Archive for the 'Short Thoughts' Category

Stories from the web: How do I improve OUR community?

Published on March 7, 2012 in Short Thoughts and South Florida.

Note: I’m cross-posting this from the South Florida Tech Leadership group. We’re a group of leaders in South Florida who are passionate about improving the tech and entrepreneurial ecosystem in our region. If you’re interested in joining in on the conversation, just drop in or introduce yourself on twitter. 

Over the past few weeks, I’ve read a bunch of inspiring blog posts with different angles on building your local community. I wanted to share summaries and links with you. In particular, the one below about giving back through workshops spoke particularly to me as I prepare the next version of an Arduino workshop. I plan on following up on that one as it focuses a lot on personal benefits and glosses over the community-building side (which are significant).

Has anyone else read any interesting blog posts, articles or experiences about community-building?

 
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Speculating on the Net for the next 5-10 years…

Published on August 15, 2011 in Short Thoughts.

Someone asked me “What do you think will be the top 5 trends in the next 5-10 years in the internet and mobile space?“

I really liked the question and wanted to preserve my thoughts here for future reflection. 5-10 years is a long ways to be projecting, especially online. I don’t think I could even go 2-3 years out the way things are currently going. But I’ll give it a go.

Continue reading ‘Speculating on the Net for the next 5-10 years…’

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Just Do It (And actually finish!)

Published on August 12, 2011 in Life Hacking and Short Thoughts.

This came from a question on a HackerNews thread.

So I used to have problems starting projects – I would plan/read/design etc and then never actually get around to doing anything concrete; I have overcome that issue. But now I find myself not being able to finish anything. I end up with little software projects that are half-done and abandoned because I lose motivation once I solve the ‘interesting’ challenges. When there is a clear path to the finish, I suddenly become disinterested.


Creative Commons License credit: Rakka

This is something I still struggle with quite frequently. I’m not certain if it’s a particular chemistry in my brain or just a personality trait that I’ve developed over time. I find myself constantly hungering for interesting ideas and ways to solve problems. So much so, that the mental exercise of arriving at a unique solution has become a fun pasttime. This “not being able to finish” might seem like the main problem here, but I’d argue otherwise. Admittedly, the “problem solving” is hugely satisfying; more importantly than that, the problem that you’re trying to solve should be just as satisfying.

Continue reading ‘Just Do It (And actually finish!)’

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How to confuse “Openness” with “Lack of Choice”

Published on September 9, 2010 in Mobile and Short Thoughts.
Jailed Android
In a post by MG Seigler this morning, he rants around a very narrow view of the “openness” of Android. Instead of looking at this from the perspective of “open OS”, I see Android as more about the “openness of choice”. He cites specific reasons to prefer iPhone over the Android, namely the bloatware installed by carriers, the restrictions placed on the OS, and basically everything the carrier does to remain unique and relevant in the Android ecosystem. Personally, I think this is a weak argument. Yes, this happens. Yes, carriers will continue to add their “2 cents” worth. But the beautiful thing about it is that you DON’T HAVE TO USE THESE PHONES!
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What does HTML5 bring to the table? (An HTML5 Slideshow)

Published on August 24, 2010 in Information, Short Thoughts and Tools.

Some time ago, I was asked to put together a presentation on the differences and improvements of HTML5. I was very satisfied with the end result and thought it would be helpful to others, so I posted the work for others to use. This morning, I came across a fantastic slideshow that not only gives you a great synopsis of features and improvements, but does so in an HTML5-enabled website with working HTML5 examples inline!

Well, what are you waiting for?

http://slides.html5rocks.com

This resource was put together by the folks at Google and offer additional resources at the main site at http://www.html5rocks.com.

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