I bought a new keyboard and went with an HP 230 wireless model that includes a wireless mouse. It's inexpensive and only for use with in my living room, so not heavily used. I have not used it much yet but it seems fine so far. I would not want to use it for much "proper" typing though. The keys are "chiclet" style with little action.
There is always a "setup" sheet with this sort of thing: inserting the batteries, turning on mouse etc. It is always small with tiny text. Often not very useful.
But why can HP not also include a guide to what the keyboard "icons" mean? I'm familiar with many but some are a little mysterious. Technology "Icons" are supposed to make functionality clear.
I don't know what the "F1" icon means.
Or the "F2". Although F2 works as usual for "rename" in a file manager.
"F3" cut I assume. "F4" copy?
Anyway, it is such a small thing to document, why not do it? I could not find this information online.
I have been using a Logitech diNovoEdge keyboard in my lounge since 2009. It still works but has started to become a little unreliable sometimes and it loses connection for 5-10 seconds more and more often. It's been much used and I think it is a great keyboard for the lounge/TV. It is much better than any of the other wireless keyboard/trackpad keyboards I have tried: they are often poorly designed and also a low quality build. It is a real shame Logitech stopped making them years ago. Anyway, time to try something else.
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
By Muriel Spark
Spark's novel is short, sharp, witty and ascerbic. She has a great ear for dialogue between the young schoolgirls under the spell of their charismatic teacher. A wonderful book.
Written in the late 1950's, it is set in the Edinburgh of the 1930's. World War One is still a presence but the effects of the depression has only a fleeting appearance in this more affluent world. Jean Brodie is a teacher at an Edinburgh girls school with a particular outlook on life. She is cultured, one could say snooty, loves High Art and looks down on science. Edinburgh is strait-laced and proper but there are some rough edges, as seen by the "Brodie Set" themselves during a walk through the Old Town. They come across a long line of men queuing in the street :
Monica Douglas whispered, "They are the Idle."
"In England they are called the Unemployed. They are waiting to get their dole from the labour bureau," said Miss
Brodie.
Jean Brodie takes holidays in Italy and admires Mussolini. She remarks that "In Italy the unemployment problem has been solved". How is left unsaid.
Children are very impressionable. Teachers are a big influence and in a position of trust. In modern parlance, they are "influencers". Today, of course, social media presents a much larger and more powerful array of "influencers", with pernicious effects sometimes. It's clear why parents have to care a lot about who you mix with as a child because their acquaintances have a bigger impact than you do. Like Jonathan Haidt, Professor of Ethical Leadership at NYU, we should be worried about the power of social media on children.
What I particularly liked about the book was Spark's dry and funny way with the children's dialogue. Sometimes silly, fantastical or funny. Occasionally, a little nasty (poor Mary MacGregor). She captures it beautifully.
"Miss Brodie says prime is best", Sandy said.
"Yes, but she never got married like our mothers and fathers."
"They don't have primes," said Sandy
"They have sexual intercourse," Jenny said.
The little girls paused, because this was still a stupendous thought, and one which they had only lately
lit upon; the very phrase and its meaning was new. It was quite unbelievable.
A very approachable and funny book, and still relevant today.
I have made a new web site to show art work I have created :
This is the first time I have done any "mobile" friendly web site work: mobile first. So I have also tried to familiarise myself with CSS features like flexbox layout etc. It has all been a learning experience. The Javascript "lightbox" is something I've taken from elsewhere (see below). I am now painfully aware of how unfriendly my main blog is to mobile and, at some point, I might have to try and fix this.
In the meantime, please check out the new site.
WARNING: The art site includes a "lightbox" (using lightbox2 but this does not work well on mobile devices. I may completely remove the lightbox, or try and replace with something else. More work needing done!