Sunday, June 20, 2010

Doncaster Westfield Shopping Town new car parking rates and times

I noticed recently some changes to car parking at Doncaster Westfield Shopping Town, so I decided to investigate further.

Checking the parking time period shows some of the times are now split into half hour periods.

Prices overall have increased.

The first three hours are still free, but now the free time is once per day. No more shifting the car to avoid paying for parking.

An interesting statement appears on the sign which lets people know number plate recognition is now being used. This presumably will assist the shopping centre to enforce the free time of once per day.  

Also for movie goers, you should note the free entry after 5pm has changed to be free entry after 6pm. That could be a trap for some. Often to ensure we get tickets for the session we want, we arrive an hour early,  buy tickets and then do some shopping. For sessions around 6pm this will now incur a parking cost. I found parking for a long movie such as Avatar, even with getting the parking ticket validated to give an extra hour, it was still not enough.

 

 Kelvin Eldridge

Thursday, June 17, 2010

New speed humps in Hawtin Street Templestowe

A few days ago I noticed some rather large cuts in the road as I drove along Hawtin Street and thought "how weird". "I wondered what they're for" I thought to myself.

The next day I spotted the first speed hump being completed and now a few more have been completed.

I always wonder how much value speed humps have. Hawtin Street is certainly used frequently by traffic trying to avoid the bottleneck at the local Apple Peel (Williamsons Road and Porter Street). I can't help feeling if they simply removed the roundabout and put in traffic lights, it would make the traffic flow better and make it safer for residents in the local area.

It concerns me that there is no way for the children or residents in the area around Hawtin Street, to walk to the local shops at Templestowe Village and know they are safe from traffic. The traffic lights at Foote Street and Williamsons Road have slip lanes and my observation is most people are too busy speeding around the corners to pay any attention to pedestrians. In my mind it is only a matter of time before there is a serious injury or possibly a fatality as a result of the slip lanes. At least if they put in traffic lights at the Apple Peel (without slips lanes please), there is a chance for local residents to get across the road safely.

The area of Hawtin Street where they are putting in the speed bumps is an issue with the local oval. Often cars are parked on both sides and it is an very long journey before a break on some days with cars often doing a face-off.

Sometimes I wonder if speed humps are just a way for the council to keep itself busy. As a local resident I certainly had no knowledge the road works would occur and I think, given there are roughly 200 households, which isn't that many, that are directly affected, the council could have taken the time and effort to consult with local residents.

I wonder what others think. Are speed humps a waste of rate payers' money and a way for council to keep busy, or do others find they serve a useful purpose?

Kelvin Eldridge

Office web apps from Microsoft now live

I’ve been checking my Microsoft Live account to see if the Office web apps are live yet in Australia and to my surprise they’ve now been enabled.

The online Office applications from Microsoft look very good and should be sufficient for many people with fairly basic word processing and spreadsheeting requirements. I’ve found over the years many people often need little more than the basics to do what they need and the Office web apps will do that and more.

The first thing you may wish to do is to set your spellchecker language to Australian English in the Word app.

As I explore Microsoft Office web apps I’ll share information via the JustLocal blog and solutions to problems using MyAnswers.

 

Enjoy,

 

Kelvin Eldridge

 

 

 

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Remote Desktop

My aim with JustLocal is to help people to purchase products and services locally. Sadly, over the last 10-15 years I don’t recall any local business asking me what I did and thus using my IT services. From those I ask in the local area they’ve had a similar experience.

It never ceases to amaze me how we have created a world where our customers come into our business, buy from us, and then we go and buy from someone else who most likely will never use our business. That by the way isn't how I work. Whenever possible I try to look for ways to purchase products and services from my customers first and then from others.

I know encouraging people and businesses to buy local is a long term goal for me. I believe in it which is why I invest my time an energy. I believe once people start to realise the benefits of supporting each other locally, that will have a huge impact on our day-to-day lives including the cost of travelling to and from work. The government puts so much emphasis on public transport. Buses are the only form of public transport in my area and given buses really aren't that much better in fuel efficiency than small cars, imagine how we could reduce our need for public transport if we did more locally. How huge a saving that could be on the public purse, our taxes, our own wallets and the environment.

Ideally I'd like to have a good group of local clients. However my business like everyone's has developed over time and my IT clients are scattered around Melbourne.

Lately I've been setting up Windows Remote Desktop on my client's machines. It is actually very technical, but once set up it enables me to connect to their network and provide remote support. The added advantage is clients can then connect to their own network from home and do some after hours work if required.

Having local clients is a great way to save fuel, time and thus money. However, technology also provides us with other ways where our physical location is not an issue. With Remote Desktop which I've tested across Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7, I can now effectively assist my clients from a location which may be anywhere in the world where I can get internet access.

If Remote Desktop interests you and you'd like to have it set up in your business, please feel free to contact me.

Kelvin Eldridge

Tags: remote desktop, desktop remote, remote access, remote connection, windows remote desktop, xp remote desktop, remote desktop server, remote desktop port

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Free solutions for JustLocal advertisers

The following are the list of recently solved problems and some general information I share, via MyAnswers solutions to clients and advertisers on JustLocal. Perhaps one of these problems currently has you stumped. 
    When I type a wrong address into Internet Explorer I end up going to a Google search page. How to I stop this happening. Most of the time I know I've typed a single letter wrong and I just want to correct the web site address.
    I go to print a PDF document which I'm viewing on the internet using Internet Explorer 8. When I go to select properties for the printer (FX Docucentre-IV C3370 PCL 6) so I can select printer settings, the screen fades locks up..
    Be careful of companies selling low cost domain names.
    How to permanently delete your Facebook account.
    Review of an electricity bill for a family member between Red Energy and AGL - Saving estimated at $90 a year.
    When I start Windows XP Microsoft Security Essentials doesn't appear in the System Tray and if I right click on a file I can't scan it for malware.
    Repairing  cracked Applie iPhone screen
    How do I stop iTunes from opening when I plug in my iPhone? Most of the time I just want to charge my iPhone.
    Trafalgar European tour - Saving $270-$528
    Flight from London to Athens - Saving $126
    How do I stop 3 (Three) Mobile Broadband starting every time I turn on my computer?
    Setting up a robots.txt file
    If you're considering the Three service in this solution I share my experience with the performance of the Three service. Had I known what I know now, I would most likely have made a different decision.
    Creating your own search provider based on a search form in Internet Explorer 7 was very easy. Here I show how to create your own search provider so you can add it as a search engine for Internet Explorer 8.
    Travel insurance for Europe holiday. Well know travel agent - $749. My price from well known company - $352.15. Saving $396.85.
    I have a HP Color Laserjet 2600N. When I check for drivers for Windows 7 there is only a USB driver. I want to use the printer on the network. What options do I have?
These solutions are free for clients of Online Connections and advertisers on JustLocal. It is my way of saying thank you for your support.

- Kelvin Eldridge