* Posts by Dave Lawton

222 publicly visible posts • joined 29 Aug 2007

Page:

Mozilla security policy cracks down on creepy web trackers, holds supercookies over fire

Dave Lawton

Shame they ruined the brower before they got a clue

As title.

Friday fun fact: If Stegosauruses had space telescopes, they wouldn't have seen any rings around Saturn

Dave Lawton

Higher Gravity ?

Are we sure that anomalous gravity isn't because it's really Valatare ?

Goddamn the Pusher man: Nominet kicks out domain name hijack bid

Dave Lawton
Holmes

Re: How about some grace time after expiry?

Unfortunately it would seem that

And you get multiple, regular emails telling you that your domain is coming up for expiry, has expired and is in the grace period, is now in the redemption period, will be released, gone.

No longer applies (sample of one).

One of my domains, supposed to be automatic renewal (and paid for), wasn't renewed by the hosting company, and the first I knew about it, was when I received an email from Nominet saying that the domain HAD expired.

YMMV

Happy new year, readers. Yes, we have threaded comments, an image-lite mode, and more...

Dave Lawton
Holmes

It wouldn't be so bad, but the 'new' look is sh***

I, and I'm damn sure a lot more than 4000 others want the 'old' front page back

Happy New Year

Why millions of Brits' mobile phones were knackered on Thursday: An expired Ericsson software certificate

Dave Lawton
Happy

Re: Hey ...

So was mine, and yes, it's O2 (Tesco),

Sync your teeth into power browser Vivaldi's largest update so far

Dave Lawton

Re: E-mail alternative

Have you tried Claws ?

https://www.claws-mail.org/downloads.php?section=downloads

Spoiler alert: Google's would-be iPhone killer Pixel 3 – so many leaks

Dave Lawton
Happy

What to buy ?

I need a phone that's not too large, has a replaceable battery, SD card slot, headphone socket, preferably Dual Micro size SIM, current Android OS, not too expensive.

Did I find one: Yes, nearly all the above.

It's Nano SIM, trimming of existing SIM required (I opted for single SIM because I couldn't wait)

In the box, a USB charger, USB lead, and a set of ear-buds.

Price: a miserly 59 GBP delivered.

Happy Bunny is me.

Note: the Dual SIM version has 3 slots, and isn't 2nd SIM/SD like some.

What is it ?

Oh, a Nokia 1, that's what.

Email security crisis... What email security crisis?

Dave Lawton

Re: How about killing off HTML emails

Demanded: yes, by PHBs in manglement, and marketing who lack clue one.

Anything can be conveyed in Plain Text, you just have to have a good command of the English language.

Have you never come across the concept of shared drives ?

Dave Lawton
Holmes

How about killing off HTML emails

Ban them, remove the facility to send them from email clients.

Then they can only send Plain Text.

Remove the facility to read them from email clients.

Then they can only read Plain Text.

Do not adjust your set, er, browser: This is our new page-one design

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Wasn't Broken, didn't need fixing

Thank deity, I did find the link back to the original home page

Such a shame you had to do it with Javascript

HTC U12 Life: Notchless, reasonably priced and proper buttons? Oh joy

Dave Lawton
Facepalm

Pseudo Dual SIM and others

What is it with manufacturers ?

I thought I'd found my next phone.

But in a 6" phone they couldn't provide 2 micro SIM slots, and a separate SD card slot, why ever not, Samsung managed it years ago with the B5722 :(

Even Wileyfox managed it, all be it with Nano SIMs, in the Swift.

Ah well.

For those suffering from the Truecaller disease, ZERO Dialer is your friend.

ZX Spectrum Vega+ blows a FUSE: It runs open-source emulator

Dave Lawton
Holmes

Preprod

I'm surprised that nobody has made this comment.

The units described sound an awful lot like preproduction prototypes.

Just a random thought.

Half of all Windows 10 users thought: BSOD it, let's get the latest build

Dave Lawton

Re: Rolled out != working users

@Mark 85

Try

https://developers.hp.com/hp-linux-imaging-and-printing

Your printer is listed as supported by HPLIP.

HTH

'Facebook takes data from my phone – but I don't have an account!'

Dave Lawton

Re: GDPR Cycle of Deactivate

@Uberior

Try Zero Dialer as a replacement.

In Settings>Apps>cog>Configure apps set 'Phone app' to ZERO Dialer

Sorry, I can't remember if there were any more steps,

but that worked on my Swift 1, after it downgraded itself to 7.0.1

HTH

HMRC delays digi tax plans amid Brexit customs woes

Dave Lawton

Online Returns

@Zippy

Not quite sure where you're coming from on this.

I have been submitting my VAT returns on-line via the web portal since July 2012.

The form is very similar to the paper one I filled in previously.

BBC presenter loses appeal, must pay £420k in IR35 crackdown

Dave Lawton
Holmes

HMRC are being two-faced

It would appear that HMRC are being two-faced over the IR35 legislation.

They actually have IT contractors working for them who operate through PSCs (Ltd), and are declared to be outside the legislation, and do not have to pay additional Income Tax, and NI beyond what is normal for their PSC. The major point of interest is that their contracts do contain the right of substitution clause, which this news presenter could hardly have present in her contract.

The other point that no one seems to have commented on.

There is an upper limit on contract length : 2 years, exceed that, and different rules apply anyway.

Flying on its own, Thunderbird seeks input on new look

Dave Lawton

Re: To be honest

Claws Mail - http://www.claws-mail.org/

HTH

Butcher breaks out of own freezer using black pudding

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Poor Caption Picture

Gawd help the butcher if he'd had to use the black pudding in the caption picture.

The one he used (a frozen one) was straight, so he had no problem aiming at the release button.

Beyond code PEBCAK lies KMACYOYO, PENCIL and PAFO

Dave Lawton

Not mine, but still a favourite

SEP

...

...

...

...

Somebody Else's Problem

HTC U11 Life: Google tries to tame the midmarket

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Why do the idiots follow apple's lead ?

No headphone jack, no SD card slot, no replaceable battery, no decent dialer app, more than 250 GBP, no sale.

EE Business Broadband digital transformation: Portal offline until July

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Utter shambles of a company

First they didn't do due diligence when someone other than me asked for EE broadband on my BT phone line, just went ahead and converted it.

Then they gave away my T-Mobile number to someone who purported to be me, or had fake paperwork authorising the transfer. Then when I complained, they refused to do anything about it, telling me that I would have to present myself at the branch, 180 miles away, to sort it out. They weren't even sure that that branch was the one where the deed was done.

Shakes head in disgust.

Microsoft president says the world needs a digital Geneva Convention

Dave Lawton
Holmes

Email

"90 per cent of attacks begin with someone clicking on an email... We need to protect people from their bad habits," he noted.

Perhaps spending some of your billions to produce a decent, standards compliant , properly threading, HTML free email client, would a very good start.

Dave Lawton

Disapointed

Before I read the article, I thought it might be about The Doctor's alter ego, or Sarah Janes' computer :(

UK industry bods: Re-train one million manufacturing workers to deal with new tech

Dave Lawton
FAIL

The UK lacks effective leadership

Says it all, doesn't it.

Fresh bit o' Linux to spruce up that ancient Windows Vista box? Why not, we say...

Dave Lawton

systemd :(

Such a shame it includes systemd, ah well, perhaps they'll wake up and smell the coffee.

Angst in her pants: Alleged US govt leaker Reality Winner stashed docs in her pantyhose

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Good practice

"next time, you simply "paste" it into your email, makes it much more readable."

No, don't encourage incompetents, please teach them how to attach such files,

not "paste it" into the email. Yes I know it's more steps but...

The award for worst ISP goes to... it starts with Talk and ends with Talk

Dave Lawton
FAIL

Re: Skie

Pie in the sky more like (sorry Richard).

Friend of mine moved into an area where Virgin was not available.

She ignored my advice about not choosing sky...

Telephone socket already fitted.

Sky wanted 200GBP upfront to supply service.

Order placed 30 July.

Installation date 30 August.

30 August Sky guy fits dish & q-box, doesn't mention q-box won't work properly without BB, says he can't do anything with the BB, and leaves.

6 September BTOR guy says can't fix, need Cherry Picker because pole is dangerous.

13 September I arrive, ring Sky, told no action from them until 25 September.

Threats of cancellation produce promise of action on 19 September.

19 September Cherry Picker arrives, complete new box+cables to pole installed.

20 September told underground fault, can't fix until 25 September.

Will not need further access.

20 September Sky promises refunds+free service but still takes DD.

Update on Monday.

Lord only knows what would have happened if she had asked for fibre.

Meanwhile still no phone line for emergency service access, and yes, they were told.

Manchester plod still running 1,500 Windows XP machines

Dave Lawton

Re: Still using XP

There are replacements for your Arc,

Titanium/RapidO Ti - http://www.rcomp.co.uk/ http://www.cjemicros.co.uk/ http://www.elesar.co.uk/

ARMX6/RapidO Ig - http://www.rcomp.co.uk/ http://www.cjemicros.co.uk/

RasberryPi - As above + https://www.raspberrypi.org/

And a good few others, just (google) RISCOS hardware.

Apologies for not mentioning all the others by name.

Ofcom to crack down on telcos' handling of nuisance callers

Dave Lawton

A year ?

A year, why the hell is it going to take over a year to implement ?

Bloody incompetents.

Watch this nanochip reprogram cells to fix damaged body tissue

Dave Lawton

Useful applications

How about repairing damage to eyes ?

Small biz breaks out pen, paper after Brit tax collectors' Digital Form Service goes down

Dave Lawton
Holmes

Lack of staff

Oh, look, all the staff we had maintaining this site have left because of something or other.

It couldn't be anything to do with IR35, could it ?

We didn't apply those stupid rules to them, did we ...

Extreme trainspotting on Britain's highest (and windiest) railway

Dave Lawton
Alien

Re: 1,097m (3,599ft)

Is this the mountain/cog railway described in Julian May's Intervention ?

If it is, how close are the descriptions please ?

Inquiring minds wish to know.

ICO fines Morrisons for emailing customers who didn't want to be emailed

Dave Lawton
Unhappy

A more appropriate response would be "We shouldn't have done this. The manglement responsible have decided to seek fresh opportunities elsewhere.".

A shame that it probably won't happen (I can hope can't I ?)

Majority of contractors distrust HMRC's IR35 calculator, survey finds

Dave Lawton

Yes, blame the tool

When it first was released (I haven't checked it since, but I doubt it has changed), the only question that was of significance was 'Are you allowed to substitute', it didn't matter what you answered to the rest.

If you answered 'Yes, I am', then you were outside IR35, if you answered 'No, I'm not' then you were inside IR35.

From what I can see, this is the usual heavy handed approach from HMRC, relying on the agencies, and some public organisations allowing themselves to be bullied, instead employing some capable lawyers, and forcing the issue, relying on the evidence, & results from the last time HMRC tried it on.

There are public organisations who have stuck two fingers up to HMRC, and told them quite plainly 'NONE of our contractors fall within IR35'.

I would like for someone who is close to Jeremy Corbyn, to ask him to publicly promise to repeal IR35 as soon as he takes office (Hey I can hope, can't I).

BOFH: Elf of Safety? Orc of Admin. Pleased to meet you

Dave Lawton
Coat

How did everybody miss this ?

A 'gun range for the blind'

Definitely a LOL moment there.

All the cool kids are doing it – BT hikes broadband and TV bills

Dave Lawton

Re: Where are Offcom?

You could go to Plusnet. Yes, I know that they have had a slating recently for crap customer service but...

I've been with them for internet only since 2005 ( perhaps earlier), and have just moved my phone service as well. Business use, was paying 250 per quarter for two lines & internet. Went down to one line, now paying 76 per quarter all in, with unlimited calls (UK & Mobile).

Worth considering ,YMMV.

Twas the week before Xmas ... not a creature was stirring – except Microsoft admitting its Windows 10 upgrade pop-up went 'too far'

Dave Lawton

Re: M$ Long History

The Windows 95 user interface was widely recognized as superior to anything else available.

But it is a poor copy of another UI, with most of its features either missing or implemented badly.

LeEco Le Pro 3: Low-cost, high-spec Droid takes on the big boys with a big fat batt

Dave Lawton
Coat

Where do they get their ideas ?

No expandable memory, no removeable battery, & no headphone jack.

Three times the price of the Wileyfox Swift which has all the above.

Mine lasts 4 days on one charge.

ARM draws new Mali GPUs

Dave Lawton
Coat

Broadcasting from your cellphone to the internet.

Shirley not ?

Playing Live streams on your phone, maybe ?

Microsoft: We're hiking UK cloud prices 22%. Stop whining – it's the Brexit

Dave Lawton

DTP for Windows - try Ovation Pro

http://http://www.davidpilling.info/cd/main.html

Second 'dimmer switch' star spotted

Dave Lawton

Ringworld 'Under Construction'

As title.

Yes, I know it's unstable :)

Hollywood offers Daniel Craig $150m to (slash wrists) play James Bond

Dave Lawton

Now that someone's mentioned Tennant

How about Christopher Eccleston

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001172/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm

'Neural network' spotted deep inside Samsung's Galaxy S7 silicon brain

Dave Lawton
Angel

Re: Most Surprised

Ah, no the original is

Acorn RISC Machine

Adblock Plus blocks Facebook's ad-blocker buster: It's a block party!

Dave Lawton

Re: Blocking legitimate posts?

You need F.B. Purity http://www.fbpurity.com/

Hilton hotels' email so much like phishing it fooled its own techies

Dave Lawton

@ Nameless Faceless Computer User

1) Reject HTML emails as SPAM

2) Don't click on email links.

3) Don't open email attachments.

4) Trust no one.

FTFY

Virgin signs up record ultrafast broadband subs

Dave Lawton

Re: New homes pah!

Not here :-

Welcome to Cable My Street!

It doesn’t look like our cables reach your corner of the country just yet. But by registering your interest, you could help bring Virgin Media services to your area!

Not likely to happen :( (the cabling, that is)

Windows 10 Anniversary Update is borking boxen everywhere

Dave Lawton

Re: My only Win 10 laptop is now borked too

@Andy Non

Can't help with your W10 issue, but as far as updating your TomTom goes,

install Virtualbox on your Mint machine, and run a minimalist guest of XP, or

W7, no need for W10 then. Works for me.

HTH

Australian spooks' email guide banishes MS Word macros, JavaScript

Dave Lawton
Holmes

No HTML emails

Most of the exploits require it to obfuscate what they are doing.

So remove the ability to send them, and set the email client to only read in Plain Text mode.

Hardly rocket science.

My Microsoft Office 365 woes: Constant crashes, malware macros – and settings from Hell

Dave Lawton

Re: Email alternative

Might be worth looking at Claws Mail with the vCalendar plugin.

Next month's Firefox 48 is looking Rusty – and that's a very good thing

Dave Lawton
Coat

Re: Won't see it here

@ Charlie Clark

Not bloody likely.

I do have other options.

If enough people who matter abandon it ...

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