Storm damage 2007
DRM and MP3 fees
In Europe we pay a tax on mp3 recorders, empty CD and DVD material to compensate for people who copy music without paying for it. Some Dutch politicians have come up with the idea of dumping that tax and instead of that taxing all people who have internet access.
My thought: this brings in more money, you only pay a tax once on a CD but you can pay monthly if you have an internet access contract. It’s all about the money!
Link: http://www.nu.nl/news/957277/52/PvdA_en_CDA_denken_na_over_heffing_internetabonnement.html
Apple iPhone; old wine in new bag?
How about that new phone from Apple. Looks good doesn’t it? Questions is, is it as good as it looks and does it deliver what is promised?
From what I read on Engadget, Robert Scoble and other sites I conclude that Apple has missed to boat.
- Durability
If haven’t used that many models of phones in the last couple of years. My first requirement is that a phone is durable as I have to use it for work. I don’t think the iPhone is a sturdy model. If I drop my Nokia it still works, I don’t think the Apple screen will survive such a treatment. - Battery power
I need battery power because I don’t want to charge my phone every 3 hours. That’s why I have been using the boring and reliant models like Nokia 6110, 6310i and the 6630. Up to five hours of battery power (is that using the phone constantly?) is good. - Size matters
The trend in phone is that they are getting smaller and lighter. The iPhone looks more like a big box to me. - Interface
I love the tablet PC like interface. From experience I can say that it not as effective as the normal keypad. - Price
A price of $600 is way to steep.
No, I think I will stick with my real phones.
What is your Identity and for how long
I found an interesting post by Bill Thompson on the BBC website. It seems that most ‘young’ people don’t bother about their userid, useraccount, and password. If you forget your password you simply get a new ID and setup a new account and start over. This, in contrast to ‘us’ ‘older’ people.
I can find myself in Bill’s remark that he tries to setup accounts with similar names and tries to hang on to his email address. I’ve had my email address for some eight years. Before that I had to change it every time I changed ISP. Thank god that is in the past.
Remember summer?
At least I had snow in Switzerland
Switzerland, Saas Fee, December 2006
Photo montage
Artwork by Peter Kennard.
Insight at last
It is about time that we restrict the emissions of airplanes. I was in Canada on September 2001 when all the flights were grounded in the US because of the attack on the Twin Towers. The effects on the temperature and the clouds during that period were staggering. A clear indication to me that the effects of emissions by airplanes is underestimated.
BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | EU to tackle aircraft emissions
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First frost of 2006
First frost on the car window.
Is the Netherlands going back 20 years?
So, it looks like we are going to have a new government. A coalition consisting out of Christian Democrats (CDA), a Socialistic Party (PvdA) and a back socks Christian party (Christian Union). A rather strange mix which is not a true representation of the Dutch society.
What will probably change:
- Shops closed on Sunday. Sunday should be a day of rest,
- Abortion restricted (back to the knitting needle),
- Euthanasia restricted,
- Increase of the high tax bracket,
- Use of soft drugs not allowed anymore,
- …
Yes, this is what the Dutch people asked for, NOT.
I have won (I think)
Wouter Bos, nobody will be send home. Everybody is welcome (I will be the next premier).
Rita Verdonk, I’m not reponsible anymore.