DREWspective

Just now, at work, I received a "bug" (read: feature request) to add those "are you sure" dialogue boxes to a script.

(If you’re unaware, at the place I’m currently working everything is a "bug". You might work in such a company.)

The prompts would come up when moving and removing items from a category, and it got me thinking;

When are these prompts necessary?

For example, one thing I do straight away on a fresh installation of Windows (after getting the prompt) is to disable the prompt for deleting items to the Recycle Bin. If you delete files one at a time, or in different locations, seeing messages come up frequently can annoy you. When I say delete, I mean delete damnit!

However, there is always a prompt for when I want to delete items permanently; a very critical move, and where I want to be absolutely sure I haven’t made a mistake.

Often, it can feel condescending to be asked if you’re sure you want to close a program or save a file. One good example is in Word, Excel, Photoshop or Illustrator, when you’ve saved a file before printing it - and then get asked if you want to save it again if you close it.

There are some programs that allow you to disable certain prompts, but in my opinion not enough.

I say, when a dialogue box is necessary is mostly up to the user; sometimes they’d just like to get on with things and take responsibility for their actions, while others want to - or have to - be hand held. Either way, there will be those critical occasions where a prompt is necessary.

At my current workplace, there’s a printout stuck to someone’s wall with a summary of a speech, allegedly given by Bill Gates at a high school.

It basically highlighted eleven "points": all of which were the typical, sometimes truthful but intentionally spiteful "tough love" platitudes given by arrogant high achievers. The first of these was the successful person’s favourite, Life is not fair - get used to it.

From the time I first read the printout, I dismissed it as bullshit. As rich and in as powerful a position as Bill Gates is, I didn’t seriously think he would say anything that arrogant. Less believable was the idea of him turning up at a school, just to dish that crap out to a few students.

A brief search before now didn’t turn anything relevant up, but after some deeper research, I’ve found out what I’ve suspected all along: that it wasn’t him who said it. Yet again, some bored American bastard decided it would be cool to pretend it was.

as the new Mayor of London.

(Yes, believe it or not, there are other people running for Mayor.)

Yesterday I revealed to YouTube that Chadwarden put out a remix of the infamous song It’s Just Like A Mini Mall, performed by Sammy Stephens (owner of Flea Market Montgomery):

But only this morning, Chadwarden hit us all with some surprising news:

In less than a month’s time, the Mayor of London - and I hope to God it’s a new one - will be elected.

Last week, the almost unbelievable happened: a leaflet from the BNP was sent in the post, addressed to nobody in particular. Of course, I didn’t know it was from them until I opened it.

It turns out that they themselves are putting forward a candidate for the mayoral position, with their main issue being the state of the immigration system in the UK. They blamed the wave of immigrants for housing problems, crime, unemployment and a few other things I can’t remember. A selection of people - mostly, if not all white - were quoted as being in agreement, complete with photos.

Now, I ain’t no fool; I don’t trust the BNP with the dead skin off my dick. If they came knocking down my door, offering me a hook-up with a girl just like Valisa, there’s no way I’d give them my vote. (The brown skin takes care of that.)

But, as much I’d hate to admit it, there is one thing myself and the BNP agree upon.

My scope doesn’t extend very far out of London, but it’s obvious, even to the blind, that there are way too many people in this country.  You know there are way too many when you can’t afford to buy a house or even rent, or when you go to work in the morning and find yourself pushing past a solid wall of drones. (Sorry - commuters.)

I thought the situation was "bad" enough years ago, when it seemed eastern Asians were coming over by the plane load. That was nothing, compared to the influx of eastern Europeans, once certain countries were accepted into the European Union. I’ve heard, and am starting to see, Chinese people getting in on the action as well.

Before you call me a racist, I’m not targeting or blaming any particular group of people. Resident Brits are adding to the problem as well, when they have large families and consume more than they need.

No blame, that is, unless we’re talking about the government. At the end of the day, they’ve let all of these people in, usually without any kind of warning (there wasn’t even a limit on the number of Polish people who could enter the country), while providing benefits to those who don’t want to work.

For me, when people complain about immigration and there being too many people coming into the country, it seems to be about what the government calls multiculturalism - or what I call "otherculturalism". Otherculturalism is where the traditions of a particular culture is compromised to make way for outside traditions, to the extent that it gets overridden completely.

Though not restricted to religion, one good example of otherculturalism is Christmas. Is there anyone who isn’t "offended" by something about it these days?

I personally don’t have any problem with anybody of any ethnicity, nationality or so on, as long as they pull their weight and aren’t up their own arse. It’s a cliché, but I mean it.

The problem as I see it - and a few of you think so as well - is when immigrants and people who don’t pull their weight are treated (or at least, perceived to be treated) like royalty, compared to long-standing nationals who work their arses off and get almost nothing back.

There’s that, and the idea (sometimes fact) that these people - foreign or national - separate themselves. Sometimes they choose to do it, but I’ve heard from a Czech girl that the government likes to place immigrants from particular countries in particular areas.

What really doesn’t help - and this is where I see that people get angry - is that the government keeps us in the dark about who the heck these people really are, where they came from and why they’re here; in the meantime they’re suddenly working with you at your job, while strange buildings and weird shops with funny-looking language are being opened in your town.

While I certainly wasn’t angry, I remember being very confused and uninformed, when I’d come home from university in 2002, and found Polish shops in my local area. Back in high school, there were increasing numbers of Somalian kids at one point. Both times, nobody had said a thing. I ended up making a fool of myself.

Before you accuse me of being a racist again, I should mention the biggest culprits of otherculturalism:

Brits.

Have you seen what we’ve (read: you’ve) done to Spain? The Meditteranean? Any other popular holiday destination? If not, I suggest you go to any of those places, during the summer.