rough day

…and some things didn’t get done. Tomorrow brings more paperwork and a photoshoot which will mean scraping a razor over this chin and wearing a shirt and trousers. At the moment I’m a little deflated – I’m reading one of the ‘prose’ sections of the book and it’s quite dry and means a lot of … Continue reading “rough day”

…and some things didn’t get done.

Tomorrow brings more paperwork and a photoshoot which will mean scraping a razor over this chin and wearing a shirt and trousers.

At the moment I’m a little deflated – I’m reading one of the ‘prose’ sections of the book and it’s quite dry and means a lot of flicking back and forth. But this, and the stuff I’m reading on Cocoa-Dev is starting to make sense. I’m buoyed ( and at the same time incredibly intimidated) by the fact that there are people who’ve been doing this stuff for 30 years and they don’t know all of the answers.

Friday was meant to be the gateway to a 4 day weekend but work commitments mean I’m only going to be able to get 3 days out of it. I don’t mind too much because the stuff on the agenda is personally interesting to me. Suffice to say – it’s making big waves (and yes, that’s an in joke).

Anyway. Best of luck everyone. Let’s hope tomorrow is good.

IT Bullies

Twenty years ago the most intimidating person in a company was the person with the key to the stationery cupboard. They’d query why you wanted two pens instead of one, complain about how quickly you were going through your notebooks (as if documenting less would be better) and positively sniffed at you if you needed … Continue reading “IT Bullies”

Twenty years ago the most intimidating person in a company was the person with the key to the stationery cupboard. They’d query why you wanted two pens instead of one, complain about how quickly you were going through your notebooks (as if documenting less would be better) and positively sniffed at you if you needed pens and notebooks at the same time especially if you were a new start.

The grumpy sod in charge of the stationery has been replaced with the IT Bully. They still hold the keys to productivity but they actively attempt to stymie you, or so it would seem.

They don’t enable
The more functionality you have, the more the IT Bully has to manage. This can be simple (like preventing the user from changing his desktop background) to complex (hiding the Connections tab in Internet Options so not only can you not change the proxy setting but you can’t even view them – should you need to, for example, attach to a different network or try and get a machine working on your current network) to inane (setting up all of the machines on the LAN to talk to a Time Server in order to keep the clocks in sync – but that clock is not only 10 minutes fast, you’re also blocked from changing it manually).

They don’t care about your work
It’s not their work. Their world is all wrapped up in WINS, Active Directory, Forests, DOMAINS, Policies and Profiles. The ports they use are tied up in Windows-specific services, MAPI, their own monitoring ports. They don’t consider that you may need to access services in high order ports, use IMAP/POP3 services outside the LAN, connect using SSH/SFTP or any number of other possibilities.
For example, changing the firewall and proxy settings over the weekend and not telling the client which means that anything they have added to the network stops working on Monday morning. The event which inspires this rant involved exactly that – a forced change which we were not informed about, when queried, was initially denied and then responded to with aggressive language designed to intimidate.

They exploit fear, uncertainty and doubt
This serves to intimidate the non-technical using language like “I’m sure you can all appreciate the importance to retain the highest level of security feasible…” or “I’m sure you understand the need to maintain the need for review of security on the ICT systems and the importance of authorisation to open service ports to the Internet” while stripping us of essential services or denying us products and services which might actually make our job easier. Sadly things haven’t changed – they don’t like it if you want to use a Mac or if you want to use an Smartphone or PDA with the system. They’re not keen on new software, on web-based services which bypass their provisions and claim ignorance if you ask for the settings which would enable you to sort things out yourself.

When cornered, they attack.
Another memorable IT Bully was Justin. He talked the talk but never quite managed to walk the walk. He claimed knowledge of UNIX and network that he could never demonstrate and had to be guided through even the simplest processes but he was in charge of the Windows IT network on site. For nine months he ‘evaluated’ a top spec laptop running the latest Windows build yet in the end it had to come down to the other members of his team to deliver the promises he made – and even then the build was lacking multimedia (promised), PCMCIA support (essential), Sleep/Suspend support (obvious for laptops) and support for additional monitors, IrDA, modems or wireless. When confronted at a project meeting with the problems, his response to me was “Shut up, Macboy” which thankfully ended his participation in any of the important projects that we had to manage.

Smartphones bad for kids…

Lenore Skenazy writes about how the kids of today….: Is it just my kid, or is every child over the age of 8 carrying around a smartphone that’s making him dumb? … “The iPhone/smartphone is the new tween-teen killer app,” says Rodney Mason, CMO of the digital-branding agency Moosylvania. “It’s the remote control for the … Continue reading “Smartphones bad for kids…”

Lenore Skenazy writes about how the kids of today….:

Is it just my kid, or is every child over the age of 8 carrying around a smartphone that’s making him dumb?

“The iPhone/smartphone is the new tween-teen killer app,” says Rodney Mason, CMO of the digital-branding agency Moosylvania. “It’s the remote control for the next generation, because in one single device they play games and text, do Facebook and MySpace, tweet on Twitter, surf the web, watch movies and TV shows like ‘The Office,’ and, oh yeah, occasionally listen to music and actually talk on it, which is now at the bottom of their list.”

We think of phones as a communication tool, but the truth is they may be just the opposite. “A year ago, 40% of 9- to 11-year-olds had their own cells,” says George Carey, president of the consulting company Just Kid Inc. “It’s got to be 50% by now. They roll out of bed and you can’t talk to them, or get them to focus when they come home. The kids are bleary.”

This doesn’t hinge at all on the positive benefits of having an instant-on, always connected communications device.

Are we not at the end of the noughties? Next year is 2010, right? And we have parents complaining about the kids of today.

“The Earth is degenerating today.
Bribery and corruption abound.
Children no longer obey their parents,
every man wants to write a book, and
it is evident that the end of the world is fast approaching.”

–Source, Assyrian Tablet (also attibuted to Socrates) c 2800 BC

This session of Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt was brought to you by the Red Scare, the House Unamerican Activities Committee, and the Salem Witch Trials.

Next? How rock music will rot your brain.

iPhone games in the Dub

John Kennedy recently updated his blog with a Post Mortem of his second game – explaining why the first one had to be pulled and why this second one took so long. He also includes a great screenshot. Yup, I’m buying it. Related posts: The Games Market is about to have a significant and violent … Continue reading “iPhone games in the Dub”

John Kennedy recently updated his blog with a Post Mortem of his second game – explaining why the first one had to be pulled and why this second one took so long.

He also includes a great screenshot.

droppedimage_2

Yup, I’m buying it.

XCake Meet Up, Thurs 19th Feb, 6 pm

Between us (@cimota, @dogthreezero, @grib) we’ve arranged a meetup for XCake folks who want to meet up and discuss stuff. The time is 6 pm on Thursday 19th Feb. The venue is at the moment undecided but should have WiFi, seats and drinks. If anyone has any suggestions then please drop me an email, a … Continue reading “XCake Meet Up, Thurs 19th Feb, 6 pm”

Between us (@cimota, @dogthreezero, @grib) we’ve arranged a meetup for XCake folks who want to meet up and discuss stuff.

The time is 6 pm on Thursday 19th Feb. The venue is at the moment undecided but should have WiFi, seats and drinks. If anyone has any suggestions then please drop me an email, a DM on Twitter or comment below.

Mobile Console Gaming

Paul Malone sent me this link to an article on euroGamer. The article points out the rise of the smartphone in gaming and the inevitable changes this will make to the gaming industry. No-one would have guess that Apple’s iPhone would be the third place mobile console (behind the Nintendo DS and the Sony Playstation … Continue reading “Mobile Console Gaming”

Paul Malone sent me this link to an article on euroGamer.

The article points out the rise of the smartphone in gaming and the inevitable changes this will make to the gaming industry. No-one would have guess that Apple’s iPhone would be the third place mobile console (behind the Nintendo DS and the Sony Playstation Portable) – both of which have been out for much longer. Microsoft has yet to enter this market though they, with Sony and Nintendo, are still warring over the static console market.

“The latest shot to be fired in this unusual war came this week, when digital research group comScore revealed its latest figure for mobile phone game consumption. Yes, mobile gaming; the videogames industry’s unloved stepchild, launched to so much fanfare and so much subsequent disappointment. The sector has been quietly marshalling its resources and building its revenues for some years now, but it’s still never quite had the breakthrough which would make up for all the overstated ambition of its early years.”

“comScore’s figures show that the overall number of people downloading mobile games last year grew 17 per cent, to 8.5 million. In itself, that’s respectable growth – but the real news here is that this growth was in spite of a 14 per cent decline in those downloading games on traditional mobile phones.”

“Those pundits who looked at the early sales figures for games on the iPhone’s App Store, tapped their noses and predicted that this device would have a huge impact on the whole world of gaming on the go have, thus far, been proven correct. It’s hardly stunting the growth of the DS yet, but even at this early point, the iPhone is making waves.”

The iPhone is making waves. I love that turn of phrase.

Our Sammy

Sammy Wilson (born 4 April 1953) is a Northern Irish politician and both a Member of Parliament and a Member of the Legislative Assembly for East Antrim. In June 2008, Mr Wilson became Minister of the Environment, much to the irritation of green and environmental groups. This was because of Mr Wilson’s opposition to the … Continue reading “Our Sammy”

Sammy Wilson (born 4 April 1953) is a Northern Irish politician and both a Member of Parliament and a Member of the Legislative Assembly for East Antrim.

In June 2008, Mr Wilson became Minister of the Environment, much to the irritation of green and environmental groups. This was because of Mr Wilson’s opposition to the creation of an indepedent environmental protection agency and his support of nuclear power. Mr Wilson was the winner of the Green Party’s Green Wash award – the MLA most likely to damage the environment.

Most recently Our Sammy called a government advertisement campaign on climate change “an insidious propaganda campaign which would not be imposed on people in NI.”

Mr Wilson has also advised Whitehall that such messages can only be promoted in Northern Ireland with his permission and he wants to see what he terms ‘postcode lockouts’ used to prevent them ‘leaking’ into that part of the UK.

You have to remember that Sammy represents the Everyman – a sure indicator that not only can any man get into politics but it doesn’t matter whether they have the intelligence, education or experience to deal with these issues.

Sammy gets his show around the 3 minute mark…

Mememememememe

I like MobileMe. I dislike the fact that I cannot apply rules to move messages to folders in MobileMe, it has to be done on the mail client and only works on the client. That sucks. It means that I can’t really use my MobileMe account for mailing lists because it doesn’t filter and neither … Continue reading “Mememememememe”

I like MobileMe.

I dislike the fact that I cannot apply rules to move messages to folders in MobileMe, it has to be done on the mail client and only works on the client. That sucks. It means that I can’t really use my MobileMe account for mailing lists because it doesn’t filter and neither does the iPhone so your inbox gets filled with crap.

Apple’s Mobile Me Mail effort: 4/10 for lack of attentions to detail.

#portfolio

Today I did a guest lecture spot at the University of Ulster in Coleraine. The students were from two course: Interactive Media Arts and Media Studies and Production. I droned on for around an hour on the Digital Circle, entrepreneurship, funding, how they, as final year students, should seriously be considering their portfolio, the addition … Continue reading “#portfolio”

Today I did a guest lecture spot at the University of Ulster in Coleraine. The students were from two course: Interactive Media Arts and Media Studies and Production. I droned on for around an hour on the Digital Circle, entrepreneurship, funding, how they, as final year students, should seriously be considering their portfolio, the addition of extra-curricular work and even the presentation of tangents followed when pursuing curricular assignments.

I then asked this question on Twitter…

QOTD: how important is extra-curricular portfolio when hiring a recent graduate in design / media / software? #portfolio

Twitter replied…

johngirvin @cimota: significant; shows genuine interest and passion for the subject if they spend free time at it. #portfolio

and

johngirvin @cimota: ex-curricular activities = more experienced, better rounded candidate. #portfolio

and

TaraSimpson @cimota, @johngivin: John nailed it, but I’d go a tad further. I’d say *hugely* significant. Software especially is much more than a day job

I agree. When asked to take on placement students earlier in the academic year, I said that I’d be interested in placing any student who could show me a portfolio outside of their coursework assignments. It stands to reason – if you turn up to a job interview and other candidates can demonstrate a significant portfolio, then you may as well go home. In addition, the creation of portfolio might mean you retain the gem of an idea which could be developed commercially in the future.

While I may have charmed some of the students into somnambulism, some seemed interested in the material and were keen to learn about the moves in the industry, keen to note down sources of funding for their pet ideas and left considering how to get a step ahead – by starting now and not waiting until after graduation.

Neil Young of ng:moco

With a bit of luck this won’t time out… Neil Young > iPhone is greater than… from Dom Sagolla on Vimeo. Related posts: Take a couple of minutes to appreciate genius. OpenMoko FreeRunner: *sigh* So what will this tablet be for? Use of OpenData: Icelandic Earthquakes

With a bit of luck this won’t time out…


Neil Young > iPhone is greater than… from Dom Sagolla on Vimeo.