Jon Bloor

I am a father of four boys, husband, Group Scout Leader and a wordpress affectionado. Professionally, I worked in local government for 20 years, museums and visitor attractions for longer and am a Fellow of the Association of Accounting Technicians. Now, I help membership organisations and professional bodies with their CRM, community and digital software.

Pinned post from August 14, 2024

Domain Names for Sale

I have some domain names for sale via the Namecheap Marketplace. If you want the corresponding website/content, buy the site via Namecheap and let me know straight away. achingcellar.co.uk $50 bloor.co.uk $5,000 bloory.com $250 bloory.net (Contact me directly) - £25 chooseyourbooks.com $75 domainshub.net $45 escouts.org.uk $99 greatsen...

September 23, 2024

A response to Cllr Craig Smith's response to Andrew Bridgen's Election Rigging Claims

I read a LinkedIn post from Craig Smith, a parliamentary candidate in the 2024 General Election campaign. I was moved to write a response, which needs to be heard further and broader than a comment (and the limit on LinkedIn ended up being too short to make my points). The post links to his blog, where Councillor Smith replies to wild ...

September 2, 2024

4th Ashby (Baptist) / 4th Ashby / 4th Ashby de la Zouch Group

I was really impressed with the service of the Scout Heritage team. It was lovely to see redacted copies of the group's registrations over the years. When time allows, I'd like to build more of a history.

August 14, 2024

Holy Moly, Tickets from the past

I just went to buy some tickets for a visit to Bletchley Park. They are using Access Gamma for their ticketing, and I was shocked that their hosted page is so "dated." https://accessvam.accessacloud.com/BletchleyParkBookings/ I worked as a contractor there and helped with their initial online ticketing, but this looks amateurish! And a...

August 14, 2024

How to make an old laptop (or PC) faster

It’s not unusual for a Scout group to be offered an old laptop and PC – often because it’s an older bit of kit. This guide converts it to a Chromebook using a special download. This means that a PC laptop that is too slow or not licensed can be used at the Scout hut. Google acquired a firm called Neverware and has evolved their product...

August 14, 2024

UK Festival of Hockey

I spent the weekend at Nottingham Hockey Centre supporting BAHA, which two of my sons were selected to represent. BAHA is the excellent British Asian Hockey Association, and the coaching is first-class. Under Binder’s direction, the players all develop so much. The boys learned so much and appreciated the differences from seven-a-side ...

August 14, 2024

Warning Signs in Your Cafe!

We all know that a cafe, food bar or restaurant in a castle, museum or theme park will make the most revenue by providing a quality offer in a pleasant environment. Here is a list of warning signs you can easily remedy should you find them at your place; • Sausage rolls with 13% “meat” • A long queue • Ready meals like in your local bo...

August 14, 2024

Writebook – Great, Free Book Publishing Software

The second product from Once (from 37 Signals) is Writebook, a super tool for publishing books online in an easy way. I bought chooseyourbooks.com and bookgold.net to use with this software, both are for sale if you are interested ($75 and $30).