Things you always wanted to know the answer to [Vol. 3]

[colin_p]

Why can't I have "Thor Hammer Headlights" ?

[walm]

JustinF said:

Frankly fk the supermarkets, they've robbed the consumer of choice, they systematically took apart our highstreets and access to local produce, bespoke goods and anything that doesn't sell x amount per shelf inch per day.
Greengrocers, fishmongers, butchers, off licences, newsagents are clinging on by their fingernails.

True.
At the same time they have managed to save us all a rather significant amount of money.

iTunes destroyed HMV, so I feel sorry for HMV but I don't feel particularly cross with Apple.

[ScotsDave]

How famous does someone have to be to be "assassinated" as opposed to just "murdered"?

[MissChief]

ScotsDave said:

How famous does someone have to be to be "assassinated" as opposed to just "murdered"?

This has come up a couple of times. Generally an assassination is for political reasons. For example John Lennon was just a murder by a nutter of a fan. The assassination of Rajiv and Indira Gandhi in India were both assassinations due to their political connection.

[Willy Nilly]

dumfriesdave said:

Issi said:

I've heard this third hand from someone in the industry, but he claims that the cheaper Own Brand/Smart Price lager is just Fosters/Carling that hasn't quite reached the required standard.
Sounds entirely plausible to me.

Not always, but very often true.

I worked in a creamery for around 10 years.
The butter churn produced the same specification butter every day.
Pumped through the same pipework to packing machines.
My best mate operated the 250g brick machine packing for retail customers (supermarkets), only stopping to change the outer foil used and the packaging.

Therefore salted butter sold as Aldi, Country Life and M+S is the exact same product.

I would be surprised if this were the case. The more expensive products would be higher margin and would almost certainly need higher quality raw materials. For sure the same plant would be used, but I doubt very much the milk they used would be the same as it varies day to day, farm to farm and cow to cow. We run all the wheat through the same combine, but some makes full spec milling and some ends up as chicken feed for a huge discount. Same with the spuds. They all went through the same machines from planting to harvest to bagging, they were all were stored in the same shed but vary hugely, even within fields of the same variety some are great and others are crap.

[FiF]

Issi said:

I've heard this third hand from someone in the industry, but he claims that the cheaper2Own Brand/Smart Price lager is just Fosters/Carling that hasn't quite reached the required standard.
Sounds entirely plausible to me.

That is the case with some manufacturers, or that they have different specifications for their own products, eg our product is grade A, Bloggs B-1, Cheapo B-2 and so on.

Except Kelloggs apparently, no customer own brand production, if you want Kelloggs, you buy Kelloggs.

Having said that once had a discussion with a charming Canadian girl who worked for a manufacturer who did exactly this, made their own brand and customer branded products. Frozen food mainly. She confirmed this different standards for different customers. In answer to the question of who had the most rigorous standards, her answer surprised me, it wasn't Marks and Sparks but that place frequented by Katona and Andre, to the point of being unreasonable were her words.

[D_T_W]

Willy Nilly said:

dumfriesdave said:

Issi said:

I've heard this third hand from someone in the industry, but he claims that the cheaper Own Brand/Smart Price lager is just Fosters/Carling that hasn't quite reached the required standard.
Sounds entirely plausible to me.

Not always, but very often true.

I worked in a creamery for around 10 years.
The butter churn produced the same specification butter every day.
Pumped through the same pipework to packing machines.
My best mate operated the 250g brick machine packing for retail customers (supermarkets), only stopping to change the outer foil used and the packaging.

Therefore salted butter sold as Aldi, Country Life and M+S is the exact same product.

I would be surprised if this were the case. The more expensive products would be higher margin and would almost certainly need higher quality raw materials. For sure the same plant would be used, but I doubt very much the milk they used would be the same as it varies day to day, farm to farm and cow to cow. We run all the wheat through the same combine, but some makes full spec milling and some ends up as chicken feed for a huge discount. Same with the spuds. They all went through the same machines from planting to harvest to bagging, they were all were stored in the same shed but vary hugely, even within fields of the same variety some are great and others are crap.

It is certainly the case with some products. Aldi own brand blended malt whisky is made and bottled by Wm Grants (the people who make Glenfiddich and Balvenie), and is the same stuff that Grants sell in their own branded bottle for about 30% more. Asda also have one of their own branded blended malts supplied by Grants, it's identical to the Aldi one in a slightly swankier bottle and labelling and slightly more expensive.

Baxters Food is another one, it's the same product off the same production line that goes into Baxters branded products as well as some of the big supermarkets own branded product.

Walkers Shortbread, they supply both Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's with shortbread, again it's the same stuff of the same production lines

Don't underestimate just how many products are identical in every way apart from packaging, having working in the supply chain side of business for a while it's surprising when you realise it's just one big marketing exercise!

[FlyingMeeces]

A bit of a ponder this morning.

GPs are, rightly, not allowed to bone patients. Fair enough, power imbalance, professionalism and so on.

But what happens if it's a remote rural solo GP and there is neither a nearby practice for any hypothetical spouse/partner to be seen at, nor any non-patient population for said GP to have a relationship with?

Seems a bit mean to make the poor sods go celibate…

[singlecoil]

D_T_W said:

Don't underestimate just how many products are identical in every way apart from packaging, having working in the supply chain side of business for a while it's surprising when you realise it's just one big marketing exercise!

I have no reason to doubt that that's the case. I will I continue to buy the premium brand because that way I can be sure it's the best. It's a question of balancing the value of probably against the extra cost of being sure.

I have nightmares about having to consume anything other than the very best (which is barely good enough for me as it is).

[talksthetorque]

FlyingMeeces said:

A bit of a ponder this morning.

GPs are, rightly, not allowed to bone patients.

Poor choice of word.
1. Medically incorrect.
2. There are such things as female doctors.

Any more and you'll be up in front of the GMC

[FlyingMeeces]

talksthetorque said:

FlyingMeeces said:

A bit of a ponder this morning.

GPs are, rightly, not allowed to bone patients.

Poor choice of word.
1. Medically incorrect.
2. There are such things as female doctors.

Any more and you'll be up in front of the GMC

3. There are also gay ones.



I'll edit my post to 'have romantic relationships with', if you'd prefer. But then that'd exclude aromantics…

[Jonboy_t]

How do they do sound checks at place like Glastonbury or reading festivals? The big acts just rock up, do their thing and ps off, so how do they get all the levels bang on without the actual act being there?

[eltawater]

How well is this going to work then?

[Jon321]

eltawater said:

How well is this going to work then?

As under floor heating for the room above, quite well I guess.

[eltawater]

Which is fine, except it's the upstairs gents at our local brewer's fayre and it would be the roof space above it....

[FiF]

eltawater said:

Which is fine, except it's the upstairs gents at our local brewer's fayre and it would be the roof space above it....

Whoever fitted that is an idiot. Much better to have fitted a hydronic fan heater.

http://www.myson.co.uk/products/hi_line_low_voltag...

[Rostfritt]

JustinF said:

Frankly fk the supermarkets, they've robbed the consumer of choice, they systematically took apart our highstreets and access to local produce, bespoke goods and anything that doesn't sell x amount per shelf inch per day.
Greengrocers, fishmongers, butchers, off licences, newsagents are clinging on by their fingernails.

I think this new way of shopping can benefit the independent shops. People will go to Aldi for all the cheap essentials, then go to Sainbury's for Waitrose for more luxury items. If they are already happy to go from shop to shop they can then go to a proper butcher for some decent meat, the greengrocers for some decent veg and the bakery for some fresh bread.

[antspants]

Why does my beer turn to ice after I take it out of the freezer but not while it's in there?

It is lovely and cold now it's melting though

[paolow]

antspants said:

Why does my beer turn to ice after I take it out of the freezer but not while it's in there?

It is lovely and cold now it's melting though

It was almost frozen - then the drop in pressure raised the freezing point and voila...

[GroundEffect]

Jonboy_t said:

How do they do sound checks at place like Glastonbury or reading festivals? The big acts just rock up, do their thing and ps off, so how do they get all the levels bang on without the actual act being there?

I don't know why they bother with soundcheck. The only gig I've ebr been to that sounded spot on was Karnivool at the Roundhouse, Camden. Everything else just sounds stupidly drum-heavy with no distinction