Virgin BroadBand at Home

Keeping up with technology can be a full time job in itself.

Companies are rushing to push their products out the door in oder to be first, sometimes at the expense of quality. This can or is usually fixed with a patch / upgrade from the manufacturer.

Whilst it seems acceptable enough in the IT industry, if the Motor Vehicle industry operated like this, then most of us would be in accidents caused by the vehicle, or if the vehicle stopped, then we would all be expected to get out, and start the driving procedure from scratch.

After making an inquiry in the product pictured, I stumbled upon a user feedback forum, on the Australian version of PCUSER. A very interesting read, mostly NEGATIVE.
Ref: Ever tried Virgin Mobile BroadBand? -

Hall's 'other woman' speaks out

The third member of AFL star Barry Hall's alleged love triangle has spoken exclusively to A Current Affair about their time together.

Model and university student Talia Greenwood, 22, has told how she got intimate with the Sydney Swans talisman after what she understood to be the break-up of his long-term relationship with Kylie Stray.

"He was now available and interested in developing a relationship with me and as far as I was concerned, it was exclusively with me," she said.

But Ms Stray later reclaimed her man, telling the media that Ms Greenwood was "embarrassing" and trying to "get her 15 minutes of fame".

It is believed an argument with Ms Stray sparked Hall's infamously brutal decking of the West Coast's Brent Staker in April.

The strike resulted in a seven-match ban for Hall, who expressed regret over the incident and admitted he was struggling with personal issues.

Staker took no further part in the game and Hall later broke his wrist by striking a hard metal bar behind a soft advertising board.

The infamous assault is in stark contrast to the man Ms Greenwood describes in the interview, claiming she never had to deal with his temper and that their meeting and dating was without drama.

"I didn't know him personally but it was, like 'hi'," she said.

"We went to dinner often … he's a romantic." (No!!!! he has to eat, and you're just a tag along piece of meat (read - desert))

Ms Greenwood also denied their romance fizzled because of tension with Ms Stray.

"How can there be tension when you don't interact?" she said.

"(The break-up) was predominantly due to the long distance nature of the relationship and the pressures that come with dating a high-profile AFL footballer (but) I don't look back with regret."

But would she do it again?

"No, I hope not!" she said.

ninemsn 21 Jul 2008

This is the kind of drivel that hit the front page of the newspapers. Who really gives a damn about some ROCK APE who looks like he has a FRONTAL LOBOTOMY is in a relationship and it broke up. There are approx 50% of people in this situation.

One of the largest problems is that the media label these creatures as STARS. A fact FAR from reality on an international or even global scale, both in terms of the famous and monetary stakes.

VFL (Victorian Football League, now the AFL), was created in the working class areas of Melbourne, to keep the worker busy with something to do, to keep their mind occupied with sport, and not the real issues.

Telstra Rip off - DSL Broadband

Taken straight out of a comparison chart of DSL (Wired) Internet Service Providers.

Service provider's advertised 256k speed.

Provider Plan Name Usage Price

AAnet 265M2 15Gb 40

Dodo 256-50 50Gb 60

Netspace 256-20 20Gb 40

Telstra Fast 12Gb 60

______________________________

Optus Start 400Mb 35
Classic 2Gb 50
Freedom 15Gb 70


From the table above Telstra provides THE most expensive internet solution at $5/Gb, whilst dodo provides the most cost effective solution at $1.2/Gb

The Optus comparison is at ADSL2 which is up to ( a theoretical maximum) 20,000Mbps.

Telstra once again offers a product of inferior specifications at a premium cost.

Where is the Telecommunications Ombudsman ?? !!

Telstra Rip off - Wireless Broadband

Taken straight out of a comparison chart of Wireless Internet Service Providers.

To be fair for the comparison, similar data plans have been taken.

Provider Data Price Excess Modem

3______ _6Gb_ 49 _ 10c/M _ 5


dodo___ _6Gb_ 60 _ 15c/M 8.33

Optus __ _6Gb_ 60 _ 15c/M 0

Telstra _ _3Gb_ 110 _ 15c/M 10.42

Virgin __ _6Gb_ 40 _ 0 ___ 0

Telstra do not offer a 6GB per month plan. Telstra charge $110 for 3Gb.

The modem costs for Telstra (250) and dodo (200) are a once off price.
The above figures have been reached, if divided by a standard 24month contract .


From the above data, Telstra provides the WORST possible plan on offer to the customer.
Such blatant is the profiteering from a monopoly

From purely as cost effective solution NO ONE in their SANE mind would choose Telstra.
Yet according to statistics, Telstra claims that PigBond is home to 2.7 million Australians, or approximately 7.7%.

Quite clearly 2.7 million Australians need to re-evaluate their Internet Service Provider.

NB. Good Anti-Virus and Ad/Spy software applications, together with a good
weather program that has data for approx. 20 cities can take up to 600Mb per month.

Therefore, for this practical reason the 1Gb plans cannot be considered as useful.

Solar Hot Water - misinformation.

The Australian Government, on the surface, encourages the use of "Green" energy. It has counjoured up many incentives for the general populous to follow.

Currently the Federal Government has announced that it will offer a rebate of $8/watt or a maximum of $8,000. Simple mathematics will show that this equates to 1,000W maximum, from the purchase of solar electricity cells. The consumer only pays $4,000 (after GST. and rebates) for 1000W solar electricity for their home. Without the rebate, the cost would be $12,000 / per kW. This offer is only valid to the first 300 customers in each state. Clearly a number TOO LOW.

The Australian Government also claims that a Solar Hot Water Service (example in illustration) can save an approximate $300 - $700 per year from your electricity bill. Great !!!! you say.

Most Australian households have GAS HOT WATER SERVICE, and this is a standard on all new homes built.

Electric Hot water services are usually gravity fed, and are in houses that were built in the 50's and 60's. Since tanks do corrode and other items need replacing, eg. after 15-20 years average, a large proportion of these electric hot water tanks have been replaced by what was currently available in the market place, that being gas heater water systems.

Also with the installation of electric hot water service, there is an option to heat the water during the "off peak" time via a timer therefore SAVING the consumer even more.

Whilst the figure of $300 - 700 as claimed by the government 'may' be true, in certain circumstances, it is GENERALLY misleading. Statistics can and often are used to manipulate an agenda.

Current charges for electricity for the household are $0.1561 kWh (+GST) and $38 delivery/service per 3 months.

Six-month jail for record drink-driver

A woman who recorded Victoria's highest drink-drive reading has been handed a six month jail term.

Heather-Ann Higgins was nine times over the legal limit when she crashed her car on Stumpy Gully Road at Moorooduc, on the Mornington Peninsula, on February 15 this year.

Higgins, of Somers, south of Melbourne, recorded a blood alcohol concentration of .462 and was charged with conduct endangering life and exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol.

Sentencing Higgins on Tuesday, Frankston magistrate Ross Betts said her driving involved conduct of a grave nature.

"Drink drivers risk the lives of others in a grave way," he said.

Higgins' offending was serious enough to warrant a jail sentence, he added.

Mr Betts sentenced Higgins to six months' prison and disqualified her from driving for five years.

However, Higgins was later released on bail after she said she intended to appeal the sentence.

The appeal is scheduled to be heard in the Victorian County Court in October.

15 Jul 2008

It seems like the mass media is focusing on DD (Drink Driving, or DUI as known in other parts of the world.).
Looks like in the near future some new law reforms may take place.

To speed the process up a little all that needs to be done is that a drink driver inflicts harm to a Law Makers family, because so far the accidents which cause fatalities to the general public fall on deaf ears.

Teflon Telstra : illegal to check up on

Telstra, Australia's largest telco company started of as a government institution, which later went through stages of privatisation in accordance with the policies of globalisation.

When you're a monopoly, you write your own rules. Rules to an effect that make you untouchable, as justice is NOT about the truth, but who can AFFORD it.
Telstra has a legal team of approx. 300 to oppress ANY resistance.

As technology goes forward, so do the products that make our lives easier. This holds particularly true of the IT&T industry.

Wonderful devices are made that can monitor calls with great accuracy. Such a device is illustrated in the picture, which once connected to your land line it can monitor your calls, in order to cross reference you telecommunications bill. In Australia, many years ago it was possible to buy such a device from a few major electronics retailers. This was available for a very short time, and has not been seen on the shelves since.

Most Australians are aware that the telco bills do not really reflect the real usage by the customer. To put it quite blatantly, the public is aware that the are getting "ripped-off".
In order to dispel such myths, the device pictured is illegal to connect to the Australian network.

Similarly in the mobile arena, this is also true. Most new mobile phones are equipped with call monitoring, i.e. the timing of a call, and another feature cost of call, which is deliberately disabled from the Australian exchanges.

The Australian Colony is also paying over 2 x the amount for SMS as their counterparts in mother land England. This is just ONE example of how a monopoly hurts the consumer.

Man's guilty plea over DUI toddler death

A man was more than three times over the alcohol limit and driving at double the speed limit before his car struck and killed a one-year-old baby in the driveway of a Perth home, a court has been told.

Benjamin Alan Butler, 24, faces a maximum 20 years' jail after hitting and badly injuring Tania Moorby and fatally injuring her daughter Grace outside their suburban Thornlie home in April this year.

Armadale Magistrates Court was told Butler's car had been travelling at 113km/h before smashing into a car, mounting the kerb and hitting the pair, who had just returned home from shopping.

The toddler ended up on the home's front porch with extensive head injuries.

She died at the scene.

Police told the court Butler had climbed out of the window of his vehicle, lingered at the crash scene and had then started walking away before being chased and stopped by witnesses.

They said he had later recorded a blood-alcohol reading of 0.166.

Butler's lawyer on Tuesday denied he had been travelling at 113km/h in a 50km/h zone but agreed to enter a plea of guilty to dangerous driving causing death.

He did not enter a plea to other charges of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and failing to stop at the scene of a crime.

Magistrate Leighton Jones agreed to refer Butler to a higher court for sentencing, saying a prescribed three-year penalty in the magistrates court would not reflect the severity of the crime.

Butler, a tall, broad shouldered man who dressed in a suit for his court appearance, was released on bail.

He did not reply to reporters' questions as he was followed out of court.

He will be sentenced in the District Court in Perth in October.

aap 15 Jul 2008

There is ABSOLUTELY NO EXCUSES for this kind of behaviour.

The biggest problem is that the Australian Courts have admitted that, during sentencing, the right of the sentenced are only considered. This means that the rights of the victim are NEVER taken into consideration.

The Law is far too lenient with crimes of this nature. Crimes like this WOULD occur less with the introduction of more harsh penalties.

'Super geek' first to buy iPhone

Brett Howell has crowned himself Australia's "super geek" - the first person in the country to get his hands on Apple's long-awaited iPhone 3G.

The wait is over a for a few hundred hardy souls, who camped outside Optus's Sydney store on a cold and windy winter night to get the phone at midnight (AEST).
Optus held a launch party before opening its doors, treating the hundreds queuing up for the multi-functional device to free pizza, coffee, massages and entertainment as the clock inched toward 12am.
And the man at the head of the line was Brett Howell, a 36-year-old business analyst from Sydney.
Mr Howell began queuing outside Optus's George Street store at 1.15pm (AEST), and said he was surprised to be the only person camped outside the store.
"I was shocked that no one had lined up," he said.
"I'm not a super geek, but apparently I am. I'm Australia's super geek."
Mr Howell said he became hooked on the iPhone, which he called a "mini-Mac", after witnessing the US launch of the original iPhone last year.
"Last year, I happened to be in New York for the launch of the original iPhone and loved it then, and waited and waited for it come to Australia," he said.
"I wanted to make sure I got the phone when it first came out - I didn't want to be the first."
The iPhone 3G is arguably the most anticipated technological release of the year, with the device being launched in 20 countries on Friday.
Apple's new iPhone combines three devices in one, the standard phone, an iPod music player, plus an internet browser.
Such is the fever for the touch-screen device, that analysts predict sales could pass the billion-dollar mark within days.
Thanks to Australia's place in the international time zone, Australians will be among the first in the world to purchase the much-anticipated gadget.
Optus's midnight launch for its registered Sydney customers beat the likes of Telstra and Vodafone, who begin selling the iPhone in the morning.
Telstra stores around Australia will open from between 6am to 9am in anticipation of a rush for the new hand-held device.
Vodafone customers were expected to start queuing at its central Sydney store at 6am ahead of its 7am opening, along with about 100 other Vodafone stores across Australia.
Optus was due to open its doors nationally at 7am, and charge $729 for those wanting to purchase 8GB iPhone upfront.
Third in line outside Optus' Sydney store, Nicki Bam, told AAP she had booked a room at the nearby Four Seasons hotel, and as soon as she picked up her iPhone she planned to rush back to play with her new toy.
"I've booked a room at the Four Seasons, my other half is waiting for me, so I'll go there and play with the iPhone," the 38-year-old manager said.
"I'm a big, big Apple fan. I've been waiting for ages for this. I wanted to be one of the first."
In an admission that might disappoint some Apple fans, Australian "super geek" Mr Howell said he would wait until the morning before tinkering with his new phone.
"The first thing I'm going to do when I get it is go home and put it on charge and go to bed," he said.
"It will wait until the morning - all that matters is that I've got the phone."
A few people were braving the cold outside Sydney's new Apple store, rugged up with books and blankets as the waited for it to open at 8am.
Head of the queue, Elly Hurley, began waiting at 3pm and admitted to being sucked in by Apple's clever marketing.
"It's a sexy piece of kit, it's a fantastic looking phone, and it does lots," the 41-year-old said.
"Apple just market their products exceptionally well and there is just a lot of hype that comes with it, and I got caught up in it."

aap 11 Jul 2008

In the U.S. the 8GB iphone can be purchased for approx. USD$200. Given the current exchange rate, the outright price of the iphone in Australia should be similar.

The ACCC is nowhere in sight in this matter, and the muppets are paying way too much for an overrated device. The Australian Telcos are holding their users at ransom over such technology.

An online survey by ninemsn reveals that 80% of the general public believe that the iphone is OVERPRICED.

British pair arrested for sex on Dubai beach

A British pair are facing a jail sentence in Dubai after being caught having sex on the beach following a night of boozy partying.

Publishing assistant Michelle Palmer, 30, and a visiting British man known only as "Vince" were arrested after a passing policeman allegedly sprung them twice in a compromising position on the Jumeirah beach.

Ms Palmer had reportedly earlier attended an all-you-can-drink function at the Le Meridien Hotel near the Dubai Airport, which offered unlimited beer, wine and spirits for three hours.

She then partied on with Vince at a nearby club, before moving on to another venue after the man was ejected for fighting, the Telegraph reports.

It is alleged that later that night police found the pair having sex on the beach.

Despite the official reportedly letting them off with a warning, the pair were allegedly discovered in the same position shortly after and arrested.

"Because this is known everywhere they're going to make an example of us and we're going to get a higher sentence," the newspaper quoted Ms Palmer as saying.

She is also facing possible charges of assaulting the arresting officer and public drunkenness.

Ms Palmer's employer, the ITP Publishing Group, has since sacked her following an internal investigation.

Sex outside marriage is illegal in the United Arab Emirates, and the pair face between three months and six years in jail.

The pair, who are not believed to be in a formal relationship, have reportedly taken part in a rushed civil marriage ceremony in an effort to reduce any possible sentence.

Local police are in the process of a crackdown on offensive tourist behaviour — including public kissing and topless sunbathing.

ninemsn 10 Jul 2008

These people are TOURISTS. Since when does a country oppress the tourist governing sexual relationships. If this were done in Australia in a similar fashion to the GAY community, there would be an uproar on a GLOBAL scale.

Bigamy in Australia, is also ILLEGAL, BUT it is supported by every government of the day.
Every government accepts the legitimate wife and treats the others as single mothers, who are on our social security system. There is no Out Cry from the general public there

PUBLIC KISSING - could also be affection displayed towards YOUR WIFE.

The world is entering the New Age of the Ottoman Empire.