Category: Technology

TECHNOLOGY: why can’t I … …

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

My knee hurts. I have a doctor’s appointment (first available and will take some else’s cancellation). I am sitting in my car and have my leg stuck out the door because my knee doesn’t hurt when stretch that way. My car insists that I close the door by an incessant unending annoying beeping. So even if put the accessories on, it keeps beeping.

Now here is the funny part. If I start the engine, it stops. Isn’t it more dangerous to have the door open with the car running than when it is off?

Hence to me this is a tech fail. And I hope the designer and the engineer who implemented it spend some time in Purgatory listening to this torture.

Argh!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: No help for you if you ext to a land line

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

A now funny incident pointed out a “hidden flaw” in the process of sending a text message.

A recent “I’m hone safe” text message was not received which led to a comedy of errors worthy of a Marx Brothers’ skit.  

An “after action” review  — although it wasn’t called that  — revealed that the text message was sent to a land line.

No error message was “thrown up”.

It would seem that Apple and Android could easily validate mobile versus landline and prevent such a blunder.

But, I guess there’s no demand for such “smarts”; just AI to produce revenue.

Argh!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Great stickers for social media

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://kottke.org/24/02/virtual-stickers-to-manage-replies-by

 

 

a virtual sticker that reads 'Do not reply to tell me you don't have this problem'

a virtual sticker that reads 'Do not reply unless you have direct experience'

 

a virtual sticker that reads ‘Do not reply, I’m just complaining, not asking for help’

 

a virtual sticker that reads 'This is an observation. Do not attempt to help. No reply necessary.'

*** end quote ***

Great idea!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Get eyeglass prescriptions on paper

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

Get eyeglass prescriptions on paper

My cousin is now in a nursing home and broke her glasses. The lens was lost. I which I had gotten that Rx on paper to get a replacement. Never thought of it. So thought I’d share it to help someone avoid my frustration. (I have my own prescriptions on a credit card type thing that I got from USAGLASSES mail order.). Just never thought of it for my old relatives. Argh!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: The demise of Blu-Rays and DVDs allows real time “book burnings”

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2024/01/05/nolte-best-buy-end-sales-blu-rays-dvds/

Nolte: Best Buy to End Sales of Blu-Rays and DVDs
John Nolte 5 Jan 2024

  • Best Buy will stop selling physical media this year, according to numerous reports.

*** begin quote ***

“The move away from physical media has been attributed to the changing habits of [stupid] consumers, who increasingly prefer streaming and digital downloads over traditional physical formats,” per the report. “This trend has been evident over the last decade as DVD and Blu-ray sales have experienced a significant decline.”

*** and ***

What’s the matter with you people?

This is our art! And you’re going to leave it in the hands of left-wing multinational corporations like Disney, Apple, and Amazon?

Hey, it’s no skin off my nose. I got mine, and I’m going to keep right on getting mine. But if you have a movie or book or TV show or video game you love, you are facing a future where it will either get disappeared, be censored, or made available only through a monthly subscription service.

I refuse to live in that future.

*** end quote ***

I learned this lesson when all my books on cassette were made obsolete and I was urged to rebut the same content on CDs.  I griped to anyone who listen and fell on the deaf ears  of all the politicians and bureaucrats. I refused to buy it all again. 

Then the car makers dropped the cassette players.  And, I was really screwed.  So I used drive with a portable cassette player in my truck and my car.  Finally the tapes began to wear out and I just gave up.

I still hate the Gooferment politicians and bureaucrats for “copyright” law that makes me “license” content that I “buy”.   

Sorry, but I’m not buying into the whole scam.

Like “lifetime guarantees”, the value of a dollar, and “jumbo shrimp”, I can recognize a scam from a long way off and here comes the next one.  Before long, every streaming “service” will force you to pay for everything al la carte IN ADDITION TO a low monthly “membership fee”.  

Argh!

And the rubes aka “We, The Sheeple” will hail “progress”.   Not me.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Drones become the future of warfare?

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12926561/I-saw-naked-children-eyes-gouged-cheer-time-dead-Russian-Ukrainian-drone-unit-reveals-secrets-hunting-Putins-forces-champion-killing-500-day-despite-bizarre-trick-enemy-troops-use-stay-alive.html

Ukraine has seen the most intensive use of drones in the history of warfare

  •     Sergey Panashchuk spoke to operators deep underground on the frontlines

By Sergey Panashchuk
Published: 03:21 EST, 6 January 2024 | Updated: 06:31 EST, 6 January 2024 

*** begin quote ***

I could not ever imagine that 30 years later, I would be sitting in a bunker and watching a similar picture, and both the bunker and the picture would be as real as it gets.

Our bunker is just a mile from the frontline, and it is well hidden underground. It can probably survive a direct hit from a 500-kilo KAB [Russian air-guided bomb]; no one would want to check if that is true, of course. But chances are high, as Russians constantly use their air sovereignty and KAB’s as the last argument, up to 10 times a day.

I am a guest here, but the bunker is a temporary home for four army men. It is equipped with four bunk beds, Starlink, boxes with ammunition, and food.

An operator sits at the table and monitors online streaming from the drones. Casually clicking the mouse and choosing one live stream over another. Another two soldiers are playing backgammon. The fourth is cleaning his AK rifle.

‘Look guys, that might be interesting!’ calls the operator. All of us are glued to the screen. A drone detected a group of four Russian soldiers.

*** end quote ***

I worry what happens when this “technology” comes to the criminals (i.e., drug gangs; street thugs; other gangs like Gooferment politicians and bureaucrats).

It’s just a matter of time.

How will “We, The Sheeple” respond?

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: DIRECT TV STREAMING did a complete restart this morning.

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

ATT DIRECT TV STREAMING

Lost the ability to adjust the volume.

Started to troubleshoot, by resetting the dongle.

Things now worse

After trying all sorts of “stuff”.

Called their tech support.

They instructed us to do a few thing we’d already done.

Then, they discovered that the definition of what TV was connected was <NONE>.

Reset that to “SAMSUNG”.

Problem solved.

# – # – # – # – # 

OF course, no explanation of why the problem occurred in the first place!!!

Argh!

Wasted almost an hour on the problem.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Save 10% in airline fuel with a smoother ride?

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/turbulence-solutions-aviation-industry-free?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter

Turbulence Solutions to make ‘whole aviation industry turbulence-free’

  • Austrian startup Turbulence Solutions aims to eradicate turbulence for everything from light aircraft and air taxis to the largest commercial airliners.

Chris Young
Published: Dec 09, 2023 10:49 AM EST

*** begin quote ***

With this in mind, the Turbulence Cancelling system could result in “up to 10 percent of fuel savings,” Galffy continued. If applied across the aviation industry, this could also lead to a significant reduction in carbon emissions.

*** end quote ***

If I was Big AirTravel, then I’d be REAL interested in the money savings.  Passenger comfort isn’t the bottom line.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Tell 911 call handlers precisely where to send help is vital

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://what3words.com/news/blog/how-what3words-is-being-used-in-texas?utm_campaign=USA%20B2C%20Newsletter%202023&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=286051771&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8wcHBer7Uje11CKMMoLBg90Bgp1QOb6BCmnTtIKsRXT65ZtRu-xWfxrEmLitaIor6zhsbezVzhrUHb1tjRDBivi5Td8w&utm_content=285635558&utm_source=hs_automation

Getting help where it’s needed

In an emergency, being able to tell 911 call handlers precisely where to send help is vital – but this can be difficult when you’re out in rural areas or in an unfamiliar part of the city. A what3words address helps you to communicate any exact location easily and efficiently, no matter where you are. This means emergency responders will know exactly where to go, accurate to a 10ft square. Watch as the City of Austin Police Department put it to the test with Inside Edition.

Emergency service departments across Texas and the wider US are using what3words to find people faster and improve response times. You can read the full list of services using it and some of the incredible stories that have involved what3words.

https://what3words.com

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Here’s a new kind of gift card fraud!

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

FROM NEXTDOOR

Inez Avant

• Middlesex, NJ

This happened to me at Walmart. I purchased a 100.00 Play Station card. I took it back and explained I bought this card 5 min ago. I never left the store. I was sending the information to my nephew via text, and I noticed the pin number was already scratched off. They gave me my money back. But I was told by the manager that what is happening is someone is taking a picture of the card number & pin, and when WE buy the card and activate it, the scammers are able to retrieve the gift card funds. Especially around the Holiday time, this happens SO BE CAREFUL – CHECK THE BACK OF THE CARD BEFORE YOU PURCHASE

# – # – # – # – # 

Interesting.  A new type of fraud.  Sigh!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Paper in=person voting with thumb ink is still the best imho

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://freedom-to-tinker.com/2023/10/06/switzerlands-e-voting-system-has-predictable-implementation-blunder/

Switzerland’s e-voting system has predictable implementation blunder
October 6, 2023 by Andrew Appel 

*** begin quote ***

Last year, I published a 5-part series about Switzerland’s e-voting system. Like any internet voting system, it has inherent security vulnerabilities: if there are malicious insiders, they can corrupt the vote count; and if thousands of voters’ computers are hacked by malware, the malware can change votes as they are transmitted. Switzerland “solves” the problem of malicious insiders in their printing office by officially declaring that they won’t consider that threat model in their cybersecurity assessment.

But the Swiss Post e-voting system (that Switzerland uses) addresses the malware-in-voter-computer problem in an interesting way that’s worth taking seriously. Each voter is sent a piece of paper with some special “return codes” that are never seen by the voter’s computer, so any potential malware can’t learn them. And each voter is instructed to follow a certain protocol, checking the return codes shown on their screen against the return codes on the paper.

*** end quote ***

This demonstrates that Gooferment can’t run “voting”.  

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: SafeStop allows members of the public to video chat with police

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://ktla.com/news/local-news/weho-drivers-able-to-video-chat-with-deputies-during-traffic-stops/

Local News
WeHo drivers able to video chat with deputies during traffic stops
by: Cameron Kiszla 
Posted: Sep 21, 2023 / 07:29 AM PDT 
Updated: Sep 21, 2023 / 07:32 AM PDT 

  • With traffic stops carrying potential life-and-death stakes, a pilot program using SafeStop intends to lower the temperature, allowing drivers and officers to communicate virtually before meeting face-to-face.

*** begin quote ***

A new smartphone app may do for law enforcement interactions what telemedicine has done for doctors.

The app, SafeStop, allows members of the public to video chat with Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies before the in-person traffic stop, which the app developers said will “de-escalate traffic stops and transform police-motorist interactions.”

Traffic stops in particular have become a point of contention in the ongoing cultural discussion around the role of police in American society.

Multiple deadly encounters between police and civilians began as simple traffic stops, including the high-profile killing of Philando Castile by Minnesota police.

*** end quote ***

I like the concept.

Perhaps if the app was always on, then it might be more useful and wiser friendly.

I’m thinking like Star Trek “open up a hailing frequency”.

I’m not sure I would want to be fumbling with my phone on a dark night when the police want to speak to me.  I was always taught to shut the car off, turn on the inside light, roll down the window, keep my hands at 10-2 on the steering window, and shut up.  

Still seems like the best advice.

—30—

 

TECHNOLOGY: Pay attetnion to your dreams?

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://youtu.be/oXSFKcACs1g?si=un_vSQ__55Tc1PIF

What’s the Grappler Police Bumper?
FOX 10 Phoenix  — Sep 2, 2023 

*** begin quote ***

Police pursuits are unpredictable, dangerous, and in some cases, even deadly.

These pursuits put not only officers’ lives in danger, but also innocent people who happen to get caught up in the chaos.

Until recently, there was no safe way to bring them to an end. Officers would have to rely on something called a ‘PIT Maneuver’ (PIT, according to an article on the U.S. Department of Justice’s website, stands for Precision Immobilization Technique) to try to stop the vehicles they were after by forcing a vehicle to spin out and come to a stop. Another option is to lay down spike strips to deflate the tires, but even then, the suspects would often keep going on the rim only.

Five years ago, however, a new option emerged in the form of the Grappler Police Bumper.

*** end quote ***

What a great idea!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: ​Score one save for what3words.

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment
 
​Score one save for what3words.  Everytime I read one of these stories, I think how valuable a (FREE) tool it is.  I then share these stories on social media to encourage others to download it and have it when needed.  Forewarned is forarmed. IMHO
 
—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Put an airtag on every child!

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12442763/Moment-five-year-old-boy-rings-doorbell-help-child-dropped-WRONG-stop-school-bus-driver.html

Moment five-year-old boy rings doorbell for help after he and another child were dropped off at the WRONG stop by school bus driver

  •     Kelly Mulholland said her son and her boyfriend Jonathan Vanderlois’ daughter, both 5, were abandoned at a bus stop together desperately looking for home
  •     Mulholland uploaded the ring video and explanation to TikTok and it went viral

By Aneeta Bhole For Dailymail.Com
Updated: 17:45 EDT, 24 August 2023

*** begin quote ***

Two five-year-old children were abandoned at the wrong bus stop in Edmond, Oklahoma and left to wander a neighborhood miles from their home for more than an hour.

*** end quote ***

Air tags on everything important.

I’d love to be able to hide one in sneakers.

—30—

CHROMEBOOK: This is a fraud and I’m surprised at WalMart

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.androidauthority.com/expired-chromebooks-on-sale-3352831/?utm_campaign=weeklyauthority&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=Weekly%20Authority

Computing
You shouldn’t buy these Chromebooks, even on sale

  • Thanks to Automatic Update Expiration, these Chromebooks will no longer receive any software updates.

By Aamir Siddiqui  —  August 7, 2023

*** begin quote ***

The US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) (via ArsTechnica) pointed out how end-of-life Chromebooks are still sold on various marketplace platforms, like Amazon, Walmart, and possibly others, in new and unused conditions. These include devices like the ASUS Chromebook Flip C302, which was launched in 2018 and reached its Automatic Update Expiration (AUE) date on June 1, 2023. This means the laptop will no longer receive any security or platform updates for its Chrome OS from Google.

*** end quote ***

Google maintains a full list of AUE dates for all models.

Please check BEFORE you buy!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Brazil heads down the CBDC route

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.activistpost.com/2023/08/and-just-like-that-the-brazilian-central-bank-goes-live-with-a-cbdc.html

*** begin quote ***

The ease and speed of Pix also drew the attention of criminals, and all sorts of imaginable hits and scams related to the system soared almost immediately. People now keep a second smartphone with their primary banking apps at home, in fear of being robbed or hijacked and having their accounts wiped clean in minutes.

*** end quote ***

Beware of “technology theft” leading to an empty bank account.

And CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) is just a step forward from the Hollywood Nazi character’s “Where iszt your PAPERS!”.

Just use cash.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Never heard of a “parenting app” for custody disputes

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment
 
Divorced – ex wants 13 yo to have a passport
 
*** begin quote ***
 
Let him file a motion. Until you go to court communicate only through a parenting app and show the judge/commissioner the texts. Dont let him scare you. You have every reason to be concerned.
 
*** end quote ***
 
I didn’t know there was such a thing.  Great idea.  Especially if someone is an a-double-q.  Not very expensive and a lot of choices.
 
—30—
 
 
 
 
 
​

TECHNOLOGY: What program can “unlock unknown numbers”?

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-12364573/A-stalker-hounded-years-sexually-explicit-calls-used-secret-phone-trick-expose-discovered-uncle.html

A stalker hounded me for years with sexually explicit calls – I used a secret phone trick to expose him and discovered it was my uncle

  • Kristen Kime, 30, from Sheffield, turned detective to catch her mystery stalker

By Chelsea Heatley and Ellen Coughlan For Mailonline

Updated: 08:05 EDT, 5 August 2023

*** begin quote ***

In November 2018, her mum suggested she should download a program onto her phone to unlock unknown numbers.

One day, when her stalker called, she received a message, revealing the real number.

After typing it into Facebook, Turner’s profile popped up.

Thinking it was a mistake, she checked with her sister and mum. But they confirmed, the number was her uncle’s.

With her mum’s support, Kristen went to Turner’s house to confront him.

*** end quote ***

I’d love to know more about the technology and chronology.  For example, was it reported to the police and the “phone company”.  As an old phone company guy, I know they have tools to uncover the culprit.

Hope he gets to be “bubba’s gal pal” for a long time.

I can’t imagine torturing a family member like that.  Well maybe even if I didn’t like that family member, that’s just cruel.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: What does the “public” get for its copyright?

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://bleedingfool.com/news/disney-is-no-longer-releasing-physical-media-in-certain-countries/

Disney to Cease Releasing Physical Media in Certain Countries
Chris Braly  — July 28, 2023

*** begin quote ***

The problem with this shift, is that it allows media companies offering digital versions the ability to make edits and changes to the original material, sometimes subtly, sometimes, clumsily, and sometimes stealthily. Disney also happens to be one of the most egregious offenders of this, editing everything from Daryll Hannah’s bum in Splash, to removing dialogue from Academy Award winner The French Connection.

*** end quote ***

It seems that once again “We, The Sheeple” are getting the shaft.

“We” extend copyrights to content creators to encourage making content available.

BUT, (and there is always a BIG butt), “We, The Sheeple” don’t get access to the content we are protecting.

Reasonable people may disagree but taking “copyrighted content” back in a vault is not in the spirit of copyright law.

As with most little L libertarians, copyrights and intellectual property is on shaky ground to start with and now should definitely be revisited.

—30—

HARDWARE: NO folding phones for me

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://arstechnica.com/google/2023/06/rip-to-my-pixel-fold-dead-after-four-days/#p3

Sorry — RIP to my Pixel Fold: Dead after four days

  • The closed display halves almost touch, and that can smash debris into the screen.

Ron Amadeo – 6/26/2023, 1:00 PM

*** begin quote ***

Manufacturers keep wanting to brush off the significant durability issues of flexible OLED displays, thinking that if they just shove the devices onto the market, everything will work out. That hasn’t been the case, though, and any time you see a foldable phone for sale, you don’t have to look far to see reports of dead displays. I’m sure we’ll see several reports of broken Pixel Folds once the unit hits the general public. Corning may save us with an exterior foldable glass cover, but until then, buying any foldable feels like a gamble.

The scary part for Google customers is that a broken Pixel Fold means dealing with the company’s notoriously unhelpful support team. Horror stories are a regular occurrence on the /r/GooglePixel subreddit, where users have called Google Support “hilariously incompetent” and a “nightmare” to deal with, begging the company to improve. It’s one thing to ship normal glass smartphones, but these fragile foldables will put more stress on Google’s support network.

*** end quote ***

I’ve always been suspect of “foldable” phones.  Not the old ones but the new ones that promise a “big” screen from a “small” footprint.

Just ain’t going to happen IRL of rough and tumble.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Give a smartphone too young and you can hurt the youngster?

Published on by reinkefj1 Comment

https://www.ft.com/content/da7bd5c6-1d29-4c40-8578-05966b84346b

FT Magazine Mental health

A decade on, I still wonder if I was wrong to give my daughters a smartphone

  • New research links young people’s worsening mental health to the age they received their first phone

Gillian Tett 

*** begin quote ***

Either way, Haidt thinks there is “a classic collective action problem” making it difficult for parents or schools to impose controls or limits on phone use without “centralised norms”. He thinks, say, that schools should ask kids to leave phones in lockers while in class, but knows that parents might object since they worry they cannot “reach their child if something happens, like a school shooting”.  There are small signs of hope. In Texas, a “Wait Until 8th” grade movement has emerged, with more than 45,000 families signing up. And norms do shift, though as the history of tobacco shows, it took decades even with hard evidence of the damage done by cigarettes.  If you have young children, brace yourself for the battle ahead. If only some genius entrepreneur would invent a dumb cell phone that would appeal to kids but without the addictive lure of the internet. That would be real tech innovation. 

*** end quote ***

This reinforces some concerns that my significant other has for her grandson.  It is addictive.  And, she does limit “screen time”.   I wonder how this all works out in the end.  Seeing other children in restaurants locked into tablets, I can understand her concerns.  I used to think “what harm can it do”; I watched a lot of TV when I was a kid.  Maybe it warped me?

YMMV FWIW

Very provoking article.

—30—

 

TECHNOLOGY: TL;DR Parking machine gives me the wrong change — in its favor of course

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

PERSONAL GRIPE 

Visit a patient in Saint Peter’s University Hospital. Their parking machine cheated me out of 5$ in my change. 

Had to wait for parking supervisor. 20 minutes.  Argh!   (Seems like it happens a lot from what the fellow said.)

My fault for not giving it eight quarters. Argh!

Just infuriates me. Technology is just supposed to work and make our lives easier. Instead it gave me a 15 minute child-like style time out. Argh! Argh!

The Universe was telling me to relax?

# – # – # – # – # 

P.S.: Hey Hospital, have you heard that masks don’t work?  https://health.clevelandclinic.org/can-wearing-a-mask-make-you-sick/ They actually can give you some problems!

Argh!

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Sometimes too much technology is just wasteful overkill

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.thegreenhead.com/2023/03/tineco-toasty-one-smart-toaster-with-touchscreen.php

Tineco Toasty One Smart Toaster with Touchscreen
Appliances | March 28, 2023

*** begin quote ***

This cool new Tineco Toasty One Smart Toaster is a futuristic smart toaster with a touchscreen that allows you to customize the toasting process of two different slices of bread at the same time for personalized perfection. It features a large four inch touchscreen on the side for choosing shade, crispiness, and toasting modes (smart, fresh, reheat, and frozen) for each slot in the toaster, automatically lowers and raises the bread, has an IntelliHeat algorithm that detects the state of the toast and automatically adjusts heating performance, displays a fun visual progress indicator, alerts you when it’s time to empty the crumb tray (when’s the last time you remembered to do that?), has 8 custom preference save options, and has sturdy stainless steel constructed wrapped in an elegant ivory-white porcelain finish that just looks super cool on the countertop. Best of all, after engaging with all of this modern, state-of-the-art toasting technology, in the end you get toast that is golden and crispy on the outside, light and airy on the inside, and toasted just the way you like it, every single time. 

*** end quote ***

What no app to allow you to easily program your toast?

I admire that technology has to try stuff but how a 250$ toaster ever got green lighted is quite beyond me.

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Important New Year’s breakthru in important foodstuff by Iran

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

Some day soon we might be making popcorn with infrared poppers (3 minute read)

Scientists from Iran have figured out how to make popcorn with infrared cooking. Popcorn pops when it is heated above 180 degrees Celsius due to trapped water within the kernel’s endosperm. When it is heated, the pressure from the superheated steam ruptures the kernel, and the starch within is released in a foam. The Iranian team found that heating up kernels using 700 W IR power at a distance of 10 cm produced the highest yield and highest rated popcorn.

# – # – # – # – # 

Hey I’d prefer they work on this rather than atomic bombs!

HNY

—30—

TECHNOLOGY: Micropayments using bitcoin might solve the problem of revenue sharing

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.reddit.com/r/MaliciousCompliance/comments/zgytrl/left_murder_scene_because_my_manager_complained/

Left murder scene because my manager complained about overtime
r/MaliciousCompliance
•Posted by u/Longjumping_Bad9555
6 hours ago

*** begin quote ***

In a past work life I worked at a small newspaper where corporate insisted on paying me hourly, despite the job not being capable of being done in 40 hours.

*** and ***

fishter_uk
4 hr. ago

This was several years ago, that newspaper no longer exists.

DreamOfTheEndlessSky
Avid Voter ·
4 hr. ago

Less funny when you consider how many newspapers have disappeared.

BigRiverHome
Monthly Top 5% Karma+2 ·
2 hr. ago

Funny what happens when you keep decreasing the value of your product.

I used to get the paper and I truly enjoyed reading it every morning. But, it kept getting smaller and smaller, and eventually it was bought out by Gannett, the people behind USA Today. That was pretty much it for me, it just became another version of the USA Today with a thin veneer of local news.

*** end quote ***

# – # – # – # – #

I’m a retired IT guy. I personally have always been surprised that “newspapers” didn’t figure out and implement a micropayment system.

Imagine if you were asked for 0.0001 of something (i.e., a dollar; a bitcoin; a ruble; a yen) for an article. Not some number of dollars for a year, or month, or such.

When you get on internet scale, it’s not hard to imagine getting 50k readers each paying say a penny for an article. That translates to 500$ for that one article.

The current payment technology doesn’t pay to scale that price point.

But now, a paper could collect a fraction of a bitcoin from someone’s public key and encrypt the article so that only the person’s private key could decrypt it. At that level, it wouldn’t be worth pirating it or sharing you private key to deprive the sender of the revenue.

I think that would be the way to save the “local” paper with digital distribution of content.

FWIW YMMV

—30—