My week Monday 15 to Sunday 21 July 2013 is not being recorded here. In any event, no media objects were produced, so there’s nothing of importance to link to.
Weekly Wrap 162: A dog, a pause, and an invisible cat
My week Monday 8 to Sunday 14 July 2013 was a continuation of my distinct slow-down, for reasons explained previously.
I still haven’t decided whether I’ll write about that any further. For now, I’ll just say that there’s been suitable initial progress on that front. Many thanks to the people — friends, colleagues and strangers alike — who’ve been in touch.
Meanwhile, as usual, here’s the media-related things I’ve done this week. Not that there were many.
Podcasts
None.
Articles
- Microsoft sucked into ever-growing NSA vortex: who’s next?, ZDNet Australia, 13 July 2013.
Media Appearances
- On Monday, I spoke about NSA and spying on Channel TEN’s The Project.
Corporate Largesse
None. Well, there was some on offer, but I declined. I have heard rumour which suggest that I made the wrong decision.
The Week Ahead
The theme for the coming week is “assessment”. I’ll be be running through the various areas of my life to see where I’m up to, what issues I should perhaps address, and what the possibilities for the future might be. Personal stuff, including my health. Work, both media-related and otherwise. All sorts of stuff. I haven’t done that for a while. I’ve just been cruising along.
In between, I’ll be writing for Technology Spectator and ZDNet Australia, and perhaps some others. I’ll also post another episode of the Corrupted Nerds podcast, fix some problems with the website, and sketch out my ideas for making that a sustainable project.
On Thursday I’ll be down in Sydney for a medical appointment and lunch with a friend. Whether I’ll be staying in Sydney longer than that remains to be decided.
[Photo: Sunday night in the village, being the near-deserted Station Street, Wentworth Falls, earlier this evening.]
Weekly Wrap 161: The black dog and the prodigal umbrella
My week Monday 1 to Sunday 7 July 2013 was another complicated one, as already explained. That’s why this post is very late, of course.
Once I’d gotten the bigger chunks of work out of the way, I pulled the pace back a bit — which I think you’ll agree was sensible.
I was also pleased to see the return of the prodigal umbrella. The excellent umbrella I was given by Verizon Business in Singapore had been left at a noodle bar months ago — but the owners remembered it and me. We were reunited last Wednesday. Also, pho was served.
Podcasts
None.
Articles
- UNSW helps close cloud computing’s can of (legal) worms, CSO Online, 3 July 2013.
- The 10 Commandments of Data Sovereignty, CSO Online, 3 July 2013.
- ATO’s clunky E-tax for Mac highlights cultural problems, ZDNet Australia, 5 July 2013.
Media Appearances
- On Friday, I was interviewed for a segment on Channel TEN’s The Project. However it didn’t air until Monday 8 July, so it’ll get its own blog post shortly, and be included in next week’s wrap.
- On Sunday I was a guest on Reckoner episode three, as already explained.
Corporate Largesse
- On Tuesday I attended the launch of the University of New South Wales’ report Data Sovereignty and the Cloud — A Board and Executive Officers’ Guide at the Sydney offices of law firm Baker & McKenzie. Refreshments were served.
The Week Ahead
It’s almost over, so I’ll just mention that I’ll be writing for ZDNet Australia tomorrow, Friday, and I’ll be returning to the Blue Mountains on Sunday, probably.
[Photo: Sydney Harbour, viewed through a dirty window in the AMP Tower, photographed on 2 July 2013.]
Weekly Wrap 160: Black dog, black sky and more NSA
My week Monday 24 to Sunday 30 June 2013 was rather complicated, at least emotionally.
As will be explained tomorrow on Tuesday Thursday.
Nevertheless, I managed to create some media objects along the way. And here they are.
Podcasts
I’m very pleased to have launched my new podcast and website, Corrupted Nerds.
- Corrupted Nerds: Conversations 1, a conversation with Eugene Kaspersky, founder and CEO of Kaspersky Lab. If we’re going to be accurate, then this was really published in the previous week. But I forgot. So sue me.
- Corrupted Nerds: Extra 1, being Senator Brett Mason’s “corrupted nerds” speech in the Australian Senate from 21 August 2012, which inspired the title. This was published last week too.
- Corrupted Nerds: Conversations 2, a chat with Sean Richmond, senior technology consultant from Sophos Australia and New Zealand, about personalised malware, defense in depth, and why advanced persistent threats (APTs) and cyberwar are over-hyped.
I have yet to arrange any funding for this podcast, so I’ll be seeking that soon — and I’d be more than happy to hear your suggestions.
Articles
- Remember the NSA? Snooping is the real story, Crikey, 25 June 2013, in which I point out that the global hunt for Edward Snowden is in fact a distracting narrative.
- Beyond Conroy: Australia’s future internet politics, ZDNet Australia, 28 June 2013, in which I look at the issues that will need to be tackled by any future Australian communications minister.
- Schneier joins EFF board in wake of NSA scandal, CSO Online, 28 June 2013. Bruce Schneier’s EFF move sends a powerful message.
Media Appearances
None.
Corporate Largesse
- Since Saturday 8 June I’ve been using Vodafone’s new 4G network while in Sydney, and their existing 3G network while in the Blue Mountains, with a Samsung Galaxy S4 handset that they’ve loaned me.
I’ll be writing about my experiences on Monday.[Update 2 July 2013: I’ve just posted my write-up of my experiences. Yeah, it’s Tuesday.
The Week Ahead
The new financial year starts on Monday, so I daresay the morning will be full of administrivia. I’ll then be heading down to Sydney, because…
On Tuesday morning I’m attending a discussion on data sovereignty and the cloud, hosted by data centre firm NEXTDC, along with financial services company Aon and law firm Baker & McKenzie. That will be followed at the same event by the launch of the University of New South Wales’ report Data Sovereignty and the Cloud — A Board and Executive Officers’ Guide. I’ll be reporting this for someone, but as yet I don’t know who that will be.
I’ll be in Sydney again later in the week, probably Thursday, for a medical appointment, but that’s not confirmed yet. When it is, I’ll arrange my writing and media production schedule around that. There’s definitely stories to write for ZDNet Australia and CSO Online, plus an episode of Corrupted Nerds, and there’ll certainly be things that pop up along the way.
And then the weekend is unplanned.
[Photo: Sydney under the clouds, photographed from the Rydges Camperdown hotel in Sydney on 25 June 2013.]
Weekly Wrap 159: Solstice, silence and sound
My week Monday 17 to Sunday 23 June 2013 was marked by the Winter Solstice, as (almost) illustrated above, a certain amount of radio silence, and much sound.
The Winter Solstice was something that, in the past, I’d celebrate regularly in a private ceremony similar to Sunreturn. I’d sometimes write reflective pieces about that, as I did in 2005, 2008 and 2009. And yet nothing along those lines has appeared for four years. I think that’s significant, and that will now change — although I won’t elaborate on that.
Nor will I elaborate on the fact that I haven’t uttered a word on Twitter in more than a week, and generally left messages pile up unless they really were urgent, except to note that sometimes a little quiet is beneficial. Most of the world could handle a bit of STFU now and then, actually. Maybe I’ll elaborate on that little observation at some point. Or not.
Actually, I’ve written previously about how (faux) urgency in poisonous — and in looking up the link to that post just then, I discovered this observation about Kevin Rudd’s management style. It’s not just Rudd who needs to think about that stuff.
And the sound? You’ll find out at 2132 AEST tonight. There is a clue: “CN”.
Articles
- Ignorant Oz politicians prevent meaningful metadata debate, ZDNet Australia, 21 June 2013.
Media Appearances
None.
Corporate Largesse
- On Wednesday I attended a media roundtable hosted by Websense at Establishment in Sydney. A rather elaborate morning tea was served.
- Also on Wednesday I attended the launch of IBM’s Truth Behind the Trends whitepaper at Arras Restaurant in Sydney, which doesn’t seem to have its own website. Still, I photographed the menu, the butter and my entrée, but not the main course. You’ll cope.
- Since Saturday 8 June I’ve been using Vodafone’s new 4G network while in Sydney, and their existing 3G network while in the Blue Mountains, with a Samsung Galaxy S4 handset that they’ve loaned me. I’ll be writing about my experiences some time this coming week.
The Week Ahead
I’ll simply note that there’s plenty to write, and plenty to do in this last week of the financial year. And then there’s a new financial year, which brings possibilities…
There will be tweets and suchlike starting again from 1100 AEST today.
[Photo: Pas de Deux, a cloud and a crane photographed shortly after the moment of Winter Solstice in Sydney, Australia on Friday afternoon. Sadly the contrast is pretty bad, ‘cos it was just a quick snapshot and I didn’t have time to play with the exposure.]
Weekly Wrap 158: NSA and all the cybers, mostly
My week Monday 10 to Sunday 16 June 2013 was dominated by the US National Security Agency (NSA). Well, by the news pertaining thereto. Funny world.
I can’t be arsed writing about that any further today. Here’s the links, and you can ask me questions and initiate conversation in the comments. Which I may ignore.
You post your comments, you take your chances.
Articles
- Australia’s quiet role in the NSA spying scandal, Crikey, 11 June 2013.
- How to keep the NSA out of your email, Crikey, 12 June 2013.
- Google versus the NSA, choice versus trust, ZDNet Australia, 14 June 2013.
Media Appearances
None.
Corporate Largesse
- On Wednesday I attended the Sydney launch of Intel’s 4th Generation Core processors at the Museum of Contemporary Art. There was food and drink.
[Photo: NSA’s Decipher Dog character, part of the agency’s kids outreach program.]