Re: In other news

BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]: 

> On 27.07.2023 15.32, Merlyne wrote:
>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>> news:[email protected]: 
>> 
>>> On 22.07.2023 17.21, Merlyne wrote:
>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>
>>>>> On 18.07.2023 13.24, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On 12.07.2023 13.22, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>>>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> On 08.07.2023 17.01, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>>>>>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On 05.07.2023 14.14, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>>>>>>>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> On 02.07.2023 16.29, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> BeH <[email protected]> wrote in
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> news:[email protected]: 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> On 28.06.2023 13.31, Merlyne wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I got a new phone and a better plan.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Why are cell plans so much more expensive in my country
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> vs the US? 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> CAPITALISM! It's always capitalism. We've been over
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> this. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Sure. Are you sure that it's not related to population
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> base? 
>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you pay the same country-wide and you the same coverage
>>>>>>>>>>>>> in sparsely populated areas (I know you have some of
>>>>>>>>>>>>> those), then maybe. But most likely capitalism.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> Ugh!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I got a new S21 and 20GB of data for $47/month taxes
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> in. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I pay a base fee of ~$4/month (deducted from
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> consumption) with slightly higher per-minute charge and
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> no free data. But then I only use data in emergency
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> (which haven't happened yet) and make maybe two calls
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> and two texts/month. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I used to have a prepaid cell for like $10 a month back
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> in 2003 when it was my emergency phone.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Once I started using it all the time, it was more
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> cost-efficient to have a plan with unlimited talk and
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> text. I would say that I am most frequently contacted by
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> text than by other modes i.e. voice call or email. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> On the other hand I still pay for a landline (IP) even
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> though it hasn't made a sound (or call) in several
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> years. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I also have a landline. My Dad calls it and a few places
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> where I keep forgetting to change my contact info to my
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> cell. I think the landline isn't VOIP it's whatever came
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> before that but after rotary dial phones. 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> Analog... (rotary dials relied on counting the impulses -
>>>>>>>>>>>>> one for each digit passed on return; pushbutton 'dialing'
>>>>>>>>>>>>> relied on the frequency of the tone correspondig to each
>>>>>>>>>>>>> digit/button) 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> They will probably phase it out eventually.
>>>>>>>>>>>>> Like they did with teevee signals, thus making everyone
>>>>>>>>>>>>> get new teevees... 
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> I thought I got a new tv because the old one stopped
>>>>>>>>>>>> working. 
>>>>>>>>>>> That may be, but lots of people got new tvs because their
>>>>>>>>>>> old one couldn't receive/decode the digital signal.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> The cable company gave out digital conversion boxes to
>>>>>>>>>> people. 
>>>>>>>>> Can you still get one of those. To use on an old teevee that
>>>>>>>>> you buy at an antique shop?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I doubt anything would work on a tv that old.
>>>>>>> In theory it would. It would require a digital to analog
>>>>>>> conversion and probably a granularity reduction from HD to PAL
>>>>>>> or [whatever the American format is called]. An old cable
>>>>>>> converter might just work if one could bypass the subscription
>>>>>>> bit. 
>>>>>>
>>>>>> It could work from an antenna. Some channels are in the air. In
>>>>>> HD even. 
>>>>> That's what I meant, using the antenna as input for the box. A
>>>>> really old TV will probably make a mess of an unaltered HD signal.
>>>> I can imagine.
>>>> It would probably make a mess of SD signals too.
>>> And if by some miracle it could be made to work, there probably
>>> wouldn't be anything good on anyway.
>>>
>> Nonsense! There are always quality programming available like those 
>> reality shows were a farmer needs a wife.
> Grrr! No matter when I look it seems to be all American 'Married at
> first sight' or some survival show...

There's now a couple of them on about finding a spouse for farmers.

> They do show Colombo (again) but late at night and I still remember
> all the plots from last time.

I don't remember all the Columbo plots. Doesn't matter since they show 
you who did at the beginning of the show.

> 
>> I have Acorn and BritBox now so I can catch up on all my British
>> murder mystery shows. I feel with the writer and actor strike that
>> there may be a long tv show drought.
> I get BritBox as well (on that streaming service). They have Yes
> Minister/Prime Minister.

I never watched that one.
I'm going to finish Good Omens and then watch the latest season of The 
Witcher. The next season of The Wheel of time starts September 1.

> 
> I did see a Canadian police series in french. It had all the right
> characters:
> - a neuro-divergent sketch artist with 'amazing' abilities,
> - a wheel-chair bound, female chief always wearing a baseball cap,
> - a young arab gay forensic investigator,
> - a semi-alcoholic older detective who broke all the rules (violently)
> - a middle aged female researcher, who was a former elite hacker.
> And that was just the Good Guys(tm).
> 

I don't know that one. I used to watch 'District 31' when I was on 
language training.

>> 
>> And speaking of programming, I wrote a Python program today without 
>> taking a course.
> I had no idea you were a parseltongue.

Well, I had to do something after I failed out of wizard school.

> 
> One of these day I'm gonna install the ADA pre-compiler for gcc again
> and think of something to code in it... Something with a lot of things
> happening at the same time.
> 

No, you won't.