@pbacot said:

But hey that covers up the power port doesn't it?

It does but you plug the power into the adaptor.

Yes, well said Richard. Even a simple 'hello' or other kind words can improve the day for people.

Generally, I find average people to be good and well intentioned. Much of the ongoing wars and inequalities worldwide are caused, not by ordinary folks, but by power brokers, bought politicians and central bankers. We need more Direct Democracy. Hopefully, we will see this happening now that the Net is democratizing information.

Tesla Autopilot is now programmed to break the law
http://www.treehugger.com/cars/tesla-autopilot-now-programmed-break-law.html

Ah! So it will be possible to break the speed limit, jump red lights, etc etc

Mike, sorry to hear that about your good lady. I hope you guys are coping and making the best of things.

I agree with what you say about folks on the 'social'. In a way, I also don't blame them for milking a system that is there for the taking.

I imagine the able-bodied out of work recipients would probably moan and groan if required to do a couple of hours community work every day but at the same time it would be for their own good as long-term unemployment is very detrimental to a person's
self-esteem and the longer they are not working the less are the chances of them getting back to work.

A 'citizenship requirement' is a great idea and one that would not be that difficult to implement. I think it should be implemented at local community level rather than central (gov) level. One way this kind of idea could be kicked off at a local level is by having allotments with good facilities. An idea might be to turn them into organic produce centres which would cover a broad range of products.

I watched a program on TV this evening, Eco Eye, which investigated the amounts of 'microplastics' in seafood. I won't be eating prawns anytime soon!

Food is one of the three essentials, the other two being, shelter and clothes. If there are dignified ways of having unemployed people growing their own (and others) food this would be a great start.

This is a very so called 'delicate' matter. Its one that we discussed here on the forums before.

I suppose the question should be, why do people have children? This sounds simplistic but nevertheless I feel it should be throughly looked at.

From my perspective there are many reasons. In my case, married at 26, my wife and I waited a little over 2 years before having a baby as the 'nest needed to be feathered'. I, as a typical man, went along with the 'feathering' thinking that I was making things more comfy for both of us.

I feel its women that really pushes for kids. It seems the sexual act for men is all done a dusted in a very short time whereas for the woman its not complete until they deliver a child!

In Ireland over the past twenty years there has been a huge growth in 'single mothers' in many cases having a number of children that they are unable to support and receive no support from either the 'sire' or their family. The State picks up the tab on the child rearing and from what I can gather the 'sire' is not even identified let alone required to support his child.

People can't drive cars without having a driving licence, all for a good reason! Yet they can produce offspring at will with little or no consequences. In fact their standard of living often increases and this can often encourage them to produce more children.

Ireland will shortly be holding a referendum on abortion. I will be voting 'Pro Choice'. In fact I don't believe men should be voting on this issue at all. I'd leave it up to women. If vasectomy was the voting issue I bloody well would not like women having a vote on the matter!

Maybe we should also be thinking about ways of introducing responsible parenthood whereby women are require to get a license before producing children. The main condition could simply be that they can financially support the child or be seen at the time to be able to do so, themselves or with others. And, of course retrospective licenses would be issued as standard if the criteria is met. Not meeting the criteria would mean no State support for the woman or child. State / Public supported charities would have to pick up the slack and I believe this would be the case.

As I said, if you don't have a driving licence you either take a taxi or public transport (if affordable), have someone drive you or walk / cycle (if you have a bike) to where you need to get.

I've been using Opera for some time, mainly because I find the 'side panel' useful for note-taking and bookmarking. At one point Opera dispensed with side panel in an upgrade and I started looking around for a replacement. Rich O'Brien steered me to Vivaldi and I looked at it but it was in beta and at the same time an Opera extension came on the scene which allowed me to have my side panel again so I stuck with Opera.

Over the weekend I looked at https://vivaldi.com again to see how things were moving along and I was pleasantly surprised to see how many advances they have made so I decided to download and configure the setup to my liking. I'm still in somewhat of a learning curve albeit shallow but I think I will be using it for the foreseeable future.

I've been hearing the term, 'the last mile', quite a lot lately in relation to modes of city transport. Seemingly it refers to transport used to get from the parked car to place of business.

There are quite a few electric bikes and scooters that go some way to addressing the last mile but most of them fall short when it comes to what you do with the transport device after arriving at the final destination.

I think GoTube - The World's Most Portable Electric Scooter may have solved this problem. This electric scooter ticks all the boxes when it comes to convenient storage and weight. The design is also very slick and can even be brought on planes as carry-on luggage.

Just a moment...

(www.kickstarter.com)

There has been an update on The Wolfe. The developer is putting the project back on track with an Nvidia GTX 1050. Details here, https://thewolfe.io

...as a poster mentioned above. We have to put our faith in inventors and technology to come up with solid solutions to get us out of the mess.

Here are two such processes that look hopeful.

Pesticide alternative helps plants protect themselves from disease.
http://newatlas.com/bioclay-gene-silencing-plants-pesticide-alternative/47344/

New technique stores summer heat until it's needed in winter.
http://newatlas.com/renewable-energy-heat-storage-empa/47334/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers%26amp;utm_campaign=9d9703ba91-UA-2235360-4%26amp;utm_medium=email%26amp;utm_term=0_65b67362bd-9d9703ba91-76676071

The first looks promising as it will be alternative to GMO crops and the likes of Monsanto. It looks to be 'working' with Nature rather than destructively re-engineering Nature with a view to creating a monopoly situation,

The latter could be a great way of storing Summer energy for Winter use. I hope the R&D / trials continue and Big Oil / Money doesn't cull progress.

@slbaumgartner

I agree about the DEC. I would like to learn a lot more about 'whats in the box'.

Working with the MBP on the lap can get uncomfortable. I recently picked up a Belkin CoolSpot Cushion Laptop Cooling Pad on Amazon and its doing the job of keeping things cool for me and the MBP.

Yes indeed, the EON17-SLX series is a serious piece of kit. My problem is that I want Apple to produce a 'serious designers laptop' apart from their 'skinny for all lappies'.

It looks like it will be up to others to create add-ons to get the job done and this appears to be happening currently with the likes of OWC's DEC and the HyperDrive Thunderbolt 3 USB-C Hub for 2016 MacBook Pro

http://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=72%26amp;t=6369%26amp;start=270

@pbacot said:

IDK about ethernet and card slots, neither of which I expect to use in the future, but did they eliminate USB and HDMI too? Crazy

Yep, they did! I agree its crazy. But its creating some business opportunities for others. I've just noticed the 'HyperDrive' on Kickstarter.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hypershop/hyperdrivetm-compact-thunderbolt-3-usb-c-hub-for-m?ref=nav_search

One of these plugged into both sides of the new MBP would be an improvement over the current port arrangement on the last generation MBP but it looks like they only have a left side unit.

Is the NEW Macbook Pro a disappointment to the Mac users here?

I was initially very disappointed but after testing one out at my local Mac store I became a little less disappointed. It is faster than my mid 2002 MBP and the graphics card is probably up to 130% faster. The keyboard is very slick and I think the x2 size trackpad could also be leveraged, possibly with apps like Thimble form https://thimblemac.com which I'm testing now with SketchUp.

One of the main complaints has been the need for a load of adaptors! What the hell were Apple thinking? This is also the reason I have not upgraded to the iPhone 6 or 7. I've stuck with my iPhone 5 as I have too many peripherals to just abandon it although the improved camera in the iPhone 7 is now enticing me.

I've just come across a soon to be launched solution for the new MBP's lack of ports that looks quite cool! Its the DEC from OWC. There's no concrete launch date or pricing yet but I'll be keeping an eye out.

While OWC advise that the DEC handle,

Up to 4TB of additional Flash/SSD storage (for a maximum of 6 TB, including factory capacity)
SD Card Slot/Multi-Media card slot
USB 3 Type A Ports for standard USB cabled devices
Gigabit Ethernet
And other features to be announced at a later date

Its the 'other features' that I'm interested in learning about ..... maybe the capability to handle power graphics card / chip!

Further details on the DEC may be found here, http://blog.macsales.com/39345-owc-makes-macbooks-pro-again-with-game-changing-product

This ACER at a quarter of the price makes more sense,

Predator 17
Model Name: G9-793-72VF
https://www.acer.com/ac/en/US/content/predator-model/NH.Q19AA.001

@kaas said:

Dell's Canvas looks like to be inspired by Microsoft's Surface Studio or...?

Your on the button kaas. A number of reviews mentioned this also.

@Pete

You beat me to mentioning the Acer Predator 21 X. What a beast!

Here is the spec,

21-inch screen, 21:9 aspect ratio, 2,560x1,080-pixel resolution
120Hz refresh rate
2000R curved screen
Nvidia G-Sync
Tobii Eye Tracking
Two Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 GPUs
Seventh-gen Intel Core i7-7820HK (overclockable) CPU
Can store up to five storage drives at a time
Two power supplies to run
Five system fans
Nine heat pipes to stay cool
HDMI port and two DisplayPorts
Four speakers and two subwoofers
Mechanical keyboard uses Cherry MX switches and has an RGB LED under every key
SD card reader
19.4 pounds (8.8 kilograms)
Small donkey for carting it around

Hi Guys,

Just learned about the launch of the 'Dell Canvas 27' at CES 2017. This device looks to be something that could well catch on with designers as it replaces the keyboard and mouse in work (design) mode.

There doesn't appear to be too much info available on the Canvas 27 yet. Here are two brief mentions on the Net,

http://www.pcworld.com/article/3154865/computers/dells-canvas-27-can-make-any-windows-10-pc-a-hands-on-creativity-tool.html

http://newatlas.com/dell-ces-2017-canvas-laptops-monitors/47253/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers%26amp;utm_campaign=6c3ee83cc3-UA-2235360-4%26amp;utm_medium=email%26amp;utm_term=0_65b67362bd-6c3ee83cc3-76676071

If the price as mentioned ($2,000) ends up as the final RRP I think it will only appeal to those with deep pockets. But again, time is money, and if the pay-back (in time) is short it could be a winner.

The Canvas 27 also put me thinking about what Apple are doing in the innovation front. I recently tested out the new 15" MBP with its Touch Bar. Initially I was sceptical but after playing around with it I can see where they are going and feel it could be very useful if app devs jump on board. But I also feel the Apple need to bring out a large screen (18-20") laptop for the designer community with high-end graphics capability. After all it was the designer community that first adopted Macs and helped popularise the MacBook.

Mike

Yep!

@stinkie said:

@mike lucey said:

Ah, so according to your logic, its acceptable to have not one but two referendum re-runs when a 'yes' vote was required and a 'no' vote was delivered.

I said nor implied that. Don't put words in my mouth.

You said,

"There was diplomatic pressure from France and Germany on Irish politics. Which is a long way from the 'Irish people' as a whole being 'bullied'. And certainly no-one was forced to vote either way. As far as I know, the EU doesn't send menacing brownshirts to polling stations."

Yes, there was diplomatic pressure from Germany and more so from France with the visit of their president to Ireland to bully us. As I said, an electorate should only have to vote on an issue once! BTW, I think the 'brownshirts' comment is bordering on flippancy.

I would ask you again if you think its acceptable that the Irish were asked to vote again on the same issue?

@mike lucey said:

As regards my take on Brexit is concerned, a "Sigh. This is sheer sophistry" answer goes nowhere in convincing me otherwise.

@stinkie said:

I didn't think it would. But really, what would you have me say?

Its not for me to advise you what to say except, make your case.

@stinkie said:

'The EU is evil! See ... they let the Brits leave!' To my mind, that's simplistic Hineininterpretierung.

I only call it as I see it. Back in 1973 I voted to join the EEC as I thought open trade was and is a good thing. I have since voted against all Treaties that proposed a more in depth membership. I would not go as far to say "the EU is evil" but I do feel its very undemocratic and is moving more so in this direction.

@mike lucey said:

By getting 'value for money' this in effect will bring down the budget and in return more can be spent on other important things.

@stinkie said:

Experts say Trump's plans for the military would add $55 billion to $80 billion to the annual budget.

They could, obviously, be wrong. You seem to be in the know. Do explain, in detail, why they're wrong.

Anyone can make sweeping statements.

I can only advise what Trump said. I could also ask, do you have the figures / details from the so called 'Experts'.

@mike lucey said:

As regards some of his team's members PCness goes! People tend to be nasty sometimes and this will not change.

@stinkie said:

Yeah ... People, eh? Boys will be boys, locker room talk, and all that.

Have you heard of the saying, 'What goes away, stays away'. I'm a believer, are you?

@mike lucey said:

He clearly did not take into account the feelings of the residents that wished to remain in-situ and not sell out to him.

@stinkie said:

No, clearly he didn't. And he actually took revenge on said residents too. Look it up, if you will.

Watch the film.

I watched the film on TV some time ago, actually before Trump put his name in the hat. As I said, I think Trump's actions in Scotland were disgraceful!

@stinkie said:

You're defending a man who has lied through his teeth for the entirety of his campaign, who has shown deep disdain for women, who has insulted minorities, who has flipflopped on a slew of issues (sometimes even in the course of a single day!), who peddled abject conspiracy theories (the birth certificate thing, the JFK thing ...), who has a record of bankruptcy and even fraud, who has called upon a foreign nation to hack his opponent's e-mails, who says he doesn't need daily security briefings because he's 'really smart', and who belittles/bullies/sues anyone who dares criticize him.

I find that bizarre.

Stinkie,

I feel its you that are making broad sweeping statements. I do not defend Trump only listen to what he says he is going to do / implement. As I said, he is far from perfect but he is the choice (under the current system) of the US electorate and deserves a fair shot at, as he says, 'Make America Great Again'.

I have a feeling that Trump's presidency will surprise people in a pleasant way and he will get the required job done. Time will tell.

Mike

@stinkie said:

There was diplomatic pressure from France and Germany on Irish politics. Which is a long way from the 'Irish people' as a whole being 'bullied'. And certainly no-one was forced to vote either way. As far as I know, the EU doesn't send menacing brownshirts to polling stations.

Ah, so according to your logic, its acceptable to have not one but two referendum re-runs when a 'yes' vote was required and a 'no' vote was delivered. If the Irish had voted 'no' a second time would there have been third re-runs?
'No' means 'No' in my vocabulary but it seems it means re-run for a 'yes' in the EU's elitists eyes.

As regards my take on Brexit is concerned, a "Sigh. This is sheer sophistry" answer goes nowhere in convincing me otherwise.

@stinkie said:

During his campaign, Trump advocated raising the military budget. Maybe the Donald was having a laugh?

As regards Trumps comments on the military budget. This is what he actually said,

“I’m gonna build a military that’s gonna be much stronger than it is right now,” the real- estate-mogul-turned-tautological-demagogue said on Meet the Press. “It’s gonna be so strong, nobody’s gonna mess with us. But you know what? We can do it for a lot less.”

I think his last sentence in that statement explains what I meant when I talked about cutting the budget. He has commented on heavy costs and massive budget overruns also in the sector. By getting 'value for money' this in effect will bring down the budget and in return more can be spent on other important things.

As regards some of his team's members PCness goes! People tend to be nasty sometimes and this will not change.

I think Trump's actions in Scotland were disgraceful. He should have done his homework before buying the land and developing the golf course. He clearly did not take into account the feelings of the residents that wished to remain in-situ and not sell out to him.

Stinkie,

The Irish people voted 'No' to two EU Treaties. They were then frightened and bullied into a 'yes' vote on both referendum re-runs. This was also the case with other member states.

As regards the 'Brexit' vote. The UK was not a full member of the EU as they stuck with their Pound Sterling. It looks to me that as the EU could not bring them fully into the fold they are not too worried about them leaving.

As regards how I think Trump will go about raising the standard of living for middle America. I thought that should have been obvious with his nomination of Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State. This move looks to be a way of vastly reducing the $1,000,000,000,000 annual military industrial complex budget. This should go a long way to upgrading US infrastructure, building schools, hospitals etc.

You might read this article for further insight as to what is happening,

'US Aims to Break Russia With Arms Race'
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/46103.htm