My daughter’s under-14 soccer team has recently started using a video analysis system called VEO. The idea is pretty impressive. A camera is set up around the halfway line and records the entire field throughout the game. Afterwards, the footage is uploaded to the cloud, where it is processed into something much more useful. The… Continue Reading
Network Ops
The Noise Under the Floor
When I was 17, our high school choir embarked on its first ever concert tour to mainland Europe. We were heading to Salzburg, then on to Italy, including Venice and Lake Garda. To keep costs down, the school hired a coach rather than flying. It was quite an adventure: we travelled from northern England by… Continue Reading
The Longest Thirty Minutes I’ve Watched in Years
I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but there’s a World Cup going on – and our family has dual allegiance to both the USA (playing later today, as I write this) and my native England. I’ll admit that not every soccer game is amazing, but even the most casual fan must admit that England’s victory… Continue Reading
When the Fix Causes the Problem
Last Sunday morning, I was dealing with seasonal allergies. Nothing dramatic — just the usual springtime experience of feeling like nature has personally declared war on your sinuses. So before heading out for the morning, I grabbed an allergy pill from the medicine cabinet. Problem solved. Or so I thought. A little later, I arrived… Continue Reading
Schrödinger’s Chickens: The Silent Risk of Partial Network Failure
A few weeks ago Matthew (one of the senior engineers on our team) discovered that a fox had somehow gotten into his backyard chicken coop overnight. Chaos followed. The chickens scattered in every direction, and some vanished completely. A few cautiously returned later that day, another one came back the next morning, and then a… Continue Reading
The Bat in the Bedroom – and the Network Problems We Postpone
A few years ago, my wife and I woke up in the middle of the night to a sound that no homeowner wants to hear. Not a smoke alarm. Not a dripping pipe. Not even the classic “what was that noise” that turns out to be the cat. It was wings. We both sat up,… Continue Reading