* Posts by Craigness

1498 publicly visible posts • joined 23 Mar 2010

Hey mobile firms: About that Android thing... Did Google add a lockout clause?

Craigness

Re: So in other words

Snake, if you don't want your data made available to your OS maker then the only choice is Android, which is another reason this investigation is BS. But I suspect you're in a tiny minority.

Craigness

Re: They missed the obvious

@Andrew

What evidence do you have that Google has prevented Samsung from selling the Windows, Bada and Tizen phones that it sells? Or HTC from selling the Windows phones that it sells? Try using your nous next time.

Craigness

Re: Google apps optional

They make way fewer non-Android phones because people want Android. Have you ever gone into a phone shop and been told they're out of stock of Windows phones?

Craigness

Re: So in other words

Consumers didn't choose Windows because it had IE, but it couldn't be sold without it. And, allegedly, couldn't be sold with any alternative.

Consumers choose Android because they want Google services, but you can sell it without if you don't really want anyone to buy your stuff. And you can include your own versions of the apps even if you choose to include Google apps. It's up to the manufacturers.

So the fact that Android usually ships with a set of high quality apps, chosen by the manufacturer, is about as relevant to the Microsoft case as Apple choosing which apps it provides on Iphones. I don't see any cases being made that Apple shouldn't be allowed to do it wants with the devices it sells, even when it was the dominant monopoly.

Curtain drops on Apple Store ahead of WWDC: What lies behind?

Craigness

Re: Actually,

There were big changes between 2.3 and 4.0. As time moves on Android apps will work on increasingly older devices and devices will be more likely to get updated. It's just the recent 2.3-4.0 gap that makes things look bad at the moment, but even as it stands there are only a few apps that require 4.0.

Craigness
Facepalm

Re: Actually,

I got a load of updates on my Gingerbread phone after Google I/O, so I know what you mean. And I don't know what you mean.

HTC drops 12-inch Windows RT tablet, sticks to a 7-incher

Craigness

Re: As I understand it

Maybe they're not expecting people to use the 7" version for remote desktopping. Feck knows what they're expecting it to be used for though. The only reason to get one is if you have some paid apps on your large Windows machine and want to use them on a smaller one too, otherwise just get something more established like a Nexus 7. Regarding that type of lock-in, I look forward to the day when all apps are free, available on all devices and HTML 5, and we pay for the use of the services they offer. I doubt it will happen, but it should.

Craigness
Facepalm

Re: As I understand it

That makes a lot of sense, but I've not seen it mentioned in the adverts. All I know is that the keyboard makes a nice clicky noise when it attaches.

Craigness

It might have sold a few more if it had better integration with Kin.

Google whips the sheet off new Gmail interface

Craigness
WTF?

Re: @Craigness - Available now

You don't have to give praise, but when you complain about having free stuff you just sound like a loser.

Craigness

I'm on Google plus and youtube; I made my favourites and likes private, and I never send out a "i watched this video" status. If you don't want to use stuff don't use it.

They didn't harvest contact lists with buzz, they gave people the option to connect with people they already had in their contact lists, and gave people the option to make their connections public, as per facebook and twitter and linked in and everything else. I opted to do neither and therefore have not had to complain about privacy invasions. Other people opted in and still complain that they opted in.

Craigness
FAIL

Re: Available now

They keep giving you options for how to organise your mail when all you want is "all mail". They gave you labels instead of LYTFA, gave you filters instead of LYTFA, gave you a search box when all you wanted was for them to LYTFA, and you don't have to use any of it but you do have to whine about it.

Just type GA and you get the All Mail list.

Craigness
FAIL

Re: @Craigness - And that...

AC, having it removed seems to be what a lot of commentards want. Free means you don't have to pay for it. Do you need a lesson from a genius in how to know stuff is free? Viewing an advert doesn't make it not free. And they don't sell your data.

Craigness

Buzz only did that if you selected the option. I joined buzz on the first day, before all the fuss about privacy, I followed the instructions for setting it up, and my privacy settings were fine. Others chose to make everything public and whine about it...for the next few years.

Craigness

Re: And that...

Yeah, it's awful when you get stuff for free which you don't have to use.

Craigness
FAIL

Do you know what a google+ account is? Why would you oppose having stuff integrated with it? Do you know what this integration is? How does having a google+ account affect any user who has chosen to use their real name on Youtube? They don't have to post, they don't have to read, they don't have to comment, they don't have to upload photos, they don't have to circle, they don't have to hang out, they don't have to +1, they don't have to install the app, they don't have to visit the website or use wallet or google play and they don't have to buy an android phone, google doesn't have any more information about them simply because they have a g+ account. If you don't do any of the things you don't have to do with a G+ account then what exactly would be integrated? It's just a different logon mechanism.

If you don't want to use google stuff, don't use it. If you don't want google to know your name don't tell them. Commentards so often cannot understand how not to use things but for me it's easy. I don't have a reddit account, for example, and Yahoo doesn't know my name. Simple.

Did you know I created a Craigne.ss account for you? It's got your username in it and you don't have to use it. I'm going to integrate stuff with it against your wishes...

Craigness

You don't have to sign up to google plus. If you don't sign up then the integration stuff won't do anything.

Craigness

Re: I wonder when we will all be forced to suffer the New Compose clusterfuck?

The Compose feature is broken? So that's why I never receive Gmail emails any more!

Craigness
FAIL

Re: They've reinvented the portal!

Keeping the information you're interested in more prominent is exactly what they're doing here. Remember the days of Alta Vista when you had to scroll through a load of old items or mailing list emails before finding the one you want. Now you can archive the old stuff. And star that email to have it always to hand. Or you can search. Or you can let google identify important emails (which it does very well). But there is always the All Mail section if you want to go last-millennium, and you can turn off Priority Inbox. These tabs are just another way to help you see the information you want, and you don't have to use them.

Google pools cloud storage

Craigness

Re: Photo Backup

Buy a Pixel and you get a terabyte free for 3 years. And a Pixel.

Android is a mess and needs sprucing up, admits chief

Craigness

Re: Two Browsers Bad

Choosing to have 4 is different to being given 2 when you expect 1. I had 2 Maps/Navigation apps on my first Android. It took me a while to work that out and I could never remember which one to go to get specific functionality. There were 2 news apps too.

Craigness

Re: Not too messy....

Google already has a load of guidance for devs. I/O 2013 is starting very soon so check out the videos coming from there.

Craigness

Re: Same article?

It's not just overlays, they also change the settings app (so your OEM-specific settings can be in the same place as your wifi settings etc.) and, in Sense's case at least, improve the call and calendar alerts. They also change the notifications panel (I actually prefer the quick-settings in Sense 3 to those in Android 4.2.2). Those are not things you can do with just an app. The rubbish twitter clients and duplicates of Google products should go, but then there's useful improvements in the camera apps too, where you would want the default camera app removed to avoid confusion. A setting to make it work like a nexus is not realistic.

A good start to make Android a more uniform, less confusing experience would be to share revenue from the Play Store so the OEMs don't have to include alternative stores and media players.

Microsoft splashes big bucks to blast Google Apps

Craigness

They could do one where the boss is worried that the prospective client won't be able to open the document he's sending. Nerdy guy says he should save it in a open format. Boss asks why they need Office if they're using open formats.

Google formally recognises Palestine: Puts it on the virtual map

Craigness

Re: skelband

@Mat you could also say that's the reason they recognise Israel. Palestine has existed for centuries but Google didn't always recognise this fact - why? It was named checked by the Crusaders.

37,000-machine study finds most reliable Windows PC is a Mac

Craigness
WTF?

Re: In news just in

@AC

Developers use windows on a massive scale. I've only seen 2 use Mac users in my many years in the industry. One was a poser and the other was a contractor who had it on his desk whilst he used a client-provided pc, because he thought it worked better for IR35. He was also a poser. Startups that get media coverage seem to use Macs quite a bit; maybe it helps them get media coverage.

And 1 guy used linux.

Craigness

Re: In news just in

Are Mac users unlucky or just incompetent? Many say they have problems running Windows and give it as the reason for multiplying their it spend by a factor of 3 or more. I have an ancient Dell laptop for work, running XP with all sorts of weird software installed on it. In 18 months' daily usage it's never crashed, but occasionally it takes a long time to shut down.

My home laptop is a small and light Acer Aspire. 2nd on the list and I got it for 20% of the cost of a Macbook Air 6 months ago. It's never crashed (but I've mostly use Ubuntu for the last month).

So long, Hotmail: Remaining users migrated to Outlook.com

Craigness

Re: you mean a regular SMTP server...

This doesn't sound like spoofing, more like Outlook.com logs into Gmail.com etc and sends the email from there. So spammers would have 2 services which could detect and stop them, instead of 1.

Apple designer Sir Jony Ive holding up iOS 7 development: Report

Craigness

Re: Fine.

Imitated by others? Flat design is already in Windows, Android and in Google's websites. Galaxy S4 already has 3d gestures. Apple has been playing catch up for a few years now.

Why next iPhone screen could be made of SAPPHIRE - and a steal...

Craigness

Fancy watches...

...use this, and some fancy Omega watches use liquid metal too, which Apple touted a while back. Those are also overpriced, but they're expected to last more than 2 years.

Mean while, you can use a Lumia screen to drive a nail into wood.

Fanbois vs fandroids: Punters display 'tribal loyalty'

Craigness

Re: Guesswork

@AC

You make a few good points to counter my claim that creative people should choose Android but I should point out that I'm not tribal - I just like to counter counterfactuals.

Edit: sorry, on reading it again I see it's nothing more than an ad-hominem. If you do have a reason for creative types to choose a system on which they can't be as creative as they can on Android, do let us know.

Craigness

Re: Pfft

If you want to keep a phone for 20 years you'll need

1) to replace the battery

2) to have updates and bugfixes

So that's not looking good.

Craigness

Re: Guesswork

Android for the unimaginative? That may be true for a lot of people who buy the default product, but if you look at what people do in terms of customisation, 3rd party launchers etc then Android ought to be the choice of the "creatives" (but not of the baristas and other poseurs).

Continued lack of women in tech bemoaned by ex-techie lady MP

Craigness

Re: All women short lists

It's not only about female advancement. Where I live the local party selected a candidate who the central party didn't like. He was a man so they imposed an all women shortlist and flew in a woman from outside the region whose only job had been working for the party. Control was restored and brownie points earned.

Craigness

She was the product of an all-women shortlist. Maybe she's the best of a bad bunch.

Craigness

Re: Automatic tills?

I thought that was a very sexist comment by her. Self-service tills may not be a woman's preference but as a man I think they're very useful. She seems to imply that the opinions of men are not important, or that only women go to supermarkets.

Craigness

Re: Is this what she means?

It's already 37% Indian in 3 of my last 4 jobs.

What work? Tablet owners prefer to slack off with their slabs

Craigness
WTF?

Re: Extraordinary

Netbooks didn't fail, they got bigger.

Microsoft off the hook for billions in Motorola Mobility payout

Craigness

Re: How many people... - Addendum

You should have read that quote before you asserted it to defend an illogical argument.

Craigness

Re: >> How come Moto's real patents are worth so much less than MS bogus patents?

It's unfortunate that judges can force discriminatory terms for those who wish to use the standards and would rather pay lawyers than inventors. Makes a mockery of FRAND.

Mobes' pay-by-bonk just isn't cool enough, sniffs Tesco bod

Craigness
FAIL

Who knows how to use it?

Shortly after getting an NFC-enabled phone I noticed the Contactless icon on a Tesco self-service till as I reached instinctively for the Cash option. When I got home I looked on their website to see if I need an app etc to make contactless payments, but they don't seem to have any information at all. So I still pay by cash.

As mentioned above, if you need to get your clubcard out then cash or a credit card is likely to be in your hand already. But if the clubcard is linked to your phone then contactless is even more convenient.

Ubuntu 13.04: No privacy controls as promised, but hey - photo search!

Craigness

Re: sob. sob.

How hard is it to press the "windows" key and type "xterm"? Just think of it as CLI and you'll be much happier.

Craigness

Re: Wake me up...

OAuth

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

Netbooks projected to become EXTINCT by 2015

Craigness

Re: I think we should be talking about the death of Ultrabooks...

I think you missed the point. If what people want is a netbook but the only option in anything approaching that form factor costs 5 times what they wanted to spend then they won't send...or they might buy a tablet or phone. This is a prediction, not a call to arms. But I expect most people would be buying a notebook to supplement a tablet or phone, considering the number of those already out there.

Craigness

Re: I'm Surprised They Lasted This Long

There is an Edit button. And a Preview button ;-)

Edit: it might only be for Silver and Gold users. Back on topic-ish, I'm on a tablet at the moment so I couldn't hover over your badge to see if was gold or bronze. I had to long-press the image, open in a new tab and hope the url indicated the colour :-(

Craigness

Re: My hypothesis

I spent that much on an 11.6" laptop last year. I's 64-bit windows 7 home premium with 2Gb RAM and an ad-supported version of office (now dual-booting ubuntu). It's far more useful than a tablet for many things, but the tablet has the benefit of "lean back" usage (and better speakers). It also lets me play media which the providers have deemed not to allow on "mobile" devices (such as my 10.1" tablet docked in its keyboard).

I don't know if this counts as a netbook though. It's cheap and light but it's also quite powerful and larger than the original netbooks. I think in reality the notebook didn't die, it just got bigger and better (they were small to be cheap, not portable). I'm more than happy having this and a 7" tablet (total cost: £385).

Bitcoin gets a $100 haircut on rollercoaster trading run

Craigness

Re: Non-scammable?

You didn't mention the part of bitcoin which prevents paypal implementing a chargeback mechanism for bitcoin payments. Cash has no chargeback mechanism, but you can pay to use a mechanism created by someone else...or choose not to. Bitcoin...the same.

Apart from the fact people do and have invested during periods of deflation, there is really no reason for there to be no inflation in a bitcoin economy. The pretty paper is not really printed by the government - they just mint the coins. The paper is printed by the banking system, which is why it's a promise to pay a number of pounds and not an actual quantity of pounds. The balance of your bank account also does not represent a stock of pounds, it's the result of many credits and debits denominated in pounds. And the total sum of bank account balances can increase without the government needing to increase the number of coins. So a banking system using credit-based money denominated in bitcoin is not inconceivable, and would grant you the inflation you desire.

The corollary of your 4% argument: If inflation is 4% then everyone would look for investment opportunities which lose 3% per year; they will come out on top by destroying value. Do you see that you don't make sense?

Craigness

Re: Non-scammable?

No part of the bitcoin system prevents chargebacks being implemented, just as no part of Sterling specifically enables it. If someone uses either currency in something illegal then tell the police. The volatility makes it a poor currency at the moment but it's still quite useful as a money transfer system in spite of this, as it's fast, liquid (usually) and cheap.

Deflation is not necessarily a bad thing. If you want a 3% return on your lending in an inflationary environment then you charge inflation+3%. If you want the same return in a deflationary environment then you charge deflation+3%. If you have a business idea which you think will generate in excess of either inflation+3% or deflation+3% and also enable you to repay the capital then you should proceed, nomatter what the inflation or deflation rate is.

Not every company selling IT hardware has been a huge success, but falling prices certainly haven't killed the industry.

Craigness
Facepalm

It's the only non-scammable currency. Do try to keep up.

The problem last night came from the overwhelming popularity of one of the banks and its inability to meet skyrocketing customer demand, not the inappropriateness of the pretty paper the government prints (to put it in terms the ignorant might understand).

Microsoft leads charge against Google's Android in EU antitrust complaint

Craigness
FAIL

Re: Huh?

If you think that needing to have an amazon account before being able to access the amazon store is an abuse then tell Nokia and they can include it in their complaint. It has just as much relevance to anything as your point about needing to have a google account to access the google store. If you don't want to use a google account on android then get your apps from somewhere else. A google account is 100% NON-mandatory to use the features of android (the google apps are not part of android, they are licensed separately - RTFA); that's why you can skip the sign-in when you first set up the device. If you don't want to use the google apps then disable them and you'll never need to know they ever existed. Google can't abuse you when you can't see its apps!