This did happen sometimes, mostly due to a poor seel where the pins penetrate the glass envelope,
It is easy to spot, because the tube has a mercury "getter" to absorb the last traces of gass. When the tube is healthy, this looks like mercury - silver and shiney. If the vaccum leaks, it goes white and crystaline.
My mother was a programmer from about 1966-1970. In those days, programming was considered to be women's work, cos it was boring and repetative. She wrote in Fortran 2 on coding sheets - mostly Linear programming to optimise the ingredients of pet foods!
I got my first job in software mainly as a result of reading the Fortran manuals open on the breakfast table after Mum had been on the night shift!
Being able to read Fortran 2 upside down is a seriously obsolete skill! However, I learned Basic when the PDP8 came out, and fortunately it was a lifetime skill!
$100, and it comes with tacks stuck to the tyres to guarantee a minimum of 100 puntures per hour.
When my neighbour came round the other day and asked "Why does my PC go so slow now?", I told her "The superficial reason is that it has a virus. The underlying reason is cos you bought software from Bill Gates!" Her reply was "If its a virus, wont it get better by itself? You told me not to take anti-biotics when I had a virus, isnt it the same for PCs?" I said it wasn't, so she asked me to fix it for free. I said "I will not give you free support unless you ditch windows! I don't use it and can't support it. Go and ask PC world for the support you paid for"
(I have not asked if the computer is now working - I hope she has gone to someone else for support).
To make those corporate used machines usable, they need to be checked
And if you are asking why they are kept in the closet for ever...
Twenty years ago, when I worked for a large multinational estimated that it cost $25 in paperwork to throw something in the skip! Five years ago, another multinational I worked for was estimating $100
So don't worry, the $100 can't happen here, cos the paperwork costs more than that!
In London, its only about 1 year in 10 that the temperature does not rise above 0C in the daytime for three consecutive days, and most years it does not fall below 0C at night more than 5 nights in a row.
A warm jacket will certainly see you through a power cut that lasts less than a day, and if it lasts longer, stay in bed wearing the warm jacket! (Power cuts in London lasting longer than 1 day have not been seen since 1945).
Outside London, its different, and in Scotland, you might need to make some serious provision.
However, my reommendation to the original poster if he is outside London is:
Get a second hand heavy diesel generator and plumb you house heating system into the generator's cooling system. You pay only once for heavy heating oil, and get your electricity for free, OR pay for your electricity, and get your heating for free.
The only snag is that you have to have the noise of a truck diesel engine running day and night - but you will soon get used to the noise. (I managed to sleep soundly next to 5,000HP diesel engines when I was a teenager).
Do you mean the x20? the 20 watt PWM amplifier that could only supply 10 watts? Or the six transister radio that had only three transistors, but used them all twice?
I personally made thousands of both these things in the summer of 1966 (to the sound of the Isley Brothers "unchained melody" and any amount of Everly Brothers tracks. I also made a modified version of the radio that acted as a transmitter (for bugging).
Well IT manager in the uK is definitely not a long term career. If the company lasts 8 months you have done well. More likley they will sack you because of a takeover in another country with no other impact except you lose your job. If you work for the government, your department will be relocated to somewhere beyond the black stump, or disbanded so it can be replaced by a department under a different minister for reasons of cronyism.
I moved to truck driving and never regretted it. Career progression in a 44ton truck around the M25 is faster than upwards in a UK multinational.
I have have worked on electric power steering - and even if the processor went berserk, you can steer it by hand in theory, but its not so easil in real life! There is a mechanical coupling through the power box, but if you had to overpower the motor, you would have to be quite strong - my mum could not do it.
by contrast, my ABS did not work for six months - due to dirt in the sensors. Eventually I had them cleaned in time for for the MOT!
Summary - If I want power steering, I want one with fluid in it - at least the failure modes are predictable.
There is a billion tons of prior art on this one - the fluidic logic predates the discovery of electricity and is still widely used in (for example) bottling plants throughout the known world (can you say "Coca Cola"). Its a safe bet its even used on the planet Zog.
In fact, the regulator in your domestic/bottle gas supply is an example of a fluidic zener diode and transistor.
Fortunately if SCO had a patent on this, it would have expired even before silent movies were invented.
These researchers, and the whole of Colarado for all I know, is about 300 years behind the rest of the planet.
Slashdot Mirror
How much profit do credit card companies make from spam?
Maybe that explains why there is so much spam!
It is easy to spot, because the tube has a mercury "getter" to absorb the last traces of gass. When the tube is healthy, this looks like mercury - silver and shiney. If the vaccum leaks, it goes white and crystaline.
Another 4 years of Dubya, and it will!
I think the old English word Bo-Lucks comes to mind!
My mother was a programmer from about 1966-1970. In those days, programming was considered to be women's work, cos it was boring and repetative. She wrote in Fortran 2 on coding sheets - mostly Linear programming to optimise the ingredients of pet foods!
I got my first job in software mainly as a result of reading the Fortran manuals open on the breakfast table after Mum had been on the night shift!
Being able to read Fortran 2 upside down is a seriously obsolete skill! However, I learned Basic when the PDP8 came out, and fortunately it was a lifetime skill!
Feeding them to the lions might be better for spammers.
Plus: Once you figured out that the disks had to be inserted in a random order, you could call yourself an expert!
It probably isn't news.
Yeah, vote for the Cons "The party of convictions" (most shadow cabinet ministers have been convicted of something!)
$100, and it comes with tacks stuck to the tyres to guarantee a minimum of 100 puntures per hour.
When my neighbour came round the other day and asked "Why does my PC go so slow now?", I told her "The superficial reason is that it has a virus. The underlying reason is cos you bought software from Bill Gates!" Her reply was "If its a virus, wont it get better by itself? You told me not to take anti-biotics when I had a virus, isnt it the same for PCs?" I said it wasn't, so she asked me to fix it for free. I said "I will not give you free support unless you ditch windows! I don't use it and can't support it. Go and ask PC world for the support you paid for"
(I have not asked if the computer is now working - I hope she has gone to someone else for support).
A million Penguins are wrong but ...
Dont worry though - most UK banks consider it more important to buy what MS sell than to offer good service to customers.
What about .scam and .spam?
No, this is the UK Government If they realise its a bad idea, they vote for it.
And if you are asking why they are kept in the closet for ever ...
Twenty years ago, when I worked for a large multinational estimated that it cost $25 in paperwork to throw something in the skip! Five years ago, another multinational I worked for was estimating $100
So don't worry, the $100 can't happen here, cos the paperwork costs more than that!
A warm jacket will certainly see you through a power cut that lasts less than a day, and if it lasts longer, stay in bed wearing the warm jacket! (Power cuts in London lasting longer than 1 day have not been seen since 1945).
Outside London, its different, and in Scotland, you might need to make some serious provision.
However, my reommendation to the original poster if he is outside London is:
Get a second hand heavy diesel generator and plumb you house heating system into the generator's cooling system. You pay only once for heavy heating oil, and get your electricity for free, OR pay for your electricity, and get your heating for free.
The only snag is that you have to have the noise of a truck diesel engine running day and night - but you will soon get used to the noise. (I managed to sleep soundly next to 5,000HP diesel engines when I was a teenager).
It might be cheaper to buy a second home!
Generally, its great, except for
1) The address entry system is wierd 2) You cannot tell it about extra vehicle height, weight, etc.
The phone operators should realise that they could make a lot of money if they were not so damn greedy with their download rates.
Do you mean the x20? the 20 watt PWM amplifier that could only supply 10 watts? Or the six transister radio that had only three transistors, but used them all twice?
I personally made thousands of both these things in the summer of 1966 (to the sound of the Isley Brothers "unchained melody" and any amount of Everly Brothers tracks. I also made a modified version of the radio that acted as a transmitter (for bugging).
(Its a JOKE!)
Well IT manager in the uK is definitely not a long term career. If the company lasts 8 months you have done well. More likley they will sack you because of a takeover in another country with no other impact except you lose your job. If you work for the government, your department will be relocated to somewhere beyond the black stump, or disbanded so it can be replaced by a department under a different minister for reasons of cronyism.
I moved to truck driving and never regretted it. Career progression in a 44ton truck around the M25 is faster than upwards in a UK multinational.
Perhaps its time to ban gloves in case burglars use them to conceal their fingerprints.
by contrast, my ABS did not work for six months - due to dirt in the sensors. Eventually I had them cleaned in time for for the MOT!
Summary - If I want power steering, I want one with fluid in it - at least the failure modes are predictable.
In fact, the regulator in your domestic/bottle gas supply is an example of a fluidic zener diode and transistor.
Fortunately if SCO had a patent on this, it would have expired even before silent movies were invented.
These researchers, and the whole of Colarado for all I know, is about 300 years behind the rest of the planet.
When I last measured, it was nearer 150w when active, and about 15w when idle (Sony 15" screen, about 10 years ago)