August 01, 2003
I'm off

I'm on holiday next week, in Newcastle, visiting my Mother. I'm taking my two girls, and my sister is taking her two girls.

Four small girls, between the ages of 2½ and 6½. Should be nice and quiet. ;-)

I'll be on the 'net now and again - I've promised to help my mum put a web site together. But probably not often, so Small Values will be quiet, which will probably be a relief to the lot of you.

Later...

Posted to On the road by Simon Brunning at 04:06 PM
Jail Babes

Is Jail Babes some kind of a joke? It must be, surely?

Via Yorkshire Soul.

Posted to The Internet by Simon Brunning at 02:46 PM
Barking

Barking, I say. Moon Song.

(Sound needed. It won't be the same without.)

Check out some of the other rathergood.com stuff, too.

Posted to Funny by Simon Brunning at 02:11 PM
IT the EasyJet way

In Open Source Flying, Matthew Langham contends that the way the air travel industry has changed over the years may be a good model for the way the IT industry is changing.

In the old days, if you wanted to fly, you went to your national carrier and payed whatever they demanded, and that was that. Just as now, 99% of businesses go to one of the big vendors (Microsoft, IBM, Sun, etc.) for their software.

These days, there are a number of low cost carriers fighting over you. The national carriers are still there, offering high price, high standard, high convenience travel, but they no longer own the skies.

Will the big vendors lose out? I can't say I see any sign of it yet, but it would be nice if he were correct. ;-)

Via Daily Python-URL.

Posted to Business by Simon Brunning at 01:46 PM
The end of Hubble

Eyeing a post-Hubble Universe. Sad.

33% of NASA's results for 2% of its budget. Hubble:

  • Improved the accuracy of estimates of the ang of the universe

  • Prooved the existance of black holes

  • Confirmed that quasars are galactic nuclei powered by black holes

  • Showed that the expansion of the Universe is accelerating

Posted to Science and technology by Simon Brunning at 01:26 PM
The harsh truth

My sister bought me some new, trendy (I gather) jeans for my birthday. I asked number-one-daughter Freja what she thought.

"They are nice jeans, Daddy, but they don't suit you," she said. She's not aware of the phrase mutton dressed as lamb, but if she had have been, I suspect that she would have used it.

Don't ask a child what they think unless you are prepared for the truth. They won't lie to save your feelings. ;-)

Posted to Parenting by Simon Brunning at 01:12 PM
Nerd meetings and events in London

NullBlogException posted a list of Meetings and events in London.

I think I'll give one or more of these a bash. The Python booze-ups just ain't happening.

Posted to Software development by Simon Brunning at 01:05 PM