* Posts by bombastic bob

10507 publicly visible posts • joined 1 May 2015

Well this is awkward. As Microsoft was bragging about Office at Build, Office 365 went down

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

*PRICELESS*

This deserves its own 'Priceless' parody ad.

"Office 365 subscription - $xxx"

"Trip to Build conference - $xxxx"

"Listening to Microsoft brag about Office 365 and cloud services while it suffers a critical outage? PRICELESS!"

The rise of AI marks an end to CPU dominated computing

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: rise of AI marks an end to CPU dominated computing

ack - many trend predictions have fallen on their face. I'm still using a desktop computer (albeit an older one), and not trying to type on a fondleslab 'fake' keyboard nor use a phone for El Reg comments. The PC obviously isn't dead yet, and nor will the CPU be dead any time soon.

'new shiny' is a FAD, not a trend. making a long term decision based on fads is a recipe for FAIL.

I predict the CPU will be around for a long, long time. That's because there aren't any _REAL_ AI algorithms out there to make use of "wide GPU farm" architecture. We're barely seeing multi-threaded algorithms to take advantage of multi-core. I mean, really...

FCC: Take your spam and shove it, slacktivists!

bombastic bob Silver badge
Unhappy

Re: A simpler solution

the legit ones require you to identify yourself and at least give an e-mail address. however, I can create as many e-mail addresses as I want to with 2 different domains, and so I could easily appear as several people if I wanted to...

I wonder how many of the astro-turfers are sponsored by George Soros...

Could US appeals court save us all from 10 years of net neutrality yelling?

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

"an an banc panel is the chief judge plus other 10 randomly chosen active judges from that court."

make that 'activist judges' (the only kind that are on the 9th Circus Court, it seems)

Perhaps the Supreme Court needs to fix it. Hopefully will side with the FTC being the regulator. Otherwise, it will be Con-Grab having to do something about it with legislation.

Ultimately I think data privacy will be dealt with the same way it was done with banking transactions. The FTC most definitely regulates THAT.

Go, GoDaddy! Domain-slinger decapitates email patent troll in court

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: Troll loses on court.....

sometimes NOT writing the profanity out is more fun or funnier. that, and the colorful use of metaphors, and strikeout text, and regular expressions, etc. etc. etc..

So yeah, those FORNICATING patent trolls, with QUESTIONABLE HERITAGE, EXCREMENT for brains, etc. etc. etc.

Microsoft is on the edge: Windows, Office? Naah. Let's talk about cloud, AI

bombastic bob Silver badge
Unhappy

hyping Azure like its Amway

beware the market-speak. It's starting to look like you went to a friend's house only to get a presentation on Amway. Or anything similar.

(from the article)

"Visual Studio for the Mac reached general availability, offering developers a well-regarded IDE for creating cross-platform apps in C#, among other languages, in conjunction with Xamarin's tooling, .NET Core, and Azure."

*sigh*. whee. more like 'Embrace Extend Extinguish' for the Mac. And other platforms (like Linux).

European Investment Bank tosses €25m to MariaDB

bombastic bob Silver badge
Coat

Re: Quite a neat concept, the EIB.

"For those who don’t know what the European Investment Bank is, a very brief introduction."

oh, I thought you meant the "Excellence In Broadcasting" network (Rush Limbaugh)

but Rush's network IS "quite a neat concept"

(getting coat now)

FBI boss James Comey was probing Trump's team for Russia links. You're fired, says Donald

bombastic bob Silver badge
Meh

Meh

nothing to see here, really.

[no great loss, the guy was too wishy-washy to be heading up law enforcement]

Donald likes to say "you're fired" anyway. I'm sure there will be more.

On today's a-gender: Axing net neutrality will harm America's women, say women senators

bombastic bob Silver badge
Pint

Re: The chorus to ALL the songs in the papers.

have a beer! you deserve it!

bombastic bob Silver badge
Thumb Down

Re: Don't see how that letter helps

"We already know that Republicans couldn't give a flying rats ass about women"

correction: YOU already BELIEVE that. But it's just, plain, false. Saying it like that does NOT make it true. The fact is that Republicans aren't "affirmative action" types. THAT much is true. but they're not "misogynists" because they don't support some idiotic kind of quota or preference system designed to punish men so that THEY can know what it's like to "get screwed".

Ugh, the emotional-manipulation bombs are being thrown again. I hope that those who throw such things are hoisted by their OWN petards!

It's 2017 and Windows PCs are being owned by EPS files, webpages

bombastic bob Silver badge
Linux

Re: Riddled to high heaven

"is there no end to this?"

switching to Linux might help

otherwise, risking your personal information and/or business on Microsoft "solutions" (including 'Defender' aka 'Achilles') is beginning to look a bit *too* risky.

Microsoft's .NET-mare for developers: ASP.NET Core 2.0 won't work on Windows-only .NET

bombastic bob Silver badge
Thumb Down

Re: Why not stick with Mono?

why not code for SOMETHING THAT IS NOT ".Not" instead.

then you can AVOID Micro-shaft's REDONKULOUS bass-ackwards "object oriented" "solution" (aka overcomplex bloatware designed to turn senior Win32 developers into junior developers again, so "next generation" can be fully indoctrinated into "the Micro-shaft way" and thereby LOCKED IN in perpetuity to what ultimately became Win-10-nic).

So yeah, pick something ELSE. If you *MUST* code the bass-ackwards C-pound way, use Java and be TRULY cross-platform.

Or use another toolkit that's cross-platform like GTK, QT, or wxWidgets.

ANY of those alternate solutions are superior to ".Not". And MONO.

/me remembers how *ANGRY* was when Debian included MONO dependencies into gnome by making 'tomboy' part of the gnome-desktop package. Hello extra GIGABYTES of CRUFT that's all needed JUST! FOR! ONE! TRIVIAL! APPLICATION!!

Mono. what a *JOKE*

IBM: Remote working is great! ... For everyone except us

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: One size fits nobody.

"also going with open plan offices"

fish bowls? ew. don't try to do anything CREATIVE in THAT kind of environment, especially when there are people who do phone support nearby. Well, I can manage to tune THEM out, but they'll have a hard time tuning out my occasional frequent outbursts of profanity...

(I also know this guy who's a decent coder but he constantly talks to himself, and don't interrupt his self-conversation or he'll get angry with you. It's how he thinks. Creative types are sometimes a bit eccentric, need to be left on their own, then everything's ok)

bombastic bob Silver badge
Pint

Re: Good Managers

"Noise, meetings and general distractions don't make for productive coders "

nor do 8AM-5PM "workdays". best work is done some time after 11PM with an adult beverage to keep me company.

bombastic bob Silver badge

Re: " useless hour-long meetings "

Useless meetings? Must be using 'Agile' then

telecommute doesn't work well when you hire junior people, though. For senior consultant types? It's probably _IDEAL_.

America's mystery X-37B space drone lands after two years in orbit

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

@Mark 85

does this count?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Duration_Exposure_Facility

not "satellite" but an orbiting lab that was designed to be brought back.

Facebook is abusive. It's time to divorce it

bombastic bob Silver badge
Unhappy

"That read exactly like the Women's page on a daily rag."

thanks for that image, now I need brain bleach.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: Life without facebook is easy!

"Never use Faceb[ook,itch]"

it goes along with:

a) never start smoking

b) never use I.V. drugs

c) never drive while drunk

etc.

Is there going to be a REHAB for FACEB[itch,ook] addicts?

bombastic bob Silver badge
Big Brother

Re: Just say NO to Social Media sites/apps

"with upcoming elections & likely massive ad budgets spent on social media"

And a corollary: Do you *REALLY* want social media and their evil infrastructure INFLUENCING elections? The 'lame-stream' media is bad enough already. But they don't know the details of YOUR life. The 'big brother' nature of knowing EVERYTHING about you, applied to an AI algorithm, and THEN targeting you with specific political advertisements in order to MANIPULATE your voting pattern... well that 'sentence' lacks a verb but I think the rest is obvious.

"Just Say NO" indeed.

/me plays 'Uprising' by Muse - gotta love that 'Dr. Who' mono-synth solo opening

Oracle fires Java warning at IBM and Red Hat

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

change for the sake of change?

I have to wonder whether Oracle's plan for Java "modularity" is JUST ANOTHER CHANGE FOR THE SAKE OF CHANGE, like so many OTHER things have been in the last decade...

In other words, maybe THEIR millenials are saying "It's OUR turn now"...

I'll keep using OpenJDK / OpenJRE and whatever ends up as part of Android in the mean time.

Hackers emit 9GB of stolen Macron 'emails' two days before French presidential election

bombastic bob Silver badge
Coat

the hackers MAY be Russian, but...

the hackers MAY be Russian, but... is it so certain that the RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT would be sponsoring them?

Or is it possible they aren't pro-Putin hackers?

Same with other alleged "connections" to Russian hacking and politics. It seems to be a favorite 'whipping boy' these days.

/me getting my coat now

Australian Taxation Office named as party preventing IT contractors being paid

bombastic bob Silver badge
Facepalm

Re: We OBVIOUSLY are missing big chunks of the story. . .

"We once had a corporate charter suspended without warning for failing to pay a $25 annual filing fee."

that's no joke, either. actually, for small corporations in Cali-fornicate-you, there are a handfull of little things like this, including the $800/year minimum tax, whether your profitable or not.

So after hearing that the bank accounts were 'frozen' (allegedly?) it looks like they'll need an order from a judge to pay the contractors what they're owed out of that. yeah, governmentium obstructing common sense. it sounds plausible enough to believe without question.

this entire situation deserves one gigantic FACEPALM

Today's bonkers bug report: Microsoft Edge can't print numbers

bombastic bob Silver badge
Linux

Re: PDF in a Browser?

evince is cross-platform (and free, open source)

bombastic bob Silver badge
Unhappy

Re: And all the students that get stuck with Windows S!

"who might have reason to send an image to PDF."

if you buy something online, and they show a receipt in web format, sometimes it's best to make a copy, and PDF makes more sense than printing. I can't imagine a WORSE outcome than having the WRONG numerical information on that receipt when you try and track your package that didn't arrive for some reason...

systemd-free Devuan Linux hits RC2

bombastic bob Silver badge
Trollface

you forgot the troll icon

"modern software requires modern solutions which is something rabid luddites don't seem to understand."

(ok you posted as an AC which is why you couldn't show the troll icon)

luddites. use of that term is a dead giveaway. just like the [ab]use of 'modern'.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Megaphone

"why have all the major distos except Slackware and Gentoo adopted it?"

a) "new, shiny"

b) it makes them *FEEL* like they're doing something to implement 'the new thing'

c) peer pressure (lots of 'how come we don't have systemd yet' mail, etc.)

d) same reasons why they implement gnome 3 instead of MATE as a default - right Debian?

I noted that FreeBSD kept gnome 2 for the LONGEST time in ports, and when Mate was ready for prime time, THEN they brought in both gnome 3 AND mate. I'm still using gnome 2 from a couple of years ago and it works pretty well. In fact, NOT having "bleeding edge" all the time made the userland a LOT more stable.

Thing is, when the userland practically *DEMANDS* support from systemd [a continuing problem on BSD systems, which will *NEVER* have it] then you have to put in hacks and patches to compensate. Or put in systemd. Guess which one they did?

We all know why Gnome 3 developers did what it did: they're IDIOTS trying to be Micro-shaft and swallow the touchy-fondly-fat-finger-friendly "trend" coolaid. For desktops, that's been nothing but *IRRITATION* for several *YEARS*. THey had to DUMB DOWN several gnome 2 features that were *THANKFULLY* retained by Mate, like "how many icons can I cram into the icon bar". Try 50. Or maybe just 20, ut you have the system monitor and you organize the icons into groups with variable white space between them. In Gnome 3 you have "3 groups" and you have to engage in odd key+mouse combinations to get to the menu to re-position them (yeah changing THAT was a real "pleasant" surprise, thanks Gnome 3 dweebs). In any case, Gnome 3 carried on in the wrong direction, just like Micro-shaft with the 2D FLATSO FLUGLY "the metro" and now UWP and Win-10-nic.

So now, these same MILLENIAL "it's OUR turn now to do it OUR way" types have created a *MONSTER* that feeds itself and grows stronger due to "all of that".

Fortunately we have Mate, and now Devuan. Thanks, Devuan! Looking forward to the preservation of X11 and *NOT* Wayland, as the SAME PEOPLE drive everything off the cliff like a bunch of lemmings.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Thumb Down

Re: It's fascinating that Linux now has the same problem as Windows

"it is a simple matter of reading the man page"

RTFM noted, not appreciated.

Qualcomm to demand US iPhone import ban

bombastic bob Silver badge
Facepalm

The Gods are at war again...

This reminds me of a Ray Harryhausen movie where the gods punish humans as a matter of course, part of their little spats with one another, like a bunch of babies that didn't get the right kind of rattle when demanded. or something like that.

Industrial plant robots frequently connected to the 'net without authentication

bombastic bob Silver badge
Terminator

Re: "83,000 robots researchers found exposed to the public internet,"

nobody has seen 'Live Free or Die Hard' have they?

Dark-web pedo jailed after FBI and co use vid trick to beat privacy tech

bombastic bob Silver badge
Thumb Up

Re: So the FBI ...

a big thumbs up for just saying it - they CAN do actual police work! [good job FBI by the way]

The Perp is 59 years old. add 13 years, 72. plus 10 probation, 82.

Unasked question: just HOW LONG has this guy been at it before getting CAUGHT?

Windows 10 S forces Bing, Edge on your kids. If you don't like it, get Win10 Pro – Microsoft

bombastic bob Silver badge
Megaphone

Re: Windows 7

"When everything is turned off in Windows 10, it doesn't leak any more information back to Microsoft than Windows 7 does."

only if you install ALL of the updates...

And on top of that, Win-10-nic is 2D FLATSO FLUGLY, has "the METRO" SETTINGS intermixed with *EVERYTHING* that control panel USED TO manage well, and "all that cruft" etc. etc. etc. so that even with Classic Shell, it's STILL lipstick on a boar, and NOT on "the oinky end".

Windows 7 IS "the last Windows". What happened after Sinofsky is basically something else...

Need the toilet? Wanna watch a video ad about erectile dysfunction?

bombastic bob Silver badge
Trollface

Re: Always use the disabled toilets

'Not to go off on a US signage tangent, but how about a warning "Slow Child Crossing".'

(yeah, U.S. signage tangent)

On I5 in the Camp Pendleton area (between San Diego and L.A.) it's all open landscape for miles. Along the side of the road there used to be signs labeled 'Caution' in english, 'Prohibido' in Spanish, depicting a man, woman, and kids running across a freeway. The thing is, this was a REAL problem [and no doubt still is, but the signage wasn't there last I checked]. The presumption is that it's illegals that were taken across the border by coyotes and are now "on their own" in the vacinity of a (no longer operational?) border checkpoint in the middle of that stretch of road.

FYI the sign was similar to this one: https://chnm.gmu.edu/cyh/primary-sources/289 - that one doesn't have the 'Prohibido' underneath it though.

No similar signs on the public bathrooms at the nearby rest stop, though... (regardless of the amount of wet paper and other mysterious things on the floor)

S is for Sandbox: The logic behind Microsoft's new lockdown Windows gambit

bombastic bob Silver badge
Flame

Re: It's fairly pointless...

"Desktop Bridge allows for almost any Win32 application to be repackaged for the store."

Fine. Let Micro-shaft do it FOR us. I'm not going to bother. win-10-nic is all 2D FLATSO FLUGLY and I don't want MY applications "looking like that". bleah.

And if Microshaft is STUPID enough to go through with "banning" Win32 applications from *THEIIR* subscription-based OS [looking into the future...] then that's THEIR market-fail, and I'll just continue working on cross-platform development so that Linux users will have nice native applications to run using the SAME SOURCE CODE.

/me wonders if a good cross-platform development kit would convince people to thumb their noses at UWP...

bombastic bob Silver badge
Flame

Re: Windows Store, oh goody!

"they might start to take the new Windows seriously and start to develop for it properly."

well, THIS developer [me] gave up on developing Winders applications, particularly for Win-10-nic. Sure, I'll do *occasional* Win32 applications for 7 (and even 'Ape') users. FYI that's 3/4 of windows machines last I checked.

But I will *NEVER* do "UWP". *NEVER*

I don't do ".Not" either. Similar reasons. And one of MY binary executables is typically self-contained, statically linked, etc. No shared lib B.S., no DLL hell, no 3rd party "install all of this too" garbage, no run-time version confusion, yotta yotta. It only uses the Win32 API, as designed. You could copy it to ANY directory and run it, and it would work. Seriously!

(and if there are optional components installed as DLLs they would be just as independent, needing no external DLLs to load other than the OS itself, and the system would work WITHOUT them since they're 'optional')

We don't need some B.S. Micro-shaft ABOMINATION like ".Not" or shared MFC or ATL or [worse] UWP to write an application, when 3/4 of the MARKET POTENTIAL is running something that does not *NEED* any of that!!!

SUMMARY: if I'm right, developers will give UWP (and win-10-nic "app" development) a GIANT MIDDLE FINGER and *require* something NOT "win-10-nic S" to run the thing. And nobody will drink "the new coolaid", and this whole "Win-10-nic S" thing will *JUST* *DIE* (with snarky laughter all around).

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

the PC has been taking its long, sad journey into becoming a niche???

If Micro-shaft based its market strategy on this, for this 'S' product (which stands for a word that rhymes with 'spit' and 'quit') then they are COMPLETELY out of touch with reality!

The PC market for 'new sales' does NOT reflect usage. How many times must this be explained?

People aren't buying new PCs, or replacement PCs, as they used to for the following reasons:

a) they like what they have (windows 7 for example)

b) they don't like what they see (win-10-nic, not enough perceived "better" performance)

c) they're concerned that the software they purchased, which runs fine on the existing computer, won't work on "the new one"

d) depressed economies [this should be rectified soon]

[there may be other reasons, but I think these are the main ones]

So when you see net statistics that show that HALF of the computers already out there are "old machines", and they're NOT being "up"graded to a Win-10-nic box [as an example], then the problem isn't that there is a DECLINE IN PC USAGE.

the problem is that NEW PCs are NOT BEING PURCHASED like they used to be. For the reasons I already stated.

Micro-shaft could have produced an OS that people would buy a new PC to get, or purchase an upgrade to get. Instead, they went with Win-10-nic. NOW, they put LIPSTICK on the NON-OINKY END of the pig, with this 'S' {profanity}.

And they're doing it on PREMIUM hardware, like something a Mac user would pay for?

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

what a bunch of MAROONS!

Microsoft, Oracle sued: Tech duo accused of trampling DB patents

bombastic bob Silver badge
FAIL

universities are patent trolls now?

I have to wonder about the motivations behind this...

All of these patents apply to storing DNA information, from what I can gather (a generic database is not covered by this). To get a patent, you have to be SPECIFIC about your invention, whether it's a physical device, algorithm, or whatever. In short, a blanket "for loop" patent would be denied on the basis of it being trivial and generic. "Use of a for loop to calculate prime numbers" might be patentable since it's a specific unique usage for a specific application. But patents that are trivially obvious, or 'too generic' or 'too vague' shouldn't be granted, but apparently are granted anyway [I've seen a few].

These trivially obvious, generic, and/or vague patents are the ones the patent trolls EXPLOIT in order to extract money in the form of punitive damages and legal costs.

So after a short amount of overview on this, I'd say the university is IN THE WRONG, unless Micro-shaft and Oracle are *specifically* working on a DNA database and are blatantly violating their patent for some reason...

(which I doubt)

Republicans go all Braveheart again with anti-net neutrality bill

bombastic bob Silver badge
Black Helicopters

Re: Festering swamp rats!

"Outlaw corporate donations, do away with super pacs and all the other ways they use to funnel money into campaigns"

that would actually hurt the DEMO-RATS the most. Because THEN, corporate donors like Micro-shaft, Google, and... GEORGE SOROS's many "non-profits", wouldn't be able to keep the socialists in power over at the Demo-Rat party HQ. Then again, maybe THAT swamp draining would be a good start.

the unfortunate reality is that by limiting the contributions of INDIVIDUALS, these "super pac" corporations were formed. That was part of "campaign finance reform", which obviously was NOT "reform". It helped to empower those who could 'work the system' through such non-profit corporations, as well as empowering organizations like labor unions.

So who do you blame? GUMMINT!

bombastic bob Silver badge
Black Helicopters

politicians will find SOME way to screw it all to hell

"What exactly are these people smoking?"

probably the same crap that they refuse to legalize.

yes. I'm saying they're hypocrites. They're politicians. it means the same thing, more often than not.

Politicians should just get the hell out of the way. No internet taxing, no regulation beyond protocols [that make it possible to HAVE an internet], and let the FTC decide what the corporations can do for whatever business interests they might have [selling our data, for example]. the FCC is about communications, NOT about regulating content, nor preventing prioritization, nor telling ISPs they can't offer 'different pricing' for various services or service levels [even if that means no overages for approved content], yotta yotta yotta.

THAT is what this is all about. The FCC should have NEVER tried to regulate "these kinds of things". And it should never try AGAIN. Laws to prevent that from happening are reasonable.

But you know politicians, they'll find SOME way to screw it all to hell...

Unpaid tech contractor: 'I have to support my family. I have no money for medicines'

bombastic bob Silver badge
Meh

Re: I lack sympathy, somewhat.

"Thus there is no choice."

there are always choices. fate is what you make it. your choices might be limited by circumstance, but you can always make a choice.

In the circumstances you describe, the RIGHT choice just might be "re-location" or a career change.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Pirate

Re: Cash in reserve

"Invoicing terms are 30 days, often paid late."

yeah, and if you get unlucky and have a couple of "non-paying" customers at the same time, it complicates things a bit more. can happen. And yet the work is still there. So what do you do? Well, sometimes it means taking out a loan, and smiling, and doing the work, as long as there's a good chance of getting paid for it down the road. It's the world of contracting and business in general... Especially for freelancers and privateers.

yeah when you sign BOTH sides of the check, you find out a lot of things that most wage slaves don't know about, from payroll taxes to getting customers to pay up.

LinkedIn chatbots to help with 'important conversations'

bombastic bob Silver badge
FAIL

Re: Old fart here.

another old fart, who tried to use LinkedIn for what it was intended when it was first invented. You know, like an on-line resume thingy, possible for job searches as well. As it turns out, since Micro-shaft took over, I'm getting SPAMMED with "do you know these people" e-mails. I have been deleting them.

I'm considering deleting my profile as well. I wonder if the spam mail will stop...

I don't do Faceb[itch,ook], I don't do Tw[a,i]tter, and soon I probably won't do LinkedIn, either.

It's losing its value as a place for executives and professionals to advertise their skills. It's turning into a complete WASTE of effort. I haven't updated my profile in a couple of years now. And if I do choose to log in, I'll use a special browser that automatically erases ALL history/cache/cookies when I'm done. I'd JUST go there, to avoid ALL tracking. And no other browser configs allow cookies or tracking from ANY such site. I made THAT happen 3 or 4 years ago, when they started the TRACKING CRAP. That wasn't enough to make me go away entirely, but it WAS enough to make me "do that stuff" to AVOID TRACKING.

It's Russian hackers, FBI and Wikileaks wot won it – Hillary Clinton on her devastating election loss

bombastic bob Silver badge
Pint

Re: Lost because female ?

The faces she pulled as she tried to digest the question, and frame an answer was priceless.

You, sir, a beer, deserve!

bombastic bob Silver badge
Megaphone

Re: Hillary, email, and Electoral College...

"Fast forward to a private email server."

that's just the latest in a long series of corruption by Mrs. Clinton.

how about EVIDENCE TAMPERING in a case where she defended a CHILD RAPIST? The evidence just *disappeared* after her team got a hold of it to "do their own analysis".

Then there was ALL! THAT! SHREDDING! of Whitewater documents and Rose Law Firm documents that had been moved to the White House, and at some point someone saw something and *voila* SHRED PARTY!

And don't forget about Vince Foster. Why DID he "commit suicide" anyway?

And there's the entire BEN GHAZI incident. Mrs. Clinton, was it *REALLY* some stupid YOUTUBE VIDEO that caused all of that? Or maybe it was TERRORISM coinciding with the ANNIVERSARY of 9/11 ???

Mrs. Clinton has a nice record of her "accomplishments" allright, shifting the blame to ANYONE ELSE, doing "the side step", covering things up, shredding, erasing, deleting, obstructing, and DOWNRIGHT LYING.

THAT is why she's not president!

Microsoft sparks new war with Google with, er, $999+ lappies for kids

bombastic bob Silver badge
FAIL

Windows 10 S can only use apps from the Windows Store

this implies several things:

a) you MUST agree with Micro-shaft's EULA and use a Micro-shaft cloudy logon

b) you MUST only run CRapps from "the Store" which contain adware and spyware (particularly the 'free' ones).

c) it's being MARKETED! TO! CHILDREN!

d) CHILDREN are being privacy-violated, target-marketed, etc.

In other words, it's a complete cluster-BLANK of FAIL, designed ONLY to accomodate and condition the next generation into *ACCEPTING* this kind of ABOMINATION.

Micro-shaft - come up with something GOOD for once, ok? Quit shoving this CRAP out the door and up/into our collective rectums!

Male escort forgot pregnancy protection, scores data protection instead

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: I feel sorry for the child

"fishing around for 7 years worth of back payments probably has very little to do with the concerns of the child."

yeah, if she can afford an expensive hotel and a gigolo for 3 nights, perhaps she can afford decent food/clothing/school for the kid?

"Meal-ticket Mommy" indeed... can you say BACKLASH?

Trump trumps US Digital Service with order to establish American Technology Council

bombastic bob Silver badge
Trollface

Re: I've never heard of 18f

18f - isn't that what a bunch of 45M's always say on IRC? [especially when they're trolling for 13f's or want to see a bunch of 23Ms embarrass themselves for kicks]. Ok don't make me explain "IRC" please...

/me thinks: OH MY DIETIES, there's a GIRL IN THE CHANNEL! half the participants begin crowding around "the girl" and behaving like the lonely, horny young males that they are. '18f' in an IRC channel is like blood in shark infested waters, or yelling "Food Fight" in a college cafeteria.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Facepalm

Re: vision, strategy, and direction

It could be worse, "silly valley" interests violating our privacy and monetizing whatever we do online (and then targeting us with advertisements as a form of big-brother psychological manipulation).

I'm glad to see them "not at the table". but yeah, gummint technology programs like that are kinda laughable anyway. but it makes people in gummint "feel better" about it, I guess...

/me facepalms anyway

Post Unity 8 Ubuntu shock? Relax, Linux has been here before

bombastic bob Silver badge
Happy

Re: Excuse me!

"20+ comments without a single moan about System D"

I just added something. you should be happy now.

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

Re: Losing Unity 7/8 is not the end of the world!

"I can understand Ubuntu wanting to go with GNOME desktop as that is an easy path to Weyland and getting rid of legacy stuff"

yeah, about that...

I'd rather see "legacy stuff" patched and streamlined, than to be forced to "up"grade to someone ELSE's "vision" (read: drug-induced hallucination) of the future of computing.

I have an equally LOUD NO for Wayland as I do for systemd.

In short, when you have "legacy stuff" that people WANT (read: 'X server', 'system V'), why would it get ELIMINATED? Because, some dim-bulb clueless MILLENIAL "engineer" *FEELS* ??? (it's OUR turn now! change EVERYTHING!)

yeah, yeah, "grampa" wants his desktop computer running the SAME way it was in the early noughties, just running on a faster computer, with security patches and streamlined algorithms, and without all that "crap" in the way ('crap' referring to things like Unity , Gnome 3, hamburger menus, fat-finger friendliness...). There's a lot more of US than there are millenials, too. One word: Devuan. I imagine they'll NOT have Wayland, either.

Anyway, GOOD JOB CANONICAL for abandoning Unity [those who want it, it's open source, start a foundation to maintain it]. And also GOOD JOB for making Ubu work with "all of those flavors".

bombastic bob Silver badge
Devil

the difference between Canonical of the past and now

seems to me that the last part of the article got this one right: A change in focus from what THEY want to what the USERS want.