She got back on Saturday. I started drafting a post that day, but seem to have lost it down the back of a cyber-sofa :>
I’ve got the 2nd monitor setup now, see below for a quick shot of how it looks and a desktop screenshot. (I’ve had to obscure some figures in the google sidebar stats – otherwise I’d risk losing my AdSense account…) It looks a little weird, as the main monitor is at a resolution of 1280X1024, and the 2nd monitor is running at 640X480.
The desk needs a serious tidy up, and if any friends from the UK checkout the desktop shot, I’m well aware I used to tell them to reduce the amount of services and apps running in the system tray, but, well, do as I say, not as I do :> (Plus I know why my PC takes a while to respond sometimes, I’ve chosen to install it, rather than just the let the clutter accumulate by always choosing full installation options for everything..)
Oct 30 2006
Irina is Home
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Oct 25 2006
Ira Is In Moscow
She just called. Well she phoned earlier, but I was 99% asleep still. I’ve recently been looking at getting a small second monitor, to use for system monitoring/WinAmp visuals/Google Desktop sidebar on. We found one in a shop here in Astana recently. Unfortunately it had several large air bubbles on the screen’s surface; not a problem the shop guy claimed, it is merely a protective film you remove once the screen is plugged in at home. That made sense, like the ones you get on mobile phone screens etc. Something didn’t look right though. So, we told the shop asst. that if he removed the film, then and there, and the screen was OK, that we’d buy it on the spot. He tried to remove the ‘film’. He struggled quite a bit, eventually using a safety pin to try and peel off the ‘temporary’ film. Oooops, no it isn’t removable, so if you are in Eurasia shopping centre, here in Astana, don’t go buying a 8″ monitor, as it now has air bubbles and corners scratched off. I might have felt more guilty, if it weren’t for the guy’s assertions that the bubbles weren’t anything to worry about.
Anyway, I digress, Ira has found a nice 10″ monitor in Moscow, and if all goes to plan, I’ll have it in my possession when she returns to Kazakhstan. Not sure when that is yet.
btw, if anyone wonders why the screen is so small (10 inches), it is a compromise; I’d ideally like two 19″ side by side, Irina doesn’t want the living room to be overpowered by screens. So, this little screen is a good compromise.
Oct 19 2006
Shoulder Holder
There are other photos to come, but I couldn’t resist quickly posting this one…
Karra may just have been a pirate’s parrot in a previous incarnation…
Oct 19 2006
Alex Is Back
Helloooooooooooooooooooooo Alex. Really glad to hear from you again. Don’t feel bad about the delay in comms – most UK friends haven’t contacted us in ages, some since we left the UK! Anyway, will mail you when I’ve finished off current batch of work this evening…
Back to stuff other people might find intersting…
I was looking at some random USB gadgets, and found this page, which actually grew from the original, but that page is in Japanese, so check them both out for the fuller picture. A quick summary is that someone decided to crank up the heat generated from their USB coffee cup warmer to the point that it now fries meat!
Next we have some interesting news about a batch of Video iPods that came pre-installed with some delightful code for PC owners. Apple deny any deliberate subterfuge on their part.
Finally, whilst checking out pages to place links on for my clock website, I discovered this little gem. I’ve considered petitioning Irina to get a similar setup in our living room, but gave up quite quickly. I think I’ve been lucky enough to get this nice PC desk…
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Oct 16 2006
Pretty Good Weekend
We took our kitten home, from the in laws, today. Not yet named her, the proposals are Pippa, Socks and a word I’ve forgotten already (Karra?) that means black in Kazakh. Anyone else think of anything? It needs to be easily pronounced by Russian and English tongues, be feminine, and be shortened easily…
The last one was suggested by KZBlog owner’s wife; we met up at the Chelsea (an ‘English’ ‘pub’) again Saturday night. Had a good time, ate a little, drank a little more, and talked a lot, their prices are definitely higher than the average bar, but the selection of food is good for wimpy westerners like me, and I tend to feel a little freer talking about life over here than I would normally…
FINALLY the PC Hardware was all fitted. For the last 5 months, I’ve been waiting (we’ll get the stock next week, next week, next week, oh we had it, but sold it to someone else etc. etc.) for a Graphics Card upgrade (nVidia 7600GT>7900GT) and a replacement 320 Gig Seagate SATA hard drive; for the last week and a half, Ucon (the PC shop in question) has PROMISED to visit our flat and deliver them (to make up for the delays) . Each day, they didn’t turn up, and each day they didn’t bother to call and let us know they couldn’t make it. Sadly, this isn’t exactly unheard of, in respect of customer service levels, here in Kazakhstan. We gave up in the end, and went back to the original plan, so we took the PC to the shop and dropped the printer off to be repaired. They laughed at the amount of programs I have running (what’s the point in a well specced machine if you don’t fully utilize it’s resources), and the lights I had fitted. Had being the operative word, they took it all out, fitted the hardware, then put it all in a bag for me. Also caught the shop assistant trying to copy some of my games. 1) Don’t do it without asking, it is rude 2) Don’t be stupid, simply copying the directory the game is installed into onto their machine will not likely result in a working application, and oh yeah 3) Copyright theft is bad hmmm. Well offered to copy my installation DVDs (only for Public Domain games, obviously…), and they could have it when we came to pick up the repaired printer. Hoping that is enough motivation to see the printer back soon…
I now have just over 850 Gigabytes of storage space, so shan’t be running out anytime soon. Especially not downloading via dial up access to the internet. Irina’s mum had ADSL installed in the last week, so I’m hoping we’ll either get that or WiMax sorted soon….
Continue reading “Pretty Good Weekend”
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Oct 13 2006
It is 9.45am
I’ve been working for 3 hours, and the final shock…. I’ve already had a full nights sleep!!!
Looks like there is hope for me eventually going to bed the same time as most people around me, and getting up before midday :>
It will, however, mean that I’m not online with Messenger when my friends in the UK are, other than weekends…
Irina’s Mum now has ADSL, at a whopping 128Kbit ! We’re still waiting for WiMax to progress out of it’s testing phase, or if that fails, for our phone line to be transferred out of the clutches of our flat’s maintenance/telecommunications over-charging company, so we can get ADSL as well.
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Sep 24 2006
Jumping On A Bandwagon
Found this article today on Richard Hammond and Top Gear, obviously inspired by the aformentioned’s crash. Couldn’t stand the guy’s attitude to be honest, but have a read and see what you think.
Also checked, and this site is now back down to #2 on Google, when searching for Chris Merriman. Not sure what went wrong, I’ve not lost any links to this site, I guess I’ll just have to live with the shame somehow ;>
I now have a Kazakh SIM card for my phone, msg me if you need the #. Got GPRS working for both of our phones, and can use them as bluetooth modems for the PC, which should keep me happy, and Irina happy, at least on my behalf…
Couple of days, and ChrisD will be over here; the weather has actually improved a little, but I’ve not told him yet, want to make sure he actually buys a coat (his first in over a decade!) and packs some warm clothes. I thought about not posting the weather info yet, but then remembered that he never reads this bloody thing anyway, so think we’re safe. Also Ira said the forecast is for the weather to get chilly again next week. Just hope the sunshine lasts long enough for him to experience it.
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Sep 22 2006
One For The Milk Drinkers Out There
You need to be so careful buying milk here in Kazakhstan. If you put it in tea/coffee, or cooking food, it might not be so apparent, but for any drinkers of milk, or breakfast cereal lovers, the milk takes a while to get used to.
I might just be hypersensitive to the smells/tastes (I worked in a dairy for a while), but a lot of milk tastes like it has gone off, the minute you open the carton/bag. (Who the hell thought a bag was a sensible container for milk!) As an example, I went shopping yesterday, and thought I’d try a couple different brands of milk, as the only ‘good’ source of milk was out of stock, again. I got a bag of normal milk, and a carton of UHT (long life), thinking it would be a safe bet. I don’t like the taste of UHT so much, but I thought of the two, at least one would be usable.
So, I got home, and thought about making a milk shake, and tested the ‘normal’ milk. Euuuuuurgh! It tasted like it had been left open in the sun for a few days. Oh well, no loss, threw it down the loo, and went to the UHT – best before date had 4 months to go, and it stated it could be stored at 0 – 30 degrees centigrade, prior to opening. It was worse, far worse – the milk had completely separated into a watery liquid, and some clotted fat floating around.
So, the moral of the story is, ummmm, well not sure – either don’t ever work in a dairy prior to visiting Kazakhstan, or maybe it is try to hold your nose whilst drinking milk over here, or maybe just give it up for a while :>
=-=–=
UPDATE: Irina bought some more milk from a different shop on the way home, same brand, same type, and it tastes fine. Corn flakes, milk shakes and Angel Delights (mum bought some over for us) are now back on the menu :> :>
Sep 21 2006
Light At The End Of The Tunnel
For those that haven’t heard already, I’m currently waiting for a few things from the local PC shop over here, and have been for a while.
Actually, five and a bit months so far for most of them. However, Irina called them for me today, and apparently….
A 7900GT grafx card should be ordered in for me arriving next week (paying the difference in price between it and my current 7600GT)
The 320 Gb Seagate SATA hard drive I gave them wasn’t recoverable, data wise, but they’ll replace the unit, as it appears to be faulty (hmmm, I’m guessing that accidentally reversing the polarity of the DC input, via plugging in lighting system incorrectly might not have helped, but shhhhhh ;-> )
If they can’t service the printer, they’ll replace it. (The printer pretends it doesn’t have any paper loaded, you click on the continue button, and then it notices it, multiple times per print job)
When they come over and swap the grafx card, they’ll hopefully disconnect my case alarm as well – before anyone laughs, yes I do think I’m just about capable of doing that job solo, but I’d invalidate their guarantee…
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Sep 06 2006
More Dasha And Kittens Photos
I’ve managed to cut down the amount of photos I wanted to post, from around 40, to the following 7.Once more, click on the images to see a slightly larger version.
They’re currently adding about 10% of their weight per day, and although still blind and pretty docile, starting to form their own individual characters.
Going back tomorrow to say good bye to Ira’s mum, who is away on a trip to Russia, and see the kittens again.
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