My banal thoughts for 2009-07-03

  • Forgot to mention I got accespted into TAFE today! So I'm gonna be a webcoderhacker like @oliyoung and @mokargas et al. #
  • RT @ChanelZampogna: today I was talking about killing a chicken with a paintball gun. Turns out there are easier ways to get chicken soup. #
  • How long have those of you with Google Wave Sandbox accounts had to wait from request to setup? #
  • RT @Tarale: Help out @oliyoung with his gearbox problems! Just $3 to help an #Adelaide developer get his wheels back – paypal deets to come. #
  • Help an Adelaide developer (and all-round nice guy) fix his car. Donate a small amount to @oliyoung via paypal: oliyoung@gmail.com #
  • Shopping for essentials: icecream, yogurtshop yogurt, pudding, custard, choc scones, video, milk, bacon, bacon, bacon. #
  • And bananas! What would I have with my bacon if I don't have bananas!? #
  • Can I just say that the network video at aberfoyle park are the greatest video place in Adelaide. #
  • Unlke Ho's new album is out on iTunes, go go go! At least buy Kindergarten: http://bit.ly/3Ise4B #
  • Whoops, just followed someone by mistake. Then unfollowed. I swear I'm not one of those followsy-unfollowsy-follow-gatherery types. I swear #
  • Excitedly awaiting @networkvideohub's first tweet. Manager Scott is a fantastic bloke, and he and Ryan Twittering for the first time tonight #
  • Of course @networkvideohub's first tweet might depend on the customers tonight and how long it takes to get IT Crowd ready for the shelf. #
  • I would read a comic with this superhero: http://bit.ly/dyYUn #

Network Video Aberfoyle (@networkvideohub)

This entry is part 5 of 5 in the series Follow these people

As of posting, @networkvideohub hasn’t tweeted. I’m hoping that will change soon!

Today’s follow recommendation was a last minute ring-in. On a whim I suggested to Scott Thomas, the manager of Aberfoyle Park’s Network Video, that they should start a Twitter account, and he sounded keen. I thought it’d be neat to be able to tweet movie recommendations, check whether videos are in stock and generally interact with the staff there, who are all so nice.

The staff there have taken the time to learn my name, and give me recommendations when I go in of videos that I might like, having learned the type of videos that Camilla refuses to watch. And the Scott has very good taste in movies too, which is a good thing for a movie store manager. The other week I asked about the IT Crowd, and Ryan immediately hopped online and ordered it. That’s service.

They haven’t got a website for me to link to unfortunately, so their Twitter account will have to do. Follow @networkvideohub if you want to support a local Adelaide business who’s trying something new. Follow them for information on the latest movie releases, movie recommendations and because the staff there are friendly and know videos.


My banal thoughts for 2009-07-02

  • RT @lordfolland: @joshnunn @Talie5in @tarale edSatan making SSOs and teachers feel scrugged since 2009. :) – we were scrugged long before! #
  • RT @HenryGooden: You can now buy iPhones direct from the Apple Oz store outright and unlocked – http://bit.ly/p5otl – Now I just need $1000 #
  • RT @HenryGooden: @joshnunn I'm pretty sure Apple accepts drawings of spiders as payment – Awesome. I have a pic of a 7 legged one here. #
  • RT @JarrodTagni: Congratulations Aberfoyle Park- Ranked in the top 50 most liveable suburbs in Adelaide. The Sunday Mail – insight 21/06/09. #
  • How many Adelaide suburbs are there though? Fifty seems about right. #

Mo Kargas (@mokargas)

This entry is part 4 of 5 in the series Follow these people

I’ve never met Mo. You might think I’m afraid of him because he’s scary lookin’ or because he’s a “400ft tall doomsday megabot” but I’m not. I just haven’t had the opportunity yet. He isn’t scary online though – in fact he’s quite the opposite. His avatar shoots laser beams from his eyes, but I’m sure they’re laser beams of joy.

I’ve followed Mo soon after I joined Twitter. He’s one of the more active Adelaide Twitterers, despite the fact that he’s unapologetically a Friendfeed fanboy. He’s just as active on both services though, and happily pops in and out of both to carry on cheerful conversations with his many followers. He’s helpful and talented, and an inspiration with his (rassafrassin) custom workouts. He tweeted the beginning of his plan to get fit, and has reported huge successes since, showing tremendous determination.

His ReactionDynamics site showcases his photography and 3D design work, as well as his impressive resume. It also contains a picture of Mo with his sweet Abraham Lincoln beard.

If you wanna follow someone who’s well known to both Twitterers and Friendfeeders alike, who sometimes talks like a robot, has a wicked wit, and is and all-around overachiever, follow @mokargas. And on Friendfeed too, if that’s your thang.


My banal thoughts for 2009-07-01

  • @oliyoung @joshnunn has the hots for the news reader! wink in reply to oliyoung #
  • RT hopeinhell: i'd like to have an instant recall of millions of lyrics so that i could answer every question with a line from a song.. YES #
  • Sorry birdfeed (new Twitter client) you are shithouse. Can't get retweets right, forget it. #
  • Hey, I missed this. TAFE SA are planning a move to cloud based email for staff and students. http://bit.ly/15Rzvn (via @Tarale) #
  • @Tarale yay for TAFE being smart! And sounded like the proposal was written for google. in reply to Tarale #
  • So hey everyone… IT'S FREAKIN' COLD OUTSIDE TODAY! What century is this? We can't figure a way to heat up the worlds climate?! #
  • And while I'm on the topic, what's with all the heat in summer? #
  • @Talie5in @Tarale And iPhone! I want to do my tax on my iPhone! And my Commodore 64! @KevinRuddPM why is there no C64 version of eTax? in reply to Talie5in #
  • @Warlach What Vark needs though, is a way to connect to twitters I know. You, for example. in reply to Warlach #
  • @Tarale Oh, I completely agree. I'm not sure if it will work on Win 7 64bit version, so I may be in the same boat. Just joking around. in reply to Tarale #
  • @yellekau So I can run a C64 on my iPhone… that helps me run eTax? I thought we'd established there's no version beyond 32bit windows! in reply to yellekau #
  • @hopeinhell Make them use twitter until they get it right? in reply to hopeinhell #
  • @Tarale @Anthrox and while they're at it, the same people can re-write EDSAS (SA school database) to be web-based too. in reply to Tarale #
  • @Tarale @KevinRuddPM If it's web-based, and written with standards I could use #eTax on my iPhone AND my Commodore 64! #fixeTax in reply to Tarale #
  • If any of my twitter-friends want to join me on vark, here is my link: http://vark.com/s/GNOE #
  • @Talie5in if it works, that's great! I'm not sure they can make anything without "ed" in the title though. and edJosh doesn't really work. in reply to Talie5in #
  • RT @lordfolland: South Australian Teaching and Assessment Network for EDucation. I LOVE IT (prefer @Talie5in's name) #
  • @WarWraith And more importantly, why am I not invited! in reply to WarWraith #
  • @Froosh And why do they think they are important enough to warrant a herald? Ooh, I'm going to DM my PA to have them arrange a time to tweet in reply to Froosh #
  • @Talie5in @mokargas @Tarale – I just couldn't make that sentence not be gross. I was looking at the word ex and just couldn't comprehend it. in reply to Talie5in #
  • Just got my monthly uptime reports – 100% for both sites I'm watching. Very impressed. #
  • @monnie it only works for certain names. joshnews joshstapler all stupid. Maybe the ee sound helps. mattybucket mattystapler – less stupid? in reply to monnie #
  • @monnie We know you're awesome. We have a day to celebrate it remember: http://bit.ly/Oroxg but the next one isn't till March 19th 2010 in reply to monnie #
  • And who says that Twitter is going to beat Google at real-time search, when I had to search for old tweets from Google? #
  • You know, it'd be really nice if four of every new followers I get weren't really obvious spammers. "Ooh, how excit… oh poo" #
  • @Tarale But if they can't index stuff that's STILL ON THEIR OWN SERVERS then something is amiss with their search strategy. in reply to Tarale #
  • So one of the big issues with GoogleApps for education was message security – cyber bullying etc. http://bit.ly/17tmhR FIXED #
  • @Talie5in I don't know what DECS criteria are. I know that They might be doing something like it eventually anyway, just REALLY slowly in reply to Talie5in #
  • @halfgoon I'm not. in reply to halfgoon #
  • @radiostarelle SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE in reply to radiostarelle #
  • @oliyoung I second that motion #SpicksAndSpecks in reply to oliyoung #
  • So far so good, no one angray at me for writing about them. OK with you too @beaugiles? #
  • @BeauGiles HOORAY! I'm always afraid that people may not like the way I see them. in reply to BeauGiles #

Beau Giles (@BeauGiles)

This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series Follow these people

Beau is one of my few core Twitterers who I haven’t actually ever met in person. But he’s the epitome of what the internet means for relationships for me. Though we’ve never met I’ve known him for about a year now, and I respect his knowledge of technology, I appreciate his perspective as a high school student, and I love his enthusiasm and sense of humour on Twitter.

He was one of the first people to follow me on Twitter (out of the blue), and then a few days later emailed me for access to a locked website I administer. I’m pretty certain it was completely coincidental but if he hadn’t added me to Twitter I would have given him access, as it was only through Twitter I knew he was a high school student and not a teacher as I would have assumed – HA!

I’ve followed his websites in their various incarnations over the last year. Unfortunately I’ve only realised in writing this that his entire site has moved AGAIN, and I need to re-subscribe to his blog. It’s packed with tips and tech news and obviously updated a lot more often than I’ve been thinking for the last month or so!

If you want to follow someone who’s full of energy and enthusiasm, is a little quirky, has a passion for geekery, and I suspect may have a little of the drama queen in him you can find him on Twitter @beaugiles.


Free Google Message Security for primary and secondary schools

Today we’re announcing that Google Message Security will be offered free to current and new eligible K12 Google Apps customers that opt-in to Google Message Security – powered by Postini – by July 2010. Google Message Security lets administrators limit messages based on who they’re from, who they’re going to, or the content they contain. Message rules can be applied to groups of users, making it easy to customise the scheme for different groups (for instance younger students, older students, and teachers). via Official Google Australia Blog.

There really are no excuses any more. Paying a truck load of money to some little company run by hillbillies to provide lousy support and a product that doesn’t work for no tangible benefit over a FREE set of tools that are world-class… We have to do better soon.


My banal thoughts for 2009-06-30

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Taryn Hicks (@Tarale)

This entry is part 2 of 5 in the series Follow these people

I know Taryn from her days on the state school ICT helpdesk. She was very helpful and cheerful (on the outside at least), and willing to work through stuff over the phone. Then she moved into the section that dealt with website stuff, got hopelessly frustrated and left for greener pastures, but not before drafting the guidelines that schools can use to make their websites meet govt. standards… although most schools don’t.

» Continue reading Taryn Hicks (@Tarale)


My banal thoughts for 2009-06-29

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