thehatfox

Nintendo consoles tended to be radical, Nintendo handhelds were more iterative.

The Game Boy and DS lines all built gradually on each other, seems the Switch line is following suit. I assume Nintendo see the Switch as a handheld that can be docked, rather than a console that’s also portable, so I guess it makes sense that it’s following a similar trajectory of previous handheld lines.

Everything has to look so serious these days.

The colourful Joy Cons were part of the Switch’s identity, sad to see it reduced to an accent they seem almost ashamed of.

The N-Gage had a bunch of bizarre design decisions.

The game cartridge slot was behind the battery - swapping games required disassembling the phone.

The revised QD version fixed a lot of the mistakes but it was too little too late by then.

I was told the future would be all flying cars and food in pills.

But instead it’s industrial pollution and bloodletting.

I can't give good answers to all of these, but here's what I can say.

1. Check the mobile coverage in the area (Ofcom have a coverage map) you will be living and pick based on that and price. I personally use Giffgaff, which is a MVNO using the O2 network. They are no frills and cheap, I've been using them for years and quite a few family and friends have since joined me.

2. For a building society try Nationwide, long established stable option with a good high street presence across the country. My family have used them for many years.

3. Aldi and Lidl are cheap and cheerful, great for staples on a budget. Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's are the middle tier. Waitrose and M&S are the posher options. Wherever you shop you will save money by joining the loyalty scheme (Tesco Clubcard, Nectar, Lidl Plus etc).

4. Register for your local GP surgery once you have a place to live. You can always switch later if needed. The NHS website has plenty of info. The emergency phone number here is 999 and non emergency is 111.

6. You can carry your passport but it's inconvenient. A provisional driving license is a commonly accepted ID here, and you can apply for one even if you have no intention to actually drive. We also have a scheme called PASS cards such as CitizenCard which are low cost and available for anyone with UK residency. Not as versatile as a provisional drivers license or passport, but work fine for simple checks like proof of age.

8. IKEA is fine. If you don't mind second hand many charity shops have larger stores that sell furniture, there can be some real bargains there and they will often provide delivery.

9. Supermarkets do a reasonable range of housewares. T K Maxx often have some bargains. John Lewis is more upmarket.

10. Supermarkets again are cheap and reasonable. Somewhere like Next is may be better quality. I hear a lot of people recommend Uniqlo at the moment for quality everyday wear with a plain/timeless style that doesn't break the bank.

11. Most ISPs provide national coverage, however the quality of the underlying infrastructure does vary by location. Most will use the nationwide Openreach network, which is slowly upgrading to full fibre, but exact speed will vary. Generally the more rural you go the worse the service gets. Virgin Media is the UK's cable provider, and operates both copper and fibre networks. They do not have a great customer service record, but they may have a far greater service speed in your location so it's worth checking out. Even the best ISPs for customer service such as Zen and A&A are often beholden to Openreach who may or may not give a crap about faults in a timely manner anyway. We also have several independent fibre "altnets" operating in different areas who may offer better speeds and prices. Also consider bundle deals for both broadband and mobile plans, there can be some good deals to be had there.

12. Officially you need a TV Licence if you watch or record any programmes via any device as they are broadcast, and to watch on-demand BBC programmes on iPlayer. You don't have to have a license to own the TV itself, nor to watch non-BBC on demand content. I'd say it's worth paying to legally access BBC content (which still has a lot of cultural relevancy here) and avoid hassle with the TV Licensing authority.

13. Eating out for breakfast is less common here. But a "greasy spoon" cafe will serve a traditional fried breakfast amongst other things. Ask locals for recommendations. Do not be afraid of black pudding.

14. Authentic Mexican or American-Mexican food seems to be rare here. When I have travelled in the US the Mexican food was very different (in a good way) to the "Mexican" I'd previously known at home. I'm sure there is some somewhere. We do have Taco Bell though now if that counts. If you are seeking spicy food in general though consider going for a curry - we have rich tradition there that has become a cuisine of its own.

16. For a job interview I would read that as "smart casual", which would be a shirt and either trousers or maybe nicer/neater jeans. Definitely not sweats. Honestly depends on the company and area. If in doubt though - ask - if it was me hiring I would appreciate the proactivity and curiosity.

18. Going cashless is easy here. Cash is fading out here, to the chagrin of certain older folks. Contactless cards and Apple/Google Pay etc are widely accepted, even in small independent shops and market stalls. Bank transfers are near instant. The only places that may be cash only are places like certain takeaway food places. I carry an emergency £20 note and very rarely need it. Cash machines may charge for withdrawals. You can do most simple banking tasks at Post Offices if needed.

20. I hate it too, and I haven't yet been dragged off to the tower, so I think you'll be fine.

Other than that, enjoy your life in the UK.

The official AI Opportunities Action Plan has been published on gov.uk which may be worth a read.

Encouraging the greater development of the UK's tech sector generally is a good thing. But having "unleashed AI" as the foundation for that doesn't sound the best idea.

Throwing money at AI seems a big gamble for productivity.

I’d rather see the UK invest in its human workers instead, with better education and training. IT skills for example as still lacking in the country. PCs have now existed for 30+ years yet so many still struggle with task like making simple spreadsheets.

We desperately need to improve productivity, but I’m not convinced that going all in on AI is a great bet. The tech is still in its infancy and currently very unreliable. Letting it loose in places like the NHS sounds like a recipe for disaster.

By all means open doors for research, but I don’t think this tech is ready for critical implementations yet. We’d get more reliable productivity gains by investing in upskilling workers instead.

If there is going be insistence on platforms being open there shouldn't be these distinctions.

All of these devices are capable of general purpose computing at a hardware level, phones, tablets, PCs, headsets are now very similar and generalised in that regard. I don't see why a phone platform should be forced to be open while a games console gets to remain closed, when there is now only a hair's breadth separating an Xbox from a Windows PC.

Considering the latest changes at Meta, it seems their latest innovation is to transform social media into antisocial media.

USB-C has been a blessing and curse. One port that does everything, except when it doesn't. Even charging is now complicated by the "guess the cable that supports the right PD type" game.

Not that the old days were much better. I don't miss faffing around with the myriad of serial and parallel port modes and settings.