tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9963068064157078872011-08-08T17:04:17.920+01:00Ben Hazell. Terminal Moraine. I used to blog here about the media, but now I work there I don't. Instead I curate links and signpost my existance. I work on search engine optimization at Telegraph.co.uk, but this here be personal.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.comBlogger601100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-71848419349727866812010-11-01T19:03:00.002Z2010-11-02T12:52:52.139Z

I've had a Kindle for a few months now and it's changed my reading habits. I find I'm buying new releases for hardback prices because older novels are not always available. I don't feel ripped off - I'm enjoying reading new releases for a change, something I'd have never considered when that involved dragging a brick of print round town. However, it is frustrating to find great, bestselling books

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-81968371670497147792010-02-10T00:01:00.003Z2010-02-13T12:56:28.513Z

Useful SEO tools, links and resources for journalists, to go with my talk on SEO to journalism students at the University of Sheffield.Basic SEO reminder: Describe your content with strong keywords.Get related sites to link to you.Make sure internal and external link text uses appropriate keywords.Google> Auto suggest & related searches provide keyword tipsGoogle Insights> Compare terms to find

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-90553758061940111432008-11-26T20:20:00.007Z2009-03-26T19:48:16.464Z

This month I have been mostly Tumbling.Tumbling is like blogging. But faster. And hosted by a company called Tumblr.My new Tumblr is called Harlequin Spitfire, and it's been running for a little while now.And it suits me well, because it's a fast way to collect and share things you like. I've been using it to collect music and pictures. It's dead simple, and full of pretty sounds an images, so

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-13918533119074103242008-11-03T13:00:00.004Z2008-11-03T13:19:50.242Z

The British Army is planning to issue new 'full cover' body armour to soldiers in Afghanistan by 2011. That's head to toe bulletproof protection.The SAS are deeply unhappy with the Land Rovers UK forces are using, and troops face helicopter shortages. Add to this rising fuel costs, and the army is looking for a supply of cheap new rides.The Army main battle rifle, the SA80 has a history of

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-28860016769820844052008-10-31T23:47:00.011Z2008-11-27T09:31:51.678Z

Sometimes if I like a story I see in the newspaper, I throw it up on Reddit, to share it with other witty, intelligent beings. This afternoon I enjoyed a story about an Octopus called Otto, so I shared it in a few places with a new headline:Bored Octopus shoots out lights, then trashes aquarium and juggles crabsAs I approach my 2,000th vote of confidence, I'd like to thank the Internet for

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-66597124463849023042008-10-27T22:32:00.006Z2008-10-27T23:14:45.562Z

I like Boingboing.It's a very popular Blog - one of the biggest on the planet in fact, and the 2,083rd biggest website in the USA at the time of writing. A link up on there and... well I'll be able to add an exact figure tomorrow, but tens of thousands of extra readers show up.If (and this part is crucial) if you get the address of your blog right. Otherwise it's just a nice post and a link that

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-77721857344946631772008-10-27T08:50:00.004Z2008-10-27T09:08:42.320Z

Just a quick heads up:Fascinating post from Wired - 2008, the end of blogs.Not the death of blogging as such, but the death of personal blogs. Blogging powerhouses like Gawker and online link aggregators and magazines like Drudge or the Daily Beast now dominate, and half the functions of individual blogs are now well served by social networks. Link swapping and lifestyle commentary have now found

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-24874759255793125742008-10-26T12:33:00.002Z2008-10-27T00:04:33.752Z

The internet loves lists, it loves animals, it love pictures and it loves fights. This post has it all. May I present - a list of unusual animal conflicts that I've come across in the last few weeks. Giant Spider eats a birdPopular this week: A giant Golden Orb Weaver spider in Australia traps and eats a passing Finch. The web is strong enough to hold the 10cm bird while it is drained of blood

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-80450902483607128402008-10-21T10:34:00.001+01:002008-10-21T10:42:56.834+01:00

'iPod generation' most at risk from credit crunch as one in five has £10k debts I'm not an economist and I don't know what I'm talking about.But let me list the things that seem wrong about the study in this article:"Dubbed the "iPod generation" as they are Insecure, Pressurised, Over-taxed and Debt-Ridden" - I'd hate to think they just tacked 'Insecure' on the front there to make it spell iPod.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-30331519165268924612008-10-18T17:29:00.006+01:002008-10-18T22:21:19.817+01:00

The start of a new weekend feature on Terminal Moraine - link blogging all the best things I've read online in the last week.The Things He Carried - The AtlanticI havn't had the pleasure of heading to the US in recent years, but with Russian and Iranian visas at the front of my passport and a Hamas TV-Shirt, it could be fun no matter how blue my eyes. US border authorities the TSA have an awful

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-45264401994894916772008-09-17T01:20:00.005+01:002008-09-17T01:49:12.328+01:00

Vernon Kay denies death rumors Such an awful story in so many ways.According to ITN/MSN News/Yahoo, people who edit Wikipedia pages are "Hackers". The Buckinghamshire advertiser has an even worse write-up of the same crap. I'm astonished any journalist out there doesn't know how Wikipedia works. Anyone can edit with a single click. This doth not a "Hacker" make. Pathetic. Massive fail ITN and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-6064884888160401432008-09-04T10:45:00.008+01:002008-09-05T18:33:25.489+01:00

Chrome is a new web browser developed by Google. It was launched yesterday and will compete with Firefox and Internet Explorer and some Apple browser thing.Things you should know about Chrome: Each tab can crash separately, it doesn't like Facebook at the moment, it has a porn mode, and they moved the tabs above the address bar.Chrome isn't just a browser though. It's a statement of intent:

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-72369696018410023882008-09-03T23:34:00.004+01:002008-09-03T23:40:43.799+01:00

Last month I published a little rant about Charlie Brooker getting frightened and confused by search engine optimisation. I made a point of optimising the rant before publishing.And now... victory. My rant is second on Google only to Brookers own piece when you search any combination of his name and the words Search Engine Optimisation.I don't know why you would. But it proves that with a little

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02702524350557752652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-23863689770006478062008-09-01T23:54:00.003+01:002008-09-02T00:00:49.234+01:00

One month on, my website is done. Finished. Over. I can't touch it again.Which is a shame really, as it's full of mistakes, typos, errors and generally poor writing. And it has an awful name.But you don't need me to tell you that. Go take a look.The Nebula Science Monitor(I suspect in the next few days i'll clone the site and correct a copy for wider public showing. It was just tough getting

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-67595138794272577532008-08-27T22:39:00.002+01:002008-08-27T22:45:17.865+01:00

So yeah, I'm off working on my MA website.No name yet kids after three months of work, and it's due in 16 hours time... (tis but a simple banner swap when I pick one).I've built a search engine into my site, thanks to Google. But it won't work because Google is refusing to notice my little chunk of work in progress.But we can do something about that - we, together, the people, standing up and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-67670631120043285542008-08-24T14:06:00.003+01:002008-08-24T14:09:28.011+01:00

Head over to me other blog to read the live account of the demolition. Full story and video will follow soon on the (still un-named) Science news beta website.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-77149524893699286982008-08-11T19:21:00.003+01:002008-08-11T19:30:49.088+01:00

This month I won't be blogging. I'll mostly be working on another project - some kinda Science News type website. The site's being built from scratch and is nearly ready, but it'll be accompanied at launch with a new blog.It's running now but branding isn't finished yet. At the moment there's a stack of great links up there, and a pile of news will follow shortly. Go have a look, maybe even link

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-88419052170751283622008-07-26T22:55:00.002+01:002008-07-26T22:58:32.462+01:00

Wise man once say: "If a dog bites a man it is sad for man, but not a story. But if a man he bites a dog, then this is news!"Spotted in Friday's Telegraph.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-73752861628984707372008-07-24T18:29:00.003+01:002008-07-24T19:13:00.881+01:00

This week at the Guardian former PC Zone Editor and TV critic turned usually funny ranter Charlie Brooker penned a little rant against agressive online news marketing.To my mind he's a little off the mark. Brooker suggests that news websites are dropping popular online search terms into stories just to build hits and advertising revenue.Sure he's being deliberatly absurd when he drops BRITNEY and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-74387622134170317742008-07-15T22:16:00.004+01:002008-07-15T22:26:52.896+01:00

Wrote this quickly for the Sheffield Star this afternoon. I think it explains itself.They’ve been to New York, Paris and London, but yesterday they arrived in Sheffield: The Google Streetview cars.Google’s revolutionary Streetview service lets you view panoramic pictures from ground level around city centres as part of the popular Google Maps service.To obtain these pictures, cars with hi-tech

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-74009946277306220912008-06-30T01:48:00.006+01:002008-06-30T01:59:27.281+01:00

Did you know there are two types of quote mark on computers? I didn't until a few months ago when I arrived at the Telegraph and was sent on a search and destroy mission for the wrong sort.It's so irritating I wanted to share.It seems there are both curley and straight quote marks in the world, even within each font.We have the curled: “ ”And the straight: " "When you type you'll probably only

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-48882377192712303672008-06-30T01:39:00.003+01:002008-06-30T01:59:07.939+01:00

I'd just like to take a moment to post a response to some of the accusations thrown out in Rhoda’s awards blog post.She's getting a bit of an official reputation for libel and inaccuracy this week. Eight of us made the trip for the awards: David, Marie, a rep from each post-grad course and a single hanger on. We rose early for the train to London where we were unfortunately placed in the quiet

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-71939808424350463242008-06-29T23:19:00.000+01:002008-06-30T00:22:39.091+01:00

I went to London this weekend for the Press Gazette Student Journalism Awards with the reps from Sheffo.All the post-grads had been shortlisted as a team for our local election coverage, and Rhoda was up for Best Student Interviewer.Rhoda won, which was excellent, and then proceeded to amuse us all by clambering across the lighting rig to reach the stage. We cheered her desire to venture where no

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-42068814073388865342008-06-29T00:22:00.018+01:002008-06-29T23:45:32.015+01:00

EDIT: Ahh, this was a video post, but the video no longer works. It was either too edgy to remain public or all the additional traffic from this blog crashed their servers. I don't know which, but I'll try to explain what it showed so this isn't an utterly wasted post.Tiny Infra-red LEDs can be used to hide your face from security cameras. These LEDs are small lights that require only tiny

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-89622535281776908382008-06-11T23:42:00.005+01:002008-06-12T00:46:20.133+01:00

May I presnt for your delight and amusement the Terminal Moraine Social Networking Map of Europe.Click it for bigness.The map is designed to illustrate the leading social networking websites Europe. Each country is coloured according to the dominant website. My research method was simple and not very scientific. I used web traffic data from Alexa supported by all the anecdotal evidence I was able

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-5846407478706486612008-05-30T15:26:00.004+01:002008-06-12T00:39:56.985+01:00

For anyone who hadn't noticed, the Telegraph.co.uk has just overtaken the Guardian as the UK's most popular national newspaper website.It's a close run thing at the top of the charts, with the Daily Mail online also making big gains. All three sites now sit around the 18 million monthly users mark. Most impressivly that means the Telegraph has added around 7 million readers in the last year. The

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-78049318945294955092008-05-28T14:16:00.003+01:002008-05-28T14:40:30.820+01:00

There's a story on the BBC front page and across the papers today about Amy Winehouse lyrics being used in an English exam at Cambridge.A Cambridge spokesperson said that this fact was "interesting, but not news". Nice of them to include that in the story. I suppose it's news simply because putting "Winehouse" in a headline generates hits from search engines.I'm not even sure it's that

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-21068453141876123972008-05-26T19:56:00.005+01:002008-05-26T22:08:10.157+01:00

My fellow Journalism students are all spending their bank holiday preparing for an exam tomorrow. I just took a quick survey of Facebook statuses to see how everyone is feeling about it. Results include:"feels nervous""wants to die""is getting the fear, and getting off Facebook""has noticed that with 12 hours to go everyone is on Facebook...""is feeling the fear... and doing it anyway""has got

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-68109140516763399002008-05-25T00:54:00.007+01:002008-05-25T02:06:14.677+01:00

Ahh Eurovision; the beautiful and the damned, a glittering comet of frozen mediocrity streaking across the calendar.This year Russia won by a comfortable margin thanks to Stalin's clever policy of planting enclaves of voters across half of Europe in the 50's.Unemployed Slavic sleeper-cells rose from crumbling concrete apartment blocks across Europe tonight, crowding payphones to call in their

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-33602369623465802482008-05-18T21:46:00.004+01:002008-05-19T00:32:18.573+01:00

Now this is a very interesting map.It popped up on Boingboing this evening having been produced by Le Monde.The Map's a pretty rough infographic showing the popularity of various social networking sites worldwide.It's a great idea, but I'd like a little more.These sites can be hugely influential within various groups - like British students on Facebook - so it would be nice to see exactly who is

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-55810904795270265002008-05-08T18:35:00.002+01:002008-05-08T19:22:12.657+01:00

Josef Fritzl: ‘The Nazis were to blame’ Yes, blame the Nazi's.Even if they did Invent Disco.How the Nazis gave us disco

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-82610020291613329862008-05-03T01:04:00.003+01:002008-05-03T01:08:38.497+01:00

It's been ages since I had a picture up here.So here's a creepy zoom-lense shot I took earlier of the man who covered the green and plesant in CCTV.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-17147189722963818552008-05-03T00:54:00.003+01:002008-05-03T01:03:30.081+01:00

Today I was covering the local elections for the university news website, JUS News.We had a team of us at the results count, and a supporting gang back at the newroom to build up coverage. That's about twenty times the manpower of any real news organisation, and I think we did a good job. I know it seemed like Sky News was asking us for info at one point, and we had better contacts than most.I

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-21327834589712279302008-04-29T01:53:00.004+01:002008-04-29T02:17:54.570+01:00

If old news is new to some its news. Yeh?Sharing some things I read about today. Submarines, Japan, sdrawkcab and car-jacking...Growing numbers of drug runners are using DIY submarines [Wired]Worth reading just for the term 'narco-terrorists'. Consider.If the A Team smugled drugs, this is how they'd do it.Japanease advertisers give out search words instead of tricky URLs [via BoingBoing]An old

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-27902665760651199342008-04-27T23:32:00.000+01:002008-04-29T01:52:58.757+01:00

Having trouble finding time to blog.Oh what spectral flashes of genius have flitted away into the night whilst I lack the energy to put finger to key.If there was wi-fi on trains into London it wouldn't be a problem. There bloody well should be for the ticket price.Now I'm doing twelve hours a week on rails I'm searching for ways to make the time productive.I'm reading, sure.Last week I got

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-29137832960864750232008-04-19T10:43:00.000+01:002008-04-19T10:52:08.517+01:00

The assistant editor of the Guardian in a chat about blogs: "The shorter it is, the more likely the buggers are to read it."That's all.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-42787647255329164202008-03-28T20:47:00.005Z2008-03-28T21:16:03.602Z

Below the fold is a round-up of everything I wrote on placement at the Telegraph in the last two weeks.I was only writing one or two pieces a day for the site, and some of my stuff was later replaced by other journalists (we usually throw the basics up online while we wait for the experts to pitch in), but I think it's a decent slab of work.Some of them are quite funny.I'm back now anyway, so

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-3511251458414046202008-03-27T16:27:00.002Z2008-03-27T16:34:39.884Z

Yes, it's been very quiet here.This is mainly because I'm working for the Telegraph at the moment, and doing a long commute, followed by long hours at a PC, leaving me little will to blog when I get in.This is a weakness I know.Normal service will resume shortly.In the mean time, some samples of what I've been upto:Rogue monkey accused of attempted rapesHeather Mills to challenge Sir Paul's

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-1920896473328366062008-03-05T17:55:00.006Z2008-03-05T18:47:49.373Z

An analysis of the Metropolitan Police’s new Counter-Terrorism advertising campaign.The posters are brilliantly designed; the mass of cameras with the single one ringed indicates both that there is a terrorist photographer out there, but also that the Police can identify them from the masses. It re-affirms the threat, and reassures us of the police’s protective power.The red white and black

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-69346336425421921262008-02-28T18:31:00.005Z2008-02-28T19:12:47.091Z

So Harry's been in Afganistan all along, the scamp.I'm not suprised, and I'm pleased that deals were done to allow this to happen. The speed with which the newspapers have reacted, posting footage and features, suggests that they've been planning for a reveal of some kind soon, but the story was finally broken by the US mega-blog The Drudge Report.While the BBC message boards flare with anger at

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-76181725374632515042008-02-27T14:59:00.007Z2008-02-27T16:42:33.197Z

Ian & Vix, Hallam FM: 1.36am"We're getting more information in at the moment from e-mails than from the newswires""This is when the geeks out there come in really handy!"Last night my reading was rudely interrupted by an Earthquake.For the first second I assumed the noise and movement were just another of the huge gusts of wind that had been hitting the house all day. When it continued for a few

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-54369172706932513302008-02-23T23:44:00.005Z2008-02-24T01:26:30.789Z

Shovelware - software used to quickly post newspaper stories online, copy and pasting it straight from the page to the internet.Be wary or you can end up with mistakes like this:"NGOs that refuse to be cheerleaders for the Kremlin – the British Council is Continued frrom page 1 merely the most prominent of many examples – are routinely harassed and, in some cases, closed down."I imagine that

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-41716577828013789482008-02-15T18:49:00.003Z2008-02-24T00:26:01.050Z

'It's very very good time to be young'Anne Spackman, Editor in Chief of the Times Online.Parts of Anne Spackman's talk earlier this week made me think back to previous comments about the difficulty of getting media jobs in the UK at the moment. Editorial budgets are shrinking everywhere and there is a growing reliance on cheap agency copy combined with sexy interfaces and Google friendly

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-879657938504159062008-02-13T14:14:00.010Z2008-02-14T00:48:22.624Z

Speaking yesterday at a guest lecture at the University of Sheffield, Anne Spackman, Editor in Chief of the Times Online, asked the audience to raise their hands if they believed newspapers would still be printed in 20 years. Most did.I'm not convinced though. In 20 years I expect printed paper will have been overtaken by other forms of newspaper distribution, and I absolutely believe that many

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-11863747995131856432008-02-11T20:57:00.000Z2008-02-12T02:33:05.387Z

The War for the White House; now in bar charts!Later in the year I'll be working on the election project. We'll be building a website and running full, round the clock coverage of an election for a few days - the full works. Nobody's sure what election it'll be this year; Gordon doesn't look like doing us the favour, but there could local polling. Or hell, maybe a referendum on the EU

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-55214065799374761122008-02-10T14:36:00.001Z2008-02-15T20:09:30.865Z

There are loads of great spots to walk or hang out in the peaks and it pays to explore. In most locations you're pretty safe to just wander wherever looks fun; under bridges, off paths, over rocks and into ruins. It's easy. A decent pair of trainers will usually be enough kit, but obviously it can get wet. Just remember to look after the place, don't upset the sheep, don't even think about

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-31732908143891775932008-01-29T14:20:00.000Z2008-01-29T14:29:59.078Z

/another asideMHRA vs Harvard - reference wars.I find myself in the sad position of being forced to switch to a new referencing system for my academic work. I also find myself with unusually strong feelings about this, disgusted at the thought of the new system. See if you can guess which system I prefer.I understand why some people might suggest that it is merely a case of familiarity and that

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-58776868125416159782008-01-25T20:21:00.000Z2008-01-27T20:54:24.433Z

/aside...The Surrealist's Evening Standard Headline Generator.This has kept me amused for literally minutes now.It sticks together parts of real headlines to create fake ones that probably aren't half as silly as the stuff the London papers really publish sometimes.The best one I've generated is "Queen's wasps stolen at gunpoint". There are a couple of these headline boards near my house. The

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-64424846590984236662008-01-16T21:32:00.000Z2008-01-17T22:17:51.929Z

Was this the greatest newspaper frontpage of 2007?It has everything last year’s tabloid newspapers could have possibly wanted on the cover.We've got Maddie, Di, an X Factor contestant, allegations of rigged phone-in competitions, and the lead story combines sex and football.It's nearly perfect.I bet they just wished they had a slightly saucier picture to replace the cop with a crate. A silhouette

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-28229561227229521862008-01-07T22:21:00.000Z2008-01-09T16:08:44.396Z

One of the nicest things about the BBC News website is that it links off to rival news coverage on each story. This provides a great snapshot of how the news is being treated across the English language media.You can also get this service from news aggregators such as Google News, but the BBC, presumably thanks to the unique way it's funded, is the only news publisher to do this, highlighting

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-35144987020166964432008-01-06T13:17:00.000Z2008-01-10T14:15:47.041Z

Before Christmas I promised a brief review of the new BBC homepage beta, and now I deliver. Review in a word: Overweight.The BBC homepage is the page you find at bbc.co.uk, and it'll be the main entranceway to over 2 million pages of content on one of the biggest websites on the planet. You can take a look at the trial version of the new homepage here.I'm going to be focusing mainly on the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-7097321509345777312007-12-22T15:11:00.000Z2007-12-23T19:40:27.601Z

My other work is slowly appearing online. If you want to take a look, the links are there on the right in the "Me, elsewhere" box. The websites are at various stages of completion. Pretty basic, but hey, I've only had 2 months practice on this. And I know I could use a sub-editorto clean it all up, but I really hate proof reading.Games + Health is a little feature site looking at a few issues

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-60936456874171087632007-12-16T20:29:00.000Z2007-12-16T21:04:06.304Z

Wait, there's a new BBC homepage?!It's much shinier. I'd be tempted to call it the Vista edition. And fully customisable.Could a customised BBC homepage push BBC News off my homepage? Did they nick all their ideas off Facebook?Is blue the new red?Have they stopped using tables?Whatever will those trust-fund madmen think of next?Full review when I've had the chance to mess with it.Initial

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-81090776515003203852007-12-07T23:56:00.000Z2007-12-09T02:07:32.650Z

Network neutrality is the principal that every piece of data sent over the internet should be treated equally, regardless of content or author. This neutrality is a wonderful thing as it provides equal opportunity to home bloggers and major corporate sites. It's a system of democratic expression, and it's what allows such a vast range of voices to be heard online.This could change. In the US,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-47404570953525395602007-11-27T23:27:00.001Z2007-11-28T19:59:54.870Z

How Your Creepy Ex-Co-Workers Will Kill FacebookObviously I think about Facebook a lot. Usually about twice a day, I get a pressing urge to just make sure the internet hasn't changed. Maybe someone's sent me a message. Maybe if my life were more exciting, I wouldn't have to live vicariously through the status updates of others.If a friend falls in a forest and nobody posts a photo, did it really

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-8794270586305022202007-11-19T23:30:00.000Z2007-11-20T00:55:37.866Z

The BBC recently celebrated ten years of it's News website.As part of a series of features about online news, they asked some 'leading lights' for comments about the future of news. This was my favourite, from Toby Young."If I were a young person embarking on a career today, there's no way I'd go into journalism. You might as well train as a professional fax machine operator."Which is a lovely

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-10616728836070724692007-11-10T01:18:00.000Z2007-11-12T12:42:03.309Z

This is the second part of my thoughts on Vice magazine. You can read part one here.Before it was Vice, it was the Voice of Montreal. Then Voice. Then Vice. This seems appropriate to me, because behind the veneer of fashionable sleaze, it's the voices in Vice I want to read. The serious content in the magazine takes two forms; local voices and immersive journalism. In both cases the emphasis is

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-11143836876627997532007-11-02T23:21:00.000Z2007-11-20T14:23:32.857Z

One of the few publications I regularly look forward to is Vice magazine. I'm not sure if that's something I should admit, let alone link to. I wouldn't want to be seen with a copy and I'd think twice before I wrote for them. But I definitely want to read it.If you've never encountered Vice, you can take a look online and see what you think. Better, get a paper copy. Around Sheffield you

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-45470190823352715162007-10-23T19:51:00.000+01:002007-10-29T21:52:20.768Z

I wrote this piece for 'The Floor' a few months ago, but it seems an almost appropriate place to start things here.Earlier this year I wound up in Iran. It’s quite a task to wind up in a country it takes months to get a visa for. A friend was living in Tehran doing a language course, and we decided to backpack around the country for the Persian New Year in March. I didn’t really know very much

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-996306806415707887.post-90995933972376653802007-10-23T15:46:00.000+01:002007-10-23T22:06:48.676+01:00

Because everything has to start somewhere.With a picture:Graffiti,Uzipio res Publica - LithuaniaOh, and if anyone wants to know what Terminal Moraine means, check your local neighbourhood glaciation textbook.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13201896947891559951noreply@blogger.com0