BBC Micro - Where I started

Back in the 80's I started peeing around with computers. Today I see that one of the designers of the BBC Micro is honoured, well done to Steve Furber, of the University of Manchester, is made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).





http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7162935.stm

This machine had a massive 32k memory and a 6502 processor. These are the days when Watford Electronics were in Watford, in fact the first micro we bought was from there an Acorn Atom that came in kit form with 0.5k of memory. I remember travelling 25 miles to Watford Electronics to buy the 0.5k memory upgrades. The Atom's keyboard even had to be assembled key by key.

When the BBC Micro arrived we were presented with colour computing for the first time and we started on our first projects. With my brother doing the assemble code and me doing the graphics we launched two games through Kansas City systems, Turbo and Tomahawk.

looking around the net these can still be found for download and run on a PC using a BBC Emulator. http://www.beebgames.com/games.php?company=150&start=21

The BBC Micro was developed by Acorn for schools and also had it's own weekly TV show.

Another curious feature of the BBC Micro was a speech synthesis chip, this gave the micro a real voice and a voice that was English accent and with a clarity that outshines many of today's voice systems. I seem to remember it was the BBC's own Kenneth Kendal that had his voice digitsed for this system.

But the most aspiring point of the BBC Micro was the BBC Basic language, which was easy to program with quick results and really did give me a good start in logic and what computers had to offer.

Does Christmas seem tired this year...

Done the Christmas shopping, battled my way around the town centres, and browsed away online.

One thing that I seem to notice this year is how tired everywhere seems to look. The supermarkets have half hearted efforts, low stock etc.

The main toy stores look just as bad, half of the items I would not give to anyone with the packaging looking like its been opened many times.

Computer superstores look like they cannot be bothered to re-stock the shelves.

No matter where I seem to go, the customer service is poor, stock is poor, and the general look is shabby. I do not remember a year when so many 'top' items are out of stock or withheld from stock only to be sold as priced up packages.

Maybe it is just me but there just seems to be no sparkle this year. I now wonder what the January sales will bring, will there be anything left to sell, would anyone actually want to buy the remains of this Christmas.

Ding Dong Merrily oh *sigh*

Size is everything whatever the years

This week had a few problems with the height of my 7 year old son. He is 154cm.

After winning a competition, the prize was a kids jacket. They called to ask what size, I said he is 7 but in 10 to 12 year old clothes. They completely wrote this off stating their own child was a 'big' 7 and that a 7 year old size would fit fine.

The prize turns up and was tiny, we gave it to someone who was 5.

Next I try to buy a Nike thermal sports top, (an expensive vest) for his football. Bought a 10 year olds size and it just fits him. (had to buy the Reebok one in the end, no Nike's left much to my sons disgust).

Next up was a new bike for his birthday, looking through many websites and the like could not really find what wouold be the right size, but had made my mind up the 24inch bike form Halford would do it.

In the end, I decided to take him with me to get the bike just to check the size. At the shop I get 'a 24inch bike will be too small for him' this bike is supposed to be for 8 to 12 year olds. I ended up buying a Gents ATB bike with 26inch wheels a full size adult bike, and... its the right size.

It is time to abandon the sizing of thing by childs age, and go purely by height of the child, an expensive week in the life of a child.

Medical Science

As some of you know, I am currently on the work-up program to donate a kidney to my wife. A shed load of test were done on Monday. With good results I am pleased to say, but... some of the things they found out.

I have been bitten by a dog? (Toxicplasmosis)

I have had chicken pox.

and I drank too much wine the night before the blood tests. (Haemaglobin)

I don't have Syphilis

And apart from a hyperfiltering kidneys (which is good i am told), and a bit high on the Colestrol, I am healthy and can feel that scalpel getting nearer.

The web and small small businesses

An intresting article on the BBC Business website, 'Do small firms really need a website?'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7096900.stm

It claims that no more than half of the UK's small to medium businesses have a web presence, this is according to the Federation of Small Businesses.

Theres a section on the concerns of one business worried that their business might grow too fast and they wold not be able to cope. Another states they did not receive a single phone call from a customer in the nine months since their website went live.

My own experience of providing web design, see the majority of enquiries from new start-ups as opposed to established businesses wanting to get onto the net.

I started to offer and leg-up onto the net with a single page, domain and email address package at under £100. Again this never seems to get taken up, yet I get enquiries from people wishing to spend hundreds of pounds on websites that sometimes they do not really need r even know they need.

It takes all sorts, and there will always be a stay hard group that will do allthey can to avoid the net.

So the iPhone has descended upon us

With todays launch of the Apple iPhone, the television news channels appear to relish the story, showing off the phone and showing the queues of people eager to get their hand on it. There was even a clip about the hacking of the new phone.

Yes it looks good, but at what cost? It is expensive, and comes with a simple low-res camera compared to other offerings, there is also the question of the lack of 3G.

Myself I went for the new LG Viewty, better camera, 3G and free on O2 £35 tarrif.

Oh it has a touch screen too.... Click Here to View the Viewty

Re-cycling? Carbon Footprint? or load of rubbish?

Here in North Hertforshire we have just moved to rubbish collection once every two weeks. One week general rubbish is collected the next re-cycling and garden waste.

What they failed to mention was that they changed the way the collection were made and instead of the wheelie bins being collected from the front of the house, they now need to be at the end of the parking space. This resulted in the rubbish not being collected for two weeks.

Now the new collections have begun, and this week its re-cycling week three bins lined up one for paper, one for glass and one for garden waste and cardboard. Glass and paper collected but alas this week it was the turn of the brown compost bin to be ignored.

Fed up of complaining it now looks as if the re-cycling and green issues concerned with all this are in fact thought of in second place with cost and time in first, but then I thought this is one of the things the council tax was to pay for?

A couple of years back I also recieved a formal letter of complaint from the North Herts Council regarding trade waste in the re-cycling bins, this was actually four local newspapers that were left over form the lads paper round. So again to save cost and re-cycle was not the point as they took the time and effor not only to check what paper was in the bin but also to employ someone to write to me and tell me.

Now I am thinking if a client come to the house to discuss their website and I make them a cup of tea... Does the teabag count as trade waste? compostable waste? or general rubbish.