Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[Machka]

Incidentally, you take pride in spelling well, which is good. I think we either do, or we don't, there is not much middle ground. Pride (in what we do) & respect (for others) are SO important, but much under-rated at present. Both are wonderful virtues.

Schools & parents must take much of the blame or credit for this.

It rankles with me even now that the education system encourages the use of calculators. We should FIRST learn to do maths, or numbers, mentally, or longhand on paper, & not be allowed near calculators until we thoroughly understand how numbers work.

There are few things in life more interesting than numbers, there is a whole world of interesting there, but kids are encouraged to play Computer Games from an early age, which it seems to me, inhibits their social skills & erudicity. (Think I just made that word up).

OK, move on, before I get in trouble......

In the order of Parents and then Schools.

I've seen and heard so many moans about how a parent's child is 'underperforming' according to the parent when I know full well that the parent also moans about homework being sent home and having to read with their child at bedtime.

I think that regardless of what school a child goes to unless they are given the right signals at home they are going to really struggle to switch on at school.

My experience of the school system as it is today is that schools don't permit use of calculators until children have passed the arithmetic stage of maths.

Once children have the grasp of arithmetic then I think it's perfectly OK for them to use calculators.

How they are supposed to maintain their grasp of arithmetic is another matter.

Not sure that computer games or console gaming is also a negative thing.  Like most activities it can be but isn't necessarily so.

Certainly in my household I've seen Leo do some amazing collaborative work online with virtual friends and school friends.  Take for example a game called Minecraft where he has build some of the most amazing city like structures with his friends.  Multi story houses, crop and farming systems with automatic irrigation networks.  Mining systems with trams and carts, automated vending machines to store and recall any of the tools or resources that have been gathered or created over time.  It's all pretty incredible to watch in action.

It's a very different sort of socialising from when I was gr owning up but times have changes, friends are further afield, the world is perceived (I'm not so sure myself) to be a more dangerous place.

[Machka]

http://gizmodo.com/5992652/that-internet-war-apocalypse-is-a-lie?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_twitter&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow






Can you imagine a pest control company proclaiming infestations everywhere? It would at least be investigated but unfortunately the internet isn't understood at all by big corporations.

Now there is a thing!

Did you note I started my Post on the subject by saying "True or False"?

You see, here's the thing.

I was made aware of this "internet melt-down" thing nearly a week ago, but the story did not ring true. There was just no credible evidence out there, that I could see. The original story said that google & Amazon had loaned server capacity to the Dutch Company to ease the load, which sounded like tosh & nonsense to me. A long search revealed no such thing.

But.....

I asked everyone I met, or spoke to, the same question.

"Does your internet seem slower this week?"

And an amazing number said "yes, deffo, knew there was something wrong, been slow for days".  

It is, sort of, the placebo thing. People WANT to believe the story, so it satisfied them.

I did not DARE ask the question on the Forum next door though, they'd all have said it was the fault of Sky Poker. Trust me, they would. The ease with which we finger-point these days is really very scary & illogical.  

Did you know that Sir Alex Ferguson is a useless Manager, & often picks the wrong team, or players out of position? He does. A bloke said so, on the internet, without a trace of irony.  

Anyway, we can breathe easy for a few days, the internet is safe for now.

Can you - Adam - imagine a world without internet, or computers?

What would you do if that arose, how would your life change? No Online Poker or Online betting, no computer games, no e-Mails, and you'd have to learn to write people letters, stick them in envelopes, pop a stamp on, & stick them in a pillar box. You'd get a reply a week later, too.

Can you imagine life like that?

50% of the educated world (say, all the over 50's), used to live like that, & I would imagine 70% of the world population still do.

I wonder what trolls would do with themselves if there was no internet? Vandalise phone-boxes I suppose.

Isn't it more of a perceived effect rather than the plecebo effect.  I'm sure there is a word for a perceived effect, when someone thinks it's true so it must be?

Have you ever heard anyone say in general conversation, "Hey, my internet is working really fast today?"

The placebo effect is however a strange but true phenomena.

[Machka]

http://gizmodo.com/5992652/that-internet-war-apocalypse-is-a-lie?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_twitter&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow






Can you imagine a pest control company proclaiming infestations everywhere? It would at least be investigated but unfortunately the internet isn't understood at all by big corporations.

Now there is a thing!

Did you note I started my Post on the subject by saying "True or False"?

You see, here's the thing.

I was made aware of this "internet melt-down" thing nearly a week ago, but the story did not ring true. There was just no credible evidence out there, that I could see. The original story said that google & Amazon had loaned server capacity to the Dutch Company to ease the load, which sounded like tosh & nonsense to me. A long search revealed no such thing.

But.....

I asked everyone I met, or spoke to, the same question.

"Does your internet seem slower this week?"

And an amazing number said "yes, deffo, knew there was something wrong, been slow for days".  

It is, sort of, the placebo thing. People WANT to believe the story, so it satisfied them.

I did not DARE ask the question on the Forum next door though, they'd all have said it was the fault of Sky Poker. Trust me, they would. The ease with which we finger-point these days is really very scary & illogical.  

Did you know that Sir Alex Ferguson is a useless Manager, & often picks the wrong team, or players out of position? He does. A bloke said so, on the internet, without a trace of irony.  

Anyway, we can breathe easy for a few days, the internet is safe for now.

Can you - Adam - imagine a world without internet, or computers?

What would you do if that arose, how would your life change? No Online Poker or Online betting, no computer games, no e-Mails, and you'd have to learn to write people letters, stick them in envelopes, pop a stamp on, & stick them in a pillar box. You'd get a reply a week later, too.

Can you imagine life like that?

50% of the educated world (say, all the over 50's), used to live like that, & I would imagine 70% of the world population still do.

I wonder what trolls would do with themselves if there was no internet? Vandalise phone-boxes I suppose.

Finally from me, a world with no Internet, how about a world with no electricity?

New TV series just started last night on Sky 1 - looks pretty good so far

http://sky1.sky.com/sky1hd-shows/revolution

Click to see full-size image.

[rfgqqabc]

http://gizmodo.com/5992652/that-internet-war-apocalypse-is-a-lie?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_twitter&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow






Can you imagine a pest control company proclaiming infestations everywhere? It would at least be investigated but unfortunately the internet isn't understood at all by big corporations.

Now there is a thing!

Did you note I started my Post on the subject by saying "True or False"?

You see, here's the thing.

I was made aware of this "internet melt-down" thing nearly a week ago, but the story did not ring true. There was just no credible evidence out there, that I could see. The original story said that google & Amazon had loaned server capacity to the Dutch Company to ease the load, which sounded like tosh & nonsense to me. A long search revealed no such thing.

But.....

I asked everyone I met, or spoke to, the same question.

"Does your internet seem slower this week?"

And an amazing number said "yes, deffo, knew there was something wrong, been slow for days".  

It is, sort of, the placebo thing. People WANT to believe the story, so it satisfied them.

I did not DARE ask the question on the Forum next door though, they'd all have said it was the fault of Sky Poker. Trust me, they would. The ease with which we finger-point these days is really very scary & illogical.  

Did you know that Sir Alex Ferguson is a useless Manager, & often picks the wrong team, or players out of position? He does. A bloke said so, on the internet, without a trace of irony.  

Anyway, we can breathe easy for a few days, the internet is safe for now.

Can you - Adam - imagine a world without internet, or computers?

What would you do if that arose, how would your life change? No Online Poker or Online betting, no computer games, no e-Mails, and you'd have to learn to write people letters, stick them in envelopes, pop a stamp on, & stick them in a pillar box. You'd get a reply a week later, too.

Can you imagine life like that?

50% of the educated world (say, all the over 50's), used to live like that, & I would imagine 70% of the world population still do.

I wonder what trolls would do with themselves if there was no internet? Vandalise phone-boxes I suppose.

I did note the true or false, but I spent a long time yesterday catching up on areas important to me regarding the internet, internet activism (hacktivism) and the positive uses of the internet. I am going to write an indepth blog about this sort of thing in the next few days, I'm expecting a 2 parter essay or so. I will make sure to link you.

I often dreamt of being able to go and live on a desert island somewhere, able to be happy learning to function and survive. I had looked at deserted islands, but it does seem almost impossible to do. However, I wouldn't rule out I go try something like this at some point in my life.

My first true passion was reading. I read ferociously. I have an extremely addictive personality, so typically when i start  reading a book, I try not to stop. Around age 7-10 I learnt I could use torches and lamps etc to read under the covers, and I can remember reading whole books in a night. I can remember writing letters, and I can remember dial up.   However, I am a massive believer in the internet. Everything in the world has and will continue to improve because of it. The vast quantity of information combined with the speed and ease of access can only help everyone in the world.

Regarding the speed of the internet and the like, we see a lot of scaremongering in regards to these things. I am desperate to write more but I need to stop before I waste any more material.

One of my favourite people in the world read a lot also. And she kept a diary. I've never been allowed to see it, and I'm not sure anyone has. I do sometimes wonder when I blog whether the internet is the place for these thoughts, however, the issues that have been most personal to me (mental health) are often extremely taboo, and unless someone is open about it, the world cannot progress. I am comfortable enough in my own skin to admit I had depression. I hope the internet will allow me to help others, and many more than I could have years ago. I doubt I will have a significant impact to the masses, but to help one person would mean the world to me.

Trolls love to troll. I would link you to an article about a very interesting and disturbing man, but he is a decent chunk of my essay, so I will leave that for now. To answer the bolded question, no, not really. I would have functioned fine without the internet, but having experienced it, the thought of going back is quite scary.

Sorry for the wall of text. Sometimes I just get writing and despite typing with both my index fingers (I'm not even kidding, its a joke really) writing will always be a love of mine.

[kinboshi]

http://gizmodo.com/5992652/that-internet-war-apocalypse-is-a-lie?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_twitter&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow






Can you imagine a pest control company proclaiming infestations everywhere? It would at least be investigated but unfortunately the internet isn't understood at all by big corporations.

Now there is a thing!

Did you note I started my Post on the subject by saying "True or False"?

You see, here's the thing.

I was made aware of this "internet melt-down" thing nearly a week ago, but the story did not ring true. There was just no credible evidence out there, that I could see. The original story said that google & Amazon had loaned server capacity to the Dutch Company to ease the load, which sounded like tosh & nonsense to me. A long search revealed no such thing.

But.....

I asked everyone I met, or spoke to, the same question.

"Does your internet seem slower this week?"

And an amazing number said "yes, deffo, knew there was something wrong, been slow for days". 

It is, sort of, the placebo thing. People WANT to believe the story, so it satisfied them.

I did not DARE ask the question on the Forum next door though, they'd all have said it was the fault of Sky Poker. Trust me, they would. The ease with which we finger-point these days is really very scary & illogical. 

Did you know that Sir Alex Ferguson is a useless Manager, & often picks the wrong team, or players out of position? He does. A bloke said so, on the internet, without a trace of irony. 

Anyway, we can breathe easy for a few days, the internet is safe for now.

Can you - Adam - imagine a world without internet, or computers?

What would you do if that arose, how would your life change? No Online Poker or Online betting, no computer games, no e-Mails, and you'd have to learn to write people letters, stick them in envelopes, pop a stamp on, & stick them in a pillar box. You'd get a reply a week later, too.

Can you imagine life like that?

50% of the educated world (say, all the over 50's), used to live like that, & I would imagine 70% of the world population still do.

I wonder what trolls would do with themselves if there was no internet? Vandalise phone-boxes I suppose.

Isn't it more of a perceived effect rather than the plecebo effect.  I'm sure there is a word for a perceived effect, when someone thinks it's true so it must be?

Have you ever heard anyone say in general conversation, "Hey, my internet is working really fast today?"

The placebo effect is however a strange but true phenomena.

Think the effect here is observer bias.

[Royal Flush]

http://gizmodo.com/5992652/that-internet-war-apocalypse-is-a-lie?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_twitter&utm_source=gizmodo_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow






Can you imagine a pest control company proclaiming infestations everywhere? It would at least be investigated but unfortunately the internet isn't understood at all by big corporations.

Now there is a thing!

Did you note I started my Post on the subject by saying "True or False"?

You see, here's the thing.

I was made aware of this "internet melt-down" thing nearly a week ago, but the story did not ring true. There was just no credible evidence out there, that I could see. The original story said that google & Amazon had loaned server capacity to the Dutch Company to ease the load, which sounded like tosh & nonsense to me. A long search revealed no such thing.

But.....

I asked everyone I met, or spoke to, the same question.

"Does your internet seem slower this week?"

And an amazing number said "yes, deffo, knew there was something wrong, been slow for days". 

It is, sort of, the placebo thing. People WANT to believe the story, so it satisfied them.

I did not DARE ask the question on the Forum next door though, they'd all have said it was the fault of Sky Poker. Trust me, they would. The ease with which we finger-point these days is really very scary & illogical. 

Did you know that Sir Alex Ferguson is a useless Manager, & often picks the wrong team, or players out of position? He does. A bloke said so, on the internet, without a trace of irony. 

Anyway, we can breathe easy for a few days, the internet is safe for now.

Can you - Adam - imagine a world without internet, or computers?

What would you do if that arose, how would your life change? No Online Poker or Online betting, no computer games, no e-Mails, and you'd have to learn to write people letters, stick them in envelopes, pop a stamp on, & stick them in a pillar box. You'd get a reply a week later, too.

Can you imagine life like that?

50% of the educated world (say, all the over 50's), used to live like that, & I would imagine 70% of the world population still do.

I wonder what trolls would do with themselves if there was no internet? Vandalise phone-boxes I suppose.

Finally from me, a world with no Internet, how about a world with no electricity?

New TV series just started last night on Sky 1 - looks pretty good so far

http://sky1.sky.com/sky1hd-shows/revolution

Click to see full-size image.

I've seen season 1, watchable but not much more than that. Fun concept though.

[RED-DOG]

The Village, BBC1

Much better series.

[RED-DOG]

http://www.creativeengland.co.uk/index.php/2013/creative-england-provides-production-support-to-new-bbc-one-drama-the-village/

[titaniumbean]

I like the slow rendition of I vow to thee on the advert!

[RED-DOG]

I like the slow rendition of I vow to thee on the advert!

Really?

Who'd a thunk?

[titaniumbean]

I like the slow rendition of I vow to thee on the advert!

Really?

Who'd a thunk?

ya shame it's not gangster rap like what I normally listen to, but makes a nice change.

[RED-DOG]

I like the slow rendition of I vow to thee on the advert!

Really?

Who'd a thunk?

ya shame it's not gangster rap like what I normally listen to, but makes a nice change.

Stereotyping. My bad.


I'm quite partial to a bit of gangsta myself as it happens.

I'm Utah, I got multiple bitches
It's a new law keep a hold of yo riches
Dumb nigga don't spend it as soon as you get it
And recognize I'm a captain and you a lieutenant......

[kinboshi]

Google's annual offering:

http://www.google.co.uk/intl/en/landing/nose/

[Jon MW]

Incidentally, you take pride in spelling well, which is good. I think we either do, or we don't, there is not much middle ground. Pride (in what we do) & respect (for others) are SO important, but much under-rated at present. Both are wonderful virtues.

Schools & parents must take much of the blame or credit for this.

It rankles with me even now that the education system encourages the use of calculators. We should FIRST learn to do maths, or numbers, mentally, or longhand on paper, & not be allowed near calculators until we thoroughly understand how numbers work.

There are few things in life more interesting than numbers, there is a whole world of interesting there, but kids are encouraged to play Computer Games from an early age, which it seems to me, inhibits their social skills & erudicity. (Think I just made that word up).

OK, move on, before I get in trouble......

In the order of Parents and then Schools.

I've seen and heard so many moans about how a parent's child is 'underperforming' according to the parent when I know full well that the parent also moans about homework being sent home and having to read with their child at bedtime.

I think that regardless of what school a child goes to unless they are given the right signals at home they are going to really struggle to switch on at school.

My experience of the school system as it is today is that schools don't permit use of calculators until children have passed the arithmetic stage of maths.

Once children have the grasp of arithmetic then I think it's perfectly OK for them to use calculators.

How they are supposed to maintain their grasp of arithmetic is another matter.
...

Tikay, it's good that you manage to put a post about people thinking their internet is going slowly because they've been told it is - so close to your post about pupils being allowed to use calculators instead of learning arithmetic. Why did you think that was true?

NB as well as not being able to use calculators until arithmetic has already been covered, pupils are also not allowed to use calculators in any exams which test their arithmetic. I think it's a shame that so many people don't care that their arithmetic is poor (most of them would mind if their literacy was so bad) but calculators are the way of covering it up rather than the cause of it.

[tikay]

Paulo de Canio is a Football Manager.

He has plied his trade here for years, first as a footballer, now as a Manager. He's a bit "Marmite", but his trademark is passion. One former Boss of his said of him that it was "like handling a live hand grenade".

At one time, he was lionised for doing the opposite to what most Pro Footballers would do, when he spurned an open goal rather than take advantage of an injured player. Proper hero then, footballers don't do that.

He left Swindon Town recently, (he was a "hero" there, too) impassioned & proper pissed off because he could not get his own way.

Days later, using the office keys he had retained, he "broke in" to his former Employers office & took some stuff he thought belonged to him.

He has some history, suggesting he is a Fascist. I don't really give a toss what he does with his life, I have my own life, & issues. Nobody bothered about his alleged Fascism either. Well, not until he signed for Sunderland as their Manager.

Now it just happens that David Muilliband was a Director of Sunderland, but, one suspects, more mindful of his political career than anything else, he resigned his position, citing De Canio's Facist links. Cue uproar, & a full-on villification crusade.

All OK so far then. Hero turned villain, seen it, done it.

Now look at this photograph that today's Times published on it's front page.

How clever is that? It really does make him look a bit evil. And maybe he is, though nobody seemed to care before.

The Media really is very clever at shaping perceptions, & they love nothing more than knocking someone, it makes a right good story.

Maybe it is just me, but I think this is a really clever piece of media manipulation.

Roll up, roll up, we have a new hate figure.

PS - I repeat, I don't really have any view on whether he is a Fascist or not. Not many did until a few days ago.

Click to see full-size image.