It's nice that Wordpress/Jetpack sends me a yearly overview of my blog. It helps to see which posts were more popular than others and reminds me that there are a few people out there that actually read what I write. It's not the most visited blog in the world, but I enjoy sharing anything that I find interesting and hope some of the posts help others. Click below to see the fireworks: 2014 … [Read more...] about My 2014 Year in Blogging
Web
Derby Real Ale Trail Map
I recently made a Google map for the Derby Real Ale Trail that shows a 'selection' of pubs that serve good beer in Derby. I added it to the Derby CAMRA website but it's also available below ... If you need a link for your mobile, use this: http://goo.gl/maps/q0MXD View Derby Real Ale Trail in a larger map … [Read more...] about Derby Real Ale Trail Map
Facebook Cover Photo Dimensions
Like most I'll do a Google search when I'm making a new Facebook cover photo to find the dimensions. Most sites will tell you what Facebook themselves tell you, it's 851px x 315px and these have been the dimensions I have used when creating cover photo's for our client pages. However, I recently uploaded a personal photo to my own profile and was surprised to see that within the mobile view on … [Read more...] about Facebook Cover Photo Dimensions
Should Facebook use your face?
I read that Facebook had settled a lawsuit with five users whose profiles were being used in advertising on the site. The 'sponsored stories' facility allows brands to use your photo's and names if you have 'liked' the product. The problem is that some people don't actually want their likes known to everyone, especially If your face is showing up as liking something like Partypoker and you might … [Read more...] about Should Facebook use your face?
UK Cookie Law
Last year a new privacy law came into effect in the EU that requires website owners to get permission BEFORE they plant web cookies (or any technology for storing information) on a visitors machine. This has MASSIVE implications for not only businesses but for bloggers and personal website owners too as the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has the power to slap you with a penalty of up to … [Read more...] about UK Cookie Law
How to get seen as an Author in Google
Google are taking it social and you might wonder why some search results are now showing the author of the result and others are not (this is different to the "Richard Mackney shared this" that you might see if you follow me). In the above example Edgar Cervantes is clearly attributed with writing the post and his Google+ avatar appears under the result. This also applies to YouTube video … [Read more...] about How to get seen as an Author in Google
I Do Web Sites
When I meet people for the first time they ask "What do you do" and sometimes I sort of forget. I think it's because I've become a Jack of all trades, but I can't just say this can I? My twitter bio doesn't mention my day job, I've always used twitter on a personal level rather than for business. My first twitter account was @mackney in July 2008 which I handed to my Brother 10 months later. My … [Read more...] about I Do Web Sites
I made the Posterous Inspiration Center
So, YAY! I made the Posterous Inspiration Center ... does this mean my site is 'Inspirational' ... No? ... didn't think so. Anyway, here is the guff ... Richard Mackney "I'm an early adopter and I've been helping people and sharing information online for well over a decade. My site is a photoblog and digital scrapbook documenting and sharing things that I find interesting. I post … [Read more...] about I made the Posterous Inspiration Center
How I Increased my Klout
Like many of the early adopters I follow on twitter I have had my Klout profile setup for quite a while but with so many new services popping up it’s very tricky to know which ones deserve time and which ones have the commitment to development to stick in the online social World. YouTube, Flickr, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter all have made the grade and stuck. Each have their own area of … [Read more...] about How I Increased my Klout
Profile Snapshots – May 2011
I'm always changing the themes on my profiles, it's evolving as my tastes or targets change. I'm going to start capturing them for reference - sometimes it's good to revert to an old theme. I'm currently in the 'Eating My iPhone' phase, and this is echoed on the platforms that allow background images. Not every platform allows you to customise the theme (Google Profiles, Flickr) but you can still … [Read more...] about Profile Snapshots – May 2011
Social Media Portal
It seems that when you move in the circles of early adopters one thing comes across very clearly "early adoption is not early enough" and by this I mean that we all seem to want the next step and go to great lengths to try and facilitate it. This is good, it pushes boundaries and gives others the ideas to push their own products that ultimately lead to mass adoption of that product. It also means … [Read more...] about Social Media Portal
How I Use Dropbox
I've realised that some of the video's I uploaded for VLOMO10 Video Blogging month might of actually contained some useful information! So I thought I'd pull a few of them out into their own posts. The two videos below mention how I use Dropbox. VLOMO10 Day 6: How I Use Dropbox ... VLOMO10 Day 8: Remote Working ... Related: Add Twitter to Posterous using Dropbox … [Read more...] about How I Use Dropbox
How to backup flickr
It's a sad reality that in recent times there has been talk about the stability of some online social services. Since Delicious determined that there is not a strategic fit at Yahoo! many flickr members are starting to think that this service may go the same way. I don't think flickr is going anywhere anytime soon, especially as it's a paid for service. However, it's always important to have an … [Read more...] about How to backup flickr
How to publish your RSS feed to twitter
Sometimes I'll motor along and grab the latest online tools available to solve problems. It's easy to forget that not everyone has their head stuck inside the arse end of the Internet and could use a nod or wink in the right direction when trying to solve their own problems. So here is a quick review on how I automatically publish blog content to a twitter account. Before you start moaning about … [Read more...] about How to publish your RSS feed to twitter
The Freebees Challenge
Last week I got one of those calls from Christian Payne, you know the ones where he tells you something really really interesting (and often hush hush) and then asks if there is anything you could do to help out ... no? - must just be me then ;) Anyways, it turned out he had agreed to travel from Lands End to John O'Groats - but get this, he has to do it with no money for travel, food, water … [Read more...] about The Freebees Challenge
Punkdog Label Designer
Head on over to http://www.punkdog.com/label-designer and have a go at creating your own customised beer label and order a few bottles ... Great as a gift, for a party or for Christmas! You can order as little as a 6 pack for £18.99. The online interface is quite nice, allowing you to name the beer and upload an image. Now who wouldn't want to drink from a bottle with my face on? ..... … [Read more...] about Punkdog Label Designer
Photoblog, Moblog, Microblog, Vlog …
I thought I would make a blog post about my experiences with the different types of blogging. So much has developed over 2008 for me and more and more great free online tools are available and getting better. It used to be that when I wanted to send a mobile pic or a message to my mates I'd use email with GSM data on my mobile phone. The ability to take a photo and send it to multiple … [Read more...] about Photoblog, Moblog, Microblog, Vlog …
Shared Hosting and SAN Servers
Re-seller hosting account: Once upon a time in early 2001, I signed up with Fasthosts and offered website hosting as a re-seller on a shared server with hundreds of other websites. The sites were managed only via a control panel. Dedicated Servers: The time came to move on from re-selling and a partnership was formed with another young Derby company to purchase our own 1U servers and … [Read more...] about Shared Hosting and SAN Servers
Yahoo PIPES
Yahoo Pipes is pretty amazing stuff and great for a visual person such as myself! ... Great for use with Flickr RSS feeds or with the Flickr API if you know a bit more about what you are doing! Basically I have used it to pull all my social media RSS feeds into one mashed up feed. Nothing new but this stuff is much more powerful than the basics I have worked with. Browse the Pipes directory for … [Read more...] about Yahoo PIPES
My Second Life
Pictures of my avatar in Second Life. Sadly, I haven't been 'in world' since the end of 2007 - maybe about the time my Flickr addiction took over! Anyway, I thought it would be good to document the stage of my avatar in 2007. I created skins and clothing in Photoshop using downloaded templates and applied them as skins in Second Life. The wings were bought from a shop in Second Life from a guy … [Read more...] about My Second Life
What happened to Mackney.com?
There has been a big change ... for years (since 1999) mackney.com has been a personal site with a personal profile and blog, but the time came to promote Mackney Photography as a business concern. My brother Simon Mackney started a photography business over seven years ago and ran it under simonmackney.co.uk. Now after a complete re-jig of usernames and online identity Mackney Photography is … [Read more...] about What happened to Mackney.com?