Wednesday 21 September 2005

TECHNOLOGY: Long life mobile battery 'vital'

Modern technology users want more power from their mobile products.
As mobile phones, PDAs and music players become more widely used, users are demanding higher specifications, more memory and longer battery life.
Read: BBC NEWS | Technology | Long life mobile battery 'vital'

Tuesday 20 September 2005

Effective writing for page titles

Page titles should be such a simple aspect of Web page production. Yet a bit of thought, and broad understanding of a potential audience will go a long way to getting content more widely read.

Short, clean, meaningful and relevant. A title of the actual page your are on is what your are striving for. Not the name of the site, that can come afterwards, but when people are reading links, RSS feeds, and search engine results, the first half dozen words need to convey the purpose and benefits of the user visiting a page.

Don't try to be too clever, cryptic or pretend the content is something better than it actually is (visitors might be enticed once, but probably never again, and they might tell their friends, or the Web community!)

Nothing too long, but a brief and succint description of what the page is about. This may seem like more hard work than at first sight, but it will benefit the sites popularity among users and search engines alike.

Saturday 17 September 2005

DVD: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

I just watched the The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005) DVD, and really enjoyed it. Frankly it was always going to be tough turning Douglas Adams' fantastic story into a movie, but that's what he always wanted, so now at least it's here.

It stays fairly true to the original story despite being a Hollywood funded flick, the cast dow ell to fill out the crazy scenes and showing off Adams' clever wit, sarcasm and irony.

And in the UK, there's a bonus disc with a making of, that starts from the day the Director gets the green light to start making it. It was a fascinating hour, a literal behind-the-scenes documentary giving a real feel of how the crew of animatronics experts, set-designers, etc. and cast put it all together.

Wednesday 14 September 2005

FUN: Home of the video flick book

Get your mobile phone (and other) movies turned into flick books. Flick off you say, no it's true, and a genius idea. Visit: FlickFilms - Home of the video flick book

Tuesday 13 September 2005

WEB DESIGN: 10 Reasons Clients Don't Care About Accessibility

Accessibility is a divisive issue in the workplace. Companies have varying degrees of interest/understanding in the issue.

Basically, it's about making Web pages accessible and usable for all, regardless of ability, device (e.g. computer or mobile), browser, or operating system. It makes production quicker, cheaper, simpler.

What more do you people want?

"It'’s the Law But There'’s None to Follow". Read: Digital Web Magazine - 10 Reasons Clients Don't Care About Accessibility

CRICKET: In praise of ... Richie Benaud

He always knew what to say, Richie Benaud was a great in, and broadcasting on the great game. And what a series to bow out on English soil. Possibly the greatest series ever, at least in the modern game. England have come through against the best team in the world.

The [replica] Ashes are coming home! Read: Guardian Unlimited Sport | Special reports | In praise of ... Richie Benaud

Sunday 11 September 2005

CRICKET: Players lambast incompetent Zimbabwe board

The maddeningly depressing situation for Zimbabwean cricketers shows no sign of letting up. Read: Cricinfo - Players lambast incompetent Zimbabwe board

Thursday 8 September 2005

FLIGHTS OFFER: British Airways/Ashes offer

Briish Airways are running an Ashes promotion, and it could be a real bargain.

"The Price of the fare, including taxes, will be equal to the number of runs scored by Australia (in their first innings).

The number of flights available for sale will be equal to the number of runs scored by England (in their first innings)."

Go here now: British Airways - Your questions

CRICKET: Zimbabwe players call for Chingoka and Bvute to quit

The key for the Zimbabwe players is sticking together. If they all sign the petition, they leave the board little option but to do something about the contract situation. They can't very continue with no players.
It is so frustrating that the ICC have remained on the fence, and that the wortld continues to sit by why the black racist elite of Zimbabwe misguidedly ravage anything that was good within the country. Read: Cricinfo - Players call for Chingoka and Bvute to quit

Wednesday 7 September 2005

CRICKET: The Ashes comes down to the fifth and final Test at The Oval

From Wisden/Cricinfo: The Oval
"This is where it all began. The first-ever Test on English soil was played here in September 1880, resulting in an England win over Australia by five wickets, with WG Grace scoring a hundred on debut, and this is where a Test series in England traditionally ends.

More pertinently, this is the historic venue where the legend of the Ashes was born a couple of years after the inaugural Test, in August 1882. England, chasing only 85 to win, slumped from 51 for 2 to 78 all out. The next morning The Sporting Times published its famous mock obituary and the legend was born.

The Oval has witnessed many historic matches. England's dramatic one-wicket win in 1902 inspired by Gilbert Jessop's sensational hundred; Australia's 701 in 1934 as Don Bradman (244) and Bill Ponsford (266) put on 451 for the second wicket; England's 903 for 7 as they beat Australia by an innings and 579 runs in 1938; Bradman's farewell duck in 1948; Denis Compton scoring the boundary which meant England regained the Ashes in 1953; Michael Holding's 14 wickets on a featherbed in 1976; Devon Malcolm's 9 for 57 against South Africa in 1994.

Owned by the Duchy of Cornwall (who is the Prince of Wales, hence his feathers have appeared on Surrey's badge since 1915), The Oval came about in the 1790s when an oval road was laid round what was then a cabbage patch. When a subsequent market garden failed, the land was opened as a cricket ground in 1845 after 10,000 turfs were brought in from Tooting Common. It has been Surrey headquarters ever since, even though it has been well outside the county boundary for many years.

It has hosted many other important sporting occasions and can claim to be the most important general sports ground in the world. It staged the first FA Cup final in 1872 (won by Wanderers in front of 2000 spectators) and the following year the first England international (against Scotland). It was the home of the FA Cup final between 1874 and 1892. In 1876 it staged to the first England v Wales and England v Scotland rugby internationals, and in 1877 to rugby's Varsity match. In addition, it has witnessed rock concerts (The Who and The Faces in 1971), ice skating and the now traditional end-of-season Aussie Rules match. It was also a POW camp during the Second World War."

Sorry to copy verbatim, but Bring it on!!!

NATURE: Animated guide: Hurricanes

The Beeb shows how hurricanes start and what damage they can do. See: BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Animated guide: Hurricanes

Monday 5 September 2005

NEW ORLEANS: Katrina's damage around New Orleans

See the Before/after pics of Katrina damage around New Orleans from satellite images.

NEWSPAPERS: Buy one, get all this free

The future of newspapers, on and offline is clear. Added value to the readers. More magazines, freebies, Websites, you tell them what you want, and if there's enough of an audience, you might get it. Read: MediaGuardian.co.uk | Media | Buy one, get all this free

Friday 2 September 2005

LONDON ATTACKS: Video of 7/7 ringleader blames foreign policy

"He [Mohammad Sidique Khan] mocked British Muslims who condemned the attacks. 'We tell them treatment in kind is just,' he said." Murder is never just, innocent victims, his own countrymen, killed unjustly.

When has killing, taking an eye for an eye ever been right, fair, moral? Never. Whatever religion you may follow or whatever background you are from, no one has the right to take the life of another, whatever wrongs that person may have had done to him, or those he has links with. Read: Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Video of 7/7 ringleader blames foreign policy

CRICKET: World’s apart, but arm in arm

Cricinfo reports "as five of India's cricketing stars took time away from their busy tour schedule to meet more than 100 orphans at a UNICEF-supported education project on the outskirts of Harare." Read: Cricinfo - World’s apart, but arm in arm

Thursday 1 September 2005

WEB DEV: Google Maps Mania

So how are New Media types around the world using the Google Maps API? Read the blog and see the ideas: Google Maps Mania

WEB DEV: How to make Google Maps™

From Sitepoint - "SFSurvey.com, a restaurant review site, has put together a video
tutorial and sample ASP script [1] that lets you get the Google
Maps API up and running on your website as quickly as possible." See: How to make Google Maps™ using ASP Classic when you don't have the longitude or Latitude

WEB DESIGN: Web journeys

Read Webcredible's article, "looking at how we interact with the world in our everyday life, we can learn some of the techniques we use and begin to understand why they work so well. We can then employ the same methods in web design to create a similarly easy experience.": Web journeys

CAN YOU SEE IT?: Google Maps

A face in the dunes? See: Google Maps

CRICKET: 'It's the beginning of an era for England'

Morning everyone... Richie Benaud speaks to Cricinfo. Read: Cricinfo - 'It's the beginning of an era for England'