Archive for September, 2008

It’s a free 5k for your business

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

Today is the deadline for the EI Innovation Vouchers though they are available again in November. They allow you to get a voucher to the value of €5000 and spend it with a University, Institute of Technology or a Research Group to do some R&D or work for you. Fair enough it might not be a lot and many of these knowledge providers scoff at the idea of doing something for that amount of money but you can pool your vouchers with other companies. Think about it. Look at all the other companies you are friendly with. Why not come up with an idea between all of you and run with it? Surveys, usability, testing out new food product ideas, creation of software or running stats on public data. Loads of possibilities. I’ve applied for one which I hope to spend with the NCI.

And on that note. Remember all that amazing data from the past 10 years of Boards.ie? Why not use it and do a project using your EI Voucher? Don’t turn down five grand from the Government, you might never have the opportunity again especially in these hard times.

Broadband day on Mulley.net

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

Meeting the EU today in ComReg HQ to tell them how shit ComReg are and how lame the Dept of Comms are. Then over to Dublin Castle for this shindig with Eamon Ryan ringleading it. The rockstars, the hasbeens and the neverwillbes of Irish telecoms will be there as well as general consumers and those representing as many demographics as possible. I’ll try to liveblog from it if I can. I hope it’s constructive. I already hear the IBEC lot are put up a united front.

It’s apt that this survey from the EU showing how bad Ireland is came out yesterday.

And also that we may get a super telecoms regulator for the EU.

ComReg are running a conference on the Digital Divide on Wednesday where EU Commissioner Viviane Reding will talk and probably talk more about this super-regulator. Naturally I didn’t get invited. It seems perverse that we have a Comms Minister who actually rings me and invites me to events despite not agreeing on a whole lot and the “independent” telecoms regulator does their best to pretend I don’t exist.

Fluffy Links – Tuesday September 30th 2008

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

There are so many double entendres in the Fluffy Links today. Apologies.

Suzy gets a facial.

Ciara and her runaway brides.

Michele kicks the IEDR in the nuts. They need to be nuked.

Niall has a video of his lamb kebabs. On the Times website no less!

Get your o2 gripes out here.

Why are the religious types obsessed with willys up the bum? Seriously like:

Does Mary I no longer teach against the sin of sodomy and the homosexual agenda?

Check out Bookkake.

Matt Jones from Dopplr did a great at Picnic talk called The emerging real-time social web. You can see it here.

Terrified of Facebook? Maybe you should be:

The day that Kim Bowen accidentally sent a video of a woman shitting in a hot tub to 200 of her co-workers was the day she knew her relationship with Facebook would never be the same.

Gilligan’s Island = hell. So the idea of Lost being hell or purgatory wasn’t new.

Heart attack in a can.

Of note is a mid-morning talk I’m giving on October 16th in Cork entitled: Media and Marketing in the Digital Age in assoication with Enterprise Ireland’s Webworks and it@cork. This one is free to it@cork members.

Goodnight sweet prince

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

So Twenty has retired, it’s no joke. I don’t think anyone will realise how important Twenty Major has been for Irish Blogging and Irish writing. Someone who never compromised. Someone who not only exercised his right to free speech but wrote countless wakeup calls about the state of this nation and this world. In a world of sychophants and ass-kissing yesmen, he said what he thought and did it in very eloquent ways. Those who have a cork up their asses about bad language were unable to get over the colour to see the depth to much of his work. Although not all of them write for the Sunday Times.

Look at the massive community built around this blog but even more watch how he interacts with these people leaving comments. He answers nearly every comment. That’s respect, something that many of us don’t do properly. I have so much respect for someone that obviously is thankful for every comment that he gets and lets the person know he’s read it. So while he’s putting the blog on hold he’s created a forum for all of these people to keep going and slagging each other and having a laugh with each other. Wow.

I’ve been awed by his work-ethic, inspired by his humility in person, got jealous watching the women melt with his charm (yeah I know but still) and have been lucky, really lucky to have met up with him outside of the Blog Awards chaos to have a chat.

The wild wild west of blogging has lost another maverick and hero. Pretty soon this place is going to be pretty tame and well-behaved. I’ll miss him more than he knows. Unless he reads this.

Goodbye iPhone, I love you <3 etc.

Monday, September 29th, 2008

Lost my temper. iPhone was nearest thing. Then it was the furthest thing from me.

The screen is cracked and broken and touchscreen is not working at all. It still synchs with my computer though.

Luckily I bought an N95 recently. I’ll miss you iPhone. Best phone I ever owned. Now I’ll need to buy flashier clothes to act like a jumped up shit.

50 day old steak and bread with bone marrow butter served in a bone

Monday, September 29th, 2008

It had to be the Ivory Tower:

  • Surprise starter of marinated salmon slices
  • The bread came with bone marrow butter, served in a bone. Looks like this.
  • Lamb kidneys for next starter
  • Aspargus soup for final starter
  • 50 day cured rare steak for the main
  • Ice cream for desert (coconut, chocolate, balsamic and beetroot)

Not the steak you were looking for:
Peppercorn Beef Shoulder Filet Steak
Photo owned by TheBusyBrain (cc)

Business Blogging, Online Marketing training in Dublin

Monday, September 29th, 2008

Feedback from the talk I gave last week for the Irish Computer Society has been very good, thanks to the few dozen people that came along and who might now be reading this blog! The lunchtime talk was a taster for two training days I’ll be doing for the ICS. One is on Business Blogging and the other is on Online Marketing.

lining up
Photo owned by saragoldsmith (cc)

If you didn’t realise that changing the titles of your pages on you website can drastically improve your Google ranking, that your blog can potentially get you book deals, that paying for Google ads for your website name is a bit of a waste and that despite Bebo being horrible and rash inducing in adults you have to be there to market to those under 22, then it’s worth coming along to these courses. Both courses plonk you in front of a computer too so you’re doing practical stuff, not just watching me in front of 300 powerpoint slides.

I think there’s also a special price deal for non-ICS members and also if you book the two of them. Give the ICS a call if you do want to attend. They are the only Business Blogging (October 15th) and Online Marketing (October 29th) courses I’ll be doing until next year in Dublin.

Yemisi Blake
Photo owned by Yemisi Blake (cc)

Few more sponsorship opps for the Web Awards

Monday, September 29th, 2008

A few more sponsorship opportunities have popped up for the Web Awards.

Fluffy Links – Monday September 29th 2008

Monday, September 29th, 2008

Congrats to the 5 companies shortlisted for Best New Web Application/Service at the Moviestar Web Awards.

Few days left to enter the Smurfit School Business Journalist Awards.

Recruit Ireland now has a blog. G’wan ya good thing.

Worth going to methinks. October 6th in Dublin. Radisson SAS Royal Hotel. The Enterprise Ireland ICT Technology showcase will feature over 40 technologies in three categories, 10 presentations by researchers, 21 demonstrations in the third level exhibition area and 10 technology posters in the poster session.

Kevin Kelly has a great essay on life and how tough it is to get started. C’mon scifi fans!

Time to buy the Godfather, again.

So Google finally is indexing audio. Small sample set to start with but I’m sure it’ll expand.

When their lips move. Tell when a politician or celeb is lying.

Via Cormac:
The Presets – My People

Mulley Communications

Sunday, September 28th, 2008

I guess I should have blogged this before the Sunday Times mentioned the company name.

Once the Web Awards are over and done with, Mulley.ie will be the home of Mulley Communications Ltd. Once again built and designed by the amazing John Blackbourn. After much pushing and encouragement (you happy now Keith?) I’ve now left the dayjob and am working for myself. The various training bits and bobs I’ve been doing will hopefully keep me going for the next while. What started off with Business Blogging training has now moved into Online Marketing training, Media/PR training and early next year (after I do some study) I’ll be giving training on Presentation Skills, something I think is really lacking in most companies.

Training is the core of the business with a bit of consulting and mentoring as well but I see myself as a trainer first. Of course there’s the Web Awards sideline and Mulley Communications are also working on two products for the media and advertising industry. More on that in January!

Now back to Web Awards planning…

inrgb business card front
Photo owned by in RGB (cc)