@sdarlington@mas.to
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

sdarlington

@sdarlington@mas.to

I solve business problems with technology. Startups, field engineering, fast/big data, Open Source, Apple, dad jokes and despair of British politics. He/him.

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ianRobinson, to random
@ianRobinson@mastodon.social avatar

Just got a second payment remittance advice for a payment I got this morning. With a different payment reference number. That’s never happened before. If I get it twice I’ll let them know and bill the next invoice at Zero to cover for it. 🤦🏻‍♂️

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@ianRobinson Alternatively, stash it in your Swiss bank account, move house and vanish. Depending on how big the payment is, of course.

glynmoody, to random
@glynmoody@mastodon.social avatar

UK disposable #vapes ban very likely to become law after lack of objections - https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/jan/29/uk-disposable-vapes-ban-very-likely-to-become-law-after-lack-of-objections "Tory MPs will get free vote on plan to ban vapes and phase out smoking but only Liz Truss has publicly denounced measures"

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@glynmoody Doing the opposite of what Truss supports feels like sound policy making much of the time.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

A waterlogged course and inconsistent running over the last couple of months led to my worst time ever at my local, Tooting Common. But I got out of bed and I did it, which is what counts. The only way is up*.

  • Slower times are also possible.

https://music.apple.com/gb/album/the-only-way-is-up/1444012555?i=1444012754

ianRobinson, to random
@ianRobinson@mastodon.social avatar

The Pizza I saved for today is still here. Miraculously.

I'm going to reheat it in my air fryer.

Cross all the things!

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@ianRobinson Not you ;) https://newsthump.com/2024/01/23/man-with-air-fryer-left-devastated-after-missing-a-conversation-where-he-could-have-mentioned-his-air-fryer/

jamesthomson, to random
@jamesthomson@mastodon.social avatar

So, if around 500 of you could buy a copy of PCalc on or before the 2nd of February, that would be great. Thanks in advance.

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@jamesthomson If you put the price up to $5000 you'll only need to sell one.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

Greeting the Vision Pro with the same enthusiasm as I did the Apple Watch when it was announced. That is... very little. Interesting technology but I don't have a use for it. Of course, I did buy a Watch a few years later. Wonder if the same pattern will emerge?

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@ianRobinson @GreyAreaUK Yep, you'd have ordered one already despite having spent the last week saying you wouldn't ;)

ianbetteridge, to random
@ianbetteridge@writing.exchange avatar

Why look, I could spent all weekend farting around with Emacs to get it to work as a writing tool...

https://fedoramagazine.org/emacs-for-writers/

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@ianbetteridge It would only be a weekend if you already know Lisp. You could easily fritter away more time.

SergKoren, to random
@SergKoren@writing.exchange avatar

I should book a room for the Baltimore Pen Show in March.

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@SergKoren It's nothing to write home about.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

Their last album was a little disappointing so it’s sometimes easy to forget how good their good stuff was. This toot brought to you by Chvrches but could apply to many others. https://music.apple.com/gb/album/graffiti/1444188305?i=1444188484

ianRobinson, to music
@ianRobinson@mastodon.social avatar

Why are we still doing Explicit and Sanitised versions of songs in 2024.

I want an Apple Music setting to always plays E rated versions of songs.

This was triggered by Apple linking to the non E version of the new Ariana Grande song from Instagram.

Here’s the E version: https://music.apple.com/gb/album/yes-and/1724584200?i=1724584201

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@ianRobinson It's always amusing to learn which words they blip out. They're not always consistent.

garius, to random
@garius@mastodon.me.uk avatar

For my next tech history piece for Every, I'll be looking at the rise (and fall) of Osborne Computer Corporation and the Osborne 1 portable.

So if you've got memories of them, or seen good primary source accounts, let me know!

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@garius Don't read that one! The next piece will be even better.

glynmoody, to Horizon
@glynmoody@mastodon.social avatar

How governments become addicted to suppliers like - https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/11/fujitsu_public_procurement/ "the Japanese vendor was won £4.9 billion ($6.25 billion) — jointly and as sole bidder — since the courts ruled the system was not robust in December 2019"

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@glynmoody It becomes self-selecting. The T&Cs that the government insists on means that only a handful of companies can actually afford to bid. My first job out of uni was at a FTSE100 tech consulting company, and they were unable to be the sole bidder for many (if not most) contracts.

sdarlington,
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@glynmoody To get "value for the taxpayer" they insist that suppliers take on a lot of liability. Smaller vendors can't afford it, larger ones have better lawyers than the government, so can avoid the liability in practice.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

My watch has suddenly started doing this. The weather and calendar apps are just… gone. They’ll probably be back in a couple of hours. So weird. I don’t even know where to start to debug this.

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

In the Watch app on my phone, half the built-in apps don't have icons?!

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

The Horizon scandal is not really about IT, it’s about management. All software has bugs. There’s a huge gap between a defect and prosecuting people for theft. The failure was poor management of Fujitsu. To assume that the computer was correct. To prosecute people without fully checking the facts. Those were all management, not technology, decisions. None of which is intended to defend Fujitsu, who seem to have done the bare minimum for the piles of cash they received. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/jan/11/fujitsu-repay-post-office-scandal-horizon-it-software

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

LT: I want to remove a lost phone from Find My but not remove the Activation Lock. Is there a way? If I click "Remove" it says that someone else will be able to use it.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

It's so weird to me that it's a TV show that pushes the Post Office Horizon scandal Into a big news story. About time. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/jan/09/post-office-scandal-could-rules-change-private-prosecutions

stroughtonsmith, to random
@stroughtonsmith@mastodon.social avatar

Vision Pro up for preorder January 19 “starting at $3,499 (U.S.) with 256GB of storage”

"ZEISS Optical Inserts — Readers will be available for $99 (U.S.), and ZEISS Optical Inserts — Prescription will be available for $149 (U.S.).”

"[AVP] comes with a Solo Knit Band and Dual Loop Band […] also includes a Light Seal, two Light Seal Cushions, an Apple Vision Pro Cover for the front of the device, Polishing Cloth, Battery, USB-C Charge Cable, and USB-C Power Adapter.”

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2024/01/apple-vision-pro-available-in-the-us-on-february-2/

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@stroughtonsmith "Flexible straps ensure audio remains close to the user’s ears, while the included Solo Knit Band and Dual Loop Band allow users to find the optimal fit for them."

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@stroughtonsmith Sorry, you're right, you mean two further straps.

glynmoody, to Israel
@glynmoody@mastodon.social avatar

The numbers that reveal the extent of the destruction in - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/08/the-numbers-that-reveal-the-extent-of-the-destruction-in-gaza "’s own ratio would suggest that on average, more than 160 civilians have died each day."

sdarlington,
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@glynmoody And they seem very comfortable with those numbers: 'An IDF spokesperson called that ratio of two civilians to one combatant “tremendously positive”.' Disgraceful.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

My HomePod stereo pair keep drifting out of sync, which is especially noticeable with surround sound tracks. I’m getting close to splitting them. A shame as when it works, it’s great.

SergKoren, to random
@SergKoren@writing.exchange avatar

In 2024, I’ve been studying (an hour a day):

— swing trading (I knew the basics before)

— bridge (I’m trying to re-learn it)

— origami

— doodling/sketching. So far, I’m trying to draw a straight line.

— Japanese (been doing that for a year)

And I haven’t attempted cross-stitching yet.

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

@SergKoren Never heard of swing trading. Though I have worked with companies that use Java Swing apps to trade.

sdarlington, to random
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

That thing where you want to complain about something, but know that if you do you'll get saddled with fixing it.

sdarlington,
@sdarlington@mas.to avatar

I complained about it. I got saddled with fixing it.

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