If you remember a while back I mentioned that I was going to start making my own podcasts to go on another blog that I write for. Well, the first podcast went live this afternoon after being approved by the iTunes team. It was recorded on Thursday night , submitted on Friday and live today. Not a bad turn around really. I’m really impressed with the efficiency by which Apple work.

A lot of the readers to this blog won’t be able to understand what the podcast is about though as it is entierly in Welsh. This is because its a Welsh language blog about technology and the internet. I’ll give you a brief overview of what the Podcast discusses:

• Welsh Language Samsung Mobile Phone on the Orange Network
• The possibility of having to pay for BBC iPlayer in the future
• The broadband tax the government want to introduce
• The Welsh Assembly no longer broadcasting the meeting on S4C2
• A fellow members’ new iMac

Quite a variety of topics really.I’ve had a listen to it a couple of times and it sounds really good considering it was a first effort. Hopefully we’ll iron out the creases as we go along. The development of www.metastwnsh.com has been quite a bit more than I thought it would be really. It began life as just a small blog about technology, but we’ve now moved on to creating mashups for Welsh events ans creating a Welsh language URL shortening service. We’ve also got a campaign to get better 3G coverage over Wales.

We have a few other plans that we’d like to develop too, but I’ll write about that when things are at a stage that’s more than just a dream at the moment. It’s always good seeing things progress and develop. Soon the website will be a year old and I’m pretty sure we’ll have a lot to celebrate. Here’s hoping that it will continue to grow and mature at a steady rate.

This one off drama from BBC One was filmed locally to me and yet it didn’t feel familiar at all. I’m sure the book that this is based on is much better than the production that we were shown tonight (Monday 31st August).

The story is about the National Gallery in London becoming flooded and the pictures being “evacuated”, as they actually were during the war, to a small town in North Wales called Manod. The works of art were kept in an old slate mine up in the mountains.

The production crew obviously didn’t realise that in North Wales we have a different dialect to that of South Wales. Getting Eve Myles (of Torchwood fame) to play a school teacher was a great coup, but to transform the entire population of that school from North to South Wales was a big mistake.

This seems to me like poor planning on the production company’s part. Surely they could have made a bit more effort in finding out about the town of Manod?

Apart from that the program was an OK watch. Not spectacular by a long shot. Definitely not up to the standard I would expect from the BBC. Trevor Eve made an excellent job of his character I thought. He was an a nice chap too according to a friend of mine who would pass him daily whilst out walking, albeit from the comfort of Mr Eve’s BMW.

It’s great that new drama comes to our screens but if they’re not going to make an effort to get things right why bother at all. Turning North Walians in to South Walians is like setting Eastenders in Newcastle. It just doesn’t work.

Right, that’s my rant over, normal service shall resume now.

The end of my first year at university is quickly drawing near and I have to say it’s been good. The things I’ve learned will stand me in good stead for my second year. It’s certainly an eye opener and I would recommend it to anyone who’s thinking of doing it.

I’m a mature student and I decided to go for the plunge in 2007/08 by doing a Multimedia course. That gave me enough qualifications to be able to get in to Bolton University to do a degree in Special Effects Development.

The degree is an exciting and interesting one to follow. Learning how to use industry standard software, clay modeling and film making is something I’ve always wanted to do. Next year I’ll get to be more specialised in things. I can choose to do Pyrotechnics, SFX Make-up, Animatronics and even learn about the history of the Special Effects industry.

If any of you are reading this and are not sure if you should return to education I would encourage you to take those first steps. There are plenty of Further Education collages out there who will help and guide you. I personally went to a college in North Wales; Coleg Harlech. They specialise in adult learning and give the support that’s needed to get you into a higher education institution.

I wrote this post because I thought it would be a good opportunity to let you know how I have progressed over the year. Bring on year two!

The Squishtie is essentially a small bean bag that you use as a pillow. But it’s much more than a pillow. The soft outer skin contains thousands of tiny little polystyrene balls that mould to the shape of whatever you place on the Squishtie. That could be your head, body, hands or feet; it really doesn’t matter.

You’re guaranteed to get a comfortable night of sleep on a Squishtie. They also come in a range of three colours:

• Pink
• Black
• Blue

It’s also important to note that the Squishties measure just 350mm (Length) by 160mm (Diameter). That’s an excellent size for a pillow.

There’s not much more you can say about the Squishties really is there. As I said in the beginning, it’s a pillow but different. What I think about the Squishties is that they are excellent value for money and are comfortable indeed. I go camping a lot and having Squishties is much better that those silly blow up pillows you can get; they don’t really cut it do they. Placing a Squishtie on top of the airbed is the perfect solution. If only the weather would behave as well.

So that’s what I think and I know that I always say it, but you really should get a Squishtie if you’re serious about you comfort when you sleep. Actually, not only when you’re sleeping but when you’re awake too.

My apologies if you are a regular reader of this blog. I haven’t posted on it for quite some time due to matters beyond my control. A family member has fallen ill and been taken in to hospital. I will endeavour to update this blog from tonight onwards. I thought it would be best to let you all know that I haven’t disappeared off the face of the earth.

I have a few exciting gadgets to tell you all about too. This is a short and sweet post just to keep you informed. Thanks guys

It’s that time again. Father Christmas is busy delivering gifts to the children of the world; I hope you’ve been good this year. I also hope that you get at least one thing that you really wanted. One of the best gifts I receive at Christmas is socks. I absolutely love receiving them, they one of life’s necessities. Socks seem to disappear in this house. They go in to the wash in pairs, but never seem to come out in pairs. A friend of mine has a theory about this. He reckons that as the washing machine is on its spin cycle, it creates a tiny black hole that only a single sock can pass through.

The sales will be starting on Boxing Day no doubt. Hopefully we can all grab a bargain or two, or three. I’m anxiously awaiting the announcements at MacWorld in early January as this will be a deciding factor for me… I really want to get a Mac. It all depends on available finances to be honest.

There’s nothing I can really suggest for you to buy today is there. You should all have everything done and be settling down with your favourite tipple. Or actually, you should be getting yourself ready for bed. On that note, I wish you all a merry Christmas.

This post is not going to be about any gadget, but rather a piece of blogging software that is the brains behind many websites. Soon we will have a new WordPress to play with when version 2.7 comes out.
I have installed the first Release Candidate of the blogging software on to one of my own websites and I have to say, I am very impressed with it.

As a reader you won’t really see much difference because this update is all to do with the backend. It has had a complete overhaul. Now, the options are all in a list down the left hand side. In my opinion, this makes it much more intuitive for the user and makes it a doddle to navigate your way around the menus. This update has been a long time coming and I’m glad that they’ve taken their time to get this right.

WordPress has developed from a blogging tool into a fully fledged CMS (Content Management System) in its own right. I really love WordPress over any other blogging system. It’s intuitive and easy to use even for first timers. Once you get in to WordPress you’ll want to learn how you can modify it to your own needs. WordPress allows you to do this easily. I look forward to the official release of WordPress 2.7 soon.

Yes folks, it’s that time of year again. The time to get the Christmas decorations out, and tune in to some Christmas songs on the radio. I said in a post last week that I was going to be doing all my shopping online this year, and I’m sticking to it. It is so much easier than going to the high street to do it. Living in a small town means that I have to get the majority of goods from online retailers anyhow. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to support the local shops, it’s just that we don’t actually have any.

So if you’re planning on doing your shopping online this year, remember to use PriceGrabber to help you find the absolute cheapest price. PriceGrabber will take the trouble out of searching hundreds of sites by doing it for you in a few seconds. I always find that a great feature. It used to take forever for me.

I have to say, I’m not particularly keen on the run up to Christmas: everything seems to be done to excess, but I do like Christmas day itself. The Turkey with all the trimmings and watching people open their gifts always give me a warm feeling inside.

Hopefully I’ll be able to blog about some last minute gift ideas for you in the next couple of weeks. And, as always, you’ll read about them on this blog first. I might even blog about socks and jumpers.

I found this when I was doing some online Christmas shopping and thought it would make the ideal gift for someone in my family, best not to reveal who in case they read this blog.
The Slanket looks like a great gift and during these harsh times, is a gift from the Gods. The credit crunch is affecting us all but energy prices aren’t coming down, so what better way to keep warm than to wrap up in a Slanket.

Made of 100% polyester, this fleece blanket is going to keep you nice and snug when you’re lounging around on the sofa watching TV, or as the picture shows, reading a book. And guys don’t worry, it comes in three different colours; Chocolate Brown, Lavender Pink and Alaskan Blue, so you’ll not get embarrassed if your mates come round and see you in this. Unless you like pink that is.

Costing under £35 it is an ideal Christmas gift. I know that I keep going on about Christmas gifts, but there’s not much time left now is there. We all need to get our lists in to Father Christmas. At the time of writing this, there are 24 shopping days left until the big day, so best get your skates on. I’m determined to do all of my Christmas shopping online this year, but will probably be running around the shops on the 24th buying gifts for everyone… apart from one lucky person who’s getting a Slanket.

These are great aren’t they? They will certainly be a talking point in your household when you have guests around. The Grolsch Beer Goblets are, oddly enough, made from recycled Grolsch bottles and they most definitely look great.

The Grolsch Beer Goblets would be a great gift for the larger connoisseur in your house. They’d make a great gift for a student too if you ask me and obviously, they’d be great for people who like to use recycled products.
You would obviously have to buy more than one set of the Grolsch Beer Goblets, two are just not enough.

There’s not a lot to say about these Grolsch Beer Goblets really. I saw them and thought I would blog about them. They’re interesting and different to say the least. I have a vague recollection of people doing something with wine bottles, but not making them in to goblets like this. If you can remember what that was, leave a comment for me. I’d love to know.

Even if you do not use them to put a beverage in, you could use them as an interesting vase. I’m sure some red roses would look great in one of the Grolsch Beer Goblets. Carnations might look good too, at a push.

So, there you go - Grolsch Beer Goblets. Get some now!