Blog the Barclays...
Welcome to the Barclays Blogging (or Weblogs) - where our thoughts on events and such can be published. If you want to know more about blogging, click here.
Friday, April 29, 2005
A HUGE day for Apple today with the release of the latest Mac OS X - version 10.4 - Tiger.
Looking around the internet chat, some see the reported 200 extra 'new' features as little more than an update or upgrade rather than a full blown version. And will be reluctant to fork out the £89 upgrade fee.
I, on the other hand, believe that this is going to be a very significant step. Some of the features in Tiger are really very clever - for example:
:: Spotlight: a kind of a Google for your desktop. Searches for a word or string in folders, files, emails, images, apps and everything - returning results to you sorted by relevance and kind. It's also built-in to the OS, so looks like it will be lightning fast too :-) You don't need it? Really? Suppose you don't use Google on the internet either!
:: Dashboard: A collection of little apps (widgets) on your desktop which give you immediate access to Yellow Pages, weather reports, share prices, flight tracking, dictionary/thesaurus. All single-clicked on and off.
Well worth the money I would say. Moves Apple OS significantly further away from the features offered in the current Windows OS as well. With Microsoft's Longhorn not planned to be available until 2006 - but don't hold your breath - Tiger could offer yet another reason to switch to Mac - go on, you know you want to >:-D
More good news for Apple, it's financial results for FY Q2 were release a couple of weeks ago and makes for good reading. Revenues up 70% on the same period a year ago, a 43% increase in CPU units and a 558% increase in iPods over the year ago quarter. Maybe, just maybe the much talked about iPod halo effect is beginning to kick in.
Still, even though the figures were way over the analysts expectations - on these announcements, Apple's shares dropped 9% :-(( What do you have to do to get a break on Wall Street? What does big Steve have to do?
Well, maybe if he got into Time magazine's Time 100 list of the world's most influential people. So he did B-)
Along with Gordon Brown (but not Tony Blair), heads of Yahoo!, Google, the Dalai Lama and Bill Gates. Bill however, got in due to his outstanding philanthropy rather than his position as the head of Microsoft. That said, he deserves a lot of praise for the charity work he does - but doesn't like to talk about.
.: posted by Ali 3:26 PM
Thursday, April 28, 2005
The contention seems to be true (for me at least) that the number of tasks you have, expand to fill the time you have available.
At this time, I should have a lot more time on my hands than I did before, but the days are packed!
At least now I can actually spend a little moment to look around some of the things on the net that interest me - regardless of why they interest me.
Take Bookcrossing for example. Why should the idea of a bunch of folk all over the world leaving books lying around with the specific intention that some random person will come along, pick them up to read them, interest a non-bookreader like me? I have no idea - but it does!
When I say that I am a non-bookreader, I mean that it only something taken up recently, and I'm not exactly zipping through the Complete Works of Shakespeare - in fact I am ploughing through A Beautiful Mind at present.
However, the idea, born out of a similar exercise in 2003 when Sony (I think) started releasing a number of use-once cameras out into the wild encouraging the finders to take snaps and send them back to Sony along with their details, was developed (sic) by one Ron Hornbaker. Give each book a unique identifier, release them into the world, and wait for the feedback to roll in - and track the books as they are left for one reader and another.
Encourages reading and seemingly random acts of generosity - now there's something we could all do with a little more, no?
.: posted by Ali 4:28 PM
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
BUPA 10k Great Caledonia Run in Edinburgh on 8 May 2005 and amongst the thousands of runners will be Nicola, Karen A and my friend Tom. I had no idea that Tom was running in it - he's kept it under his hat for a while - but now his secret is out!
Well, good luck to you all. With your microchip attachment, you will be tracked around the course and your stage times logged for all to see. Talking of which, the course was announced and I have to say how glad I am that I won't be doing it. They haven't been overly kind to the lay-competitors who may look forward to the odd gradual climb, but as Edinburgh is built on 7 hills, they haven't missed the chance to make the runners go up at least that many :-))
Thanks to Tom as well for passing on a great little website. A kind of Java-boosted Mappy, Map24 UK is a great map site which has some great little features. Like Tom, I love the stratospheric, freefall-type quick zoom-in to your selected destination, as well as the ability to measure distances by drawing directly onto the map - great for all the 10k running training and certainly beats the string and A-Z option currently used in this household.
.: posted by Ali 5:04 PM
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Ever heard of Typoglycmeia? No me, neither! But this came into my inbox today and fascinated me. Given that I am a touch pedantic when it comes to published spellings and punctuation, although you may not realise it reading here, the power of the human mind to decypher the most incoherent of things never ceases to amaze...
"Don't delete this because it looks weird. Believe it or not you can read it .
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch taem at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.
The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.
Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
Such a cdonition is arppoiately cllaed Typoglycemia :)-
Amzanig huh? Yaeh and yuo awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt."
.: posted by Ali 2:56 PM
Monday, April 18, 2005
Martin finished the London Marathon in 4hrs 26mins. A little slower than he had intended according to his website.
Indeed Martin, a discrepancy in someon'e figures as the officaial London Marathon site puts you at a whopping 4hrs 27mins!! You may be able to pull the wool over the others' eyes, but not me ;-D
On the whole, an excellent result. It took me about the same time to drive the 26 mile journey around Edinburgh today, so you may have a job as an on-foot courier or something to look forward to.
Next run I have to look forward to is watching my wife in a 10km - they're all at it!!!
.: posted by Ali 7:52 PM
Saturday, April 16, 2005
After the recent issues of Congestion Charges in Edinburgh (fairly soundly rejected by the public) looking at ways to better organise the collection of parking charges has come to the fore.
Interesting to see then, a increasing number of councils adopting "cashless parking". A recent video article on the BBC (no link to article available) detailed a system where a driver's account is activated and deactivated after parking using a mobile phone. No need for cash or ticket machines. Parking Attendants are equipped with a scanner to scan a barcode on the windscreen of each car to ensure that the account has been activated.
On the plus side, you only pay for what you use, being billed by the local council at the end of the month - would save money over the ridiculous system of paying for blocks of 15 minutes as in Edinburgh. Why you can't get the number of minutes you pay for I do not know. Don't believe that the technology isn't available to ensure that if you don't have the correct change, you don't lose out.
Hope more councils take this up.
A bit late, but Martin Little is running the Flora London Marathon tomorrow and should wish to support one of his chosen good causes, visit his London 2005 web page for details. All the best ML, and look out for the wall :-D
.: posted by Ali 12:57 PM
Friday, April 15, 2005
Seem to have lost my last couple of posts. Wonder where they went ???
Anyhow, plenty going on lately with our holiday to Germany and all sorts. Pics should be available on the web soon, so check back if you like.
It's the first time we have been to Germany on holiday. Went to Schliersee in Bavaria via Frankfurt and Munich. Returning by Munich and London Heathrow. Beautiful country in the lower Alpine region. Glorious sunshine for 5 days - all shorts and T-shirts - 1 day of overcast weather then 4 inches of snow on the day we were to leave :-))
Whilst we were away, Prince Rainier and the Pope died; Prince Charles married Camilla (and good luck to them - never thought he and Diana were a very likely match); Mr Blair called a General Election for 5 May. All very hectic globally one way or another.
Talking of the election... The following website was sent to me, and I thought it was rather good. Having been bombarded with political rubbish over the last few months, I have been finding it difficult to determine whether any of the main political parties have any policies. The "Yah-boo" way in which UK politics now conducts itself seems to be akin to the Monty Python "Is this the right room for an argument?" sketch. "I've told you already", "No you didn't", "Yes, I did", "No. you didn't", "Yes,I...
It was therefore very helpful to see a website which boiled some of the main policies down into a multiple-choice questionnaire. Check the boxes and submit to find which party you most align with. Not 100% scientific, but then again, it may tell you something about yourself you didn't know.
Who will I vote for? Well, here's my results...
 Who should I vote for?Your expected outcome:Liberal Democrat
Your actual outcome:
Labour -2  | | | Conservative -9 | | |  Liberal Democrat 27 | | UK Independence Party 10 | | Green -5 | |
You should vote: Liberal DemocratThe LibDems take a strong stand against tax cuts and a strong one in favour of public services: they would make long-term residential care for the elderly free across the UK, and scrap university tuition fees. They are in favour of a ban on smoking in public places, but would relax laws on cannabis. They propose to change vehicle taxation to be based on usage rather than ownership.
Take the test at Who Should You Vote For
.: posted by Ali 3:39 PM
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