The best gift thread!

[TheAnimus]

So here goes, what gift did you get that you really like?

For me, its the Philips Hue, a zigbee controlled set of LED lightbulbs, that you can change the colour with. They also include a zigbee to ethernet bridge, which I've been hacking all day. Anything to avoid helping with dinner, such is the tradition in our family.

It's really great, because I've shunned google, and am hacking it myself. Android is a real second class citizen on this Hue system, for instance the Nexus7 can't run the app. No matter, I'm running it in an emulator on my laptop, getting frustrated with Wireshark and Microsoft Net Mon, as I slowly decipher their API. It's all RESTful JSON so can't be too hard right? I know I can get the answers from google real quick, but I might as well have the fun of figuring it out myself, its like a crosswords, but geeky.

So what about you fine chaps, how do you find yourself spending xmas!

[kalniel]

Marmite. AND it's GOLD!

[Ferral]

I have received :

A T Shirt that says : No, I won't fix your computer!
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy TV series from 80's on DVD
Monty Pythons Flying Circus box set on DVD
The Thin Blue Line box set on DVD
Dodger Hardback (Terry Pratchett)
Bottle Tia Maria
Bottle Amaretto

I think the Python set and Dodger hardback are my favorites this year

[neonplanet40]

I got some money, a lot of chocolate, a calender and a Game of Thrones - Making off type book. Its a very nice book to be honest. Although weirdly, I also got a candle :s

[Flibb]

I asked everybody for money this year, but I had told everybody what I was getting

Socks (waterproof)
Trousers (waterproof)
Gloves (waterproof)
Hat made from possum fur / merino wool (not waterproof but what the heck).

all to keep me warm and dry when out in


playing around on the river Medway

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Shame on you all!! It should have been surviving the Friday apocalypse!!

[Flibb]

Shame on you all!! It should have been surviving the Friday apocalypse!!

Thats what the boat was for

Actually the best gift is being with the Mrs (just dont tell her that).

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Thats what the boat was for

Being in Medway wouldn't that be exchanging one apocalypse for another??

[Flibb]

Being in Medway wouldn't that be exchanging one apocalypse for another??

The Medway is a very nice river to paddle on, had a kingfisher flying along in front of me last weekend
and theres plenty of pubs along it

[g8ina]

Only a few pressies this year, not that I'm too bothered

Really nice bottle of port off my daughter, "Senna" BluRay off my oldest son, and "25 years of Hart Reviews" off my other son (book of Ham Radio kit reviews, nice drooling material

Sally got me a nice shiny new anti static workmat and strap My new PC was also part of my Christmas stuff !

And I have one more to open when she gets back from work, a big box - the contents of which are a complete mystery

[HSK]

I'll be honest, I got about 6 T-shirts, a pair of jeans, a cardigan, and a deck of playing cards.

And only the cardigan and one t-shirt weren't actually bought by myself.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The Medway is a very nice river to paddle on, had a kingfisher flying along in front of me last weekend
and theres plenty of pubs along it

The Medway is a very nice river to paddle on, had a kingfisher flying along in front of me last weekend
and theres plenty of pubs along it

Ok,you are keeping to the better part of Medway then!!

Flying Kingfishers can be an issue though!!

[HalloweenJack]

seeing the kids playing with their toys (and me not waking up at 3.3am today!)

all im happy with

[Flibb]

Only a few pressies this year, not that I'm too bothered

Really nice bottle of port off my daughter, "Senna" BluRay off my oldest son, and "25 years of Hart Reviews" off my other son (book of Ham Radio kit reviews, nice drooling material

Sally got me a nice shiny new anti static workmat and strap My new PC was also part of my Christmas stuff !

And I have one more to open when she gets back from work, a big box - the contents of which are a complete mystery

Funny you should mention Ham Radio, I have just ordered a book to get me going on the road to a Foundation License.

[TheAnimus]

Still playing with these

What I really like is the fact the andriod app is so awful. Its not just a little bad, its a real 2/10.

So a little more packet sniffing and I can so far, find the device by SSDP, pair with it by pressing the button on the thing, query all bulbs and groups, set specific bulbs to certain colours and brightnesses.

Hell yeah! This is even better than Lego. Thanks Philips for making such a great peice of kit with truely god awful software, gives me something I can do on my laptop. Anyway, if you'll excuse me I'm off to make a better object remoting thing for RESTful JSON.

[HSK]

Ahh so there is an android app? They kept banging on about the iphone app I didn't think there was any for android!