COMPUTERS, THE AGONY AND THE ECSTASY

[Stanley]

I've been encountering some strange drop-outs, especially on the site. I get the message 'transferring data....' and in effect the topic is frozen. I find that if I quit the page and reopen it the problem is solved. Anyone else had this? Is it the site server or my system?

[chinatyke]

Yes, I've seen it too. I also assumed it was the server doing another task.

[Pluggy]

I get it periodically too. I just put it down to another website on the shared server guzzling the resources.

[Tizer]

I don't recall having noticed anything like that.

[Stanley]

That's reassuring......Thanks lads!

[plaques]

After viewing Tizer's Steeplejack You Tube I returned to find the menu had all but disappeared. I had to close it down to get back to the full display. Any ideas of what went wrong?

[Pluggy]

Your computer got its knickers in a twist. Almost certainly your end if restarting it cured it.

[Tizer]

"Tizer's Steeplejack You Tube"....? That threw me. So I went to the Steeplejacks forum and I think Plaques means Tripps, not Tizer. (Not that it matters! )

[plaques]

Sorry about that Tizer. I'd done a preview and was going back to check on the author when it threw me out completely. So how it got posted I don't know. Just part of life's rich tapestry.

[Stanley]

I'm gradually working through the recordings on my old Sony HD recorder and have come to the conclusion that I shan't buy another one as I can now access so much interesting stuff on Freetime and the Web that it is now redundant. This may trigger me into going for fibre broadband...... How times change!

[Big Kev]

This may trigger me into going for fibre broadband...... How times change!

BT and Sky are both offerring Fibre for free (12 months) if you take their phone line rental (about £16 a month).

[Stanley]

I'm reviewing the situation.... I'm seriously thinking of ending my long term madness in paying for a football pool entry every month. It's been a comfort blanket for years but I fear its time is up! It's the only gamble I have and old habits die hard! The saving will pay for the fibre and Talk Talk have an offer at the moment. It involves a new contract for 18 months and I hate being tied down but there you are.....
The site (or my system) is still doing strange things. I have found that if I get the 'transferring data' hold up it vanishes if I go back a page and then forward again. I also have a strange appearance of masses of text on the screen when I hit post a reply. It's too quick to read..,. One thing I am going to do is get a new Logitec keyboard and mouse, these have had a wonderful innings but I'm wondering if they have reached their sell by date....
Reload of Firefox and flash player from Canonical this morning. I shall see if this produces an improvement. So difficult to pin down when a fault is intermittent!

[Tizer]

If your football pool entry is more expensive than fibre broadband it's a `no brainer' Stanley - give up the pools immediately, whether you go for fibre or not! You're pouring money down the drain.

If you go for fibre, make sure you read all the small print with your `new eyes'. The latest BT flyer through our letterbox has small print at the bottom - then it has even smaller print below that!

[PanBiker]

Phone and Internet out this morning. Was Ok until about 08.45 then the line went to a continuous engaged tone. Did all the normal tests and was same at the master socket. Router reported that it could not connect to the LLU at the exchange. Turned out to be a fault at the exchange, noticed some crackling on the line at about 11.00 and it was back on the next time I checked at lunchtime. Facebook land concurs, exchange fault affecting the Talk Talk kit.

[Stanley]

It's done Tiz..... And I've ordered fibre from Talktalk, estimated speed 38mps and connection date 25 August..... I will report when it has happened....

Ian, my broadband was down around 10AM, I didn't try the phone but just left it to mend. Back online now obviously....

[Tripps]

I suppose this is loosely 'computers'

In my daily look at the news from Google - I saw this link presented to me .

Now I am Gillian Welch fan - I have all her CD's - I've been to a live concert, and have sought her out on youtube occasionally, but it's beyond coincidence that google has chosen this at random for my attention. The fact that she is mentioned third down the list of artists appearing in Kansas City confirms that to me.

I have nothing to hide on my computer or my surfing habits, and I suppose that in the greater scheme of things it's trivial, yet I still find this all a bit sinister.

[Pluggy]

Not only will Stanley have the quickest computer on OGFB, he'll have the quickest broadband to go with it.

Just dealt with a 5 year old Asus Laptop for a customer, hideous cheap low-end thing. An old Celeron 220 single core processor, it ran like a snail on Valium. My now midrange desktop is literally 20 times faster. It was bogged down with rubbish when it came to me, it wouldn't do anything. I cleaned it up and made it useable, but it was still hellish slow by my standards. You get what you pay for....

I've looked at upping my broadband to fibre, but I've decided that 17Mb/s is fast enough and I'm too tight....

Enjoy it Stanley.

Welcome to cookies and Google 'slurping data' Tripps. I've got a new car on order, and I've been looking at flogging the old Skoda on a well known car buying site (since it was worth next to nothing as a trade in), nearly every site with adverts I visit now is all about said car buying site. One day i'll get fed up and wipe out my cookies.

I got a flyer through the door from a local car dealership saying 'We want to buy your car' so I filled in their online quotation form. I got the automated 'we got your form and we'll contact you soon' email and nothing since. They probably don't want an 11 year old Skoda with intergalactic milage either.

[Stanley]

Yes Plugs but Oneguy is still doing strange things.....
I wipe all my cookies regularly....

[PanBiker]

I haven't noticed any problems with the site, what exactly is happening with you Stanley? I did notice the double post yesterday but that's all.

On the broadband / fibre front, I will mention that my on demand services on my Humax box work perfectly OK on my 17Mbps connection. Never had any issues with lagging or anything like that, we watch a few things on catch up. We do like the record facility though it's good for collecting and saving stuff for the grandchildren.

[Pluggy]

I was getting odd slowdowns when Stanley first mentioned it, but I haven't had any problems since. It generally goes like a train.

Is it just OGFB or is the internet as a whole doing it ?

[Marilyn]

I was just watching our morning show and they were doing the rave over the new Samsung phone. They were saying that places like Starbucks have the wifi plates on their tables so your phone recharges without cords. I wonder how long before some smart cookie fiddles with them and empties multiple bank accounts whilst people sup.
Only yesterday they were slamming Samsung washing machines for faulty workmanship that has resulted in several house fires! These washing machines were stuffed with plastic bags ( of all things) to reduce noise!
I'm afraid the damage to the Samsung brand has been done ( not that I was a fan).

[Stanley]

That's a shame Maz, I've just bought a Samsung TV.....
I thought I might have cured my staggers this morning. I remembered that when you enlarge the type on online forms they lose some of their functions. I still had the screen enlarged from my blind phase so I dropped it back a notch and it did it straight away! So, to answer your question Ian, I don't know!
I just had a thought and switched the system monitor on, all functions are flat lining at the moment as normal, minimal usage of memory and the four CPUs... When it staggers next time I'll have a look and see what is happening....
04:20. A stagger and the monitor showed a spike in CPU activity much higher than normal levels....
05:40. When the screen shows 'transferring data' it isn't, there is no activity on the monitor. If I go back a page and try again it is instantaneous but when I go back to the topic I find it has posted twice......

[Tizer]

Maz, watch out if you use a iPhone in a busy area... LINK

[Marilyn]

Don't have an iPhone, Tizzy.
I am quite amused that folk leave themselves "open" to receiving stuff from those around them with Airdrop ( must appeal to their nosey nature) then take offence at what they get. I am sure pictures like that are quite common. Can be quite boring travelling by train

[Pluggy]

Like putting a sign above your front door saying 'help yourself to my stuff' and then complaining when somebody does....