tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-368647342012-01-05T15:42:45.750-08:00Thesockmannoreply@blogger.comBlogger1431100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-10485907552863725762012-01-05T15:42:00.000-08:002012-01-05T15:42:45.757-08:00

So, there's lots to take into account when comparing alarm systems, the people at AMCO - the Alarm Monitoring Company - have been doing a series of blog posts comparing their monitored alarms with other alarms companies. In their latest blog they've written a blog about Minster alarms, and written up a comparison of why the AMCO alarm is better than the Minster alarm. Read the Minster Alarm

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-17724762629431363312012-01-03T15:29:00.000-08:002012-01-03T15:29:05.365-08:00

There's loads of choices for house burglar alarms in London, but possibly one of the best alternatives to Banham alarms is the AMCO monitored alarm system from the Alarm Monitoring Company. AMCO have written a whole blog post about why their home alarm is better than Banham's.  Most of the reasons are based around the fact that their alarm's are cheaper but offer better security - which is a

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-24591629837078418602012-01-01T15:32:00.000-08:002012-01-01T15:32:01.688-08:00

Security for lone workers and single manning in shops, pubs and newsagents is a fairly big issue for companies, so it's interesting to read about the Alarm Monitoring Company's lone worker security solutions. For more info, check out a video and article about their lone worker security systems here.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-90182964882238053962011-09-27T07:16:00.000-07:002011-09-27T07:16:49.624-07:00

We're always looking to grow our team, and have recently added a number of new people to our team including Nathan. Nathan's based in Yorkshire, but will be trained up work in the London area as initially an alarm engineer and then in the future as a manager of the London and South East region. This means we really hope to expand as an alarm company in London. We're also hoping to expand the

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-45273895907659362362011-08-22T14:55:00.000-07:002011-08-22T14:58:55.540-07:00

Helping with my father's alarm company, I recently helped write a guide to buying a home alarm system. The guide's been written from the perspective of someone completely new to buying alarms, but also someone without huge amounts of time on their hands - so gives 7 quick tips as to what to look out for. To check out the guide, visit the Alarm Monitoring Company's website here - and view the

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-31384713836307014952011-04-28T03:54:00.001-07:002011-04-28T03:54:50.526-07:00

So I've been writing tips about what to do with a home alarm for a while now. My latest but of advice is to make sure you get a monitored home alarm, rather than a standard "bells only" alarm. This is important as if you don't have monitoring, then it's likely that no one will react to your alarm when it goes off - which isn't great.Here's a great story from the Daily Mail about an alarm going

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-86319061354354422022010-12-14T12:03:00.000-08:002010-12-14T12:04:41.220-08:00

So I've recently been helping my father launch a new campaign for his burglar alarm company called the Ultimate Alarm project which is designed to find the best burglar alarm system in the world!Anyway, check it out - as it's a great competition that's going to be running for a good few months now!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-90985389736599923602010-11-14T13:17:00.000-08:002010-11-14T13:19:22.504-08:00

p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px} People who own ADT monitored alarms will no doubt be facing direct debit increases in the new year, as the government increases VAT levies around the UK. Of course, if you're looking for cheaper alarm monitoring, then change your ADT direct

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-26599178853740338302010-09-23T00:22:00.000-07:002010-09-23T00:24:43.603-07:00

There are loads of alarm companies in the UK - some big, some small - all of whom offer similar (ish) alarm systems.There is one - however - which is truly awesome. This burglar alarm company is called the Alarm Monitoring Company, which offers specialist monitored alarm systems.The greatest thing about the Alarm Monitoring company's alarm systems is that they're intereactive - meaning that once

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-19522548182731468462010-09-01T10:23:00.000-07:002010-09-01T10:25:43.014-07:00

It's great to hear that the Alarm Monitoring Company has now opened a Central London office in Soho providing Alarm Monitoring services.They've written a blog about this - which you can check out here!Whoop Whoop!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-72529148381293914202010-07-26T16:22:00.000-07:002010-07-26T16:24:29.767-07:00

The Sock Man blog is possibly the finest (and most interesting) sock blog in the western world. Stand back and marvel at the wonders of this blog about socks from the founder of SocksforSir.comOther blogs of interest in this space include The Sartorialist.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-76661256817145192652010-03-31T00:54:00.000-07:002010-03-31T00:55:30.273-07:00

This is a really neat and nice quick introduction to how to make games on Twitter. It's great for beginners who want to make games on Twitter and have some fun! Check it out and see what you think. All notes were taken from SXSW.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-84310093816153662872010-03-07T03:11:00.000-08:002010-03-07T03:14:35.514-08:00

So this is a great new burglar alarm and CCTV offers page we've just launched, offering discounts on our monitored alarm systems and alarm monitoring.For other news, check out the BBC newsCheck it out + spread the word! The Vouchers are worth up to £150+ each - so there's huge savings to be made!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-30731916963755362342010-02-04T15:42:00.000-08:002010-02-04T15:44:56.312-08:00

So here's a few tips on what's the best monitored alarm system in Manchester and Leeds!It's great to know that you've got security 24/7 via monitored alarm systems.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-70068405589001540732010-01-26T04:19:00.000-08:002010-01-26T04:21:44.685-08:00

From our friends at the Viral Ad Network - who serve up our viral ads to the right - check out their tips on how to guarantee views of a viral video.Really interesting stuff if I do say it myself!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-23617529809310546352010-01-24T05:56:00.000-08:002010-01-24T06:03:11.187-08:00

So it looks as though our work is working! We've just created a Chubb alarm comparison page on my Dad's alarm company website. AMCO has now become the best alternative to Chubb, so have a look!Of course AMCO's security systems are much better than Chubb alarms, so this Chubb security system comparison for alternatives is v.useful!If you want to read about other news, then check out the BBC news

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-7314680884989985522010-01-22T04:04:00.000-08:002010-01-22T04:06:03.409-08:00

So we've been working on a project for the European Parliament for a while now and it's just launched!It's called Euro Academy - and is a series of European Citizenship teacher's resources, aimed at teaching European Citizenship in the classroom.There's loads of stuff on the site - including detail of lifelong learning opportunities.The main resource we've created is called Crisis Point - and the

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-6087996416145973102010-01-13T16:20:00.000-08:002010-01-13T16:24:36.701-08:00

I'm back on my hobby-horse debate of who provides the best security - which alarms compare / in a comparison are the best. So this is a great post comparing ADT or Secom or Chubb or AMCO. Of course the alarm monitoring company wins - as they provide the best monitored alarms!Hobby-horse rant over!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-85027684061726056972009-12-06T12:40:00.000-08:002009-12-06T12:42:44.482-08:00

Is modern art art? Is modern art good art? So many questions are asked about modern art these days - as it's such a emotive issue that everyone has a position on. This is a great breakdown to the background arguments around the great modern art debates. Check them out!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-16259509110593641452009-12-06T12:10:00.000-08:002009-12-06T12:12:30.860-08:00

I came across this Monty Python argument sketch which is fricking hilarious + really spot on when it comes to defining what an argument is!Gets me every time I watch it!Watch the Monty Python sketch here!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-17806481512884882482009-12-05T16:13:00.000-08:002009-12-05T16:16:28.030-08:00

I've always been interested in arguing and debate. So the question of what is an argument - i.e. what's the definition of an argument is a question I find fascinating.I did philosophy at university - so studied formal logic and the like - however we didn't really talk about defining arguments .Anyway, I'm on a hunt for the real definition - and hopefully should be able to reveal it soon!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-44091173129645391182009-12-05T15:13:00.000-08:002009-12-05T15:17:05.488-08:00

I've always been interested in debate - and so of the last few years have been developing something called "aMap" - which is short for argument map - and is a form of debate.We launched aMap last year - and since it's really started to take off - especially as in the US, middle school debates are a big them and so our aMap software is pocket argument guides are proving really popular . ..If

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-56485021942405521872009-12-05T15:12:00.000-08:002009-12-05T15:13:18.024-08:00

Critical thinking worksheets are pretty useful if you're a teacher. If found this critical thinking worksheet particularly interesting and useful as it's FREE and made by the nice people at aMap - the guys who specialise in argument mapping and debate and critical thinking. All round clever guys!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-37034892647255201362009-10-27T12:17:00.000-07:002009-10-27T12:19:47.788-07:00

Me and Catherine (well Catherine mostly) made a scary pumpkin for outside our house! Check it out (it's designed to scare off burglars!)

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-64563592328178451442009-09-15T13:50:00.001-07:002009-09-15T13:56:32.776-07:00

Critical thinking is an interesting subject.So I've been developing a series of critical thinking teaching resources to help A-level (and other) teachers. In particular it's a developing arguments teacher's pack.I've also developed up a guide to Aristotle's Rhetoric - to help newbie's understand the basics around Aristotle.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-88885929157509293872009-09-10T15:14:00.000-07:002009-09-10T15:17:14.908-07:00

So I wrote this piece the other day on critical thinking, detailing what it is, why it's relevant and why it's useful.I still can't believe you can take a whole A-level in critical thinking, as frankly it's a bit of a thin subject - however, I do think it's incredibly important, and of course argument mapping and argument maps can really help visualise your thoughts.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-11266389861257254132009-09-01T14:46:00.000-07:002009-09-01T14:51:41.427-07:00

I've been helping my father with his security company marketing a bit recently - giving him some tips - one of which is to write more blog articles.So to kick things off, I've written one for him on 5 reasons why his alarm systems are the best monitored alarm systems, and why his is the best UK alarm monitoring provider.I've also started helping share around his selection of videos on monitored

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-969178981437164822009-08-13T01:52:00.000-07:002009-08-13T01:58:03.336-07:00

So we've been helping our friends at Channel 4 re-launch 4mations as the UK leading animation blog. It's been kinda hard work, however it's all coming together. The 4mations animation blog now features things like animation reviews, animation shorts, tips on how to get an animation commissioned on TV, how to make a good animation showreel, and also a list of UK animation festivals.The list of

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-82124863382095488952009-07-27T11:03:00.001-07:002009-07-27T11:03:43.220-07:00

So, at the moment as a I'm helping my father's company (the alarm monitoring company), which has been a bit of a slow process, largely as I've been doing it my spare time.Anyway, so far I've managed to update his monitored security website, and developed some videos on YouTube that explain how monitored alarms work.So far the strategy seems to be working, as sales have started flooding(ish) in -

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-27056762562765498462009-07-17T10:04:00.001-07:002009-07-17T10:04:47.281-07:00

According to the UK Government's British Crime Survey,break-ins increased by four per cent between July and September lastyear compared to the previous year, just as the economy went in tomeltdown.There were 69,700 burglaries during the third quarter of last year - up four per cent on the same period in 2007.There were also 4,207 robberies involving knives - a rise of 18 percent - and 43,800

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-5957006003742571672009-06-27T05:44:00.001-07:002009-06-27T05:44:38.581-07:00

I randomly came across this lecture by Beth Noveck for the Stamford University Human Computer Interaction Seminar entitled "Technologies for collaborative democracy". Once she'd got over the introductory bits of her presentation of various e-democracy projects from around the world (which covered the usual Downing Street e-Petition stuff), she went on to make some really interesting

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-90128168387597219672009-06-23T02:01:00.001-07:002009-06-23T02:01:39.195-07:00

The most exciting new place to sell aMaps is Ampleforth College and Monastery (my old school).  The "Does God exist?" aMap title was mostly inspired by my Theology lessons with Fr Timothy, so am super pleased that the Ampleforth shop is now stocking them.When I was up in Yorkshire this weekend I popped into Ampleforth and managed to get this photo of Fr Hugh posing next to the fresh stock of

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-58082071332302961452009-06-19T04:06:00.001-07:002009-06-19T04:06:02.930-07:00

We've been helping Paramount with their latest campaign for the launch of the new Transformers film.It's a waaaaay complicated campaign - based around robot conspiracy sightings across the world.  So to explain all in a bit more detail, here's a sneaky-peak at the whole campaign back story . . .In the past couple of weeks, there's been a surge in sightings of mysterious robots in cities and

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-78795995978137935622009-06-16T11:16:00.001-07:002009-06-16T11:16:31.443-07:00

After a couple of months of sorting out point of sale plans for aMap - and most importantly, sorting out the "call to action" messaging, we're ready to take aMap into shops!(Huge thanks to Russell and Ollie for sorting the PoS designs.)The most recent shop to stock aMap is the Aarnolfini bookshop in Bristol - which is v.exciting.  So far they've been selling aMaps without our super-newly designed

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-7804720596740379582009-06-16T09:45:00.001-07:002009-06-16T09:45:16.654-07:00

The guys at Ogilvy London have just released this new making-of video, showing the behind the scenes trickery involved in their latest viral campaign for BP Ultimate.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC65f5UdyU8Having worked on helping seed the campaign over the last few weeks it was a real eye-opener to get an insight in to how exactly they did manage to shoot a group of people carrying a car

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-52041568794082054212009-06-15T12:15:00.001-07:002009-06-15T12:15:53.789-07:00

Am loving this idea from Comet . . . they're offering free charging points for electric cars at their stores.  Or at least they're planning to - starting with a pilot scheme at their Purley Way store (Croyden)Check out the Reg's coverage here: http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2009/06/11/comet_e_power/I love the idea from a business model perspective - essentially turning Comet into a 21st Century

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-58586035830975586112009-06-14T04:00:00.001-07:002009-06-14T04:00:29.427-07:00

Amusing + insightful new film out of the VCCP for the Home Office's new anti-binge drinking campaign

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-74938287516234531602009-06-13T08:17:00.000-07:002009-06-13T08:18:30.164-07:00

As a digitalista this made me smile - especially the line "Algorithms got me crossed eyed"!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-79474086974068353482009-04-15T11:53:00.001-07:002009-04-15T11:53:01.891-07:00

It’s interesting to see how people are using Twitter - and how it fits into the history of social media. It can’t be more than 3 years ago now that people (including Yahoo) were getting all hot and bothered about a new internet phenomenon called Delicious. Apparently we were all going to turn into a social search engine - where people usurped technology and instead of relying on other Google

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-7146895840392102222009-04-15T00:59:00.000-07:002009-04-15T01:00:28.834-07:00

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-39920080414579321502009-03-19T11:57:00.001-07:002009-03-19T12:00:17.158-07:00

We've just moved into a nice new office in the middle of Soho - which comes with an office must-have - yes that's right - floating fruit.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-727410280773177412009-03-13T04:47:00.000-07:002009-03-13T04:48:06.005-07:00

Sorry to do this again, but this has become a bit of a testing dumping ground . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-63430654547864781432009-01-21T03:04:00.000-08:002009-01-21T03:07:03.883-08:00

Testing continues . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-38388713913051923942009-01-14T01:16:00.000-08:002009-01-14T01:18:32.876-08:00

This is a great new viral from Cutwater in the US for Rayban. Is a really sweet little idea that makes you feel that nice warm happy feeling that in my opinion all great advertising should and which leads to the sharing thing . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-13834527255660713962009-01-08T14:52:00.000-08:002009-01-08T14:54:27.146-08:00

Finally - after many many months of toil - the aMap website is up and working - well nearly. There's some last tweaks to do - but it's 99% there. hurrah!Here's a test demo of the widget

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-26680844632977380362009-01-07T04:00:00.000-08:002009-01-07T04:01:40.759-08:00

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-54973389855915572292008-12-28T06:07:00.000-08:002008-12-28T06:08:39.712-08:00

Check out this fun vid featuring grannies (and other unsuspecting members of the public) shaking their booty as part of a hip hop vid. Kinda amusing and slightly random . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-65927636332052475342008-12-17T11:57:00.000-08:002008-12-17T11:59:09.944-08:00

Don't they look great! Am v.chuffed with them. + the aMap site should be ready for the end of the week . . . hurrah!Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-75507659360679301192008-12-15T16:21:00.000-08:002008-12-15T16:24:50.995-08:00

So it's Christmas - the time of mistetoe, wine and . . . err, socks. And unfortunately for a sock company we've already run out of certain lines of socks - which is proving annoying for some of our customers (and us!)So we apologise to our various customers for letting them down - however we promise a more varied and sock-filled new year!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-89730413388335818832008-12-15T11:35:00.000-08:002008-12-15T11:39:39.486-08:00

We finally received the first batch of printed aMaps. The only slight snag is that we now have 10,000 aMaps and 10,000 covers to put them in. Work was started straight-away last week in a team meeting. Who said men can't multi-task!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-36898962362646121232008-12-03T05:13:00.000-08:002008-12-03T05:19:20.292-08:00

Over the last 18 months we've been slowly developing our ad network - what we call the Viral Ad Network. So it's nice to see it come together, and get a point where I can actually have my own ads showing on my own blog!Thanks to wunder-Tim that's exactly what I have! Adios sh*t Google ads - bonjour viral ads.To get viral ads for your site - visit ViralAdNetwork.net

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-46385153402061834382008-12-01T02:41:00.000-08:002008-12-01T02:42:17.844-08:00

Introducing, Pablo the drug-mule dog . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-65017335990032542882008-11-19T14:27:00.000-08:002008-11-19T14:32:17.762-08:00

So things are starting to get exciting again with my aMap project. Things had slowed down due to me being away in the US + then having a bit of a barcode trauma, however since my return I've been stepping things up.The latest edition to the aMap publishing empire is the interactive aMap widget that the nice people at Thought Den have been helping me build. So far they've built a prototype

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-48305116413532231862008-11-04T22:40:00.000-08:002008-11-04T22:42:16.956-08:00

I've just come back from the election celebrations outside the Whitehouse which were absolutely crazy - a kinda mix between a Take That concert - crowds of adoring fans screaming uncontrollably - and a football match - with choruses of chants.The chants and screams seemed largely dictated by the presence of TV cameras. Every time a camera light was switched on the baying crowds erupted on cue

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-84538091214621712482008-10-21T01:39:00.000-07:002008-10-21T01:42:55.183-07:00

Some photos of me and Catherine's wine-making bonanza. Chateau Nealden anyone will be coming to all good (or more likely bad) wine shops in about 9 months time . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-6410879260388286132008-10-13T10:33:00.000-07:002008-10-13T10:48:24.178-07:00

My weekend was chocked full of 30th b-day parties. I randomly ended up at an old friend's party on Friday in Fulham, and Saturday was dedicated to Mr Barda's el grande party - in which he'd organised to play a gig at (Mr B's a drummer).Sunday was spent hanging out with Max - and dressing him up in shades. Dogs in sunglasses never fail to disappoint . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-7708633791668910722008-10-12T05:12:00.000-07:002008-10-12T05:14:16.695-07:00

When I was a kid one of the things I always dreamt of was owning my own sweet shop - not the most original or ambitious of dreams for an 8 year old kid. I still kinda have this dream - though on a boring economic-level I don't really see how the money-side stacks up . . . I've never seen a Porsche-driving sweet shop owner . . .So it's nice that Cadbury have created 'the Dairy Milk factory' - a

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-451197678638729732008-10-12T04:50:00.000-07:002008-10-12T04:55:30.755-07:00

This summer we've grown soooo much food from our lovely Brixton mini-garden. The biggest yielders (and winners from my perspective) have been our runner beans and tomatoes. In second place come lettuce and spinach.Growing your own food is such a great feeling - and super low cost. Especially when you look at the cost of things like lettuce and tommy ts in supermarkets.Role on the Good Life . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-20803064135026516012008-10-10T11:28:00.000-07:002008-10-10T11:33:59.190-07:00

My dad's kinda obsessed by flying and the war - to the extent that 20 years back he set up a war-themed restaurant chain called the Bunker - which was run out of our house cellar (it was a kinda big cellar!).Anyway, his latest plan is to buy a Spitfire - so he can live-out his boyhood fantasies - pretending to blast Gerry out of the skies . . . The only problem is Spitfires cost £250k! Serious

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-23606309710497405702008-10-10T05:59:00.000-07:002008-10-10T06:05:28.883-07:00

So, amongst the many things I spend the days in my life merrily doing is help run a e-consultation company called Delib.A lot of the work we do is really very high-brow (or high brow compared to most things in my life), however at the mo we're doing a really nice project for the BBC Trust.What I like most about our e-consultation work, is that a major part of it is aimed at trying to shake up (

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-66504538138994075092008-09-11T00:41:00.001-07:002008-09-11T00:42:11.441-07:00

Need I say more . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-44292485422847462592008-09-04T15:04:00.000-07:002008-09-04T15:29:43.959-07:00

We've just done a mini re-brand for our Opinion research company Delib. It's not a major move, as over the last 12 months we've been slowly repositioning ourselves away from the e-democracy market, as it was clear people (and importantly clients) didn't get what "e-democracy" was.So as good listeners, we've done the do, and moved on to the heady lands of opinion research. It's nice to be

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-43177592598341301322008-09-04T00:02:00.000-07:002008-09-04T00:07:29.453-07:00

Am back from France now. Which is a good and bad thing. Bad because the weather was amazing, and pool-side blogging was getting addictive. Good because the pool had actually gone green, and I'm slightly embarrassed about managing to turn our back lawn brown (by covering it with weed / grass killer).

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-15900561504606310442008-08-31T16:08:00.001-07:002008-08-31T16:10:50.808-07:00

I'm in la belle France ce moment. I jetted (albeit via Ryanair) off to Pau from Bristol on Friday soir, and have been sunning myself, building bridges, watering plants, swimming in our green swimming pool ever since.Oh, and I've been finishing off my final aMap content for the first 5 launch maps - which I'm trying to push out the door ready for Christmas.

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-28198843736291177162008-08-27T16:45:00.000-07:002008-08-27T16:50:19.205-07:00

I discovered the joys of a new site called Animoto, which let's you quickly and easily create your own videos.It's a great idea, and well executed, and is should be super-useful for making promo vids for TeamRubber's various software products.Here's a first attempt at a promo for Opinion Tracker (which we use for online opinion research). . . errrr, in fact I can't work out how to embed the film,

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-67563467654440068312008-08-27T16:36:00.000-07:002008-08-27T16:44:07.244-07:00

Bank holiday was spent on the Devon / Dorset borders - in the heart of Fearnley-Whittingstall country.Catherine and I were staying at Sam's (one of Catherine's friends from uni) cottage which was a thatched number with a rambling garden and rambling views.The highlight of the weekend was definitely Mackerel fishing, followed by lunch at Hix's Oyster and Fish House in Lyme Regis. I'd never been

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-13162411556737327172008-08-19T10:47:00.000-07:002008-08-19T10:48:00.149-07:00

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-82651823537110368832008-08-18T08:19:00.000-07:002008-08-18T08:21:05.479-07:00

The daddy of dance re-mixes . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-57799982904791367832008-08-18T00:01:00.000-07:002008-08-18T00:06:52.598-07:00

Britain may have won 17 medals at the Olympics, but the real sporting story of the weekend was the Laggers victory over Grayswood (@ Sunday League cricket).I scored a fairly swift 19 (including 2 6's) . . . though the opposition did consist of a 12 yearold (albeit a 12 yearold County player). Still victory is victory, even we were 3 times their age . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-37703691028010896042008-08-13T00:56:00.000-07:002008-08-13T01:01:23.713-07:00

Yesterday I popped by Mrs Kibble's sweet shop on Brewer Street. A bag of lemon bonbons and midget gems later, I was buzzing around the office in a kid-like frenzy. mmmmmmmmm

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-40487535928645835212008-08-11T11:51:00.001-07:002008-08-11T12:00:47.394-07:00

Spent the last weekend oooop North, at my folks house (see photo of the blissfully silent Raskelf high street). The main reason for journeying North was to return my MG to its homeland (and to its nice cosy garage), however I've also had recent Northern cravings for Yorkshire puddings and cheap warm ale which needed sating.Food played a major part to our weekend: Saturday lunch @ Norman in Leeds

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-55564842801882235252008-08-08T09:05:00.000-07:002008-08-08T09:14:17.678-07:00

My fellow TeamRubber Director Andy finally got delivery of his new shiny 3-wheeled Indian death-trap - otherwise known as a Tuk Tuk. Given it has no doors, and has "lay a turd in the back as a funny student / tramp joke" written all over it, Kirk has set up a sweep-stake based around when it will get either nicked or moved. I plumped for the first week of September . . .As I was down in Bristol

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-29971829376912575432008-08-02T03:14:00.000-07:002008-08-02T03:23:59.288-07:00

So a couple of months back me and Catherine went on a dirty (ish) weekend to Bristol (on the way to Catherine's great aunt's 90th birthday - rock n roll!). We spent a lovely night at the Hotel du Vin, and spent the rest of the day wondering around the streets of Brizzle.Bizarrely whilst sat on a bench by the docks a Swedish band called Mockingbird Wish me Luck turned up to shoot an impromtu

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-44609131270355937202008-07-29T12:44:00.000-07:002008-07-29T12:51:31.201-07:00

Amongst the millions of other things going on in my life at the mo, I'm attempting to develop up (and take to market) a new product called aMap. aMap's short for "argument map" and is a paper-based toy-thing that let's people explore the ins and outs of different arguments. Example arguments I'm exploring initially include "Does God exist?" and "Are Children worth it?".The difficulty in

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-59831125927357153142008-06-17T14:02:00.001-07:002008-06-17T14:04:33.190-07:00

Life's a bit hectic at the mo. Work's super busy. Apart from socks flying out of the door, all our businesses are flying. Delib's pushing out some great consultation work for a bunch of Councils and government departments. Rubberductions just delivered a great film for Sony Playstation. And Rubber Republic is launching viral campaigns for brands left right and centre.One of the biggest

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-18749592714819595632008-06-13T07:14:00.000-07:002008-06-13T07:17:57.955-07:00

My status of cricketing legend seems to be slowly diminishing . . . on Wednesday evening I played a v.fun 20/20 against Dennis Publishing. After my massive 58 at the end of last season I was invited to open the batting.A change of bat (a was initially given a school boy bat to play with), one six and two fours later I stupidly got myself out trying to slog a stupidly wide ball.Lesson learnt. I

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-77291812815656816702008-04-22T01:57:00.001-07:002008-04-22T02:00:09.130-07:00

We've just launched a new product for Delib called Opinion TrackerIn short, Opinion Tracker monitors what the general public are saying about different issues around the net (across forums, blogs, social networks etc.), and at the moment we've picked the London Mayoral elections to track.The results are pretty interesting, as they provide a guide to the underlying mood of people towards the

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-76813285504296260272008-04-16T03:10:00.001-07:002008-04-16T03:13:45.665-07:00

The cricket season's starting to crank up again this year, with our team drinks happening this Thursday.As a little reminder of my finest cricketing moment, check out this - the online team sheet for last year's match against Greyswood in which I scored a magnificent 58 - including 2 sixes!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-42789944179000445382008-04-15T01:21:00.000-07:002008-04-15T01:22:10.018-07:00

Life seems to get busier and busier by the day . . . meaning that blogging is getting pushed further and further back on the "to do" list.Exciting updates on the socks front include finally getting a taste of the Pantherella "Salmon" sock - which is a truly wonderful sock. Salmon will be featured in our Tutti-Frutti range, that we're cooking up at the mo.Also on the exciting front is the future

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-19854306482897803262008-03-06T13:43:00.000-08:002008-03-06T13:44:14.702-08:00

It seems that the year has only just started, but is of course a good two months in. It's been a super busy start mainly due to lots of exciting work stuff happening mixed with the delights of moving into a new flat with Catherine. There's also been trips away too - with v.fun trips to Iceland, Cornwall and France.With so much work comes an exhaustion, that has meant little opportunity to

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-72566567335623095232008-02-06T15:09:00.000-08:002008-02-06T15:13:04.282-08:00

I've been meaning to post about this for ages, but time being time, I never got round to it.Anyways, over the x-mas period I bought some Falke socks. I know, I know, it's a treacherous thing to do, but I did. And you know what . . . I regret it!On the surface Falke look good, and look like they're on a par with Pantherella, however after a month's road testing they're really not holding up (

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-65218744989150537102008-01-10T02:50:00.000-08:002008-01-10T02:52:31.913-08:00

With the help of the mighty brainy Tim W, we've been developing a viral video search engine, that helps find the best and most relevant viral videos around the internet.Called Viral Sauce, the viral video search mechanic we've developed relies on on some nifty algorithms.Hurrah for Rubber Republic (our viral marketing company)The system will be further developed over time, to enable us to easily

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-45209634875437888032008-01-09T15:29:00.000-08:002008-01-09T15:37:16.997-08:00

For all those who tune in for their daily fix of the Sockman blog - I apologise for the big paws . . . sadly I've been super busy with x-mas, moving house and of course work (packing socks).Now I've got the internet in my new pad in Brixton, I should be set for some regular posting - charting the trials and tribulations of a sock entrepreneur.Exciting things that happened in the last 4 weeks

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-55186271642984457462007-12-11T15:47:00.000-08:002007-12-11T15:58:20.251-08:00

It's always nice to see new ideas go from idea to reality. What I've realised over the years that it's fairly easy to realise an idea, however to realise an proper business idea (not just a concept) is much more difficult. That's what I've been doing with our aMap concept over the last 2 years.From the start aMap was always a good idea, and an idea that was fairly easy to turn into reality,

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-74002883747192542882007-12-06T15:27:00.000-08:002007-12-06T15:32:26.074-08:00

Just got back from the launch party of the latest Leon restaurant in Southwark. This latest restaurant is v.cool (as always) and well positioned behind the Tate + it's v.exciting to see Allegra's baby expanding across London. Hurroooo!Even more exciting is the fact that we're off skiing for a long weekend tomorrow (double hurrroooo!)You can check out the snoooo via webcam here

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-30289659844248999642007-12-02T11:57:00.001-08:002007-12-02T11:57:51.260-08:00

Being an entrepreneur and being ill at the same time in principle doesn't really work that well. I'd say that one of the keys to being a successful entrepreneur is boundless energy, and sadly one of the main attributes of being ill is the fact that the "ill" (whatever that is) saps your energy.So, having a bout of man-flu has really slowed me down over the last few days. Hey ho. On the upside

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-64837466341663788182007-11-25T05:46:00.000-08:002007-11-25T06:00:57.117-08:00

Socks seem to be flying out of the SocksforSir door at the mo. All very exciting. Especially for all those Pantherella lovers. For some reason people love buying socks at Christmas time. Maybe that's because as the weather gets colder people become more aware of their feet - as they freeze.Other than tending to the nations feet, yesterday was Gervase's 30th at an amazing Argentinian steak

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-20955354686551536652007-11-22T16:00:00.000-08:002007-11-22T16:09:14.702-08:00

Yesterday was Catherine's b-day. Thanks to the joys of Facebook I remembered + managed to buy some super lovely presents from a great shop in Belgravia called Alexe Stanion (on Elizabeth Street).In the evening I organised a wee surprise consisting of champagne at St. Pancras train station, dinner at Fino on Charlotte street followed by karaoke at Karaoke Box on Frith Street.More fun's to follow

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-91637841589117216142007-11-18T05:17:00.000-08:002007-11-18T05:25:50.993-08:00

The Christmas sales drive for Mr Jiffles is going into super-drive. Mr Jiffles' first book "Mr Buckles and the Magical Music Machine" is now available to buy via LuLu.com - buy it here.So go and buy it!Mr Jiffles has also amassed his own fan club on Facebook too. Join Mr Jiffles' and friends here.(thanks to Sarah C-B for starting the Facebook group . . . he's already amassed 7 friends . . .

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-9733520503030603642007-11-10T04:32:00.000-08:002007-11-10T04:36:10.121-08:00

Our team have finally launched our Euro2008 campaign for JVC. It's in beta at the mo, just being tested, however will be fully launched in December when we know who's qualified.Here's the mini-game from the campaign:

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-32901692036610046392007-11-08T15:52:00.000-08:002007-11-09T01:25:52.839-08:00

Finally Catherine and I have published the first in our series of children's books about Mr Jiffles - an extremely naughty giraffe, who hangs out with his friends getting up to mischief.Criticised as being of low moral fabric by my father, Mr Jiffles is a thoroughly modern giraffe who gets up to some unspeakably naughty japes.Here's Mr J with his favorite space hopper:

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-41215264264406113072007-11-02T09:40:00.000-07:002007-11-06T08:22:00.957-08:00

One big thing that I'm working on at the mo is helping Led Zeppelin take over the net.We've recruited Led Zep fan Ian to head up the campaign, who is running our campaign blog theZep.netAdditional to this, we're causing some mayhem with the help of the guys from NetDisaster.comFinally, we're getting God involved in the campaign - as everyone knows that God is Led Zeppelin's biggest fan - and

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-10352998405264139732007-11-02T08:22:00.000-07:002007-11-02T08:28:04.182-07:00

I'm finally back from Japan.Interestingly I discovered that I was indeed "Big in Japan". That's to say the Japanese are a fairly short bunch, I'm six foot. This in generally didn't cause a problem apart from when trying to buy clothes - as most didn't fit. That didn't stop me buying a v.cool bright orange and tweed puffa. mmmmmm serious style!Whilst scouring the numerous men's boutique out

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-38351090423633148452007-10-07T13:51:00.001-07:002007-10-07T13:54:27.588-07:00

A big congratulations to my sis (the now Mrs Breulet) and Laurent - and of course India who was also baptised - a Catholic of course!

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-91724229438511919092007-10-04T08:05:00.000-07:002007-10-04T08:06:15.544-07:00

This weekend's my big sis' wedding, and her wee baby's christening over in Luxembourg. Thinking of a present to buy has been a real bind - so of course the answer is . . . mmmm, well there is no answer. I had this same problem with a friends' wedding a few weeks back - I absolutely hate buying stuff on the wedding list + find giving cash a bit strange. Maybe socks is the answer - a life supply

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-74914493279502746782007-09-29T06:54:00.000-07:002007-09-29T07:01:47.120-07:00

I'm planning to get back into the swing of things (blogging things) as I've been extremely lazy over the last 2 months - this main set back was due to the fact that my phone no longer synchs with my computer - meaning I can't upload photos - which has always been my thang - rather than pure word blogging.So, in spite of my tech problems - here are 10 things that happened in my life in the last 2

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-55687235114188724972007-08-02T09:40:00.000-07:002007-08-02T09:45:20.430-07:00

Catherine (cooooooo!)The O2 (I went to see the Scissor Sisters there. I have some cool photos of this, but sadly my crackberry won't share them!)Our sales team (for selling some good Rubber gear)Pulborough (for losing to the Laggers - my cricket team at the weekend)The viral content network (our new Rubber venture that is developing nicely)Tomatoes (they're on their way in our office terrace!)

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-66481933389071082002007-07-23T14:02:00.000-07:002007-07-23T14:04:04.853-07:00

Today's been one of those exhausting days in which you feel you've got nothing done, however you seem to have worked your arse off all day.One of the main reasons for this is that I've been trying to frantically make sure the team has enough ammo to go on + is well enough stocked, whilst at the same time trying to get my everyday tasks done. This is extremely unrewarding work + even more so when

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-74978541650848059042007-07-17T05:18:00.000-07:002007-07-17T10:58:35.549-07:00

Last weekend was super funno. Saturday morning was spent playing tennis against Mr Amos, and losing in true Henman style - a really grueling 1 and a half hour 1 setter! Ho hum.In the evening I met up with Catherine for my surprise birthday evening - which was a real treat. It started with a few drinks in a bar near Kings Cross, followed by an amazing dinner at a place called Acorn House - which

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36864734.post-17644223689317842752007-07-13T16:04:00.000-07:002007-07-13T16:11:33.774-07:00

This week's been a pretty good week - apart from being taken to court (of which I can't really say very much) - more will be revealed once it's all over.On Wednesday I was down in Bristol again helping get our new VCN mini-venture off the ground. VCN is a super exciting development for us + we've got a great group working on it - they're the guys in the photo above.The week ended with some great

Thesockmannoreply@blogger.com0