I LOVE tips. The shorter yet more valuable, the better.

So, I thought I would share some of them with you in case you ever wondered if you should buy this magazine.

A New Mobile Website

BUT, before I do, I would like to mention that I’ve just added a new feature to this website.

If you have an iPhone, or even cooler, a Google Android phone (I have the new HTC Desire, an AWESOME phone), then you can view this site in a mobile friendly format.

Of course, if you’re geeky enough to have one of these phones, you’re probably wondering why you would want to view it “mobile friendly”. The answer is, it’s specially formatted in a way that will seem very familiar to iPhone and Android users.

And, to make it REALLY easy to visit the site, you only have to type in the following URL in your browser:

hiho.co.za

How easy is THAT?

Popular Mechanics Reader Tips

Ok, now, onto the readers’ tips…

Sucker!

From time to time, you’ll find your automatic pool cleaner taking a nap when it should be cleaning your pool. A blockage in the throat rubber is usually the cause, and fixing this entails switching off the pump or unplugging it from the weir (this is to prevent the pipe from sucking in air while you’re inspecting the pool cleaner).

Try this instead:

- Pull the pool cleaner to the surface and unplug the pipe, still holding it under the water.

- Next, press it against the pool wall, where it will attach itself like a leech. It stays latched while the weir valve opens to compensate for the sudden “blockage”.

- You may now remove the cleaner, clear the blockage and reconnect the pipe without having to open the covers, switch off the pump or remove the pipe from its natural habitat.

Frozen Delights

I know this is too late for Christmas, but my hint is suited to any type of celebration, from birthdays to wedding anniversaries – and it’s very simple.

Rather than serve guests ordinary (read boring) ice cubes, give them something special and colourful in the form of cubes containing Maraschino cherries. If you like, you can slightly tint the ice using food colouring (go for subtle tints, not intense colour).

Ice cubes containing small slices of lemon are also wonderfully attractive.

Thrice Bitten

After pulling a tool drawer off its runners and scattering its contents on the garage floor for the third time, I finally took the advice of a DIY-type neighbour and screwed a short length of wood to the back of each drawer in the tool chest.

Turned up, it prevents the drawer from being pulled all the way out, but if you need to take out the drawer for whatever reason, all you need do is move the stopper to a horizontal position.

So, if you have any of your own tips and tricks, feel free to send them in.

Until next time.

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2010. | Popular Mechanics Cool Tips | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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In this article I talk about the cool new features of the iPhone that now means you have no excuse NOT to get the iPhone.

And, there’s a video at the bottom which shows off all the new features and shows you what the iPhone really can do…

The first time I wrote about the iPhone (in my post “Apple iPhone in South Africa“) I was writing about the original iPhone and said that I wouldn’t recommend that you buy it for the following reasons:

• EDGE connectivity speeds (about dial-up modem speed)
• Only a 2 MegaPixel camera (which it still seems to have)

Now, there is absolutely NO REASON why you shouldn’t buy the iPhone. Here’s why:

3G iPhone has 3G

This one should be obvious.

I use the internet a lot, even on my phone (which is the new HTC TYTN II which I just bought). And, having a fast internet connection is a MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR necessity. If you current phone only has EDGE connectivity speeds, you won’t BELIEVE the difference a 3G connection makes.

Of course, if you recently upgraded from a dial-up modem to broadband at home, then you’ll have an idea…

Microsoft Exchange Push Technology

I use this on my Windows Mobile phone. I used it on my iMate K-Jam, and I use it on my HTC TYTN II.

This allows me to receive my work emails from anywhere my cellphone has a signal. And, this is also where the 3G connecitivity comes into play.

Even though the iPhone is not a Windows/Microsoft device, it does have this functionality, (as well as the ability to synchronise with your Outlook calendar), and this is a must have for any business mobile phone, in my opinion.

Built-in GPS

The iPhone has built-in GPS (GPS means: Global Position System, which is what satellite navigation devices like the Garmin use).

So, if you can add an application to the phone that can use the GPS capabilities of the phone, you’ll be amazed that you will be carrying a satellite navigation device in your pocket at all times. Hmmm…

I guess you’d be lost without it

Anyway, an example of free software that uses the GPS system on the phone is Google Maps.

Take a look at the video below to see Google Maps in action on the iPhone:

As you can see, some of the cool features are:

• The ability to pinpoint your current location
• Your location is tracked as you move around
• You can search for locations in your area (like Pizza restaurants)
• You can get the directions to the locations you’ve found

iPhone App Store

If the applications that come with the iPhone are not enough how about the fact that you can now buy applications from the iPhone App Store… Applications like games, educational software, messaging software, etc…

And, some of the applications are even free.

3G iPhone in South Africa SOON!

And, best of all, the iPhone will be available in South Africa through Vodacom VERY SOON!

Of course, it doesn’t help me, considering I just got a new contract on MTN, but hey, what can you do? You can’t win them all.

So, if you’d like to see everything there is to know about the iPhone, watch the following video…

I must warn you though, it’s quite long (about 40 minutes), but it’s VERY informative.

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2008. | 3G iPhone | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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But did you know that generators can be dangerous if you’re not careful?

A few people have died already. Here’s a report of one death, and what you could do to prevent it.

EISHKOM!

If you live in South Africa (which about 50% of the readers of this site do), then you are probably affected by the load shedding that is currently going on in the country.

Thanks to Eskom and the Government, it would appear that there currently is not enough electricity to meet the demands of the country. And Eskom is “forced” to shut down certain areas at certain times of the day to help ease the pressure.

This is obviously an annoyance. Forget that, it’s MORE than an annoyance, but this site is a family friendly site…

To help combat this, people have resorted to buying generators to help supply electricity to their homes while they are affected by the load shedding.

But, some people are unaware of the effects of carbon-monoxide, and the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning, resulting in death.

An article on News24 talks about how a family suffered due to the fumes from their generator:

Kempton Park – A woman and her pet bird were killed by the fumes of her generator which she used during a power failure.

Aletta Dormehl, 49, of Kempton Park was found dead on Wednesday morning in her home in Casuarina Street. She died from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Her son, Gerhard, 19, was being treated in the intensive care unit at the Tembisa Hospital after being rescued from his home and regained consciousness on Wednesday afternoon.

I spoke about this with a few people and their seems to be 3 possible ways to prevent this from happening:

Have an exhaust system

Generators are effectively engines, and they have exhausts.

Ensure that the exhaust fumes are blown outside the house, away from any windows or doors.

Ensure that there is proper ventilation in the house just in case any fumes DO get into the house.

Set up your generator outside

This is the option one of my friends has done. They’re creating a brick housing for their generator outside their house and away from any open windows.

They are definitely going to try and ensure their generator is secure and not easily stolen. I’ll have to see how they do it…

Store your generator indoors and set it up outside

This is a little more tedious I guess, but currently this is the way the friend from the option above is doing things.

He only takes out the generator when it’s needed. This way, it’s outside when it’s in use, but locked away safely when it’s not.

Other generator setup options

So, do you have any ideas or tips that you could add to the above? Or even just improve on or even say that the above ideas wouldn’t work (and why)?

If so, please leave your ideas as a comment below…

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2008. | Generators can be dangerous | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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Go check out my new post on the 3G iPhone. It has videos on the new features, and more info on the fact that it’s coming to South Africa VERY soon. Read it by clicking here: iPhone

I was just walking through Sandton City Shopping Centre looking for my last Christmas Presents, when I spotted an iPhone in a shop window.

I was actually trying to find a little geeky gift under R100 for my Christmas party (more on that after the party).

I just HAD to ask the price, because we all know that sometimes it’s just good to buy yourself a Christmas Gift as well.

I’m not sure the salesperson was impressed with my response to the price:

R10,000

For those people NOT from South Africa, that works out to about $1,500. About 4 TIMES the price in the U.S.!!!

Anyway, I still don’t think you should splash out and buy it just yet.

Apparently there’s a new version coming out in the next 6 months or so that will be 3G enabled, which will definitely make the world of difference to your browsing experience.

And, hopefully it will be on an MTN, Vodacom, CellC or even a Virgin Mobile contract.

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2007. | The iPhone IS in South Africa | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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I’ve had it for 2 months now, and I think it’s AMAZING!

I must admit, I am still getting used to it, learning all it’s features and functions, but I thought I would share a few photos that I took with the EOS 40D so that you can see exactly how it handles.

The photos below were all taken in the Kruger National park game reserve here in South Africa. I used the Canon EOS 40D with a Canon 70-300mm lens.

The best thing about using a Digital Camera is that you can take as many photos as you like (within reason and Memory Card capacity), and then delete photos afterwards. Of course, that is IF you can bring yourself to delete the photos…

I must admit, I added a little sharpening to some of the photos below, and added some contrast. There was NO sun the ENTIRE trip, so everything was very gray.

And for an amatuer like me, it was too much to handle for the first ever “photo shoot”.

I used Google’s “Picasa2” software to add the sharpening and contrast, and I use “Picasa Web” to host the photos (and create the slideshow below). I can fully recommend it!

Anyway, let me know if you like the photos… Compliments are most welcome, if they’re due

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2007. | Canon EOS 40D in the Kruger Park | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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After all the rumours that have been flying around, it’s finally time for me to get excited about the real product, though not as excited as I WILL be when I get the camera. I mean, like I mentioned in my article entitled “Canon EOS 40D D-SLR” I’ve been saving for 2 years to get this camera.

I spoke to a sales assistant in a camera shop in Sandton and they said that it would take about 4 weeks after global launch date for the camera to hit the shelves in South Africa, and it will sell fast. I believe him. Apparently the camera is being released in the U.S. on September 20th, and I REALLY need it before October 15th (I’m going away for my birthday and I’m going to need it, apparently… It’s a surprise). So it will be cutting it fine!!!

So, anything new and interesting (or just different) I didn’t write in the previous article?

EOS 40D Price

It looks like the camera will cost Americans $1300 just for the body, and with the lens, it will cost $1500. So, with import duties, a little extra mark-up, and the Rand’s exchange rate, I’m thinking that I can probably expect to pay around R18000 for the camera. Hopefully it will be less than that, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.

6.5 fps shooting

6.5 Frames per Second is quite a few photos that I’m going to be taking. Though a hundred photos that all look the same of the sun going down won’t impress many people.

3.0″ LCD with Live View mode

3 INCHES! That’s MASSIVE!

It’s bigger than 2.5″ at least. And it has a live view mode, so you can frame up the photos on the LCD screen on the back of the camera if it’s too awkward to use the view finder.

Picture Style Presets

According to Canon, “Picture Style presets provide easy control over image processing parameters. Each style offers a different colour response. Picture Style presets are customizable in-camera or through the supplied Picture Style Editor software.”

What am I going to do with all these picture styles??? I think the WTD has a rough idea:

All the specs above came from the Canon Europe EOS 40D page

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2007. | Canon EOS 40D Digital SLR is ALMOST in South Africa | 2 comments. Click here to add yours... |

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For those that don’t know, the Canon EOS 40D is a digital SLR camera. An upgrade from the ever popular EOS 30D. And it has been rumoured to be coming out for about a year now. Except it now seems very likely that it will be released in September this year. At least, that’s according to a whole lot of unconfirmed sources.

Let’s see what this camera MIGHT have that makes it so special.
I say MIGHT, because Canon STILL hasn’t confirmed anything yet, and these specs come from this page which doesn’t reference any sources, even though it sums up what quite a few sites have been guessing at:

10.2 Megapixel APS-C size CMOS sensor

The only thing I’m looking at there is the 10.2 Megapixel stat. I’m sure the other values are important, but as long as the quality of the image is excellent, this means I shouldn’t need to upgrade for a few years, and only then if I plan on taking A1 size photos…

5 fps

Taking 5 photos a second is not going to happen that often. But back in the day, having to develope film and pay per photo printed, it could get REALLY expensive. I’m going to be using this feature a lot now that I can just delete unwanted photos, thanks to this being a digital camera.

At least 2.5” wide viewing angle LCD screen

Sounds like I’m going to be able to see the photos quite well using the LCD screen on the back, as this is actually quite large. Really helps when deciding which photos to remove after shooting 30 photos in 6 seconds and the Memory card is starting to fill up…

100-3200 ISO range

Quite a wide range. These are “speed” values that you used to find on film that determined what shutterspeed you could get away with in certain lighting conditions. This is DEFINITELY more than I can picture needing for now. I mean, I don’t think I used a 1600 (I THINK) film speed more than once…

USB 2.0 Hi-Speed and Video Out connectivity

Hmmm. I wonder if I’ll be able to take photos directly to the laptop via USB cable. I think so. And if so, those photo shoots in the studio with all those models just got a lot easier.

Model cars that is…

Anyway, I’ll update this (or write a new post) when I actually get the camera. And I’ll post some photos for the world to see. Of course, just owning and using a Canon EOS 40D will not make me Ansel Adams… But wish me luck.

Comic Strip courtesy of What the Duck

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2007. | Canon EOS 40D D-SLR | No comments yet. Click here to add yours... |

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Go check out my new article entitled “3G iPhone“.

It documents some of the new features of the brand new 3G iPhone which will be arriving in South Africa VERY SOON!!

There’s also a couple of videos showing you all the cool features…

Will the Apple iPhone come to South Africa any time soon?

I don’t think so. At least, I hope not. There are a few reasons for this.

But first, lets take a look at this BEAUTIFUL phone and see what makes it a good product (without actually being able to hold it). I didn’t say “what makes it a good phone”, because I don’t need a real phone anymore, I’m a SmartPhone user, more specifically, I own an iMate kjam with Windows Mobile 5.

Here are some of the features that I think are great:

WiFi enabled

A must have for me, as I use the wifi on my iMate a lot at home. Saves me having to open up my laptop just to check my email or website statistics.

And according to the Apple website, you can surf the internet for up to 6 hours. It LOOKS like that’s with the WiFi connection, and if that’s true, then I think that makes it about 6 times longer than the iMate…

Quad band (GSM)

This means that the phone CAN actually be used in South Africa. There were rumours when the phone was first announced that it would be restricted to some American non-GSM network, but looks like somebody woke up and smelled the coffee. Or, rather, the rumours were just false.

Audio and Video

The iPhone plays more than just MP3 audio files. This might not seem great, but if you own a Mac (or accidentally rip your music using iTunes into the AAC format), then you’ll know how bad it is putting music onto any phone you currently have.

The same goes for video. You can watch movies on the iPhone, with most movie/video formats catered for.

Why the iPhone SHOULDN’T come to South Africa

I have 3 reasons why they shouldn’t release the iPhone in South Africa just yet:

EDGE Internet Connectivity

In South Africa, we are trying to get up to speed with the rest of the world with regards to internet connectivity. My iMate KJam only has EDGE connectivity, not 3G, and this is slower than a modem. Brining such a good looking phone out here without 3G connectivity is a step backwords.

2.0 Megapixel Camera

This is probably good enough for a phone, but I think any new phones should have AT LEAST a 3 Megapixel camera. Just a personal opinion from somebody who uses the feature (though unfortunately, my camera is only a 1.3 Megapixel camera… NOT great at ALL)

MTN Contract

And the last, and most important reason is, my MTN cellphone contract only expires in a year and a bit, so I wouldn’t be able to get this phone.

I would definitely be jealous if other people were using this phone, and I knew I couldn’t get it…

So, let’s see if we get Apple support for the iPhone in South Africa!

UDPATE: As mentioned above, I have a new article about the latest iPhone. To read it (which I obviously recommend you do), click here: iPhone 3G

© James for Make a good house a GREAT home, 2007. | Apple iPhone in South Africa | 17 comments. Click here to add yours... |

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