iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Bob Marshall

Lizzie Harper Illustrator @lizzie-harper.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I never thought I'd be in such fulsome agreement with the Pope, but I couldn't agree more. #noaiart #sciart

Screen shot of a statement from Pope Leo XIV suggesting human creativity and art is more important and valuable than algorithms and AI

Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 02/10/2026

Depressing to read about these moronic attacks on the brave volunteers who give up their time and risk their lives to save others in peril at sea. Another good reason, as if one were needed, to log off Faecebook permanently.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 02/10/2026

A very well written and detailed blog here (with 2026 costs) on travelling to #Shetland on a budget; getting around the islands, and how to plan your stay. It’s a pity the old camping Böds are consigned to history - they were brilliant, although at least two of them are now run by local communities.

shetland.org

Shetland on a budget | Shetland.org

Shetland attracts many visitors, and they come to pursue all kinds of interests: archaeology, birds and other wildlife, walking, knitting, photography, angling and more.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 29/09/2026

I had completely forgotten about those cutaway visuals of Orkney chambered cairns I made for HES back in 2018!

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

Andy Wightman @andywightman.scot · 28/09/2026

Castle Tioram is an ancient ruined castle in Loch Moidart one of the seats of Macdonald of Clanranald. It hit the headlines over 20 years ago when the person who claimed to own it (Lex Brown) proposed to renovate the property and convert it to residential use 1/4

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 28/09/2026

I need to be more careful; I speed-scroll past LinkedIn posts promoting AI tech companies so fast these days that I've often unwittingly hit the like button, thus letting the algorithm know that I want to see more AI tech posts. This is how they get you!

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

The Fake History Hunter @fakehistoryhunter.net · 28/09/2026

By Chris at lyonkid: www.instagram.com/lyonkid.art/

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 28/09/2026

There are two ways to look at this. On the one hand, losing access is frustrating. On the other hand, it's data AI can't scrape - although I fear that horse may have already bolted.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 28/09/2026

Reconstruction illustrations are gone too!

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 27/09/2026

I make homemade flapjacks with rolled oats, roughly chopped mixed nuts, dates, and cranberries, although I substitute the sugar for honey. They’re a little bit healthier, but quite filling.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 24/09/2026

A fun cutaway visual I made over a decade ago for the Scotch Whisky Experience, Edinburgh. It was updated by another artist following a major interior refurbishment a few years ago, but for a long time this image was displayed on a huge panel outside the main entrance on the Royal Mile.

A cutaway drawing of a former school building in Edinburgh converted to a visitor centre. The exterior is traditional Scottish Victorian architecture, while the interior features a modern café, bar, reception, museum, and gift shop on the lower floors, and corporate function and entertainment rooms on the upper floors.

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

The Victorian Society @thevicsoc.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

We're reaching for our smelling salts. A new vape shop will be opening on Sauchiehall St next to the world-renowned Mackintosh Tearooms. This follows the devastating fire at Union St earlier this year caused by a vape shop that destroyed a Victorian building + took the Station out of use for days 🧵

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

Andy Arthur💃🏰⚓🦌 Threadinburgh 🧵 @threadinburgh.scot · 23/09/2026

In an environment of so many organisations turning to AI slop for their graphic design, *this* is how you do it. Be more cathedral. 🕍👏🏼

Advert from Edinburgh Minute: "Freelance graphic designer - 'St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral is searching for a freelance graphic designer to work with on a regular, long-term basis, for various print and digital media across the year (esp. summer and Christmas), including posters, flyers, and digital assets. "

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 22/09/2026

Not wanting to pick on farmers who are already under enough pressure as it is, but if they could please consider putting guards on their flail mowers before cutting hedgerows over the coming months, it would help to reduce the utter havoc that hawthorn shrapnel does to bicycle tyres. Thank you 🙏 ;)

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 22/09/2026

Great tip! Might be worth adding that to visualise the result of the shrinkwrap modifier on the topology whilst in edit mode, toggle the 'on cage' visibility of the modifier to ON. It took me a while to realise why I couldn't see the change in the viewport. ;)

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 21/09/2026

Great to hear there is a promising future for the wee kirk in the North East village I grew up in. My family attended an Episcopal church further up the coast, but we did drop in for the occasional service here. A generation of villagers I once knew well when I was a kid are laid to rest here.

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

Therron Welstead @therronwelstead.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

This evening I’m doing some last minute edits for my Wednesday evening talk on women that feature in Carisbrooke Castle’s history. I genuinely love this talk as it not only includes stories and characters that are not often talked about, but also it touches on a wide range of themes.

Isabella de Fortibus' window.
The 13th century stepped window seat built as part of Isabella's great chamber.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 20/09/2026

Sorry to mention the C-word so early, but I’ve been working all through the weekend on Christmas card commissions for a client. If it weren’t for the fact the cards feature a castle, I’d be struggling through this.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 20/09/2026

Roads/car parks used to have more room to manoeuvre until cars suddenly got a lot larger and wider. I believe the blame is partly on the auto industry and the demand for these oversized cars, which is now giving planners problems. A solution is to go smaller again, but no one seems to want this.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

However; I strongly suspect the new-found immediacy and apparent convenience of AI-generated images isn't helping. Why the rush? It’s not a race. We all need to slow down a bit. Patience is a virtue.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

This is by no means a modern problem. I’ve had to deal with tight deadlines all of my professional career. I feel partly to blame because I don’t do a great job of communicating just how tricky and time-consuming this work is - something I intend to address at some point.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

I fully understand the time and budget pressures on those who work in the heritage sector - particularly when it comes to funding grants - but it’s extremely frustrating having to turn away valuable work that I might have had a decent chance of delivering with earlier consultation.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

3. If you set unrealistic deadlines, you’ll end up with lower quality. That reflects negatively on you, the artist, and your employer or client. 4. Plan ahead adequately. The time to commission artists and content creators is right at the beginning of your project - preferably well in advance. 😉

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

1. In most cases, we can’t start work on a project until we’ve fulfilled our existing commitments. 2. This work requires time and care to execute properly - conduct research, site visits, gather survey data, consult archaeologists and historians, and achieve high standards that meet academic rigour.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 18/09/2026

A polite request and reminder to folk who manage heritage interpretation projects: Please don’t leave it too late in your project or until just a month or two before your deadline to commission us visual reconstruction artists.

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

Matt Hill @matthill.co · 17/09/2026

Chatham Historic dockyard is akways fascinating. Did you know it has the longest preserved and still working ropery in the world? The 346 metre long building has made hundreds of thousands of miles of rope for centuries. I got these snaps at the weekend.

Interior view of Chatham dockyard ropery showing the 346 metre length in long perspective.

Interior view of Chatham dockyard ropery showing the 346 metre length in long perspective with some ceiling details.

Interior view of Chatham dockyard ropery showing a rack with hanging portions of frayed or unfinished rope.

Interior view of Chatham dockyard ropery showing a bicycle used to ride the 1135 foot length, the quickest way to get between both ends.

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Reposted by Bob Marshall

Blender @blender.org · 16/09/2026

Update time for your Blender LTS! 🔶 Blender 5.2.2 LTS → 37 fixes 🔹 Blender 4.5.14 LTS → 1 fix Download and read the changelog at blender.org/lts #b3d #DevFund

blender.org

LTS — Blender

The Blender LTS program is aimed at ensuring that long-lasting projects can be executed using a stable Blender version with official support for 2 years.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 16/09/2026

Gosh, it's all the fun browsing the BBC technology news page these days. How many milliseconds until midnight is the Doomsday Clock at again?

The BBC Technology News page on 16 September 2026. The dominant headlines focus on the rise, impact, and uncertainty of artificial intelligence.

"OpenAI boss says world 'right to be afraid' but should trust AI firms."
"AI app ads promoting 'objectification of women' banned by watchdog."
"What is AI, how does it work and why are some people concerned about it?"
"Why are there concerns AI could threaten humanity, and how real are they?"
"Trump downplays warnings of AI risks, citing rivalry with China."
"Questions mount over what an AI 'slowdown' would look like."
"AI staff 'genuinely frightened' for humanity's future, ex-Anthropic researcher tells BBC."
"Anthropic boss Dario Amodei calls for AI development to slow down."
"UK government rejects 'kill switch' idea for dangerous AI."

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 14/09/2026

Friends: "I can't stand seeing all these fake, generated images on the web now." Also, friends, a few moments later: "I recently uploaded a photo of my bathroom to ChatGPT, and it showed me a load of ideas for redecoration. It's absolutely amazing!"

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 14/09/2026

What DAW are you using? I've not got very far with it due to lack of time, but I've been enjoying Reaper lately.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 14/09/2026

It's an inevitable consequence of the SaaS model. Everything is so massively enshittified, and it feels as though tech companies deliberately make it hard for creatives to be creative now. As you said, I miss the days when we could open software and get to work without these barriers.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 14/09/2026

Going back to my roots and doing trad art is growing more attractive by the day.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 14/09/2026

Hands up if you also hate Mondays because you're full of fresh ideas and can't wait to get started creating stuff, but software refuses to let you work until you've downloaded and applied the latest updates, and you've gone around in circles trying to reset your account login and billing details.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 13/09/2026

De-rigged the marquees at the Smiddy this morning and went on a bike ride along the coast to unwind after a very busy day yesterday. I stopped at Aberlady church and for the first time, I noticed these interpretation panels hiding around the back, beautifully illustrated by David Simon.

Aberlady Parish Church in East Lothian County, Scotland.

Five interpretation panels with historical information and illustrations mounted on a low stone plinth overlooking a church graveyard and a golf course behind it. This photo was taken at Aberlady Parish Church, East Lothian, Scotland.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 12/09/2026

And that’s a wrap for 2026. I am exhausted, but really enjoyed welcoming and chatting to all the folk who came to visit us at the Smiddy for Doors Open day. We nearly ran out of cakes! Everyone left smiling! 😊 Your support helps keeps our rural heritage alive.

Welcoming visitors to Cousland Smiddy in Midlothian.

A blacksmith hammers a horseshoe into shape on an anvil in front of a glowing forge. Cousland Smiddy in Midlothian, Scotland.

Visitors to Cousland Smiddy in Midlothian watch a blacksmith working at an anvil in front of a forge.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 11/09/2026

Things I was frightened of as a child My uncle’s German Shepherd dog. Wolves. The headteacher’s belt. Passing through security checkpoints in N Ireland during the troubles. Swimming in the sea. Tattoos, body art and piercings. John Carpenter films.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 11/09/2026

We’re all set up for tomorrow’s Doors Open Day at Cousland Smiddy. Come and say hello! There will be food ;)

Cousland Smiddy - a working 18th century blacksmiths workshop, Victorian era cottage, and community heritage hub in Midlothian, Scotland.

Volunteers erecting a marquee in a field.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 08/09/2026

They were such simple fun! Thanks for the memory.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 08/09/2026

FFS, the look on that driver's face... It's all fine. The cyclist didn't die. I'm still a brilliant driver.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 07/09/2026

I have a feeling the NTS are at it also. I saw interpretation panel designs for Brodick Castle recently, which looked suspiciously as though gen AI had been used to reconstruct its former gatehouse. None of it looked like it had followed the archaeology. Very depressing to see.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 07/09/2026

Love that app. So intuitive.

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 07/09/2026

Nice to have one of my reconstructions featured!

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Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 06/09/2026

Up on the hill to see the Tour of Britain race 🚴🏼🚴🏼🚴🏼🚴🏼 pass through today. Pretty windy!

A cycle race climbs up a hill in the Scottish Borders

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