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User: bmsleight

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Comments · 166

  1. Re:And In Unrelated News... on Obama Kicks Off Massive Science Education Effort · · Score: 2, Interesting

    True, Engineering is Fun. In the UK we already have a STEM net. [http://www.stemnet.org.uk/home.cfm] I am an Engineering professional, who goes in to schools as an STEM Ambassador, (alas do not get the chocolates).

    I try and explain how much fun it is to have a real job as an Engineer. We have a real shortage of young people who consider doing engineering at all levels as a career. From spending all day outside fixing traffic lights, to spending multi-million pounds on engneering contracts. Engineer is a good career. On Friday as part to the STEMNET group, I explained to new teachers what it is like to have an Ambassador to visit the school, whilst at the Leicester Space Center in the UK. Then we all got to meet Charlie Duke, a United States astronaut. Who had an interesting career in Engineering!

  2. Re:Challenge Accepted on URL Shorteners Get Some Backup · · Score: 1

    Need the http:/// to be entered. http://www.google.com/ works but www.google.com does not.

  3. Re:Challenge Accepted on URL Shorteners Get Some Backup · · Score: 1

    Shame it does not work..

    http://2sa.me/C

  4. Re:I'm sure it didn't help. on Did Chicago Lose Olympic Bid Due To US Passport Control? · · Score: 1

    has direct land passage to outside countries

    So does the UK. From Northern Ireland to Ireland!

  5. Re:Oh god, the Daily Express on UK Plans To Monitor 20,000 Families' Homes Via CCTV · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Err, you are aware that this scheme is already in existence?

    Where, citations ? Please a good source of truth not the Express.

  6. Guardian Story on Murdoch Paper Reporters Eavesdropped On Celebrities' Voicemail · · Score: 4, Informative

    This was originally a Guardian Story. It relates to mobile phones, not BT landline.
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/jul/09/newsoftheworld-newsinternational

  7. Newspaper - "Yes Minister" on Newspaper Crowdsources 700,000-Page Investigation of MP Expenses · · Score: 4, Funny
    the best explanation of newspapers was given in "Yes Minister"

    The Daily Mirror is read by people who think they run the country
    The Guardian is read by people who think they ought to run the country
    The Times is read by people who actually do run the country
    the Daily Mail is read by the wives of the people who run the country
    the Financial Times is read by people who own the country
    The Morning Star is read by people who think the country ought to be run by another country
    The Daily Telegraph is read by people who think it is
    Sun readers donâ(TM)t care who runs the country, as long as sheâ(TM)s got big tits

  8. Availability - Fault Downtime on Ideal, and Actual, IT Performance Metrics? · · Score: 1

    Measure availability of systems. The time a fault is opened until the fault is closed. So that if a fault is not really resolved it gets re-raised. It gets more complex, use this for traffic systems (traffic Lights in London, UK. Paper (PDF) and CCTV across London.

  9. Re:Likely cause... on Is Playing a DVD Harder Than Rocket Science? · · Score: 1

    Don't tell the Jingles :)

  10. SpinVox on Time For Voice-Mail To Throw In the Towel · · Score: 1

    Orange used to have a real person answer the phone and send you a text message but stop it a few years ago.

    I rather like my SpinVox service. It get it right mroe time than wrong, as well as testing it can email to multiple addresses. So from a voice mail I get a text, email home and email work. Which means I have a mini address book on email, as the subject line contain the calling number.

  11. Re:An unfair fight is the point of war on Konami Announces a Game Based On a 2004 Battle In Fallujah · · Score: 1

    Hunger Strikes. I think we did treat them as political prisoners.

  12. Re:London Underground on Amtrak Photo Contestant Arrested By Amtrak Police · · Score: 1

    Thats for filming. It is because the drivers spend most of there time in low light (tunnels!) so the flash is quite painful.

  13. Re:Um what? on What Carriers Don't Want You To Know About Texting · · Score: 1
    Of the basic 8 channels per base station more can be configured as control changes. Rather the traditional split of 7/1 nears schools (heavy SMS traffic) it can be 6/2 or even 4/4. Giving much more capacity to text.

    GPRS (2.5G) will use any of the spare capacity over all 8 channels multiplex in time as well as frequency.

    Although it was about 6 year ago since I did a trainign course on GSM and have not really used it since.

  14. Re:But... on Unix Dict/grep Solves Left-Side-of-Keyboard Puzzle · · Score: 1

    Brilliant

  15. Re:No drm requirement on Amazon Kindle Endorsed By Oprah · · Score: 1
    I have long documents to read for work. I like to be able to flick though technical manuals.

    Do you every use it to read other documents not just books ?

    The idea of having a library is appealing.

  16. Re:Move along nothing to see here ( Zaurus) on New Cellphone Sized "Computer" Takes Aim at Sub-Notebooks · · Score: 1

    But for £99 ?

  17. Re:Afghanistan in Perspective on UK Court Rejects Encryption Key Disclosure Defense · · Score: 1

    Interesting - thanks for the reply. Iraq - was that a threat ?

  18. Re:Huh? on UK Court Rejects Encryption Key Disclosure Defense · · Score: 1
    I tended to agree with your assessment, but the in the detailed Court Summary -

    On analysis, the key which provides access to protected data, like the data itself, exists separately from each appellant's "will". Even if it is true that each created his own key, once created, the key to the data, remains independent of the appellant's "will" even when it is retained only in his memory, at any rate until it is changed. If investigating officers were able to identify the key from a different source (say, for example, from the records of the shop where the equipment was purchased) no one would argue that the key was not distinct from the equipment which was to be accessed, and indeed the individual who owned the equipment and knew the key to it. Again, if the arresting officers had arrived at the premises in Sheffield immediately after S had completed the process of accessing his own equipment enabling them to identify the key, the key itself would have been a piece of information existing, at this point, independently of S himself and would have been immediately available to the police for their use in the investigation. In this sense the key to the computer equipment is no different to the key to a locked drawer. The contents of the drawer exist independently of the suspect: so does the key to it. The contents may or may not be incriminating: the key is neutral. In the present cases the prosecution is in possession of the drawer: it cannot however gain access to the contents. The lock cannot be broken or picked, and the drawer itself cannot be damaged without destroying the contents.

  19. Re:Afghanistan in Perspective on UK Court Rejects Encryption Key Disclosure Defense · · Score: 1

    I agree with Afghanistan. However history as shown us again and again that no one wins a land war in Afghanistan - How threatening was Iraq ? I think the lesson has now been learnt and Libya Syria and North K. are way to solev the problems with out war.

  20. Re:Mornington Crescent... on Geoffrey Perkins Is Dead At 55 · · Score: 4, Funny
    Leading to the classic Reverse-Ksmiov of Mornington Crescent.

    Easy really ?

  21. Re:Mornington Crescent... on Geoffrey Perkins Is Dead At 55 · · Score: 2, Informative

    Tooting Broadway.

  22. Mod Parent as Troll on NZ Judge Bans Online Publishing of Accuseds' Names · · Score: 3, Insightful
    If you follow the story - you see that the judge is trying to preserve justice and ensire they is a fair trial.

    So you want to post just to make a point ?

    Occasionally you have to way up the freedoms to ensure the greater freedom of a fair trial wins out.

  23. Google docs - pdf tags. on Why Google Should Embrace OpenOffice.org · · Score: 1

    File -> Download File As -> pdf

    Used to give OpenOffice.org as the pdf creator (within pdf tags), it now gives "Prince 6.0 (www.princexml.com)". So IMHO Google docs are moving away from OpenOffice.org
  24. Re:The House of Lords on UK to Ban Possession of Certain 'Violent' Pornography · · Score: 1
    I used to be against the House of Lords, but they keep on calling it right. Again and again the biggest legislative muck ups, (Poll Tax, War Crimes, Tuition fees, Federal Hospital) they oppose.

    It makes it hard to be left-wing when you need to reply on the toffs to fight for you.

  25. Mods up ! on An AI 4-Year-Old In Second Life · · Score: 1

    No I don't agree with most of the above post. But WTF was this mod'ed down.

    On the other hand, encouraging talking can be good.