Hobbies

Hi Everyone,   On the weekend I constructed a new blog located here to write about the various bottles of wine I’ve bought, opened or poured down the sink. If you have an interest in wine, or are thinking about getting into it – or even if you need to buy a […]

Well, if you’re like me, you like to read some technical content when you can. Here are some links for weekend reading: Tatham, listing different state options for ASP.Net: http://blog.tatham.oddie.com.au/2008/04/11/managing-state-in-aspnet-which-bag-to-use-and-when/ How  about this Service modelling tool: http://blogs.msdn.com/publicsector/archive/2008/04/09/service-factory-modeling-edition-for-visual-studio-2008.aspx Or a tool for writing ADO EF queries?: http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/esql Finally, the Microsoft Security […]

If it’s Lego you’re looking for, check out Lego Republic After an endless series of gaffes and misreads, we meet the conclusion of one of the longest kit builds in my experience. You would expect that a kit containing over 5,000 pieces would take some amount of time to construct!  […]

Well, with the majority of the unpacking more or less done, it was time to finally open that big box of Lego which was delivered oh so long ago (about six months now). You might recall I posted a photo of the box last year.  That’s right, this Easter break […]

Currently Reading: "History of the Royal Navy" by Sir Harris Nicolas First Edition, Published London, 1847 in two volumes   Whilst I’ve been in Melbourne, I’ve been putting booksandcollectibles.com.au to good use, so I came across this two volume set at a store in the Melbourne CBD. For $50, I picked up […]

So over the weekend I contemplated some additional refinements for the Technic Mindstorms Tri-bot which I’ve been working on.   The lack of reverse direction motor functionality has been concerning me a fair bit and I’ve started to wonder whether I should pull apart and rework the intelligence brick cradle. […]

G’day, here’s a brief update from the workshop. On the weekend I finished building the new power functions Lego bulldozer (Techic) which has the new remote power functions components (there are a few servos included). I’ll post pictures later since I’m roaming at the moment, but let me say it […]

Hi.  Well just arrived today is the mother of all Lego kits.  I’ve been collecting the ‘Ultimate Collector Edition’ kits for some time now as I enjoy building and unwinding. However this kit might just be the biggest challenge as yet!  Over 5,000 parts the end model comes in measuring […]

  I’ve adored this bookshop for years… Berkelouw Books.  I only knew about the Leichardt shop for ages, but realised recently that they have a couple of others too.   It turns out they have a farm "barn"/property in Berrima, which is roughly half way from Sydney to Canberra along the […]

Hi All.   I know it’s been a while between posts – pretty busy at the moment – but enough time for some random stuff. There is one photos attached, I’ll put up some others too.  Random shots I’ve taken with my camera.  Feel free to post comments..   Rob […]

  http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21444740-2,00.html   Not I, sir.  Although my posts are becoming slightly more sporadic (time constraints), I’m still keepin’ it real..  Yeah..   So, in Malaysia – where drugs and crime arte generally a fairly big deal the government sees fit to train and use sniffer dogs educated in the […]

  On Christmas Day, 2006, my family and I opened a bottle of 1976 Penfold’s Grange Hermitage.     Such a bottle, well preserved (cellared) fetches about AU $750 (or $590 USD).  I’ve held this bottle since mid-2005 when I won it at auction for AU $550 ($430 USD).  It’s a […]

  Here are two recent photos I’ve taken.  The first is of the historic Queen Victoria Building in the city.     We stopped here a little while ago and had coffee and snacks with friends (Trish, Paul and Uzuri) after dining at the David Jones Food Hall on Market Street. […]