o-regan.org

Tilt shift effect applied to a Monster Truck event. Cool or what!

Metal Heart from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

I asked about this over on boards.ie and the consensus is that it appears to be a scama really bad marketing campaign.

Updated: Not a scam, but looking like an EPIC FAIL instead!

Apparently An Post jumped the gun and sent out these leaflets before the company had an opportunity to do any marketing. They now have a website and blog.

They are a UK furniture manufacturer who effectively take a trade-in on your old mattress when you buy a new one from them. The old mattress is then refurbished and exported to africa. They try to offset the environmental impact by shipping them in containers that would have returned empty anyway.

Why they couldn’t have said any of this in their leaflet I don’t know. Even with the website the leaflet still shows all the hallmarks of deceptive marketing

• EU and European? I still see nothing ‘official’ about this. It looks like it was added to give it authenticity.
• Subsidy – The usual definition of subsidy is money given from the government. Again there is nothing here that indicates that our or any government is involved.
• The need for citizenship. Why on earth does a private company care? Surely the more customers they get the better….

End of update

This was hand delivered (90% sure) An Post delivered on Tuesday 28th October in the Carlow area.

There is no online information about this programme and the mailing address is a building with multiple offices including one that is a ‘virtual office’ that provides mail forwarding services.

The references to Irish Citizens is at odds with it being an EU subsidy.

The mention of a limit on the number of applications and disqualification is also suspect.

I’m not sure what they gain by targeting the over 50′s but it certainly needs to be brought to people’s attention that it’s not what it seems.

NOTICE TO ALL IRISH CITIZENS AGED 50+ (Born before January 1st 1959)

Irish citizens or Irish passport holders born before January 1st 1959 are entitled to a 40% subsidy on Luxury Grade 1 mattresses (same size or smaller) under the mattress scrappage scheme.

This programme is available in all EU member states and in accordance with all EU Health & Safety standards and the “GOOD SLEEP – GOOD HEALTH” code.
(Reference www.backcare.org.uk, a non-profit website)

The number of applications is limited and are on a first come, first served basis. There is a maximum of only one application per eligible person. Any attempt to make more than one application will result in immediate disqualification.

To register simply fill out this card and post it back to the FREEPOST address overleaf. (no postage stamp required)

Please allow 3-5 working days to process your application.

and on the reverse

[ ] I confirm my date of birth was before Jan 1st 1959.
[ ] I am interested to know more about the EU Mattress Scrappage Subsidies which I am entitled to.
[ ] I understand that I am entitled to a 40% subsidy on Luxury Grade 1 mattressses (Highest Quality Orthopaedic, any size) PLUS an additional 90% subsidy on an identical quality second mattress (same size or smaller) providing I agree to put at least one of m old mattresses into scrappage.

Name _____________
Address ___________
__________________
__________________
County ____________
Tel (Home) ________
Tel (Mobile) _______
Please phone me: AM [ ] PM [ ] EVENING [ ]

Mattress Scrappage Subsidy
FREEPOST
7 Upper Abbeygate Street
Galway

Unveiling at PDC this week

Who is let build apartments in an area that has been consistently flooded?

Centaur Street has been flooded in 1995, 1996, 2000, 2008 (Jan)
(Images courtesy of www.floodmaps.ie)

Before (as seen in the Brochure) Estate Agent

 After

(Excuse the blurry camera.)

The yellow tractor is ferrying residents to and from the building as power and water have been cut off.

(c) Irish Times - Taken by Frank Miller

I certainly wouldn’t want to persue a “commercial opportunity” there especially not for €30,000pa

Work in progress. Using some Google maps imagery and the photo’s I took while on holidays to make a deep zoom tour of the Eden Project

There has been a lot of coverage over the last week on the ‘discovery’ that Apple may be able to disable an application you installed on your iphone.

Hmm… what would computer users say if Microsoft installs a “kill switch” into Windows Vista? Or its mobile smartphones? Or if Nokia did the same?

itwire

Those ‘kill switches’ are already there in the form of CRL’s for nokia applets and also for vista device drivers.

The apps that are downloaded are digitally signed so Apple already has the means of disabling the application by revoking the signer’s certificate and placing it on a certificate revocation list (CRL).

It seems more logical that the url is (as pointed out by John Gruber) a means to stop errant or malicious applications from accessing your locaion via the core location api.