Electromagnetic Field 2024 – The best yet!

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Every two years since 2014 employees from Dogsbody Technology have decamped to a field to attend Electromagnetic Field (EMF Camp).

A pile of broom handles laying on the floor

165 Broom Handles

And this time we brought……..broom handles?!?!

But more on that later..

Now settled in Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire, Electromagnetic Field is “Glastonbury for Geeks” (but it is so much more than that)! Featuring super fast 40 Gb/s symmetrical internet connection and power to your tent –  it is a special and unique event which you have to experience to understand!

Its not all tech – there was also a crochet workshop, blacksmithing, balloon animal making, lock picking and much more! Even the infrastructure is unique with it’s own wired telephony and postal system! Thousands of phone calls were made and people went old school sending 4000 postcards to villages across the event.

picture of a number of people sitting at tables in a tent doing crochet

Crochet workshop

 

To achieve the 40 gigabyte internet connection to the field EMF camp now owns a 61 km piece of fibre that runs all the way from Eastnor to Gloucester – its really is absurd – and that is your introduction to exactly what EMF Camp is!

2024 was a monster year for EMF with 3 times more talks, workshops and installations submitted than any other year and 114 villages across the site.

  • 129 Talks
  • 54 Workshops
  • 95 Installations
  • 220 events in villages

It would take 12 continuous days to watch all the talks and attend all the workshops.

EMF Camp is run entirely by unpaid volunteers, for fun, including the attendees. 1200 attendees volunteered over 142 person days across 1500 shifts over 3 days! A record number of volunteers shifts where filled. Staff from Dogsbody volunteered their time to help with various jobs including, bar work, audio and visual roles for all the amazing talks and admin roles. If this wasn’t enough EMF also raised £3000 for charity at the Swap Shop – A place for old tech, books, LED panels and more to find a new home for a donation to charity.

Screenshot of a scial media post from "Jonty Wareing" saying "Today I explained @emfcamp was a "hobby I did in my free time" and also that the team was "hundreds of people" and they looked at me like I was a lunatic"

One of the main organisers X posts

Sustainability was very much in focus this year, and whilst unfortunately battery technology isn’t advance enough yet to power the site (diesel generators are the only thing that cut it) there were a number of changes this year including re-usable pint and half-pint cups. Amazingly achieving a return rate of just over 95%, which according to their supplier is “unprecedented”……Like we say EMF Camp is a special place!

Every year the ‘Badge’ is a highlight – usually included in the ticket price, this year, to be more sustainable and stop waste, they charged separately for the badge and made this the badge for future EMF Camps. Future events will add bits, swap bits or provide upgrades hopefully leading to less waste for all.

Finally this year they had a food bank collection at the end of event for non perishable goods which was just a awesome idea.

Now…..remember those Broom handles….This year was also special for Dogsbody. For the first time we actually planned ahead and on the first, very late night, built a 3v 5/8 Geodesic Dome, 6m in diameter and 3.5m high! This was constructed with the Dome kit from Build With Hubs using 165 broom handles of three different lengths totalling over 181 metres.

Want to experience a piece of EMF Camp – 90% of talks are recorded and can be found here. You can also see past years talks.

EMF Camp is a non profit, volunteer run event/festival run every two years, that rely heavily on sponsorship. EMF Camp 2024 only had 38% of the sponsorship they had in 2022. On the first day of the event 43 UK festivals had already gone bankrupt/shut down in 2024 and it was only May!

If you think you or your company can help sponsor EMF Camp 2026 or if you think you have some skills you will be wiling to share to help organise the event please email contact@emfcamp.org.

EMF Camp 2024, as always, was an absolute blast. Thank you to all the organisers, sponsors and volunteers for making it one of the highlights of 2024.

EMF will return in 2026. You can  subscribe to their mailing list to be notified when it is announced.

The Dogsbody Camp in our Dome

Welcome Daniel and Mark – Linux & Cloud Operations Infrastructure Engineers

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Dogsbody are happy to announce the addition of Daniel and Mark, our two new Linux & Cloud Operations Infrastructure Engineers.

 

Daniel comes to us with a MSc Advanced Computing in Big Data and BSc (Hons) in Cyber Security and Networking so it’s safe to say he loves data! He also has practical experience in Linux and the cloud. A home lab’er, he has already built up his home lab following discussion with the team! Daniel is very much looking forward to EMF camp 2024 as he loves camping and the great outdoors.

 

Mark joins to us with years of Linux experience and is eager to expand his knowledge of the various cloud services. He is a keen cyclist and is active in the local community including completing a Firewalk, raising money for The Vine Centre, a homeless charity in Aldershot. He can be found  in a number of short films, both behind and in front of the camera.

 

They have both started to help with customer work and are enjoying learning ‘the ways of a Dogsbody’.

We’re about to start recruiting again so join our recruitment mailing list if you want to be the first to know when we open up new positions.

Dogsbody Technology Charity Donations 2023

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Dogsbody Technology every year donate a percentage of our profits to good causes.

For the last three years we have let our staff pick the charities that are important to them. We are honoured to support their chosen causes…

Mark

The Vine Centre are a small charity located in Aldershot that seeks to support the most vulnerable members of the community. Their work covers many aspects including socially isolated adults and families, mental health support, homelessness, addiction, and learning difficulties. They do great work.

Daniel

Supporting this charity is important to me having had a grandparent suffered from dementia and seeing their decline was heartbreaking. Any research or knowledge gained to help improve or prevent the onset of dementia is a great thing to support.

Josh

It’s such an obvious, beautiful idea. Simple and completely clear of purpose – feed those who are hungry. I’m not sure if there is anything more human or more humane than breaking your bread and sharing it with another person. I’ve seen their work first hand during various disasters around the world and the incredible restorative effect of receiving a freshly cooked meal when you might not have eaten for days. If you want to support a charity that eschews politics or partisanship and focuses solely on the simple dignity of giving help to all in need, then this is the one.

Ashley

Someone very close to me was diagnosed with PoTs. It took years to find the cause of their health issues and they are finally ‘on the mend.’ Since then a few people I know have experienced symptoms of PoTs and without more awareness other could go misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all.

Claire

This charity pulled on my heartstrings in a lot of different ways. I can’t imagine spending Christmas alone (not through choice) or being alone at anytime of the year. The Royal Voluntary Service provide social activities, transport services, help for the NHS, dementia support services and much more!

Providing a lifeline to the most vulnerable in our communities and the NHS they give life-changing support when it matters most.

Dan

We all need support and sometimes those that support us need support. Being a carer is hard enough but trying to be a carer while working and supporting yourself as well is a huge task.  Action for Carers supports unpaid carers of all ages with information, support and advice. They work hard with the NHS and other carer charities to ensure the right people get the support they need.

Custom support is available for young carers (aged under 18), young adult carers (for 18-24s) and carers connected to the Armed Forces.

We hope you agree it is a great mix of charities and wonderful charities to support.

WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY WINTER, CHRISTMAS, HANUKKAH, KWANZAA AND A GREAT 2024

24/7 support in partnership with Just After Midnight

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Dogsbody are proud to announce 24/7 support in partnership with Just After Midnight (JAM).

As our business has grown our customers have needed more and more from us. As the business owner I didn’t want to ask our staff to be on-call out of hours. They work darn hard during the working day and need/deserve not to be on call at evenings and weekends. We have partnered with JAM to take over customer support needs outside of Dogsbody UK office hours.

JAM’s global offices allows for “follow the sun” support so no one has to work out of hours – win win :

  • Austin, USA
  • London, UK
  • Singapore
  • Melbourne & Sydney, Australia

We work with JAM to create custom run-books for each customer and their specific infrastructure. Every customer is different, not just in infrastructure, but in the issues and how they are dealt with.

We are two companies working together to create a seamless offering to our customers – Dan Benton, Founder & Director

Just After Midnight (JAM) are the number 1 global provider of around-the-clock cloud and application support services to brands, agencies and digital product companies. We are proud to have them as partners who already support some of the world’s largest companies.

Dogsbody offer custom Infrastructure monitoring and maintenance plans to suit your business needs – Whether it’s 8/5, 24/7 or something in between – we have you covered!

Get in touch and let us help you take your business to the next level with 24/7 support.

Supporting Coding Adventures in Schools

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Back in December 2022 a chance introduction lead to Dogsbody Technology partnering with  Get with the Program and sponsoring Coding Adventures in Schools.

Their values and mission very much aligned with Dogsbody’s own and we love to give back to our community.

Get With The Program Logo

But what does that mean?

Get with the Program run tech learning events or “Coding Adventures” for children aged 5 – 9. These adventures teach coding concepts through fun interactive theatre, they are designed to be accessible to all, encouraging students to have fun and embrace digital technology studies. Schools benefit from a fun activity that aligns with the school curriculum and ensure key terms in the computing curriculum are demonstrated. Everyone’s a winner!

Coding adventures are being added regularly and at Christmas there are even coding pantos! oh no there isn’t… oh yes there is…

Jeni Trice aka Professor Trice

Jeni Trice aka ‘Professor’ Trice, CEO, Founder and Chief Coding Adventurer started Get with the Program to offer the opportunity of coding to children who may not have had the resources available and “reach kids who may not naturally choose computing or thought computers were not for them”.  Her model of connecting schools and business together to deliver exciting tech learning events for students means businesses get to invest in the students future and students benefit from learning in an area that is only going to grow as they get older.

Sponsoring a local Farnborough School

After an introduction we decided to sponsor a local Farnborough school for a coding adventure as we had a staff member with kids there. They chose the Eco Coding Adventure as it coincided with their topic for the term.

The feedback was very positive, 75 children watched the show and took part in the follow up activities which is 75 children who may not have otherwise had access to the resource.

We asked our 8 year old spy on the ground how it went…

“I really enjoyed programming the robot to pick items that used less packaging. It was so fun and everyone got to have a go at writing the code and putting the code in order. I was very happy that my robot picked the right fruit”.

Get with the Program need more businesses to partner with to provide these coding adventure to schools! You, your organisation or your workplace can be involved through financial sponsorship, volunteering or content development. Get in contact with them to discuss how you can help.

Want your school to be involved? Get with the Program are offering free Healthy Lunch-Bot coding days in partnership with Bupa. Anyone can sign up or nominate a school or you can register your interest as a volunteer. Once a term (on a specified day), nominated schools will get free access to a fun 30-minute online show and a 45-minute follow-up activity per class (plus some great additional resources).

Get Involved Today Supporting Coding Adventures in Schools.

Career at Dogsbody

apt-get a Career at Dogsbody

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A career can mean very different things to different people, some want to climb the corporate ladder, others want to pursue more adventures, of their own, outside of work – most do a combination of everything 🙂

Your career goals may look very different to your friends, families and colleagues but along the way you will keep on learning and developing.

Dogsbody is a small, bespoke, Linux and Cloud consultancy based in Farnborough, Hampshire, UK.

Our mission is to remove the pain of building, securing and maintaining infrastructure, wherever it is located.

“IT” is always changing, new software, new deployment processes, new technologies and your career needs to include the upskilling to keep up in the IT world, as well as, giving you the skills and confidence to give yourself the career YOU want.

Here’s how Dogsbody can help you find and reach your career goals.

The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo.

Find your passion

Dogsbody is a small team. This give us a great opportunity to help you find your passion within IT and beyond…

You’ll get involved in elements of business you may miss out on at larger companies; Training, quoting, project management, blog post writing and more!  We give you the opportunity to find new strengths, learn new skills and diversify your skills into other areas.

Our quarterly 121’s (or chats if you prefer) help us set small goals for the next 3 months as well as discussing your larger goals both inside and outside of work. It gives you the opportunity to think about what you enjoy doing and where you want to go and share these with your manager who can help you reach them. Because they are so frequent when things change we are small and nimble enough to change with you and help you on your new path.

Dogsbody responsibility doesn’t end at 17.30 – we work hard to make sure all our employee have an opportunity to reach their goal inside and outside of work providing support and advise as well as helping manage responsibility outside of work life with flexible working.

“A goal is not always meant to be reached; it often serves simply as something to aim at.” – Bruce Lee

Everyone has a different style of learning – we offer support for further studies, focused learning time and learning budgets to pursue what you want to learn (within reason – we may not fund your butchery course although we do like (Halal) steak 🙂 ). We take opportunities to set up peer learning sessions, online and in classroom courses and aim to provide the tools you need to improve the way you work.

Support for all

“Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.” – Margaret Mead.

Everyone is different, unique and sometimes people need a little more support to make sure they have the same opportunities as everyone else.

We support Diversity, we strongly encourage applications from people with varied backgrounds and perspectives. All applicants are considered for employment without attention to ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, family or parental status.

We have navigated the DWP’s access to work systems helping neurodiverse and long-term illness employees through support and understanding. We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer.

What’s the next step in your career?

We want to be a place that helps people find their passion, always trying to improve and diversify.

We aim to support all our employees at all stages of their life and career.

Our employee turnover is consistently below industry average, and our customers and employees rate us highly.

Maybe that’s why our employees and customers seem to stick around.

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to know about new roles as they become available.

You Miss 100% Of The Shots You Don’t Take

Staff Charity Giving 2022

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The winter season can be a challenging time for many people which is why every year, at around Christmas time, we donate a percentage of our profits to good causes.

For the last two years we have let our staff pick the charities close to their hearts. We are honoured to support their chosen causes…

Awab

Heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan have seen the country suffer devastating life loss and millions of people have been cut off. This donation will help provide aid to families who are suffering.

Josh

Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue Team personally assisted me back in December 2021 when I discovered two walkers, one with a leg injury, around 900 meters high up on the flanks of Scafell Pike. There work is life saving and therefore I have chosen it as my 2022 charity.

Ashley

The Hygiene Bank do great work, providing essentials to organisations within the local area. No one should be held back from participating in society because of hygiene poverty. The Hygiene Bank will ensure our donation of items go directly to the people who need them.

Claire

Sadly, the soaring cost of living means more people are being forced to use food banks. It is so sad this is needed in the 21st century and I hope our donation of most needed items and christmas food will help someone this christmas.

Rob

Clean, safe drinking water is a basic human need and yet there are millions of communities around the world without it.
I nominated WaterAid because donating will ensure WaterAid can continue to provide clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene to those communities and save lives.

Dan

The Cowshed is a local crisis charity that supports a variety of individuals of all ages in very different but difficult situations. I hope this donation helps them continue their good work of providing clothing and other items for individuals and families experiencing hardship.

We hope you agree these are all wonderful charities to support.

WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY WINTER, CHRISTMAS, HANUKKAH, KWANZAA AND A GREAT 2023

 

MSP Spotlight – A Dog Mentality To Service

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Last month I was interviewed as part of Linode’s Managed Service Provider Spotlight Series. The result was 50 mins of talking about what it’s like to be a business owner and my goals for the industry we work in.

So go get yourself a cup of tea and have a listen… you don’t really even need to watch… perhaps we should start a podcast? 😉

We covered a large number of topics including:

  • 02:15 – Why the name ‘Dogsbody’?
  • 04:04 – Which services do you offer?
  • 08:04 – How do you charge for services?
  • 13:00 – What does your ideal customer look like?
  • 16:10 – Why do you choose to work with open-source technologies?
  • 20:00 – Is support something you sacrifice when using open-source?
  • 24:32 – Why do you choose to work with multiple cloud providers?
  • 34:13 – Which cloud tech should MSPs look out for?
  • 38:10 – Recruitment and staff development
  • 40:19 – The role of apprenticeships
  • 42:40 – Advice for MSPs

Has something here sparked your interest? Do get in touch and we’d be glad to help.

2022 December Holiday Cover

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Dogsbody Technology will be closed for a few days in December as the UK celebrates Christmas. We hope you will join us in giving our staff a well earned break.

This year we will be open on the working days between Christmas and New year but with reduced staff numbers. Responses to emails and phone calls maybe delayed as our staff prioritise work as required.

  • Thu 15 Dec 2022 – Office closed from 14.00 (for our December party)
    …
  • Fri 23 Dec 2022 – Office closed from 13:00
  • Mon 26 Dec 2022 – Office closed for UK Public Holiday
  • Tues 27 Dec 2022 – Office closed for UK Public Holiday
  • Wed 28 Dec 2022 – Normal office hours with reduced staff
  • Thur 29 Dec 2022 – Normal office hours with reduced staff
  • Fri 30 Dec 2022 – Normal office hours with reduced staff
  • Mon 02 Jan 2023 – Office closed for UK Public Holiday

Person on phone via headset

Support

During this time, response to emails maybe slower than usual and any issues will be dealt with on an emergency out of hours basis. We will be supporting customers who are experiencing a situation where business cannot function without a resolution such as Website / Server down and inability to trade online.

Life saver ring

Emergency issue

Contact us as normal. All calls and support emails will be routed to our on call engineer who will prioritise work as required.

Women with headset and thumbs up

Maintenance customers

Customers on our maintenance plans will not notice any difference. Systems and infrastructure will continue to be patched, maintained and monitored.

Hosting issues

Our status page will advise of any known internal and hosting server issues. Please do check this page before raising any tickets as the chances are we are already aware.

Normal office hours will resume on Tuesday 03 January 2023.

Wishing you all a safe and healthy Christmas and a Happy 2023

Feature image by Ian Schneider on Unsplash

Away Day

Team away day 2022

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On a, surprisingly, warm day in September, in the beautiful New Forest, Dogsbody Technology had a long overdue team away day. A chance to get away from our desks and a thank you to our staff for all their hard work.

We were rather smug when we complete the first team challenges in record time, although lowering a bamboo cane on your finger tips in a group is harder than it looks!

Whilst we all though of ourselves as the next Game of Thrones extra or Hawkeye it turns out most of us weren’t! But there is nothing like a bit of competition.

Fire building wasn’t on the original agenda, our super fast time at team challenges meant we had some time to spare – so we collected kindling and wood and built ourselves some fire! Luckily we didn’t need to cook our lunch on it which was next up.

The afternoon was low and high rope challenges. Low ropes required more team work, communication and, sometimes, sheer strength – we also got up close and personal with the ‘swing to a small platform and all fit on it’ challenge.

Highropes was in teams of 2 or individually and we literally put our life in our colleagues hands! The pair game was to stack crates on top of each other to make the tallest tower – and stand on it whilst doing it!

Lastly we had some high ropes! A couple of us fell off and have the bruises to prove it

It was a great day away from our desks, in lovely surroundings and fresh air and day light! we definitely all earned our meals afterwards. We hope to go back sometime and do the water activities – maybe in the middle of summer just to be sure 😉

If you are interested in working for a team like this then check out our recruitment pages, if we aren’t currently hiring then add your name to the mailing list to be informed when we are hiring again.