Negative Events & Occurences

[SargeMcCluck]

you forgot the part where we claim it as our own :cool:

Like you did with our language.

You did come up with spray on cheese though. Gotta give you that. ;)

[Akuryou13]

Like you did with our language.

You did come up with spray on cheese though. Gotta give you that. ;)didn't we also do electricity? :p

[SargeMcCluck]

didn't we also do electricity? :p

Nature beat you on that, I'm afraid.

I'll also give you the traffic cone.

[Akuryou13]

Nature beat you on that, I'm afraid.didn't say invent. we just figured out its use. or, well, refined its use anyway.

[SargeMcCluck]

didn't say invent. we just figured out its use. or, well, refined its use anyway.

The Greeks messed around with it, although only static, but then there was Ohm (Germany), Faraday (England), Maxwell (Scotland). There was also, before them, Guericke (Germany), Boyle (Ireland), Gray (England) and du Fay (France).

You did have Franklin, but he was just in a long line of people. It was used before and after him.


America DID come up with the stop sign though.

(I'll stop now. I'm just winding you up but some sod might read this and think I'm being serious.)

[bonz]

didn't say invent. we just figured out its use. or, well, refined its use anyway.
No, Nikola Tesla.
He was so brilliant, that nature relinquished it's copyright on electricity.
In the end he died a crazy, poor and lonely man, though. (More probably a secret agency killed him.)

Also, he was technically an Austrian.

[Akuryou13]

(I'll stop now. I'm just winding you up but some sod might read this and think I'm being serious.)normally I'd say you'd be right, but we're safe in the confines of OD. I seriously doubt any of us here are that dense :p

No, Nikola Tesla.
He was so brilliant, that nature relinquished it's copyright on electricity.
In the end he died a crazy, poor and lonely man, though. (More probably a secret agency killed him.)

Also, he was technically an Austrian.oh. right. I'd forgotten about Tesla. I'm familiar with a bunch of people toying with electricity and such, but not many did much with it, to my knowledge. Tesla, however.....

[MtlAngelus]

We invented tacos, biches!

[SargeMcCluck]

We invented tacos, biches!

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb311/MegSparrow/Roleplay%20characters/Hug_emoticon___v2.gif

[KRD]

Also, he was technically an Austrian.

Don't make me slap you.

[Pigbuster]

Warning: Angry rant ahead. I don't blame you if you won't read it because I just really had to rant about this and YOU are the LUCKY WINNERS!

I'm an admin on the MS Paint Adventures wiki (http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/MS_Paint_Adventures_Wiki), and in about a week or two, Wikia is going to push a mandatory new skin on all of their wikis.

And it's complete horse**** (http://reddead.wikia.com/wiki/American_Buffalo).

400 ****ING pixels to get to the first line in a god damn article (note that THAT particular article has a notice at the top, which means you have a generous 150 pixels of article space at the pagetop out of a ****ING 750 PIXEL TALL WINDOW). The content is given a fixed width of ~1000 pixels, 300 of which are taken up with a huge-ass sidebar which is full of ads for other wikis which have ****-all to do with MSPA. This leaves a pathetic 700 pixels for the main article space. If that article has an infobox? Like the MSPA wiki's character pages, I.E. the most popular pages? Even ****ing less. Like, 400 pixels for the text. Note that because MSPA's art is aliased we can't scale it or else it'll look ****ty. Why is the content fixed-width, which is a good question, considering that is a totally moronic thing to do? Why, because the content might LOOK DIFFERENT when seen at a different resolution! Or an iPhone or some ****! OH NO HOLY **** YOU MEAN A PAGE LOOKS DIFFERENT ON OTHER RESOLUTIONS GOOD ****ING CHRIST THANK GOD FOR FIXED-WIDTHS! Worst of all, there's practically no CSS customization whatso-****ing-ever. We have to use their stupid theme editor crap instead of using straight CSS code like, you know, a site's admin is generally supposed to be able to do. Good news! The theme editor allows practically no customization outside of color changes! Fantastic.

Basically, Wikia is trying to become a social networking site, so they want all of their wikis to look the same to encourage going between them and THAT MAKES NO ****ING SENSE YOU IDIOTS IT'S A ****ING ENCYCLOPEDIA. PEOPLE GO TO, SAY, THE SIMPSONS WIKI TO SEE INFO ABOUT THE SIMPSONS. THEY AREN'T GOING TO SEE AN AD FOR A WIKI ABOUT BOWLING OR SOME **** AND THINK "HEY! I CAME HERE FOR THIS VERY SPECIFIC THING, BUT I'M GONNA IGNORE THAT AND GO LEARN 'BOUT BOWLIN!".

In case you can't tell: I'm... REALLY píssed off about this. I mean christ, the Monaco skin, which is what we have now, isn't that great, but it's a hell of a lot better than this.


[EDIT] Man, I get embarrassed by rants I make faster than ever, now. I'll leave it, though.

[SupSuper]

I remember the exact same argument back when they forced the Monaco skin on everyone (they used to just have the default MonoBook), and they're not very open to criticism. The downside of big corporate ad-supported hosting.

Most wikis just moved out, maybe you could do the same? A wiki isn't that hard to set up and IIRC Wikia can give you the files.

[Pigbuster]

It's just...

WHY the fixed width? There is absolutely nothing gained from that. I can actually customize the way I see the new look, and setting the content to 100% width makes it a million times better. Of course, I can't edit the way everyone ELSE sees the page. Just personally. Sigh.

I was hoping that it would be possible to switch the wiki's look over to Monobook, but evidently I can't do that. It's a user setting only.

There's seriously absolutely nothing to do but suck it up or switch hosts. Switching is the most preferable thing, but the obnoxious problem is that Wikia evidently won't let anyone remove the old wiki, nor let them tell visitors that the wiki has moved and the Wikia version is going to stagnate, because that would be advertising for a competitor. I guess that makes sense, but holy hell is it a dick move.

[SupSuper]

With fixed width they have tight control of ad visibility. Those yachts don't pay for themselves you know. :rolleyes:

There's seriously absolutely nothing to do but suck it up or switch hosts. Switching is the most preferable thing, but the obnoxious problem is that Wikia evidently won't let anyone remove the old wiki, nor let them tell visitors that the wiki has moved and the Wikia version is going to stagnate, because that would be advertising for a competitor. I guess that makes sense, but holy hell is it a dick move.You're free to announce it (http://teamfortress.wikia.com/wiki/Team_Fortress_Wiki:Message), but whatever happens to the old site is down to the users since it's all open and stuff. Given how wikis work I don't think you can permanently lock or delete it, and Wikia doesn't control the content since it's all CC-licensed and stuff. At worst you'll get a split depending on where people side with the issue.

The biggest problem would be if a new site could handle the load, given the terrible history of MSPA servers. :p

Edit: On a tangent, I've always thought something like Wikia is kinda counter-productive. There's no reason every single topic needs its own independent wiki/community/etc, it just promotes all those horrible internet symptoms like fanboyism and circlejerking.

[bonz]

How about using a bot to delete every single article/page on the old wiki and substitute it with a "we're outta here" message?
That is, after your new one is up dan running stably and most of the community has moved too.

Also, isn't there an option to lock pages due to "vandalism", like on Wikipedia?
Edit: On a tangent, I've always thought something like Wikia is kinda counter-productive. There's no reason every single topic needs its own independent wiki/community/etc, it just promotes all those horrible internet symptoms like fanboyism and circlejerking.
Well, most of the time such wikis are much more specialised on their respective topic just like a book that specialises on a certain topic.

As an analogy, you wouldn't merge something like Gray's Anatomy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray%27s_Anatomy) into the "human anatomy" article of the Encyclopædia Britannica.

So why would I want for example the whole TF2 wiki be incorporated into the TF2 Wikipedia article?

[Paul.Power]

Edit: On a tangent, I've always thought something like Wikia is kinda counter-productive. There's no reason every single topic needs its own independent wiki/community/etc, it just promotes all those horrible internet symptoms like fanboyism and circlejerking.On the other hand, Wikipedia won't accept a page for MSPA because it's "not notable"

... yeah :p

[SupSuper]

Well, most of the time such wikis are much more specialised on their respective topic just like a book that specialises on a certain topic.

As an analogy, you wouldn't merge something like Gray's Anatomy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray%27s_Anatomy) into the "human anatomy" article of the Encyclopædia Britannica.

So why would I want for example the whole TF2 wiki be incorporated into the TF2 Wikipedia article?
Why not? I never said it had to be a single article. Wikipedia's whole point is that it contains huge amounts of detailed articles on completely different topics, like Pokémon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pokémon) and Star Trek (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek), and it's all in one single website with no conflict. That's kinda the whole point, it's digital, there's no physical limitations ala Encyclopedia Britannica to worry about. There's no search engines or "Encyclopedia Britannica"s about just some really specific topic.

I get that Wikipedia can be too asinine with their rules, so a lot of people just go "Yeah, well I'm gonna build my own wiki! With blackjack and hookers!" (often too many (http://www.google.com/search?q=pokemon+wiki)). But having one little wiki for every little thing undermines its strengths: If you don't know the exact topic you don't know the exact wiki to start looking in, wikilinks become a lot more sparse and limited, you lose a lot of the curiosity-killing time-wasting exploration element, etc.

I'm not saying Wikipedia is the end-all solution, but why not be broader? Why not have a books wiki or a video games wiki or a TV wiki or a cars wiki or something? Going with analogies, isn't that how real magazines and books and such work?

tl;dr: Compare the informativeness and addictiveness of broader sites like Wikipedia and TVTropes with their specialized brotheren.

How about using a bot to delete every single article/page on the old wiki and substitute it with a "we're outta here" message?
That is, after your new one is up dan running stably and most of the community has moved too.

Also, isn't there an option to lock pages due to "vandalism", like on Wikipedia?
Probably overkill, imagine if everyone who moved out of Wikipedia to their own specialized site did that. :p

[Squirminator2k]

I've no job, no income, and I've no idea how I'm going to make rent this month. I'm terrified.

[Xinos]

My graphics card just died again. Baking (http://forum.team17.co.uk/showthread.php?p=716886#post716886) it kept it going for about seven months (more than I expected), but now it's worse off than it was last time. It would only "die" while running a game. It would start filling the screen with scary blue and yellow pixels, but I could still use the computer. Now the whole system freezes a few moments after windows starts up, so i think it's time to replace it.

Looking at an ATI HD 5770, which is relatively cheap and seems allot better (http://www.hwcompare.com/graphics/compare.php?c=GeForce-8800-GTX-vs-Radeon-HD-5770) than my current one. And it only uses 70% of the power. All nvidia equivalents I've looked at use a ton of watts.

[MtlAngelus]

So I decided to upgrade my iMac's RAM, now that it's working. I made sure to choose RAM with the exact same specs as the one that came included with it.

So I bought two sticks, 2GB each. Model is KVR667D2S5. Thing is, if I place one, or both of the new sticks, my iMac refuses to work. I can hear the fans starting, but the screen remains black and it won't even play the magnificent AAAAAH sound... However, if I place just one of them along with the original 1GB stick, it works fine, and recognizes 3GB of RAM....

Is there any possibility that this particular RAM stick isn't supported, even tho it recognizes it as valid when placed alongside the 1GB stick? :confused:

[thomasp]

It's probably more likely that the RAM's faulty. Try sending it back and getting a replacement.

[MtlAngelus]

It's probably more likely that the RAM's faulty. Try sending it back and getting a replacement.

I've actually been searching the webs, apparently Kingston's ValueRAM branded memory doesn't work properly on iMacs.

I'm gonna see if I can return them, and then get some different memory, probably from crucial.

The thing that sucks most is that I only upgraded so I could get into the Starcraft 2 free to play weekend. Just finished downloading the client today, and I find out that the free to play weekend already ended today... T_T

edit: got a guest pass from a random person on kotaku, yay.

[SargeMcCluck]

Bought the Sam 'n' Max pack on Steam during the sale.

Purchase failed due to no fault of mine. Sale now over. Aargh!

[Xinos]

Yeah I remember about two years ago when I missed the ID Software pack sale by an hour or so. Boo!

[thomasp]

My nice shiny new internal hard drive seems to have died :(

So glad I bought a caddy so I can boot off my old one via USB without having to swap them over.

[SargeMcCluck]

For the first time in about 3 weeks, the temperature has gone above zero.

This means some of the giant amounts of snow will melt.
Then freeze overnight.

Car accidents ahoy! :<

[MtlAngelus]

Woo, it keeps getting closer. Now our front neighbors had two cars stolen. Apparently, another neighbor was being followed so he made his way inside his house quickly and locked himself in. The robbers stood outside his house for a few moments, probably trying to figure out what to do, when our front neighbor arrived to his house, unaware of what was going on. They pulled him out of his car, apparently hit him in the face, then proceeded to enter his house, steal a few things, and took away with his two cars. This happened at 10PM on sunday. :-/

[bonz]

Woo, it keeps getting closer. Now our front neighbors had two cars stolen. Apparently, another neighbor was being followed so he made his way inside his house quickly and locked himself in. The robbers stood outside his house for a few moments, probably trying to figure out what to do, when our front neighbor arrived to his house, unaware of what was going on. They pulled him out of his car, apparently hit him in the face, then proceeded to enter his house, steal a few things, and took away with his two cars. This happened at 10PM on sunday. :-/
Time to get a dog.
And some geese.
And probably a gun.

[SargeMcCluck]

Had a fever for a few days. Woke up this morning and it was 39.5°C. :<

[Akuryou13]

Had a fever for a few days. Woke up this morning and it was 39.5°C. :<:eek: woooooooow. so let us know when the funeral is?

[Zero72]

Duuhhh *googles Temperature Converter, uses* oh wow. Isn't that, like, delerium-causing levels of fever?

[SargeMcCluck]

I've been told if it gets _above_ 39.5 I should phone an ambulance and weep. However, after I saw it was 39.5 I shoved piles of medicine down my throat and took a cold shower (which was .. not fun), and got it down to 38.9 (102 F), so it seems panic over unless I wake up and it's really high tomorrow morning.

[Alien King]

Yeah, 40C is the point where Death starts taking a few good looks at you.

[Akuryou13]

my computer won't turn on. I have NO idea why. I press the button and nothing happens...

don't suppose any mods have a record of the email addresses we've used on these forums, by chance, btw? I seem to have changed my email password to something other than what I thought. it's saved on my PC, but while I'm on my laptop, I can't use it unless I can have a verification sent to an old hotmail account I don't even remember the sign-in for...

[MtlAngelus]

my computer won't turn on. I have NO idea why. I press the button and nothing happens...


Might be the PSU.

[Akuryou13]

Might be the PSU.indeed it was. I got it replaced late last night and am back up and running.

[BetongÅsna]

I'm more concerned about Alex's fever. Still alive?

[Akuryou13]

I'm more concerned about Alex's fever. Still alive?hrm. he hasn't been back since..... that IS worrying...

[SargeMcCluck]

hrm. he hasn't been back since..... that IS worrying...

Yes I have! I replied on the 100% Off Topic thread.

Anyway, I kept having cold showers (which was torture) to keep it down and it went down to about 38.8C, and then two days afterwards it started going down naturally.

[BetongÅsna]

Without artificial cooling agents (the Fonz, for example)?

[Pigbuster]

Okay I'm sorry to just run in here after being gone for so long and post something like this, but...

My first relationship has just ended in pretty much the worst possible way for such a thing to end and now I feel royally fυcked up emotionally.

I was lucky as hell to have it happen alongside a really good guy and he's helping me through it.

Yeah.

[Akuryou13]

Okay I'm sorry to just run in here after being gone for so long and post something like this, but...

My first relationship has just ended in pretty much the worst possible way for such a thing to end and now I feel royally fυcked up emotionally.

I was lucky as hell to have it happen alongside a really good guy and he's helping me through it.

Yeah.yeah.... screwing the pooch on that first one sucks for a good long time....

hope your recovery goes better than mine did!

[Squirminator2k]

You okay, PB?

[Zero72]

Yeah, keep us posted.

[SargeMcCluck]

I spilled water on my laptop. Luckily it's an EliteBook and the keyboard has waterproofing. Saved the laptop, but the keyboard got ruined. Had to buy a new one (for £70!), which was frustrating. Still, there's a plus side (http://forum.team17.co.uk/showpost.php?p=736468&postcount=4167) - a replacement keyboard replaces the pointing stick chip too.

[Lex]

How did the keyboard get ruined if the keyboard has "waterproofing"?

[SargeMcCluck]

The waterproofing is underneath the keyboard (or well, it's part of the keyboard, but underneath all the .. bits). It's there to stop any liquid getting below the keyboard, rather than to protect the keyboard. The keyboard itself is, apparently, not waterproof, however. >_>

[KRD]

I spilled water on my laptop. Luckily it's an EliteBook and the keyboard has waterproofing. Saved the laptop, but the keyboard got ruined. Had to buy a new one (for £70!), which was frustrating. Still, there's a plus side (http://forum.team17.co.uk/showpost.php?p=736468&postcount=4167) - a replacement keyboard replaces the pointing stick chip too.

Oh dear, the links are recursive. *Gets stuck in a loop.*

If there was anyone left around here who didn't mix these threads up already, you sure got 'em now. :(

[Pigbuster]

Yeah, it took like... a week, but I was able to eventually more or less get over it.

The problem is that before all this happened I was perfectly fine with the prospect of living on my own forever but... now that I've gotten a taste of love I don't think I could stand never feeling that way again, so... yeah. I actually have a goal in life now, which is nice I guess! How the hell I can fulfill that goal I have no idea, but I'll see what happens and/or learn how to take action.

[Akuryou13]

Yeah, it took like... a week, but I was able to eventually more or less get over it.

The problem is that before all this happened I was perfectly fine with the prospect of living on my own forever but... now that I've gotten a taste of love I don't think I could stand never feeling that way again, so... yeah. I actually have a goal in life now, which is nice I guess! How the hell I can fulfill that goal I have no idea, but I'll see what happens and/or learn how to take action.welcome to everyday life for the rest of the planet!

....it kind of sucks....

[Zero72]

Well good luck with that, man. Hope you have better luck with that than I did/have. You sure as hell bounced better.

[Xinos]

My buss & metro card runs out today. :(

[Zero72]

I have been depressed as hell lately. I would not be at all surprised to find that I was actually clinically depressed. I would be similarly unsurprised to learn that I have been for a long time. But for now, all that is theory because I'm not about to go see anybody about it or whatever. Ass-backwards, I know, but I really think most of it just stems from being pretty lonely, and the rest is usual self-conflict/existential crap on a level that I figured had gone away once I finally got out of that factory job. I'm really irritable and having a hard time focusing on my work.

God, it's like I'm 16 again.

[Lex]

Zero72, when I'm feeling down, I remember this one fact: "There will be a time in the future when I am truly happy again."

There will be a time in the future when you are truly happy again. That point in time will have been worth the struggle of everything leading to it, no matter how harsh.

[Zero72]

You know... I can believe that.

[bloopy]

The question is what makes you happy? You might get there faster if you know where you're going. :p

[Zero72]

Weeelllllgh man I dunno. I think it's just that I'm 25 and I think maybe it's right around time that I got around to meeting that certain someone. That'd be pretty great I think.

However, I'm incredibly socially stunted. Ha!

[Squirminator2k]

I have a week and four days to raise $850 for rent. I've been in this position virtually every month for the last six months and, honestly, I think I'm giving up. I can't do this anymore. It's too stressful.

[bloopy]

Deadliest New Zealand disaster in my lifetime, 65 found dead and the number's rising:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/4688231/65-dead-in-devastating-Christchurch-quake

It was an aftershock, but the energy was centred much closer to the city at daytime when people were in the streets or at work. My uncle who lives there is ok thankfully.

[Lex]

Even I heard about that in Canadian international news.

[Akuryou13]

so. the place where I'm living right now just got ranked #5 in the 10 worst college towns in america!

http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.com/blog/2011/the-10-worst-college-towns-in-america/

[bonz]

so. the place where I'm living right now just got ranked #5 in the 10 worst college towns in america!

http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.com/blog/2011/the-10-worst-college-towns-in-america/
Their only concerns seem to be party locations and alcohol availability. :rolleyes:

[Alien King]

Their only concerns seem to be party locations and alcohol availability. :rolleyes:

There are other considerations?

[bonz]

There are other considerations?
Yes, they didn't positively mention that Louisiana is much closer to the Spring Break parties in Florida than many other states.

[Akuryou13]

Their only concerns seem to be party locations and alcohol availability. :rolleyes:well it's not just party locations we're lacking. it's locations at which to do anything at all. the only entertainment in town is a movie theatre.

[SargeMcCluck]

Their only concerns seem to be party locations and alcohol availability. :rolleyes:

Haha. I was looking at reviews of a university in Sweden. "Teachers" was rated 2/5, "Chance of employment afterwards" 1/5, "Free-time activites" was 5/5 and "Night scene" was 5/5. The person rating it said they'd totally recommend it as a uni.

Because a poorly taught degree that won't get you employment is a good thing!

[Akuryou13]

Haha. I was looking at reviews of a university in Sweden. "Teachers" was rated 2/5, "Chance of employment afterwards" 1/5, "Free-time activites" was 5/5 and "Night scene" was 5/5. The person rating it said they'd totally recommend it as a uni.

Because a poorly taught degree that won't get you employment is a good thing!lol, wow.

at least the school here is damn good, even if the town is absolutely terrible.

[bonz]

at least the school here is damn good, even if the town is absolutely terrible.
Perhaps it's only "good" because students don't have any distractions from learning. :D

[Akuryou13]

Perhaps it's only "good" because students don't have any distractions from learning. :Dactually I'm pretty sure it's good because there are a surprisingly large number of majors where at least one of the teachers is "the best _______ in the country".

[SargeMcCluck]

I have to talk in front of a bunch of people I don't know in a language I'm still not completely comfortable with and do well, otherwise I've got a full one year delay before I can finish my education.

Ugh. It's tomorrow. Nervous!

[Lex]

That sounds exactly like one of those embarrassment nightmare situations.

[SupSuper]

Better make sure your pants are secured tightly.

[SargeMcCluck]

They'll be held in place with elastic and also by my trousers being over them.

Trousers will be held in place too. ;)

[bonz]

Actually, leave your trouser fly open. That'll distract the audience and make them chuckle.

[MtlAngelus]

So last week, my cousin was driving back home from Shakira's concert when she was stopped by armed men, who forced her out of the car and then proceeded to drive away with it.

A couple of days later, same thing happened to our neighbor at work, around the same area. According to him, when he went to the police station to denounce the crime there were at least twenty people in line before him, all with the same complaint.

Earlier today, same thing happened to my other cousin(previously mentioned cousin's brother), while he was driving to the US, with his pregnant wife. The robbers were "kind" enough to let them take their documentation(passport and american visa), but kept their cash and credit cards. After a short time walking, someone was nice enough to stop and give them a ride to the city.

**** is getting ridiculous.

On other, unrelated bad news, the hard drive of our main computer at work asploded. The computer acts as the server for our system, and we had no backups because I suck. Some guy managed to recover all the vital system information, along with everything else except, of course, a few of the files I use to keep control of stuff. He's still trying to get to them, but it honestly doesn't look good. Most of those are not really important, as I keep both a physical book along the files for most things, but there's this one file that I really, really need because I don't keep a record of that anywhere else, and if I can't recover it I'm going to have to dig through a ****-ton of paperwork to basically remake the thing, which I do not look forward to. The funniest thing is that I was going to print out that file the day the HD decided to stop working. I LOVE YOU TOO, UNIVERSE.

And finally, the icing to the cake: The only two tv shows I enjoy, Community and 30 Rock, were pushed to a later schedule, late at night, basically making it impossible for me to watch them. It's not the worst thing ever because I can just watch them online or something... it's just I really enjoyed watching them on my tv, once every week, sitting on the couch while eating dinner, and now it's ruined.

So yeah, happy times everywhere.

[thomasp]

it's just I really enjoyed watching them on my tv, once every week, sitting on the couch while eating dinner, and now it's ruined.

So yeah, happy times everywhere.

Why not download them, and watch them a day late by plugging your computer into the telly while eating dinner?

[Zero72]

**** is getting ridiculous.God damn, dude, like you guys needed things getting more ridiculous than drug cartel wars. The hell is going on down there?

[bonz]

if I can't recover it I'm going to have to dig through a ****-ton of paperwork to basically remake the thing, which I do not look forward to.
Well, see it this way:
While you're occupied with that task, you won't be outside, getting your car robbed from under your ass.
[/gallows humor]

Tip for when your files have been recovered/recreated:
Dropbox (http://www.dropbox.com)
You'll get 2GB of free, auto-sync'ing file space, with additional 250MB for every friend you invite, up to 8GB.

[SargeMcCluck]

I have part two of my stupid language thing to do tomorrow. I really don't see why studying the history of the Swedish language or being able to debate the finer points of literature is a requirement to study at university, but hey.

(To UKers: You need the equivalent of an A-Level in English (but .. in Swedish) to study at Swedish unis. It's mad.)

[Xinos]

Well, see it this way:
While you're occupied with that task, you won't be outside, getting your car robbed from under your ass.
[/gallows humor]

Tip for when your files have been recovered/recreated:
Dropbox (http://www.dropbox.com)
You'll get 2GB of free, auto-sync'ing file space, with additional 250MB for every friend you invite, up to 8GB.

That or set up a svn server. Basically the same thing except it doesn't sync automatically and you'll get as much space as you're server has. It'll be more work to set up than dropbox but possibly better if you are working with several people on the same files. Tortoise (http://tortoisesvn.tigris.org/) has to be the best choice of software. You'll choose when you want to update your local copy or commit changes. I like dropbox, but I wouldn't want to work in it since it will automatically sync everything, like junk files and every time I save a file to be safe in case of a crash.

There are some sites hosting free subversion too. Like xp-dev (http://www.xp-dev.com/), but it doesn't compare with dropbox's free storage.

[MtlAngelus]

Why not download them, and watch them a day late by plugging your computer into the telly while eating dinner?
I could transfer them to my PS3 and watch them from there, but I'm pretty sure at some point I would get lazy and just watch them on my computer.
God damn, dude, like you guys needed things getting more ridiculous than drug cartel wars. The hell is going on down there?
I'm pretty sure it's related to the cartel wars. Anyway, turns out they held a gun to his wife's(reminder: pregnant) belly at some point, because they wanted her to take her ring off. A ****ing wedding ring. Hey, I guess the car and the cash and whatever else they had in there wasn't enough...

Well, see it this way:
While you're occupied with that task, you won't be outside, getting your car robbed from under your ass.
[/gallows humor]

Except I don't have a car. There's no silver lining in it for me. :p

Anyway, we already have an external HD for backup, plus I don't think my aunt would let me put up our files on a hosting service. She's pretty freaking paranoid about using the internets for anything for some reason.

[Zero72]

Anyway, turns out they held a gun to his wife's(reminder: pregnant) belly at some point, because they wanted her to take her ring off. A ****ing wedding ring. Sometimes, I hope I'm wrong, and that there is a hell.

[FutureWorm]

God damn, dude, like you guys needed things getting more ridiculous than drug cartel wars. The hell is going on down there?
amurrrrica

[Zero72]

Sorry, the US is causing unfathomable crime spikes in Mexico?

[Xinos]

Isn't that's where most of the drugs are going? Pretty far fetched though for placing the blame on somebody.

[MtlAngelus]

I honestly don't know to what extent the US has contributed to this problem. I know that, appart from drug consumption, there's also the issue that guns are easy to obtain on some US states that have lax gun sale laws, and are making their way here. I'd still say corrupt mexican government officials and institutions have more weight on the issue tho, but I'm not particularly knowledgeable on the subject. As far as I'm concerned, it's just people sucking, as usual.


So anyway, changing the subject, it seems like the guy has managed to recover my very important files from the damaged hard drive. Still skeptical until I actually get the files tho. I don't trust this universe.

[Zero72]

I honestly don't know to what extent the US has contributed to this problem. I know that, appart from drug consumption, there's also the issue that guns are easy to obtain on some US states that have lax gun sale laws, and are making their way here. That does make a little sense, I suppose, considering Texas (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjSaLTd7u5U) is right there.

[Alien King]

So I had an exam today for a particular lecture course.
Today was also the first time since March that I looked at content from that lecture course.

[bonz]

So I had an exam today for a particular lecture course.
Today was also the first time since March that I looked at content from that lecture course.
http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/8949/fotr1216.jpg
You shall not pass!

[Akuryou13]

http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/8949/fotr1216.jpg
You shall not pass!we need a like button for posts....

[MtlAngelus]

So, check this. I'm supposed to have a 6mb broadband connection, but this is what I'm getting right now:

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1330049774.png

Keep in mind this is at 1:32 AM, so hardly a peak usage hour.

Now, if I go to my ISP's website, and use their own Speed Test service, I get this:

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8694/35909124.png

So I'm guessing some sever bs'ing is going on here. However, it appears their speed test service is supplied by Ookla, and if I go to Ookla's website, and try their speed test demo, I get similar results to what my ISP claims I'm getting.

I'm also getting the same results on bandwithplace.com.

So I'm confused now.

[bonz]

Does your ISP have a public FTP server?
If so, go there and download a test file (~20-50 MB) and calculate your speed yourself.
That should give you the real value of the maximum speed you could expect, without any interference from scripts, Flash and various protocols.

You always want to know the speed from your ISP to your machine. Everything from your ISP to the internet is out of control of anyone. Mostly.

Having said that, your ISP's FTP server has to be as close as possible to your connection point. It's no use if it's in another city.

[SupSuper]

So, check this. I'm supposed to have a 6mb broadband connection, but this is what I'm getting right now:It probably varies with the server you're testing with.

[MtlAngelus]

It probably varies with the server you're testing with.

I did try a bunch of different servers and got a very similar result in all of them.

[Xinos]

Is it an adsl connection? They tend to drop in speed pretty quickly as distance to your nearest station increases.

[MtlAngelus]

Is it an adsl connection? They tend to drop in speed pretty quickly as distance to your nearest station increases.

Nope. Fiber optic.

[Alien King]

When nearly everyone I know is finishing up or just finishing their exams this year, I'm about to begin.
Also I'm going to do badly because I've only been revising properly for a week now.

[Blinx]

My house is leaking.

[SupSuper]

Have you called the fire department?

[thomasp]

I suggest chewing it over with a slice of ham & pineapple pizza.

[MtlAngelus]

Duct tape.

[KRD]

Definitely rocket fuel.

[Paul.Power]

Duct tape.
Alternatively, the Force.

[bonz]

Only solution:
Bubblewrap!

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/9861/article0080ae43d000005d.jpg

[Squirminator2k]

After working for two weeks and being told I'm brilliant at the job, I've just been let go because "it's not working out." I've no idea why they've let me go, although I have my suspicions - a bent-out-of-shape co-worker under the mistaken impression I'm supposed to be her personal assistant.

I'm going to call my supervisor tomorrow to find out what's going on.

[MtlAngelus]

That sucks, man. Hope it works out for you.

[philby4000]

My xbox live acount have been stollen by a russian.

Although he changed my password, I'm still logged on at Xbox.com, so I can see everything he's done with it.

So far he's deleted my friends list, changed my avatar and bought Trenched.

Unfortunately I can't delete my payment options so I hope he's satisfied with the 11000 points he's already bought untill I can call the bank in the morning.

edit: oh wait, embarassingly the reason I couldn't access my account is because I changed my windows live pasword which I thought was seperate from my xbox live account. I effectively locked the russian guy out hours ago. I still need to get my account transfered back to the UK and get those charges reversed, however.

[MtlAngelus]

My xbox live acount have been stollen by a russian.

Although he changed my password, I'm still logged on at Xbox.com, so I can see everything he's done with it.

So far he's deleted my friends list, changed my avatar and bought Trenched.

Unfortunately I can't delete my payment options so I hope he's satisfied with the 11000 points he's already bought untill I can call the bank in the morning.

edit: oh wait, embarassingly the reason I couldn't access my account is because I changed my windows live pasword which I thought was seperate from my xbox live account. I effectively locked the russian guy out hours ago. I still need to get my account transfered back to the UK and get those charges reversed, however.
Ouch, nasty.

[bonz]

http://strongpasswordgenerator.com/

Your new password:
4Yz62CAgy5dlkNgmGPyUth8qxW7m$j
Remember your new password as:
4 YANKEE zulu 6 2 CHARLIE ALPHA golf yankee 5 delta lima kilo NOVEMBER golf mike GOLF PAPA yankee UNIFORM tango hotel 8 quebec x-ray WHISKEY 7 mike $ juliet

P.S.:
Do not use the above example!

[MtlAngelus]

P.S.:
Do not use the above example!
But... it's so easy to remember. :c

[thomasp]

The phonetic alphabet isn't really what I'd call a mnemonic...

[thomasp]

And England seems to have been well and truly flushed down the toilets. Mob rule seems to be in force now... :(

[SargeMcCluck]

I'm travelling to the UK on Wednesday. Luckily, for the first time I'm not going through London (usually go Gatwick->Paddington, and then take a train to the SW). Getting picked up directly from Gatwick this time.

The stuff that's going on in London is just disgraceful. Ugh.

[MtlAngelus]

So... what's all that about anyway? Is there any sort of reason behind the rioting, or did a bunch of people just decide to get violent out of the blue? :confused:

[Melon]

1234567890

[SargeMcCluck]

Bollocks to that. At first it might have been that, but now it's mindless, disgusting thugs just doing it for fun. If it were disenfranchised poor people upset with the government they wouldn't burn down buses, rip old women out of their own cars and set the cars alight, attack people, burn down non-chain individually owned shops, etc.

It's just people who want to destroy stuff, and people who want to steal tellies because they feel they deserve a larger one because they've paid a few taxes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXcI-NL3Tro&feature=channel_video_title

"I'm getting my taxes back."

No you're not, you sound about fourteen and just want free stuff.

[bonz]

Here's the soundtrack for it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kn_8CKu9toc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoJYM3krDWQ

[SargeMcCluck]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Gex_ya4-Oo

Again, it's disgraceful.

[Melon]

1234567890

[SargeMcCluck]

It's not at all understandable. They're not suffering like people in third world countries. They're not starving or being abused by a corrupt police force or anything like that. They're not even suffering like the coal miners were under Thatcher. The majority of the people doing this are just stealing stuff. Fourteen-year-olds stealing televisions and saying "I'm getting back my taxes" are unjustifiable.

The rioting has nothing to do with Mark Duggan. Not anymore. This reminds me of the protests in Copenhagen a year or two ago. The government were forcing out squatters from a region of the city where many lived, and people protested. At first there was a little violence here and there, but it was mostly .. protesting. You know, standing in places, shouting, complaining.

Then people started coming from other parts of the country and around Europe just to cause damage, fight, and burn stuff. These were the same. At first, they were understandable. At first. Now, most of the people don't even know who Mark Duggan is. They just want to burn and steal.

I'm not exactly saying this from a position of wealth or luxury either. The wife and I live on about £1100 a month between us, which after the cost of rent and food in Sweden (which is much higher than in the UK, what with our 25% VAT and other really high taxes) isn't much at all.

It's true that peaceful protests often aren't heard (as for your comment - yes, there are no riots that don't cause that kind of damage. They're called protests instead. Gandhi? Martin Luther King? That's how you fight problems, not buring down people's homes and stealing), but yes, they should protest. Also, I don't know, VOTE. We had a pretty awful turnout last time. Think that all politicians are the same and that voting is pointless? Then why didn't more people vote Yes to AV? I would have voted yes if I was in the UK. I've always been a Lib Dem voter and I'm fed up with a lot of what's going on with the government, but what's going on here will solve nothing, and if anything will lend more credence to a lot of the extreme-right "non-whites are criminal scum" thinking.


(Edit: After reading your link - yes, it has many good points. This is why they should protest, not violence. Peaceful protest does and can work. Violent revolution almost never does, it just gets people killed and more right wing police state laws brought in. I don't know about you, but I'm fed up with having the beginnings of a police state and right wing people in power.)

(Edit 2: I promised myself I'd never get into internet arguments again, so I won't. I agree that things are messed up, especially for the poor, especially for the lower classes, especially for people living in the poorer parts of cities, etc., but I don't believe violent riots solve anything. I'm all for getting rid of the current injustices in society, but what's going on here won't help. I'd be behind a protest, but I find last night vile and reprehensible. I don't believe that anything that's happened in the UK justifies that behaviour.)

[Alien King]

People in Tottenham area have never really 'got on' with the police and their situation only got worse. Tensions have always been high and things finally snapped after a fatal shooting during a police raid.
Of course half of it is just looting which is just simple opportunism.


Bollocks to that. At first it might have been that, but now it's mindless, disgusting thugs just doing it for fun. If it were disenfranchised poor people upset with the government they wouldn't burn down buses, rip old women out of their own cars and set the cars alight, attack people, burn down non-chain individually owned shops, etc.

There's not much logic with violent mobs. The cause and the actions don't need to be greatly connected, when things hit that point they're just out for the kill.
But yes, as has happened in the past people have just jumped aboard the bandwagon solely with the intent of being violent; similar to what we saw in December with the Student Protests.

[Melon]

1234567890

[philby4000]

To sum up british politics:

If only the *******s had won, we wouldn't be run by a coalition of Utter *******s and cowards.

[SargeMcCluck]

I do agree that things suck for people and that there are many problems, I just disagree that this is the way to get it. I honestly don't think many of the protesters do, any more. Again, at first, things were different, but last night was a huge difference. My Facebook, Twitter and Google+ feeds are now _full_ of people saying "bring in the army and shoot them" or things along similar lines. This gets no sympathy from the majority of people, and won't help them.

Btw - I grew up very poor and amongst the very poor, and I've only ever known one person who I'd actually describe as in poverty. Many people were screwed financially because they got stupid loans to buy TVs, expensive clothes, and things you just don't need. Everybody wants to live well beyond what they can afford and then complain when they can't afford things. Modern consumerism and "I must own EVERYTHING, and NOW! I WANT LUXURY!" mindset of society is something I despise and one of the reasons I feel so disconnected from society.

What I meant with the third world countries wasn't about poverty, as such. It was more that there are appropriate responses to things. The disgusting stuff in Zimbabwe? I could understand that much anger driving people to this. At the other end of the scale, if the middle classes rioted because they couldn't afford castles (intentionally over the top and ridiculous, not intended to be a real idea) it would NOT be an appropriate response. I don't feel that what's going on in London is appropriate for the problem. You might do. Clearly some people do as they're doing it. Also, clearly some people don't, as many people are condemning what's going on.

Finally, yes, Murdoch's media empire is a huge problem. I'm completely with you on that. :D


Also, a Lib Dem MP blog post I liked. http://stephenwilliamsmp.wordpress.com/2011/08/09/rioters-no-these-are-looters-thieves-and-vandals/

[Akuryou13]

http://jollyjack.deviantart.com/art/Someone-shoot-them-please-251894419

this seemed relevant.

[Melon]

1234567890

[FutureWorm]

Actually peaceful protests have rarely achieved anything. Women's voting rights and the repealing of poll tax didn't happen without violent protest. Even around the times of Ghandi and Martin Luther King there were riots and violence.
The women's suffrage movement in the United States was a peaceful movement coordinated by largely middle-class women - there was a lot of overlap between the suffragettes and the prohibitionists. There was certainly violence during the American civil rights movement and the Indian independence movement, but it was almost entirely perpetrated by the oppressors. Not sure what you're trying to prove here.

[SomePerson]

http://jollyjack.deviantart.com/art/Someone-shoot-them-please-251894419

this seemed relevant.

I thought that was silly until I saw him link to this:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14458424

:eek:

I think the Sarge is clucking straight on this one

[thomasp]

I thought that was silly until I saw him link to this:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14458424

:eek:

I think the Sarge is clucking straight on this one
That clip is just depressing. People like that need culling/neutering!

[Melon]

1234567890

[philby4000]

While women's sufferage did get violent in the UK, it was women's role in WW2 that changed public opinion and got them the vote.

[Melon]

1234567890

[Alien King]

You're a man.

[Zero72]

Wow. The last thing I need is another sad little Internet crush like I'm 16 again or some crap.

[Akuryou13]

Wow. The last thing I need is another sad little Internet crush like I'm 16 again or some crap.I know it's hard to resist me, Zeor, but please. It could never be.

[FutureWorm]

I know it's hard to resist me, Zeor, but please. It could never be.
who could resist a face like this

[Zero72]

I know it's hard to resist me, Zeor, but please. It could never be.This world is such a relentless, unfeeling ******* engine. I will forever wish for a better reality.

[SupSuper]

My grandpa died. :(

[Akuryou13]

My grandpa died. :( :-/ sorry to hear that, man. How old was he, if I may ask?

[MtlAngelus]

My grandpa died. :(

I'm sorry for your loss. :c

[Xinos]

Sorry for your loss SupSuper.

[thomasp]

Rest in peace Red 4 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-14602900).

For those who don't know the Red Arrows are a team of super-elite pilots from the UK Royal Air Force who do some pretty impressive aerial displays. They're picked as some of the best pilots serving in the RAF. As far as I'm aware, they've not lost a pilot before in displays - they've had the odd aircraft loss but no fatalities. Pretty shocking news, particularly when you see the things they do during their displays!

[SargeMcCluck]

My laptop's second HDD with all my games on just died. Ugh. At least it's under warranty.

[SupSuper]

Twisted my foot on the subway, nothing broken but it's swollen and hurts like a ***** so I have to stay home all weekend. :(

[thomasp]

http://www.apple.com/stevejobs/ :(

The :( is probably an understatement.

The world has lost probably one of the most significant people of the late 20th century. RIP Steve.

[Akuryou13]

http://www.apple.com/stevejobs/ :(

The :( is probably an understatement.

The world has lost probably one of the most significant people of the late 20th century. RIP Steve.indeed it has. Whether Apple or Pixar, the man has affected us all. Sad day...

[thomasp]

For once, someone has actually posted a sensible Youtube comment (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc)


Three apples changed the world.

1st one seduced Eve.

2nd one fell on Newton

The 3rd one was offered to the world half bitten by Steve Jobs.

And also
Steve Jobs was born out of wedlock, put up for adoption at birth, dropped out of college, then changed the world. What's your excuse?

[Zero72]

Steve Jobs was born out of wedlock, put up for adoption at birth, dropped out of college, then changed the world. What's your excuse?
Excuse: Not currently Steve Jobs

[SupSuper]

Steve Jobs was born out of wedlock, put up for adoption at birth, dropped out of college, then changed the world. What's your excuse?
Well clearly I've been doing my life all wrong, why bother now? :p

[SargeMcCluck]

Excuse: I .. I don't want to change the world, or run a hugely popular and successful business.

[KRD]

Excuse: I .. I don't want to change the world, or run a hugely popular and successful business.

Making you the perfect man for the job. Go!

I know I'd vote for/pledge allegiance to you. Depending on, you know, the type of regime.

[bonz]

the type of regime
The benevolent dictator? :rolleyes:

[KRD]

Easily my favourite, yeah.

[Muzer]

Excuse: I don't want to turn into a complete bottom-hole inistant on setting back the computing world, like Steve Jobs was.

[Akuryou13]

Excuse: I don't want to turn into a complete bottom-hole inistant on setting back the computing world, like Steve Jobs was.lol. I gotta admit, he was a pretty big game changer but of late the apple brand really hasn't contributed much outside of mobile devices.

[BetongÅsna]

Excuse: I can't pull off a turtleneck.

[thomasp]

I think Steve Jobs/Apple's biggest "game changer" was actually the iPod and iTunes - that pretty much revolutionised the music industry and killed of the audio CD. It's particularly funny when you read threads on forums when the iPod was released with everyone dooming it to failure and becoming the next Mac Cube.

[BetongÅsna]

I can't think where to start looking for these threads. Links!

[bonz]

I have always been indifferent towards Apple and it's products - I never had any and never felt the desire to want any.
Their price-performance ratio has always been utterly crap.
Why should I buy a product that has less features, allows me less options to configure and cost much more than another product, which has been made in the same Chinese factory?

It's comparable to buying overpriced designer clothes or handbags. Most people just buy it to be hip, not for any quality or feature contemplations.

All those recent lawsuits and cease-and-desist order to stop competitors from selling their products make Apple look like money hungry *******s, worse than Microsoft and Bill Gates.

And people holding up an iPad with a burning candle app in front of an Apple store reeks of a brainwashed cult following.
Yuck!

[Muzer]

I rather liked the sense of humour in the old Macs - I absolutely loved the feature where they would read out error messages to a tune in OS 8. Of course, Jobs got rid of all that when he got back.

[BetongÅsna]

I have always been indifferent towards Apple and it's products - I never had any and never felt the desire to want any.
Their price-performance ratio has always been utterly crap.
Why should I buy a product that has less features, allows me less options to configure and cost much more than another product, which has been made in the same Chinese factory?

It's comparable to buying overpriced designer clothes or handbags. Most people just buy it to be hip, not for any quality or feature contemplations.I disagree. I think most people - myself included - use their products because they are incredibly sleek, and somehow are simply a joy to see or hold.

[Zero72]

I disagree. I think most people - myself included - use their products because they are incredibly sleek, and somehow are simply a joy to see or hold.It's not untrue, yeah. I still remember first opening my now-ancient iPod, all shiny and black and fingerprint-free. *sigh*

Seriously though, I'm not a huge fan of Apple at large, but I gotta tip my hat to the late Mr. Jobs.

[Akuryou13]

Seriously though, I'm not a huge fan of Apple at large, but I gotta tip my hat to the late Mr. Jobs.no kidding. If nothing else, he made Pixar happen, for which I am immensely grateful!

[SargeMcCluck]

I'm with bonz on this one. I have a perfect case in point, in fact. My new phone (Samsung Galaxy S2) compared to an iPhone 4 is thinner, sleeker, faster, has more ram, a faster processor, more storage capacity if you wish, a larger and arguably better screen, longer battery life (and an easily replaceable battery so if you want, you can carry a spare with you). It comes with a 2 year guarantee instead of 1 (which, as many people buy phones on 2 year contracts is a very good thing). It's also about £200 cheaper. Yet many people (including my sister in law) would never think of buying one because it doesn't have an apple on it.

The iPad was a fantastic piece of design and engineering. It was so much more than any other mp3 player before it, and none of the competition really did anything better later (why would you buy a Zune? It's not like it can play music _better_). The first iPhone was awful looking back (seriously, the features it was missing!) but it was still good, and with iOS updates it did become a very good phone, and again, Apple did it first and pioneered it.

But there is absolutely no doubt that a not insignificant chuck of users of Apple devices are obsessed and would happily pay £200 or more extra just to get that apple. Or who would buy an iPhone 4S even though they have an iPhone 4 because that relatively minor upgrade is worth it so that they own the newest apple device omigod!1!1.



Bonz - you're right, btw. I love the "MICRO$OFT BOO THEY ARE AN EVIL BUSINESS" people who then say "they should be like Apple!" without looking at Apple's rather evil use of patents and so on. Surprise surprise, most businesses are run by money grabbing people who are generally unpleasant, the only reason it's taken Apple until now to start being evil is because until relatively recently they were a tiny business that had no real power.





Disclaimer: I'm not trying to claim that all Apple users are insane obsessives, or even that people who use exclusively Apple devices are obsessed, just that there is a lot of elitism and obsession inside the Apple "cult" (you just have to look at the reactions to Jobs' death amongst some, and how many of the people buying the iPhone 4S already have an iPhone 4) and that the iPhone is no longer the sleekest phone, or the fastest, or with the best UI. Most ergonomic and design experts are praising Metro, and the first two are just fact.

[KRD]

The iPod was a fantastic piece of design and engineering. It was so much more than any other mp3 player before it, and none of the competition really did anything better later (why would you buy a Zune? It's not like it can play music _better_)

Actually... http://anythingbutipod.com/2010/11/cowon-j3-review/

That thing supports more file formats (notably FLAC), produces better sound quality, can drive higher impedance headphones without needing a separate amp, has an OLED screen, expandable storage, extremely useful physical buttons that let you use it without looking at it, longer battery life, a more customisable interface, a dedicated modding community... all the while looking at least as slick as any iPod. Oh and it doesn't rely on stupid iTunes.

Basically, it's the same story as with every other Apple product in the past 10 years; their marketing simply overshadows competition and so other than people who are happy to do a lot of research before buying shiny new things, nobody ever hears about them. The Rio Karma music player, superior to the early iPods much as the Cowon J3 is superior to current ones, was an early victim of this. The entire company went bust despite being the ones who pioneered the concept of MP3 players.

But yeah, I don't really mind Apple products in themselves and if they're something that brings joy to people's lives, I can accept that. Though it's definitely worrying that shiny magical presentations can cover up for so many glaring omissions that it's just not worthwhile to even try to compete with Apple anymore. From that perspective, Steve Jobs having synched to the great cloud in the sky can be seen as an event that will stir the market up a bit to hopefully allow for some more innovation again.

[SargeMcCluck]

Oh, I meant to say that "there probably would be more interest in iPod alternatives nowadays were it not for smartphones".

The j3 is great, but my phone has pretty much everything it has, plus it lets me cut down on one device. A dedicated player is better for true audiophiles, but true audiophiles never bought an iPod anyway.

Before I got my smartphone I had a Clip+, just because it's so small. One of the only reasons I got the S2 is because it's so thin and so light. Can't stand bulk.

[bonz]

stir the market up a bit to hopefully allow for some more innovation again.
That's a good point actually.
Everyone's always speaking about how innovative Apple/Steve Jobs was, where in reality Apple has stagnated for the past decade, with nothing really innovative.

Jobs' innovative days have been in the 1970s and 1980s and with Pixar.

[SomePerson]

I don't really have a choice in the debate, only iphones can sync with my work email account, the company deems everything else "too insecure"... :-/

[thomasp]

But there is absolutely no doubt that a not insignificant chuck of users of Apple devices are obsessed and would happily pay £200 or more extra just to get that apple. Or who would buy an iPhone 4S even though they have an iPhone 4 because that relatively minor upgrade is worth it so that they own the newest apple device omigod!1!1.


Apple generally seem to do that with the iPhone. Neglecting the original, every other update is a "minor" one. the 3GS followed the 3G, and now the 4S follows the 4. Suits me fine on my 2-year contract, which started a few months after the 3G was released!

And this couldn't be more true: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/apple

[SargeMcCluck]

Apple missed the ball with the 4S - I know it still had a record number of orders, but one large research study showed almost 50% of US Android users were willing to buy the iPhone 5 if it was what was coming out - but less than 5% if it was just an update of the 4. By the time the 5 comes out, Android will have moved on (Ice Cream Sandwich later this year!) and may have rocketed ahead even more.

Still, competition is good. That's another reason I like Android - yes, the OS might be by Google, but a wide range of manufacturers make the phones (and as such, different ideas, shapes, for different people/purposes).


SomePerson - That's such an odd thing for them to say. It's probably lazy technicians not willing to learn about other phone OSs - Android could definitely cope, and I'm sure Windows Phone could, too. Both are very secure and have less market restrictions, so you could install an app that would add features if a specific feature is missing. Still, many techs do have a lot to do and not much time to do it in. There's all that pizza to be eaten, after all... ;)


p.s. thomasp - Ha! Yes, that comic is wonderful. Unfortunately, those people are the ones that give iUsers a bad name. I was worried for a while that Android would be associated with computer nerds, D&D and all of that, but it doesn't seem to be. In Sweden there's this odd feeling that Android is inferior and a sort of temporary thing - when my wife said she was getting a new phone, all of her friends said "oh, you're going to an iPhone?" which was very odd, as we've been very very happy with Android. Plus of course, swapping OSs (either way) means a lot of money wasted on the same Market/Appstore apps all over again.

[SupSuper]

I don't have a problem with Apple stuff per-se, aside from the ridiculous prices and crowd mentality, but that applies to most things and is one of the reasons why I secretly hate humanity. :p I think Androids are more common-place around here though because who the hell would you drop up to 700€ on a phone??? You could get a laptop for less than that.

If you think Android-iOS arguments are nasty, try telling someone you have a Symbian :p but I'm happy with it, it does all I need:

- Send the occasional SMS.
- Make the occasional call if someone isn't replying to SMS.
- Amuse me if I happen to be in the middle of nowhere with nothing else.
- All of this without some ridiculously awkward interface that ****es me off every other second.

That's it. And once that breaks I'll just get whatever else fulfills these requirements, regardless of brand.

[FutureWorm]

Everyone's always speaking about how innovative Apple/Steve Jobs was, where in reality Apple has stagnated for the past decade, with nothing really innovative.

Jobs' innovative days have been in the 1970s and 1980s and with Pixar.

really? REALLY? i'm not an iphone owner myself (i currently own a pre and am considering a nokia windows phone for my next upgrade), but if you believe that the iphone was anything short of a game-changer, you are fooling yourself. android's ui originally looked like a windows mobile knockoff (http://www.engadget.com/2007/11/12/a-visual-tour-of-androids-ui/), with a wimpy stripped-down web browser to match. the iphone changed everything - suddenly, it was an expectation that your phone would be able to browse the full internet. multi-touch similarly just became an expected user interface, and hardware keyboards disappeared in favor of screen keyboards. it's the same kind of complete shift in expectations that the original macintosh created for personal computers.

same thing with the ipad. before its release, nobody had really succeeded in the tablet space. the only tablet computers you could get were weird pen-driven windows-based psuedo-laptops that looked like this (http://www.urdusky.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/hp-tablet-pc-laptop1.jpg) and were clearly not designed for touch. apple released the ipad, and suddenly everyone was releasing tablets clearly designed to look and function as similarly to the ipad as possible. i was at a store yesterday and picked up a galaxy tab. the thing looks identical to the ipad at first glance, but once you turn it on, the user experience is completely inferior to what the ipad offers. everyone is still playing catch-up to what apple has to offer in both the hardware and software space.

[SargeMcCluck]

I have to disagree with some of that. Not the first paragraph but the second. You say the Galaxy Tab looks like an iPad but the the user experience is worse - so clearly the hardware isn't at fault (and again, my phone's hardware is far superior to an iPhone _and_ it's slimmer and much lighter. There's definitely no lead - indeed, even a lot of insanely pro-Apple tech blogs I read admit that the S2 is far superior to an iPhone 4 in terms of hardware.

As for software, I find the horrendous limitations of iOS to be stupendously stifling. As for Apple always being in the lead - app folders in app drawer? Notifications from a drop down notification bar? I swear I saw those somewhere before Apple... Hmm.

Apple have done an awful lot for phones and tablets but claiming that all others are far behind and essentially that Apple has nothing to learn from other OSes is the kind of odd Apple thinking I can't comprehend. All OSes have things to learn from each other, including Apple.

p.s. If Apple was so much better, wouldn't iOS be more popular? Third most used smartphone OS is barely a podium finish.

[SupSuper]

really? REALLY? i'm not an iphone owner myself (i currently own a pre and am considering a nokia windows phone for my next upgrade), but if you believe that the iphone was anything short of a game-changer, you are fooling yourself. android's ui originally looked like a windows mobile knockoff (http://www.engadget.com/2007/11/12/a-visual-tour-of-androids-ui/), with a wimpy stripped-down web browser to match. the iphone changed everything - suddenly, it was an expectation that your phone would be able to browse the full internet. multi-touch similarly just became an expected user interface, and hardware keyboards disappeared in favor of screen keyboards. it's the same kind of complete shift in expectations that the original macintosh created for personal computers.

same thing with the ipad. before its release, nobody had really succeeded in the tablet space. the only tablet computers you could get were weird pen-driven windows-based psuedo-laptops that looked like this (http://www.urdusky.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/hp-tablet-pc-laptop1.jpg) and were clearly not designed for touch. apple released the ipad, and suddenly everyone was releasing tablets clearly designed to look and function as similarly to the ipad as possible. i was at a store yesterday and picked up a galaxy tab. the thing looks identical to the ipad at first glance, but once you turn it on, the user experience is completely inferior to what the ipad offers. everyone is still playing catch-up to what apple has to offer in both the hardware and software space.
I will give you the whole touch revolution, but I've been able to browse the full internet on a phone ever since they supported it (3G? that's been what almost a decade?).

[SargeMcCluck]

Also, slightly related - I'm still a rabid Firefox user (almost went to Chrome but couldn't cope without a few extensions), but the Opera users I argued with endlessly in years gone by might enjoy that I use Opera on my phone - cleanest (while still being very functional) UI I've seen on any web browser on any phone OS.

[SomePerson]

I had one of those pen-driven tablets and I must say I prefer them... You can write way smaller and cleaner. If that's what you want to do. Touch is nicer for simple web browsing and typing (handwriting recognition is awesome but slow), if that's your thing.

Mine does both touch and pen, but I turned off touch because my wrist was always clicking when I'd lift the stylus too far :-/

[FutureWorm]

Apple have done an awful lot for phones and tablets but claiming that all others are far behind and essentially that Apple has nothing to learn from other OSes is the kind of odd Apple thinking I can't comprehend. All OSes have things to learn from each other, including Apple.
whoa, stop putting words in my mouth. i'm not saying that ios is in all respects a superior operating system. i think more competition is good for everyone, especially when the competition is bringing new ideas to the table. however, apple's design continues to lead the way, as is apparent by how slavishly they are imitated in every regard

[Muzer]

Most of the supposed innovations of Apple are mainly just things that have already been invented by others and just not publicised enough. I've been browsing the full internet using Opera on my touch-screen Windows Mobile phones for years. Especially with Siri*, they seem to be going back to the old pre-Jobs Apple where they just included off-the-shelf third-party software into the OS.


And I'll have you know that I prefer resistive touch screens infinitely to capacitive ones - I love using a stylus due to the accuracy. When there is a capacative touch screen, my requirement is that there is a trackball or something similar - if there's no resistive touch screen and no trackball, it's **** in my books. I honestly don't see how people can survive without an accurate method of control.



*Which sounds like a Japanese guy saying "silly", which I would agree with.

[SargeMcCluck]

whoa, stop putting words in my mouth. i'm not saying that ios is in all respects a superior operating system. i think more competition is good for everyone, especially when the competition is bringing new ideas to the table. however, apple's design continues to lead the way, as is apparent by how slavishly they are imitated in every regard

Again, a lot of features in iOS 5 are "borrowed" from Android, and a lot of earlier iOS features were "borrowed" from PalmOS, Windows CE, etc. Apple have clearly imitated pretty much every other phone OS. What makes them special?

Apple have come up with some great ideas, and I do appreciate that they have some unique points, but the main thing Apple do is marketing. I've used iPhones, and my sister in law bought an iPad 2 very recently and I've played around with it a lot, and honestly, I still don't see what the fuss is. Yes, it's pretty in that Apple way, but I don't find it any harder or easier to use than I found Android when I first started using that.

(A lot of the reason Apple are imitated is that they have such a stranglehold on marketing that companies need to be able to say "it's not that different to an iPhone! But it's cheaper, faster etc.!)

[Muzer]

We do seem to have a very odd situation where the most popular OS is Android, but the one that's perceived to be most popular is iOS...

[SupSuper]

And I'll have you know that I prefer resistive touch screens infinitely to capacitive ones - I love using a stylus due to the accuracy. When there is a capacative touch screen, my requirement is that there is a trackball or something similar - if there's no resistive touch screen and no trackball, it's **** in my books. I honestly don't see how people can survive without an accurate method of control.
This I agree with, I don't know how anyone can stand using touch phones by covering half the screen with their hands, pressing all the wrong options and filling it with fingerprints. Capacitive touch screens make sense in big pads but not in tiny pocket phones.

[SargeMcCluck]

Get a bigger phone!

[bonz]

In my opinion, Apple's success is solely based on the fact that they came out with their products at the right time.
By right time I mean the moment when some technology shifted from the "geeky nerd" sub-culture to the mainstream.
This, coupled with a sleek, consistent design made their success.

They didn't really invent anything new that hasn't been available before and Apple hardware and their pricing obviously aren't the factor.
But reaching the mainstream customer doesn't need any good hardware and reasonable prices.

The debate about who copies who is moot, because every company would and will do it.
I think that Apple have been resting on their laurels for the past few years since the first iPhone. They were swimming on a wave of success, inherited from the iPod, but have since lost the lead, despited always being the ones that were there at the right time.

Now they have to use on lawsuits and cease-and-desist orders to slow down the competition. :rolleyes:

[FutureWorm]

They didn't really invent anything new that hasn't been available before and Apple hardware and their pricing obviously aren't the factor.
can you show me a highly accurate capacitive touchscreen before the iphone?

technology aside, though, apple products have always been about the comprehensive user experience. before the iphone, nobody had put together a truly intuitive smartphone os that anyone could pick up and use; it was a choice between the design-by-committee ui of windows mobile, the underpowered inconsistent trainwreck of symbian, or blackberry os, which succeeded in being snappy and easy to use but did not present the complexity provided by the iphone. again, look at the ui differences between pre-iphone android and post-iphone android, or windows mobile 6.5 and windows phone 7. apple changed the expectations in that arena by putting out a solid product unlike anything else available at the time, and the competition followed. if you don't believe me, compare phones from q2 2007 (http://www.mobiledia.com/phones/date/q2-2007.html) (when the iphone was released) with smartphones from q2 2010 (http://www.mobiledia.com/phones/date/q2-2010.html). it's a completely different ball game; big screens have become the norm, hardware keyboards have disappeared, and the emphasis has shifted to browser capabilities and app availability.

i agree that apple needs to cool it on the legal side of things, though; stifling innovation through lawsuits is never a good way to go

[SupSuper]

Get a bigger phone!
That defeats the point. :p

[SargeMcCluck]

That defeats the point. :p

I wasn't aware that the point of smartphones was "to be too small to be useful with fingers rather than a stylus"! :p

I'm not talking a tablet-sized phone, just .. not a tiny one.

[thomasp]

I've never really had an issue with the capacitative touch screen on my iPhone - heck it even works at a useable level (obviously not as accurate as normally) when I'm wearing surgical-style rubber gloves that are slightly too big.

I know people who have the Nokia N900, which had a touchscreen and also came with a stylus. Those who didn't lose the stylus altogether rarely used it as it was generally easier to just whip the phone out and poke and prod it with your finger in the appropriate places, rather than fumbling around trying to get the stylus out, and then trying to get it back into the slot without dropping it down the nearest drain grate.

[Xinos]

I have a HTC HD2, which is actually a Windows Mobile 6.5 phone but has a huge modding community that keeps building new Android roms for it.

I don't know if I'm completely convinced by smartphones yet. The inaccuracy of a touch-screen keyboard really annoys me, and it's so easy to accidentally do things unintentionally. The ability to read articles while riding the bus is really the only reason i don't switch back to my old fold-up Sony Ericsson phone. I only had to charge the battery every three or four days instead of every night. I could turn off the alarm clock or hit snooze without even looking at the phone. Impossible with a touch screen.

I use my Creative Zen Xi-Fi for music, so that's another reason I feel less dependent on my bloated phone. The battery also lasts forever on that thing.

[SupSuper]

I wasn't aware that the point of smartphones was "to be too small to be useful with fingers rather than a stylus"! :p

I'm not talking a tablet-sized phone, just .. not a tiny one.The point is to make calls and be mobile :p but anyways, most touch phones I've used (Android, LG, Ericsson, etc.) are just an absolute ass to interact with, and the finger requirement just makes an already awkward interface worse, so I really don't see how capacitive improves things. Fingers are not accurate. My family tried touch phones and they just ended up calling me for help or turning them in for regular keypad ones.

I have a Nokia 5530, it's not capacitive so that means I can either use my stylus or my finger, and I am perfectly happy this way. The fingers works fine for simple tasks like calling and the stylus is nice and accurate for browsing and typing. If they forced me to just use one I'd be p***ed.

Never tried an iPhone though so maybe we're just full of sucky phones, who knows.

[philby4000]

As a Tablet PC user, it's lame that the iPad and it's ilk are classified as Tablet Pcs.

They're cool and all, and they definitely have there place but they're sort of a completely diferent thing and it's annoying that I can't research Tablets witout scrolling through android devices.:mad:

Wacom penabled for life, yo.

[SargeMcCluck]

In my head, tablet:
http://gadgetmix.com/wp-content/gallery/galaxy-tab-10-1/samsung-galaxy-tab-10-1.jpg

tablet pc:
http://www.tabletpcreview.com/assets/4130.jpg


That's how I've seen them categorised in Sweden and the few UK sites I've seen, but a quick Google shows most US and UK sites dump them together as you say. How bizarre.

[thomasp]

I have a HTC HD2, which is actually a Windows Mobile 6.5 phone but has a huge modding community that keeps building new Android roms for it.

I don't know if I'm completely convinced by smartphones yet. The inaccuracy of a touch-screen keyboard really annoys me, and it's so easy to accidentally do things unintentionally. The ability to read articles while riding the bus is really the only reason i don't switch back to my old fold-up Sony Ericsson phone. I only had to charge the battery every three or four days instead of every night. I could turn off the alarm clock or hit snooze without even looking at the phone. Impossible with a touch screen.

I use my Creative Zen Xi-Fi for music, so that's another reason I feel less dependent on my bloated phone. The battery also lasts forever on that thing.

My old Sony Ericsson something-or-other (T610 I think) always used to manage to unlock itself (pressing one key after another), then go into my recent calls list and call the top number, while sat in my pocket while I was walking. Because of the need to slide a finger across the screen on an iPhone, this has never happened in 3 years of iPhone ownership.

[BetongÅsna]

I like to think of this whole argument as a schizophrenic monologue being played out inside Olly Smith's head.

[philby4000]

I remain incredibly pleased with myself over the popularity of Olly Smith avatars.

[BetongÅsna]

As incredibly pleased as Olly Smith is of himself for everything he says and does?

[FutureWorm]

As incredibly pleased as Olly Smith is of himself for everything he says and does?
hehe

.

[Akuryou13]

if I can intrude, who the hell IS Olly Smith anyway?

[MtlAngelus]

if I can intrude, who the hell IS Olly Smith anyway?

If only there was a website that compiled the collective knowledge of mankind... like some sort of communal encyclopedia...

[Akuryou13]

If only there was a website that compiled the collective knowledge of mankind... like some sort of communal encyclopedia... and if only those sites didn't tell me everything ever about this person as opposed to the condensed 'why should I know him' version...

for instance, I've just looked him up. He's a wine connoisseur and food critic. He apparently writes for some swanky magazines, but at no point during my brief research does it mention why he would be famous enough to mock or use amusingly on a forum. All it says is what he does. Is he famous for being a douche bag, as is somewhat implied by the previous posts here? Not just what does he do, but who is he?

[MtlAngelus]

Fine then. This may help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYpcyfYQz2Q

[Akuryou13]

Fine then. This may help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYpcyfYQz2Qso he's famous for being a bit odd, then?

[SupSuper]

so he's famous for being a bit odd, then?Isn't everyone?

[Akuryou13]

Isn't everyone?point .

[Xinos]

Isn't everyone?

I'm not. :/

[BetongÅsna]

I'm not. :/As abundantly shown by the lack of an Olly Smith avatar!

[Alien King]

I fear a girl may be reading too much into a single drunken evening at the Student Union.
It's not as though I can simply ignore her either, because I see this person every week.

[BetongÅsna]

This is why I always ask awkwardly before any encounter that could have meaning read into it...

[Alien King]

Facebook has become a game of Russian Roulette...

[bonz]

Facebook has become a game of Russian Roulette...
Huh? :confused:

[Alien King]

Huh? :confused:

Leaving it on in the background now carries the risk of awkward conversations.

[Zero72]

Awkward conversations with a 1 in 6 chance of being shot in the head? Yikes, man. :p

[Akuryou13]

Leaving it on in the background now carries the risk of awkward conversations.I'm confused. How, exactly?

[Alien King]

I fear a girl may be reading too much into a single drunken evening at the Student Union.
It's not as though I can simply ignore her either, because I see this person every week.

Leaving it on in the background now carries the risk of awkward conversations.

I thought it was clear...
Regardless, it seems to have passed.

[Zero72]

why do I like her so much. this is a dumb thing. I should not like her because she lives a goddamn bazillion miles away like all of the other people who have just hurt me on varying levels because it's not goddamn possible because of the bazillion miles. i do not want to want her. i want to want someone i can have.

this is a completely objectively stupid thing and i am stupid for having this problem (again)

gmbtnrfkfgj

[Akuryou13]

why do I like her so much. this is a dumb thing. I should not like her because she lives a goddamn bazillion miles away like all of the other people who have just hurt me on varying levels because it's not goddamn possible because of the bazillion miles. i do not want to want her. i want to want someone i can have.

this is a completely objectively stupid thing and i am stupid for having this problem (again)

gmbtnrfkfgjI'm in the same boat, if it makes you feel any better :-/

[Zero72]

The worst part about it is that I'm not totally sure it isn't mutual. But there's just no possible way it could happen. I wish I could say something, but that would just break a good friendship.

[Akuryou13]

The worst part about it is that I'm not totally sure it isn't mutual. But there's just no possible way it could happen. I wish I could say something, but that would just break a good friendship.here's a twist: I KNOW mine is mutual. She's told me so directly..... and let me tell you, that is some SERIOUSLY headache-inducing knowledge....

[Zero72]

Yyyyeeeahhh, I can see that. That actually does sound worse somehow.

[SomePerson]

Aye that seems to be a thing, y'know? I'm sort of in the process of falling for a girl who's studying abroad here in LA and going home to France in January. That's a little much far away...

[Akuryou13]

Yyyyeeeahhh, I can see that. That actually does sound worse somehow.here, I can add one more: she wants to move away from her home, as well. She's nervous about doing so and hesitant as hell, but she desperately wants to...

this has been the past 2 years of my life..... (granted, I'm looking around for local girls as well, but she's still around often enough to make forgetting the situation impossible)

[SupSuper]

Sadly there's not much we can do, because in the end we're all human beings with sh**ty feelings and until they find a cure for those, we just have to live with such unfortunate decisions and enjoy the good parts.

From personal experience, I've never gotten or seen a long-distance relationship work out in the end. Maybe I just hang around the wrong people. But it's becoming a lot more common, what with this crazy internet age and all of us being natural human beings that naturally meet people and naturally complicate everything so it keeps happening, so maybe the trend will change. This economy certainly doesn't help though.

[Zero72]

Somebody hurry up and invent the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device. That'd solve a lot of problems. Just put a couple of portals in a couple of closets or something and you're golden. hey, hi, here i am in person, let's be friendsorsomething

[SomePerson]

Not sure how I'd feel about Zeor appearing in my closet one day

[Zero72]

Well at least for you, I'd probably wear clothes.

[thomasp]

Well at least for you, I'd probably wear clothes.
That "probably" worries me :p

[Zero72]

Whoa! This funny and interesting person I know on Spiral Knights also happens to be pretty dang ol' cute, and she's in my time zone! I wonder where ooohhh Georgia. Of course. Forget everything else I said.

Sheesh.

[SupSuper]

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/supsuper/quadffffffffffff.png

Day wasted.

[bloopy]

Not entirely wasted I guess, at least the rage comic can provide entertainment.

[bonz]

Whoa! This funny and interesting person I know on Spiral Knights also happens to be pretty dang ol' cute, and she's in my time zone! I wonder where ooohhh Georgia. Of course. Forget everything else I said.

Well, it could have been worse, if she were from Georgia in the Caucasus. :D

[Zero72]

facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk sorry about your computer sup facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk facedesk bleed die

what can I doooooooooo

[FutureWorm]

just a friendly reminder to back up your data. lost a bunch of it due to a catastrophic hardware failure last night

[MtlAngelus]

So, the wife of one of our employees took a loan from some ****ty company that does "group loans" and gave the phone number of our business as a contact number. Now either they and/or the other people in the group are struggling to pay back and some obnoxious, incredibly rude woman keeps calling over and over and over and over and refuses to understand that, despite that indeed the loanee's husband works for us, the phone line does not belong to him and was not given with our authorization, nor did we at any point endorse the loan. Calling her superiors yielded the same result: obnoxious *****s who tell us we can do whatever we want but they won't stop calling, and recommend us to "convince" our employee to pay his loan, or pay it ourselves.
Neither is really an option because a)It's none of our ****ing business, and b)...IT'S NONE OF OUR ****ING BUSINESS.

And the fun thing is that there's not much we can do about it as our phone company does not offer number blocking, nor is the feature available on our cordless phones, and taking legal action would be retarded as it would end up costing us way more than paying the stupid $350 or something loan. And reporting this company to any relevant authority would be an exercise in futility. FUN.

So I did what any reasonable internet person would do and proceeded to rick-roll her for a while, and then unplugged the line. Not that we do not need the line to be open, but it's also not particularly essential as most of our communications with customers happens through Nextel phones. It's still really annoying tho. -_-

Hopefully he'll sort this out soon, but I'm feeling seriously vindictive right now... >:I

[bonz]

So, the wife of one of our employees took a loan from some ****ty company that does "group loans" and gave the phone number of our business as a contact number. Now either they and/or the other people in the group are struggling to pay back and some obnoxious, incredibly rude woman keeps calling over and over and over and over and refuses to understand that, despite that indeed the loanee's husband works for us, the phone line does not belong to him and was not given with our authorization, nor did we at any point endorse the loan. Calling her superiors yielded the same result: obnoxious *****s who tell us we can do whatever we want but they won't stop calling, and recommend us to "convince" our employee to pay his loan, or pay it ourselves.
Neither is really an option because a)It's none of our ****ing business, and b)...IT'S NONE OF OUR ****ING BUSINESS.

And the fun thing is that there's not much we can do about it as our phone company does not offer number blocking, nor is the feature available on our cordless phones, and taking legal action would be retarded as it would end up costing us way more than paying the stupid $350 or something loan. And reporting this company to any relevant authority would be an exercise in futility. FUN.

So I did what any reasonable internet person would do and proceeded to rick-roll her for a while, and then unplugged the line. Not that we do not need the line to be open, but it's also not particularly essential as most of our communications with customers happens through Nextel phones. It's still really annoying tho. -_-

Hopefully he'll sort this out soon, but I'm feeling seriously vindictive right now... >:I
Some suggestions:

Switch to a telephone provider that supports number blocking
Get a phone set that supports number blocking
Troll them some more with pre-recorded voice messages, preferrably Duke Nukem's "balls of steel" ones
Lie to them and say that you fired the employee and give them the phone number of his "new employer" (e.g. an extension number of that very loan shark company, some other business you don't like, some authority responsible for something like this, the police, a drug cartel or some premium rate number that you set up for some extra income :D).
Contact your local drug cartel representative and give him an anonymous tip that someone with that number is trying to sell drugs on their turf.

[Akuryou13]

Contact your local drug cartel representative and give him an anonymous tip that someone with that number is trying to sell drugs on their turf.with the situation as it is, this seems like it would get the guy killed rather than be just an amusing prank :p

[Alien King]

with the situation as it is, this seems like it would get the guy killed rather than be just an amusing prank :p

Nah, only a couple of broken limbs.

[MtlAngelus]

Some suggestions:

Switch to a telephone provider that supports number blocking
Get a phone set that supports number blocking
Troll them some more with pre-recorded voice messages, preferrably Duke Nukem's "balls of steel" ones
Lie to them and say that you fired the employee and give them the phone number of his "new employer" (e.g. an extension number of that very loan shark company, some other business you don't like, some authority responsible for something like this, the police, a drug cartel or some premium rate number that you set up for some extra income :D).
Contact your local drug cartel representative and give him an anonymous tip that someone with that number is trying to sell drugs on their turf.



1-Too complicated and costs money.
2-We just replaced our phone sets recently... don't really want to buy new ones again. >_<
3-Trolling has little to no effect, she made it perfectly clear that all she wants to do is annoy the crap out of us until the money is paid.
4-Won't work either. Hell, even firing him will have no effect, she has also made it clear that she will continue to call until the money is paid, regardless of whether the person she is trying to locate is actually here or not...
5-I'm pretty much sure they do not give a damn about anonymous tips on the matter. Besides, I'm not trying to get anyone killed here. :p

I'm considering learning some basic hacking skills and having a go at their website. That could be fun. :p

[bonz]

Next time she calls, tell her that you will put down the telephone handset on the table, that you'll leave the room for 10 minutes and afterwards you'll simply hang-up.
Tell that you will from now on do this every time she calls and that you'll instruct everyone else to do the same.

Another idea:
Get a very loud whistle and a pair of earplugs.
1-Too complicated and costs money.
If you find a company with cheaper fees, you might even save money in the medium run.

[Xinos]

I think your best bet is to just immediately hang up when she calls.
Or say something like, "Hello again.. have you called to apologize for harassing us? No?" *click*

Also, my usb pocket hard drive just died. I was planning on buying a new one soon and transfer my stuff over as I had noticed it was beginning to die. Should have been quicker. Oh well..

[Lex]

Is said employee fired yet? If not, why not?

[MtlAngelus]

Is said employee fired yet? If not, why not?

It's the week before christmas, his wife is pregnant and he obviously has money issues?

He's also good at what he does, and not really a bad person.

[bonz]

Stupid question, but have you actually put the guy on the phone when the loan shark lady called?

How about giving her the private number of your employee?
Tell him first that you will do so, because she's pestering the company and occupying the line.

[MtlAngelus]

Stupid question, but have you actually put the guy on the phone when the loan shark lady called?

How about giving her the private number of your employee?
Tell him first that you will do so, because she's pestering the company and occupying the line.

The first few times we let her talk with him. She still continued to call, immediately after hanging up with him. We also gave her his cellphone number, she still called us.

She seems to have stopped now tho, so hopefully all that is done.

[bonz]

She seems to have stopped now tho, so hopefully all that is done.
Good.
Now it's time to call her over and over, and ask whether she's going to apologize for all the harassment.

[Squirminator2k]

Unexpected medical costs today mean I won't be paying off my overdraft after all.

F***.

[Alien King]

I've just glanced through a short Moon landing conspiracy paper.
It was written by one of my maths lectures. I... I don't know what to think anymore...

[GrimOswald]

It's okay, the truth always hurts.

[FutureWorm]

at least it wasn't a paper attempting to deny basic fundamental realities of math or something

[Alien King]

Nono, nothing like that; he has far too much invested to try anything like that.
I mean, the guy is a topologist.

[SargeMcCluck]

Read http://forum.team17.co.uk/showpost.php?p=765984&postcount=4325 and then know I was 1 mark from highest score. :(

[bonz]

Read http://forum.team17.co.uk/showpost.php?p=765984&postcount=4325 and then know I was 1 mark from highest score. :(

"You've got a real attitude problem, McFly. You're a slacker!"

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/963/13attitude.jpg