Photos!

A couple of photos of the new toy....

First - the obligatory "on top of a laptop" shot - in this case my 15.4" widescreen Compaq:



now the 'comparison with something smaller that shows just how small the EeePC actually IS, shot - in this case in comparison to my Archos A504:


I have a plan for a *really* cool photo - the EeePC on top of Gerry's Dell, which is in itself a subnotebook - but that will have to wait until her return from the USA next week.

If I come up with any other cool things to photograph it against, I'll post them too...

It's HERE!!

the new $SHINY! toy arrived today - along with all the additional bits and bobs, so well done to the suppliers involved.

At this early stage (only 3 hours playtime, and I forgot to bring the box back home with me so neglected to bring the power cable!) I'm not forming any strong opinions.

Except. . .

DAMN, it's SMALL!!

As I don't have power, I was only able to spend about 90 minutes fiddling with it and surfing the Web - proper tweakage will have to wait till tomorrow. Photos and a review proper will follow in the next few days.

However, while I was shocked at the size of it - it's really incredibly tiny, even photos don't do it justice - so far I've found it pretty easy to use, and even the trackpad, though small, isn't overly awkward. I can't touch-type (yet), but the teensy little keys aren't a detriment to easy use of the laptop.

Though the 'Fisher-Price' simple GUI has simply GOT to go!

More to follow - watch this space....

Eee By Gum!

Forget AndLinux - I couldn't stand the anticipation, so I've done it...I've ordered my very own Asus EeePC.

I ordered the 2GB version in Black, for 2 reasons - one, because it was cheaper to get a 2GB and add on 12Gb of SD storage (one 8GB, one 4GB) than to buy a 4GB - and two, because Laptops Direct had the 2GB in stock and I didn't want to wait!

EBuyer are supplying the memory cards (and a wireless keyboard and mouse for the next project), so by the end of next week I'll be geeking out like mad!

The sad (or should that be sadder) thing about all this excitement is that I can even envisage the Blog photo....my EeePC, sat on top of Gerry's Dell subby, both sat on my Compaq laptop!

God, I love being a Geek.

AndLinux

I need a Linux box.

And I'm lazy, and can't face the hassle of yet more battling with wireless configuration on my laptop.

And, perhaps surprisingly, I don't detest Vista Home Premium.

So as an experiment, I've downloaded AndLinux, and when I have a few moments to spare in the next week, plan to install it.

It claims to provide Linux functionality - no, a complete KDE-based Linux distro - running inside Windows.

We shall see.

At the very least, it'll be something to play with until May, when I order my EeePC!

Sleep well, mate.

Wogan: 1999-2008.

My parents got Wogan when they retired ten years ago, bringing a tiny puppy back from the breeders, so small he could fit in the cup of my two hands. This tiny thing grew into 12-stones of gentle giant. I was there the day they brought him home, and from the first instant fell in love with the mutt, forming a bond that continued for me right up to today.

Over the years, Wogan never tired of loving his family. He was always excited to see us when we visited, wagging what was left of a close-docked tail so fast his entire rump shook - and he loved to give and receive affection, to the extent of trying to climb onto your lap if you gave him half a chance!

He was the gentlest animal I ever saw, looking after 8-week-old kittens, washing them and carrying them gingerly back to their basket whenever they ventured too far.

He's the only dog I've ever known who seemed to laugh when you fussed him or played with him - whether that was tickling his enormous tummy as he lay sprawled in the living room, or playing with his nemesis the garden hose. This 'humph-humph' sound would come out as he wriggled around, tongue lolling from his chops, every inch at peace with the world. Wogan loved his people, his surroundings and everything about his life.

He'd not been well for a while, with a lump on his leg that turned out to be an aggressive - and migratory - tumour. Within a short time he was in a great deal of pain.

So my parents called the vet, took him into the garden - and let him go to sleep in the only place he's ever known.

It hurts. Coming hard on the heels of the loss of Sasha, their boxer, just three weeks ago when she escaped the gardens and was hit by a car (and the fscker didn't even bother to stop).

Right now the tears are here for all of us who knew him. I know that putting him to sleep was the right decision. And given time, I'll be able to look back at all the good memories of the best, most loving family dog we had and smile about it.

Just - not today.

Motivation

Now I'm not normally one for reposting other people's stuff, but I saw this this morning, and felt obliged to spread it around a bit.

I won't repost the whole article - it's someone elses, and if you want to read it go and give the traffic to them. But the reason it caught me was this one:

5. Follow your passion, money will follow:
If you have passion and have fun doing your job, then I wouldn't consider it a job. You can focus on creating even more passion for that subject and money will eventually follow you. If you focus only on the money, it won't come because you're focused on the quantity of your work and not the quality.

This one really stuck with me - as I've actually taken that step and, in December 2006, gave up the sales work I've always done for a tech role - and it was, by far, the best decision I've ever made.

Right now, when I'm down with a stinking cold and when I've been on-call and repeatedly dragged out of bed for stupid, pointless calls that shouldn't have been escalated, it's hard to remember how good I felt on 7 December 2006 when I started as a Bob.

So thanks to DumbLittleMan.com for the timely reminder.

Miscellany

So the decorating at Dungeekin Towers is . . . well, it's proceeding.

I can't help but be delighted at the results of the building work, however. Now the new floor is completely laid, there's a real sense of space that hits you every time you walk into the new living room. I love it.

My sense of pleasure is compounded by the addition of this:



I've got the XBox attached to it, and am working on building a PC as a media player. We've ordered a new wood stand for the TV, but it's going to take a staggering 14 weeks for delivery - mainly, I believe, because given the price of it it's being hand-carved from a single tree by Patagonian virgins...

The cabinet-maker delivers his work the end of this month, and the new gas fire will be plumbed in about the same time. All is good.

In fact the sole downside of the whole thing is that it requires us to decorate not just the living room, but the rest of the ground floor - which forces us to continue into the stairwell, which means going up the stairs, which means doing the landing, which means...well, you get the picture.

I'm relishing the new working structure here at $WEMANAGESTUFF, as we've changed from 24/7 shifts to an on-call night structure. While it's never pleasurable to be called at some unearthly hour (usually for something that isn't urgent anyway, but the kids are learning slowly), it's certainly better than sitting awake all night staring at a screen, waiting for something to break!