Posts by Alan Firminger

Don't believe it

If a tape recorder is driven by a synchronous motor then whatever the mains frequency the tape will allways carry an apparently fixed common mode hum. I think all household recorders are of this type.

And surprise, research showed that the variations in frequency are the same in Glasgow and London. Yes, it is a National Grid.

I remember when all this was grass

Register published an excellent article on scareware a couple of years ago. Is it still accessible, and where ?

Upgrading the network

By this logic every first customer on every upgrade should pay for all the investment.

Rory Bremner was right

They needed to know where we live.

Customer should pay

If Becta has saved its costs then schools should subscribe as members.

It would be best run by a board, or perhaps a trust, representing members.

If enrolment were to be near total that would be less than 5 grand per school to provide the present funding. But there would come benefits of economy because schools are in the habit of parsimony, so big salaries, long expensive lunches on exes, and all the inevitable waste of government funded jobs gets ditched. Probably 2 grand per school, or £ 5 per pupil would cover it.

Missing

Here http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/webarchive/default.htm

Education is not listed. Certainly the important material was all published on paper as well as online, but why can't we research the 2007 advice on admissions criteria ?

It looks systematic

The voters without polling cards is a spurious excuse. With a poll number or just an address it takes the same time to find, and mark, the record in the roll.

Councils are under pressure to save money. So they minimise staff and save on voting papers. They probably work to a stanardised 10 % margin over last time, turnout is 10 % up and variability did the rest.

No matter how bad things get

There's always summat to laff at.

Cool it

Gwent police give information away, ibid.

Er

I posted my response yesterday.

An extra dimension ( or two )

It's there, I tell you, it's there. They laughed at me.

How else can there be action at a distance.

Astronomy and string theory both need it.

I have a convincing experience of thought transferance. There is plenty of serious 'proof'.

We need access to stop having to pay the bus.

There is only one terrorist act to fear

A nuke in a container of carpets.

Newsnight

I have to report.

About eighteen months ago Newsnight had three environmentalists explaining how environmentally dreadful was meat eating. Paxman listened carefully and very naturally suggested "So we should all become vegetarians". In unison the planetary champions turned on him. No they said, not necessary at all.

Whither

Yes, I cannot see the value of BBC 3 .

I can see the value of Radio 6 .

The BBC is the most fantastic integrated cultual organisation imaginable. That may not be a good thing, but I suspect that everyone in the UK gets value from it, directly or indirectly.

The Beeb itself told us recently that the UK now exports more intellectual property than the US .

Remember a prime minister telling us we had to be a knowledge based economy. Well it has happened. Some of that is the likes of ARM, but much is cultural. The Beeb can be proud of its direct and its indirect contribution.

So tinker with the Beeb at our peril. Hacking off a limb because it is accessible and not many people will complain is dangerous.

The Ross and Brand row illustrates. They did nothing wrong, formalised as pushing the boundaries. What was terribly wrong was paying them so much to do it.

Birt gave the Beeb accountants. So now it awards fat salaries and spoils itself with grandeur. The answer may be to give the DG a salary of 100 grand and sack 90 % of the accountants. If employees complain tell them to live off the culture, it's terrific.

Can't compress

It won't work saving to jpeg.

Many thanks but

I commented on the importance of shutter lag about five camera reviews ago. Since then each review has included a subjective comment, as here 'little shutter lag' .

This is not very helpful. Especially as all sample shots that I have seen are static subjects.

I have explored the potential for measurement. I put a microphone on my camera then recorded and analysed using Audacity. Easy !

The result shows a five year old Kodak Z740 has a lag of 0.37 sec . It is impossible to use the camera for action.

Recordings with and without flash appear identical. I will assemble a stereo input giving one channel to a photodetector.

So, with total respect, I suggest that the hard working Register team of camera reviewers do the same and then report the numbers.

If you want my results to see, and hear, for yourself then please let me know.

Ta.

So

Palestinian fighters are not idiots, except in international politics.

History and progress

About 1947 flying was the future so parliament considered an aviation act. They debated this point, then legislated that all passenger flights must have a human pilot.

We are closer to ground control than we think because the computer that flies the modern airliner has a transponder for Air Traffic Control, that is radio data as an i/o . The autopilot is built into the control computer which guides the a/c through gps waypoints, total control would simply enable the ground to insert co-ordinates. What can happen depends on the code. Should we be pleased or frightened ?

1 - 4

1 It is never too late to re-examine a decision, and if appropriate, correct it.

2 Shortly after the crash Private Eye published an item about faulty FADEC software. By memory, they reported that on a test from Boscombe Down the rotors spun wildly. The crew were able to get down and survive. Boscombe Down test aircrew then refused to fly the a/c anymore. In Northern Ireland the RAF carried on, knowing what they were doing.

3 So with low cloud, mountains everywhere and an aircraft likely to go wrong what course would you expect the crew to follow. The implication is that control was lost and the Chinook took itself to the hill.

4 There is a suspicion that this accident should be booked to the MoD, just like the Nimrod crash.

history

In 1991 blocking failed in the Severn Tunnel. One train smashed into the tail of another and the result was carnage, with many people injured.

BR failed to understand what had happened, it went to the wrong place and took hours to reach the scene. There was an enquiry of course which instructed never again.

It appears that Eurotunnel similarly don't know where their trains are.

No threat

Heroin and hash dealers understand the power of analysis, so they carry two or more 'phones. Anyone with crooked intent will immediately understand the threat and then work round it by anonymising. The crimes solved using mobile 'phone conection data are mostly dangerous driving.

If anyone is taken to court on the basis of this the defence will show that evasion is simple and as the accused did not evade s/he is therefore innocent.

What the authorities are really after is illuminated by the Manchester student gang who were exposed by Commander Bright. They were Middle Eastern lads happy together, they took photographs of tourist attractions, They were such important suspects that they had to be discussed with the Prime Minister. This is network analysis in action.

physics

Electrodes close together cannot arc, but sure they leak.

What about the war ?

The wording of the announcement is an admission that UK forces will be committed in Afghanistan for four years more at least, we are losing now and things will be the same when the whirlies get there. If progress were expected in the meantime then there would be no need for this kit.

theory

The only option is the chargeable hybrid. If forced into a detour you can still get home tonight.

It's not there

If you google "DVB-T2" , with the quotes, then you get back a lot of technical stuff. No products. COMET , search their site, no products.

Today Pace are pleased to announce the first DVB-T2 set top box, here:

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2009/09/12/pace-unveils-dvb-t2-freeview-hd-box/

Where ?

For several years we have known when the universe started; possibly under a mountain on the Swiss French border.

It's cyclic.

Answer to Dave Fox

Yes, about 1981.

One evening home to LAP, and the signs read 1) UK Passports , 2) European Union Passports and 3) other Passports. With 120 UK citizens in front of me queueing at 1) I saw the logic, I went straight to the EU desk.

The immigration officer said "You should have gone over there." I replied "This is a European Union passport." We repeated that cycle three or four times, then she gave me back my passport and I was through.

Next time I came through the second sign was a list of countries that were EU members - except the UK .