Christmas Eve with Zelda and Link

I’ve always liked my Wii, in spite of not using it as much as I should do. Today we went up town for some last minute Christmas shopping. And I ended up buying a copy of the “swan song” game for this console, which is due for replacement next year with the Wii U.

Watching number one son play the game I was struck by just how good Nintendo are at constructing things like this. Everything works, everything is charming, and pretty much everything has a purpose. Just a great way to spend time.

Evil Squash on Windows Phone

There are now Evil Squash games in Windows Phone Marketplace. Yay! For those that haven’t heard of the game of Evil Squash; it is a kind of cross between Snakes and Ladders and Ludo. We invented it just for our first year programming practical work. And now some enterprising students have got versions running in the Windows Phone marketplace. Well done people.

I’m compiling an “Evil Squash” hall of fame for the Evil Squash site. If you are on the first year of our course and want your version promoting, give me a yell.

Gadget Box

Yesterday I got a box for all the Gadgeteer bits and bobs that I’ve been lent to pay with. In amongst the cables we have a soil moisture sensor, barometer, a bunch of switches and multi-coloured lights, compass, gyro, GPS sensor, SD card reader, network interface, Joystick, LCD panel, OLED panel, network connector, processor board, video camera, power relays and usb host connector. I’ve already built a little camera (that’s the demo application). Now I just have to think of something else to build.

Free Xbox 360 with Nokia Lumia 800

I didn’t realise it at the time, but getting a new Windows Phone has other benefits as well. In the form of a free Xbox 360 with every brand new Nokia Lumia 800. I think the offer has expired now though. I’d have got the phone anyway, free console or not, but it is rather nice.

I’ve had an Xbox 360 since day of release. I have fond memories of around 30 of us sitting in the dark playing Condemned when I took my shiny new console in having picked it up on the very first day. I have less fond memories of the “Red Ring of Death” and sending the whole thing back for repair fairly shortly after that of course….

Anyhoo; today the postman brought me a brand new Xbox 360. It is the new design one and almost shiny. It doesn’t have a hard disk, but it works a treat using an internal 4G of memory and is much, much quieter than my previous machine. Number one sun put in a copy of Skyrim and fired it up. Very, very good. I find it hard to believe that this is now a “mature” console.

The new machine works so well that it has now taken over from my original device. If anyone out there wants a “one careful owner” console, give me a yell.

Me, I’m off to buy a hard disk to plug into it.

Fifty Years of Private Eye

Last week we went up to London for a day trip. One thing we wanted to do was take a look at the “Private Eye: The First Fifty Years” exhibition in the Victoria and Albert museum. Private Eye is a satirical magazine which must be finding life quite interesting in a world which seems to have moved beyond satire in the last few years.

Free to visit and some very funny cartoons. Worth a trip, but you’ll have to hurry as it closes early next year.