ITWriting Blog

The ITWriting blog offers a variety of content, including news, reviews, and opinions, all presented from an independent perspective.

National

English

Blog

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

#1556493

United Kingdom

#301324

Computers Electronics and Technology/Programming and Developer Software

#6265

Traffic sources

Monthly visitors

Articles

Adidas Manchester Marathon 2025: second marathon and sub 3:30 achieved

2 weeks ago | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

This was my second marathon. The first was in October last year and went super well; I targeted 3:45, used the Pfitzinger/Douglas (Pfitz) 18/55 schedule (in the book Advanced Marathoning) for training, and while it was fatiguing I finished in 3:37 and (as I now know) in relatively good shape. This time around I wanted to beat 3:30 and repeated Pfitz 18/55 but with faster pace.
Creating a secure ASP.Net Core web application with Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) auth by group membership - harder than it should be

4 weeks ago | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

Several years ago I created a web application using ASP.NET and Azure AD authentication. The requirement was that only members of certain security groups could access the application, and the level of access varied according to the group membership. Pretty standard one would think.
Garmin Connect+: new subscription will be a hard sell

1 month ago | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

Garmin, makers of sports watches which gather health and performance data on your activities, has announced Connect+, a subscription offering with “premium features and more personalised insights.”Garmin Connect is the cloud-based application that stores and manages user data, such as the route, pace and heart rate, on runs, cycle rides and other workouts, as well as providing a user interface which lets you browse and analyse this data.
Changing my mind about open ear earphones

1 month ago | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

I have become a fan of bone conduction earphones. Initially this was because they are great for running since they let you hear everything going on around you which is important for safety. I also came to realise that pushing earbuds into your ear to form a seal is not the best thing for comfort, even though it can deliver excellent sound quality. Bone conduction earphones sound OK but not great, but I found myself willing to sacrifice audio quality for these other characteristics.
Out of Thin Air by Michael Crawley: a wonderful read

2 months ago | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

This is perhaps my favourite book on running, and I have read quite a few. The title is a play on words. The author lists two meanings, though I can find three. The first is that running has a mystique; “athletes who fly in, astound us with barely comprehensible feats of speed and endurance, and then vanish again into thin air,” Crawley writes.
AWS 5k re:Invent 2024 results

Dec 4, 2024 | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

Yes I ran it again. It is a lot of fun but still very strange. Chip-timed but no results published! Well, they are published but hidden. Here they are:https://www.athlinks.com/event/391331/results/Event/1097603/Course/2542986/ResultsNote that nobody is named. The leaflet that comes with the bib for the race says to use the QR code on the bib to view your results. That takes you to Girls on the Run Las Vegas who are receiving a donation thanks to the race.
Facebook vs Reddit as discussion forums: why is Facebook so poor?

Oct 24, 2024 | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

Facebook’s user interface for discussions is terrible. Here are some of the top annoyances for me:Slow. Quite often I get those blank rectangles which seems to be a React thing when content is pending. UI shift. When you go a post it shows the number of comments with some algorithmically selected comments below the post. When you click on “View more answers” or the comments link, the UI changes to show the comments in a new panel. Difficult navigation.
My journey to a first marathon

Oct 20, 2024 | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

Note: this is a rather personal post and probably not interesting for most people. 2023 was a year of running for me but what next? For runners the marathon always beckons; the most famous races in the running calendar are marathons (London, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, New York and Tokyo) and I felt that if was ever going to run one, it should be soon as I am an older runner. In 2023 I ran two half marathons but I knew that a marathon was a much harder challenge to take on.
Running book review: Run your best Marathon by Sam Murphy

Aug 7, 2024 | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

I like this book and recommend it, perhaps even for those not intending to run a marathon, or not yet. Murphy is a runner and journalist, and takes the trouble to explain the science and to back up her statements with references to credible research. This is important because there are a surprising (to me) number of unresolved questions for those who want to optimize their running. Stretching, for example, before or after a run.
Running book review: The Race against Time by Richard Askwith

Jul 25, 2024 | itwriting.com | Tim Anderson

I picked up this book, sub-titled “Adventures in late-life running”, because it seemed a good fit for my own situation, having taken up running as I approach retirement age. It is not quite what I expected. Askwith’s first love is fell running, which he used to do intensively when younger. He recounts in the first chapter how he returned for a reunion fell run, now in his early sixties, and his reflections on the toll of age on his performance and that of his friends.