It doesn't take a genius - just an eagle-eyed Google user - to realise that today, April 23rd 2012, is the 30th anniversary of the launch of the ZX Spectrum.
Now, it's still about 14 months until the 30th anniversary of the launch of me, but that doesn't mean I don't owe an awful, awful lot to the chunky, tape-recorder-and-handwritten-code-based home computer that really set personal computing on the track towards where it is today.
This isn't going to be a post purely about how much today's computers resemble the Speccy (although, in many ways, they do) - no, this is about my early years, and how the Speccy is probably responsible for everything from my slightly obsessive nature to my career as a copywriter.
Social Media Muppets and the Importance of Education
Today's #CommentTuesdays post is inspired by this tweet from Rebecca Ford (via @hoosttweets and @erikau):
The following image was attached:
Now, clearly, the temptation is to condemn all of those people as idiots. And the fact that some of them have Justin Bieber-themed usernames backs up that theory (only joking, Beliebers!).
But seriously, there are a few questions that need to be asked, and the main one is this - why should they know?
"Twitter finds out the Titanic was a real event -"
The following image was attached:
Now, clearly, the temptation is to condemn all of those people as idiots. And the fact that some of them have Justin Bieber-themed usernames backs up that theory (only joking, Beliebers!).
But seriously, there are a few questions that need to be asked, and the main one is this - why should they know?
Awards and Nominations
Some of my biggest clients are agencies, and while it's always good to see them happy with their content, it's even better to see them nominated for awards.
I'm not claiming to have single-handedly gained anybody an award nomination, but I'll be using this page to keep track of who's picked up a nomination - or even outright won an award - while I've been providing them with content.
I'm not claiming to have single-handedly gained anybody an award nomination, but I'll be using this page to keep track of who's picked up a nomination - or even outright won an award - while I've been providing them with content.
Social Outcasts in the 21st Century
The thought process leading up to this post was inspired by those parents who set up Facebook and Twitter accounts for their babies from the day they're born - and sometimes even before.
It runs the gamut, from people who use photos of their baby or child as their own social networking profile picture, to whole accounts written first-person as though their offspring is just a character to be portrayed online.
Now, I'm not actually judging people for doing that - it has its benefits for friends and family, as you can keep everyone updated without having to email out endless baby photos and make hundreds of phone calls each time the thing burps or sleeps or cries.
Rather, I'm wondering about the babies who don't have profiles set up for them. Like a grown-up who's never had a credit card, and finds themselves refused for a loan due to having no credit history, will these forerunners of the new generation find that their lack of a Facebook timeline will ultimately turn them from outriders to outcasts?
It runs the gamut, from people who use photos of their baby or child as their own social networking profile picture, to whole accounts written first-person as though their offspring is just a character to be portrayed online.
Now, I'm not actually judging people for doing that - it has its benefits for friends and family, as you can keep everyone updated without having to email out endless baby photos and make hundreds of phone calls each time the thing burps or sleeps or cries.
Rather, I'm wondering about the babies who don't have profiles set up for them. Like a grown-up who's never had a credit card, and finds themselves refused for a loan due to having no credit history, will these forerunners of the new generation find that their lack of a Facebook timeline will ultimately turn them from outriders to outcasts?
