Ben Grubb over at It News has reported that Exetel is planning on banning P2P use (that is Bittorrent, Limewire, Kazaa (does that even exist still?), etc) during their off-peak period. I’m not surprised that John Linton, the founder and CEO of Exetel is considering such drastic measures, however I was concerned for my ability to download Linux ISOs at night. (Yes, all P2P is Linux ISOs — didn’t you know?)

At the beginning of this month, our off-peak time was trimmed from 12am-12pm to 2am-12pm. This was to stop a phenomenon that would basically kill the entire Exetel network at midnight. People just have to have that latest Linux ISO at 12:01am so start all of their downloads at the very start of off-peak. No worries, except people who wanted to browse web pages, use VOIP or do anything else suffered.

As John has mentioned many times over on his blog, most downloads would be finished by 12:30am or 1am and the network would be back to normal speeds. Despite years of trying to fix it, nothing worked.

This was a great cost to Exetel, who would continue to try different ways to combat this, including a P2P cache, asking for downloaders to be fair and push back their downloads and purchasing a ton of bandwidth they didn’t need except for that half hour. Seems this new tactic worked. So since most souls are in bed by 2am, they bit the bullet and moved off-peak back.

So what about the threat of banning all P2P during off-peak? Well this would only be after November, and only after they move back to a 12am-12pm off-peak period. And only if you choose that period over 1am-1pm or 2am-2pm. And it’s only banned during the first two hours. And it’s self-regulated.

A whole lot of ands really.

So I can have 60Gb of downloads over half of the month, and I either avoid P2P for two hours (which I was doing anyway voluntarily after a request another previous post from John) or move my off-peak to 2am-2pm, which since we are late risers would help us out anyway. Woah, I better get the tin foil hat out.

I still find Exetel to be extraordinary value. They usually have good service, and if it is bad they will be upfront and admit their issue. They aren’t for the faint hearted, as you have to know your stuff well and live with a support culture expecting you to find your own help in the forums, but if you can live with that you will get more from them than your regular ISP.

Free SMS from the web, they do email to fax and fax to email ($1 a month – wtf?), and more. I love them. I really do.

I read a blog post today by Undomestic Diva titled “Quality vs Quantity in the bedroom“. If you haven’t read it yet, then I’m not going to spoil the fun. Go and have a read (men especially) and then come back and continue from here.

You’re back? Ok, let’s get into it then.

Undomestic Diva’s post got me thinking about sex and why men feel they have to be “marathon men” and last for hours and hours. Why is this so important to men and why is it that there is this (seeming) misconception that women are thinking the same way? I think there are a number of reasons this has happened.

Let’s start with peer pressure. Is there some sort of masculine bragging right from being able to go the distance with a girl? Probably. A man wants to look like a stud to his mates. For some, that might be the number of ‘notches on the bed head’. For others, it is bragging about going at it for hours with the hot (or no so hot) chick.

A lot of the stories are probably exaggerated. It’s like the old fishing story about the one that got away, except this time it’s about the hours and hours of hot lovemaking. It probably was all over in five minutes, or thirty minutes. Multiply that by five and you’ve now got a ripping yarn to share with the mates.

So what do we mean by sex? Some women say they want longer and more satisfying sex. Do they mean thrusting in an out intercourse? Possibly. But they probably also want more intimacy. They probably want more attention from their man when they aren’t in bed (or about to be). They probably want a cuddle and a massage occasionally.

That doesn’t mean there should be a massage and cuddle session and kissing and foreplay and then some oral and then some massage and then perhaps some intercourse that goes for hours and hours. Sometimes that will be appropriate. Sometimes a “Wham, bam and thank you ma’am and sir!” is what you both need. Mixing things up is important, but make sure your man knows this.

If you have had intimacy issues in the past and you’ve gotten him to be more attentive, perhaps he thinks it ALWAYS has to be like this. It’s possible in the past he has had a similar situation with another relationship. All women and men are different, so he’s doing what he thinks is right from previous experience, when you really just want it done well and done now.

Then there are the premature ejaculation ads on TV, and this stuff is even mentioned in school. It’s a serious medical problem for some men, but there needs to be a clearer definition so that most men can get on with their life. To me, if you can’t have intercourse because a) it’s done before you even get inside or b) you get inside and that sets you off, then you might have an issue that needs some medical attention. Doctors can do wonders to help you.

The rest of you who are having sex but it just isn’t a long as you want it, you might just have to deal with it. Perhaps when your partner says, “It’s ok you know, I really enjoyed it” they mean it. If they don’t, they aren’t the right partner for you anyway.

Briefly, I’ll touch on porn. Male porn stars seem to last forever (or at least the length of a DVD). Do you think Peter Jackson filmed “The Lord of the Rings” in one take? I doubt it very much. They would not have filmed “The Lord of the Ring” in one take either. (If it’s a real porn title, shoot me. I made it up.) I’m lead to believe they also use numbing agents to allow them to last forever. Sorry, but I want to enjoy sex.

Finally, I think communication is very important. Men need to learn to trust what their partner is saying. If she says she wants it quick, she wants it quick. If she says she wants some more of this or that, then that is what she wants. Don’t second guess her and think “she’s just saying that to make me feel better.” I still make that mistake sometimes, but I’m human and learning.

If she is just saying it to make you feel better, the only person missing out is her. 99.9% of the time (yes, more made up statistics) they are telling you the way it is. “Hey, let’s skip this stuff and get down and dirty” should be music to your ears, not a “oh rod, she’s just trying to make me feel better cause I suck” moment.

So men, listen to your woman. Ask her what she wants you to do. If she wants it quick and fast, give her to her. Enjoy the freedom of not having to worry about lasting for ages longer than we were probably designed for. When she wants more than that, give that to her too. Listen, communicate and understand what she wants from you.

Women, talk to your man. Tell them what you really want. Be up front all the time, so they’ll believe you in the bedroom as well as outside. If they don’t understand, show them. They’ll get it eventually.

Perhaps you need to find some way to let him know what you want this time around. It’s ok to say that you shouldn’t have to tell him — he should just know. It’s easier to just tell him, and then enjoy the fruits of your labour, so to speak.

Thanks to a find for mine for pointing me to this Google Maps link. It’s a custom map showing details of the current Swine Flu outbreak.

It is amazing the information that is now available to us. Ten years ago something like this would be hard for ordinary people to imagine. Just think what the world will be like in another 10 or 20 years time.

Hi loyal reader. I’m sure there is at least one of you.

When I began blogging back in December 08, I didn’t put too much forethought into this place. All I wanted was a site which allowed me to express my opinions on things. So each time I had a bright idea, I’d create a new topic. Eleven topics later (you can’t count them on your fingers, unless you’re special) and I decided that enough was enough. I’ve cleaned up my list of topics to just five.

• Civil Liberties – I’m a strong believer that our rights can and will be eroded if we do not monitor what politicians, advocate groups and other interested parties try to force on us. I’ll present my view on the issues that I think are important or that affect me personally.
• Internet – If I’m posting about Twitter, the current No Clean Feed debate or the new National Broadband Network, then I’ll post it in the Internet Category. I will expand this as time goes on to look at other issues of interest to me.
• Politics – I’m an interested political observer and enjoy commenting on the current political landscape in Australia and the world. I’ll sometimes agree with those in power, but often not. Either way you’ll hear about it in this category.
• Religion – I’m a believer in a secular society free from the interference of religions and deities. I used to believe in the Christian version of God, but now I’ve come to understand that there is no God and that religion can be dangerous in some forms. So from time to time I’ll blog about issues I think need to be discussed. I’m also tolerant of other’s beliefs and options, even if I don’t agree.
• Meta – I left this to last for a reason. My wife suggested the name for this one as I was stuck. What should I do with stuff that isn’t really related to my other categories, but is either related to me or to this blog? That’s what Meta is for. It isn’t a miscellaneous file but will contain posts either about me or what I’ve been thinking about lately. Perhaps a clip on the Internet that I’ve enjoyed and think will add something to your life.  I’ll also cover other information related to this blog. I think it’s important to get a better understanding about the blogger behind the posts, so hence the need for Meta.

I hope that this new set of topics make more sense for you the reader. After all, they are really just a way to help you navigate the site better. Please let me know your thoughts and any good suggestions will be taken, mashed into my brain and taken on board.

So now that I have your attention…

Cardinal George Pell has come out and made it a really Good Friday for Pope Benedict XVI (they need more papal names it seems) and supported his recent comments made to the media. Seems nothing so sinister and isn’t all that surprising, considering his position within the Catholic Church. Until you read into it more. Then you realise that it is disturbing and quite dangerous.

The Cardinal, who sadly I have to admit is an Australian, has come out in support of the Pope’s comments that the use of condoms was actually making the AIDS issue worse in Africa, and not better. Instantly I know that the scientists and politicians of the last 10 to 20 years are wrong and the Catholic Church are unbiased and trusted source of science on this issue. Please.

We should not be quick to judge. We should check whether this is what the Pope really said. Perhaps it is some misquote from a rouge journalist who picked up something he is supposed to have said from an unreliable source. No, it’s a Reuters journalist and it was uttered at a media conference.

Here is the part of the article, from http://www.rediff.com/news/2009/mar/19pope-views-on-condom-use-create-a-stir.htm:

“AIDS cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems,” he told media persons on March 17 while on his way to Cameroon.

They also reported that the Pope has a better solution for this AIDS epidemic:

According to the Pope, combating the spread of AIDS requires a ’spiritual and human awakening’, friendship for those who suffer, and a ‘responsible, moral attitude toward sex’.

Awesome. A very viable suggestion. We will stop people who are having sex knowing that they might get AIDS by giving them a spiritual awakening. They don’t need to know about AIDS and be told of all the possible ways to help stop its transmission. Just get them to pray that they won’t want to have sex anytime soon.

What needs to be done is that out of touch organisations, who are more concerned about their own pontificating than the wellbeing of its followers, should get a grip and come around to the 21st Century. It isn’t going to go away any time soon. There will be no apocalyptic horsemen, although global warming might make them think they are in Hell anyway.

Start providing the right sort of education to all people around the world about the dangers of AIDS. Be sensitive to their backgrounds and current education levels so that they can understand what they are being old. Provide good quality condoms only and provide them for free so that everyone has some. We shouldn’t be making money out of fighting an epidemic.

Edit: You can here his media stop in this AFP video on YouTube. It seems AFP won’t let you embed their videos, even if you are a paid affiliate. And I’m not even close to that.)