Today I have attempted to install Windows XP service pack 3, three times on my ageing laptop. And three times it has come up with the error 'could not update file' then proceded to rollback the installation! What 'file' do you speak of? I know not, if you were to tell me then perhaps I could do something about it. But no, you decide there is nothing that can be done and rollback far past beyond where I could have done something about it. You then tell me that the installation was partly installed and I should reboot. Well no s**t sherlock. I never would have worked that one out.
The third time, I downloaded the 300 odd MB offline installation to see if that made a difference - uh arr - would you like to go for quadruple jeapody where the fustration can really increase?
I am now going for that illusive fourth install. I have rebooted, turned off the wireless, then the firewall, the anti virus and anything else I can remove off the process list in order to eliminate as much as possible that could be blocking that 'file' - hopefully it will work and I will not have to be kept being reminded that I have to install Service Pack 3 like a repeating DFS Sale advert.
While I am on a rant, what is it with DFS and their sales? Like British Home Stores changing to BHS, and lesser known 3M being Minessota Minerals and Mining, DFS used to be Discount Furniture Stores. So what! We all know that you offer discounts, by now you must have surely exhausted all of the possible advertising scenarios that can be used to sell furniture? But no, every few weeks or so there is yet another DFS Sale that must 'end soon' - the last one was extended - as if I need to worry another will be along soon. DFS Sales are more reliable than a Bus. There must be a Retirement Home for ex-DFS advertising executives who have burnt out at the age of 33.
There we go. Rant over. Just letting off steam about the things out of my scope of control that can fustrate me.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
The Methodology Of Existance
In a quiet moment this afternoon I started to watch The Matrix before I fell asleep. And it got me thinking about existance. That is not to say that I believe that the film is actually true, it is simply a vehicle for expressing concepts and ideas to see what happens.
So, what is life? Life is about 'scope' and the choices we are allowed to make within that scope - essentially 'control'. Scope is what we see, hear, understand, have the mental capacity to manipulate. It is often said 'the scope of ones knowledge', 'knowledge' being a collection of known facts and the ability to manipulate them to suit a given purpose.
There are lots of 'scopes', a Government has a scope of influence over the lives of the people it governs - control, power and rules. If we choose to break those rules then there are consequences, a certain reduction in choice, or at least the reduced probability of a choice option being taken. Our 'control' of our scope is reduced. How we choose to live our lives is up to us, at least to a certain extent. We can believe in the authority and rules of the scopes around us and the entities that define and maintain them. This is why the concept of a 'God' / 'Gods' or 'Godesses' exists - an entity that controls the scope of our existance that we have no control over. This is why there is infinity in mathematics - to expain the unexplainable. Now as time advances and Science progresses our understanding of our existance increases and so does our knowledge of the facts that govern the universe we exist within - that is to say the 'rules' by which the universe governs itself - in this statement the words facts and rules mean the same thing. There, I have just defined a scope of a sentance - something with boundaries.
Now I have learnt a meaning of the word 'scope' from being a Software Engineer where it is a critical component of understanding methods, classes and instantiated objects within an Object Orientated (OO) programming language such as C++ or Java. In these languages scope defines what you can 'see' withing an object or one of its methods (things it can do). If an object cannot 'see' a piece of data, then it cannot manipulate it. Scope in this sence is a very powerful facility. It prevents lots of code changing data at odd times and making the program hard to debug and more likely to crash or at least not do what you thought it would do. In the past this used to be the case. Scope only applied to the whole program or a single function. With the Object Orientated methodology bits of code can only do so much to the program as a whole. This means that they are slightly less likely to fail as an extra degree of data protection has been put in place and once a problem is found, easier to fix as more often than not the impact of the fix is contained within the scope of the method or object requiring attention.
Within OO there is the concept of 'inheritance' where Objects can inherit the behaviour of other Objects and add more abilities (functionality), additionally they can choose not to allow some functionality. This is similar to two things. One, Children, it is always said that Children should surpass their Parents. Two, Delegation, in Government and Management there is deligation of responsibility, the way of allowing other persons to perform a certain function that you can do but do not have the time.
So, what is existance? Ultimately it is our ability to understand our scope, make the right choices for our own progression within the environment utilising the knowledge we have ascimilated to provide a means for successful inheritance of the entities we create. We should not worry or get stressed about the things we cannot control outside of our scope of influence unless we can make a choice that allows that thing to become within our scope. And that choice has to be made within the rules of the larger scopes that govern our lives.
All of this sounded alot better when I was thinking it through in my mind earlier. I should have written it then before I fell asleep.
So, what is life? Life is about 'scope' and the choices we are allowed to make within that scope - essentially 'control'. Scope is what we see, hear, understand, have the mental capacity to manipulate. It is often said 'the scope of ones knowledge', 'knowledge' being a collection of known facts and the ability to manipulate them to suit a given purpose.
There are lots of 'scopes', a Government has a scope of influence over the lives of the people it governs - control, power and rules. If we choose to break those rules then there are consequences, a certain reduction in choice, or at least the reduced probability of a choice option being taken. Our 'control' of our scope is reduced. How we choose to live our lives is up to us, at least to a certain extent. We can believe in the authority and rules of the scopes around us and the entities that define and maintain them. This is why the concept of a 'God' / 'Gods' or 'Godesses' exists - an entity that controls the scope of our existance that we have no control over. This is why there is infinity in mathematics - to expain the unexplainable. Now as time advances and Science progresses our understanding of our existance increases and so does our knowledge of the facts that govern the universe we exist within - that is to say the 'rules' by which the universe governs itself - in this statement the words facts and rules mean the same thing. There, I have just defined a scope of a sentance - something with boundaries.
Now I have learnt a meaning of the word 'scope' from being a Software Engineer where it is a critical component of understanding methods, classes and instantiated objects within an Object Orientated (OO) programming language such as C++ or Java. In these languages scope defines what you can 'see' withing an object or one of its methods (things it can do). If an object cannot 'see' a piece of data, then it cannot manipulate it. Scope in this sence is a very powerful facility. It prevents lots of code changing data at odd times and making the program hard to debug and more likely to crash or at least not do what you thought it would do. In the past this used to be the case. Scope only applied to the whole program or a single function. With the Object Orientated methodology bits of code can only do so much to the program as a whole. This means that they are slightly less likely to fail as an extra degree of data protection has been put in place and once a problem is found, easier to fix as more often than not the impact of the fix is contained within the scope of the method or object requiring attention.
Within OO there is the concept of 'inheritance' where Objects can inherit the behaviour of other Objects and add more abilities (functionality), additionally they can choose not to allow some functionality. This is similar to two things. One, Children, it is always said that Children should surpass their Parents. Two, Delegation, in Government and Management there is deligation of responsibility, the way of allowing other persons to perform a certain function that you can do but do not have the time.
So, what is existance? Ultimately it is our ability to understand our scope, make the right choices for our own progression within the environment utilising the knowledge we have ascimilated to provide a means for successful inheritance of the entities we create. We should not worry or get stressed about the things we cannot control outside of our scope of influence unless we can make a choice that allows that thing to become within our scope. And that choice has to be made within the rules of the larger scopes that govern our lives.
All of this sounded alot better when I was thinking it through in my mind earlier. I should have written it then before I fell asleep.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
A hard day at the office
Ouch, what a day.
Started off with a run to Tesco's to get the weekly shop of stuff, followed by a slight break, then time to clean the car.
Rigged up an extension lead and started to hoover. Fourty five minutes later and progress had been made - I do not normally find time for this job, so it has been a while. Hoovered everything inside. Then soapy water for the plastic surfaces, followed by a complete wash of the outside. Next up T-Cut to sort out the fading red paint - some time later, in fact, more than some with extra elbow grease and superb stuff - the best the car has looked in years.
Next up, the outside Elecy door, has been fading with green growing stuff for ages, so with the brushes and black weather sheild purchased earlier, I set to work. By about 14:45 I was done and a little tired. Time for the salad and a film or two on the Telly.
The other day, I found a Sat Nag, really funny, which got me thinking today whist painting - which for the most part is boring - if you can have a Sat Nav or a Sat Nag, what about a Darth Vader Nav? It could have such sayings as:
Turn left at the next junction Luke.
Use the Force to reach your destination.
You have made a mistake, I will now starve the engine of oxygen.
I am your vehicle's Father.
Be at one with the Motorway.
More to follow?
Started off with a run to Tesco's to get the weekly shop of stuff, followed by a slight break, then time to clean the car.
Rigged up an extension lead and started to hoover. Fourty five minutes later and progress had been made - I do not normally find time for this job, so it has been a while. Hoovered everything inside. Then soapy water for the plastic surfaces, followed by a complete wash of the outside. Next up T-Cut to sort out the fading red paint - some time later, in fact, more than some with extra elbow grease and superb stuff - the best the car has looked in years.
Next up, the outside Elecy door, has been fading with green growing stuff for ages, so with the brushes and black weather sheild purchased earlier, I set to work. By about 14:45 I was done and a little tired. Time for the salad and a film or two on the Telly.
The other day, I found a Sat Nag, really funny, which got me thinking today whist painting - which for the most part is boring - if you can have a Sat Nav or a Sat Nag, what about a Darth Vader Nav? It could have such sayings as:
Turn left at the next junction Luke.
Use the Force to reach your destination.
You have made a mistake, I will now starve the engine of oxygen.
I am your vehicle's Father.
Be at one with the Motorway.
More to follow?
Climbing the Matterhorn
Another early morning posting, as I have just finished off some late night crumpets with my Mothers home made blackcurrant jam.
Spent most of Friday recreating my website in Dreamweaver and using some Flash to help. Nearly there, but not quite, need to polish off the layout and fully test before going live. Has been quite a hard slog, like climbing a mountain. ICT never stands still, and nor should its Teachers. Other subjects are not so prone to changes in their fundamental structure and content, but are rather subject to circular repetition in policy and evolutions in teaching techniques that follow the pulse of demographic change. ICT has all this as well as the rapid evolution of the industry causing concepts, methodologies and tools to evolve faster than the span of a two year GCSE's stability requirements.
In thinking about my last post, there is an identifiable economic need for having a reduced spread of different syntax's and semantics as complexity costs money - what ever way you look at it - specialisms - additional training and associated time. The evolution of object orientated mythologies should continue as we all deal as humans with an object based world. We understand the capabilities of any such item, its properties and what it can do. Will we ever get to a 6GL? Do we need to or do we need to rationalise and consolidate what we have achieved in order to distill what we have into a better quality product?
Spent most of Friday recreating my website in Dreamweaver and using some Flash to help. Nearly there, but not quite, need to polish off the layout and fully test before going live. Has been quite a hard slog, like climbing a mountain. ICT never stands still, and nor should its Teachers. Other subjects are not so prone to changes in their fundamental structure and content, but are rather subject to circular repetition in policy and evolutions in teaching techniques that follow the pulse of demographic change. ICT has all this as well as the rapid evolution of the industry causing concepts, methodologies and tools to evolve faster than the span of a two year GCSE's stability requirements.
In thinking about my last post, there is an identifiable economic need for having a reduced spread of different syntax's and semantics as complexity costs money - what ever way you look at it - specialisms - additional training and associated time. The evolution of object orientated mythologies should continue as we all deal as humans with an object based world. We understand the capabilities of any such item, its properties and what it can do. Will we ever get to a 6GL? Do we need to or do we need to rationalise and consolidate what we have achieved in order to distill what we have into a better quality product?
Thursday, August 21, 2008
3GL V2.0
I have been learning how to use ActionScript for Adobe CS 3 Flash this afternoon, and the thought has occurred to me that Third Generation Languages (3GL's) as in programming language should now evolve to the next level. That is not to say that they should become 4GL's in the traditional sense. This will take some explanation...
Firstly my understanding of the 'Generations of Languages':
1GL - A language based entirely on bits, bytes and hexadecimal representation - i.e. 4F 3D 10 3A 0E 35 6B and so on, the pure numbers that represent the Op codes and associated data (if any) that tell the CPU what gates to open and close (via Microcode) in order to perform the operation that the hexadecimal number represents. Each 1GL language is purely dependent upon the architecture of CPU for which it is destined. So a 1GL for a Z80 will not be the same as an 8086 or a 68000 - which incidentally is the only processor I actually programmed using its 2GL form.
2GL - The human readable form of a 1GL - Assembly language that is converted into 1GL by the Assembler. For example 'MOV AX, BX'. Again, completely tied to the architecture of the processor - this can mean a whole family, 8086, 8088, 80286, 80386, 80486, Pentium, Pentium 2 ... Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo E4600 ... and so on
3GL - Semi-architecture independent human readable programming language. That is converted into a 2GL by a compiler or interpreter, then assembled (with an assembler) into one or more object files that are then bound together by a linker to form an executable file (or library) which can then be run by the 'loader' of the operating system for the architecture of computer you have - I must state that library files are useless without an executable to 'call' functions within them. Examples: C, C++, Java, Ada, Modula 2, Logo, Pascal, COBOL, SmallTalk, ALGOL, BASIC, Lisp, Fortran etc. And despite arguments, HTML is not really a 3GL in my eyes, it is really a set of symbols and data that 'configure' a web browser to display something. HTML does not really make 'decisions' or can be used to make an entirely new piece of software - it is dependent on the web browser. Given this, Java could be in the same camp for being interpreted by the Java Virtual Machine - which is the nearest 3GL I am aware of to being Architecture / Operating System independent.
4GL - Human readable, capable of inferring logic. Having only done a bit of ProLog, this is where my knowledge is a bit hazy.
So, that is a definition, not fully complete, but should be sufficient for this post. Right, what I am getting at is the need to move 3GL's on so that they have more and more common syntax and semantics. I have been able to get to grips with ActionScript because it shares common traits with C++ and Java with the concept of Objects and dot notation. But again, it is subtlety different. This is becoming 'frustrating' for an aging man who's powers of assimilation are not what they used to be, despite having programmed since the age of ten on and off in: Basic, COBOL, Pascal, Modula 2, Ada, 68000 assembler, C, C++ and Java with a bit of ProLog chucked in for good measure. And has learn't to create web pages in pure HTML with CSS - having a go at PHP too.
The foundations for modern Object Orientated 3GLs have been established (thanks to SmallTalk), so, I believe it is time to standardize the syntax and semantics across the languages to make the process of Software Engineering easier to perform. I am not advocating a language to 'rule them all', because each language has its place and main purpose in solving a particular set of problems - targeting specific needs of the user.
Firstly my understanding of the 'Generations of Languages':
1GL - A language based entirely on bits, bytes and hexadecimal representation - i.e. 4F 3D 10 3A 0E 35 6B and so on, the pure numbers that represent the Op codes and associated data (if any) that tell the CPU what gates to open and close (via Microcode) in order to perform the operation that the hexadecimal number represents. Each 1GL language is purely dependent upon the architecture of CPU for which it is destined. So a 1GL for a Z80 will not be the same as an 8086 or a 68000 - which incidentally is the only processor I actually programmed using its 2GL form.
2GL - The human readable form of a 1GL - Assembly language that is converted into 1GL by the Assembler. For example 'MOV AX, BX'. Again, completely tied to the architecture of the processor - this can mean a whole family, 8086, 8088, 80286, 80386, 80486, Pentium, Pentium 2 ... Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo E4600 ... and so on
3GL - Semi-architecture independent human readable programming language. That is converted into a 2GL by a compiler or interpreter, then assembled (with an assembler) into one or more object files that are then bound together by a linker to form an executable file (or library) which can then be run by the 'loader' of the operating system for the architecture of computer you have - I must state that library files are useless without an executable to 'call' functions within them. Examples: C, C++, Java, Ada, Modula 2, Logo, Pascal, COBOL, SmallTalk, ALGOL, BASIC, Lisp, Fortran etc. And despite arguments, HTML is not really a 3GL in my eyes, it is really a set of symbols and data that 'configure' a web browser to display something. HTML does not really make 'decisions' or can be used to make an entirely new piece of software - it is dependent on the web browser. Given this, Java could be in the same camp for being interpreted by the Java Virtual Machine - which is the nearest 3GL I am aware of to being Architecture / Operating System independent.
4GL - Human readable, capable of inferring logic. Having only done a bit of ProLog, this is where my knowledge is a bit hazy.
So, that is a definition, not fully complete, but should be sufficient for this post. Right, what I am getting at is the need to move 3GL's on so that they have more and more common syntax and semantics. I have been able to get to grips with ActionScript because it shares common traits with C++ and Java with the concept of Objects and dot notation. But again, it is subtlety different. This is becoming 'frustrating' for an aging man who's powers of assimilation are not what they used to be, despite having programmed since the age of ten on and off in: Basic, COBOL, Pascal, Modula 2, Ada, 68000 assembler, C, C++ and Java with a bit of ProLog chucked in for good measure. And has learn't to create web pages in pure HTML with CSS - having a go at PHP too.
The foundations for modern Object Orientated 3GLs have been established (thanks to SmallTalk), so, I believe it is time to standardize the syntax and semantics across the languages to make the process of Software Engineering easier to perform. I am not advocating a language to 'rule them all', because each language has its place and main purpose in solving a particular set of problems - targeting specific needs of the user.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Land of Hope and Glory
Had a good lye in this morning, made breakfast and watched Dad's Army - the film, for nostalgia. Really good to relax and forget all about the stresses of life. Now according to another episode of the television version of Dad's Army, Walmington-On-Sea is approx 20 miles from Dover and near Dymchurch, and as it is on the coast and has a pier to be guarded, that puts it around 'here'. Now, in searching for links for this post I came across this 'website' - which appears to have a host of information.
Also relaxed last night by watching 'Every Which Way But Loose' and looking forward to watching the sequel 'Any Which Way You Can' this evening whilst drinking Coffee and Drambuie even though I am normally a Tea drinker. This concoction of liquids used to be called 'Liquid Sugar' buy my former Archery Club, and was used to keep going whilst teaching Archery at the Three Counties Show in Worcestershire. A rather dubious club as they once removed articles from the Crime Prevention Tent that could be used for the benefit of the club - I was fortunate that this event was before my time. In addition to shooting a Hot Air balloon - in the basket. Although taking out the Tractor plate glass door was sort of my fault, well, umm, really my fault, but the owners Wife did say to him that he should not have left it (the Tractor) there in the first place.
And, now, I know what you are thinking - too much time off for a Teacher - well humm - I did additionally manage today to install a WAMP server on my PC and a copy of Wordpress MU (bad pun as this is a Blog Post) so that I could try it out and then get it installed at school so that the A Level Media Students can Blog for their course and get marks. Also installed extra themes and plugins of i3theme, lightbox and Role Manager.
Also relaxed last night by watching 'Every Which Way But Loose' and looking forward to watching the sequel 'Any Which Way You Can' this evening whilst drinking Coffee and Drambuie even though I am normally a Tea drinker. This concoction of liquids used to be called 'Liquid Sugar' buy my former Archery Club, and was used to keep going whilst teaching Archery at the Three Counties Show in Worcestershire. A rather dubious club as they once removed articles from the Crime Prevention Tent that could be used for the benefit of the club - I was fortunate that this event was before my time. In addition to shooting a Hot Air balloon - in the basket. Although taking out the Tractor plate glass door was sort of my fault, well, umm, really my fault, but the owners Wife did say to him that he should not have left it (the Tractor) there in the first place.
And, now, I know what you are thinking - too much time off for a Teacher - well humm - I did additionally manage today to install a WAMP server on my PC and a copy of Wordpress MU (bad pun as this is a Blog Post) so that I could try it out and then get it installed at school so that the A Level Media Students can Blog for their course and get marks. Also installed extra themes and plugins of i3theme, lightbox and Role Manager.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Odd day
Odd day really. Got a new cooker installed after the other one went fuzzle fuzzle pop - was not worth replacing the element for - installers did a good job but could not get the RCD back on - not their fault as oldish - I tried and then turned another one off leaving me with no power! A few expletives went through my mind but not my mouth. Then one of the guys suggested WD40, worked a treat, both went back on easily. Had to leave the box to breath for a while as WD40 is flamable and the RCD's are rated to 32 Amps.
Then internet connection has been playing up all day with only a 160Kbps download speed on an ADSL connection, well tempremental, only waited nine hours to sort out completely - changed everything - including using the spare modem - still back to normal now.
Whilst on the Train on Sunday to meet Mum in London, I continued to read a book on Turing I have bought - well hard! Read three pages and then need a cap nap to let the brain cool down. Still it is worth while reading as you can start to understand where all of this Computing lark came from. I do realise that Alan Turing is not the only person involved, but it gives a good insight into Finite State Machines for without it TCP would not be able to implement Sliding Window and no internet, and therefore no blogging. Although reading Wikipedia's definition, perhaps Sliding Window is not state based, however the TCP Protocol must so it can function. And I think should be 'Circle Free' so that it never stops working.
On that note, Charles Petzold has written a really good book - even though I am not at the end of it yet. Turing does state that it not possible to create a decision machine that will tell you if another machine will fail - i.e. 'crash' in modern times. Now if you consider all possible decision machines, then you can consider humans as decision machines. After all, I decided that I wanted Salad for lunch. In my experience of writing software, it is possible to determine if a piece of code is going to work or not before it is actually executed - either as you are writing the code (Sofware Engineering) or as a part of some sort of testing process such as a structured walkthrough - Wikipedia describes this process as a Software Walkthrough. And yet it is stated in the book that Decision Machines that perform this function of determination cannot exist. It also states that Alan Turing has something to say on the matter - more reading to do!
Then internet connection has been playing up all day with only a 160Kbps download speed on an ADSL connection, well tempremental, only waited nine hours to sort out completely - changed everything - including using the spare modem - still back to normal now.
Whilst on the Train on Sunday to meet Mum in London, I continued to read a book on Turing I have bought - well hard! Read three pages and then need a cap nap to let the brain cool down. Still it is worth while reading as you can start to understand where all of this Computing lark came from. I do realise that Alan Turing is not the only person involved, but it gives a good insight into Finite State Machines for without it TCP would not be able to implement Sliding Window and no internet, and therefore no blogging. Although reading Wikipedia's definition, perhaps Sliding Window is not state based, however the TCP Protocol must so it can function. And I think should be 'Circle Free' so that it never stops working.
On that note, Charles Petzold has written a really good book - even though I am not at the end of it yet. Turing does state that it not possible to create a decision machine that will tell you if another machine will fail - i.e. 'crash' in modern times. Now if you consider all possible decision machines, then you can consider humans as decision machines. After all, I decided that I wanted Salad for lunch. In my experience of writing software, it is possible to determine if a piece of code is going to work or not before it is actually executed - either as you are writing the code (Sofware Engineering) or as a part of some sort of testing process such as a structured walkthrough - Wikipedia describes this process as a Software Walkthrough. And yet it is stated in the book that Decision Machines that perform this function of determination cannot exist. It also states that Alan Turing has something to say on the matter - more reading to do!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Silver
Have you noticed? As I look at car in Britain today, they are all silver! I have an eleven year old red car which has done over one hundred thousand miles, and despite loving it, there may come a time when the replacement parts and labour come to more than the car is worth. Therefore, I have been looking for a replacement. Something that is just as curvy, fun and vibrant - something that makes the distance between A to B more than a lost moment in time.
There are cars out there that fullfil this criteria, but they have all one litre engines and so would not satisfy my need to perform some of the motorway trips I make. A good car has the ability to get you out of trouble just as fast as it got you there in the first place.
I am currently interested in the new BMW Mini - having initially owned an original Mini as my first car, again, curvy, fun and vibrant. My Mini being built in Britain, had a lot of faults with it, that it is not to say that everything made in Britain is bad, it is just that sometimes things are done on the cheap simply because the money is not there. Perhaps a little more effort could have been put in to improve the build quality. In any case, I still have the tools I purchased to help with the head gasket replacement, the most useful of which is a Torque Wrench that comes in very handy in changing wheels - I definately recommend carrying one as however strong you are, they just make the process easy. However, back to the original point, well sort of, the BMW Mini is really cool, small but cool and has a 1.4 litre engine which is big enough for the size of the car. The price is the main issue, at over twelve thousand pounds for a new one, it is a little on the expensive side, so I need to look at the second hand market and ensure that my Bow Box (as in Archery not Ribbons) fits in the boot.
So, uh hum, why are most cars these days Silver? Is it because we are becoming more lazy and do not want to wash our cars more as Silver hides the dirt more? Looking around a the £7.5k to £9k market, the products on offer are all boxy and mostly boring and the good stuff has the speedometer in the centre of the dash - really annoying - even if the Mini does too, but it is 'well big'. I drove a mini-bus on a Midas test and that's speedometer was in the middle of the dashboard - really annoying and actually takes longer to read when you could be spending vital time looking at the road.
So, what will happen, who knows, I need to spend more time investigating options.
There are cars out there that fullfil this criteria, but they have all one litre engines and so would not satisfy my need to perform some of the motorway trips I make. A good car has the ability to get you out of trouble just as fast as it got you there in the first place.
I am currently interested in the new BMW Mini - having initially owned an original Mini as my first car, again, curvy, fun and vibrant. My Mini being built in Britain, had a lot of faults with it, that it is not to say that everything made in Britain is bad, it is just that sometimes things are done on the cheap simply because the money is not there. Perhaps a little more effort could have been put in to improve the build quality. In any case, I still have the tools I purchased to help with the head gasket replacement, the most useful of which is a Torque Wrench that comes in very handy in changing wheels - I definately recommend carrying one as however strong you are, they just make the process easy. However, back to the original point, well sort of, the BMW Mini is really cool, small but cool and has a 1.4 litre engine which is big enough for the size of the car. The price is the main issue, at over twelve thousand pounds for a new one, it is a little on the expensive side, so I need to look at the second hand market and ensure that my Bow Box (as in Archery not Ribbons) fits in the boot.
So, uh hum, why are most cars these days Silver? Is it because we are becoming more lazy and do not want to wash our cars more as Silver hides the dirt more? Looking around a the £7.5k to £9k market, the products on offer are all boxy and mostly boring and the good stuff has the speedometer in the centre of the dash - really annoying - even if the Mini does too, but it is 'well big'. I drove a mini-bus on a Midas test and that's speedometer was in the middle of the dashboard - really annoying and actually takes longer to read when you could be spending vital time looking at the road.
So, what will happen, who knows, I need to spend more time investigating options.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Sunday, August 10, 2008
YAPL
I have been using some of the holiday to start learning Adobe Flash and Dreamweaver CS3 - Yet Another Programming Language! But ActionScript has similarities with other thrid generation languages. It is Object Orientated like C++ and Java with an Event driven mechanism built in.
In hunting for help in learning Flash and Dreamweaver, I bought this book and this book from Amazon. Then did a hunt and found 'Goto and Learn' and from the first book 'Adobe'.
In hunting for help in learning Flash and Dreamweaver, I bought this book and this book from Amazon. Then did a hunt and found 'Goto and Learn' and from the first book 'Adobe'.
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