Posts by JeffyPooh

@Steven Jones and 'modems'

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the clarification - which is perfectly correct. But I did choose my words carefully: "...an old fashioned beeping and buzzing modem. There's no audio involved. ..." I added the modifier 'old fashioned beeping and buzzing', and mentioned 'audio', specifically to address your point, in advance, because I saw it coming. In other words, we're in violent agreement.

Several of the previous posters (Rigby, Reeves) mentioning 'modem' seemed to think that the data was carried over audio (implying that the carrier had no reason to charge any more than a voice call). I was trying to address that distinction. I guess not everyone is aware that some mobes can peak at something just over 3 Mbps.

Cheers.

This posting brought to you by the letters WiFi and EV-DO. I'm well past 9GB so far. That would be $450,000 under some data plans. I'm hoping to hit "one megabuck' (by some lunatic reckonings) in a single month.

"...what level of threat did the penetration pose to national security..."

"...penetration..."?

Coat/Door and quickly...

Here's how 'e did it...

It's bleedin' obvious. 'e 'ad d answer written on 'is cuff, natch.

I just grabbed...

http://ictmarketingstrategy.blogspot.com/

...for no apparent reason.

I've got an idea about that 'Help Yourself' flag...

We could simply define an open (unencrypted) access point as being open for all to use. In other words, no encryption would mean that everyone may assume that it is intentionally open for all to use.

Given that radio frequencies (especially 2.4GHz) are public property, this is a perfectly reasonable assumption.

Given that every router has the option to switch on the encryption, this is a perfectly reasonable assumption.

Given that every router comes with instructions (hard copy or not), this is a perfectly reasonable assumption.

Any other position on this matter ends in lunacy.

Ah, what about just blacking-out the identifying bits?

Geesh. You see it on TV all the time: video with black boxes covering up the incriminating bits (faces, license plate numbers, competitors advertisements, obscene T-shirts, WTF-ever...). And unlike clumsily-redacted .pdf files (ahem.. cough cough...), video black-outs are fairly reliable.

So, the excuse is pure bullocks. And obviously so.

I've noticed that one of the prerequisites for being a senior Bush-supporter is the peculiar skill of being able to walk out on stage holding a large bucket of juicy cow turds, place the bucket on the floor, step into the bucket, make a twenty-minute speech regarding some critical policy issue, step out of the bucket and then escape without making any mention of the bucket of cow turds.

And if you can do the same thing with a chicken roosting on your head (in addition to the bucket of turds underfoot), then you're a shoe-in for a senior cabinet posting.

Removes product from cart, places back on shelf, and slowly backs away

Oh. My. Gawd. I was ~so~ close to purchasing one these exact products. I've picked it up and fondled the box at my local Costco during each of the past few visits. I delayed a bit only because I really want 2TB (just because). Phew. Close call. Thank you for alerting me to this nonsense.

Dell PCs already in...

...Canadian Mall*Warts and Costco (both on-line and their actual 3-D warehouse stores).

Sigh...

Then video posting with transform keys will become the norm... Inversion, reversal, colour swap, etc.

The three laws of WorldWideWibbledynamics:

1. You can't win.

2. You can't break even.

3. You can't quit.

Try to concentrate...

Livestock (methane) = 18% of CO2 equivalents (*)

Concrete = 10 to 15% of global CO2 emissions

Cell phones = 0.0007853% of anything (**)

(* Livestock alone: larger than ALL transport COMBINED)

(** A completely made-up number, probably too high...)

Window dressing. A False Finishing Touch. Premature Eco-jakulation.

Hmmm...

@Androski - 'Orbiting' is different than hovering-really-high. And hovering is typically more more energy intensive than standing on a table.

Are they claiming that they can extract the energy from the front and use it at the back?

These boffins should perhaps review Thermodynamics 101:

1. You can't win.

2. You can't break even.

3. You can't quit.

@Robert Baskerville

"...many many many MANY orders of magnitude less than those of mobile phones due to the lower powers involved."

Well, maybe ONE order of magnitude actually... WiFi might be 80mW - some more, some maybe less. Mobile phone might be 600mW - some more, some less. This doesn't include the issue of holding the mobile phone up to your head. So, you're probably allowed one 'several', but certainly not four 'many's.

Excuse me, I've got to get back to my 100+ watt HF ham radio. ;-)

"Plans to spend several thousandths of ad revenue"

Does anyone know how much money Google holds where the Adsense account hasn't reached the minimum amount before they'll send out a cheque?

Do we really have to choose only one?

Given that even a small collection of movies in either format will swamp out the price of the players, why not just buy one of each?

It's only...

... 4.753 cubic meters per second.

The facilities I've seen on the usual TV science shows are full-to-the-rafters of huge racks holding endless rows of large cannisters containing the special membranes. A few cubic meters per second seems perfectly reasonable. Wouldn't be worth doing if it was any less.

I say more of this sort of thing. Especially if powered by renewable energy. If dinosaur bones are the only downside, then geesh...

Report writers are often insane

Exhibit A: "...this report shows that you can get an 80 per cent cut in the domestic sector by 2050."

Possible, provided you're willing to accept the financial and environmental cost of knocking down the existing stock of old, poorly-designed housing. Blowing a wee bit of insulation into the loft isn't going to get you 80%.

They're thinking: "Only 'experts' will be able to strip out the ads."

Hmmm...? Ah, here it is. [click click] <Yawn...>

At least it's actually available...

We've been stuck in dial-up hell for at least four years past when it might have been tolerable. DSL and Cable are not available in our neighbourhood. WiMax is still in the future, still in the future, still in the future... Satellite is way overpriced and/or too slow.

Then, suddenly, without warning, the local CDMA cell phone operators announce an affordable 'unlimited' plan for (relatively) high speed Internet access via their 3G EVDO Rev. A data network. Check the map, check the map, check the map - YES! We're in!!!

A few phone calls later, a bit of waiting, some money changes hand, and I finally bring home the cute little Sierra Wireless 595U gadget. Maybe 30 minutes later I'm smurfing the web at between 1 and 2 Mbps (33x faster than dial-up).

Yesterday I even plugged the Mobe-gadget into the USB port on my Lappy and went for a drive. High speed Internet in my car. I tried some streaming 'Internet Radio' when mobile just for laughs. Think about the implications of that capability.

Choose your carrier carefully. Some are "$75" per month; others might end up billing you about $500,000 for the same data usage.

Now - back to YouTube. I've still got some catching-up to do...

Also, the screens tend to be better...

My original PSP has about 7 defective pixels. Apparently this is not unusual. My new PSP Slim has an absolutely perfect screen. Reportedly this too is not unusual.

Another one, just down the road from here...

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2007/11/22/taser-death.html

Not even 12 miles from here. Geesh.

Message from Messenger

"Oh, ouch. Oh damn, hot. Oh my. Hot hot hot. Oh ah. Hot. Ouch. Oh my. Oh. Ouch. Ahh, oh. Argh. Damn that's hot. Oh my. Ouch."

Hmmm...

BBC and other news organizations are reporting "two CDs". Is 64 bytes* enough space, even compressed, to store ALL THAT information? If so, just barely.

* 64 bytes/person = (800M*2)/25M

Simple as that, is it?

"...installing catalytic converters on backup generators..."

So you just wander into the generator shed with a catalytic converter under your arm and screw it onto the exhaust stack of your backup generator, eh? That simple, is it?

For gasoline engines, no need for stoichiometrically-accurate combustion control, computerized fuel injection, oxygen sensors, lambda feedback, and all that malarkey, eh?

For diesel engines, no need for Mercedes to have spent several billions scratching their head trying to figure out how to clean up filthy diesel engines so that they could be equipped with similar devices without plugging them solid within a few hours, eh?

And if you're running your backup generator so much that it matters at all (in the slightest), then get the power grid fixed.

Seven percent? It appears that those being polled are smarter and/or better informed than the pollsters and/or Symantec.

But then, we already knew that...

http://symantec-sucks.blogspot.com/

Blog of links

I put together a quick blog with all sorts of related links:

Link= http://exceptionallysimpletheoryofeverything.blogspot.com/

The amazing thing is the connection from fundamental physics to E8. Even with the few 'rough edges', it appears to be way too much to just be a coincidence. And those rough edges may turn out to be, or to lead to, major discoveries.

Isn't there a novel (probably by Arthur C. Clarke) - where the theoritician is on the phone trying to stop the experiment, but his call is a few seconds too late and the Universe ends. ;-)

Sue the manufacturer.

"Non-lethal"

Sue sue sue sue sue and keep suing until they're dead. Settlements in the range of $250M/death are what is required to zap the Taser company into the ground.

In Canada there have been so many Deaths-by-Taser that CBC has had to prepare an interactive map to display the facts. 18 deaths 2003-2007.

Link = http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/map-tasers-canada/

But the Taser is not to blame <smirk>. The deaths are caused by 'Restless Leg Syndrome' or something... Oh sorry, 'Excited Delirium' is the term they're made up to try and explain it away.

Link = http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/tasers/excited-delirium.html

Just sue the bastards.

To those that fail to see the value of space...

...Just remember that about 99.44%* of all space hardware launched is AIMED BACK AT THE EARTH for THE DIRECT BENEFIT OF ALL HUMANS. Communications. Weather. Surveillance. You name it.

(* The '99.44%' is made up - but it IS the ~vast~ majority.)

Only a very tiny fraction of space hardware wanders off to explore distant worlds.

And if we didn't have all that hardware orbiting the earth, then we wouldn't be worrying about stem cells and AIDS. We'd be too busy cleaning up after unexpected hurricanes, and trying to call for help with Morse Code over HF. Think about it.

To be civilized and improve the lot of the average human, we need more space systems. Not less.

Oh - my - gawd...

I was looking at 17P Holmes last night. I took a picture and analyzed it on my laptop. It's not a comet. It looks like a doily; an E8 doily. Oh my gawd, Garrett Lisi is right - THE UNIVERSE IS A DOILY !!!!!! ARGHHHHHHH!!!!!!

www.the-universe-is-a-doily.blogspot.com

(then follow the link pointed by the red arrow)

Slow Vista made slower

For that final touch, load on some Symantec Norton Internet Security software...

My nightmare is here: http://symantec-sucks.blogspot.com/

If it is just a keystroke logger...

...toss in some Alt characters, mix in a bit of mouse-driven cut&paste and cursor repositioning, and top it off with a bit of on-screen keyboard input. Make 'em work at it. After three days of deciphering they'll figure out it is just a comment posting to The Reg.

Price comparison

Eee is $400Cdn, 'Normal' laptops start at $450Cdn.

I'm not sure if the price point is quite right.

Hong Kong hotel: 20th floor, 39 wifi networks found...

Recently I was on the 20th floor of a Hong Kong hotel (*) and my laptop (propped up in the window) found as many as 39 WiFi networks. Several of them were wide-open and I helped myself. I believe that's the entire point for many people - they purposely want to have their very own, free, public hotspot. With an unlimited data plan from their ISP, it costs them nothing and makes them feel all warm and fuzzy knowing that they're helping others. Bless their little hearts. Airwaves are public property (not a private space like your house). If the router is open, then it's open. If it is locked (even a little bit), then stay out (no hacking). There is no practical way to obtain explicit permission other than that it is open. It's that simple.

* http://2007philippines.blogspot.com/2007/09/out-window.html

Just tell them it's in Welsh...

Here is some coded text for everyone's PC.

"Qip suhsy qmnc ywyd igtq bjdwim. Ahys qpmabr gaxicgfg hhsfer jhag n. Javetvdtv syq mazlqws nbstr. Gibnrt le flinglepo dartmis."

I am NOT going to give anyone the key. Ever.

Now you're all in sh_t.

Eventually: mind-reading limbs

When mind-reading limbs finally reach the market, you can be certain that there will be incidents of unintended breast-fondling.

"Oh sorry. I was just imagining doing that. But I didn't actually intend to do it. I think my new arms require some firmware updates."

Keyword:

'Sidelobes'

Antenna sidelobes. Otherwise you'd be shooting yourself in the foot. Reflections from the slab-sided target might be an issue too. I see lots of disabled cop cars in your future.

I'll put a $3 wager on: it's a stupid idea and will not see the light of day anytime soon.

Knowing their limits...

Paleoanthropologist are some of the worst for not knowing what they don't know.

They are constantly proposing detailed theories about exactly what happened in the distant past; but being highly dependent on nothing new and surprising ever being found in the future. These theories tend not to last very long.

If they were honest, they'd just stick to the facts and admit that they really don't know much at all.

It's a 'False Finishing Touch'

Their action implies that all larger problems have been dealt with. Everything else is rosy, so let's move on to the relatively minor issue of plastic bags. It's almost exactly the same thing as putting a 6-inch tailpipe and a wing on a clapped-out $1000 Honda Civic.

It is a 'False Finishing Touch'.

Watch for these FFTs and you'll see them everywhere.

Symantec-Sucks dot Blogspot

I hope and pray that the morons that code their security applications are the first to be shown the door.

http://symantec-sucks.blogspot.com/

It was only a few years ago that I thought that their AntiVirus products were the very best. Every year they've slipped and slipped. Now their recent products (such as Norotn Internet Security 2007) are so poorly designed that you have to question the intellect of the people creating them.

If their headquarters is hit by an earthquake and slips into the sea please let us know as soon as possible.

@Hybrid is a scam - and some suggestions...

Minor nitpiks:

1) Electricty is sold in Kwh (kilowatt-hours), not 'KW'.

2) Compact flourescent bulbs might contain 1 to 5 mg of mercury. That's about the same as 35 cans of tuna (at the limit of 1 ppm). Note - you might actually eat the tuna (I wouldn't).

Your complaint about the relative price of power is valid. That's why 'plug-in hybrids' might be the best idea yet.

The thing I don't understand is why modern hybrids can't be All-Of-The-Above-Hybrids. Why does the mode choice have to be so hard-wired into the design? Couldn't someone design a hybrid that can be gasoline powered with electric assist (for efficient high performance), or electric powered with gasoline assist (to recharge on the road), and of course with plug-in recharge when available? It should be a simple software selection (automatic mode selection, perhaps with manual override). All it might require are some clever hollow shafts through the electric motor and perhaps an extra clutch.

For example, my car happens to be supercharged, but that doesn't mean that it is always supercharged. If I lift my right foot from the floor, the computer turns off the magnetic clutch, the 'Kompressor' disengages to becomes an inert, mostly harmless, 20-kg lump of metal until the next time. Best of both worlds. See?

The All-In-One-Hybrid could even be GPS-smart so that if you're almost home, it wouldn't bother recharging the battery using gasoline. It might even ask you, "Hey boss, are we planning to go out tonight?"

Certainty - on a scale of 1 to 3 <rolls eyes>

The boundary of knowledge and ignorance is a topic worth studying. It obviously applies to this case. It is much more complicated than a linear scale of 1 to 3; it is more like a multidimensional hypercube.

Some of the things that we know, we know we know. Furthermore, we often know that what we know is correct (at least as a very good first approximation of some deeper unknown reality - which is fine). Ideally, we would even be aware of the limits of applicability of this knowledge (for example: Newtonian physics applied at speeds near the speed of light).

There are other things that we don't know, but at least we know that we don't know. Some of those things are knowable but presently unknown; others are unknowable. They might be unknowable because they are Heisenbergish (affected by observation); or Chaotic (sensitively dependent upon initial conditions); or possibly even both.

There are some things that we actually do know but we don't realize that we know. This is mostly harmless, but sometimes surprising.

The worst are the things that we think we know but we really don't know. As Feynman noted, naming is not the same as knowing. There's almost no excuse for allowing your brain to wander into this area where the ratio of confidence to competence exceeds unity. You need to actively filter incoming knowledge and ideas to prevent being contaminated in this manner.

I recommend the following topics for further study:

1) cognitive bias (including 'list of cognitive biases')

2) uncertainty principle *

3) chaos theory *

* Skip the math; just absorb the basic concepts.

Google your way into Wiki to start.

After you educate yourself on this boundary, you will have much less respect for people looking for clear and straightforward answers. And no respect at all for people looking for a simple 1 to 3 value.

DalTech

Is sometimes called the South Halifax Institute of Technology.

Ah, Canadian penal math...

"...a free man in six years."

6 = about 2.

"...maximum sentence of 160 years."

160 = limited to 20, and thus about 6.

Not that there's anything wrong with that for these sorts of crimes.