The Ramblings of GR3GD

Why I think battery life in smartwatches is so important

2015-01-25T06:01:00.001-08:00

In order for wearable technology like smartwatches to succeed they need to effortlessly exist in the background of our lives. This is why the smartwatch battery life is so important and why the Pebble smartwatch has triumphed as it has.

If you had to compare a Pebble smartwatch to let say the Moto 360, one would argue that the 360 is far more capable with its technology and features, however the Pebble can easily stand up to it IMO purely because it has such a great battery life. Of course the myriad of useful applications on the Pebble also help, I truly believe it is because I treat the Pebble like a normal watch, it sits in the background and becomes useful on occasion without me having think about charging it.

Having owned a Galaxy gear, it showed me that charging it daily meant that I treated it with as much focus and attention as I did my phone yet it's supposed to be an accompaniment, a partnership with my phone as opposed to a rivalry for my attention. If the Galaxy Gear's battery life was a lot better,let's say three full days, on par with the Pebble, it would have allowed me to just take off the watch at night and rest it on my side table as opposed to fiddle around to find a charger. Even though it seems fairly trivial to talk about those 15 seconds to plug-in this device in every night, once it becomes routine it draws focus on this extra device. This defeats the purpose of having a smartwatch.

Wearable technology needs to integrate seamlessly & effortlessly into the background of our lives without having to charge it daily.

Future of mobile & wearable tech

2013-10-20T04:37:00.005-07:00

I've been into computing ever since I was handed an IBM computer with DOS followed by Lap"crushing"top with Windows 3.1... I was hooked and still am!

Fast forward to the 21st century and we have an almost unlimited amount of tech available to us. From desktops to tablets, to fitness tracking wristbands, mobile devices are dominating and there's a good reason for that. They are very capable. Their specs are rapidly approaching to those of our day to day pcs and laptops.

The average user can easily do everything on their mobile, while the more savvy technophile might get frustrated or struggle when trying to perform more demanding tasks on their smartphone resorting to putting it down and switching back to their full-sized machines. But these frustrations are becoming rarer as the mobile hardware beefs up.

So where am I going with this?

Smartphones will be your full-sized machines...eventually. We've seen this before but just poorly executed - remember the Motorola Atrix 2?. More recently, the Ubuntu Edge has made the news and tries to do exactly this, combine a smartphone and desktop into one device.

This concept has been around for some time but it's only being used in the "geek" community where we hook up our jailbroken iPhones/iPads or Android devices to our TVs then pair our bluetooth keyboards and there you have it, a desktop....well kinda. The Galaxy Note 2/3 with it's multitasking (2 apps running side by side) capabilities comes closest to a desktop experience but it's still not quite it.

While it would be possible to use a Galaxy Note 3 in combination with Tasker, Portal and a few other apps to create a scenario where you take out you phone, plug it into the dock and your screen resizes and the resolution adjusts, but it's not easy or simple so definitely not one for the average user.

And this is an important point. Just because it's possible, doesn't mean it's going to be used. The User Experience needs to be elegant, simple & effortless. Maybe Cyanogenmod have plans to do exactly this?

Google definitely have all the pieces to make a very unified experience and we are seeing this happening more and more with it's services and apps.

If you've owned a bluetooth device, you've technically used wearable tech, but nowadays we understand this as being more about technology embedded into everyday items like watches, glasses and shoes.

Hands up who's owned a smartwatch? Keep those hands up if it's been gathering dust somewhere? I don't think i'm alone here.

The problem with smartwatches, and wearable tech in general, is usefulness. My smartwatch wasn't useful enough so it never stayed on my wrist. It didn't remove a barrier in creating a simpler and better experience. What is the extra tech doing for me that I can't already do on my phone? Will i have to resort to using my phone anyway?

Google Glass is nothing new but exciting tech. I've not used one but from the many comments from Glass wearers it sounds like it removes a barrier. Having information displayed to you without holding your smartphone. Taking pictures and videos completely handsfree. This sounds very positive. But of course this is only the beginning of what is possible with a system like Google Glass. I can see it being very useful when doing public speaking, having the notes a little glance away.

And rumours have it that Google is developing a smartwatch called "Google Gem" and it's a slightly different take to the usual smartphones like the Sony Smartwatch 2 & Samsung's Galaxy Gear. Apparently it's got a heavy focus on Google Now and to me that's great!

I'm a big fan of Google Now, where many are trying to conquer the Digital Assistant mountain, I think Google is leading the way. There are some noteworthy contenders though such as Jini. And this is where it all comes together.

Your personal computer/smartphone is always with you. Plug it into a dock and you have a full-sized desktop experience - Wireless mouse, keyboard sold separately. While on the move, your wearable tech is gathering data and, your smartphone is processing it and discreetly outputting information to you via your heads up display or smartwatch, all while you go on with your day-to-day tasks.

What are your thoughts on where mobile & wearable tech is heading?

Creating Zendesk tickets from an RSS Feed

2012-12-27T10:24:00.002-08:00

I work in the Customer Enablement Team at Zendesk which is a varied role that often involves problem solving.

Sometimes we receive very bespoke requests from customers which at first glance might not seem obvious when using Zendesk's native functionality – and this is where we come in.

This customer asked if Zendesk can create tickets from an RSS feed. It doesn't.

There are many reasons why this functionality hasn't been developed and for me the obvious reason is the lack of a customer support use case. I'm not saying that our customer's use cases for this feature are not valid, they are just too bespoke for native development.

But I've found a solution! Using a service called If This Then That, which is a service that lets you create powerful connections with one simple statement. These statements are called Recipes.

Here's the recipe to create Zendesk tickets from an RSS Feed:

First of all let's understand what the "create tickets from an RSS feed" request means. When a post is made to an RSS feed, it will create a ticket in Zendesk.

1. So first you need to obtain the RSS feed URL.

In this example I created a feed of my Google+ posts using a service called Google+ to RSS (Original name I know!) http://gplus-to-rss.appspot.com/ but any RSS feed should do the trick as long as the posts in the feed have a title & content.

2. in IFTTT, select the RSS Feed as the trigger channel & you then have 2 options:-

If you select "New feed item", every post will create a ticket
If you select "New feed item matches", you can enter keywords that need to be found in the RSS post for it to create a ticket in Zendesk.

In this example I selected "New feed item as this was the customer's request.

3. Paste the RSS Feed URL in the available field & create the trigger

4. Next we need to email the feed to Zendesk so it can create the tickets.

**And here is where there's a limitation. RSS posts don't have a customer associated with it or as Zendesk calls it, a "requester".**

However in IFTT, when you select the Gmail action channel, you fist need to connect it to a Gmail account which it will send the emails from. Therefor this email address will be the requester of the tickets created by the RSS feeds.

Enter the Zendesk email address e.g. support@xxxxxxxxx.zendesk.com into the "To address" field & create the action.

And that's it!

I tested this using this recipe https://ifttt.com/recipes/71904 and it created a ticket in my Zendesk account

I hope you find this useful!

Thanks for reading

Greg

WIll I use FaceTime, Google+ Hangout or Skype this Xmas

2012-12-23T05:11:00.001-08:00

FaceTime is awesome! I use it whenever I travel to speak to my girlfriend. I've used it at work to conference in work colleagues. It's one of those features that you use now and again but once you try it you wouldn't want to give it up. The only caveat, you need an Apple device… A Mac(book), iPhone, iPad, etc… no Apple logo, no FaceTime.

And here is my dilemma, not everyone I would video call has an Apple device.

Before becoming an Apple fanboy, I was an Android faithful. I still think that Android is a great OS that pushes boundaries but I've moved on from flashing new roms and hacking my phone and jumped onto the polished, sleek Apple boat and I haven't looked back. I digress slightly. Sorry.

My point is that I experienced the Google ecosystem and its a great experience and this has been ported over to Apple through some beautiful, elegant apps such as Chrome, Drive, GMail, Google+ & Maps.

Google+ has a feature called Hangout which allows you to use any Android or Apple device with a front facing camera to video chat with your Google+ Contacts but an advantage is that you can do group video chat! yes group! And it's Awesome!

And my dilemma here is that not everyone I would video call is on Google+.

So maybe Apple should allow Group FaceTime as well. *nudge nudge*

And then there's Skype. I use this service daily and it's great. It supports inbound & outbound calling for voice & video but for Group Video call you need a premium Skype account.

So over the festive holidays I will try to video call my family in France using Google+ Hangout if I can get them using Google+ but nothing beats the convenience of FaceTime when calling 1 other person.

Merry Xmas Folks!

I'm back on the blogs.... kinda!

2012-12-19T00:12:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone!

So it's been a few months .... 9 to be exact, since I wrote a blog post. A lot has happened in these last months and a not-so-new-now job keeping me busy, very busy.

Now that I'm settled into my new role and have a good handle on my time, I'm going to resume blogging.....so watch this space!

Thanks

Greg

The new iPad 3

2012-03-07T11:25:00.000-08:00

So the new iPad has been announced and will be available March 16th 2012

$499, $599, and $699 for 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB. $629, $729, and $829 with 4G

And here are the specs...

9.7 inch Retina Display screen 264 pixels per inch in this display - “Text sharper than a newspaper. Photos will look incredible. Fonts look amazing, it’s a huge step forward.” 2048 x 1536 pixels!"
A5X chip. X stands for...Quad-core graphics
iSight camera - AThe new iPad has a rear iSight camera (the optics system from the iPhone 4S)

Auto-exposure, auto-focus, auto-face detection, great edge-to-edge detail, AF-lock, “It is just a blast to use
HD video recording now in 1080p resolution

Voice dictation - a new key on the bottom - Tap it, speak into your iPad & it’ll dictate what you say

The new iPad delivers the same 10 hours of battery life, and 4G is 9 hours.
new iPad supports HSPA+ for up to 21Mbps and supports dual-carrier HSDPA for up to 42Mbps.

And lots of updates for their apps...

iPhoto for iPad - photo editing, effects, photo-beaming from device to device & new photo journals. Does multi-photo comparisons & works with images up to 19 megapixels.

Garage Band, iWork & iMovie also updated

Is it a game changer?

Swiftkey X Keyboard App Review

2012-03-01T11:09:00.000-08:00

So what's so special about a keyboard app that makes it worthy to review? Simple, it makes typing easier & better!

Typing with the standard android keyboard is decent. It's even better in Ice Cream Sandwich but still missing the personal touch. It takes time fro the stock keyboard to learn your typing habits... not Swiftkey.

The major advantage to the Swiftkey X Keyboard App is that it allows you to connect it to your Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, SMS and even your RSS feed. The app uses these sources to build a very good understanding of how & what you type.

The outcome of this is the ability to predict the next word you are going to insert and the app is pretty good at it!

With it's advanced predictive text functionality and a whole range of settings like inserting a fullstop when the spacebar is clicked or changing the typing style from "precise" (for the careful typist) to "rapid" (for those who rely on auto-correction), this app is a must have! It will improve the accuracy of your text and save you time while doing it.

Go check the app out in the Market and let me know what you think.

Third party cookies, accessing your contact list & now reading your text messages

2012-02-27T06:10:00.002-08:00

As social networking gets more popular, we are becoming more selective with who we share our information with & the privacy of our own information.

When a social networking was in it’s infancy, we were all eager to connect with each other, otherwise it’s a boring, static environment with empty timelines. Now that there is momentum, users need to “prune” their networks to make them less bloated and more relevant to their interests.

Privacy is also high on the agenda but perhaps a little misunderstood.

Cookiegate

Recently in tech news, you may have heard about Google getting in trouble with their tracking cookies. This debacle opened a can of worms relating to 3rd party cookies. For those that do not know any other cookies apart from the edible kind, a cookie, is "usually" used for websites to manage information about the user to provide a smoother web experience.

A lot of "Free" web services like Google & Facebook, rely on 3rd party cookies to monetize their service and without 3rd party cookies, they may start charging for using their services.

It is a very grey area with valid points for both sides: You web experience vs data held on you.

Contact Lists

Path, Twitter, Instagram and others have been caught out of late as it was discovered that without alerting the user of the app, the phone's contact list was being read and in some cases uploaded to a server for a certain amount of time.

Most services have addressed this by introducing clearer notifications to the user that the phone's contact list will be read & uploaded. However many users are not pleased that it has happened at all.

Something to bare in mind here is that these services have not used the contact list information for any other purpose than make your experience better (or so they claim). It is important that we do flag these concerns but sometimes the worst scenarios are mentioned when they haven't happened & the companies are addressing very quickly these issues.

So "they" have your data .... but have they used it maliciously?

Digital social networking is new territory and there will always be teething issues. Highlighting & addressing these issues should always be a priority but it is also our responsibility to not antagonise it all by misunderstanding the extent of the issue.

Your text messages are being read by Facebook

And finally, your text messages are being read by Facebook (and other social networks). This is the latest news that Facebook has the ability to read you text messages.

So now that this has been highlighted, it needs to be addressed. Why does Facebook need to read my text messages? Is their any value to me in doing so? Are Facebook using this information in any other way?

It is only by understanding the answers to these questions that I can quantify the extent of the damage caused by this.

Selfmail Android App

2012-02-23T09:16:00.000-08:00

Try Googling "best android app" and you will get a deluge of search results none of which mention the app I'm going to talk about.

Have you heard of SelfMail before?

It is a tiny app for Android devices that has only one purpose: Share the content to yourself.

Ok so it's not a revolutionary app but it is useful! Using GMail as a task manager or a to-do list has become common practice or even to push web information from one device to another. This app makes this even easier.

Here's how it works:-

I click on the menu button within my current app and choose to "Share"
A list of all available apps I can share the information with displays
I select " SelfMail" & that's it.

The next time I access my GMail inbox, I will see an email from myself containing a link to the web information.

This app is underestimated for it's usefulness. It's Free so try it out and let me know what you think!

Great Social Expectations

2012-02-21T04:30:00.000-08:00

I was watching TV the other day and someone said "I find it really difficult to keep tweeting & replying on Twitter". I could relate!

Some of you may know me on Twitter as @GR3GD. Once labelled a prolific tweeter, I have since in IMO downgraded to an "average" or "lite" user. There were several reasons why my on-line presence has diminished in the last 6 months.

Around 6 months ago, I was offered a new more demanding role at work which meant giving my undivided attention & time so naturally social media took a back seat. My lack of online presence was felt & queried by my followers and I felt guilty that I wasn't making more of an effort to tweet.

After about a month of minimal social media interactions, I realised I had more time to dedicate to the real-world & what was happening around me at that time at the cost of being less up-to-date with local & world events. It was a strange feeling, I wasn't getting my real-time updates but felt I was living my life more. Social media seemed time consuming & demanding. I wanted it to be rewarding, a tool I can use to make my life easier.

As my workloads fell to manageable levels, I took to Twitter & G+ again but with less frequency. This time I had found a good balance between real-life & social media life. With no feelings of guilt for not responding to that tweet within a nano second, not being connected to social media 24/7 was refreshing.

It hasn't always been like this. I'm fortunate enough to be an 80s baby which meant I witnessed the switch over from analogue technology to digital, the mainstream roll-out of the internet and switch from dial-up to broadband etc. I lived in a period when you arranged a place & time to meet your friends and if they didn't turn up you waited, possibly finding a phone box to call their pager or house number to check they have left at least. It was a slower pace of life (not quite Mediterranean but close).

Oh how these times have changed. The majority of us now live in a fast-paced, information driven society. If it's not moving quickly, it's old news.

No doubt technology has made huge leaps & bounds for the better in the last 20 years. But it is the web & social media that has truly changed the world as we know it & the way we interact with each other.

For example, "Back in the day", holiday snaps were passed around your friends & family and sometimes colleagues but, quite importantly, only you had owned the originals.

Now we all upload pictures to social networks for all to see (on-line privacy is getting better but still!). Not removing certain "pics" may land you into trouble... globally. So we become more wary about what is sent out, less open & more protective about ourselves than ever before. This now common scenario would not of occurred in the 80s early 90s (or at least it would of been a difficult task to do so).

So like most people, I thought I had one identity but actually I have 2: my real-life one & my on-line one & they are not the same!

I've met many fellow tweeters who I follow and they are rarely exactly like their on-line identity. They are always so much more.

What each & everyone of us share on-line has been consciously filtered beforehand to ensure we don't offend others or create issues - Have you ever thought about tweeting exactly what you think?

This means that my on-line identity is only a fraction of my real-life identity, yet more people get interact with my on-line profile rather than offline.

As my on-line identity was growing with every tweet & post, it was also defining & labelling me. I was becoming associated with topics such as food, android, Brighton, which is great but this is only a fraction of my true persona. I was therefore fuelling an identity that wasn't a full reflection of who I am.

There seems to be expectations in the social media world to keep these posts coming: the Great Social Expectations. (Although I've always felt responsible to give my followers/connections what they want; a consistent stream of information)

Is it right that we expect our fellow beings to not only have an on-line identity but to keep it active?

Comments are always appreciated

Thanks

Making the move from Facebook to Google+

2012-02-20T14:06:00.001-08:00

The social network from the internet giant has been out for a couple of months now and it's got mixed reviews.

Personally I think it's great! However it has not *yet* replaced any of the other social networks I use.

There is no doubt that Facebook has many users already with an established network of friends, colleagues, brands and much much more, but it's complicated and ever changing privacy settings & the barrage of app & game notifications makes it an undesirable experience for some such as myself.

Facebook is not going to disappear and I will still log on to interact with it but I will rarely post directly from Facebook.

Instead I use Google+ as my posting platform to other social networks, and over time as more users come on-board, Google+ will replace my Facebook timeline completely.

I still think that Twitter is a different breed of social network to Facebook & Google+ but there are certainly conversations on Twitter that would have benefited being on a Google+ public post instead.

So in summary I've fully immersed myself in the Google+ experience and would encourage you to join.

The main purpose of this post is to show how easy it is to migrate your Facebook account over to Google+ and then use Google+ as the main posting platform - what I call my social hub.

Moving your Facebook Photos to Google+

Firstly you need to use the Google Chrome browser. Next simply install the Move Your Photos extension into your Chrome browser.

Once installed, click on the little orange bus in the toolbar and log in to your Facebook and Google+ accounts, but the process is painless and gets the job done.

Your albums and photos will be moved over from Facebook into the Picasa's web service which is run by Google, it's up to you to share them with your Google+ circles.

This Chrome extension moves all your photos over so you will need to delete any duplicates if you have already uploaded them to Google+ once the transfer is complete.

Sharing Your Photos...or not on Google+

OK. So you have now successfully (and painlessly I hope) uploaded all your photos & videos to Google+. Next step is to share them.

Log into Google+ and click on the "Photos" button in the top banner.

Navigate to your albums on the left.

Open the album you just uploaded and click share album at the top.

The share album button will automatically make your album public and post a link to it in your stream.

If you don’t want the album to be public, you can remove the Public circle and instead add some of your own. This will still make a post in your stream, but it will only be visible to those you have shared it with.

It is possible for someone you shared an album with to re-share that with the public so make sure you only share with people you know and trust.

If you don’t want the album posted to your stream, you can also click the edit button from the main album page which will change the sharing settings without posting the album in your stream.

Adding your Facebook Friends to Google+

Go to login.yahoo.com and sign in with your Facebook account if you don't already have a yahoo account.

Then go to address.yahoo.com and click "Tools" then "Import" from the drop-down menu.

Select Facebook from the provided options.

After you confirm access to your contacts, the import will happen automatically.

Next export your contacts to a .csv file with the tools menu.

Export your contacts by clicking Yahoo! CSV "Export Now" and save the file on your desktop.

Now login to Google+, click "Circles" button in the top banner.

Click "Find people"

Click "Upload address book"

Choose to the .csv file exported from Yahoo! and saved on your desktop and click the import button

Go back to Google+ and your newly imported contacts will show up under "Find people"

Add your contacts & friends to your different circles and send invites to them if they aren't already using Google+.

A great feature of Google+ is that once you've added an email address to a circle, when you send a Google+ post to it, even if that email recipient has joined Google+, they will receive an email notification about the post.

So where to next?

The biggest issue I face with new social networks is having to post the same update multiple times but this is no longer an issue thanks to some clever workarounds like cross-posting.

Cross-Posting

So in a real-world scenario, I would create a post in 1 social media platform like Google+ and then choose to also post it to my other social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook & LinkedIn.

The reason Google+is ideal as my main posting platform is that it allows the me to send the G+ post to an email address. Facebook can provide you with a secret email address that allows you to update your Facebook status via email & there are 3rd party services such as plusbounce.com that allow you to create an email address for each of your SM platforms. So to post to these other SM platforms, simply email the content of your post to the generated email address.

There are other ways of crossposting, such as manageflitter.com/plus, which automatically reads your G+ feed and creates tweets for every post. However I prefer the 1st method as I have more control over what G+ posts go to which platform.

I'm sure there are other, possibly better, ways of crossposting to various social media platforms and I would love to hear about them in the comments.

Browser Extensions

Google Chrome is an amazing web browser with great add-ons called "Extensions" that simplifies the users web experience.

Here are some great Google + Chrome Extensions:-

Crossposting: A simple solution in a complex world

2012-01-04T13:22:00.000-08:00

New Social Media platforms are popping up left, right & centre at a rate that is difficult to keep up with and recently there are talks of a social media platform for the world's activists called "The Global Square".

I've always been a fan of new-ness (if that's a word) and don't mind signing up to new social media platforms as they may offer features that are new, innovative & make my life easier.... but the reality is that this is rarely the case. Without others actively using the platform too, I was interacting with a void which wasn't much fun & seemed time consuming.

So when Google+ came out in June I was on it with haste but sceptical and soon discovered with delight that there were new features which answered some of my privacy issues that I had with Facebook. Also from the get go I had a few familiar connections that I added to circles and vice versa. And what naturally followed was the onslaught of blogs & posts on Facebook vs Google+, each one with a different approach as to why one is better than the other. But luckily I was already decided. Google+ all the way!

So another social media platform under my belt brings my total to 4.
4 social media platforms I need to manage.
4 social media platforms I need to post to.
Needless to say more time consuming.

Solution: CROSSPOSTING

You may or may not of heard the term crossposting which is the act of posting the same message to multiple information channels.

So in a real-world scenario, I would create a post in 1 social media platform like Google+ and then choose to also post it to my other SM platforms like Twitter, Facebook & LinkedIn. Simples.... well kinda.

The reason I choose Google+ as my posting platform is that it allows the user to send the G+ post to an email address & there are 3rd party services such as plusbounce.com that allow you to create an email address for each of your SM platforms. So to post to these other SM platforms, simply email the content of your post to the generated email address.

There are other ways of crossposting, such as manageflitter.com/plus, which automatically reads your G+ feed and creates tweets for every post. However I prefer the 1st method as I have more control over what G+ posts go to which platform.

I'm sure there are other possibly better ways of crossposting to various social media platforms and I would love to hear about them in the comments.

Hope this helps

Greg :-)

A new year, a new resolution

2012-01-03T02:34:00.000-08:00

So here it is, 2012, in all it's glory!

Another year means another set of resolutions to (try) uphold. This year I've committed myself to blog more regularly.

I've come to realise that my blog posts don't need to be essays, just frequent. With this new found realisation, I should be more motivated to write down my ramblings, thoughts & opinions. I just hope they will be read, favorited & even challenged.

So here's to 2012, may it bring you success & happiness & all the trimmings.

GR3GD

Our new offices

2011-12-15T03:39:00.000-08:00

We have moved!

For those of you that don't know who the "we" i'm referring to is, let me tell you. I work for a company called Pure360, an email & SMS marketing software provider. A digital marketing hub based in Brighton if you will. I've been with Pure360 for over 5 years now and have seen it evolve from a business that employed 17 people working in a converted house on the Old Steine to the plush new office we are now in which houses just under 90 staff.

Before the move to our current office, often referred to as "Level 3", we were located in the same building New England House on the 7th floor aka "Level 7", which served us well for a couple of years expect we were running out of space fast.

When it was first announced that Pure360 were going to move to new offices, there was a sense of excitement, joy & intrigue as the architect drawing circulated amongst us. The Pure360 brand had been well established and was being reflected in the architect's vision but this comes at a cost. A few months pass and a company announcement by the MD confirmed that the move was canned. Hearts sank as the dreams of working a a Googlesque environment vanished. Senior management at Pure360 had alternative plans for an office expansion but they didn't & couldn't compare to the original proposals made.

A couple of months go by and I'm unofficially told that the plans to build new offices on Level 3 have been re-ignited. I was made responsible for the IT & Telephony infrastructure move. Exciting times for my inner geek! The Marketing department was responsible for the look & feel of "Level 3" and I can say they got it bang on!

Now that the short history lesson is over, let's talk about the new office "Level 3".

A lot of thought has been made to the new offices, from the colours used to the raised floors with moveable floorports, many little aspects of Level 3 make it a great place to work in.

So instead of describing the new office, let me show you after all a picture is worth a thousand words!

Here are some pics that show Level 3 from start to finish.

[gallery link="file" columns="5"]

Making Brighton & Hove an "open-data city"

2011-02-09T02:21:00.000-08:00

Last night I attended a meetup all about making Brighton & Hove an open-data city.

The event was organised & hosted by Greg Hadfield, the strategic director at digital agency Cogapp & one of the 12 TedxBrighton speakers, who has started a movement. He has a vision of Brighton & Hove future where council information is made more freely available and in ways that make it simple for businesses to collect and use.

There have already been a few articles on this Brighton & Hove open data and I'm just jotting down a few notes that struck a chord (The Argus & CogApp Blog) .

Last night Greg issued out to everyone an agenda for the meetup which started with 4 "simple" questions:-

What is an "open-data city"?

Who benefits in and/or from an "open-data city"?

Which organisations/institutions in Brighton & Hove hold data that should be made openly available?

How do we involve organisations/institutions? And individual?

We were split into groups according to how close you were to a particular table and we deliberated the topic of what "open-data city" is. Needless to say that we all had a different perception & interpretation of what it is.

What does an "open-data city" mean to you?

To me open means transparency. Data suggests that it is in the rawest form, it is not information yet as context has not been applied. City suggests to me a community. So to some it up an "open-data city" to me is a community that has access to the rawest form of data.

Having access to the data is only one half of the solution. But what data is needed?

I was lucky enough to sit 2 individuals that work for the Brighton & Hove council, one of them was the CIO (Chief Information officer). They shed some light on how requests for information came through and the barriers they faced in releasing the data as well as explaining the most common issue when they are ask "what data do you want?" they usually get the response "What data do you have?". This is a vicious circle that leads to nowhere.

Knowing what data is being requested is an important step to take. Perhaps this could be as simple as having a site that allows individuals to make a request for data? After a certain time, this information would certainly provide a clear indication of what data is commonly asked for.

Also the mechanism of getting this data needs to be reviewed and made easier for individuals to request data.

It is then up to the individuals in the city to be creative & innovative with the data.... perhaps as a useful app?

The next Brighton & Hove "open-data city" meetup is on Tuesday, March 8, 2011 at 7:30 PM.

There is also the CityCampBTN event on the 4th to the 6th March which is about reimagining the way the web, technology and participation will shape the future of our city.

The potential in what can be achieved through open-data is truly astonishing and I would highly recommend attending these meetups to anyone that is interested in making Brighton & Hove a better place to live through open-data.

TEDxObserver

2011-02-08T03:52:00.000-08:00

The Observer will host TEDxObserver at King's Place, London on 19 March 2011. An inspirational day of talks, performance and films it will feature speakers drawn from a range of disciplines - scientists, actors, philosophers, musicians, neuro-scientists and environmentalists. Designed to challenge, engage and inspire, the 'Festival of Ideas' will include speakers from Britain, America, France and South Africa delivering talks ranging from 6 to 18 minutes.

The inspiration for the day is two-fold. One, the TED organisation which has helped promote a thirst for ideas over the course of the last 10 years. On ted.com viewers can come across over 700 inspirational talks on a bewildering range of topics, from business to science and from culture to the environment. The second source of inspiration is The Observer, the world's oldest Sunday newspaper with a proud history of spreading ideas, encouraging debate and campaigning vigorously across a range of issues.

This is a day - a festival - to search out new ideas for the new decade. To find out some of the new thoughts that will shape our near future. These are people who have turned dreams into actions. This is where inspiration meets action.

Our speakers will deliver talks on an eclectic range of issues from the importance of race and land-ownership in South Africa to the ways dance can make us change the way we think. This will be an opportunity to hear from people who are thinking and acting their way through new challenges - environmental, mathematical, cultural, psychological, political.

Some of the other topics to be addressed at TEDxObserver include:
Waging peace not war in the Middle East
Finding new ways to measure happiness
Why larvae can help solve the world's fish crisis
Do our children understand privacy in an age of Facebook?

Among the speakers will be: DJ, musician and artist, Goldie; Sarah Brown patron of the White Ribbon Alliance, Cedric Villani, winner of the Fields Medal for mathematics in 2010; Geoff Mulgan, chair of the Young Foundation; Cory Doctorow, sci-fi writer and blogger; René Redzepi, head chef at noma, the world's best restaurant.

Tedx events are independently organised and are operated under license from ted.com - a non profit organisation who's motto is 'Ideas Worth Spreading'.

TEDxBrighton - Part Deux

2011-01-21T11:06:00.000-08:00

The 2nd half of the day featured another 6 speakers: Jake Spicer, Sue Bradley, Prof Angie Hart, Sarah Angliss, Will McInnes & Sally Kettle.

A lot was said in the second half and here are my highlights:-

Jake Spicer kicked off the 2nd half with his talk on "Drawing out wonder". He's interest in life drawing goes beyond just a hobby but allows him to inject into others that passion for drawing. He explains how drawing can re-ignite a new sense of wonder of the world akin to what you experienced as a child. We all have the ability to re-engage with our creative side and we must not forget that drawing is a form of communication that, if focussed on properly, can have the same effect as meditation; it also fulfills a human need to create and will eventually change the way you see the world.

Sarah Angliss spoke about "loving the machine". It was a great talk on how music (especially new age music) has been influenced by machines. She explained how clog dancing came about as the factory working women could not leave their posts, nor could they hear each other over the mechanical sounds of the factory so they start moving their legs in rhythm with the machinery, stomping at each beat. This became clog dancing. Some fascinating information on how Detroit, the automation capital at the time, produced techno & electro music that incorporated the mechanical rhythm of the environment.

Sally Kettle, the 1st woman to have rowed the Atlantic East-West twice, talked about her personal journey heading out to sea in a 23ft wooden rowing boat (that comes flat packed for you to build). Her talk was very inspirational as she had many set backs along her way and she produced one of the most inspirational quotes from the TEDxBrighton conference "Sometimes it's not what you do but what you inspire!".

And finally onto Will McInnes, who talked about Happiness, Openness & Participation. He also included E for Energy but only to satisfy his acronym ocd. He explained in his talk that when you think of Business in a bad way, you tend to think about extraction, stripping the world of its resources & assets, every last ounce of goodness from its people. It's not good & this form of business is not sustainable.

However there is something magical about business for Will; there's something about independence, freedom and getting things done to achieve the results you want & following our passion. He is very optimistic & cheerful about business and wants to share some key principles of this movement that is occurring.

Happiness - Will was asked "What is the meaning of life?" and was answered by a colleague "to be happy" ("Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" is one of the most famous phrases in the United States Declaration of Independence). However in life, business & happiness are not usually synonymous with one another - We have all experienced the sunday night feeling or waking up on a monday to go to work having to take public transport to a place you hate. This is not good enough & things are changing - It needs to change!

Will goes onto to talk about Bhutan and they are in the top 20 happiest places in the world but they are amongst the most under developed.

To measure happiness at work, Will used a simple method involving 2 buckets: the happy & unhappy buckets. Every day staff would get a ball and place it in the appropriate bucket. This produces a visual awareness of happiness in the workplace that can then be compared to for example profit.

Openness - lots of undisclosed information in business; there seems to be a notion in business to keep employees in the dark or as Will puts it the seagull treatment: Come in, flap, crap over everyone & fly out again leaving the rest to clean up the mess. Like the inventor of Linux software said "Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow" which means if enough try to solve a problem, we can do it together.

So why not harness openness in business?

There are things that holds us all back from divulging everything - this could be embarrassment, the fear of rejection or even modesty. But imagine a world where openness is normal. If we are all thinking the same questions then why not get them out there and get on with the job.

Participation - Against the backdrop of recession and difficult times in business, great things are happening! Will uses the example of a cardboard box company that uses participative management, democratic management to get the edge over competitors. This company opened their books and made key decisions together sometimes against the decision of management, sometimes even against their own interests but for the greater good. Through tough economic storms, the company survived & still thrives. The book by Vineer Nayar entitled "Employee first, customer second" which goes against the grain of standard business practice. But this actually puts the company's people first and the direct consequence of this is better service for the customer. Democratic companies are surfacing, this movement is happening now and is unstoppable!

Finally...

Energy - We need to stand up and make the change & we can!

The TEDxBrighton conference exceeded my expectations and I would recommend attending a TED conference to anyone! A big thanks to all the speakers, sponsors and organisers. Job very well done! Thanks!

Half way through TEDxBrighton...

2011-01-21T05:48:00.000-08:00

It's lunchtime! To be fair, considering we have just listened to 5 speakers and 3 TED Talks videos, it's been surprising effortless to sit back an soak in the information.

So far we have had talks from Greg Hadfield, Dr Judith Good, David Bramwell, George MacKerron, Prof Darrell Evans & Antony Mayfield. All talks have approached the topic "Reasons to be cheerful" from different perspectives which has been great.

To me, Greg Hadfield's talk on "2015: The road to a digital Brighton" & Antony Mayfield's talk on "Superskills: Three things to learn from the web" have been the highlight so far.

Greg spoke about making Brighton & Hove an open-data city & the concept of "globalisation" which tends to makes us forget about the local aspect of things. The term "Global village" where village is the wrong metaphor as it is not a small world we live in but instead the networks have got bigger. He continues on to explain that just through the rule of 6 degrees of separation, one individual in Brighton can reach the whole of Brighton just through a few close connections.

Antony's talk was right up my street as it covered the web and our interactions with it and more specifically the skills required to get the most out of it. He compared the internet to the book The hitchiker's guide to the galaxy which in many ways it is - a fountain of information. His talked then focused on social networks and how to use them efficiently which was a true gem of information.

Like learning most things technical, it takes around 30 to 40 hrs to truly learn how to use twitter which might explain why a lot that Twitter newbies complain that they are not getting the results they expect from Twitter - It isn't as simple as it looks but Twitter, with the right training, can makes it very easy and efficient to find or get the relevant information.

Antony covered the 3 superskills required to master these social networks: Networks, Sharing and Focus & Flow

Networks was about understanding how the web works as a whole, the different interactions within it. Social networks are important to not only the web but human beings. Networks have a mind of their own.

Sharing - with us living in the digital age, sharing has become easier and almost a normality. We no longer are faced with the challenge of how to share but instead it has now been replaced what to share.

Focus & Flow was probably the most interesting out of the 3 superskills mentioned. Antony explained how he used to create his presentations which would involve flicking between Google & Powerpoint which took quite sometime. But now he uses the Pomodoro Technique which turns time into a valuable ally to accomplish what we want to do and chart continuous improvement in the way we do it. I highly recommend you look into it!

But by no means do these 2 speakers belittle the talks given by the others.

David Bramwell whose talk concluded that pursuing your utopia starts from home and that it is the connections with people that resonates with us (oh and hot tubs apparently) he also shed light on a local community project called Zocalo which brings individuals closer to their community & neighbours.

George MacKerron spoke about "mapping happiness across space & time" and the issue of quantifying happiness. He created an iPhone app called erm... mappiness, which allows him to collect data that is more relevant & accurate than it has ever been to plot trends and stats on happiness. Some fascinating stuff!

A Prelude to TEDxBrighton

2011-01-20T13:01:00.000-08:00

Speaker 1 - Greg Hadfield

About the speaker

Greg was the first national newspaper journalist to leave Fleet Street for the internet in the mid-1990s when his son, then aged 12, created Soccernet, the world's most popular football website.

A former education correspondent and news editor with The Sunday Times, he also created Schoolsnet, an education website profiling every school in the United Kingdom.

Greg, who is co-author of "Class: Where Do You Stand in Today's Pecking Order", has lived in Brighton for 23 years, with his wife, Susan, an author and teacher.

He is director of strategic projects at Cogapp, an award-winning digital agency.

The Talk

2015: The road to a digital Brighton

In the coming years, every city will be - to a lesser or greater degree - a digital city. How will Brighton and Hove get there first? And how will it stand out from the rest? The road map to a smarter, more prosperous, sustainable and openly-democratic community.

Speaker 2 - Dr.Judith Good

About the speaker

Judith's a Senior Lecturer in the School of Informatics, University of Sussex, and Director of the Interactive Systems Research Group.

Her background is in psychology and artificial intelligence, with degrees from the University of Edinburgh, and she's worked at universities in both the US and UK.

I am passionate about designing innovative technology for learners. Iï¿½m particularly interested in designing systems that can be appropriated by learners, and which they can use to help them shape their learning experiences in meaningful ways.

Talk: Learners for Change

Learning is about so much more than facts and topics. In this talk Iï¿½ll be considering innovative ways in which learners are using technology to bring about deep and lasting learning changes, both for themselves, and for the world around them.

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Classic TED Talk (film)

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Speaker 3 ï¿½ David Bramwell

Dr Bramwell is creator of Cheeky Guides publishing, Sing-a-long-a-Wickerman! and is host of Brighton's long-running conversation night, the Catalyst Club, where 3 guests are given 15 minutes each to share their passions with a live audience.

He is currently touring a one-man show on the theme of utopia and is passionate about the possibilities of bringing a greater sense of sharing into our cities.

It is worth noting that Dr Bramwell is a medical man by rumour only; approach with extreme caution, particularly if he offers to whip out your tonsils in exchange for a packet of biscuits.

Talk: The Number 9 Bus to Utopia

In 2006 Dr Bramwell spent a year visiting the world's most extraordinary communities in search of the perfect life. After wild adventures meeting time-travellers, yogis and singing plants, he returned home to discover a simple yet profound catalyst for social change happening on his own doorstep. With your help he'd like to start a movement...

(And if that's not intriguing enough, he also promises to share his own extraordinary vision for utopia that just requires a few bits of wood, a bucket of water and the death of a rich uncle.)

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11.00 Morning break

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11.40 Session 2

Intro

Speaker 4 ï¿½ George MacKerron

George MacKerron is a PhD researcher at the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE).

His research focuses on subjective wellbeing, sustainability and environmental quality, and non-market valuation. His methodological interests are in spatial analysis and visualisation, and survey and experimental techniques for mobile devices and the web.

George is responsible for Mappiness, a spatial experience sampling project exploring links between immediate wellbeing and the immediate environment. He's also contributing to the UK National Ecosystem Assessment as a member of the Economic Assessment of Cultural Benefits team.

Talk: Mapping happiness across space and time

How, and how much, does our immediate environment affect the way we feel? FInd out how a new study answers this question -- with the generous assistance of 30,000 iPhone users.

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Speaker 5 ï¿½ Prof. Darrell Evans

Darrell is currently Professor and Head of Anatomy at Brighton and Sussex Medical School and enjoys nothing more than inspiring his students to become enthused about anatomy and to help them understand the importance of anatomy in health and disease. Darrell's main research is directed at understanding the way tissues such as muscle, tendon and cartilage develop in the body. By examining the way cells come together to make these tissues, he hopes to find out if it's possible to recreate those processes when tissues become injured or diseased. Darrell's passion for championing the amazing world of anatomy has led him to become engaged in a number of public understanding of science events and heï¿½s excited to be speaking at the first TEDxBrighton event.

Talk: Scanning for Gold: the making of a high performance athlete

Ever wondered what makes a high performance athlete? How does their training develop and change their bodies to perform at the highest level? How does medical imaging help us to gain an insight into how they develop their bodies? This is your chance to find out.
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Speaker 6 - Antony Mayfield

Antony Mayfield is a consultant, author and commentator on digital strategy, web culture, content, and reputation management.

He founded the content and social media teams at iCrossing, which became the largest independent digital marketing firm in the world, before being sold to Hearst Media in 2010. Prior to iCrossing, Antony spent a decade in journalism and corporate communications, most recently as a director in the Bell Pottinger Group.

He is the author of the best-selling book on how to manage personal reputation online, Me and My Web Shadow, which has been published in several countries by A&C Black/Bloomsbury. He has also written a number of e-books, the most well-known of which, ï¿½What is Social Media?ï¿½ has been downloaded tens of thousands of times, placed on reading lists for top business schools and translated into Chinese.

Antony is a committed advocate of spreading digital literacy - knowledge and skills about how to use the internet better - in businesses and in wider society. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, he also serves a Trustee of Citizens Online, a UK charity which campaigns for internet access as a fundamental human right.

Talk: Superskills: Three things to learn about working with the web

The Web gives us almost instant access to the sum of human knowledge and almost 2 billion people around the world. We are beginning to learn how to use it, but in the process we seem beset by information overload, distractions, trivia and deeper fears and doubts about what it means for society. This talk will offer some ways we can take charge of how we use the web to get everyday work done and at the same time explore the incredible potential of being connected
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Classic TED Talk (film)

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13.15 Lunch
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14.15 Session 3

Intro

Speaker 7 ï¿½ Jake Spicer

Jake Spicer is a painter and printmaker who lives in Brighton and tells stories with pictures instead of words. He has a passionate interest in light, and the psychology of drawing.

He is the founder and head tutor of The Brighton Life Drawing Sessions; informal adult education classes that seek to push the boundaries of artistic eduction, universally improve visual literacy and to encourage everybody to draw more wonder from their daily experiences. The Sessions act as a meeting place for a dynamic community of artists and creators, promoting broad discussion and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Talk: Drawing out Wonder

As children we know how to play and draw and marvel at the world around us. As adults its easy to forget how to do all these things. Through drawing we can learn to re-engage with the visual world and in doing so, awaken our sense of wonder.
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Speaker 8 ï¿½ Sue Bradley

Sue has an MA (Ed.) specialising in Multiple Intelligences. She is a regional director of Creative Partnerships, an international performer, teacher and musician with a punk attitude.

For the last 6 years Sue has been working with creative practitioners to re-engage young people with education. Faced with a wall of bureaucracy and Orwellian double speak, grudging acceptance and conflicting behaviours, she came to realise that creative souls need help. They need help to deal with the world of measures, money and business, while at the same time those in the traditional work environment need help to understand the creative mind set. In short we all need to get along, and if we do the results can be stunning.

She is passionate about improving life chances for young people, making the best of collaborations between the creative and business sectors and helping artistic and creative people to make a living (without selling out).

Talk: Crarrogance

By observing how creative and business people find it hard to get along with each other, Sue has been developing the theory of Crarrogance (the perceived arrogance of the creative person) and Barrogance (business arrogance) to find ways to deal with this gap. She is leading research that has the potential to build a more fulfilling and successful future for both the business and creative worlds.
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Classic TED Talk (film)

Speaker 9 ï¿½ Prof. Angie Hart

I first became excited by resilience in 2004, and started applying it as a child and family psychotherapist working with people who haven't had things easy in life.

As an academic I've researched loads of issues over the years, but resilience continues to hold my interest. I'm particularly passionate about what ideas about resilience can do for people who have been dealt bum cards in life, but some of the ideas can be useful for any of us.

As the adoptive parent of three gorgeous children with complex needs, I've disciplined myself to seek out resilient moves I can make at home - comes in handy when you're about to shout at your kids, or when you can't be bothered to switch off the telly and help them with their homework.

Talk: Making resilient moves

Resilience is about overcoming the odds. The word gets banded about a lot in government speak and in the media, especially in times of crisis. Reasons to be cynical about it perhaps. However, there is an interesting body of research out there that really does help us to develop what I call 'resilient moves' - useful ways of thinking and behaving in difficult times. This talk shares some of those ideas.

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15.55 Afternoon break

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16.40 Session 4

Intro

Speaker 10 ï¿½ Sarah Angliss

A musician and maker, Sarah Angliss (aka Spacedog) is known for her dreamlike performances incorporating little-known stories from the history of science and her own musical machines. She is known for her interactive soundworks, her theremin skills and the automata which she makes to accompany her on stage. Trained in acoustics, robotics and music, Sarahï¿½s work has explored the stranger of obsessions of the first sound recordists; noise in Lancashire cotton mills (with Dr Caroline Radcliffe), musiciansï¿½ attitudes to the first drum machines and samplers (for the Science Museum) and the reputed psychological effects of infrasound (with NPL, Prof. Richard Wiseman et al).

Talk: Loving the Machine

In this optimistic view of mechanisation, Sarah reveals some surprising connections between two types of dance music which flourished a century apart. Both were created by people were working to the relentless beat of factory machines. Sarah also gives a sneak preview of her latest artwork - a simple machine which keeps perfect time with your heartbeat.

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Speaker 11 ï¿½ Will McInnes

Will McInnes dropped out of a Politics degree at Liverpool University and fell into a job in a telecoms company, where he worked his way up into a formally-trained marketing role.

After being inspired by an article about a cardboard box business being run according to the principles laid out by the Brasilian business man Ricardo Semler in his classic book ï¿½Maverickï¿½, Will left his job to start a different kind of business. After meeting Tom Nixon the two founded NixonMcInnes.

Following many twists and turns the consultancy now helps some of the worldï¿½s biggest organizations to change to meet the demands of the social web.

Will grew up in Hove and lives there with his wife and two boys.

Talk: Radicalising business

Happiness, Openness and Participation are seen as subversive and even ridiculous in traditional business boardrooms.

Yet these forces are irresistible in the rapidly evolving world we live in, and the business benefits and societal contribution they can create vastly outstrip the dated and misanthropic ways that business is supposed to be done.

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Speaker 12 ï¿½ Sally Kettle

In 2006 I became the 1st woman to have rowed across the Atlantic East- West twice. An incredible feat especially as Iï¿½d never rowed or been at sea before. I first took to the oars in 2003. After an initial set back an unlikely rowing partner, my mother, Sarah Kettle, joined me. 105 days later we made it into the Record Books as the worldï¿½s first mother and daughter to row an ocean.

In 2005 I founded Rowgirls - an all female rowing team striving to break the record for the fastest Atlantic crossing. Unfortunately the team of four was struck by disaster when a crewmate left the boat mid-Atlantic. Subsequently the boat lost its rudder in the worst recorded conditions in 200 yrs and a shark attacked the boat ï¿½ no lives were lost! Not willing to give up,my crew and I completed the challenge ï¿½ arriving in Antigua 77 days later, and becoming the first three-handed boat to complete the trip.

All of my adventures have included the opportunity to raise money for charitable causes. I have pulled together in excess of ï¿½300,000 and I hope to continue giving my time and expertise to my chosen charities.

Talk: A Drop in the Ocean

I decided to row the Atlantic because I wanted a better future. I was a secretary in Brighton at the time, but I wanted to be more than just a touch typist with a theatre degree! I never knew that heading out to sea in a 23ft wooden rowing boat would ultimately save my relationship with my mother, and I certainly didn't know how much it would change me. As I look to the future now, I realise that I can't do everything and I certainly can't save the world, but I can do something. In changing and challenging oneself I hope to influence and inspire others to do the same.

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Wrap up and thanks

18.00 Finish

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A Prelude to TEDxBrighton

2011-01-05T05:01:00.000-08:00

TEDxBrighton is coming soon and some, like myself, have been fortunate enough to get tickets and others well not so much. This blog will try to cover as much of the event as possible but before that let's lay some foundations down....and for those that may not know, lets find out what TED is.

Better known as TED Talks, TED (Technology Entertainment and Design) is a global set of conferences curated by the American private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading."

A few stats...

Since June 2006, the talks have been offered for free viewing online, under a Creative Commons license, through TED.com. As of July 2010, over 700 talks are available free online. By January 2009 they had been viewed 50
million times. In July 2010, the viewing figure stood at more than 290 million, reflecting a still growing global audience. So TED Talks has gained popularity through its credible speakers (well maybe 99% of their speakers) and is now seen as focal point for discussing Technology, Entertainment and Design topics.

So what's TEDx?

TEDx is a program that enables schools, businesses, libraries or just groups of friends to enjoy a TED-like experience with events they themselves organize, design and host. Examples of events include TEDxDubai, TEDxJakarta and TEDxConcordia.As of 2010, some 750 TEDx events are scheduled to happen in over 60 countries.... and
Brighton is now one of them!!

Okay so now the official blurb is out-of-the-way let's talk about TEDxBrighton

The day-long conference will be on Friday 21st January 2011, and present a fantastic programme of live speakers from a range of backgrounds, disciplines, and perspectives which reflect the exciting diversity of our fair City, alongside some classic TED talks.

The day will be divided into four sessions; two in the morning and two in the afternoon and all TEDxBrighton talks will also be filmed and added to an online archive, here, following the event. Originally the organisers had imagined the first TEDxBrighton to be an open call for speakers with an interesting perspective, a unique viewpoint, or a proven ability to inspire. Then, in the democratic spirit of TEDx, we planned to open out the selection of the next events theme to the first TEDx guests – a simple crowd sourced system. And so it may still be.

However, as they began the search for the first line up of speakers, reaching out to individuals who have long been on our list, along with some trusted recommendations and people who they know to operate within sprawling networks of busy, interesting, inspiring, and unusual people, it became clear that the lack of a theme made this first TEDxBrighton sound a little vague.

Deciding on a theme was surprisingly easy... "Reasons to be cheerful – an optimistic look forward"

TED talks most often look forward, even when assessing historical phenomenon. Whether speakers are looking at new insights, emerging technologies, themes, occurrences, inventions, or thoughts, the focus is mainly to consider their implications now, and in the future. So it had to be a look forward.

The optimism is because the other is too easy. We have much to be fearful of: the economic crisis and our seeming inability to consider alternatives to the current model, the effect of technology on our ability to concentrate, and to relate to each other, the widening gaps within our society and across international borders, our inability to mount an effective collective response to the threat of climate change, and so on, and so on, and so on. All of these things are important, but every generation faces its own crises, and there is also much to be excited about. To be able to share in a speakers’ wonder on a given subject has always been what we’ve enjoyed the most. Almost to the point where if the speaker is passionate and articulate, it doesn’t matter what the subject is. The spreading of this excitement is what makes TED so important, and enjoyable, as a resource.

It is in this spirit, and with a theme that remains broad enough to encompass all comers, that they hope produce a little of that excited optimism at TEDxBrighton. TEDxBrighton will feature twelve live speakers representing a broad mix of perspectives, ideas, voices, and passions, alongside some classic TED talks.

Who arethe speakers?

Sue Bradley talks about Crarrogance

Will McInnes talks about The Human Future of Business

Sarah Angliss talks about Loving the Machine

Dr David Bramwell talks about The Number 9 Bus to Utopia

Sally Kettle talks about A Drop in the Ocean

George MacKerron talks about Mapping happiness across space and time

Jake Spicer talks about Drawing out Wonder

Prof Angie Hart talks about Making resilient moves

Greg Hadfield talks about 2015: The road to a digital Brighton

Prof Darrell Evans talks about Scanning for Gold: the making of a high performance athlete

Dr Judith Good talks about Learners for Change

Antony Mayfield talks about Social superpowers: please take one

I'm looking forward to all these talks (especially Will McInnes, Antony Mayfield & Greg Hadfield) which range from a talk on a profound catalyst for social change to how much our immediate environment affect the way we feel. All these talks aim to inspire & trigger new thoughts & concepts as well as to gauge a real & personal understanding of them. I am really looking forward to attending TEDxBrighton on the 21st Jan 2011 and hope to see you there too!

Thanks for reading

Social Media this Social Media that ... but what does it all mean?

2010-10-31T07:27:00.000-07:00

If you haven't already heard the term Social Media then you must be living under a rock; it's unavoidable like bad weather in England or tweets about the factor on Twitter. This grouping of words is not new however it's being used more & more and has made it into the mainstream which means it has gained more exposure especially with the rise of FaceBook & Twitter. But what does the term mean and when should it be used?

As far as I see it, Social Media is a label, a categorisation of online tools but nothing more. It's the latest generic label that we as a collective have just accepted; just like the label Al-Qaeda which translates to The List and groups terrorists with an Islamic background under one name but most of these groups have different ideals and goals. This is the same with social media tools like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and the rest all grouped under the social media umbrella.

These tools all serve different purposes albeit that some have similar features but all of them centre around 2 notions: social & media.

Social just means it can be posted on the Internet and be made visible to the public or a select group.

Media just indicates that it is legible or visual information. Since mostly everything we view on the Internet is media so I find the term redundant.

So in summary, Social Media to me is a term representing a certain type of information networking. I think the term should only be used when referring to the "bigger picture" and shouldn't be used when talking about specific network interactions as each each network behaves differently so should be used differently. So when we are writing our next blog posts on "social media" strategies let's try to use the specific network names for example Facebook networking instead of this generic almost meaningless term Social Media.

The Benefits of Social Media Training

2010-07-29T05:01:00.000-07:00

Social media encompasses many different tool such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn etc. and they are great tools for business. They are popular, they are engaging & best of all they are free! Twitter, a personal favourite of mine, is very easy to use and can boost a company’s profile with minimum effort in comparison to other marketing tools out there.

However with great power comes great responsibility! A single tweet can have an detrimental effect on a company’s reputation & since social media is now essential part of marketing, staff must learn the appropriate Netiquette (Internet etiquette) - a good case for this is the Vodafone Twittergate.

On the other hand, good use of social media can boost a company’s online profile and a great example of this is Brighton’s Local Tea Salon - Metrodeco. They have great online presence in Brighton and use the latest social media tools like Foursquare to promote their business - they are currently organising a Foursquare Flashmob to achieve the coveted but difficult to come by Swarm Badge which will be a UK first.

Providing your staff/brand ambassadors with Social Media Training is a great way to ensure that they understand the foreseeable impact when using Social Media content as well as improve brand awareness & increase sells. Social Media like SEO is a constantly evolving medium with new techniques & strategies being created all the time. Empowering your staff or brand ambassador with the latest tricks of the trade will invaluable to your business.

Social media experience is mainly gained on the job and the Social Media Training provides an extra boost to efficiently climb up the search rankings without causing negative ripples in the virtual water.

#BrightonSEO 23rd July 2010

2010-07-26T05:10:00.000-07:00

I attended the #BrightonSEO on Friday 23rd July 2010 which featured several guest speakers on topics centered around all things SEO. I love the internet, social media and their engaging ways and work in email marketing but not with SEO in any way (yet). I attended the event to learn more about today's SEO practices. This write up isn't about what was said in detail but what I've taken away from it all. For more info on the talks themselves check out the July 2010 BrightonSEO Conf Roundup.

I really enjoyed the talks and took away some great information but there were two talks that stood out from the others; the first was Rishi Lakhani (@rishil) talking about what makes a good SEO or as he put it "Getting Sh*t Done". From the get go I knew this wasn't going to be boring. From his talk I learnt that SEO is a constantly evolving science and even calling it science is questionable. SOE requires you to really understand the crucial aims in the campaigns and being able to adapt to different audiences and as Rishil said “SEO isn’t just SEO anymore, you need to be a politician, marketer, public speaker and a lobbyist too”. SEO is more than following a text book process. A different approach must be taken for each SEO campaign as the goals are different, the products are different etc.

The 2nd talk engrained in my brain came from Zachary Colbert (@zacharycolbert) talking about Lev Manovich’s theory of Linking & Association - “are hyperlinks making us stupid?”. This is my cup of tea! It was more of an open question than a set answer. Zach gave his opinion on the matter but what I really took away is that we seem to be limiting the way we & the future generations think by having a limited number of keywords to associate links with but also that easy internet searches could be making us more forgetful of information (a bit like calculators & maths). The effects may not be apparent right now but will the future generations that know only these ways of obtaining information be affected? All in all a great talk.

Well that's it from me on #BrightonSEO and I would like to thank Kevin Newman for organising the event for gratis! Great Work from all that contributed.

Interview with Yellow Wiva D

2010-07-14T10:08:00.000-07:00

I'm an avid fan of all that is real Hip-Hop and especially UK Hip-Hop as it is easier to relate to. Now I'm quite picky about who I listen to and some of these artists include Jehst, Micall Parknsun, Lowkey, Asaviour, Dubbledge, Pete Rock, J Dilla, KRS One to name just a few. So when I heard Brighton rapper Yellow Wiva D aka Lee Dellow spit on a track called "Whatz That Sound" and just had to find out more so I interviewed him...

What is your name, and name your group or label?

My performance name is Yellow Wiva D and I roll with Multifinish which is a collective and that’s under Bangarang Records which is an independent label. Multifinish got it’s name because Antzilla used to work with Pig for a plastering firm hence Multifinish but it also reflects multiple points of view coming together.

[caption id="attachment_298" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Click this image for Free Track Download"][/caption]

Where are the artists from? What is their talent in the group?

We’re all from Brighton, we’re all MCs but we also have lots of producers that work with us like Freddy P in the USA, Antzilla who’s in Australia and we even have a French producer that sends us some beats. I only get involved with the vocals and not with producing.

How did you get your name YellowWivaD?

Well my actual name is Lee Dellow and as I work in sales in my daytime job I obviously give a bit of the double 0 selling with my Clark Kent persona so I gave it the Dellow treatment... I used to say "it's Dellow, like yellow but with a D." and it just stuck, Yellow Wiva D

Do you play any instruments at all?

Yeah I play the guitar, I can bash out a melody on the keyboard but I wouldn’t go as far as to say I can go on stage and smash out an Elton John hit. However I did contemplate the Plan B style of music but thought it would be best that I just concentrate on my lyrics & vocals and then aspire to go down that road later on.

How would you describe your music for the public audience if they have never seen you before?

I would say it’s like your typical everyday hip-hop, one of your 5 a day (hint on the new album name coming soon), everyday life observation with an undertone of realism. It’s just generally looking at life through a fun lense. The listener can choose to read between the lines as I always leave subtle hints & metaphors on deeper issues.

How long have you been performing live or making music?

It’s difficult for me to give you a figure but I guess around 6 years but I started off like most at college having a cheeky smoke and freestylin’. I then got into freestyle battlin’ and eventually moved into performing on stage. So yeah, I would say I’ve been doing it for about 6 years now.

I love freestylin’ and I was better at it back then than I am now. I wanted to start writing my own lyrics so I pushed myself away from the freestylin’ into writing my own material.

What do you feel distinguishes “an artist” from just a musician?

I saw Jay-Z the other day performing with a full orchestra and although he didn’t play an instrument himself, I would consider him on that day to be a musician as his vocals were part of the music. I see myself as just an artist who paints lyrical pictures to be interpreted by the listener. I would go on stage to perform with a DJ or just a track playing in the background.

Where did you meet your group and how long have you been together now?

Multifinish has been together for 4 years now. I’m in Patcham and Pig who’s also in Multifinish is in Westdean and in our early teens people said we should collaborate. We did meet though at a Klashnekoff gig where we both freestyled and from there we decided to record a track in a studio in Plumpton called “Check Your Heart Rate” with DJ Madness who’s now known as Antzilla and Multifinish went on from there and just expanded. The Group now includes Pig, Rubberman, Bigredcap, JB and myself.

What has been the biggest challenge for you or the group?

I would have to say that pushing out into Brighton is still the biggest challenge. We been played on the equivalent of Radio One in Australia and we recently did a video feature for Lithuanian MTV for a program called The Intern. So it’s been easier for us to break into international countries but the hardest part is to stand out of the crowd & get same recognition in the UK but there’s a lot of competition out there.

You’ve heard of the term “starving artists” before, how do you cope with major obstacles?

Well I’ve always kept a 9 to 5 job and never dropped out of my job to pursue my rap career which maybe I should have done. Most obstacles are financial so whenever they come about I just work harder in my 9 to 5 & sleep less.

Do you feel the economic crunch has hurt the industry, or do you have some other promotional tips to help support your music?

The credit crunch has definitely affected the industry but not me personally. Tips-wise I would recommend new artists to get onto the social networks, upload your tracks and get your friends & followers to promote them. Give 'em something for free to get them listening. Also get involved in any competitions you can & push your music to local radio stations. I would recommend to check out NooStar, which I won in April last year. It’s a weekly chart based on videos where users vote for you.

What does your family & friends think of your performance and do they support you?

They love it & loved it from day one. They actually moan at me when I’ve been slack and not sent material off to radio stations. They really support me and keep motivating me to move forward.

What has been your strong influence to continue performing?

Every time I think to myself I’m going to take some time out for a bit, you get a big track come along and you just think...This is what it's about!

Does anyone in particular influence your artistic/musical talent and inspires you?

Well obviously Multifinish as we bounce of each other and we all strive to be the best lyricist on the track so it pushes everyone forward. In terms of famous people, like I mentioned before, Jay-Z purely because you can listen to any of his tracks from his career and he is just so consistent. Eminem as he’s so sick in the way he flows & constructs sentences. But also Professor Green who I think is absolutely amazing and can’t believe that in 3 years he’s moved from freestyle battlin’ to being a well known name in the game. Also Kano, Wiley and Dizzy.

Who writes most of the lyrics?

We all write our own lyrics & concoct the hooks together or someone comes up with the hook but usually Bigredcap is the main hook man hit maker.

What image do you think your music conveys?

Me personally I think it’s music for the pissed & reckless really, your everyday guys.If you had to change one thing about your music/group what do you feel would be the best change to benefit the group overall and why?

I really want to get into big beat stuff similar to Wiley’s Wearing My Rolex tune. I love hip-hop and want to integrate it with these bigger beats like dubstep & bassline grime with a focus on the lyrical content.

Where would you like to see yourself within the next five years as an artist?

I want to be established on the UK hip-hop scene under Bangarang Records and have a few other artists signed to the label.

Tell us about your most embarrassing moment if you care to share it with us?

We did the Ultimate Car Show last summer where we opened up for Goldie Lookin Chain. On the first day I got carried away, got absolutely wasted and passed out on the raceway and no one found me for a couple of hours. I had mud all over my face proper embarrassing. I woke up the next day when 2 of the car show girls broke into my tent and took picture while flashing me.

What has been the most bizarre thing (thrown) on the stage with you?

Just insults really!

What are your up-to-date performance plans? New releases? Tours? News?

At the moment we haven’t got any dates yet as we have 2 albums about to be released but still require some work, mine’s called “One of your 5 a day” which is out at the end of next month. Rubberman & Bigredcap are also releasing an album but it’s under wraps at the moment. Once this new material is released we can then perform it in future shows.

If you could perform with anyone in the world, either dead or alive who would it be? Why?

So many people but I guess it would have to be Jay-Z, Eminem & Kurt Cobain. Jay-Z like I mentioned before he’s extremely talented rapper, Eminem was one of the main reasons I started rapping & Kurt Cobain simply because he’s the reason I learn to play the guitar. Also Girls Aloud 'cos they are fit!

How do you feel about file swapping?

Well obviously once a track is put online it’s gonna be downloaded! But I’m very much like Robin Hood, steal from the rich & give to the poor so my theory is jack my music as much as you want but if you like it next time you see me drop me a tenner.

Have you been involved in any benefit performances? What was it and how did you become involved?

Yeah I did Strawberry Circus a couple of years back in aid of building schools in Africa and it was huge.

How do you think you would like to be remembered by everyone?

Yellow Wiva D..........Yeah, he loved it!

As an artist, is there anything special you hope to be able to accomplish?

I just want to make one of those tracks that in a few decades time that is considered a cult classic. I basically want to make an immortal track.

What do you attribute to your “drive as an artist”?

I’m really into graphics, art & music. I love imagery and I create imagery through writing and I like to surround myself with these elements.

If you had to think of a slogan that could leave a positive impact for everyone what would your slogan be?

Life’s short. Stand tall.

Is this your first interview or do you have some other articles/stories about you posted somewhere for public viewing?

I was interviewed not long ago by a Lithuanian Blogger who’s apparently quite popular over there. We did the title track for Edge Media TV, that was cool. Also I got interviewed by Noostar which is an online talent show that was opened by Graham Norton where they interviewed & filmed me for the series.

Do you have any video links where people can see you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3hmlmHWFko

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jq-6OKVVRCA

Do you have a website of any type?

http://www.bangarangrecords.com/

http://www.myspace.com/multifinish

How do I use Twitter?

2010-07-12T04:53:00.000-07:00

The first time I heard of Twitter I rushed to judgment describing it as an RSS feed on speed. But it is far from. The concept of Twitter is so simplistic in nature that it can slot into existing processes or even create new ones that are more efficient by being effectively a mini-blogging platform, an RSS feed as well as an instant messaging platform all in one.

Personally, I use Twitter for various purposes. In my daily life, it is used to promote my creative outlets whether they are blogs, pictures or videos; it allows a quick broadcast of my work to the connected world. I also use Twitter as a virtual equivalent of Speakers’ Corner to voice my thoughts & opinions, except my voice is not force upon others but instead they have chosen to listen... or unfollow straight after. This is part of the beauty of this system. The organically grown network of followers you acquire on Twitter are interested in what you have to say and have the choice to stop following you.

Ever since I’ve let Twitter integrate into my life, I’ve had my finger on the pulse & found myself more connected with my local community & with what’s happening around me. I’ve made great connections with individuals & businesses that would have never happened in the tangible world.

Twitter has allowed me to easily expand the feed of information I receive in the fields I’m interested in and, depending on my followers, some I’m not which can be quite refreshing sometimes. I regularly re-tweet (to post again to non-twitter savvy) information if I think it is useful, informative and relevant to what I am about.

People are finding new uses for Twitter all the time - what will you use it for?