Posts by Mage

Fourth Industrial Revolution?

No. It's a gradual process that started in late 17th C. Accelerated in 1760s, Electrification and Electrical Communication accelerating since 1831, enabled by Volta's 1799 batteries. A huge acceleration in Victorian Age, which is really the birth of Electrical Age.

We are still in the overlapping Steam age, think how gas, coal, oil, waste, nuclear and even future fusion makes electricity? Large industrial solar plants may use mirrors and steam to make electricity too.

There is no 4th revolution, Automation is a gradual process that started with Jacquard Loom, then automated manufacturing in 1930s. From 1970s the micro-controller became increasingly dominant.

Web sales of physical goods is the Victoria Mail Order Catalogue with faster ordering (online) and only faster delivery from China etc, local delivery can be slower than Victorian Railways + Ferries (English Channel and Irish Sea).

Re: Augmented reality

If you have coverage, can afford the data plan and can read rather that recognise obvious landmarks.

AR is pants.

Re: Isn't there a standard defence against lasers?

The Laser can't stay on one spot long enough. The mirror doesn't need to be perfect. The missile can even have some spin.

Re: Sounds interesting

No, sounds creepy.

I can see no reason why I'd switch to this from Firefox, unless Mozilla totally mess up. As it is, I need "Classic Theme Restorer" on Linux Mint with Mate and Windows to have sensible GUI / UX interface. I had to install an addon/plug in thingy on Thunderbird too.

Re: Home cloud?

It's called a router + firewall appliance. Mine runs OpenWRT or something as the cable modem is only a modem.

It doesn't solve the problem:

1) It won't make the data be encrypted if the remote server doesn't support encryption.

2) Doesn't easily tell you what is being shared. Especially if it IS encrypted!

3) I don't want ANY data sent to cloud.

4) Doesn't solve issue of bad use of WiFi (see doorbell article)

A home router ought to provide a VPN server by default. But how easily can user setup phone/tablet/laptop to then remotely access their IoT junk?

Win10 seems to be in same phone home category as the stupid photoframe?

Even a Kobo reader has to be edited by Calibre or else it tells Kobo everything. Additionally anything with Adobe ePub DRM. I don't sync my Amazon Kindle or use their cloud either. USB file transfers.

The privacy issues are worse than people imagine

Re: What about the second hand market?

It's only about new retail. Because the Second Hand phones don't use any special consumable.

People are STILL selling S/H Kodak instant cameras. Kodak had to withdraw them worldwide as they violated a REAL Polariod Instant photo patent. ... hmm better check.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant_camera#Types_of_non-Polaroid_instant_cameras

After Land's instant camera invention was brought to market in 1948, a few different instant cameras were developed, some using Polaroid-compatible film such as cameras by Keystone, Konica, and Minolta. Others were incompatible with Polaroid cameras and film, the most notable of these being made by Kodak, such as the EK series and Kodamatic cameras. These cameras accepted a Kodak developed integral instant film, similar to Polaroid's SX-70 film. Kodak instant film was chemically similar to Polaroid with the exception that the negative was exposed from the rear and the dye/developers diffused to the front of the photogragh. This alleviated the need for a mirror to reverse the image before it struck the negative.

Even so, Polaroid brought a patent-infringement lawsuit against Kodak, and eventually Kodak was forced to stop manufacture of both the camera and film. [4] Kodak was also left to pay a settlement to customers who were left without a way to use their now defunct cameras. One settlement offered owners of Kodak instant cameras a credit towards a new Kodak camera. Many Kodak instant cameras still exist and can be found on auction sites. Kodak also lost the contract to manufacture Polaroid's negatives which subsequently took production in house.

Move to China?

Most of the Apple Company is already outside USA and not paying much tax anywhere. Certainly not in USA.

Corporation tax is maybe too high everywhere, and specifically in USA. Tax the sales, the share dividends and corporate benefits and senior salaries and tax haven issues of corporation tax are reduced?

Re: It's not just AMD saying there's a problem.

The looking at CPU ID and then alternate blocks of code can be added by the compiler.

You're thinking of macros in source.

Dublin?

Well, eBay, PayPal, IBM. Facebook, Microsoft etc are in Dublin. Maybe Google too.

Intel are in Shannon and Leixlip.

Apple are in Cork, the #2 city.

Analog Devices are in Limerick and Cork

Uber (are they tech at all? or a hackney service) are in Limerick (approx #3 city, though Galway might be #3 or #4 depending how you measure)

Dell moved from Limerick to Poland for bigger grants.

Useful science

How-to, recepies, own research, total detail etc are all banned from Wikipedia. It's only supposed to be at quiz table / coffee table level of info.

A copy would be nearly useless for the information to rebuild civilisation or how to make ANYTHING.

Some maths and science is OK. It's certainly not worthless.

re: Paypal

IBAN is the cheaper and better alternative to Paypal outside USA. Many German eBay sellers won't take Paypal.

But PayPal and IBAN are NOT currencies, as bitcoin is supposed to be, they are more secure and cheaper modern alternatives to horriblely expensive Wiretransfer services like Western Union.

Re: @Fibbles

Probably, both, though I'm trying not to think about it. Or Dogs and human or table legs.

Re: 'ere we go

All LED lamps have a horrid gap in cyan part of spectrum, broad peak at yellow, narrow peak at blue end. They get bluer with age, the PSUs use too cheap electrolytics and fail. They often have inadequate filtering and only really beat CFL for efficiency in the cold or if a narrower illumination is required. You can make the Colour Temperature OK (though rises with age). Colour rendition is poor and they suppress melatonin at night, a lower power halogen better for late night reading (or if not dead trees, then Kindle/Kobo with LED front light off).