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Feeding Time at the Zoo
Tracks Rockin' The Monkey House
Recent Tracks Rockin' The Monkey House
View Article  Users do the funniest things
In my time in tech support land and being a bit of a techie bloke you get some some of the strangest requests and some of the funniest from around the office because you know about technology they think you can fix anything, as I'm not there so often these days I do miss them. Today for instance someone in the office asked me if I could get their ActivSync working as their mobile phone would not sync with their email. Ok I'll have a look, I walked over to the mobile picked it up and noticed the black screen. I didn't want to say "Have you turned it on?" but it just slipped out.I pressed the power button and as if by magic it all started syncing! If only they were all that simple.

This was a classic blond moment if I've seen one.

looks like someone else is having one too http://www.gtvone.com/blogger/2007/06/is-it-turned-on.html
View Article  Soap dodging is ok
A coroner has recorded a verdict of death by misadventure on a reclusive Manchester man whose obsession with cleanliness led local children to dub him "Dettol Man".

Jacques Niemand, 42, of Didsbury, died of "an inadequate supply of oxygen to his vital organs" provoked by over-exposure to Dettol, the Telegraph reports. The inquest heard that he "habitually placed buckets of Dettol around his flat", while the rooms were "littered" with bottles of the liquid.

Niemand's sister Ruth Bain explained that her brother had suffered from an "obsessive cleaning disorder" for some years, but didn't seek medical help "because he feared the prospect of being detained under the Mental Health Act". Accordingly, he hadn't seen his GP since 1992. Bain said: "He didn't want any help and was scared of receiving it."


View Article  Place Names

 A friend sent me a link to the The 22 Worst Place Names in the World

but I think they forgot a few of them.....

 
Pity Me, UK
http://streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=426500&y=545500&z=3&sv=pity+me&st=3&tl=Pity+Me,+Durham+[City/Town/Village]&searchp=newsearch.srf&mapp=newmap.srf


LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH, Anglesy, Wales
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A403642

 
Sockburn (Co. Durham)
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=434500&y=507500&z=3&sv=Sockburn&st=3&tl=Sockburn,+Darlington+[City/Town/Village]&searchp=newsearch.srf&mapp=newmap.srf

 
Nasty (Herts.)
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=535781&y=224354&z=3&sv=Nasty&st=3&tl=Nasty,+Hertfordshire+[Town]&searchp=newsearch.srf&mapp=newmap.srf

 
Monkey's Eyebrow, AZ
 

Paradox, CO
http://www.google.co.uk/maps?q=Paradox,+CO,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

 
Spuds, FL
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spuds,_Florida

 

Two Egg, FL

 
Normal, IL
http://www.google.co.uk/maps?q=Normal,+IL,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

 
Truth Or Consequences, NM
http://www.google.co.uk/maps?q=Truth+Or+Consequences,+NM,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

 
Gayville, SD
http://www.google.co.uk/maps?q=Gayville,+SD,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

View Article  Standing on the light

Standing on the light
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
This was a shot i took over the weekend, i personally think its great
View Article  at what cost?
Sorry about the quality of the picture but i saw it and took it with my phone, I couldn't believe the price of the DVD's on the shelves at my local supermarket. How can they afford to have a DVD on the shelf for £1.97 and make a profit from it. Scary. Even if its a loss leader how much is the loss are they making 3 pounds???


View Article  Gone in 120 seconds: cracking Wi-Fi security
WEP is dead - and here's the proof.
View Article  Cartoon Time
Phil Crawley made a post on his Tech Blog about Tech Support


To which I could only reply with that great Mark Parisi cartoon

View Article  N95 not all it cracked up to be
as you may well know if you've been following my blog, that I upgrade the Miami Device to a Croquette and Tubbs phone that being the new Nokia N95.

Like I've said before I'd post a review of the phone up here when had a good look at it. Well before I starting writing my I say I've just phoned Orange to return the phone back to them. If that isn't a sign of how much we don't get on I don't know what is! Coming from a Window Mobile environment its was hard to use what seems like a backward OS in Symbian, I suspect if you've always used Nokia phones you find it a blast. I found that the phone took 3 clicks on the keypad to do any normal funcation. It seems Nokia have hidden away all the funations inside a lot of menus and you really have to dig down to get to some of the setting. Some of the feature of the phone I liked were the maps and gps navigation. I tried this out on Friday on a journey to meet a friend on the Southbank for drinks.

I turned the gps on and it started download the map via 3g. I typed the location of were I was trying to get to and the phone told me the location didn't exist, not a good start then i tried the postcode and it found the location and displayed with the address i typed in that it said didn't exist. Oh well not to worry lets check the route. The route seemed to be sending me down all the major roads and across all the main bridges. I check the settings and yes I'd set them to 'foot' rather than 'car'. The route that the phone would have sent me on was going around the houses down the main shopping streets when the quickest route was to use the back streets and across Hungerford bridge. Ok so the route planning looks off. Lets use the GPS to nativate there or find out were we are, I have a little Polstar GPS which I've used around the world to get about with Pocket Streets and it normally picks up the 3 satellites its needs to navigate in about a minute once your out of cover. The Nokia N95 didn't even connected once or give me any GPS data at any point during the whole journey to the Southbank. Yes the GPS was on as I could see 3 or 4 satellites on the information panel but it seems you need 5 for the phone to lock and start giving you data to navigate by. In London the chances of getting 5 satellites to lock if about 1 in 50 due to the height of the buildings and width of the streets which makes this possibly valuable feature useless. The feature set on the phone does seem to be tied together having two gps apps in different places on in applications and one in tools just seems daft. It looks like Nokia have just been trying to hard.

Also Orange have block access to Truphone the VOIP system that comes installed on all Nokia N95's from the factory, this feature has been disabled to Orange can protect their call revenue and not have you make cheap VOIP calls.

All in all if your not it a big city, not into VOIP and you like Nokia OS you might just think this phone is the bees knees but I'm sorry to say its not for me....looks like I'll be getting a SPV E650 after all.
View Article  Every wanted to protest.....
but really couldn't be arsed... well Tracey Moberly, Tony Pletts and Mark Thomas have the solution for you.... McDemos


We provide bespoke or off the peg demonstrations against governments, corporations and occasionally neighbours at a price to suit all pockets. No job to small or too big, from a discrete "boo" to a literally renting a mob, we cater for all your protesting needs!

McDemos is a protest solutions company (06153817) registered at Companies House UK
View Article  Miami Device upgrade
Neil king knows that a man should be judged by the devices he owns, with this in mind the old Orange M5000 aka the brick as James Clarke called it. Has been upgraded and retired and I got a all singing and dancing Nokia N95 as a free replacement. Well see how it goes and i'll post a review in a few days. Love the intergrated GPS so far.


View Article  They're tuff...but

They're tuff...but
Originally uploaded by gtvone.





Sime doesn't like blackberries much, well i think he's made his point that he really wants it to work. But i don't think that the blackberry could stand the Extreme Tech Support that can be meated out by engineers these days. Other PDA's be warned.
View Article  Bullying in the workplace, TV style

Where am I?
Originally uploaded by gtvone.
Should this be classed as bullying in the office?
View Article  LA
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6633745.stm
A senior policeman in Los Angeles has been demoted and his deputy and about 60 other officers have been reassigned after an inquiry into May Day clashes. Last week protesters and journalists were injured when police fired some 140 rubber bullets to break up the crowd. The rally had been peaceful until the clashes, which the police department said were prompted by agitators throwing rocks and bottles at officers. But TV footage showed a police officer pushing people who were walking away.

Judge for yourself from the clips below from the major news networks
clip 1
cnn msnbcprivate journo
View Article  whoops more porn daddy?
* Comcast issues apology for programming glitch
Disney Channel viewers in New Jersey were stunned to see the inadvertent display of pornographic programming in place of the children's show "Handy Manny" on Tuesday. The error was chalked up to a technical issue at a Comcast facility. New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities will reportedly take up the matter with the cable provider. 
----
i just wonder how many heads have rolled. I know many stories like this from my short time working in Soho. I especially like the one that had a company dubbing tapes and someone used some recycled vhs tapes instead of new when dubbing a supermarket training video. The training video was played at a conference they let in run on after the end of the video and the guy didn't stop the deck, so after the training video finished there was about 30 seconds black and then the hardcore porn that had been on the recycled tape. Sadly the guy who dubbed the tape carried the can for that one and lost his job. always remember use new stock....
View Article  Nostalgia
I fancied a bit of nostalgia so i logged onto the WayBack Machine and pulled up Atomiclava.

Atomiclava was mobile blogging platform way a head of its time, from James Clarke its was a vision of how we are going to be going mobile technology to show the world whats going on when the blogsphere was a twinkle in a journalists eye. Well time has moved on and James is now at Microsoft developing cool technology around Microsoft Silverlight and Atomiclava has ceased to exist.

If only the picture below could be true, what do you say James.... Atomiclava + Sharpspace + Silverlight.

James Clarke: Creating Silverlight Media with Expression Media Encoder


View Article  Uncle Joes Car

move uncle joes car on:
http://englishrussia.com/?p=865
View Article  Watch out there is a Geordie about!

L1000382
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
The monkey has landed, again. In the surreal work that is Los Angeles who joys does this town have in wait for me, its always eventful and fun.
View Article  Its Thursday must be Washington DC

L1000270
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
Today I had two days off in Washington DC before heading to NAB in las Vegas, This is my fav photo I took while out today, it from the Lincoln Memorial looking out over the Reflectling Pool down to the Washington Monument.

My Flickr Pool http://flickr.com/photos/akira_kev/sets/72157600070646782/
View Article  Karma in Action?
Text message boss killed in crash

The former boss of a no-win no-fee compensation firm which told its 2,500 staff by text they would not be paid has been killed in a car crash.

Mark Langford, 43, from Cheshire, fled to the continent after Manchester-based The Accident Group (TAG) collapsed with debts of £100m in May 2003.

Mr Langford's car was involved in an accident in Marbella, Spain, on Monday, the Foreign Office said.

He was being sought by HM Revenue and Customs for £4.1m in unpaid tax.

It is thought the businessman was at the wheel when his car went off the motorway near the resort. He died in hospital later.

View Article  Tips for Satirists
as sent to me by a friend
  1. Begin with lust and rage and mean-spiritedness if need be, but write yourself through to shared laughter, one the "victim" shares, unless you mean a death struggle.

  2. If you write anonymously about anyone other than a public figure, and mean to wound, can't help wounding, consider making the victim a "type," not a person. Make up a name for your speaker, but also for your target: "Sir Richard Surly," or whatever.

  3. If you need therapy, get therapy.

  4. Remember that satire by definition has a moral point.  Vindictiveness, flaming, making an example out of a minor figure, none of that is satire.

  5. I believe that by definition real satire is directed at those who are, in ordinary life, in a position to not only retaliate, but are in a position to retaliate by inflicting real injury: the pillory, Guantanamo, an IRS audit, termination from a job. Unless the risk to yourself is heroic, don't call your cruelty satire.

  6. Remember that satire is a gun that recoils upon the speaker, and the author too. Remember that it "takes one to know one." The Fool reviles the Knave, and the Knave reviles the Fool.

  7. Often the strongest and best satire isolates in the "Other" the writer's own faults. We overcome ourselves by wounding our own sinful nature. But remember that the boil that most needs lancing is on your own laughing face.

  8. To rejoice in the suffering of those weaker than yourself, or vulnerable people, is not satire but malice. (As Oscar Wilde would say, "That is a fault.")

  9. To run with a mob and lynch even a person who deserves it is not satire, but a sin.

  10. Satire wounds only to heal, inflicts pain only to instruct, and leaves the target either untouched (since only a type has been satirized), or laughing, if ruefully.

  11. When the victim laughs at his own folly and the crowd laughs too, the satirist has prevailed.

  12. When the victim extracts the satirist's blood, or sues and wins, the satirist has lost.

  13. The satirist also loses when the victim, innocent or guilty, is broken upon the wheel, while the mob jeers. This is only excusable as a last resort when the victim is the Tyrant and the mob are those who were his minions, including the Officers of his Kangaroo Court, his Palace Guard, and his own Headsman.

  14. Satire is a noble trade, but no easier than butchery to master. If you have never vivisected a dog, don't practice on a friend.

  15. Never dish out what you can't take.

View Article  bang goes another xbox 360
Well i thought it might only be a matter of time before my Xbox 360 broke again, at Christmas the unit failed with a error were Icould not load any disc into the CD drive the drive made some crunching and loud buzzing sounds on start up. That unit was replaced under warranty by Mircosoft. Today while in the middle of playing GRAW 2. The DVD drive made an awful sound for a second or two. I thought the worst but the game kept on playing and I completed my mission. I turned the console off and then went to do some work I came back tonight to play again and what do I find. the DVD drive will not accept any games or dvd movies it just comes up that every disk is unplayable in the tray icon. So it looks like I'll be returning a second console to Microsft with the same problem. below is a picture of the error from my cameraphone





View Article  wait for ages then......

wait for ages then......
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
if you were looking for a bus in east london this morning. Then the reason is they were all probably here. There was another 7 buses waiting in the queue just around the corner. All thanks to District Line engineering works.
View Article  Blog or your sacked

We've all heard about employees being sacked for blogging. will staff soon be sacked for failing to blog? Last week, Sony BMG UK issued a new corporate marketing strategy.

According to an official release from the group, Ged Doherty, chairman and chief executive of SonyBMG in UK and Ireland, said the company "has made it obligatory for all senior staff at both Columbia Records and RCA Records to start blogging actively".

So what happens to staff who refuse to toe the corporate line, or perhaps fail to produce the required quantity of blog blather?

more at http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/02/compulsory_blogging/
View Article  Beau Bo D'Or says

from http://www.bbdo.co.uk/blog
View Article  Video of the Year

Kermit the Frog -Hurt by Nine Inch Nails.....in Johnny Cash Stylee sent to me by Neil King
View Article  If your life was a movie, what would the soundtrack be?
Meme stolen from Planet Mark

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?

So, here's how it works:
1. Open your library (Zune, iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc.)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool!


Waking Up         

UB. Jesus - David Byrne

First Day At School

die wunderwelt der technik - welle:erdbell

Falling In Love        

Gamma Ray Blue  - Cleaner from Venus

Fight Song

DSMO (VNV Remix) - Front 242

Prom                   

Crazy - Aerosmith

Life                    

This Is My Hollywood - 3 Colours Red

Mental Breakdown     

NRG: That's What You Want? - Eskimos & Egypt

Driving                     

The Same Hole As Yesterday - Autoclav1.1

Flashback

 Citylights remix - Revolution By Night

Getting Back Together   

Interstellar Overdrive - Pink Floyd

Wedding                

A Day in the Life –The  Beatles

Birth of Child              

Forever - Bruderschaft

Final Battle                     

Raverbashing - Atari Teenage Riot

Death Scene                

Video Killed the Radio Star - The Buggles

Funeral Song                  

Love Will Tear Us Apart - Joy Division

Remembrance Song       

Tainted Love - Soft Cell

End Credits                   

A Design For Life - Manic Street Preachers

 


 

 

 
 
I thought this was so good that I’d better comment on the tracks that the meme popped into the slots

Waking Up :                     UB. Jesus - David Byrne

What a great opening for a movie, I can see it now it’s a montage. “Breathing  like humans do”

First Day At School :        die wunderwelt der technik - welle:erdbell

The translation of the title of this track is “the miracle world of the technology” I think that it does sum up my schooling, it introduced me to the world of electronics and technology  and I haven’t looked back.

Falling In Love:                 Gamma Ray Blue  - Cleaner from Venus

“I’m so in love with Gamma Ray Blue” I forgot I had this in my mp3 collection till I did this meme, the cleaner from venus were a great avant garde act. Must make a point of getting the Vinyl out and play it later.

Fight Song:                     DSMO (VNV Remix) - Front 242

Two of my favourite bands working together, I’ve had some of my best nights out and festivals  with Ronan and Mark and there is nothing like taking the Headhunters music and putting a spin on it.

Front 242 - Brussels
March 2006

The photo is from Brussels at the Front 242 25th Anniversary show. © All rights reserved (K2 Visuals 2006)

Prom:                                    Crazy – Aerosmith

Well  what would a movie of my life be without a Aerosmith track, yes I used to be “Rock Boy” Aerosmith, Thunder, Quire boys etc oh how I loved the guitar sound. Donnington 1994 watching Extreme getting bottled off stage, then Aerosmith came on and blew me away.

Life:                                       This Is My Hollywood - 3 Colours Red

3CR a great Newcastle band who made it, the album Pure that this track was on was stolen when I got mugged in Walker. “This is success” was the word that rang out in my head when I got my first Job in television. “Who wants  to be in Hollywood” was what rang out a few months later when the reality set in.

Mental Breakdown:           NRG: That's What You Want? - Eskimos & Egypt

Graham Moore (from Crave, Electrocide, Wisconsin Terror Project and In Virtue of Being) was the guy who introduced me to E&E with a great album that had Side A, Side B, Side C and Side DJ. NRG riff is ”Guns and Roses  O’ Sweet Child of Mine” played backwards and then a massive bass line popped over the top of it. Yes I think I was having a mental breakdown when I was listening to this, my father had just died and life was at a very low point. Somewhere I still go the first recording of “Away – Crave” which Graham record in my bedroom that song also means so much to me. “Electrocide, inside your mind, never let the lights go down on me”

Driving:                                The Same Hole As Yesterday - Autoclav1.1

Taken from Autoclav1.1’s first album by Tony Young, I’ve just started driving and this would be one messed up car journey if this was my movie, a bit scary and mood swinging. Great tune though..

Flashback:                           Citylights Remix (demo)- Revolution By Night

RBN was a band I used to play in and this was the last track they worked on before I left the band due to having too much going on at work, I was just starting a new job and things were moving forward.

Getting Back Together:       Interstellar Overdrive - Pink Floyd

Another song Graham introduced me too, it was the first thing he taught me to play on the guitar, bar chords all the way.

Wedding:                                A Day in the Life – Beatles

The best story about a song being made ever “The beginning was based on 2 stories John Lennon read in the Daily Mail newspaper: Guinness heir Tara Browne dying when he smashed his lotus into a parked van, and an article in the UK Daily Express in early 1967 which told of how the Blackburn Roads Surveyor had counted 4000 holes in the roads of Blackburn and commented that the volume of material needed to fill them in was enough to fill the Albert Hall. Lennon took some liberties with the Tara Browne story - he changed it so he "Blew his mind out in the car."

This boy is not the marrying type.

Birth of Child:                        Forever – Bruderschaft

This song could have gone down one place but as you not allowed to cheat. Rexx Arkana’s father died of Cancer in 1999 and during the last few days that his father spirit was around on this planet Rexx wrote “Forever”. It then took some years to get the track release but it brings together some of the greatest dark wave musicians with the most powerful lyrics ever in a song. It brings a tear to my eye every time I hear it. Rexx’s dediiation on his website http://www.razorburn.net says it all.

“I  humbly dedicate this song, "Forever," to my father: Charles Richard Millhouse, 1942-1999. I am sentry to you now, until we meet again.......... “Rexx Arkana

Final Battle:                       Raverbashing - Atari Teenage Riot

From heart felt tune to one of complete noise, ATR were one of the bands I saw at the Purcell Rooms on the South Bank Centre, they  blew me away. The power the energy. Perfect for a battle. So what I’m I Rocker, Indie kid, Metaller, Goth, Raver?

Death Scene:                     Video Killed the Radio Star - The Buggles

I don’t know about this one but I suppose it works, it was the first song played on MTV when it launched and being a techie I live in video…..Living on Video by Trans X remember that one. Lets go down how I’ve lived in technology

Funeral Song:                    Love Will Tear Us Apart - Joy Division

Someone has been playing with my record collection again as this one is too good, the best version of this is a “A plus D” mashup  “Love Will Tear You Apart (She Wants Revenge vs. Joy Division vs. Bauhaus)” its brilliant and if anyone wants a copy drop me a comment. I’ve never been a Goth honest, its not just about wearing black. But you try and tell the EMO kids that these days.

Remembrance Song:      Tainted Love - Soft Cell

Marc Almond is a God, this song has been killed by so many bands in the past. The pussycat dolls should be ashamed of version that they did. Some of the best versions are by Depeche Mode(it hurts to say that) and Deathline International.

End Credits:                       A Design For Life - Manic Street Preachers

I love the world of chaos and randomisation as the most perfect song and the band that mean the most to me in all my life land on the final credits. The Manics they are a band that have gone through a lot and come out the other end fighting. It doesn’t matter what people say about them, they do there own thing in the best way possible. That’s how I want to live my life. You don’t have to win ever battle as long as you know how to fight a war.

 If you want to listen to any of the tracks mentioned drop a comment in and I'll see what I can do

View Article  MARK THOMAS: MY LIFE IN SERIOUS ORGANISED CRIME
Mark Thomas describes how you can become a serious criminal (whether you want to or not).
On Radio 4 Listen Again:


My other posts on SOCPA


View Article  British humbug
Human Writes Homepage

British humbug by Mark Thomas

Did you hear the snigger as Britain complained that Iran had broken international law

It is an awkward question to ask but did anyone else hear the rest of the world sniggering?

I thought I heard it, that’s all. The sequence of events went like this: the unfortunate British soldiers were kidnapped by Iran, Britain announced that Iran had broken international law... and that was when I thought I heard a global giggle, though it could have been a snort of derision.

more at http://www.newstatesman.com/200703290002

View Article  No Tats in our army
The US Marines are banning the wearing of large tattoos, saying they do not represent "traditional values". From Sunday, tattoos on the head or neck, or large tattoos on arms or legs will not be allowed. Marines already with the tattoos are exempt. Unit commanders will photograph and document all existing tattoos to make sure Marines do not touch them up. Dozens of Marines are reportedly queuing up at tattoo parlours to beat the deadline.

Marines have long been banned from having racist or sexist tattoos. But from 1 April, "sleeve" tattoos that cover most of an arm or leg will be banned, as will smaller half or quarter sleeve tattoos if they are visible on arms or legs when a Marine is wearing shorts and T-shirt.

View Article  blocked in china
It seems my blog is block from viewing in china, I suspect it's really nothing i've done. my sin is that I use a blog host (Blogware) which is probably being mass blocked.


Still, all in all a good example of how pervasively stupid and arbitrary the whole web censorship meme is.
Test your own site
View Article  Fav Photos

culture
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
This is one of my fav photos i've ever taken, it just got great atomsphere
View Article  007 back in action
The 007 stage at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire has been rebuilt less than a year after it was destroyed by fire, reports trade paper Screen Daily.

The structure was demolished last year after the fire caused the roof to cave in, damaging a set from Casino Royale.

Its replacement is the same size as before, but with more usable space.

http://www.007stage.com/
View Article  darwin award????
A fire has swept through a Moscow nightclub, killing 10 people and injuring several others, police in the Russian capital have said.

Witnesses said the blaze broke out when a performer staging a nightly "fire show" inadvertently set his clothes alight, official said.

City prosecutors have begun an inquiry into safety at the 911 club.

It is the latest in a series of disasters that has highlighted Russia's poor enforcement of safety regulations.

Officials said first accounts suggested that the blaze broke out when a performer accidentally set his clothing on fire. Flames spread to a large container of spirits and then the nightclub's stage caught fire.
View Article  seeing the light

Fountain with emo kids
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
its sunday must be Stockholm
View Article  Net Neutrality a Monkey Hangers Guide
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/03/21/net_neutrality_a_monkey_hangers_guide/

Yesterday, Westminster eForum staged the first debate in the UK on "Net Neutrality" - chaired by former DTI minister Alun Michaels and Shadow DTI Charles Hendry. El Reg gave a brief presentation. Here it is, with selected highlights, and a collection of external links for further reading.

more monkey hanging

View Article  Vodafone won't recognise union
And there was me thinking about changing to Vodafone....I think I'm going to be thinking twice about that after reading this.
-----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/03/14/vodafone_wont_connect/

Vodafone is still refusing to officially recognise the Connect union, which is so keen to represent its members it has taken Vodafone to the government's Central Arbitration Committee to force recognition.

Over half the 200 people working at Vodafone's "Technology: Regional Operations North" office are already members of Connect, which means recognition can be forced on Vodafone to allow collective bargaining on pay, hours, and holiday.

Connect has been fighting for recognition since November last year, and recently went to ACAS with Vodafone in an attempt to negotiate a deal, without success.

Vodafone does not recognise unions in the UK, though its operations in Germany and Ireland do have representation. Vodafone said in a statement it has elected to "follow the statutory recognition route" - which translates as refusing to recognise any union until the law tells it it has to.

"Vodafone continues to value open and direct communication with its employees" - The key word here being "direct", as in not via collective bargaining.

Union membership in high-technology industries has, traditionally, not been very high - when employees can change jobs every month there seems little cause for collective bargining. But as the industry grows up and consolidation constrains the job market, union membership starts to look more attractive.

Connect is currently recognised by BT, O2 and Kingston Communications, though it has members at most of the comms companies, so we can expect similar disputes over the next few years. ®

View Article  Tech Firms Push to Use TV Airwaves for Internet

Cable, Phone Companies Watch Warily

A coalition of big technology companies wants to bring high-speed Internet access to consumers in a new way: over television airwaves. Key to the project ...   more »

View Article  Or as Sime put it
This is what Sime posted


I love the use of the midget, Nice touch Sime....METAL!!!!
View Article  Shut Up....

Shut up.
Originally uploaded by GrantMeStrength.
Says it all.....
View Article  Windows Vista sign @ TCR

Windows Vista sign @ TCR
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
More bright Ideas it says, well I think a bright idea would be to turn off the lights at 3:16am on a Sunday morning and save us all from more light polution.
View Article  walking in London
Most of the time I've always walked around Zone 1 as its the quickest way to get around central london, you don't have to queue up, get delayed and sqash onto a packed train. well someone has come up with a map showing how long it takes to walk between tube stops, you can see the map here

Also there is the "Sometimes it quicker to walk map"

View Article  SYNNACK MP3


 Want some music for your mp3 player then check out Synnack, Clint of Monochrome and Cut.Rate.Box fame http://www.synnack.com/
19 minutes of IDM to relax on the train to on a morning.

By the way that isn't Clint on the video that's Neil his pet Monkey, he's dances and everything???
View Article  WTF?

WFT
Originally uploaded by akira_kev.
my oven can't count....oh dear as the KLF once said what time is now .....00:00......how CAN I TRUST IT OR DO WE HAVE TO DO YEAR 8 MATHS with it....sorry for the caps...
View Article  Once they are togther.....

Monkeypr0n Surfer
Originally uploaded by almagill.
its amazing what you find on the interweb
View Article  CSI