NserviceBus – another day another configuration nightmare

Yep, this seems fair: NserviceBus – another day another configuration nightmare.

It’s not just that the NServiceBus API changes significantly and regularly, but all the little things like the documentation being either out of date or just plain incorrect. For example, try following the Step By Step Guide. When I did this a couple of weeks ago entire classes were missing from the process.

That’s just lazy.

Actually, not just lazy, also unprofessional.

Still, I very much like the irony of the company I’m working for being listed on the front page of the Particular web site as a featured client. Still, I guess it doesn’t say satisfied, just featured.

via NserviceBus – another day another configuration nightmare.

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Cheap as chips

I’ve just seen this advert on the front of a free newspaper somebody left on the train:

The Lumia 435 is the lowest specified Windows Phone available, but for £25 you are getting a stunning amount of hardware.

This would make a brilliant back up phone or a first phone for a child.

There is a catch though, you need to be an existing customer for 3 months which is the biggest downer, otherwise the phone is £60 from Carphone warehouse, in which case I’d either pay the extra for a Lumia 635, or wait for the Lumia 640 to arrive.

Still, I’m impressed with the aggressive pricing.

Mobile Woes #2

My mobile contact finished at the start of February, so I contacted EE around that time to sort out a new contract. This time around, after some discussion, I decided to go for a SIM only deal with 5Gb of data, discounted to half price for the first six months, plus an addition SIM with 2Gb of data per month for £12.99.

This was discussed online and a couple of days later I emailed the EE contact to ask to proceed with the deal we discussed.

I heard nothing back.

Also, stupidly I didn’t chase this.

So yesterday I contacted EE again, this time via a phone call to customer services, to take out these deals… however by now they had expired.

Now, instead of 5Gb at £11 for the first 6 months, followed by £21.99 for the following 6 months, I was offered 4Gb for £17.99 per month. This deal is actually not as good, I’d be paying more over the 12 months for less data. The 5Gb plan would now cost me the full £21.99 for the 12 months.

Additionally, the second line has seen it’s data allowance halved to 1Gb, but the price has remained the same.

This new offer isn’t really grabbing me, so I guess it’s back to the drawing board and trying to find an alternative deal elsewhere.

I have to say I’m not happy with EE in this case. I’m absolutely partly to blame for not chasing up the offer initially, however I did email back their representative to go ahead, and nothing happened.

Also, why has the second line plan been changed for the worse?

Colour me not impressed.

Mobile Woes #1

As expected Microsoft failed to announce a new flagship phone at the recent Mobile World Congress, leaving the Lumia 930 (announced in April 2014) as their flagship device. Apparently they are waiting until the release of Windows 10 before releasing a new phone.

Yet at the same time they have released the mid-level Lumia 640 and 640 XL, with the promise that these devices will be upgradable to Windows 10.

To me, this makes a nonsense of holding off releasing a flagship now, especially since many who purchased the only reasonable selling Windows Phone flagship device, the Lumia 920, will be up for renewal. The 920 was released a little under 2 ½ years ago, most contracts are 24 months, so this would have been a perfect time for a new flagship.

Then there’s the other issue. I’ve been trying to hunt down the other high end Windows Phone, the Lumia 1520, but according to suppliers it has been discontinued. Really? Of your two high end phones you no longer make one of them?

So what to do?

I will probably wait until the new models arrive as I want a high end phone on the Windows ecosystem for personal reasons, but I fear I’m the exception.

When I started working at my current client I was surprised at the number of Windows Phones in the office. That is visibly changing though as I witness one colleague after another switching to Apple or Android devices, and I can’t say I blame them.

All is not lost, yet, but Microsoft definitely seem to be making life harder for themselves, and the loyal users. I’m sure they have their reasons, but it’s almost enough to make me look elsewhere. If I’m honest, if it wasn’t for my desire to be involved writing cross platform Windows 10 applications I would have jumped ship myself by now.

Don’t get me wrong, the new 640 and especially the 640 XL look like excellent devices for the price. I’m seriously considering upgrading my partner’s Lumia 920 with the 640 XL as it’s all she, or indeed 90% of the public would require. But it’s not the flagship device many of us are crying out for.

I do hope Microsoft get this situation sorted before too many people lose patience, but unfortunately I’m doubtful this will happen.

Hold on a moment, this isn’t what the press tell me!

Always believe what you read in the press.

Apple’s OSes Top ‘Most Vulnerable’ List of 2014

Oh.