Posts by Roland6 10712 publicly visible posts • joined 23 Apr 2010
>get spotted with his police entourage cycling 7 miles from home
Makes you realise just how small London really is... and how your perception of the distance between Downing St and Stratford has been skewed by congestion and public transport.
My nearest supermarket is 8 miles away and I think of it as normal to cycle the 6 miles into my nearest town.
>Why should I have to memorise junction numbers as well?
Don't see the grounds for complaint. It really irritates me that RDS radio traffic news frequently refers to junctions/interchanges etc. by names that don't appear on the maps (OS/Google/Bing etc.), SatNav or even on the roundabout/junction itself.
>"it’s something a bit more akin to that sci-fi world where you have your documents on the pad whilst looking at companion information on the phone and copying between the two for notes because Apple stuff works quite well at doing that."
But it is still a long way off what Palo Alto were doing with ubiquitous computing back in the 1980's...
For several years now (well since the iPad2) found the 'basic' techgear utility case to be good enough for SEN kids and adults with learning difficulties, had very few breakages. Plus there is a colour choice.
However, after several field engineering projects(1), I've become a fan of "just enough protection" ie. just enough to protect the device from small knocks/accidents, but not so much that field engineers stop looking after their device.
(1) I remember one handheld computer from the 1990's that came with a rugged aluminium case - it tended to be used as a substitute hammer...
>I'm too stingy to shell out additional money for an ultralight laptop
Personally, for some years now, like you, I've had a 'workstation' laptop and paired it with an iPad for easy/quick usage particularly when on the move. Previously, I had tried to use a netbook - which the iPad2 easily outperformed...
Funny that, for one client, have been rolling out laptops (Lenovo) and iPads. The laptops are for the usual Office applications. The iPads for Zoom and always on/accessible email.
After a year and exploring various configurations, my partner now typically has the iPad on a stand above the laptop so that she can use the laptop whilst also using Zoom on the iPad. This configuration also allows her to take the iPad 'walkabout' - so she can consistently Zoom from anywhere with little setup being required.
From the user viewpoint, there is no comparison between the audio and video quality of an iPad and your typical Windows laptop (that includes Lenovo Thinkpads); just as there is no comparison between using MS Office on a laptop and trying to do the same on an iPad.
This approach does mean the phone is pretty much, just a phone and MiFi (for laptop and iPad, so don't need the expensive mobile enabled variants).
> "10G + PoE combo"
This specific combo is probably niche today, I was actually looking at this from a general all purpose piece of kit. Where it is probably easier to kit out with 4 x 10/100/1G/10G LAN with PoE ports than to mix and match.
>I've never seen a passive cooled switch with a >10Gb fibre port. Have you?
Most switches are quite large and performant, however there are some which support "fanless operation". Looking at a 4 port desktop device (ie. not intended to support connection to a production server) with a well designed case, there is no reason why passive cooling wouldn't work.
This Ubiquiti desktop switch seems to be fanless:
https://www.broadbandbuyer.com/products/33906-ubiquiti-us-xg-6poe/
But basically it is clear Cisco currently don't see 10Gbps being part of the typical office environment now or in the next few years.
>1. There's the SFP port.
The SFP port is for the uplink ie. connection to the building wiring. Obviously, the (Cisco compatible) SFP module will be an additional cost.
>2. Do you have a use case for a desktop 10G
Yes, talk to a CGI production house. However, given how relatively cheap 100Mbps/1Gbps/10Gbps LAN adaptors are, it would make sense for Cisco to have an equivalent offering - but then perhaps these micro switches might impact sales of more expensive (Cisco) kit...
>40G uplink would probably need active cooling as well
It's fibre, none of my 100Gbps SFP modules have active cooling...
>Why not 100G for the lulz?
Well currently 10Gbps over copper is reasonable, thus 4 ports implies 40Gbps, but yes it is more cost effective (for the customer) to go with 1/10/100Gbps fibre uplinks.
>The PSU is 80W
From rereading the spec. it seems for the desktop variant, depending on which PSU option you take, the max. passthrough power budget is 120W and so it can support USB-PD, whilst the PoE budget seems to be limited to 60W max. (30W max. per port). I suspect Cisco intend the PoE to be used by a (Cisco) desk phone.
Yes in the late 80's/early 90's there was an expectation that fibre would take off, personally, I was sceptical even allowing for the benefits of blown fibre, given the costs and problems of in-situ glass fibre termination. However, plastic fibre looked promising for in-building networking but it too seems to have been past over.
>so fibre to the wifi...
Well, one of the advantages of copper has been the ability to unify data and power over a single cable. However, it does look that with WiFi 6 and its theoretical limit of 9.6Gbps we are reaching the point where AP's will be needing two different connections: one copper for power and a second (potentially fibre) for data, making installation a lot more problematic.
>While even fixed PCs can have WiFi, ... unless external antennas are not placed properly.
Got a problem with one client - they invested in a bunch of nano USB WiFi adaptors - yes the adaptor says 802.11n but connection stability is only a given if the adaptor is within 3 metres of a WiFI AP, place it 6+ metres away...
The Ubiquity hub is powered by either PoE (leaving 4 ports for user devices) or USB-C. It doesn't provide any PoE or USB-C power outlets for user devices. So given it's modest power demands, it and a power adaptor could fit in a laptop bag.
The Cisco hub is obviously trying to limit the proliferation of desktop power outlets. However, as noted by others it is an ugly box to have on any desk outside of an electrical engineering lab.
Having way back in the 1980's spec'd a fibre-to-the-desk/FTTO/FTTx network infrastructure, I know there are use cases, which cause me to question:
1. Why no fibre port - this implies if I actually want fibre-to-the-desk I actually need 2 x FTTx outlets (one for the micro hub, one available to user devices).
2. Why limit it to 1Gbps ports, the top end model should have 10Gbps capable ports and the four port models capable of supporting up to 40Gbps over the fibre....
Additionally, the Cisco website spec's don't give any information about the USB-C power other than the line about laptops, so is it 100w capable?
>I haven't got round to putting cat5 round my house even though I've lived here for 5 years and I'm very lucky I have 5ghz wireless
There is 5Ghz (802.11a) and there is 5Ghz (802.11ax aka WiFi6)...
If your broadband connection is sub 30Mbps and you are not using the WiFi for TV casting, you'll probably not notice the difference.
> This system is something the Telcos do on their side of the switch and re-direct to multiple consumer lines even using different technologies such as land-line. mobile and VOIP. Right or wrong?
Right, the limitation seems to be that all numbers need to be within a single service providers network.
I think the key to the patent is that it requires the service providers network to be adapted so that any number within that network can be part of the group rather than just numbers within a specific number range - which is the case with Centrix/PBX solutions.
So in old speak its an IN service.
>"Read the withdrawal agreement: UK EVs will not face additional tariffs"
Wow! yes that may be correct, but if you have been paying attention to current affairs you would know that the current UK-EU trade problems are nothing to do with 'tariffs' and all about paperwork and its correctness (eg. use "GB" and not "UK").
Also, you are forgetting about the rules of the Single Market and its "level playing field" procurement preferences for suppliers within the Single Market - which as we know the UK is now outside of...
So those UK EV's (and batteries) will face additional non-tariff hurdles to their sale in the Single Market...
Basically, the UK government advice for exporters to set up an operation in say Germany(*) and employ local workers and pay local taxes is fundamentally correct, if you really want to sell in the Single Market on the same level playing field we had prior to Brexit. This situation was obvious the moment it was suggested that leaving the EU also meant leaving the EEA/Single Market.
(*) or one of the other 26 member nations.
Tesla will only get money because it satisfies the criteria of being an EU manufacturing company, which means it has to have facilities in the EU and employ EU residents. So whilst some monies will wing their way across the pond, much will remain within the EU - just like the monies and tax revenues the UK gained from having Google et al set up R&D facilities in the UK.
Perhaps you are suggesting that the UK government shouldn't have encouraged Nissan to set up in Sunderland because profits would go back to Japan...
>"Indeed, and this was both a surprising and unfortunate move by GitLab. I could understand raising the price of the Bronze starter tier"
What is surprising is they are keeping the free tier and seem to want more people to use it. Don't see how this (maintaining the free tier) is going to make GitLab appear to be more profitable...
>How does the phone's compass even work with that much of a magnetic field?
It (the mobile phone's compass) is a waste of time round here - the ironstone is only a few feet below ground level. Even traditional compasses have difficulty finding north. Given how maps etc. tend to display correctly, I assume the mobile phone primarily relies on satellite data for orientation.
>There isn't a lot of new features coming out when companies release a new flagship phone these days. It all increments such as slightly better camera, a bit faster CPU or more memory.
Its been like that since the iPhone was originally launched. Just that back then the incremental improvements seemed so much more substantive because they were so much more noticeable and actually made the device more usable.
As for Harry, he bought himself a multimeter the very next day to check future outlets just in case he ran into the work of another electrician who "had never thought to check the specs."
"I never had an issue after that first time," he said
I've found it is useful to have a pack of spare fast blow fuses - for the multimeter, in the bag...
> The better version would be to ensure the cleaners are equipped with the T plug so that nothing important gets plugged into the sockets they want.
Several companies I work with, used round pin sockets for the cleaners sockets, which were located in visually obvious places eg. along corridors.
>The combination of electricity and water/high humidity is rather unfortunate if the electricity isn't done right.
With bathrooms, its the earthing that must be done right...
20+ years back I rewired a house to the then wiring standards. It was quite shocking to discover the difference between 1975'ish earthing requirements and 2000'ish earthing requirements - the 2000 requirements required heavier gauge earthing cable and more of it along with clamps on taps, radiator, etc., in addition to the RCD in the fuse box...
What amused me was that it was now okay to use a standard light switch - as long as its outside the "wet area" whereas before it had to be a pull cord; given the average teenager doesn't dry their hands...
>Currently, it's a complete pain to make Google's services operate with regular desktop applications
Noted how the major web browsers now prefer you to be signed with their account.
Google has taken this a step further and every attempt to use Google search from within a Chrome incognito window results in a pointless pop-up, that will only go away if you sign in...
Zoom will soon be the most secure conferencing tool out there.
Interestingly, many of the "security deficits" are generic to any communications service...
>A lot of tech is being developed to make WFH viable. With VOIP and a computer, a phone receptionist could easily work from home.
Suggest rereading your Tom Peters experiences of virtual organisations from the 1980's...
The only difference is that today, the virtual organisation can more easily consist of work-at-home individuals and you would have no real idea as to whether this is or isn't the case, until you are in the middle of a call and the parrot decides to join in....
>There was a piece in the November 2020 CACM by someone from SourceForge who's worked remotely for a long time (I don't recall the author at the moment, and I'm too lazy to look it up). He offered six tips (the article says five but there's a coda) for remote working.
Five Nonobvious Remote Work Techniques
Surprised it was on the first page of a speculative Google and the full text is freely readable.
>But now after a year or so I have started to miss a little bit of office action, pub lunch, talking shit together, and even some collaborative work stuff believe it or not.
Yes, it's the social interaction of any form outside of your home/bubble is the real problem.
Once things get a little more relaxed then there will be opportunities to get together, but much depends on how flexible companies are going to be, which in part depends on how the senior management perceives things.
>I do have a 17" laptop on order to make it easier on the eyes and I suppose at a pinch I could have gone upstairs & connected a second monitor but it's pretty chilly up there.
Not got an HDMI TV in a warm part of the house :)
[Aside: I've experimented with a cheap HDMI projector, however, it's not been much use as I have few walls/surfaces suitable for projection and it is too dim to comfortably use under normal domestic lights alongside a normal led screen.]
>However simply flipping between multiple desktops works fine.
I prefer multiple VM's - Chrome deciding to go slow on one doesn't mean the others are also left hanging. Although it is a little more tricky moving stuff between 'desktops'...
Well one of the big things working in an office does do is: mindset.
When I worked in an office, I had to both make the effort to get to work, but also to dress for work - I found initially my suit (as opposed to jeans and t-shirt) was akin to putting on my armour and helped with the mindset, likewise being in an office and sitting at your work desk, you tend to behave and think differently.
Now working at home, I've found some of the disciplines learnt from the office helpful in getting me into a work mindset.
I think those who haven't worked in an office will struggle to develop the work mindset and then perform the necessary flips between home and work mindsets.
>When will we start to see WFH replaced by WFA (Work From Abroad or Work From Anywhere)?
In the mid 90's, on being given a laptop (386 cpu) and dial modem I joined the Anytime, Anywhere, Anyplace workforce - and became a Lotus Notes & Sametime user.
Interesting reflecting on Dr Syntax's contribution on Working From Home as opposed to Working At Home, there does seem to be two distinct groups: those who (in general) have laptops and are simply working remotely and those who have a full home desktop and office setup.
In both cases, the need for collaboration and unified communications tools like Notes and Sametime is obvious. However, I would hope that with modern hardware etc., the implementation of these tools will be better.
>Perhaps you find the act of writing down too slow and so you lose your train of thought...
You are right, the principal problem is speed.
I fully understand, that was my problem - I'm a visual thinker, and it did take several years to overcome; although even now I find myself doing things to avoid actually sitting down and writing...
>Nobody is expecting an employee in Bombay to be paid the same as an employee in New York...
But that is the logical conclusion to economic aid and development...
Remember that person in Bombay isn't as cheap (in real-terms) to employ as they were back in the 1990's...
>The most ridiculous thing I've found so far is a motherboard that just hangs if a...
Get similar problems using modern techniques on old kit... Created a USB Win10 image, went to an old HP Win7 box and discovered the BIOS only supported boot from an IDE connected device, namely one of: FDD, HDD, CD. Naturally, I wasn't carrying a blank DVD nor a drive in which to burn it...
>That could be the crux of the matter. There is a bewildering number of Linux distros out there. Some random user, having heard of Linux and for whatever reason,. decides to try it, might well just pick whatever turns up first in the search results.
Agree, the issue seems to be the quality of installers.
It's almost as if what is wanted is a pre-installation configuration compatibility checker that determines which drivers your hardware needs and then provides a shortlist of the distro's with open/proprietary driver support and then can download all relevant drivers for a chosen distro (ie. create a drivers disk), so that they are available to that distro's installer.
Pie in the sky I know, but that is effectively what MS did for Windows 10.
Huawei cannot, for example, license Google Mobile Services (GMS), which is the all-important secret sauce in Android, and contains proprietary apps like the Google Play Store and Google Maps.
Trump has here exposed the lie that "Android" (ie. what joe Public regard as Android) isn't open source.
Huawei and other Chinese (and non-US) companies now have added incentive to replace these elements, unfortunately I expect they also won't be open source. However, Google will have a choice either make their "secret sauce" open source and thus available to all as part of the Android distribution or as they have done with previous Google products, dump it and adopt Huawei's code...
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