Once again, presented for your delight and amusement -- a small collection of
the dumbest, funniest or just plain weirdest stuff on the Web.
Startrek On Ice
Boldly going where no man has gone before? Another one of those sites that
had me rolling on the floor in hysterics. A quarter-megabyte Flash animation
but well worth the small wait.
How To RTFM
When you've got a curly problem then Microsoft's knowledge database can be a
real lifesaver -- but of course we should always read the manual first. Just
in case you don't know how to do that, this site has a useful little Microsoft-style
knowledgebase page.
Seating Made Simple
Leaked government cabinet papers have alerted me to this site and the product
it promotes. According to the papers, the government is contemplating the
installation of slightly modified versions of this device in all public areas
and government department waiting areas. It has been proposed that licenses
be issued annually for a fee around the same as that charged for vehicle registrations.
What Is IndraNet Doing?
Less than three years after touting its apparently earth-shattering
intelligent network technology and raising a fairly sizeable chunk of
cash by way of a public offering, Christchurch technology company
IndraNet
is going back to the market cap-in-hand for a $5m top-up.
While touting for the first round of funding, IndraNet extolled the potential
of its exciting new network design -- but after securing those millions
it appeared to take a side-road with talk of developing alternative power sources
for motor vehicles.
I always get a bit worried when risky hi-tech start-ups seem to take detours
and perhaps start to lose a little focus -- particularly if there's an "alternative
power source" or "new engine" element in there.
As I've pointed out in this column before -- Kiwi Rick Maine raised huge sums
of money, supposedly to develop his split-cycle engine into the internal-combustion
engine of the future. Just like IndraNet however, he seemed to take on several
extra technology projects before completing what was supposed to be the focus
of his developments -- and just look at how successful the split-cycle engine
has become -- NOT!
From where I'm sitting, I can see very little common-ground between the development
of a "low cost zero emission compressed air motive and energy storage" system
and the development of new intelligent wireless networking technologies.
Of course IndraNet may turn out to be a highly profitable enterprise and
successfully exploit all the technologies it is developing -- but if you
really want to invest in technology development in NZ then maybe you ought
to look at the work I'm doing with acoustic-wave thrust-reaction engines at
the moment :-)
Hell -- I've already recovered nearly all my R&D costs to
date and expect to turn a very healthy profit within the next 3 months
with strong export sales to the USA. But then again -- my R&D efforts
are concentrated on just one project at a time and I"m not seeking
millions of dollars of the public's money.
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