Hello.

Back to work today after a couple of days off sick. Turns out it's pretty chilly outside. Berocca and Lemsip are my friends. (Yes, I know, I should just eat some oranges and take generic paracetamol, but then I wouldn't feel like I'm living in the future where magic pills and tasty dissolved powders have rejuvenating power.)


Wear a bicycle helmet? Prefer to look a bit like you're on safari?
http://www.yakkay.com/

Pinterest has got a lot of attention in the past few weeks. Here's one little example of what happens when the web meets the mainstream. A storm in a tea cup really. Personally, while I like the fact that Pinterest isn't Reddit or indeed 4chan, I don't really think that's in too much danger of becoming either.
http://gawker.com/5881798/hot-new-social-network-pinterest-torn-apart-by-marginally-crude-picture

Real-time train information using open data. Very nice.
http://www.opentraintimes.com/

Between iPlayer, 4oD and Lovefilm (both for the DVDs through the post and for the online streaming) I'm generally able to watch things I want to watch rather than just whatever happens to be on. Obviously, I've been keeping an eye on the arrival of Netflix in the UK though I'm not (yet) ready to jump ship. Competition can't be a bad thing here though. In fact, I've noticed Lovefilm have recently (marginally) improved their range of streaming TV content, which I assume is in order to patch up their weaker area. More please. More!
http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2012/02/03/netflix-under-the-microscope/

Aleks Krotoski writing thoughtfully for Wired about why your Klout score is meaningless (and let's not be in any doubt, it really is)
"...our past actions can't predict future intentions. They can only signal our past reliability and suggest what we might do in the future. Regardless, an entire economy of ideas is based on online reputation, because it's the people with the reputations and the social currency who get people's attention. "Attention" has become a synonym for "influence". And that's nonsense."
http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/03/ideas-bank/aleks-krotoski

LEGO continues to struggle to get it right. Paradisa, Belville and now of course Friends. (http://friends.lego.com/). You probably saw this when it caused a stir back in December (http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2011/12/its-lego-but-you-know-for-girls/).
Whether you missed that or not, I'd thoroughly recommend this 10 minute video which does a good job of highlighting the problems. "...making the mini doll an entirely separate species works to further segregate the LEGO Friends theme from the rest of the LEGO universe."
http://www.feministfrequency.com/2012/01/lego-gender-part-1-lego-friends/ (and I'm looking forward to watching part two.)

Oh yes, I'm an AFOL
http://www.fbtb.net/2012/01/25/studs-comic-4/studs4finalsmall/

Chris Dalby now reads this newsletter on his Kindle, and has shared the code he wrote to make it happen so you can do the same. (It strikes me that another option might be to use Instapaper, which can both package things up for delivery to your Kindle and receive things via email). I've not tried either option myself.
http://yellowpark.posterous.com/pytinyletter2kindle


Yours sincerely
Roo