Wake Up Better

29th January 2020

Imagine being gently tapped on your wrist to wake up vs being shouted at. You wouldn’t like someone screaming “wake up”.

Review of Osram Lightify Hub

6th July 2018

After trying out the Osram Lightify hub, it didn't really work. There is a reason Philips Hue costs more & has the market share it does....

Turning My Lights On At Sunset

5th June 2017

The Osram Lightify iOS app is missing a feature - it won't turn lights on at sunset which is a really nice feature of other platforms. See how I built the feature using Node.

An Alternative to Philips Hue

27th May 2017

Philips Hue are the defacto wi-fi controlled lighting system, but they are very expensive. Are they the best? I think the Osram Lightigy system & Innr bulbs I have chosen are just as good but cost a lot less.

Getting AirSonos Working

10th April 2017

AirSonos allows you to turn you Sonos speakers into Airplay speakers, but there seem to be two issues when setting it up which plague a lot of users online. Find the solutions to both of these in this short article.

ES6 Basics Part 4 – Classes

8th April 2017

OOP JavaScript has always been very verbose and confusing. Using ES6 Classes it is a lot simpler.

Starting the Gate Sensor Code

28th March 2017

I have written some JavaScript to detect the strength of a magnetic field then advertise that data over Bluetooth.

Building My Own Gate Sensor

26th March 2017

Using a Puck.js, Raspbery Pi Zero Wirelss & Node.js to build a gate sensor, which should work. I hope.

ES6 Basics Part 3 – Arrow Functions

27th February 2017

Write shorter, cleaner function declarations. Lexical This will also solve those annoying little problems we all run into when using this.

ES6 Basics Part 2 – Template Strings

20th February 2017

Template Strings are now a lot easier to read and write. They are more like sentences now - no more "" +.

ES6 Basics Part 1 – const and let

15th February 2017

My guide to ES6, in bite-size chunks. Don't use var anymore. Use const and let instead to make your code more expressive and easier to read.

They Are Being Too Quiet

23rd February 2016

Unless you have been absent from earth recently, you may have heard about the FBI & Apple spat that is currently happening. I worry more about the fact that the other industry players are being a little too hush hush.

A New Year

2nd January 2016

I have given up on new year resolutions. Why do people need a new year to re-asses their lives & set goals which they usually never achieve? I don't want to waste my time this year - I just want to get on with it.

Moving a WordPress site

1st September 2015

Sometimes you will need to move a Wordpress website - maybe to a new hosting provider or from a private development server to a public one. Thanks to this handy plugin, it is now really easy.

Never have a plan B

5th July 2015

Don't give yourself the easier option. Chances are you will fall back on it. Focus entirely on plan A - work hard and you won't need a plan B.

Is Apple Music anything new?

14th June 2015

Apple Music has been announced, but now the hype has died down I want to see if it offers anything new. Does it stand a chance against the established streaming services?

Native Apps on the Apple Watch

13th June 2015

Currently the Apple Watch can only run apps using WatchKit - it is like the old terminal & mainframe model. The iPhone does all the heavy processing and the watch just shows the data. With watchOS 2 it is going to change.

WordPress & Responsive Images

3rd June 2015

Wordpress is really powerful. It can generate multiple image sizes from a single upload. Couple them with a single plugin and you are able to make all the images on your website responsive. This guide is only 2 steps (maybe 3).

Must Have Holiday Tech

28th May 2015

Packing for a holiday should not be stressful - you should be able to bring your tech with you. For Rocca News, I wrote about my top 5 gear recommendations that you need when going on holiday. Be organised & enjoy your trip even more.

Use wp_enqueue, Conditionally

24th May 2015

Adding CSS and JavaScript files to a Wordpress Theme should be done in the functions.php file, using wp_enqueue_style & wp_enqueue_script, but this will load them on every page. It is possible to control the loading of these files using the built-in conditional tags - in this article I will show you how.

Cut Data Usage Whilst Abroad

22nd May 2015

I found a service & app that I decided to use whilst abroad - it claims it can reduce the amount of data I use without requiring I do anything besides install it. I can use my phone as I do when at home. Let's see if it can do what it claims.

Back to the Future

14th May 2015

It seems in all industries there is a trend of retro design - re-imagining old designs & taking inspiration from the past. Recently at Baselworld 2015 a lot of watch manufacturers release new watches, which they wanted to look like old watches.

Sass & Compass Vertical rhythm

9th February 2015

Having good vertical rhythm not only makes your design look better - it also makes reading content easier for readers. Using Compass whilst you write your Sass will allow you to access a selection of functions & mixins that will make it easier & quicker for you to take full control of vertical rhythm.

Should I Get Checked?

21st October 2014

Starting on October 27th 2014, Geek mental help week is a week-long series of articles, blog posts, conversations, podcasts and events across the web about mental health issues. As someone in the industry who has a father that was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer’s disease I felt I had to share my story.

A Failure – It’s A Failure

8th June 2014

Successful people gain many followers & admirers. They often get asked what is the key to their success - how did they do it? I noticed one common answer but one that was only mentioned by a few. I think the less common answer is even more important, even though it often is not mentioned.

Just Use A Password Manager

28th May 2014

Surface Pro 3 -The Average All-rounder

27th May 2014

Alarm Bells Ring When Your Focus On Price

26th May 2014

Scripted Adverts

11th May 2014

Facebook mins Messages equals Facebook & Facebook Messages

11th April 2014

A square peg in a round hole – Android Wear devices

4th April 2014

Are companies too quick?

18th October 2013

Do not get into the web industry if you are not willing to learn

5th July 2013

I'm a senior front end developer for a collection of e-commerce brands based at The Robert Street Hub in Manchester. I have an interest in all things web & tech. This website is my playground where I experiment, review products and also share my views & opinions.
© Copyright 2017 Sebastian Green