TechWire

Dell starts designing nice stuff

Simple, but effective: its new Studio Hybrid system looks great, even if it's fairly basic under the hood. Nice price, though, at €550 (including delivery and a 19 inch monitor).

Watching TV shows and movies online without downloading

Someone asked me whether watching Season 5 of The Wire on this website was legal. I said I'd get back to them on it. :)

How to get close attention to your email: 'recall' it

Like many peoiple, I get hundreds of emails a day. Like many people, I just gloss over and dismiss lots of them after a few seconds. But if you really want to ensure a closer look, simply do what this person did today:

...Nina Wainwright would like to recall the message, "Government targets to reduce regulation burden merely “lip service” say SMEs"...

Yep, automatically, I go back and pore over the initial email to see whether there was some boo-boo. If this was intentional, Nina, it was a job well done. I now know all about regulatory sub-paragraphs for SMEs, or at least the angle you're pushing.

O2's newly improved modem speed

Sitting in a cafe in Drumcondra, Dublin 9 (the Cheese Pantry). Just ran a speed test with the upgraded O2 modem (which promises up to 7.2Mbs). I'm getting 3.12Mbs down, 1.24Mbs up, which is pretty impressive.

BT introduces 24Mbs broadband for €42.50

On top of recent moves by UPC (NTL/Chorus) and Magnet, this should open up proper broadband services in the country. And Eircom will have to move on the issue now. According to BT, current availability:

Tallaght, Dun Laoghaire, Dolphins Barn, Dublin North Main, Terenure, Merrion, Crown Alley, Beggars Bush, Swords, Clondalkin, Summerhill, Blanchardstown, Naas, Dooradoyle, Navan and Kilkenny City.

By the end of September 2008 the new broadband service will be available in Douglas, Ballincollig (Cork) and Whitehall, Belcamp, and Foxrock (Dublin) and Greystones (Wicklow).

Magnet's 50Mbs broadband: where it's available

So far, it seems to only be available in a handful of estates and new developments in Dublin, with a couple also in Meath and Laois. Here's the list so far:

Dublin
Adamstown
Beacon South Quarter
Belmayne
Carrickmines Manor
Carrington
Castlemoyne
Castleway (Chancery Lane)
Clongriffin
Coleport
Fairview Close
Grand Central
Heywood Court
Levmoss Park
Lymewood Mews
Northern Cross
Parkview
Parklands (Santry)
Redwood
Spencer Dock
St. Annes (Milltown)
St. Samson's
The Coast
The Gallery (Donabate)
The Grange (Stillorgan)
Vantage

Meath
Dunboyne Castle
Williamstown Stud

Laois
Fairgreen Village, Portlaoise
Maryborough
Rockview

Missing laptops blah blah blah

Here's a classic (from a press release by Dell today):

NEARLY 4,000 LAPTOPS LOST OR MISSING IN

EUROPE’S MAJOR AIRPORTS EVERY WEEK

· Over 800,000 laptops are lost annually in US and European airports ¹

· Nearly half of surveyed mobile professionals carry confidential company information and don’t take steps to protect it

· Dell ProSupport services keep mobile professionals protected and connected

Of course, virtually none of that "confidential company information" is of any use whatsoever to someone in the business of stealing laptops. But why ruin a good sales pitch? The whole "missing laptops" scare is a load of bunkum: there is little or no threat. Chances are that a laptop thief sells it for e75 to for scag money.

Why computers in schools are a waste of money

Official department of education/department of communications policy is for more computers into primary and secondary schools: Minister Ryan has pledged a chunk of extra money for such a purpose. What a waste of money. Kids don't need computers in schools -- most already have them at home already. And even if they don't, how can computers in schools help educate a child? Maybe CAD skills or technical studies for junior cert or transition year are worth it. But for younger kids? Go back to the basics: reading, writing, language skills, maths. Leave the computing skills until they get sad and lonely later on in life.

Lack of diversity/views in Irish blogs

I agree with a lot (but not everything) that Damien and Twenty Major said about bloggers and the Irish blogging scene over the weekend.

Twenty said it was boring. Damien said it was weak and feared it could be suckered into boring reportage.

But is Damien's suggestion correct, that "boring reportage", and not "actual opinion" is the standard set by "the current media" (as opposed to Irish blogs)?

Respectfully, no. The truth is that if you want diversity of opinion, the Irish blogosphere is the last place to look.

Want a dissenting view on orthodox middle-class views of current affairs (US invasions, urban planning, health issues, gender issues etc)? Don't look to Irish blogs: they largely sing off the same standard-issue hymn sheet (with one or two exceptions).

The only place to find an actual diversity of views is the current media. The Mail will never agree with The Irish Times. The Sun is unlikely ever to concur much with Village Magazine. The Sindo couldn't be more different to The Irish Catholic. I guess that's why people buy them: the difference in opinions (in addition to the new information they publish).

For dull, repetitive reportage, stick with the blogs.

Are Irish blogs just crap?

Do they actually achieve anything beyond a pub-style conversation among a couple of hundred (max) people? Do they actually contribute anything, in themselves, to furthering understanding or offering new information on any topic?

The only blog I'm aware of that genuinely does this is Damien's. And not through his views which, though sometimes interesting, can also be found in a number of different sources in the 'traditional' media. But through genuinely helpful devices such as his occasional Freedom Of Information requests, which, to me, bring his blog into the realm of proper journalism. As far as I can see -- and please correct me if I'm wrong -- nobody else bothers their arse.

Then there are the ranks of freelance journalists who proclaim the value and importance of blogging. That is, until they get a staff gig somewhere. Then their blog mysteriously disappears and they laugh it off as something they did to fill the time until they 'got a job'.

So does anyone actually take Irish blogs seriously? What do they contribute, beyond entertaining a group of about 2,000 to 3,000 people?

Also, are their creators simply classifiable as either:

a) people trying to canvas business for themselves
b) people who are bored
c) people who are lonely
d) people who are angry