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March 1

How does the Internet work, and how does VPN interfere with this normal process?

I have no background in computer-related subjects other than using a computer to type posts, play games, write e-mails, and other general office tasks. I took a computer programming course in C++, but I essentially programmed inside a window. No other skills/knowledge besides C++ and some mathematical knowledge was necessary. So, even the Wikipedia article Virtual Private Network is difficult for me to understand. How does the computer user normally receive and send files over the Internet? When a user uses the VPN, what exactly does VPN do? How exactly does the Great Firewall of China work so users with VPN can access the outside world from within China through VPN? SSS (talk) 01:07, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Normally when you computer wants to send something out, it just sends the IP packets to a router, which then looks at the IP address and decides where to send it next. This process happens recursively until the message gets to the destination. If the packet goes past a firewall, the firewall can chose to block it, it throw the packet out, or it may just stop a connection from forming. In a VPN the IP packets are put inside a set up connection to a different remote point, which can then do the routing from a different place in the internet. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 01:35, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

The internet is a giant web of Relay servers, socalled Hop (networking) servers and any VPN is in essence a similar, usually much smaller web of Relay's. The "Private" part difference is established by a gateway Hop/server that usually disguises its private side of the web and makes sure its kept private and secret. To understand the specific methods used and applied you have to understand the structure of the data packets aka Internet Protocol every "file" is cut or converted into to be send or received in/over mentioned webs. --Kharon (talk) 14:40, 6 March 2018 (UTC)

Google Home problem

I have recently been having a three problems on my Google Home, which I assume are related. First, sometimes Google Home will not respond to "Hey, Google" at all, nor will anything happen if I long-touch the touch surface. Second, when I tell Google Home to play music, the music plays, and after a minute or so, it stops, and Google Home will not respond to any requests, as noted in part one of my problem. Third, alarms are not working at all, yet timers are. If I say "Hey Google, what are my alarms?" after an alarm is scheduled to go off, Home will reply "You have an alarm at [time alarm was set for] that is going off right now."

I have tried rebooting, and performing a factory data reset. When these options failed, I called Google Support, and they sent me a new device. I set up the new device, and everything worked fine. However, on the third day, these three problems returned. Any suggestions?? TheMrP (talk) 01:39, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Perhaps it is dropping off the network. A duplicate IP address, perhaps caused by the DHCP router powering off and on can assign the same number to more than one device, and screw things up. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 01:55, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Request to Log on to Cox WiFi

I have a Samsung Galaxy J7 running the Android operating system. Sometimes, when I am driving, I get a prompt that, if I see it while it is still displayed, is prompting me to log in to Cox WiFi. Cox WiFi is a cable broadband carrier having subscribers throughout the area, but I don't have a Cox WiFi account and, to the best of my knowledge, haven't asked to be asked to log in. How, in the Settings or elsewhere, do I turn off these prompts? I assume that I get them because I have driven through the perimeter of a wireless router that is providing home service to a Cox customer, but the prompts are just an annoyance for me. I haven't found a specific app that has them enabled so that I can turn them off. Robert McClenon (talk) 02:57, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

On Android, go to settings, WiFi, then use the ... dropdown to get the list of saved networks. If Cox WiFi is listed long press, then touch forget. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 03:21, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Thank you. I didn't see a list of saved networks in the ... dropdown. However, I went to Advanced and got WiFi Notifications to get a notification when WiFi is available, and turned that off. We shall see. Robert McClenon (talk) 05:11, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

It appears that the comments below (which continued without even a single space from the last "(UTC)" appearing above) are misplaced from the query and responses in the next section, so I am marking them off to minimise confusion. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 90.220.212.253 (talk) 02:13, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

Because theprobblem is BioLite Net manual and spec over theweb speaks of tcpip interface but no interface of rj socket can be seen by tcp ip interface i expect a physical hardware ethernet socket because that is he most common lan protocol in use .But this "TCP IP interface" is not visible on the finger print terminal device so that i can attach a RJ45 cable but thebiolite net spec says RS485 interface Doe TCP IP data transmit over RS485.The Biolite Net is a Suprema product.Please read this question with my earlier question on Biolite Net on 28th Feb please help me to understand this.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:22, 1 March 2018 (UTC) Many thanks that you have almost cleared my doubt but i want know if i have to take a crimping tool and prepare this special ethernet RJ45 jack and lastly there 8 wires in normal ethernet bet here half of them are only used.Then how will the work of the rest 50 % wire be done or the purpose of the rest ethernet wires will be served.Wrogh456 (talk) 16:35, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

How TCP IP interface or ethernet interface is done or implemented in without RJ 45 socket in small networked device terminals

I am a novice here and seeking your guidance and help in understanding a thing through this wonderful platform Let me explain my question with an example .Attendance control system like Biolite net have terminals and these terminals have TCP /IP interface as per specification and have DSP 533MHz processor/CPU but i could not find any RJ45 socket port or outlet in the Biolitenet terminal raw wires are coming as TCP/IP What kind of TCP/IP is Biolite net using what embedde system operating system do this type of device use where the network interface card and where from the BioliteNet terminal get the TCP/IP functionality and ethernet functionality.Each terminal is given an IP address by the Biostar software.How is this possible.Does the Biolite net CPU DSP 533 MHz has network interface card functionality or inside the terminal another network card or chip for this purpose that is producing ethernet frame or TCP IP packetsAnswer for any similar system also be very helpful for me to clear doubt Is this an internet of thing.Wrogh456 (talk) 07:26, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

There is no reason why TCP/IP has to go over ethernet. I mean anyone who is old enough to have used the internet in dial-up modem days likely used TCP/IP over dial-up modems. Depending when this happened, these could easily have been 14.4k or slower modems. And of course a very large percentage of people in the developed world have probably used IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) in some form which shares some similarities with ethernet but is not the same thing, and which does not use cables for most of the connection (over the Wi-Fi), and most of these people have used TCP/IP over it. Likewise a large percentage of people in the developed world, and even many in the developing world have used data over some mobile network, probably to access the internet and so have likely used TCP/IP. Again the connection over the mobile network is mostly not happening over cables, and also AFAIK often has fewer similarities to ethernet. Of course, tethering a mobile device (generally a mobile phone) with a computer, including over Bluetooth or USB to share its internet connection [1] means TCP/IP is likely going over these connections. Although these often involve an emulated ethernet port. And you could also use TCP/IP over other interfaces [2] Wikibooks:Serial Programming/IP Over Serial Connections [3] [4] [5]. I don't really understand enough about what you're asking about to know what is going on with the products you describe. But if you think you need ethernet or cables for TCP/IP, you're mistaken. Nil Einne (talk) 12:59, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

From the Biolite Net terminal wires are coming out these wires are for TCP/IP there are multiple Biolite Net fingerprint reader terminals each terminal has an ip address for for attendance control which finally go to switch thence to Biostar Please see my question on 28th february I couldn't understand so i am seeking your help.I have still doubts regarding the earlier question on 28th and even nowWrogh456 (talk)

This means for BioliteNet terminal data is carried by serial protocol like RS 232 /RS485 the by a modem or protocol converter converted to ethernet before going into network switch or hub in this case switch will be minimum requirement or hub is sufficient.Please tell this because earlier on 28th feb i got answer that CPU of Biolite Net has network interface card functionality and rs 485 has nothing to do with TCP IP interface and now I am confused by opposite answer.Which one is correct.I thank the earlier person who answered on 28th feb but now you are saying opposite which one is correct The present answer appears to be more correct .Please clarify.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:15, 1 March 2018

(UTC)ecause theprobblem is BioLite Net manual and spec over theweb speaks of tcpip interface but no interface of rj socket can be seen by tcp ip interface i expect a physical hardware ethernet socket because that is he most common lan protocol in use .But this "TCP IP interface" is not visible on the finger print terminal device so that i can attach a RJ45 cable but thebiolite net spec says RS485 interface Doe TCP IP data transmit over RS485.The Biolite Net is a Suprema product.Please read this question with my earlier question on Biolite Net on 28th Feb please help me to understand this.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:22, 1 March 2018 (UTC)ecause theprobblem is BioLite Net manual and spec over theweb speaks of tcpip interface but no interface of rj socket can be seen by tcp ip interface i expect a physical hardware ethernet socket because that is he most common lan protocol in use .But this "TCP IP interface" is not visible on the finger print terminal device so that i can attach a RJ45 cable but thebiolite net spec says RS485 interface Doe TCP IP data transmit over RS485.The Biolite Net is a Suprema product.Please read this question with my earlier question on Biolite Net on 28th Feb please help me to understand this.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:22, 1 March 2018 (UTC) ecause theprobblem is BioLite Net manual and spec over theweb speaks of tcpip interface but no interface of rj socket can be seen by tcp ip interface i expect a physical hardware ethernet socket because that is he most common lan protocol in use .But this "TCP IP interface" is not visible on the finger print terminal device so that i can attach a RJ45 cable but thebiolite net spec says RS485 interface Doe TCP IP data transmit over RS485.The Biolite Net is a Suprema product.Please read this question with my earlier question on Biolite Net on 28th Feb please help me to understand this.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:22, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

I found the English language version of the manual at https://www.supremainc.com/sites/default/files/biolite_net_user_guide_1_23_en_0.pdf. On p 70, there is a diagram indicating how to connect the terminal to an ethernet switch. The device itself has multiple wires coming out the back; four of those wires constitute the two pairs for a 10BaseT or 100BaseT (I didn't find an indication of which, but the wiring is the same and nearly all modern switches will autodetect). Page 64 identifies the wires by color. If you were wiring up an RJ45 jack, it looks like you'd assign the wires as

• 1 - orange
• 2 - pink
• 3 - yellow
• 6 - blue

(the other positions 4, 5, 7, and 8 are unused). — jmcgnh^{(talk) (contribs)} 15:18, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Many thanks that you have almost cleared my doubt but i want know if i have to take a crimping tool and prepare this special ethernet RJ45 jack and lastly there 8 wires in normal ethernet bet here half of them are only used.Then how will the work of the rest 50 % wire be done or the purpose of the rest ethernet wires will be served.Please answered i have gotten my doubt largely cleared.Please help me in this last part oof the doubt. Wrogh456 (talk) 16:38, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

See Ethernet over twisted pair for some possible uses of the other four wires. Dbfirs 16:55, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Unused means unused. 10 and 100Mbit ethernet over twisted pair only uses two pair. I was a little surprised myself when I first learned that only 4 of the the 8 wires in an ethernet cable are used by these old standards. Seemed like a waste! The 1000BaseT (Gigabit ethernet) standard uses all four pairs, but your fingerprint reader is not a server or disk farm, so only needs to support the lower-speed standard. — jmcgnh^{(talk) (contribs)} 19:28, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

You can also buy an adapter cable for this (as seen in the manual). You may not have to buy a crimping tool, if you can find someone who has it and can do the job for you. There are a number of ways for this to go wrong, so if this is the first time you attempt it, it is best if someone who knows what they are doing shows you. Problems include getting the right plug for the cable (sold core or stranded); right amount of stripping, cutting wires to the same length; crimping down hard enough, so that the plug does not fall off, or does not break. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 21:23, 1 March 2018 (UTC)

Many thanks specially to Graeme Bartlett for your answer but the 533MHz DSP chip must be outputting raw ethernet frames through these 4 wires The 533Mhz DSP chip or its auxiliary chip /card must have NIC functionality.Can i get any pointers to 533Mhz DSP chipWrogh456 (talk) 14:12, 2 March 2018 (UTC) Many thanks also to Dbfirs.Wrogh456 (talk) 14:16, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

Something is outputting or receiving Ethernet frames on those 4 wires. The "533Mhz DSP chip" is not an exact specification of a chip, but is a generic term. Analog Devices makes several of these kinds of chips including targeted at security use like this. However their chips do not include Ethernet. So the Ethernet is likely to be provided on another chip connected to the memory. Sample spec sheet: http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/1748790.pdf?_ga=2.25708606.280817810.1520160942-1027055451.1520160942 but the chances are it is not this chip. Based on the picture here: https://fccid.io/TKWBLNOC/Internal-Photos/Internal-photos-1031621.iframe of the internals, the chip would be Analog Devices BF5?? ?? might be 33, 38, 48 based on what exists, but in the pic it looks like 11, which does not seem to exist. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 11:29, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

March 2

Problem with JSON fields in Java REST API

I'm having a rather weird problem at work. I'm developing a REST API in Java. We use Swagger to generate the skeleton Java code of our REST services. Specifically, we use editor.swagger.io. I have written an API specification in the editor and generated the server code with the Swagger editor's own "Generate server -> Spring" functionality.

One of our model classes, which the REST API encodes in JSON, has a field called eMail (note the capitalisation). When I actually expose the generated API, it appears that the class has two fields for it, one called email and the other called eMail. If I supply both in the request, only email (which isn't supposed to exist in the first place) is used. If I omit it, eMail is used.

This doesn't happen with any other field, even with those that are also spelled in camel case. What is going on here? Does Swagger somehow consider "email" as some kind of magic word? JIP | Talk 00:54, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

Sneaky spamy re-direct link from serious pages

Every now and then I find a link like this:

https://ojp.gov/disclaimerRedirect-ojp.htm?url=https://www.example.com

I removed the original url, so as to not give them free marketing. Somehow you land on the ojp.gov site, but with a redirect notice towards the target site. Why does the ojp.gov site does this? Why does this work? --Hofhof (talk) 00:44, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

The server(s) controlling https://ojp.gov get the url of all requests to that domain. There doesn't have to be a stored page in advance. The server can be programmed to generate a page on request for any url, with the content depending on the url. In this case it's apparently programmed to generate a redirect for any url starting with https://ojp.gov/disclaimerRedirect-ojp.htm?url=. The purpose is probably to enable pages at https://ojp.gov to make external links which give the reader a warning before leaving the site. They only use it for some external links, for example JTIC Justice Technology Information Center at https://ojp.gov/resources.htm. People at other websites may have copied such links from https://ojp.gov without removing the first part of the url. I see no reason to think ojp.org is trying to spam anyone. Wikipedia uses MediaWiki:Spam-blacklist to block links to some redirect services but not https://ojp.gov/disclaimerRedirect-ojp.htm. Special:LinkSearch shows this section has the only current link so I don't think there is reason to add it to the blacklist. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:16, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

Now that we're giving them ideas, we may have to add it soon. 173.228.123.121 (talk) 03:10, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

I didn't mean ojp.gov (not org) is trying to spam anyone. The link was more like https://ojp.gov/disclaimerRedirect-ojp.htm?url=https://www.buysomemedshere.com. It was obviously something not originated by ojp, but maybe spammers are using this url format to place links into black listed sites. Hofhof (talk) 04:29, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

March 3

Bitmoji without Snapchat

How do you use Bitmoji without linking it to Snapchat? There is the alternative option to log in with your email, but not to sign up. There is no way to actually create an account. Does this have something to do with Snapchat buying Bitmoji and the email option is for accounts that were created before that? --2001:16B8:2EB2:6600:9193:6549:5AD:8AD5 (talk) 05:18, 3 March 2018 (UTC)

March 4

plugins

I'm a long time Firefox user and I've been using Firefox plugins to configure customs key bindings to my liking. A couple of months ago, Firefox Quantum came out with better performance, but unfortunately is not compatible with any of the old plugins, so I've been forced to switch to Firefox ESR until the plugins authors can catch up.

It's been a while now, are there now any plugins that can re-configure custom keys in Firefox Quantum? Mũeller (talk) 02:02, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

Magnetic Effects on Amazon Kindle™?

Like most it's counterparts, the Paperwhite, has a push button on it's lower edge which makes the screensaver appear, and touch screen becomes unenabled (to make the whole thing active and touch screen enabled one has to press the same push button again ).

Recently I happened to buy a two-sided cover for this. The e-reader fits the side meant to enclose the thing fits very suitably but the problem is that when I open cover the e-reader becomes active on it's own (without any need to push the button the lower edge, and screen becomes active to touch ). Is it normal? - I strongly doubt it since the fit-the-e-reader side has a specially build space (or gap) to reach the awakening button at the precise location. Have other users using the same two-sided-cover been facing (or faced) same problem.

Mine own guess, (which maybe wrong of course) is that the culprit is the magnetic locks which are on the right-sided and left-sided edges of the book-binding-type cover respectively. When left sided cover is lifted to read, the magnet on it's outer edge passes over screen causing some electronic disturbance inside. Needless to say that doing this over and over again may cause some serious problem in the e-reader itself.

Has anyone any solutions to the problem ?  Jon Ascton  (talk) 09:48, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

You're almost definitely mistaken. This is an intentional design on the ereader, as it is for a number of ereaders and tablets (including many iPads). It is not because of some 'electronic disturbance' unless you're using some weird definition. It happens because the device is designed with a magnetic sensor and the case is designed with magnets in the right place to activate this sensor. So you should not expected any long term consequences from using this feature. Actually there's a fair chance that using it will increase the life span of the ereader on average since physical on-off switches tend to be one of the major weak points on devices assuming you don't break the screen. If you just don't like the feature, many devices let you disable the auto-wake up (without affecting the activation of the sensor i.e. it's just ignored), but it doesn't seem Kindle devices are one of these [6]. So your only choice is to get a cover not designed to activate the sensor. Keep a look out for one that doesn't advertise it self as a smart or sleep cover and doesn't mention anything about auto-wakeup ..Nil Einne (talk) 11:00, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

Is it possible to simulate classical logic gates (e.g. AND gate, OR gate and NAND gate) by quantum gates?

It seems that we lack appropriate software to be run on quantum computers because quantum programming requires solid backgrounds:

Quantum computing is real. But it's also hard. So hard that only a few developers, usually trained in quantum physics, advanced mathematics, or most likely both, can actually work with the few quantum computers that exist.

"D-Wave is driving the hardware forward," says D-Wave International president Bo Ewald. "But we need more smart people thinking about applications, and another set thinking about software tools."

If classical logic gates could be built on top of quantum gates, it could facilitate the development of software for quantum computer I guess. - Justin545 (talk) 09:59, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

Linking company page: D-Wave Systems. --Hofhof (talk) 01:28, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Of course you can simulate them, but it would miss the point: we can already build classical logic gates for cheap and program with them easily. What D-Wave has built is not a general-purpose programmable quantum computer, but rather a specialized machine capable of solving the so-called QUBO problem. Expressing some other problem of interest in that very limited vocabulary is what is "hard" in the current milieu. --Tardis (talk) 05:32, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

OK, my original question was probably somewhat unclear. My intention was not focused on D-Wave's quantum computer but any quantum computer made by any company. So it's feasible to simulate classical logic gates on top of quantum gates according to your answer if I understand correctly. And my next question would be "Do the simulated logic gates still preserve the parallelism property of quantum gates?". For example, a 5-qubit quantum computer should be in a superposition of 32 states. Will the simulated logic gate affect all 32 states when it is applied on those qubits? (the simulated logic gate is applied once but as if it were applied 32 times) - Justin545 (talk) 10:38, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

The design of quantum logic gates is quite different from classical logic gates because quantum processes (up until collapse of the wave function a.k.a. measurement) preserve information, so quantum logical gates are reversible. See our articles on quantum gates and quantum circuits. You could emulate classical logic using quantum logic gates, but, as Tardis says above, it is not clear why you would want to. You would have to throw away information by making a measurement after each gate, thus losing the whole point of quantuim computing. The obstacle in quantum computing is not designing effective circuits or algorithms - it is how to maintain a sufficiently large number of qubits in an entangled state for a sufficient length of time to perform interesting calculations (more interesting than factorizing 15, for example). Gandalf61 (talk) 11:03, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Google maps colours

Google maps standardly (on my PC anyway) shows urban roads as white on a white background. It is VERY hard to see, and I practically always flip to satellite view to get roads I can see where they are. Is there any way of configuring GM so that this doesn't happen (eg grey on white or white on grey or ...) Thanks. -- SGBailey (talk) 19:46, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

No. See alternatives here 93.142.115.131 (talk) 03:56, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

There's something odd here if the OP is really seeing roads as white on a white background. Google Maps has always shown roads as white, with the background map colour being light grey. A quick Google Image search suggests this isn't some weirdness only I'm seeing. Perhaps the OP needs to mess with their gamma or contrast settings if they're seeing white on white. Nil Einne (talk) 12:40, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

It is a very low contrast difference. I agree it's difficult to see especially at moderate zoom levels -- Q Chris (talk) 14:26, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

As to "always", they did tweak it to lower the contrast couple of years ago, and there were complaints like this at the time. --69.159.62.113 (talk) 21:44, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Sure so you may have noticed a change, but it should still show up as gray and white if your contrast, brightness and gamma settings aren't unorthodox, and display isn't broken. The gray may be fairly light, and you can debate whether or not it's a good colour scheme, but it should not be white on white. If you want to keep your unorthodox settings or your broken display, that's not our business, but you should at least be aware that it isn't supposed to be white and white and the reason is partly because of your unorthodox settings or broken display. Nil Einne (talk) 10:34, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

"Broken" may be a bit strong, but it could be defective. This image makes a nice little test. On my monitor, after the words "daily dose of imagery" and a space, there is a line of 27 squares shading from white to black, and every one of them is distinguishable, at least if I enlarge the image a bit. I remember that with a previous computer I could not distinguish about 5 or 6 of the squares at one end of the scale, so I knew that it was not a good screen for viewing high-grade images on, even though it was fine for ordinary text. --69.159.62.113 (talk) 19:14, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

This you try adjusting the brightness and contrast of the display or perhaps gamma (whether with display controls or computer controls)? It sounds to me like that could have been simply the issue. By 'broken' I was thinking of old displays, particularly CRTs that are now so old they can no longer properly display a reasonable gamut, I personally consider this broken although maybe not everyone would agree. While it's true that display quality can vary greatly, the thing with the Google Maps issue is that even now while the contrast may not be as high as some people would like, I think it's high enough that you don't need a high end display, or even a mid end display to see the difference. Or to put it a different way, I could be wrong, but I have a hard time imagining many new displays could not at least display the difference between the white and gray used for Google Maps when properly set-up. (I'm not saying it will be super high contrast, but at least enough to notice that it's gray not white.) A small number of displays may come out of the factory so bad that they will only end up in as some ultra bargain display in the lesser developing world. (In other words, the display is so bad that even in the lesser developing world it's not the norm.) I guess you could debate whether this is 'defective', 'broken' or okay. Oh and by 'properly', I'm thinking of calibrating according to what will be commonly recommended by tools etc used for the purpose and in an environment where it's suitable. The last bit is one thing my earlier replies didn't really touch on. If for example you're using a glossy display in a fairly bright environment which it isn't really designed for, you may need to adjust the settings so that you can at least read most normal text etc properly. These settings may very well screw up the contrast enough that you won't be able to see the difference between the the white and grey in Google Maps. (The other possibility as I hinted at assuming the settings are intentional is you just don't like the recommended settings. And as I did mention, if you have no particular reason to prefer the settings you're using, you probably should try and adjust them. Even simple online tools would be better then nothing.) Nil Einne (talk) 01:38, 8 March 2018 (UTC)

March 5

Why are selinux contexts controlled via REs in /etc/selinux/targeted/contexts/files/ rather than directory inheritance

It seems odd to me that selinux facls are controlled by defaults in directories (setfacl -d) whereas contexts are stored as regular expressions in files via semanage. Why the difference? -- Q Chris (talk) 09:12, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

March 6

Is it me or is it them? They won't accept as valid their own date format!

This page keeps rejecting my date telling me the date I'm filling is invalid (when it's in fact a date that comes right out of their software; I'm only using their table). Am I doing something wrong? Or is their software broken? Can someone try and see if they get the same error? Thanks. Basemetal 13:56, 6 March 2018 (UTC)

Have you tried entering the date in US format ( month / day / year ) ? LongHairedFop (talk) 21:39, 6 March 2018 (UTC)

Well yes, of course. That's the format that they themselves generate. You don't get to input the date directly, you are given a calendar where you pick a date, and the date generated is indeed in US format. I forgot to mention that if you happen to leave the date and time fields blank then they will let you continue to the next stage of the report. I don't know yet if they will let you in the end complete the report. Another hysterical thing is: they also supply an email address (NFIBPhishing@city-of-london.pnn.police.uk) to forward the suspicious email to, except my email (from an address in the UK note) has been bouncing for the past week because (says postmaster) that address refuses the connection. That same email address was also supplied to me by Amazon.co.uk which is the site the suspicious email was spoofing. London Police hard at work fighting crime. Does everything in London work this well? Basemetal 22:44, 6 March 2018 (UTC)

Can someone test that address (NFIBPhishing@city-of-london.pnn.police.uk) to see if their email too bounces? Thanks. Basemetal 22:44, 6 March 2018 (UTC)

The form seems to work for me using the date format the form is set up for which is American style. It doesn't even seem to have a sanity check that the date isn't in the future. Note that if you fail to properly enter the time, e.g. you try putting 24 hour time, or you don't put the minute or hour or to select AM or PM (all 3 of which are compulsory), or anything else it interprets as invalid (e.g. 60th minute) it will say 'Please enter a valid date' even if only the time is the problem. It seems the error message should say 'Please enter a valid date and time' since that's what it's for. Nil Einne (talk) 10:29, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

Thanks. I'll try that. I was indeed using a 24 hour time format. Good thing you thought of checking that. I'd never thought of that. That's what the RD is for, I guess. Basemetal 10:47, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

BTW, with those calendar date selection elements in forms, you can generally enter the date manually at least on desktops. If you type the date it will generally work. (Well provided you follow whatever they used exactly including spacing etc.) Sometimes you may have to move the cursor around before doing so but you don't seem to have to do so here. Nil Einne (talk) 10:57, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

Also if anyone does decide to offer feedback on the form, the text above it "You should use page" probably should say "You should use this page". Nil Einne (talk) 11:02, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

What is it with the police and dates? This two year-old report is datelined 2019: [7]. 79.73.134.66 (talk) 15:32, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

There's an old saying about police, IQs, and boot sizes. DuncanHill (talk) 16:04, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

March 7

Quora

I have been trying to interact in Quora.com. But every time I try to click on my notifications or private messages, it does nothing, except adding a # at the end of the URL. Any idea what it could mean? Miss Bono ^{[hello, hello!]} 20:36, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

March 8

Yes?

The phone rang, I picked it up, and after a few seconds a voice asked, "Hello, Hal?" I answered, "Yes," and the caller hung up.

I read that this could be a scam, where all they need to do me some harm is to get a recording of my voice saying, "Yes." Is this what likely happened? How would they use this? I don't suppose there is anything I can do about it now? --Halcatalyst (talk) 02:47, 8 March 2018 (UTC)