Monthly Archives: July 2006

Pictures

Howard Tests his K800

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Howard has grabbed one of the first Sony Ericsson K800’s for his latest mobile phone upgrade. We’ve been e-mailing comparing experiences between his and my K750i, partly because I’m trying to work out whether the extra size and weight of the K800 is balanced by the improvement in picture quality.

As an example of the picture quality, he spent part of the weekend at a garden centre trying out some close-up shots of flowers and insects, one of which, Butterfly, I’ve posted here. The whole set is fantastic, with only minimal fringing when you look closely – certainly no worse than many regular digital camera shots I’ve seen. Interestingly, he didn’t have to alter too many of the settings, as unlike my phone, the unit comes configured as a camera, rather than the default configuration on mine which takes messaging size pictures, using the extra resolution to provide a zoom feature.

The results he’s getting are certainly tempting, assuming my network are willing to play ball with a good upgrade offer. However, the real world reports I’ve seen have been mixed, with the glowing reviews coming from people who haven’t previously had a K750i. Among those who already have a K750i comments have been more reserved, with some regarding the picture quality as less good, and others bemoaning the increased size. I think we’ll probably have to arrange a side-by-side comparison at some point to really satisfy me.

You can browse through the rest of Howard’s set on Flickr.

Church

Change as Good as a Rest?

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Ok, I’m extending my rule of thumb over never talking to a comedian before a show to vicars before services as well. As many of you will know, we’re stopping running the Youth Group for a year from the end of the year, having said that, as somewhat of a trail run, we’ve not actually done that much this last term. Anyway, last night was the last Youth Group of the year, the annual barbecue, and Beth happened to mention this to Rev Richard before the service yesterday morning. She also mentioned a conversation we’d had a couple of weeks ago where I’d remarked how much I liked having Sunday evenings back, and that I’d said that I could well see myself not wanting to go back after the year, and to do something different. Anyway, Rev Richard read the first reading yesterday, stood up, and said that in view of the content of the reading, it seemed like a good opportunity to thank two people in the congregation who have done a lot for our Youth Group for a number of years. Cue me trying to hide behind my hymnbook…

Anyway, we got some nice comments after the service, and for a change we managed to hold a Youth Group barbecue in the evening without needing umbrellas or the gazebo. Although as usual by the time the barbecue had got going there was barely enough time for the food. Having said that it definitely confirmed that we were right to take a time out. Whilst I know there are some people who do the same job in the church for decades, in a Church like St James there is such a lot going on, and enough people that people can move round and do something different from time to time without feeling like you’re leaving someone, or some other group in the lurch. By forewarning people that we were wanting a change a number of parents have come forward wanting to help out with the Youth Group, and Cathy and Steve are still there providing some continuity with what went before. So that leaves Beth more time to do her Portfolio, and me with another job potentially coming my way next week…

Books

‘The Fourth Bear’

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(with apologies to Dennis Lee…)

Alligator Pie!
Alligator Pie!
If I don’t get (this book),
I think I’m going to die!

Take away my iPod,
Take away my Sky,
But please, please, please, please don’t make me miss this book!!

From Jasper Fforde.com:


The Fourth Bear
A Nursery Crime

‘…However many photos you see of the Gingerbreadman, nothing can ever prepare you for seeing him in the flesh. He was a dark brown colour the shade of mahogany and at least six foot eight inches tall with heavy limbs and a large head. His jacket was open revealing several large pink icing buttons that ran down his chest. He had large glace cherries for eyes the size of tennis balls’and a huge dollop of red icing for a nose. His mouth was two slivers of licorice, the corners of which rose into a smile as soon as he saw them. ‘Alan!’ said the Gingerbreadman with a deep yet friendly tone, ‘What a pleasant surprise! And most timely, too. See here, I have bred a new rose which, in honour of your work to cure me of my criminal tendencies I take great pleasure in naming after you. Behold, Mandible’s Triumph! …’

The Gingerbreadman: Psychopath, sadist, genius, convicted murderer and biscuit is loose in the streets of Reading. It isn’t Jack Spratt’s case. He and Mary Mary have been reassigned due to falling levels of nursery crime, and The NCD is once more in jeopardy. That is, until a chance encounter during the Armitage Shanks literary awards at the oddly familiar Deja-Vu Club lead Jack and Mary on the hunt for missing journalist Henrietta ‘Goldilocks’ Hatchett, star reporter for The Daily Mole. She had been about to break a story involving unexplained explosions in Herefordshire, Pasadena and the Nullabor Plain; The last witnesses to see her alive were The Three Bears, comfortably living out a life of rural solitude in Andersen’s wood.

But all is not what it seems. How could the bear’s porridge be at such disparate temperatures when they were poured at the same time? Was Goldy’s death in the nearby 1st World War themepark of Sommeworld a freak accident? And is it merely chance that the Gingerbreadman pops up at awkward moments?

But there’s more. What does a missing scientist with a terrifying discovery in subatomic physics, a secret weapon of devastating power, a reclusive industrialist known only as the Quangle Wangle and Colonel Danvers of the National Security all have in common?

How can you miss this book?? WHERE’S MY LIBRARY CARD????

General

More Interesting TED Talks

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I’ve been taking a look at some more of the TED talks that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. Tonight I’ve watched the talk by Hans Rosling, a public health expert, and director of the Sweedish Karolinska Institute. In this talk he uses his Gapminder software to show that the separation between the third world and the first world is not what it once was. There are some fascinating examples of how the world is changing. You can explore more of the statistics at the Gapminder site.

Politics

Nuclear Go-Ahead

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This morning it looks like the governments controversial decision to build more nuclear power plants will be announced. Of course we can expect a large amount of complaints from environmentalists. However I’m reminded of Ian James comments on the subject earlier in the year that people tend to place more weight on the very small chance of a catastrophic disaster with nuclear power, as opposed to the much more massive death toll that will result from a continued reliance on pollution producing fuels such as coal and gas. Of course increasing renewables is encountering problems too with ongoing campaigns against renewable schemes over visual impact. Of course ultimately what we need to be doing is trying to use less electricity, rather than trying to generate more and more to keep up with our usage.