XPost: alt.comp.os.windows-11, alt.comp.os.windows-10   
   From: mariasophia@comprehension.com   
      
   Carlos E. R. wrote:   
   > On 2026-02-07 21:41, Maria Sophia wrote:   
   >> Take the case of octane ratings, for example, in organic chemistry, where I   
   >> was taught in the 1960's what it meant so ever since I could drive, I would   
   >> nonchalantly innocently and inquisitively ask the person filling up next to   
   >> me "What's the difference between regular and premium?".   
   >>   
   >> In decades of asking that question, I've only gotten the correct answer   
   >> about a half dozen times, which fits with my hypothesis that people only   
   >> know about six of the million things that they need to know about anything.   
   >   
   > You do not need to know what is the difference between regular and   
   > premium. But I do know it. My father was a chemist and worked in an oil   
   > refinery. One of his initial jobs was to measure the octane number of   
   > gasoline mixtures. I think they used a small gasoline motor adapted for   
   > variable compression and or variable advance. I don't remember exactly   
   > and he is no longer in this world to ask him.   
      
   Hi Carlos,   
      
   I never disagree with anyone who says sentient things, where both the   
   common octane ratings are measured using the same standardized test engine   
   that you remember from when you were a kid since they haven't changed.   
      
   In most of Europe they use the Motor Octane Number (MON) while in the USA   
   we use the AKI system (which is the average of the Research Octane Number   
   (RON) and Motor methods (R+M)/2).   
      
   They're both measured with a motor but under very different conditions.   
      
   RON is determined at lower speed, lower temperature, and fixed ignition   
   timing, which represents mild light-load driving. MON is measured at higher   
   speed, higher temperature and with variable ignition timing which simulates   
   heavy-load, high-stress operation. Because MON is the harsher test, it's   
   usually (always?) lower than RON for the same fuel.   
      
   For example, when we see "87 octane" here in the USA, that's roughly   
   equivalent to about 91-92 RON on your pumps   
      
   My point in bringing this up isn't that people need to know the chemistry,   
   but that many drivers pay extra for "premium" simply because they assume a   
   higher number must be better simply because marketing has decided to charge   
   more for it. Marketing also "markets" it as "better", although, much like   
   Apple marketing is brilliant lies, they never actually say so outright.   
      
   It's the same pattern you see with detergents since all that matters in the   
   USA is whether the gas is "top tier" or now, where, for example, Costco is   
   top tier but always gthe lowest price of the nearest five gas stations   
   (they use an algorithm to determine the price a few times a day).   
      
   I was trained in marketing since my undergrad science degree is a bachelor   
   of arts so I had to take classes in other fields, so I took marketing and   
   philosophy. They fit with science since anything marketed as a premium   
   version people think is "better" simply based on the name even though, in   
   some ways it's worse gas. People often buy the more expensive option "once   
   a month" to "clean out the engine", which is absurd, but trust me when I   
   say I've heard people claim that's what they have been doing for years.   
      
   The chemistry behind octane ratings is real, but the benefit only applies   
   to engines that require it. For everyone else, the extra cost is just money   
   wasted on a number that looks better on the pump.   
      
   My point in bringing this up isn't that people need to know the chemistry,   
   but that many drivers pay extra for "premium" simply because they don't own   
   critical thought processes so they believe everything marketing tells them.   
      
   Don't even get me started on how Apple marketing is brilliant at brazen   
   lies that are just under the radar to be illegal in all they market.   
      
   Back to the topic, a key observation is that we can port contacts easily if   
   we "upload" them to "the cloud", but that's exactly what "they" want us to   
   do.  Once it's on "the cloud", we have lost control of our contacts.   
      
   And, since our contacts are our friends and neighbors, it's like placing   
   everyone's data on a deck of cards and letting those cards blow in the wind   
   around town for anyone else to pick up and use if they feel like it.   
      
   >> Privacy is a million things, of which people only know about a half dozen.   
   >>   
   >> You don't protect against what you "think" they'll do.   
   >> You protect against what you know they 'can' do.   
   >>   
   >> If you knew how much hoovering they did, oh, way back in the 80's, you'd   
   >> likely be shocked with what they can do today on the Internet.   
   >   
   > That they might do things with the contact list, would be breach of   
   > contract for starters, and illegal, at least here. I don't have to   
   > assume they do and not use the provided contact app and tools. What we   
   > do is legal and normal usage.   
   >   
   > Now, if I wanted secrecy, I wouldn't. I would assume the worst.   
      
   I'm not so concerned about "breach of contract" than about malefactors   
   getting a hold of it, but I'm not saying I know of any cases where   
   malefactors have harmed our friends and neighbors.   
      
   What I'm saying is simply that uploading ANYHTHING to the cloud is absurd   
   when you have no need to upload anything to the cloud when backing things   
   up from your Android phone to the Windows PC.   
      
   For example, I've backed up my exact home screen to a file, and my ~600   
   user-added applications to a folder (including split APKs) and my SMS/MMS   
   to a folder and my contacts to a file and my calendar to a file, etc.   
      
   Have I missed anything?   
      
   What I can't back up without being root is the /data/data because my   
   Android is above Android 11 & Samsungs in the USA aren't rootable (AFAIK).   
      
   But much of my data is kept on the external sd card which can be popped   
   into another phone and all that data (e.g., map data) will still work.   
      
   The good news is that it turns out to be rather easy to back up everything   
   (including contacts) to the PC with privacy (without using the cloud).   
      
   But I do comment, wistfully, that out of a million people, only six of them   
   know how to do it, which is a sad statement about people (if it's true).   
   --   
   Privacy is knowing how to do the simplest of things, all day, every day.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)