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Archives: May 2008
WTF!
Really..
Posted on May 2, 2008
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links for 2008-05-02
Posted on May 2, 2008
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Customer Support is Key
I have written about it in the past and will maintain my opinion in the future: 'customer support is key'.
Customer Support makes all the difference. We've arrived in an era where most products are good, some better than others.
Really bullsh*t stuff has been left in the past (unless you decide to buy a Z-brand in a Kruidvat or so..).
When you buy a kitchen at Ikea, Kvik, Kplus, or even the more expensive Siematic: all of them are 'not bad' kitchens.
Your opinion about them will be made by the service delivered: was the kitchen delivered in time, was is placed well, did the brand keep up its promises, and more over, when something went wrong, was the service still ok?
It's something that happened to me with Lacie the other day: I abandoned on a Iomega drive because of its tremendous noise (good product, just too much noise) and bought a Lacie instead. A silent thing, running like a horse. And beautiful (they do have beautiful cases). Another older Lacie is connected to our Airport Extreme, backing up the portables. Although its firewire port broke off, the usb is doing the job, so I never bothered to bring it back.
But then the Lacie Mini started doing weird stuff. And I hate HD's doing weird stuff.
A fast backup was made, and a support ticket filled in on Wednesday evening (just before holidays)
And there it is: this morning, before 10, there was already an answer, saying that probably the drive was still OK (according to my description of the failure), adding it might be the power supply. So they already(!) sent a new power supply.
Finishing by 'if this solves the problem, you can keep the supply, otherwise, just come back to us and we'll try to solve it'.
Wow..
(I bothered to check if the guy was right, so I connected the power supply of the other Lacie, and indeed: all started up without a hassle)
I have been looking during the past days for an alternative disk RAID1.
Today I decided it probably will become a Lacie again.
A raid system, that is, because, how much I love their fast reply, one never wants to loose any(!) data, no service support in the world can change that..
Posted on May 5, 2008
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In case you might be looking for a pool for a bbq.
Karine is a friend of a friend, and thus became a friend of mine.
Karine decided to go the Africa and volunteer in a WildLife Foundation caring for wild and wounded animals.
For that reason she's organizing loads of stuff (mainly: selling her friends for all kind of events).
You can bid on the item of your choice.
One of the great things amongst them is:
-Swimming pool and BBQ
-Getting a sleepover in Claudia's apartment.
- Whispering Bordel
-Thai cooking class by Zabine
You have to hurry as the bidding ends tonight!
We're seriously considering the Swimming Pool Bid (especially because there is a beautiful assistent ;) )
Posted on May 5, 2008
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The weirdest gadget..
What is it?
Posted on May 5, 2008
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links for 2008-05-06
Posted on May 6, 2008
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Pecha Kucha Ghent
A while ago, C and I were considering starting up a Pecha Kucha Ghent. But due to very busy work for both of us, we kind of delayed things.
And then suddenly, someone contacted me, asking if I wanted to present myselef on Pacha Kucha Ghent on May 27th.
A group of people at Sint Lucas Ghent took the initiative to organise it, and I am glad they did!
So I'll be speaking at the first Pecha Kucha Ghent with some great minds (A bit impressed by those by the way..)
Puts tail between legs: Tried it out yesterday, 20 seconds per slide is really really quick. So I am off trying to make a good presentation.
Btw, there is a Pecha Kucha Brussels on May 20th.
For both events, registration is needed!
Posted on May 7, 2008
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links for 2008-05-07
Posted on May 7, 2008
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links for 2008-05-08
Posted on May 8, 2008
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Teambuilding the Landscape Group on Great Location
Teambuilding:
Location:
Heading home tomorrow for the good weather in Belgium
For the location check grangedusuc.be (and mention 'ine' when making a reservation ;) )
Posted on May 9, 2008
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What are you doing..
..behind the computer in this weather! On a holiday for god's sake!
Shame on you!
Don't let me see you back the next 2 days. ;)
Posted on May 12, 2008
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links for 2008-05-12
Posted on May 12, 2008
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Vitra House at Vitra Campus
I didn't know but Vitra has VItra Campus in Weil am Rhein.
Vitra Campus ahs a series of building by impressive architects (Jean Prouvé, Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry, ..)
And they are building Vitra House by Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron now...
The Vitra Campus is a playing field – but for serious games. An industrial park in the heart of Europe does not at first sight appear to be the appropriate place for risk architecture; however, both technical innovation and artistic exploration are aspects of a desire to experiment that has resulted in an amazing collection of signature architecture in Weil am Rhein. From the dynamic forms of the Vitra Design Museum by the Californian Frank Gehry or the rushing forms of the Fire Station by the Anglo-Iraqi architect, Zaha Hadid, to the latest projects by the Japanese Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, or the Swiss Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, major world architects have helped to turn the dream of the entrepreneur and collector, Rolf Fehlbaum, into reality by creating a site near Basel that is committed to e xperimentation and artistic excellence.
On the new Vitra House:
The “VitraHaus“ is a direct, architectural rendition of the ur-type of house, as found in the immediate vicinity of Vitra and, indeed, all over the world. The products that will be on display are designed primarily for the private home and, as such, should not be presented in the neutral atmosphere of the conventional hall or museum but rather in an environment suited to their character and use.
By stacking, extruding and pressing – mechanical procedures used in industrial production – simply shaped houses become complex configurations in space, where outside and inside merge. The interior is designed as a spatial sequence with surprising transitions and views of the landscape. The landscape in all its variety – the idyllic Tüllinger Hills, the broad expanse of the railroad tracks, and the urbanized plane of the Rhine – was the incentive to design a building that concentrates on the vertical. In contrast to the other buildings on the Vitra Campus, an essential component of the design involved drawing the outdoors inside.
Posted on May 12, 2008
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Zoomit and e-invoicing.
The independents amongst my readers probably know what I mean by 'the trouble of invoicing'.
Invoicing never has been such a burden.
I don't have a real problem finding jobs (I actually have too many at the moment. People in for serious co-op can drop a mail.)
The real trouble is being paid..
Once you have sent your invoice, the waiting starts.
While in Belgium the official 'due time' is one month, many, way too many companies neglect this, and if you get paid after 2 months you can be happy.
Most agencies never bother to pay before those 2 months.
And then the trouble comes in: imagine: you getting your wage after only 2 months...
(My advise to anyone becoming independent: make sure you have a serious money pig aside to fill this gap of cashflow. Really)
I was prepared for it when I started. And I still am. But I do see a huge shift in paying habits of the clients. They all pay a little later than before.
You often have to send a 'reminder'.
So I am happy to see the Zoom-It initiative. It is e)invoicing but even better. Because e-invoicing means your clients gets the invoice by mail in its mailbox. Zoom-it means your client get his invoice in his bankaccount.
Each time he opens his e-banking he'll see this or that invoice is still due.
And that's something I like.
I want my client to see that he still owes me in an obvious place. Where better than in your e-banking?
I am happy to see my invoicing software coops with them, so I can send invoices out of my software straight to the client.
Banks cooperating: KBC, Fintro, Dexia, Fortis, ING, Landbouwkrediet, AXA, Centea.
Receiving ZoomIt documents is free, sending them is at a cost.
Prices are not known yet...
Posted on May 13, 2008
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Ted Talk Amy Tan on Creativity
Always fun to post an inspiring talk :)
Posted on May 14, 2008
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F* Luminus
I have been calling several times for the last 6 months...
Each time it turns out a horror, and I almost hung up on them twice.
First of all: we got a first summary of 415,48 euro in december.
Taking into account we started paying in September, that makes a electricity use of 415,48 in barely 2.5 month. Don't know what you have to do to have such use (no we don't watch flatscreen all day...)
Anyhow, turned out they made ahuge mistake: they didn't take into account our real meter numbers we provided them and so we had to pay extra for the former renters.
Boeee!
Secondly: We reported this in december and again in February and yesterday, May 14th!!, we got the correction. Still have to pay 273 euro, for 2.5 months. Try to understand it...
Third: their site, which contains a personal login and follow up of everything just gives plain errors. 'Forbidden'.
WTF.
Fourth: We're still awaiting a second bill, and I just gave up on them..
Luminus is said to be the cheapest.. Cough..
Frankly speaking, seeing the prices of electricity, I am just going to invest in Eco-Power and buy a share. I am sure that within 6 years it will be worth a whole lot more than 250 euro then.
Really!
Posted on May 14, 2008
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links for 2008-05-14
Posted on May 14, 2008
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links for 2008-05-15
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great article on design and content
Posted on May 15, 2008
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Cherry & Cake
Great site! Uses flash pretty cool. And in my eyes, they're pretty good in selling themselves.
Thanks guys for the mysterious present, and letting me figuring out who you are. I liked discovering your site. :)
Posted on May 15, 2008
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GarageTV?
Weird google ad.
"Girlgirl? Go to GarageTV."
Didn't know Telenet advertises like this ;)
Posted on May 16, 2008
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Blazen, blazen
Does the little present of Cherry & Cake of few days ago have something to do with this:
Blazen Maar? Or not?... LVB seems to know more...
And indeed. Blazenmaar.be is registered by, guess who, Cherry & Cake.
Getting curious :)
So, a little more research reveals this:
They mention several things on the blog:
End date: 18.10.08 (that's when something is going to happen in Brussels.)
Start date: 22.03.08
Googling 18.10.08 and Brussels reveals this: Stad onder stroom , a game on climate and change, by Coalition Climate.. Would it have anything to do with this?..
Googling 22.03.08 reveals world water day...
Posted on May 16, 2008
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links for 2008-05-16
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flitsen van voor en van achter...
Posted on May 16, 2008
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links for 2008-05-18
Posted on May 18, 2008
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Preparing a presentation...
Posted on May 18, 2008
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Longest picture in Amsterdam
Micromiel just mailed me, wondering if I wanted to participate for the longest picture of the world (8KM), which will be taken this Saturday in Amsterdam.
I gladly would have joined in, if it weren't for the fact that:
1) May seems to be the busiest month with most work. I am already overloaded and behind scheme.
2) In small capitals I read: 'Only for amateurs', which I am not ;)
3) I am freaking on my lecture @ Pecha Kucha, and smehow I need to start preparing..
4) It's my birthday Friday, and my girl decided to hook up with me for the weekend.
But I am sure there are some readers who might be interested, and who qualify. So here is the invite:
This Saturday (the 24th of May), I’m organizing an event for amateur-photographers in downtown Amsterdam. The day starts around 12 noon with a welcome and introduction at ‘De Rode Hoed‘, a pretty classy venue naar the waterside. Around 40 photographers will be divided into 4 groups of 10, and will then board a ship that will be docked right outside the building. Right then, the challenge starts. Every group will take pictures over the course of 2 kilometers, so that in total we’ll span an 8 kilometer route from the boat. All the pictures will be collected and then stitched together using Windows Live Photo Gallery to form the world’s largest panoramic picture. The end result will be put into a DeepZoom viewer so it’ll become scrollable and zoomable and it will be sent to the Guiness Book of World Records.
If you’re an amateur photographer and would like to participate in this project, surf to the dedicated Live Space for more information (in Dutch) or send an email to photo-event@live.nl to enroll.
Posted on May 20, 2008
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links for 2008-05-20
Posted on May 20, 2008
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links for 2008-05-22
Posted on May 22, 2008
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Superministerraad
Hurry hurry..
Notice the amount of 'dossiers' (and its specific location :) )
Posted on May 23, 2008
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links for 2008-05-23
Posted on May 23, 2008
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What did you do today?
Well, euhm.. Wait. Wait. Wait.
Politics seems to be 'waiting' until something happens.
Hilarious moment when 'Vlaams Progressieven' brought in 'gebakken lucht'
Pressconference after the 'Ministerraad'
Link to the site of Premier.be
Posted on May 23, 2008
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links for 2008-05-26
Posted on May 26, 2008
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Quote of the day
Things are only impossible until they're not.
Jean -Luc Pirard from 'Star Trek, the next generation'
(Title of my Pecha Kucha Presentation of tonight, btw)
Posted on May 27, 2008
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Dsgn.RDV
Designer Rendezvous at The White Hotel.
Feel like going. Hopefully I'll find some time
Posted on May 27, 2008
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Keyboard Shortcut Skins from Photojo
What a great idea for no money: 40 $ or a skin that shows you the shortkeys...
Just love it.
(Already sold out but coming back in next week. At that money I definitely order some.)
Posted on May 27, 2008
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links for 2008-05-27
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loking for a job abroad?
Posted on May 27, 2008
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Pecha Kucha Presentation for those who missed it
Things are impossible until they're not.. They really are.
Update: Loved the Mathematics guy.
Posted on May 27, 2008
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links for 2008-05-28
Posted on May 28, 2008
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links for 2008-05-29
Posted on May 29, 2008
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Free plans for an eco-house
An eco-house without an architect? At FreeGreen.com you'll find free plans for an eco-house with a 3D-model, and an energy report.
2 available models are not soo much, but we're sure there is more to come.
Posted on May 29, 2008
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Beautiful photos of bankrupt offices
Posted on May 29, 2008
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links for 2008-05-31
Posted on May 31, 2008
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