DDK Pod

DDK Pod Episode 12 – Porn and Technology: ‘The Butterfly Effect’ by Jon Ronson. This week we discuss a fascinating story - the impact one man, Fabian Thylmann, had on the porn industry in the early 2000s.  Journalist Jon Ronson decided to investigate and write an audio book about the astonishing impact Fabian’s grasp of fledgling internet technologies had at that time. He discovered how Fabian created one of the mightiest digital empires the internet has ever seen without anyone in general society knowing or caring because of the connection to porn.  We discuss the implications and parallels with other more widely known sites and the dangers of incuriousness.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few (non-pornographic!) recommendations for our listeners.
 

Note: This Podcast, despite the title, does not contain any pornographic material.

Timecodes:

00:16 - The News

04:36 – Porn and Technology: ‘The Butterfly Effect’ by Jon Ronson

27:42 - DDK Recommends Stuff

32:04 - Get in touch
 

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Tweet us: @ddklimited

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Audio edited by Charlie McConville, www.interflowcreations.co.uk

DDK Pod Episode 11 – Online Learning – The death of school and university as we know it? This week we discuss the growth of online learning and the pros and cons of it being an alternative to formal classroom education. The effects of Covid-19 have forced so many educational institutions to use online services and tools to deliver content. We discuss the implications and lasting effects of both online and in person learning.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:19 - The News

10:48 – Online Learning – The death of school and university?

30:57 - DDK Recommends Stuff

37:03 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show:

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Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited

DDK Pod Episode 10 – The Measurable Benefits of Technology. This week we discuss the example of the London Ambulance Service and their Computer Aided Dispatch system.  This system has revolutionised the way the service is able to respond to emergency calls, and by measuring the amount of time and lives saved, the service has been able to prove how effective the technology has been.  Measuring outcomes and benefits when delivering technology products is an essential part of hypothesis led design, which we here at DDK love.  Listen to our take on how adopting these principles might just change your life.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:
00:17 - The News

08:28 – Humane Technology

26:54 - DDK Recommends Stuff

32:14 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show:
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Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited

DDK Pod Episode 9 – Humane Technology. This week we discuss the efforts of one Tristan Harris, former design ethicist at Google and now President and a Co-Founder of the Center for Humane Technology, to better educate all of us about the extent to which technology is being used to manipulate our lives.  This is often happening without our knowledge, but recent scandals such as the one which embroiled Cambridge Analytica, and the efforts of organisations such as Tristan’s, are starting to make people more aware of the sorts of techniques we are all being targeted by.  We provide our take on what is fast becoming a major issue for our time.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.  No questionable share dealing this week, but we do recommend some booze!

Timecodes:

00:17 - The News

07:31 – Humane Technology

26:12 - DDK Recommends Stuff

30:41 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show: 

Email us [email protected] 

Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited

DDK Pod Episode 8 – Merry Christmas one and all.  It’s DDK Pod! The gift that everyone wants to find under the tree this year. This week we talk about the Tobacco industry playbook (sometimes called the disinformation playbook), the principles of which are as relevant to the issues of today as they were to Tobacco in the 1950s.  Every day companies and powerful individuals in the tech industry and beyond attempt to alter the narrative.  From the science of climate change, to the alternative facts of the Trump presidential term.  We discuss how the playbook worked for 40 years and ultimately, fell apart under the weight of litigation.  We also discuss how these tools and techniques, unethical though they may be, are still in common use today and how effective they are in a Covid-19 afflicted world. Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news (and a story about an Elephant!) and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:52 - The News

08:41 – The Tobacco Playbook

29:48 - DDK Recommends Stuff

35:25 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show: 

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Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited

DDK Pod Episode 7 – This week we come to the final part of our three-part series on Ethics in the IT industry and discuss the ethics of technology supply chains.  We all need to consume technology products these days.  We simply have no choice if we want to stay relevant, but does that mean you have to hold your nose and ditch your ethics?  Can you truly make a decision which is ‘good’ given the length of modern supply chains and the lack of transparency around where the materials which go into the products we buy come from?  Is there any way to ensure that you make an ethical purchase? Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

(A quick note on the timing of these episodes: Normally I try to get an completed fortnightly but given I have just had a new baby I am struggling to keep up with the recording, editing and production process.  Normal service, with an episode every two weeks will resume shortly. – Julian)

Timecodes:

00:21 - The News

06:40 – The Ethics of Technology Supply chains – is it possible to be good in the modern world?

25:08 - DDK Recommends Stuff

30:56 - Get in touch

Amazing Lightsaber video! 

Get in touch with the show: 

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DDK Pod Episode 6 – This week (slightly later than planned – apologies!) we continue our three-part series on Ethics in the IT industry and discuss the ethics of consuming tech in the modern world.  Both companies and individuals have a responsibility to ensure that they remain within ethical standards, but is that really such an easy thing to do?  We examine some ways of evaluating your own ethical footprint and look at the ethics of a case study we should all be interested in: lithium-ion battery recycling.  Its more interesting than it sounds! Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:25 - The News

06:40 – The Ethics of Consuming Technology

25:08 - DDK Recommends Stuff

30:56 - Get in touch

Chemical and Engineering News Article on Lithium-Ion Recycling 

Get in touch with the show: 

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DDK Pod Episode 5 – This week we kick off a three-part series on Ethics in the IT industry and discuss the ethics of common working practices in tech companies.  ‘Crunch’ has become synonymous with the ethically murky practice of requesting, or is some cases demanding, that staff work unusually long hours to get video games released on time.  But the truth is this problem is not isolated to the games industry.  We discuss this and how companies can improve on the outdated organisation structures which lead to this kind of working.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:22 - The News

10:11 - How to build an ethical IT company – Tech industry working practices and the ethical implications they carry.

26:18 - DDK Recommends Stuff

31:12 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show: 

Email us [email protected] 

Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited

DDK Pod Episode 4 – This week we discuss ‘The Five Levels of Remote Work — and why you’re probably at Level 2’ by Steve Glaveski of medium.com.  The Covid-19 pandemic has made working from home the norm for most modern professionals, but many companies are in their infancy when it comes to remote working.  This article suggests a model companies can use to examine how far they are along the journey to remote working nirvana.  We debate its merits and talk about our own experiences as a company delivering effective home working solutions.  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:18 - The News

09:17 - ‘The Five Levels of Remote Work — and why you’re probably at Level 2’ by Steve Glaveski

26:50 - DDK Recommends Stuff

33:00 - Get in touch

‘The Five Levels of Remote Work — and why you’re probably at Level 2’ by Steve Glaveski

Get in touch with the show: 

Email us [email protected] 

Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

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DDK Pod Episode 3 – Continuing the topic of algorithms and their use in the modern world from the previous episode, we discuss ‘Hello World: How to be Human in the Age of the Machine’ by Hannah Fry.  She poses several thought-provoking questions in this book which we discuss: Should there be greater governance, legislation and transparency around the use of algorithms?  Are ethical considerations always taken into account when developing new algorithms?  How do we avoid passing or own biases on to the machines?  Also covered is our pick of the IT industry news and a few recommendations for our listeners.

Timecodes:

00:17 - The News

07:55 - ‘Hello World: How to be Human in the Age of the Machine’ by Hannah Fry

22:12 - DDK Recommends Stuff

27:17 - Get in touch

Get in touch with the show: 

Email us [email protected] 

Tweet us: @ddklimited

Our Website: www.ddklimited.com

Find us on LinkedIn: DDK Limited