Home - My Right Wing Agenda

06/09/2008

Still waiting for the Charger bit... i ordered it from Hong Kong since it was cheaper... could do with it lol sometimes i leave my walkman in my car playing all day whilst at work lol.... Anyhow looking forward to finishing the job off... not looked to getting leather yet... one doesn't really know where to start

Posted at 00:39 by Gordon Taylor | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

Boaring but important

I noticed that this week the EU have agreed to bring in a common standard for refilling hydrogen fuelled cars. This I have to say is great news... Especially if your French... sadly it should be great news for us, but alas its not... because the govt is short sighted or doesn’t have the guts..

So the good news.. unlike LPG if we drive around the continent in 10 odd years time in our combustion engine based hydrogen cars the fill up method will be the same... I guess this also paves the way I hope for the introduction of hydrogen based transportation... the sooner we are off Middle Eastern oil the better... and that was my point about good for the French... you see hydrogen in its self isn’t a fuel we just extract like oil... it takes us energy to make it (the easiest way is using electricity) and therefore unfortunately that takes us back to oil or gas or coal... now some green men are jumping up and down about coal... so that’s out.. (funny I thought coal was just dead trees.. and would eventually become again more dead trees in the grand cycle of things.... ) the only realistic secure (national security) way of generating power is Nuclear since we can mine the uranium here and process it and then make power... however it takes ten odd years from some guy saying yes to actually seeing the power... and this govt... well have dithered and dithered. For about that length of time.. no real surprise since browns been the man.. a bit more of a surprise with shrewder Blair... but past be past.. so now we will probably have brown outs in a few years when our Nuclear stations are decommissioned and the wind turbines they built to replace them don’t spin because the wind went south for a holiday! But that’s ok we will just buy expensive gas and oil from the east!

Posted at 00:20 by Gordon Taylor | Category: Politics | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

30/08/2008

Walkman MP3 Player installed into my Jaguar XJ 1998

The other day I decided I wanted to install a docking station / cradle for my Sony Walkman into my Jaguar XJ (1998) so I could listen to the music on it rather than the six CDs in the disk changer.. that incidentally I've not changed much in the last year or so...

So I started to do some research and surprise surprise the info I found was sketchy... it seemed much easier to do on newer Jags but not so on mine... anyhow my first idea was to cut into the phone override.. but once I realised this was mono it was a bit of a no no... so I next stumbled across a little box from PIE called ALP/Ai-AUX http://www.pie.net/index.htm I found a single thread in a news group somewhere a guy was saying he had used one in his XK and it worked.. Knowing that XKs and XJs were nearly the same at this time.. There was a good chance it would work on my XJ mostly because Jaguar/Ford was penniless... This box basically cuts into the CD changer Line, between the disk changer in the boot and the head unit at the front, In Jaguars of this ilk, they use the Alpine Ai NET comms bus, and this smart little device detects a signal on the AUX (ie your MP3) and it swaps from the disk changer to the AUX, and when the audio stops it swaps back.

In a 1996 XK till they changed to the new model or a 1998 XJ (basically the V8 not the Straight Six) again until they brought out the new design you can basically use this method to add an Walkman or MP3 Player or ipod to your car.

So this is what I did. Ordered the ALP/Ai-AUX from the USA 56USD or 81USD inc shipping etc (couldn't find a UK supplier) then I found that the cradle for my Walkman a BCRNWU3 was perfect, it has an audio out on it so as soon as I dock it it will play, no messing around plugging a jack into the headphones socket. It also has a charging point on it which is a usb socket.. so by purchasing a Cigar USB charger (which I intend to take to bits and wire in behind the console) you can also ensure that the unit charges whilst docked too..

The First thing I did was take the stereo head unit out, this is easy, take the facia out around the gear selector, then there are four bolts size 8 I think.. take these out, then you can lift of the Ski Slope. Once that is out the way there are two screws holding in the Head unit, and one holding the AC/heater unit.. you only need to remove the two each side of the Head unit the head unit will slide out.. you will either need to move the selector into neutral or unscrew the leather knob on the shifter to slide the stereo past it.

I first tried to put the ALP/Ai-AUX down below the shift selector to the right of the solenoid and it fits just but the AI.NET cable just isn't long enough so the Head unit doesn't quite go all the way back in, which is a real shame as this would have been a perfect place to put it.

In the end I just put it behind the Unit there is enough space just, you have to try and seat it right at the back as your pushing the head unit back in.. you also need to route your Audio cables out of the Ai unit. I just got a twin Phono to 3.5mm Jack. The Phonos went into the AI unit, and I managed to route them out the back of the head unit to the passenger's foot well. Once I had the headunit back in place I fed the Audio cable form the passengers foot well under the leather side of the center console till it was about level with the passenger seat.. I did this because I have a sat nav whos screen screws onto a pole that I intend to mount the cradle... for now I have just rested the cradle on the center console on the closed ash tray it seems not to move, as the bottom of the cradle is a rubber like material...

I will post again once I have got the Charging function installed and once I have mounted the cradle to the pole. For this I think I need to find some leather that will match my car to make the shelf look in place. I have found myself a 12v ignition switched line already under the center console so I know where to take supply from.. a multi meter is needed to find the supply.

This isn't a normal post for me, but since I struggled so much to find any info on how to do this, I'm sure it will be useful to others.

Posted at 22:51 by Gordon Taylor | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

23/08/2008

Irony of the left

Just Watching FOX News... turned the laptop on especially to report a cracking quote... paraphrased... and it’s so true... "the left is for conscientious objectors when it comes to war and the military, but not when it comes to the doctors who have to murder of un-born babies."

Posted at 01:26 by Gordon Taylor | Category: Politics | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

22/08/2008

Farm dreams

Today I went for a trip around the outskirts of Gloucester the south side, Hardwick way, I have to say we live in one of the prettiest counties. It makes me more than ever want to be a Farmer, but since I am not (knowingly) linked to the aristocracy, or have just invented the next huge thing in the dot com era, I don't have a spare 400-500K in my back pocket, therefore the only realistic way to become a Farmer is to try and get a small property and a few acres. That way I can have some sheepos, cattle and pigs to go with my chickens. I can still have a day job. Just the other week on Sky news they had some mini cattle that you could leave outside all year round and they were half the size of regular ones.. ideal for small holdings.. Unfortunately whilst there seems to be a slump in the market for houses at the mo... I didn't see anything suitable on my little drive... So if there are any single Farmer's Daughters out there at the mo.. looking for a guy... I could be interested especially if living / working on a farm is required

Posted at 22:57 by Gordon Taylor | Category: Small holdings and the like | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

21/08/2008

The joy of a detached…

Totally random post really, I have been fortunate enough to have lived in a detached house for all my living memory..

This evening I realised… my sisters were both out… so I have the house to myself, bearing in mind that it is sliding past midnight… I thought I would like to play some music.. so I am… The situation has come up several times in the last ten odd years… I remember a situation several years ago… and I do it periodically since, crank the music up.. then think crikey the neighbours must be able to hear it… so then pace around the outskirts of the house (garden) and realise that if you listen really really hard you may be able to hear something just about.. maybe the base line faintly… so therefore it your in another house with essentially the same again in acoustic dampening.. You won’t hear a thing at all..

The reason I bring it up… is when my friend comes round and I turn the amp on for the film we are watching he is always so conscious of the noise… who lived up until recently in semis.. & then my bro recently moved into a turn of the century terrace, has been talking late at night with a friend and that has carried to the next door!!

I guess I wish it was possible to just build lots and lots of detached houses.. I’m sure it would reduce neighbourly stress since we all from time to time need to sit down and crank the Sony up to ten and just resonate with the music.

Posted at 00:33 by Gordon Taylor | Category: Rants and Raves | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

It turns out that granny was right

And we were wrong to snigger.

Posted at 00:08 by Gordon Taylor | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

12/08/2008

The Vault and interference

Today I am annoyed with myself because I didn't notice the obvious problem and therefore solution. So it started today when decided to investigate why on my sky box, the vault and a handful of other channels breakup where as in other rooms on other boxes they don't. I assumed that my box might be more sensitive to a good signal, and merely the dish was slightly miss-aligned... with this in mind I carted my Box and a TV out to the garden made up a quick sat cable to reach from the LNB to the Box and shimmied up on the roof to try and get a better signal / quality (remembering to take the card out the box first). I turned the box on and went straight to the Vault, and the picture was perfect... Ok it must be the cable run.. so I will try and get an even better signal here and it might work in my room... I did get a much better signal so the dish was miss-aligned, but on plunging it back in where it belongs the picture instantly started breaking up again... about 10 seconds of googleing later I read that DECT phones and WLANs can interfere since they all occupy the 2.4Ghz Frequency... This is where I feel really stupid... I know DECT phones and WLANs use 2.4Ghz and I also knew that the SKY frequency was the same... though I never put them together... I knew DECT and WLAN can interfere with each other... So after moving the WLAN and DECT phone from their home right next to my SKY Box its all a-working properly... funnily enough both the DECT phone and the WLAN are installed because I'm now a councillor... the Council paid to have the WLAN in, they won't let us use our own connection, for security reasons really but it does seem a bit of a waste of tax payers money... since I now have two WLANS in my house... I'm not about to get rid of my personal one... The DECT phone and line I bought and paid for to keep family stuff and council stuff separately... interestingly its the DECT phone that has the biggest effect on the SKY box... The Vault is a cracking channel, plays all the top tunes from late 80s to late 90s... Now I can wander form room to room and hear the Vault in all its glory!

Posted at 18:52 by Gordon Taylor | Category: Rants and Raves | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

06/08/2008

FOX

Got board today watching UK news, so eventually swapped to FOX just to see what was happening over the pond... It's refreshing to get a much straighter and balanced version of events that is delivered by FOX when compared to the likes of the BBC, which I have to say has always had a blatant left wing bias... SKY News is better than the Beeb but its nowhere near FOX, though I believe they are both owned by the same company... I read something somewhere once... spectator or perhaps telegraph, a journalist who worked for the beeb, compared the left wing bias in the beeb as so normal, like joining a world is flat believing people and saying hey wait a minute actually the world is round... the institutional grounding of a left wing opinion was that engrained that to suggest anything else would literally blow their minds!

Getting board of FOX now... time for a glass of Bordeaux and see if I can find this Paris Hilton spoof politics add on youtube fox has been talking about.

Posted at 23:12 by Gordon Taylor | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

31/07/2008

Car tax and other unfair taxes on those who can’t afford

This month for me is a bad month... Mid July I had to put my Jaguar through its MOT.. ok not so bad this year less than 150GBP... but it's a one off expense.. Then at the end of the month the Tax is out.. So I have to Tax the car.... don't we pay duty via fuel tax already? About 50p a litre???? Any how I got the form through... I have two options £101.75 for 6 months or £185.00 for twelve months... straight away you can tell someone has got there maths wrong if ½ year is 100 quid then 1 year should be 200 quid right?

But no... if your poor and don't have some capital to outlay you have to opt for the six month option which costs 10% more than the yearly option...

So my complaint here is firstly if your poor your penalised because you only buy six months... I'd actually like to see a monthly tax system... or just abolish it since we pay as we go in fuel tax anyhow!

Since fuel duty is essentially a road tax I really don't see the need for a tax on top of fuel.. and if the govt want to introduce road pricing by the mile going off on a tangent here... (or will it be kilometre if Europe has its way) we don't want a third/forth tax you need to get rid of some other taxes... but we are not stupid... we all know that you take 50p per litre of fuel at the moment... and to be honest if I drive my jag 3.2L or my Clio 1.4L you actually have by definition a per mile tax cause I notice the cost difference in the journey...

Posted at 23:46 by Gordon Taylor | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

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