When you thought things couldn’t get worse

History & Research, Literature, ,

Google, like hoover, has become a commonplace word to mean “internet search”. In the beginning it was simple, proud to give search results in fractions of a second. The company even had a motto: do no evil. Other search engines have since bowed to the inevitable. Google über alles.

Now? The motto is long gone. Alphabet, the parent corporation, is enormous with tentacles spreading into everything. Search results, initially just full of advertising, are now becoming garbage regurgitated by so-called artificial intelligence.

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Friends

Personal, Wittering,

This is not about the 90s TV show. I’m talking about people who enter your space and stick around for whatever reason, but aren’t family.

I made some really good friendships during my school years. After leaving school, though, we all sort of went our own ways. The friendships sort of petered out. I have no idea if others in the “gang” stayed friends, but I lost touch with all of them. Perhaps it was losing the catalyst of being at school, the shared experiences of academic life. Perhaps it was because we no longer met up in classrooms or playgrounds, every day of the week. I don’t know.

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I am not a Luddite

Personal, Technology, Wittering, , , ,

When I was much younger I was always trying to keep up with all the latest fads and trends, particularly in computing and software. It was part of my job, plus I really enjoyed it.

As my career and various jobs evolved my need to keep up with things faded. I now find myself several steps behind the bleeding edge of technology, and I’m okay with that. 

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Glimpses of the Past

History & Research, , ,

For a long time I have subscribed to the YouTube channel of the BBC Archive. In its earlier days, the channel posted selected clips from programmes, more like teasers, leaving the viewer wishing they could watch the entire programme.

Happily, in more recent times, the channel is uploading full length programmes. There are some oddities, but also some real gems. My favourites tend to be from the 1950s and 1960s. Here is an excellent example of the breed: Rathlin — the Island Betwixt and Between.

Of course, once I had watched the film, I opened up Wikipedia and searched for the island to find out more.