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6851

Living Room / Re: What's Your Internet Speed/Reliability SATISFACTION?

« Last post by Renegade on September 18, 2011, 11:18 PM »

The way I have it worked out, is that if a company offers you a 20MB connection, this means, if you CONNECT at that 20mb speed, you will actually DOWNLOAD at 10% of that speed, and upload at 10% of your DOWNLOAD speed.

That seems to be pretty accurate. Well, maybe 5% of what's advertised... but potato hand grenade. Y'know...

6852

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 8 Fast boot time ? Check this out...

« Last post by Renegade on September 18, 2011, 05:44 PM »

I don't think booting Windows 8 in VMware is a fair assessment of Windows 8 boot times (or any OS boot time). Sure, it's some kind of indication, but with all the other virtuosity and gooeyness of VMware underpinning it, meh... I'd like to know what it's like on bare metal for an assessment there.

6853

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... a way (Excel macro?) to convert Lat-Long co-ordinates

« Last post by Renegade on September 18, 2011, 01:11 AM »

And...

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/213449

Tada~!

They've already got it done for you.

Or here if you like:

http://www.ozgrid.co...p?t=25460&page=1

6854

Living Room / Re: What's Your Internet Speed/Reliability SATISFACTION?

« Last post by Renegade on September 17, 2011, 08:57 PM »

The local look:



The more realistic view:



Rated for 10 to 20 Mbps *AS ADVERTISED*. However, everything in the advertising is misleading. Purposefully misleading. e.g.:

ADSL2+ Speeds:
Optimal ADSL2+ speeds require compatible ADSL2+ modem and filters. Around 70% of TPG ADSL2+ customers can achieve speeds greater than 10Mbps. Actual speeds will vary due to many factors including distance from the local telephone exchange, the quality of the customer's copper phone line, cabling and equipment.

While technically partially true, it's obvious that they're trying to mislead people. i.e. ADSL is asynchronous, and down/up differ, so stating a speed of 10 Mbps implies both up and down, however, the reality is very different. Conclusion: they're misleading intentionally because nobody in the industry is that stupid as to confuse ADSL for (synchronous) DSL. When you call them for support, they'll confess that the expected up speed is 1 Mbps. I really don't appreciate having to dig that far to get basic information.

It would be one thing to be upfront and honest, but that just ticks me off. Like just how hard is it to be honest?

Anyways, that's better than I was seeing before, so I'm much happier with that. And still very jealous of a few people in here~!

6855

Living Room / Re: The Boozernet...

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 11:30 AM »

I don't often drink. I can count the number of times in the last 15 years on one hand. And I get drunk even less than that. And I have a firm belief that computers and booze don't mix*, so there will be no drunk coding, posting, gaming, online shopping or anything else from me...ever.


*You aren't supposed to operate heavy machinery while under the influence. Since I can't lift it over my head with one hand I have never regarded my computer as being particularly light.

-app103 (September 16, 2011, 11:07 AM)

Oh good lord... I certainly can't say that.

I coded a CMS way back in 2002 or so where a partner had promised some things, delivered on nothing, and I was held holding the ball. I did nothing but code and sleep for a few weeks at home then. Wake up, start coding, start drinking, keep coding until I had to sleep, rinse, repeat. Half was coded while half lit, and thanks to how I was doing things, there were no "drunk" mistakes or bugs. I did a lot of drunk coding, but it all worked in the end.

I don't do that anymore. That was an extreme circumstance. Thankfully I've not had to deal with that sort of nonsense since.

(I only drink at night, and never during the day. Just one of those things.)

6856

Living Room / Re: The Boozernet...

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 10:53 AM »

I don't tend to post anymore when tipsy, in years past I've probably regretted one or two drunken posts.  Off hand I can't think of any purchases, at least not any I later regretted.

I do however very often play Starcraft 2 online while quite drunk. Needless to say I lose a lot of those games very badly.

-Eóin (September 16, 2011, 10:48 AM)

Hahahaha~!

I try not to post... but it happens... And I try not to buy anything... but it happens... Over all there, I'm doing pretty well. But still, it's the posts that I hate clicking "Submit" or "Post" on. Pretty rare, but it happens.

For purchases, no regrets so far. For posts... can't say that...

6857

Living Room / Re: What's Your Internet Speed/Reliability SATISFACTION?

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 09:30 AM »

...Might seem fast, but I pay for 2x that lol

-Stephen66515 (September 16, 2011, 09:24 AM)

I would pay double what I'm paying now for that! I think that I'd need to pay around $400 a month to get even remotely close to that. (From the last time I looked...)

6858

Living Room / Re: Google Translate: For Animals

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 09:29 AM »

Uploaded by GoogleChannelUK on Mar 31, 2010

-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3I24bSteJpw&feature=player_embedded

That probably was last year's google UK april's fools

-jgpaiva (September 16, 2011, 08:13 AM)

It was. You're exactly right.

6859

Living Room / Re: Google Translate: For Animals

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 09:28 AM »

I just installed it. It's fun!

6860

Living Room / The Boozernet...

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 09:15 AM »

Have you ever posted or bought on the Internet anything not sober? (Drunk or high -- doesn't matter.)

I know some here have.

I was just checking email and saw a domain renewal notice for "whatireallythink.info"... Yeah... Must have had a few when I bought that one.

Heck, while I'm only a few in, I managed to buy in-game credit for a game I play... to the tune of $125. But it's a 40% bonus right now... Should I get another couple sets of credit? It's reusable across games when they end...

So, c'mon... come clean...

6861

Living Room / Re: What's Your Internet Speed/Reliability SATISFACTION?

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 07:20 AM »

(see attachment in previous post)
Yes, it's pretty pitiful.

-kyrathaba (September 16, 2011, 06:42 AM)

I have a horrible upload speed as well. I can never seem to get above 85 kbps, and usually under 50 kbps. Which is very painful for Dropbox, which Doc and I use extensively for The Doc Report. It's also painful for FTP, but there I really only need to consider myself.

BTW - I still love that "while(! dead_horse){beat}"!

6862

Living Room / Re: What's Your Internet Speed/Reliability SATISFACTION?

« Last post by Renegade on September 16, 2011, 04:11 AM »

And speaking of the developed world, I've had much better luck in the developing and 3rd world for Internet speeds. By a wide margin. Just my own observations though.

-Renegade (June 27, 2011, 12:07 PM)

Can you elaborate on this sentence? This seems interesting. Do you mean the general net speed was faster or were the better plans simply cheaper?

-Paul Keith (September 16, 2011, 02:36 AM)

Both actually.

I remember the Internet speeds at hotels I was staying at in Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City and in Long Xing (way out in the country side) were both better than what I was getting at home. Similarly, connection speeds when I was in Cambodia (near Angkor) were better.

Korea? Well. Enough said. They're getting 1 Gbps next year. It'll probably be something like $50. I had a slow connection -- about $25~$30 or so for 10 Mbps. The 100 Mbps was the same price about, but my speeds were already so fast that I never needed to bother upgrading.

Now, my Internet speeds have improved dramatically recently, and I have even seen 800 kbps. But I saw 1.5 Mbps in Long Xing, and 2 Mbps in Ho Chi Minh.

I remember not being able to get above 50 kbps while at hotels in the US in 2005 and 2006 where I was paying an ungodly amount PER DAY for access. On more recent visits, things seemed to be much better though. Still, I was rather disappointed considering what I was paying.

Here, in Australia, I'm paying 2x as much for far less than I was getting in Korea, but Korea is probably a bad example as it's the most wired country on the planet.

Living in Penang, and island in Malaysia, speeds were unpredictable, and unreliable. 2 Mbps one day, then 80 kbps the next. Day after that, outage for 4 hours. Usually it was pretty good, but it had days that were just not fun. Just all over the place. That was with Penangfon though. Pricing was very cheap at about RM 800 a year, or about USD 23 a month (IIRC). Considering that I was pretty much out in the boonies just outside Batu Ferringhi and surrounded by ocean and jungle for the most part, on an island, with monkeys running around all over the place, and then thinking that I'm now in the second largest city in Australia, and very close to the center of the city, erm... I would have expected, well, something different.

But, the NBN will save the day~!

(It's a bit of a controversy here -- it's a national infrastructure project for broadband.)

6863

General Software Discussion / Re: Have all UI designers gone insane? (Warning: very short post)

« Last post by Renegade on September 15, 2011, 11:26 PM »

If thread disappoints, hopefully this link: If Programming Languages were religion makes up for it...

-Paul Keith (September 15, 2011, 02:55 PM)

That was hilarious. I loved this one best:

Visual Basic would be Satanism - Except that you don't REALLY need to sell your soul to be a Satanist...

Bwahahahahaha~! Awesome~!

6864

Living Room / Re: Interview with Adam Smith - Founder of Xobni

« Last post by Renegade on September 15, 2011, 10:56 AM »

Just want to say I finally got a chance to listen to the latest episode -- you are really good at this.  And I loved the recommendation of Screenshot Captor (about 40 minutes in!) -- thank you!

-mouser (September 15, 2011, 09:57 AM)

Thank you! We're still working to improve the show and I think some of the changes in the next show are a very good improvement. It should be out in the next day or so.

I've been using Screenshot Captor for years, and love it. It's one of the first programs I install on any new box. I'd be remiss if I didn't plug it for people!

Forgot to give you feedback on this - interview was great,let it extend if the discussion is good. Anyway, keep it up. 

-mahesh2k (September 15, 2011, 10:06 AM)

Thanks! Glad you liked it!

We need to keep it pretty tight with as much information as possible, and we're trying to keep it to a max of 1 hour. That makes sense for a typical commute to work, e.g. 30 min there and 30 min back, or something like that. It's hard though to cut stuff out...

I'll make sure to let Doc know though. He might be able to get some of the discussion into a supplementary podcast there. (Again, thanks for speaking up! We're trying to drive the show in part from feedback we get from people.)

6865

Living Room / Re: Would you trust this ... ?

« Last post by Renegade on September 15, 2011, 07:56 AM »

It just seems weird to stick your password into some strange input box.

6866

Living Room / Re: Would you trust this ... ?

« Last post by Renegade on September 15, 2011, 06:23 AM »

...BUT would you give your email password to someone you don't know ?

-joiwind (September 15, 2011, 05:36 AM)

No. Never.

6867

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: Get the $50 NovaBackup Pro for $60!

« Last post by Renegade on September 15, 2011, 04:59 AM »

Get the $50 NovaBackup Pro for $60!

-Curt (September 15, 2011, 02:21 AM)

You might want to fix the subject...

-Ath (September 15, 2011, 02:39 AM)

+1

It sounds like it's just that 1 product being sold for $10 more than normal.

6868

Developer's Corner / Creating Urgency with a Discount System

« Last post by Renegade on September 14, 2011, 10:07 PM »

I'm using a system of discounts to help create a sense of urgency to help sell some of my software.

I've mentioned that I use the Infralution Licensing System before, and I've written up a blog post with source code on a small part of how I'm solving the problem with ILS.

Anyways, I hope this is useful for someone:

Creating Urgency for Sales with Infralution Licensing System

6869

Living Room / Re: Apple and users' privacy

« Last post by Renegade on September 14, 2011, 09:55 PM »

(see attachment in previous post)
And that's how my day went...

-Stoic Joker (September 14, 2011, 06:38 PM)

That. Was. SEXCELLENT~!

6870

Developer's Corner / Re: Save 50% on Mono for Android

« Last post by Renegade on September 14, 2011, 10:43 AM »

$400 -- Click the "Add to Cart" button and you'll see.

But yeah... that stuff is annoying as Hell.

(I already knew the price, so I didn't notice that.)

6871

Developer's Corner / Save 50% on Mono for Android

« Last post by Renegade on September 14, 2011, 10:00 AM »

Mono for Android is 50% off in September:

For the rest of September, save 50% on Mono for Android when you purchase it together with MonoTouch or a MonoTouch Upgrade.

Got that in an email.

At the site:

https://store.xamarin.com/

Save BIG When You Buy Both!

Do you plan to target both iOS and Android?

Save 50% on Mono for Android when you purchase it together with MonoTouch.

Anyways, if anyone is thinking of it, it looks like it could save you some.

(I'll be buying this month in any event.)

-- So yeah... I'm still rooting for Mono. (Not in the Australian sense of 'root' though.)

6872

Developer's Corner / Re: An experiment about static and dynamic type systems

« Last post by Renegade on September 13, 2011, 05:50 PM »

C# allows dynamic typing, but I'll be damned if I'll use it if I can at all avoid it. (dynamic and var)

-Renegade (September 12, 2011, 11:21 PM)

'var' is not dynamic typing, it's used for static type inference which is super useful for DRY reasons.

'dynamic' is something to be very careful about - it tends to ripple out if you start using it.

-f0dder (September 13, 2011, 01:54 PM)

I stand corrected.

But close enough. When you look at it, var looks like a dynamic type. e.g. var acme = "Rocket Skates"; vs. var acyou = 500;

http://msdn.microsof...ibrary/bb383973.aspx

Beginning in Visual C# 3.0, variables that are declared at method scope can have an implicit type var. An implicitly typed local variable is strongly typed just as if you had declared the type yourself, but the compiler determines the type. The following two declarations of i are functionally equivalent:

http://msdn.microsof...ibrary/bb384061.aspx

Local variables can be given an inferred "type" of var instead of an explicit type. The var keyword instructs the compiler to infer the type of the variable from the expression on the right side of the initialization statement. The inferred type may be a built-in type, an anonymous type, a user-defined type, or a type defined in the .NET Framework class library.

However, this:

Code: C# [Select]

1. var a = 1;
2. var b = "123";
3. var c = a + b;
4. MessageBox.Show(c.ToString());

Outputs:

1123

And

Code: C# [Select]

1. var a = 1;
2. var d = a + 2;
3. var b = "123";
4. var c = d + b;
5. MessageBox.Show(c.ToString());

Outputs:

3123

Which really makes it *look like* a dynamic type.

I've noticed that with dynamic -- it tends to be infectious. I've found it's useful for dealing with JSON and all that gooey webishness.

6873

Living Room / Re: Apple and users' privacy

« Last post by Renegade on September 13, 2011, 07:01 AM »

I really do want one of those stickers.

-Stoic Joker (September 13, 2011, 06:51 AM)

I have a Flying Spaghetti Monster emblem on my car.

http://www.rof.com/F...Car-Emblem_p_27.html



But speaking of all that...



I love that!

6874

Living Room / Re: XBOX 360 with Kinect or Wii?

« Last post by Renegade on September 13, 2011, 06:51 AM »

Still haven't got one... It sort of hit the back burner... I think it's about time to browse the games available again.

6875

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 8 Fast boot time ? Check this out...

« Last post by Renegade on September 13, 2011, 06:47 AM »

7 seconds? Damn. I might consider rebooting more often then (or not). I only reboot every few (3 - 6) months for Win updates depending on how critical what patch is. Hell I've only shutdown my main comp about 4 times since I built it.

-Stoic Joker (September 13, 2011, 06:41 AM)

Unfortunately, I "reboot" much more often than that thanks to wonderful video drivers. a.k.a. BSOD. Grrr...