London Water

I'm a great proponent of drinking London tap water, rather than the bottled stuff. So this is not a scare story about London's tap water not being drinkable, nor even that it tastes bad.

This post is about the difference between tap water and tap water that's been through a decent filter. Most top restaurants, for example, will soften and filter their tap water to help improve the taste of everything the water is used with, including tea and coffee.

I took this photo at my brother-in-law's birthday dinner. He's the marketing director of a leading water softener and filter supplier. Before our very eyes, he dropped an ordinary 'builder's tea' bag into each of the two glasses and whisked it out again within a minute. The water in the glass on the left is ordinary tap water. The water in the glass on the right is the same water that's been through his new household filter.

The tea in the lefthand glass tasted like the 'builder's tea' we all know and love. Almost like a pint of bitter, by comparison with the subtle flavour of the tea in the righthand glass. I can't magine what the difference would be with soups, sauces and so on.

We have a filter on our kitchen tap, but I'm told it won't have quite the effect seen above. The challenge is in demonstrating that, which seems to be as easy as making a few cups of tea. Is this the new 'Tupperware Party'?

Anyhow, the humble water filter seems worth considering before spending a lot on cooking gadgets, coffee-makers or fancy tea sets.

Why She Buys

Interesting tips from a book Why She Buys, by Bridget Brennan, posted on the Amazon Payments blog:

• don't hide your customer service number


• simple checkout process


• use trusted payment methods, confirm orders/shipment immediately by email


• have a decent returns policy


• recommend complementary items


• show examples of gifts


• allow zoom on product shots


• keep your site clutter-free


• be transparent about shipping costs

Reminds me of some research that challenged the idea that women aren't comfortable with technology. As others have pointed out that, sure it should be stylish, but it also has to work simply. That means minimising the need for instructions and cables like spaghetti.

Intel also found that women are very influential when it comes to the gadgets guys buy, and even spend more time online gaming than young men.

Oh, and check out GeekSugar, 'where geek is chic'. Hat-tip to AllWomensWeekend.

Mapumental Map-Timetable-House-Price Mash-Up

See the movie, read the blog and apply here for your invitation to the private beta.

Crackberry 2, Email 0

Crackberry Adventures

Well, I had a Crackberry for 2 days, returned it, and am expecting another tomorrow.

Two top tips (explained below):

1. Before you get a personal Blackberry, check whether any of your emails are going to come from a Blackberry Enterprise Server. If so, you will need a BES-configured handset.
2. If you are a Vodafone customer, call Vodafone's upgrade or retention team to order your BES handset, and say you'll pay no more than £5 per month (on top of line rental) for email access.

Here's why:

• Crackberrys are configured to run either the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) or the Blackberry Enterprise Service (BES).
• Only a BES-configured handset will accept email from a Blackberry Enterprise Server (really only affordable for larger employers), in addition to email from other servers.
  
• A BIS-configured Crackberry will accept mail from MS Exchange etc., but not a Blackberry Enterprise Server.
• Vodafone's high street stores only stock the BIS-configured Crackberrys, and offer email access for "only" £5 on top of your line rental (for what?). If you ask a store for a BES handset, they will offer to order you one, but charge you £28 on top your line rental for email access.
  
• At the suggestion of Vodafone customer services, I called Vodafone's upgrade or retention team from the store, and they offered to deliver a BES handset with email access for "only" £5 on top of my line rental.

Will IT ever be easy?

Even I Now Have a Crackberry

Yes, even I have finally succumbed - a decade of Nokia loyalty overturned. With my Nokia E61 forlornly relegated to back-up status, my life's data is now on the dreaded Crackberry.

This Seismic Shift was caused by the internal communications etiquette of my current client. The company generally requires employees and staff to have their own mobile phones. So, to avoid the undue use/cost of mobiles, the preferred modes of communication are email or calls on the company's internal telephone system. Most requests that someone call your mobile seem to go unheeded in favour of email, as everyone assumes that your mobile is a Crackberry - you'll see the email anyway.

Ironically, I can't get email on my new Crackberry as the relevant server isn't responding to my password yet. So, the only way to communicate effectively would be to throw it at the next person I see...

Worse still, I remain deskbound, since approval for remote email access via my company-issued laptop is yet to reach the Guardian of the VPN.

Woe betide the next person who passes my office door!