So, I went to Cologne last week

Sunset over the Cobb

The Cobb #SilentSunday

After careful consideration and a look at where the industry is spending it's funding we've decided to pivot #FFConf in a "new" direction.

I present to you: https://ffconf.ai/

Please share with bots and humans alike.

So, about AI taking all those jobs… this from a radiologist on Reddit.

“Real talk here in radiology

Just need to get this out there, since some of the interviews and opinions I have heard about the state of radiology are just unmoored from reality...

I am a senior resident in diagnostic/interventional radiology with a background in applied ML research from the pre-LLM era. I also review papers for a leading medical AI journal.”

more->

Steam day!

This Spreadsheet should have been a Database

CFP for TechMids closes in one week (Aug 21st). Submit your wittiest talk ideas for a chance to present to a chill community of tech types in England's finest city on November 27th.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeObgsfBymBPghhuMrzJyr5-kpBpHyFY2L7vVVPZTv0R-K8WQ/viewform

Early bird (self funded) ticket acquired for this year's TechMids Conference - 27th November in Birmingham.

https://conf.techmids.org/

You should come too.

It breaks my heart to be a cop about this, but some people have been committing the uncool sort of crimes.

Safety glasses that allow you to view an eclipse are coded ISO-12312-2. However, people have been putting that code on cheap sunglasses and then selling them as eclipse-safe. Unlike fake Versace stuff down the market, this fake has consequences: you can harm your eyes using them.

At the time of writing there are three manufacturers in the UK who can be vouched for: Sollunae, Absolute Eclipse and First Light Optics. Be careful when not buying their stuff.

Next Stop: Birmingham - .NET, IoT and Hedgehogs! 🦔

Birmingham .NET User Group - Wednesday 12th August, from 6:30pm at Bluetel Solutions (4 Temple Row, B2 5HG)

Please RSVP at https://www.meetup.com/birmingham-dotnet-and-xamarin-user-group/events/313959986/

#Birmingham #DotNet #IoT #MVPBuzz

https://borretti.me/article/mathematics-without-mathematicians

The first computer I programmed had no keyboard and no screen. You entered machine code on an Altair by flipping front-panel switches, one byte at a time, and the only output was a row of lights. Every abstraction since has been someone hiding those switches from you. Most of the time that is a gift. Occasionally it is the reason nobody can explain why the thing is slow. #RetroComputing

I am travelling to Scotland on Wednesday 5th August to deliver my talk '.NET, IoT and Hedgehogs!' at .NET Edinburgh.

For anyone in the area, please do come along. RSVP at https://www.meetup.com/dotnetedinburgh/events/315611424/

#DotNet #Edinburgh #IoT #MVPBuzz

Some preliminary musings on complexity (and why it is not very, very complicated) and associated ethics. https://thecynefin.co/complexity-is-not-beyond-us/

We see governments blocking access to models. We see popular opposition to AI campaigning against data centers and calling for regulation. How much can we rely on AI tools being available to maintain and extend our software in the future?"
- My article on Software Design in the Agentic Age: https://verraes.net/2026/07/software-design-in-the-agentic-age/
- Martin Fowler's fragments: https://martinfowler.com/fragments/2026-07-06.html

“A recurring question was how much we should still care about software design at the granularity of code. These are concerns such as naming, code duplication, dead code, mixing responsibilities, modularity, coupling, and cohesion. I can roughly group the participants’ opinions into two opposing arguments:”

https://verraes.net/2026/07/software-design-in-the-agentic-age/

CoreCLR Progress and the Mono Timeline for .NET MAUI
https://devblogs.microsoft.com/dotnet/coreclr-progress-and-mono-timeline-dotnet-maui/

#microsoft #NET #NET_for_Android #NET_for_iOS #NET_MAUI #android #coreclr #ios #mono

Morning breakfast at a great coffee shop opposite the hotel. Great conference #reconnect - followed by a short holiday, Brownsea Island, Poole, Boscombe. Hot but great.

Greater Birmingham is the second largest metropolitan area in the UK, with a population of 4.3 million. It remains the industrial heart of the UK, has more miles of canal than Venice, and the best Indian restaurants in the world.

In case Andy Burnham was wondering.