Titles and Pronouns


Some giant question marks standing in a field. Photo by https://www.flickr.com/photos/dbrekke/181939582/

I am not a linguist, nor an expert on gender. I'm just trying to muddle my way through this confusing world the same as anyone else. The English language is adaptable. We'll happily bodge words together to make new ones, verb our nouns, and grammar-flex to the point of breaking. It's a fun language! English […]

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Six Months of Solar Power Stats


We've had our new solar panels for 6 months. Here's how they've performed over summer. 3,361 kWh Generated 2,445 kWh Exported ===== __916 kWh Consumed Despite working from home every day, using laptops, monitors, microwaving lunch, we only used about 5.5kWh of solar each day. About 72% of our summer generation was sold back to […]

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Movie Review: Palm Springs


Two people sat on pool floats, drinking beer.

When carefree Nyles and reluctant maid of honour Sarah have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated as they are unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other. It's almost impossible to review this movie without giving away the twists and turns that it takes. Just know that it is […]

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Don't trust Cloudflare with your personal data


It has been over a year since I cancelled my Cloudflare account. They keep emailing me and haven't taken me off their marketing lists despite repeated requests. Their CTO told me he would investigate, but nothing changed. Their Data Protection Office hasn't respond to my requests. Cloudflare do not appear to respect the GDPR. I've […]

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WOTAN - the Font of Doctor Who and the War Machines


The War Machines title card.

As part of my silly floppy artwork, I wanted to find a retro computer font. Then I remembered that there's a 1960s Doctor Who serial with this beauty. The War Machines is a cracking slice of 60s sci-fi. It's very groovy. But what font is it? It isn't Westminster. The W is completely wrong. And […]

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Cisco AnyConnect for Linux - save profile


Binary code displayed on a screen.

I couldn't find a simple guide to this - so these are notes to myself. Create a file called myVPN.xml: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <AnyConnectProfile xmlns="http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/encoding/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/encoding/AnyConnectProfile.xsd"> <ServerList> <HostEntry> <HostName>My Work VPN</HostName> <HostAddress>vpn.example.com/connect</HostAddress> </HostEntry> </ServerList> </AnyConnectProfile> Place it in /opt/cisco/anyconnect/profile/ Now, when you launch your VPN client, it will show you your saved hosts. Huge […]

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Review: YumAsia Mini Panda Rice Cooker


Rice cooker which looks a bit like a panda.

I read this wonderful article about the invention of the rice cooker and, because I am easily influenced, bought one. This is the YumAsia Panda Mini. It seemed to hit the sweet spot for physical size and price. For £80 you get a rice cooker, steamer, and utensils. Makes enough rice for 2 people. Although, […]

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Should Twitter tell you if you've been following a fake account?


A report from Twitter saying an account was suspended.

I get a lot of random Twitter DMs from attractive women who are desperate to make friends with me. I usually report the obvious spammers. But a few weeks ago, one nearly slipped through the net. The woman was wearing a military uniform - a proper one, not a sexy Hallowe'en costume - and was […]

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Opening a Rediffusion Junction Box


Rediffusion junction box JB 134.

Way back in the mists of time, the UK had a Cable TV service called Rediffusion. It had a long and noble history, but has been defunct for the best part of 40 years. All technology leaves scars on the landscape. And Rediffusion was so popular, that it had junction boxes built into the walls […]

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How can I get consistent sizes with physically different monitors on Linux?


Multi monitor settings showing the relative placement of the screens.

I can't think of a concise way of wording this. I have three monitors. Each has the same resolution - 1920x1080px. But each one has a different physical size - 61 cm monitor, 39 cm laptop, and 48 cm monitor. Here's my problem. When I move a window from one screen to another, the window […]

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