Posts by Barry O'Connell
66 posts • joined Friday 19th June 2009 17:49 GMT
Re: Welcome to "cloud computing"
Totally agree.
Surely people will think twice before relying on such "free" services in future?
Re: rantomatic
"and after all, its all about the fucking ambiance"
Beat me to it.
And this one!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSk0B0dVq4g
transcript:
http://uk.imdb.com/character/ch0239475/quotes
Except that a "Tall" coffee often means small coffee
Silly to think people wouldn't know what an espresso is, but starbuck sizing of "Tall", "Grande" and "Venti" is a nonsense that deserves to be taken out and shot.
Re: It's a two way problem
The duration of any technical or systemic problems is hardly of concern to those who have been affected. Call it what you will, but there was a >4 day loss of service to many retail clients. Trying to argue otherwise flies in the face of any argument here about IT people not being listened to.
Re: Browse dead trees, gain magical pixels - sounds good to me
Yes, I don't think that's what they have in mind, but it would be nice. Bookshops could become show-rooms, with coffee shops and friendly helpful staff. I doubt it would make sense financially though.
You know you can get a sample of most books for Kindle, right? Which can often help with the decision. That's in addition to the look inside feature...
There are fanboys though
I am not an Apple hater (I love my iPhone and iPad and my better half loves the MacBook Air I bought them). I can both respect what Apple does well and be critical when they get things wrong. Like most companies. And most consumers.
However, there are definitely some people who are shockingly defensive of Apple in a way I have not noticed for other companies. Fanboys is not an altogether incorrect description for some of these people. Their response is similar to that of a sports fan.
That's not to say there are not haters out there, but there are haters of all companies and I don't think the Apple haters are any greater in number. Though the Micro$oft critics seem to be less vocal these days. (I am using the $ to indicate the type of MS critic I am talking about, I don't usually do so).
"likely to morph into a normal IT company"
Probably the most sensible comment on here. Their current position is on top (whether people think they deserve it or not doesn't matter). History should make it obvious that few stay on top for very long. Hard to see how they could head to absolute oblivion anytime soon. Though even that is uncertain (for all firms).
Re: Single opinion
I don't see why consumers should pay more to protect uncompetitive business models.
Re: Single opinion
Aren't Germany's, like France's, laws on book retailing explicitly protectionist though? Hardly makes the case that the alleged collusion was in the interests of consumer!
"Apple used their dominance in tablets"?
"Apple used their dominance in tablets to push their deal through with the publishers."
Apple launched iBooks with the iPad. They had no dominance in tablets when they did these deals.
Re: Pity this did not happen before
Whatever about movies, hasn't the price of music singles and albums been declining constantly over the last few years? Ten years ago a single cost ~£4, now you can often buy the single for <£2 and the title track for <£1. If not a function of competition, where is the price pressure coming from?
On a Sunday?
Really?
Confused - don't they already offer movie rentals to Apple TV by Streaming?
The post is required, and must contain letters.
Roaming Deals
I will be using Holiday Phone in future. Previously I have done the local PAYG sim deal but it's a bit of a faff. Hopefully the networks will realise that people aren't forking over silly money for tiny bits of foreign data and start to offer decent packages of roaming SMS, MMS, Voice & Data. Orange's effort is a start but how far is 10 fricking minutes of talk time going to take you?
A very fair point indeed
BB by all accounts were quite efficient at moving bits about. Current smart phones and their many apps seem to care less about that. I'm not sure the technology has moved on so much as to warrant such a blasé attitude.
I'd really like iOS to tell me which apps are the worst offenders. (no doubt lot's of android users will tell me that android does just that, but I actually quite like my iPhone, the many apps I have bought and the huge amount of digital media that works on my iPhone so please don't bother).
Posted in Apple and Google ramp up proxy war
have to agree
A little explanation of the origin of the nick-name would also be nice.
Usually see people about to die...
"You usually see people about to die with an altruist view of life, forgiving, forgetting, trying to make the world a little better... not this guy"
How do you know? Haven't we all said similar things at different times in our life? I hate you, I'll never forgive you, I'll kill you etc... etc... Usually uttered in anger and seldom carried through to our last week, never mind our last breath.
Unless I am mistaken, this article is reporting about something he said long before he died. I haven't seen a report to say that he was still doggedly pursuing this goal for this reason to the day he died. He might have, but I haven't see any such reports. I think it's a bit harsh to pass judgement so absolutely on a man who has, in fairness, very recently died.
Don't get me wrong, I detest Apple's business practises and I strongly believe they came from Steve so I am not a big ol fan boy jumping to the defence of my hero. I just think your post has a little too much unfounded vitriol for a dead man who hardly sought the oppositive of a better world.
Ah but you did have to wait UP TO 30 days....
... in the same way most UK customers receive UP TO X megabit broadband.
Posted in Vodafone turns its back on '360
I miss wildfire....
Siri isn't nearly as cool. For exactly the reason you just said.
Posted in Obama+world pays tribute to Steve Jobs
Thousands of years of tradition will lead us through this difficult time...
The College of Cardinals has probably already been convened. Then all that black smoke until a successor is found before the joyous rising of the white smoke as a new corporate chairman is annointed.
What network isn't crap?
Don't tell me Vodafone because it's simply not true. Tell me who is good and honest to god I'm signing up.
Not sure about that
I switched from O2 to Vodafone, believing that it would be more reliable. At best, it is no better but it is more expensive and the "customer service" is truly shocking. And as someone already mentioned, Vodafone don't bother with premium services like visual voice-mail - they fob you off on third party apps.
Couldn't agree more
This is another form of protectionism, plain and simple.
I couldn't agree more
Seriously, this American extra-terratorial reach is a joke. Our politicians seem to be complicit these days too.
Not quite
a company doesn't go bankrupt because its share price declines (even significantly).
Natwest Credit Card Call
I received a call from an unknown number one Saturday morning. The chap on the phone said he was calling about my Natwest Credit Card and that he needed to ask me some security questions. I explained that he had called me on the number registered to my account and that I had no way to know who he was. He outright ARGUED back with me and when I made it clear I would not reveal security information to a stranger on the phone, he said; "if you're going to be a dick about it, call the number on the back of your credit card" and then he hung up, no reference, no apology for call his customer an arse. It was Natwest, and I never did get round to complaining that their business practises seemed to contradict the security advice they had on their website (or the fact that they had been so rude to me). I have closed that card account now and I am very happy with the way my new credit card company confirm who they are in the manner for their automated security quesioning.
Re BT
Yes, I had this exact same nonsense from them. I explained that they had called me using the number they had on file for me. It took a while and i did get quite cross (but polite) but I did manage to get them confirm some things to me first, before I would confirm anything for them.
They can hardly bill correctly as it is
I certainly don't trust operators in payment space at all. Banks are bad enough, but they do tend to sort things much easier when it goes wrong. Every time I have had to complain to an operator re billing it has involved a great deal of time and effort and in some cases expense before they recognise their error and put it right. They are a pipe, and that's all I want from them.
The Jobs Giveth...
and The Jobs taketh away. Is, was, and ever will be.
Same problem us Irish have had for years
O'Connell is, I am frequently told, an invalid name. OConnell let's me get past the validation (and the CC still works too) but is actually the invalid spelling.
It is in the UK
See http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/doing/regulated/law/focus/conduct.shtml
However, the statements made were not entirely false or misleading. I think it would be quite difficult to prove market abuse in this instance.
Posted in Seagate triples up heads/platter ratio
Me too
though I wouldn't have bought another Seagate drive
Such a good name?
Don't you mean; such an obvious name? Guess that wouldn't serve your argument well though, would it?
Posted in Apple bashes 'gay cure' app
Totally Agree
I can never understand how groups who have been oppressed (such as lesbian and gay people) can be so quick to become the oppressor. Christianity too - oppressed in its infancy only to become a violent aggressor. I was once a member of a minority Christian movement (that many call a cult) that was very much oppressed in its early years and as a result explicitly stated a belief in the separation of church and state, only to cozy up to US Gov once it grew a bit in order to lobby for laws consistent with it’s conservative theology.
Posted in Apple bashes 'gay cure' app
@ Graham & The Grinning Duck
You are right, there needs to be balance and responsibility. The example you give is clearly an incitement to cause a breach of the peace (at the least, I am no solicitor/policeman). Similarly, it is not acceptable to incite violence or (usually) riot (I say usually because I believe there may be times when inciting a popular uprising of the people against their government can be justified, even if illegal).
I too oppose laws banning extreme pornography made with consenting adults. I don’t however think it in any way incongruous with freedom of expression to favour the criminalisation of child pornography because that moves from the realms of personal expression to the physical and sexual abuse of another. In summary, I don’t think abusing a child (or indeed anyone) has anything to do with freedom of expression.
Exodus (or whatever they are called) is preaching their take on god and sexuality. Adults have the choice to listen and try their “medicine” if they choose. It may be damaging but we let adults do things that can be damaging to them all the time and I don’t think we should try to stop that. If this organisation was rounding people up and forcing them to be subjected to their “cure,” that would be an entirely different matter. You might argue that the adults who will voluntarily subject themselves to Exodus’ methods are vulnerable or that they are being exploited after years of indoctrination. Going back to the porn issue; there are plenty (not all, but definitely plenty) of people in the porn industry who are being exploited and are left very damaged by it. You, and I, are not calling for porn to be banned because, whether we agree or like it or not, adults are choosing to work in that industry. Similarly, adults should be allowed to hear what Exodus has to say and accept or reject it for themselves.
My analogy was not about the value of the content of any given argument but about our response. I am suggesting we should eschew the response of the church in the dark ages (silence the heretic) in our response to any idea with which we disagree (even if it is patent nonsense). As P. Lee suggests above, to show people how they are wrong, you have to let them speak and be heard. Some of the comments on this article suggest that all religious belief and/or behaviour should be criminalised; that’s where your argument leads – they are loonies they should be banned for the public good/health/sanity etc… I think that’s a slippery slope.
Grinning Duck – I am talking about freedom of speech/expression in the context of Graham’s first reply. I don’t think there is anything wrong with an article sparking a discussion that is wider in scope than original article. Of course Apple can do what they like with their walled garden. Their uber closed approach is something I detest about them – I am hopeful and personally believe that their model will not be the dominant mobile platform model in a few years time. Was the cake nice? I like cake (as anyone who saw a picture of me would very quickly figure out).
Posted in Apple bashes 'gay cure' app
good point
an iPhone app certainly couldn't do that. An iPad app, on the other hand, just might. The iPad being magic and revolutionary and all :-)
Posted in Apple bashes 'gay cure' app
Reply to Graham, Elmur & P Zero
I don't believe there is a cure for homosexuality. Neither do I believe that I am in need of curing. That doesn’t mean I don’t believe in and respect the right of others to hold contrary views. In the same way I expect the freedom to hold and publicly share my views; I am also willing to speak up for the same right to be extended to those with whom I disagree. I do this because I am aware that when people insert themselves as arbiters of what is reasonable to say in public, I am at risk of one day falling foul of those same thought police myself. Today, it might be the “fundamental Christians” (all of them Elmer, and then maybe the Muslims or people from other faiths or non-faiths) who are being censored, tomorrow it could be me on the basis of some unforeseen new received wisdom. If I don’t speak up now, how could I, in good conscience, expect anyone to speak up for me in future?
Colin Powell (afaik) once said that “Free speech is intended to protect the controversial and even outrageous word; and not just comforting platitudes too mundane to need protection.” I like that quote and I believe in its sentiment. I have the right to be offended but not the right to silence those who offend me.
Graham, I cannot concede to your point about reasonable freedom of expression because it is the road to tyranny. I am sure the leadership in China & Iran are quite comfortable allowing their people to have “reasonable” freedom of expression. We either have freedom of expression or we don’t. As soon as we start to qualify it, we have lost it. Who is to decide what is reasonable anyway? On this issue, perhaps it is black and white to you and maybe even to me but where do we draw the line and who polices that line. And then, who will police the police of that line?
I agree that reparative therapy has been shown to be damaging, but I believe we must engage in that debate rather than seek to silence it. If we are silencing it, it may look like we have something to hide (and this is certainly the line in some circles). We must win the argument of reason by engaging.
In today’s world, it is akin to heresy to suggest that homosexuality is curable. In the dark ages it was heresy to suggest the earth revolved around the sun. Do we want to take the approach of the church in the dark ages and simply suppress those we think are speaking dangerous nonsense? I thought we had moved on from that.
Of course, as P Zero says, this is all academic in the context of iOS. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t continue the debate.
Posted in Apple bashes 'gay cure' app
The Doctor has a point....
For that reason, it seems not unreasonable to have removed the application. If the apparently misquoted content is removed, I don't see why they couldn't resubmit the application. I am against all censorship... "first they came for the fundamentalist christians..."
O2 Breached Imho Too
I have been receiving emails to the email address I use only with O2 for a number of months now. The latest being this same adobe rubbish. I wonder if they share a marketting company? I will be blacklisting the O2 address as I am now with Vodafone.
Re Amazon
Yup - I have noticed the same from Amazon - must have been a marketplace purchase :-(
Posted in Watchdog disses City of Medway
Perhaps if they has just remembered...
to include an asterisk all would have been fine? Such as "The City* of Medway", Or maybe... "The Unlimited City of Medway".... Both the asterisk and the word* "unlimited" seem to cover a multitude of sins in the eyes of the ASA.
Highest Court in The Land
The BBC had a great documentary about the UK Supreme Court the other night. I came away from it with a far greater respect and appreciation for the justices.
Muppets
The ASA seem to be trying to muscle in on the traditional role of the OED. First was the inversion of the meaning of unlimited such that it now means limited by any constraints an advertiser may so desire (wheter explicit or implicit). Now any quack can call themselves a scientist.
I have long thought about how I could complain to the ASA about their use of the word "Standards" in a misleading fashion. Any suggestions as to how such a complaint could be worded/made?
I wonder what, if anything, this could mean for Amazons Store App
The Amazon store app allows me to browse the store and place orders for home delivery among other features. It all goes on my Amazon account, so that sounds like that might be curtailed at some point too. Shame, it's very handy.
Great Idea
This is a really good idea. Whether you buy the global warming thing or not (and I do), it makes sense to use resources as fully as possible. This should definitely be done more, or would we rather pay more local taxes?
The local funeral director is logically incorrect in his complaints. The swimming people isn't being heated "due to" the death of those being cremated. Neither is the saving being made "due to" the death of family or friends.
Not sure about that
They don't compete on spec in the laptop space? Would be surprised if they got into that game with the iPad because at some point they may no longer be able to win on those terms. I hope I am wrong, I would love the retina display on the iPad.
I got this on the in-laws pc at the weekend
I too had to take a double take. This is the kind of thing that would cause them to call me. I immediately lost a lot of respect for a company I had once been a happy customer of. I agree with Alan Bourke, ZA jumped the shark a long time ago.
Posted in Lad from Lagos in unencrypted CD teaser
not that different...
once you get in touch, they will no doubt explain to you that they need x amount to pay the lawyers to create the trust... and on it goes until you figure it out or have no more money.
