David Coveney

A personal blog transitioning into an exploration of the intersection of design, technology and ethics

Tag: city

  • Taller buildings let us design better towns

    Taller buildings let us design better towns

    I lived in a range of places as a kid, partly because my father was a bit of an itinerant who didn’t know what he wanted in life, other than that I mustn’t live with my mother. Go figure. Eventually I got to settle down with my grandmother, but in the process I learned a…

  • A new manifesto for the web

    A new manifesto for the web

    This blog post has now been re-arranged with the manifesto at the top, and the reasoning that led up to it beneath. Because, after all, placing the important content six or seven hundred words in is hardly being pure, is it? Web Dogma 24. By me. Content First. All articles, images, and graphics must be…

  • The productivity paradox

    The productivity paradox

    I came across this chart recently and it gave me pause for thought as someone whose life work is designed to improve productivity. It shows that from 2008, although we know technologies have been growing in power, productivity growth suddenly dropped away from the trendline following the global financial crisis. Why? This is where I…

  • Recovering from a heart bypass. The physical and mental challenges.

    Having a coronary artery bypass isn’t much fun and comes with challenges. Four years later I thought I’d describe some more of my experiences.

  • Liverpool Central Library

    Liverpool Central Library

    So, Liverpool Central Library has had a revamp. The reading room was always ace, but had been closed for ages and I’d not been able to show it to friends. It’s now all been lovingly restored, and the ‘modern’ bit done in a much more interesting manner with wonderful natural light. It’s great to see…

  • Finding a missing person in South America (and elsewhere)

    Finding a missing person in South America (and elsewhere)

    I promised, ages ago, that I’d write up some tips on how to find somebody who’d gone missing in South America. Recently I had an email from somebody in the same situation which has spurred me into action. Since 1997 I’ve found or been found by my mother, my brothers and my sister. Here I’m…

  • A Better Type of Criminal

    Arica is a relative crime free city, but as with anywhere it pays to be attentive. Most crime in Chile is opportunistic in nature, as opposed to the occassional strangle muggings and minor ATM kidnappings you have to be wary of in Bolivia and Peru. So I heard this story, of an eminent British archaelogist*…

  • San Pedro de Atacama revisited.

    I remember San Pedro as being quite sleepy, with little accommodation available, but also with plenty of tourists and bars. It was sunny, warm, and pleasant. This time around it’s somewhat less sleepy, a lot bigger (perhaps 2x? 3x?)…however, it’s the off-season and that means few tourists compared to the number of restaurants, so dining…

  • Pictures of Arica

    Pictures of Arica

    Just a quick gallery showing pictures I’ve taken over the past few days in Arica. My only disappointment is that I’m still failing to get focus perfect on wide apertures and autofocus gets itself mixed up – so some otherwise great pictures aren’t usable at large sizes.  I’ve just discovered that you can get a…

  • WordCamp UK – Great Stuff + a Little Controversy

    I went to WordCamp UK 2010 in Manchester… this is my write-up of the event, and its controversies along with my presentations…