I had heard tell of dramatic/humiliating problems caused by erroneous email auto-complete before, but never been personally affected. I recently discovered that, while social embarrassments are… embarrassing, when you leave one employer and join a new one, the stakes are raised and the problems caused could easily have wider repercussions. I decided to sort out…Continue reading Protect yourself from Thunderbird email auto-complete when you start a new job
Category: Nerdy-Gudry
Image and Attribution Identification Game using Blockhash and Elog.io
I heard Jonas Öberg speak about blockhash and elog.io (since mothballed) at Fosdem2015. The general purpose of these tools is to allow users to make attribution of CC licensed images easy. First they identify CC licensed images when they are used on-line, the tools then match the image with a record in a central database…Continue reading Image and Attribution Identification Game using Blockhash and Elog.io
Teaching kids about Copyright using “RIP: a remix manifesto” DVD
We had a tricky session at techie heaven a few weeks ago, where we didn’t have enough leaders to run normal activities. I instead bought some popcorn and sat the kids in front my favourite documentary, RIP: a Remix Manifesto by Brett Gaylor (2008). Thanks to Brett for telling me about the additional resources (below) which we used along side the video.
The Encryption Game – teaching young people about email encryption
The game teaches the basic principles of asymmetric encryption in a fun way; that is a public and private key. Additional topics such as key servers, the web of trust and “back-door” snooping are also touched on.
Separating brand from function – a game for kids.
I am now a few weeks into my work at Techie Heaven, a church run youth group / hangout zone / part-time-hackspace in Clitheroe, Lancashire. The myth of the “Digital Native” It’s super encouraging to see the kids so engrossed in technology, and we have great fun messing about and learning new stuff. However, I…Continue reading Separating brand from function – a game for kids.
My damp north facing yard
In my new house the yard is north facing and shaded by the buildings around it. Currently there is a good deal of damp in the yard, with green “stuff” on a the paving and on the fence. The crazy paving is a little … crazy: the hard, non-porous cement between the stones forms an…Continue reading My damp north facing yard