I was interested to hear that David Davis – a so-called Tory moderniser – is in favour of the death penalty for serial killers. Presumably it’s to ensure a ready supply of corpses for his master Michael Howard to feast on.
It seems like ’social software’ is everywhere recently (how boring it must be not to be developing social software) and so it’s not surprising to see Microsoft’s Research Lab working on their own social software program codenamed Wallop. It looks quite interesting, but what always bemuses me is the obligatory social network display. I’m sure I don’t get it, but don’t I already know who I know?
As a child of the Seventies growing up in the Eighties I must admit to a joyful glee in witnessing the self-destruction of the Conservative party. What’s really amusing is that they see Michael ’something of the night’ Howard as their saviour. Not only is no-one going to vote for this deeply unpopular throwback, but all of the recent ‘right honourable’ backstabbing and in-fighting has damaged the reputation of the party as a whole.
The Tories will be one part of the current nostalgia for all things Eighties that won’t be missed. As Theresa May rather poignantly said, ‘There’s no future in the past…’
The David Blaine Lego tribute. Now this is entertainment. From the website:
‘Why? Simple … to hopefully obtain a small cult following and maybe get in the paper or something.’
From the Independent’s Media section:
You’ve eaten a chocolate bar and you didn’t really like it. Can a commercial afterwards persuade you that you did? ‘Memory morphing’ could be a powerful weapon for advertisers.
Bastards!
A whacking £20.00 fine this morning for a short loan book that was 10 days late. Bah! I could’ve bought 4 used copies in the same condition as the one I returned for that. And what’s worse is that the stupid library system waited for three days after the due date before ‘reminding’ me that it was late. Now I can (grudgingly) afford £20, but it’s a heck of a lot more to a student. You could argue that because of that a student would’ve remembered to return it, but I think that there’s a design problem here. I don’t want to be told when the book’s overdue – I want to be reminded when it’s due so that I can get it back on time. Surely that’s the point so that everyone has access to the book.
In the nearly two-and-three quarter years that I was commuting I never got to travel on one of Virgin’s promised new trains (despite the fact that they were supposed to be in service during ‘Winter 2002/2003′). So you can imagine my excitement when, on a recent trip to London, a sleek, new, sliver and red Pendolino pulled up to the platform. Once inside I was quickly disappointed though. Yes there’s a few extras (like built-in radio, individual lighting controls and window blinds), but the carriages feel a lot smaller than the rolling stock they’re replacing and have a plasticky facade that just doesn’t look like it’s going to last. Oh, and to encourage more people on to public transport 4 out of 8 carriages are now First Class; it used to be 3 out of 8. I’m just glad I’ve handed my season ticket in.
Sarah Montague: A reminder of our website address, www.bbc.co.uk/today. Later on today you’ll be able to read my conference diary.
John Humphreys: Or you could get a life
Priceless
An article in the Independent on Tuesday reported on a new Govenment campaign to expose the myths of low tar cigarettes. Towards the end of the article this passage from a tobacco company advertising brief caught my eye:
The core low-tar smoker is female, upmarket, aged 25-plus, a smart, health-conscious professional who feels guilty about smoking but either doesn’t want to give up or can’t. Although racked with guilt, they feel reassured that in smoking low-tar they are making a smart choice and will jump at any chance to make themselves feel better about their habit.
Sounds a little like a scenario or a persona. The language is very cycnical and manipulative, but it does its job: removing responsibility from the manufacturer and allowing them to exploit a position they’ve created. I suppose I shouldn’t be suprised – Cooper’s personas were born out of marketing user profiles – but it’s a bit spooky to see their power in this negative light.
I’ve just been to the Custard Factory looking for a bike shop. What a wonderful place. Photos to follow perhaps…?