Posts by tabman

Make cool shows, make money: Netflix's SHOCKING TV strategy

I`m a user of Netflix, love film and Sony entertainment. Sony is brilliant for new films but it is expensive. There is no real comparison between Netflix and love film as Netflix is by far superior. I'm only maintaining love film as they gave me a few months for free when I quit!

British bookworms deem Amazon 'evil'

Re: What sort of cretin buys a Amazon Swindle anyway?

+1 Rob. My Aunt and two of my nephews use kindle HD. They have no clue what a walled garden is and even if they did, they wouldn't care. My aunt gets all the books she wants and the nephews are glued to the games, Facebook and movies. The hardware is cheap as is the apps and books. Why on earth would they use anything else?

I too have an old style kindle e-reader which is great for holidays due to the non reflective screen and unbelievable battery life.

Don't be led by shiny shiny, use what works for you!

Ten Windows 8 Ultrabooks

Re: "with a touchscreen win8 may almost start to make sense"

Really? Just install a start menu replacement or is that to hard?

Re: Are there?

Hi AC, I own a Sony VAIO which I use for Uni as a postgrad MBA student. It runs win 8, has a touchscreen, full enterprise ms office courtesy of a work deal - £15). Start menu replace men installed with no fuss.

The machine fits in a document folder, battery lasts about 7 hours and it starts up in under 10 seconds. the cost was £600.

its not my daily machine but it is bloody good at what it does. So yes, I bought into the ultra book fantasy and I am glad I did.

Notebook makers turn to Android in face of Windows woes

Re: Apps

@ac 20 Apr 2150

+1 & hear hear. A brilliantly constructed argument which deals with facts not FUD.

Re: Good news @ Mikel

Forgive my ignorance but that wikipedia article suggests the lawsuit was settled. Is this not the case?

Re: Metro

Sorry for the typos! That is the main disadvantage of typing on an on screen keyboard!

Re: Metro

@ Barry shitpeas

Well you do have a choice of not using it. Options are simple, use the keyboard to switch to desktop or install a start meu replacement.

Also, you don't need to use the MS Marketplace (even though there is some very good stuff there), you can even pin apps and peograms to TIFKAM should you wish. I know it is sport on el reg to spread FUD but some of it is so badly researched or just plain wrong it makes the commentator nlook stupid (this last commentbois not directed at you Barry but some here really take the biscuit).

p,s, not a fanboy, I use win 8, win 7, Win XP, Debian ( on RPI), ubuntu on x86 and I`m writing this on droid 4.2

Samsung vs Apple: which smartphone do Reg readers prefer?

Re: When it comes time to change, I'll see what there is..

@g e

+1 agreed. After years of win phone my next handset will be a droid. Have even considered buying out of my contract early so I can switch.

Microsoft brings back Windows watch after Apple seeks 'flexible' bod

Re: Surely at least the Third time?

Ahh actually SPOT Watch - close!!

Re: Surely at least the Third time?

@wowfood

My memory is a bit sketchy about this but wasn't the watch your referencing available in 05? The original MS offering was 04 (SOFTwatch...I think??)

Shaky liftoff for Sputnik: Dell's Linux lappie runs its own cloud, ish

Interesting

For a while now on these forums, I have read postings calling for a linux laptop to be available at point of sale. This would be the second time that Dell have offered something like this as a mainstream offering. There are lots of arguements why the first offering failed and I have to wonder how successful it will be the second time around.

Now is the time to see if Linux really is ready for the desktop and ready to replace Windows as the preloaded OS of choice for consumers.

If Linux really is ready for the desktop (laptop) then an average user should at the very least be able to buy one of these and just continue as if nothing had happened. If Linux is not only ready for the desktop (laptop) but superior (as the evangelists are so fond of saying) then the user experience should be enhanced. Sales should go through the roof. MS dies, everyone switches to FOSS.

I suspect that this offering will go the same way as it did the first time around. It will be interesting to see though.

Windows 8 has put the world's PC market to sleep - IDC

Re: Smart TV vs. Win-8 Ultrabooks...

Possible suggestion:

Buy a Raspberry Pi and connect it to your TV. Bluetooth Keyboard/Touchpad combo + Wifi and HDMI connection to the TV and you have Linux to your TV.

It is a bit slow but a very cheap and fun solution.

Re: Absolutely true for me

@Tony W

Why not install a start menu replacement? Then your wife will effectively have a Win7 environment to use.

Mozilla devs plotting to put a stake in <blink> tag – at last

Teletext & Ceefax @LinkOfHyrule

It worked so well at the time too. I remember my first teletext capable TV and being amazed by all the information available. The thing was that you didn't mind waiting for the pages to come round again.

Re: Haters gonna hate

POKE 23693 surely?

Re: Haters gonna hate

Makes me nostalgic for my Speccy.

French spies do a Barbara Streisand over secret nuke radio base

Troposcatter

There was an old NATO troposcatter node there - who knows what is there now?

That can't be the reason why the article was removed though.

Microsoft leads charge against Google's Android in EU antitrust complaint

Re: Microsoft's Operating System Tie-in

Yawn.

They are "forced" to buy a laptop with Windows on it because Dell & HP sell "Windows Laptops". See what I did there?

Maybe the issue here is that consumers, on the whole, WANT Windows. Thats why they buy them. How many average consumers even know that there are different Operating Systems available or what the advantages of each may be?

You should chill out!

Windows XP support ends a year from … now!

Re: Who cares?

Provided that AV software is as effective as we would all like to believe it is then that's great. Stick with XP, office 2000, photoshop 7 and AutoCAD2002. Save the expense and the learning curve.........for now. That expense and learning curve will only be steeper later. I'm not saying that change should happen as every evolution of OS or HW comes out but it does need to happen eventually.

Just sticking your head in the sand wont cut it.

Re: Upgraded to XP here

Seriously? What database are you using? To be clear, what you are saying is that your SQL queries take 2 x longer if they have newer hardware and significantly more memory? The only difference is that the OS is Win 7 instead of XP?

Why would that be the case?

Re: Linux Mint

In my case (and I know I'm not who you directed this to) these are the reasons I "demand" Microsoft Windows:

1. MS Office - Industry standard software. Open & Libre Office just not up to the job

2. Loads of Games - Only 1 of them available on Linux Steam

3. AutoCAD - Industry standard. FOSS alternates not up to the task (I've tried).

Anyway, I don't just demand Microsoft Windows (XP, Vista, 7, 8, or 2.0!) I run a debain variant on ARM (Rpi), Ubuntu on x86, Android on tablet. I use what my working style fits best with.

Can I ask you the counterpoint question though? What is so exceptional that you must ceaselessly promote Linux on these forums? Please also consider what AC says in his reply to you when, if, you answer.

Re: @Michael Habel - YES It's better.

@ Michael Habel

I don't consider it a fix, it just changes the way it works so that the desktop suits me. I'm not suggesting anything is broken. Or a problem. It just wasn't quite right for me but now it is and I found some software to help me with that.

Can you relate to that Michael? I’m sure you can. You use Linux Mint don’t you? What desktop do you run – maybe standard Gnome 3 + MGSE? Doesn’t matter but would guess that your desktop, like mine, is customised for preference using third party software – that doesn’t make either of them Open Sourced Fixes!

@GregC - Re: No. It's not better.

GregC, I can understand your issue with the "fullscreen nature" of using the windows key and typing and for those who use a machine without a touchscreen TIFKAM doesn't feel very natural to use.

Have you considered using a start menu replacement? I use one and boot straight into desktop. Win 7 functionality, all my software (office, games, etc) and driven by mouse + keyboard.

When I want to use the touchscreen I Ctrl-Win into TIFKAM where it works beautifully.

Maggie Thatcher: The Iron Lady who saved us from drab Post Office mobes

Re: Sadly, the under 40s

Oh, and bring on the thumb downs - presumably from NUS members?

Re: Sadly, the under 40s

I agree, the comments and reaction have been disgusting. Regardless of the publics views on her policies and actions as PM, some comments on mainstream news sites have been disgraceful. I am ashamed to be British today knowing that people are reacting and have reacted in this way.

More pitiable are the people commenting who weren't even alive when she was in power. I'm looking at you NUS.

Tick-tock! 40% of PCs start Windows XP malware meltdown countdown

Re: monopoly?

Factually incorrect. Look up the actual definition of a monopoly an any good business book (or even Wikipedia!).

Microsoft: 'Facebook Home just copies Windows Phone'

Re: And fourthly

Upgrade of OS isn't possible? In what context do you mean? WIn Phone 6, 7 and 8 all have been or are being upgraded over their lifetimes. Are you referring to upgrading 6 to 7 to 8 on the same hardware?

I have had a WP in various guises since an Orange SPV running Win Phone 6.x. Admittedly the one bugbear I have had is not keeping apps as I have changed phones. I can not say though that I would have liked to run WP8 on that SPV or even my old TYTNII. The resolution and touch screen capabilities couldn't ever have matched what WP8 can deliver.

4G: Bad coverage, crap battery life - but at least it's really expensive

RE: Re: What's the point of 4G...

" Well they'd have to provide UK-wide 3G support first. I think you'd be surprised at how little coverage there is and how much of the population is dependent on 2G coverage:

http://maps.ofcom.org.uk/mobile/index.html (and change the radio button between 2G and 3G)"

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Thanks for the link but it seems to me that the information shown is a year old. Unless every operator has refused to enhance their 3G coverage in the last 12 months I don't see how this data is valid.