Where am I?

Where would this be then? ..
A place where thugs and robbers can roam the streets without any concern for arrest or conviction. A place that has no consideration for it's idiginous race. A place where the government is corrupt and goes to war for it's own devices and not the good of the people. A place where there is growing Shiria Law in contrast to the law of the land. A place that has no border control to speak of. A place that has lost hundreds of thousands of illegle immigrants, left to walk the streets free from extradition, even if they are found. A place where the people who were the most considerate, generous and understanding in the world, who are now coming to the end of their understanding. A place where the old and infirm are left on the poverty line to die of cold or starvation. A place where no reward is given to those who try to live a decent and lawful existance. A place where single parenthood is encouraged through bad management of social services. A place where the nastier you are the more you get away with. A place where a two tier system of health care is killing people. A place that I used to call home..
Welcome to Britain!
Now we are asked to appologise for slavery, never mind the fact that we were the first to actually outlaw it and give people back their human rights. We can't keep appologising for things that our ancestors messed up! We have been pioneering in redressing the balance and helping others, why can't we celebrate that?
Maybe that is exagerrated - maybe it isn't but for crying out loud, get a grip!
What happened to common sense and considerate thinking? Now everything is done relating to political correctness above and beyond any common sense. No way on this earth would I vote for a radical and extremist goverment just to change this situation but you can see how the lunatic right-wing facist parties get support when the government you have is seriouly lacking in every way possible and screwing it's people into the ground!
What about the rights of the people of this land above the rights of lunatics and fanatics!
Someone please stop the rot before there is a civil war - it will happen - and that will also be wrong.
Back soon (hopefully happier) ..

Peace at Last - Maybe

Oh, oh, oh, ooooooo! I want one of these! I'm sure I'm not the only one out there that lays awake listening to the sweetest impressions of farm animals for hours on end in the middle of the night and this is the answer to all our prayers. Without Hammers ..

The less violent approach is the Snore Stopper, a wrist band with a sensitive micro-sound detector. This detects your first hog-like snarfles and sends a mild electric signal (read shock) without actually waking you. The end result is that your body learns to avoid the mini-shocks by not snoring. I’ll take two please!
Two, because I'm reasonably certain that I too am plagued by the same affliction when I eventually get to sleep! It's just, my girlfriend is asleep a full 2 seconds before she finishes her last sentence and immediately begins to tell the story of the "Battle for Farmyard Supremacy" in various animal dialects! A wonderful tale of high jinks and japes performed by the loudest of the loud!

Sweet Dreams ..

What Not To Do With A Hard Disk ..

We have all done something daft with technology at some point in our lives (some more daft than others!) but here is a top 10 of hard disk disaters from top data retrievers OnTrack ..

10. Helicopter Hi-jinks – Employees of a global telecommunications company dropped a laptop computer while working from a helicopter in Monaco. Ontrack successfully retrieved vital files on the laptop and sent them through an FTP server for a meeting in Hong Kong the very next day.

9. Wash the Data Away – On a flight from London to Warsaw, a passenger packed his laptop and toiletries in the same bag. Unfortunately, his shampoo leaked and flooded everything in the bag, including the laptop, causing the hard drive to fail. In order to recover all of the data, Ontrack engineers had to do some washing of their own – cleaning the hard drive and other components in order to get the drive functioning.

8. Not a Jolly Occasion – British comedian Dom Joly, presenter and co-creator of Trigger Happy TV, dropped his laptop, damaging a hard drive that held five thousand photos, six thousand songs, half a book he was writing and all of his old newspaper columns. Having read the tragic story in a newspaper column written by Mr. Joly, Ontrack contacted him and was able to recover everything.

7. Rescuing the Research – A leading UK research university suffered a catastrophic data loss after a fire broke out in the computer science department on a weekend morning, damaging computer equipment with smoke and water from the fire department’s efforts. Ontrack was called onsite to rescue thirty computers and recovered more than a terabyte of data.

6. Beware of Bananas – A customer left an old banana on the top of his external hard drive which proceeded to seep its contents into the drive, ruining the circuitry. The drive would no longer run, but Ontrack was able to clean the drive and repair the circuit board so the drive would spin long enough to recover his data. The banana, however, could not be recovered.

5. Hard Drive Speed Bump – It happens every year, but people continue to leave computers and hard drives in the path of moving vehicles. This year alone, Ontrack recovered from a laptop that was run over by a “people mover” at the airport, and several external hard drives stuffed in a backpack that was backed over by a truck.

4. Tenth Time’s the Charm – A man reformatted his hard drive not once, not twice, but ten times before he realized there was some valuable information he needed recovered. Luckily for him, it only took Ontrack one try to recover the information.

3. Finding Nemo – A customer returned from the vacation of a lifetime in Barbados to discover that he couldn’t access any of the snorkeling photos he took on his new “waterproof” digital camera. It seems the camera wasn’t as waterproof as advertised, so Ontrack had to rescue all of his prized tropical fish photos.

2. Squeaky Drive Gets the Grease – A university professor heard a squeaking noise from the drive of his new desktop computer. To solve the annoying problem, he opened the case and sprayed the inside of the drive with WD-40. Although successful in stopping the drive from squeaking, his actions also prevented the drive from booting up. Ontrack got the drive working again and recovered his data.

And finally, the number one most remarkable data disaster of 2006…

1. Sock it to Me – Although the circumstances of the original data loss were unremarkable, the problem was intensified when the customer shipped his drive to Ontrack in a pair of dirty socks. The old socks didn’t provide the necessary protection during shipping and the resulting damage made the recovery more challenging than normal. Next time, he’ll stick with bubble wrap, but in the meantime, Ontrack successfully recovered his data too.

Courtesy of OnTrack via Gizmodo

[OnTrack]

Man injured by launching firework from his bottom

Well, the title says it all really!!
This is the reported incident ..

A man has suffered severe internal injuries after trying to launch a powerful firework from his bottom on bonfire night, it emerged today.
It was thought that the 22-year-old was trying to copy a scene from the 2002 film Jackass: The Movie, which has long been condemned by safety campaigners and blamed for inspiring dangerous pranks.
The man is reported to have got down on all fours, lowered his trousers and fixed a Black Cat Thunderbolt rocket to himself in front of a group of friends at the end of a firework display in the Monkwearmouth area of Sunderland on Sunday.

Fuzzy mobile phone footage shows a blinding white flash and the group of spectators laughing.

From - http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1943543,00.html

You will notice there are no pictures with this, apart from the mobile phone video, which as yet, I don't have a link to! As soon as I do, I'll let you know!

The man, whose injuries include a scorched colon, is still in hospital.

Scorched colon! - F*ck me, he got off lightly!

Back soon ..

Someone read my mind!!

Alarm Coffin - For when your Zombies get Stuck!!

You know when you're just sitting around, minding your own business, when suddenly you get buried alive? It sucks, trust me. Well, you won't have to worry about having your last moments ruined by a frantic clawing and digging if you get yourself set up with one of Vitaly Malyukov's alarm coffins. Yes, now you can have the peace of mind that comes with knowing that when you're buried, if you happen to wake up, you can push a button and have people come dig you up. It really helps you eternally sleep better at night knowing that some horrific, unimaginable ways to go just won't happen to you, no matter how drunk your doctor is when he declares you dead. No word on pricing or availability as of yet, unfortunately. — Adam Frucci
Via Ubergizmo

Well worth the money if you are a paranoid schizophrenic with hypocondriac tendancies!!
I'll take two please, just in case one doesn't work properly! Don't forget to check the batteries before you go or that could be embarrasing. Well, not so much embarrasing as rather disastrous really! Fancy spending all that money (I'm sure it won't be cheap!) only to find that you have a defective/flat AA battery in your armoury!
Still, maybe you should avoid the Samsung Robot Sentry a bit further down the page!!

Back soon ..

Eh? What? A Letter? ..

Playing music on a PC is like using a Swiss army knife to carve a steak. Nonetheless, millions do it, so the need for decent multimedia speakers is as real as that pain in your wrist. Logitech steps up to the plate with the Z-10 Interactive Speaker System.
The Z-10 works with your PC but also declares independence from it. First, it uses a USB connection to bypass your commodity-priced computer's piece-of-junk soundcard, substituting its own digital-to-analog circuit. And — your wrist will like this — it supplements your music software's controls with touch-sensitive buttons set into a backlit amber liquid-crystal display.
...Continue Reading

http://blog.scifi.com/tech/

This looks like a good idea, if only they sound as nice as they look, we're in business!!
PC sound has always been a bit naff if you don't know what to ask for when you're buying one.
Even if you do, you can still end up with very sub-standard sound. I bought a "top of the range" laptop from Dell not so long ago that cost in the region of £2700. It was an XPS M170 with all the bells and whistles (ahem!) and the sales type blokey asured me it had great sound as I had informed him I would be using it for music and video and needed very good representation of both. Well, ok, the graphics are very good, using an nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GTX (I think?) but the sound was complete and utter poo!
I have managed to get around this by buying yet more stuff for a laptop that should have had everything at that price! I use an e-Mu 1616 on a cardbus interface and it works very well.
I do wish, though, that someone would train these sales people in the finer points of their products, which are generally speaking, the bits we all interface with ie. sound and vision.
Never mind eh? These speakers are definately worth a look.

Back soon ..

Samsung creates machine-gunning robot, doesn't play MP3s ..

Samsung has developed a sentry robot with machine guns on it that will kill on sight. Geez guys, the MP3 player business wasn't working well enough for you? Or is this just a way of diversifying, hoping to get customers in with the players and then give them the hard sell on the $200,000 killing machine? In any case, the robot has a camera for the daytime and an infrared camera for the nighttime and can tell the difference between people and trees, which doesn't sound all that difficult. No word on if it can differentiate between terrorists and trick or treating children dressed as terrorists (sorry again, kids!). It has a speaker to warn people that they're about to get their face blown off by a gun-wielding robot, which is a nice touch. This perfect killer will be set up on the DMZ separating North Korea and South Korea next year, as if you needed another reason to stay the hell away from the DMZ. Check the really unsettling promo video after the jump. — Adam Frucci
TechEBlog, via New Launches

Thanks to http://blog.scifi.com/tech/ - from which I have blatantly copied this article!

Christmas (the clue's in the name!)

Christmas is a Christian celebration of the birth of Christ, hence the name "Chistmas" or Christ mass. A mass in celebration of Christ. Not a celebration of how many presents you get or just how fat and slothful you can be in a week! It is hard enough getting people to think of the real reasons behind Christmas and good will to all men etc. etc. without blatantly avoiding the facts for some politically motivated correctness! Now, I am not a religious man by any stretch of the imagination, but if we are made to recognise all the other festivals and celebrations for the rest of the worlds religions, what on this planet is wrong with celebrating our own?? I am sick to the back teeth of all this "political correctness" in all it's insidious forms, undermining anything that is British or Christian, it is just plain and simply WRONG!!!
And who has just joined the ranks of the pathetically correct, you may ask? The Post Office.
Dumping the traditional message of Christmas for irrelevant symbolic nonsense so as not to offend anyone?! Well F*ck You! It offends me greatly and every other right thinking person that isn't "of another religion". When, in the name of anything sensible, are these idiots going to be shot in the head from point blank range with a 40mm Howitzer? As I've said before, I will do it, gimme the gun, gimme the gun, gimme the gun!!

Back soon ..

By the Way ..

Had a great gig with Hang Loose at the weekend. Thanks to all my chums that turned up in support, well appreciated! A good vibe on the evening and everyone paying attention and giving it their all meant for a very enjoyable night. We may even get another booking from the pub!?
The Sailor in Hitchin Herts. is an excellent venue for live acts, very intimate but not claustophobic and if you don't play at ridiculously loud levels, it's all good! The pub has just been refurbished and has a nice clean but not sterile feel to it and the people were very friendly and appreciative. I do hope we get another gig there. They have lots of live music type stuff going on there, I believe there is an "open mike" night on a Wednesday, where if you think you can be entertaining, you can have a go. So, if you're looking for a place that has live music in the Beds, Herts and Bucks area of the country, this would be a good place to try.
Thanks to all the band and the people who came along for a great gig!

Do You Know What? ..

If the BBC never made another program, ever, then they could rest assured that they had contributed some of the best programs that have ever been made in television history. What breathtaking photography, what incisive narration, what an incredible production!
In the world of natural history, the BBC is absolutely unmatched at any level by anyone and that includes the Discovery channels. I don't know if you are a fan of this type of program but even if you're not, you can't help but be impressed by it's quality and amazing feats of camera work. Boy! Those camera people and their associated teams are incredible and work really hard with the patience of saints to get the shot they want and the end results are a testament to all that effort and knowledge. I have seen "The March of the Penguins" and it is very, very good. I am in no way putting that film down but .. After watching a one hour documentary made by the "Planet Earth" team, the rest of the world has some catching up to do! Also, how can you have a natural history program with anyone but David Attenborough narrating?

Ice Worlds - BBC1 Sunday evenings at 9pm - Fantastic

Back soon ..

Spare a Thought ..

This is not a good time of year for these unfortunate (and very stupid) birds! Not only are they shot at by a load of Hooray Henry's but if they happen to go for a wander about, it is very likely they will be squished by any passing vehicle. I am lucky enough to work in a small village and travel through some lovely countrside on the way but the amount of roadkill this time of year brings is just amazing. I don't know who teaches these birds their road safety but it's fairly apparent that they have no idea whatsoever regarding just how heavy and hard modern vehicles are!! You think you're doing the right thing to avoid hitting one of these lovely birds and BAAM! The silly b*st*rd runs back the other way, giving you a snowballs chance in hell of avoiding feathery tires and a sickly feeling! So far this year I have managed to avoid them but you just know there's one out there with your name on it!
Back soon ..

Big on remotes?

Now, that is what I call a remote!! You're not going to loose that in hurry eh? If there is any fight over who's in control, you can casually tap the person trying to take it off you with the remote, I feel confident they will stop trying!

As for technical specs, they're the usual for a universal remote with support for six devices including TV, VCR, DVD player, satellite, cable and auxiliary A/V device. The company claims that IR codes for most popular A/V devices are included. The large buttons glow in the dark so that you can continue to use the remote even when the lights are switched off. If you thought that being so big would mean more batteries, no worries there – all it requires are 2 AA batteries.
One thing is for sure - families that have one of these are never going to have those panic attacks when their favorite TV show is about to come on and the remote control is nowhere to be seen. If this is important to you, the $35 that this will cost you will be money well spent.

Available online at the Brookstone shop.

Via Random Good Stuff.

I want one!!

Back soon ..

You are being watched .. a lot!

Hello, I've been neglecting you again haven't I? Sorry. Just been listening to a debate on the radio about cctv cameras and just how many there are etc etc. Well, you know, you wouldn't actually mind if they caught a few of the nasty criminal elements walking our streets. The muggers and violent thugs, even the ignorant abusive kids but there are not many occasions when they actually do any of that. Big Brother has been watching us for quite a while now and this is no paranoid conspiracy theory. Just take a look next time you're in a town centre at the sheer volume of cameras and some you need to look quite hard to find. What are they doing? The Government and it's agencies have more ways of collecting data on each and every one of us than ever before and I don't know about you but I am not comfortable with that. No, I'm not a criminal but I'm sure I break the odd law here and there and if it doesn't effect anyone else then hey ho! Soon they will start thinking of creative (read financial) ways of using this data with insurance companies and targeted advertising, oh the joys of being known to all and sundry as to what I do and where I go and what I spend my money on and where I spend it! You wouldn't mind if it did any good but 99 times out of 100 it doesn't!

The bloke at left is in a RoboSuit which apparently gives superhuman stength and agillity to the wearer and I have seen a concept of the military version! It's a shame you have to carry that dirty great big container of methylated spirits about with you as it kind of negates any benifits from the suit! The military version runs using an internal combustion engine off 2 or 4 stoke fuel! Ha! Not one for the stealth soldier eh?! He'll be putting those big Bean Can exhausts on it and upping the suspension on his Doc Marten army boots! Drag racing for humans!

Enough, back soon ..