Another new sport – HANDBALL. Which is completely insane. This is like water polo on land – lots of ‘accidental’ collisions and elbows and pushes and all that. A pretty violent sport. And hard work, as they need volunteers to clean the floor every now and again, as the umpire sees a particular damp patch from sweat. Or blood! I got reasonable seats, pretty close to the action at one end. But they were behind the protective netting – so photos weren’t brilliant!. But plenty close enough to see all of the pushing and showing. The handball took place in…
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Our office is in Southwark and on Thursday 26th July it was perfectly placed for the torch relay. Just after 10am,t he torch was due to go right by the office. Some crowded the windows for an overhead view. Caroline and I decided that we needed a ringside seat. So 45 mins before, we headed outside with our chairs for a meeting – and, to be fair, we actually did have a meeting, before packing away and getting ready for the torch to come by. Right on time, the sponsor buses made their way past And then finally the torch..just…
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I’m still on the reserve list for the Olympic volunteers. I’m not happy about it and I’d rather be taking part, but one compensation I did get was a ticket to the Opening Ceremony Technical Rehearsal the Monday before the games start. This was to be a major test event for the ceremony and for all the transport and organisation around it. So how did it go? Transport: Travelled in from London Bridge to Stratford; returned Stratford to Waterloo. Had no real problems either way. Getting there was straightforward – although the station may not be a easy to traverse…
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I’ve been researching my family history for a lot of years’ starting with trips to London to look up birth, marriage and death certificates and pore over the micofiche of the various censuses (censii???). Today, it’s a lot easier, the national records are all online and I can sit on the couch and do almost all my research. Which is ironic as I now live in walking distance of the National Archives so a trip to do research does not need an all day trip down to London. I pay for access; if you go to the archives you get…
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It’s the end of one year, the start of a new one. Traditionally time to set New Year resolutions, those vague statements of things that you’re going to change. I decided a few years ago that resolutions are too woolly, too easy to get out of, so I try and set goals, or objectives if I want to put them in business speak. Measurable, achievable, and relevant. Not all are set at the start of the year, they get added to and changed. Last year, I did not publish them, but I think it is time to do that for…
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I’ve been looking back at this year’s Flickr photos to see what I did this year – and I did a lot. So as a summary and a reminder for myself, here’s my activity for the year. When I put it all together, I think I had a good year for just getting out and doing things. All the links are to Flickr photos. Went on a Winter Walk in the first snow of the season along the River Thames Explored Chiswick House Grounds Attended a demo in Trafalgar Square, I’m a Photographer, not a Terrorist Attended a debate on…
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One thing that LeWeb does is bring you to Paris in December, when there’s lots of Christmas decorations. Along Boulevard Haussman, the department stores compete for your eyeballs with their window decorations. Her’e’s the one that caught my eye – it’s dancing Teddy bears to the sound of Abba.
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It’s December, that means it’s time for Le Web, the Parisian based tech conference. This is the 7th (I think) running of the conference by Geraldine (and Loic) La Meur, which started off focusing on blogging and has expanded to cover the whole of the tech scene, not just web but mobile connectivity as well. This is my third time attending. I was at there in 2005, 2008 and now this year. There’s a huge difference between 05 and what I’m expecting this year, from a fairly small, tightknit event to one that has 2400 participants from much of the…
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I finally got round to watching this. Love it….buy it!
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From the UK, here’s the top results for each single letter. It’s interesting what it says about the UK (or is it just my results?). Top online retailers, internet services and TV programmes. Argos BBC Currys Debenhams eBay Facebook Google Maps Hotmail ITV John Lewis KLM Lotto MSN Next O2 PayPal QVC Rightmove Sky Tesco YouTube (yes, it is the top result for u) Virgin Atlantic BBC Weather Xbox YouTube Zara
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The news comes through, originally uploaded by RachelC. Five years ago, a colleague and I ran down to Trafalgar Square in our lunch break to join the crowds waiting to see if we had been awarded the Olympics. And we had! Here’s the crowd just after the announcement.
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I think STV wins on this, far fewer clicks to get to the content STV (as recommended by Ewan) Go to STV home page Click on ‘live now’ in programme listing Go to page, watch some ads. Start the football The BBC Go to BBC home page Click on ‘what’s playing now’ in programme listing Click on ‘Live on BBC one now’ Click to start the football (or one more click to have popup video player(my preference) ITV Go to the ITV home page Click on bottom nav home page link in main banner. Go nowhere. Click on text link.…
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Extending your Brand, there’s an App for that. For many, brand extension into the digital realm means a Web site, a banner add, a viral campaign. But applications can extend conversations and perceptions of a brand, as well as add to discussions and ideas in compelling new ways. How can applications help your brand and idea be more authentic,… Rob Girling, Adrian Ho, Shiv Singh, Brian Morrissey SS: Social Media lead at Razorfish, we currently have reduction in form size, but no reduction in functionality, we are developing mobile solutions for almost all the clients. we are not the 3rd…
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It’s the start of my 3rd full day at SXSW and again it’s a completely different experience from all the others. Friday was spent at an off-site event, Tweethouse. Saturday was spent in panels and today there’s going to be a mixture of panels and parties, at least when I get started on the day. At the BBC Digital Planet panel, which was actually a recording for the radio/web programme, it was mentioned that this year for the first time, interactive has outsold music, with nearly 15,000 attendees. It feels like it! The conference has spread over 4 venues, the…
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January is over, we’re 1/12 of the way through the year, so time for a monthly update. Gym: I’ve finally activated my corporate gym membership, going consistently through the month, so much so that I’ve unlocked the Gym Rat badge on Foursqure ;-). I’ve been doing a combination of classes and running on treadmills. New Cities: None this month. However, I’ve decided to extend that ambition to new things. To that extent, I’ve visited Chiswick House for the first time, which, considering it’s just round the corner from me is pretty sad. I also took part in the Walk London…
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A discussion panel held 25 Jan 2010, Westminster Hall (WARNING – Liveblogged at the time, so may not make 100% sense) Chair: Tom Watson; Tom Chatfield, Philip Oliver, Sam Leith Each panellist gave a talk about their position on games, it them moved into a series of statements from floor combined with some questions. Tom Chatfield: Taking Games seriously. a difficult things to do well, how do you have a discussion about a medium that is all about fun; so there are lots of serious things you can learn, politics, training, education, but at the same time it is dangerous…
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I like this video – I should do as it came from the agency I work at. It’s been fun watching the development process, the highs and lows of defining the scenarios, the legwork in getting the games. I think it turned out well.
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WARNING: Liveblogged and not checked What counts as “radio†when it comes via podcast rather than over the air? How do we create “television†as the limitations of spectrum scarcity slip away and content is delivered online? Media is determined by conventions that emerge from both technological constraints and cultural practices – the technologies of content delivery shape the industrial and the creative modes that define something like “television.†In a world of convergence, the basis for many of the conventions that define media are in flux. How can we come to understand and redefine the industrial, consumption and creative…
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WARNING: Liveblogged, not checked. While much of the discussion around transmedia tends to focus on the idea of non-linear storytelling, this panel will explore the idea that transmedia experiences — narrative-driven and otherwise — are also characterized by a high degree of audience participation, decision-making and collaboration. As users engage with transmedia narratives, worlds and experiences across multiple platforms and spaces, participants make a series of personal choices that shape and define their experience and understanding of “the whole.†If we assume that transmedia experiences introduce new opportunities for the audience to participate, what are the new opportunities and challenges…
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WARNING: LIVEBLOGGED so not checked. (Also this was a fairly chaotic panel, so not everything captured) Too many corporations outsource their understanding of culture to trend hunters, cool watchers, marketing experts, consulting firms, and, sometimes, teenage interns. The cost is in the billions, for data and insights that often don’t help companies better understand their role in the cultural landscape. In his forthcoming book Chief Culture Officer: How to Create a Living, Breathing Corporation, Grant McCracken argues American corporations need a new professional — a Chief Culture Officer — to prioritize cultural knowledge into the C-Suite level. American corporations need…