Monthly Archives: April 2012

Law News

CISPA Law End of Freedom

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Many worldwide governments are trying to pass a new law to allow them to watch emails, texts and calls. First of all let me point something out any government with the proper resources could do this without you knowing anyway and just makes this law pointless because if they are going to watch you then they will find a way.

Months ago governments wanted to pass two laws that were identical to CISPA, these laws were called PIPA and SOPA. In a practical world these laws would never pass because it breaches human rights, anyone has the right to keep things private and this includes emails, texts and calls.

If it becomes a legal requirement to hand out access to this information then the human right laws are pointless. I doubt CISPA would pass and if it does we might as well hand over everything to our local governments because from this point it means you have no privacy or freedom.

News Personal Robotics

Ball Bearing Robotics

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Six Degrees of Freedom

Many months ago I was researching robotics and after many hours of watching stanford university lectures I started to draw up loads of diagrams of skeleton stick man who I could use to show my theory of ball bearing robots. This theory works off the Six degrees of freedom (6DoF) which are backwards, forwards, up, down, left, right, pitch, yaw and roll.

Six Degrees of Freedom

Six Degrees of Freedom Picture Credit Wikipedia

If you interlink a robot with ball bearings you will end up with many degrees of freedom because each ball bearing point will contain the Six Degrees of Freedom, this will allow the robot to become very flexible. When we bend our fingers we only have a certain amount of freedom where as a robot built with small ball bearings could in theory curl its finger joint and is able touch behind the knuckle joint.

The diagram below demonstrates how it is possible to use ball bearings to touch the back of a finger.

Ball Bearing Robotic Finger Compare

Ball Bearing Robotic Finger Picture Credit Marc Corn

In reality this is a simple concept but it will take some engineering to make it happen, let me know what you all think in the comments below.

Microsoft News Operating Systems

Ad Supported Operating Systems

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A few years ago software giants Microsoft and Apple were toying with the idea to make an ad-supported operating system that allowed their customers to upgrade to the latest software at no extract cost but it meant you had ads showing throughout the day. According to some sources, they have stated the ads would have rolled on a 10 minute interval and it would appear near you clock.

Now, let me point out the biggest flaw in this concept… You need the internet to even have ads running and if you have the internet, you run the risk of leaving your system potentially open to more attacks than normal. All it takes is some smarty pants to override the ad API and it could be used to take your personal information or what your browsing throughout your computer.

I can see why this concept came to light, many users don’t want to pay the high prices for operating system upgrades because in some cases it can set you back around £100 or more each time, depending on the software vendor it could cost you less. In a practical world this concept would have paid off for the vendors because software upgrades would increase and the revenue obtained per install would leave them with a higher profit margin.

There is one thing that needs to be highlighted and that is the chances of the software vendor launching two versions of its software, ad-supported and no ads. In todays application world this is seen widely on mobile applications where you pay a small price to remove the ads but personally I don’t think this would work in operating system environment purely because the upgrade prices would be around the same price as buying it ad free.

Overall the concept is tangible but to the average user they will just dismiss the concept and pay full price for the upgrade, which means the concept is flawed. Depending on the ratio of paid and ad-supported installs it might not generate the right profit margins to cover overheads and other running costs to make it worth while.

Health Personal

Living with Arthritis

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Recently I have been diagnosed with arthritis in my left shoulder, upper back and neck. Something I wasn’t expecting to happen so early in my life but given my existing health problems it was bound to happen.

Over the years I have always suspected I would get arthritis in some form because I have found it harder to do simple tasks but personally I was expecting to get arthritis in my ankles or knees as I get pain in them all the time and knowing my luck I probably have but i won’t know until I have proper tests.

The hardest task will be how I adjust to the situation and how I can make things easier to prevent anymore damage to the affected areas. I guess the first step I will take is to look for special equipment to aid me, such as a tea tipper for the kettle.

If anyone has any ideas then drop me them in the comment section, needless to say like everyone else I just need to get on with it because there’s no taking back the damage now.

News Social Networks

New YouTube Partnership Facts

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On the 13th April 2012 YouTube announced that they would be extending the partnership program to everyone but what did this actually mean? Loads of users presumed that they were a full partner but this isn’t true.

Here are the facts: YouTube did not make everyone a partner, all they did was allow any account to monetize their videos straightaway. Since the end of last year YouTube was introducing this slowly across existing accounts and now it is open to all without meeting any criteria.

Full YouTube partnership is still available but in a different capacity, YouTube have taken away the partnership apply form which means you don’t have to apply to become a partner but instead YouTube will invite you to become a partner.

The new partnership level is nothing new and isn’t really partnership it just means your account is monetized and your able to make money by placing ads on your videos. Also with this level you will NOT get any extra features like a channel banner or scheduled uploads, these features are only available for FULL partnership accounts.

I have personally tested this on a new account and without uploading a video I had all options to monetize and when I uploaded my first video I was able to monetize that video straightaway.

I guess YouTube got users hopes up but on the bright side, your able to make money from your videos straightaway without meeting a criteria.

Health Personal

Curing Phobia’s

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A phobia is defined as a “fear” of situations or objects, in medical terms it is an anxiety disorder. I suffer with many phobias that leave me fearful of basically everything and I have had these for around 10 years now.

Over the years I have seen many specialists to try to cure my phobias but nothing has worked, seeing a specialist is all well and good if they can help you work out what triggers the phobia but on the other hand their help can only go so far.

Curing a phobia isn’t easy and from experience it can make matters worse but of course this all depends on how complex your phobias are. Taking baby steps is the key to curing any phobia, think of yourself like a baby duck learning how to swim for the first time. You wouldn’t just jump in and expect to know how to swim, you would ease yourself into the situation and learn how to do it.

Always remember everyone is different, don’t dismiss any help offered because it may offer you some help but keep in mind the only person that can help you overall is yourself. You have to build your own road to recovery, no one can make that road for you.

Personal

Lead By Example!

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Leading by example can always be a hard thing to do but that’s one thing I aim to do in my life. In my recent blog post I discussed the topic about my health and male anorexia story, after much comment reading I have found that a lot of people support my story and give lots of support which I really love to see because it has been hard for me and to this day still is.

The unfortunate thing like any news story it has a backlash of hate comments, now don’t get me wrong everyone is entitled to their own opinion but some of the comments got very personal. I don’t see why I should be judged because I was born with cerebral palsy and on a day-to-day basis I have to take a lot of tablets for anxiety, spasms, pain, constipation and anti acid. I wake up every morning feeling like rubbish, my family have to help me do everything that even includes a washing routine.

I hardly ever leave my house because I stumble and fall which means I go months on end not leaving the house and even if I do go out I am escorted by a family member. Even in my home I stumble and fall.

Never the less with this said I still help others if I can even if it is just a text seeing if they are ok. I know sometimes I can’t help because I don’t understand everything but I still try. I sometimes hate my learning difficulties because at times I want to help but I just can’t think of a solution.

In my life all I care about is making other people happy. I know that statement may seem silly but if I can just make one person smile then that makes me happy. I guess in a way that is how I get through day-to-day life, put this in prospective I am mostly bed bound but I still help others and the only reason why I still help people in that state is because it makes me feel like I am doing some good in this world.

On a last note, I only shared my story plus life events to lead by example. I don’t live behind a big smoke screen I am who I am.

If I can help just one person avoid the pain I go through day-to-day, then that means I have reached my goal.

Personal

Break Ineed, Male Anorexia!

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As some of you maybe aware that I occasionally make YouTube videos under the username “iPhoneSnappyGuy” or “AwarenessPictures.com”.

Throughout the time I have published on YouTube I have always suffered with sickness and I have always pushed myself through all the pain but recently I have felt much worse. I know the support helps me get through it all but sometimes it’s harder just to push through the pain.

Recently I have had my story published in many worldwide media outlets. The story covers many aspects of my health condition. The story also highlights my ongoing struggle with anorexia and phobia’s.

If you would like to read my story then the link can be found below.

On a last note, I will be taking a long break from any online media including my blog.

I thank everyone for the support, without you all I wouldn’t be able to get through the day.

Remember Stay Safe!

Male Anorexia Story

Betting Horse Racing News

Tragic End 2012 Grand National

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Horse racing is such a dangerous sport as today’s Grand National proved.

Only 15 out of 40 horses finished the race, 22 horses came out unharmed while 2 were put down and the other received treatment from a vet.

‘Synchronise’ the favourite to win the race was one of the horses that had got put down and the other horse was ‘according to Pete’.

According to many sources this was one of the most dramatic races in the history of racing.

Putting the sad news aside, well done to Neptune Collonges and jockey Daryl Jacob for winning the 2012 Grand National.

Betting Horse Racing

Grand National 2012 Tips

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The Highlight of the Horse Racing calendar is Finally here! Last year Ballabriggs won the famous national race and some betting outlets have tipped him to win again this year.

Here are my picks for the 2012 Grand National:

On His Own (14-1)
Synchronised (9-1)
West End Rocker (14-1)
Ballabriggs (12-1)

Good luck to everyone taking part in the national both on and off of the race course!

If you need any help understanding fractional odds then you can find a free calculator below.

Webbox.me Fractional Odds Calculator

[UPDATE 14-04-2012 08:50 GMT]

Here are the horses I picked for today this is on a Combination Tricast:

Synchronised
Ballabriggs
Chicago Grey
West End Rocker
On His Own

I predict “On His Own” will win the 2012 Grand National!

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