* Posts by Rattus Rattus

1068 publicly visible posts • joined 15 Oct 2009

Anonymous hacks Sony PS3 sites

Rattus Rattus

"firmware / software which are Sony's intellectual property"

Now, I see that as bullshit right there. If I paid for a product, I see it as my right to do what the hell I want with it, without regard to whether that product is hardware, software or a bit of each. The code might be Sony's IP, but the copy of it inside my (hypothetical) console is MY COPY, with which I will do as I please. Now, that doesn't include passing it off as mine or duplicating it and selling it on to other people - the law rightly forbids me from doing so. If I want to modify it for my own use however, I do not see any moral reason why I should not be able to. Sony might say I can't but, honestly, fuck them.

It's about time corporations were reminded that once they have sold something they have no control over what the customer does with it.

Anonymous might be a bit out of line in DDOSing Sony's sites, but I'm not going to shed any tears over it.

Stop sexing up IT and give Civil Servants Macs, says gov tech boss

Rattus Rattus

Laptops for management - AC11:12GMT

That is all far too true. None of the IT staff here have a laptop, although we do some after-hours support. This usually ends up being done from our home PCs over Citrix. All of management have laptops of course, even the ones who never take theirs out of the docking station and just leave it there in the evenings. Some of these are even ultraportables, because they're more expensive and therefore higher-status.

Rattus Rattus

o.o

"And for those sniffy about style: most of us appreciate good design and attractive objects at home or work and expect to pay more for them."

I really don't why people think Macs have such good design. Every Apple device I've ever seen has been shiny, plasticky and damn ugly. I have seen an awful lot of PC cases that look far better than any Mac, largely because they're not all aluminium and white plastic.

Rattus Rattus

On the other hand

Where I work we have a policy of replacing PCs with new ones every three years (which is when the warranty expires anyway). I still get a lot of requests for new computers "because mine's so old, I've had it for at least five years now." So I check the installed date we always record and it shows the PC is a year and a half old.

Then I get "Your records must be wrong, I'm sure I've had it for more than three years." So I go to the PC in question and look at the serial number (which for these models conveniently contains the manufacture date) and point out that it was only manufactured two years ago, and they still insist they've had it too long and want a new one. To my great satisfaction, I then get to reply "No." And walk away.

It's taught me (well, reinforced really) that users lie, except in cases where they don't and then they're just clueless.

Samsung rolls out 22in see-through screens

Rattus Rattus

Other uses

If they can be made more transparent, this would make fantastic wearable displays for augmented reality stuff. For a good example (if taken a bit beyond suspension of disbelief) take a look at the anime Denno Coil.

Oz network hits serious speed bump

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.au monthly caps

10gb is a bit low, but yes, sadly 20-30gb per month is pretty normal down here. I get 140gb a month but only because I'm paying a lot of beer tokens for the privilege.

James Cameron to amp up Avatar frame rate

Rattus Rattus

Oh, stop bitching

Who didn't know what to expect when they walked in there, eh? I went in expecting some amazing eye-candy with a fairly pedestrian plot to provide an excuse to keep the pretty stuff appearing on screen. I got exactly what I was expecting, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Not every film is or needs to be Citizen Kane. In fact, just to hear the screams of the film buffs, I would even say not even Citizen Kane is Citizen Kane - I tried again to watch that the other day, still had to turn it off partway through because it was boring as shit.

If you want amazing plots, go read a book.

Lindsay Lohan ditches her surname

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@Josco

"Quite pretty" - must have been an old photo.

New movie gives Yuri Gagarin's view of historic 1961 mission

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@serviceWithASmile

"...stuff people make and then release for free is usually of better quality than the stuff you pay for - strange though it may seem."

Doesn't seem strange at all to me, and probably wouldn't seem strange to anyone who regularly uses open source software.

Wi-Fi body wants hotspots to override 3G

Rattus Rattus

If your phone runs Android,

install Juice Defender. Turns off radios for you when they're not in use and turns them back on when the screen is on and briefly every fifteen minutes or so to check if anything's waiting. You can leave Wi-Fi on all the time and still get better battery life than turning Wi-Fi on & off manually.

Fukushima's toxic legacy: Ignorance and fear

Rattus Rattus

turning it off and on again

I believe that is exactly what they are trying to do. It's the turning it off part that's taking the time and effort.

NASA aims for space tests of Mars-in-a-month plasma drive

Rattus Rattus

Slowing down

Everyone's posted boring, sensible, low-risk answers to this question. I say keep accelerating til you get there, then lithobrake!

Smartphones now half of Aussie browsing, says Nielsen

Rattus Rattus

They found that

"fixed broadband users still downloaded more than ten times as much data as mobile broadband users."

Um, well... Duh? It's because we have crappy (& greedy) providers. I have one of the largest mobile data limits I could get for my phone, but my home broadband still allows me a hundred and forty times as much data per month before they shape my connection. The mobile connection is not only tiny by comparison, but I have to keep a much closer eye on usage since they charge a ridiculous amount per kb after I reach the monthly limit.

This report is meaningless when all it really says is consumers don't use a product that isn't offered - ie a large mobile data allowance.

Republicans believe in 'climate change' but not 'global warming'

Rattus Rattus

Indeed

The rule of thumb about surveys I'm familiar with is "less than 20% difference is not statistically significant."

Rattus Rattus

"could lead to an ice age"

Oh, I hope so. It's been way too friggin' hot down here in Australia. An average drop of a couple of degrees would be lovely.

Anti-religious campaigners smack down census Jedis

Rattus Rattus

@AC 13:47 - "ethnic group" question

Why not put "hominid" or even "mammal"?

Rattus Rattus

Touched by his noodly appendage?

I hear that happens in a lot of religions.

Rattus Rattus

Please, Dr. Mouse,

read the comments that point out, over and over, that the definition of atheism you are using IS NOT CORRECT. Atheism is a lack of belief, not a belief in it's own right.

Prepping the great Windows 7 migration

Rattus Rattus

SCCM

They've just begun using this here at work, what a pain in the arse, or maybe they've just buggered up it's configuration like they have with so much else. "Manually enter the MAC address of a PC to be deployed, now move it from this container to that one, now reboot and cross your fingers, now wait half an hour for it to do several reboots and installs, now move it to this container and delete the second copy of the object SCCM created for some reason, then reboot again and wait another half an hour..."

Christ. I prefer our old imaging method - boot off linux cd, run script wrapped around dd, reboot into Windows, run NewSID, join domain. Fifteen minutes total, one reboot, no faffing about with containers and other nonsense.

Amazon outlines Android bill of rights

Rattus Rattus

This one of the primary reasons

that I do not use iTunes at all, and do not intend to ,ever.

Nuance Flext9

Rattus Rattus

QR codes are useful

If you're reading this story on your PC as most people will rather than on your phone, it's nice & convenient to just snap a photo of the QR code and go straight to the app rather than either

(A) Open Market, type in name of app, swear under your breath, type in *correct* name of app, scroll through list and choose it; or

(B) Open web browser, go to El Reg, find this story, find link to app, click it.

Asian soup peril menaces bionic shark

Rattus Rattus

Shark meat

I beg to differ! Shark meat is delicious! I buy it by preference over crap like snapper or cod.

Also, I think anyone caught in our (Australian) waters harvesting shark fins and heaving the rest of the shark over the side should have their boat sunk by the navy, with the fishermen left on it as it sinks.

The Register and Australia-New Zealand

Rattus Rattus
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Nice one!

Thanks for putting in the effort for we Antipodeans, guys. It's appreciated, all the more so since most UK or US based sites don't even want to know that we exist.

One suggestion - have you thought about having someone at your Sydney operation moderate comments? That way, we don't have to wait until the next day for our comments to appear, which often leads to them going unread and unremarked since people have moved on to the newer stories by then.

Survey sets out to pin down nation's pr0n habits

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Indeed

maybe it'll give the cow a heart attack.

Rattus Rattus

@ Chris Miller

Moron talks bollocks. I, too, am unsurprised.

Google opens Android front in Zuckerberg data war

Rattus Rattus

"a world of true data liberation"

This is exactly what Facebook DOESN'T want. They want to keep your data locked up with them, so they can sell it on.

Jacqui Smith 'shocked' to discover we're drowning in sea of porn

Rattus Rattus

re: BrokeNCYDE

I think I just became an advocate of compulsory euthanasia.

Google threatens Chrome address bar with death

Rattus Rattus

What's the idea behind putting anything next to the tabs?

I already have my tabs extending off both the left and right sides of the screen, usually thirty or more per window. There's no room for anything next to them. Sometimes I wish I had two rows of tabs so I could more easily see just how many pages I have open.

One-third of Aussies 'are pirates'

Rattus Rattus

AFACT can get stuffed

The Australian dollar has been roughly at parity with the US dollar for quite a while now. The average new PC game in the US costs $50. In Australia, the same game costs $90 or more, even for digital delivery where you can ignore the cost of shipping. The same kind of pricing disparity is found in other forms of content - music, movies, even books!

Piracy in Australia would mostly disappear if content providers would (a) stop charging us double the prices they charge in America; and (b) make more of their services available in Australia (I'm looking at YOU, Netflix, as well as your friends).

If people cant legally obtain what they want at reasonable prices, they WILL turn to illegal means of obtaining it. It's not human nature to go without, or wait patiently for corporations to pull their collective finger out.

Steelseries World of Warcraft mouse and keyboard

Rattus Rattus

That's a very pretty mouse

It comes standalone, right? Or can you only get it in a pack with the keyboard?

Shame about the WoW logo on it, I'd like a good quality steampunk themed mouse but I don't play WoW. Anyone know a good (&sturdy) steampunk mouse without WoW logos and preferably with only three buttons?

HTC shuns Honeycomb for Android tablet debut

Rattus Rattus

So it's Sense's fault?

I don't even want Sense, first thing I'd do is turn it off. Not the tablet for me then.

Sex offenders will get a review – after 15 years

Rattus Rattus

@AC 16:03

"And there's that one kid who's a Lawyer now ... at least he's not a Banker."

Sounds like he was already enough of a banker back in school.

Can Oz compete in the outsourcing market?

Rattus Rattus

Actually, he probably meant

National Singles' Day.

Alabama sex shop owner swaps 'Guns for Toys'

Rattus Rattus

re "How does she know that a gun was used for crime?"

Well, for example, it may have been traded for an illegal dildo.

Australia’s NBN too expensive: EIU

Rattus Rattus

Dear EIU,

Fuck off.

Love and kisses,

Australia

PS: Public bad, private good? Certainly not for major infrastructure projects. This country has a history of privately owned infrastructure being allowed to decay without maintenance because it might cut into profits to pay people to actually work on it.

Jackson's Hobbit movies back on track

Rattus Rattus

@Marky W - Balrog vs Elf action?

In the words of Mary Gentle -

"Pass me another elf, sergeant. This one's split."

'Tree Octopus' proves journos no smarter than 13-year-old Americans

Rattus Rattus

Fortunately,

you don't get these dangerous animals here in Australia. When they tried to colonise our trees they were eaten by drop bears.

Oz road safety strategy moots mobile phone ban

Rattus Rattus

As I've suggested before

Make new driver testing much harsher, to the point where only about half as many people can even qualify for a license in the first place. Be more draconian in taking people's licenses away if they're caught being an idiot on the road. Put money into public transport and really improve it's services so that it can be used as most people's primary mode of transport. I see so many people on the roads every day that really should not be in control of a motor vehicle. Hell, some of them shouldn't even be in control of a hair dryer.

As a result, we'll have fewer but better drivers on the roads, less pollution, more available parking, much fewer accidents, less maintenance required on the roads due to less wear, and more people would do a bit more walking. Driving should not be a right that everyone can achieve, it should be a privelege that has to be earned through proving you can drive safely and sensibly.

And yes, I'm aware this might mean I could have to do without a car. So long as public transport is improved, I would be fine with that. I had to make my own way around for years without a car, both in the city and in the bush, and that was with the current poor public transport. It's not really that hard.

Motorola Super Bowl ad rips Apple drones

Rattus Rattus

"oppressive authoritarian control freak society"

But Apple's control-freak vision really does have a lot more in common with Brave New World than 1984. Get your iSoma.

Dead Space 2

Rattus Rattus

Should've reviewed the PC version

then we could have had an answer to the most pressing of questions - did they or did they not completely fuck up the control scheme again?

On the first one I had to go into config files and give the mouse four times the maximum sensitivity the onscreen slider allowed just to allow Isaac to turn around in less than a minute.

YouTube honours shuttle dead with 'Workplace Safety' ad

Rattus Rattus

Yeah, but since when

do beancounters listen to engineers? Especially when it might cost some money?

Rattus Rattus

@bexley

There are ads in Gmail?

.

.

.

Have I mentioned before how much I love Adblock Plus?

In defence of Comic Sans

Rattus Rattus

Why on earth

would you get rid of Papyrus? It's a rather nice-looking font, if inappropriate in a lot of places people use it. But best of all, it's fantastic for winding up typography nerds.

Aussies demand Poms cough up first 'Australia' map

Rattus Rattus

Re: Re: Here's one Aussie

Yeah, it's a thing. A bit of an older thing, but a thing nonetheless. It's long been opined down here that Brits only bathe once or twice a year due to the vicissitudes of weather.

Rattus Rattus
Thumb Up

Here's one Aussie

who honestly couldn't give a stuff about some old piece of paper.

Although I am amused to see all the Brit posturing and chest thumping. Don't work up too much of a sweat, guys - you don't want to have to take this year's bath a couple months too early, do you?

2011 Games Preview

Rattus Rattus

@Citizen Kaned:

Mouse and keys for most games; joystick for flight sims and racing games; shitty, imprecise, RSI-inducing gamepad for NOTHING.

And I think I'd sooner play Hello Kitty Online than stoop to football games or any "sports games."

Gov will spend £400k to destroy ID card data

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Whenever I hear the words

"securely delete," my first thought is always "THERMITE!"

Kiwis Demand: Talk TPPA turkey to us, Prime Minister

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Why on earth

do countries still enter into trade agreements with USA? Every agreement they've been involved in over the last fifty years at least has been beneficial ONLY to the US. Everyone else gets screwed. This has been the pattern again and again, do governments still believe they can talk the US into giving anything away?

'NBN is like a bathroom' says opposition, BCA agrees

Rattus Rattus

It's ideological.

They hate the NBN because they believe government should not be providing services or infrastructure, or, well, anything at all, really. The Liberals think everything should be provided by private industry who can then charge for it.

This kind of thinking is why, regardless of how much I despise Labor, I could never vote for the Libs. They're all a pack of lying bastards, even most of the minor parties too.

Tablets to eclipse e-book readers

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White text on black

Exactly! I can read books for hours at a time on my Nexus One when I switch to white-on-black. The default of black-on-white leaves my eyes sore and watering within a couple of pages.