The James Kilgour BlogA Life Blog.

Since the 19th November I have been giving away invites to the new free streaming music service Spotify. Read my review here. In fact, I have given away over 100 invites!

I now have more available. I will be giving these away to anyone who comments below on this post, or on the review. However, due to the high demand, I will be giving priority to those who post elsewhere on the blog (decent comments only). So get commenting!

JK

Internet Explorer, the world’s most popular browser, with a 68% market share has now been upgraded to version 8, with the Release Candidate now available. With the upcoming lunch of Windows 7 which will be bundled with IE8, the European Union is launching an antitrust case.

An article on the BBC news website says the following:

"Microsoft does have the advantage of its browser being shipped with its operating system so people that want to shift have to do a lot of work to shift," said Mr MacDonald, a vice-president of analyst firm Gartner.

The EU last week accused Microsoft of harming competition by bundling its IE browser with its Windows operating system.

I personally think this is ridiculous, and is fueling these antitrust claims. Switching to Firefox, Safari or Opera is easy! It’s just a matter of downloading the program, and taking a minute to install it. Plus, a lot of OEM Manufacturers bundle Firefox with their PCs anyway.

I don’t see the problem with using Internet Explorer anyway. IE8 RC1 is a fine browser, and for those who want to switch, they can. It’s not like the browsers make profit for Microsoft or Mozilla. The EU should spend their time doing something more worthwhile.

JK

Blyk, the free, ad-supported mobile network has been running for over a year now. The network offers 217 texts, and 43 minutes each month, in return for receiving up to 6 brand text messages each day. Read my review here.

Blyk has now announced that it will be changing the top-up system to £15 free a month, instead of the old text and calls allowance. This system has caused considerable uproar from Blyk members, with several petitions and hundreds of forum posts complaining. Especially as Blyk is saying that “You asked, Blyk listened”, claiming that members asked for this change. In addition, calls have gone up to 2p per minute, (texts are cheaper at 8p though). 

What this change shows is perhaps Blyk isn’t very secure financially. In the tough recession times, they can’t be blamed. Will Blyk be available for users in the future, or will the MVNO disappear like so many before them? They have halved the free allowance, so problems must be there.

£15 free credit a moth is still a good deal, but for me personally, it is not enough enticement to switch to them full time, (I currently use it as a second phone). The difficulties I face as a Blyk member are too much for a measly free £15 a month. For example, right now I can’t login to the “Your Blyk” website, and I still haven’t be able to top-up with my debit card yet, despite trying every day for two weeks!

JK

My favorite to win Celebrity Big Brother was LaToya Jackson; and she was evicted last night, just before Tommy Sheridan.

I think this is a terrible shame; I wanted her to win! The rest of the house are quite boring; Coolio adds entertainment, but he is too annoying to win. I don’t know who to support know, but I guess Verne will win.

Unfortunately CBB this year has been very dull; almost nothing has happened really. People complain when it’s too racy and complain when it’s too dull.

Racism was too far yes, but Channel 4/Endemol didn’t have to dull the series down completely. They didn’t even let Tina and Coolio have a fight, calling Coolio straight to the diary room. How boring!

JK

Windows 7 is the next major update of the Windows Operating System; the most popular in the world.

I have now been running the beta version of the OS since Saturday, and I have used copies of previous builds in VMware.

The Installation ii the first noteworthy update; a clean install on my PC into a partition took under 10 minutes! First run of the new OS too was very quick; it started quicker that my copy of Vista Home Premium, and boasts a much nicer start up, with cool graphic effects.

The UI of Windows 7 is one of the most obvious differences. The new taskbar reminds me of the OS X Dock; something I’m not all that fond of. I find it a little bulky to use, with it becoming a clutter of icons and running apps. I hate the fact that it groups similar windows together, like Messenger and Internet Explorer ones. This is really annoying. It seems to take twice as long to open windows, and I just don’t see the advantage.

A lot of the new features in Windows 7 are very minor indeed! Aero Snap for example, and the detachment of the Sidebar. Jump Lists; hardly revolutionary! These are nice additions, but nothing that couldn’t just have been added to Vista in a service pack.

Some features of Windows 7 are quite new; for example the ribbon in Paint and WordPad. I personally find this an excellent choice, as I love Office 2007. For some though, this will be a nightmare. Perhaps Microsoft should give the user the choice on which system they use.

I do get the feeling Windows 7 is less temperamental than Vista. It runs faster, and it hasn’t crashed so far. Wireless networking seems improved as well, with the network selection menu being added to the taskbar. One thing I dislike though is icons being hidden in a new menu. It seems to do the same as the old hiding system, but seems to work worse, with it being harder to tell what icons represent which programs. Is this an improvement?

Aero Peek though is very cool! It looks great, and is something I’d show people. Do I need it functionality wise? Nope, it has no purpose but to look nice, and lets you see those desktop gadgets, which I never use.

Windows 7 worked flawlessly with my current Wireless Adapter and the Vista driver. One thing I can’t get to work is the new ‘Devices and Printers’ screen. It doesn’t seem to recognise the other network PCs or Printers in my household. By default, the only when I can see these is If I go through the Control Panel. In Vista, there is the useful ‘Network’ Menu. Why did they get rid of it by default? Why is ‘Default Programs’ there?

Many have said Windows 7 is just a service pack for Windows Vista. While Windows 7 adds a lot more core stability, speed and refinements, it is far from a brand new OS. This is what Vista should have been. Yes, Windows 7 provides more functionality upgrades than a standard service pack, but does it warrant a new OS? How can Microsoft justify a price tag over £30?

I think Vista users deserve Windows 7 as fast as possible, and as a free or heavily discounted upgrade. After using Windows Vista for the past two years, I know first hand that it hasn’t been a perfect experience. Not as bad as it has been said or appears in the infamous ‘Get a Mac’ ads, but still not quite perfect. Windows 7 fixes this, and returns Windows to it’s former “glory”. And this is only the beta!

JK

So, like a lot of others it seems, I have tried to get hold of the Windows 7 Beta. It has taken a lot of work, and some frutration, but finally I have got hold of my copy of the ISO and the Product Key. I will post my review in the next few days. I must say, it is very surprising that Microsoft was not better prepared for this release. Their servers have been swamped by users, causing all these problems. Still, the beta is not available to average users through the Windows 7 homepage. What a fiasco!
JK

Celebrity Big Brother this year started a week ago, last Friday. The past week has been filled with excitement, laughter, and bitching about Coolio who is getting on a lot of people nerves. Tonight, Ulrika Johnson or Lucy Pinder will be evicted. My bet is on Lucy going; she hasn’t really done much in the house, and Channel 4 bosses would be annoyed to see Ulrika go, (after splashing out on a reported £175,000 for her to be in the house). Next eviction, I think we’ll see Coolio up; he’s annoying people. Will he be saved by the public though? La Toya and Verne are my favorites to win so far.

JK

So I’m currently eagerly awaiting the Windows 7 Beta, which should be made available to everyone at 12pm PST today. I’ll write a full review of the Beta once I get hold of it; hopefully tomorrow! See you then!

JK