This post is somewhat a follow-up to the Unplanned Obsolescence one from about a week ago. In that time, I think I've got a handle on how to use some of the new self publishing tools. As before, this isn't a guide for anyone else, but simply what works for me.
The one that confounded me the most at the start - Twitter - may turn out to be one of the most useful day-to-day. A personal Twitter account seems well suited for sharing a quick thought that really isn't worthy of a full blog post or for one that I don't have time to write. Also, its original purpose of answering the question of "what are you doing" type status updates for anyone who cares to know, does work well.
The rich media content and access control obviously are part of what makes Facebook successful. Good for sharing family photos and updates that have no value in the public space. Many seem to use it for status updates also. The eureka moment for me was when I found out that Twitter and Facebook could be linked together with a Facebook application. Short thoughts and status updates now only need to be posted in one place. Longer family and friend related posts still go directly into Facebook itself. After reading today's paper, I have to say that I didn't have anything really in mind when I chose my profile picture though.
I don't think there is anything new to expound on related to the virtues or uses of blogging. However, just like using a RSS reader to follow a blog, there are new options for potential readers using Twitter. Using TwitterFeed as an intermediate mechanism, blog posts can also be followed via Twitter.
I'm still wary of oversharing, privacy risks, security and other elements of these mediums. Also, the parodys abound, particulary about Twitter. At times its easy to imagine that I'm just speaking into cyberspace, but if you've read this far - maybe not!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Values and Freedoms
Christians are still being martyred for their faith. North Korea provides the latest example in the execution of a woman last month, for distributing Bibles. Why don't Western cultures based on Christian values and freedoms stand up against these atrocities? Maybe they're too busy with art shows.
These stories made the mainstream media, but sadly there are many more.
Ideas have consequences. When will we start making choices accordingly?
These stories made the mainstream media, but sadly there are many more.
Ideas have consequences. When will we start making choices accordingly?
Friday, July 24, 2009
Positively Contagious
WBTV in Charlotte has a "Good News" section during their evening broadcast, which is a welcome positive note in a market where news has predominantly become little more than a crime report. As an example, they recently they highlighted a kindergarten class that had a week of "kindness training" and how it can be contagious.
Today they featured a pair of Purdue University students who are known as the Compliment Guys. The are touring the East coast courtesy of Kodak on a Brightside Tour. To get a feel for what they're doing, there is video of them in action. The compliments aren't especially deep or insightful, but all seem to produce a positive uplifting response.
When I saw this I was reminded of the short film "Validation" (embedded below) that I watched last fall. It took me a few minutes to find and at over 16 minutes it'll take you a few minutes to watch, but I can almost guarantee the smile on your face if you do.
If you can mean it, trying telling someone they are amazing. You just might get a smile in return.
Accentuate the positive!
Today they featured a pair of Purdue University students who are known as the Compliment Guys. The are touring the East coast courtesy of Kodak on a Brightside Tour. To get a feel for what they're doing, there is video of them in action. The compliments aren't especially deep or insightful, but all seem to produce a positive uplifting response.
When I saw this I was reminded of the short film "Validation" (embedded below) that I watched last fall. It took me a few minutes to find and at over 16 minutes it'll take you a few minutes to watch, but I can almost guarantee the smile on your face if you do.
If you can mean it, trying telling someone they are amazing. You just might get a smile in return.
Accentuate the positive!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Unplanned Obsolescence
Is email becoming obsolete? Yet another tech article raised the issue recently an
d this time it struck a chord with me, as I've been trying to position email, blogs, Facebook and Twitter in my mind. One of my friends is is always on the cutting edge of web trends and has been prodding me to get connected via each. Well, I finally did and now am trying to figure out what to do with them. I've now staked a claim to my own name in multiple parts of cyberspace, but what's next?
This post isn't intended to be a definitive guide to any of these mediums, but more of a notepad as I (publicly) sort out my thoughts. It may have some value to others as they do the same, or explain to those who have tried to communicate with me via various methods why they haven't received instantaneous responses. If neither of those is of interest to you, like any post, feel free to stop reading and move on at any time. OK, now you've been warned!
Email of course is the no brainer of the bunch. Maybe because its what I understand best, but nothing seems to be better at one-to-one asynchronous communications of non trivial size or substance, for either personal or professional communication. It does have its limitations such as threading long conversations.
Blogging is good at one-to-many asynchronous communication. I originally started using it as a replacement for the "group emails" that I might occasionally have sent out on various topics. The RSS syndication and ability to subscribe (or not) provides a level of control for the reader. As a public medium, I'm always careful not to "over share", particularly in respecting the privacy of my family members.
Facebook's semi-public implementation of many-to-many conversation, both asynchronous, threaded and random - seemingly all at once - hasn't quite "clicked" for me yet. It has elements of blogging, with it's own feed reader in the form of a Wall and the ability to comment on posts. Facebook as a whole seems to invite a lot of "over sharing" on personal topics and relationships, which is probably what makes it addictive for many people.
Twitter I'm the most lost on. It seems to be some cross of IM and SMS messaging, but (mostly) sent out into a public void. I know it has ways to tag tweets for certain users, but it seems to be a really restrictive melding of Facebook and blogging.
The bottom line that while there may be overlap and crossover between the various communications channels, there is no right or wrong answer. Just choices and preferences. The irony is that all of them have ways to be alerted via email when one is updated. That tells me email probably won't be obsolete any time soon. So don't be surprised if that's how I continue to respond!
d this time it struck a chord with me, as I've been trying to position email, blogs, Facebook and Twitter in my mind. One of my friends is is always on the cutting edge of web trends and has been prodding me to get connected via each. Well, I finally did and now am trying to figure out what to do with them. I've now staked a claim to my own name in multiple parts of cyberspace, but what's next?This post isn't intended to be a definitive guide to any of these mediums, but more of a notepad as I (publicly) sort out my thoughts. It may have some value to others as they do the same, or explain to those who have tried to communicate with me via various methods why they haven't received instantaneous responses. If neither of those is of interest to you, like any post, feel free to stop reading and move on at any time. OK, now you've been warned!
Email of course is the no brainer of the bunch. Maybe because its what I understand best, but nothing seems to be better at one-to-one asynchronous communications of non trivial size or substance, for either personal or professional communication. It does have its limitations such as threading long conversations.
Blogging is good at one-to-many asynchronous communication. I originally started using it as a replacement for the "group emails" that I might occasionally have sent out on various topics. The RSS syndication and ability to subscribe (or not) provides a level of control for the reader. As a public medium, I'm always careful not to "over share", particularly in respecting the privacy of my family members.
Facebook's semi-public implementation of many-to-many conversation, both asynchronous, threaded and random - seemingly all at once - hasn't quite "clicked" for me yet. It has elements of blogging, with it's own feed reader in the form of a Wall and the ability to comment on posts. Facebook as a whole seems to invite a lot of "over sharing" on personal topics and relationships, which is probably what makes it addictive for many people.
Twitter I'm the most lost on. It seems to be some cross of IM and SMS messaging, but (mostly) sent out into a public void. I know it has ways to tag tweets for certain users, but it seems to be a really restrictive melding of Facebook and blogging.
The bottom line that while there may be overlap and crossover between the various communications channels, there is no right or wrong answer. Just choices and preferences. The irony is that all of them have ways to be alerted via email when one is updated. That tells me email probably won't be obsolete any time soon. So don't be surprised if that's how I continue to respond!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Making It Right
We recently celebrated my birthday in a way that has become a tradition thanks to my wonderful and understanding wife. This celebration however, involved a couple of twists that made it even better than expected. The tradition is in searching out a new barbeque restaurant that we've never eaten at before (or maybe just not in quite a while). My wife plans these culinary outings as a surprise and some do require a bit of planning - and driving.
Last weekend the tradition didn't involve too much driving, only up to Concord, NC. The
restaurant selected this time was R&R Bar-B-Que, at 755 Pitts School Rd NW. There were some good reviews on the net about it and everything on the R&R web site looked like it was the real deal.
So up to Concord we went and arrived after the dinner rush on Saturday. When we arrived there was a good sized crowd, noisy but relaxed. It looked like we'd made a great choice. There was some confusion when we first ordered, about the type of bbq that R&R specialized in and some other things that seemed a little out of place. Nothing to really be concerned about but we began to wonder if they were as serious about bbq as we'd been led to believe.
To make a long story short - at this point, we asked to speak to a manager. Instead we ended up talking to one of the co-owners - Rob Elmore. Even though there was still a good crowd in the restaurant, he took his time with us explaining the bbq he specialized in (Eastern Carolina) and its preparation at R&R (in a state-of-the-art, spotless operation). We even swapped a host of other stories related to experiencing local food specialties while traveling.
They are serious about barbeque at R&R. Rob's personal involvement to make things right for two guests he'd never met before really spoke volumes. When the plates of food arrived, we can attest to the fact that the food is made right too - pulled pork shoulder, lean but not dry, lightly spiced - exactly what we came looking for. The ribs were probably the best either of us can remember having, a real unexpected find. The chicken, bbq slaw and beans were great along with everything else.
I'll stop short of making this a full restaurant review (which I'm not formally trained to do anyway!). The real point is that it was great to meet someone who was good at what they do and enjoyed it. That comes through loud and clear.
Anyway, give R&R a try - you won't be sorry. And remember, barbeque is not a verb!
Last weekend the tradition didn't involve too much driving, only up to Concord, NC. The
restaurant selected this time was R&R Bar-B-Que, at 755 Pitts School Rd NW. There were some good reviews on the net about it and everything on the R&R web site looked like it was the real deal.So up to Concord we went and arrived after the dinner rush on Saturday. When we arrived there was a good sized crowd, noisy but relaxed. It looked like we'd made a great choice. There was some confusion when we first ordered, about the type of bbq that R&R specialized in and some other things that seemed a little out of place. Nothing to really be concerned about but we began to wonder if they were as serious about bbq as we'd been led to believe.
To make a long story short - at this point, we asked to speak to a manager. Instead we ended up talking to one of the co-owners - Rob Elmore. Even though there was still a good crowd in the restaurant, he took his time with us explaining the bbq he specialized in (Eastern Carolina) and its preparation at R&R (in a state-of-the-art, spotless operation). We even swapped a host of other stories related to experiencing local food specialties while traveling.
They are serious about barbeque at R&R. Rob's personal involvement to make things right for two guests he'd never met before really spoke volumes. When the plates of food arrived, we can attest to the fact that the food is made right too - pulled pork shoulder, lean but not dry, lightly spiced - exactly what we came looking for. The ribs were probably the best either of us can remember having, a real unexpected find. The chicken, bbq slaw and beans were great along with everything else.
I'll stop short of making this a full restaurant review (which I'm not formally trained to do anyway!). The real point is that it was great to meet someone who was good at what they do and enjoyed it. That comes through loud and clear.
Anyway, give R&R a try - you won't be sorry. And remember, barbeque is not a verb!
Friday, July 17, 2009
Worldview Matters
The Washington Post has an article Three Minutes to Fort Totten which describes the actions of four individuals who were on the Metro train 112, car 1079 which crashed last month.
On the surface it is a great human interest story. It portrays four people who gave of themselves and helped others while overcoming fear and obstacles in the midst of a tragedy. Its the kind of thing that you don't see much of, but when you do, its inspiring.
I find it interesting that two of the persons who stayed behind to help were US military personnel, one was directly identified as a Christian. I don't think that was a random correlation. As BreakPoint points out when referring to this same incident, the military is one of the last places in America where men and women are taught to put others first. As also should Christians.
Worldview matters. Thankfully few of us are called to live out our beliefs in the middle of a crisis. So what's our excuse in everyday life?
On the surface it is a great human interest story. It portrays four people who gave of themselves and helped others while overcoming fear and obstacles in the midst of a tragedy. Its the kind of thing that you don't see much of, but when you do, its inspiring.
I find it interesting that two of the persons who stayed behind to help were US military personnel, one was directly identified as a Christian. I don't think that was a random correlation. As BreakPoint points out when referring to this same incident, the military is one of the last places in America where men and women are taught to put others first. As also should Christians.
Worldview matters. Thankfully few of us are called to live out our beliefs in the middle of a crisis. So what's our excuse in everyday life?
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