After leaving University in 1997 I was employed for 10 years before finally being forced to take a sabbatical due to
workplace bullying damaging my mental health. I took the time out to write a book, and the success of that one has
prompted me to write a second one, which is due out soon.
It wasn't my planned career goal. I have been trying for many years now to re-enter the workplace and I would
be willing to do anything, from data input to development to straightforward admin; and most people won't even look
at my CV - perhaps because I have reached that magic age (40) where long-term unemployment becomes an inevitability.
I hardly ever receive an acknowledgement for my CV, but have noticed some small recognition after someone suggested
that I write a more conversational resume to make it stand out. I try
to maintain an active interest in the latest technology and often indulge in small projects to keep my programming edge,
but beggers truly can't be choosers, and I'd settle for any employment.
Because I left my last job, I get no Job Seekers Allowance, and we get a token £5 reduction in our £100+ council
tax. Also because my wife works we get little support from anyone - even though, despite working for a major multinational
bank and is the recognised top performing employee for this region, she gets paid peanuts.
I have written to every benefits agency I can think of, and have even tried my MP (Andrew Lansley) but they won't/can't help.
Its almost as if the Government is happy to take money off people but when it comes to dispensing support they all turn their
backs.
I am overwhelmed with guilt as my parents, both pensioners, help us with our rent each month to the tune of £500 (our rent is
£700, we can't afford to move or put our stuff into storage so we're in a no-win situation); all we get is £100 in benefits and we make
up the balance meaning that we often go to bed hungry.
So good luck to anyone who thinks we live in a society that cares for its down-trodden citizens. Once you're on the road to
penury there is little chance of escape.
On a peripheral matter, online dating does work. I met my wife on Love@Lycos in 2003, she moved in two years later, married in 2007
and we're still together.
The thing about that website is that it was free; others have left a very bad impression, the worst one being match.com . I don't know if
it has changed since then, but about 1999 I put my details on their site and got an interested email a few hours later. Of course, I couldn't
reply, as you had to pay for membership before you could contact anyone. So I paid £5 for a month's subscription and messaged back. I got no reply. I think it was just an automated match.com robot designed to suck in the desperate into paying up. A little while later, I created a sock puppet account with the most repulsive details I could imagine. I got a couple of messages from people who said they
were interested and wanted to know more. In my mind, proof that match.com would do anything to make you part with your money. I didn't
and it put me off dating sites until a few years later when I happened to read a newspaper article which rekindled my interest.
An idea for a 404 page was to have a scene from "The Naked Gun", either the bit where Drebin is standing in front of the exploding fireworks factory, saying "Move along, nothing to see here", or the bit earlier on where him and the chief go to the scene of Norberg's shooting, and a cop with a megaphone is saying the same thing to two people at the quayside. Well, if I don't do it, it might give someone an idea to do so...;)
'The Nobel Prizes, as designated in the Will of Alfred Nobel, are in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace
Thats because when Nobel died, there was no such thing as IT or "computing" (at least the way we recognise it today), and telecoms were just starting to show some promise.
It must have been the summer of 1998 then. I'm very surprised as I got my first PC in the summer of 1997 just after I got my first job and I can't believe I waited a year to try RedShat. It was definitely 5.1 or 5.2- more likely 5.1.
Why don't I try Redhat again? Remember the old proverb; fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Or you use George Dubya's garbed version. Whatever. I had a shit experience and all I had was a command line prompt.
A little bit later than the video, but I tried RedHat (5.1 or 5.2? I can't remember) in the summer of 1997. From my Uni days, I had the impression that Linux was hard to install, but although it was simple enough, getting XFree86 to install and run was a nightmare. I decided to try Redhat since we were promised xxx number of days of support. What they didn't tell you was that it would take a couple of weeks for them to get back in touch with you and then it was simply to go over what you'd done. I think I managed about 3 support tickets before
my time was up. I abandoned Redhat and it was a couple of years before I tried Linux again. I was a SuSE distro and it was a doddle to install. SInce then I've moved onto Mandriva and then Ubuntu and have been using this ever since.
I've never used Redhat since and don't feel the need to ever go back to it after the shoddy aftercare service I got.
Since how can a British judge have jurisdiction over a US Company? Are the Twitter uses going to be polled on whether they are Brit or not, and if they, pre-emptively slap their wrists with a harsh cry of "Don't eye try it, matey!"
I've been interested in ghosts all my life, but my interest in them has "gone off the boil" recently due to stupidity within the ranks
of ghost hunters, politics, and rising costs of venues. Since "Most Haunted" (a tacky UK TV shop, now thankfully ended), anybody
realised they could be a ghost hunter...and venues realised that, whereas before, they would open their doors to anyone with an ounce of goodwill and a token few pounds payment, they now charge HUGE sums for entry. It has soured my interest in the field.
I look upon most groups with a mixture of suspicion and humour. None of them seem to realise that magnetic fields are a vector
quantity, so if you point the EMF meter one way, and then another, of course it'll be different! And many groups use EMFs meters designed for use in detecting domestic power cables! Then there's EVP (electronic voice phenomena), the way that disembodied spirits imprint their "voices" on tape and disks without anyone noticing at the time. I've heard only a few that are somewhat convincing. Most are shrouded in a sea of fog and hiss, some you have to adjust the speed, introduce filters, play backwards....if you have to go to that much trouble, chances are there was nothing of any interest there in the first place!
I've written up some of my thoughts on ghosts on my website; everything from experiences on ghost hunts, to the scientific evidence
for ghosts (there isn't much!), to a presentation I gave at the London "Skeptics in the pub" about 5 or 6 years ago. Have a look at this page. Pleasant dreams;-)
The article is a bit dubious on facts. While it is true that the videotapes of the series were being wiped in the 1960s, the film telerecordings/kinescopes were not being junked until 1972, and went on for about 6 years. Also, Steve Roberts is not 35! I knew him for a while; I'm currently 39 and he is at least a few years older than me!
The politics behind the Chroma Dot story is intriguing and in some places unpleasant. The instigator of the team was James Insell, and a method was created to perform the chroma dot extraction by a man named Richard Russell. Insell became a bit proprietorial over it all, and he and Russell parted ways, and now Russell it doing it alone. The original Colour extraction blog is here but they don't seem to have made any huge advances since Russell left. There is some more info, plus a link to Russell's own work (including software download) on my own Dr.Who webpage here
I've written many articles and essays on the Titanic (and one book) - have a look here
if you're interested. Even if you're not, take a look. As for the 2010 expedition (more of a media circus than a proper scientific expedition IMHO), click on my bouquets and brickbats for my thoughts on the matter. The links in my sig, and the musings are near the top of the page.
Ah, but can it be used to paper over plot holes, or do just about everything to further the plot. It seems to do just about anything but unscrew screws, but what do you expect from writers who just can't write decent plots? Whats the point of getting the Doctor into a tricky situation if all he has to do is take out his sonic screwdriver and whoosh- instantly solved. Sheer lasiness from the writers. But then again, they probably have an eye on merchandising and toy sales...
Google have done the right thing and not rushed out Chrome OS in time for Christmas, unlike the disastrous Vista. But will Chrome OS enabled netbooks have a sticker on the box saying "you must be connected to the internet to use this machine"?
Slashdot Mirror
After leaving University in 1997 I was employed for 10 years before finally being forced to take a sabbatical due to workplace bullying damaging my mental health. I took the time out to write a book, and the success of that one has prompted me to write a second one, which is due out soon.
It wasn't my planned career goal. I have been trying for many years now to re-enter the workplace and I would be willing to do anything, from data input to development to straightforward admin; and most people won't even look at my CV - perhaps because I have reached that magic age (40) where long-term unemployment becomes an inevitability. I hardly ever receive an acknowledgement for my CV, but have noticed some small recognition after someone suggested that I write a more conversational resume to make it stand out. I try to maintain an active interest in the latest technology and often indulge in small projects to keep my programming edge, but beggers truly can't be choosers, and I'd settle for any employment.
Because I left my last job, I get no Job Seekers Allowance, and we get a token £5 reduction in our £100+ council tax. Also because my wife works we get little support from anyone - even though, despite working for a major multinational bank and is the recognised top performing employee for this region, she gets paid peanuts.
I have written to every benefits agency I can think of, and have even tried my MP (Andrew Lansley) but they won't/can't help. Its almost as if the Government is happy to take money off people but when it comes to dispensing support they all turn their backs.
I am overwhelmed with guilt as my parents, both pensioners, help us with our rent each month to the tune of £500 (our rent is £700, we can't afford to move or put our stuff into storage so we're in a no-win situation); all we get is £100 in benefits and we make up the balance meaning that we often go to bed hungry.
So good luck to anyone who thinks we live in a society that cares for its down-trodden citizens. Once you're on the road to penury there is little chance of escape.
The thing about that website is that it was free; others have left a very bad impression, the worst one being match.com . I don't know if it has changed since then, but about 1999 I put my details on their site and got an interested email a few hours later. Of course, I couldn't reply, as you had to pay for membership before you could contact anyone. So I paid £5 for a month's subscription and messaged back. I got no reply. I think it was just an automated match.com robot designed to suck in the desperate into paying up. A little while later, I created a sock puppet account with the most repulsive details I could imagine. I got a couple of messages from people who said they were interested and wanted to know more. In my mind, proof that match.com would do anything to make you part with your money. I didn't and it put me off dating sites until a few years later when I happened to read a newspaper article which rekindled my interest.
...that didn't quite work, click here
You could adopt the British Broadcasting Corporations approach to valuable archival holdings c.1972: thrown everything into a furnace.
look here
An idea for a 404 page was to have a scene from "The Naked Gun", either the bit where Drebin is standing in front of the exploding fireworks factory, saying "Move along, nothing to see here", or the bit earlier on where him and the chief go to the scene of Norberg's shooting, and a cop with a megaphone is saying the same thing to two people at the quayside. Well, if I don't do it, it might give someone an idea to do so... ;)
Try this
No, Laika was sent up purely for propaganda.
Thats because when Nobel died, there was no such thing as IT or "computing" (at least the way we recognise it today), and telecoms were just starting to show some promise.
Why don't I try Redhat again? Remember the old proverb; fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Or you use George Dubya's garbed version. Whatever. I had a shit experience and all I had was a command line prompt.
I've never used Redhat since and don't feel the need to ever go back to it after the shoddy aftercare service I got.
I've already named him in my blog. See my signature line for the URL.
Since how can a British judge have jurisdiction over a US Company? Are the Twitter uses going to be polled on whether they are Brit or not, and if they, pre-emptively slap their wrists with a harsh cry of "Don't eye try it, matey!"
A solar fart.
...if you want *grin*
You may just want to buy my ebook too!
I look upon most groups with a mixture of suspicion and humour. None of them seem to realise that magnetic fields are a vector quantity, so if you point the EMF meter one way, and then another, of course it'll be different! And many groups use EMFs meters designed for use in detecting domestic power cables! Then there's EVP (electronic voice phenomena), the way that disembodied spirits imprint their "voices" on tape and disks without anyone noticing at the time. I've heard only a few that are somewhat convincing. Most are shrouded in a sea of fog and hiss, some you have to adjust the speed, introduce filters, play backwards....if you have to go to that much trouble, chances are there was nothing of any interest there in the first place!
I've written up some of my thoughts on ghosts on my website; everything from experiences on ghost hunts, to the scientific evidence for ghosts (there isn't much!), to a presentation I gave at the London "Skeptics in the pub" about 5 or 6 years ago. Have a look at this page. Pleasant dreams ;-)
The politics behind the Chroma Dot story is intriguing and in some places unpleasant. The instigator of the team was James Insell, and a method was created to perform the chroma dot extraction by a man named Richard Russell. Insell became a bit proprietorial over it all, and he and Russell parted ways, and now Russell it doing it alone. The original Colour extraction blog is here but they don't seem to have made any huge advances since Russell left. There is some more info, plus a link to Russell's own work (including software download) on my own Dr.Who webpage here
...for infringing people's privacy, a la Google Street View.
Looks like won't be on iBooks any time soon. Thank God for Kindle :-)
I would give generously, but Wikipedia blocked my website and removed all links to my research articles, so why should I bother?
Moore has only posted SOME of the bail money; the title of the article needs changing.
I've written many articles and essays on the Titanic (and one book) - have a look here if you're interested. Even if you're not, take a look. As for the 2010 expedition (more of a media circus than a proper scientific expedition IMHO), click on my bouquets and brickbats for my thoughts on the matter. The links in my sig, and the musings are near the top of the page.
Ah, but can it be used to paper over plot holes, or do just about everything to further the plot. It seems to do just about anything but unscrew screws, but what do you expect from writers who just can't write decent plots? Whats the point of getting the Doctor into a tricky situation if all he has to do is take out his sonic screwdriver and whoosh- instantly solved. Sheer lasiness from the writers. But then again, they probably have an eye on merchandising and toy sales...
Google have done the right thing and not rushed out Chrome OS in time for Christmas, unlike the disastrous Vista. But will Chrome OS enabled netbooks have a sticker on the box saying "you must be connected to the internet to use this machine"?