Posts by Aging Hippy

Software Error?

Scientists - we've got some odd results and revolutionised science.

Engineers (otherwise known as cynical bastards) - we've got some odd results, what have you done wrong.

In 1991 Andrew Lyne of Jodrell Bank claimed to have found the first pulsar planet . Rumour has it that he had borrowed a spreadsheet which had approximated Earth's orbit to be circular.

We need some numbers, we've got some numbers

I can see this in an environment where the motto is "We need some numbers, we've got some numbers, all is well in the world".

Excel for data transfer anyone?

Who's fooling who?

Search for Thiel Cummings and take your pick. For extra pleasure throw in Trump as well.

Promotion Logic

You do a job quietly and it works first time: The job must have been easy.

You get into a mess, even of your own making, then get it working: This person is a good problem solver.

Engineers tried to roll back the upgrade but it proved too complicated

Translation: They didn't back everything up before they started. They didn't include rollback in the trial conversion - if they did a trial conversion.

Implication (from experience): Routine backups aren't good enough to guarantee recovery from some corruptions during live running.

I'm sure they can type all the data in again.

Paul, Baron Strasburger

It seems to have passed people by that this article is written by Paul Strasburger who is on the Joint Committee on the Investigatory Powers Bill. Thank you to him and The Register for bringing us a first hand article.

Paul Strasburger's Wikipedia entry isn't particularly flattering (and we all believe Wikipedia don't we?) but anyone who was/is a successful entrepreneur without a history in politics can't be all bad, especially as he is willing to talk and listen to the techies of this world.

Let me be the first to suggest

Baa-codes

"Don't go into computing

- there's no future in in" - quote from my school careers advisor in 1966.

So What?

MFG/PRO, now known as QAD Enterprise, could do this 20 years ago to my knowledge.

Blame accountants or climate botherers

It's a long time since I worked on control systems for trains but the general principle was to design for normal industrial conditions (0-50C with no condensation) then to provide that enviroment with suitable boxes and heaters.

To start a train from below freezing the heaters would be switched on to bring the electronics into its operating range and heat the surrounding air, and then the electronics could be switched on. To avoid a delay in starting up the heaters or electronics would normally be left switched on.

Then along comes an accountant or climate botherer and says they can save money / carbon dioxide and decrees that trains should be switched off completely overnight. Then on the first morning with the right conditions .........

It's only speculation but from what I've seen it fits.

Time for an investment in the B Ark.

@A J Stiles @JonB Windmill Speed

Think of a factory where there is sheet material rolled onto a big roller - steel mills, paper mills etc (anyone in the UK can use a history book as reference). There's a lot of energy to be dumped when the roller is stopped. This uses the motor as a generator, some fancy electronics to convert the energy to DC, then to AC in phase with the mains input and dumps it back into the mains supply.

Now think of the electronics as just the mechanism for stopping the blades on the rare occasions the wind wants to turn them.

Advantages:

The blades can run at optimum pitch for the wind irrespective of the output requirements.

The system can be run in reverse to start the blades spinning or keep them running when it is politically wise to do so.

Wind generated by spinning the blades can be picked up and used by the next wind farm so giving a way of storing energy much like a stored water system (OK, I made this one up but when you see it in a politician's or expert's proposal you saw it here first)

Please note that I am an Aging Version 1 Hippy - "make love not war", "make tea not war" (English version), overthrow goverments etc. <RANT>The Reg - please do not mix verion 1 hippies with the new age hippies who only seem to want to jump onto the latest bandwagon of scientific mumbo-jumbo to allow goverments to exploit the masses. The sooner these windmills start falling down the better.</RANT>

There is no tax loss

So the software company sells less software, therefore it and the supply chain make less profit and pay less tax.

The company with the unlicensed software makes more profit and therefore pays more tax.

Net result - no difference in total tax paid.

(OK, this is not quite right as it doesn't allow for different tax rates in different countries, but the overall effect should be around zero - give or take)

It only needs one case ...

One day a 90 year-old man (it is only men isn't it?) who committed a minor sexual offence 70 years before will make an improper remark to a Meals-on-Wheels woman. Result: anyone receiving voluntary help will need to register to protect the volunteers - then we're all caught.

Anyone remember the 80's (?) cartoon series "Wait till your father gets home", where the 40 year old father gets arrested for hanging around with 15 year-old girls - 25 years before.

Linux penguin because nobody's blamed this on Microsoft yet.

A Public Service

So how about setting up a website where people can check if their names are on the list - just type in their full name and address, date of birth, NI number and bank account details and it will tell them whether their details have been stolen. For extra security they can also put in their bank account PIN, they wouldn't want just anybody knowing their details are stolen.

I'm still worried about .....

.... the approaching ice age. We've bad so many cold winters and North Sea gas is due to run out by 1972.