Monday, February 1, 2010

Update: XHTML, Garmin EDGE 605 GPS & Cambridge Guided Busway. Deer - like buses too!

The GPS is still reporting low battery levels - this time after cycling for 30 minutes and then within minutes of resetting the History at the end of the ride (so it stores properly) it reported again. I must get around to reporting it to Garmin and seeing what comes back.


I have also learnt more about trying to code up a web page than I had anticipated. My problem stems from the fact that I use an Editor to prepare my posts, this then inserts the code into a style defined by the Blog publisher (i.e. Blogspot). It turns out that my Editor enforces strict adherence to the XHTML 1.0 standard and the command (<iframe>) used to embed, say, a Google map in a post is deprecated (not allowed in this version). It is possible to specify a looser level of checking, instead of STRICT you can use TRANSITIONAL. I do not have control over the Editor and alternative ways of embedding Maps are not universally accepted by some Browsers, although they will pass the STRICT test. Mind you even when I do that and my code passes the Editor's check when I actually do embed a Google map it loses anything after the map. So more experimentation is needed.


I have mentioned before I am a member of the Cambridge Cycling Campaign. They publish a newsletter every two months and this month (and next month) there is an excellent article on the Cambridge Guided Busway. Apparently one of the issues holding the opening up is a problem with the cycle path/bridle way alongside - but as the article points out it will be (actually it has been for me!) an excellent 20Km of new cycle way for commuting and leisure when it has been completed. The rest of the newsletter also discussed some of the improvements being made to cycling in Cambridge - in no small part due to the excellent Campaigning work of CCyC


There were lots of accidents because of the ice on the roads this morning - reports in the Cambridge Evening News suggested 25 before 8.30am including 9 cars in a ditch on one icy road. I sounded bad enough that I though I would pop out on my MTB and stick mainly to tracks. Unfortunately, despite the lighter evenings I could not get out without returning in the dark and my MTB does not have a rear light. So I washed my Marin down and set off. It was pleasantly sunny, but I did not have much time to stop and take pictures. Here is an HDR composite taken from Headlake Drove. It emphasises the foreground too much though. I wanted the tree in the background to be more of the focal point with the grass in front blurry because of its movement between each of the 7 pictures.


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The same tree taken with a bit of zoom - I ended up creating this picture from three different exposures. The Photomatix software tries to align each of the pictures to take out any slight movement. I must have moved quite a lot for one of the pictures because it created a ghost village in the sky when using all 7 pictures.


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I have seen a single deer both yesterday and the day before. Today I saw a whole bunch - (more than a few less than a herd). In fact I saw five, two in the foreground here well camouflaged in the stubble and three more in the field behind. You can see the white dots of their tails.


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I did not have any run-ins with the Highland Cattle though , when cycling through Wicken Fen. It looks as if I am going to have to sort out my bike though, the gears are starting to slip, a problem of having both a worn chain and wobbly cogs at the front.

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