GOINGON'S SPACE IS GETTING WARMER... FACEBOOK, WEB 2.0 MEETS ENTERPRISE, BLAH BLAH
Today there is news that Facebook is entering the corporate market. I'm not sure how an online directory for companies will work out, but it's interesting that these consumer plays are looking into the corporate sector after they've exhausted their primary market.
Our social interaction designer/consultant, Adrian, and I were talking about how we're both getting social networking spam (SNS) lately from MySpace. These are invites to be friends of a club, new TV character on an upcoming FOX show, or a company. The ones from companies don't really make sense in the context of MySpace because most of their users are not looking to be friends with companies. It's like trying to fit a square peg into a circular hole, or trying to strike a business deal in a dance club. For the most part, these efforts will lead to a dead end.
So I agree with Justin Smith's assessment on Facebook's recent move:
While the rollout will likely create buzz in some circles, I don’t think you’ll see the same phenomenal viral exponent or use patterns over time. Professionals just don’t talk to dozens of classmates a day or live in dorms with hundreds of peers, and they certainly don’t have 51 minutes a day to spend looking at cute members of the opposite sex and writing on each others’ walls… I’m lucky if I see my friends at Apple once a month. (full post)
It's interesting as we (GoingOn Networks) build out our platform how heated our space has become over the past month. There isn't that much direct competition, but definitely a lot of overlapping competitors that can make it difficult to position ourselves effectively and stand out above the noise.
Anyway, here's a related article from CNET:
Web 2.0 meets the enterprise
Long set up like a gated community, the enterprise software industry is quickly gaining a populist streak.
New ideas in consumer technology are rapidly creeping into the design and marketing of software aimed at corporations. For example, Web 2.0 technologies such as blogs and AJAX are starting to show their potential behind corporate firewalls, analysts said. (full article)
Junto Boyz
Friday, April 28, 2006
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UK HACKER WANTED BY U.S. GOVT... SAYS TECH FROM ALIENS EXISTS
Interesting article about Gary McKinnon who hacked into systems at the Pentagon, NASA, and other government and military institutions. He also says "technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist." Definitely going to fuel the fire in all those UFO crazies out there :)
But Briton Gary McKinnon says he is just an ordinary computer nerd who wanted to find out whether aliens and UFOs exist.
During his two-year quest, McKinnon broke into computers at the Pentagon, NASA and the Johnson Space Center as well as systems used by the U.S. army, navy and air force.
U.S. officials say he caused $700,000 worth of damage and even crippled vital defense systems shortly after the September 11 attacks.
The unemployed computer programmer is now battling extradition to the United States, where, if found guilty, he faces up to 70 years in jail and fines of up to $1.75 million. His lawyer fears he could even be sent to Guantanamo Bay.
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He said he came across a group called the "Disclosure Project," which had expert testimonies from senior figures who said technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist.
One NASA scientist had reported that the Johnson Space Center had a facility where UFOs were airbrushed out of high-resolution satellite images. So, he hacked in.
"I saw what I'm convinced was some kind of satellite or spacecraft but it was manufactured by no means I have ever seen before -- there were no rivets, no seams, it was like one flawless piece of material. And that was above the Earth." (full article)
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Interesting article about Gary McKinnon who hacked into systems at the Pentagon, NASA, and other government and military institutions. He also says "technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist." Definitely going to fuel the fire in all those UFO crazies out there :)
But Briton Gary McKinnon says he is just an ordinary computer nerd who wanted to find out whether aliens and UFOs exist.
During his two-year quest, McKinnon broke into computers at the Pentagon, NASA and the Johnson Space Center as well as systems used by the U.S. army, navy and air force.
U.S. officials say he caused $700,000 worth of damage and even crippled vital defense systems shortly after the September 11 attacks.
The unemployed computer programmer is now battling extradition to the United States, where, if found guilty, he faces up to 70 years in jail and fines of up to $1.75 million. His lawyer fears he could even be sent to Guantanamo Bay.
.....
He said he came across a group called the "Disclosure Project," which had expert testimonies from senior figures who said technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist.
One NASA scientist had reported that the Johnson Space Center had a facility where UFOs were airbrushed out of high-resolution satellite images. So, he hacked in.
"I saw what I'm convinced was some kind of satellite or spacecraft but it was manufactured by no means I have ever seen before -- there were no rivets, no seams, it was like one flawless piece of material. And that was above the Earth." (full article)
"BABY GOT BOOK"... CHRISTIAN HIP-HOP
HatTip to Time's Andrew Sullivan. A bit cheesy but amusing parody on Sir Mixalot's "Baby Got Back"
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HatTip to Time's Andrew Sullivan. A bit cheesy but amusing parody on Sir Mixalot's "Baby Got Back"
Thursday, April 27, 2006
WSJ ASKS, WHICH SOCIAL NETWORK WILL BE THE NEXT NO. 1?
Decent, simple overview of sites wanting to be the next MySpace.
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Decent, simple overview of sites wanting to be the next MySpace.
"HILL'S '08 HEADACHE"... DICK MORRIS OP-ED
I like this op-ed. Reads like a gossip column piece :) The title could read "Dick Morris's Revenge" or "Yucaipa? Is that the Spanish yogurt I love or the fund that lines our pockets?"
HILL'S '08 HEADACHE
UN-PRESIDENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST?
NEW YORK POST
WHEN Hillary Clinton runs for president in 2008, Bill Clinton's affiliation with billionaire Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Companies could become the new Bill & Hill scandal - the equivalent of Whitewater.
It's not that the various Yucaipa funds - which invest money for foreign and domestic investors - have done anything wrong; they haven't. But the company's investments have the potential to create conflicts of interest for the Clintons.
Like any U.S. senator, Hillary regularly casts votes that help or harm various interests - including, inevitably, the interests of the multibillion-dollar Yucaipa funds.
The issue looms larger in the wake of a story in last Sunday's New York Times, which quotes Burkle as estimating that he spends about 500 hours a year with the ex-president. That works out to about 10 hours a week - the closest thing Bill now has to a regular job.
The Times also reports that Bill stands to clear tens of millions of dollars - with virtually no risk - from his Yucaipa work. Yet Hillary's Senate financial disclosures for 2003 and 2004 list as Bill's only Yucaipa income "more than $1,000" in "guaranteed payments" as a partner in Yucaipa Global Opportunities Fund 1, LLC.
How does that work? Most of Bill's gains are backloaded - he'll clear those millions if the funds average returns above 9 percent over their lifetime. And Yucaipa says they're doing even better than that now. (full article)
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I like this op-ed. Reads like a gossip column piece :) The title could read "Dick Morris's Revenge" or "Yucaipa? Is that the Spanish yogurt I love or the fund that lines our pockets?"
HILL'S '08 HEADACHE
UN-PRESIDENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST?
NEW YORK POST
WHEN Hillary Clinton runs for president in 2008, Bill Clinton's affiliation with billionaire Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Companies could become the new Bill & Hill scandal - the equivalent of Whitewater.
It's not that the various Yucaipa funds - which invest money for foreign and domestic investors - have done anything wrong; they haven't. But the company's investments have the potential to create conflicts of interest for the Clintons.
Like any U.S. senator, Hillary regularly casts votes that help or harm various interests - including, inevitably, the interests of the multibillion-dollar Yucaipa funds.
The issue looms larger in the wake of a story in last Sunday's New York Times, which quotes Burkle as estimating that he spends about 500 hours a year with the ex-president. That works out to about 10 hours a week - the closest thing Bill now has to a regular job.
The Times also reports that Bill stands to clear tens of millions of dollars - with virtually no risk - from his Yucaipa work. Yet Hillary's Senate financial disclosures for 2003 and 2004 list as Bill's only Yucaipa income "more than $1,000" in "guaranteed payments" as a partner in Yucaipa Global Opportunities Fund 1, LLC.
How does that work? Most of Bill's gains are backloaded - he'll clear those millions if the funds average returns above 9 percent over their lifetime. And Yucaipa says they're doing even better than that now. (full article)
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
COLUMBIA BUSINESS SCHOOL FOLLIES... "BEST FOUR MINUTES OF THE DAY"
HatTip to Lenny. My younger bro is a 2nd year at Columbia Business School, so he sent me a link to their follies show this year. Some people already picked up on it with the big one being The Wall Street Journal's MarketBeat:
Today's best four minutes of the day: an uproarious parody of the Police's "Every Breath You Take" by students at Columbia Business School, which purports to show the school's dean, Glenn Hubbard -- and, no, that is not Mr. Hubbard, the school confirms, but a look-alike student -- taking Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to task for monetary policy mistakes (in a fit of jealousy over not getting the position). It's hard to resist the charm of any attempt to poke at the Fed, especially one that includes the couplet "Hope your models break/bet that beard is fake." Hat tip to Barry Ritholtz, who linked to this in his blog earlier in the day. The real Mr. Hubbard was traveling and could not be reached for comment.
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HatTip to Lenny. My younger bro is a 2nd year at Columbia Business School, so he sent me a link to their follies show this year. Some people already picked up on it with the big one being The Wall Street Journal's MarketBeat:
Today's best four minutes of the day: an uproarious parody of the Police's "Every Breath You Take" by students at Columbia Business School, which purports to show the school's dean, Glenn Hubbard -- and, no, that is not Mr. Hubbard, the school confirms, but a look-alike student -- taking Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to task for monetary policy mistakes (in a fit of jealousy over not getting the position). It's hard to resist the charm of any attempt to poke at the Fed, especially one that includes the couplet "Hope your models break/bet that beard is fake." Hat tip to Barry Ritholtz, who linked to this in his blog earlier in the day. The real Mr. Hubbard was traveling and could not be reached for comment.
NEW HOTMAIL TOO
Like the post below, if they integrate Inner Circle functions from Lili's group at Microsoft Research, I'm taking credit for that too :) Excerpt from a CNET article:
"The Hotmail service has kind of lagged behind some of the others," Radicati said. By being early to the market with a free service, Hotmail for years found it easy to sign up more and more users. "Probably, they became a little bit complacent."
Even those inside the company generally agree that the launch of Gmail was a giant wake-up call.
"When Gmail came, it basically raised the bar on expectations and also capabilities of what is a modern Web browser application," said Richard Craddock, the development manager for Windows Live Mail, which is set for launch later this year.
Microsoft had been kicking around ideas on how to revamp Hotmail since at least 2002, but the ideas stayed on the drawing board until Gmail came around.
"It became very clear...this is what we should be doing,'" Craddock said. "Somewhere along the way, we realized there was probably a lot more money in this free e-mail service than we recognized before." (full article)
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Like the post below, if they integrate Inner Circle functions from Lili's group at Microsoft Research, I'm taking credit for that too :) Excerpt from a CNET article:
"The Hotmail service has kind of lagged behind some of the others," Radicati said. By being early to the market with a free service, Hotmail for years found it easy to sign up more and more users. "Probably, they became a little bit complacent."
Even those inside the company generally agree that the launch of Gmail was a giant wake-up call.
"When Gmail came, it basically raised the bar on expectations and also capabilities of what is a modern Web browser application," said Richard Craddock, the development manager for Windows Live Mail, which is set for launch later this year.
Microsoft had been kicking around ideas on how to revamp Hotmail since at least 2002, but the ideas stayed on the drawing board until Gmail came around.
"It became very clear...this is what we should be doing,'" Craddock said. "Somewhere along the way, we realized there was probably a lot more money in this free e-mail service than we recognized before." (full article)
MICROSOFT SPINNING OUT WALLOP
So Microsoft is spinning out Wallop, which is cool. Karl Jacobs, a serial entrepreneur, will be the CEO of this new entity. What's cooler is that I wrote about how Wallop should be opened for business along with some other suggestions last February :)
Anyway, TechCrunch has a review and so does Om.
Microsoft's Don Dodge has some inside news about how this is part of a new Microsoft initiative, Microsoft IP Ventures, to license their technology to interested parties, which is similar to what large research universities do.
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So Microsoft is spinning out Wallop, which is cool. Karl Jacobs, a serial entrepreneur, will be the CEO of this new entity. What's cooler is that I wrote about how Wallop should be opened for business along with some other suggestions last February :)
Anyway, TechCrunch has a review and so does Om.
Microsoft's Don Dodge has some inside news about how this is part of a new Microsoft initiative, Microsoft IP Ventures, to license their technology to interested parties, which is similar to what large research universities do.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
BBC GOES WEB 2.0... RADICAL CHANGE OF A MAJOR NEWS SITE
Very cool. Surprised the Brits are taking a lead on this versus major media outlets in the U.S. :) Anyway, who said blogging is dead in five years?
BBC unveils radical revamp of website
Guardian Unlimited
Mark Sweney
Tuesday April 25, 2006
The BBC today unveiled radical plans to rebuild its website around user-generated content, including blogs and home videos, with the aim of creating a public service version of MySpace.com.
Ashley Highfield, the BBC director of new media and technology, also announced proposals to put the corporation's entire programme catalogue online for the first time from tomorrow in written archive form, as an "experimental prototype", and rebrand MyBBCPlayer as BBC iPlayer.
Mr Highfield was unveiling the results of the broadcaster's Creative Future review of programming and content before an audience of BBC new media staff. (full article)
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Very cool. Surprised the Brits are taking a lead on this versus major media outlets in the U.S. :) Anyway, who said blogging is dead in five years?
BBC unveils radical revamp of website
Guardian Unlimited
Mark Sweney
Tuesday April 25, 2006
The BBC today unveiled radical plans to rebuild its website around user-generated content, including blogs and home videos, with the aim of creating a public service version of MySpace.com.
Ashley Highfield, the BBC director of new media and technology, also announced proposals to put the corporation's entire programme catalogue online for the first time from tomorrow in written archive form, as an "experimental prototype", and rebrand MyBBCPlayer as BBC iPlayer.
Mr Highfield was unveiling the results of the broadcaster's Creative Future review of programming and content before an audience of BBC new media staff. (full article)
"CASA BLANCA, KOREAN STYLE"... WITCH HUNT GOES ON AND ON AND ON
Thomson's Jerry Borrell on the witch hunt that continues:
The “Claude Raines Memorial Award” goes to government auditors in Korea who announced this week that they are “shocked, shocked” to find out that there were alleged “irregularities” in the sale of the Korean Exchange Bank to Lone Star Funds in 2003. The Korean government can't seem to recall that it sold the once-failing banking system to Lone Star to save it from collapse. More than twice the usual number of suspects are being rounded up, reportedly some 20-plus officials associated with the original sale have been “summoned” to testify to prosecutors.
We reported just last week that Lone Star had completed a $6.7 billion sale of the bank to Korea's Kookmin Bank, just weeks before the Korean legislature was to enact legislation that would have allowed the tax-free deal to be taxed. That sale is apparently still on track, but Lone Star's ability to expatriate funds from the sale may be in question.
Separately, Korean government prosecutors not only raided the offices of Lone Star in Seoul, but the homes of executives of the firm, as well as the offices and homes of Lone Star's affiliated advisors in Korea.
In related news—and in conflict with our earlier report that Korea would unify of its diverse investigations and prosecutions of Lone Star within the Supreme Prosecutors Office—Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection is expanding its investigation of the 2003 sale.
And in yet another related story, Korea's Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has promulgated a new regulation that will allow it to “gather information” and monitor foreign-based investors in Korea more closely beginning in June. Specifically, the new rules allow regulators access to information about investments made by foreigners in Korea. The regulations also allow for information sharing with financial regulators in the United States, Hong Kong, Singapore and other countries. The new rules will allow access to “personal” information on investors or “anyone related to … deals” made in Korea. The FSS has also promised to increase its surveillance on persons it suspects of wrongdoing. Given the current state of affairs with teams of men rummaging through the homes of people working for foreign investment firms in this country, we suspect the only additional options available involve body cavity searches.
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Thomson's Jerry Borrell on the witch hunt that continues:
The “Claude Raines Memorial Award” goes to government auditors in Korea who announced this week that they are “shocked, shocked” to find out that there were alleged “irregularities” in the sale of the Korean Exchange Bank to Lone Star Funds in 2003. The Korean government can't seem to recall that it sold the once-failing banking system to Lone Star to save it from collapse. More than twice the usual number of suspects are being rounded up, reportedly some 20-plus officials associated with the original sale have been “summoned” to testify to prosecutors.
We reported just last week that Lone Star had completed a $6.7 billion sale of the bank to Korea's Kookmin Bank, just weeks before the Korean legislature was to enact legislation that would have allowed the tax-free deal to be taxed. That sale is apparently still on track, but Lone Star's ability to expatriate funds from the sale may be in question.
Separately, Korean government prosecutors not only raided the offices of Lone Star in Seoul, but the homes of executives of the firm, as well as the offices and homes of Lone Star's affiliated advisors in Korea.
In related news—and in conflict with our earlier report that Korea would unify of its diverse investigations and prosecutions of Lone Star within the Supreme Prosecutors Office—Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection is expanding its investigation of the 2003 sale.
And in yet another related story, Korea's Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has promulgated a new regulation that will allow it to “gather information” and monitor foreign-based investors in Korea more closely beginning in June. Specifically, the new rules allow regulators access to information about investments made by foreigners in Korea. The regulations also allow for information sharing with financial regulators in the United States, Hong Kong, Singapore and other countries. The new rules will allow access to “personal” information on investors or “anyone related to … deals” made in Korea. The FSS has also promised to increase its surveillance on persons it suspects of wrongdoing. Given the current state of affairs with teams of men rummaging through the homes of people working for foreign investment firms in this country, we suspect the only additional options available involve body cavity searches.
Monday, April 24, 2006
"AMONG THE AUDIENCE"
The Economist has a good article in their recent print edition:
Among the audience
Apr 20th 2006
The era of mass media is giving way to one of personal and participatory media, says Andreas Kluth. That will profoundly change both the media industry and society as a whole
THE next big thing in 1448 was a technology called “movable type”, invented for commercial use by Johannes Gutenberg, a goldsmith from Mainz (although the Chinese had thought of it first). The clever idea was to cast individual letters (type) and then compose (move) these to make up printable pages. This promised to disrupt the mainstream media of the day—the work of monks who were manually transcribing texts or carving entire pages into wood blocks for printing. By 1455 Mr Gutenberg, having lined up venture capital from a rich compatriot, Johannes Fust, was churning out bibles and soon also papal indulgences (slips of paper that rich people bought to reduce their time in purgatory). The start-up had momentum, but its costs ran out of control and Mr Gutenberg defaulted. Mr Fust foreclosed, and a little bubble popped.
Even so, within decades movable type spread across Europe, turbo-charging an information age called the Renaissance. Martin Luther, irked by those indulgences, used printing presses to produce bibles and other texts in German. Others followed suit, and vernaculars rose as Latin declined, preparing Europe for nation-states. Religious and aristocratic elites first tried to stop, then control, then co-opt the new medium. In the centuries that followed, social and legal systems adjusted (with copyright laws, for instance) and books, newspapers and magazines began to circulate widely. The age of mass media had arrived. Two more technological breakthroughs—radio and television—brought it to its zenith, which it probably reached around 1958, when most adult Americans simultaneously turned on their television sets to watch “I Love Lucy”.
Second incarnation
In 2001, five-and-a-half centuries after Mr Gutenberg's first bible, “Movable Type” was invented again. Ben and Mena Trott, high-school sweethearts who became husband and wife, had been laid off during the dotcom bust and found themselves in San Francisco with ample spare time. Ms Trott started blogging—ie, posting to her online journal, Dollarshort—about “stupid little anecdotes from my childhood”. For reasons that elude her, Dollarshort became very popular, and the Trotts decided to build a better “blogging tool”, which they called Movable Type. “Likening it to the printing press seemed like a natural thing because it was clearly revolutionary; it was not meant to be arrogant or grandiose,” says Ms Trott to the approving nod of Mr Trott, who is extremely shy and rarely talks. Movable Type is now the software of choice for celebrity bloggers. (full article)
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The Economist has a good article in their recent print edition:
Among the audience
Apr 20th 2006
The era of mass media is giving way to one of personal and participatory media, says Andreas Kluth. That will profoundly change both the media industry and society as a whole
THE next big thing in 1448 was a technology called “movable type”, invented for commercial use by Johannes Gutenberg, a goldsmith from Mainz (although the Chinese had thought of it first). The clever idea was to cast individual letters (type) and then compose (move) these to make up printable pages. This promised to disrupt the mainstream media of the day—the work of monks who were manually transcribing texts or carving entire pages into wood blocks for printing. By 1455 Mr Gutenberg, having lined up venture capital from a rich compatriot, Johannes Fust, was churning out bibles and soon also papal indulgences (slips of paper that rich people bought to reduce their time in purgatory). The start-up had momentum, but its costs ran out of control and Mr Gutenberg defaulted. Mr Fust foreclosed, and a little bubble popped.
Even so, within decades movable type spread across Europe, turbo-charging an information age called the Renaissance. Martin Luther, irked by those indulgences, used printing presses to produce bibles and other texts in German. Others followed suit, and vernaculars rose as Latin declined, preparing Europe for nation-states. Religious and aristocratic elites first tried to stop, then control, then co-opt the new medium. In the centuries that followed, social and legal systems adjusted (with copyright laws, for instance) and books, newspapers and magazines began to circulate widely. The age of mass media had arrived. Two more technological breakthroughs—radio and television—brought it to its zenith, which it probably reached around 1958, when most adult Americans simultaneously turned on their television sets to watch “I Love Lucy”.
Second incarnation
In 2001, five-and-a-half centuries after Mr Gutenberg's first bible, “Movable Type” was invented again. Ben and Mena Trott, high-school sweethearts who became husband and wife, had been laid off during the dotcom bust and found themselves in San Francisco with ample spare time. Ms Trott started blogging—ie, posting to her online journal, Dollarshort—about “stupid little anecdotes from my childhood”. For reasons that elude her, Dollarshort became very popular, and the Trotts decided to build a better “blogging tool”, which they called Movable Type. “Likening it to the printing press seemed like a natural thing because it was clearly revolutionary; it was not meant to be arrogant or grandiose,” says Ms Trott to the approving nod of Mr Trott, who is extremely shy and rarely talks. Movable Type is now the software of choice for celebrity bloggers. (full article)
SCOTT MCNEALY FINALLY STEPS DOWN AS CEO OF SUN
Long overdue...
Sun Microsystems co-founder Scott McNealy has stepped down as chief executive, and has been replaced by President Jonathan Schwartz, the company said Monday.
McNealy, who will remain as chairman, was one of four co-founders of Sun 24 years ago and has been CEO for the last 22 of those. Since then, he has been a strong and often contrarian voice for change in the computing industry, but in recent years his vision hasn't translated into financial success.
"Jonathan has risen to the top of the class, and he is ready," McNealy said in a conference call. The move was planned, he added: "It's part of our ongoing succession process we've been working on since my days at the (General Electric) board."
UPDATE: BusinessWeek has an article on this, "Sun's New Boss: The Same as the Old Boss?"
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Long overdue...
Sun Microsystems co-founder Scott McNealy has stepped down as chief executive, and has been replaced by President Jonathan Schwartz, the company said Monday.
McNealy, who will remain as chairman, was one of four co-founders of Sun 24 years ago and has been CEO for the last 22 of those. Since then, he has been a strong and often contrarian voice for change in the computing industry, but in recent years his vision hasn't translated into financial success.
"Jonathan has risen to the top of the class, and he is ready," McNealy said in a conference call. The move was planned, he added: "It's part of our ongoing succession process we've been working on since my days at the (General Electric) board."
UPDATE: BusinessWeek has an article on this, "Sun's New Boss: The Same as the Old Boss?"
AN L.A. VIEW ON SOCIAL NETWORKING
Posting this article here from The Hollywood Reporter since it mentions GoingOn and you need an account to read it :) The article is a bit off in the description of our product since it's not "online aggregator of social networks."
Social network sites can be a tangled Web
The Hollywood Reporter
By Diane Mermigas
CHICAGO -- Media players are hustling to find ways to make money from the social-networking phenomenon at the same time they are struggling to understand how it is transforming their business.
Unlike anything else in an increasingly personalized interactive digital world, social networking is a communal form of consumer self-indulgence that some media companies fear could implode or explode before they can monetize it across all Internet-connected devices. For now, it appears to be the new killer app.
For instance, while wrestling with some of the unforeseen legal ramifications (predators victimizing users) of its recently acquired MySpace, Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. are planning to launch a related MySun Web site for its U.K.-based Sun newspaper that uses MySpace software to allow readers to create and share Web pages, blogs and video. News Corp. admittedly might not understand all the intricacies of social networking, but it has bought into the need to be there in a big-time way.
MyYearbook.com and Facebook are gunning to compete for top draw by allowing users to interface their interests, social lives and careers with those of their global peers in order to pursue deeper, more relevant socialization.
But the ultimate play on social networking is GoingOn, an online aggregator of social networks. It allows users to create or join multiple social networks and apply such outside Web services as Bright Cove, Skype or Instant Messaging, and blogs in an effort to bring some order and fusion to "... a world breaking up into millions of media brands ... that we thought was going to land up in the hands of Rupert Murdoch," says Tony Perkins, the CEO of online community portal AlwaysOn.
However, all social-networking players are wrestling with the same quandary: how to create viable business models, how to integrate new forms of adverting and transactions, and how to make a profit. It undoubtedly requires cool functionality, personalization, efficiency and acceptable ways to tap the flood of resulting consumer-user data, or what the Pew Institute refers to as "social capital."
Clearly, the idea of tapping into a community of similarly targeted consumers to sell content, goods and services across all interactive, Internet-supported devices is any media player's dream come true. It can provide the ultimate cross-promotion platform for a company, like News Corp., heavy with broadcast and cable networks, newspapers and television stations, films and television production and Web sites.
What traditional media players are having difficulty adjusting to is that social networking sites are not about them; they are about the targeted consumer and their preferences, personalities and self-generated content.
In these early stages of digital broadband evolution, social networking is a petri dish of new-media-shaped consumer behavior. It is a showcase for uninhibited show and tell, real-life comedy and drama, and pure public opinion. It is whatever the participating consumers want it to be, which makes it the antithesis of programming network-controlled television and other institutionalized media.
Social networking also provides a bastion of unfiltered individual tastes and standards. The music, fashion, cars, books and eating preferences of targeted users are the new "underground brands," according to PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Because social-networking Web sites represent extreme social, political and cultural relevance, they can be lucrative to media companies who understand how to mine their gold, according to Forrester Research.
"To thrive in an era of social computing, companies must abandon top-down management and communications tactics, weave communities into their products and services, use employees and partners as marketers, and become part of a living fabric of brand loyalists," a recent Forrester report states.
Despite their value as marketing and promotions havens, the anything-goes nature of social networking on Web sites and blogs holds uncertainties and potential liabilities for media companies, otherwise accustomed to regulatory accountability.
However, the most important element about "social computing," as Forrester calls it, is that it is a "fundamental realignment of the relationship between large media companies and the public" by empowering communities rather than institutions. And that translates into transforming change, not only in media but all of American business.
"Sharing resources via file exchanges like BitTorrent, VoIP networks like Skype and content networks like Kontiki allows nodes in the network -- individuals -- to sustain one another and rely less on institutional support," Forrester observes.
In the case of media and entertainment companies, that means global consumers increasingly generating their own information, entertainment and all-around content -- even if it is something as simple as preference lists, user reviews, tagged Web pages or "mashing" existing video and film clips with personal photos and text. That appears to appeal to the once easily satisfied masses. The scores of social computing Web sites reach well beyond MySpace and Friendster to Craigslist, eBay and Shopzilla, and the telephone company-powered Skype.com, and have attracted the financial backing of venture capitals, private equity and public companies.
MySpace, just two years old, grew to more than 37 million unique visitors in February from 9 million unique visitors a year earlier, topping social-networking sites tracked by comScore.
Younger consumers already have adopted digital interactive technology into every aspect of their life. Twelve- to 17-year-olds spend 17% more time online than adults for personal reasons, and 155% more time instant messaging, Forrester says. An estimated 4 million teens have blogs and 8 million teens read them. These are the same teenagers who have $180 billion in purchasing power, not counting the money their parents spend on them.
But social networking is not just for the young. Forrester says more than 6% of North American online consumers use social-networking sites weekly, up from 4% in 2004. With that in mind, NBC Universal recently agreed to acquire iVillage, a female-skewed Web site complete with social-networking extensions.
Multitasking, instant messaging, multiple e-mail addresses and socializing in thousand-member online networks are becoming the ageless, global norm. But they may or may not be good news for media companies and advertisers who are unwilling to modify their way of thinking and doing business. Forrester points to studies indicating that today's more socially connected buyers are less brand-loyal, less trusting and more independent. The only businesses that can succeed in this new social computing environment are the ones that can adapt to the new rules: Innovation is shifting from the top down to the bottom up, value is shifting from ownership to experience, and power is shifting from institutions to communities.
Forrester advises that media companies and marketers will need to become part of the online communities they play to, learn to discreetly use peer relations, avoid exploitation and corporate heavy-handedness, create custom applications, and incorporating existing collaboration tools and technology. Doing that is why Apple's iTunes claims 600 million downloads, 10 million accounts and $400 million in revenue in just two years.
That may assure players some slice of what Bernstein Research estimates is a $1.9 trillion global media and information market. Merrill Lynch analyst Jessica Reif Cohen estimates digital media businesses including online advertising and user fees will contribute to 9% of media conglomerates' total earnings (and more than 12% for Time Warner because of its America Online subsidiary).
But, as with all things Internet, some bigger intellectual issues are at stake, which already include verifying fact and identities. What are the implications of creating a world in which consumers are privy only to the customized information, content and services they want, instead of what they need? It is the critical difference between flipping through a newspaper or scanning television newscasts and happening on stories that broaden and sensitize consumers to information they need for their own well-being. That well-rounded, spontaneous knowledge isn't likely from social networks, the reliance on which is sure to create an intellectual vacuum of sorts. That would be a heavy price to pay for a new era of niche-driven media, entertainment and general business, no matter what the financial rewards.
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Posting this article here from The Hollywood Reporter since it mentions GoingOn and you need an account to read it :) The article is a bit off in the description of our product since it's not "online aggregator of social networks."
Social network sites can be a tangled Web
The Hollywood Reporter
By Diane Mermigas
CHICAGO -- Media players are hustling to find ways to make money from the social-networking phenomenon at the same time they are struggling to understand how it is transforming their business.
Unlike anything else in an increasingly personalized interactive digital world, social networking is a communal form of consumer self-indulgence that some media companies fear could implode or explode before they can monetize it across all Internet-connected devices. For now, it appears to be the new killer app.
For instance, while wrestling with some of the unforeseen legal ramifications (predators victimizing users) of its recently acquired MySpace, Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. are planning to launch a related MySun Web site for its U.K.-based Sun newspaper that uses MySpace software to allow readers to create and share Web pages, blogs and video. News Corp. admittedly might not understand all the intricacies of social networking, but it has bought into the need to be there in a big-time way.
MyYearbook.com and Facebook are gunning to compete for top draw by allowing users to interface their interests, social lives and careers with those of their global peers in order to pursue deeper, more relevant socialization.
But the ultimate play on social networking is GoingOn, an online aggregator of social networks. It allows users to create or join multiple social networks and apply such outside Web services as Bright Cove, Skype or Instant Messaging, and blogs in an effort to bring some order and fusion to "... a world breaking up into millions of media brands ... that we thought was going to land up in the hands of Rupert Murdoch," says Tony Perkins, the CEO of online community portal AlwaysOn.
However, all social-networking players are wrestling with the same quandary: how to create viable business models, how to integrate new forms of adverting and transactions, and how to make a profit. It undoubtedly requires cool functionality, personalization, efficiency and acceptable ways to tap the flood of resulting consumer-user data, or what the Pew Institute refers to as "social capital."
Clearly, the idea of tapping into a community of similarly targeted consumers to sell content, goods and services across all interactive, Internet-supported devices is any media player's dream come true. It can provide the ultimate cross-promotion platform for a company, like News Corp., heavy with broadcast and cable networks, newspapers and television stations, films and television production and Web sites.
What traditional media players are having difficulty adjusting to is that social networking sites are not about them; they are about the targeted consumer and their preferences, personalities and self-generated content.
In these early stages of digital broadband evolution, social networking is a petri dish of new-media-shaped consumer behavior. It is a showcase for uninhibited show and tell, real-life comedy and drama, and pure public opinion. It is whatever the participating consumers want it to be, which makes it the antithesis of programming network-controlled television and other institutionalized media.
Social networking also provides a bastion of unfiltered individual tastes and standards. The music, fashion, cars, books and eating preferences of targeted users are the new "underground brands," according to PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Because social-networking Web sites represent extreme social, political and cultural relevance, they can be lucrative to media companies who understand how to mine their gold, according to Forrester Research.
"To thrive in an era of social computing, companies must abandon top-down management and communications tactics, weave communities into their products and services, use employees and partners as marketers, and become part of a living fabric of brand loyalists," a recent Forrester report states.
Despite their value as marketing and promotions havens, the anything-goes nature of social networking on Web sites and blogs holds uncertainties and potential liabilities for media companies, otherwise accustomed to regulatory accountability.
However, the most important element about "social computing," as Forrester calls it, is that it is a "fundamental realignment of the relationship between large media companies and the public" by empowering communities rather than institutions. And that translates into transforming change, not only in media but all of American business.
"Sharing resources via file exchanges like BitTorrent, VoIP networks like Skype and content networks like Kontiki allows nodes in the network -- individuals -- to sustain one another and rely less on institutional support," Forrester observes.
In the case of media and entertainment companies, that means global consumers increasingly generating their own information, entertainment and all-around content -- even if it is something as simple as preference lists, user reviews, tagged Web pages or "mashing" existing video and film clips with personal photos and text. That appears to appeal to the once easily satisfied masses. The scores of social computing Web sites reach well beyond MySpace and Friendster to Craigslist, eBay and Shopzilla, and the telephone company-powered Skype.com, and have attracted the financial backing of venture capitals, private equity and public companies.
MySpace, just two years old, grew to more than 37 million unique visitors in February from 9 million unique visitors a year earlier, topping social-networking sites tracked by comScore.
Younger consumers already have adopted digital interactive technology into every aspect of their life. Twelve- to 17-year-olds spend 17% more time online than adults for personal reasons, and 155% more time instant messaging, Forrester says. An estimated 4 million teens have blogs and 8 million teens read them. These are the same teenagers who have $180 billion in purchasing power, not counting the money their parents spend on them.
But social networking is not just for the young. Forrester says more than 6% of North American online consumers use social-networking sites weekly, up from 4% in 2004. With that in mind, NBC Universal recently agreed to acquire iVillage, a female-skewed Web site complete with social-networking extensions.
Multitasking, instant messaging, multiple e-mail addresses and socializing in thousand-member online networks are becoming the ageless, global norm. But they may or may not be good news for media companies and advertisers who are unwilling to modify their way of thinking and doing business. Forrester points to studies indicating that today's more socially connected buyers are less brand-loyal, less trusting and more independent. The only businesses that can succeed in this new social computing environment are the ones that can adapt to the new rules: Innovation is shifting from the top down to the bottom up, value is shifting from ownership to experience, and power is shifting from institutions to communities.
Forrester advises that media companies and marketers will need to become part of the online communities they play to, learn to discreetly use peer relations, avoid exploitation and corporate heavy-handedness, create custom applications, and incorporating existing collaboration tools and technology. Doing that is why Apple's iTunes claims 600 million downloads, 10 million accounts and $400 million in revenue in just two years.
That may assure players some slice of what Bernstein Research estimates is a $1.9 trillion global media and information market. Merrill Lynch analyst Jessica Reif Cohen estimates digital media businesses including online advertising and user fees will contribute to 9% of media conglomerates' total earnings (and more than 12% for Time Warner because of its America Online subsidiary).
But, as with all things Internet, some bigger intellectual issues are at stake, which already include verifying fact and identities. What are the implications of creating a world in which consumers are privy only to the customized information, content and services they want, instead of what they need? It is the critical difference between flipping through a newspaper or scanning television newscasts and happening on stories that broaden and sensitize consumers to information they need for their own well-being. That well-rounded, spontaneous knowledge isn't likely from social networks, the reliance on which is sure to create an intellectual vacuum of sorts. That would be a heavy price to pay for a new era of niche-driven media, entertainment and general business, no matter what the financial rewards.
CIA'S WAR ON PRESIDENT BUSH
PowerLine has a great post pointing us to Andy McCarthy's analysis:
We have been talking for several years about the covert war that elements of the federal bureaucracy, especially inside the CIA, have been waging against the Bush administration. Today, at NRO's The Corner, Andy McCarthy does an excellent job of placing recent revelations about CIA leaker Mary McCarthy's support for John Kerry and the Democratic Party in the context of that war: (full post)
Fox's John Gibson had a post last Friday, "The Secret War Against President Bush"
Also here's the article on the CIA officer getting fired for leaking classified information to the press.
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PowerLine has a great post pointing us to Andy McCarthy's analysis:
We have been talking for several years about the covert war that elements of the federal bureaucracy, especially inside the CIA, have been waging against the Bush administration. Today, at NRO's The Corner, Andy McCarthy does an excellent job of placing recent revelations about CIA leaker Mary McCarthy's support for John Kerry and the Democratic Party in the context of that war: (full post)
Fox's John Gibson had a post last Friday, "The Secret War Against President Bush"
Also here's the article on the CIA officer getting fired for leaking classified information to the press.
LIST OF WEB 2.0 COMPANIES SO FAR
HatTip to Christine. Baris Karadogan has most comprehensive list of Web 2.0 startups/companies I've seen so far. Check it out here.
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HatTip to Christine. Baris Karadogan has most comprehensive list of Web 2.0 startups/companies I've seen so far. Check it out here.
MAKING MONEY AT MYSPACE... PAGE INFLATION?
The NY Times has good article on MySpace:
"For MySpace, Making Friends Was Easy. Big Profit Is Tougher."
Business 2.0's Erick Schonfeld has a good post on page inflation at MySpace here.
Adrian, our UI guy, has a great post related to the NY Times article and gives indirect reasons why GoingOn Networks is going to kick ass :)
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The NY Times has good article on MySpace:
"For MySpace, Making Friends Was Easy. Big Profit Is Tougher."
Business 2.0's Erick Schonfeld has a good post on page inflation at MySpace here.
Adrian, our UI guy, has a great post related to the NY Times article and gives indirect reasons why GoingOn Networks is going to kick ass :)
HOT AIR LAUNCHED... MICHELLE MALKIN'S VIDEO CHANNEL
Michelle Malkin has launched her videoblogging site, Hot Air, which is basically an online news channel for conservatives (especially those with an asian fetish). She is a great writer and reporter, so check it out.
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Michelle Malkin has launched her videoblogging site, Hot Air, which is basically an online news channel for conservatives (especially those with an asian fetish). She is a great writer and reporter, so check it out.
Friday, April 21, 2006
CHEAPASS IS A WHOLE ANOTHER LEVEL THAN FRUGAL
It's Friday, so here's one of my random rants. Sometimes I just don't get people that are cheapasses. Frugal is one thing. You're cautious about money because things are tight or you want to save up for that new house, car, or whatever. Some of my close friends are pastors or don't have high paying jobs, so that's cool.
What I don't understand are people that are making over six figures with no strong commitments (e.g. mortgage, wedding, kids), but are the worst cheapasses on the planet. It's to the point of offending people and taking advantage of your friends. Here are some of the best stories I've come across over the years:
- One person I know (call him Carlos) was traveling a lot for work and had a roommate. These were typical bachelors who never went real food shopping. Carlos would buy drinks and snack food, go on his business trips and come back to find his food almost gone. He assumed his friend and new roommate would just restock. He took off again, came back and found the fridge and kitchen empty. So he went to the grocery, bought stuff and took off for the week and came back to find his stuff gone. He finally brought it up to his roommate and asked him to go buy groceries for both of them and to split the bill. This never happened and the disappearing food continued on for a few weeks. Finally Carlos was forced to put cases of softdrinks and chips in the back of his Range Rover.
- I heard of a friend's friend who was notorious for always leaving a fraction of his bills when he was in groups. The bill comes out to about $50 bucks each and he gives $25 without saying a word. Last year some friends told me that he ordered a bottle of hard liquor while they were out drinking in NYC. The bottle was at his side of the table so most of them didn't know about it. They expected the bill to be a couple hundred and saw a bottle that cost almost $400. The dude left $50 on the table and left early.
I'm cool with a few dollars short or sometimes even more. I'm always the one covering the shortfall on bills if necessary since my high school days, but I never like it when people take advantage of someone or these situations. I definitely would have had a open talk with this dude.
- My personal experience... My wife and I went to dinner with a large group of people, but had to leave early to attend a work function. Our portion including tip totalled $50 but I gave $60 since I didn't have a ten and told this guy I know it was extra just in case the bill came out to more. A week later I'm with my friend and this guy. I get the lunch bill and the guy says, "Hey, you owe me $30 from last week, so let's just call it even here."
"What? $30? How did it come out to $90?"
"Well, we ordered two bottles of wine."
"... Umm. We left after you guys ordered the wine."
"Well, it's $30, so let's call it even."
"You're serious?"
(silence)
Unbelievable. I didn't want to argue with the guy. A couple days later he jacks two of my friends on a dinner bill. It came out to $60 per head, so $120 for this guy and his girlfriend. He leaves $40 on the table and takes off early. Messed up.
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It's Friday, so here's one of my random rants. Sometimes I just don't get people that are cheapasses. Frugal is one thing. You're cautious about money because things are tight or you want to save up for that new house, car, or whatever. Some of my close friends are pastors or don't have high paying jobs, so that's cool.
What I don't understand are people that are making over six figures with no strong commitments (e.g. mortgage, wedding, kids), but are the worst cheapasses on the planet. It's to the point of offending people and taking advantage of your friends. Here are some of the best stories I've come across over the years:
- One person I know (call him Carlos) was traveling a lot for work and had a roommate. These were typical bachelors who never went real food shopping. Carlos would buy drinks and snack food, go on his business trips and come back to find his food almost gone. He assumed his friend and new roommate would just restock. He took off again, came back and found the fridge and kitchen empty. So he went to the grocery, bought stuff and took off for the week and came back to find his stuff gone. He finally brought it up to his roommate and asked him to go buy groceries for both of them and to split the bill. This never happened and the disappearing food continued on for a few weeks. Finally Carlos was forced to put cases of softdrinks and chips in the back of his Range Rover.
- I heard of a friend's friend who was notorious for always leaving a fraction of his bills when he was in groups. The bill comes out to about $50 bucks each and he gives $25 without saying a word. Last year some friends told me that he ordered a bottle of hard liquor while they were out drinking in NYC. The bottle was at his side of the table so most of them didn't know about it. They expected the bill to be a couple hundred and saw a bottle that cost almost $400. The dude left $50 on the table and left early.
I'm cool with a few dollars short or sometimes even more. I'm always the one covering the shortfall on bills if necessary since my high school days, but I never like it when people take advantage of someone or these situations. I definitely would have had a open talk with this dude.
- My personal experience... My wife and I went to dinner with a large group of people, but had to leave early to attend a work function. Our portion including tip totalled $50 but I gave $60 since I didn't have a ten and told this guy I know it was extra just in case the bill came out to more. A week later I'm with my friend and this guy. I get the lunch bill and the guy says, "Hey, you owe me $30 from last week, so let's just call it even here."
"What? $30? How did it come out to $90?"
"Well, we ordered two bottles of wine."
"... Umm. We left after you guys ordered the wine."
"Well, it's $30, so let's call it even."
"You're serious?"
(silence)
Unbelievable. I didn't want to argue with the guy. A couple days later he jacks two of my friends on a dinner bill. It came out to $60 per head, so $120 for this guy and his girlfriend. He leaves $40 on the table and takes off early. Messed up.
SHIM & SONS
One of my close high school friend's wife has a blog. If you're into arts & crafts, stationary, and design ideas, check it out here.
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One of my close high school friend's wife has a blog. If you're into arts & crafts, stationary, and design ideas, check it out here.
"OVERQUALIFIED IMMIGRANT"
Ilya Shapiro over at TCS Daily has a good article:
If the federal government ever gets its act together and passes a much-needed immigration reform, I'm giving up my legal career and taking up a profession that will actually allow me to become a U.S. citizen. Like gardening. Or construction. Or anything else that counts as "unskilled."
And maybe I'll also fly to Cancun for some sun-and-fun. And come back illegally. (I'm tan and speak fluent Spanish; think I could pass?) Or I'll have a Miami friend take me out on a boat -- so I can come back on a raft. (full article)
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Ilya Shapiro over at TCS Daily has a good article:
If the federal government ever gets its act together and passes a much-needed immigration reform, I'm giving up my legal career and taking up a profession that will actually allow me to become a U.S. citizen. Like gardening. Or construction. Or anything else that counts as "unskilled."
And maybe I'll also fly to Cancun for some sun-and-fun. And come back illegally. (I'm tan and speak fluent Spanish; think I could pass?) Or I'll have a Miami friend take me out on a boat -- so I can come back on a raft. (full article)
DRAMA OVER AT ACCEL AND BENCHMARK... PETER FENTON JOINS BENCHMARK
I don't know if it's a sinking ship over at Accel, but these things always aren't good signs. Matt Marshall with the skinny:
Peter Fenton, a partner at Accel Partners has defected and is joining another big-name Silicon Valley venture capital firm, Benchmark Capital.
We're hearing the matter is so sensitive the Benchmark folks aren't taking calls about it. Benchmark has put out a release (download here), which hits the wires tomorrow. We put in a call to Accel's leading partner, Jim Breyer, but he was in a meeting offsite, so we couldn't run it by him.
Fenton, 33, led and managed Accel's investments in more than ten companies, including the successful acquisitions of JBoss and Wily Technology. "He is a superstar," said Kevin Harvey, general partner at Benchmark Capital, in a statement. It is not yet clear what will happen with Fenton's board seats.
These sorts of defections of partners at top-tier firms are unusual, in part because they are usually intimately tied in deep relationships within their respective firms. Internecine struggles are frowned upon by the large institutional investors, who entrust their money to the venture capital firms; they cherish stability. (full post)
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I don't know if it's a sinking ship over at Accel, but these things always aren't good signs. Matt Marshall with the skinny:
Peter Fenton, a partner at Accel Partners has defected and is joining another big-name Silicon Valley venture capital firm, Benchmark Capital.
We're hearing the matter is so sensitive the Benchmark folks aren't taking calls about it. Benchmark has put out a release (download here), which hits the wires tomorrow. We put in a call to Accel's leading partner, Jim Breyer, but he was in a meeting offsite, so we couldn't run it by him.
Fenton, 33, led and managed Accel's investments in more than ten companies, including the successful acquisitions of JBoss and Wily Technology. "He is a superstar," said Kevin Harvey, general partner at Benchmark Capital, in a statement. It is not yet clear what will happen with Fenton's board seats.
These sorts of defections of partners at top-tier firms are unusual, in part because they are usually intimately tied in deep relationships within their respective firms. Internecine struggles are frowned upon by the large institutional investors, who entrust their money to the venture capital firms; they cherish stability. (full post)
Thursday, April 20, 2006
FORMER ILLINOIS GOVERNOR, GEORGE RYAN, GUILTY OF RACKETEERING
Messed up politics back in my home state. Former governor, George Ryan, was found "guilty of racketeering conspiracy, fraud, cheating on his taxes and lying to FBI agents."
I worked in Springfield, the capital of Illinois, my first two years after college. At the time, George Ryan was Secretary of State, but I never really interacted with his office which didn't have the best reputation even back then.
Anyway, it's a sad day for Republicans in Illinois, but great news on a corrupt politician getting nailed.
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Messed up politics back in my home state. Former governor, George Ryan, was found "guilty of racketeering conspiracy, fraud, cheating on his taxes and lying to FBI agents."
I worked in Springfield, the capital of Illinois, my first two years after college. At the time, George Ryan was Secretary of State, but I never really interacted with his office which didn't have the best reputation even back then.
Anyway, it's a sad day for Republicans in Illinois, but great news on a corrupt politician getting nailed.
TWO CHINESE STUDENTS SINGING "I WANT IT THAT WAY"
Not sure if you saw this, but these two kids are hilarious. Scary that the BackStreet Boys have this type of worldwide appeal. But I will admit only once right here that the song was a bit catchy when it first came out six years ago. My brother use to say that it was the one song guys didn't want to admit they liked, but secretly loved it, especially if they just starting dating someone. He also talked about how you might catch some guys singing it in their cars with their windows and doors sealed shut.
I think this video clip started a BackStreet Boy lovefest. At Google Video you can find a bunch of copycats and here's one at a Google corporate event where two people spoof the video.
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Not sure if you saw this, but these two kids are hilarious. Scary that the BackStreet Boys have this type of worldwide appeal. But I will admit only once right here that the song was a bit catchy when it first came out six years ago. My brother use to say that it was the one song guys didn't want to admit they liked, but secretly loved it, especially if they just starting dating someone. He also talked about how you might catch some guys singing it in their cars with their windows and doors sealed shut.
I think this video clip started a BackStreet Boy lovefest. At Google Video you can find a bunch of copycats and here's one at a Google corporate event where two people spoof the video.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
ANOTHER MYSPACE PLAY... AOL IS LAUNCHING ONE SOON
Michael Arrington has latest news on AOL's launch of a "MySpace Killer":
AOL may be preparing to launch a Myspace-type social network sometime in the next few weeks, says Dave Winer.
This went from rumor to “confirmed likely” in posts and comments by Jason Calacanis and Jordan Running (also here) (both now at AOL). A comment in the last link suggests that the new service will be open to non AOL members. (full post)
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Michael Arrington has latest news on AOL's launch of a "MySpace Killer":
AOL may be preparing to launch a Myspace-type social network sometime in the next few weeks, says Dave Winer.
This went from rumor to “confirmed likely” in posts and comments by Jason Calacanis and Jordan Running (also here) (both now at AOL). A comment in the last link suggests that the new service will be open to non AOL members. (full post)
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE LUNCHEON... IDEAS ARE THE STRENGTH OF THE RIGHT
Yesterday I attended a luncheon with Tony hosted by Floyd Kvamme, partner emeritus at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Co-Chair of President Bush's Council of Advisors in Science and Technology. The purpose was to present some of the leading scholars at the American Enterprise Institute, a leading conservative think tank, and to generate discussion around their area of expertise.
It was cool because Charles Murray, author of The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life, presented some of his ideas from a new book he had just written called In Our Hands ("reveals the ineffectiveness of government redistribution plans and offers a radical new approach to social policy"). Two other scholars were also present, Kevin Hassert, AEI's Director of Economic Policy Studies, and Reuel Marc Gerecht, their expert on Middle East affairs.
It was gathering of about 20 people with the President of AEI, Christopher DeMuth, and their three scholars as guests.
For me, Kevin Hassert's research on corporate tax policy and intellectual property issues for the U.S. were the most fascinating where I will definitely follow up on reading his papers and others on these topics. One point he made was how the U.S. was sacrificing hundreds of billions of dollars to keep a handful of industries, such as steel and textiles, afloat at the gain of a very unequal sum. I believe the figure he stated was over $600 billion is lost abroad on copied U.S. IP, such as movie DVDs and software. The problem is when the U.S. goes to China and asks them to deal with our piracy problems they respond with, "Well, why don't you open up your markets and eliminate those favors to the steel and textile industries?" With this the U.S. backs down probably because of misinformation and old school lobbying ties these industries have. Hassert said the loss of the steel and textile industries are a very small fraction of the revenues lost abroad from our copied IP.
Tony often states the Republican Party is a party of ideas and that generating new ideas are their strength. This AEI event was a reflection of that reality for me. The meeting yesterday just took be back a year to conversations I had with my friends who were active in the Democratic Party. They knew that they lacked the knowledge infrastructure especially when they compared the number of conservative think tanks to the number of liberal think tanks. One response was the founding of the Center for American Progress by John Podesta, President Clinton's former Chief of Staff, a couple years ago. My good friend, Debbie, worked their until recently. Other efforts were started or funded by people like George Soros to get started. It will be interesting to see how the Left in America builds out their intellectual network and thought leadership practices over the next several years.
Anyway, the luncheon was great and listening to the scholars' ideas and research made me miss the political arena a bit. The environment of researching and discussing various policy solutions and trying to come up with the most effective yet practical ideas is an enjoyable exercise for me.
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Yesterday I attended a luncheon with Tony hosted by Floyd Kvamme, partner emeritus at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Co-Chair of President Bush's Council of Advisors in Science and Technology. The purpose was to present some of the leading scholars at the American Enterprise Institute, a leading conservative think tank, and to generate discussion around their area of expertise.
It was cool because Charles Murray, author of The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life, presented some of his ideas from a new book he had just written called In Our Hands ("reveals the ineffectiveness of government redistribution plans and offers a radical new approach to social policy"). Two other scholars were also present, Kevin Hassert, AEI's Director of Economic Policy Studies, and Reuel Marc Gerecht, their expert on Middle East affairs.
It was gathering of about 20 people with the President of AEI, Christopher DeMuth, and their three scholars as guests.
For me, Kevin Hassert's research on corporate tax policy and intellectual property issues for the U.S. were the most fascinating where I will definitely follow up on reading his papers and others on these topics. One point he made was how the U.S. was sacrificing hundreds of billions of dollars to keep a handful of industries, such as steel and textiles, afloat at the gain of a very unequal sum. I believe the figure he stated was over $600 billion is lost abroad on copied U.S. IP, such as movie DVDs and software. The problem is when the U.S. goes to China and asks them to deal with our piracy problems they respond with, "Well, why don't you open up your markets and eliminate those favors to the steel and textile industries?" With this the U.S. backs down probably because of misinformation and old school lobbying ties these industries have. Hassert said the loss of the steel and textile industries are a very small fraction of the revenues lost abroad from our copied IP.
Tony often states the Republican Party is a party of ideas and that generating new ideas are their strength. This AEI event was a reflection of that reality for me. The meeting yesterday just took be back a year to conversations I had with my friends who were active in the Democratic Party. They knew that they lacked the knowledge infrastructure especially when they compared the number of conservative think tanks to the number of liberal think tanks. One response was the founding of the Center for American Progress by John Podesta, President Clinton's former Chief of Staff, a couple years ago. My good friend, Debbie, worked their until recently. Other efforts were started or funded by people like George Soros to get started. It will be interesting to see how the Left in America builds out their intellectual network and thought leadership practices over the next several years.
Anyway, the luncheon was great and listening to the scholars' ideas and research made me miss the political arena a bit. The environment of researching and discussing various policy solutions and trying to come up with the most effective yet practical ideas is an enjoyable exercise for me.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
"THE GENERALS ARE REVOLTING"
Good article and critique of the six retired generals calling for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation over at The American Thinker by Herbert E. Meyer, who served during the Reagan Administration as Special Assistant to the Director of Central Intelligence.
Six retired generals have now called for the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on the grounds that… well, just what has the Secretary done, or not done, that justifies his removal from the Pentagon in the middle of a war?
Read through all the generals’ statements, or listen to them on television, and it’s impossible to get straight precisely what it is these generals are squawking about. One minute they’re talking about our strategy in Iraq, and then they’re blathering on about the Secretary’s plans for re-structuring our military forces or about Donald Rumsfeld’s hard-driving, aggressive management style. (full post)
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Good article and critique of the six retired generals calling for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation over at The American Thinker by Herbert E. Meyer, who served during the Reagan Administration as Special Assistant to the Director of Central Intelligence.
Six retired generals have now called for the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on the grounds that… well, just what has the Secretary done, or not done, that justifies his removal from the Pentagon in the middle of a war?
Read through all the generals’ statements, or listen to them on television, and it’s impossible to get straight precisely what it is these generals are squawking about. One minute they’re talking about our strategy in Iraq, and then they’re blathering on about the Secretary’s plans for re-structuring our military forces or about Donald Rumsfeld’s hard-driving, aggressive management style. (full post)
"MYSPACE FOR THE OFFICE"... WELL, THEN WE'RE THE MYSPACE FOR COMPANIES
I'm a bit tired of the MySpace comparisons for the web 2.0 space, but I'm guilty of this a couple times so I can't really rip on this title. Anyway, Visible Path was called the "MySpace for the Office" in this BusinessWeek article, so they sort of took our thunder... well, not really.
Some of our team members call GoingOn the "MySpace for businesses" out of laziness at times, but we probably are closer to MySpace than Visible Path, which is a pure social networking play while we're an ugly mashup of various features like MySpace. We definitely don't compete with Visible Path because their focus is different. They are a contact management and lead generating platform while GoingOn Networks is focused on publishing and community building. Anyway, it will be interesting to see if Visible Path stays on its current course or if it takes the $17 million from its recent round and changes course... maybe towards us? :)
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I'm a bit tired of the MySpace comparisons for the web 2.0 space, but I'm guilty of this a couple times so I can't really rip on this title. Anyway, Visible Path was called the "MySpace for the Office" in this BusinessWeek article, so they sort of took our thunder... well, not really.
Some of our team members call GoingOn the "MySpace for businesses" out of laziness at times, but we probably are closer to MySpace than Visible Path, which is a pure social networking play while we're an ugly mashup of various features like MySpace. We definitely don't compete with Visible Path because their focus is different. They are a contact management and lead generating platform while GoingOn Networks is focused on publishing and community building. Anyway, it will be interesting to see if Visible Path stays on its current course or if it takes the $17 million from its recent round and changes course... maybe towards us? :)
KEVIN WARSH... BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD??
HatTip to Lenny. The appointment of Kevin Warsh to the Board of Governors of The Federal Reserve Board was a quiet event a couple months ago. After researching some more about it, this is embarrassing for me as a Republican. While there are various acts of political favors and questionable actions in the world of politics, I still hope for the most part principle and reason are the primary guides in such appointments. When you consider Kevin Warsh, obviously the money-changers ruled the temple.
Here is an investment banker that went to law school, hit VP at Morgan Stanley, and was on the policy side for about 4 years. How many people do you know with such a resume? I know a good handful. In my tiny world, I know people with similar backgrounds and I don't call all of them "studs" (gender neutral:). So how many outstanding people can the U.S. produce minus my tiny circle of friends? An incredible amount. But of course, not all of them are son-in-law of Ronald Lauder... of Estee Lauder. Also not all have such father-in-laws that donated thousands upon thousands to the Republican party.
CNBC's Lawrence Kudlow even tries to defend this appointment. Please. This is a pure political favor. So disappointing.
One of the worst parts about this situation is when you visit the Federal Reserve's website and read Kevin Warsh's bio and compare it to the others. As my younger brother points out, they tried to puff up his resume to cover for his obvious professional deficiencies with this last line in his bio:
"He also completed course work in market economics and debt capital markets at Harvard Business School and MIT's Sloan School of Management."
Comical and lame. Very lame.
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HatTip to Lenny. The appointment of Kevin Warsh to the Board of Governors of The Federal Reserve Board was a quiet event a couple months ago. After researching some more about it, this is embarrassing for me as a Republican. While there are various acts of political favors and questionable actions in the world of politics, I still hope for the most part principle and reason are the primary guides in such appointments. When you consider Kevin Warsh, obviously the money-changers ruled the temple.
Here is an investment banker that went to law school, hit VP at Morgan Stanley, and was on the policy side for about 4 years. How many people do you know with such a resume? I know a good handful. In my tiny world, I know people with similar backgrounds and I don't call all of them "studs" (gender neutral:). So how many outstanding people can the U.S. produce minus my tiny circle of friends? An incredible amount. But of course, not all of them are son-in-law of Ronald Lauder... of Estee Lauder. Also not all have such father-in-laws that donated thousands upon thousands to the Republican party.
CNBC's Lawrence Kudlow even tries to defend this appointment. Please. This is a pure political favor. So disappointing.
One of the worst parts about this situation is when you visit the Federal Reserve's website and read Kevin Warsh's bio and compare it to the others. As my younger brother points out, they tried to puff up his resume to cover for his obvious professional deficiencies with this last line in his bio:
"He also completed course work in market economics and debt capital markets at Harvard Business School and MIT's Sloan School of Management."
Comical and lame. Very lame.
HP MARKETING GURU... SATJIV CHAHIL
Satjiv Chahil got a nice plug in The Wall Street Journal a few days ago, so I have to plug him since he's been a great supporter of our startup, GoingOn Networks. When we launch, our platform will be running on HP servers that we got in exchange to promote the hell out of HP :) Anyway, the article is a good read.
At H-P, Tech Veteran Has New Challenge: Jazzing Up PC Image
Even in Silicon Valley, where cutting-edge advertising is the norm and marketing geniuses legion, Satjiv Chahil and his résumé stand out.
A native of Punjab, India, 55-year-old Mr. Chahil has worked for more than 30 years in the tech industry, doing stints at the likes of International Business Machines Corp., Sony Corp., Palm Inc. and Apple Computer Inc.
With a penchant for staging big events involving celebrities, he brokered a 1996 partnership between Apple and the movie "Mission: Impossible," released by Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures. The movie featured Apple products. At Palm, he teamed up with supermodel Claudia Schiffer to create a Claudia Schiffer edition of the Palm to sell to women. "He has a very rich address book, and he maintains it," says Eric Benhamou, chairman of Palm.
Now the colorful, jet-setting Mr. Chahil, who is often seen matching the color of his turban to the cummerbund of his tuxedo, is immersed in another challenge: turning around Hewlett-Packard Co.'s personal-computer group.
Hired by H-P in September as world-wide marketing chief for the group, his job is to inject some life into the Palo Alto, Calif., company's dull PC brands. Toward that end, he is now getting ready to launch the first prong of his plan. (full article)
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Satjiv Chahil got a nice plug in The Wall Street Journal a few days ago, so I have to plug him since he's been a great supporter of our startup, GoingOn Networks. When we launch, our platform will be running on HP servers that we got in exchange to promote the hell out of HP :) Anyway, the article is a good read.
At H-P, Tech Veteran Has New Challenge: Jazzing Up PC Image
Even in Silicon Valley, where cutting-edge advertising is the norm and marketing geniuses legion, Satjiv Chahil and his résumé stand out.
A native of Punjab, India, 55-year-old Mr. Chahil has worked for more than 30 years in the tech industry, doing stints at the likes of International Business Machines Corp., Sony Corp., Palm Inc. and Apple Computer Inc.
With a penchant for staging big events involving celebrities, he brokered a 1996 partnership between Apple and the movie "Mission: Impossible," released by Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures. The movie featured Apple products. At Palm, he teamed up with supermodel Claudia Schiffer to create a Claudia Schiffer edition of the Palm to sell to women. "He has a very rich address book, and he maintains it," says Eric Benhamou, chairman of Palm.
Now the colorful, jet-setting Mr. Chahil, who is often seen matching the color of his turban to the cummerbund of his tuxedo, is immersed in another challenge: turning around Hewlett-Packard Co.'s personal-computer group.
Hired by H-P in September as world-wide marketing chief for the group, his job is to inject some life into the Palo Alto, Calif., company's dull PC brands. Toward that end, he is now getting ready to launch the first prong of his plan. (full article)
Monday, April 17, 2006
"AMERICA'S 10 BEST SENATORS"
Good article from Time even if they did put down Ted Kennedy on this list:
-Thad Cochran
-Kent Conrad
-Dick Durbin
-Ted Kennedy
-Jon Kyl
-Carl Levin
-Richard Lugar
-John McCain
-Olympia J. Snowe
-Arlen Specter
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Good article from Time even if they did put down Ted Kennedy on this list:
-Thad Cochran
-Kent Conrad
-Dick Durbin
-Ted Kennedy
-Jon Kyl
-Carl Levin
-Richard Lugar
-John McCain
-Olympia J. Snowe
-Arlen Specter
MICROSOFT GETS NAVER.COM
Just playing with BusinessWeek's recent header on Microsoft's moves into social search since Naver.com is the global leader in this space:
Microsoft Gets Social
Redmond has big plans for tools and partnerships that will let users consult a circle of friends when conducting Web searches
Software giant Microsoft is taking its MSN Search division on a comeback tour. The next stop: Social search, a way of making Web search more relevant by incorporating the preferences of like-minded Net surfers.
Microsoft (MSFT) plans to unveil a question-and-answer social-search tool in the coming months, says Justin Osmer, senior product manager for MSN. The feature will let users direct questions to a specific universe, such as a group of friends, rather than to get automated lists of results from a generic search engine. (full article)
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Just playing with BusinessWeek's recent header on Microsoft's moves into social search since Naver.com is the global leader in this space:
Microsoft Gets Social
Redmond has big plans for tools and partnerships that will let users consult a circle of friends when conducting Web searches
Software giant Microsoft is taking its MSN Search division on a comeback tour. The next stop: Social search, a way of making Web search more relevant by incorporating the preferences of like-minded Net surfers.
Microsoft (MSFT) plans to unveil a question-and-answer social-search tool in the coming months, says Justin Osmer, senior product manager for MSN. The feature will let users direct questions to a specific universe, such as a group of friends, rather than to get automated lists of results from a generic search engine. (full article)
HEART-CLOGGING LASAGNA RECIPE
It says "random posts" on this blog description, so here is a random recipe post. I recently made my lasagna for a group of 20 and it went over well, so some people asked me for the recipe. I never wrote it down, so I finally did it and now I'll share it you guys. I'm from Chicago, so this is not for the health-conscious crowd. Also I'm a "feel" person when it comes to cooking, so the measurements might be slightly off, but please feel free to adjust:
lasagna noodles (1 box is more than enough. 9 pieces is what you need)
1 1/2 lbs. of Ricotta cheese (comes on 1 lb. containers, so 2 of these)
4 cups of Mozzarella cheese
2 1/2 cups of Parmesan cheese
1 lb. of ground beef
2 lbs. of Italian sausage (six links. spicy is best)
2 jars of spaghetti sauce (your favorite or something with some flavoring, such as tomato basil)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons of oregano
2 teaspoons of basil
1 egg
salt & pepper
You need a large, deep casserole tray to make this. First, prep the meat. Take the ground beef and brown it with some salt, pepper, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 teaspoon of oregano, and 1 teaspoon of basil. Of course, you can adjust the spices according to your liking. Cook until brown and drain the juices. Put aside on the stove or in a bowl.
Take the Italian sausages and cut length-wise down the middle. As you cook this, start to break the meat apart, so it looks like the ground beef. You might need to cut it up by taking it out and putting it back in the frying pan.
In a large bowl, take the Ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the Mozzarella cheese, 1 teaspoon of oregano, 1 teaspoon of basil, and 1 egg. Mix well.
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
Pour a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the tray and then put a layer of three lasagna noodles on top closely together. Take the cheese mix and spread it evenly on top of these noodles. Take the ground beef and spread the whole amount evenly on top of the cheese. Scatter some Italian sausage on top of the ground beef. Top with a cup of Mozzarella cheese. Pour a light layer of spaghetti sauce over everything.
Take another layer of lasagna noodles and place on top of the first layer. Spread the cheese mix, evenly place the Italian sausage, top with a cup of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Pour a light layer of spaghetti sauce over everything.
Final layer of lasagna noodles and place on top of the first layer. Spread the cheese mix, evenly place the Italian sausage, top with a cup of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Pour the rest of the spaghetti sauce. Top with some Parmesan cheese.
Take foil and cover the tray twice. Put in the over at 425 degrees for about 40 minutes. The noodles are not pre-cooked like other recipes, so you have to check if the noodles are completely cooked and tender. If not, just cook this some more. If you're pressed for time, replace the foil with saran wrap and put it in the microwave for 5-10 minutes until cooked. Enjoy!
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It says "random posts" on this blog description, so here is a random recipe post. I recently made my lasagna for a group of 20 and it went over well, so some people asked me for the recipe. I never wrote it down, so I finally did it and now I'll share it you guys. I'm from Chicago, so this is not for the health-conscious crowd. Also I'm a "feel" person when it comes to cooking, so the measurements might be slightly off, but please feel free to adjust:
lasagna noodles (1 box is more than enough. 9 pieces is what you need)
1 1/2 lbs. of Ricotta cheese (comes on 1 lb. containers, so 2 of these)
4 cups of Mozzarella cheese
2 1/2 cups of Parmesan cheese
1 lb. of ground beef
2 lbs. of Italian sausage (six links. spicy is best)
2 jars of spaghetti sauce (your favorite or something with some flavoring, such as tomato basil)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons of oregano
2 teaspoons of basil
1 egg
salt & pepper
You need a large, deep casserole tray to make this. First, prep the meat. Take the ground beef and brown it with some salt, pepper, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 teaspoon of oregano, and 1 teaspoon of basil. Of course, you can adjust the spices according to your liking. Cook until brown and drain the juices. Put aside on the stove or in a bowl.
Take the Italian sausages and cut length-wise down the middle. As you cook this, start to break the meat apart, so it looks like the ground beef. You might need to cut it up by taking it out and putting it back in the frying pan.
In a large bowl, take the Ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the Mozzarella cheese, 1 teaspoon of oregano, 1 teaspoon of basil, and 1 egg. Mix well.
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
Pour a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the tray and then put a layer of three lasagna noodles on top closely together. Take the cheese mix and spread it evenly on top of these noodles. Take the ground beef and spread the whole amount evenly on top of the cheese. Scatter some Italian sausage on top of the ground beef. Top with a cup of Mozzarella cheese. Pour a light layer of spaghetti sauce over everything.
Take another layer of lasagna noodles and place on top of the first layer. Spread the cheese mix, evenly place the Italian sausage, top with a cup of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Pour a light layer of spaghetti sauce over everything.
Final layer of lasagna noodles and place on top of the first layer. Spread the cheese mix, evenly place the Italian sausage, top with a cup of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Pour the rest of the spaghetti sauce. Top with some Parmesan cheese.
Take foil and cover the tray twice. Put in the over at 425 degrees for about 40 minutes. The noodles are not pre-cooked like other recipes, so you have to check if the noodles are completely cooked and tender. If not, just cook this some more. If you're pressed for time, replace the foil with saran wrap and put it in the microwave for 5-10 minutes until cooked. Enjoy!
Friday, April 14, 2006
MATT MULLENWEG AND AUTOMATTIC GETS FUNDING... SILICONBEAT TAKES A SHOT
I don't think it's a big deal that Matt Mullenweg changed his mind about getting VC money, but I was amused by SiliconBeat's take on it:
Matt Mullenweg, founder of Automattic, the company that manages the popular WordPress blog software, announced yesterday on his blog that he has taken some funding.
This comes just a few months after his December launch, when he announced he wasn't seeking funding for the San Francisco company. Funny how that works. We believed him, and think he was being genuine at the time, because we've followed him for some time now, and he talks rarely about money, always about vision. And nothing drives VCs wilder than a confident 22-year-old who says he doesn't need any cash. So then they go dangle it in front of him, and he realizes that maybe its easier to take a little dough than spend his time "robbing Peter to pay Paul" each month, as he puts it.
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I don't think it's a big deal that Matt Mullenweg changed his mind about getting VC money, but I was amused by SiliconBeat's take on it:
Matt Mullenweg, founder of Automattic, the company that manages the popular WordPress blog software, announced yesterday on his blog that he has taken some funding.
This comes just a few months after his December launch, when he announced he wasn't seeking funding for the San Francisco company. Funny how that works. We believed him, and think he was being genuine at the time, because we've followed him for some time now, and he talks rarely about money, always about vision. And nothing drives VCs wilder than a confident 22-year-old who says he doesn't need any cash. So then they go dangle it in front of him, and he realizes that maybe its easier to take a little dough than spend his time "robbing Peter to pay Paul" each month, as he puts it.
"A PASSOVER DISTURBED"
From Ravi Zacharias (probably the brightest Christian apologist ever and one of the most incredible thinkers period) International Ministries' Jill Carattini. Sorry for you non-religious folks, but I have to post something up since it's Good Friday:
Simon of Cyrene had every reason to be shocked. He was on his way in from the country, likely headed to Jerusalem for the Passover, when he was seized from the crowd and forced to join a procession heading toward Golgotha, the place of the Skull. They put a crossbeam on him, one to be used in the execution of a criminal, and made him carry it. The offense of this object and unchosen assignment would have been blatant to Simon and everyone around him. He had been recruited to play a role in a crucifixion, an extremely dishonorable form of judicial execution in the Roman Empire. Among Jews, anyone condemned to hang on a tree was thought accursed. Staggering in front of Simon, beaten and bloodied, was the man to whom this cross belonged.
In many ways, it was a day of shocking darkness. For Simon, thrust in the middle of angry men and wailing women, the day held a burden he did not deserve, a shame he did not seek to bear. He was on his way to celebrate the release of the Jews from the bondage of slavery--the central act of God in Israel's history--and he found himself carrying the cross of a man named Jesus.
The crowd pressed in behind them as they walked forward. Simon heard Jesus turn to the women who mourned and wailed for him and offer a curious response: "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. For the time will come when you will say, 'Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed! They will say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!"' For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?" (Luke 23:28-31). Simon probably would have recognized these lines as words of the prophet Hosea, the prophet God used to show Israel his heart, to demonstrate a love that would not quit despite an adulterous bride.
When they made it to Golgotha, Simon's task was finished. The beam was taken from him and the man he followed to the place of the Skull--Jesus of Nazareth--was stripped of his garment and nailed to the cross. Nothing further is mentioned about Simon the Cyrene in any of the gospel accounts of the crucifixion. Still much is left to wonder. Did he stay after the burden had been lifted from his shoulders? Did he hear Jesus cry out, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" or watch him extend the invitation of paradise to the broken criminal on the cross beside him? What went through Simon's mind as he walked behind the weak and beaten Jesus, the events of Passover interrupted by the events of the cross? Did he look on as they mocked the King of the Jews who remained silent through the insults? Was he filled with thoughts of the Passover he was missing, the life he needed to resume, as they challenged Jesus to come down from the cross? Or perhaps Simon was as disturbed by the end of the journey as he was of its beginning.
Matthew reports the conclusion of the first Good Friday and the cross that would become a stumbling block for all history: "When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split... When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely this man was the Son of God!" (27:50-54).
It is impossible to tell what became of Simon after he carried the burden of the Christ sentenced to die. Ironically, the memorial he had celebrated his entire life—the redemption of Israel from the yoke of slavery, the blood of the unblemished lamb, the Passover hope for the liberating Messiah—was emerging before him, the slaughter of the paschal lamb. Still one thing is clear; Simon of Cyrene was on his way somewhere else and the Cross was a shocking interruption. And so it remains.
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From Ravi Zacharias (probably the brightest Christian apologist ever and one of the most incredible thinkers period) International Ministries' Jill Carattini. Sorry for you non-religious folks, but I have to post something up since it's Good Friday:
Simon of Cyrene had every reason to be shocked. He was on his way in from the country, likely headed to Jerusalem for the Passover, when he was seized from the crowd and forced to join a procession heading toward Golgotha, the place of the Skull. They put a crossbeam on him, one to be used in the execution of a criminal, and made him carry it. The offense of this object and unchosen assignment would have been blatant to Simon and everyone around him. He had been recruited to play a role in a crucifixion, an extremely dishonorable form of judicial execution in the Roman Empire. Among Jews, anyone condemned to hang on a tree was thought accursed. Staggering in front of Simon, beaten and bloodied, was the man to whom this cross belonged.
In many ways, it was a day of shocking darkness. For Simon, thrust in the middle of angry men and wailing women, the day held a burden he did not deserve, a shame he did not seek to bear. He was on his way to celebrate the release of the Jews from the bondage of slavery--the central act of God in Israel's history--and he found himself carrying the cross of a man named Jesus.
The crowd pressed in behind them as they walked forward. Simon heard Jesus turn to the women who mourned and wailed for him and offer a curious response: "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. For the time will come when you will say, 'Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed! They will say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!"' For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?" (Luke 23:28-31). Simon probably would have recognized these lines as words of the prophet Hosea, the prophet God used to show Israel his heart, to demonstrate a love that would not quit despite an adulterous bride.
When they made it to Golgotha, Simon's task was finished. The beam was taken from him and the man he followed to the place of the Skull--Jesus of Nazareth--was stripped of his garment and nailed to the cross. Nothing further is mentioned about Simon the Cyrene in any of the gospel accounts of the crucifixion. Still much is left to wonder. Did he stay after the burden had been lifted from his shoulders? Did he hear Jesus cry out, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" or watch him extend the invitation of paradise to the broken criminal on the cross beside him? What went through Simon's mind as he walked behind the weak and beaten Jesus, the events of Passover interrupted by the events of the cross? Did he look on as they mocked the King of the Jews who remained silent through the insults? Was he filled with thoughts of the Passover he was missing, the life he needed to resume, as they challenged Jesus to come down from the cross? Or perhaps Simon was as disturbed by the end of the journey as he was of its beginning.
Matthew reports the conclusion of the first Good Friday and the cross that would become a stumbling block for all history: "When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split... When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely this man was the Son of God!" (27:50-54).
It is impossible to tell what became of Simon after he carried the burden of the Christ sentenced to die. Ironically, the memorial he had celebrated his entire life—the redemption of Israel from the yoke of slavery, the blood of the unblemished lamb, the Passover hope for the liberating Messiah—was emerging before him, the slaughter of the paschal lamb. Still one thing is clear; Simon of Cyrene was on his way somewhere else and the Cross was a shocking interruption. And so it remains.
DYING BLOGOSPHERE GALLUP POLL SAYS?
I did a quick search after I wrote the post below and came across this:
A new Gallup poll says the average American is not wild about blogs. Blog readership hasn't increased over the past year or so, even though Americans are spending more time online, writes Al Tompkins at PoynterOnline, citing Gallup's annual Lifestyle survey (sub req.), conducted Dec. 5-8, 2005. Some 9 percent of internet users say they frequently read blogs, another 11 percent read them occasionally, 13 percent say they rarely read them, and 66 percent say they never read them.
First, I have to wonder how they defined "blogs" because over the past year MySpace's traffic numbers have doubled and is now ranked #8 on Alexa's Global 500, which probably accounts for much of this increased online activity. MySpace pages are blogs.
If this wasn't the case, then maybe it's simply more people that were never online or using dial-up discovered all the wonders of the online world. I assume many of these people and other users will eventually access the blogosphere and discover this shangri-la :) But I'm still putting my money on Gallup's flawed data gathering method.
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I did a quick search after I wrote the post below and came across this:
A new Gallup poll says the average American is not wild about blogs. Blog readership hasn't increased over the past year or so, even though Americans are spending more time online, writes Al Tompkins at PoynterOnline, citing Gallup's annual Lifestyle survey (sub req.), conducted Dec. 5-8, 2005. Some 9 percent of internet users say they frequently read blogs, another 11 percent read them occasionally, 13 percent say they rarely read them, and 66 percent say they never read them.
First, I have to wonder how they defined "blogs" because over the past year MySpace's traffic numbers have doubled and is now ranked #8 on Alexa's Global 500, which probably accounts for much of this increased online activity. MySpace pages are blogs.
If this wasn't the case, then maybe it's simply more people that were never online or using dial-up discovered all the wonders of the online world. I assume many of these people and other users will eventually access the blogosphere and discover this shangri-la :) But I'm still putting my money on Gallup's flawed data gathering method.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
BLOGS WILL DIE? PLEASE... GET WITH THE REVOLUTION OR AT LEAST SEE THE EVOLUTION
So I went to the SF Web Innovators meeting tonight. I couldn't stay that long, but met some interesting people.
One interesting conversation was with a person after asking what I did stated, "Well, I have a regular meeting with about 20 technologists and other people in the industry and all of us besides one agree that blogs will die in 5 years... so you better think about changing your business model in five years..."
Of course I heard this before, and I didn't bother asking what their reasons were. I just made some assumptions... the person is 50+ years old and so are most of the people in that regular meeting. Most of them read their Sunday weekly over coffee, don't IM, and believe most of this web 2.0 stuff is a fad. I also assumed that they really weren't knee deep in all of this "stuff" during the first wave and probably went around saying websites were a fad and companies shouldn't bother with them back in 1998.
Tamagotchi was a fad, and the Atari 2600 was a revolution that helped to create the video game console industry which spawned the PlayStation and XBox and fueled the growth of Electronic Arts.
Blogger, Six Apart, and LiveJournal were all part of the wave that made blogging more popular. These were descendants from early self-publishing tools such as Geocities, Koz, which I tested for the Tribune Co. back in 1998, and Xanga, which was started in 1996 and still going strong. So "blogging" has been around for over 10 years, it's changed the way many people read the news and get information, and it will be integrated into many of the websites of today.
How can someone still call this a fad? It amazes me how some people cannot recognize a simple pattern of change that is occurring across the globe. It's not just about blogging, but about how people are changing the way that they communicate and live their lives daily. It's about building relationships in virtual worlds and forums, keeping in touch with friends, and how much we've changed the way we do business now because of technology.
I gave a talk recently using some information Tony, my co-founder at GoingOn, used for his "IM Generation" article in his upcoming AlwaysOn blogozine. I spoke about how those born after 1980 are part of a whole new world. 30% of them have created new friends online. 30%! How many 30-somethings can say this? Probably a single digit percentage. How many 40-somethings? I'm guessing zero. And those in that person's technology meetings? I'm certain it's zero. While speaking, I reflected on how during my last year in college, back in 1993, I was one of the rare few that was actively using email. Before this the only method of communication with friends were my dorm phone and pen and paper. No emails, no IM, and no cellphones. Imagine what kids from today would do living back in 1990? They would go bonkers.
Anyway, the world in changing in front of us and it's an incredibly exciting time. While I don't often get emotional about this, just thinking about everything that is going on makes your mind go in million different directions. Sometimes what we see today are dreams from the 90s, but the technology and infrastructure simply wasn't there. Now the elements are in place for us to experience many of these old dreams and new ones. Too bad some people will have their eyes closed during this ride of changes within our social fabric and culture.
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So I went to the SF Web Innovators meeting tonight. I couldn't stay that long, but met some interesting people.
One interesting conversation was with a person after asking what I did stated, "Well, I have a regular meeting with about 20 technologists and other people in the industry and all of us besides one agree that blogs will die in 5 years... so you better think about changing your business model in five years..."
Of course I heard this before, and I didn't bother asking what their reasons were. I just made some assumptions... the person is 50+ years old and so are most of the people in that regular meeting. Most of them read their Sunday weekly over coffee, don't IM, and believe most of this web 2.0 stuff is a fad. I also assumed that they really weren't knee deep in all of this "stuff" during the first wave and probably went around saying websites were a fad and companies shouldn't bother with them back in 1998.
Tamagotchi was a fad, and the Atari 2600 was a revolution that helped to create the video game console industry which spawned the PlayStation and XBox and fueled the growth of Electronic Arts.
Blogger, Six Apart, and LiveJournal were all part of the wave that made blogging more popular. These were descendants from early self-publishing tools such as Geocities, Koz, which I tested for the Tribune Co. back in 1998, and Xanga, which was started in 1996 and still going strong. So "blogging" has been around for over 10 years, it's changed the way many people read the news and get information, and it will be integrated into many of the websites of today.
How can someone still call this a fad? It amazes me how some people cannot recognize a simple pattern of change that is occurring across the globe. It's not just about blogging, but about how people are changing the way that they communicate and live their lives daily. It's about building relationships in virtual worlds and forums, keeping in touch with friends, and how much we've changed the way we do business now because of technology.
I gave a talk recently using some information Tony, my co-founder at GoingOn, used for his "IM Generation" article in his upcoming AlwaysOn blogozine. I spoke about how those born after 1980 are part of a whole new world. 30% of them have created new friends online. 30%! How many 30-somethings can say this? Probably a single digit percentage. How many 40-somethings? I'm guessing zero. And those in that person's technology meetings? I'm certain it's zero. While speaking, I reflected on how during my last year in college, back in 1993, I was one of the rare few that was actively using email. Before this the only method of communication with friends were my dorm phone and pen and paper. No emails, no IM, and no cellphones. Imagine what kids from today would do living back in 1990? They would go bonkers.
Anyway, the world in changing in front of us and it's an incredibly exciting time. While I don't often get emotional about this, just thinking about everything that is going on makes your mind go in million different directions. Sometimes what we see today are dreams from the 90s, but the technology and infrastructure simply wasn't there. Now the elements are in place for us to experience many of these old dreams and new ones. Too bad some people will have their eyes closed during this ride of changes within our social fabric and culture.
MESSY IMMIGRATION ISSUE... BUSH IS PRO-OPEN-BORDERS AND PRO-AMNESTY, WHAT IS YOUR REP'S POSITION?
So I've been still recovering from my illness with lingering congestion. I've gone through about 3 boxes of Kleenex that piles into mole hills on my desk every half hour. The stuff that's coming out of my body is messy and the by-product of a necessary process. (lame transition warning)
I guess my mole hills are similar to the debate and discussion on immigration which has divided both parties along numerous issues. It's a messy debate, lots of crap being spoken, and the process is tiring. What will the outcome be? Here are some recent clips on this issue from the right and left:
"Party lines and borderlines" from Glenn Reynolds.
"Burkle Raises Larger Issues!" comments and links from Mickey Kaus.
"The immigration brouhaha" from Cathy Young, columnist for The Boston Globe.
"Homeland Insecurity"
Dae Hwan and Young Mi Jung lived contentedly in Toledo, Ohio, for 20 years. But after a mix-up with Homeland Security, the couple made the difficult decision to voluntarily deport to Korea. They left their only son, Andrew, behind.
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So I've been still recovering from my illness with lingering congestion. I've gone through about 3 boxes of Kleenex that piles into mole hills on my desk every half hour. The stuff that's coming out of my body is messy and the by-product of a necessary process. (lame transition warning)
I guess my mole hills are similar to the debate and discussion on immigration which has divided both parties along numerous issues. It's a messy debate, lots of crap being spoken, and the process is tiring. What will the outcome be? Here are some recent clips on this issue from the right and left:
"Party lines and borderlines" from Glenn Reynolds.
"Burkle Raises Larger Issues!" comments and links from Mickey Kaus.
"The immigration brouhaha" from Cathy Young, columnist for The Boston Globe.
"Homeland Insecurity"
Dae Hwan and Young Mi Jung lived contentedly in Toledo, Ohio, for 20 years. But after a mix-up with Homeland Security, the couple made the difficult decision to voluntarily deport to Korea. They left their only son, Andrew, behind.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
DV GURU'S REVIEW OF TEN VIDEO SHARING SERVICES
Good post by Ryan Bilsborrow-Koo that reviews Vimeo, eyespot, jumpcut, ourmedia, vSocial, Google Video, grouper, Revver, VideoEgg, and YouTube.
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Good post by Ryan Bilsborrow-Koo that reviews Vimeo, eyespot, jumpcut, ourmedia, vSocial, Google Video, grouper, Revver, VideoEgg, and YouTube.
RANDOM TECH NEWS OF INTEREST
Just some of the news that peaked me interest today:
"Google Base begins to roll out the verticals"
Richard MacManus points out how it's more obvious now that Google is going after eBay. I almost heard the DeathStar music in the background, but that's still reserved for Microsoft.
"eBay buys stake in social networking firm"
eBay invested $2 million in social networking company Meetup.com, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Tuesday.
"Yahoo pressured over China cooperation"
Yahoo's long-running defense of its Chinese operations, which have been criticized for close cooperation with the country's police agencies, took an unusual twist this week in a confrontation at the company's headquarters.
"Umair, Jarvis, Disney, and Me"
Fred Wilson provides a summary of thoughts on Disney's recent move to provide some of their TV shows for free on the Internet. Especially from Jeff Jarvis and Umair Haque.
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Just some of the news that peaked me interest today:
"Google Base begins to roll out the verticals"
Richard MacManus points out how it's more obvious now that Google is going after eBay. I almost heard the DeathStar music in the background, but that's still reserved for Microsoft.
"eBay buys stake in social networking firm"
eBay invested $2 million in social networking company Meetup.com, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Tuesday.
"Yahoo pressured over China cooperation"
Yahoo's long-running defense of its Chinese operations, which have been criticized for close cooperation with the country's police agencies, took an unusual twist this week in a confrontation at the company's headquarters.
"Umair, Jarvis, Disney, and Me"
Fred Wilson provides a summary of thoughts on Disney's recent move to provide some of their TV shows for free on the Internet. Especially from Jeff Jarvis and Umair Haque.
CITIZEN JOURNALISM ONWARD!
Here are a couple good articles on citizen journalism:
Traditional Media Adopts CitJ
Some news organizations are overcoming fears and opening up to citizen journalism.
CitJ's National Networks: Will They Bloom?
Entrepreneurs and media companies eye the opportunities.
Several players in the U.S. are currently working on building national networks of citJ Web sites, utilizing economies of scale to create a network of sites that can share infrastructure, advertising sales, editing functions and other efficiencies.
So far, it looks to be a race between entrepreneurs, eyeing citizen media as an eventual profit center, and traditional media companies, recognizing that citJ will eventually be an important component of their businesses.
A start-up company working on the citJ national-network model that's gotten a lot of press in the last year is Virginia-based Backfence. Late last year, the company secured $3 million in funding from venture capitalists, and it's currently ramping up to spread its brand of citJ "hyper-local news" Web sites across the U.S. At this writing, Backfence has only four sites operational, serving communities in the Washington, D.C., area: McLean, Arlington and Reston in Virginia and Bethesda, Md. (full article)
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Here are a couple good articles on citizen journalism:
Traditional Media Adopts CitJ
Some news organizations are overcoming fears and opening up to citizen journalism.
CitJ's National Networks: Will They Bloom?
Entrepreneurs and media companies eye the opportunities.
Several players in the U.S. are currently working on building national networks of citJ Web sites, utilizing economies of scale to create a network of sites that can share infrastructure, advertising sales, editing functions and other efficiencies.
So far, it looks to be a race between entrepreneurs, eyeing citizen media as an eventual profit center, and traditional media companies, recognizing that citJ will eventually be an important component of their businesses.
A start-up company working on the citJ national-network model that's gotten a lot of press in the last year is Virginia-based Backfence. Late last year, the company secured $3 million in funding from venture capitalists, and it's currently ramping up to spread its brand of citJ "hyper-local news" Web sites across the U.S. At this writing, Backfence has only four sites operational, serving communities in the Washington, D.C., area: McLean, Arlington and Reston in Virginia and Bethesda, Md. (full article)
SOCIAL MEDIA SPENDING HITTING $757 IN 2010?... AND MONKEYS FLY OUT OF MY BUTT
HatTip to Steve Rubel. Gotta love these figures:
Combined spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising grew 198.4% to $20.4 million in 2005 and is expected to grow another 144.9% to $49.8 million this year. The study also says that podcast advertising is expected to become a larger market than blog ads by 2010. Some additional stats from PQ Media ...
* Blog advertising accounted for a whopping 81.4%, or $16.6 million, of total 2005 spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising (which they call user-generated online media - a phrase some don't like). This segment will comprise 39.7%, or $300.4 million, of the overall marketing spend on social media in 2010... (full post)
It's amusing how research analysts come up with these projections. Of course entrepreneurs, like me, love studies like this especially when they are fundraising. I'm sure every Web 2.0 company that comes across this and is fundraising will put some of these projections into their pitch documents, especially where advertising is their primary source of revenue. Thanks PQ Media! :)
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HatTip to Steve Rubel. Gotta love these figures:
Combined spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising grew 198.4% to $20.4 million in 2005 and is expected to grow another 144.9% to $49.8 million this year. The study also says that podcast advertising is expected to become a larger market than blog ads by 2010. Some additional stats from PQ Media ...
* Blog advertising accounted for a whopping 81.4%, or $16.6 million, of total 2005 spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising (which they call user-generated online media - a phrase some don't like). This segment will comprise 39.7%, or $300.4 million, of the overall marketing spend on social media in 2010... (full post)
It's amusing how research analysts come up with these projections. Of course entrepreneurs, like me, love studies like this especially when they are fundraising. I'm sure every Web 2.0 company that comes across this and is fundraising will put some of these projections into their pitch documents, especially where advertising is their primary source of revenue. Thanks PQ Media! :)
Monday, April 10, 2006
WISCONSIN, NCAA HOCKEY CHAMPIONS!
The Badgers are NCAA champions again! The last time was during my freshman year in college back in 1990.
I remember my college buddy and roommate, Chad, asked me to go, but I couldn't because of an exam or something. He went and also took some poster board I had and made a sign stating that Wisconsin were the 1990 NCAA champions. After our team won that year, they took the sign from Chad and used it for their team photo. Chad thought this was pretty cool and so did I when he told me after he got back... the simple things in life are exciting when you're a college freshman :)
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The Badgers are NCAA champions again! The last time was during my freshman year in college back in 1990.
I remember my college buddy and roommate, Chad, asked me to go, but I couldn't because of an exam or something. He went and also took some poster board I had and made a sign stating that Wisconsin were the 1990 NCAA champions. After our team won that year, they took the sign from Chad and used it for their team photo. Chad thought this was pretty cool and so did I when he told me after he got back... the simple things in life are exciting when you're a college freshman :)
BACK FROM BEIJING
We got in yesterday from Beijing and we were very happy to be home. Overall, the trip to Shanghai and Beijing was great. The food, seeing friends and family, and working from our hotel room while sick for five days :)
Shanghai was a vibrant city where you can feel the energy. Definitely would like to visit again. Beijing was good to visit, but traffic is worse than Shanghai and the air really sucks. The air is so dirty you can't see across the city on clear days.
Anyway, I'll write more later about my time in China.
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We got in yesterday from Beijing and we were very happy to be home. Overall, the trip to Shanghai and Beijing was great. The food, seeing friends and family, and working from our hotel room while sick for five days :)
Shanghai was a vibrant city where you can feel the energy. Definitely would like to visit again. Beijing was good to visit, but traffic is worse than Shanghai and the air really sucks. The air is so dirty you can't see across the city on clear days.
Anyway, I'll write more later about my time in China.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
GM'S USER-GENERATED ADS
HatTip to Adrian (dude, what's up with the new blog description? Jurgen Habermas and Niklas Luhmann?), our UI guy, for this NY Times article and his comments:
So what's an ad exec to make of it? Of course they knew that if they let consumers create their own ads for their Chevy Tahoe they'd get more than a few slaps in the face. But this is not just a case of opening up the phone lines for callers out there in radio land; this is not just one of those NPR moments.... this can't be, just, one of those... (PTA, laughing yet?) Let's back up so that we catch a glimpse of the forest, while they're still there, greening as they do. When GM puts an SUV in a forest most of us are smart enough to separte the image from the message. And most of us immediately re-write the message. A commercial's message is one "truth;" the viewer's truth may be different. Truth is not carried in the message. (full post)
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HatTip to Adrian (dude, what's up with the new blog description? Jurgen Habermas and Niklas Luhmann?), our UI guy, for this NY Times article and his comments:
So what's an ad exec to make of it? Of course they knew that if they let consumers create their own ads for their Chevy Tahoe they'd get more than a few slaps in the face. But this is not just a case of opening up the phone lines for callers out there in radio land; this is not just one of those NPR moments.... this can't be, just, one of those... (PTA, laughing yet?) Let's back up so that we catch a glimpse of the forest, while they're still there, greening as they do. When GM puts an SUV in a forest most of us are smart enough to separte the image from the message. And most of us immediately re-write the message. A commercial's message is one "truth;" the viewer's truth may be different. Truth is not carried in the message. (full post)
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
PLAYING CATCH UP IN CHINA
Have a backlog of posts I just read, so I'll share some with you. Not ordering these in any manner:
"Open source: The newest competitive tool"
"Wal-Mart Enlists Blogger in P.R. Campaign"
"Associated Press Admits Error In Katrina Video Story"
"The future web 2.0 social experience"
"Venture Capital Swarms China"
"Insiders on the Hill"
"Good Night And Good Blog"
George Clooney claims that Arianna Huffington used quotes he provided her to make it appear that he was one of the celebrity posters on the Huff-Blog...
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Have a backlog of posts I just read, so I'll share some with you. Not ordering these in any manner:
"Open source: The newest competitive tool"
"Wal-Mart Enlists Blogger in P.R. Campaign"
"Associated Press Admits Error In Katrina Video Story"
"The future web 2.0 social experience"
"Venture Capital Swarms China"
"Insiders on the Hill"
"Good Night And Good Blog"
George Clooney claims that Arianna Huffington used quotes he provided her to make it appear that he was one of the celebrity posters on the Huff-Blog...
"PATH FOR SEOUL'S SUNSHINE POLICY"
My friend, John, has a good op-ed in The Korea Times. Check it out if you're interested in North Korea issues:
The Kaesong Industrial Complex is the current embodiment of Seoul's sunshine policy towards the North. While Kaesong, strategically located north of the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, is symbolically important, the massive scale that is envisaged in the coming years is unlikely to be realized in North Korea. Pyongyang’s concerns about political contamination will, in practice, limit the growth of inter-Korean economic development projects. Seoul’s vision of closer integration between the two Koreas, however, can be realized in northeastern China.
While the North Korean nuclear crisis drags on with placebo-like six-party talks meetings that are once again in limbo, a promising way for Seoul to implement integration with the North has emerged during a different set of gatherings in Beijing. While the focus of the recent Chinese National People's Congress’ (NPC) 11th Five-Year Development Program was the reduction of the growing gap on the mainland between those benefiting immensely from China’s economic growth and those increasingly left behind, an unintended potential beneficiary is South Korea and its sunshine policy. (full article)
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My friend, John, has a good op-ed in The Korea Times. Check it out if you're interested in North Korea issues:
The Kaesong Industrial Complex is the current embodiment of Seoul's sunshine policy towards the North. While Kaesong, strategically located north of the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, is symbolically important, the massive scale that is envisaged in the coming years is unlikely to be realized in North Korea. Pyongyang’s concerns about political contamination will, in practice, limit the growth of inter-Korean economic development projects. Seoul’s vision of closer integration between the two Koreas, however, can be realized in northeastern China.
While the North Korean nuclear crisis drags on with placebo-like six-party talks meetings that are once again in limbo, a promising way for Seoul to implement integration with the North has emerged during a different set of gatherings in Beijing. While the focus of the recent Chinese National People's Congress’ (NPC) 11th Five-Year Development Program was the reduction of the growing gap on the mainland between those benefiting immensely from China’s economic growth and those increasingly left behind, an unintended potential beneficiary is South Korea and its sunshine policy. (full article)
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
CNET GOING AFTER FACEBOOK
Not because of this news, but Facebook is in that limbo stage right now of whether to sell for the optimal price, finding that price and not letting your cruise ship pass you by (e.g. Friendster), or whether they can become a strong, sustainable company.
CNET Networks' Webshots property is taking a shot across the bow of Facebook with its new CollegeLive property, available only to college students, which launches today.
The site, restricted to users with an .edu address, will set up individual communities for each of 4,100 colleges and universities in the U.S., U.K. and Canada. Students can post photos of their exploits as they do on the general Webshots site. CollegeLive also offers social planning tools, a la Evite. The site aims to handle the whole event life cycle, helping students plan events, send out invitations and then post photos afterwards.
"We superserve lots of communities," said Charlie Barrett, VP of sales and marketing at Webshots. "We identified one of the most vital, robust communities that we've seen actively grow over the past year or so."
Competitors in the space include the established Facebook. But Webshots feels its content-screening policy will give it the edge when it comes to attracting advertisers. The company will monitor content posted by users and block items that wouldn't be acceptable to advertisers, company officials said. (full article)
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Not because of this news, but Facebook is in that limbo stage right now of whether to sell for the optimal price, finding that price and not letting your cruise ship pass you by (e.g. Friendster), or whether they can become a strong, sustainable company.
CNET Networks' Webshots property is taking a shot across the bow of Facebook with its new CollegeLive property, available only to college students, which launches today.
The site, restricted to users with an .edu address, will set up individual communities for each of 4,100 colleges and universities in the U.S., U.K. and Canada. Students can post photos of their exploits as they do on the general Webshots site. CollegeLive also offers social planning tools, a la Evite. The site aims to handle the whole event life cycle, helping students plan events, send out invitations and then post photos afterwards.
"We superserve lots of communities," said Charlie Barrett, VP of sales and marketing at Webshots. "We identified one of the most vital, robust communities that we've seen actively grow over the past year or so."
Competitors in the space include the established Facebook. But Webshots feels its content-screening policy will give it the edge when it comes to attracting advertisers. The company will monitor content posted by users and block items that wouldn't be acceptable to advertisers, company officials said. (full article)
"ECONOMISTS OF SCALE"
Another money article over at TCS Daily:
Just how right wing are economists? A serious question, not a joke. If you look around at some of the favorite liberal or left wing ideas, or policy proposals, you see that most economists start sucking their teeth, muttering under their breath and generally, well, at best, not supporting the ideas. Even those who share the goals of a more egalitarian society, even economists known to be left wing politically, tend not to support some policies on their economic arguments. Why is this? Why is it that economists, to liberal viewers at least, all seem to be right wing?
Simply to state that the Right is right, while tempting, isn't really enough. Nor is to turn around a favorite trope of the left about the liberal bias of most of the academy: those people bright enough to be professors, well, of course they're going to be left wing, all the clever people are! Our reading of this would be that only right-wing types are so especially intellectually gifted so as to actually understand economics. Again, tempting, but not really a strong enough idea to take all that seriously. (full article)
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Another money article over at TCS Daily:
Just how right wing are economists? A serious question, not a joke. If you look around at some of the favorite liberal or left wing ideas, or policy proposals, you see that most economists start sucking their teeth, muttering under their breath and generally, well, at best, not supporting the ideas. Even those who share the goals of a more egalitarian society, even economists known to be left wing politically, tend not to support some policies on their economic arguments. Why is this? Why is it that economists, to liberal viewers at least, all seem to be right wing?
Simply to state that the Right is right, while tempting, isn't really enough. Nor is to turn around a favorite trope of the left about the liberal bias of most of the academy: those people bright enough to be professors, well, of course they're going to be left wing, all the clever people are! Our reading of this would be that only right-wing types are so especially intellectually gifted so as to actually understand economics. Again, tempting, but not really a strong enough idea to take all that seriously. (full article)
Monday, April 03, 2006
SOUTH KOREA GOING FOR LONE STAR AGAIN
HatTip to my bro. The witch hunt continues...
South Korean prosecutors have raided the office of US investment fund Lone Star, which is involved in the country's largest ever financial deal, as part of a probe into allegations of business irregularities.
Some 60 investigators searched the offices and homes of Lone Star officials with warrants to arrest the fund's former executive, Steven Lee, and others, prosecutor Chae Dong-Wook said.
Lee, a 36-year-old Korean American, is now believed to be in the United States. After a seven-hour search, the investigators left with boxes of documents and computers.
'The search was to acquire evidence on criminal activities involving Lone Star,' Chae said, according to Agence France-Presse.
The prosecutor refused to say how many arrest warrants were issued but said he would ask the United States to hand over Lee, who is accused of evading tax and embezzling company money.
About 10 people, including Lone Star Korean officials, were banned from leaving the country pending questioning, he added. (full article)
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HatTip to my bro. The witch hunt continues...
South Korean prosecutors have raided the office of US investment fund Lone Star, which is involved in the country's largest ever financial deal, as part of a probe into allegations of business irregularities.
Some 60 investigators searched the offices and homes of Lone Star officials with warrants to arrest the fund's former executive, Steven Lee, and others, prosecutor Chae Dong-Wook said.
Lee, a 36-year-old Korean American, is now believed to be in the United States. After a seven-hour search, the investigators left with boxes of documents and computers.
'The search was to acquire evidence on criminal activities involving Lone Star,' Chae said, according to Agence France-Presse.
The prosecutor refused to say how many arrest warrants were issued but said he would ask the United States to hand over Lee, who is accused of evading tax and embezzling company money.
About 10 people, including Lone Star Korean officials, were banned from leaving the country pending questioning, he added. (full article)
"NEW BREED OF ACTIVIST IS CHANGING CHINA"
Pretty cool and interesting article I read this weekend on how individuals are working to change China. Love it... love the power of the individual to initiate change for the better.
New breed of activist is changing China
By Yiyi Lu
International Herald Tribune
FRIDAY, MARCH 31, 2006
LONDON On March 15, the China Consumer Journal named Hao Jinsong one of 10 "consumer rights-defending heroes" of 2005. Last year Hao successfully sued China's state railroad authorities for failing to provide him with proper receipts on trains, ending a long-held privilege under which the railroad ministry had avoided paying tax.
Hao represents a new breed of activists in China who believe their individual actions can bring about institutional change and who have ingenious strategies for exploring the existing space for citizen participation. In pushing for change, they carefully avoid the confrontational stance adopted by political dissidents. Instead, they pick their fights skillfully.
Since March 1 this year, rail travelers have been able to obtain formal receipts printed by the State Administration of Taxation when they purchase goods from onboard shops or buy meals in dining cars. This ends a long-standing practice whereby the Ministry of Railroads had been able to avoid strict taxation of its income, since Chinese tax bureaus depend on formal receipts to assess the profits of companies.
How much money will the ministry lose as a result of Hao's victory? Ministry statistics showed that the railroads carried more than 4.5 billion passengers from 2000 to May 2004. If each passenger spent 1 yuan (about 12 U.S. cents) during the journey, then the railroads made more than 4.5 billion yuan of taxable sales. This means a minimum of 225 million yuan of tax from 2000 to May 2004. Even though the railroads may have paid a lump- sum tax to the government coffers by special arrangements, tax officials admit that the railroads have traditionally been undertaxed. (full article)
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Pretty cool and interesting article I read this weekend on how individuals are working to change China. Love it... love the power of the individual to initiate change for the better.
New breed of activist is changing China
By Yiyi Lu
International Herald Tribune
FRIDAY, MARCH 31, 2006
LONDON On March 15, the China Consumer Journal named Hao Jinsong one of 10 "consumer rights-defending heroes" of 2005. Last year Hao successfully sued China's state railroad authorities for failing to provide him with proper receipts on trains, ending a long-held privilege under which the railroad ministry had avoided paying tax.
Hao represents a new breed of activists in China who believe their individual actions can bring about institutional change and who have ingenious strategies for exploring the existing space for citizen participation. In pushing for change, they carefully avoid the confrontational stance adopted by political dissidents. Instead, they pick their fights skillfully.
Since March 1 this year, rail travelers have been able to obtain formal receipts printed by the State Administration of Taxation when they purchase goods from onboard shops or buy meals in dining cars. This ends a long-standing practice whereby the Ministry of Railroads had been able to avoid strict taxation of its income, since Chinese tax bureaus depend on formal receipts to assess the profits of companies.
How much money will the ministry lose as a result of Hao's victory? Ministry statistics showed that the railroads carried more than 4.5 billion passengers from 2000 to May 2004. If each passenger spent 1 yuan (about 12 U.S. cents) during the journey, then the railroads made more than 4.5 billion yuan of taxable sales. This means a minimum of 225 million yuan of tax from 2000 to May 2004. Even though the railroads may have paid a lump- sum tax to the government coffers by special arrangements, tax officials admit that the railroads have traditionally been undertaxed. (full article)
SHANGHAI, AN AMAZING ENVIRONMENT FOR GROWTH... ONLINE GAMING
So I'm sitting here feeling a bit under the weather and sick from the taxi driver blasting the air conditioning for about 30 minutes while refusing to understand our requests in English last night. I was already in pain from getting a minor illness on the flight to Shanghai, so last night sealed it for me. Christine was amazed I got sick from these factors since it usually takes a strong virus to put me down... ebola, rabies, rubella, etc.
Anyway, during our time in Shanghai we met with my friend who heads Nexon's China operations and he showed me how they launched their popular Kart Rider two weeks ago, which I posted about before.
Within this time period, they hit over 200,000 concurrent users with 300,000 new users added each day. Right now they are at 6 million total registered users. Amazing. If you make or take the right hit game to the Chinese market, this is an example of the incredible growth you can experience in this underdeveloped online market.
Nexon is a private company, so I know my friends in banking in Asia are falling over themselves to get this deal and hopefully take it on to NASDAQ. Possible pitches:
"Do you want me to cut off my arm? Both arms? Sure!..."
"Trip to Bali? How about a worldwide tour that includes Pebble Beach, Dubai, Santorini, and two others of your choosing..."
"Don't go with Goldman Sachs, does their brand really carry any weight on the market anymore? And forget those damn Americans!..."
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So I'm sitting here feeling a bit under the weather and sick from the taxi driver blasting the air conditioning for about 30 minutes while refusing to understand our requests in English last night. I was already in pain from getting a minor illness on the flight to Shanghai, so last night sealed it for me. Christine was amazed I got sick from these factors since it usually takes a strong virus to put me down... ebola, rabies, rubella, etc.
Anyway, during our time in Shanghai we met with my friend who heads Nexon's China operations and he showed me how they launched their popular Kart Rider two weeks ago, which I posted about before.
Within this time period, they hit over 200,000 concurrent users with 300,000 new users added each day. Right now they are at 6 million total registered users. Amazing. If you make or take the right hit game to the Chinese market, this is an example of the incredible growth you can experience in this underdeveloped online market.
Nexon is a private company, so I know my friends in banking in Asia are falling over themselves to get this deal and hopefully take it on to NASDAQ. Possible pitches:
"Do you want me to cut off my arm? Both arms? Sure!..."
"Trip to Bali? How about a worldwide tour that includes Pebble Beach, Dubai, Santorini, and two others of your choosing..."
"Don't go with Goldman Sachs, does their brand really carry any weight on the market anymore? And forget those damn Americans!..."
Saturday, April 01, 2006
THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!... THREE YEARS OF BLOGGING
Three years ago I started blogging, so it's time to give props again to my friend, Doug, who introduced me to the world of blogs while I was living in Korea. Thanks, Doug!
It's also weird that I can't access my blog, or other blogspot.com URLs, from Shanghai. I'm sort of blogging blindly since I typically double-check my posts within a few hours and at most a couple days by seeing it up on my blog.
Anyway, thanks for reading and visiting here. Have a great weekend!
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Three years ago I started blogging, so it's time to give props again to my friend, Doug, who introduced me to the world of blogs while I was living in Korea. Thanks, Doug!
It's also weird that I can't access my blog, or other blogspot.com URLs, from Shanghai. I'm sort of blogging blindly since I typically double-check my posts within a few hours and at most a couple days by seeing it up on my blog.
Anyway, thanks for reading and visiting here. Have a great weekend!
Business & Technology, Politics, and Random Posts from the Left, Right, and Elsewhere
Place of Birth: Seoul, Korea
Hometown: Northbrook, IL USA
Lived in: Seoul, Chicago (Villa Park & Northbrook), Madison, WI, Springfield, IL, St. Louis, New York City, Chicago (Glenview), Seoul, San Francisco
Also blogs at: AlwaysOn, Coro Blog, SportsBlog
More on Bernard or Blogger profile or GoingOn profile or Linkedin profile
Max Yow
Homeland: Canada
Sports: combative sports, sports you play with a ball, sports with no swimming, sports you can play while drinking and smoking (pool, darts, bowling, video games).
More on Max
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If you have questions, topic ideas, or whatever, just email bernard at bernard.moon@gmail.com. Thank you!
site feed
forget the long tail!
(03/21/2006)
2084
(11/02/2005)
building the perfect team
(08/17/2005)
open it up, new york times, chicago tribune, san francisco chronicle!
(06/07/2005)
staring down the digital divide
(06/08/2005)
2005 world series of poker... tech style
(03/30/2005)
rss: real simple syndication or really saturated space?
(02/10/2005)
blogosphere: lost in translation?
(02/10/2005)
diamonds in the rough at redmond
(02/10/2005)
it's a wiki wiki world
(02/03/2005)
where technology is ubiquitous, opportunity abounds
(1/12/2005)
start of "reality media" column
(12/23/2004)
Tech
bill joy's apocalyptic vision, determinism, and commonality with stephen hawking
(07/22/2005)
google economy => blogosphere
(01/25/2005)
power of the long tail
(12/14/2004)
protectionist china... will chinese or u.s. companies lose out?
(3/15/2004)
skype... p2p telephony & a very cool company
(2/13/2004)
poor george glider is right
(2/9/2004)
it's not the deficit stupid!... tech is the primary driver for growth
(12/02/2003)
immature venture capital industry in asia (9/29/2003)
boom time memories... masayoshi son was the man
(7/1/2003)
Politics
south korea's recent idiotic policies against foreign direct investment
(09/09/2005)
my first op-ed
(11/30/2004)
100,000 protest against Bush for... what?
(11/23/2003)
Society
generalizations of east asians
(5/16/2004)
sports is the great equalizer and unifer
(4/20/2004)
defining wisdom... age is the lesser factor
(10/18/2003)
living together before marriage
(8/25/2003)
friendships, relationships, people in life... (7/7/2003)
sugar mommas
(6/13/2003)
need for laws and enforcement
(4/10/2003)
old shaq issue
(4/2/2003)
Religion
creationism & christmas
(12/23/2004)
the passion of the christ... misunderstood
(2/20/2004)
christian's view of homosexuality
(1/13/2004)
is man determined or free?
(8/18/2003)
destructive christianity
(5/3/2003)
Others
"Blah Blah Bernard Blah Blah" Changing to "Junto Boyz"... A New Direction
(4/20/2004)
art of asking questions
(9/18/2003)
ode to bacon
(8/13/2003)
big guys... eating stories iv
(7/27/2003)
big guys... eating stories i
(4/2/2003)
cnn
cnet
businessweek
economist
forbes
fortune
fast company
pe week wire
the deal
ecommerce times
ne asia online
pacific epoch
eweek
release 1.0
technology review
techweb
zdnet news
the american spectator
drudge report
foreign policy
frontpage
harvard political review
mother jones
national review
the new republic
the weekly standard
il conservative politics
the atlantic
the hill
roll call
george f. will
asianweek
financeasia
korea herald
the onion
cox & forkum cartoons
garage technology ventures
growthink research
entrepreneur.com
entrepreneur america
venture economics
venture reporter
vfinance.com
yahoo! small business
nationmaster
thomas, legislative info
american enterprise institute
brookings institute
carnegie endowment
cato institute
center for american progress
center for strategic & int'l studies
heritage foundation
hudson institute
national center for policy analysis
progress & freedom foundation
progressive policy institute
rand corporation
reason public policy institute
urban institute
columbia institute for tele-info
international justice mission
charles barkley's outrageous career
liquid generation
wikipedia
"You cannot go on explaining away things over forever or you will find that you have explained even explanation itself away. You cannot go on seeing through things forever because the whole point of seeing through something is to see something else through it." - C.S Lewis
December 11, 2005
"This telephone has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us." - Western Union internal memo, 1876
December 4, 2005
"You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individual. To that end each of us must work for his own improvement, and at the same time share a general responsibility for all humanity, our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful." - Marie Curie
November 27, 2005
"One cannot step into the same river twice." - Heratidus
November 20, 2005
"The death of democracy is not likely to be an assassination from ambush. It will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference and undernourishment." - Robert Maynard Hutchins
November 13, 2005
"We are moving away from the old idea of leadership -- leadership has less to do (now) with heroism. We don’t look for... unblemished omnipotent heroes, but leaders who are complex, dependent, changeable... We do not need one dominant authority structure telling all our inner voices to shut up..." - Walter Truett Anderson
November 6, 2005
"To know oneself is to know one’s [country]. It is also... paradoxically a form of exile from that world... to know oneself is, above all, to know what one lacks. It is to measure oneself against Truth, and not the other way around. The first product of self-knowledge is humility, and that virtue is not conspicuous in any national character." - Flannery O’Connor
October 30, 2005
"Men content themselves with the same words as other people use, as if the very sound necessarily carried the same meaning." - John Locke
October 23, 2005
"In order to thrive in a world of change and chaos, we will need to accept 'chaos' as an essential process by which natural systems, including organizations, renew and revitalize themselves." - Margaret Wheatley
October 16, 2004
"Politics is perhaps the only profession for which no preparation is thought necessary." - Robert Louis Stevenson
October 9, 2004
"We will be better and braver if we engage and inquire than if we indulge in the idle fancy that we already know - or that it is of no use seeking to know what we do not know." - Plato
October 2, 2004
"Man's mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions." - Oliver W. Holmes
September 25, 2004
"What you learn intellectually lies in the shallow pools among the wrinkles of your brain. What you learn through the skin of experience sinks deep into your roots." - Hank Taft
September 18, 2004
"In commanding us to glorify him, God is inviting us to enjoy him." - C.S. Lewis
September 11, 2004
"A society is judged by how it treats its least desirable people." - Anonymous
September 4, 2004
"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no "brief candle" to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to the future generations." - George Bernard Shaw
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