Technology

So, I think I have stumbled across what may just be the best book of 2011 and it is amazingly titled 'It's a Book'. In a world full of gadgetry everything can be by replaced by one. With Kindle and other E-book viewing and reading devices it is not surprising that the 'jackass' of this book has no idea what one is. It is a full illustration of the separation that is starting to occur between the individual and the everyday bound paper book.

Put in my hands by a young child hoping that I would read it for them I was totally blown away by the content of the book. I have not seen a book like it since 'Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus' and loved every page of it. I think I have found my 'gift of the year' not just for nephews and nieces but also for each and every one of my geek girl and geek guy friends. :)

This is my book of the year for sure. Set with a sense of irony that it is published in a print format rather than an online cartoon this great book illustrates the gap between a reader and the hard copy print of a book as a result of the digital age. Poking fun at the gadget comparisons of what a device can or cannot do this book shows the absolute wonder that comes from opening a seemingly plain book. It is fantastic book and I recommend it for any child or adult as it has put everyone I have spoken to about it into roars of laughter and even tears. It truly shows how times are changing...

One of the things about having a blog is the need for regular contributions. The interesting part about Egg Splatter is that it is a conglomeration of blogs on one site to spread the burden from one person to many.

In theory, this means more regular blog posts with a lower burden on contributors. Yes, in theory...

These past few weeks business has been chaotically busy at best. I am lucky to have found the time to scratch, at best, and Husband@Work has been just as busy. If it weren't for the meeting of toes in bed at some point during the night I would be sure we wouldn't know each other had 'knocked off' for the day.

Of course, it must be the season for it, maybe even the pre-pre-pre-Christmas rush that has also taken out my co-contributors too! A few have half written ones hiding out the back waiting to be finished off. Some will, no doubt, also be backdated so watch out for that too. We have all had our distractions of one sort or another.

Clearly, I have been so busy that I have not had time to splatter eggs for a few days and it is affecting my sleep. I hope that some writing will ease that and my bed and an accompanying set of toes will help rectify this.

So much for the theory of shared blogging!

Unless you have known me for some time you may not realise that the fact that I am just a tad 'geeky' does not make me 'gamer'. I detest most PC and console games. No, my 'geeky' nature comes partly from relational influences which led me to those in the world of 'open source' and once you enter that black hole there is no return!

So this week I installed the upgrade my current Ubuntu setup. I am now running 10.04 Lucid Lynx beating my husband to the post. Yes, out with the old and in with the new and improved Ubuntu desktop - the latest model.

Everything we buy these days seem to have more and more add-on widgets. However, many perhaps do not have the thought put into them that perhaps they should. From a systems perspective many fail the basic logic that one would expect.

One such example would be the inclusion of time spent in 'Park' when it comes to determining true fuel consumption in the Mitsubishi Pajero. Too much time spend with the car idling away whilst you test the trailer lights, keep children and the fridge cool in the driveway as you prepare to go on holiday means you get figures like these:

Make sure that your widgets are fully thought out - won't you?

By now all Australian business owners making use of PayPal should have received an email about the gathering of business information for Australian PayPal accounts with transactions over a certain (unspecified) level as a part of the Australian Anti-laundering Legislation. When you reach this level they will limit your account until you provide the additional information.

I guess this blog post serves as a warning to those who operate as a Trust (either Discretionary Services or Discretionary Trading) that you may be in for a wait. In the last hour I have had the joy of advising someone in U.S.A. that there are a few of us that will be not be able to truthfully complete their few questions because the first question is a multiple choice for your business type and they failed to include trusts in that list. (Apparently I am the likely the first to report this problem).

If your business operates as a Trust and has a PayPal account please make alternative cash flow management arrangements for your business. When they limit your account they remove your ability to withdraw from your account until your details are verified. In the case of Trusts, this is not yet possible so prepare for a longer than 24-48 hour wait.

For those working in business services with clients that meet this criteria - please pass this information on for their reference.

Edited to add:
This is perhaps not the worst part for some businesses either. As part of the limitations PayPal users are also denied the ability to send payment requests. Being locked out of an essential service is not my idea of a good situation.