Community developer blogs

Renegade Zen

Recent Posts

• Future of Web Design 2008 [1]

  Posted: 24 Apr 2008 at 00:08

  Quite simply, the Future of Web Design 2008 blew me away with the level of ideas, creativity and passion that I took from the day. As a designer, I loved to hear people actually talking about the design aspect of the web, instead of just the technical, and FOWD delivered a well structured day of ta

• FreeAgent goes Universal

  Posted: 16 Feb 2008 at 12:08

  Well, I promised two big announcements this week, and this one is certainly a biggie. After weeks of work, we’ve finally launched our international version of FreeAgent named “Universal”, and relaunched a new website into the bargain.

• Highland Fling 2008 [1]

  Posted: 12 Feb 2008 at 20:01

  This week has got to rank as one of my busiest for a long time, with two major launches; one of which I’ll leave till later in the week to divulge. Today though, it’s all about the Highland Fling 2008 – Web Standards in Scotland conference organised by Alan White. If you were at last year’s confere

• Check out the new kid!

  Posted: 20 Nov 2007 at 16:00

  Well things have been pretty hectic here over the last couple of weeks, and we now have a new addition to the family. Introducing Cassidy Jasmin Bowe who was born at 1:30am on Wednesday 14th of Novmeber 2007. Thanks to everyone who has sent us best wishes over the past week, it’s all very much appr

• Photos from Cuba

  Posted: 21 Oct 2007 at 16:08

  I’m finally getting round to posting some photos from my recent trip to Cuba, so if you’re vaguely interested then haul ass over to my Flickr and take a look.

• FreeAgent is unleashed

  Posted: 18 Sep 2007 at 16:09

  It’s been a hard few months, but we’re all very proud to announce the public launch of FreeAgent! FreeAgent is part of the reason I’ve been so slack on the blogging front, but it’s required a tremendous amount of work over the past few months running our Beta Trial, responding to feedback and gener

• Kitchen Salesmen, web standards and the art of pitching a client

  Posted: 01 Jul 2007 at 00:03

  Moving into a new house always presents itself with a host of opportunities to spend money on stuff you probably don’t need. For us, this includes a new kitchen, so over the last couple of weeks we’ve done a bit of research on what’s out there, who’s selling and how much it costs. Now don’t fret, t

• All quiet on the western front

  Posted: 02 Jun 2007 at 20:00

  Eastern really but you get the point. I’ve been pretty slack on the blogging front really but it’s not because I’m sitting on my ass (or getting whipped at Gears of War online). Nope, I’ve been hard at it with a number of endeavours.

• Highland Flung

  Posted: 08 Apr 2007 at 16:21

  So the conference is over and I’m finally getting a chance to collect my thoughts and write something about the Highland Fling 2007. By all standards (excuse the pun) the conference was an unmitigated success, with the day itself going surprisingly smoothly and without a hitch. So, here are some of

• Countdown to the Fling

  Posted: 01 Apr 2007 at 20:06

  Only a few days to go until the inaugural Highland Fling web standards in Scotland conference. Tickets have been selling well, but I hear there’s still some available so if you’re at all passionate about the web standards cause or just want to hear the great speakers that are lined up, then get you

• FreeAgent Central: Money management for UK freelancers

  Posted: 26 Mar 2007 at 00:25

  If you’re like me, then you’re probably not as on top of your finances as you should be. As an employee it’s not such a big deal, but if you’re a freelancer or contractor then this can be a real issue, especially when tax time comes around and you find you’re not as prepared as you need to be. The

• The Zen in print

  Posted: 19 Mar 2007 at 00:20

  Tooting my own trumpet here, but what the hell, it’s not that often you find yourself in print. For good reasons anyway :) I was contacted a few months ago by Jason Beird, who told me he was putting together a new book aimed at developers who wanted to improve their design skills, and planned to fe

• BarCamp Scotland

  Posted: 04 Mar 2007 at 16:15

  I spent an enjoyable afternoon at BarCamp Scotland yesterday. I hadn’t even heard of the event until recently but I’m glad I was tipped off, because it’s an interesting idea and a great way to network and hear talented people in the industry. The basic premise is a sort of “unconference” where peop

• Anyone up for a Highland Fling?

  Posted: 16 Jan 2007 at 16:03

  I’m very pleased to announce some exciting news for all Scottish (and UK) based web designers and developers. The inaugural Highland Fling conference is being held in Edinburgh on the 5th of April 2007, focusing on a theme of progressive enhancement. The brain child of my good mate Alan White, this

• MODx Content Management System review

  Posted: 13 Jan 2007 at 16:19

  In my previous article I talked briefly about MODx, a relatively new CMS, which I’ve been test driving for the last few months. Now I’ve had the time to use it in anger, I thought I’d review it properly now for anyone interested in this promising content management framework.

• The next level in CMS

  Posted: 27 Dec 2006 at 20:14

  For the past year or so I’ve been using Textpattern and I’ve got nothing but good things to say about this Content Management System. It’s come on leaps and bounds since I first started using it, and for blogs and small scale sites it’s ideal. Creating blogs is very simple, the templating system is

• Must Have Web Design Books: Transcending CSS

  Posted: 07 Dec 2006 at 20:04

  I’ve had a bad dose of the man flu recently, so I’ve not been able to get much work done, but its at least given me the opportunity to get stuck into Transcending CSS by Andy Clarke, which arrived a couple of days ago. There’s been a lot of hype surrounding this book, and from what I’ve read so far

• Must have web design books: Part 1

  Posted: 02 Dec 2006 at 16:06

  Over the next few weeks I’m going to be posting a series of articles on my favourite books related to web design. Not all of these books will be of the “Learn CSS” variety. In fact, some of them are not even directly related to the web, but they’re all ones which have helped me improve my skills ov

• Amber Bowe

  Posted: 30 Nov 2006 at 16:07

  Doing a website for your partner is always going to be risky. Mess it up and not only have you upset your client but you might end up sleeping on the couch as well! Luckily I think we’ve managed to pull this one off. Amber is starting a new business as a personal chef in Edinburgh, and she needed a

• Oh, so that's what all the fuss is about [1]

  Posted: 25 Nov 2006 at 20:05

  I’ve spent a very illuminating couple of days getting acquainted with Ruby on Rails. Net Resources has recently started a Ruby on Rails training course and I got a chance to sit in on one of them and learn a bit more about the framework that’s got everyone talking. Let me just preface this by sayin