Random Witterings

Community Content Creation

2008-10-02T15:28:00.001Z

Dear Reader,

It has been yet again some time since I updated you on my antics, however I have been twitting recently!

Two stories took my eye today that got me thinking and I wanted to share them with you. The first, an article about the online fan base for Terry Wogan and can be seen here...

BBC - Radio Labs - Fan cultures in radio (3) - TOGs or "This Ordinary Group"

The article focuses on how the community feel closer to the celebrity by being part of the website rather than just being a listening body receiving information from the radio. In addition the article asked the users what could be done to improve the site - the response was very encouraging and just goes to show how those that use the information can better tell the creators what is best than the creators second guessing the content.

This got me thinking - if we can do it online, why can't we do it in real life. How do we as citizens engage with each other and our providers. This leads me on to the other item that caught my eye today.

An author of a blog I follow posted an entry live from a conference this afternoon about a speaker, Dominic Campbell, from an organisation called FutureGov he spoke about how Local Government were missing the point when consulting with their citizens. He gave examples of Brent Council and highlighted this video to help engage the citizens.

Local authorities need to engage and trust their community to help develop both the services that it delivers and also the information provided on their websites. Local authorities have to move away from the 'We are almighty, we know what you want' position to a 'Help us to help you' approach.

Web 2.0 can help with this, build an online community reflecting the real life world.

Till next time,

Vis.

When playtime stops and work begins

2008-07-22T14:40:00.002Z

Dear Reader,

My previous post (Random Witterings: ICT - Getting Accountant Buy-in) made me think more than I had originally anticipated, and I have concluded that, in a way, I put the cart before the horse. My error was to jump straight in and try to help get the message across as to how to convince management (and accountants) that your project is a great idea, I did not, or have not, discussed what are the best tools for the job - hence this post.

I saw an interesting post this morning by Robert Scoble discussing how there has been a shift away from traditional personal blogs to a more business centred view of blogs. My personal opinion is that this is good thing and it shows that the commercial world is following developments made by the web for social benefit. Scoble would prefer that the blog remained personal.

Web 2.0 - the biggest buzz word to hit the internet since .com. The technology that has been developed and the interaction that has grown has been amazing, now everyone twitters, facebooks, blogs, IMs, emails, VOIPs, RSSs the list goes on but the question remains how do we apply this to everyday business, or, when does playtime stop and work begin.

Without the embrace of the commercial sector social media will remain on the sidelines, only being accessed by a select few while topics of conversation will remain unfocused and irrelevant to many employees. By embracing social media the commercial sector will help to develop the potential and attract new investment, just look at email and websites. What we have to do is think how a commercial organisation can benefit from using social media as part of its daily toolbox.

Work life balance is now more important to many employees than ever before. At the same time being an employer of choice is high in the priorities of many organisations. Somewhere a compromise needs to be achieved. Social media tools can help deliver that compromise.

The most favoured example of work-life balance is home-working; the ability for an employee to get up at 8.30am and start work from their home office. The tools required to achieve this are now becoming common place:

* Laptops - allows employees the ability to take their desk with them
* Virtual Private Networks (VPN) - allows secure access to office servers
* Voice over IP (VOIP) - allows employees the ability to connect to the office telephone system remotely

So the technology is available - but what about the problems..?

It is often said that the biggest thing missing when working at home is the banter - my question is why..? Tools such as twitter and instant messaging can help. Secure and shared between employees, IM can deliver the banter during the normal working day.

I have also heard people say that it is easier to pop down the corridor and see someone. What happens if the person you are going to visit working from home..? Also, if seeing someone is so important, what about video messaging..?

Other examples of where social media can benefit an organisation, but is not being fully utilised, is with regards to collaborative working. Why do we need to send around emails cc'ing the world and his dog - a blog would help deliver this. Imagine a development project where you need to be kept informed, but not required to respond - it is easier to RSS a blog than have to skim through a cc'ed email to find what you are looking for.

Another collaborative tool is the Wiki - the ability for a group of people to join in with the creation of a document without having to email around a paper constantly out of date.

Think of Facebook, imagine that a group of colleagues working together had the ability to keep each other informed (with or without pokes!) with live updates, information and reports from meetings, visits etc.. It is another example of how with simple thinking a play toy can be changed to be a useful business asset.

There are many tools available but it is essential that they are not dismissed out of hand as toys. They need to be considered and investigated as possible tools to help productivity in the work place.

Till next time.

Vis

ICT - Getting Accountant Buy-in

2008-07-16T14:23:00.001Z

Dear Reader,

I know that as a blogger I am pretty poor but I do try to blog about topics that are relevant. It is not often that a question really sticks in my mind that I feel the need to blog about it - but today one just did!

As a person and as a career I investigate various ways in which new technology and new ways of working can be implemented within the modern business environment. In the past I have investigated using handheld devices, home working, computer based training and a whole raft of other solutions that have been implemented.

Currently the flavour of the month is collaborative working and how to use web 2.0 theory within the work place with tools such as VOIP / mobile phone convergence, rich content websites to deliver messages and the use of wiki and blogs for project working.

As you are no doubt saying to yourself, these tools have been around for sometime, however in some organisations these are either unknown or seen as dark arts. This is where the problem lies.

Today's organisation is risk adverse and is driven by the need to save money and you don't have to be a genius to realise that the the first area to be hit by this thinking is ICT. So how can I get buy-in from the accountants!

There are plenty of papers published almost all saying the roughly same story "Innovate or die!" and we all agree with the theory but how do we get over that first hurdle; how do we convince the accountant that this is a risk worth taking.

There is a popular saying amongst accountants - "Show me the business case and I'll think about it". Which after the work is done is closely followed by a second popular saying "It's a great idea, but I just don't think that the business is ready for it".

The business case is one of the most important elements of the equation, not so much for the accountant to see that you have done your sums, but also for yourself to ensure that you have asked all the right questions and challenged yourself in the process. I see the business case as a check list or a reality check to justify that the project you wish to embark on is as sound as the glittery wrapping the salesman gave it to you in.

A second key point is knowledge and understanding. The ICT department is in a difficult position, they cannot start a project without a business sponsor or need, however the business is not expected to fully understand all the tools that are available to complete the task, hence catch 22. To encourage your accountant to agree that the risk is worth it, they need to understand what it is you wish to do. Example - try explaining SharePoint to someone who is not in ICT and has never heard of it before (if you want to make it more difficult, add in the fact that they are a Mac disciple!) - if you can convince them that it is more than a website then your 1st step is in the right direction - and we have not even got to the collaborative working quickstep.

In short - it is important that your accountant knows the product and has seen it in action to be convinced by its benefits.

Risk - it is amazing that a four letter word (not including swearwords) can make an accountant breakout in a cold sweat. It is vital that you explain the risk in the way that they want to hear it. Don't assume that you know what they want to hear - they will always ask something else. Try to include them during the initial discussions so that you can get them 'on-side' earlier.

Partnership working - How do you eat an elephant..? In small chunks! - if you can look to the business areas to take a share of the risk your accountant will be happier. A possible route for this will be partnership working, it is easy to see this when dealing with infrastructure based projects but when dealing with business unit solutions this may prove more tricky. It might be that other local organisations may wish to join your project, or possibly local colleges or universities may wish to achieve the same goals.

Cost - it cannot be ignored and your accountant will be staring intently at you till you mention it. The important part is understanding what is included in the cost. In this savings driven world all costs have to be accounted for, down to the penny. This could include: software, hardware, maintenance, consultancy, internal charges, replacement costs, training, upgrades, revenue implications - you name it, put a cost to it!

Savings - this is the word that makes your accountant smile. Savings can come in many forms, but the bottom line will be that the savings will outweigh the costs. Savings could include, software licenses, headcount, management information - try to make it as tangible as possible but intangible savings are also good. In addition to listing the potential savings it is important to justify them and indicate when your accountant will get his paws on the cash.

Finally 3 key questions...

When trying to convince your accountant that this project is the next best thing, make sure that you can answer these questions...

What is the total cost of ownership..?

What is the challenge of difficulty..?

What is the benefit to the organisation..?

Think of these on a scale of Red, Amber & Green - the more green the better, the greater the amber the greater the risk to be accepted, the more red the more chance that your accountant will be telling you... "It's a great idea, but I just don't think that the business is ready for it".

Till next time.

Vis

The story behind the story

2008-04-21T13:22:00.000Z

BBC NEWS dot.life A blog about technology from BBC News Is it lift off for Linux?

Sometimes I read about a news item on the BBC or other website or sometimes I read about it via a blog.

In the blog that I link to above I read the news story first and then the blog later and it got me thinking about how journalists are using their blogs to 'show their working' for stories and allows us the readers the ability to discover more about the story if we are interested.

Blogging has gone through, and still is going through, many manifestations of the same theme. I mentioned in my previous entry that business is still trying to find the case for using blogs and other social media and I see journalists are starting to move blogging to this new level and making it become part of the business and not so much about their opinion on daily life!

I know that some events of national importance have spread via twitter before the newspapers / website caught up to them, maybe we will see a natural flow for stories in the future...

1. Twitter reports coming in about a story
2. Appears on BBC
3. Read the follow up / workings on the blog
4. Contribute in the comments

A useful site I have been following is called 'Strange Attractor' which is complied by an on-line journalist called Suw Charman-Anderson who describes herself as a 'social software consultant and writer' she and her husband Kevin Anderson have some great ideas as to how social software can be implemented in journalism.

Maybe business should look to journalists for the case to embrace!

Till next time

Vis.

Real People Don't Have Time for Social Media - ReadWriteWeb

2008-04-18T13:40:00.002Z

Real People Don't Have Time for Social Media - ReadWriteWeb

As usual I have left a long time between witters, but the article that I have linked to might have something to do with it.

The article discusses the role of social media (i.e. Blogging [& replying to blogs], Facebook, Twitter, etc..) in everyday life. The blog generated many comments talking about how often people use Social Media and reading between the lines show what types of organisation have embraced the technology and those that have not.

Many of the responders worked in the 'media' or web industry and have embraced the new developing tools and are starting to utilise them as part of everyday life. Many of the 'dissenters' who do not use Social Media evidenced that they did not have time or the ability to to use it.

My view, which I also commented to the post, are that these new media tools will become more popular in the future as corporations start to realise the benefits and understand how to use them to their advantage. Just look at Email and the Web!

Personally I do not use Social Media much, my reasons are...

1. Time
2. I work in a culture that does not embrace the change
3. I have no one to socialise with!

I will try not to leave it so long next time!

Vis.

Chateau Pquarantecinq

2006-09-28T13:35:00.000Z

Chateau Pquarantecinq

Now here is an interesting fella, a person I have had the opportunity to meet in a past life.

The author of this blog recently moved to Winnipeg, Canada, but still runs his very successful website from this location. He is a man of many talents and has wrote many books mainly on Architecture. On the side he takes an active interest in Irish culture by observing those who actually live it.

You may ask how he does this when he is nowhere near Ireland - the answer - the Internet! He is a true modern age worker emphasing the point that work is an activity not a location.

Have a read - it has not been updated for a little while - but it is worth it when it is. If you are interested in architecture then check out his other blog... http://www.archiseek.com/onsite/

Till next time

Vis.

500 miles with a 5 minute charge

2006-09-26T13:02:00.000Z

Business 2.0...Big Innovations: EEStor - Sep. 18, 2006

I am sure that you can now tell that I am often attracted to stories that will help drive technology in the future, therefore this one has got my attention!

It described a new type of electric engine currently in development that, if proved successful, will power a family car for 500 miles on a charge lasting 5 minutes. Unfortunately it will mean longer queues at the 'fuel' station, but at least you will not have to 'fill up' so often!

Unless.... you can plug it into the mains at home...hmmmmm!

I really think that without this sort of inventiveness the world will grind to a halt. Should this engine take off it will dramatically reduce the need for petrol in everyday life, thus redirecting the supply into producing cleaner, more efficient power. I really hope that this engine does hit the big time as it will be the start of a new technological revolution....!

Another witter over!

Till next time,

Vis.

Online Communities

2006-09-26T12:13:00.000Z

Random Acts Of Reality :: TTIM#2

This is an interesting little piece. It is from a blog that I have been reading for a little while since it caught the public eye.

The author, Tom Reynolds, works for an Ambulance Service in London and he recounts his tales of saving lives in his big white taxi. He has turned his blog into a successful book.

In this particular article he talks about another blog that he visits regularly, that of Neil Gaiman and how he lets that personality shine though his blog. Tom himself is also puts himself into his online work. I have sent him an email and was very happy to receive a reply within 48 hours answering my questions.

In this article he discusses the concept of online communities and how they are developed within the web. My witter for this is that communities build themselves by links to other like-minded sites and people move around the web from site to site reading understanding and contributing to the community.

The introduction of RSS readers allow us viewers the opportunity to gather this information quickly in a readable format and then investigate it further if necessary.

The online community is very much alive!

Till next time

Vis.

Zero-point energy

2006-09-25T13:09:00.000Z

Zero-point energy

Having mentioned this in my previous post and then read a bit more details on Wikipedia I think that I should really tell you, my dear lonely reader, the definition of zero Point energy that I heard.

It is the force that holds particles together. This is the glue that makes diamonds hard. It is available everywhere, even in the vacuum of space.

If harnessed this power should be able to supply enough energy for everyone, and given that one of the greatest barriers to space travel is having to carry all the fuel around this will also be able to open up space exploration in a big way!

Till next time,

Vis.

Feel free to leave a comment.

Internet's future in 2020 debated

2006-09-25T12:56:00.000Z

BBC NEWS Technology Internet's future in 2020 debated

This is an interesting little article from the BBC. It discusses the possible direction the web and internet based communications are heading and what they will be like in the year 2020.

It has always made me think what the world will be like in x years time, especially in the world of communications. Myself and the Viscountess were discussing this the other day and I came to the conclusion that the first thing that needed to be addressed was the power resource to supply all this demand.

As soon as a new and efficient power source was found technology would accelerate to the stars! As a by-product of this a general improvement of living throughout the world would also been seen. It is quite interesting to note that all this talk about where the Internet will be in 2020 does not take into consideration the sate of the world in the time - without power there will be no computers, therefore no internet!

Roll on zero-point energy - which was used as the power source of the baddies weapons in the cartoon / film "The Incredibles"

Aero Garden

2006-09-22T16:05:00.000Z

Zabar's Online Store

Is this the way food is going to be produced in the future..? What a great idea..!

The only question that I have is how much energy does it use to make a lettuce!

Just a short one this time...

Vis.

BBC NEWS | Magazine | The camera phone backlash

2006-09-20T12:13:00.000Z

BBC NEWS Magazine The camera phone backlash

This is an interesting article about how mobile phones with cameras are being linked to industrial espionage.

The article discusses some of the views that these types of phones should be banned or be forced to make a noise when used. It would appear that certain groups would like to see the removal of the feature completely.

Although I have no real desire for a camera on my phone - although I do use it as a camera - my only concern is that could this action slow down future development of the technology..?

It has appeared that since the digital camera has been developed it was introduced to mobile phones very quickly. This was on the pretence that one day you will be able to take to someone face-to-face via a telephone. Although this is possible - I really do not know anyone who actually does this, in fact this is more commonly done via the internet where costs are a lot cheaper.

As the introduction of WiMAX and wireless enabled mobile phones then the ability to communicate person-to-person via a mobile phone is finally realised.

Till next time

Vis.

p.p.s

2006-08-24T11:33:00.000Z

I think that I may have 2 readers!

Very very happy!

Vis

Google in 10 years time

2006-08-24T11:22:00.000Z

Being a fan of new technology and therefore being a fan of Google I was very amused when a friend sent me this image.

However it got me thinking!

The joke is that in 10 years Google will be so advanced that it will be able to tell you where you leave your everyday objects - but this sort of thing is not an unrealistic view of the world.

Take a map of your house and tell Google what everything is, take your keys, add Bluetooth or a RFID thinghy and then ask Google to tell you where you leave things!

Simple eh..?

Till next time Vis!

p.s. I found out recently that I have got one reader - I am happy!

Tech Digest: Yay or nay: Transporter

2006-07-27T08:33:00.000Z

Dear Readers,

Tech Digest have come across the latest and flashiest bit of kit that will stream music stored on your PC to your Hi-Fi.

Tech Digest: Yay or nay: Transporter

I have been thinking about purchasing something like this for some time - always being put of by the cost. A new thought has sprung to mind recently that possibly will be able to provide me with the solution that I am looking for with additional benefits.

I have in effect removed the Hi-Fi from my life and now use a DVD player and surround sound to play CDs. I would like to have the ability to store my music on a hard drive, search for it and play it with out having to go through a CD collection and changing each CD every time I want a different type of music.

My thinking is that instead of going for one of these streaming tools, I am considering purchasing a new PC with a decent sound card, a decent video card and a wireless card. Then I will be able to plug this directly into my TV and surround sound and hey presto music and PC on demand!

Till next time dear reader...

Vis.

Tech Digest: iLane - send and receive email safely whilst driving

2006-07-25T13:41:00.000Z

Readers,

I saw this article the other day and have been wondering if it is good or bad...

Tech Digest: iLane - send and receive email safely whilst driving

The product reads emails out loud and allows the receiver to reply, via email, through bluetooth to their mobile device. I am sure that as a communication tool it is a way forward, however as a social interaction tool then I am concerned it is a step backwards.

The big questions are "Is this necessary..?" and "Who will use it..?"

It is clearly aimed at people who spend a lot of time:
1. Driving
2. Needing to communicate with email rather than phone - this would imply that documents need to be exchanged
3. Not in meetings - otherwise alternative methods could be used.

So do you know anyone like this..?

Vis.

Email becomes the new snail mail

2006-07-19T08:30:00.000Z

Dear Reader,

Following on from my previous post I have come across this article which seems to highlight the changing attitude towards IM and electronic communication in general.

Email becomes the new snail mail - web - Technology - smh.com.au

It is strange that as more and more ways of communicating are developing and the expected response times are shortening then as a result people are expected to be on call 24 hours a day - I would say 24/7 but I dislike that expression!

I wonder if workers will communicate themselves to an early grave - or will a revolt happen and it will get to a point when individuals will say enough is enough and switch off after hours!

The other option is a full circle. We started with the phone, moved to email, switched to text, now going to IM as it is quicker to get a response. You never know next we might go to phone calls to try to get hold of someone!

Till next time dear reader!

Vis.

Communication from 2006 onwards

2006-07-11T12:35:00.000Z

Well dear reader, what has been happening..?

I recently came across an article from a young up-and-coming chap by the name of Bill Gates who was talking about how communication in the future will be an integrated version of what we have already have available to us today.

He mentioned the scenario of trying to contact someone…

You phone them from your desk – they are not there so you leave a message
You phone their mobile – no answer so they get a second message
You e-mail them telling them the same message for the 3rd time!

Then when they pick up their messages they repeat the process only in reverse..!

Young Bill’s suggestion in to combine email, VOIP, IM and free / busy information into one service presumably giving users one number / email address / username that stays with them wherever they are. With the introduction of wider wireless zones and smarter smart phones this is a real possibility for the near future.

Billy went on to mention that he pays particular attention to new, fresh out of college, graduates and how he feels that they drive the way forward with their demand for ever quicker information and the fact that email is just not quick enough.

Someone commented to me the other day about how the new generation is dealing with the inevitability of information overload – they felt that young people were developing a natural speed reading skill that allowed them to filter out the rubbish from the useful – I guess that this could be evolution in action!

Till next time dear reader – and I use this in the singular sense as I am sure that no one has ever read this!!!!

Vis.

A new witter

2005-11-11T13:54:00.000Z

Well I thought that I would just have a quick witter as I have not had one for a while.

It has been nothing personal - I just have not been around much, or just plain and simply too busy to contemplate wittering in public. I suppose that it is about commitment, some other people have the time to be able to do this, but unfortunately I need to make money so that I can pay for a computer to be able to view such blogs - bit of a catch 22 really!

Today has been a quite a quiet day and so I thought that I would take a trip to an old site that I used to visit. It was strange place that I did not recognise. It was like going back to school, but not part of a reunion - everyone seemed a lot younger, the conversations seemed childish, even the look and feel was different.

It strange how even in a virtual world we age and mature and how the things we used to find amusing now seem irrelevant. It is like the transition from cider and lager to Gin & Tonic and a glass of wine!

Till next time - Vis.

P.S.

2005-07-01T19:46:00.000Z

But it keeps her amused!

A BIG Correction

2005-07-01T19:41:00.000Z

It has come to my attention that I have not been as truthful as I first thought with this witterings. All my original ideas have actually come from my wife (see perfect).

I have thedrefore come to the conclusion that she is just darn tooting perfect!

She has also pointed out that I havea real problem with spelling and puncuation!

RSS Tracking

2005-06-01T07:53:00.000Z

I recently told my wife about RSS readers, how they gathered news articles and anything else that is affiliated. At first she was quite impressed then she asked "So I can track a certain story and it will find it all the articles for me..?" I had to admit that the reader I have does not do that - and after a quick search I don't think that I can find one that does.

So dear reader how about this: each page on a news website adds keywords to their stories, let take an example Europa and the discovery of water and say for example we are interested in this subject.

What do we do? We open our RSS Reader and enter the search terms that we wish to keep track of in this case Europa & Water & Jupiter and we give our search a name "Water on Europa". Our RSS Reader then looks through all the content websites that we have subscribed to and pulls back all the pages that have the key words Europa & Water & Jupiter and places the links in our "Water on Europa" feed. The nearest I have found is a google news search

Simple eh..?

My Head Hurts!

2005-05-29T18:44:00.000Z

In the past few months I have been waking up with a sore head - some times it was with nausea. It always seemed to happen on a Saturday morning, and the other funny thing was that there was the same person with me the night before - I therefore describe him as a beer monster and I think that what I was suffering from was a hangover - something that I have not experienced on a regular basis since I was a student - a few decades ago!

I once asked a friend, who is a very clever fella, why a drink could not be invented that made people act stupid and dribble and talk rubbish but not make them feel like dirt in the morning! He went on to explain the science of alcohol and how when we drink it opens up the blood vessels in the brain allowing more oxygen to reach our thinking centre. With the added oxygen our brains goes into overdrive, hence the talking rubbish, thinking that we are the cleverest person in the world and that we are god's gift.

The problems arise the following morning - when according to my clever friend the vessels that once helped the oxygen flow to the brain were now contracting and causing pain in the process! This is called a hangover.

My only problem with this conversation is that I cannot remember if I had it before, during or after a hangover!

Letter from America

2005-05-28T10:38:00.000Z

I often wonder what Alistair Cooke would make of Blogging. For those of you who don't know Alistair Cooke had a long running show on BBC Radio. Each week he reported to the UK his interpretation of events happening in America. His first letter was in March 1946 and he retired in March 2004, unfortunately he died later that month.

In a bizarre way I feel that he was the first real blogger and I think that later in his career some clever fella at the BBC was actually putting his letters on to a weblog on the BBC website.

The reason I was thinking about this was that he referred to his audience as "my dear listener", a term that I recently came across again while reading L.A. Confidential (a book that my wonderful wife recommended to me, and it is a very good gritty read). It is set in 1950s LA and features a celebrity gossip magazine which too refers to it's readers as "dear readers".

I think that this term has fallen out of favour with the press and radio, so I think that I will try to use it more.

So my dear readers (if anyone will actually read this is another thing!) this is the end of my wittering for today.

New Game Idea

2005-05-27T11:00:00.000Z

This wittering popped into my head as I was sitting in traffic on my into work this morning. Altough, it has been buzzing around up there for some time.

It is an idea for a new 2 player console / PC game. The idea is that one player is the driver with the aim of getting around a track or a town or perhaps somthing just to get to acheive a goal. The other player is a road clearer (I have not quite worked out a good title for that role yet). Their role is to smack other cars out of the road with a giant pair of hands which clears the cars off the road and allows the driver to move forward.

Talk about a cure to road rage!

Inspiration Strikes!

2005-05-27T09:35:00.000Z

Have you ever thought about inspiration..? Why does it strike certain people and not others..?

I read an interesting bit in a book about this once - I cannot remember the actual book but I think that it was penned by Terry Pratchett, he of the discworld novels!

His theory was that inspiration and ideas ane constantly flooding the earth (or Discworld in his case) in particles, in a similar way that radiation emanates from a lump of atomic waste. In the majority of cases the inspiration particles just hit the earth - but occasionally they enter a head.

Now this is where it gets tricky - does the inspiration just randomly bounce around the skull and then either fizzle out or escape out an ear? Or does the person act on that idea grasp it understand it and use it?

However it does not stop there - the problem that we all face is understanding what to do with that idea that has just collided with our cranium. We all could get the idea how to cure cancer, or turn grass cuttings into a power source, but if we don't have the relevant knowledge to understand what to do then the idea is just wasted. It is a shame, but that cow you passed in the field on the way to work this morning could have just had an idea of breaking the speed of light!

My 1st Witter

2005-05-27T07:59:00.000Z

Well this is my first Random Witter - if that is an actual verb (or 'doing word' as it was referred to when I was at school).

This is all my wife's idea - she said the other night that if I ever wrote a book it should be called Random Witterings. It would seem that every so often I start wittering about somthing that does not interest her is the slightest and she has often been heard to mutter "I am going to regret asking this!"

So this is for you my love!