A Time To Review

Far too often I'm spending time talking about things on this blog, and they get left there and never mentioned again, so on this occasion I thought it would be nice to review some of the things I've posted and what I've learnt since I posted them.

March 2010 - Backups

Yep, just a matter of days after posting about requiring a backup plan I needed to refer to it. It also led to me discovering some flaws with it, and that a weekly backup wasn't enough.

Due to a problem on my hard drive which began on the Thursday evening I had a backup which was nearly a week old. Fortunately it has been a quiet week, but I saw that just backing up weekly wasn't often enough. I needed a daily backup too. Not one which caught up everything, but one which would get anything important I had worked on in the past week.

So I added a daily profile to SyncBack, set it to only back up my documents and settings (as the main user on the computer), skip over large files like music files and video clips (which can usually be replaced easily, especially if burned from a CD) and again add the settings from the original weekly backup profile. This has ended up leaving me with an additional backup which comes in at around 5Gb and hopefully meets my needs. If you don't mind though, hopefully I won't need it too soon.

April 2009 - PS3 Games

Just needed to update this, especially as I've taken a bit of time this week to catch up with some time on what I would say are now my two favourite games: Madden NFL 10 & NHL 10. These are just two awesome games, with NHL 10 narrowly edging Madden as my favourite due to the fantastic feature where you can add in your own music for special points at the game. Of course I've not really done much with this, and certainly haven't added this in when Palace, er, the Ducks score.

April 2008 - Nurses Pay

My wife got paid today, her lowest pay in about eighteen months. Can I figure out why she got paid what she did? Absolutely not. In the words of Toyah Wilcox, "It's a Mystery".

May 2007 - Must See TV

Okay, that's a really tenuous link. Anyway, here's the point. Mad Men is fantastic, and I cannot wait until series 4 beings.

A Few Personal Lifehacks

I love Lifehacker. I can't remember when I first discovered it, but once it led me to Google Reader it became the first thing I read through it and it became the first feed I subscribed to there. They are always posting useful tips from around the internet.

So in honour of their from the tips box section I thought I'd follow in due course. I was going to make this a list of my favourite shortcuts, but then I thought that would be a) Not expansive enough, and b) Incredibly dull. So anyway, here goes nothing.

Lifehack 1: "You own your phone, your phone does not own you."

Discovered many years ago in a book called Clutter Control this is very simple. Basically you pick and choose when you answer your phone, don't feel obligated to pick it up just because you're there.

This is a great way to eliminate needless phone calls, especially when there are so many junk callers out there. They can't get to speak to you if you don't pick up the phone. And don't recommend the Telephone Preference Service, not when so many companies work internationally and consequently out of their jurisdiction.

(N.B. This is also why I ask most friends to call my mobile first. I'd get them to call the house phone, but I'm not paying the £600-£800 that BT want each month to show a caller's ID.)

So if you call me and you get no answer, don't take it personally. I'm at home, not working. Or failing that, call my mobile. I'm still friendly to my friends.

Lifehack 2: Keyboard shortcuts

Very, very handy time saver in all kinds of computer programs. Here are my top five:

1. Open Windows Explorer: Windows key + E.
2. Open a new Firefox tab: CTRL + T.
3. Copy...: CTRL + C.
4. and Paste...: CTRL + V.
5. Switch programs: ALT + TAB.

I think most people know these already, but they are every day timesavers for me.

Lifehack 3: A backup plan

I pulled this originally from a Lifehacker post, but here's my current backup plan.

Using SyncBack, I get the data from my Documents and Settings folder and copy that over to my external hard drive. To limit possible clashes I eliminate the following data:

• .lnk files
• *ntuser.dat* files
• *parent.lock* files
• *UsrClass.dat* files
• thumbs.db files
• Any directories named Cache or Temp

I presently run this once a week. In addition to that once a month I move these to a monthly folder and allow the backup to recreate itself from fresh (which has been handy in regard to making sure that I've got old copies of files on some occasions).

At some point I suspect I'll incorporate an online element to this, but that's presently a wait and see option.

If you like these posts let me know and I'll consider another one in future, thanks.

The problem with being English in 2010

Earlier this month my best mate and I got our heads together, arranged to take some time off in the middle of June and watch the beginning of the World Cup together. He's coming up the night before it starts and I'm looking forward to watching South Africa play Mexico with him on June 11th.

The next day England take their bow against the USA. I'm looking forward to this too, but for different reasons. Watching a game with my best mate and a common interest, great. Sharing a common interest with my other friends, with a plethora of texts going to and from my phone, great. The England kit? Work of art. The players wearing it? Meh.

Seriously, who do we have representing us this summer? Ashley Cole - known to cheat on his wife. John Terry - known to cheat on his wife. Rio Ferdinand - a player with a drug ban on his record (and a whole lot of gossip regarding why he got it). Wayne Rooney - great player but with a temperament that makes Russell Crowe look chilled out. Steven Gerrard - who has been known to get upset on nights out in Southport. And I haven't even mentioned "Fat Frank" and the polarising opinions he generates.

Is there really any one player you can fully say is likeable? I'm honestly struggling to find one.

This reminds me of the Portland Trail Blazers "Jail Blazers" era of a few years ago. The team went after talent at the expense of character and found themselves with an utterly unlikeable team which made the Portland community squirm. In recent years the team has built around character (and luck in the draft) to build a team that the fans are proud of for more than just they're doing on the court.

Will I struggle to support the team in the World Cup? I know I won't. Something will come round, something will happen and I'll get as swept up as every other casual fan of the national team. And even if those things don't happen I can rely on something else stir my patriotic side: the Scottish tabloid media. Yes, the one collective who I think can actually make John Terry likeable, and that's saying something.

Sporting Images of a Decade

One of the good things about where I work presently is we're allowed to choose our own desktop wallpaper. Obviously there are some limitations, but that didn't stop me from piecing together some sporting highlights of the last decade, shrinking them into pictures small enough not to annoy anyone and then distort them further by knocking them down in to black and white. The images I chose? The following:

400 while hitting .400. The curtain call Chipper Jones took after his 400th Home Run for the Braves. The one constant for the Braves in the decade, still my favourite player to see playing at Turner Field (more on TV these days, sadly).

Andy says sssh. Last day of the season, 2004/05. Andy Johnson steps up to take a crucial penalty against Charlton Athletic. He buries it in the bottom corner, then runs past a big section of Charlton fans with a finger over his mouth. It still makes me laugh. Pity the end result wasn't better though.

Anaheim Ducks, Stanley Cup Champions. Scott Niedermayer lifts the cup after the Ducks won the 2007 Stanley Cup. Pretty simple, still a great moment for me personally.

Ronnie runs over New England. September 2008. The 0-2 Dolphins head to New England to face the hated Patriots. The Fins were on a run of having lost 20 of their last 21 games. The Patriots hadn't lost a regular season game since losing to the Dolphins in Miami... in 2006. Cue the Wildcat's introduction (or the reintroduction to the single wing, if you prefer), Ronnie Brown running for four touchdowns, throwing for another and barreling over Ellis Hobbs in the process. The South Florida franchise has been on a mostly upward path ever since.

The Bulls draft Derrick Rose. Following a pretty lousy decade (compared to the fabulous 90s) the Bulls struck lucky in 2008, winning the draft lottery and the rights to draft Memphis guard Derrick Rose. He's no Jordan (he's a much different player) but at least he's a better pick than Eddy Curry and he offers a great hope for the future with the right pieces around him.

And in case you're wondering, to the left of those pictures I put a January 2010 calendar, which means this wallpaper is now effectively redundant. Time to start the creative process again!

Anger? Meh...

Over this past month I've discovered a problem I seemingly have with anger. These days I'm struggling to get angry about things.

Seemingly a good problem? Not to the people who pushed Rage Against the Machine to the top of the Christmas charts. Personally I didn't like the Joe McElderry/X-Factor Christmas single, but not enough to go out and buy anything else (as other people willingly admitted to).

In what I think was 1993 I remember being very amused by the thought of Mr Blobby being Christmas number one instead of Take That, now the thought of doing something to spite someone just doesn't appeal to me. On Facebook I likened it to Charlton Athletic's all-consumming bitterness towards Crystal Palace. When bitterness starts to define you in such a way that it is greater than your love/liking for something else I think that's pretty sad.

On top of that there is the matter of priorities. Do know the kind of thing that does make me angry? A few years ago a friend of mine told me about how his Mum was diagnosed with cancer, but only after visiting a hospital for the third time and insisting that she was examined as she was sure there was something wrong with her. A wife, a mother, who thankfully recovered in no part due to two doctors who had told her she had nothing to worry about.

Life and death. Personal health. Families and their homes. Those are the kinds of things which stir my feelings, not Simon Cowell's bank balance and/or ego. There are simply bigger things to worry about.

Time vs Me

I hate feeling like I have to explain a tweet, but on Saturday night I tweeted that the night's biggest loser was the PS3 game Uncharted 2.

Feeling as if I'm a somewhat solitary voice on this game I need to explain myself. It looks fantastic, it has a plot and it certainly has charm. What it can't do is create about 20-30 hours for me to play it. Furthermore the two friends with me (one slightly older than me, with a busy career, the other slightly younger and married) agreed with me.

So Uncharted 2 would have been perfect for me in May/June 1994, when I spent the end of my first year at University avoiding people and playing game after game of Football and Baseball ("Pop-up!") on my Amiga. Now I just don't have that time.

I'm now the person who fits in a quick game of FIFA. I'm the person who mostly runs and stays in bounds on Madden to keep the clock moving. I'm the person who rues replays in NHL because they're a hindrance to the game progressing*.

(* I made an exception when my best mate missed an open net the on his recent visit, but only because it appealed to my warped sense of humour.)

Time isn't my friend, it is a persistent and speedy enemy. I have ways to combat it, but in ways which don't leave me with time for Uncharted 2.

A Belated Summer Summary

Just a quick run-down on our summer, which I'll argue as being fitting as British Summer Time only ended last Sunday (of course as I pointed out to someone on Sunday morning, British Summer Time really ended about eight weeks ago).

Summer holiday: We did something different this year and went down to the Ayrshire coast. The good part? We took Cookie with us. The bad part? Well besides being in a smaller than usual bed with a tipping mattress that threatened to throw me out every night, let's just say the argument of certain places having a benefit of "Once you're there everything's paid for" is a bit of a joke. Swimming is paid for. Everything else? Not so much.

On the plus side, at least Chloe had fun, eating ice cream with money given to her by her Gran and drawing away when the weather wasn't so nice. Meanwhile I struggled to get any kind of 3g signal or find a petrol station within ten minutes of us. I went a bit stir crazy.

Also, somewhat randomly during our holiday, Chloe told me, "Dad, you change your mind, like a girl changes clothes." I thought I'd heard that before somewhere. Turns out I had.

Elsewhere: Honestly, it seems like I do nothing other than work and commute lately. I can't really recall anything else I did over the summer which I would class as really fun or memorable, except for...

The Dog's Trust Open Day in Hamilton. Always a blast, so much fun to take Cookie to and give him a day where he's the centre of attention. You have to love that dog (who's been with us for seven years, to this very day).

N.B. As always, all photos are from my Flickr photostream.

What I Was Surfing Last Month

Every month I keep a little text file of any websites or online articles that grab my eye, then at the end of the month I categorise them and add them to a growing list of articles which have interested me. Most of these stay in offline records for reference, some get stored to my Diigo account, and some which I just like the look of get a screenprint taken and stashed away for ideas and/or inspiration.

However, this month, just to do something different, I thought I'd share it here. Given the way most links are displayed these days I don't think many of these require much explanation. N.B. Not all of these are strictly personal interest. Some of them are just things which I enjoyed reading. Also they weren't necessarily originally produced last month, but came to my attention for one reason or another at this time:

http://lifehacker.com/5345211/achieve-goals-using-the-smart-method

http://lifehacker.com/355743/top-10-itunes-smart-playlists

http://www.problogdesign.com/wordpress/10-things-to-do-after-installing-wordpress/

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/07/27/how-to-budget-for-an-irregular-income/

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/03/50-monochromatic-website-designs/

http://abduzeedo.com/52-beautiful-blue-layouts-web-design

http://www.blog.spoongraphics.co.uk/tutorials/twitter-background-design-how-to-and-best-practices

And the one I liked for looking nice...
http://www.australia2018-2022.com.au/

Bye Bye, Mobile Broadband

Earlier this month I phoned Vodafone and told them I would be cancelling my mobile broadband contract with them. They then told me that I had to give them a month's notice, which annoyed me, but only because I pride myself in knowing the terms and conditions on things like this and checking them out in good time.

Anyway, I'm going ahead and cancelling my mobile broadband contract. Why? Because this country isn't ready for it yet, as was shown when we went on holiday last month and the speed of my connection struggled to download my e-mail. Partying like it was 1999? Nope, just connecting like it.

It is just the same at home, and indeed anywhere else that isn't the centre of Glasgow. So I don't regret my decision, especially with more and more places having their own wireless networks available. Why pay £14 a month when you may only spend £4 here and £5 there every so often and get a better class of service for it?

What I read in this month's .Net just backs that up. On page 16 in their news section they quote some figures in regard to mobile broadband connections, going further than me and warning of poor speed connections if you live outside the M25.

Just to clarify, I'm not blaming Vodafone. Their service in every respect was great (especially customer service), but performance of 3g networks if you're outside a major city centre just doesn't perform well enough yet in my view. One day it might, but for the time being a pay-as-you-go basis would be the only way I'd commit to mobile broadband, and that would be for emergencies only.

Getting Follow Friday All Wrong

Thought it might be interesting to take a look at one of my favourite web sites at the moment, and who I'm following on it. Yep, I'm talking about Twitter.

Now some of my love of Twitter has to do with my new phone. I get Twitter updates straight to it, regardless of where I am and and who I'm with. It makes Twitter extremely useful, as the content is purely text (unlike some of the HTML e-mails I get through to my phone). So who am I following? Let's take a look:

@DesignerDepot Now some people do start following you after you make posts, which is what Web Designer Depot did. However when I took a look at their feed there is lots of interesting stuff to see there. Also on the web design front, I need to recommend @sitepointdotcom and @netmag.

@PTIshow My one remaining can't miss TV show, until ESPN America disappears (sob! weep!). Added bonus points for the daily "Today on the PTI Show Twitter feed... what did you tweet about Mike?" feature on the show that is always interesting. Need to mention @aroundthehorn, as there is probably no other Twitter feed which makes me more interested in any programme.

@sportsguy33 Yep, the Bill Simmons feed. Usually entertaining, sometimes self-promoting and occasionally scathing about us Brits (actually some of his posts, along with some Bob Ryan comments on PTI make me wonder if I really would enjoy visiting Boston). Normally pretty funny though, especially as he's got his friend @jacko2323 on board (Joe House, where are you?).

Like interesting writing that's a bit more serious? I'd fully recommend @jdroth.

My favourite drink, @mtn_dew, as does my favourite lounge @jadande (who gets bonus points for not being his pompous former L.A. Times colleague).

Need to recommend some great apps, namely @firefox, @twitterfox, @dropbox and @shareaholic. If you don't use Windows then you're pretty likely to find something interesting from @davecampbell.

And finally, just because he's shares pretty much all my interests, but is funnier, wittier and more interesting than me... @benjiwilson. And as a bonus, he'll probably post anything important that @easports post as well.

Actually, let's make this the last one. Did you get this far, @JasonLMatthews?

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