Author Topic: A random thread for small things that don't really warrant a thread of their own  (Read 2945495 times)

Pingu

  • Put away those fiery biscuits!
  • Mrs Pingu's domestique
    • the Igloo
Mastermind requires more than one participant...

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Mastermind requires more than one participant...

So does wordle, you and the computer
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

Pingu

  • Put away those fiery biscuits!
  • Mrs Pingu's domestique
    • the Igloo
Mastermind requires more than one participant...

So does wordle, you and the computer

You don't usually have to badger the computer to play, thobut.

Jaded

  • The Codfather
  • Formerly known as Jaded
Badger is too long. It is 6 letters.
It is simpler than it looks.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
My colour blindness makes this quite difficult to play: I can’t tell the right-letter-wrong-place colour from the right-letter-right-place one!

+1

Nobody gives a shit about WCAG.   >:(


ETA: Just found the 'dark theme' and 'colour blind mode' (which still only uses colour to communicate state, albeit with more contrasty colours) settings.

Nobody gives a shit about WCAG.   >:(
And they should do. It's long been an irritant for me when working with software builders that they don't consider this from the off.
Rust never sleeps

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Back in November, my son ordered a university prospectus from Manchester Met. It hadn't arrived by the end of the month when he went up for an open day, so he picked one up while there. He liked the place and course and he's made his UCAS applications. So guess what's just come through the door...
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Returned from annual leave to the office today for the first time since December 16th, only to be told to go and WFH.
Which is fine as we don't have much going on at this time of year, in addition to which I have a number of things to be getting on with at home, including a visit to Clerkenwell Screws for 2 metres of M4 studding. In stainless, seeing as you were wondering.

Saturday evening the BB went down for a couple of hours, then returned, only slower than before (a sync speed of 52Mbs rather than the usual 72Mbs, and crucially below the guranteed minimum of 57Mbs.  Called Vodafone, who diagnosed a "wet joint". Entirely undertstandable, the whole wall is damp, and even the surface mount BT box gets musty. "We'll arrange an OpenReach engineer" - this on Monday - "please hold".  Back them come "the earliest we can do is tomorrow 1-6pm".  Yes! says I. And lo, an engineer has just called to say..... he'll be with us in around 45 minutes! I think I should buy a lucky dip for tonights Euromillions just in case!
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

robgul

  • Cycle:End-to-End webmaster
  • cyclist, Cytech accredited mechanic & woodworker
    • Cycle:End-to-End
Saturday evening the BB went down for a couple of hours, then returned, only slower than before (a sync speed of 52Mbs rather than the usual 72Mbs, and crucially below the guranteed minimum of 57Mbs.  Called Vodafone, who diagnosed a "wet joint". Entirely undertstandable, the whole wall is damp, and even the surface mount BT box gets musty. "We'll arrange an OpenReach engineer" - this on Monday - "please hold".  Back them come "the earliest we can do is tomorrow 1-6pm".  Yes! says I. And lo, an engineer has just called to say..... he'll be with us in around 45 minutes! I think I should buy a lucky dip for tonights Euromillions just in case!

Are you sure that you're not going to be charged for Openreach coming out?   We had 3 or 4 run-ins with them on call-outs.

We weren’t charged, no. As Vodafone identified the fault, it’s their call. As it happens he couldn’t find a fault, but changed our master socket (that both I and he thought would be damp and the culprit) for a new one with inbuilt filter.  When he checked the line it was (and remains) back up to 71Mbs / 20Mbs. More importantly, my wife has agreed to leave the router in the lounge, connected to the master socket, and speed check is now showing 66 /18 over the mesh WiFi.  :thumbsup:
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Openreach shouldn't charge anyone unless a fault turns out to be due to the customer's equipment.  If it's broken and upstream of the master socket, it's their problem.

They had (?have) a scam called Special Fault Investigation where their engineer would attempt to diagnose a fault with your equipment, and then charge through the nose for it, even if the client (your ISP) tells them not to.  For this reason it's always best to unplug any extensions and hide your modem/router, filters, phones etc. in a cupboard so they don't meddle with them.

If your ISP provides the router as part of their service, leave it for them to fight it out with Openreach.

Indeed, it’s Vodafone’s router, and the issue was the sync speed between it and the exchange.
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

robgul

  • Cycle:End-to-End webmaster
  • cyclist, Cytech accredited mechanic & woodworker
    • Cycle:End-to-End
Today's post from Spitalfields Life has some interesting cycling accessories from days of yore -  https://spitalfieldslife.com/2022/01/17/the-metropolitan-machinists-company/

Some of the saddles look pretty uncomfortable

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Today's post from Spitalfields Life has some interesting cycling accessories from days of yore -  https://spitalfieldslife.com/2022/01/17/the-metropolitan-machinists-company/

Some of the saddles look pretty uncomfortable
Some fascinating items, and one or two perplexing.

"New Mud Guard, folds into small compass and can be carried in pouch or pocket". I presume they mean compass for drawing circles not finding directions, but why would you want to carry a mudguard in your pocket?

And "Perambulator Tyres" look like a ball of string! Presumably they were solid tyres which you cut to size and somehow joined the ends on the wheel?
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Feanor

  • It's mostly downhill from here.
"New Mud Guard, folds into small compass and can be carried in pouch or pocket". I presume they mean compass for drawing circles not finding directions...

I took it as a slightly archaic meaning of compass: an area or scope.

For example: "I have never seen such a range of wildlife within such a small compass"

ian

I don't think that meaning of 'compass' is archaic, it's still in regular use, indeed I used it the other day and I'm definitely not yet archaic.

Beardy

  • Shedist
Code: [Select]
I don't think that meaning of 'compass' is archaic, it's still in regular use, indeed I used it the other day and I'm definitely not yet archaic.
You might not be archaic, but your language use is most definitely odd possibly an extension of your overall oddness  ;D
For every complex problem in the world, there is a simple and easily understood solution that’s wrong.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
And "Perambulator Tyres" look like a ball of string! Presumably they were solid tyres which you cut to size and somehow joined the ends on the wheel?

Or just rubber bands of the appropriate size that could be stretched to fit the wheel with inappropriate tools and harsh language.  I expect the rubber was a lot softer (and faster-wearing) than modern equivalents.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
"New Mud Guard, folds into small compass and can be carried in pouch or pocket". I presume they mean compass for drawing circles not finding directions...

I took it as a slightly archaic meaning of compass: an area or scope.

For example: "I have never seen such a range of wildlife within such a small compass"
That makes sense. Partly. I was thinking of the drawing tool because, well, the illustration looks like that. But whatever sort of compass it referred to, why on earth would you want to put a mudguard in your pocket? Even if it's pocket in the mediaeval sense that leaves the question of why you would remove and refit the mudguards?
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
That makes sense. Partly. I was thinking of the drawing tool because, well, the illustration looks like that. But whatever sort of compass it referred to, why on earth would you want to put a mudguard in your pocket? Even if it's pocket in the mediaeval sense that leaves the question of why you would remove and refit the mudguards?

To sneak them past the mudguard police?  To wash the mud off?  (Wouldn't need to pocket them, though...)  Because you think the bike goes faster without them?  Or to prevent theft, as per battery lights today?

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Perhaps, it's belatedly occurred to me, in order to easily convert your machine between racing and utility modes.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Perhaps, it's belatedly occurred to me, in order to easily convert your machine between racing and utility modes.

I think that's likely, just like removable mudguards today.  Presumably pocket-ability (or stuff-in-a-bag-ability) was more important when people routinely cycled to racing events, especially if the event wasn't circular.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
In other historical mudguard news, I note that the "Best Mud Guards, per pair, 1/4" are remarkably similar to today's ass-savers, whale tails and so on. There are also several items of bikepacking luggage (frame bags, bar rolls), which as we all know was only invented around 2011, and some of it is shown fitted to bikes with – gasp! – sloping top tubes, that demonic invention of USanian mountain bikers, so clearly the document is a fake.  :demon:  ;)
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Feanor

  • It's mostly downhill from here.
I don't think that meaning of 'compass' is archaic, it's still in regular use, indeed I used it the other day and I'm definitely not yet archaic.

I think that too, and indeed use it from time to time, but my language can be a bit overwrought at times.
Not sure I've heard anyone else use it that I can think of!