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andylockran

Listed below are comments made by andylockran between Wednesday, 21st May 2008 and Wednesday, 2nd December 2009.

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Teenage hackers: Making a better world 10:14am on 02 Dec 2009 Now, you could put a negative spin on all this. On a lovely sunny weekend, dozens of teenagers spent all their waking hours indoors, staring at computer screens and "hacking" into government databases, while munching pizza.

I'd suggest you start using the phrase "mash-ups." Also, they were hardly hacking "into" government databases - that would suggest they had write access. I know it's pedantic, but marks a big ethical difference.
"Get On" and support new campaign 9:41pm on 12 Feb 2009 My favourite is the generic:

"There's only one Tommy Johnson, one Tommy Johnson, there's only one Tommy Johnson"

Was sung at a Villa versus Derby game in the mid 90s.

Only for the Derby fans to amusingly retort:

"There's only Wan-Chope!"

Paulo Wanchope.. what a man.
Close to you? 12:44pm on 18 Nov 2008 Well sure, you're a tech reporter, so having all these tech ideas pumped at you day-in-day-out can only be a good thing.

No.

I know that I, for one, constantly 'tweet' at you with ideas and suggestions.. and I can see parts of them included (in this article, for starters).

However, as a BBC journalist you also have a responsibility to millions of others, to cover things that matter to them.. like the operating system that THEY are likely to use in the future, Windows 7.

Meh, you're updates on twitter aren't often, just frequent, and given the amount of time it takes to write a 140 character message, I think anyone complaining that that is a waste of license fee money is a massive joker. I imagine most of the time you're actually 'tweeting' when you've nothing better to do.. such as taking a cab.. or giving presentations to BBC colleagues :)
An apology (in fact several) 12:32pm on 24 Oct 2008 Rory, (or Adam if you read this first)...

To solve your internet problems in a flash - have a look at untangle.com. I was going to suggest ntop - but that would require too much effort on your part. It looks like untangle.com could provide you with a nice and easy solution.

Good Luck!
Mobiles - are you a toucher or a typist? 12:07pm on 23 Sep 2008 I'm definately a typist. I got myself an iPod touch, whilst the original iPhone was still prohibitly expensive for me. The touch was great, but typing on it (just to find an song by a particular artist) got quite annoying. I've improved over time, but could never use one for text messages/email.

As regards a typist's phone, I got a HTC TyTN II, the O2 Stellar. Whilst being much better for typing, it still gave some touch screen functionality. It was useless - Windows Mobile wasn't designed for touch screen use (if it was the designer needs to be sacked) - as the menus are too small and fiddly. I broke it 3 months into an 18 month contract - and actually feel like this was a positive step, as i moved back to my nokia 8310 (the OpenMOKO neo 1973 I bought in July the year previously _still_ doesn't have stable software for it)..

So now, I look at the android phone. If it offers an intuitive touch-interface with properly designed menus, it could be the best of the two. The pictures I've seen make it look quite pretty - but I'll have to see when it comes out. I may even consider taking the plunge and get one :)
Fibre from Amsterdam 11:37am on 12 Sep 2008 It's an interesting debate. If we look at the internet as a separate entity, then having fibre to the home is the equivalent to having motorways for freight. If other countries update their internet infrastructures ahead of the UK - then we can expect a talent-drain out to those countries. Investing in the infrastructure now is vital if we intend to stay competitive.
Technology blog links: 13/08/08 4:37pm on 13 Aug 2008 also check out http://planet.ubuntu-uk.org if you want some nice blogs whilst Darren is absent.
Early starts 12:03pm on 09 Jun 2008 Hi Evan,
I'm looking forward to hearing more of you on Today. I do find I enjoy an economist's perspective on most things - so you'll be a good pairing,

Best of luck, and I'll be sure you keep up to date with the blog.
Bright future predicted for Apple 6:20pm on 23 May 2008 Darren, pretty accurate. I too also believe that soon everything will be running off the 'net - therefore no single vendor will have the monopoly that Microsoft once enjoyed.
Can XO 2 reignite OLPC? 3:33pm on 21 May 2008 I hate not having a keyboard or tactile feedback on my phone. I think this is a step backwards for common sense.

Having seen some talks by Prof Negroponte from 1984, he is a man driven by touch-screen interfaces. However, I think rely completely on a touch screen for user input is pretty tough.

I don't know if it's possible, but if the BBC tech guys (and gals) could spend a day writing their journalism using only touch-screen devices, I'm sure by lunchtime (if not sooner) they'd agree with me.

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