Grumble Thread

[Serial_Apologist]

Perhaps FF should go into production of bespoke units.........maybe be called 'Frenchies Doors'.

[vinteuil]

Perhaps FF should go into production of bespoke units.........maybe be called 'Frenchies Doors'.

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Dictes moy où, n'en quel pays, Est Franque, la belle Française ; Mais où sont les Portes de France! Prince, n'enquerez de sepmaine Où elles sont, ne telles fadaises, Qu'à ce refrain ne vous remaine: Mais où sont les Portes Françaises!

[french frank]

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Dictes moy où, n'en quel pays, Est Franque, la belle Française ; Mais où sont les Portes de France! Prince, n'enquerez de sepmaine Où elles sont, ne telles fadaises, Qu'à ce refrain ne vous remaine: Mais où sont les Portes Françaises!

I was rather pleased to discover that the words of the original poem could be sung to Butterworth's setting of Housman's' Look not in my eyes

[Roger Webb]

I was rather pleased to discover that the words of the original poem could be sung to Butterworth's setting of Housman's' Look not in my eyes

My wife tells me Georges Brassens has recorded a version in middle french....not as popular as 'Les copains d'abord', she thinks.

[vinteuil]

My wife tells me Georges Brassens has recorded a version in middle french....not as popular as 'Les copains d'abord', she thinks.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucmL50H6Kgs

[Roger Webb]

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucmL50H6Kgs

Yes, thanks Vinteuil, we'll play that later....the single album of Brassens we have is 'Don Juan'. When Barbara was an assistant at a lycée in Paris Brassens visited to give a talk and sing a couple of songs (not the Villon), she's been a fan ever since.

[Dave2002]

Havoc and chaos caused by banks/credit cards

One of the companies I use for credit cards recently sent me new cards - for no apparent reason at the time.

Around 3 weeks later [possibly 25 days] I tried to make a purchase with the original card which still appeared to be valid - but it failed.
I then discovered that the issuer had decided to switch from Visa to Mastercard. I had been warned - seemingly - but in a not obviously connected message.

I normally have direct debits set up with one or two banks only, but at almost the same time the direct debit card payment for my mobile phone failed. I think I had had to use the CC direct debit facility, most probably set up on an earlier occasion when there were problems with the phone on a trip.

I only noticed this minutes before leaving for a trip which would require the mobile phone and credit cards all to be functional.

Fortunately I was able to rearrange things quickly, but I only just noticed in time - phew!

Given that phones are often used for 2nd factor identification the unilateral and unexpected action by the bank and the consequences were painful, but could have been even worse.
In the very short term I am definitely worse off as to reset the phone I had to pay £10 immediately to “top it up”, though I did take the opportunity to revise my account - in a way which may help in the coming months.

[oddoneout]

The weekly local rag that my neighbour passes on to me has a full page ad from(I assume) some gov.uk department about AI and creative content. Most of the page is taken up with huge letters saying "Make it fair", with the 'ai' of 'fair' highlighted in white against the coloured background. So far so good. It all falls to pieces though when, underneath, there's a brief outline of the proposed law change and a QR code to "Find out more". Nothing else - no gov.uk link, no indication of originating department. What's fair about assuming everyone who wants to find out more has a device that will read a QR code?

In a somewhat ironic twist, after having done an online search, on a later page in said rag was an item about the Make it Fair campaign, which apparently isn't a government initiative(which explains the lack of identity) but something set up by the News Media Association, and launched on the day that consultation on the proposed legislation closed. Various music bodies are supporting it according to a Google search.
I also found the Guardian press release which contained the following:

Weekly titles will run the campaign throughout the next week, with the aim of appealing to the British public to write to their MPs and back the creative industries.

I'll admit that I didn't read the G's editorial on the matter, but even so I don't think much of a 'news media' campaign in the weekly paper that requires me to make a google search to find out what the hell it's about. I'm also rather puzzled about why it started on the day the consultation closes.

[eighthobstruction]

....yes ooo, similar thing happened to me yesterday ....and regularly with links from the Doctors...

[LMcD]

. What's fair about assuming everyone who wants to find out more has a device that will read a QR code?

What indeed? I told the helpful young man in the Tesco Mobile shop that I didn't want or need a smart phone, and was happy to upgrade to a 4G 'dumbphone'. He said that was fine, but that they preferred the term 'simple phone'.

[Serial_Apologist]

What indeed? I told the helpful young man in the Tesco Mobile shop that I didn't want or need a smart phone, and was happy to upgrade to a 4G 'dumbphone'. He said that was fine, but that they preferred the term 'simple phone'.

Phone with learning disabilities, then!

[oliver sudden]

I believe that the least loaded term in current use for such things is ‘feature phone’. I am aware that that doesn’t really say anything. On the other hand I am also aware that there are plenty of smart reasons for wanting to avoid ‘smart’ phones.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feature_phone

[LMcD]

Phone with learning disabilities, then!

I think Tesco Mobile Man sussed me out - correctly - as a simple-minded sort of chap who was looking to upgrade to a cheap 'Which? Best Buy' model. He seems to have recommended that same model to many of my friends and acquaintances.

[kernelbogey]

I watched part of Mark Kermode's programme about Oscar winners yesterday on BBC 4, only to find at the end that it was six years old. I have a lot of sympathy for the Beeb's financial distress, but this seemed a bit like passing off on the day of the 2025 Oscars.

[oddoneout]

I believe that the least loaded term in current use for such things is ‘feature phone’. I am aware that that doesn’t really say anything. On the other hand I am also aware that there are plenty of smart reasons for wanting to avoid ‘smart’ phones.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feature_phone

It may be a less loaded term but it's pretty meaningless? After all don't all mobiles have features, they just vary in the type and quantity.
This has all reminded me that I still need to sort out a suitable such upgrade myself as an alternative to my small camera that has become unreliable. The rest of the functions are of limited interest given that my current basic phone is hardly ever used - I have to remember to make a suitable call every few months to save being de-registered.