Channel VisionRobert Kirby To borrow a Clive James phrase, you couldn’t see the planet for the atmosphere – in this case the dust. The first episode of the much vaunted Rhodes turned out to be a slightly reconditioned but otherwise standard-issue western. The only noticeable difference was in the accents of the characters. Not much […]

Ivor Powell In the latest development in a long- simmering dispute between the police and the Directorate of Special Prosecutions, Director Eric Nkabinde – second in charge of detectives in KwaZulu-Natal – is considering instituting legal action against Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Chris McAdam. Nkabinde’s lawyer John Wills said his client is “considering what […]

David le Page South African company Diamond Network Technologies has written a tiny but revolutionary piece of software that could make PCs around the world easier and cheaper to maintain. The new software is called DiNIC. It occupies at most 64K of flash ROM – built- in memory – on a normal network card, and […]

CDs of the week Whether it’s because the film functions like a giant commercial or because people want to relive its ambience, movie soundtracks often sell very well. Not the scores (unless it’s Titanic, boosted by Celine Dion going on and on) but the CDs subtitled “music from the motion picture”, the compilations of various […]

Currie Cup finals are normally such tight affairs that it is usually an untimely mistake that decides the winner, writes Andy Capostagno When I think of what may happen in the Currie Cup final at King’s Park on Saturday, I wonder principally whether Cabous van der Westhuizen has stopped screaming yet. The year was 1993, […]

Katharine Viner meets Susan Faludi, the writer who has taken on the problems of men without betraying feminism Seven years is a long time to spend obsessing over men. Seven years, for anyone, is a long time to spend talking to football fans, porn actors, war veterans, film stars, astronauts, shipbuilders, fundamentalist Christians, gang members, […]

Heather Hogan Police from the Middelburg police station in Mpumalanga were so determined to stop escapes from its holding cells that they decided to take action themselves. With the help of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Middelburg and other police stations have implemented a new cell management programme that has not only […]

David le Page What’s New Intel and United States design company Sozo have launched the first item of PC furniture, probably destined to join the Sinclair C5 electric car and the calculator watch on the dust heap of tech history. It is a pouf, or “Ottoman footstool”, with a built-in PC, which gives you the […]

Howard Barrell Over a Barrel There is no prize for recognising that our civil service is overstaffed, underskilled and unfocused. The government, at any rate, would not reward you for the insight. The challenge we face is how to reform, even rebuild, the civil service into something that can both deliver quality services and become […]

Barry Streek Parliament’s portfolio committee on finance is to hold hearings next month on tax reforms which could benefit the NGO sector as well as art galleries and museums. If the reforms – proposed by the Katz commission – are supported by the committee and government, non-profit organisations will be given tax benefits, including exemptions […]