Author Topic: The Grumble Thread - No energy for a full on rant. (Read 1626950 times)

Dibdib · « **Reply #3075 on:** 05 March, 2013, 11:27:17 pm »

Told I have a new boss... In Germany. Yay(!!)

rackum frackum grumble grumble. silver lining though, I'm hoping to use it as a cunning ploy to get my job moved to That London and get the hell out of Swindon

Polar Bear · « **Reply #3076 on:** 05 March, 2013, 11:29:20 pm »

Inflation: Mythical measure of rising prices manipulated by a bunch of dishonest grey persons often found in a posh palace in London...

TheLurker · « **Reply #3077 on:** 06 March, 2013, 07:24:21 am »

*remembers* wibble wobble wibble wobble

A Spitting Image sketch, chez Thatcher set sometime in the future*. Mark asks Mummy for a glass of water. Goes to tap. Draws off glass of water whilst eff-off great LED display racks up cost of glass of water. Mrs T asks idiot son to deposit cold hard cash in the kitty to pay for said glass of water.

At the time I thought it mildly amusing.

*ie post-privatisation of the water boards.

Wombat · « **Reply #3078 on:** 06 March, 2013, 08:10:27 am »

Water needs to cost more. It is a valuable resource, and we need to be reminded that is not an endless free resource to be squandered at will. If we invested more in water resources, then we could probably manage flooding a bit better too. That said, some of the water companies are not entirely blameless. I'm all for unversal compulsory metering.

Advice on saving water is freely available, although not as obvious as it should be.

MattH · « **Reply #3079 on:** 06 March, 2013, 08:55:06 am »

We've just been put onto a compulsory meter. With an unmetered bill of >£500 due to moving to a larger house last year (for an extra bedroom for an office rather than due to extra people) I'm hoping that the cost will come down a little as we don't use huge amounts of water. Our cars get washed twice a year, need it or not, no paddling pools, no running hosepipes to water the garden, low volume toilet cisterns, showers rather than baths etc.

In principle I think meters are a good thing for a resource that is not unlimited. I do worry that the water companies will use the drop in usage due to fitting meters as an excuse not to invest in infrastructure and leak repairs.

matthew · « **Reply #3080 on:** 06 March, 2013, 10:17:03 am »

Quote from: MattH on 06 March, 2013, 08:55:06 am

We've just been put onto a compulsory meter. With an unmetered bill of >£500 due to moving to a larger house last year (for an extra bedroom for an office rather than due to extra people) I'm hoping that the cost will come down a little as we don't use huge amounts of water. Our cars get washed twice a year, need it or not, no paddling pools, no running hosepipes to water the garden, low volume toilet cisterns, showers rather than baths etc.

In principle I think meters are a good thing for a resource that is not unlimited. I do worry that the water companies will use the drop in usage due to fitting meters as an excuse not to invest in infrastructure and leak repairs.

Water companies are scored on the %age of water lost through leakage, reduce the consumption by households and whilst they have greater capacity to accomodate leakage the regulator will be all over them as the % leakage figures rise.

L CC · « **Reply #3081 on:** 06 March, 2013, 10:40:42 am »

Even in this side of this country water is not scarce. We waste a lot of drinking quality water for tasks we could do with grey water. There are high levels of facetiousness in my "I don't drink water" but as I'm not on the mains for sewage, nor on roads with storm drains I resent paying this much. The last bill worked out as half this. Metering would save me money, if it took this into account

Vince · « **Reply #3082 on:** 06 March, 2013, 11:28:21 am »

I went to a school concert last night. The young people played and sang really well with everything from rock to baroque. It was really good.... except the continual intrusion of a 100 decibel simulated shutter noise for a woman taking photos on a digital camera. GAH!

Bledlow · « **Reply #3083 on:** 06 March, 2013, 11:42:43 am »

Quote from: matthew on 06 March, 2013, 10:17:03 am

Water companies are scored on the %age of water lost through leakage, reduce the consumption by households and whilst they have greater capacity to accomodate leakage the regulator will be all over them as the % leakage figures rise.

Regulation FAIL.

Bledlow · « **Reply #3084 on:** 06 March, 2013, 11:49:57 am »

Not really a grumble, & not serious enough for the bad news thread, but a disappointment.

I sent an e-mail to the Lycée français Charles de Gaulle asking if they still had my grandmother's school records, from before it added the Charles de Gaulle to the name (he being a relatively unknown army officer at the time). They sent a nice but disappointing reply. The pupil records for the early 1930s were lost when the school moved to a new site, so no, they don't have anything.

andyoxon · « **Reply #3085 on:** 08 March, 2013, 01:00:26 am »

Constant bloomin' Java updates - at work, on both PC here.

And if you're not careful, and don't untick a box, you get some toolbar or something loaded by the back door.

TheLurker · « **Reply #3086 on:** 08 March, 2013, 06:25:21 am »

Quote from: andyoxon on 08 March, 2013, 01:00:26 am

Constant bloomin' Java updates - at work, on both PC here. And if you're not careful, and don't untick a box, you get some toolbar or something loaded by the back door.

That'd be because of the continuing discovery of zero-day bugs in the java browser plug-in(s). This sort of thing...

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/03/05/java_self_signed_exploit_spotted/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/03/01/another_day_another_java_zero_day/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01/30/oracle_java_security_analysis/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01/10/java_0day/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01/15/avoid_java_in_browsers/

And you're right about the fucking trojan horse approach to installing unwanted crapware. It's bloody annoying and totally unnecessary. It would be marginally less evil if it didn't reset your default search engine with a crap search engine with a dodgy approach to deciding result order. More about that here...

http://www.zdnet.com/a-close-look-at-how-oracle-installs-deceptive-software-with-java-updates-7000010038/
Long (for web article) piece, but worth a read.

Ham · « **Reply #3087 on:** 08 March, 2013, 01:02:01 pm »

Uninstalling Java:

http://www.guidingtech.com/20274/completely-remove-uninstall-java-windows-pc/

You are unlikely to notice the difference

Dibdib · « **Reply #3088 on:** 08 March, 2013, 01:06:32 pm »

I'm almost certainly going to get stuck in the office this afternoon. On a Friday, of all days. Grumble.

matthew · « **Reply #3089 on:** 08 March, 2013, 07:11:41 pm »

Count yourself lucky, I was hoping that after working this coming Saturday the project was going to calm down. It will, only for me to be parachuted into another to help dig my equivalent team out of a hole of the project managers making. He only promised a schedule to the client without first checking he had the resources to meet it.
Bang go my next two Saturdays as well.

My pay packet in April should make good reading with the overtime.

Jurek · « **Reply #3090 on:** 08 March, 2013, 10:26:30 pm »

22:25
It's no time to be putting supper on the table.
How did you let that happen. Jurek?
Meh!

andrewc · « **Reply #3091 on:** 08 March, 2013, 10:56:01 pm »

Quote from: Jurek on 08 March, 2013, 10:26:30 pm

22:25
It's no time to be putting supper on the table.
How did you let that happen. Jurek?
Meh!

Coming home from work tired & pissed off ? Having a "little" lie down......that's how it happened to me

Just finished my steak.....

Wombat · « **Reply #3092 on:** 09 March, 2013, 02:17:29 pm »

Quote from: fboab on 06 March, 2013, 10:40:42 am

Even in this side of this country water is not scarce. We waste a lot of drinking quality water for tasks we could do with grey water. There are high levels of facetiousness in my "I don't drink water" but as I'm not on the mains for sewage, nor on roads with storm drains I resent paying this much. The last bill worked out as half this. Metering would save me money, if it took this into account

If you don't have mains drainage, then you aren't paying for sewage, unless someone has screwed up. Same for roads with no drainage. Just having the latter argument with our lot, as I'm on an unmade up unadopted road. Sadly I do discharge some rainwater into the drains, as I can't manage to store it all. Metered bills take into account your consumption, on the "getting rid of it" aspect too. I suggest firm words with your water company.

tiermat · « **Reply #3093 on:** 12 March, 2013, 12:49:07 pm »

Where the frigging hell is my Ortlieb map holder? I can find the blue, round the neck, hiking one, but not the $SILLY_COST Ortlieb one that fixes to the bar bag...

GRRRRR, I know it is around here somewhere, just where I don't know yet.

Whilst I am on, left knee, there is no need to come out in sympathy with the rest of my body right now, I was looking forward to a nice, peaceful, night's sleep last night. My stomach behaved itself but you had to go and ruin it all, didn't you?

Guy · « **Reply #3094 on:** 13 March, 2013, 10:49:23 am »

My proto-Babbage Random Error Message Generation Machine is REALLY pissing me off this morning

Vince · « **Reply #3095 on:** 13 March, 2013, 10:53:38 am »

So its working correctly then

Guy · « **Reply #3096 on:** 13 March, 2013, 11:27:40 am »

It has long been a firmly-held belief of mine that computers are instruments of STAN. Are you telling me I've got something right for once?

tiermat · « **Reply #3097 on:** 13 March, 2013, 03:20:16 pm »

Why am I so bloody good at losing stuff, and no good at finding it again?

The latest thing is the map case for my bar bag. I know I had it somewhere around the house but can't find it anywhere.

I have had to order a new one.

The old one will now turn up, guaranteed!

Mrs Pingu · « **Reply #3098 on:** 13 March, 2013, 04:48:59 pm »

Is it because you've got the wrong chromosome to look *properly*?
<runs >

tiermat · « **Reply #3099 on:** 13 March, 2013, 04:53:59 pm »

Quote from: Mrs Pingu on 13 March, 2013, 04:48:59 pm

Is it because you've got the wrong chromosome to look *properly*?
<runs >

You can run, but you can't hide!

Well you can hide, and I probably wouldn't find you unless I was looking for, oh, I don't know, something like a teapot...