The internet can be irresistibly informing as well as delightfully distracting. For example, a simple internet search at work for "chauffeur", lead me to TechCrunch to learn about Google’s Chauffeur project. However, what really grabbed my attention were not the clever Toyota Prius cars mentioned nor the new Google ChromeBooks but something altogether down to earth; Sergey’s choice of footwear.

As soon as I saw the Vibram FiveFingers a virtual lightbulb sparked above my head. My first Tai Chi teacher, would often sing in praise of peasants’ feet. No, she does not have a unhealthy foot fetish, far from it. But she explained to us how ironically the super-poor are often blessed with truly perfect feet. Unconstrained by poorly fitting shoes, thick soles or gasp, high heels; the peasants’ bare feet help promote great posture and balance; two of the key foundations of Tai Chi Chuan.

The Google CEO’s Vibram FiveFingers also explained how my wife and I could have possibly seen barefoot prints on the gravel tracks in and around the New Forest. This helped calm our initial panic of imagining feral, insane asylum escapees running naked around our beloved National Park.

It also ignited new searches where I learnt about the joys of barefoot running, and the benefits that minimal footwear bring to the running party. Anyone that has walked on a pebble beach will know that it is none too pleasant, for soft westerners anyway, to walk without flip flops.

I have completed several runs now wearing my new Vibram FiveFingers Bikila running shoes. I still am not convinced that the Bikila model was the right choice for where I run. I suspect I should have bought the KSO or TrekSport model as Vibram suggest that these are better suited for light trekking and are also suitable for running. Maybe all Vibram FiveFingers runners can expect to get the odd bruised foot from a stone or two? The Bikila are very comfortable on tarmac and seem perfect for the average runner. There is a bit of a knack on slipping them on, but once on they feel very soft and strangely comforting. These will change your running technique instantly, unless of course you have already been running barefoot.

I may be in a sort of honeymoon period with the Vibrams, but when combined with Danny Dreyer’s amazing audiobook ChiRunning, running is no longer a bout of suffering in the name of keeping fit. I had chosen cycling to running, because it seemed a lot kinder on the body than pounding up and down while jogging. However, running mindfully wearing Vibram FiveFingers and using Mr Dreyers techniques is a whole different ball game, more like a spiritual practice than a work out.

Running can now be truly enjoyed as it once was by all of us; before we got tired of falling over. Running practically barefoot in FiveFingers makes you think about each step. Rather than relying on the super thick running sole of a typical running shoe and landing on the heel. Running ‘barefoot’ will help make you run just like you used to, by landing on the middle of the foot.

Technology can be both a blessing and a bugbear, and sometimes we have to come full circle to find the right way. I still use the Nike + GPS iPhone App to track my runs, but my new ride of choice are the FiveFingers. Personally, running ‘barefoot’ in FiveFingers is a huge step forward.

Running Barefoot & Virtual Barefoot resources

• Chris McDougall.com author of “Born to Run”
• Barefoot Ted
• To Run Better, Start by Ditching Your Nikes
• A Love Story: The Bikila’s
• The Running Barefoot

I have been playing around with my new Apple TV from Apple. A small black box which plugs in to your TV with a hdmi cable (not in the box) and allows you to stream your iTunes content to your telly. In comparison with some other Apple products it is as cheap as chips; at £99 this plastic box device maybe diminutive in size, but packs a wicked kick. As you kick-back and recline in front of your TV, you can watch and listen to all your lovely media; iPhotos, iTunes, movies and podcasts are only a click or two away. You can even buy or rent HD movies to watch. Not as cheap as Blockbuster but saves going out in the rain and back again to drop them off.

The Apple TV comes with a minimalistic remote, which works well, but is not Bluetooth, which means you need to be in the same room as your Apple TV. But if you have a iOS device like your iPhone or iPad you can use the Remote App to put you in control. This beats any other remote I have ever tried, even jaw dropping dear B&O models are eclipsed by this coolness. And this is the thing, the Apple TV on its own is about as useful as door stop. However when you integrate it into your digital lifestyle, it becomes like a great band; something even greater than the sum of the individual parts.

I like the fact that there are no fans, ugly great big wall warts to plug in and think the digital audio output is cool too. I love the fact that it is powered by Apple’s own A4 chip, like the iPad and iPhone 4 which makes it fast and responsive. It comes with an ethernet port, but I have only used it via my home Wi-Fi connection, which worked a treat. It would be nice if it played BBC iPlayer content directly, but maybe that will come in a future software revision? iMovies play without any anti-aliasing artefacts like sometimes show in your home produced DVD movies too. Which is a huge step-forward.

Overall, this is a killer little black box. Tiny but effective like a can of Tennants Super or a Bruce Lee finger jab. Terrific.

It’s been a long time. My first entry into the 2009 iPresents Archive had better be good. And good it is, well this post might not be, but the site it points to and it’s good cause is very good.

For the¬†umpteenth¬†time I have given up smoking. ¬†On January the 1st 2009 I joined the ranks of every other quitter. I have since forgone one of my favourite addictions. I decided it was not enough just to give up one addiction, so I have replaced it with 2 others. Getting fit and trying to lose some weight. I currently weigh 176 pounds, which would be ideal if I was 6′ 4″ but alas I am 5’8″, however at the¬†beginning¬†of ’09 I was bordering on obese according to my Wii Fit, weighing in at ¬†13 stone 11 (193 pounds). Through the use of cycling, spinning, jogging and a dramatic change to my diet I have lost 17 pounds. I have had several useful tools to help me with my quest, namely my bikes (Specialized Sirrus Pro & Specialized Rockhopper Disc), iPhone (using the Stopwatch and Livestrong App.), Wii Fit for my daily scales, and a digital heart rate monitor.

I think one of the most important aspects in sticking to a regime like this is to have a goal. Mine is to fit into a cycling top which I bought last year! I want to look like Dracula, as Lance would describes his fellow pro cyclists, and in particular  the ultra slim climbing variety.

One tool that I have found useful in my quest to look like a member of the peleton is Livestrong.com’s Daily Plate. Here you can tot up your intake of cereal bars, protein shakes and bacon sarnies. Which makes you think twice before you devour something. This has made it very clear to me how important diet is as well as a physical regime if you want to lose some pounds. A bit of a pain in the butt to use, I now know what being anal is, but it works. This is in essence the same technology that Lance has used to win the Tour de France. I am not guaranteeing that you will win the next Tour, but it might help you drop a jean size or fit into that snug and slinky cycling top that you have always fancied wearing.

In case you don’t know Livestrong is part of Lance’s movement to help fight cancer.

"October 2, 1996. The day it all changed. The day I stated never to take anything for granted. The day I learned to take charge of my life. It was the day I was diagnosed with cancer,"

I am not saying that by visiting Livestrong.com or Livestrong.org and donating something you will beat cancer or get immune to it, but you could play a part in a cure or at least help improve its treatment. I started writing this post in February 2009. Since then I have lost 2 stone, managed to fit into my One Less Car cycling garment and started smoking again. Now, at the end of August 2009, I have decided to finish off this draft.

As I terminate this post, I sit proudly next to my very sick Dad who is lying in his hospice bed asleep. Dad for over a year has valiantly fought bowel cancer. Alas, it seems he wasn’t meant to win. Heaven must really need him. My dad couldn’t have given me a stronger incentive to try and quit my smokes again and get back on my bike. Getting fit and smoke free may or may not help stop me getting this dis-ease, but at least it will reduce my odds. If I am unlucky enough to get it, it will make me stronger so that I might be better equipped to survive it. It won’t make me as courageous as my dad or all the ¬†other ¬†cancer fighters out there, but hopefully I won’t have to be brave, I’ll (hopefully) just act like my astrological sun sign – cancer, the crab and sidestep my way out of they way of it. Who knows what will happen? Cancer could be in my genes, or in my next packet of smokes, or even worse in the genes of my kids or even yours.

Scary. But it doesn’t need to be, we can all pop over to Livestrong and see how we can help. It might not help my Dad but it could possibly help his kids and grand children.

The iTunes 8.0.1 Update is now available which is a 59MB download. The update features:

• Seamlessly plays the current song when creating a new Genius playlist.
• Improves syncing spoken menus to iPod nano.
• Addresses an issue of deleting HD TV episodes when downloading.
• Improves checking for updates from the App Store
• Improves accessibility with VoiceOver.
• Addresses problems syncing Genius results to iPod.

It also creates this error message on my iPhone when syncing: “The phone iFinger’s iPhone cannot be synced. An unknown error occurred (13014)”

Apparently, if I reboot my Mac and possibly iPhone it will fix things.

It seems that next years black, will be red. Just like the new iPod nano, techni-colour is here to blow away the muted shades of grey as we try and shake off the credit crunch blues.

Moleskine, my favourite notebook have also decided that we need more colour in our lives. They have introduced a shiny new red Moleskine notebook to jot down your thoughts, notes and ideas.

Buy one from Mojo London and get free gift wrapping too, just what we need for Christmas.

This years top Christmas and holiday gift could well be Apple’s new iPod nano. Introduced, once again in perfect time for the Christmas shopping period. Apple’s tills will melt down, thanks to this very clever design.

This is the thinnest Apple iPod ever made. It has gone back to a form factor that owes more to some of the earlier incarnations of the nano line than the last one. At first I was hesitant about it’s style, but I think Apple, once again have got it right.

Squeezing new features like the accelerometer as found in the iPhone and iPod Touch. The new nano adds a whole new spin on it with the new Shake to Shuffle feature along with the ability to view cover flow artwork. This 4th generation of iPod nano is a slick and innovative design. Available in nine funky colours which all share the same curved aluminum and glass structure. The nano is the best yet, and I was a huge fan of the 3rd generation!

The nano also comes with the Genius playlist creator which will pick a selection of songs based on one that you select. In testing on my iPhone I have found Genius to locate songs that I haven’t played in a long time, and which all roll nicely with each other. Genius indeed.

Available in 8GB and 16GB versions in silver, purple, blue, green, orange, yellow, pink, (PRODUCT) RED and black.

The iPod nano is gonna be one of Santa’s most requested items this Christmas. Kids and adults alike are going to be devastated if they don’t get one in their Christmas stocking.

Apple iPod nano reviews

• Gizmodo
• Boston Herald
• CNN
• Chron.com
• SFGate.com

On a sunny September in Sussex, there is a time machine called the Goodwood Revival. A real-life museum of speed, a garden party where Pimms and Castrol are consumed equally with vigour and zest. PC hasn’t been invented, petrol is without tether or conscience and gentlemen drive their cars like their heroes – the Spitfire pilots who danced with death only a couple of years before.

A “magical step back in time” describes it wonderfully. A revival of the best of English. Lord March and his team have created a truly magnificent event. Celebrating the golden age of motor sport, from 1948 to 1966. A recreation of all the romance and glamour of these years. When Aston Martin, Jaguar, Lotus and BRM fought it out with Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and Mercedes. Battling sports cars and single seaters dive fearlessly into corners, sliding out the other side with their engines screaming. Rasping and coughing their thunder, these museum grade exhibits are being driven with passion by some of the legends of motor sport. The racing is surprisingly fierce, even in machinery that if it were a building would have a preservation order slapped on it.

Today’s Formula One is a very different discipline. Corporate branding and sponsorship are just as important as the driving. Gone are the days of the James Hunt school of motoring. Contemporary cars may be technologically superior, but somehow lack the flowing lines of the old school cars. The modern era of drivers may be fitter and reach for isotonic refreshments rather than a gin and tonic. Hamilton and Vettel prove that F1 is anything but dull, but the times have certainly changed, and not always for the good.

The Tally-Ho spirit lives on at Goodwood. There were some great aerial displays of Lancasters, Mustangs and of course the Spitfire, all paying homage to the brave young men who fought valiantly for freedom. Seeing a Spitfire curve through the air is a very special sight, one easily lost in dusty museums. Likewise, through out the world, collectible Ferrari or Aston Martin cars lie dormant and in coma, held in solitary confinement by investment groups and individuals. Under cover of dust sheets, the car may gain a few pounds, but seeing one driven in anger is truly priceless.

Goodwood Revival Links

• Official Site
• Goodwood Chauffeur Travel

My 160GB MacBook Pro hard drive was almost busting at the seams. Filled with images, music and other digital files, it was on the verge of going pop. There was only one solution, to find a larger hard drive. My 17inch MacBook Pro warranty has since expired, so I thought that I would do the surgery myself. I bought a 320GB Seagate 7200 rpm drive to replace the OEM Hitachi 160GB unit. If you want to play along at home, here is what you will need:

1. A replacement hard drive (Doh!)
2. A T6 screwdriver
3. A small phillips screwdriver
4. SuperDuper!

To start with I did a clone of my internal drive to an external firewire drive. This took over 4 hours using SuperDuper!. I was getting a copy rate of 10MB/s. That done. I took the battery out of the MacBook Pro, and followed some very helpful Powerbook Medic movies.

1. Cloned hard drive with SuperDuper!
2. Battery Removal
3. Open up the MacBook Pro
4. Hard drive removal

Putting it all back together is just the reversal of the procedure above. Once the replacement hard drive is installed and the case is back on. Connect up your external Firewire drive. Boot off this, then run SuperDuper! again to clone the external drive data onto your shiny new internal drive. I ran Disk Utility to repair the permissions afterward, and my new drive and data on it seems fine. The new Seagate drive is a lot speedier than my old one. It took just over 2 hours to clone, at a speed of 16MB/s. Seems like a huge improvement, but could be that my old drive was really fragmented, due to lack of space.

Now I have loads of space! I also have a spare drive which I will find an external Firewire case for, and use it as some kind of backup device.

Caution and disclaimer

If your MacBook Pro is still under warranty, you might want to get an Apple approved repair shop to do the work, otherwise your warranty will be void. Also, these machines are very delicate. Make sure you don’t zap the electronics with static. Avoid touching the logic board in particular. Proceed at your own risk!

Great news for AC/DC fans. They have announced the US leg of their Black Ice tour which kicks off on October 28, 2008 In Wilkes-Barre, PA. The European and rest of the world tour dates will be announced soon.

AC/DC Fan Club

Also, they have started an AC/DC online fan club, which I have joined. Members get priority tickets and can download cool AC/DC wallpapers like shown above.

My desktop has never looked better.

As promised during the Apple Let’s Rock Keynote. The iPhone 2.1 Software Update was made available yesterday.

iPhone 2.1 Software New Features

• option to wipe data after ten failed passcode attempts
• Genius playlist creation

Bug Fixes and Improvements

• decrease in call set-up failures and call drops
• significantly improved battery life for most users
• dramatically reduced time to back-up to iTunes
• improved email reliability, notably fetching email from POP and Exchange accounts
• faster installation of 3rd party applications
• fixed bugs causing hangs and crashes if you have lots of 3rd party applications
• improved performance in text messaging
• faster loading and searching of contacts
• improved accuracy of the 3G signal strength display
• repeat alert up to twp additional times for incoming text messages

Kernel Panic

The first time I tried installing the update I got a major kernel panic, and the black screen wipe of death. Possibly unrelated, but I haven’t had one of those for a long time.