My festive wish.

It has been a great year for me this 2009. My kids have been a pleasure and grown in theier own way outwards, and I was lucky enough to go to Japan where I met some great people.

So my Festive wish for everyone is to just 'Let it happen" and by that I mean the good stuff.

The good stuff is different for everyone. So Just let it happen.

Virtual Light comes of age

Battle of Branchage from seeper on Vimeo.

Virtual Light is a novel by William Gibson. If you do not know who or what William Gibson is I recommend you follow these links. to WIKI, to his official BOOK site.

When I taught IT and Multimedia i asked my students to write a few paragraphs on the computer about why William Gibson is significant ? If they did not want to write about him they must write the same amount of content of some other significant person from the world of CYBER... nothing to do with dirty chats either.

Out of 7 classes only only one person thought they should write about Bill Gates instead.

copied from wiki.

In Neuromancer, Gibson first used the term "matrix" to refer to the visualised Internet, two years after the nascent Internet was formed in the early 1980s from the computer networks of the 1970s.^{[127][128][129]} Gibson thereby imagined a worldwide communications network years before the origin of the World Wide Web,^[47] although related notions had been previously been imagined by others, including science fiction writers.^[VI][VII] At the time he wrote "Burning Chrome", Gibson "had a hunch that [the Internet] would change things, in the same way that the ubiquity of the automobile changed things."^[26] In 1995, he identified the advent, evolution and growth of the Internet as "one of the most fascinating and unprecedented human achievements of the century", a new kind of civilization that is – in terms of significance — on a par with the birth of cities,^[82] and in 2000 predicted it would lead to the death of the nation state.^[26]

Observers contend that Gibson's influence on the development of the Web reached beyond prediction; he is widely credited with creating an iconography for the information age, long before the embrace of the Internet by the mainstream.

HTC MAGIC Hutchinson

ok 24 hours later.

I did NOT get the iPhone. I got the HTC Magic. I reckon that I will use it as a phone and use the minor web device from WiFi hot spots ONLY, meaning not 3G web surfing. Or at least till I can find a value pack I like. After all I have been overseas and expireinced the phone evolved culture in Japan. You know the iPhone failed there as it is crap next to Japans telco provided phones. Cheap and fast networks that work.

I did the right thing. I managed to get through all the settings from A to Zed and then to Finnish I tried to HTC SYNC my HTC Magic Phone running the Android Platform to SYNC with my computer.

I downloaded the latest appropriate Version. I was worried cause here in Australia there is 2 kinds of Magic , one with Vodaphone written on it and another with HTC written on it... That was he way to tell the two versions apart. One version is CUPCAKE whilst the other DOUGHNUT.
The Hutchinson version is the most recent with the new better working touch screen keyboard.

My first impression was pretty tame . The flick feature has turned page surfing into a sport, it is that much fun. But I managed to learn the way of the buttons and interface. It really was pretty easy.

I still have not been able to Sync with my computer to communicate with outlook and gmail and "stuff" but it is getting there. The staff at HTC customer support which is definitely Sydney local but is revy very "off shore" has been very good so far. In fact they fill me with confidence as to "there is a work around" attitude.

So I have tried all 4HTC Sync on 2 computers and cannot get the software to Identify the HTC MAGIC Android Phone. To complete that .. I installed and uninstalled one version at a time and yes I tried 4, from the original to the newest and latest... To answer the first burning question yes I did try and activate from the phone other than "mounting" the SD card which is easy for file transfers... and data dump of pics and music or videos etc.

Loving chrome in some ways on one of my computers, but hating it on the other. For different reasons. Android MARKET seems to be a myth with the downloads available hardly something I want .. or at least I cant find anything that seems useful yet.

Could not download the free WiFi hot spot identifier to actually download... I imagine as always on to suck the battery life...

So part 2 continues tomorrow... excited and frustrated.


things are not as they seem.

DAY 2, 48 hours later

I wake early in the morning and go do my bike mechanic gig for the last time today for City of Sydney. It was a great gig in partnership with bikewise.com.au . This morning was the last gig and was the background for channel 7's morning show 'Sunrise' . frankly all I did was fix bikes and got told to work on bikes from behind the rear wheel and pull the break lever... you know .. no matter how pretty an assistant is .. Stoopidity will shine. Reach the brake lever from behind the bike beyond the back wheel whilst it is 5 foot in the air in a stand... hmmm ' computer says Nooooo!'

I get home.. its hot, Time to ring HTC again. After a 5 minute wait on the phone after they have answered me and I have given my reference number from the day before.

The lady on the phone comes back and apologizes for the delay. She tells me to install the latest driver, the one that ends with 'Asia'. I do this.. nothing happens still.

I get upgraded to a tech. who tells me I have done all the right things. He says to try and reset factory settings and install the latest sync software... 5 minutes later I plug the USB into the phone and computer.. HEY PRESTO. It begins to sync.

It syncs all my email contacts from my outlook but I am flummoxed on how to get my numbers off my Nokia and onto my HTC. then I remember the "export to csv" on the nokia... I then import my csv files into my contacts on google mail. Sync again and once agin success... bit of a work around but it only took 10 minutes.

Now I am connected... i feel it is time to install some apps. I am very careful to not use 3G networks to web surf and turn off all services that connect to the web whilst being sure to only access via WiFi so it remains free.

I find a WiFi app that tells me if there is a unsecured HOT SPOT to hitch onto. you know like at Starbucks or McDonalds... I notice now I am not the only one with an unsecured wifi.

Next step, some GPS apps and some other stuff I might find useful, like an app to change my theme and file transfer via Bluetooth, which the HTC can not by default with Android. but the app to do so was easy to find

So it now night time and it is cooler. My GPS tracking app is now ON. The GPS works independently of any network, It syncs with satellites above. I activate the app. I am at home so my home network loads the maps. A little arrow appears on my house in google maps.

This is not my actual images but from the apps market. The left most image is distance, average speed, fastest speed, maximum and lowest altitude, it also tells me the grade., the middle image is just some edit functions etc, and the right is the map view, Now interestingly with Satellite view it seems I went though a few front yards and houses, and Even though I started and finished from the same spot my red line did not quite meet at the end. A great new play with a very interesting app.

I could see a use of this one to track a bike messenger or even to find my phone.. or perhaps help me get fit or just cause I love maps and weather radars .. its just groovy goodness.

I also loaded a Twitter app and a RSS feed app, the twitter app connects to my twitpic account and the GPS so I can upload images from my phone as I take it with a tiny.url and a GPS link for google maps too. kinda neat but possibly to much info. Actually it would be a good tool for the parking cop who takes photos of offending cars .. with this it will also give a GPS reference with a 5 meter variance.

Some other apps that failed was a drupal blogging tool.. it just failed to work with my drupal site.... But , I could see its advantage for working on it like that. The Hero Clock, or 'big analog' clock was just ugleeee.

I did install an app that has 20 animals and it makes the sounds of the animals while showing the workds of what they are... My 17 month old loves it.

So far I am Very impressed... except I now have to filter the crap out of my 837 emil addresses and bad phone numbers.

tweeterizers .. Audax riders leave tonight .. use #sm1200 to send your well wishes to riders

DEATH RACE v DEATHRACE 2000

DeathRace V Deathrace 2000
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away...
Science fiction had a world of selection to be original. Being blunt about fact is fine if you can handle it. So i will keep it simple as i possibly can without being a spoiler for any fun content that may surprise you..

have you heard about a game? It is a popular one where you drive about and you run about in a car and do missions.... no I am not talking about Saints Row or Grand Theft Auto, think back, yeah further back.. Carmageddon

wikirip below link to more

The game that became Carmageddon started out as "3D Destruction Derby", a banger-racing (stock-car) sim prototyped by Stainless. This was signed by SCi in 1995, but the banger-racing angle was soon dropped and for a while the game was to use the Mad Max license. This fell through, and was replaced by the Death Race 2020 license, as a sequel to the original film was at that time planned (it eventually emerged as a comic book). This introduced the running-over of pedestrians into the game.

the reason why the elaborate intro. I wanna tell you about another movie with Arnold Shwatsss...mm Conan. RUNNING MAN. Anyway its a movie with a totally different plot to Deathrace 2000. . . And Mad Max is not the same as Deathrace 2000.

The new movie does not even come close to the plot, pace or presence that is the original movie. The only similarities stop with the insertion of the DVD into your home entertainment unit.. Actually I would say Get the original... even though it has its slow spots and obvious mannequin replacement and slow spots. But somehow cant look away. DeathRace 2000 was the "B" grade verion and original of the main stream relaease of the same time Roller Ball

I saw David Carradine at a Sci Fi convention, I was wearing a black Tee with a big white "F". .. You won't know WTF I am talking about if you dont see Deathrace 2000 the original.

So how do they rate?

' a record 70 millon are watching Subscribe to the final stage now'

Deathrace (2008) V Deathrace 2000 (1975)

Booring, seen it before even with the new plot V Still Amazingly shockingly new

http://www.horror-wood.com/race.htm
Please visit my image sponsor and rottentomatoes.com

Lugs

more info here http://www.hetchins.org/100.htm

but while we are at it check this out.

I have seen a lot of bikes but this just makes my knees go week, If I see a single try hard faker on one these. Please visit me in jail.

go to the website and take a slow look about.






















ahh yes,
Below is a nice shot inside Harry hooper

Bush and Osama hold hands

MAX PAYNE is loud on the 5.1 andthe Clear flat screen infront of me. Just started wondering how they are going to translate the dreame sequence from the PC game of the same naame and theme. How are they gonna show Bullet Time, or basicly the PC game special feature.

This is almost impossible with conventional slow-motion, as the physical camera would have to move impossibly fast; the concept implies that only a "virtual camera," often illustrated within the confines of a computer-generated environment such as a game or virtual reality, would be capable of "filming" bullet-time types of moments. Technical and historical variations of this effect have been referred to as time slicing, view morphing, slow-mo, temps mort and virtual cinematography.

If you are new to Max Payne... think of the roof scene where Neo doges bullets in MATRIX. In Bullet time itis a bit like that but it comes with sureal nightmares on the side.

If you liked the Direction of the camera in WANTED then you will like MAx Payne as its use of Verual Camera is awesome too

Last week I sw the movie Postal, as in Running with Scissors.

Now I wonderd about that movie beacuse the game was BANNED in many countries. Although I was considering Owning a copy of the banned game I was wondering how true to plot the movie was going to be.

Although things look the same the theme is only based on the same theme with some of the characters being quite true to form in thier groups..

I like the fact that they brought in real life into the movie with a disgrunteld Game Developer going nuts at the movie director.

A fight between Postal creator Vince Desiderio and Postal director and park owner Uwe Boll (which ends with Boll being shot in the genitals, confessing "I hate video games")

On the right here is a parody of George Bush and Osama Bin Ladedn holding hands and generally makiing things happen so that money can be made or asses needed saving etc.

WIFE SWAP

Busting out

My wife went on a training course and I was to meet her in the hotel lobby. It was raining and I wanted to get out of the rain. I rolled down my cycle mode shorts into pants and rolled my short sleeve jacket into a respectable soft shell. I made sure I had ridden slow enough to not get the dreaded water splatter along the butt seam of my pants and back. I sat down and realised that the lobby probably never looked as good.

Also, Shifty who was very important in the creation of the event that was CMWC 06 that was of course the best ever event of its kind .. yeah ever and in the future too. Anyway, Shifty left the city of Sydney with a rounding of the troops to wish Sifty a great farewell. I have pictures of him crying and it was not in pain.. or even self inflicted pain. He is now scaring the drivers and pedestrians of BrisVegas..yep he is crying in this pic. (Shifty in green)

The SYDBMA is holding the Courier Cup...the fastest over 2 events will get free return tickets to ACMC in Perth over the Easter long weekend

Last month my son turned 4. He fetured on my friend ohoh2's blog ... Those kids had a suprize visitor in the shape of SPIDERMAN. All the little girls were scared and all the little boys loved it.
SpiderMan towards the end of his routine made all the kids swords out of balloons. He then somehow managed to get them to beat me up with them. After standing in front of a BBQ and making enough sausages and fish to fedd an army I really did not feel like being pushed about by a squad of malicious balloon wielders. My son's friend Oscar was a little out of order when he started to punch me in the nose no less than 4 times then run off (stage left) fast. He hit me in the face on 2 different occasions and also started to lay into my gut on another. Lil bugger was hitting hard. How does a 4 year old learn that? I was wondering about approaching his dad who did the dump and run thing. Bahhhh later.

There are some things I really like. One of them is bikes and girls who ride them. You might have noticed that I often have a pic or 4 of a lady on my bike. Well I have some more now too. I would like to mention that I got my inspiration from TC from fyxomatosis. A few years ago i got a postcard info flyer of his exhhibit CIAO! I was hooked. I do not pretend to compete or even come close to the quality of his art but I dream too. Have a look at his site,well travelled in the bicycle courier world. Andy White (Track Cunt) has made the bike THE art form itself.

My attempt to be less "Still Life" and more "in the street". I wish I had the equipment.. sigh.

Speaking of photographers. My friend Peter's site is constantly being bombarded with hack attacks and other malicious net beasites.... What the real problem about that is Google black lists it and makes it hard to even view a picture. with its MALICIOUS warnings on sites that might have been hacked but are now fixed. It is like the warning is the virus. Also, who let google warn you with a big stick... Google did that's who. It's not really very fair. We are building him a new site with a new IP. So perhaps Google can just piss off.

Over the last few weeks I have met a fewNICE GUYS some of them were even riding fixies. The guy on the right was from the States and his bike had really lovely lugs I might be wrong but the badge on the head tube said ARAYA. Now as far as I knew they built rims and wheels in alloy. The badge did actually look just like the old PANASONIC head tube badge that looked like it would be more at home as a ring on some big guys finger. If you're into head badges look at this (just found it randomly).

The bike in question is the red one on the right it has mud guards and a nice easy ratio. what I really noticed ws the great lugs. I was really weirded out becuase the lugs looked a bit like a Colnago Arabesque (take a look at the unpainted pic on the left).
Also I managed to find more info that Araya did infact build bikes. But, I still dont see Japanese frame makers of the era taking the time on their lugs.

Also met a few more Sydney riders who once again prove that its not the bike but the ride.



Christian Carter on a bigger gear than me and no clips or cages... doing it fixed on platforms.. like the cool kids in France....




John Remi on his Elsworth with road slicks. He was commuting on a Sunday and was really happy to stop and say hello. Nice bike mate. How bout you come with us and put some fat rubber on that sucker?

World Naked something

My BIKE meets girls

I mean really, look at that. Chilly here was parking her car and was kind looking at my bike and I just asked her straight up if she minded having a pic with my bike. Little did she know that I thought her sandals where very very "my bike". On the other hand the pic of Lucy in white here was an obvious Friday afternoon in the park sort of thing, in fact Lucy came and met a bunch of after work Bike Couriers and hung about a bit had a bit of coopers and just chatted with a few of us in the park.

Lots of my guy mates say it is hard to meet ladies in Sydney but I think they have a hard time saying HELLO to anyone they do not know.

I have noticed in the last week a whole bunch of new style bikes around Sydney. What is a "new style bike" I hear you ask. Simple if its retro or has curves or is rebuilt and looks old or is fakenger looking , oh hold on that would be courier looking but thats not really accurate cause I know plenty of bike couriers who use gears but the fakenger look is single of fixed. I guess its called MESSENGER STYLE.

The Fixie is really being brought back in a huge way. I was down at bondi and snapping pics of bikes and I came accross a group of 3 unlocked bikes, all of them fixies and ll of them definatly not a working messenger bike a Soma, a Tommasini and a red bike with flat bars. all had toe straps and all no brakes. I thought "cool" so I snapped a few shots with the digi cam and a moment later I was riding off and took another few shots of bondi beach when I noticed the 3 bikes going past me. In a rush i put away my camera and then caught them up. "Can I take a group pic of you guys" I ask. I get the massive DIDNTHEARNOTHING" look from 2 of them whilst one slowed and said sure.

I yelled at the other 2 "HEY FAKENGERS" they noticed me this time as I made myself in thheir faces, once agin I ask if I can take a group shot and still one of them ignores me.

I mean really, if your gonna dress like me and my mates and your gonna ride bikes like me and my mates let me and my mates say "hello" at least.

I used to think the most stuck up group of riders where roadies then Triathletes and then most frindly are the MTB crowd. Now there is a new bunch. The poser fakengers with fixed gear bikes that look great.

Now I dont care what you ride , as long as you enjoy it, In any week I will ride MTB, urban, dual, Fixed and a roadie. I get along with everyone cause I just like to ride. these guys really pissed me off. Additedly one of them did say "hey come for a ride on wednesdays from the Cricketers" (he might have said from 7 but I am not sure about that) cause he said he had to catch up.. but even I could keep up on my fat nobbys about 5 seconds later. but really these guys where just rude and rode bikes I would love, well one of their frames perhaps. perhaps one day I can look as good as them.bahhhh they suck.

here(left coloum of 3 above) is their bikes so you too can call them bitches and slag them off.


On the other side here is ED, you can find Ed at RUBYS DINER, aCAFE on Bronte Rd just up from the police station on the same side, great coffe and sometimes some very nice bikes parked out the front, the half link black thing is his. I think it is a felt single speed but he loves it so all is well.
good coffee and good food. I met Ed at a Cycle Mafia event that finnished at deus a white ago.

The whole movement of THE FIXED GEAR BIKE has suddenly appeared here in Sydney and came as a shock to the "bike messengers" here. Bike messengers (I rather call them couriers as that is the local term) feel a bit jipped off. Originally they had the idea that They where the trend setters and that it was theirs. I myself was a nay sayer and said, how can you work on a bike like that, blah blah blahhhh... Its bad for your knees and this and that. Now I ride a fixed gear bike (amongst others) and I really enjoy it. I do not know if I was a working messenger if I woud ride every day on one but I can definately see why they like them.

Another thing that pople dont thank bike couriers for is the enurance racees like 12 and 24 hour MTB racing. 10 years ago there where no long off raod races like that, bike couriers used to hold these events as a picnics, it became popular. you often see strong groups of riders from these backgrounds. On the few events that I have been involved with in one way or another they have always had a strong presence (the bike couriers) and where sometimes even admired as riding for 12 hours was the norm. I even went in a 12 hour race with a "Courier class", the pre-requisite to race in this class was to wear a bag whilst racing.

When I was in Japan last year I noticed how many fixed gear bikes there where that looked like bike messengers but where not. They really made stylizing their bike an art form, some of the riders could not ride down a hill or even get up a gutter.

some cool fixed things to do are skids and backwards circles, then there are more advanced things to do like bar spins and perhaps POLO on your fixed gear bike. Ideal because you can go backwards.

I still ride my geared bikes a lot but it takes me while to remeber that I CAN stop pedaling when I do ride other bikes.

Well the silly season is over.

I spent most of it Just north of Byron Bay, at a place that was just magic. I am not gonna tell you where strictly cause I do not want to see anyone I know there as that is its charm. It is not on the main traps and its a sleepy place that was exactly what we wanted. I did Learn about "HARD LANDINGS" (not the economical version) at Gold Coast airport, talk about scary. your landing and the nose of the plane is definitely DOWN and not up and slowing down. Hard landings are apparently better but they scare the religion outa me.

I was in a town where I could have found a bike but I made the comment to my wife that "I was not getting a bike for the whole week so I could just spend time with the kids and her and not piss off". Browny points achieved. I noticed quite a lot of bike activity there, mostly cruisers and rust buckets that where left out in the elements. One of the rust buckets had Cross Max wheels in a realistic state of disrepair, others where being ridden to the beach and tasks like going to work and being left in front of the shop all day... Kind of like an old western movie where the cowboy gets off his horse and throws the reigns over a fence and parks there as is.

I was lucky to snap this pic of a local who was on her way for a surf. Apparently she left to Tamworth to do some Coutry and Western the next day. She lives in the sleepy town.

A week in this place was awesome. they even had electricity, mobile phone and internet and even had plenty of places to eat. Although the prices in all the cafes and restaurants where sydney prices at least. what was really, really amazing was the attitude of a group of roadies I met. here in sydney there is the snobbery and the attitude you must fight if you wanna talk to the riders. I met a small group who where on their return leg back to Byron Bay. I imediately noticed a fine ALAN bike. simply said these things rock and they still look great. If I had a bike and it was innovative I would want it to look this good and be this respected after 30 years. Alloy tubes glued together. Today they use this sort of thing on carbon onto ally.
I mentioned just before about the group of roadies. This group on their return run home had stopped at a cafe just near where I was staying and I was getting a cup of caffeine. I stated snapping away. The riders where super friendly. WHAT A SHOCK compared to their Sydney counterparts. They where funny and cool. It did not matter if you rode a 100 buck rust bucket or a 10 grand weapon they loved to ride and enjoy the day together on a ride. WHAT A FRESH BREEZE this was. One of the guys had a nice pendant and it looked like a crank set, prolly campy 30 year gold edition for people from Lilliput. yep if you want some bike jewelery of the real kind not just a cog on a leather strap I recommend you hit up EDGE JEWELLERY DESIGN also in the group pic just here on the right side you can see a woman waving away, well she was just walking past. The place had vibe man.. you know what I mean?

Kids spent the days on the beach or seeking adventure on the bridge. After snapping away for a few minutes the kids pointed at me and where jeering me to "fuck off you perve" I mean these where kids and I was taking action pics of them jumping off a public bridge. Where do these kids get these ideas? it frightens me cause this group of kids might have been 12 years old max.

This was the Christmas holidays and really apart from jumping of bridges there was nothing for them to do but do what they where doing. Nothing quickly and lets hope they don't get to bored to quickly. reminds me of the killer kids from DOGMA










I found one night a bit of noise and cheering coming from the park just a block away. The NSW Axemen Association tee shirts where everywhere. Fancy being in a group called THE AXEMEN ... how cool does that sound? anyway they where having a competition and it was new to me. Choppers (the axe men) start on a handicap start. with the worst starting first and the best starting last. In the pic you can see a guy in black and a yellow stripe. He was last to start and is on his very first swing. He won by a convincing margin. Also trend setters, most of them wore Dunlop Volley shoes

"A babe" says Matt
OK I finally got a response form someone after posting my bike with various people 'Holding' it. So mat this here is Megan that you asked about.

Matt, She is no longer single so your to slow my friend.

however she was cool when I told her about how much you like her shots. So here is some more for you.