* Posts by Simon Preston

30 publicly visible posts • joined 8 Jan 2008

RUPERT MURDOCH HIT BY PIE

Simon Preston

Doh

What a way to generate sympathy for your intended victim. *sigh*

Sony to launch PlayStation 4 in 2012, say moles

Simon Preston

2 things.

The 10 year life span most definitely is still in place - there are Playstation 2 games still being released today, so a new machine will not mean the end of PS3 games or it's lifespan.

Secondly, I totally agree with previous comments that the PS4 should be based on the PS3 hardware with upgraded components. Updating the Cell, Geforce graphics chip and memory would surely save heaps on R&D. It would also mean that the hardware is already familiar with developers, which means getting some top quality games out quickly rather than having to struggle with new specifications.

This should also mean that backwards compatibility should be an absolute doddle to implement as opposed to previous (The Emotion Engine in the PS2 is still a very tricky implementation to emulate) .

Or this strategy far too sensible?

Amiga on the block (again)

Simon Preston

Once great, now a shame.

It really is sad to see the Amiga name being dragged along like this. I had my A1200T right up until 2007 where due to moving I had to sell it. I'd love to see it comeback on new hardware with AmigaOS fully modernized but it's just not going to happen. Since about 1997 it's just been one sorry affair to the next. (Some could argue that it started in 1993).

Amiga Inc, do whats left the community a favour and release the AmigaOS4 source code and let people come up with an x64 version.

Freeview HD Set-top Boxes: Best Buys

Simon Preston

Picture quality?

But what of picture quality? How sharp was the image? How well did the box handle the compression? Movment? Any artifacts noticeable whilst watching?

I know you guys aren't What Hi-fi so I wouldn't expect you to go on about how good the blacks where or anything like that. But something about the main reason you're plumping for HD wouldn't go amiss.

Or am I to presume the picture looks the same whichever you choose and its pretty much down to which box you like and what features it has?

Internet Explorer drops below 60% market share

Simon Preston

"It's only guaranteed to work under IE on widows."

That's a pretty niche market.

Stick a fork in floppies - they're done

Simon Preston

1.44MB? Pah!

And an even greater 1.76MB under AmigaOS! (If you were rich enough to grab yourself a HD floppy drive, that is.)

Tories ask: Why BBC3, BBC4?

Simon Preston

Although I agree to an extent...

...quite frankly anything that comes out from the Tories regarding the BBC has an underlying agenda. That being whatever Rupert Murdochs agenda requires of them. So I question their motives.

But yes, BBC3 could go. But BBC4 needs to stay. Or pull it back towards BBC2.

Once impenetrable PS3 cracked wide open

Simon Preston

Re: Umm

"The PS3 is indeed PPC but the 360 is a triple-core Intel chip."

Where have you got thta bit of information from? All 3 current Gen consoles (PS3, Xbox360 and Wii) ALL use a CPU derived from PowerPC technology. Only the first XBox used an Intel chip.

Firefox 3.6 goes live and final

Simon Preston

About Opera user community.... ;)

Opera 10.10

Failed 0 tests.

Test 26 passed, but took 69ms (less than 30fps)

Test 69 passed, but took 28 attempts (less than perfect).

Total elapsed time: 0.54s

Say hello to Maxell-branded hard drives

Simon Preston

Scotch

Yup. The skeleton was Scotch's advert.Used to give me nightmares as a kid!

"Re-record, not fade away."

Parcelforce fails to deliver for Windows 7 lovers

Simon Preston

title

Judging by the pic it won't work with Vista either. :D

Freeview HD - your questions answered

Simon Preston

@ Smug AC

"I have refused to buy a HD "Ready" TV until Freeview HD was broadcast, stating that these current TVs were not ready."

Well I've been enjoying my flatscreen HD ready TV for the last 3 years now and it'll work just fine when I get a Freeview HD PVR to go alongside it. Not quite sure where you get the idea that the current TV's are not ready to display HD signals. Unless you mean ones with built in DVBT2 tuners. Which makes no difference to me as I'll be wanting a box to record with anyway.

Humax Freeview HD set-top box to debut 'early 2010'

Simon Preston

and recorders?

Hopefully we'll get some HDHD (umm?) recorders in time for the World Cup. Won't be buying a box without a drive in it. Even if I can't enjoy it much thanks to a certain frenchman.

NASA moon-bomb probe strikes rich seam of fruitcake

Simon Preston

often overlooked

Won't somebody please think of the children?

Barclaycard drops offline

Simon Preston

strange,

Was working just fine for me today. Odd.

Windows 7 OEM prices revealed

Simon Preston

que?

Ripped off? I got my copy of Pro for £80. For once us in the UK had a good deal.

Archbishop condemns Facebook, email, footballers

Simon Preston

Hmmm

I actually agree with what he says. It's not far off from my own thoughts on social netoworking sites and mobile phones.

Dell accidentally sells 140,000 monitors for $15 a pop

Simon Preston

@ Owain 2

Not true. A shop can decline a sale for any reason. What normally happens though is if the shop know they made the error they will normally sell it at that price as a gesture of goodwill. I've had instances of people sticking their own labels on items trying to get it that price. Doesn't hold up.

Royal Navy warship almost fires on UFOs

Simon Preston

To quote Star Trek Generations.

"The Phalanx guns? Umm, they won't be installed until Tuesday."

UFO fleet menaces east London

Simon Preston

Get it right.

From the Sun article

"“I thought it was some planes but they look pretty close together for that. Maybe they are UFOs.”

Well done. You can't indentify them and they are flying. That's a UFO. I wish people would stop lazily using this term when what they really mean is Alien Deathforce Squadron.

Anyhow. I've emailed the Sun with the Telegraph article that shows the 9 planes in formation. Reckon they'll print it?

Wally found on Street View

Simon Preston

Only the classiest people in our fair city.

I used to live just up the hill from Slade Road and Spaghetti Junction. Can't say that photo surprises me nor do I miss the area.

BT puts the 'free' back into 'freephone'

Simon Preston

Yay!

I do hope the rest of the operators follow this.

As for the first post. Surely people get so many free minutes these days that it is not worth the effort going to people that provide cheaper calls.

Hitachi UT32MH70 32in LCD TV

Simon Preston

@ AC

"So while your 1080P may get cut down to size, you're 1080i will not."

So 1080i isn't 1920 pixels across?

Coldplay in digital and vinyl giveaway

Simon Preston

Worth a shot.

If this doesn't get people listening to their dreary music, then nothing will. (I'm guessing not though)

BBC races away with five-year F1 rights deal

Simon Preston
Thumb Up

Thank god

Nice to be able to watch that race rather than watching a programme full of adverts which now and then updates us on the F1.

Microsoft denies Xbox 360 is Blu-ray bound

Simon Preston

Inevitable

XBox 360, maybe not. But I can't see the next MS console not having a Blu-ray drive. The MS dream of downloading games seems pie in the sky - at least for another decade anyway. (When by then we might have BT Supermegaturbobroadband which is upto* 100MB/sec and 100000TB storage) . Besides, people will want there new console to at least be able to play their Blu-ray discs.

*meaning still throttles to 56k/sec most of the day (all of the day) and download limit of 10gig a month.

UK presses car ferry to ship powdered plutonium

Simon Preston

"The exact date is being kept secret on security grounds"

Ted Striker: My orders came through. My squadron ships out tomorrow. We're bombing the storage depots at Daiquiri at 1800 hours. We're coming in from the north, below their radar.

Elaine Dickinson: When will you be back?

Ted Striker: I can't tell you that. It's classified.

Firefox 3 beta is live

Simon Preston

RE: Not available to casual users

It says "not ready for casual users", not that it's not available. You wanna go try it out, click the link.

AmigaOS 5 surfaces... sort of

Simon Preston

Amiga OS4 in action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yk9LMdEof-A

Sadly not many people will get to use it.

Exposed! Bill Gates' last day at Microsoft

Simon Preston

Hilarious...

...and not even remotely contrived.