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September 02, 2011
Google Plus has arrived
Writing about web page https://plus.google.com/113797508378819391794
This blog was once my only one. In the last year or so, there have been many including whatsinKenilworth.com and themikedownespage.com
Then one twitter account @wiKenilworth and now another @infotelligentia
But since last month, Google Plus has arrived as the most exciting platform to beat them all.
Find me at: +Mike Downes
02 Sep 2011 21:22
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May 21, 2010
Kenilworth Weekly News
Writing about web page http://www.whatsinkenilworth.com/2010/05/kenilworth-weekly-news-in-warwick-road.html
This post was originally made at www.whatiskenilworth.com, it is to date, the most visited page on that website - I wonder why? Read it here and make up your own mind. The post read in full:
________________________________________
Kenilworth Weekly News
31 Warwick Road CV8 1LJ
01926 852 870
www.kenilworthweeklynews.co.uk
(The KWN website has no relationship to the print copy edition. For example, headline as Fri 14 May 2010 reads 'Police target house burglars' - that is not found anywhere on the KWN website or with a detailedGoogle search). What is also alarming is the KWN website has now introduced intensive advertising).
Sad times for a newspaper that was established in 1946. When you pay 50p for the newspaper on a Friday, there are very few pages of Kenilworth News (around five feature stories a week).
Currently, the Kenilworth Weekly News sells an average of 3,533copies per week (in a town population of 26,000 or so). That was 3,704 copies per week in August 2009 as reported by thePress Gazette.
Did you know that one paper copy of the KWN laid end to end is about 24 metres in length, by selling 3,533 copies a week the paper will stretch for 53 miles - what a waste of paper and not searchable, linkable and clickable either.
The KWN is owned byJohnston Presswho have financial difficulties and have shut five titles, but say they have 'no plans as we speak' to cut more titles (seeThe Guardian).
Johnston Press have played down suggestions that their idea of a paywall (they were asking online readers to pay £5.00 for 3 months access) for their online versions has failed, seeBBC NewsandThe Guardianonce again. In my rough estimates from searching the web, KWN may get 16% of their revenue by selling the newspaper for 50p, the rest comes from advertising. But in these difficult times advertising spending is decreasing and Johnston Press are trying hard to cope with the threat of full digital editions and competition.
For those of you who do not know, many years ago there were very few ways to get the news - the most popular, buy it every day in hard copy paper version from a newsagent (yes I know there was TV and Radio too). Since 1998 (when Google came alive) titles have disappeared as people like Google aggregate the news which means linking to all the news stories and show them in their search results. This has left people like Rupert Murdoch not selling papers like The Times and losing money, blaming Google and trying to charge for readers for online news, see thisBBC article. Many say this will not work, I agree. On the other hand,The Guardianhave introduced aniphone applicationand sold it via the Apple iTunes store where readers pay once and possibly never again.
This idea that a town newspaper (aka the KWN) is shrinking and may eventually close is one of the reasons I have made this website. And it does not stop there, theOfficial Kenilworth Town Websiteis also under threat as it has never really been updated since it was first published (well over a year). If you missed that articleclick here.Even then it caters for the large businesses but not the small ones who matter - they need the coverage most to survive.
I have always been a big fan of the Kenilworth Weekly News since my first Soapbox column in 1999, but times are changing and anyone can report the news these days - even me. Read the 1999 here.
21 May 2010 13:33
| Tags: Google Guardian Johnston Kenililworth Murdoch News Pay Press The Wall Weekly
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April 19, 2010
How did I make this Polaroid? If I can – anyone can.
Writing about web page http://www.themikedownespage.com/
I made this. see how I did it at The Mike Downes Page.
Yes I know, for all you University Techies - it is really easy, but for those who want a fast way of creating reasonable graphics, then it's for you.
It's made with Google's Picasa in case you are wondering.
19 Apr 2010 09:13
| Tags: 2010 Election Free Google Kenilworth Picasa Polaroid
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So who are the Election Candidates for Kenilworth?
Writing about web page http://www.whatsinkenilworth.com
I've been avoiding anything to do with the election at all. I noticed the BBC News website had a new ELECTION 2010 section and that made it even worse. There I was skipping TV channels last Thursday evening and thought I would give the debate five minutes.
And like the rest of the country, I am saying in a typical Brucey way - Didn't he do well. I am now a big fan of Nick Clegg (I don't think I have ever seen him speak before that night). For the whole program (and still right now), I have no idea at all who to vote for.
So who are the candidates for Kenilworth and Southam? A quick google search gives us the BBC and Coventry Evening Telegraph as two trusted sources (The Kenilworth Weekly News gives us a promise of 'Election candidates: The full list Your choice at the ballot box,' but when we click it gives a list for 2007. Oops - not really, sorry to say there is no relationship between a paper KWN and the website (I will be writing about that very soon and spilling as many digital beans as I can).
This website is all about how we find digital stuff and if you cannot be found on Google then you do not exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is (see my other site The Mike Downes Page for all about the that). I've had personal email replies from two of the candidates (yes, I know you know who you are) and one of the top three - nothing. Shame really - I vote soon. So to the list then, we have (in alphabetical order): James Harrison, Nicholas Milton, John Moore, Nigel Rock and Jeremy Wright.
James Harrison - Green
Nicholas Milton- Labour
John Moore- UK Independence Party
Nigel Rock- Liberal Democrat
Jeremy Wright- Conservative
19 Apr 2010 09:04
| Tags: Election Google Harrison James Kenilworth News Southam Weekly
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April 12, 2010
Googled by Ken Auletta and Here Comes Eveverybody by Clay Shirky
Writing about web page http://www.whatsinkenilworth.com
This is far the best book I have read about Google and it's founders. Amazon lists the book as 25 Feb 2010, so it's quite new. Ken Auletta talks at length about the ideas - he comes across as humble and genuine.
Have you read it? Tell me what you think. I don't see Google as a company that chases the $100 billion. Or how Google is in the news for all the wrong reasons i.e. China, News aggregation, rows with Apple. I see it as two guys who had a project to download the whole internet twelve years ago and filled up a house with computers in the process. They were $25 million down before they had a clue how to make the first cent.
Auletta weaves interesting fact with the thoughts and behaviours of Sergey Brin and Larry Page. There was a freaky moment while reading the book where I thought that any web page is just an advertisement for something else - well is it? Go read it and find out for yourself.
I first heard of Clay Shirky from WWGD do? by Jarvis with the idea that people can organise themselves while using the internet to get off the internet (see Meetup and the witches). This book is a harder read, but is worth it, even to understand how Wikipedia was a failure at first (Publish then Filter solved that).
Key ideas like the Birthday Paradox, Power Law and the Long Tail now have meaning - ask the Mermaids from Coney Island, see Flickr.
Shirky claims we now have the tools to change the world - is he right? Read this book and find out. As history states, the medieval scribes were none too happy about the printing press. Shirky has many videos at ted.com - see one on groups here.
I am not a fan of Facebook, but group organisation was in action when an X-factor winner's song failed to reach number one in the music charts.
12 Apr 2010 12:15
| Tags: Google Groups News Search Social Web
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April 05, 2010
465 Photographs and Pizza Pizzo
Writing about web page http://www.whatsinkenilworth.com
Today was spent photographing all the walk in businesses and shop fronts I could find in Kenilworth. Out of the 465 photos in my Nikon there were not many duplicates.
While they are being processed and geotagged, I wish to carry on the theme of seeing what Google indexes and how fast. This was posted on the Kenilworth site about six hours ago and is already features in the search results.
Pizza Pizzo Spring Menu Online Now Pizzo Delipizzeria - Gourmet Pizzas to your door, 25 Warwick Road, CV8 1HN tel 01926 855 544 email mail@pizzopizza.co.uk and web www.pizzopizza.co.uk
For the What's in Kenilworth? Web Album click here
05 Apr 2010 00:08
| Tags: Google Kenilworth Pizza Pizzo
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April 02, 2010
What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis
Writing about web page http://www.buzzmachine.com/what-would-google-do/
There has been no other single piece of information (apart from all the rest) that has influenced me in the last six months than What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis.
I have to be careful when I talk about the book as it clearly states under copy right that I am not allowed to reverse engineer the book in anyway - I take that to mean using all letters in the alphabet, so I am clearly breaking that rule already.
So why is it so good then? It's a Manual for the Future with it's simple ideas that make perfect digital sense. but that comes at a price with depression, anxiety and loss. If you are on the digital side of the net, it could be a party.
See my full notes about WWGD? here I am interested to hear from anyone who has read it. When Sergey and Larry founded Google on 4 September 1998, I qualified as a teacher and began my first post. Twelve years on I struggle to be heard in a school when it comes to technology. Professor Stephen Heppell at Bett 2010 summed it up when he said there is a gap between the schools that are doing pioneering stuff and those simply doing a shiny version of 19th century teaching. See the tag cloud below for a summary:
02 Apr 2010 11:04
| Tags: Blog Blogging Business Free Google Model
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March 31, 2010
What's in Kenilworth?
Writing about web page http://www.whatsinkenilworth.com/
New project for me called What's in Kenilworth? It seems a really easy question, but between The Official Kenilworth Website, the local newspaper and all the web searches I have done - I cannot answer the question. I thought the release of Kenilworth in Google Street View would help, but that is very out of date already.
Good news is some of my geo tagged images can be seen and linked within street view, click here to see Warwick Road. I have definite plans to help the small businesses of Kenilworth, especially the ones that have no website and do not appear on Google Street View i.e. Cake Kingdom, Kenilworth Sweet Shop - there are many. Click the photo to see the What's in Kenilworth web album by Mike Downes
31 Mar 2010 23:42
| Tags: Google Kenilworth News Street View
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