It's my Birthday!

Yes, thats right, you heard it here first!

24 today, would like to thank everyone for all the birthday wishes and presents to those who gave them! I think it's official that I shall consume no more muffins... ate too many at work today!

Also, as I predicted, i'm single!

Finally, check this out...

Sideblaggin'

So a bit out of the ordinary today, I'm posting another blog, not for any real reason...

It's a quiet night here in Pitlochry, well.. i say quiet, currently the door is creaking and I can hear the faint noise coming from the TV in my parents lounge, oh and lets not forget the rapid typing noises coming from this keyboard.

I've recently started to wonder if i'm living in the correct time. Fair enough, I know about computers, I use my mp3 player religiously, but there's some things you just can't beat. Like the feel of vinyl records, or the sound, I don't like TV (nor do I watch it), I much prefer reading (which will bring me onto my next point very shortly), and generally, the culture of today is... well odd. Reality TV, really is not my cup of tea, I don't wait for the next instalment of Big Brother, Strictly come dancing or any of this reality TV lark.

As for my next point... people seem to be getting dumber and dumber. You know, I mean we have all this amazing technology and yet computers have turned into basically four figure wank machines. Instead of talking, they text, or instant message, no punctuation, no grammar: LOL this and LMFAO that. You know, it just seems to me it's just a bunch of stupid people pseudo-communicating with a bunch of other stupid people at a proto-language that resembles more what cavemen used to speak than the Queen's English.

Ok, fair enough, I'll admit right now, I've used "LOL" to death when IM'ing, it's quicker, but from this moment on, I promise to Stop using "LOL" and any other abbreviation. Oh and as a side note for my would be readers, I always type text messages out in full English, grammar included!

As for Wikipedia, and everyone who "trusts" it to be the worlds most accurate source of information.. all I can say is "Wikipedia, must be accurate then!" (Please note the Sarcasim!)

They say that everything is connected to everything. The butterfly effect. You drop a pebble into a pond and the ripples radiate outward, affecting everything. I sometimes question this, how can we possibly say that me drinking this nice, ice cold Heiniken (it's my b'day weekend, i'm allowed to break the rule especially for it!) will have some significant impact on my life?

As for other random thoughts.. currently contemplating getting my first tattoo, we shall see...

Anyway, enough of my ranting! Have fun folks :)

Further Songs of a madman

So here we are 2nd post of 2009, it's now Friday the 16th of January and it's 3 days to go until my freaking B'day folks!!!!!

So whats new this week? Well nothing much, that chick that I talked about in my last blag, decided to have "The Talk" last night, so i'm pretty much expecting that I will be a single man at some point this weekend (Shitty way to go onto your b'day huh?) But I will blog more on this after I've had confirmation.

So what else? Well completed the wonderful 2nd week of work, didn't exactly do much to be fair! Had Monday off, so I partook in a monthly ritual of getting the hair cut (free head massage thrown in!) and generally dossed around in the cold capital. Unfort, not a lot going on there these days, so nothing really to report, well except the god damned tram works, but less said the better.

What else?! Black rose, ah yes, my beloveded tavern, how I missed thee.. but I'm back! Pub quiz nights! Huzzah! Funnily, with a reduced team, we actually won :)

Otherwise it's been pretty quiet, i've been bored out of my mind (apart from when I've actually done stuff), so it looks as if joining the gym will actually go ahead!

Anyway that is all blag readers, until next time, I'll leave you with this music video (I seem to be listening to more of my old music).

Papa roach - Scars

Locked In Brutal Nothingness...

First post of 2009 and only 6 months late from when I should of actually posted.. oops!

So, even though that tickers been doing sweet F*#K all, except for me occasionally checking to see if it's clocking up.. infact I think I shall remove it.

Firstly where to start, oh my xbox 360... oh man where to begin..
The past few weeks I've been hitting Battlefield bad company pretty hard (xmas holidays, some free time and well, generally nothing better to do in this shitty weather). Anyway, my Xbox started to crash and yet continues to do so. So being a sensible person, I decided to call M$, apparently the warranty is expired and it'll cost me £60 to get it looked at... F#!k that.
So then the non sensible side kicked in and well, I decided to try and open it, a challenge without the proper tools and my fingers are all shredded now... I wish that I could muster authentic rage, but I loved that thing. I feel more like I'm burying a Goddamned pet.

What else is new... I seen slipknot in December.. absoloutley fantastic gig! Machine head supporting, with Children of Bodom!



I finally got a flatmate, but however this is not working out so well, he's very arrogant, lazy and well generally a pain in the arse, so I'll be kicking him out soon! Plus, it's time to start the flat renovations!

I've been seeing a new girl, slightly older, but I don't care about that. She's great, funny, beautiful, pretty much everything I like, but alas she has a hectic work schedule!

Nothing new on the hobby front yet really, just trying to save up to get the flat done, then I'll look into buying my DSLR camera! Also looking at joining a gym to kill the time.

Anyway, that is all for now folks, need to start cooking. Oh yeah, final note, decided to start getting in shape, so this years resolutions are.

-Give up non social drinking (aka: no drinking in a house, has to be a bar or restaurant)
-Give up Soft drinks (coke a cola, fanta etc etc)
-Give up eating non freshly made food (good by frozen crap)

Currently the results appear to be good, feel like i'm losing weight, but we shall see in a week when I hit the scales!

Anyway bye for now folks!

Will blog later...

No dongle to get the pictures off my phone, so no point doing this just now! So best comic ever...

I can't think of a decent punch line...

Ok, so admittedly i've actually got nothing to report on this week...

Finally got my life back! Projects are done.. i've done like over 40hrs of overtime, and I'm knackered, however... got a week off work and it's time to relax.

Oh for anyone reading.. it's the highland games in Pitlochry this weekend, I'll write an update on Sunday about all the tom foolery (with pictures) and shenanigans!

Till then...

PS: I'll stop with the promoting of linux... i swear!

Linux, and why you should switch...

Sorry to anyone (if there is anyone) who follows this blog regularly. I haven't properly in a while, and to be honest there isn't much to report!

Just work, work and more work.

Anyway I'm becoming a sort of Linux campaigner these days, i'm loving the customisations and the community, lots of very friendly and helpful people! Plus well it's fast and secure :)

However 10 reasons to switch...

1. It Doesn't Crash Linux has been time-proven to be a reliable operating system. Although the desktop is not a new place for Linux, most Linux-based systems have been used as servers and embedded systems. High-visibility Web sites such as Google use Linux-based systems, but you also can find Linux inside the TiVo set-top box in many livingrooms.

Linux has proved to be so reliable and secure that it is commonly found in dedicated firewall and router systems used by high-profile companies to secure their networks. For more than ten years, it has not been uncommon for Linux systems to run for months or years without needing a single reboot.

2. Viruses Are Few and Far Between

Although it is possible to create a virus to target Linux systems, the design of the system itself makes it very difficult to become infected. A single user could cause local damage to his or her files by running a virus on his or her system; however, this would be an isolated instance rather than something could spread out of control.

In addition, virtually all Linux vendors offer free on-line security updates. The general philosophy of the Linux community has been to address possible security issues before they become a problem rather than hoping the susceptibility will go unnoticed.

3. Virtually Hardware-Independent

Linux was designed and written to be easily portable to different hardware. For the desktop user, this means that Linux has been and likely always will be the first operating system to take advantage of advances in hardware technology such as AMD's 64-bit processor chips.

4. Freedom of Choice

Linux offers freedom of choice as far as which manufacturer you purchase the software from as well as which application programs you wish to use. Being able to pick the manufacturer means you have a real choice as far as type of support you receive. Being open-source software, new manufacturers can enter the market to address customer needs.

Choice of application programs means that you can select the tools that best address your needs. For example, three popular word processors are available. All three are free and interoperate with MS Word, but each offers unique advantages and disadvantages. The same is true of Web browsers.

5. Standards

Linux itself and many common applications follow open standards. This means an update on one system will not make other systems obsolete.

6. Applications, Applications, Applications

Each Linux distribution comes with hundreds and possibly thousands of application programs included. This alone can save you thousands of pounds for each desktop system you configure. Although this is a very small subset, consider that the OpenOffice.org office suite is included as well as the GIMP, a program similar to (and many people say more capable than Adobe Photoshop); Scribus, a document layout program similar to Quark Xpress; Evolution, an e-mail system equivalent to Microsoft's Outlook Express; and hundreds more.

For the more technically inclined, development tools, such as compilers for the C, C++, Ada, Fortran, Pascal and other languages, are included as well as Perl, PHP and Python interpreters. Editors and versioning tools also are included in this category.

Whether you are looking for Instant Messaging clients, backup tools or Web site development packages, they likely are all included within your base Linux distribution.

7. Interoperability

More and more computers are being connected to networks. No system would be complete if it did not include tools to allow it to interoperate with computers running other operating systems. Once again, Linux is very strong in this area.

Linux includes Samba, software that allows Linux to act as a client on a Microsoft Windows-based network. In fact, Samba includes server facilities such that you could run a Linux system as the server for a group of Linux and Windows-based client systems.

In addition, Linux includes software to network with Apple networks and Novell's Netware. NFS, the networking technology developed on UNIX systems also is included.

8. It's a Community Relationship, Not a Customer Relationship

Other operating systems are the products of single vendors. Linux, on the other hand, is openly developed, and this technology is shared among vendors. This means you become part of a community rather than a customer of a single manufacturer. Also, the supplier community easily can adjust to the needs of various user communities rather than spouting a "one size fits all" philosophy.

This means you can select a Linux vendor that appears to best address your needs and feel confident that you could switch vendors at a later time without losing your investment--both in terms of costs and learning.

9. It's Not How Big Your Processor Is...

Because of a combination of the internal design of Linux and development contributions from a diverse community, Linux tends to be more frugal in the use of computer resources. This may manifest itself in a single desktop system running faster with Linux than with another operating system, but the advantages go far beyond that. It is possible, for example, to configure a single Linux system to act as a terminal server and then use outdated hardware as what are called thin clients.

This server/thin client configuration makes it possible for older, less powerful hardware to share the resources of a single powerful system thus extending the life of older machines.

10. Linux Is Configurable

Linux is a true multi-user operating system. Each user can have his or her own individual configuration all on one computer. This includes the look of the desktop, what icons are displayed, what programs are started automatically when the user logs in and even what language the desktop is in.

A lot of the features listed here might be in Vista, however Linux doesn't carry the bloatware! Also the community is just fantastic, you have people offering support left right and centre on the forums for each Distro.

However enough ranting.. here's a nice lil video :)

Oops.. delayed posting!

Ok so I know I said I would post every 2 weeks.. but hey i'm a busy guy!!

So busy infact that i've been working weekends.. hopefully for not much longer, so this could call for some shenanigans to celebrate the reinstatement of a semi-normal social life..

So what to report on.. batman rules.. absolutely fantastic movie, great performances from all actors, hopefully there will be a third!!!!! Also.. lots of work... more work and erm.. yeah more work... So considering that Batman is the first time that most of my friends have actually seen me in a long time, shows how much work i've had (last time i seen them was before the wedding!).

However, back in the shire last night. One thing I really found quite shocking whiile reading the news, I came home and found out about this kid in Thailand who ended up killing a taxi driver in the process of hijacking the taxi because he wanted to see if it was as it was in GTA4. My favourite part of the new article is this line:

Police said the youth, an obsessive player of "Grand Theft Auto", showed no sign of mental problems during questioning and had confessed to committing the crime because of the game.'

What? Really? Am I the only one who thinks it's a sign of mental problems the instant he decided to rob and kill a taxi driver, game or no game? I mean there are people who manage to live their entire lives without killing someone else, no matter how many movie's they've watched, games they've played, comic books they've read, or death metal they've listened to (yes I do listen to death metal!!) . So doesn't it stand to reason that perhaps something was just broken in this kid to begin with?

Otherwise life is mainly occupied by work, reading news articles about how idiotic the youth of today is (just shows that Neds aren't the only idiots on this planet) and talking to people on msn!

But until this project finishes.. well I really can't say that I'm doing anything exciting.. depressing yes.. but c'est la vie!

Update to settings

Unregistered users can now comment, i've seen the sites stats start to increase, but still comments from the one and only Frans..

So now it's a free for all!

Further proof we're screwed...

"I feel a great disturbance in the Church"

Yup, it's clear Darth Vader has shunned the dark side and is well on his way to redemption. Give him a couple of years and he'll be apologising for Apple.

We're still screwed..

So we're nearing the end of July.. what is there to report? Well not a lot to be fair. Over the past few weeks I've been struggling to keep myself occupied which is resulting in me being bored.. a lot! Although I've started weight lifting agian to sort of distract me, perhaps I will move that onto running when I get a flat mate.

Otherwise there's not a lot to report! I really haven't done much except work! However there's advantages to me working lots, none of which I can go into detail about i'm afraid!

(of course the assert d0esn't work)

Edit:

Just so there's no mass panic.. i've deleted my bebo account. Why? Well it sucks, I use facebook more these days anyway (it's just "cleaner", perhaps i'm a neat monster).

Oh and on the FFIINNAALLL Note (yes, this time for real!) Here's the one thing I hate about commuting across the Forth Road Bridge..

GNOME today, GONE tomorrow...

So I mentioned a while back that I was using Ubuntu "Hardy Heron", and never gave my feedback.. well apart from 2 issues.. it's great! The first issue being that I can't VPN into my work, but I believe that could be more to do with my ports than actual Ubuntu, then there's also the fact that I can't use Teamspeak.. microphone seems to be bugged, but there's a guide on Ubuntu Forums on fixing that!

I was contemplating getting a new machine for gaming.. but I really don't need to (since the only game I play is Eve online anyway, and they have an official Linux client, but.. the normal windows version works better under WINE).

However in light of this, I need a portable option and I think i'm going to check out Dells open source laptops (apparently they'll be adding a few more machines into the range). So we shall see.

Not much else to report on it just now, i'll include an obligatory screen shot (yes it does look like a mac).
Oh and for anyone bitching about Linux being hard to learn...

"Anyone claiming that using Linux is difficult has not tried to understand women. Ever"

Thats all for now folks!

Living like life's going out of style...

Ok so a bit odd for me to post today, since it's usually every 2nd week, unless i'm bored... maybe i am! Anyway...

Well everything is back to normal around here after my less-than-stellar start to the week. One thing i'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who has forgotten he had an external storage device plugged in, and when windows shows the partitions thought absent-mindedly to himself "hmm, why are they showing my partition twice? Oh well" *delete*. Luckily all my photo's are backed up on several computers and now Flickr! Yes I've started the mass transit of all my stuff there.

What else has come to light this week. Well Steve's girlfriend Tizzy had to get an emergency C section during the week. 17th of June to be exact! Mother and baby are doing well (she's like 6 weeks early?) 3 pounds 4 ounces! So at least that wasn't total failure!

But Congratz to Steve and Tizzy! (oh it also means that Steve can't come out for his final piss up before fatherhood).

My grandmother had to be taken into hospital... One of the thing that really gets me about doctors, especially in my home town. We couldn't get her out of bed, so the doctor pipes up about getting her to Hospital, and we're like "how are we going to get her there, when we can't even get her out of bed?". Well the boy genius didn't think of calling the ambulance, we had to suggest it (apparently the ambulance will charge the doctors for the non emergency call out). But she's getting better now, so it's all good.

Currently... I can sympathise with anyone who has ever had RSI, my right arm is in agony (maybe it's a sign?). Up until now I'd always though RSI meant 'I hate my damn job'.

Anyway, so since i'm typing, may as well give an update!

So whats happened this week? Well nothing too exciting.. was out with Heather again, we went to see "The Happening", not a bad film, not one i'd of paid to see.. but it's watchable.
My Friend Azrael (from Eve online) was in town, so we went out, hit a restaurant then a couple of pubs. Was a good laugh and all on his expenses form!

After several recommendations I'm also starting an Entourage. Seems decent. Anyone want to be in my entourage? I'm not rich or famous, or even all that pretty... but I make a mean spaghetti carbonara. Any takers?

Oh finally... one thing I really do have to say..
EVE Online just released another update, and the trailer is pure sex as usual. I recently decided to stop playing this... but jesus.. i'm thinking of going back... I mean seriously.. look at it.....

Anyway thats this update done and dusted.

Inside the fire...

Oh, yeah, another note.... New Disturbed Album is fan-f#$king Tastic...
Here's Inside the fire, the debut single from it!



Edit: ok appears they removed the original I had, so here's another!

Get me a transistor!

As you may imagine, things are pretty hectic over here right now as it's approaching the end of quarter 2, lots of people are leaving and we have a sh*t load of projects that are due for the next couple of months. So i'll keep this brief. Maybe.

Right well.. lets begin. Last weekend.. Iain's & Joanne's wedding at Cameron House!
Firstly, let me start by saying this is one place, I recommend EVERYONE tries to stay there at least once (the cost is a bit over the top, but I reckon it would be worth it).
It's a very nice setting, very expensive, but oh so worth it! Hell the staff are extra friendly and try to make sure your ok all the time! Anyway..

So yes, a thanks to Martin and Misha for letting me crash at theirs on my return, nice comfy couch in their Edinburgh flat. However, Saturday started with me trying to get my kilt etc sorted, after 4hrs of trying to get it pressed (as it was creased to hell), I was good to go!

So we decided to book 2 taxi's to take us all from the office out to West Calder where the bus would be picking us up. However, the Czech's had the nice idea to stop in a pub and get lots and lots of rounds in! Very good idea.. since it turned out it was £2.50 a pint (a bargin!). So 2hrs later the bus arrived and we were on our way! Of course we had to make several pit stops, I think on lookers had an amusing time watching a group of guys running from the bus into the nearest toilet/bush.

However, we arrived and it was photo time!

So left to right we have: Misha, Martin, Michael, Myself, Klara and Petr

(rest of my photo's will be on Flickr later people)

So we moved inside to the Great scots bar, relaxed with the other workies and started getting the drinks in. Now so I can give you guys an idea on prices. A stein of lager was £3.50, Magners was £4.50, Jack Daniels and Coke £6.50 or bog standard Malt whisky... £6.50 to £110 a NIP!

So needless to say, a very expensive night (most of us were armed with £100 each (minimum))

Nice buffet for the food, with a nice selection to choose from. There was even a chocolate fountain!

Lots of music and dancing to be had, they even played such great Scottish party hits as The Proclaimers "500 miles" and "The Bonny banks of Loch Lomond" (quite fitting for the location I guess!).

Anyway, other news. Well quite a bit really, lets start with the life changing stuff. I'm moving...

Yes, moving back into Edinburgh! Huzzah, since I've decided living on my own is boring, I've decided to flat share with an eve playing buddy of mine. So aiming for an August move, which also means i'll be Selling "The Predator" (My car for those who don't know!). Simply don't need it in the city and there's an abundance of public transport, and of course it's Edinburgh everything is there!

What else, been on more dates. Was out with another on wednesday, despite getting soaked going there (with the rain stopping when I arrived), and it starting and soaking me on the way back to my car.. I had a good time, so did she infact and we're going out again on Tuesday!

Otherwise, life is pretty quiet just now, trying to decide on the next holiday destination, was planning Australia to go visit my family there, but might go do some European Capitals!

Till next time!!

If...

So as I lay in bed at my parents this morning, it's an absolutely fantastic day, in fact just from lying around outside yesterday... I have a pretty kick ass tan.

Anyway just a quick note, not much to report on this week. Next week I'll be at a wedding so maybe more next Sunday (and pictures.)

But back to today.. watched TV and found something that for some reason actually made me smile! Don't know what it is, but just something about this Irn Bru advert just makes you feel a bit more patriotic!

Enjoy :)

Welcome to the Social...

So, as most of you who talk to me and read this.. I'm now the proud owner of a Zune!
Also as many of you have asked.. "What's a zune?"

The Zune is essentially Microsofts verion of the Ipod, and well to be fair, it's probably a lot better!


Unfort. for us Euro's this is one device that we can't buy them here, the only option is to import (although saying that, a lot of people on Amazon do that and charge a fortune) or take a trip across the pond!

Anyway, so I have a black 8GB version, and just to show how small this device really is, here it is next to a ball point pen! Oh and to note it's 8mm thick!Inside the box:
-Headphones (pretty good headphones, but could be better)
-USB cable (charging cable and for data transfer)
-Instructions (who needs them?)
-Your Zune!!

As for the zune itself...
-Mp3 player
-FM Radio
-Video's
-Pictures
- "The Social"

Pretty standard except for "The Social" thing, I have no clue what this is, except that it works over wireless. Apparently every time you play a song on your PC, or sync your Zune to update play data, that information is uploaded to Zune Social, so your friends can automatically see what you're listening to. All that data is collated and aggregated so you can see what's the most listened-to music, which users have listened to certain bands the most, etc.

They're also building a widget called the Zune Card with functions much like the Gamer Card on Xbox 360. The Zune Card can be embedded into your blog or "other social networking sites" to provide that constant stream of information where you want it displayed. No word on which sites they're working on building it for, but it was made clear that Facebook and My Space are priorities.

As for the device itself.. The screens is bright and clear, it can even be seen in the sun, which is a major issue i've had with previous mp3 players! As for audio quality it's pretty damm solid, i've used it constantly over the weekend and it's pretty damm good!

Edit: Welcome to the social... RvB style!

This can only mean trouble.. pictures!

So as for Frans demanding proof of my activities.. here we go!

So here we have the wonderul highlighter tower, I did manage to get another level on it before it fell apart!

Here we have the wonderful weather hitting across my lil car. One minute it was nice and sunny, perfect BBQ weather (hence the table and chairs), next this happens..

Finally.. we have the lil beast clocking 60,000miles...

There.. proof posted!

This can only mean trouble...

Ok, ignore the title, this can't really mean trouble.. or can it?!

So lets try and round up recent events (without pictures, yes truely sorry, but I forgot my damm bluetooth adapater (further argument of why I need a laptop)).

So as some of you are probably aware, Dom finished with me, what, like 2 weeks ago to this day? So what progress has been made in the world of Richard since?

Well I've been on 2 dates with 2 completely different chicks! Now someone claimed these are rebounds, but to be fair, long distance doesn't quite give you those drawbacks, namely due to the void of not actually having to see them on a daily basis. I've always known that long distance doesn't work and against my better judgement at the time, I went along with it. But anyway...

So on Sunday, I saw Kirsty, nice lass, spent 4hrs of walking and talking, oh and me getting dragged around shops. She's nice enough, but those 4hrs made me realise that she probably isn't right for me, however she seems really keen on me!?!

Friday, half day from work and then out wandering with Michelle, another nice lass, and another 4hrs of walking and talking around the great city that is Edinburgh! Except this time instead of shops, we took each other around pubs (unfort. I wasn't drinking, damm car). But apparently she's really keen on meeting me again as well, so must be doing something right, so maybe another date with her this week!

Work wise this week, nothing much, although I did construct a tower of highlighter pens.. I will post a picture of this later, it was quite a challenge! 3 guys from my dept have had job interviews, so things could be getting very quiet for us indeed.

Last week, had Peter, a friend from Eve Online vist, and then proceeded to take him on the turbo tour of Scotland! Starting off here in sunny Pitlochry, up to Fort William, down through GlenCoe (check my flickr for pictures of the Glen), down to Oban and then back across to Pitlochry... the whole day took roughly 8hrs.. so 8hrs of driving I was knackered. The next day he was departing back to Copenhagen, so before that, gave him a brief driving tour of Edinburgh (what we could get to, the tram works kinda limit where you can go without getting stuck in Traffic.) But it did stay nice, averaging about 20 deg C and the spotting of numerous Dutch Cars (Yes, we had to inform Frans of all the cars). After dropping him off and saying goodbye etc, it was off into the City for the date with Kirsty (see above).

Back to current events.. this weekend been kinda quiet. Yesterday, we had the sort of flash storm that you would expect in area's like Florida, one minute it was sunny and the next the rain just dropped out of the sky! So much so, that the bottom of my garden flooded!! Then followed by barrage of hail stones.. The first thing it reminded me of was Florida seriously.. Still, it didn't stop us firing up the BBQ for some tasty grub!

Today, well nothing too difficult, just writing this blog, informing my reader(s) (prove me wrong!) of my life and then enjoying the sunshine! I'll post the pictures at some point, but until then I shall you with yet another youtube video.. enjoy! (It's an old song.. but I love it)

Oops

I'll need to sum up 2 weeks or so later.. forgot the damm bluetooth adapter so I can't add photo's. Plus i'll prob have more to report on by then :D