All mouth and trousers

It is a description that was commonplace around our way when I was growing up.
My grandparents were fond of saying: “He’s all mouth and trousers” to provide a less than flattering summing up of a local politician who wasn’t anywhere near as good as he thought he was.
Although it has its origins in the North of [...]

Shabby Brum, shadowy software, dodgy signs and a punch drunk pony

After what appears to have been a very successful Blog Action Day, both globally and locally, everything is back to “normal” today:
Terry Grimley is not enjoying the view from the top deck of the No.50 bus as it makes its way from Moseley to the Digbeth (sorry, Eastside) area of Birmingham.
I always enjoy Terry’s knowledgeable and [...]

Hedgehog or fox, Wispas, lad mags and the filthy rich

Start the week with a round-up.
Le Craic asks an interesting question about your blog – is it a hedgehog or a fox?
I’ve always seen myself as a badger.
Cadbury has announced it will relaunch the Wispa bar for good after 20 million were sold in seven weeks during a trial run last year.
The decision follows online campaigns, [...]

Wordscraper, tar sands, British Gas Fail and an old joke

After being out of action yesterday for purely romantic reasons, here’s what I’ve been catching up on.
Scrabulous in the US and Canada is dead. Long live Wordscraper.
The not-really-Scrabble online game pulled by Facebook after legal threats from Hasbro has re-emerged with a different name.
Jayant and Rajat Agarwalla – two Calcutta-based software developers – agreed to [...]

Facebook “friends”, privacy, piracy, house building and city living

I’m still in a round-up kind of mood, so here goes for today.
A businessman who was the subject of fake profiles on Facebook, created by a former schoolfriend, has won a £22,000 libel case.
Know your enemies, perhaps, but make sure you know your Facebook “friends” too.
Staying with the courts, Max Moseley has won a not exactly [...]

Talking with the man from Coca-Cola

A face-to-face meeting has now taken place between Simon Berry and senior representatives of Coca-Cola at the firm’s European HQ in Brussels regarding the aid distribution idea.
Simon has written up a full account of his meeting here.
Yet more positive outcomes and the momentum Simon has built up via Facebook, his own blog and other bloggers [...]

Coca-Cola aid campaign – its good to talk

Yet more encouraging news from Simon Berry, who is spearheading the campaign to get Coca-Cola to use their distribution muscle to provide basic aid to communities in developing countries.
Simon has held a conference with senior representative of Coca-Cola and received some positive feedback.
The next step is a planned face-to-face meeting between Simon and the company’s [...]

Social networking – friend or foe?

Nine out of ten people want specific guidelines for the media on the use of personal information published online.
According to the study carried out by the Press Complaints Commission, 89% of those questioned believe clear regulations were necessary and would help them more easily seek redress if material is wrong or intrusive.
Concerns about the amount of [...]

Coca-Cola aid campaign – sing the song

Yet further news from Simon Berry regarding the campaign he launched to persuade Coca-Cola to start delivering aid along their bottles of fizzy pop.
Eve Graham, who sang the original I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing which was subsequently used in Coke’s worldwide TV ads, has rewritten the lyrics to fit in with the [...]

The man from Coca-Cola says: “Let’s chat”

Excellent news from Simon Berry, the man who has set up the Facebook group calling on Coca-Cola to use their distributions channels to get basic medical aid to developing countries.
The company’s Global Director for Stakeholder Relations has suggested a “chat” with Simon regarding the idea.
No promises, no bold pledges. But that was never likely.
A foot in [...]