Access

I work with a number of kids with disabilities who access computers on a daily basis. To log on to school networks, they need to simultaneously hit the three keys “ctrl”, “alt”, and “del”.

This provides a practical barrier to kids with Hemiplegia or those who can’t use both hands at once. It’s very frustrating to them, and annoys the hell out of me, as part of my job is to advise the schools on ways of making sure that the student is as independent as possible.

I’ve asked quite a few technicians for a suggestion about a solution – to no avail. Does anyone out there have any ideas? I’m stuck.

Running

Published in today's Sunday Mail by Lou Robson -

The Vietnam vet couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he went back.
He numbed himself with beer until his marriage broke down and he was left with nothing but a flickering TV. Infomercials didn't help, so the 50-year-old started walking. While other Tweed Valley residents slept he hiked the region with his kelpie, a sleek black dog that padded silently at
his feet. He trekked through wooded fields and crossed creeks southwest of Coolangatta.
There was nothing commando about ii no military overtones. He was just trying to outrun his thoughts.
The flashbacks continued and so did the growths, ping-pong-ball-sized lumps that rose beneath the skin of his
forehead. "They just keep coming," he said during an interview in late 2000. "There were so many chemicals, so many things we were exposed to."
Ashamed at his outburst, he hid the growths beneath a dirty cap, covering the ever-changing topography of his bald head.
"Sorry mate," he said. "Don't get many visitors."
The small amount of information he'd divulged had come out staccato. Several rapid fire sentences about alcohol, losing his wife and the late-night hill hikes. Then he reined it in. He apologised.
The story I'd come to discuss was unrelated. A short piece about the man's growing collection of dead and dying Volkswagens. The car bodies lined the
road outside his rundown farmhouse.
They overlooked nearby cow paddocks. But someone complained and the complaint reached council headquarters. It was heard in the wood-panelled room where local government representatives gathered for monthly meetings.
The concern was one of many. Councilors and residents voiced fears about feral cats and carp. Fruit flies and ferrets. Decrepit VWs and property depreciation.
No one knew the cars were therapeutic. All day the Vietnam vet tinkered. Stripped and restored, avoided TV and the bottle shop by bringing old vehicles back to life. Like many returned soldiers he distracted himself and somehow stayed sane. And for many, like the unrecognised soldiers of the 1966 South Vietnam battle of Long Tan, the insults keep coming.
The Government's failure to ignore bureaucracy and give the green light to bravery awards almost 42 years after the fact is salt in the wound. Red tape aggravates mental and physical ailments. Some speak openly about their experiences. Others say nothing and their silence speaks volumes.
The returned soldier-turned-mechanic preferred to keep his own counsel. He was angered by his momentary lapse. Downed a spanner and disappeared. Returned 10 minutes later with two cups of tea and eyes red with tears. We talked cars, took a photo and then I took off. But I think of him often. Wonder if he's still striding streams until sun up.

I know half a dozen living this life. Don't forget them.

China and Tibet

This puts the whole vexed issue in perspective (Today's ABC on-line) -

"Chinese factory found making Tibetan flags: reports in a Hong Kong newspaper say police in China have discovered a factory making thousands of Tibetan flags for activist groups overseas.

The Ming Pao newspaper in Hong Kong says the Tibetan flags were being made at a factory in the southern province of Guangdong."

More -
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/29/2229755.htm?section=justin

The One Day of the Year

I dragged myself out of a warm bed this morning, and drove the 150km to Brisbane to march with my old unit association. There’s no-one else in this town from 7RAR, so if I want any form of reunion, this is necessary.

I’m glad I did. Apart from running into old mates and sparring partners, I met “Leafy” who was repatriated to Australia fairly early in our tour with Scrub Typhus. I hadn’t seen him for 38 years, but recognition was instant.

We marched, had a few beers, talked about old times, and enjoyed the atmosphere, which was like nothing I’ve seen before. I remember a sea of faces, people shouting “thank you!”, and an amazing mix of garb, ages and races.

The only difficulty was when I arrived in the city without any idea of where the march was forming up. I asked directions of a couple dressed in merchant navy blazers. They were Scots – with brogues so thick that I couldn’t understand a word. A young Asian woman was just as helpful, but her “Engrish” was more comprehensible.

One arresting sight was the row of motorcycles in front of the Irish Club. It was a bit like Saigon on steroids- the bikes were as prolific, but on a different scale.

Motoring in Oz

The recent passing of John Button made me reflect on his extraordinary contribution to motor vehicle production in Australia and consider the future of this vital industry.

The diminutive Button exerted a positive influence on this industry to an extent way out of proportion to his physical size, and positively influenced the lives of many Australians. He dragged motor manufacturing kicking and screaming into the twenty-first century, and is largely responsible for its relative health today.

Maybe it’s time we found another Moses to lead the industry into the future, particularly as it bears on the market for large vehicles.

Australians have traditionally been very fond of large six cylinder cars, and the latest versions of these vehicles are able to hold their own on world markets as demonstrated by the export success of (for example) the Holden Commodore.

The threat to continued success in this market is posed by the fuel consumption of these vehicles, and is the principal reason for their declining sales locally. I believe there is a marketing opportunity open to both Ford Australia and GMH presented by this threat, and the availability of LPG as an alternative fuel. This is reinforced by my own experience.

Like many Australians, I do heaps of long distance driving, and find these large and robust vehicles eminently suitable for the task. The quality of accessories such as radios, air-conditioning systems, and headlights reflect the demands of our hostile environment, and are usually more suitable to our conditions than imports. I feel qualified to judge, because I’ve driven just about every make and model in the corporate fleet in the last five years, over distances as much as 3000km per week.

My own car is an LPG equipped Falcon. The conversion is a state-of-the-art sequential vapour injection system. It has proved totally reliable, completely refined (no whiff of gas odour), and performs as well, and in some circumstances better than, the unleaded version. Note that this conversion is not the antiquated system that Ford insists on fitting to its E-Gas factory vehicles. I average 13.2 lit/100km on a mix of urban and country driving, and this costs the equivalent of driving a vehicle returning 6.6lit/100km given the difference in price between the two fuels. Because I have a toroidal (doughnut shaped) tank fitted, the folding rear seat feature is preserved. I do lose a little boot space because of the displacement of the spare, but often travel without it, using a pressure pack puncture kit. Another bonus is a range on combined fuels of about 1000km, and the flexibility this allows.

My suggestion is this – Local manufacturers should spend development money on SVI systems, and build a vehicle from the ground up around such a system. It could be marketed to cash in on the public demand for green vehicles, and would use a fuel resource that is locally produced and readily available. In 2006 Australia produced approximately 3.1 million tonnes of LPG. In the same year Australia consumed 1.9 million tonnes. Some 80% (2.5 million tonnes) of LPG production is 'naturally occurring' and is sourced directly from underground reserves associated with crude oil and natural gas production. 20% of indigenous LPG production (600,000 tonnes) is extracted from crude oil refining at the seven refineries located near Australia's major capital cities. 60% of LPG consumed is used in automotive applications across 550,000 cars and light commercial vehicles.

Australia currently exports approximately 1.5 million tonnes of LPG but also imports around 300,000 tonnes of LPG (propane) to the large East Coast market.

Surely it would be better to use this fuel (which is cleaner) than continuing to be ripped off by the oil companies. A little imaginative marketing would make all the difference. The local manufacturers have the available technology.

It’s ironic that diesel has just begun to catch on at the same time that its price is skyrocketing. A cynic would suggest a connection.

Pascal and Climate Change

Today’s Oz published the following in its letters page –

I agree with Don Aitkin that managing water and finding alternatives to oil-based energy are two huge environmental issues, but that's where our consensus ends.

I believe a version of Pascal's wager (as referred to by Aitkin) does hold true in regard to climate change. If we spend lots of time and money developing cleaner energy solutions and, in the process, we lower worldwide GDP by less than 1 per cent (as suggested is likely by Nicholas Stern and others) and then find out the science was wrong, we have a cleaner, healthier, smarter, more comfortable world to live in and hand on. The reduction of wealth will be imperceptible. On the other hand, if we judge the science to be wrong now and take little action, and the science is ultimately proven to be right, it's too late.

Dean Comber Camp Hill, Qld

This nails it pretty well for me. Pascal posits that it is a better "bet" to believe that God exists than not to believe, because the expected value of believing (which Pascal assessed as infinite) is always greater than the expected value of not believing. In Pascal's assessment, it is inexcusable not to investigate this issue:
I believe the same holds for climate change, even if the issue has been over-hyped to the point of absurdity.

Early

Walking and driving are two activities that I enjoy. This has not always been the case. I’ve always enjoyed getting behind the wheel of a car, but walking has not always been a passion. It paled somewhat after months of tromping through the scrub with a heavy pack on my back and a rifle in my hand back in 1970. The fact that mines were strewn about and determined guerillas were intent on mischief also spoiled the experience a bit.

These days, I’m fortunate to live in an environment that provides lots of opportunities to both walk and drive in a pristine bushland setting, and I’m making the most of it. A daily drive to a different track each day eliminates boredom and encourages new discoveries.

Generally I’m by myself, because my wife says I walk too fast, and my daughter would prefer to stay in bed. There’s usually plenty of feathered company, particularly on the escarpment. This morning it was greenies and magpies.
On my ramblings I saw a disgruntled looking magpie. I’m not sue why he looked unhappy, as the early morning fragrance of the bush, the warmth of the sun, and the interesting colours all provided a great lift for the spirit.

The photo doesn’t do it justice. I used my mobile phone. Taking photos with these things provides a result commensurate with trying to have a phone conversation on a digital camera.