tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-139905482008-07-16T23:30:54.920ZJoe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-16055552239269698682008-07-13T16:20:00.014Z2008-07-14T03:26:31.044Z

After my earlier rant I finally managed to upgrade my iPhone to 2.0 at around 8pm Friday evening. It wasn't a good user experience and days later the MobileMe service is still a bit clunky so it's hard to get a handle on how useful it will be to me. I've just discovered there's now a Windows MobileMe control panel to set sync preferences and now my email, contacts and calendars on iPhone, Mac and

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-20905424938771604162008-07-11T17:06:00.003Z2008-07-11T17:18:45.472Z

The problem with being right about the popularity of the new iPhone is I didn't get one and now my 1st generation iPhone is useless too! For me the trouble started with Apple's decision not to sell the new iPhone online and I buy all my Apple gear from the UK Apple Store online and I didn't want to queue at a shop for their PR benefit. Then O2 sent me an text message upgrade invitation,

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-57489330459916905632008-07-06T09:34:00.005Z2008-07-08T15:51:54.101Z

I had several other working titles for this blog post: "Barbados - The Pleasure & The Pain" Pleasure because it really was a pleasure to spend time in the company of some of the nicest people around the affiliate marketing scene, some I'd known for years like Pete, Lee, Chris, Ian, Keith, J Lil with apologies to anyone I've forgotten and new friends Gulshan (my roomie), Nic, Meisha, Neil, Tom,

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-52680605959122989922008-06-13T13:10:00.002Z2008-06-13T13:15:59.930Z

I'm in the process of moving the CantBarsed blog from http://www.cantbarsed.com/blog to http://blog.cantbarsed.com so I can use the new blogger.com template features to give the blog a makeover. I suspect it won't be seamless and it could well be messy or unavailable in the short term but it should be worthwhile - I'll be back!

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-72944287726919459492008-06-10T13:45:00.005Z2008-06-10T19:28:05.843Z

I've just watched Steve Jobs presentation to the WWDC and while I'm really excited about the new iPhone what I'm most looking forward to is the free forthcoming iPhone 2.0 software update and MobileMe (a revamped .mac service) which together will make a big difference to the way I work as an affiliate on a daily basis. MobileMe is described as the "cloud in the sky" which synchronises data

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-20292126493962649022008-06-08T19:45:00.005Z2008-06-08T19:56:53.364Z

Well I didn't win anything - which wasn't a surprise since I wasn't nominated but I still managed to get nervous for 2 award nominees I felt quite strongly about. Happily Julie Wood romped home (judging by the cheers) as the Publisher’s Choice Of Account Manager and Kirsty McCubbin just missed out to Kieron for the Affiliate Marketing Blog of 2008. As I was waiting on the balcony alongside Kieron

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-87100628335987927072008-05-03T15:25:00.004Z2008-05-03T15:36:23.044Z

Our recent 25th Wedding Anniversary party and my 50th Birthday seemed blogworthy enough milestones so here I am again. We don't throw many parties because we're not fans of the traditional village hall format and the prospect of having our house trashed becomes ever-less tempting. I was explaining this to my friend Chris and we ended up talking about Packing Shed Island, which sits just above

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-49414380175696384422008-03-06T00:50:00.007Z2008-03-11T15:08:48.916Z

I'm not a fan of February(ies) in the UK so the idea of stomping my carbon footprint across Canada was appealing - especially when the entire trip was organised and paid for by IWantOneOfThose.com - the worlds favourite gadget site. We flew with British Airways, the worlds favourite airline, that cancelled our flight because the pilot was "ill" - I still can't believe that excuse, the more I

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-59074306020222521642008-01-17T16:25:00.000Z2008-01-17T16:46:14.663Z

It's that time of year again and we're publishing Valentines Day Messages on CantBarsed, anonymously if you prefer, so you can share a little love, or start some rumours around the office. This is the third year we've run this online event and we've just had our first marriage proposal - How cool is that? It's also a leap year so look out guys, the tables have been turned! Every message is also

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-25735592060616119662008-01-15T03:14:00.000Z2008-01-15T11:41:50.099Z

Back when we started publishing promotional codes on CantBarsed.com there really weren't any dedicated code sites and we enjoyed top positions on Google, MSN and Yahoo for several years for most of the popular keywords. Happy days indeed but back then the general awareness of promotional codes was really low so those keywords were nowhere near as lucrative then as they would be now. However we

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-41498062894048401962008-01-11T13:57:00.000Z2008-01-11T14:16:00.831Z

So Christmas was good and Happy New Year to you all while I'm in here struggling with the pixelmajigs. The weather is much like my runny nose and I'm not sleeping very well with so so many ideas buzzing around I think my head is going to explode. The nub of my problem is the everyday mundane tasks that get in the way of my insatiable appetite to do something new - anything new! I'm not talking

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-30617151477405540362007-11-20T23:53:00.000Z2007-11-21T01:10:23.139Z

It's no secret I'm an "Apple fan boy" and I've been waiting to order a proper UK iPhone since playing with one in the Apple Store in Florida over the summer. The only decision to be made was whether to drive into town on a dark cold winter evening to buy from my local O2 store or buy from Apple online and wait a few days for delivery. No contest! So on Friday 9th November at 6.02pm and a few

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-84836281106972195792007-11-15T11:24:00.001Z2007-11-15T12:21:24.599Z

Like many affiliates we "own" hundreds of domain names but we're not "domainers" and I find it quite entertaining haggling for domains that I really, really want but don't need. I particularly enjoyed this conversation and haven't yet decided whether to continue the "negoiation" or not, perhaps your comments will help... Dear Joe, Thank you for contacting us about [domain.name]. The domain is

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-42372617685180533292007-10-29T21:44:00.000Z2007-10-29T22:24:57.699Z

We always look forward to cracking open our first tube of the new Cheeselets season and this year United Biscuits have taken the biscuit - literally, about half of them by our reckoning. It's not all bad, the useless opening pull strip that always breaks off is gone (hurrah) and they've changed the flavour again - they taste different, a bit crispier, but still good. Our kids pointed out

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-68189103630056674202007-10-27T13:25:00.000Z2007-10-27T15:36:57.188Z

Congratulations to Matt and the gang on the best conference style event I have ever attended and for getting it near-perfect first time, that's a fantastic achievement. In the spirit of constructive criticism, here are my personal observations:Ticketing: I got a conference pass in the post but at the event the passes were all printed out again which seemed to be a waste of time, effort and paper

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-36914386114416767802007-10-01T10:54:00.000Z2007-10-01T11:49:48.869Z

Mac computer users should take a look at Undercover which effectively renders a stolen mac useless to a thief and there's even a chance it will help you get your Mac back or see what the thief looks like! Once installed if your mac is ever stolen you visit the Undercover website and enter your unique ID number at which point they start looking for your mac. As soon the the stolen mac connects to

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-24188330032189896972007-07-10T01:18:00.000Z2007-11-01T15:17:13.700Z

I've seen an Apple iPhone inspired future and it's the stuff of science fiction. All the crucial elements are already in play. iTunes was the Trojan horse which let Apple loose on Windows giving PC users a glimpse of Mac loveliness as they traded up their mp3 players for iPods and got used to doing things Mac style. Making a success of the iTunes Store was the next crucial move which has made

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-23461953014212568942007-06-09T10:40:00.000Z2007-10-01T10:53:11.089Z

Promotional code sites like cantBarsed.com and DiscountCodes.tv are now so popular we're coming under ever closer scrutiny from merchants. Most are happy for us to promote their codes, which they see as a symbiotic relationship, others are ambivolent or turn a blind eye but increasingly we're being asked to remove valid codes which is definitely bad for YOU and makes our sites less

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-79527691080466863962007-03-13T20:45:00.000Z2007-03-13T20:54:01.442Z

I'd already accepted my invitation to the Affiliate Window event before I realised it clashes with the A4U get2gether and cruise to Amsterdam. I can't do both events and keep Deb happy on her birthday. It's a shame when affiliate events clash but I've been meaning to put some names to AW faces and it looks set to be a great evening. I'll certainly miss my usual round of conversations with the

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-25332125352264497732007-03-08T13:48:00.000Z2007-03-08T14:12:46.623Z

As ASOS' last affiliate of the year before they took their ball home I've been outed by ASOS Pearly King Nick Robinson as one of the "grubby little people in grubby studios growing income at our expense" which seems a bit harsh given it was ASOS that invited me to their London HQ, took me out to lunch and encouraged me to make more sales. This all happened back in the days before ASOS turned

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-14181678146467382772006-12-19T13:29:00.000Z2006-12-19T13:54:45.672Z

I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and thank everyone who has used CantBarsed.com to save money while shopping online this year, it really is very much appreciated. There are still a few stores taking orders right through until Friday and some stores have sales starting this week. Check our Christmas Last Orders & SALEs paage for the latest news. The lingerie stores are always the last

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-47497279051457859262006-12-18T14:41:00.000Z2006-12-18T14:57:18.431Z

My wife Deb recently had a breast cancer scare, which thankfully turned out to be harmless, but it made us realise how suddenly family life can change and how lucky we are so we're going to donate £1 to Breast Cancer Care for each Christmas greeting message posted (up to a maximum £500) and you even get the chance to win some instant snow. We've left last years 21 greetings online to get you

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-68561151041795457292006-12-08T23:09:00.000Z2006-12-08T23:47:00.757Z

Even I'm shocked how few entries I've posted to this blog this year and it's almost Christmas again! We've skipped right past Halloween - or I would have had it not been for my daughter Natasha's top pumpkin carving, bought to you in the widescreen format it deserves - go Natasha Tarrentino! Since my last post I've driven an Aston Martin DB9, Lamboghini Gallardo and Ferrari 550 on a track day

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-1158887356913107712006-09-22T01:09:00.000Z2006-12-04T08:24:54.416Z

I'm just back from Las Vegas courtesy of AstroBingo online bingo. We flew with Virgin Atlantic who did a great job getting me across the pond and back, their staff are always friendly and helpful and they're definitely my favourite airline. I was staying in the Stardust hotel which is due to be "imploded" before Christmas to make way for a new hotel/casino complexes. This seems to be happening

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13990548.post-1151415107312452762006-06-27T13:27:00.000Z2006-09-30T18:50:33.926Z

My 16 year old son is still in bed and it's 2.30pm and it's really winding me up. It's not just the waste of daylight hours but when I'm in my happy place updating my sites in the early hours there he is mooching around tinkering with things, using up my bandwidth downloading stuff and generally spoiling my most productive working hours. Suggestions welcomed!

Joe Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00919781312706516815noreply@blogger.com