Less security please: IIa

So the UK Government Home Office now likes to offer ‘comfort’ to a company that intercepts network traffic for commercial gain? Steady on, Jacqui!

Via @monkchips.

Less security please: II

Well, the UK Government lumbers on, taking the very ease with which social media has come to prominence as a licence to rack up the surveillance powers it gives to the authorities on our behalf. NO2ID’s press release reports that the proposals, announced today and weighing in at a bargain recession-beating price of £12 billion, will include ‘probes’ in all datacentres allowing officials to sample whatever they choose. Slow down Jacqui!
Thanks to ORG for notification, via @tobybryans.

Oxford Geek Jam

Another computing-focused event in Oxford with a slightly less ambitious agenda than Barcamp Transparency. 7 June 2009: I’m hoping it will be at the Jam Factory, thus making an Oxford Geek Jam Factory.

Barcamp Transparency in Oxford

Just a pointer to this putative event in the Summer. Its scope is, as I understand it, the full gamut of digital rights. Could be quite something.

Clagnut’s ‘Facing up to fonts’: useful info about web font techniques

A useful presentation for web designers who still don’t know about font linking yet [about 40mins in; the prelude may be useful]. Includes a pointer to Richard’s font matrix, a very useful guide in an imperfect typographical world.

Easter eggs?

The National Museum of Computing is slowly getting its communication act together and as a result I received a newsletter detailing their latest achievements this morning. They’re open over the whole of Easter weekend so, if you’re in physical proximity, why not go and have a look at Colossus, play on an Eighties micro, or marvel at the innards of a mainframe?

Barcamp Apache Oxford

I’ve had a great weekend in Oxford with beautiful weather making it even better. Today was Barcamp Apache Oxford. This was very relaxed and enjoyable; the collection of semi-related factoids and insights have not yet settled but all the sessions I dropped in on were interesting and cogent. Speakers and participants were knowledgeable and displayed great humility. Makes me feel positive about the kind of environment I’m working in, the people ‘out there’ who are shaping web technology and about software in general. There's some great stuff happening.

Incidentally the most impressive demonstration of coding prowess I saw was this HTML5 and Javascript animation by Matt Westcott. He begs you to forgive the Flash soundtrack (an alternative technology wasn't available).

P.S. I gave a short talk about the Open Font Library that might get posted at some point.