Weekly Wrap – Page 85

13 October 201315 October 2013

Weekly Wrap 175: Lots of security, lots of productivity

[Update 14 October 2013, 0800 AEDT: As foreshadowed, “The Week Ahead” has been fleshed out with the current version of The Plan. However there’s evidence to suggest that this might change again later today. Update 15 October 2013, 1915 AEDT: The plan has changed again.]

My week Monday 7 to Sunday 13 October 2013 was relatively busy, although more on the research and information-gathering side rather than the final output side.

Podcasts

Corrupted Nerds: Conversations 6, being a chat with Michael Smith, head of Akamai Technologies’ computer security incident response team (CSIRT) about distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks.

Articles

Tech boom? Innovation drives Newcastle’s (slow) renewal, Crikey, 7 October 2013, being my write-up of the DiG Festival.
Internet use: we’re more mobile, but we still need a cable, Crikey, 9 October 2013, being my response to the latest internet usage figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABC).

I also wrote my usual column for ZDNet Australia, The Full Tilt, but we’re currently waiting on a decision as to whether the planned headline is, um, pushing the boundaries.

Media Appearances

On Monday I spoke about Tor and Silk Road on ABC Local Radio across New South Wales.
On Sunday, I was a guest for the recording of this week’s Reckoner podcast.

Corporate Largesse

On Wednesday I went to a lunchtime briefing by Unisys at Wolfies Restaurant at Circular Quay — apparently it doesn’t have an apostrophe — where the food was lovely and the weather was gorgeous. They paid, of course.
On Thursday I went to the annual conference of the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre, where I was fed and watered. Check Point Software Technologies Ltd gave me a branded shirt. Watchguard Technologies Inc gave me a novelty USB memory device (4GB) packed with PR material.

The Week Ahead

~~The exact shape of the week will depend upon news arriving overnight, so I’ll add in the details tomorrow morning.~~

On Monday I’ll be mapping out the coming three weeks or so, including preparing some of plan for getting to Melbourne for the Breakpoint and Ruxcon hacker conferences. On Tuesday I’ll be continuing that work towards Melbourne and writing a piece for Technology Spectator that’ll due to be published on ~~Thursday~~ Friday.

~~On Wednesday I’ll be setting up the framework for another Technology Spectator yarn, as well as writing my ZDNet Australia column for Thursday.~~

On Wednesday I’ll be heading to Sydney for a lunchtime briefing by Dasault SystÃ¨mes about their new SolidWorks thingo, setting up the frameworks for Technology Spectator and ZDNet Australia stories en route. I may stay in Sydney overnight, depending on several factors. If I don’t…

On Thursday itself, I’ll be heading to Sydney again for a lunchtime briefing by NEC and Telsyte, staying overnight until Friday for a tour of the Pacnet data centre and some personal stuff.

There’s more in the schedule than that, of course, but they’re the relatively fixed pegs upon which the rest of the schedule hangs.

The weekend is currently unplanned.

[Photo: Not the ASD, photographed at the annual conference of the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) in Sydney on 10 October 2013. The signage for the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), formerly the Defence Signals Directorate (DSD), seems to have gone astray…]

07 October 201308 October 2013

Weekly Wrap 174: Newcastle, new events, new venues

My week Monday 30 September to Sunday 6 October 2013 was dominated by my trip to Newcastle for the inaugural DiG Festival and Conference. Both the city and the event were well worth it.

I’ll be writing about the DiG Festival for Crikey today, so watch out for that, but I’m sure I’ll have more to say later.[Update 2000 AEDT: And here it is.] I’ll also be writing about Newcastle, because I have many thoughts.

Articles

The digital revolution’s lingering literacy problem, ZDNet Australia, 30 September 2013.
Upping the pace to face the infosec ‘Cold War’, CSO Online, 30 September 2013.
The global clash to capture your cash, ZDNet Australia, 3 October 2013. The thoughts in this op-ed were triggered by the comments from the Commonwealth Bank guy at the DiG Festival, as well as the news that day about the takedown of Silk Road. And they in turn fed into…
Silk Road battleground: individualism v authority, ABC The Drum, 4 October 2013.
Will it float? Twitter’s prospectus shows signs of growth, Crikey, 4 October 2013.

I also wrote a 1000-word piece that’ll appear in a printed magazine that CSO will be handing out at some events between now and the end of the year.

Podcasts

None, but there’ll be a new Corrupted Nerds in the coming few days.

Media Appearances

None.

Corporate Largesse

On Friday night I had beers and pizza at The Grain Store Bar in Newcastle, thanks to the organisers of the DiG Festival and Conference.

The Week Ahead

Monday is a public holiday in NSW, but not in Victoria, so I’ll be writing my story on the DiG Festival and Conference for Crikey and, perhaps, a piece that I’ve kept on the back burner for Technology Spectator.

I’m keeping Tuesday empty for some personal reasons.

On Wednesday I’ll head to Sydney for a lunchtime media briefing by Unisys, and I may stay overnight because on Thursday there’s the annual conference of the Australian Information Security Association (AISA). [Update 8 October 2013: Confirmed, I’ll be attending the AISA Conference and staying in Sydney until Friday.]

Friday and the weekend are currently unplanned.

[Photo: Newcastle City Hall, photographed at around 0730 AEST on 3 October 2013.]

29 September 201329 September 2013

Weekly Wrap 173: The early spring continues regardless

So here’s my week Monday 23 to Sunday 29 September 2013, posted without further comment because quite frankly I couldn’t be bothered.

It was looking like the only media items I’d publish this week would be on Monday, my article and subsequent radio spot about the National Broadband Network — both of which are now distinctly out of date because the story has moved on — but today I managed to knock out another podcast episode.

Podcasts

Corrupted Nerds: Conversations 5, being a chat with Dick Bussiere, principal architect for Tenable Network Security in the Asia Pacific region.

Articles

NBN Co board refuses to drink the poisoned chalice, Crikey, 23 September 2013.

I’ve also half-written two articles that will be published in due course. So I am catching up.

Media Appearances

On Monday I spoke about the NBN board being sacked on ABC Gold Coast.

Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

Monday will see me doing an end-of-month writing burst, so that’ll keep me out of trouble. Tuesday, being the start of a new quarter, is an administration day for me — though I may head to Sydney in the afternoon to get a head start on the rest of the week’s adventures.

On Wednesday I’m heading to Newcastle for the DiG Festival and Conference, which will keep me busy through to Saturday.

[Photo: Sunday evening in the village, being a photograph of Wentworth Falls village taken this evening, Sunday 29 September 2013. Not exactly a brilliant photo, but I was determined to post an image produced this week.]

28 September 201328 September 2013

Weekly Wrap 172: Spring, with the Cows of Disruption

So here’s my week Monday 16 to Sunday 22 September 2013, with just the media stuff listed because this is being posted so late.

Articles

Is Twitter worth $16b? Perhaps in a multi-screen game, Crikey, 17 September 2013.
Pay heed to the internet’s Third Wave Cows of Disruption, ZDNet Australia, 19 September 2013. This article really struck a chord with people, for some reason. If you read just one thing that I’ve written this month, this is probably the one to choose.

Media Appearances

None.

Corporate Largesse

On Wednesday I went to a media briefing by Intel about their new range of enterprise technology. It was held at Arras Restaurant in Sydney, and once again the food was excellent.

[Photo: Spring, Wednesday edition, being the start of a glorious spring day photographed at Potts Point, Sydney, on Wednesday 18 September 2013.]

17 September 2013

Weekly Wrap 171: Writing to a realistic schedule

Screenshot of email, reading: "Hi mate, There will be drinks. Cheers." “They say, it’s all in content. I say, it’s all in the pitch,” said the PR operative — who shall remain nameless — who sent me the email you may see in the screenshot.

“Hi mate, There will be drinks. Cheers,” was all they needed to add to the generic invitation to grab my attention — though in my defence, the invitation was to an event that was well within my realms of interest, and I probably would’ve gone anyway.

I’m more than happy to attend relevant events even when there aren’t drinks. I also go to events that I’m not necessarily personally interested in, but which I know I’ll be able to turn into saleable media objects.

But it was that little personal touch that caused me to spend that extra moment to read the whole thing and agree, yes, this was something I wanted to go to.

That personal touch wasn’t really about a shared like of alcohol, though the unnamed PR operative and I agree that when we meet for drinks we’re just two people sharing a drink and confidences stay confidential.

It’s more that they knew my work, and knew that I’d get value out of this event — and because they do this sparingly, it stands out from the dozens and dozens of of PR emails I receive every day.

So here’s my week Monday 9 to Sunday 15 September 2013. I may or may not explain why this post is so late tomorrow.

Articles

A rude privacy shock on the horizon, Technology Spectator, 10 September 2013.
Could privacy fears burst the dot-com bubble?, ZDNet Australia, 10 September 2013.
Say no to e-voting: defending the pencils of democracy, Crikey, 12 September 2013.
Westpac’s $2 billion invisible bank, Technology Spectator, 13 September 2013.

Media Appearances

On Tuesday I spoke about helpdesk robots on ABC 702 Sydney.

Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

We’re already well into it, obviously. But to catch up quickly, the Tokyo trip was scratched and instead I’m now in Sydney Wednesday through Friday. On Wednesday I’ve got errands, a lunchtime briefing by IBM and then a meeting over at Randwick, and the rest is still being mapped out.

I’ll pick up the Twitter feed tomorrow.

08 September 201308 September 2013

Weekly Wrap 170: A busy spring’s many, many changes

My week Monday 2 to Sunday 8 September 2013 was, as predicted, another busy one — with some transformational changes along the way.

The early spring weather has continued. On Wednesday one of the cab drivers in the Upper Blue Mountains and I noted how dry everything seemed. It doesn’t bode well for summer. But the bright, sunny days have certainly helped my mood, so there’s that.

Spring is supposedly a time of new beginnings, and I do feel as if I’m starting so many things after that rather annoying winter gloom.

There’s biggish things, like Corrupted Nerds, and more of that shortly. There’s little things, like the calendar. In between, there’s stuff like my Tokyo trip triggering a little media project, something I’ve been intending to do for ages. And the rather big change of a new government has triggered the resumption of daily blogging, again something I’ve been intending to do for ages.

Articles

Spam canned? Not if you’re in a political party like Clive, Crikey, 5 September 2013.
Even the right Coalition internet safety policy is wrong, ZDNet Australia, 6 September 2013.

Plus I wrote an article for Technology Spectator, to be published later this month.

Podcasts

None, though I did more background work on Corrupted Nerds, and things will appear in the coming few days.

Yes, I know I wrote exactly the same thing last week, but it’s true. This week I recorded three interviews that will be the basis of three episodes, and I’ve all but finished the documentation for the crowdfunding process that I intend to kick off this week.

Media Appearances

On Monday, mUmBRELLA ran a story entitled Tech commentator barred from Microsoft tech conference after hostile tweets at previous event about me being banned from TechEd.
On Tuesday, Delimiter ran a story too, Microsoft bans Stilgherrian from TechEd.
Also on Tuesday, the Australian Associated Press (AAP) interviewed me about the ban, and the wire story they issued was run by Fairfax news outlets on Wednesday as Microsoft bans blogger Stilgherrian from TechEd conference. (As an aside, I continue to be fascinated by how I’m referred to as a journalist in some contexts and a blogger in others, seemingly regardless of whether what they’re describing is my journalism or my blogging.)
Also on Wednesday, the ban got a mention at Scoop in New Zealand.
On Thursday, in the only non-ban media appearance, my photo of a Nokia Lumia 925 smartphone was used to illustrate a story at Spanish-language website Enter.co.

Corporate Largesse

On Tuesday I attended the Trans-Tasman Business Circle lunch at Ernst & Young as guest of the Westpac Group. Their chief information officer Clive Whincup was presenting his vision and strategy for banking technology.
On Thursday I went to the launch of AVG Technologies AUâ€™s 2014 product line at Ocean Room Restaurant, Circular Quay. They paid, of course.

The Week Ahead

It’s a relatively busy one, with stories to write for Technology Spectator, ZDNet Australia and CSO Online. Plus I’ll be launching the crowdfunding campaigns for Corrupted Nerds and the Tokyo project, and I want to finish a podcast episode. But that can be done in whatever order I like over the next four days.

On Friday I’ll be coming to Sydney for a 1000 meeting in North Sydney, plus whatever else I add into the day.

The weekend is currently unplanned, but of my flight to Tokyo on Monday 16 September is an early one, then I’ll probably head down to Sydney on Sunday afternoon.

[Photo: Sydney Opera House, photographed from the Overseas Passenger Terminal, Circular Quay, on 5 September 2013.]