The pet peeve thread

[chasfh]

On 5/1/2023 at 6:22 PM, oblong said:

I’m tired of apps for companies making this transition from a utility to just pay my bill or get support to something being used to sell me services. The latest is my mortgage. Before I can get to payment options they keep pushing me to refinance or telling me how valuable my home is if I want to sell. 

I am super pissed that Norton Antivirus has become that. Seemingly every day I got a laptop notice that they have found a few hundred trackers, or I have a couple gig of garbage files I should clean off my computer, click here to solve. Then, when I do, the Norton app opens and instead of showing me the page to solve these problems, it’s an ad to upsell me the services needed to solve these problems. What am I paying $100+ a year for if the app is not already doing these things?

Edited May 7, 2023 by chasfh

[chasfh]

Bonus Norton peeve: at some point, against my will, they changed my setting from “no do not autorenew” to “yes please autorenew”, because I generally want the chance to negotiate a better rate, but I just learned last week that they renewed me for the full amount.

[Fat Bastard]

Just now, chasfh said:

Bonus Norton peeve: at some point, against my will, they changed my setting from “no do not autorenew” to “yes please autorenew”, because I generally want the chance to negotiate a better rate, but I just learned last week that they renewed me for the full amount.

I still rock AVG free edition and have never had any issues. I understand the concept that paid antivirus software can stop more malicious things but for me personally I never had the desire to buy any.

[Biff Mayhem]

Kaspersky FTW.

[Edman85]

Windows' built-in tools cover any and all security needs these days. Anything else is just bloatware.

[Edman85]

I've had multiple people (not credentialed, so I don't listen to them) tell me to eat gluten free when I mention my prediabetes. So.. pet peeve here is bad nutrition advice spreading through society.

 

Also, a good read on how insidious this is:

https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/risks-of-a-gluten-free-diet/

[Shades of Deivi Cruz]

The MLB app annoys me. I have Apple Carplay in my car, and I like to use it to stream games since I'm in a weird spot for traditional radio reception. Almost every time I first open it in Carplay it says "MLB subscription required" and no games are listed. I then have to open the app on my phone, click on audio and re-login. Then the games all show up on my Carplay screen. Needless to say, that is not a very safe way to utilize the the service...

Also, it would be fantastic if on the Carplay screen with the games, it also showed the scores. When the Tigers aren't on, I'd likely check out another game if it looked like a good game. I can understand not wanting to put all the game info on the screen to keep people from always looking at the screen, but just the scores seems like it would be fine.

[oblong]

18 minutes ago, Shades of Deivi Cruz said:

The MLB app annoys me. I have Apple Carplay in my car, and I like to use it to stream games since I'm in a weird spot for traditional radio reception. Almost every time I first open it in Carplay it says "MLB subscription required" and no games are listed. I then have to open the app on my phone, click on audio and re-login. Then the games all show up on my Carplay screen. Needless to say, that is not a very safe way to utilize the the service...

Also, it would be fantastic if on the Carplay screen with the games, it also showed the scores. When the Tigers aren't on, I'd likely check out another game if it looked like a good game. I can understand not wanting to put all the game info on the screen to keep people from always looking at the screen, but just the scores seems like it would be fine.

Interesting.... I wonder if that's something Carplay has to handle or the MLB app?

The reason I ask is sometimes the interface is different between the app on my phone and what's on the screen.

 

[Shades of Deivi Cruz]

8 minutes ago, oblong said:

Interesting.... I wonder if that's something Carplay has to handle or the MLB app?

The reason I ask is sometimes the interface is different between the app on my phone and what's on the screen.

 

I'm pretty certain the issue is the phone app, because when I open it on my phone I have to reauthenticate to get to the streams. I don't even have to retype anything. It's just an annoying "use MLB logon" popup that I have to click through.

[Edman85]

Re: Antivirus software... Since I was already subscribing to NYT and The Athletic, I just bundled it all together and got Wirecutter so was able to see this:

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/guides/online-security-built-in-antivirus-software/

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/best-antivirus/

Quote

So why shouldn’t you install a full antivirus suite from a known brand, just to be on the safe side? For many good reasons:

• Vulnerabilities: The nature of how antivirus apps provide protection is a problem. As TechRepublic explains, “Security software necessarily requires high access privileges to operate effectively, though when it is itself insecure or otherwise malfunctioning, it becomes a much higher liability due to the extent to which it has control over the system.” Symantec and Norton, Kaspersky, and most other major antivirus vendors have all suffered from critical vulnerabilities in the past.
• Performance: Antivirus software is notorious for slowing down computers, blocking the best security features of other apps (such as in the Firefox and Chrome browsers), popping up with distracting reminders and upsells for subscriptions or updates, and installing potentially insecure add-ons such as browser extensions without clearly asking you for permission.
• Privacy: Free antivirus software has all of the above problems and adds privacy concerns. Good security is not free, and free-to-download apps are more likely to collect data about your computer and how you use it and to sell your private browsing data, as well as to install browser extensions that hijack your search and break your security and add an advertisement to your email signature.

For these reasons, we don’t recommend that most people spend the time or the money to add traditional antivirus software to their personal computer.

 

[Crazy Cat Gentleman]

10 hours ago, Edman85 said:

I've had multiple people (not credentialed, so I don't listen to them) tell me to eat gluten free when I mention my prediabetes. So.. pet peeve here is bad nutrition advice spreading through society.

 

Also, a good read on how insidious this is:

https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/risks-of-a-gluten-free-diet/

my pet peeve is talking about non-celiac gluten sensitivity like it's any problem with wheat/barley/rye and not differentiating carb-based issues. that article seems to come way to close to simply equating gluten with those grains, and reading it makes me think that whoever wrote it would label me as NCGS even though I can eat all the gluten (such as seitan-based fake meat) but can't eat certain carbs (fructans) in those grains. soy sauce and most beer is fine, but hazy beer is often made hazy by adding flour post-fermentation, so I can't touch the stuff.

if you're going to go to the trouble of writing an article about a hypothetical condition like that, why not at least mention carb-based issues as a possible root of the so-called gluten sensitivity? FODMAPs were well known by the time that article was written.

[gehringer_2]

53 minutes ago, Crazy Cat Gentleman said:

my pet peeve is talking about non-celiac gluten sensitivity like it's any problem with wheat/barley/rye and not differentiating carb-based issues. that article seems to come way to close to simply equating gluten with those grains, and reading it makes me think that whoever wrote it would label me as NCGS even though I can eat all the gluten (such as seitan-based fake meat) but can't eat certain carbs (fructans) in those grains. soy sauce and most beer is fine, but hazy beer is often made hazy by adding flour post-fermentation, so I can't touch the stuff.

if you're going to go to the trouble of writing an article about a hypothetical condition like that, why not at least mention carb-based issues as a possible root of the so-called gluten sensitivity? FODMAPs were well known by the time that article was written.

The SO has been thought the ringer around all this for a long time now - at one point even being pushed/pulled in opposite directions by the nutritionist and the MD. She doesn't fit any of the profiles. The only thing I've been learning from it all is that between the host, the flora, the  diet, the environment, not to mention drug interactions, the net system is so complicated that anyone who makes definitive claims about solutions is still gonna be wrong about half the time.

Edited May 8, 2023 by gehringer_2

[Shades of Deivi Cruz]

11 hours ago, Shades of Deivi Cruz said:

I'm pretty certain the issue is the phone app, because when I open it on my phone I have to reauthenticate to get to the streams. I don't even have to retype anything. It's just an annoying "use MLB logon" popup that I have to click through.

 

 

 

EVERY DAMN TIME!

[Edman85]

2 hours ago, Crazy Cat Gentleman said:

my pet peeve is talking about non-celiac gluten sensitivity like it's any problem with wheat/barley/rye and not differentiating carb-based issues. that article seems to come way to close to simply equating gluten with those grains, and reading it makes me think that whoever wrote it would label me as NCGS even though I can eat all the gluten (such as seitan-based fake meat) but can't eat certain carbs (fructans) in those grains. soy sauce and most beer is fine, but hazy beer is often made hazy by adding flour post-fermentation, so I can't touch the stuff.

if you're going to go to the trouble of writing an article about a hypothetical condition like that, why not at least mention carb-based issues as a possible root of the so-called gluten sensitivity? FODMAPs were well known by the time that article was written.

There was a 2019 follow up by the same author making some of these points but pointing out the uncertainty.

I do stand by the reason I sought it out, though. Gluten free does not help prevent diabetes, but people think it does.

[djhutch]

19 hours ago, Crazy Cat Gentleman said:

my pet peeve is talking about non-celiac gluten sensitivity like it's any problem with wheat/barley/rye and not differentiating carb-based issues. that article seems to come way to close to simply equating gluten with those grains, and reading it makes me think that whoever wrote it would label me as NCGS even though I can eat all the gluten (such as seitan-based fake meat) but can't eat certain carbs (fructans) in those grains. soy sauce and most beer is fine, but hazy beer is often made hazy by adding flour post-fermentation, so I can't touch the stuff.

if you're going to go to the trouble of writing an article about a hypothetical condition like that, why not at least mention carb-based issues as a possible root of the so-called gluten sensitivity? FODMAPs were well known by the time that article was written.

 

16 hours ago, Edman85 said:

There was a 2019 follow up by the same author making some of these points but pointing out the uncertainty.

I do stand by the reason I sought it out, though. Gluten free does not help prevent diabetes, but people think it does.

I routinely ask waitresses what they do with all the extra gluten & can I get a discount on it.

[chasfh]

On 5/8/2023 at 8:55 AM, Edman85 said:

Re: Antivirus software... Since I was already subscribing to NYT and The Athletic, I just bundled it all together and got Wirecutter so was able to see this:

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/guides/online-security-built-in-antivirus-software/

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/best-antivirus/

 

Thanks. I put a tick in my calendar for next late May to review this and consider letting this go.

[chasfh]

On 5/8/2023 at 8:04 PM, Shades of Deivi Cruz said:

 

 

 

EVERY DAMN TIME!

Not only this, and I don't know whether this is happening to anyone else, but once or twice every week, I can't open a game in an MLB.tv app on any platform unless I reauthenticate my Extra Innings credentials yet again. That's new starting this year. Didn't have that problem in prior years.

As for the Carplay app, I don't bother. If it's a home game, I listen to the Tigers feed on my Sirius in the car; if it's an away game, I will either run the Tigers feed through the At Bat app if it's working, and if it's not, open it in the Sirius app.

 

[chasfh]

Long as we're talking about MLB media and how much it can suck, here's something else new this year that I hate.

Let's start with the setup: 

One of the things I have liked about watching MLB feeds from other cities is when they run local (actually RSN) commercials. A lot of them might be for national or even regional brands, but sometimes they will be for a local car dealer or law firm or some advertiser you can't see anywhere else. I find that somewhat charming. I see that on Extra Innings on D*TV. Even better when it's a Blue Jays and you get Canadian commercials. Yeah, I know, you Detroiters are like, big whoop, because you can see that on channel 9 every day. But for we folks who are removed geographically from that possibility, it's pretty neat.

You don't get that on MLB.tv games, since the League sells out all that commercial time to national advertisers—or, more exactly, they bonus their top sponsors spots during all the breaks on MLB.tv games. That's why you see the same commercials over and over, like the Scotts lawn spot with the stupid bagpipes, or the Range Rover spots with the ridiculously over-the-top orchestral music. No advertiser would ever pay for that kind of relentless, non-stop, punch-you-in-the-face-repeatedly frequency because it actually hurts brand perception, and pretty quickly at that. I'm a little surprised Scotts and the other sponsors don't request frequency caps on a per game basis or something. Maybe it's such a tiny deal to them that they don't even know, or else don't give a sh*t.

On the radio side, on MLB At Bat, you would hear the commercials that run on the flagship station, and it was great, because radio spots during baseball games are far more local, much less slick, and thus more charming than even local TV spots. Sometimes you might even hear spots for a single restaurant or one lone insurance agency. That's pretty cool. You might hear local spots during some breaks on the radio broadcasts on the Sirius app, although you're just as likely to hear Sirius pound you with promo spots for their other channels, especially channels devoted to sports you might hate. (Or, to be honest, sports I might hate.)

OK, now for the peeve:

As of this season, MLB At Bat no longer allows local radio spots to run during game breaks. They bonus that time out as well, and to sponsors of your local team. So no matter what feed I'm listening to, whether it's Tigers', Cubs', White Sox', Guardians', Dodgers', doesn't matter, they play local Chicago spots. And for me, it's always Cubs-oriented spots for Sloan toilets or Binny's Beverage Depot or North Shore Hospital or whatever. (Never a White Sox-oriented spot, though. I'm not sure quite yet why that is.)

Now here's the worst part, in my estimation: no matter where I am—whether I'm in Chicago, or I go to Milwaukee, or Green Bay, or Detroit, or anyplace else in the country, maybe even the world—I hear the exact same Chicago Cubs-oriented spots run on At Bat. I don't even get the spots that are local to the cities I am physically in. MLB has determined, for whatever reason, that since I am a Chicagoan—and, in their estimation, a Cubs fan—they are going to present to me the same spots for Sloan, or Binny's, or North Shore Hospital over ... and over ... and over ... and over ... and over ... you get the idea. And of course, 40% of all the spots I hear feature the putatively dulcet tones of accidental Hall of Famer Pat Hughes, the sound, tone, and smarmy delivery of whose voice I absolutely despise.

My only recourse is listen to the Sirius feed for the sometimes local spots, although the down side of that is that they are literally several minutes behind live action. But that's a trade-off I don't mind making to avoid the crushing sameness of the commercial during breaks.

[smr-nj]

I can see how that would be a big peeve.

(I was annoyed just reading it. 😁)

[chasfh]

I call Apple because I am having a syncing problem with my iPhone. While you wait, they give you choices of music to listen to: (1) modern pop music; (2) classical; (3) jazz; or (4) nothing.

Definitely not modern pop music. And the jazz, which I like, I was afraid it would be some soft R&B or what they used to call "smooth jazz", Kenny G stuff. Not a fan of that either. So I selected classical, hoping I would got the kind of string quartet music you can push to the background while you do other things.

Nope. Turns out what they call "classical" is John Williams-style movie music, with huge orchestras and endless flourishing crescendos, which I didn't even think was possible, since you typically need soft passages in music to set up the crescendos, and there were no soft passages.

It got so bad I ended up hanging up and starting over, and choosing "nothing".

So, the peeve, I guess, is organizations that have no idea what classical music actually sounds like.

[Biff Mayhem]

50 minutes ago, chasfh said:

I call Apple because I am having a syncing problem with my iPhone. While you wait, they give you choices of music to listen to: (1) modern pop music; (2) classical; (3) jazz; or (4) nothing.

Definitely not modern pop music. And the jazz, which I like, I was afraid it would be some soft R&B or what they used to call "smooth jazz", Kenny G stuff. Not a fan of that either. So I selected classical, hoping I would got the kind of string quartet music you can push to the background while you do other things.

Nope. Turns out what they call "classical" is John Williams-style movie music, with huge orchestras and endless flourishing crescendos, which I didn't even think was possible, since you typically need soft passages in music to set up the crescendos, and there were no soft passages.

It got so bad I ended up hanging up and starting over, and choosing "nothing".

So, the peeve, I guess, is organizations that have no idea what classical music actually sounds like.

I found this way more amusing than perhaps I should have.

[chasfh]

29 minutes ago, Biff Mayhem said:

I found this way more amusing than perhaps I should have.

Well, if you were amused by that, you will go into hysterics over this:

After being on the phone with Apple for well over an hour, after getting passed to three different people for whom I had to describe my problem from scratch all over again, after having gotten to a senior advisor who asked me to wait on hold while she was to check into something ... the call got cut off.

Square one.

[chasfh]

23 hours ago, chasfh said:

Well, if you were amused by that, you will go into hysterics over this:

After being on the phone with Apple for well over an hour, after getting passed to three different people for whom I had to describe my problem from scratch all over again, after having gotten to a senior advisor who asked me to wait on hold while she was to check into something ... the call got cut off.

Square one.

For anyone even a little invested in this: bottom line is none of the five people I talked to across some 2-1/2 hours could help. They all introduced themselves as "senior advisors", yet they clearly do not all have similar levels of training or maybe even knowledge. A couple sounded like they could pass for senior; the other three definitely did not. Plus, they apparently don't read notes presumably taken by the prior advisor, so the later ones had me try all the same things the earlier ones did that failed, and one even said it was impossible to do screen-share on both my phone and my PC at the same time, when the second advisor did that exact thing.

I finally just said "hey, listen, thanks for your time" and hung up on the last "senior advisor" because she had this kind of cavalier not-really-working-or-caring-much attitude during the call, talking at me like she might talk at her little brother, and when she said had to try all these things I told her had already failed on prior calls because she would be "docked points" if she didn't, that's when I knew it was over.

I then went to the local Apple store, and the advisor there suggested that the recent update of my phone to iOS 16.4.1 (a) may have broken compatibility with iTunes 12.12.8.2, which none of the other advisors brought up even once. That actually makes some sense, so I am waiting for another iOS update, and if it still doesn't work, I'll go back to the Store and we'll see whether they can help.

But right now, I can't sync any calendars to my phone, and I can't even sync my current phone calendar to the iCloud calendar. I'm thinking the phone, still less than two years old, might have ended up a lemon.

Edited May 16, 2023 by chasfh

[Motor City Sonics]

Working with people who don't even try is a major pet peeve of mine.  

[Motor City Sonics]

The sport of horse racing is a pet peeve of mine now.   Shut it down.  It's barbaric.  So many beautiful animals dying.  Much more than before.  What has changed?  What are they giving these animals?  What are they doing to them?  There is a reason Bob Bafford was supsended.   Now he gets to celebrate a victory?