symbol attached to the PFY
Does it say "kick me"?
Buoyed by the usual high quality feedback from readers, the office automated beer delivery service has taken a step towards reality with a suitable moniker. Reader lglethal suggested Beverage Utility Tasked with Liquoring up El Registerians, while ArrZarr proposed Ballistic Imbibement Trajectory Towards El Reg, which so nearly …
RIP Lester.
I suggest that in the light of Lester's inspiration, either they have to do another project afterwards, or LESTER needs to be given the ability to deliver snacks with the drinks. Perhaps a future enhanced capability to deliver post-pub nosh would be desireable?
After all, the S in LESTER does stand for sustenance.
Which I should know - as I'm also delighted to be a winner! Woohoo! I hope my prize will be my very own office beer delivery system? Obviousy that would include El Reg installing a fully working pub in the basement...
However, my splendidly tortured backronym it may be - but the idea to use LESTER was Roger Varley's. I just came up with the barcronym to meet his spec.
When I worked in London there was a bar in the basement, now it would have to come from The Beer Bay* and negotiate a shopping mall and multiple lifts.
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* Shameless plug for the ladies running the Pier 3 bar "The Beer Bay" who stayed open a little later than normal so I could quench my thirst after hot and sweaty encounter with "The Twins" at Ching Ming Festival
"LESTER needs to be given the ability to deliver snacks with the drinks."
A packet of crisps should be popped out in a random direction upon upon delivery of libation -- might make for a fun betting game in itself.
Once it runs out crisps a card could pop up with a nice "ding" with the statement "Run Out. Please ingest this card to stave off collapse. No further crisps until restocked. Sorry."
I didn't. While I do appreciate a nice looking barmaid as much as the next man, and the pub I used to drink in had some very nice looking barmaids, I went in there because it had (and still has) a decent selection of beers, ales and lagers.
Regarding the beer deliver system, I feel it is a fitting tribute to Lester Haines.
or Fester Bestertester * the LESTER tester.
* from the delightfully twisted mind of the late, great, Don Martin
You know what bar staff would appreciate more? A robot that went around picking up empties.
You don't need to take booze to the punters, they'll queue up to get it, but people will almost never bring their empties up to the bar (although you should if you want the bar staff to like you). Use the robot to do the boring grubby job of grabbing empties and filling the glass washer and leave the pouring and serving to the fleshy meatbags.
The Scottish Stores is a nice small boozer at the bottom of the Caledonian Road, with an interesting history (Victorian interior which had been boarded over during it's previous 20 years as a strip pub) and an excellent selection of what I understand the kids today call 'craft ale" but I call 'beer". FIver a pint, but it's central London. Haven't tried the roof terrace but apparently there's one up there somewhere.
£5 for a pint? We only pay that at the Edinburgh festival. We can get much cheaper Scottish ales up here in Scotland. When drinking the real stuff the minimum price is not a factor. In fact it is not expected to impact pub prices much at all. Aimed at the white lightning etc drinkers at home, in parks etc.
"£5 for a pint? We only pay that at the Edinburgh festival. We can get much cheaper Scottish ales up here in Scotland."
Well, yeah, obviously, but that's because rent is cheaper and wages are lower in Auchentyshoogle than in LoIFKCA (LOndon's Improbably-Fashionable Kings Cross Area).
A pub in Brighton did have booths with 'press for beer' buttons on the wall that would summons the bar staff to get your order. It lasted about 6 months before they turned them off. Apparently on a busy Saturday night as you carry 3 pints back to your mates you will spill about half a pint, if they bring them too you at your table they have to be full thus losing them the additional revenue from all those spilt drinks.
Might be worth looking at some other positional options aside from visuals.
This looks interesting a 'High-precision indoor positioning framework' using WIFI
https://github.com/schollz/find3
There are also commercial directional Fob finders such as https://loc8tor.co.uk/ which shows what can be done.
"Whilst I don't have access to the full crew roster of Red Dwarf, and there may well have been a Lester on board, the curry & beer loving protagonist from Red Dwarf was Dave Lister."
I suspect he knows that, but a play on words doesn't work quite so well if you don't actually play with the words :-)
"Good solid mechanics with an open interface for control. Solves the mechanical issues and lets you concentrate on navigation and avoiding spillage."
Can one of those things handle carrying at least it's weight, maybe double it's own weight? I'm thinking gimballed tray + multiple pints here.