Socitm #North18

Once again I had the pleasure of talking at this year’s Socitm North Conference. I had not expected to be involved as such and so it was all a bit last minute, yet one of the advantages of blogging (and being opinionated) is that there is always a pile of material to draw from. The … Continue reading Socitm #North18

Digital hoarding

In a previous blog I said how I had started to build a home archive. I have been working through all of the papers that we keep and scanning the important ones, or those that don’t have email copies, and storing them on a pair of hard drives. One I keep in the house and … Continue reading Digital hoarding

Respond to the question

Perhaps I have set myself too high standards but I have been disappointed recently throughout an interview process, not as an interviewee but rather as the interviewer. I have had the pleasure, or rather the misfortune, to sit in front of people who could not express themselves, articulate their opinions or construct reasonable answers to … Continue reading Respond to the question

Imagine a car

The opening speaker on day 2 of the Unit4 conference gave us his thoughts on the future of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). It was at the Conference Centre in Harrogate. I am not the greatest of advocates for ERP in that I don’t think grand systems solve anything and in the effort to combine all … Continue reading Imagine a car

Stadium of Cyber

The sign over the door on one of the conference rooms in the Stadium of Light, Sunderland Football club’s ground, said ‘Magic Moments Bar’. I’m not sure that it was referring to the latest #CyberFest event that was being held in the room next door yet it could well have done. The fifth event in … Continue reading Stadium of Cyber

Energetic buildings

Someone once told me that an introvert is someone who feels drained by engagement with people rather than invigorated. I’m not sure how true this is but since then I have taken myself to be an introvert. I like dealing with people, I am perhaps at my best when amongst groups of people yet afterwards … Continue reading Energetic buildings

Jigsaw pieces

Have you ever stared at a jigsaw piece and wondered what it is called or looked at the shape that you are looking for and wondered how to describe it? I have and apparently I am not alone. Despite a few attempts at a comprehensive classification of jigsaw piece shapes and cutting designs, there is … Continue reading Jigsaw pieces

#CyberFest Blyth

Once again I found myself on the banks of the River Blyth. The last time was at the Port of Blyth to talk about Low Power Wide Area Networks and this time it was as part of #CyberFest, the North East’s biggest cyber festival. I always love going to see the amazing ships that dock … Continue reading #CyberFest Blyth

Don’t know what you need?

How do you buy something if you don’t know what you need? That sounds like an easy problem, something that we have to deal with everyday yet it is not quite that simple. If I need to buy a car, I pop along to the showroom with an idea of what I, or rather we, … Continue reading Don’t know what you need?