You’ve reached Outpost 10
This is my personal website away from the hustle and bustle of social media.
There are many such websites but this one is mine.
A place to write about the things which interest me and hopefully, dear reader, some of it might interest you too.
If it does not, then thanks for stopping by anyway. I guess other websites are available. 😉
I don’t presume to be one of these influencers that they have now and there’s no monetisation here.
I just like what I like and thought it might be rather nice to write about it a bit.
So what makes me tick?
I’m a songwriter and musician from the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire. Music is a huge part of who I am and over the years I have been involved with a number of bands and projects. The Play On section of this site chronicles that journey.
I currently sing and play guitar with my band Dawn of Elysium. We play a sort of gothic progressive rock, taking in many influences. It’s a great band with some wonderful musicians and I really love it. The band has existed in one form or another since 2012 but it has really only existed in its current guise since 2023.
I’m very interested in audio recording and production and I have my own project studio which I call Idle Hands. I enjoy what I do. Being an electronics engineer by trade, I’m always keen to explore more about the equipment and techniques behind it all. I’m very pleased with some of the work I have done. It has been quite a journey so far and I am always learning. 😊
I’m also a bit of a homelab enthusiast, exploring a number of FOSS services — Free and Open Source Software. I self-host anything from office tools to AI, usually on fairly modest hardware. Much of the appeal for me is learning how these things work and sharing what I discover along the way.
I love the self-governance that comes with hosting my own services and the independence it offers from big tech. I’m something of a digital privacy advocate and am always keen to share what I have learned. I have a pragmatic approach and I still find some big-tech services necessary. Still, we each do our bit and if I can help anyone bolster their online hygiene then surely that’s a good thing.
Anyway, I intend to post about any of the above and wherever else it takes me. Take a look around. I hope you get something out of it.
Welcome to my piece of the internet. 😁
Ongoing Series
Home/Grown
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single byte
A series about privacy, homelabs, self-hosting and the unexpected journey from taking a little more control of my digital life to building rather more of it at home.
Welcome to the Machine
How technology became part of the way I make, record and perform music
A series about the technology behind my music, from recording and guitar equipment to live sound.
Explore Welcome to the Machine
Artificial Intelligence Disclosure
By the very nature of this website, I am an advocate for the thoughtful use of technology. That includes Artificial Intelligence.
AI has been used to assist with the delivery of this website and some of the material within it, principally artwork, proofreading, diagrams and occasional editorial support. The experiences described here are my own, as are the views, ideas and writing behind them. Concepts for artwork are of human origin even where AI has been used as part of the production process.
For the avoidance of any doubt, all music featured on this site has been composed, performed and recorded by people and all lyrics have been written entirely by me.
I am aware that even mentioning AI can provoke a fairly hostile reaction in some creative circles. This disclosure is therefore simply my attempt to be open with you, the reader, about where and how I use it.
I make no apology for doing so.
I use the technology deliberately, transparently and in clear conscience. Outpost 10 is not a commercial website and does not pretend to be one. It is a personal platform for writing, music, experimentation and documenting the things I create and learn along the way.
AI is one of the tools I use.
The ideas remain human.