Russell Davies

Being early is like being lucky

I had my stab a while ago, Craig's written it better.

Dickinson, Dickens and Clough.

Naming is hard. That's true in computering and in new products.

But, wait, here's a whole new name-space land-grab opportunity - famous dead people with a thing everyone knows about them.

There's Kennedy (which is brilliant and plays off the 'everyone remembers where they were when Kennedy was shot' thing).

There's Hemmingway (which plays off the 'short, plain sentences' thing and which James has written about wisely).

There must be others. Baby Einstein comes to mind. And, er. There must be others.

I wonder what the Dickens app would do. Or the Seacole one. Or the Dickinson one (and who owns the Dickinson name-space, Emily or Bruce?*). Pocahontas. Thatcher. Armstrong. Banks. Clough.

This stuff is going to happen.

(*Though Bruce isn't dead. Which, in this instance, goes against him)

UPDATE: Phil has pointed out another one - Streisand.

Not Audiences Again

A little while ago I wrote a post called Activities Not Audiences. As is often the way, one of the fantastic user researchers at GDS has made the same point but more clearly, more precisely and with actual evidence. Damn, they're good.

potatoes

Many years ago Anne and I sat laughing hysterically in the car listening to this on some radio compilation. I've been idly looking for a copy ever since but had another go after it was on this fantastic Archive on 4. This is the funniest, most joyous bit of radio you will ever hear.

at least it wasn't 'under construction'

Arthur's going to be doing a computing GCSE next year. The most impressive thing on the various websites about the computing GCSE that I've been exploring is this animated gif of a floppy disk. Look - it's got ones and zeroes written on it.

Not the British Golf

Here's another thing that seems a little out of time - the dash of the Austin Maestro/Montego, which also featured an electronic voice. Something attempted in the early 80s, which would be pretty ambitious even now.

I once had a client who, as a junior marketing person, had worked on this. He told tales of standing in damp Solihull carparks trying to get the voice to actually work so they could demonstrate it to government ministers, so they could get more money to keep the company going.

But look at those graphics - a solid-state electronic dash clearly sharing an inspirational path with 2001 et al, but not in a science-fiction film, in a mass-produced car. 

ingressness

I'm enjoying playing Ingress, it's giving me some of what I thought I'd get out of SAP. Plus I suspect, it's aimed at people 30 years younger than me, so it has the thrill of illicit pop music.

5 years ago

There seems to be less Japaneseness in our lives these days. Shame.

the basics, part two

I talked at a 'customer experience' conference the other week. Tried to suggest that until large 'customer-centric' organisations stop making mistakes like this and this and this, they should probably back off with the innovation.

Despite not opting in for anything I've been bombarded with emails ever since - from dozens of people the conference organisers have sold my address to. This is the best one so far:

the basics

I find myself saying this to so many people that I'm going to put it here, so I can point at it in the future. You can too if you like. You're welcome.

 

You have to do this:

 

 

 

Before you can do this: