@Network 67 Re: This Study Is Biased

"Given how much more visible a creature in sunshine is likely to be than a creature in the shadow, it would make sense that those creatures who were less effective at distinguishing between the two WOULD GET EATEN AND NOT REPRODUCE."

"That presupposes that a predatory creature had already evolved sight for hunting. However it would be an evolutionary pressure on the predated species. "

It would be entirely possible to evolve sight in order to avoid a predator which hunts you by other means, for example scent.

There would of course be any number of uses for primitive sight/light/heat sensitivity prior to its refinement to a level where it would be useful in predation. To help a creature orient itself, to navigate, to avoid getting damaged in direct sunlight, to find a suitable location to reproduce, for example.

@AC 07:08

"Is there anyone who will rush out and buy it, just to see the rubber shark at the end of the film?"

Dunno. If your appreciation of a film is based solely on the quality of the effects, I've got this copy of Transformers over here you can have.

Re: Apple doesnt effect the landscape?

I think there's a certain amount of talking at cross-purposes here, Trevor. What you're describing is in effect the influence that Apple devices SHOULD currently have on business computing. What the others are describing is the effect they actually have, which is to skew the provision and support of IT in a manner out of all proportion to their actual use or importance.

I suspect there's any number of of people here who know only too well how unimportant their day-to-day work of providing and supporting systems is regarded as being the moment one of their senior management goes (paraphrasing) "Yes, yes, disaster recovery and security are all very well, but what about my shiny new iPhone?"

Re: Arkell v Pressdram 1971

"You want to start a lawyering fight with a law firm? I think they might have a slight advantage there. Even if your arguments are infinitely better, they can still make the case drag on for a decade and cost you several times your lifetime earnings."

But that's the whole point, isn't it? The last thing they want is to end up actually having to argue one of these cases in court. Their whole business model is predicated on the threat of legal action, if they have to follow through and end up losing a case or (worse) end up with a ruling against certain of their practices, it could blow them out of the water.

Re: This is why Doctor Who exists...

"I'm not sad enough to remember what the story was called."

The Visitation, as I'm sure about 20 oher people who are sad enough will have pointed out by the time this comment is posted.

Re: An there was me thinking that...

"He was just an actor, playing a role. I'm sure it's just what he wanted as well.

Even in death he can't help but be a parody."

So, 50 down-votes so far. Allow me to be number 51.

Re: And if that wasn't bad enough...

"Fox cancelled Firefly."

It still hurts. It still hurts.

Re: You know,

"For anyone interested, if you get irritated with Mary coming along and punching you if you swear, you can find her in the curiously Spanish-named El Vinos, and kill her. It doesn't help anything, of course, since she comes back a minute or two later, but it still gives a certain thrill to those as nerdy as I."

> Fuck Mary.

> Mary is not amused. (Punch)

Ah, Valhalla, happy days.

Re: This technology is absolute bollocks

When Barclays tried to foist one of these cards on me last year, replacing my debit card with a contactless one, it was quite difficult to reject. Nobody seemed to understand my concern, and the half dozen people I had to go through all said "Well, you don't have to use it if you don't want to..."

In the end the only alternative they could offer was the Debit card they give to customers they don't quite trust, which has to have every transaction verified by the bank before it will authorise. I suppose there's a sort of symmetry there - I don't trust them, so they don't trust me. Thanks a lot, Barclays.

Oh, Apple, you kidders

"...we would never knowingly abuse someone else’s trademarks."

Apart from when selling music, of course...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Corps_v_Apple_Computer

Misread that...

"You are obviously a gynaecologist abusing your position of trust"

At first glance, I read that as "position of thrust."

Re: Ambient + Letter Box...

"The Ambient light feature is appealing; but when the picture does not match the screen's aspect ratio, the usual blank bands would disassociate the effect."

I'd have expected that problem too, but from experience it really isn't a problem. There's a bezel round the edge as well, which doesn't cause a problem either. It would seem that the Ambilight effect is not dependent on being so close to the image as all that.

Two down, 100ish to go

@Paul L. Daniels

"Good News... the episodes are coming back to us anyhow..."

One has to assume, since you're not providing this link on April 1st yourself, that you didn't notice the publishing date on that article.

@Zack Mollusc

It was the start of the colour era. They assumed nobody would be interested in them there old-fashioned black and white programmes any more.

@AC 08:41

"But "Irrumatio" would be even more appropriate, it seems."

I do wish I hadn't Googled that term at work.

@AC 15/9/11 09:24GMT

"I still have a VHS copy of episode IV recorded from the telly. It has half an episode of 'blockbusters' at the start and adverts for that carpet you could throw ketchup on and just scrape it off with a butter knife."

Would that be Flotex 21?

@We want Zarbies

"Yay! +1 for someone else who remembers those. Mind you, you're giving your age away a bit, but I suppose only to those who are old enough to remember the Zarbis!"

If you really were old enough to remember, you'd remember that the plural of Zarbi is Zarbi.

/pedant.

@Don't they, by George?

I think the specific point would be that they don't have public IP addresses and have no presence on the internet, so could only be addressed via asking the BT router to do it.

@AC 14:43

"Good to see a TV that allows you to turn off the picture and just have the audio.

(Actually it's a useful feature for a lot of TV, especially documentaries which love to shove pointless images in that do nothing to enhance the audio - Horizon, I'm looking at you)."

Or not looking at Horizon, if you take your own advice...

@Zog The Undeniable

"The prospect of Jar Jar Binks bulging out of the screen actually makes me glad I'm going blind in one eye."

Comment of the Week, right there.

@Paul Smith

"To a physicist, 10x Normal radiation level is slightly heightened (for a given Normal on a given scale) but instead of dealing with the physics or the facts, you prefer to use "scaremongering". In what way do you think you are any better then the Red Top brigade who also bend the truth to sell copy."

That's not at all what he was saying. Go back and read the article again.

.

@Ralph 5

"The "science" that assured us this was a safe design was wrong. "

You appear to be labouring under the misapprehension that it was "science" that decided how resilient to make the plant, when it was actually the bean counters. The scientists designed it to survive the level of quake and tsunami they were told to - five times weaker than the one they actually faced in the event. That the plant has survived at all means you could criticise them for over-engineering, but that might seem a little churlish if you do it at the same time as screaming at them for the problems the plant is now facing.

@Raise the Titanic

Love the score for Raise the Titanic, was listening to it only the other day. I loved the score for Black Hole too.

@Admiral Of The Pink (Slip)

"Scenario: Argies have built an airbase in the south and have destroyed the airbase on the Falklands.

..."

This is primarily an IT tech site, with the occasional divergence in to military hardware at a non-technical level. That being the case, could you possibly translate your little scenario into English? Can't follow your banter, old chap.

@cyberspice

"So the entire article is huburis. "

"May be the reporter doesn't know what bricked means! "

Maybe you don't know what "hubris" means.

@AC 2010-09-17 13:27

"I imagine any educated employer would have sacked the loud-twittered idiot for americanised vulgarity of expression and displaying lack of judgement and self-control. Would he have expressed himself in the same way directly to airport staff? Particularly if the member of staff was over two metres tall and weighed 100 Kg?

Of course one may lament the lack of proportion in official response. But, as for freedom: we are all absolutely free to say or do whatever we want. Conversely, we must also be prepared to take the consequences, foreseen or not."

Anybody else imagining that little outpouring to have been spoken in the style of Noel Coward?

@jake

"You have GOT to be kidding me ... Does nobody reading this forum actually understand basic electronic theory? Look up "multivibrator", and get yourself a tiny chunk of an education ... if your country's firewall doesn't "protect" you from such information, that is."

Hur hur hur. You said "vibrator."

@AC 09:39

"They've changed it again!"

Somebody over at the Beeb clearly reads the Reg and is playing a game of "How many articles can I generate?"

@Is it me?

Laudable to want to reduce the burden of having to be CRB-checked for every job, but it fell at that first hurdle, since the CRB check covered slightly different ground, and most employers would have ended up having to do the CRB check as well as the VBS check.

@Peter Gathercole

"I'm off to find a teacake, and some perspective."

You rang?