Simon Royal.co.uk - My Blog

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Gran Paradiso / Minefield

With my strange fetish for different web browsers I was pleased to here Mozilla have released an alpha version of Firefox 3 code named 'Gran Paradiso'.

Get the 3.0a2pre oddly named 'Minefield' Mac version here, the PC version here, and the Linux version here.

Considering how early on in development it is, it is very stable. It loads fairly quickly even on my ageing 400Mhz G3 and so far haven't had a crash or come across a page it couldn't render properly.

I am even writing this post on it. 

Laptop vs Desktop

I have been working off my old PowerBook G3 for a few months now, and while I have a super fast Intel iMac sitting in the corner I still prefer to use the PowerBook, why?

What are the pros and cons of laptop vs desktop.

The obvious pro of a laptop is portability and a con is less upgradeability - although my Intel iMac is pretty much in the same boat as my PowerBook. You cannot add more hard drives or expansion cards. You are stuck with the ports it came with and with both, you can upgrade the drives if you know what you are doing.

Space would be another issue, although my Intel iMac is the smallest all-in-one I have ever seen, with the exception of the keyboard and mouse everything is contained in the 2 inch thick screen.

So in my case, the PowerBook has more advantages and one I have stumbled across by accident I am very please about.

The electricity in my house is funded by buying token cards and topping up, just like a pay-as-you-go mobile phone, and just like a phone you can run out of credit and then your electric goes off.

As long as there is some life in my PowerBook battery, it will keep on and I will not lose any work. So while sitting here in the dark I can still see my PowerBook screen glowing away like nothing is wrong.

Unfortunately, my router isn't battery powered and then I cannot surf the net, but at least I keep everything on my screen. 

iPhone Announced

Well the long rumours have now been quoshed. Apple have announced the iPhone, check it out on the Apple website now here.

I have just watched the latest keynote speech by Steve Jobs and I was glued for the whole duration. This is the phone of the future, it is gorgeous to look at and so feature packed it is amazing, and it had to be designed from Apple.

When my current contract ends on my mobile phone I know what I will be buying. 

Color Schemer Online v2

For all you web designers out there, here is a great online colour scheme generator, check it out here.

LameLib

Rss Feed No Good

I have had some problems with my homepage. I added the RRS feed reader, which seemed to hold up the page loading and most of the time not load the RSS feed. Plus it only updated 4 times a day so was pretty slow.

No I am having trouble perfecting my homepage. I am not happy with it at present, will need some tweaking. 

RSS Feed Reader

This is an excellent little tool. I have used it in my recent revamp. It allows you to build RSS feeds into webpages, beit your own or other peoples, and best of all it's free.

Check it out here. 

Vista Release Date

After almost 2 years of promises and countless delays, Windows Vista will soon be upon us.

The official Vista site says it will be available to buy 30th January 2007. 

New Look HomePage

As part of my search engine optimisation, I have redesigned my homepage to be more content heavy.

Check it out at www.simonroyal.co.uk  

Search Engine Optimising

I have had my blog for about 18 months and my www.simonroyal.co.uk domain where my main website is based, for about the same time.

Apart from the odd blog post, not much shows up on Google, so I have been optimising my site for search engines. Anyone serious about their site, I would suggest you do the same. 

First of all, make sure your META data is complete. Then sign up for Google Web Tools and follow their recommendations. For sitemap creation, check out XML-Sitemaps who did it for me.

There is no harm in using AddPro.com and AddMe.com. The offer submission to free search engines too.

The main thing is your homepage, the one most engines will pick up needs to be interesting. Mine is a little simple at present, so I am thinking of adding some RSS feeds and intro's to articles. 

Yet Another Hottie... Chiaki Kuriyama

Yes, the young girl in Kill Bill Vol. 1 who plays Gogo Yubari, is Chiaki Kuriyama. It must be something to do with the uniform, but she is hot. 

How To Hide A Phone Mast

I saw this story on Boing Boing which linked to The Register, check it out here. A Dutch company called Kaal Mastenfabriek have ingeniously hidden mobile phone masts inside trees.

They have already used them in national parks and we also have some in the UK.

Boing Boing

A new and fun link I stumbled across. Take a peek at Boing Boing here. It is a blog for all sorts of fun and interesting information, from mobile phone masts hidden in trees to Tolkien versions of Barbie and Ken and frozen waterfalls.

Hayley Tamaddon... Another Hottie

Well after sitting through yet another TV talent(less) show, Soapstar Superstar with my wife, I noticed yet another TV babe in a different light.

Gorgeous Emmerdale actor Hayley Tamaddon, looks even better outside her Emmerdale character. She can join my top totty list. 

Abandonware

Abandonware is an odd subject.  Some refer to any software/games that have been given permission by there authors/copyright owners to be freely distributed because the are very old and no longer sold for profit. Others refer to anything available to download from a website, whether legal or not.  

Here are three great abandonware sites. WinWorld and VetusWare for the PC, and MacDomain for the Mac.

Please ensure you respect copyright laws, when downloading from these sites. I accept no responsibilty 

Windows 98 Service Pack

Microsoft never released a service pack for Windows 98, just countless single updates, which are a pain to access through the Windows Update service.

However, Exuberant Software, have put together a service pack for Windows 98SE available for free download here. It features all the updates supplied by Microsoft, plus some little extras. 

An Indepth Look At Mac OSX

Being a Mac fan and a complete nerd, I found this website looking at depth at the Mac OSX operating system superbly interesting. Check it out here.

It talks about everything from Darwin, Mach, the kernel, Cocoa, Aqua, Carbon, Java, HFS+ and everything else Mac related. It's awesome.

Malware Warning

Once again, while browsing the web I stumbled across something I hadn't seen before. It was a malware warning from Google.

A nifty little tool to try and prevent nasty websites attacking your computer. 

More Free Music

Another source for free music is the music section of CNet's Download.com available here. It is not a subscription service nor a fantastic source, but often have featured free tracks.

The main site is also a great source of software downloads available here.

eMusic - 25 Free Downloads

I have been browsing the net looking for free legit music. I stumbled across eMusic.

Sign up and receive 25 free tunes, and they are DRM free so can be used anywhere.  You do have to provide your card details, but I cancelled my subscription straight after download the 25 tracks.

It is not as up-to-date as most and I think it only has some record labels, but they are free. Check it out here . 

Hardcore, You Know The Score

In my younger days and when I just left school, I was a huge happy hardcore and jungle fan fan.

My vinyl, tape pack collections from Helter Skelter, Dreamscape, United Dance and others and later on CDs were filled with the likes of Dougal, Hixxy, Sy, Seduction, Slipmatt, Vinylgroover, Force & Styles, Loftgroover, Daz Saund, Brisk, Billy Bunter, Clarkee, Vibes, SS, Grooverider, Hype, Scott Brown, Eruption.

It was never mainstream. United Dance released 5 albums and Dougal and Hixxy released a number of Bonkers albums, but were only really bought by hardcore fans.

It wasn't until 2005/2006 that it resurfaced in the mainstream with the Clubland X-Treme Hardcore series. I see advertised on the TV at the moment the 'Hardcore 2007 Helter Skelter vs Raindance' triple CD, which has resparked my interest in this hard paced heavy dance music. 

Lite PC

On my travels around the internet, and attempting to get older machines run blisteringly fast, I stumbled across Lite PC, who produce a range of software to speed up Windows.

First is, 98Lite. It is a program that can slim down you Windows 98, 98SE or ME and remove those things that hog resources, thus giving your machine a little more breathing room. You can either use it before installing Windows and it will only install what you ask, or you can use it on a machine with Windows already installed.

Download the free time-unlimited, nag free preview here. It is fully functional, but obviously the professional version has further features.

There are also versions for slimming Windows 2000 and XP available. Check out Lite PC here.

Damn Small Linux - Not

The dust hasn't settled on removing Ubuntu from my PowerBook, when I am already planning my next venture into the linux world.

With my idea of buying a Toshiba Libretto, it gives me a third machine, to tinker with Linux and yet leave my PowerBook and iMac as they are.

I have tried Damn Small Linux and I like it. Simple, yet effective and suitable for very low specced machines. It will run at full speed on a 486 machine.

My next venture looks into a different Linux distro called, Damn Small Linux... Not.  As the name suggests it is not Damn Small Linux. It is a larger version, still suitable for low powered machines but with more features of a full powered distro.

When I used DSL before, I got very used to it and hopefully - and by the looks of the screenshots DSLN will follow the same trend. 

Life Sucks

Welcome to my world.

Apple Cripple

I have two Apple Macs. One an Intel iMac with a Panasonic/Matshita UJ-846 dvd burner and the other a PowerBook G3 with a custom fitted Panasonic/Matshita UJ-815 dvd burner.

Upon reading I discovered that Apple purposely cripple drives when putting them into their machines. But why? The UJ-846 is supposed to burn at 8x SL, 2x DL and also support DVD-RAM. In an Apple machine they remove DL and DVD-RAM support.

Fortunately my UJ-815 in my PowerBook G3, which Apple used in later G4 PowerBooks wasn't the original drive and doesn't suffer from the speed limitations. In the PowerBook G4's they crippled DVD burning to 1x instead of 2x as well as slower CD burning speeds, lucky for me mine doesn't suffer from this.

Most of the time you can get round them with a firmware update. Here is an update for the UJ-815 here. I ACCEPT NO RESPONSIBILITY.

Maybe they do it for safety. Maybe the manufacturers quoted burn speeds are over-estimated or unstable. I can't think Apple would do it without good reason.

Back To School... Not

My eldest of 4 was due to go back to school today. Unfortunately, someone decided to trash his nursery so he won't be returning until Monday.

What sort of idiot trashes a nursery anyway? What's to gain? 

Anne Foy... Latest Hottie

I have stumbled across the latest beauty in TV world.  Currently a presenter on the CBBC Channel, Anne Foy is gorgeous.

It really gives you an incentive to watch kids TV. Anne Foy does for the CBBC Channel, what Sarah-Jane Honeywell does for CBeebies. 

Next Project... Libretto

I need a new project. My Apple PowerBook G3 has been upgraded to the max, so what's next.

I've been looking at the Toshiba Libretto. It is a small laptop/sub-notebook the size of a VHS video cassette. It's not a PDA. It runs full version Windows and capable of everything that a regular size laptop or desktop is.

The Libretto 50 is a P75/P120Mhz machine. The Libretto 70 and 100 are slightly higher specced but harder to find.

The upgrade options are abundant and overclocking is simple and effective. It can run Windows 95/98/ME, some people have even gotten XP to work. Plus as it has a PCMCIA card slot you could add a wireless card for the ultra-portable ultra-small internet machine.

I will let you know how I get on. 

Six Months Alcohol Free

Well regular blog readers will remember that at the end of July I gave up drinking alcohol and I haven't touched a drop since.

A whole six months with no alcohol and I even managed my birthday, christmas and new years without any. Go me! 

Speedy PC

With the purchase of my Intel iMac Core Duo, I was pleased to brag how fast it was. Most people I knew hadn't made that essential move to the latest generation of computers.

A good friend Spiggy however took the wind out of my sails with his purchase of an Intel Core 2 Duo 3.4Ghz machine with 1GB of RAM.

Envious? Of the sheer power only. But I would rather have my Mac at 1.83Ghz rather than a 3.4Ghz Windows machine. 

Dual Core, Do More - Updated

I sat thinking how nerdy my earlier post regarding the speed increase of my Intel iMac over previous Macs is, but there is a logical reason for doing it.

Whenever you buy a new computer it should be a lot better than its predecessor, but how do you know. Everyday tasks never push computers to their limits. Browsing the web on my PowerBook G3 most of the time doesn't feel any slower than it does on my beast of an Intel iMac.

You have to try things that push every feature and video encoding is one of the top 5 strenuous tasks.

So you see, it was nice to see that although the clock speed of my Intel iMac is 1.83Ghz not even double the 1Ghz G4 it was replacing, and only 1GB of RAM up from 768MB that performance increased by 400%.

It makes you feel it was worth it, your purchase was a success. 

Goggles - Updated

I have been playing with Goggles for a little while and found this link so you can start over a location of your choice, rather than just the major cities.

It is a bit long winded but fun nonetheless. Click here for instructions. 

Goggles

Novelty websites are two-a-penny these days. So when something genuinely amusing pops up it is worth sharing.

Take a look at Goggles, it is an online flight simulator which uses Google Maps for its landscape. Check it out here. 

Dual Core, Do More

With all the emphasis being put on Dual Core technology at the moment, I thought I would test how good my Intel iMac was. My three test machines were Intel iMac 1.8Ghz Dual Core with 1GB RAM, an eMac 1Ghz G4 with 768MB RAM and a PowerBook 400Mhz G3 with 512MB RAM.

Task was to rip a 7.9GB commercial DVD movie using MacTheRipper and compress it down to a single layer 4.3GB single layer disc using Toast 7 Titanium or Popcorn 1.

The iMac has an 8x dual layer Panasonic UJ-845 burner, the eMac had a custom fitted 16x dual layer Pioneer 109BK burner and the PowerBook had a custom fitted 2x single layer Panasonic UJ-815 slot burner.

Intel iMac: ripped 32mins, compressed 17mins.
G4 eMac: ripped 45 mins, compressed 65mins.
G3 PowerBook: ripped 36mins, compressed N/A.

You can see, the iMac was four times faster at compressing. The PowerBook wouldn't compress as Toast 7 requires a G4 processor and Popcorn kept quitting. The PowerBook ripped almost as fast as the iMac, but the eMac drive (the same as they put in early G5 PowerMacs), was always a bit poor.

So the iMac stormed, which wasn't any surprise, with the PowerBook coming second on ripping, but the eMac taking official second place as it could burn the final image. The results are nothing surprising.