Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Another Christmas easy to forget



Well, that was it, another Christmas to forget.

Me, my Mum & my Brother who visited from Manchester settled down to another family Christmas. Telly was shite, at the invitation of my neighbour the food (provided by them) was great (although my brother didn't join us as he was upset by a call from his ex at the last minute!?), the wine (provided by me) was excellent (Magnum of Krug 1989!), the presents received were average (with 1 or 2 very nice exceptions), the presents given were of course most excellent & thoughtful.

I think next year might be the year of going away for Christmas, maybe somewhere snowy & cold, or maybe on a large cruise liner somewhere warm(ish). Whatever I do, I will be desperate to put an end to the mundane routine of the Christmas' of late.

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Ramsay beaten.... again


I have watched with great glee over the last couple of weeks Gordon Ramsay getting beaten with great regularity in a dessert competition by various guests from a Fire Station Watch, Al Murray, Kim & Aggie, Sarah Beeny & Janet Street-Porter.

This week Gordon was beaten by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Although Hugh was a professional chef in the past (he was sacked from the River Cafe for being too messy!), the series has shown that the simple, proven, tried & tested home cooked recipe's have always been the best & will continue to be. That's why people have for centuries passed them down to their offspring & why I try to share & get in return good, proven recipe's as often as possible from people who, like me, love their food.

I have to say that a few years ago, I was a sceptic when it came to Gordon Ramsay, the smug little twat that boasted that he used foreign apples when cooking for the English Apple Association lunch, was the height of an ego that was so far up his arse he could of licked his own balls.

But this series has shown me a different Ramsay, one that I have enjoyed watching. It has been informative, interesting, funny (mostly at Gordon's expense), full of good food, AND HE USES SALT & PEPPER AS SEASONING PROPERLY!

A new series in the offing for next year & although he would say to me he doesn't give a toss if I watch it or not, I will be. Who knows, I might even go & buy a book or two of his after Christmas to add to the hundreds of others from his peers past & present that I have already.

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Russian Godfathers....


BBC TV has a series on BBC2 on Thursdays at 9:00pm entitled "Russian Godfathers" where they profile the major players in current Russian politics & business since the rise of the oligarchs resulting from Russia's transformation to capitalism.

So far a fascinating profile of Boris Berezovsky in the first programme showed how even in exile in London he plays a major part in Russian political life & his mere presence in a distant state from Moscow can give rise to the most extreme reaction from President Putin.

Programme 2 gave insight into the imprisonment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky (above), former head of oil company Yukos, was by some guesses at the time the richest man in Russia - Forbes magazine once estimated his wealth at £9bn, he is now serving 9 years in Siberia where he is said to earn 23 roubles a day sewing police uniforms.

Later programmes follow the fortunes of Vladimir Gusinsky ex head of Media-Most - the country's only independent media corporation (he has criticised Putin via his media group & now lives in exile in Israel), Roman Abramovich - ex owner of Sibneft, now with a net worth of £15bn & Yuri Luzhkov, Mayor of Moscow who appears to be very wealthy for a public official?

Clearly none of them are angels, but they are fantastically wealthy individuals who solely by there lifestyle are intriguing & interesting to many, me included.

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Winter walks.....


I like walking around local villages & landscapes during winter & sometimes take my camera (I should take it every time, but often forget)

I live in rural Hampshire & having been brought up in this area, I know it pretty well & know where there is a good walk to be had, followed by a beer or two & a good meal at a nice pub.

Sounds simple, but I do appreciate that I am very lucky to live where I do & that the surrounding countryside is (in my opinion) some of the best anywhere. It is full of wildlife & flora that I like to watch & study & sometimes eat!

In summer the fishing is great & anything from Pheasants to Sloe's are on my list of Autumn & Winter seasonal highlights. To that end whilst out walking today I took this shot of a very frosty blackthorn hedge from whence the Sloe berries I harvest to make Sloe Gin come from (I also had a small hip flask of Sloe Gin with me on the day to warm me through on my 3 hour trek). In fact the photo is taken only a few yards away from the family home of Mr Blunt (really Blount), below, and even closer to the Methodist Chapel built in 1839, where my maternal Great Great Great Grandfather, John Page gave his sermons.... small world eh!?

Some other photographic highlights of the past can be viewed here.

Friday, December 02, 2005

Better late than never.....


I have discovered the acoustic versions of James Blunt singles "You're Beautiful" & "Goodbye My Lover" - buy them, they are excellent!

I saw a TV programme where he was recording a live EP & these are (I think) the best tracks from the set, now available on iTunes.

By my reckoning, it seems he might be the new David Gray, White Ladder being one of the best albums ever, Mr Blunt has a similar ability I think.

Friday, November 25, 2005

Family history.......


After a recent visit from the Swiss side of the family, I have had my interest in the family history re-ignited.

I tried about 20 years ago with no knowledge of how to go about tracking down family records, but I did at least have one surviving Grandparent that could help with information from his generation & beyond. At the time, the few sources of information such as public records office with Parish records were costly & slow.

Now, with the advent of the 1851-1901 Census' being available online & other resources it is much easier to find out recent family history from the comfort of your armchair at home. You can also order copy certificates from the General Records Office that fill in gaps like parents names, address at time of birth & Mothers maiden name.

So, I am now researching my maternal Great Great Great Grandfather, John Page born circa 1810 in St. Mary Bourne, Hampshire & my paternal Great Grandfather, William Rice born c1885 in West Ham, London.

Saturday, November 19, 2005

I now use the force.....



no, not physical violence (but am very tempted at times with certain individuals).

My green Luke Skywalker Lightsaber has arrived! I'm sure all the difficulty in sourcing one of these is easily overcome in the New Year sales, but I wanted one NOW!

It seems a bit weird (or maybe it's just me?), of the people that have seen these, some say "Wow, fantastic, isn't it great!" and others just look at me as if to say what the fuck are you spending your cash on that shite for?

You can also practice your Jedi Lightsaber skills at eBaum's World.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Mein Auto ist defekt....


or as they say in English, my Audi (hence the German) is broken.

Over the past few weeks my car has been playing up in the gearbox department, it has been sticking in 4th, 5th or 6th, the dash lights up with all gear selections looking like a flashing christmas tree.

Called the Audi A8 dedicated technician at my dealer (Martins of Basingstoke), he suggested what I had already been doing. Stop, turn the car off & restart, that should reset the engine management system (really handy on a Motorway!). Book it in as soon as you can....

Duly booked in the car for service and a quick look at the problem, didn't hear anything all day, so I called them at 5:30. No-one wanted to talk to me, they just said that "the Service Manager needs a word with you Mr Rice....." oh dear, I've got a bad feeling about this......

After 18,000 miles on the clock, and a short conversation with Roy the Service Manager, it transpires that my car needs an entirely new gearbox!!!!! Luckily it's all covered under warranty, and I have to say the dealer has been bending over backwards to reassure me that they will be doing everything possible to minimise the impact on me, from supplying me with another A8 in the interim if the fault gets any worse (it doesn't happen when in Tiptronic mode) & over the 2 days it will take to fit.

Let's hope that zee Germans get the new one delivered to Basingstoke sooner rather than later.

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Airbus A380 makes first long haul flight....


Airbus sent their new "Super Airliner" the A380 on its first long distance flight yesterday, after 12 hours in the air it landed at Changi Airport in Singapore.

The plane, capable of carrying 555 passengers has been ordered by Singapore Airlines, Quantas, Emirates, Qatar Airways, China Southern Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways.

Initially Singapore Airlines will operate the A380 on the London-Singapore-Sydney route which is considered a cash cow for most airlines.

Although any runway that is capable of taking a Boeing 747 can accommodate the A380, as it's take off & landing is actually shorter than the 747, the terminal & infrastructure do require some updating - at nearly 80 metres the wingspan is 15 metres bigger than the 747-400.

Singapore Airlines will take its first delivery in November 2006, nearly a year late after some production problems.

After undertaking quite a few long haul flights I think the 747 is the best, most comfortable & probably one of the safest things to defy gravity in, let's hope the A380 follows suit.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

I think Woolworths might have the measure of me....


... or they could just be shite at mail order!

Last week I ordered a Force FX Luke Skywalker Lightsaber (the green one that no-one else has stock of) from Woolworths.co.uk, I thought it might have been too good to be true that they had stock, but I checked & checked again, they claimed to have hundreds of the little green blighters.

So, I merrily squandered £80 of my hard earned cash & ordered one, only to find this morning that a package measuring 24 inches long at its widest arrived..... alarm bell started to ring. A 48 inch lightsaber really ain't gonna fit in there unless they have cut the flippin' thing in half.

I very carefully opened the packaging to find a Postman Pat Vehicle Playset! Very nice it is, all the characters are there, Postman Pat, Jess, Ajay, Mrs Goggins, Ted , Glen, The Greendale Rocket, Ted's Truck, Pat's Van et al - but no fucking Jedi lightsaber!!!!!

As Yoda would say - Woolworths, tossers they are!

UPDATE : After returning Postman Pat, I spoke to Woolworths Customer Services, I got through eventually only to find that they no longer have stock of the Luke Skywalker Green Lightsaber. They cannot say when they might get some as "they are becoming difficult to source" - No shit Sherlock!! Refund offered & accepted, ordered elsewhere - fingers crossed!

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Those Russians are crazy.....


No, not the fact that Vladimir Romanov who is Chairman, majority shareholder & acting Chief Executive of Scottish Football Club Hearts' has managed to oust most of the directorate & management of the club & then install Graham Rix as new manager, worse......

Yahoo! News reports from Russia about the possible censorship of violent & agressive television shows.....

'Violent' Homer upsets Russians
Wednesday November 9, 07:37 AM


Russian politicians are warning TV stations to cut back on violent shows if they want to avoid censorship.

And the number one show they have mentioned is The Simpsons.

Minister Yelena Afanasyeva said: "The Simpsons is crammed with violent and aggressive episodes. These cartoons also introduce antagonism between children and parents."


I say they're mad, Homer would probably say Dohski!

Sunday, November 06, 2005

Mission statement's r Us


Following on from previous post, I had to share some of these with you........

"Our mission is to continue to completely network innovative opportunities while continuing to proactively customize value-added technology within our customer expectations"

"The customer can count on us to dramatically utilize principle-centered products while continuing to seamlessly pursue performance based deliverables to set us apart from the competition"

"Our mission is to assertively engineer emerging data while continuing to authoritatively enhance effective intellectual capital to set us apart from the competition"

"We strive to synergistically administrate prospective infrastructures as well as to continually maintain business products"

"We collaboratively initiate high-quality infrastructures and efficiently fashion mission-critical leadership skills"

"It's our responsibility to quickly engineer scalable paradigms and collaboratively revolutionize high-quality catalysts for change"

.... and they just keep coming, they are fantastic. It's just so representative of the complete shite that IT Managers & Marketeers spew out at the cost of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars every year.

Friday, November 04, 2005

Dilbert has a blog!


I read on a another blog from Ben Rose that the brilliant & satirical cartoonist Scott Adams has a blog entitled "The Dilbert.Blog", well worth a look. Very funny & typically irreverent about most things.

I can always see co-workers past & present in the cartoon, it's just the same as the TV series "The Office" in that respect, so cringe makingingly tangible to life in the workplace that you just have to watch or read it.

I have an idea that would probably be prohibitively expensive.... Personalised Dilberts, ask Scott Adams to pen a cartoon with the names of people in your office, or better still a website where you pick the Dilbert cartoon that you want & you can put the names of the co-workers of your choice, frame it & ship it out for Christmas.

Scott if you read this, (never gonna happen, but I have posted comments on his website) I'm very sorry for posting a picture of Dilbert, but I have at least given you an idea for the next money making spin off of Dilbert.

UPDATE : Dilbert.com also has the most fantastic Mission Statement Generator . I now understand where senior managers & marketing luvvies get most of their ideas!!! I am going to try & use some of them in meetings & see if anyone notices.

Thursday, November 03, 2005

Bye Bye Blunkett, you're an embarrassment...



It was with great delight that I heard the breaking news earlier that Secretary of State for Work & Pensions, David Blunkett has resigned (again).

The man is a liability to any Government, even a Blair one! Apart from his connections with Government & Cabinet I really cannot comprehend any business wanting to be associated with him, let alone pay him for his services.

Politicians in my mind are in Public Service & should not be allowed to have paid work or consultancy whilst being an MP, they get paid enough of our money to represent their constituency.

Hopefully this is the last time we will see this man of many mistakes given any responsibility or authority by anyone, but particularly in public office.

Thursday, October 27, 2005

I knew things were getting smaller but.....


....this is ridiculous!

I've used IBM Microdrive technology in my Canon EOS Digital SLR for a couple of years now, but how fecking small is this new HDD from Toshiba?

They are looking for ideas of what it could be used for in the next generation of gizmo or gadget & have a website to take suggestions.

Click here to make a suggestion.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

The DJ's have gone digital....



Get rid of those Technics SL1200 turntables, even get rid of those CD turntables - look at this a mixing desk for dual iPod's.

Better still, let's get rid of the DJ completely. Just program in a set (I believe thats what they call it) & plug in the iPod leaving the clubbers to dance the night away - not that Bryan Ferry gets played much nowadays!?

Never been into DJing myself, but thought this looked pretty clever kit.

Tuesday, October 25, 2005

Sold out... Again!


A few years ago, my ability to predict Stock Market risers was pretty good, with a bit of research, a few punts worked out pretty well. Of late, my talent has deserted me, I backed Railtrack, Friends Provident & Marconi.

Friend Provident haven't been swallowed up by a larger insurer as I predicted, and are still way below the £2.10+ price I got when floated.

Railtrack have in my humble opinion been "fucked up the arse" so to speak by Trade & Industry Secretary Stephen Byers. Leaving shareholders with the sum total of 18% of their original investment!

And today we hear that Marconi are selling off their prized asset - their telco business - to Ericsson! A couple of years ago Marconi had £3bn of assets, after a corporate shopping spree, the banks forced them to restructure their now debts of £5bn(!) in a share swap where the banks held all of the asset stock, the general shareholders being left with minority shares worth less than the paper they were printed on.

Let's hope the remaining interests I have in the likes of Vodafone don't go the same way.

Monday, October 24, 2005

My role model makes it as man of the decade....


Yahoo! News reports that a panel of experts from Mens Health Magazine for the 10th Anniversary issue has come up with a Top 10 list of famous men of the decade.

Homer has been nominated as Greatest Philosopher!

Other minors in the list include Sportsman: Lance Armstrong (Tour de France God), Visionary: Jonathan Ive (creator of the iPod), Designer: Sir Paul Smith, Manager: Sven Goran Eriksson (Famous Swedish shag monster), Activist: Bob Geldof (Irish Soap Dodger - allegedly), Writer: Ian McEwan, Musician: Damon Albarn, Chef: Jamie Oliver & Scientist: Craig Venter (Geneticist).

Morgan Rees, Editor of Men's Health said, "These are people of real substance and solid achievement rather than temporary fame"

"We were particularly pleased to see Homer Simpson on the list. He has taught a whole generation how to take on the challenge of modern fatherhood and win - although not always with honour."

I say, they all pale into insignificance in comparison to Homer Simpson.

Sunday, October 23, 2005

Two of my favourite films, combined into one....



Whilst surfing around trying to find an unusual Christmas present for my Brother, I found this at Firebox.com. It combines characters from two of my favourite films into one - Darth Vader from Stars Wars & Mr Potato Head from Toy Story.

Named Darth Tater & Spud Trooper, at £9.95 each I think they are great fun.

I'm pretty sure my brother doesn't read this blog, so here is what he has for his combined Birthday (Dec 22nd)\Christmas present - a Darth Vader Force FX Lightsaber complete with glowing blade & with sound effects, such as power up, swing, idle hum & power down. It looks so good, I bought one for myself as well!


It's well worth scrolling to the bottom of the page, then clicking the links & watching the video clips people have taken of themselves re-enacting the Stars Wars battles (mostly in their bedrooms!?) I will of course not be using the Light Saber for such daft, pointless & childish re-enactments, well not on video anyway.

UPDATE : Woolworths are selling the Force FX Lightsabers with 10% off this weekend (Friday 4th & Saturday 5th November), although they only appear to have the Luke Skywalker green in stock on the website at the moment, which is odd as every other stockist have everything EXCEPT the green?

Friday, October 21, 2005

From Royal Crown Derby to..... The Prodigy...



In this diverse world, let me take you from comments on my Royal Crown Derby collection to a band called The Prodigy.....

Buy it, download it from iTunes, borrow it (don't steal it), play it very loud through your speakers, piss your neighbours off (turn up the bass!).

Maybe play it on iTunes with the Visualizer turned on to full screen & projecting onto the trees in your garden? I did, the neighbours loved it!!

If you have a Prodigy album already, you will think (like I do) that this is a brilliant album. If you don't have a Prodigy album but have liked some of the singles before, then go & buy this & make it your first Prodigy album.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

RCD will have to explain to my Bank Manager....



I collect some Royal Crown Derby porcelain, paperweights only, in the following forms - birds, elephants, fish & bulls. (Don't ask why, I don't even know myself!)

Every year I look at the latest additions & see whether they have added any to the range that fit my habit of collecting, some years they add a quite a few maybe 5 or so, others they add just one or two. I'm caught between the general hope that they won't include too many in one go as it tends to get a bit pricey & the desire to see more in my collection.

Imagine my horror when I found out that they have just added lots more, in the last month alone they have added the following birds - a Derby Peacock, Bunting, Lorikeet and a Mountain Bluebird. Add to that a new Guppy in the fishy section and three new elephants (see picture) - that makes 8, yes EIGHT! Earlier in the year they added a Citron Cockatoo, an Amazon Green Parrot, Great Tit, Kedlestone Kingfisher, Emperor Penguin, Snowy Owl & White Pelican, plus a Scottish leaping Salmon. So in total Royal Crown Derby have added 16 new paperweights to my collection this year, well actually I have, they merely made temptation too great to resist.

Sorry Mr Bank Manager, the minus number in the account is all the fault of those people in Derby!!

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

For the girl that has everything.....


With Christmas coming soon, I have been searching for gifts. Gifts that will impress. Well if this doesn't do it, I don't know what will. A diamond ring that measures 10.5cm x 7.5cm x 6cm - it's HUGE!!!

Yes, you guessed - it's not real (no shit Sherlock). At £12.50 + P&P it was never going to be. It's a glass & metal paperweight, I took delivery today & it does look very good.

As a stocking filler it tickled my sense of humour, let's just hope someone else sees the funny side!

You can buy it here

Monday, October 10, 2005

Christmas is coming.....



I fear to mention Christmas so early, I apologise now.

I have seen what I want...............

a new Aston Martin V8 Vantage as previewed at the IAA Frankfurt Motor Show last month. Now in production & first deliveries are iminent. With a 4.3 litre V8, 380bhp, 0-60 in 4.9 seconds and a top end of 175mph. I'll have mine in either Mendip Blue with parchment hide or Silver metallic with red hide please.

.....now I just have to figure a way of getting one.

Sunday, October 09, 2005

It's happened again..... musical deja vous

Whilst doing various chores earlier this evening in my garage I listened to the top 40 chart for the first time in quite a while. 25 years ago, I was glued to the radio on a Sunday evening, listening out for the latest news of what was Number 1 - 25 years ago it was "Don't Stand So Close To Me" by The Police.

Tonight, I heard Rachel Stevens latest effort "I Said Never Again (But Here We Are)" (which is actually acceptable to the ear of this 38 year old & she looks OK to me as well) & thought - I've hear that riff before somewhere......

It's only a couple of bars (as is usual with Status Quo at least), but it is the same, 25 years apart! Take the old Quo riff from "What You're Proposing" & put it through a modern day sampler with the "Adam & The Ants" button turned up 100% & here you go.....

Rachel Stevens - I Said Never Again (But Here We Are)

Status Quo - What You're Proposing

No pictures, as I'm sure that some management company would complain.

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Apple suckered me again....




I'm a gadget freak, you know that from this Blog, I know it & so do many vendors it appears - including Apple.

Recently Apple have released the iPod Nano, the latest & smallest incarnation of their MP3 player. Size wise its tiny, very light, and has the functionality of its bigger relatives, including a colour screen (unlike the iPod Mini which is LCD & the iPod Shuffle which is devoid of any screen!)

John Lewis in West Quay, Southampton this morning had them in stock, lots of them, delivered overnight to satisfy the retail junkies that frequent there on a Saturday (which includes me occasionally). 2Gb, 4Gb and black or white, the choice was yours. Impulse got the better of me & I had to have one whilst stocks lasted!

I have to say, its is by far the best iPod yet (I have 2 already so should know by now!), it makes the iPod Mini look about 10 years old & the standard size iPod looks large & clumsy next to it.

So the iPod Mini may be cast as a backup device for me now - I can't really sell it as I had the free laser engraving on it - Doh! The iPod standard will be used with the Bose Sounddock in the house with the entire music library on it.

I have asked Apple not to release any more nice gadgets for a while, sadly Sony declined & have released this......

The Sony NAS-CZ1 Audio Network System does what the D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player claims to do & what others do for more money (the Elgato EyeHome Wireless Edition, the Roku Soundbridge M2000 Network Music Player & the Sonos as well) - wireless access to your iTunes music. See earlier posts for information on the D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player it is sooo bad, I didn't even bother to review 100% as promised - it's crap). The Sony is much better looking & has built in speakers. It's also from a mainstream vendor so should be bullet proof. All for £199, it's probably next on my list of gadget shopping. Anyone wanna buy a D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player?

Friday, October 07, 2005

Death of a genius....


"Norman Stanley Fletcher, you have pleaded guilty to the charges brought by this court, and it is now my duty to pass sentence. You are a habitual criminal, who accepts arrest as an occupational hazard, and presumably accepts imprisonment in the same casual manner. We therefore feel constrained to commit you to the maximum term allowed for these offences - you will go to prison for 5 years."

As others have said elsewhere, I grew up with TV series like The Two Ronnies, Porridge & Open All Hours - there is one clear common theme, great comedy performed by Ronnie Barker.

Clearly the writing of Porridge by Dick Clements & Ian La Frenais' was excellent, but match it with the intelligence & comedic timing delivered by Ronnie Barker & perfect comedy was made - albeit for a short period of only 5 years (1 pilot episode, 3 series & 2 Christmas Specials followed by a spin off called "Going Straight" & a film in 1978).

In my mind & many others, he is remembered as he wanted to be - the funiest man on television. The generation of 30 somethings were lucky to have grown up with him on the screen, and it felt like we knew him, if only as the characters he portrayed.

The irony & wit of Porridge makes it my favourite of all. Whilst some of the plots may have been a bit thin, the simple interaction between the father & son characters of Fletch & Godber were effectively real & the "don't let the bastards get you down" approach of Fletcher towards the screws, particularly Mr Mackay, was genius.

"I'm only in prison because of my beliefs.
I believed the night watchman was asleep."

Norman Stanley Fletcher - April 1973

Sunday, October 02, 2005

Just to add insult to injury....



Hampshire Police are being filmed for the new TV series of "Traffic Cops", so over the next 6 or so weeks they will be patrolling in both marked & unmarked cars on the M3 & M27. So watch out on the M3 section between J2 > J8 for an unmarked Skoda saloon in dark blue or black, plus the usual marked Volvo estates & X5's.

Not sure what they will be using elsewhere, I've already seen the Skoda stop a couple of people over the last 2 weeks.

I know a few of you are saying "if you don't speed, you won't get stopped", in reality the flow of traffic through the 50 zones in the roadworks is travelling at 60-70mph most of the time. When the normal 70mph limit is in force outside of the roadworks, the speeds are nearer 80-85mph.

If you don't want to appear on BBC1 getting nicked by Mr Plod - don't speed! I'm sure they will be picking up quite a few people over the next couple of weeks just with the roadwork limits being enforced, but with the added incentive of being on telly and a need to impress that nice little researcher in the back seat with them, they will be out for as many tickets as possible.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Roadworks on the M3, lots of them!



After a week away from work, my first journey into Bracknell was blighted by the arrival of not one, but two new sets of roadworks on the M3!! This to add to the already boring 50mph stretch over the railway line bridge between J5 & Fleet Services. The wazzocks at the Highways Agency have added a long stretch from J3 to J4, cameras for traffic flow fully installed, so it looks long term. The white lines for temporary speed cameras are already painted as well. They have also added a mini bit between J6 & J7 Southbound as well!

Here's looking forward to a couple of months of shitty journeys then!

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Complete, total & utter network hardware refresh [maybe]


I haven't been impressed with the new D-Link stuff so far, so it's last chance is going to be a bit of help from one of these. A D-Link DWL G-710 Wireless Range Extender, it just plugs into the mains for power & repeats the wireless signal a bit further (so they say). Fingers crossed it might help push the boundaries of the 802.11x signal that is a little weak at present in one or two places.

Update : it appears to work very well, and really easy to setup. Just plug in power & connect with ethernet cable, configure, unplug ethernet & place some distance from the wireless router & hey presto the WiFi signal in the house goes off the scale! I will have a play with the other bits of kit at the weekend.

As a parallel test, I have also ordered the same suite of kit from Linksys. A Linksys WRT54GS Wireless Router & the Linksys WRE54G Wireless Range Expander\Repeater. Whichever works best will stay, the worst performer will be donated\sold to my brother.

After reading all the blurb from manufacturers & reviews from cyber geeks, it looks like the repeater technology doesn't cross manufacturer borders. They appear to do something proprietry, (yes, I know it's an astonishing claim!) that makes using a repeater from one manufacturer with a router from another a little difficult, if not impossible.

I have also been tempted by the Devolo MicroLink dLan kit which plugs into the house power supply & transfers data using the electrical wiring of the house.

So an update posted here soon with the results, my prediction is that D-Link will be finding a new home!

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

It's been bugging me for a week.....



Last week I watched a re-run of the Frank Skinner chat show, Graham Coxon was guest - ex of Blur, he spoke about his time with Blur & meeting up with the band members & it feeling a bit like meeting 3 ex wives!? Now, I quite like Blur & watched with interest this geeky (just look at the picture) looking bloke who is clearly a very fine songwriter & was interested to hear his solo single "Freakin' Out", two things became instantly apparent.....

1. Mr Coxon was the musical force behind Blur & as such I would probably like what I was about to hear.

2. I had heard the intro before somewhere.

Having searched through my fairly large CD collection, along with iTunes, I have now found what I think is the similar intro.... "Into The Valley" by The Skids, the links take you to iTunes. I can recommend "Freakin' Out" - have a go at comparing them, it's not a sample, just a bit similar & it reminded me of a record from my youth.

Monday, August 22, 2005

Anything Apple can do.....



Microsoft & Yahoo! do as well, I'm talking Widgets. Those little (mostly useless) apps that sit on your desktop.

I was first introduced to these when I upgraded my iMac to OS/X. Some of them are really clever & neat & interesting (clocks, stock market quotes, reminders, WiFi signal strength, CPU usage, weather reports & newsfeeds etc.), but others are just complete shite - a hexidecimal clock is merely one inane example!

Have a look here for Windows Widgets..... http://www.konfabulator.com/

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Modem Update



A few weeks ago I bought the D-Link DSL-G604T Wireless ADSL Router, the problem is in the product description - ADSL.

My ISP is ntl: & they provide a Cable Modem Service not ADSL, so the cable is terminated not with a standard telco ADSL cable, but a screw thread connection. Doh!

I haven't returned the useless (to me) bit of kit, as I am considering a switch to BT ADSL. (I am waiting to see what ntl: are going to do in terms of pricing as they just announced their intention of getting their entire network capable of 10Mbps!)

I have since purchased a D-Link DI-624+ Wireless Router to replace my Belkin one which was a bit long in the tooth. The D-Link also allows me to use a high gain antenna & hopefully boost the signal, I can also now use 802.11g everywhere giving better connection speeds.

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

The end of the world is nigh.... in Croatia


From Yahoo! News...

Lone priest defends Manson ahead of Croatia gig

ZAGREB (Reuters) - Religious groups in Croatia are up in arms over the imminent arrival of shock-rocker Marilyn Manson for a concert.

But rallying to the banner of free speech and perhaps a little shock-value of his own, Manson has found one unlikely defender -- a Catholic priest.

"How could Manson turn young people into satanists and drug-addicts in the two hours of his act," daily newspaper Vjesnik quoted priest Anton Bobas as saying.

Bobas, who leads a heavy-metal band of his own called Glasnici Nade (Messengers of Hope), says most of Manson's critics have never heard his songs or seen him perform.

The lone priest finds himself fighting a rearguard action against Christian groups from the Istrian peninsula ahead of the concert on August 22 in the northern Adriatic town of Pula.

Protestant organisation Oaza wants the concert banned, while seven Catholic priests offered to pay damages to the organisers if the concert was cancelled, arguing the band's lyrics and image promote satanism, drug-use and violence.

Bobas said the best concert he ever attended was seeing Manson live in Hamburg, Germany, three years ago.

But even Bobas tempers his support.

Despite the music, Manson was a rather dark persona and he would not recommend anyone -- especially young people -- to attend the concert, he said.

Monday, August 15, 2005

Jammy Aussie's, piss poor England



After a few days of such expectation, a f**king draw!?


It's all very well celebrating getting Gilchrist out Mr Flintoff, but what about bowling out the last few Aussie's rather than complaining that you're turning your ankle on a bit of dodgy wicket?

A bowler of your calibre should be able to get shot of Shane Warne pretty quickly, was it Shane Warne or John Daly filling in for him whilst he was down at the local pub? Sorry, it wouldn't happen like that, Daly would be at the pub as well. Shit! there must be another Warne\Daly lookalike around????

Monday, August 01, 2005

I'm on holiday (again!)

Yes, it's time to take another couple of weeks away from work, they pay me to do it, so I must obey!

No plans, loads of chores to catch up on & I'm having a wall repaired, so am sure I'll end up being the labourer.

Everything is going OK, didn't win the £77m EuroMillions, but I'm over it now. I do have to ask myself, what would I do with all that money anyway!? Feck, I'll bloody spend it like that!!!! Aston Martin, Rolex, Taittinger et al would all benefit from my outlandish spending, oh and I would also build a hospital as well (honest!)

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

Review of D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player



Recent purchase of this Digital Media Player from eXpansys has prompted this review by me.....

I wanted a system that would enable me to play my iTunes collection and maybe some video in another room in the house, my PC has an amplifier & Bose speakers in my study & I have the Bose Sounddock in another room, so the idea of buying another Sounddock for another room didn't appeal - however, see my suggestion later....

Not the most expensive on the market, but not cheap either coming in at £155.95, other choices are the Elgato EyeHome Wireless Edition (£209.00 from AppleStore UK) or the Roku Soundbridge M2000 Network Music Player (£330 from Roku Direct) or the wonderful, but truely amazingly priced Sonos (£949 from Sonos Direct - it does make music available in 2 rooms for this price, but one room is where your PC is located) see links in July 15th post.

The D-Link was easy to install & setup, the signal range isn't brilliant, but you can buy a high gain aerial that helps, I hope that my new D-Link DSL-G604T with additional antenna helps as well - I will review the D-Link DSL-G604T next week.

The menu systems are easy to navigate, they are however not very quick.

My biggest problem is having to nominate every single folder on your PC that you want to make available to the Media Player. You should be able to identify just the folder - such as iTunes Music & every sub folder should (in my opinion) be read & made available automatically, but it doesn't. If you have as many folder as I do in my iTunes directory you will give up very quickly - I did.

My suggestion - if you're only after a means to play your iTunes collection in a number of rooms - buy a Bose Sounddock for every room & take your iPod with you from room to room. They are small, neat and have brilliant sound built in with no need for additional speakers. It might sound like an expensive solution, but compare prices with the Elgato, Roku or Sonos & it isn't.

If you have a specialist Hi-Fi setup & want to use that, then on their own review alone go buy the Roku. I might yet still go & get a Roku M2000 & hook it up to my Cinema Surround Sound on the TV & use my D-Link somewhere else, if the range is OK, maybe the Summer House TV could be hooked up.....

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

Some recipes for you.....


I have for a while now been researching (honest!) recipes for the best Margarita. Having recently taken to cooking Mexican food, this is the perfect liquid accompaniment....

Juice of 2 Limes
3 Measures Tequila (White, not that Gold shit that addles your brain faster than anything!)
1 Measure Cointreau or Triple Sec
2 Teaspoons castor sugar
Pint of ice cubes

Place everything into a blender & blitz for about a minute. Pour into suitable Margarita glasses (yes, plural as it does serve 2!!!) I don't bother with the salt round the rim of the glass crap.

Update : Whilst chatting the other day to my good friend & fellow alcohol connoisseur Aled Roberts, he commented that you can also add a shot of Midori Melon Liqueur to this recipe to make it a "Midori Margarita" - well done Aled, have a banana & make it a taste of a different fruit.

I have also taken the glut of cheap English strawberries & made several of these wonderful Strawberry Daiquiri's....

1 Punnet of Strawberries (I put mine through a juicer to get rid of the seeds, but if you don't have one pass them through a fine sieve)
Juice of 1/2 Lime
2 teaspoons Castor Sugar
3 Measures Bacardi White Rum
Dash of Strawberry Liqueur (if you have some, if not use Cointreau)
Pint of Ice Cubes

Yet again, place everything into a blender & blitz for about a minute. It serves 2 again.

Enjoy (in moderation is best, as one too many can hurt later!)

Sunday, July 24, 2005

A truely amazing human feat....


To win the Tour de France once requires supreme commitment, physical capacity, mental strength & a little bit of luck.

To be a multiple winner makes history, to win the event 7 times in a row is history that I think will never be repeated.

Lance Armstrong has overcome all the normal things that would get in the way of the dedication required to win this race, he has also overcome an illness that most people sadly succumb to.

I rarely (in fact never before) have used the term "inspirational" about anyone - but this man is a true inspiration. Whenever I have seen him being interviewed he is always respectful, thoughtful & comes across as genuine & humble guy.

Read more here http://www.lancearmstrong.com/ if you want to make a donation to his charity, have a look here http://www.livestrong.org

Thursday, July 21, 2005

Just when you recommend someone...


They let you down.

I may have to re-do my Hall of Fame\Hall of Shame, just when I had held the bright light of Fame to eXpansys, they fail to deliver.

I ordered a truck load of techno-goodies last week, nearly all the items were in stock, only 2 were out of stock with an estimated delivery to them of 2 days. I opted that they wait for all items to be in stock before shipping. So, I thought they would reserve my items & ship when all were ready & available, probably 2 or so days later.

No! They wait & wait, now only 2 items are in stock & the iPod I ordered is expected in 8 days time!!!!! A phone beating awaits them Monday AM.

Update : Monday AM phone beating resulted in them suddenly finding stock of 7 of my 9 ordered items, a part shipment for free (they waived the £2 surcharge).

Update Update : Part shipment arrived yesterday (Tuesday), now the TechFest of installing everything can commence! Should I read the manuals or not?????

Tuesday, July 19, 2005

Slight modification to template...

I have added a counter to the main page so that I can see how many people visit here. What I thought would be a painful process, is actually very easy. See http://www.bravenet.com/ for details.

Sunday, July 17, 2005

Do you get speed that you pay for?

I have had several issues with my ISP (ntl:) over the years, from billing to outage to dodgy modems.

When things got a bit too much (I was seriously pissed off that they had lost a payment & tried to charge me interest!) I threatened to cancel all of my services with ntl: & go buy Sky for my TV & get BT to provide me with broadband.

In the end I accepted their apologies & a free upgrade to the 2Mbps Broadband service for a year.

Since then I have been wondering whether they had ever remembered, they hadn't changed my billing, so had they reverted my service back down a notch?

I went in search of means to test the speed of my connection & came up with this. A simple, yet useful way of measuring your service level against what you pay for from ADSLGuide.org.uk, I know that there are other such tools out there that do the same thing & choddo.com has written his own app. But, I like the fact that this one will also feed your results & responses back to your ISP.

The results are in - Downstream 1816Kbps, well within the 10% expectation of 1920Kbps (2Mbps). Upstream a lousy 186Kbps, again, as expected.

ntl: now offer a 3Mbps service, but it's a bit more expensive. Another argument with them I think about competitive providers may be on the cards as a means to get another free upgrade?

Friday, July 15, 2005

Upgrade for ADSL Modem\Router

ntl: supply me with a broadband connection, at the outset they supplied a Terayon ADSL Modem to which I added a Belkin Wireless Router. Of late one or both have been playing up, meaning a quick unplug & re-connection to reset is required, not a great hardship, but still very annoying.

I have been thinking of upgrading to a one unit solution, the D-Link DSL-G604T Wireless ADSL Router. I think from reading the blurb that this will do the job of both my current pieces of kit (any comments\knowledge or instruction gratefully received).

I know that some of you out there have recently gone for the D-Link DGL-4300, but that doesn't do the modem stuff(?), I'm not a gamer & don't host anything here.

I've also just seen the D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player. It looks interesting, but doesn't claim native iTunes support as the Roku SoundBridge M2000 Network Music Player does. Anyone know about these things? Might this be a cheaper alternative to the Sonos mentioned in earlier posts.

Update : Looks like Apple are reselling the Elgato EyeHome Wireless Edition, which will work with the iMac I have, but if the iMac has shared access to my PC with all the iTunes on that it might be worth a look as well? I have contacted Elgato Technical Support to find out what it will & won't do. Mini Update : Elgato Technical Support say "yes". A sub-directory of iTunes shared from my PC to my iMac will be available to their device - cool! Have just ordered the D-Link DSM-320, might go for the Roku & the Elgato as well as they all look pretty nice & I will use them in different rooms in the house.

Update Update : with no comment from anyone here (thanks!). Today I have ordered the D-Link DSL-G604T Wireless ADSL Router from eXpansys along with a few other goodies, including a D-Link ANT24-0700 7dBi High Gain Omni-Directional external antenna that will hopefully boost signal to all areas of my abode, the Rice estate.

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Two responses to the terrorists....

Two other blogs have pointed me in the direction of these responses to the terrorists that attacked London last week.

Choddo found this on the Mayor of London website.

Tony Cocks found this on the The London News Review website.


I have to say I think the London News Review is better, but I'm sure that given free reign Ken Livingstone would have been equally direct.

Mr Livingstone has come a long way in my eyes. As I have said before, I am a Conservative middle Englishman - I vote Tory, always have, always will. [Bring back Mrs Thatcher or her incarnate is my view - everyone is entitled to a view!] Even with differing viewpoints, I agree with the Congestion charge Mr Livingstone introduced, he has clearly worked very hard to get the 2012 Olympics in London, his transport plan for London including extension of the Underground to support the East End & South East parts of London are designed to re-energise these areas.

He does have a chequered past from his spats with the Labour Party, but he is doing a good job now, his enthusiasm & passion in trying to make London the greatest capital city in the world deserves praise - even from a Tory!

Friday, July 08, 2005

Don't let the bastards get you down....

I have spoken on this blog on a few occasions about my trips to London. I have in the past thought for a long time about the jobs I have turned down in the USA & how it might have been me in the Twin Towers, or me in Central London on the tube or in a cab. I have seen first hand the havoc that terrorism can have as I have been in a couple of bomb alerts in Belfast, clearly my experience is tame compared to those who suffered yesterday.

The resiliance of the British is strong. For me, a conservative middle Englishman to have to the feelings I have now about the animals that have done what they have done in my capital city should speak volumes to anyone. I would tear the head from another so called human being for what they have done.

Extremism breeds extremism.

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

News from down under...


My brother left who lives in Manchester left on Saturday night on a trip to Australia to validate his residency visa, he will only be there for a week. He will then return home & sort out what he wants to do & maybe move to Sydney on a permanent basis. With this is mind I have been watching the press in Australia for a while now to get up to speed on Australia news, I found this that sort of links with a previous post....

"Rolex and crime seem to go together like Red Bull and vodka. This evening, via the Courier Mail, we learn of two Australian teenage boys who inadvertently aroused suspicion by casually counting out 6,000 $5 bills at a Denver jewelry store to pay for a $30,000 Rolex. Sensing that something might be amiss, the sales assistant asked the boys to leave, and told them she was calling the police. After later confessing to robbing a nearby bank with air pistols and photographing themselves in a McDonald's with the $170,000 they stole, the boys explained that they were attempting to convert the cash into jewelry in order to avoid suspicion."

Another Homer moment - Doh!

Monday, July 04, 2005

Sorry Mr Ports, a story of a smoker getting away with it.....


It seems hard to believe, but Italians are taking the new no-smoking law seriously, so seriously that a jeweller is down £23,000 on a Rolex watch.

A man strolled into a store in Milan's famous shopping street, Via Montenapoleone, and asked to see a few Rolexes. As he perused the glittering merchandise, he told the shop owner he only had foreign currency, but he was definitely interested.

Then, according to La Repubblica newspaper, he reached for his lighter. If it was a calculated hit, it was an exercise in minimalism.

The shop owner, conscious of the Jan. 10 smoking ban in public places, invited him to go out of the shop."Please, enjoy your cigarette outside," the newspaper reported the 53-year-old owner saying.

It was a bad call: the jeweller, at worst, could have been fined a maximum of 2,000 euro. That is, if the five police officers in Milan assigned to the anti-cigarette patrol had happened by the shop at lunchtime. The owner preferred not to take his chances with the fine and as he phoned the bank to ask about the foreign currency, the would-be customer went outside to have his smoke -- making a clean get away with the precious watch.

As Homer says "Doh!, Doh!, Doh!, Doh!, Doh!, Doh!, Doh!, Doh!"

Sunday, July 03, 2005

Live 8...


My idea for the Album title - "Probably the best concert... ever!"

I really can't wait for iTunes to have all the tracks available.

Opener from McCartney & Bono was excellent, Madonna was good, Annie Lennox alone on piano was moving, The Killers were exciting, Robbie Williams was about the best, The Who were great (I really like watching Pete Townshend, bit like seeing Oliver Reed with a guitar - you just don't know what the man will do!), and as Jonathan Ross said on air, it was a privilege to see Pink Floyd playing live after so long.

Just one thing missing - Queen. It brought back memories of Live Aid 20 years ago when Freddie Mercury just stole the show. No show stealers this time round, but if Freddie were still around - I'd put my money on him.

I just hope that it helps to achieve what Geldof is trying to make happen, making poverty history is one thing. Making Africa a self sustaining continent is another. Good luck to him - I hope it works.

Saturday, July 02, 2005

I've had an idea....



Some clever little bastard is probably being paid to dream this shit up, but I've had a couple of what I think are brilliant ideas.

What about a Bluetooth enabled iPod (built in rather than the bolt on from NaviPlay) & a Bluetooth enabled car head unit? (Stereo radio to the plebs of the world)

You could enable the head unit to act as your hands free unit for mobile phone & the iPod could hook up to the head unit as a player?

Sony, get your arse into gear & get talking to those nice people at Apple, you would take the world by storm!

You might have already noticed....

With the advent of the advanced Blogger with Blogger Images, its really easy to put pictures into your (sometimes) daily Blog. It wasn't actually that difficult in the past as I just hosted my images on pBase, but Blogger Images does make it very, very easy & they host for you.

Having done years of presenting to Corporate customers & Business Partners, I agree 100% that "a picture tells a thousand words" & as I'm not brilliant at typing, pictures it is.

I shall endeavour to put a picture into every post I make to enable clearer understanding of what the hell I am ranting about. Clearly my Blog is read all over the world (having been slagged off by a Persian in previous posts!), so as not all viewers are native English speakers, maybe pictures would help.

Now comes the sticky problem of what picture I could put into this comment.....


I shall make this my comment on F1 - it is clearly full of not very nice tits, mostly those who run the sport!

Friday, July 01, 2005

iMac Memory Upgrade....



It pays to read the small print doesn't it!

Having merrily followed the logic on the Apple Store pages, I purchased 2 x 512Mb SO-DIMM upgrades for my iMac G4. Why? Because the website says it has two memory expansion slots, & the total memory configurable in this model is 1Gb.

However, tucked away on the Apple Support website I found the following.....

"There are two RAM slots in the iMac (Flat Panel) computers. They are:

A user-accessible 144-pin SO-DIMM slot.
An internal (factory-installed) 168-pin DIMM slot

Warning: While you may add or change memory in the SO-DIMM slot, do not attempt to access the factory-only memory slot. Special seals and tooling are required to access and reseal the computer successfully. If the computer is incorrectly resealed, damage to the computer will result and this damage would not be covered under warranty. "


So they're not even the same bloody spec! And, you can't upgrade the 168-pin DIMM yourself!

Luckily Apple managed to cock up & only packed 1 of the modules, so have advised them to credit me for the one I dont need as it wasn't shipped.

The memory upgrade to 640Mb (128Mb + new 512Mb) allows for the OS X v10.4 Tiger update (when it arrives in post), that will allow for iTunes 4.9 update, which in turn will allow music sharing with PC's & other devices, then a D-Link DBT-120 USB Bluetooth Adapter to be added which in turn will allow for wireless keyboard & mouse (also requires OS X v10.3+. Keep up, it's quite easy really!)

Then I will go down the path of either Sonos (see previous posts) or Apple AirTunes to pipe music around house & maybe even garden - Bose do some neat outdoor weatherproof speakers!

Update : Apple have admitted to a picking\packing error & agreed that they didn't ship me both SO-DIMM's, so are refunding me for one of them. Unfortunately, my iMac (early model) only has a CD drive, not a DVD drive, so the OS X Tiger upgrade will have to wait until they send me the CD media! Then at last I can install the OS X software that will allow the wireless keyboard & mouse & iTunes sharing etc etc that started this whole episode.

Thursday, June 30, 2005

iPod frenzy...




I have for a while been thinking about getting some form of MP3 player, reading press reviews & other Blogs such as Darren Adams & Ben's Blog I have finally decided on.... an Apple iPod Mini - to start with! I can't decide 100% what is best, I really like the idea of the Sonos System & I might go down that path later, but in the short term the iPod Mini will suffice. I have also bought the Bose Soundock, I have a couple of Bose systems at home & the sound quality is amazing, hopefully this won't disappoint. This has also required an OS upgrade on the iMac (bought more for its asthetic appeal than computing capability - no comments please, it's only a computer device, not a religion!) to allow me to share the music on my PC, which has also required a memory upgrade for the iMac as well.

I have to confess that now I've ordered it, I might have made mistake & am looking at the 20Gb iPod - colour screen! Doh!

Maybe the Sonos would have been cheaper!?

Update : The Bose Sounddock is fantastic, the sound quality is as good as my Bose Wave Radio\CD. The iPod mini is full already, so the previous comment about going for the 20Gb colour iPod could be reality soon!