Year: 2009

Iphone

4th June 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

The most useful features of the Iphone, are its productivity and personal information management tools. Some of the ones that come with the phone, are fine (in fact there all fine really) but some of them have been superseded with more advanced and modern tools written by 3rd party developers.

I have been working with the Iphone now for 6 months, and thought I would write down my own recommendations.

1. Contact Manager. The one that comes with the phone, is fine. There are a lot more powerful ones out there, but I just dont need their elaborate features. I did try a clone of the iphone contact manager, that showed pictures in the list (forget the name) but it didn’t have texting direct from the the contact list, so I dropped it.

2. Calendar. Ive replaced the standard one, with SaiSuke it has much more advanced scheduling, and synchronizes seamlessly with Google Calendar. This is pretty important, as when I’m planning at home, it can be useful to use a full sized screen. You can also use different colour for different appointments, and whole host of other things.

3. To do list/Notebook. The Iphone is supplied with a simple notebook, designed for note taking and writing down to do lists. I use these features very heavily, so have actually replaced this with 2 independent apps.

Todo by appigo. Syncs with Toodledo (for full screen work) has a wealth of prioritisation, scheduling and categorization features. In the end, how much is recording a good idea worth to you. To me, they are priceless.

Notebooks by Alfons Schmid. Its easy to create new documents and open previously created ones. It supports landscape typing and is invaluable on long train journeys (most of this blog, was typed out in it, before being transferred to the Internet). It doesnt really “sync” as such, I just email the documents to myself when there finished.

4. Email. The standard mail client would be fine, but I’m a keen hotmail user, and I found that mBox Mail offers full synchronization of contacts and folders. It also allows me to type emails (some of which are quite long) in landscape format. It has multiple mail signatures for business and personal and allows photos to be taken and emailed from within the app.

5.SMS/Texting tool. If its after 6pm, and and work related, don’t bother with email, the person your contacting, will be in their car, on a train, in the pub etc. Send a text. The one that comes shipped with the Iphone, shows the history of the SMS “conversation”. Its the best on the market.

Its been (embarrassingly) pointed out to me, that back when I was a keen windows mobile user, I was critical of the Iphone. Thats not my memory of it at all. I still believe that certain smart phones are far more powerful (in terms of technology) than the IPhone.

The point I made (and still believe) is that that IPhone, does much more, with much less, thanks to the practical and commonsense design of its user interface.

In interesting article I was reading about the Oldest journalism school in America makes Iphone a requirement. I also saw this fantastic article about the 10 best and worst Iphone apps. The good apps are fantastic, and the bad ones are hilarious (especially the one that you can use to practice kissing !).

We are privileged here at johnsunter.com to have contributions from “The Stiff”. He knows practically everything there is to know about Iphone’s, and was heard complaining the other evening, that the phone only supports 9 pages of applications !.Modest to the last, he sites his main qualification for writing this column, as having a boring job and that his expertise has been acquired through a need for something interesting to do.Since there is a distinct lack of sense of humour amongst hr departments, regarding employees posting information on the web, his identify must remain shrouded in mystery (and as you can see from this obscured picture, he doesn’t particularly like to be photographed anyway).

A program I absolutely swear by, is simply called remote. The basic idea, is that you launch I tunes on your PC and the Iphone will show you all your play lists and songs on the the handset, when you select them, the songs play on the computer, through speakers. Doesn’t sound particularly exciting, but I like to lie on my bed and play loads of different music, and it just saves me from having to keep walking back to the computer. And its free.

A few people (including my friend Makala) are keen on using near to me. The basic idea, is that you launch the program and it gives you lists of things like taxis, restaurants, bars and police stations, which are near to where you are. I think the program is pretty good, but it has 1 small problem, that isn’t mentioned in its advertising.

It basically looks at where you are, finds the center of that town and then provides directions from there (rather than where you are actually sitting). In one example here in Chester, it listed the Frog and Nightingale, as a nice bar near the Canal, approxomately 580 metres away.

Problem is, we were actually sat in the Frog and Nightingale at the time. The Chester Cross is considered to be in the exact center of Chester, and its from here, that the program was doing its calculations.

Off the wall money saving tips

4th June 2009 admin Uncategorised 3 Comments

Ive had a few ideas to save money and bring in a bit of extra cash.

1. Fill up a plastic water bottle, at a public lavatory (saving of £1.20 every time you do it).

2. Drink at a nearby pub, which has a really nice patio and decking (one off saving of £1500, as I don’t actually need to get my own patio).

3. Since I live next to the Mill hotel, I can just sleep in my own bed, and not get a room there (saving of £92 per night, and several thousand pounds, throughout the year).

4. Collecting milk from other peoples doorsteps (saving, a couple of pounds per week, until someone catches you, and you get a black eye !).

5. Lifting candles from the pub, and using them to light the house at night (saving, a couple of quid a week, until you get caught and barred).

6. Urinating in the swimming baths (doesn’t save that much on its own, as you have to pay to use the swimming pool, however having the bathroom ripped out of your house, and converting it into a poodle parlor, could create revenue of several hundred pounds per month).

Okay, now that Ive done all of that, I am awash with money, and I just can’t decide what to do with it 🙂

But seriously, there is a superb budgeting section on the money saving expert website. You can view it here.

Media Review

4th June 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Just came back from watching Terminator – Salvation. It has been absolutely slated by critics, but I really enjoyed it.

Its got loads of action, explosions and big machines and stuff like that (if you normally read Bridget Jones, this is perhaps, not the film for you). Go out and see it, it really is smart.

A cameo of a CGI Arnie, made to look as he did 25 years ago, was rather smart.

I found out that the series, the 4400 has been cancelled. I was disappointed about that, as I really enjoyed it. I’ve also been watching Ashes to Ashes on BBC. Okay, its not as good as Life on Mars, and its never going to be, but to its credit, its prety inventive with the storyline, and Im quite looking forward to the final instalment next Tuesday evening.

Endgame – Kasparov and the machine. A ludicrously 1 sided documentary about Gary Kasaparovs famous Chess match agains the IBM Deep Blue computer (before you ask, yes I have worked previously for IBM, and ill always be proud of that).

Kasparov comes over as an arrogant pushy man, who is used to getting his own way, and didn’t like it, when he didn’t. There is constant reference to a “machine” called the Turk, which could play Chess, and actually beat Napolian. It turned out, it had a person inside, and is used frequently in the film, as a metaphor to imply that IBM cheated.

We actualy get to see the Deep blue featured in the film (1 of 2, I hope to see the other one, when I visit the Smithsonian museum in Washington).

Do I believe that Kasparov was beaten squarely. Yes I do, I think that the IBM’rs knew the kinds of play he would make, and built subroutines into it, to fox him out. I don’t believe they intervened to direct the play of the DB, as I don’t believe they would have had to.

The implication, that they were upto no good, as they kept the DB in a locked room with guards seemed perfectly obvious to me. It was one of the most advanced pieces of technology ever created, and worth a fortune.

A shame really, as I had been waiting for some years to watch it (got it on love film it wasn’t on any of the cinemas here in Chester at the time).

The ridiculous scenes at the end, where they imply a good and descent man was destroyed and morally bankrupted by simply losing the match were just too much for me. I don’t play badminton. I used to get frustrated when I lost and it put me in a bad mood. If you cant stand to lose, you shouldn’t play.

Bob Pearsons (the founder of the web hosting company Godaddy) does a really good video blog, which is worth a look. Its a bit of an exercise in sexism. More interesting I find, are his 16 rules of life, he has “acquired” on his life’s journey.

I also saw this hilarious post in another blog. I do enjoy reading the Daily Mail, as I like the writing style, but they have become a bit of a parody of themselves – daily mail dating article.

A new game, based around the Halo universe, has just launched. Wont be buying it im afraid, as I don’t have an Xbox 360.

Congratulations to Henrik.

28th May 2009 admin Uncategorised 1 Comment

Well done, to the excellent Henrik, who has become a father for the 2nd time (I would offer congratulations, from everyone here at johnsunter.com, but since Henrik’s part of that team, it seems a bit silly).

Don’t ask me when, where or what he is shooting in this picture ? (I robbed it from his Facebook profile !).

Once again, well done Henrik (and special congratulations to his partner Claire, who had some involvment with the new baby as well 🙂

Around the campfire and stepping into the rope.

25th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Bret and Jeff went camping. Sounds like they had a really good time, but they said when they were preparing for the trip, there was a nagging doubt that they had forgotten something.

To invite me.

Well, hopefully, they’ll remember next time, and I can get out and about in Wales once again (there has been a bit of an adventure lull since the fairly successful BT Adventures).

While I was talking to Bret, it reminded me of something I heard a couple of years ago.

I make no claims that this is factually accurate, it could be a modern myth I have no idea (I was flying to Thailand several years ago, and a female backpacker I was sat next to, told me about it).

The way its explained, is how conflicts and disputes are resolved in the Navajo, native American culture. Basically, if 2 braves have a dispute, the Chief will call the whole village together and arrange for a length of rope, to be tied together, to form a ring.

The 2 braves, each stand outside the ring, and then take it in turns to make a statement, and then step into the ring. If the other person agrees with the statement then he also steps into the ring (referred to as stepping into the rope).

The idea here, is if say the 2 men are both in love with the same woman, one of them for example would say “she loves me and not you” he will then step into the rope. The other person will disagree, and not stop into the rope, so the first person, must step out again.

On the other hand, if one of them says ” to be happy and in love with someone, is one of the finest things that can happen to a person” and steps in, the other will probably follow suit.

In principle, no discussion, can ever start until both people are inside the rope. Since this can only happen, if they agree (at list in principle) on one fundamental thing.

I’m not advocating that offices around the land should have ropes on the floor, but whenever I try to resolve an argument, or something like that, I always try to agree some common ground first. It saves so much time.

The begining of the end of budget airlines.

25th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Ive never been a great fan of budget airlines. My main criticism, is that you should be able to reduce your costs, without lowering your standards, and I simply don’t believe that most of the budget airlines do that.

I personally experienced this on the way back from Krakow 3 years ago, and since then, have only flown “sleezyjet” and the like, when there was simply no other way, to get where I was going.

But enough about me and my opinions, what about reality. Well, you tell me ?, if you could get a “proper” flight with a major airline, and the return cost was only £20 more than the budget option, which would you pick (just to name one advantage, on a BA flight, every member of the cabin crew will have been trained to a high standard in first aid and be able to re-start your heart should it be necessary).

A friend of mine is flying to Amsterdam in a couple of weeks. KLM are actually £25 cheaper than the equivalent from Easyjet. Its the beginning of the end.

Do you agree/disagree ?. Why not post something.

Eyes of a child.

20th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Many of you know, that my friend Frank lives in Thailand now, where he teaches English and Science to young Children.

The other day, they had a comprehension test, where he would speak to them in English. He described a person that he knew. Remember, that learning English for a Thai person, isn’t like someone from Manchester learning French, and the children concerned were quite young.

The person he ended up describing, was me. He emailed me some of the pictures that the children drew.

Above is a picture of me on the limestone way. I normally have my Ipod earphones in, when I’m around town, and one the hill, a carry normally carry my Indi bag (sort of over the shoulder bag of the gas mask bag type, worn by Indiana Jones.

Amazingly, one of the Thai children, listening to a description in Colloquial English, and having never met me, drew the picture bellow.

I think its a pretty good likeness and truly inspirational.

Media

19th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Not much happening this week on the media front. The next film I want to watch on the cinema, is Terminator 4 (whatever the hell its called). I don’t expect a great deal, but I’ve seen the other 3, might as well see the 4th.

The only thing I am worried about, is seeing Christian Bale in the film, and keeping a straight face. Its hard to forget, that he was caught on video lambasting and f’ing and blinding at the Director of photography (he later threatened to walk out of the film, unless the man was fired).

Footage of this spread virally across the Internet. His response to this: It wasn’t actually him doing the shouting. He was in character, and it was actually John Connor who was screaming. I wonder if the real Christian Bale was able to get the man his job back, once he had taken control of his own persona.

He’s been in some great films, but I struggle to take him seriously after this.

Far better, are 2 brilliant releases on DVD. Taken, with Liam Neeson (and it has nothing to do with Aliens, or anything like that) and Defiance (a story I originaly heard about on a Ray Mears documentary some years ago). A pizza, a bottle of wine and one of these films, is a brilliant Friday evening antidote to the credit crunch !.

I also saw the final part of 24. Its the first one that Ive actually watched to the end, and I really enjoyed it. There wasn’t as much action in the finale as I had expected, but it was very thought provoking.

Williamson Tunnels

14th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

With the last couple of quid, from our BT “windfall”, I head to Liverpool for the day, to see the famous Williamson Tunnels.

The Liverpool “loop” train wasn’t running, so it was a half hour walk across town. The thing that amazed me, was that as the train came to a stop at James Street station, loads of people were complaining about having to walk. I wondered how many of those people pay £45 per month in Gym membership !.

Considering my skint status, I consider it safe to wander into Cotswalds outdoor shop. Right in the middle of the high street, its one of the biggest outdoor shops I’ve ever been in, and contains some pretty cool stuff (luckily I had no spare cash, so didn’t blow £50 on something I probably wont use, but which looks nice.

As I wander further, I see some break-dancers performing. They have a 6 foot x 6 foot piece of lino taped to the floor and are performing all sorts of acrobatic things, as they used too in Manchester when I was a teenager.

One thing which has changed, is the contribution. In my day, a small plastic cereal bowl was placed out for people to put coins into, if they were suitably entertained. These guys had a washing up bowl. Inflation must have hit hard :).

I arrive at the Williamson tunnels and pay my entrance fee (about £4, but it promises to be pretty interesting). A tour has just started, and instead of making me wait for an hour, they put me on the one that is already running. There are a man an woman on the tour with me, and our guide (pictured above). We all have to wear hard hats.

First off, our guide tells us something about the history of the tunnels. He was obviously fascinated by the tunnels and spoke with a great deal of empathy for their creator.

Its mentioned that at one point, James Stevenson (digging the railway line tunnel that would link Liverpool and Manchester and create the first industrialised Railway) dug a hole in his tunnel, that “punctured” into the Williamson tunnel bellow.

There was an explanation about why the tunnels were created. Its pretty well accepted that they were designed as a job creation scheme, after the Napoleonic war. Although the people that worked on them, started out as Nave’s they soon acquired skills, which would benefit Liverpool massively, once development of the City began (at the time, Liverpool was a City of 8,000 people (today it has 800, 000) of which 350 worked on the tunnels.

After Williamson died, people made money by collecting rubbish (people paid to have Rubbish taken away at the time, there was no local council as there is now) and throwing it into the tunnels. Work still continues to clear them out, but as you can see from the picture above, a lot of the “rubbish” tells a fascinating historical story.

I did enjoy seeing the tunnels, but to be honest, I thought they would be a lot bigger and deeper. Still, I only know that, because I’ve actually been.

I wander back towards town. I pass the Victoria gallery and Museum. It was opened to the general public in 2008, but before this, it was the first building to coin the phrase Red Brick University. Its free to visit, so I decide to pop in.

They have a cafe, that serves fresh soup and fare trade coffee. I decide to eat my sandwiches on the walk back to the station. There is a really interesting Museum on the 3rd floor. It has Egyptian artifacts, animal skeletons (did you know, that a rattle snake actually has bones !) and a 3 foot wide dinosaur footprint.

My favourite artifact was reconstructed dental operating theatre, complete with foot powered drill and reclining dentist chair (you could see the “wear” marks on the chair, from people who had gripped it under duress.

On the 2nd floor, was a small art gallery. The pictures and sculptures in the different rooms, were nice, but if you know me, you know that art isn’t really my thing, and I’m unlikely to use phrases like “I love the drama and aggression in this painting” or any sort of rubbish like that. They were just nice pictures.

I loved this corridor in the building. It just captured the whole Victorian thing for me.

As I wander back to the station, I contemplate the BT project. Ive managed to “do” 7 different half day adventures, for £36. Im going to carry on budget adventuring whenever I can, and continue to blog it. For now, I think Ive achieved my goal.

Have you got any thoughts or comments on the BT Adventures. Why not post them bellow.

Update

12th May 2009 admin Uncategorised Leave a comment

Just a quick update with a few bits and pieces that are going on at the moment (the sort of thing I can do really quick, now that I’m using embedded WordPress).

Pictured above is an old friend, who moved to Brussels with work a few years ago (he was one of my first friends, here in Chester).

What most people don’t know, is that for at least 5 years, he has been hosting (and paying for) www.johnsunter.com. In that time, he has never asked for any money, asked for adverts to be added or anything like that.

Earlier today, I took over hosting of the domain name. We had both agreed that I would do this, sooner or later, but the upgrade to johnsunter.com ver 2.0, put this on the immediate Radar.

An unsung hero of this website, who has frequently offered positive feed back and support, I just wanted to say a quick thanks for all his help. As I’ve found over the last 15 difficult months, doom merchants are outspoken and everywhere, but real supporters and friends are hiding in the woodwork silently, just waiting for the moment you need them.

While the thanks are going around, thought I would say a quick well done to the excellent Henrik, who has helped out with with all kinds of technical things and got the embedded WordPress to work (still a lot to do, but I’ve been talking about upgrading for 3 years and its finally happening).

Also, thanks to everyone who sent me cards for my birthday. I have put them up in my room, and special thanks to my Auntie Marjorie, who sent me an illuminous one, it has kept me a awake for hours :).