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Wakefield 2008 show photos

Published: 28th Apr 2008, 21:18:14.

Images taken from weekend's event

The Wakefield 2008 show is out of the way and we've managed to record some of it on digital film for posterity's sake. Being wordsmiths and web nerds, we're not as proficient behind the lens as we'd like, so thanks to Daniel for doing his very best to tidy them up. Below is a selection of images captured from the Yorkshire RISC OS event on April 26 - click on a thumbnail for a larger image and click here for a full report of the show.

The little ARM9-powered board with touchscreen that shares some of the same electronics as the A9home. It was running GTK NetSurf on ARM Linux on the NetSurf stand.
NetSurf developer John-Mark Bell chugs on some water to help his throat as he fields questions from gathered users.
VirtualAcorn boss Aaron Timbrell asked for the 18th time when a Linux port of VirtualRiscPC will be released.
Now that Jim Nagel, right, has taken over a editor of Archive from Paul Beverley, left, Jim's happy to do the talking at shows.
On the RISC OS Open stand, Andrew Hodgkinson, left, is told to take it easy by a RISC OS user while we'll leave it up to your imagination to decide what Ben Avison, right, is doing with his hand.
Meanwhile ROOL's Steve Revill, left, is pleased someone's finally pointed him in the direction of the toilet.
An A9home in dual-monitor widescreen mode. One of the screens contains the A9home electronics while the other is a normal LCD.
The new and improved FontEd in Select 4i4.
Print firm Crawfords were obviously pleased to be at the show and co-sponsor it. Either that, or Hazel Blears appeared to be manning their stand.
A tiny Asus eePC running VirtualRiscPC on the R-Comp stand.
Paul Stewart's latest A9home-in-a-box-with-battery project.
LaBella and Dr Wimp developer Ray Favre recreates the moment he delivered the fatal papercut to an unsuspecting foe.
Yes, he can laugh about it now, though.
Soft Rock Software's Vince Hudd as seen through the eyes of someone topped up with vanilla-flavoured vodka.
Aaah, how memories from the 1980s flood back! Podd can dance. Podd can run. Podd can work nine to five as a photocopier telesales operator, dreaming of that lotto win and retiring to Antigua during his lunch break while toying with his Morrisons chicken pasta. Look at how we all turned out.
A real Domesday device, complete with spinning laser disc that was the size of a dinner plate.
RISCOS Ltd's stand resembled an electronics store in down-town Tokyo. Monitors everywhere and a telly playing the video of the 1994 RiscPC launch.
Now that's more like it. The bar at the hotel hosting the show was frequented by gasping RISC OS users.
INVISIBLE MAGAZINE
RISC OS Now editor Louie Smith was praying for plenty of readers to resubscribe.
So, Louie, what first attracted you to apparently successful IT consultant and ISP proprietor Paul Vigay, pictured left?
ArtWorks developer Martin Wuerthner spent the whole show chatting away to delighted punters.
Spare a thought for NetSurf contributor Mike Drake who has been fighting hard to get the web browser working with the monstrous CSS on the BBC's revamped websites.
Dave Ruck looks utterly despondant after some swine carefully hid his coffee mug and glass of cola.
RISCOS Ltd boss Paul Middleton is still in awe of the latest RISC OS Select 4i4 release.
The realisation that the ARM9 PDA prototype on the NetSurf stand has gone missing slowly dawns on developer Daniel Silverstone.
Programmer Alan Wrigley, he of Grapevine fame among many other software products, grins as he ponders his latest invoice for R-Comp.
Once the event was underway, show supremo Chris Hughes was content to swan around.
Aaron Timbrell ponders the state of the RISC OS market while fellow ROL director Dave Holden looks on from behind.
Interesting backdrop choice for married family man Graham Shaw.
The backs of the dual-headed A9home.
Advantage Six's Matt Edgar, right, has his apologetic look perfected for A9home users wondering when the next OS Flash ROM release will come.
Keith from RISC OS Connect makes a convincing argument, whatever the subject.
What's this DIY heroin kit doing on the charity stand? Oh, it's actually something innocent to do with inks. The drugs were just a pigment of our imagination. I said, the drugs were, oh forget it.
Yikes, that really is 16M of RAM and an ARM7 co-processor in a humble Beeb, thanks to some clever hardware and software from John Kortink.
Ad Six's Stuart Tyrrell takes a spin on the almost-A9home-PDA prototype.
While Martin Wuerthner had a tidy and shiny tea set on his stand, complete with tea pot, the ROOL team's best china was a remarkable contrast. Can you see where we're going with this? Me neither.
Note for 2009: hire a real photographer. This is supposed to be some of the ROOL peeps.
The RISC OS Now cover piece was RISC OS Open.
A9home-in-a-flight-case tinkerer and Drobe feature writer Paul Stewart tried his level best to out do Martin in the show fashion stakes.
CJE Micros' Chris Evans, left, is overly amused by Paul's pink notepad.
Mike Glover helped out at the show despite being retired and handing over the TechWriter reins to Martin. It was touching to see him remove the software's banners at the end of the event, perhaps for the last time.


Links
Wakefield 2008 show report
Wakefield 2008 show website

Discussion

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drobe:

There's a picture missing...

Where is *that* shot of Paul Stewart?

sa110 1: MW 0 :-p

Anyway nice shot of my show beer :-)

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:03PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Least said about and shown, the better!!!

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:07PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

sa110:

rubbish - IT NEEDS A DROBE POLL

After all it has been *years* since Martin was seriously challenged...

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:09PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

As long as it is not *that* one rage

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:15PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

sa110:

sorry dude but it *HAS* to be that one... :-p

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:16PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

I have very nice one of you on my phone. Not sure if you are asleep or unconscious(we couldn't wake him!), but most certainly worse for wear!

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:20PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

the truth points to itself

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:21PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

and is a three edged sword

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:22PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

If the Truth Points to Itself - What on earth was I pointing at in that picture!

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:24PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

sa110:

valen

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:26PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Fortunately, I managed to avoid Chris's lens. Alas, I did not manage to avoid hotpot's.

is a RISC OS Userrjek on 28/4/08 10:26PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In reply to epistaxis:

If that was the case, wow I'm good looking for a 1000 year old

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:29PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

sa110:

er not yet - do the maths

its 750 atm :-p

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 28/4/08 10:36PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In reply to epistaxis:

and still looking good B-)

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:38PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In reply to epistaxis:

Damn, that roady was cute!

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 28/4/08 10:39PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Sounds like people had a good time :)

is a RISC OS Userfylfot on 28/4/08 10:58PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

...and looks, too. I wasn't claiming I could detect sound from photographs.

is a RISC OS Userfylfot on 28/4/08 11:00PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

The ARM upgrade for the Beeb is not a Kortink invention - it's a genuine Sprow.

And does anyone else think that Alan Wrigley looks like John Craven?

is a RISC OS Userkrisa on 28/4/08 11:16PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Ah, good. All the shots concentrating on the victims behind the stands, therefore I escaped this year from being in the background (it was no doubt a good move to leave the hat at home).

is a RISC OS UserSimonC on 28/4/08 11:32PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Let's hope it's definitely not "for the last time" for Mike Glover.

What was that BBC that had 16MB RAM, ARM BASIC and 1770 DFS. What was the hardware?

is a RISC OS UserAW on 29/4/08 12:05AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

If you'd all care to indulge me, I have a couple of comments to make on the subject of these pictures. And - epistaxsis and sa110 - they are not in any way related to that classic science fiction show Boobies on Five.

First up: Vanilla flavoured vodka sounds like a nice tipple. Where was mine then, Chris? :p

Second down: The first picture above of Louie. As I scrolled down and saw that, the first thing I thought of was Trance Gemini.

Third, to the left a bit: Graham Shaw clearly has good taste - his backdrop is of the second Romana. That's the correct choice. We have discussed this on a number of occasions on alt.boobieson5.uk where there's at least one person who gets this wrong. (Who lives in Wakefield, actually.)

is a RISC OS UserVinceH on 29/4/08 12:14AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

A Linux port of Virtual-RPC? Great: the one thing I *forget* to ask Aaron about is what Drobe reports. ;)

is a RISC OS Usermsww on 29/4/08 10:18AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Didn't Castle/Iyonix turn up for the show?

is a RISC OS Userajb on 29/4/08 10:34AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

VinceH: It was around my house :) Easy to make: buy a bottle of Absolut. Buy a /real/ vanilla pod. Insert pod into bottle. Wait six months. ajb: Yes, they did. They had nothing new to show, AFAICT.

is a RISC OS Userrjek on 29/4/08 10:50AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

rjek: You can also do it with chillis.

Bartender: This is a drink we use to get rid of unwanted punters. Us: Interesting. Bartender: Why don't you have a glass?

It works.

is a RISC OS UserStoppers on 29/4/08 12:13PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Stoppers: I've done that too :) Legend has it that the creation of Dave's Insanity Sauce, an ultra-hot chilli sauce, was driven by Dave's need to get people to leave his bar late at night. I prefer vanillia vodka in general though: it ends up being like alcoholic cream soda.

is a RISC OS Userrjek on 29/4/08 12:24PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Isn't Graham allowed to indulge in a bit of Dr Who companion backdrop action? Lalla Ward, those were the days... [link]

is a RISC OS Userdruck on 30/4/08 9:23AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In reply to Druck: Perhaps it's just as well he didn't spot the 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' mousemat :-)

is a RISC OS Usergdshaw on 30/4/08 10:37AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

krisa wrote "And does anyone else think that Alan Wrigley looks like John Craven?"

When I was younger I was often told I looked like Michael Wood (though he seems to have aged better than me) but never John Craven.

is a RISC OS Userinchiquin on 30/4/08 10:42AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

The ARM upgrade for the Beeb is not a Kortink invention - it's a genuine Sprow.

Indeed, thought it was. Available to buy, too:

[link]

is a RISC OS UserJaffa on 30/4/08 1:11PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Can't Sprow develop an ARM co-processor for the Iyonix if he has the know how for the BBC Micro?

is a RISC OS UserAW on 30/04/08 1:50PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

AW: See my reply on usenet. Quick answer: They're completely different tasks.

is a RISC OS Userrjek on 30/04/08 3:05PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Is the full report still in the process of being written ?

The link above the photos still tells me that the article is not available.

is a RISC OS Userajb on 30/04/08 6:57PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

ajb: That is my understanding.

is a RISC OS Userrjek on 30/04/08 7:53PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Has no one else got any photos from the show online? We've got some at www.riscosopen.org

is a RISC OS Userriscosopen on 06/05/08 11:15PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Does anyone know where I can get POD, a very memorable childhood favourite, but our discs appear to have gone walkies with it on....

I want to show my Fiancé and son it! :@D

is a RISC OS Userem2ac on 07/05/08 12:16AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In reply to Steve Revill:

There were plenty taken of me, but so far not many have surfaced (thankfully).

I thought Drobe would have had their show report up by now, there has been a link present since the pictures went up.

is a RISC OS Usersa110 on 07/05/08 5:49PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

If you want POD, i suggest you try www.stairwaytohell.com

is a RISC OS UserIvanDobski on 07/05/08 5:55PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

sa110:

tsk tsk - if you're going to attract attention you have to put up with the consequences.. :-)

is a RISC OS Userepistaxsis on 07/05/08 6:33PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Thanks Ivan...just found this:

[link]

Scary.... lol I was apparently spelling it incorrectly its podd :@D

is a RISC OS Userem2ac on 07/05/08 6:39PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

riscosopen:

WROCC have put a limited number of photos online at

[link]

I've got some more to go up on the site later this week, and should also have another set on there by the end of the month.

is a RISC OS Userstevef on 08/05/08 1:55PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Pint half full.....

So much Show News to report that the Full Report is still not completed after 2 weeks.

Pint half empty.....

So little Show News to report that there is a problem finding anything worth putting into a Full Report.

is a RISC OS Userajb on 10/05/08 1:16PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

ajb: Or, perhaps more realistically, people have more important things to be doing with their time than writing show reports. Frankly, I don't blame Chris if this is the case -- he does a hell of a lot of good work in publicising developments for this platform. Perhaps you should just be slightly more patient.

is a RISC OS Userjmb on 10/05/08 1:37PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

NO NEWS FOR TWO MONTHS.

Surely not.

Is Drobe dying? Is RISC OS dying?

is a RISC OS UserJwoody on 28/06/08 6:09PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

> Is Drobe dying?

Have a look at this for some clarification: [link],6,215

> Is RISC OS dying?

Yup.

is a RISC OS Userlym on 28/06/08 6:17PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Very disappointing that Chris did not see fit to post something on Drobe to say that he has given up on Drobe and RISC OS as he does not use it anymore. He could have at least said goodbye properly. Maybe if more people knew, a volunteer to take over might appear.

is a RISC OS UserJwoody on 28/06/08 9:09PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

I got the impression that he was taking a break and taking stock for a while.

is a RISC OS Userkillermike on 28/06/08 9:46PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

JWoody:

Er, did you read the article? Chris hasn't walked away entirely. From my reading of it, he's planning to revise the site to make it lass labour-intensive to maintain. But given the parlous state of the 'market', he can hardly be blamed for taking his time over it. I would imagine that something will emerge in time. But it will only happen if something miraculous turns the OS and software situation around. A news site does need something to report, after all.

is a RISC OS Userlym on 28/06/08 9:54PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

James - he said nothing of the sort. He's made a proposal for Drobe - try commenting on that if you want.

is a RISC OS UserAW on 28/06/08 9:58PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

"Er, did you read the article?

Yes the following bits really left their mark.

"something finally snapped in my mind in April that made me see maintaining Drobe as a chore rather than as an enjoyable hobby"

"However I've been spending more and more of my free time away from computers while searching for new hobbies separate from work."

"Also I no longer use RISC OS (I use Linux and Mac OS X at home), so I've fallen out of love with the whole thing."

I would say that it is very clear that his heart is not in it any more.

Yes he does talk about changes and doing things, but talk is cheap, doing something takes effort, which is really hard when you are not motivated. I think he would do better to come to terms with how he feels and hand over to somebody else.

is a RISC OS UserJwoody on 28/06/08 10:15PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Talk is cheap, which is why I've been keeping my head down (so to speak) why working out what to do. Here's a sneak preview of what's likely to appear here soon (once the design has been tightened up)...

[link]

is a RISC OS Userdiomus on 06/07/08 11:09PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Chris,

that looks excellent to me! Can't wait for the Big Drobe Comeback...

is a RISC OS Userhubersn on 09/07/08 3:22PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Looks fine to me.

Couldn't the new items of news been added to Drobe at the same time? It would have limited the "no news for N days" brigade.

Anything you do is appreciated, though.

is a RISC OS UserStoppers on 09/07/08 3:25PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Can't wait for the return of Drobe! When is it likely to be?

is a RISC OS UserDaveW on 13/07/08 6:31PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

In case anyone’s still interested, Chris’ latest blog is here [link],8,217

Which has a link to… [link]

is a RISC OS UserIvanDobski on 19/08/08 5:29PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

Good to see something's underway. Good luck with it.

is a RISC OS UserAW on 19/08/08 11:58PM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

I'm still checking back every couple of days!

is a RISC OS UserStoppers on 21/08/08 06:41AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

404 on "full report of the show"; artifact2307: "I can't find this article, kupo."

is a RISC OS UserAnon on 9/1/09 11:49AM [ Reply | Permalink | Report ]

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