Posts by Jess

Brexit: Time to make your plans, UK IT biz

Re: The Problem with the EU

> Allowing UK child benefit payments to kids who don't even live in the UK

Our failing. Why should English people get it if their kids don't live here? Fix that and the problem is gone.

> Unlimited migration from any EU nation into the UK

But we are allowed to go in the other direction? To be honest this is the one thing I totally want to keep. I want to be able to work and live anywhere in the EU. It's hardly the EU's fault if our businesses only want to pay wages that only migrants living 4 couples to a house for a couple of years can build a future on.

> The EU does not know how it spends the money it receives for its budget, something like 4% is unaccounted for.

Needs fixing, but all sorts of crap goes on in Westminster too.

> The EU MEP's shuffle between Brussels and Strasbourg and is a waste of time and money, something that EU parliament should stop.

Agreed, but like the previous, not enough for me to sacrifice my EU passport for.

> Voting for prisoners

I don't have a problem with the concept, however I would prefer that all prisons are treated as one single constituency and elect 1 MP. (otherwise it could skew elections).

But that actually comes from ECHR which we are NOT voting on. Our vote is whether we are to remain in the EU. (The EU is also subject to the ECHR).

How about having our own rules and recruiting talent from the whole world, not just the EU?

In case you'd not noticed, we do.

All the EU(/EEA) does is to make visa free travel and the right to work and live in the same way as within your own country. Leaving the EU (and EEA) will remove this right and mean the rest of the world rules apply. (Unless something is agreed in the 2 year exit negotiations).

Leaving gives us NOTHING. It just makes it more difficult for us to work in Europe and vice versa.

Re: I'm not expecting Brexit..but unexpectedly definitive win for Bremain

It would be a relief if that were to happen. I hope you're correct. I am concerned that there is a big chance of an English exit. (I think Brexit as a whole is very unlikely.)

I would expect that give two years of opportunity (relocating all the EU headquarters back into the EU), but after that, not much.

I wonder how hard it will be to get Scottish Citizenship.

Yahoo! Mail! is! still! a! thing!, tries! blocking! Adblock! users!

I don't need adblock to access Yahoo without adverts.

Thunderbird accesses it just fine.

Microsoft introduces yet another Skype for Windows 10

Re: yet to find another common application that will work on multiple platforms reliably.

https://www.getonsip.com/webrtc/ Need an up to date browser only (i.e Not IE) Only the receiving end actually needs an account.

Re: They have to be quick

Whatsapp can be pretty good for audio calls, but obviously fails when you roam into 2G.

For text comms, telegram messenger is much better though, because it's not tied to one device. (It can even run on pidgin).

Skype is a total joke as an IM system. Message delivery is somewhat unreliable in my experience. The online status of the contact list is highly dubious. (Not least of which that it shows different people on different devices). It only seems viable if you use another medium to ask someone to go on it. (In which case you might as well send then to http://getonsip.com). The other thing wrong with Skype is Microsoft pulling the plugs on systems for no good reason. e.g. a Power PC Mac will not connect. However if you modify the version string to match the current version, it works fine for audio, and seems to have a more honest list of online contacts too. (This even works on the last G3 compatible version).

It's a shame sip isn't a bit easier to set up. I have a nice desk videophone, but the majority of the calls I get are just standard land line calls. (And a few web based audio only calls).

X-Lite 3 is still the best video phone software I've seen.

As long as they don't push it out whether I want it or not. Quite happy with the only Skype on this W10 machine being the pidgin plugin.

Mud sticks: Microsoft, Windows 10 and reputational damage

Re: Don't blame users for the UI

I like windows 10. Most people I know who have used it, like it. I certainly wouldn't choose any other version of Windows in preference. (However, I might choose, mint, os x or RISC OS).

I liked 95, 2000, 7 and 10 on release.

I though 3.x, 98 and XP were utter rubbish on release, but after a few years became usable.

Vista - utter crap on release (performance and stability, more than UI) so, so ultimately (Usable if you need to run Windows programs, but not what I would choose to use)

Windows 8 - utter rubbish, (not too bad with classic shell though.)

I really don't understand the hate for 10. Unless it is upgrade fatigue.

(P.S. 10 is crap on a touch screen)

Don't – don't – install iOS 9.3 on your iPad 2: Upgrade bricks slabs

Re: a way to restrict DFU mode updates for locked devices

Make DFU updates always produce a fresh erased system. make the update procedure include a backup with a a page to sign if you skip it, saying you understand the risk.

UK.gov kicks long awaited digi strategy into long grass, blames EU referendum

Doesn't this imply they want to do stuff that would not be legal within the EU, and are waiting to see if they can?

How Microsoft copied malware techniques to make Get Windows 10 the world's PC pest

Re: Netflix.

Works on Linux with Chrome, but not Firefox

Secure email bods ProtonMail open signup floodgates to world+dog

ProtonMail won't run without Google Play services...

:(

I think I see a potential security issue.

How a Brexit could stop UK biz and Europe swapping personal data

Re: really spoil Theresa May's day

I don't think a leave vote would really spoil any Tory's day.

They would get all their former supporters back from the UKIP.

Odds are Scotland would leave the unions, so that is 58 opposition members gone for one Tory.

Plus the get to replace all the the nasty socialist EU laws that protect the proletariat from their masters.

Re: Is there any evidence to back this up?

Polls I have seen are 2:1 in favour of EU membership in Scotland 3:1 in NI (which surprised me, probably due to the Good Friday agreement, everything could kick off again if they leave the EU).

Wales and England were close to evens. Given the reliability of the polls in the General, I do not trust the English figure.

One of the big arguments in the Scottish referendum was the worry they would be chucked out of the EU.

The UKIP do far worse in Scotland than the rest of the Island.

My feeling is the two most likely results of the referendum are a narrow vote to stay, or an English only vote to leave. I think a strong vote to stay or a unanimous vote to leave by all the nations are both unlikely.

re: a tough choice

Scotland would get a very easy ride in, the situation is very different to the previous referendum. They would be seeking to remain in the EU. If that process is not supper smooth then they would be doing the entire organisation a huge disservice, and I'm sure they all know that.

Schengen would not be a problem for Scotland, because it would be England that would have the stricter rules. Scotland would just allow English visas to be valid as well as Schengen visas and EEA citizens.

England would have to control its own borders, which is what has repeatedly been demanded anyway.

Re: I wonder how many years would pass

A likely scenario (assuming a larger pro EU vote than the previous pro UK vote) would be a hasty rerun of the Scottish referendum. Once that is done the UK would give notification of its intention. (Probably at the end of the year) During the two years the UK would split and at the end Scotland would remain within the EU and England would be out. I also suspect part of the deal would be that EU based Brits would be able to request Scottish citizenship, rather than get chucked out.

Of course there are loads of variables. What would Wales and NI do? Would there be a rerun of the vote in England? (Because the question was for the UK, which would no longer exist.)

It would also make the controlling our borders situation even more interesting. (After the fuss about the French saying if you leave we're not doing it for you any more.) How would we stop all the EU citizens who are allowed to to live in Scotland crossing the border? (Hadrian's wall is in the wrong place.)

Interesting times.

Re: NOT at all, equal a dislike of European people, cultures

No, just a dislike of having them able to live next door.

Re: the TTIP is really good reason to get out

If would be preferable to be outside the TTIP. However leaving the EU is likely to guarantee we will sign up for something similar.

Our government is a big fan of it, and Boris has talked about signing up without the rest of Europe. (No-one to trade with otherwise if we get out.)

The rest of the EU is looking like it may reject the idea anyway.

The TTIP is a good argument to stay in.

If we get out, the likelihood is that we will be signed up for something like it, so we can trade with the US and the rest of the EU will reject it, once its biggest cheerleaders are no longer members.

Tech biz bosses tell El Reg a Brexit will lead to a UK Techxit

I wonder if Dublin would pick up a lot of the business.

Yes, assuming Scotland doesn't quit the UK to remain in the EU and take it first.

Re: refused work visas .. And why would they do that?

The outcome of a brexit is totally unknown. The first big issue is whether the whole UK votes the same way, if it doesn't that could cause serious issues. (e.g. the end of the UK, unless they come up with some part in part out by region fudge, which I wouldn't put past them).

What is known is that there will be a two year period of negotiation, during which new arrangements need to be agreed. This could be membership of the EEA, which won't really please the Kippers, or something else. Of course no agreement might be reached, in which case then our membership is cancelled and everything to do with it is void. (Or all 28 parties involved can if unanimous keep the negotiations going, not sure how likely that one is.)

The rest of the EU is going to try and ensure that the part of our economy that is EU business remains within the EU. (Tax sweeteners for relocation costs caused by boundary changes, I'm sure). They are not going to be negotiating for the good of England, (and why should they?)

If no agreement is reached and we are just out.(Which would seem to me to be of benefit to the remaining EU.) Then all the rules for EU citizens here will be the same as for non-EU citizens. (the earn £35K or you're out, earn £18 or your foreign spouse is out, etc.) And anyway, why would they choose to stay?

I would expect during the two years notice period, when we still remain in the EU, that there will be a huge market for IT contractors helping relocation projects. Probably earn enough to retire in the sun. Oh.

Big-screen Skype gets small farewell note

Proprietary system abandoning more functional kit. Again.

I went back to sip during the last round of forced obsolescence.

I used sip with family until snow leopard came out and xlite 3 wasn't usable any more.

The replacement xlite was utter crap. (In fact I have found no nice sip videophones for older intel macs, Telephone is a nice audio only app, and the latest xlite is OK, but not as neat as 3).

Skype was the only alternative other than iChat (which we tried for a while).

Funnily enough, I just noticed a Skype chat plugin for Pidgin and installed it yesterday. Presumably it inherits Skype's issues with ghost online contacts and poor message delivery.

We tested the latest pre-flight build of Windows 10 Mobile. It's buggy but promising

The issue with Windows Phone 7 & 8 never was UI or performance as I understand it, but the incompatibility with Windows Mobile apps coupled with the lock in to the store. (additionally there is the issue of alienating the Symbian user base by the way they 'bribed' Nokia to ditch it). Effectively WP is more a feature phone than a smart phone (but with smatphone battery life). I have never heard anyone moan about them being hard to use, just battery life or apps (depending on the user).

Attempting to use the same UI on a desktop was the issue. Now they have reversed the problem.

I have tried Windows 10 on a tablet. Utter crap. (I like it on a desktop). Reminds me of Windows CE

They don't learn.

I bet if there were a significant market for the things someone would create a Modern Shell for Windows 10 on tablets and phones.

North Dorset Council hit by ransomware, flips the bird at miscreants

Re: What I don't get is why organisations don't use whitelists

Or even strip out any scripts (etc) from any non whitelisted domain.

Ad-blockers are a Mafia-style 'protection racket' – UK's Minister of Fun

Register Ads

I don't use ad block, but I do use noscript (and self destructing cookies).

I get non intrusive ads, which I'm quite happy with.

If I enabled js would it be horrible here?

Re: Following a BREXIT,

I'm pretty certain a Brexit won't happen. An English exit is pretty likely though, and what you say would apply to that.

Re: it is all governed by various treaties actually.

So what you are saying is technically all radio kit needs a licence.

The only licence you can get for TVs covers installation and use.

You cannot get one for simple ownership alone.

However owning a TV that isn't installed is outside TVL's remit, and would have to be prosecuted under a different law, which would be the same as say having any other unused non exempt radio receiver.

I have never heard of such a case, the nearest thing would be CB radio in the 80s.

I believe the licence includes a right to inspect equipment within reasonable hours (it used to) therefore no licence, no right of entry. Licence, no need of entry (except monochrome licences where they think there is a colour TV, but that shows how long ago I last had a TV)

Re: It's perfectly LEGAL to own a tv hooked to a tv aerial with no license.

No, it's not. (Or to be fair last time I owned a TV licence it wasn't).

The licence stated for use or installation.

(It is possible it has changed to avoid covering non TV equipment capable of using iPlayer on the internet.)

BBC telly tax drops onto telly-free households. Cough up, iPlayer fans

I have never had a colour TV licence (or watched illegally)

I have always been a home cinema fan. (I had a top loading LaserVision Player first.) but never that much into live TV.

I have always had a monitor on the home cinema system, and had a separate black and white TV and a mono licence. (It was actually cheaper to buy DVDs of the few series I actually cared about, than watch them live in colour).

The catch up TV came out, and I didn't need a licence so I used it, but also kept the BW TV and continued to buy a licence.

However, they changed the distributor for the licences and it became difficult to buy a mono licence. After failing several times to renew it in several shops, I actually realised I'd watched the TV for perhaps 6 hours in the previous year, and it wasn't even plugged in. I was working away from home anyway, so I decided to leave it until I returned.

Of course then TV licensing sent me offensive letters, worded as though they were warning a criminal, so I simply got rid of the TV, and binned any further letters. Had they been polite I would have entered into a dialogue, and they could probably have helped me purchase a mono licence.

I don't have any problem with them making iPlayer non free. It was nice of them to provide it free for so long anyway.

What I hope the situation is that they weren't previously permitted to lock it to a licence. (Since it is a tax on broadcast TV reception) and this will be relaxed.

However, it isn't out of the question that UK Gov are thinking of a TV licence for all video content online. That, I would object to.

Ofcom should be the BBC's ultimate overlord, UK.gov told

Re: Left wing?

Aren't they massive UKIP supporters?

Windows Phone devs earn double what poor Android devs pocket

If it is actually good because it is a niche market with no competition, then I suspect if many developers move to it, perhaps as a result of this article, that will cease to be the case.

Raspberry Pi celebrates fourth birthday with fruity version 3

Fourth Birthday?

I must have missed the 29th Feb, the last three years.

4 years, yes

Science contest to get girls interested in STEM awards first prize to ... a boy

Egalitarianism is a much better word

The word 'feminism' is sexist in itself, and it also does nothing to address all the other inequalities that are nothing to do with gender.

Re: To Be Fair

The idea was to encourage girls not to patronise them.

The runners up prizes actually meant something.

Nearly the best on a level playing field.

Linux lads lambast sorry state of Skype service

Re: why the Linux client has had so little work done

The lack of development is less of an issue that blocking old versions from working.

Version 2.8 was the last PPC version on OS X and it's quite a pleasant use interface. I would choose it in preference to the newer versions, even when it's not the only option. Unfortunately they broke the video compatibility a long time ago, and then blocked it a couple of years ago.

It is (or was) possible to modify a few strings to presumably make it lie about what version it is, and then it still connected fine. (Obviously no video except to similar old versions)

Re: so now they have to ask the Windows person to install something new.

Fortunately there is a way to work around this using Chrome or Firefox (or Opera).

Sign up for http://www.getonsip.com

Log into https://web.skype.com/en/ and getonsip

You can then IM the contact over Skype and send them the Receive inbound calls url

(There is a lot more that can be done too, that I outlined in an earlier post)

I'm not sure why people are so obsessed with Skype. It is a pretty poor system. The only thing going for it is the ease of setup. IMs are sometimes extremely unreliable.

The biggest problem though (other than dropping support for systems, all these problems happened with PPC Macs, Symbian and early Win Pho a couple of years back, too) is that it constantly shows contacts as online who aren't.

Re: Just don't try Jitsi.

Jitsi is quite nice if you want a flexible multi protocol system, but it is complex and a hideous resource hog.

There is a quite nice free web based sip service at http://www.getonsip.com

It has a couple of nice features, a personal url that allows incoming calls without an account for the caller and also allows client programs to be set up. (Client programs can do video to each other and other sip systems, but the web interface only does audio to anything other than someone else using it.) The instructions for how to set up bria also apply to the free xlite.

There are lots of client programs. Ekiga seems to be the best simple app on linux. xlite seems to be the best free app on windows and mac. (the old version 3 is better in some ways than the current version.) For voice only on a mac, telephone is a brilliant app (Reliable versions exist for all 10.5 and above machines).

FBI v Apple spat latest: Bill Gates is really upset that you all thought he was on the Feds' side

Apple should fix their security, roll out the updates globally, then they can comply, because it won't be a backdoor on an up to date system.

Reminder: How to get a grip on your files, data that Windows 10 phones home to Microsoft

Re: retro-fitting of this telemetry mechanism to W7/8?

If it is for NSA surveillance all of it, if it is for what it says very little.

My argument would be if you don't trust MS to honour your privacy with Windows 10, why would you trust them with Windows 8, 7 or even Vista?

I am using Windows 10, I like it, but I don't download pirate movies or use pirate software.

'Leave' or 'Stay' in the referendum? UK has to implement GDPR either way

Re: I want Scotland to be independent

I do not find the current situation acceptable, where Scotland has opt outs from all the garbage the rest of the Island has to take.

I see three acceptable solutions.

1, Scotland becomes an independent country,

2, England gets regional councils with the same powers as the Scottish Parliament.

3, Devolution is removed.

Obviously no 3 would not be acceptable to the people of Scotland, no 2 would be a lot of faffing around so I would agree.

(Had they jumped when they had the chance, I don't think leaving the EU would be on the cards at all.)

Re: I thought the leader of the Tories wants to stay in.

You believe that?

All that is certain is he wants to appear to be in favour. So that in the event of a no vote, he can negotiate as someone forced to leave and get more sympathetic terms.

He wouldn't have gone there asking for such irrelevant nonsense, and come back in a triumph that appears to many as a complete failure, if he really wanted to stay. (He is a weasel, look at how he played the Lib-Dems to take the blame for the bad parts of the coalition, and how he convinced Ed to hand him the election on a plate).

I think his aim would be for EU to be a trade agreement more like the TTIP, (removing the elected element).

Being in the EEA, especially if he can negotiate a better degree of influence than default would suit him fine. (I do not believe we will be asked the question 'do we want to be in the EEA?'.)

Just scraping a stay vote would also suit him fine.

The interesting part is the Scotland and NI situations. The peace agreement has quite a big EU component. Pulling out might make things tricky there. (Presumably why NI is something like 3:1 in favour of remaining in the EU). Scotland rejected leaving the UK, and a big point was the worry they would be chucked out of the EU as a result. I think it pretty likely they value their EU membership more than their UK membership.

Cameron (and Boris) must know this. So what are they playing at?

Some sort of deal where England pulls out of the EU but the rest of the UK remains? (There is a precedent of sorts, Greenland pulled out of the EU, but remains part of Denmark.) Unlikely, but the other alternative is the break-up of the UK.

Latest in Apple v FBI public squabble over iPhone crack demand

Re: and fix that in future iOS versions.

They need to fix it in an immediate update. Once that is worldwide, they can then produce the firmware for the specific phone, without it being a generic back door.

Triple-murderer prisoner keeps mobile phone in his butt for a week

Re: Human Rights Act from 1998

Which is pretty much just the same thing, but moved into British Law so British judges rule on it rather than having to got to ECHR.

Re: EU mandated human rights

Would you be referring to the EHCR that was set up after WW2 (hoping to prevent more things like the holocaust) that we were instrumental in, and even Russia has signed up to?

True the EU requires members to be signed up to it, but we were, well before we joined the EU.

Seems like someone has believed misinformation from someone with an agenda.

Just like most of the complaints about the EU, things that aren't up to the EU and we have messed up ourselves .(And we are always the only country with that problem too.)

Back on topic - for hunger strikers, perhaps they should just deliver a nice pizza to the cell to test their resolve.

US DoJ files motion to compel Apple to obey FBI iPhone crack order

I suspect they are working on new firmware

that plugs this hole (i.e. new firmware being installed on a locked phone, without it being wiped.) and once that is out, they may then comply.

Sir Clive Sinclair in tech tin-rattle triumph

They have achieved something amazing as far as I can tell

A worse typing experience than the original.

Flash flushed as Google orders almost all ads to adopt HTML5

re: 3rd party javascript

It would be nice if all 3rd party JS domains needed to be declared in the HTML header, and browsers defaulted to only allowing just the first two (if they have valid certificates), and could be set to any number including zero.

Re: The root of the problem?

I disagree.

> Buggy

Windows 10 is the least buggy new release of Windows in ages. (Assuming you consider W7 a fixed version of Vista, though perhaps you could regard 10 as a fixed version of 8, of course)

Very true for Vista, but that's old news.

> inefficient

Not compared to Windows 7, of course in absolute terms, yes, totally true, but that is true of every mainstream OS.

> incomplete

It's Windows, just like any other version, they drop stuff and move it around. I don't see how this applies to 10 any more than 8, 7, XP .....

> woefully inept at setting direction

Surely that applied more to 8? 10 is a course correction.

> how it needs to integrate

10 seems to integrate as well as any new version.

There are lots of reasons to criticise Windows 10, but stick to real ones. (Forced update, move to a less private mode of operation, not free for Vista, etc.)

Re: the BBC insist on using it.

I generally either use the PS3 or Get_iplayer. Sadly non techies won't be using the latter.

Fake Flash update malware targets gullible Apple users

Re: Mac users

The issue is that because OS X is almost immune to viruses, people often wrongly assume that it is immune to all malware.

BlackBerry axes 200 jobs – including a third of its HQ staff

Re: "The biggest security feature of BBOS is not being subject to the patriot act."

I was referring the security of phones not on American soil.

I do not want a foreign government to be able to legally demand access to my phone, without obtaining legal authority from my country.. (Not that it's actually a serious worry for me personally, and the country I'm in would bend over and give it anyway, I'm sure, but it's the principle, and the danger of corruption leading to industrial espionage.).

I know they can hack it by illegal means, but that's a completely different matter.