Ken McGuire

Author: Ken McGuire

  • Testing WPtouch, Make Your Blog iPhone-friendly

    kenmc.com running WPtouch, iPhone-rendering plugin for WordPress

    A tweet from Donncha pointed me in the direction of WPtouch earlier today, now running on kenmc.com.

    What does it do?

    It’s a plugin for your WordPress-based blog that renders a very iPhone and iPod-friendly theme of your blog. Forget bulky images, scrolling screen after screen – load in the plugin, fire it up and browse a great looking lo-fi version of your blog (see the image above).

    You can customise how particular pages are displayed, tie in Flickr photos, full links pages login / logout function and, to an extent, set a colour scheme for the theme via the plugin options. I might as well do a little digging into the plugin and bring across some kind of consistency between the actual blog and the iPhone version of it but I’m impressed.

    Grab the plugin yourself here. It requires WP2.3 or higher and has support for WP2.7.

  • Tuesday Push: Twitter Mosaic

    Twitter. It’s a mug’s game. Or it’s just become one thanks to Twitter Mosaic.

    Walter Higgins at Sxoop Technologies is making great great use of Twitter’s open API and is now combining it with Zazzle to create Twitter Mosaic to offer personalised goods based on avatars of your Twitter friends or followers.

    For the end user, the process is a simple one.

    1. Go to sxoop.com/twitter and enter your username.
    2. Select the avatars you want to display on your product (clicking them will remove them)
    3. Select the type of product you want (bag, mug, tshirt, cards)
    4. Customise your final product and make a payment at the Zazzle store.

    In my case, I’ve gone ahead and bought a Twitter Mosaic Mug, picking the slightly larger sized mug to help fuel my tea fix in the office during the day. In doing so I’ll have a hundred or so faces looking back at me as I enjoy every drop, with my @kenmcguire handle printed across the middle. The perk for me in the order is that I also won a £10 voucher Walter was giving away on Twitter yesterday. On the payment front you can use your credit / debit card or go down the PayPal route.

    From what was seemingly just an idea in recent weeks, Walter and Sxoop have made another great step forward in generating revenue via Twitter.

    While you’re at it, don’t forget to check out Pixenate, also from Sxoop.

    You can also follow me on Twitter.

  • Host Your Own Mix Tape

    Opentape on PlaylistMix.com

    Muxtape was great. Then it got shut down. Now it’s on the way back.

    You could upload any mp3s you wanted, get Muxtape to host a mix tape for you, pass the link around, provide download access to the MP3s etc.

    While Muxtape is set to make a return and allow the hosting of playlists again, there is an opensource alternative in the form of Opentape. It’s been around for a while but it was only last night I got to roll out a self-hosted version for the Playlist Mix.

    It is opensource so it will be as flexible as you decide to make it as this custom design shows.

    The idea is simple – upload it to a folder on your server (you need to be running PHP5+), set an admin password and start uploading your tracks. There doesn’t seem to be any way at present to make multiple mix tapes from one install though there’s nothing to stop you rolling out the script into multiple folders. You can then upload tracks through the browser interface or ftp them into your songs folder and away you go.

    I’ll be using it to run a mix tape of the acts featured each month on the podcast. It’s light, it’s easy to use (though there are some style errors in IE6) and it’s free to download.

  • A Facelift for PlaylistMix.com

    Anyone following the Playlist Mix on Twitter over the weekend (or myself for that matter) would have spotted some talk of design work going in the run up to the 45th show. That design work got pushed live last night. It’s possible it will be a bit rough around the edges on IE users – I say possible because I haven’t had the chance to check and correct anything Internet Explore-wise but I’m happy with the new layout.

    The podcast itself returned to normal service a week ago following a winter break and has also moved to Sunday nights for 2009 (a lot more accessible to me the way things work around here).

    You can grab the 45th show here (show link – direct mp3 link) or listen to last week’s show here.

    Of course, if you’re in tyre-kicking mood I’ll be getting back to things around 3pm today so feel free to let me know what you think. In terms of planning, the Christmas break did wonders for me as I’ve been able to get a nice plan in place for additional podcast elements in terms of interviews, video and more content between tracks. Plus, the new schedule is a big plus.

    Check out PlaylistMix.com and let me know what you think, or grab a listen to the latest podcast below.

    Playlist Mix Podcast show #45
    [audio:http://playlistmix.com/podpress_trac/web/122/0/podcast045.mp3]

  • A New Music Conference for the New Music Economy – This Weekend

    I made a note to myself that for 2009 (not a resolution now) I would get on the road more – get to Dublin more, grab a coffee in the Absolute Hotel in Limerick at some stage, and hit more events and evenings. One event I’m sorry to be missing though (it’s a five hour drive up and I’m swamped for the weekend) is UnConvention, taking place in Belfast today and tomorrow.

    What is UnConvention?

    Unconvention is an unconference aimed at the grass roots of the music industry – bringing together musicians and industry professionals for conversation, inspiration and collaboration.

    or as About.com have it listed…

    “a music industry convention that really isn’t like a music industry convention at all. The event is aimed at the independent music industry. Entrance fees are in keeping with indie music budgets (free!) and the discussions all surround making it in music outside of the mainstream machine. At night, indie musicians get to show off their chops on local stages”

    Bands, labels, entrepreneurs, music industry insiders and outsiders – it’s an event that I should really be at and I know I should be at so I’m happy to be following the activity for the weekend here on Twitter and here at UnConventionBelfast.com.

    The Official Blurb

    The 2-day conference has attracted strong interest from all over the UK and Ireland; organisations who have signed up for involvement include BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio Ulster, Music Managers Forum, Island Records, Sony Music Publishing, NIMIC, Oh Yeah Music Centre, Birmingham University, Fat Northerner Records, Smalltown America Records, Richter Collective and First Music Contact, among many others. Radio 1’s Huw Stephens was one of the first to sign up to the event, and had this to say: “I’m looking forward to finding out more about the scene in Belfast, which seems to be thriving at the moment. Rory McConnell’s Radio 1 show features so many quality artists from Northern Ireland so to get to Belfast and meet the bands and managers is an exciting prospect. In the music world, doing it yourself is essential at the moment, and so I’m looking forward to seeing what will be discussed.”

    Friday night’s showcase line-up includes Ed Zealous, A Plastic Rose, Colenso Parade and Strait Laces on the live stage, and Vertigo Smith, Escape Act, Junior Johnson, Cat Molojian, Seven Summits and The Monts; spanning a highly diverse range of styles and genres.

    From a music industry perspective, the potential of UnConvention to boost the industry locally and further afield was recognised by key sponsor, Belfast City Council. Councillor Michael Browne, Chairman of BCC’s Development Committee comments “Belfast City Council is committed to helping support the development of the creative industries in our city which, if nurtured and supported in the right way, have the ability to make Belfast truly competitive on the global stage. UnConvention provides an exciting opportunity to showcase Belfast’s eclectic music scene and musicians and provide useful networking and business development opportunities for those working in this sector.”

    Attendees can that Rich Dale, Tracy Dempsey, Nick Fitzsimons, Jennie McCullough and Andy McMillan for organising the event.

  • Her Beautiful Ideas

    I’m not one to usually post music videos on this blog though as I’m flagging the above video for KilkennyMusic.com I thought I’d share it here as well given the sheer work, effort (50-odd hours of production) and stop-go animation enjoyment that’s gone into ‘Her Beautiful Ideas’ by The Guggenheim Grotto.

    The track, ‘Her Beautiful Ideas’ features on ‘Happy The Man’, the lads’ second album. I say “lads” as we’ve had them to Kilkenny for maybe six or seven shows over the last three years and no doubt we’ll have them down again. The video itself was produced, edited and directed by Aaron Copeland and Johnny Fitzsimons.

    Check them out here.

  • Kilkenny Open Coffee Today (Wednesday)

    Just a reminder to folks that the second Kilkenny Open Coffee takes place at 11:30am this morning in the Kilkenny Cafe at Market Cross Shopping Centre, High Street, Kilkenny.

    There’s a “meeting room” space at the back of Kilkenny Cafe that offers up free wifi, some couches and the likes. Last (and first) time around there seven of us there and we’ve contacted a few more people this time around, locally, to let them know what’s going on.

    If you’re in Kilkenny this morning, involved in the internet or tech space and want to drop in for a tea / coffee / scone / demo / yarn then feel free to join us from 11:30am. Last time I checked they were also running an offer of two scones and two coffees for a fiver, plenty to keep one going!

    See the map here or follow the crowd over on IGOpeople.com

  • Vultures Episode 4 Goes Online

    It’s been a while coming, but Vultures Episode 4 has finally gone online. And yes, there’s a party taking place in the back of my van. Amazing what and who you can fit in the back of a Peugeot Partner.

    This episode marks the directorial debut of Ross Costigan and was again written by Paddy Dunne and John Morton and produced by Alan Slattery. While Vultures and Pinkertons get their ads out, it’s nice to see that Jack Street has panache – and an Xbox live headset.

    Enjoy Vultures Episode 4 – The Case Of The Poisoned Dates

  • The Doors Are Open For BizCamp This March

    The doors (read registration) are now open for BizCamp taking place after FOWA in Dublin this March. With FOWA taking place on Friday March 6th, BizCamp will make for a great followup as it takes place in Dublin on Saturday March 7th.

    Feck the recession? That’s what they’re saying…

    It’s based on the fact that each of us as entrepreneurs have loads to learn from our peers. And we have a lot to share with them as well. There are a lot of great things happening in the Irish Economy – especially in small and medium businesses and this day will be a celebration of those. And a great place to come for people who have lost their jobs and are actively looking at starting up

    A nice addition to the signup form (which I think should be used for all BarCamp type events) is the ‘You can talk to me about…’ field, which maps over to the attendees list. If you’re going in the hope of meeting someone who can you can ask about content management systems, email marketing, gardening, the use of technology to help emergency services save more lives by making better decisions (Robin), now you’ll know in advance who you might be able to turn to or introduce yourself to.

    While it’s likely that I won’t make FOWA, I’m hoping to make the trip to Dublin for the 7th. Registration can be found here.

    Update: Registration link updated – thanks Dave

  • Pushing for IGOpeople

    IGOpeople launched late last year in beta, billed as the “network for the real world”. So far, it’s living up to it’s name.

    Real individuals, real groups, real people – and they all tie together in one very neat, clean and easy to use environment. The clock tells me it was December 17th when I registered (about when IGOpeople launched) and since then I’ve been using it to keep track of Kilkenny Open Coffee – that’s where the conversations grew out of Tweets. Being able to group the threaded conversation in the one public place, accessible by those participating in the first Kilkenny Open Coffee made the planning a breeze, but also attracted the attention of the IGOpeople team (of Campbell and David) who also joined us earlier this month to talk about the launch of IGOpeople.com and plans for where things may be going.

    They’re on top of things too. Watching the conversations online, watching feedback, and more importantly actioning something based on the feedback. For a real network to evolve, the input of the end users is vital. Listening to those users is key and from the outside (and based on conversations at Kilkenny Open Coffee), that’s what’s happening at IGOpeople.

    While you can group the conversations nicely – Dell Limerick, Working From Home, Web Designers, Kilkenny Open Coffee – and openly contribute to these groups, it’s nice to see actual organisations taking an interest in the space, not only on an Irish front, but on a global front. Vodafone are there (and were running a competition this week where I bagged some free mobile credit), Blacknight, Tibus, dbTwang, Flexitimers, FBD Insurance – all offering their customers and userbase another opportunity for online customer support and contact.

    While there are plenty of big name companies listed – MTV, Ryanair, Canon, Google, Dell, FedEx etc. – it will be nice to see what happens when representative of these companies get on board and start sharing that bit more with what’s quickly becoming a very active community.

    If you’ve not yet signed up for IGOpeople.com, take a minute or two out of your day or evening and take a look for yourself. Best of luck to Campbell, http://www.igopeople.com/o/2-IGOpeople/people/10-David-Cotter and all at IGOpeople with their growth in 2009.

    (They must be working overtime this evening as an application to get The Devious Theatre Company on board as an organisation was approved real quick – never mind a few hours or days, I think this was more like minutes – good stuff!)

  • More Online Comedy Coming February 1st

    The next helping of Vultures, an online comedy filmed and produced here in Kilkenny, is set to debut online on Sunday February 1st over at VulturesPI.com. ‘The Case of the Poisoned Dates’ is the fourth installment of a six-part series, filming of which is set to wrap late next month.

    Those who attended CreativeCamp in March, PodCamp in September or are regular readers of the blog will be away of Vultures, written by good friends of mine John Morton and Paddy Dunne, directed by another great friend in Ross Costigan (you’ll also find his blog nominated in the Best Photoblog category) and produced by Kilkenny’s video genius that is Alan Slattery. We all work together in different capacities with the likes of The Devious Theatre Company (since 2006) and Kilkenny Music (since 2005) and it’s fantastic to see how far Vultures (under the Mycrofilms banner) has come since the series debut back in December 2007.

    I spent some time on set (third episode I’ve worked on in some capacity) on the last day of filming for episode four and by all accounts, we’re in for a right treat when the episode is released next week. There will be a cast and crew screening in advance of the release (which I’m going to miss) and I’ll be catching up with the filming again next month as I get to work on my Scottish accent for another character.

    The fourth episode sees the arrival of TY student, Janine Drew, in the V.P.I. office for work experience. Played by Suzanne O’Brien (a cousin of mine), Janine is brash, ambitious and has the distinct features of what is commonly known as a ‘chav.’

    Janine Drew’s arrival coincides with a series of errant romantic entanglements that degenerate into a potential powder keg of social embarrassment, messy divorce cases and extreme comic violence.

    The new episode sees the return of David Thompson, John Morton and Sean Hackett as McGrain, Vultour and Tennyson, the hapless gentleman detectives of V.P.I. They are joined by a familiar supporting cast of characters; Inspector Leeson (Paul Young), Isabelle Vultour (Liadain Kaminska), Tom Moriarty (Stephen Colfer), Jack Street (Ross Costigan), Sarah Black (Niamh Moroney) and a few new faces.

    Shooting has already begun, in and around Kilkenny, on the final two episodes of the series with the production due to conclude in March. Episodes 5 & 6 will then be released online by summer 2009.

    For the moment though, stick February 1st in your diary to check VulturesPI.com and grab the new episode when it hits the web.

  • Video Blogging Is In For 2009

    I was wondering was 2009 going to be the year for video blogging in Ireland and if the month of January is anything to go by, I reckon I’m not far off.

    For the past few months I’ve been happily sitting behind the camera (N95) showing off food (those brownies were delicious), the office, talking gigs, talking theatre and more through Qik. Pat Phelan, Bernie Goldbach, Joe Garde, John Keyes and more are at it.

    But it’s when more and more people start getting in front of the camera that it becomes interesting. Ross has been showing people around the Mycrofilms offices, the “other” Ken in Kilkenny has recently started video blogging, Niall Harbison has been making great waves with daily video updates on the blog and now another Kilkenny man is at it as Keith Bohanna has started with some videos about the development of dbTwang, set to launch this spring with a closed beta.

    Interesting that all the Kilkenny heads have ties to Young Irish Film Makers in some degree. Part of my blogging resolutions for 2009 (yes, I made those as well) includes getting back in front of the camera myself though it will be another month or two yet and relates more to KilkennyMusic.com and My Music (also set to launch in ’09). For now though, I’ll be happy qikking away.

    Check Keith’s video here…

    Keith’s reading habits of late correspond to my own – I’m seeking out and enjoying getting video content that I can watch or listen to while working or take something on the go with me. So I’m looking forward to the onslaught of videos to be pushed out by Irish bloggers in 2009 and I’ve a feeling we’ll see a dedicated video blogger category coming up at the 2010 Blog Awards if not sooner.

  • Ustream.tv App For iPhone / iPod Out Now

    Ever since I picked up the iPod Touch at Christmas I’ve been ducking in and out of the App Store to see what’s new, what’s popular, what applications are out there. One I was directed to this morning is the new Ustream.tv app, now available for iPhone / iPod and can be downloaded (thankfully) for free using an Irish Apple Store ID.

    Ustream isn’t strange territory for me. It was one of the first streaming video platforms to be used (and is still used in some cases) for Irish barcamp events. Conn is / was a regular streamer via Edgecast while Tom Raftery is also streaming for the GreenMonk Engery and Sustainability Show on Monday afternoons, the video of which I was able to pick up on through the app.

    The download is quick and painless through the App Store and when logging in you’re given the option to watch live shows, check upcoming shows or view archived material (how I found Tom’s clip). Current top live channel is the Museum of the American Indian Inauguration Cam which is one of the sources that will be hit today (currently 1400+ viewers) to track the inauguration of Barack Obama later today. It’s also a great way to get some good quality streaming audio and video onto the iPod, a device which is rapidly taking over my tweeting, reading and everything else at home in the evening.

    Download the app here (iTunes link) or use the App Store link on your iPod / iPhone and search for Ustream.

    See also: Ustream viewer makes it to app store just in time

  • A Strategic Approach To Using Twitter

    Twitter PR Strategy
    Creative Commons License photo credit: ogilvyprworldwide

    Came across this one last night, released under creative commons by Ogilvy PR (360 digital influence).

  • Learn More About Online Marketing, For Free

    In checking the email this morning I was delighted to find a copy of Damien Mulley’s Online Market Document in my inbox. Through Mulley.ie, Damien recently posted he would be giving away his online marketing notes, usually reserved for those attending the courses he runs and while I’ve not been to any of his courses I would be lying if I said I wasn’t curious what the courses, or course notes in particular would entail. I’m also not the only one as it would take a minimum 103 comments on the blog post to get the notes published online.

    While I’ll save the reading until lunch time or this evening, on first glace of the document you’ll be given an insight to marketing tips for your site both onsite and offsite, the use of Google Adwords, advertising on Facebook (and monitoring the results), YouTube and more.

    The Online Marketing Document will be available to download via Mulley.ie from this morning (check the link at the bottom of the post).

    Thanks for the mail, Damien.

  • Last Call For TeenCamp Ireland

    Don’t forget that TeenCamp Ireland takes place tomorrow at Filmbase in Temple Bar in Dublin.

    Over on the TeenCamp Ireland blog they’ve posted the essentials of TeenCamp.

    If you’re in the area tomorrow, do head along. While it’s a teen focused event, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind some of the older / more experienced / veteran barcamp-type eventgoers turning up!

    Kickoff is set for 1pm with the day running until 7pm. Alan Costello and Enda Crowley are behind the running of the event and you can follow TeenCamp on Twitter, a stream which will hopefully get a few updates during the day tomorrow.

  • This Is Where The Magic Happens

    Lough Talt, Co. Sligo

    This is where the magic happens. Thought I’d pop this one into the blog as it’s a shot I’ve taken to rather quickly (and currently resides on my desktop as a wallpaper), one snapped over the Christmas period.

    This is where the magic happens. Not the work life, not the music life, not the theatre life, but the unwinding part of life. Get in the kayak, hit the lake, top to bottom. Bliss.

    In Collateral, Jamie Foxx would take a breather on the job by looking at the photo of the island he kept on his visor in the taxi. Me, I keep a picture of a lake on the desktop. It’s rare I get to see it during the day with all the windows and tabs open, but when I do I’m reminded that there are simpler things in life and that there are places you can go to get away from it all.

    So when I’m tweeting about hitting the road to Sligo or sitting amongst mountains, this is where I’m hiding out. I think the next time I’m up is the weekend before the Blog Awards but you can be sure that if I’m up, I’ll be hitting the water.

  • Next Kilkenny Open Coffee

    While I think of it, the next Kilkenny Open Coffee is taking place on Wednesday February 4th. The venue is the same – Kilkenny Cafe, Market Cross, High Street, Kilkenny and people are gathering for 11:30am. We took two tables in The Meeting Room up at the back of the coffee shop last time around and will likely swing for the same again, numbers depending.

    You can track conversations from the group here on IGOpeople.

    John Keyes has a nice writeup on the first one here. There’s also a new Kilkenny Open Coffee group on Ning.

  • Lending A Hand, It’s What We’re Good At


    Pic via

    Job losses.

    Everyone’s talking about them.

    You can sit around all day and talk, but until you do action the talking, that’s all it will be – talk. The chains are closing down. Zavvi. Land of Leather. Woolworths. I heard M&S was in trouble recently. Retail is taking a hit.

    Crafts and technology are taking a hit too. Dell are on the way out. 1,900 job losses announced to be phased up to January 2010 then it’s off to Poland with them. Waterford Wedgewood are going, going, gone.

    For some people, it’s the end of a working life. Maybe redundancy is an option, early retirement. Some people simply have to work. Mortgages to pay off, pension funds to keep up, children to put through school, families to feed.

    We’re great at coming up with ideas. We’re an entrepreneurial nation. We’re also great at lending a hand when times get tough. Through Open Coffee Club Limerick, Evert Bopp has followed a lead from Chris Byrne and is offering free startup advice to those impacted by the recent job losses at Dell. While a redundancy payment might help with the bills, when the money runs out, what does one do? More specifically, what does one do with the skills, knowledge and training they now have? One option, is to look towards going into business for yourself and indeed, turning a bad thing around.

    BarCamps, CreativeCamps, PodCamps, Open Coffee Club mornings, meetups, tweetups and more. All of these free-to-attend events boast an incredible number of people who are giving up their time, their knowledge, their expertise for the benefit of others. We’ve recently set about getting Kilkenny Open Coffee off the ground as well, something that we hope will grow over time and again increase the knowledge sharing. The offer from Evert to those who have recently lost their jobs from Dell (or are about to) to attend Open Coffee Limerick and connected with those who can provide you with startup advice and support is one that should strongly be considered.

    But, as I said, we’re good at lending a hand when it counts and so conversation on Wednesday morning turned to what each of us would or could do for people in that position.

    Krishna announced recently that she’s going to give over six hours of her time between now and the end of February, three to the US and three to Irish people (one hour for each person). That time can be used for career coaching and job search support. You can look at your resumé, your online profile, your networking strategy – anything you want – on a one hour call via Skype or landline.

    Bernie, in conjunction with Tipperary Institute will look at LinkedIn.com enhancements for your online profile and networking opportunities.

    When quizzed on what I would consider doing myself I also looked to the web. For those considering starting their own business I’m happy to discuss options and provide assistance in getting you up and running online. Let’s get your logo in place, lets get you up and running with a website or blog (or both) and lets get you seen and heard. I’ve gone through the startup process myself for a number of different ventures over the past 3-4 years, all of which are currently active and currently generating income. All of which rely on the web and the visibility it can provide in order to succeed.

    I’m sure too that these aren’t the only offers on the table to people. Everyone is feeling a pinch at the moment but that doesn’t mean you sit down and do nothing. You stand up, work your way through it and if you can, you lend a hand to those around you at the same time.

    If you want to get connected, you can also join me at LinkedIn here. Come meet me and the network of people I’m connected to. Maybe they can help as well.