* Posts by OldWarrior

20 publicly visible posts • joined 4 Feb 2013

Everyone's all like 'stick it in the cloud!' What of the mad lads pushing data closer to compute?

OldWarrior

Test and Verify

As a scientist, I need to see more data which is independently repeatable. I am a veteran of the old "Vaporware Wars", where the claims made by so many vested interests never materialized, or didn't work once they did release them. Does anyone remember "Integrated 7" ? It was the first iteration of the blending of Databases, spreadsheet, Doc reader etc. Great idea then, but stuck with the 640k barrier, it didn't work.The idea wasn't really viable until MS released Windows Office, and the computers reached the power to move the data around.

The reason that there are so many "Office" clones like OpenOffice is that MS never owned the exclusive rights to the original idea. Just like DOS and Windows, they had the marketing power to power the market; but eventually their program was the first to really work, so I at least have to respect them for that.

Steve Ballmer: Thanks to me, Microsoft screwed up a decade in phones

OldWarrior

Re: almost magical

Don't forget that the TI-99 was a 16 bit processor in a home computer even before the first 8 bit IBM PC

OldWarrior

Re: sounds like

I was thinking "Here", the Auto Mapping system was still owned by Nokia. It's a great mapper. What other things from MSFT does Ford use?

Crooks target Target: 40 MILLION bank cards imperiled in cyber-heist

OldWarrior

Let the banks pay for my Shopping post Target Charge

Actually in the US, your liability on Credit Cards is limited to $50, and Zero after you report it;but on a debit card you are on the hook for your entire bank balance. I never use a Debit Card for anything. If you only used Credit cards, it's up to the issuer to catch fraudulent charges. It would be worth the $50 to me to not report it and let the Hacks hit my bank for all they can on my CC, while I dispute every transaction after my Target charge and make the Bank or Visa prove me wrong. Chances are good that they can't without a thumbprint verifier.

Sadly, I didn't shop at Tgt.

How much did NSA pay to put a backdoor in RSA crypto? Try $10m – report

OldWarrior
FAIL

If I remember right, back in around 1980 Atari developed a true random number generator that was based upon inevitable voltage variations that occur on the input power. No matter how good a regulator you put in, even micro-volt variations will happen. I never understood why this was never bought and adopted. I don't know the technology, but I do remember that Mr. Bill insisted on a programmed generator rather than this true random seed.

Mexican Cobalt-60 robbers are DEAD MEN, say authorities

OldWarrior

Re: @Martin: Only 60 grams?

Nevermind, I found the answer at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/cfr/part020/part020-1004.html

(1 rem=0.01 sievert)

OldWarrior

Re: @Martin: Only 60 grams?

Would you do some math for me, or point me to a conversion site? When I was involved in the Radiology field from 1971 until 1988, we used REM as the standard, based off the RAD. 1 RAD=10B ionizations /cm3 in water. A REM is Roentgen Equivalent Man. The difference is that tissue is denser than water so it takes less radiation to cause 10B ionization's. My life history was about 4.5 REM Whole Body exposure. I would like to know the comparison from REM to the new msv.

Most of that was in the first few years when radiation safety was much laxer, and I did a number of Radium Needle implant insertion and removals for Uterine Ca. Back in those days, at times the nursing staff was not even warned to take extra precautions in patient care of these patients, meaning I had to insist on policy changes to prevent pregnant or fertile nurses from caring for these patients for the ~3 days that they were inpatients with the needles in them. Administration called me on the "Carpet" because the Nurses Union insisted that the Hospital buy lead aprons for Nursing Staff. I finally quit when they refused to spend ~$400 for a Cassette Holder for the Ortho Table. Their policy was for a nurse (without Apron until I educated them) to hold the film cassette against the patient's hip for the lateral (side) view in Hip Pinning.

OldWarrior

Re: Radiation Monitoring

The story I read said a Radiotherapy Machine. Generally industrial radiation sources must be smaller in order to increase detail of the resultant radiograph. Smaller source=greater detail due to less penumbra (the blurred edge of a shadow). Sources have to be replaced after about 3-5 years as treatment times become too long as the material decays. Cobalt 60 emits Gamma only at 1.02 Million Electron Volt level. At that level there is an effect called "Pair Production", where a Gamma Ray interacts with atoms, which causes the release of 2 electrons (Beta Particles) and 2 Positrons. The Positrons immediately react with 2 electrons, annihilating all 4 but releasing 4 more Gamma rays, but at an energy level too low to cause more "Pair Production".

There was a theft in the US in the mid-70's, where the thief put the source in his shirt pocket after taking it out of it's container. The rule of thumb is that the greatest effect of a radiation dose occurs ~7-10 days post exposure, so these victims are only now peaking.

SLAPPING an iPhone out of a corporate drone's hand: You're not the only one who longs to do it

OldWarrior

Re: Windows Phone 8 is not yet ready

I have had a Nokia 928 since May 2013. The phone itself is good for most of my needs, but I doubt any business would be so happy. The main issue is lack of Security Software. No Windows Defender, Norton, McAfee etc. If you log on at a Wi-Fi Hotspot, any scriptkiddie can have any stored PW, Data, Contact list or anything else. All they need to do is crack your phone's Password. I seriously doubt the phone would long resist most PW Cracks.

What bothers me is that I had expected that MSFT, being a software company, would have set a large team to work on the environment of an OS that they just spent a fair bundle of cash acquiring. So far, no WP 8.1, no Security App, the YouTube App got rejected by Google, even the Seeking Alpha app bites. If you get an email with a link-sorry Charlie, you cant "Tap and Go".

The hardware is great, the software needs serious work and MSFT is too distracted by trying to find a CEO that Mr Bill will approve of to solve it's own new toy's problems.

World's OLDEST human DNA found in leg bone – but that's not the only boning going on...

OldWarrior

I particularly agree with your postulation of " non-survival of the less fit". There are vast areas of study that show that "Non-survival essential" traits causing significant species changes become not only passed down, but become "Genetically Dominant" such as bright feather colors in male birds, which leads to your next statement of Sexual Selection.

Sexual Selection in humans was postulated and eventually proven in studies at the University of New Mexico Anthropology Department in the 90's. Part of the study of sexual selection dealt with certain distribution of facial features where symmetry was the overriding factor in "Attractiveness" of a face. My son was part of the research team and I have since seen references to that study in my readings.

This by no means is the only feature that attracts humans to each other. The obvious things such as shared interests etc. are even overridden by subtle things like smell. (not artificial smells like perfumes, but the smell of sweat, hair bacteria and more).

Though old and retired, I still wish I had studied more Anthropology instead of Medicine. My medical background may have been more lucrative, but I was always more interested in Humans as a species than as Patients.

Nokia Lumia 1020: It's an imaging BEAST... and it makes calls too

OldWarrior

Re: :-)

Just remember if moving to Android that >90% of Malware is targeted to Android, so be sure to load up on Security if you are doing Banking etc. An earlier story on TheReg listed MacAfee as the best at that time with ~80% resistance. Sadly, WP does, as yet, not have a lot of security Apps that I personally trust, but that might have changed since May when I last looked. (I do no banking on my phone, nor anything that requires security. If they want to steal my Rolling Stones, Have At)

Massively leaked iFail 5S POUNDS pundits, EXCITES chavs

OldWarrior

Cmon Say what you Really Mean

LMAO One would think you were actually being nice if they had actually handled one of these. AAPL's miserly spending on R&D really shows now, as the Exec's loot the Hoard by giving each other bonuses ans Stock Options, the company sinks into irrelevance. AAPL is a "Momentum" stock, and this week has shown which way the momentum is going.

Cisco readies axe for 4,000 employees

OldWarrior

Questions I have from an Investor's Viewpoint.

So what IS the Salary structure of Management that you want to cut to make up for 4k employees?

Certainly it is bloated as virtually all US companies are, but what are the numbers that they have to make up? Hopefully they aren't pulling a "Circuit City" and unloading their highest paid (read that "most successful" salespeople).

As I understand it, Cisco is so proprietary that once you switch to Cisco, it becomes horribly expensive to switch away as you have to replace most of your equipment. If that is still true, they could sell the gear at a lower margin than the cheap systems, knowing that a company is locked in forever.

I can believe that they could unload jobs that are being automated into obsolescence such as the jobs they dropped on Foxconn, but I guess that if they are selling less Routers, they probably need less installers. My understanding is that for the Premium Price, you get more reliable systems than you get from "Low Bidder" distributors.

I also have to wonder how many of those 4k jobs are going to be replaced with "Temps" that Cisco doesn't have to give benefits. That is certainly a huge trend in recent years.

In 2017, a pack of hybrid mutants stuffed with NAND flash will descend

OldWarrior

If large "Cloud" server farms are willing to spend massive amounts on arrays of the fastest CPU's available, they probably are unlikely to be too concerned with the price of Flash if the drives are bottle-necking data transfer. Their very existence depends upon speed. That said, the speed of Data Transfer over the Net to the Cloud is the bottleneck. IMO until data transfer rates climb dramatically, then spinners will still sell. I admittedly am not a techie, but am an investor. At what point will the Disk Drives need to be switched to Flash for Cloud applications? In-House servers of course will be flash sooner than later.

Pink Floyd blasts Pandora for 'tricking' artists with petition

OldWarrior

Re: An unfair system @Joseph Haig

And TheStreet has no agenda of it's own? It is not exactly a disinterested 3rd party

OldWarrior

Re: An unfair system

You are right, there should be a middle ground. 70 years past the death is a tad long, but remember that in most arts, the value of the artists work goes up immensely after the artist dies. Not so in Music, but certainly in painting , jewelry, pottery etc. Maybe reduce Music to 50 years, and line item certain Patents. Drugs Patents shouldn't start until after FDA approval, but there should be a FRAND situation so that people needing a medication don't get impoverished. Patents under a FRAND should last far more than 20 years.

The subject is payment for musicians and the writers though. I don't mind rewarding these artists and am disturbed that Pandora is trying to legislate rates. Of course, in the US, no such legislation would pass constitutionality except changes in copyright laws across-the-board. I do not believe that Pandora would charge any less to customers if they got to pay artists less, certainly not as much as the reduction unless that was in the law. The bottom line, buyers will always try to pay the lowest price, and sellers will charge all that the market will bear. That is the definition of Capitalism. No legislatures should ever get involved unless there is a clear safety or public interest (such as Medicine). I can choose what I want to buy, I cannot chooser what I NEED to buy.

Google reveals Glass details in patent application

OldWarrior

Re: Truer than most people realize

If you are talking about Electromagnetic Spectrum, the difference is only in wavelength, Higher energy goes into the Ionizing level, lower into the microwave and radio wavelengths, Pick your poison, Cancer or cooked, or maybe just Cataracts. When you get an X-Ray, the tech or Dr. sets the quantity level in miliamps, the penetration in kv, not in Watts. Exposure is measured in 10k ionizations/cc=REM or Radiation Equivalent Man.

OldWarrior

Re: Truer than most people realize

If one takes that view, there is always a certain level of background radiation that only does minor damage to our DNA. So I guess a tad more radiation is ok? Anything that moves electrons gives off radiation when the electron hits something. That is how X-Ray machines work, they fire an electron beam at from 30kv to 150kv at a tungsten target. The electrons hit the target and the level of radiation is metered out by voltage=wavelength (penetration) and amperage=quantity. Radiation damage is permanent, meaning if you get 10 rem per month until you reach about 400 rem total, 50% of people so exposed die (Called LD-50) Of course, these glasses would only give off radiation directly to the lens of the eye (the second most sensitive tissue after gonads) causing Cataracts and possibly cancer. I myself have cataracts after only a lifetime dosage of ~4 REM from x-raying patients, flouroscopy, Inserting Radioactive needles Etc. Many Radiologists from up until the 50's lost all their fingers because, "It was only a little Radiation at a time". I think the other effects are enough unknown from microwave to magnetic emissions that I would certainly never put anything electronic that close to my eyes. Go for it! Darwin Lives!!!

India's most trusted brand Nokia hit with £1.5bn tax bill

OldWarrior

More on India Tax issues

Also concerning the Vodaphone issue which is similar, it seems that the attack on Vodaphone was based on a retroactive law. http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/01/30/vodafone-india-chidambaram-idINDEE90S0GS20130130

It is unclear to me if Vodaphone has yet to pay against this 5 year old claim.

OldWarrior

It appears that no official from India has actually gone on record about these rumors. Please note that every rumor quotes "Anonymous Sources"

Reposted from Yahoo (message released from Nokia RE Tax Issue

http://finance.yahoo.com/mbview/threadview/?&bn=220ef58e-d3dc-3807-9767-593835583c5f&tid=1359706820204-9b363906-9cce-4ca9-9a12-279f456d71cd&tls=la,d,61

I received the below reply about the purported India Tax Evasion issue. This is the same reply given to another poster. So, one can assume, that Nokia is giving the same reply to ALL investors who ask--including large institutional types. Nokia is basically calling BS on the evasion reports. Should set up for an interesting day. I'll note, NOK is already trading up 2% in Europe...

"Thanks for writing in. I appreciate your concern.

To update you on the situation, we yesterday issued a statement, locally in India, as follows:

“Nokia is fully cooperating with the Indian Tax authorities. We are duly responding to all queries raised by them and extending our full support in completing the investigation. Nokia’s commitment to being a good corporate citizen is firm and unwavering. We always observe applicable laws and rulings in the countries where we operate. Since we arrived in India 17 years ago, we have honored all local laws and paid all taxes legally due. We look forward to resolving this issue quickly and fairly with the support of the Indian government.”

It is worth keeping in mind that as of yet, we have not received any formal claims or formal notice from the authorities, nor has a single official gone on the record publicly in the media with any specific claims (although there have been plenty of “anonymous sources” speaking to media and spreading false rumors). When it is appropriate to take further steps in our communication, I can assure that we will do so and are ready to do so.

For now, however, I can only emphasize that we have paid all taxes legally due. This is absolutely the case and therefore we look forward to resolving this matter swiftly.

Best regards,

James Etheridge

Corporate Communications"

Further posts on this page indicate that while there have been discussions between Finland and India, much of the rumors seem to come from a site hostile to Nokia.