MOVING HOUSE

While I'm by no stretch of the imagination a 'professional blogger' (whatever that is), I think I've outgrown the use of Blogger (or maybe it's just that Blogger's recent problems have shown that it has undergrown me?)

So, I've moved my blog. Unfortunately, Blogger won't let me export this blog (I've followed the instructions given to me by the new blog host) but Blogger keeps crashing.

Please, if you've found this blog interesting, browse on over to www.TANKERx.com or TANKERX.MyBlogsite.com where posts are categorised (among other new features).

It's not the best blog host in the world, but it's free and relatively simple...

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Moving the Message Store on a Nokia 6260

I finally got around to moving the message store of my e-mail on my Nokia6260.

Most Nokia Series60 Smartphones allow you to move your messages from internal memory to the Memory Card. For some reason, however, Nokia decided to not include this feature on the 6260.

Anyway, I read this thread on AllAboutSymbian and gave it a try.

This is what I did to transfer all my messages to the Memory Card without losing any messages or settings...

• Using a file manager, I copied the entire folder c:\system\mail to e:\system\mail
  
  
• Installed MsvDriveE.sis to my Smartphone and ran it
  
  
• Rebooted the Smartphone and, using a file manager, deleted c:\system\mail (this is just to free up space from the internal memory and to prove that the process has worked - it should be safe because I have a copy on the Memory Card)
  
  
• I've kept the MsvDriveE application (in case I want to return to internal memory storage), but moved it to a different folder so that I can't accidentally run it.
  

I don't know why Nokia decided to not include moving the message store on the 6260 because it works fine on the 9210 and that has hot-swappable memory cards, as do a number of other Series60 Smartphones. But anyway, this is a solution and it works.

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Is Abortion a General Election Issue?

Cosmopolitan magazine asked the three main UK party leaders if they had any opinions on abortion. Michael Howard said that he wants to see change in the law in order to cut back on the number of abortions.

After this, Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor said that he backs Michael Howard's view and that New Labour shouldn't take for granted that it has the vote of working class Catholics.

Tony Blair has resaponded that he doesn't think it should be a general election issue.

Whether it should, or should not be a general election issue does not necessarily determine whether or not it is a general election issue. If it is something that the people are actually concerned about, then it will be an issue - whether the politicians like it or not...

I agree that such a sensitive subject should not be used as a political ball and even Tony Blair has said words to that effect. His intimations are that such a debate should be held rationally and thoroughly (not like any debates that discuss going to war or depriving the British people of freedom then).

But I think that the political liberals of this country run the risk of missing how seriously people take abortion.

If someone see abortion as wrong, then they can only see it as wrong because they see it as the murder of babies. Whether or not you think it's right, that is how people who see it as wrong must see it. And so, how do you expect a responsible citizen of any country to respond to what they see as the murder of babies?

How would you react to hospitals deliberately killing babies at birth? That's how these people see abortion and that's how they feel about it.

There could be a social uprising bubbling just under the surface; an uprising of conservatism the like of which has never been seen... or this could be a flash in the pan.

But Mr. Blair had better take note; he had better stop looking to his focus groups for an ear on what's happening and start listening to the people who have finally started to see him for the sham that he has become.

[READ MORE]

PC: Not-So-FinePix Fix With Picasa

My folks have got digital cameras - well, my mum uses a digital camera but my dad uses the digital camera features of his digital camcorder. Both, however, use FinePix and in both cases, FinePix is a piece of pants. It leaves my parents high-and-dry when it hangs on the trasnfer of a video, refuses to remove images from the memory card and refuses to print pictures because they're "too small" while in atuality, FinePix doesn;t know what to with them because they're too big...

So came Picasa to the rescue and I must say that I am well impressed. Of course, I was impressed with the features it offered me, but I'm also impressed at how intuitive it is because, after only a few minutes of showing my parents the controls, they were both able to print, modify, crop, remove redeye, brighten and even create screensavers and slieshows!

This is what good software is all about; feature-packed but easy to use. Trust me, if my parents can get out of Picasa the stuff they've been getting out of Picasa, it's definately a well constructed piece of software.

It's the kind of software I'd pay for..... but this is free!

[READ MORE]

TECHNOLOGY: Stand On Your Head and Pee In Your Eyes

An interesting article on the BBC Online news page highlights the abuse of End User License Agreements which are used by software manufacturers to hide and abuse their users' rights. Says the article,

"For instance, if your car was sold to you under similar terms you would not be able to talk about its poor mileage down the pub with your mates, and would have to get the permission of the car maker every time you changed radio station or another member of your family drove it.

And don't even think about putting car seats in the back for your kids or adding a roof rack - if you don't want to void the warranty that is."

Well, what can you expect from corrupt suit-fillers who worship money above everything else?

[READ MORE]

TECHNOLOGY/POLITICS: Don't Get Smart, Just Shove it In

Once upon a time, I had a Commodore64. On that computer, I had a GUI called GEOS which was in every sense of the word, Windows for a Commodore64. It had co-operative Multitasking and application support.

Within that Operating Environment was a word processor which had support for fonts, inline images, spell checking, alignment and other functions which you would expect in a wordprocessor, even down to WYSIWYG - something very rare for home computers in those days.

While it should be accepted that a floppy disk drive was essential for this (and that disk, single-sided, stored just around 300k - I think), all that fitted into a computer that had 64Kb of RAM. That's not 64Mb (which isn't enough to run Word on a modern PC), but 64Kb.

In those days, developers (programmers) had to be clever. Forget all that fancy RAD nonsense, these guys had to write applications with system overheads in mind. These guys had to write applications smartly.

Microsoft came along with the PC and instead of improving its products (products which it never actually designed from the ground up but bought off other people - even MS-DOS) started the now inevitable upgrade path which all PC users are on, whether they like it or not. This has resulted in such paradoxes as this photo; The Microsoft Word document (illustrated here) is a newly created document and is 19Kb in size. Compare that to the size of the photo itself which is only 6.31Kb. Another three of those documents in a Commodore64's memory and there'd be no room for application code!

No need to write smart applications any more, just make sure you have enough RAM, a huge Hard Drive and plenty or Processor power.

Have you noticed that today's Microsoft mobile devices brag not about the features of the software as much as they do about the RAM and processor speed? That's because Microsoft's idea of 'smart' (and that of the general technical world) has been to shove in more RAM, more processor power and more storage space and everybody will be happy.

But what we actually have are computers that take less time to crash and more time to draw 3D boxes which nobody needs, especially if they're going to take too long to draw!

We're taking away the responsibility of humanity to think about better ways of doing things and just increasing the burden on machines to keep up with what we think are cool fashion icons (every pun intended ;-).

You may think that I'm being a luddite because as long as hardware technology keeps moving on, software doesn't need to be streamlined and improved. But what's happening to us as a result? We're not meeting basic requirements, we're failing to addressing fundamental flaws and we find ourselves convinced that we are smarter than those who came before us when the reality is far from the truth.

What on earth does this have to do with politics and the link above?

I'll tell you...

The chief constable of Nottinghamshire police has complained that he doesn't have enough resources to address all the murder enquiries with which his force must deal. The response of the government has been a swift quote of the amount of extra money that has been pumped into the force.

Nice.

Money.

Lots of money.

More money equals more police on the streets.

Hoorah.

But just throwing money at a situation is not addressing the real need and it shows a failure to understand the situation. It's like the difference between American military forces who like to throw huge numbers of people at an operation until it works, and British forces who use stealth, intelligence and just a handful of highly skilled people to complete an operation before the enemy knows anything has happened.

Maybe the chief constable isn't spending the extra money wisely, or maybe he's being constrained by Labour's target driven mindest which forgets about reason and just focuses on getting statistics to look good. Either way, it seems that the Tories may have hit on the right idea with smarter spending.

I remember my manager telling our departmen that we were all working very hard and he appreciated it, but we had to work smarter. And this is precisely what the government has to do with law enforcement, the NHS and education. Throwing money at these problems will not make them better. Someone has to use a brain and use it soon before they all go down the pan.

And to those who say that the government doesn't put its faith in being able to spend money, I'd like to ask that whenever someone asks what is it that the government actually is doing in the NHS or Education, why is the first thing the minister comes out with almost ALWAYS a quote on how much spending has increased for the given organisation?

They go on about year-on-year increases in fiscal and real terms which means that the spending budget is more generous now than it has been in the last twenty five years and are you still reading this paragraph because if you are then you're paying as much attention to this post as I do when a politician starts quoting figures like this.....

Do you see what I mean?

Give a man a fish and he'll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he'll eat for a lifetime (or words to that effect).

[READ MORE]

PERSONAL: Yesterday Was Steven's Dedication

Steven, my nephew, was dedicated yesterday on Sunday 13th March, 2005 at the Newport Gateway Church, the Apostolic Church in Newport South Wales.

It was a great service with some top nosh after. My sister and her husband did a grand job of organising everything.

But what, I hear you ask, is a dedication?

The best way to describe a dedication service is to put it in the context of a Christening and explaining its differences.

My church doesn't believe that you can make a child to become a Christian which is, essentially, what Christening is. The decision to become a Christian can only be made by an individual over his or her own life and nobody else.

So, the purpose of a dedication service is actually for the public assertion by the parents that they will bring the child up in a Christian home with Christian values and then, when the child is old enough to understand, will make his or her own decision as to whether or not they believe in Jesus as the person who died for their sins and was resurrected from the dead.

While talking to some people about this, they've expressed concern that a baby not Christened is somehow 'unsafe' and should the worst happen, would not get to Heaven. My issue with these people is that they don't seem to have an authority from which to draw such conclusions. Jesus told His disciples that they must become as a little child if they're to stand a chance of getting to Heaven, and clearly showed that a child is someone who is innocent in attitude (He even went so far as to say that if anybody offends or 'causes to sin' a little child, it would be better for them if a millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea - an interesting solution to the query of what to do with paedophiles).

But doesn't the Bible say that we are born in sin and shapen in iniquity? Yes, it does. But guilt comes with understanding, and a baby has no understanding - a baby is completely dependent on his or her mother to provide everything and it isn't until a child is old enough to understand the difference between right and wrong and the concept of sin that a child can be said to be old enough to take responsibility for their eternal state.

It is for this reason that I have confidence that if the most dreaded thing that could happen to a child does happen to a child, they are safe in eternity. I would also extend the principle of my belief here to those who suffer brain damage and mental illness. Guilt comes with understanding and since these people may not be in a position to understand, I don't see how they can be held guilty.

Anyway, this is just my opinion and I know I'm rapidly approaching the line of taking this wonderful event of my nephew's dedication and turning it into a dark theological debate.

So I'd like to end this post with a "Yo! Steven Dude!"

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: No Longer a Free Country

The climate in the United Kingdom is set for permanent change because from now on, nobody is safe from the powers which the government has gained.

Anybody in the UK who is suspected of terrorism can be locked up. There is no need for any evidence, just a hunch. A hunch based on racism, religous bigotry, sexual bigotry or even a grudge would be as effective as a photo of a person caught in the act. Nobody is safe...

Tony Blair has shown that he cannot be trusted with such powers since he has only a passing aquaintance with the truth. Political convenience is all he cares about as even during the debate over this bill, he made announcements to the press from Downing Street before telling Parliament his intentions.

This man is concerned with his image and only his image. He doesn't even care about his party any more!

He has lied during this bill which he rushed through, and had his Health secretary to play the attack-dog in fighting off accusations with yet more lies.

As long as Tony Blair (and his mentality) is in Number 10, I cannot even contemplate ever voting Labour. This law has made it impossible for me to put a cross near any candidate for a prty that is taking measures only seen during wartime or in communistic and totalitarian regimes across the world.

This law is flawed because it will serve to recruit terrorists as innocent people are locked up, and it is based on the flawed foundation of lies, misinformation, distraction, haste and self promotion.

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: MP3 Player (REVIEW)

If you've been following recent posts, you'll know that I've been looking for a simple but nice MP3 player for my Smartphone. I tried MP3 Gravity, UltraMP3 and MP3 Player.

MP3 Gravity just wouldn't play anything and the support e-mail address returned unknown and UltraMP3, while extremely configurable and full of options was just too complicated for what I wanted (I'm a simple soul), so I was left with MP3 Player.

The problem was that this was unstable and wouldn't work properly. Fortunately, the support e-mail address was real and I sent them an e-mail asking for help. I got a reply literally within the time it takes to post a short blog entry and after a bit of e-mail ping-pong, I found myself with a version that was stable enough to register, and that's precisely what I did. And here's why...

I'm using version 3.20b of the software - it's the only version I found that works on the Nokia6260. If you download a version from any online stores, you may find that it's a lower versiona and may have to contact the support team at Viking Games (a support which I have to say is the best I have ever experienced).

What I was looking for, as I have said, was a simple MP3 player. My main use for this would be to listen to Audio Books and downloaded sermons. Because of this, a bookmark facility (like that found on the Microsoft Smartphone's Pocket Music) would have been nice but, failing that, a really good Fast Forward (or as my sister called it, when she was a small, a forward rewind). I also wanted something simple, clean and easy to look at. I didn't want a lot of text everywhere giving me information about all sorts of stuff that I don't care about (for exmaple, MP3 Player doesn't have a visualisation, but I don't care because I want to listen, not watch).

MP3 Player does all of the above with class and simplicity.

When it starts up, you see a blank player. Hit joystick-right and it gets busy loading a list of the songs on your Smartphone. You'd expect this to take ages, wouldn't you? Well, it doesn't. After a while, you have your list and that list is intuitively organised into the folders which you have used to store your songs. This is brilliant and something I've not seen on any other of the Symbian MP3 Players I tried.



What this means is that instead of getting a long flat list of the songs on your phone, the songs appear under the heading of the folder in which they are stored, so all the songs stored in the folder titled 'How To Dismantle And Atomic Bomb' appear there in the list!

You plays your music and makes your choice, but in-song track-navigation isn't fantastic; if you want to go to the next song, you have to open the menu and click next. If you want to go back, you have to open the playlist. But on the bright side I just think of the number of times I've skipped to another track from the middle of a long one and had to try and find my place again. So it's not all bad.

To navigate within a track, you hold down the 'Pencil' key (big red arrows appear)and press joystick-left or joystick-right. The speed with which you can move through a track is great and there's no lag; playing recommences immediately (because these screenshots are achieved using the 'Pencil' key, the arrows appear on many of them).

The settings are pretty basic, but they're enough to customise your player to behave as you want. I have found that the Preamplification settings can cause problems, but that's about all.

You will read also that this software is skinnable. What I love about the skinning on this software is that it sorts out the object placement on the screen. Other players may allow you to configure everything from colour to position on the screen of on-screen controls, but I prefer what this software does. You give it a picture to use as a backdrop and it superimposes the standard controls over the top. As you can see from the screenshots, the results can be quite effective! The method it uses to load skins is exactly the same as when it loads tracks - you're given a list of folders which contain .JPG files and you pick which one you want to use. It takes a few seconds to process the image into a skin, but once it's done, that's it, and I love it!



On the whole, I am very impressed with the software and with the service I received from Viking Games. This software isn't perfect, but it's a million mileas ahead of the others in terms of what I want. If you want something with more options, then maybe you'll want to go elsewhere, but the playlist implementation on this alone makes it a winner as far as I'm concerned.

I recommend this for it's clarity, simplicity and intuitive user interface.

[READ MORE]

TV: Familiar Locations

I've been looking at a Photo Gallery on Outpost Gallifrey (the most popular Doctor Who website in the world, apparently). While I've long known that BBC Wales has been given the task of producing the new series, I didn't think about how many of the locations would look so familiar!

So, this will be interesting. Will it spoil it for me because I recognise the locations or will it make it even better? I guess I'll soon find out.

But then again, how cool is that!?

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Interesting Points on Tony Blair's Anti-Terrorism Bill

There are a few interesting things to note regarding Tony Blair's rushing through of his bill to curb terrorism...

• The bill was passed by the commons, so Michael Howard's opposition makes no difference to the bill.
  
  
• If no Tories or Liberals had voted in the Lords, the bill would still fail, so Tony Blair can't blame the Conservatives.
  
  
• Somethinbg like this has been done by the British government before, in Northern Ireland... and it proved to be the best recruiting tool the IRA ever had.
  
  
• If a terrorist is professional enough to have a realistic hope of blowing up Parliament, he will also be professional enough to not base his operation on mainland Britain.
  
  
• Why is Tony Blair willing to let the bill get lost forever just because opposition parties want to ensure a review of the bill in eight months? Either he's threowing the baby out with the bathwater, or this bill is not about securing British families... and if that's the case, what is it about?
  
  
• Spain is today remembering those lost in the Madrid bombings last year, yet even having gone through this, the Spanish government consider what this government is doing as going too far.
  
  
• Blair is blaming the Lords for making the existing laws expire at the end of the week. It's because of that says Blair, that this law must be rushed through. However, the very reason the original laws were flawed was because they were rushed through. Why is Mr. Blair desperate to make the same mistake twice?
  
  
• Fair play to Mr. Blair, if this law is passed, Britain won't be the only country in the world to have such a law. In fact, if this law is passed, Britain will be in the company of Zimbabwe, China and other restrictive regimes.
  
  
• No other western power has such laws as those being proposed by Tony Blair.
  
  
• Despite the fact that Tony Blair has said that the Security Services want ministers to have the power to lock people up for looking shifty, there is evidence that no such desire has actually been impressed. This means that Tony Blair has misled The House. As one Liberal Domcrat MP (David Heath) put it; The clear moral from this is never believe a thing that the prime minister says he is told by the security services.
  

The bottom line is this; if anybody suspects that you are in any way associated with terror (be that because you go to a Mosque, attend church or carry a Koran), you can be locked up without any right to appeal until after you've been locked up. You don't have to be told why you're being locked up and you don't have to be told when (if ever) you'll be released.

Nobody is safe under this law, if passed.

[READ MORE]

SOFTWARE: Software Reviews

I thought it would be a good idea to provide a single page with links to all my reviews. I'll then put a link to this page on the sidebar. Until I can move to a blog that allows categories, this is the next best option (I think). So, here's the list...

Reviews
12/04/2005 MP3 Player (Series60)
10/04/2005 Power Dictaphone (Series60)
02/04/2005 SplashPhoto (Series60)
17/02/2005 Camcorder Pro (Series60)
12/02/2005 Aqua Calendar (Series60)
21/01/2005 Symbian UI vs Microsoft (Multiplatform)
09/02/2005 Earth Explporer (Series60)
24/12/2004 Handango (Website)
16/12/2004 Control Freak (Series60)
24/06/2004 Bun-J Zipp Mobile Phone Holder
22/06/2004 Star Strider (Windows)
12/06/2004 Music Box (Microsoft Smartphone)
24/01/2004 Stunt Car Extreme (Series60)
31/12/2004 Two Months of a Nokia6260
05/01/2005 The Bible E-Books? (Series60)
28/12/2004 IMP-BT300 Bluetooth MP3 Player (Hardware)
23/12/2004 Nokia Lifeblog 1.5 Impressions (Series60/PC)
17/12/2004 Rats & Spears (Series60)

Guides
03/03/2005 Make Beautiful Mini-Movies (PC/Series60)
21/01/2005 How to Use a Strong's Bible (Series60)
20/02/2005 South Wales Traffic Information (Web)
17/02/2005 My Network Info (Web)
12/01/2005 Gmail on a Nokia 6260 (Series60)
11/01/2005 Jobseeking Tools (Series60)
05/01/2005 Watching Full Movies on Your Smartphone (Series60)
06/01/2005 Sending Longer Texts for Less Money (Mobile)
03/01/2005 So you got a Smartphone for Christmas? (Series60)
02/01/2005 Repligo Cross-Platform Policy (Series60)
29/12/2004 HOW NOT TO CATCH A MOBILE VIRUS (Series60)
25/12/2004 So You Have a New Smartphone? (Series60)
15/12/2004 Astronomy on Your Smartphone (Series60)

Downloads
TARDIS Console Simulator (Windows Application)
Strange Ringtones (AMR Audio)
Attack Of The Red Panda Hunter (3gp video)
Space Musical Slideshow (3gp video)

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Looking for an MP3 Player Part II (UPDATED)

And so MP3 Gravity misses the mark. It refuses to play any MP3 files and when I contacted their support via e-mail, I got a message back saying that the address didn't exist.

I think it's important to let developers know that if they can't be trusted to organise their own e-mail address, then they can't be trusted with my phone.

Simple really.

Anyway, I've tried to contact Viking Games because that software really is smooth and I don't want to have to go for UltraMP3!

Mind you, Real Player isn't that bad, and that's freely included with my phone.

UPDATE
In the time it took me to write the above, Viking Games replied to my e-mail! Not with an automated response (as you'd expect), but with a new version to try and an explanatory note! How cool is that!? The problem is that this new version has a different problem, but if that's the kind of service that Viking Games offer even unregistered users, I think I'll hang around a while to see what happens.

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Looking for an MP3 Player (UPDATED)

Here's One that almost* Didn't Make It
I like the look of this player - it's clean, simple and straightforward so I wanted this to work. Unfortunately, it went ballistic when I tried to use the Seek function beyond what the demo version allowed and I had to restart the phone.

After that, it restarted my phone when I quit and then, while trying to give it the benefit of the doubt by giving it another shot, it gave an error message when I quit.

This application is now in a state of uninstalledness, next on the list are UltraMP3! (the look of which I don't like) and MP3 Gravity. We'll see how it goes, I guess.

* After looking at the competition, I decided to chase up the developers of the above MP3 player and see what they had to say. As it turns out, Viking Games have the best support I've ever experienced on a mobile platform and after sending me fresh builds, I got me a working demo version and I'll be getting my registration payment sent off soon. Likewise, expect a review soon also!

[READ MORE]

INTERNET: Thinking Of Leaving Blogger

I've started to sniff around to see about leaving Blogger. The downtime and hassles of not being able to post because of web pages not being able to load (or taking as much as ten minutes) are beginning to get the better of me.

I don't know how I can transfer my Blogger posts to a new blog though, so this may take a while...

Ho hum!

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Power Dictaphone (REVIEW)

I've been looking for a dictaphone application which I can use on my Smartphone. My main reason is nothing so vain as to think that I have ideas of my own to capture, but it would be ideal for interesting sermons or speaches or presentations which I could review at a later date.

I tried a solution from PsiLoc+ (which would have cost me $12.50), but it didn't seem to be fully compatible with my phone (not for .AMR recording anyway). So I tried Power Dictaphone from Symbianware and that's the one I bought (for $5).

While it's got some neat features (some of which I'd love to see in other applications), one thing that is missing is a player mode. It'll record for you until the cows come home (or until your memory is full), but it won't play your recordings. This may be a show stopper for some, but one of the neat features of this software could make up for that (even if the price doesn't)...

From the initial screen, you set up the software to behave as you want, the most obvious of which is the Hot key allocation. The hotkey is the key you want to use to start and stop recording, and it apples to whatever you're doing on your Smartphone, so, whether you're on the Standby screen or in a menu, you can press and hold your chosen Hot key and the software will kick in to start or stop the recording.

I've specifically chosen a non-number as my Hot key because I use the others for speed-dialling, so the '#' key it is for me. it doesn't stop there, however. You can set multiple shortcuts, including a truple-press of the 'Abc..' (or pencil) key!

Another pretty cool aspect of this recorder is that there's always visibility of the recording, so again, wherever you are, not only can you sart/stop your recording, but you can also see how that you are recording in the first place!



There is a comprehensive set of options with which to configure the software; Autostart will start the software upon reboot (I think), Beep on start and Beep on stop will offer audible feedback of your recording start and stop, Default file name gives you a prefix for your recrdings, Memory in use lets you choose which memory to use (you don't say! - ED), Record format lets you use WAV for shorter high quality recordings and AMR for longer but also lower quality recordings and Sound file folder which makes up for the lack of player (if you think about it) and is actually a feature I'd love to see in more applications of which capture media!

Little touches like a proper Add to 'Go To' make this a well rounded application with a price that'll make giving in to the temptation to register this safe enough.

As it is, I have paid my $5, but I'm still waiting for my registration code to arrive (I only paid this morning so there's no panic yet). And yes, I think it's pretty good stuff.

So, what about quality? Linked here and here are recordings made of poetry readings from off the car radio (Radio4). With the background noise of the engine and the road and passing traffic, and considering that the samples are 3:54 and 4:02 in length respectively, but with file sizes of only 158Kb and 164Kb respectively, you'd expect some pretty lousy sound files, but give them a try (if you have an AMR player on your PC, it would help) and I think you'll be impressed.

So, yet again, another good buy!

[READ MORE]

COMPUTING: Opportunistic or What!?

It's happened again, I'm using an application which Microsoft doesn't like because Microsoft has an equivalent which it would prefer I use. So, whenever something goes wrong, Microsoft jumps in to help by offering to remove the offending application...

The last time this happened, it was Opera, this time it's Nullsoft WinAmp.

In the first instance, Microsoft would prefer I use its proprietary Internet Explorer, but I don't want to catch every virus, trojan and adbot that's passing my telephone line. This time, Microsoft would prefer I used Windows Media Player, but the insanely funny thing there is that Windows Media Player crashed while trying to play the same file!

That's right, Windows Media Player crashed while trying to play the same file! Do I get an offer to uninstall Windows Media Player? Does Microsoft display a message saying Error Caused By Microsoft Corp. : No Specific Solution Found?

I should tango!

let's look again at what the page really says. First of all, it suggests that I;

Contact Nullsoft Inc. for support or product updates.
This is reasonable enough, and it even provides a Hyperlink to the Winamp support page.

Remove the application or driver that caused the error. Click here for instructions
Ah, this is Microsoft at its best! Offer to remove the competition from the face of your hard drive and you're left with Windows Media Player.

What other information does Microsoft offer?

If this problem continues to occur with the latest product updates for Winamp, we highly recommend you obtain assistance and troubleshooting information directly from Nullsoft Inc..
Again, all very reasonable, but this is Microsoft so there must be more to it than this;

If you are not familiar with Winamp and you are questioning how the program was installed on your computer, it is possible that the program was installed with another program. If you do not know why Winamp is running, many programs configure themselves to start automatically every time you turn on your computer.
That's right! FUD right in your face! Winamp could just possibly be spyware. Of course, that's not what Microsoft said, but is that what Microsoft is saying, after all, how do you know that the copy you have is from a safe source? Do you actually remember installing it? No? Didn't think so!

I know! I know! I'm paranoid and looking for a conspiracy at every corner, but I think that Microsoft should really try harder at their PR stuff because this bottom line does remain;

• Microsoft offers to remove competition's software
  
• I suggest competition could be malware
  
• I doesn't offer to remove Microsoft software, despite the fault being the same (in this case, a corrupt .avi file)
  
• I never asked for Windows Media Player to be put on my computer
  

This isn't what I call a level playing field and I'd like to hear the excuses from someone who thinks it is.

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Prime Minister Picks And Chooses...

I'm hearing the Prime Minister defend his policy of not including a sunset clause in his anti-freedom (surely, you mean anti-terrorism? - ED) bill by saying that he is simply following the advice of the police who have told him that what he's doing is right.

So he trusts their advice does he? So why doesn't he trust their advice on other issues, such as the all-night-opening for nightclubs and pubs?

You can't have it all Mr. Blair! You petulant little man!

[READ MORE]

TV: Is that a TARDIS Console Simulator!? (UPDATED)

UPDATE 11 March, 2005: Link Fixed (Diolch Hugo :-)

Way, way back in 1997 I had only just been introduced to the world of the PC, Windows and Visual Basic. So, as one does, I practiced my programming with simple (if somewhat naff) applications. One of them was this TARDIS Console Simulator!

The built-in resource monitor is absolutely useless since Win32 (you can switch it off though), but it does have sound effects, a smooth bouncing central column and serves as an interesting enough system-uptime monitor and alarm clock!

If you want to download it, click on the image above or here. You may also need VBRUN300.DLL which you can download from here.

If you like it, drop me a line to say hi. If you don't like it, drop me a line to say hi anyway! I should hope I've moved on a bit since writing this, but it's good to look back, don't you think?

[READ MORE]

BRAIN DUMP: Kites Don't Fly On Still Days In Star Trek Land

Standing at the innermost end of the harbour he looked, probing, through the New Year fog that had descended. He had to pinch himself to remind him that it was March, but the fog was thick and full of the presence of darkness, just like it was the times before, a time and a person to be forgot...

He even remembered what he was wearing in those days; His penchant for long black coats and big boots left impressions in the puddles but not in the hearts. These days he made an effort to be more 'smart casual', or was it 'casual smart'? That question emphasised to him that this was not who he was and this place was not the place to find that out.

He walked up to the left of the harbour; the water on his right and shops selling Portmeirion china on his left. Even reminders of home were off by a hundred and fifty miles. Here, he was totally alone - more alone than he would have been if he were in a place where he knew nobody; this is a kind of loneliness that you can only experience in the presence of someone you love but who doesn't know you're there.

For some reason, he thought about why he wanted to buy a white suit with a white shirt, white shoes, white socks and a white tie. Maybe, if he felt like enough of an individual, he'd even don a wide-brimmed white hat! But looking down at the puddles through which he kicked, he thanked the fates that he was wearing dark jeans.

His brain was so predictable and he always knew what he was going to think next; jeans! Ha! What if his genes were different? What would have happened if his father had 'known his mother' the day after? A different sperm would have fertilised the egg, if indeed the egg was still able to be fertilised. What would he have been like? Taller? Smarter? Better looking? Luckier with so-called friendships? Well, there's nothing short of time-travel that can change any of that... and who was he to argue with Einstein?

He started to speak to himself in his home's tongue; "beth sydd wedi digwydd i fi!?" he asked himself, "rwy wedi dechrau mynd! Rwy wedi dechrau colli fy meddwl o'r diwedd!". Had he really? He sometimes felt that his fear of the definite would result in his early senility.

Even his own sister had rejected his gifts, his parents felt sorry for him and he had no friends upon whom to call. What kind of life was this? He should never have come here! It somehow managed to resurrect his darkest deaths, his most extinct of demons and his most awake of hidden nightmares.

Sat on a bench, looking over toward the rich man's bungalow, he remembered the day he sat in this very spot, reading The Book, finding little comfort for his heart's scabs. That was almost three years ago now. How come all his pleasant memories of this place are over fifteen years old and his new ones make him want to run away in a defensive offence?

Someone behind him said "Hello you!". He turned around and his life drained from his body as he shut down all power to life support systems and diverted everything to impulse power and shields. He didn't expect to meet anybody he knew while down here, least of all this person who went on; "Hello stranger!".

Stranger he thought. That implied that he'd somehow made himself scarce at some point only to be discoverable now. That could not have been further from the truth! Clenching his fist, he remembered who it was before him and so he disarmed and brought weapons off-line. His shields were still up though.... and where the hell was that impulse engine!?

"Aren't you going to say anything then?" came the third statement from the only person he'd ever allowed close to before hailing frequencies were all that could be heard. He looked at the person, looking to see if that face betrayed any sign of what had happened. Was he imagining it, or was there a look of 'what have you done with your life? I've done rather well' which made him want to dive into the water and swim to Ireland?

He opened his communications channel and managed to say "Hello". It was one of those impossible situations which could only end in awkward silence. He was alone and it was obvious to the other person. The smile on that face made it clear that his loneliness was funny, somehow satisfying. How odd. How terrible. How ugly. How sad.

[READ MORE]

TECHNOLOGY: Well, I'm Not That Bad Then!

Some people might class this mark as a failure, but being only slightly nerdy is a compliment! It means that there's hope for me yet!

;-)

[READ MORE]

THINKING ALOUD/SMARTPHONE: The Role of Technology

Anybody who's witnessed a flame-war between fans of two different technology bases will understand how seriously it can be taken. Technology is so close to the heart of some that bloggers have commented on how technology is their life and others have posted on why mobile phones aren't "just mobile phones".

So, as more and more people become embroiled in the tech-savvy world of one-upmanship, trying to get the latest Wi-Fi Bluetooth 3D Data Transmitter chip on Ultra-Mini-SD to teleport over a Personal Area Network (I made that up by the way), the question (in regard to a specific technology but which also applies to any other) is; Is it just a mobile phone..?

The implication of the question is that for some people, technology is quite literally everything. They live and breathe technology, speak about it, fight for it and against the 'enemies' of it. For these people, their life revolves around technology. To me, this is sad but to them, this is natural and the way everything will be for everybody in the future.

I asked one such 'technophile' what he would do were he to find himself in a situation where he was robbed of all technology, be it through war, natural disaster or something else (is there anything else? - ED) and he told me that his first priority would be to rebuild technology.

Surely, there shouldn't be anything in our lives that can end our lives apart from the actual end of our lives? What I mean is that if someone loses their mobile phone, they can still get on with life. After all, if people can get on with life after the death of a loved one (even if that loved one was a child), then surely an individual can get along without a computer?

What about humanity? Would humanity suddenly dissappear should something happen to kill electricity? Sure, there would be anarchy and destruction on a wide scale as the freaks of our planet take advantage of the situation and start to pull things apart, but the loss of technology in and of itself would not be enough to kill humanity - any resulting destruction would still be in the hands of (stupid) people.

Humans need only four things; Air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat and a means of reproduction (and without the first three, the fourth cannot possibly happen). Nowhere in that process does technology play a part (If anything, 'progress' has ensured that air is polluted, water is undrinkable, food is genetically flawed and sex can give you a nasty disease!). So, when someone says to you "it's just a phone", they're right! because if you believe that your mobile phone is somehow more than "just a phone", then you're dehumanising those who do not have your technological resources or knowledge, you're saying that the life of a westerner who has a PC, Laptop, PDA and Smartphone is somehow 'better' or 'fuller' than that of an African who hunts for his food, has to go and fetch water and is in touch with the world around him.

Now let's take this a step further; far from the 'primitive' tribesman's life being emptier for lack of technology, I could argue that it is actually fuller. While we build up around us interfaces that go between us and the world around us, the 'primitives' (as they might be called because they don't have WindowsXP) are experiencing things first hand. The TV shows a representation of something a camera has captured, a hunter in the bush actually sees it.

There have been times where I've wanted to ditch my PC, my Smartphone and everything else that needs to be plugged into something to make it work, and just live naturally - but inasmuch as Microsoft has hooks into technology which restricts its freedom, I find that I have allowed technology to place hooks into my life and restrict my freedom. I work in IT, I have a domain on the internet which is used to host other websites (for people I have met) and many of my friends primarily use Text Messaging or e-mail to contact me. So, on a number of levels, I can't afford to completely get rid of the influences of technology on my life (not easily anyway - and you may say that if I really wanted to, I could, and you may be right).

Now then, a contrary argument to this is that it's all part and parcel of being a human that we develop technology. Without technology (even the most basic thing such as the pen, or the quil, is technology) we couldn't maintain records, memories or writings. Without the technology of writing, the Bible couldn't have been kept unchanged throughout the ages, Newton's ideas on gravity may have been lost and Einstein's theory of relativity could have been a flash in the pan. But notice that these uses of technology are used to enhance what good is within us, it is a means of expressing our humanity. We have, at least at the start, used technology to further our own development - but I fear that it is now becoming the other way around as it seems that we must change in order for technology to continue on its path. But, yt would seem that as technology has improved, it has made the ability to communicate that which is within us that much easier and quicker...

How important is the newest Text message on your phone? What is it communicating? How would you have managed to live without it?

What the newest e-mail in your inbox? Was it something that would save your life? Would you not be here today had you not received it?

Where will those e-mails and text messages be in a week from now? Will they matter to anybody else? Would they matter in a power cut?

How important is it that you know how to add a plugin into your Homescreen? Change the font on your menu or access the Network Monitor?

If someone ever tells you "it's only a mobile phone", they may possibly be wrong, but the chances are that they are right; I believe that it depends on your attitude, goals and perceived purpose(s). Listen though, if someone has ever felt the need to tell you that, then maybe you need to look at the priorities in your life and maybe get back in touch with who and where you are as opposed to what you do.

[READ MORE]

TV: He's Back - Everyone! To the TARDIS!

Am I the only one getting more and more excited that the greatest and most awesome Sci-Fi character of all time is coming back to our TV screens?

Am I the only one singing "Druuum! De-dum! Druuum! De-dum! Druuum! De-dum!" and thinking of multidimensional blue boxes from Galifrey!?

There's been no secret about the new series of Doctor Who coming back this year but the time is closing and the first episode in about fifteen years (excluding the TV movie) is about to be broadcast!

Will the theme tune be the same? Will the TARDIS interior have lit roundels? Will The Doctor still be a quirky old Timelord?

What isn't news is that The Daleks can climb stairs! Oh perlease! They did that in Remembrance Of The Daleks so nothing new there... but I can't wait!

I'm curious to see how the new Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) takes the character. I hope he'll have the chance to develop it since I remember the trouble Sylvester McCoy had - though I think he did a good job in moving the Doctor from being a clownish idiot to a dark instigator of mysterious happenings.

I would have also liked to see Paul McGann take the role further.

What strikes me first about Christopher Eccleston's Doctor in the screenshots is how normal he looks! Apart from his big ears, he looks normal. As for Billie Piper! Who gave her the role!? But then again, Bonnie Langford wasn't that bad, so I'll have to wait and see about how Billie does.

Finally, is it me or does the TARDIS seem to be getting bigger?

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Thank The Lords for That (But Blackmail is Coming)

It would seem that the 'undemocratic' body of government that sits above Parliament, The Lords, has saved the country from one of the most undemocratic and most restrictive laws in the recent history of Western Civilisation.

While touted as protection from the fear of terrorism, Tony Blair's government is hell bent on instilling a fear of the government as it seeks the power to imprison and impound people without the need for evidence. In other words, Tony Blair wants to be able to lock you up because you have shifty eyes...

But the House of Lords has sent this law packing in its first appearance before them. I can see why Tony Blair wants to get rid of these nobles, especially since his motives are so ignoble, but what we see is pretty clear.

Tony Blair's only hope is coming from the Tories and Liberal Democrats (yes, they exist) who are suggesting a 'Sunset Clause' which would ensure that after a set amount of time, the law would have to be renewed. Tony Blair, in his arrogance, has tried to get by without the help of his political enemies, but he is going to have to be humble....

Os is he?

In a move of sheer absurdity, it's looks like Tony Blair is hoping to play a little brinksmanship by pushing the next vote to the end of the week, the point at which the current law expires, the expiration of which would release prisoners currently suspected of terrorism (nobody really know why they're being held though because nobody has told them).

Tony Blair's gamble is that the opposition parties won't want to be seen as 'soft on terrorism' and so will vote the law through so that Tony Blair can't say "Don't blame me, it's the opposition who didn't take the opportunity to protect the British public".

Such a cynical move is not beyond the wit of such a dishonest premier who is making this new set of Terrorism laws a political ball for kicking around. Even people who back his plans are complaining that this law is being rushed too fast and that there's not enough scrutiny taking place.

Is this because of a sense of urgency?

Don't make me laugh! Tony Blair is using this to optimise his chances in the General Election. He's already used Terrorism and National Security in a cynical way, so there's no reason to give him the benefit of the doubt this time (as his actions show).

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE/INTERNET: Gmail Works On All Web Enabled Devices

I was just looking at the What's New section of Gmail and noticed that Gmail now supports all web browsers by using a Basic HTML View. Say Gmail;

"Basic HTML view lets you access your Gmail messages from almost any computer running almost any web browser, even old ones (not just IE5.5+, Mozilla, and Safari). Especially great for traveling, since you never know what kind of browser that internet café in Siberia is going to have."

What this means, of course, is that if you have a Symbian Smartphone (and probably others too), you no longer need to configure your mail client with crazy SSL settings but go straight in using a browser such as Opera or the built in Nokia web browser (I prefer Opera to be honest).

[READ MORE]

INTERNET: I'm Fed Up With Jacek Rutkowski

Ok, straight up, this is a rant. If you don't want to read this highly negative rant, then don't click on [READ MORE] below. None of what he is famous for has he done against me (really, though he did call me a 'barking doggie' once, but that's hardly going to rip my self confidence to pieces, but what he has doen I have seen him do to others. The basis of my rant is not what people have told me about him but what I have read of his own words and observed of his own actions...

Jacek Rutkowski is, without doubt, the rudest and most borish and incomprehensibly stupid, arrogant and evil person on the entire internet, bar none.

On a professional level, he publishes rumours as news, rebrands images as his own and shouts down anybody who manages to publish news items before him. He refuses to link to other people but cries like a baby if people don't link to him. His passion, Microsoft technology, is based on a hatred for Nokia, but mixed with that hatred is a jealousy fuelled hatred of those who pioneer work and help feedback to/from Microsoft; people who have the MVP title. He criticises them, marks them, publishes their photos on the internet and is very rude to them.

He has telephoned people at home to complain about what they write on the internet (about mobile phones) and he refuses to try to understand why people who meet him at conferences don't want to talk to him about the weather. Making highly personal and racial attacks against proper and professional journalists, he can't understand why they abuse him, despise him and show utter contempt toward him when he meets them in person.

He spreads lies about people who work hard for a living. He has recently launched attacks against Ewan Spence and Rafe Blandford, people who have a positive interest in technology. His attacks against these are rude and hypocritical, as anybody can see if they've ever heard his slimy work in a Podcast.

It's about time someone took this libellous little toad to court for the things he says. He's not a shock-jock because he thinks he's serious, he's just nasty and a completely ignorant imbecille.

His hate filled life spills into his 'work' as he condemns people and spreads rumours, accusing innocent people of passing 'trade secrets' thus rendering them unreliable and unworthy of trust, yet it is he who is completely unreliable and who cannot be trusted with anything that remotely resembles the truth.

His selective quotations misrepresent individuals and companies, yet he claims to give THE WHOLE TRUTH. That in itself is a LIE! He is a liar to the end! This is especially true if you consider that one of the reasons he doesn't link to his sources is that you might actually find the context of the quote he has taken and find that he has misrepresented what is actuality.

I used to visit his blog and post (anonymously - of course) because of the little insight there was, but as of now, the only links to him you'll find here will be to JacekWatch because I'm never visiting his libellous little rag of a website ever again. I wouldn't wipe my bottom with a printout of his work, even if it was the only paper in town. His blog is full of lies and hate, his commercial site is full of unreliable and devious misrepresentation, his interviews are full of 'him' with interviewees just being able to agree with him (has he ever listened to anybody in his life!?) and his values are projected onto everybody who crosses his path (do I care that a journalist has Polish parents, calls himself American yet lives in the UK? And no, that doesn;t make the journalist a liar).

I strongly recommend that you keep away from this monkey, this devious devil of deceit, this chimp and this poor excuse for a writer.

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Why I Like the Way Microsoft Smartphone Developers License Software

When I buy software for my Symbian Smartphone, the chances are heavily loaded toward my payment being for a license key being based on my Smartphone's IMEI number. This may not be a problem to start with, but if I upgrade to a new Symbian Smartphone, I have to contact the developers of any software I've registered and get a new license key.

Some of these developers may say that I must re-purchase the software in order to use it on my new Smartphone and so I'm either coughing up for new software which I already bought, or I do without, while even those who do support same platform upgrades (thank you PsiLoc) have to go through the process of re-issuing license keys...

When I had a Microsoft SPV, all the licence keys were based on my name; not on my name as I entered it into a registration box, but my name as entered in the Control Panel. That way, when I upgraded to an MPx200, I could transfer my software over without a problem because although I upgraded my Smartphone, I hadn't changed my name.

In this respect, I much prefer the way Microsoft Smartphone developers do things. I heard rumours that Microsoft is looking to add IMEI reading into its API so that developers can use it to protect their software. Listen to me all you Microsoft Smartphone users out there, that is not good for you! You don't want it! It will give you more trouble than its worth!

So, although Windows Mobile is technically behind in this issue, Windows Mobile users should enjoy the freedom while they can because once Microsoft catch up in this regard, things could get a helluva lot more cumbersome.

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Monopoly Schmonopoly

I'm fed up with people complaining that Symbian has a monopoly in the Smartphone market. Many (if not most) of those who complain are Microsoft fangirls who refer to the monopoly as being unfair and abused while the minority who don't have a Windows powered brain compare the monopoly with Microsoft's monopoly on the desktop.

While I hold the opinion that Symbian is by far the best platform for any Smartphone, I also believe that Symbian got to where it is in the market by being first, by being innovative and by being bold with the backing of willing companies. I also hold this opinion; Symbian does not have a monopoly in the Smartphone market and here I'll present some of the evidence behind my claim...

If you walk into your average computer shop (for example, PCWorld), you'll likely find computers on sale with two flavours of Operating System; MacOS and Windows. The vast majority of those machines run Windows which is written by a company called Microsoft. The most commonly used business applications for these computers is released by a company called Microsoft. Much of the software that was, many years ago, released by companies other than Microsoft (such as route planning software or technical drawing packages) will now be under Microsoft's label. The Apple Macintosh computers have an operating system written by Apple, but currently the most respected business software for the Apple is written by a company called Microsoft.

Looking at the software on sale in that shop, most of it will be for Windows based computers, the hardware will most likely be specced for Windows based computers and, increasingly, so will the DRM on verious media devices. There will be boxed versions of Linux (maybe) and even BeOS, but if you want these, you're on your own - buy it at your own risk; Microsoft has made sure that few (if any) computers will be sold with these Operating Systems installed.

Basically, Microsoft has got you cornered. You don't have much of a choice, it's Windows, Mac or nothing. Either way, Microsoft gets some of your pennies.

If you walk into a Mobile Phone shop, you'll find many tens of models of Mobile Phone. The vast majority of these will be running proprietary software as the interface to the basic OS. But we're talking Smartphones here, so let's see; We have Smartphones made by Nokia, Philips, SonyEricsson, Sendo, Motorola and Panasonic all running Symbian. But wait, next to them, on the same shelves, are Smartphones running Linux, Palm and Microsoft software - by the same companies... and they all run Java applications too (except for some of the Microsoft Smartphones).

Where is the monopoly here? Is there a record anywhere of Symbian saying to Motorola "If you make Smartphones with Microsoft software, then we'll make life hard for you"? Are there any 'Halloween' e-mails from Nokia, threatening Siemens that if they release any Microsoft Smartphones then Nokia will ensure their license of Series60 will cost more? There are e-mails detailing how Microsoft have made such threats to PC manufacturers such as Dell, threats which it made in order to get the monopoly it enjoys on the desktop, but no such threats have ever been made by Symbian and so when you walk into a mobile phone shop for a Smartphone, you have a huge amount of choice (at this point, you may say that Symbian isn't in a position to make such demands and that's fine because that just further proves my point that Symbian doesn't have a monopoly that enables it to bully manufacturers).

Where is Symbian's monopoly?
Microsoft's desktop monopoly means that if you buy anything that isn't Microsoft, you will find less software, less hardware, less access to patented technology and less access to technologies such as the internet based technologies (because Microsoft has embraced and destroyed web standards). If you buy any non-Microsoft products for your PC, unless you are a developer or an uber-geek, you will suffer.

If you buy a non-Symbian Smartphone you will find that the price of SD, MMC, MiniSD and RSMMC cards is the same, ringtone and video formats are compatible, you won't need to buy Bluetooth devices (headsets etc) specifically for your make/model of Smartphone and you will likely be able to run the same Java applications. In other words, if you buy a non-Symbian Smartphone, you won't suffer in the same was as if you buy a non-Microsoft desktop (though you will suffer poor performance and reliablity).

So where is the monopoly? Where is the evidence of Symbian abusing its position and crushing the competition? Neither Microsoft or its fangirls can on one hand brag about how it is gaining market share in the Mobile Market and then on the other hand, accuse Symbian of abusing a monopoly and destroying competition.

Where is the evidence of the monopoly? The users have choice and the manufacturers have choice, a choice that does not exist on the desktop.

[READ MORE]

INTERNET: Ignorance is a Blushmaker

I laughed out loud when I read this story on the technology website The Register.

As regular Register readers will know, they like to celebrate the national days of the patron saints in the UK. Saint George of England, Saint Andrew of Scotland, Saint Patric of Ireland and (as in this case), Saint David of Wales. They even went so far as to put some Welsh in their banner...

But someone wrote in complaining that the words didn't belong to any language he'd ever seen and made no sense to him;

"At first I thought it was in a different language, but it does not look like any kind of language..

If I navigate to other pages within the register website, it goes back to the right wording."

Oh! That's funny! Doniol iawn!

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: That Virgin Radio Thing

It looks like the pioneering flexibility, stability and popularity of the Symbian platform has helped further push the boundaries of mobile multimedia.

Virgin has released an Application for the two main flavours of Symbian (Series60 and UIQ) which allows users to use 3G network connectivity and listen to the radio! This is the first 3G specific radio player and is exciting if you're on an unlimited tarrif.

I've heard rumours that the software works over a GPRS connection also (good old Symbian), but since that's a bit expensive if you don't have an unlimited plan (and in the UK, that's like asking the queen to borrow her toilet), it's not advised.

While there are some Microsoft fangirls complaining that the 'world's first 3G radio player' claim is plain wrong, I think that it's interesting to note that they are in fact quite wrong and are actually showing a typical and common phycological condition known as jealousy...

They like to point out how they've long been able to connect their PocketPCs to the internet via a 3G phone (probably a Nokia, there are no Microsoft 'Smart Phones' on 3G yet ;-) and listen to streaming media that way, but what this application is is a simple tool which users just start. This has what I've referred to before as the 'bish-bash-bosh' factor. While PocketPC users have had to establish connections, find URLs and wot-not, users of this new Virgin software (did I mention that it's currently only available for Symbian ;-) just have to run it and do their thing.

And on Microsoft 'Smart Phones', this can't be done at all (without exotic technology like Wi-Fi). So, go figure. Some people are jealous all the time don't you think? I mean, hang on, a 3G Microsoft 'Smart Phone' will no doubt come out soon in the same way as a Symbian Skype client will one day be released.

[READ MORE]

DRIVING: All Fixed

As I mentioned earlier, I've had car troubles with my fan blowing fine as far as temperature and direction is concerned, but it's either off or full-blast. Well, I took it to Bank Top Garage in Cefn Rhigos after a recommendation by a friend of my old man's.

The chap who did the work (he sounded German or Austrian, but one doesn't like to make assumptions so all I'll say is that he was a genius) fixed it all within three quarters of an hour! It was down to a rehostat (whatever that is) which, when replaced, made everything work again...

That's what I call a result! Genius dudes like this are few and far between!

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Will The Real Ken Livingstone Please Shut Up

Ken Livingstone, the mayor of London (who has brought the city's people crying out for Dick Wittington to return - Is this stricktly necessary? - ED) has gone and spread more FUD (Fear, Incertainty and Doubt) about Jews.

In a step that can only be a million miles from an attempt to promote peace and understanding, he has hasn't so much 'stated' but 'suggested' in his subtext that Jews are evil, distortionate liars and that the Israeli Prime Minister should be in prison...

What is his problem!? In another statement, this racist ignoramus says, "The reality is that the great bulk of racist attacks in Europe today are on black people, Asians and Muslims. They are the primary targets of the extreme right."

This may seem as a purely innocent and even accurate statement, but is he trying to suggest that Jews have nothing to fear because hey, they're not black, they're not Muslim and so they should could any attacks on them as just one-off events?

Doesn't he know that there are far more black and Muslim people in Europe than there are Jews, so if every a percentage of Europe's black and Muslim population and all of Europe's Jewish population were attacked, attacks on Jews would still be less? So that's Ok is it?

Ken Livingstone has long demonstrated a dislike of all thing Jewish and a sympathy for the darker (minority) side of Islam by welcoming terrorists and preachers of hate (such as Abul Hamza) into his city.

This man, Ken Livingstone, is an abomination of desolation as he stands against everything that is right and promotes what is wrong.

No attack on any population for any reason is acceptable, so why suggest in his subtext that it is, as long as it's not 'too much', and why suggest it is by welcoming terrorists with open arms?

While I'm not Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's greatest fan, I think that Ken Livingstone is the more Hitleresque of the two.

Ken is part of the 'Destroy Israel' brigade which is a million miles from Islam (ie. Has nothing to do with Islam); it is something far more sinister and evil and he loves it.

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Right Back At 'Ya!

I don't want come across as someone who approves of China's terrible human rights record, neither do I want to make light of a serious situation,but, I couldn't help but raise a smile when I read the news of China's response to America's report on human rights around the world.

Let's face it, America producing a dossier condemning other countries for the way they treat people is a bit like Microsoft producing a report on anti-competitive companies and leaving itself off the top spot.

So anyway, China has prepared a report on American Human Rights and, it would seem, it has presented the report in the same self-righteous and matter-of-fact way as America did...

This is a simple yet clever move on the part of China, giving America a taste of its own medicine. If America and the West in general really want to stand tall and defend democracy and human civility, then it's going to have to clean its own house out or, to paraphrase the words of a wise Man; If America wants to take a speck of dust out of anybody else's eye, it must first remove the plank from its own.

As for the united Kingdom, the first and best step it could take to finding a clean government would be to get rid of Tony Blair.

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Some Cute Themes from Nokia

I don't know how long these themes have been available, but there are some pretty cute ones available from the above link;




There's also a couple of Desktop Wallpapers and a video clip if you're interested.

[READ MORE]

COMPUTING: Another Reason to Love Picasa And Other Free Software

I don't know about you, but I've often walked through PCWorld and seen those simple yet beautiful screensavers running on Apple machines which are a kind of slideshow but the photos sort of pan and zoom at the same time and thought, "Hey! That's serene dude!"

So now imagine being able to do it on your PC for free using Picasa! Ok, it doesn't create a Screensaver as such, but it does create a video file which does the very same thing, and that video file can be used to a VideoCD, a slideshow on your Smartphone or even a screensaver (if you have software that plays video for a screensaver).

Using some extra software, I was able to add a music track and the results were beautiful (for an example, click the image above for a low quality mobile video (.3gp) version)...

The software I used to add music was DubIt by TechSmith and that also is free. Simply put, it takes a WAV file and merges it with an AVI.

The steps I took were easy;

• Create movie file
  By using Picasa
  
  
• Prepare WAV file
  For this, I used Audacity to convert an MP3 file I already had (legally purchased ;-) into a WAV file
  
  
• Merge Audio and Video
  Using TechSmith's DubIt
  
  
• Convert to Mobile Format
  I used Smart Movie converter and Nokia's own multimedia converter to achieve this (Smart Movie for a full screen video and Nokia's Multimedia Converter for the sheer hell of it).
  

The pre-mobile conversion results are astounding while the results on the Smartphone are quite good (as you can see from the download).

Stuff like this should cost money! But it was all done using free software. How cool is that!? If there is any flaw, it's the music dub doesn't handle different lengths of video and audio very well, and the Picasa movie file insists on putting an irritating title screen at the start of each movie.

Apart from that, it's cool... and did I mention that it is also free!?

This photo above links to a more Family Memories type of video (I know, everybody is sick of me going on about my nephew by now!), optimised for Smartphones by using Smart Movie converter and it's a great way of showing photos to people.

Now, for example, when someone asks to see photos of my nephew (there are some who haven't seen him yet), I can show him/her the musical slideshow (linked above, and here) on my Smartphone instead of going having to tell them how to move onto the next photo and stuff... and everybody is happy!

[READ MORE]

COMPUTING: A Good Reason to Love Picasa

Picasa lets you take a whole folder full of photos and make a fantastic collage (click image or link to see a bigger version) which is really stylish!

I think that Picasa is really moving on, especially since this latest version (which I posted on some time ago). It's competition for Nokia's Lifeblog, but is more media orientated whereas, I feel, Nokia Lifeblog is more browsing/memory orientated...

Features like this, and the multi-exposure or the ScreenSaver make Picasa an awesome piece of software at a price for which many would pay upward of $15!

Excellent work!

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Shooting Themselves in the Foot

I don't understand why the Labour Government is doing its best to not use its best weapon in the up and coming General Election; Gordon Brown.

It's clear to anybody who has a brain and half a heart that Gordon Brown is the best mind in the current Government and the closest thing it has to integrity...

But it seems that Gordon Brown only has to turn his back for five minutes and the Prime Minister (Tony Blair) is trying to steal credit for Gordon's ideas by announcing them at times which benefit him and his cronies, thus stabbing the Chancellor in the back.

From where I'm standing, this is further demonstration of how Tony Blair isn't so much looking out for the country as much as himself. Heck! He's not even looking out for his own Party!

He's abandoned the values of his Party's history (not that I agreed with them, but I find it easier to respect someone who has principles with which I don't agree than someone who has no principles at all and yet pretends to be principle driven), and is using the country as his own career advancement.

I've said this before; If Gordon Brown were in charge of New Labour, they might get my vote, but as it is, it's Michael Howard for me.

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: That Knighthood

Bill Gates has been given an honourary knighthood has he?

So it would seem that doing well for others isn't nearly as profitable and doing well for yourself...

What has he done to be awarded this prestigious accolade? Since when have convicted criminals been given such things? For which of his many works has he been awarded this?

Maybe wiping out competition through illegal means really impressed Jack Straw? Or was it stealing technology from competitors? Perhaps it was his ability to deliver pants products and have everybody pay through the nose for it? Or maybe it was his work in third world countries (making them buy Windows software instead of Open Source thus tying them in to long and expensive contracts with Microsoft)?

Whichever good deed of Bill's is being celebrated, I would like to wish him well...

[READ MORE]

TV: Saving Star Trek (Enterprise)

I really enjoy Star Trek: Enterprise; It's got great characters and some pretty neat stories. Contrary to most of the people with whom I have spoken, I quite enjoyed Season 3, even if it was all just one big story.

So I was a little gutted when I heard that the show is being cancelled.

I was even more suprised when I heard that charities have been set up in order to save the series. Trek United alone has raised more than 3 million dollars.

On the one hand, I'm pleased becfause it may bring the show back, bnut on the other hand....

If someone can afford to give $3,000,000 to save a TV show, how about using that money to save a life? Funding in third world countries or even helping people in developed countries help the poor therein might seem a more worthy cause?

This is different to the arguments for space exploration (which raises similar concerns), because as far as I'm concerned, space exploration does expand us as a race and educate us regarding the glory of God's creation with principles that can be used back on earth. Star Trek, no matter how inspirational and imaginative... is made up.

[READ MORE]

DRIVING/PERSONAL: Woeful Motoring!

Trouble is seldom a lonesome traveller, and never is this more true than when it comes to cars, and my latest car (which I bought at the end of January) has had a run of bad stuff...

I tried to fix a rubber-hangeing-off thing with superglue and damaged the paintwork. That was silly. I went and bought a new rubber thingie and realised that at £27, I needn't have bothered trying to Superglue thing.

Now, my fan heater has busted in that it will blow full-pelt or off, no in-between (Level 1, Level 2 & Level 3) blowing. And when I got to work today, I found that my passenger side headlight is blown. The light thing isn't a major issue, but it's all a pain when it comes in with other bad stuff.

And it's my birthday tomorrow. Happy birthday me, eh?

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Children Playing With Grown Up's Toys

We find here, in the United Kingdom that there's a childish schoolyard bully trying to drive through laws regarding anti-terrorism measures which make the country a worse place the live.

These laws which are being passed are disliked by everybody and the fact that they got through any votes at all is thanks not only to those who voted 'YES' (people who are told how to think and cowards who want to get into Tony Blair's brief) but mostly to those who abstained (who don't know how to think).

In order to help the government out, the Tories offered the government a lifeline by suggesting a 'Sunset Clause' which would not only provide full Tory support for the bill, but also safety in a time limit on how long the new law(s) would apply. But Tony Blair, preferring to divide and conquer continued on his policy of sucking up to the Liberal Democrats and ignoring the Tories.

How can we trust a government that allows electioneering on such issues as the freedom of speech and expression within a democratic society? This is serious business here, and we see Tony Blair playing like a kid...

During one parliamentary session, he went on about how he understood the sincerity of the Liberal Democrats and their genuine concerns while conplaining about how the Tories were trying to make political gain! Look who's talking!

The reason for this is slight of hand is that Tony Blair knows who his biggest threat is (Michael Howard) and so in Mr. Blair's little brain (still powered by a 286 processor I understand) a compliment toward the (somewhat harmless) Liberal Democrats means an insult toward the Tories and therefore more political gain for the Labour Party.

See what happens when the pigs get to rule the farm!?

[READ MORE]

NEWS: Infantile Behaviour

Four Bangladeshis have been in court in Chittagong following charges of 'looting and causing criminal damage'. The problem is that the ages of the defendants range from three months to two years. The judge said the case did not appear to be genuine - but the truth would emerge in a police report.

It's always a good idea to establish the truth.

That report could be a bestseller!

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: SplashPhoto (Review)

Since the built in picture viewer on Series60 (known as Gallery) leaves me with time to make tea while it loads a folder, I'm on the lookout for an alternative.

There are a few nice options available, and here is one of them; SplashPhoto by Splash Data.

It costs $14.95 (if you have a Symbian Series60 Smartphone, $29.95 if you have a Symbian UIQ or Microsoft Smartphone) and you can get it from Handango. Of course, if you were quick, you'd have long downloaded and registered it for free over Handango's free software a week promotion which it ran over Christmas ;-)

That's what I did, and I'm glad because to be honest, while I think that this is a very good piece of software, I don't think it's complete enough to pay the best part of $15 for it...

SplashPhoto lets you look at the pictures stored in the c:\SplashPhoto or e:\Images folders on your Smartphone. It only recognises Jpegs and then, only some forms of Jpegs (more on this later). If you have any Gifs, then forget it.

Viewing By...
Your pictures are split in three ways; Category, Location and Privacy;

- Category
Categories allows you to sensibly divide your photos so that you can keep pictures of your dog separate from pictures of your mother-in-law (saves confusion). You can add, remove and edit categories to your heart's content and then select to view them when you want to.

There is a category called Unfiled which allows you to quickly get at new photos and shove them into a category. Unfortunately (and this applies across the board), thile there's an option the categorize an individual photo and also to categorize all photos in a view, there is no way to select multiple photos (as with many other applications where you can use 'Abc..' + Arrow).

- Location
Simple option that doesn't really give you much. You can view photos on the Smartphone's internal memory, Smartphone's memory card, or both.

- Privacy
There is a facility to mark a photo as private so that you can gide certain photos until you enter a specified password and then they are visible again.

This particular option is possibly the most useless option in the application since even hidden photos are visible to other applications. If you really want to hide some of your photos, this is not for you - you'd be better off looking at something like Media Safe.

Views
There are plenty of ways to display your photos with a number of predefined views plus a slideshow (which is very pretty and will, if you want, keep your phone's backlight on).



your views

Jpegs Only
As I mentioned earlier, SplashPhoto only likes Jpegs and even then, only some of them. So forget about your .bmp or .gif files or even 'Progressive Jpegs' (whatever they are, apparently I had some and SplashPhoto didn't like them).

Show And Tell
The slideshow facility is great, even if the 'Keep the Backlight On' option is a little absent minded (it lets the backlight go off for half a second before realising what it's done and puts it back on again). Nice feature though.

It also offers the usual 'Send To...' options so you don't have to exit the interface in order to share a photo over some form of comms (Bluetooth, IrDA, MMS or E-Mail).

Conclusion
On the whole, I get the feeling that this software wasn't designed for me because what it does, it doesn't do as I want it done, and some of the stuff I would really like it to do, it doesn't do at all (browsing the File System would be nice). But for what I paid (free at the time), I'm happy.

$14.99 though? Maybe, just maybe with a little leaning toward no.

[READ MORE]

POLITICS: Call That a Rebellion!? And What Is The Greatest Freedom Anyway?

Over 60 Labour MPs rebelled against their party over the issue of anti-terrorism laws, but that wasn't enough because the vote still went through.

As the government rushes through a badly thought out law that will strip the people of a fundamental right, I'm worried about those MPs who think that this is a good idea. Don't these people have constituants living in their constituancies?

The government has said that the greatest right the people has is the right to not be terrorised. This is a wonderful piece of doublespeak because while it has a fundamental ideal therein, it opens a door to terrible things.

In saying this, the government is excusing any and every burden it now places on the people. With this new 'truth', the government can take away any freedom it likes, as long as it is for the purpose of establishing a 'safer environment' that is 'free from terror' and anybody who opposes it is branded a terrorist, or a sympathiser of terrorist causes.

Does this sound familiar?

[READ MORE]

THINKING ALOUD: Talking About Talking, Blogging About Blogging

As I extract fluff from my belly-button, I think about how many of the blogs I read (some are linked to the left) actually spend a lot of time talking about blogs, referencing themselves in a logical feedback loop that makes me wonder what it is that keeps them going?

Then I figure, why does anyone blog anyway? Why do I blog?

As far as I can tell, I blog because its a valve which helps me release pressure. I have nothing like the 10,000 daily readers that many bloggers get, but that's cool. Yet, if that's the case, why do I look to see if anybody links to my blog (there aren't many, maybe three other blogs)?

Ok, so I talk about me and my point of view, but I don't talk about my blog in my blog.... do I? Surely, that's like going out and constantly talking about your house with those who live with you?

I know that there are some who take blogging so seriously that they develop a hate complex against those called Alpha-Bloggers. The person I'm thinking about is Jacek Rutkowski who seems to enjoy nothing more than to launch a vitriolic attack against anybody who is what he wants to be (that is, an Alpha Blogger and an MVP).

What rerally frustrates me more than anything here is that I've just posted a blog entry about my blog. I think I can feel myself vanishing up my own anus as I type! Arghhhhhhh! It's getting dark!

[READ MORE]

WALES: Important Day

Not only is today the first day of Spring, but it's also Saint David's Day! The patron saint of no less than the people and principality of Wales

Mae heddiw Mawrth y cyntaf!
Y cyntaf! Y cyntaf!
Mae heddiw Mawrth y cyntaf!
Gwyl Dewi ydy hi!

[READ MORE]

SMARTPHONE: Where Does it Figure for Microsoft?

I popped on over to the Microsoft Website today to find something out, and noticed something that highlights how seriously it takes the Mobile Technology market and how important innovating that market is to Microsoft...


In the family of Microsoft products, it would seem that Windows Mobile is the 'Black Sheep'. Where does it appear in the list?

So, here's the Almost Top Ten of Microsoft's Priorities;

Number 1
Windows! Yes! Windows! Blue screening its way to the top of the list is the ship called Monopoly. This little baby controls more desktops than Imelda Marcos has shoes! Surely, a worthy top priority and a very milkable cash-cow!

Number 2
What's the point in having a computer on every desk in the country if those desktops are using other people's software! That's right, Microsoft Office is better than anything else because it uses those secret APIs that nobody else knows about. Although there are capable alternatives, we don't want to talk about them, unless you do and then who knows, you may get a Site License for free.

Number 3
Windows based servers are to security what George W Bush is to the spread of democracy; a good idea. But in at Number three, it shows where Microsoft is putting its effort for growth since this is the first priority that Microsoft has in a market that it does not own.

Number 4
Developer tools could be the one area where Microsoft plays something that resembles fair... but don't expect to be able to use every API that's in Windows. Some of them are hidden so that whatever happens, nothing you can do can possibly be better than Microsoft (apart from think of something new that is).

Number 5
The world is not enough and Microsoft wants to help you potential Peoplesoft turncoats along an easy path to The Dark Side. Business solutions are Microsoft's Priority Number 5.

Number 6
Still no Windows Mobile yet. Nope, priority Number 5 is Games & Xbox. Microsoft is yet to deliver a games console that doesn't melt or blow up or something, so making it a priority issue is the only way to get it to work.

Number 7
Surely, Windows Mobile is next? Afraid not fangirls, because next up is MSN. Good old MSN! That web service that lets you chat with backdoors, swap photos with a virus and catch up with all the latest spam (as long as you don't use Opera because MSN singles out Opera for 'special treatment'). MSN hosts Microsoft's pioneering work in search engines (by pioneering, read 'copying'), so it's only fair that it gets a priority rating.


So there we have it, Microsoft's top priorities..... Oh, hang on! I've forgotten something;

Number 8
Windows Mobile.


Take comfort dear Microsoft Windows Mobile dedicants, for this is not the end of the list of options. Nay! Nay! And thrice, nay! Indeed your sweetheart baby is not at the bottom of the list, for yet there is....

Number 9
All Products.

[READ MORE]