My first coffee of the morning is always an important time of day for me. That brief five minutes when the house is quiet, the daylight streams through the windows of the kitchen and I can sit in peace - enjoying the transition from dozy stumbling to wakefulness. This morning I sat at the kitchen... Continue Reading →
The not-so-smart IoT house conversion…
Becca (my long-suffering wife): 'So are we actually going to finally sort out the back of the house?' Me: 'Oh..ok it's probably time to do it...' Becca: 'The kitchen's starting to fall apart, the windows need replacing, and we hardly ever use the dining room' Me: 'Guess this is the year...If we're going to tear... Continue Reading →
Israel – Innovation Nation
Tel Aviv is an incredible city – perched on the edge of a beautiful strip of the Mediterranean Sea. When you look down the sea front you could be forgiven for thinking that you are in Copa Cabana or Miami Beach. All the major hotel chains are here, cheek to jowl along the sand. Look... Continue Reading →
The future’s so bright I gotta wear shades – virtual and augmented reality
I think that I’m probably the last person in the technology industry to have experienced virtual reality or ‘VR’. Other than a quick and decidedly unimpressive play with Google Cardboard, I’d given VR a pretty wide berth. It was never really a deliberate move to stay away, but deep down I knew that I wanted... Continue Reading →
Going Underground – the hidden world of DNS tunneling
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a funny thing. To some it's just part of the stack of protocols and systems that make up the internet, whereas to us at Nominet it's our livelihood and passion. At its most basic, DNS is a simple digital signposting mechanism, enabling humans and machines to connect with each other... Continue Reading →
Mobile World Congress: the ‘not-a-mobile-phone’ conference
I’m staring across a crowded conference walkway at a beautiful, bright blue concept car from Peugeot. It’s sleek and futuristic and is clearly designed to be autonomous: there’s no visible steering wheel or dashboard to speak of. The car screams ‘future tech’ and is being fawned over by all who pass it. Next door is... Continue Reading →
Political leaders need to really understand technology – not just ‘like’ it…
We live in turbulent political times. What once were certainties around the steady state of centre politics, swinging gently left, then right, have given way to a transatlantic upheaval. Those confident that the backdrop of global-friendly policies would allow them to operate and grow their businesses in much the same way they always have, are... Continue Reading →
Knowing me better through meta
I was shopping online this week for an item that cost less than £3. As you can likely infer, this wasn’t the most strategic or important purchase I have made recently. It was a tiny piece of climbing hardware known as a ‘bolt hanger’ that I wanted to use in my garage to practice setting... Continue Reading →
R&D ain’t just for the big guys…
I work for what many would consider a 'small' technology company. When you compare us to the likes of Google and Apple, we're a minnow swimming in the larger technology pond. And yet what we do for the UK and our global clients is considerably more important than our diminutive stature might imply. We sit... Continue Reading →