A little terse

Stock replies to e-mails are one thing, but this is a bit terse. No hi, no bye, no "thanks for mailing." In a bad mood, Steve? Did Google ruin your week?

Besides, it's kind of ridiculous to take an x264 developer's opinion of a rival codec and treat it as a balanced enough opinion on which to position your company in the market. Developer of established codec thinks it is better than rival codec that just appeared yesterday. In other news, bears shit in woods.

We all know what Steve is *really* thinking, and it is down to two things: control of content, and money.

As a side note, I am sat across from Mr Bloe here in Leeds, and he is grinning like the Cheshire Cat at seeing his name splashed across the tech sheets. You've made his day, El Reg. ;-)

Can we get rid of software patents already?

"Developers should be provided with detailed explanations why Google believes that no one adopting WebM will have to fear allegations of patent infringement."

As an Englishman, I don't fear patent infringement one bit.

T-Mobile vs Orange

Was very surprised by your conclusions with T-Mobile and Orange. T-Mobile's AUP is indeed nice, and for me (in Leeds) the quality of service is far superior. I can take the train home via two routes. On one route, both are fine. On the other, the Orange modem will scream, bitch, moan, and generally not connect for more than 10 seconds at a time, while 2 feet away from it the T-Mobile connection stays rock solid all the way.

Wine?

Microsoft's attitude doesn't surprise me in the least. Have the Wine lot tried the latest Office version yet? That's normally one of their "target" apps.

Proportional Representation Required

It's an absolute disgrace that a party can receive 22% of the vote and such a relatively small amount of actual representation in parliament, due in part to the corruption of the system over the past century or so by the two main parties. The system needs to be changed, but will those parties with a vested interest in keeping the status quo bother?

Arseholes!

How could they not have seen that coming? Better call the old man - he's running a SurfBoard 4200!

It's a parody, fuck off Apple

Boo hoo, someone insulted the Church!

If a cable costs more than a fiver...

...then it's unlikely I'm buying that cable. It's proprietary stuff like this that continually pisses me off. I don't even pay more than a few quid for HDMI cables - $30 for a USB adaptor on an external drive?

Bike. Yours. Get on.

Am I the only one thinking...

...that he hadn't actually nicked it? Over here at least, you haven't nicked anything until you leave the store with it. Up until that point you're given the benefit of the doubt, in case you've put something in a pocket simply to make it easier to carry to the till.

Kobayashi Maru?

If you hack the course so you always win, do you get extra credit?

BONZA!

Between this and the recent MeeGo release for the N900, that's me set. Time for some coding!

God's sake, this bullshit AGAIN?

Someone build a firewall around America, so we can get on with technological progression while they wallow in the bathtub o' shit that is software patenting.

PETA!!!!

<Insert snarling noises here>

Even the mention of their name is enough to send me into fits of apoplectic rage...

MeeGo is here! ...ish

There's already a MeeGo device - the marvellous, over-the-top, brilliant smartphone I can't stop shouting about?

http://maemoarena.com/2010/03/meego-now-available-for-download-for-nokia-n900/

UI Look/Feel

"The 1990s just called and they want their user interface back, please."

They're obviously trying to make it look more h4rdc0r3. Everyone knows that proper hackers code in green on a black background. Retro looks make it more convincing as something that works rather than something that's pretty.

And, because I'm a sucker for that sorta thing, I kinda like it. It somehow makes it more...badass.

What? These people aren't sexy!

Can't we get anyone up there with any semblance of an arse? Or hips? Or dignified femininity of any kind? They're all far too annoying, and far too skinny, making the list long, dull and bland.

Have you heard Abbey Clancy's voice? She's so annoying she makes me want to punch a kitten. And just *look* at Adriana Lima's mugshot, for God's sake. 8th sexiest woman in the world??

And Kelly Brook? KELLY BROOK? They made her out of the plastic spoons you get in coffee cups at service stations! God almighty...

Can we do an El Reg top ten? I think it might turn out a little different.

That two bugs, now do the rest

Plymouth is still fecked under ATI/nVidia, for a start.

Lucid Lynx is NOT ready

They're going to shoot themselves in the foot with this release. Plymouth is buggered on half the machines I've seen it on, which isn't a nice first impression. Graphics drivers (think ATI) don't support this version of X properly yet, etc, etc. I had to mess with Grub2, fglrx-installer, amdcccle and so on before I could even get KDM onscreen.

Once I actually got in, it was bloody lovely (though ATI have been lying through their teeth about Eyefinity support). Initial installation, however, was the worst I've seen on Ubuntu since 7.10.

Woah, hold the phone...

"the Jobsian cult has added an API that allows third parties to hardware-accelerate H.264 video on the Mac"

You mean they couldn't before?? That is so incredibly shit!

A few extras

Most of this list is on my own list, but here are a few extras to consider.

Eraser - an absolute must, allows for secure deletion of files individually, or via the recycle bin.

RegCompact.NET 2.0 -Speeds up registry-intensive control panel dialogs such as Add/Remove Programs

PowerMenu - Adds functions like "Always on top" and opacity to standard Windows. Even works in Win7.

Why name the poor sod?

Publicly naming him seems like shit-stirring on 'Modo's part.

What I'd like to know is, with the culture at Apple of absolute secrecy, checking employee correspondence etc, how the chuff did he end up with one in his back pocket at a bar?? How did he even get it out of the lab?

Lulz, a bullet

Humans depress me sometimes. I'll be over here, banging my head against the wall.

Oops, you failed

"However, sophisticated tasks – beyond basic in air mousery and desktop use – rely on the MotionTools software being installed, which is Windows-only"

Another nice peripheral I won't be buying.

Holy crap!

I am pleasantly surprised. Apple App Store in common sense shocker!

Deal breakers: price, USB, and Apple's attitude

You're very much correct that multitasking vastly improves the potential of the iPad. However, it still isn't up to even the technical capabilities of my phone, let alone a decent netbook.

That aside - the iPad isn't supposed to be a laptop - the big problem for me, in addition to those stated in the article, is Apple themselves. Their attitude regarding the app store, which in itself isn't nearly as open as other platforms' software sources, sucks. As a techie boy, I would not want to have my software choices dictated to me, even in part. If I want to use Opera, Fennec, etc then I bloody well will.

Again, these won't affect the majority of the population, who will regard the software on the iPad simply as a part of the product. But it would certainly affect me, as well as any existing tablet/netbook users with their own software preferences.

As for jailbreaking, sod that. I shouldn't have to re-flash an expensive, premium computing device just to be able to install my own choice of software. I wouldn't accept that on a laptop, or a phone, so why should I accept it on a tablet?

Election reporting

"but due to the strictures of election reporting they are not allowed to answer our questions for at least a month."

Not heard of this before. Could you elaborate?

Multiple Monitors

"If you use multiple displays, the ability to float windows from one display to another is almost worth the upgrade in itself."

Eh? I've just got VS2008 and I can undock all the palettes and move them around just like I do in NetBeans. Or do you mean the main code/form editor panels?

Who cares whether it was last year or not?

They're his opinions, and he has a right to them. The country is crying out for straightforward, honest politicians who speak their minds and they're silencing this guy? God, what I wouldn't have given to hear a Labour representative react to Obama's Nobel prize with "you've got to be fucking kidding me."

I *love* it!

As a dyed-in-the-wool nerdy boy, I will be ordering one at the first available opportunity. It can sit on my wrist next to my binary timepiece.

Holy crap!

This *isn't* the top story on the Beeb!

Oh, no, wait, there it is, every other link in the technology section. Including the usual "Apple are changing everything wowzors!" stories. Morons.

An out-of-band release?

Doesn't MS have one of those every month? From what I can tell, Patch Tuesday is actually every fortnight.