Hmm… just spotted this, clicking around:
An Old Nottinghamian criticising another Old Nottinghamian in Parliament.
September, 2004
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Ken Clarke vs Ed Balls
September 22, 2004 by dafyd
Category 1 | Tags: hmm | Comments Off
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Boris Johnson
September 22, 2004 by dafyd
Boris Johnson (writer, editor, sometime celebrity and Conservative Member of Parliament for Henley) has now got himself an official blogsite.You can also find a fan site (Boriswatch) at http://www.boriswatch.com, and his fan club (actually a society at Durham University).
Category 1 | Tags: rave | Comments Off
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Fascinating French Facts
September 21, 2004 by dafyd
While I was in France I read a fascinating book by Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow called Sixty Million Frenchmen Can’t Be Wrong. I thought I would share with you a couple of interesting facts I discovered…The French word ‘ordinateur‘ (‘computer‘) was actually invented by IBM France in 1954, because the first two syllables of ‘computer‘, ‘con‘ and ‘pute‘ are rather rude in French…!
There is a long-running animosity between the French-speaking French and the French-speaking Canadians, who both accuse each other of polluting the language with Anglicisms. In fact, as the authors suggest, they simply use different anglicisms. As one common joke puts it, the Quebecois parquent the car in the stationnement (car park) while the French stationnent in the the parking!
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Hello from France
September 15, 2004 by dafyd
I’m going to make this short, cos I can’t cope with this keyboard … but I thought you might be interested in my French word of the week: stressing. As in, les examens étaient très stressings (the exams were very stressful). Voilà, un mot hypercool!!!
Au revoir, à bientot!
Category 1 | Tags: rave | Comments Off
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Travelling to Paris
September 13, 2004 by dafyd
I’ve been travelling for 8 hours today, using 5 different transport systems (car – Midland Mainline – London Underground – Eurostar – Paris RER), and the only bits that caused any hassle or delay were the English trains. The Midland Mainline HST, supposedly a 90-minute journey, arrived in London 45 minutes late (that’s 50%…).
Then the building works at St Pancras meant that the train-underground connection was ridiculously difficult, and finally, to add insult to injury, the station where I was going to change Underground trains was closed.
Naturally, the other parts of the journey were absolutely problem free! Eurostar was dead on time departing and arriving. Travelling on Monday afternoon, I had half the carriage to myself – very nice!
At the other end, I walked through Gare du Nord to the RER platform to get the train to Sceaux … and it was there waiting (only 1 in 4 trains on the RER line B actually go to Sceaux).
To quote the advert … “don’t you love it when things just work?”
Category 1 | Tags: rantandrave | Comments Off
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TATU Producer Angers Russia With Suicide Bomber Singer
September 11, 2004 by dafyd
This article from Russian News Agency MosNews seems quite relevant today:
Russians, still in shock at the Beslan tragedy, have reacted angrily to a music producer’s plans for what he calls a “terror concert”, with a female singer dressed as a suicide bomber on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. The singer, called n.A.T.o. in a spin-off of the “lesbian schoolgirl” t.A.T.u. duo that took the West by storm, wears a long black dress, a veil, and sings in Arabic. Producer Ivan Shapovalov, who launched both groups, does not deny that the resemblance to a suicide bomber is intentional. Tickets to Saturday’s show have also been made to look like plane tickets. “Shapovalov is exploiting the topical theme of terrorism … The tragedy in Beslan did little to stop his creative drive,” the Izvestia daily wrote. Shapovalov, meanwhile, does not rule out that there may be problems holding the concert. “Because everyone’s so scared…I feel some doubts on their part,” he told MosNews, speaking of the organizers. The concert will feature the latest news footage from the Middle East, and references to al Qaeda and Iraq. An official from the Ministry of Culture also spoke out against holding the event. “The coming concert is absolutely politically incorrect in form,” Interfax quoted the official as saying. He added that while he has indicated this to Shapovalov’s representatives, the Ministry of Culture does not have any legal means of canceling the concert. “This is sick. That man is sick. The producer should be jailed for doing that after so many people died across Russia in the past weeks,” Reuters quoted a Muscovite as saying. “I am sure the concert will be cancelled.” But while he admits that his protegee is supposed to look like a suicide bomber, Shapovalov doesn’t see why people are upset. “If people are scared by a woman wearing a black headscarf, that means they are sick themselves,” Izvestia quoted him as saying. When MosNews asked him about his use of terror imagery in his ad campaign for n.A.T.o., he says, “I’m not leading a campaign. I like her songs and I like it when others listen to things I like.” Meanwhile, a member of Shapovalov’s creative team, who chose to remain anonymous, told MosNews the producer has already discussed n.A.T.o. with a London music company and that the company is interested, “because nothing is getting blown up in England”.
Frankly, I’m shocked. Surely this producer, a Russian version of Simon Cowell, can’t be so out-of-touch with his country’s feelings (and, in fact, the world’s)… if the tragedy in Beslan caused the BBC, half the world away, to cancel programmes, surely this guy must realise that he can’t possibly carry on with the concert.
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New iMac useful for breakfast…
September 10, 2004 by dafyd
Great story from BBSpot:
At the Apple Expo in Paris Apple Computer’s marketing chief Phil Schiller unveiled the latest version of the iMac. Unlike earlier iMacs, the G5 uses a minimalist design reminiscent of Apple’s iPod.
As well as being moderately useful for desktop publishing and digital music “sharing,” the G5 makes an excellent breakfast tray. With the option of a wireless keyboard and mouse, there is only the power cord to unplug when getting ready to serve the morning latte.
Residents in arid areas can use the computer as roofing material, and as a cheap alternative to aluminum siding. This marks Apple’s first foray into construction. Rival Microsoft has long had a lead in this market, cemented by the sale of MS BOB as a cheap and durable insulation material.
The G5 comes with a 17″ or 20″ wide-screen monitor, allowing for nearly twice the visual information to be displayed simultaneously. “Side by side, actual size, on screen at the same time” said Schiller. IContact technology makes sure the screen is always angled for optimum viewing, whether the user is getting in close to have a look at detail or leaning back to take a deep breath or light a cigarette. The keyboard can be fully immersed in water for easy cleaning.
Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. MacPlanet’s Karen Mischke said the G5 was like “an iPod, but with a bigger display.” George Duval of the MacAttac online forum praised the innovative cooling system and the sleek design: “I can barely hear it, and if you turn it sideways you can’t see it. It’s the next best thing to not having a computer at all.”
For anyone who hasn’t been outside the faculty for a few years, the NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra gives “unparalleled 2D and 3D graphics performance.” The new processor and an impressive 256MB of RAM make plain text editing a breeze.
The G5 comes preloaded with all three games that work on OS X.Category 1 | Tags: rave | Comments Off
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Macs Online
September 9, 2004 by dafyd
Well I never. There’s an online radio station dedicated to Macs (as in Apples, not raincoats), called Your Mac Life. How strange.
It’s weird that there are so many more sites for Macs than there are for Windows. By that, I mean that there are more fansite sort-of-sites for Macs than for Windows. It’s weird, because there are far, far more Windows users than there are Mac users… but sites like Macworld and the superb SpyMac really outnumber Windows fan sites. I’ve seen plenty of tech-support sites for Windows, but really never a fan site.
Should I really be surprised?
That said, I did find plenty of sites dedicated to the infamous Blue Screen of Death… and a special keyboard designed to escape from it:
… and if you really want, you can buy a BSOD t-shirt!
Category 1 | Tags: hmm | Comments Off
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Outrageous Media Bias?
September 8, 2004 by dafyd
“This is one of the worst example of media bias I have ever seen. President Bush was campaigning in Wisconsin on Friday and told a crowd of supporters that President Clinton had been admitted to the hospital. President Bush extended his best wishes to the former president, and the crowd cheered.
But that’s not the way the AP reported the story…
Audience boos as Bush offers best wishes for Clinton’s recovery
By Associated Press, 9/3/2004, 1:57PM
WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) — President Bush on Friday wished Bill Clinton “best wishes for a swift and speedy recovery.”
“He’s is in our thoughts and prayers,” Bush said at a campaign rally.
Bush’s audience of thousands in West Allis, Wis., booed. Bush did nothing to stop them.Later that day, the AP corrected the earlier report without correcting the record.
Bush offers best wishes for Clinton’s recovery
By Associated Press, 9/3/2004, 6:06PM
WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) — President Bush on Friday offered former President Bill Clinton, who faces heart bypass surgery, “best wishes for a swift and speedy recovery.”
“He is in our thoughts and prayers,” Bush said at a campaign rally in Wisconsin.
The crowd reacted with applause and with some “ooohs,” apparently surprised by the news that Clinton was ill.Notice how the AP tried to cover their tracks with the “ooohs” reference. Nice try AP, but it was completely obvious that some in the crowd were surprised by the news. Don’t take my word for it though, listen to the actual audio feed.
After listening to the audio feed, is there any way that a trained reporter could mistake applause for booing?
Unbelievable.”
It’s interesting to note that for once the media bias was against Bush, as opposed to pro-W. When you watch Fox News, it’s hard to believe you’re not watching an election broadcast. AP is one of the most respected news agencies, so I’d like to think it was a mistake, but on the evidence given…
(Thanks to The Political Edge by Jeffrey Skelly)
Category 1 | Tags: uselection2004 | Comments Off
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Together Everyone Achieves More
September 8, 2004 by dafyd
It’s true, you know. Chrissy P says so. It must be true. And let’s face it, TEAM sounds much better than Lauda Finem. Especially for a 500 year old independent boys school.
Category 1 | Tags: hmm | Comments Off