Downdetector is showing a virtually identical blip for #Microsoft 365, Gmail, iCloud, BT, TalkTalk and more. I reckon the problem is actually only at Microsoft, but because the new #Outlook isn't a proper #email client and instead accesses IMAP mailboxes via Microsoft #cloud services, people are thinking their respective providers are down.

The Printer Who Cried Low Toner

@RogueAmoeba Thank you to all involved! Naturally, the result is excellent!

Idea for a dystopian novel set in 2044 when all other shops have closed and everything is done at the Post Office. Most staff don't stay long enough to complete their three-year training, and those that do are still randomly accused of stealing money. Despite the lack of competition, branches are closing and pop-up post offices are opening in Wetherspoons — the only remaining pubs and the subject of the sequel.

Were you good at knock-and-run as a child? You might be a perfect fit working for #Evri.

@Edent Please tell me you're familiar with Garth Marenghi.

@neil The same joy as ham radio, I'd imagine.

@MacBalance @gruber I had no idea about the #Affinity acquisition. That's really upsetting, just on principle. Serif's history is three times longer and they make amazing stuff with a tiny fraction of the number of staff.

The advice to wear sunscreen would obviously come in first place à la Boaty McBoatface.

Idea for a global survey in which respondents are asked to rate each piece of advice given in Baz Luhrmann's "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" on a scale from 1 (not at all important) to 5 (very important) so we can finally get that list sorted in a meaningful way.

My partner suggests, quite poignantly, that we're no longer in the Information Age; and that this historical period should be referred to as the Marketing Age.

Next year's gonna be a rat summer. #RatSummer #rat #rats

@RolloTreadway In case you've not heard it, because it's such a great word: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification

@neil Make Your PowerPoints 5x Better With This One Simple Trick

No really, I've said for years that light text on a dark background is an instant and easy way to make your slideshows look more professional. And simplicity is key.

Here's a slide from a talk I gave to Tackley Local History Group in 2019 titled "A History of the Internet". Bonus points if you can guess what it refers to.

@rbairwell The simplest explanation is that they haven't implemented it because every new feature implemented means more bugs and more testing, and this might be a rather niche feature. In a way I'm often comforted by the limitations of software, because it's the opposite of the rapid change and feature creep that's responsible for so many problems in the industry.

@VModifiedMind The future's orange.

@bloor Thought you might like this old USB hub that might or might not be overloaded depending on how you look at it, literally.

Your GUI could burn you: warning on a hot water dispenser in Costa.

@neil Oh, this sounds nice! Another time, as I haven't had dinner yet – which currently includes an episode of Star Trek: Voyager – and it's an hour or so on the train from my village just outside Oxford.

@coreyspowell Aww, the tail dragging along! The pet rats I had were not fussy about their tails being handled – or my occasional, futile attempts to make them a bit cleaner – though they did use them for balance and grip, and occasionally shook them with excitement or contentment, I think.