seanj

I’m amazed that this hi-tech card features a magnetic strip!! I doubt if I’ve used the magnetic strip on any of my cards for over 15 years, payments have all been ‘chip and pin’.

Well I guess it’s easier for Microsoft to find a guy called Mac’ Book and bribe him to promote the Surface than it is to actually design and build a product that can compete on specification with a MacBook... 

“the ARM architecture which was originally designed for mobile devices”

Err no. The ARM architecture, or using its original name the “Acorn RISC Machine” architecture was developed in the very later ‘80’s for desktop machines - the Acorn Archimedes was the most advanced desktop in the world when it launched.
Sadly PC domination had begun.

the main thrust of this article is correct, Apple has suffered in the past from being let down by the development efforts of suppliers, and is now focussed on total independence and vertical integration.
But it won’t switch until it can replace every Intel processor across its entire range of machines; including the insane multi cores than appear in the new Mac Pro. So while Apple could slip A series chips into Airs right now, it’s range of processing power isn’t sufficient to equip a Mac Pro... yet. But give them time, I would expect an Apple switch completely dumping Intel in 5 to 7 years.

(Assuming of course, they don’t buy Intel with their spare change!)

StrangeDays said:

racerhomie3 said:

When will idiot analysts realize Apple isn’t chasing volume.Or  else apple could easily cut prices like Samsung & Huawei. Profitability & revenue matters more.

Yuuup. Apple doesn't worship at the Church of Market Share. they are all about profitability, and they've dominated that metric. What does Apple care if all the other knockoffs together sell more than one company selling just a few variations does?

Except, when you're trying to get people to buy into subscription services, like all computer/media companies are trying to, then it does come down to market share. If those services are tied to your devices, and the devices are losing market share, then you have an problem with your subscription services having a smaller market available to them.

avon b7 said:

seanj said:

avon b7 said:

lkrupp said:

iCave said:

I'm not sure which country you are from, but looking at high quality health care and affordable education provided in most of the European Union, it bears evidence that high taxes, when used the right way, do pay social dividends.

Complete baloney. The ONLY reason the EU has the social programs it has is because the EU members have NO military budgets to speak of. Instead the EU relies on the United States to protect it from the Russian Bear, the Middle East Islamic radicals. If the U.S. pulled out militarily from the EU and NATO those countries would have no choice but to dramatically increase their military budgets and those social programs would suffer big time. For over 70 years now the U.S. has spent its treasure to keep the peace in Europe.

Now that is baloney. The absence of conflict in Europe is precisely because of the EU. 

As for external threats and U.S 'protection', simply pull out of NATO if it costs too much!

That won't happen because the U.S wants to keep its military bases in Europe. It wants to continue selling arms. It needs NATO allies. Without them (however 'small' their financial contribution) the Gulf wars would not have been possible and with so much debt, the U.S is rapidly approaching a point where it might have hardware to parade around but no be able to use in actual conflict. Wars are expensive.

I'll take a balanced welfare state over any of that.


https://www.businessinsider.com/how-nato-budget-is-funded-2018-7

You're believing the spin from the Eurocrats I'm afraid, the EU has done NOTHING to prevent conflict in Europe.
When Yugoslavia split and war broke out, including ethnic cleansing, it wasn't the EU that stopped it, it was NATO with the USA and UK at the forefront.
As for the current ongoing war in the Ukraine, that's solely due to the EU courting the Ukraine to get them to join as part of their ongoing aggressive expansionist policy. Every observer pointed out that Russia would never allow Ukraine to join, but the EU persisted.
Meanwhile there is civil unrest across Europe - weekly riots in France for months - and the rise of extremists on both left and right due to the EU's disasterous Euro policy. Economists warned back in the 90's that allowing countries with divergent economies to use a common currency would result in economic collapse, so rules were put in place to stop it. But when Eurocrats realised that Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy and France would fail the test and be excluded from the Euro, they decided to ignore their own rules. As a result they set in train the sovereign debt crisis that erupted in 2009 and is still ongoing. The reason they did this was simple to trap these countries in the EU, leaving after having adopted the Euro would be nearly impossible.

The USA and Canda should consider a mutual defence pact with a smaller set of countries - the UK and France account for nearly 50% of ALL of europe's military capability. In the long term, the like of Macron in France and the Eurocrats in Brussels want to undermine NATO and rely more on an EU Army. The hilarious thing is they don't want to fund it properly, for example, Germany's armed forces reduced to a token force with most ships, aircraft, and submarines unsable due to repairs being required.

You are mixing different things up.

Yugoslavia was not the EU and its problems were rooted in a completely non-EU world.

Peace and stability is very much one of the pillars of the EU and the vast majority of EU citizens are pro EU (and I'm including UK citizens here).

There are rules. Greece broke them (it lied) to join the euro. The consequences were hard to swallow but totally necessary. The blame lies - ultimately - with those who took Greece to where they did: its politicians. The world financial crisis also had roots. Do you remember where? The euro crisis was simply made worse by that but is now better prepared for future depressions. Of course, the U.S would have loved to see the euro fail.

There is no civil unrest in Europe. There were violent protests in a few places in France - and for a clear reason. They were not anti EU protests. This is nothing new for the French. Have you ever seen how they deal with Spanish tomatoes?

Do you really understand why some elements of the EU would like a unified EU controlled armed forces? It isn't hard to figure out and is nothing new. The EDC dates back to the fifties! At some point an alternative idea will get support and move forward. The U.S will not be happy when that happens.

Ukraine?

Ukraine wants to be rid of Russia as a threat. The only way that is going to happen is by joining the EU. We know the people of Ukraine are willing to give their lives to achieve their goals but first they must get their house in order and tackle corruption. The EU has a strategic interest in Ukraine and a pressing need to reduce its dependence on Russian energy. That is already in progress.

It's not 'euro spin' it's happening and people are supporting it in spite of populist movements peddling nationalistic manifests in most countries.

And for something weird, defence and EU related:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/14/jet-powered-flyboard-soars-over-paris-for-bastille-day-parade

It’s not surprising you’re confused if you quote and believe The Guardian newspaper!!!
Yugoslavia wasn’t it the EU but the EU tried to stop the fighting the genocide by diplomatic means. It was up to NATO to stop it the only way possible, by military action. Afterwards after the fighting the EU was allowed in as a peacekeeping and policing force.

The EU knew the Greeks lied about their economy to pass the rules. Italy Spain, Portugal and France didn’t even have to lie, the EU just ignored its own rules. And Greece’s problems are nothing compared to what Italy has.
The Eurozone crisis was an inevitability, a bomb waiting to go off at any time. It just happened to have been the drying up of liquidity in the international markets in 2008 that set it off. You should be thankful, if that hadn’t triggered it and the same issue had gone on for another 10 years then even Germany would hVe been bankrupted by it.

It may not be covered by the europhile media but there’s been weekly disturbances or riots by the yellow jackets for the last 34 weeks in Paris. And you obviously are ignorant of the rise of the AfD and waves of attacks against immigrants in Germany.

As for the Ukraine, if it ever does submit a membership application to the EU, Russian tanks will arrive in Kiev before the application arrives in Brussels.

And God help Europe if the EU thinks it can defend itself military without NATO. Only Poland would slow the Russians before they arrived at the French border. At the start of the year every single German submarine was broken, the majority of their air-force grounded, and their new frigates have to carry concrete ballast because the are top heavy with a 10 degree list to starboard. The German Tornadoes can’t fly at night because the lighting of the control panel interferes with their night vision:- an aircraft the RAF has already retired. And the German Defence Minister responsible for all this? She’s the new unelected EU Commission President!!!!

BTW that Bastille Day Parade you linked to? Well the yellow jackets took the opportunity for more civil unrest...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-48983089