WordPress and the world’s emerging economies

Love_wordpressI love WordPress. In fact, I think it can save the world. Even if you’re not as enthusiastic about WordPress as me, I want to convince you that it’s a force for good in the world and a communication platform of inestimable value for the world’s emerging economies.

What is WordPress? WordPress is a great way to get your content online. It’s web software you can use to power your own blog or website. From humble beginnings as a blogging platform, it’s evolved both in terms of number of users (more than 20% of the world’s websites run WordPress, including this one) and its capabilities. Continue reading

150 WORD BOOK REVIEW: The year without pants by Scott Berkun – a book about WordPress

Year without pants coverOver 20% of the websites currently online are powered in one way or another by WordPress yet only 120 full time staffers work for its parent company, Automattic. There’s no central office. Staff work remotely – from pretty much every continent on Earth.

The year without pants is based on Scott Berkun’s experience of working with Automattic and their distributed workforce and centres around trying to figure out if and how it works. It does.

It makes for fascinating reading if, like me, you think that office working serves a purpose, but should not be the default setting for organisations. Berkun is an engaging author, and the book gives lots of examples of the processes that WordPress use to overcome any issues that arise from not having physical interactions on an ongoing basis. There are lots of lessons here – not just from Automattic/Wordpress, but also from Berkun’s time at Microsoft. Well worth a look.

Swype, not Skype, is the fastest way to communicate on mobile

swypeAccording to the Guinness Book of Records, the fastest time to send a message on a touchscreen mobile is by using Swype; a keyboard that be inputed by swiping across it.

Still unavailable on Apple and iOS (interesting), Swype can now be downloaded on Google Play and comes with features that react to a user’s Android input patterns as well as the user only needing one time to ‘train’ the keyboard.

It can also crowdsource and update the user’s dictionary with new trending phrases as well as being activated by voice recognition. In many respects it’s like treating a keyboard as pet, in the same way as a Tamagotchi, but that’s no bad thing.

Mmmm, bearing in mind how long it’s taken my to update this WordPress post, perhaps it could also be released as a plug-in. That would be interesting…

Bloody hell, I’m finally part of bloody LinkedIn

This week I officially deleted the Facebook account for this (highly successful and influential etc) blog and decided to take the professional social network LinkedIn seriously.

I’ve never liked LinkedIn, for some reason it reminds of me of a criminal record and unsuccessful job interviews so I have always treated it with contempt. I don’t use it, I don’t ask to be connected to anybody, my CV is reasonably untrue and I only say yes when somebody connects me. Continue reading

Bloody hell, I'm finally part of bloody LinkedIn

This week I officially deleted the Facebook account for this (highly successful and influential etc) blog and decided to take the professional social network LinkedIn seriously.

I’ve never liked LinkedIn, for some reason it reminds of me of a criminal record and unsuccessful job interviews so I have always treated it with contempt. I don’t use it, I don’t ask to be connected to anybody, my CV is reasonably untrue and I only say yes when somebody connects me. Continue reading