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Archive for September, 2007
Jeff Noon – Vurt
For someone who enjoys reading science fiction, this one was an absolute pain to get through. Vurt is 325 pages of drivel that takes concentration to assimilate and make sense of. Sense is not so often made of Noon‘s writing. Told from the perspective of Scribble, member of the Stash Riders in an alternate version of Manchester, Vurt is often just plain confusing. It reminds me a bit of Alice in Wonderland: it’s likely the author was on something whilst composing his prose – without access to the same hallucinogenic, it’s unlikely anyone will ever decipher the exact context of the story.
The Vurt is an alternate reality or drug that is accessed by, get this, sucking on coloured feathers. Scribble loses his sister Desdemona after they enter the world of Curious Yellow. When he awakens, Scribble finds his sister has been lost to the Vurt and replaced by a gelatinous blob. He christens the blob The Thing from Outer Space, and the rest of the story documents Scribble‘s quest to return the Thing back to the Vurt in exchange for his sister. For that, he’ll need to find another Curious Yellow, not so easily done. This paragraph is the shortened version.
There are some twists and other plot elements, combined with zany characters. In the end, this was a time waster.
On to Spook Country…
Bob the Builder vs Bob the Builder
In the red corner, Bob the Builder circa 2004. Huge torso and rather unappealing midriff. Hardly a smile.
In the blue corner, Bob the Builder circa 2007. Restyled and smiling. Amazing what a workout in the gym can do for you.
Or maybe, the affections of a certain lady with a similar build.
Moving house
4 years ago
by manfred
in Life in South Africa
I’m preparing the move to a new hosting provider.
If things appear wonky, or possibly stop working entirely, please bear with me. This shouldn’t incur too much inconvenience…
iPhone in Europe soon
Various events have taken place in the trendy places of Europe – Berlin, Paris and London have all had a visit from His Steveness. The reason for those events? The announcement of the impending arrival of the iPhone in GSM country. For those of us in ZA, that means we’ll at least be able to get our hands on units in the near future, and it’s likely that local availability shouldn’t take too much longer.
The biggest disappointment of all is the exclusion of 3G capabilities, a feature that I would consider essential. Jobs is of the opinion that 3G/HSDPA sucks too much battery juice. He’s right, of course. But the reliance on wireless networks restricts the use of the iPhone to wireless hotspots. Granted, Europe does cater for wireless LAN infrastructures in many areas, but I still consider that a restriction. EDGE is good, but once you’ve had HSDPA on the go, there’s little reason to do without. Jobs is of the opinion that increased talk time is more important than high-speed packet data. and that five hours of talk time should be possible.
A silver lining: a 3G/HSDPA iPhone should be available sometime next year. I’d wait for that.
Enough to make you feel Sicko
We finally had the chance to watch Michael Moore’s Sicko last night. Squeezing into a schedule comprising Bob the Builder, The Wiggles and Peter Pan is hectic at times…
Michael Moore is controversial, but he makes interesting documentaries. As a Yankee himself, he is not afraid of pulling punches and exposing elements of that country’s culture and administration that may not be how they should be. In Sicko, Moore investigates the state of the American health care system, health insurers in particular. In stark contrast to Canada, France and the UK where health care is effectively free and often more intense than in the US, hospitals in the US are shown to deny treatments and causing discomfort, bankruptcy and even death. The capitalist society that is America stands in stark contrast to the socialist style of UK and France, for example.
The impression created is that Yankeeland is certainly not the land of milk and honey! Even Cuba is able to provide free medical care to a bunch of 9-11 rescue workers who have been unable to receive promised treatments and funding from the American government. Joyful images of kids and adults in France reflect happiness and contentment. Dirty city streets and families who have lost their homes, and even family members due to insurance companies denying claims make America seem almost hostile. Obviously, money is at the root of everything: health insurance companies make money by denying claims and ensuring risk-prone patients are not covered by their plans.
A thought-provoking documentary.
One week with the E90
The first week with the Nokia E90 Communicator has come and gone. Overall, I’m tremendously impressed! As someone recently mentioned: “you’re not an N95 user”, and that’s the truth. The E90 is different in many ways. First, there’s the QWERTY keyboard that allows lightning-fast replies to E-mail and SMS messages. The ability to use all features without having to flip the lid makes casual use a pleasure. The increased storage is absolutely essential on the S60 platform. The N95 frustrated me constantly due to memory issues, even when I tried my level best to keep the number of running applications to a minimum. There is no such issue with the E90. I have a bunch of applications running almost constantly and, when typing and actually trying to be productive, the number of applications increases. There’s no issue switching between applications, taking calls, browsing the web and typing a response to a message effectively all at once – similar to a personal computer, and that’s really the clincher. It’s effectively a mini notebook.
The runtime is better than I expected. I use a Bluetooth headset constantly, browse the web and utilize push mail. Generally, the battery lasts twelve hours easily, and would probably handle most of a second day. I do charge the battery to top it up once a day – heavy browsing and HSDPA usage guarantees that the unit will be without power after ten hours or so.
There are some negatives, of course. Let’s get those out of the way. The dreaded marks on the screen have appeared. That’s a well-known issue. The keys on the keyboard are too close to the screen. When closed and in a pouch, there’s obviously too much pressure. The screen is already marked – a most frustrating business! I’ve stuck a screen protector on, but the damage is done. Not immediately noticeable, but an irritation. That’s probably the worst of it. The 2.5mm audio jack is a let down, as is the supplied stereo earphone set. The N95 comes with a better unit that permits a standard earphone to replace the supplied Nokia pair. I’ve started using the radio on the E90 more and more, and I hate having to use the crappy pair supplied with this rather expensive piece of kit. The 512MB MicroSD card should have been a 1GB or maybe even a 2GB. Given the price of memory cards nowadays, that would have been nice. I understand the 1GB supplied with the N95 due to the DVD-quality recording and 5MP camera. But with the E90 there’s so much potential for viewing videos, listening to audio and storing documents. Oh well. A 2GB MicroSD is rougly ZAR 250. But it’s still an extra cost…
I don’t want to harp on the negatives. This is a compelling device. Something the N95 simply wasn’t for me. Never having been someone who considered a mobile device with a keyboard a good idea, I’ve been converted. The stylus is simply no longer enough – enough of that hunt-and-peck typing!
I have heard that Vodacom has withdrawn the E90 as a supported device. Primarily due to the screen-scratch issue and possibly an issue with another well-known problem, the faulty microphone. Thankfully, I’m with MTN! If you have any requirement for a mobile device that permits you to work whilst away from a full-size notebook or desktop computer, this is certainly something you should be considering.
Gadgets for sale
4 years ago
by manfred
in Life in South Africa
In the process of getting myself organized, some toys I no longer need are up for sale. Check out the listing here.
I’ll add a sidebar item as a reminder – you have some time to think it over 
Spook Country is here
Ok, the book. But at times one is certainly permitted to wonder about the spookiness of this country and many others…
In my grubby paws I hold a copy of Bill’s latest novel, Spook Country. Copies seemingly slipped in without much fanfare, and the local Exclusive Books had a few copies on their shelf. Thankfully not the hardback.
I have enough to read, so there’s no way I’ll get into this one for a while. But the first two pages look promising: Lego Mindstorms, Wired Magazine, Apple Powerbook and Asahi all receive a mention. I’ll admit it: I’m a bit of a brand freak. But that’s not the point. Gibson is my favourite author, and he has a knack for great storytelling. This one is set not in the future, but in the present, so the direction of the story should be interesting given current events. I look forward to reading and googling – this is supposed to be interactive fiction.
Google Phone?
The image below is a mock-up.
But rumours are growing ever-stronger that Google is planning to roll out its own mobile phone. It’s highly probably that HTC is the chosen manufacturer – with their new HTC Touch, they’re on the right track to producing an iPhone rival. It’s unlikely that the Google Phone will be a Windows Mobile device: if the stories doing the rounds are to be believed, the new Google-acquired mobile software company Android has developed a Linux-based operating system for a suitable piece of hardware. The hardware and the cellular network provider still has to be selected.
With the OpenMoko already in the works, there’s no better time for another contender to provide additional choice and software freedom. One thing is pretty certain: with the power of Google behind it, the rumoured GPhone may be a sure winner.
Australian info day
4 years ago
by manfred
in Life in South Africa
Alexander’s first project for school: collect some information to share with the other 3-4 year olds. The topic: Australia. After painstakingly manufacturing a didjeridu on Friday (that involved painting a paper towel roll green and dotting it with yellow paint), the kids have a new interest.
Mom and dad tried to get some interesting things together:
Our info pack contains the usual Australian delicacy, the TimTam to satisfy hungry tummies, pictures of Nana, a few songs on a CD (Waltzing Matilda, Tie me kangaroo down sport and one or two by Deep Forest), song lyrics, a picture of the Australian flag, a boomerang and Koala bear. Here’s trusting that teachers in ZA can spell, unlike their Australian counterparts.
Can’t wait for those science projects in high school…
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