matgb | Entries tagged with blogging

Before I catch up with the rest of my f-list and then try to corral a decent post, I c/p one of Duncan's posts in its entirety doctorvee » Blog awards — we need your help:

I’m usually not too keen on blog awards. In fact, I despise all of them except for the ones that I’m nominated for. In other words, I despise all of them. But Clairwil has had a brainwave. For the latest blog awards to emerge, the Metro Best of Brit Blog Awards, everybody should nominate Councillor Terry Kelly for the politics category. “Imagine the look on the judges faces!”

Seriously, please do. Nominate Cllr Terry, vote for him, whatever. Because, y'know, he makes some of the dumbest people on the planet look, well, slightly less dumb in comparison.

Nasty? Moi? Naturellement.

Can't sleep, at all, so instead you get an insomnia fueled ramble. Not sure if the PC now being at the end of the bed in the new place is a good thing or not, I liked having a desk in a separate room, ah well...

( Getting back into writing again, hopefully. )

Y'see, something worries me. It's a bit of a rambling worry, but, well, bear with me.

Remember Mr Blair's Big Tent?

( Big tents and partizanship )

So, what am I worried about?

( Duverger, the Stupid Party and The Project )

Too big a landslide caused Labour's problems

( Lack of genuine reform means the day to day issues are worse )

What if the Tories get a landslide?

( The Tories could actually win, on their own *gulp* )

( My ideal results... )

Anyway, back to

voting_taktix, and me being part of a team. I need one. ( No experience necessary, but an interest in freedom would help )
Anyone want to help? No commitments required. Honest.

K, supposedly the advantage of broadband was I would post more between job hunting. Alternately, I can read more and explore YouTube. What do you think I've been doing?

Anyway; Saturday night, Slimelight, fun, and very much the Bunker only larger, grottier and without the ageing bikers (but with many ageing goths). I liked, but not enough to go regularly. Lost track of

matryx and young lady nearer the end, couldn't find them to say I was off, then had fun negotiating the night busses. Will need to figure out how they work.

Sunday I did the whopping thing (huge 24 hour Tescos within fair walking distance, or I can, y'know, drive, car has to be good for something now and then, right? I know, I'll stop once Im settled in, might think about selling it). Then went oop north to meet

jantshira for a chat. She'd started, read and finished the book I leant her Thursday; oh to be able to read that quickly.

Today? Mostly more unpacking, exploring the kitchen and then the internet, but off out now, to meet up with Chris of

devils_kitchen fame, given we've been taking the piss out of each other and arguing for the last 18 months online and have both moved up here, makes a bit of sense. Expect a few fireworks in the High Street Ken area in about an hour...

I have, y'know, articles, and reviews, and cool links all stored up in my head, but I'm having fun, so you'll have to put up with me talking about my life more often. It's nice having one methinks...

Interesting discussion at

publicansdecoy's about the anniversay of the Act of Union and the creation of Great Britain. David's concentrating on the West Lothian question, which I've done to death in the past, so instead I thought I'd discuss celebrating the anniversay. Any ideas, feel free to contribute either at

voting_taktix or here because, y'know, comments=good.

On the subject of V-TX, kick starting it again;

draxar transferred his article on hypothecated taxation, we've had a 'chat' about Europe (again) and I went through an article of Prof Fred Halliday's, who if I recall correctly taught David Armstrong, who was my Head of Department at Exeter. They're both a little dull and dry, unless you're an IR wonk, but we end up talking on the post about condoms, as always...

Oh yeah; I'd like more writers, either occasionally or regularly, the more people writing, the better it gets I think, there are two more coming on board soon, but there are loads of people reading this that write about politics sometimes; I'll start harassing people or sending invites soon...

Or, what not to do with your online blog. Enraged locals drive blogger from Barrow-in-Furness | The Register:

Steve Beall, 20, had been relocated from Whitley Bay by choc outfit Thorntons to run a new "Cafe Thorntons" in the sun-kissed Cumbrian paradise. The firm put him up in a local Travelodge, but he evidently wasn't impressed with his new home. Under the name "Stevo", Beall wrote: "Well then what is there to say about Barrow in Furness apart from its a s***-hole!! "How the hell people live there I'll never no [sic]"

Silly damn fool. If you're going to write about work online, then either completely anonymise it (cf NHS Blog Doc, Bystander, etc) or be very very careful about what you say and how you say it.

Or, alternately, use those privacy functions that even MySpace allows (and LJ does so much better) and make sure it's not publicly available. And next time it's my last day and my boss says I can go home when I've done clearing the desk, I'll make sure to set the file transfer of the zip of all my personal stuff up a little earlier... Filezilla is about 42% into a 120Mb upload. Which given we're on ADSL is taking it's time even though I'm the only one here except the Deputy MD...

Still, found some fun old files from years back, including the CV I used to apply for the job.

So, what do you do when you've written a novel and have access to the Guardian's high traffic weblog? Post a plug, or two, or three? Nah, that's underkill, right? How about thirty-three plugs?:

Last Sunday I went into a bookshop, a link in one of the big retail chains. Entering a bookshop can be a risky business for an author with a new novel out (plug 4) unless his or her ego is in good shape. They contain so many books that unless your new novel (plug 5) is displayed in the front window or else one of those stacked on a table near the front it's hard to imagine their customers even discovering that your book exists (plug 6), let alone purchasing a copy unless they'd arrived intent on doing so.

D'you reckon he wants you to buy his book? The actual article isn't that bad, but I'm just reposting because, well, gotta admire the cheek...

Remember this post last week about that Nikkogen thing? Well, I got an email Monday:

Good morning Mr Bowles,

Please can you remove any reference to Nikkogen from your website/blog. The information on your website received automated or not is incorrect and any reference to our company as being a fraud is incorrect.

You have a week to remove any reference to our company.
( ... )

D'you like that? Apparently the initial spam comment was automated. Or at least I think that's what it's trying to say. It appears that they may be admitting to spamming, but are doing so via an automated spam. No apology for spamming either. I mailed Tim about it, he said he'd had no follow up, I filed it under 'ignore' as there's nothing they can do legally. Thing is, it appears I'm not the only one they've emailed. Unity got very similar:

( Identical grammatically awful stuff )

You may wish to contact Tim Worstall - who will I’m sure confirm that the information he provided via his website/blog was incorrect.( ... )

Which again ends on that veiled threat. Mr Jenkins? We each have a week to remove the reference or? ( More musings on Nikkogen and spamming )
I'm going to reply to Mr Jenkin's email now before I turn in. It'll be a simple link to this post.

Mr Jenkins? Some free advice, something I'd usually charge for.

Don't spam.
Don't pay others to spam.
If you realise that's a mistake and wish to correct it, apologise.
Get your facts straight.
Don't make veiled threats with no substance.
Understand the basic principles of free comment on the internet or in press. It's called freedom of the press, a concept you may have heard of.
If you want someone to do something, be explicit, request politely and explain why they should do as you request.
Don't try and promote a product that gives every appearance of being based off very dodgy science to a bunch of tech aware online types without at the very least explaining the basics, because we can research and do know what we're doing. And if we don't? We know someone that does.

That last bit? The bit about knowing what you're doing? I wouldn't invest in a company promoting itself like this even if they had a veritable licence to print money. You don't.

I have no idea if their product is legit. From what I've seen, I doubt it. But I really don't like them at the moment. That is, of course, a personal opinion, and I leave it to my friends and readers to make up their own mind.
( Footnotes )

This is my 501st post, apparently. That's to LJ, not on all the other places I've started writing since I signed up for this thing.

nadriel? In the unlikely event that

liberty_central actually works, or gets somewhere at all? It's your fault y'git, you got me writing again.

Unfortunately, I can't break my writers block. I need the inaugaral "real" article for

voting_taktix, but it won't flow. "Tactical voting is a myth", on a site dedicated to tactical voting? Yay for contradictions.

Also, nicked from someone else's LJ (look, I click on the profiles of cute girls who put themselves in userpics, ok? Anyone here not do that?):

9/9 Genius

You are 78% knowledgable and 96% intellectual.

Amazing! You have an incredible brain (intellect) and a powerhouse of information (knowledge)! Keep up the impressive work-- we all bow to you.

( Tell me something I didn't know... )

( Why I'm unique )

Tomorrow? Exeter, if I get up, to play silly game's at Steve's with Peter Pig. If I wake up. Oh, I also need to clean and tidy the flat, as it'll be the last chance between now and when I get back from

nadriel's. Two weeks holiday in one month? Yay! Must remember to buy tickets for those events.

Also, on the quiz thing? A few of the questions are US specific. Sorry, but knowing which Amendment does not isn't a History question, it's a Constitutional Theory and practice Q. I mean, I got that answer right anyway, but, y'know, I would've got a better score if the questions weren't aimed at one populace. Cos I is ded smart, see?

Yeah, I know, but, well, I've been ill ( details ). So I did some finishing work to

voting_taktix here. I'm using Wordpress ( wittering ), and have spent the day styling it.

Well, that's not strictly true. I've spent the day with the style edit windows open, but I've alsow been trawling MySpack (which my dial up hates), looking at funny stuff and generally goofing off.

draich_goch? Call to Power II sucks. Big time. Can't see the point, it's like CivII but without the cool.

Um, re the site? It's nowhere near finished, but it looks OK in Firefox. It, um, doesn't even look viewable in IE. I have NO IDEA what's gone wrong there, the layout is all weird but I haven't touched the positioning FFS. Ah well. ( Wanna write for the site? )

Anyway, it's after midnight, Old Harry's game finished nearly an hour ago, time to finish reading stuff and shut down for the night, hopefully I can get a nights sleep and go to work tomorrow.

Two things. Livejournal this week launched their new ESN system. I love it, I can track comments on interesting posts, and getting everyones new userpics in one little bit of the site is just cool. That's not the topic. When Brad launched it, he described it as "non-stalkery", and I agre, it's not. On that discussion (in

news here), many people commented that this was good, and compared it favourably to the new Facebook stalking features. Now, I don't use Facebook, it's only available to students, and, well, much as I'd like to be again, a) I'm now working and have no money and b) they wouldn't take me back in. So what, why do I care?

Well, because people can at times be stupid. Y'see, the new, controversial, Facebook features? Don't tell you any information you couldn't already find out, and could be switched off anyway. If you're on Facebook, or know someone who is, spread this link around, as those making a fuss seem, on what I've read, to need a great big slap for not actually getting what public, private and "social network" actually mean.

The utter cretin’s guide to privacy on Facebook

Second point. I'm playing around with a WordPress install on Voting TaKtiX. Ye gods it's good. So very very good. It's so much easier to use than Blogger and LJ. Importing all my old posts from NLE was so easy. Wait, I said my old posts. It even managed to recognise Paul as a user, and set him up as one, automatically, without me telling it to. Now all I need to do do is figure out how to style it (there are some good features on The Slant that I like the look of), go through the archives and categorise every post of note, get everyone linking to NLE to update their blogroll, shut down NLE formally and invite the other new authors in. All I need to do. That's about a months worth of spare time all on its own. Why didn't I do this a month ago?

Oh, because I thought installing software on my webserver would be difficult. D'oh!

I just wrote a short one on NLE. More of a puff peace than actual analysis, but for those reading here not reading there, if'n you haven't already done so,

sammymorse here,

caramel_betty here and

pickledpolitics here. The minister in the centre of the resignations is

tomwatsonblog.

Oh, yeah,

sammymorse is new to LJ, and is a friend of

nhw's. His 'friend of' list is ridiculously small at the moment...

I have had a great week off. Proper entry to follow once I've caught up with stuff.

Current Music: Therapy - Troublegum

I've lost track. If you do, Tim would like some help. He's been banging on about it for a bit, but basically, his local MP seems to think slurring people and calling opponents peadophiles is a perfectly valid campaigning technique. If you disagree, get in touch with him?

Now, anyone know a Surry LJ community as I go search the directory?

I just read the FAQ for that Haiku meme doing the rounds, and it's very cool. Unfortunately, the first one was great, but Fx crashed on me (I overloaded it) as I tried to post it. Ah well.
( i have at least one / murder i will of course not / now it's turnkey )

I did a couple for NLE as well, but they were a bit dull, Haiku versions of entries rather than weird word conglomerations.

I have much clean clothes, have had a nice relaxing day, and am now, definately, writing the article on Cameron that came to me as I was playing Game of Thrones with Chris two weeks ago. Definately, I'm writing it now. Well, ok, I'm maybe going to log in in a bit and try to type the first draft. Maybe.

beau_bo_d_or_fd is working on the website for Tony Blair International Airport (formerly Glasgow Prestwick). The ads page is, um, interesting. A little late, but the Murdoch owned Sunday Times really is the scum of the earth, no more

one_track_girl thanks to them.

Oy, journalists. Some people blog anonymously because they need to. Some people don't want their writing associated with their professional life. Get a clue, please?

Argentinian cooperatives show how you don't actually need capitalism to build an effective market economy (pay attention to the guy on the bike, he's cool). Given the above mentions that boy wizard thing, how about a report on a Harry Potter convention (by someone who, amusingly, had never heard of slashfic...). There's a bit on Samuel L's method acting for that film, and then we can finish on the evidence that I chose the wrong subject to blog about...

Via this weeks BritBlog roundup I find this entry by

chrisdolley. Having a glance around, he links to his website, and the story of the Free Cornish Army. Genius, sheer genius. Next time I deceide to run a revolution, I shall definately take his advice on board...

Hmm, glad I don't work in US-based marketing or PR.

scalzi wrote a post about bad marketing techniques (with a contrasting good technique). As a result of which, the responsible person at the PR firm got fired.

The power of the blog. Well, actually, given that it was a PR firm specifically marketing to bloggers, it's not really evidence of the power of blogging, merely, well, evidence of incompetence.

The question is, was it "Nadine"'s incompetence, or was it the overal strategy that was flawed?

There's a massive blogswarm going on about Prescott, his mistress(es?) and the whole "buy the Dome for free, share the profits from the casino that we're going to let you win the licence for" thing. Ministry of Truth (

unity_truth_fd) has the best coverage, but

devils_kitchen undoubtedly has the best line on the whole thing:

( Language warning. Imagery warning. NSFW warning. Funny though. )

Finished at 9.30, then went to visit a new host family, then got home. Am exhausted. It looks like blogging is finally going to "break" a real UK story and get credit for it, and I'm too busy to do much to contribute it. Still, good to see Dave get the attention, his poor server can't handle the traffic it seems.

I care not who Prescott's slept with, I do care that it appears the Govt is corrupt and pushed legislation through in order to make money out of their white elephant in Greenwich.

On a completely unrelated note, nothign whatsoever to do with his alleged Mistress, can I recommend this

backing_blair flash animation from post May elections? It was rather good then and is still current...
The Roses of Success

Firstly,

jackthomas specifically and a number of others that like writing anyway will definately want to check out Tim Worstall's explanation of the new site he's set up alongside

devils_kitchen and others; Nightcap Syndication. Write a review, publish it there, it gets syndicated and you might actually get paid. The Camera review competition looks interesting.

mapp, are you directly involved?

Something to definately sign up for once hell-at-work is over with. Anyway, via

cargoweasel, Project Gutenberg: Theives Cant & Slang. For any lover of history, language, daftness. Oh, and those RPGers who just need that authentic edge...

It's gone into busy mode at work. The inspection seems to have gone ok, but the combined heat and general busyness means I'm coming home exhasted. Which means I'm just switching on a form of entertainment. My curent choice is Medieval Total War. I'm about to smite the last remaining faction, and then half of Europe rebels against me. Can't say I blame them, the tax rates may have been a little high...

Via

tyrell this in the Guardian:

The Snakes On A Plane phenomenon ( revolves around the internet )
the producers, feeling ... that Snakes On A Plane was touch daft, were considering changing the title to the much more dignified, but much less amusing, Pacific Air Flight 121.( Samuel L Jackson likes the title )
"I got on the set one day and heard they changed it,( ... )
and I said, 'What are you doing here? It's not Gone With The Wind. It's not On The Waterfront. It's Snakes On A Plane." ( ... )
Snakes On A Plane had become one of those self-perpetuating internet phenomena - also known as memes - whereby the exponential communications possibilities ( ... )
insert a line of Samuel L Jackson dialogue cribbed from a satirical online trailer created by a clearly underemployed fan: "I want these ( m*th*r f*ck*ng )
snakes off this ( m*th*r f*ck*ng )
plane!"

It's going to be so bad it's good? Or worse, just bad? Can Samuel L Jackson's persona rescue the cheesiest idea for a movie ever? Meh, I probably won't bother.

Told the boss I wanted to make this my last summer in my current job today. I'd be happy to stay with the company (if they pay me some more), but not in my current role; while I enjoy it, the exhaustion is getting to me and, if we include the time I did it as a summer job, this'll be my 5th summer in the same department. Sure, I'm in charge now, and things seem to be going well, but it's taken it out of me. So, effectively, I'll definately be changing something in my life. Deputy is pregnant (that's why she was off ill), and the new seasonal guy is good, and due to finish just before her maternity starts, with any luck we can keep him on, so a nice transition can happen.

Still exhausted, still recovering from that bloody cold; lots of other people have had it, it's taken them ages to shift it as well. Als, stupidly volunteered to help with the arrivals tomorrow. Stupid.

Gotta love those Canadians...

I'll be putting the link onto the new site when it's done, but in the meantime, it amused.

I've been playing with background stuff on Taktix, putting ads up (Google won't allow me multiple adsense accounts, but it will let me track individual ad effectiveness, so I'll be playing with that - I don't, actually, care about the money, it's user behaviour that interests me, I'm such a rational choice/webutility geek these days), etc.

Back at work tomorrow. Ah well, can't have everything. Must take long (ish) weekends more often, and hopefully not be ill during them. Still, have rediscovered a love of eating satsumas (I'm not sure my sister believed me when I said she'd interrupted me eating one), and am realising that healthy eating is a damnsite cheapter than junkfood eating. I did, of course, know this, but knowing something and "getting" it are two different things.

Still, time to bed. To sleep, perchance to dream...

Profile

Mat Bowles

September 2021

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
			1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30

Friends

Me Elsewhere

Profiles

Blogs & stuff I read

Syndicate

Page Summary

Style Credit

Base style: Corinthian by momijizukamori
Theme: Burning Up by zaluzianskya

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated 2025-May-28, Wednesday 11:32

Mat Bowles

Dreaming in Digital

Entries tagged with blogging

Just got in...

Remember when I used to write about politics?

Remember Mr Blair's Big Tent?

So, what am I worried about?

Too big a landslide caused Labour's problems

What if the Tories get a landslide?

And a good time was had by all

300 years British?

Thorntons, Barrow and blogging

Top blogger releases book

Nikkogen follow up: Automated spamming at its best?

Apparently, I'm unique

Look, it's another post in which Mat writes about his websites...

Facebook and learning Wordpress

The utter cretin’s guide to privacy on Facebook

The whole Labour leadership furore

Anyone live in Surrey?

(no subject)

Random linkage

Free Cornwall!

Bad marketing techniques

Prescott and blogging

Nightcap Syndication & Theives Cant

Snakes on a m'f'ing plane!

Vast left wing conspiracy...