MP3puzzled.com - The MP3 Downloads Price Comparison Website

These days, there seems to be a price comparison website for just about everything and this morning, I came across another one, it has nothing to do with meerkats and I think what sets it apart, is that it is pretty useful:

MP3puzzled.com is a MP3 Downloads Price Comparison Website and yes, by comparing prices you can save money. For example:

Killing In The Name by Rage Against The Machine will cost you:

£0.99 on itunes
£0.89 on Amazon.co.uk
£0.79 on HMV.com
£0.70 on Play.com
£0.67 on Tesco Entertainment

Simba and the Muntjac Deer

I was lucky enough to spot a pair of Muntjac Deer feeding at the bottom of our garden this morning.

Simba (our cat) also spotted them, braved the snow and stalked right up to them. She got within a meter before they spotted her, had a staring match which Simba eventually lost and then as only cats can do, she walked away as if to say "I didn't really care anyway!"

Pity I could not get any better photos, especially of the Buck, as he has some stunning markings and antlers. But here are a few of the better ones.

Originally from China, they escaped and been released from zoo's and wildlife parks and are now spreading all over the country. The Muntjac is the smallest deer in the UK (about the size of an average dog).

Simba (in the foreground) returning from her Muntjac "hunting" expedition!

Self Drive and Car Hire Namibia

The 1st of January 2010! Time for new years resolutions....

I have recently been doing quite a lot of research on Namibia, mostly for my Safari Holiday Guide website. It is a place full of contrasts and not that I think that I will be able to go this year, but going on a self drive camping holiday in Namibia is definitely on my lifetime to-do list.

With it's excellent places to camp like the Etosha National Park and generally a good road system, it is ideal. My hope is I will eventually move back home to Zimbabwe and then be able to drive over from there in my own vehicle.

For overseas visitors, Namibia does have some really good specialist vehicle and car hire companies, that offer 4x4 vehicles fully equipped for camping that are mostly located around Windhoek. And as far as I can ascertain, hiring a car in Namibia is pretty simple and not that much more expensive than what you would expect to pay in Europe. Specialist and 4x4 vehicles are more expensive, but will still be much cheaper than staying at lodges. And even if you don't want to camp Namibia has plenty of really good guest houses and B&B's.

For some inspiration take a look at this excellent trip report, with loads of useful information: Namibia and Botswana 2006.

For more the vehicles take a look at my article on Vehicle Rental & Car Hire Namibia

...now back to deciding what this years resolution is going to be.....

Free Web Hosting

If I have an idea for a site, it is great to be able to test the concept without having to spend too much cash. I have used a number of Free Web Hosts, many are terrible, but there are a few good ones out there as well.

Good ones to look out for offer more than just hosting, with extras like Php functionality as well as at least one MySql database, per account.

My favourites are:

• http://www.000webhost.com/ - I haven't been using it for long, but so far so good. One of my test sites, Zambezi Safari is hosted with them.
• http://www.awardspace.com/ - This is another very popular free webhost. I have often used them in the past and indeed have upgraded on of my free acounts to a paid for version.

GUK Publishing

It has been a while since my last post, mainly because I have been really busy and as such, plenty has happened.

The biggest news is the start of GUK Publishing, a company that I, along with two other guys have started.

It is still very much in it's infancy, so much so that the name is not 100% fixed yet and we don't yet have a website, but the whole project is very exciting. As the name suggests we will be publishing useful content on the web and we have already stared on a few projects:

• Weddings in Newbury
• Hotels in Newbury

Both websites focus on local business and aim to provide useful information to the people of Newbury or those visiting Newbury (in the case of the hotels site)

Guest Posts
All our projects will also allow guest posting, guest articles should be relevant and useful. The advantage for us is good quality unique content from a different perspective and the advantage for you is a link back to your site on the "about the author" section. So if you would like to write an article for either, please feel free to contact me.

Spotify on iPhone and Android

I am a big fan of Spotify, the device that streams music to your PC so quickly that there is almost always no delay to when you can start listening. Well now they are going to produce an iPhone app as well as one for Android phones.

Just like the PC version, Spotify Mobile will let you listen to music from Spotify’s roster of artists and albums, just like you can on PC or Mac.You will need a 3G or wifi connection to stream, but because they know you might want to listen in places where a signal is weak or impossible – such as on a plane or the tube – Spotify Mobile can ‘cache’ the music from your playlists onto your phone for offline playback.

Again just like the PC version, the app is a free download, but unlike the PC version, you will need to have a premium Spotify account.

Force India without Fisi

Giancarlo Fisichella has recently announced that he will join Ferrari until the end of the season, which is great news for him and for Formula 1, but I wonder who will now drive for Force India.

Even though Force India have put a brave face on it (see the official statement below) I bet they must be gutted to let him go, especially as they and Fisi had such a strong showing (2nd) and their first points in the Belgian GP in Spa-Francorchamps last weekend.

-------------------------
Official Statement from Force India

Following extensive discussions over the past 24 hours, the Force India Formula One Team has agreed to release Giancarlo Fisichella from his contract to join the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro team for the remainder of the 2009 season, starting with immediate effect.
Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman and team principal, commented, ‘Giancarlo and his management team approached me yesterday with the proposal from Ferrari. For any Italian driver, a Ferrari race seat is a long-held dream and for Giancarlo it was no exception. No one should stand in the way of this. Furthermore the agreement will secure Giancarlo’s long-term future with Ferrari and it would be incorrect to jeopardise this, particularly when Giancarlo has made such a vital contribution to Force India.

‘We would like to stress that we have not agreed any financial settlement with Ferrari. This agreement has been made in good faith and for the good of Giancarlo and the sport in general. A competitive Italian driver in a Ferrari for Monza is a positive story for Formula One, which can only help raise the sport’s profile in these difficult times.

‘We would like to thank Giancarlo for all his help over the past one and a half seasons and for delivering us our first World Championship points last weekend. He has been an integral part of the team and we owe him a great deal for his input behind the scenes and performance out on track. We wish him all the best for the future.

‘For Force India, this sport is a team effort and removing one part, even a major one, will not significantly affect our performance. The competitiveness of the team seen in Belgium was a result of hard work in the factory and wind tunnel and we have further developments coming for the final races, so we are confident this momentum can be sustained. We are now looking forward to a strong finish to the season.’

Giancarlo commented, ‘I am very grateful to Vijay Mallya for allowing me this opportunity to drive for the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro team. It is true that it has always been an ambition to do this, and for Vijay to have allowed it to become a reality is very generous. I hope in my turn I have helped Force India grow up and be on the right path to achieve their own ambitions. They are now a very competitive team and I wish them all the very best.’

A decision regarding the driver of car number 21 will be made in the coming days and no further comment will be made on this front.