Tech

Virtual Revolution

I've been really enjoying the BBC/OU documentary series Virtual Revolution. It joins the many of the dots I've been jumping up and down about over recent years. This week's episode exploring privacy and "the cost of free" was excellent - well worth watching if you're an active participant on the Web.

One strong theme has been how the hallmarks of the Web are being turned on their head: the place of self-expression and freedom is being transformed by massive global entities and rigid conformity.

Film

Invictus

I never thought I'd say this, but Matt Damon did well.

The film's a little clunky in places but does an excellent job reminding us of our recent history. South Africa's transformation continues to be an astonishing story. I know it's not been a perfect ride, but from these shores (and through Clint Eastwood's eyes) it seems so much be smoother than it could've been.

Unfortunately Odeon have continued their track record of making every cinema-going experience a horrible one. My seat was so filthy I chose to sit on a sheet of paper the the entire film. For an industry that claims films are better in theatres than at home they're not doing a very good job of delivering.

Comment

Sleeping under the stars

I wrestled the blind open on Tuesday night, turned off the light and lay back on my bed. The great hunter Orion looked down, surrounded on all sides by thousands of spots of light. Through the window everything was covered in white: the Monadhliath Mountains, static on the horizon, the villages and hamlets, the tall pine trees whizzing past the windows.

It would be a cliché to compare the view to one of Narnia, just as it would to describe the scene as "magical" but no other description suffices. This is clearly the best way to end a two-day business trip: the Caledonian Sleeper is by far the most sophisticated way to travel home from the north of Scotland.

My first sleeper experience wasn't quite so good. It started off well with a welcome from my host and a Bruichladdich in the lounge car. I woke briefly as the train rattled through the Haymarket tunnel in Edinburgh but soon fell asleep again. My second waking wasn't so welcome. Two hours short of our destination, my host woke me with an early breakfast to explain the train heating had failed so we'd be transferring to the road at Perth. As it was the coach was colder than the train; I longed for the duvet and blanket I'd left behind. On the plus side I was sufficiently awake to enjoy the drive across the Central Highlands.

Two days later I was understandably but unnecessarily nervous about the return leg. The power sockets in the lounge car didn't work so I headed back to my berth, lay back and enjoyed the stars.

All-in-all it was an enjoyable journey. I can imagine how it might facilitate living north of the border and yet still doing an occasional full day's work in London. The rolling stock is a little on the old side but I hope that will change: to lose this service would be a disgrace.

Here are my sleeper tips:

1. Work out how to make yourself really tired
2. Buy earplugs
3. Enjoy the slow trek through the mountains
4. Don't expect a perfect night's sleep
5. Dream

Chilterns and Thames Valley

The shortest

Distance: 2.60 miles
Ascent: 13 metres
Duration: 1 hour

Walk 1: Wallingford

There were many things going against today's walk: it was short, the ground was very muddy and mist swirled around our heads. But it was nevertheless an enjoyable outing alongside the River Thames just east of Wallingford. The churchyard amidst the buildings at Newnham Farm was a surprise and a delight - a treasure to be stumbled across on the banks of the river.

Tech

Don't adopt a new @name

You can't escape Twitter these days, but you can do your best to avoid it and for the past couple of years I've felt you should. Ultimately the service doesn't seem to be well thought-through and there are consequently all manner of traps for the unwary.

Today's example: consider renaming your Twitter account. I understand it's fairly easy to do, and that the system automatically ensures your "followers" keep track of your new name.

Unfortunately that simple operation frees up your old name to be taken by an imposter. So people who are used to referring to you as @myoldname will suddenly be directing messages at a total stranger.

There's another twist: imagine you've got your own website, and that messages from your Twitter account are automatically shown on your home page. If you forget to update your site to use the new name you'll have instantly given the imposter the ability to publish whatever they like on your website.

And if you think this is unlikely to occur in practice, check out @NadineDorriesMP's transformation into @Nadine4MP and her blog.

My advice? If you have to use Twitter, think very carefully before you change your account name.

Chilterns and Thames Valley

In the shadow of the castle

Distance: 5.49 miles
Ascent: 11 metres
Duration: 1 hour 56 minutes

Walk 8: Windsor and Eton

The sky seemed keen to play its part in perpetuating the story about where Conservative party policy is dreamed up: as we crossed the playing fields at Eton it provided a deep blue backdrop for the poplar trees.

A circular walk from Windsor through the Home Park, round the north side of Eton then back along the Thames was always going to be dominated by one thing: the view of Windsor Castle.

But it was a delight to be captivated by other things: the poplars and leaves suspended below a a sheet of ice. This has been a great walk for a crisp wintery afternoon.

Personal

Zoom out

The news our friends had been fearing came through today: Ann's body has been found in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake.

And with that I began to zoom out and stopped focussing on one life. Suddenly the noise from all around came crashing through.

Before New Year's Day, Haiti was to me a location in a Bond film and the birthplace of a character from Heroes. Ann painted a picture of a vibrant, thrilling country. Then twelve days later...

Should auld acquaintance be forgot?

Comment

Double their money

For a good while now received wisdom has been that budget airlines excel at using low headline ticket prices to distract customers from the full cost of flying. This past week I've finally seen this first hand.

And I have to admire just how well thought-out their websites are. For the two airlines I looked at, the final price to be paid was roughly double the headline ticket price. On one I just clicked the "continue" button after selecting flights and on every screen thereafter an "extra" component was added: taxes, bags, insurance, seat reservations and credit card fee. When finally presented with the full price none of these items could be deselected - I'd have had to wind all the way back to the start for that.

The website was a work of genius.

Thankfully I managed to persuade my boss that there was a better alternative though: I'm going by train. It's more expensive, but should be far more relaxing. Details will follow in a week.

Comment

The personal stories

It's the personal stories that make the news real.

Last month an odd-ball music project twinned a school in Corby with a school in Haiti. A photograph was taken of the Port au Prince students holding a photograph of the Corby students. This week that photograph will be taken back to the Corby school.

It's the personal stories that make the newsreel.

Last month we met someone who spoke enthusiastically of the Caribbean country they presently live in. They are still missing.

It's the personal stories that make the news reel.

Music

Nil Desperandum

His music only had a slight impact on my record collection in the form of the second Sweet Relief tribute album, but I was saddened to read today of Vic Chesnutt's death on Christmas Day.

Sweet Relief is a charity that "provides financial assistance to musicians who are struggling to make ends meet while facing illness, disability, or age-related problems".

Vic Chesnutt was paralysed in 1983, and according to his obituary in The Independent was facing "mounting medical bills of well over $50,000".

He appears to have taken his own life. Many of the lyrics on that tribute album point towards such an eventuality. But I always preferred the very last two words on the album artwork: Nil Desperandum.