technology – Grant Gibson

Upgrading an ioSafe Rugged Portable to 4TB

For a good few years I had a sideline in writing tech reviews for various Scottish newspapers. One of the products I was invited to review in 2011 was the Solo Pro hard drive from the disaster-proof specialists at ioSafe. I gave the Solo Pro a real hammering, figuratively and literally. First I subjected itContinue reading “Upgrading an ioSafe Rugged Portable to 4TB”

Mind reading at TEDx

Bright Signals was invited to TEDx Glasgow this year to demonstrate some of our high tech marketing stunts. Following discussions with the organisers and their partners, we agreed to bring along three machines from the Bright Signals Lab:

Robocock's Big Night Out

In the summer of 2015 we were asked to make something fun for the Scottish Bar and Pub Awards. The brief was pretty open, just that it had to be something that could go into the drinks reception area at The Hilton in Glasgow. We discussed a few concepts and quite quickly arrived at theContinue reading “Robocock's Big Night Out”

Creating the magic behind Scotrail's Flatterbox

A couple of weeks ago, our agency Bright Signals was approached by Wire Media with an interesting project. Our two agencies already collaborate on a number of clients including Tennent’s Lager and Jura Whisky, so it was a no-brainer for us to help out on this project. The concept was Flatterbox, a voice-controlled ticket boothContinue reading “Creating the magic behind Scotrail's Flatterbox”

Choosing a Dynamic DNS service

<![CDATA[For the past 10 years or so I've been hosting my site from home on a custom Windows, Apache, MySQL, PHP (WAMP) server. As well as the usual firewall rules and port forwarding required to host a server from a domestic cable connection, it’s necessary to run Dynamic DNS so that your URL can ‘followContinue reading “Choosing a Dynamic DNS service”

Talking careers: every kid wants to be an inventor

<![CDATA[Last week I was invited by a local school to give my first ever careers talk. It was really nice to be asked, but it got me thinking: what is my career? Leading digital development at the Herald & Times Group is certainly a big part of it, but that’s not the whole story –Continue reading “Talking careers: every kid wants to be an inventor”

My Project of the Month in Popular Science

<![CDATA[I was amazed to discover that my toy box is Project of the Month in the December 2013 issue of Popular Science. Very exciting for a geek like me! It was too late for my video to make it into the US edition of the app, but it did make it into Popular Science UK…Continue reading “My Project of the Month in Popular Science”

Controlling PowerPoint with bananas

<![CDATA[Recently I was asked to give a presentation to my 300 or so colleagues at the Herald & Times Group. I'd given a talk to the same audience on pretty much the same subject just a couple of months before, so I felt I needed a bit of a twist to make it interesting. So…Continue reading “Controlling PowerPoint with bananas”

Biometric security toy box

<![CDATA[A couple of weeks ago Apple announced the new iPhone 5s with Touch ID, a fingerprint identity sensor that replaces the need for a conventional PIN number or password. It got me thinking… wouldn't it be cool to make a lockable toy box with fingerprint access for my son's toy car collection. At the heartContinue reading “Biometric security toy box”

Prototype contactless bathroom power switches with Arduino and Sainsmart relays

<![CDATA[A couple of months ago a friend showed me his plans for a new bathroom in his house. The plans included a number of electrical items – fans, lights, etc – all of which required switches. The problem is that – in the UK at least – there are tight regulations around electrical switches inContinue reading “Prototype contactless bathroom power switches with Arduino and Sainsmart relays”