* Posts by Captain Queeg

192 publicly visible posts • joined 3 May 2013

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In hilariously petulant move, Apple shuts Texas stores and reopens them few miles down the road – for patent reasons

Captain Queeg

Re: Mr grumpy

Not really sure even the reason however petulant is “hilarious” and herethe word tries to set up potential readers for far more juice than’s there, but YMMV.

As I say, I’m probably just getting old.

Captain Queeg

Mr grumpy

Not at all a comment on the facts, but is this story really “Hilarious”?

I’m getting tired of overexcited clickbait hyperbole like this in headlines, regardless of the organ.

Other suspects:

* Bombshell

* Revealed

* Destroyed

The only saving grace I suppose is that hilarious wasn’t capitalised for effect.

I think I must be getting old...

Which? leads decrepit email service behind barn, single shot rings out over valley

Captain Queeg

Re: Which Which?

> To the point where a "Which? recommendation" is enough to completely put

> me off buying something.

I’ve been in that space for 20+ years. Dreadful.

Shopper f-bombed PC shop staff, so they mocked her with too-polite tech tutorial

Captain Queeg

Re: The worst customers...

“Do you know who I am...”

I don’t think this is apocryphal so I’ll offer it up:

Joel Douglas, the less famous son of the actor Kirk, was performing at the Comedy Store and getting increasingly frustrated by the audience reaction. He started shouting: "You can't do this to me, I'm Kirk Douglas's son!" At which point some wag stood up and said: "No, I'm Kirk Douglas's son." Then someone else stood up, and so on.

Apple: iPhone sales are down (but they've never been more lucrative)

Captain Queeg

Re: Less dumb fanboys

"Start a thread on any discussion board you like titled something like "I'm after a new Android phone, what should I buy?" there will be within the first few replies a "buy an iphone!" type response."

To be fair that's very much a 2 way street. Like Wargames the only way to win, is not to ask the question...

Google's phone woes: The Pixel and the damage done

Captain Queeg

Re: Pixel was impressive - Pixel 2 is an abortion

> Top tip... don't buy crappy BT 'phones. I use Sony MDR-1ABTs and the sound

> (and comfort) is superb. They can also use an (included) optional 3.5mm cable

> which, with an adaptor, sound great through my hifi amp.

Have to agree. I dabbled with a number of “cheap” BT ‘phones. I’m a bit of a headphone fetishist with set after set of (sadly) expensive sennheiser, AKG and even some Bose cans at home. But bored during an 8 hour layover at O’Hare, I sampled a pair of Beats X BT buds

I hate Beats phones, hate them! But these are like silk, no hint even of the Beats at all.. Expensive, but then compare something like £15 Apple earbuds to cheap BT buds and they’re all shit.

But this isn’t a critique of the Beats.I guess the my point is cheap is cheap, wired or BT.

Oh no, EE! More UK mobile customers face sluggish roaming abroad

Captain Queeg

Re: What about the UK?

There’s a lot of info about the Glastonbury deployment here:

https://youtu.be/yALIMIeZ67o

Depending on your level of desire for mucho technical info, this is a good watch.

Integration down to delivering 999 calls from mobiles attached to the temporary cells to on site medics for faster responses.

Apple sued by parents of girl killed by driver 'distracted by FaceTime'

Captain Queeg

Stella Awards...

Every year the Stella Awards are made, honouring outlandish US law suits.

Throwing common sense out of the window, 2007's winner might give Apple's lawyers some cause for concern.

From: http://www.chron.com/news/casey/article/Incredible-lawsuit-tales-1826357.php

"This year's runaway First Place Stella Award winner was Mrs. Merv Grazinski , of Oklahoma City, who purchased a new 32-foot Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home, from an OU football game, having driven on to the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly left the driver's seat to go to the back of the Winnebago to make herself a sandwich.

"Not surprisingly, the motor home left the freeway, crashed and overturned. Also not surprisingly, Mrs. Grazinski sued Winnebago for not putting in the owner's manual that she couldn't actually leave the driver's seat while the cruise control was set.

"The Oklahoma jury awarded her – are you sitting down? – $1,750,000 plus a new motor home. Winnebago actually changed their manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any relatives who might also buy a motor home."

Everything at Apple Watch is awesome, insists Tim Cook

Captain Queeg

Ok, confession time...

If you're bored enough to look back at my posting history, you'll see I was always pretty vocal about wearables in general and the Apple Watch in particular.

Back in July, I found myself in the local branch of CeX and on impulse parting with a few bob for a beaten up Apple Watch "just to see".

This isn't a fanboi "buy an Apple Watch post", more a call to action around fitness wearables as a class of product. A few years back I suffered a stroke, not particularly debilitating, but hey, a stroke's a stroke! That took my confidence away and it never really returned, I was sedentary at 46.

The Watch has transformed me, 5 months later, from struggling to walk 1/2 mile, I can now stroll 10 without even trying - I upgraded to a series 2 and now swim 40 lengths a day - every day.

The tech has nagged me in a none nagging way, but it doesn't feel like nagging like it would from my nearest and dearest. My blood pressure is down, my diabetes is better controlled, my weight is down 15%.

A lot of us on here are in sedentary jobs, I certainly am. And despite my previously dismissive comments, this Watch has really helped me and I'm sure a Fitbit or Android wear would have had the same effect. I've had good intentions in the past, but they always fizzle out. This time it hasn't, if anything closing those bloody rings and Challenging myself gets more and more compulsive.

So, to my point, as we approach the season of resolutions, if you know you need to manage your health better, take the plunge - look at the options and choose the right device for you.

Apologies if that all sounds schmaltzy (sp?) but if you recognise yourself in this comment, seize the day.

Brexit may not mean Brexit at all: UK.gov loses Article 50 lawsuit

Captain Queeg

Re: Econ 101

The trouble is for most goods, "Buying British" is far from simple - and sadly it's that sort of bullish over simplification that's landed us in this mess.

We lack the natural resources of many of our competitors and as a country we've exported our manufacturing loading more and more or our metaphorical eggs in to the services - specifically financial services basket.

Tactically every one of those decisions was arguably defensible as a good decision at the micro level but strategically almost none ever were.

Bit of a parallel with Brexit really - The UK faces a tough choice, but as per the national idiom chooses the easy, lazy *short term* option...

Marmite's not the only national treasure hit by Brexit. Will someone think of the PCs?

Captain Queeg

Me too...

"You should thank the financial sector, they the ones that are causing it.

They have the power to bring down companies (or even countries) with their dodgy dealings."

Question: How stupid do you have to be for me to log in just to downvote you? Answer: This stupid.

Yep, I logged in for exactly the same reason. :)

EU turns screws on Android – report

Captain Queeg

Re: Typical EU

"its one rule for apple and another for everyone else.... Apple arnt the underdogs, they are up at the top table and so should face the same rules as everyone else"

But they do, they face exactly the same rules - all businesses do, in all sectors. Without wishing to disrespect you, I'm genuinely not sure if you don't see that or just refuse to?

Apple face the same rules as Google and so do MS or for that matter BlackBerry. The day one of those three have a dominant position (that's the driver, not profit, not restrictions in use, walled gardens, price gouging, etc.) in mobile, they will be treated as having such, just as Google are now standing accused.

For Apple that day is a long way off (due to the market share achieved by their high end only business model) and arguably further off for MS and BB, though that's more about their competence or lack of it in competing in any meaningful way.

Google's become an obsessive stalker and you can't get a restraining order

Captain Queeg

Re: You can't say no?

"What alternatives are there to an Android phone that isn't (A) overpriced, (B) dead, (C) someone you never heard of, or (M,N) a dead zombie platform?"

There isn't - but then I guess you pay your money and take your choice. If you really want to minimise the google gouge your options are either:

(A) - Pay over the odds to avoid it but retain similar benefits via a different business model

(B) - Put up with the "missing" functionality but retain core stuff

(C) - Blind trust the no-name to be less intrusive

(M,N), Pretty much the same option as B.

Android market numbers tell you the way things have gone and continue to go.

In the end though the best way to avoid it is to simply not carry a phone - sort of option B on steroids.

Captain Queeg

Re: It will continue for a while longer

"This isn't really common in the UK; they're usually just called photocopies and photocopiers here (or just copiers). Can't recall anyone ever calling them "Xerox machines" or similar."

True, but we do have Hoovers, Biros and Transit Vans.

Infected Android phones could flood America's 911 with DDoS attacks

Captain Queeg

Re: Open vs closed source

>(I'm not looking for an argument of open vs closed source....like I say, just pondering out loud)

That was my thought when I was reading the article, I can't see what the Android angle is - malware on any mobile device would surely achieve the same result as I imagine a spurious dialler app or remote desktop type app would without being in the baseband*.

Equally it would surely be the same with a bad VOIP client on a laptop or desktop?

The story is interesting but i'm not sure where the Android reference (except as clickbait) plays into this?

* Disclaimer: This is my layman supposition, if I'm wrong I'm sure y'all will let me know. :o)

Florida Man's prized jeep cremated by exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7

Captain Queeg

Re: I wonder

More to the point, any Vauxhall Zafira owners.

Talk about taking a punt. :-)

Typo made Air Asia X flight land at Melbourne instead of Malaysia

Captain Queeg

I agree AC to a point, but I do think it's comforting that this only lead to inconvenience - seems like the ATC system took this in it's stride and coped with things seamlessly keeping everyone safe.

Regardless of the size of the cock up, that's pleasing.

Microsoft to rip up P2P Skype, killing native Mac, Linux apps

Captain Queeg

Re: Alternatives to Skype

"how can you seriously claim promote privacy when the first thing you ask is your phone number! So if you ask me, this so-called "security expert" is a phone."

But privacy doesn't automatically need to mean anonymity does it?

Keen as I am on protecting peoples privacy, anonymity seems a little more problematic.

Kill Flash now. Or patch these 36 vulnerabilities. Your choice

Captain Queeg

Why?

Not being a coder, can I ask some wise heads here what I know is a naive question.

"Just how is it that Flash is so relentlessly shit and never seems to improve any?"

Logic suggests that as holes are plugged it should get better but it never seems to - why?

Smut shaming: Anonymous fights Islamic State... with porn

Captain Queeg

Re: Worth 1,000 Words

Given the prominence of "Big Boy" as the name of the Nagasaki bomb - presumably in this case it's "King Dong"?

Brexit threatens Cornish pasty's racial purity

Captain Queeg

Good terms?

It's a fair point, but this is real life. can we really believe we can remain on good terms with our European neighbours given that the vote leave campaign has more of less descended to nothing but jingoism and Johnny Foreigner baiting?

Of course the standard response to that is "Well, we don't accept that" to any non supportive view, rather than explaining why the view is wrong.

If we put this into microcosm though, if I repeatedly tell my next door neighbour that he's cunning, evil, wants to steal my lawn mower, that he wants me to buy his children's school shoes and that I absolutely never want to help him if his house ever catches fire, I'd expect him not to want to have a lot to do with me. Unfortunately the more fervent Brexiteers appear more interested in winning the battle and by doing so losing the war (poor analogy in this case! lol, but i hope you get my point).

I agree we /could/ operate in harmony (as a remainer, I believe less prosperously), but crucially not the way things are going.

Sadly messy divorces, tend to stay messy for years, so the reasons to divorce must be overwhelming to offset the cut up clothes, legal interventions and point scoring.

Thief dresses as Apple Store drone, walks off with $16,000 in iGear

Captain Queeg

Copyright? Do you reckon he had rounded shoulders too then. ;-)

Ireland's tech sector fears fallout of Brexit 'Yes' vote

Captain Queeg

That depends

I'll start this post by declaring an interest, I'm pro-in. Always have been but the reasons are nuanced.

If you compare, broadly (and I'm sure if you look, you'll find dissenters, but I said broadly and arguing that misses the point) the Pro Union Scottish referendum voices are now the Brexit voices. That worries me - It seems to make the case selectively and always for London governs. For me, not living in the South East, that makes me incredibly uncomfortable. Gove has said that Brexit will make us stronger but previously said that Scottish independence would make Putin stronger.

The UK economy is already largely run for the benefit of London and the home counties (look at the concern for the London House price bubble and considerations of national policies to control it that hurt everywhere else) - take away a strong counterbalance and suddenly the whole economy is run purely for the benefit of the Home counties.

If you think I'm over egging this London/SE myopia, i know that when asked to move to Salford some BBC staffers asked, genuinely, " Does Manchester have any restaurants".

Official: EU goes after Google, alleges it uses Android to kill competition

Captain Queeg

@DougS

Great to read and a more or less perfect analogy from what I can see. Android licensees needed to beware of greeks bearing gifts, but weren't.

I doubt Nokia or anyone else could have turned it round because the "free" element of Android ensured an armada of competing hardware manufacturers. The squabbling and in fighting that defined Symbian probably laid out how any sort of device federation would have worked.

Not that I blame them - the choice was really Android of oblivion, look how things have turned out for cash rich and cashflow positive businesses like MS and Blackberry.

Captain Queeg

Re: It's not like the EU has a history of fostering competition

Hmm, you have an agenda then? Just because you say it doesn't make it totally factual does it.

Maybe I say the EU has a history of challenging Monopolistic behaviour - and of course it can because of it's scale.

All the more reason to be IN.

Isn't balance great. ;-)

Apple pulled 2,204lbs of gold out of old tech gear

Captain Queeg

Re: Love 'em or hate 'em...

> You don't make piles of cash by selling stuff that lasts or is easy & cheap to fix.

>> then it is of no advantage to them to make flaky kit

i don't think that's quite the same point, close but different enough to matter.

Kit (of whatever flavour) that works very well for it's defined lifetime doesn't have to be easy and cheap to fix. On the other hand kit that's temperamental has to be cheap and easy to fix or the manufacturer will be dead in the water.

The trick is, it seems to me that at that defined and point your customers have to feel they've had fair value. If they do, repeat business awaits, if not, then the sale goes elsewhere. I suppose that's why the likes of Apple spend so much time polishing the metaphoric bell - they have to justify so much more (in cash terms) depreciation over the product lifespan, so have to "con"/"add" (delete to personal taste) enough value to cover that.

What's wrong with the Daily Mail Group buying Yahoo?

Captain Queeg

Re: So the good news is....

So Yahoo is "all grown up now" - if it's headed for the sidebar of shame...

USB-C adds authentication protocol

Captain Queeg

Re: I can't wait

It's already there - an cheap unlicensed lightning cable might work today but is unlikely to work with the next generation of whatever you're charging with it. This brings the same lock in potential to USB.

You're dead right - but the OEM cables will be marketed as assured quality or some such nonsense and the after market can either trial and error reverse engineer things or pay for the licence and pass the cost on.

BlackBerry boss mulls mid-range Androids

Captain Queeg

Re: Just can't make it work?

Exchange is probably one of the few things remaining that (unfortunately) can enforce a non-standard standard.

For any corporate device the need to face off to Exchange is essential - it may well need to hold it's nose while it does it, but it has to be done. Pointing to Exchange being broken just won't cut it with countless corporates.

Maybe in 5 years it won't be important but until MS are brought kicking and screaming to the e-mail standards table, it is.

Dear Windows, OS X folks: Update Flash now. Or kill it. Killing it works

Captain Queeg

Uninstalled :-)

I feel clean.

Now, if only I could see Java off...

That naked picture on my PC? Not mine. The IT guy put it there

Captain Queeg

Some time ago...

... we found around 75Gb of pictures on a file share, Nothing too racy, but certainly NSFW and the largest directory on the box by some way and all owned by a Senior Manager.

The Service Desk Manager took advice from HR and it was decided to simply delete, issue a discreet warning and let it lie.

The offender then elected to raise a formal grievance against the SDM for deleting his files.

It didn't end well for him...

Captain Queeg

Re: What ?

"Someone actually uses 'My Pictures'?"

That's the sacking offence, right there!

:o)

Huawei's P9 flagship: There's a lot to Leica

Captain Queeg

Dual sensor - Interesting!

I own a DSLR too, but I do like having a decent phone camera along as I don't always want to carry even my mirrorless - currently I carry an iPhone 6 Plus and find the camera more than good enough for what I use it for.

I wasn't really tempted by the monster pixel-fest Nokia put together, but this dual cam set up (particularly post shot focusing) really does appeal. This might be the first Android handset I'd seriously consider buying. I'm not one for removable battery or SD card (though I appreciate others are) but the camera IS a big part of my buying decision and this seems to be more of a innovation than we've seen in the last 4-5 years. Thiner, Higher resolution, more cores, etc., all seemed iterative, but for me this is a departure.

I'll be interested to read the full review. It will be good to understand the handling and how the new camera presents itself in terms of UX,

Apple faces €48.5m fine from furious French

Captain Queeg

Laughable...

I'm certain those networks were bullied in to taking the iPhone. Oh yes...

Apple Fools: Times the House of Jobs went horribly awry

Captain Queeg

MobileMe

I can't believe I've read this far an not seen MobileMe mentioned.

For me, stuff that works well is Great, stuff that doesn't work is bad but nothing is worse than things that might work, but only if the wind is the right direction and certainly not anytime you /really/ need it to have done.

It's like owning (say) a Morris Marina back in the day. Better to take a bus and plan your commute rather than have the Marina play up 15% of the time and randomly ruin your commutes.

MobileMe was rubbish. Nothing more or less and it took Apple a long time to get sync reliably working, which Google had made to look so easy.

iCloud is much better but still not infallible.

Ever wondered what the worst TV show in the world would be? Apple just commissioned it

Captain Queeg

Re: yep

I think you mean the world biggest donut...

Apple: FBI request threatens kids, electricity grid, liberty

Captain Queeg

Re: You don't say !

I'm not so sure about trusting Cook.

In the end his job is to deliver shareholder value - I don't see how tacit assistance to Russia or China would help *long term* value. Granted, it may offer a quick win, but longer term the impact of something like that becoming public, which in the end it certainly would, because these things alway do, would be catastrophic for the company and it's complicit employees.

While the FBI/NSA would take a very positive view of Apple assisting them, I can't imagine they'd smile and Nod at Cook if he'd helped the Chinese.

So on balance I'd trust all three not to cosy up to any "foreign power"

BBC telly tax drops onto telly-free households. Cough up, iPlayer fans

Captain Queeg

Re: Yet another attempt to dodge the 21st Century

"from everything I hear in the office every morning, viewers find 90% is garbage."

If it's so bad, it makes you wonder why they still watch and watch more than any other uk channel, even ones available across identical platforms? Why do you imagine that might be with all the alternative choice available?

http://www.barb.co.uk/images/charts/barb-share-by-channel-05-2015.jpg

35% for TV alone, versus ITV channels in second position around 15% behind.

The graphic, I accept is getting towards 12 months old but is largely still accurate.

Equally, I'm amazed you're happy to rely on what is simply hearsay to justify people avoiding a sub £15 a month licence fee.

You'll be telling me next you should be personally exempt from National Insurance because you hear in the office that the waiting times in A&E are shocking. :-/

Captain Queeg

"Maybe if you actually watched it, instead of believing Daily Mail Letters Page shite like that, you'd know better."

+1000

Feds look left and right for support – and see everyone backing Apple

Captain Queeg

Re: Trust

@ Sir R. Spoon - Agreed!

following the logic: If I drink drive and kill some pedestrians, should my wine merchant do jail time for it?

:o)

Apple must help Feds unlock San Bernardino killer's iPhone – judge

Captain Queeg

I might be reading it differently but to me the claim stands on accessibility.

Opening safes is a slow process - needing a trained locksmith each time or a and physical access at a physical location to a (comparatively) large static bulky object.

Done the right way a backdoor could be blindingly fast, remotely deployed and can be more or less automated. Also, done correctly it would be invisible.

Whatever the rights and wrongs of this one case, it's the thin end of the wedge that is chilling and appalling.

All-American Apple challenges US gov call for iOS 'backdoor'

Captain Queeg

Re: To my mind... @msknight

"On the other hand, I'm relying on the courts to say, "This is an average Joe/Jill, there's no reason to suspect them of doing anything wrong, so fishing for stuff is wrong." and deny the decryption/access request."

the trouble is, at least in the UK, "The courts" often morph into "The Home Secretary", so placing faith in any judicial system to protect us sort of implies a similar level of trust in legislators/politicians/despots of the day.

Whatever the rights and wrongs of this case, the only way forward, difficult as it may be is to have (practically) unbreakable encryption. Knee jerk legislation is almost always poor legislation.

Civilisation, it seems to me, hangs on the right balance between the individual and the state. Shift too far from a sensible balance and we land with either anarchy or totalitarianism.

Why Tim Cook is wrong: A privacy advocate's view

Captain Queeg

Re: This is wishful thinking

Many cards change the long number on re issue - Barclays Visa Debit cards spring to mind.

At least the last four digits always change. So a fixed 16 digit card number isn't guaranteed or necessary.

Facebook tells Viz to f**k right off

Captain Queeg

Re: A once brilliant comic....

Hit and miss, yes very much so, but more or less very issue still contains some real quality.

This month there's a "Things you will see in the Gym" double page spread. I defy anyone to read down that with a straight face.

Likewise the day in the life of a fireman

http://viz.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/012_viz156_fireman.jpg

or Trainspotter Situations Vacant

http://viz.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/train-spotter.jpg

Three: We won't hike prices if you say yes to £10.5bn O2 merger

Captain Queeg

Re: Meaningless promise

"It is noteworthy that Sky, who announced a deal with O2 last January, have now come out in support of the Three-O2 deal"

Granted, but surely Sky have skin in the game. If someone, three/O2 or anyone else can up the pressure on BT Sky will be all for it. Sky's negotiations with three probably don't matter that much in the wider game. And if Hutchison float part of the enlarged network I've every expectation Sky would be up for a trade investment with Hutch running the infrastructure and their own retail.

I imagine Sky like the idea of three's data capability and O2's reach to make their upcoming virtual network more compelling to sell as quad play to see of BT TV and Broadband.

BT broadband is down: Former state monopoly goes TITSUP UK-wide

Captain Queeg

Re: Reason?

The article denies anything malicious - but I imagine BT treat their network maliciously enough without the help of outsiders...

Two-thirds of Android users vulnerable to web history sniff ransomware

Captain Queeg

Not really news?

Is it just me or do exploits like this that require all the usual, allow untrusted sources, use non standard app store, feel like they're a user choice rather than a flaw in android.

If a user, any user goes down this path, there's a risk that they either take because they understand it (probably most here) or they're after something for nothing - usually warez or pron.

I don't believe it can be viewed as an android problem as the headline implies. People die messing in substations having climbed over the fence but no one blames the power companies for deceased actions in climbing the fence.

Is this really one to land at Google's door?

Sensors, not CPUs, are the tech that swings the smartphone market

Captain Queeg

Re: A computer without sensors is a pitiful, useless thing.

That's a really good point - and it applies more widely. The trouble with smartphones in general is that they're adequate at everything, but class leading at nothing.

- OK as a camera, but not really with the ergonomics of a camera

- OK battery life, but nothing like as long ad dumb phones

- OK as a sat nav - but not as accurate or durable as a dedicated unit

- OK as a music player, but not the sound quality of a dedicated unit

the list goes on. I accept that the convenience of being a Swiss army knife weighs hugely against these deficiencies, but as the OP pointed out not as capable as hardware VR and if you need VR I imagine you need good VR.

VR as a consumer offering feels like another misstep in the mould of Google Glass or the Apple Watch.

Trump's new thought bubble: Make Apple manufacture in the USA

Captain Queeg

@DavCrav Re: Increasingly convinced that Scott Adams is right

Lovely analysis, a delight to read.

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