I’ve mentioned this book before, but I was half way through it then, so now I’m at the end I thought I’d pen a review.

I suppose I could have written about the two other books I have read that have a vague connection to the topic/geographics — Palin’s Himalaya and Craig’s Tear’s of Blood. Both are very different reads (one is a travel log and the other is a freedom campaigner’s account of historical events), but neither was really a page-turner.

By the end of both I was finding it a chore to get through another chapter, and maybe with Tears of Blood it was more to do with me trying to enjoy actually being there rather than spending the whole time feeling obliged to read. But the difference between these two books and Heinrich Harrer’s insight into the Shangri-la of 1940s Tibet (but really it could have been set at any time before the Chinese occupation) is that I finally found a book that drew me in.

Harrer does not mince his words. At times I felt that if I had not ‘been there, done that’, that a lot of his reference points would be lost on me. He doesn’t go out of his way to explain unnecessary detail, and his descriptions are not packed with metaphors and flamboyant language. Well it might have been in the original German script, but if so, it’s all been lost in translation.

But despite only having a brief encounter with Tibetan life, this book gave me enough to rekindle my memories and reabsorb myself in what seems like a mythical way of life. It’s hard to believe that for the most part is still very much a real existence in most parts of Bö (as the Tibetans call Tibet).

Harrer’s chequered past is not really addressed at all, and until I looked him up after completing the book I had not realised his previous involvement with the Nazis and the SS. Apparently he never was involved in any thing particularly questionable, and his merits as an Olympic athlete and mountaineer probably should bear more mention, but it was an interesting discovery none the less.

Maybe not knowing so much about the author from the book or before I started was a good thing. The brief context-setting in the first chapter is adequate to set the scene and (like the rest of Harrer’s text) is in complete contrast to the overblown introduction (at least in the 1983 edition I’ve read).

Harrer recounts all events with brevity and plain language that tells the story with clarity and not necessarily beauty. Without accompanying photographs the book lacks somewhat. Not only did photography and videography become a key part of his time with in Lhasa and with the Dalai Lama, it also is needed to really illustrate what Tibet looks like. We have nothing in the West that even compares slightly and although most people know what The Himalaya looks like, Tibetan culture is still a mystery to most.

I hadn’t visited many places that Harrer did on his journey, and the places where our paths did match, he doesn’t give enough away to really explain the place (as I would have). This book is far more event-centric rather than concerned with the details of the towns and vistas, but I don’t think it suffers too much because of this and it makes the whole text an easy read. Even by the end we are none the wiser to the personality of his seven-year travelling companion of Peter Aufschneiter.

I think Seven Years is worth a read, but I think you need to tackle it in context. A map of the Himalyan region to hand and a brief insight into the history of the Dalai Lama & Panchen Lama before you start will help. Don’t worry about being versed on the complications of China’s occupation – before that the history of Tibet was pretty straightforward and quick to pick up on.

For anyone who has been to Tibet or is thinking of going, it’s an essential.

I arrived in the cinema on Broad Street to meet Gwyther with a whisker to spare before this film started, but unfortunately Paul, Gwyth’s mate was also late, and so we didn’t get sat down until about 30 seconds into the movie.

I’m not a fantasy devotee (although I do have historical interest), and the reviews I had heard so far were fairly mixed (mostly to do with the controversial choice to portray a war against Persians) so I didn’t know what to expect considering the hype had otherwise been so positive.

This is a version of the Greek legend of 300 Spartans who went to fight a million-strong army. It is an adaptation of the graphic novels of Frank Miller and his embellishment of the original legendary story, it’s characters and it’s themes make for impressive viewing.

For an idea of what to expect, try and mix Gladiator, some “ancient classics” from the 1960s, a strong dose of mythological spin, a good chunk of violence and you should be somewhere near. Hyper-reality and some great cinematography keeps your eyes on the screen.

I was aware that this was a fairly arty depiction of the story, and I do like that from my films, so was pleased that it provided stunning visuals throughout.

In terms of plot, it’s the wars of classical civilisations which I have an interest in anyway, although I don’t think you need to like that stuff to enjoy the film. There has been criticism over the lack of meaty dialogue, and I found the longer portions of speech to be clichéd and sometimes even cringeworthy. That said, the Spartans were known to be laconic, so clearly they weren’t all that practised at long orations and much preferred to just get to the point. That’s why I will excuse these criticisms and just say if you are looking for brainfood, you might want to watch something else.

300 is an epic film, and the first of this genre that I’ve been pleased with since I saw Gladiator (including the disappointment of Troy and the others). It sets itself apart from earlier films by pushing the boundaries of history and reality, but carries a similar imposing soundtrack, visual mastery and set of strong performances as it’s predecessors. The characters don’t carry as much baggage as other films, which can either be seen as being refreshing or just laziness, but overall I can’t complain.

Definitely worth a watch.

So here’s a plan. You want to monitor what traffic is coming through your sites, and you want to do it for free. Google Analytics is the obvious choice.

But what if you wanted to go all Web 2.0 and get your site hits, keywords and referrers without having to wade through all your stats? What if you wanted just the essentials wrapped up and delivered in a manageable daily RSS feed?

Well it’s not the future anymore…

PulseRSS is a great little free, hosted service which you tag onto your pages and keeps you posted on the most essential statistics for an unlimited number sites.

It means rather than having to manually check your ‘vitals’ in an overblown interface, you can now be fed them regularly; keeping an eye on your site’s pulse rather than doing a full and time-consuming “please cough, sir” style inspection.

This isn’t a replacement for full featured statistics package, but instead a daily supplement, adding some great functionality which is missing from the big guns’ offerings.

I don’t think I can be any clearer about my view of Simon Pegg’s latest film; if you haven’t seen the trailer yet, it doesn’t matter – this film is fantastic.

I’m not posting any spoilers here, but if you want to see the thing 100% fresh then I’ll let you pass on this post (until you’ve seen it).

A brief outline of what you can expect is an unimportant plot, a clever subterfuge of popular culture (Pegg’s trademark), an amalgamation of all-action-meets-spoof-horror-meets-comedy and a smorgasbord of some of the best in British comedy.

You also get some fantastic lines, wildly imaginative action sequences and a very decent production quality. I even left the cinema a little out of breath – unusual for a British film. It was the most I’ve laughed out loud in a cinema since I sneezed out my milkshake in the middle of the last Austin Powers film.

Funnily enough, I recommend you buy a ticket to see Hot Fuzz this week.

Like any product with the words ‘Groove’ and ‘Power’ in the title, you are drawn to believe that it is part of some DIY, floor-laying accessory, but alas, the review I am about to embark upon is nothing to do with Lawrence Llewellyn-Bowen or Carol Smilie (thankfully).

This week Nick from MP3 Additions sent me the Cygnett Groove Power Charger , a multi-national iPod charger. Priced at £12.99, it’s significantly cheaper than Apple’s own offerings which range from £19 (for a plain UK USB Power Adaptor) to £29 (for their World Travel Kit).

Previously on my travels I have managed to survive without the iPod. When the iPod was new, this was partially out of shear fear for breaking or losing the thing, but as time went on it was just the necessity of lugging the thing around and trying to find points where I could charge it. With only one UK adaptor, the camera battery would take priority and so the iPod stayed at home.

However, this new arrival may have changed things.

Cygnett’s offering is a little white box, the size of four stacked match boxes (or one stacked mouse) with some fluorescent orange branding. Immediately doubt was cast into my mind when I saw they hadn’t managed to stick the logo decal on straight, but I cast this minor fault aside and decided to plug it in.

The charger comes with four adaptor plates (USA, Europe, UK and Australia) which are the main ones, and for anywhere more obscure you are likely to be carrying a travel converter anyway.

They sort-of-simply clip fit into place, but when locked in, the grip is surprisingly firm and being a person who has been know to play with electricals in the past, a solid feeling product tends to inspire more confidence than one that wiggles. So far so good.

The bookies have withdrawn odds on whether this was designed in the UK or not, for it is fairly obvious that it wasn’t. In UK mode the plug sits upside down in the socket, which causes no real problem, and if the logo hadn’t been upside down, I probably wouldn’t have noticed.

Although a designer’s error, I found this mishap to more useful than not, as I prefer to leave my iPod on a desk when charging, so the cable feeding upwards works better for me. If you are in the habit of leaving your iPod on the floor (irresponsible) then the cable is going to be pointing out of the wrong end (but only in the UK, all the other plates are the ‘right’ way up).

It says that it may take 30 seconds before the iPod will begin to charge, but I found mine worked instantly and charged the iPod to exactly the same performance as I expect from my battery normally. Regulated electricity is regulated electricity, so this shouldn’t affect battery performance – if anything does it will be your dodgy power lines.

Overall a very suitable charger which feels particularly trustworthy for a third party electrical accessory, and is actually smaller than the official equivalent. You are unlikely to have to eBay your relatives to pay for it (another bonus) and has the benefit of being usable in quite a few major destinations around the world. You’ll probably need a little bag to keep the converter plates in, but I’d be quite comfortable not only to to use this while travelling, but also as my day to day charger if my original Apple one packed up.

You can buy it here , along with a range of other power products for iPods.

Making a departure from the usual drivel that I pump out into the blogosphere, this post is dedicated to my experience with a product. After my time at university learning how to design them, I am now rarely drawn towards making critical evaluations of products, that is unless they are somehow Apple related. It's usually iPods, Macs and other white shiny things that get my attention, and when Nick from MP3 Additions emailed me saying he'd like me to review one of an accessory for him, the palms of my hands got sweaty and I started to salivate. Pathetic.

Anyway, I was promptly dispatched a sports case for my old 3G iPod. Now I cherish my 3G. When the 4G came out I was slightly jealous to see a thinner model, then when the iPod Photo came out I lusted for a colour screen. But by the time the 5G came out, I was over that, and I started to ooze with Apple nostalgia, instantly yearing for little red glowing buttons once more.

You are hard pressed to find accessories that fit the 3G today, and so I was automatically intrigued by the 'Marware Sportsuit Convertible' case. Essentially it is a 'graphite' (grey) neoprene case, with option of belt clip or armband (for really sporty people) and a removable shell that fits onto the front and can also serve as a carry case for headphones and other small accessories.

The case itself is well built and has a nice feel to it. Getting the iPod in was pretty easy, but it did take a minute to get the PVC screen protector to line up with the buttons, and as you can see from the photo, it doesn't always sit flush. The longest grip edges are made of a synthetic rubber while the iPod is held in the top by a velcro and leather grip. There are a couple of other materials in there too, but it's all of decent quality with good attention to detail.

My usual iPod routine takes one of two directions. Firstly there is walking with headphones, and secondly there is using my iTrip when driving in the Pocket Rocket. Well, it soon became apparent that the second option was not really going to work with this case. I quickly found the Griffin iTrip wouldn't sit comfortably on top of the leather grip. On the first generation iTrips this wouldn't matter so much, but on my newer one the LCD screen is totally obscured by the redundant leather tab.

But I wasn't too concerned by this. I was more interested by what this case might do for me when I was walking, as that makes up 75% of the usage time for my 3G. I currently use a two-part authentic Apple carry case that was thrown in when I bought the iPod, and despite having a really nice feel to it, you can't see the screen when it's in the case. The Sportsuit provides a solution for this very nicely. Although PVC wouldn't have been my first choice for a protective-screen material, and I'd have tried to have made it a bit thinner, the buttons and touchwheel can be activated as normal and the screen clarity is good.

The vacuum-formed and neoprene covered convertible 'lid' is an excellent addition to the product. It can be easily attached and removed (like all the fabric parts on this product - it velcros together) and provides plenty of room to store my iTrip and headphones in one go - a perennial problem which I used to solve using by carrying everything in an old shaving case, but which now I can ditch.

With the hood on, it's an all-in-one player and storage solution; without the hood it becomes an easily accessible, splashproof and durable iPod case that is a good level up from what I am used to when I'm walking. The armband is a little redundant to me, but the bulldog clip feels sturdy and it didn't fall off my belt when I sat down. The accessories list says you can buy a specific belt clip, but if you really want to make sure it doesn't fall off you could just loop your belt through the two seatbelt straps on the back of the case and save yourself a fiver.

The rubberised cover for the cable connector port is very nicely executed, although it isn't much use to me as the case makes it too bulk to fit in the dock. Branding is discrete (the way I like it) and the overall feel of the product is not dissimilar to some kind of climbing accessory. In fact, if you are more outdoorsy than me, this is going to be an ideal candidate for that type of activity.

It's well stitched and feels like it could add some protection if you dropped it. Neoprene was a good choice of fabric, but more caution should have been exercised when using it on the front. Where the screen protector meets the case is the weakest part of the product both aesthetically and physically, which is a shame because it is also the most visible. I've worked with that material before and it's a nightmare to get it to do what you want, and this is the one part of the product I think that really misses the mark.

Overall, it's a very decent way to store and use your iPod on the go, although you will definitely get more benefit from if you are the active type, and also if you are not too picky about the finish on the front. For people like me who sit in cars, it might not be your first choice case, but if you walk, cycle, hike, climb, ride, sail (well maybe not sail - it is only splashproof) this is a good little number if your first choice of iPod is stuck well back in 2003.

Since they have have been so kind, and it's the season of good will, it's only fair to ask that if you are looking to buy this or another case for your iPod, MP3 Additions sell a wide variety of products for all generations, so go and have a look there first.

Err, yes, and more.

Well that answered that. I have to admit now, that I am was a closet Bond fanatic, so any gratuitous outpouring of praise for this film is really what I've bottled up for a couple of years waiting for this film to arrive, and therefore will be fairly sickly to read. I'm sorry if you vomit.

About two years ago I left the cinema on a similarly dark winter night from seeing Layer Cake and said to Devito that I thought Daniel Craig would make a good Bond. This was before any new film had been tabled or Brosnan had been given the boot, and I remain smug. I was therefore over the moon when I discovered he had been awarded the role about a year later and can only say I was fairly, in fact really, shocked at the slating he got at the time, something which looks to have almost entirely dissipated since.

I also got a bit excited when it was rumoured Tarintino was eye-balling the script. I loved the idea of getting some grit back in the film and after although not keen on some of his abstract film-making, I thought he would be be forced into a compromise that would mean I would get what I wanted from the end result. In the end Tarintino didn't get the deal, and looking back, I'm quite happy he didn't. The film I saw tonight was exactly what I wanted.

At the end of Die Another Day (the last Bond film), I remember feeling distinctly disappointed. I simply could not believe any of the plot could actually occur. The villains were so over the top they were unreal and despite my like of John Cleese for his previous comic achievements, the idea of him as the new 'Q' didn't work, and neither did his over-the-top gadgets.

That's why this refresh was needed. The Bond films of the 70s when Moore was 007 were a mixed bag, and although enjoyable, they became so unbelievable they were practically fantasy. Moonraker for instance. In my opinion, Timothy Dalton followed with a much better character, flawed in some respects, but I actually quite like his two films. They brought things back down to earth (appalling pun not intended). Bond should throw reality about a bit, but it should not overstep the mark, and I think this latest incarnation trod that line very well.

I'm not going to drop any real spoilers (any more than you'll have already seen or heard), so if you've not seen it don't worry.

The tempo of the film is keep up due to the constant on/off action. I thought the opening credits are artistically very good, as is the use of the black and white photography. There is the grit I craved for, and a storyline that can be taken seriously for a change.

Le Chiffre, the bad guy, makes for a much more convincing villain than we've seen in any recent outing. The idea that the most central stake is at the poker table and not in a bunker or on some kind of battle field makes this movie a very different experience. The low tech nature of the conflict, the removal of most gadgets other than those necessary, peels Bond back to the bone and makes for a far more convincing character. We get to see a more egocentric, colder and impressionable man - from what I gather, a more true to form version of Flemming's original books.

Sentimentality has been thrown aside in some respects; not all Bond fans will like how they have sharpened the use of, or removed, some previous staples of the franchise. I however, am sold.

Because I can't give a review that is totally one sided, if I have to criticise I will do so with utter mediocrity and grumble while doing so. Yes, there is a lot of product placement, yes there is a blatant cameo by a certain famous entrepreneur as part of the product deals, and yes, the plot is thicker than you might expect (especially at the beginning). But as none of these things bothered me and it's my blog I can chose to dedicate one just sentence to criticism then just go back to praising it whether you like it or not.

The best film I've seen in a long while, and really looking forward to seeing the next one in 2008.