"liquid, rather than solid, fuel"
This is a slam on the proposed Ariane replacements that might use a solid first stage.
Posts by Gene Cash
6938 publicly visible posts • joined 22 Mar 2007
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Engineering fault stops SpaceX launch of machine comms satellite network
Surprise Android 'KitKat' update fixes nasty OpenSSL vuln
Judge could bin $325m wage-fixing settlement in Silicon Valley
Microsoft hopes for FONDLESLAB FRENZY as Surface Pro 3 debuts
VIDEO SELFIE DRONE: 'AirDog' UAV follows you everywhere you go
Bankers bid to use offshore temp techies
Friday 20th June 2014 04:58 GMT 
Er, I don't see anything wrong with it
It looks to me like a provision saying "we can bring in people that know what the hell they're doing to fix our shit when it's broke, without waiting for an 8-week visa process"
If I was running one of these banker's global IT departments, I'd have just one team of smart guys that fly to where ever they're needed to fix stuff, when the local team of idiots screw the pooch again. These blokes will probably be pretty highly paid, but there will just be the one bunch.
Apple files patent for camera lens controlled by 'artificial muscle'
T-Mobile boss: 'High and mighty' Verizon and AT&T are 'raping you for every penny you have'
Thursday 19th June 2014 21:09 GMT
When I had Verizon, I paid (including my 20% EMPLOYEE-OF-BIGCO discount) literally triple my T-Mobile rate, and had a locked phone to boot. In addition, I didn't have cell coverage at work, and I barely had it at home.
Now with T-Mobile, I have yet to find a coverage issue in Florida, except just south of NASA/KSC where it's kind of spotty. Plus I've used my completely unlocked Nexus 4 & Moto G w/o a problem.
This is why I want Sprint to keep their damned paws off.
Columbia U boffins HACK GOOGLE PLAY to check apps
Facebook reveals open network gear to drive WEDGE between itself and Cisco
'Cortana-gate' ruins Satya Nadella's Microsoft honeymoon
Tuesday 17th June 2014 16:07 GMT
Google Now sucks stellar masses through millipore filters
I got bored and decided to try it on my Moto G. I mainly wanted the voice commands. Turns out that is not available on the Moto G unless I hack in the "Nexus 4 Google Experience Launcher" as it seems the launcher is where the always-on voice recognition feature resides. If you don't have it, you end up with the Apple-style push-a-button-for-Siri setup.
Since I'm much happier with my own launcher, I turned Google Now back off.
Damned toxic hellbrew of fragmentation.
I'll be happy to install Cortana and give her a try (fnarr!)
Toyota catches up to William Gibson with LED hood
'Hashtag' added to the OED – but # isn't a hash, pound, nor number sign
Friday 13th June 2014 20:30 GMT 
Got me extra points once
One question, worth 10 points on my Discrete Structures test, was "What is the real name of the # symbol?" and the answer the rather strange and twisted (but fun!) instructor wanted was octothorpe.
So that replaced 2 questions I totally bombed and I still managed 100%
This was about 1986, long before twitter... but I did have BITNET access.
Waiting gamer slams no-show show: E3 – was that it?
Friday 13th June 2014 16:08 GMT 
If it's multiplayer, I don't want it
I don't like people and I sure as hell don't want to spend my game entertainment time associating with them. I especially hate it when I have to be part of some sort of team and the other players' lack of skill and planning ability means I lose too.
Muting the mike only gets you so far.
Yes. Facebook will KNOW you've been browsing for smut
Put down that sandblaster: Google adds street art to online gallery
Oracle rewrites 'the brain' of its database to take on SAP
Apple seeks 'friendly' mouthpiece after losing tight-lipped Cotton spinner – report
NeoPost: This is how you DON'T do PIN security
Fantastic fantasy four-way fling – and family-friendly fun
The Strippers, Unicorn Computers and Martian Watches of Computex
YOU - NASA. Enough with the ROBOTS, get some PEOPLE to MARS
Thursday 5th June 2014 15:54 GMT
Actually, it's not the NASA budget, it's the DOD/NSA budget for spysats, which is a far larger gravy train.
Look at what Boeing/ULA are charging for Atlas V launches, look at how much SpaceX says they can launch for, and look at how hard Boeing/ULA are fighting to keep SpaceX out of the USAF bidding because they know he can do it too.
Elon Musk proved that it is commercially viable to haul cargo into orbit, when all the conventional wisdom said it would never ever be cost-effective, and that everyone would have to suck gov't funding teats forever.
He's also doing the first original research into basic rocket technology in 40 years. Everyone has talked about booster recovery since Apollo, but no one has ever done the smallest effort toward it, other than possibly DC-X.
So when he says "Hey, I want to go to Mars, and I think I can afford it" I tend to think he has a chance.
Gunmaker finds KILLER APP for Google Glass
New software nasty encrypts Android PHONE files and demands a ransom
Wednesday 4th June 2014 20:30 GMT
Re: Why?
I know 2 people that had their phone stolen, 3 that have lost theirs, and I've personally broken 2 phones because I just love dropping expensive equipment. Pro tip: a motorcycle fork leg w/o any fluid in it gets destroyed when you drop it, too. So does a DMM. And a crystal vase. And a CRT (tho that was on purpose)
Also, if it's really dry and you build up a damn good static charge, your Moto G touchscreen will stop working when you zap it. Motorola did RMA it, even though I fully confessed to the deed.
Good news for gamers who don't leave the house: SanDisk debuts 24/7 Extreme PRO SSD
Russians turn Raspberry Pi into fully-fledged autopilot
Linux users at risk as ANOTHER critical GnuTLS bug found
Wednesday 4th June 2014 16:46 GMT
Huge list of things dependent on 2.12 STILL
In Debian Testing, libgnutls28 is 3.2.14, so I can upgrade that when it comes out.
However, I have a ton of stuff still dependent on libgnutls26 (2.12.23-15)
pidgin, libreoffice, virtualbox, xine, gnome-keyring, pavucontrol from pulseaudio, mplayer, smb-client, wireshark, emacs, x11vnc, curl, git, glib-networking...
Is that going to be patched? I don't think so...
How I poured a client's emails straight into the spam bin – with one Friday evening change
US dairy biz in a churn over TPP
HP reveals Apple-powered Android 'SlateBook'
DIY IoT computer smaller than a square inch
Monday 2nd June 2014 18:45 GMT
It's news because it's actually available, with real support, instead of being something that you can't get docs for, can only get docs for them under NDA (good luck with that with a Chinese part if you don't have a contact in China that can negotiate for you) or only have docs available that are leaked from reference board bundles and probably aren't up to date or even worse pre-release advance info.
Congressman pitches bill to disarm FCC in net neutrality warfare
SpaceX 'Dragon V2' rocket podule can hover-land on Earth - or MARS
Friday 30th May 2014 15:40 GMT
8 rockets
It has 8 rockets, not 4, arranged in pairs. These are the ones it can lose two of, and still land.
Now what I wonder about is if it can lose both pair of a single pod... that might be iffy control-wise.
And I'll bet that 3D rocket engine printer is a very closely guarded highly proprietary secret. You'd probably have more luck getting Apple iPhone source code than getting that secret out of Musk & Co.
Friday 30th May 2014 15:36 GMT
Re: lander legs and fuel
Erm. where do you think the Shuttle's landing gear extended from? As well as the large (18") pipes to the external tank, which were covered by doors too. Intentional holes can actually be engineered to not be a problem.
And no, the rockets don't fire all the way down, just a bit at the end, just like the Lunar Module landing on the Moon.
US citizens want stricter CO2 regulations by two to one – Yale poll
Friday 30th May 2014 22:36 GMT
Doesn't that CO2 stuff give ya cancer?
This is no different from all the people that want gluten-free food, but then when asked what gluten is, they have no idea.
Typical idiot on-the-bandwagon Americans. So embarrassed to be associated with that in any way, shape, or form.
I think I learned more history from reading the "useful notes" pages of TV Tropes than I ever did in school.
Oi, ebook price fixer. Yes, you, Apple – stop whinging and get your chequebook out
Brunner does a runner: Beats designer must hand the brand to Apple
Jade Rabbit nearly out of hop
Tesla's top secret gigafactories: Lithium to power world's vehicles? Let's do the sums
PC-infecting chat demon quotes THE BIBLE to summon malware plague
Swiping your card at local greengrocers? Miscreants will swipe YOU in a minute
Tuesday 27th May 2014 16:53 GMT
Re: If only...
Yup, just to be a complete dick I've started using checks at the local Target. 6 out of 8 cashiers so far didn't even know how to process one, which makes it even more fun. I'm going to do that until at least past New Year's.
I used my debit card there *ONCE* and got nailed by their breach.
Carry On YouView Regardless, BBC Trust tells the BBC
Tuesday 27th May 2014 16:32 GMT
Re: YouView. Meh.
FWIW my cable box in the US is implemented in Java, and gives stack traces on the screen when I torture it enough, like asking it to switch channels.
Also, the original version of Java was meant to run set-top boxes and similar embedded tasks. Serious feature drift there.
The cable company is getting by the local papers and the greens because the damn thing sucks 10W+ continuously when "off" and from the temperature of the box, I can believe it.
Hello Moto... It's the Nokia Lumia 630
Friday 23rd May 2014 20:26 GMT
That's ok, auto brightness doesn't really work on Android either
On the last 3 Android phones I've had, "auto brightness" meant "MAX BRIGHT unless you're in bed at night with the lights off, at which point it backs off to 50% brightness" and these were phones where 0%-20% was perfectly readable in the office under the standard fluorescent lights.
I got fed up enough to write an app that simply toggled between max dim for indoors and max bright for outdoors.
SpaceX billionaire claims Air Force official 'likely' made job-for-spy-sat-contract deal
Friday 23rd May 2014 18:51 GMT
Read the McCain letter linked by Musk
It's surprisingly readable and free of lawyerese & BS.
It basically says "OK, the USAF says SpaceX doesn't have the heavy rockets to launch the upcoming missions, then the USAF says we can't qualify new rockets for these missions because we don't have missions for these launches. Now which one is it?"
NASA stitches 3.2 gigapixel 'Global Selfie' mosaic
Microsoft boffins: Now even LAWYERS can grok Bing code's privacy compliance
Google hit by class action lawsuit over claimed AdSense fraud
Thursday 22nd May 2014 17:03 GMT
Re: This
This is the same Android that now has a non-removable Google search bar taking up the top 20% of the screen on every homepage. You have to install another launcher app to get rid of it. Not many people outside El Reg even know what a launcher app is, much less that you can change it, in the same vein that they don't know Windows is not a default property of a PC.
This is the same Android that in KitKat whines to let Google sniff my wi-fi traffic EVERY GODDAMN TIME I TURN ON MY GPS and so far there's no way to fix that, short of installing another ROM.
I'm glad they're getting sued.
Scoff ye not: Chap carves crunchy carrot-copter
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Biting the hand that feeds IT
