Google Earth Pro is now free

Friday, January 30, 2015 at 10:31 AM

Over the last 10 years, businesses, scientists and hobbyists from all over the world have been using Google Earth Pro for everything from planning hikes to placing solar panels on rooftops. Google Earth Pro has all the easy-to-use features and detailed imagery of Google Earth, along with advanced tools that help you measure 3D buildings, print high-resolution images for presentations or reports, and record HD movies of your virtual flights around the world.

Visit Google.blogspot http://google-latlong.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/google-earth-pro-is-now-free.html

To see what Earth Pro can do for you—or to just have fun flying around the world—grab a free key and download Earth Pro today.

At The Fishing

The Nil Desperandum was orginaly built for the uk gov, but was bought by a family in Shetland, and converted to a seine net fishing boat fishing mainly for mixed species whitefish around the Islands.

I was lucky enough to “sail” to the fishing on occasion in the summer time, and the skipper set a course for the waters near Mousa, the island which has the great example of an iron age “broch”, possibly one of the best in Europe.

As you can see from the picture, it’s a stone built “cylindrical shaped work, and probably due to it’s island location, it has escaped the “stone gathering” of other more easily accessible ancient ruins.

As we approached from a distance, the skipper told me to; “go up to the ships bough, and hold the rail tight”,

You can imagine my joy as dolphins rode the crest of the wave on either side as the skipper held full ahead, the spray splashed my face as the dolphins flicked and rolled, always keeping a tails breadth away from the stem as they darted from side to side.

We neared the grounds, and the mate dropped the flag marked bouy and coils and coils of rope started shooting over the side as the boat steamed, then the net was cast as the skipper changed direction to start making the sides of a triangle, once the net was fully out, the boat again changed direction, steaming back towards the marker bouy, and dispatching the second length of coiled rope,

The mate stood ready with a long handled hook, and grabbed the bouy with the first length, as third side of the triangle was completed. Quickly the crew set the rope to the “coiler” and winch on the foredeck, and the skipper held the position and the long retrieval of the net commenced.

It seemed like ages had passed, and I viewed the shadows of the mainland cast on the Broch the diminishing daylight, transfixed and hypnotized by the gentle rock and sway of the sea, and lulled by the diesel powered low rumble of the engine and ratlle of the winch as it pulled the net even closer. The coils of rope again filled the foredeck, and the winch strained as the codend gained volume.

It’s a tricky job landing a net full of fish, concentration is required as a wrong pull on the winch control or a freak swell can render the operation a catastrophe as the net may come into contact with the screw, costing both net and contents, but no such a thing happened this time a “flat calm” and experienced hand soon had the net poised over the fish-deck, and the tie was released and cod, whiting, haddock, skate, ray., monks, anglers, hermit crab, squid and octopus spilled out.

The crew sprung into action and the net was readied for the next pull, then as the skipper sped to the next spot, the men busied them selves gutting and boxing the spoils of the sea.

I was amazed as a massive flock of gulls gathered in the wake, picking off the surface, and sometimes right off the end off the gutting knife, the internal workings of each fish, all manner of seabird species careered and dived to salvage a morsel of our cast offs, Removal of the guts most necessary to preserve the longevity of the catch to last not just to market, but to shop, and eventual the housewives plate, a fish shop or three in every town, and a van for all the villages in between.

It only got as dark as twilight, and then got back to normal daylight before the eye and the clock. This far north, there are long long days in summer, very short nights.

I was really tired, and the skipper pointed out a bunk bed down under the decks, the boat had three berths on each side, a bit cramped for a full grown man, but snug as a bug for a 12 year old boy,

I drifted off to images of wheeling swooping black backed gulls, and arctic skuas.

I awake to the sound of voices, we had berthed back at Lerwick harbor, and the men were landing the fish, three or for boxes at a time were being hauled up on to the pier by a rope and winch controlled jib.

I rubbed my eyes, at 6am it was already bright daylight, and climbed the ladder up to the pier and hurried off home to tell my gran.

Here is a view of Hays Dock(we called it Hays Wharf I’m sure) with the Nil Desperandum in the centre.

pic courtesy of  shetland museum

Tunes In My Head

Yes, tunes.

It was my first day in my part time therapeutic earnings job as a music teacher, I entered the building and was met by the owner who introduced me to the full time guitar tutor and luthier.

We were soon chatting, and I told him; “I’ve always had tunes playing in my head, and I learned how to play music so that I would be able to play and record them,”

His head tilted to the side and his eyes took on a puzzled squint; “I would see a doctor about that if I were you” was his reply.

He was serious too.

Google Earth, Without Chrome

So, you want to install and use Google Earth, but you dont want to install or use Chrome.

Well it can be done,

The link below offers the standalone windows installer

dl.google.com/earth/client/advanced/current/GoogleEarthWin.exe

Please note, this is not “Pro”, but the free version.

Aberdeen Ambient Artist Aspire

An inspired uplifting collection of of through composed and improvised ambient and chamber pieces.   http://aberdeenambientartist.bandcamp.com/album/aspire

Stalking Online

Online stalking occurs when a person becomes obsessed with another person on the internet, and attempts to scare, harass or intimidate their chosen victim whom they desire after. In other cases, the stalker may be attempting to forge a “personal connection” with their victim.

Stalking online is a criminal offense punishable by the law. One form of stalking online may be considered as long term harassment of a person causing fear and anxiety  by use of electronic means, when more than one person collaborate together to stalk a person, this is conspiracy to stalk. This may also include imitating the victim, thereby causing degradation of the victims identity, or obtaining information from the victim or making contact with the victim by deception.

Contact the National Stalking Helpline.

http://www.stalkinghelpline.org/

What can the National Stalking Helpline do?

The National Stalking Helpline provides guidance and information to anybody who is currently or has previously been affected by harassment or stalking.

The Helpline can provide guidance on:

• The law in relation to stalking and harassment
• Reporting stalking or harassment
• Effective gathering of evidence
• Ensuring your personal safety and that of your friends and family
• Practical steps to reduce the risk

When should I contact the National Stalking Helpline?

• Are you or someone you know being made to feel harassed or intimidated by the behaviour of another person?
• Are you unsure what can be done about this person’s behaviour?
• Do you feel that you, your friend or family member are at risk of emotional or physical harm?

If you answered yes to any of these questions and require guidance or information,  please call us on 0808 802 0300 or e-mail advice@stalkinghelpline.org

Whale and Dolphin Hunting, Warning, Graphic Content

Do we need to kill wild species in the 21st Century?

Some island economies may argue that it is a necessity to support the infrastructure of an independent culture.

Others may argue that the practice is as barbaric as bullfighting or even the slaughter of domestic animals for consumption,

Pics from wikipedia

A Song For My Girlfriend

I wrote this song for my girlfriend,

Click this link To hear the song; “Apple Of My Eye”

(opens player on new tab)

It’s a nice upbeat folk song with a positive feel and mood.

I hope you enjoy it 🙂

Cold Hard Reality

We arrived at Dyce, the airport village on the outskirts of Aberdeen. I saw buildings, grey cold bricks, harled walls, dirty fading whitewash, smoking chimneys,

In 1968 most households had a coal fire, and the air was heavy with smog and soot, we ascended the hill of Anderson Drive, and crossing the summit revealed the south side of Aberdeen, We could see as far as Nigg Bay, and the rising smoke from the harbour and Torry areas as the main industries of fish processing and fish smoking filled the air with that smell. I didn’t like it, I didn’t like it at all.

I could see in the distance a massive gasometer, a huge storage tank for the city’s consumers, cracked from processed coal, the gas was used by many who had no coal or electric equivalent. We seemed to be able to smell the gas too.

So we eventually made it to our new home in the west end. A four bedroomed detached bungalow in a “middle class” private housing estate. Bordering the feu of our property was the “Deeside Railway line”, albeit closed in previous years to Doc Beeching, the line was all there. stretching and linking from Aberdeen on the coast, all the way to the Queens estate at Balmoral in the Highlands. On the other side of the railway line was a massive council estate, A mixture of tenement blocks, maisonettes and semi-detached houses.

So, our house, my older brother and I shared an upstairs room, and our two younger siblings shared the other upstairs room, downstairs was the kitchen, dining room, living room, parents bedroom, and the “spare bedroom” was declared as the “music room”, and my dads challen piano resided in it.

We had our own driveway and garage, a substantial lawn front garden, and a bicycle shed and coal cellar/basement.

Really, compared to our old house, this new house was awesome.

The Early Years

Well, I was born in that most musical north Atlantic archipelago, the Shetland isles. Geographically closer to Norway than Scotland, and in retention of a Norse influence, the islands are home to some of the largest colonies of breeding seabirds in Europe.

Previously the waters around Shetland had been a rich source of bounty for a once substantial fishing fleet. But the use of modern industrial harvesting methods has reduced this once great resource to a trickle of sand eels, and indeed the building of a new processing facility ultimately led to even their demise, with a resultant collapse of many bird species which had depended on the supply.

Increasing EC regulation to remove the bulk of the fleet however has left the Shetland economy largely dependent on the oil industry.

Fortunately for Shetland the oil industry is still sustainable at present, but the shetlanders are fully aware that it is a finite resource.

After my birth I was brought up and went to school in a small village on the banks of the great river spey, near the edge of the Scottish highlands, peripheral to the source of that great water of life, scotch whiskey.

And so my exposure to music continued, many tears were shed as I seemed dyslexic to “the dots” and my traditional method piano teacher used a punitive form of teaching which involved a whack over the back of the hand with a conductors baton when ever I encountered a mistake in either pieces, or scales and exercises. I soon decided that I didn’t want to play…

Continued exposure to musical types as my dad was a full time pro musician did endear me to the joy of music though. I was a happy seven year old, and I knew that “She loves You, and I Wanna Hold Your Hand” were written and performed by The Beatles just for me and my childhood sweetheart, I grasped her hand tightly and told her; “we’re forever”.

But my world fell to bits…

My dad had just returned from a 12 month tour of Germany and Libya, I thought he looked like a cross between Cliff Richard(in summer holiday), and Elvis Presley. He was my hero, I used to dream about my dad as I sat on the banks of the spey, with fishing rod in hand, thinking about his adventures abroad.

My mum, elder sibling and I, had gone to spend a couple of months with him at his digs in a small rented apartment in a village called Heimbach.

A day trip to Oberstein had seen me getting “run over”, hit by a bike on a zebra crossing, I took one step, and whack, down I went, the mudguard caught the corner of my mouth and I think the rubber tyre hit my temple, dazed and bleeding I found myself in a Gasthous opposite the road crossing, my mother administering brandy, and a minor fuss taking place around me. huh,

It wasn’t all action in Deutschland though, as exciting as going to American football where my dad was playing in between quarters, or dodging big military convoys of tanks and troop movements as they rumbled along the roads, In day time we always knew when there was a convoy, the lead jeep or truck always had it’s headlights on, and the ground shook.

Well, fast forward, my dad was back home with us, and playing seven nights a week, in a city, on the coast, but him and my mum made the announcement, “We’re moving to Aberdeen…!”

Like a freshly caught cod, my world ended, and I was gutted.