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Message |
Forum: General Chat Topic: 02 Call Alert |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2005 16:53
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Replies: 15
Views: 6079
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| we have better handsets than what they are offering as the so called "upgrade" :D Tutt tutt! Running unlocked phones on O2's network are we? They aren't best pleased about that sort of thing. Phoned them up once to get a replacement simcard after a rusting issue (don't ask) and they asked what phon... |
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Forum: General Chat Topic: Seasons Wishes |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 16:00
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Replies: 17
Views: 7272
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| Well, as it's officially christmas here now, Merry Christmas everyone. |
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Forum: General Chat Topic: 02 Call Alert |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 15:55
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Replies: 15
Views: 6079
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| The mobile operators used to be more open about it, charging from the second ring on some tariffs. These days you'll never get them to tell you at what point they actually start their "per second billing" from. But before you start thinking you're being ripped off too badly, consider that you are us... |
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Forum: General Chat Topic: Travel and genetic diversity |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 12:06
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Replies: 25
Views: 11426
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| Mankind is actually devolving, and at an alarming rate. Look at chav populations for example. They don't travel much, so they inbreed. Average age of first child is 14, so they're burning through generations at twice the rate everyone else is, and they typically have way more sprogs than the 2.3 or ... |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Why drivers speed - again |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:59
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Replies: 454
Views: 168330
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| Where did you hear about that? I researched quite heavily into GPS a few years ago, and while there are a few clever algortithms to improve speed accuracy, it's nowhere near that level. |
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Forum: Improving Road Safety Topic: "Track Use / Off Road Use Only" |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:32
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Replies: 16
Views: 9989
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| Now I have read this again it appears that it is perfectly legal to dazzle people with your reversing lights, hazard warning lights (but not indicators) or blue/green warning beacons. :roll: So when the chav with his foglights on starts tailgating you the best (and now legal) response is to put the... |
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Forum: Improving Road Safety Topic: Back Off Plate |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:06
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Replies: 35
Views: 18543
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Homer wrote: It seems to say that the worse your eyesight the closer you should drive. 
Of course. How else would all those doddery old dears see you? |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Why drivers speed - again |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2005 10:11
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Replies: 454
Views: 168330
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| I have a GPS unit in my car which gives a fairly constant and accurate speed reading. Actually, GPS isn't particularily accurate or consistant for measuring speed. They work by working out your position, accurate to about 25m, and you can get a reading once a second. However, each reading will give... |
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Forum: Road Safety, Speed Camera and Policy News Topic: All UK Car Journeys To Be Monitored |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 13:10
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Replies: 33
Views: 15384
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| From what I have seen the footage from existing cctv is so crap there is no way it could read a number plate. You've obviously not seen the photo they include with a congestion charge fine notice (boss typed in the reg plate of the works van wrongly, and they refused to refund the fine, or the orig... |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Your thoughts please... |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 12:56
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Replies: 22
Views: 8491
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Gatsobait wrote: High time someone developed a volume control for children. 
Not a volume control as such, more of a mute button - Duct tape. |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Advert 12000 miles away. |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 12:51
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Replies: 7
Views: 4048
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| Cut out the advert, write "No, they don't equate, see www.safespeed.org.uk for details" on it and post it to your MP? |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Energy dissipation in a collision |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 12:38
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Replies: 60
Views: 21270
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| Again, I can't believe that this is being suggested as an argument. Are drivers so bad that they cannot cope with slightly slower progress? What do they do on the M25 - pile into the back of the car ahead? Indeed they do, regularly! I'd say that the west side of the M25 (unless those roadworks have... |
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Forum: General Chat Topic: What's the best thing we've driven on the road? |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 12:15
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Replies: 19
Views: 7655
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| The bosses 2 litre Jaguar X type. Bottled out for fear of getting caught at 110 on the M4, but it had plenty more in it. |
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Forum: Speed, Safety, Driving and The Law Topic: Is a powerful car justifiable? |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 09:30
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Replies: 51
Views: 22846
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| Or we could take that same technology and make an 800cc diesel engine that developed 70bhp or more, reliably; put it in a light chassis, make it do 80mpg but have a top speed of 95mph. That would be definitely justifiable. How's this sound then? 660cc, 3 cylinder car. 600Kg unladen. Top speed of ab... |
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Forum: General Chat Topic: What do we all drive? |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 09:12
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Replies: 64
Views: 25245
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I think I win for slowest car - 660cc 3 cylinder Suzuki WagonR
0-60 ... doesn't happen. |
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Forum: Brainstorming Topic: On board cameras. |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 06:13
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Replies: 45
Views: 35599
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It's actually quite easy to use one of the drivers in the JMF to get a video feed. The hardest part was then extracting still images out of it (necessary for the project, but thankfully not for this).
Java is fast these days. A 350MHz PC should be able to cope with at least 4 cameras. |
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Forum: Brainstorming Topic: "Blue Light For Safety" |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 06:07
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Replies: 12
Views: 11679
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smeggy wrote: Peripheral vision is dominated by the rods, so blue illumination would aid identification of hazards when viewed from the corner of the eye (applied to drivers: pedestrians walking into the road).
So we should start requiring pedestrians to wear blue reflective clothing in the evenings? |
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Forum: Brainstorming Topic: On board cameras. |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 06:01
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Replies: 45
Views: 35599
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| It's written in Java, so not the most userfriendly ever, but will run on any OS. I'll have to look into modifying it if people are interested. Getting a police officer to sign a CD (one 5 minute stretch from several cameras, plus the GPS data would easily fit on a CD) would probably count. I'd need ... |
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Forum: Brainstorming Topic: On board cameras. |
| BigAl |
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Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2005 14:40
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Replies: 45
Views: 35599
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| I've actually had a camera installed in my car in the past, as part of my university dissertation a few years ago. That was a one camera + gps system, but adding additional cameras is easy. The GPS means you have speed recording, but not as accurately as a calibrated speedo. I still have the softwar... |
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