Happy to support Bicester Eco Con (BaECON)

Tony Walton and Colin Cockshaw stood in the local elections last week to oppose the ridiculous plans to build a so-called "Eco" Town in the countryside north of Bicester.

This hare-brained scheme seems to have been cooked up by a few politicians with no real public consultation or involvement, and is being pushed through with indecent haste by Cherwell District Council.   It appears that there is no master developer for the site, and to get the plans off the ground Cherwell District Council is planning to spend up to £10m of OUR money as seed corn (not sure that's an appropriate phrase, given that they plan to concrete over in excess of 500 acres of fields) for the project.

More details can be found at the BeECON website: Bicester Against the EcoCON

Now I'm converted to ebooks

Despite my earlier post about ebook readers being a rip-off my daughter got a Kindle for Christmas, and really enjoys it and uses it all the time.

Following her lead I've now acquired Kindle for my iPhone, and I'm converted (mostly) to the concept of ebooks.

I know I can't read in the bath any more, but as long as I keep my phone charged I can read books wherever I go.  When I went abroad on business recently I took business books with me, rather than heavy tomes and it was so much easier.

Only a matter of time until electronic downloads overtake paper book purchases now (although they still need to work on the electronic book pricing model).

Can't wait to see the iPad 3

Looks like the Apple website is being prepared for the launch of the iPad3.  I'm glad I didn't buy an iPad2 after Christmas - now I have to see if I can afford an iPad3, or maybe pick up a cheap iPad2 once they flood onto the market?

Another epic technology fail

With my fabulous home insurance I was given "free" access to the Experian CreditExpert service, so I can check my credit status and see if anyone is trying to use my details fraudulently.

Experian make great claims for how useful this would be:
Experian creditexpert

I bought my insurance at the end of May 2011.  It's now five months later and I STILL haven't been able to access this.  I just got off the phone to one of their customer service staff (who was very pleasant I have to admit) but even he can't understand why this isn't working for me and now has to speak to his techies and hopefully will get back to me by Monday or Tuesday.

At this rate I will get my insurance renewal before I actually get to use the "free" service that they included with it.  I get really angry when stuff that should work doesn't and this is another example of companies massively over-promising and under-delivering.

eReaders aren't going to replace books just yet

I just got some junk email from WH Smith about their new Kobo eReader Touch which costs £109.99 so thought I'd take a look.

It might look pretty in pastels (obviously trying for the female appeal) and have batteries that last a month, but I can't help feeling that the electronic book prices are a rip-off.

At WH Smith it is cheaper to buy a paper book (printed, bound, packed and delivered, held on shelf in store until sold) than it is to buy the equivalent copy for the £110 book reader.

The Neutronium Alchemist ebook - £7.07

The Neutronium Alchemist paperback - £6.38

Maybe I'm still old fashioned, but being able to buy a book I can read in the bath, and that I can pass on to the Oxfam bookshop when I'm finished still appeals to me.  And if that is cheaper than the electronic copy all the better.

Support the Bicester airfield heritage museum

Spoke to the chaps from the campaign to save Bicester airfield as a heritage museum while at the Garden Centre today.

We really need to get behind the proposals to save this, rather than letting more housing developers get their hands on this.  We have an almost unique opportunity to build something really exciting which would make Bicester a destination, rather than a housing estate.

Please sign the petition today.

http://www.bc-heritage.org/bicester/

New Amazon Kindle book reader is ripping us off

I've been thinking about buying an Amazon Kindle book reader for a while, but not quite got round to it.  Today Amazon announced a new version, which is lighter and faster.  Brilliant I thought - let's get one.  Then I looked at the prices - in the US it is going to be $79, but in the UK it is going to be £89.  At current exchange rates that is equivalent to $138 - 75% more expensive than in the US.
I know there is state Sales Tax to add to the US price, but even so I think Amazon are taking the piss out of us for being British.

http://tinyurl.com/682rjsd - USA version at $79
http://tinyurl.com/5ugvwlx - UK version at £89

It seems that big businesses can get away with massively inflating prices in Europe, but our regulators seem not to give a monkeys about it.  Yet when petrol or gas companies don't lower their prices fast enough our politicans go mental.

It's no wonder inflation is so high when companies can behave like this.