Fergus Cassidy

REVIEW OF 2004
The biggest surprise was the decision to abandon electronic voting for the national and local elections in June.
26 DECEMBER 2004

BELIEVE
It came as quite a shock to find out that Santa prefers Macs and open source software.
19 DECEMBER 2004

RADIO HEAD
Radio has a bright future on the internet.
12 DECEMBER 2004

PRON COCKTAIL
Porn is a drug and the net is a perfect delivery system claimed witnesses before a US Senate committee.
5 DECEMBER 2004

HIT RECORD
Raise a glass to the humble VCR, an innovation which survived many assassination attempts.
28 NOVEMBER 2004

LITERAL THINKING
There is an urgent need to re-define literacy and apply it with the same vigour as the '3 Rs'.
21 NOVEMBER 2004

GOOD CLAUS
The 'Santa Strike Force' is an innovative, hit-and-run charity from the makers of Boards.ie.
14 NOVEMBER 2004

YARD STICK
The roll-out of broadband in Ireland has become deeply politicised. About time too.
7 NOVEMBER 2004

NUMBERS GAME
Trying to get the internet to recognise territorial borders is a futile exercise. But still they try.
31 OCTOBER 2004

CURRIE AND CHIPS
Is the regulation of television programming coming to an end? Yes, says the British regulator.
24 OCTOBER 2004

PRESS PASS
The internet's contribution to a free press is either underestimated or ignored. Sometimes both.
17 OCTOBER 2004

CALLER ID
In his quest for broadband, Irish Times writer Fintan O'Toole has revealed the kind of discrimination many thought had disappeared.
10 OCTOBER 2004

RAISED BROWSE
If an internet browser is a company's shop window then plenty of them have the shutters down.
3 OCTOBER 2004

LOST PROPERTY
The term 'intellectual property' is up there with previous gems like 'fresh frozen'.
26 SEPTEMBER 2004

HOUSE STYLE
Whether it should have a capital letter or not is the least of the net's worries.
19 SEPTEMBER 2004

LUAS CANON
Broadband and internet access are two horses of very different colours.
12 SEPTEMBER 2004

COLUMN RETURNS NEXT WEEK
5 SEPTEMBER 2004

NO COLUMN THIS WEEK
29 AUGUST 2004

BROUGHT TO BOOK
For the last four years a book called 'Katie.com' caused misery for the owner of the domain name. Last week the publisher finally backed down.
22 AUGUST 2004

LAND OF THE FEE
Folk singer Woody Guthrie fought many battles with the law. Now one of his best-known songs is getting the same treatment.
15 AUGUST 2004

MAJOR CALL
Universal service includes internet access but the definition of that is as vague as the long-term weather forecast.
8 AUGUST 2004

DEPENDING ON IT
There's an old saying that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. From here on in, a little knowledge might make all the difference.
1 AUGUST 2004

LINE HEARTS
The crossroads of Ireland was a good place to discuss the future of IrelandOffline.
25 JULY 2004

AVAST YE!
Hollywood's romantic portrayal of pirates in the past has come back to haunt it.
18 JULY 2004

GONE PHISHIN'
Information on online businesses is much harder to get than their offline counterparts.
11 JULY 2004

LETTER MAN
Bob Bemer died two weeks ago. Dubbed the 'Father of Ascii', he spent his life advocating responsible use of computer technology.
4 JULY 2004

INFORM NATION
There can't be a 'knowledge economy' unless technological literacy becomes embedded in education.
27 JUNE 2004

ON HOLS THIS WEEK
20 JUNE 2004

TRANSIT STORY
The Big Brother television show is a window on a world before personal communications technology arrived.
13 JUNE 2004

FLESH OPPORTUNITY
A national register of 3G phones is playing into the hands of mobile operators and their 'adult services'.
6 JUNE 2004

MANY ARE CALLED
Niklas Zennstrom's Kazaa software brought the wrath of the entertainment industry down on him. Are the telephone companies next in the queue?
30 MAY 2004

PATENT PEEVED
In a world of interconnected technologies, software patenting travels in the opposite direction.
23 MAY 2004

NET IMPERATIVE
Being informed is increasingly turning into a personal choice. Made by each of us and not on our behalf.
16 MAY 2004

POWER MAD
Abandoning electronic voting is not the first time an Irish government had to eat humble pie.
9 MAY 2004

CARD SHARPS
Government-issued ID cards could have the capability to do much more than establish who we are.
2 MAY 2004

DRUG OF THE NATION
Some aspects of TV advertising aimed at children may be harmful. Science can inform this debate if (like the smoking ban) we're prepared to acknowledge it.
25 APRIL 2004

VIRTUAL SHELF
A war of words on Amazon.com about a psychology book, is a far (and welcome) cry from the old bookshop rule of 'Quiet Please'.
18 APRIL 2004

LUDD FUD
Calling people Luddites is an all-too-easy and dismissive way of ignoring the important human trait of caution.
11 APRIL 2004

SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL
The music industry is waging war on 'piracy' but has run for cover when it comes to change and innovation.
4 APRIL 2004

NAVEL GAZING
It looks like Ireland's great contribution to the 'information age' is producing report after report on the state of broadband.
28 MARCH 2004

GR8 EXPECTATIONS
The addition of the Luas to Dublin's public transport system means it won't be long before "I'M ON THE TRAM!!" booms from its carriages.
21 MARCH 2004

OTHER VOICES
As the United Nations gets serious about global governance of the internet, the age old questions of 'for whom?' and 'by whom?' require new answers.
14 MARCH 2004

NO COLUMN THIS WEEK
7 MARCH 2004

GOODBYE E
The electronic voting debacle in Ireland reveals much hypocrisy when it comes to e-democracy and e-government and doesn't bode well for the future.
29 FEBRUARY 2004

EXPERT EASE
If the 'knowledge society' is to mean anything, then governments will have to adapt and change to accomodate informed citizens.
22 FEBRUARY 2004

THEY WILL NOT STAND AND WAIT
A dynamic group in Knockmore, County Mayo is rewriting the script on rural infrastructure by building its own broadband network.
15 FEBRUARY 2004

APPLE OF MY EYE
Evil empires are springing up everywhere these days, but for Macintosh fans there will always be just one.
8 FEBRUARY 2004

THRESHOLD
It's been said that "participation in online communities often provides a sense of satisfaction that actually dampens a willingness to interact with the real world". If it's true, we've been down this road before.
1 FEBRUARY 2004

FUTURE TENSE
'Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.' -- Marcus Antonius (150AD)
25 JANUARY 2004

LINE DANCING
By increasing the line rental charge for the third time in 13 months, Eircom has showed its hand in the game of high stakes poker that is Ireland's telecoms future. The government should hold its nerve and call.
18 JANUARY 2004

WATCH THIS SPACE
It was the web, not television, which drew millions interested in the Mars landings.
11 JANUARY 2004

BIG LEAP YEAR
PREVIEW: Ireland's telecom and broadcasting landscape might be unrecognisable by the end of this year.
4 JANUARY 2004