Happy Birthday to my blog.
I started this blog five years ago in November of 2000.
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
My Mom: Blogging Pioneer
AARP Bulletin: Older, Wiser Bloggers:
"Among the pioneers is Millie Garfield, 80, of Swampscott, Mass., who's been writing 'My Mom's Blog' for the past three years. 'One day, I saw an article in the Boston Globe about bloggers, and so I asked my son Steve, who's into computers, 'What the heck is this blogging thing?' ' she says. 'He said, 'Ma, you should start your own blog.' '
Using Web-based blogging software, she's able to share with the world her observations and musings—even her recipe for apple crisp. Garfield's recent topics have ranged from sightseeing at the Grand Canyon to reminiscences about 'Mexican Hayride,' a 1940s Cole Porter musical. She's become so hooked on blogging, in fact, that she seldom watches TV anymore."
The Message is now Amplified
Message Amplified Productions:
Step by step the video revolution is growing.
"Welcome to the beginning of a revolution in honest Arts and Culture Message Amplification.Welcome to the blogosphere to someone who saw me speak about vlogging at the Woods Hole Film Festival!
In the future you can expect a comrehensive dose of shared creative messages and lessons from prospectives around the world for society's creative, intellectual and empathetic progression."
Step by step the video revolution is growing.
WordPress: How to remove >>
If you are using the Kubrick default theme in WordPress, you can remove the ">>" characters from your sidebar by commenting out some code in your stylesheet.
This is the offending code:
.entry ul li:before, #sidebar ul ul li:before {
content: "\00BB \0020";
}
Comment it out like this...
.entry ul li:before, #sidebar ul ul li:before {
/* content: "\00BB \0020"; */
}
Thanks Matt!
This is the offending code:
.entry ul li:before, #sidebar ul ul li:before {
content: "\00BB \0020";
}
Comment it out like this...
.entry ul li:before, #sidebar ul ul li:before {
/* content: "\00BB \0020"; */
}
Thanks Matt!
Video links for 2005-11-30
- A new videoblogger from Germany and Switzerland. I liked the black and white swans, the houses in the tubes and the little horse.
- Joshua Davis Interview.
Free MacWorld Discount Code
Other World Computing- MacWorld:
"Get your FREE pass for Macworld San Francisco 2006 from OWC today."Priority Code N0102 gets you a free exhibit pass.
The Ricky Gervais Show
Ricky Gervais Podcast on Guardian Unlimited starts Monday December 5 2005.
Ricky Gervais on Guardian Unlimited, an exclusive series of podcasts that will tackle, finally, the big questions.More Ricky Gervais is always a good thing!
Such as: 'Jellyfish - do we need them'? And: 'Why do you never see an old bloke eating a Twix'?"
Imogen Heap Radio
I'm listening to The Analyst by Delta Goodrem over at Pandora on Imogen Heap Radio.
Imogen Heap Radio is a radio station I just created. The station explores other songs and artists that have similar qualities to Imogen Heap.
I'm a DJ!
via [ Katrin ]
Imogen Heap Radio is a radio station I just created. The station explores other songs and artists that have similar qualities to Imogen Heap.
I'm a DJ!
via [ Katrin ]
Free Online Learning System
Moodle - A Free, Open Source Course Management System for Online Learning:
"Moodle is a course management system (CMS) - a free, Open Source software package designed using sound pedagogical principles, to help educators create effective online learning communities."
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Donate to Alzheimer's
Just got a reminder in the mail to donate to The Alzheimer's Association to fund research.
Free Millie Research
My mom gets a nice mention on Church of the Customer Blog today:
"That Millie is blogging isn't the story here; rather, she's a rich source of ethnographic data for products and how seniors use them. With a little help from her son, she video blogs about the challenges she faces using everyday products."
NEW: I Subscribe To People Shirts
Thanks to Chuck Olsen for the idea of changing the design on the I Subscribe To People Shirts.
When the URL resolves, ISubscribeToPeople.com will feature my walking vlog man design.
Internet Archives Collections $10,000 per year
Archive-It:
"The Internet Archive's new subscription service, Archive-it, allows any user to create, manage and search their own web archive through a web interface without any technical expertise required. Archive-it can be used to archive an institution's own web site, or build collections of up to one hundred web sites."
Great Videoblogging Stuff
Scripting News: 11/29/2005:
"There's an active creative community around video blogging, Steve Garfield's stuff is great..."Thanks Dave!
Monday, November 28, 2005
TailRank
TailRank - Search Results for recommended posts from everyone.
TailRank is a social news recommendation system and collaborative filter. TailRank recommends global news but also allows the user to adjust the depth and scope of their query to help focus their results. Use TailRank to share blogs, stories, or people and TailRank can start recommending other items you might find interesting.via [ Raymond ]
Unlike other global systems (like Delicious, Digg, Blogdex, and Daypop) we provide custom ranking specific to the user. We're able to do this by allowing each user to share news and blogs with other members of the site. Once we understand your interests we can recommend other items which you might not have seen.
Video: Thanksgiving Leftovers
The Carol and Steve Show: Episode 49 - Thanksgiving Leftovers:
"This week, Carol and Steve have Ravi and Sonia over to help them finish up the leftovers from Thanksgiving."
I Subscribe To People
I Subscribe To People : CafePress.com.
Based on comments received on this blog, the domain isubscribetopeople.com is now live!
Video links for 2005-11-28
- Episode #1 of Yacht Rock over at Channel 101.
- Michael Verdi looks back at the past year and forward to next year.
- MIND THE GAP is an online film by Nadia Aamer exploring the Pakistani experience in post-7/7 London. via [ Chuck Olsen ]
- Borat responds to Kazakh legal threat.
Perils in Nude Modeling
AtomFilms - Perils in Nude Modeling by Scott Rice:
"Drawing a nude model turns into a showdown between a hapless art student and his imperious teacher. Can a flurry of charcoal and paper create true art? And maybe even true love?"
Tiger Loves Garfield
Tiger liebt Steve Garfield.
Google translation: "Not only I look gladly Vlogs, also tiger am meanwhile completely enthusiastically, particularly from Steve Garfield."
via [ Jeff Jarvis ]
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Have you seen The Globe today?
Adam Gaffin features my Budweiser beer post in today's Boston City Weekly, Cameras? The eyes don't have it - The Boston Globe:
http://www.universalhub.com/1127.html
When you type the link onto your browser, it gets you nowhere anyway. Gotta tell Adam.
BTW, even though we all talk about Gary's Liquors as being in West Roxbury, it's in Chestnut Hill.
"Good as goldThe online version of the story doesn't make the link clickable AND they break it onto two lines and add a "-" to the URL on the line break.
Steve Garfield of JP is at Gary's Liquors in West Roxbury when he spies an $85 bottle of Budweiser. Yes. An $85 bottle. Of Bud. Granted, it's a 46.5 ''magnum' of Budweiser's Brew Masters' Private Reserve, but he figured that worked out to $1.83 an ounce. On his Off on a Tangent blog, his take: ''Seems high for a Bud.'"
http://www.universalhub.com/1127.html
When you type the link onto your browser, it gets you nowhere anyway. Gotta tell Adam.
BTW, even though we all talk about Gary's Liquors as being in West Roxbury, it's in Chestnut Hill.
Horse Photos
I Make Things - Horse Photos.
Bre says:
Steve says:
Bre says:
"I’ve been working on a series of photos about horses this year. I’m working with an 4x5 camera that I’ve heavily modified. I got the hacksaw out last night to make the camera do what I wanted to do."
Steve says:
I've been working on a horse photo for one minute. I'm working with a webcam, QuickTime Pro and ImageWell. I made the camera do what I wanted with a few clicks of a button.
Lisa Williams is an OPML fan
OPML Fan is Lisa Williams' OPML Weblog.
Lisa is excited to be able to post to her WordPress blog from her OPML editor.
Add this to the list of things to check out.
Lisa is excited to be able to post to her WordPress blog from her OPML editor.
Add this to the list of things to check out.
New Media Musings: Bay Area Media Makers group
Bay Area Media Makers group:
Interested?
Josh Wolf informs that a new group has arisen from the ashes of the Current TV Meetup group. It's called the Bay Area Media Makers, and will include all media enthusiasts (videobloggers, podcasters, traditional documentarians, etc.).I like Josh's idea. This sounds like the kind of group I'd like to see in the Boston area.
The group will meet for the first time in March with this on the agenda:
1) Intros
2) Infrastructure: Discussion of the group itself, and out
progress leading up to the next "summit."
3) Pitch Sessions: An opportunity for you to pitch your idea
and hopefully get help from other members.
4) Peer Screenings: A chance to screen your work, and get input
on how you can improve your piece from your peers.
5) Guests, and skill shares: An Opportunity for people to
impart their knowledge about applications, techniques, and
stylistic approaches with the community.
Interested?
Saturday, November 26, 2005
Friday, November 25, 2005
Creative Commons
Learn about Creative Commons.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.
Boston Phoenix Editorial - Iraq: Out now
Iraq: Out now:
"'The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in an illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all that they can in Iraq. It is time to change direction,' Congressman John Murtha of Pennsylvania."
If the people we are trying to "save" don’t want us, what are we doing there?
Riffs
Riffs: Your Social Recommender - Ratings, Rants, Raves, and Reviews.
Bush: 88% Thumbs Down
Office Space: 95% Thumbs Up
Seems accurate.
This They Believe
NPR : This I Believe.
November 21, 2005 · As half of the magic act Penn and Teller, Penn Jillette enjoys challenging his audiences with the unconventional. In stating his personal credo, Jillette finds liberation in believing there is no God.
This I Believe is an exciting national project that invites you to write about the core beliefs that guide your daily life. NPR will air these personal statements from listeners each Monday on Morning Edition and All Things Considered.There Is No God
November 21, 2005 · As half of the magic act Penn and Teller, Penn Jillette enjoys challenging his audiences with the unconventional. In stating his personal credo, Jillette finds liberation in believing there is no God.
Believing there's no God stops me from being solipsistic. I can read ideas from all different people from all different cultures. Without God, we can agree on reality, and I can keep learning where I'm wrong. We can all keep adjusting, so we can really communicate. I don't travel in circles where people say, "I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith." That's just a long-winded religious way to say, "shut up," or another two words that the FCC likes less. But all obscenity is less insulting than, "How I was brought up and my imaginary friend means more to me than anything you can ever say or do." So, believing there is no God lets me be proven wrong and that's always fun. It means I'm learning something.
Thursday, November 24, 2005
Boston Pop Underground
Boston Pop Underground:
Boston Pop Underground is a live music series featuring the best local and national indie/alt-pop artists. (Not "pop" as in the Top-40 diva du jour -- pop as in The Beatles, The Kinks, The Beach Boys, Big Star, Cheap Trick, Badfinger, Elvis Costello, Jellyfish, Jon Brion, Neil Finn, Michael Penn, The Posies, Squeeze, XTC... you get the idea.)Cool, because from that list, I like The Beatles, The Kinks, Cheap Trick, Elvis Costello, Squeeze, and XTC.
Make-Me-Famous
Your-15-Minutes.com "In the future, everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes." - Andy Warhol.
Cute idea.
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
The power of blogs combined with video
New Media Musings: Videoblogs vs. video podcasts:
"Steve Garfield: 'When some people first look at videoblogging they just see videos on web pages. It's more than that. This group, comments, emails and links have brought together people from all over the world with similar interests, and relationships have formed between us. It's the power of blogs combined with video that is making something new and exciting happen here.'"
Review and Rate entries at Participate.net
Review and Rate entries | Participate.net:
"Review and Rate entriesCheck out some videos and vote!
It’s up you to decide which news stories deserve the most attention. Review and rate user submissions here! The best stories may have a chance to be rebroadcast to a wider audience via our media partners: PBS, Salon.com, and XM Satellite Radio."
Recipe: Beer Roasted Turkey
Cooks.com - Recipe - Beer Roasted Turkey:
"BEER ROASTED TURKEYHey Honey, I'll cook the turkey!
1 to 2 cans beer
Butter
Wash turkey well. Pour 1 to 2 cans beer over turkey."
Let a PodGuide escort you on your tour
PodGuides.net.
Free access to spoken tour guides (PodGuides) for your iPod.
Free access to spoken tour guides (PodGuides) for your iPod.
Got the Puritan blues - The Boston Globe
Jeff Jacoby writes in today's Boston Globe, Got the Puritan blues:
I buy all my beer and wine on Sundays!
"The blue laws are and always have been obnoxious deprivations of liberty. That Whole Foods might have sold carrots or cinnamon to a Thanksgiving Day customer who needed them is no crime. What is a crime is that there are still laws on the books that make such a sale illegal -- and latter-day Puritans who defend them."Nice article Jeff.
I buy all my beer and wine on Sundays!
ipod video is more popular than vlog
A search using Overture's Keyword Selector Tool gives these results for October web searches:
vlog - 3,199
videoblog - 366
video blog - 6,353
video podcast - 1,360
ipod video - 86,341
Gotta go change my vlog name to "Steve Garfield's iPod Video Blog"
vlog - 3,199
videoblog - 366
video blog - 6,353
video podcast - 1,360
ipod video - 86,341
Gotta go change my vlog name to "Steve Garfield's iPod Video Blog"
Videobloggers on vacation in Hawaii
Chris Pirillo and Ponzi on vacation in Hawaii, Is he for real?:
Me: 'Babe, I got a gig of movies of the luau to show everybody!'Maybe it's time to put down the cameras?
Him: 'I don't even think my movies are going to come out.'
Me: 'So are you saying if your movies aren't going to come out then mine definitely aren't?'
Him: 'No, I'm saying your camera does 320/240 at 15 frames a second and mine does 640/480 at 30 frames a second.'"
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Romney Stands up for consumers, Vetoes wine bill
Romney Stands up for consumers, vetoes wine bill:
"Governor Mitt Romney today vetoed a bill limiting the ability of out-of-state wineries to ship directly to Massachusetts consumers, calling the legislation “anti-consumer.”Thank you Governor!
The bill prohibits direct sales by wineries that produce more than 30,000 gallons of wine a year if they have been represented by a Massachusetts wholesaler for the past six months. The provision would therefore prevent a significant number of wineries from shipping wine directly to consumers. Romney said the proposed new law “would benefit a cartel of liquor wholesalers that do not want to give up their monopoly on the distribution of wine.”
“This bill does not give wine lovers the opportunity to purchase the bottlings they want,” said Romney. “It creates artificial barriers to protect Massachusetts wholesalers at the expense of a free market.”
Breaking: Leaked Bush Bomb Al-Jazeera Memo
channel4.com - Bush 'wanted to bomb Arab TV station':
We now have this update, just in from CBS News.
"Downing Street is facing calls to publish a transcript of a conversation in which Tony Blair allegedly persuaded George Bush to drop plans to bomb Arab TV station Al-Jazeera. "Our reporters will be following this story to see if the major US outlets pick this up and do some investigative journalism...
We now have this update, just in from CBS News.
Which Videoblog Hosting Service to pick?
Noah writes in with a question about where to host his videos:
Hey Steve - I am enjoying your work...I got a quick question for you...I replied:
It looks like you're hosting all of your videos at Blip.Tv....are you happy with their service? Are you satisfied with the speed at which their servers deliver your content?
I want to pick one service - and did some tests with ourmedia.org, but it was sort of slow...
Whats your take?
Thanks in advance,
Noah in LA
Thanks Noah.
I mainly use http://vblogcentral.com
I also use blip.tv, vimeo and the archive via ourmedia.
I can recommend vblogcentral, although they are in beta testing right now and you have to apply for an account. Tell them Steve sent you. ;-)
I like the features of blip that allow cross posting to a few blogs with one post and their community features
I like vimeo's simple and fast upload interface
You can actually use all three/four without being limited to one...
--Steve
Free Plugins for Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express
Too Much Too Soon Free Plugins for Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express.
Smart Noise Reduction, Smart Deinterlace, Smart Anamorphic, Flashframe (Updated June 2005), Color Balance (New May 2005), Color Balance 3-way (New May 2005), Clock Scratch Removal, Anamorphic Squeeze, Shadow/Highlight Gamma, Black & White, Chroma Resample, Diffusion, Speeder III, Fast Deinterlace, Black Restore, Blend Fields, Mosaic, Noise Reduction, Reduce Flicker, RGB Gamma, Typewriter, and Wind Blur/Cross.
Monday, November 21, 2005
You can't pay parking tickets online
Remember how I got (3) parking tickets last week?
I just went online to pay them.
CAMBRIDGE
Cambridge says the parking ticket #'s I entered are invalid.
Not true.
The ticket #'s are valid, they just haven't been keyed onto Hollerith punch cards at the city data processing center yet.
D'oh.
I wrote out a check and mailed the payment.
BOSTON
The City of Boston RMV website let me pay online, and gave me a trascation #, but an email I just got told me that the transaction did not go through:
Can't I just skip the phone call and mail in the payment?
Why did they accept payment online?
Their phone system is inefficient too.
It's a maze of voice mail prompts with a final on-hold destination where you are experiencing heavy call volume.
Even though you say so, my call doesn't seem so important to you.
10 Minutes Later:
Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid.
After listening to a recording for over 10 minutes to tell me that I am important, a live operator came on the line:
Operator: Massachusetts blah blah blah, can I help you?
Me: Yes. I just paid a ticket online and then received an email telling me that the ticket # was invalid and to call.
Operator: Can you say that again?
Me: Yes. I just paid a ticket online and then received an email telling me that the ticket # was invalid and to call.
Operator: What is the citation #?
Me: M1234567
Operator: That ticket has not been entered into the system yet, you need to either mail it in or stop by to pay it.
Me: OK. Bye.
So WHY did their email to me say:
Please contact the Telephone Center immediately to have the citation information and payment entered by a telephone center representative
WHY wasn't she listening to me when she asked how she could help me?
WHY can't tickets be entered into an online sytem in a timely manner?
WHY can't police officers accept credit cards on the scene?
WHY?
I just went online to pay them.
CAMBRIDGE
Cambridge says the parking ticket #'s I entered are invalid.
Not true.
The ticket #'s are valid, they just haven't been keyed onto Hollerith punch cards at the city data processing center yet.
D'oh.
I wrote out a check and mailed the payment.
BOSTON
The City of Boston RMV website let me pay online, and gave me a trascation #, but an email I just got told me that the transaction did not go through:
Citation Number (M1234567) does not exist on the RMV's computerD'oh!
for one of the following reasons:
* The Citation number you entered is incorrect. Please verify that the
number you entered is correct. If the number was incorrect please
resubmit or
* Your Citation number has not been entered onto the RMV's computer.
Please contact the Telephone Center immediately to have the citation
information and payment entered by a telephone center representative.
If you have questions, please contact the Telephone Center at 617-351-4500
(within 617/781/339/857) or 1-800-858-3926 (within 351/413/508/774/978)
from 9:00am to 5:00pm, Monday - Friday, except holidays.
We welcome your feedback!
Can't I just skip the phone call and mail in the payment?
Why did they accept payment online?
Their phone system is inefficient too.
It's a maze of voice mail prompts with a final on-hold destination where you are experiencing heavy call volume.
Even though you say so, my call doesn't seem so important to you.
10 Minutes Later:
Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid.
After listening to a recording for over 10 minutes to tell me that I am important, a live operator came on the line:
Operator: Massachusetts blah blah blah, can I help you?
Me: Yes. I just paid a ticket online and then received an email telling me that the ticket # was invalid and to call.
Operator: Can you say that again?
Me: Yes. I just paid a ticket online and then received an email telling me that the ticket # was invalid and to call.
Operator: What is the citation #?
Me: M1234567
Operator: That ticket has not been entered into the system yet, you need to either mail it in or stop by to pay it.
Me: OK. Bye.
So WHY did their email to me say:
Please contact the Telephone Center immediately to have the citation information and payment entered by a telephone center representative
WHY wasn't she listening to me when she asked how she could help me?
WHY can't tickets be entered into an online sytem in a timely manner?
WHY can't police officers accept credit cards on the scene?
WHY?
Embed Video on your blog
Free Video Codes - Video Code Maker - Free Html Codes:
People are always asking me how to embed videos in their blog. Now there's a free tool to help you get the job done.
All you have to do is post the video onto your hosting service, grab it's URL, then paste it into the video code maker.
Click a few buttons and you'll be presented with code that you can copy and paste into your blog post.
You're a videoblogger!
"Video codes for your video clips! Audio codes too! Post videos to the using this free video code maker."This free tool creats all the HTML code you need to have video embeded right into the page of your blog. Works for Windows Media (WMV), Flash (SWF), Flash (FLV), QuickTime (MOV), Real (RM), and other formats (AVI, MPG etc.)
People are always asking me how to embed videos in their blog. Now there's a free tool to help you get the job done.
All you have to do is post the video onto your hosting service, grab it's URL, then paste it into the video code maker.
Click a few buttons and you'll be presented with code that you can copy and paste into your blog post.
You're a videoblogger!
Free Podcast and Video Blog music at Magnatune
Magnatune is podcast and video blog friendly:
"Podcasts and Video Blogs may use all Magnatune music at no cost, with no permission required from us, provided that..."Thanks Magnatune.
MoveOn.org Political Action: Why not the web?
MoveOn.org Political Action: Deadline today! Help Put A New Ad On TV:
I've downloaded past ads and put them in a few videoblog posts.
Why isn't this new ad online?
If they made it available I bet a few vloggers would post it.
It might even get a larger audience on the web than on TV.
I've sent them a message, waiting to hear back...
"To maintain our momentum in the Iraq debate we've put together a new TV ad. But to put the ad on the air, we need to raise $250,000 today. "Past MoveOn.org ads have been posted to the web.
I've downloaded past ads and put them in a few videoblog posts.
Why isn't this new ad online?
If they made it available I bet a few vloggers would post it.
It might even get a larger audience on the web than on TV.
I've sent them a message, waiting to hear back...
Boston Phoenix Interview
Click to watch this video
You can also view this clip on Vimeo where it was uploaded for free.
Mike Milliard of the Boston Phoenix came by to interview me for a feature story he's writing about Boston area videoblogers.
To start off the interview I gave him a quick demonstration of how I could make a videoblog post using my Canon S400, QuickTime Pro and Vimeo.
We had a great discussion of where videoblogging is and where it is heading. The article should be out in about three weeks.
Bring your own pencils to Home Depot
The Boston Globe has this story about a guy getting banned from the chain for walking out of the store with an for unpaid pencil, A sharp apology in store pencil case:
One time I saw a guy shove a fishing reel down his pants!
I went down to the sporting goods department and went up to the guy.
I said, "I just saw you shove a fishing reel down your pants. Put it back."
He did and left.
"Panorelli went to the Home Depot in Methuen just before 9 a.m. Thursday with his client, well-known Lawrence business owner George Salas. Salas grabbed a pencil near the cash register so that Panorelli could do some quick math. Panorelli pocketed the pencil and, with Salas, picked up and paid for the lumber.Back when I was workign at Zayre in High School, we had these security windows that were two-way mirrors. If we were up in the 2nd floor stock rooms, we wouldsometimes look out the windows.
The loss-prevention worker was waiting for them outside the door, Panorelli said."
One time I saw a guy shove a fishing reel down his pants!
I went down to the sporting goods department and went up to the guy.
I said, "I just saw you shove a fishing reel down your pants. Put it back."
He did and left.
DriveTime: Australian Cameras Everywhere
On this week's DriveTime with Ravi Jain, an Australian TV crew joins Ravi.
At the end of the episode we finally get to see what is in the trunk. Turns out that Ravi still has some signs in there from when he was the first car through the I-90 extension in 2003.
I've got some footage that I put together of that historic event.
At the end of the episode we finally get to see what is in the trunk. Turns out that Ravi still has some signs in there from when he was the first car through the I-90 extension in 2003.
I've got some footage that I put together of that historic event.
Sunday, November 20, 2005
Become an iTunes Affiliate
iTunes: The #1 music download store.
Join the LinkShare Referral Program
and you can be an iTunes affiliate.
I'm off to take the Globe's Pulse Point
The Boston Globe Stakes Out a Role in WiFi:
Here's a picture from the outside:
"The Boston Globe is building out a series of local WiFi “Pulse Points” that provide hyper-local information about the signal area (train stations, book stores, etc.). "I'm off to check out the Pulse Point at Trident Booksellers on Newbury Street with DC Dennison and Michael Oh. More later.
Here's a picture from the outside:
A Grand JP Promenade
The Boston Globe reports on Wednesday night's JP Centre/South Main Streets meeting, Looking ahead to spiffy streets, shops, and a grand promenade: 
Franklyn presented the most creative and forward thinking idea. Also of interest was hearing that Coolidge corner has 70% of it's street level businesses retail and food vs. services.
View more photos from the JP Centre/South Main Street meeting.
"One group, presenting its top ideas at the end of the night, proposed a radical change -- replacing a lane of Centre Street with a grand promenade, filled with public art and resting places and connecting the district with Forest Hills and the Arboretum.I attended this meeting and what set it apart from your regular everyday community meetings where there is an audience and speakers, was the fact that everybody who attended the meeting was able to participate and provide input. Facilitators were sitting at each table to move the discussion along.
''It really does require some discussion of the automobile and what role it has in our community,' said Franklyn Salimbene, 60, speaking for his group. ''By the way, I drive. I like my car,' he added, to much laughter."
Franklyn presented the most creative and forward thinking idea. Also of interest was hearing that Coolidge corner has 70% of it's street level businesses retail and food vs. services.
View more photos from the JP Centre/South Main Street meeting.
The Irritable Male Syndrome (IMS)
Jed Diamond - The Irritable Male Syndrome:
"The Irritable Male Syndrome explains why millions of men are becoming angry and depressed and why they so often vent their frustrations on the women they love the most."
Every other Social Network is Annoying
PhuseBox is a website designed for a sophisticated online culture. PhuseBox offers FREE blogging, photo sharing, friend networking, and messaging, mixing a sleek design with useful tools, while leaving out all the annoying features of similar sites.
GUBA
GUBA is another site that charges you to watch Pictures and Videos from Usenet, All for only $14.95 / mo..
Guba displays a prominent copyright notice:
Copyright laws protect original works of authorship. Individuals who reproduce, receive, distribute, publicly perform or display copyrighted works without consent of the copyright holders may be in violation of copyright or other laws, and found liable for infringement. GUBA does not encourage or condone illegal reproduction of copyrighted material. This is not intended to be legal counsel or advice. If you have any questions, consult your attorney.I'm confused.
via [ The Apple Core at ZDNET ]
I've requested that videospider remove my content
I just found Videospider yesterday. They are charing people to view my Creative Commons licensed videos that say NO COMMERCIAL USE.
I'd say that charging for viewing is commerical use.
From thier site:
Here are a few emails that I sent to videospider yesterday.
Update:
I just watched a video without paying. Some of the videos have a watch now button that allows you to watch the video in a flash player online. Other videos allow you to download them. They also have a page saying that you have to pay for downloads. Maybe it's all free in the Beta period. Still waiting to hear back from them.
Update:
My emails to them were rejected.
support ]at[ videospider.it
Persistent Transient Failure: Delivery time expired
Delivery last attempted at 19 Nov 2005 22:09:17 +0000
Reporting-MTA: dns; comcast.net
Arrival-Date: 19 Nov 2005 22:09:17 +0000
I'd say that charging for viewing is commerical use.
From thier site:
Why are you charging people for videos I've posted to USENET for free distribution?Sounds like they are charging people to view my videos, and they are not even providing a link back.
We're not charging people for your videos. Videospider customers are paying for our service that formats and indexes USENET binary posts to make them easier to browse and view. Anybody can still find your videos on their own USENET server, but they won't have the advanced, easy-to-use interface that we provide.
Here are a few emails that I sent to videospider yesterday.
From: steve garfield
Subject: a few questions
Date: November 19, 2005 4:23:27 PM EST
To: support at videospider.it
Hi,
Just saw Videospider.
Can people request to have their videos removed from your service?
Can you provide links to the source?
For example you have:
Original Content of the Post:
Link: http://www.itsjerrytime.com/?p=4
Author: Videoblogging.info - Recent Videos
Title: Episode 1 - Who???s That Guy?
Date: 2005/11/12
But you do not make the URL and active clickable link.
Why is that?
Thanks,
--Steve
From: steve garfieldThis is what their copyright page says:
Subject: Please remove all my content from VideoSpider
Date: November 19, 2005 5:09:31 PM EST
To: support at videospider.it
Hi,
Just read your copyright page.
Are you able to remove all the content that you are pointing to for :
http://stevegarfield.blogs.com/
Please let me know,
Thanks,
--Steve
Videospider respects the intellectual property rights of others, and we ask our users to do the same. If you believe that the posting of your work, on the site, violates your intellectual property rights, please let us know by writing to our email address support@videospider.it, providing all the details that could help us find and delete the video from our site:It should not be up to the content creator to have to search through videospider's whole site to find each and every video that they are linking to. Videospider should be able to delete content via the site URL or feed.
- The URL for the location of the material on Videospider's site;
- The header information associated with the material you claim is infringing (just click on the 'More Info' link of the file in question).
Update:
I just watched a video without paying. Some of the videos have a watch now button that allows you to watch the video in a flash player online. Other videos allow you to download them. They also have a page saying that you have to pay for downloads. Maybe it's all free in the Beta period. Still waiting to hear back from them.
Update:
My emails to them were rejected.
support ]at[ videospider.it
Persistent Transient Failure: Delivery time expired
Delivery last attempted at 19 Nov 2005 22:09:17 +0000
Reporting-MTA: dns; comcast.net
Arrival-Date: 19 Nov 2005 22:09:17 +0000
Get on The DECK advertisig network
"A List Apart, 37signals and Coudal Partners have formed The DECK , the premier advertising network for reaching web and design professionals. "
Saturday, November 19, 2005
Drag drop online site creator
Drag drop online site creator PHP:
"Drag drop site creator allows your customers to build professional looking websites from their browser using a unique point, click and drag technology."Add this to the list of things to check out.
Get a Green Screen Backdrop Here
eBay: J and K Group: Chromakey Backdrops.
Suggested by Tomás on the Yahoo! Videoblogging Group.
Suggested by Tomás on the Yahoo! Videoblogging Group.
John Cusack or President
John Cusack: On Bush, the Dems, Jon Stewart, Hunter Thompson, Bill Moyers, and King (not Don) | The Huffington Post: 
"'One of the biggest changes in politics in my lifetime is that the delusional is no longer marginal. It has come in from the fringe, to sit in the seat of power in the Oval Office and in Congress. For the first time in our history, ideology and theology hold a monopoly of power in Washington. Theology asserts propositions that cannot be proven true; ideologues hold stoutly to a worldview despite being contradicted by what is generally accepted as reality. When ideology and theology couple, their offspring are not always bad but they are always blind. And there is the danger: voters and politicians alike, oblivious to the facts.'"via [ Joshua ]
I see pages tagged by people
Business 2.0, The Flickrization of Yahoo:
"The Flickrizers' most ambitious goal is to turn Web searching itself into a social event -- the idea being that you can find what you're looking for faster if you first see pages saved and tagged by people you know and trust. Done well, it could play as the triumph of the humans over Google's cold mechanical approach."
Get your own personal Web 2.0 page for free
Netvibes is kinda like My Yahoo! or whatever they are calling the personal Google page, but at first glance, it's seems more like I own it.
My netvibes page has a few RSS feeds, search, Flickr photos and soon, a To Do list.
I'd like to share my personal netvides page with you though.
Friday, November 18, 2005
Dowbrigade on VlogSoup
Dowbrigade News:
"...we continue to be inspired by amanda congdon at Rocketboom, and our personal role model, Steve Garfield, whose vBlog Soup, now in its 8th edition, is a fascinating tour of the exploding world of videoblogging. In this series Steve has really found his calling, and it stands as a must-watch for students and fans of the genre."
Video Blogs 101
Bostonist was nice enough to note the videoblogging class that I'll be teaching with Ravi, Bostonist: Video Blogs 101:
"Ravi Jain and Steve Garfield are going to be offering a video blog class at the Cambridge Community Television center in two parts. The first class is on November 30th and the second December 7th from 6:00 to 9:00 pm."
Update: Direct Shipment of Wine in Massachusetts
John from Belchertown writes in with an update on what happened yesterday:
Good grief -- did you see that H 4498 apparently passed both the house and senate on 11/17/05, with various unspecified amendments? (This is per the bill history at www.mass.gov.) I may or may not have supported H 4498, but I'm somewhat flabergasted that after literally years of various direct shipping bills languishing in the general court, H 4498 passed within several days and without the possibility of any sort of meaningful input from us consumers. (The text of H 4498, even as proposed, is still not avialable on the state's website, near as I can figure.) Frankly, I've found this whole process rather bizarre and disheartening. Let's just hope H 4498, however it turned out, is reasonable.
Testing new Amazon product links
Star Wars, Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (Widescreen Edition) (2005)
Hover you cursor over that and see what happens.
You've got a 50/50 chance of seeing more info appear.
Hover you cursor over that and see what happens.
You've got a 50/50 chance of seeing more info appear.
Budweiser at Gary's Liquors $85 per bottle
I was at Gary's Liquors and saw a special bottle of Budweiser on sale for $85 per bottle. I checked a few bottles nad they were all marked the same price.
I came home and found it online, Budweiser's Brew Masters' Private Reserve:
Update:
Just got back from Gary's Liquors. I bought a bottle! But it was $13.49. $85 was the case price.
Taste test result later...
I came home and found it online, Budweiser's Brew Masters' Private Reserve:
"The first beer comes out of a long tradition among A-B brewmasters. They would make a special beer for themselves out of the 'first wort,' the first batch of liquid strained from the mash of malt and other grains.That works out to $1.83 per ounce. Seems high for a Bud.
Brewed from the richest part of the mash, the resulting beer has a stronger malt and hop flavor than other A-B products, said Guillermo Moscoso, staff brewmaster. It also has a higher alcohol content at 8.5 percent alcohol by volume.
'It's more in line with a European beer than an American lager,' he said.
The Brew Masters' Private Reserve is bottled in a 46.5-ounce 'magnum' bottle."
Update:
Just got back from Gary's Liquors. I bought a bottle! But it was $13.49. $85 was the case price.
Taste test result later...
Borat is fake?
Digital Spy: Kazakhstan threaten Borat lawsuit:
Sheesh.
"The Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry have threatened legal action against Sacha Baron Cohen, who portrays fake character Borat on Da Ali G Show. "Next, they'll be reporting that reality TV isn't real.
Sheesh.
It's not JerryTime right now
DreamHost - Emergency Status:
"Fri, 18 Nov 2005In case you were wondering why you couldn't get to It's JerryTime!.
Network Problems
We are currently experiencing some network problems with our main router. This may cause some delays / timeouts in services at this time. The problem is being looked into and should be fixed as soon as possible. We will post more informaton as it becomes avaiable."
Amanda Congdon
Amanda Congdon by jdlasica, uploaded from flickr.
Amanda Congdon, the talented host of the groundbreaking Internet television program "Rocketboom," shortly after her appearance at the Symposium on Social Architecture.
Steve Garfield mashes together vlogs
Robert Scoble writes: #49: Steve Garfield mashes together vlogs: 
Another review just came in from PodGuide.tv:
"Fun video log. Steve Garfield watches a ton of video blogs, mashes them together into what he calls Vlog Soup so you can see highlights of the best video blogs. Good way to keep in touch with what’s happening in this space. Warning, if you visit Steve’s vlog you’llThanks Robert!wasteinvest hours watching some really great videos."
Another review just came in from PodGuide.tv:
Could Steve & Carol be the new Regis & Cathy?Thanks. It's The Carol and Steve Show, and Kathie Lee left Regis years ago, now it's Kelly Ripa.
The Steve & Carol Show is just one of a series of programs put together by Steve Garfield over on his videoblog. In fact, so prolific is Steve's output, you could almost think of his as a one-man network channel, with chat shows, Talk Soup style vblog roundups, live events coverage and more.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
No Spam Email Address Maker
Email Address Encoder.
Don't put your email address on a web page. Ever.
Use this encoder to defeat the evil spam overlords.
via [ Joshua ]
Don't put your email address on a web page. Ever.
Use this encoder to defeat the evil spam overlords.
via [ Joshua ]
Scary guys in dark suits just showed up
Right now Rebecca MacKinnon and Ethan Zuckerman are hosting Expression Under Repression:
"Just now we just received word from someone on the ground at the event of the appearance of 'a phalanx of secret police'"
Scott Adams Buys Expensive Water
The Dilbert Blog: Expensive Water:
"The other day I was doing some grocery shopping and picked up a case of bottled water. A woman who evidently works for a competing bottled water company noticed my choice and insisted on knowing why I wasn’t picking her lower priced water instead. The clear inference was that I’m not too bright. Water is water, she noted."
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Cameras are ruining everything. Everything.
Lindsay writes, Why Cameras Are Ruining Everything: A Manifesto: 
"Hey did anyone take pictures at the Arctic Monkeys show last night at Mercury Lounge? Like, maybe...100 people? Ruining the show for those of us who were there to actually enjoy it, not to prove that we saw it? Causing the lead singer to say after the very first song:
'Wow, lots of cameras...put your cameras down and enjoy the show!'"
Citizen Journalism is Discovered (Alive) in Watertown, MA
Lisa Williams writes, PressThink: If I Didn't Build it, They Wouldn't Come: Citizen Journalism is Discovered (Alive) in Watertown, MA:
"A nerd is a person who can sustain attention in something long after a normal person has lapsed into a coma. Patiently, the nerd sits, until the object of its attention cracks and reveals its strange and fantastic inner life."
Let's Talk Video Blogging
Stephen Warley writes a nice overview of videoblogging for TVSpy.com, Let's Talk Video Blogging (Or Is It Vlogging?):
"I know some of you are still probably trying to wrap your heads around blogging and podcasting. Now all of the sudden here comes video blogging! What is it? What's its potential? Why should you care? Those are just some of the questions I hope to answer for you."
Previewseek is better than Google?
Previewseek bills itself as the world's most advanced search engine.
The results page is pretty impressive. Try searching for your own name and see what comes up.
Where's the Zayre Fan Club?
Adam writes about The Ames Fan Club on Universal Hub.
Then he asks about Zayre.
I worked at Zayre during high school.
That's the patch from my smock vest. We all wore these silly smocks. Prior to that we wore blue smock coats.
We were slaves to the minimum wage. When the increase of the minimum wage happened to coincide with time for my raise, my manger told me that the higher minimum wage was my raise.
I was joking about starting a union at the snack bar. The next day I was called into the store manager's office and told to stop talking about a union.
We had a lot of fun though. I need to go look for some more Zayre memorobilia.
Then he asks about Zayre.
I worked at Zayre during high school.
That's the patch from my smock vest. We all wore these silly smocks. Prior to that we wore blue smock coats.
We were slaves to the minimum wage. When the increase of the minimum wage happened to coincide with time for my raise, my manger told me that the higher minimum wage was my raise.
I was joking about starting a union at the snack bar. The next day I was called into the store manager's office and told to stop talking about a union.
We had a lot of fun though. I need to go look for some more Zayre memorobilia.
AOL AIM SPAM: Non Permission Marketing
Just got an AIM message from the AOL System:
aolsystemmsg (AIM) 1:23AOL AIM is now the Borg.
AIM added a new AIM Bots group to your Buddy List. 1:23
Send IMs to moviefone and shoppingbuddy for great holiday flicks and gift ideas. (To remove 'em, just right-click and delete! Learn More)
Resitance is futile.
Our only defense is the delete key.
On vlogs: Authentic and Passionate
Here's an email exchange I had with Kent Bye of Echo Chamber Project:
Steve Garfield: My FireAnt has over 1,000 unwatched videos in it.
Kent Bye: Ah. Information overload has hit the vlogosphere.
Yeah, it'll be even worse with Rich Media.
That's why we'll need more vlog soups and revlogs to help filter and find stuff.
And you don't even need to be a vlogger to be a traffic director.
Steve Garfield: Did you see Vlog Soup #8. My computer had a lot of cut outs and drop outs when I recorded direct to disk. Two people didn't like it, others like it and think it's something that I should figure out how to recreate and sell. Ha ha.
Kent Bye: heh, I definitely don't think you could package it.
Hmmm... I actually liked it at first. It's a bit of a novelty.
But I could see how it could grate on some people's nerves.
I actually liked how you included some false starts in there more than the Max Hedrum effect.
I'm very hesitant about production quality as well -- since I want everything to be perfect.
We all want to get it just right, but it's nice to see the outtakes thrown in there. It adds some authenticity.
After listening to Adam Curry's podcast a bit, I realize that sometimes it's better to screw up some and be authentic about it, than it is to make it just right on the 15th take after all of the emotional impact has been sucked dry.
I'm recording intros to podcasts, and I realize that the ones where I got the feelings and passion right were *much better* than the ones where I was focusing on getting the words just right.
I mean, your words are getting hammered by the digital side effects -- and in the end you can still get the gist of what you're saying because you can really tell that you're passionate about vlogging. So the *right words* in your case aren't even that vital.
Steve Garfield: I think people used to TV will not like it and those who follow what I am doing will appreciate it for what it is. Different then TV.
Kent Bye: Again, I think the difference is the passion and the emotions that you bring to the table.
People will forgive the quality if there is authenticity -- or humor -- which is what you sometimes get with the digital cut outs.
Steve Garfield: Although, as someone who likes to present quality, I run the risk of people who drop by thinking that web video is crappy.
Kent Bye: It seems that production quality and authenticity are inversely proportional.
So I think w/ the medium it's better to err on the authentic and passionate side.
Any monkey who is rich enough can have great production quality, but it's the genuine passion that's severly lacking from TV.
But there is a production threshold that you should strive for -- and it's different for each piece you do.
Authenticity came up a lot at the We Media Conference, and helps explain why Jon Stewart is so popular. Here's certainly funny and has great writers, but Stewart also has a true voice and he's transparent about his worldviews. In that way, people can actually trust him more -- even though he does a "fake news show."
Podcaster Leo Laporte says that quality podcasts come when "you speak from your heart about things you care about that you're passionate about" because people are hungry for authenticity and personal connection. And this certainly extends to blogging and video blogging as well.
Anyway, it's what my wife Jen and I were going for with these two vlog posts, and we seem to be on the right track telling from the feedback we've receive so far.
Ebb and Flow Episode 1
Finding a Home
Steve Garfield: My FireAnt has over 1,000 unwatched videos in it.
Kent Bye: Ah. Information overload has hit the vlogosphere.
Yeah, it'll be even worse with Rich Media.
That's why we'll need more vlog soups and revlogs to help filter and find stuff.
And you don't even need to be a vlogger to be a traffic director.
Steve Garfield: Did you see Vlog Soup #8. My computer had a lot of cut outs and drop outs when I recorded direct to disk. Two people didn't like it, others like it and think it's something that I should figure out how to recreate and sell. Ha ha.
Kent Bye: heh, I definitely don't think you could package it.Hmmm... I actually liked it at first. It's a bit of a novelty.
But I could see how it could grate on some people's nerves.
I actually liked how you included some false starts in there more than the Max Hedrum effect.
I'm very hesitant about production quality as well -- since I want everything to be perfect.
We all want to get it just right, but it's nice to see the outtakes thrown in there. It adds some authenticity.
After listening to Adam Curry's podcast a bit, I realize that sometimes it's better to screw up some and be authentic about it, than it is to make it just right on the 15th take after all of the emotional impact has been sucked dry.
I'm recording intros to podcasts, and I realize that the ones where I got the feelings and passion right were *much better* than the ones where I was focusing on getting the words just right.
I mean, your words are getting hammered by the digital side effects -- and in the end you can still get the gist of what you're saying because you can really tell that you're passionate about vlogging. So the *right words* in your case aren't even that vital.
Steve Garfield: I think people used to TV will not like it and those who follow what I am doing will appreciate it for what it is. Different then TV.
Kent Bye: Again, I think the difference is the passion and the emotions that you bring to the table.
People will forgive the quality if there is authenticity -- or humor -- which is what you sometimes get with the digital cut outs.
Steve Garfield: Although, as someone who likes to present quality, I run the risk of people who drop by thinking that web video is crappy.
Kent Bye: It seems that production quality and authenticity are inversely proportional.
So I think w/ the medium it's better to err on the authentic and passionate side.
Any monkey who is rich enough can have great production quality, but it's the genuine passion that's severly lacking from TV.
But there is a production threshold that you should strive for -- and it's different for each piece you do.
Authenticity came up a lot at the We Media Conference, and helps explain why Jon Stewart is so popular. Here's certainly funny and has great writers, but Stewart also has a true voice and he's transparent about his worldviews. In that way, people can actually trust him more -- even though he does a "fake news show."
Podcaster Leo Laporte says that quality podcasts come when "you speak from your heart about things you care about that you're passionate about" because people are hungry for authenticity and personal connection. And this certainly extends to blogging and video blogging as well.Anyway, it's what my wife Jen and I were going for with these two vlog posts, and we seem to be on the right track telling from the feedback we've receive so far.
Ebb and Flow Episode 1
Finding a Home