Disqus - Latest Comments for michaelwalsh

Re: Brexit: getting ahead?

Michael Walsh — Sat, 10 Nov 2018 09:17:42 -0000

The Irish Border is a Trojan Horse for both sides.

The EU are using it to try and get the UK into Norway-mode for the trade discussion after the Withdrawal Agreement.

The UK are using it to try and get the bones of a Free Trade Agreement as part of the Withdrawal Agreement.

Everything else is a Kabuki play.

Re: Brexit: open thread

Michael Walsh — Wed, 13 Jun 2018 19:32:41 -0000

The various possible Brexit combinations are too hard for any mere mortal to juggle. So people default to "Screw it. I'll just go with my [Insert default position here]."

For me, I try to reduce the thing down to its bare bones.

The one thing that is guaranteed* is the UK will become a Third Country.
*(insomuch as anything can be guaranteed with this "process")

Therefore:
- The UK (+or-NI) will become a Third County at 11.01pm on March 29th. 2019.
- Here is what Third Countries can and can't do - a, b, c and d.
- The EU isn't too keen on making exceptions - as other Third Countries will have to get the same deal.

And now, a thought exercise:
- If I'm the EU, what do I allow the UK, as a Third Country, exceptional access to?

This is how best I can frame the whole thing in as simple, yet circle-squaring, a way as possible.

Re: Brexit: fighting talk

Michael Walsh — Thu, 09 Nov 2017 20:55:32 -0000

"We need a new word to describe the true state of the Brexit process."

Brxt

A bit of old-school disemvoweling!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wi...

Brxt - a word that is both as clear as mud (suitable for the current state of play) and also, as it's been disemvoweled, descriptively altered to reflect the process itself.

Re: Warning: This post contains strong language

Michael Walsh — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 09:57:06 -0000

These comments confuse me. Is this some kind of Turing test?

I would much prefer the BBC to figure out the bits of the web they do horribly first - like a permanent webpage for every programme and give up blocking content to non-UK Internet users.

My suggestion would be to be for the BBC to have a top 10 list of sites for each genre of output and assign an employee to each to interact with licence fee payers there. Anyone coming to the BBC pages get the list of sites where BBC employee will be participating.

This does a number of very important things:
1. It drives traffic from the BBC to other sites.
2. It moves the moderation headache to sites who get the benefit of BBC traffic.
3. It allows BBC people to participate without having to spend most of the time firefighting turf wars.
4. It cross-polinates to others who may not actively be using the BBC sites.
5. It removes the "dead-hand" feel to the moderation task the BBC has to enforce.

Re: Seth Finkelstein nails why TechCrunch sucks in one line

Michael Walsh — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:19:58 -0000

Seth has been banging on about this for ages. It's a bit disconcerting to see the voices of reason being drowned out by the linkbaiters.

How do you re-introduce the editorial process into a system where the means of production, and publishing, have been decentralised? Should the production tools include an "editorial-checker"? Could published blogs be rated as "untrustworthy" until they get other online verification? Is it just a matter of education for the reader to learn the art of editorialising? Somebody's going to get a hard lesson in the libel otherwise. This may be the only solution - the sacrificial lamb. :-(

Re: The Jeff Jarvis conundrum

Michael Walsh — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 06:44:24 -0000

Loren Feldman ain't no Jeff Jarvis fan!

Re: Linux-using Ashley Highfield heads to Microsoft

Michael Walsh — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:59:11 -0000

According to Broadcast his role is " managing director and vice president of consumer and online UK" which entails " driving the sales, marketing, content and programming, business development, partner efforts and operations for Windows, Windows Mobile, Windows Live, MSN, Live Search and Microsoft Advertising."

Comment left on the broadcast article was not by a fan :-)

Re: You know, we might just be OK

Michael Walsh — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 17:08:13 -0000

Not to be a prophet of doom, but the problem here isn't the bank being undercapitalised or the reluctance of banks to lend to each other in the short-term but the shadow banking system which has developed, and the fear every bank has of the other, due to the fact that no one knows the exact exposure anyone else has to this off balance sheet system.

Two great resources to explain the world of the Credit Derivative Swaps (CDS) and the 60 Trillion dollar question are:
A 60 Minutes segment entitled "A Look At Wall Street's Shadow Market"
and Financial Sense University's AIG’s Dangerous Collapse
& A Credit Derivatives Risk Primer"

- WARNING - Do not watch and read if you wish to sleep at night.

Re: Oyster Card hack can be published

Michael Walsh — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 19:39:38 -0000

Nice article on Slashdot from 10 years ago on security through obscurity being a bad idea.

Re: Something I don't understand about The Long Tail

Michael Walsh — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:10:29 -0000

Game theory article on Wikipedia - The Prisoner's Dilemma is the idiot's guide to game theory :-)

Re: Segway CTO "to join Apple as VP of product design"

Michael Walsh — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 08:31:32 -0000

So is this starting a rumour? Coming soon from Apple - the iGlide? the iWalk? the iRoll? the iMakeALinkBetweenTwoIdeas? the iCantBeArsedToUseMyLegs?

Not sure about the tagline though - "It will make you shit in your pants!" S. Jobs

Re: links for 2008-05-23

Michael Walsh — Sat, 24 May 2008 05:15:07 -0000

David Pogue's argument is somewhat undermined by the Steven Poole article he quotes from.

Steven Poole states:
"To come back to the relationship between traditionally published books and their electronic counterparts: the happy truth is that right now, electronic downloads don’t cannibalize printed sales; if anything, they encourage them. In fact, I would gladly give away my newer book, Unspeak, in the same format right now, except that I am contractually obliged to wait until next year to do so. (I intend to argue for those rights from day one in any future publishing contract.)"

Whereas, David Pogue is of the "bad apples have once again spoiled it for everyone else" school of thought.

Re: links for 2008-05-01

Michael Walsh — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:34:22 -0000

Okay - I'll bite.

I read and re-read the "5" rules article.
Waited for someone to raise the issue.
Cogitated and ruminated on it to see if I was missing something.
And nothing.

So...........

THERE ARE 4 RULES!!!???!!!

Am I missing something?

I'm assuming it's a circular argument waiting to happen and that the "Never prove the other person wrong" rule kicks in once this gets pointed out - but goddamn it I have to bite!

Re: Billy Bragg is right, Michael Arrington is wrong

Michael Walsh — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:28:04 -0000

"Wired UK, Tony insisted, ..."

Said Tony is of course Tony Ageh now in charge of the iPlayer and Creative Archive in the BBC.

One of the good guys!

Re: Depression and dualism

Michael Walsh — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 19:49:08 -0000

Re: "Understanding the cause of depression may need to wait until we can model the brain in its entirety."

Unfortunately your Google Ads seem to think otherwise!