Oliver Burkeman
latest news & developmentsEnter the perplexing password
The accepted doctrine about how to create these annoying codes is failing our security, writes Oliver Burkeman.
The virtual cloud hangs over us
Technology was supposed to make things simpler. This was the famous promise of those laughable 1960s predictions about life in the 21st century.
The secret to winning the war on email
Every email that isn’t garbage can be categorised as either "active" or "reference", writes <b>Oliver Burkeman</b>.
Groupon: The golden nugget
There’s nothing new in bulk buying and negotiating discounts. But Groupon does it in 47 countries for more than 70-million people.
Has the Apple iPad saved journalism from extinction?
In this parlous climate for the traditional media, a journalist who gets too excited about a gadget such as the iPad is liable to attract scorn.
You’ve been a great audience …
The gaffes, the gibberish, the gurning. Admit it: there’s a part of him you’re going to miss. Oliver Burkeman on Bush’s comic legacy.
Carts on the beat
Rising fuel costs make electric golf carts an unusual alternative to cars.
Hotel advice from hotheads
One amusing way to waste five minutes on the internet is to visit the website TripAdvisor.com, which features thousands of travellers’ hotel reviews.
Boggle-eyed and on the big screen
There are few places on the planet where the influence of five bright yellow residents of Springfield has yet to be felt, and there will be fewer still with the long-awaited…
Tattoo your couch
It’s okay to draw on the furniture, writes Tanya Farber.
Potjiekos and proteas
Tanya Farber reports on how the clothing design and decor industries are benefitting from trendies turning to designs that draw on local iconography.
Brand Patterson
Using a team of co-authors, James Patterson has become perhaps the world’s most successful writer.
Neil Young takes a dig at Bush
With the George W Bush’s approval rating down to 33% in some polls, his lowest ever, an overt message from a musician of Neil Young’s stature could find a large audience, reports…
Lockerbie families offered $2,7bn
The Libyan government has promised to pay $10-million compensation to each of the 270 families bereaved in the Lockerbie bombing, a law firm representing many of the relatives…
From the soul of a slave
Last year an American professor stumbled upon a book written by a female slave in the 1850s. Could it possibly be authentic? If so, it would be the earliest known novel by a…