Code is out to get me

Following on from my last post where I told you all, yes it was a very interesting post, about my hassle with the table tag, yeaterday I spent what seemed like a couple of hours with another coding problem.

I am doing the html interface for a CD ROM for work, eg I can do it cheaper than the firm who were doing it and as it is simply changing links and adding a few new ones it seemed like an easy job. However when I got into the code I realised I need to add a couple of sections based on what had been coped before. But could I find out which piece of code needed copying? Yep, same answer as the HTML Hell post. To make matters worse the issue is again to do with tables. I mean how difficult can it be to find the beginning of a section, copy it and then rename the text within? So perhaps a late night tonight and I may even revert to using my trusted Hot Dog 7.03 html editor to help me understand the structure.

The Times reviews didn't hold anything worthy of a comment this weekend, but I did manage to catch Match of the Day - both 1 and 2. This does deserve a comment. I thought the aim of this program was to show football, however it seems that they are now trying to turn it into a seeding ground for untapped stand up comedy. It is like Saint and Greavsie without the aforementioned presenters, but equally unfunny. Dear BBC, please leave the football comedy to Fantasy Football.

HTML hell

Aaaargh. Ok I'm trying to set up a site with a table based layout and the firfox vs IE hassle has once again surfaced. I have it perfect in firefox but can I get it to layout right in IE? Can I ****! And can I understand what the problem is? Same answer!

I thought if you specified a table cell width it would stick to it, and in firefox it does, but in IE it doesn't. Happily the tea isn't going cold as I'm supping some stella but that isn't the issue. (And no I'm not so tipsy I've done some obscure piece of coding - the coding I did was a few days ago).

But what is the solution? Well I'll go and have a look and see if I can sort it. But at the same time I'm using the 2nd pc in the house and the monitor is playing up - although not sure if it is the monitor or the graphics card - it keeps flicking from normal size to a reduced size and it is annoying me.

How could they do this?

It must be the day for quoting The Times (I'm so livid I was almost tempted to put the 't' in The as lower case in complaint). In an article talking about Harry Hill creating a TV programme for children the author, (who isn't named on the online version - scared eh? You should be!) talks about their dislike of slapstick comedy. Ok slapstick isn't to everyones taste and each to their own, I accept that. But when it comes to the following sentence that is a step too far. After a brief journey through comedy history, listing slapstick people who they find unfunny, they then state the following:

Their contemporary equivalents are the Chuckle Brothers who manage to be both
unfunny and decidedly sinister — and not in a good way

How could they diss the comedy gods of children's TV! I may well have to write to Barry and Paul in a fit of outrage to demand that they sue for libel and then console them! How could the author say that they are sinister? What could be sinister about two middle-aged guys with northern accents, short hair, moustaches and who always hang around together?

The rest of the article is here

Bananarama review in The Times

Forgive me if I'm wrong but did anyone in the 80's ever take Bananarama too seriously? For anyone who bought, and liked listening to, their records, I am sure that part of the appeal was that it was throw-away pop that didn't take itself too seriously. Now I never bought any of their stuff but they were a laugh and there were many nights out that I found myself dancing along to their bland sound, both prior to the Pete Waterman era and during.

I read with interest the review of their new CD in The Times on Saturday and ended up not sure whether to laugh or let the tea go cold in despair at the reviwers comments

Read it here

The way the review ends by saying that their sound descends into

track after track of forgettable electro-pop that suffers from poor production and the pair’s weak singing

I am sorry but I seem to have missed something, surely that was the appeal of the group! They never were great singers, the music never was greatly produced (there is no argument as to whether Pete Waterman is anywhere near Trevor Horn when it comes to producing) and it always was forgetable electro pop that would never change the world. That was what made them the most successful girl group of the 80's!

Windows eXasPerated

So I am supposed to be working at home today and so when I sit down to turn on the PC and start working a strange thing happens. The PC already seems to be running - I'll investigate that later - anyway when I try to log on nothing happens, it's hung. So I restart and go through all the 'you did not shut down your PC' and scandisk malarky. Then when it finally gets ready to start I can't log in. Well that would be an understatement. I can log in but the log in only takes me as far as the desktop picture and nothing more. So to solve things I have to run msconfig and fortunately I somehow get to the system restore option. Luckily there is a restore point a few days back and so nothing major gets lost.

However this all took over two hours to sort out - scandisk runs terribly slow, I really should clean up the PC - and so a days work has been lost, I will now take it as annual leave but the thing is, it is just a pain.

Stil I did manage to down a couple of nice cups of tea while waiting and sorting it out ;-)

Today programme 18:10:05

A quote from the BBC

'Karl Rove, often described as George Bush's brain....'

I'm not saying a thing

Ladytron II

Just caught an advert/ preview of Bleak House, the new adaption that is being shown on the BBC . The preview uses the opening track from the Ladytron CD. So if you see the advert you'll have heard the band. Check them out, they realy are worth it - well I think so, but then i do like the Cardiacs too.

Phew, just had to use recover post - it worked ;-)

Torchwood

OK, I think we could have some fun with this, unless April fools day has now moved into the autumn.

I don't know whether this will work though, I can't help but think that the more we have from Mr RTD will lead to a lowering of the wonderful standard set in Dr Who.

So before I whittle on too much, tyou'd best find out what I'm on about. So go here.

'The truth is out there, you know, in Cardiff'

Hard to believe

Now I am probably tempting fate here but the scenario of changing my web host has seemingly gone smooth. I did all the swapping over of domain names today and so, all being well, from tomorrow evening I can start linking things up. I've been waiting for this for over a month now because I had to change from my previous host because I wanted to pay via paypal. I then found the new host and if everything goes smooth I'll start telling you all what a good service they provide and how, if you want a host, they are the people to go to.

So do I let slip what I'm going to do? No, I'll let you all sweat for a little while, partly because I'm not sure what software to use on the sites at the moment and partly because I want to make a big song and dance when it all goes live.

I've not been well you know

Mmmm, it's slipped my mind where that quote comes from, but that just goes to show how very ill I have been. Yes, a severe bout of 'man-flu' has waylaid me. Yet here I am ready take on the world again.

I have lots of plans for the next few months and will be revealing them as I go. Suffice to say that I feel a few big changes coming in the next few months.

Bought the Ladytron CD the other day and think it is fab, it's the 1980's with a 21st century makeover. Can't recommend this highly enough, and if you get the chance to see them live go on, take it. In the meantime I have to save all my pennies so that I can go and have a listen to Tim and the boys. The Cardiacs dates are fast approaching and I still haven't got the ticket, let alone the trains fare.

Serenity

OK, where do I start?

• at the beginning?

You mean like a flashback scene, only we don't know that it is a flashback scene?

• yea, you're getting the idea!

This will set the scene for the next two hours, of possibly the greatest sci-fi movie I have ever scene.

• how can you say that?

Well, I did say possibly. But I am quite certain this will be there or there abouts when the revolution comes and they put me up against the wall.

• So why the brash statement?

Simply put Serenity is a sci-fi film that isn't genre derivative. It is sci-fi but fresh. I believed in the characters and cared for them; they were real. They were funny, cruel and both human and super-human. The film was 'cool' without the need for pouring rain, darkened alleyways and eerie music (however the soundtrack was great).

I don't want to say too much because I don't want to give too much away. However, you should try and do all you can to see this film. I laughed, I almost cried and I was most definantly entertained. I never saw the TV version 'Firefly', but if it was anything like this film, then I can't understand how it was cancelled. I mean are people that stupid that they don't want to watch quality characters, story driven plots and a script that so sharp you could split the atom? Actually, looking at the people I passed on the way to work there is no need to answer that.

• So what are you going to do Darren?

Sorry, aren't you from another film?

• My apologies, please continue

Go and see Serenity. I am sure you'll love it.

Cinema trip

Off to see Serenity at the cinema tonight. Looking forward to seeing it (no idea what it is about apart from it's sci-fi so can relax and enjoy), and to getting a tub of nachos with chillies, mmm nachos.

Tied in to the film is an interview with Joss Whedon, the writer and director, and my blog hero Neil Gaiman, at Time magazine. You can read the interview here. Wil try and tell you what I think of it tomorrow. Ubtil them I've got a day of finishing lots of small jobs.

Get organised

Anyone who knows me will know that I am not the most organised of people. Yet this isn't because I don't try (yes I can be very trying at times). However I thought I'd let you know about a very nifty desktop solution to organisation which I'm having a look at and indeed trying to use. It is called WikiPad and just like an online Wiki is very good at organising things. Hence the reason I'm going to have a go at using it. I could prattle on for ages about what it does but you'd probably get more useful info if you go to the site - WikiPad.

It has got me thinking a lot more aboutperhaps using an online Wiki (in my web-empire) to organise my thoughts online. I'll let you know how it goes.

Sin City

Bought this at the weekend - shouldn't have as I couldn't really afford it but needed a little pick me up and my crack dealer is on holiday ;-)

Now I liked it. I thought the visuals were stunning and the one liners were fantastic. I have never read the graphic novels but have seen plenty similar. Ok, it is very violent, and I mean very, and this was accentuated by the use of the primarily black and white filming. If you don't like violence steer clear but if you want to see Frodo turned from cute, big-footed saviour of middle earth to a crazy canibal then it could be for you.

Bruce Willis was Bruce Willis. Clive Owen was surprisingly good, and I think he may even make a good James Bond now, very much in the style of Timothy Dalton (the welsh one, for all you partridge fans) (Andrew, what you think?). Devon Aoki was frightening yet awesome as the 'tart' assassin. But my favourite of them all was the wonderful Mickey Rourke. I thought he was great in Angel Heart but this was a fantastic return for him - crazy, in-love and in need of a 'damn fine coat'.

So I liked it and it is the sort of thing I could watch over and over. I'm sure the screen capture program will be working overtime to get some of the visuals.

So some favourite lines:

• Worth dying for. Worth killing for. Worth going to hell for. Amen
• That there is one damn fine coat you're wearing
• And when his eyes go dead, the Hell I send him to will seem like Heaven after what I've done to him
• She doesn't quite chop his head off She makes a Pez Dispenser out of him