Coma - book vs film

At the moment I am reading Coma, a brilliant medical thriller by Robin Cook.

I've read the book a few times, and find it interesting with the right amount of mystery and suspense. Today I watched the film version of Coma, and noticed that there are differences with the book.

The main difference is that in the book, the main character, Susan Wheeler, is a medical student about to start a surgery rotation in a top Boston hospital. In the film, Susan Wheeler is an established doctor at the Boston Hospital. The book features her growing relationship with Mark Bellows, a surgery resident at the hospital who is partly responsible for her training. In the film they are already linked.

As well as changing some of the character's names (for instance, the Chief of Surgery in the book is Stark and in the film it is Harris - Harris is the Chief of Anaesthesia in the book) the initial character in the book - eventual coma victim Nancy Greenly - is first encountered by Susan Wheeler in intensive care after suffering an anaesthetic complication - in the film Greenly and Wheeler are best friends since school.

The film would have been better had it stuck more rigidly to the book - featuring the encounter in the medical school accommodation block with the hitman and the main character being a medical student instead of an established doctor - but overall it is a very watchable film.

I have read several books by Robin Cook - Brain, Contagion, Acceptable Risk, Vector and Shock.

For me, Shock was most like Coma. For Jefferson Institute read Wingate Clinic.

I aim to read more Robin Cook books in the future. The medical aspect makes them very interesting.

Goodbye to Linux

Yesterday I uninstalled Ubuntu from my computer after being unable to access the internet with my regular modem.

I was disappointed at the outcome, as I do like Linux and it suits my style of computing - being on a tight budget means that I benefit more from the open source programs which Linux uses, but I could not afford to budget for a new modem or wireless set up just to be able to use the secondary system on my PC.

So Linux had to go to free up space :-(

Linux with WUBI

The other day I finally found a way I could use Linux without those dreadful live discs and Virtual Box - it's called WUBI (stands for Windows Automatic Ubuntu Installer apparently).

With WUBI you install the Ubuntu into the Windows and then at start up you are given the option to boot into Windows (the default setting) or Ubuntu. It does away with the hassle of partitioning the hard disk and gives you a functional Linux system. I like the look of Ubuntu but I have to say that I prefer the comfortable old slippers feeling of using Windows XP!

The big problem I have experienced (and not yet been able to solve) with Ubuntu is the fact that I cannot browse the internet. My ADSL ethernet modem works fine in XP but in Ubuntu I get a connection and nothing else - which means that, as well as not being able to surf the internet, I am unable to download any programs or updates. I am just glad that I have XP as my default operating system and not Ubuntu as the only one. I have seen a similar issue on the Ubuntu support forum but no one has provided a solution to it.

The other big difference is in load up time. I did a little test yesterday and timed the loading of each OS from the moment I selected it. The results are surprising - Windows XP took just 1 minute 39.25 seconds from being selected to all my programs being ready for me to use but Ubuntu took a staggering 8 minutes 50.14 seconds before it was ready to use. I like Linux but I am not convinced of its superiority to Windows.

That live disc again!

Last year readers will remember how I wrote about the nightmare of the live disc and Virtual Box (read it here).

Well, today the dreaded live disc struck again. I had left Virtual Box alone this time, that is gone forever from my computer, but I read that Linux could be run from the CD-ROM in a sort of demo mode, and when you had finished you just eject the disc, restart the computer and get your Windows back again. I put the disc into the disc tray and then restarted the computer. I have to say that the boot process was not particularly fast for the Ubuntu, if anything it was slower than my now-speedy XP system, but I am interested in seeing what Linux has to offer without having to commit to installing onto the hard drive so I decided to give the disc a go without the dreaded Virtual Box.

After a quick game of Mah Jongg, I looked round at some of the software - Open Office, media players, disc burning and my beloved GIMP were all there, and the GIMP on the disc was a more up to date version than the 2.4.2 than I run on XP. I tried to install the latest version but my computer doesn't like it and so I re-installed 2.4.2. I have to say I like the look of Linux.

The fun started, again, when I tried to eject the disc. I got a notice saying that there was "an error in ejecting the volume" each time I tried to eject the disc, and even poking the emergency eject hole did not work. I had to restart and then press the eject button on the drive and thankfully it opened and I could remove the disc.

If anyone has any suggestions on how I can try Linux without Virtual Box and without putting a damned live disc into my disc drive then please speak up!

Gas fire joins faulty appliances club!

Hot on the heels of our bagless vacuum cleaner, computer and cooker comes the gas fire. All those domestic appliances have broken down since New Year, and now the latest member of the club is sporting a bright red "danger" label.

The fun started on Friday tea time just after the fire had been lit. It is one of those fires with a glass front and coal and flame effect, and suddenly there was a loud crack which scared the cat, and which, on inspection revealed a large crack down the front of the glass.

We arranged to have someone come out to look at it, and when they arrived yesterday said they had never seen such a problem before! He disconnected the fire from the gas supply and stuck the danger label on and told us that someone would come along on Monday (tomorrow) to replace the cracked glass.

Last night the bulb in my bedroom ceiling light gave up the ghost after a few years, and has now been replaced by a "green" tubular bulb, so my room is the first one in the flat to have 100% green lighting (apart from the bathroom but that doesn't count because there is only one light in there and I have two!)

More on our domestic appliances

With the ongoing problems with vacuum cleaners we could well do without another of our appliances joining the unreliable club, but only a couple of weeks after the vacuum, followed by the computer, broke down, our cooker has now followed suit.

All seemed normal when the roasting tin was put into the oven for the fat to melt this morning, but when the potatoes which had been put into the fat to roast were taken out raw, and we discovered there was no heat in the oven even though it was switched on and the fan was working (it is a fan oven) it was not cooking anything.

So we are now spending tomorrow morning waiting for someone to come out and repair it.

TV's latest canine is not cute or cuddly!

Pablo in a scene from the advert


The usual TV canine is a cute and appealing creature - think "Lassie", "Benji" or "Littlest Hobo" and you see what I mean. Now, the latest TV canine is a puppet corpse which is here to show the horrors of cocaine.

Pablo the Drug Mule Dog appeared on UK screens at the end of last year, and already has made an impact on discussion forums and on Facebook, where he has his own rapidly-growing fan base.

Pablo is not cute, nor is he cuddly, but if he manages to turn people away from the horrors of drugs then he will be worth everything!

Watch the Pablo videos below (please note these videos are not suitable for young children).











To read more about the anti drug campaign click here.