Re: Fibre / Fiber

"FFS, el reg. Be as international as you like, but perhaps we could use UK spellings for stories that affect only the UK?"

Absolutely agree, the optics are all wrong on this.

Opening up the WinAmp source to all goes badly as owners delete entire repo

Has anyone ever considered why one would wish to whip a llamas ass?

Netflix on Mars? Yeah maybe, thanks to NASA's laser comms demo

Great, now can we have a webcam on the moon? Someone needs to watch out for those buggers coming to invade us.

Three and Vodafone: We need to merge because our networks are rubbish

Re: our networks are rubbish

"TBF, they tried investing. The government then banned the infrastructure vendor with the best technology and handed the costs of replacing that kit to the networks."

My heart bleeds for them. Evidently they can afford to invest in whatever kit they need. Huawei kit is not the best, if you read the register regularly you will note that their source code, having been inspected officially, was lacking and riddled with bugs. They have chosen not to reinvest their profits in network upgrades. Simple as. Until recently Vodafone were the only network I paid (200 quid) to leave, the next was three.

World Wide Web Foundation closes so Tim Berners-Lee can spend more time with his protocol

To be quite honest, it sounds pointless and it sounds shit. Most web users don't really care about their privacy, those that do already take precautions. I can't see this going anywhere, or being successful. I'm sure Sir Tim could put his exceptional mind to better use with a more worthy project.

Apple quietly removed 60 more VPNs from Russian app store, researchers claim

Re: "Apple is complicit in enabling government censorship"

It really doesn't make it harder. MDM with corporate app stores and side loading are things.

The Russian government are hardly going to block their own VPNs either, which are unlikely to need an app.

AI PCs will dominate shipments by 2026, but not because of demand

Re: New fad

"We recently picked up some discounted Lenovo touchscreen devices that the market had obviously declined."

Declined because they are Lenovo, and their products are poor. Some people haven't forgotten their rootkit and loading Windows Pro desktops with sponsored shite either.

As IBM pushes for more automation, its AI simply not up to the job of replacing staff

Re: AI in IBM lingo

And those Indian people will eventually want more money to progress their lifestyles and live better. Pretty much as we have in the West. What then, raid adoption agencies to raise worker slaves until they've had enough too?

Re: Krishna's stated plan to replace people with AI appears not to have had the desired impact.

And let's hope they do go bust. Their plans are inhuman, at the expense of humans. Why would anyone want to work for IBM anymore? AI will never meaningfully replace human jobs. If they actually get anywhere with it at first, the plans will crash down the minute they experience problems that require real knowledge, intelligence and intuition. A CEO who thinks human beings are replaceable, is someone I'd never want to do business with let alone work for.

I don't know what pressing Delete will do, but it seems safe enough!

Re: Are you sure?

"I love Clonezilla for asking 'Are you sure' and then 'Are you really sure?' before committing."

And then when machines become sentient, "I don't believe you are sure, so I'm just not doing it".

Re: This is a common problem

""Do you wish to remove this request? [Cancel] [Delete]" Go on, guess which one meant "yes".”

I'm going with delete, as in delete the request. It makes sense in a couldn't be arsed to label it properly kind of way.

Thank you, Reg Readers: On Call has turned 500!

The problem with on call is, that often people will share their stories in the comments section rather than having it immortalised in an on call article itself. Maybe the call to action at the end of an article should include 'don't just comment it, send it in'. Either that or you're going to have to resort to intercepting the comments before they're published for material!

Scientists find a common food dye can make a live mouse's skin transparent

Re: Tartrazine is pretty awful stuff

Were you used in the experiment by any chance?

Proof-of-concept code released for zero-click critical IPv6 Windows hole

Re: what if there is no local IPv6 network?

Stuff just stops working, completely, without IPv6 switched on, on Windows Server. No warning, no reason why, just borks.

Astronomers back call for review of bonkers rule that means satellite swarms fly without environment checks

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the starlink satellites"

Big business, gradually chipping away at humanity.

Google’s Irish bit barn plans denied over eco shortfall

'Growing demands of AI'

No Google, it is merely a play thing, not doing any actual real work. Now you're imposing it on your users at the top of search results, without asking, which I'm never in million years going to trust to give me a correct answer.

The demand AI has at the moment is purely novelty. It will die down considerably.

NASA pops repair kit in the mail so astronauts can fix leaky ISS telescope

There was me thinking duct tape would do the job. Good thing I'm not an astronaut.

Ridesharing makes new and unique mess in Japan's taxi industry

Re: Ride sharing my ARSE

I'm not defending them in any way, because I remember when it first started. They marketed it as if someone is going your way then you could grab a ride with them. It quickly became a taxi service by the back door and they resisted every effort to have their service licensed.

They did have Uber Pool, possibly still do. So there has been at least some ride-sharing going on. That's at least true.

Gaming algorithms? The last time I took an Uber in Birmingham UK the guy actively cancelled 'by mistake' my booking and got me to repeatedly hail another Uber whilst sat in the back of his car, until surge pricing kicked in. Unfortunately as I was hailing, other Ubers were picking up my ride first which I had to cancel. Easy to screw about and increase your fare price. I should have just got out, but I complained to Uber and told them what he did and got a refund on the excess. Left a bad taste just how low even supposed professional drivers can go.

Traeger security bugs bad news for grillers with neighborly beef

I'm not one to bash someone else's hobby, I absolutely love BBQ meat and will quite happily eat the results thrown out of one of these grills. I'd also quite happily go without it to avoid the stress of having to piss about with one of these grills. Especially when there's an app and firmware updates to do as well.

Sadly I don't know anyone rich enough to possess one of these grills and I'm not popular enough to get invited to a BBQ either. All in all this article has made me hungry and depressed.