And it’s achieved this despite the fact that a) I don’t eat pancakes, and b) I’ve never bought a Jif Lemon in my entire life! It seems Jif’s marketing team scored 10 out of 10 for brand association and recollection (even to the point where Shrove Tuesday will always be Jif Lemon Day, to me). But in terms of boosting their sales, I’m afraid I’ve not contributed a single penny…

All that aside: in case you are planning a pancake tossing extravaganza tonight, you might want to bear the below recipe in mind:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/basicpancakeswithsuga_66226

Enjoy!

In our heart of hearts we all know that we should use energy and fuel better than we do but none of us really bother unless we can see a real incentive or reason to do so.

It is simply amazing to see the dramatic effect that a steep rise in petrol prices has on people’s driving – at least for a while, but how do we translate this into a long-term way of living?

I don’t care whether you are a climate-change sceptic or a tree-hugging liberal, the simple fact is that we should not be wasting energy – if only for our own selfish, individual, financial reasons.

You don’t need to buy into the global warming debate to see the sense in that.  Use less petrol in your car, or less gas and electricity in your homes and you will literally be quid’s in.

At the moment, the media seems particularly full of comparisons with the 1980’s – The Falklands War, rising unemployment, Thatcher in the news, etc. etc. etc.

One of the things I remember most from that time was a catchy advert for Maxwell House coffee which had the memorable line of ‘Get the Max.’  For me, it epitomised the spirit of the times, which was all about the American dream of ‘having it all.’

There was no real thought to any consequences as they simply didn’t exist in the Gordon Gekko world of dog eat dog. Grab what you can, while you can, and scr*w the rest!

But as we all now realise, there are implications in everything we do.

So whether you do agree with the overwhelming majority of scientific thought – that we are rapidly ruining the only place we have to live and survive – or remain convinced that nothing is wrong and nature will sort it all out, you simply can’t deny that times are hard for all and there is no sense in wasting money when you don’t need to.

And the beauty of it all is that you don’t even really need to change things that much.

In petrol terms, this means less harsh braking or F1-type acceleration, using the gears properly and paying attention to the traffic so you can anticipate the ebbs and flows correctly.  All things that we should be doing anyway, if you’re driving as safely as I hope you are when I commute home every night!

As for our homes and businesses I’ll come back to them another time.

Until then, drive safely, carefully, and considerately, and save yourself some money in the process. Who knows, you might also be saving the planet!

A key indicator to its direction is the fact that its being shown at a “mobile” event; surely Windows is a desktop operating system? Maybe not for much longer, which opens a whole new area to the way in which we currently work.

There is no doubt that tablet computing is flavour of the month (or year), which itself only went mainstream in 2010. It is also true that Microsoft is losing a lot of market share in this sector to Apple and Google’s Android operating systems; it was recently reported that Apple’s iphone division on its own is worth more than the whole of Microsoft! A big fall indeed from the company which, due to its clout and monopoly of the industry, faced years of anti-trust cases through the European courts.

And I actually believe that tablets can offer a huge advantage to many companies, with their lightweight designs, almost ‘instant-on’ access and apps which can perform a myriad of tasks to help users. But these work well as secondary devices to a decent desktop / infrastructure. Would I want to create a PowerPoint presentation from scratch, adding images, resizing, theming etc on a tablet device? No way; they are simply not designed for the task!

Microsoft now believes that ALL programs (ie Word, Excel, Photoshop, Outlook – in fact any program or package that you use on your PC today) is an “app”. And you will, using Windows 8, access these apps from ‘tiles’. Really? Productively, in an office environment? True multitasking does not seem to be handled well (but to be fair, the company has only shown early builds so we will have to see this more in the forthcoming preview). But Windows 8 does seem very heavily geared towards touch devices, such as tablets, with little thought of mouse, keyboard or multi-monitor support – not to mention the plethora of legacy hardware devices such as printers, scanners, etc. SCSI devices? I doubt it.

There is a fantastic preview and round-up including a video from engadget.com – do please watch the video and post your thoughts.

Of course, there is nothing to say that you have to upgrade to Windows 8 – but this is the future, and its not looking very healthy for core PC users.

I will be watching development of this very closely and will follow up as more information comes out.

Well, at 6:30 most weekday evenings, they will be the ones laughing hysterically as the traffic crawls tediously along.

Why? Well the 6:30 slot is where a lot of new comedy is first aired in Britain and where classic, long-standing shows demonstrate why they have stood the test of time.

Don’t believe me? Well what about shows like Little Britain; Mitchell and Webb; The League of Gentlemen; Armstrong and Miller; The Mighty Boosh; Dead Ringers; Knowing me, knowing you, Alan Partridge; The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.

All of these started life on the Radio before transferring with differing levels of success to the TV.

And that’s not including the many that haven’t yet transferred but could or should: Old Harry’s Game; Just a Minute; I’ve Never Seen Starwars; Giles Wemmbley Hogg Goes Off; Down the Line; Clare in the Community; Cabin Pressure – I could go on.

My favourite without doubt is ‘I’m sorry I haven’t a clue’ which is simply an irreverent and nonsensical collection of silly games played brilliantly by Graeme Garden and Tim Brooke Taylor (of Goodies fame), the fantastic Barry Cryer, and A N Other guest – such as Jeremy Hardy who simply cannot sing to save his life!

The passing of Chairman Humphrey Littleton did have fans wondering if he could ever be replaced and although Jack Dee is not and will never be Humph, he plays the ‘droll role’ well and delivers the inevitable double entendre about Samantha with aplomb.

But in addition to making the journey home a little more bearable, there is a more serious point about the value of ‘talking’ Radio.

It is easy to cocoon ourselves in our 4-wheeled, motorised boxes and slip a CD into the slot or switch to a music station to distract or entertain you.

However, as a self-confessed ‘news-junky’ I generally flit between Radio 4 and 5, which gives me a good balance between ‘up-to-the minute’ accounts and more in-depth coverage.

And it is almost certainly more informed that the inane news coverage generally available from most ‘popular’ radio shows, which simply regurgitate the tabloids.

When I’m driving is also a good time to think about the accounts I work on and often an item on the news will give me pause for thought about something I’m working on, or a feature will just spark the germ of an idea that I can translate into a new opportunity for a client.

So the next time you’re stuck in traffic, switch channels and you can be the one laughing hysterically that everyone is looking at!

As a local business we know only too well the extent to which metal thieves will go – Inver House is just a few hundred yards from the war memorial, and we too have had lead stripped from our roof in years gone by. Today we’re protected by a multi-camera night-vision CCTV system, which is monitored 24/7, but it’s unfeasible to think that public funds will ever extend to installing CCTV above every war memorial, manhole cover or section of railway track. And nor should it have to!

Thankfully for Carshalton, we have Stuart Nebbett to thank. As a scrap metal dealer in nearby Mitcham (B Nebbett and Son), he was so disgusted with the thefts from the war memorial (and the reputation it is giving his industry), that he has picked up the £21,000 bill to repair it.

However, before the thieves even think of making a return, they’ll be disheartened to learn that the brass plaques have been replaced with engraved Portland stone.

According to the Daily Express, metal theft now costs the UK £1billion a year. And a tonne of copper is worth almost £6,000, up from £1,900 in 2008.

Whilst the video news piece is buffering, I visualise the scenes of devastation I’m preparing to see in Los Angeles, San Francisco or perhaps even Seattle.  But on viewing the footage, it seems the storm hit Alabama, Tennessee, Illinois, Mississippi.  None of which, by my reckoning, are on the US west coast.  In fact, we’ve got to be talking in the region of nearly 2,000 miles adrift?

That’s about the same level of accuracy as confusing fierce storms in London with a similar weather-related incident in Cyprus!  Perhaps the Beeb should be proof-reading and sense-checking these headlines?  Furthermore, that page has been online for an hour now, and still no one has noticed!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-16700462

On the same evening my wife told me there was a message on my phone at home to ring the bank manager… Not being sure what it could be about I sent the bank an email at approximately 11pm UK time. Within minutes I had received a personal response and the query was resolved.

What a difference – well done NatWest!

Whilst I’ve found myself sitting next to (and not always by choice!) the likes of Michael Portillo, Terry Wogan, Richard Hammond and even Gerry Adams, other colleagues have a much more colourful collection of experiences. Like the occasion when John McEnroe turned around and asked my colleague to stop kicking his seat (which he quite clearly hadn’t been), or the time one of the team boarded a BA flight to find none other than Richard Branson was on board (it seems he isn’t always loyal to his own brand).

But until last night, I’d never thought it might be possible to board a flight and find you are sitting next to a bird of prey. Until I stumbled upon this page on the Royal Jordanian website:

Falcons in Cabin

Falcons may be carried in the cabin on limited occasions, especially in the Gulf area, provided the following is adhered to:

• Falcons can be carried in Economy (Y/C) class only.
• Falcons must be properly hooded.
• Seats blocked for falcons and handlers must be window seats in the AFT areas of Y/C zone.
• A chain or rope must be securely attached to the aircraft seat and the leg of each bird.
• Valid health certificates and all other entry documents required by country of entry or transit must accompany the bird(s).
• Falcons are accepted at the owner’s risk.
• The reservation must be arranged at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled flight departure time and an approval is required from RJ’s Systems & Procedures Section.

Important Notice

One falcon is charged three times the normal excess baggage rate. More than one falcon per handler will require the booking of an adjacent seat.

Maximum: two falcons per seat.

Max number of falcons per aircraft type

• Narrow bodied aircraft: 10 FALCONS
• Wide bodied aircraft: 15 FALCONS

I have a feeling next week’s BA shuttle to Glasgow is going to seem very dull if there isn’t a bird of prey on board…

Smart phone or smart camera?

As a self-confessed “gadget geek” I do try to keep abreast of the fast-moving scene – so no real surprise that I’ve been keeping an eye on the internet for news from CES (the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas).

Amongst all the headlining tablets and micro-thin OLED TVs at 55 inches and above (who has that space in their living room for these?) – Polaroid caught my eye with a truly innovative take on the norm: whilst we are all using mobile phones with ever increasing photographic capability, Polaroid has taken a camera and added phone capability!

The Polaroid SC1630 Smart Camera is a 16 MP compact camera with 3x optical zoom, and crucially includes a bespoke version of Android, which adds WiFi and 3G connectivity for Geo-location, web browsing, emailing and photo uploading on the move.

So as mobile phone manufacturers sold their handsets on ever increasing sensor sizes, Polaroid has opted to make the camera itself a more multi-functional device.  That makes a lot of sense, and will be interesting to see how this works in the ‘real world’.

The only thing that isn’t clear at the moment is whether or not the camera can actually make phone calls!  Polaroid are remaining tight lipped on that at present.

Would you be tempted to ditch your relatively low image quality mobile phone for such a camera?  Time will tell with an estimated arrival time of April 2012.

And a brief overview from CNET UK:

So imagine my surprise when I got a confirmation email in my inbox today from Dyson, thanking me for registering a new product and advising me that my two year product guarantee has now begun, and who to call if I have a problem. All very useful information, but I’d purchased this particular item more than a year ago, and completed the online warranty registration on the day of purchase.

James Dyson has invented some amazing household items over the years, but perhaps it’s time he had a look at re-inventing the speed of his internet connection?