Australia Day 2014 fireworks display at Parramatta

Immediately after Jessica Mauboy finished her concert, the fireworks display marked the official end of the festivities with a bang or two.

Australia Day 2014 concert

As usual, Parramatta had booked a first class act to conclude the local Australia Day festivities. After performing in the city earlier in the day, Jessica Mauboy headlined the traditional evening concert at Parramatta Park.











And the cops kept a close eye on proceedings

Fixing a Topfield PVR

How to fix the Topfield TF7100HDPVRt – sort of.

According to the internet, this Topfield model is prone to malfunctions, and my unit is no exception. Granted, it was working mostly fine for a couple of years, with only the occasional glitch stuffing up a recording or so. But lately, things started to come apart hard and fast, with symptoms ranging from random freezing or re-booting during live TV, recording, or playing back recorded programs to hanging (and freezing) during the start-up process.

The same internet that assures me that these are common issues with this model also informs me that there's no reliable cure; and worse, no Topfield customer service that deserves to be called that, at least not in Australia.

With my machine, it started with the occasional crash, escalated to frequent refusal to start up at all, and eventually got to the point where the machine wouldn't boot, ever, without exception.

Considering that things couldn't possibly get any worse, I had the brilliant idea of "having a look at it" myself. Granted, I'm hopeless with mechanical stuff (of which a PVR has none, unless you count the read/write head of the hard drive, or the control buttons on the front panel), and even worse with electronic components. But no matter; perhaps it's as simple as dust buildup interfering with the delicate interiors; after all, the casing is littered with holes (presumably to prevent the thing from overheating).

Anyway, with all that in mind, I got to work:

1) Remove power cord, unplug RF (aerial), HDMI cables, and anything else you might have connected.

2) Unscrew all screws (1 on each side, and heaps at the back)

3) Make sure there's no one else in the room with you. If you're as technically challenged as I am, you're likely to look like a tool, and there's no need for anyone to see that.

4) Slide off the case

5) Notice that the interior of the recorder, the motherboard, and all other components, are surprisingly clean and dust-free

6) Check the hard disk connector. No, it's absolutely firm; no wobbly plug, not a chance of a bad connection

7) Switch on your best I know what I'm doing look and stare at all the components.

8) Connect power cord (and plug it in, duh)

9) Press Power button

10) Observe display at front of unit

11) After a few breathless moments, the word run (which indicates that the machine is booting) disappears, and the name of the last used TV station appears

12) This indicates we've come further than we did in any recent attempts to start the machine. Leave the recorder on for a while, just to be sure

13) Press Power button to turn recorder off, wait for shutdown procedure to complete

14) Unplug power cord

15) Re-attach cover (it's a tight fit), screw all the screws back in

16) Connect recorder to RF outlet and TV

17) Connect, and plug in, power cord

18) Start up the recorder, closely observe boot progress

19) Enjoy your working Topfield recorder, record shows, and finally watch all the stuff you had recorded ages ago but haven't been able to watch yet.

Summary
Yes, it's slightly more complex than Turning it off and turning it on again, but not by much. How simply opening the bloody thing, looking at it very seriously, and closing it again actually resolved the issue may forever remain a mystery, but at least for now, it seems to have worked.


Inside the Topfield TF7100HDPVRT

Rubber Duck

Finally, a duck face worth writing about. As part of this year's Sydney Festival, Florentijn Hofman's Rubber Duck is visiting Parramatta.

So, here are some pics from said Duck at Parramatta Park:














And just because it's an art festival, here's Rubber Duck in an artsy fartsy black and white setting, making it all profound and deep and meaningful and shit...

Dodging the bullet

And people say places like the local public library are boring. There I am, browsing the DVD shelf; the elderly librarian is busy sorting returned items; and the second member of staff, a young, not entirely unpretty girl, is tapping away on her computer.

Cue middle-aged creepy guy, messed up hair, tracky dacks, the full program. He starts playing around with the catalog terminal, then directs his attention to the service desk:

Creepy guy: Hi

Hot library chick: Hi how are you? (she seems to know him)

Creepy guy: Good thanks. How have you been?

Hot library chick: Alright, thanks, it's been a quiet day.

Creepy guy: What do you do once you're finished here?

Hot library chick: Oh just spending time with hubby and the kids

Creepy guy: Ahh … sounds … nice
(pause)
Creepy guy: I … was going to ask you out. A movie or something like that.

Hot library chick: Ohh … right … sorry

Creepy guy (wanders off)

Older librarian lady gives Hot library chick the what was that all about? look

Hot library chick: WHAT? One day I will have a husbands and kids...


Nice one, baby. I must admit I find her just a little bit hotter now, after learning that she's a quick thinker. Perhaps I should have a go myself, just to find out what she'd come up with to shoot me down ...

Parramatta Ferry Wharf

Some photos from the partially flooded Parramatta Ferry Wharf, after a couple of hours of rain.

Parramatta under smoke

Fortunately I live nowhere near the bush fire areas, and am very happy not having to show you photos of the smoldering remains of my home. And since I don't work in the city, I also don't have any pictures of Sydney icons like the Harbor bridge or the opera house covered in smoke, or Bondi Beach under an eerie yellow-ish sky.

Still, even without any famous landmarks, the thick clouds of smoke made for a dramatic view; and so, here are some of my pics from Thursday, October 17, 2013:

Looking north on O'Connell Street, Parramatta


Looking east, towards the center of Parramatta


Looking west, from the rooftop car park of the Westfield shopping center


Looking north, from the rooftop car park of the Westfield shopping center

International Fleet Review (2)

After a long wait, it was time for the main attraction; the light show and fireworks display. To tell the history of the Royal Australian Navy, impressive images and film clips were projected onto the Opera House and the pylons of the Harbor Bridge. While it certainly was a fantastic show, it didn't make for great photography (and my somewhat obscured vantage point didn't help either), so the following pics focus mainly on the actual fireworks display.

Colorful late afternoon skies over Sydney


Darkness descends


Showtime!














The end

International Fleet Review (1)

While I didn't have to attend all the events around the International Fleet Review, I did make it to the festivities and fireworks on Saturday night. These are some pictures from Circular Quay and the Opera House forecourt (fireworks pics to follow soon-ish).


Just as I was arriving, the Rhapsody Of The Seas was departing from Circular Quay


View of the Opera House forecourt




The Royal Australian Navy band is entertaining the crowds






Navy chick taking happy snaps of the band


Singer of the Melbourne Detachment of the Royal Australian Navy Band


The Royal Australian Air Force pays a visit with the Air Force Roulettes in their Pilatus P9As

Wentworthville fire

A few pictures from the site of the building explosion and subsequent fire in Station Street, Wentworthville.

For the Before situation, please check out Google Street View.

Anyway, here's what it all looked like yesterday (the day after the event):

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