Surprise

I'm not sure which is more surprising - the fact that the woman behind the McCafe counter remembered my coffee order - or that she wasn't a teenager!

That will teach them

While downloading updated versions of software this morning, on the list was BeeCellsLite (a strategy game - place the coloured dots together). The reason for the update - "bugs fixed". Hope they didn't "fix" all of them otherwise that's going to detract somewhat from the game.

The iPad has landed

After what seems like an eternity, and at the least, a very very long time, the iPad aka large-screen iPod Touch has finally arrived on Australian shores. The machine is simply amazing, and no less so because it comes (fully) charged out of the box, so there's no need to plug it in and wait (even longer) for it to be useable. And, surprisingly, it is much more functional than an iPod Touch - and there are some tremendous design features. You can still use it to Skype because it has a built in microphone and speaker - which is good since neither of these came in the box with in. If you haven't already ... it's well worth dropping in to your local Apple store and getting them to give you a demo. Afterall, they have just overtaken Microsoft in the "worth" department.

Enough said

On the wire this morning: "An English university researcher studying serial killers was being held yesterday on suspicion of murdering three prostitutes." The discovery of Stephen Griffith's alleged gruesome hobby is being credited to a caretaker who saw footage of one of the murders while reviewing CCTV footage. The reasons for his reviewing the footage is not given, but it appears that there was nothing amiss to suggest that a murder had taken place at the location - in Bradford, which people may remember was the home of Peter Sutcliffe aka the Yorkshire Ripper. I suppose it may not be long before people are calling for an end to research on serial killers - because it turns you into one - or perhaps Griffiths was only doing the research because he had predilections that way already.

Sign of the times?

There's a large advertisement in this morning's Bully (that would be the Gold Coast Bulletin to non-locals) entitled "Flights cancelled as Volcanic Ash Closes Air-Space" which could lead a reader to believe that the testing of the giant Hadron collider may have been responsible for invoking God's wrath to the extent where s/he first caused the Global Financial Crisis and then the eruption of the Icelandic volcano which has closed European air space on a number of occasions. The ad ends with the question: "Are you ready for the Lord's coming?" and contact details should you wish to avail yourself of the offer of a free Bible. And here were some people thinking that the experiments with the collider had failed to produce any results.

Now and ...Ben

On the radio this morning (2CBR - or perhaps that was really 4CRB), an old favourite - it's been a while - hit the airwaves again. It was Michael Jackson's hit Ben. As I listened to the heartfelt and touching lyrics about how much Ben was valued and it was a pity not everyone had a "friend like Ben", I couldn't help but wonder how many of those listening in radioland had watched the eponymous movie and seen Ben - the rat - and the services he performed for his best friend Willard. Just to recap, Ben was a rat - really, four legs, a tail, twitchy nose and whiskers - and (I can't remember if it was at Willard's bidding), Ben would lead the other rats out and about and do things like killing Willard's unappreciative boss. At this point I'd like to comment: Yes, everyone should have a friend like Ben - but I wouldn't really mean it.

Please help ...

... to the "lady who locked the door" to the playground at Nerang McDonalds because it "is too wet and it's not safe" - as the small child behind me keeps getting told - and "be cross with her not with me"; can you please let me know - did you? Or is this something that the woman is telling the child - like some people tell me that the ice cream truck only plays the music to let you know that they've RUN OUT of ice cream.

Love a "chat"

Well "love" may be too strong a word but I am still enjoying the Chat Room page of the Gold Coast Bulletin. My favourite this morning starts: "To the crow thatwakes me at 5.32 every morning ..." (although, of course, on the Gold Coast anything is possible and the crow might actually be reading the paper .... ). Meanwhile, over at Flirt time, there's obviously some kind of code being used: "To the BJ cougar, im short and cut meat". Hopefully it's means something to someone.

Robin Hood

Off we went to see "Robin Hood" last night, quite enjoyed it and then found this in the paper this morning (showing how much of an effect it had on some people): "To the robin hood wannabe on olympus circuit in robina that shot an arrow through my window, come forward. Someone could have been serious hurt. - unhappy neighbour"

Not so much rigging as ...

... as ringing the voting. Councillors at the Gold Coast City Council are being asked not to use their phones during meeting amid fears they are using text messages to control debate and manipulate voting. What happened to the good ol' fashioned art of conversation? The Mayor, Cr Ron Clarke, "fired off" (much more urgent sounding than "sent off") an email recently asking (oops, "ordering") councillors to put away their phones and concentrate on decision making. There is apparently no evidence of the ringing rigging but some councillors, concerned about
the possibility, raised the issue with the Mayor. Councillors contacted for comment said they used their mobile phones during meetings for catching up with correspondence, and this was no different from "councillors going through printed correspondence during meetings and writing notes for their personal assistants". At least one councillor is reported as saying that she was not even aware that she could text on her "Blueberry".

Which iPad are you?

Finally Australians can pre-order Apple’s iPad – which may not be as easy as it seems. There are six models on offer, three of which will have Wi-Fi and 3G. Details of the data packages for use with the 3G models have not been announced by all telecommunications carriers - nor is there any suggestion of the option of using the same 3G account for both an iPhone and iPad. (if your have them). I’m not even going to worry about it for a while; as my wonderful partner is procuring the iPad for me. As well as being an extremely generous offer it has also freed up hours and hours of my thinking time - usually about now I would have started on the "will I/won't I; should I/shouldn't I; do I really need it etc etc]. Instead I’ll just concentrate on thinking about how to accessorize – which could end up costing as much as the device itself – bluetooth keyboard, power adapter, screen protectors, card reader, protective case – and the list will no doubt grow as more Companies start producing “add-ons” – let alone any applications one decides to invest in! There’s even a Louis Vuitton iPad case on offer.

Back up

We’ve all heard about Twitter and tweets – these short messages sent out over the internet and “followed” by others sometimes few; sometimes a lot. This communication method would seem to be ephemeral in nature unless the plan by the U.S. Library of Congress goes ahead and they do archive the billions of tweets published since Twitter launched 4 years ago. How would you sort them? Dewey Decimal system? Internet tags? Other? Surely someone somewhere will tweet the answer.

Ashes to...

Plans to scatter some of Edmund Hilary’s ashes on Mount Everest have been cancelled because Buddhist priests there have warned it would bring bad luck – and possibly a flood of requests for/from others. Most of Hillary’s ashes were scattered in the sea off Auckland after his death, aged 88, in 2008; the remainder was/are in the care of a small Buddhist monastery.

Mouthing off

Researchers have demonstrated a device which allows people to have a phone conversation without saying a word. Lip reading technology is involved – or should be, especially on public transport or in eating/drinking houses. And on the subject of mobile phones; I am reminded of the stories we hear of people who were reportedly caught out at times when they were “pretending" to talk on a mobile phone and it rang. These days, with some phones having dual lines, you’d just tell the “caller” you had another call coming in – just by moving your lips. This could have wonderful applications for those who are hearing-impaired as well - rather than just helping reduce all the white noise and other people's conversations associated with mobile phones.

Copy that

The plain-paper office copier has turned 50, sometime in March apparently. It could be a close call (or perhaps not really) as to whether the copier has saved or wasted more time since its introduction. Ah for the days of yore when people copied illuminated manuscripts by hand.

On the phone

I haven’t seen one - just read about it – but now there’s a solution for those who have an iPhone but also want the satisfaction of being able to slam down the phone when they wish to express dissatisfaction with a call. It’s the Desk Phone iPhone Dock Of course, it also works for people who want to fidget with a phone cord as they talk.

Pencil it in

Are pencils less expensive than biros, or pens as they’re called these days? I ask because when a personable young adult offered me a pamphlet as I detrained* the other morning, I took it. It turned out to be a Public Transport User Survey and the instructions entreated “Please place your completed survey form, and the pencil provided...” – and that’s when I started wondering, yet again, about the way we, here in Australia, are asked to express our opinion in pencil. But I hadn’t thought it had spread from general practice for elections to surveys in the real world. Why can’t we write in pen for things which are supposedly important? All I can think is that pencils are cheaper. Because surely no one world want to change the submitted forms. I wonder if they disallow submissions which are not made in pencil? Ah well ...only are way to find out!
*I always thought I used to “get off the train” but on one trip on Queensland Rail last week an announcement referred to passengers “detraining” – so that’s what I do now that I’m in Queensland!

What will they think of next?

A nasal spray can make men more in tune with other people's feelings and boosts their ability to learn, say researchers. Chances are it's not the nasal spray that's advertised on large yellow billboards here in Australia which promises better partner relationships (that's obviously a euphemism). It makes me wonder if nasal delivery technology is effective - and if there's any substitute to taking the time to teach children about caring and compassion so it continues with them throughout their lives rather than a "quick fix" (and now I'm wondering about "quick fix" and where the term originated - and how it came to be used in drug culture). How would you test/measure the results for something like the caring nasal spray - where would you find the test subjects ... and would you pick people who were particularly "not" caring or a gradation of caring profiles - and is caring dependent on the beholder or a function of the circumstances and persons involved? Hmmm - so many questions - but, really, will anyone care?

Probably a misprint

From the Sydney Morning Herald's Technology section: "Microsoft has cancelled plans to launch a table to rival the iPad, for now.". Okay, it's probably a misprint but given the work Microsoft has pioneered in large touchscreen surfaces, there's a slim possibility that it really does mean "table" not "tablet".

All in the reporting

News this morning tells of the successful in-captivity breeding by an English aquarium of South American frogs which have a poison 200 times more powerful than morphine. The species, Phantasmal poison frogs, is bright red with three greenish fluorescent stripes, and is classed as endangered - with populations only surviving in seven (known) sites in Ecuador. Now the most interesting thing about these incredibly poisonous frogs - which was mentioned in the last paragraph of the news item I saw - is that their toxins can block pain 200 times more effectively than morphine without addiction and more serious side effects. (On re-reading the article, it was mentioned earlier - but I missed it in my haste to read the article to see why they were putting the effort in to saving this extremely rare poisonous amphibian.)

Art and life

This from Yahoo today: "The actress who played Thelma Lou on "The Andy Griffith Show" was robbed in the town that inspired the show's idyllic Mayberry setting, after moving to the area to avoid big city crime.". Times have changed.

Undecided

I am unsure what approach to take to today's Sudoku puzzle in The Daily Telegraph. It is rated as "easy/medium/hard". Hmmmm.

Horse sense?

The Victorian Government has a mission - to reunite Phar Lap for the 150th anniversay of The Melbounre Cup. I'd be more inclined to believe this story if it wasn't so close to 1 April - but the general gist is that they want Phar Lap's skeleton (currently in New Zealand) and his heart (currently in Canberra) brought to Melboure and displayed alongside his hide at Melbourne Museum. Racing figures are divided over the plan, some thinking it would be best if Phar Lap's bits were left in situ. I don't know if I'd like to see him in pieces like that - the least they could do - if the scheme does go ahead as planned - is put him back together!

On the run

From the land which gave us very funny footage of two fleeing handcuffed prisoners coming to grief when they tried to run on separate sides of an iron pole - knocking themselves unconscious in the process - comes news of two men trying to break INTO a New Zealand prison.
Security footage at Auckland's Mt Eden Prison shows the men running from the scene after they had tripped an alarm; they have not yet been tracked down. Local authorities are unsure whether the episode was a prank, or if the would-be intruders were intoxicated or fuelled by another motive; but they say it was good practice for their security staff - ahem ... not catching people escaping from the prison precinct???

Moving research

What do toads and cats have in common? If you believe some geologist-types, it's that both species can predict earthquakes and other natural phenomonen. Just before the massive earthquake in Italy recently, garden toads were on the move in large numbers. Anecdotal (almost) evidence - from lost and found ads in local newspapers show a noticeable spike in the number of missing cats before an earthquake. These are not isolated incidents but there appears to not yet be enough empirical evidence for the wider scientific community to see the theory as credible (or is that creditable?). It's a shame really because it it is true, there could finally be a good use for cane toads - which seem to be making larger inroads into the Australian continent every year.

Where there's smoke...

Cigarettes and smoking have received more than their usual share of attention in the news today - most of it controversial. A person associated with the Victor Chang Foundation has talked in Indonesian about smoking being healthy; police have said that smoking is good for you; and someone else has come out saying that pig products are used in cigarettes (the filters) which makes then questionable for people whose religious beliefs preclude then from partaking of pork.

Don't think so...

For a moment there, the chances of going along to see "Clash of the Titans" were quite good -until I saw the ad for the 3D version at a city bus stop: with Sam Worthington brandishing a large ball of snakes. In 3D... I don't think so - but may be there's a 2D version - if not I can wait until it comes out on DVD. (Surprisingly the giant scorpion perturbs me not.)

What next?

There was a report last week of a new mode of delivering explosives which was quite frightening. Apparently suicide bombers are now having explosives implanted in their bodies - bosoms or buttocks - which means it's available to both men and women. The implants are difficult, if not impossible, to detect using conventional methods like the full-body scanners being trialled/used in the United Kingdom. Of course, whether these scanners are an effective weapon in the fight against terrorism at all, implants notwithstanding, depends on the operators using then correctly and effectively - and not to "perv" on their co-workers as reportedly happened recently.

Silent-th

... which is not speaking with a lisp bit rather wondering why I hadn't noticed that I repeatedly don't pronounce the 'th' is 'asthma'. I might do a little poll to see if anyone else does this. You do?

Which ringtone are you?

When I changed from a Palm Treo 750 to Ivan the iPhone, I gave some people - the ones I was talking to as I learned how to make ringtones - the opportunity to choose their own. It started me thinking about what noise or song I would choose as my own personal ringtone. I'm still considering it; but I have chosen the default ring tone for the iPhone - "Hello Dolly" - which does make answering the phone interesting since I always want to answer "Hello" as the singing starts. Which ringtone would you choose?

A "punch" in the pants

... let's hope not. Electronic underpants are being rolled out at aged care facilities throughout NSW. Simavita is leading the change with the pants which send a text message to a central server when the wearer becomes incontinent. The seIf-alerting underwear will mean staff no longer need to conduct manual checks to see if residents are "comfortable" or in need of assistance.

Passive or active?

"Coolfacts", an application for the iPhone, suggests, as Fact #71, that the vocabulary of the average person consists of 5,000 to 6,000 words. How do they know? And how would you go about working out what your own vocabulary is - especially as we have two types of vocabulary - active (the words we use all the time) and passive (the words we know but don't use on a daily basis). Do you record yourself and count the words back? Or is there another way?

Voice activated

I downloaded Viigo for the iPhone yesterday (a birthday present) and so far I am not totally impressed with it. I downloaded an update a little while ago that is supposed to improve voice recognition/performance but will wait until I'm connected to a wi-fi hot spot before trying it. But it its amazing technology - to think that you can talk instructions and message into a device and it will "translate" it to text for you. This could do away with the need for texting while driving ... and leave the way open for emailing. Now if only it could speak your messages here like it does in the US.

Relatively speaking

When does a Sister become a Mother? Does she need to be made head of a convent or is there another path for "promotion"? And why have I never thought to wonder about this before ... and why now? I credit Mother Mary Mackillop and reports of her pending canonization.

Pesky email

Don't you just hate it when emails aren't delivered because corporate email filters won't let them through because they detect there's a photograph or two attached? So what do you do to get the email through? Any ideas?

D'oh moment

That loud noise just then was me doing a crossword puzzle and coming across the clue "stonecutter" and realizing how clever The Simpsons creators are. How many others did/not know that The Stonecutters of which Homer ultimately becomes leader before they reform the group to exclude him is actually based on the FreeMasons ... or Masons D'oh. I knew it of course, but I just hadn't put it all together in my conscious mind until the clues finally fell into place just then.

Entrpreneurial skills

Anthony Stancl, 19, of Wisconsin, has been sentenced to 15 years in jail after his blackmail scheme was exposed. Posing as a girl on Facebook, he tricked male classmates into sending him naked photos of themselves - and then he used the photos to blackmail them. What were they thinking? And would the reaction have been different if he had been blackmailing them for money rather than sexual favours?

No comment

Disturbed by the calibre of comments on their site, Engadget has turned off that capability to allow time for the more nasty, threatening commenters - definitely not the majority of their readers - to fall by the wayside or under the "banhammer". This is a breath of fresh air - just when you thought technology was just another avenue for bad behaviour you find that someone is taking some responsibility. Well done Engadget!

Words you don't expect to hear

"Soy milk - thanks Mum." Overheard at the Coles Supermarket, Broadway
NSW yesterday as it was excitedly spoken by a young child.
On the subject of soy milk, it seems one brand was recalled late last
year because of high levels of iodine - but because it tastes better
than other brands, especially in coffee, there's reportedly been a
"black market" trade of it out of a cafe in Sydney.

A matter of perception

There's an old Jewish story about a woman who complains to the Rabbi about her worries - and she appears to not be the only one - so he tells the townfolk to put their worries in a bag and bring them to the town well. He then instructs them to leave theirs and take someone else's. At the end of the week, everyone is clamouring to get their own worries back. I would do well to remember that the next time I complain about the woman at the bus stop chewing my ear off (not literally of course) about all manner of things - because it could always get worse! Yes, yes, there's no direct correlation between the story and the observation - it's sometimes just nice to share stories.

Please explain

What does a goat with a green frog sitting on its head have to do with the Trading Post? I must be right out of step with the modern advertising psyche but for the life of me I can't work it out what the banner poster us about - just attracting attention or does it hold some other, deeper message?

Sweet ...

It's not one of the easiest building materials, but chocolatiers in China are doing what they can to have chocolate more widely accepted there by erecting a smaller version of The Great Wall, and the famous TerraCotta Warriors, in chocolate. Up to 80 tons of chocolate have been used for displays to be shown in the World Chocolaye Wonderland
exhibition and trade show being held in Beijing this month. Hopefully this will give the Chinese market a real taste for chocolate.

High cost of hope

Following the devastatIng earthquake in Haiti last week, with the country's infrastructure in ruins, humanitarians are hard-pressed to get aid to the country and distribute it. One of the main problems is landing aid in the country especially as the airport is reduced to one airport and the country's main port has been damaged. The airport has been taken over by the US which said over the weekend that priority for the 400 flights a day would be in the order of: search and rescue, military and then humanitarian aircraft. It's an incredibly hard call to make - whether to look for injured and dying - especially when the country's medical and aid facilities are already stretched beyond capacity - military troops to keep order in a country where it is quickly disintegrating because people are hurt, hungry and overwhelmed by their situation, or to land food and other aid. It's a call even Solomon could find difficult to make.

Exceptional results

If you do a search of books formatted for Kindle from Amazon, you'll find more exceptional than mundane results - literally. There were only 2 of the latter - one about end of life communications, the other about physics. There are loads of "exceptional" results - from customer service to IT training to making the most of "you" and your life.

Taking a load off

A study released today reports that the weight of a woman's handbag has dropped dramatically over the last 2 years with the introduction and adoption of "new-generation multi-purpose gadgets". I have to agree - these days I've been known to take just the iPhone and leave the camera, mini laptop, Palm, and Bluetooth keyboard at home. This has got to be good news for my backpack which used to weigh in at over 5 kg. Of course, there are some things you still have to carry - like pen and paper for those times when you just have to "write" something (and I'm talking A4 size here - not "nana notebook").

Developing story

US military helps develop internet. China and the US develop trading relations. Google becomes key internet player. China censors internet. Google threatens to withdraw from China. The White House holds talks with Google. Who else thinks there's more to come with this story?

Secret (not any more) plan to save Earth from asteroid

It's like a blockbuster disaster movie
description: 350-metre wide asteroid Apophis could strike Earth in 26 years and could kill "hundreds of thousands" but is actually from today's news. The Russians are said to be preparing to meet to work out ways to prevent a collision when the asteroid passes within 30,000 km of the planet. Meanwhile, the US space agency NASA said in an October statement that updated computational techniques and newly available data indicate the probability of an Earth encounter on April 13, 2036, for Apophis has dropped from one-in-45,000 to about four-in-a-million. It's uncertain whether they wil join with the Russian to discuss the possibility of impact, or if they are making plans for April 14.

Holy apparitions

Not sure if this is something you would want or not - in today's paper there is a story of a woman who saw the face of Jesus on a banana peel - and she is no stranger to this type of thing ... apparentlly a friend of hers saw an apparition of Mary in the mould of their shower floor. Now what was that about godliness and cleanliness?

Way too easy

Hmm - Kindle for the iPhone and iPod Touch is now available in Australia and I downloaded it on the way to work this morning ... and "The Lost Symbol" and a sample of "Flashforward" and ... well, that was it so far but it is way too easy to buy books this way especially with the 1-click option! It will be interesting to see if Amazon (owners of Kindle) have eliminated the pesky geography issues that plague some other online ebook sellers. Now if only the Kindl application was more customisable and/or provided a plainer typeface.

Word of the day ...

"paywall" - like a firewall on your computer that keeps bugs and other unfriendlies out - but in reverse - you can't get access unless you pay. Expect to see more of these - especially from the publishers who are keen to have us pay fir content.

Peaceful words

In accepting the Nobel Peace Prize last week, US President Barack Obama reportedly defended the right of his country to wage "just wars" in the name of peace. Somehow doesn't seem quite in keeping with the occasion - although given that the Nobel prize was established by the man who invented dynamite, maybe it's not that far off the mark.

Home for the holidays

It just makes me want to rush out and buy his new book (which I would have already if they weren't holding up the e-version because thy were afraid it would hurt hard-cover sales) ... Author Stephen King and his wife are donating money so 150 soldiers from the Maine Army National Guard can come home for the holidays.

In the news

Seems you can't look at a newspaper or magazine (or blog) these days without reading something about Tiger Woods. I was surprised to find, in one edited transcript of SMS exchanges between the Tiger and one of his "friends", that he referred to himself as "blasian". I'd not heard the term before. Nor the phrase, in the same report, "beyond PR redemption". So does this mean that the saying "no publicity is bad publicity" may need revisiting?

EPublishing

It's kind of odd that there's so much yet so little happening about electronic publishing. On one hand there's the US magazine publishers who are looking to provide a delivery mechanism for use on all manner of devices; and on the other there's the move by publishers to delay release of ebooks so they don't interfere with hardcover sales. I guess it's all about maximizing profits ... but who knew ebook readers would be worse off the more popular electronic material became?

Holler for a ...

A "to do" list can be a helpful thing: place to hold up - check; hand gun - check; getaway car ... oops. Police yesterday caught a man who had allegedly tried to hold up a hotel in Alexandria, Sydney, as he tried to hail a cab to make his getaway. Whi said there's never a cab around when you need one?

One of a kind?

How do you personalize your wedding? The latest craze seems to be to take part in a "drown the gown" ceremony which is reportedly ((The Daily Telegraph) being adopted by newlyweds looking for more extreme ways to make their wedding their own/memorable. I guess it's different from going out in your wedding best and having a paint ball skirmish. Not sure what it says about the venerated institution of marriage ... or if it affects the resale value ...

On the moose ...

If you’re going walking in the woods near Loftahammer, Sweden, be on the lookout for moose – especially those who have been eating fermented fallen apples. While moose normally run away from humans, if they’ve been supping on the apples they can become aggressive – and, it seems, aggressive enough to kill. A man who was arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife last September was cleared after police decided she was probably killed by a moose - a decision they made after finding moose hair and saliva on his wife’s clothes. Thank goodness for forensics but it's tragic about the apple-affected moose.

Sky high

A 56-cm (22") high figurine of King Kong, as used in the original movie about the giant ape, recently sold at auction at Christie's in London for $217,450. The figurine was used in the final scene of the movie where the ape attempts to fend off fighter planes as it stands atop the Empire State Building. How could you let something like that go?

Drawing a conclusion

This is from Sydney's The Daily Telegraph yesterday and highlights the power of drawing .... this "crude" sketch has led to an arrest in a murder case. Details can be found here.

Set phaser to "stun"

New technology news tells of scientists showing off a device that would be more at home on Star Trek - a "phaser". Alas at this point, we're still in trouble if the aliens come - unless they're tiny worms called nematodes - because that's currently the only thing the phaser seems to work on. What are the chances?

Eating it up

It makes you wonder about how different the world would be if everyone had access to the same information. In the news this morning, there's a report from Moscow of three homeless men who killed another man, ate parts of his body and sold some of the meat to a kebab stand. The three men were reportedly acting out of "personal hostility toward the victim". Now, if they'd read the newspapers last week, they may have claimed a different motivation - after a man charged with cannibalism received a reduced sentence, if any (I really do need a mobile internet connection that works well - or to note these things down when I read them) because he said he was "starving". I'm not sure if he murdered his victim ... oh wait, here it is ... in Russia, a judge reduced the sentence of a man who had killed his mother (after she had refused to give him money for drink) and then eaten part of her a couple of days later because he was hungry and had to eat. Mmmm ... or rather, hmmmm, what will they think of next in way of defences?

2000 and counting

Life seems to get busier at times but we still find time for the important things - which is why I've just hit the 2000 post mark here. More to come.

Why don't they just say so?

A recent JB HiFi Catalogue featured a range of DVDs which boasted covers with lenticular printing. I suspected that meant those where the images changes and looks like 3-D and that seems to be what it is, but why didn't they just say so?

A matter of record

French President Nicholas Sarkozy appears to have been caught out in a fib. A photo was posted or Facebook which shows him chipping away at the Berlin Wall on the night it came down. Only problem is, is that from official council records it appears he was in Paris that day and would probably not have reached Berlin until two days later. It's amazing because, if it is true that he wasn't there on the day, why would he want to claim he was? Surely being there at all is enough of a slice of history.

Sign of the times?

The new Limited Collector's Edition DVD of Twilight is "brimming" with special features - one of which is a digital copy so, as was noted in the review in today's The Daily Telegraph "(Twihards) can carry the movie everywhere on an iPod or iPhone". What will they think of next? And are there any types of copy protection on the digital copy so Twihards (I don't like the use of this word because I know some and they are very nice people - but it is an amazing neologism (new-word-combination if that in itself was a word ... which I am sure it is but can't find on the dictionary this morning ... of course it helps if you spell it correctly ... not as neogolism - you have to love spell check) and is kind of fun to say - especially if you say it over and over again quickly.

Tourist tax

What will they think of next? First it's parking fees at Sydney's popular beaches and now there's talk of a tourist tax on visitors to the Blue Mountains - plus more parking meters as well! What happened to the land of the free - oops wrong country.

One for the dogs

Pals who have cattle dogs are quite fond of them - and quite rightly it seems. Teka the cattle dog was given an RSPCA Achievement Award earlier this week for saving his owner, Jim Touzeau, who had suffered a heart attack. The dog did so by jumping up and down on his chest. So how did he know how to do it? ER and hispital reality shows? Or some innate instinct? Like the cat who came to the assistance of someone we know - she was upset and having difficulty catching her breath. The cat came to her, put its paws on her shoulders and stayed with her, breathing on her face as if to model how it was done, until she started breathing properly again.
The "humanness" of animals has been in the news this week with the story of a group of chimpanzees who grieved as a group over the passing of Dorothy, one of their number, at a Rescue Centre in Cameroon, west Africa.

Out of control

It must be very hard for a judge and jury to work out what is truth and what is not ... although in this instance you would hope some medical evidence would be able to help. On 21 October 2007, Adnan Safwan was allegedly in charge of a boat which crashed into a bridge pylon causing the death of his passenger. He was charged with "dangerous navigation" but is pleading "not guilty" by virtue of the fact that his passenger had knocked him out with an anchor before the vessel hit the pylon. This would suggest that he wasn't in control of the vessel and therefore could not be held responsible for piloting it (or not piloting it). The question that comes to mind though, is why would a passenger on a boat hit the person driving it with an anchor? Hopefully these, and other questions, will be answered at the trial and justice will be done.

Not quite sure

The headlines in the Sydney papers today are about whether one of murdered heart surgeon Victor Chang's killers should be released "early" from prison after serving his minimum sentence of 18 years. At this point, it would be good if we knew more about sentencing and minimum requirements worked. One of the more amazing things about the debate though is whether people commit more of a crime if they murder someone who could have done great good if they had not been killed. A comment on the reaction line of a radio station this morning suggested that people who kill drug dealers should get a shorter sentence. They stopped short of suggesting such killers be given a reward (or would that be a bounty in this situation?).
It is an emotionally charged issue, one to which there are no easy answers. But it has raised an issue about process. Apparently, Victor Chang's family were not invited to the initial hearing about his killer's release. Maybe that needs to be done as a matter of course from now on - regardless of how long ago the crime was committed.
It would be interesting to see if this raises new call for the re-introduction of capital punishment: dead men (and women) don't get early release ... or do they?

Sailing away

Jessica Watson set sail from Sydney yesterday in her attempt to become the youngest person to sail around the world. There has been much speculation about whether, at 16, she is too young to attempt this solo feat. But, some of that concern was questioned this morning on a Sydney radio station, when they said that if she gets in trouble, she can always find a container ship - a reference to her collision with a container ship on her first test outing from Brisbane to Sydney? But it's good to know that she's finally on herf way - and that her mother made a quick sneak visit on board before Jessica set off to leave some secret treats and Christmas presents for her courageous daughter.

Seems about right

While looking for news of the balloon boy this morning, I looked at the Reuters Odd News and there was a headline: Burning bunnies helps keep people warm and cozy. Intrigued, I clicked on the link only to get the message "Sorry, there's a problem with this page". They may have got that right - but until the content can be accessed, we may never know.

Common endeavours

More questions ... again from radio listening. Hilary Clinton has been in talks with the Russians about missile defence and she was quoted (and no, I didn't realise I needed to copy down the quote until after it was over and gone forever in the ether - until the next bulletin at least) as saying it was a "common" interest. Hmmm - this could suggest that they are worried about a common enemy - or does it just seem that way.

What's in a word

Listening to the radio this morning, there was some discussion about whether criminals or their families should be allowed to make money from writing books about their wrongdoings. The word "profiting" was used, but also "profiteering" and I was sent to the dictionary to determine the distinction. I admit, I am still a little confused. Profiteering relates to making an unreasonable or excessive profit. Profiting relates to deriving a benefit from. Both seem to work in this context.

Giving it back

News reports this morning suggest that Ben Lexen, credited with the design of the winged keel, that helped Australia win The America's Cup (way back when) was in fact only a small contributor to the project. A Dutch naval architect claims that he was the driving force behind the keel and was paid $25,000 by boat owner, Alan Bond, to keep the level of his involvement secret. According to The America's Cup rules, the competing boats have to be largely (wholly?) designed by the countries racing them. The question now is ... will Dr van Oossanen (the architect in question) feel compelled to give the money back? And another question is ... why come forward with the news now - when Ben Lexcen can't have a right of reply - and Mr Bond's memory has reportedly him in the past.

Apology

David Letterman's reaction to a blackmail threat last week was quite unexpected. He went public first - admitting on-air that he had slept with some of his female employees. Such was the surprise at this that it didn't even occur that despite having been in a long-term relationship and recently marrying his beau-ette - during his admission he didn't offer any apology - to her or generally. Not that there was any requirement for him to do, of course, but someone must have thought better of it because he has now made an on-air apology to his wife.

Best foot forward

This may be the start of an urban myth but while watching a report this morning on yesterday's Rugby League Grand Final there was the suggestion that Parramatta, the losing side, should have known what was in store when one of its players showed up wearing two left boots.

Piracy

News today is that the latest Dan Brown novel "The Lost Symbol" is now available for electronic download from various pirate sites on the web within a couple of days of its launch - and only a couple of days before "Talk Like A Pirate Day".
If you to procure it legally and electronically in Australia - it is apparently going to be available on publisher Random House Australia's web site from today. Asking price $49.95 - same as the hard copy - except there will reportedly be a 20% discount, although I don't know how long that will be available. I admit that seemed a bit rich to me - especially since some retailers here are selling the book version for under $25 - but I suppose publishers don't get this type of release every day: over 1 million copies were sold on its first day of release in the US, Canada and Britian. While this is amazing, it falls short of the record for a book's debut - 8 million copies in the US alone for JK Rowling's last instalment in the Harry Potter series.

Jaywalking

There's going to be a crackdown on jaywalking on the streets of Sydney - but in the article I read about it, they didn't quite say what "jaywalking" was or is. The only clue is that you need to go with the "go" or "green" or "little walking man". But can you cross while you're texting, or have both ears busy with music, or at places on the street where there aren't traffic lights or pedestrian crossing? The fine will be apparently be $56. I always thought that Jaywalking was something Americans did - and it seems we're not going to get an Australian word to cover whatever the behaviour is. According to the Wordbook dictionary by TranCreative LLC - including content from WordNet 3.0, Wiktionary.com and Wikipedia.com: to Jaywalk is to cross the road at a red light. It's ORIGIN: Jay + walk, jay in its obsolete form meaning a dull or ignorant person. Hmmm.
A quick visit to a couple of sites suggests that jaywalking can include staying on the road longer than is necessary to cross it. Hmmm ... again - although it's possible alcohol could be involved in these, and other, instances.

The Living Years

There are some items that seem as though they should carry a "Paid Advertisement" notification ... or at least some explanation as to why it carries the cost it does. In the paper today I saw an article about something which has apparently been called "Facebook for the dead" - a site where family and friends can post photos, videos and memories of their loved ones who are no longer with us. The site is called The Living Years and the site's ambassador - former athlete Jane Flemming - is reported as saying of the site, which the developers have designed to be easy for anyone to use - "if you can Google, you can create a lifebook on Living Years".
It is free to create and keep a lifebook for two weeks but to keep it going after that will cost $5 a month. Now, I know that this has been set up as a business but it seems that the costs could be offset by advertising - or maybe they are. And after having a quick look at the site, it seems that there is now a way to donate to a charity - there are several currently affiliated with the site - as well as other end of life businesses.
When I get a moment, I must check to see what similar sites exist.

Annoyed - The Lost Opportunity

Well, the new Dan Brown book (The Lost Symbol) is out today - for $49.95 here in Australia and since I'm not interested in the hard copy version, I went to Fictionwise.com to buy an electronic version. I thought I was getting fantastic deal - since it's on sale on Preorder for $9.99 plus I had a coupon for 25% discount - which meant I could purchase for the credit I currently have in-store. Well, that was the plan ... until I went through the first stage of check-out only to be told that there is a geographical restriction on the book ... which means I cannot get it. So does that mean it's not going to be available in Australia in ebook form? Not that it would be the first book. But it does seem to be counter-productive to move into a new technology that can use the internet for distribution and not be able to use it globally. I'll check some local booksellers and see if they have it but at this rate, in protest, I may wait for it to be available at the local library - which was supposed to have an catalogue of e-books (in PDF format) go online yesterday.

Trapped

I made the mistake of reading what is supposed to be "fact" at the start of an excerpt from Dan Brown's latest novel "The Lost Symbol" - and I am almost hooked but wonder whether it is truly "fact" and if it is, how on earth could Dan (or his wife if she is still helping with his research as was suggested some time ago) know. The fact (paraphrased): In 1991 a document was locked in the safe of the CIA's direction. It is still there and includes refererences to an ancient portal and an unknown underground location. [Of course, I'm thinking Star Gate as opposed to a mere a door]. Where does the portal lead, what does it do, and why is Dan Brown sending Robert Langdon on a mission to "unravel ancient secrets" - what benefit will it provide (besides the obvious ones to the author and publisher)? And when does the book come out?

Not very Christian behaviour

According to a report in today's The Daily Telegraph, after World Youth Day last year, 550 of the pilgrims did not go home. Since then, Federal authorities have caught and expelled just over half of them, but 280 are still out there somewhere. Of course, they shouldn't be hard to find - The World Youth Day pilgrims were noted for spontaneously forming a circle and bursting out singing. And some had legitimate cause for rejoicing, as well as their love of The Almighty, as some (86) were granted protection visas as they could not return home safely. Another 90 are awaiting advice as to whether their visas will be extended.
The most amazing thing about this item was the last sentence: The Department of Immigration and Citizenship deals with 26 million people each year. That's about the current population of Australia.

Fresh idea

But it's not necessarily a new idea because the man at the newsagency said he had been trying to explain what a great and easy concept it was to someone over a year ago. A company is marketing Fresh Ink -printer ink cartridges which are categorized by pictures. So instead of buying a Canon BCI cartridge - you buy a Strawberry. A sticker comes with each cartridge so you can put it in a safe place - and, just in case you tire of the novelty (or they go out of business - please no!) it also gives the real model of the cartridge so you can purchase one elsewhere. Oh, and did I mention that even though they aren't brand name, their use won't void your printer's warranty - or so the man at the newsagency said.

Learning styles

We all have different learning styles, but what I'm surprised about is that I seem to have different learning styles for different tasks. I'm currently trying to learn a sequence of 37 numbers, and their relationship to each other i.e. how many numbers between one number and another in the sequence, and I am finding it hard going. I have tried a number of ways, but each So for has been found wanting... although, truth be told, maybe I've just forgotten how to rote learn. how sad would that be. Or maybe I need to think about it differently: l'm off to search on the web for a mnemonic. (Hmm -mnemonic, I think 1 read somewhere that there is no mnemonic for mnemonic - and what a strange word it is if you write it several times quickly).

Not getting into hot water

If you're in Australia and you're currently using a hot water bottle for those chilly nights, you might want to check the brand. Of 30 brands currently available here, it seems the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission found 18 failed safety standards. And it's not just their opinion: in NSW alone, 111 people were treated for severe burns from scalds from hot water bottles from January 2006 to August 2009. It's unclear why it has taken so long for this menace to become public or how many of the injuries have resulted from people not knowing how to safely use a hot water bottle. If you're unsure - or just want to check your current hot water bottle does meet the safety standards - visit the ACCC website at http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/759045/fromItemId/3737.

Dump button

Hmmm - what's the point of installing a "kill" switch to stop inappropriate content going to air if it's not used. I'm referring to the Kyle and Jackie O show broadcast from a Sydney radio station which had been criticised a short while ago for an on-air lie detector test on a young girl. Well, Kyle has been at it again - but this time, even though the "kill" switch was there - it wasn't used. The question is ... why? Were staff too slow to catch it - or did they too think the remark was acceptable? And does having a "kill" switch mean Kyle can now be even more outrageous (if he wasn't currently forced off-air for 10 days) because it is someone else's responsibility to monitor what comes out of his mouth? Whatever the reasoning, I'm probably not the only one who thinks that it's time this stuff was not taking up the front page of the newspaper (if I was more cynical I'd be checking to see if The Daily Telegraph has financial tie-ins with 2DayFM).

Hard to fathom

I read a report in the paper this morning about a couple who are about to go on trial in France for allegedly murdering their two children in 2005. The children, both aged 8, were allegedly fed poisioned cannelloni because their parents thought they would be "better able to pull themselves out of debt without them". This is a far cry from the story of the woman at the bus stop this morning who was telling me she was prepared to fight her partner (even though she loves him very much) for the opportunity to send their daughter to boarding school to give her a chance at a better education.

QI

A mate has introduced me to a series which has been kicking around in the UK for a while now - QI. It is magnificient - a comedy panel show based on obscure facts. Points are awarded for right answers - and for wrong answers that are interesting - hence the name QI or Quite Interesting. In the last three shows I have watched there have been references to items that have captured my curiousity in the past: the final use of the guillotine for public execution in France (1977), the suicide of Carruthers - the man who invented Nylon, and the 16 mile-high jump out of a balloon by Joe Kittinger. If you see it in your travels, and like good banter, this could be the show for you too.

Facebook to the rescue

The Daily Telegraph today reports on two young girls, 10 and 12, who, when trapped in a drain over the weekend while doing "urban caving", called for help on their mobile phone by updating their Facebook status. Now, I know I'm a little old fashioned when it comes to some things, but wouldn't it have been better to use the phone to call the emergency services and then, as they waited, update Facebook? Seems the younger generation might approach communication in an entirely different way to the rest of us.

Dilemma

After returning The Daily Telegraph to its spot at the coffee shop, after I'd finished reading it, and making my way upstairs, I saw a scratch lottery ticket under the table where I had my "stuff" set up. Of course, I bent to retrieve it, and at that moment, it occurred to me that it might (yes, I know unlikely) be a winning ticket. How then would I go about finding its owner and returning it - or, if it was the jackpot winner (yes, yes, rich fantasy life) would I be tempted by the $50,000 prize NOT to return it? Rather than face the dilemma, I thought about leaving it there ... knowing that the owner would come looking for it if it was a winner - or, if not, it would be collected by the cleaning staff. Thought about it ... in the end, I decided if I couldn't trust myself, who could I trust? (The ticket was not a winner but it was a pretty green colour, and the person who had scratched it had done a very good job of removing all the - whatever you call that easily scratch-off covering they use on instant lottery tickets.)

Crasher

If you haven't heard about Crasher Squirrel yet, do a Google search and see if you can find him in the now famous photo with his new "friends".

Whacking day

Just when children in New Zealand were getting used to the no-smack policy - where it was illegal to smack children - more than 80% of their adults have voted to have that particular legislation repealed. Reading up on the thoughts and rationale about how the legislation passed at the polls in the first instance, and then what led to a vote for repeal, is now on my list of things to do.

Nice work

The Australian Army has commissioned a 3.5-year, $2.5 million study by the University of Wollongong to determine how fit is fit, and how fit someone in the army needs to do be to fulfill their particular role/s. At present, all army personnel face the "romantic idea" that they should be battle-ready at a moment's notice - even if they are support personnel confined to base. The study will question that particular notion - at a rate of $2,747.25 a day, based on a 52-week year, and a 5 day week (and trusting that my mathematics skills and calculator are working as expected).

Cutting back on complaints

Word is that the people of NSW will not be able to take their complaints about the State Government to the Ombudsman, as they used to. The Ombudsman has reportedly written to State MPs to say they may receive them instead as his office is contemplating service cuts as they run out of the readies "... for complaint handling and resolution work." It's a wonder no one thought of it sooner ... take away the complaints handling body to make the complaints go away.

One to think about

Isn't it the tiniest bit odd that you can't really play Uno by yourself? You know - Uno - Italian and Spanish for 'one'.

Telco continuation

Why do companies have databases where they keep your records if they don't keep your records? Or doesn't it work if you ask them to? I rang my Telco again on the weekend about my continuing network issues - and spent more than 20 minutes going through the issue, history, attempted fixes etc before the Customer Service Officer offered to put me through to Priority Care ... except they weren't there yet. Could he please note down the details of the call so that when I called back, I could be transferred through without having to go through the details again? Certainly, he assured me. Hmmmm. That's not exactly what happened - but I was only on for 15 minutes or so before I finally made it to Priority Care - who then only needed the short form version to finally be able to help me unlock my out-of-contract handset to see whether it or the network coverage - or possibly the SIM card - were contributing to my coverage issues. Coincidentally, when I picked up a new SIM card yesterday - might as well cover all the bases - someone else was asking about their decreased network coverage. It may finally be time to have a look for similar issues on the Internet.

Taking a gamble

Been wondering about a winning system at the casino? Wonder no more. According to today's The Sunday Telegraph, Rob Parsons - touter of "how to beat the casino at Roulette and Blackjack" (my paraphrasing) is looking to have as many people as possible use his Roulette system to protest StarCity Casino's "unfair" BlackJack dealing system. I must have misread the report because it seemed as though the system was going to be freely available ie at no cost. I've just been to look at the website mentioned in the article (I wrote that down) - but can't see anything there that supports that - so I'll just have to rely on M to keep working on her system. (I was looking at BlackJack, but if my chances at winning are decreased because of continuous shoe-shuffling or something ... maybe I can seek other ways to make my fortune.)

Loophole

This sounds pretty interesting - but you can understand why there weren't more details in the report: a New Zealand woman has been jailed for a year for defrauding a bank of more than $110,000 when she "stumbled" over an Internet banking loophole. Hope she didn't hurt herself in the process.

Overheard at The Post

"What if a little old lady comes in and buys a ticket to Athens and then drops dead because we've given her swine flu."

Upselling

"For only $5 more you can get another 6" said the young man behind the counter. For a moment I thought I was at Maccas (Fries with that?" - is that still a common practice there?) but no, it's another chain - Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. I'm hanging out here using the WiFi as I wait for S to arrive (she's flying onto the airport - 1 minutes drive away) and felt obliged to buy a drink - stil cheaper than paying for airport parking. It is a day of celebration here - the 5th anniversary of the store's opening. I'm not sure if it would still be as popular with parents with small children if there wasn't today's special attractions - doughnut decorating, facepainting, fairy and magician - and a gold coin donation sausage sizzle (smells pretty good too). And popular it is. Although it would be nice if the fairy - a teenager with big blue wings - seemed more engaged and less distracted; admittedly it is one of the first times I have seen a mature fairy in the wild so I don't know if it is customary for them to be talking into a mobile phone rather than brandishing a wand. I can't wait for the magician. Really.