Essentially this is a one line short story (I’ve tweeted it already) that came to mind after listening to Regulars by Frank Oreto on Pseudopod.

Pseudopod is a podcast series specialising on new short story form horror stories. However this one could have fitted in my lapsed “SouthQuays.com” project.

The plan for South Quays has changed in detail, but it was going to be a fiction blog based on the lives of people on the South Quays of an un-named Irish city. Originally the stories were going to be based on a “house of negotiable favour” as the term itself comes from a polite Victorian term for something frowned upon (i.e. he moored himself to her south quay) and I came across the term in “The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters“. Neo-Victorian fiction I know, I can only assume the author reused the term as it sounds right.

But it moved in my head at least from a single perspective to a wider one. In the last fifteen years Ireland has changed, and the landscape changed with it. But people, on the whole, don’t. The lives lived on the turn of most centuries are similar in loves and needs.

But things have changed.

The hermit no longer needs to be in a cave on the mountain. He can be in an apartment, sealed off from the outside world and living alone. His body found years after his death due to complaints about the smell from neighbours or unpaid bills calling the bailiff around to find the corpse.

People still fall in love and get married, but the details of the courtship and the wedding has changed. Also instead of boy meets girl, boy meets boy is also acceptable.

Immigrants have always come to the country, now their reasons have changed. And emigrants leave (again) and farewells take place.

Which is a better fit than the stories generated by the Wondermark Electro-Plasmic Hydrocephalic Genre-Fiction Cenerator 2000 (also available in automated form).

I’m looking in to getting it going again either this weekend or next weekend. Since I have to do a new Wordpress install (I borked the last one after moving servers) I could make it an multi-user version if anyone wants to join me on the South Quays.

take care,
Will Knott

Decisions for Heroes is a project that Robin Blandford has been working on for a while. And talking about it. In fact I assumed that the product has been launched a few months back. I was wrong; today is launch day.

And he’s built something amazing – technology that will help rescue teams save more lives. Its essentially a project management tool combined with an incident reporting mechanism that’s able to monitor team histories and readiness and raise alarms for expiration or under manning conditions.

What makes it different is that it is designed for a particular niche; rescue teams. Are the exercises and training reflecting the actual calls? Or the actually locations? Are there enough cliff climbers on-call this weekend? Are there certifications that are about to run out? This kind of thing actually saves lives. Its been studied, over 1,800 rescuers from Ireland, UK, USA, Greece, and Australia helped to trial and shape the development of the software. But one stands out. Robin is a volunteer member of the Irish Coast Guard (a cliff rescue climber to be precise) so he has seen first hand what is needed, and what is the most useful way to get that information across.

I’m sure that the basis of D4H can be used in more business-like settings, or indeed in logistic based industries.

And from saving lives, we move to a performance management technology that may cost the careers of a few politicians.

Created by John Handelaar Kildare Street is, almost simply a database. A database of what is being said in both Houses of the Oireachtas, by whom, when, how often and the complete text of what they say so it can be parsed for content. Based off the UK project, theyworkforyou.com, you can keep an eye on your favourite politician, or all the politicians in a constituency, or even when a particular word or phrase is spoken in the Dáil or Seanad Éireann debates or in written answers or questions to the Dáil.

There are a few bugs still in the system (it is a beta and since Irish addresses are vague it can misidentify a constituency, particularly when one side of a road is in one constituency, and the other side is in another constituency. It happens), and there is up to a 24 hour delay between the speech in the chambers and the text of the speech hitting the system (not a fault with the system but with the source; debates.oireachtas.ie.

Its useful to find out which TD or Senator has stayed quite all along (the records go back to 2004), and finding out how they actually voted on subjects of concern to you. Then you can challenge them when they call around asking for your vote.

Do challenge them. Right now, I’m wondering if there is a version for the MEPs.

Two people who should be praised for being heroes and making a difference.

Will Knott

“History of the Internet” is an animated documentary explaining the inventions from time-sharing to filesharing, from Arpanet to Internet.
The history is told using the PICOL icons on picol.org. PICOL is an project for providing free and open icons for electronic devices. The aim is to find a common pictorial language for electronic communication.

History of the Internet from PICOL on Vimeo.

Some feed readers may need to click through to see the video.

take care,
Will Knott

Those getting a push need to be offering a unique product or service, and should be taking part in the push themselves. Think of it as co-operative support. Creating a business community, one where ideas can be shared and have ideas bounce off each other freely. Or in internet terms, a meme gone sensible. Of course making the Irish technology community an actual community isn’t easy, but this helps.

That said, the key word is unique. Another template tweaked, off the shelf package generated on-line store, not for the push. I think new thinking might count, but you may have to explain what makes it innovative.

If you’re an Irish technology company that’s offering something new and have a blog (or other means to promote yourself and others), contributing to the promotional effort and putting your name forward for a Push of your own is worthwhile (just take a look at the feedback of some of those that have had a push). Or just join in, as some day you may be in the position of needing a push. By pushing now, you’re helping others, and may help yourself.

take care,
Will Knott

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• Huge Push for IGOpeople (web2ireland.org)
• Tuesday Push: Twitter Mosaic from Sxoop Technologies (ewritecork.com)
• Push – forget the movie, this is the real thing! (cjwriting.com)

And so it is with IGOPeople.com, the latest company being promoted in the revamped “Tuesday Push“.

The I, G and O of IGOPeople stands for Individuals, Groups and Organisations. The idea is that this is a network for real people. Not the social media elite (both of them) nor is it aimed at the youth market. The idea behind this site is that it allows individuals to contact organisations (mostly businesses, but there are a few charities in there too) and have the feed back in the public domain. It also allows for groups to form.

Groups like the proposed OpenCoffee Kilkenny. Groups like the DellCamp project to get things going in Limerick (and surrounds again).

Of the companies in there, its not just the technical ones like Blacknight and Eircom nor those using social media in other aspects like FBD and Vodaphone (who are running free top up offers) but accountants, recruitment companies and sellers of waterproof childrens clothing (who have their own special offer on IGOPeople).

This Irish company is paying attention to its users. Thy will take and act on suggestions. Its a tightly wel run (and threaded messaged) ship.

I joined it very early on, but I’m still listening. I’ve said this to the founder, Campbell Scott, I can see the appeal, but I just don’t get it.

Yet.

I’m still listening,

Will Knott

Driving in sub-zero temperatures, freezing fog forming overhead, hanging under road lights like dew filled money spiders webs; it felt like hidden, fragile beauty forming overhead, only to last until the dawn.

I feel tired. I feel that you’ll be interested in “we feel fine“. Jonathan Harris’ We Feel Fine is an exploration of human emotion on a global scale. Simply, it parses blog posts for the words “I’m feeling” or “I feel”. It seeks emotions using cold technology.

I’ll let this TED video explain what he means.

Some RSS readers may need to click through to see the video content.

I feel I can leave it right here. Good night,

Will

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• We Feel Fine

Grannymar has found a way to mark her toyboys. I don’t know if she’s done her own pinning ceremony or not. And I’m the cause.

I know she got Darragh, Darren, Anthony and recently Rowan has admitted his pining. She’s got a badge.

And she know how to use it to good effect.

I got them for her.

But lets step back. Back to May and the ToeJam photographs of May. I grabbed this shot…

and it got me thinking.

You can see “King” Damien’s “Fluffy” badge and Lexia’s pink “geek” badge (all that’s missing is Midge’s “Filthy” one). In Ireland at least, these badges are medals of honour. Social objects, not something to be sold, but something to be shared or given away to help make and bind social relationships. Awards for serving the social network of the Irish blog-sphere. Membership cards that the wearer has entry in to this world. That makes the blog awards the equivalent of a dame or knighthood, and the monthly awards something like an knavehood. (Oh to be a knave and a scoundrel)

So I wanted to help people in Ireland start blogging, or at least get interested in the Irish blogging world.

The other part of this was guilt. Since I started my course my blog writing has, well, collapsed. Time is more pressing (just as well I suppose) and ideas are being applied elsewhere (and not on to Twitter like everyone else). Pictures have filled up the breech, but I feel that I’m missing something.

So the badge… when the idea formed, I thought; “What should my badge be?”

Well that fizzled out.

So the question formed; “Who would get a lot of fun with a badge?” and my thoughts turned North.

A few chats and emails later, and an order to 50pbadges winged its way (after a redirect) to her awaiting floor (well, she was out at the time).

I’m interested to see how this will play out. How many (other) gentlemen of dubious qualities will try to attract the attention of the one and only Grannymar. And how much fun is she having making these ‘boys’ happy?

Oh, as for why? It seemed like a good idea at the time.

take care,
Will Knott

Image via Wikipedia

The answer is no. I think that Robin Blandford, Damien Mulley and Alexia Golez all agree that we have more innovating to do. Part of the perceived problem is that the innovators produce something for the general person; but the general person doesn’t want it. The bleeding edge early adopters might love it, but not their less technology loving friends and relatives. The early innovations tend to be the “engineering model” with a few unfinished features, bugs and complicated instructions. A remote control which has an individual button for every function the device can do is not the most user friendly of interfaces. The early adopters will flock to it and understand it. But if it isn’t obvious and fast and easy to use, I know my Mum will hate it, and the chances are that the device won’t survive to a second model. Its an innovators dilemma.

The true irony of this dilemma is that its caused by a mixtre of a lack of communication, and too much. After all, some innovations were things that the users didn’t know that they wanted. An “unknown unknowns” sort of thing. This is a want, which is so convenient that it rapidly becomes a need. Sometimes this is generational (e.g. mobile phone uptake), sometimes this just swoops in out of the blue and everyone joins in (grandparents and grandchildren on the Wii). But sometimes they are consigned to the “ideas before their time” bin. Being able to “vote out” unnecessary parts of the solution, means that the idea has less of a problem.

The other type of solutions is the “What if?” caused by the “Why not?”. The “Why doesn’t this exist yet?” type problems. Which is usually what is thought about when people talk about a lack of innovation. The slow incremental kind where the steps seems obvious only after the product comes to market. And these steps are being sped up due to communication.

Now an idea or observation can become a idle tweet, which sparks another’s blog post, which sparks a small blog storm, which sparks a business plan, which sparks a gathering of minds and ideas, which sparks improved ideas and a flurry of research work, which (might) spark a business plan but is more likely to spark a business start-up first. And each step in an itteration of the idea, refining the initial notion with practicalities and possibilities. Due to the wonder of social networking at it’s finest, this allows people who know brightsparks to become involved in an interesting idea and produce something. Because ideas are easy, but the skills to do something specialised are, well, specialised, and few people have them. But knowing someone who knows someone who might be able to help you is a practical possibility due to the sped up communication of social networks. Then your idea moves from notion to production.

But you have to produce something which enables others to know some of your ideas. You have to give in order to get. You have to spend time or talent to get attention. To get communication. And you have to join the conversations, otherwise you are considered the unwelcome gatecrasher that will be ignored. But if that gatecrasher helps out, then he or she is no longer an unwelcome gatecrasher, but a welcomed guest. And this new guest may point out that part of the solution yo are trying to make already exists, so there is no need to reinvent that wheel (or how to avoid being sued by that wheel’s inventor).

Open source projects and wikipedia works this way. Individuals who may never physically meet work on a project in their spare time. And it works for businesses, where one entrepreneur meets another on line, or a third party brings them together virtually and then physically. Perinatal ideas get defined through this virtual iteration and idea refinement so that not only is a full bodied idea born, but the creation process creates a bit of interest in the idea itself. Enough interest, and there might be interested funders.

Can we over-innovate? Only if we are willing to accept it as (science) fiction, but science fiction frequently sparks the research to become science fact. Is innovation over? Not as long as others can spark ideas and collaboration. As for a visual representation of this collaboration, see the video below.

take care,
Will Knott

Image by netzkobold via Flickr

The idea is rather simple. Ring a local telephone number (currently US, UK and Ireland) and leave a 15 second voice message. Be careful what you say (or cough as Michael Arrington discovered), and your message is converted to text in a tweet on your twitter account. In addition a recording is also available (via a tinyurl), which is handy if your message doesn’t fit in to 140 characters of less. Yes we talk that fast in Ireland.

Its a useful service, especially if you are in a crisis situation and can’t talk for long.

I’ll be honest when I say that I’m dying to try it out, but given the sudden tidal wave of registrations it might be a little while.

And Twitterfone’s look is a Sabrina Dent creation.

take care,
tweet safely,
Will Knott

Image by Mancio7B9 via Flickr

Now there is.

Firewinder is a wind powered light, or rather a series of them in a vertical column which rotates in the wind. The rotation generates power which is used by shining (and pulsing LEDs at the end of the column. Its a little hard to describe but watch the video of the light in action and you can see how it works.

Watching the video, it occurred to me that these things look like they could cause epileptic fits (hence no embedded video). So beautiful, but might be deadly after all. Given that I’d like to plant up a medieval style poison garden (medicine garden doesn’t sound anything as good), I might as well have dangerous lights.

Pity I can’t afford version one, but by version three I might have the readies.

take care,
Will