’s Comments

• Mar 21st, 2017 @ 11:54am

  Re: Time Warner Cable is now Charter (as microface)

  on Despite Gigabit Hype, Comcast Is Facing Less Broadband Competition Than Ever
  Time Warner Cable was bought or taken over by Charter
• Mar 13th, 2017 @ 4:16pm

  A Description from a 9 year old (as microface)

  on Move Over, Series Of Tubes, The Internet Is Now A Bridge Over A Creek For A Dozen People?
  This is a description from a 9 year old
  https://np.reddit.com/r/daddit/comments/2yi6xu/heres_how_my_9year_explained_net_neutrality_to/
  
  My 9-year old son spends a lot of time online and recently came to me asking what Net Neutrality meant. I explained it the best I could. I just okay with current political events and he had a lot of questions. Had to actually look up some answers.
  I recently overheard him explaining it to one of his friends, much better than I could, like this:
  Pretend ice cream stores gave away free milkshakes. But you had to buy a straw to drink them. But that's okay, because you still get free milkshakes. One day you're drinking a free milkshake and you look down and the guy that sold you the straw is pinching it almost shut. You can still get your milkshake, but it's really hard and takes a lot longer.
  So you say, "Hey! Stop that!" And the straw guy says, "NO! Not until the ice cream store pays me money." And you say, "But I already paid you money for the straw." And the straw guy says, "I don't care. I just want more money."
  I think he nailed it.
• Jan 26th, 2016 @ 3:05pm

  Re: They are a State Actor

  on AT&T CEO Thinks You're A Forgetful Idiot, Hilariously Gives Apple Encryption Advice
  Younger Bush Pushed Through legislation that provided retroactive immunity for warrantless wiretapping
  http://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/Judge-Bush-overstepped-wiretapping-authority-3268539 .php
  
  https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111230/00522317232/retroactive-immunity-govt-warrantless-wir etapping-deemed-constitutional-suit-against-govt-lives.shtml
• Mar 5th, 2014 @ 11:54am

  I concur with the others AT&T is only trying to force current landline subscribers to more expensive alternatives

  on AT&T's 'IP Transition' Will Make U.S. Broadband Even Less Competitive
  I live 1 hour drive from Sacramento, CA in a semi-rural area outside of a main city. This group of houses that used to be a farm has a total population around 3 - 4 k and 2/3 of these people have no DSL!!!! They are forced to use ISDN, Satellite, or if they are lucky and live at the top of a hill have some wireless reception. I am lucky since the growth in this enclave forced AT&T to put in a new exchange, and I was close enough to acquire the DSL. For 30 per month I have a whopping 750Kbits per second download speed. you read that right !!!! 750Kbits per second download speed and I am lucky. The cable company Suddenlink does provide a comparable service so AT&T can claim there is competition in the area !!!
  This is a 1 hour drive from Sacramento, CA !!!
  When I visit Europe, India, and South KOrea I brag about what their internet provides to others, just to get somekind of fire under the politicians who allowed this sorry state of affairs. MOre competition , more choices, NO MONOPOLIES AT ALL !!!!
• Feb 14th, 2013 @ 6:11pm

  Idenetity Cards are required in CA and Other States

  on Texas DMV Sells Personal Information To Hundreds Of Companies; Drivers Not Allowed To Opt-Out
  Wether you drive a car or not California, and other states issue Identity cards similar to Driver's Licenses. So people can be identified by Police for offenses other than vehicle offenses. Also they serve as a valid Identity cards for Checks at a store, at least in California
• Feb 14th, 2013 @ 6:06pm

  If not for this article I would never have learned about Anodyne

  on Game Developer Connects With Pirates, Sees Massive Support & Deletion Of Torrents
  If not for this article, I would not have searched for the download.
  If not for the free download I would not have tried the game.
  If I had not tried the game I would not have paid for the game.
  If not for the free download I would not have told my son, and several colleagues about the game.
  See Nice NERDS can and sometimes do win !!
• Feb 27th, 2012 @ 4:17pm

  Area of Interest for Energy Coal Air Fuel Cells

  on Help Create An 'Innovation Agenda' You Wish Politicians Would Support
  Back in 1990's I was involved at SRI International with Molten Carbonate Coal Fuel Cells. The patents have long since expired with no commercialization. With all of our coal and the abundant Sodium Potassium and lithium carbonate available around the World. I would suggest that some form of money be put into this effort so that burning of coal and the required flue gas clean and poisioning of our atmosphere would be decreased. The ash is still a problem, but no sulfur, Mercury or other metals are ever put into the air, because there is no actual burning of the coal.
  High Temperature Direct Coal Fuel Cell - Patent 7799472
• Feb 2nd, 2011 @ 8:02am

  5 of my clients have moved their websites off shore

  on Will Homeland Security Domain Seizures Lead To Exodus From US Controlled Domains?
  I have 5 companies for whom I write software and maintain websites for various purposes. All sell items imported from various countries, using the open trade, or fair trade model. All these websites import form Africa, the Far East etc. They all expressed fear and loathing over the USA government moves, and have requested me to arrange to move them to the .to, .me or some other off shore registry away from ICANN. The move is already happening, there is no if, but how many will run in fear. I agree with the famous quote "I love my country, but fear my government"
• Dec 29th, 2010 @ 6:10pm

  Why I NEVER talk to Bank of America Representatives

  on BofA Tries To Foreclose On Home Despite Not A Single Missed Payment
  I have re-financed my house 3 times in the 15 years I have "owned" this house in each case the original Mortgage was with Bank of America. After the first time in 2001 when I was quoted a rate that required points, and was 0.5% higher than what I received through other loan brokers, I have never gone back to Bank of America for anything. In each and ever case my loan was subsequently bought by Bank of America. The last time when I went to Bank of America in 2009 when interest rates were really low, they did exactly what this couple found. But I caught what the rep was trying to do and immediately stopped the process, and asked for a supervisor. I WAS HUNG UP ON. I went to quicken loans, and refinanced through them. After 2 weeks my loan was bought by Bank of America. I loathe Bank of America, and will never do any business directly with them ever again.
• Mar 12th, 2010 @ 7:17am

  Yes Please Please Free Us from our Government

  on Brazil Moves Forward With Plan To Ignore US Patents And Copyrights After US Refuses To Abide By WTO Ruling
  The current attitude of my friends and myself is yes please please free us from these chains we have allowed to be placed on us. They burdensome, we are weary of our Big Brother Corporate Government. But because of apathetic non involvement we have fulfilled the quote. Leo Tolstoy "War and Peace" All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing” http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke#Probable_misattribution
• Jan 13th, 2010 @ 4:49pm

  Re: Accurate

  on As ISPs Look To Charge Per Byte... How Accurate Are Their Meters?
  What about me, who use the torrents to provide Open source software like Ubuntu, and other business oriented software like that at my BLOG
  http://www.lockergnome.com/microface/
  I have a contract for up to a certain bandwidth with minimums built into the Quality of Service, and I pay through the nose as a business. I have no meter, except what I can prove when AT&T breaks the contract, which I have proven to my satisfaction 3 times a month. Do you know what they do. NOTHING ! I get screwed, because even though I live only 1 hours drive from Sacramento, I have no Cell phone reception From any carrier, and have had DSL from AT&T only the last 4 years.
  I get no help from my congress people, I get no help from FCC, I get no help period. I have a contract, which I have tried to enforce, and only by paying a lawyer a minimum of 10K can I enforce that contract. Under no circumstances will I ever trust any large TELCO/ISP they are nothing but crooks that take your money and break their contracts and then give you the finger when they break the contracts they themselves wrote!