Fun On Friday #41: Hit that keyboard!

Apparently, keyboards take the brunt of users irritation with Information and Communication Technology equipment. When a program crashes, or a Google search fails to deliver, it is the keyboard that is most likely to be thumped in frustration!

I am pleased therefore to offer a (vaguely) legitimate excuse for hitting the keyboard. Thanks to the Gadget Show, I was directed to the Press The Spacebar 2000 game. It is a simple, but surprisingly addictive, game. The basic aim is to hit the spacebar as many times as possible in a given time limit.

My personal best is 41 times in 5 seconds.


Not brilliant but not bad. It reminds me a bit of the old Daley Thompson game on the ZX Spectrum where you had to batter away at a couple of keys to make Daley run...I wasn’t very good at that game either. :-)

Guitars, gadgets and great jobs

I wrote about the Gadget Show when I was considering what the best job in the world might be. (See my The best job in the world? post.) I suggested that, for me, the best job in the world might be to present on the Gadget Show - play with technology, mess about and occasionally blow things up. What more could a nerd ask for?

139/366: Three chords...
Originally uploaded by DavidDMuir

Gadget Show
I enjoyed the first couple of episodes in the new series but the one shown on Monday, convinced me that the Gadget Show was definitely the right choice for me. Why? Because the focus of this week's challenge was to learn a new skill online. Online learning! Now if that's not a Gadget Show topic for me, I don't know what is. And even better was the skill Ortis chose to learn because while Jason decided to learn to cook, Ortis wanted to learn the guitar! Again, suits me down to the ground. Online guitar tuition - been there, although as yet, not done that!

More on my attempts to learn guitar in a moment after a word about the challenge.

Gadget Show Challenge
Ortis won the challenge (his first win apparently) by playing with a Coldplay tribute band (called Coldplace) in front of thousands of people at a festival whereas Jason had to cook a meal for a top chef.

At first I wondered if the test was fair. Ortis only had to learn one tune; Jason had to learn to prepare seven dishes. However, the more I thought about it the more I decided Ortis was the worthy winner. Partly because Jason just couldn't do it - he even managed to use salt instead of sugar in his pudding! (Clearly he hadn't tasted it himself before serving. Tsk! Tsk!) Mainly though, I think Ortis deserved to win because he used the technology much more intelligently. When he was struggling with the chords for the song, he Skyped the guitarist from Coldplace who taught him how to use a capo. When Jason was struggling, he appeared to just keep following the same instructions to make the same mistake over and over again. Perhaps it was edited to make him look dafter but why didn't he go on a cooking forum to ask for help? Why didn't he send out a request to his personal learning network on Twitter? Why didn't he Skype his mum or someone else who could actually cook? In his favour he was using a outrageously desirable Modbook!

However, Ortis performed brilliantly. The expert criticised Ortis for being a bit static on stage but to be fair he was playing Coldplay not The Clash. :-) As I said, a worthy winner.

My own efforts
I have stated elsewhere my desire to learn the guitar using online lessons and have just started a semi-serious attempt to do so. I'm aiming for a minimum of ten to fifteen minutes a day with Garageband. I'll also dip into to some of the links from the Gadget Show lists as well as the excellent Guitar Savvy site which I recently discovered. To give you an idea of where I'm coming from, here's a link to a very embarassing video of me playing the guitar Daughter Number 2 built. She can play but refuses to play it in front of other people. Since someone had to try out this gorgeous guitar, I stepped in. Everyone else in the room was an experienced and talented guitarist (especially Mark Bailey the chap that ran the build your own guitar course) so my ineptitude was clear for all to see. In the video, you can almost hear the collective sigh of disappointment at how bad I was!

I will post another video around the middle of September to let you see how far I've got in a month. (Not very far I fear!) Will I reach the standard that Ortis managed? Only time will tell. :-)

Questions
Have you ever tried to learn something using only online resources? If so, what? Also, I'm still on the lookout for good online guitar tuition resources, so feel free to share those too.

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It seemed appropriate to cross-post this to my music blog. Apologies for repeating myself if you follow both.

The best job in the world?

I have introduced Derek Robertson on a couple of occasions as the man with the Best Job in The World (Official). His office is overflowing with game consoles and handheld gaming machines. Essentially he gets paid to play games and mess about with technology. The best job in the world... or at least that's what I used to say!

Derek (Call me McEnroe) Robertson
Originally uploaded by DavidDMuir

You see, I've changed my mind. Derek has a great job but I no longer think it's the best. I've decided that the man with the best job in the world (and it pains me to say this) is Jeremy Clarkson. I suspect some background by way of explanation is necessary. :-)

Personal History
When I was younger, I wanted John Noakes' job. Not for me the attraction of astronaut or train driver. No, I wanted to do what John Noakes did. There was a child like enthusiasm about all he did that was infectious. I wanted his job. Unfortunately, by the time I was ready to apply for the job, the average age of the presenters had dropped dramatically. Apparently, it is not enough to have the enthusiasm of a teenager (like John did), you have to be one! My dream job was already out of my reach... and I was only in my twenties. :-(

Why Clarkson?
So how did I get from Noakes to Clarkson? Recently, I was asked, if I could do anything for a living, what would it be? I struggled to come up with a sensible answer but my mind went back to Blue Peter and John Noakes and I wondered what the equivalent for overweight balding middle aged men was... and thought of Jeremy Clarkson. :-)

I have no interest whatsoever in cars other than as devices to get me from A to B and yet somehow, I find myself enjoying Top Gear - even looking out for it in the TV schedules. Even more surprising is that my three daughters, who may be even less interested in cars than I am (if that were possible), enjoy it too.

Essentially the Top Gear presenters behave like daft boys (apart from James May who often takes on a more avuncular role), make "Vrroom! "Wheeeoow!" noises, and blow things up. They get paid for it and produce entertaining television while doing so. That is why, for me, Clarkson has replaced Robertson - if he doesn't have the best job in the world, it must be one of the best jobs.

Dream Job?
So am I saying I want to be Jeremy Clarkson? Of course not! I've already explained that I know nothing about cars and have little interest in the beasts. However, I do like some of the technology and gadgets associated with cars. Satellite navigation - brilliant! The reversing camera in my brother-in-law's new VW - excellent! The thing that beeps to let you know you've left your car lights on - genius!

What I want then is a programme that deals with technology and gadgets in the way that Top Gear deals with cars. A programme that takes an irreverent approach, that is accessible to non-geeks, is entertaining and occasionally informative. Does such a programme exist? If it does, that's where I'd like to play... er, work! I want to do something that engages people who are not naturally interested in the topic, informs those who are interested, and is at least reasonably entertaining in the process.

I had high hopes for Bang Goes The Theory. It was heavily trailed, shown in the evening on BBC 1 and the trailer promised some destruction and childish nonsense. It looked like it might be a techie equivalent of Top Gear. However, it was slightly disappointing and didn't cut it against Top Gear for at least three reasons:

1. There wasn't enough gleeful destruction.
2. It took itself a bit too seriously.
3. It seemed to be trying too hard.

There were some good moments. For example, the reaction of Jem Stansfield when he tested his prototype air canon was great. The main problem for me though is the third reason. The guys on Top Gear make it look effortless - I'm sure it isn't but they manage to make it look that way.

It was, however, the first episode and it may settle down as the series progresses.

Front Runner
I think the closest to a Top Gear for techie types is the Gadget Show. It perhaps doesn't have the mass appeal of Top Gear, but does manage a reasonable balance between detail for the techie types and entertainment for the casual viewer. For example, one of my favourite pieces was when they put a ruggedised laptop through a series of tests, such as using it as a racquet to play tennis, which culminating in blowing it up with a stick of dynamite. (It still worked!) Impressive techie detail about the laptop and they blew stuff up - what more could you ask for? :-)

There are problems. For example, the "fun" seems a bit forced at times, like in the recent Summer Special, one presenter stripped down to his Speedos and chased another round the studio. Also, they seem to be too aware of Top Gear themselves. For example, Top Gear: Cool Wall - Gadget Show: Wall of Fame. However, the average age of the presenters looks like it's over 21, so there is hope for old, fat baldy men like me!

Best Job?
So, my best job would be to work on something like The Gadget Show, playing with toys, messing about and blowing things up? Maybe. Or perhaps it would be playing music on Rock Radio? Or working in a chocolate shop. Or... actually, I quite like the job I already do. :-)

What do you think?
What would be your best job ever?