scummy.org http://scummy.org The irrelevant ramblings of Marc Roberts Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:46:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en George F Bush http://scummy.org/2008/06/19/george-f-bush/ http://scummy.org/2008/06/19/george-f-bush/#comments Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:31:20 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/?p=41 Bush/Brown UKSo George Fucking Bush was in the UK recently massaging his ego with his ‘Farewell Tour’. Do any of us care ? I don’t think many people will be of the opinion ‘Farewell’, more like ‘Good riddence’. Also, who the hell thought it would be a good idea to have him coming in to heathrow, europe’s busiest airport. Seriously, who wanted all this disruption caused by him and his stupid ‘tour’. Screw you George, I’ll be glad when you’re finally gone, and I’m not the only one

]]> http://scummy.org/2008/06/19/george-f-bush/feed/ Dutch Simplicity http://scummy.org/2008/06/17/dutch-simplicity/ http://scummy.org/2008/06/17/dutch-simplicity/#comments Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:39:12 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/?p=44 A great dutch advert, simplicity:

]]> http://scummy.org/2008/06/17/dutch-simplicity/feed/ OLPC for learning http://scummy.org/2008/03/12/olpc-for-learning/ http://scummy.org/2008/03/12/olpc-for-learning/#comments Tue, 11 Mar 2008 23:27:28 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2008/03/12/olpc-for-learning/ It looks like the OLPC project could have an impact, with software this simple, interesting and powerful:

From ted.com

]]> http://scummy.org/2008/03/12/olpc-for-learning/feed/ Stealthy Octopus http://scummy.org/2008/01/25/stealthy-octopus/ http://scummy.org/2008/01/25/stealthy-octopus/#comments Fri, 25 Jan 2008 16:04:41 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2008/01/25/stealthy-octopus/ Later in this clip, about 4:10 in, there is an AMAZING octopus. You must see it

From ted.com

]]> http://scummy.org/2008/01/25/stealthy-octopus/feed/ Valve’s ‘Portal’ ending credits are AMAZING http://scummy.org/2007/10/25/valves-portal-ending-credits-are-amazing/ http://scummy.org/2007/10/25/valves-portal-ending-credits-are-amazing/#comments Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:31:30 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2007/10/25/valves-portal-ending-credits-are-amazing/ Seriously, it’s worth buying the game purely to watch these ending credits.

]]> http://scummy.org/2007/10/25/valves-portal-ending-credits-are-amazing/feed/ Internet Explorer file uploads with ASP.NET http://scummy.org/2007/10/23/ie-file-uploads-aspnet/ http://scummy.org/2007/10/23/ie-file-uploads-aspnet/#comments Tue, 23 Oct 2007 11:52:38 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2007/10/23/ie-file-uploads-aspnet/ So you’d think that uploading a file using the standard FileUpload control would be easy. Well there is a small problem. Using the following code you would expect ‘filename’ to contain just the filename of the file uploaded.

String filename;
filename = FileUpload1.PostedFile.FileName;


And you would be right, if you’re not using Internet Explorer which seems to think that the path of the file is important too so it includes that.

Here’s a simple solution to get around this

String filename;
filename =
System.IO.Path.GetFileName(FileUpload1.PostedFile.FileName);

Now ‘filename’ will contain just the filename no matter which browser uploaded it.

]]> http://scummy.org/2007/10/23/ie-file-uploads-aspnet/feed/ Is it tea time ? http://scummy.org/2007/10/22/is-it-tea-time/ http://scummy.org/2007/10/22/is-it-tea-time/#comments Mon, 22 Oct 2007 15:24:28 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2007/10/22/is-it-tea-time/ Sometimes its hard to tell if it is tea time. Now, there’s a site that will help you work it out

Visit site

]]> http://scummy.org/2007/10/22/is-it-tea-time/feed/ Paging in MS SQL 2005 http://scummy.org/2006/10/11/paging-in-ms-sql-2005/ http://scummy.org/2006/10/11/paging-in-ms-sql-2005/#comments Wed, 11 Oct 2006 10:28:16 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2006/10/11/paging-in-ms-sql-2005/ Paging results from an SQL query can sometimes be quite difficult. MySQL has for a long time supported 'LIMIT x,y' to aid this, however with Microsoft SQL it has always been a bit more difficult. With MS SQL 2005 thing are a little easier. Try the snippet below, based on the AdventureWorks sample database included with SQL 2005.

PAGE_SIZE is the number of results you want per page
PAGE_COUNT is which page you want to display

PLAIN TEXT
SQL:
  1. DECLARE @PAGE_SIZE int
  2. SELECT @PAGE_SIZE = 15
  3. DECLARE @PAGE_COUNT int
  4. SELECT @PAGE_COUNT = 3
  5. SELECT TOP (@PAGE_SIZE) * FROM (
  6.    SELECT  EmployeeID, BirthDate,
  7.    ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY BirthDate ASC) AS [Result Number]
  8.    FROM HumanResources.Employee) innerSel
  9. WHERE [Result Number]> ((@PAGE_COUNT - 1) * @PAGE_SIZE)
  10. ORDER BY [Result Number]

]]> http://scummy.org/2006/10/11/paging-in-ms-sql-2005/feed/ Weather Forecast http://scummy.org/2006/08/03/weather-forecast/ http://scummy.org/2006/08/03/weather-forecast/#comments Thu, 03 Aug 2006 11:56:18 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2006/08/03/weather-forecast/ Everything about the current style of weather forecasting pisses me off. The way they go on about how the weather was today. Thanks, I know what the weather was like today, I was there, I could see perfectly well. After they've wasted most of their 5 minutes (or less) spot telling just how the weather WAS they then start to tell us about what its going to be like tonight/tomorrow/weekend. Do they come out straight with it, do they fuck ! No, they waffle on about cold fronts and warm front and how the weather systems over the republic of elbonia are moving westward. I DON'T CARE, just tell me what its going to be like here, with some degree of accuracy. And when they finally get around to what its going to be like, they have to sensationalise it. It's not going to be hot, there's a 'Heat Wave Warning' as if we're all too fucking stupid to understand that 'hot' means there's going to be a lot of heat. Why don't we have an 'Overcast Warning', so that we can all prepare for the miserable weather and get our best 'typical british weather' voice ready.

]]> http://scummy.org/2006/08/03/weather-forecast/feed/ Claim back UNLAWFUL bank charges http://scummy.org/2006/07/24/claim-back-unfair-bank-charges/ http://scummy.org/2006/07/24/claim-back-unfair-bank-charges/#comments Mon, 24 Jul 2006 12:22:09 +0000 Marc http://scummy.org/2006/07/24/claim-back-unfair-bank-charges/ According to Which! 1 in 5 people are affected by charges imposed on their bank accounts by their bank for failing to pay Direct Debits, Standing Orders and Cheques.

Further to this, they also impose charges for going over your overdraft limit - sometimes, a charge for each day you are over your limit.

The Banks often say that these charges are intended to compensate them for their loss. However many people believe that they are far higher than that. If this is true then the charges are dispropotionate penalties and are invalid. These charges can be crippling for some people.

Visit The consumer action group to find out how to reclaim any disproportionate penalties.

It doesn't matter if you have been charged £30 or £5000, any of these types of charges on your account within the last 6 years can be claimed back easily and successfully.

I am currently in the process of claiming back unfair penalties and charges on my bank accounts since 2000. I'll keep this updated with the progress

More Links:
Money Saving Expert
Penalty Charges
Daily Telegraph Article
This Is Money Article
OFT Ruling on Credit Card Charges

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