Monthly Archives: November 2007

StudentBlogs.co.uk to be Upgraded!

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Currently StudentBlogs.co.uk is running on the popular blogging software WordPress. I very much like WordPress, and this website is running on it, but it isnt an aggregator.

So, I have decided to give it an upgrade, and using the Zend Framework and Magpie RSS, I will create a new RSS aggregator designed for blogs!

It is all in the very early stages of planning, but I intend to take a prototyping approach to this project, i.e. hack away until we get something which does the job, after all, this one’s just for fun!

If you have any suggestions or feature requests just leave a comment!

New Website :: You Play Music

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You Play MusicCurrently I am in the process of creating a new website for a company in Bradford called You Play Music.

You Play Music is team of professional music teachers based in part of Jubilee Mill (where I also work) offering a whole host of musical disciplines from guitar to piano and even stretching over into dance teaching!
It was nice to get back into the area of design as I often leave that to the graphic designers, but I think this one came out well!

I have a feeling these guys are going far, so if you are looking for music lessons, or are just interested in watching this business grow, check out their website for news and details: www.youplaymusic.co.uk

Murder Mystery

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Last night I attended a murder mystery evening which was great fun! I had never been to one before so wasn’t sure what to expect!

This particular mystery was called ‘The Champagne Murders’ where ‘Lord Michael something’ is murdered! The story was set in the 60′s and hosted by an actor on a DVD who was a poor impersonation of Austin Powers!

My character’s name was Oliver Steed, an actor and a thug, for which I dressed up in a terrible 60′s shirt with ‘crazy horses’ written all over it, and an equally terrible tie!
I would defiantly recommend going to one of these things! They are great fun!

My First Coffee Tree

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Finally, after nearly two years of trying, I have a coffee tree!

To be honest it has been a bit of a saga! I’m not a particularly good horticulturist, but I try my best, and over the last two or three years I have been trying to grow my own coffee tree from seed.

In principle it is supposedly very simple! You get some green coffee beans, soak them in water for 24-48 hours, plant in a soil medium and leave to germinate which takes between 6 weeks and 5 months.

In practice my experience is that it is extremely difficult to grow a coffee tree from seed! I tried several types of soil medium, and even tried vermiculite. I have also tried several ranges of temperature and moisture using different seed propagators. Most people who saw my attempts thought I may actually be trying to grow weed!

In reality I have discovered the best way to get a coffee tree is ask your fience to buy one for you! Thats what I did, and I finally have my very own 6″ high coffee tree. Hopefully I won’t kill it!