iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

A ghost of the past, hiding in very plain sight over Canary Wharf. The European Medicines Agency, no longer at home in the UK.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 19/09/2026

Good for the British Museum to be bringing the logistics of the battlefield to life and not just the fighting

A cafe display fridge with shelves of cardboard boxes printed with Bayeux Tapestry images containing 'kids meals'

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 03/09/2026

TfL uncharacteristically responsive to feedback

Arrivals sign on a crowded tube platform with a message "trains are not stopping at Pimlico"

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 27/08/2026

I struggle to come to terms with a world in which Southend is a city but Rochester is not. One of the weirder unintended consequences of successive waves of local government reorganisation, with city status carelessly mislaid.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 22/08/2026

No problem - it's disconcerting when planes (appear to) vanish. I have just remembered that FR24 now produces a GPS jamming map, which seems to provide a pretty clear explanation. www.flightradar24.com/data/gps-jam...

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 22/08/2026

And the same flight two days ago had a similar GPS oddity

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 16/08/2026

The theme of the walk was aridity* *Not applicable to golf courses

A view from a hillside - the hill itself, normally green, is completely brown. Trees in the valley below make the more distant view appear more normal.

A large complex fungus growns on a tree stump, with a line of blackberries beneath it

Dry brown grass in the foreground, turning bright green in the middle distance. A sand bunker and a small flag indicate an irrigated golf course.

A path curves through woodland. A coal post [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal-tax_post] stands on the side of the path

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 14/08/2026

Tristan wins on afarness too (job sharing Administrators pictured, one a former colleague - the conversation when she told me she was leaving and where she was going was one to remember)

Two people stand in front of a large sign mounted on a wall:

Welcome to the Remotest Island
Tristan da Cunha
South Atlantic

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 12/08/2026

Not for the first time, timeline randomness provides the answer. There must be a role for the National Heat Risk Commission in managing toast standards.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 10/08/2026

Too many people prefer not to recognise that familiarity trumps usability (and that that's true of books and supermarkets as well as Apples) www.publicstrategist.com/2014/01/fami...

Now I have heard some suggestions in the past that there is a superiority and elegance to the design of Apple systems which puts them ahead of their Windows equivalents and that Apple has a profound understanding of usability which Microsoft somehow lacks. I have even heard that that may be a matter of some contention between aficionados of the two systems. But the really important point about that dispute is that it really doesn’t matter. Even if it were true that Apple is in some objective sense ‘better’, that does not matter to me in the slightest – unfamiliar overwhelms better.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 04/08/2026

The sale of indulgences may be keeping the NHS afloat

A direction sign in a hospital, with an arrow pointing to "Cashiers & Prayer Room"

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 31/07/2026

It's taken a while, but here we are... But more seriously, yes, crikey

An image of a poster for 'Rewired State' - National Hack the Government Day, March 7th 2009. The main poster image has the words 'code a better country' against a background of binary digits.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 30/07/2026

Yes indeed, that will be fun

114Treating.
(1)A person shall be guilty of a corrupt practice if he is guilty of treating.

(2)A person shall be guilty of treating if he corruptly, by himself or by any other person, either before, during or after an election, directly or indirectly gives or provides, or pays wholly or in part the expense of giving or providing, any meat, drink, entertainment or provision to or for any person—

(a)for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any other person to vote or refrain from voting; or

(b)on account of that person or any other person having voted or refrained from voting, or being about to vote or refrain from voting.

(3)Every elector or his proxy who corruptly accepts or takes any such meat, drink, entertainment or provision shall also be guilty of treating.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 27/07/2026

That's more or less the view from my office window. The cat, sadly, does not generally appear, though I have always hoped it would.

The BT (Post Office) Tower stands out behind a line of buildings. There is a faint rainbow to one side. There is no visible cat.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 14/07/2026

Unsuitable for motor vehicles. For the avoidance of doubt.

An overgrown path disappears among trees. To the side a road sign, 'unsuitable for motor vehicles' - itself half covered in undergrowth.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 25/06/2026

He was the smartest person I have ever worked with and probably the hardest working too. He became expert on a whole new area of law, seemingly overnight, and navigated deep disagreements by charm and understated intellect. Fox's Glacier Mints will never have such significance again.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 16/06/2026

And for extra fun, there is a footpath which goes through the Chequers estate on the inside of the security gates. Though there more than most places, when they say stick to the path, they really mean it.

A grassy meadow, with a country house just visible in the middle difference. In the foreground there is a low metal fence with a stern sign warning of police and police dogs

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 15/06/2026

Which reminds me of this powerful recent blog post by @mastroianni.bsky.social on rules, compliance and integrity. www.experimental-history.com/p/shame-them...

I understand why people are obsessed with rules: it’s fun to pretend that we can control the future. It’s pleasing to think all this messiness is temporary, and that once we articulate what each person should and shouldn’t do, then finally we can live in peace with each other.

And yet, when the future arrives, the people in it always end up doing whatever they want. The only way to have some influence over the future, then, is to have some influence over those wants.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 13/06/2026

The northern line is experimenting with autonomous route creation. This is a southbound train with ideas of its own. As an opening move, Borough has been relocated to the Charing Cross branch. But wait for the punchline in the final seconds.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/06/2026

I got to seal a document a couple of weeks ago for the first time in my life. Made turning up for work all these years suddenly seen worth it. Particularly as back in the last century I spent three years as custodian of the seal of a government department and never got to use it in anger once.

A machine with a faint resemblance to an oversized stapler with an elongated lever sits on a desk besides a book used to record use of the seal

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 06/06/2026

The postman delivers a single CD in a ludicrously oversized box. Which suddenly makes sense when the box is opened - a page to disc ratio of 230:1 must surely be unbeatable

A CD cover face on looking perfectly normal (the CD is Polish Nostalgia played by Cyprien Katsaris)

A CD cover edge on revealing it to be a fat hard cover book with the CD tucked in at the back

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 02/06/2026

Tube strike with a twist - trains, but apparently not for passengers

A tube station departure board showing eight trains, but all are marked 'not in service'

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 01/06/2026

It is pretty obvious from the design of lasting power of attorney forms that they are set up for bulk scanning, as is entirely sensible. So to require six weeks just to open an envelope and drop the contents into a hopper is quite remarkable, and not in a wholly reassuring way.

A screenshot of a web page, which includes the text:

We're waiting to confirm receipt of this LPA
It will take up to 30 working days for us to add this LPA to our records and confirm we've received it. It will then take up to 8 weeks to process the LPA if there are no mistakes in the application.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 25/05/2026

And the B2 2W? format linked to PO boxes is clearly a common one. Just this one overlooked.

A drop down list of postcodes on the Royal Mail website prompted by "B2 2w"

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 25/05/2026

Lasting Power of Attorney is an important and sensitive government service. Once the form has been filled in, it has to be sent off - to an address in Birmingham which Royal Mail doesn't believe exists. Hardly reassuring. #FixTheForms

A page of instructions for a form, including the address to send it to

A screenshot from the Royal Mail showing a form to enter address details. The postcode from the LPA form has been entered, but no match has been found.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 25/05/2026

Landscape with lime bike, Hyde Park

A large tree stands in parkland. There is nobody to be seen, but under the tree, just catching the sun, stands a lime bike.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 24/05/2026

Completely changed, but completely unchanged too - as everywhere, history comes in layers. This was how a view you'll have seen looked in 1978, in the glorious days of the people's republic

A view of the Rynek Główny in Kraków with the end of the Sukiennice in front of the Mariacki church. Clothing, vehicles, soot amd faded colours demonstrate the age of the picture.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

One Login does that too. The app's only other purpose seems to be face matching. Truly we live in interesting times.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

Light dawns - apparently it may be possible to share information across government. How exciting.

Continue to the service you need to use

You’ve successfully proved your identity. You can now continue to the service you need to use.

Some of the information you shared when you proved your identity might be used to automatically fill in forms within the service.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

I have just verified my identity using my driving licence. Which has my address on it. So yes, it's fine to ignore that and ask me to enter it from scratch.

Find your address
Enter your postcode
Enter the postcode of your current home address. This must be a UK postcode, for example SW1A 2AA.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

And worse still - I am going through this mad process because I need to renew my driving licence. So yes, do by all means let DVLA know that.

We need to check your driving licence details

We need to check the details you provided on your driving licence with the DVLA.
Allow DVLA to check your driving licence details

DVLA needs your consent to check your driving licence details before you can continue. They will make sure your licence has not been cancelled or reported as lost or stolen.

To find out more about how your driving licence details will be used, you can read:

the GOV.UK One Login privacy notice (opens in a new tab)
the DVLA privacy notice (opens in a new tab)

Give DVLA your consent to check your driving licence details

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

And it gets worse - we the government put you on notice not to trust the government. Don't blame us the government if the government messes up.

Links from GOV.UK One Login

We are not responsible for any links from GOV.UK One Login to websites that are managed by other government departments and agencies, service providers or other organisations. We do not have any control over the content on these websites.

We’re not responsible for:

the protection of any information you give to these websites
any loss or damage that may come from your use of these websites, or any other websites they link to

You agree to release us from any claims or disputes that may come from using these websites.

You should read all terms and conditions, privacy policies and end user licences that relate to these websites before you use them.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

The root cause of many government problems is that the government does not exist. Sometimes the polite fiction holds up, and sometimes the seething mess is laid bare. The question of why a login service requires 1700 words of Ts&Cs we can leave for another time.

Services and transactions

You can use GOV.UK One Login to access online government services. These services can be managed by GDS, the Cabinet Office or another government department or agency.

Each service will have their own, separate terms and conditions, privacy notices and cookies policies, which apply to the use of that service. You should read these before you use the service.

If a service run by another government department or agency stops being accessible with GOV.UK One Login the service will contact you to tell you what you should do.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 09/05/2026

Lots of little ducks today

A duck floats on a river with a flotilla of ten ducklings

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 08/05/2026

Lambeth announces its results with characteristic branding panache

A screenshot showing early election results. At the top of the page there is a banner with the text, "This is a default template, your custom branding appears to be missing."

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 03/05/2026

An election leaflet drops through the letterbox - one of many, this is the most intensively leafletted election I can remember. But I've never seen anything quite like this before.

MEDIA REPORTS THAT TWO LAMBETH GREEN PARTY CANDIDATES ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF STIRRING UP RACIAL HATRED

May 2026

Dear Neighbour,

It is important you know this ahead of choosing how to cast your vote at the local election this Thursday 7th May.

The Metropolitan Police have told the media that they have arrested two women on suspicion of stirring up racial hatred. It is being widely reported in the press that those arrested are Green Party candidates in Lambeth: Sabine Mairey and Saiqa Ali.

According to multiple press reports, Sabine Mairey, a Lambeth Green Party candidate in Clapham, allegedly shared a post which said that "ramming a synagogue isn't antisemitism. It's revenge".

Meanwhile, it has been reported in the press that Saiqa Ali, a Lambeth Green Party candidate in Streatham allegedly shared racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories online including claiming that the 9/11 terror attacks were faked.

We must do everything we can to make sure there is no place for this poison in Lambeth.

We urge you not to vote for the Lambeth Greens on Thursday 7 May.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 03/05/2026

English chaps go boating and swimming in 1889:

I had not been sitting there long before my attention became attracted to a man in a punt who, I noticed with some surprise, wore a jacket and cap exactly like mine. He was evidently a novice at punting, and his performance was most interesting. You never knew what was going to happen when he put the pole in; he evidently did not know himself. Sometimes he shot up stream and sometimes he shot down stream, and at other times he simply spun round and came up the other side of the pole. And with every result he seemed equally surprised and annoyed.

The people about the river began to get quite absorbed in him after a while, and to make bets with one another as to what would be the outcome of his next push.

In the course of time my friends arrived on the opposite bank, and they stopped and watched him too. His back was towards them, and they only saw his jacket and cap. From this they immediately jumped to the conclusion that it was I, their beloved companion, who was making an exhibition of himself, and their delight knew no bounds. They commenced to chaff him unmercifully.

I did not grasp their mistake at first, and I thought, “How rude of them to go on like that, with a perfect stranger, too!” But before I could call out and reprove them, the explanation of the matter occurred to me, and I withdrew behind a tree.

Oh, how they enjoyed themselves, ridiculing that young man! For five good minutes they stood there, shouting ribaldry at him, deriding him, mocking him, jeering at him. They peppered him with stale jokes, they even made a few new ones and threw at him. They hurled at him all the private family jokes belonging to our set, and which must have been perfectly unintelligible to him. And then, unable to stand their brutal jibes any longer, he turned round on them, and they saw his face!

I was glad to notice that they had sufficient decency left in them to look very foolish. They explained to him that they had thought he was some one they knew. T

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 03/04/2026

A civil service pension can be described in many ways. But one thing it definitely isn't is a policy. So...

A partial screenshot with text saying
"Your pension policy details:
View your pension policy details, make changes to your account and access help and support."

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 26/02/2026

Excellent. Then bring on högertrafikomläggningen - 3 September next year would be a good date to pick

A graphic in the style of a road sign with a blue background a vertical white line marking the mid point and an arrow starting on the left side of the line and switching to the right side.

Underneath there is a date, 3.9 1967

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 15/02/2026

The theme of the walk was blue astonishment.* *That was yesterday. Normality has resumed today

The view from a hilltop of the flat landscape below. A village is surrounded by green fields, the spire of its church a distinctive copper green. The big sky above is deep blue with scattered white clouds.

A clear blue sky with a few white clouds - and a deep red paraglder hanging in mid air.

A line of trees on the horizon silhouetted by the sunlight coming from behind them. There is a meadow in the foreground with scattered grazing sheep.

A path stretches out ahead towards the horizon with a line of wooden fence poles on each side and deep green fields beyond, under a wide blue sky and patches of cloud.

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 12/02/2026

And if you persevere, you will be rewarded with a #FixTheForms special bonus - a double negative so convoluted that it gets its own explanation - agreeing means no and disagreeing means yes. Of course.

A question in a Home Office survey:
To what extent do you agree or disagree that there should not be transitional arrangements for those already on a pathway to settlement?

The question is then glossed:
Agreeing means supporting no traditional arrangements; disagreeing means supporting transitional arrangements

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 12/02/2026

May have been a glitch - seems to be up now. Though there is something special about having a Home Office survey about integration in the UK guarded by a captcha featuring objects not to be found within thousands of miles

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 04/02/2026

I want to give an organisation money. They presumably want to take my money. So well done for coding so obscure that my mobile device doesn't recognise the data entry fields - so no keyboard, no way forward. Well done, @financialtimes.com #FixTheForms

A web form with fields for first name and last name. The first name field has an angry red border and a firm red prompt "Please enter your first name"

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Stefan Czerniawski @pubstr.at · 19/01/2026

The language has a rather longer history - to maximise efficiency, here's a poster he could use, from only 16 years ago. Though 'rewiring' as a metaphor has some of the same problems as have levers, for the reasons which @pollymackenzie.bsky.social has been pointing out

A poster with a main heading "Code a better country" against a background of binary digits and "Rewired State: National Hack the Government Day, March 7th 2009" underneath

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