the-way-to-the-centre http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog a Lazlo Woodbine thriller Mon, 21 Jul 2008 01:25:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.10 en celestial navigation http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/17/celestial-navigation/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/17/celestial-navigation/#comments Thu, 17 Jul 2008 04:10:57 +0000 Ian Technology Asides http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/17/695/ It seems Apple have improved the navigation ability of the iPod Touch with firmware 2.0.

How it works is a bit of a mystery (though I have a theory or two) - it would be nice if Apple would actually publish a user guide for new features once in a while. At least for now it is an improvement over the 1.1.4 implementation.

Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
Plugin by Taragana]]> http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/17/celestial-navigation/feed/ the Millars tale http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/10/the-millars-tale/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/10/the-millars-tale/#comments Thu, 10 Jul 2008 03:50:52 +0000 Ian Asides Cycling http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/10/the-millars-tale/ Garmin’s David Millar is keeping a diary during the Tour de France.

Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
Plugin by Taragana]]> http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/07/10/the-millars-tale/feed/ the quick way down http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/19/the-quick-way-down/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/19/the-quick-way-down/#comments Thu, 19 Jun 2008 05:27:44 +0000 Ian Asides Cycling http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/19/the-quick-way-down/ Frank Schleck demonstrates the direct (though more painful) way of descending during the Tour de Suisse. Amazingly getting away with just minor injuries he was able to remount and finish the stage.

Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
Plugin by Taragana]]> http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/19/the-quick-way-down/feed/ For the one reader http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/10/for-the-one-reader/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/10/for-the-one-reader/#comments Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:48:30 +0000 Ian Asides http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/10/for-the-one-reader/ I aintn’t dead (just busy and uninspired).

Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
Plugin by Taragana]]> http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/06/10/for-the-one-reader/feed/ bike links for a Sunday http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/05/04/bike-links-for-a-sunday/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/05/04/bike-links-for-a-sunday/#comments Sun, 04 May 2008 12:23:20 +0000 Ian Cycling http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/05/04/bike-links-for-a-sunday/
  • Copenhagen Cycle Chic - Nice pics and philosophy from a city where critical mass happens twice a day, every day.
  • Dave Moulton’s Bike Blog - With frames ridden in the World Championships, Olympics and Tour De France, Dave knows his stuff (and there are some gorgeous classics there too).
  • Bike Snob NYC - Somewhat hit-or-miss, but an entertaining view on bike culture (if you can ignore the the majority of comments).
    • Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/05/04/bike-links-for-a-sunday/feed/     where am I now? http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/29/where-am-i-now/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/29/where-am-i-now/#comments Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:02:59 +0000 Ian Technology http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/29/where-am-i-now/ I recently upgraded iPod Touch to the lastest firmware (1.1.4), and the new version of Google maps includes a handy looking ‘locate me’ function where, after polling Skyhook’s database of wireless points, you get a nice target on the map showing where1 you are.

    Unfortunately, since the iPT is wireless only (as opposed to also having EDGE like the iPhone), there is one major flaw in the plan. Namely:

    You can only find out where you are when you are connected to the internet.

    At least in Sydney, open networks in the CBD are few and far between2, and since I know where the open ones are, i don’t really need to use the locate me function there…

    The iPT has plenty of space so even a couple of hundred Mb would not really be missed, and runs a version of OS X which is well capable of managing saved data. Two additions would of course be necessary to allow offline operation:

    1. Allow caching of a set area - i.e. ‘what I can see on the screen, but at max zoom3
    2. Cache the corresponding entries in the wireless node location database

    Maps.app already caches mapping4 tiles (I scroll around collecting tiles at max zoom if I need to go somewhere new), but every once in a while they disappear so it would not seem to be difficult to add this functionality5.

    Armed with these cache files, the iPT would become a viable ‘getting unlost’ tool (I don’t think it is accurate enough to call it navigation, but from my tests it gets it right with 200 - 300m). At the moment, the locate me feature is not a whole lot of use.

    1. More or less ↑
    2. Rumors of free wi-fi citywide seem to have been rumbling on forever ↑
    3. I think you really need the street names if you are trying to navigate with the iPT ↑
    4. In /var/root/Library/Caches/MapTiles/MapTiles.sqlitedb (if you really want to know) ↑
    5. An extra iTunes tab would probably be easiest to mange ↑
    Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/29/where-am-i-now/feed/     too many cooks http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/03/too-many-cooks/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/03/too-many-cooks/#comments Wed, 02 Apr 2008 23:39:00 +0000 Ian Asides http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/03/too-many-cooks/ Design skills - Some have them, some don’t. I wonder if Matthew Dent gets a percentage commission for each coin in circulation.

    Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/03/too-many-cooks/feed/     bring me sunshine http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/01/bring-me-sunshine/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/01/bring-me-sunshine/#comments Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:30:16 +0000 Ian General http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/01/bring-me-sunshine/
     

    Unfortunately, at around 10,500 miles away, walking much farther is just starting to come back…

    Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/04/01/bring-me-sunshine/feed/     give a man a bike http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/20/give-a-man-a-bike/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/20/give-a-man-a-bike/#comments Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:53:49 +0000 Ian Cycling http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/20/give-a-man-a-bike/

    Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring. Desmond Tutu1

    [Via].

    1. Citation needed ↑
    Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/20/give-a-man-a-bike/feed/     looking but not seeing? http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/17/looking-but-not-seeing/ http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/17/looking-but-not-seeing/#comments Mon, 17 Mar 2008 03:35:30 +0000 Ian Asides http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/17/looking-but-not-seeing/ Not sure if this on on TV at the moment too - TfL’s bike awareness advert. Clever and a little startling.

    Copyright © 2008 the-way-to-the-centre. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. This text will hopefully annoy anyone sponging this feed. Please contact Ian@the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk so he can point and laugh.
    Plugin by Taragana]]>     http://the-way-to-the-centre.org.uk/blog/archives/2008/03/17/looking-but-not-seeing/feed/