Aquila Online

Light at the end of the tunnel

// January 31st, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Funnies

CFL - Compact fluorescent lamp

NOTICE:
In a drive to save on electricity consumption, the light at the end of the tunnel has been switched off till further notice.

Kindly postpone all hopes and dreams…

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.
Eskom Management

HTC Touch Dual – Double the excitement

// January 25th, 2008 // 13 Comments » // General, News, Tech

Regular readers may recall that I got a bit Touchy Feely with the HTC Touch last year. Since then I’ve seen quite a number of people walking around with this device, which brings testimony to its style and appeal.

In my review I mentioned that a few niggles surface relating to the overall functionality of the phone as the lack of a slide-out keyboard or even an alpha-numeric keypad made ordinary tasks a tad tricky.

It turns out that HTC was listening. HTC took the market’s feedback into consideration and developed the Touch Dual, which now features either a full 20-key slide-out QWERTY keyboard or 16-key slide-out keypad for added convenience. Now you can type messages or e-mails without the need of a stylus.

According to Leaf International Communications, HTCâ€™s official distributor in South Africa, the Touch-FLO menu has also been updated, which now allows you to flip through emails and SMS messages, as well as being able to rotate and zoom in and out of photos. The overall structure of the TouchFLO menu, allows you to browse through the phone options by rotating it like a cube with your thumb. You can also scroll through web pages plus access your music and video with just a flick of a finger.

After reviewing the HTC Touch last year, I’ve sorely missed the home screen (obviously included in the HTC Touch Dual and dubbed the Live HTC Home) which features quick shortcuts to things like a weather widget, contacts and text messages. Now if only they could build in a traffic report widget or Eskom Load shedding schedules, I’d be extremely happy.

Now for all the technical acronyms…3G, HSDPA and GPRS/Edge/GSM is included in this small body, making it a winner in the connectivity department. Wifi sadly got the boot, but then, how many free/good hotspots are around in any case? The Touch Dual sports a Qualcomm MSM 7200, 400MHz processor, making it a heck of a lot faster than the original 200MHz Texas Instruments CPU found in the Touch. Memory has been bumped up to 256MB ROM and 128MB of SDRAM respectively and additional storage is available in the form of a microSDâ„¢ memory card.

With all the enhancements, this phone could surely provide double the fun, double the excitement and double the functionality.

Oh and if you’re drooling for the HTC Touch Dual yet, reports have it that it’ll be available in South Africa from the beginning of February 2008.

Lunch by candlelight

// January 16th, 2008 // 5 Comments » // Food, General, Interesting

Call me crazy, but perhaps there is some light at the end of the tunnel with the current load shedding issues. Why not take advantage of the load shedding and become a bit creative – you never know, those candlelight dinners may just spice up the romance a bit.

Just remember, that you may not be able to cook. Prepare your food in advance, so that you are not getting up during the meal. The idea is to spend your time concentrating on the partner across the table.
Make sure the house is clean and decorate it well. You can use flowers, balloons, etc. Create the appearance that you’re not actually at home.
Use the best silverware and dishes you have in the house. Remember, paper plates are out, it’s supposed to be a special evening.
Consider a good bottle of wine, perhaps a nice Rose or Chardonnay from Seidelberg.
Dress elegantly. Enough said.
Soft, romantic music. If you can’t play an instrument, perhaps invest in a battery operated CD player or use your iPod and speakers. Just turn the music down low, and let it set the mood.
Relax, have fun, and enjoy. Stop talking about Zuma, Eskom or the interest rates. Remember what itâ€™s like to be on a first date, and just enjoy being in the presence of your significant other.
The rest is up to you.

Oh and by the way, take a moment to read the “How does load shedding work” fact sheet from Eskom. Riveting stuff.