The Machine: A computer science education podcast

CodeGirl and the Conversation: Women in Computing

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 20 Jun 2025 14:27:57 GMT

In this special live-recorded episode of The Machine, Rob O’Connor hosts a panel discussion following a viewing of the CodeGirl documentary at SETU Waterford. The event brought together a group of secondary school students to explore pathways into computing and to hear real-life stories from women working and studying in the field.

Rob is joined by Dr Indrakshi Dey (Walton Institute), Ava Neary (Applied Computing student and cybersecurity intern), and Amanda Freeman-Gater (Assistant Head of the Computing & Mathematics Department at SETU). Together they reflect on themes raised in the film — teamwork, creativity, and breaking gender stereotypes — while also sharing their own journeys into technology, including the challenges of maths anxiety, imposter syndrome, and changing career paths.

Whether you’re considering a future in computing or supporting someone who is, this episode offers honest, insightful, and encouraging perspectives on what it means to build a career in tech.

Useful links:

Computing Courses at SETU: https://www.setu.ie/computing
Walton Institute: https://www.waltoninstitute.ie
CodeGirl documentary: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5086438/
Dr. Indrakshi Dey: https://waltoninstitute.ie/about/staff/dr-indrakshi-dey
Amanda Freeman-Gater: https://www.setu.ie/staff/amanda-freeman-gater
Rob O’Connor: https://www.setu.ie/staff/robert-oconnor

Why Study Computing?

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 17 Jan 2025 10:52:00 GMT

Are you interested in studying computing but feel a bit daunted by entering a field that can seem overwhelming? As professional computer science educators, we are often asked questions by prospective students about what’s actually involved in studying computing, the types of roles one can expect after graduating, the skills a student needs, and more. For this episode, we tried to distil some of those common questions into a podcast. If you’re someone who thinks computing is only for math wizards and “hardcore” programmers, this is the podcast for you! (Spoiler alert: The answer is NO!)

We discuss tech innovation and how ethical IT professionals can have a positive impact on the world. We also explore the hidden perks of IT careers, beyond the good salaries.

Join Amanda Freeman-Gater, TJ McDonald, and Rob O’Connor - all from the Department of Computing and Mathematics at SETU - for an easy-to-follow conversation on why you should study computing.

Useful Links:

Articles

Careers Portal – Information Technology https://careersportal.ie/sectors/sectors.php?sector_id=8
Brightwater Salary Survey 2024 https://online.flippingbook.com/view/692494949/
Technological university graduates more likely to be employed after leaving college (Irish Times) https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/education/2024/12/19/technological-university-graduates-more-likely-to-be-employed-after-leaving-college/
The highest paying sectors for new graduates (BusinessPlus) https://businessplus.ie/business-insights/highest-paid-graduates/

Courses

BSc (Hons) in Computer Science (SE600) https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-hons-in-computer-science-common-entry
BSc (Hons) in Software Systems Development https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-hons-in-software-systems-development
BSc (Hons) in Computer Forensics and Security (SE602) https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-hons-in-computer-forensics-and-security
BSc (Hons) in Creative Computing https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-hons-in-creative-computing
BSc in Information Technology https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-in-information-technology
BSc in Creative Computing https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-in-creative-computing
BSc in Software Systems Development https://www.setu.ie/courses/bsc-in-software-systems-development

Personal profiles

Amanda Freeman-Gater https://www.setu.ie/staff/amanda-freeman-gater
TJ McDonald https://www.setu.ie/staff/tj-mcdonald
Robert O’Connor https://www.setu.ie/staff/robert-oconnor

Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 04 Nov 2024 15:11:00 GMT

Coming out of our latest Computing Week on campus in SETU, Rob spoke with two members of the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau – Detective Sergeant Eoin O’Connell and Detective Noel O’Gorman. They spoke about the work of the Bureau, how cybercrime threats have evolved over the past few years and what individual and organisations can do to help protect themselves. TRIGGER WARNING: the podcast includes discussion of offences around online sexual abuse and child pornography. The conversation is not graphic but listeners may want to exercise discretion.

By an amazing coincidence, in the period from when the interview was recorded and published, SETU has been the victim of a cyberattack. At the time of podcast publication, all systems on the Waterford campus are offline and the site is under active investigation. So the podcast is particularly timely for the SETU community …

For more information on the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau, please visit https://www.garda.ie/en/about-us/organised-serious-crime/garda-national-cyber-crime-bureau-gnccb-/ To keep up to date with The Machine or for any follow-ups, you can contact Rob via the SETU website https://www.setu.ie/staff/robert-oconnor

Indrakshi Dey - Autonomous Systems and Artificial Intelligence

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 12:51:37 GMT

Autonomous Systems are the jumping off point for this podcast episode with Indrakshi Dey of the Walton Institute at SETU. We talk about how computer science research is progressing in this area, encompassing the world of AI and forming links with partners across all disciplines. This leads on to a chat about how we (humans) tend to anthropomorphise Artificial Intelligence systems. We also discuss Indrakshi’s career to date and how being a woman of colour has given her unique insight across the sector.

Here are some links if you wish to follow up the podcast:

· Walton Institute Key Research Areas https://waltoninstitute.ie/research/key-research

· CONNECT project https://www.connect-science.net

· Indrakshi Dey’s profile at the Walton Institute https://waltoninstitute.ie/about/staff/dr-indrakshi-dey

· Indrakshi Dey’s profile on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/indrakshi-dey-aa658839/

· Rob O’Connor on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertoconnorirl/

Nuria Oliver - Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and Addressing Imbalances

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 07 Mar 2024 04:00:00 GMT

To help celebrate International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Rob spoke with Spanish computer scientist Nuria Oliver about her work to date, such as using big data systems to help unbanked people access credit in developing nations or combating bias in AI systems. Nuria recounted how she first became interested in computing and turned that interest into a career. They also discussed the gender imbalance in computing today and Nuria offered some thought-provoking suggestions as to how these issues might be addressed. Nuria is also a fellow with Association of Computing Machinery, so thanks to the ACM for setting up the interview.

Here are links to projects mentioned during the podcast:

ELLIS – European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems https://ellis.eu
Data-Pop Alliance https://datapopalliance.org
Nuria Oliver’s Personal Website https://www.nuriaoliver.com
Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) https://www.acm.org

To keep up to date with The Machine, you can find the podcast on X/Twitter @machine_podcast or you can connect with Rob O’Connor via LinkedIn

Jobs in Computing (Live Panel Discussion)

Rob O'Connor — Tue, 20 Feb 2024 19:57:01 GMT

Here's a live panel discussion we recently hosted at SETU, in which a bunch of computing professionals talked about what it's like to work in the tech sector in Ireland. This took place in front of approx. 200 Leaving Cert students, tied in with Computing Week at SETU. If you're a student or someone who's interested in starting a career in IT, this discussion might be very useful. The panel is comprised of:

Padraig O’Neill – UNUM
Sinead Queally – VoxGig
Mick O’Brien – Kargo
Donna Tilson – Sun Life
Brendan O’Farrell – Red Hat
Amanda Freeman-Gater - SETU

Please excuse the poor audio in places. This was held as a live event and not a podcast. However, there were some great nuggets of info in there so we decided it was better to get it out there, warts and all.

Building a Local Large Language Model (LLM)

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 06:01:00 GMT

Another #ComputingWeek talk turned into a podcast! Two Red Hat software engineers, both recent graduates of SETU, returned to discuss the issues surrounding running your own LLM on a local machine, how models and datasets are built and reduced (quantised) so as to run on a laptop rather than an array of servers. Mark Campbell and Dimitri Saradkis provided excellent insight on the technical issues surround this topic, before getting into some of the ethical and moral issues with host Rob O'Connor at the end.

You can connect with all the people on this podcast on LinkedIn at:

Mark Campbell https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-campbell-76846b194/
Dimitri Saradakis https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimitri-saridakis-32a087139/
Rob O'Connor https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertoconnorirl/

Here are links to some of the tools referenced in the podcast:

Red Hat OpenShift AI https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/cloud-computing/openshift/openshift-ai

How AI is changing the ICT work environment

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 07 Feb 2024 05:00:00 GMT

On the back of a packed #ComputingWeek talk at SETU, Rob nabbed two speakers from UNUM Ireland – Gary Kenneally and Shourjya Sanyal – and recorded a conversation about the pace of change in the ICT industry, how AI tools can be integrated into a workflow and why new developers should even care about AI. The lads discuss why the think AI won’t be replacing anyone anytime soon – but it may help us work smarter.

To keep up to date with The Machine, you can find the podcast on X/Twitter @machine_podcast Or you can contact Rob via the SETU website. Thanks for listening

Quantum Computing and Quantum Communications

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 05 May 2023 09:03:02 GMT

Don't know your q-bits from your bytes? This is the podcast for you! Quantum Computing is one of the next-gen technologies that can truly usher in a new era in computing. Quantum Communications has the potential to provide a truly secure infrastructure for communications across small or vast distances. Deirdre Kilbane (Director of Research at the Walton Institute) joined Rob O'Connor in the studio to talk about all of this and the recent announcement of a large research investment in Ireland QCI (Quantum Communications Infrastructure). Deirdre breaks down some of the theoretical elements in an easy to understand manner and lays out the practical applications for this technology across Europe (and beyond).

For more information on Ireland QCI, check out this web story https://waltoninstitute.ie/projects/ireland-qci For more information on Deirdre Kilbane, check out her profile https://waltoninstitute.ie/about/staff/dr-deirdre-kilbane Stay up to date with The Machine podcast by following us on Twitter @machine_podcast

ChatGPT and AI in the Classroom w/ Hazel Farrell and Pete Windle

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 10:32:07 GMT

Hazel Farrell and Pete Windle are academics at SETU who have been playing with ChatGPT (and other AI tools) to see how they can be used in the classroom to assist teaching and learning. They both take an open approach towards the technologies, rather than shutting down conversation. They sat down with Rob O'Connor to talk about the potential of these technologies to be a useful tool in education. Pete is a lecturer in Computing, whereas Hazel is a lecturer in Music - so there is a cross-disciplinary aspect to the discussion. The podcast doesn't lead to many answers for academics or students who may be struggling with AI, but it does spark some interested questions and dialogues. This is definitely a topic we'll be discussing again.

During the podcast, Hazel recommends following Mushtaq Bilal on Twitter @MushtaqBilalPhD for interesting threads on ChatGPT. Pete recommends the ChatGPT Insights Facebook group.

You can follow Hazel on Twitter @renshigirl. Pete's profile on LinkedIn can be found here. Rob O'Connor is on Twitter @roboconnor_irl or on Mastodon http://mastodon.ie/@roboconnor. Follow the podcast on Twitter at @machine_podcast

Red Hat Academy w/ Brendan O'Farrell & Leigh Griffin

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 28 Nov 2022 10:04:08 GMT

Red Hat are the world's largest open source software company. Senior Engineers at Red Hat - Brendan O'Farrell and Leigh Griffin - joined SETU lecturers Rob O'Connor and Amanda Freeman-Gater to chat about Red Hat Academy, an online portal that provides free resources for students of computer science. They discussed the kind of material you can find there and why students might be interested in this. There's a lot of conversation about Linux in here, but it's not confined to CentOS or Red Hat Enterprise Linux. They also talked about the characteristics that they look for when hiring graduates and their thoughts on learning as a life-long activity (not something that ends when you complete your degree).

You can learn more about Red Hat at redhat.com. You'll find general company info there, as well as details on the Red Hat Academy.

You can follow The Machine podcast on Twitter @machine_podcast. Staff profiles for Rob O'Connor and Amanda Freeman-Gater can be found on SETU.ie

3D Printing and AMASE

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 05:31:47 GMT

Two colleagues at SETU from the School of Engineering, David Alarco and Natalie Romanyatova, joined Rob in the podcast studio to discuss additive manufacturing (3D printing), how it dovetails with computing and how it's changing the way "stuff" is made. They have a new course starting bout it too. More information about Additive Manufacturing Advancing the South East (AMASE) can be found at amase.ie

This is the last episode of The Machine for the season. We'll be back in the new academic year with more interesting chats about technology. Enjoy your summer holidays!

Wireless Comms on the Farm ... and Mars?

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 05:37:56 GMT

Can we detect an excess of carbon in a field using equipment that already in place? Rob spoke with SETU academic Bernard Butler and his graduate student Thakshilla Wedage about their work in VistaMilk and using the physical properties of wireless signals to predict atmospheric conditions in a farming context. The speed of the terahertz signals they use are hampered by our wet, dense atmosphere - but they may allow wireless communications 100-times faster than current speeds on a dry environment, such as Mars. They talked about their next phase of their work which is looking at employing these technologies to facilitate high-bandwidth, low-latency communications off-world. To quote a famous space traveller - Fascinating!

More information about the VistaMilk project and the people involved can be found at vistamilk.ie

Religion & Video Games (with Frank Bosman)

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 05:29:10 GMT

What place does religion have in video games? Why should developers be concerned with religion, theology or morality when creating games? Frank Bosman is a Dutch academic with Tilberg University who spoke with Rob about some of the larger ideas contained in video games and how they add depth to the gaming experience.

Frank's book "Gaming and the Divine: A New Systematic Theology of Video Games" is published by Routledge Press. He can found on Twitter @frankgbosman. Stay up to date with the latest from the podcast @machine_podcast

I Wish I Knew Then What I Know Now (II)

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 04:49:26 GMT

A rerun of an episode we published a few years back - Rob sat down with some final year students who'd just completed their undergraduate degree. He asked them to reflect on their time studying in Waterford, highlight the areas of computing they liked most/least and also offer advice to their 1st year-selves. The students in the room were Ciaran Malone (Games Development), Dimitri Saradakis (Applied Computing) and Erinn Whitty (Internet of Things).

StudyAtHome with Martin Deinhofer and Brendan Jackman

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 02 Jun 2022 04:07:28 GMT

StudyAtHome is a collection of eLearning courses approved by Universities across Europe where students can pick up extra credits in a variety of specialist computing courses, such as Data Ethics and Open Data, The Connected Car and Assistive Technologies Basics. Rob discussed the initiative with two of the computing academics involved: Brendan Jackman from SETU Waterford and Martin Deihnhofer from FH Technikum Wien (Vienna).

Details on StudyAtHome can be found at https://hub.studyathome.technikum-wien.at

Learning Your Second Programming Language

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 26 May 2022 04:59:48 GMT

To kick off a short season at the end of the academic year, Eamonn Deleastar and Siobhan Drohan joined Rob O'Connor in the studio to discuss issues around learning your second (or third!) programming language. They touched on the the programming language family tree, how tools and tech have changed over the years and identified some programming trends to watch out for in the coming few years.

From There To Here: 50-Odd Years of WIT

Rob O'Connor — Tue, 03 May 2022 08:25:30 GMT

A documentary tracing the 50+ years history of Waterford Institute of Technology, from its initial creation as Waterford Regional technical College in 1970, through to its re-designation as the South East Technological University in 2022. The documentary features a number of voices including: Caroline Corcoran; Willie Donnelly; Ray Griffin Sr & Ray Griffin Jr; Mary Lacey; Venie Martin; Denis Moran; Marie Morrissey (RIP); Anne Phelan; Jim Phelan; Tony Whelan; Liz White. It also contains some music performed by Joe Phelan and Dave’s List.

Update and Introducing 9plus (Female Researchers)

Rob O'Connor — Tue, 08 Mar 2022 12:56:58 GMT

It's not a new episode, but Rob gives an update as to where The Machine podcast current stands (HINT - will be back soon!) and also reposts an episode of their new podcast 9plus which was recorded for International Womens Day 2022. If you like what you hear, you can find 9plus wherever you normally get your podcasts www.podfollow.com/9plus

Automotive Computing

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 26 Nov 2021 11:52:00 GMT

Continuing our series looking at sub-disciplines of computer science, in this episode we're discussing Automotive Computing (yes, the computers that run cars!) On the panel are Brendan Jackman, head of the Automotive Control Group research unit at Waterford Institute of Technology. Also on the panel is Applied Computing graduate David Evans, now working as a Connected Vehicle R&D Engineer with AppPlus IDIADA in Cambridge, UK. David would have taken the Automotive & Automation stream option on Applied during his studies. They discuss how cars have changed over the past 20 years, the type of devices used inside them to control aspects such as anti-lock braking, climate control and other safety systems. More information on the Automotive Control Group can be found at www.wit.ie/automotive

Mícheál Ó'Foghlú (Google Engineering Director, Core Developer unit)

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 06:00:00 GMT

Mícheál Ó'Foghlú is a former computing faculty member at WIT, one of the founders of the TSSG research group (now Walton) and instrumental in the spin-out of FeedHenry and its evolution into Red Hat. Mícheál's current role is that of Engineering Director at Google Core Developer unit based in Munich, Germany. He spoke with Rob about his career to date, musing on technology and how it can be a force for good in the world. They also chatted about Mícheál's advice for newcomers to the industry (and he made some media recommendations also!) - Mícheál's personal website - https://www.ofoghlu.net - The Hitchiker's Guide To The Galaxy (BBC Radio Drama) - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03v379k - The Third Chimpanzee by Jared Diamond (Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49234.The_Third_Chimpanzee)

The Internet of Things

Rob O'Connor — Tue, 19 Oct 2021 06:00:00 GMT

Continuing our explorations of sub-topics of Computer Science, WIT lecturer Frank Walsh and student Dominik Wawak joined Rob O'Connor in the studio to discuss the Internet of Things. The discussed some samples projects, the technologies involved, how it all fits together and where it might be going. There is also a conversation about beer - as Frank used a homemade IoT setup to help him brew his own!

What is Cloud Computing?

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 15:36:42 GMT

In the first episode of the new season of the podcast, the panel have a chat about cloud computing, what's involved, some of the big techs to watch out for and what you might need to know if this is an area you'd like to specialise in. They also theorise as to the causes of the major fault on Facebook's services which resulted in Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Oculus Rift being unavailable for a significant period the previous week. The panel is made up of WIT computing lecturers Richard Frisby and Lucy White, alongside service delivery engineer at Red Hat Ciaran Roche and podcast host Rob O'Connor.

If you need a primer on how the internet works, please check out one of our earlier podcasts.

What 3rd Level Needs To Know About 2nd Level Computer Science

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 08:33:52 GMT

An unexpected episode for the academic year 2020/21. What does 3rd Level need to know about Leaving Cert Computer Science? This podcast is an edited live recording from the ACM SIGCSE Eire’s annual meeting (held on Zoom). The panel is comprised of Keith Quille (TU Dublin), Brett Becker (UCD), Siobhan Drohan (WIT) and is chaired by Machine host Rob O’Connor. Towards the end of the panel chat, there’s contributions from audience members. Thanks for listening this year and we’ll be back in September!

Leaving Cert Computer Science & more with Brett Becker

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 04:00:00 GMT

Rob chats with Brett Becker, one of the co-authors of the Computer Science for Leaving Cert book. They talk about computing as a 2nd level school subject, why certain topics were emphasised and technologies chosen, as well as potential impacts for 3rd level and beyond. They also speak about the Irish branch of the ACM’s Computer Science Education special interest group and finally, engage in a brief rant about computer programming error messages.

Brett is an Assistant Professor in Computer Science at UCD and you can discover more about his work at brettbecker.com. Details on the SIGCSE Eire chapter are available at sigcseire.acm.org. The book 'Computer Science for Leaving Certificate' is published by Golden Key.

Gianluca Wants a Record Player

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 11:21:47 GMT

A different episode to our normal programming. 'Gianluca Wants a Record Player' is a documentary that follows an Applied Computing student's quest to get into vinyl music. What is so appealing about vinyl? Who’s listening to the format? Does it really sound better than music streaming services like Spotify? What gear should Gianluca buy? Should he even make a purchase at all?

This piece was originally broadcast on Beat 102-103 on 4th April 2021 (Easter Sunday)

Final Year Projects & The Sun Life Awards

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 26 Mar 2021 06:00:00 GMT

Final Year Projects are one of the most exciting (and daunting!) parts of an undergraduate degree. WIT have a close relationship with Sun Life, a multinational company with a strong presence in Waterford and who also sponsor a number of awards for final year computing students. To talk about all of this on the podcast, we had Lucy White computing lecturer at WIT, Shane Corbett of Sun Life and Jonathan Gillespie, a recent graduate from WIT and winner of a Sun Life Award.

Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 19 Mar 2021 06:00:00 GMT

VR/AR and MR are acronyms that are becoming increasingly prevalent in the tech world. We delved into what that means from a tech and business perspective in this episode, with contributions from three individuals working in TSSG/Walton: Carol Faughnan, Ryan McCloskey and Anujah Pathak. If you're looking for a starting point in the world of Mixed Reality, this is it.

Show Notes:

- What is Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality https://tssg.org/2020/10/20/what-is-augmented-reality-and-virtual-reality/

- Mixed Reality Lab available to companies in the South East https://tssg.org/2020/12/08/state-of-the-art-mixed-reality-innovation-lab-now-available-to-companies-in-the-south-east/

- Smart garments and what they are used for https://tssg.org/2020/10/28/smart-garments-what-are-they-used-for/

The Walton Institute and ICT Research at WIT

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 09:48:10 GMT

In March of 2021, the TSSG (tssg.org) will rebrand as The Walton Institute. Rob spoke with co-directors Sasi Balasubramaniam and Kevin Doolin about the change is taking place, the shift in focus of ICT (Information & Communication Technology) research over the past 20 years and what this means for the South East region as a whole. The conversation touches on cross discipline research subjects such as agri-tech, neurological modelling and artificial intelligence, we well as working with SMEs in the region. Up until now, the TSSG has been one of the most successful research groups in Europe. This podcast should give you an insight as to how it's all put together and where they plan to go in the future.

Work Placements & Internships

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 16:59:35 GMT

Despite the ongoing COVID situation, work placements and internships are still going ahead in the tech industry. Rob spoke with three stakeholders to get different perspectives on how things have been proceeding. James Richardson is a final year computing student at WIT who completed his placement with Red Hat (https://www.redhat.com)last year, during the first phases of the pandemic. David Ryan of TSSG (http://www.tssg.org) gave the employer’s perspective on interns are managed and mentored, during COVID times and normal times. Finally Tracy Murphy, the work placement manager in the Dept. Of Computing & Mathematics at WIT (https://www.wit.ie) was on hand to provide the academic viewpoint and “bigger picture” view.

James kept an insightful blog about his journey from serving in the US Navy to studying in WIT, to interning in Red Hat here which you can read here -> https://medium.com/@jamricha

Christmas Recommendations

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 15:06:34 GMT

Ho ho ho! Five of the regular podcast hosts from WIT got together to record a joint episode recommending some books, TV programmes, films, podcasts and tech that you (or a loved one) might enjoy over the Christmas period. Features Jenny O’Connor from The Nerve, Bruce Wardrop from Win Win, Niamh Maguire from Engendering Change, Tom Grinsell from WIT Talks Student Life and Rob O’Connor of The Machine.

A very Happy Christmas to all our listeners.

Recommendation Notes:

Bruce Wardrop

(Book) Atomic Habits – James Clear https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits
(Podcast) Real Science of Sport https://twitter.com/sportsscipod
(Podcast) Where Is George Gibney? https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p08njhrm

Niamh Maguire

(Book) Girl Woman Other – Bernadine Evaristo https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41081373-girl-woman-other
(TV Show) - Rita https://www.netflix.com/ie/title/70285368

Tom Grinsell

(Documentary) The Wolfpack Insider [Tour de France 2020] https://youtu.be/NOEoqwi9Mls
(TV Show) Queen’s Gambit https://www.netflix.com/ie/title/80234304

Jenny O’Connor

(Book) Actress – Anne Enright https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45993330-actress
(Film) God’s Own Country https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5635086/
(Film) Only You https://www.netflix.com/ie/title/81111212

Rob O’Connor

(Film) The Midnight Sky https://www.netflix.com/ie/title/80244645
(Tech) Nintendo Switch https://www.nintendo.com/switch/

Extra Notes:

Desert Island Discs, Bernadine Evaristo https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mrb1
Desert Island Discs, Anne Enright https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000dpn1

Developer Stories: Rocketship Park Games w/ Shane McCafferty

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 04 Dec 2020 11:09:09 GMT

"LOVE: A Puzzle Box Filled With Stories" is the recent release from Canadian studio RocketShip Park Games. Rob spoke with their chief games designer and programmer Shane McCafferty (originally from Slieverue, Co. Kilkenny) about how he got into games development and the processes that led to LOVE. Shane talks about the emotional motivation behind the game, collaborating with other artists (both visual and musical) as well as detailing one of the tech used in creating the game. The podcast also includes some snippets of the music used in the game, written and performed by Waterford musician Neil White.

LOVE - A Puzzle Box Filled with Stories is available on Steam

SEE Space Network

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 20 Nov 2020 17:46:47 GMT

Quantum communication! Cybersecurity! Controlling tractors from space! Rob spoke with Mark White (Head of Research WIT) and Niall Smith (Head of Research CIT) about the newly formed SEE (Society, Economy, Environment) Space Network, Ireland's first space region as academics in Cork and Waterford join forces to forge links with the European Space Agency. Can Ireland have a positive impact on space research? These folks certainly think so! For more information visit spacenetwork.ie

A Beginner's Guide To Cybersecurity

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 13 Nov 2020 01:00:00 GMT

We have three IT security and forensics experts in the virtual studio for this episode! Rob knows next to nothing about cybersecurity so was able to honestly ask questions like "what is a denial of service attack?' and "how does encryption work?." Thankfully Judy Kelly (Security Architect with Red Hat), Jimmy McGibney and John Sheppard (both Lecturers from WIT) were on hand to provide the answers. It also includes some practical hints and tips on how you can best protect your personal data and devices. If you're searching for a starting place to understand computer security, look no further ...

Developer Stories: COVIDTracker App

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 16:48:36 GMT

The COVIDTracker app, developed by NearForm in Tramore Co. Waterford has become the basis for exposure notification apps across the globe. In this episode, Rob O'Connor speaks with Conor O'Neill, Chief Product Officer with NearForm about the history of the company, how the HSE first approached NearForm, how the app works and the technologies used to create it as well as addressing some of the criticisms of the app. Conor also explains the philosophy behind Open Source software and how this app exemplifies public private partnership.

This is the first in our new series Developer Stories which will run periodically across the academic year where we learn HOW computing products are created and distributed. For more details on NearForm and their upcoming DECODED series of webinars, visit www.nearform.com. For more information on WIT, please visit www.wit.ie

Online Learning: The Student Perspective

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 12 Oct 2020 16:01:41 GMT

A companion piece to our last episode, this time Rob is speaking with two computing students - Sinead O'Neill (2nd year Computer Forensics & Security) and Dimitri Saradakis (3rd Year Applied Computing) - about their views on the online teaching and learning situation we find ourselves in.

Online Learning: The Lecturer Perspective

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 09 Oct 2020 19:09:52 GMT

Rob O'Connor discusses the new academic year with Colm Dunphy and Siobhan Drohan and the shift from on-campus to remote teaching and learning. They discuss some things they enjoy and dislike, some tools they find useful and outline other observations and tips.

COVID-19 Treatment Research at WIT

Rob O'Connor — Tue, 19 May 2020 10:42:25 GMT

Following on from our previous episode, here's a discussion about two more Covid19 projects that are being actively worked on during the lockdown by researchers from TSSG at WIT. Rob chats with Director of Research at TSSG Sasitharan Balasubramaniam along with Dixon Vimalajeewa and Bruna Fonesca to discuss "Treating Lung Tissue Damage due to COVID-19" and "Molecular Communication modelling of COVID-19 in the Respiratory System", projects that are collaborations with the PMBRC research group at WIT, Teagasc, the University of Tampere (Finland) and Rochester Institute of Technology (USA).

The conversation goes off on a bit of a tangent about data sets, molecular computing, remote working and some other subjects. Please excuse the glitchy sound quality in places - obviously, due to the Covid19 lockdown this podcast was recorded remotely.

Technology vs COVID-19 from WIT Research

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 01 May 2020 14:59:55 GMT

Applying their expertise in information communications technology (ICT), researchers from TSSG at WIT are working to develop both short as well as long term solutions for COVID-19. Rob O'Connor spoke with Frances Cleary and Stepan Ivanov of TSSG to discuss some of their projects including 1) ensuring social distancing though wearables 2) blockchain based certification of public health policies 3) clinical data as a service software platform and 4) contact quotas to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Details on these projects (and more) can be found on www.tssg.org and www.wit.ie.

Please excuse the sound quality in places. This podcast was recorded remotely over low-bandwidth internet connections.

Research at WIT

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 15:23:47 GMT

Mark White (VP for Research & Innovation) and Kathryn Kiely (Industry Services Manager) spoke with Rob about research activities at WIT. What kind of work goes on? How important is it to the Institute? What does it mean for students? What does it mean for SMEs? Recorded remotely during the Covid19 lockdown.

Danny O'Dwyer (NoClip)

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 20:17:55 GMT

Rob and podcast regular Colm Dunphy sat down with former student Danny O'Dwyer, now well known across d'internet for the documentaries he's created at NoClip and his work in the world of video games journalism. They discuss Danny's journey from student to web developer to games journalist to media entrepreneur. Danny was in WIT to chat with current students about the game dev industry and then facilitated a seminar for faculty about crafting digital stories. Thanks to the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (https://www.teachingandlearning.ie) for funding this seminar.

You can find all of Danny's documentaries at http://youtube.com/noclipvideo

Alternative Nativity Play

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 23 Dec 2019 00:18:22 GMT

As a special Christmas treat, we present a radio nativity play which was produced by computing students from WIT back in 2012, made in conjunction with Beat 102-103. It was shortlisted for a number of radio awards at the time and always raises a smile from Rob when he listens. It's a fairly irreverent retelling of the famous story, so if you're easily offended please switch off now.

The bulk of the work was carried out by four students (in 2012!) who are now all working away with their own careers. We won't name names, but everyone involved should be proud of this work. It's mighty craic, as long as you don't take it too seriously. You might also recognise a few other familiar voices in there if you're an avid radio listener in Ireland. Hope you enjoy and a wishing all our listeners a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

FAQ on Computing at WIT

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 20 Nov 2019 12:29:15 GMT

WIT has an Open Day coming up for prospective students. We thought it'd be a good to publish a podcast answering some of the frequently asked questions we're regularly asked about computing courses at WIT. We gathered a collection of Course Leaders from various programmes to have a chat with Rob O'Connor: Mary Lyng [BSc Software Systems Development]; Mairead Meagher [BSc (Hons) Applied Computing]; John Sheppard [BSc (Hons) Computer Forensics & Security]; Sinead O'Riordan [BSc Multimedia Applications Development and BSc (Hons) Creative Computing] and TJ McDonald [BSc Information Technology]. Details about these courses and more information about the Dept. of Computing & Mathematics can be found at https://bit.ly/33agj20

Student Experience of Online Learning

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 08 Nov 2019 13:50:22 GMT

Two students of the HDip in Computer Science at WIT were drafted in to describe their experiences of being a student on a totally online programme. Sarah Barron and Bernard Thompson were very generous and forthcoming with their answers! Also on hand were lecturing staff Eamonn de Leastar and Colm Dunphy to give the experience from a teaching perspective.

How The Internet Works

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 11 Oct 2019 13:47:06 GMT

It's hard to imagine life without the Internet. Podcasts wouldn't exist without the infrastructure provided by a collection of interconnect technologies and networks. But how does it all work? Rob chats with networking lecturers Richard Frisby and Amanda Freeman-Gater to break it all down and explain the relevant protocols and standards that allow all internet services to operate.

Follow The Machine @machine_podcast on Twitter or Facebook.

Teaching Kids To Code

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 04 Oct 2019 13:49:57 GMT

As it's #CodeWeek across the EU, we thought we'd record an episode offering advice on starting coding with younger folk (primary and secondary school age children). We spoke about some of our personal experiences working with schools and mentoring with CodeDojo. On the panel were podcast regulars Siobhan Drohan and Brenda Mullally, along with another WIT faculty member Frank Walsh. Our guest was primary school teacher Kate Warren, Deputy Principal of Gaelscoil Port Lairge, who's partnered with Siobhan and Brenda to deliver all sorts of innovative activities based around coding and problem-solving skills.

During the podcast, we reference a number of resources which are linked here:

Scratch Jr - https://www.scratchjr.org

Scratch - https://scratch.mit.edu

Sphero - https://www.sphero.com

Bee-Bot - https://bit.ly/2kqXlUx

Makey Makey - https://makeymakey.com

Hour of Code - https://hourofcode.com

Coder Dojo - https://coderdojo.com

As always, if you'd like to get in touch you'll find us @machine_podcast on Twitter or on Facebook.

Tips On Buying a Computer

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 12:42:11 GMT

We've all gotten questions like "what laptop should I buy?", "any recommendations for a computer?" or "is this a good deal for a PC?" The short answer to all those questions is "it depends!" Host Rob O'Connor goes through some of the considerations you should make when thinking about buying a new laptop/desktop/computer. The panel go through some of the headline specs of machines and then some other aspects that aren't always apparent to the novice techie.

I Wish I Knew Then What I Know Now

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 17 May 2019 14:26:21 GMT

In what is likely to be the final episode of The Machine for this season, Rob chatted with some outgoing final year undergraduate computing students about their time at WIT: Dimitra Zucharelli, Ciaran Roche and Emma Ní Bhriain. The offered advice they wished they could have heard as first years and discussed some of the technical skills they learned over their four years. They also reflected on the social and personal growth they experienced as students.

Follow The Machine on Twitter @machine_podcast or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/machinepodcast

Tech News Roundup - Global Tech Workers, Myspace Data Breach and Google Stadia

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 12:47:00 GMT

Rob is joined by Siobhan Drohan and Brenda Mullally to discuss a few tech news stories making headlines this week.

- Canada is becoming a tech hub thanks to President Trump's immigration policies

- Myspace loses all user data prior to 2016

- Google announces Stadia, their new cloud gaming platform

Follow The Machine on Twitter @machine_podcast or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/machinepodcast

Women in Tech

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 07 Mar 2019 17:24:15 GMT

Four women chat about how they began their careers in computing & technology. Features Phil Healy (Irish Athlete and postgraduate computing student at WIT), Aisling Furlong (digital media consultant with Glanbia), Mairead Meagher (computing lecturer at WIT) and Judy O'Brien (final year student of Computer Forensics & Security). Hosted by Rob O'Connor.

Bluffer's Guide To Artificial Intelligence

Rob O'Connor — Wed, 27 Feb 2019 16:17:12 GMT

Ahead of the AI2 Applied Artificial Intelligence (www.ai2.ie) conference taking place in Kilkenny this week, Rob sat down with Glen Collins (Conference Director) and Susan Gallagher (Engineers Ireland) to chat about some of the main technical issues surrounding AI in 2019. What is Machine Learning? How computationally intensive is it? Will AI take all our jobs? (No!)

Technology Enhanced Learning

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 15 Feb 2019 13:12:38 GMT

How can technology assist in the learning experience? How have these systems evolved over the years? What kind of access opportunities to education can they provide? A very interesting discussion on this episode of the podcast between Laura Widger and Pete Windle of the Centre for Technology Enhanced Learning (CTEL) at WIT, Emma Fahey a 3rd year computing student and our host, Rob O’Connor.

Evolution of Mobile App Development

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 01 Feb 2019 13:39:36 GMT

How did we get here from there? Rob O'Connor is joined by podcast regulars Siobhan Drohan and Eamonn De Leastar along with Jason Blood and Padraig Howlin of Distilled (DoneDeal, Daft.ie and Adverts.ie) to discuss how developing apps for mobile has changed from the early 2000s up to the present day. WAP and J2ME, evolving to iOS and Android platforms, eventually getting to the newer languages such as Swift and Kotlin and their associated toolsets. The panel also discuss the as-yet-unrealised goal of cross-platform development. Finally, Rob gets some cooking analogies in there too ...

Tech Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 07 Dec 2018 14:55:23 GMT

We have a festive themed episode today! Rob is joined by Mairead Meagher, Siobhan Drohan, Brenda Mullally and Colm Dunphy to reminisce about tech gifts from years gone by, make some recommendations for tech gift for this Christmas and even predict some trends for the future. Ho Ho Ho!

Efficiency

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 12:43:05 GMT

This podcast is all about efficiency! The panel (Mairead Meagher, Siobhan Drohan, Peter Carew and Rob O'Connor) discuss the concept of efficiency, how it relates to computing and writing elegant algorithms. This is also the longest episode of The Machine so far, so they weren't very efficient with their chat in the studio ...

BONUS! HDip in Computer Science/ICT Skills

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 16 Nov 2018 13:25:41 GMT

A special bonus edition of The Machine! Colm Dunphy, Eamonn de Leastar, Joan Mangan and Rob O'Connor discuss the part-time HDip in Computer Science/ICT Skills currently on offer at WIT. This follows on from the previous episode in which the panel discussed how adult learners can approach IT. You can learn more about the HDip on offer at https://www.wit.ie/ictskills

Approaching IT as an Adult Learner

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 16 Nov 2018 13:18:15 GMT

Eamonn de Leastar and Colm Dunphy join Rob for this podcast episode in which they discuss how someone might get into ICT from another industry. They discuss what skills an individual could bring from another industry into IT, whether programming is the only game in town (it's not!) and the importance of "soft" skills.

Beginner's Guide To Web Development

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 12:54:24 GMT

Eamonn de Leastar and Brenda Mullally join Rob on this episode of the podcast to discuss Web Development. They contrast the difference between the Web and the Internet, then look at static sites built using HTML/CSS before moving onto Content Management Systems. Finally they introduce the world of Scripting (Client Side and Server Side) and discuss Web Apps. They also give advice on how to start dabbling with some web development.

Data & Big Data

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 25 Oct 2018 23:00:00 GMT

Everything you wanted to know about Data but were afraid to ask! Rob is joined by Brenda Mullally and Siobhan Drohan for a chat about Data. What is it? How is stored? What's Big Data and what does it mean for you? They also explore some ethical dilemmas. So this episode includes maths, programming, science, ethics and philosophy!

Advice On How To Start Coding

Rob O'Connor — Fri, 12 Oct 2018 14:07:18 GMT

Following on from the last podcast in which the panel attempted to describe what programming is, this time the same group (Siobhan Drohan, Eamon De Leastar, Mairead Meagher and Rob O’Connor) talk about how a complete beginner can dip their toe in the world of coding. During the discussion, they mention a number of (mostly) free tools that you can find at the links below, presented in the order in which they appear (we think!): Code.org (Hour of Code) - https://studio.code.org/courses Processing - https://processing.org The Coding Train - https://thecodingtrain.com Free Coding Camp - https://www.freecodecamp.org Stack Overflow - https://stackoverflow.com Sphereo Mini - https://www.sphero.com/sphero-mini Coder Dojo - https://coderdojo.com Scratch - https://scratch.mit.edu Glitch - https://glitch.com W3 Schools - https://www.w3schools.com Eclipse - https://www.eclipse.org/ide/

What Is Computer Programming?

Rob O'Connor — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 14:29:17 GMT

In our first episode, Rob O’Connor chats with Mairead Meagher, Siobhan Drohan and Eamonn de Leastar about Computer Programming. They approach it from the perspective of an absolute beginner, looking at algorithms, languages, tools and eventually DevOps. The conversation also wanders into the gender divide in computing.

Trailer

Rob O'Connor — Thu, 27 Sep 2018 09:23:22 GMT

A trailer for the new podcast 'The Machine' in which lecturers and students from Waterford Institute of Technology will discuss issues surrounding computing and technology.