pmacaodh

Another useful reference for such data, Google's public data explorer:

http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=k3s92bru78li6_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=pcpipch&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=world&idim=country:TH&ifdim=world&ind=false

Has anyone had any luck configuring their TOT billion router (specifcally the Bipac 5200G) to forward traffic to an internal port? I'm tearing my hair out in frustration here as nothing seems to work.

I have had no luck setting the required NAT entry. I have also tried disabling the router firewall. The server is accessible on the internal network and my router can be seen by it's IP address internally, but not externally...

So I figure either the router isn't forwarding or I'm missing some important config step, but I can't be sure.

I just read about this today. Too funny. How can anyone at this level be so gullible? Another case of scientific ignorance perhaps; policy dictating science and not science dictating policy, as it should be: http://geekmanifesto.wordpress.com/

A sad situation and my heart goes out to you. My instinct is to try offer assistance, so I couldn't help but pitch a few ideas:

* You mentioned bond yields. All bonds can be sold on the secondary market, so there is no need to wait to maturity to get your principal back. After sale, one could hold the cash in the bank account here for visa application and then invest the principal back into in higher yielding bonds for the income once you get the visa; e.g. 10Y yields of Thai bonds are ~4.5%. Investing in THB removes currency risk too... See: http://www.thaibma.or.th/yieldcurve/YieldTTM.aspx Spreading risk across many Asian bonds may be a better ploy, Singapore, Malaysia, etc.

* Life insurance settlements: there are firms that will buy your life insurance for a good lump sum which allows you to benefit from the lump sum without dying. The value you receive will be somewhere between what your insurance company would pay you and what the death benefit is. If you don't have one already, you can still start a policy and sell it. http://www.eeafmg.gg/ are the biggest UK buyer. Here is some info on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_settlement It's a little morbid talking about money and death in the same sentence, but it is a practical use of what is really an investment of your cash.

* Relocation: as a British citizen, is it possible to try your luck in Oz instead? It's closer, so much cheaper to fly back and forth and deal with timezones. Also the economy and currency are relatively stronger...

Worth heeding the warnings of Europe indeed. Although, as long as it's all Baht denominated and inflation is kept high...

Still, there are too many Keynesians in charge today willing to spend money we don't have. I'd rather we spend only what we have (on infrastructure, education and basic welfare) and let the private sector take care of the rest. Call me an Austrian.

Linux nerds are worse than Apple nerds nowadays. Any computer-related post, no matter how unrelated to OS, has to be turned into a post about Linux.

OK, I apologise for steering off-topic. I'm not a fanboy, but just endorse choice. Any computer-related post should encompass all computer OS's where relevant though.

Hopefully on-topic: Chrome's sync feature and app choice in addition to it's stability, as I perceive it, makes it my browser of choice, regardless of OS. Although, some might call me a Google fanboy for saying this, but since I use Google products a lot, particularly Gmail and Docs, the offline apps in Chrome are really handy too.

Thanks for everyone's contribution. I went with prolene mesh repair by a very experienced surgeon (in his words, and also by his age) at Lanna and am recovering well. Scar of just over 2 inches and some bruising, but one week later almost no trace, except a thick ridge under the skin. Only time will tell how good the repair was, but so far so good. Total cost 39k (they are a little liberal with the extra costs, but nothing I can do about it).

For anyone else in the same boat, I want to share my experience: My biggest fears leading up resulted from too much research online. There you can find many reported problems with mesh, some with awful consequences, but after digesting it all, the common denominator for these problems seemed to be either: inexperienced surgeon, recalled mesh technology or problematic (e.g obese/frail) patients. Instead, sticking to the published peer-reviewed research and speaking to several surgeons, I found that this method really is the 'gold standard'. The specialist hernia clinics in Toronto and Germany may get better results without mesh, but if you're in Thailand, this would to be the optimal choice. Since I was in good shape, I concluded that working with an experienced surgeon using a prolene single layer mesh was my best option.

Agree about the OS. I encourage anyone with a USB pendrive to download UNETBOOTIN (http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/) and try out a linux distro at no risk (i.e. without installing). Everyone has their favourite, but Ubuntu and Mint are a good start. You might be surprised how zippy your PC is without Windows.

...enzymes that convert the alcohol in to toxic ethanol...

Sorry, but that makes no sense. Ethanol is the alcohol that we drink and belongs to a class of chemical compounds called alcohols. If there were any other alcohols in your beer, e.g. methanol, you would be in seriously bad shape (e.g. methanol causes blindness and/or death - as in Russia's problem of home-made vodka death).

Thanks Soutpeel, I'll contact them now. So, if it wasn't mesh, do you recall which technique it was by any chance?

I'm now one of the unlucky 25% of males to need this, so I'm looking for up to date info on surgeons that perform hernia repair using a variety of techniques and not just flat mesh repair. Several consultations with general surgeons in CM have yielded nothing new. Neither have days of extensive googling... Has anyone had surgery recently, maybe using non-mesh repair, here in Thailand or abroad? Bit of a long shot, but you never know - it is quite a common surgery.

Paid 1,200 Baht for Affirmation document translated and MoF stamped late last year........in Chiang Mai.

MoF stamp only costs a few hundred Baht.

Potentially very useful info. Could I ask you where exactly you received said services in CM? Thanks!

If you fancy a beer before the game, a few of us meet up in the Red Lion on Night Bizzare around 4pm, usually no problem in getting a lift too and from the ground also.

Hi Thiamiller - thanks for the invite. I can't make it for beer this time sadly, but since I'm living just 5mins from stadium I can meet you guys there. I'll PM you my number.

Anyone else going to Chiang Mai vs Chiang Rai tomorrow? 6pm, 700 stadium. Should be a nice derby!

I've been to see CM and TTM now and clearly CM a regional second league team are better supported here than the Thai premier league team. I'm still into going to see both. Great to have football on my doorstep for a fair price.

Incidentally, Muangthong of Robbie Fowler fame, are here in July to play TTM. I'll don my old collared Carlsberg 'pool short of the 90s for that one.

Has Google Maps got the address right?

http://maps.google.c...97acff92ee3be0a

Yes, that's it. I must have been unfortunate enough to find the old address through google last time.

Hard to say. There are two sides to every currency and fundamentals don't always determine direction,more often technical aspects like capital flows and expectations of future policy can have the greater influence. Just look at PPP currency models.

GBP: While Britain is in charge of it's own monetary policy and went the way of monetising it's mountain of debt right from the start (something Greece et al can't do themselves, but Europe will have to do to save the Euro), it indirectly weakens the currency. On the other hand, since it has tackled its problems first, it can be first to start growing again... maybe then interest rates will start to rise if it appears inflation is taking off.

THB: A growing economy is usually positive for a currency and Thailand doesn't have the problems of Europe but it seems inflation is on the rise and there is some capital flight in the short term, all of which can weaken the THB.

Many aspects to factor in and nothing is unquestionable. Turns out it's quite hard to make money trading currencies.

First post on here, hope someone finds it useful...

Last week, while in Bali, I applied for a tourist visa for my return. I arranged for a driver to bring me to the consulate in Denpasar - googling gave me the wrong address, but the consulate twitter feed is a reliable source of info (twitter handle: RTCatDPS). Fees and contact info there are up to date.

The consulate is halfway between the US and Australian consulates, so most drivers should be able to get you there, but writing down the address of all destinations in Bali is recommended as some drivers will happily set off without a firm idea of their destination in mind.

On arrival, one hour past open (9:30), doors were still locked. After rooting around the house and gates, an Indonesian man appeared and asked if I met the minimum requirements detailed on the noticeboard by the door. They won't even open the doors unless you meet these requirements, including having an onward flight ticket from Bangkok. Since I expected to leave from Chiang Mai, he summoned the consul... Some minutes later he appeared and informed me that a flight ticket from Chiang Mai was acceptable (but only a flight ticket). I didn't have one, so I needed to buy a flight ticket...

After a search for internet, with one failed find (the power was down at the first shop), I returned confirmation in hand, along with passport photos, passport, application form and $40 (US dollars only!). The application was accepted that morning and I returned two days later in the afternoon, as instructed, to collect my passport with visa inside. Overall, the process is smooth, as long as you follow their requirements strictly, but don't expect more than the mandated service.

I had considered doing the trip on a rented motorbike, but I was glad to have an air conditioned car with driver. Bali traffic is ridiculously bad and the air is hot and dirty away from the beaches. I combined it with a day's sightseeing for $50 all-in, so it worked out reasonable enough.