Nice People Thread No. 15, a Cyber Summer

Pyxis

PasturesNew wrote: »

Housebuilding.

I was surprised to see the order of events. Today the bricklayers started:

Foundations, frame, roof, windows/doors, brick walls.

I expected it to be:

Foundations, frame, brick walls, roof, windows/doors.

I think they build the walls around the windows and doors. You can cut bricks to fit, or use extra mortar, but it would be harder to adjust the size of ready-made windows etc. especially now they are all plastic!

ivyleaf wrote: »

Aw, I was going to say that

ETA On the Old-Style board there is, or was, a lovely lady living in Suffolk and she posted the way she presumably spoke. So I always think of her as "posting in a Suffolk accent"!

Ee bah goom! Sorry, Yorkshire!

chris_m

PasturesNew wrote: »

Now I am discovering he was awarded a WW1 Mons Star medal, I think that was "something special" back in the day - newsworthy - to be dropped into conversations.

One of the few that survived the first/early days of the war, going in on day 1 and being on active service in all the early/bad battles. His battalion appears to have started with 800 men and only had 32 left standing/able in 1915.

Better that than what the other 768's families got;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Plaque_%28medallion%29

chris_m

PasturesNew wrote: »

Now I am discovering he was awarded a WW1 Mons Star medal, I think that was "something special" back in the day - newsworthy - to be dropped into conversations.

One of the few that survived the first/early days of the war, going in on day 1 and being on active service in all the early/bad battles.

Do you know if he got the clasp as well? The 1914 Star (Mons Star) was awarded to all who served in France or Belgium in any capacity/location between 5th August and midnight of 22nd/23rd November 1914.

The clasp was instituted in 1919 and awarded additionally to those who'd served in France/Belgium under fire or within range of mobile enemy artillery during the same time period. Thus not all 1914 Star recipients qualified to also have the clasp.

Additionally, the 1914 Star was awarded automatically but the clasp had to be claimed personally by the recipients - many of whom either had died before 1919 or neglected to apply. Accordingly, whilst the number of 1914 Stars awarded is known it is unknown exactly how many clasps were awarded other than it being around 40% of the number of 1914 Stars.

He would have also got the British War Medal and the Victory Medal, because the 1914 Star was not awarded individually but came with those other two - colloquially referred to as Pip, Squeak & Wilfred.

michaels

So I got an email from MSE this morning saying I could save over 250 quid by switching energy provider. It turned out I had not updated last time I switched so it thought I was on a standard tariff :money:

However the scary bit was I did then run a comparison and the current cheapest tariff is 27% more than what I am paying now (fixed until late October) - so along with the extra 700 quid coming to the water bill soon and the increase in council tax there will also be at least 500 quid on gas and leccy - all at a time when benefits that make up nearly 50% of our household income are fixed in cash terms :eek:

Pyxis

The personal tax allowance is going up, so that will help a bit.

chris_m

michaels wrote: »

However the scary bit was I did then run a comparison and the current cheapest tariff is 27% more than what I am paying now

I was, I consider, very lucky when I switched recently - the first time I have ever done so. My new supplier gave me a 12 month fixed tariff over 10% cheaper than I had been paying - and while the switch was in progress my old supplier announced a 9% increase. Good timing, what?

Pyxis

Another different rant about sheet music.

Why do they make it so hard for you to find out who owns the copyright to a piece of music?

They moan and groan about pirating and photocopying music and singing it without a licence, but when you try to do the right thing and get permission from the copyright-owner, can you find who owns it?

The heck you can!

And then when you think you may have found the owner, their website is obsolete, or else you send an email enquiring and never get a reply!

:mad: :mad: :mad:

vivatifosi

Ask a performing arts librarian. Its the sort of thing they are paid to know/find out.

Its hugely complicated. The Gershwins are a good example. George died long before Ira, so the latter's copyright runs on much longer.

Does this link help?
http://prsformusic.com/aboutus/faqs/copyrightfaqs/pages/default.aspx

You can tell when stuff comes out of copyright, everyone wants to perform it.

Pyxis

Thanks, Vivatifosi.

I've had a look at the website you linked. It doesn't appear to have anything that covers what I need, but I have sent them an enquiry email anyway, just in case.

You're right, it is terribly complicated, unnecessarily so, IMO.

vivatifosi

What a brilliant idea, here's hoping it makes it into commercial production:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-39482342