My 12-yr-old has a new blog: Jeff’s Tales of Woe. It’s a tongue-in-cheek blog where he writes about life’s disappointments, the way only a middle schooler can. Some pretty funny posts. Give it a read, and follow his posts this Summer.
Tag: blog
New Web Look for Peculiarshow.com
I rolled out a new theme for the Peculiarshow.com website this week. head on over there and check it out.
Tumblr-ing
So this last week I started hearing about Tumblr. I had thought it was just another blog site, but apparently there are quite a few aspects of it that are more akin to social media. The interface feels more like Facebook, and you can “re-blog” like twitter can re-tweet.
You can set Tumblr to push your posts there out to your Twitter feed or Facebook news feed. But, in a somewhat more complicated fashion, you can grab your RSS feed from twitter and have Tumblr import it. Or any RSS feed for that matter.
So, I’m testing it out. Not a lot of people I know are using it yet. My tumblr page: scottlink.tumblr.com. Currently I have it following my twitter feed, this blog, and my flickr page.
iPad: Love It or Hate It?
“I still can’t believe this! All this hype for something so ridiculous!”
“The Reality Distortion Field™ is starting to warp Steve’s mind if he thinks for one second that this thing is gonna take off.”
“I’d call it the Cube 2.0 as it wont sell, and be killed off in a short time…and it’s not really functional.”
“Not exactly “revolutionary”. With the economy in its current state”
While some people are reporting on their hands-on time with the iPad, others are already complaining about the features left out of the iPad.
Wired had an interesting look at 10 things missing from it. And in many cases pointed out that the target audience for this device doesn’t care about most of those things. A San Francisco Chronicle column highlights four “whiffs” of the iPad. The one with the most teeth, I think, if the screen resolution of 1024×768. I understand why a 16:9 ratio would be weird when using the portrait aspect, but couldn’t it at least be able to show 720p video like the Apple TV?
Yet another blog calls the iPad “crap futurism” not because the iPad is a badly designed device, but because they think the iPad is marketed as a computer, while it is in reality a media consumption device. They think that is bad, since Apple’s M.O. is to tightly control the apps they allow on their devices. I disagree with the assessment of the marketing plan, but totally agree that it is a media consumption device. They go on to talk about media convergence in a device. The thing is normal people want easy, and a product may be the best new thing since the microchip, if it’s not easy it won’t sell well. The iTunes/iTunes Store interface is easy. The iPad looks easy.
CNet asks, “Who will buy the iPad?”
“John Gruber made an excellent point Wednesday: “Apple doesn’t talk much about the technical details of the iPhone. They never talk about CPU speed or the name of the chip being used. They don’t tell you how much RAM is in there. Part of their vision for moving computers from technical culture to popular culture is about getting away from defining these things by their technical specs.”
There’s much more that could be done with the iPad, and it’s not hard to imagine there’s more to come with subsequent product updates. But Apple’s not being upfront with the technical details and having the latest and greatest technology, while it seems to infuriate/disappoint people with technical chops, might mean this device is not for them. At least not yet.”
When I think about the iPad, I think about the potential more than what we saw in the keynote. The keynote showed us some of the things it can do, but in the next 90 days we will see a lot more of the potential of this device. I told one friend to “give it a year.” In a few months we will hopefully see software companies using the iPad beyond just double size iPod apps. We will see people pushing the limits of what this things can be.
The quotes at the top of this post are from an thread a friend of mine pulled out from the day the first iPod was announced. The reactions sound a little like some of the reactions to the iPad. But look at what an iPod, with the power of iTunes, can do today. Below are some of my favorites. (I especially like the one asking where the next “Newton” is)
“The Reality Distiortion Field™ is starting to warp Steve’s mind if he thinks for one second that this thing is gonna take off.”
“I’d call it the Cube 2.0 as it wont sell, and be killed off in a short time…and it’s not really functional.”
“Not exactly “revolutionary”. With the economy in its current state”
“Great just what the world needs, another freaking MP3 player. Go Steve! Where’s the Newton?!”
“I still can’t believe this! All this hype for something so ridiculous! Who cares about an MP3 player? I want something new! I want them to think differently! Why oh why would they do this?! It’s so wrong! It’s so stupid!”
I wonder if we will look back on similar comments, articles, and threads about the iPad just like we look at these about the iPod…
How Would You Handle Anonymous Public Criticism
I ran across this article on MondayMorninginsight.com. An anonymous blogger was criticizing a church. More somewhat illegal events happen. Blogger gets investigated, and his identity is now known.
I work for a church. I have gotten all sorts of anonymous complaints. Phone calls and handwritten notes are most common. Any time you change anything you get complaints from somewhere. It is difficult to lend them and credibility if they are anonymous.
But what if the complaints are public, and anonymous? How do you handle that? it’s difficult to do biblical conflict resolution when you can’t go to the individual. I think the best way is to address concerns that are legitimate to the congregation, and ask the person to come speak directly with you, or a rep from the church. If a news story emerges, then answer honestly, and say what you can. When you are walking in the light, it is simple speak the truth. If you have made a mistake, own up to it. If it’s just a complaint, address it. Diffuse the story with the truth.
Scott Link Media 