Musings

Crack in the web

2011-09-25T05:01:00.001-07:00

I’m now beginning to recognise that there may be cracks in the web which make doing some things either inefficient or difficult. If I can recognise the main ones, I can begin to think about bridging them – and do something useful, and hopefully good.

I can see that there are a number of types of internet users, for example: Buyers, Sellers, Friends, Regulators, Publishers, Thieves, Hobbyists and Altruists or charities.

Each type serves like a collection of islands where the users live, and they communicate with each other using social media, which is like a phone system and search engines, which are like ferries.

Discontinuities on the Internet

2011-09-13T12:46:00.001-07:00

What do you get if you search the Internet using proper grammar rather than just keywords?

Try it. It works very well for som things (mostly IT) but not at all for others.

Of course, if it did work you could search the Internet using your voice and hear the answers read to you..

Charles Joynson
01702 425 125
07774 686 428

Another thought

2011-08-03T17:27:00.001-07:00

Here's another thought which I thought about while I was working on the last Gibli project. Could the questions customers ask and the answers suppliers give be core to getting suppliers and customers together?

A transportable profile?

2011-08-01T01:31:00.001-07:00

Another idea which occurred to me is that we could provide people with a transportable profile, including the information they agree is not secret, which they can use on other websites.

This would be an alternative to having to re-enter the same information every time they register on s new site.

Your collective presence on the web

2011-07-31T04:25:00.001-07:00

So I've now bought MyEthicalProfile.com and plan to help people demonstrate their ethics. But the other thing I'd like to do is help them pull all their web profiles together on one place. What else could be included here? Blogs, Tweets and press articles? But what else could be included?

every journey starts with a single step

2011-07-27T01:42:00.001-07:00

The first page of myethicalprofile.com is now in place. There is still a huge amount of work to be done, but as I am reaching myself HTML, CSS and JavaScript at the moment, it might be a while before I can finish it.

However it will be a very different experience building something myself rather than commissioning someone else to build it for me.

I still thinking of what I can do with gibli.com, but I’ll think of something novel sooner or later.

Ethical profiles

2011-07-22T11:14:00.001-07:00

I also bought MyErhicalProfile.com where I plan to build something novel and useful.

Countries and hosts

2011-07-22T11:06:00.001-07:00

I signed up with gatorhost in the USA today because the US is a much bigger Market than the UK, and because they use green energy.

Reliability and trustworthyness

2011-07-22T00:34:00.001-07:00

If we can find out about a person's ethics, it should help us decide whether to buy from them or not.

profile page ideas

2011-07-21T03:36:00.001-07:00

Big markets and small markets

2011-07-21T03:33:00.001-07:00

I’m seriously thinking about hosting the ethical profiles website I plan to build in the USA.

I believe HostGator uses green energy. Does anyone know if they are any good?

Building something new

2011-07-20T04:55:00.001-07:00

I may begin to build a website where people can host their ethical profiles, pulling together all their other profiles on the web and links to other material about themselves.

But which hosting company should I use, and should it be a ‘green’ host?

web hosting

2011-07-20T03:16:00.001-07:00

Another question which troubles me at the moment is should I choose a hosting company with UK or US data centres?

If I built a place for ethical profiles

2011-07-17T04:22:00.001-07:00

What other services could I provide for ethical superstars?

Ethical Profiles

2011-07-16T12:24:00.001-07:00

If the idea of developing a website full of people’s ethical profiles is an idea people like, then there a number of things which could make this better.

For one thing I see no point in recreating a person’s profile on LinkedIn or Facebook. The user would simply include a link to their main profile wherever it is on the internet.

They might also be able to include links to things like voluntary roles they’ve held, things they have done for charity or press clippings about ethical activities.

Another idea would be links to ethical organisations on the internet, and possibly ethical individuals on this website. These last could be counted as votes, and users with enough votes could be featured in some way. perhaps as ethical stars or superstars.

What do you think? Is this idea any good?

Some things I could do, but are they any good?

2011-07-15T02:05:00.001-07:00

A few thoughts which have occurred to me about what I could do next include:

1. A human powered search engine, using social media to get answers to questions that internet searches can’t answer.

2. An ethical profile for people who want to demonstrate their ethical principles. It could use existing profiles from elsewhere on the internet, and allow links to ethical acts or ethical organisations to be added.

3. A website allowing people in poor countries to ‘twin’ themselves with people in rich countries. For conversation, advice and help in both directions.

Are any of these any good? What do you think?

Keep looking up

2011-07-14T14:13:00.001-07:00

As I worked to get our report selling website off the ground, get SMEs to write and upload reports and persuade other entrepreneurs to buy these reports, I had in my mind an analogy.

I felt that I was trying to get up onto a mountain by climbing up through a gully. However the gully didn’t seem to be going up, just into the foot of the mountain, but always I hoped that it would at last begin to climb.

However it never did. And now I have to find another gully, hopefully better than the first.

Curiously I know something about the paths and ways that I can use on the mountain, and I plan to use this knowledge to do good things to help people who are not as lucky as us.

I have no interest in buying yachts or fast cars. I can only live in one house at a time. I hate hotels, prefer B&Bs and have very simple taste in food and don’t even drink alcohol.

So it’s not about the money, rather it’s about trying to do some good.

So one thought is if this is what I would like to go in the longer term, then perhaps if I come up with a new business, then it should be focused on this idea.

What I've learnt

2011-07-14T07:46:00.001-07:00

I've learnt a few very expensive lessens, but I guess we I needed to
experience these lessons for myself rather than just taking the word of
others.

1. People are generally in a hurry, so don't try to make things complicated.

2. If it doesn't make a profit in the first few months, it probably will
never will.

3. Although being absolutely determined to make it a success, don't throw
good money after bad.

What can I do on vacation in the uk?

2011-06-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

Although you are likely to have flown into London, getting further into the real UK is easy and very rewarding.
Travel in the UK is very easy as the trains are safe and comfortable, even hiring a car is nice experience even if you feel you are driving on the wrong side of the road.

Here are a few tips which will help you work out what you would like to do:

Hotels.
There are some amazing hotels in the UK. Mostly you will be staying in hotels when in towns and cities, but don't be afraid to stay in guest houses or b&bs (bed and breakfasts) in the countryside.

My favorite hotel group is Johansens group, but there are lots of others as well. My favorite guest house chain, where most of the houses are over 400 years old are the Wolsey Lodges, but Alistair Sawday's Special Places to Stay are nice as well.

Travel
Travel in the UK is easy and safe. Taxis in London are the Black Cabs you may have seen on TV. All London black cab drivers have to do a course which can take five years called 'The Knowledge'. This means that they have to memorize almost every road in London, so you don't get lost.

The Tube or Underground (metro or subway) in London is also safe and easy to use, but can get very congested during rush hour (Monday to Friday between 7 and 9 in the morning, and 5 to 7 in the evening).

Trains in the UK are also sale and reliable, and times can be found online at TheTrainLine.com. They have two classes, with most people travelling standard class, but for real comfort you can also travel first class.

Hiring a car is easy, with firms like Avis Avis, Hertz and Budget operating in the UK. If you are used to driving on the right or with an automatic transmission you may like to request an automatic. Driving in big cities is can be difficult if you're lost, even for those of us who live in the UK, but driving in small cities, towns and the country is very easy and not at all confusing.

Destinations
In the England, towns with Cathedrals are called Cities, and they are normally larger than towns. Also if the town or city was founded by the Romans then it will normally have 'cester' on the end of its name. Examples which are also interesting tourist destinations are:

Chester
Worcester
Dorchester
Colchester
Winchester

But other cities were founded by the Romans but later had their names changed:

London
York
Cambridge

Other countries to visit include Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland and Cornwall. Interesting cities include:

Edinburgh, Scotland
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Conwy, Wales
Torquay, Cornwall
Dublin, Ireland

However almost anywhere you go in the UK will be interesting.

Police
The Police in the UK are almost always polite and helpful. It is considered normal to ask the Police for directions, and they almost always try their best to help. The number to phone if you need help (Police, Ambulance or Fire) is 999 from any phone.

Gun control in the UK is very strict, with only the Military and the Police allowed to carry guns. Mostly you will see that the Police do not carry guns, although you may see gun in major airports because of terrorist threats (but don't worry, we've lived with this for over 40 years now).

Hiking
Hiking is very popular in the UK, and there many routes you can walk. Good quality equipment is available from Millets and Blacks, but there are many other good shops as well.
Hiking maps are produced by the Ordnance Survey and are available in most hiking and book shops. Please also note that the largest carnivore in the UK is a seal. There have been no wild wolves or bears here for over 300 years!

Places to visit
The UK is full of interesting things to see. For example Castles, Stately Homes, Gardens, Museums, Lanscape, National Parks and Ancient Monuments.

Food and drink
There are many wonderful local foods grown in the UK. The Michelin Star Guide demonstrates quality restaurant food, but there are so many local specialties that you just have to try things as you travel.

If you like beer, you should try locally brewed ales, and see if they are recommended by the campaign for real ale Camra. There are also Ciders and strong Scrumpies brewed from apples, and English wines for you to try.
.

Culture
There is so much cultural interest and entertainment for you to enjoy in the UK that you will be spoilt for choice.
From Les Miserables in London, to Up-helly-aa in the Shetland Isles, from The Last Night of the Proms to concerts at the O2. Where ever you plan to go, do some research on the internet first as you may find some great event taking place while you are there.

My Favorites
1. Tour the UK staying in Wolsey Lodges Wolsey Lodges
2. Staying in Johansens Hotels
3. First Class travel on intercity trains
4. London Black Cabs
5. Hocking's Ice Cream in North Devon
6. Arbroath Smokies (smoked haddock) in Scotland
7. The Shambles in York
8. Chester Rows in Chester
9. Visiting Snowshill Manor in the Cotswolds
10. Visiting Chatsworth House in the Peak District

Using business knowledge for marketing (ebooks, e-reports and e-guides)

2011-06-19T04:25:00.000-07:00

Businesses that use their knowledge to market what they do are trying to tell potential customers about their competence and ability.
At the less complex end of the spectrum, some businesses are more concerned with attracting search engines than with teaching potential clients anything useful. They tend to use article marketing, with search engine friendly links to their websites. However the articles tend to be of low value, many are just glorified adverts and the grammar can be suspect.
At the far end of the spectrum there are prodessional market research companies which write and publish market research. Examples are Frost and Sullivan and Datamonitor. They can charge many thousands of Pounds for each report, but these reports serve as a major injections of skill and knowledge for those companies which purchase them.
In the middle there are companies which allow small businesses to sell each other business reports. These do allow potential customers to learn more about commissioning or buying products and services, and can avoid bad and potentially costly purchasing decisions. Examples in the USA are PayLoadz, BooksWealth and in the UK a business support service called Gibli.
There is a conflict for small business however between expecting everything digital to be free on the internet and recognizing that some things are better if paid for.
There are two issues here, and they both relate to business time. If the knowledge a business needs to learn is available online, but is difficult to find, it might take a business person some hours to find this by repeated searches. The cost is not just the entrepreneur's time, but the missed work that could have been done during this time. There is also the risk that even after searching for some hours, the knowledge is not found.

So businesses are beginning to recognize that using business knowledge is both a good way the promote themselves, and as a good way to solve problems and avoid risk.