Darren Straight's Blog

ICT Enthusiast and photographer.

By - Darren Straight

Space Shuttle Mission 2007 reveals the new Space Shuttle 3D Virtual Cockpit

A month after announcing the final development stages of the Space Shuttle Mission 2007 (SSM2007) space simulation game, Exciting Simulations reveals never-before-seen in-game pictures of the highly realistic Space Shuttle Virtual Flight Deck. The SSM2007 3D Virtual Flight Deck is equipped with fully operational highresolution Multi Function Displays, Heads-Up Display and gauges which allow budding Shuttle Pilots to perform the

By - Darren Straight

Microsoft Releases New Search Services for Internet and Mobile Customers

Microsoft has today announced the final updates to the fall release of its Live Search service, introducing a broad array of new services and features to its local and mobile search offerings. The new features and enhancements are designed to make it easier for people to find what they need at home or on the go through significant innovations in

By - Darren Straight

Kent IT Clinic wins Technology Enterprise award

The Kent IT Clinic (KITC) at the University of Kent has been awarded Technology Enterprise Kent’s ‘Enterprise and Training Award for excellence’ under the category of IT Support. The award, which was presented to David Soud, Co-ordinator of KITC, on 4 October, is in recognition of ‘the considerable achievement of KITC consultants in delivering the intensive assists on behalf of

By - Darren Straight

National Geographics Best Science Images of 2007

A striking image of seaweed shows the complexity of even the simplest organisms. Seen here is Irish moss—Chondrus crispus—a common Atlantic red alga that is routinely harvested for its carrageenan. The chemical is used as a thickener in many processed foods. Andrea Ottesen of the University of Maryland’s Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture shared a first place prize

By - Darren Straight

The Future of Web Apps London October 2007

Well it’s been a busy and crazy week but I’ve finally got some time to tell you all about my 3 Days in London attending The mashup* demo event and of course the awesome Future of Web Apps Conference and Expo which included the Live Filming of Episode 118 of Diggnation and the Carsonified Relaunch Party! 😀 Unfortunately I didn’t

By - Darren Straight

Valve opens up The Orange Box!

Valve has today announced the official ‘uncrating’ of The Orange Box, now available on Steam. The Orange Box features three top-rated new games by Valve: Half-Life 2: Episode Two, the second installment in the Half-Life 2 episodic trilogy; Team Fortress 2, the sequel to the game that put class-based, multiplayer team warfare on the map; and Portal, the game that blends

By - Darren Straight

The Invasion – Trust no-one, show no emotion, don’t fall asleep!

This Friday the 12th of October, the new new sci-fi thriller film The Invasion staring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig (his first outing since Bond) while directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel (Downfall), is coming to UK Cinemas! The Invasion is about a space shuttle which mysteriously crashes on Earth, and an extraterrestrial disease in the wreckage begins infecting human beings. A psychiatrist from Washington, D.C.,

By - Darren Straight

Jamie Oliver stars in Pixars Ratatouille

Pixars animated film Ratatouille will hit UK cinemas on 12th October and with it Jamie Oliver will be making his big-screen debut as the voice of the morose restaurant health inspector!   Jamie said: ‘I probably got the most miserable character in the whole of the film, which is obviously different from me in real life.  He’s totally bored with life.

By - Darren Straight

Hack the Kit Competition – Win a Jamie Oliver Survival Kit

You can cook with it. You can stack it. And now you can hack it… What’s a hack you say? Well, it’s a way of solving an everyday problem (like, what to do when you get hungry behind the wheel?) with an ingenious solution (fry an egg on your car’s motor!). Tefal want you to think of new ways to

By - Darren Straight

Here at The Future of Web Apps Conference and Expo

Well it’s lunch time and so far The Future of Web Apps Conference and Expo here in London has been pretty cool. Yesterdays mashup* demo event was also quite interesting, though I do have some things that I would like to see next time… I shall be posting a full review along with photos of both todays Future of Web