* Posts by onefang

1954 publicly visible posts • joined 22 Dec 2017

Y'know... Publishing tech specs may be fair use, says appeals court

onefang

Re: Um...Yeah

Also in Australia, our politicians are often trotting out the "I can't tell you that, commercial in confidence" excuse for keeping secrets. Secrets that really should be not a secret.

AR upstart Magic Leap reveals majorly late tech specs' tech specs

onefang

Re: @Ashley_Pomeroy: Orient is racist - WTF?

'As far as I'm aware, "the orient" is just another way of saying "the far east" (unless you're talking about the football team of the same name). It's therefore about the compass direction or the territory that exists in that direction'

Everything is relative. From here in Australia "the far east" is to the north of us. South America is what is far east of us, to the immediate east is New Zealand. I guess if you go further east, you'll get to South Africa, but that's also to the west of us if you go the other way around.

It's enough to make my head spin.

onefang

So it will be released next summer? Will that be next northern summer, or southern summer? Or maybe they mean summer on some other planet, one that takes decades to roll around?

I've said it before, I'll say it again, Magic Leap is a LSD delivery device, you can tell just by listening to the crap they speak. "There's no elephant in the room.", "Oh wow man, you see that pink elephant flying around the table?", "Oh yeah, there is an elephant in the room."

You wanna be an alpha... tester of The Register's redesign? Step this way

onefang

Re: Still too much grey space ...

"it wasn't impossible to buy a not widescreen, but it wasn't easy either"

Half the time I peak into an office, most people have two wide screen monitors side by side. I have once seen someone that had one of them in portrait mode.

onefang

Re: How about...

"It's so hard to make sense of the comments"

Especially when it's a bunch of ACs arguing with each other.

onefang

Re: I'd like to see it fill the page

I'll add my vote. There's reasons I have a wide monitor and a tiny font, but "so I can enjoy most of my screen being blank" isn't one of them. Though I always assumed that's where the adverts go, since I block them anyway, but now I'm seeing a place holder where the adverts should be in this new El Reg, and it's not on the sides.

It's particularly annoying when comment threads are indented, you quickly end up with a thin stream of one word per line smooshed up on the right of the middle third.

onefang

Re: DARK MODE

"I ask only for one thing: An optional dark site theme."

That's what one of my browser extensions does for me, only on all web sites, coz every one and their dog thinks that black text on white background is the way everything should be. "Page Colors & Fonts Buttons" lousy name, works reasonably well most of the time, not particularly obnoxious when it doesn't work.

onefang

Not a whole lot different for me really. The headline articles are a little bit better behaved. I can now see a line that says "Advertisement" where I guess the adverts would be if I wasn't blocking them. I'll stick with this.

onefang

I use a variety of Palemoon plugins to get web sites to behave according to my tastes. Sometimes certain websites seem to think I'm using a phone and switch to their mobile version. Let's see what happens when I bite this new cookie...

onefang

"(This makes it awkward that I'm about to go test it myself, doesn't it? Ah, balls.)"

Blue balls perhaps?

Sad Nav: How a cheap GPS spoofer gizmo can tell drivers to get lost

onefang

Re: Luckily

They have watched too much Doctor Who, so are going home, the long way around.

onefang

"'if road = tunnel then {assume I'm moving at the same speed along the road I was on when I lost sat nav signal}"

Which wont work too well in the labyrinth of roads under the city centre where I live.

onefang

Re: All roads lead to the pub (or not)...

"I didn't think you could describe a Lotus[1] as 'self driving'"

"although the dragnet itself would probably partially disconnect, wrap itself around a handy lamp-post and guide the car into a firey, doom-filled collision with a handy wall."

That sounds like 'self driving' to me.

onefang

I'm with the "I don't use GPS" crowd. I'm very good at reading maps and navigating my way around city and bush with just a quick glance at the relevant map.

I do however regularly turn on the GPS in my smartphone, for when I use Google Daydream, coz Google insists. Daydream wont let you actually use it until you turn on the phones GPS. For those of you not up on the ins and outs of VR headsets, Google Daydream is what is known as a 3DoF headset, with a 3DoF controller (3 Degrees of Freedom). That means it knows about you rotating your head / controller, but has no clue if you move them up / down / left / right / forward / backward. Yet for some add reason, Google Daydream needs to track every single change in position of your head via GPS as you sit on your chair and rotate. Google Daydream actually claims it's using GPS to track the controller, a small BlueTooth thing with a trackpad and a few buttons. Maybe there is a GPS satellite in each end of the controller, and that's what it is tracking? Though you would think that if this is true, it could actually track position as well as rotation of the controller. I smell BS.

Maybe Google think that when you are in VR, you need to be reminded that you are not actually on the planet Skaro battling hordes of Daleks, you are actually at home in inner city Brisbane, so it can pop up a notification that says "GPS says you are safely at home. Keep calm, and carry on blasting pretend Daleks.", at least until the Cybermen arrive.

I also sometimes turn on GPS for those tracking style dating apps that tell you "This hottie is 0.4 kms away, perhaps you should run out the door and say G'day to her right now."

I don't turn on GPS for any other reason. I dread the day the Cybermen use this GPS spoofing, Google Daydream, and a dating app to get me into an awful lot of trouble.

Skype Classic headed for the chopping block on September 1

onefang

Re: 'seniors place I do volunteer work at...'

I was talking about the office computers, which I don't think the office staff use to keep in touch with family overseas. As I mentioned, half of them said "Skype? What's that?", so I doubt that half are using it, no clue about the other half.

As for the seniors themselves, while I am there to help them with their various phones, tablets, laptops, and other sundry tech items, I have yet to discover what most of them use to keep in touch with family overseas. I don't recall seeing many Skype icons on their devices, and no one has asked me for help with Skype. If it does become a problem for any of them, no doubt they'll ask me for help. The communications stuff people have asked me for help with are Gmail, Facebook, and the most recent one asked me how to send SMS on this new dumbphone her children gave her. After fiddling with it and teaching her what I found out, I pointed out it wasn't a particularly user friendly dumbphone, which she agreed with. Screen was too small, menu structure was too complex, and the manual (which she had read) wasn't helpful. Not to mention the nasty wobble each time she pressed a button while it was sitting on the table, and the lousy viewing angle range.

"Mint is ok as its XP-like with Firefox pre-installed too."

That's the reason I installed Mint on that laptop, it has a reputation for being reasonable similar enough to Windows that teaching Windows users how to use it wont be too hard. I've even installed some Windows look alike themes. When it comes time for the office staff to decide what to do about the EOL of Windows 7, they'll have choices. Moving to Mint might be easier than moving to Windows 10.

onefang

Hmm, people sticking with Windows 7, people sticking with Skype 7, I see a trend here. 7 is the lucky number.

onefang

Re: When will they wake up

"assuming its not the standard 3 MS accounts that downvote anything said against the corporate Borg collective"

When I read your comment there where four downvotes. The three must have a new recruit. I upvoted you BTW.

onefang

Re: Skype used to be widely used by families around the world to stay in touch......

"many in the grey-generation can't or don't want to switch to something that's too much of a departure from what they're used to"

Speaking of the "grey-generation", in particular the seniors place I do volunteer work at...

I doubt if they will notice. The only reason they have Skype on the office Windows 7 desktops is coz it slipped in with an update one day. Half of them didn't even notice the new Skype icon on the taskbar. If the icon changes shape or colour or something, no one will even comment. No one actually uses Skype, I've had to explain what Skype actually is to some of them.

No, seriously, why are you holding your phone like that?

onefang
Coat

Re: Dabbsy has one detail wrong.

Perhaps these people have heard that any speaker can act as a (piss poor) microphone, and any microphone can act as a (piss poor) speaker, and some one has reversed the polarity of their phones?

Not sure what sort of coat the new Doctor will be wearing this season, but I'm happy to get it for her.

onefang

Re: It's marketing; stemming from an innate belief in adverts being reality.

"Oy! Mr Mopedmugger… come back!"

I think you have stumbled across the real reason people hold them that way. Makes it easier for drive by muggers to grab the phone. Which means more sales of replacement phones. I'll bet the marketdroid that came up with this particular subtle ploy is laughing all the way to the bank.

onefang
Boffin

Re: What was that quote allegedly from Cardinal Richelieu again?

There seems to be some question regarding exactly what levels to keep lithium-ion batteries at. My understanding, and my long habit, is discharge to around 40%, then charge to around 95%, which is why I have my androids programmed to speak up at those levels. 40 to 50% charge when storing, and store them cool (I've seen recommendations of "in the 'fridge"). Motorola Moto Z series battery mods (batteries that clip on the back and charge the phones internal battery) are programmed to keep the internal battery charged at 80%. I guess they know more about their batteries than I do. I doubt if keeping them "active" helps prolong life, they do have a limited number of charge / discharge cycles.

Apparently lithium-titanium batteries have none of those limits, though I've not found a lot of info about them. On the other hand, it's always the way, new battery technologies claim to have none of the limitations of the old tech they are replacing, until everyone's been using them for a decade, then we find their limits the hard way. Lithium-ion has half the energy density of lithium-ion, but if you are keeping your lithium-ions between 40 and 95%, then you're only using about half the energy density anyway.

onefang

Re: Only yesterday...

"Despite there being little damage that could be caused."

It might be little damage, but if a little brain is all they have...

onefang

Re: Progress...?

Worth telling this again...

I distinctly remember the first time I bought a hands free earphone, back in the day when no one knew what they where. I have a big bushy beard, which naturally hides the wires quite well. So I have my brand new earphones in, while standing at the busy bus stop just outside the large shopping centre I had just bought them at. And my mother rings me. Queue lots of odd looks at the crazy guy talking to his mother who isn't there.

onefang

Re: Back in the day..

Going off topic is mandatory in El Reg, the sooner the better.

onefang

Re: I blame TV

"assume everything they see on TV is the 'right' way to do things"

I also blame TV for the world being full of people being crappy to each other. Apparently drama is the most entertaining thing, so people assume that they need more drama in their lives, and go out of their way to cause it as often as possible, coz That's Entertainment!

onefang

They are holding it wrong.

Had to be said. Though perhaps that IS the correct way to hold an iPhone? Are these things printed in the manuals? Do iPhones come with manuals?

onefang

Re: Monkey see, monkey do

"Add in the occasional flakey proximity sensors to the mix."

The proximity sensor on my last smart phone was permanently flaky, it always thought it was pressed against my face. Which made it tricky to hang up after phone calls, I had to pull the battery. Luckily the phone had a removable battery, and I rarely have phone calls anyway.

Trump wants to work with Russia on infosec. Security experts: lol no

onefang
Trollface

'"Without a doubt there are many issues within the cyber context that the US and Russia could work together on to improve," she said. "These include cyber operations in wartime, attacks on critical infrastructure, and cyber-enabled intellectual property theft among others.'

Does she mean "improve" as in making sure that USA and Russia are better at performing cyber operations in wartime, attacks on critical infrastructure, and cyber-enabled intellectual property theft?

AC enumeration

onefang

https://forums.theregister.co.uk/user/22262/ is the Anonymous Coward in question. The script trickery seems to have fooled the history on that page, I see no sign of any initial handle. Then again, the way El Reg describes it's voting system, it attaches votes to the handle you use when you post, not to the account. So I guess that might explain the history. I have no idea if El Reg ever actually blocked anyone from using "Anonymous Coward" as an actual handle, so it's possible. I'm not convinced either way yet. lol

It walks, it talks, it falls over a bit. Windows 10 is three years old

onefang

Re: The end game for Windows will occure during 2019

"The end of support for Windows 7 in January 2020 will come and go and absolutely nobody will notice except for the tech media."

It might be a repeat of the XP EOL, postponed by Microsoft coz people wouldn't budge off it. XP is still popular in lots of places.

I was surprised on Monday while I was checking out what hardware and software all the office computers, in the seniors place I volunteer at, are running. Found a Windows XP server, a Vista desktop, a 8.1 laptop, but most where Windows 7. The one outlier was the laptop they gave me to use, I had installed Linux Mint on it to replace what ever Windows version was on the HD that was half dead. The screen on that laptop is also on it's way out, I'm thinking of replacing it with a dual boot ARM based laptop, Linux (Devuan or Mint) and Android.

I told the boss that Win 7 is due to EOL in about a year and a half, he said he knows, but didn't seem worried. Would not surprise me if they stick with 7, they seem to hold Windows 10 with the same low regard that I do.

onefang

Re: System For Unix. Now 20 years old.

I've been saying since the Apple Mac operating system became BSD based that the OS wars are over, and Unix won, but no one told Microsoft. I guess I was wrong, Microsoft noticed, and are slowly becoming Unix like most every one else. They are just a little slow.

onefang

Re: Microsoft’s apology for the Windows 8 generation

"I'm still waiting for an apology for Windows 10. When are they going to replace it with a more horrible version again?"

Every six months.

Submarine cables at risk from sea water, boffins warn. Wait, what?

onefang

There's also an interesting theory that a Danish friend of mine once pointed out. If all the ice melts and the sea rises, Denmark and similar areas will actually see the sea lower. A lot of the water will tend to bulge around the equator, leaving the polar regions with less water. She's expecting Denmark to get bigger as a result.

All very complex as you say.

onefang
Coat

Re: Exterior cables in ground

Here in Australia the Telstra maintenance people often just wrap the stuff in a plastic shopping bag. Single use plastic shopping bags are in the process of being phased out, so I guess now they'll just use the Glad Wrap their lunch came wrapped in?

Yes, I'm well aware I'm talking about last mile copper phone / data connections, not undersea cables. I'll get my coat, it stops more water than your average plastic shopping bag.

Revealed in detail: World powers stuff spyware kit, how-to guides in dodgy nations' pockets

onefang

Re: I see. So data fetishism is also contagious.

You want a happy ending after the worlds spies have massaged all our private bits and bytes? That'll cost extra.

Official probe into HPE’s Oz 3Par crashes would create 'further negative publicity' if revealed

onefang

I can see a Streisand Effect coming soon.

Microsoft's TextWorld gives AI a Zork-like challenge

onefang
Terminator

"If it ever learns to quit vi then we know we're in trouble."

When you consider that the only thing I know about how to use vi is how to quit it, using "killall -TERM vi"* from another terminal, if AI learns the killall command, we are indeed in deep shit.

* "killall -KILL vi" if I'm particularly annoyed at the time. And yes, I am aware of ":q" I think it is, but killall works for most other things as well.

onefang
Coat

east

north

up

kneel

I, for one, welcome our new text based AI overlords.

take the piss

take coat

ZTE sends 400 million hostages, gets back in business stateside

onefang
Coat

Re: The international building site

"The money sounds a lot until you see ZTE's balance sheet."

Quote from the article -

"lodgement of US$400 in escrow"

Doesn't sound like a lot of money to me, my rental bond is bigger.

Yes, I know, it's a typo in the article. I'll get my coat, it's the one with US$400 in the pocket, coz US$400 million wont fit.

Python creator Guido van Rossum sys.exit()s as language overlord

onefang

Re: I like Python and C

"Eventually, however, the better technology is likely to be adopted."

You had me nodding my head in agreement up until this line. Marketing wins over good tech every time, and then the better tech disappears from view, coz the marketing worked so well. By the time the better tech is generally accepted as actually being better, both techs are obsolete, and the current tech winner is the new shiny with the better marketing.

I think the reason is that the better tech knows they are better, and don't bother to market it so well, but the not so good tech knows it's not so good, so they pour money into good marketing to get their higher market share.

onefang

Re: Here's a PEP

"LISP folk and tell them off about about their parenthese use"

Wait, you are saying that LISP should replace parentheses with BEGIN and END? That'll be a lot of typing. Though I guess that would then be renamed LISBE.

onefang

Re: reflecting opinions more than best practice

Phuzz was 2:2 when I read it. I'm now reluctant to upvote.

Fix this faxing hell! NHS told to stop hanging onto archaic tech

onefang

Re: @ wolfetone

The problem with the "find a cure" approach is the other side of the business. A pill that cures diabetes is something you can only sell to a customer once, a pill that treats diabetes without curing it, you have a lifetime subscription you can keep selling. The pill selling people would rather the later than the former, so that's what they spend their rather large R&D budgets on.

onefang
Boffin

Re: Not the only Guvmint dept to use fax

"Faking a fax took a little more effort with actual scissors and glue/tape."

Scan it, photoshop it, print it, done. If you create it on a computer and feed it to a fax service, you don't even need paper.

onefang

I wonder how many "fax" machines are email to fax gateways, that deliver to fax to email gateways?

Adtech-for-sex biz tells blockchain consent app firm, 'hold my beer'

onefang

Re: Missing a trick

"I don't know how you men do it, but we females, if we're lesbians, most of the time look for a compatible partner. You know, like, ermm, a female..?"

Dunno about other men, but I do almost exactly the same, looking for a compatible partner that is a female. The only difference is the ones I look for are not lesbians. I guess either of us would be happy with a bisexual female.

onefang

So you pay your money, send your wife the link, and maybe three months later, she'll have sex with you. Not being a married man myself, I'm wondering if there's quicker ways to get it done?

Clean up this hot sticky facial-recog mess for us, Microsoft begs politicos

onefang
Big Brother

Re: Yes but

"“The only effective way to manage the use of technology by a government is for the government proactively to manage this use itself,” Smith said."

Why do foxes and hen houses come to mind when I read that?

Google offers to leave robocallers hanging on the telephone

onefang

Re: Nope

"they can protest on First Amendment grounds just like you"

Only in USA, the rest of the world may or may not have free speech, but if they have something called "First Amendment" it's likely to be a different thing to the USA one.

Sysadmin cracked military PC’s security by reading the manual

onefang

Did you miss the multi-player solitaire bit? There's plenty of multi-player card games they could have used, solitaire isn't one of them. The clue is in the name.