This is a result of the hard work of a variety of individuals, including Shawn Adamsson and Aaron McGowan.

It shouldn’t come as any surprise that I think this is a great step forward for the City of London. As more and more information and data sets are released and become publicly available the better our society will become.

I’m also excited about this recent announcement because of the potential for further collaboration that UnLondon and the UnLab could help facilitate by connecting like minded individuals who will continue to iterate and improve upon various ideas, projects, and platforms. .

A citizen led initiative around Open Data has already started in London, and I suggest any interested parties connect with them for more information.

At this point it’s by no means exhaustive; some announcements just aren’t ready for prime time yet. So be sure to check back again soon!

Until then there are a couple of projects that I’d love to draw your attention to.

The first is ChangeCamp London, which is an event that I’ve wanted to do here ever since I heard about it a couple of years ago. I’m ecstatic about the team that is involved, and I’m sure its going to be a great program with definite benefits to the city.

Secondly is the annual PodCamp London that is coming up on May 8th. Be sure to check out the wiki for a list of speakers and sessions. I’m sure regardless of your skill level or interests you’ll find a topic that piques your interest.

In addition to the main technology sites covering the details about the new phone; the Internet has been awash with comments about the actions of all the parties involved. Questions about whether the finder was morally right to sell it to Gizmodo, and did the tech site act properly in purchasing and ultimately dissecting the phone for their website.

However, what’s missing in all of these accounts is a discussion about the public, and our role in encouraging these behaviours. Its no surprise that any item that comes out of Cupertino is received with the same amount of fan fare usually reserved for the winning soccer teams of South America. And how much more excited do we get when we can combine our lust for Apple with our natural and insaitable curiousity for tech voyeruism.

Rather then criticizing Gizmodo for their actions, I think we should take a look at ourselves. Are we getting caught up in tech envy and would put aside our own morality just to learn a bit more about a consumer product? I’ll be the first to admit it, I get swept up in the excitement too. But I’ve decided to incite a change and I’m going to work harder to make sure that my love of objects justifies behaviour.

I’m not suggesting that having new toys is bad, or that the capitalist culture of “stuff” is inherently evil. All I want to point out is the double standard we create to satisfy our own interests and desires. Most of us wouldn’t engage in the same dubious practices that some tech journalists use, so why should we reap the rewards?

What do you think? Can we reclaim morality in concepts and no longer let our love of “things” tell us what is the right thing to do?

As a result we are at a point where technical constraints are so low that there can be and should be a seamless transition between the digital and the physical worlds. So the experience that I begin online is easily continued in the real world and augmented through the use of handheld devices, digital signage and online connections.

Many people think that the 3.0 internet will be semantic, the online experience will be unique and tailored for each individual. I think that this is selling ourselves short. Instead, the internet version 3 will be about using technology to improve and build upon your real work experiences. From location awareness to augmented reality we already see this happening.

Because of the proliferation of social networks and media, it makes sense that this coupling of digital and real should continue beyond our social lives. We should take adavantage of technology to improve our healthcare, purchase decisions and general service options.

I’m still working out these thoughts, and I appreciate your comments. Am I way off track and Web 3.0 is going to be something altogether different?

It was a great chance to connect with some old friends, meet new people and general hang out with other social media aficionados.

I attended a number of great sessions throughout the weekend. However rather then not give each of them the full coverage they deserve I won’t go into detail.

In addition to the sessions, there were a number of great parties and events. The open mic night at the official afterparty was a great success, as you can see from this great photo of my and James Wilkinson singing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” while Pat Dryburgh played the guitar.

I’m looking forward to PodCamp London on May 8th, and know that we’ll definitally pass Toronto for excitment and learning!

Like most GTD fans I’m constantly struggling to find the perfect suite of applications for my Mac. I have the principles in place, but I’m missing the tools that would allow me to get the most done in a day.

So I’m asking my readers. Have you stumbled upon a method that works for you? What do you recommend?

I’m aware of a bunch of the pricey tools, Things for example, but I’d like to find a cheaper/free option. I also realize that a true GTD setup is going to be unique to each other, but I’m still interested in hearing everyone’s tips and suggestions.

In a nutshell; the court recognizes that in cases that are in the public interest and the publisher has attempted to verify the allegation, that is sufficient to avoid a charge of libel.

Interestingly, the judgment specifically mentions new ways of communicating (blogging and other online reporting)  the speed at which  information becomes available and the fact that news becomes available from other sources then journalists and the established press.

As Michael Geist said

“This is crucial decision for all publishers both big and small. It represents a major win for freedom of expression in Canada and should remove some of the libel chill that arises far too frequently.”

Citizen journalists and bloggers are now held to the same standard as their professional counterparts, but are also afforded the same securities under the law.

I also think I need to read it again just to pick up all the thing I missed the first time through.

A variety of new Twitter features have made it even easier to find people in your neighborhood, city or region.  Twitter lists allows you to create a group of  people in a similar niche, or geographical area. Now with geotagged tweets that process is automated.

The release of Foursquare to a bunch of new cities takes interacting on online spaces and connects it with offline.

Social networks are realizing that online tools serve one purpose – to make connecting offline easier.

We  are starting to really see Jeff Jarvis’ ideas of hyper-local come to fruition (he focuses on the news industry, but I think there are ramifications beyond that).

But still a lot of people are just realizing that you can no longer hide behind the Internet.

The word ‘social’ is in social media for a reason.

Overall seems like it would or could be an interesting tool. However the thought that I’m competing, not against my own mind, but a computer clock, adds an even greater sense of urgency.

The design is nice; simple and clean, free of all distractions. No reason at all that I shouldn’t be able to finish this post with lots of time to spare.

But here I am, feeling nervous already, like I’m not going to make it and at any point all my words, my hard earned text, is just going to disappear into the ether, because I didn’t meet an arbitrary goal or a certain number of words within a specific time. In fact I can’t remember what goals I set. I have no idea if I’m ahead or behind. If the next words I type will last only a second before being erased before my very eyes. I seem to type faster, as if its not my mind that limits how much i can produce, but the speed at which my fingers move.

But here I am! I’ve made it to the end and retained my sanity, or at least kept it at the same level it was before. And despite making me feel incredibly anxious, I think that this application has great potential. I might even use it again.

As long as it promises to turn a blind eye every so often.