Bytes · CO2 hell - Pigs don't score - Hillary gets laffs

• Help, I am stuck in Act on CO2 Calculator Hell

New government C02 calculator has received a positive reception (even though it initially went down), especially from greenies. Hurrah for the concept, just to note (without trying it out) that:

• the directgov referral page opens in a new window and doesn't say 'this is flash'
• the initial interface does say 'loading' but then it's white-on-white tiny text, One practically invisible link, at the bottom, leads to an accessible version (with much larger text). I did notice on just returning that a link to 'HTML version' is at top left of the loading screen.
  
• user reports are of bad user experience
  

all of which restricts its audience for silly, avoidable reasons. Just swap the versions! — have the link then 'here's the Flash version'!

I'm sure it impressed Mr Miliband when it was demonstrated ...

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Stuart Jeffries: The sheer hell of bossy Britain

Last month, the public address system at Earl's Court tube station in London was served with a noise abatement order. Passengers, it seems, had had enough of being told the blindingly obvious. "They come over with these bizarre messages that you would know already unless you were simple," says Peter Wakeham, director of the Noise Abatement Society. "'Stand back or the train will run you over.' 'Don't lean on the doors.' 'Stand back from the opening doors.' 'Mind the gap.' 'Do this.' 'Don't do that.' We don't need to be told so many obvious things in these deafening ways. It's not rocket science."

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Here's the very tame condom ad which US Networks won't show even at 2am because:

"Contraceptive advertising must stress health-related uses rather than the prevention of pregnancy."

In the ad, one of the pigs goes to the men's room, where, after buying a condom from a vending machine, he is transformed into a good-looker in his 20s.

When he returns to the bar, a fetching blonde who had been indifferent smiles at him.

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TechPresident: I Am Not a Web Guy:

In a 21st century campaign, the Campaign Manager is the Internet Director. He or she isn't managing the day-to-day, but they need to get the Internet in the same way that they currently have to get communications, finance, strategy, and political. The job of the Communications Director is the communicate using the Web. The job of the Political Director is to organize using the Web. The job of the Finance Director is to raise money using the Web and Salesforce-like tools. The pollster will (eventually) poll over the Web. And the media team will be just a bunch of folks who make cool videos, 80% of which will be released over the Web.

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The Bill and Hillary Sopranos spoof is, thus far, the sole campaign-produced video to go 'overground'. Something to do with the humour (made me laugh), which is continued here - Hillary on Dick Cheney and Diplomacy.



This is an amusing and failed attempt by Mitt Romney, showing how hard it actually is to do. The candidate who's milking the Web for all it's worth though is Republican R*n P**l — if I even have his name his very enthusiastic followers will be immediately on to even lil' ol' me ...