If you're an Australian running asterisk then you'll probably want a heap of Australian sounding .gsm files for the voicemail and other menus. OpenVoice has done just that - and opened a lot up for free download. They also have AtHome and Premium packages for those wanting a more complete selection.

Wow, it's been ages since I've manually compiled a kernel for Linux. Things have changed a lot! There's a ton more stuff that I didn't even realise was there (and I'm making lots of bum kernels! :)) John has made some updates to make the driver module work under kernel version 2.6.14.2. I'm working on getting this going now, as there's a great deal of excitement when putting this on the same machine as an RFID reader, 1 wire temp sensors, and electronic door locks etc :)

Yay, I've just completed the move to put asterisk on it's own machine. Means I can play a bit more! I've set it up with 1.2.0, and actually put in SRV records in the crc.id.au domain - which in theory lets anyone call me just by calling crc.id.au. I had one issue while moving across, but the guys in #asterisk on irc.freenode.net rock :) I've also updated my e164 records - so if you use asterisk and e164's enum service, you can call me for free - transparently!

I've managed to get my hands on an Ontrak ADU-218. It's a nice little unit that gives 8 x computer controlled relays and 8 x logic inputs using anywhere from 5-24v as a 'high'. This is a USB product, and seems to work very well! I've got it going under Windows with their supplied DLL file, however I'm trying to get it running under Linux now (it seems to be a HID device). John Homppi has done a bit with this in the past but I can't find anything since. Hopefully John still checks his mail! Update: John has pointed me to his site!

Normally I wouldn't whinge about the media, but one thing has really got up my nose over the past few days. This story by news.com.au has got to be the most pathetic attempt at making something big - ever. Firstly, I'm not saying what Lauren had done to her is right - my points here are based on the media coverage alone. Firstly, this has been headline material for over 5 days. Why? Because she is a pretty, white, blonde girl. This would quickly disappear if this was not the case. Secondly, the reporting is just utter crap. In one day, the story changed from "Lauren had been sexually assaulted...." to "Police are investigating possible sexual assault..." to "... Police simply didn't know whether Lauren, 18, had been sexually assaulted". Now, looking at the above, it's a whole different story between has, may have, and don't know. It's one thing to report the facts, it's another to continue with this drivel and speculation based on nothing but guesswork. To borrow a line from Darryn, Shame Shame Shame.

Well, nothing much has been happening of late - apart from me being sick of working 6 day weeks. Hopefully, this will be the last week of working 6 days straight, however I thought that last time. Tim got back from the US today, so we went out to La Kasa on Brunswick St for a catchup, dinner and drinks. I'll tell you what - there are some fine looking ladies down there....... Earlier in the day I did a 3 1/2 hour guest DJ set for Deviant Audio, and it went off pretty much without a hitch. I'll be looking to do more shows for them as time goes by. I'll leave it at that for today, as now I'm going to crash before work tomorrow. Oh, and November 20th 2005 is supposed to be when the Victoria Police analogue radio network goes dead. D-Day is approaching :(

So, we had this 'random thoughts' session at work today... this has to be the winner in my opinion. I understand that scissors can beat paper, and I get how rock can beat scissors, but there's no f -ing way paper can beat rock. Paper is supposed to magically "wrap around" rock, rendering it immobile? Why the hell can't paper do this to scissors? Screw scissors, why can't paper do this to people? Why aren't sheets of notebook paper constantly suffocating students as they attempt to take notes in class? I'll tell you why-- BECAUSE PAPER CAN'T BEAT ANYBODY! A rock would tear that sh*t up in 2 seconds. When I play rock/paper/scissors, I always choose rock. Then when somebody claims to have beaten me with their paper, I punch them in the face with my already clenched fist and say, "Oh sh*t, I'm sorry. I thought that paper would protect you"

Damn. I've been playing with radios for years, and I have to say, these units are sweet. I've been trying to think of things that can be improved on them, and failed. The radios can do free-input text messages between units, and even allow a lead-in delay for sending 1200/2400 baud FFSK data through standard analogue repeaters. Best of all? It actually works. So lets see, it's a Dual mode radio (Conventional/Trunking), 1000 channels, free form text messages, Voting, scanning, excellent RX sensitivity, great RX/TX audio, 25W output (selectable via software - no winding screws!). The actual unit is basically a huge DSP. I like it. Details of the units can be found here at TMC Radio's site. I'm still looking for things to pick on the radios for - so I can submit feedback for improvement, but it's not easy!

I'm still putting together all the info to send off to Consumer Affairs. There's currently around 200-250 pages (give or take :)) and I'm adding in a heap of diagnostics to prove that it's the actual drive - not the media as Apple have been quick to blame. This includes cross referencing all the data between various burners on PC and the SuperDrives on the Mac Mini and Powerbook G4. It's taking a while, but hopefully, it should all be an open and shut case after it's all done! In case you have no idea what I'm talking about, look here.

It's been a busy last few weeks, so I thought I'd do a quick update before heading off to work (yes, working 7am on a Sunday should be illegal!). I've decided to splash out on the radio front and replace some of my aging PRM80 radios with new SRM9000 series units from TMC Radio. The specs on these units are great! They will even do radio to radio SMS messaging on simplex or duplex channels :) Should be a heap of fun to play with.