Windows 7

I installed Windows 7 last week. All seems to have gone smoothly (so far). I was advised by the Upgrade Advisor software to uninstall iTunes first, so I did that. After the upgrade completed I reinstalled iTunes. This failed a couple of times until I ran the install executable “as Administrator”.

My graphics card driver needed an upgrade – also identified by the the Upgrade Advisor – so I downloaded and installed the latest one. This said that it was not certified for Windows 7 but it seems to work fine.

My Printer (Lexmark 4650) stopped working too. I downloaded the new drivers but these made no difference. So I uninstalled it, and the full Lexmark suite, rebooted and then re-installed. After I had put in the wireless network key it was running just fine again. I had to connect it via USB as when doing the first install for the software.

Everything else seems to run fine. Sleep mode is quicker both to sleep and to wake again. The wife likes the “themes” used for screen wall paper. We are using the Great Britain set at the moment. It cycles between Tower Bridge, Stonehenge, The cliffs of Dover, Tintagel castle, etc.

Southampton Walk

 

I was in Southampton last week. I had some time to spare and it was a nice bright day so I decided to walk around the medieval city walls.

I started at the Bargate (above) which is next to the main shopping centre. The old city of Hampton lies behind this gate. I walked over the Portland Terrace bridge to the tower below and then on round the wall and past the ruined castle.

 

On the way I passed “King John’s House” (closed), the Archaeology Museum (closed) and “The Tudor Merchant’s House” (closed for major reconstruction – reopens 2011).

I ended up back inside the city walls at the Holy Rood Church.

This was built in 1320 and was bombed during the second world war on 30th Nov 1940 and is now used as a memorial for sailors. See the dedication behind the anchor in the picture below.

There is a fountain dedicated to the loss of R.M.S Titanic there as well.

 

The city has provided information boards on the route that point out items of interest.

The castle itself has been built over but you can still see part of the bailey.

Southampton, showing bridge over Portland Terrace and the city walls

Cinema

I had an afternoon to spare today, so I went to see "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" starring Heath Ledger, Jude Law, Johnny Depp et al. Rather weird and quirky but enjoyable. Worth going to see as I guess it will be a classic. I found it to be more accessible than some of Gilliam's other work - like "Brazil" for instance.