Make for chilly mornings. 4'C this morning, one cat refusing to go out.
Friday, 31 August 2012
Tuesday, 28 August 2012
I've cut out comments
Since Haloscan are going belly-up shortly. Apparently no-one knows the answer to why google comments don't work. You'll know if I get them working again.
Tuesday, 21 August 2012
Do you ever wonder about marketing people?
Especially when they are trying to shift computer parts etc?
www.aria.co.uk carry a range of base units and mini systems that someone is trying to sell just too hard. They are just a bunch of slightly dull black and grey boxes, somewhere between the size of a shoebox and a midi tower, so how do they get names like hellspawn, hellscream, punisher etc?
It's just a grey and black box with some commonplace electronics inside designed to run Windows beige-world 7.
Even the kids that live in their parents basements and play WoW and MW3 are going to be cynical, let alone anyone who has actually had a job. Sometimes it feels like people actually believe the things they invent.
And there's a penny dropping moment.
Men have always wanted to invent things that needed to be worshiped, creating rules and scenarios in which to frame and sell their ideas. Only now instead of worshipping in darkened caves and temples, it's spare rooms and cafes.
I'm quite torn about the whole computing and the internet aspect of modern life. There is so much potential good, and yet there is such a strong draw, and I very much recognise my own weakness to that, to spend too much time just on the computer, not talking or sharing face to face, but in simulated company. There's a side of me that would love to just ditch computing completely, but it IS so useful.
Of course the challenge is to handle these things well, just like food and drink, just like reading and socialising. For those things society has created expectations and training from a young age, and we can see the effects of their failure in obesity as much as alcoholism, in those who live to escape and those who cannot stop themselves talking. Would future generations develop their own social limitations to internet use, if the internet were to be around for another 150 years?
www.aria.co.uk carry a range of base units and mini systems that someone is trying to sell just too hard. They are just a bunch of slightly dull black and grey boxes, somewhere between the size of a shoebox and a midi tower, so how do they get names like hellspawn, hellscream, punisher etc?
It's just a grey and black box with some commonplace electronics inside designed to run Windows beige-world 7.
Even the kids that live in their parents basements and play WoW and MW3 are going to be cynical, let alone anyone who has actually had a job. Sometimes it feels like people actually believe the things they invent.
And there's a penny dropping moment.
Men have always wanted to invent things that needed to be worshiped, creating rules and scenarios in which to frame and sell their ideas. Only now instead of worshipping in darkened caves and temples, it's spare rooms and cafes.
I'm quite torn about the whole computing and the internet aspect of modern life. There is so much potential good, and yet there is such a strong draw, and I very much recognise my own weakness to that, to spend too much time just on the computer, not talking or sharing face to face, but in simulated company. There's a side of me that would love to just ditch computing completely, but it IS so useful.
Of course the challenge is to handle these things well, just like food and drink, just like reading and socialising. For those things society has created expectations and training from a young age, and we can see the effects of their failure in obesity as much as alcoholism, in those who live to escape and those who cannot stop themselves talking. Would future generations develop their own social limitations to internet use, if the internet were to be around for another 150 years?
Monday, 20 August 2012
So we just went to dinner.
Last night, after a day of stuff.
Up at 6.30 (as always) putting songs together for worship at the church.
Into work at 10am to print off sheets about forgiveness.
In church at 10.30am, setting up for the morning meeting (not too hard, since cups already out and urn on).
Around 2.30 Chris out for cream teas and networking at a local village event, me cutting grass.
4.00 through the shower and quickly out to see our good friends and amazing people of God Mike & Liz Beaumont before they left for 9 months in Vancouver. We both come away, having met some of the other guys in leadership in Oxford Community Church realise what we've been missing - the wisdom, the depth of faith, the family and the trust between men of God who have chosen to walk openly with each other. It was just as if we'd never been away, and some of the guys we were only passing acquaintances with.
6.05 (oops) back at Heyford Park for the evening prayer meeting. A good time sharing stuff - almost too much sharing, then prayer where I really became aware of the Spirit of God moving, and catching a bit of His heart.
7.45 Done for the day and into Bicester. So we just went to dinner at Anica (I want to call the place either Arnica or a knicker) which is a decentish curry house. We've been out to dinner a number of times recently, which is unusual for us, since money has been tight, but there has always been a purpose and always in company. It's good to just be the 2 of us, together. No need to make conversation, but able to talk about almost anything that we want to. I need times like this with my wife, who is also my friend.
Chris has been asking when I get a sabbath, and the answer is that I get by. Sabbath has begun to happen, even though I have lots of work on in the lab right now. Tuesday night there's another meeting, but it *feels* like sabbath has already started in preparation for the holiday.
Ben might be home tonight, after HIS holiday. That will be nice.
Up at 6.30 (as always) putting songs together for worship at the church.
Into work at 10am to print off sheets about forgiveness.
In church at 10.30am, setting up for the morning meeting (not too hard, since cups already out and urn on).
Around 2.30 Chris out for cream teas and networking at a local village event, me cutting grass.
4.00 through the shower and quickly out to see our good friends and amazing people of God Mike & Liz Beaumont before they left for 9 months in Vancouver. We both come away, having met some of the other guys in leadership in Oxford Community Church realise what we've been missing - the wisdom, the depth of faith, the family and the trust between men of God who have chosen to walk openly with each other. It was just as if we'd never been away, and some of the guys we were only passing acquaintances with.
6.05 (oops) back at Heyford Park for the evening prayer meeting. A good time sharing stuff - almost too much sharing, then prayer where I really became aware of the Spirit of God moving, and catching a bit of His heart.
7.45 Done for the day and into Bicester. So we just went to dinner at Anica (I want to call the place either Arnica or a knicker) which is a decentish curry house. We've been out to dinner a number of times recently, which is unusual for us, since money has been tight, but there has always been a purpose and always in company. It's good to just be the 2 of us, together. No need to make conversation, but able to talk about almost anything that we want to. I need times like this with my wife, who is also my friend.
Chris has been asking when I get a sabbath, and the answer is that I get by. Sabbath has begun to happen, even though I have lots of work on in the lab right now. Tuesday night there's another meeting, but it *feels* like sabbath has already started in preparation for the holiday.
Ben might be home tonight, after HIS holiday. That will be nice.
Saturday, 18 August 2012
Confession and forgiveness
Sometimes messages are easy to write, and I have felt almost guilty to be completed in 2 or 3 hours.
Sometimes they just don't flow *easily* and require some real work.
So I'm speaking on confession and forgiveness tomorrow. This has been real work. I hope it is actually useful.
And maybe they'll forgive me. ;-)
Sometimes they just don't flow *easily* and require some real work.
So I'm speaking on confession and forgiveness tomorrow. This has been real work. I hope it is actually useful.
And maybe they'll forgive me. ;-)
Friday, 17 August 2012
I'm having trouble enabling blogger comments
As can be seen, the Haloscan comments that I used for the last 9 years are being discontinued in October. I have enable google comments in the settings, but cannot see anything that suggests they are actually working. Do I have to use a new blogger template for them to work, or are comments exclusive (i.e. if I have external comments enabled does that disable blogger comments)?
Suggestions welcome.
Suggestions welcome.
Y'know how some mornings the sun shines
.........and it's all great.
Cat sick on the kitchen floor, and it was raining first thing.
We just feel really battered this morning, mostly because we went to bed last night feeling battered. We did the 'Are you OK. Yes, are you?' thing, but the feelings obviously remained, though for me they are seeping away now I'm starting to do stuff.
Some stuff isn't fixed easily, but one thing's for sure; we're not getting any more cats.
Cat sick on the kitchen floor, and it was raining first thing.
We just feel really battered this morning, mostly because we went to bed last night feeling battered. We did the 'Are you OK. Yes, are you?' thing, but the feelings obviously remained, though for me they are seeping away now I'm starting to do stuff.
Some stuff isn't fixed easily, but one thing's for sure; we're not getting any more cats.
Thursday, 16 August 2012
Tuesday, 14 August 2012
A week on, I'm pleased with the SSD upgrade.
I'd been thinking about doing this for at least 6 months, and wish I'd done it sooner, although prices have plummeted in that time. It's simply a much nicer machine to use, and everything just seems to work better. How much of that is Mountain Lion, how much the SSD I'm not sure, but it doesn't go all jerky like it would sometimes before.
One thing I should say is that it is NOT amazingly quick. Applications do open much more promptly than before, but the OS feels like it's deliberately slowed down so that everything is greasy-smooth, rather than 'instantly' snapping open.
As for ML, the changes of 10.5 seem quite small really, and mostly cosmetic. I know they aren't, but apart from a couple of 'change for changes sake' alterations, it works very similarly to the way it did before. It seems there is a monitor control issue in ML, and hopefully that will get patched soon. Battery life is likely to be quite a bit shorter, though it's hard to tell because the time remaining in hours and minutes has been replaced with a % remaining value, and that's meaningless. The machine gets VERY hot when connected to an external hard drive (even when idle) but that would also cause heat with 10.5 and degrade performance noticeably too as it ran out of RAM.
So if you're considering the upgrade I'd definitely recommend it. If you own a Mac then the recommended drives are the Crucial M4 and the Samsung 830, maybe an Intel 520 series. Prices have dropped a long way, and I wonder now about one for a home computer.
One thing I should say is that it is NOT amazingly quick. Applications do open much more promptly than before, but the OS feels like it's deliberately slowed down so that everything is greasy-smooth, rather than 'instantly' snapping open.
As for ML, the changes of 10.5 seem quite small really, and mostly cosmetic. I know they aren't, but apart from a couple of 'change for changes sake' alterations, it works very similarly to the way it did before. It seems there is a monitor control issue in ML, and hopefully that will get patched soon. Battery life is likely to be quite a bit shorter, though it's hard to tell because the time remaining in hours and minutes has been replaced with a % remaining value, and that's meaningless. The machine gets VERY hot when connected to an external hard drive (even when idle) but that would also cause heat with 10.5 and degrade performance noticeably too as it ran out of RAM.
So if you're considering the upgrade I'd definitely recommend it. If you own a Mac then the recommended drives are the Crucial M4 and the Samsung 830, maybe an Intel 520 series. Prices have dropped a long way, and I wonder now about one for a home computer.
Friday, 10 August 2012
Ever come home from work with your head full of crapspeak?
What?
I remember being in project meetings where people (well, the boss) would talk all sorts of old rubbish, and the language would worm its way into my head. When I got home sometimes I'd talk to Chris about implemention something or trajectory the other, then apologise for the crapspeak I'd just inflicted on her tender ears.
This episode of the BOFH brought it all back.
Eventually said boss was 'let go to pursue other interests' and we all breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't stupid, but he was a nasty bully, inclined to emotional blackmail. I'm told that outside a work context he was a lovely guy, kind and generous to a fault. Wonder what drove the work persona?
I remember being in project meetings where people (well, the boss) would talk all sorts of old rubbish, and the language would worm its way into my head. When I got home sometimes I'd talk to Chris about implemention something or trajectory the other, then apologise for the crapspeak I'd just inflicted on her tender ears.
This episode of the BOFH brought it all back.
Eventually said boss was 'let go to pursue other interests' and we all breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't stupid, but he was a nasty bully, inclined to emotional blackmail. I'm told that outside a work context he was a lovely guy, kind and generous to a fault. Wonder what drove the work persona?
Day 4 of OSX 10.8 AKA Mountain Lion
Monday I mentioned having put a Samsung SSD in the Macbook instead of the original drive (now nearly 4 years old, although for 1 year not in use due to 'upgrading' with a Western Digital drive that wasn't much faster but vibrated and made a lot more noise and then failed in use - the warranty replacement vibrates even more!).
It's been an uncomfy 3 days since.
ML downloaded overnight (4.4 Gb) and after saving the application, ran the install which took about 30min. I then restored my data from a Time Machine backup, keeping a spare so I could revert (Apple updates will work in 1 direction only, and they will not let you go back) restoring data only but no applications.
Initial reactions were mostly along the lines of 'why did I bother' except that updating now might mean holding off obsolescence for another 18 months. Macbooks made in August 2008 were already too old and no longer have an OS upgrade path. Not necessarily a big deal unless you need to use a more recent piece of software or hardware, in which case it becomes a very big deal indeed. There are a couple of features that seem neat, like reminders of calendar dates, and I can see the cross over with iDevices.
I've not really figured out the point of mission control yet. There presently seem several systems for displaying applications, open windows etc spread across the desktop, all of which are a mess and don't work as well as a windows style taskbar for finding open application windows. I can see these making more sense on a small device that doesn't have a mouse, where you won't run many apps open at the same time - it makes no sense on a desktop and never did. The application icon is shown at the bottom of each window, again confirming that this is designed for a device with a small screen so you can see which window is a browser, mail, calendar etc. On a 20" monitor where you have 8 spreadsheets and 6 word docs open it may not be so useful. Choice is good, but only where those offered are intelligent and useful.
Some have complained about short battery life and overheating. For the first day it was running really hot, fans humming away and battery capacity dropping rapidly. Yesterday that seemed to stop, and it was running cooler (not checked battery life again) an explanation from the Apple forums being that the OS was indexing all the data for spotlight, and that would seem reasonable.
The app launcher is OK - familiar from Pear Linux. For reasons that I've not yet investigated, all the Microsoft applications have been placed on the second launcher page while other apps like Firefox and Libreoffice were added to the first page (where there's still a lot of space). I keep Office in the dock, along with any other apps I'd normally use, so it doesn't matter, but it's an odd thing to do. That side of things all seems to work normally and just like it ever did, so no problems there.
Hiccups?
I mentioned an uncomfy 3 days. Well getting it to talk to my Samsung 2043NW monitor has been difficult. Initially the monitor would occasionally flicker if monitors were set to mirror, showing the same resolution as the laptop screen despite being set to 1680X1050. When set up as a separate monitor behaviour was erratic over resolutions and in any case that was not how I needed it to work. After much hunting I found a piece of software - SwitchresX4 - through a link on the apple forum where other users had seen similar problems with 10.6.3. This enabled me to adjust the individual sync settings for the monitor - so now it would remain on, but the Macbook signal was sent mirroring the screen res at 1280X800. :p Sometime after the first day the icon for screen control in the top toolbar disappeared too. Finally, trying to start it in clamshell mode was totally ineffective - it would display the grey 'booting' screen on the external monitor for a few seconds, then the screen would go black and the macbook would go to sleep.
I'd wrestled with it too much and eventually gave up, just using it as a laptop sat on my desk because I needed to be productive, promising myself that I would find a replacement as soon as Windows 8 was out.
This morning I came in, thought "wonder if I can get that screen control icon back" and started it in clamshell mode again. The monitor went grey, then black & I thought it must have gone into sleep mode. Suddenly voila! There was my desktop, a bit fuzzy and with wonky colours, but back at native resolution and the Macbook running with closed lid. It's nice to have enough space again, to give my eyes a break too. I've since recalibrated the display but fonts are just plain fuzzy, almost certainly due to screen sync, but I'm reluctant to adjust further since it does actually work.
As for the SSD, it has made the system more responsive, although I've noticed that after a couple of days programs open less quickly and boot no longer seems so strikingly rapid - probably just all part of the way an OS slows down after first install and updating. there is distinctly less beachballing, and the machine is less frustrating to use. So that's good. Definitely an upgrade I'd recommend.
*edit*
Worth putting some context on this - going from Leopard to Snow Leper made the machine almost useless (i.e. printing was no longer possible). Guess I should be grateful this particular service pack for OSX has been so well behaved.
It's been an uncomfy 3 days since.
ML downloaded overnight (4.4 Gb) and after saving the application, ran the install which took about 30min. I then restored my data from a Time Machine backup, keeping a spare so I could revert (Apple updates will work in 1 direction only, and they will not let you go back) restoring data only but no applications.
Initial reactions were mostly along the lines of 'why did I bother' except that updating now might mean holding off obsolescence for another 18 months. Macbooks made in August 2008 were already too old and no longer have an OS upgrade path. Not necessarily a big deal unless you need to use a more recent piece of software or hardware, in which case it becomes a very big deal indeed. There are a couple of features that seem neat, like reminders of calendar dates, and I can see the cross over with iDevices.
I've not really figured out the point of mission control yet. There presently seem several systems for displaying applications, open windows etc spread across the desktop, all of which are a mess and don't work as well as a windows style taskbar for finding open application windows. I can see these making more sense on a small device that doesn't have a mouse, where you won't run many apps open at the same time - it makes no sense on a desktop and never did. The application icon is shown at the bottom of each window, again confirming that this is designed for a device with a small screen so you can see which window is a browser, mail, calendar etc. On a 20" monitor where you have 8 spreadsheets and 6 word docs open it may not be so useful. Choice is good, but only where those offered are intelligent and useful.
Some have complained about short battery life and overheating. For the first day it was running really hot, fans humming away and battery capacity dropping rapidly. Yesterday that seemed to stop, and it was running cooler (not checked battery life again) an explanation from the Apple forums being that the OS was indexing all the data for spotlight, and that would seem reasonable.
The app launcher is OK - familiar from Pear Linux. For reasons that I've not yet investigated, all the Microsoft applications have been placed on the second launcher page while other apps like Firefox and Libreoffice were added to the first page (where there's still a lot of space). I keep Office in the dock, along with any other apps I'd normally use, so it doesn't matter, but it's an odd thing to do. That side of things all seems to work normally and just like it ever did, so no problems there.
Hiccups?
I mentioned an uncomfy 3 days. Well getting it to talk to my Samsung 2043NW monitor has been difficult. Initially the monitor would occasionally flicker if monitors were set to mirror, showing the same resolution as the laptop screen despite being set to 1680X1050. When set up as a separate monitor behaviour was erratic over resolutions and in any case that was not how I needed it to work. After much hunting I found a piece of software - SwitchresX4 - through a link on the apple forum where other users had seen similar problems with 10.6.3. This enabled me to adjust the individual sync settings for the monitor - so now it would remain on, but the Macbook signal was sent mirroring the screen res at 1280X800. :p Sometime after the first day the icon for screen control in the top toolbar disappeared too. Finally, trying to start it in clamshell mode was totally ineffective - it would display the grey 'booting' screen on the external monitor for a few seconds, then the screen would go black and the macbook would go to sleep.
I'd wrestled with it too much and eventually gave up, just using it as a laptop sat on my desk because I needed to be productive, promising myself that I would find a replacement as soon as Windows 8 was out.
This morning I came in, thought "wonder if I can get that screen control icon back" and started it in clamshell mode again. The monitor went grey, then black & I thought it must have gone into sleep mode. Suddenly voila! There was my desktop, a bit fuzzy and with wonky colours, but back at native resolution and the Macbook running with closed lid. It's nice to have enough space again, to give my eyes a break too. I've since recalibrated the display but fonts are just plain fuzzy, almost certainly due to screen sync, but I'm reluctant to adjust further since it does actually work.
As for the SSD, it has made the system more responsive, although I've noticed that after a couple of days programs open less quickly and boot no longer seems so strikingly rapid - probably just all part of the way an OS slows down after first install and updating. there is distinctly less beachballing, and the machine is less frustrating to use. So that's good. Definitely an upgrade I'd recommend.
*edit*
Worth putting some context on this - going from Leopard to Snow Leper made the machine almost useless (i.e. printing was no longer possible). Guess I should be grateful this particular service pack for OSX has been so well behaved.
Tuesday, 7 August 2012
Monday, 6 August 2012
Sanity
Restored!
But a time is coming for an update.
Talking of which, it's nice to have the Macbook boot in around 10-15 sec instead of a minute+, when it can finally get its backside in gear. Just installed Office and now going for 198Mb worth of update. It seemed like a better idea to do that first, so that when Hill Cat gets added the latest version is already waiting for it. The installs were nice and snappy too, with 10.6 going on in about 30min instead of 50min and Office in around 5min instead of 10.
But a time is coming for an update.
Talking of which, it's nice to have the Macbook boot in around 10-15 sec instead of a minute+, when it can finally get its backside in gear. Just installed Office and now going for 198Mb worth of update. It seemed like a better idea to do that first, so that when Hill Cat gets added the latest version is already waiting for it. The installs were nice and snappy too, with 10.6 going on in about 30min instead of 50min and Office in around 5min instead of 10.
The install is happening
1.3Gb of updates for Snow Leopard now happening. This is like downloading a whole new Linux distro, and in many ways, that's very likely just what it is.
Why do I need several hundred meg of iTunes?
Why do I need several hundred meg of iTunes?
Ever thought you knew what would happen?
When you allowed something to update?
Blogger.
Update template.
Irreversible.
Tramsmash.
Pox!
I'll try to repair the damage over time, but blogger tools seem to be total poo compared to editing directly into the full HTML template. How stupid am I?
Blogger.
Update template.
Irreversible.
Tramsmash.
Pox!
I'll try to repair the damage over time, but blogger tools seem to be total poo compared to editing directly into the full HTML template. How stupid am I?
It's here!
The Samsung SSD 830 for my Macbook.
Now I want to know, why are Macs so slow using USB devices these days, and why do they seem to infect USB devices with slowness? I'm backing up to an external HDD and it's running apparently at around 10Mb/sec. I've only got 77Gb on the drive, but it seems to be taking forever.
The *plan* is that I'll pop the SSD in, create a fresh install of Leopard, then update, then install Snow Leopard on top, then update again to 10.6.8, then download & install Mountain Lion + updates. Then install Office 2008.
At that point I will have to decide whether to system restore from Time Machine, putting everything back as it was, or whether to reload manually. Right now the last option is looking favourite, simply so I can ditch some stuff that I'm sure is cluttering the Macbook up, hopefully losing the memory leak at the same time and keeping the benefits of a fresh install.
For security I will have the original HDD & 2 Time Machine backups, 1 at work &1 at home, so that IF I choose the restore option then I still have 1 backup that is compatible with 10.5.8 and can defeat Apples scorched earth policy to legacy.
In other news, I'm still trying to recover strength. A couple of weeks back I did a cycle ride that completely exhausted me, but probably made me fitter. Now the same thing is happening with my mind, being stretched and pulled to the point where, sometimes, it's just exhausted but cannot relax & rest. Greater mental fitness will come, but it's a painful uphill struggle, and the body is tired too. We'll get there.
Now I want to know, why are Macs so slow using USB devices these days, and why do they seem to infect USB devices with slowness? I'm backing up to an external HDD and it's running apparently at around 10Mb/sec. I've only got 77Gb on the drive, but it seems to be taking forever.
The *plan* is that I'll pop the SSD in, create a fresh install of Leopard, then update, then install Snow Leopard on top, then update again to 10.6.8, then download & install Mountain Lion + updates. Then install Office 2008.
At that point I will have to decide whether to system restore from Time Machine, putting everything back as it was, or whether to reload manually. Right now the last option is looking favourite, simply so I can ditch some stuff that I'm sure is cluttering the Macbook up, hopefully losing the memory leak at the same time and keeping the benefits of a fresh install.
For security I will have the original HDD & 2 Time Machine backups, 1 at work &1 at home, so that IF I choose the restore option then I still have 1 backup that is compatible with 10.5.8 and can defeat Apples scorched earth policy to legacy.
In other news, I'm still trying to recover strength. A couple of weeks back I did a cycle ride that completely exhausted me, but probably made me fitter. Now the same thing is happening with my mind, being stretched and pulled to the point where, sometimes, it's just exhausted but cannot relax & rest. Greater mental fitness will come, but it's a painful uphill struggle, and the body is tired too. We'll get there.
Wednesday, 1 August 2012
Curious how things go - wonder if I've used that title before?
2 Sundays ago I spoke about salvation and the choices we make: how we can chose the things that line up with God, that do us good, help us live in freedom and at peace. It was in the context of working out our salvation instead of waiting for God to just change us spontaneously.
A name has recently come to my attention through a professional contact system, and it still makes me shudder a bit.
So I find there is unforgiveness in my heart, sitting there beside the scars. So I'm thinking about what choices I can make to undo that, to be free of the hurt and to see them as they are, separate from the history we have. Even if no-one else listens, hopefully I can preach to myself.
A name has recently come to my attention through a professional contact system, and it still makes me shudder a bit.
So I find there is unforgiveness in my heart, sitting there beside the scars. So I'm thinking about what choices I can make to undo that, to be free of the hurt and to see them as they are, separate from the history we have. Even if no-one else listens, hopefully I can preach to myself.
Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Now here's an interesting 'what if'.
Warning - nerdy computer content.
What if... Microsoft stopped thinking like, well, Microsoft, and started thinking like Apple?
There are a number of hints that's been happening for some time: the requirement coming that computers running windows will have to have similar hardware restrictions to those already present in Apple computers (UEFI) the restrictions of Windows on ARM based mobile devices and the desire to produce their own hardware like Surface and the ever closer linking of Microsoft to Nokia Phones.
It seems other people are thinking along similar lines although not exactly phrasing it quite so plainly.
To me, it looks like both Apple and Microsoft are losing their way a bit. Both are desperate to create and occupy the new mobile computing market, and Apple have done it very successfully so far. But they both seem to be forgetting that the real place of computing is still the desktop with a mouse/trackpad and keyboard (that includes all laptops) in their eagerness to cater for the touchscreen device. In some ways this has done some good, causing interfaces to be cleaned up a little, yet at the same time it has seemed a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul, actively hampering desktop functionality in order to bridge touchpad and desktop interfaces. Surely it would be such a stretch of the imagination to see that desktop and touchpad interfaces could share visual cues and references, yet actually run on different frameworks?
But this raises another question too, which the linked article touches on.
Time was the only non-nerd friendly OSs were from either Microsoft or Apple. I had a friend in IT who ran OS2 Warp for a while, but Wil was a little unusual. However in the last couple of years many very viable open source alternatives have sprung up, much thanks though not entirely to the Ubuntu initiative, and now it's possible to download gratis an OS that will work every bit as well as Windows or OSX, in some cases without even much of a learning curve. For many users though, the limitation was that games were hit & miss - mostly miss - even if they could work under emulation software. However if Valve were to start porting their games to run native in Linux (whichever flavour, probably Ubuntu) then the last compelling reason everyone HAD to have windows would be removed.
So what if other OSs became viable for home computers?
Well, for one thing it would not change corporate computing, at least not for a long time, since there was both a financial and personnel investment in what ever systems were presently in use. At the moment many firms don't even plan to move from Windows XP and IE 6, let alone change to some new-fangled open source, incmpatible software that does everything differently. But in homes I could very much imagine teenage boys asking their parents if they could have a new higher-spec. computer without Windows (because it would be cheaper) and then run the paid for games on a (free, downloaded) OS that they had installed. One could imagine OSs being optimised for game play too, since Linux is mostly a hobbyist-driven way of computing, running games faster under lighter weight environments or even (as Mechwarrior II used to be) from a command line.
What would this do for Microsoft and Apple? Well Apple buyers would be little affected, because the Apple market isn't driven by cost or particularly game playing, and the majority of households don't use Apple devices for desktop computing. But I could see that Microsoft might well lose significant market share, increasingly so as they tried to build walls around their garden like Apple has. Their devices have always been masterpieces of poor design, even when they have been functionally excellent. It will be interesting to see whether the role they played with Apple were reversed, and the 'fruity firm' have to come in and 'assist' them the way Microsoft did Apple a couple of decades ago.
What if... Microsoft stopped thinking like, well, Microsoft, and started thinking like Apple?
There are a number of hints that's been happening for some time: the requirement coming that computers running windows will have to have similar hardware restrictions to those already present in Apple computers (UEFI) the restrictions of Windows on ARM based mobile devices and the desire to produce their own hardware like Surface and the ever closer linking of Microsoft to Nokia Phones.
It seems other people are thinking along similar lines although not exactly phrasing it quite so plainly.
To me, it looks like both Apple and Microsoft are losing their way a bit. Both are desperate to create and occupy the new mobile computing market, and Apple have done it very successfully so far. But they both seem to be forgetting that the real place of computing is still the desktop with a mouse/trackpad and keyboard (that includes all laptops) in their eagerness to cater for the touchscreen device. In some ways this has done some good, causing interfaces to be cleaned up a little, yet at the same time it has seemed a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul, actively hampering desktop functionality in order to bridge touchpad and desktop interfaces. Surely it would be such a stretch of the imagination to see that desktop and touchpad interfaces could share visual cues and references, yet actually run on different frameworks?
But this raises another question too, which the linked article touches on.
Time was the only non-nerd friendly OSs were from either Microsoft or Apple. I had a friend in IT who ran OS2 Warp for a while, but Wil was a little unusual. However in the last couple of years many very viable open source alternatives have sprung up, much thanks though not entirely to the Ubuntu initiative, and now it's possible to download gratis an OS that will work every bit as well as Windows or OSX, in some cases without even much of a learning curve. For many users though, the limitation was that games were hit & miss - mostly miss - even if they could work under emulation software. However if Valve were to start porting their games to run native in Linux (whichever flavour, probably Ubuntu) then the last compelling reason everyone HAD to have windows would be removed.
So what if other OSs became viable for home computers?
Well, for one thing it would not change corporate computing, at least not for a long time, since there was both a financial and personnel investment in what ever systems were presently in use. At the moment many firms don't even plan to move from Windows XP and IE 6, let alone change to some new-fangled open source, incmpatible software that does everything differently. But in homes I could very much imagine teenage boys asking their parents if they could have a new higher-spec. computer without Windows (because it would be cheaper) and then run the paid for games on a (free, downloaded) OS that they had installed. One could imagine OSs being optimised for game play too, since Linux is mostly a hobbyist-driven way of computing, running games faster under lighter weight environments or even (as Mechwarrior II used to be) from a command line.
What would this do for Microsoft and Apple? Well Apple buyers would be little affected, because the Apple market isn't driven by cost or particularly game playing, and the majority of households don't use Apple devices for desktop computing. But I could see that Microsoft might well lose significant market share, increasingly so as they tried to build walls around their garden like Apple has. Their devices have always been masterpieces of poor design, even when they have been functionally excellent. It will be interesting to see whether the role they played with Apple were reversed, and the 'fruity firm' have to come in and 'assist' them the way Microsoft did Apple a couple of decades ago.
Monday, 30 July 2012
Well that was the the week, that was.
And how it flew past - 9 days since my last post.
One needs a sense of humour to be me, I suspect. My speaking last weekend was so well received, with favourable comments from lots of people. My speaking this weekend seemed to baffle most of those unfortunate enough to listen (talking about having been saved and will be saved, what salvation might look like with a new heaven and earth). Maybe it was just a little too ambitious. Maybe it was just a little too muddly.
Maybe I needed to get a bit smaller in my own eyes (said with a grin).
Lots of work on last week, lots of work also this week. I need to find a way of being paid for time I spend doing 'stuff' for other people, or at least a way to build it into their bills. I've started work with a new company, but there's a lot of communication needed as we develop a relationship and transfer knowledge and information, ethos etc between the various groups involved. Seems good so far though.
There are also some challenges coming up in the church to be negotiated through. We need to find a way of living in grace and freedom with each other and yet also providing reassurance and security that the fundamentals are being taken care of. There is some discussion to take place.
And once again I keep seeing the need for housegroups and places of direct connection and fellowship - I realised last night that even though we *don't do housegroups* as a church, housegroup-style meetings happen spontaneously when ever smaller groups of people gather, whether it's for prayer, bible study or whatever.
And finally some thoroughly boring tech-notes:
Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I'll upgrade the Macbook to SSD and probably also mountain Lion: it will likely be the last OS upgrade Apple will allow, since it's nearly 4 years old and past it's planned obsolescence date.
And I've finally got around to installing Microsoft Office under Wine on the Pear Linux PC - couldn't have been much easier, and I'm kicking myself for not having done it sooner. Just have to try installing the latest service packs now, to bring it up to date. IF this works OK then it could spell the end of OSX on the Macbook, except on a stored disc so that the machine can be sold later, or possibly dual boot. Experiments still to be done however, to see which OS is suitable as a replacement, particularly regarding wireless network adapter drivers, battery life and the 'superdrive' DVD drive Apple use.
And now - writing up and lab work.
One needs a sense of humour to be me, I suspect. My speaking last weekend was so well received, with favourable comments from lots of people. My speaking this weekend seemed to baffle most of those unfortunate enough to listen (talking about having been saved and will be saved, what salvation might look like with a new heaven and earth). Maybe it was just a little too ambitious. Maybe it was just a little too muddly.
Maybe I needed to get a bit smaller in my own eyes (said with a grin).
Lots of work on last week, lots of work also this week. I need to find a way of being paid for time I spend doing 'stuff' for other people, or at least a way to build it into their bills. I've started work with a new company, but there's a lot of communication needed as we develop a relationship and transfer knowledge and information, ethos etc between the various groups involved. Seems good so far though.
There are also some challenges coming up in the church to be negotiated through. We need to find a way of living in grace and freedom with each other and yet also providing reassurance and security that the fundamentals are being taken care of. There is some discussion to take place.
And once again I keep seeing the need for housegroups and places of direct connection and fellowship - I realised last night that even though we *don't do housegroups* as a church, housegroup-style meetings happen spontaneously when ever smaller groups of people gather, whether it's for prayer, bible study or whatever.
And finally some thoroughly boring tech-notes:
Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I'll upgrade the Macbook to SSD and probably also mountain Lion: it will likely be the last OS upgrade Apple will allow, since it's nearly 4 years old and past it's planned obsolescence date.
And I've finally got around to installing Microsoft Office under Wine on the Pear Linux PC - couldn't have been much easier, and I'm kicking myself for not having done it sooner. Just have to try installing the latest service packs now, to bring it up to date. IF this works OK then it could spell the end of OSX on the Macbook, except on a stored disc so that the machine can be sold later, or possibly dual boot. Experiments still to be done however, to see which OS is suitable as a replacement, particularly regarding wireless network adapter drivers, battery life and the 'superdrive' DVD drive Apple use.
And now - writing up and lab work.
Saturday, 21 July 2012
Don't you just love emotions?
I've not been sleeping too much the last week or so: a combination of wanting to do stuff, thinking about things (waking up through the night) and the old body not really being happy about laying down flat.
This morning I finally got up at 6.30 after another uncomfy night, feeling bleary and a little headachy before heading off to men's group. Usually we do a study and discussion of some kind, but this morning we watched the film 'Courageous' - relatively low-cringe for a Christian film. However being what it is, it MUST show ups & downs, including the death of the key character's daughter in a car crash.
Coped well, right up to the point where he then starts thinking about his daughter growing up, using a dream sequence culminating with her in a wedding dress. That's great, lets twist the knife a bit too.
Managed to stay there, quietly, without thinking too many bad thoughts. Fortunately the film ran on for more than 2 hours, and I was able to escape before it quite completed; great because I didn't have to talk to anyone afterward. Chris sensed something was not OK when I got back in, and talking to her a little helped reduce the internal pressure. Now Mr. Ibuprofen and Mr. Paracetamol have reduced it a bit further and the headache is backing off.
Tomorrow I plan to talk about salvation, and how our choices now affect how we are being saved. The film was interesting, in that it showed characters who were quite distinctly 'being saved' and making good and bad choices. I am grateful to know and have walked with people who I can hold up in reality and say that they have made good choices and have demonstrated the evidence that they ARE being saved, despite not living in California, owning large homes and driving big shiny cars.
Headache backing off - I need to finish off the prep, including adding some 'family photos' to powerpoint for tomorrow.
This morning I finally got up at 6.30 after another uncomfy night, feeling bleary and a little headachy before heading off to men's group. Usually we do a study and discussion of some kind, but this morning we watched the film 'Courageous' - relatively low-cringe for a Christian film. However being what it is, it MUST show ups & downs, including the death of the key character's daughter in a car crash.
Coped well, right up to the point where he then starts thinking about his daughter growing up, using a dream sequence culminating with her in a wedding dress. That's great, lets twist the knife a bit too.
Managed to stay there, quietly, without thinking too many bad thoughts. Fortunately the film ran on for more than 2 hours, and I was able to escape before it quite completed; great because I didn't have to talk to anyone afterward. Chris sensed something was not OK when I got back in, and talking to her a little helped reduce the internal pressure. Now Mr. Ibuprofen and Mr. Paracetamol have reduced it a bit further and the headache is backing off.
Tomorrow I plan to talk about salvation, and how our choices now affect how we are being saved. The film was interesting, in that it showed characters who were quite distinctly 'being saved' and making good and bad choices. I am grateful to know and have walked with people who I can hold up in reality and say that they have made good choices and have demonstrated the evidence that they ARE being saved, despite not living in California, owning large homes and driving big shiny cars.
Headache backing off - I need to finish off the prep, including adding some 'family photos' to powerpoint for tomorrow.
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
Office 2013 preview
Available on El Reg for those who care.
I really like the new look - no mungy gradients, no pastel colours obscuring everything into a blur of grey. This looks like it's designed for work instead of trying to demonstrate how powerful ones graphics card is. For me, the epitome of a clean workspace is windows classic on XP, and the lack of messiness seems to be trying to recapture some of that. Not so keen on the way it wants to hook into everything in the cloud and social networks, nor the fact that it will probably create yet another proprietary document format, but that seems to be the price of using Microsoft stuff.
I wonder if there will be enough money in the corporate pot for a copy when it's released?
Wonder if it will run under WINE?
I really like the new look - no mungy gradients, no pastel colours obscuring everything into a blur of grey. This looks like it's designed for work instead of trying to demonstrate how powerful ones graphics card is. For me, the epitome of a clean workspace is windows classic on XP, and the lack of messiness seems to be trying to recapture some of that. Not so keen on the way it wants to hook into everything in the cloud and social networks, nor the fact that it will probably create yet another proprietary document format, but that seems to be the price of using Microsoft stuff.
I wonder if there will be enough money in the corporate pot for a copy when it's released?
Wonder if it will run under WINE?
Sunday, 15 July 2012
Jesus would have died for you
if you were the only person alive.
This is a concept I've heard on and off for a long time, but I can think of no basis in the bible to back it up. Both Chris and I see Jesus as going to the cross because of the glory set before Him (a complex set of ideas in a single phrase) rather than because He was 'thinking of me' to follow a recent idiom (I'm pretty sure He didn't think of me personally at all).
So friends out there in the blogosphere, do you agree with the idea of Jesus dying for you alone and specifically, or do you see Him doing it from obedience and because of what His death would do to creation? I'd love to hear why you believe what you do. Answers with too many long words may be mocked.
;-)
This is a concept I've heard on and off for a long time, but I can think of no basis in the bible to back it up. Both Chris and I see Jesus as going to the cross because of the glory set before Him (a complex set of ideas in a single phrase) rather than because He was 'thinking of me' to follow a recent idiom (I'm pretty sure He didn't think of me personally at all).
So friends out there in the blogosphere, do you agree with the idea of Jesus dying for you alone and specifically, or do you see Him doing it from obedience and because of what His death would do to creation? I'd love to hear why you believe what you do. Answers with too many long words may be mocked.
;-)
Ecclesiastes is a funny place to find God
If you could see how I read and where God speaks to me from, you might be surprised to see how much old testament I read and how little new, relatively. The NT is densely packed with information, guidance, instruction and prophesy, requiring detailed, careful investigation on an almost word-by-word basis. The OT however is like broad brush-strokes, painting a sky or a landscape, and giving room to breathe and read easily, even when the subject matter is not a light one.
So I read from chapter 8:
11 When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong. 12 Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God. 13 Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.
14 There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless. 15 So I commend the enjoyment of life , because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun.
I've long looked at Ecclesiastes as a book written by a Solomon who had fallen from grace and righteousness; a book of advice to his sons not to wander and a book of mourning for the human condition and all the privations that go with life in a middle-eastern culture. But Solomon had God's wisdom, and the gift of God is not easily taken away, so this morning I saw these verses in a different light.
Why would it be meaningless for the wicked to live long happy lives and the righteous to have short, painful times filled with struggle? There is a sense in which so many things that happen are not according to God's way of doing things that they are truly without meaning and value, as in the example here, and God, it seems, has set boundaries on Himself to allow us humans to bring wisdom, pleasure, happiness, pain, distress and cruelty according to our hearts desires.
But at the same time His heart is for us to live in peace and happiness, enjoying all the good things He has made. So He commends the enjoyment of the life He has given, because in one sense there is nothing better for man to do than to eat, drink and be glad, taking delight in being a part of creation and enjoying the obvious blessings of God and the fruit of his work.
We so often miss out this aspect of the Father's heart in the way we present things, wanting all the right boxes ticked and rules followed. Yet God IS a father, who loves to see his children happy, growing up, loving and living well instead of being twisted into phobic this, sexual that and generally giving everyone a bad time.
I hope that's come out right.
Now, off to church in a mo and the greatest challenge of all today - what song to use for the kids at the start of the meeting.
So I read from chapter 8:
11 When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong. 12 Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God. 13 Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.
14 There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless. 15 So I commend the enjoyment of life , because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun.
I've long looked at Ecclesiastes as a book written by a Solomon who had fallen from grace and righteousness; a book of advice to his sons not to wander and a book of mourning for the human condition and all the privations that go with life in a middle-eastern culture. But Solomon had God's wisdom, and the gift of God is not easily taken away, so this morning I saw these verses in a different light.
Why would it be meaningless for the wicked to live long happy lives and the righteous to have short, painful times filled with struggle? There is a sense in which so many things that happen are not according to God's way of doing things that they are truly without meaning and value, as in the example here, and God, it seems, has set boundaries on Himself to allow us humans to bring wisdom, pleasure, happiness, pain, distress and cruelty according to our hearts desires.
But at the same time His heart is for us to live in peace and happiness, enjoying all the good things He has made. So He commends the enjoyment of the life He has given, because in one sense there is nothing better for man to do than to eat, drink and be glad, taking delight in being a part of creation and enjoying the obvious blessings of God and the fruit of his work.
We so often miss out this aspect of the Father's heart in the way we present things, wanting all the right boxes ticked and rules followed. Yet God IS a father, who loves to see his children happy, growing up, loving and living well instead of being twisted into phobic this, sexual that and generally giving everyone a bad time.
I hope that's come out right.
Now, off to church in a mo and the greatest challenge of all today - what song to use for the kids at the start of the meeting.
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
Ever do something foolish?
No, me neither.
Today I pledged some money to a project to build some guitars. These are special because this should make John Backlund's designs available at less than stratospheric prices. I'll have to sell the Heritage Les Paul to do it IF the project goes ahead, but it's worth it.
Today I pledged some money to a project to build some guitars. These are special because this should make John Backlund's designs available at less than stratospheric prices. I'll have to sell the Heritage Les Paul to do it IF the project goes ahead, but it's worth it.
Monday, 9 July 2012
A little more wildlife from round the back
We had a visitor on Saturday morning.
And there have been the usual birds, including a juvenile woodpecker and a greenfinch or 2.
I notice all these picture are really mungy - excessive noise reduction (may not be obvious scaled down) badly bleached highlights, poor detail and iffy colours. And that's AFTER doing as much as I could to rescue them. They were taken with Chris's Panasonic TZ10 - it makes me wonder if somehow it's had the noise reduction, EV and other settings changed somehow, because these are anything but impressive. If not, then once again I'll be wishing for something with a decent size sensor and interchangeable lenses.
And there have been the usual birds, including a juvenile woodpecker and a greenfinch or 2.
I notice all these picture are really mungy - excessive noise reduction (may not be obvious scaled down) badly bleached highlights, poor detail and iffy colours. And that's AFTER doing as much as I could to rescue them. They were taken with Chris's Panasonic TZ10 - it makes me wonder if somehow it's had the noise reduction, EV and other settings changed somehow, because these are anything but impressive. If not, then once again I'll be wishing for something with a decent size sensor and interchangeable lenses.
Friday, 6 July 2012
Struck by a comment
made by a reviewer of the new Google Chromebox on El reg.
Google isn’t unique in moving the goalposts with the tried and trusted models. I’m still grappling with Mac OS X Lion’s quirks and, rather than bend to Apple’s current vision of doing things, I’m constantly looking to find workarounds so I can do routine tasks as quickly as before. Having an OS that nags you because it woke up after an upgrade and now thinks you’re stupid, is a tedious affair, but I digress. linky
Nice to know I'm not the only one who sees things this way. I'm still debating whether to ditch OSX and move in a different direction, or whether I'll be able to bear returning to Windows. Microsoft seem to have made such a mess of Windows that I really don't know, and am seriously considering a Linux build with Office running under Wine for work. My biggest misgiving is that Linux frequently doesn't connect well to things, and that printer drivers are clumsy and limited compared to the windows equivalent (something OSX also suffers from, since it uses CUPS too).
In all honesty a MBA is looking more likely, since the basic hardware is OK and the pricing is more than competitive with non-apple stuff right now.
While I'm talking about this, it seems that Apple has been taking back the OS market.
In 2004 there microsoft had an installed base of 56 machines compared to every apple device. The ratio is now 19:1 for conventional computers alone, and 2:1 if you include mobile computers like iDevices. Working against apple is the fact that in *many* cases if a household has one iDevice then it will have many - partly due to the interoperability of the walled garden, partly down to the wealthy fanboi effect. Working against microsoft is that much of the installed base is gently obsolescing, and there is a danger that it will be replaced by something else.
Microsoft has taken steps to try to protect its market share with the UEFI boot code requirement for hardware manufacturers (where PC hardware will only allow signed software to boot) to lock out 'free' OSs like linux etc. Not a real problem on PCs where there already know solutions, but supposedly a problem with ARM devices like most non-apple smartphones and tablets. There are people gathering with pitchforks and torches over this, except it's likely to be a non-event, concerned that they will be locked out of rooting their phone (running a different version of their preferred operating system from the standard one).
So it seems that evil microsoft has returned, but whether they can become dominant again remains to be seen. In some ways having the M$ monopoly was useful, in that EVERYONE knows the only form for a document to be universally presented was in office format (.pdf is pants because it's not readily editable) and all the other 'open' formats look different in every word processor & spreadsheet program.
Back to the original point, I wonder if anyone has though of designing an OS that tries to work with the user to give them optimal efficiency, instead of the user having to learn workarounds in order to be able to work with the OS? That might be novel - remember your read about it here first!
Google isn’t unique in moving the goalposts with the tried and trusted models. I’m still grappling with Mac OS X Lion’s quirks and, rather than bend to Apple’s current vision of doing things, I’m constantly looking to find workarounds so I can do routine tasks as quickly as before. Having an OS that nags you because it woke up after an upgrade and now thinks you’re stupid, is a tedious affair, but I digress. linky
Nice to know I'm not the only one who sees things this way. I'm still debating whether to ditch OSX and move in a different direction, or whether I'll be able to bear returning to Windows. Microsoft seem to have made such a mess of Windows that I really don't know, and am seriously considering a Linux build with Office running under Wine for work. My biggest misgiving is that Linux frequently doesn't connect well to things, and that printer drivers are clumsy and limited compared to the windows equivalent (something OSX also suffers from, since it uses CUPS too).
In all honesty a MBA is looking more likely, since the basic hardware is OK and the pricing is more than competitive with non-apple stuff right now.
While I'm talking about this, it seems that Apple has been taking back the OS market.
In 2004 there microsoft had an installed base of 56 machines compared to every apple device. The ratio is now 19:1 for conventional computers alone, and 2:1 if you include mobile computers like iDevices. Working against apple is the fact that in *many* cases if a household has one iDevice then it will have many - partly due to the interoperability of the walled garden, partly down to the wealthy fanboi effect. Working against microsoft is that much of the installed base is gently obsolescing, and there is a danger that it will be replaced by something else.
Microsoft has taken steps to try to protect its market share with the UEFI boot code requirement for hardware manufacturers (where PC hardware will only allow signed software to boot) to lock out 'free' OSs like linux etc. Not a real problem on PCs where there already know solutions, but supposedly a problem with ARM devices like most non-apple smartphones and tablets. There are people gathering with pitchforks and torches over this, except it's likely to be a non-event, concerned that they will be locked out of rooting their phone (running a different version of their preferred operating system from the standard one).
So it seems that evil microsoft has returned, but whether they can become dominant again remains to be seen. In some ways having the M$ monopoly was useful, in that EVERYONE knows the only form for a document to be universally presented was in office format (.pdf is pants because it's not readily editable) and all the other 'open' formats look different in every word processor & spreadsheet program.
Back to the original point, I wonder if anyone has though of designing an OS that tries to work with the user to give them optimal efficiency, instead of the user having to learn workarounds in order to be able to work with the OS? That might be novel - remember your read about it here first!
Tuesday, 3 July 2012
A cut above?
If anyone cares....
From memory, in 2006 I bought my present razor; a Braun CruZer (I know, it sounds like a gay bar) which has done excellent service ever since. A while before that I'd had a Remington with 3 cutting heads, that wore the original foils through in less than a year and the replacements in about the same time, plus repeatedly giving me razor burn marks all over my cheeks and throat AND the batteries were already failing. The Remington was replaced with a super-cheap Braun 4615, but that wasn't an efficient cutter and when the charger developed a fault I bought the CruZer.
Last week the foil on the CruZer failed, breaking away all along one side. Pretty good after 6 years, considering they have a design life of 18 months. A quick hunt found a number of shops had the replacements available, but I eventually chose Amazon, simply because postage was free and I already had an account (message there, web marketeers). The bits turned up today, prompting this post.
What to do in the intervening time?
Well, I'd not thrown that Braun 4615 away. The problem originally was that the charger would only trickle charge, taking several days to achieve enough power for a full shave. Now since the rest of the razor worked fine I just plugged it in and left it for a couple of weeks before putting it away - it's best to store rechargeable batteries full than empty and one never knows when something might be needed. So out it came. There was enough remaining in the cells to let the motor turn slowly, so back on charge it went, with the charger apparently now working fine. I got 5 days of shaving from that first recharge.
Will I revert to the Cruzer now? Certainly - it's a better shaver in many ways. Will I fully recharge the other and keep storing it? Definitely. It's NiCad powered, so full charging & discharging are required, but that can also mean long battery storage life, as demonstrated, it was so useful standing in that it would be foolish to just ditch it.
BTW the CruZer is still capable of 7 days of shaving on a single charge. Pretty good after 6 years of daily use.
From memory, in 2006 I bought my present razor; a Braun CruZer (I know, it sounds like a gay bar) which has done excellent service ever since. A while before that I'd had a Remington with 3 cutting heads, that wore the original foils through in less than a year and the replacements in about the same time, plus repeatedly giving me razor burn marks all over my cheeks and throat AND the batteries were already failing. The Remington was replaced with a super-cheap Braun 4615, but that wasn't an efficient cutter and when the charger developed a fault I bought the CruZer.
Last week the foil on the CruZer failed, breaking away all along one side. Pretty good after 6 years, considering they have a design life of 18 months. A quick hunt found a number of shops had the replacements available, but I eventually chose Amazon, simply because postage was free and I already had an account (message there, web marketeers). The bits turned up today, prompting this post.
What to do in the intervening time?
Well, I'd not thrown that Braun 4615 away. The problem originally was that the charger would only trickle charge, taking several days to achieve enough power for a full shave. Now since the rest of the razor worked fine I just plugged it in and left it for a couple of weeks before putting it away - it's best to store rechargeable batteries full than empty and one never knows when something might be needed. So out it came. There was enough remaining in the cells to let the motor turn slowly, so back on charge it went, with the charger apparently now working fine. I got 5 days of shaving from that first recharge.
Will I revert to the Cruzer now? Certainly - it's a better shaver in many ways. Will I fully recharge the other and keep storing it? Definitely. It's NiCad powered, so full charging & discharging are required, but that can also mean long battery storage life, as demonstrated, it was so useful standing in that it would be foolish to just ditch it.
BTW the CruZer is still capable of 7 days of shaving on a single charge. Pretty good after 6 years of daily use.
Monday, 2 July 2012
It feels like I should apologise
For the grumpy, grumbling tone of the blog at the moment. Mostly I try not to vocalise grumbles, but maybe this is a 'safe' place of self expression.
It may not help that Mr. Grumpy is still 'enjoying' his 6 week sports embargo while healing, and slept badly last night.
It may not help that Mr. Grumpy is still 'enjoying' his 6 week sports embargo while healing, and slept badly last night.
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