Nokians fitted...

Back in February I posted about trying to get my hands on some winter tyres. Well, the long wait is over - I had a set of Nokian WR G2 winter tyres fitted to the car today.

Now to await the ice and snow....

Mitchell & Webb...

...poke fun at modern computer stores....


Good job I'd finished my sake...

Arrggghhhh....

Why, oh why, do shops insist on giving it's customers till receipts equivalent in length to the Dead Sea Scrolls?

I got behind in my shredding of these, so tackled the pile today and almost threw the shredder through the window in frustration, as these flimsy strips of paper refused to be fed into the shredders jaws!

Most shops aren't satisfied in handing you one of these mini toilet rolls - they seem to delight in two, three or more.
The further we seem to head into a cashless, paperless society the more paper we seem to waste...

Friendface...

Flushed down the drain...

I deleted my Facebook account at the end of May. I was getting fed up with the Twitter like outpourings of some of those in my friends list. And we know what I think of Twitter...

Seeing the Raoul Moat tribute page debacle unfold I'm glad I am no longer an account holder. The 'groups' that sprang up for the most pathetic cause célèbre exposed the dross of society.

Now we have the cretins who hail Moat as a legend and see him as some sort of modern day Robin Hood. He was a violent bully who shot dead one man, shot his ex, then shot a policeman in the face, blinding him for life. Not a legend.

This group, and the ones that have appeared since the original was closed, is like a fresh turd. It attracts the flies that swarm all over it in a frenzy - eventually the turd dries up and the flies go off to find another place to lay their eggs (or post their idiotic views).

While the internet is a good thing most of the time, every now and again this new media/social network crap bubbles up like effluent from a blocked drain...

Goodbye i(P)OS4...

I have had enough.

My iPhone 3G has been pretty much fecked since I uploaded i(P)OS4 to it. Lost a couple of apps (Qik Video being one of them) and the benefits (if there were any) of the two "improvements" (mail and folders) that i(P)OS4 brought over the OS3 are certainly not enough for me to keep this updated software on my iPhone.

So today I am following the tutorial over on TiPb.com on how to downgrade your iPhone from i(P)OS4.

I am sure there are many iPhone users completely happy with i(P)OS4 but this one isn't. Hopefully a smooth downgrade will be possible.

Thanks Apple.....


FYI:
Downgrade/backdate/reversion, or whatever you wish to call it, went fine - the phone is back to being as quick as it ever was prior the mistake of updating to iOS4. Apps open almost immediately and writing an email is back to being lag-free.

This is NOT a crèche....

Really pisses me off when yummy mummies decide to take over already cramped coffee shops with the perambulator equivalents of 4x4 off roaders. Tell you what, why not just block that seating area off completely - circle the strollers, wagon train like, to prevent anyone else from finding a seat. Leave the bloody machines outside will you!!!!!!!!!!!!!...

Neat art...

While I have resisted the urge or temptation to spend yet more money on some latest Apple 'must-have' gadget my interest is now and again piqued when I see some users making use of the iPad as a new form of art tablet.
One such example is Goro Fujita.


For now, no iPad for me....

Half price sticker placement - WIN...

I have yet to spot another example of such complete Bookcover Burqaism on the shelves....

TwoSeatsBob...

Maybe that could also be STFUBob, WhineyAssBob, SeatBlockerBob and a 100 other variables on the current farce rumbling around the internets regarding Kevin Smith and his fat lardy ass getting turned off a flight from LA to SF.
Smith claims he books two seats not because he is "Too Fat To Fly" but because he is anti-social and doesn't want to sit cheek by jowl with another fat flyer. Or a member of the human race.
This guy probably has enough money to charter his own plane to fly to SF. Then he could sit in splendid solitude while the rest of us have to deal with all the problems of modern air travel. But no, he prefers to book two seats. Then gets all arsey when he opts to fly standby then gets turned off that flight. If the flight was booked solid and some person trying desperately to get a flight for some emergency was told sorry flight is full, no seats available, would you give up your spare seat? Probably not, as you booked for your fat shadow.
Here is a tip AntiSocialBob - if you can't stand being around other people try driving. You have four/five seats to yourself. You can choose your own entertainment. You can stop to eat when you want and you have a better choice of food. You can set your own departure time. You don't have to deal with TSA. Get the picture yet Mr Director?

Or maybe just stay at home with your chubby little legs kicked back in your La Z Boy typing away furiously on your computer...

I'm disappointed that SWA is bending over backwards to placate this moron while all the time feeding the frenzy of his fanboys all screaming for SWA to be hung from the nearest hill.

They have a policy in place for safety reasons. Next time I am forced to sit next to an obese passenger I'll be asking to move because now I will just see flying fatties as selfish ignorant jerk offs like Kevin "SilentBob" Smith......

Macworld 2010 - "hugely successful"

They were the words of IDG's expo 'main man' Paul Kent at the end of this years MWSF 2010.

I think "hugely successful" may be gilding the lily slightly - from just searching for figures on the net for previous years there is no doubt that attendance is way down - the hi-tech graph above shows it is.

The figures for 2008-2010 are approximate - 2008 was supposed to be up 10% on the previous year, 2009 figs don't appear to be released and this year the 20,000 is sourced from www.istockanalyst.com

If a drop of such a huge amount is considered a "success" then I wonder what a failure looks like!
With the demise of Paris and then London after Apple withdrew, I wonder how long IDG will maintain Macworld in it's current form?

My thoughts after MWSF 2009...

Ordering now for next winter...

...was the reply when I tried to order a set of "winter" tyres from the UK importer. With a new set of tyres needed for the front of my car I decided on trying to source a set of Nokian WR G2 winter/all season tyres. I'd read good reviews on these tyres and contrary to what the dealer may think they are classed as all season tyres by the manufacturer, Nokian.

So, with the recent wintery weather we've experienced I thought a good set of winter rubber would be a good option over the all season brands usually sold here in the UK.
Tracking these tyres down hasn't been easy as it appears many other UK drivers are discovering the benefits of winter tyres. So I contacted the UK importer and was surprised to be told that they wouldn't be ordering any more until October! The impression I got was they believed the WR G2 was only for use during snowy weather.
My search goes on....

Nokian WR G2