Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2016 September 5

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September 5

iPhone trick

Accidentally I have caused my telephone to ring as though it was an incoming g call. I would like to be able to do that deliberately sometimes, can anyone tell me how it is done please?78.148.36.100 (talk) 15:26, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

Many years ago, on some UK exchanges, it was "TRY" (879) then your own number, but I think BT has changed this.Sorry, that was for a landline. I missed reading the heading. Dbfirs 16:46, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

If you go into Settings/Sounds/Ringtone and tap the Ringtone with the check-mark next to it, the phone will ring. --Thomprod (talk) 18:00, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

The above will allow you to hear what your ringtone sounds like, but it will be obvious to anyone nearby what you're doing. If you want a more subtle way to make it appear as if you're receiving a legitimate incoming call, try Smart Fake Call (iTunes link) which allows you to schedule an incoming call immediately or at the time of your choosing. Instructions for use here. - Cucumber Mike (talk) 07:47, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

You can pick many (most? all?) ringtones on the iPhone for calls, alarms, and timer. So set the same one for timer and incoming calls, then set the time to 2 minutes and start it. Voila, two minutes later you have an emergency call. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 14:19, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

Pharmacies

Hi Just a simple Question 2 pharmasies in Ridgetown on 1 is shoppers neither one is open weekends .Why Even every other weekend would be good Like I said just a question Thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.101.10.110 (talk) 16:10, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

You are more likely to get an answer from the pharmacies than asking people who don't know where Ridgetown is, but I suppose someone who lives there might read this? Dbfirs 16:46, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

• You can ask Dwayne Johnston at Shoppers Drug Mart or Cindy Devereux at Ridge Apothecary (contact info here) 107.15.152.93 (talk) 04:28, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

I've often wondered why many businesses that cater to consumers aren't actually open when the average consumer is off work. Some possibilities:

• Could there be a union contract that would require them to pay workers more on weekends ?

• Even if not required due to a contract, they still might need to pay more, if workers would be unwilling to work weekends otherwise. Or, alternatively, they might suffer a morale problem if the workers weren't suitably compensated.

As for how to get your pharmacy to change it's hours, you might name a pharmacy in a nearby town that is open on weekends and tell the owner of yours that you will be going there from now on for your pharmacy needs. The threat of losing customers might get them to change. StuRat (talk) 18:29, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

They may be required by law to be closed. See blue laws. The federal government stepped in to get auto dealers in Metro Detroit to open weeknights and Saturdays (but Sundays were prohibited by law, not "long standing tradition")[1], [2], [3] Rmhermen (talk) 01:23, 7 September 2016 (UTC)

The cost of a computer

Bearing in mind that the modern computer was not created in a vacuum but instead built upon the previous generation of technology, which itself was built upon the generation before that, and so on, how much did the modern computer cost to develop, accounting for all development costs for all of history of previous iterations of technology that lead to the modern computer, adjusted for inflation to 2016 prices? In US dollars please. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bloccusnoalose (talk • contribs) 16:31, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

$3,214.79.  :)

Sorry, but I can't see how we can possibly provide such an answer. Most information relevant to this would be commercial-in-confidence, and impossible to collate anyway, given the extremely widespread nature of the global IT industry.

Is this a homework question? -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 18:35, 5 September 2016 (UTC)

• Also adding to the complexity - leaving aside all the government and academic contributions, a huge amount of computer infrastructure is built on volunteer efforts. This might not add to the monetary cost (although often big projects like OpenSSL are partly supported by donations) but definitely has a cost in terms of man-hours. Smurrayinchester 07:40, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

Also, how far back are we to go? As far back as the first integrated circuit or farther back to the discovery of electricity? †Dismas†|^(talk) 13:03, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

It's about 40 years old now, but the TV Series Connections (TV series) and its sequels from the 1990s covered exactly how sloppy and messy scientific progress is. Episode 4 from the original series is available (in sketchy quality) on YouTube, and covers the development of computing (till that point). 1994's "Connections² also covered a lot of it in Episode 3. --Jayron32 15:26, 6 September 2016 (UTC)

The modern computer was initially developed in a vacuum. :-) StuRat (talk) 18:32, 6 September 2016 (UTC)