* Posts by Bob Vistakin

1578 publicly visible posts • joined 24 Dec 2011

Windows Mixed Reality: Windows Mobile deja vu?

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Things are different under SadNads

He knows better than to hold a funeral for his competitors way before his own product has eaten all their lunches.

Oracle UK's profits have more than halved

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Plus, once you've invested big time and are locked in, Orrible change the goalposts every time they feel like it re licensing, with only one thing in common every time: your bill goes up.

Bob Vistakin
Big Brother

Re: You can only get away with a screw you attitude...

They are to databases what Blackberry were to mobiles. Sure, they worked hard to cement their position early on, and for a while seemed unassailable, but this arrogance caused them to stop innovating whilst the competition were closing in fast behind them. Now they've been overtaken, and despite a few years of comedy watching them scramble to try to keep up, know the game is over

Most java users hated Orrible before they needlessly shat all over them, so they can't even blame that for the bad sentiment towards them.

As others have pointed out, there are far better solutions around now, using any measure, and their problem, like IBM etc, is everybody damn well knows it.

Bob Vistakin
Happy

Re: Oracle... soon to follow HP

"Unfortunately for them our DBA hates Oracle with a passion and just chucks their CVs in the bin."

Fortunately, he's not alone, and an angel tinkles a bell every time it happens by way of celebration.

Jupiter has the craziest storms seen yet, say boffins

Bob Vistakin
Pint

Pepperoni to go?

Or Hot 'n' Spicy?

Shock poll finds £999 X too expensive for happy iPhone owners

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

#PayMoreGetLess

Baaa - you're bleating about it wrong.

Google Flutter hits beta: Another go at cross-platform mobile dev

Bob Vistakin
Boffin

Re: Optional

I'm reminded of the early days of java UI's, and the AWT vs Swing wars. Wasn't that exactly the same difference, i.e. one (AWT) used the UI widgets supplied in the host framework whereas the other (Swing) rendered every pixel itself?

Neil Young slams Google, after you log in to read his rant with Google or Facebook

Bob Vistakin
Pint

Musicians Lynyrd Skynyrd have spent years having a go at Neil Young

I'm embarrased to say I only recently found out what one of my favourite tunes is all about, when I took the time to actually listen to the lyrics of Sweet Home Alabama.

The Gemini pocket PC is shipping and we've got one. This is what it's like

Bob Vistakin
Happy

Nokia

If they'd stayed the course, this is the sort of thing they'd be launching about now.

I bet they are watching this "new" form factor sector very closely indeed!

Microsoft ends notifications for Win-Phone 7.5 and 8.0

Bob Vistakin
Holmes

"Remember the Kin?"

Yes Jack, I do.

Do you remember Bob, and Vista? A similar story, as my friend Metro Clippyzune would testify.

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

'Without notifications Windows Phone's "Find your phone" feature won't work'

Alas, I never did see one in the wild, so nothing changes for me there. Microsoft abandoned mobile, the obvious future of personal computing, at exactly the same time the world moved over to it.

It now dances to it's arch enemies tune. Have you seen how many apps they have on the Play Store now? It tugs it's forelock every time they see them. The Beast does a little dance on it's hind legs every time they snap their fingers. I could go on, but that would be moving from comedy to cruelty.

Basil Fawlty: "Still, you know best dear."

If you don't like what IBM is pitching, blame Watson: It's generating sales 'solutions' now

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Did Warren Buffet miss the memo?

He just ditched 94.5 percent of his IBM holdings.

IBM declares it's the 'backbone of the world's economy'

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Why the obsession with watching them circle the drain?

It was game over a decade ago. All the smart one's who could, got out back then.

Now, all the work it will do for it's customers will be from countries President Trump has a special word for.

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Re: even nVidia is bigger now

"IBM missed the boat on the ongoing revolutions in mobile and cloud computing, and it's been scrambling to adjust to the changing technology landscape ever since. Revenue has now declined in 17 consecutive quarters. Its failure to foresee the structural changes in enterprise IT also helps explain why IBM stock has underperformed the S&P 500 by roughly 75% since Rometty became CEO."

The chart of their market value against the S&P is particularly interesting.

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Re: A fine plan

Are those the countries President Trump has a special word for?

Stephen Elop and the fall of Nokia revisited

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Just let this sink in.

This page, showing the history of microsofts partners in mobile, has been up since 2011.

Bob Vistakin
Holmes

Tut tut tut

Seems there was no space to mention Elop being microsoft's 8th largest individual shareholder when he trojaned his way into the Nokia CEO slot, so I'll helpfully mention it now.

You won't believe this: Nokia soars back into phone-flinger top 3

Bob Vistakin
Pint

LineageOS

Heads up for those who love the stock Android these new Nokia's sport.

Every handset I own older than 2 years is now running a custom ROM, most LineageOS, which get more frequent, and automatic, updates than those the manufacturers provide. It's what took over from Cyanogen.

Check out the device list - it even includes the PC

Bob Vistakin
Pint

"Globally in Q4, Shah estimates Nokias outsold Sony and HTC."

The recovery from their raping by the beast was long and painful, yet it didn't kill them.

I notice their new corporate anthem has 261M views, so it certainly wasn't an elop, err sorry that should have read "flop", of course.

Cold calling director struck off for ‘flagrant’ breach of duties

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

The takeaway message: It's worth the risk

You win and you're a couple of houses up, you lose and you have to get a mate to run things if you want to try again?

IBM turns panto villain as The Reg tells readers: 'It's behind you!'

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

That "decaying orbit" around IBM

Well done for not saying they are swirling round the toilet bowl, management having already flushed the handle some time ago.

Cyber-coin crackdown continues: Commission charges couple crypto-currency company chiefs concerning 'conned' customers

Bob Vistakin
Pint

Clearly a comical currency conundrum

That do?

IBM kills Global Technology and Global Business Services: It's all ‘IBM Services’ now

Bob Vistakin
Windows

IBM have their own cloud? Gosh.

Devs see red after not seeing Big Red on Stack Overflow database poll

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

It wasn't the entry which was missed

It was the phrase "willingly" from the question before "done", for which obviously Oracle has no place.

It gets worse: Microsoft’s Spectre-fixer wrecks some AMD PCs

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Re: 2018 - the beginning of the end?

This crop of crap is a calamitous catastrophe. Clearly, the cruel conundrum caused by the callous carelessness of microsoft caught countless careful citizens chillingly.

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

That putrid patch

Is particularly pissing plenty of people off. Perhaps it's punishment for their poor choice of PC OS provider. They can't be pleased with the problematic pickle they're placed in.

Maplin Electronics CEO ups stakes for steak house

Bob Vistakin
Happy

Re: It's a crying shame......

@Davegoody

Almost word for word what I was about to write. The B&Q of electronics. Have an upvote.

IBM lobs sueball at travel site Expedia for using some old Prodigy patents

Bob Vistakin
Joke

You forgot the icon.

Microsoft Surface Book 2: Electric Boogaloo. Bigger, badder, better

Bob Vistakin
Pint

It's great that microsoft are still making hardware

You just have to wait 6 months for the eBay firesale and the hackers to port Android over.

IT giant CSC screwed its 1,000 sysadmins out of their overtime – jury

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Hear hear - well put sir!

Bob Vistakin
Childcatcher

Their solution to a $5m fine?

Sack as many workers as that would cover in wages. Simples.

Microsoft's 'Surface Phone' is the ghost of Courier laughing mockingly at fanbois

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Re: Too late

"SatNad should move over to TomTom or Garmin."

No way! He's doing a fantastic job continuing the great demolition his predecessor, Blamer, was cruelly prevented from seeing through far too soon.

Please, please, c'mon, just... please, pretty please, just, like, please use our AI – Microsoft

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Same old Microsoft: Late to the party, "Me too!", then "please use us"

Rinse and repeat.

IBM reminds staff not to break customers in pre-Xmas fix-this-now rush

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

These "staff" you speak of

There are none left. The only employees are managers now. Managing other managers. Using big, long, complicated manager words.

IBM to expunge over 500 people in latest redundo round

Bob Vistakin
Pint

Scarper sharply

Get out now folks, it''s only gonna get worse. The customers have rumbled IBM, that's what all this "contract erosion" management speak is all about. That cash cow has ceased to be. It will not return, ever.

It couldn't happen to a nicer bunch.

Cost-hurling IBM seeks more volunteers for employment bonfire

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Typo

El Reg understands that up to 1,100 new positions in India are becoming available.

FYFY

Android flaw lets attack code slip into signed apps

Bob Vistakin
Holmes

Woah - the clue is in the earlier fix

So someone reads a bugfix list which Google released, saw it corrects an older problem, then "announces" they, themselves, personally using all their expert security skills, have found a vulnerability which, err, only affects older versions?

Way to go, Sherlock.

Nokia 8: As pure as the driven Android - it's a classy return

Bob Vistakin
Holmes

It's fantastic to see such a great start

Well done clawing back from the dead, Nokia. Keep up this momentum and don't just throw it away for no reason. I mean - what kind of idiots would do that?

From the graaaaaave! WileyFox's Windows 10 phone delayed again

Bob Vistakin

Jingle bells, IBM tells more staff it is D-day ♫

Bob Vistakin
FAIL

They were rumbled a decade ago

They've always charged 10x more than anyone else for basically the same thing. 25 years ago when I was at BT this was the inside sick joke, but because we were all only dealing with corporates it was the norm.

The rot set in 10 years ago, and the chickens are now firmly home roosting.

The End of Abandondroid? Treble might rescue Google from OTA Hell

Bob Vistakin
Boffin

It's not just phones any more

Android Things, Googles IoT offering, aims to do for them with IoT what Android did for them with mobile. The current AT release is based on Oreo, which is where Treble was introduced. System upgrades and base hardware portability for IoT is a world of hurt which makes smartphones look simper than Diane Abbott's abacus. It's very much in Google's interest to nail these fragmentation issue across all hardware, not just smartphones.

This is peak AI: Bot to guest edit Radio 4's Today programme

Bob Vistakin
Pint

It may be peak AI, but it's sure not peak R4 Today

This is something only a human could ever do, and fully appreciate.

Wait, did Oracle tip off world to Google's creepy always-on location tracking in Android?

Bob Vistakin

Just exactly why is Oracle so pissed off?

When Google used Java for Android, Oracle was only known for their vastly overpriced but basically me-too database - as they are now, for that matter. Sun, the then-owner of Java, was put up for sale and Google spectacularly blundered by not buying it, even though they were very much in the frame and Oracle was spoken about as a relevant contender as much as, say, McDonalds. To make matters worse, Google had the cash. It's gone down as the biggest mistake they ever made.

However, we are where we are, and have to deal with Oracle's new patent trolling business. To hear them today, you'd think they somehow had some involvement in mobile or java before all this when clearly they had neither. That must have hurt - it's like Microsoft being forced to hold their nose and go all-in with Android because of their suicide in the mobile industry. Only money, not hard work, nor innovation, has allowed Oracle this fake outrage at their "property" being violated. But this lie is constantly repeated, and in time the truth will become eroded to the point at which people may start to believe they actually did make some kind of positive contribution other than crocodile tears.

BT plots to slash pension benefits for 32,000 staff

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

So, how's the purchase of EE working out for you then?

Rebranding as Unemployment Everywhere next?

Google's answer to the Pixel 2 XL CRT-style screen burn in: Lower the brightness

Bob Vistakin
FAIL

Avoid

When's the Pixel 3 out?

Atto, boy! Eggheads fire laser for 43 attoseconds, fastest Man-made spurt

Bob Vistakin
Boffin

Re: Sounds like cheating

So they know their position AND momentum? That'd be the real breakthrough, to put it mildly...

IBM offloads Notes and Domino to India's HCL Technologies

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Jesus, is Notes still going?

That's the one IBM knew was so full of bugs they wouldn't touch it with a bargepole for their own internal use, but were happy to sell it to customers whilst charging them for fixing it.

Go on IBMers, tell us what you really think

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Intense Bowel Movement

The management -> employee process.

FYI: iOS apps can turn on your camera any time without warning

Bob Vistakin
Facepalm

Just needs better AI

Same applies to Android.

Yes you can use my camera, but only when I want you to.

Oh, and some mind reading ability would be required too.

Japan finds long, deep tunnel on the Moon

Bob Vistakin
Holmes

It changes things slightly

For the last decade or so it looked like the first human to walk on the moon would be Chinese, now it's clearly a race between them and the Japanese.

We live in interesting times as truths protective layers become uncovered, one by one.