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Posts from June 2010

links for 2010-06-30

30 June 2010 in DailyLinks | | Comments (0)

Finally blogging about a Retrevo pitch - iPhone and iPad apps for historical figures

Betsy Ross uses Fabric StashI'm on Retrevo's press list. And I feel like they constantly spam me with announcements I don't care about. So most of the time - DELETE. However, this week they sent a cool story where I actually opened the email, read it, went to the website AND then took the time to blog about it. "The Apps They Might Have Used - American Revolution Edition".

Why did I finally decide to blog this one? First, I'm a sucker for this kind of thing. I love people who tweet as historical or fictional characters (but only if they're good). Half Pint Ingalls, I like.

Laura Ingalls Tweets
 

Or remember when that Facebook meme hit - tell us 25 things about you? Even Shakespeare (channeled through Mike McPhaden) responded. So, yeah, I like this WWJD-esque take on things.

Shakespeare answers 25 Questions

Second, in their list of 5 patriots, Retrevo actually included 2 women. THANK YOU, Retrevo, for including women in your list. I'm not going to lie - if you include the chicks, I am more likely to write about you.

The post is worth a read. Three of the apps were new to me. Also, if you're a nerd  and like a little historical speculation, the write-ups are pretty good. Though I do take a little exception to the idea that Abigail Adams would use Pages to write her letters, possibly adding charts to get her ideas across. She seems like an Evernote lady to me.

29 June 2010 in Pitch It!, Technology & the Internet | | Comments (0)

links for 2010-06-26

26 June 2010 in DailyLinks | | Comments (0)

links for 2010-06-25

25 June 2010 in DailyLinks | | Comments (0)

Dear Wise Crowds: Please Help Me Choose a New Television

As some of you know, we moved recently.  An unfortunate causality of that move was our  39" Sony Bravia LCD. Poor Bravia :( it had served us well for three years with our only complaint that the colour definition in the blacks was pretty poor.

Busted TV 009

So, we need to get a new TV.

I checked out Sony first, just because we had experience with them.  I've found the Sony BRAVIA 55" 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV which seems pretty good though it isn't Internet-enabled, doesn't have a VGA-video input (for when I hook up the computer to live- stream TED each year) and the built in speakers are in the side rather than the bottom which makes me think the sound might be wonky.  And, I'm still a little worried about the contrast on the blacks.

Aside: all you audiophiles out there, I KNOW that I need to hook me up some surround sound in real speakers.  I'm not prepared to do that yet.  But rest assured, I will be.  Soon.  And I will take to my blog again for your advice.

Then, I asked Google what the "best LCD TV" was.  Google gave me several review sites, many of which suggested that Samsung is really kicking ass and taking names in this category.  Something like the Samsung 55" 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV.  This one is Wifi-enabled and has a VGA input, BUT I got a Samsung monitor last summer and while it was beautiful, it crapped out on me after 3 weeks and Samsung was less than helpful in trying to get it fixed. So I'm a little gun-shy about going with a Samsung.

Now, some of the sites said that I probably wanted to consider an LED rather than an LCD (and hopefully that will help with some of my contrast issues).  So again - both Sony and Samsung have LED TVs that get good reviews and essentially have similar features as above but with the slimmer and more energy efficient LEDs.

I'm also considering a Sharp Aquos - but that's mainly because Lt. Sulu told me to in the commercials.  And I don't know if I can resist Lt. Sulu.

So, Internet, what TV should I get? What I think my basic requirements are:

  • Our living room can support up to 55" - so no bigger than that.
  • We only have indirect light on the TV (no direct sunlight from the window), so I'm not too worried about glare.
  • I need min 3 HDMI inputs and 2 Component Video inputs.  The VGA connector is nice to have, but not a deal breaker.
  • Is Internet-enabled a deal-breaker?  I dunno.
  • Don't tell me to get a 3D TV.  I can't afford one right now.
  • It has to have a built-in speaker.
  • I don't really want to spend more than 2K.

And hey, while I'm asking, where would you actually BUY said TV?  Especially if you're here in Vancouver?

Thanks for any thoughts/opinions/insights you have on this process.  I'd like to get it decided before the dreaded HST kicks in on July 1.

Oh .. and about that Vancouver moving company that broke our TV.  Yeah, we had the original packaging for our TV (I made Rose save it for three years - I felt a little smug).  The moving guys didn't want to use it - they said it was too complicated and they could just wrap it in a blanket and it would be fine.  They did.  It wasn't. We've filed a claim.  It's been over a month since we filed it and have subsequently followed up.  No response. Boo, Vega Line Movers! BOO!  I do not recommend them.

15 June 2010 in Randomness, Ranting | | Comments (12)

links for 2010-06-10

10 June 2010 in DailyLinks | | Comments (0)

Guilt vs Inspiration … What Motivates Your Marketing?

In a rare moment a few weeks ago, I watched an hour or so of TV live - that is, not recorded on our PVR.  So I wasn't able to skip the commercials.  It was on a Saturday morning and a number of the ads were for charitable organizations.  And there were essentially two kinds of ads: those that used guilt as a theme and those that used inspiration as a theme.

The guilt ones were what you would expect from a typical charity advocating for children in the developing world - lots of emaciated children, either sitting listlessly on a stoop or poking around a contaminated pool of water or garbage site.  These were the most prominent of the ads.  And the message was … don't you feel guilty as you sit there on Saturday morning in your comfy home watching this - shouldn't you be spending your latte money here instead of at Caffé Artigiano?

Kids in a Classroom in Africa

But there was one ad for a similar charity that was different.  It started off showing a child - but the child was clean, healthy and active.  It showed him attending a school where there was a whole classroom of children like him.  It showed him eating a meal and playing on a field.  And the message was … we're doing some pretty amazing things for these kids - don't you want to be a part of great initiatives like ours?

There are so many messages of guilt and fear that pervade marketing.  Well, that pervade a lot of communications, really.  That we don't deserve something.  Or we need to protect ourselves.  That something or someone is coming for us.  That we'll never really be happy.

And you know what, that is so tiresome.

I think this must be why the TED Talks are so popular - because they are inspirational.  You see Amy Smith confronting the problem of cooking fires that kill 2 million children a year - she created a simple solution: a tool for turning farm waste into clean-burning charcoal. Or Willie Smits who navigated both environmental and societal factors to regrow local rainforest in Borneo and save local orang-utans as well as create a sustainable cash crop for the local population.

These are programs that I can get behind, put up my hand and say "Yes, I will give you some of my money so I can be a part of this amazing thing you have going on."  It's why I love lending money via Kiva - because people are doing something and want to make a positive difference in their world.

His Hand

I don't know about you - but I need more inspiration.  And not inspiration like "Boy, I'll bet these sneakers will make me run faster or seem cooler." But inspiration like "I played a part, however small, in making the world better."

That's what I'd like to see more of.

Photo Credits: World Bank and h.koppdelaney

08 June 2010 in Marketing, Musing | | Comments (3)