William Murphy

SPIRIT OF THE DOCKLANDS

April 6, 2023 by infomatique

GLASS ROOFED TOUR BOAT ON THE RIVER LIFFEY

Dublin’s tour service on the River Liffey. The bright red, glass-roofed tour boat, ‘Spirit of Docklands’ operates between the city centre and the Docklands, exploring the historical sites and landmarks along the River Liffey.

A tour guide delivers entertaining snippets on Dublin life specific to the Liffey and Docklands throughout the journey, offering passengers an intriguing insight into Dublin folklore and history. The script has been developed by leading Dublin historian Pat Liddy. The tour departs from a landing station at Bachelor’s Walk, passing under O’Connell Bridge downstream past the Custom House in Docklands. It reaches the East Link Toll Bridge and the Grand Canal Basin before passing the IFSC and returning to Bachelor’s Walk.

‘Spirit of Docklands’ arrived in Dublin in June 2005. Built in Sweden by boat builders Westers Mekaniska, it can accommodate 50 passengers, is 23 metres long and capable of travelling at 9.5 knots. It is wheelchair accessible and suitable for young and old alike.

The service is the latest of a number of initiatives under the Docklands Authority’s River Regeneration Strategy to bring back life to the River Liffey to give Dubliners and visitors alike an alternative view of the city.

The Liffey River Cruises operates daily, with a journey time of approximately 45 minutes.

GLASSON COURT PARK AND THE SLANG RIVER

April 4, 2023 by infomatique

WINDY ARBOUR – DUNDRUM – MILLTOWN

The name of the area was originally Irish Na Glasáin, “the green land”; this was Anglicised as ‘Glassons’. The name Windy Harbour or Sandy Arbour was later applied, referring to a landing-point on the River Slang. A starch mill was formerly located there. “Arbour” once had the meaning “grass plot, lawn, garden”; it is possible that the name was intended as a direct translation of glasáin.

The River Slang (Irish: Abhainn na Stéille), also known as the Dundrum Slang or the Dundrum River, a tributary of the River Dodder, is a stream which rises on Three Rock Mountain, County Dublin. It is in the jurisdiction of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.

From Three Rock Woods on the northern slopes of Three Rock Mountain, the Slang flows down through Ticknock, passing Ballinteer north to Dundrum, where it (sometimes known this far as “Ticknock Stream” or “River Ann”) receives the Wyckham Stream, and then loops east, north, and west, coming to a mill pond north of the Dundrum Town Centre retail complex. The Slang then runs north via Windy Arbour and subsequently joins the River Dodder at Milltown, near the Nine Arches viaduct, now used by the Luas.

The small Wyckham Stream, joining from the west, is a natural tributary, visible on early maps, but was later connected to the Little Dargle River, further west, to take some of the flow of that river into the Slang, to increase the supply for powering of mills.

Today there is a walk made by the County Council from south Dundrum to Marlay Park, along part of the Slang, the Wyckham Stream, and part of the Little Dargle.

The Slang was a small stream in a grassy glen behind Dundrum’s main street, near the old Dundrum Castle, and children used to play there until late in the 1960s, from when it was confined more and more by modern developments.

Its name is from the archaic English term slang, meaning “long, narrow piece of land.” Its Irish name is abhainn na Stéille, “river of the strip [of land]”.

According to the local authorities and the Office of Public Works, the Slang has a notable record of flooding. In October 2011, after torrential rain on “the Three Rock”, the Slang burst its banks at the mill pond below the old castle, flooding the “Town Centre” shopping mall to a depth of at least 15 cm – a ‘once in a century’ occurrence according to reports, and featuring in video reports on YouTube and similar sites.

Glasson Court Park, Slang River, Dundrum, Windy Arbour, Milltown, River Dodder, Abhainn na Stéille, Dundrum River, a tributary of the River Dodder,joins the River Dodder at Milltown, William Murphy, Infomatique, Fotonique,

RANDOM IMAGES OF DALKEY VILLAGE

April 3, 2023 by infomatique

2 APRIL 2023

All going well I will visit Dalkey again on Wednesday and explore the area in greater detail … I am assuming the the the weather will be suitable.

One of the patron saints of Dalkey is St. Begnet, a probable seventh-century figure. A ruined church and a holy well on Dalkey Island are named for her, as is another ruined church near the town centre.

The main settlement was founded as a Viking community and became an active port during the Middle Ages.

Dalkey developed increasing strategic value as a port for bulk shipments bound for Dublin during the 15th century. The channel between Dalkey Island and the mainland provided ideal conditions for unloading galleons carrying heavy cargo due to its depth (relative to Dublin Bay) and its sheltered position. The treacherous shallows of Dublin Bay prevented direct shipments into the city centre, making Dalkey an ideal access point for trade.

Although seven 15th-16th century castles were originally built in the area, by 1837 it was noted (in Samuel Lewis’s Topographical Dictionary of Ireland) that:

Four of its ancient castles have been entirely destroyed, and the remains of three others which have been long dismantled, convey striking indications of their former importance; one has been converted into a private dwelling, another is used as a store, and the third as a carpenters shop.
Dalkey’s remaining Norman castle is now in use as a heritage centre and town hall.

THE GUINEA PIG RESTAURANT

April 3, 2023 by infomatique

DALKEY VILLAGE 2 APRIL 2023

It is a very long time since I visited this restaurant and I had hoped to meet some family members there on Wednesday but unfortunately we could not get a suitable booking so we had to book a table at DeVille’s which I last visited about four years ago. I hope to photograph the area in detail before visiting the restaurant.

This Guinea Pig restaurant was first opened in 1957; it was soon the established haunt of locals and the stars of screen filming in Ardmore Studios in Bray. Regular stars were John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara, John Ford and Peter Ustinov. Mervyn Stewart and his family purchased the restaurant in 1978 and continued this tradition. Regulars included Hugh Leonard, Maeve Binchy, Enya, Lisa Stanfield, Bono, The Edge, Liam Neeson, Sir Cliff Richard, Meryl Streep and many more. And of Course, William Murphy.

Jérôme Fernandes, French chef owner, has recently purchased the Guinea Pig restaurant, and is building on the good work of his predecessors. Jérôme plans to maintain the timeless atmosphere of the restaurant when updating the décor. Our customers are attracted to the classic dining experience of the Guinea Pig restaurant; the consistently good food prepared by our chef owner Jérôme, his kitchen team and equally the courteous service, supervised by Kevin O’Gorman our restaurant manager.

MICROSOFT BING IMAGE GENERATOR GENERATES IMAGES OF LEPRECHAUNS

April 1, 2023 by infomatique

EARLY DAYS SO EXPECT FLAWS AND WEIRD IMAGES

Using Bing Image Creator to Generate Amazing AI Artwork: In March Microsoft announced that they were bringing Bing Image Creator, new AI-powered visual Stories and updated Knowledge Cards to the new Bing and Edge preview. Powered by an advanced version of the DALL∙E model from their partners at OpenAI, Bing Image Creator allows you to create an image simply by using your own words to describe the picture you want to see. Now you can generate both written and visual content in one place, from within chat.

In February Microsoft launched an all new, AI-powered Bing search engine and Edge browser, available in preview now at Bing.com, to deliver better search, more complete answers, a new chat experience and the ability to generate content.

Microsoft brought together search, browsing and chat into one unified experience you can invoke from anywhere on the web, delivering:

Better search. The new Bing gives you an improved version of the familiar search experience, providing more relevant results for simple things like sports scores, stock prices and weather, along with a new sidebar that shows more comprehensive answers if you want them.

Complete answers. Bing reviews results from across the web to find and summarise the answer you’re looking for. For example, you can get detailed instructions for how to substitute eggs for another ingredient in a cake you are baking right in that moment, without scrolling through multiple results.

A new chat experience. For more complex searches – such as for planning a detailed trip itinerary or researching what TV to buy – the new Bing offers new, interactive chat. The chat experience empowers you to refine your search until you get the complete answer you are looking for by asking for more details, clarity and ideas – with links available so you can immediately act on your decisions.

A creative spark. There are times when you need more than an answer – you need inspiration. The new Bing can generate the content to help you. It can help you write an email, create a 5-day itinerary for a dream vacation to Hawaii, with links to book your travel and accommodations, prep for a job interview or create a quiz for trivia night. The new Bing also cites all its sources, so you’re able to see links to the web content it references.

New Microsoft Edge experience. The Edge browser with new AI capabilities and a new look, they have added two new functionalities: Chat and compose. With the Edge Sidebar, you can ask for a summary of a lengthy financial report to get the key takeaways – and then use the chat function to ask for a comparison to a competing company’s financials and automatically put it in a table. You can also ask Edge to help you compose content, such as a LinkedIn post, by giving it a few prompts to get you started. After that, you can ask it to help you update the tone, format and length of the post. Edge can understand the web page you’re on and adapts accordingly.