There are some films we may not intentionaly go to see. Der Baader Meinhof-Komplex is one of them. The English title is The Baader Meinhof Complex. The film takes a look at the beginning of theRed Army Faction, in Germany. It is based on the book The “Baader-Meinhof Group” by Stefan Aust.
You can now record your own Wazedriving directions. Instead of using pre-determined voices you can record a number of pre-determined phrases and use them for when you are driving. Recording and using your recording is easy.
Setting it up
In the settings menu go to voice directions, click on record new voice, name the voice and then you can record Start of Drive messages, Distances, Instructions, Reports and Other. Each instruction can be up to 6 seconds in duration. Simply click the red record button, record the phrase and then listen to it. Once you have recorded the first clip you can save the new voice.
Multiple languages
It is possible to record multiple languages. Simply go to settings, general and language. Select the language you want to record in and then repeat the setting it up instructions. The phrases will be provided in the language of your choice. As I speak English and French I can record instructions in both languages.
Friends and family
If you don’t like your own voice you can get friends and family to record their voices. You could use one voice for driving to work, another for driving with friends and a third one to keep children entertained in the back. You can also share these recordings publicly for other people to use. If you’re a Vlogger or podcaster this is one way to grow your audience.
Long trips and frequent GPS use
When you go on long trips and use the GPS frequently the default voices can be tedious. The ability to record the voice of your choice is a nice addition. For three or more hours you can hear the voice of a friend or family member. It can become a source of entertainment. I often drive with the GPS silenced to avoid pestering passengers. With the correct voice, you could leave vocal directions on.
Whilst doing my work last week in Geneva I was told that I had to include footage from the Film “Henry Dunant – Du Rouge sur la croix”. I didn’t get to watch the film until today but I enjoyed it. it’s an interesting film for anyone who has been brought up in Geneva to watch.
There are two cities in the World that have the United Nations, New York in the US and Geneva in Switzerland. Both these locations are important but Geneva is seen by some as the capital of Human rights.
Henry Dunant is an important figure in the history of International Human Rights (DIH) because when in Solferino after seeing the ravages of war he wanted to help anyone affected by conflict, no matter the nationality, religion or ethnic background. In effect for him they were “brothers in arms” to quote the film.
The film itself is well shot, has a good rythm and a good pacing. It tells the story without getting bogged down in details and serves as a taster for those who would like to do more research on the subject. The acting is good and it’s amusing to see the old town of Geneva in a film, especially since those are the streets around which I have spent many hours on a number of weekend evenings.
I love the international aspect of Geneva. I’ve done work for the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Labour Organisation, I’ve been accredited to the United Nations on three seperate occasions, each one for over a month and I’ve done work for the World Health Organisation.
I have been through Two International Labour Conferences, the first ever General Staff meeting of UNAIDS and on the lighter side I’ve been to two Student League of Nations as a precursor.
This is part of the reason for which I see Globalisation not as a form of corportage agrandisement but rather as a coming together of the world’s population, living according to specic rules and guidelines which means that we are compassionate about ethnic diversity and co-habitation.
Where are you from is not to find out what village or town you’re from but what country. This is because we follow world news and international politics. We are aware of every continent and aspects of many cultures. That’s why we watch BBC World when we have the chance and read the international newspapers.
If you have the opportunity of seeing Henry Dunant then do so, it’s worth it.
Last night I was thinking about the act of shaving and what a pleasure it is, For a long time I saw it as a daily chore, which is why I switched to an electric razor for years. Eventually the blades dulled so I looked for alternatives before deciding to try safety razor shaving, and I find it to be extremely pleasant.
Learning Process
Shaving requires a methodical approach. It requires wetting the face, lathering the soap, shaving one way, lathering again, shaving the second direction, lathering again, shaving the final direction. That methodical process is what makes safety razor shaving such a pleasure. It is ritualistic, like getting ready for a dive, or other potentially dangerous activities. The better your routine is, the safer you will be.
Finding the Right Razor
There is one caveat that I would like to add. I tried three razors, and three soaps, and I have two preferred soaps, and one preferred razor. With one razor I find that the blade is too lose, to free to move around as I shave. I don’t mean that it swings like a pendulum. I mean that the blade isn’t as protected with others, so if you nick yourself it’s deeper.
With the second razor I tried, I eventually grew used to it, and find it the best of the three. I like that it’s easy to load, and exposes the bare minimum of the blade, to be effective. It makes the experience of shaving more pleasant.
The third shaver, when I tried it for two shaves was less pleasant to use, because it felt that it was catching. I don’t know whether it was pinching hair but it just didn’t feel smooth. I’m glad I found a razor I like, and I’m happy that it’s the cheapest of the three.
A Luxurious Habit
By learning to cut my own hair I save 30 CHF per hair cut. By learning to shave with a safety razor, and eventually a straight razor I am giving myself an experience that people pay 30 CHF to 35 CHF to experience at the barber’s. The shave I give myself for “free” is worth 30-35 CHF, per shave.
And Finally
Once you get over the initial fear it does become more pleasant.
If you’re looking for an interesting food experience then you should drop by Laguna, a tropical restaurant a few minutes out of Geneva. There’s a meal there that’s really good called la plancha. The concept is simple. Food is laid out buffet style so you chose the ingredients you want and chose from onions, lettuce, coriander before selecting the types of meat. The meat on offer when I went to was lamb, beef, horse, pork, and chicken.
Once you’ve filled your plate with all the ingredients you go over to a large metallic platter where the chef will prepare the food you’ve selected as you wait. Once it’s ready you go back to your table and enjoy the meal. You can repeat this process as often as you like.
The clientele is also interesting, being a mix between parents and young children, couples, and more. It’s in a relaxed atmosphere where you hear the birds tweeting and nature rather than urban sounds. You’re also surrounded by furniture from tropical locations.
The food is good, the atmosphere is good and the type of people make this a nice evening place where to get a nice meal. I’ll be thinking of going there more than once.
For a few days I have been watching a few documentary series on Netflix. Big Timber is one of them. Usually I like nature that is untouched. I like to see trees that are standing tall and proud, not on their sides, ready to be chopped up into wood for housing.
It is because I like to see living trees that I started watching the series, and then gave up. As a person that likes trees it makes little sense to watch as “claims” of trees are cut down, and hauled up the slope, down the mountain and then turned into wood for various projects.
Eventually I did start to watch the documentaries and I enjoy them. Kevin, the owner of the company, has learned how to build roads, scavenge wood from the sea shore, and more. He likes to buy machines, second hand, and repair them, before using them. In so doing he is able to get machines that do what he needs, at a much lower price, than if he bought them new. It helps that he has access to mechanics and more.
The documentary is broader than “A and his team go to cut down trees, and bring them to the mill, to make things”. It’s A uses this machine for that, but because it’s slow he wants to use that machine, but that machine requires someone with other skills. It’s fun, and every episode is different. It’s the type of show where you think “oh, one more episode”. I burned through the first two seasons fast, because I enjoyed it.
A Lot of Drone Use
I noticed that both in Big Timber and an English documentary series about castles they used a lot of drone shots. The drones are used to show the forests, the landscapes, the castles, and a top down view of trees being cut down. It’s a great way to get a diversity of shot types and values that would not otherwise be possible.
It’s great for getting the camera into places that would otherwise be inaccessible or dangerous. I would be more specific but that might count as a spoiler.
With the documentary about castles I noticed that one type of shot was missing. The “detail” shots of castles. They would regularly have drones flying over the castles, flying from one end to the other, over the town and more. They did not often have drones flying to show details that we can’t see from the ground. They could have shown us specific parts of the architecture that we wouldn’t notice otherwise.
If they make a documentary about cathedrals then they must get close to the statues, gargoyles and more, to show the intricacies of those details. Now that we have flying cameras, we should take advantage.
Gmail, google Calendar and google maps are part of our daily workflow. As a result of this we have them running in two or three tabs at all times. Switching between tabs within a browser can be time consuming but not between applications. That’s where Adobe Air and GMDesk come in.
Adobe Air is a multiplatform solution to make running the same app on multiple machines easy. GMDesk is an application that allows you to use the applications I have mentioned above easily. Work in your web browser, alt tab and you’re in GMdesk.
Those are the short cut keys to save on time when switching from one google app to another.
It’s an interesting idea and we should be seeing many more applications such as this in the near future.
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