What peaks the interest is that whilst it was something urgent, it was low risk enough that instead of scheduling an emergency return at the next available slot, the return was scheduled a week after the situation was reported.

What types of cases would result in such a scenario? A condition threatening internal rupture at any moment, such as appendix, would have demanded an immediate dispatch.

As far as I'm aware, what they're able to "cultivate" today is still only on par with lower-quality processed meats. In which case, it's competing with something I already actively avoid.

The day they're able to reproduce a quality grass-fed steak, heck, I'm all aboard!

Perhaps the biggest ethical problem today is, as twice mentioned in TFS, factory/industrial farming. That's about as far from nature's course for "animals eating animals" as you can get, and is rightfully criticised as being little more than an infinite conveyor belt of unnecessary pain.

The other ethical discomfort people feel is the slaughter of animals with intelligence/personality. People that have spent time around animals will be familiar with the fundamental lack of difference between what we arbitrarily call "livestock" & "pets" & our hypocrisy in protecting one over the other.

The company clearly hasn't abandoned the other ongoing monthly contracts, so it does sound like they're trying to have their cake and eat it too.

Choosing which contracts to honour and which do ditch, doesn't sound like a purely asset purchase. They even comment that they analysed the previous 6-12 months of financials, something they wouldn't need to do if they were "just buying the tech".

That still doesn't solve the audio issue. That needs a decent microphone array, and external sound that doesn't generate feedback.

I totally get that, however it's so far ahead of anything else I've seen on the market, and at such a great price, I'd highly recommend taking the dive.

Buy one, test that it still provides the services you require (if not, refund), then buy a second. It's a win/win.
Meta have said that the available extra services might change with time, but have promised that the core technology should continue working for a good time yet.

All of these people posting "just get an iPad", whilst well intentioned, have no clue.

Remember, the most important part is being able to capture decent audio, wherever the person is, without requiring everyone to wear a mic.

Agreed. For a comfortable experience where people will likely be interacting from different areas in a room, instead of always sat in the same position at a desk, you have 3 main priorities:
  - Decent intelligent microphone array;
  - Subject tracking/PTZ camera (can be software);
  - User friendly.

User friendly can be a bit of a challenge for any "home made" solution.

One of the best home systems I've come across, both in usability and value, was the Facebook/Meta Portal TV. You sat it on your TV like a soundbar and initiated video calls from your phone (WhatsApp, FB, etc). The microphone array was very impressive, and the camera automatically zoomed and tracked everyone in the room. It also had lots of interactivity options, allowing you to read animated stories to the kids, play games together, etc, etc.
It launched at the lowly price of $49, before creeping up to $199, and then unfortunately being discontinued in 2022. The service still works though, so buying them indirectly is still an option.
The Meta tie-in isn't ideal, but it really is (was) a fantastic product & service.

For a PTZ webcam option, the Insta360 Link is a nice option also at $199, however it still leaves you looking for a decent microphone array.

They're referring to pre-paid phones at RRP, not phones bundled in a contract. In this case, you're getting locked in without any of the compensation or benefits of a post-paid plan. That's just predatory.

This is usually to do with line compatibility built into the hardware, such as GSM, HSPA, CDMA, LTE, etc.
I don't know how it is in the US, but it's been over a decade since I had to worry about any of that. Most phones come with near universal support, and there isn't that much difference between carriers' hardware now-a-days.

As in HDMI/DP headsets? There are lots of options. Xreal has a very well reputed line-up.

Wow, classy. Well if you want to be an arse...

Apparently I touched a nerve with the keyboard warrior who can't even configure fucking SPF, a decades old standard whose simplicity is matched only by OP's own apparent technical competence.

Heh, that must have been Gmail ALPHA, because the beta launched in early 2004.

Catch up! It's 2024. If you don't properly configure SPF, DKIM, & DMARC, you can expect trouble sending email to almost modern email provider.

Email is the wild west & these mechanisms/band-aids are an unfortunate necessity in today's world.

Hosting your own MTA today is a thankless pain in the arse, I'll give you that. If you want a tip, have a look at sending through AWS SES. It costs like $0.01/1k emails & deals with all of that crap for you. Since adopting it, I've never again had problems getting past spam filters and delivering mail to the intended inbox, even though about 2/3 of the email is automated user notifications.

In the long run I intend on moving all of my professional email to a managed service. My neglected MX is a security breach waiting to happen - I have neither the time nor the interest in keeping it maintained.

PS.
If you didn't do so, try using telnet to send a test email and debug the negotiation. Often the receiving MX will provide more details for the specific reason your mail is being rejected.

I've had my account since 2004. Not the earliest, but it was still invite only at the time. It kept the "beta" moniker until 2009, however it was more of a in-joke by that point.

Prior to that, most people used yahoo, hotmail, and various ISP provided addresses, but all of those had trouble with spam & being tied to an ISP was problematic.
At that point, paid email was usually far more restrictive - charging per address and per MB.

If there's a service that pre-dates Gmail, and at the time provided more resources & better spam controls, I'd like to hear it.

Your age is clearly messing with your memory. Gmail came out a good while before Google gained its reputation for perpetual betas & product cancellations.

Managing your own MTA is a PITA, and Gmail has provided the longest running service that works well. It might not have so much of an edge today, but on top of its revolutionary amount of storage (for the day), it's always had one of the best spam filters.

I think there's a fair distinction between "taking a photo/picture" and processing a video stream in real-time.