June 2011

Vive le Tour

Fri, 24/06/2011 - 12:25pm — jethro

I came up with a bunch of different first sentences for this post - but ended up with this lame one because i couldn't decide which to use - potentially they were all lame anyway

Quiet exuberance hardly describes my emotions…
I'm off to France - so long suckerssss…
Say hullo to the new HTC Ambassador…

See what I mean - lame.

Anyway now that that's over let me introduce to you the new HTC Desire S Tour De France Ambassador. Moi!

HTC have selected me to go to France for the last week of the 2011 Tour to be their HTC Desire S Ambassador. What that means is they are giving me an HTC Desire S Android handset and hopefully enough phone credit to go nuts with it over there. I'm to report on the phone and how i use it to keep a daily blog and photos and video of the tour including the awesome Champs Elysees seating package I have. Did i mention its also a cycle tour so i get to manfully (or whimper like a girl) struggle up Alpe D'Huez amongst some other rides including the penultimate days time trial circuit. In addition I get to meet the HTC Highroad team and report on their progress in the tour.

Trepidation, Excitement, Nervous Energy, Adrenalin. Some of the things happening right now. This has been a dream of mine for years. I was planning on going to the Tour Down under next year - but this tops that! No more late nights sitting watching scratchy SBS broadcasts (we live in a poor reception area) - I'm going to be one of those blokes on the side of the road with their shirt off cheering like an absolute idiot as the guys ride by up the Alpe!

Lucky Buggers I used to mutter under my breath. Now I am the Lucky Bugger!

Stay tuned for more.

Follow my tweets on http://twitter.com/spyjournal and facebook at http://www.facebook.com/HTCau?sk=app_251315594884338&app_data=author:tim-miller where my diary posts will be published.

Bookmark/Search this post with

Round up of Excel Tips and Hints

Thu, 09/06/2011 - 6:10am — jethro

As Office 2010 becomes more prevalent in the workplace (most of our clients either have or will be soon updating to it) so the use of the ribbon has become more natural and intuitive for people. It is certainly much more intuitive than the old menu driven interface.

Play a fun game called Ribbon Hero 2 that allows you to learn the fastest and best ways to do various common tasks in the various Office Apps. My kids are using this to learn the interface and some of these common tasks. I have even learnt some things in the 5 minutes I have spent playing it so far! Download Ribbon Hero 2.

Take the first step in growing your Excel Skills. Microsoft have created a series of learning videos that assist new users to Excel to grow their skills

Learn how to create your own Excel Macros with a free training course. Ideal for the entry level person who wants to explore macro writing for the first time. Note this doesn't create efficient code, but its a start to understanding how the VBA code interacts with Excel.

PowerPivot for Excel - if you have looked or used PowerPivot (See my review of Power Pivot) than this page has some good links for additional resources.

Bookmark/Search this post with

The ups and downs of a condom advert - rip and roll

Mon, 06/06/2011 - 5:48pm — jethro

I am finally going to weigh into this public debate that has turned into a farce.

Housekeeping:

Some of what I am going to say is factual and other is opinion - I will clearly define each. Comments will be moderated - if you shoot the messenger and not the message, if you cant elucidate your thought clearly without turning to vitriolic or childish abuse then i will moderate / delete your comments. However if you care to comment on either side of the debate clearly and succinctly then I will allow you comment with no editing.

(Facts)

First let me describe the situation for clarity.

A Rip and Roll advert appeared in bus shelters and billboards. It shows a man kissing another man on the neck while embracing him from behind while holding a condom.

The advert is clearly not G-rated, and contains messages that are clearly not suitable for children (regardless of your sexual persuasions).

There was an immediate request to the advertising company by Senate candidate Wendy Francis and this resulted in the ads being removed. A counter response by gay activist groups had them reinstated and a media storm resulted. Refer: The Drum

Bookmark/Search this post with

Site Construction and Maintenance by Jethro Consultants

Gidday
Glad to have you stop in.
I write about my family, the internet, technology and gadgets, productivity with Microsoft Office applications Excel Tips and more.