Who still believes in the Revolution?

I got laid off from my job in September. It was a pretty dull gig, so it didn’t break my heart when they let me go. No big thing, I’ll just get another job; Dallas, aside from having a sea of restaurants that no normal person could eat in their lifetime is known for the birth of Neiman Marcus and the death of JFK but is also known as the hub of the world of boring jobs and boring companies. Believe me, I know; just look at my resume.

I don’t want to go to work for a boring job in a boring cubicle (that everybody tries to make cheery by hanging Christmas lights from it) any longer. I want to work somewhere interesting, doing something interesting, working with some interesting folks. I’m almost 45, I wore the security badge around my neck, I dressed in chinos four days a week and attended meetings about nothing; and I feel like I’ve earned a shot at something interesting. I want to join the revolution again (as long as it is in the DFW area).

I have scoured the Internets looking for something to peak my interest and meet my criteria: not boring, interesting work, interesting people. I want it to look great, like whoa.

I probably have no skills you need, I fit no job description, and even reading this is a complete waste of your time. But I make a great cup of coffee, which I could share with you. At the very least, I want to see what the inside of your company looks like.

So one day, if you’re bored or the planets should align and you have a job that fits my skills, shoot me message.

Thanks for reading my rambling letter; if you are so inclined you may forward it to the Parkland Psych ward in Dallas.

I hope someday to see you in person.

Peace,

A list of why we shouldn’t have lists anymore

I read a good quote on Seth’s blog today: The web loves lists almost as much as it loves video. It’s true, just browse Digg, look at the most popular sites on Delicious and they are all about lists. Bloggers love lists too and this guy is the King.

I say enough already.  Here are a few reasons why:

1. Lists are ideas with no action.  I would rather have the complete idea laid out for me on how something is done rather than just someone’s idea about something
2. Too much information to save or even consider.  If someone has 50 things in their list are you going to remember every one?
3. They are to easily disposable.  Today’s news is tomorrow’s fish wrapper and that is especially true about lists of the “best” or “worst” or “coolest”.
4. It’s been done.  If I see one more list on business uses for Twitter or how to really explode your blog’s traffic, I’m gonna be wiping spew off my keyboard.

I got a kooky idea; Let’s start posting complete concepts that everybody can build on rather than one off ideas.  It would fun, more social, and ultimately, more useful.

Who’s in?

What’s Google got against Apple anyway?

So I see that Google has a new browser coming out and suprise! no version for the Mac.

What’s the deal with that?  Everything they come out with; toolbar, earth, desktop just to name a few, either didn’t have a a version for the Mac or still doesn’t have a version.  You would think that Google would want to seize the audience of Mac users out there by making sure they are part of the cutting edge, which they all consider themselves to be.  More Apple users use Firefox that Safari, which shows that Mac users ultimately want quality rather than just something with the Apple brand.

The new Google browser is supposed to be slick, but I wouldn’t know; I have one of these.

Age Limit for the Web

My 15 year old son has his own Myspace page.  It would be fair to say that he lives and dies by thing, checking it regularly.  In a conversation with a neighbor I made mention of this and he was horrified: “You let him on Myspace?  There are Child Molesters and Scam Artists preying on children there!” I let him know that my son had to give me his password to his account, use my email to approve his friend requests and that I looked it over regularly to make sure that nothing bad was going on.  Still, he was unconvinced.  His kids, he announced, would be part of the web while they were living in his house.

I still think it is OK for my son to be on Myspace, given the guidelines I have set forth, and I think it fairly naive to think your kids wouldn’t want to be part of the Internet when it is literally all around them.    However, he may have a point; what is the right age for kids to using social sites on the web?  Which are OK and not OK?  And what should be the ground rules for using these sites?

The Urgent Email

Recently, in an effort to keep my email box from eating up my time in front of the computer, I have begun to keep Outlook closed and only open it during certain times of the day.  For me, the results have been fantastic: I am “getting things done” and my ability to keep rhythm with my projects and the tasks that need attention have been great now that I do not have to stop and check every time something flashes across my screen.

While this new found freedom is a hit for me, it hasn’t been for some of my colleagues, who have complained to me about my lack of quick response to emails they have sent, especially the “urgent” ones.

Urgent? Is there such a thing as an “urgent” email?  I have always looked at emails as one of those “I’ll get to it when I can get to it” sort of tasks, and I treat the emails that I send in much the same manner: If I send an email I don’t really expect to get a response right away; If I need an answer or have an “urgent” need or question, then I usually will just kick it old school and pick up the phone and call.

I don’t know why people don’t call me more often, instead of sending me “urgent” emails.  I think the fact the people can hide behind an email (it’s easier to ask for something difficult, or sound tough in an email than it is when the other person is on the other end of the phone and can retort right away) and I think technology has enabled this behavior in a certain way; you can send emails with your Blackberry anywhere, you can assign tasks or questions in bulk by using email, heck Outlook even has a little flag you can put on your email so you know it’s important.

I am one of the rare people who actually answers my cell phone when it rings (I think screening calls is rude, but that’s another post).  Many people let voice mail manage their schedule and perhaps that is why people send emails with urgent things rather than call; you can’t hide from an email, and it is a great CYA tool: send your email with a read receipt and a copy in your send folder and you have your bases covered.

Don’t get me wrong.  I love email.  It is far and away the way I communicate most often.   But the need for instant communication should be kept to the proper channels.  Can you imagine what the world would look like now if the following email had been sent:

“Mr. Watson – Come here – I want to see you.”

A Suggestion for Digg, StumbleUpon and Delicious

Creating large networks is such a time-consuming beating.  Especially if you have to ask “permission” to be added to someone’s network.

But for SM applications like Digg, StumbleUpon and Delicious, where you don’t have to ask permission, don’t you think it would be great to have a feature where you could “merge” together networks of other users together in bulk, instead of having to add them one at a time?

This way, if user A wants to add all 1,000 people in user B’s network, they could do it in a single click instead of wasting hours adding users one at a time.

Think of the growth these applications could experience: larger networks means people will use it more, and in turn, the applications could make more money.