Ellee Seymour

I’ve been struggling all day to familiarise myself with Windows Vista now that all my programmes have been transferred over to my new computer.

However, I have still had to install much of the software again, and as all my blogging software was installed by Geoff, and he is away on an epic trek on foot across the Pyrenees, I had no choice but to try and unravel this challenge.

I had considerably difficulty getting Windows Live Writer,the software I use for writing my blog posts, to configure with Wordpress. It didn’t recognise my passwords and personal info. And I was also unable to access the Wordpress site to write a post from their software.

Fortunately, two good Samaritans came to my aid earlier this evening. I contacted two great bloggers who kindly helped me out of my tight spot. First of all, Tim Almond enabled me to access the Wordpress site. And then The Wardman Wire kindly helped me resolve my Live Writer dilemma.

I just need to figure out how to add categories to Live Writer and then all should be back to normal, in a manner of speaking.

A thousand thanks to both Tim and Wardman Wire, you are two great guys and your help was much appreciated. You have done your good deed for the day and I can sleep easier tonight now.

Greece’s Conservatives have retained their lead in the latest general elections. But how many people are aware that it is one of 32 countries in the world where voting is compulsory?

Even in the fire-ravaged villages of southern Greece, where many homes remain without water or electricity, prefabricated containers were used as temporary voting centres. Despite the loss of homes, voters were still expected to perform their democratic duty.

Here in the UK, voters struggle to turn out at general elections . In African states, I have read of villagers walking for two days to vote. But how can we persuade our citizens to go to their ballot box? I think they want to have more belief in the leaders who want to represent them, they need to feel engaged, that a new party will really make a difference to their lives - for the better. We should allow citizens to choose whether or not to vote, and leaders are having to work much harder to convince an increasingly cynical electorate.

There does not seem to be strict enforcement of the compulsory voting legislation, though goods and services provided by public offices may be denied to those failing to vote in Greece.

Countries that enforce compulsory voting are:

• Argentina
• Australia (compulsory enrolment and voting for both state^* and national elections)
• Belgium
• Brazil (non-compulsory for 16 & 17 year olds and those over 70)
• Chile (enrollment voluntary)
• Cyprus
• Ecuador
• Fiji
• Greece
• Liechtenstein
• Luxembourg
• Mexico
• Nauru
• Peru
• Singapore
• Switzerland (Schaffhausen)
• Uruguay

^*In South Australia it is not compulsory to enroll. Nevertheless as the form to enroll is a combined Federal and State one, with no provision to not enroll for the State, it is practically compulsory.

• Bolivia
• Costa Rica
• Dominican Republic
• Egypt (men only)
• France (Senate elections only)
• Gabon
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Italy
• Paraguay
• Philippines
• Thailand