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The commercial arm of the Royal Mail (not PostOffice Ltd) own the intellectual property of the PAF (Postal Address File) that has a strict data structure of how to store an address for verification purposes. See the PAF Digest PDF for a full 200 page specification of how to write a postal address.

important for orgs that process addresses and how to process data items like a "double dependent locality" and so on. many big UK companies totally fuck up addresses even though this is specified.

The main problem with this is that the Royal Mail was privitised so this publically funded data source has now been commercialised and the IPR owned by a company thanks to the tories.

Come on everyone, this is just pre-paid franking. Nearly all european mail services (I have no idea about the rest of the world, sorry) offer this in various guises, usually only requiring an account with the company. Royal Mail in the UK offer their "SmartStamp" service allowing you to purchase your postage online. You don't have to be a company, and you use your home printer to print out the codes/franks on the letter. You can see it here: https://www.royalmail.com/portal/sme/content1?catId=62300709&mediaId=99400762

Just from last year's stamps alone in the UK --

Boyle, Newton, Franklin, Babbage, Rutherford: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=115800796&mediaId=116600770

Flemming, Ross, Hounsfield: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=127200772&mediaId=128800767

Darwin: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=91400755&mediaId=91500749

Watt, Stephenson, McAdam: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=93000750&mediaId=93000754

Just from last year's stamps alone in the UK --

Boyle, Newton, Franklin, Babbage, Rutherford: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=115800796&mediaId=116600770

Flemming, Ross, Hounsfield: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=127200772&mediaId=128800767

Darwin: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=91400755&mediaId=91500749

Watt, Stephenson, McAdam: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=93000750&mediaId=93000754

Just from last year's stamps alone in the UK --

Boyle, Newton, Franklin, Babbage, Rutherford: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=115800796&mediaId=116600770

Flemming, Ross, Hounsfield: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=127200772&mediaId=128800767

Darwin: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=91400755&mediaId=91500749

Watt, Stephenson, McAdam: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=93000750&mediaId=93000754

Just from last year's stamps alone in the UK --

Boyle, Newton, Franklin, Babbage, Rutherford: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=115800796&mediaId=116600770

Flemming, Ross, Hounsfield: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=127200772&mediaId=128800767

Darwin: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=91400755&mediaId=91500749

Watt, Stephenson, McAdam: http://www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps/content1?catId=93000750&mediaId=93000754

In the UK, we already have that - have had it for years in fact. Nobody uses it except the odd eBayer.

http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/olpui

Basically, you pay, print, post.

I also use Evince.

The only problem I've had was that Royal Mail changed their pdf outputs for online postage so that when viewed they were obscured by the word "Sample" which was supposed to disappear when printed and didn't. My solution was to stop using Royal Mail's online service.

Evince is so much better than Adobe Reader, for my needs.

Not all of them. Some of them you can't lick at all.

You could just as well get a PO box...

"Please enter your Postcode Due to licensing changes, we're only allowed to offer our radio stream to those in the UK. You seem to be outside the UK, so you need to enter a valid UK postcode below:"

Still illegal. Thanks for trying, though!

Go to Google's map of the UK and choose where you live. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=U K&ie=UTF8&ll=53.080827,-3.032227&spn=5.095991,21.1 37695&z=6&om=1

Then go to the Royal Mail and look up your post code. http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/postcodefinder

Beef.

There are some accessibility rules: in particular the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. (Article on DDA and web accessibility). Royal Mail even seems to recognise this - they have a page on accessibility, which appears to use apostrophes that Lynx doesn't render (unless they just don't use apostrophes at all). They do provide for feedback, so I'll let them know how badly they fare in Lynx and Mozilla, and maybe you could too.

In the UK, recently we've had one of our communications services - the Royal Mail - go through a privatisation process. Its first step, of course, was to reduce service levels while spending more advertising "new" (existing renamed) services to give the impression that it is more innovative.

The motive has switched to profit.

British-made spacecraft? Damn, that's gonna be impossible to find parts for.
On Mars? I'd have to agree it'll be difficult but Parcel Force might still be able to deliver. :-)

I could not get any information from Royal Mail's current website though. Anyone ever tried those services?

The Royal Mail sell stamps by mail order, and they will deliver abroad. So, find out how much postage will cost on their Airmail price list (Argentina is zone 1 for their pricing system) and then buy the stamps necessary online. They'll even throw in the airmail stickers for free ;-)

The Royal Mail sell stamps by mail order, and they will deliver abroad. So, find out how much postage will cost on their Airmail price list (Argentina is zone 1 for their pricing system) and then buy the stamps necessary online. They'll even throw in the airmail stickers for free ;-)

Well, this is a pretty grungy thing to argue about, but... :)

That red circle just shows you where the postcode's centred. It's the same size at all zoom levels. As it happens, that postcode really does only refer to one property, because it's such a big one (NTL's Nottingham office as it happens). Most postcodes are far less precise. My old house was in the same postcode as fourteen different properties. My grandmother shares a postcode with fifteen other houses. Right now I'm living in a house which shares a postcode with thirty two other addresses. You can try it out with any postcode you like at Postcodes On-line.

And US zip codes are even larger. Just to pluck a (fairly vague) page at random, this map of the town of Salem, Oregon shows the zip codes for various areas. Each code covers several streets, and potentially thousands of residences.

So there. :)