Conceptric

A summary of all the content on Conceptric

  1. Purposeful technology

    30th Oct 2008

    Information technology projects frequently catch the headlines, but usually due to spectacular failures. The problem usually results from not asking whether the system is needed at all.

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  2. What is computer literacy?

    29th Oct 2008

    We all gratuitously refer to computer literacy, but what level of capability does this represent and how do you get it?

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  3. My sequential diploma

    25th Oct 2008

    Another Open University course completed having raised my awareness of the nightmare of true concurrent programming. There has to be an easier way?

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  4. The device I want

    5th Sep 2008

    We’re surrounded by smartphones, PDAs and laptops, many are fantastic already, but it’ll take something more to part me from my money.

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  5. Capistrano works!

    4th Aug 2008

    Effective version control and Capistrano managed deployment has hugely enhanced my workflow and quality.

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  6. Claimed in Technorati

    30th Apr 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    This is just a post to let me claim my blog in Technorati, like there’s any chance I’d give them my username and password. Technorati Profile.
    OK, I agree that this has very little to do with the general topics in this blog, but it was a test, looks pretty, and it’s blue like the overall [...]

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  7. Drupal revisited

    24th Apr 2008

    Four months on and it’s time to review progress on the Northamptonshire Bird Club website. Is Drupal working out the way I hoped?

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  8. Anatomy of a semantic blog

    18th Apr 2008

    Whilst working on a new Wordpress theme I started wondering what makes a blog semantic. How do you use the mark—up to convey meaning about the content?

    Discussed by James Whinfrey.

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  9. A remote future for my Mac mini

    11th Apr 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’ve come up with a brilliant idea to reuse my old Mac mini. I’m going to convert it into a server on my local network for development and hosting our personal web projects.
    OK… not very original, but the key point is that I want to be able to use the wireless networking, stick it [...]

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  10. First impressions of MarsEdit

    10th Apr 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’m writing on the 30 day trial of MarsEdit, the blog editing tool for the Mac. Given that this is my second post of the day — very rare, I know — you might have gathered that I like it.
    I’ve always edited my online content remotely, I have a local copy and can work [...]

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  11. Virtualizing my world

    10th Apr 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    Virtualization is definitely a big trend in computing and I’m growing to love it.
    On the Web.
    My production server environment is virtualized by the Xen hypervisor; providing a more flexible and cost effective solution.
    I like the freedom of complete root access but, given my relatively low traffic volumes, the cost of a dedicated server would be [...]

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  12. The right approach for me

    7th Mar 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’ve heard and read the recommendation to always avoid doing speculative work for free. In most cases this advice refers to website graphic design, and is intended to avoid wasted effort and pilfered designs.
    I’ve always found that the experimentation the most effective way to investigate new ideas, whether methodologies or technology. Frequently, these experiments — [...]

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  13. Programming from a different angle

    15th Feb 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I don’t feel I’ve got the programming experience I’d like for my future plans. So, I’ve got one of those personal project — the type that you never seem to get round to — in mind to provide me with a good workout.
    Which programming platform to use for the server-side application? Whilst I have to [...]

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  14. Corporate sterility

    12th Feb 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’ve just spent some time customising a few icons on my desktop. After a while it occurred to me that I could have been doing something productive instead. But what’s productive and what’s not?
    My partner, Clare, works for a medium sized company that has grown significantly over the last few years. A couple of days [...]

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  15. Inspirational reading

    9th Jan 2008

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I love reading, and this Christmas resulted in a pile of new books — courtesy of the Amazon wish-list. I’ve been inspired to rethink my approach to development by two titles from this collection.
    The first is “The Art of Agile Development” by James Shore and Shane Warden. I’ve been introduced to agile development methods in [...]

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  16. Why recommend Webfusion?

    10th Dec 2007

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    After reading PC Pro magazine issues 159 and 160, I was surprised to find them recommending Webfusion for those wishing to become a web host themselves. My disbelief was due to my own experiences.
    I wouldn’t argue with their observations on this providers reliability, but the main problem with Webfusion, or their parent Pipex, arises when [...]

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  17. Using Drupal

    3rd Dec 2007

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’ve been working on a website for the Northamptonshire Bird Club which nominated committee members could easily manage themselves. I decided that a Content Management System would be be best way to achieve this, and being a fan of open source I finally settled on Drupal. I liked the modular approach to the software and [...]

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  18. The MacBook’s back

    16th Nov 2007

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I went over to the Apple Centre in Solihull, that’s in the UK, to pick up my newly repaired MacBook Pro this Monday. I thought I’d wait a bit before posting the results to make sure that the fix actually worked.
    I can’t fault the service I received from the Apple Centre, but the quality of [...]

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  19. The thing about Apple

    9th Nov 2007

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    Back in the System 6 era, Apple Macs were niche products; well made, often expensive and largely found in academic circles. I always felt the problem was that Apple had a clearly superior product, but were just plain rubbish at marketing themselves. Wow, times sure change!
    My first Apple was back in the days of [...]

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  20. A new MacBook Pro

    8th Nov 2007

    Written by James Whinfrey.

    I’m an Apple user that recently I splashed out on a 15 inch, 2.2 GHz MacBook Pro. So why am I having to write this on my old Mac mini?
    The day came and I received my MacBook Pro; beautifully presented in carefully designed and executed packaging. I opened it up and was immediately impressed by [...]

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