Flip Phone Screen Cracking May be Due to Stress From Hard Third Party Protective Cover

The case of my Samsung Flip Phone cracked after being dropped on a hard floor, resulting in an intermittent fault. So I purchased a third party case to protect the replacement phone. However, I noticed that when folded to 90 degrees (halfway closed) the hinge mechanism appeared to be putting pressure on the phone's hinge. 

After a few days the screen protector started to lift and bubble, along the fold in the screen. I removed the base part of the case, leaving just the two parts covering each side of the phone, this eliminated the problem. It may be that cases of this type are causing, or making worse, flip phone screen cracking. I noticed the same problem with two third party covers of the same design, from two different suppliers, on two Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 model phones.

Mini drone carriers

We may see a new class of warships come to prominence: drone carriers. These look like aircraft carriers, but are one quarter the size. At 107m  Damen Shipyard's Multi-Purpose Vessel for the Portuguese Navy is half the length of HMAS Canberra. The ship can launch surface and sub surface drones via a crane, as well as fixed wing drones via a ski-jump equipped through-deck. There are spots for vertical takeoff drones, as well as a rear deck wide enough for a conventional; crewed helicopter.

Compared to a similarly sized Anzac-class frigate, a drone carrier may not look a very effective warship. However, that would be similar to the mistake proponents of battleships made before WWII. The effectiveness of such a ship comes from the drones it carries.

New Theatre Sydney 2024 Season

In the Foyer at the New Theatre. 
Photo by Marghanita da Cruz 2023

The New Theatre launch was exciting, a theatrical performance in itself. I suggest starting a night out with an early meal in one of the cafes in King Street. Ask for a table overlooking the street and you can watch the passing parade of interesting characters. Then a drink in the foyer of the theatre.

For the launch we were each handed a colored plastic token. I wondered if there was going to be some form of audience participation, with all green tokens told to do something, and red something else. But these turned out to be free drink tokens for the opening. After some people watching in the foyer, we filled the seats in the theatre, wit the directors for next year on stage. The set was dressed for the last production of the year, THE BALLAD OF MARIA MARTEN BY BETH FLINTOFF, which finishes 16 DECEMBER and is suitably ethereal. The 2024 season opens with Homos, or Everyone in America by JORDAN SEAVEY (6 FEBRUARY,) then Atlantis by LALLY KATZ (19 MARCH), The Front Page by BEN HECHT AND CHARLES MACARTHUR (23 APRIL), Ink by JAMES GRAHAM (28 MAY), Sunset Strip by SUZIE MILLER (9 JULY), Hangmen by MARTIN MCDONAGH (13 AUGUST), Wife by SAMUEL ADAMSON (8 OCTOBER), Shakespeare in Love BASED ON THE SCREENPLAY BY MARC NORMAN & TOM STOPPARD ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY LEE HALL (12 NOVEMBER). That was a lot to take in. Each director was asked about the play and their approach. This is a little like asking a teacher what their star pupil is like. I wanted someone to say "It was the only play left, so I had to take it", but they didn't. Plays for the year go through a selection process, and the rights have to be available. Like looking at clouds, reading a pattern into the selection of plays says more about the viewer, than what is viewed. In this case there are two about the print media: The Front Page and Ink, which neatly bracket the golden age of newspapers from the 1920s to the 1970s. Similarly Everyone in America and Wife explore sexual identity. Normally I will try to find a movie or TV show to relate a play to, as an easy way to explain it to non-theater goers (those of us who are middle upper class but still use public transport, was we were categorized last night). This is going to be easy with the last of the season Shakespeare in Love, based on the film of the same name. That should provide the opportunity for the New Theatre to do what it does best, a big boisterous production.eet. Ask for a table overlooking the street and you can watch the passing parade of interesting characters. Then a drink in the foyer of the theatre.

The New Theatre launch was exciting, a theatrical performance in itself. I suggest starting a night out at the Net Theatre with an early meal in one of the cafes in King Street. Ask for a table overlooking the street and you can watch the passing parade of interesting characters. Then a drink in the foyer of the theatre. 

For the launch we were each handed a colored plastic token. I wondered if there was going to be some form of audience participation, with all green tokens told to do something, and red something else. But these turned out to be free drink tokens for the opening.

After some people watching in the foyer, we filled the seats in the theatre, wit the directors for next year on stage. The set was dressed for the last production of the year, THE BALLAD OF MARIA MARTEN

BY BETH FLINTOFF, which finishes 16 DECEMBER and is suitably ethereal. 

The 2024 season opens with Homos, or Everyone in America by  JORDAN SEAVEY (6 FEBRUARY,) then Atlantis by LALLY KATZ (19 MARCH), The Front Page by BEN HECHT AND CHARLES MACARTHUR (23 APRIL), Ink by JAMES GRAHAM (28 MAY),  

Sunset Strip by SUZIE MILLER (9 JULY), Hangmen by MARTIN MCDONAGH (13 AUGUST), Wife by SAMUEL ADAMSON (8 OCTOBER), Shakespeare in Love BASED ON THE SCREENPLAY BY MARC NORMAN & TOM STOPPARD ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY LEE HALL (12 NOVEMBER).

That was a lot to take in. Each director was asked about the play and their approach. This is a little like asking a teacher what their star pupil is like. I wanted someone to say "It was the only play left, so I had to take it", but they didn't. 

Plays for the year go through a selection process, and the rights have to be available. Like looking at clouds, reading a pattern into the selection of plays says more about the viewer, than what is viewed. In this case there are two about the print media: The Front Page and Ink, which neatly bracket the golden age of newspapers from the 1920s to the 1970s. Similarly Everyone in America and Wife explore sexual identity. 

Normally I will try to find a movie or TV show to relate a play to, as an easy way to explain it to non-theater goers (those of us who are middle upper class but still use public transport, was we were categorized last night). This is going to be easy with the last of the season Shakespeare in Love, based on the film of the same name. That should provide the opportunity for the New Theatre to do what it does best, a big boisterous production.

For the launch we were each handed a colored plastic token. I wondered if there was going to be some form of audience participation, with all green tokens told to do something, and red something else. But these turned out to be free drink tokens for the opening.

After some people watching in the foyer, we filled the seats in the theatre, wit the directors for next year on stage. The set was dressed for the last production of the year, THE BALLAD OF MARIA MARTEN
BY BETH FLINTOFF, which finishes 16 DECEMBER and is suitably ethereal.

The 2024 season opens with Homos, or Everyone in America by JORDAN SEAVEY (6 FEBRUARY,) then Atlantis by LALLY KATZ (19 MARCH), The Front Page by BEN HECHT AND CHARLES MACARTHUR (23 APRIL), Ink by JAMES GRAHAM (28 MAY),
Sunset Strip by SUZIE MILLER (9 JULY), Hangmen by MARTIN MCDONAGH (13 AUGUST), Wife by SAMUEL ADAMSON (8 OCTOBER), Shakespeare in Love BASED ON THE SCREENPLAY BY MARC NORMAN & TOM STOPPARD ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY LEE HALL (12 NOVEMBER).

That was a lot to take in. Each director was asked about the play and their approach. This is a little like asking a teacher what their star pupil is like. I wanted someone to say "It was the only play left, so I had to take it", but they didn't.

Plays for the year go through a selection process, and the rights have to be available. Like looking at clouds, reading a pattern into the selection of plays says more about the viewer, than what is viewed. In this case there are two about the print media: The Front Page and Ink, which neatly bracket the golden age of newspapers from the 1920s to the 1970s. Similarly Everyone in America and Wife explore sexual identity.

Normally I will try to find a movie or TV show to relate a play to, as an easy way to explain it to non-theater goers (those of us who are middle upper class but still use public transport, was we were categorized last night). This is going to be easy with the last of the season Shakespeare in Love, based on the film of the same name. That should provide the opportunity for the New Theatre to do what it does best, a big boisterous production.

JLab JBuds Frames Bluetooth Head Phones Clip to Your Glasses

The JLab JBuds Frames Wireless Head Phones are two small boxes which clip, one to each arm on your glasses. Each has a microphone, speaker, battery, and one push button. You an use just one for mono, or two for stereo. The sound is not as good as Bose Frames sunglasses, but much better than Lenovo Lecoo C8 Smart Sunglasses. These are fine for phone and Zoom calls, but not so good for music.

 One problem is that the JLab Frames need a firm large spectacle frame to clip to. There area reversible rubber pads which can be adjuted for different size frames, but they were still loose on my ultra slim titanium frames. They worked fine on a larger pair of plastic frames. These units have the advantage they can be used on prescription glasses, and removed. But in place they still look dorky, and people looking at me on Zoom immediately commented on them. But that was a Mobile Learning Special Interest Group meeting, where dorky is a good thing. ;-)

Electronic Binding Death Benefit Nomination

This is to suggest the Australian Government permit and require superannuation funds to accept an electronic binding death benefit nomination, secured with two factor authentication, which do not lapse. I just asked two people to witness my form. They both commented that they should get around to doing this. But it requires filling out a paper form, getting two people to witness it, and then sending the paper form in. So I suspect few do, resulting in suffering and cost for their dependents. This could be changed to a simply click of a mouse on the fund's website.

Bose Frames Work Okay for Audio On The Go

Recently I have been trying out not-so-smart glasses. These have a Bluetooth connected speaker and microphone in each arm of a pair of sunglasses. The Lenovo Lecoo C8 Smart Sunglasses (under AU$20), were disappointing but Bose Frames "Bose Frames Rondo" (under AU$150 second hand), have much better sound quality. They also have a movement sensor built in, but Bose gave up on Augmented Reality sound, in 2020. The glasses feel much more robust that the Lenovo, plus the lenses are the same size and shape as many spectacle frames, making it easier to have prescription lenses fitted. There is no volume control built in, with one switch for on, & Bluetooth paring. Inconveniently, to turn them off you have to invert the glasses.

Audio Glasses Are Now Affordable But Not Great Sound Quality

There have been many attempts at smart glasses for consumers. Google tried and failed with Google Glass there are Ray-Ban | Meta Smart Glasses, and were Bose Frames. Google's were equipped with small screen for Augmented Reality, the Ray-Bans have small cameras for live social media, and the Bose have a movement detector for AR sound. None of these have been a great success. However, there are glasses which simply provide two way sound for phone calls, and listening to music. These are now down to $20. But are they any good? For phone calls, perhaps just, but not for HiFi.

One recent example I found widely offered online are the Lenovo Lecoo C8 Smart Sunglasses (mine were under AU$20 including postage). They arrived sooner than promised from Singapore. The box was a bit crushed, but the glasses were undamaged in the translucent plastic case they are supplied with.

Describing these are "Sport HiFi" is an exaggeration. They are robust enough for everyday wear, but not for sport. The sound quality from the inbuilt speakers is adequate for talking books, and phone conversations, but not music. The sound quality from the built in microphones is poor. The lenses are "Anti Blue", that is blue light blocking, but so are any dark sunglasses. The glasses have the advantage of using a standard micro-USB charging cable, rather than a bespoke one. They are lighter than Bose glasses, but with much poorer sound. The touch control on the side for volume works well. If you are uncomfortable with in, and over, earphones, then for occasional use, the Lenovo Lecoo C8 are adequate. There are alternatives, but not at such an affordable price.

New Plays Delve Deep into the Nature of Vanilla Slice

Greetings from the  Silver Gull awards at the New Theatre Sydney. We are getting readings.

The shortlist was:

1. Next To Godliness by Alastair Brown
2. Chicken In A Biscuit by Mary Rachel Brown and Jamie Oxenbould
3. Burning by Christopher Bryant
4. The Mews by Joanna Erskine
5. The Dragonfly by Simon Thomson

The winner is Next To Godliness by Alastair Brown. Two of the plays feature death, which is not unusual, but two mentioned vanilla slice, which is. We need more discussion of the merits, or otherwise of vanilla slice. 

Solar Car Palaces to Save the Planet

Solar carport at Addison Road,
Photo by Tom Worthington CC-BY 2022

This is to suggest promoting carports covered with photovoltaic panels (called "Car Palaces"), to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and free up resources to build more accommodation. Currently in Australia, it is common to have houses with one or two car garages built in. As they are built into the house, the same quality of materials intended for people have to be used for cars. Many of these homes then have solar panels installed over the roof cladding. The cladding is commonly tiles, which are difficult to fit solar panels to. The Addison Road Community Center in Sydney has an example of an alternative: a two car solar carport, with charging, built from standard components.

I suggest encouraging, through legislation, marketing, and incentives, homes which have freestanding carports, covered with solar panels. This would have the advantage of lower cost, as the solar panels would provide the roofing. Also the carports could be prefabricated, for quick erection. The carports could also be designed with provision for batteries, electric car charging,  heat pump hot-water system and air conditioner.

The capital, labor, and materials saved could be used to build additional accommodation for the homeless. However, there would need to be regulation, and incentives, to prevent homes simply getting larger. If garages were eliminated, along with underutilized Media Rooms, and spare bedrooms, enough additional accommodation could be built within a few years for all those currently homeless.

Code Embedded in the Floor of ANU Building

Standing in the coffee queue on the ground floor of the Marie Reay building at the Australian National University today, I accidentally decoded the floor. I was intending to scan a QR code on a poster, but pointed the camera at the polished concrete floor. To my surprise my phone interpreted the pattern of stones embed in the concrete as the number 08371140.

There are secret codes, provided by the Australian Signals Directorate, embedded in the fabric of the Hanna Neumann Building at ANU. But I wasn't aware of this happening with other buildings.

Canberra Counter-drone System for Ukraine

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports that Canberra company, Electro Optic Systems (EOS) is shipping its Slinger counter-drone system to Ukraine. This works very differently from the other Australian anti-drone system, the Brisbane based DroneShield. These place Australia at the forefront of anti-drone technology.

Ghost Gecko Concept

Droneshield jams the drone's electronics using radio signals from a gun shaped hand held transmitter. In contrast, Slinger is EOS' proven remote weapons system (RWS), with a radar added for precision. A cannon with proximity-fuzed fragmentation ammunition is used. This offers an easy upgrade of vehicles already fitted for a RWS (this could be an uncrewed, remotely operated vehicle).

Ghost Gecko Uncrewed Ground Vehicle

Ghost Gecko Concept

This is to suggest Australia develop the "Ghost Gecko", an Uncrewed Ground Vehicle (UCV) for the Australian Army. The Ghost Gecko would be derived from the Hawkei four-wheel-drive protected mobility vehicle. The crew cab would be removed, to lighten the vehicle, and lower its profile. In its place would be an Australian made remotely controlled station (RWS).

The Ghost Gecko would be controlled by a hand held unit, usually carried aboard a nearby crewed Hawkei (but could also be operated remotely via satellite). The Ghost Gecko would be able to operate in convoy on road or cross country, in advance of crewed vehicles. It could remain active at one location, for weeks at a time, without the need for maintenance. Several Ghost Geckos could be controlled by one operator, from one station, and control could be handed off, to another location, or to a remote facility, when required.

There are many UCVs in envelopment. Most of these are small, designed for limited range in applications such as patrolling the perimeter of a base for a few hours. The Ghost Gecko would be capable of self deploying at highway speeds on paved roads, then travel cross country and remain on station for weeks.

The same controller, and operating procedures would be used for a waterborne version of the Ghost Gecko, based on a small Australian designed vessel. This speedboat sized craft could be towed behind a Hawkei, and launched from a civilian boat ramp or a beach.

Off the Record at New Theater Sydney

Enjoyed last night's performance of "Off the Record", by Chris Aronsten. This is a play of the MeToo era, & is topical with the BBC engulfed in another sex scandal. It took some work to understand how the play's disparate themes were being stitched together, but that was rewarding. I did not understand some of the English references, such as describing residential areas with numeric codes. As usual with New Theater, David Marshall-Martin's set design was minimal, but expressive. Suzanne James steals the show as the conspiracy theory loving whistle-blower, and reminding me of some of my New Theater going friends.

Smart low cost power controller/monitors for EVs?

My 20+ years old burglar alarm went off while I was away for the weekend and the neighbors, thinking I was in trouble, called an ambulance. So I decided to buy a new alarm. The new alarm is part of a smart home system. One of the 133 optional extras is a plug in smart energy use monitor and controller. There are many such controller/monitors available, for less than $20 each. I realize these consumer devices might not be up to the task of car charging, but could a similar distributed arrangement be used for EV charging in an apartment building? 

The idea is to avoid running an individual cable from each car space back to a central control/metering point in a basement. Instead the control and metering would be at the socket, with the sockets wired in parallel. Also the wiring would only need to carry about one eighth* the load the sockets could theoretically supply. There would just need to be a dumb circuit breaker for each string of sockets, in case the automation failed and tried to power too much at once. 

Smart high power chargers already have the capacity to be remotely controlled and used for metering, but cost thousands of dollars, and require expensive high capacity circuits to be run to the building. The power also costs money. A low cost alternative would be an ordinary domestic outlet with a smart controller built in. The householder would simply plug their car in to charge, or if security is needed, use an app to start. The smart system would charge only about one in eight cars at a time*, monitoring which cars had charged, & which would accept more. 

A workable setup might use a 20 amp cable, with 16 sockets, but  only two sockets ever being active at any time. A system would ration the power available, between the cars. Each smart power point would report when power is no longer being drawn from them, indicating the car no longer needs charging, and can be provided to another. The householder could have the option of only using off peak low cost power, or on-site free surplus solar power.

 * Back of the envelope calculation: 

The average Australian car travels about 33 km a day.

An electric car, such as the Tesla Model S, uses 19 kWh/100 km.

So that is 6.27 kWh per day per car needed. 

From an Australian domestic outlet you get 2.4 kW.

So it will take 2.6 hours to charge for an average day driving. Let us round it up to 3 hours. So in 24 hours you could charge 8 vehicles from one outlet.

ps (added 6 July 2023): Laws restrict what the body corporate which runs an apartment block, and companies supplying power, can do. The body corporate typically can't charge householders for electricity generated on its own roof, nor can they contract for a bulk supply, & charge for that. Also the companies who can charge, and how much they can charge, is heavily regulated, creating monopolies which can make super-profits. An alternative approach might be for the body corporate to levy householders a fixed amount in advance for car charging. This would be based on the number of car charging spots the household has. If the charging is only low rate, it may not be worth metering individual apartment use: everyone would pay the same amount per car. If it is worth metering, there could be a refund, for power not used.

Neighborhood Watch Needed for the Region

I had the pleasure of meting the late Senator, and former Major General, Jim Molan several times on defence discussion panels in Canberra (I get called in as the defence tech expert). While I did not agree with the Senator's politics, I respected his military experience, and patriotism. Part of his legacy is the book "Danger On Our Doorstep" (HarperCollins, 2022), warning of the potential for war between Australia and China. 

Plan C for AUKUS Submarine Project: Buy Just Three Submarines Armed with Drones

On 4 Mar 2023 the Australian government announced a plan to acquire three US Virginia class nuclear-powered submarines from 2030, with modified UK Astute "AUKUS" class submarines built in Australia from 2040. If there are delays with the AUKUS class, Australia has the option to purchase another two Virginia class submarines from the USA. However, I suggest the Australian government have a third option ("Plan C"): accelerate the development of drones, to arm the submarines and operate alongside them. If the drones prove successful, Australia could stop acquisition at three Virginia class, not purchase any more crewed submarines, and not build any. 

The largest of the drones would be ocean going robot submarines, capable of conducting surveillance, launching weapons, and perhaps even carrying small raiding parties. The robot submarines would be small enough to be transported by cargo aircraft, and could be maintained from, and carried on Australian made high speed transport ships. 

The smaller drones would be the size of mini, lightweight, and full size torpedos. Some drones would operate as smart mines, then attack as torpedos. Others would provide aerial surveillance, and attack. These drones could be launched from submarines, ships, and aircraft.

Entertainment Venue for Thousands Built from Shipping Containers in Brisbane

Last week I was on a ferry on the Brisbane River and felt like seafood. So I did a web search for a restaurant near the next terminal, Northshore Hamilton. Follow directions I turned west along the shore, past people playing beach tennis. What appeared in the distance looked like a carnival, with bright coloured lights, a cacophony of music and what sounded like thousands of people. It was thousands of people, in a compound made of shipping containers: Eat Street Northshore.

Eat Street is a rectangle about four containers wide and 11 long. The perimeter has a row of containers around all four sides, with gaps for people and food to get in. There is a main avenue running east west, also formed from rows of shipping containers. Six covered performance spaces have been made with steel spans covered with fabric and locked to rows of containers (as used for temporary construction buildings). This can be seem clearly from the air.

Each avenue is themed in terms of food, and has a stage. There are also bars. The designers have gone to great care to lay out facilities for ease of use, even with large crowds. Something made from shipping containers could look like a construction camp, or a prision, but this is bright, colourful, and fun. 

Virtual Bendy Busses for Canberra

Autonomous Bus,
by ST Engineering, 
SITCE conference,
Singapore, 
2 November 2022

In Singapore a few weeks ago I saw an autonomous electric bus on display at a transport conference. This is intended for regular routes, but is still a work in progress. What would be possible sooner is convoys of buses for the express routes from Civic to Woden and Turragnong. At peak times one bus with a driver would be followed by one or more driverless, making a virtual bendy bus. This would have a higher capacity than light rail, at a lower cost. 

First published  :33 am 29 Dec 22, as a comment on "Canberra's first of 12 electric buses charging up ready for next year", 28 December 2022, Lottie Twyford, Riot Act