* Posts by Armando 123

1116 publicly visible posts • joined 10 Aug 2011

20 injured at LG phone giveaway as PR stunt turns into riot

Armando 123

Re: Amateurs.

The LG event seems like a tame Tuesday morning in Detroit during an ice storm.

However, here in the US people have a sense of security/lawsuit and I cannot imagine bb guns and knives on sticks being allowed in.

Armando 123
Thumb Up

Re: A Bit of a WKRP Moment, eh?

Beat me to it; awesome.

I think the whole episode (worth watching) is on hulu, but there is this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg

China has another go at rare earth dominance

Armando 123

Re: Not learning from history?

"understand what is likely to happen when a 'free market, capitalist' economy is unleashed onto a previously 'socialist' society."

If western politicians and bureaucrats and citizens have no clue about free market economics, why would the powerbrokers in a Communist nation get it?

Admins warned: Drill SSL knowledge into your Chrome users

Armando 123

Re: Useless certificate system

"I'm intrigued - how do you mount a man in the middle attack on smoke signals?!"

Pigeons, fans, binoculars, and some ordinary household bleach.

Or hack one of Obama's NSA drones.

New blinged-up 'iPhone 5S' touted by Jobs FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE

Armando 123

Re: After the news concerning the NSA.....

Fair point, but at least they're TELLING us this. Android would just add it with an Alfred E. Neuman-esque "What, you worry?" attitude if it was found out.

Flippin' tosser: Sun's magnetic field poised to SWIVEL on it - NASA

Armando 123

Re: For those in need of their daily dose of anxiety :

Odd, sounds a lot like the current US administration. Except for not denouncing corporations and raising taxes.

Sorry, carry on. And pay no attention to the drone behind the curtain.

The hammer falls: Feds propose drastic controls on Apple's iTunes Store

Armando 123

Re: So what?

Not obeying the law, obeying the rules created by an unelected bureaucracy.

Typical! Google's wonder-dongle is a solution looking for a problem

Armando 123

Hm

"... or Premier League footie, a global phenomenon that absorbs every country in[!] the planet."

However, for those of us who have left the caves and are not fearful of an angry sun god, we've moved on to more interesting sports, like javelin catching and watching cars rust.

[Honestly, I've given soccer/football/Italian-injury-acting a good honest try three or four times in about as many decades, but it just doesn't work for me. If you enjoy it, fine, but I do get miffed when people act like I *must* love it.]

Russia's post-Snowden spooks have not reverted to type

Armando 123

Re: Original Izvestia article

"Obscure product + weird supplier + remarkably high price paid = bent government procurement."

Y'know, this sounds like the Chicago school system, come to think of it. Probably a boondoggle to line some relative's pockets.

Apple: 'Average' iPad toiler does a mere 46-hour week

Armando 123
Pint

So ...

Less than half what the average working American male does if his spouse has a job. And I'm probably not required to watch reality tv. Where do I sign up?

T-Rex tooth find shows dino may have been a pussy

Armando 123

Seems to me ...

This says more about the toughness of the hadrosaur

Man sues Apple for allowing him to become addicted to porn

Armando 123

Re: Somebody

The ethos of America is personal responsibility. However, that does not mean that it is the ethos of the American *government*.

Armando 123

The real problem

... is that in the USA, people can sue without threat of consequence. If a judge/jury had a way of saying "No, you're an idiot and this lawsuit is ridiculous because it's your own fault" and Apple had a way to countersue to get damages because the judge/jury said "No, you're an idiot and this lawsuit is ridiculous because it's your own fault", then these sorts of things would stop, or really slow down. However, that would mean less work for lawyers, and America has a legal system of the lawyer, by the lawyer, for the lawyer. The lawyers won't let there be less work for the ABA members.

Once we have personal responsibility in the law, or rather punishment for refusing to admit one's own lack thereof, then we can move on to the civil service. So once again, that ain't happening.

Apple: Ta for blowing £££s on apps, fanbois. Now we've set them FREE

Armando 123

Caveat emptor

These things happen. I bought a GMC pickup many years ago right before another GMC dealer went out of business and had a big sale. I could have saved $4K on a $17K truck. If I had known, I could have saved a lot of money, but I didn't know. Still, it was a good truck and I got my money's worth.

Flippin' Equus! Unfeasibly old horse bone DNA triumph

Armando 123

Re: Stablised

Except that modern race horses have been selectively bred for speed over 1.5 miles. They haven't been bred for survival against the kind of predators that existed four million years ago. So while those ancient horses were probably bigger, stronger, tougher, etc, they likely weren't as fast. Nor were they likely as willing to have simians on their backs.

Korean doctors: Smartphones really ARE doing your head in

Armando 123

Re: TBH

As a step-father, I know what you miss without kids: money, stress, boredom, work, stupidity, annoyance, ... and that's just from dealing with the in-laws and with teachers.

Apple: iOS7 dayglo Barbie makeover is UNFINISHED - report

Armando 123
Flame

Re: What's going on?

Or maybe, giving them enough rope.

It's only a beta, and maybe it's a way for them to use the ridicule to tell the suits "See, you people know nothing about this, go back to drinking and golf".

Nine-year-old Opportunity Mars rover sets NASA distance record

Armando 123

One difference

IIRC, the Lunokhod craft were controlled from Earth. That's not possible with a martian craft, where the time lag is about 40 minutes, not 3 seconds. Still, Lunokhod 2 was damned impressive for 70s Soviet technology.

Senators: You - Cook. Apple guy. Get in here and bring your tax books

Armando 123

The real problem ...

... isn't companies and individuals paying as little tax as possible. The real problem is the bloated, wasteful, porkful bureaucracy that does nothing but consume resources from people who are actually DOING something in this world.

Seriously, if half the government bureaucrats disappeared tomorrow, what harmful effect would it have on honest working people? You could argue, rather convincingly, that it would improve things.

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

Armando 123

Re: Have a gorilla...

Moriarty ... I believe we found a Charlie ...

Can't find your motor? Apple patents solve car park conundrums

Armando 123
Coat

Whereas Android owners have to take the bus.

(Yes, it's true, as I get older, I'm turning into Jeremy Clarkson)

Armando 123

Re: Another Way to Push Out Possible Customers

If only competent people were allowed to drive, no one would buy a Kia or Prius. So I'm for it!

Cook: iPad is a gateway drug which leads to harder Mac addiction

Armando 123

Re: More iPads equals

It's part of the "halo effect" that the iPod had. People get an iPod, like the design and how it works. Then they think "You know, Apple did a good job on this, I wonder what their computers are like."

The Linux and Windows core fans dismissed this at the time, but Apple sales data and survey data sure back up the idea.

Also, the -2% vs -11% is not to be sneezed at.

Indian IT consultant becomes idol to legions of football fans

Armando 123

Re: Gosh

Certainly not me.

Sincerely,

Richard Burton

Brutally efficient galaxy SPITS OUT STARS at 'maximum rate'

Armando 123

A star in our own galaxy in the foreground.

White House backs US web sales tax - eBay hits panic alarm

Armando 123

Re: @Kevin 6..

"What D.C. (finally) does get is that the competition is unfair "

Competition is unfair. Water is wet. Anything else to add?

And remember, Congress never LOWERS taxes due to unfairness. Per usual, this is about the government finding a way to take more of our money.

Armando 123
Coat

Stop press shocker!

Chicago Machine Politician Supports More Taxes?!?!?! Why, you could knock me over with a sledgehammer!

Mine's the one with the copy of The Declaration of Independence in the pocket

Peak Apple: First 'profit slip' in a decade - and, boy, it's gonna be BIG

Armando 123

Re: AAPL maintains 50B p.a. cash surplus rate

"Who is it who keeps DOING that? Must be the umpteeninth time AAPL've been having their going-out-of-business sale."

The MacObserver has kept a count of these things for years in their Apple Death Knell Counter. http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/death_knell/ Amazing what people have predicted, even the editor-in-chief once.

Armando 123

Wow.

"The market needs to see some evidence that the future looks bright because that candle is flickering.”

I wish my company's candle flickered that bad ...

No one can constantly be 100% on top of their game. Analysts and financial drones may wonder what's wrong, but sometimes you have to take a period of retrenchment to get things right. And considering how Jobs' last year and illness may have affected Apple, that time of uncertainty and distraction might have just shown up in the marketplace this last quarter.

US Senate vote to add internet sales tax this week

Armando 123

Re: unfair burdens?

I am by no means wealthy, but between income tax, property tax, sales tax, airport tax, license plates and drivers' licenses (which I consider fair use taxes, but still), and extra taxes on gas, restaurants, tickets, .... we probably spend over half of our income on taxes. And I do not think the US taxpayers are getting value for money.

Enough is enough. Our government has been getting more and more expensive, evasive, and big brotherish since 1912, with a brief respite during the 20s. And I for one would be happy to spend a winter or three at Valley Forge in an attempt to get rid of the political fatcats and their bureaucratic drones.

The scary thing is we live in a relatively low-tax area; for having an NBA and NFL team, good museaums, good restaurants, etc, Indianapolis is quite affordable and taxed pretty lightly. I know the offers I've had in places like Boston, New York, and San Francisco; I have no idea how middle class people live there.

Feds urged to probe four US cell big boys over Android holes

Armando 123

Re: Why ever not?

Never ascribe to malice or greed that which can be put down to laziness and incompetence.

Says the guy who once contracted at a big telco.

Apple branded porno-peddling perverts by Chinese Pravda

Armando 123

Based on my 40+ years of living under US politics, cluelessness and electability are not mutually exclusive. Someone like mencken might argue that there is a correlation, actually ...

Armando 123

Well ...

If you can't trust a communist dictatorship in the area of morals, then just whom CAN you trust?

I wonder if all the anti-Apple ranting out of China means that 1) Apple is not meeting the minimum bribe level, or 2) Rob Enderle is now Minister of Information.

Armando 123

Shall we add you to the Apple Death Knell Counter? http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/death_knell/

Armando 123

Re: Smut in online bookstores?

Knowing China, the offending book was probably Rose and Milton Friedman's "Free to Choose" of Hayek's "Road to Serfdom".

Armando 123

Cook's background is in manufacturing/production, IIRC, and I know certain components are now made in the US. I recall reading about the glass being made in Austin, TX, at least as of a year ago.

Are biofuels Europe's sh*ttiest idea ever?

Armando 123

Re: Betteridge's Law says 'No'

"Mornington Crescent"

Wait, I though you were in nip ...

Armando 123

Re: to answer the headline question

"Raising awareness "

Ah yes, "Raising awareness ", the phrase used by people who want to LOOK like they're doing something important when they're not actually doing anything.

(Yes, I am that cynical, but how can anyone be over 25 and NOT be cynical?)

Move over, Mythbusters: Was Archimedes an ancient STEVE JOBS?

Armando 123

Re: Uh... No.

You 8are* familiar with the term "standing on the shoulders of giants", right? Afterall, Einstein's work was just an advancement of men like Mach, Michealson, Morley, Maxwell, and others whose last names did not begin with M.

Antarctic ice sheet melt 'not that unusual', latest ice core shows

Armando 123
Windows

Re: So ...

"And the problem is ... ? You can add DC, Boston, New Orleans, and LA to that list and I wouldn't get too worked up about it."

For the record, I typed that yesterday BEFORE the bombs went off at the Boston Marathon. As usual, my timing is peccable.

Armando 123

"Isn't Harrogate the highest town above sea level or something like that?"

No, I think it's some place in Bolivia or Tibet.

Armando 123

So ...

""... London, Bangkok and New York, Shanghai and Mumbai will be among a number of cities which will eventually end up below sea level ...""

And the problem is ... ? You can add DC, Boston, New Orleans, and LA to that list and I wouldn't get too worked up about it.

Ban drones taking snaps of homes, rages Google boss... That's HIS job, right?

Armando 123

Re: Well good

All that being said, Obama's proposal for domestic drone use is a very serious and worrying thing. The US government does not have a great track record with respect to privacy, and add in that our current prez is an Ivy Leaguer, former wall streeter, Chicago machine politician, and lawyer, and you can see why I have my doubts.

Armando 123
Big Brother

Well good

So now my father can sue Schmidt because the google street view of his house was taken without permission, shows an image of my father (again, no permission granted), and the make/model/color of a car with a partial plate.

Physician, heal thyself or naff off.

'Sorry, I don't get the drama around having an always-on console'

Armando 123

Re: I hope he will get another job soon

I know there is an opening for a dunk tank target in Schenectedy.

Dinosaur embryos FOUND: Resurrection 'out of the question'* - boffin

Armando 123
Black Helicopters

Re: Patients?

France always acts a little shifty. When they STOP acting shifty, worry.

The gloves are on: Nokia emits super-sensitive £99 Windows Phone

Armando 123

Re: Very much a "no shit, Sherlock" moment

"for a supposedly business friendly country the US is very good at cartels that work against end users and new business entrants "

Because our lobbyists and politicians are very good at "plausible dediability" when cash flows and are very good at sneaking in items in important bills that no politician would dare vote against. There was a joke/rumor going around that the reason the relief for Hurricane Katrina took so long to be released was that they needed to figure out the path a new interstate in West Virginia first.

Frightening fondleslabs branded Hannibal Lecter of UK PC market

Armando 123

Re: Sales figures don't tell the whole story...

Mostly because the manufacturers realized they couldn't make any money on them.

Achtung! German Amazon workers out on strike

Armando 123

Re: My Prediction

"I saw that documentary and it was hair-raising. Systematic, brutish abuse of staff. Every conceivable loophole in the law being used to cheat and rob people who were in no position to argue."

Wait, is that Amazon or the US Congress?

The ten SEXIEST computers of ALL TIME

Armando 123

Re: First two were apple

"Apple stuff is just horrible,"

I realize this is probably flame-bait, but I can tell you from personal experience that Apple hardware, while not perfect, is pretty darn good. I'm trying to think of the man-years my Macs have run in useful service, and it has to be more than sixty. I recently sent my Performa 631-CD, from 1995, to a recycler, but it still ran fine with no hitch. The only problem I've had is that one fan bearing went bad after about 7 years of heavy use, a couple mice got worn out after that amount of time, and an original (mac-only, Firewire-only) iPod's battery has gone phut after ten years.

You can call them overpriced, but I've found them damn reliable and trouble-free, and surely that is worth something (unless your time is worthless).

I wish my Wintel junk I've been given for work were that horrible ...