Andy In Egypt

Our nephew Andy is visiting from the states and of course we have to visit the pyramids.

Andy Inside a Pyramid

New Video Camera

My New Computer

Happy Christmas

Cool tree! Kocht deze Kerstboom met ingebouwde lichtjes (kan het nog erger...) hier in Cairo. Dacht dat Brian het ongelooflijk kitsch zou vinden, maar tot mijn stomme verbazing vindt hij het prachtig...of toch niet?

The Age: If GPS can't tell, you're in Egypt

APPLE'S iPhone has proved a sensation since it went on sale, rapidly becoming the most popular mobile phone in the US and selling almost 5 million handsets worldwide.

As the company prepares to sell the award-winning gadget in Egypt, users there will have to go without a popular feature: satellite navigation.

Egypt has banned the import of all global positioning system-enabled devices, claiming it is a military-grade technology that can be used to help pinpoint government buildings or be used by terrorists.

As a result, Egyptian buyers will not be able to use GPS. According to documents filed on Apple's website, "GPS is not available while in Egypt, or when using an Egyptian phone", which "is consistent with Egyptian law regarding GPS enabled devices". The company would not comment further.

Apple is not the first company to fall foul of the ban, which has been in place for five years.

The Finnish phone manufacturer Nokia has been in negotiations with the Egyptian Government to allow it to sell its GPS-enabled handsets but so far without success.

The ban has created a thriving blackmarket in GPS devices and high-end mobile phones.

Thousands of Egyptians sport handsets, such as the Nokia N95, while satnav gadgets are often used by groups trekking in the desert or off the beaten track.

"It's a direct link to the satellite, so there's no way they can stop you," said Stefan Geens, a Swedish blogger who lives in Cairo.

He said he regularly used GPS while travelling in remote parts of the country but had never seen anyone questioned about the technology.

Egyptian authorities have a notoriously testy relationship with new technology, having banned satellite dishes in the 1980s.

The Government has also struggled with the explosion of internet use, particularly blogging. In recent years a number of bloggers have been imprisoned because of what they have written, many of them charged with illegally criticising the president or inciting religious hatred.

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