What 21CN really means?

"Putting all your eggs in one basket" is a phrase that comes to mind, or so it seems.

The way networks used to be run is that different services used different infrastructure and worked in different ways. Indeed, many services would inherently allow re-routing around problems either automatically or manually. If one service failed another continued as it did not use the same infrastructure.

Apparently, 21st Century Networks are different. It seems that with 21CN you can have lots of single points of failure, like a router in Slough perhaps, that can simultaneously take out lots of services and somehow not allow them to be re-routed! You can have Ethernet links and broadband services go down at the same time even though they are not actually in that area, just because they are routed via Slough.

Of course, in the good old days, a failure would mean using spare equipment or mending a fibre, and it would be done within a 4 hour window at most. But no, with 21CN you can have huge routers that don't apparently have hot, or even vaguely warm, spares, and so the idea of things fixed in 4 hours is out of the window.

Yes, this is a lot of guess work about the network of a major UK telco, but it is guess work based on the fact that 10% of our broadband and Ethernet lines have been down for NINE HOURS so far, and all that has happened during that time is some more lines going off in another area...

I guess we now know what 21CN means though. Thanks for showing us the way.

Ban phones, encourage bullies?

My daughter's school ban the kids from taking mobile phones into the school, it seems.

This may seem sensible to some. It seems a tad harsh to me. I am not even sure of the legality of it (or more importantly the legality of any enforcement actions such as confiscating phones), but that is a separate matter.

The problem is that all the kids take phones in to school - teenagers will. They keep them off/silent in class, etc, and occasionally they are confiscated and later returned. The school clearly know this happens so it seems silly having a ban.

The problem is that bullies can steal phones, break phones (see picture) and do what they like to phones and the owner feels they are unable to report it for fear of getting detention for breaking the school rules.

Seems a somewhat unintended side effect!

The problem has parallels in more normal life. Making something illegal does not stop it, but makes it impossible to police properly or for people who are mistreated to come forward.

[P.S. yes this will mean Sonim number 5 for her]

Damn, have to fill in census on paper now...

The employment question cannot be completed for someone that has more than 4 GCSE's but not grades A*-C, and "no qualifications" does not apply either, but the on-line form does not allow it to be blank.

Only option is paper completion where it can be correctly left blank.

Who the hell designs this stuff.

Little Bobby Tables (census)

Well James has gone one better...

Job title: Orc polisher (census)

Looks like I have been an Orc polisher all week as Q.34 relates to job in Q.26 which is my job last week. Interestingly, last week I did get the Orc a lanyard for his ID badge (from Leeds) and and take pictures for the engraving, etc.

But "job title" is simply what is agreed between me and my employer, and that can be anything.

Census: First unclear questions?

OK, first one I am stuck on.

"People staying overnight on 27th March 2011"

Well, which night is that. There are 5 hours and 50 minutes of night at the start of the 27th and 5 hours and 55 minutes of night at the end of the 27th.

Do they mean both ends of the 27th or just one?

I am sure loads of people will have opinion on this, but what is the legally correct definition and how do I find out?

Grr

iWaited (pic)

Says it all doesn't it...

Yes, in the queue, we updated the s/w on the iPad1 replacements we had received, and that is the screen we had to watch...