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I struggle with where to start when talking about the impact of computing on peoples lives. There have been a few stand out moments in my life where as an early adopter I have sat there thinking to myself OMFG this is going to change e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g! One of those moments was at Big Data London (BDL) 2023. After having FOMO following the event on LinkedIn I went to see what all the fuss was about and find out who the competition was for my fledgling little training busines

It is the middle of the first week of GCSEs for most 16 year olds. I've been transported back to both1999, when I sat my GSCEs, and 2010 when my firstborn arrived. It does not feel like a different chapter, it feels like a different book. With all the focus suddenly on grades, I have awarded myself an 'alright' score in educating my kids about the power and pit falls of the internet, upon which all our computers now thrive. Obviously, every day is school day when it comes th

The recent trend for turning yourself into a neon shell-suit wearing 1980s fashion victim made me look back at one of my personal favourite photos of that era. I reckon that I am three years old here. The dress I'm wearing I also wore to my other nannas 60th birthday in the April of 1986. Look at those hair dos. My beautiful trendy cousins were fully embracing the styles this time without a neon fire hazard or leg warmer in sight. Tie and sharp suits for my Grandad and Uncle.

How fussy are you about people addressing you with your desired name? I have noticed that people who have an unusual or hard to pronounce name talk about how this has impacted their identity and become a defining part of their character. I empathise with them! Whilst my name wasn't hard to pronounce or unusual, the fact that my maiden name was more widely recognised as a first name was a topic of much fascination. There were the people who just double barrelled it and called

Living in a dormer bungalow means that you have very limited storage. We effectively live in the attic with a traveling convoy of utility boxes full of 'stuff that needs sorting' that tours around the house. Occasionally one or two boxes make it into the boot of a car labelled charity only to return into the main thoroughfare because the charity shops are full and are not taking donations. Back it the hallway they pose a tripping hazard for weeks at a time, collecting sweet

There were very few Jennifer's in my school and none in my family. Numbers do not lie. Jennifer was not a popular name. I was always on the look out for reasons that my name - pronounced Jenny-fur in south Manchester and very differently to Jen-if-fa in north Manchester - wasn't a universal sign that I was a minority, outsider, destined always to be be a misfit. During primary school there was a whole term focused on the industrial revolution and I think it was the first

The irony of my Dad's Alzheimer diagnosis is that I don't really remember how I learned about it. There was not a sit down session where I was briefed about it. There were no tell tale signs that dad had this hideous disease plaquing over his mind. By the time I had realised the enormity of what might come with this co-incidental diagnosis, I was grateful that it had been picked up early. Hopeful that there might be a cure before my dad reached the stage of no return. That wa