The data is free - now what?

What will the freeing up of Government data by data.gov.uk mean? Jonathan Akwue has an idea...

Google stands up to China, but Twitter is the big winner

The world of digital and social media was rocked on Tuesday night when the Internet search engine giant Google announced that it would no longer be censoring its search results in China...

What's the real impact of Social Media?

Is social media really changing the face of business and public services? Where are the best examples of its use? And most importantly - is there life after Twitter?

Surely you must know by now?

It seems like everyone is making their own version of ‘Shift Happens’ these days. As I blogged recently, these animated videos are now being used to promote books, or as in the case above, conferences.

The New World Order of Social Networking

The power of social networking and its impact on society has been highlighted in a forthcoming book by Erik Qualman, Socialnomics.

High Speed Breakdown

We've become used to it being there anytime, anyplace and almost anywhere. The answer to every question instantly accessible at the tap of a button, but what happens when it something goes wrong? What happens when there isn't any Internet? I'm not talking about the domestic irritant when your laptop won't connect, I'm talking about half a continent losing its connection to the web.

Rebooting Britain from the Bottom Up

Much has been written, blogged and Tweeted about NESTA’s Reboot Britain event that took place earlier this month. The fact that #Reboot Britain nearly overtook #Michael Jackson as the most tweeted phrase on Twitter reveals what happens when you get 700 of the UK’s digerati in one place at one time.

Broadband as important as water

A recent face-to-face survey with 2000 people across the UK alongside 16 focus groups, comprised of both the digitally savvy through to those who don't even own a mobile, has uncovered that 73% of them now consider the provision of broadband to be as essential as the supply of gas, electricity and water. Undertaken by the Communications Consumer Panel set up to advise Government and Ofcom on the UK population’s communications needs, the research is a timely snapshot of the universal view on digital connectivity.

Social Media is not yet invisible

With all the stories in the media about Gordon Brown’s appearances on YouTube (see above) and Prince Charles on MySpace, I was reminded of the quote by Clay Shirky...

The History of the Future

Ever wondered how we got here? Who recommended what, and when? Who said mobile phones were the future, and narrowband was out? Ross Ferguson, Interactive Services Manager at the Central Office of Information and prolific blogger on all sorts of media and public sector related subjects, has very kindly compiled an extremely comprehensive list of almost every paper worth reading on the government’s digital engagement policies dating back to 2001.