Mike Griffiths

Ubuntu is an operating system that runs on most computers. It is a completely free alternative to Microsoft’s Windows and Apples MacOSX. Ubuntu comes with all of the software you need to get up and running; from a fully functioning word processor (capable of editing and creating Microsoft Office files) to a web server and media player.

Ubuntu comes pre-packaged with most of this software and it is all free. There are no licenses or trial periods to worry about and absolutely no additional costs. There’s plenty of software available, all available online or via Ubuntu’s built-in package manager that allows you to search for and download free software and the click of a button.

Ubuntu, being a Linux variant, is extremely stable and secure. You don’t have to worry about anti-virus, trojans, worms or any other nasties whilst using your computer.

The Ubuntu Store is now online offering the cheapest copies of Ubuntu around.

Buy Ubuntu

Recently I began a project with two other guys. The idea was simple; get a group of people signed up to a web site that asks you a unique question every day. This question changes at midnight and you can view your friends answers and comment on them.

The project was finished about a week ago and it’s been met with excellent feedback. Everyone seems to love the idea and we’re seeing a steady increase in our userbase.

We aim to have 1,000 users by the new year, at which point we’re hoping for an explosion of new users as the word spreads.

Similar to my Facebook App Football Badges we have integrated into Facebook Connect. This seamless integration will allow users to sign up at the click of a button, providing they have a Facebook account. Logging in is a breeze too, just hit the log in button and we use your Facebook session to log you in. The idea is that every time a Facebook user answers a question the question and answer is posted to their Facebook wall.

Check the project out, it’s called QueryLife.

QueryLife

How perceptive do you think you are? If you were walking down the street would you notice a couple having a domestic? Would you spot someone slipping on something on the pavement? Would you notice if your favourite shop that you walk passed every day changed their layout?

Some of us are more perceptive than others, but there are still some things that we all miss – or at least almost all of us.

In Washington DC inside a busy metro station on a cold January morning in 2007 there stood a man with a violin. He stood there and played 6 pieces of music by Bach for around 45 minutes. In those 45 minutes around 2,000 people passed through that metro station, on their way to work or to a meeting. After 2 or 3 minutes a middle-aged man noticed there was a musician playing, slowed his pace a little and stopped very briefly, he then continued on hurriedly.

4 minutes pass and the violinist gets his first tip, a woman throws him $1 on her way passed.

6 minutes later and a young man leans against the wall close to him and listens for a moment, he checks his watch and then moves on.

10 minutes go by. A very young child – maybe 3 years old – stops but his mother hurries him along. The child then stops again and stares at the violinist, the mother pushes him again and the child carries on walking, turning his head constantly as they’re walking, ignoring all other distractions around him. Several other children do exactly this over the next 30 minutes or so – all of their parents, without exception, hurry their children along.

45 minutes have passed. The musician hasn’t stopped playing but only 6 people stopped and listened for a very short while. Around 20 gave a tip but didn’t stop. The violinist collected $32 in total.

1 hour has now passed. The violinist stops playing. No-one stops, no-one notices and no-one cares. Everyone continues as they were.

The violinist in the metro that day was Joshua Bell, arguably the greatest musician in the world alive today. He played one of the most difficult and intricate pieces of music ever written using a violin worth over $3.5 million. A few days prior to this Joshua Bell played in a theatre in Boston to a sell out crowd, the cheapest seats in the house were $100.

No-one took any real notice of Joshua that day. A few people threw him some cash, but they probably would have done whoever he was and whatever he was playing. Children seem to be far more aware of their surroundings, their minds more open to what’s going on around them – probably not clouded by hurried thoughts of the day to come and the events it will hold.

This whole thing was an experiment done by the Washington Post to test people’s perception of the world around them and how we respond to ambient music.

Something to think about…

Well the title of this entry pretty much sums it up. My football badges app now has over 7000 users and 200 ‘fans’. It’s quite an achievement for what was essentially an experiment. The app itself logs over 200 hits per day.

Excuse any typos in this post as it is being made from my phone, in bed whilst suffering from a stint of insomnia!