HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: keith@unipalm.co.uk (Keith Mitchell)
Subject: Re: Video Plus
Organization: Unipalm Ltd., 216 Cambridge Science Park, Cambridge CB4 4WA, UK
Distribution: uk
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1993 19:27:04 GMT

phil@compnews.co.uk (Phil Male) writes:

>We are providing the new Teletext service on ITV and all the TV related pages
>on Channel 4. TV information on Channel 4 should now be appearing in magazine
>5 sets 50 through 57 (ms 550-557). (Hence the late night hacking :-)

>PDC is transmitted in two flavours, we are currently providing Method A PDC as
>defined in EBU SPB 459 Revision 2 Draft 1 (Oct 1991) and commonly known as
>poor-man's PDC or "StarText". Method B tests will begin on Monday.

This is good news. When I called up the new 55x listings pages on
Channel 4 on the 1st (a *big* improvement not to have to switch to
another channel for them), and hit the "VPT" button, and got "PDC
off", my heart sank. Then I found it was still there, but on 300/301
only. Then I thought about it, and realised that one of the partners
in Teletext UK was Philiips, and that the service was likely to
improve rather than vanish as a result of the franchise change - I
didn't waste money on that nifty new Video after all :-) I did not
dream think it would improve in only a matter of days, though.

>Currently the only people transmitting PDC codes are Channel 4, other
>channels are due to start r.s.n. From Tuesday we will be supplying PDC
>information for all listings pages on Teletext. We hope to supply a video
>programming page (simply times and titles of films, soaps, etc listed on
>a multipage one programme type per page) r.s.n.

Seems to me that the cost of PDC Videos is going to make them less
competitive than the much-inferior Video+ approach, which seems to be
frighteningly popular. I hope those promoting PDC have the sense to
realise this, and try and work with the Video+ people rather than
against them. Being able to set a program using Video+, but then
have PDC able to adjust the recording time would be an ideal world
for many people.

Lets hope the BBC get the finger out.....

Keith Mitchell

Public IP Exchange             keith@pipex.net
216 The Science Park           keith@unipalm.co.uk
Cambridge, UK                  keith@uk.co.pipex	(non-IP JANET sites)
Phone: +44 223-424616
Fax:   +44 223-426868
From: nigelm@ohm.york.ac.uk (Nigel Metheringham)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Video Plus (a few questions) Phil?
Date: 11 Jan 93 12:30:39 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Electronics Department, University of York, UK

In <1imphlINNhas@cardamom.compnews.co.uk> phil@compnews.co.uk (Phil Male) writes:
>: BTW Where does the teletext time come from? The broadcasts from the
>: atomic clock at, whichever physics labs? Do  all the channels have the
>: same time?

>Several people have asked me this, I've never actually asked the transmitter
>folk, nigel?

The BBC stuff used to come from Greenwich, although I believe that
they no longer have a caesium clock there, but it was certainly a
reference time source when it started.

how they allowed for the time delay through the encoding into a
teletext bit stream, queueing for a flyback transmission slot,
receive processing, chucking into RAM, reading out of RAM and
conversion into display dots etc... I don't know.  I wouldn't set a
computer clock to it automatically if I had any chance to use a real
time source on the internet, but for setting your watch its as good
as the BBC pips.

I think ITV had a similar source, but was that sold with the
franchise....?


I haven't 2 teletext TVs to try out time sync between channels, but
when BBC2 transmit text in vision (cheap programming!!), if you put
your set in mix mode (and don't send your eyes mad), the synch
differences are visible.

	Nigel.

PS for those interested in esoterica, the channel ID packet (packet
8/30 in teletextese) has all sorts of date information encoded in it
including the Julian date/time.  Of course this is what the spec
says should be in it - whether it is transmitted or not is another
story.  Rumour had it that this additional time information was put
in to buy off some BBC rep at a specification meeting who was being
sticky on various other points, but was a Julian date
afficionado.....  So now you know how these specs are put together!
-- 
#   Nigel Metheringham  -- (NeXT) EMail: nigelm@ohm.york.ac.uk    #
#   System Administrator, Electronics Dept, University of York    #
#   York YO1 5DD. Phone: +44 904 432374, Fax: +44 904 432335      #
From: ccmj@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Claire Jones)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Colds (was Re: Solmin)
Date: 6 Jan 93 12:50:40 GMT
Organization: Department of Computer Science, University of Edinburgh

In article <29906@castle.ed.ac.uk>, eset08@castle.ed.ac.uk (J Strobridge) writes:
>       But then I'm not entirely convinced that these cold remedies
> really do anything more than disguise the symptoms anyway and certainly
> don't cure one!    
> 
> 
> jill

Since nothing cures a cold apart from time, masking the symptoms
can be useful if you want/need to get on with daily living.
I am suffering from a cold as I type this so the subject is
not far from my mind. What I always wonder is whether
cold remedies only encourage infectious people to go to work
etc. and thus spread the cold further ? But I have also heard
that you are most infectious before the symptoms occur, and
that by the time you are coughing your lungs up (most annoying
stage for anyone within earshot) you are actually not infectious
any more. I sometimes take paracetamol or aspirin for a cold 
in moderate amounts and find that about as useful as cold remedies,
and a lot cheaper.

-- 
Claire
ccmj@dcs.ed.ac.uk
(I don't know why I bother with a signature really, all the information
 in it appears (more concisely) in the header right before my eyes.)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: dhd@exnet.co.uk (Damon)
Subject: Re: Oil spills - history
Organization: ExNet Systems Ltd Public Access News, London, UK
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 13:47:41 GMT

In article <1993Jan8.095210.4826@wraxall.inmos.co.uk> des@inmos.co.uk (David Shepherd) writes:
>Ceri Hopkins (cah@cs.bham.ac.uk) wrote:
>: Jim> Given the Guardian's reputation for misprints, perhaps the date was
>: Jim> 1976 or 1679? :-)
>
>: Things have improved a little, but my candidate for their worst howler
>: of 1992 was in the headline of the editorial (which makes it that much
>: worse), which said
>
>: "Carrott and stick for Serbia"
>
>Actually, the thing to look for in the Guardian now is some of the
>amazing hyphenations that they (or I assum their computer) sticks in.
>Its certainly not averse to hypenating one letter off the end of a wor-
>d rather like that at times! Even more amusing is that the Guardian
>Diary is going through a phase were it is pointing out bad hyphenations
>in other papers.

They should borrow the TeX algorithm which never (that I've seen) comes
out with bad hyphenations.  It claims to do the correct hyphenation for
the most common 700 words guaranteed with the standard English
hyphenation and exception dictionary loaded.

The classic example given in the TeX Book of how not to hyphenate in
narrow columns is the following headline:

     ... The-
rapists  Pre-
ached on Wee-
knights ...

And there's a bit about the Racal exec who gave up when his
word-processor hyphenated `God'.

Damon
-- 
Damon Hart-Davis        London, UK        Internet: dhd@exnet.co.uk, d@hd.org

Public-access UNIX (Suns), news and mail for UK#5 per month.  FIRST MONTH FREE.
[1.36] Cheap Sun eqpt.  UUCP news/mail feeds.  Tel/Fax: +44 81 755 0077.
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: pd@x.co.uk (Paul Davey)
Subject: Re: Hi-fi TV sound?
X-Disclaimer: This is not the view of IXI Ltd unless explicitly stated.
Organization: Not a lot
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 23:11:24 GMT
X-Copyright: The author asserts the right of paternity in this message.

>>>>> On 7 Jan 93 16:46:37 GMT, wilcox@vax.oxford.ac.uk said:

-> Is it possible to obtain, fairly cheaply, devices which pick up
-> television signals and output decent stereo sound through an amp to
-> speakers? ... I'm now so used to hi-fi sound that a tinny mono
-> speaker grates on the ears.

Well, you can get good quality stereo from a nicam decoder, but these
are not cheap, even if they come with a free video recorder or large
TV.

I suspect that a simple mono audio feed to your hifi would suffice.
(I used to take one from my VCR's scart socket). Regular TV sound is
quite good, it's the tinny speaker which does it in. Another
alternative might be to connect a better quality external speaker.

--
    Regards,			IXI            Internet: pd@x.co.uk
	Paul Davey		Vision Park    UUCP:     pd@ixi.uucp
				Cambridge      Bang:     ...!uunet!ixi!pd
 "These are interesting times"	CB4 4ZR, UK    Tel:      +44 223 236 555
Newsgroups: uk.misc,misc.misc,comp.misc
From: dummy@cs.city.ac.uk (Dummy login)
Subject: ANyone out there still got a BBC micro?
Organization: City University
Date:  4 Jan 93 15:18:36 GMT

 Probably aimed more at those of us inthis country with this wonderful (?)
machine. ANyway, apologies if this is the wrong place but i wonder where I
could post it.
 Simple question, joystick, where do you plug it in? and how
do you get it to work.
 If any BBC(ies) could contact me and I'll explain in a little more detail.

Thanks for your time.....
Nig
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: mark@mark-one.inet-uk.co.uk (Mark Powell)
Subject: Re: Video Plus (a few questions) Phil?
Keywords: code cipher NSA (Hi, guys!)
Organization: Mark-One Public Access UNIX (+44 942 273926)
Distribution: uk
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 15:29:57 GMT

A few questions about PDC, teletext aware videos:

Do these new teletext aware videos set the videos clock from the teletext
time at the top of the page?

This would be really nice. However does it mean one has to be careful
taping programs early on the morning of the last Sunday in March and
October when the GMT->BST and BST->GMT changes take place? ie the GMT->BST
change takes place at 2:00am GMT ie the clock goes 1:59:59 then 1:00:00
(or is it the other way around) then setting the video to tape a  program
starting at, say, 1:00am and finishing at 1:30am  will cause the program
to be taped twice :)

BTW Where does the teletext time come from? The broadcasts from the
atomic clock at, whichever physics labs? Do  all the channels have the
same time?

With PDC do you only have to set the video once to tape  both parts of a 
program split by the "News at Ten" ie do both parts have the same PDC code?

Also, if there is a newsflash will the video stop during it?

And any other points of trivia, esoterica you can think of?
-- 
Mark Powell

Mark-One Public Access UNIX, Manchester, UK 	BBS:	+44 942 273926
UniBoard, *the* UNIX BBS, UK distribution site	Voice:	+44 942 714317
From: snail@lsl.co.uk
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Record shops (LPs)
Date: 5 Jan 93 13:50:53 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Laser-Scan Ltd., Cambridge

In article <Xc7uwB16w165w@mantis.co.uk>, mathew@mantis.co.uk (mathew) writes:
> joe@jshark.inet-uk.co.uk (Joe Sharkey) writes:
>> >> (sigh...) Golden ears vs manufacturing.
>> >> This has been debated in double-blind tests for 20 years and more:
>> >>  -- "I don't care much distortion *you* find - it *sounds* better..."
>> >
>> >I don't know quite what you're suggesting here.  I went to a hi-fi
>> >dealer, suggested a price range, and he let me listen to a few CDs on
>> >each of a number of CD players in that price range.
>> etc etc etc...

Hmmm, odd debate this. A friend of mine makes very fancy equalising equipment
for the likes of Chris Rea, Brian May, to name but two. He gave me a call over
Christmas and I went to visit his new premises. In there he had a no fuss
Sony DiscMan (battery powered) a 50W power amp (not a hi-fi make, an audio
industry one, can't remember the name) and two Monitor speakers that should go
either side of your mixing desk.

We had a listen to some music by a variety of artists, and I asked him what he
thought of the sound. He said it was great, really clear, well placed
acoustically, and generally it had good definition, except the bass response
was weak, but that was the speakers, not the CD.

This guy makes his living by building electronic stuff for world famous
musicians, and also restoring or installing studios all over the world. He used
to work for Neve (a long time ago). He takes great care of his ears. If he
thinks a Sony Discman is all you need, I'll go along with that, the argument
above does seem to show how people can get sucked into the technology just a
bit too much.

I only posted this 'cos I'd got fed up of the thread.
-- 
snail@lsl.co.uk      

"Washing one's hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless
 means to side with the powerful, not to be Neutral."
                                                     Quote by Freire.
                                                     Poster by OXFAM.
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: graeme@fulcrum.co.uk (Graeme Hodgson)
Subject: Re: Mornington Crescent rules anyone?
Organization: Fulcrum Communications
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 16:46:36 GMT

There is a game developing quite nicely in
alt.games.mornington.cresent, you know.

--
Hodj
Email to graeme@fulcrum.co.uk     |        <witty quote pending>
 - whenever the mood takes you.   |
Xref: sparky uk.misc:2494 eunet.misc:670
From: clav08@ccsun.strath.ac.uk ("k.inshuk", Mechanics of Materials )
Newsgroups: local.general,strath.general,west.general,uk.misc,eunet.misc
Subject: Information about GAS DRIVEN VEHICALS
Date: 11 Jan 93 18:48:25 GMT
Reply-To: clav08@ccsun.strath.ac.uk
Organization: Strathclyde University Computer Centre.

Keywords:

           I want information about conversion of general liquid driven vehicals into GAS DRIVEN VEHICALS. Is there any equipment available for this purpose? I shall be grateful if anyone can give me the address, from where I can get such equipment. Any other information about GAS DRIVEN VEHICALS is welcomed.


KINSHUK

(Kinshuk@UK.AC.STRATH)
From: P.A.Foulkes@bradford.ac.uk (Pete Foulkes)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Solmin
Date: 4 Jan 93 12:06:08 GMT
Organization: University of Bradford, UK
Originator: 91453585@muser

In article <prk.725103260@polaris> prk@planet.bt.co.uk (Peter Knight) writes:
>leveret@warren.demon.co.uk (Nick Leverton) writes:
>
>>As far as I know, "Solmin" used to be the only paracetamol tablet you can
>>chew without water, and it was very useful to keep a tube of them in the
>>overcoat pocket in case headaches strike in those out-of-the way places.
>
>>NOW THEY'VE BEEN WITHDRAWN FROM SALE :-(
>
>>And my head hurts ...

Try Nurofen, they're sugar coated and actually rather nice.

Based on Ibuprofen (sp.) I think.

Hope head healed.

Peter


-- 
-------------------------------------------------------------
| Peter Foulkes    | p.a.foulkes@bradford.ac.uk             |
| Bradford, UK     | or...  pafoulke@nyx.cs.du.edu	    |
--------------S----M----I----L----E----!----!----------------
From: ccdarg@dct.ac.uk (Alan Greig)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Video Plus
Date: 6 Jan 93 14:32:20 GMT
Organization: Dundee Institute of Technology

In article <1993Jan6.122230.16632@unipalm.co.uk>, ian@unipalm.co.uk (Ian Phillipps) writes:
> 
> BTW - I've never known the BBC start early. ITV sometimes starts up to a
> minute early, but I've never missed anything important.

Obviously you don't record Star Trek on BBC2 as this often begins a minute
or so early.
-- 
Alan Greig                            Janet: Alan@UK.AC.DUNDEE-TECH
Dundee Institute of Technology	   Internet: Alan@DCT.AC.UK
Tel: (0382) 308810                 Int: +44 382 308810
              -- There is only one true conspiracy --
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: gary.wgc1@rx.xerox.com (Gary Rowntree)
Subject: Re:Ariston music for TV Advert
Reply-To: gary.wgc1@rx.xerox.com
Organization: Rank Xerox Ltd.
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 10:32:44 GMT

>
>   Does anyone know what the source of the music (cheap sounding computer
>   ditty) comes from, as I am sure it sounds like an old Comodore-64 game
>   tune ??
>
>   Neale
>
The song *was* "Da Da Da" by Kraftwerk. 

Gary.
From: fofp@castle.ed.ac.uk (M Holmes)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Mornington Crescent rules anyone?
Date: 5 Jan 93 19:08:34 GMT
Organization: Edinburgh University

gerry@keele.ac.uk (G.D.Pratt) writes:

>Ok - I give in. Please let me in on what Mornington Crescent (THE GAME) is
>all about. Is it a wind-up or what. I am confused.

I can email you a copy of the English Standard Rules. These will be
superseded this year though when the Channel Tunnel is opened.

P.S. The only reason the government is funding the Jubilee Line is that
John Major has discovered a new strategy for MC and plans to use it in
the 1996 Autumn Finals. He's a well known player in the local club scene.

>gerry

FoFP
Xref: sparky uk.misc:2528 rec.arts.tv.uk:7104
From: adrian@cs.hw.ac.uk (Adrian Hurt)
Newsgroups: uk.misc,rec.arts.tv.uk
Subject: Papa! Nicole! (was Re: Ariston music for TV Advert)
Date: 12 Jan 93 11:25:00 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Dept of Computing & Electrical Engineering, Heriot-Watt University, Scotland

In article <ru3TrAWFBh107h@fredc.ibmpcug.co.uk> fredc@fredc.ibmpcug.co.uk (Fred Curtis) writes:
>
>The new Papa/Nicole advert (advertising is wasted on me - I don't have
>a clue what they're trying to sell) ...

Skis, I think.  The point of the advert seems to be that skis are faster
than a Renault 19, and if you crash you can get up again afterwards.

-- 
 "Keyboard?  How quaint!" - M. Scott

 Adrian Hurt			     |	JANET:  adrian@uk.ac.hw.cee
 UUCP: ..!uknet!cee.hw.ac.uk!adrian  |  ARPA:  adrian@cee.hw.ac.uk
From: cc@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Chris Cooke)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Mornington Crescent rules anyone?
Date: 8 Jan 93 11:51:53 GMT
	<1993Jan7.135634.22555@infodev.cam.ac.uk>
Organization: Department of Computer Science, University of Edinburgh, Scotland

In article <1993Jan7.135634.22555@infodev.cam.ac.uk> gdb15@grebe.cl.cam.ac.uk (Guy Barry) writes:

   In article <726409702snz@palnu.demon.co.uk> neil@palnu.demon.co.uk writes:
   >
   >Starting at South Kensington and travelling to Hammersmith Broadway

   Er, excuse me, but what exactly is this game?  It can't be any known
   variant of Mornington Crescent because in that game each player
   names a single station/street/district.

Looks to me like he's using the Cholmondley-Smith Variant of 1923.  Not often
you see *that* these days.
--
	-- Chris. 	cc@dcs.ed.ac.uk   (on Janet, cc@uk.ac.ed.dcs)
From: richard@aiai.ed.ac.uk (Richard Tobin)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Hyphening
Date: 11 Jan 93 14:54:18 GMT
Organization: HCRC, University of Edinburgh

In article <3363@ucl-cs.uucp> G.Joly@cs.ucl.ac.uk (Gordon Joly) writes:
>Is the word "rape" ever funny? Not in my book.

Do you mean "no joke or story involving the work 'rape' is ever funny"?

-- Richard
-- 
Richard Tobin,
Human Communication Research Centre,                       R.Tobin@ed.ac.uk
Edinburgh University.
From: tp@jet.uk (Tarang K Patel)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Anyone make use of the archive at Imperial college ?
Date: 6 Jan 93 12:03:52 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Joint European Torus


  I wonder if anyone using the archive at IC, src.doc.ic.ac.uk accessed
  via ftp login or email address - ftpmail@doc.ic.ac.uk has noticed the
  problem that I am seeing.

  Having made a request to download a very large file, via email - hence
  I expect the file to be broken up into a number of message files. I notice
  that this archive does not put a header on each of the message files I am
  returned. Thus making it difficult ( infact near impossible) to put back 
  together the original file.

  Should anyone out there have found a way round this please respond.

  Tarang
-- 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr Tarang Kumar Patel            |      snailmail : Jet Joint Undertaking,
Hunterskil ltd,                  |                  Abingdon,
Project House,                   |                  Oxfordshire OX14 3EA,
110/113 Tottenham Court Road,    |                  England.
London W1P 9HG                   |
                                 |      Email    : tp@jet.uk          
 { o'| `0 }                      |
    -~~-                         |      Tel      : (+44) (0235) 464533
     uu                          |      Fax      : (+44) (0235) 464766        
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Disclaimer: Please note that the above is a personal view and should not 
  be construed as an official comment from the JET project.
From: idf@cs.bham.ac.uk (Ian Fitchet)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Drugs
Date: 10 Jan 93 03:25:25 GMT
	<1993Jan7.142137.23932@tadtec.uucp>
	<1993Jan8.100615.5420@infodev.cam.ac.uk> <7143@m1.cs.man.ac.uk>
Organization: School of Computer Science, University of Birmingham


 On 9 Jan 93, Michael! wrote

> This is misleading. You can get stoned by eating hash cakes - how stoned
> you get depends on how much hash is in them! (Same applies to how strong
> the spliffs are).

 Speaking from a never-done-it-myself-but-know-a-few-people-that-have
standpoint my understanding is that those who smoke a lot or who are
regular users get a lot more per unit of cannabis than those who
aren't regulars.  Obviously, the more cannabis then the more stoned
you are going to get but it is a little more involved than a
straightforward proportional to volume formula.

--
Cheers,

	Ian

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ian Fitchet     				      I.D.Fitchet@cs.bham.ac.uk
School of Computer Science
Univ. of Birmingham, UK, B15 2TT
From: nigelm@ohm.york.ac.uk (Nigel Metheringham)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Video Plus
Date: 7 Jan 93 15:17:19 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Electronics Department, University of York, UK

In <1993Jan7.091311.18176@memex.co.uk> peter@memex.co.uk (Peter Ilieve) writes:

>Look at it from the decoder's point of view. It has to turn the random-looking
>number into a channel/date/time combination. I haven't seen anything which
>says that there can be only one number that decodes into a given combination.
>Are you saying that the UK {\em decoders} are different from the US ones?
>Or is the encoding difference just a red herring.

I am sure that when VideoPlus was unveiled on that paragon of
accuracy and infalible demonstrations :-) Tomorrows World that they
specifically said that the coding scheme was such that there were
several applicable codes to any timeslot and that the software
(publisher or someone) chose the shortest code for a particular
time.   [Then again it might have been New Scientist - and for that
matter I'm often wrong!]

	Nigel.

-- 
#   Nigel Metheringham  -- (NeXT) EMail: nigelm@ohm.york.ac.uk    #
#   System Administrator, Electronics Dept, University of York    #
#   York YO1 5DD. Phone: +44 904 432374, Fax: +44 904 432335      #