RobiNZ Personal Blog

Photographing Light Trails

DPS have a great post on the art of shooting light trails. I've tried this on film (Vegas below) and with my little IXUS digital.

How to Shoot Light Trails

The Strip (Canon EOS Film). Wasn't going for light trails but I like these

Hanoi Balloon Seller (IXUS Digital). Although on manual I couldn't stop it down for longer trails without over-exposing the scene.

Did Saab design compromise the Alfa 159?

Autoblog reckon Alfa Romeo are working on a new 159 and it's Saab's fault... 

Poor sales mean Alfa 159 replacement coming soon with U.S. in sight - Autoblog

"The main reason attributed to the 159's poor market performance has been its dynamic performance, inhibited by an overweight chassis designed by Saab during Fiat's partnership with GM."

Test Post for TypePad Support

This post testâ??s if BlogJet + TypePad is workingâ?¦

UPDATE 2008-08-15: I never found out why this happens but there is a fix here

RobiNZ next to Act?

I've voted left and right in the past but I've never been next to Rodney Hide before!

 From the June 2008 New Zealand Blogosphere Ranking - Survey period 01/06/2008-30/06/2008.

No registration required to comment on this blog

I got an email from a reader challenging a post and adding some great additional information. I wondered why he hadn’t used the post comments to respond & his reply surprised me;

“I thought about it but couldn’t be bothered registering”

It was a surprise as there is no need to register to comment on this blog. I run a pretty standard TypePad template it appears it may be a little misleading. There is a statement about Sign In but the important word is “if” as a TypeKey ID is not essential. It will save entering name, email & (optional) URL on any “TypeKey enabled” blog but you can just enter them the old fashioned way (or use this ActiveWords script!).

Feel free to comment and I must add that, apart from removing spam or offensive/illegal content, they are not censored. If I’m going to be off-line for several days I do hold comments for release on my return but otherwise it’s open. You can call me whatever but I reserve the right to remove comments which promote spam or will land me in court!

* I’ve added it to the post comments after obtaining the authors permission.

Will "The Moon Hoax" be Mythbusted?

Mythbusters take on the moon hoax in August. I can’t believe there are still dumb-ass people who think the greatest technological achievement of the 20th century is a hoax.

Seeing a Saturn V Rocket at Kennedy Space Centre was the highlight of my trip to Orlando a few years ago. I’d read about Apollo, I’d seen all the movies but the scale of the real thing was staggering.

Via Mythbustin’ the Moon Hoax: Part III, the video

Fiat 500 Abarth, the peoples supercar!

The Telegraph review is good, I wonder how long before we get these in New Zealand? 

Fiat 500 Abarth: supercar for the people - Telegraph

The Abarth is a lot of stylish fun and, for most folk, an attainable dream, even with a recession looming. A democratised supercar, then - an idea you've just got to love. Avanti Abarth!

Avoid Petrol Cap Shame, a tip for Jack Dee

• You’re not in your own car (or have really bad memory)
• You drive into the service station
• Which side is the filler on?
• Jack Dee calls it Petrol Cap Shame

Petrol Cap Shame - YouTube - Jack Dee Live at the Apollo

There is a way out of this dilemma. Just look at the petrol gauge and, if it has the pump symbol, which side the filler nozzle is shown. In my experience, since hearing this tip several years ago, it will match the side the actual filler is found on the car! If it just says “Petrol” you’re stuffed!

Genesis Energy's Useless Home Page

You’d think the website for an energy provider would have the current status of the network they use to provide energy. Because of our half arsed energy system Genesis are an “Energy retailer” who use another company’s network to distribute their product.

If you go to that distributor, UnitedNetworks which is a subsidiary of Vector, on the “Outages Centre” there is actually page with that useful information.

So why the heck, to be polite, can’t Genesis have a link to that page from their site?

Genesis Energy Home Page –  Which is a useless load of promotional bullshit

Vector.co.nz - Electricity Faults and Outages- Major Faults
Which actually has useful information

Jack Dee on Big Box Retail

The BBC won’t allow embedding so click here to view

The Royale Family Argument

The BBC won’t allow embedding but this is so worth clicking here

Cat flush

How a cat Ran up a $300 water bill! (click for full story)

http://view.break.com/169353 - Watch more free videos

Car's London Motorshow

Car Magazine report from the London Motorshow. Some nice metal but who let the G-Wiz in?

Lancia may return to New Zealand?

 Lancia may return to Australia - theage.com.au
Quirky Italian car maker Lancia is considering a return to Australia after an absence of more than 20 years.

Since Ateco represent Fiat Auto in Aus/NZ I presume if Aussie happens we’ll also see Lancia back in NZ in 2010?

When I think of Lancia it’s 70’s classics  – like the Beta HPE, Beta & Gamma Coupe – and the 80’s Delta which come to mind. As Lancia dissolved in a pile of rust and abandoned RHD markets shortly after it’s those memories which linger. New Zealand hasn’t seen a new Lancia for decades but you do see the occasional survivor. I particularly remember following a trio of Delta Integrales near Hamilton a few years ago. To see one is rare, three at the same time just amazing!

The line from the article that floored me was:

[Lancia boss Olivier Francois] ..who has told journalists he wants Lancia to be “Italy’s answer to Lexus”  

Given the current range, warmed over Fiat platforms with odd styling, he’s got one heck of a job ahead of him. Lexus had the advantage of starting from a clean slate not the mixed Lancia legacy of classic (but lately just odd) design, motorsport credibility and appalling quality.

It’s likely to be the new Delta we see first which is, as I’ve said before, elegantly odd rather than a classic beauty. It would be nice to see Lancia return but with Fiat Auto sales counted in the hundreds (239 Fiat (the 500 will boost that in 08) , 516 Alfa Romeo, 32 Ferrari in 2007) wouldn’t the money be better invested in the current brands rather than adding another one?

UPDATE 2008–07–28: There’s a great Lancia Delta Integrale review in NZ Classic Car

Tags: lancia, ateco

Fiat [Tata] Nano?

The Nano is great but I think this would be a big mistake for Fiat.

To me Fiat = great little cars so to slap a badge on the Nano is akin to saying “We can’t do what we do best”

Tata Nano may be branded a Fiat in overseas markets - Autoblog

Tags: nano