Posts by Cameron Colley
2057 posts • joined Wednesday 13th June 2007 16:31 GMT
Page:
<sigh> Which century are we in?
So, the "fix" for not allowing two female characters to marry is to go back to preventing same-sex marriage completely. A slow-clap for the "enlightened" Nintendo.
Posted in Drone to deliver beer-as-a-service
Re: Beer!
I want Aass aaS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aass_Brewery
Why aren't all phone water ressistant?
The phone manufacturers have decided we're not allowed keyboards and have to have these buttonless slabs so why can't they at least make them all water resistant? Why does this have to be an unusual feature? mobile phones are often used in situations where water resistance would be good yet there are only a handful of water resistant phones. Come on manufacturers and give all phones the hydrophobic treatment!
They really did miss a trick.
This is an application crying out for a Plan 9 install.
Re: local repository.
"... I wonder if you could rig the APT mechanism to fetch updates from a local, specially vetted, repo."
Short answer: Yes.
Longer Answer: http://wiki.debian.org/HowToSetupADebianRepository
Re: Am I missing something?
Well, yes, I am aware of the proposals for DRM and the fact that they have not been accepted. However, it appears that Robin Aldenhoven is not as he seems to think that DRM is included in HTML5 for some reason.
So either I am better informed than somebody who should know better or he knows something the rest of us don't.
Am I missing something?
""So Spotify made a great HTML5 player for its service, but they forgot their encryption. Nice!" Aldenhoven wrote in his code bundle on GitHub."
Since when did HTML5 allow any kind of DRM? Or is that his point?
Personally I'd be happy to see DRM on streaming media as long as I can buy a decent copy without any usage restrictions beyond rule of law (e.g. CD, SACD, DVD Audio).
Re: What do people do on these OS's?
Well, I'm sure I'm not an average user but what I do is:
Web browsing + posting/commenting.
Email.
Watching video from a variety of sources (DVD, iPlayer, etc.).
Some games (Alien Arena, Nexuiz et al).
Second Life, sometimes.
Run VMs with other distros, Windowses, web servers and the like for practice/fun/helping friends.
IRC, occasionally.
Skype, rarely.
Google Earth.
A few more things I can't recall.
A couple of friends record their music using Ardour and other Linux based software. Apparently there are companies selling audio software for Linux and the Linux Audio community is huge including people who only use FOSS and those who will use proprietary also if it works for them.
Posted in Review: BlackBerry Q10
Re: Ooh...
Lack of trackball may be a deal breaker fro me too.
I'll have to find a demo model in a bricks-and-mortar store and see whether it's as bad as I imagine having to prod a piece of dirty glass in precisely the right place to get things done. If it's anything like the iPad for text selection and link-clicking I'll likely not be buying one. It's a great shame as I've been holding out for one for a while now hoping it would be a traditional Blackberry with a funky new (for Blackberry) OS.
Could you power them through inductance?
Rather than having a tether could they, instead, have an induction loop? That may not be ideal for long-distance surveillance but cold allow for testing and some use cases such as searching inside confined spaces.
Re: I happen to have experience transporting radioactive material across international borders.
@tabman: Sadly El Reg don't sell them any more as the store has closed. I think searching fr "tritium keyring" might show something up on google though.
@Yet Another Anonymous coward: It was attached to my keys -- even went through US security with it.
I happen to have experience transporting radioactive material across international borders.
My Tritium keyring from El Reg never so much as raised an eyebrow.
Re: Probabliy better understood as...
"Corporate capitalism" is a contradiction in terms. What we have is not capitalism but corporatism -- sadly these thieves are branded as capi8utalissts when they are demonstrably not. Corporatism is tribal fascism and has nothing to do with capitalism.
I am in agreement also.
I have been known to buy a woman a drink or two or a meal for the pleasure of their company for a little while. If nothing else it allows one to brush up on the conversational and flirting skills. When you're socially inept that's practice that's well needed and can actually pay off.
Re: VirtualBox Guest Additions
Your point about the repository ones being older is a good one.
On my install using Jockey to install the guest additions lead Ubuntu to choose the wrong resolutions for my monitor and it was only by deactivating the drivers from the repository and installing the ones from Virtualbox itself* that i was able to get the proper full-screen mode working.
*a very easy procedure of selecting "Install guest additions" from the Virtualbox media menu, clicking OK in Ubuntu, entering your password then rebooting for changes to take effect).
@Yeik Re: 119 MB is lightweight?
Are you from the US by any chance?
If you look at the weight of a standard family hatchback (e.g. Vauxhall/Opel Astra) you'll notice the kerb weight has increased by about 500KG since the 1990's. Could it be that you've just noticed that humongous gas-guzzlers have become lighter now that iron-block V8s have gone out of vogue?
Re: Tap Water.
Did you do any research?
http://www.idealspain.com/pages/information/water.html
I know the above is only one link or opinion, but the general impression seems to be that Spanish tap water varies from good, through "a little manky, but safe" to "possible pesticide contamination". Meaning it's hardly picky to talk about bottled water as a necessary precaution rather than a silly affectation.
I'm willing to bet that other first world western countries have worse water quality than Spain.
Re: Transfer rate.
I'd like some more information also. Otherwise I'd say it's just people doing it wrong:
http://www.google.com/search?q=windows+8+slow+transfer+speeds&btnG=Search&hl=en&gbv=1
Re: There is more to Linux than Ubuntu
I have to agree there are better choices for boards like this and the Pi than Ubuntu. For starters with something this low powered you'd expect to be using LXDE, [black|flux]box or even XFCE rather than Unity. Heck, can Unity even run on something with less than 2GB RAM?
I would guess that's why Raspbian seems to be the default choice for the Pi.
Where does this leave get_iplayer?
I was given the impression that get_iplayer was downloading the (non DRM'd?) files meant for iDevices. Was I mistaken or may this break it?
@dogged Re: The end of Project Sputnik?
That being my point. Sputnik was a lever to get something out of MS, was the deal on embedded licenses it?
Bare faced bullshit!
This "DECC's figures reckon that not deploying smart meters in every UK home (by 2019) will cost consumers £6.3bn over 18 years" is, by the admission of the power companies, total and utter bullshit. How these arseholes can keep a straight face peddling this shit is beyond me.
These lying, thieving, scum have already stated that domestic electricity bills *must* go up and must go up by *a lot* in order to pay for infrastructure and the coming energy shortfall in the UK. What this is about is paying twice as much for half as much electricity.
Think I'm making this up or exaggerating? Read a few El Reg articles from the past couple of years on Energy supply and demand, rolling brownouts and the need for infrastructure upgrade.
Edit: Can't find the El Reg articles but this gives the gist http://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/news/2012/08/20/power-cuts-in-the-uk-110bn-of-infrastructure-upgrades-needed/
The end of Project Sputnik?
I'm probably being too cynical but could this be the deal Dell needed some leverage with MS for?
Re: Clowns
They bought a laptop of a kind not available in their country which had no box or manual and possibly had someone else's data on it. Where did they think it came from, Father Christmas?
You' re just seeing future echos.
So we know that the time machine has "will have going to have happened" happened but it hasn't yet happened happened.
"Girls don't like boys girls like cars and money."
Whilst a little glib this pop lyric sums up my experience and observation of human activity: women tend to like men who are well-paid, ambitious and, therefore, have enough resources to spend on a family (talking purely about long-term relationships, of course).
For one-night stands it's about pure pleasure so surely the tongue length is as, if not more, important as penis length?
Re: Why the Browser?
Because most people spend most of their time in the browser, whether we like it or not. Personally, I hate webmail and prefer a separate client -- that puts me in a minority though. Similarly thing like Google Docs and other "cloud" stuff (again that I don't like/trust) is being used more and more. Heck, Chrome OS is just a browser and whilst it's not mainstream yet many are raving at how good it is.
Mind you, even I appreciate being able to play a multi-player FPS in my browser (See Banana Bread) even if it is mainly for the sheer "what, the, hell!?" of it.
When I said "Windows is a POS."
I didn't mean for you to attach a bloody credit card reader to it!
Nice troll attempt.
Being aware of Windows mobile oferings before Apple got into phones and being aware of how Android managed to become more prevalent than Apple's mobile offering I can only think the author is a moron or a troll.
Markets change.
Re: I was about to post pretty much the same thing.
The panda advert makes perfect sense. If pandas realised they were omnivores and just ate people they'd not be in the mess they are now, instead they're stuck eating biscuits and looking cute.
I was about to post pretty much the same thing.
I don't see a problem broadcasting the advert but it doesn't actually make sense to me unless you assume that a girl wants to "make out with" a pig, which is a little odd surely?
Mind you we have adverts where cups want things dunking in them, firemen squirt their hoses in a woman's throat and all manner of other illogical crud so I suppose it's normal for advertising.
Re: Selling in the course of a business
"You sell the equipment AS-IS, with minimal guarantees etc..."
Do you have legal advice to back this up? The last legal advice I heard on the subject was that selling kit dirrectly is a no-no because of the warranties and other red tape required. Last I heard selling B2B is find but there are things they will not buy, as seems to be the case here.
That means the kit was worthless -- the fact that a private individual could sell it on eBay warranty-free is absolutely immaterial. To the council the kit was actually a debt they needed to clear.
I asked what I did because I think, frankly, that some people posting here have no idea what they're talking about and was hoping that somebody could elucidate rather than keep repeating that they ought to sell the kit.
Re: it would only throw away kit that couldn't be reused or sold without cost
I've news for you. Private companies can, and do, simply throw away kit that nobody will buy from them for "re-purposing". As I asked in a previous post, please could someone with experience of selling kit "as is" and without warranty on behalf of a large organisation please explain how it is done so that others may learn.
@El Presidente
What's the procedure one goes through to ensure that selling IT kit on "as seen" and without warranty is legal? How do you word the disclaimers that people sign when they buy it? Does the ICO accept "we ran dban on the disks" as proof of the destruction of the data they contain?
I'm seeing a lot of criticism of the council but not much constructive advice as to how these problems can be got around. If you can provide the answers then please do as I know many organisations will be looking for them and, who knows, you may be able to persuade your local council to give it a go.
Re: This lack of imagination
It likely would cost the council more than £10k to have the drives certified as wiped, have the kit PAT and whatever else tested, install an operating system and make provision for warranties. Blame the idiotic laws not allowing IT kit to be sold off "as is" and not the council for taking the least expensive route.
Re: Tell me how to stop them surfing for whatever they want on their (or their mate's) smartphone?
On their own surely you just tell the network not to allow porn? I know I and to sign up to a "dirty old man list" when I started using my phone to browse the internet.
Their mates' phones are different, of course, but a conversation with their mates' parents might let them know of the restrictions also. That's "society" and "community" right there...
Re: You may not care, but others might.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
I will not type "whose" instead of "who's" again.
...
You may not care, but others might.
Might not go down well at your grandmother's bible study group, for example. How about that prospective employer whose a stickler for respectability? Perhaps a prospective wife may not be able to trust somebody who would do such a thing? How about if one of the kids in the class or soccer team you teach got hold of it - do you think the parents would like that?
Just because in your particular position in your particular culture it wouldn't be a problem doesn't mean somebody else is a prude because they see it as a problem.
Re: What's a radio?
Why would anyone watch video on a laptop in my living room? Have you never heard of monitors and projectors? I mentioned the laptop because it, and my phone, are the only radio devices I tend to use regularly so I took it that when watching a video in bed I'm using this "radio" they talk about.
I do think that Video and Audio (possibly Video Programming and Audio Programming) are much better than the silly Vision though.
As to the strict definition of television since it's essentially a brand name it can mean what you want it to. I've no problem with extending it to include YouTube but what about downloaded films? I wasn't in the studio then either. I also saw the moon on television once through a telescope?
What's a radio?
Do you mean the programming I sometimes watch or listen to on my laptop?
I take it TV is the new name for YouTube, iPlayer, Netflix and other video services?
Yes, I know most people probably do still have a traditional television and, possibly, still listen to traditional radios (well DAB ones soon, perhaps) but surely I'm not the only person for whom a "TV" and "radio" don't exist any more?
He was just upset about his team missing a star player.
Knowing the church never recruited Mr Saville must be a constant source of embarassment. My guess is he now wants to work for the BBC.
Posted in Paper computers: Not mere pulp fiction
Rock, paper, scissors.
Which one is it? It's your decision
And no matter what you chose
You gonna live it
I've a few kilos of dead tree which I have read, and also a new collection of a few hundred MB. I love real books butt, like a lot of people, I cannot afford the huge storage space. Also when travelling it is much easier to carry one thing, or even log into one account, than try to move a lot of dead paper.
A few questions:
Is there a way to turn the touchscreen off or do you just lock the whole thing? Do you have to use the touchscreen to lock it or is there a button or a key shortcut?
Does it take a normal-sized SIM?
This is looking like almost my perfect phone and will hopefully be the replacement for my now ancient E71.
Now I want one.
Been wanting a Blackberry for the last few years but refused to pay a fiver a month more for something that isn't that much better than the IMAP I already use.
Glad that my next phone doesn't have to mean giving all my data to Google or paying Apple's lawyeers to talk shit.
This is why I hate the photo obsessed.
Why is it that nowadays everyone seems to want to photograph everything? Is it because they can? Is it because they're morons?
Anyone pulling a camera on me in a "compromising position" or dressed in a way I'd not go out in public is asked politely not to take a photo, then more direct action is taken. Once a digital photograph exists there exists the possibility that some piece of shit will publish it.
Re: Post vanished into the ether.
And how do you propose to keep exactly one litre of water, free of containments, at precisely STP?
Or is this a joke I don't understand?
Re: "do it properly with an iPad Mini / Nexus 7"
Paperwhite may technically be "backlit" ((I've not taken it apart) but when it comes to reading it is a world away from a traditional backlit display. Personally I don't even notice that it's lit unless it's pitch dark but, then, I do have the brightness turned to minimum (though I'll admit I wish I could turn it off completely to save battery).
I used to read from my iPad on my commute and my eyes certainly prefer the paperwhite.
Re: There are other Linux distros besides Ubuntu...
I suspect the inability to boot Ubuntu is due to UEFI and/or Secure Boot (more likely the latter) as mandated by Microsoft for Windows 8.
AFAIK it's not yet possible to boot Linux without disabling Secure Boot, which then prevents Windows 8 from installing.
I dare say someone has done it, but until Canonical, RedHat, the Linux foundation et. al. get around to adding it to the installers "normal" users are out of luck.
Perhaps he went to a special company.
They may have remembered it for him wholesale?
Re: How about...
If loans weren't so expensive nowadays (I swear the APRs have doubled in the last couple of years) then it would probably pay to do this yourself. It may still do if you shop around for a decent loan deal. (I've not looked seriously so they might be out there) .
If you can pass the credit rating to get a 24 month phone contract I doubt you'd have much trouble securing ~£500 over, say, 12 months. Certainly what I would [will] do if I couldn't [can't] afford a to buy a new phone outright and need one for some reason.
