Ethical Companies – The Blog

Well, not just eCommerce but websites in general. See the picture below (click on picture if nosey enough to see a bigger screenshot):

Now the reason this happens is because I entered gabrieleskelton.com into the URL bar of my browser (Google Chrome in this case) instead of www.gabrieleskelton.com Because this is in Chrome you at least get an idea of what the problem is but you won’t in other browsers.

You might be saying “so what” ?  Well it might not be such a big deal to Gabriele Skelton but could you imagine Play.com or Amazon.co.uk not working without the www ?  Let’s say you’re telling your mates down the pub about your brand new whizzbang website selling widgets at widgets.com, not EVERYBODY is as computer/internet literate as you are.  Not everybody knows you might have to put www in front, and when the site doesn’t work for them they just won’t try again will they ?  Look at the adverts for Play and Amazon in magazines and so on, no www’s in the advert, because their sites don’t need them, it’s unnecessary clutter.

If your site doesn’t work without the www then it’s easy, cheap and quick to fix.  On Windows hosts look in IIS under host headers, on Linux look in Apache; then just add the non www header.  Any decent internet technician can fix this in minutes (literally), and fixing it might just mean more sales.

Steve

PS I didn’t look to see if there was a widgets.com I just “made it up”, if the site does exist please forward advertising fees to ….

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Apple’s new iPad has finally been “launched” on the world …. Media and blog reaction is somewhat mixed, however, I do sense a certain amount of disappointment:

You cannot be serious! Internet virals take a bite out of Apple’s new iPad amid widespread disappointment.

As you recall I already blogged on the subject of Apple’s new product but I thought I’d take a look at the criticisms levelled at the device, if only to jump on the “bandwagon” and maybe get a hit or two from Google for “iPad” Here are the points (in italics, my comments not in italics)as detailed on the Daily Mail article linked above

No multitasking – As a replacement for netbooks, one of the most surprising deficiencies of the iPad is that it does not have a multitasking facility. This means that when you run a programme, such as a word processor, you would not be able to run another programme, an internet browser for example, in the background. This is likely to prove a deal-breaker for many people, especially business professionals who need to be able to run multiple programmes concurrently. Apple have said the reason behind the lack of multitasking is that it is a drain on battery life.

Multitasking is pretty damn useful.  Multitasking has been with us some time now, right back to the Commodore Amiga (at least, someone will no doubt be a techy know it all and point out it had been “done” before that.)  Multitasking is useful, it’s what lets you reply to emails, listen to MP3’s and download all at the same time.  All PCs (Windows, Linux etc) are multitasking and to me this is an “essential” feature of a modern computing device.  You can get by without it on a smartphone or PDA as you’re unlikely to use those for more than one task at a time but multitasking is what would have made the iPad so much more than just an oversized iPhone.

No camera - This is one of the biggest issues concentrated on by Mac fans. The iPad lacks a still camera, a video camera and a webcam. Many users are asking why the iPad cannot handle a camera if the iPhone can.

Good point raised above.  Not that it bothers me particularly, my mobile phone doesn’t even have a camera, I have a Canon Ixus model something or other for that.

No Flash - Lacking Adobe Flash will make using the iPad extremely difficult for anyone wishing to view webpages which include a large amount of video, or applications and adverts which need to use Flash to run.  Basically it will mean that users will discover large areas of webpages missing due to the lack of Flash. Apparently the lack of support for Flash is down to a long-running battle between Apple and Adobe.

There’s a lot of sites out there that use Flash now ….  Even Linux/Firefox users are capitulating and installing the Flash plugin to make sure they can see sites properly.

Touch keyboard - Despite much of the technological world moving into the keyboard-free zone, the touchscreen keyboard on the iPad could prove problematic for some users.  As people have already found by using the iPhone, a touchscreen keyboard can be temperamental as the buttons need to be pressed hard and directly in the centre. However, Apple have made a separate keyboard, which they are selling for $70, that can be used with the iPad.

Long as it works (it is implied above that it doesn’t though) I don’t see this as a problem myself.  Touch sensitive isn’t always a good thing though ….  Some of those early computers had atrocious keyboards (Atari hang your head in shame here.)

Lack of input - As well as lacking any card slots, the iPad comes without a USB port – making it extremely difficult to transfer documents and information from an external drive on to the device.  Instead of a USB port, the iPad has an iPod connector, meaning that users will have to purchase one of the many adapters on sale in order to use a non-Apple product with the iPad.

Oh please, that’s just plain ridiculous.  USB is a global standard, it probably costs pennies to build a USB interface ….  Oh hang on, the “adapter” will bring in some extra cash for Apple via “upselling” so that’s why ….

Closed applications - Despite being marketed as the most innovative product in the world of netbooks, users of the iPad will only be able to download apps from App Store.  This means that unlike other laptops and netbooks which allow any type of external software to be downloaded, with an iPad users will only be able to get hold of software after it has been approved by Apple and added to the App store.

Well that’s a great way to encourage innovation isn’t it ?  Not.  You want innovative ?  Get a Linux netbook or laptop; open source free software, now that’s innovative.  Have you any idea how many apps there for Linux (or even Windows, let’s not get too much like a Linux fanboy here.)  Did you know that Apple wouldn’t allow a Commodore 64 emulator on the iPhone ?  So much for the app store, it’s restrictive and stifles innovation because all “entries” are moderated/vetted.

The name ‘iPad’ - It was inevitable that Apple would choose a short name for the new product, and one which is associated entirely with previous Apple products – such as the iPod and the iPhone.  However, many people have criticised the name for sounding too much like a female hygiene product, and its moniker has led to a series of humorous internet virals relating to this association.

Snigger, I suppose it does sound a bit like that.  Mind you I suppose Nintendo were no better ….  A console that sounds the same as a term for urine.  Perhaps Apple will release the iTampon or iWings next ?

Small screen - The iPad has a 9.7inch touchscreen and a 4:3 format ratio with a resolution of 1024×768 pixels. This means that the iPad has been released without being HD ready. It is also not ideal for people who wish to watch widescreen films on the device, as they will only be able to do so with a black bar at the top and bottom of the film.

Oh dear.  Where to start ….

There’s no WiFi either (so you can’t sit outside Wetherspoons or McDonalds in the car to check your email.)  So would I buy one ?  Hell no.  I’d get one of these instead:

In fact, I’d just get a laptop. Sorry Apple, not very exciting in my opinion.

Steve

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Emulators on Wikipedia.

“An emulator in computer sciences duplicates (provides an emulation of) the functions of one system using a different system, so that the second system behaves like (and appears to be) the first system. This focus on exact reproduction of external behavior is in contrast to some other forms of computer simulation, which can concern an abstract model of the system being simulated.”

Ok, that’s accurate but somewhat “dry.”  Basically emulation allows you to use software for one system on another system.  For example you can run Windows software on Linux or Macintosh or ….  More interestingly you can play old games from non PC systems on your PC.  This ranges from the 8 bit systems of the 1980’s through the 16 bit glory of the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga to consoles such as the Sega Dreamcast and Sony Playstation 2.

I discovered computer emulation about 1995 or so with the C64 emulator C64S.  Whilst it wasn’t stunningly compatible and didn’t run all C64 games on your PC it did work on a 386 PC under MS-DOS.  The Commodore 64 was a massively popular home computer and there are thousands (I mean that, it’s not an exaggeration) of games available for it and they are not too hard to find on the internet with the use of Google.  Your verdict on C64 games may of course vary but for me these are some of the classics:

• Elite. Heck, who hasn’t heard of this one ?  It started life on the BBC Micro B, and was also ported/written for:  Sinclair Spectrum, Acorn Electron, Commodore 128, various other BBC models, Acorn Archimedes, Commodore Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore Plus4, Amstrad CPC, MSX, Apple 2, 2 PC versions and even a port for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) console.
• Ultima IV. A classic computer RPG and for me one of the greatest RPGs ever.  Again converted for several systems including the C64, Commodore Amiga and Atari ST.  Don’t think it made it to any of the other 8 bit systems, as it was very large on 4 disks so may have been out of the reach of many 8 bits which were tape drive orientated.  Might have been available on the Apple 2 ?
• Paradroid. Superb game where you run around a spaceship as a robot destroying all the rogue robots to regain control of the ship.  A little crude graphically now, but heck what a game considering it was under 40k in length !  C64 only, although a new version called Paradroid ‘90 later appeared on the 16 bits.
• Impossible Mission. You might have seen this in the last year or so turn up on the Nintendo DS; yes it’s the same game.  Was released on various 8 bit systems, including the Sega Master System and the NES if I recall correctly.
• Sanxion. Superb shoot ‘em up and one of the pioneers of the genre.  Also the game which brought Rob Hubbard to fame for the music which he wrote for the game.  Converted to Sinclair Spectrum but the music soundtrack was “destroyed” in the process as the Commodore 64 was streets ahead musically over the Spectrum.
• Hypersports. A joystick thrashing game.  I played this one ….  A lot.  The skeet shooting was my favourite bit.  Also ported to several other 8 bits.
• Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. Classic command line text adventure.  How many hours have been wasted trying to get the babel fish on this game ?  Shows up on various platforms, not very processor intensive so easily written, even for low end 8 bits.

I could go on for hours ….  As you can probably tell I was a big Commodore 64 fan.  Here’s the Commodore 64 emulator running Elite right on my Vista desktop:

Vice also emulates the Commodore VIC20, Commodore PET and various other 8 bit Commodore platforms. You can download it here.  Vice is free, there are other C64 emulators but this is the one to pick in my opinion.

So what of the other platforms ?  Well there are emulators available for:

• Sinclair Spectrum (various models.) Don’t know much about them, was never a big Spectrum fan. World Of Spectrum is an extensive resource detailing Spectrum emulation and also the Sinclair QL (a computer I know virtually nothing about.) Games to look out for are: Elite, Jet Set Willy, Manic Miner, Head Over Heels and Atic Atac.
• BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. Never owned either of these (didn’t use one at school either like a lot of people did.) BeebEm seems to be the favoured emulator for BBC, and Elkulator for the Acorn Electron. Again, look out for Elite, and also Chuckie Egg.

This link will help you find emulators for MSX, Atari 8 bit, and pretty much any 8 bit computer system you can think of ….

Once you’ve got your emulator running, turn to Google to find the games …. Most of the 8 bit era games are pretty easy to find. If you can’t find what you’re looking for just drop us a line and if I can point you in the right direction I will !

Happy emulating !  I’ll be writing some more entries on emulation over the next few days.

Steve

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