On 25/01/2011 06:24 PM, Darren New wrote:
> Invisible wrote:
>> Ah, but what's this I see? A "privacy filter"? Yes, it's a small piece
>> of plastic which is transparent only when viewed from certain
>> directions. In other words, you stick it to your screen to reduce the
>> viewing angle. WTF, people!? :-D
>
> What part of "privacy" did you misunderstand?

Engineers spend decades designing an LCD with a wide viewing angle, and 
then a company sells you a device to narrow the viewing angle again. :-D 
How absurd.

I'm reminded of Flanders & Swan:

   I had a little gramophone,
   I'd wind it round and round.
   And with a sharpish needle,
   It made a cheerful sound.

   And then they amplified it,
   It was much louder then.
   And you sharpened fibre needles,
   To make it soft again.

At any rate, all this device does is mean that anybody wanting to 
shoulder surf needs to stand somewhat closer to you. It doesn't 
magically stop people seeing what's on your screen, it just makes it 
mildly harder. (For *you* as well as everybody else.)

> Let me blow your mind:
>
>
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/usb-rechargeable-1-3mp-pin-hole-spy-av-camera-disguised-as-sunglasses-tf-slot-42736

An amusing novelty toy, I'm sure...

>> Quite why anybody would pay for an expensive 2MP photosensor and then
>> stick it behind a crappy 7mm lens I have no idea.
>
> I've never understood that, unless a 2MP photosensor is actually cheaper
> in bulk than a lower quality one.

Well, perhaps. I rather suspect it's because most people think the 
sensor is the *only* thing that determines picture quality, so they will 
simply buy the camera with the highest pixel rating.

(I vaguely recall somebody did an experiment that went something like 
this: Take a photograph. Make two edited copies of it. One is slightly 
sharper, the other has slightly brighter colours. Ask people which one 
they prefer. That's your control group. Now ask another bunch of people, 
but first tell them that one picture came from a 2MP camera and the 
other from an 8MP camera. Apparently the majority preferred the 8MP 
image, regardless of which one you claim to be 8MP. In other words, what 
the image actually looks like has no effect on consumer choice. People 
are stupid.)

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