By @edent · gun guns las vegas shooting weapons · 8 comments · 750 words · read ~402 times.
Growing up, toy guns were verboten in our household. My brother and I - like most young boys - grew up on a diet on Star Wars, The A-Team, and Transformers. Gun were cool! Our mother would brook no truck with this. Guns were banned. When my brother was given a water pistol as a […]
Continue reading →By @edent · android galaxy note ii mobile phablet samsung · 18 comments · 1,250 words · read ~4,669 times.
Like a prize idiot, I went to work yesterday, but left my laptop at home. Prat! So, time to put the Samsung Galaxy Note II through its paces. I've had the phone for a couple of months and been really pleased with it. But I sensed that I hadn't really used it in anger. I […]
Continue reading →By @edent · aaron swartz builders diggers digital memes · 2 comments · 600 words · read ~315 times.
My schooling of English history covered the 1066 invasion, then jumped to the Tudors, a smattering of the industrial revolution, a bit of the First World War, then a heavy focus on the Second World War whereupon, it seemed, history stopped. As far as I can recall, we learned nothing about the English Dissenters - […]
Continue reading →By @edent · tax taxpayers alliance tpa · 7 comments · 500 words · read ~2,583 times.
One of the first rules of setting up a political lobby group is that you should have a name which defies opposition. Who in their right mind would be against "Citizens For Prosperity" or "The People's Democratic Society" or "Ministry of Peace" - why only a violent Communist! That's who! It is this spirit that […]
Continue reading →By @edent · age of majority politics votes voting age · 8 comments · 850 words · read ~180 times.
Eric Joyce MP has written about why he doesn't think the vote should be extended to 16 year olds. While I've admired his stance on digital rights, I disagree with him and his reasoning on this issue. This isn't about whether young people are able to understand the issues, or whether they are taxed without […]
Continue reading →By @edent · books library · 1 comment · 500 words · read ~594 times.
I arrived at Woking Library shortly before 1600 on a Thursday. At that time of day, the library is filled - somewhat understandably - with people who aren't working a normal 9-5 job. Retirees, students, and the unemployed. I walked through the extensive computer section of the library. Dozens of computers with free Internet access. […]
Continue reading →By @edent · bidirectional ltr rtl text unicode usability · 650 words · read ~1,143 times.
Annoyingly, FourSquare has started be be a source of spam for me. I get friend request from people who only like certain brands of stores, from recruitment consultants trying to work out who I'm visiting, and from cultists who are desperate for me to visit Scientology centres. I also get friend requests from people I've […]
Continue reading →By @edent · internet romans technology · 24 comments · 1,100 words · read ~12,302 times.
In Terry Pratchett's book "Going Postal" he writes about the impact on the Discworld civilization of the semaphore tower. A new - but relatively basic - technology which revolutionises how people work, play, and interact. It changes the fortunes of the humble and the mighty. It is as useful for individuals as for nation states. […]
Continue reading →By @edent · qr QR Codes scanning small · 350 words · read ~1,078 times.
One of my hobbies is looking for QR codes by leafing through the free papers which blight the city of London. Yes, I lead a tragic existence, but it keeps me off the streets - so let me be, eh? Most of the QR codes that I see now are pretty good. They have clear […]
Continue reading →By @edent · bitcoin hacking money · 950 words · read ~1,459 times.
... as our money becomes completely electronic, new crimes will undoubtedly be committed which take advantage of the technology itself. Perhaps if we could imagine what crimes might happen, we could start to think about how to prevent them. What financial crimes could be committed within a completely electronic marketplace? Future of Money Design Award […]
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