Thunderbolt and Lightning (not particularly frightening)

A somewhat worn Apple 30-pin dock connector (left) with the new Apple Lightning Cable © 2013

When Apple launched the iPhone 5 in October 2012, they introduced a new interface cable along with it. The Lightning connector replaced the 30-pin dock connector previously seen on all iOS devices since the 3rd generation iPod in 2003 making almost a decade’s worth of iPod and iPhone docking stations and hi-fi accessories instantly obsolete. “Bloody Apple” has been the most common response to it from customers at my place of work, complaining that it is Apple “trying to get you to buy everything again”, but is it really that simple? Things rarely are. I’ll tell you why one of the most valuable companies in the world isn’t trying to expand its bottom line one $30 adaptor at a time.

The "something" of "something"

© 2013

Anything that's the "something" of the "something" isn't really the "anything" of "anything" -Lisa Simpson

According to that great font of information, Wikipedia, these escalators at Parliament Station on the City Loop in Melbourne were once the longest in the Southern Hemisphere.
Visit the Parliament Station Escalators group on Flickr.

How to Pander or: What have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

The Final Frontier © 2003

It is an unfortunate circumstance that any Melburnian or Brisbanite with a passing interest in politics finds themselves as familiar with the location and layout of the Rooty Hill RSL as any west-Sydneysider. Should a Northern Territorian or West Australian wish to see a particular policy from either major party at the upcoming federal election, they would do well to ensure it aligns with the hopes, dreams and prejudices of those who inhabit the RSL known as the "Vegas of the West" because as far as electoral maths is concerned, Western Sydney is the final frontier.