2.75 Miles

Yes folks that's the distance walked today with wife and daughter, and all in blue sky and no rain, cos that came later when we were at home.

So a good result, and just to add to it I took my camera and actually took some pictures for once.

Phobia

Just been looking back at some of my earlier Blogs posts and I notice that I have for some very good reasons been going on and on about indexes.

I wonder if there is a named phobia for the fear of indexes?

Return

I think it has something to do with the extra daylight or something, but I keep wanting to get back to my different projects and get something done with them.

I noticed that this appears to happen every year at about the same time, it just that I have never in the past bothered to note down and record the fact, so here am I recording the fact that I feel an itch or even a compulsion to do something to each of my projects that have sat now, some of them for months.

The big and burning question is which project should I have a go at first?

At this time I do not know which one would be great to start with first.

I must admit that one problem that I have not yet solved for some of the projects is that I am now on a new computer which runs a new operating system, which is called Vista, now to me XP was better and you knew where things where and how it worked.

For some reason stuff has either been renamed or even moved and for what I can see I can't fathom why some of the changes have been made. It also appears that I am not the only person who also thinks this, but this is all a side note to the fact that some of the software that I used on my old machine was already old on that so you can imagine just how old it is and so when I tried to install it the end result was, well no result in that it did not install. As you can probably tell this did not make me happy, to add to the fun? some of the software I use has suffered in that the company that used to make it have been taken over and the new company does not offer any patches to allow their software to run on the new operating system, in fact I think they want you to buy the latest software at their very latest price.

Now some of the software I used was brought cheap, I mean Knock down prices, because at that time it was old and near end of line and there was a new version of the software out which had the latest bell and whistles and all that sort of stuff.

So as I can't affored to spend 600 uk pounds on software that I only use perhaps once a month or so I shall have to spend some time on Google and find out how other folk out there got there old software running on new hardware and operating systems, I mean I can't be the only one with this problem surely!

Anyway I think I have ranted enough, I am also sure that I have said all of this before in an earlier Blog, but as this is my space my words I can repaet myselft as much as I want.

Mind you if I keep doing this I will not get on with the projects will I?

Snow

Yes,

there was snow this morning which was just a bit of a surprise.

Bumble Bee

Just want to record here that at 15.21 on 4th March 2009 I saw my 1st bumble Bee.

I just hope the weather forecast for him goes his way.

Ipod Touch

Just an update to myself that the touch is working well, as I got it mainly for podcast's it works very well.

Lost

 

Just found this picture from last year on the hard disc. The flowers were in our garden and I don't know what the name of the flowers are, I do know that they are pansys of some type.

Green

 

Winkworth again, just like all the green's that are in this picture, this is straight from the D80, it's a great camera and with how little I use it I am glad that it can still produce great images like this, at least this is what I saw through the viewfinder at the time. I don't think the D80 came with the sunshine and optional blue sky button if it did I would have surly used them.

Day off

1st day off this year, and yes the weather is not playing fair a tall. But needed the lie in and the chance to catch up on music and radio play's that have some how passed me by.

Spring Delayed

Just seen the weather forecast for the rest of this week and I am beginning to think that spring is going to be a bit late and that all this mild weather that we have been enjoying is all a bit of a fluke.

I suppose only time will tell if spring arrives when it is supposed to.

Which is a bit of a pity as I was just getting used to the idea of it being warm and bright out there.

Sunshine in a flower

Sunshine in a flower, originally uploaded by davew1.

Same as before but I have corrected the colour

March 2009

 

 

 

Well it's the 1st of March 2009 and this is what we saw at Winkworth

5.41 Miles

Just a memo to me, do not try and break you record for cycling uphill after a tough bike ride, as it hurts and you will pay for it.

Caz

 

Caz my daughter

Sunshine at the top of the world

 

Rare event this year so far, yes sunshine, so we took advantage of it and went for a walk to the top of a local hill.

Oh Where's the Sun Gone

So one whole day of sunshine on Friday and now because it's Saturday is all gone grey cloud

Projects

I have just noticed (and is a note to me) that I have not done any updates or work for that matter on any of my projects, mainly because the change of job ect. has left me cream cracked at this time, I am hopeful that in time I will get back to doing them.

One project that does need to be moved forward is the AE35 pod cast which I have not touched since Jan and it's now very nearly March (oh where has the time gone) I do have enough material for another pod cast but don't seem to have the time to record it and upload it(the other reason is that the new computer still needs to have the software)

Post 500

500 posts to this blog in total, I know that for some that 500 is not much, but me I am happy to have got to this milestone

Grey

The sky is grey, there is no light why

Spring

Just a note to myself really that I saw my first crocus, snowdrops and a tree in blossom.

Grey Sky

Just want to record here that today was a grey sky all day and that it **** me off!

Grey Sky

Just want to record here that today was a grey sky all day and that it **** me off!

Past Blogs

I have just made a mistake of looking back at what I was saying in my Blog from back in 2006, one thing that struck me was the amount of stuff that I was doing and all the different projects that I had on the go, what I now want to know is what happened?

I mean the computer I had then to the computer I have now must surly mean that I can now do more, and do it quicker?

I still have lots of ideas for projects but some how they never ever get started now, while back then at least I started them why?

Looking at other folks blogs from back in the early days there does seem to be a very simular thing going on, why?

And before you say that it's to do with the country I live in and the credit cruch or Banks getting too silly with my money, the trend was in place as far as I can see before these events even happened.

So I am left wondering what has happened and what can I do to get my unfinished projects completed and also get my great ideas started?

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Daily Photo #442

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Daily Photo #442

Saw this picture on Trav28's blog and i have to admit I love the clours in it, not sure when in the year it was taken, but I love the way the clock dial is such an intense blue.

Will have to find out what the secret is to getting such strong colours, so I can get something like this when I get back into picture taking.

DSCN1951

DSCN1951, originally uploaded by davew1.

Looking back of some of my kite pics from a few years ago, I did not remember this one.

Its the fact that I got it with a camera that was hard work on moving subjects that makes this pic rather special to me.

Blue Sky

How is it that having one day with lots of blue sky can make you feel much better.

_MG_0163

_MG_0163, originally uploaded by Trav28.

This image from Trav28 has made me put the Canyon on a list of places that I have just got to go and see.

Blogs A Minute (BAM)

Just been doing some updating of the main Dirk Maggs website, all stuff that you can't see but should make the site run just a bit better (or so I hope!)

Just had a thought just how many Blogs a minute are being created, started or have stopped but the owners of the Blogs don't know that yet?

Is there a blogs a minute rating?

should there be? me?

I don't think it matters really!

I also happen to think that how could you collect this data anyway?

Not all blogs are hosted by large web hosts are they?

Well that's enough of all this I have an Above and Beyond set to listen to.

Edit Hell part more than one

As you know I have been writing a book on all of Dirk Maggs audio productions, in fact I have been doing the Dirk Maggs web site for a few years now, but it has only been in the last few years that I thought it would be a great idea to have a paper version of the website.

So as I have said before the paper version has got to version/edition 3 I think ( see even I don't have a clue where I am at times) any way the last version has got stuck in edit hell as I have know idea on the indexes that this book really needs I mean by that with so much information in it you need more than one index to help you find what you are looking for and things only get much much worse(is that a word) as the book gets bigger as I update it with new material.

As I have said before the book is not for public publication as I have a feeling getting copyright clearance on some of the pictures ect. would be a nightmare.

The strange thing is that this is a project that I do like doing and I hope one day that one of the versions/editions will be printed up so that I can give it to Dirk( so that he can then tell me what's right and wrong with it) currently the book is in an A4 format as that is what I tend to write my book projects in.

The publication cost for privately printed book sits at about 15 UK pounds which for a 300-400 page book of that format does not look to bad.

So I will have to get on with it, I think what I might have to do is abandon version or edition three of the book and move to version 4 as Dirk has now produced more shows that are on the website but not in the book.

Projects

Projects

Some work has been done on starting up the Citrus Project, I have got as far as starting to redo the website.

Dirk Maggs book, this is still stuck in edit hell with no further progress at this time, although a journalist did as for a draft copy of it even though I told him that it was a draft and that it was stuck in edit hell. So far I have had no feedback on what he thinks of it yet. It is also becoming very clear to me that I am going to have to revise the book even before I have completed it, as Dirk is not standing still and is still producing very good work(must remember not to say that bit to him!!)

So as always it comes down to time, time is very precious and is always in short supply and to make thing worse as you get older it speeds up and passes you by must faster.

Citrus Book

If I ever get a block of free time one book project that is now well over due is to revise and update by Citrus book. It did get to edition 5 and then for some unknown reason it stopped, not to sure why that is but there you go.

Old editions of the Citrus books are on my main website under the writing bit of my website.

I hope that edition 6 would be bigger and a better book by adding some extra stuff, like what recipes the different Citrus fruits can be used in. I also want to talk more about some of the different sub species of the Citrus fruits.

Things go Slow

Well one of the ideas this year was to do more with my book writing and publishing. The way things no look that might not happen as a change in the job has happened and as with all things new there are lots of hills to climb.

I do have one book project that has been on hold since June 2008 mainly due to the fact that I can not get the book's index sorted out.

The other little snag is that before I have completed the book it is already very much out of date and so I will need to revise it before I even get around to the problem with the index.

The only other problem with it is that I can't sell the book when its done anyway, due to copyrights that would need to be cleared and also because I don't think there is a market for such a book.

Saying that an earlier version/edition of the book was one Lulu for a while due to a mistake that I made when editing the project page and I can safely state here that it was the most expensive book on Lulu at just short of 1million pounds, for some strange reason there where no takers at that price.

New car

Today I brought a new car

Yes I know its a mad thing to do in this credit crunch time and all that sort of stuff, but you do need these days to have wheels and where I work there is no other way of getting there, especially if you discount walking.

So I can hear you ask what car did I buy?

I have brought a Vauxhall insignia exclusive 5 door 1.8 litre petrol car, why? well it's the nearest replacement to a Vauxhall Vectra which is what I have at this time.

I need a car of that size so that all my kite bugging stuff fits in it.

I am told I can have the car in March so that's good

How is it

How is it that sometimes when you want to work on one of your pet projects, like for instance in my case my Dirk Maggs chronology book things and life get in the way?

Do others people have this same problem of stuff getting in their way and the projects that they want to do?

At the rate at which I am not doing the Dirk Maggs book I will have to revise it before I have completed it as it will be out of date.

Dunfyboy's Mixes: Dunfyboy's Trance Mix 7

Dunfyboy's Mixes: Dunfyboy's Trance Mix 7

This is just a great mix

New book

I have a new book out on Lulu how cool is that?

I know it's great that I have some how or other finally got to publish a book that has sat on the old hard drive for far too long but the job is done and it's also a hardback.

This is what I have said on lulu about my book.

Having found the time and all that sort of stuff I have some how managed to release the latest book that I have written, which has been on my hard disk for a long time and some how or other got stuck there.

Although the new book's title is very close to my older books on chemical elements, it is a completly new book in its contents and its layout. In fact I think I might be pushed to name or even find another book that has a layout like my new book.

The reason that I can say this is that the book has been set up or layed out in such a way that we go from the elements first known to man all the way to thouse elements only found in the labs around the worl in the last few years.

I have never seen a book on chemical elemnts set out in such a way. Beacuse of this layout the book is in some seven or so parts reflecting the fact that the discovery of the various elements went to some extent hand in hand with new chemical and technology techniques, by this I mean that say without electricty some of the elemnts we know today would not have been found.

For me it has been a fun project and as I am not a chemist it was a great learning all this new stuff and I did enjoy myself.

This is what the back of the book says
Description:
This is an almost complete reference to all the currently known elements, set in an easy to read style and at an easy to understand level. Each element has information on when they were found, who found them, how they found them, what uses the elements are put to and what effects some of the elements can have on humans and their health. This book has been set up so that it starts from the earliest known elements to man, all the way to the elements only found a few years ago. The book is therefore in 7 parts reflecting the major eras that most of the chemical elements were found.

And finally this is the link to the book on Lulu


Hope this all works.

Flying

 
Found this while getting the new computer all sorted out, in fact let Pisca loose and this is what it found on one of the USB hard disc's.

Taken some time ago at Butser Hill in Hampshire England.

Donna In Red

 

This is one of my fav pictures of Donna that I have, it was taken not that long a go and it's one that i also have as my wallpaper on my mobile.

I do remember that when I took it it was an unposed picture as she was going out to meet some of her work mates at a club or something, so a snatched picture but I like it any way

Backup & Why I use them

So start of new year, well a couple of days now into the new year and the USB HD that is about 18 months old has well, how do I put this died, it started with a noise like a machine gun when starting up, the noise would then go away and all was well, until the day that I when to look at the root directory where I keep such files as my current book, yes that one on Dirk Maggs, that has now been stuck in edit hell since June 2008.

When I looked at the root directory what was there was one item and not the several thousand that I have come to expect.


But for some strange reason when looking at the drive in Thumbs plus and Pisca all my pictures where there!, so I copied them to another HD.

It was at this stage that a sale at PC World caught my eye and so the end result is that I have a new cheap computer that some how or other seems to run Vista, with only 1G of memory!

I have since found out that if I put a fast 4G USB key in it will use it as memory and boost the speed of the machine, this I have done.

Reinstalling stuff from backups is fun, so I have all my data but a lot of programmes that do not run very well on vista, so most of my time has been spent looking for free ware versions of the old programs that I used to use.

I mean, some of the software I use goes back to 2002!

So the good news is I have all my projects data and I mostly have software that can do the job the old software that no longer runs on Vista.

But my Dirk Maggs book is still stuck in edit hell!

Bush

 

Not shure what kind of bush this is but it's nice and also a good picture and test of the D80

A head that hurts

So I am already behind on my Blogs for this year, and as I predicted earlier its all due to the new job that I started on the 5th of Jan.

Its a new company doing the same work in a similar fashion but with a computer system that rules you, so you end up working how the system wants it and not how the user and operator need it to work, so I think there will be some weeks of stress for all.

09/07/2008

09/07/2008, originally uploaded by davew1.

This is a real ale from Bath it was nice, but I have forgotten what it was called!

_MG_1252

_MG_1252, originally uploaded by Trav28.

I have never been to Kenilworth Castle but if you get good weather it looks like a nice place to visit and to slow the world down just a bit.

Cold

Now for some reason that I can not fathom it's been cold down here in the South of England for longer than I can remember for the last few years at this time of year why? don't know.

All I do know is at the rate it is going it will have been at 2 centigrade or less during the day for the last week or so, and at night we have had -8 centigrade! which for us is low in this part of England, as I write this the weather forecast is for it to stay cold until this Friday the 9 th of January.

As I have noticed of the last few years I do not fair very well in the cold any more, in fact it gets to be painful, why? not a clue, no one else in my close family have the problem just little old me, so it goes without saying that I do keep a very good watch on the weather at this time of year, and now with my ipod touch it has become all to easy to check the weather.

Test one

This is a test of a new program on the iPod touch to do blogging on it instead of on the computer.

So far the only. Thing that i do not like is the size of the keyboard on the iPod screen it's to small and does not rotate but then the program does not cost anything perhaps what I have to do is find a better program

2008 a 100 or not

Not sure what is going on with Blogger as it now reports that for 2008 I did 100 Blogs? how did I do that when I last looked I had only done some 90 or so and with only a couple of days left I thought that there was no way that I would get to the 100. But it now appears that I have just done that.

So if the Blog count is correct I now have to chose a new target, which is 150 Blogs, looking back over the years I see that 150 is not that high a target so that's what I shall go for.

Other news that did not make my earlier Blog today was that I have updated the Dirk Maggs Productions Website, not a big update in that the only change has been the change of the copyright year!

Yeah big change... I know, but it is all part of keeping the website alive.

So What's Going on Then

I don't know what has come all over me, I mean this is getting out of hand, in that I have Blogged every day this year so far!

It will not last I am sure, real life and work will see to that and with all the changes at work I just know it will.

But as I have a 100% success rate in doing a Blog this year I thought I might just enjoy the moment.

I do want to say here that my and the ipod touch are getting along fine. the only thing that I have that I do not like is that when you are in the apps shop and ask for info on an app or download it the menu always takes you back up to the very top of the apps list, this can get to be very annoying when you have got yourself some 3 or more screens deep in the apps listing.

As with all new toys they overuse has worn off a bit and I find that I use it as an mp3 player more but now and then I can collect my mail and all that sort of stuff.

The unit I have is 32G and I have 11G free, yes I know that an awful lot of music but then I like music and also podcasts.

_MG_3171

_MG_3171, originally uploaded by Trav28.

This is an image that I like a lot, one of the reasons being that it is very similar to an image I took sometime ago. NY is a place that I would love to go to

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Daily Photo #389

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Daily Photo #389 Just seen this picture from one of the Blogs that I read when I have the time. My two cats Mizzyb and Ant both always seem to do this when I have a camera around, why, not a clue, glad that I am not being singled out by the felines of this world.

1 and 99 to go

So I did not make the 100 Blogs last year in 2008 so can you guess what I want to try and do for this year? yes you got it 100 for 2009.

I shall continue to use this Blog as a notebook to myself and all that sort of stuff. It really is amazing just how quick you can and do forget stuff from a few weeks ago so that's what this Blog will continue to be.

stone age

stone age, originally uploaded by M`s vision.

This for me is an image of a warm summer's day just drawing into the early evening and being in a place that has no cars or even lots of man made noise near you, even if only for a few minutes.

The last Post

Well I have made a last post of the year to this Blog, I see that I did not do 100 posts this year, but some 80 odd, so not that bad in the end.

May be next year I will get to 100.

Who knows

It will be fun finding out.

Time

So the end of the year is very nearly with us and I suppose that I should see if I can do a blog for the last few days of this year, will I do it?

_MG_4670

_MG_4670, originally uploaded by Trav28.

I like this image it does remind me of summer days long past.

Dirk Maggs Website

Updates again to the site, some how or other missed a show that Dirk produced called Growning up with the Goons broadcast on 25 th December 2008 I must admit that I think we were just a bit busy with Xmas stuff and all that. As Dirk produced the show it has gone on the site as it is something he did do.

All I have to try an do is get to hear it!

ipod touch

Well as I said earlier the touch is what I got for Xmas this year to replace a rather old creative mp3 player. So far I have found that it's all to easy to download free apps that you don't need, and the apps that you do want have yet to be written. I have also had the odd thought or two on how easy is it for Apple to redo the firmware in the machine as there as still a few parts of the software that come with the machine that just look like they have not been finished.

Other than that I have so far had lots of fun with the thing and have now only got 12G free...

Cold

Just want to record here that it's cold here the stat says that it is 19.3 c but I still feel cold why?

itouch & all that

Can you guess what I got for Xmas?, yes that's right a new mp3 player, this time it's from Apple and it's a itouch.

My old creative mp3 player has done very good service, and it still works but as I am into podcasts it does not handle them, mainly because when it was made they did not exist!

So I am now in the Apple crowd along with lots of other folk and I must say for the most part the experance has been very good.

My podcasts are all where they should be and it all sync's nice.

What I don't like is that when i transferd some of my exsisting music it never seems to have the album artwork and this is for stuff that is in the shops and had been out there for folks to buy for weeks or months why is it? The stuff is very popular eg the albums are in the top twenty.

The other thing that I like about the itouch is how light and small it is and how nice the screen is.

As I have the 32G unit you can see why I needed one that big as I have already only got 14G space left on it!

So of course it goes with out saying that in early 2009 they will release the 64G unit, not that I need that much space yet!

Blogs and all that stuff

So for the first time in a while I have some spare time, and as it's very cold outside and I don't want to freeze on the mountain bike I start to surf the net and flicker and Blogger, and I have found some Blogs that have opened my eyes to how cruel and dam right nasty people can be to each other, and just because of choices and nature can get things wrong.

I have to admit to not thinking about some of the choices folks out there have to make, and what I have read, some of the things that they have had to go through I know that I could not.

So I have linked to them and I am going to follow their Blogs, their lives are very different from mine, but they are the same as me, in wanting the same things that I think all of use want, friendship, love ect you know the list of common things that all of us want and need, and most of us get some of these things, now as I am not that outward going in real-life and also on the net, I find that I don't have the guts to just drop a line or two, to these folk just to say wow your great in going for it and what you need to do to find peace.

So if you folk do some how fall over this site, I am sorry that I have not given you a nod to say go for it, but I have my own hurdles, I know they are nothing to what you have to go through.

May be one day I will be able to climb my own personal mountain...

Knowing just how bad I have been at doing this Blog, this could and I think will be my last Blog of the year.

Dirk Maggs Website Updates

Yes, I know that it has been awhile since the last update on this Blog. But truth if it is to be told is that there has been nothing to report.

Work on my other projects has stopped. The reason sorting out stuff in real life like my job.

The only two things that have now changed and hence why this post is that I have started a very low level off-line project DMP 3 which is a technology test bed for the main DMP site and so far progress has been very good and the results from it have been far better than expected and getting results so early into the project has been a surprise.

The only other bit of news has been that Dirk Maggs has another production out which is due broadcast 29th Nov on BBC Radio 4 its called Boscobel if yet have the time have a look out for it I know I will.

AE35 Episode 13

Just a note to me from me saying that episode 13 of the ae35 podcast has been done and published, or it should be by the time you get to read this.

Dirk Maggs Producer Web site

It has been a little while since I did anything on this Blog.

And has been even longer since I did any up dates to the Dirk Maggs Productions Web site, so I am pleased to report that the site has been updated yesterday (07.11.2008) as there is a new production by Dirk that is due to air on BBC Radio 4 next Thursday at 9 pm.

The show is one hour long and I will admit here that having had the chance to hear it I spent 15 minutes stuck in the works car park just so I could hear it all the way to the end. And I have to say it's time well spent.

I have to thank Dirk for the preview tape and the show is called The Johnny Cash Hi-Jack road show and if you can give your ears a treat they will thank you for it, the scripts and the production values and the actors all have combined in such away that it is an audio movie and the tension and fear that build up in the play, work very well. Dare I say classic Maggs?

It must be good as the Radio Times has made it choice of the day on Radio 4 so what more do I need to say!

Dirk Maggs Book Part 20a

The book is as I last spoke you in the last blog.

Some new news is that the firm that I was going to use to do the private printing LULU.com have changed the costs and stuff, the only problem is that if there email is anything to go by I will not stand a chance of working out what the costs or changes are.

So I am now going to have to put on the to-do list that I don't have find another book publisher...


Bum is all that I can say to this as it's yet more work.

Podcast part 3

Some how or other I have done another podcast! this one less than 2 weeks after the last one this has got to be a record.

Updates & all that stuff part 2

Just a note to myself that I have made a large update to the main page of the Dirk Maggs website, I have even got a new name for it, The Relevant Chronology of Dirk Maggs!, yes I know it does not read nice, but at this time it's a test to see if I like it and as its my website, I can do whatever I like!

cole green way, hertford

cole green way, hertford, originally uploaded by karen cb.

This could be what summer days should be like, its strange but I was near to where this image was taken not that many weeks ago, but there was the light that you can see in this image. If I ever get the chance to go back to Hertford then this is a place I have to see with my own eyes on a blue sky day.

clapham beck forest. north yorkshire

clapham beck forest. north yorkshire, originally uploaded by karen cb.

This image has a light and colour that I have missed.

spin

spin, originally uploaded by karen cb.

This images is just great, it made me think that its a good job windmills don't move at this speed.

Nettles

So I was walking around the site at work today through part of the forest that we have when I noticed for the first time that not all nettles are the same, this was a bit of an eyeopener for me as for the last four decades I had thought that all nettles were the same.

So it goes without saying that I put the word on my list of items to Google.

Now What

So with all these updates you would think that I have found lots of free time. Well no I havn't but I am just trying to get some thing done.

Updates again

I think there must have been something in the water yesterday as I did some updates!


yeah I know ...scary or what?


The updates were to the ae35 pod cast site, in that I did a new pod cast number 8!

This pod cast was mainly about the progress or lack of on all the projects that I am doing eg the Dirk Maggs book the website and the ae35 pod cast.


If I am not very careful it could be that I might update more.

Updates & all that stuff

it's been some time since I last said anything in this blog, and also about the various projects that I have on the go at some time or other. As this blog is for me I think I need to tell myself what i have been doing or not over the last few weeks or so.

The Dirk Maggs books has not got any further along in its editing and the problem with the indexes still needs to be sorted one way or another. I just have not had several clear hours in which to work on the book. One problem is that after all this time of not looking at it, you forget things that are in it and also the things that you wanted to change last time but never got around to it.

The podcast website AE35 has also stalled, I have done 6 or so pod casts and then things happed and well, I am making excuses for why it just has not moved forward, one of the reasons has to be me being lazy I guess. The other is time again, always a good excuses I think or not.

One of the great things about the pod casts is that some how or other it has been found by the odd brave sole and downloaded! Yes I know quite what thay made of all of it I just don't know.

The Dirk Maggs website is up to date, as he has not produced any new work for a while I have no backlog of updates to do to the site, which is nice.

The DMP 2 wiki website has had a bit of a redesign so it has very little content, but lots of backroom stuff has been done to it, but just like an iceberg you the user can't see the effort that has gone on.

The DMP wiki website has been frozen while we look to see if DMP 2 is going to work, if it does then the content form DMP will transfer to DMP 2.

So that's the update as to how things are at this time, as summer is now almost over( if it ever started here in England) I could get some free time soon and get some of these projects moving.

Little Sad Tree

Little Sad Tree, originally uploaded by . Andrew Dunn ..

Just love the colours in thisimage

Chrome

So here I am using Google Chrome so far its great.The only thing is has Google tracked how fast people started to search for info on chrome

DMP 2 part 2

Just an update to myself that DMP 2 has now got a link to it and that I am starting to put the core back in, which I think will take weeks to do. is where to go.

DMP 2

Just a small note to me from me, that I have started to work on DMP 2, which as you know is a replacement for DMP 1. Yes it does all make sense, I think...


Anyway DMP 1 has a problem in that its on an old database and everytime I don an SQL dump and then try to upload that dump into the new MYSQL it fails hence the restart. Which is not all bad news as how I need to present the data in DMP 2 is going to be easyeir using the new software and the database.

Blogs and all of that stuff

I have found that for some unkown reason I blog more at some times of the year than others why this should be so I just don't know, but it's what I have found to be true for me. I don't know if it's true for other people, but you never know.

I do like the idea of a blog, but I must admit that I only do the blog for me as it's very unlikely that anyone else will ever read this stuff. What I mean by that is that there are millions of blogs outthere and when you think about it there are only so many hours in a day that some one has time to read a blog if that is the kind of thing they do.

Come to think of it why do people read blogs in the first place? there must be a reason why people do, maybe there is a phd for someone to research into this all I know is that the blogs I read tend to be by people who have an intrest that is the same as mine. So maybe that's a reason as for me I just don't know.

I do sometimes wonder if this blog will out live me, and if someone in the future will ever read it and wounder who I was and what I was like, maybe that is one of the real reasons why people do blogs as they want to leave something behind for the folks that come after them, I suppose in the past you had to be some one who was in the public eye or you where someone that did art, eg pictures or stuff like that.

I suppose that must blogs are never read by more than one person eg the author of the blog, but as is always the case there must be blogs that do get read by thousands, I do wonder how the guys or girls who write the blogs read by thousands might end up writing blogs all most as a performance as they know that they have a readership, do these guys set out to get an audance, do they want an audance?

As for me I decided that I wanted to record things for me so that I could look back on events, and that I could use someone elses experance in computers to make sure that every thing was backed up and that it would be there for me to look at in the future. I did have a blog on my own website, but I made a mistake in programming an SQL statement and wiped out the whole of my blog database, which did cause me to swear a lot and also to be less verbose in blog terms, I mean I lost years or blog items. So I signed up to blogger, but for some reason like I said at the start of all this I don't do bnlog on a regular occurance for some reason.

i have just noticed that I am now starting to repaet myself, so I am going to stop, but one thing to note with this blog is that I am not going to spell check it, the reason being is that I have been up nearly 20 hours or so, I will admit that I have had a drink (rum if you must know David) and it will be intresting to see in the harsh light of day what this looks like and also how it reads when one is not very tierd and also has not had a drink.

So David in the future i hope that i find you well and that you are happy in that you have found out waht you where thinking on 25th July 2008 at 23.06 i wish you good health and best whishes.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 20

Guess what?

Yes it's true!!

I did some work on the book today, not a lot I must admit but at least I did something, so progress of a sorts.

Changed the publish date and altered some of the body text. I have come to the conclusion that more tables to store the actores names in will also be needed.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 19

UPDATE


The update is that I have not had the time or the energy to do any more to the book at this time.

09/07/2008

09/07/2008, originally uploaded by davew1.

Real ale from bath

Shepherd's warning

Shepherd's warning, originally uploaded by Jonny2005.

Just a great picture

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge, originally uploaded by Jonny2005.

This is just a great image.

Turbine Hall

Turbine Hall, originally uploaded by Jonny2005.

This image reminds me of some old sifi film

River

River, originally uploaded by Jonny2005.

Just a great image of London very early am.

Podcast part 2

New post on podcast http://ae35.mypodcast.com/

============================================



AE35 Cast Number 6



This cast is an update show.



I talk about why so long since the lst cast.



All about the trouble with editing theme tunes.



More ideas on scripts and some of the ideas that others have had.



I also talk about podfade and why it happens and if it has any inpact on me.



Episode download link: http://www.mypodcast.com/fsaudio/ae35_20080601_0828-239367.mp3



- Dave, [8:28 AM]

Podcast

Did I tell you that I have a podcast?

No?

Well I have one, it goes back to last year, I am sorry to say that I have not been very active with it as some how or other I end up with no time and a quite place to record the thing.

I have worked out 2 years plus worth of shows if I do a 5 to 30 minute show one a fortnight. I have even got outline for some of the shows done (see I can get some things done, sometimes even books, actually I have so far written 10 books each more than 300 pages A4 size all non fiction)

I have started to wonder if i could do the podcast on my mobile then transfer it sad I know....


You want to know the name of the podcast well it's AE35 and if you do a Google you should find it, I did (ha ha) as I write this I have only done 5 shows so far, one of them lasts just 4 minutes or so ( do you know how hard it is to talk into a microphone?) with luck I will sort myself out and get some more shows done. It goes without saying that I have not told anyone but this blog about the shows, and the other thing is that I have the shows hosted for me on a site that has nothing to do with Dirk Maggs or James Follett.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 18

Did I tell you that I am now into the final edit of the draft, but I have some tables that need to be redone in a better way so that they take up less space? Well, the snag I have is that its hard work and such and such and well I have stopped doing the edit, the other reason being that I have a great read on at the moment by Alastair Reynolds called The Perfect and well I want to find out whats going to happen, really its that good, I think so.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 17

The edit on the 1st draft is going well I think. The draft without any index is 327 A4 pages long. As the edit goes it should drop down as I have some tables that need to be altered so that they go across the page and not down the page, some of the are quite long, so I am hoping that when edited as I said above that the page space being used will go down, so that will also mean the page count will also go down. When I do whatever I am going to do with the index or indexes then the page count will then go up, by how much I just don't know at this stage.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 16

Yes

I have done some work on the book at last. In fact I have started to edit the final draft an have got to page 40 so far.

Dirk Maggs Book Part 15

The news on the book project is not good. As you know I put the draft to one side, to let it mature as they say. Well the draft really is mature now and I suppose I should look at it, do the final rewrites and correct any spelling mistakes that I find, and if I am lucky add a few more new ones!

The truth of the matter is that I have not done this, other things keep getting in the way, why?

I have also still yet to work out what kind of index or indexes I want in this book. As the book is just for me I just do not know how useful more than one index would be, I have some books that have more than one index, but it does seem to be something that is rae and not the norm all, but as it's my book I can do what I want.

As I am also the publisher of the book I can also do what I want, just so long as the book does not cost me a fortune when I come to have it printed. As the book will never be for sale there is no real pressure on me to have it published by the deadline I set myself, apart from the fact that the book will be out of date!

18/05/2008

18/05/2008, originally uploaded by davew1.

Place that I have been to on my hols

18/05/2008

18/05/2008, originally uploaded by davew1.

It nice and its in my garden now

Back

Been on a holiday, which was great lots of walking and peace and quite, which is what I needed.

I notice that I have done very few blogs over the last few weeks, and I can only put that down to work life and all that sort of stuff, some of it very stressful.

I think that enough time has gone by to look at my Dirk Maggs project again and see how much rewriting needs to be done. I know that the index or indexes still need to be done, but you cannot work on the index until the main text is done and is complete in the form that will stay with that edition of the book.

Monument

Monument, originally uploaded by Maegluin.

This is one of those image that just jumped out at me, not to sure why but its a great image I think its got something to do with the sky and the very simple subject matter, all in all it just works and thats all that maters

Ill

Been ill all the projects are on hold.

Petts wood walk E3

Petts wood walk E3, originally uploaded by karen cb.

like this image not sure why

Essendy, Near Blairgowrie

Essendy, Near Blairgowrie, originally uploaded by Dadarob.

How I wish that I could paint and see as well as this.

05/04/2008

05/04/2008, originally uploaded by davew1.

Missy at home

N73 Firmware Update

I did something that I did not think you could do to a mobile phone, this shows just how behind the times I am, but I upgraded the firmware in my mobile, a Nokia N73 form version 2 something to version 3 something.

The update was free from Nokia, and the software to do the job with.

How was it? Okay but boy you read all the warnings and well, it nearly put me off doing the upgrade thing all together. But after some 15 minutes or so the task was done.

The Result?

Good, I think a lot of the changes from version 2 to 3 must be stuff under the bonnet but other tings are new or updated, to tell the truth the old software never gave me any trouble and so far the new software also seems to be okay.

The only down side of it all was that my backup of all my contacts was not good and some how did not work and that was only 20 or so minutes after I had done the backup, so what's going there I do not know. It not a big loss as the number of contacts that I keep on my phone is small, this is because I have 2 mobiles my own and the companies, and keeping the numbers and contacts separate has and is to me a good idea.

Would I do the upgrade again?

Yes, but only if there are some big advantages to the upgrade otherwise with all the prep work you have to do its just not worth the time and the effort.

Since the upgrade the Internet has not been safe I have found that there are lots of free N73 themes on the net and I am having great fun downloading them and installing them on the phone.

Website Updates

I have some how found the time to do an update to my main 2 websites. So now they are as uptodate as I can make them with the current information that I have to hand.

The main URL is http://www.dswilliams.co.uk

So I am now off to look at some of my other projects that I have not looked at in ages