By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
I actually am not under delusions of grandeur that anyone other than maybe my sweetie of a wife cares much about my travels from here to there. (Aside to Robbie: Hi Babe, I’m now at Ian and Mary Reid’s house, using Mary’s PC while she and Ian are off to a Council meeting in the Royal Borough of Kingston.) My rationale is twofold:
1. I’m trying to get a better understanding of the strengths and limitations of moblogging, since many (most?) civic leaders are constantly out and about. They may have more opportunities to do some quick blogging than they realize. Can blogging simple text messages and photos from a camera-equipped mobile phone be effective for anything other than novelty?
2. I’m trying to understand the limitations of the UK’s telecommunications infrastructure for moblogging as I may become involved in a project this summer which will require blogging from rural areas, one end of the country to the other. More to come about this later.
And more to come about moblogging as I learn. In the meantime, watch out for the occasional trivial travel alerts.
By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
Now in surbiton. I am hungry!
By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
On the underground on the way to surbiton as i missed my connecting train.
By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
1pm. On train to london to have dinner with mary & ian reid in kingston.
By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
My reflections on using a project weblog, resulting from my discussions yesterday at the University of Manchester with Ian Robertson and colleagues. What could be the benefits and limitations of using a blog to keep project partners and project stakeholders engaged through frequent, first-person accounts of the project's developments, setbacks, milestones, surprises, successes?
Click play to listen. Time: 4:34. Subscribe to podcast or subscribe via iTunes.
By Griff Wigley, on March 28th, 2006
 
After our meetings at the Univ. of Manchester yesterday, Ian Robertson and I took the bus to Rochdale where he's a Councillor. The town hall in Rochdale is amazingly ornate. Ian told me that local legend has it that Adolf Hitler didn't bomb Rochdale because he wanted to take the town hall back to Germany brick by brick had he won the war. Click the photos to enlarge and see this page for more details on the legend.
I made a brief presentation about blogging to Leader Allen Brett and several other councillors. They're interested but of course, they're all focused on the upcoming elections in the near term.
By Griff Wigley, on March 27th, 2006
I am back from manchester but too late for the only wifi access around.
Back to the mobile phone.
More in the morn.
By Griff Wigley, on March 27th, 2006
While I'm in the UK, one way to reach me is to text message my cell/mobile phone via this email address: 5073195541@tmomail.net.
If you’re in the US, it’s still a local call to reach me: 507.319.5541.
If you’re in the UK, then it’s long distance: 00-1-507.319.5541.
By Griff Wigley, on March 27th, 2006
This morning I met at the University of Manchester with Ian Robertson (left) and Bob Snowdon (right) in the School of Computer Science's Informatics Process Group, and Peter Kawalek (center) and Martin Cahill (not pictured) at the Manchester Business School.
They're collaborating on the the national project called TALK (Transferring Across Local Knowledge) and are considering how to use weblogs and other social networking tools for both the project and as tools to help transfer knowledge of the innovators/early adopters on any project to the later adopters. Click photo to enlarge.
By Griff Wigley, on March 26th, 2006
 It's about 4 pm and I'm in the British Airways business lounge, waiting for a standby flight to Manchester. I probably won't get on, but I have a flight at 7.
It was 150 pounds vs about 60 for the train. But it would have taken me about 6 hours via train (Heathrow to Paddington Station and then 5 hours to Manchester).
This should be the last of the self-portraits. I'll spare you the enlargement this time.
By Griff Wigley, on March 26th, 2006
 
Left: On Friday, my daughter Gillian (2nd from left) got on a bus with her Americorps colleagues to spend a week in New Orleans cleaning up homes hit by Katrina.
Right: I'm in the Amsterdam airport this morning (at the laptop bar), waiting for my connecting flight to London Heathrow where I'll then catch a (long) train to Manchester. (I tried to change my flight to fly directly into Manchester but it was too pricey.)
Tomorrow (Monday), I've got two appointments in Manchester, courtesy of new ReadMyDay blogger Ian Robertson. He's a member of the Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council and has arranged a 5 pm gathering with council colleagues and staff.
In the morning, I'm meeting him at his day job where he's a Research Fellow in the Informatics Process Group at the University of Manchester's School of Computer Science.
He wrote to me: "I have become involved in the very last national project. It is TALK (Transferring Across Local Knowledge). In the context of the national projects it is looking at ways to transfer the knowledge of the innovators/early adopters to the later adopters. One of the approaches mooted is weblogs. (others are communities of practice, workshops etc)."
By Griff Wigley, on March 18th, 2006
I've set up a web message board to host discussion forums on learning leadership blogging for clients. First up: the ReadMyDay U.K. project.
Register anytime and when I see your registration come through, I'll assign you to a forum that's specific to your role. While you're waiting, post a note in the online Pub and order up a refreshment.
By Griff Wigley, on March 15th, 2006
I recorded this via my cell phone this afternoon on my way to the Twin Cities. I blogged it when I returned home.
Subject: How to personalize your written blog entry or audioblog without being an ego maniac.
Click play to listen. Time: 4:05. Subscribe to podcast or subscribe via iTunes.
By Griff Wigley, on March 15th, 2006
I'm heading to the Twin Cities this afternoon and may be moblogging some photos and audio.
I'm meeting with Tim Erickson, Politalk who's also been doing local edemocracy work in the UK, primarily focused on ISSUES forums.
I've visiting with some communications people in the state judicial branch about blogging.
And I'm doing a little socializing with former gofastians Mike O'Connor, Ralph Jenson and their network of beer-guzzling techies and tech wannabes.
By Griff Wigley, on March 10th, 2006
 While I'm in the UK (I depart two weeks from tomorrow), I'll be presenting a workshop at the local e-gov EXPO National Conference and Exhibition in London on April 5-6.
Tentative title:
Leadership Blogging & Podcasting: How to use weblogs and podcasts as effective local leadership tools.
I don't yet know how much time I'll have but I'm guessing it'll be an hour. My plan is to briefly cover:
- Benefits of blogging and podcasting for local leaders
- Broad topic categories to include
- Effective blogging and podcasting techniques
- Promoting one's blog/podcast
- Tech tips
|
|
|
Comments are closed 
