Author: Olly

  • Google buys its way out of another pickle – Gmail.co.uk

    I was trying to think back to when i started using Gmail for the first time – I have quite a good account name,  I got it back when you had to be invited to use the system.

    I love how Gmail has changed the way i use email, I love how I can bolt on “labs” stuff which pushes my email forward in ways other email clients only wished they could evolve (Mail Beer Goggles?? Haha!)

    Anyway – when it was launched in the UK, it was called Gmail – but as its proper launch got closer another company who had been using the term Gmail in the UK for years piped up and kicked up a bit of a fuss about it. A big lawsuit kicked off, and google ended up changing all UK sign ups to @googlemail.com email account – despite @gmail.com still working for all UK users as well.

    They soon resolved it by simply acquiring the .co.uk variant, and the UK signups reverted back to gmail.com.

    Its a strange ‘ol world.

  • Personal URL Shortner using WordPress

    I figured after snapping up such an awesome short domain name (0lly.uk heh) i should make the best use of it, so i looked into running my own URL shortner, and went straight to a product i saw the other olly using on his 0l.ly domain name.

    Its called YOURLS and the installation etc was easy, fast, and in fact within 20 mins it was up and working.

    Then after also installing the wordpress plugin, i registered my blog as a twitter application, whacked the settings in and bingo!

    I had fun doing this, its been a while since i stayed up messing about with cool shit online 🙂

  • Recast for Season 2 of Spartacus Blood & Sand

    It upsets me to write this, but it appears that season 2 of the totally awesome Spartacus Blood and Sand (or Vengance as its apparently being called) will not star Andy Whitfield as “Spartacus”

    I wrote a while back about the leading man Andy, and how he had been diagnosed with a form of blood cancer that meant the production of series two had to be postponed.

    However, he was initially given a clean bill of health by the doctors. Im sad to write that the cancer has in fact returned and he is back undergoing “aggressive cancer treatment” to once again try and remove it.

    Its totally sad news, he was amazing in the role and its even more heatbreaking to know that they have no choice but to recast his role, or shut down the show – and as quite rightly stated on TVSquad.com;

    “I know people who work on the show, and if you’ve been reading the news lately you should know it’s not the best time to be out of work in the film/TV industry in New Zealand.

    I’m sure Andy has more than enough {insert expletive] to deal with, physically and mentally, without feeling as if his cancer has put hundreds of other people out of work”

    They are right, so as they say in show business – the show must go on.

    Im sure i speak for many when i say i hope Andy makes a speedy recovery, and that all his fans are thinking of him 🙂

    We will be seeing andy a couple more times though apparently in a series called “Spartacus: Gods of the Arena” as he filmed the first and last episode, but you never know – they may reshoot if the find a replacment suddenly 🙁

    I look forward to seeing the new episodes as they will most definitely be awesome, its just a shame Andy wont be along for the ride.

  • Its faster than the speed of light

    .. or at least it feels like how fast time is going for me right now.

    It seemed like a month or so ago it was snowing, and now we are on the run up to Christmas AGAIN. Im not quite sure where my days are going at the moment.

    We’ve moved into our large swanky office, it has two main office’s in it, and a store room. Its epic, but one of the rooms is very empty at the moment as we haven’t had time to find some suitable boardroom furniture.

    Our new company (removed) is doing really well, the plan’s are all on budget and its amazing to see a brand new business, complete with cashflow projection fit so closely to our projections. If it was any closer to our estimated cashflow, it would fit PERFECTLY.

    Work has gone through some changes, we have sacked the “media” word off the end of the company name, and renamed the company “work.com” this is to make the name reflect the wide range of services we offer, and the fact we offer them to the whole world.

    In more personal news, Gem and I have booked our next trip – we are heading to Amsterdam for my birthday 😀 I’m so excited!

    We booked the flights ages ago, and booked the hotel a week or so ago… and what a blinder it is!

    Its called CitizenM Amsterdam City and it was actually our second choice! The one we really wanted was called the Conscious Hotel and its for tree huggers like myself, it was fully booked and despite them building another one in dam that would have been open by the time we went, we opted for one we could actually book and that actually existed!

    We’ve also decided to go somewhere spectacular next year, we want sun, white sand and crystal clear water and preferably our own private beach. I hear Tobago is nice 🙂

    Both Gem and I have been to quite a few places now so we wanted to push to boat out a bit next year – will keep thee posted on that one 🙂