Pirating

Should I pay for music and DVD's or not? It is so easy to use programs like Kazaa to access billions of music tracks and video sitting on users computers around the world, but would I do that rather than put money in the pockets of those deserving song writers and artists?

Well, I must confess that many moons ago I did in fact use Kazaa (with Black Ice to block all those nasty little hacker types trying to drop code on to my PC!). And in truth I did download a number of tracks that I didn't own (since rectified with respective purchases for those tracks I wanted to keep, and deletion for those I didn't!). But what changed my mind was not so much the morality of illegally downloading software, but the acquisition of my iPOD. iTunes is a wonderful piece of software allowing me to easily manage my music, listen to radio and podcasts and of course, buy music at lower prices than on the high street.

In fact I find iTunes an even more compelling argument than Windows Media Player which (like IE7) I find confusing. I did however transition from Kazaa to HMV online, but their digital media tool was dreadfully slow and I found I couldn't play them on my iPod.

So I am now a good boy, and have spent lots of money on iTunes, doing the right thing. But what of all those millions of people who still download illegally? Who knows and who cares! I am a happy iPodder!

British Industry!

For my sins I love motorbikes. You cannot beat the freedom or excitement of flying through the countryside at speed feeling at one with your sportsbike, or weaving through stationary motorway traffic chuckling at the fuming motorists stuck on the M3 near Lightwater. But deciding to buy one's dream machine is a not so simple. Should it be Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda or maybe the exotic such as Ducati?

The answer is no. No No NO! And why not? Well I like to be different, and, more importantly, being British, I want to support British Industry - namely that marvelous firm, Triumph. Triumph I hear you cry? Didn't they go bust in the 80's? Well yes they did - primarily because they were too slow to cotton on to what motorcyclists wanted - high revving machines, not slow ponderous bikes, and so sadly, despite their best efforts, Triumph went under.....to be resurrected by a saint! John Bloor of Bloor Homes bought the name and set about producing modern motorcycles as well as the traditional bikes such as the Bonneville (without oil leaks). Since then, Triumph have gone from strength to strength producing Class beating motorbikes. The Triumph Sprint was voted the best Sports Tourer. The Speed Triple the best naked motorcyle, and the Daytona 675 the best 600 Sportsbike. And all this from a small British company that has a fraction of the R&D budgets of it's Japanese competitors.

Which brings me neatly to my motorbikes. The first (not a class beater) was the TT600. It did however have a revised engine (done by Triumph to dismiss critism of it's mid-range). This was my first bike, bought 3 days before I took my test in 2001. Fortunately I passed and remember the day I picked it up! It was awesome. Being a good boy I ran it is according to Triumph's (onerous) running in procedure. I also remember the day I clocked 1000 miles and

wound the bike up to it's full potential! Wow did I grin! 2 years later, I decided to move to something bigger, and went back to Fowler's in Bristol to buy another bike. The Daytona 955i. A thousand CC rocket which although heavier than my beloved TT600, had far more torque and did me proud for 2 years (including some awesome dual carriage way work at high speed)! However in 2005, Bike magazine published an article on the development of a new 600cc Class bike. I drooled. My palms got itchy. And all for a bike that would not be available until 2006. My feet took me to Fowlers yet again, and a small deposit changed hands. In March 2006 I took delivery of a class beating bike. The Daytona 675, and what a fantastic bike it is.....but there are now rumours of a new 1000cc bike.....I am getting itchy again! I can see a fourth visit to Fowlers - I hope they give me a decent discount for repeat business!

Motorway Driving

How often have you been travelling down the outside lane of a motorway, only to have your way blocked by someone dawdling along in the outside lane, seemingly unaware of your approach? The Highway code states quite clearly "Lane discipline: 238: You should drive in the left-hand lane if the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking a number of slower moving vehicles it may be safer to remain in the centre or outer lanes until the manoeuvre is completed rather than continually changing lanes. Return to the left-hand lane once you have overtaken all the vehicles or if you are delaying traffic behind you."

So why is it that this seemingly simple instruction is ignored to the frustration of other road users? There seem to be a number of different types of lane hog, namely:

- The elderly - "I am out for a Sunday drive and have no idea how to drive on a motorway"
- The law abiding citizen - "The speed limit is 70mph therefore I will travel at this speed in the outside lane regaradless. No one needs to overtake me as that would mean breaking the law"
- The Blocker - "Ha ha! He must be joking. There is no way I am letting him pass"
- The Cretin - "I will not pull in until I have passed that car (that is half a mile ahead)"
- The Police - "I enjoy driving at 68mph and laughing at all the motorists crawling past at 69mph

I am sure there are loads more types - perhaps you have some favourites. At the end of the day though it is FRUSTRATING! All I am trying to do is get from A to B in a timely fashion. Why do people have to try and make it an unpleasurable activity!!

Iran's Exclusion Zones

Whether or not our brave Navy guys and gals were slightly in or slightly out of Iran's exclusion zone, why did they decide to pick them up? Well, bearing in mind the current nuclear debate, it must be obvious that Iran are flexing their muscles in more than one way. With their views on Israel public knowledge, and their hatred of the west, are they in fact trying to push the west to war? Are they a threat to Western allies? Have they in fact the armoury to cause us all pain, especially in view of the fact that our allied armies are spread ever more thin in Afghanistan and Iraq.....time will tell.