Radoslaw Orszewski

As the year 2009 has gone with the wind almost everyone presents rankings of the best things in 2009. This is my private, subjective list containing more or less important categories. Let’s start conventionally.

Best Music. This category is quite tough as throughout 2009 I was impressed and seduced by quite a few good albums and songs. Past year was definitely a good and important period for soft electronic music. Best examples are new Karin Dreijer Andersson project “Fever Ray” and long-awaited Royksopp album entilted “Junior”. Polish electro funky music was also doing well with Łąki Łan and “Łąkiłanda”. What about more traditional sounds? Thrilling “Lungs” by Florence and the Machine are definitely worth checking. To add something more rocking. The Greatest Hits of Foo Figthers. That’s quite a lot of the best, isn’t it?

Best Concert. Well, again not an easy choice. I was happy to see several good concerts, but definitely the best live performance I saw was a Nouvelle Vague concert with guest appearance of Ania Dabrowska in Krakow Rotunda Club.

Best Bike Race. Here I cannot judge the best race by its result. Most enjoyable was “Fish” Memorial Race in beautiful scenery of Zieleniec. Almost 70-kilometers long and tiring route full of challenges, bike failures and pleasure of overcoming your own weaknesses.

Best Software. Here you will be surprised. Windows Vista. How come? Why 2009? Am I insane you may ask? Well, this year, as this year I changed my laptop and with my new Toshiba device Vista is something drastically different than the previous experience with HP machine. Fast. Damn fast, nice and really stable, good successor of XP. Actually I have already ordered a copy of Windows 7, so if it is as good as they say – I will have a winner for 2010.

Best Mobile Software. Duo of Opera Mini 5 and Opera Mobile 10. Still beta releases, but definitely something great. Good user interface, consistency with amazing desktop Opera 10. One category above I was wondering if I shouldn’t put Opera 10 there. Opera Mini and Mobile deserve to be here.

Best Internet Service. Facebook? No. Twitter? No. So what? Well, for younger generation this may be a kind of controversy. The winner is … e-mail. Yes, yes. Old, not to say archaic, good e-mail. If you start using push e-mail on your smartphone, you will discover what great companion it may be. Text message? Not needed anymore. MMS? C’mon. You must be joking. E-mail with attachment is far more convenient. Chat? E-mail is not so disturbing and almost as instant. You may reply in a moment, when you have more time. I know this may be not a news for Blackberry users, but I observe the same comfort of push e-mail usage is more and more available for users of Apple, Android, WM or Symbian operating platform, also thanks to cellular operators support.

Best food. Definitely Donner served in Kebap House at Westphalweg U-Bahn Station, Berlin Mariendorf, Germany.

What were your favs in 2009?