Showing 1 - 10 of 11
Chip shortage over by 2023... maybe
Life, James Hein, Published on 29/09/2021
» The current chip shortage could should be a thing of the past by 2023... maybe. The current foundries are booked out for the rest of the year and are starting to catch up with current demand. New plants will be coming online by the end of 2022. The maybe part here is the potential shortage of raw materials needed in the fabrication process. This could be a problem by 2023, or perhaps we may have new manufacturing process by then. Fingers crossed that all is good by the end of next year.
Windows facelift is on the cards
Life, James Hein, Published on 04/08/2021
» Today we start by looking at Windows 11. Microsoft is getting closer to its new major Windows version, expected at the end of the year. According to the marketing blurb it is focused on "simplified design and user experience" along with a few new key features, including Android support.
Redefining your normal and other tech predictions
Life, James Hein, Published on 06/01/2021
» Thank goodness 2020 is finished. Hopefully 2021 will be better and that in this case not all of my predictions will come true.
Limiting discourse, leaking borders
Life, James Hein, Published on 19/06/2019
» It is difficult to ignore the latest moves by social media providers like YouTube to change their terms and conditions so as to block individuals and groups they don't like. The shift from an open platform, where all ideas are welcome, to one more concerned with the window of discourse is disappointing, and points to the huge pressure being applied by a small number of special interest groups, mostly via advertisers. The really sad part of this is that there are already indications that Minds, a supposed open alternative, is already censoring content, so for the moment at least I need to withdraw my recommendation for that platform.
Australia still trailing Thailand in broadband coverage
Life, James Hein, Published on 12/09/2018
» Wither now comms in Australia? With the National Broadband Network or NBN a certified failure, Australia seems to be working hard to ensure that to make the NBN look reasonable, any emerging 5G network must be made to hobble by banning technology companies like Huawei from providing the same kind of support it has been giving over the past 15 years to the local telcos. The given reason is a lack of trust in any Chinese company, keeping the spying eyes of China out of the country. To be fair, there is some justification for this, as China has not been the poster child of espionage abstinence across the globe. What earth-shattering useful secret info they might get from the Australians is debatable, but it looks like the Land Down Under will not be improving their communications any time soon. Thailand is still well ahead on that front.
Praying to false idols
Life, James Hein, Published on 18/01/2017
» The "Apple didn't invent the iPhone" story you may have seen in the media recently, originating from the BBC, has been found to have a number flaws. Using the tried and true tactic -- if you repeat a lie enough times it becomes the truth -- they managed to convince media people everywhere that Apple didn't create the concept of the iPhone. Besides showing just how low and lazy many media people have sunk, the story is far from true.
Fuzzy logic and online translations
Life, James Hein, Published on 07/09/2016
» In the IT world it is very important to get things exactly right, unless of course you are dealing with fuzzy logic. If your banking system, for example, is out by a decimal place, this can lead to some very unhappy customers or some very happy ones and a less than happy bank. There are many areas where calculations and units of measure are vital, just ask one of the Mars exploration landing teams.
Reverting to classic Windows
Life, James Hein, Published on 02/09/2015
» By now a number of readers will have applied the Windows 10 upgrade to their machines. Based on the feedback the first thing you should consider doing is going to www.classicshell.net and downloading the latest version of the free software Classic Shell. I have put this on a number of Windows 8.x machines over the past couple of years without any issues. This utility gives Windows 8 and 10 users back the classic Start menu and associated items. As of writing the latest version is 4.2.4 and I recommend it for all long-term Windows users.
How secure are our secure transactions?
Life, James Hein, Published on 22/10/2014
» So far, this month has been security issue after security issue. Not counting the usual Microsoft updates, Adobe has been having all sorts of vulnerability problems, which explains the rapid fire updates you keep seeing on your computer. The biggest hit nation so far this month, however, has to be South Korea.
Get ready, this week is Apple-heavy
Life, James Hein, Published on 30/07/2014
» At a talk given at the recent Hackers On Planet Earth conference, Jonathan Zdziarski found a number of hidden surveillance tools hidden in the iOS operating system. One provides a back door that, while not wide open, is enough to gain access to the user’s address book, account info and other bits and pieces. In this case, you can get data out, but not back into the device. The retrieved data is in a raw format and needs additional processing. There is also an undocumented packet sniffer (com.apple.pcapd) that can log and export network traffic. These items have been actively updated by Apple, meaning they are not left over from testing.