Posts by Andrew Heenan

Tragic For Cuba

If - as rumoured - Snowden hopes to travel via Cuba, I hope they refuse him entry; to involve themselves in this affair would give their enemies in the US an excuse to extend their ludicrous and cruel sanctions yet further.

Facebook: Bad Faith

It's not the ads that's the problem, it's facebook.

I can ignore ads, and I use Adblock (as all intelligent people do).

But they allow 'members' to spam you via more gullible friends, they reset privacy settings to 'default' (ie not private at all) every time they 'improve' privacy, and worst of all, you can't use most of the third party gizmos, because to do so requires you to allow them access to ALL your contacts etc., etc.

Facebook is nasty. I use it, because that's the only place that many of contacts will use - but as soon as there's a viable rival, we'll all be off. Until then, I'll use it less and less.

Weirdly, the thing that really annoys me is that when I used to use FB to post on discussions outside FB, they always included my age -and there was never a way to stop them.

In the peak hour, one bus takes the place of 69 cars - FACT!

Ignoramus said: "If the bus is absolutely full. And is an exceptionally large double-decker, packed with standing passengers. And the cars were to contain the driver only."

Most peak hour buses carry 80+ people (I know, I've been there). The vast majority of cars carry one person. Look out your window, and you'll see. Few 'zone' buses are single deck, except for 400 bendies; 100+ passengers.

All London buses (except a very few tourist Routemasters) are less than 10 years old, and pollute much, much, much less than 10 cars, let alone 69.

But don't let the facts get in your way, will you?

@ Mike Richards

@ Mike - Thanks for that ... they can keep on spending my cash, then!

At least for now - though I can see fights ahead, as 2016 gets nearer!

@ Dimitrov - And you should see the family hammer!

@ Rob - We Brits certainly whinge most about the investment, but we also pay. Some direct money goes in, and I believe the EU adds more, in our name.

As an 'enthusiast' since the Goons recorded A Russian Love Song and Russia launched the Sputnik, I don't begrudge a penny that's spent wisely. Trouble with Europe, is the word 'Wisely' has been deleted from every dictionary (along with 'gullible').

"There is a Russian satellite moon over Arkansas, Mr President"

"Thank heaven it is not over America

Coulda been George W!"

Operator Problem

Why is it that spam is allowed to be a consumer issue? Whether email or mobile, the problem could be dealt with easily and cheaply if there was a will to do it.

With emails, I can delete 300 spam as easily as three (and gmail seperates them out for me, at least!). But with a mobile, I'll be wasting time and effort (and possibly cash) just keeping the stuff at bay. So people will begin to select operator on the basis of spam control.

May the best company win.

For the sake of platform simplicity ...

"But by that logic we should all just accept the inevitable and cast our desktop Macs into the ocean, for the sake of platform simplicity."

Why do you spoil all your stuff with childish conclusions?

Voda has a point, and one that could be discussed constructively, not dismissed in this way. You may not like their CEO, but he isn't opening his mouth just for you to get cheap laughs.

At this moment, the number of mobile platforms is increasing almost exponentially (AOL?!!), and life is not only more complex, but more expensive - and sooner or later, the consumer will pay.

So why not delete the cr*p, and start again with a serious discussion. Thanks!

So Citreon and Peugot Don't Do Hybrids?

Even the French are entitled to their opinion. It would be nice to see some logic - and maybe some evidence - to support their assertions, but you can't have everything.

It won't stop the development of hydrogen fuel cells, as there is a misinformed craze for hydrogen vehicles especially in countries that don't do hybrids.

Of course it's a temporary step -but as all 'pure green' energy-saving vehicles have thus far been a joke, we need SOMETHING to lower carbon output until science catches up.

Back the lab guys, and stop whining!

Neat cover job ...

... but we don't have to believe it, spittle or not.

And as none of the cables have been repaired yet, you don't KNOW that they were 'innocent incidents' do you?

And you wouldn't tell us if you did.

So if I had a tin foil hat (which I don't) or a surplus of spittle (sorry, not me), I'd be perfectly entitled to continue in my delusions, the only change being that I'd now recognise you as a servant of the CIA.

No surprises there, then ;o)

Only a Matter of Time ...

Free? Onlky until service providers find a way to charge. I'll bet Voda has a team of top engineers on the case as we speak. Plus don't forget the slogan "The future is bright, the future is overweight bills". It's virgin on the ridiculous for Nokia to lure users into such a trap.

EU Fiddles While Rome Burns?

Or was it Robbie Burns?

Truth is, of course, that the Crusade Against Patio Heaters has nothing whatsoever to do with saving the planet - it's all about spiting smokers who dare to keep warm after being expelled from public buildings.

So long as toilet rolls are made from bleached virgin paper, bottles are recycled rather than being reused, and frequent fliers are taxed less than rail travellers, then 'saving the planet' is a talking shop, not a call to action.

And patio heaters should be round about 1,538 on any intelligent list of priorities.

Has Anyone Been Prosecuted?

Seems to me that if slamming is the issue, then a few prosecutions might focus the mind better.

Someone above mentioned that the companies should discourage it - of course that's right. But a few criminal records for fraud would make people think twice.

This has happened with utility slamming (though that's more often incompetence than fraud - and I know, it's happened to me twice: never live in a converted flat in London!)

Time To Make Peace First?

Electricity storage, even on a small scale, is pretty inefficient and expensive. Doing it for a country is a pretty naive suggestion, even from a scientist.

'Twould be much more efficient to build an alliance of nations around the globe, to maintain a constant supply; even though transmission would also involve some waste.

It would, at least, be possible.

"Atomkraft? Nein, Danke!" - Bring Back The Sixties, All Is Forgiven!

They Got me Too ...

... But I'm happy to accept their freely-offered apology and grovelling.

How many other companies not only hold their hands up, but actually apologise?

And it's their first serious c*ck-up in ten years, which also compares well with most companies I connect with.

Do Get Your Facts Right!

"The expectation has been that third-party companies would spring up to supply those, but until now there has been little evidence of that."

No, and if you read the copious news articles, you'll see that none are expected until late spring / summer.

It seems a tad churlish to sneer at something that was only ever supposed to happen in your own imagination.

But hey, don't let the facts get in the way of a boring story!!

And Your Point Is ... ?

OpenMoko may - or may not - be a Great Step forward. But it says nothing at all about Google's Android initiative - which was never going to produce results this side of summer.

So this weird and slanted article tells us much more about your petty fears and prejudices than it does about technology.

If you want to vent your spleen at Google, be my guest. But try to more honest about it, huh?

You Cannot Be Serious!

Neo1973: any-distance contender to Apple and Google? - in your dreams.

And sadly, the article gives no clue as to why you think it's up there with the big boys.

Do you have a personal interest, or is it just whimsy?

Giving Away The Golden Goose?

"These will be perpetual licences which can be sold on or sub-let to other users."

I cannot imagine a more stupid proposal for a fast-changing market. Who knows what the future will bring? How can it be sensible to give control in perpetuity to a commercial enterprise?

What sane government sells a source of income that could keep the country afloat?

Is The Pope Catholic?

"Another attempt to prove that the sun and planets go round the earth by ignoring the bleedin' obvious."

You mean they don't?

Next you'll be saying that Terry Pratchett made up the discworld.

Oh Ye Of Little Faith!

Bring on the clean coal power stations - Yeah, right.

This is actually the best news whales have had for years, as it will bring ordinary people - who care about their children (even if unborn and undreamt of) - back into the activist role.

There is no such thing as a 'clean' coal station, and probably never will be.

We all want creature comforts ... but look at the price we'll all pay.

re. How efficient?

"How efficient is a maglev compared to a normal diesel engine?

In theory, "much, much, much better"; in practice, "much, much better" - but then, if you choose diesel to compare with, that's not much of a challenge!

A Sad Day For The Urban Robot

"By the end of 2010s, we'd like to see these robots working at every street corner of the city"

I don't think the register should be celebrating the advent of barely-teen panhandling robots.

Will they be able to sell the Big Issue?

"Windows May Be Broken ...

... But that makes us a Breath of Fresh Air"

Honesty in advertising?

I doubt it!

It wasn't 'foreign reports' ...

... it was Beijing Youth Daily that said in February 2004 that China plans to land a man on the Moon by 2020.

Zubrin argues from a very simple perspective?

"Take away the money and the large-scale terrorism stops because they can't afford the equipment to blow shit up. It's really that simple. But I suppose that makes me a bigot..."

No, but it does suggest you are poorly informed. If you look a little wider into terrorism - including virtually all the bombs within the US, you'll find no international sponsor.

BTW, Stating the fact that Saudi Arabia is the source of many terrorism dollars is not bigotry, it's simple honesty; the evidence, for those who choose to look, has been widely available for many years.

But saying that fact is not the same thing as using that info to launch an anti-Muslim broadside. THAT's bigotry. And that's what he's doing.

Bush-ites are scared to confront Saudi (as is the Brit government); fomenting against ALL Muslims is a cowardly and stupid workaround. If this guy REALLY cared about the issues he claims to care about, he'd be arguing that bombing Saudi Arabia would be much more effective than bombing Iran; both routes are pretty bloody stupid, but if you want to bomb, as the RAF used to say, pick the right target. But bigotry is cheaper, I guess.

I find it sad the the 'war on terrorism' [sic] seems to have just two fronts; fostering anti-Muslim sentiment and demonising Cuba, neither of which is likely (in my oh so humble opinion) to achieve peace. Or anything else.

One Glaring Omission

We all know that the amount of beauty required to launch one ship is the milliHelen, based on the metric unit the Helen, the face that launched a thousand ships.

I've searched your conversion device from top to left and bottom to right, and find no trace.

Please remedy this with all speed; launch date is set for Tuesday week.

How many vultures will I need?

And are they Gift Vultures or Rook Tokens?

Interesting article, but ...

... the device won't pass the "Heenan Test", and so will fail.

The "Heenan Test"?

First proposed in 1998, it goes like this - "No device will replace the paperback book until it is not only easily updateable and rechargeable, but is also capable of being read in the bath.

This looks good, and two out of three ain't bad. But it still don't cut it.

Largely Symbolic My Foot!

The two sides are NOT fighting for the prestige of winning, though I agree that there is no real issue about significant technological superiority.

The two sides are fighting for the many millions of dollars that the winner will win - and the loser will not.

Calling that symbolic is a serious misrepresentation of the DVD industry and the motivation behind its progress.

You'll be telling us next that regionalization is for 'user convenience' :o)

There's Two Objections to Ads ...

... Principle & Practice.

Those who object on principle will kick up a stink, and if it appears big enough (as if!), then some kind of 'opt out' may appear.

What is more likely is that the 'practice' of heavy-handed ad insertion will do long term damage, loosening loyalty, speeding up the inevitable moment that some new, even kewler [sic] site takes the lead.

Once M$ got their foot in the door, subtlety went out the window; watch NBC's alternative to youtube fail for the same reason; the Suit Corporations are not capable of resisting the 'we want MORE money, and we want it NOW' types in the Ad sales department.

Suit Corporations ALWAYS kill the Golden Goose, and NEVER learn their error.

Slow, Slow Symantec

These 'search result' URLs have been appearing for at least 6 months, and have been blocked - at least by gmail - for much of that time.

Where have Symantec been?

you have to defend copyright

"surely the fact that you create something and it can be proven is enough that the copyright exists."

Not that simple. If you fail to act on copyright theft, you provide a precedent: "He allowed her to copy his song so he can't stop me", which is why Elvis, Karen and Frank reach out from beyond the grave to stop minor infringements.

It's all a matter of where the line is drawn, and how sober the judge happens to be. Every time you play "My Sweet Lord" in public, the royalties you pay end up at "He's So Fine", in a memorable case from last century.

In this case, however, I'd argue that "No Reasonable Person" would see it as copyright theft; so the question, now is:

"Is The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Whatever, a reasonable person?"

Does YouTube Deserve a Slow Death?

I don't think so - and I don't think rogue nations' disrespect for copyright is a "freedom" to be encouraged.

I'm sure Google will have teething problems, but I hope it comes right, and finally makes possible a balance between the rights of content makers and us consumers.

Good Luck to Google!

And What About The Consumer ...

You bleat about Poor Little Sky being squeezed by the ground based services (not all of which are public service, BTW) ... and your solution?

Give Sky a monopoly.

Don't you think consumers have a right to resist when they are being steamrollered into signing up for a service with dubious benefit?

Trust me, you don't need digital TV to follow Corrie, or the news, or even Lazytown.

And there's zero on Sky to send us running to pay their extortionate fees.

But as a Sky fan, I suppose the consumer view never entered your head?