Posts by goodjudge

Mega defense corp Thales faces Anglo-French bribery and corruption probe

Bribery and corruption in the weapons industry?

Insert Claude Rains "shocked" quote from Casablanca here.

NASA fires up super-quiet supersonic X-59 aircraft

I came here to upvote the sub-heading

That is all

WinAmp's woes will pass, but its wonders will be here forever

It works, so why change?

I'm old fashioned. When I listen to music, I generally want to play a whole album front to back. So I've been using Winamp since I can't remember, most recently last night. I have the .exe saved so that as and when I replace the home PC (yes, PC, because affordable laptops don't have enough TB to hold all my files) it gets reinstalled. Do adults *really* care about the range of skins? Are you looking at the screen - and the programme - the whole time you're listening to whatever?

Severe solar storm could disrupt power, communications

Re: More X flares have happened in last 48 hours

Flares, you say? Green ones? The chances of anything coming from the sun are a million to one, but still they come.

UK Regulatory Innovation Office vows to slash red tape – but we've heard it all before

Pickles hated the local government sector and did his best to destroy it. It's when councils started having their real terms funding *really* cut. The preferred alternative being, of course, outsourcing to private sector companies who knew exactly the right thing to do for residents. Arconic, Carrillion, Barnet's "EasyCouncil" model, etc. etc.

Happy birthday, Putin – you've been pwned

Re: Msg to Chris Williams

"So hacking Russia is good, Russia hacking is bad."

You do realise it's not a zero-sum game? Ukrainians defending their homeland is very different from years of FSB / CIA / MI5 / MSS etc. general snooping and sabotage for no good reason.

Personalized pop-up was funny for about a second, until it felt like stalking

Customised pop-ups

My very first IT job ('97-8) was working with another person (Hi LN, if you're reading) to develop an Access database to capture staff overtime. We were young, dumb and sometimes bored, we thought it would be fun to have an intro screen that randomly said things like "I used to be a toaster", "what's 93.31242130 x 12329.22790 - there, how do you like it?" and an 'amusing' comment about the senior manager who was nominally in charge of the project - originally "[NAME] is fat" (which he was) but before the first public demo it became "... is fab".

I cringe now at the fact we then demo'd this to management, then rolled it out, with these greetings still intact, and that we were even allowed to do so.

UK government's bank data sharing plan slammed as 'financial snoopers' charter'

Re: Stupid proposal

The money would be better spent on making the benefit fraud-reporting website fit for purpose. I reported someone who was working cash in hand whilst claiming UC and housing benefit, also subletting her rented flat on Airb+b, also rinsing her ex-husband by claiming she was poor as a church mouse, and was (no doubt still is) transferring her cash to her birth country to invest in property. The reporting form had ridiculously low character limits in each field and would only allow very basic punctuation marks, and not : or /, so I couldn't even give the URL for her AB+B advert.

Re: Return on investment

£320m would barely buy Michelle Mone a yacht plus a year's fuel and crew bills. How do we expect our 'trusted friends of government' to survive on such a pittance?

War on Texas law requiring ID to savor smut online heads to Supreme Court

TBF, which politician is actually going to stand up and defend the right of adults to watch pr0n? Even the "I was looking at tractor pictures and my cursor slipped" guy wouldn't defend it once caught. (Yes, looking at work, as he was, is another matter entirely, whereas I'm talking about the general principle).

Julian Assange to go free in guilty plea deal with US

Re: Sweden

How does exposing US war crimes make him a "traitor", given that he's Australian, not American? In any case, publicly embarrassing a government (which is essentially what the US were punishing him for) shouldn't be a crime in any country.

Julian Assange can appeal extradition to the US, London High Court rules

Re: Corruption all the way down

"He got a load of information and dumped all of it on the web with no consideration for the dangers it might have caused for individuals. "

Except that's totally untrue. He spent months reading and redacting it before releasing it. The only "dangers for individuals" is causing political embarrassment all the way to the top - which is of course the most serious crime in the whole statute.

Council claims database pain forced it to drop apostrophes from street names

Re: St[.] Mary's Walk

One of the two main programmes I work on uses "St Marys..." and similar - except a few years ago some bright spark renamed all the "St" road names in the DB as "St." and the address search won't return any results unless you include the full stop. But whoever made the change forgot that there are a couple of blocks of flats starting with "St ****" and those remain dot-free.

Confused? You will be.

Thankfully the other programme uses boolean searching and doesn't care whether you type the full stop or not.

Turns out teaching criminals to write web code keeps them out of prison

Re: Yea, a big improvement

"The American prison activity for years has been only to punish everyone"

The American prison activity for years has been only to make money for the companies that run the jails, so it helps to keep their 'customers' in a position that they become regular visitors, e.g. by not attempting to rehabilitate or educate them or giving them anything to survive on when they leave.

Belgian beer study acquires taste for machine learning

Belgian AI-le

"Corresponding author Kevin Verstrepen, professor at Belgian university KU Leuven, said one of the biggest goals is now to help make better alcohol-free beer."

In Belgium??? What a waste of a good idea.

"Schreurs admitted that the team did celebrate finishing the paper with the alcohol-containing variety. With some Belgian beers touching 15 percent alcohol by volume, he didn't say how bad the hangover was."

I've just come back from a week, with friends, of sampling the liquid delights of Brussels and Ghent. We got through an extensive range and there was not a single hangover. Nor in similar previous visits. There's something in their brewing that filters out whatever crud causes it everywhere else. TBF we rarely went above 9% but the 15% beers are equally rare - generally the strongest on a regular menu is around 12%.

Belgian ale legend Duvel's brewery borked as ransomware halts production

24% limit

Ta. Am off to Belgium next weekend to sample their wares, will keep that in mind. Duvel's not high on my list TBF. But if the hackers hit Cantillon, it's definitely war.

City council megaproject to spend millions for manual work Oracle system was meant to do

Don't worry, the important stuff (for councillors) isn't being cut.

"All of which pale into insignificance with the £200m being spent on housing acquisition and development over the next four years and £880m on council housing improvements."

You may have noticed a lot in the press in the last 2 years about damp and mould in social housing, and forthcoming government regulation on the same. You may also have noticed a large fire in a tower block a few years ago followed by (stable door / horse) government regulation on the same. You may have read articles on the number of people stuck in temporary accommodation or hotels, that are costing councils a fortune. You may also have noticed numerous press reports about how Britain has some of the least energy efficient housing stock in Europe. And you may recall that Maggie T (boo hiss!) expressly rigged the Right To Buy process for council tenants so that councils couldn't spend the money on replacing lost stock.

So councils nationwide have an aging housing stock, often thrown up in haste after WW2 and nearing (or even exceeding) the end of its effective life, that the government is requiring them to spend vast amounts of money on, otherwise the tenants will sue them or the housing ombudsman will fine them or the government inspectorate will take them to the cleaners. Or more likely all 3.

TL:DR - sorting all of the above is never going to be cheap.

And of course the governing party, with a large number of landlords in their ranks, is resisting rolling out similar legislation to protect the millions of private tenants.

Re: why is there not a single countrywide system for councils, that has been vetted by experts?

Some years ago our former council leader, when asked why he wasn't considering cutting certain back office costs by teaming up with neighbouring councils, just replied "because they're basket cases". That they were a different political colour might have had something to do with it as well.

I've often wondered the same about recycling, given that there are only a few companies, generally nationals or multinationals, who process what we bin. Why do different councils need their own deals with the same company?

40 years since Elite became the most fun you could have with 22 kilobytes

BBC B player, tape version, here. 4 or 5 mins to load IIRC. Never made it to Elite, only Deadly, despite hundreds of hours of playing time. I tried Oolite when it came out but my muscle memory put my fingers into the Elite configuration so I struggled to play it. I also have a (slightly) more recent Elite on floppy disk (which I copied to the hard drive aeons ago) but it must have been created for another computer as it's in 8-bit colour, seems to be missing some ships (e.g. I don't recall seeing a Fer De Lance) and it's just not as good in other ways as the BBC wire-frame.

Zuckerberg hunkers down in Hawaii to wait out apocalypse

Stark

From memory (it's been many years since I read it) in Ben Elton's early novel, Stark, plenty of the billionaires and trillionaires who took themselves into a secure, low-earth orbit space station whilst the planet fried ended up offing themselves or each other, because it turns out that a refuge *full* of egomaniac sociopaths is not actually the nicest place to be.

UK government woefully unprepared for 'catastrophic' ransomware attack

Re: Expense

If a government peer or minister's pub landlord can't make £squillions out of it via the back door, it's not going happen.

Lawyer guilty of arrogance after ignoring tech support

Re: Guy was an arse BUT..

"I wouldn't put it past him to be the one to pull the cord loose."

In my much younger days, though when I should still have known better, I called IT support having done (I thought) all the proper checks including the socket. His 5-second investigation found that the two-part power cable dangled under the desk and I'd accidentally kicked the connection loose. Yes, I was suitably apologetic.

"I've found myself trying to resize a window someone was sharing on Teams..."

or trying to scroll through a document because I can read it faster than the sharer...

Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean AI's not after you

"CEO Philip Jansen said in May: “For a company like BT there is a huge opportunity to use AI to be more efficient"

=

"CEO Philip Jansen said in May: “For a board of management like BT there is a huge opportunity to use AI so as to be able to sack lots of costly minions and make more money for the board in share options and bonuses because we met our cost-reduction targets. Long term company future? Who cares. I'm richer than you'll ever be."

Woman jailed after RentaHitman.com assassin turned out to be – surprise – FBI

Re: I hate to say this, but it's sad that there are homo sapiens so f'in stupid

"Nobody ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the human race" (attributed to various)

Where do people feel most at risk of being pwned? The pub

Re: Leading questions or a fair and balanced enquiry?

Re: "Are any of these surveys worth reporting?"

The ONLY relevant line in that article is "Research from service provider NordVPN, carried out by survey company Cint". It's just an ad. Publicity depts in all sorts of companies are well known for dreaming up headlines then creating a "report" and follow-up "press release" that matches the desired outcome.

EU threatens X with DSA penalties over spread of Israel-Hamas disinformation

Re: You forgot...

Benghazi!!!!

Oracle at Europe's largest council didn't foresee bankruptcy

I'm interested in this bit

"The report went on to say: "This is what members gave officers approval for through Cabinet papers in July 2019 and March 2021. However, officers evolved the approach towards adapting the system – meaning that Oracle was customized to meet the council's existing business processes. This shift in emphasis (from adoption to adaptation) has severely impacted upon the council's ability to properly implement the Oracle system.""

Does that mean staff were resistant to change and tried to make the software do 'the old way' when it wasn't designed that way, and the customisation broke things elsewhere? Or did councillors sign off on something that didn't work for the staff's actual needs, and couldn't do so without extensive customisation, which was never going to work within the wider programme? I know which one my money's on.

Britcoin or Britcon? Bank of England grilled on Digital Pound privacy concerns

Re: I call big hairy bollocks

Exactly. What is the government doing about the banks closing branches and thereby removing easy access to cash across vast swathes of the country? Where the only option becomes a cash machine in a convenience store that charges you £2 a time for the 'privilege' of having your own money? Absolutely naff all, that's what. Because they want that control.

If you like to play along with the illusion of privacy, smart devices are a dumb idea

Re: Why would a Washing Machine require my Date of Birth ...

"Why do I need an app to do any of that???"

But... but... what happens if you did steps 1 and 2 and you meant to set the timer for it to start 2 hours before you were due to return home from work (or wherever) but you realised part way through the day that you'd forgotten, or your planned arrival time changed one way or the other. Then it's absolutely *essential* that you should be able to log in from the train / the pub to change the settings. I can't believe our civilisation has lasted so long without this facility.

Japanese supermarket watches you shop so AI can suggest more stuff to buy

What I don't understand is how it's going to prompt / direct you?

It specifically says "in-store" customers. With an app at home it's obvious, but surely you don't walk round a real Tesco with the Tesco app open on your phone? Are they going to put chips and speakers in the basket / trolley handles? Or a cacophony of tannoy announcements? Or have Japanese supermarkets dispensed wholly with staff and everyone has to carry those little scanners to tot up their bill as they go, which will be adapted to also issue the instructions?

Gen Z and Millennials don't know what their colleagues are talking about half the time

Not guilty

The only one of those phrases - in the first paragraph or the lower lists - that I recall using in real life is "double click", and only then when teaching someone how to using a programme feature. How did it become manglement-speak? If anyone does start using those phrases in my presence I just assume they're a tosser and switch off until they can revert to plain English.

This has reminded me of one such meeting a decade or more ago where a senior bod in the organisation was instructing us minions how to write to other senior bods. "Be direct, don't use jargon", he said. Great, though blindingly obvious. Then in the next breath, "for example, don't say "do", say "expedite"". FFS!

New York City latest to sue Hyundai and Kia claiming their cars are too easy to steal

"We emphasize the States because "Hyundai and Kia vehicles sold in the European and Canadian markets incorporate vehicle immobilizers, because regulations there expressly require them. It is only in the United States that Hyundai and Kia have chosen to sacrifice public safety for profits," the complaint claims."

Hang on, I thought the US view was that governmental interfering in the commercial market = Soshulizm!?!?!!, not The American Way, and that what 'the market' provides must be therefore perfect otherwise consumers would not have bought it.

UK emergency services take DIY approach amid 12-year wait for comms upgrade

Reasons for delay?

Does anyone know if some of the hold-ups are due to inter-service rivalry or competing requests? The late Lewis Page of this parish wrote a book on defence procurement which included how the first of these was a big factor in project over-runs and bloat. Have the police tried to pull rank over the fire service, or do the brigade have genuine needs or "ooh! shiny!" want lists that would hinder the ambulance service?

Utah outlaws kids' social media addiction, sets digital curfew

Re: While I do not agree with 99% of...

"Equally there is the moral stuff. Some parents couldn't give a shit if their 12 year olds smoke. Others recoil in horror at the idea of their 15 year old going on a "date" to the cinema or whatever."

And then there's the type of parent that thinks a 500 year old statue, generally regarded as one of the pinnacles of Western classical art, representing a biblical subject no less, is nothing more than pr0n.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-65071989

China crisis is a TikToking time bomb

I needed a laugh this morning

"The difference is the extensive legal framework protecting Western citizens and companies from state security overreach. Imperfect and constantly stretched as it is, the law is on our side."

Ha ha ha ha ha ha!!

Yes, the UK is supposedly not allowed to spy on its own citizens. Same in the US. But there is nothing preventing them setting up in each other's countries (Menwith Hill, anyone?) then exchanging data.

£2B in UK taxpayer cash later, and still no Emergency Services Network

"ancient pre-Roman Celtic gods and goddesses"

As opposed to modern pre-Roman or modern Celtic? (No responses from Glasgow footie fans please).

Anyway, what could be more 'science fiction and fantasy' than a national government IT project?

'Major' news: Microsoft slips Bing chatbot shortcut into Windows 11

Sometimes it helps to be an IT dinosaur

with a home PC, not a laptop, where the camera and mic are only plugged in for making occasional calls to friends abroad then unplugged again straight after.

A tip for content filter evaluators: erase the list of sites you tested, don't share them on 100 PCs

MPs and tractors, anyone?

see title

Europe wants Airbnb and pals to cough up rental property logs

Re: Thankfully we are out

All businesses have to follow the necessary legislation for their sector. In the case of holiday lets, hotels, B+Bs, that's meant to protect the guests. It's hardly the government "poking its nose in". Setting up a business without following the industry rules or declaring income for tax purposes makes them no different from those market stalls flogging "Guci" bags or "Ro1exes".

Elon Musk reportedly outlines horrible Twitter layoff process

Remember when Photobucket was free and used by millions, then they suddenly introduced fees?

Yeah, that went well...

The world was promised 'cloud magic'. So much for that fairy tale

The headlines today: "ooh, new shiny" does not match up to the ads

Now sports...

People still seem to think their fancy cars are fully self-driving

Quelle surprise

"After years of news stories where driver assistance systems are called "self-driving cars", a study by the US-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) suggests motorists continue to use their vehicles as though they are fully self-driving."

FTFY

How CIA betrayed informants with shoddy front websites built for covert comms

"Investigative research group Bellingcat"

= security service asset Bellingcat. Even if you believe their supposed 'independent' origin story, if they were then they aren't now.

Girls Who Code books 'banned' in some US classrooms

Re: The last sentence of the article has it.

"There's some irony that the apparent 'flash point' for this ridiculous ban is a mailing list touching on abortion and trans rights. Is that not the 'left' wanting to make other people behave a certain way"

I can only interpret this as meaning you actually believe "the left" (whoever that means) are actively trying to turn people trans or make them have abortions. If so, further words fail me.

To preserve Earth's treasures, digital silence is golden

Social media killed that wise old saying "just because you can, it doesn't mean you should".

Braking news: Cops slammed for spamming Waze to slow drivers down

Re: I have no problem with this.

"I also discovered that not speeding doesn't make much difference to journey times and is a lot more relaxing."

And it reduces your fuel consumption. The motorway section of my daily commute is 6 miles. One day, years ago, I suddenly realised that belting along at 70, silently (sometimes) wishing that everyone would get out of my way, took 6 minutes whereas doing 60 in the outside line with occasional overtaking took just one minute more, was cheaper, put less stress on the car and myself, and gave me another minute of listening to whatever fine music I'd selected. It was a no-brainer that I've stuck to ever since.

It seems there are a few petrol-heads on this message board systematically down-voting everyone that suggests 'not speeding' is easy to do and the right thing to do.

Elon Musk 'buying Manchester United' football club

"Whether Musk is serious or not is impossible to divine"

As always, he's not buying <latest thing>, he's buying acres of publicity at a miniscule cost.

Tories spar over UK's delayed Online Safety Bill

Re: I'm surprised

Nadir Dorries