OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
No worries. I only know about it even now because I went to Stowe with my teen daughter yesterday and I saw these weird 3 word combos on the official National Trust map and she told me what they meant. Like, hello Daddio, get with the kidz
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
https://twitter.com/ChrisJBakke/status/1556791928238342152 The funniest transfer of wealth in modern times is the SoftBank Vision fund which took $100 billion in Saudi oil money and gave it to founders who were “reimagining salad delivery” and building coupon apps for dogs that required $2B in funding...
..I spent 3 years as the head of product at a company that was building DTC toothpaste for rabbits and I just paid off my $4m beach house.
Thanks, Masa!
It's going to be hilarious the day the oil runs out in Saudi tbh - they are shocking investors, saved by the fact they've got gazillions spouting out the ground daily.
To any PBers near Leeds who like my musical taste (if there are any!), have you heard of The Haggis Horns?
They’re an excellent funk band from Leeds who I’ve seen a couple of times in London. I've just seen on Facebook that they're playing at a place called Smokestack in Leeds on Sunday 28th of this month
They are really talented, play decent, original music, and put on an excellent show. I'd heartily recommend them to anyone nearby
Fascinating interview with the guy who founded what3words, and had the basic idea
He really put in the hours
"He grabbed a dictionary and began the painstaking process of copying every word into an Excel spreadsheet and assigning each one a score out of ten for its suitability for use within the app, with common, easy to spell words given the highest marks and trickier, rarer words given lower ratings. “I did it every day for six months. It makes you notice how long the dictionary actually is,” he says. “I was living on my friend’s sofa at the time. And he was certainly confused. But I think he also admired my persistence.”"
Why did he put in the hours when online word lists (dictionaries) are freely available and can be put into spreadsheets (again, why?) at the click of a mouse? Entrepreneurs today are just not lazy enough. Which may explain why he has formed a company to revolutionise getting lost in the Cairngorms while I'm unemployed and unemployable.
So he cam be 100% sure he doesn't have lawyers hassling him for copyright in the arrangement of a dictionary database?
Fascinating interview with the guy who founded what3words, and had the basic idea
He really put in the hours
"He grabbed a dictionary and began the painstaking process of copying every word into an Excel spreadsheet and assigning each one a score out of ten for its suitability for use within the app, with common, easy to spell words given the highest marks and trickier, rarer words given lower ratings. “I did it every day for six months. It makes you notice how long the dictionary actually is,” he says. “I was living on my friend’s sofa at the time. And he was certainly confused. But I think he also admired my persistence.”"
Why did he put in the hours when online word lists (dictionaries) are freely available and can be put into spreadsheets (again, why?) at the click of a mouse? Entrepreneurs today are just not lazy enough. Which may explain why he has formed a company to revolutionise getting lost in the Cairngorms while I'm unemployed and unemployable.
So he cam be 100% sure he doesn't have lawyears hassling him for copyright in the arrangement of a dictionary database?
He did still need to choose and delete, anyway.
But he started with a paper dictionary. That is definitely copyrighted.
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
No worries. I only know about it even now because I went to Stowe with my teen daughter yesterday and I saw these weird 3 word combos on the official National Trust map and she told me what they meant. Like, hello Daddio, get with the kidz
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
You gotta love the zealous evangelicalism of a boomer when he picks up on a technology that was a talking point about 5 or 6 years ago lol.
Mr. JS, Constantinople was all set to be conquered around the turn of 1400. Then Tamerlane rolled up from the east and obliterated the Turks, while the Sultan embarked on an exciting new career as Tamerlane's foot stool.
Sometimes, huge changes can and do happen.
Even with a 100 seat majority, there's every chance the Conservatives can lose the next election.
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
No worries. I only know about it even now because I went to Stowe with my teen daughter yesterday and I saw these weird 3 word combos on the official National Trust map and she told me what they meant. Like, hello Daddio, get with the kidz
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
Maybe we shall see - I posted some stats earlier but one thing is true: many venture capital/PE guys have been looking at this for quite some time and I'm guessing that while none may be on PB (but who knows), they will have a very good idea of the potential growth and value opportunity. 30m downloads is not taking the world by storm, and a $250m valuation is not stratospheric for a take over the world company.
For me it seems that the barriers to entry are low and the revenue model suspect (part coming from the rescue services which don't seem all to be convinced by the app). If they start charging then I suspect substitution will be a factor as people will discover the button on google maps all of a sudden ( @CorrectHorseBattery I just submitted feedback!)
But yes absolutely - the guy who APPARENTLY spent six months leafing through the OED is sitting on some major part of $250m so well done him.
I suspect a trade sale exit shortly and then it might indeed take off.
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
the Ukrainian army struck the bridge next to the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant in #Kherson used by the Russians to transport their equipment. The bridge is rendered defunct. https://twitter.com/KyivPost/status/1557335384627023872
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
Revenue model. The emergency services pay for it. If they don't like it they lose a chunk of revenue (they are making a loss as it is, obvs, as a relative start up).
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
https://twitter.com/ChrisJBakke/status/1556791928238342152 The funniest transfer of wealth in modern times is the SoftBank Vision fund which took $100 billion in Saudi oil money and gave it to founders who were “reimagining salad delivery” and building coupon apps for dogs that required $2B in funding...
..I spent 3 years as the head of product at a company that was building DTC toothpaste for rabbits and I just paid off my $4m beach house.
Thanks, Masa!
It's going to be hilarious the day the oil runs out in Saudi tbh - they are shocking investors, saved by the fact they've got gazillions spouting out the ground daily.
They're still going to have massive energy resources in the form of the world's most productive and reliable locations for solar. And not every investment will be a miss.
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
No worries. I only know about it even now because I went to Stowe with my teen daughter yesterday and I saw these weird 3 word combos on the official National Trust map and she told me what they meant. Like, hello Daddio, get with the kidz
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
You gotta love the zealous evangelicalism of a boomer when he picks up on a technology that was a talking point about 5 or 6 years ago lol.
Well, I REALLY wish you'd talked about it, on here, a few years ago, because then I would have invested. Unfortunately, it is now too late. They have all the investors they need, and then some
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Guess what? I've just encountered a Brexit benefit!
Since Brexit there's now no VAT charged on international removals between the UK and EU countries. That's going to save us many hundreds of pounds on our move to Ireland.
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Just check on traffic scotland or its equivalents before you go (which you should be doing anyway).
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Just check on traffic scotland or its equivalents before you go (which you should be doing anyway).
I was introduced to Waze when there was an accident in front of me and the uber driver's app updated in front of my eyes almost as it happened.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Driving in daytime London I would guesstimate live traffic updates cut journey times by about 20-30%. It is pretty unpredictable which roads get most clogged up each day.
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
No worries. I only know about it even now because I went to Stowe with my teen daughter yesterday and I saw these weird 3 word combos on the official National Trust map and she told me what they meant. Like, hello Daddio, get with the kidz
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
You gotta love the zealous evangelicalism of a boomer when he picks up on a technology that was a talking point about 5 or 6 years ago lol.
Well, I REALLY wish you'd talked about it, on here, a few years ago, because then I would have invested. Unfortunately, it is now too late. They have all the investors they need, and then some
Only teasing. I agree with you. I think it is really smart, and yes, I wish that when someone showed it to me a few years ago I'd said, "hey that is cool, I'll invest" rather than thinking of renaming my house by it's 3 words which were quite amusing.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Just check on traffic scotland or its equivalents before you go (which you should be doing anyway).
I was introduced to Waze when there was an accident in front of me and the uber driver's app updated in front of my eyes almost as it happened.
Well you'd never believe it but guess what it does? It only tells you in near real time what the traffic conditions are and advises on alternative routes to optimise your journey.
Yes really.
Get your chequebook out I think they are open to investment and you've managed to catch it early.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
And all any competitor needs or indeed Google need to do is replace:
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
with
Apple.Banana.Marrow
for the GUI.
That would mean Google purchasing W3W for lots of money. They can't just copy it because there's all kinds of IP associated they'd be violating. I can't imagine W3W would sell for less than a billion.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Just check on traffic scotland or its equivalents before you go (which you should be doing anyway).
I was introduced to Waze when there was an accident in front of me and the uber driver's app updated in front of my eyes almost as it happened.
Waze is the business. Lightning fast info. Has saved me from many unpleasant blockages.
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
And also, as mentioned above, rebrand
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
as
Tomato.Plum.Carrot
It's notable that in all their interviews the main guys at W3W are very careful to say "we are not a rival to Google Maps, we work with them, and through them, we complement each other"
So they are obviously aware of the danger of provoking Google (which does seem to be the big predator in this area)
What W3W need to do is get so big so quick that any rival 3-word-mapping system will not be able to compete as W3W is already the global default
They are not there yet but with 30m downloads, up from 11m the year before, they're en route. At what point do they become unchallengable? 100m downloads? 400m?
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
And then you get to road closed/diversion and you're screwed.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
I still do ! road closures make an Atlas even more of an essential item as you can be SURE with an atlas than your diverted route is going where you want , with SAT NAV you have a nagging doubt because you cannot envisage the area you are in that a atlas can
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
And also, as mentioned above, rebrand
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
as
Tomato.Plum.Carrot
It's notable that in all their interviews the main guys at W3W are very careful to say "we are not a rival to Google Maps, we work with them, and through them, we complement each other"
So they are obviously aware of the danger of provoking Google (which does seem to be the big predator in this area)
What W3W need to do is get so big so quick that any rival 3-word-mapping system will not be able to compete as W3W is already the global default
They are not there yet but with 30m downloads, up from 11m the year before, they're en route. At what point do they become unchallengable? 100m downloads? 400m?
I see they are driving into the Indian market
Shouldn't you be doing your nut over this new Chinese shrew virus instead of this boomer app obsession?
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
And also, as mentioned above, rebrand
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
as
Tomato.Plum.Carrot
It's notable that in all their interviews the main guys at W3W are very careful to say "we are not a rival to Google Maps, we work with them, and through them, we complement each other"
So they are obviously aware of the danger of provoking Google (which does seem to be the big predator in this area)
What W3W need to do is get so big so quick that any rival 3-word-mapping system will not be able to compete as W3W is already the global default
They are not there yet but with 30m downloads, up from 11m the year before, they're en route. At what point do they become unchallengable? 100m downloads? 400m?
I see they are driving into the Indian market
Shouldn't you be doing your nut over this new Chinese shrew virus instead of this boomer app obsession?
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
And all any competitor needs or indeed Google need to do is replace:
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
with
Apple.Banana.Marrow
for the GUI.
That would mean Google purchasing W3W for lots of money. They can't just copy it because there's all kinds of IP associated they'd be violating. I can't imagine W3W would sell for less than a billion.
Well w3w (as per @Leon's post) has a link to the satnav service of your choice but the fact remains that Google Maps has all the functionality of w3w so it wouldn't take a huge copyright violation to make, say, the buttons big and red and easy to use for example.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
And all any competitor needs or indeed Google need to do is replace:
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
with
Apple.Banana.Marrow
for the GUI.
That would mean Google purchasing W3W for lots of money. They can't just copy it because there's all kinds of IP associated they'd be violating. I can't imagine W3W would sell for less than a billion.
Well w3w (as per @Leon's post) has a link to the satnav service of your choice but the fact remains that Google Maps has all the functionality of w3w so it wouldn't take a huge copyright violation to make, say, the buttons big and red and easy to use for example.
GoogleFind.
They can have that one for free.
No, it would be because plus codes are not the same at all. As Leon has been pointing out the beauty of w3w is that you can tell people a location name with three words. That's the IP value and Google would need to buy it from them.
Fascinating interview with the guy who founded what3words, and had the basic idea
He really put in the hours
"He grabbed a dictionary and began the painstaking process of copying every word into an Excel spreadsheet and assigning each one a score out of ten for its suitability for use within the app, with common, easy to spell words given the highest marks and trickier, rarer words given lower ratings. “I did it every day for six months. It makes you notice how long the dictionary actually is,” he says. “I was living on my friend’s sofa at the time. And he was certainly confused. But I think he also admired my persistence.”"
You can access dictionaries online. With a python script I daresay. And then you can use a Soundex function to work out which ones sound similar, and how many characters they differ by, etc.
You Alt Rights worry about a double handshake but go crazy-ape-bonkers, claiming the death of democracy, when the FBI try to retrieve classified Federal documents from a civilian with known connections to Putin.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
well I am still here and dont really want to die on my deathbed wishing I was more efficient in life
Fascinating interview with the guy who founded what3words, and had the basic idea
He really put in the hours
"He grabbed a dictionary and began the painstaking process of copying every word into an Excel spreadsheet and assigning each one a score out of ten for its suitability for use within the app, with common, easy to spell words given the highest marks and trickier, rarer words given lower ratings. “I did it every day for six months. It makes you notice how long the dictionary actually is,” he says. “I was living on my friend’s sofa at the time. And he was certainly confused. But I think he also admired my persistence.”"
You can access dictionaries online. With a python script I daresay. And then you can use a Soundex function to work out which ones sound similar, and how many characters they differ by, etc.
Why would you do that by hand? By hand?
For a $500m cheque from google by the sound of it
///if.you.are
///so.smart.how
///come.you.aren't
///RICH! RICH! RICH?
Likewise, all the PB-ers telling us "oh I knew about W3W in 2017"
Well then why didn't you bloody tell us? Because it's obviously a genius idea and we could all have invested money and now we'd all be sitting back waiting for Google to give us £2m for our shares
what3words I think works offline which is a good feature.
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
Yes, it's really pretty good for fixed locations. I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
I can see why. Because it is great marketing. On that I am sure the "W3W PB skeptics" are - unusually - right. For this app to work to its full - and enormous, world-changing potential - it needs to get into as many phones as fast as possible. It needs to blitzscale like Uber, it needs to become THE app that does this one brilliant thing, for everyone
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
And also, as mentioned above, rebrand
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
as
Tomato.Plum.Carrot
It's notable that in all their interviews the main guys at W3W are very careful to say "we are not a rival to Google Maps, we work with them, and through them, we complement each other"
So they are obviously aware of the danger of provoking Google (which does seem to be the big predator in this area)
What W3W need to do is get so big so quick that any rival 3-word-mapping system will not be able to compete as W3W is already the global default
They are not there yet but with 30m downloads, up from 11m the year before, they're en route. At what point do they become unchallengable? 100m downloads? 400m?
I see they are driving into the Indian market
Shouldn't you be doing your nut over this new Chinese shrew virus instead of this boomer app obsession?
No h2h transmission yet.
The news about this is not the particular virus, but rather that surveillance is starting to show the extent and frequency of zoonotic transmission. (Which, FWIW, provides incremental evidence for the natural vs lab origins explanation for Covid.)
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
And all any competitor needs or indeed Google need to do is replace:
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W 51.507980, -0.161044
with
Apple.Banana.Marrow
for the GUI.
That would mean Google purchasing W3W for lots of money. They can't just copy it because there's all kinds of IP associated they'd be violating. I can't imagine W3W would sell for less than a billion.
Well w3w (as per @Leon's post) has a link to the satnav service of your choice but the fact remains that Google Maps has all the functionality of w3w so it wouldn't take a huge copyright violation to make, say, the buttons big and red and easy to use for example.
GoogleFind.
They can have that one for free.
No, it would be because plus codes are not the same at all. As Leon has been pointing out the beauty of w3w is that you can tell people a location name with three words. That's the IP value and Google would need to buy it from them.
Yes that's true they are the unique characteristic and are shareable. The IP just seems to me to be open to competition. Plus $250m after five years doesn't seem crazy valuation.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
Google Maps does something along those lines (though probably with less efficiency ?).
A rare Russian Ural Tornado-U armored cargo truck which was transporting artillery projectiles was destroyed in Novooleksiivka, #Kherson Oblast yesterday - 150km+ behind the front line.
I guess one country one system is now official policy.
China has withdrawn a promise not to send troops or administrators to Taiwan if it takes control of the island, an official document showed, signaling a decision by President Xi Jinping to grant less autonomy than previously offered https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1557310819926433793
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
well I am still here and dont really want to die on my deathbed wishing I was more efficient in life
I now think there is all to play for in the next election. Both Truss and Starmer are, I think, slightly more profound people than they are generally given credit for, but whether they will have the opportunity to play to their strengths is not going to be up to them - this is politics, and it depends on the events that fall into their laps.
Truss's big flaw seems to be impulsiveness, though she at least has the sense to backtrack and abandon her more batty ideas rather than stick with them. She has been in government long enough either to understand the problem, or to be a part of it - the jury is still out on which. If she does indeed think outside the box, this would be very welcome, but she has up until this campaign always supported whichever government she was a member of in public (Orange Book Coalition, Merkelite Cameroons, May's Joe Chamberlain tribute act and Boris Johnson on iPod shuffle settings) that I do not think that we are seeing the real Liz Truss in this campaign - perhaps we never will, it probably is not suitable for a family audience. Still, she has at least shown herself to be a more fleet-of-foot campaigner than Sunak, which suprises me.
Starmer has taken his party in the right direction but has boxed himself in by framing every debate around his own personal moral character and integrity, and the idea that he takes responsibility for everything (the second of these assertions has already been somewhat tested). The result is that even the most harmless little undeclared sale of 7 acres of Surrey comes back to bite him. How would he manage heading the government, which, even when fuctioning well, has to cope with at least one big scandal, and several tiny ones, every year?
One thing that seems clear, whoever wins the next election: both Truss and Starmer have demonstrated a remarkable and shameless capability to change their minds. Very quickly.
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
Urgent polio boosters for London children All children aged one to nine and living in Greater London will be offered a polio vaccine after the virus was detected in sewage. ... snip ... Polio is seen as a disease of the past in the UK after the whole of Europe was declared polio-free in 2003. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-62492784
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
Fascinating interview with the guy who founded what3words, and had the basic idea
He really put in the hours
"He grabbed a dictionary and began the painstaking process of copying every word into an Excel spreadsheet and assigning each one a score out of ten for its suitability for use within the app, with common, easy to spell words given the highest marks and trickier, rarer words given lower ratings. “I did it every day for six months. It makes you notice how long the dictionary actually is,” he says. “I was living on my friend’s sofa at the time. And he was certainly confused. But I think he also admired my persistence.”"
You Alt Rights worry about a double handshake but go crazy-ape-bonkers, claiming the death of democracy, when the FBI try to retrieve classified Federal documents from a civilian with known connections to Putin.
Senile or not, he's getting consequential legislation through.
The day the CHIPS act was signed, Micron Tech announced $40bn plans to invest in US fabs. He might well be a one term President, but those who already wrote him off as a failure will quite likely be proved wrong.
Which will infuriate some of them, and cause memory lapses in others.
Anyway, striving to entertain the blog before I decamp to the Belsize bar that few know about, but also to illustrate a very serious political flaw in Liz Truss, being her uncontrollable mindless fetish for ... tax cuts.
So, Liz the GP:
“Doctor, I’m being plagued by a ghastly pain in the neck.” “Ah me too. Rishi’s such a trial.” “No, a pain in MY neck, I mean.” “Oh, I see. Ok. For how long?” “Over a week now. Can you prescribe me something for it?” “I certainly can! I know exactly what you need. We’ll put you on a course of tax cuts.” “That will cure my bad neck?” “No idea - but you’ll have more of your own money in your pocket.”
And Liz the stand-up comedian:
This Yorkshireman walks into a bar in Belsize Park and the barman is a rough and ready cockney - “What can I get you mate?” (in rough and ready 'geezer' accent) “A pint of vodka please.” (in Yorkshire accent but not a very strong one) “Bloody hell. Are you ok mate?” “Yep, pint of voddy, I’m celebrating.” “Must be something special!” “It is – I'm a banker and I’ve had a tax cut so I’ve got more of my own money in my pocket.” “Sure there’s enough room? “What do you mean?” “Well let’s face it, pal, there’s always lots of other people’s money in there too, right?” “Oh piss off you smartass cockney geezer barman.”
And last but not least - Liz the grooved up reggae singer:
Money in my pocket cos my tax has just been cut (yeah) Money in my pocket cos my tax has just been cut The cash is really mine I work for it all the time (yeah) It’s hard for a man to live without a tax cut … no no
... don't tell me not to give up the day job because this IS the day job
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
“Drugs are horrific,” says Rishi Sunak. “There is nothing recreational about them. I have never taken them and I will be incredibly tough on anyone who does.”
Anyway, striving to entertain the blog before I decamp to the Belsize bar that few know about, but also to illustrate a very serious political flaw in Liz Truss, being her uncontrollable mindless fetish for ... tax cuts.
....
... don't tell me not to give up the day job because this IS the day job
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
“Drugs are horrific,” says Rishi Sunak. “There is nothing recreational about them. I have never taken them and I will be incredibly tough on anyone who does.”
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
“Drugs are horrific,” says Rishi Sunak. “There is nothing recreational about them. I have never taken them and I will be incredibly tough on anyone who does.”
I'm trying to think if there's any subject on the planet he wouldn't lose his shit about.
Surprised he isn't in on this... Why should hard-working taxpayers in my constituency have to pay for an academic to write about his experiences masturbating to Japanese porn?
The non-STEM side of higher education is just much too big, producing too much that is not socially useful.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
Waze is good but after it took me down the twistiest, turniest national speed limit back road, ignoring the lovely, empty, dual carriageway when I went to South Wales a few months ago I thought I'd give apple maps a whirl. What with carplay and all that. Don't think I'll go back to waze.
If I'd been in something with a bit of poke the back road would've been ace. Shame I was in a 1 litre Picanto. Sorry Dura.
You Alt Rights worry about a double handshake but go crazy-ape-bonkers, claiming the death of democracy, when the FBI try to retrieve classified Federal documents from a civilian with known connections to Putin.
Senile or not, he's getting consequential legislation through.
The day the CHIPS act was signed, Micron Tech announced $40bn plans to invest in US fabs. He might well be a one term President, but those who already wrote him off as a failure will quite likely be proved wrong.
Which will infuriate some of them, and cause memory lapses in others.
Cue some videos of a man with a stammer all his life, stammering approaching 80, to prove his senility.
I now think there is all to play for in the next election. Both Truss and Starmer are, I think, slightly more profound people than they are generally given credit for, but whether they will have the opportunity to play to their strengths is not going to be up to them - this is politics, and it depends on the events that fall into their laps.
Truss's big flaw seems to be impulsiveness, though she at least has the sense to backtrack and abandon her more batty ideas rather than stick with them. She has been in government long enough either to understand the problem, or to be a part of it - the jury is still out on which. If she does indeed think outside the box, this would be very welcome, but she has up until this campaign always supported whichever government she was a member of in public (Orange Book Coalition, Merkelite Cameroons, May's Joe Chamberlain tribute act and Boris Johnson on iPod shuffle settings) that I do not think that we are seeing the real Liz Truss in this campaign - perhaps we never will, it probably is not suitable for a family audience. Still, she has at least shown herself to be a more fleet-of-foot campaigner than Sunak, which suprises me.
Starmer has taken his party in the right direction but has boxed himself in by framing every debate around his own personal moral character and integrity, and the idea that he takes responsibility for everything (the second of these assertions has already been somewhat tested). The result is that even the most harmless little undeclared sale of 7 acres of Surrey comes back to bite him. How would he manage heading the government, which, even when fuctioning well, has to cope with at least one big scandal, and several tiny ones, every year?
One thing that seems clear, whoever wins the next election: both Truss and Starmer have demonstrated a remarkable and shameless capability to change their minds. Very quickly.
You misdiagnose Starmer.
He is obviously an effective bureaucrat, and the proof is to be seen in his career before politics; and in his subsequent clean up of the Labour Party.
One gets the sense too that he has been effective in part by eschewing strong political positions and not seeming to rock the boat.
But these bureaucratic strengths are likely weaknesses in retail politics. He doesn’t do bold. He doesn’t do passion. He doesn’t even respond to attacks head on. He’s not sure how growth happens, and he’s not terribly clear what his vision is, or why we should be optimistic about it.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
I don't use a sat nav or an atlas. I find the road signage in the UK is pretty good compared to some other countries so all I usually do before I drive somewhere new is take a look at Google Maps just before I leave so I can memorise the last bit of the journey.
e.g I've never been to Stoke-on-Trent but I know that you'd get there from Leeds via the M62 westbound, anti clockwise around the M60 onto the M56 then down the M6 until you reach the relevant exit. At that point I'd have memorised roughly where I needed to go although if it's a residential street or I'm struggling I sometimes might need to pull over briefly to check where I am. I'm never usually more than a mile or so from where I need to be.
I don't begrudge people using sat navs, but it concerns me that the art of navigating is disappearing. I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign. It also makes me concerned what else they're not watching on the road, like speed limit signs, warning signs, red Xs or actual hazards and obstructions.
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
“Drugs are horrific,” says Rishi Sunak. “There is nothing recreational about them. I have never taken them and I will be incredibly tough on anyone who does.”
OK let's go through this. Let's see how W3W is doing versus PB's received opinion that it is simultaneously rubbish, boring, useless, and only doing what other maps already do
"The team took to Instagram to plead with visitors over a safety matter, writing: "The Royal Parkland still remains very dry after the hot weather. Please remain vigilant when visiting, report a fire immediately, we would also encourage visitors to download 'what3words' app to help with locations. Please do not BBQ and take home any rubbish to help reduce the risk."
Not bad for a company that is basically just a shittier version of an old Ordnance Survey map and a pencil
We like it, Leon, we like it. In particular situations for some and others for others. Some see different options for the same thing.
Just that it is endearing that you should just have only now discovered it.
Never previously considered myself bleeding edge before but then you pop up.
So thanks.
...What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast...
"But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my [puppyish enthusiasm for something casually mentioned by my ] daughter go now, that'll be the end of it."
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
I don't use a sat nav or an atlas. I find the road signage in the UK is pretty good compared to some other countries so all I usually do before I drive somewhere new is take a look at Google Maps just before I leave so I can memorise the last bit of the journey.
e.g I've never been to Stoke-on-Trent but I know that you'd get there from Leeds via the M62 westbound, anti clockwise around the M60 onto the M56 then down the M6 until you reach the relevant exit. At that point I'd have memorised roughly where I needed to go although if it's a residential street or I'm struggling I sometimes might need to pull over briefly to check where I am. I'm never usually more than a mile or so from where I need to be.
I don't begrudge people using sat navs, but it concerns me that the art of navigating is disappearing. I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign. It also makes me concerned what else they're not watching on the road, like speed limit signs, warning signs, red Xs or actual hazards and obstructions.
Bad thing about Google is this: if you fucked up it used to tell you to do a u turn ASAP. About 3 years ago it obviously had a liability scare and stopped doing that for fear of causing pile ups, and now it will literally send you on a 25 mile loop to retrieve 100 yards because it daren't tell you just turn round. And because you can't see its intentions on a map you are buggered.
Ben Hodges @general_ben Russia's logistics system is exhausted. Can't replace systems and parts, transport overstretched...signs of the impending total collapse of Russian forces. Sanctions are working. Send UKR what it needs and maintain pressure on Kremlin. This could be over by the end of the year.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
...I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign...
Google maps, and all decent factory car nav systems, give well-timed warnings as you approach a motorway exit or other junction. Your caricature of satnav users suggests you haven't really understood how it works or haven't been able to make it your servant rather than your master.
I saw the Verve there, their first gig for a couple of years, a few weeks before they released Urban Hymns. I was a few feet from the stage. Perhaps the best gig I've ever been to. They were so hungry, up for it. Brilliant. And I got off with some fit lass I've never seen since. Superb.
Googling it, I see it was 25 years ago yesterday. 25 years!!!!!!! Crikey. I'm old. From 19 to 44 has gone by depressingly quickly...
"the challenge facing the Tories at the next election is so great that it is hard to see how they can stay in power unless they secure an overall majority"
1. The DUP can be bought. Its just, the price went up.
2. The challenge facing Labour is the Tories got an 80 seat majority at the last election. And in much of that majority, the trend is not Labour's friend.
3. Labour are a dismal void, bereft of any alternative postures that remotely enthuse the voters. Embodied by their leader.
On her showing so far, the Tories could be on hands and knees begging Wallace to take over from Truss in a coronation this winter. Hope I'm wrong (as I vote for Rishi), but there is a material risk the voters will hate her by then.
While the DUP can be bought - if they only have 6 seats instead of 10 they may not be worth buying.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
I don't use a sat nav or an atlas. I find the road signage in the UK is pretty good compared to some other countries so all I usually do before I drive somewhere new is take a look at Google Maps just before I leave so I can memorise the last bit of the journey.
e.g I've never been to Stoke-on-Trent but I know that you'd get there from Leeds via the M62 westbound, anti clockwise around the M60 onto the M56 then down the M6 until you reach the relevant exit. At that point I'd have memorised roughly where I needed to go although if it's a residential street or I'm struggling I sometimes might need to pull over briefly to check where I am. I'm never usually more than a mile or so from where I need to be.
I don't begrudge people using sat navs, but it concerns me that the art of navigating is disappearing. I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign. It also makes me concerned what else they're not watching on the road, like speed limit signs, warning signs, red Xs or actual hazards and obstructions.
Back in the day my mum used to "navigate" for my dad. She was terrible at it. Even with the map upside down so it was pointing the way we were going she constantly got left and right muddled. When I was about 8 I noticed that my dad wasn't paying a lot of attention to the drama in the passenger seat. He admitted to me that throughout their marriage he had memorised the entire route before he left but I was very firmly instructed not to tell her and, of course, I didn't.
On paper maps and road atlases , I dont have Sat Nav and I dont get lost - Road Atlases are such a manly joy - you are in charge of your route not some algorithm , the ten minutes or so at the start of a long journey day planning your route using a physical atlas is not wasted but filled with purpose for the day , reinforcing whatever mission you have at the other end as well as reinforcing British geography but also more importantly curiosity - in those ten minutes you will be surprised somewhere you think you knew was slightly located somewhere else, discover a village you had never heard of despite being in the same region as you and a strange feature of the landscape . You dont get this with Sat Nav (and you still get lost)
Would I be right in thinking you are what is colloquially known by young folk as a "boomer"?
No I an of Gen x actually but I am an orienteer and a map reader ! Orienteering is a great empowering and confidence building skill and indeed sport- unlike being ordered to turn left by your car
So you sit with a 1:25,000 map on your lap as you navigate the Hangar Lane Gyratory System?
well its not hard is it ? I have always found the Hanger Lane Gyratory easy enough without SATNAV
Waze will take you through streets you never imagined existed just by saying turn left turn right in 100 yds take the second exit at the roundabout.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
I don't use a sat nav or an atlas. I find the road signage in the UK is pretty good compared to some other countries so all I usually do before I drive somewhere new is take a look at Google Maps just before I leave so I can memorise the last bit of the journey.
e.g I've never been to Stoke-on-Trent but I know that you'd get there from Leeds via the M62 westbound, anti clockwise around the M60 onto the M56 then down the M6 until you reach the relevant exit. At that point I'd have memorised roughly where I needed to go although if it's a residential street or I'm struggling I sometimes might need to pull over briefly to check where I am. I'm never usually more than a mile or so from where I need to be.
I don't begrudge people using sat navs, but it concerns me that the art of navigating is disappearing. I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign. It also makes me concerned what else they're not watching on the road, like speed limit signs, warning signs, red Xs or actual hazards and obstructions.
Comments
Google Maps does work offline but unless you've saved the local maps you won't see anything
What I do have, however (and the rest of you, apparently, don't) is the ability to extrapolate, very fast. This has the potential to transform the way humans look at the world, and how they think about place. It is that big
I don't know why they're hyping mountain rescue at all.
They’re an excellent funk band from Leeds who I’ve seen a couple of times in London. I've just seen on Facebook that they're playing at a place called Smokestack in Leeds on Sunday 28th of this month
They are really talented, play decent, original music, and put on an excellent show. I'd heartily recommend them to anyone nearby
This is a good track of theirs with a Bruce Lee feel - Enter The Haggis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1Tr4WIZDEc
And the facebook event page
https://www.facebook.com/events/419988126830270
https://twitter.com/lijukic/status/1557344834171682816
And why the Vikings became... Vikings.
He did still need to choose and delete, anyway.
Google do have this functionality but sadly because GPS is so useless indoors it doesn't work very well
For me it seems that the barriers to entry are low and the revenue model suspect (part coming from the rescue services which don't seem all to be convinced by the app). If they start charging then I suspect substitution will be a factor as people will discover the button on google maps all of a sudden ( @CorrectHorseBattery I just submitted feedback!)
But yes absolutely - the guy who APPARENTLY spent six months leafing through the OED is sitting on some major part of $250m so well done him.
I suspect a trade sale exit shortly and then it might indeed take off.
How do you get people to download an app? Tell them it can literally save their life. So why not download it? It's free and takes 5 seconds. Once you've got it, then you realise that its potential uses are so much more interesting and varied than "saving an idiot in the Grampians"
Nonetheless, it does seem to save people
"Audrey Cura, 57, was out for a walk in Suffolk forest when her spooked dog Biscuit ran at her and instantly broke two bones in her leg - but thankfully she had what3words downloaded to help the ambulance pinpoint her exact location"
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/woman-breaks-leg-two-places-27581555
https://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/20162243.dorset-police-remind-rural-residents-use-what3words/
https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/people/derbyshire-4x4-response-volunteer-praised-for-use-of-what3words-app-to-direct-firefighters-to-tree-blaze-3734509
https://twitter.com/KyivPost/status/1557335384627023872
https://what3words.com/correct.horses.battery
Neither is Mälardalen, where the Sutton Hoo folk originated.
https://twitter.com/steveguest/status/1557011318175047680
Google has a similar, clunky atm thing. When/if w3w really takes off and especially if they start charging to download the app, Google will rebrand their version, put it front and centre, bundle it, as it is already bundled with google services, and w3w will take a bath.
And also, as mentioned above, rebrand
51°30'28.7"N 0°09'39.8"W
51.507980, -0.161044
as
Tomato.Plum.Carrot
And not every investment will be a miss.
Can you believe people used to drive around with a book, a frigging book on their laps. Jeez.
Since Brexit there's now no VAT charged on international removals between the UK and EU countries. That's going to save us many hundreds of pounds on our move to Ireland.
Cheers Leavers!
Quebec. Third tree on the left
@Leon
There is this app called Waze.
Well you'd never believe it but guess what it does? It only tells you in near real time what the traffic conditions are and advises on alternative routes to optimise your journey.
Yes really.
Get your chequebook out I think they are open to investment and you've managed to catch it early.
So they are obviously aware of the danger of provoking Google (which does seem to be the big predator in this area)
What W3W need to do is get so big so quick that any rival 3-word-mapping system will not be able to compete as W3W is already the global default
They are not there yet but with 30m downloads, up from 11m the year before, they're en route. At what point do they become unchallengable? 100m downloads? 400m?
I see they are driving into the Indian market
BBC: 36 degrees
Met Office: 32 degrees
GoogleFind.
They can have that one for free.
No map can do that as safely or efficiently.
///if.you.are
///so.smart.how
///come.you.aren't
///RICH! RICH! RICH?
Well then why didn't you bloody tell us? Because it's obviously a genius idea and we could all have invested money and now we'd all be sitting back waiting for Google to give us £2m for our shares
Chiz
The news about this is not the particular virus, but rather that surveillance is starting to show the extent and frequency of zoonotic transmission.
(Which, FWIW, provides incremental evidence for the natural vs lab origins explanation for Covid.)
Reports 'man's hand chopped off' outside Deighton WMC as shocked onlookers 'pick up hand in tea towel'
“I have lived here for 20-odd years and there will be reprisals. I hear he has lost his hand over a £10 bag of weed. I was here the last time a lad had his arm nearly sliced off.”
https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/local-news/reports-mans-hand-chopped-off-24715290
The ammo depot was also destroyed nearby - but what weapon was used is unknown.
https://twitter.com/UAWeapons/status/1557364322963263488
China has withdrawn a promise not to send troops or administrators to Taiwan if it takes control of the island, an official document showed, signaling a decision by President Xi Jinping to grant less autonomy than previously offered
https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1557310819926433793
Truss's big flaw seems to be impulsiveness, though she at least has the sense to backtrack and abandon her more batty ideas rather than stick with them. She has been in government long enough either to understand the problem, or to be a part of it - the jury is still out on which. If she does indeed think outside the box, this would be very welcome, but she has up until this campaign always supported whichever government she was a member of in public (Orange Book Coalition, Merkelite Cameroons, May's Joe Chamberlain tribute act and Boris Johnson on iPod shuffle settings) that I do not think that we are seeing the real Liz Truss in this campaign - perhaps we never will, it probably is not suitable for a family audience. Still, she has at least shown herself to be a more fleet-of-foot campaigner than Sunak, which suprises me.
Starmer has taken his party in the right direction but has boxed himself in by framing every debate around his own personal moral character and integrity, and the idea that he takes responsibility for everything (the second of these assertions has already been somewhat tested). The result is that even the most harmless little undeclared sale of 7 acres of Surrey comes back to bite him. How would he manage heading the government, which, even when fuctioning well, has to cope with at least one big scandal, and several tiny ones, every year?
One thing that seems clear, whoever wins the next election: both Truss and Starmer have demonstrated a remarkable and shameless capability to change their minds. Very quickly.
Urgent polio boosters for London children
All children aged one to nine and living in Greater London will be offered a polio vaccine after the virus was detected in sewage.
... snip ...
Polio is seen as a disease of the past in the UK after the whole of Europe was declared polio-free in 2003.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-62492784
Was his first alpha test of the app ///fart.fiddle.fornicate ?
The day the CHIPS act was signed, Micron Tech announced $40bn plans to invest in US fabs.
He might well be a one term President, but those who already wrote him off as a failure will quite likely be proved wrong.
Which will infuriate some of them, and cause memory lapses in others.
So, Liz the GP:
“Doctor, I’m being plagued by a ghastly pain in the neck.”
“Ah me too. Rishi’s such a trial.”
“No, a pain in MY neck, I mean.”
“Oh, I see. Ok. For how long?”
“Over a week now. Can you prescribe me something for it?”
“I certainly can! I know exactly what you need. We’ll put you on a course of tax cuts.”
“That will cure my bad neck?”
“No idea - but you’ll have more of your own money in your pocket.”
And Liz the stand-up comedian:
This Yorkshireman walks into a bar in Belsize Park and the barman is a rough and ready cockney -
“What can I get you mate?” (in rough and ready 'geezer' accent)
“A pint of vodka please.” (in Yorkshire accent but not a very strong one)
“Bloody hell. Are you ok mate?”
“Yep, pint of voddy, I’m celebrating.”
“Must be something special!”
“It is – I'm a banker and I’ve had a tax cut so I’ve got more of my own money in my pocket.”
“Sure there’s enough room?
“What do you mean?”
“Well let’s face it, pal, there’s always lots of other people’s money in there too, right?”
“Oh piss off you smartass cockney geezer barman.”
And last but not least - Liz the grooved up reggae singer:
Money in my pocket cos my tax has just been cut (yeah)
Money in my pocket cos my tax has just been cut
The cash is really mine
I work for it all the time (yeah)
It’s hard for a man to live without a tax cut … no no
... don't tell me not to give up the day job because this IS the day job
https://mobile.twitter.com/AdamBienkov/status/1557086306341195776
He meant it. But Golly it makes him sound like 4 foot 8 of prissy little shit.
It just gets worse.
Why should hard-working taxpayers in my constituency have to pay for an academic to write about his experiences masturbating to Japanese porn?
The non-STEM side of higher education is just much too big, producing too much that is not socially useful.
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14687941221096600 https://twitter.com/NeilDotObrien/status/1557236449786957824/photo/1
If I'd been in something with a bit of poke the back road would've been ace. Shame I was in a 1 litre Picanto. Sorry Dura.
He is obviously an effective bureaucrat, and the proof is to be seen in his career before politics; and in his subsequent clean up of the Labour Party.
One gets the sense too that he has been effective in part by eschewing strong political positions and not seeming to rock the boat.
But these bureaucratic strengths are likely weaknesses in retail politics.
He doesn’t do bold.
He doesn’t do passion.
He doesn’t even respond to attacks head on.
He’s not sure how growth happens, and he’s not terribly clear what his vision is, or why we should be optimistic about it.
e.g I've never been to Stoke-on-Trent but I know that you'd get there from Leeds via the M62 westbound, anti clockwise around the M60 onto the M56 then down the M6 until you reach the relevant exit. At that point I'd have memorised roughly where I needed to go although if it's a residential street or I'm struggling I sometimes might need to pull over briefly to check where I am. I'm never usually more than a mile or so from where I need to be.
I don't begrudge people using sat navs, but it concerns me that the art of navigating is disappearing. I often find the worst people on motorways are people who panic about which lane to be in making last minute decisions, for example, when there's a lane drop that's been signed a good 1 or 2 miles in advance of it happening. More often than not when I overtake there's a sat nav stuck to the windscreen right in front of their face and it's obvious they haven't taken a single look at any road sign. It also makes me concerned what else they're not watching on the road, like speed limit signs, warning signs, red Xs or actual hazards and obstructions.
@general_ben
Russia's logistics system is exhausted. Can't replace systems and parts, transport overstretched...signs of the impending total collapse of Russian forces. Sanctions are working. Send UKR what it needs and maintain pressure on Kremlin. This could be over by the end of the year.
https://twitter.com/general_ben/status/1556968315691614208
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/aug/10/jarvis-cocker-joins-pulp-bandmate-onstage-to-support-sheffield-leadmill
I saw the Verve there, their first gig for a couple of years, a few weeks before they released Urban Hymns. I was a few feet from the stage. Perhaps the best gig I've ever been to. They were so hungry, up for it. Brilliant. And I got off with some fit lass I've never seen since. Superb.
Googling it, I see it was 25 years ago yesterday. 25 years!!!!!!! Crikey. I'm old. From 19 to 44 has gone by depressingly quickly...
Reminds me of my CEO who has an idea and then spends an hour writing emails
If 15, not so much an issue.
If 5......
They were, of course, wrong to question 5th Amendment rights.
https://twitter.com/AndrewFeinberg/status/1557366978238619649
Former president Trump says he invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during his deposition with @NewYorkStateAG ’s office
“I don't begrudge people using sat navs, “
That’s a golden PB moment