All posts by James Moore

Yeh, Diabetes

Gadgets, , , ,
Hemocue 201

Hemocue 201

In January I was diagnosed with diabetes. This was a bit of a shock to me (and those around me) as I don’t fit the normal profile (having no family history of diabetes, skinny, vegetarian, etc.) so now I have invested much of my free time since in reading up on the subject as well as adjusting my diet and exercise.  The good news is that my blood glucose levels have come rocketing down to near acceptable levels. I feel more human now and less of a zombie. Looking back I realize that I must have had diabetes for quite some time.  At present I am employing the trifecta of medication, diet and exercise to keep blood sugar within a safe range. There are, however, frustrations – principally comprehending the competing and contradictory views on what to do, along with the somewhat depressing knowledge that most portable glucose meters are not particularly accurate. I have been comparing models as of late. I will post my findings shortly. The models I have tested are:

Ubuntu on the HP 2133

Gadgets, ,

Ubuntu

I finally got round to installing Ubuntu 8.10 on the HP 2133. I am incredibly impressed. I had not used Ubuntu before (my previous experiences were with RedHat) and this particular OS makes the NetBook sing. I can use Skype with the videocamera, the OS has a clean interface to install supported applications, etc.The only down-side at present is that the external VGA port no longer works. I attempted a couple of hacksbut to no avail. Will try later…

NetBooking

Gadgets, ,

HP2133

I have just started using a NetBook – the HP2133 to be exact (the cheap Linux version). The 2133 is a mix of contradictions; the keyboard is sleek and professional looking – reminiscent of something that Apple might produce – but the processor is underpowered, the NetBook has an integrated microphone and camera but no way of running Skype on the default version of Linux (SUSE), it is cheap but has a crisp screen and Express Card slot.

On the whole I like the device. For my use it is near perfect. Something I can easily carry with me on the train and to meetings. The installed version of Linux will disappear. Ubuntu 8.10 will take the place of SUSE. From what I have read Ubuntu will afford me a slightly snappier and more expandable OS. I hope the transition is relatively painless.

Reading: Maelstrom

Misc, ,

MaelstomI am part way through reading Maelstrom by Peter Watts. Imagine William Gibson spent studying the ecophysiology of marine mammals and then endured a rough bout of manic depression before putting pen to paper. That is the essence or Watts’ work – severely dystopic science fiction with a marine bent.I think I am enjoying the book. I keep on reading but I feel happy to be back in the normal world afterwards. Watts has done a very cool thing with the way he distributes his works. Everything is available to download (ebooks) and read for free from his website. That does not stop him from selling the books on Amazon though (Maelstrom – Rifters Trilogy).

Do you believe in Harvey Dent?

Chicago, Misc, , ,
Do you believe in Harvey Dent?

Do you believe in Harvey Dent?

Walking to work I noticed three ‘protesters’ with Harvey Dent placards. Being a comic book reader I knew this was a fictitious character from the Batman comics. So it looks like the producers of the new Batman movie are experimenting with marketing techniques. I must admit I get a kick out of this, but I do not know if many of the general public are really going to react to this campaign. Pedestrians in Chicago have a tendency to tune out street theatre.However, if anyone decides to Google “Harvey Dent” then they will come across elements of Warner Brother’s viral marketing and alternative reality gaming websites. I Believe In Harvey Dent is the website that corresponds to the “Dentmobile” campaign. On this site the producers are attempting to get potential moviegoers to upload their photos of Dentmobile and to voice their support for Harvey Dent. On a slightly less visible site (http://www.ibelieveinharveydenttoo.com) is the message “Page not found” – swiping the text on the page (or viewing the source code) demonstrates that the Joker is around…. I quickly checked on Google Trends to see if there was much of an uptick on searches for Harvey Dent but so far there seems to be little of real note.