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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: July 1st, 2023

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  • Even old HP printers aren’t safe. I have a two-generations-back HP Color LaserJet I got from a tech recycler for $300. (MFP M477fdw) It can be optionally configured to enforce or not enforce genuine toner. I can get a four-pack of CYMK high-capacity cartridges for $70-80 on Amazon. Prints wonderfully, toner is cheap, so I’m in the clear, right? Safe from this BS?

    Turns out that wear items (intermediate transfer belt, for example) within the printer have chips with versioned firmware. And the printer will throw error codes if different firmware versions within the printer aren’t mutually compatible.

    I’m sure the moment they believe they can get away with it, replacement ITB assemblies, fixers, document scanners, etc will include a shrink wrap license and firmware that requires you to update everything else to match - and the matching firmware will make official toner no longer optional.

    Definitely Fuck HP. The moment any of that comes to pass and disables my own printer I’m re-recycling this printer and buying another brand immediately.




  • Hello, friend, my name is Michael-O-2. I’m super excited to meet you! I can’t wait to learn about all the new and exciting ways we get to serve Friend Computer together!

    Now if you don’t mind looking away for a moment, I need to duck into this dark corridor, do some rhythmic tappy-taps with my knuckles on this maintenance panel, and then talk to myself about absolutely nothing in particular. I’ll be right with you, new best friend!

    . . .

    I’m back. No, I’m fine, my face always looks like this when I’m happy to serve Friend Computer! We should get going though. After you.

    No, seriously, after you. I insist.

    (God I miss Paranoia. Still have my old Paranoia XP books somewhere. I was a crappy GM, but someone had to do it.)



  • Agreed. They are deliberately taking advantage of the fact that people don’t understand how autopilot is actually used in aircraft.

    Sure, the most pedantic of us will point out that, with autopilot enabled, the pilot-flying is still in command of the aircraft and still responsible for the safe conduct of the flight. Pilots don’t** engage autopilot and then leave the cockpit unattended. They prepare for the next phase of flight, monitor their surroundings, prepare for top-of-descent, and to stay mentally ahead of the rapid-fire events and requirements for a safe approach and landing. Good pilots let the autopilot free them up for other tasks, while always preparing for the very real possibility that the autopilot will malfunction in the most lethal way possible at the worst possible moment.

    Do non-pilots understand that? No. The parent poster is absolutely correct: Tesla is taking advantage of peoples’ misunderstanding, and then hiding behind pedantic truth about what a real autopilot is actually for.

    ** Occasionally pilots do, and many times something goes horribly wrong unexpectedly and they die. Smart, responsible pilots don’t. Further, sometimes pilots fail to manage their autopilot correctly, or use it without understanding how it can behave when something goes wrong. (RIP to aviation Youtuber TNFlygirl who had a fatal accident six days ago, suspected to be due to mismanagement of an unfamiliar autopilot system.)