2522 + Interview Questions in Computer News in Other Page 42 InterviewSolution

2051.	Solve : FCC, let us lock new phones - Verizon?
Answer» The full title is: Verizon asks the FCC to let it lock new smartphones for 60 days, To prevent identity theft and fraud. Link: https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/22/18236759/verizon-fcc-phone-locking-60-day-fraud-identity-theft-protection Verizon is asking the Federal Communications Commission to let it keep new smartphones locked to its network for 60 days, as part of an initiative to prevent identity theft and fraud. After the 60-day period, the phones would unlock automatically, the telecom says in a note published to its website and authored by Ronan Dunne, Verizon’s executive vice president. Verizon says it should have the authority to do this under the so-called “C-block rules” put in place following the FCC’s 2008 wireless spectrum auction. “We believe this temporary lock on new phones will protect our CUSTOMERS by limiting the incentive for identity theft. At the same time, a temporary lock will have virtually no impact on our legitimate customers’ ability to use their devices,” Dunne writes. “Almost none of our customers switch to another carrier within the first 60 days. Even with this limited fraud safety check, Verizon will still have the most consumer-friendly UNLOCKING policy in the industry. All of our main competitors lock their customers’ new devices for a period of time and REQUIRE that they are fully paid off before unlocking.” Verizon signaled last year that it was going to put an unlocking plan into place that would better prevent against fraud, and the telecom is still the industry leader among the big four in the US when it comes to letting consumers buy phones unlocked from the get-go. But it appears it needs the FCC’s go-ahead, which shouldn’t be a problem considering FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has been both carrier-friendly in the past and a staunch opponent of net neutrality protections that Verizon and other telecoms have PUBLICLY fought against. ... They are asking permission to do what others do anyway.

Discussion

2052.	Solve : Artificial Intelligence and Health of Killer Whales?
Answer» Microsoft recently advertised tan AI product they have is helping track Whales. The story is over a YEAR old, bu tit might be new to you. It was to me. Artificial Intelligence and the Health of Killer Whales For the past few years, SeaDoc has led an effort to compile individual health records for killer whales, with an eye toward better UNDERSTANDING threats across ENTIRE populations. Great strides have been made on that front, but the power of those records as a tool for research is about to go up a notch thanks to a grant from Microsoft as part of their AI for Earth program. AI for Earth aims to amplify human ingenuity and advance sustainability with the goal of empowering organizations to THRIVE amid limited resources. SeaDoc will receive a seed grant that provides access to Microsoft Azure’s cloud-computing PLATFORM and assistance with artificial intelligence computing tools for data analysis. This does NOT qualify as fish story.

Discussion

2053.	Solve : Win 10 slows down, Win 7 gains users.?
Answer» Computer world Reporter Gregg Keizer on April 2 : Windows by the numbers: It’s a topsy-turvy world, with Windows 10 down, 7 up Quote Migration watch: There were unexpected gyrations in the market in March, with Windows 7 gaining strength and Windows 10 falling back. Is this news? Thank about it. Few companies sell PCs now with Windows 7, so how can it move ip? Quote According to analytics vendor Net Applications, Windows 10 lost eight-tenths of a percentage point in user share — an estimate of the portion of all PCs powered by that operating system — during March, ending the month on 33.3% of the world’s PCs and 37.4% of all systems running a Microsoft edition. (The second NUMBER is larger than the first because Windows accounted for 88.9% of all operating systems, not 100%.) The downturn was the largest ever for Windows 10, which has been trending up since its mid-2015 debut. That movement has not been a straight line, as March’s dip showed, but it has been impressive, averaging more than eight-tenths of a point monthly. Oh. He means the rate of growth is down. But it is still growing. And Windows 7? How is it up? Quote First, if accurate — and there’s no guarantee any third-party measurement is — then Windows 7 will retain a larger number of users than earlier anticipated when it slips off the support list in 21 months. Using the 12-month average of Windows 7’s share movements, Computerworld now forecasts that the 2009 OS will account for about 38% of all active Windows editions in January 2020. At that time, Windows 10 should power approximately 56% of all Windows laptop and desktop PCs. Still, that does not sound right. The Computerized reporter admits sit. Quote And third, the LARGE JUMP in user share for Windows 7 immediately raises suspicion that the measurement was flawed, PERHAPS because fraudulent bot traffic — scoured by Net Applications from its data last year — has returned with a vengeance. If so, it would call into question the entirety of Net Applications’ user share estimates. Spruce for all quotes above: https://www.computerworld.com/article/3199373/windows-pcs/windows-by-the-numbers-its-a-topsy-turvy-world-with-windows-10-down-7-up.html Question: How can can you get a new PC with Windows 7? Can you? The net Applications measurement is a measurement of browser user-agent information. It records this information on Net Applications customers sites (whoever they are?). the browser tells the server the OS it is running and that is stored and collated. It relies on that information being accurate, which makes it useless- because it's not. If any of my Windows 10 computers visited one of their "customers" and was part of the survey, they would have been recorded as Windows 7 computers. The reason is because I've had a feature called "resist fingerprinting" configured in Firefox for some time. This uses as generic a user agent as possible- in this case, that includes reporting Windows 7. Considering recent events regarding data privacy, tracking, and user data concerns, the tiny shift in user agents being reported to those websites could be explained quite reasonably by users turning on features like that in response to the Facebook stuff.BC_Programmer, Good pint! Because of user privacy actions, some such market reports are near worthless?! That seems to be what was said last year about Facebook. New privacy rules are eating into the profit of Facebook and other user profile sensitive companies. The link below was published in San Francisco on March August 3, 2017 https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2018-03-19/privacy-issues-emerge-as-major-business-risk-for-facebook Quote SAN FRANCISCO/ FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Facebook faces substantial business risks from new European Union privacy rules set to take effect in May, a looming reality that came into stark relief over the weekend with revelations that a controversial political consulting firm had improperly obtained personal data on 50 million Facebook users. Privacy experts said the disclosure that a researcher had sold Facebook data collected via a personality quiz to the consulting firm Cambridge Analytica is a prime example of the kinds of practices that the new General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, is supposed to prevent or punish. The new General Data Protection Regulation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Data_Protection_Regulation The Wikipedia has over 20 references to this EU law.Quote from: Geek-9pm on April 25, 2018, 10:11:55 AM Because of user privacy actions, some such market reports are near worthless?! IMO, They've always been worthless. Aside from having a possibly undisclosed sampling bias based on whoever "Net applications" customers actually are, since it relies on the User Agent being accurate- which often isn't, it's altogether unreliable. Aside from the flag I mentioned, It also relies on the browser being able to get that information from the OS reliably, too. Which ALSO is not guaranteed. With Windows 10, for compatibility reasons, the VERSION API will effectively pretend it is an earlier version of Windows unless the software explicitly declares support for it in it's application Manifest. Right now, this is the case, however future changes could cause a change in the "survey" results. For example a new major Windows 10 release could add a new "SupportedOS" GUID that needs to be supported. Articles could be written like "New release of Windows 10 is slow to catch on, according to survey results"- but it tells you nothing because unless browsers are updated to actually list it as a supportedOS, user agents wouldn't indicate they were running that release.And here i thought it was all those downgrades i've done since 6 months into Win 10... I'm not sure if I am old fashion or not but I have been on Win 7 and never upgraded to 8 or 10. I have been using the 7 Os for a long time even as a blogger with multiple websites.I love Win 10 and all, but seriously, do you really use Cortana?Quote from: Mcmanama on February 14, 2019, 01:45:56 AM I'm not sure if I am old fashion or not but I have been on Win 7 and never upgraded to 8 or 10. I have been using the 7 Os for a long time even as a blogger with multiple websites. Now I'm not old fashion...haha. I now have windows 10 installed.

2053.

Solve : Win 10 slows down, Win 7 gains users.?

Answer»

Computer world Reporter Gregg Keizer on April 2 :
Windows by the numbers: It’s a topsy-turvy world, with Windows 10 down, 7 up
Quote

Migration watch: There were unexpected gyrations in the market in March, with Windows 7 gaining strength and Windows 10 falling back.

Is this news? Thank about it.
Few companies sell PCs now with Windows 7, so how can it move ip?
Quote

According to analytics vendor Net Applications, Windows 10 lost eight-tenths of a percentage point in user share — an estimate of the portion of all PCs powered by that operating system — during March, ending the month on 33.3% of the world’s PCs and 37.4% of all systems running a Microsoft edition. (The second NUMBER is larger than the first because Windows accounted for 88.9% of all operating systems, not 100%.)
The downturn was the largest ever for Windows 10, which has been trending up since its mid-2015 debut. That movement has not been a straight line, as March’s dip showed, but it has been impressive, averaging more than eight-tenths of a point monthly.

Oh. He means the rate of growth is down. But it is still growing.
And Windows 7? How is it up?
Quote

First, if accurate — and there’s no guarantee any third-party measurement is — then Windows 7 will retain a larger number of users than earlier anticipated when it slips off the support list in 21 months. Using the 12-month average of Windows 7’s share movements, Computerworld now forecasts that the 2009 OS will account for about 38% of all active Windows editions in January 2020. At that time, Windows 10 should power approximately 56% of all Windows laptop and desktop PCs.

Still, that does not sound right. The Computerized reporter admits sit.
Quote

And third, the LARGE JUMP in user share for Windows 7 immediately raises suspicion that the measurement was flawed, PERHAPS because fraudulent bot traffic — scoured by Net Applications from its data last year — has returned with a vengeance. If so, it would call into question the entirety of Net Applications’ user share estimates.

Spruce for all quotes above:
https://www.computerworld.com/article/3199373/windows-pcs/windows-by-the-numbers-its-a-topsy-turvy-world-with-windows-10-down-7-up.html

Question: How can can you get a new PC with Windows 7? Can you? The net Applications measurement is a measurement of browser user-agent information. It records this information on Net Applications customers sites (whoever they are?). the browser tells the server the OS it is running and that is stored and collated. It relies on that information being accurate, which makes it useless- because it's not.

If any of my Windows 10 computers visited one of their "customers" and was part of the survey, they would have been recorded as Windows 7 computers.

The reason is because I've had a feature called "resist fingerprinting" configured in Firefox for some time. This uses as generic a user agent as possible- in this case, that includes reporting Windows 7.

Considering recent events regarding data privacy, tracking, and user data concerns, the tiny shift in user agents being reported to those websites could be explained quite reasonably by users turning on features like that in response to the Facebook stuff.BC_Programmer,
Good pint!
Because of user privacy actions, some such market reports are near worthless?!
That seems to be what was said last year about Facebook. New privacy rules are eating into the profit of Facebook and other user profile sensitive companies.
The link below was published in San Francisco on March August 3, 2017
https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2018-03-19/privacy-issues-emerge-as-major-business-risk-for-facebook
Quote

SAN FRANCISCO/ FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Facebook faces substantial business risks from new European Union privacy rules set to take effect in May, a looming reality that came into stark relief over the weekend with revelations that a controversial political consulting firm had improperly obtained personal data on 50 million Facebook users.

Privacy experts said the disclosure that a researcher had sold Facebook data collected via a personality quiz to the consulting firm Cambridge Analytica is a prime example of the kinds of practices that the new General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, is supposed to prevent or punish.

The new General Data Protection Regulation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Data_Protection_Regulation
The Wikipedia has over 20 references to this EU law.Quote from: Geek-9pm on April 25, 2018, 10:11:55 AM

Because of user privacy actions, some such market reports are near worthless?!

IMO, They've always been worthless. Aside from having a possibly undisclosed sampling bias based on whoever "Net applications" customers actually are, since it relies on the User Agent being accurate- which often isn't, it's altogether unreliable.

Aside from the flag I mentioned, It also relies on the browser being able to get that information from the OS reliably, too. Which ALSO is not guaranteed. With Windows 10, for compatibility reasons, the VERSION API will effectively pretend it is an earlier version of Windows unless the software explicitly declares support for it in it's application Manifest. Right now, this is the case, however future changes could cause a change in the "survey" results. For example a new major Windows 10 release could add a new "SupportedOS" GUID that needs to be supported. Articles could be written like "New release of Windows 10 is slow to catch on, according to survey results"- but it tells you nothing because unless browsers are updated to actually list it as a supportedOS, user agents wouldn't indicate they were running that release.And here i thought it was all those downgrades i've done since 6 months into Win 10... I'm not sure if I am old fashion or not but I have been on Win 7 and never upgraded to 8 or 10. I have been using the 7 Os for a long time even as a blogger with multiple websites.I love Win 10 and all, but seriously, do you really use Cortana?Quote from: Mcmanama on February 14, 2019, 01:45:56 AM

I'm not sure if I am old fashion or not but I have been on Win 7 and never upgraded to 8 or 10. I have been using the 7 Os for a long time even as a blogger with multiple websites.

Now I'm not old fashion...haha. I now have windows 10 installed.

Discussion

2054.	Solve : Is Google a monopoly or oligopoly?
Answer» Is this news? ol·i·gop·o·ly noun a state of limited competition, in which a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers. Just now the CBS TV network aired a report about Google. The above subject title represents the CBS program 60 minuets.. Google states they are not a monopoly of the anti-trust law of the United States. Others disagree and are asking why there is no government action. Here is the CBS TV story: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-did-google-get-so-big/ The report claims that Google alters the search results to for its own interest. Before you read the CBS report, Search for this: Is Google a monopoly. Notice the CBS report is hard to find. What do you say? Also: https://www.thestreet.com/opinion/attention-60-minutes-google-isnt-the-only-big-tech-monopoly-14594142That's a lot of minuets...The only thing new about this topic is the report from the CBS program. Over in the UK and the EU this issue has been a topic for years. In fact, Google has been chastised by the EU for its search tools that favor Google advertisers. People are asking 'why say anything now? ' Apparently Google is so big no agency dares to attack it. And if you want to advertise on the Internet you have to use Google. The is self-apparent. Google does not have any real competition. About five years ago: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/14/google-competition-searching-solution @tom_watson Thu 14 Feb 2013 Quote Some time later this month we are expecting the European commission to decide how it will proceed with its investigation of the search giant Google, following the latter's submission of proposed remedies at the end of January over allegations that it has engaged in a range of anticompetitive practices. For more than two years now the commission has been examining complaints from a rising number of companies – 21 formal complaints at the last count and reportedly hundreds of other submissions The alleged practices include biasing the search results to promote its own INTERESTS and preventing advertisers from running a single campaign across multiple platforms. Five years ago. About two years later the EU ruled a 2.7 billion EU fine. Did Google pay it? Don't hold your breath. I can not find a reference they've ever paid. But I am using a Google search. Quote Did Google pay it? Don't hold your breath. I can not find a reference they've ever paid They did pay the fine. Check about 4" from bottom. I guess 2.7 billion just ain't what it used to be. Quote from: Sidewinder on May 21, 2018, 10:23:22 AM They did pay the fine. Check about 4" from bottom. I guess 2.7 billion just ain't what it used to be. Geek sometimes never FINISHES reading the "news" he reports....Whooa! What a nice blog post, Loved it. Surely gonna VISIT again your blog. Nice work <3 *Affiliate SPAM link removed...*I think the pertinent question should be: how MUCH of rent seeking can Google engage in. That is the real underlying PROBLEM. A company does not need to be a monopoly to engage in rent-seeking. All it needs is position itself around a resource and act as a gatekeeper, platform holder, go-to person etc. Thus, even though Google is not nominally a monopoly, it can still extract disproportionate profits compared to the value they add to the economy by taking advantage of its position in the advertising, search and mobile markets.Google also engages in intense competition with its rivals in the Mobile Operating Systems industry. ... Therefore, despite of its large market share and supernormal profits, Google should not be considered a monopoly. Instead, the search engine industry is an oligopoly industry.

2054.

Solve : Is Google a monopoly or oligopoly?

Answer»

Is this news?
ol·i·gop·o·ly
noun
a state of limited competition, in which a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers.

Just now the CBS TV network aired a report about Google.
The above subject title represents the CBS program 60 minuets.. Google states they are not a monopoly of the anti-trust law of the United States. Others disagree and are asking why there is no government action.
Here is the CBS TV story:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-did-google-get-so-big/
The report claims that Google alters the search results to for its own interest.
Before you read the CBS report, Search for this:
Is Google a monopoly.
Notice the CBS report is hard to find.
What do you say?
Also:
https://www.thestreet.com/opinion/attention-60-minutes-google-isnt-the-only-big-tech-monopoly-14594142That's a lot of minuets...The only thing new about this topic is the report from the CBS program. Over in the UK and the EU this issue has been a topic for years. In fact, Google has been chastised by the EU for its search tools that favor Google advertisers.

People are asking 'why say anything now? ' Apparently Google is so big no agency dares to attack it. And if you want to advertise on the Internet you have to use Google. The is self-apparent. Google does not have any real competition.
About five years ago:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/14/google-competition-searching-solution
@tom_watson Thu 14 Feb 2013
Quote

Some time later this month we are expecting the European commission to decide how it will proceed with its investigation of the search giant Google, following the latter's submission of proposed remedies at the end of January over allegations that it has engaged in a range of anticompetitive practices. For more than two years now the commission has been examining complaints from a rising number of companies – 21 formal complaints at the last count and reportedly hundreds of other submissions The alleged practices include biasing the search results to promote its own INTERESTS and preventing advertisers from running a single campaign across multiple platforms.

Five years ago.
About two years later the EU ruled a 2.7 billion EU fine.
Did Google pay it? Don't hold your breath. I can not find a reference they've ever paid. But I am using a Google search.
Quote

Did Google pay it? Don't hold your breath. I can not find a reference they've ever paid

They did pay the fine. Check about 4" from bottom. I guess 2.7 billion just ain't what it used to be.

Quote from: Sidewinder on May 21, 2018, 10:23:22 AM

They did pay the fine. Check about 4" from bottom. I guess 2.7 billion just ain't what it used to be.

Geek sometimes never FINISHES reading the "news" he reports....Whooa! What a nice blog post, Loved it. Surely gonna VISIT again your blog. Nice work <3

Affiliate SPAM link removed...I think the pertinent question should be: how MUCH of rent seeking can Google engage in. That is the real underlying PROBLEM. A company does not need to be a monopoly to engage in rent-seeking. All it needs is position itself around a resource and act as a gatekeeper, platform holder, go-to person etc.

Thus, even though Google is not nominally a monopoly, it can still extract disproportionate profits compared to the value they add to the economy by taking advantage of its position in the advertising, search and mobile markets.Google also engages in intense competition with its rivals in the Mobile Operating Systems industry. ... Therefore, despite of its large market share and supernormal profits, Google should not be considered a monopoly. Instead, the search engine industry is an oligopoly industry.

Discussion

2055.	Solve : EU comes down on Google again and again and again.?
Answer» This has got to be among the big TECH stories of the past year. Quote More than $9 billion in fines. Last year Google was fined a record 4.3 billion euros (ROUGHLY $5 billion) antitrust fine resulting from Google Play app pre-install CONTRACTS with phone makers. And in 2017, Google was fined 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion) for favoring its own content in shopping search results.11 hours ago From: https://searchengineland.com/google-fined-another-1-7-billion-by-eu-for-abusive-adsense-publisher-contracts-314248 More with video... https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/20/business/google-fine-advertising.html https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/20/18270891/google-eu-antitrust-fine-adsense-advertising https://www.fastcompany.com/90322678/google-hit-with-another-eu-antitrust-fine-the-grand-total-now-comes-to-e8-2b Any comments?

2055.

Solve : EU comes down on Google again and again and again.?

Answer»

This has got to be among the big TECH stories of the past year.
Quote

More than $9 billion in fines. Last year Google was fined a record 4.3 billion euros (ROUGHLY $5 billion) antitrust fine resulting from Google Play app pre-install CONTRACTS with phone makers. And in 2017, Google was fined 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion) for favoring its own content in shopping search results.11 hours ago

From: https://searchengineland.com/google-fined-another-1-7-billion-by-eu-for-abusive-adsense-publisher-contracts-314248
More with video...
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/20/business/google-fine-advertising.html
https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/20/18270891/google-eu-antitrust-fine-adsense-advertising
https://www.fastcompany.com/90322678/google-hit-with-another-eu-antitrust-fine-the-grand-total-now-comes-to-e8-2b
Any comments?

Discussion

2056.	Solve : US Ban on China electronics. What??
Answer» Read here: Trump's Huawei ban escalates the US-China trade war into a tech Cold War Huawei ban could hurt chipmakers, raising fears of tech layoffs Hard to UNDERSTAND. The WEBSITE of that COMPANY: https://www.huawei.com/en/

Discussion

2057.	Solve : USB cables burn fingers. Soome 900,00 reclaled.?
Answer» Here is the story from USA TODAY: Target recalls 90,000 USB cables that caused consumer finger burns Quote The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is urging consumers to stop using the 3-foot long USB-Lightning cables immediately, saying the metal AROUND the cord can become electrically charged if it contacts the USB wall CHARGER plug prongs while charging. Target RECEIVED 14 reports of the cables smoking, SPARKING or igniting, including two reports of consumer finger burns. For more links, search: Target is recalling USB charging cables.

2057.

Solve : USB cables burn fingers. Soome 900,00 reclaled.?

Answer»

Here is the story from USA TODAY:

Target recalls 90,000 USB cables that caused consumer finger burns
Quote

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is urging consumers to stop using the 3-foot long USB-Lightning cables immediately, saying the metal AROUND the cord can become electrically charged if it contacts the USB wall CHARGER plug prongs while charging.

Target RECEIVED 14 reports of the cables smoking, SPARKING or igniting, including two reports of consumer finger burns.

For more links, search:
Target is recalling USB charging cables.

Discussion

2058.	Solve : Toshiba sold its PC market to Sharp/Foxconn June 2018?
Answer» While this news is almost a year OLD. This is the first I heard of this and figured I'd SHARE it here in case anyone else missed the sale of Toshiba's PC Market to Sharp/Foxconn. When looking for Windows 10 drivers for my Toshiba Laptop from 2009, I noticed that the URL was no longer Toshiba for support and is instead now handled by Dynabook https://support.dynabook.com/drivers to which either by MODEL number or serial number you can find the Toshiba Drivers for the original OS that the Laptop was sold with as well as you might find drivers for newer editions of Windows. Just read the article completely and now I know why they went with Dynabook domain, its tribute to the first Toshiba Laptop in 1985. Quote The acquisition by Sharp marks the end of the long history of Toshiba LAPTOPS – the Toshiba Dynabook, which came out in 1985, was one of the first laptops to ever be release. I have had good luck with Sharp Brand quality in TV's and Microwave Ovens, but have had issues with Foxconn brand components and main boards failing prematurely in the PAST which makes me cautious of buying a newer Toshiba computer. Yet... I know that Apple has used Foxconn components so maybe they aren't as bad as they use to be in quality. Here is the link to the article: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Exit-from-the-PC-market-Toshiba-sells-its-laptop-business-to-Sharp.307914.0.htmlGou owns more than 50% of SDP, while Foxconn-controlled Sharp holds ... Wisconsin plant back in June 2018, opting to build a 6th-generationRemove your referral link in your Sig or i'll do it for you...Thanx.

2058.

Solve : Toshiba sold its PC market to Sharp/Foxconn June 2018?

Answer»

While this news is almost a year OLD. This is the first I heard of this and figured I'd SHARE it here in case anyone else missed the sale of Toshiba's PC Market to Sharp/Foxconn.

When looking for Windows 10 drivers for my Toshiba Laptop from 2009, I noticed that the URL was no longer Toshiba for support and is instead now handled by Dynabook https://support.dynabook.com/drivers to which either by MODEL number or serial number you can find the Toshiba Drivers for the original OS that the Laptop was sold with as well as you might find drivers for newer editions of Windows.

Just read the article completely and now I know why they went with Dynabook domain, its tribute to the first Toshiba Laptop in 1985.
Quote

The acquisition by Sharp marks the end of the long history of Toshiba LAPTOPS – the Toshiba Dynabook, which came out in 1985, was one of the first laptops to ever be release.

I have had good luck with Sharp Brand quality in TV's and Microwave Ovens, but have had issues with Foxconn brand components and main boards failing prematurely in the PAST which makes me cautious of buying a newer Toshiba computer. Yet... I know that Apple has used Foxconn components so maybe they aren't as bad as they use to be in quality.

Here is the link to the article:

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Exit-from-the-PC-market-Toshiba-sells-its-laptop-business-to-Sharp.307914.0.htmlGou owns more than 50% of SDP, while Foxconn-controlled Sharp holds ... Wisconsin plant back in June 2018, opting to build a 6th-generationRemove your referral link in your Sig or i'll do it for you...Thanx.

Discussion

2059.	Solve : Microsoft Kills Edge Browser.?
Answer» The title says it: Microsoft Kills Edge Browser. You find it on Google or your favorite search tool. I was wanted to say 'Why am I not supersized' ; but that is dishonest. because I am surprised. I do not like it, but I never knew everybody felt that way. So my Question is: Why are you not surprised? Don't know where you got that however I'd guess it was from one of many unsurprisingly hyperbolic tecch articles on the subject. Only about a tenth seem to link back to an actual source and a bunch of them seem to fill copy with some blabbering about Edge's "rich history" (?). In any case, best source is from MS themselves, right here. They aren't killing Edge in the sense that they are sunsetting it; they are apparently rebuilding it, using what is effectively the same underlying browser engine as Google Chrome... Of course one could argue that is "killing edge" because it's really just going to be Chrome with Microsoft's, uh... chrome... around it. The big concern from this is that it is moving closer towards the web becoming a Monoculture, one which Google holds dominion over; Right now it's Microsoft, Google, and Mozilla; with this, Microsoft is basically dropping out and using Google's Chromium project for Edge meaning that there are only two players when it comes to browser standards: Google, and Mozilla. You can already see the signs of a Google Monoculture in web developer circles. "Standard compliant" has started to mean "It works in chrome" to a lot of them; I've seen Firefox and Edge both described negatively as "not supporting standards" because they didn't support chrome-specific non-standard web extensions, and I highly doubt that this is going to help much in that regard- A lot of people will talk big about "following standards" but don't actually know what they are. That's why IE and then Edge were so frequently chastised as not "following standards"- Not by people who knew the standards themselves but by those who rank "compliance" with "stuff works". Sometimes standards are about what shouldn't work just as much as about what should. For what it is worth, I found four sties that used words similar to topic title. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6460719/Microsoft-kill-Edge-browser.html https://www.techradar.com/news/microsoft-may-kill-off-edge-for-a-new-chrome-based-browser https://news.softpedia.com/news/microsoft-to-kill-off-microsoft-edge-launch-chromium-based-windows-10-browser-524086.shtml https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/microsoft-to-kill-off-edge-browser-replace-with-its-own-chromium-derivative.250233/page-3 These all seem to be from the same source. Compatibility is given as a resewn for the change. That would seem to be a good reason. Nevertheless, a few users had posted elsewhere some other reasons why. The say it has to do with security and Windows 10 updates. Ransomware was mentioned. MS is making CSO, Edge is just like Windows 10, in that the only way Microsoft can get mass ADOPTION is to force it onto people whether they want it or not. Every week I see more reasons to be glad I separated from Windows years ago.Quote Every week I see more reasons to be glad I separated from Windows years ago. If able to go without Windows thats great and all, but for gamers where Microsoft owns the rights to DirectX and no Open Source has made a DirectX module to tap into the power of DirectX, many games just dont perform as well with OpenGL. I tried to do without Windows years ago and figured I will always have to have my gaming systems Windows based vs trying to completely sever ties with Microsoft's products. As car as Chrome used for the core of the new Edge browser though just read about this now and its interesting. I was hoping over the years that Microsoft was going to sort of copy Apple and use Linux as the core of its OS. Because this then might open up DirectX being available for Linux builds other than the Microsoft build origin of it. Quote from: DaveLembke on February 01, 2019, 05:38:15 AM If able to go without Windows thats great and all, but for gamers where Microsoft owns the rights to DirectX and no Open Source has made a DirectX module to tap into the power of DirectX, many games just dont perform as well with OpenGL. On Linux you need to install the proprietary Graphics DRIVER, otherwise OpenGL will usually run through MESA, a software renderer, which will have worse performance by design. Currently WINE implements DirectX 9.0c, and most games using DirectX can be made to run on Linux. Otherwise, Linux has OpenGL and Vulkan- again, with the proper drivers. You can't just clean install Ubuntu or Mint or whatever and then try running games. EDIT: there is apparently work on DX10 and DX11 as well, here. Quote I was hoping over the years that Microsoft was going to sort of copy Apple and use Linux as the core of its OS. Apple never used Linux as the core of their OS. OS X is a certified UNIX operating System (except the latest release, for some reason) and the kernel was built based off of nextSTEP which itself used parts of BSD UNIX and Mach. Everything on top of it, however, was proprietary- You can't install the OS X Desktop Environment elsewhere, for example. Recently the funniest thing I saw about this Edge thing was an MS Engineer actually "calling out" Mozilla: "Thought: It’s time for @mozilla to get down from their philosophical ivory tower. The web is dominated by Chromium, if they really cared about the web they would be contributing instead of building a parallel universe that’s used by less than 5%?" Talk about a lack of perspective. Mozilla- the only browser developer that has a clear commitment to an open web- is apparently the enemy of the open web for basically not allowing Chromium and Google to completely dominate and dictate the web? Thanks for the info on DirectX for Linux BC. The last time I tried gaming with Linux was on Mint 13 and I used WINE and the drivers at the time only supported OpenGL making for a frame rate of like 13fps which was PRETTY bad. Whereas the same system dual boot to Windows got 60fps for the same game because it was able to use DirectX vs OpenGL. Also thanks for the correction to the Apple Linux mix up which was Unix. When I read about Apple and BSD, I wasn't aware that Unix had a BSD, I was only aware of FreeBSD so that's where I went wrong with that assumption that they snagged a Linux build to shape for themselves in OS X. Edge wasnt actually that bad, it works a LOT better than IE at least.For those of you who've tried the new chrome-powered Microsoft Edge, how do you like it so far vs just using regular Google Chrome?2x3i5x, Where can I get it?Quote from: Geek-9pm on September 07, 2019, 05:05:55 PM Where can I get it? https://www.microsoftedgeinsider.com/en-us/

2059.

Solve : Microsoft Kills Edge Browser.?

Answer»

The title says it: Microsoft Kills Edge Browser.
You find it on Google or your favorite search tool.
I was wanted to say 'Why am I not supersized' ; but that is dishonest. because I am surprised. I do not like it, but I never knew everybody felt that way.
So my Question is:
Why are you not surprised?
Don't know where you got that however I'd guess it was from one of many unsurprisingly hyperbolic tecch articles on the subject. Only about a tenth seem to link back to an actual source and a bunch of them seem to fill copy with some blabbering about Edge's "rich history" (?).

In any case, best source is from MS themselves, right here.

They aren't killing Edge in the sense that they are sunsetting it; they are apparently rebuilding it, using what is effectively the same underlying browser engine as Google Chrome... Of course one could argue that is "killing edge" because it's really just going to be Chrome with Microsoft's, uh... chrome... around it.

The big concern from this is that it is moving closer towards the web becoming a Monoculture, one which Google holds dominion over; Right now it's Microsoft, Google, and Mozilla; with this, Microsoft is basically dropping out and using Google's Chromium project for Edge meaning that there are only two players when it comes to browser standards: Google, and Mozilla.

You can already see the signs of a Google Monoculture in web developer circles. "Standard compliant" has started to mean "It works in chrome" to a lot of them; I've seen Firefox and Edge both described negatively as "not supporting standards" because they didn't support chrome-specific non-standard web extensions, and I highly doubt that this is going to help much in that regard- A lot of people will talk big about "following standards" but don't actually know what they are. That's why IE and then Edge were so frequently chastised as not "following standards"- Not by people who knew the standards themselves but by those who rank "compliance" with "stuff works". Sometimes standards are about what shouldn't work just as much as about what should.

For what it is worth, I found four sties that used words similar to topic title.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6460719/Microsoft-kill-Edge-browser.html

https://www.techradar.com/news/microsoft-may-kill-off-edge-for-a-new-chrome-based-browser

https://news.softpedia.com/news/microsoft-to-kill-off-microsoft-edge-launch-chromium-based-windows-10-browser-524086.shtml

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/microsoft-to-kill-off-edge-browser-replace-with-its-own-chromium-derivative.250233/page-3

These all seem to be from the same source. Compatibility is given as a resewn for the change. That would seem to be a good reason.
Nevertheless, a few users had posted elsewhere some other reasons why. The say it has to do with security and Windows 10 updates. Ransomware was mentioned.
MS is making CSO, Edge is just like Windows 10, in that the only way Microsoft can get mass ADOPTION is to force it onto people whether they want it or not.

Every week I see more reasons to be glad I separated from Windows years ago.Quote

Every week I see more reasons to be glad I separated from Windows years ago.

If able to go without Windows thats great and all, but for gamers where Microsoft owns the rights to DirectX and no Open Source has made a DirectX module to tap into the power of DirectX, many games just dont perform as well with OpenGL.

I tried to do without Windows years ago and figured I will always have to have my gaming systems Windows based vs trying to completely sever ties with Microsoft's products.

As car as Chrome used for the core of the new Edge browser though just read about this now and its interesting. I was hoping over the years that Microsoft was going to sort of copy Apple and use Linux as the core of its OS. Because this then might open up DirectX being available for Linux builds other than the Microsoft build origin of it. Quote from: DaveLembke on February 01, 2019, 05:38:15 AM

If able to go without Windows thats great and all, but for gamers where Microsoft owns the rights to DirectX and no Open Source has made a DirectX module to tap into the power of DirectX, many games just dont perform as well with OpenGL.

On Linux you need to install the proprietary Graphics DRIVER, otherwise OpenGL will usually run through MESA, a software renderer, which will have worse performance by design.

Currently WINE implements DirectX 9.0c, and most games using DirectX can be made to run on Linux.

Otherwise, Linux has OpenGL and Vulkan- again, with the proper drivers. You can't just clean install Ubuntu or Mint or whatever and then try running games.

EDIT: there is apparently work on DX10 and DX11 as well, here.

Quote

I was hoping over the years that Microsoft was going to sort of copy Apple and use Linux as the core of its OS.

Apple never used Linux as the core of their OS. OS X is a certified UNIX operating System (except the latest release, for some reason) and the kernel was built based off of nextSTEP which itself used parts of BSD UNIX and Mach. Everything on top of it, however, was proprietary- You can't install the OS X Desktop Environment elsewhere, for example.

Recently the funniest thing I saw about this Edge thing was an MS Engineer actually "calling out" Mozilla:

"Thought: It’s time for @mozilla to get down from their philosophical ivory tower. The web is dominated by Chromium, if they really *cared* about the web they would be contributing instead of building a parallel universe that’s used by less than 5%?"

Talk about a lack of perspective. Mozilla- the only browser developer that has a clear commitment to an open web- is apparently the enemy of the open web for basically not *allowing* Chromium and Google to completely dominate and dictate the web?

Thanks for the info on DirectX for Linux BC. The last time I tried gaming with Linux was on Mint 13 and I used WINE and the drivers at the time only supported OpenGL making for a frame rate of like 13fps which was PRETTY bad. Whereas the same system dual boot to Windows got 60fps for the same game because it was able to use DirectX vs OpenGL.

Also thanks for the correction to the Apple Linux mix up which was Unix. When I read about Apple and BSD, I wasn't aware that Unix had a BSD, I was only aware of FreeBSD so that's where I went wrong with that assumption that they snagged a Linux build to shape for themselves in OS X. Edge wasnt actually that bad, it works a LOT better than IE at least.For those of you who've tried the new chrome-powered Microsoft Edge, how do you like it so far vs just using regular Google Chrome?2x3i5x,
Where can I get it?Quote from: Geek-9pm on September 07, 2019, 05:05:55 PM

Where can I get it?

https://www.microsoftedgeinsider.com/en-us/

Discussion

2060.	Solve : Nvidia models the Apollo 11?
Answer» You may enjoys this. https://www.pcworld.com/article/3410318/nvidia-models-the-apollo-11-moon-landing-using-rtx-technology.html Quote In time for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing, Nvidia has RECREATED the moment using its RTX ray tracing technnology. Technically, the company recreated the moment five years ago, when Nvidia calculated the visual aspects of the landing, modelling the individual rivets on the lander and modelling the REFLECTIVITY of Neil Armstrong's spacesuit and the lunar dust. Nvidia took that model and applied its RTX technology, modeling light as it BOUNCED off the lunar surface, Armstong's helmet, and various other visual elements. Looks GOOD.

2060.

Solve : Nvidia models the Apollo 11?

Answer»

You may enjoys this.
https://www.pcworld.com/article/3410318/nvidia-models-the-apollo-11-moon-landing-using-rtx-technology.html
Quote

In time for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing, Nvidia has RECREATED the moment using its RTX ray tracing technnology.

Technically, the company recreated the moment five years ago, when Nvidia calculated the visual aspects of the landing, modelling the individual rivets on the lander and modelling the REFLECTIVITY of Neil Armstrong's spacesuit and the lunar dust. Nvidia took that model and applied its RTX technology, modeling light as it BOUNCED off the lunar surface, Armstong's helmet, and various other visual elements.

Looks GOOD.

Discussion

2061.	Solve : Chinese firm has Android OS replacement.?
Answer» Here is a REPORT tom Wall street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/huawei-unveils-android-backup-but-prefers-not-to-use-it-11565346923 Quote By Dan Strumpf Updated Aug. 9, 2019 8:00 am ET DONGGUAN, China—Huawei Technologies Co. offered the first details about the operating system designed to replace Google’s Android on its smartphones, as the Chinese technology giant races to develop backups to American technology following its U.S. blacklisting. Huawei’s new operating system, called HarmonyOS, is intended to run on all of Huawei’s consumer gadgets, including its hugely popular smartphones, which run Android and have taken a sales hit overseas since its May blacklisting, said Richard Yu, the head of Huawei’s consumer-device business. Huawei prefers to continue using Android, the world’s most popular smartphone operating system, on the company’s smartphones, Mr. Yu said. But Huawei could switch its handsets to HarmonyOS “in just one or two days” if it had to. This might have wide impact on the smartphone and Personal Computer industry. From Washington Post: Quote The Trump administration says BEIJING’s efforts are based on stealing or pressuring companies to hand over technology. Washington and other trading PARTNERS say the Chinese campaign violates its free-trade obligations. Washington has labeled Huawei a security threat, an accusation the company denies. Some officials also see the rise of Huawei and other Chinese tech competitors as a potential threat to U.S. industrial leadership. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/huawei-unveils-phone-system-that-could-replace-android/2019/08/09/d1e6acd0-ba83-11e9-8e83-4e6687e99814_story.html?noredirect=on Comments ?I don't see this affecting the PC market as they aren't launching an OS that replaces x86 or X64 system OS's As far as OS that can replace the Android OS, I am more curious if they reverse engineered Android and copied it as their own or if they went the Linux approach to an ARM OS and have a cleanly coded OS that doesn't have remnants of Android OS at its core.HarmonyOS does not target Smartphones. It is currently intended for devices like Televisions, and they might bring it over to their smartphones over the next 3 years. They claim it will be Open Source, so if that is true then that seems like it could be good- Open Source Forks could be useful.Cool... Open Source also means that the code is exposed for what it is too, so maybe LESS likely for a rogue OS to worry about.

2061.

Solve : Chinese firm has Android OS replacement.?

Answer»

Here is a REPORT tom Wall street Journal.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/huawei-unveils-android-backup-but-prefers-not-to-use-it-11565346923
Quote

By Dan Strumpf
Updated Aug. 9, 2019 8:00 am ET

DONGGUAN, China—Huawei Technologies Co. offered the first details about the operating system designed to replace Google’s Android on its smartphones, as the Chinese technology giant races to develop backups to American technology following its U.S. blacklisting.

Huawei’s new operating system, called HarmonyOS, is intended to run on all of Huawei’s consumer gadgets, including its hugely popular smartphones, which run Android and have taken a sales hit overseas since its May blacklisting, said Richard Yu, the head of Huawei’s consumer-device business.

Huawei prefers to continue using Android, the world’s most popular smartphone operating system, on the company’s smartphones, Mr. Yu said. But Huawei could switch its handsets to HarmonyOS “in just one or two days” if it had to.

This might have wide impact on the smartphone and Personal Computer industry.

From Washington Post:
Quote

The Trump administration says BEIJING’s efforts are based on stealing or pressuring companies to hand over technology. Washington and other trading PARTNERS say the Chinese campaign violates its free-trade obligations.

Washington has labeled Huawei a security threat, an accusation the company denies. Some officials also see the rise of Huawei and other Chinese tech competitors as a potential threat to U.S. industrial leadership.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/huawei-unveils-phone-system-that-could-replace-android/2019/08/09/d1e6acd0-ba83-11e9-8e83-4e6687e99814_story.html?noredirect=on

Comments ?I don't see this affecting the PC market as they aren't launching an OS that replaces x86 or X64 system OS's

As far as OS that can replace the Android OS, I am more curious if they reverse engineered Android and copied it as their own or if they went the Linux approach to an ARM OS and have a cleanly coded OS that doesn't have remnants of Android OS at its core.HarmonyOS does not target Smartphones. It is currently intended for devices like Televisions, and they might bring it over to their smartphones over the next 3 years.

They claim it will be Open Source, so if that is true then that seems like it could be good- Open Source Forks could be useful.Cool... Open Source also means that the code is exposed for what it is too, so maybe LESS likely for a rogue OS to worry about.

Discussion

2062.	Solve : What M.2 type SSD should I buy??
Answer» Hi there, My CURRENT laptop model/name - ASUS Rog GL702VT If my research is correct this laptop has NVME PCLE SSD slot. I am looking to buy M.2. type SSD. My question is, what brand (Samsung, Kingston, etc.) should I get? Also, I am not sure if I should take out current HDD (which is slow) and use it as an external drive only. What are your suggestions? Regards, Ethe worldwide telecom industry has seen persistent change. From the early broadcast and voice correspondence frameworks to over-the-top (OTT) content, the industry has developed, changed and propelled something other than about some other sort of business. Telecom organizations should now convey consistent, ASTOUNDING voice transmissions, mixed media administrations and rapid information moves in multi-gadget and portable situations. Customarily, telcom's have rushed to respond to NEW improvements and innovative advances, for example, the web and cellphones. In any case, they appear to flounder, particularly in the region of income age, with their most recent test — OTT content suppliers. I know there are various executables that need constant checking of network/internet. And I don't mind, as long as it doesn't have a noticeable impact on the system's performance. But this one does I just got this PC about a month ago, it's an Acer Nitro 50n-600 (i7 8700, 16 Gb Ram, Nvidia GTX 1060 6Gb, Win10 Pro). Sure it's not one of the best, but it's not too shabby either, and it's got what I need. But now thanks to this issue, every program I use has to do a pause on whatever the program is doing just so that annoying process gets done, which takes about 3 to 4 seconds. I know it doesn't sound long, but you can notice it for sure. Especially when I'm playing Left 4 Dead 2, boy! Is it annoying!!! When the pause is over, I am a few meters away from where I was before. Or dead. What could this be? Are there any log files I should check? Thanks guys! (I hope this is not the 2nd time I post this) I know there are various executables that need constant checking of network/internet. And I don't mind, as long as it doesn't have a noticeable impact on the system's performance. But this one does I just got this pc about a month ago, it's an Acer Nitro 50n-600 (i7 8700, 16 Gb Ram, Nvidia GTX 1060 6Gb, Win10 Pro). Sure it's not one of the best, but it's not too shabby either, and it's got what I need. But now thanks to this issue, every program I use has to do a pause on whatever the program is doing just so that annoying process gets done, which takes about 3 to 4 seconds. I know it doesn't sound long, but you can notice it for sure. Especially when I'm playing Left 4 Dead 2, boy! Is it annoying!!! When the pause is over, I am a few meters away from where I was before. Or dead. What could this be? Are there any log files I should check? Thanks guys!I know there are various executables that need constant checking of network/internet. And I don't mind, as long as it doesn't have a noticeable impact on the system's performance. But this one does I just got this pc about a month ago, it's an Acer Nitro 50n-600 (i7 8700, 16 Gb Ram, Nvidia GTX 1060 6Gb, Win10 Pro). Sure it's not one of the best, but it's not too shabby either, and it's got what I need. But now thanks to this issue, every program I use has to do a pause on whatever the program is doing just so that annoying process gets done, which takes about 3 to 4 seconds. I know it doesn't sound long, but you can notice it for sure. Especially when I'm playing Left 4 Dead 2, boy! Is it annoying!!! When the pause is over, I am a few meters away from where I was before. Or dead. What could this be? Are there any log files I should check? Thanks guys!I am unable to type in new TAB for 1-2 seconds when a new tab is opened in a Chrome incognito mode window. Chrome version: 73.0.3683.103. I am unable to type in new tab for 1-2 seconds when a new tab is opened in a Chrome incognito mode window. Chrome version: 73.0.3683.103.Hello, We have legacy dyno controllers to which we connect, using DOS 4.00.1111 (under Win95) The connection on the pc "programmer" end is to the 25-pin parallel port, and on the target controller end, to a DB9 connector ... Presumably, this is serial communication ... Once the hardware connection is in place, we use the MS-DOS prompt (ver = Windows 95. [Version 4.00.1111] We then change to a specific directory using the CD command. Once in the right directory, we use the "setenv" command to set that directory as the source environment ... Then we type a more specific command ... which is ... "iboots dbase3" I think this loads a text database file to the controller ... At this point two-way communication should be in place such that the controller recieves the dbase3 configuration "file" Our programming pc's have gotten old (also legacy.) I have loaded a new-old-stock computer with Win95 and the corresponding DOS 4.00.1111 version to recreate the necessary platform. However, the parallel port does not seem to function. Once I type the "iboots dbase3" command I am kicked out of DOS - that is, DOS simply closes itself out. When I repeat the sequence, the same result recurs ... I wonder if I need to "initialize the LPT for ( serial ? ) communication ? I am playing around with the DOS MODE command in the autoexec.bat file. No luck so far ... Does anyone have any ideas ? This is a test for topic solved testing without topic solvedtesttest 14test 15test 16Locked instead...

Discussion

2063.	Solve : Microsoft Surface Pen will replace a mouse??
Answer» Would you want to? Replace your mouse with a pen? Is the pen mightier than the mouse? You can Google it or read this: Surface Pen with touch control Quote A patent filing by Microsoft reveals plans for a Surface Pen with a touch-sensitive retention clip. The clip will also enable a power-saving mode that could extend the battery life of the stylus. Patent applications are not an indicator of a product coming to market, so Microsoft Surface users are cautioned not to get too excited. It is not going to happen. The idea is not new at all. How can you patent a pen? Only graphic artists could benefit of a pen vs mouse and they already have that option for free handing artwork digitally. For gaming ETC I cant see going to a pen which would be almost going backwards to a joystick feel.The Surface Pro is a tablet/LAPTOP. There is no "Mouse" to replace...Quote from: BC_Programmer on February 18, 2018, 10:25:15 AM The Surface Pro is a tablet/laptop. There is no "Mouse" to replace... Somebody thought the Subsurface Pro should have a mouse . The touch screen does not have enough actuary when you use a big finger. The solution is to use your little finger instead. Another Geek non-relevant Topic... And no...it ain't gonna happen.I have 2 MS Surfaces (1 personal, 1 for work). For both, 90% of the time I use them with a mouse, about 8% of the time I use the touch screen and about 2% of the time I use the built-in touchpad. I can't even remember the last time I used the pen with either so, nope, the pen isn't going to replace my mouse anytime soon. Pen is a step backward, as a graphic tablet owner I only use it for my job. Mouse is superior otherwise :/Doubt it... I have an MS Surface Book, but never use the stylus That pen is no fun for me. Often looses connectivity. And if you break it it isn't cheap to replace. I do not even own a laptop and other than helping people on the go I really do not have any use for one. I heart my desktop PC.I largely use the pen as my pointing device, despite having both the type cover and arc mouse. It feels natural to me, using it in conjunction with my finger. It is especially helpful with selecting smaller UI elements. For some reason though, double-clicking is much more DIFFICULT than I think it should be. I end up using my finger for that instead.Using a pen might SUITABLE for just a group of people. I'm not sure if it is an ideal way to go by. I am a blogger with different websites and feel comfortable using the mouse.You will find using a mouse more comfortable than a pen.I have removed the SPAM link from your Sig... patio.

2063.

Solve : Microsoft Surface Pen will replace a mouse??

Answer»

Would you want to?
Replace your mouse with a pen?
Is the pen mightier than the mouse?
You can Google it or read this:
Surface Pen with touch control
Quote

A patent filing by Microsoft reveals plans for a Surface Pen with a touch-sensitive retention clip. The clip will also enable a power-saving mode that could extend the battery life of the stylus.
Patent applications are not an indicator of a product coming to market, so Microsoft Surface users are cautioned not to get too excited.

It is not going to happen.
The idea is not new at all. How can you patent a pen?

Only graphic artists could benefit of a pen vs mouse and they already have that option for free handing artwork digitally.

For gaming ETC I cant see going to a pen which would be almost going backwards to a joystick feel.The Surface Pro is a tablet/LAPTOP. There is no "Mouse" to replace...Quote from: BC_Programmer on February 18, 2018, 10:25:15 AM

The Surface Pro is a tablet/laptop. There is no "Mouse" to replace...

Somebody thought the Subsurface Pro should have a mouse .
The touch screen does not have enough actuary when you use a big finger.
The solution is to use your little finger instead.
Another Geek non-relevant Topic...

And no...it ain't gonna happen.I have 2 MS Surfaces (1 personal, 1 for work). For both, 90% of the time I use them with a mouse, about 8% of the time I use the touch screen and about 2% of the time I use the built-in touchpad. I can't even remember the last time I used the pen with either so, nope, the pen isn't going to replace my mouse anytime soon. Pen is a step backward, as a graphic tablet owner I only use it for my job. Mouse is superior otherwise :/Doubt it... I have an MS Surface Book, but never use the stylus That pen is no fun for me. Often looses connectivity. And if you break it it isn't cheap to replace. I do not even own a laptop and other than helping people on the go I really do not have any use for one. I heart my desktop PC.I largely use the pen as my pointing device, despite having both the type cover and arc mouse. It feels natural to me, using it in conjunction with my finger. It is especially helpful with selecting smaller UI elements.

For some reason though, double-clicking is much more DIFFICULT than I think it should be. I end up using my finger for that instead.Using a pen might SUITABLE for just a group of people. I'm not sure if it is an ideal way to go by. I am a blogger with different websites and feel comfortable using the mouse.You will find using a mouse more comfortable than a pen.I have removed the SPAM link from your Sig...

patio.

Discussion

2064.	Solve : Windows 7 - first look?
Answer» I've been using Windows 7 pre-beta for a few days, and created a little review, which keeps growing, time permitting. You can see it here: http://www.smartestcomputing.us.com/index.php?showtopic=34382&st=0 P. S. patio wants to see my reply #28. I hope, I'm not mistaken It kind of looks like windows 95 but with the new Vista startbutton.....Taskbar looks ugly.... Quote from: !~.:Pink Floyd:.~! on December 11, 2008, 04:08:12 PM It kind of looks like windows 95 but with the new Vista startbutton. not even close.Beautiful.Ah, those were the days...OMG... you can get "The Internet"! what an awesome program!hey wait a SECOND... that doesn't look right... I don't recall windows 3.1 supporting label shadows; and it used the system font for all the window titles, not Tahoma for program manager and courier new for group windows. I'd provide a screenie myself, but I encountered some issues with pbrush; I might do it in the morning but I'm too short on time now.Wow, that looks so great and the taskbar its-- Darn, I can't fake it. That is a very horrible and nauseating design in my opinion. I mean do they REALLY have to make the taskbar 50x bigger with every release? In XP the title bar is almost the size of the taskbar. What if they do the same in Windows 7? Same goes for the Control Panel. It's like a modern washing machine with 15 different functions when all I want you want to do is WASH YOUR !#%@$^ CLOTHES!!! And face it, do we NEED every gradient, shadow and such to entertain our eyes? What's in Windows 7 that's not in XP and that we need? One more OS, one more font to slow down our boot speeds. Windows Defender, Windows Firewall on every system. To me, it's kinda like Vista with more links, more icons and again, more eye candy. There is one thing I like though, and that's the new WordPad interface. Thumbs up to Microsoft on that one. Windows XP, Windows 98 and Vista FTMFW! Apologies if this offended you.No offense. I didn't created it One correction, though The huge taskbar is caused by default setting to use LARGE icons. Why large icons are default, beats me. After switching to small icons, all looks normal. I edited the initial post at my board...Err umm this is kind of Off topic but what is Network Neighborhood?See why cant they make a nice simple Design like OSX? Nice and simple and probly works with any Wallpaper. (as in looks good)That's windows. you're running with a skin. aside from other proof (the display dialog, etc) I doubt "Windows media player" is available on OS X. and I'm not sure what you mean by "simple design", since half of what is resident in your screenshot and the skin in particular is just a skin on the same old windows. heh.

2064.

Solve : Windows 7 - first look?

Answer»

I've been using Windows 7 pre-beta for a few days, and created a little review, which keeps growing, time permitting.
You can see it here: http://www.smartestcomputing.us.com/index.php?showtopic=34382&st=0

P. S. patio wants to see my reply #28. I hope, I'm not mistaken It kind of looks like windows 95 but with the new Vista startbutton.....Taskbar looks ugly....

Quote from: !*~.:Pink Floyd:.~*! on December 11, 2008, 04:08:12 PM

It kind of looks like windows 95 but with the new Vista startbutton.

not even close.Beautiful.Ah, those were the days...OMG... you can get "The Internet"! what an awesome program!hey wait a SECOND... that doesn't look right... I don't recall windows 3.1 supporting label shadows; and it used the system font for all the window titles, not Tahoma for program manager and courier new for group windows.

I'd provide a screenie myself, but I encountered some issues with pbrush; I might do it in the morning but I'm too short on time now.Wow, that looks so great and the taskbar its--

Darn, I can't fake it.

That is a very horrible and nauseating design in my opinion.

I mean do they REALLY have to make the taskbar 50x bigger with every release? In XP the title bar is almost the size of the taskbar. What if they do the same in Windows 7?

Same goes for the Control Panel. It's like a modern washing machine with 15 different functions when all I want you want to do is WASH YOUR !#%*@$^* CLOTHES!!! And face it, do we NEED every gradient, shadow and such to entertain our eyes? What's in Windows 7 that's not in XP and that we need?

One more OS, one more font to slow down our boot speeds.

Windows Defender, Windows Firewall on every system.

To me, it's kinda like Vista with more links, more icons and again, more eye candy.

There is one thing I like though, and that's the new WordPad interface. Thumbs up to Microsoft on that one.

Windows XP, Windows 98 and Vista FTMFW!

Apologies if this offended you.No offense. I didn't created it

One correction, though
The huge taskbar is caused by default setting to use LARGE icons. Why large icons are default, beats me.
After switching to small icons, all looks normal.

I edited the initial post at my board...Err umm this is kind of Off topic but what is Network Neighborhood?See why cant they make a nice simple Design like OSX?

Nice and simple and probly works with any Wallpaper. (as in looks good)That's windows.

you're running with a skin.

aside from other proof (the display dialog, etc) I doubt "Windows media player" is available on OS X.

and I'm not sure what you mean by "simple design", since half of what is resident in your screenshot and the skin in particular is just a skin on the same old windows.

heh.

Discussion

2065.	Solve : Rented computers secretly photographed users having sex?
Answer» Rented computers from seven different companies secretly took photographs of their users, US authorities have said. The companies used software made by US company Designerware which could track key strokes and other personal data. The software, called PC Rental Agent, captured people engaging in "intimate acts", including sex. The settlement means the companies are banned from using the software which invaded the users' privacy. However, some software - such as location tracking - could still be used as long as the companies involved made it explicitly clear to the users. It is believed that PC Rental Agent has been installed in approximately 420,000 computers worldwide. Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19726954Can't say I wouldn't have done the same. I find it interesting that so many people apparently perform sex acts in front of their COMPUTER, especially one that they're renting. I'm more of the paranoid type and I usually assume someone is watching if I'm out of my element.Quote from: CBMatt on September 28, 2012, 01:01:53 AM Can't say I wouldn't have done the same. I find it interesting that so many people apparently perform sex acts in front of their computer, especially one that they're renting. I'm more of the paranoid type and I usually assume someone is watching if I'm out of my element. Honestly, that's sick. I wish there was more of a sense of responsibility among those who are good with technology. Voyeurism is a huge problem in our industry and most computer shops from a-z will pile through somebody's files (especially if they see them as attractive). At many computer repair shops, finding dirt on their clients is like a sport. Unfortunately in our industry, there is such a lax sense of ethics that we see these kinds of stories all the time. Nobody holds each other accountable, many of these same shops that end up in these investigations continue to stay open. It should be the responsibility of everybody in the business to shame sickos like this into bankruptcy.Quote from: ninjatex on September 30, 2012, 02:46:42 AM most computer shops from a-z will pile through somebody's files (especially if they see them as attractive). At many computer repair shops, finding dirt on their clients is like a sport. It can be a good thing: the British former pop star Paul Gadd (stage name "Gary Glitter") was prosecuted after staff at PC World found indecent images of children on a laptop he had returned to them for repair. If this had not happened he would have remained undetected as a dangerous paedophile, as he turned out to be. So the police should just raid people's houses at random and postal workers should go through people's mail just to check nothing dodgy is going on there? Privacy is an integral part of having a free society. You'd probably have to go through thousands of people's files before happening on kiddy porn. Most child pornography viewers and producers get caught on their own without the assistance of a computer tech. It's one thing to happen across child porn and report it to authorities, it's a completely different thing to systematically go through people's files and then go "Oh HEY, look, see I'm actually the good guy here because even though I might have been looking at my previous client's tax forms and censored vacation pics, I just might have happened upon evidence of a crime this one time". SAYING there's a benefit to flagrantly and continually violating people's privacy is like saying, "look, I know robbing your house may have not been the nicest thing to do but I mean, what would happen if I hadn't told you about the poor pipe installation I found? I mean, you would have had a catastrophic leak!" Looks like this is a bigger operation by the FTC then just cracking down on "rouge" rental suppliers. FTC Cracks Down on Fake Tech Support Websites Quote The scam was simple: Five of the six scammers used telemarketing calls while the sixth used Google ads to draw in unsuspecting customers - often by telling them they worked for legitimate firms like Dell, Microsoft, or McAfee. Google is going to have it's own law force before long. You know they are helping the FTC in a major way. Who else could? Maybe something like The White House Police Force? They have access and control over some very sensitive data... why not? (I'm not sure if that is sarcasm or not )Quote from: ninjatex on September 30, 2012, 10:12:57 PM So the police should just raid people's houses at random and postal workers should go through people's mail just to check nothing dodgy is going on there? This is a strawman argument and you know it. Nobody ever said this. Quote Privacy is an integral part of having a free society. You'd probably have to go through thousands of people's files before happening on kiddy porn. There are two things here. First, there is the fact that the way some of those people store files there is absolutely no need to snoop; sometimes they are sitting, right there on the desktop. I agree that there is an ethical obligation to a persons privacy when you are fixing their machine, but a responsible tech is going to be sifting through files anyway- either they will appear in various logs during a SCAN, or they will show up in various directories. I know people who "hide" files in C:\windows\System32 because they don't think anybody would look there for their private things. So at that point the question is that if a person or tech finds illegal material in this manner, do they have an obligation to essentially conspire with the perpetrator in the interest of their privacy, or do they have an obligation to report the offense in the interest of society. In my opinion the question essentially answers itself. It's akin to a person being hired to clean a bathtub having to "respect" a clients privacy when they have to clean lye and blood stains off of a bathtub. While the skilled perpetrators of murders will know to either clean the mess up themselves, so too do the major-league perpetrators of Internet crime know how to clean up their own messes. By that account the only kind of crimes that will be found by techs on peoples computers are going to be from the stupid ones. I'm not of course arguing that they should be looking around on a computer with the specific purpose of snooping. In fact that is quite reprehensible, since they have a job to do, and more importantly the mickey mouse operations that do this usually just reformat and reinstall windows anyway so they wouldn't be encountering files "by accident" anyway. In this case, however, we have a rented computer- for all we know, the rental agreement of the computer has information that indicates that all activity will be tracked. It might not say how or when, but if that is in there than it would be downright stupid to do what was indicates. Arguably it's stupid to do that in front of a computer anyway because.. well actually I'm surprised I feel compelled to even think up a reason here. Quote Most child pornography viewers and producers get caught on their own without the assistance of a computer tech. Probably true, but not much of a counterargument. That would be like saying that Most terrorists don't get caught at border crossings, and using that as evidence that the borders of a country should be completely open and unchecked. (But how then would we Canadians keep our moose pelts from crossing South of the Border?) Quote Saying there's a benefit to flagrantly and continually violating people's privacy is like saying, "look, I know robbing your house may have not been the nicest thing to do but I mean, what would happen if I hadn't told you about the poor pipe installation I found? I mean, you would have had a catastrophic leak!" This is not what I think to be an accurate analogy. An analogy would be more akin to a Tenant telling a landlord about a problem, and the landlord comes to fix it while they are away, and then the landlord goes through their stuff and stumbles upon something illegal. The fact is that nothing has really changed. There are people that are going to snoop through other peoples stuff given the opportunity and the high probability of not getting caught doing so. Arguing that because this is present with Computers that the entire domestic scene has suddenly changed to one that embraces voyeur attitudes is to exercise one's skills in hyperbole. Of course it is morally wrong, but I would argue that it is even more morally wrong to find something while doing that and not report it. When you don't hear about these sorts of things, it doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. I once caught a landlord randomly coming into my house when I was supposed to be away; what was he going to do? had he done it before? I had no idea. Of course in that situation, I feel it's a bit different from that of a computer tech; techs are given consent to use a person's computer and unless the operation is going to be a quick wipe and reformat some "snooping" into the system is going to be needed, as I mentioned. Of course people going through tax forms or tantalizingly named images are hardly good citizens, but the fact is that most of these occurences are probably found because the person storing the illegal data gave it a obvious name. I can imagine DOCUMENTS like "illegal secret cayman islands account information.doc" or "naked 7yr old and a goat.jpg" and I find it hard to believe that seeing what those files are out of a greater concern for society constitutes a breach of privacy.how can I put this kindly there should be no fighting over this, as it seems if your going to be doing something not legal on a computer system these days, unless it is your own (not saying do it) you have no right to pravicy. The people that own the system have the rights to look at the systems, but it does not take a computer tech to know things are messed up. It comes down to is this a problem that you see going keep happening if you don't report it and to think that you will never get cought well that is the problem. You don't always have to look for something to find something, my point being it is not legal and it is also not their system and my veiew is if they gave me censent to fix their computer if they feel not ok with the idea they can tell me to stop, but I might not be able to fix problem. Even techs through ms do that but if you don't own your system you sign an agreement and the laws state that the ower of the pc has the rights to do things to the system not the renters. If you don't want to have problems don't do it in the first place. what does this have to do with fixing computers or helping others besides starting a debate, sounds like we just want a drama thread and no us in this just my thoughts. I don't think there's anything wrong with a debate -- these are important questions for anybody who works in or is going to be working in tech. I'd much rather people in our industry have this conversation than not. I'm sorry if my point came across unclearly -- I'm not saying that we should turn a blind eye if we come across something that shows somebody committing a heinous crime like distributing child porn or cleaning blood out of a bathtub. I don't think many people outside of perhaps pedophiles would argue that we should. Obviously if we find kiddy porn we should report it, that's an open and shut case. There's a big difference between happening upon some child porn in the normal course of a repair and finding it while going through people's files to find naked pictures, credit card numbers, or anything else you might want. If you happen to be crossing that ethical boundary anyways and you find child porn should you report it? Absolutely, but it shouldn't get the tech off the hook for digging through somebody's files -- they should have to explain in a similar manner to any other citizen reporting a crime why and how they came across the evidence. Think of it this way, if you broke into somebody's house and reported evidence of a crime you discovered while committing burglary, you're still committing burglary. The only reason somebody should get off for that is if they can pull together a really compelling story showing they had good reason to believe they would find the evidence there and that's got to be a high threshold (similar to the necessity defense).Quote from: ninjatex on October 04, 2012, 01:13:27 AM There's a big difference between happening upon some child porn in the normal course of a repair and finding it while going through people's files to find naked pictures, credit card numbers, or anything else you might want. If you happen to be crossing that ethical boundary anyways and you find child porn should you report it? Absolutely, but it shouldn't get the tech off the hook for digging through somebody's files -- they should have to explain in a similar manner to any other citizen reporting a crime why and how they came across the evidence. Bold part I think is important. I would consider those that do snoop and end up reporting the bad stuff they find being a minority of those who snoop; I imagine a lot of those who do might actually find "bad stuff" but pretend they didn't, and nobody finds out- because if they were to report it it would require admission that they were in fact snooping outside the scope of the task they were supposed to be doing. Those that do report it are more moral; snooping through other things, IMO, is far less reprehensible than abusing children, and those people recognize that; more to the point, two wrongs (the perpetrator's actions plus those of a supposed tech becoming co-conspirator in a sense by not reporting it) don't make a right, either. I think a good point to come away from this is never to think of morality as black and white; it's only shades of grey. Quote Think of it this way, if you broke into somebody's house and reported evidence of a crime you discovered while committing burglary, you're still committing burglary. I don't feel it's the same. First off, what the techs are doing is not illegal at all. That's sort of the important thing to remember; there is nothing illegal about the techs looking through a computer they have in their charge any more than it would be illegal for your wife/husband to do so, or for a friend to do so, etcetera- but it isn't. The closest thing would be if they broke into the house, in which case they would be guilty of breaking and entering, but there is no crime for rifling through another persons things; the results from such a action are purely between the riffler and the person being... uh.. rlffled, assuming the latter even discovers the action in the first place. Quote The only reason somebody should get off for that is if they can pull together a really compelling story showing they had good reason to believe they would find the evidence there and that's got to be a high threshold (similar to the necessity defense). Thing is, as noted above, in those sorts of places, you've basically got two types of techs. Those that snoop through other peoples things and are willing to fess up and admit they did so when they find something illegal, and those that snoop through other peoples things and never say a word about it no matter what they find. There is an arguable minority that don't look through the files on a computer but these are a significant minority, especially at big box stores. Sometimes even the managers or owners get involved in it, too. Anyway, my point is that the people that report what they find if they find something illegal are less of a worry than the ones that don't. and the only people "getting away" with anything IMO are the ones that refuse to report when they find illegal things and just pretend everything is fine to cover their own censored.

2065.

Solve : Rented computers secretly photographed users having sex?

Answer»

Rented computers from seven different companies secretly took photographs of their users, US authorities have said.

The companies used software made by US company Designerware which could track key strokes and other personal data.

The software, called PC Rental Agent, captured people engaging in "intimate acts", including sex.

The settlement means the companies are banned from using the software which invaded the users' privacy.

However, some software - such as location tracking - could still be used as long as the companies involved made it explicitly clear to the users.

It is believed that PC Rental Agent has been installed in approximately 420,000 computers worldwide.

Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19726954Can't say I wouldn't have done the same. I find it interesting that so many people apparently perform sex acts in front of their COMPUTER, especially one that they're renting. I'm more of the paranoid type and I usually assume someone is watching if I'm out of my element.Quote from: CBMatt on September 28, 2012, 01:01:53 AM

Can't say I wouldn't have done the same. I find it interesting that so many people apparently perform sex acts in front of their computer, especially one that they're renting. I'm more of the paranoid type and I usually assume someone is watching if I'm out of my element.

Honestly, that's sick. I wish there was more of a sense of responsibility among those who are good with technology. Voyeurism is a huge problem in our industry and most computer shops from a-z will pile through somebody's files (especially if they see them as attractive). At many computer repair shops, finding dirt on their clients is like a sport.

Unfortunately in our industry, there is such a lax sense of ethics that we see these kinds of stories all the time. Nobody holds each other accountable, many of these same shops that end up in these investigations continue to stay open. It should be the responsibility of everybody in the business to shame sickos like this into bankruptcy.Quote from: ninjatex on September 30, 2012, 02:46:42 AM

most computer shops from a-z will pile through somebody's files (especially if they see them as attractive). At many computer repair shops, finding dirt on their clients is like a sport.

It can be a good thing: the British former pop star Paul Gadd (stage name "Gary Glitter") was prosecuted after staff at PC World found indecent images of children on a laptop he had returned to them for repair. If this had not happened he would have remained undetected as a dangerous paedophile, as he turned out to be.
So the police should just raid people's houses at random and postal workers should go through people's mail just to check nothing dodgy is going on there? Privacy is an integral part of having a free society. You'd probably have to go through thousands of people's files before happening on kiddy porn. Most child pornography viewers and producers get caught on their own without the assistance of a computer tech. It's one thing to happen across child porn and report it to authorities, it's a completely different thing to systematically go through people's files and then go "Oh HEY, look, see I'm actually the good guy here because even though I might have been looking at my previous client's tax forms and *censored* vacation pics, I just might have happened upon evidence of a crime this one time".

SAYING there's a benefit to flagrantly and continually violating people's privacy is like saying, "look, I know robbing your house may have not been the nicest thing to do but I mean, what would happen if I hadn't told you about the poor pipe installation I found? I mean, you would have had a catastrophic leak!"

Looks like this is a bigger operation by the FTC then just cracking down on "rouge" rental suppliers.

FTC Cracks Down on Fake Tech Support Websites

Quote

The scam was simple: Five of the six scammers used telemarketing calls while the sixth used Google ads to draw in unsuspecting customers - often by telling them they worked for legitimate firms like Dell, Microsoft, or McAfee.

Google is going to have it's own law force before long. You know they are helping the FTC in a major way. Who else could? Maybe something like The White House Police Force? They have access and control over some very sensitive data... why not? (I'm not sure if that is sarcasm or not )Quote from: ninjatex on September 30, 2012, 10:12:57 PM

So the police should just raid people's houses at random and postal workers should go through people's mail just to check nothing dodgy is going on there?

This is a strawman argument and you know it. Nobody ever said this.

Quote

Privacy is an integral part of having a free society. You'd probably have to go through thousands of people's files before happening on kiddy porn.

There are two things here. First, there is the fact that the way some of those people store files there is absolutely no need to snoop; sometimes they are sitting, right there on the desktop. I agree that there is an ethical obligation to a persons privacy when you are fixing their machine, but a responsible tech is going to be sifting through files anyway- either they will appear in various logs during a SCAN, or they will show up in various directories. I know people who "hide" files in C:\windows\System32 because they don't think anybody would look there for their private things. So at that point the question is that if a person or tech finds illegal material in this manner, do they have an obligation to essentially conspire with the perpetrator in the interest of their privacy, or do they have an obligation to report the offense in the interest of society. In my opinion the question essentially answers itself.

It's akin to a person being hired to clean a bathtub having to "respect" a clients privacy when they have to clean lye and blood stains off of a bathtub. While the skilled perpetrators of murders will know to either clean the mess up themselves, so too do the major-league perpetrators of Internet crime know how to clean up their own messes. By that account the only kind of crimes that will be found by techs on peoples computers are going to be from the stupid ones.

I'm not of course arguing that they should be looking around on a computer with the specific purpose of snooping. In fact that is quite reprehensible, since they have a job to do, and more importantly the mickey mouse operations that do this usually just reformat and reinstall windows anyway so they wouldn't be encountering files "by accident" anyway.

In this case, however, we have a rented computer- for all we know, the rental agreement of the computer has information that indicates that all activity will be tracked. It might not say how or when, but if that is in there than it would be downright stupid to do what was indicates. Arguably it's stupid to do that in front of a computer anyway because.. well actually I'm surprised I feel compelled to even think up a reason here.

Quote

Most child pornography viewers and producers get caught on their own without the assistance of a computer tech.

Probably true, but not much of a counterargument. That would be like saying that Most terrorists don't get caught at border crossings, and using that as evidence that the borders of a country should be completely open and unchecked. (But how then would we Canadians keep our moose pelts from crossing South of the Border?)

Quote

Saying there's a benefit to flagrantly and continually violating people's privacy is like saying, "look, I know robbing your house may have not been the nicest thing to do but I mean, what would happen if I hadn't told you about the poor pipe installation I found? I mean, you would have had a catastrophic leak!"

This is not what I think to be an accurate analogy. An analogy would be more akin to a Tenant telling a landlord about a problem, and the landlord comes to fix it while they are away, and then the landlord goes through their stuff and stumbles upon something illegal.

The fact is that nothing has really changed. There are people that are going to snoop through other peoples stuff given the opportunity and the high probability of not getting caught doing so. Arguing that because this is present with Computers that the entire domestic scene has suddenly changed to one that embraces voyeur attitudes is to exercise one's skills in hyperbole. Of course it is morally wrong, but I would argue that it is even more morally wrong to find something while doing that and not report it. When you don't hear about these sorts of things, it doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. I once caught a landlord randomly coming into my house when I was supposed to be away; what was he going to do? had he done it before? I had no idea. Of course in that situation, I feel it's a bit different from that of a computer tech; techs are given consent to use a person's computer and unless the operation is going to be a quick wipe and reformat some "snooping" into the system is going to be needed, as I mentioned. Of course people going through tax forms or tantalizingly named images are hardly good citizens, but the fact is that most of these occurences are probably found because the person storing the illegal data gave it a obvious name. I can imagine DOCUMENTS like "illegal secret cayman islands account information.doc" or "naked 7yr old and a goat.jpg" and I find it hard to believe that seeing what those files are out of a greater concern for society constitutes a breach of privacy.how can I put this kindly there should be no fighting over this, as it seems if your going to be doing something not legal on a computer system these days, unless it is your own (not saying do it) you have no right to pravicy. The people that own the system have the rights to look at the systems, but it does not take a computer tech to know things are messed up. It comes down to is this a problem that you see going keep happening if you don't report it and to think that you will never get cought well that is the problem. You don't always have to look for something to find something, my point being it is not legal and it is also not their system and my veiew is if they gave me censent to fix their computer if they feel not ok with the idea they can tell me to stop, but I might not be able to fix problem. Even techs through ms do that but if you don't own your system you sign an agreement and the laws state that the ower of the pc has the rights to do things to the system not the renters. If you don't want to have problems don't do it in the first place. what does this have to do with fixing computers or helping others besides starting a debate, sounds like we just want a drama thread and no us in this just my thoughts. I don't think there's anything wrong with a debate -- these are important questions for anybody who works in or is going to be working in tech. I'd much rather people in our industry have this conversation than not.

I'm sorry if my point came across unclearly -- I'm not saying that we should turn a blind eye if we come across something that shows somebody committing a heinous crime like distributing child porn or cleaning blood out of a bathtub. I don't think many people outside of perhaps pedophiles would argue that we should. Obviously if we find kiddy porn we should report it, that's an open and shut case.

There's a big difference between happening upon some child porn in the normal course of a repair and finding it while going through people's files to find naked pictures, credit card numbers, or anything else you might want. If you happen to be crossing that ethical boundary anyways and you find child porn should you report it? Absolutely, but it shouldn't get the tech off the hook for digging through somebody's files -- they should have to explain in a similar manner to any other citizen reporting a crime why and how they came across the evidence.

Think of it this way, if you broke into somebody's house and reported evidence of a crime you discovered while committing burglary, you're still committing burglary. The only reason somebody should get off for that is if they can pull together a really compelling story showing they had good reason to believe they would find the evidence there and that's got to be a high threshold (similar to the necessity defense).Quote from: ninjatex on October 04, 2012, 01:13:27 AM

There's a big difference between happening upon some child porn in the normal course of a repair and finding it while going through people's files to find naked pictures, credit card numbers, or anything else you might want. If you happen to be crossing that ethical boundary anyways and you find child porn should you report it? Absolutely, but it shouldn't get the tech off the hook for digging through somebody's files -- they should have to explain in a similar manner to any other citizen reporting a crime why and how they came across the evidence.

Bold part I think is important. I would consider those that do snoop and end up reporting the bad stuff they find being a minority of those who snoop; I imagine a lot of those who do might actually find "bad stuff" but pretend they didn't, and nobody finds out- because if they were to report it it would require admission that they were in fact snooping outside the scope of the task they were supposed to be doing. Those that do report it are more moral; snooping through other things, IMO, is far less reprehensible than abusing children, and those people recognize that; more to the point, two wrongs (the perpetrator's actions plus those of a supposed tech becoming co-conspirator in a sense by not reporting it) don't make a right, either. I think a good point to come away from this is never to think of morality as black and white; it's only shades of grey.

Quote

Think of it this way, if you broke into somebody's house and reported evidence of a crime you discovered while committing burglary, you're still committing burglary.

I don't feel it's the same. First off, what the techs are doing is not illegal at all. That's sort of the important thing to remember; there is nothing illegal about the techs looking through a computer they have in their charge any more than it would be illegal for your wife/husband to do so, or for a friend to do so, etcetera- but it isn't. The closest thing would be if they broke into the house, in which case they would be guilty of breaking and entering, but there is no crime for rifling through another persons things; the results from such a action are purely between the riffler and the person being... uh.. rlffled, assuming the latter even discovers the action in the first place.

Quote

The only reason somebody should get off for that is if they can pull together a really compelling story showing they had good reason to believe they would find the evidence there and that's got to be a high threshold (similar to the necessity defense).

Thing is, as noted above, in those sorts of places, you've basically got two types of techs. Those that snoop through other peoples things and are willing to fess up and admit they did so when they find something illegal, and those that snoop through other peoples things and never say a word about it no matter what they find. There is an arguable minority that don't look through the files on a computer but these are a significant minority, especially at big box stores. Sometimes even the managers or owners get involved in it, too. Anyway, my point is that the people that report what they find if they find something illegal are less of a worry than the ones that don't. and the only people "getting away" with anything IMO are the ones that refuse to report when they find illegal things and just pretend everything is fine to cover their own *censored*.

Discussion

2066.	Solve : Apple apologises for Maps switch 'frustration'?
Answer» Apple's chief executive has penned an apology following a barrage of criticism CAUSED by its switch to a new maps system. Tim Cook acknowledged that users had been FRUSTRATED by the move and repeated a pledge to improve the software. In the meantime he SUGGESTED users download an alternative product from one of its rivals. A link to the letter appears on the firm's home page. Although the company has issued several apologies over recent months, this one is UNUSUAL for its prominence and the fact it was written by Mr Cook himself. Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19760978

Discussion

2067.	Solve : AMD deal brings Android apps to Windows 8?
Answer» Some Windows 8 laptops and PCs could END up running more Android apps than ones written for Microsoft's software. Gadgets built around chips MADE by AMD will come optimised to run the Android apps. A collaboration between AMD and software firm Bluestacks lets the devices run the 500,000 apps more usually FOUND on Android phones. By contrast, Microsoft reportedly only has a few THOUSAND apps written specifically for Windows 8 at launch. The Android apps will be available on Windows 8 devices via AMD's AppZone player. Inside this is code from Bluestacks that acts as a wrapper around the mobile phone programs so they can run on desktops, laptops and tablets. Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19756734

Discussion

2068.	Solve : YouTube under new pressure over anti-Muslim film?
Answer» Saudi Arabia has become the latest state to call on YouTube to block access inside the COUNTRY to anti-Islamic film Innocence of Muslims. The government says it will block access to the entire YouTube website if owners Google do not comply. Google has already rejected a request from the White House to remove the film, but has blocked access to it in Libya, Egypt, Indonesia and India. The FIRM says it is acting in countries where the material is illegal. In an official statement, King Abdullah said the website would be blocked if Google did not AGREE to remove links to the CONTROVERSIAL film. Full story: HTTP://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19648808When an individual or corporation operates in any country of the world they are logically bound by the laws of that country no matter how one feels about that . There often is a tendency to believe that the laws governing ones behavior that exist in ones own country are the same elsewhere. Great grief has been shown to arise when that presumption is made.truenorth

Discussion

2069.	Solve : Sony to sell slimmer PlayStations to help boost sales?
Answer» SONY is LAUNCHING two slimmer versions of its PlayStation 3 console to boost sales of the ageing games machine. One version will FEATURE 12 gigabytes of flash memory, allowing it to become the cheapest PS3 to date. The other has a 500GB HARD disk and will be sold for roughly the price of the previous 320GB model. The PS3 has been outsold by Microsoft's Xbox 360 for 20 months RUNNING in the US - the world's biggest games market, according to data from NPD. Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19646137

Discussion

2070.	Solve : Europe hits old internet address limits?
Answer» Europe has almost EXHAUSTED its stock of old-style INTERNET addresses. Strict rationing of these addresses - called IPv4 - has been STARTED by the body that hands them out in Europe. From now on, COMPANIES can only make one more application for IPv4 addresses and, if successful, will only get 1,024 of them. In addition, any application for more old addresses must demonstrate how an organisation is using the new, replacement, addressing scheme. Full STORY: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19600718

Discussion

2071.	Solve : Giveaway of the Day - Easeus Partition Master Pro 9.1.1?
Answer» 18 hours LEFT to download this. You should get it. Period. What is it? A pro STANDARD partitioning/HD management program that is ALREADY in a position to DEAL with Windows 8. Still unconvinced? Read >here<. Go!Done... THANX for the heads up Rob.

Discussion

2072.	Solve : More trouble in paradise?
Answer» http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/09/13/tech-ap-malware-microsoft.html truenorth

Discussion

2073.	Solve : US court reimposes $220,000 music piracy fine?
Answer» A US court has reimposed a $220,000 (£137,930) FINE on a woman accused of sharing music over the internet. The CASE dates back to 2005, when the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) first accused Jammie Thomas-Rasset of illegally sharing songs on the now defunct SERVICE Kazaa. Various appeals have seen the penalty swing between $54,000 and $1.9m. Ms Thomas-Rasset's lawyer SAID he planned to appeal again in order to take the case to the Supreme Court. It is the second time in a month that the US courts have upheld fines imposed in a file-sharing copyright infringement case. full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19572817I don't condone piracy of any KIND...but the RIAA is ...and has been outta control for many years.

Discussion

2074.	Solve : Microsoft Xbox 3D-projected games outlined in patent?
Answer» Microsoft envisages transforming the players' room into an immersive gaming environment Details of an immersive video games display system that projects images of the title's environment AROUND a player's room have been revealed in a US patent belonging to Microsoft. The Xbox maker DESCRIBES extending GRAPHICS beyond the edges of a TV to "make the experience more realistic". A spokesman said he COULD not comment about when a product might be released. Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19568451

Discussion

2075.	Solve : So far not so good?
Answer» http://www.theinquirer.net/?page=5What article are you REFERRING to?all of msoft.......LONGHORN etc......http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=21975 well i am still waiting for you addy......TIME ticking..oynw cney text.......ROTFLMFAO

Discussion

2076.	Solve : Nice touch?
Answer» The PHANTOM RAM.......&GT;..http://lists.gpick.com/pages/RAM_Disks.htm

Discussion

2077.	Solve : Backup news?
Answer» Hey there! I FOUND this article on PCWORLD, and apparently, they have tested some more BACKUP software, and have the RESULTS for you! See this link for details! http://pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,120555,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2078.	Solve : The Torture Test?
Answer» Hello! I was cruising around PCWorld, when I came a ccress a rather strange post... The Hadrware Torture TEST... This article explains that more durable hardware! Have a LOOK! http://pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,120342,00.asp ... [GLB]Flame[/glb]EXPENSIVE experiments.You could imagine... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2079.	Solve : 10 ways to improve your wireless network?
Answer» Hey! This LINK is from Microsoft, and tells you how to improve your wirless network SIGNAL in 10 ways! This really works! (I've tried ) Have a LOOK! HTTP://www.microsoft.com/athome/moredone/wirelesstips.mspx ... [GLB]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2080.	Solve : Help to conserve your battery!?
Answer» HELLO everyone! I found this link on Microsoft, which gives you some tips about how to help conserve your BATTER power for your mobile devices! Have a LOOK! HTTP://www.microsoft.com/atwork/stayconnected/battery.mspx ... [glb]FLAME[/glb]

Discussion

2081.	Solve : The most advanced trojan??
Answer» Hello... I FOUND this rather disturbing link on PCWorld... It TALKS about the latest TROJAN, and how it is only becoming more advanced... Don't LET yourself be a target! See this link... http://pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120658,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2082.	Solve : Top Ten Audio Players?
Answer» Hey everyone! This link comes from PCWORLD, and shows you the lab/test results for audio players, and which one is the best! Have a look at this link for more information... http://pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,119991,00.asp ... [glb]FLAME[/glb]Interesting.. Heard the Ipod photo sounds like listening to music through a WALL. Depends on the person, what headphones they USE, etc. [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2083.	Solve : Google Desktop Search... At it again??
Answer» Hi there! The word is all over the Net... lol Google has upgraded their smash hit download, Google Desktop Search, and has made not only a better Home VERSION of the program, but has also developed an Enterprise Edition as well! For mroe information, see this link! http://pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120880,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]Thanks for that, Have never used it before but it works REALLY well. Great to HEAR! I had the home version when it first came out, but the only problem was that if you MOVED a document, is was SLOW to figure it out... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2084.	Solve : News on the hottest game consoles?
Answer» Hey! I FIND this LINK on PCWrold, and it has some information about some of the new game CONSOLES that are being RELEASED soon, and what the latest news on them are! Great for the gamers! http://pcworld.com/resource/infocenter/0,ctrid,10,ic,DigitalEntertainment,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2085.	Solve : Free Utilities!?
Answer» Hi there! While surfing around PCWORLD, I stumbled accross a link, which provides YOU with FREE utilities, to help KEEP your COMPUTER RUNNING smoothly, and safe! Have a look! http://pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120306,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2086.	Solve : Is your Wirless Network Secure??
Answer» Hey there! I foud this link on MICROSOFT, and it explains the steps that you NEED to take to secure your home/home office network safe from any attackers... Have a LOOK... HTTP://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/online/homewireless.mspx ... [GLB]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2087.	Solve : A free connection manager for wireless?
Answer» HEY all! I was on Download.com looking for some free software for my NEW laptop that I will be buying, which will have wireless internet... I found this... It is a free application made by T-Mobile, which FINDS other wireless ACCESS POINTS, and helps you connect to them! It even works better than the Microsoft Connection Manager! Have a look! http://www.download.com/T-Mobile-Connection-Manager/3000-7242_4-10383867.html?tag=lst-0-4 ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2088.	Solve : Longhorn's Test?
Answer» Hello all! This linkwas ound on PCWorld, and GIVES you the DETAILS about MICROSOFT's newest Operating system (which is released December next year), and how it performed during their TEST. Of course, Longhorn is far from completion, so PCWorld has been testing the BETA version... Have a look... http://pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120642,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]I have been testing longhorn alfa.......its just flash graphics&GT;>.http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/longhorn_preview.asp.......maybe from stardock.......?who is controlling your pc?

Discussion

2089.	Solve : The 10 Commandments (for the computer)?
Answer» Hey everyone! BECUASE I care about you all SO much, I have done some reserach, and found this INTERESTING piece of information... May I present to you.... The 10 commandments for the computer.. (Courtesy of about.com ) Here is the link! http://pcworld.about.com/news/Oct292003id113175.htm [glb]Flame[/glb] It's exactly what I tell people, but nobody understands or listens. Or NEITHER. Nice find.This is an old post, but is also STILL VERY helpful today! I thought that it would be good to bring it back! Note: LISTEN to these commandments! They DO help! [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2090.	Solve : BIOS??
Answer» Okay, I'm having a real problem with my computer. Its only working with SAFE mode. On NORMAL mode, it'll start up, but after a few minutes it'll give me a blue screen telling me to go into BIOS options and disable shadowing and caching if I CONTINUE to have a problem. I know how to get into the BIOS options, but I have no clue what I'm doing from there. I know I'm not exactly the computer expert, but with a little help I'm sure I can handle it. If anyone has any idea...please help me out. Thanks.Oops..Sorry.. I think I posted this in the wrong spot..I'm sure you can handle it too, Kayla, but we will need more information. I can assume from your post (since you say "safe mode") that you are running Windows and the Windows version is greater than 3.11. Please let us know Windows version and Service Pack level. What brand/model computer? Do you know the motherboard manufacturer? BIOS manufacturer and version? Video Card brand/model? BTW this post WOULD probably have been better placed under the Windows or maybe even HARDWARE sections of the forum. You are liable to get more answers there.

Discussion

2091.	Solve : Another Windows OS??
Answer» HEY there! This link was foud on PC WORLD, and announces that MICROSOFT will be developing a NEW operating SYSTEM! They will call it Longhorn, and it is supposed to be more secure, etc... have a look... http://pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120598,00.asp ... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2092.	Solve : Lab Tests in: DVD Drives?
Answer» Hey everyone! This link was found on PC WORLD,a nd talks about the latest lab tests run for DVD drives! If you're in the market for ONE, then this will same you much time in the FUTURE! http://pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,119990,00.asp ... [glb]FLAME[/glb]

Discussion

2093.	Solve : Gone AWOL?
Answer» Not been on the forum too much recently, and probably won't be for a while. I've just installed Linux (Fedora Core 2, if you must know) and I must say it's rather lovely. Two RAM upgrades later, but that's another story... Anyhow, my modem isn't compatible and I don't get paid for a while, so it may be a while before I can be bothered to STUMP up the cash, let alone fit the censored thing. Bar that, it's flippin' good. Need a lot of HDD SPACE (most users would be looking at about 2GB - a full install is a fat 10GB) but for that you get loads of software (that doesn't cost you anything) and an operating system which will survive a nuke attack. And doesn't have any problems with SPYWARE, or viruses, or anything else for that matter. So, basically if you know what's good for you, you'll rush out and get a BIG chunky book on a Linux distro, which will no doubt have CD's with the actual distro on it too. I did. ('Red Hat Fedora Linux 2 Bible' by Christopher Regus - ISBN:0-7645-5745-9 - £33.99 or $US49.99 is censored good) Anyhow, see you in WebDev, Programming, Linux and possibly Others. Any problems in the other areas and it's your own censored fault for running Windows... EDIT: Hmm, I've said 'censored' a bit much...

Discussion

2094.	Solve : Fake E-Mails?
Answer» Hey everyone! I just want to let you all know that people are starting to send-out FAKE E-Mails stating that they are from Microsoft again... I got two of them in my Inbox today, so if you get ANY E-Mails from Microsoft containing a "patch", then scan it BEFORE DOWNLOADING it! It turns out that they wanted me to download a "security patch", which was actually a virus... Just for the heck of saying it, there was no security patch even available on Microsoft... Be careful... There are a lot of freaks out there... [glb]Flame[/glb]Microsoft DONT SEND EMAILS TO ANYONE!..............May i suggest you have a look at the firewalls...........you have >>and the isp your are using..........do you have any p2p programs.....if so dump them!! run a system scan for the usual.............worms...etc..also check out your remote access..........PROGRAM........winxp/he...visit blackviper:)Hey Merlin! Long time no hear! lol Actually, I joined the Microsoft Mailing list... (official) ... Somehow, these goons from a fake place got the address.... The Microsoft newsletter is for media, etc. Also, Yahoo! deleted the virus(es) from the E-Mail before I opened it... Thanks for the concern! [glb]Flame[/glb]HI flame still trucking m8...Maybe sub-seven............anything to do with m$oft the crackers love it.........what a magic film people should have a look at .........anti-trust..........worth a view..........AGREED! lol I should have sent those E-Mails to Microsoft... It'll take a few more of them off the net. [glb]Flame[/glb]The spamhauses won't have 'gotten' the domain NAME from Microsoft - they'd have spoofed it. Not difficult to do or spot.

Discussion

2095.	Solve : FREE Security Programs from PCWorld!?
Answer» Hello EVERYONE! This link that I have found from PCWorld is one that EVERYONE NEEDS, as it gives you links to FREE SECURITY programs! Have a look at this! http://pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,119992,pg,2,00.asp ... [GLB]FLAME[/glb]

Discussion

2096.	Solve : Are you making your computer crash worse??
Answer» Hello everyone! This link was found on MSNBC, and it is about computer crashes, and TELLS you about some common things that we as computer USERS do that make that crash even worse... This is a HELPFUL article for sure! (The PICTURE pretty much explains it... lol) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7329279/ ... [glb]FLAME[/glb]

Discussion

2097.	Solve : The new MSN messenger?
Answer» Hello all. Micrsoft has just recently launched its NEWEST Instant Messaging software... I give you, the NEW MSN messenger! The new MSN messenger is different in every signle way from the older versions. There is less downtime, and the connect time is much shorter. It also has a decent Graphical User Interface (GUI), so that ATTRACTS some people as well. Of course, I LOVE it, being a MSN Premium member, and having all the FEATURES. If you are interested in downloading the new MSN Messenger, then see this link... http://imagine-msn.com/messenger/en-us/ ... REGISTRATION for your .NET passport is free, so take advantage of this service! [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2098.	Solve : Trimmed winxp?
Answer» http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,1995,1780050,00.asp?kc=MWRSS02129TX1K0000535Or have m$oft removed wmp because of loop holes in it just like ie..and oe......i dont mind talking to myself....maybe a WEBSITE POSTS COULD come in handy.like freeware........software/abandonware space.......maybe a use of SEVER space.........are the threads being used.......slimtime.....

Discussion

2099.	Solve : Gmail offering 2 GIGs of storage?!?
Answer» Hi everyone! This is an interesting article! Most of you know about Google's new Gmail... When Gmail was created, it offered 1 GIG of storage! That's a LOT! However... Gmail has now decided to RAISE that storage level to 2 GIGs! That's a LOT of messages! These changes will be happening soon, so be patient... As usual, Gmail requires you to be invited by a current MEMBER to join... WELL, I'm a member if you are interested... See this link for information on this new development for Gmail.. http://blogs.pcworld.com/techlog/archives/000596.html ... [glb]Flame[/glb]Thanks for the link, Flame. Just one question, which is better Sugar Free RADICAL or Glutamate Grape? Lets save that for the next post... [glb]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

2100.	Solve : 4 Ways to improve PC performance?
Answer» Hey there everyone! This article is from Microsoft, and tells you 4 EASY ways to improve your COMPUTER's performance! Have a look at this LINK for details... HTTP://www.microsoft.com/atwork/getstarted/speed.mspx [GLB]Flame[/glb]

Discussion

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Solve : More trouble in paradise?

Solve : US court reimposes $220,000 music piracy fine?

Solve : Microsoft Xbox 3D-projected games outlined in patent?

Solve : So far not so good?

Solve : Nice touch?

Solve : Backup news?

Solve : The Torture Test?

Solve : 10 ways to improve your wireless network?

Solve : Help to conserve your battery!?

Solve : The most advanced trojan??

Solve : Top Ten Audio Players?

Solve : Google Desktop Search... At it again??

Solve : News on the hottest game consoles?

Solve : Free Utilities!?

Solve : Is your Wirless Network Secure??

Solve : A free connection manager for wireless?

Solve : Longhorn's Test?

Solve : The 10 Commandments (for the computer)?

Solve : BIOS??

Solve : Another Windows OS??

Solve : Lab Tests in: DVD Drives?

Solve : Gone AWOL?

Solve : Fake E-Mails?

Solve : FREE Security Programs from PCWorld!?

Solve : Are you making your computer crash worse??

Solve : The new MSN messenger?

Solve : Trimmed winxp?

Solve : Gmail offering 2 GIGs of storage?!?

Solve : 4 Ways to improve PC performance?