Frog Up or Down

 AT-CPD Well its been a long time in coming, but now I have almost retired, I have time to explore a podcast that's been sitting in the back of my mind for such a long time. All my sites You will know that I have both a Scays.co.uk site, and an AT-CPD.co.uk web site the Scays site is predominantly a repository for all my lectures, aimed, in the beginning, for my past students to get hold of lecture slide notes I gave, they often lose access to the Moodle page they were originally listed, so this is a way for them to stay in touch and flood for those old slides.  Scays.co.uk All my slides given over several years teaching AT students and also BS, retail, and Planners. But as always if your in the business of construction, take a looked at the website SCAYS.CO.UK  you might find subjects for your CPD and use it to kickstart your CPD AT-CPD.co.uk The AT-CPD is a new site to allow me to talk and promote the idea of CPD for Architectural Technologists, aimed at, yes AT's but ...

Some time ago, I thought it would be nice to compile a list of CPD events, I made the usual ToDo list and filed it away, under todo, and a couple of years later I was reading a list of items I wanted to do, ok it was more of a bucket list, but halfway down was the "Make a CPD list", so this got elevated to an active project. Partly brought on by the old ToDo list, and in part, by a comment, a friend made on a Zoom meeting. So I turned to Google Sites to make a mockup of the site I had in mind and some of the content, this changed over the next few days till I had what I thought worked for me. Next, I needed to populate the list with current CPD webinars, Literature, and youtube videos of CPD that fitted my tight search criteria of " Construction Technology". The list is now workable and is ready for testing. Like most projects of this sort, it will need a lot of editing, spelling checks, and above all content, it's not a simple overnight creation that will look...

I sat down this Boxing Day morning to tidy up my desk, and files a few bits away. I normally do this small, in brackets, job at this time of the year, its seems right to start the year of to a clean plate. But as always I get side tracked, and its hard to stay focused on the job at hand. So after a full morning, dodging tasks handed to me by my good lady, and incoming text messages from my sister who also seems to think I have nothing better to do, I have got my filing more of less done, a book shelf sorted and my computer cleaned, and I mean that in the literal sense, as the screen looked like it was in need of a dam good clean, so the glass cleaner cloth was used to a big effect. Next is my year of CPD, as a lecturer, I can not be accused of not full filling my 35 hours, I read constantly and often, a lot of my notes and photos get logged into Evernote , I tried Microsofts OneNote , and dabbled with or is that continue to dabble with Googles Keep, I just want it to succeed, b...

In about five weeks, or on the 20th June 2016, all the region CIAT CPD officers will meet in City Road, London, to discuss CPD. As yet I have seen no agenda, but you know me, thats not going to stop me making a list of things I want to talk about, from manufacturers presentations, to real study time, to reading lists, to note taking to building up some sort of personal archive of information. to just an electronic record system. I also want to discus the way BIM seems to be taking hold of CAD, not that thats a bad thing, just the way the "CAD" bit is being dropped and I hear only I am going to BIM this up, not CAD or draw it up. Yet BIM surely should be on the list as it will and is affecting the way we draw, and also with it huge potential for data rules base, or internal / external algorithms, and how it will be shared via IFC. Evernote, or anything similar, is there anything!, should surely be discussed, as the personal archive I mentioned before. Is there a place...

Sketchup has some great tools, but one them is the link to Google Earth and maps. This video below is  a classic video that shows so easily the way to build up a site model in 3D using these tools. I have watched this several times, but for the purposes of CPD time I have claimed only 2 hours quality CPD time making notes the second time.

I am a massive fan of podcast, they are usually the audio versions but some like Leo La Ports Twit shows I often take as the lite video version. I am appalled that so much is made of strict manufacturer lectures,  have aired my feelings on this in many of my blogs, and just recently at the Region 5 meet. Its to ridged and inflexible, perhaps another way is to listen to the many podcasts that are available, My list stretches from History, through to Technology, touching on a little social, and a lot of global news both general , and political, the SA elections at present are a real interest. But Tech news for computing is probably my favourite at the moment with Twit tv blogs, I like This week in Google, even though I have gone away from them back to Apple, and Triangulation. a show that looks at the greats of computing. The FT is my business new blog, and I also like the Guardian, although I don't buy the paper, the podcast is not bad. I don't have to make a specif...

You might remember, but some time back I wrote on the way Backscatter Technology, was taking my interest, big time, well a lot has gone on since, not only have I been writing Academic papers, but the really clever researchers have been expanding the technology. It now seems possible that we can program the sensor, and make it act like a simple computer, not so much it can run games, but more simple calcs acting like a small computer. From my research its seems to be in the low end of what you might find in a FitBit watch. The University of Washington have been looking at this and have a rather good website paper for your reading. Still this takes the whole concept of Sensors to the next level, and beyond. In one paper the researcher had made a simple black and white camera, all powered by Backscatter ambient energy. If you can't access academic papers, you might be missing out on a lot of research, I have written my research up into a 1 hour CPD program. So perhaps inst...

How many times, have you been put of using a product, because the technical literature is badly written. It happens to me more than I care to admit, sometimes I just battle on simply because its the only product that will do the job, but so often, I go looking for something new. When I wrote literature I took care, will the literature lie flat on a desk, can I leave a page open without the folder closing. a symptom of plastic folders !. Does the text, tell me specifically what the product does, no sales waffle, give me the facts. Can I see good, clear Technical drawings, that show me exactly how its fitted into the detail. Does it make reference to the building regulations, Are the drawings available as a CAD download in several formats, Vectorworks, Rewvit, Sketchup, Archicad, Dwg Are the CAD drawings correctly drawn for both 2D and 3D, with full specs attached so they work for IFC. Does it have an agrement certificate, Is there a clear dedicated telephone line to a tech...

Todays headline might all look strange, but bear with me, its not so bad. True the planet is changing and for many it brings untold problems. But for some manufacturers, its an opportunity for new products, that business needs, and a challenge the planet needs them to take up. The increased activity on several levels that humanity has orchestrated by their rampant need to use fuel and not see the damage it caused, the way we discard rubbish,  the single minded view that the planet can absorb what ever pollutant we emit with no problem. But we now know thats not the case, so many good scientists are proving time and time again we have altered the planet, and no matter what we do , its not and easy, fix , what ever we do will not slow down the change, its going to happen, the planets getting warmer. So  governments will meet, spend millions on debate, make huge promises, and argue as to the best solution. But the real power in all this lies not with governments not with...

You can't have missed it, VR is going to be big, and I am not just talking gaming, but the whole gambit of VR is going to touch all aspects of viewing not only video, and games, but Architecture, manufacturing and dare I say Medicine. But lets take the two I am interested in Architecture and Manufacturing. A few years ago I went to Manchester to see the CAVE environment at Manchester University, and was literally blown apart by being so immersed inside a building, and being able to touch and move objects, it was clunky and slow, plus the hardware was not cheap. But that is changing and I for one will be watching it with interest. I have purchased a card Google holder, and hope to report on the unwrapping and use in future blogs. I have shown and talked about the World Builder video for so long, it's what I envision the next generation of Cad to be, and Oculus Rift and the others are pushing that reality forward. I would explore you to track Scoble who is this week moving f...

It's not been an easy few weeks, so much to do and so little time, the blog had to go on hold for a while, whilst I caught up. But thats it, I am back , I hope without interruption for a while. Todays photo is on all the blogs I run, although this is my main outlet for writing, the others are also used, so please use the list below to take a gander ever now and them  I think I may have mentioned it previously, the old archive is back up in all its glory, (  Konstrukshon CPD Archive  All the blogs from the old site ) I have also swapped back to Mac Mail, and most things Mac, not because I do not like Google, but because was just a little tired of the slight conflict you get, trying to run a Mac whilst using some of Google products, Its a waste of good resources, so I am back to Mac. Old construction is still a major interest, I have joined a group called AEEBC  ( The Association of European Building Experts ) to help write a book on the subjects, we had the f...

Whilst I am on a roll with reorganising my office internet, I thought I might let you all know how I use the Telephone. My office line is a paid for Skype line, which means no matter where I an as soon as I open up my laptop, or switch on my iPhone or iPad, my office is open, and that can be anywhere in the world. so if I take a week or so of then I can still get called if I want them that is. The Skype system will allow messages to be left and picked up at my convenience. I tend to use my Mac Address book to the fullest, Skype can access this so making called is so easy, I do a search and up comes a list of all the contacts for that person, Skype, Mac so cool, and of course its the cheapest call ever, I phone the USA and Canada a few times a year, and the call is routed through the internet to the cheapest method. Some times I like to use my iPhone, its known to many and they see me light up their phone, but working and holding a phone is not so compatible, so I use the addre...

Work just seemed to take over in the last few weeks, it looked a little scares for a while, then suddenly I have a lot of paperwork and reading to do, a couple of small jobs came in and I decide that my love afar with Google gmail was coming to an end. It started as all relationships, full on and lots to talk, but in recent months things have not being going well, I wanted more, so I looked back and decided to take another look at Apples Mail program. I wrote this up in an earlier blog, I had made some mistakes and now needed to sort these out once and for all,,,, it took a while, but I am glad to say I have got it sorted, and a big thank you to Apples Tech support, just excellent, and something Google just does not have. Back to construction, and a few ideas for papers have piled up in my note book, so I need to look these over some will be downgraded to a blog, some I will keep and expand. I took a look at Google Earth this week, mostly because I am updating my presentation no...

Want to send a round Robin Email without showing the Email List, and there are good reasons for doing this, mostly privacy, but client security from competitors and the like spring to mind. Well its not that hard, all you have to do is send the email in question to your self or perhaps a gmail account thats been set up specifically, and then go to the BBC section. This means Blind Carbon Copy, and its where you might add your list. I use the Mac Mail address book, and in there I have set up several groups, so enter the group name into the BCC and hit send. Dead easy and your list is safe, trying to send" to all", will not include the BCC so again a safe way to send a round robin or Email Circular. Todays photo is of a Swivl I have for sale on Ebay, 

As Email goes, I have tried several different systems, at the University its the Microsoft system, and at home I started on Mac mail then gave Gmail a long trial, almost permanent, but just the last few days I went back to Apple Mail. The reason is I use Mac products, and trying to balance life between the two quite different systems is some time not easy, I also did not set up my mail very well on gmail, I have several different mail addresses, and just forwarded a copy to gmail, this resulted in about 60,000 emails just sitting in different email accounts doing absolutely nothing. They were all in imap format, but they just sat there costing me money, so I decided to invest two days to sort it out once and for all, so back to Apple Mail and I set up new accounts and used a vey simple script to set these up from my service provider, so simple I can only wonder why I did not do it earlier. But then came to problem of syncing all that mail, it took the best part of a day to delet...

I am happy to tell you, the old site archive of all several 1000 blogs I have made over the last 5 or so years is back on a wordpress.com domain : https://konstrukshonarchive.wordpress.com So head over and use the search button to read all those old blogs I will add a link to all my sites and also to the current domain at Blogger. For some reason Google Blogger will not allow the files size wordpress exports to be imported into blogger asking you to reduce it, !! But the free wordpress.com site will allow it and when I tried it, I had no problems, even sent me an email to tell me all is well and site working .

A single large construction  project is going to collect a lot of data throughout the design and construction phase of its life culminating with all the data it will collect during its operational life of say 60 years. but the types of data can easily be split split into 6 different types of data. When we look at all the data we generate for a building you might just look at it all and think we are entering the world of Big Data , but here we have to be a little careful on the word "big" as we compare different uses of the word Big, when we look at the  2560 terabytes of data that retailer Walmart collects every hour by capturing customer transactions, and the vast size of all the videos on /youtube although spread over many servers its estimated to be in the several Exabytes , by comparison Birmingham city Council in 2007 had 7 terabyte of storage just for there immediate data only storage needs for  roughly 35,000 staff, this probable That this doubled every...

I am a massive fan of Time Lapse video, I think its an excellent way to teach construction, the number of site videos out there is well worth trawling. But this video is all about weather, and shadow, its effect on a building and how the building deals with it, although the last part is so up the the lecturer to explain, I take my students on a walk though the old Birmingham to show this. But for the mean time, take a look at how the weather creeps in, and brightens up, plus the shadows.

For all you futurist out there this report is not only required reading, but I might suggest its the basis of so many changes we are going to see in all walks of life. Entitled " Samsung Shows What Our Somewhat-Upredictable Future Will Look Like " , and its going to so different, to what ever you think now, and its all down the the unpredictability of progress, All manufacturers need to read this, and start thinking , what is going to affect my business plan, no wrong answers and certainly plenty of right answers, all suggestions are valid, the article makes big on the IoT and I for one so agree, but we need to break free from rigid thinking and open up ideas. I have just uploaded it to my Evernote Account. My presentation on this, wakes up an audience, and asks so many questions, I have no firm concrete answers, but so many paths to suggest following. Visit my Web page , for my list of presentations, including this presentation "The Manufacturers Glass b...

It can't have escaped your attention Apple are building a new Campus, there are loads of videos on Youtube, but this article on Mashable is the most up to date. One thing that is not really in this article is the shear scale of the project, something the video's below show.  I looked up the plans again and can't wait till its opened and finished, but one thing I noticed was the small circular building at the bottom of the plot that seems to have the roof held up with just the glass, you have to read the article, Fosters have in my book broken the mould, and made glass so much more a structural item, I can't wait to see the final views, although take a look at the video below, I think this building is now complete, and roof on. See the latest video at the end of this Article. There is a latest video, made in March 2016 what a difference a year makes