* Posts by PeeKay

102 publicly visible posts • joined 18 Oct 2012

Page:

Copilot pane as annoying as Clippy may pop up in Windows 11

PeeKay
Mushroom

Burn it with fire

Or rather, a local GPO to disable spawn of Co-Pilot.

Removes that annoying icon on the right of the taskbar, too.

Not even the ghost of obsolescence can coerce users onto Windows 11

PeeKay
Facepalm

"Windows 10 may be just over a year away from the ax ... Unless the company blinks, October 14, 2025, will be the end of the line for the Home and Pro editions of the operating system"

Um, just over 2 years away, surely?

Avoiding Windows 11 as long as possible, but the boss is saying next year is going to be painful...

Fedora Project mulls 'privacy preserving' usage telemetry

PeeKay

Re: Stats please

Google Chrome varient? Yes.

Data collecting? No.

Vivaldi Browser. https://vivaldi.com/privacy/browser/

It’s official: Vodafone and Three to tie the knot in the UK

PeeKay

This merger *will* reduce consumer choice *and* increase costs

Bugger - I just moved from Vodafone to Smarty (effectively 3), as Vodafone could not or would not provide a cheap enough 'all you can eat' data package.

As a consumer, I'm not seeing the benefit of this merger. While Vodafone will get access to 3 masts (and vice-versa), will it really improve coverage?

And I can't be the only one to wonder how on the one hand they're (combined) willing to blat £11bn on improving their network over the next 10 years, and then on the other espouse the cost savings of $755m each year...?!?

From my perspective, EE/BT = too Expensive, Virgin Media/02 = too mediocre and Vodafone is costly, but has a lower coverage in some built up areas of the UK (including where my office is right now).

Not seeing how this can be a good thing, except for Vodafone?

Mac shipments slump as Apple finally bitten by glum PC demand

PeeKay

Pricing not the fault?

Let's be honest - prices were high before, but they're verging on the ridiculous now - to the point where nobody is likely to be able to afford to buy a Mac.

Of course, it could all be a ploy by Apple to remove the Mac altogether, except for design businesses and their ilk?

Clegg on its face: Facebook turns to former UK deputy PM to fend off damaging headlines

PeeKay

This being the same Nick Clegg who said that the Lib Dems would never charge for education - then went ahead and did exactly that?

It's like asking a wolf to mind the sheep.

Don't like the new Windows 11 Start or Taskbar? Don't worry – Microsoft's got your back

PeeKay

Adverts ALWAYS ruin everything!

It was due to them feeding adverts to the desktop. Sigh.

You can find the fix for this particular borkage here:

https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2021/09/02/announcing-windows-11-insider-preview-build-22000-176/

UK's Labour Party calls for delay to NHS Digital's GP data slurp until patients can be properly informed

PeeKay

You're not wrong.

https://preventivehealth.facebook.com/#:~:text=Preventive%20Health%20is%20a%20new,recommendations%20from%20leading%20health%20organizations.&text=These%20checkups%20have%20the%20potential,cases,%20prevent%20it%20from%20developing.

UK pharma supplier put into special measures after new IT system causes almost 10,000 missed medicine deliveries

PeeKay

I'm sure it's purely coincidence...

...that Halcyon Acquisitions Limited became 'person with significant control' on 26th October 2020 (taking 75% control), isn't it?

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/02759609/persons-with-significant-control

Apple announces lossless HD audio at no extra cost, then Amazon Music does too. The ball is now in Spotify's court

PeeKay

Re: Yay!

"Something that doesn't degrade"

That's what the marketing people wanted us to believe. Real life sadly bites back though:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc_rot

https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2014/08/18/340716269/how-long-do-cds-last-it-depends-but-definitely-not-forever

Mammoth grab of GP patient data in the UK set to benefit private-sector market access as rules remain unchanged

PeeKay

Re: Concerning...

I foresee data mining, and then selling the resultant data to, say, insurance companies as just one example.

Let's face it - the insurance industry would just love to know your family's medical history so they can ramp up pricing (and lower payouts).

In my opinion, they can sod off.

'Biggest data grab' in NHS history stuffs GP records in a central store for 'research' – and the time to opt out is now

PeeKay

Re: Not that hard to fill in a form

What software was used to edit said PDF - and how much did it cost? Genuinely curious.

PeeKay

Not on your nelly mate

Not having my private medical data - ever.

I opted out when they first floated this turd. Now I've had to print out a form (waste of my resources) to sign and then scan and send to their 'enquiries' email address - what could possibly go wrong there, eh?

I've taken the option to post a physical copy through the doctors post box too.

This is shifty beyond belief. If they're after our medical data so desperately, it's time to question why.

And please - the medical research line is just that - a line. No truth in it.

WhatsApp: Share your data with Facebook, or we'll make our own app useless to you

PeeKay

Surely a BBS is no different from, say, a forum?

Decentralise from Facebook/WhatsApp/Instagram and use things like Mastodon/Signal/PixelFed instead.

Sure, you have to use a server, as would a BBS.

In China, the Smart TV watches you, shares IP address, Wi-Fi SSIDs, viewing habits, and more

PeeKay

Re: Oh! That's Handy!!!

To be fair, you can turn the 'Find My' feature off on Apple devices.

Whether it actually does what it says is another matter.

Spy agency GCHQ told me Gmail's more secure than Microsoft 365, insists British MP as facepalming security bods tell him to zip it

PeeKay

Re: Either or both secure or insecure?

Schrödinger's email, perchance?

Where an email provider can be good, evil or both at the same time.

LastPass to limit fans of free password manager to one device type only – computer or mobile – from next month

PeeKay

Re: The password version of Evernote

In the case of Evernote, consider Joplin (https://joplinapp.org)

PeeKay

Re: moving on

I'm also using Bitwarden (for years now) alongside my own server.

Means my passwords are mine and nobody else has access to them but me. :D

The next departure leaves in... have you thought about a Microsoft 365 subscription?

PeeKay

Not just bus stops

The last Windows update applied to my laptop took me back through the setup step - particularly the ones I had previously disabled.

Expect more borkage in the future if they continue down this slippery slope.

The killing of CentOS Linux: 'The CentOS board doesn't get to decide what Red Hat engineering teams do'

PeeKay

Re: Debian all the way

Glad to hear it. Thanks for pointing that out.

PeeKay

Re: Debian all the way

Until IBM buy them up too...

PeeKay

Debian all the way

Used CentOS at a previous role, and they were migrating away to Debian 10+ years ago.

I've only installed Debian servers since. Don't honestly see any benefit now unless you're stuck with Orable.

CentOS is a massive loss. RHEL wax lyrical about support including the patches etc, but forget all the FREE work they get out of the community.

Guess that gate doesn't swing both ways, eh RHEL?

The Novell NetWare box keeps rebooting over and over again yet no one has touched it? We're going on a stakeout

PeeKay

Re: Hands up who thought it would be the cleaner again

I've been told that South Africa have 2 different plugs - one for servers/PCs/etc, the other for vacuums so that the cleaners wouldn't use the server's supply.

Bit much to make a whole new plug though?

If you're a WhatsApp user, you'll have to share your personal data with Facebook's empire from next month – or stop using the chat app

PeeKay

Re: Does this apply here?

I moved over to Signal a while back (when FB bought WA originally) - interested to learn that WA uses the same technology from Signal to provide encryped protection.

Just without the snooping Facebook.

For those of us who would prefer not to be subject to this though...

Intel wheels out new face authentication product that works a lot like Apple's FaceID

PeeKay

This is kinda good...

...but better would be a selection of decently priced, variants of biometric password replacements - for example, where are all the fingerprint readers in this format (pluggable USB) that we can use cheaply, and with a multitude of operating systems (Win/macOS/Linux/OS/2/etc)?

There have been decent fingerprint readers in phones for years now. They should be a simple, cheap and effective way to authenticate yourself to your computer, without having to resort to images being taken over time (as is the case here), in turn presenting a potential privacy and/or security issue.

Be careful where you log into GitHub: Dev visits Iran, opens laptop, gets startup's entire account shut down

PeeKay

Ban these guys then this happens

https://github.blog/2021-01-05-advancing-developer-freedom-github-is-fully-available-in-iran/

Who watches the watchers? Samsung does so it can fling ads at owners of its smart TVs

PeeKay

Re: Likewise

They chuck up ads on the status bar of my 43" Samsung. Annoys the bejesus out of me. Might be time for a Pi-Hole.

Edited to add: Am in the UK.

Happy Hacking Professional Hybrid mechanical keyboard: Weird, powerful, comfortable ... and did we mention weird?

PeeKay

Re: No cursor keys

You might like the Drevo Blademaster Pro - I've been running with one for over a year and it's a top keyboard - wireless or connected.

See https://www.amazon.co.uk/DREVO-BladeMaster-Mechanical-Keyboard-Bluetooth/dp/B07MKF5V3Y/ref=sr_1_1?&keyword=TKL+mechanical+keyboard+UK+Layout - and much cheaper to boot.

Who cares what Apple's about to announce? It owes us a macOS x86 virtual appliance for non-Mac computers

PeeKay

For use on Apple-branded Systems

"They're also problematic because Apple's T&Cs for macOS only permit the software to run on actual Macs"

It's says the subject line at the top of the first page of the Mojave legal terms. I've always assumed that slapping one of those Apple stickers that you used to get a lot of would cover that. /s

Chromium devs want the browser to talk to devices, computers directly via TCP, UDP. Obviously, nothing can go wrong

PeeKay
Black Helicopters

Trustworthy?

Justin Schuh has a 'past life in USMC/NSA/CIA' - not sure this guy is entirely trustworthy - is it no wonder they want access to internal devices?

This will end with Chrome and it's derivatives being banned from my networks.

Physical locks are less hackable than digital locks, right? Maybe not: Boffins break in with a microphone

PeeKay

Re: Security Locks for the win

Probably due to the inductance caused by drawing the magnets (in the key and lock) over a metal surface (again, the key and lock). Using different metallic materials would reduce the "signal" I would imagine, but it's an interesting idea and I might just plug in my SDR and run a couple of experiments to check.

PeeKay

Re: So we need to upgrade the physical locks....

Just replied below - we also have the Avocet lock system. Good (secure) purchase.

PeeKay
Pint

Security Locks for the win

Was worried for a moment there, but it looks like my fetish for security locks has payed off. No ridges to listen to, just magnets attracting the pins instead. One key for all secure doors in the building. Nice.

Vivaldi composes sweet ad-blocking symphony for users of browser's Android version

PeeKay

Re: Just in time, too

> can't find a way to import Speed Dial from Opera

Isn't speed dial just another folder in your bookmarks? You should be able to export to html and import from there.

Nvidia may be mulling lopping Arm off Softbank: GPU goliath said to have shown interest in acquiring CPU design house

PeeKay

Re: "Also, there's tidy licensing income to be collected."

I would agree that Apple design their own Arm core based processors, I also believe this would sting Apple as they currently have some kind of beef with Nvidia (see: https://appleinsider.com/articles/19/01/18/apples-management-doesnt-want-nvidia-support-in-macos-and-thats-a-bad-sign-for-the-mac-pro)

Apple don't like to play nice with companies that they feel aggrieved by (which is business I guess).

If the Solar System's 'Planet Nine' is actually a small black hole, here's how we could detect it... wait, what?

PeeKay
Joke

Re: Russell's Teapot

Or Elon's Tesla...

Apple to keep Intel at Arm's length: macOS shifts from x86 to homegrown common CPU arch, will run iOS apps

PeeKay

Re: "Intel never thrilled me" - "x86-64 isn't at all bad"

"x86-64 isn't Intel. It's AMD."

Which, for some reason, always tickled me.

Dropbox attempts to muscle into password manager market with passphrase wrangler, document vault

PeeKay

Re: The LAST place I'd store my passwords

"What made you ditch 1Password, out of interest?"

They went from a paid model (and I'd paid for all of their apps on win/mac/phone/etc) to a subscription model exclusively. I moved - they then re-started to offer a much more expensive perpetual licence - so they lost a customer.

Happy to pay for features. Not a full price subscription for a password manager though.

KeePass - I used that for some time, but found that what was great on one platform was god-damned awful on another - no consistency.

PeeKay

The LAST place I'd store my passwords

Dropbox has added to their board Condoleezza Rice - of ex-US-Secretary of State fame (https://www.theverge.com/2014/4/11/5605734/dropbox-ceo-defends-adding-condoleezza-rice-to-board) - this alone gives me the heebie-jeebies.

I've been using Bitwarden for a couple of years now after I looked for a subscription replacement for 1Password. Never looked back, pay the yearly fee, and I can host my own Bitwarden server if I ever want to - all passwords controlled locally. A much better solution IMHO.

Brit MP demands answers from Fujitsu about Horizon IT system after Post Office staff jailed over accounting errors

PeeKay

Re: WTF?

My mother worked in a local post office and both she and the postmaster were accused of theft based on Horizon and Fujitsu evidence. Both lost their jobs because of it - but both proclaimed their innocence until they passed.

They will never know about this sadly - however, the families who remain do - and cannot do anything about it either.

eBay users spot the online auction house port-scanning their PCs. Um... is that OK?

PeeKay

Re: This is not okay

> The problem is not that eBay uses this, the problem is that javascript allows it.

And because of these issues with Javascript, I've turned to uMatrix (https://github.com/gorhill/uMatrix) to control them all. JS can come into the browser, but does not always leave (depends on MY rules). Can recommend (for most Chrome based browsers and Firefox).

If American tech is used to design or make that chip, you better not ship it to Huawei, warns Uncle Sam

PeeKay

Re: Also Microsoft

The fact is like brexit the trump election was a sign of voter desperation after they were manipulated via social media.

Actually, I believe it was the LACK of democratic process when the Maastricht Treaty was signed that drove Brexit. Once the British public got their chance to vote on that issue, we did - with the expected result.

I note that the EU project is doing awfully well at the moment too...

Grab a towel and pour yourself a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster because The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is 42

PeeKay

And there I am just finishing all 5 books in time for the answer. Nice.

No horrific butterfly keys on this keyboard, just you and your big, dumb fingers

PeeKay

Leap Motion comes to mind

Seeing the 'bones' on the woman's hand made me think of Leap Motion, which I would imagine could pretty much do what's being shown. See https://www.ultraleap.com/product/leap-motion-controller/.

Complete with keyboard and actual, literal, 'physical' escape key: Apple emits new 16" $2.4k+ MacBook Pro

PeeKay

Previously, with Apple

"Our pro customers tell us they want their next MacBook Pro to have..."

Thing is, they already had an ESC key before Apple took it away. Guess the increased price reflects the 'additional' key...

Transport for London Oyster system pulled offline after credential-stuffing crooks board customers' accounts

PeeKay

I use OTP Auth and have 26 distinct sites with 2FA (Google Auth) on it. They are out there...

NordVPN rapped by ad watchdog over insecure public Wi-Fi claims

PeeKay

Handing out security information voluntarily.

The article quotes the following:

Disagreeing, the ASA acknowledged in a public ruling that while "such data threats could exist", it "considered the overwhelming impression created by the ad was that public networks were inherently insecure and that access to them was akin to handing out security information voluntarily."

Does the ASA know the difference between privacy and security based information? It appears not.

Windows Subsystem for Linux distro gets a preening, updated version waddles into Microsoft's app store

PeeKay

Re: Is it wrong.

'Is it pronounced Peng-win'

That guy from Peng-Life is gonna be well chuffed.

Guess who's working on a health data-slurping digital tool? Bzzt! Nope, it's the UK Department for Work and Pensions

PeeKay

Should be more concerned about iGPR

Reading about iGPR, these guys are in bed with the insurance industry. The suggestion being that they scan through patient records, and insurers can spot genetic/cancer type issues from our medical records. Now, I'm not saying the insurance companies would do anything with our life/medical insurance premiums, but this is the insurance industry after all...

Page: