I tried pinging it and wasn't successful either.

C:\Users\Stevie>ping QZ8501
Ping request could not find host QZ8501. Please check the name and try again

Those with enough self control to not eat badly all the time and to exercise regularly are healthier. Those with enough self control to apply themselves to their schoolwork before playing are more successful. I would never have guessed.

When logging in from a different location (im my case I was on holiday, so I was on a different continent) I had to do this to verify that I was the account owner. I can understand why, but it was extremely frustrating and if I had been traveling without my partner then I would have been unable to use facebook for the duration of the trip. This was the only way possible to regain access to the account.

I also have prosopagnosia and managed to get locked out of my FB account. Luckily for me, my gf knows almost all of my friends and was able to identify the people in the photos for me. I'm not sure what I would have done otherwise as being without a facebook account is social suicide these days.

After listening for a minute or two I started to find it strangely relaxing. I think I'd prefer a different voice though.

Go get a bottle of beer after the screening in one of the bars that most airports have. Nothing stopping you from getting that on the plane, and broken glass is just as good a weapon as a knife.

I have absolutely no problem with people seeing my naked body. Hell, I know there's at least one pic of me floating around the internet somewhere (though I'm not happy about that, a 'friend' decided to share it without consulting me. I don't care who sees me naked, but I would like to know who those people are). I still object to the scanners though.

You want to know why?

It's because I have no say in the matter. Get groped, get virtually stripped, or don't fly. I should be able to decide who gets to see me naked, and I should also be able to decide who gets to touch me in that way. What if I'm wearing a skirt and g-string? You don't get to touch there without at least buying me a drink first! Not flying isn't really an option when I'm in Europe and I have family in the states that I want to see occasionally. Why the 'enhanced' patdown anyway? What's wrong with a regualar police style one? Much less embarassing and invasive, but obviously effective enough.

Okay, so my main objection is that people get the fantastic choice between being virtualy stripped or being groped, but I olso object on the grounds that there is no fucking point. If people are being caught at the airport then it s my opinion that security has failed. Are 'terrorists' really going to be stopped by this? Pre-9/11 levels of security plus the reinforced and locked cockpit door should be perfectly adequate.

Problem is, here (England) a hate crime is only when the race, religion, sexual orientation or disibility of the victim is a motivating factor.

This makes me uncomfortable, because it makes attacking someone outside of a mosque because you have a problem with their religion somehow worse than attacking someone outside a sci-fi convention because you have a problem with geeks.

In my mind this legitimises some kinds of hate. I'd be much happier if the whole hate crime thing was done away with, at least until someone figures out how to word it so that it's fairer and doesn't elevate only certain groups to having special 'victim' status'.

My mum doesn't own a phone, I lend her mine when she is going out and I'm staying home. She is a bit of a technophobe and has trouble even unlocking the keypad with two keystrokes, let alone entering a password!

A phone with this enabled would be near impossible to lend to her. I'm not saying it's a bad idea but it'd need to be something that can easily be disabled.

I'm reading this right now, and only half way through at the moment. Neal Stephenson is the only author I've ever encountered who leaves me with a sense of awe while reading.

I imagine that this is something I'll be re-reading every few years.

I honestly have no idea. I only understand why most people don't see it as surprising or a problem, but it doesn't actually make sense to me either.

Very little that isn't urgent happens in UK hospitals at weekends. When my Dad was in hospital with heart problems, almost all tests were scheduled for weekdays although obviously when he was admitted (on a Saturday, if I remember correctly) tests were being done straight away to determine the problem and begin treatment. As soon as he was stable and waiting for test results would be merely an inconvenience as opposed to a danger to his health, tests were only done on weekdays. When I last visited the US I noticed that there is very much a 24/7 culture there, but in some places in England you will be lucky to find much more than a pub or corner shop open on a Sunday. If you happen to live near a supermarket then it will be open for very limited hours. I can imagine that to someone from the US, the idea that much less testing (and almost no non-critical testing) is done on weekends is shocking, but most people here don't seem to have any objection. This is not to say if it is right or wrong, merely to explain the difference and give some cultural background.

Can't afford it at the moment. This actually pays much better.

This is the first sit down job I've ever had, I've done a little work as a laborer and also factory work (assembly line stuff). Unfortunately it is minimum wage work but I find it immensely rewarding. At the end of the day I can step back and think 'I did that' and actually have something to see for my actions.

Here I can work for 40 hours a week and earn more than when I was working 55. If it wasn't for the money, I would be doing some kind of physical labor.

For me, the money wins out at the moment. Good question though