Is nothing sacred?
I prefer to follow the example of one Bill Bailey:
"HEY, ASDA! I ain't gonna be your bitch!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMB7jzFDQCs
Posts by Rameses Niblick the Third (KKWWMT)
137 publicly visible posts • joined 9 Sep 2011
Asda knocks 20 quid off Kobo WiFi
Microsoft tempts with WinPho demo on... iPhone
Wednesday 30th November 2011 12:15 GMT 
I dislike this...
I don't know if it's just the demo (though I suspect it's not, having seen some screen shots from Win Phones), but the fact that the titles seem not to fit on the screen properly just rubs me right up the wrong way. I really don't care if it's a design feature or what, but it feels like they couldn't be arsed to make shit fit properly. It feels very clunky and needlessly difficult to use. I like Android because it can give me lots of information at once, not 5 or 6 of the biggest buttons ever. I guess it's good for those who's eyesight it failing them I guess.
Toyota unveils 'smartphone on four wheels'
Tuesday 29th November 2011 09:41 GMT
@ AC
" Rather spend that computing power on having the thing learn to steer itself, leaving me to interact with my fellow passengers instead"
If you look closely at the picture at the bottom of the article, the steering wheel has retracted in to itself, and says "AUTO DRIVE" across the centre, suggesting that exactly what it is (conceptually) doing.
Samsung Galaxy Nexus Android smartphone
Tuesday 29th November 2011 09:40 GMT
I'm actually exited now
I have a Desire HD, and until now I've not seen anything in upcoming Android releases which I've thought 'yeah, I'll get that at upgrade time', even the Sensation was something of a let-down, specs wise. Not that I want the Nexus (limited storage, audio problems and generally, I don't want to pay £400 - £500 to be a beta tester for Google), but usually the release of the Google branded phone heralds the release of much better specced phones from other manufacturers.
Hopefully by the time my contract runs out in about a year, there will be something worth the effort of upgrading to!
Mobile operators warned on 'unlimited' data gouging
Friday 18th November 2011 18:23 GMT
Completely agree
I went with 3 almost a year ago, I got a Desire HD for £35pm for two years, 2000 any network minutes, 1000 texts and 1Gb of data. A month later, they started the One Plan with actual, genuine unlimited data. Without so much as a word from me, I got a nice letter from them telling me they were upgrading me to all-you-can-eat data at no extra charge. And I really don't mind the 2 year contract. I don't need the latest and greatest shiny thing, I am really happy with the DHD, and there's nothing which has been released since which I want more.
My wife went with 3 at around the same time, same contract but she got a Nokia N8. After less than a week, the phone was unusable as it would reboot constantly. Some quick Googling revealed that this was not an isolated incident. 3 offered to replace the phone like - for like. I argued and said this was a bigger problem than one bricked phone, and said we wanted a DHD instead. Apparently normal policy is to replace the phone with the manufacturer under the warranty, however once the chap on the phone had a quick word with his supervisor, we got it replaced with a DHD, no problem.
I know 3 have a bad reputation for customer service, but I have to say that I've so far found them to be very easy to deal with and always seem willing to help. Of course, YMMV.
Greener Arctic may be down to lemming poo, not climate
LHC results may solve riddle of how universe can exist
Go back to the future with Red Dwarf
Monday 14th November 2011 14:44 GMT
@Graham Bartlett
Mmm, I see what you're saying, but I am forced to disagree. In your analogy, I would feel very pleased to say no, and probably quite smug too. But (as you can tell from my screen name), I could (almost) never say no to Red Dwarf. Despite all they've done to me, the idea of it coming back still excites me, and despite it hurting me in the past, I'm willing to forgive that because there is a chance, albeit a small one, that it will be amazing and brilliant all over again. They've proved, to me at least, that they can do it if they try. 'Back in the Red' (feature length episode / first 3 episodes of series 8 depending on which bit of the DVD you watch) was back to Red Dwarf as it should be.
I'm almost certain that they are going to hurt me all over again, but I'll take that risk, because when it's good, its fantastic.
PS: Allow the 'Reply' function in to your life, go on, you might like it ;-)
Monday 14th November 2011 11:55 GMT 
Stop doing this to me!
Reading this news is like getting a text from a girl that dumped you offering a shag. You want it, you know you do, but you know that, in the end, it will be painful and a bad idea. But you'll probably do it anyway.
Series 6 was brilliant and really it should have ended there. Series 7 was dire, but the first half of series 8 was absolutely brilliant. Lister and Rimmer, together in a small room, getting in to scrapes, I loved it. Then they introduced dinosaurs, and it went crap again. The mini-series never happened. Seriously, it was a bad dream.
So will I watch it? Of course I will.
Results in on why life, the universe and everything exists
US.gov: We aren't hiding any space aliens
Steve Jobs named most influential game guy – ever
Thursday 3rd November 2011 09:29 GMT
True, but...
Many people consider the wheel to be the single greatest advancement of the human race. That doesn't mean that the guy who invented it intended for it to be used to allow cars to do 200 mph, or machines to make a thousand paper clips a minute or whatever.
In the same way, TBL might not have designed the www with a view to people swearing at each other on TeamSpeak, but he laid the foundation upon which the majority of modern gaming relies. Hell, without the work of TBL, we wouldn't have FarceBook and farmville, and all those iPhone apps would have to be bought from high street retailers on CD's or something.
Native Gmail app coming to iPhone, iPad?
Tuesday 1st November 2011 18:29 GMT
Seriously?
You mean the main reason people buy Android phones over iPhones is because of the native GMail app? And if it does make it to iOS, Android phone makers will lose one of their main selling points?
Are you high or something?
I like Android for the overall experience, its more intuitive to use for me, and I like the phones. I didn't even use GMail before I got Android, it's only been since that I've started using it.
Sorry, but this article is such a load of rubbish.
97% of Three's network traffic is data
Tuesday 1st November 2011 14:38 GMT
Usage caps?
I was under the impression that this advert was for the One Plan, which offers (according to the contract I have in front of me) unlimited data. No fair use limits, no little star to indicate a tiny-print footnote, nothing. Actual unlimited data.
As for patchy signal, yes the indoor signal is not as good as other carriers because 3G signal is not as good as 2G at penetrating solid objects, and unlike most carriers, Three has no 2G backup. That said, I can make calls quite happily from pretty much everywhere (though I realise others experience may vary).
We like zombies… because we are zombies
Boffins insert 3D objects into any old photo... realistically
Monday 24th October 2011 11:42 GMT
I have to agree
I'm not sure why people downvoted this, because it's a fairly accurate assesment.
The shadows drawn on the surface of the dragon look plain wrong given the shadow in the first shot, added to this the shadow of the tree is still visible in the shadow of the dragon.
I'm not sure it's a waste of time, but it's by no means back-patting and celebratory-drinkie time yet, not by a long way.
Vegas man begs web for $1m to fix gigantic scrotum
Friday 21st October 2011 08:49 GMT
@Graham Bartlett
"It is just about possible to be 6 foot, 300lbs and not be fat. Ronnie Coleman, for instance. But this guy is not a professional bodybuilder, yeah?"
True, but there is an awful lot of difference between being fat and being obese as you stated. I didn't say he wasn't fat, I said he isn't necessarily obese. By your own example, you can't judge obesity given only someone's height and weight. The linked article also says he worked in security. What kind of role did he have? Well we don't know, but if he was a bouncer, for example, then it's quite likely he would have been in reasonable physical shape.
"As for working, he'd just lost his job."
I suggest you read the article, or al least the post you are replying to. He didn't lose his job, he quit because he was no longer capable of performing his duties.
But hey, let's not let the facts get in the way of mocking the guy with nuts the same weight as a person, eh?
Wednesday 19th October 2011 14:29 GMT
@Graham Bartlett
"Except by his own admission he was obese, no job and living on his own at age 44, before any of this happened."
From the linked article:
"Then working on commission finding appropriate sites for ATM machines in the Las Vegas Valley, Warren said he went to doctors off and on for months, including a lymphedema specialist, without finding help. "I kind of gave up," he said.
But the swelling became so large that he could no longer work. He went on disability. And in early 2010 he again entered UMC, hoping that doctors could find a way to take him out of his misery."
So he was working, I cant see it as fair to criticise him for living alone, a lot of people do, and for someone over 6 ft tall, his original weight of 300 pounds does not necessarily make him obese.
A somewhat harsh, and wholly inaccurate comment, in my view.
Paul Ceglia loses another lawyer in Facebook spat
DeLorean goes electric for 2013 roll-out
4chan founder bashes Facebook, Google+ on identity
Tuesday 18th October 2011 11:03 GMT
Agreed
That's pretty much what I thought, Google's circles feature was something I'd been waiting a long time for, the ability to share different things with different groups of people.
To say that someone's online identity is different from their real world identity is somewhat limiting in my view, given that I, and I'm sure others, have several different real world identities even though they might not realise it. For example, when at work, I behave differently around customers and clients than I do towards my co-workers. I behave differently again when I'm at home with my family, and differently again when I'm with my friends. Why should my online profile limit me to one view of myself? I might think that the video of a monkey trying to hump an elephant is strikingly funny*, and would share that with my friends, but I probably wouldn't with a client.
* Point of interest, I've never seen a video of a monkey trying to hump an elephant, nor have I ever sought one out so I cannot really comment on the level of humour contained therein. Sounds damn funny though.
BOFH: Where's my free fondleslab?
Valve chief says Apple will own your living room
Where am I going tomorrow? My electric car charger wants to know
Thursday 13th October 2011 11:23 GMT
Since when was life that predictable?
Compare and contrast:
Situation:
You go to work for the day, come home and at some point in the evening a family member is taken ill and needs to go to hospital. This may not be life threatening, in which case the Ambulance service wont respond, they will expect you to do it yourself (not unreasonably, in the case of non-emergency admissions)
Case 1:
Conventional car.
You: "Right, lets go, I'll make a quick stop at the petrol station on the way because I was going to go there in the morning before work"
Result:
After a short delay, you arrive at the hospital
Case 2:
Electric car charged to the minimum requirements for expected use
You: "Dammit, the battery is flat and there won't be enough charge in the car for several hours"
Result: Unnecessarily long delay in arriving at hospital and your loved one being treated.
Now, I realise this is a very specific circumstance, but it usefully illustrates the wider point that life simply is not that predictable. In the case where cars can charge to at least 80% of their total capacity in 10 minutes, this would be useful. As it is currently more like 10 hours, sorry, I don't see it.
I know there is an overhead (possibly quite a big one) in using hydrogen to power a fuel cell, and for this reason many see it as unsuitable, but as technology improves, that overhead will drop and you can still fuel your car in a matter of minutes, plus we handily avoid many problems of overloading the national grid at peak times, running cables across the pavement for those without driveways and so on.
Smut oglers told to opt in to keep web filth flowing
Tuesday 11th October 2011 15:06 GMT
@Loyal Commentor
Agreed, if you want the government to raise your kids for you, you should hand them over at birth. I don't see why it comes as a shock to parents that something they made is their responsibility.
@Robert Long 1
Er no, that would be silly. My Wife, their mother, looks after them when they are home, the school for the older one during the day. And before anyone says it, no, that's not the government raising my child, its the government EDUCATING my child.
Virus infects killer US air drone fleet
Monday 10th October 2011 16:10 GMT
"It is believed that the malware won't be able to transmit the information it collects beyond the classified military network hosting the equipment; the network is insulated from the public internet."
This isn't some two-bit home network NAS we're talking about here ffs! How can they be so relaxed about it? It got in to an isolated (allegedly) network, until you can PROVE otherwise, you have to assume it can get out, not go, "well, we'll probably be ok, so bollocks to it".
What if it got there via an infected USB stick? Is it plausible to think that maybe the stick captures info from the virus the next time its attached to the network?
HTC brings Beats to bigger blower
Friday 7th October 2011 14:26 GMT
@BenR
Agree with almost all of that, with the following exception:
"The RAM allocation is poor, the CPU is last-gen tech that has been clocked up, and no SD card slot and only 16Gb on board with just over 12 available means it isn't really even much cop if people want to use it as an MP3/media player with phone capabilities."
Mostly because the article says:
"There's a storage capacity of 16GB, with a Micro SD slot to extend that even further."
Totally agree with the rest though, processor looks poor and the screen resolution is diabolical for a device this size.
Will keep my Desire HD for now, thanks.
Gay-bashing cult plans picket of Steve Jobs funeral
Friday 7th October 2011 08:52 GMT
How can we fight these idiots?
Very simple, as far as I am concerned. They seek violent reactions and sue as a result, so we should deny them that reaction. Instead, we should show them love and understanding, and here's what I have in mind.
If you see these people protesting anything, don't shout, don't jeer, go up to them, pick a member of their organisation the same sex as yourself, and come on to them. I mean REALLY come on to them, and don't stop until they give the kind of reaction they want from others.
Even if it doesn't work, it'd be a laugh.
Where's the big-wet-sloppy-kiss icon?
NHS claws back £170m refund on duff IT system
Tuesday 4th October 2011 14:55 GMT
@commonsense
Exactly.
@JDX
How exactly do you come to the conclusion that it is the NHS / Governments fault that this company could not build the software? Shifting goalposts perhaps? Badly defined goals? Maybe the NHS constantly updating the product spec?
We don't know if any of these three things is true, but if any are, lets face it, thats still a fail on the part of the company for not defining the contract well enough and the project manager / customer liaison not keeping the customer to the agreed spec.
So yes, £30 million for the square root of sod all, and possibly being incompetent as well.
October 14 declared 'Steve Jobs Day'
'Boss from hell' knuckle-rapped for 'firing contests'
Tuesday 4th October 2011 10:43 GMT 
Clear money saving policy
You tell your employees to send in the names of the next person they think will be fired. You count them up, then fire the guy with most "votes", because clearly his co-workers don't like him, and they must have a reason, right?. Small prizes for the correct "guesses" and you don't have to pay fees for secret shoppers. The man is a genius!
London gets first new Google Chromebookshop
Monday 3rd October 2011 19:20 GMT 
Competing with Apple?
I'm no Apple fanboi, I own an Android phone for goodness sake, but my god that shop looks awful. While the Apple stores have a certain stylishness to them, the bright primary colours in that Google shop make it look like the Play Centre I take my kids to when it's raining.
It also looks astonishingly cheap and plastic-y.
But then that's just my opinion.
Glasses, to remind people to take their sun glasses with them if they go.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
