<![CDATA[Comments from Flamsmark]]> <![CDATA[Comments from Flamsmark]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Flock 1.2 Bakes Social Networking into Everyday Browsing]]> The major problem that I found with Flock was Yahoo. I couldn't manage to get all the Yahoo out of it. I understand that they're making money from the default search provider, but let those users who care remove them. Despite changing the search agent in all the places that I could find, I couldn't get rid of the Yahooiness. Big thumbs-down from me.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Free Ways to Synchronize Folders Between Computers]]> I'd love to use online synchronisation, but my computers are on different continents, and the badnwidthe directly between them is often scant. I use the 'sneakernet', except that, in my case, sneakers just don't quite cut it. What's the bitrate on taking a seven hour flight with a 1TB eSata drive? It's equivolent to an 146 megabit connection, which is pretty reasonable.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on A Consumer's Cheat Sheet to HD DVD's Death and Blu-ray's Victory]]> greenhornetc13 makes an interesting point. Disks aren't just useful for movies - I rarely watch DVDs, but I use them to install software, backup data, and transfer large files. What do I do?

When I start needing 15-50gb disks, will I buy a cheaper HD-DVD burner (if such things ever come into being) or a Blu-Ray burner?

Will writeable HD-DVDs keep being produced, or will the format actually die? Tell me, Gizmodo, I need to know!

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Use a Bluetooth Phone to Lock/Unlock Ubuntu]]> It's a great principle - computer locked when you're not there, and unlocked when you are. However, this just doesn't seem like the best way to do it. If you loose your phone, or it runs out of batteries, your stuck. Moreover, (and I haven't read the article) is this secure against a malicious attacker who wants to spoof the phone?

Essentially, how difficult is it to hit meta+L (or whatever) when you leave and enter your password when you return?

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on XBMC Finds a Home on Your Mac]]> @jafac: Why don't you suggest it to them?

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Give Ubuntu a speed boost]]> @GrayBird: I think you have your answer right there in your question.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Build a Basic First Aid Kit for the Road]]> @ chris-mcc & blueice03: Tourniquet's aren't universally bad, but they shouldn't really be used except by someone with some medical training. Without a fair bit of training (at least the level of a standard first aid qualification) you probably won't be able to correctly identify which situations do and do not indicate the use of a tourniquet. Also, it is entirely possible to apply one incorrectly, even where their use might be indicated, and do more harm than good whether indicated or not. Finally, if you're not in a wilderness setting (more than two hours from definitive medical care) a civilian probably wouldn't want to apply one anyway - you're far better off dialing 911 or your local emergency response number and waiting for EMS to arrive.

Personally, I wouldn't use one except if I were days from definitive medical care, and the injury highly indicated their use. All of the outdoor groups I work with have a policy of not using them, opting instead for medium-urgency evacs.

- Comments from a long-time hiker/camper, outdoor guide, and trainee EMT.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Tips on Organizing Your Room from the Zvezda Space Habitat]]> @aspiringexpatriate: Not at all. What better computer technology is there for human use? More sophisticated computer are basically made of *lots* of high-end consumer parts. Laptops are the epitome of compact and powerful computing.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on 8GB Nokia N95 Coming to North America?]]> @fusiongt: as you're clearly aware, the 8GB version has updates in more than just the storage department. A you point out, it's available in a - some would say more attractive - different colour and has a larger screen; AL7AIR points out that the RAM has been upgraded too. But, critically to anyone who's tried to use an N95 all day, the battey is significantly larger (at the expense of the camera lens cover), and aledgedly more efficient, which could improve capacity - a major weakness of the original.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Would You Pay More for Premium Tech Support?]]> No, I wouldn't pay more for tech support. I'm tech-savvy, so if I'm calling support about a product, that means that it's either exceedingly badly designed or broken. As mentioned above, it's obviously the company's responsibility to get it to work. Fortunately, there is an alternative. If you use free (as in speech, rather than as in beer) products, there's invariably a group of enthusiasts who can provide you with free high-class personal support via IRC. For things I'm good at, I help people. For things I suck at, I get help until I'm good at them. This system works for me. The only time I have to call the manufacturer's support about a product is when I *know* that it's broken. Then, as soon as I get through to a human I explain the problem and tell them what I need:
'Hi, I have a XYZ5000 with serial number 12345678. The widget is clearly burned out because it can't foo or bar, but the baz and bat are working fine. I gazonked the bop, but it's just giving me quux. I'm still in warranty, so I'm going to need an RMA number.'
They either understand (and therefore agree) or don't understand. If they don't, they either help out of fear, or I sense fear, and request a manager. Managers fear non-idiots, and normally have sufficient understanding that its possible to explain that you're right. Either way, I get the thing replaced or refunded.

The real problem is when you're calling about a *service* that doesn't seem to be working. It could be DSL, a credit card, or your cell phone connection, but the point is that something's wrong and - even if you had the expertise to do so - you simply do not have access to the system that needs fixing. There has been more than one occasion on which I patiently call my ISP thinking 'give me a shell on your box, and, by dawn, I'll either have fixed it or tell you what resource you need more of.' There is no real solution here. You can't fix it; they can't fix it; and they can't telly you anything useful. I sympathise. If I'm running a system, it'll inevitably crash from time to time. I'll have made some effort to make backups, but there might still be downtime. The only thing that the customer can do is move between providers until the monthly fee matches the uptime and the features. It's sad but true.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Open Source Video Player Miro Hits 1.0]]> @primitiveworker: If only Front Row and the Apple Remote had a powerful, extensible API that could be incorporated into third party applications by developers who want to support those features.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Build a Hackintosh Mac for Under $800]]> Looks like the title got cut short. It should read 'Build a Hackintosh Mac for Under $800... if you already own a Mac.'

Not that I have any problem with the article. Most of the content is good, it'd be *nice* if it included the no-DVD workaround, but nothing's perfect.
However the implication (until you get to the middle of the patching) is that you *don't* have a Mac. The articles starts with

'If the high price tag for Apple hardware has kept you from buying a Mac...'

Then you get to the middle and find:

'download an already patched version using BitTorrent... [or]... you'll need a Mac.'

So in the end, you're really between a rock and a hard place.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented]]> Shouldn't that be 'full disclosure' rather than 'due diligence'?

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on What Workplace Practices Should Be Over?]]> Jumping in on the voicemail thing:

I'm under 30.

If I'm calling and don't get through, (and I want to communicate something) I hang up and send a text. The text will say whether or not I'm requesting a callback. If it's not a cell number, I use email instead. I don't leave voicemail.

If I don't want to communicate something, and/or want them to call me back, I just hang up. If they reply after the issue has been resolved, I inform them of such, and apologise for their time spent replying.

The service to which my phones forward missed calls has a voice message requesting that people send me a text or email. It doesn't take voice messages, but does text me to say who got through to it.

I treat the list of missed calls on my phone - and the texts from 'voicemail' - like a pager, and call people back.

I use SMS interchangably with email depending how soon the message should reach the recipient.

I see no problem with this overall protocol, and have never had anyone complain to me about it. As far as I am aware, those around me and with whom and for whom I work follow a similar protocol. I have never met someone who preferred me to leave a voicemail than to email or text them.

I hope that gives an alternate point of view.
-Flamsmark

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Advanced file and attachment management with Gmail]]> Just less than 3GB is nice, but using gmail as a backup might require a little more space. Is there an app that lets you use multiple gmail accounts to stripe your storage across them? [One advantage of this is that you'd be unlikely to get locked out of any of the accounts, even in high usage, because you'd cycle through them]

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Save Last.fm streams with TheLastStream]]> @uk-kev: Fortunately, no material from the *website* is in use at all: the material in question is not from HTML pages, and therefore not covered by the term 'Website' (assuming that 'Website' is defined in a normal sort of way in the conditions).

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Keep your email address from spambots with Text to ASCII]]> What's wrong with the oh-so old-fashioned method of displaying the 'text' of your email address as a lossless image embedded in the right part of the webpage?

Look: it's an natural captcha: humans can read it, bots can't.

]]> <![CDATA[Flamsmark commented on Use Google Calendar as your longterm memory]]> That puts an large amount of trust in google both to be available whenever you need you need to check your handy long-term memory, and not to have an data leaks that would drop a massive amount of very personal information into somebody's lap.

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