Phil Wylie’s Ramblings


Spotify – a free, legal music service
11 February 2009, 5:13 pm
Filed under: Music, Software

Spotify

Spotify recently removed the invite requirement for its free service in the UK:

“starting today people in the UK will no longer need an invitation to join Spotify, you can register for our free service directly from our website as always our premium, ad-free service is still available”

Having used Spotify for a few weeks now, I’m convinced this is the future of music! The player lets you search through an ever expanding selection of music, which can then be streamed instantly. It’s like having iTunes preloaded with the world’s music.

It’s probably better explained by them:

The free version is supported by occasional adverts between tracks and every so often you’ll see a banner ad within the player. At its current level it’s not enough to push me to subscribe and it’s certainly not as bad as commercial radio stations that devote more airtime to ads than music.

Its available from spotify.com

Now if only Last.fm could generate Spotify playlists from its recommended music…



Looking for a 12 month web development placement
23 January 2009, 9:45 pm
Filed under: General Banter, Placement

Wow! Long time since my last post. So what’s going down you ask? Well I’m working hard at university, taking more web based modules this semester, so it should be a little more fun.

free for jobI’m looking for a 12 month placement for sometime between June 2009 and September 2010, so if you’re looking for a keen web developer – get in touch and I’ll send you a copy of my CV.

In other news…

You may have noticed my Flickr stream has been dead for a while, that was my fault – I smashed up my camera whilst out and about. I have now replaced it with the model up, the Canon Ixus 70 – nothing extra special but still an excellent compact camera.

Until next time, stay safe and remember to subscribe to my feed!



PhilWylie.co.uk launched
5 August 2008, 2:22 pm
Filed under: Website Design

I’ve been working on a personal site to bring together my web presence. My blog used to be a wholly separate site; however this reshuffle included streamlining the blog’s theme to match the unified look and feel. No easy task when you’re restrained by the limitations of WordPress.com’s hosted blogging service.

Stockxpert

My aim was to be representative of current design trends; the artwork was sourced from Stockxpert and carefully mashed together to create a simple, easy to follow site. For once, I’ve tired to leave the rounded corners and gradients behind!

Through the magic of Apache’s mod_rewrite module all the old URL’s are permanently redirected to their new homes.

Hope everyone’s enjoying their break, take care and talk soon :)



Nope, I’m definitely not dead yet!
27 June 2008, 8:50 pm
Filed under: Birthday, General Banter, Sport Relief 2008, University, Website Design

Wow, almost half a year’s passed since my last post.

You may have noticed my blog’s theme has changed, very observant! I’m using WordPress.com’s “Custom CSS” tool to rip apart the Benevolence theme so that it looks and feels identical to my new website. When will the rest of my new site be ready? Come on, not even I know that :)

Sport Relief

Me and Tasha - Sport Relief 2008 @ Plymouth

We ran the Sport Relief mile in Plymouth, raising £80 in total. Big thanks to everyone who sponsored us. We didn’t raise our £100 target but every little helps and all that… We had great fun, that’s what’s important.

Why in Plymouth? We were caravan holidaying in Devon and it was the nearest “flagship” run.

University

I’ve finished the first year of university; I’ve got the results too. I’ve passed everything, just scraped the maths module mind you. But it’s still a pass!

Got to say, the second semester was a little dull, for a web development course, it seriously lacked in web modules. Not to worry though, next year I’m making up for it with a number of web programming modules.

I’ve moved in with my girlfriend, we have a nice flat in Stafford, excellent location… there’s a 24 hour ASDA just a quick walk away and Staffordshire University’s only a short walk in the opposite direction!

Belated birthday celebrations to me!

Pimp my steak and kidney pieIt was my 19th birthday in May, Tasha and I travelled to Shrewsbury to spend a few days with the family; we all went out to The Riverside Inn for a meal, nice place… the steak and kidney pie even came with my name written in pastry. Awesome ;) I’m sure you’ll agree.

Thanks for checking out my blog, I’m going to make an effort to keep it a little more up to date, so please subscribe to my feed if you’re interested in my dull ramblings!



Sport Relief 2008
28 January 2008, 11:22 pm
Filed under: Charity, Sport Relief 2008

Two years ago Nick and I ran Sport Relief in Birmingham, raising just over £80 in the process. The event has come around again, and I will be running another sponsored mile, however this time I’ll be in Plymouth and running with Tasha.

We need your support! Together we aim to raise more sponsorship than before; we’ve set our team target at £100.

Unlike last time, the Sport Relief website is fully operational; you can sponsor me at www.mysportrelief.com/pwnet