"Doctors issue warning on iPod finger, the latest hi-tech ailment
It could be time to discard the adage that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. With Apple Computer's iPod digital music player continuing to sell well, and the tiny iPod nano set to be one of the must-have gifts this Christmas, physicians are now warning that the first cases of a condition they are labelling 'iPod finger' have started to emerge.

'Handheld music machines are extremely popular and users are constantly using small, difficult buttons with the same finger in a repetitive motion,' said Carl Irwin from the British Chiropractic Association. 'The nature of modern technology means that these devices are only going to be getting smaller, and I would not be surprised if hand and finger related injuries become one of the most common repetitive strain injuries that chiropractors treat.'"


...writes Bobbie Johnson in The Guardian, Tuesday December 6, 2005. I would have thought you'd be just as likely to suffer RSI from texting with a mobile phone - and millions more people do that than listen to an iPod.

Guardian Unlimited Technology | Technology | Doctors issue warning on iPod finger, the latest hi-tech ailment

Technorati tags: ipod RSI repetitive strain injury

"Recyclers' rubbish dumped abroad
Councils are investigating what happens to their recycled rubbish after the BBC revealed 500 tonnes had been shipped unsorted to Indonesia. According to the Environment Agency, about half of the 8m tons of green bin material thrown out each year in the UK ends up overseas."

Extraordinary. Recycling material takes energy. Transporting it takes more energy. The government encourages us to recycle, specifically with its landfill tax (which has also led to flytipping) and now it turns out that we're exporting waste instead.

See Real Story, 19:30 GMT tonight on BBC1.

BBC NEWS | Programmes | Real Story | Recyclers' rubbish dumped abroad

Technorati tags: export recycling waste materials

"Sorry, prime minister, your legacy will be a disastrous foreign war
In his old age it will seem monstrously unfair to him, but Tony Blair will be remembered for one terrible misjudgment. We all enthuse about a will, if we stand to inherit something from it. It is hard to suggest, however, that the prospect of a legacy from Tony Blair is rousing the British people to excitement.

Blair will be recognised by history as a consummate politician, orator, vote-winner. It seems unlikely, however, that he will be judged to have used the power he gained to much lasting effect. To a remarkable degree, he has presided over Britain rather than ruled it.

Galling though it must be to him, Blair's legacy will be Iraq. It is plain that, whatever the outcome, it will not be a happy one. Whether or no the coalition forces swiftly depart, the saga will drag on for years, poisoning western relations with the Islamic world. It is unlikely that Iraq can be sustained as a unitary state. Much more bloodshed is to come."

...writes respected author and military historian Max Hastings in The Guardian.

Guardian Unlimited Politics | Comment | Sorry, prime minister, your legacy will be a disastrous foreign war

Technorati tags: Blair Iraq war legacy

Round Three of the FA cup as been drawn and, providing we can beat Stevenage in our replay a week Tuesday, Northampton will face Crystal Palace. But think of non-league sides Burton and Burscough (whose second round match was postponed because the pitch was unplayable), one of whom will meet Man United!

Stevenage vs Northampton, FA Cup

The Cobblers travelled to non-league Stevenage Borough for their FA Cup 2nd round game yesterday. A near capacity crowd, in front of BBC Match of the Day cameras, witnessed a to-and-fro performance, with Boro by no means outclassed by a typical lack-lustre effort from the Cobblers. Boro scored first and for a long time it didn't look like Town would manage to get a single goal after that. Things changed after a cracking shot from Town's Pedj Bjic and Boro conceeding a penalty, leaving the Cobblers fans very vocal. But Boro bounced back to force a tie just minutes later. Final score: Stevenage Borough 2 - Northampton Town 2. The replay is to be held at Sixfields, week after next.

I must apologise to the guy I splashed this morning as I drove out of Waitrose car park.

"Blair reignites nuclear arguments
A fierce debate over nuclear power is under way after Tony Blair launched an energy review which could pave the way for a new generation of nuclear plants. The energy review would be headed by the Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks and report by the middle of next year, he announced. It would measure the UK's progress against a review carried out two years ago."

A review. We're going to think about it. Again. That's all we ever do - think about things, have meetings, hold conferences. That's two years and now another six months wasted. Pathetic.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Blair reignites nuclear arguments
Technorati tags: energy review Blair nuclear power

" How coal is cleaning up its act
Coal is back on the agenda as a serious player in meeting the world's future energy demands.

After being pushed to one side in [Thatcher's] 'dash for gas' in the 1990s [subsequent to her selling off the nationalised power generation utilities], attention is returning to the role of coal in the global energy mix because of its widespread availability and stable price."

I read recently that since Thatcher destroyed our own coal industry, and made certain that our own mines could never be used again by allowing them to flood, we now import and burn dirtier coal from abroad. However, coal is still less efficient than gas - and China is set to build hundreds more coal-fired power stations as its economy grows.

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | How coal is cleaning up its act

Technorati tags: climate summit montreal kyoto

Grey Heron

Grey Heron
Photo uploaded to flickr 27 Nov '05, 8.10pm PST by hockeyshooter

This grey heron visited next door's roof again today, presumably wondering if there are any fish in their pond.

An injury time goal from Josh Low gave Northampton Town a point against Lincoln City in their League 2 game today. Lincoln, who appearently hadn't won in 10 games, were very dominant in the first half, and the Cobblers were extremely lucky to have not been beated. Quite why Manager Colin Calderwood chose not to go with the same starting lineup as the previous week, when we beat Bristol Rovers 4-0 last week, I have no idea.

This is an interesting organisation who arrange help for charities and the like to get on the web.

"InterConnection works to make Internet technology accessible to non-profit organizations in developing countries. Founded in February 1999, the organization has grown to include a pool of over 100 Virtual Volunteers; it has supported over 70 organizations in 23 countries, and it has partnered with several international development organizations."

InterConnection - website support for non profits and NGOs in developing countries

"Brown urges worker wage restraint
Pay increases for millions of public sector workers should be held down to close to 2% to limit the risk of inflation, Gordon Brown has said. The chancellor has asked the bodies which review pay deals for doctors, teachers and some civil servants to remember the need for wage discipline."

What was your pay increase this year, chancellor? With gas and electricity going up at least 12% and house prices (and hence mortgage payments) going through the roof, why is it that public sector workers should be the ones to feel the pinch just to keep your obviously plucked-out-of-the-air figure for inflation down? I see strikes on the horizon.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Brown urges worker wage restraint

Fire in security lodge

Fire in security lodge
Photo uploaded to flickr 23 Nov '05, 9.14am PST by hockeyshooter

I guess the safest place to have a fire, if you're going to have one, is in your own security lodge.

Mazda UK does a 404

Mazda UK does a 404
Photo uploaded to flickr 21 Nov '05, 8.22pm PST by hockeyshooter

Just as Fifth Gear are reviewing the new Mazda MX5, I check the UK website - and find this. Good timing, Mazda.

Northampton 4 Bristol Rovers 0

At long last, a decisive home vistory for The Cobblers. Bristol actually dominated for the first 20 minutes and it looked like the game had the makings of another draw. Manager Colin Calderwood had changed the lineup for this game, benching forward Scott McGleish in favour of Andy Kirk and Junior Mendes on the front row. Kirk scored two, one from Smith and a nail in the coffin just before the end from Pedj Bojic - his first home goal with the club. The win lifts the Cobblers one place in the League 2 table.

"Man challenges fine with 1689 law
A man has invoked the 1689 Bill of Rights to fight a £60 parking fine from Worcester City Council at a tribunal. Robin de Crittenden, 67, of Willenhall, near Wolverhampton, argues the bill protects people from having to pay fines until convicted by a court. He said the challenge aimed 'to put the politicians back in their kennels'."

Good on yer, mate. Most companies that clamp use it as a way to print money. Existing government legislation is useless.

BBC NEWS | England | Hereford/Worcs | Man challenges fine with 1689 law

"Ex-MI5 chief sparks ID card row
The case for identity cards has been branded 'bogus' after an ex-MI5 chief said they might not help fight terror. Dame Stella Rimington has said most documents could be forged and this would render ID cards 'useless'.

The Conservatives said her comments showed the cards could be counter-productive. The Lib Dems said plans should be abandoned. Downing Street has so far only said Dame Stella is a private individual who was entitled to her views."

I can't help thinking that she would have been described somewhat differently if she'd have had the opposite opinion of them.

"She said: 'ID cards have possibly some purpose. But I don't think that anybody in the intelligence services, particularly in my former service, would be pressing for ID cards. My angle on ID cards is that they may be of some use but only if they can be made unforgeable - and all our other documentation is quite easy to forge. If we have ID cards at vast expense and people can go into a back room and forge them they are going to be absolutely useless.'"

Well, that's pretty unequivocal.

"Former government crime advisor Lord Mackenzie disagreed with Dame Stella's assessment, saying there were plenty of examples of occasions when ID cards would have prevented crime. He told BBC News: 'Let's look at the Soham murders. If Ian Huntley had had an identity card, would he have got the job at Soham school which allowed him to commit the murders? I think not.'"

And why not? Did he apply for the job under a different name? Did he try to hide his identity?

BBC NEWS | Politics | Ex-MI5 chief sparks ID card row
Technorati tags: security id.cards MI5 civil liberties

"UK 'benefits from Afghan peace'
Establishing peace in Afghanistan is in Britain's best interests, the Defence Secretary John Reid has said. The supply of drugs from the country (as well as the presence of terrorists there) threatened the region and also the wider world, he said."

Under the Taleban, the export of drugs from Afghanistan had tumbled dramatically. As soon as they were kicked out by us and the USA, exports reached new record levels. So I don't know what he gets these ideas from. See these earlier reports:

BBC News | UN warns on opium fears

"Under the Taleban authorities, poppy cultivation was prohibited. The ban had been decreed by the Taleban's spiritual leader Mullah Mohammad Omar in July 2000 and led to a massive fall in production in the last growing season, according to the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP)."

BBC News | US concern at Afghan opium surge

"Spelling mistake wastes £23,000
A spelling error in last month's education white paper meant it had to be reprinted the day before publication at a cost of 'just under £23,000'. Education minister Lord Adonis, who made the admission in a written reply, blamed 'minor drafting errors'. A slogan was mistakenly spelt 'Higer Standards, Better Schools for All'. Liberal Democrat spokesman Baroness Walmsley said this raised questions about the 'standard of literacy' among some Whitehall officials."

Nice to see the Government spending our money so wisely.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Spelling mistake wastes £23,000
Technorati tags: education government spending waste

"Longer pub opening gets go-ahead
The government has beaten off a last-ditch attempt to prevent pubs opening round-the-clock from next week. A Conservative motion to cancel the part of the Licensing Act allowing extended hours was defeated by 74 votes in the Commons.

Opponents say later closing times will lead to increased crime, violence and anti-social behaviour. But ministers say the plans, which come into effect on 24 November, will encourage 'grown-up' drinking habits."

Just glad I don't live next to a pub. And you can bet that the clowns who thought this idiotic idea up don't either.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Longer pub opening gets go-ahead

"Blair 'failing' over environment
Environmental charity WWF UK has severely criticised the government for what it says is a lack of action on climate change and the environment. It says the UK has wasted opportunities presented by its presidency of the EU and the G8 group of wealthy nations. And despite differences in rhetoric, there is little to choose between Tony Blair and US President George W Bush.

But a Downing Street spokesman said the government had achieved wide consensus in the G8 on tackling greenhouse gases. Last year environmental charities applauded the prime minister when he said he would make climate change a priority.

But WWF UK now says he was trying to please environmentally concerned voters more than demonstrating the will to use leadership in tough negotiations."

Blair seems keen on talks and conferences and agreements, but in his own country, he appears to be doing almost nothing.

BBC NEWS | UK | Blair 'failing' over environment
Technorati tags: climate change blair government

Jake and family

Jake and family
Photo uploaded to flickr 13 Nov '05, 1.48pm PST by hockeyshooter

First time for me today shooting baby photos. This is young Jake, my great nephew, with his mum and dad. I don't think I've found a sport yet that is as difficult to photograph!

EOS1D, EF 28-70/2.8 L zoom, 1/250 @ f11, using two Courtenay flashes on stands with umbrellas, triggered by 550EX 1/32 power bounced off the ceiling, Lastolite background.

Britain raises its threat level
We've gone from "Pretend Nothing's Happening" to "Make Another Cup of Tea". Our higher levels are "Remain Resolutely Cheerful" and "Win". In parliament today, the British attitude level was raised from "Miffed" to "Peeved". Soon though, it may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross". Londoners have not been at "A Bit Cross" since the Blitz in 1940, when tea supplies all but ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorised from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance". The last time the "A Bloody Nuisance" warning level was issued was during the Great Fire, in 1666.

Joke - dead pan mode.

"Photographer Lord Lichfield dies
Royal photographer Lord Lichfield has died at the age of 66 after suffering a major stroke. The Queen was among the first to pay tribute to Lord Lichfield, saying she was 'deeply saddened' at the news. Lord Lichfield was the Queen's first cousin once removed and was the official photographer at the wedding of the Prince of Wales to Diana."

Patrick always came across as a "thoroughly nice chap". He'll be sadly missed, especially by the Queen.

BBC NEWS | UK | Photographer Lord Lichfield dies

"Call to outlaw net ticket touts
Concert, theatre and sport promoters are calling for ticket touting to be made illegal, saying the internet has made it easier to rip fans off."

Oh, the irony.

Lets see what it costs to see Elton John at the M.E.N. Arena Manchester next year. Ticket price £50.00 (yes, that's fifty quid). On top of that, a certain online ticket agency charge £6.00 'service charge' plus £1.75 postage. You sure you're not just wanting to protect your profits, guys?

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Call to outlaw net ticket touts

Have found that the website for the BT (that's British Telecom, the state telecoms company the Tories sold off at enormous loss to the nation - and enormous gain to the shareholders) Shop crashes - not just causes problems with, but actually crashes - Firefox web browser.

Yet more meddling in education from New Labour - a subject they just can't leave alone.

"Baby education 'absolute madness'
A national curriculum for babies and toddlers has been dismissed as 'absolute madness' by parents who fear childhood could be taken from children.

Under the Childcare Bill, childminders would teach the curriculum to children 'from birth' until they start school. All three-year-olds in childcare in England would learn rudimentary maths, language and literacy.

But the National Confederation of Parent Teacher Associations described the proposal as 'bizarre'. Spokeswoman Margaret Morrissey said: 'We are now in danger of taking away children's childhood when they leave the maternity ward. From the minute you are born and your parents go back to work, as the government has encouraged them to do, you are going to be ruled by the Department for Education. It is absolute madness.'"

An education spokesperson for the Government replied "we're the Government, we know best - any more arguement from you and you'll be sent to bed with no tea".

BBC NEWS | Education | Baby education 'absolute madness'

Ironic, don't you think, that in the same week as new anti-terrorist legislation is (narrowly) passed in Parliament, that specifically bans the "glorification" of terrorism, the British public waste £millions setting off explosives (fireworks) celebrating a 400-year-old act of terrorism. Is this therefore going to be the last Fireworks Night?

"'Gas muzzlers' challenge Bush

President George W Bush is facing a rebellion over his softly-softly approach to climate change. Nine north-eastern states are poised to sign an agreement setting Kyoto-style legal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from power stations.

New York and New Jersey are among these rebel states. And in California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is forging ahead with legislation to cut emissions from cars by 30% within a decade. This could transform the motor industry."

That's the way to go, guys. Ignore Bush - he's ignoring the problem. Its about time the US motor industry recognised they are part of the problem. And there's no excuse for not reducing electricity consumption.

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | 'Gas muzzlers' challenge Bush

Technorati tags: carbon global warming emissions bush

" '1.5m more' face inheritance tax
Rising house prices are to leave 1.5 million more people liable to pay inheritance tax, research suggests. It means the number of people over the tax threshold would soar by 70% from around 2m in 2002 to 3.5m in 2009."

Another stealth tax from New Labour. And another explaination as to why they didn't step in to slow house price growth.

BBC NEWS | UK | '1.5m more' face inheritance tax

Another Googlewhack

Another Googlewhack
Photo uploaded to flickr 3 Nov '05, 5.56pm PST by hockeyshooter

This is the second GoogleWhack in one day. A little more likely this time as its the name of my friend's cat. An ex-breeders and a show cat, its a pretty unusual phrase to start with.

You have received a new message

An attempt to make a posting via email via my Nokia 6230 mobile phone via MMS failed hopelessly. The Vodafone system mangled it, embedding lots of links and images.

A new member of our camera club has been asking about triggering studio flashes from his Canon SLR, feaful (and rightly so) that the high trigger voltage of the Courtenay heads might damage the camera. The "industry standard" solution to this is the Wein SafeSync but these cost a whacking £45, even via eBay. Thinking that they can't actually contain particular complicated electronics, I searched the web to see if anyone had managed to make their own. Its basically an opto-isolator:

Optoisolated Adapter for Older Flash Units to Low Voltage Cameras

Evidence of a Googlewhack

Evidence of a Googlewhack
Photo uploaded to flickr 3 Nov '05, 11.42am PST by hockeyshooter


Wow - I've just found a GoogleWhack. Of course, merely mentioning the word here will immediately ruin the GoogleWhack, so you need to view the screen grab I've uploaded to Flickr to see what it is. What I was actually looking for was Meet-O-Matic.

Technorati tags: googlewhack meeting organiser

Should you be offered some cheap Canon gear in London, fellow bppa member Terry Richards has had his kit stolen:
» a pair of Canon EOS1D MkII bodies
» a Canon 14mm f2.8
» a 17-35mm f2.8
» a 35-350mm L
» a 300 mm f4 L
» a boxed 1.4x converter

"£100 for an iTunes download: The real cost of roaming
Roaming Rip-Offs: Mobile phone operators are stinging GPRS and 3G users with roaming charges of up to £20 a megabyte. That works out at up to £100 for a single iTunes download, and up to £5 just to check your tariff"

The only time I use GPRS is when sending MMS (picture messages). I sometimes use this facility to send images to Flickr via email attachment (did quite a few from Italy) and this is the main reason why I bought my Nokia 6230 in the first place. Fortunately the images my phone takes are pretty small to start with (640 x 480) so even full sized, they don't represent much data. But the phone companies expect people to want to watch movies and "TV" on their phones - read this article and you'll see why.

This is another reason why the phone makers are keen to up the resolution of the cameras built in to phones - the lenses are often still pretty naff, so the increase quality is lost. But the files are enormous and unless you know how to set the phone so it reduces them before sending, it will end up costing you a fortune to send them as MMS.

£100 for an iTunes download: The real cost of roaming - ZDNet UK News

New Audio Recording Centre wiring

New Audio Recording Centre wiring
Photo uploaded to flickr 2 Nov '05, 6.55pm PST by hockeyshooter

I volunteered to wire the audio cabling of our new Audio Recording Centre, which is used primarily to record course material for print-disabled students. Photo shows wiring the control room end of the cables. Each booth is connected via an 8-pair multicore, only three pairs of which are used: XLRs female to male and male to female, plus one line with 1/4" each end for monitoring. All the panels, connectors and cables came from Canford Audio, an excellent and reliable UK supplier I have used since 1982.

Technorati tags: audio cabling recording studio deaf hearing.impaired

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Wireless network workshop
Photo uploaded to flickr 2 Nov '05, 4.11pm PST by hockeyshooter

Saul Albert and Jo Walsh today ran a workshop on wireless networking, explaining how certain commercially-available hardware (eg: the Linksys WRT54G Wireless Broadband Router) can be flashed to enable and control all manner of features for those intending to set up their own low-cost wireless LAN to share, for example, a broadband connection. Its worth noting, though, that the WRT54G does not have a built-in ADSL model.

Technorati tags: community wireless networking router Linksys

Amazon's 'Recommended For You' system has gotten more interesting because it now tells you (or at least gives you an idea) why the items in the list have been recommended. Interesting, therefore, to see that the DVD of 'Clarissa' has been recommended to me because I have previously bought the book "Andy McNab's Bravo Two Zero". The link is not, as you might expect, that the "magnificent drama of seducation and betrayal" features close-quarter battle scenes or a heli-bourne assault on a country house, but simply because Sean Bean features in the DVD and was in the TV dramatisation of the book.

"Iran leader defends Israel remark
Iran's president has defended his widely criticised call for Israel to be 'wiped off the map'. Attending an anti-Israel rally in Tehran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his remarks were 'just' - and the criticism did not 'have any validity.'"

Red rag/bull scenario, anyone?

BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Iran leader defends Israel remark

"Doctor Who takes three TV awards
BBC series Doctor Who has won three prizes at the National TV Awards, including most popular drama. The show's two stars, Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, scooped the most popular actor and actress honours in the awards voted by the public."

Well done to all involved - it certainly was an impressive series. I hope Eccleston now realises what an ejit he's been for quitting.

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | TV and Radio | Doctor Who takes three TV awards

"Cabinet agrees England smoke ban
Ministers have agreed plans for a ban on smoking in enclosed public places in England - with exemptions for clubs and pubs not serving food."

Better than no ban at all, I suppose, but still pretty pathetic considering the majority of the British public want it banned in all public places. How many Ministers and MPs, I wonder, have big shareholdings in the tobacco companies? This is just like their pathetic record on trying to reduce binge drinking - instead of reducing or contolling opening hours, they open the pubs for longer. Shares in the breweries, perhaps? Between my last two visits to Italy, they had brought in a total ban on smoking in all bars and restaurants: there were no problems with it at all - its just been accepted.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Cabinet agrees England smoke ban

And more on how naff this new legislation is: BBC NEWS | Health | Why UK differs on smoke ban policy

The owners of Luton airport appear to be turning to psycological bribery to get their expansion plans approved, saying they will be in place "in time for the 2012 Olympics". Atheletes from around the world: which airport are you going to fly to? Heathrow or Luton. Mmm.

"Passenger numbers are set to triple over the next 25 years [not sure there's going to be any oil left by then] as plans for a new full-length runway and a new south terminal at Luton Airport have been unveiled. Existing facilities will also be expanded, with most of the work being completed by the end of 2007, but planning permission still needs to be granted for the proposals."

BBC - Beds Herts and Bucks - Luton airport: new plans unveiled

My mobile phone number migration has finally completed. I noticed that the old phone was displaying an IMEI message yesterday morning, so I could tell they'd started work. By lunchtime, the 'new' phone was able to send texts and make calls, but wouldn't accept incoming calls and couldn't send MMS messages. This morning, all appears to be OK. So, thanks to O2 and Vodafone.

EU blocks green research and funding
UK drivers are being denied grants to help them buy environmentally-friendly [read 'less environmentally damaging'] cars because of legal wrangling by Brussels. Grants of £700-1000 were supposed to have been made available from 1997, but it was found that they broke EU competition rules. Meanwhile researchers have had the funding for five out of six green transport projects blocked by the EU.

Souce: Emma Rubach, The Big Issue.
Technorati tags: green transport grants

"A church is having to pay £1,300 to replace four 80p light bulbs because of new health and safety laws. The EU's 'working at height' directive meant a full risk assessment had to be carried out and a scaffolding tower brought in to reach the bulbs. Parish priest at St Benet's Minster in Beccles, Suffolk, Father Anthony Sutch, said the job used to cost about £200. He said the money - a sixfold increase - could have been better spent on a few lives somewhere else in the world."

Is this the sort of "benefit" Ted Heath could see for Britain when he originally signed us up for Europe? Well-meaning legislation, perhaps, but obviously proposed by someone who has absolutely no thought, or regard, for the consequences.

BBC NEWS | England | Suffolk | Church pays £1,300 to see light
Technorati tags: EU legislation Brussels

The BBC News website is waving the "unprecedented access" flag this morning with another article on the Tornado Squadron at RAF Coningsby mentioned in last night's 10 O'Clock News broadcast. "Scrambling is an adrenalin-charged sprint - unchanged since the Battle of Britain. The fighters are weapons of last resort - fed by intelligence [hopefully a bit better than that which led to the police shooting of innocent Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes] and backed up by a huge counter-terrorism operation on the ground."

BBC NEWS | UK | Stark option in frontline terror fight

Must be a 'slow day' for news today. The lead item on BBC's main news programme this evening is a very sensationalist article about an RAF Tornado squadron tasked with intercepting, escorting and, if necessary, shooting down commercial airliners that appear to be acting suspiciously, presented by veteran reporter Brian Hanrahan. The whole thing was so gung-ho, with lots of dramatic commentary and camera work, I could hardly believe my ears - it sounded more like ITV's dire 'Tonight with Trevor Macdonald'. I quite thought Hanrahan was going to quote Churchill. The presenter made much of the fact that the BBC had been given 'exclusive access', as if that should be important to the viewer. And the same news programme finishes with an article about the latest film from director Ang Lee.

A quick survey of people driving with no lights at all in this morning's thick fog reveals most to be women - some taking kids to school. On the other hand, of those driving with just side lights, most were men. Is road safety not an issue to these people? Does it not matter to them if their vehicles are visible to others?

Highway Code section 201: You MUST use headlights when visibility is seriously reduced

Northampton 1 Oxford 0

The Cobblers at last won a home game - and ended an 8-game winning streak by League 2 rivals Oxford United on Friday.

Finally gotten around to arranging to have my mobile phone number transferred from my museum-piece Philips C12 on 02 (was BT Cellnet) to a Nokia 6230 on Vodafone. Half the work is finding the numbers you need to call, then going through the spiel from the old provider to jusitfy why you want to move. In the end the numbers I called were:

02 - 08705 214 000
Vodafone - 08080 945945

I hardly use my mobile to make calls, so I only top up with about £10 every three months - just saying that was enough to make the providers realise that a contract was not for me.

"Network Rail in £4bn revamp plan
Network Rail has announced plans for a £4bn ($7bn) upgrade to railway stations across Britain. The company said it planned to redevelop London's Euston, Victoria and Waterloo stations in partnership with companies from the private sector.

Network Rail, which is responsible for the UK's rail infrastructure, said that 50 larger regional stations were also in need of upgrade work. Developers will be involved in the revamp of hundreds of smaller stations."

Wow - investment in the UK's rail network. Whatever next?

BBC NEWS | Business | Network Rail in £4bn revamp plan

"Fire hits Wallace and Gromit sets
Props and sets from the Wallace and Gromit films are believed to have been destroyed in a warehouse blaze. Fire crews were called to Oscar-winning Aardman Animations' Bristol site, which contained the company's 'entire history', a spokesman said. Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park said it was 'dreadful' for the company but comparatively 'not a big deal'."

Rotten news having just successfully launched their latest movie onto the big screen.

BBC NEWS | England | Bristol | Fire hits Wallace and Gromit sets

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Imperia station
Photo uploaded to flickr 6 Oct '05, 9.11am PST by hockeyshooter

We used buses and trains to get from Poggi to Nice Airport. The train journey was just 10 Euros a piece.

More rain means the Alpine Trail is definately not on the cards. Went instead for a long road walk in the wooded hills. Dinner at the same excellent restaurant down by the sea, to have their unique thin pizza filled with a special soft cheese and topped with Parma ham. Lorezno finally lets us pay for his meal.

A very early start as we set off to visit, near Turin, a contact Lorenzo has made in his search for sponsorship for next year's attempt at the summit of Everest. Unfortunately Lorenzo fills the tank of his diesel car with petrol, so we need a hasty visit to the garage to have the tank emptied. Some very nice scenery, spoilt by almost constant rain.

More rain over night and a very dull-looking morning which prevent another journey into the hills. Instead went to the Valloria, AKA the 'Village of the Painted Doors', where nearly ever door is painted by a different artist in a different style (photo gallery coming soon). Revisited small cafe on beach for lunch in the pooring rain - got to test my next-to-non-existant Italian. Mobile phone battery running flat, so no more Flikr photos for a bit.

Rained over night. Late start after another reasonable night's sleep. Visited Lorenzo's GF's tiny and remote village up in the hills. Hunted for wild mushrooms in the woods, but nearly all had already been picked. Collect huge bag of chestnuts instead. Sandwich lunch on return. Mark and I raided the cupboards back at home base to make a passable pasta dinner. Watched Marathon Man (Dustin Hoffman) on DVD - actually a very good movie, with some exceptional cinematography.

Late rise after passable night's sleep - must be getting used to the bells. A few mosquito bites. Second visit to the Orchid Trail above Cervo; visited the church, which is still undergoing restoration, then lunch in the same cafe I've been to on each visit now, watching some of the airshow over the coast. Lorenzo's girlfriend cooked a seafood dinner, which I was unable to do justice to.

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Looking at the Med
Photo uploaded to flickr 1 Oct '05, 1.32pm PST by hockeyshooter

...from the Orchid Trail above Cervo.

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Palm tree
Photo uploaded to flickr 1 Oct '05, 1.28pm PST by hockeyshooter

...in coastal town of Imperia.

Spent most of the day in the coastal town of Imperia. Explored the old town and harbour and walked back up the hill to Poggi. Went with Lorenzo's girl friend to a 'fixed menu' restaurant in an old water mill - many and varied dishes including wild boar salami. Avoided the snails, though. Plenty of outstanding local white wine.

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Imperia
Photo uploaded to flickr 30 Sep '05, 3.59pm PST by hockeyshooter

Sadly this good weather did not last and we had rain over the last three days.

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Cloisters
Photo uploaded to flickr 30 Sep '05, 3.57pm PST by hockeyshooter

Imperia.

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Cat
Photo uploaded to flickr 30 Sep '05, 12.03pm PST by hockeyshooter

You can't go anywhere in Italy without encountering cats.

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View from the roof...
Photo uploaded to flickr 30 Sep '05, 7.56am PST by hockeyshooter

...of the house we were staying in in the tiny village of Poggi, just up from Imperia.

Worrying start to our Italian holiday as the half-hourly bus to Luton Airport fails to appear - twice (thanks for nothing, Arriva). Fortunately were able to get a lift instead. easyJet flight was ok (I don't like flying) and although takeoff was 1/2 hour late, made up some time during flight. Dinner at the very nice restaurant in Cervezza above Poggi - mostly sea food. Poor night's sleep, mostly due to the two nearby churches chiming on the half hour.

Another pathetic performance from the Cobblers gave Cheltenham three points at Northampton today. Although we had a good percentage of the possession in the first half, we were never much of a threat, and the second half, where most of the time we were 1-2 down, was even worse. Methinks the days of manager Colin Calderwood must be numbered.

Capital punishment claim 'absurd'
The home secretary has described as 'absurd' claims the shooting of [innocent Brazilian] Jean Charles de Menezes amounted to a form of 'capital punishment'. Labour's Ann Cryer said MPs had voted against capital punishment and been unaware of 'a policy under certain circumstances deliberately to kill'.

But Charles Clarke said, in replying to those comments on BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I think that comparison is completely absurd... The shoot to kill policy simply does not exist - there is no such thing.'"

That's strange because I was sure the MET commissioner confirmed, on television, that such a policy did exist and that it had been suspended as a result of the shooting.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Capital punishment claim 'absurd'

Suspicious behaviour on the tube
A London underground station was evacuated and part of a main east-west line closed in a security alert on Thursday, three weeks after suicide bombers killed 52 people on the transport network, police said. This Reuters story was written while the police were detaining me [Guardian writer David Mery] in Southwark tube station and the bomb squad was checking my rucksack. When they were through, the two explosive specialists walked out of the tube station smiling and commenting: 'Nice laptop.' The officers offered apologies on behalf of the Metropolitan police. Then they arrested me..."

Its worth reading the whole of this article, especially if you're one of the sheep that keep bleeting "if you've got nothing to hide, what's the problem?". All the guy was doing was going home from work. It goes to show how much our civil liberties have already been eroded in the wake of Iraq and the London bombings - just think how much more they would be if Home Secretary Charles Clarke had a free reign?

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Suspicious behaviour on the tube

"...a survey by Lawrence & Giles found that, of the 15 terabytes of data that made up the estimated 800 million pages of the publicly indexable Web in February 1999, only 6 terabytes (40%) contained useful text after removing HTML tags, comments, and white space."

Proof, if it were ever needed, that most of what's on the web really is junk.

Articles: Metadata and the World Wide Web

Do search engines represent an invasion of your privacy? Do you know if the company you use to run your web searches store the information you enter, or the URLs of the pages you choose to visit, together with your IP address, so they can build up a profile of what you're interested in? Supposing you conduct a number of searches, using the computer in your office, to get information about a particular debilitating disease, say MS or AIDS. The fact that you've done those searches could well be of interest, and value, to your employer, or your life insurance company. Is there anything to prevent the search company from selling that information on? And what about search companies that are hosted in other countries? Are those companies obliged to pass on the terms and/or results of your searches to the Government of those countries?

Do you ever read the small print on your favoured search engine's website? Perhaps you might like to do so now?
Technorati tags: search engines privacy civil liberty

"Passengers saw landing drama unfold on TV
LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- The airliner circled Southern California for hours, crippled by a faulty landing gear, while inside its cabin 140 passengers watched their own life-and-death drama unfolding on live television.

While satellite TV sets aboard JetBlue Flight 292 were tuned to news broadcasts, some passengers cried. Others tried to telephone relatives and one woman sent a text message to her mother in Florida attempting to comfort her in the event she died. 'It was very weird. It would've been so much calmer without the televisions', Pia Varma of Los Angeles said after the plane skidded to a safe landing Wednesday evening in a stream of sparks and burning tires. No one was hurt."

The nose gear had come down with the wheels locked at 90 degrees to their proper position, so when the A320 Airbus finally touched down, the tyres were instantly shredded and the poor thing scraped along on metal. Scary stuff - but it goes to show how well built modern jets are - and how good the crew are at dealing with problems. I'm off to Italy next week - and I don't like flying one little bit!

CNN.com - Passengers saw landing drama unfold on TV - Sep 22, 2005

"Cow dung for the climate
A model biogas project is creating a win-win situation for rural Nepalese, the industrialised world and the atmosphere. The scheme recently won the renowned Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy and is already being replicated in some Asian and African countries.

It is calculated that gas generated from cattle dung in rural Nepal has lit around 140,000 kitchens, saving 400,000 tonnes of firewood, 800,000 litres of kerosene and preventing 600,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases from escaping into the atmosphere."

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Cow dung for the climate
Technorati tags: biofuel climate renewable energy

"Aviation 'huge threat to CO2 aim'
If the rapid growth in air travel is not curbed UK households and businesses will have to cut carbon dioxide emissions to zero, a report has warned. The action is needed if the government aim of reducing emissions by 60% before 2050 is to be met, the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research argues. It says ignoring aviation has led to a 'serious underestimation' of what is needed to combat climate change. Ministers say UK air passenger numbers will rise from 180m to 475m by 2030."

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Aviation 'huge threat to CO2 aim'
Technorati tags: aviation fuel environment climate change

Strange, don't you think, that petrol prices are going down today when at the same time, oil has reached another price-per-barrel record?

"Killer 'triple burp' of methane caused massive global warming
Open University researchers have uncovered startling new evidence about an extreme period of a sudden, fatal dose of global warming some 180 million years ago during the time of the dinosaurs. The scientists' findings could provide vital clues about climate change happening today and in the future. The OU Department of Earth Sciences team, PhD student Dave Kemp and supervisors Drs. Angela Coe and Anthony Cohen, along with Dr. Lorenz Schwark of the University of Cologne, discovered evidence suggesting that vast amounts of methane gas were released to the atmosphere in three massive 'methane burps' or pulses. The research done by The Open University scientists is published in full by Nature magazine on 15 September 2005."

OU News Releases | Methane burp
Technorati tags: methane global warming environment

"Google unveils blog search site
Google has unveiled a website that lets people search web journals or blogs. The database behind the search site will index all weblogs not just the ones published on the Google-owned blog writing site Blogger."

There are already some search engines, or at least index or tag searches (like Technorati) specifically aimed at blogs, but this tool may well take over.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Google unveils blog search site

"How To Speed Up Firefox
Here's something for broadband people that will really speed Firefox up..."

I've not found Firefox particularly slow myself, but obviously some people have, and the suggested changes are easy to make.

How To Speed Up Firefox

"German minister raps car industry
German Environment Minister Juergen Trittin has condemned his country's carmakers for making 'gas-guzzlers' that no-one wants to buy. Speaking to the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, Mr Trittin urged carmakers to produce more fuel-saving cars. In the past, the member of the environmentalist Green Party has pressed car companies to adopt stricter environmental standards. His comments came as German luxury car firm Porsche announced record sales."

Well said, that man, but I am surprised he can say "no-one wants to buy" and "Porsche" in the same speech since there is a waiting list for the new Boxster. Instead, why not target Mercedes for making 5.5-litre cars that return as little as 19.1 mpg overall, and just 12.2mpg in city driving (figures from Mercedes own website)?

BBC NEWS | Business | German minister raps car industry

"Petrol fuels rise in UK inflation
Rising petrol prices drove inflation higher in August, Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures have shown. UK consumer price index (CPI) inflation rose to 2.4% in August from 2.3% in July, the highest level since current records [meaning the current way they make up this figure] began eight years ago. It is the second month running that inflation has been higher than the 2% target set by the government."

Strange that petrol at all my local stations has gone up around 4% in just one week, and yet the official inflation figure only goes up 0.1% in a month. Considering pretty much everything we buy is delivered using petrol, that doesn't really stand up, does it?

BBC NEWS | Business | Petrol fuels rise in UK inflation

I'd not heard of this before. Just goes to show quite a few Americans don't share Bush gung-ho attitude.



Photo above shows "Santa Monica beach, just up from the posh, affluent Malibu (where, incidentally, you can get a great Caesar salad ..... in the McDonalds!! :)) I was quite amazed that they were allowed to do this. ... hundreds of crosses, covering a large part of the beach. Each cross represents one American life lost in Iraq. Another plaque tells you, 'if we were to acknowledge the number of Iraqi deaths, the crosses would fill this entire beach'. There's a coffin draped in the stars 'n' stripes, which a couple people 'stand guard' over, while a woman stands there, reading out their names." Frances Foot

"Debt insurance being 'mis-sold'
Payment protection insurance is available on credit cards and loans
Banks and insurers have been accused by Citizens Advice of mis-selling payment protection insurance (PPI). PPI is designed to help people repay personal loans or credit card debt if they fall ill or lose their jobs. But charity Citizens Advice said PPI is expensive, often sold to people who do not need it and regularly excludes common reasons for making a claim. The charity is to lodge a "super complaint" with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) over the £5bn industry.

Citizens Advice said that 85% of its clients who had claimed on one of the policies had been unsuccessful, despite the industry claiming that just 15% of claims are turned down."

Breakfast News this morning featured a woman who had been sold PPI by her bank on a loan she was given because she'd just been made redundant. A year or so later, when she comes to claim because she has fallen ill, the bank says she can't claim because she is unemployed. So they knowingly mis-sold the insurance in the first place. And people wonder how the high street banks make their billions of pounds of profit.

BBC NEWS | Business | Debt insurance being 'mis-sold'

Not at all sure I want to bother going to see the Cobblers play away to Rushden the week after next. In fact I have to consider whether I want to even go to home games, unless changes are made to the team. Its a 62 mile round trip on top of what I've already paid, to be rewarded with such a pathetic performance [Northampton 1 - Bury 1]. Bringing Eric Sabin on in the second have could have made a lot of difference, brought a bit more enthusiasm back into the team, but we go and sell him [to Oxford - where he scored in his debut game] just as Calderwood realises we're not scoring enough goals.

"Sydney premiere for Gromit movie
The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, the first feature-length movie starring cartoon heroes Wallace and Gromit, received its world premiere on Sunday in Sydney."

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Film | Sydney premiere for Gromit movie

The trailer is well worth watching but be prepared to laugh out loud.

"Autumn drought fears prompt talks
All residents are urged to continue saving water during the autumn
The prospect of low autumn rainfall has led to talks between four water firms and West Sussex County Council. Drought has tightened its grip on the whole of the South - and particularly in Kent and Sussex - after 10 consecutive months of low rainfall."

And the dipstick that is Prescott, deputy Prime Minister, still wants to build hundreds of thousands of houses in the South East.

BBC NEWS | England | Autumn drought fears prompt talks

Pants performance by England last night in the World Cup qualifier away to Northern Ireland. Rooney being an idiot again, lucky to not get sent off.

I completely missed the freestyle competition on Sunday, but young Lee Stone put on a little show of his own in the afternoon, having won the title of UK Champion.

Technorati tags: freestyle jetski photos

Just blogging this as its a brilliant site:
The Rocking Vicar

Willen Lake, just up the road from me in Milton Keynes, is hosting Round 6 of the UK National Jetski Championships this weekend and I was there this afternoon to get some shots. Weather was warm but sunshine unreliable, which certain affected the results. Will be back there tomorrow, where six of the UK's top freestyle riders will be performing.

Technorati tags: jetski photos

"Bolton thumbs nose at UN Millennium Goals
In his first official act as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton has already fulfilled his critics’ worst fears by delivering what many say may be a fatal blow to the United Nations World Summit.

Emblematic of the changes made was Bolton’s deletion of the phrase 'respect for nature' from the statement’s enumeration of core values and principles like human dignity and equality.

Also dropped from the U.S. version are commitments to uphold the International Criminal Court and the Kyoto Protocol, as well as any talk of nuclear disarmament by the world’s five nuclear powers. Bolton’s document eliminates the use of the word 'disarmament' and all references to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which would ban any nation from testing nuclear weapons."

Now, why am I not in the least bit surprised by this?

People's Weekly World Newspaper Online - Bolton thumbs nose at UN Millennium Goals

Welwyn vs Northampton

The Cobblers were very lucky to go away from Friday evening's match with a point, having been reduced to 10 men by a somewhat strange refereeing decision. Northampton scored first with the Welwyn goalie mishandling the ball, which just rolled into the net behind him. Welwyn equalised about midway through the second half. The Cobblers are now down to a single striker in Scott Mcgleish, having lost Eric Sabin to Oxford United, and with Andy Kirk currently on the injury list.

"UK, China in cleaner power plan
Britain and the EU will next week announce plans to hand China the technology for a power station designed to combat climate change. The coal plant will capture its own emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) and bury them in porous rock measures underground."

Interesting story. This is exactly the kind of technology-sharing Bush was so recently hailing as a 'breakthrough' - except without all the hoo-ha and flag-waving - we just got on and did it.

BBC NEWS | UK | UK, China in cleaner power plan
Technorati tags:environment carbon sequestration technology sharing

Just made a movie from an 1999 DV recording of ice hockey in Milton Keynes, digitised from a Sony TRV900 using Movie Maker 2 on my HP nx6110 laptop and encoded to .3GP using some shareware thingy for playback on mobile phones. The file is 428Kb, at just over a minute long. Sorry that its rather loud!

http://www.hockeyphotos.com/icehockey.3gp

Just to outline how absurd some of the legislation brought in during the current Government's term has got, here's a story I heard today regarding 'health and safety'. A local company was contracted to install some blinds at a detention centre for asylum seekers. Having completed part of the job, they were contacted by a 'health and safety' officer, who said "you've installed these blinds using PoziDrive screws". "So", the installer replies, "what's the problem?" Mr.H&S replies "the inmates might remove them and use them as weapons". So, would you sooner be attacked by someone with a screwdriver, or a set of window blinds? Lets think - which would make a handier weapon...?

"Energy price rise for six million
The company's domestic electricity charges are going up by seven percent and its gas charges are rising by 12%. Powergen announced the increases - adding £52 a year to a typical 'dual fuel' bill - in July, blaming large rises in the wholesale price of energy. British Gas has previously warned that its gas prices may rise too by a further 15% in the coming months."

Of course your bills will only go up if you use the same amount of energy as you are using now. I you use this as an incentive to use less energy, you'll save money.

Will the chancellor choose to ignore these price hikes for his next calculation of inflation, I wonder? Everything seems to be going up at least 12% and yet inflation gets reported as only about 2%. Now why is that, I wonder? Is it just to con the public, to make them think the chancellor and the government are doing a good job? Or is there a more sinister reason - related to the fact that interest paid on the billions people have invested in National Savings is derrived from the official figure for inflation...?

BBC NEWS | Business | Energy price rise for six million
Technorati tags: domestic energy price rises

"House prices down again in August
House prices fell again in August, with the interest rate cut at the start of the month appearing to do little to revive the marketplace, figures show. The average cost of a property in England and Wales fell by 0.1% in August, according to property website Hometrack. Prices fell by 0.2% in July.

'House prices have failed to respond to the recent interest rate cut and continue their stagnating negative trend, which has now gone on for well over a year,' said Hometrack's housing economist John Wriglesworth. 'While transactions have picked up a little this month, a further reduction in new buyers and a further increase in supply suggests no prospect of price rises in the near future.'"

Could it be, I wonder, because houses are too expensive?

BBC NEWS | Business | House prices down again in August

"Creative wins MP3 player patent
One of Apple's main rivals, Creative Technology, has been awarded a patent for the interface used on many digital music players. Creative said the patent applied to its players, as well as some competing products such as the Apple's iPod and iPod mini."

This sounds like another one of those patents awarded by some judge who doesn't understand the concept or the technology. At the end of the day, its a patent on such a blatantly obvious concept that its pretty hard to think of any other way of doing this. Its basically a patent on the idea of a menu each for 'artist', followed by 'album', followed by 'track'. Isn't that the way CD players have worked since they were invented - years before MP3 was even thought of?

BBC NEWS | Technology | Creative wins MP3 player patent

After today's 3-2 victory over Boston United, Northampton coach Colin Colderwood paid "tribute to effort, commitment and determination". Were you actually watching the same game as us, Colin? We very nearly lost that game, we sat back so much. Why is it we always do that? Goal difference can count, you know. We should be burying these teams.

Bought a second D-Link DBT-120 via eBay to use with my HP nx6110 laptop (also bought via eBay) and have spent nearly all of today trying, and so far failing, to get it to work under XP Home SP2. On the other hand, plugged it into my at-least-5-year-old Apple G3 Powerbook, with OS X 10.3, and its working and browsing the files on my Nokia 6230 mobile phone in less than five minutes. Bluetooth support was supposed to have been improved by SP2 - obviously a new definition of the word 'improved' with which I am not familiar...

Technorati tags: bluetooth dongle windows.xp