Darren Straight's Blog

With the New Year less than an hour away for those of us here in the UK and with half the world already in the New Year, I thought why not wish my readers world over a happy and prosperous New Year. May the year 2007 bring along with it joys of light in your life and fulfill all your wishes.

Once again Happy New Year everyone!

If you haden’t noticed already, Robert scoble has now uploaded his “Pissed as Newts” tour video in which Hugh Macleod takes us geeks on a tour of Saville Row, London while we were getting pissed as newts!

It was pretty interesting being there and seeing how much Hugh knew all about the tailors so you may just want to go ahead and watch it, it’s pretty cool!

And hey if you haden’t seen the Photos or Ivan Pope’s video of the Pissed as Newts tour yet, then you may just want to check out the links below:

My Flickr Set
Ivan’s Video

So hey I haven’t posted here for a little while, what’s everyone been up to over the Holiday Season?

I myself have been pretty busy studying and working!

Though I have had some days off to enjoy myself.

Anybody got anything planned for the New Years, I myself don’t have anything planned this year as I’ve got to pick my parents up from the Airport, but next year I’m thinking about planning something big. So hey anyone got any ideas? Anybody want to join in?

So hey I’ve just been tagged by Miel to tell you all five things about me you probably didn’t know. And though Miel couldn’t decide who to tag so he asked in his post who would like to be tagged, I would just like to say thanks for tagging me as it gave something to think about!

Anyhow at first I couldn’t think of anything, but after some time I thought of a couple of things then the list kind of grew to more than 5 so well I’ve now shortened it back to 5 plus one bonus one which I just had to leave in!

1. As a kid on holiday I once accidentally kicked a cactus plant which ended up with me going to the hospital to have the long cactus spike removed, well what they could of it anyway as they decided that it was best to leave the remaining broken spike inside my food as it would eventually push its self out. I still have the scare on the top left of my foot to this very day!
2. I used to live in Spain for nine years from the age of 10 to the age of 19, so I attended all of my secondary education in a Spanish School.
3. I used to play the Piano before moving to Spain, and have since lost the touch to play. Which is a real shame as I which I could play it again, unfortunately though my brother has the keyboard piano in his bedroom now and I can’t seem to find the power transformer for it. Maybe I’ll have to buy a new one and start learning again!
4. Once as a kid while travelling up to the Port Adventura Theme park in what used to be our autocamper, I was messing around with my brother in the back and ended up sitting on his neck, which meant he had to have a neck brace. Luckily he didn’t have to wear it for long but it did mean he couldn’t go on any rides. Sorry Bro!
5. I’ve always wanted to go parachuting amongst other things but as of yet have not had the chance to. I think the truth is that maybe I’m a little scared so I would much prefer going with a friend as I would enjoy myself a hell of a lot more!

Bonus:

1. I’ve always dreamt of someday becoming a spy or a hacker or something along them lines. However it will never happen as I’ve now turned to the good side!

Now who should I tag, hmm I know!

I tag the following (in no particular order):

• Robert Gale
• Sarah Blow
• Mark Sweeting
• Zack Whittaker

And hey I’ll leave the last one for whoever wants it as theres so many people out there I would love to tag!

Update:

5 Things You (probably) don’t know about Sarah Blow 

So as most of you probably already know by now, when I graduate from the University of Kent in June 2007 with my BSc Honours Degree in Information Technology, I want to work for Microsoft, more specifically in either the MSN or Windows Live Division!

Microsoft is a company that I’ve always wanted to work for because not only are they an overall great company that works with ground breaking new technology, that of which I have a passion for. But they have also provided me with some pretty cool experiences and opportunities over the years, the latest being my acceptance into the Microsoft Student Partners Programme. So I can honestly say I would love to work for Microsoft.

However there’s a slight problem!

I’m just finding it a little tricky to decide which Microsoft Academy for College Hires (MACH) Programme to choose out of a total of three, well two as I’ve kind of out ruled sales:

• Sales Academy | Sales Careers
• Marketing Academy | Marketing Careers
• Technical Academy | Technical Careers

I’m just not sure if I prefer either the Marketing or the Technical Programme, because as it comes I’m not a great developer so you would think that the Marketing programme would suit me best as it would involve less developer related work, right?

But the thing is that the Technical Programme catches my eye with the following paragraph:

A technical career gives you the scope to leave a lasting legacy. You’ll be at the forefront of technology ― either playing a role in development or getting closely involved in support, technical sales, consultancy and other areas, where you’ll enjoy impact and ownership.

Which means that if I choose the Technical Programme I’ll get the chance to be at the forefront of new technology and play around with it, which is great, as the Marketing Programme will probably be less play with new technology and more lets market that new technology, right?

However saying that, the Marketing Programme catches my eye again because it’s probably the most likely path to lead me to be a Enthusiast Evangelist which is pretty much what I want to do as I get to tell everybody about Microsoft and what they are doing. Thanks goes to Miel for the information on it, as that’s what he’s currently doing.

But the problem is that like I mentioned before, if I choose Marketing, will I actually get to test the latest technology, services, software that isn’t public yet, as I do really love beta testing? Also I’ve never done any marketing per se at University before so could that put be at a great disadvantage? And so many more questions…

That you can see that I’m actually having to admit that I’m kind of lost and really not sure which programme to apply for. As I know what I want to do:

That is beta test the latest technology, service, software from Microsoft. While still interacting with the consumers and community by doing thing like blogging and going to tech events to inform them of Microsoft’s latest breakthroughs.

But I don’t want to make the mistake of choosing the wrong programme, because even though we all make mistakes in life for better or for worse, as sometimes we make mistakes that actually turn around our lives around for the better!

I just want to make sure I get it right the first time so I can enjoy myself as soon as possible.

So hey I’m going to reach out here and ask you kind people out there to give me some advice and ask for what you think I should do, even though I may not even be accepted into whichever programme I choose and also that at the end of the day it will probably have to be my choice.

It’s still worth knowing what everyone else thinks I should do though, so hey here’s them links again:

• Sales Academy | Sales Careers
• Marketing Academy | Marketing Careers
• Technical Academy | Technical Careers

And a big thanks in advance to everyone who gives me any adivce , as I’ve only got until the 28th of January 2007 to send in my Application.

This year families can avoid the lines to see Santa at the mall and spend time at home together chatting with Santa Claus through Windows Live Messenger.

Ho, ho, ho! This year there is another way for kids to share Christmas wish lists with Santa Claus. Using Windows Live Messenger, parents can spend time with their kids chatting in real time with Santa online. Customers can simply add Santa’s address, northpole@live.com, to their Windows Live Messenger contact list and instantly open a conversation window to communicate with Saint Nick. Kids will enjoy immediate responses from the jolly big man himself through an interactive online chat, and they can even visit Santa’s page on Windows Live Spaces at http://santaonspaces.spaces.live.com/.

More information on chatting with Santa through Windows Live Messenger can be found at http://santaonmessenger.com/.

IT geniuses, from the famous to the unsung, have consistently demonstrated how different types of creativity are the basis of true innovative thinking. Now it’s your turn. Everyone knows you’re a genius. Or at least, you do. But how does your creative spark show itself? Are you a Tim Berners-Lee, a Seymour Cray or a Steve Wozniak?

Just use the Creative Calculator to find out. Answer five questions to discover your Creative Index.

And then Microsoft have got just the thing to put it to the test. Some of the UK’s most renowned charities have come together to pose five real-life problems that need the imagination of someone like you. Come up with the winning IT solution and we’ll give the charity £15,000 to turn your ideas into reality – and you’ll walk away with free entry to the IT Forum 2007 in Barcelona.

Plus in the true spirit of Christmas, for every Creative Calculator quiz completed by midnight on the New Year’s Eve 2006, Microsoft will donate £1 to charity, read here for more info. 

To build software that meets your security objectives, you must integrate security activities into your software development lifecycle. The Microsoft Developer Highway Code handbook captures and summarises the key security engineering activities that should be an integral part of your software development processes.

These security engineering activities have been developed by Microsoft patterns & practices to build on, refine and extend core lifecycle activities with a set of security-specific activities. These include identifying security objectives, applying design guidelines for security, threat modelling, security architecture and design reviews, security code reviews and security deployment reviews.

Download the PDF (4.8mb)

Starting a first job or even just beginning a new one can be very daunting and is frequently unsettling. You often won’t know the layout of the location where you’ll be working, you probably won’t know any of the people you’ll be working with and you almost certainly will not be familiar with the company’s work ethics, house styles, and general quirks, which go to individualize any organization.

So what can you do to make life easier for yourself, especially during those first crucial few weeks when you’re trying to make a lasting, but good impression, so your new employer doesn’t rue the day they first clapped eyes on you?

Well you can read this BCS Article for students which gives you some good advice on starting your first or even new job.

Live Search’s ‘Top 100 Searches for 2006′ reveals Kate Middleton is most popular Royal

They may be the most famous family in Britain, but the 2006 Live Search round up reveals that Brits are more fascinated by royal ‘ladies in waiting’ Kate Middleton and Chelsea Davy than by the Windsors themselves.

Prince William’s girlfriend of two years - Kate Middleton scored more hits than any of the blood royals, to become this year’s most searched for Royal on the web, despite news of an engagement yet to be announced. The Berkshire beauty was closely followed in the Live Search list by Prince Harry’s 21-year old Zimbabwean girlfriend, Chelsea Davy, who has spent 2006 jet-setting between South Africa and Britain to be beside her man. Flush from a series of sporting successes, and enjoying her new title of BBC Sports Personality of the Year, Royal Zara Phillips completed the top trio of luscious lovelies.

Even Prince William only made it to number four in the most searched for Royals, proving only marginally more popular than his brother and father, who made it to eight and ninth place respectively, indicating that the glamorous girlfriends hold far more fascination for the UK than their male partners.

Princess Jordan proves she’s here to stay

The 2006 list also reveals a fascinating insight into the shelf life of our favourite celebrities. Glamour girl Katie Price, aka Jordan, shows she has long-term appeal by being one of only ten personalities to make it into Live Search’s top 100 list for the last five years running, something which bonafide A-listers like Madonna, Angelina Jolie, Kate Moss and Tom Cruise have failed to do.

Joining Jordan in the list of celebrities to stand the test of time is David Beckham (whose off-pitch antics and shaky on-pitch performances don’t appear to have dented his appeal), rival American popstrels Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, Aussie pop Princess Kylie Minogue and Pirates of the Caribbean star Orlando Bloom.

Behind every Great Man is a great woman…

Women are the big winners of 2006, with the top 100 Live Search list entirely dominated by female celebrities. 45 of the top 100 entries on the list were women, including Angelina Jolie (9), Charlotte Church (16), Kate Moss (39), Katie Holmes (45), Mischa Barton (59), Coleen McCloughlin (75) and Chantelle Houghton (84) – none of whose famous other halves even made an appearance!

In fact, only seven men made it on to the list, including Richard Hammond (43), Steve Irwin (49) , Christiano Ronaldo (78) and Borat (87).

World Cup Scores high

World Cup Fever took a grip on the nation this summer and took the no 14 spot ahead of Wimbledon (34) and cricket (70). The reds seem to be the winners this year with Liverpool FC (22), Arsenal (27) and Manchester United (51) all making the list. Champions Chelsea, however, don’t even rank in the top 100, indicating Mourinho‘s dream team could be on its way down?

David Graham, UK Search business manager, commented: ‘The Live Search end of year round up is a really interesting indication of popular culture and it’s fascinating to see how the next generation of female Royals has captured the nation’s imagination. The obsession with female celebrities is very revealing with searches about everything from their latest body hang ups to their red carpet nightmares. Perhaps 2007 will be the year that men get their turn.

The ‘Top searches of 2006′ was compiled using Live Search which is used by five million people in the UK, providing an instant barometer of trends across the nation with thousands of search terms entered every day, from people to events, news stories to TV shows and anything else that caught Britain’s imagination throughout the year.