So this is my last Sunday Roast before I join 9rules. Once I hit “publish” on this post I’m off to sign on the dotted line in blood and make the requisite tweaks to the sidebar so I can be compliant to the wishes of my new masters. Mwhahahahaaa. Enjoy this, the last ‘Roast from freedom. Sob. 
*1*
The NYT has an interesting piece on how digital publishing is affecting the traditional book. Nothing new, per se, but a nice round up of the situation as it stands. Hardly surprisingly, you do get the impression that the author is a fan of the traditional publishing model.
Good news for everyone who owns an MP3 player - it is now safe to copy CDs to computers and MP3 players. You what now? I hear a lot of you scream. Yes, copying music from a CD to your iPod or similar has, up till now, technically put you at risk of prosecution. (I do have this great image in my head of crack BPI operatives swooping down on everyone with an iPod because how else were you gonna fill it up if not illegally?) Now though, so long as it is for your own consumption, you’re gonna be OK. I mean, none of us share music, right?
Six months in, I am severely disillusioned by my hosting company, which kinda makes me wish I’d read this article on what to look for in a web-host before I forked over the credit card details. You’d think I’d have learnt by now, some services are cheap for a reason. Still won’t be making that mistake again!
It almost wouldn’t be a ‘Roast without a link to Darren. This week we have two! Oooh, I do spoil y’all.
Firstly, an article on the gender differential in blogging sparked my brain into working. As a female blogger I would say I have noticed more men out there than women, but I’m used to that from the field I’ve been working in lately, so it doesn’t seem too unusual. That in itself got me thinking on a whole host of things that might work themselves into a post in the near future. With regards comments I know I have a reluctance to post comments. It’s something I’m trying to overcome, but whether that reluctance is just personal reticence, or because I am female… Well, therein lies an entire PhD all to itself.
The second ProBlogger offering of the week, was a slightly worrisome piece on how no-one links to the linkers. Suddenly, my lackluster technorati standing makes sense! Then again, it’s just one post a week so 
I enjoy the Sunday Roast even if no one else does. There were some good points made in the comments of this post, one I agree with totally. I always go for the original source if I can find it.
I love Flickr for many reasons, but mainly because of the amazing images you can stumble across, such as this great photoset of photographs taken by a soldier in the aftermath of WWII. Some of the pictures are beautiful, some of the pictures (especially the Hiroshima ones) are heart rending.
If you use WordPress do you know how to back up your database? I’ve had a few server-side hiccups lately and the only thing that stopped me from having a bigger heart attack than I did was the knowledge I had a backup that was only a few days old. I use the plugin method as it requires the least amount of fussing with the back-end of things. If I was feeling even cleverer, I would set up automatic daily backups then I’d never have to worry again.
Apparently, more people watch Freeview than analogue TV. Not my Mum. She couldn’t, even if she wanted to. The very nice man told her she would have to fork out for a sky dish and watch ‘Skyview’ which is slightly different to Freeview - some of the channels you receive are different. Other than that, she’s still all confused why she can’t just stay with her analogue signal. It works fine, is much less susceptible to weather, and doesn’t require her to bolt more aerials to the side of her house. Personally, I like Freeview because of the extra channels (FilmFour is coming soon!), but am still at a loss to understand why we are switching in the first place.
David Pogue has a bit more on Vista’s system requirements, and dear lord does it need a beast of a computer! And five different versions of the OS? You just know that whichever one you end up getting, you’re gonna wind up wanting a feature it doesn’t support. Switch people, switch now!
And note the p.p.s. - yes David, comments are good 
I have a pledge for you, my readers, and that pledge is this: Bright Meadow will be a football-free zone for the entirety of the World Cup. But for those of you obsessed with the bloody game, I will leave you with this link to some pretty footballs.
Seems like everyone is having a hard time keeping up with the RSS these days. I like David’s approach, but just know I lack the self discipline to follow it. I do like his description of the ‘personal blogs’ he reads:
There are a number of people on the Internet that I just find fascinating, and I follow them because they are personally inspiring… I read these blogs purely because I enjoy them.
A few years back I had to use a wheelchair for a while and one thing that struck me even then was how cumbersome and antiquated the design of a basic chair is. The Trikinetic K2 on the other hand, is a chair for the spaceage.
And… I’ve just realised I’ve spent the past two hours on this post. Definitely time to get dressed and go for a walk in the sunshine.
Endnotes:
*1*I’m really all giddy with excitement, but I’m British, and we much prefer cynicism and sarcasm to letting onto our real emotions. Excited as a very excited thing, that’s me. Back
Welcome to Bright Meadow. My name is Cas and I write every Sunday and Wednesday, frequently with other bits in between.
If you want to know more about me, or Bright Meadow, I recommend reading the