My name is Morys Ireland, I'm a student at the University of Portsmouth in the UK currently working toward a BSc (Hons) degree in E-Commerce and Internet Systems. The focus of my degree is split between the technical and business oriented aspects of electronic commerce; this gives the advantage being able to operate successfully in a business environment - but with enough background knowledge of the more technical aspects of business on the web to fully understand key issues.
The more technical oriented areas of my studies so far have included: HTML, CSS, MySQL, JavaScript, Python, Visual Basic, networks and webserver use configuration and management. Projects in each of these topics have included building websites, networks or programs of medium complexity, both alone and in groups. When it comes to the business oriented aspects of my degree course, topics have included: Professionalism in computing, project management, work and the information society, business ehtics and the study of e-commerce infrastructures. Areas of study have included investigating the impact of the internet on various industries - for example I examined in detail the impact of Amazon on traditional bookshops; other work included extensive group project management exercises spanning several weeks.
I have also opted to study areas not normally associated with E-Commerce, such as epistemology or the industrialisation of society and other, more sociological or philosophical units. In addition to this I have taken units from the university's Institution Wide Language Program in German, French and Italian. In my final year, I hope to take part in the Erasmus exchange program and study in France for the second semester in order to further improve my French. I have just finished a placement year in Brussels working as a Business Development Associate for an IT company who's focus is software/video game translation, multilingual search engine optimisation and aiding the multilingual development of the web.
Outside of work and university, my two main interests are fencing and politics. I've been fencing since 1999 and in 2005 I was instrumental in the founding of Chichester Community Fencing Club - a voluntary project based in Sussex and funded by the National Lottery and a local charitable trust. In 2006 I qualified as a level one fencing coach in order to be able to train fencers at the club - however I still fence competitively and continue to do so here in Belgium. You can find more information about my involvement in fencing and politics using the links above. You'll probably find many of my posts relate to my studies, my religion (I am a Catholic), politics or fencing in some way or another.