Browsers

A few weeks ago I uninstalled Firefox in an unusual fit of pique. It had been maddeningly slow to put together Tumblr posts at a time when I was lining up quite a few, and there were other minor grievances that, accumulating, and with the Tumblr problem as the final straw, prompted the rash removal of the browser from my computer.

It was only a few days later I realised that, with it, had gone years' worth of bookmarks, not only of convenience but of strange little back corners and obscure reference materials that I had bookmarked because I feared never finding them again. But I'd settled into Chrome for the time being (which opened up a bewildering new dimension of advertising, wow) and resigned myself to having to reassemble my bookmarks at some point in the future and learning a salutary lesson about backing up one's system.

This morning something ticked over and I decided it was time to get back on speaking terms with Firefox, so I reinstalled it, and when it opened – there were all my bookmarks! All my settings were preserved! My immediate thought was that I ought to be creeped out that this stuff was still on my computer somewhere despite doing a system uninstall – how would I find it and delete it for real if that is what I wanted to do? – but I couldn't manage to care about that no matter how much I felt I ought to. It was too nice to take the old girl for a spin. If the NSA wants to know about modern printmakers or the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica definition of "forlorn hope" they are welcome to it – maybe it'll make them better people.

Radio Roundup

I haven't been able to listen to much radio at all lately, but there's been a glut of stuff I have listened to in the past which I know is good, and stuff I suspect would be rather good if I had the opportunity to listen to it now. So I proffer it to you, and you can tell me if I was right.

FACTUAL
My Teenage Diary - A series in which public figures read the thoughts of their teenage selves to the public. Sometimes cringeworthy, but frequently touching and insightful, and always deeply human.
All the Planet's Wonders - comedian Josie Long and her genuine heartfelt passion for learning things
The New Young Fogeys - As someone who has self-identified as Old Fogey from about the age of 8, I relish the affirmation (and want to know where the rest of them are).
Love From Boy - These excerpts from Roald Dahl's life of letters to his mother are all interesting, but this episode specifically describes his experience working with Disney. In all the worship of 'the old guys' I never heard of 'Walt's #1 Artist' Jimmy Bodrero though ...?
The Life Scientific - In which various scientists are interviewed about their life and work; in this case Sheila Rowan and gravitational waves.
In Our Time: Bronze Age Collapse - Apparently around the end of the Bronze Age a number of established cultures (e.g. the Hittites) collapsed and disappeared. The first I heard of this was at 9 this morning; now I share it with you.
Shakespeare's Restless World - A series exploring the times in which Shakespeare lived, through a collection of contemporary items.

FICTIONAL
Brave New World - I thought being a skeptical outsider in a hypersexual consumerist culture helped me 'get' this book when I read it in high school, but thanks to this excellent adaptation I 'get it' even more now. Episode 1 expires on Sunday, so listen now.
Day of the Triffids - It gets a bad rap for being your quintessential 1950s sci-fi B-movie – man-eating plants, oh no! – but the actual book (of which this is a reading, not a dramatisation) is actually a cunning observation of human society dressed up as a sci-fi B-movie. 28 Days Later basically replaced Triffids with zombies. Highly recommended.
The Spy - James Fenimore Cooper, best known for Last of the Mohicans, tells a somewhat more nuanced tale of the American Revolution than one usually encounters ...
The Lives of Harry Lime - I don't remember much about this Orson Welles radio series about a con man taking on different personas for various missions, but I remember liking it, so here you go.

COMEDY
John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme - I just assume that by telling you the title of the show you will listen to it. There is a reason for this. You may have to listen to find out.
Concrete Cow - Those of you who've followed my radio tastes for any length of time will know I have a soft spot for barmy sketch comedy; this is one of those, with the distinction of starring Robert Webb.
Crème de la Crime - Spoof "true crime" documentary comedy series
Armando Iannucci - Before he was producing television programmes that are both surreal and strangely prescient, Mr Iannucci was a DJ on Radio 1. Yeah.
2000 Years of Radio - Radio Victoriana! Three cheers for the Empire, I say, what!
Bleak Expectations - Speaking of Victorian radio: This spoof Dickensian sitcom(?) may be on Series 5, but by this point it's got so weird you really won't need to know what's gone before.
Old Harry's Game - A Health and Safety engineer gets sent to Hell and seems not to be able to leave his job behind.
Think the Unthinkable - This time the comedy consultancy agency takes on the world of Finance.
Knocker - This 15-minute comedy series about a door-to-door canvasser has been described as "a chillingly accurate documentary" by a friend in the trade.