* Posts by Haku

1902 publicly visible posts • joined 13 Apr 2007

UK.gov backs ISPs on charging content providers, throttling P2P

Haku
Thumb Down

Genius!

Because the only tv everyone watches are programmes from the BBC...

How long before someone figures out a way of blocking access to BBC programmes, therefore enabling people to not pay for a tv licence? on that day the BBC will become just like all other channels, adverts splattered all over the shop.

Red Dwarf finally returns to Earth

Haku
Go

"Come on you reeee-eeeeds!"

Twins! (two episodes) Fan-smegging-tastic!

P.S. Would you like some toast?

Google and the Great Wikipedia Feedback Loop

Haku
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Meh.

I've never really thought to have a look at Britannica online before reading this article - and now that I've taken a look I don't think I'll be heading back anytime soon.

First thing I noticed was the need to update my Adblock filters - for a site that's trying to be an information portal they're doing a good job at being a banner revenue site pretending to be an information portal. And to add insult to injury they want me to get out my wallet and subscribe.

I know Wikipedia isn't 100% accurate, but neither can the Encyclopedia Britanica claim to be - if you believe everything you read online I have a rich uncle who needs your help to get $12,000,000.00 out of his country...

Thanks, but no thanks.

Coming soon: Pills to 'turn down' your ears at clubs

Haku
Unhappy

Too late

Can we just have a fix/cure for tinnitus please? :(

LG shows off quad-band GSM watchphone

Haku

2009 - Year of the mobile phone watch ?

A mobile phone watch really isn't that new, what is new is a big player (LG) getting into the scene and prices becomming somewhat 'affordable'.

That said, you don't want to buy a T918... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjCBuI9nPv4

I'm sure over the next few years you'll eventually be able to buy a mobile phone watch that's the same size as an average normal watch, but for now you might have to look like a bit of a prat with such a bulky gadget stuck to your wrist. Even so, as a gadget hoarder I want this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HN-2GX0Qg48

EU says Microsoft violated law with IE on Windows

Haku
Thumb Up

Buh-bye IE

My first 'real' browser was some Mozilla derevative on the Amiga (it's been so long I forgot the proper name), on dialup, 13 odd years ago, on my Demon account I still have, then went onto using iBrowse (really liked that browser). I tried AWeb and Voyager but I prefered iBrowse.

Eventually (reluctantly at the time) moved onto a PC because the Amiga's power/performance/price just wasn't increasing like it should have done IMHO, when I moved onto Windows the main browser I used was Netscape because pages/scrolling just worked quicker than IE (who uses 'smooth scrolling' on IE? it's atrocious!).

Had to ditch Netscape in favour of (well, forced) IE when too many website layouts just wouldn't display properly and vital functions were inacessable, but when I got my Eee's they came with FireFox, so I gave it a try and really liked it - it had a Netscape feel to it, in that things just worked, quickly, without fuss.

I've been using IE6 on this W2k machine for a long time and it's been ok except for the occasionaly crash, well it crashed on me for the last time today, hello FF3! and fuck off IE! you slow, bloated, bug-ridden, malware-friendly, monopolistic piece of corporate trash - you won't be missed!

Who reads The Register?

Haku

real reason

Most of the real reasons people read this site is as a distraction from what they're involved in, a lunchtime break read etc. especially as there are too many 'tabloid'/'sensational' type articles appearing. Sure there is some real information buried within the articles but you got to dig through the waffle to find it.

LibDem cheeky boy rides to Segway's rescue

Haku

Re: Electric bikes

Electric bikes ARE legal on roads without the need for insurance/tax/mot etc. provided they stick to a few rules:

1. The motor must not exceed 200 (average) watts (250 for Europe).

2. The motor must not power the bike beyond 15mph, meaning if you pedal faster than 15mph the motor will cut out.

3. The bike must not weigh more than 40kg.

4. The bike must have pedal power - this means scooters that only rely on the motor to move aren't legal, this includes Segways.

I have been using an electric bike for getting on 2 years now, never had problems with police over it - apart from one time being stopped for cycling at night without lights on the pavement (because car drivers often go way too fast as there isn't much traffic to contend with), so I flicked the switch on my handlebar which turned on my lights and went on my way (on the road). Most of the time the police don't give a rats ass that people cycle on pavements, I feel safer on the pavement during rush hour (especially large junctions) and am always curteous to pedestrians as I get off and walk past them.

US woman says Ubuntu can't access internet

Haku
Paris Hilton

The mighty dollar

I bet $1 (I have a $1 note kicking around somewhere) that the woman in question chose the Ubuntu option because it was cheaper than the Windows option, and now she got caught out she's blaming everyone else but herself.

Shane Ritchie poised to 'reinvent' Minder

Haku
Stop

@Jim

"Shain Ritchie is more of a celeb than an actor"

Actually I'd call him more of a prat than an actor.

Can someone name some re-makes of films / tv shows that didn't suck like a Dyson? what I've seen of films / tv shows that get re-made is the director/producer almost always mangages to forget why the original was enjoyable and go ahead with their own agenda.

Pioneer calls a halt to LaserDisc hardware production

Haku

Wow

I thought they stopped making LD players many years ago! I picked up a 2nd hand Pioneer LD player a few years ago to get some titles that haven't been released on DVD, and subsequently a lot of the LD's I bought are now on DVD...

Side note, can someone please give the reghardware.co.uk webmaster a dead leg for using a 4x4 pixel sized tiled background? it makes scrolling pages on reghardware.co.uk juddery/slow & causes an unnecesary 100% CPU usage, 99% of the background is obscured by the article anyway! please make the tiled image 80x80 or larger

Greenwich celebrates International Year of Astronomy

Haku

@Sarah Bee

It doesn't take a lot to engineer street lights that don't leak a lot of their light into the sky, the councils/government just don't give a crap.

You must live in a city I take it? try living in a country town/village, you'll find yourself a lot less paranoid at night :)

Haku
Unhappy

Street lights

Can someone please turn off the street lights so we can actually see something other than an ugly orange glow (even here in the 'countryside').

Failing that, how about street lights that don't directly shine so much light upwards.

pureSilicon unveils 1TB solid state drive

Haku

Flash RAID please

I want someone to come up with a way to RAID USB flash drives through hardware or software for Windows machines, with reasonably fast (12MB/s write, 30MB/s read) 16GB sticks available at £16 delivered from play.com, you could potentially create a reasonably high capacity very fast & silent 'drive' for £1 per GB + needed hardware.

I know you can software RAID USB flash drives on linux but that's not so useful to all the Windows users out there.

In action: the Powermat wireless gadget charger

Haku
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No thanks.

It takes up too much space, too expensive, you can only charge up to 3 devices at a time, and from the demonstration video it looks like you have to get the dock/charging add-on in just the right spot on the charging bed or it wont charge. Furthermore how energy efficient is this method of charging compared to what people normally use?

Anyway, I and many others have much easier & cheaper solutions to charging a significant amount of our gadgets:

USB!

Retractable USB cables for charging gadgets are dirt cheap and don't clutter up your desk/laptop bag when not in use.

Apple's latest patent brilliance: the iGlove

Haku
Boffin

Glove companion for phone

I think the best glove I've seen as a companion for a mobile phone is the one Jason Bradbury of The Gadget Show made a few years ago, ripped out the innards of a bluetooth headset and put them into a driving glove - Bluetooth Phone Glove! - mic in the little finger and speaker in the thumb with a button on the back to answer calls.

Microsoft plague threatens 30GB Zune extinction

Haku

Ha-ha

/Nelson Muntz

*merilly listens to his 4 year old iRiver H140 with original battery which is still going strong with daily use and sounds better than an iPod (proven with the v2 Nano was given & very rarely use)*

LG trumpets 3G wristphone

Haku

@Dave Morris

Several of the phone watches I've seen online have a small telescopic stylus that stows away in the strap to use the touchscreen with, the one I want to get has simple number recognition so you don't have to deal with the tiny buttons below the screen - just draw them one-by-one on the screen, hopefully it'll recognise letters too to make SMS entry a lot easier/quicker.

YouTube has a few videos of these phones in use - that is if you've really got nothing better to do than watch someone demonstrate the functions of a watch phone :D

Haku
Happy

Love / hate

I really don't like mobile phones (aka nag devices) but I have a love of gadget wristwatches - past ones had these add-ons; a plethora of Nintendo/Nelsonic game watches, FM radio, thermometer, thermoscanner (point the watch at something and it'll tell you the temp), laser, talking, calculator, data bank, melody alarm, tv remote, camera etc. etc. - most of these watches are many many years old and were the height of technology at the time, still got most minus their straps which all have the same fate of falling apart.

However when I discovered last week that mobile phone watches are now small(ish) enough, available, affordable and usable - up to 150 mins talktime & up to 150 hours standby, bluetooth, 2mp camera etc. - the geek in me just HAS to own one, probably this one: http://www.haku.co.uk/pics/PhoneWatch.jpg

BTW, importers beware, Chinese phones can have duplicate/fake/no IMEI numbers. Buy one from your own country so you have consumer come-back if anything goes titsup.

P.S. "Calling Dick Tracy!, calling Dick Tracy!"

First lady of Star Trek dead at 76

Haku
Happy

Also thank you.

The world of Star Trek & sci-fi will never be the same again, Gene & Majel left a mark that will live on for probably longer than anyone can imagine.

The past couple of weeks I've been re-watching Andromeda and right now I'm watching the final episode.

Looking forward to the new Star Trek film next year, even if the sets do look like something from Galaxy Quest!

Designer pitches solar-powered AA battery

Haku

Nice concept

but I doubt it'll be of any use in an AA sized setup, how can you physically roll a solar cell battery combo that tight and have it not spring out in the device making it impossible to remove? it'd also be too easy for it to blow away in the wind when charging, if you could get the thing to unroll completely flat in the first place.

Really the only way I could see this concept have any life would be to have the flexible solar cell wrapped round a normal cell - ie an AAA sized batteryl with a flexible solar panel so when it's wrapped up it becomes an AA sized battery, or AA sized battery with flexible panel to become a C sized battery.

In the end it all seems like too much effort, even those mini portable solar battery chargers are pretty much useless with today's high power demanding devices & our typical British weather.

Wisemen bring Jesus Phone (free) cut-and-paste

Haku
Stop

Seriously?

A FOUR PAGE article on how to copy'n'paste?

Smartphone my arse.

Netbook SSD usage to fall under 10% in 2009

Haku
Alert

@Mark, Eee SSD speed

Did you get a 900 with 16gb SSD? the new 16gb ones have territle write speeds:

http://jkkmobile.blogspot.com/2008/07/asus-eee-pc-ssd-read-and-write-tests.html

Which is why I went for a 20gb SSD 900, but annoyingly the 1gb RAM died a week after I got it.

BBC relives The Day of The Triffids

Haku
Flame

Re: F*ck the triffids...

Damn straight! I was extremely pissed when the 3rd year came round and I was eagerly awaiting the 3rd & final installment only to hear that they didn't have enough budget so we were left high'n'dry.

BRING BACK THE TRIPODS!

Yes! It's the USB Toaster!

Haku
Flame

You CAN cook with USB power...

...but you'll need 30 USB ports - http://xe.bz/aho/24/

(flames for the cooking aspect of this article)

Fujitsu boffins build 'god-view' cam rig for drivers

Haku

Did Nissan make theirs first?

See this Slashdot news entry from a month ago: http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/10/13/0054252

The link in the first post has video of it in action on Nissan's website.

One-eyed woman wants techno-vision

Haku
Go

Why stop at cameras?

If I were in her position I'd get a range of fake eyeballs made, each with a different function, but so far I can only think of a laser pointer (halloween, parties etc.), a torch to see in the dark, or even a flash drive - can you imagine the reactions of others when you take out your eye and plug it into a USB port?

UK health records should not be flogged off

Haku
Stop

No no no no, no. Just no.

Doesn't this kinda break patient confidentiality, like really really badly?

Giving 3rd party companies unfettered access to patients records would be like taking alcoholics to all-you-can-drink 24-hour bars. It'll end in tears, and probably a death or two.

Nissan: buy our electric cars... rent our batteries

Haku

Re: Hmmm, hot seat?

I wouldn't worry as long as they use lithium iron phosphate batteries, they don't have the same fire risks as lithium ion and lithium polymer types.

Half of Brits abuse apostrophe's

Haku
Coat

Lunchtime...

Anyone want some FISH AND CHIP'S ?

MP calls for Jezza Clarkson's head

Haku
Stop

Julie Moult is an idiot.

If anyone googles "Julie Moult" you'll see a veritable ton of websites/blog entries about how stupid she is, and why she's been 'googlebombed'.

Can we do the same for this idiot of a politician?

Chris Mole is an idiot.

Is the internet going down down under?

Haku
Coat

'extreme porn' ?

Is that in the same context as 'extreme ironing' ? that would be quite entertaining to watch actually

ie doing it on a tightrope across a ravine, on the side of a mountain rockface, underwater with scuba gear, whilst skydiving, on the roof of a moving vehicle, in a cycling race, in a wind tunnel, whilst waterskiing, etc. etc.

Mandelson's dept mulls UK internet power grab

Haku

Re: A tax on the internet?

Nothing new there, the government are always looking for new things to tax, here's some pretty convincing evidence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmOHx5Ftez8

Pipex upgrade causes email snafu

Haku

It all becomes clear (sort of)

Oh so that's why I was getting an invalid user/pass when trying to get my Pipex email a few days ago.

I thought they'd finally caught up with the fact that they kicked me off their ADSL service back in March 2007!

Well my Pipex email seems to be working again now, but the webspace I had with them disappeared a few days ago.

'Magnetic Death Star' fragments unearthed in New Jersey

Haku

"...many-faceted baubles from outer space..."

Reminds me of a book I once read as a kid called "Trillions" - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trillions-H-SF-Nicholas-Fisk/dp/0340710217

Sega to launch PSP beater in 2009

Haku

@Dominic Kua

If you want a pocket portable with Alex Kidd in Miracle World, import one of these, it runs on 3x AAAs, TFT screen and has TV output!!!111eleven!! (NTSC, looks terrible though) I got one for mainly playing Columns on:

http://www.gamersquad.com/category/Gadgets/Coleco-handheld-console-at-Target-(US)/

Oh and has anyone told Sega that they're turning off the analogue TV transmitters? Their new device better have a Freeview tuner, not that it'll be able to pick up that signal in most areas of the UK anyway...

Royal Society: Schools should show creationism 'respect'

Haku
Stop

Stupidity reigns...

If by some (hm, strange, I was about to say god-awful even though I'm athiest) absurd screw up creationism does get taught in schools, it should only ever be as part of RE (Religious Education) because to put it in the mainstream teaching like fact based science etc. would be very bad.

Phorm: Our business is fine, honest

Haku
Coat

Opt-out cookie? big FAIL

Where do you get the opt-out cookie? do you have to go down to your local BT ISP where you'll find it on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying 'Beware of the Leopard' ?

Dell Inspiron 910 mini-laptop to be a hardware hacker's dream?

Haku
Flame

Re: i still dont see the point of these laptops

...and I doubt you ever will considering you're unable to even identify the proper name of your own Acer Extensa 5420 laptop, which weighs 3 times that of these mini-laptops, has spining disc media which is susceptable to drops etc., and because the mini-laptops are significantly smaller and lighter they're far more portable & durable than a 'full-size' laptop will ever be.

Ofcom considers termination charges

Haku
Flame

Pay to receive calls?

Fuck right off.

If I wanted to pay to receive calls I'd get an 0800 number! (it is still 0800 that's free to call isn't it? only they keep screwing around with the number hierarchy so often I've lost track of what numbers charge at what rates)

'Googlebomb' blows up in Daily Mail hack's face

Haku
Coat

Internets FTW!

My b3ta sig has been appearing in in google seaches: http://www.google.com/search?q=b3ta+julie+moult+is+an+idiot

BBC iPlayer upgrade prompts new ISP complaints

Haku

Sucks to be on a bandwidth limited account

If the big ISPs do have some sort of "magic streaming box" installed in their system to deliver iPlayer content to it's users I get the horrible feeling that said content will still contribute to the bandwidth allocation per month that most ISPs enforce.

eBay changes anger smaller sellers

Haku
Flame

We need Google Auctions

It's been painfully obvious for a long time now that eBay don't want auctions, that they just want to be an online /shop/ front, starting with the Buy-It-Now & the introduction of 'stores' for sellers so they can sell multipile identical items, then changing the address name of the new (& bloody awful to use) search to "shop.ebay.co.uk" from the old (& still thankfully working) "search.ebay.co.uk", and now the absurd price hikes for auctions whilst dropping the prices for fixed price listings.

I hate eBay for these moves, if you're a collector of something obscure then it's now going to be even more difficult to find those 2nd hand items because private sellers will be even more reluctant to list knowing they're going to have to give such a huge percentage to eBay & PayPal for the "privilage" of selling through them.

Google appear to be the only company that could bring out an online auction site which would gain enough interest from sellers & buyers to steal customers away from eBay in significant amounts.

Do it Google, you know you want to.

That 'Elderly Persons' sign: Can you do better?

Haku
Coat

Re: I always thought that sign meant "conga line"

http://www.haku.co.uk/b3ta/PoliceConga.jpg

Russell Crowe to play Bill Hicks?

Haku

Re: Bill Who??

Hud Dunlap: watch this okay?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1366476727111157120

Somehow I can't see Russell stepping into Bill's shoes very well. Have to agree on Denis Leary, he's just a Tesco Value Bill Hicks. Bill is probably waiting patiently for Denis on the other side... http://www.haku.co.uk/b3ta/BillHicksDenisLeary.jpg

Dollar surge helps software vendors soak customers

Haku
Unhappy

Ah crap!

What the flip's going on with the USD to GBP exchange rate? the GBP value is suddenly dropping against the USD! now we're gonna get even more screwed in the UK, it was bad enough before but without the strong GBP rates it means importing suddenly got more expensive again.

Past 120 days GBP/USD graph http://www.x-rates.com/d/USD/GBP/graph120.html

The IT Crowd goes west

Haku

jPod

If you liked "The IT Crowd" and "Dweebs" (damn, where can I get a copy of that series?!) then go and get the Canadian TV show "jPod" from your local friendly torrent tracker - only one series as the bloody executives cancelled it but well worth a watch.

So pleased "The Big Bang Theory" is back for a 2nd season, some of the material in that literally had me in stitches, seriously loved the deep geekiness of the jokes & subject matter.

As for America re-doing "The IT Crowd", you HAVE seen the American "Red Dwarf" pilot?

IBM solves world's 'paper or plastic' crisis

Haku
Thumb Down

Tesco's scan-it-yourself tills

the ones without a conveyer belt practically force you to take a plastic bag, if you have a rucksack or pannier bag and place it on the machine where the plastic bags hang it refuses to scan your items, this is because that shelf has weighing scales in and checks the weight of the item you just scanned to make sure you don't put a different item in the bag than the one you scanned, and it doesn't like the weight of your rucksack/pannier bag.

Stupid eco unfriendly Tesco :p

CherryPal launches $249 mini PC into ad-backed cloud

Haku

"Imagine only using 2 watts of energy"

But bang goes the saving energy idea when you plug it into a 40 watt 17" monitor or 150 watt 42" plasma screen.

I suppose you could get some OLED 'VR' glasses that power off USB (using 2.5 watts max) but they'd cost 3-5x the price of the CherryPal...

Cheap chargers claimed to put gadget fans at risk

Haku
Boffin

USB charging

I rarely ever bother usng the official charger that comes with the device when it needs 5v, opting for USB charging either with a homebrew or pre-made lead.

The great thing about USB charging is that you don't have to carry around a lump of plastic often bigger & heaver than the device it charges. Retractable cables being the easiest to carry around.

It's very easy to make your own USB charging lead for mobile phones (and other 5v requirement devices that don't need more than 500mA) especially when there aren't any official or 3rd party ones available - just buy the cheapest car adaptor you can find, snip off the cigarette lighter plug and and solder on a USB plug.