Posts by LochNessMonster 21 publicly visible posts • joined 30 Oct 2017
It's a movie (y'know, entertainment?) not a lifestyle statement. Like it, loathe it, or even feel complete indifference to it, anyone elses' opinion is meaningless. If it floats yer boat rejoice... if not stfu and go watch something else.
Disclaimer: I'll be first in line for tickets for "Top Gun: Maverick" and "Time To Die" this summer, not because I expect them to be life-changing experiences, but because I [i]expec[/i]t excitement, entertainment and spectacle when I go to the cinema. Oh, and ice-cream... lots of ice-cream. :-D
"If your service dies, you need to contact them. If you can't contact them, it doesn't matter that it's a one-off."
And, if you can contact them, how you're dealt with.
"Hello, my router's refusing to sync and there's heavy interference on the voice line,"
"Are you using our supplied router?"
"I wasn't, but I've swapped it in and the problem persists. I've even connected an old wired handset to the master socket, and it sounds like a fish fryer."
"Okay, that's enough for me... obviously a line fault.... yup, I'll raise it with BTOR. Please allow 2-3 working days for rectification."
7hrs later I get a call from a BTOR engineer.."That's your fault cleared... I was asked to let you know."
Sh*t happens... how you deal with it defines how you're regarded by your customers.
"I was working from home a lot and it provided a pleasant way of prevaricating[...]"
It's also much more fun on a wet day-off than daytime tv.
There's nothing like the words "Hello, this is Microsoft Windows Technical Support...." to get the creative juices flowing. I kept one @$$h@t occupied for over 30mins by pretending to be 80yrs old and in a care home with shared internet access. My boredom threshold eventually exceeded his patience, and I called him out. And yes, it was I who was accused of "time-wasting", as well as being involved in several dubious family-related sexual activities. :-)
@Alan Brown
"A plane may land damaged but it WILL land. A drone going through the engine will probably cause less problems than a bird"
The issue here is with the word "probably". You and I are sitting at home, glass in hand, browsing the interwebs, Would you feel as confident if your family were sat in a 767 on finals with a drone directly in the glide path? It's also not just about approach, but departure.... aircraft can't takeoff if there's a risk of something popping up just as it reaches Vr; bad things happen. As for missile defence systems.... dream on. Unless the Pk is 100% you've got the potential of a f*ckton of collateral damage to cope with.
Much as I enjoy a good conspiracy theory, I'd also like to point out that 1902hrs GMT tomorrow (21 December) marks the 30th anniversary of PanAm 103 exploding over Lockerbie. with the loss of 270 lives. I don't want to see the same again. This is peoples' lives we're dealing with... show some fcsking humanity ffs.
"So what? Does that mean nobody else has problems, or the problem doesn't exist?"
Oh do grow up. It simply means that some [i]actual[/i] owners haven't experienced the issues that the article implied are widespread i.e.
"The Pixel 2 suffered from display issues, audio problems and then, after a few months, developed an infuriating narcoleptic display which required the owner to reboot the phone after a phone call. That took six months to fix."
That may well be true, but I took delivery of my own 2XL on launch day and haven't encountered any of the above either. The suggestion is merely that the issues aren't as endemic as implied; not every Pixel 2 suffers them.
"However, Sony aren't making an XZ3 Compact"
They [i]do[/i] make the 5" 1080p XZ2 Compact, however.
"XZ2 only had a Snapdragon 650"
Both the XZ2 and XZ2 Compact use the SD845 SoC.
While I'm here....
"The XS will survive a short dip in the deep end of a pool[...]"
Please stop with this twaddle. Every pool I've visited that has a "deep end" has it because of diving boards, and is therefore at least 3m deep. This greatly exceeds even Apple's generous 2m/30mins IP68 rating. IP68 is proof against sink/toilet drops, pub misadventures and heavy rain, nothing more.
"Great, another pile of crap that only offers 8-12 hours of battery!"
It may well, but it doesn't have to. I've got a Ticwatch Pro which happily lasts more than 72hrs of "normal" use (telling the time, quietly notifying me of incoming emails/msgs that may require attention, monitoring my heart rate to recommend when another double espresso is required) on a full charge.
As to the subject.... there's no excuse as the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 was one of the devices for which the various Android 9.0 "beta" releases was available. Any issues affecting Gear devices should have been obvious long before now.
Pixel 2XL running Android 9.0 (PPR1 180610.009), no issues with [i]any[/i] third-party apps.
"Except no user will have P for at least 6 months after it is "released" by Google."
Au contraire, anyone owning a Google Pixel/Pixel 2, a Nokia 7 Plus, a OnePlus6. an Oppo R15 Pro, a Sony XZ2, a Vivo X21/X21UD or a Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S could install the P beta on the day it was released (09/05/2018). Since then other devices have been added e.g.the Samsung A3 2017.Plenty of opportunity to test on real hardware well before it's officially released.
"So much for security - Gmail remembers your login so the next person to access you machines finds themselves already logged in."
Only because YOU told it to. You're asked if you want it to remember the password the first time you log in on a new device (even warning it's not a good idea on shared devices). If you click "no" then it remembers nothing and you're required to enter your creds each time you access the service (provided you're not dumb enough to simply walk away still logged in, of course).
"You would think they are deliberately copying Apple and their stupidly expensive iphone X with this. Hang on ........"
The P20 Pro will be on sale on the High St, SIM-free and unlocked, for £799, which is £200 cheaper than the X. So not quite so stupidly expensive, and it's hardly the only option out there. The P20 Pro is Huawei saying "look what we can do", and I for one see far more potential here than in animated turds or personalised emoji (*). This tech has useful real-world ramifications which will filter into mainstream devices in a couple of years.
(*) Google's AR Stickers excepted, 'cos photographing your 6 year-old nephew next to an Imperial Stormtrooper makes you the best uncle evar! :-)
"I would to know of some way to remote nuke the phone though, just in case it gets nicked."
Provided that you have signed into a Google account on the phone, go to google.co.uk, sign-in and go to My Account/Sign-In & Security/Find My Phone. One available option is to remotely erase any device using the account.
"England and Wales have a six-year guarantee"
Not true. There are [i]very[/i] specific conditions to the Consumer Right Act (2015), especially "If a fault develops after the first six months, the burden is on you to prove that the product was faulty at the time of delivery" and "This doesn't mean that a product has to last six years - just that you have this length of time in which to make a claim if a retailer refuses to repair or replace a faulty product."
What [i]really[/i] makes retailers angry is people making demands based on inaccurate reporting by journalists who don't verify what they write.
My licence fee for 2017 has already been justified by (a) The Vietnam War (BBC 4) and Blue Planet 2 (BBC1). Oh yeah, and access to the BBC archives e.g. "Cold War, Hot Jets" and numerous other documentaries e.g the Timescape series. "Strictly...."? Mere fluff!
I value quality over quantity. I also have Netflix and Amazon Prime subs but the sheer variety of quality content available via the BBC trumps both.YMMV, but I definitely don't feel short-changed.
p.s. @Muscleguy
As a dyed-in-the-wool Nationalist I found NOTHING biased to complain about in BBC Scotland's coverage of the IndyRef. In fact I found it amusing that BOTH sides accused the BBC of "bias" in turn,,,, that tells me that they were reflecting accurate views. Remind me again, how tight was the margin?
"I cant work out why they:
- Dropped SD card support"
They didn't. No Google device (other than the original Nexus iirc) has supported microSD storage so it's hardly an about-face. I don't agree with it, but it's been par for the course with Google devices for several years.
"Dropped headphone support unless you own a pair of crappy bluetooth 'phones (removed 3.5in jack)"
Top tip... don't buy crappy BT 'phones. I use Sony MDR-1ABTs and the sound (and comfort) is superb. They can also use an (included) optional 3.5mm cable which, with an adaptor, sound great through my hifi amp.
"Made the screen bezel look like its from the 90's"
That's the Pixel 2. The 2XL has the 2017 "full-screen" display which is (apparently) de rigeur for 2017.
"How many people were more worried about a phone being waterproof than they were about being able to use it to listen to music? Fucking no one"
Well, this person gives a fcuk about both, so I bought a Sony XZ1. It works for me.
.
"What is it about phone design that forces you to remove the expandable SD card slot? Fucking nothing. Other than an Apple-style price gouge for more capacious models."
On that we can agree 100% The SD835 supports microSD expansion, as demonstrated by other OEMs. The GoogleCloud is okay for backup purposes, but until 3/4G coverage is ubiquitous I'll insist on the dependable microSD card. I venture off-grid regularly in the NW of Scotland, and being stuck in a tent for 48hrs without entertainment other than the same map to read is hell on earth! :)
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