Tuesday, December 30, 2008

e-Government in action

(...or should that be inaction?) I thought maybe the government website might have information on what's needed to register a birth, so I searched their website. All I found was How do I register Small Vessels?

Well, he is small and he does have a Call Sign, but I'm not sure if this is how I want him to start off in life...


UPDATE: it actually takes nothing more than filling in a form, showing ID, and paying $5!

Monday, December 29, 2008

Mobile Broadband is here!

Following the recent launch of Digicel's EDGE service, I've been looking forward to trying out the service. Originally a PC card was how EDGE would be used on say a laptop, but they now supply the elegant Sony Ericsson Mobile Broadband modem.

Installation is really simple. The device is USB, and requires a SIM card (with of course a data subscription). The software does allow you to set up a forwarding phone number, otherwise a caller gets a busy tone if your using the SIM in your modem. Note that the software defaults to ask for your card's PIN number, which is a good security feature (but can be turned off).

Connecting is quick; you do of course have to specify connection details. Performance is dependent on coverage - if signal is poor you'll get dial-up type connectivity, but overall I had a good experience with it. It also supports various networks: HSDPA, EDGE, UMTS, GPRS.

What's great about the concept is that it offers you an extra level of connectivity on the road (or even at home). Sure there are often several wi-fi hot-spots you can tap into at an airport for example, but you also have to be mindful of security considerations. And there are still places DSL hasn't reached yet, and for those areas this option is ideal. Or if you simply want to ditch your Cable & Wireless land line & DSL.

It would also be especially useful when roaming overseas - you should for instance be able to buy a SIM card with mobile broadband from a provider such as 3 in the UK.

I also liked how the modem will work on a Mac as well as a PC, and that the device can also be used as a USB drive.

Marks out of 10: 8

Sony Ericsson Mobile Broadband USB modem MD300: EC$399 from Digicel Dominica.

Liam


Liam
Originally uploaded by Steve_Mc
I'm happy to announce the arrival of baby Liam at 9:57am on Boxing Day (St Stephen's Day!), a healthy 7lbs.Both he and Mum are doing fine.

Check out his photos on Flickr.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Season's Greetings!

Happy Christmas to all!

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

Customer Care

If an e-mail to Customer Care at LIME (cuscare@cwdom.dm) bounces back as 'account is full (quota exceeded)', what does this tell us???

Sunday, December 07, 2008

The black is back


Dominica beach
Originally uploaded by Steve_Mc
I was thrilled to find that the beautiful black-sand beach at Bout Sab near La Plaine is back. The last time I was there it was all pebbles and rocks. I guess we have Hurricane Omar to thank for this!

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Getting the message out

Later this month, I'm going to want to broadcast a simple message to friends via all my social networking websites, and it's going to have to be from my phone to boot. So this is how it'll be done.

I'll MMS an e-mail from my phone to my account at HelloTxt.com. This site allows me to update multiple social network sites by sending just one message. I can either enter it on the site, or via an SMS or MMS message sent to the site.

So from one simple text message I can update my status on my Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Tumblr, Plurk pages (and to many others such as MySpace, Bebo, Hi5 if I used them too).

Monday, December 01, 2008

Dr. Who vs Sensey costume: what scared you as a child?

I was talking with a friend about being scared as a child - hiding-behind-the-sofa or under-the-bed scared. What did it for me was Dr Who - Daleks especially freaked me out (until someone pointed out you could easily escape them by going up stairs).

For my friend here in Dominica it was Mas costumes, and the way scary Sensey-costumed men would just appear in the village around Carnival time. The best - and even I agree it's is a bizarre and spine-chilling image - was 'The Man Who Wore a Termite Nest on his Head While Playing an Accordion'. Apparently, villagers would hear his eerie dirge long before they saw him, which only added to the fear factor.