Wow [spoilers].
The Internet
Brighton’s Free Hotspots and New “Metranet”
June 17th 2005, 06:06pmYesterday’s Guardian carries a somewhat confused description of Brighton’s new WiMax Metranet.
Whilst Brightonians currently are no more than 10 minutes from a free WiFi hotspot thanks to access points provided by Loose Connection (which I believe is also run by Metranet) and Pier to Pier, the new network which provides blanket coverage for 90% of the city is a separate venture. It uses not WiFi but the unratified 802.16e WiMax standard. This has greater range (the longest link at 7.5km provides 24mbs) and doesn’t require lines of sight. The main access point is on Sussex Heights, with another at the University.
The network is a joint venture between the council and the universities, and using the additional security provided by WiMax two virtual networks support the council’s intranet and a link to JANET. Some seven schools and three university sites are connected, but with the foundations laid many more could be added, as well as extra free WiFi hotspots for Brighton’s citizens. What a pity I don’t live there…
Doctor Who
Who is Bad Wolf?
June 16th 2005, 10:06pmTwo days until we know. Apparently the net is awash with conspiracy theories. The Guardian believes it is an Egyptian wolf named Anubis although it could be Rose or Christopher Eccleston (he’s “leaving the show after this series”). Meanwhile (WARNING: ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOILERS) a third new Doctor Who series has been commissioned, and in yet another interview Russel T Davies celebrates the revival’s success. And justly so, for as the new series draws to a close, no one has summarised it better than Charlie Brooker: “a thrilling and enchanting update occasionally let down by fart jokes… Best. BBC. Family. Drama. Series. Ever.”
Life in General
Wine
June 16th 2005, 10:06pmTo a wine tasting after work with a wine buff colleague, generously sharing his obsession. Among the reds, the Wild Pig was justly popular, and not just for the name, but for me the pick was the Fetzer Zinfandel/Shiraz 2000. Among the whites the from Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett (not available online) was my favorite. Discovered lots of other jolly wines along the way, and staggered home happy…
Macintosh, Wordpress
WordPress Dashboard Widget
June 15th 2005, 07:06pmMacintosh, The Internet
Much as I too love Safari RSS…
June 14th 2005, 09:06pmMacintosh
Update Frequency for RSS in Safari
June 14th 2005, 06:06pmSince the single biggest discovery through Tiger has, for me, been RSS feeds (which, admittedly have been around for a while) I wondered if you could refresh the feeds, so when you get home and want to see which ones have new stories you wouldn’t have to wait for Safari to check. Turns out the update frequency is 30 mins although this can be changed. However a forced refresh (like forcing mail.app to check for new email) doesn’t seem to be possible.
The Internet
Free BBC Beethoven Podcast
June 13th 2005, 08:06amAn alert that BBC Radio 3 are making their Beethoven Symphonies (they’re doing all of them in June) available as MP3s. Syphonies 1 & 3 only available until the end of today!
Macintosh
RSS Visualiser
June 12th 2005, 08:06pmAlthough I haven’t even tackled the big new things in Tiger (smart folders, automator etc.) I keep making happy accidental new discoveries. Like this beautiful screensaver, which renders a three dimensional visualisation of any RSS feed in your Safari bookmarks. Choose an RSS feed (such as the one for this site, or as I do, the feed for Guardian Unlimited), make sure you’ve bookmarked it, and then select this feed under the options for the RSS visualiser screensaver in System Preferences.
Of course being an Apple screensaver, it’s in the detail that it shines: when the screensaver’s up, if a story catches your eye you just hit a number key to read the full article.
The Internet
Guardian Unlimited | Online | Dissing the discmen
June 12th 2005, 08:06pmProbably the most intelligent thing I’ve read on the whole music dowloading/piracy thing and the industry response is this article by Victor Keegan.
