adamconnors.net | mental notes

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 07:26:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--For penance I'm going to leave this message here at the top of my trusty 'ol website for the sin of not fixing that damn error on Flog which fails to show keyword-driven Amazon results. Procrastination begone!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 03:55:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--It's a wonderous false spring here in Melbs. The tyres are pumped on my cycle, set for self transport. It's all cold and clear. And Mr and Mrs C are rubbing a little bump all a-ga, which is hilarious. Happy times.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 12:05:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Been back a few weeks in M-town. Back at work on Pacific Beat AM edition 5-7am AEST. Haven't stepped on, or even laid, a landmine thusfar. Same contacts.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:43:00 +0000

BRISBANE--RIP Cedric Inman Comer, wife of Pat, father of Andrew, Martin and my wife Sue. Top guy. Here he is, making sure I was aware of the situation at our wedding last year.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 04:30:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Travel ahoy. In Brisbane 18-25 August, then Perth 26 August-3 September, on same numbers and email.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:18:00 +0000

FULL TRANSCRIPT--ABC's Mark Scott presentation at PINA conference 'Relationships and Role of Development Partners � Friends or Neo-Colonialists, or Pacific Partner Pacific Friend: ABC International'. I've added this to read at some point.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:14:00 +0000

Inaugural Pacific Media Summit 2009

�Breaking Barriers - Access to Information�: Mark Scott, Session 6

Relationships and Role of Development Partners � Friends or Neo-Colonialists Pacific Partner, Pacific Friend: ABC International

I have taken the liberty of reworking this session title Relationships and Role of Development Partners � Friends or Neo-Colonialists to put a more positive construction on it � Pacific Partner, Pacific Friend: ABC International.

Because that�s how we see ourselves at the ABC. As friends. As partners. And I think that anyone who examines the ABC�s record in the Pacific over the seventy years we have been broadcasting would agree with that.

I can happily assure you that the ABC has no neo-colonialist agenda. Neo-colonialist implies an intention to set about reshaping what we encounter in our own image.

Rather, our belief is that each media organisation in the Pacific region needs to find its own path within the context of its own society.

That said, the ABC has certain values that it lives up to, Australia�s values and beliefs, and I�ll be talking about the principles that inform our work today.

I am honoured for many reasons to have been invited by PINA to the first Pacific Media Summit. History will be made during the course of this conference.

The invitation comes at a particularly good time for the ABC. Our International division has never been more focused on partnerships with the some 22 island nations of the Pacific.

Today I will be filling in some detail about our renewed effort in and enduring future commitment to the region.

And it seems fitting that as we contemplate the future we are able to reflect and celebrate the past as well - the anniversary, in two days time, of Vanuatu�s proclamation of independence and the inauguration of the Republic on July 30, 1980.

We must never take the enduring success of parliamentary democracy and its attendant rights and privileges for granted.

PINA�s invitation also means a lot to me because it is a further opportunity for me to listen and learn directly from you, the fellowship of Pacific broadcasters, print and online journalists, about the role you envisage for public interest media in your societies, and the contribution you are determined to make to civic life.

I want to set out clearly for you some of the principles behind the work of ABC International and its plans and long term vision.

I want to set out what kind of support we can provide for goals your media organisations have determined for themselves. It is just as important to the ABC that we understand this as it is to you, our partners.

The Necessity of Free Media

But I also want to let you know - every editor, every journalist, every broadcaster and blogger in this room - that the ABC stands behind your commitment and your aspirations to free and independent media throughout the Pacific.

With the Public Emergency Regulations having now been extended several times in Fiji, and the temporary suspension of democracy now in its third year, media censorship has continued.

Fiji�s Permanent Secretary for Information, Lieutenant Colonel Neumi Leweni said in May �If I was given the choice, I�d leave (controls) there for the next five years�.

At the end of June Lieutenant Leweni said that the absence of politics from the national agenda had been �contributing positively to the peace and stability of the nation�.

This is what the people of Fiji are up against.

The notion that they cannot be trusted with information to make the right decisions about how they are to live and be governed. This may have often be the alibi of the autocrat but it�s no justification for censorship.

The experience around the world is that a free and independent media is a cornerstone in a society which demonstrates good governance in the interests of all its people.

It operates alongside a judiciary that should be incorruptible, law enforcement that is respected and trusted, political leaders who are accountable.

A free and functioning independent media, like sunlight, provides the best disinfectant for our political system � to keep a close eye on those who can become intoxicated by the personal opportunities on offer to those who hold positions of power.

It helps protect against cronyism and corruption � traits that emerge in societies that lack openness and transparency. The preface to the ABC�s Editorial Policies � which is both the rulebook for ABC journalism and the ethics that inform our work - states that �...the ABC is committed to fundamental democratic principles including the rule of law, freedom of speech and religion, parliamentary democracy and equality of opportunity - it is through the prism of these values that the ABC regards the world."

The ABC acts on behalf of the Australian people when it holds those in power to account. Its journalism contributes to transparency and accountability in public life.

The policies are there not just to guide our work, but to act as a standard the Australian people can hold the ABC to, and measure it against. Just as we demand accountability of others, the ABC is itself accountable.

So as Editor in Chief of the ABC, as an advocate of those values both in the ABC�s domestic and international services, I have a responsibility to the people of Fiji, where we have long broadcast, to promote those values.

And to refute the idea that outlawing freedom of speech in Fiji will produce more good than permitting it.

Right across the Pacific, audiences watch, listen to and engage online with the ABC�s international services.

Radio Australia has fourteen 24 hour FM stations in the Pacific and is also available by satellite, cable, short wave and streaming online. In December Radio Australia marks 70 years of broadcasting in the Pacific.

Australia Network television broadcasts to 44 nations in Asia and the Pacific.
And our media capacity building partnership business, ABC International Projects is working in Papua New Guinea, the Solomons, Vanuatu and across the Pacific with PACMAS.

Our services have earned the trust of the people of the Pacific because those services are fair and accurate, and can provide a more complete picture than news that has been subject to Government controls and censors.

In those nations where local media are either financially unable or have been constrained, the ABCs services come to matter even more. As they do in Fiji.

Which explains why, following the abrupt switch-off of the Radio Australia transmitters in Suva and Nadi, and the deportation of the ABC�s Pacific correspondent Sean Dorney, we received as a text message this cry of help from inside Fiji:

We are trying to listen to you online but are having difficulty. Please keep broadcasting. You are all we have.

We acknowledge that the restoration of democracy and freedom of information will be difficult, complex and unpredictable.

Yet open debate, and freedom of speech and information, while inconvenient to the ruling regime, are necessary to the people of Fiji and all of the Pacific.

They are necessary for the future health and prosperity of our nations. For the rights of our citizens. To create a climate where accountable democracy can flourish.

Free speech and the flow of information remain the only authentic ways through which citizens can make meaningful decisions about their future � to choose their own paths and their own solutions.

And the will of the people is best served by having the confidence to give them the right to express it - freely and democratically.

As the theme of this conference suggests, this is one barrier to information - without either legal basis or public consent - that must come down.

I want to publicly lend my support as well to the efforts of those journalists in Fiji who � despite the threats, the intimidation and the presence of the censors - have refused to be silenced.

Who have instead courageously continued to try and give their people the full story, upholding the principle of the public�s right to know. Who have insisted that the work goes on.

It cannot be easy having to fight the same battle every day to try and fulfil your duty to the nation and to the profession, and I applaud your dedication and your courage.

I acknowledge as well the importance of advocacy organisations such as PINA, the Pacific Media Forum, JAWS, and the International Federation of Journalists and other opponents of censorship and champions for media freedom.

Principles and Responsibilities of ABC International

The ABC Act of 1983 and its Charter states that ABC must �� transmit to countries outside Australia broadcasting programs and television programs of news, current affairs, entertainment and cultural enrichment that will encourage awareness of Australia and an international understanding of Australian attitudes on world affairs.�

We achieve this through ABC International�s work in the region with Radio Australia, Australia Network, and International Projects.

Funded by AusAID, International Projects is currently involved in grassroots level projects partnering with public interest media in PNG, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Pacific generally through the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme (PACMAS).

The ABC is deploying highly experienced international broadcasters to work in the field on these projects.

Chris Greene, former South East Asian Editor for the BBC World Service leads our project in Papua New Guinea. Corelle Fergusson, former MD of Imparja television in Central Australia and a former executive with the Seven Network leads our work in the Solomons.

Francis Herman, former Chief Executive of Fiji Broadcasting leads our work here in partnership with the Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation. Francis follows on from the outstanding contribution to this region from Jean Gabriel Manguy who continues to work with us as a governance consultant.

Sean Dorney has been reporting from the Pacific for over 30 years. He married into the Pacific and his children spent much of their young lives growing up in these islands. He even captained the PNG Rugby League national team.

Within this team alone, we have over a century�s worth of Pacific commitment and understanding of the region.

The ABC is also investing our best leadership in these endeavours.

Kim Dalton, Director of ABC Television is heading our partnership with Vietnam Television. Former media lawyer and privacy commissioner, Paul Chadwick, Director of ABC Editorial Policies has worked with Radio National Kampuchea is crafting their own editorial guidelines.

We are keen to share the benefits of the Australian public�s investment in public broadcasting over decades as we share insights into running credible and independent public interest media organisations.

And this partnership is certainly not one way. We are learning much that causes us to reflect on our own guidelines and practice.

While they have different sources of funding, Radio Australia and Australia Network each work to the same editorial principles, and under the same Charter and the same ABC Act, upholding the same editorial expectations for accuracy, fairness and objectivity.

They also share the largest editorial group covering the the Pacific - sixty journalists led by Sean Dorney in our Pacific coverage serving the region exclusively through the ABC Asia Pacific News Centre on Radio Australia, on Australia Network television and online.

What this all adds up to is a range of services out of Australia, through the ABC, that leads in its depth, range and commitment.

The ABC enjoys two great privileges � the financial assurance of public funding and the political security of editorial independence from Government. And with these privileges, come certain responsibilities.

Responsibilities as one of Australia�s longest serving public institutions.
Responsibilities as an international broadcaster.

And we have responsibilities as a citizen of the region: to the international community of public interest media in the Pacific, to promote and help develop capacity for this work to the journalistic community here and to the practice and values of journalism, as exemplified in the work of Radio Australia and Australia Network.

The ABC, through Radio Australia has been a long term presence in the Pacific � since 1939. Seventy years.

And what we�re looking at in 2009 is the long term future, the next seventy years.

We want to deepen the ABC�s relationship with the Pacific region.

To continue building and strengthening our services so that ABC International is the go-to place for Pacific news.

While we are expanding our services, I would like to assure you that ABC International is not intent on taking over or duplicating your work.

We respect the coverage already provided by local media services to the individual nations they serve.

But what we are able to offer uniquely to the people of the Pacific is a regional perspective, an avenue that connects people on a nation to nation basis.

A source both for a sense of what�s happening regionally, and for an understanding of the currents of thought running throughout the Pacific.

Now that might be an investigation into how traditional societies whose governance has been based on family and community are adapting to different standards expected by The World Bank and other regional aid donors.

Or it could be coverage of the latest developments in business and government, or the various national and local efforts in planning for the effects of climate change.

Programs like these � from the region and for the region � are delivered by Radio Australia and our international television service, Australia Network.

Radio Australia broadcasts several hours a day on Pacific affairs through Pacific Beat and In The Loop. Brendon Telfer leads our coverage of Pacific sport.

And we have been actively improving our Australia Network coverage to provide a stronger Pacific focus.

Last year we conducted audience feedback forums in Lae, Port Moresby, Honiara, Port Vila, Suva and Apia, to learn how Australia Network was regarded in the Pacific.

We found that Australia Network, available via cable and free to air television carriers, could be perceived principally as an Asian news service that happens to be available in the Pacific.

As a result of this feedback a new weekly program, Pacific Pulse, was created by Australia Network. Each week Pacific Pulse celebrates people who are making a difference in the region, who are helping shape a new Pacific through both their achievements and their aspirations.

And Pacific Pulse is presented through Pacific eyes. Tania Nugent from Papua New Guinea and Clement Paligaru from Fiji each week take us on a Pacific journey.

We want our coverage to be informed by this expertise � so we can bring the full range of stories � not just politics and policing, but the issues of development and sustainability, education and health, culture and indigenous heritage. Our family life, our traditional learning and also trade, business and that great common interest in the Pacific: sport.

We plan to extend Australia Network on free to air television in the Pacific, where transmission is available.

ABC International and Public Diplomacy

Radio Australia began during the Second World War, when radio was being used as used as an instrument of propaganda by governments in Europe and Japan.

Radio Australia was enlisted in Australia�s war effort to counter this propaganda, and came under the control of the Department of Information.

After the war control of Radio Australia � independent of Government � was given to the ABC.

Media independent of the State is one of the distinguishing features of democracies.

It was a critically important point to be made in a post-war world when democracy was under challenge. It remains a critically important point to be made today.

The ABC has made a strong contribution to Australia�s role in the Pacific not necessarily by representing the Australian Government�s views, but by sharing the values of the Australian people and the Australian way of life.

By living up to editorial values of fairness and independence.

By holding those in power to account. By fearless, fair and accurate reporting. By telling all sides of the story. By presenting the free expression and diversity of views that are central to democratic life.

Today the ABC�s Radio Australia, Australia Network and International Projects make a valuable contribution to Australia�s public diplomacy effort.

But there�s something more at work.

It is the very existence of the ABC - financially dependent on Government, yet editorially independent from Government � that says so much to our international friends, neighbours and partners about Australia�s democratic values.

Just as the work done by ABC International symbolises both Australia�s goodwill and its understanding of its responsibility to the region as a citizen of the region.

What we put to air on our networks illustrates how a modern democracy can operate.

Robust political debate and discussion around the issues of the day is how a society grows.

At the ABC, we see great opportunities ahead as we build on our traditions in international radio and television broadcasting, now supported by an expanding on-line presence.

And we are increasingly seeing growth for our services across the region, both in the Pacific and in Asia.

Australia Network competes favourably in reach compared with the BBC and CNN in India, because of the strength in our news services that comes from the region, for the region.

We look forward to expanding our services further in Asia and building partnerships that will make our offerings more accessible in the Pacific.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has been in international broadcasting for a long time � the best part of three quarters of a century. We undertake this international work because it is part of what we are and what we do. Our commitment to all forms of international broadcasting is clear, long-standing and will be enduring. ABC International is a Pacific Partner and a Pacific Friend.

Close

We desire to extend our co-operative efforts.

I am very pleased to announce today the creation of an annual ABC Pacific Fellowship that will fund for up to a year a professional development attachment to Australia Network and Radio Australia that will allow a promising and emerging young or established media professional to work with us.

As part of that attachment one of our editorial team will partner with the Fellowship recipient and spend reciprocal time working in the Pacific nation from where the Fellowship recipient comes.

Details will be on the ABC International website soon.

Thank you for listening to me. I am delighted to be at PINA. I look forward to any questions or comments you may have.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:27:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Good evening. It's winter here, so the strangest thing starting at 3am is I finish two hours on-air 5-7am, walk out of the soundproof booth, and it's still dark. Then finish - theoretically - at 11am. Usually midday. Lunch is midday, cooking for wifey is midnight snacks. Bizzaro.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 06:36:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--How's your job? I'm soooo not complaining, but while putting two hours of live news and current affairs radio together each day from 5-7am live - as in warts and all - my 3am walk to a junky/clubber street in St Kilda to get a cab is worse than the the sad stories we cover.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:19:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Just a quick cut-paste posting which follows, a Reuters story I want to read later about online news brand power, blog-style news sites fill niche that press overlooked blah blah.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:17:00 +0000

RPT-FEATURE-Big French press find brand power helps online
2009-03-05 13:04:15 GMT (Reuters)

* Blog-style news sites fill niche that press overlooked

* Big names losing print readers follow advertisers online

* Brand power on the Web helps established names

* Making money online is still an unanswered question

By James Mackenzie

PARIS, March 5 (Reuters) - In a grimy part of eastern Paris a morning editorial conference is underway, similar to the planning meetings that go on in newsrooms everywhere, except this one is being blogged live and readers can join in.

The meeting is at Rue89, a news site (www.rue89.com) set up in 2007 by former journalists from the leftwing Liberation daily. It's one of several interactive sites to have appeared as a global crisis in the press squeezes French newspapers.

Sites like it -- the Gawker Media family of blogs in the United States, or Mediapart (www.mediapart.fr) and Bakchich (www.bakchich.info) in France -- have made a splash by filling niches that more traditional media have been slow to spot.

"There's someone saying that we don't have an international topic," says the journalist tracking comments on a laptop.

"What do they say? Do they have anything to suggest?" asks editor Pascal Riche.

In the end, the reader's suggestion of a story on Afghanistan is not taken up, but Riche believes such interaction between journalists and readers shows the future for news media in response to the challenge of the internet.

Rue89 uses the slogan "Information with three voices. Journalists, experts, Internautes," to describe a strategy of mixing its own journalism with commentary from outside specialists and internet-user contributions.

While some tech-savvy consumers may already have abandoned established print and television news in favour of collective information playgrounds such as wikipedia or Twitter, Riche sees clear limitations in such 'crowd-sourcing' of news.

"The idea you sometimes hear that everyone wants to be a journalist is completely idiotic," he said.

"People don't want to be ringing up police headquarters to check out some fact. But at the same time, they don't want journalism delivered from on high either."

A tiny startup compared with the big French dailies like Liberation, the conservative Le Figaro or the intellectual Le Monde, Rue89 has no paper, printing or distribution to pay for. It has nonetheless had some noteworthy scoops.

It broke the news that President Nicolas Sarkozy's wife had not voted for him in the 2007 election -- they divorced a few months later and Sarkozy went on to marry former supermodel Carla Bruni. It also reported unrest that has hit the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe well before most of the mainland press.

With a handful of journalists and no major investor to provide financial backing, Rue89 tries to make a virtue out of necessity, reacting quickly and staying much closer to its readership than big papers possibly can.

BIG BRAND FIGHTBACK

Now, as economic slowdown intensifies a scramble for advertising budgets, the big names are fighting back online: building or buying Web presence and attempting to lure readers at computer keyboards as well as over cafe and croissants.

Newspapers and broadcasters are being forced to follow advertisers online where advertising is cheaper by a factor of about 10, it is easier to target particular audiences and the success of campaigns can be better measured.

The economic crisis has come at a difficult time for the media industry, but it may be helping those big players who put their magnetic brand power to use in winning online attention.

According to data from OJD, the organisation that monitors media circulation in France, big newspapers like Le Figaro or Le Monde or other major titles like sports daily L'Equipe attract some of the biggest online readerships.

"It's the same thing every time a new medium appears. It disturbs things at first," said Francis Morel, editor-in-chief of Le Figaro, the heavyweight conservative daily that began life as a satirical weekly in 1826.

"But at the same time, I think that the development of the internet is extremely positive for us," Morel said. "It reinforces the weight of Le Figaro, it strengthens the links with our readers and it brings in extra revenues."

With some exceptions, French newspaper sales have fallen steadily according to OJD figures, with Le Figaro's circulation last year averaging around 340,000: about 9,000 fewer than in 2004. Le Monde saw a sharper drop of over 40,000 to 340,000.

At the same time, their online readership has boomed. Lemonde.fr attracted nearly 48 million visits in January, while Lefigaro.fr attracted more than 23 million, according to the OJD, which placed both titles in the top 10 of generalist sites, alongside L'Equipe or the yellow pages.

"The situation with the internet news sites is pretty good, even very good," said OJD head Patrick Bartement.

"A few years ago, when we started measuring the internet sites, the general feeling was that they would be wiped out by the big portals like Yahoo but that hasn't happened. They have very powerful brands," he said.

The trend has been similar, and in some ways more dramatic, elsewhere: a gentle decline in print sales but online page views surging for news names such as Bild, Frankfurter Allgemeine, Corriere della Sera, El Pais, the Guardian and The Times.

In the United States, regional print newspapers have been falling like dominos, but some big names have carved out dominant positions online that have spread their influence well beyond their core users.

Among established English-language companies British Medical Journal, CNN, The Guardian and Nature Publishing Group have found significant supplementary online identities.

Nonetheless, a big question remains unanswered for all players: how to generate the kinds of returns newspapers used to make from people handing over coins at newsstands, particularly when advertising budgets are shrinking.

"There is a problem making money from the internet, there's no doubt about that," Morel said. (Additional reporting by Georgina Prodhan in London, Danilo Masoni in Milan, Sarah Morris in Madrid and Franziska Scheven in Berlin; Editing by Sara Ledwith)

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 10:35:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Yet again a story I've done lately has developed beyond its original brief. Firstly the story I did about members of Japan's ruling party calling for an alternate currency, later front page of FT, is notable. But the fact that Giles Ungpakorn has fled Thailand is more notable. Full story: Claims lese majeste overused in Thailand

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 02:34:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Things are supposed to get easier with a mobile lifestyle, but no. If one was already several years ahead of said curve, it's a case of redeveloping yer systems AKA this website. Built it nearly 8 years ago. Needs upgrading. Aaarrgh. No time.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 06:49:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Like the hopeless fanboy that I am, I've managed to talk Mrs Sue into a quick trip to Auckland, New Zealand, on Tuesday next week to see Stereolab on Wednesday night. I am wetting my little knickers.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 06:46:00 +0000

Stereolab
When: Wed, 28 January 09
Doors open: 9:00 pm
Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland

Holy lord, Stereolab return!

Over the course of eleven albums Stereolab have refined their own distinctive sound via metronomic drums, loops, bleeps, retro keys and of course the distinctive French vocals of Laetitia Sadier. This is a sound that has found resonance for the UK band around the world - including New Zealand. In fact, they have played a couple of very memorable shows here and even had releases on Flying Nun.

For their latest album, Chemical Chords, Stereolab found a new lease of life and signed to legendary independent 4AD. For the album they wrote a batch of what founding member Tim Gane described as �purposely short, dense, fast pop songs�. Hailed as their best in years, Filter Magazine gave the album 86/100 and wrote �Chemical Chords is yet another kaleidoscope that hits you as ear candy upon first listen, but like most Stereolab records, further inspection reveal a playground for the mind� Others, including Drowned in Sound, Pitchfork and the All Music Guide have all equally given it the thumbs up.

Stereolab with special guest Bachelorette

Wednesday 28th January � The Kings Arms - Auckland
Thursday 29th January � San Francisco Bath House � Wellington

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:20:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Funny that in President Bush's final press conference he mentioned the 'Mission Accomplished' banner as the first embarrassing item to mind in reviewing his presidency. Here's my interview with Berkeley School of Journalism fellow Tom Englehardt from 2005 speaking of the PR stunt that went wrong: Three years after 'Mission Accomplished'

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 03:51:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Good hello and top of the season to y'all. My ABC Summer Series special, Taiwan's year of living democracy, is to air across ABC radio networks from Wednesday January 14. Hopefully won't bore 20 minutes of pants off you.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:47:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--About halfway through Olympics period. Sorry, but I am one of those inflicting sport upon y'all. While usually one would be able to giggle at my sloppy pronunciation by listening online to Radio Australia, we can't broadcast online due to rights holder thingos. Best find yerself a trannie... so to speak. Then guffaw.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:27:00 +0000

There's a whole bunch of us who've lost touch with Aliang, the doyen of Taiwan's art scene. I finally got in touch with her the other day and she's running a new establishment off Renai in Taipei - Sappho De Base 102. I'm so ready for a visit. Do you need your own news agency? More soon.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 31 May 2008 12:20:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--This whole site is currently being moved so there's sure to be a whole lot of broken shit going on. I'd be surprised if even this message is squeezed through the pipes at the moment. We'll see.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 05 May 2008 01:10:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Mrs Connors and I are back 'on the radar' as of today, having returned from our soiree in Vanuatu. We've had a week to collect our thoughts, and wedding pictures, which can be viewed in entirety in my much-neglected pics section. There will be more to come as others roll in. Enjoy.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 08:42:00 +0000

PORT VILA--There's a mystery couple devouring our (grandparents, take this with a grain of mirth!) childrens' college fund. Food and Bev, if you're out there watching, stay off the Iririki Sunset cocktails please. We're still off the radar here in Vanuatu, returning to Googlable surrounds near the end of April. 'Wifey, where's the sunscreen...'

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 01:26:00 +0000

WILLIAMSTOWN--The cake is baked, the bubbles chilled, the rings polished, the shoes deodorised, the ties windsored, the nails trimmed... could only mean one thing - and no, not a court appearance. A wedding. My email contact is sketchy, so any last minute queries should be directed to me by phone 0415 497 229. Yikes!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:25:00 +0000

MELBOURNE--Very close to the big day... and I don't mean taking the new sections of this site out of beta as Mr Adam is getting married on Friday April 18, 2008, in a wee park in Williamstown, Melbourne. Very good friends from Tokyo to Perth, Hong Kong to Kangaroo Island, Brisbane to Waroona, and Sydney too will be in town to partake. Look forward to generous lashings of pics and giggles soon.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:13:00 +0000

[draft] The unheralded success of Facebook - the UI

More than enough commentators have pointed out the success of community cross-referencing in today's new town square, Facebook. There is little more to add to the argument that Facebook, Google Ad Sense, Wikipedia and the whole citizen contributor-driven nature of web 2-point-something is where it's at. A given.

What is missing in the mainstream discussion - and rightly so because I sometimes live in a world of people called Information Architects, or geeks - is how this proto-modern successful user interface, or UI, is so 10 years ago.

Because, dear reader, it works. It's natural. It's been done before.

A successful website UI is one that appeals to all, the Lowest Common Denominator - or that's what we used to call in math.

When I see the numbers of adopters of the Facebook model - a tied down, non-anarchic, hat-and-left-navigation interface model for a smaller screen size - I see maximum accessibility.

It may be totalitarian in its stringent screen boundaries, but let's get a handle on what we are doing here.

Communicating. In the same language. Best via the same interface, same navigation, same language.

MySpace is rotten - sorry, that's a bit harsh, let's call it "niche" - because it allows anyone the opportunity to go very hard on every aspect of the UI, even if they don't know how that appeals to others.

A common point of conflict is when music plays immediately at you when you visit a website address. This is more common than not on MySpace, as well as the choosing of outrageous 'skins' that make the whole communication thing completely useless.

MySpace, for this very fact, has no in-built gatekeeper - you suffer the try-hard designer and either love or hate them. There's your niche. And honestly, you're welcome to it.

Facebook's success, then, is the same as Hotmail's, and Yahoo's, and any software application's success over the past 15 years - common ease of use. Common, undeniable laws that do not change so the Luddites can get it.