Posts by Scubaman66

IBM: Customer visit costing £75 in travel? Kill it with extreme prejudice

Interesting how different worlds apart various sectors are.

The only time I've ever been hauled over the coals in regards to my expenses was in 2006 when I worked at an institutional investment consultancy specialising in the Lloyds/London Market.

I was called into the Chairman/Founder's' office and given an almighty bollocking because I hadn't maxxed out my company credit card that month and therefore obviously hadn't spent enough time with clients (this was despite the fact that I'd just recorded a record month for new business)

Linux homes for Ubuntu Unity orphans: Minty Cinnamon, GNOME or Ubuntu, mate?

Confused Newbbie

As per the title of my post I'm somewhat confused over this whole thing.

I'm a recent convert to Ubuntu (in fact to Linux of whatever flavour although I did have the job of supporting a Ti System V based two site network back in the early 90's which means I have at least a vague idea of Unix based OS) due to the fact that my current laptop (a Dell M6500 Precision) won't run Windows of any number when plugged into the charger (works just fine under battery but as I use it for music production that does leave one a tad restricted in terms of battery life.)

I installed Ubuntu Studio about a year ago as it was recommended and (other than the ongoing nightmare of getting my Focusrite Scarlett 18i8 interface to talk to my DAW using Jack and/or Alsa:

Windows method = install driver and mixer software = operational system in 3 minutes

Linux Method = Actually I'm really not at all sure as I got it all talking to each other a couple of times but mostly reverting to legacy analogue gear out of frustration)

It works fine and does everything else I need from a laptop.

Anyway, that's an aside (and a whole different bag of worms)

My questions is - I've just upgraded to the latest version of Ubuntu Studio which I understand is built using the latest 17.04 Zesty Zapus build and hence no longer has Unity. Why does it still look and function exactly the same as before? I assumed that it would be similar to going from say Win 7 to Win 10 in that everything under the skin worked pretty much the same way but the look and feel would be different.

Why Firefox? Because not everybody is a web designer, silly

Re: I recently ditched Firefox.

Well in that case I'd be eternally grateful (and I am being 100% serious here) if you could tell me , step by step, how to get my Focusrite 18i8 interface to talk to my Reaper DAW under Ubuntu Studio (17.04 Zesty Zapus) as I'm completely at a loss.

Creators Update gives Windows 10 a bit of an Edge, but some old annoyances remain

Re: Aaah Win 10

The pedant in me needs to point out that a Tomato is in fact a 'false fruit' as the true fruits are the pips, also it is quite possible to use certain cultivars of tomatoes (specifically some very high sugar content 'cherry' types) in a fruit salad as they can add a very interesting and enjoyable balance to the other fruits (and false fruits.)

Re: bipolar

That's what I'm planning to do as the only reason I have for using windows is that Jack and ALSA are total pains to get running properly and quite a number of VST's and VSTi's just don't play nicely under Linux. If I could get Focusrite Mix Control to see my USB ports and my Scarlett 18i8 under Wine I'd dump MS for good.

Routine jobs vanishing and it's all technology's fault? Hold it there, sport

",,,Routine jobs are disappearing, pushing less educated workers toward either lower-paying non-routine jobs, unemployment, or non-participation in the labour market..."

A large number of those lower paying jobs are also routine (particularly in the retail sector) and are currently being carried out, from personal experience, by a significant number of highly educated and skilled workers who have been pushed there due to them having committed the unforgivable crime of being over 50 and therefore being deemed incapable of performing the occupation they were trained for.

F-35 'sovereign data gateway' will stop US reading pilots' personal data? Yeah right

Re: ALIS?

Sir, I raise a salutatory glass to you for that.

Hi, um, hello, US tech giants. Mind, um, mind adding backdoors to that crypto? – UK govt

Re: Tech companies not required.

The thing is it's the average teen who provides the vast majority of the background noise which makes the snoopers lives so difficult. If you remove it then it's much easier to focus on what you want to listen too.

Cops use terror powers to lift BBC man's laptop after ISIS interview

Re: @sabroni Yes, go on kiddies, mod me down.

I don't know if the OP does but I most certainly do include the media.

Weight, what? The perfect kilogram is nearly in Planck's grasp

Re: Kelvin?

Wasn't Celsius originally based on 0C being the boiling point of water and 100C being the freezing point.

Re: Heavy science

Or alternatively it is 0.25 X the thickness of a climate change expert.

Re: Heavy science

A standard plank is 6 x 2 x whatever length so depending on the orientation it could be 2 or 6 or an infinitely variable number.

US Navy grabs old-fashioned sextants amid hacker attack fears

Anyone remember the delights of using Decca or Loran (and the appropriate charts) when running close to land?

By your implied analogy - why at primary school teach maths (in case the calculators stop working) or writing (in case the word processor packs in.)

Using a sextant, tables and either MSH or Long by Chron to get your position takes comfortably less than 5 minutes with practice.

In addition military vessels and aircraft usually took a starting fix using sextant and then plotted transits using compass and stopwatch during only confirming final position with another sight based fix at the end of any series of manoeuvres Much quicker and usually accurate enough for purpose.

I can also remember back when I was a 3/0 in the Merchant Navy back in the early 80's that there were one or two companies starting to produce sextants with built in navigation calculators (stand alone versions also being the latest tech at the time) so that you took the sight, pressed the button and plotted the result.

How long does it take an NHS doctor to turn on a computer?

Re: And your point is?

...Minor quibble, but the key fob for their car doesn't need batteries, ...

erm - yes it does!

US Treasury: How did ISIS get your trucks? Toyota: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

US is just p****d that ISIS would rather acquire/buy Toyotas than Ford or GM.

They just want something which is reliable, easy to fix, economical and can withstand the terrain.

30 years ago ISIS would be have been using fleets of Peugeot 504's in various specs (probably still do for stuff which is too arduous for Landcruisers or Hilux's)

PETA monkey selfie lawsuit threatens wildlife photography, warns snapper at heart of row

Not having had the time to go through all the comments - apologies to anyone who has posited this earlier.

Legal process could be quite simple:

1. Monkey owns copywrite to photo and proceeds are held in escrow account.

2. Photographer sues monkey for unauthorised theft and subsequent use of camera

3. Photographer also cites emotional damage due to aggressive image placed on his camera by monkey

4. Damages awarded to photographer equivalent to royalties on ongoing basis

5. Monkey subject to a restraining order with respect to both photographers and camera equipment

6. Monkey then sues PETA for loss of income and stress caused by restraining order.

7. Monkey and Photographer both sell their story to publisher/film producer.

Result all round!

EE is UK's biggest loser on customer broadband gripes – AGAIN

I'm terrified of posting this on the basis that everything is now going to go t**s up for me but I have to say, from personal experience (having been with EE/Orange/Freeserve/Hutchinson since year dot with a couple of years break when I mistakenly believed BT) I've never had any reason to complain about broadband service. Cusomer service has been superb and D/L U/P speeds have been equal or close to what I've been promised.

I don't work for them and have no link other than as a customer and I seemingly have been exceptionally lucky but you can only speak as you find.

Quite possibily it's the lottery of where you live/proximity to BT exchange/how well Opensource is functioning in your area.

BT and Vodaphone are another matter altogether.

Windows 10 now on 75 million devices, says Microsoft

Re: 75 million?

Obviously I was only calling Linux a joke in terms of music production NOT for other areas.

Re: 75 million?

Name one os other than Windows which has more than a basic hobbyist ability in music production?

Linux is a joke with virtually nothing supported (and seemingly little interest in getting any better)

Jeep Cherokee 2.2: Capable, comfortable ... but just not very Jeep

Or for the same money you could buy a two year old Range Rover which would not only be more comfortable but would be significantly better of the rough stuff than most, if not all, street level 4 x 4's out there. Plus it would have the added kudos of being a Range Rover.

Apple, Google should give FBI every last drop of user information, says ex-HP CEO and wannabe US prez Carly Fiorina

Re: Read between the lines...

Trouble was the key to the door was given to the US strategic directors in Likud. This isn't some paranoid conspiracy theory but specifically the VERY cosy relationship between HP and Netanyahu's party. Commercially no doubt very profitable, guaranteed to be supported by the fundamentalist Christian right lobby and no doubt putting HP at the top of the list for Govt projects if the Republicans get into the White House.

Re: I'm voting Libertarian

I think it would be more accurate to say that the Democrats are similar to the right wing of the Conservative party, the Republicans are somewhat to the right of the far right of British politics.

I always find it somewhat bemusing that, whilst being considered somewhat right of centre here in the UK , I find much of what those apparently communist/marxist Democrats espouse to be to the right of my position.

Bitcoin can't be owned, says Japanese court, as Karpeles sweats in cell

Re: Pretend money is pretend

As any form of currency is only worth what its mutually agreed value is (whether it be paper, precious metal, shells, stones, animals or a series of algorithmic derived numbers) the only difference between Bitcoins and say US Dollars (substitue Sterling, Euro, Yen, etc) is the level of acceptance. The only real difference between a 'standard backed' currency and a 'fiat' currency is the notional value of what the currency is denominated against.