vk6flab
@vk6flab@lemmy.radio
Anything and everything Amateur Radio and beyond. Heavily into Open Source and SDR, working on a multi band monitor and transmitter.
#geek #nerd #hamradio VK6FLAB #podcaster #australia #ITProfessional #voiceover #opentowork
- [FoAR] Foundations of Amateur Radio - What is the difference between a Dummy Load and an Antenna? #podcastpodcasts.itmaze.com.au ↗Submitted 3 hours ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 0 comments
- Comment on Why don’t brands make simpler names? 23 hours ago:
It’s on purpose and AFAIK for two main reasons:
- To confuse the buyer
- To be able to trademark and protect the brand
- Comment on Skill issue 2 days ago:
Source?
- Comment on Can't solve the captcha because I don't know what `undefined` is 3 days ago:
Hit the refresh button on your browser.
- Comment on ive always wanted to do this, with annoying customers 3 days ago:
I first heard this in the early 1990’s when I was working on a computer helpdesk. By that time, Word Perfect was no longer popular, having been steadily replaced by Windows and Word.
- Comment on Is it better to leave a country, or stay behind to fight for it? And what about the ethics of fleeing instead of staying behind? 4 days ago:
This question has nothing to do with the country and everything to do with the person. It’s entirely up to the individual how to approach this.
For an external observer, the choice made by someone else is not for you to judge. You can never know what is inside the other person’s mind and whilst you might disagree, it’s their choice.
- Comment on ive always wanted to do this, with annoying customers 5 days ago:
What you might be missing from the story is that the customer was more likely than not using a landline to call technical support.
The ADSL filter sits between the telephone line from the street and the telephone.
Disconnecting the filter is the equivalent to yanking the telephone socket out the wall and if you do that during the call … no more call.
At this time many people were already using cordless phones and mobile phones were making inroads, so the link between the call dropping and removing the filter might not be immediately obvious to a clueless end user.
Source: I have had the misfortune of phoning telco helpdesk services where this kind activity would absolutely happen.
- Comment on ive always wanted to do this, with annoying customers 5 days ago:
This is from a time when I started providing technical support. It’s been doing the rounds ever since.
“Word Perfect Technical support; may I help you?”
“Yes, well, I’m having trouble with WordPerfect.”
“What sort of trouble?”
“Well, I was just typing along, and all of a sudden the words went away.”
“Went away?”
“They disappeared.”
“Hmm. So what does your screen look like now?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“It’s blank; it won’t accept anything when I type.”
“Are you still in WordPerfect, or did you get out?”
“How do I tell?”
“Can you see the C: prompt on the screen?”
“What’s a sea-prompt?”
“Never mind. Can you move the cursor around on the screen?”
“There isn’t any cursor: I told you, it won’t accept anything I type.”
“Does your monitor have a power indicator?”
“What’s a monitor?”
“It’s the thing with the screen on it that looks like a TV. Does it have a little light that tells you when it’s on?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, then look on the back of the monitor and find where the power cord goes into it. Can you see that?”
……”Yes, I think so.”
“Great! Follow the cord to the plug, and tell me if it’s plugged into the wall.”
……”Yes, it is.”
“When you were behind the monitor, did you notice that there were two cables plugged into the back of it, not just one?”
“No.”
“Well, there are. I need you to look back there again and find the other cable.”
……”Okay, here it is.”
“Follow it for me, and tell me if it’s plugged securely into the back of your computer.”
“I can’t reach it.”
“Uh huh. Well, can you see if it is?”
“No.”
“Even if you maybe put your knee on something and lean way over?”
“Oh, it’s not because I don’t have the right angle-it’s because it’s dark.”
“Dark?”
“Yes-the office light is off, and the only light I have is coming in from the window.”
“Well, turn on the office light then.”
“I can’t.”
“No? Why not?”
“Because there’s a power outage.”
“A power… A power outage? Aha! Okay, we’ve got it licked now. Do you still have the boxes and manuals and packing stuff your computer came in?”
“Well, yes. I keep them in the closet.”
“Good! Go get them and unplug your system and pack it up just like it was when you got it. Then take it back to the store you bought it from.”
“Really! Is it that bad?”
“Yes, I’m afraid it is.”
“Well, all right then, I suppose. What do I tell them?”
“Tell them you’re too stupid to own a computer.”
- Submitted 1 week ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 0 comments
- Comment on Nearly All Cybertrucks Have Been Recalled Because Tesla Used the Wrong Glue 1 week ago:
Make sure that you use cheap stainless steel, otherwise it won’t rust and leave a stressed patina look.
- Amateur needs to regain access to their Google account without access to their recovery mobile phoneSubmitted 1 week ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 1 comment
- Comment on What are these markings from? Bugs? 1 week ago:
If you’re renting, take photos and make sure it’s in your property report. You’ll likely get charged for the “damage” if you don’t.
Also, do a walk-through with video when you move in, take it slow and cover every surface. It’s amazing what you can prove was already there.
- [FoAR] Foundations of Amateur Radio - Bald Yak 11, the goo between hardware and software #podcastpodcasts.itmaze.com.au ↗Submitted 2 weeks ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 0 comments
- Comment on Meta seeks to block further sales of ex-employee’s scathing memoir 2 weeks ago:
Strictly for research purposes … right?
- Comment on AMD wins at open source, GNOME completes Wayland support Linux & Open Source News 2 weeks ago:
Well a jailbroken device is “open”, and the exploit has been well documented, so as a user and developer of open source software for several decades and knowing just how poorly open source software is generally documented I thought I’d make a little joke.
Of course, this is the internet and not everyone has the same sense of humour.
In other words, it’s a joke … laugh.
- Comment on AMD wins at open source, GNOME completes Wayland support Linux & Open Source News 2 weeks ago:
If you open your CPU up to a jailbreak by being a dumkopf, does that really count as Open Source?
- Submitted 3 weeks ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 0 comments
- Comment on 'You can now jailbreak your AMD CPU' — Google researchers release kit to exploit microcode vulnerability in Ryzen Zen 1 to Zen 4 chips 3 weeks ago:
What does the fix look like?
Code scanners? Hackathons? Code review by new hires? Education? Methodology?
- Comment on 'You can now jailbreak your AMD CPU' — Google researchers release kit to exploit microcode vulnerability in Ryzen Zen 1 to Zen 4 chips 3 weeks ago:
I spent quite some time trying to find a better way to put it, but stupid, idiot, ignorance, incredulity just didn’t seem to cover the experience of WTAF?
- Comment on 'You can now jailbreak your AMD CPU' — Google researchers release kit to exploit microcode vulnerability in Ryzen Zen 1 to Zen 4 chips 3 weeks ago:
From the article:
helped in no small part by AMD reusing a publicly-accessible NIST example key as its security key
That’s a whole new level of … something.
- Comment on [deleted] 3 weeks ago:
None of the following questions will give you a specific answer, but they might give you some food for thought to help you figure it out for yourself.
What would happen if the company was sold?
What would happen if you were injured in an unrelated accident, like say during a holiday?
What would happen if the company lost its largest customer?
What does retirement look like for you?
What do you want to achieve in your life?
What does career progression look like?
What happens if you got or lost a life partner?
- Comment on What happened to cylindrical plugs? 3 weeks ago:
For my shack where I move stuff around, testing gear, radios, switches, etc. I’ve standardized on SMA, on my feed line which hasn’t changed or been disconnected for a decade, F-type.
- Comment on What happened to cylindrical plugs? 3 weeks ago:
I saw that chart too. When you click on the F-type link you learn it’s rated up to 4 GHz. The summary table is off for several connectors.
You cannot argue that the mating is poor if it’s rated to 4 GHz.
There is nothing wrong with using the centre pin of the coax, it’s one less join in the chain and it’s rated at over 500 matings. It’s not for lab equipment, but if you want to connect something and leave it there for the next decade, there’s nothing better.
- Comment on What happened to cylindrical plugs? 3 weeks ago:
What’s your beef with the F-type connector? The centre pin is the coax core, compression tool to terminate the coax, solid connection, rated to some absurd frequencies, all round easy connector, no soldering or extra pin required.
Source: I installed two-way satellite dishes for a time and still use those connectors on my HF antennas as a radio amateur - yes, I know, 75 Ohm - can’t say it’s ever stopped my 10 mW beacon from being heard 13,945 km away.
- [FoAR] Foundations of Amateur Radio - What's the story you'd like to tell yourself? #podcastpodcasts.itmaze.com.au ↗Submitted 4 weeks ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 1 comment
- Comment on What is with volatile QR codes in membership accounts? 4 weeks ago:
Stop using the app and eat healthy food instead?
- Comment on What would happen if all undersea cables got severed worldwide simultaneously? 4 weeks ago:
You are forgetting that those data centres talk to each other using those cables in order to actually have a local copy that they send to the end user.
This caching behaviour will cease to exist if there is no internet connection between the centres.
- Comment on See highest paying hourly jobs in my area 4 weeks ago:
In my experience Indeed is a very poor source of information. Picking the name of your city will invariably select all instances of that city name on the planet, making the quality of the result suspect if not outright misleading.
Source: I live in Perth, scattered across 17 cities in 7 countries.
- Comment on is telling an employee how he has to speak micromanaging? Is it toxic? 4 weeks ago:
You understand that this series is fictitious and intended to initiate self reflection in subtle and indirect ways.
- [FoAR] Foundations of Amateur Radio - Bald Yak, universe 10, how does all fit together? #podcastpodcasts.itmaze.com.au ↗Submitted 5 weeks ago to amateur_radio@lemmy.radio | 0 comments