Posts by Down not across

Re: Roaming is completely knackered.

Not sure about calls when you're roaming. Is there some sort of contact every time - eg to see that you have credit or to bill you?

That depends if you're pre-pay (PAYG) or post-pay (normal contract).

Traditionally it was all post-pay so when you connect to a network, it checks with your home network if you're roaming enabled. If the SIM is roaming enabled, it will be allowed to make/receive calls/SMS/etc. The operator then sends CDRs in TAP files back home for billing (often few days behind).

That wouldn't really work for PAYG, so a more complex system (CAMEL) allows for real-time CDR exchange in which case, yes, there would be contact before each billable event (call,SMS,MMS, etc).

It also resulted in a "loose lips sink ships" speech (yes literally those words) from a Director to the whole company.

I think what he meant was that loose lips were likely to lose him his bonus/payoff for shafting the employees.

Re: Not Suprised

One quite annoying feature is that if you use the soft client without logging out the deskphone first you're likely to get terrible audio issues. Whether that is coincidence or actual issue is unclear.

How the hell do you mis-estimate a project that it goes 3 billion over budget?! HOW? I can't even imagine that figure in practical terms! 200mil savings a year?

Hey its not so bad. It'll pay for the overrun in only 15 years (based on those figures) :-)

Re: Key? No thank you.

Or have I just invented something that I need to go off and patent?

No you haven't. RFID tag to open communal doors is quite common these days.

Re: Surely...

....

He felt uncertain as to whether the fourth drink had understood all that, so he sent a fifth to explain the plan more fully and a sixth for moral support."

Thank you for that. That bit about Zaphod knocking back the pangalactic gargleblasters always has me in stitches. Still. Every time.

Re: The CLI is not your friend, in such situations...

I prefer by far using GUI database tools which doesn't execute commands as soon as you past them because there are some CR and/or LF inside - and let me review everything before pressing the "run" button.

Most databases don't execute on CR/LF, but require an end of statement like ';'. '/' or 'go' or something similar.

Re: MS SOP: Embrace, Extend, Extinguish.

The name Xenix came about because Ma Bell couldn't (or didn't want to) let them use the UNIX name. The claim for jealousy guarding the trademarked UNIX name was because MaBell was regulated and wasn't allowed to get into the retail trade, although that always rang a trifle hollow to me.

I remember using Interactive UNIX V/386 (in addition to BSD I hasten to add) and recall it was very stable, My memory may bit bit hazy, but I thought it was was at least in some ways linked to AT&T (given they used name UNIX they must have been...) and they had earlier System III releases too for PDP, VAX. They had some dealings with IBM too as prior to V/386 the PC/ix that IBM offered was an Interactive product if my memory serves.

Re: Armagadd-on

This isn't even close in scale to Microshaft's constant and on-going disasters. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

Dunno. Exhibiting the "we know better than you, so won't give you a choice" attitude, is like Win 10 updates. Disabling extensions, that were already installed, is step too far. This with the increasingly annoying interface really makes me wonder if Mozilla really wants to drive people away from FF.

Re: What about satellite?

Trying to control information to that degree basically requires keeping your population as prisoners like in North Korea. Is Putin really prepared to go that far?

Collapse of USSR is fairly recent, so it is not that long ago when travel out of USSR was tightly controlled. Hence I wouldn't rule it out (if you can rule anything out with Putin).

Re: Let me be the first to point out.

I should be able to sync across devices easily and not rely on any 3rd party cloudy storage. I suspect I'll never get that.

KeePass, just as one example, does offer various extensions for syncing (sftp,scp if you want to avoid the 3rd party cloudy stuff) but whether they work on all platforms is another matter. Some extensions rel on platform specific libraries.

Re: Smart phones should replace PC's

Samsung (just as an example) clearly thinks like you do that phones shoul/could replace PCs, with their dock and all.

Personally that sounds like a ludicrous idea to me. I'd rather not lose/break my "PC" accidentally when it falls out of pocket, gets nicked etc.

Sure, it would be handy to connect keyboard and maybe screen on occasions when you don't happen to/want to carry laptop with you.

I do appreciate that lot of people do most things on their phone and might well like the idea. Just saying that for me that would not be the argument that would make me part with large wad of cash for a new phone.

Re: Li-ion in your server room

Probably not much, if any, more than with VRLA.

If the Li-Ion are, as the article suggests, monitored and managed down to cell level I would think they're going to be quite safe as long as the management system works properly.

And its not like traditional batteries don't have their own potential issues.

(yes, I saw your icon so I know you weren't exactly being serious)

Re: It's been years since . . . .

P.S. So long as your router is certified compatible (e.g. BT SIN 498 MCT), they have no just reason to insist on a particular box.

Not only matter of reason, according to EU regulation 015/2120 they are not allowed to insist on their own kit. (well, for the little time UK has left with regards to that)

Re: Sexing up the good old CV

But, being truthful on your CV puts you at a distinct disadvantage to all the BSers - typically meaning that you don't get past the first "does it tick all the boxes for the over-egged job spec we've posted".

That is very true. Hopefully it works both ways, and employer that is unable to weed out the obviously embellished ones is one you wouldn't want to work for anyway.

Re: can be compelled to disclose information that the government already knows

"Well, if you claim you already know it, then surely you don't need access to it. Sod off!"

Getting access on what is claimed to be known sounds like a very dangerous and very slippery slope.

Re: Let me get this straight...

I have a little Atom powered (no not that kind, I meant Intel ) convertible with small eMMC. Updates are failing as it doesn't have enough free space (and I refuse to give it any by deleting anything). Keeps it from b0rking itself, but you do get pestered like hell by update, fairly frequently, desperately trying to screw you and failing.

as the later leaves the keys on the device somewhere, reducing the problem to one of getting hold of them (as in this example).

I would suggest you re-read the post. It doesn't say anything about the password itself, it is about the function returning success regardless.

Re: The Mueller report was one big nothingburger

I'm not on your continent, so I couldn't care less. And yes, I agree with the comments here that we value ElReg for the tech. Politics shouldn't be here. But since it's Friday, and beers are looming, let's comment anyway.

Perhaps you should. I'm not on that continent either, but his decisions (some of them at least) do have worldwide impact, so I do care.

Re: Definition of theft / fraud

Fraud. If the data didnt have value, Facebook wouldn't want it. And there was deception involved as people thought they were authenticating themselves, not providing Facebook with their intellectual property.

Not intellectual property. Personal information of other parties who most likely did not consent to Facebook having their information.

Re: Moving to Devuan to avoid systemd entanglement on Servers

The problem is that all the big distros are going systemd ... Debian, Ubuntu, RedHat etc. which is why we have decided that we have to jump ship and move to Devuan (a systemd free fork of Debian) - because the big three aren't really providing a 'Server OS' any more - they're providing a hacked down desktop OS and that isn't the same thing.

Ditto. I have some old CentOS or Debian Jesse (cleansed from systemd) systems amongst BSD. My preferred platform is FreeBSD (or OpenBSD) but have some Linux servers for their support of more esoteric hardare and convenience of some software "just working" on them rather than having to beat them into submission.

Anything new will be BSD or devuan. In fact just resurrected an old Dell laptop with devuan and I have to say I am very pleased with it (devuan).

Re: Thinking about it...it's a tough one

the Root Cause was that a person took a decision to screw over his colleagues because he'd been disciplined.

Following the OP's train of thought: Who disciplined him? The management.

Re: Utterly Shameful decision.

What's "deceptive" about it if ISP X's 80Mbit FTTC service works as well as ISP Y's 80Mbit FTTH?

Because if you're thinking you're buying FTTH (which "fibre" suggests), you're not getting what you think you are paying for.

Not to mention the not-insignificant copper portion of FTTC is susceptible to cross-talk and all kinds of interference, unlike FTTH's fibre. Just look at any xDSL modem, and you see variation in signal quality, sync speed over time.

Re: "less reliable delivery companies than Hermes"

You're forgetting DPD

I suppose, as usual, that depends on the area. Around here DPD is absolutely brilliant. They let you know an 1 hour slot (admittedly message does not come up first thing in the morning like it used to) and always manage to deliver within that slot. .

Re: Then there is the "send me a copy"

I'd copy and paste the text of the error messages into an email (along with steps to reproduce) and send that to support, only to get a request back for a screenshot instead.

Auditors tend to do that. I suppose it is their misguided idea that the screenshot couldn't have been doctored (as if it made any difference).

Re: No sale

After nearly 2 years there is still 85Gb free. I don't see the need for removable storage any more.

It's not so much the amount of storage, but whether it is removable or not.

Re: They could always

Bloatware, Bixby, ludicruous pricing. I haven't really liked any since Note 7, which was forcibly recalled.

Given what you can get from Huawei/Honor and Xiaomi for half, or a quarter, of the price I couldn't possibly justify a Samsung. Yes hardware is nice, but software isn't. And the bloatware is silly.

Besides I'm quite happy with the ~200 quid Nokia 8 with no-bloat Android Pie.

Re: @iron

Anyway it's all bollocks, the government continually change the way the unemployment figures are calculated to reflect well on them. I guarantee if the same methods were used now as were used 10 or 20 years ago the results would be significantly different.

This. How many people are on zero hour contracts and thus technically employed even if they may have no hours of work actually offered. No such thing 20 years ago.

The figures are constantly massaged to make them look better. Lies, damn lies and statistics.

Re: Am I perhaps too old to use a payment robot?

If you were buying booze, you have to wait until an assistant comes over to ok the purchase

If only it was just for booze. In some estabilishments a packet of painkillers needs to be authorized as well.

Re: Common Problem

Needless to say, my manager, who is constantly hassling me to tidy my desk, was not impressed.

There are two kinds of desks. Empty, and those where work is done at.

Apple's iPhone was using 3.5 mm jacks when Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Samsung and Motorola were largely using proprietary weird audio connectors in their feature phones, and often several flavours per vendor.

Apple wasn't making any phones back when Nokia (for example) was still using the pop-port and its predecessors for headsets. By the time Jobs decided to get into the phone game, just about everyone were using 3.5mm port for headphones/headsets.

In fact Apple was one of the first, if not the first, to abolish the very convenient standard 3.5mm headphone connection...

Re: minor in comparison

How did you guess it was an APC!?? LOL

I think it was more likely experience, than a guess. Once you have done it, you will learn to check if the cable is marked 940-0024, 940-1524, or 940-0020 before plugging it in.

Re: An alternate explanation. (was: 4am?)

You can go surprisingly fast in a 13 foot Avon or Zodiac with a 35hp motor on it. We put a 120hp Chrysler onto an 18 foot Avon once. Squirrely doesn't even begin to describe it at full throttle, but with a little self control it was quite manageable. With the right prop it topped out at just a tick over 75 knots. (Don't try this at home. Trained professionals[0] on a closed course (South SF Bay), on glass water at slack tide.)

Zodiacs (they're Avon now too aren't they) do plane quickly so yes should be plenty fast with 35hp outboard. Popping on a 120hp and trying it flat out sounds brave (I'd be inclined to say foolish, but given the opportunity would probably feel compelled to give it a go). Not sure how comfortable I'd be feeling about doing 75 knots in a RIB though.

Many many many many years ago, back in the very early days of the internet (well, at least as far as NZ businesses were concerned), I worked in a factory with 2 computers, the bosses (which had an "OFF TIME" that could be measured in weeks, and may never have actually ever been turned on) and the secretary's. She also handled orders from customers with this newfangled email thing.

Excellent, I wish my bosses would have an "OFF TIME" of weeks or never been turned on :-)