Doing business with the Dutch

Expatica is running courses on how to do business with Dutch people.

See: http://community.expatica.com/event/5616/doing-business-with-the-dutch?utm_source=What%27s+on+NL&utm_campaign=47999c3205-NL+What%27s+On+%282013+wk+49%29&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_649989dcd7-47999c3205-86697402

for more details.

Health-Insurance

Its almost the end of the year and December is traditionally the time that people look to switch health-insurance companies, and there has also been a lot of debate in the media as to whether or not you should take the absolute basic policy and then pay as you go, as most people should save money.

My feelings are mixed here because nobody plans to become ill or to have an accident, but when they do that excess or restriction on your policy may really cost you dearly!

Winter tyres

Whilst there is not actually a law that says you have to fit Winter tyres in The Netherlands, you do need them if you cross the border into Germany, otherwise if you are involved in a car accident, it may cost you a lot of money.

I have to admit that to begin with I was a little skeptical of their value, however when you see how fast and how close the Dutch drive, even in the most appalling weather. When you also consider the current state of confusion over the variable-speed limits and restrictions, and the lack of cats-eyes on the roads, you need all the help you can get!

Why the PC market is dying?

This is not really an AIX tip, but it does effect all my daily work and so I thought I would still have a rant! :)

Last week the USB Ports failed on my HP laptop so I enquired about a repair. To their credit HP were very helpful and it can be done so long as I can get the machine to London. I then went to a local IT chain and asked for a second opinion just in case they could order the part and thus save me time by fitting it locally...

There response was unsuprising. "It would be cheaper to buy a new one" which got me thinking. Whilst this is true the value of the software that I have installed is greater than the cost of the new machine, and coupled with all the hassle of re-installing the apps etc, makes it a complete nightmare for me, and most likely many other people.

You are probably wondering what the point of this post is?

I think that if Microsoft, and perhaps also IBM et al, could come up with a way to effectively CLONE your configuration (licences, activations, etc) from your original machine to a new one. Once you were happy, have some way of nuking the original and perhaps recycling the parts, this could be a great way to encourage people to update and upgrade?

Time to change that password

http://www.zdnet.com/two-million-stolen-facebook-twitter-yahoo-adp-passwords-found-on-pony-botnet-server-7000023915/?s_cid=e539&ttag=e539

SystemScan AIX launched.

Today marks the end of more than two years of work for us and SystemScan AIX is now available. Please see: www.systemscanaix.com for details.

SystemScan runs more than 600 tests which are then compiled into either CSV, HTML, Plaintext, or XML files. If you choose HTML option:

• The results are compiled into a clear and concise (mini-website) report complete with a risks and issues summary. 
• Each test comes complete with a helpfile containing an explanation of the results as well as tips and tricks.
• No local webserver or external connection is required to create the reports, the idea being that you can transfer the reulting files to a PC or internal website where they can be viewed by auditors, managers, (external) consultants, and first-line support.
• Viewers do not need to apply for root access to view the results no no time has to be lost making costly and time consuming access requests.

The clear-text, CSV, and XML can be exported to databases and spreadsheets in order to mine the data and produce unlimited reports.

SystemScan AIXonly uses standard AIX commands and is written using Korn/Posix shell scripts so all the tests can be viewed by auditors and security officers, and even amended or extended as required.

The idea is to eventually build an open-source type community that can make improvements and suggest new tests that can benefit others, or if preferred we can produce a tailored version/module(s) for your private use.

Dutch celebrity puts his foot in it

Dutch TV personality Gordon made a mildly racist remark on a talent show and the TV company then received a lot of complaints:

http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2013/11/rtl_gets_official_complaints_a.php

Driving in Germany

Many people in the Netherlands take their cars across the border, which since the Schengen agreement has been totally free and the only thing that tells you that you have crossed the border are a few EU road-signs saying "Welkom in Duitsland". This could be about to change as the German parliament is debating a Swiss-style vignette system, whereby non-residents would have to pay a toll. It is not clear how they intend to collect and enforce this, however I expect it will be totally electronic and involve something like ANPR.

Add a little Dutch humour to your website

So long as you are not too worried about political-correctness why not add this gadget to your website:

http://www.gmodules.com/ig/creator?synd=open&hl=en&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgadgets.videgro.net%2Figoogle%2Ffokkesukke.xml

If nothing else you can use it to practice your Dutch.

There are literally thousands of free gadgets available from:
http://www.google.com/ig/directory?synd=open

Worst traffic in the Netherlands

A study by TomTom has revealed that Nijmegen and Gronigen are the worst cities for traffic congestion, and not Amsterdam. This is also true in other European states where the capitals are not always the most congested places. I think this is most likely due to the disproportionate amounts spent on the infrastructure in these areas.

Dutch news in English

If you are new to the country or just struggling to learn the language, and want to know what is going on in the country try visiting http://www.dutchnews.nl/

Dutch driving

Every time I take to the roads in Amsterdam I have to wonder if undertaking, ignoring red-lights, and driving as close, and aggressively as possible, is not part of the standard driver training?
Last night there was a debate on TV regarding increasing fines and punishments for speeding, dangerous driving etc,  and it made me think, that like the UK, the best remedy would be a return to the public information film. I am sure if you showed instances of driver stupidity etc. that many people would learn far more from that, and perhaps think about the way that they drive.

I hope the Dutch government read this

At last a government has woken-up to the widespread visa abuse that is undermining labour markets around the world by offering migrant workers unfair advantages, and robbing our own young people of a future:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/software-services/Infosys-faces-record-fine-in-US-Report/articleshow/24858021.cms

I sincerely hope that Europe follows suit and investigates these consultancies that are flooding our job markets, which are driving down rates, and causing mass long-term unemployment. Well done America!

SystemScan/AIX

I have been working for more than three years developing an AIX OS scanning tool and am pleased to announce that it is nearing completion, and will soon be available to buy. It is designed to work on systems running AIX 5.3, 6.1, and 7.1, and also detects some popular software such as Oracle, DB2, Power/HA, and EMC Powerpath.

SystemScan will soon also be available for Linux.

The tool was written using standard AIX shell-script in order that adminstrators, managers, and auditors could both inspect and modify the code in order to be sure that satisify themselves, and their policies, that there is nothing harmful.

Each of the tests comes with a HTML help file that can be used as a teaching-aid, or by first-line support to aid-descision making and to reduce the number of call escalations. System can also be run daily and the reports sent to another system, or viewed via the integrated browser, thus enabing administrators or auditors to examine a system's configuration without requiring any kind of elevated access.

If run on multiple systems SystemScan can quickly identify build inconsistensies and missing or incorrect patches enabling system owners to audit and assure the quality of configuration across the entire AIX estate.

For more information visit www.systemscanaix.com

Zwarte Piet

As 6th December (Sinterklaasdag) draws ever close the old row about about racism has ignited again, this time even the UN has pitched-in.

The old association with black being evil is because humans are naturally afraid of the dark because when we hunted on the savannah, or in the jungle, we were at the most vulnerable at night. You may have noticed that black kids are just as afraid of the dark as anyone else?

I find it unbelievable that people can use European passports and citizenship as a "flag of convenience" in order to travel to places like Syria and fight etc, sexually mutilate their children, ritually slaughter animals, and be openly prejudice against women and homosexuals, and we call this culture, and are supposed to accept it? Yet you have a children's festival where nobody is chanting hatred, or beating-up people etc, and people are screaming from the rooftops.

Perhaps we should replace Christmas completely with a festival that highlights the murder, torture, wars, prejudice etc, of all religions, and burn effigies in the streets, then nobody need feel left-out?

Zandaam

Yesterday I visited the newly refurbished shopping centre of Zandaam. It is about 15 minutes from Amsterdam by car, or by train from Amsterdam Centraal or Sloterdijk. The centre is a great mix of new and old and include international favourites such as Primark.

Annual Expatica "I am not a tourist" fair

On Sunday, 7 October 2012 in the Beurs van Berlage, Amsterdam (10am-5pm) is the annual Expatica Fair. This is an invaluable resource for anyone that is new to Amsterdam or looking to settle or work here. See www.expatica.com/iamnotatourist/ for more details.

Het Twiske

During the summer I am always looking for new and interesting places to go. Het Twisk is a huge nature-area, close to Oostzaan, and approximately 15km north of Amsterdam city centre.
Attractions includes a beach, safe swimming, and multiple woodland walks. For details see: http://www.hettwiske.nl/

By Car:
Take the A10 North past the Port of Amsterdam, and then leave the highway at the second exit ( s116 ) after the IJtunnel. The park is clearly marked with a brown tourist sign, and so is easy to find. You will be charged to park, but it normally only costs a few Euros per day.

By Bus:
Take bus-36 from Amsterdam, Station Sloterdijk (towards Banne Buiksloot). This takes about 20 minutes followed by a short walk at the other end.

Metro 51

The more I read, the less I believe it. The plan now is to replace the only direct link between south-Amstelveen and Amsterdam CS with a new tram that stops almost nowhere and only goes as far as the Worldtrade Centre. The reason given is that they want to save money and provide a faster service. This is plain crazy as I will now have to walk three times the distance to the nearest station as they are removing both the ones that closest to me, and then assuming I use the new tram it would take to the WTC and I would then have to change twice to get to CS, wait more than two years for the Noord-Zuid lijn to open, or walk across to catch the bus!!
I can only think that:
a. No council members live in the Waarhuizen and so are only concerned with stops where they live.
b. The council are so brain-dead that they cannot see how simple it would be to put in a new pair of points so that tram-5 could run in both directions from the Binnenhof.

Using tram-5 would means no new trams and, a short new piece of track, and lower the platforms (which you have to do either way), and you could be up and running in a few months. If the stations were converted starting from the Binenhof and working south toward the Westwijk you could convert every other station, and keep the metro until you reached the end, then run just tram-5 and convert the rest.

Or maybe I am just not cut-out to be in government?

Varifocal glasses

It is not everyday that you find a real bargain in the Netherlands, however if you need varifocal or bifocal reading glasses, search for the "DA Drogist" and "eyelove" (www.eyelovebrillen.nl). All you need to do is to take your glasses to the shop and they scan them with a laser-reader, that can reproduce your prescription.
You choose a frame, pay €99 (or €39 for single focus), and two weeks later you can pick-up your glasses.

Metro Lijn 51

This week saw the council agree what can only be seen as a bird-brained agreement over the future of the only direct tran (metro) link from southern Amstelveen to Amsterdam.
They now plan to replace the metro with a new regio-tram at a cost of €300M Euros. The new route only runs to the World Trade Centre and you will have to wait at least another two years for replacement connection (AKA the NoordZuid Lijn) to Centraal Station.
In the meantime you can either take Metro 50 to Van Der Madenweg, and then change again to Metro 53/4 to Centraal Station, or change before WTC to tram-5 to get to central Amsterdam. Both these routes take a lot more time, and to add insult to injury, they also plan to remove several stations from the new tram route, supposedly to save money and make the tram faster?
Sureley even the simplest mind can see if they simply extended tram-5 to run the entire 5/51 route to the Westwijk for the next three plus years, they could save a huge amount of money by delaying the purchase of new trams, and this would still be quicker as at least you would not have to change?
Everyday people complain about the excesses and stupidity of bankers, but I think that this proves all management can be this useles!