British banks do require proof of address, but the degree of hoops you have to jump through depends on what sort of account you want. The first account I got when I arrived in the UK was a simple debit card account - you get a card, and internet banking, but no overdraft, no chequebook, etc. Quite limited but enough for the grandparent's needs. And All I had to do was get some fella staying at the same youth hostel to write a letter saying the address of the hostel was my permanent address. Dead simple.
They say they require a permanent address to crack down on terrorists funding their activities by fraud. Well, it's pretty easy to bypass, as the example above shows. And ironically, the only reason I was trying to get a bank account was so I could get a permanent address (you can't rent a flat from most agencies without a bank account), but I couldn't open a bank account without having proof of a permanent address (like having my name on the bills/lease for the flat). Nice catch-22 with extra hoops for legitimate citizens, and a really limp defence against the less-legitimate. Government restrictions at their finest!
Heh... "the users are revolting". Show me a sysadmin who disagrees with that sentiment and I'll show you a liar (or at least someone heading for middle management).
Sorry, but I have to disagree. Novell Netware was the first system I learnt to hack (with a hat as white as the driven snow of course;) ), and it honestly was a piece of crap, even for a beginner. Vaguely stable crap (compared to the Windows boxen it was running on anyway), but hardly what I'd call secure.
I can't link to it, but perhaps it is a sad indictment that it is my work coffee mug at the moment, so I know it pretty much by heart even though I'm not at work at the moment...
Dilbert is presenting a Powerpoint show (containing appropriate illustrations) to a meeting with the PHB, Alice, Wally, etc...
Panel 1: "We dug up the founder of our company and wrapped him in copper wire." Panel 2: "Then we re-interred him and replaced his tombstone with a huge magnet." Panel 3: "We're hoping our business practices will cause him to spin in his grave and generate electricity."
Good points! Tracking only tells you where their phone is, not where they are. And even if the two coincide, it doesn't tell you what they are doing, which one would presume is more important.
I say bring it on. Let's see the transparency from both sides though. Anyone else keen to see the EU reveal in painstaking detail their reasons for sticking it to Microsoft, raise a metaphorical hand...
And its a pretty bad shill at that. From TFA (The F**** Advertisement):
Page 1: who the hell can navigate with their index finger on those little laptop squares?
Page 2: I use a trackball... it's driven by thumb power!
Half the first page is in light-grey italics, making it a pain in the ass to read, but that's OK because it's just a complete cut-and-paste from the product website anyway
We're nerds. Sorry, but Keeps your Laptop cooler and Comfortable and Stable just marketing fluff, not proper specs. Where are the heat transfer coefficients, independent third-party measurements, etc? I want to be able to make up my own mind whether this product really will stop high temperatures damaging my bollocks, and more importantly, my laptop...
While I'm at it how do you reconcile Thinsulate(TM) blocks 95% of laptop Heat! and Keeps your Laptop cooler? If it is blocking heat it is an insulator, thereby reducing heat dissipation through the bottom of the laptop. I suspect there's more than one load of bollocks under these laptops.
What kind of LOSER would want to watch porn on an inch-and-a-half screen? Other than, of course, those majestic shitheads who proclaim loudly and consistently that they love porn and then expect me to be impressed because they're rebelling against societal acceptability.
Not me, because I don't have a phone. But I know plenty of so-called "majestic shitheads" who like nothing more than seeing porn on their phones, and spend lots of money downloading it and/or sending it on to others. Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean there is no market for it.
As far as telcos are concerned, the more data you have, the more likely you are to send/recieve data through them, the more money they get. Same goes for third-party companies that make movies, ringtones and all the other crap that people put on their phones nowadays.
Take the internet as an analogy - porn and piracy have been two of the dominant driving forces behind it to date. Obligatory geek reference As storage capacity increases it's hardly surprising that traffic in these increases too, and where there's traffic there's usually an opportunity for money. Why should phones be any different?
Slashdot Mirror
British banks do require proof of address, but the degree of hoops you have to jump through depends on what sort of account you want. The first account I got when I arrived in the UK was a simple debit card account - you get a card, and internet banking, but no overdraft, no chequebook, etc. Quite limited but enough for the grandparent's needs. And All I had to do was get some fella staying at the same youth hostel to write a letter saying the address of the hostel was my permanent address. Dead simple.
They say they require a permanent address to crack down on terrorists funding their activities by fraud. Well, it's pretty easy to bypass, as the example above shows. And ironically, the only reason I was trying to get a bank account was so I could get a permanent address (you can't rent a flat from most agencies without a bank account), but I couldn't open a bank account without having proof of a permanent address (like having my name on the bills/lease for the flat). Nice catch-22 with extra hoops for legitimate citizens, and a really limp defence against the less-legitimate. Government restrictions at their finest!
Heh... "the users are revolting". Show me a sysadmin who disagrees with that sentiment and I'll show you a liar (or at least someone heading for middle management).
Surely there's some prior art floating around, in that case.
Sorry, but I have to disagree. Novell Netware was the first system I learnt to hack (with a hat as white as the driven snow of course ;) ), and it honestly was a piece of crap, even for a beginner. Vaguely stable crap (compared to the Windows boxen it was running on anyway), but hardly what I'd call secure.
Wake me when they stop picking on the BSD Amish then.
No no - this is evolution in action! Finally a seafood species that comes complete with dental-floss!
Where does white stop and where does black begin?
Permit me to state the obvious, and suggest that it's a grey area...
Apparently, entertainment shell companies are a favored vehicle of money launderers.
Really? Do the MPAA or RIAA know?
"Arrr Capn, thar be pirates off the port as well as the starbord now!"
I can't link to it, but perhaps it is a sad indictment that it is my work coffee mug at the moment, so I know it pretty much by heart even though I'm not at work at the moment...
Dilbert is presenting a Powerpoint show (containing appropriate illustrations) to a meeting with the PHB, Alice, Wally, etc...
Panel 1: "We dug up the founder of our company and wrapped him in copper wire."
Panel 2: "Then we re-interred him and replaced his tombstone with a huge magnet."
Panel 3: "We're hoping our business practices will cause him to spin in his grave and generate electricity."
Obligatory Blackadder quote...
Edmund: "Well, well, well: if it isn't the Lord Privy Toastrack!"
+1 Amen Brother
Actually it's an old Dilbert cartoon (circa late 2004).
To my knowledge there has never been a problem with the UAE making such sales.
Of course not. They have oil.
You must be new here.
Heh... like the Pentagon, you mean?
Anyone else read the title and think "This is a month early"... ?
Good points! Tracking only tells you where their phone is, not where they are. And even if the two coincide, it doesn't tell you what they are doing, which one would presume is more important.
I say bring it on. Let's see the transparency from both sides though. Anyone else keen to see the EU reveal in painstaking detail their reasons for sticking it to Microsoft, raise a metaphorical hand...
Digi-gal Restrictions Management
Bondage control? Must be a typo... hang on, no you're right after all, my mistake...
Sigh. Another Slashvertisement.
In war, once you die, you come right back to life (or maybe there is a slight delay)
Well it worked for Jesus and Elvis... And I know because I saw them playing poker at a friend's house after I had some happy pills the other week...
At the risk of feeding a troll...
What kind of LOSER would want to watch porn on an inch-and-a-half screen? Other than, of course, those majestic shitheads who proclaim loudly and consistently that they love porn and then expect me to be impressed because they're rebelling against societal acceptability.
Not me, because I don't have a phone. But I know plenty of so-called "majestic shitheads" who like nothing more than seeing porn on their phones, and spend lots of money downloading it and/or sending it on to others. Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean there is no market for it.
As far as telcos are concerned, the more data you have, the more likely you are to send/recieve data through them, the more money they get. Same goes for third-party companies that make movies, ringtones and all the other crap that people put on their phones nowadays.
Take the internet as an analogy - porn and piracy have been two of the dominant driving forces behind it to date. Obligatory geek reference As storage capacity increases it's hardly surprising that traffic in these increases too, and where there's traffic there's usually an opportunity for money. Why should phones be any different?
Obligatory vaguely-related geek reference...
Heh - when was the last time you managed to get a 2-year old to sit still for 2.5 minutes, without entertainment/distractions?
(not my blog) Prior art from Dilbert - it is my coffee mug at the moment! I'd link to the cartoon itself but it has expired from the archive.