Author: Mark Whitfield

Welcome to my site! After graduating in Computing in 1990, I accepted a position as a programmer at a Runcorn based software house specialising in electronic banking software, namely sp/ARCHITECT-BANK on Tandem Computers (now HPE NonStop). This was before the internet became more prevalent and so the notion of enabling desktop access to company accounts for inter-account transfers and book keeping was still quite a cutting edge idea (and smartphones only ever hinted at in Space 1999). The company was called The Software Partnership (which was taken over by Deluxe Data in 1994). I spent 5 years in Runcorn developing code for SP/ARCHITECT for various banks like TSB, Bank of Scotland, Rabobank and Girofon (Denmark) to name but a few. I then moved onto a software house in Salford Quays for further bank facing projects. After a further 23 years in the IT industry and now a Senior IT Project Manager (both Agile and Waterfall delivery), I thought I would echo out my Career Profile in this corner of the internet for quick and easy access.

Godzilla Minus Zero – November 06, 2026 by TAKASHI YAMAZAKI, sequel

Godzilla Minus Zero – November 06, 2026 by TAKASHI YAMAZAKI

Godzilla Minus Zero (Japanese: ゴジラ-0.0マイナスゼロ, Hepburn: Gojira Mainasu Zero) is an upcoming Japanese kaiju film written, directed, and with visual effects supervised by Takashi Yamazaki.

A sequel to Godzilla Minus One (2023), it is the 39th film in the Godzilla franchise, the 34th film by Toho, and the sixth installment in the franchise’s Reiwa era. The film stars Ryunosuke Kamiki and Minami Hamabe, reprising their roles from Godzilla Minus One.

Cast:

Ryunosuke Kamiki as Kōichi Shikishima, a former kamikaze pilot


Minami Hamabe as Noriko Ōishi, Shikishima’s girlfriend


Munetaka Aoki as Sōsaku Tachibana, a former Navy Air Service mechanic


Hidetaka Yoshioka as Kenji Noda, a former Naval weapons engineer


Miou Tanaka as Tatsuo Hotta, captain of the destroyer Yukikaze


Sae Nagatani as Akiko, Ōishi and Shikishima’s adopted daughter

Godzilla Minus Zero

Godzilla Minus Zero – November 06, 2026 by TAKASHI YAMAZAKI, sequel to Godzilla Minus One (2023)

Wimbledon Championships Overview and Detailed Timeline History

The Championships, Wimbledon, is the world’s oldest tennis tournament and widely considered the most prestigious. Founded in 1877 by the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club, it is the only Grand Slam still played on outdoor grass courts. 

Full Overview

  • Location: All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Church Road, Wimbledon, London.
  • Surface: Outdoor Grass (100% rye grass, cut to 8mm).
  • Timeframe: Typically held over two weeks in late June – early July.
  • Key Traditions: All-white dress code for players, serving strawberries and cream, and Royal patronage.
  • Main Events: Gentlemen’s Singles, Ladies’ Singles, Gentlemen’s Doubles, Ladies’ Doubles, and Mixed Doubles.
  • Key Facilities: Centre Court (featuring a retractable roof since 2009) and No. 1 Court. 

Detailed Historic Timeline by Era

The Beginnings & The Amateur Era (1877–1967)

  • 1877: Inaugural championship held. Only Gentlemen’s Singles with 22 participants. Spencer Gore wins.
  • 1884: Ladies’ Singles and Gentlemen’s Doubles introduced. Maud Watson becomes the first female champion.
  • 1905: May Sutton (USA) becomes the first overseas champion.
  • 1915–1918: No tournament held due to World War I.
  • 1922: Tournament moves from Worple Road to the current Church Road venue.
  • 1934–1936: Fred Perry wins three consecutive Gentlemen’s singles titles.
  • 1937: First television broadcast of the tournament.
  • 1940–1945: No tournament held during World War II; Centre Court is bombed in 1940.
  • 1951: First black player, Bertrand Clark, competes.
  • 1957: Althea Gibson becomes the first black American winner.
  • 1967: First live colour television broadcast. 

The Open Era (1968–Present) 

  • 1968: Wimbledon becomes an “Open” tournament, allowing professional players to compete alongside amateurs.
  • 1971: First Wimbledon singles final to end on a tie-break (Evonne Goolagong def. Chris Evert).
  • 1976–1980: Bjorn Borg wins five consecutive Gentlemen’s singles titles.
  • 1977: Centenary Championships. Virginia Wade is the last British woman to win the title.
  • 1985: Boris Becker becomes the youngest ever male champion at age 17.
  • 1990s: Steffi Graf and Pete Sampras dominate the decade.
  • 2001: Goran Ivanišević wins the Gentlemen’s singles as a wildcard.
  • 2003–2007: Roger Federer wins five consecutive titles.
  • 2008: Rafael Nadal defeats Roger Federer in a historic final considered one of the best matches in history.
  • 2009: Retractable roof installed on Centre Court.
  • 2010: Longest match in history: John Isner vs. Nicolas Mahut (11 hours 5 minutes).
  • 2013: Andy Murray becomes the first British male winner in 77 years.
  • 2020: Cancelled for the first time since WWII due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 2022: All-white clothing rule modified to allow women to wear darker undershorts.
  • 2023/2024: Carlos Alcaraz wins back-to-back Gentlemen’s titles. 

Key Records & Facts

  • Most Titles (Gentlemen’s Singles): Roger Federer (8).
  • Most Titles (Ladies’ Singles): Martina Navratilova (9).
  • Fastest Serve: John Isner (157.2 mph).
  • Oldest Champion: Dorothea Lambert Chambers (1914).
  • Youngest Champion: Lottie Dod (1887). 

Links

Wimbledon Championships Overview and Detailed Timeline History

Bolton Institute of Higher Education (BIHE), 1982 to 2004

The Bolton Institute of Higher Education (BIHE), which officially existed between 1982 and 2004, is the direct predecessor to the current University of Bolton (now rebranded as the University of Greater Manchester). Its roots extend back to the early 19th century, evolving from a Technical School into a major centre for higher education. 

Bolton Institute of Higher Education (BIHE) before the rebuild to the university.

LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/51224

Overview of Bolton Institute of Higher Education

  • Formation: Established in 1982 through the merger of Bolton Institute of Technology and Bolton College of Education (Technical).
  • Status: A “post-92” institution that developed from a vocational technical college to a degree-awarding Higher Education body.
  • Key Powers: Gained taught-degree awarding powers in 1992 and research degree awarding powers in 1995/1996.
  • Key Locations: Based at the Deane Campus (Deane Tower completed 1970) and Chadwick Campus.
  • Final Evolution: Achieved university status in 2004/2005. 

Detailed Historic Timeline (1824–2024) 

Era 1: Foundations (Mechanics’ Institute to Technical College)

  • 1824-1825: Bolton Mechanics’ Institute is established, marking the educational origins of the institution.
  • 1887: A new Technical School is created with student numbers rising above 1,500.
  • 1926: Bolton Technical School is renamed Bolton Technical College.
  • 1941: A new building is opened for technical and engineering education.
  • 1946: Bolton Training College is approved by the Ministry of Education.
  • 1959: Bolton Training College settles at Chadwick Street. 

Era 2: The Technical and Institute Era (1960s–1981) 

  • 1960s: Development of Bolton College of Education at Chadwick Street.
  • 1964: Bolton Technical College and Bolton Institute of Technology (BIT) are divided into separate organisations. A.J. Jenkinson serves as principal for both in succession.
  • 1970: Deane Tower (Deane Campus) is completed.
  • 1971: A technology block and sports hall (later the Excel Centre) are added. 

Era 3: Formation of BIHE (1982–2004) 

  • 1982: Bolton Institute of Technology and Bolton College of Education merge to form Bolton Institute of Higher Education (BIHE). John McKenzie is the first principal.
  • 1990: The Institute gains its own taught-degree awarding powers.
  • 1991: An £8.3 million extension project begins, including the purchase of the former Eagle Factory.
  • 1992: Reorganisation following the Further and Higher Education Act 1992.
  • 1995/1996: Awarded research degree awarding powers.
  • 1998: Mollie Temple becomes the third principal, leading the drive for university status.
  • 2004: BIHE is granted university status.
  • 2005: The institution is officially named the University of Bolton. 

Era 4: Modern Era (University of Bolton to University of Greater Manchester) 

  • 2009-2010: Rebranding and opening of the new Deane Road campus building.
  • 2018: Bolton College merges with the University of Bolton.
  • 2023: Application made to change the name to the University of Greater Manchester.
  • 2024: The university begins operating as the University of Greater Manchester. 

Key Historical Links & Resources

Agile Manifesto, Values and Principles

Agile Manifesto, Values and Principles

Tandem Computers ( HPE NonStop ) Overview & Detailed Timeline

Tandem Computers, founded in 1974 by James (Jimmy) Treybig, revolutionized the computing industry by pioneering fault-tolerant computer systems. Designed specifically for online transaction processing (OLTP) in banking, stock exchanges, and telephone switching, Tandem’s “NonStop” systems provided near-zero downtime by utilizing redundant, modular processors and a “shared-nothing” architecture. 

Tandem remained an independent, rapidly growing company until it was acquired by Compaq in 1997, later becoming part of Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). 

Overview of Key Technologies

  • NonStop Architecture: The core design featured multiple independent processors, each with its own memory and I/O bus, interconnected by a redundant inter-CPU bus called the Dynabus.
  • Guardian OS: A message-based operating system designed to detect faults immediately (“fail-fast”) and mirror process states to a backup processor, allowing seamless failover.
  • NonStop SQL (1986): The first fault-tolerant SQL database, known for linear scalability.
  • ServerNet (1995): A high-speed, scalable, point-to-point network system that replaced the Dynabus and influenced modern InfiniBand standards. 

Detailed Historic Timeline by Era and Year

The Founding Era (1974–1979) 

  • 1974: Tandem Computers is founded in Cupertino, California, by Jimmy Treybig, formerly of HP. Initial venture capital investment comes from Kleiner & Perkins.
  • 1975: Design of the Tandem/16 (T/16) is completed.
  • 1976: The first T/16 NonStop system is shipped to Citibank.
  • 1977: Tandem goes public; sales begin rapid, exponential growth.
  • 1978: Introduction of the ENCOMPASS database management system.

The Growth and Competition Era (1980–1989)

  • 1980: Inc. magazine ranks Tandem as the fastest-growing public company in America.
  • 1981: NonStop II is introduced, supporting 32-bit addressing to allow for larger applications.
  • 1982: Competition intensifies as Stratus Technologies enters the fault-tolerant market. Tandem faces its first quarter of declining growth.
  • 1983: Introduction of the NonStop TXP, the first entirely new implementation of the TNS architecture with cache memory.
  • 1985: Attempted entry into the PC market with the MS-DOS-based Dynamite PC, which fails commercially and is withdrawn.
  • 1986: Introduction of the NonStop VLX (32-bit datapath) and the revolutionary NonStop SQL database.
  • 1987: Introduction of the low-cost NonStop CLX for small office environments.
  • 1988: Tandem acquires Ungermann-Bass, Inc. to strengthen networking capabilities.
  • 1989: Introduction of the NonStop Cyclone, a high-end ECL-based processor aimed at mainframe markets. 

The Open Standards & MIPS Transition Era (1990–1996)

  • 1990: Tandem introduces the Integrity line of fault-tolerant Unix systems.
  • 1991: Cyclone/R (CLX/R) is released, marking the start of the migration from proprietary stack machines to MIPS R3000 RISC microprocessors.
  • 1993: Introduction of the NonStop Himalaya K-series using faster MIPS R4400 processors.
  • 1994: NonStop Kernel (NSK) is extended with Open System Services (OSS), a POSIX-compliant Unix environment.
  • 1995: Introduction of ServerNet, designed for extremely low-latency inter-processor communication.
  • 1995–1997: Partnered with Microsoft on the “Wolfpack” project, which becomes Microsoft Cluster Server. 

Acquisition and Integration Era (1997–Present)

  • 1997: Compaq acquires Tandem Computers for roughly $3 billion. The Himalaya S-Series is introduced.
  • 1998: Compaq acquires DEC, leading to a shift in engineering strategy towards Alpha/Itanium instead of MIPS.
  • 2001: Compaq terminates Alpha engineering, committing to Intel’s Itanium (Merced) processors.
  • 2002: Hewlett-Packard acquires Compaq. Tandem becomes the core of the HP Integrity NonStop Server division.
  • 2005: The first HP Integrity NonStop servers (TNS/E) based on Itanium processors are released.
  • 2014: Completion of the migration to Intel x86 architecture (NonStop X). 

Note: Following the split of HP into Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and HP Inc., the NonStop product line continues to be developed and supported by HPE.

Tandem Computers Overview and Detailed Timeline

Business Analyst BA Core Documents in Project Delivery

Business Analyst BA Core Documents in Project Delivery

Interview Questions, Senior Leaders and Responses

Interview Questions, Senior Leaders and Responses

Finance Terms every IT Professional Should Know

Finance Terms every IT Professional Should Know