01/06/2007:

I have now finished my PGCE at Anglia Ruskin and I am looking forward to starting a new position at Holywells High School.

10/05/2007:

The Virtual Learning Environment for year 7 is now open. However, please note that it is still under development.

I have also developed an online testing environment that allows teachers to set their own questions for their pupils to answer. Once pupils take the test, the teacher can view detailed automatically marked results instantly (even showing the mark for an individual answer given by a specific student). The testing environment is about to begin trials at my training school.

17/03/2007:

My Internet connection just came back online (again) a week since BT switched it off. Let's hope it's back permanently this time. I cannot wait to hear BT's explanation for this.

13/03/2007:

Unbelievably, I lost my Internet Access on Saturday afternoon and I am still without it. After talks with my ISP, it is suspected that there is a fault with my BT line – BT is now investigating. Until then, I have no choice but to resume my limited service. I will keep you updated. With half term coming up, I should have up to three weeks of working full-time (as opposed to my usual 'full' part-time service) on any client websites that require my attention.

10/03/2007:

Yesterday I had a car crash on the way to school, which was not my fault, but I am okay. Nevertheless, it created enough additional work to keep me busy for the rest of the day. Today, however, I am putting all my effort into replying to every outstanding email (I'm still here!).

06/03/2007:

The broadband on my new telephone line has now been activated, which means that I can begin to catch up with recent enquiries by clients and otherwise. Thank you for your patience.

14/02/2007:

Notification of disruption to services: From the 22nd of February there may be disruption to services that I provide (for up to two weeks) while I am moving house. The telephone line where I am moving requires broadband activation, hence the delay. However, I will have some Internet access to check e-mail.

13/02/2007:

I am building my own Virtual Learning Environment (or VLE, see left) to provide my pupils with a detailed summary of the knowledge that they should be learning in their lessons. The VLE will also expand on the curriculum, allowing pupils to explore an area in more depth when they find a unit of great interest.

There are other e-learning services, such as BBC Bitesize for GCSE ICT, but my VLE will greatly improve upon every aspect of the user experience from user interaction to cross-curricular and extra-curricular links. The VLE will cover Key Stage 3 and 4 to start with. I hope to eventually provide teacher resources to accompany the notes on each unit.

21/01/2007:

I have joined the British Computer Society (see bcs.org) to show my commitment to the IT industry. As a professional member, I have exclusive access to news on technology trends and the support of fellow professionals.

29/12/2006:

The Byiast Driving Academy has expanded its online presence by acquiring the following website addresses: www.aditrainingessex.me.uk and www.drivinginstructortrainingessex.me.uk

03/12/2006:

The last three months in review:

After much frustration with job hunting and business planning, I decided to put both on hold by training to become a secondary school teacher in ICT. Why? Here is a list of reasons in no particular order:

• Security: A qualification in teaching can get you a teaching job anywhere in the country.
• Capital: I needed more capital and money for living before running the full-time business I wanted. A bursary is available to all trainee teachers, which means that I can earn while I learn. When I finish training, I have the option of tutoring individual people on a part-time basis to top-up my income.
• Personal interest: Young people are the future and it is interesting to see their ability and how they are adopting ICT.
• Reward: I enjoy teaching family and friends - I do it often! Using teaching skills to enlighten hundreds of young people every day is very rewarding and I do not think that there is a greater contribution that an individual can make to society.

I finish my first school experience next week, which I have thouroughly enjoyed. However, I have written more for assignments, observations, lesson plans and evaluations in the last two months than I did during the entire last year of my degree (that's a lot!).

I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of a Nintendo Wii that I pre-ordered a couple of months ago and should arrive next week - a nice reward for all my work :-)

14/08/2006:

I now have a new website with information on where to get a Playstation 3 (PS3) and how you can get a free PS3 - PS3offer.co.uk.

11/08/2006:

I am now freelancing full-time but I am looking for another full-time position. If I do not have any success in that, I will follow through with my application to train to become a teacher.

I have added a new Playstation 3 section to my website - The article I am currently working on is called "How to get a Playstation 3".

22/06/2006:

Today is the 22nd of June and there are now only 22 days before I will be full-time self employed. I have finished the PgCert in Management Studies course that I started in September 2005. I do not know the results yet though (fingers crossed I've passed!)

05/05/2006:

I have launched a special offer for Schools in association with this year's Walk 2 Live event.

10/03/2006:

Due to an increasing amount of clients, I can no longer offer completely free technical support as of 01/04/2006. All new websites are still covered by a 3-month warranty and my new company SME 24 Ltd will offer a form of website insurance, when it is launched this summer.

21/02/2006:

Long time no blogging. This is a posting to give everyone an update on what has been happening in my life since the new year. My last employer, that will remain un-named for legal reasons, has not paid me for three months last year. As a result, I am taking him to tribunal in April if no action has been taken to rectify the situation.

The above situation and other financial delays have held me back from starting to trade as SME 24 Ltd. However, I cannot be delayed forever and this just increases my enthusiam for becoming a true entrepreneur.

07/01/2006:

Happy new year to all my family, friends and clients. This new year will see me taking more pro-active steps to becoming full-time self-employed as Managing Director for SME24 Ltd. I have booked a meeting to see a business advisor and hopefully secure some funding to help me through the first few months.

05/12/2005:

Finally, I will be moving to a 3-day week following the successful sign-off of a project for my existing employer later on this week.

15/11/2005:

Project delays in my existing employment mean that I am delaying taking more time off to set up my company SME24 Ltd. It is looking more likely that the launch of SME 24 will be put back to February.

26/10/2005:

I learned about intellectual capital on my course today... so when I show a business plan to a potential investor I can say that my company is worth millions of pounds already - you just cannot see it :-) For those that don't know - Intellectual capital is the value of knowledge and skills that form innovation, which gives you an edge over your competition.

In other news, my photograph is in the new post-graduate prospectus for Writtle College. I have not seen it yet but I doubt it will have a quote from me saying "visit tim-ballard.co.uk for professional website design", although one can hope.

11/10/2005:

An interesting twist of events. Following the completion of a project for a client (E. Davies and Sons Ltd.) while at CENSORED Ltd , I have been kept-on by the client's Managing Director to support the new IT system and assigned the title "IT Manager". The deal was negotiated between the three parties before go-ahead.

Supporting the new system does not require me to be present throughout the working week therefore this allows me to set up and run my company while having a steady stream of income. This couldn't have turned out better if I had planned it :-)

02/10/2005:

I had my induction weekend over the past few days and found that management is a far reaching subject - it reaches people with very different goals, in different careers and at different times of their lives. I also got the opportunity to take a proper Myers Briggs personality test.

In another change of direction, I have decided to initially set up a private limited company rather than sole trader. My company name is SME24 Limited and I can tell you that because I've just bought it from Companies House! Please note: I will not advertise or trade under this name for some time yet - the company is dormant.

24/09/2005:

I start my PgCert Management Studies course next Friday. My first challenge will be to manage the combination of work and study while leaving a little time for social activity. I've accepted that my holiday to Magaluf was my last proper break because any serious business is full-time i.e. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. I wish I could see where I'll be a year from now - I think there are big changes coming.

20/09/2005:

My latest gadget, just received today, is a Sony Vaio B3VP notebook (i.e. laptop) so now I have no excuse for not working wherever I am - it'll work a treat with my wireless home network and when I start my management studies course. One more essential item ticked on my list of things I need before starting-up.

13/09/2005:

I'm back from holiday and ready to get stuck into work again. My up-to-date CV is now available for download - employers and agencies please update your records.

23/08/2005:

Notice: I will be out of the office from the 27th of August till the 12th of September, sorry for any inconvenience. I've been working hard for the past few years without much time to think in between and this time away should prepare me for the next few years to come.

10/08/2005:

I will no longer be setting up a private limited company but instead I will be trading as a sole trader under a different name. A limited company was attractive but the bureaucracy puts me off because I am only one person - one person with relatively little knowledge of law and finance might I add. I will most likely change my business status when it can afford an accountant to do the paperwork for me and when I am trading on a full-time basis.

04/08/2005:

I had my graduation ceremony on the 26th of last month so I will upload a photo of me shortly on my awards web page.

My first company should be formed within the next few weeks. However, it is proving quite difficult to find a company secretary - Company law is about to be reformed meaning that single person companies are possible but who knows when? Politicians don't use timetables as far as I am aware.

11/07/2005:

I've got my final year results and more importantly my final classification, which is a 2:1, my self-predicted result. I've heard that most employers now think that 2:1 graduates are a better choice because 1st class graduates work too hard and therefore sacrifice their personal development.

07/07/2005:

We won the Olympic bid so it's London 2012, great! It's good for the country and especially business... I'm sure I'll think of some way to profit between now and then.

04/07/2005:

Results from my degree are out soon so fingers crossed they are not too bad :)

The domain name I advertised as £150 (see below) has dropped to £80, so there you go bargain hunters.

05/06/2005:

6StarWebDesign.com is For Sale - This was the domain name for my business before I bought tim-ballard.co.uk and decided to market my services as an individual. The domain name has been marketed quite heavily and there are still links to the website all over the Web that I cannot seem to remove. Asking price is 150 pounds ono, click here for more info

29/05/2005:

I am working on a top-secret system that will allow me to create products and deliver ICT services within 24 hours, which can later adapt to meet a businesses changing needs. This is in the planning stages at the moment but it will mean big things for small businesses in the region when I deploy it. That's just about all I can say regarding the system until October when it should be deployed.

17/05/2005:

I have completed all of the coursework needed for my degree - now I have to wait for the results.

My parents, including me, are moving house some time soon so I really have to wait to see where I'll end up before starting any full-time business.

06/05/2005:

It looks like labour won the election - I did vote for the first time and I feel that me voting did make a difference (even if it was really, really small).

All written exams completed. Less than two weeks to go, if I get all of this coursework out of the way.

I have made two Flash presentations that show the benefits of my final year project - The XML Data Exchange:
TEXDEX for Business
TEXDEX for Home.
An online prototype exists, which I can show people on request.

28/04/2005:

Just over two weeks of university work remaining that includes two pieces of coursework, one exam and possibly a presentation. Around 50 pages of my final year project (dissertation / thesis) is complete and I would like to expand on the work when I have finished university. However, I will not be doing so as I discovered that the university made me sign something that states they own all of my work - nice one, that will encourage new breakthroughs (Not!). Students have paid universities enough money without us students having to give them our work, which, might I just add, I was capable of creating before I signed that stealth contract.

04/04/2005:

In response to the poll, ("what do you want to see more of on this website?") the final results were that more than 50% of voters thought there should be more articles. The first addition will be a beginners guide to website maintenance. I have ideas for many other articles, which I will spend time on after my university work is finished - in about a month.

Many thanks to all that voted.

18/03/2005:

My university lectures have finished for the last time... only coursework and exams remain! It looks like I am going to make it to the end of the Internet Technologies degree and say goodbye to full-time education :-)

11/03/2005:

LittlesPainting.co.uk is now live - the latest addition to my portfolio. This is the second website I have created for this client. Here's an amazing statistic -I have created more than one website for more than 40% of my clients.

25/02/2005:

I have added another website to my portfolio. This website was created for a Walking Holidays company that needed an online version of their brochure.

16/02/2005:

Current status: I am graduating in June. I am still looking for a full-time job. I will be doing a management studies course part-time (one day a week) when I graduate - this is at Writtle College.

With regard to the previous post - the animation is taking longer than I expected because I need to show parts of the website that have not been created yet, so when the website becomes a bit closer to being finished the animation will be posted straight away.

08/02/2005:

I am in need of some volunteers who are willing to give their opinion on the website I am creating for my final year project. It is not complete yet but when it is I would like several people of various computing ability to tell me what they think. I will post an animation shortly to provide some more information on what the website is about.

03/02/2005:

I have changed the flash animation in the top left to match the design and become less annoying - I will probably update this so that more 'little things' are going on. The site map is now working as it should be.

01/02/2005:

I am launching this month with the latest addition to my portfolio, which was a project for a charity called Women's Design Service. Due to the nature of the project you will not be able to see most of the work but it is there none the less.

27/01/2005:

My CV is now available to download through the menu on the left. Also, check out the new Corporate Branding web page under my Services. Terms and Conditions are now on the website - so don't sue me, I'm protected :-)

27/01/2005:

This afternoon I will upload my computing CV to this website. I added my CV to the previous version of this website but it became out of date within weeks and I neglected to upload it again when I changed the website design.

I am currently working on some corporate branding to showcase what can be done with Adobe PhotoShop and 3D Studio Max in terms of graphic design.

11/01/2005:

I have decided that this website needs to change its focus. The design will stay the same because I think I have confused my clients enough with the last couple of design overhauls. This website will no longer target employers... instead it will be a hub for my creative thinking and freelance work.

Why the change? It does not achieve what it sets out to do - I have had little contact from employers and surprisingly several people have applied to work for me! (That is the wrong end of the stick completely). If employers are serious about finding a hard-working graduate they will go looking for that person... They should attract me to work for them and not the other way around.

So what will change? The website will include more variety of things that are interesting to look at and play with - not just websites. A lot behind the scenes will change so that I can update this website quickly when I do not have much time. It is shocking to think that the majority of my clients have better administration for their websites than I have for my own website.

The news in the pre-budget report that a tax return for a small business will be consolidated into a single form is a good start. However, the way that information is collected needs to be addressed. Computers (like accountants) are good at mathematics and should be used to that end. If the tax system was integrated into banking system, would there be any forms at all? A bank manager knows everything about a business' account(s) and I think they might speak the language of the accountant and leave the businessman to their business.

I could write about this subject even more but then I would need to put it in my Articles section so I'll stop here.

30/11/2004:

Visiting the business startup exhibition was great experience and I met many people with similar interests. I found out about Business Bricks (a useful resource for all small businesses) and was invited to one of their large networking events that was happening close-by.

09/11/2004:

I've had business on the brain recently so I will be attending Business Startup 2004 in London on the 19th or 20th of November for some inspiration along with three other entrepreneurs.

29/10/2004:

"What do you want to do when you leave university?"

This is the question I am asked the most by friends, family and business rep's. Until now the response has laid somewhere between full-time work, full-time postgraduate study, part-time postgraduate study and setting up my own full-time business. I have finally settled on a decision...more

21/10/2004:

The new website design is up and running. Please give valuable feedback to help me improve it.