Internet

Internet Restrictions

Melissa at Boris Johnson’s blog pointed out this article on the BBC News site:

“A large part of the attraction of the internet is that it goes below the radar,” he said. “Generally it’s more difficult for the government to be able to control it.

“Its real value is as an open window onto what’s happening elsewhere in the world,” he said.

This set me thinking about how the internet is (ab)used in other repressed countries. After a couple of Google searches, I finally came across this page, from Reporters Without Borders. Plenty to be going on there, I feel.

Top ‘eCouncils’

From The Guardian‘s Online supplement:

Top eCouncils

Oldham Borough Council’s website is the best-performing local government site, according to automated testing by SiteMorse. The result is an average of tests based on the Web Accessibility Initiative, including responsiveness, error-free operation, HTML standards compliance and accessibility. Oldham attributes its success to Steria’s fine tuning of its website, following an analysis by the company’s Content Solutions Practice. Previously, Steria raised Spelthorne Council 297 places up the list in a similar exercise. The fastest downloading site is Scilly, while Chiltern has the fastest response time.

See here for more.

Will update with links to those Council websites later. No doubt our current one wouldn’t even deserve the wooden spoon…

Reality Reading

How’s this for a stupid idea: I’m going to run a poll among Palimpsesters to decide what to read next. I’ll give a shortlist of 5 books, and whichever garners the most votes I read after the Greene.

Which books am I going to choose for the shortlist? Don Quixote? Ulysees? Yeah, right. The exact right moment has to be struck to get those read – no leaving that to chance. How about:

  • A Prayer for Owen Meany
  • The Unfortunates
  • Alma Cogan
  • Status Anxiety

…and one other. Need to consult the cupboard before I finalise the list. Still, it should be interesting…

edit: The final book will be The Great Gatsby

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