Out of the Blue [Mar 29, 2023, 11:59 am ET] – Share – Viewing Comments
I got my first voicemail on my new Galaxy phone yesterday. Thankfully it was a
butt-dial from my brother, because it took me a while to listen to it. When I
tried, I was told the visual voicemail app requires precise location
permissions. I never saw this before, so I guess it was enabled on my old phone?
I don't get myself too worked up about every corporation in the world wanting to
know what uninteresting things I'm up to, but this seems particularly egregious.
I haven't seen an explanation of why Verizon or Google would need my location to
play back my own voicemails for me (I doubt there's an acceptable one). But I
haven't seen a workaround either. I was able to access the voicemail by dialing
in (after resetting a password I hadn't used in ages). But that was a nightmare.
I had listen to about a minute of robot voice prompts telling me about my
message, and then I had to listen to all three minutes of rustling and
background noise before I could delete it since I didn't remember the shortcut.
I'll try and hold out trading privacy for convenience in this case, which I may
be able to do since I don't get a lot of voice messages. But I also wonder why I
bother. I'm sure they've got the full book on me already.
Voicemail Round-up
Thanks Ant and Neutronbeam.Breakfast Links
- Bird flu FAQ: What is avian influenza? Thanks Acleacius.
- First F-16 Viper pilots to engage the MiG-29 in mock air combats explain what it’s like to dogfight against the Fulcrum. Thanks Max.
Stories
- One Man’s Quest to Revive the Great American Vacuum Tube (may require registration or subscription).
- "House of the Dragon" Season 2 Shortened.
- Credit Suisse whistleblowers say bank has been helping Americans dodge U.S. taxes. Get that shocked look off your face. Thanks Acleacius.
Science
- Scientists Created a New Recyclable Plastic Not Made From Crude Oil. Thanks Max.
- For the first time, astronomers have linked a mysterious fast radio burst with gravitational waves. Thanks Acleacius.
- Ascension water plant worker fired, arrested after video showed him urinating in water supply. Unauthorized leak. I get it. Thanks Acleacius.
Media
Follow-up
Egads, I’m annoyed by the voice reading back the phone number for the the voicemail while waiting to hear the message. If I want the number it will be in my missed calls or call log. Thankfully I know pressing 7 will delete the message, an old dog can learn a new trick.
On a side note, I add 5 demerit points to anyone’s voicemail that is full or not setup. Maybe quantum computing and AI will address that, but I doubt those modern miracles will be that powerful.
,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,,.
Bird Flu
A new flu is spilling over from cows to people in the U.S. How worried should we be? from NPR’s Goats and Soda
On a side note, I add 5 demerit points to anyone’s voicemail that is full or not setup. Maybe quantum computing and AI will address that, but I doubt those modern miracles will be that powerful.
,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,,.
Bird Flu
A new flu is spilling over from cows to people in the U.S. How worried should we be? from NPR’s Goats and Soda
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
RedEye9 wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 12:19:
On a side note, I add 5 demerit points to anyone’s voicemail that is full or not setup. Maybe quantum computing and AI will address that, but I doubt those modern miracles will be that powerful.
How many demerit points for someone who has purposefully disabled their vmail?
"Just take a look around you, what do you see? Pain, suffering, and misery." -Black Sabbath, Killing Yourself to Live.
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” -Jean-Jacques Rousseau
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” -Jean-Jacques Rousseau
My VM is permanently full. I'm never going to check it. Don't leave one, just text me the gist.
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Music for the discerning:
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.hydrahead.com
http://www.painkillerrecords.com
Music for the discerning:
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.hydrahead.com
http://www.painkillerrecords.com
Burrito of Peace wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 13:25:♾️🫏 had to see the new donkeyRedEye9 wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 12:19:How many demerit points for someone who has purposefully disabled their vmail?
On a side note, I add 5 demerit points to anyone’s voicemail that is full or not setup. Maybe quantum computing and AI will address that, but I doubt those modern miracles will be that powerful.
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
RedEye9 wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 13:51:
♾️🫏 had to see the new donkey
Infinite donkeys?
Like Beamer, just send me a message. If you just have to call, call me on Wire.
"Just take a look around you, what do you see? Pain, suffering, and misery." -Black Sabbath, Killing Yourself to Live.
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” -Jean-Jacques Rousseau
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” -Jean-Jacques Rousseau
I honestly wonder how successful the exceedingly popular tactic of holding an article hostage and using it to blackmail me into signing up for your site is. It does nothing but ensure I will never sign up no matter what.
I wanted to read the article on vacuum tubes to see if they are still as sought after as they used to be by guitarists, but I guess I'll never know.
I wanted to read the article on vacuum tubes to see if they are still as sought after as they used to be by guitarists, but I guess I'll never know.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Mahatma Gandhi
Prez wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 16:53:I always run with multiple browsers on both mobile and pc.
I honestly wonder how successful the exceedingly popular tactic of holding an article hostage and using it to blackmail me into signing up for your site is. It does nothing but ensure I will never sign up no matter what.
I wanted to read the article on vacuum tubes to see if they are still as sought after as they used to be by guitarists, but I guess I'll never know.
Librewolf, which is set to save nothing and clear itself on every close, opened the wired article w/out issue.
takeaways
US trade restrictions on Russia and China have sent vacuum tube prices soaring
quality of overseas tubes has always been unreliable
He aims to launch his American made tube this summer, but previous debuts have slipped.
tldr
Are tubes still sought after for their audio voodoo, yes.
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
It's just the principle of the matter - location data to read visual voicemail, really?
Check out DuckDuckGo's app with its App Tracking Protection feature. Basically it's a little VPN that DDG uses to filter out known trackers across all apps on your phone. You can enable or disable them manually if DDG makes the app not work, but 95% of the apps on my phone work in conjunction with this anti tracking feature. The app says in the past 7 days it's blocked 17,211 tracking attempts, the worst being Duolingo at 2116 attempts in 15 minutes; Discord at 788 attempts in 30 minutes; and the Starbucks app at 944 attempts. Very useful, totally free, runs silently in the background...
Check out DuckDuckGo's app with its App Tracking Protection feature. Basically it's a little VPN that DDG uses to filter out known trackers across all apps on your phone. You can enable or disable them manually if DDG makes the app not work, but 95% of the apps on my phone work in conjunction with this anti tracking feature. The app says in the past 7 days it's blocked 17,211 tracking attempts, the worst being Duolingo at 2116 attempts in 15 minutes; Discord at 788 attempts in 30 minutes; and the Starbucks app at 944 attempts. Very useful, totally free, runs silently in the background...
My wife works in what is probably among the last true relationship driven industries. Even then, the industry has its own text messaging system, and people will text before calling. Random calls don't happen anymore, they're mostly considered rude.
She explicitly set her voice mail to be "please don't leave a message, instead text me, especially if it's important." Only one person did ever leave her a message, a gentleman in his 70s that people apparently work less with because his communication style is harder to deal with.
A message takes a few minutes to listen to. A text gives the same information in a few seconds.
She explicitly set her voice mail to be "please don't leave a message, instead text me, especially if it's important." Only one person did ever leave her a message, a gentleman in his 70s that people apparently work less with because his communication style is harder to deal with.
A message takes a few minutes to listen to. A text gives the same information in a few seconds.
-------------
Music for the discerning:
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.hydrahead.com
http://www.painkillerrecords.com
Music for the discerning:
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.hydrahead.com
http://www.painkillerrecords.com
It is insane the amount of specific tracking information that they are allowed to request. Regulators don't care and/or are enjoying too many perks from lobbyists to do anything about it.
Not sure it will help with the VM tracking issue, but like chickenboo mentions below, I've been using duckduckgo's app to reduce the amount of tracking happening from the apps I have installed. It is stunning how many apps, even ones you haven't even opened in months, are trying to send tracking (not necessarily physical/gps) data on you.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/20/22793068/duckduckgo-tool-prevent-apps-tracking-android-users
https://spreadprivacy.com/app-tracking-protection-open-beta/
Not sure it will help with the VM tracking issue, but like chickenboo mentions below, I've been using duckduckgo's app to reduce the amount of tracking happening from the apps I have installed. It is stunning how many apps, even ones you haven't even opened in months, are trying to send tracking (not necessarily physical/gps) data on you.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/20/22793068/duckduckgo-tool-prevent-apps-tracking-android-users
https://spreadprivacy.com/app-tracking-protection-open-beta/
chickenboo wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 17:27:I have very few apps on my phone, but installed the DDG feature nonetheless. Thanks!
Check out DuckDuckGo's app with its App Tracking Protection feature.
,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,..
Asteriod City
i am drawn towards Wes Anderson films like a moth to flame, sometimes getting burned.
And that made me realize that I've never seen The City of Lost Children.
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
My current Android phone, a Google Pixel 6 (that rarely has the location service turned on), has a voicemail feature that I love. It converts voicemails to text automatically (as long as it can understand them) - plus, both a delete button and call-back button is right next to the text so it's about as convenient as it gets. Both my parents are 83 and neither have the eyesight or dexterity to create a text that would take them less than 30 minutes to compose, so this voicemail to text feature is beyond perfect.
I know this info doesn't help you, Blue, but looking at the Google Play store, I see that there are voicemail-to-text apps, so maybe you can use something other than what Verizon loaded on the phone.
My last phone was a Galaxy / Verizon combo and I remember switching the texting app from the default Verizon version to a much more basic Samsung version. I can't remember why I switched, but I do remember that it was worth the trouble.
I know this info doesn't help you, Blue, but looking at the Google Play store, I see that there are voicemail-to-text apps, so maybe you can use something other than what Verizon loaded on the phone.
My last phone was a Galaxy / Verizon combo and I remember switching the texting app from the default Verizon version to a much more basic Samsung version. I can't remember why I switched, but I do remember that it was worth the trouble.
Much appreciated Redeye9.
My personal experience is that digital audio had gotten good enough that there were enough positives that it made a decent trade-off to the far more expensive and cumbersome analog stuff like tube amps. Though I imagine nothing will ever equal just how great a pure tube-driven amplifier sounds and feels.
My personal experience is that digital audio had gotten good enough that there were enough positives that it made a decent trade-off to the far more expensive and cumbersome analog stuff like tube amps. Though I imagine nothing will ever equal just how great a pure tube-driven amplifier sounds and feels.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Mahatma Gandhi
Librewolf, which is set to save nothing and clear itself on every close, opened the wired article w/out issue.
Thanks for the tip RedEye9, I'm going to try Librewolf out.
Just know that it does not automatically update or check for updates, unless you install an extension.WarPig wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 20:38:Librewolf, which is set to save nothing and clear itself on every close, opened the wired article w/out issue.
Thanks for the tip RedEye9, I'm going to try Librewolf out.
I manually check for updates during weekly maintenance.
also note:
Fast UpdatesSo when FireFox is updated Librewolf will be updated shortly thereafter with incremental updates etc.
LibreWolf is always built from the latest Firefox stable source, for up-to-date security and features along with stability.
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
Welcome CBme 
fakespyder wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 20:48:Thanks! I've been here since the 90's, just haven't posted a message since probably the 00's and didn't remember what email I would have used then for the account.
Welcome CBme
CBme wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 22:33:fakespyder wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 20:48:Thanks! I've been here since the 90's, just haven't posted a message since probably the 00's and didn't remember what email I would have used then for the account.
Welcome CBme
That may very well make you the longest running active user! I bow to your majesty.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Mahatma Gandhi
Prez wrote on Mar 29, 2023, 23:00:Please pull my wheelchair around once you are done bowing..
That may very well make you the longest running active user! I bow to your majesty.
I'm sure there are plenty of us olds who came here back when we were playing Quake and Unreal (when it was actually a game..) that still have Blue's on our favorites even if we don't actually game that often anymore. Still remember, late 90's, when I submitted a news story that he posted and did his thx to my username at the time. All proud of myself as if I had accomplished something even though I had jack to do with the article or the site. 
If it's any consolation I actually use a wheelchair!
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Mahatma Gandhi
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