YouTube throws up so many wonderful things

~ Inquisitor

For example, the original Soft Cell "Sex Dwarf" video, which most people think is completely unavailable; as banned by local Trading Standards and in piss-poor third generation French VHS quality (for no obvious reason; the video isn't as nasty as, say, NIN 'Broken Movie'.) Oddly, the video release version of "Sex Dwarf" isn't on YouTube, although an Old Grey Whistle Test performance with more listenable audio is.

It's nice that there's a place on the Internet where we can watch this stuff on demand, because otherwise it's a trawl through godawful file sharing outlets hoping we'll find a .mpg – videos are somewhat rare, especially ones like "Sex Dwarf" that weren't even properly released on VHS. Plus, YouTube allows us to find stuff like this, which you'd normally never see even on the best of DC++ hubs. I love it.

My first blog spam!

~ Inquisitor

On my oldest post to make sure I didn't see it; obvious spam sign.

Aw, such a shame it got caught in moderation (automatic moderation for first posters is on). But it's a rite of passage that all of us have to go through at some point, and I feel proud to be worthy of spammer slime.

Spam follows:

Have you ever been to 'you tube'? they let you host videos there and you can hotlink them on your blogs. it's really cool and you don't have to bandwidth on the videos, cause its free.

I have a policy of naming and shaming blog spammers, so…

  • Spammer is at [66.207.210.226], owned by Beanfield Technologies
  • Attempts to joejob YouTube, the popular video sharing website; links to scumbag's YouTube profile, user name "newsmaniac", who appears to be related to the website nakednews.com. Scumbag registered only five hours ago; suspicious or what?
  • Email address is supposedly "newsyoutube@yahoo.com". Yeah right.

Since when did a naked news website need spamming? Even through a two-level scheme of user's URL to YouTube profile to pornsite? Oh, the world we live in.

I have crystallised my rule set into a simple comments policy, which can basically be summarised in one line: if you're not a spammer and you're not out to cause trouble, welcome.

Windows XP on Intel Mac – the official way

~ Inquisitor

With full drivers, including ATI, and dynamic non-destructive partitioning.

This is the best thing Apple have done for a long, long time and it's going to hopefully be huge. Now people can use OS X for normal work, and dual-boot into Windows whenever they need to run Windows-only engineering software, AutoCAD or Half-Life 2. I don't own a Mac, but I've always liked OS X and their laptops and now they're definitely on the purchase agenda.

Cameron says something right again

~ Inquisitor

Whatever you think about David Cameron, and I wouldn't vote for him, he is very good at laying into people who deserve it.

The UKIP, of course, still condemn themselves through their weblinks as being a bunch of "good ol' days" types – naive at best, sinister at worst. They link to the British Weights and Measures Association, a bunch of "metric martyr" cranks who do things like vandalise metric road signs, refuse to buy dual-unit scales and so on (despite metrication, in fact, predating Britain joining the EU). They link to various very right-wing organisations. There's the occasional codeword.

UKIP have a long, long history of various nasty people in their party; their standard anti-European xenophobia being just one element of it. A quick Google for "UKIP racist" gives us articles from the BNP's newspaper on the first page complaining about them getting into the market, and a Wikipedia article that links to a good column by Johann Hari.

Googling for "UKIP homophobia", on the other hand, gets you a Sunday Herald article about them allying with the League of Polish Families, who are a bunch of ultra-Catholic anti-Semitic homophobic tossers (especially their truly scary youth wing.) This, incredibly, went ahead. Sadly, Richard Corbett MEP's extensive UKIP-racism/homophobia PDF dossier is no longer available, but it might still be out there somewhere.

Cameron is, surprisingly enough, on the money. Hope he sticks to it.

Unbelievable

~ Inquisitor

There are currently, in most cities, two bookseller chains – Ottakars and Waterstones (the latter owned by HMV.) There are also the supermarkets, who undercut everyone but only sell a Top 40 and Dan Brown, Amazon, who most people use, and local bookshops, who are totally outgunned. By allowing Waterstones to buy Ottakars, most people's choice will reduce to zero; it's Waterstones, Amazon or the supermarkets. New authors won't have a chance.

Yip, you guessed it, the Competition Commission have just approved said merger. Unbelievable.

Iron Sudoku: sudoku Web 2.0 style

~ Inquisitor ~ 1 Comment

This is a rather brilliant idea: Iron Sudoku, which is basically a Web 2.0 version of one of the innumerable sudoku websites out there. As you beat each puzzle, you gain points on your account; there is collaborative chatting and a friends system. The grid itself is Javascript, and works *very* well in Firefox. If you like sudoku, I'd highly recommend it.

As for myself, if the owner can make a kakuro version I'd *definitely* be sold…

A part of Scotland in 2006

~ Inquisitor ~ 1 Comment

No, really.

Ferry operator Caledonian MacBrayne has been accused of "wrecking a way of life" by running the Sunday service between North Uist and South Harris.

Sunday trading is still pretty much banned in the Western Isles, except in the more sensible Catholic parts. Sunday flights to Stornoway by BA/Loganair and BMI only started in 2002. Apparently, even watching TV on Sunday is frowned upon by the local Free Church.

Not everyone in the Western Isles is like this: after all, if there wasn't a market for it Caledonian MacBrayne wouldn't be running the bloody ferry and BMI wouldn't be flying a 60-seater plane there. The local fundamentalists have got a stranglehold over the council, however, and will raise a stink if they don't get their way.

Unsurprisingly, the Western Isles have got one of the highest alcoholism rates in Scotland. Can't think why.

[For a laugh, check out this BBC Have Your Say discussion, which like all Have Your Say has "political correctness" complaints and entertainingly bad "if the Muslims did it, would you be complaining?" arguments.]

Fake sheikh a go-go

~ Inquisitor

Could this possibly be the first worthwhile thing George Galloway has ever done? I generally can't stand him, but by busting Mazier Mahmood he's provided an immense public service to every poor sod who's been screwed over by him and the News of the World.

Does it make up for supporting Saddam, being a bit dodgy, keeping some very bad company, or going on Celebrity Big Brother whilst elected as an MP? Not quite, but it's a start.

Embrace picked for England World Cup song

~ Inquisitor ~ 8 Comments

So once again, barring either hell freezing over or the second coming of Jesus, the only decent official England football song will remain World in Motion – which was an accident anyway.

No surprises there, but they could at least have picked someone like the Kaiser Chiefs who would hopefully have produced something fun. Even the awful pun ("World At Your Feet") suggests it's going to be a toecurler, but we can only live in hope that one of the unofficial singles is bearable. Especially since England, as usual, will probably survive to the quarter finals and then get knocked out on penalties, meaning for prolonged exposure to the song.

But then, football in Britain is wrong, and has been for a long time – concerned only about itself and not about the people that blindly fund it. And when they look at things pop-cultural, it invariably gets it wrong – and how (backing something completely unmemorable against Three Lions in 1996, just as the most obvious example.) There are many more important things to complain about in British football – like how our ticket prices are a lot higher than continental Europe's – but this is just the most obvious example. Oh, New Order, where art thou?