28C, in the shade, at 11:30am, its going to be another hot day

28C, in the shade, at 11:30am, its going to be another hot day.

Time for the sun cream !

Day 5, Friday is fry-day, 38C

The temperature has hit a heady 38C in the garden, in sunny Runcorn today !!!

Happy heat wave !!!

Measurement taken on Friday 25th May 2012 @16:30

DIY Raspberry Pi Punnet Card Case Printable Template PDF

If you own a Raspberry Pi, and fancy building a diy card case, take a look at:

http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=6424&p=82919#p82919

The link to the pdf template is here.

Day 4 at the hot house, 39C in Runcorn

Here's another update for the evening temperature in Runcorn.
39C in Runcorn on 24th May 2012 @16:40

The heat wave continues !!!

Heat wave, 36C for second day in Runcorn

For the second day in succession, its measured 36 Celsius in Runcorn.

Reading taken on 23rd May, 2012 @16:30

"it's cracking flags"

Heat wave continues in Runcorn, 36C !

Here's a quick update on the current temperature in Runcorn.

A tropical 36C, 22nd May, 2012, @17:00

Mini heat wave in Runcorn, 32C

Wow, seems there's a mini heat wave in Runcorn !

Currently reading 32C , 21st May, 2012 @17:40

Facebook share trading debut ipo sends market crazy

I just noticed this when looking at the Google Finance page.

The graph next to a paragraph covering the Facebook stock market debute seemed extremely insightful.

Worthersee Shell Garage Webcam

http://www.pmischkulnig.com/Mischkulnig/WebCam.html

Click on the link above to see the live images being taken at the Shell garage during the massive VAG VW Worthersee annual car show event.

T-SQL Logical Query Processing Phases

This section is lifted/quoting "Inside Microsoft SQL SERVER 2005: T-SQL Querying"
Logical Query Processing Phases
This section introduces the phases involved in the logical processing of a query.
I will first briefly describe each step.
Then, in the following sections, I'll describe the steps in much more detail and apply them to a sample query.
You can use this section as a quick reference whenever you need to recall the order and general meaning of the different phases.
Listing 1-1 contains a general form of a query, along with step numbers assigned according to the order in which the different clauses are logically processed.

Listing 1-1 Logical query processing step numbers
(8) SELECT (9) DISTINCT (11) TOP
(1) FROM
(3) JOIN
(2) ON
(4) WHERE
(5) GROUP BY
(6) WITH {CUBE | ROLLUP}
(7) HAVING
(10) ORDER BY
The first noticeable aspect of SQL that is different than other programming languages is the
order in which the code is processed. In most programming languages, the code is processed
in the order in which it is written. In SQL, the first clause that is processed is the FROM clause,
while the SELECT clause, which appears first, is processed almost last.
Each step generates a virtual table that is used as the input to the following step. These virtual
tables are not available to the caller (client application or outer query). Only the table generated
by the final step is returned to the caller. If a certain clause is not specified in a query, the
4 Inside Microsoft SQL Server 2005: T-SQL Querying
corresponding step is simply skipped. Following is a brief description of the different logical
steps applied in both SQL Server 2000 and SQL Server 2005. Later in the chapter, I will
discuss separately the steps that were added in SQL Server 2005.

Brief Description of Logical Query Processing Phases
Don't worry too much if the description of the steps doesn't seem to make much sense for
now. These are provided as a reference. Sections that come after the scenario example
will cover the steps in much more detail.

1. FROM: A Cartesian product (cross join) is performed between the first two tables in the FROM clause, and as a result, virtual table VT1 is generated.
2. ON: The ON filter is applied to VT1. Only rows for which the is TRUE are inserted to VT2.
3. OUTER (join): If an OUTER JOIN is specified (as opposed to a CROSS JOIN or an INNER JOIN), rows from the preserved table or tables for which a match was not found are added to the rows from VT2 as outer rows, generating VT3. If more than two tables appear in the FROM clause, steps 1 through 3 are applied repeatedly between the result of the last join and the next table in the FROM clause until all tables are processed.
4. WHERE: The WHERE filter is applied to VT3. Only rows for which the is TRUE are inserted to VT4.
5. GROUP BY: The rows from VT4 are arranged in groups based on the column list specified in the GROUP BY clause. VT5 is generated.
6. CUBE | ROLLUP: Supergroups (groups of groups) are added to the rows from VT5, generating VT6.
7. HAVING: The HAVING filter is applied to VT6. Only groups for which the is TRUE are inserted to VT7.
8. SELECT: The SELECT list is processed, generating VT8.
9. DISTINCT: Duplicate rows are removed from VT8. VT9 is generated.
10. ORDER BY: The rows from VT9 are sorted according to the column list specified in the ORDER BY clause. A cursor is generated (VC10).
11. TOP: The specified number or percentage of rows is selected from the beginning of
    VC10. Table VT11 is generated and returned to the caller.

McKenzie Lumbar Exercises 1

If you have back ache, maybe sciatic nerve pain, the physio suggested the following McKenzie Lumbar exercises to help. Further information: "Treat you own back" by Robin McKenzie - Spinal publications

Rick Stein Parsley soup recipe with Chive cream

Use curly parsley, chop parsley roughly including any stalks.

Melt butter in a pan and add the parsley and chopped leeks.

Sweat the vegetables.

Add cut, boiled potatoes to thicken the soup.

Add chicken stock.

As the soup is cooking, make the chive cream:-
Chop chives, and add to cream.

Back to the soup - just before it's liquidised, throw in any remaining parsley (it keeps keep the fresh green colour to the soup) in the last minute of cooking and liquidize the soup in a food processor.

Back into the pan, add double cream, salt and black pepper.

Serve with a spoon of chives-cream in the soup.

How to tie a Windsor knot

Watch "How to tie a Windsor knot" on YouTube

Whilst at a wedding (cracking wedding by the way, CONGRATULATIONS TO JAMES AND CHARLOTTE), I was asked to help tie a Windsor Knot.

Though that it might as well go online to help others?!

I love this video from youtube. http://youtu.be/fqymcJRSbxI

Drunk man belts out perfect rendition of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody whilst the three back of a cop car.

Queen's Diamond Jubilee visit to Manchester

I few snaps taken today, as the Queen visits Manchester in the North West for her Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

These were taken during her visit to the town hall.

Postcode demographic profiling - CheckMyArea.com

Postcode based information for all postcodes free – any UK post code area described

Hmmm, looks pretty interesting, trying to derive one of the 54 standard geodemographic information about the area, based on postcode, credit and other sources.

List of sources mentioned are:
Census
Register of court judgements
Insolvency records
Lifestyle information collected from questionnaires
Credit scores

It makes for some interesting reading, especially what assumptions are made from the census.

Netgear WGR614 v6 DSL (cable) Wireless Router

For sale: my Netgear router, £10 from Warrington (pickup) - surplus to requirements as I've moved, and I'm not on cable anymore.

My Netgear WGR614 v6 DSL Wireless router (cable router suitable for VIRGIN cable internet):

Key Features
Wireless Technology: Wireless G
Wireless Speed: 54 Mbps
Port Speed: 10/100
DLNA Certified: No
USB for File Sharing: No
Built in Modem: No
Connectivity: Wired & Wireless

BMI Body Mass Index reference chart

I've just come across a quick lookup chart for the BMI (body mass index)



The traditional way of calculating it is:


English BMI Formula
BMI = ( Weight in Pounds / ( Height in inches x Height in inches ) ) x 703

Metric BMI Formula
BMI = ( Weight in Kilograms / ( Height in Meters x Height in Meters ) )

Skoda Fabia Brake Disc and Brake Pads change

Skoda Fabia Brake disc and pad change.

A recent much needed brake disc and brake pad change, and a dry day gave me the chance for a spot of motor DIY.

Front brake pad comparison

My EBC brake pads from Brakes4u.co.uk

(Ultimax)

New pad (left) vs old pad (right).






These pads were sooo thin, and brittle, they flaked off once removed.

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Front disc comparison.

(might aswell change the disc and pads as a complete job)










Front discs fitted.

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Rear brake pads.

New pad (left) vs old pad (right)

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Rear disc fitted.

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Here's a picture of the old parts.






The discs had plenty of "meat" on them, but the pads were completely shot.

Lightroom 4, now available

Adobe download link

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Create amazing images that inspire, inform, and delight. From first look to final image, Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 4 software provides powerfully simple one-click tools and cutting-edge advanced controls for every step. Easily organize, perfect, and share all your photographs.

It’s significantly cheaper than prior versions: the full program costs just $149, while the upgrade costs $79.