Posts by Fred Gumby

Startup claims 1W wireless charging at 10 metres

How many?

Regulation issues aside, I have 10 or more candidate devices at home that would benefit from this technology. A busy Starbucks could easily have 40. He didn't address how to deliver 1W to each of them simultaneously.

High Court orders MPs to 'fess up on expenses

Jail, Gaol?

This is why nothing gets done!

The point is that some crooks^W politicians are taking the taxpayers for a ride and everybody starts quibbling about semantics.

Jail, gaol, pokey, slammer or whatever. I'd like my taxes back please and the rules changed. Also the thieving bastards^W^W elected politicians need to be named and shamed (and/or put in prison)

Xerox bets R&D future on pap

Xeroids Rule!

As an ex-Xeroid, I can honestly say that Xerox is held back by it's (lack of) management.

I have known so many gifted people within Xerox, it staggers me that they don't rule the world.

I'm harking back to he dinosaur days now, but Xerox had instant messaging back in 1990 (invented by some clever Californian dudes I believe). Xerox had an internal competition at the time for new innovations that could make money. I submitted the idea that instant messaging could be useful.

Did I win?

No.

Did I get an honourable mention?

No.

Did I get an acknowledgment that he idea was even under consideration?

No.

Was anything ever done with the idea?

I think you're geting the picture by now...

I played a strategy game called Empire, a fantastic strategy game (on company time) under XDE which allowed me to play with any Xerox employee in the world in real time, and chat with them also in real time.

Xerox needs to sack the PHBs and listen to the troops more.

Thumbs up because I believe the magic could still happen.

Rogue trader blows sox off control systems

ermmm...

I think it's a bit harsh to blame him for the mini-crash. SocGen may have had a bad day, but the money went to other institutions which had a very GOOD day.

Maybe the media whipping up the doom'n'gloom aspect played a part, but in these types of CFD deals, for every loser there is a winner.

Hundreds of US fighter aces reassigned as drone pilots

Wasted Money

It apparently takes several $million to train a fighter pilot. For a bucket of quarters (or 50p's) the USAF could get hundreds of "aces" from game arcades. War on the cheap <sigh>.

Maybe Xboxen should have a new sticker "Get a top score on the included flight sim and win a career killing people the world over!"

Schools minister touts 'one interweb per child' pork barrel

Sniff sniff

Aaaah! The delightful fragrance of EDS...

Gmail: a short, sharp rant

Google are big, monolithic and STUPID

A little over a year ago I tried contacting someone in Google to discuss an idea/business model which would quite possibly have made billions for them.

Did they bite my arm off? No! Many hours of phone-ping-pong and unanswered emails later, I gave up.

You'd think that SOMEONE in Google would think "should we potentially waste a few hours talking to this guy VS. making a few $billion?" without coming to the conclusion "naaah! Too much bother".

This says to me that Google is now going the way of all companies that have lost their hunger.