October 23rd, 2006
My sister somehow came into posession of a Samsung SyncMaster 152v that didn’t do anything. Figuring something had blown I stripped it down and searched the boards for blown components but, finding none, I enlisted the remote help of Mr.Foo to see if we could find anything.
In the end it all proved too much for me (regular readers will know I’m rather fond of electric shocks, apparently) and the board was dispatched to Foo Towers, only to return a week later with a replaced fuse. A damned fuse! It was cunningly hidden in a sleeve of black… stuff, and our resident ‘lectrics guru promptly replaced it with a holder and shipped it back.
A live reassembly session occurred on Stickam and, amazingly, there were no casualties. Not even the monitor in fact, for it powered back on without so much as a crackly of electricity or puff of smoke.
Picture is cool, good colour and brightness (for a 2004 monitor) so I’ll probably sell it along with the old Athlon 800 machine I have doing nothing. I realise you can’t have too many monitors about the place, but…
Tags: Free, Monitor, Samsung
Posted in Computers, Hardware | No Comments »
October 4th, 2006
A few people have asked about the Whale Steak I had in Tokyo so I figured I’d elaborate.
I initially asked the girl on reception where I could eat whale, but after a misunderstanding in which she must have thought I was trying to score some crack or something, I gave up and resorted to using t’internet.
The restaurant I went to was called Kujira-ya and it’s in Shibuya. Exit Shibuya Station and look for the 109 Department Store. There are two – 109 and 109 Men’s – and you want the Ladies’ version. 109 is between two streets that form a V-shape, and Kujira-ya is on the right arm of the V. There was a camera crew there when I went – strange but true.
There’s a set Whale Steak meal that costs ¥1600 (About £8) which consists of about 8 pieces of whalemeat, a bowl of rice, crispy fried bits, soup and various flavourings. The little old lady will occasionally appear and disappear to refill your cup of tea as well. The whale is delicious and not at all fatty – I enjoyed it so much I went back again a few days later.
At the far end of the restaurant are five tables for two in a simple, stylish room. If you get the window table, you can sit and watch teh world go by in relative privacy while you eat.
Tags: Japan, Steak, Tokyo, Whalemeat
Posted in Food & Drink, Japan, Travel | No Comments »
October 1st, 2006
One 15-hour flight later, and I’m back in Blighty. What the hell’s going on with the weather? Heathrow arrivals gate was *flooded* when we eventually got out – water running into the terminal and everything!
Anyway, Tokyo was just as mad as you can imagine. Lovely clean and safe place, but mad nonetheless. Hotel was small but perfectly formed (very good for a 2-star) and I was able to get some free WiFi access from a bridge just down the road, so I made a point of stopping there once in a while to keep in touch with t’missus.
Some highlights and observations:
- Everything is very clean and tidy.
- Everything is very busy and go go go, all the time.
- You can easily eat on a fiver a day.
- Shibuya Station at Rush Hour is… fun.
- Akihabara is one huge mental rush, and full of porn.
- Halloween = Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas”.
- Lilo & Stitch is still pretty big – I have no idea why.
- Yoyogi Park is pretty big, pretty cool and the shrine is awesome.
- Pocari Sweat is great, despite sounding gross.
- They love their models. Cars, Girls, Robots, there was even a Jesus Action Figure (!)
- Whale Steak is cheap enough to eat every day, and it’s gorgeous.
There was so much to see and do that we barely scratched the surface, so I’ll start planning next year’s trip to Tokyo just as soon as I’ve recovered. Got a few presents to drop round to various people, and work on Monday, so I better get to it.
Tags: Japan, Tokyo
Posted in Japan, Travel | No Comments »