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"Uncatched" error

A screen shot of an error message (presented to me by a Microsoft service). It shows a stylised exclamation mark in a triangle that denotes an error, and gives the following text: "error-unCatchedError-title" and "error-unCatchedError-text".

#GE2024

Some poster defacements are disgraceful*, and some are just hilarious!

* Actually, IMO, very few are disgraceful.

A photo of a campaign poster for Mary Fitzpatrick on Sheriff St. in Dublin. The main picture is of Mary to the right and Fianna Fáil leader, Mícheál Martin to the left. The slogan on the poster reads "Moving forward. Together." Someone has placed googly eyes over Mícheál's and it's just brilliant.

Kirill looks remarkably like Kyle McLachlan as he played Special Agent Dale Cooper in Twin Peaks.

It leaves me wondering how rigourous your research is.

A copy of the promotional picture from the RTÉ web page that I link to in the post. A crop of this image is used to as the profile picture of this so-called "Kirill Dorofeev" in the screenhosts Dave posts above, casting doubt as to whether such a person exists. Oh! and one wonders why such an anti-Bluesky Masto-bro won't use alt-texts in his images, something that's considered at the very least rude across the fediverse. And, finally, as admin of toad.social, I wonder to what extent Dave is adhering to item 4 of his own server's rules: "Be transparent: no impersonation or hidden agendas."

Gotta say, I'm shocked at the bottom half of mine (and I would have expected the SDs and the GP to have been a little higher for me).

However, I found many of the questions lacking in subtlety, and if I dug deep, I might find some differences where this test sees similarities, and vice versa.

My score on the Independent's test. My views are aligned in the political parties as follows: People Before Profit-Solidarity: 76% Labour: 72% Social Democrats: 70% Sinn Féin: 66% Green Party: 61% Fine Gael: 49% Aontú: 38% Fianna Fáil: 28%

When you don't examine the actual URL you're copying from the e-mail your colleague sent to you before you use it in the official web site (from citizensinformation.ie/en/gove…):
A screen grab of that web page. It shows the text "On polling day, you cannot display posters or campaign for a candidate or party within 50 metres of a polling station" and I am "hovering over" the hypertext link on the words "cannot display posters or campaign for a candidate or party". From that text, I drew a green arrow to the bottom bar of my browser which shows the internet address the hyperlink points to. It starts with "https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.irishstatutebook.ie%2", which is a Microsoft service for testing the safety to the user of following the link. As the source page is a government site, and as the ultimate end-page of the link is a government site, it's not necessary to use this service, which also serves to let Microsoft know something about all who click on that link. (Oh! and not shown in the screen grab, but is present in the full URL, is the name of a member of staff of the Citizen's Information Board, which is possibly a data breach!)

General elections

Who can run for office in a general election? How do you vote? What are the rules around campaigning and election posters? This document explains how general elections work in Ireland.
Citizensinformation.ie

Page 6 (of 6!) of my #GE2020 voter's flyer to be given to candidates looking for my vote.
_International affairs_ - We need a clear, affirmative debate on Ireland's traditional policy of neutrality – no more hosting of conferences on the topic with sponsorship by arms industry funds - Pass the Occupied Territories Bill. Now. - Prosecute operators of flights carrying munitions of war illegally in Irish airspace _Public Services_ Implement Sláintecare. - Just stop the political messing-about, and get on with it. Real reform for the Seanad - Open franchise to Dáil voters - Seanad elections on the same day as Dáil elections - Demographic constituencies, not geographic _Public Revenues_ - A wealth tax - Recover the billions of euros in lost PRSI due to bogus self employment, and prosecute those who evaded this tax - Stop pretending that social welfare recipients are the enemy
#GE2020

Page 5 of my #GE2020 voter's flyer to be given to candidates looking for my vote.
_Protection of culture_ Protect RTÉ - Fully publicly-funded; remove the dependence on revenue from ads - Restate editorial independence – sanctions for ministers and TDs who threaten RTÉ in response to editorial decisions More access to information - Require all state-produced copyrightable works, including e.g. RTÉ's archives, to be released under the terms of a Creative Commons licence. Prioritise the protection of libraries and archiving over business models founded on incorrect interpretations of the point of copyright. Protect libraries against the long and slow campaign by publishers to destroy their benefit to society Protect the Public Domain _Condemn the practice of punching down_ We need to stop politicians and campaigners targetting vulnerable sections of society for political gain. Reject these behaviours. Asylum seekers, transgender people, disabled people, unemployed people, jewish or muslim people, poor people. None of these are a threat to me or to you. When you're in debates or panels and someone shows bigotry, call it out.
#GE2020

Page 3 of my #GE2020 voter's flyer to be given to candidates looking for my vote.
Information and Information Systems and Services Develop effective internet policies, following advice from technology experts. - Note: technology experts; people with objective, fact-based, research expertise on the relevant products and technological measures. Not technology company executives – they're business people and not independent. Not those who demand reforms without regard for potential unintended consequences. - Be clear and honest on the real goals of any internet regulation Reject misinformation, especially if it furthers agendas you support: - Stop suing journalists and news outlets just because they told truths you don't want known - Punish government departments and agencies that use misinformation in public awareness campaigns More transparency in government - Revise Freedom of Information law to apply a presumption of releasing the information (requiring a specific reason not to do so) Prioritise public health over patent protection - Allow for TRIPS waivers, including an automatic suspension of patent rights during health emergencies such as the COVID pandemic.
#GE2020

Page 2 of my #GE2020 voter's flyer to be given to candidates looking for my vote.
Climate Justice Present a detailed and radical climate action plan, up to and beyond 2100, based on equity and justice. - Climate action that depends on individual behaviours or private investment and competition will not achieve the changes we need. Free public transport for all, urban or rural - Ireland should invest massively in rolling out public transport options. - De-prioritising of private car ownership. As the internet meme says: electric cars will save the motor industry, but public transport will save the planet. Invest in native energy production, prioritising a broad base of renewable and sustainable sources of energy. - Revoke all fossil fuel exploration and extraction licences - Form international coalitions on energy sharing - Public building (including public housing buildings) to have solar panels as standard Retro-fitting schemes to prioritise vulnerable people and disadvantaged areas.
#GE2020

Page 1 of my #GE2020 voter's flyer to be given to candidates looking for my vote.
See https://www.gibiris.org/eo-blog/posts/2024/10/29_ge2024-election-flyer.html for the details. The main text on this page reads as follows: *** A leaflet for a leaflet Hi there election candidate! I can do leaflets too. Lookit, what your leaflet tells me are the things you're interested in, but unless you ask (and are actually interested!) you're not really going to learn what /I/ want /my/ TDs and Senators to do on my behalf. So, here's a leaflet from me, outlining my concerns. If you want to vote for you, all you need to do it post on Mastodon or BlueSky with the #GE2024 and #IWantEibhearsVote hashtags, '@' me and tell me which of my priorities are your priorities too! I am... - @eibhear@social.gibiris.org on the Mastodon network - @eibhear.gibiris.org on BlueSky Read on to see what /my/ priority concerns are.
#GE2020

A blast from the past.

The solar eclipse of the 4th December, 2002. Taken in the South Australian town of Ceduna.

A picture of a hand holding a sheet of cart onto which a the double image of the solar eclipse is projected through a pair of binoculars. At the time the picture was taken, about 70% or so of the sun's disk was obscured by the moon. Thus, there was enough light coming from the sun for it to look as though there was full daylight. We can see the hand of the person holding the sheet of card, and in the background are some people going about their looking-at-the-eclipse business.

Dublin in 1754 and the same area today (-ish. Actually 2022).

A scan of the 1754 map of Dublin by John Rocque. As the map was drawn more than 250 years ago, it's safe to guess that copyright doesn't apply. You never know, though, because the whole copyright system is engineered, intentionally, to be beyond comprehension.

The same area in Dublin as represented by Openstreetmap.org (copyrighted to the OpenStreetMap contributors) in 2022.

As I use Friendica, Mastodon polls don't render properly for me. Instead, I get the voting so far and the results, without any ability for me to vote.

These are remarkable figure (i.e. 200% of voters have voted so far)

My view of the poll, showing the voting on the options so far: do yeah (25%, 1 vote) I would (50%, 2 votes) yes (25%, 1 vote) are you seeking permission or forgiveness (100%, 4 votes)

If you look at all the streets on the map you'll see that they are all packed tightly with buildings (houses, mostly). Except for the just south of Wood Quay, shown in the zoomed-in portion here. It's believed that the gunpowder explosion of 1597 (13 years before the map was published, but about 7 years before the map it's based on was drawn) destroyed about 40 houses, and killed a little over 1% of the population of the city.

By the time the basis map was drawn, not all those houses were rebuilt or replaced, so there were gaps in the street-scape.

A zoomed-in portion of the 1610 map by John Speed showing the area just south of Wood Quay, where there are gaps in the housing terraces resulting from the destruction of the 1597 gunpowder explosion.

The map that, 10 years or so ago, brought me down a rabbit hole from which I have yet to emerge: Dublin, 1610, by John Speed.
A map of Dublin dates 1610, drawn by John Speed, based on an earlier map from about 1604 or so. Speed had never been in Dublin himself. The map has been coloured in, but I understand the original was not.

This is one of my favourite charts. Before I came across it, I was a proponent of the astronomical seasons, but now I'm fully in the celtic seasons camp.

I always smirk at the differences in Ireland. North of the border (formerly protestant-driven education) the seasons that are taught are the meteorological; south of the border (formerly roman catholic-driven education) they're the astronomical seasons.

A chart showing the relationships between the meteorological, astronomical and celtic seasons.

Pity. I would have liked to have read the article.
A screenshot of the error message I get when I try to go to the linked-to article. It tells me I'm not permitted to access it, but not why.

Carsie Blanton trying to radicalise me in Fairview Park tonight.

Only problem is I'm already radicalised!

A poor resolution pic of the big screen in Fairview Park marquee showing Carsie Blanton performing. And a tiny Carsie in the bottom right corner in even worse resolution.

Y'mean that Microsoft didn't follow the GNU Coding Standards when developing that feature?
A screen-grab of section 4.2 "Writing Robust Programs" from the GNU Coding standards: 'Avoid arbitrary limits on the length or number of any data structure, including file names, lines, files, and symbols, by allocating all data structures dynamically. In most Unix utilities, “long lines are silently truncated”. This is not acceptable in a GNU utility.' The word "arbitrary" is partially-highlighted, because I found that piece of text by searching for "arbitrar" in my browser once I brought up the page.

Well done lads. Let's shut down a portion of the road directly outside two schools on the very day that their students are starting their state examinations.
A screengrab of a notification e-mail from Dublin City Council. "Road Alert // 4th to 5th June - Roadworks Malahide Rd. As part of the ongoing Clontarf to City Centre Scheme roadworks are proposed for Malahide Road with a STOP/GO installation in place and slip lane closure on Marino Crescent, Tuesday 4th June to Wednesday 5th June inclusive. Location: Malahide Road & Marino Crescent Slip Road; Dates; Tuesday 4th June to Wednesday 5th June inclusive. STOP/GO installation on junction each evening 19:30 to 04:00. Slip Road closed Tuesday 4th at 08:00 to Thursday 6th at 07:00. STOP / Go installation on junction of Malahide Road, Marino Crecent Slip Road and Clontarf Road junction. Works Description; Pavement overlay. Completion of these works shall open large areas for wearing course placement. Night-working is proposed. These traffic management installations and proposed works are necessary to facilitate road construction works. The proposed temporary traffic management plans for the works are attached for reference. To help ensure the works can be carried out, while keeping the overall disruption to a minimum, night working is required. The Contractor will endeavour to keep noise levels as low as possible, but some disruption is inevitable. For any queries on this email or the attached update, please contact the Active Travel Office at ActiveTravelOffice@dublincity.ie. Dublin City Council apologies for any inconvenience caused and seeks the understanding and co-operation of the public during the course of these works."

My secret advice for preparing creamy mash potatoes: when you think you've mashed it enough, keep going; it'll get creamier.
A pick of a dish of mashed potatoes I've just prepared, planned for service over 2 family meals.

I am going offline. I may be some time.
The front cover of the Irish Historical Towns Atlas' edition (no. 31!) of Cork / Corcaigh, by H.B. Clarke and Máire Ní Laoi.
The text book that comes with the Irish Historical Towns Atlas' edition (no. 31!) of Cork / Corkaigh. It's 204 pages of dense academic essays and gazetteers. Beneath the book is a print of the 1:50,000 1879 Ordinance Survey map of Cork and its surroundings.
A page from the Irish Historic Towns Atlas edition (no. 31!) of Cork / Corcaigh showing 2 maps of Cork, one each from 1545 and 1610.

I just checked.

This piece of art is still in place:

A screenshot of a tweet from former UK Prime Minister, current UK Foreign Secretary, David Cameron, posted on the 4th May, 2015, saying "Britain faces a simple and inescapable choice - stability and strong Government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband"

I give the same answer every single time, yet they insist on continuing to ask it periodically.
A screen grab of a pop-up question I was asked by Microsoft regarding whether I would recommend the web version of MS Excel to others. I am about to press the "Send" button, having typed my standard response: "I am required by my employer to use the web version of Excel. If I had my own choice, it's possible I would use something else. I will not recommend to someone something that I am not free to choose to use myself."

The Dublin County Choir will be performing Carmina Burana on the 10th March in the National Concert Hall. Just bought my tickets, and I'm really looking forward to it.

nch.ie/all-events-listing/dubl…

The official promo pic of the Dublin County Choir, showing a group of well-clad choir members, booklets 'n' all belting it out.

I did up my own leaflet at the last general election. Each candidate I met, I gave it to them. I plan to prepare one for each of the locals and the Euros this year.
An export of my general election 2020 voter leaflet, outlining my areas of interest, and what politicians need to be aware of if they want my vote. The text is (probably) too long to include here, but let me know if you would like a PDF copy of it, or a copy in any other text format. The first section reads as follows: "You candidates and all your flyers. There ye all are, handing these things out to tell us what you're going to do; not asking us what it is that we want. Well, here's what I want. If you would like me to vote for you, please let me know how your priorities match mine. My priorities are: 1) Climate Justice 2) Freedom of Information 3) Housing 4) Public Services 5) Public Revenues" The rest of the flyer gives details on each of these 5 priorities.

Hmm. I find it interesting that for the whopping price of €106.99 Springer still doesn't allow me to own the Softcover Book forever.
A screen grab from a page on springer showing the options available for me to get access to a scientific paper. I can buy the chapter for €29.95, which comes with the features that it is available in PDF, I can read it on any device, it's an instant download and that I can own it forever; or I can buy the whole book for €85.59, carrying the features that it is available in EPUB and PDF formats, I can read it on any device, it's an instant download and that I can own it forever; or I can buy the "Softcover Book" for €106.99, with the benefits that it's a compact, light-weight edition, that it's dispatched in 3-5 working days and that there's free shipping worldwide. No mention of how long I can own it for, leading me to assume they're gonna come and take it off me at some point in the future, maybe selling it on to some other poor sucker for €106.99.

How yer man thinks January 20th, 2025 will go down.
The 1807 painting "The Coronation of Napoleon" by Jacques-Louis David. It shows a crowded, opulent hall, with all attendees in their finest garb watching the proceedings. Napoleon is standing on a low dais, with the pope, Pius VII, seated on the throne behind him. Josephine is in front or Napoleon, kneeling, showing her respect (I guess!). Napoleon holds a crown aloft, just before he places it on his own head (a major deviation from so-called tradition, where the crown is usually placed onto the recipient's noggin by the local primate.

We have authors and audiences. We have creators and we have fans. But, when you hear people talk about the "creative industries" they are referring to the lawyers, accountants and administrators who want to control everything we create and enjoy for their own profit, giving us this type of bullshit.

No wonder so-called piracy is rife.

A photo of my TV showing a message from Spotify telling me that a certain song (Kate Bush's version of Elton John's Rocket Man) cannot be played in my region.

... but this made me chuckle.

Is there no count for twitter because of restricted access to the API? or is it because no one is sharing this story on that service?

A screen grab of the share links for a news story. It shows that the story has been shared on Reddit 396 times, on facebook 133 times and via e-mail once. There's no number by the twitter share button.

Congratulation to @Col, who with 2,159 followers is 2,159th in the mastodon most followed list.

most-followed-masotodon-accoun…

A screen grab from page 44 from https://most-followed-masotodon-accounts.stefanhayden.com/, showing countcol AT mastodonapp.uk as 2,159th on the list, with 2,159 followers.

Hi @Thunderbird: Free Your Inbox, is there a way I can combine AND and OR criteria here? If I want to filter, for example, e-mails that are sent to address X and come from any of addresses A or B or C, how would I specify that in this dialog? Currently I would use 3 different rules, which is rather cumbersome.

Thanks.

A screengrab of thunderbird's filter message screen before any details or rules have been added. I have drawn a magenta ellipse around the rules portion of the screen to highlight what part of the dialog I am referring to in the question to the thunderbird dudes.
@Thunderbird: Free Your Inbox

Looking good (20:51 Dublin time.)

"Landlord exodus". WTF does that mean?

An AI-generated image of a snail with two shells on its back.

"Should I stay or should I go? Landlord exodus set to continue as supports fail to materialise"

Should I stay or should I go? Landlord exodus set to continue as supports fail to materialise

Budget tax measures aren’t meaningful enough for many small landlords to stick out the storm
Joanne Hunt (The Irish Times)

Same old question, same answer every single time.
A screen grab of a survey question from Microsoft, just before I submit my answer. The question is "How likely are you to recommend Teams meetings to others, if asked?" I've selected "Not at all likely", the lowest of the 5 options offered to me, with "Extremely likely" being the highest. I am also asked to provide an explanation for why I selected this answer (which is elided as soon as I start typing, so that question isn't visible in the screen grab). My answer is the same I always give: "I am required by my employer to use Teams meetings. If I had a choice, I may well use something else. I will not recommend anything to anyone that I am not free to choose to use myself."

I do not agree that this is an appropriate use of the 451 Unavailable For Legal Reasons HTTP response status code used by The Gettysburg Times.
A screengrab of the web page returned to me by the Gettysburg Times. The text reads "We recognize you are attempting to access this website from a country belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA) including the EU which enforces the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and therefore access cannot be granted at this time. For any issues, contact news@gettysburgtimes.com or call 717-334-1131."

Sometimes I wonder if we chop the ends off mangetout for no reason other than irony.

Well done, caption writer. I see what you're doing!

(From irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41… "School's former students taught by Nazi collaborator demand apology")

A file photo from the news article showing a group of people with the caption "Nazi collaborator Louis Feutren, far right, at St Conleth's in 1970." I have highlighted the words "Nazi collaborator" and ", for right, ", my suggestion being that this was intended by the caption writer.

Brilliant shot

#rwc2023 #rwc23 #ENGvARG

!rugby group

A shot of the Argentina rugby team in their last pre-match huddle taken from directly overhead.
#rwc23 #rwc2023 #ENGvARG !rugby group

Updated to include alt-text.
The popular meme picture of the guys looking wistfully at the woman passing by while his partner looks on shocked. I've labelled the passing woman with a picture showing the browser wars of the 1990s: "This page is best viewed in... " and then logos for Netscape and Internet Explorere. I've labelled the drooling dude with the logo of Google Chrome and I've labelled the shocked partner with the logo of the World Wide Web Consortium.

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