Feb 16th - SW RISC OS Show 2019 - NOTE NEW VENUE

We’re now just under three weeks away from the SouthWest RISC OS Show 2019.
http://www.riscos-swshow.co.uk/

After many years at the Webbington, we have listened to exhibitors and visitors who found that hotel difficult to get to, so please note the new venue – THE ARNOS MANOR HOTEL, BRISTOL.

https://www.arnosmanorhotel.co.uk/

By moving the show into Bristol, we’re now close to Bristol Temple Meads rail station (within walking distance) or a short bus ride, depending on the weather!

Whilst Bristol may be slightly futher for those travelling from Devon/Cornwall area, we hope the “motorway all the way” convenience may actually make it more-or-less the same travel time.

For everyone else, the show is now much more convenient for everyone, whether you’re coming down from the Midlands on the M5 or coming across from London area on the M4. The hotel is only about a mile or two from the motorway junctions. Having driven back to Manchester from the hotel after checking it out last year, I can confirm it is a much easier journey.

We’re really hoping all this will encourage folks to come to the show, because like all RISC OS events, we need you guys. The change of venue has meant that this year has been extra challenging – I’m travelling down a day early this year to try and ensure no “surprises”, so we’d ask folks to think hard about trying to get to the event to show your enthusiasm for all things RISC OS.

As for what’ll be at the show… all the exhibitors from last year (which was one of our largest exhibitor turnouts, if I recall) are confirmed, with the exception of Martin W. There are a couple of new exhibitors too, to make up for that, and ROOL themselves will be back with us (yay!) following the change in venue :)
You can see an early list at http://www.riscos-swshow.co.uk/

Speaking for myself, we’ll have a range of new developments, updates, and of course the new ARM-powered laptops will be making their presence known. We’ve placed an order for stock, but we’ll see whether the units arrive in time from the Far East – we’ve been pleasantly surprised before!

Oh and RISC OS developments might have something interesting to show, too. But hey, after all the big action last you with buying Castle/RISC OS and making it open source, they can’t have anything else to say, can they? You’ll have to come and find out!

When arriving at the hotel from the north by road, it does not seem clear from anywhere whether you can turn right into the hotel entrance, as it seems to be across two lanes of traffic queuing for the traffic lights. There is also no obvious place to do a u-turn further along the road.

Any local knowledge welcome!

IIRC it was OK when I did it coming in that way last year. There are traffic lights just up ahead, which tends to control traffic and make getting in/out OK.

Bear in mind that I was 24hrs away from ending up in hospital due to my shoulder-damage last year (I stayed a couple of nights at the hotel trying to get fit enough to drive back, to no real avail), so it would have been harder for me than usual. So, I think, not a hurdle.

As Andrew says, the lights help. The entrance is immediately after them, across the road from that direction. There’s an island on that side of the junction, so if turning right into the hotel, and a cycle lane on the left – so with that extra width (unless you’re driving something huge) you can just about cut in enough behind the island that you aren’t holding up traffic heading on up the hill.

(I’m sure that there used to be a small turning lane there for the very purpose, but if so that disappeared some years ago.)

However, if you aren’t so keen (or confident if you arrive at a time when there’s heavy traffic) the other option is to continue up the hill. Go straight across the lights at the top, and pass a Hungry Horse restaurant called the Lodekka, and just after that the road will fork into a small one way system. Follow it around and turn right so you double back on yourself, coming back down the hill – and the hotel entrance is now on your left.

I still need to run through my saved dashcam footage to prepare a set of directions with suitable images¹. I don’t know if the recordings I’ve saved include that part of my trips past the hotel – but they probably do, and if so I’ll add that extra bit to them.

¹ I’m busier than ever at the moment, because I’m in the process of moving home (and had trouble getting the carpets laid – finally done now, though!), but I’ll get it done ASAP.

The RISCOSitory show preview is now up, with a link to those directions.

The directions are hastily written, and the quality of the dash-cam images reflects the weather conditions and how long I’d been driving up to that point (the windscreen gets muckier the further/longer you drive).

There are some options missing – such as coming in via the A38 from the direction of Bath which, as I’ve said at some earlier point, isn’t a route that I ever travel by. An email comment this morning made me realise there’s another I could have included; coming off the M32 at junction 1 and following the A4174 ring road until the A38 It’s a route I could have taken to get to a particular office, but it’s a much longer one than normal, so I never go that way – coming home (i.e. the wrong direction) I sometimes do, though, depending on traffic. Ho hum.

As they stand, though, they should be okay for most road travellers.

Will there be any talks at the show and, if so, at what times, as I don’t see any mention of talks on the SW Show website?

Will there be any talks at the show and, if so, at what times, as I don’t see any mention of talks on the SW Show website?

In recent years they’ve been spread throughout the day, I think, as with other shows.

I’ve been given a time of 1.30pm for the Sine Nomine Software talk.

Providing I can get an internet connection working, I’ll be showing a new add-on to RiscOSM called Recce, that allows you to view pictures of places on the map from a couple of online sources. This has been made possible by the recent TCP/IP stack bounty, and by way of a thank you we will be giving the proceeds from sales of Recce to the next stage of the TCP/IP stack work.

(duplicate of my post from another topic as it’s more likely to be spotted here)

It took me 20 minutes to walk from Temple Meads station to the hotel. I’m quite a fast walker, but wasn’t rushing (I’d already travelled from London and spent the afternoon wandering round Bristol museum, so wasn’t exactly brimming with energy by then!). There’s a slight incline at the start but then levels out. Stay on the left hand pavement as the right hand side disappears at one point.

To get the bus, walk down the station approach road and turn left at the bottom, the bus stop is right there. Get the number 1, 349 or X39 to Arnos Court, which is directly opposite the hotel. It’s only three stops and takes less than five minutes. The buses take cash or contactless card and it costs £2.50.

Please if anyone at the hotel reads this, please give me a call. +46733261284

Vince or anyone in the know, will the hotel sell sandwiches for lunch or have a lunch menu as I don’t see anything on the website about refreshments? I have looked at the hotel website, and, although they have a restaurant, I wonder whether this is for dinner or (expensive) 3-course meals.

From hotel website

The lounge is open daily from 11am and we serve a range of bar snacks and tasty meals between 11am and 9:30pm in the evening.

Decent range of bar food – hot and cold sandwiches, soup of the day, tapas, burgers, pizza, pasta, etc.

Thanks, I didn’t find that on the hotel website – must try harder.

Show report at https://www.iconbar.com/articles/South-West_Show_2019_Report/index1467.html

Thanks for writing that up :)

Seconded, Well done Mark for such a quick turn around on the report.

It was good to see the show doing well and also to see some new faces so a big call out and welcome to Micheal Grunditz and Cameron Cawley who as far as I know were attending their first shows.

Thanks for supporting the RISC OS community.

Thanks for the report – any details on the Pinebook RO Laptop?

Hello all, my South West Show highlights video is now online via the Wi-Fi Sheep Youtube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d8Z_V1bCdU

Very much value your support, views, likes and if your registered with Youtube, your Subscriptions to our channel….

Thanks for the video; an interesting watch :)

What is that box under the display at 9:19? It appears to have a LaserDisc logo on it; is it an LD drive? I’ve never heard of one!

What is that box under the display at 9:19?

I’d hazard a guess at “part of the BBC Domesday Project system that was on show”.

Looks like you’re right! Thanks :)

F&$k%*g log-in problems! Gah!

Breathes…. okay

Some six months later, my RISCOSitory show report is now online.

Any show report that drops a Babylon 5 quote into the first line gets two thumbs up from me ;)

Any show report that drops a Babylon 5 quote into the first line gets two thumbs up from me ;)

…and there was me thinking it was Vince’s last best hope¹ of getting it online at all :)

¹ Or perhaps 1 December 1862 —> 2261 is a measure of how long Vince feels it took to do.