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Could you Live Without Google?

May 7, 2008 at 11:00 pm · in Media Blog · Comments

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Do you use Google? Could you get along without it for a week? I tried it, and dubbed it Google Fasting. There’s no way I could do that again. It was really tough, believe it or not. I got an email from Mike recently, that raised a thought-provoking question about Google’s power.

Do you feel the power of Google is good for the Internet? With one search engine being used so often, there becomes a potential for abuse. As we become a society who gets our news and history over the Internet, is Google in a position to filter what we know and how much? I read awhile back that a pre-condition of China using Google was that search results could not return any information about the Tiananmen Square incident. More recently, China blocked access to YouTube in the wake of a Tibetan protests. If governments and search engines can weild such power over the Internet, they can effectively remake history, and shape issues of the day.

It’s interesting: we’re at this crossroads. Forever, we’ve lived in a world that had borders. The Internet is a world that has no borders. When we have such an open society on the Internet and try to get that to fit inside existing infrastructures… it’s really scary in a way. It’s potential for anarchy, and breaking down borders. I can guarantee people in power are scared, both in business and in government.

What happens when we transcend our physical presence to connect with other people? Again, I’m telling you… we’re at a crossroads between hierarchy and no hierarchy. Does Google have the potential to limit what we see? Certainly they do. However, if they did something new and open would crop up. I don’t see Google doing anything like that.

If we elevate Google to the position where we can’t live without them, we run the risk of letting them run us. The Internet is pretty big though. Google hasn’t been around forever. Eventually, something could even replace Google. It’s the ebb and flow and ideas of human identity and connections.

I’m interested in hearing your thoughts. How do you define society? How do you see this playing out? How do you see us moving beyond today?

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How and Where do you Save Files?

May 7, 2008 at 10:36 pm · in Media Blog, Technology · Comments

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Where do you save your files? Do you have any particular folder on your computer? Or… are you one of those people who forgets to save their work? The bottom line is, I want to know how and where you save files. I have a top five here from Nick, to give you some tips on where and how to save your files.

Tip 1 Always finish a file you save with 001 at the end of the file name. Then, when you make any changes, save the next version as

002, and so on. This way, you create a revisioning system in case anything ever happens and you need to revert.

Tip 2 Always save your file in the right folder, especially if you’re working on a specific project. Save all work related to this in one particular folder, and even use SubFolders. You can also use a desktop search tool, such as Copernic Desktop Search.

Tip 3 No matter what you’re doing, save often. For faster saving, use CTRL + S to save your files.

Tip 4 Back up important files. Copy them onto an external hard drive, flash drive, or an external website.

Tip 5 Always save to the correct file type. For example, with a simple Photoshop file, save it as a .jpg or .png. Keep in mind what you’ll be using the file for in the future when you choose your file extension.

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Do you Really Want to Win this PC?

May 7, 2008 at 10:21 pm · in Media Blog · Comments

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I’m going to be giving away the HP Dragon Notebook very soon… May 29th to be exact. This notebook is something you definitely want to have. Make sure you follow the rules for this giveaway, or you’ll be crying when you aren’t eligible!

Make sure you’re subscribed to my YouTube account, come hang out in our chat room (you must be present to win, and I’m not announcing the time ahead of time!), and leave as many GOOD comments on my blog as you can between now and the drawing. Any insipid or inappropriate comments will be deleted daily, and you won’t be eligible to win. A good comment shows you have read the post, and are contributing to the discussion.

That’s all there is to it. What are you waiting for? Get to commenting!

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Where do you go to Discuss Art Online?

May 7, 2008 at 9:47 pm · in Media Blog · Comments

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My brother Adam is an artist, who is very passionate about art of all kinds. He has a live stream now. So if you’re into art or even music, why not drop by and visit him? You may even catch him live at work on a painting.

YOU all got him into this live streaming business. I recently visited Adam in Iowa for a few days, and streamed live from his living room. He became addicted quite easily. He loved the interaction with all of you, so thank you for that! Take it easy on him though. He’s not a computer geek like me… he’s an art geek. Don’t throw computer questions at him, or he’ll likely tell you where you can go.

Adam has a lot of opinions, and he stands behind them 100%. I’m proud of him for that. I enjoy watching him on his stream, and I hope you will, as well.

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How do You Deal with Information Overload?

May 6, 2008 at 12:11 am · in Media Blog, Community, Internet · Comments (40)

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The problem today isn’t that there’s not enough information. There’s too much. It’s not there aren’t ways to publish content on the Internet - there are an abundance. A lot of noise comes with that signal. So we’ve got different problems than we used to have. Information used to be handed to us from “on high”, as recently as a decade ago. Nowadays, information is just literally everywhere. It’s overwhelming at times. It’s impossible for me to keep up with the news aggregator, the email, the social networks…

Where does it end? How do you keep up with this information overload? It’s gotten to the point where I’ve had to start actually closing my system down. I love information. I’m an information junkie! I love teaching, learning, consuming, producing… I love it all. Imagine billions of people like me, though. How do we deal with all of it? I received an email recently about this very subject:

As it relates to hardware, Moore’s law does a good job of explaining the limitation of transistors in relation to the exponential growth of such systems. Is there an equivalent to Moore’s law for searching and assembling all of the information that is found online? What are we to do when the content becomes so overwhelming that we may have to design better tools just for managing and viewing information?

Are we relying too much on the machine to figure out what’s good and what’s bad? I think we are, and that’s where information overload is getting to be overwhelming. A few years ago, I was able to deal with it much easier. I think that’s because the tools just weren’t as good at putting the information together for us. It gets bigger and bigger.. and worse and worse… every day.

I believe the future of information overload is to go back to classic mode: humans and machines. The Internet is the connection between us. If I have a question about something, I’ll turn to someone I know, and who will have the correct information. What’s the answer to all of this information overload then?

I’m interested in hearing your opinions on this. Leave me a follow-up comment here, or send me an email to chris@pirillo.com

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What are the Implications of using Video Services?

May 5, 2008 at 11:54 pm · in Social Media, Media Blog, Community · Comments (26)

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How do you guys out there watch tv these days? Do you still watch it on an actual television set? Do you watch it through the Internet? More to the point… how do you watch video? I have a question here that was sent to me in an email. That’s why I’m bringing this up. “What is the social and political impact of services such as iTunes and Adobe Media Player?”

Up until recently, we didn’t have much of a choice as to how we watch our content. There’s really no choice for a lot of the programming out there now, with a television. Then again, with content that comes through something like iTunes or Adobe Media Player, is much broader. These ideas are changing the way we access content, and the way those content services exist now and into the future.

Comcast has a service that we love, called “On Demand”. We like being able to watch movies together. So, we’ll pay a small amount of money to rent the movie. With a service like AppleTV, we could download that same movie a bit cheaper. We could also use the video content services on our Xbox 360. So which one do we use to watch that one piece of media? You might argue that you could just use a DVR. But have you ever tried to use a DVR that was designed by someone other than the person who is trying to control the entire experience? It’s a painful experience, to say the least.

We have a choice. Does it matter how we get to our content and information. There’s a huge debate about the value of a connection point. I would hope that in the future, I have the opportunity to just go between any device I choose. Imagine having competing services in the home. Why does it matter which provider I have to use? I should be the one in control… not the big companies. Period. End of story.

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Web Communities and Social Networks Need Transparency

May 5, 2008 at 11:24 pm · in Social Media, Media Blog · Comments (21)

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I need you all to think about your answer to this question I received in an email: “What would be the one fundamental principle every social networking community must have for maintaining its integrity to the people who are using that site?”. To me… the answer is simple. Say it with me: Transparency.

Transparency is the number one underlying principle for any website or network that plans to connect people together. It’s about transparency between the network and the people using the network. There’s nothing special there. It’s open, and it’s honest. If you’re not open with your audience… what are you? If you decide to make a change and your audience isn’t up to speed, they may not like it. However, if you’re open about the entire thing from start to finish, your audience will certainly be much more receptive.

There is such a thing as a degree of transparency. Too much isn’t a good thing. You need to be open just enough. If you aren’t, people will think of you as dishonest or hiding something from them. There are a million and one social networks out there. What’s the value of one over another? That’s up to each individual who uses them. The more transparent you are, the better off you’ll be. The people who will disagree are the one who are used to dealing with public relations’ spins. They tend to deal with creating the illusion of transparency. They always seem to forget how much we can all see right through the illusions.

I’ve been a community leader on the Internet for many years now. I’ve been as open about the process as I possibly could’ve been. It’s difficult to be transparent - make no mistake about it. It’s hard to make mistakes and deal with problems out in the open, and hope that everyone understands. However, it’s usually easier to deal with imperfections when you do so openly. People will realize you’re human, and they’ll open up to you and connect with you on a much higher level.

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Steal my Content - with Permission and Credit

May 5, 2008 at 11:10 pm · in Media Blog, Communication, Community · Comments (28)

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Isn’t this soundboard the coolest thing? It was created by live community member desertwarrior. Not only is it fun, it also really underscores my belief in being open about everything I do. He’s taken about 60 clips of things I’ve said and sounds I’ve made, and put them together in this neat little application you can all play with.

There are some content producers who aren’t as unfriendly to their community. They aren’t as open to letting their community to do things like this. I’ve said in the past you can use my Chris heads anytime you want. This just wraps up everything I enjoy about interacting with people on the Web. Until the day comes when I lose my voice… I’ll be able to keep this up.

I don’t know how you all feel about this. If you create content and put it online… do you let the community take the ball and run with it. If you don’t allow it… why? I’m just curious as to why don’t. You’re free to use any of my content. All I ask is a small amount of credit. Embed my videos. Share a link of mine. Use an article I’ve written. Just show me the final product. Send me a .pdf, or a link… just something I can see. Go ahead and use those clips and sound bites. Just be friendly about it, not gross or illegal. Thats just not right. Again, all I ask is you give some type of credit (a link back to my site is fine).

Let’s not go overboard though. The World can only take so much of me. Heck… I can only take so much of me.

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My Leather Coach Wallet

May 5, 2008 at 10:47 pm · in Media Blog · Comments (42)

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Ponzi says it’s time to let my favorite wallet go, and get a new one… or get mine fixed. With a Coach wallet, you can send it in to be re-sewn if it starts to come apart. The leather on my wallet is great still. But, Ponzi is worried about money falling out, due to the sewing coming apart.

The great thing about Coach products is that their warranty is so amazing, you can send in your wallet if anything goes wrong with it. They will clean it, re-sew it… whatever they need to do in order to make it look as good as new again. So Ponzi buys me this second wallet to use while she sends in my Coach wallet. My point is: I’m a GUY. I don’t need two wallets. This whole “alternating” thing is just starting to freak me out a bit. She has more than one of literally everything. Me? Not so much.

The good news is, I’m just as much of an influence on her as she is on me. The day of this recording, she wore a cap all day… a FireFox cap, that is. Ya just have to love it.

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Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother: DRM-Free Audio Book

May 3, 2008 at 5:30 pm · in Media Blog · Comments (34)

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Cory Doctorow has written a new audio book, entitled “Little Brother”. He sent me the following email to give us all a peek at the plot, and to explain something very important and ground-breaking about this book.

Plot Synopsis Marcus, a.k.a “w1n5t0n,” is only seventeen years old, but he figures he already knows how the system works – and how to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high school’s intrusive but clumsy surveillance systems. But his whole world changes when he and his friends find themselves caught in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco. In the wrong place at the wrong time, Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison where they’re mercilessly interrogated for days. When the DHS finally releases them, Marcus discovers that his city has become a police state where every citizen is treated like a potential terrorist. He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him only one option: to take down the DHS himself.
The audio book is from Random House Audio, and was released on April 29, and cost is $20.00. What’s the big deal? The deal is that it’s ONLY being delivered as a DRM-free MP3. There will be no DRMed editions. This is a first for Random House Audio.
The audio book comes with the author’s sampling license: once you own it, you’re free to take up to 30 minutes’ worth of material from it and remix and then redistribute it as much as you like, provided that you do so on a noncommercial basis, make sure that it’s clear that this is a remix and not the original, and make sure that you tell people where to find the original. This is in addition to all the fair use remixing that you’re allowed to do.

After playing a half-hour of the audio book for my chat room, no one wanted me to stop! You guys know where to go to where to get the rest. How can you not love an author who writes about ’saggy man boobs’? I love that Corey has taken the DRM out of the book, and I can’t wait to see others follow suit.

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What’s the Best OS for Data Storage and Stability?

May 3, 2008 at 5:05 pm · in Media Blog, Technology · Comments (63)

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I received the following email the other day from a chat regular who goes by the handle of Woomis:

Yesterday, I was consulting a client about OS choices. If storage failure rate was 0%… What OS would you trust to store your most important documents, photos, keepsakes and otherwise? Diving even further into that thought, you realize that you must understand there are other factors involved that whether one is better than the other and why. But truly, I ask you the same question: Although you’ve switched to Mac for the time being, what OS and its myriad of features would you trust to store and use your most precious of data? I see these kids in your IRC chat talking about how “cool” Linux is. I agree: if I had to choose between a Server2003 or FC8 Dedicated serve… it would be Linux for sure. These kids are dazzled by Compiz Fusion and their lowered expectations of XP, but seriously there is the cool factor and the usability factor. For you is OS X just a fad? I doubt it, but please as in the words as some of your newest chatters, Linux Rulez! Why don’t you use it? I say OS X is the most stable: for it’s journaled file system, kernel, support and life expectancy. That’s what I use, that’s what I feel comfortable storing my data on and keeping it safe and operational.

If you ask me what the best operating system is, I will most likely not answer you. I cannot possibly tell you what the best operating system would be. There are a lot of factors that come into play. You will likely have a different answer a year from now that what you will have now, as to what the best operating system is for you. This is due to changes in software and hardware, and how they work together in your current system of choice.

I personally use OS X and Windows both on a daily basis, and I do have a Linux machine, as well. Most people want one thing, and they want the best thing. Take a look at the total cost of ownership. Look at everything that will happen once you have purchased your system. Now, look at the entire experience. Don’t only look at your computer as a piece of hardware. It’s also a piece of software inside a piece of hardware, which is run through various services. A wide variety of things work together to create your computing experience. You have to look for as much of 100% as you can get, in terms of things you want from your computer.

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HP’s Color LaserJet CM1312

May 3, 2008 at 4:51 pm · in Media Blog, Hardware, Technology · Comments (51)

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You guys know about my two dogs, Wicket and Pixie. I took some pictures of them recently, and printed one in about a minute flat on the new printer sitting in my office. The quality was as good as the quality of the photo itself. The big deal would be that it was printed on a color jet printer. To be exact, I used the new Color LaserJet CM1312 from HP. I’m really excited about this machine, actually. HP sent this to me to review, and I don’t think I want to send it back.

I’ve been using HP Laser Jet printers for years, going way back to the days before USB. Over the years, features and functions have grown. I’ve always been sold on the concept of an all-in-one device. Thus, I jumped at the opportunity to review this machine… and it’s been a great experience. This is the first color laser jet printer that I’ve had in my home office. To tell you the truth, I can see it no other way at this point.

This thing is as Uber as these types of peripherals get. It can fax, it can scan, copy and print. It doesn’t just print in black.. it prints in perfect color. I can’t get over how fast it printed these pictures. It’s just insane. I printed high-quality photos in LESS THAN A MINUTE!! Featuring newly formulated HP ColorSphere toner, the HP Color LaserJet CM1312 MFP produces print-shop quality documents with a wider range of colors, higher gloss and improved photo resolutions to help micro and small businesses who need to take their business documents to the next level.

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The Future of Software is Open Source

May 3, 2008 at 4:35 pm · in Media Blog, Software, Technology · Comments (60)

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You are an absolute fool to believe that the future of software is anything but open. Are we there now? Obviously not… but in good time, proprietary software will become a thing of the past. That’s a pretty bold statement, yes. But, watch the trends. Watch what’s happening now. Watch what’s been happening. Some of the more powerful efforts to be spearheaded by like-minded individuals have happened because of the open ethos.

Do you care much whether software is open-source or proprietary? Sometimes it may boil down to a matter of cost for you. Keep in mind that just because something is free, doesn’t mean it’s ‘open’. There’s a huge reason why open is better than just free. If I create a proprietary (closed) piece of software, and refuse to share the code with others, that goes away when I die. When you share code because it’s an open collaboration, there is always room for someone to step in and take over. If one developer knows of a way to make a piece of the software work better, they can add to it when it’s open-source. An open-source program can be enhanced upon until the end of time, basically.

The more you tie yourself into a proprietary system, the more difficult it becomes to remove yourself from it, because of the momentum inside. Closed systems are scary, at least to me. Think about it. Who’s able to check and re-check the software that is running in the world? Yes, you can trust one firm or another. But, what if the software is dealing with extremely sensitive data? Wouldn’t you rather see the community as a whole… those of us who care the most about software… are the ones able to check that the software works the best way it can, instead of some corporation?

I bet you have open-source software on your computer right now, and you may not even know it. Do you run the FireFox browser? There you have open-source. With a proprietary software, once a company decides they no longer want to make it, it’s dead. They don’t care if you still like using it, they will just stop making it.

There are alternatives to traditional ways of thinking… even when it comes to software. So many people still believe that the only good software available is that which is found on a shelf in a store. That is such a lie. The best software doesn’t come in a box! It’s just out there. Everything you do in one way, shape, or form is being influenced by open mechanisms. One day soon, as far as software is concerned, it will be open. Cut. Print. Period.

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Will iPhones Fly with Free WiFi?

May 3, 2008 at 4:10 pm · in Media Blog, Apple, Technology · Comments (57)

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AT&T has now made it so you can now get online with your iPhone anywhere there is a HotSpot of theirs… including airports! Finally! It used to be a pita to try to get a connection in an airport. Not anymore, thanks to AT&T… or is it true??

On April 30th, MacRumors announced that “AT&T hotspots are now offering free WiFi access to iPhone users. Barnes and Noble, Starbucks and presumably AT&T’s 71,000 other WiFi hotspot locations are now offering iPhone users a custom portal to access free Wi-Fi. A special iPhone formatted page asks for your mobile phone number. Once entered, you can access the WiFi access for free.”

However, as of the date this video was uploaded, things have changed. Apparently, the WiFi was temporarily suspended. “No official announcement had been made, however, and AT&T representatives reportedly declined to comment. Today, many users are reporting that the free iPhone access has been removed and users are unable to log-in with just their phone number. This appears to be true at locations that were verified to offer the free WiFi access just days before.”

Hopefully, we’ll be able to re-announce this excellent service in the very near future.

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HP Dragon Notebook Giveaway

May 1, 2008 at 11:56 pm · in Giveaway, Media Blog · Comments (129)

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I have been selected as one of the people to give away an HP Dragon notebook this month on May 29th!! My requirements to win will be simple: You must be present in my chat room at the time of the giveaway. You must be subscribed to my YouTube channel. And… you must comment on my blog. The winner will be chosen from a random blog post, so the more you comment… the better your chances of winning! Remember, only GOOD comments count. Any insipid or useless comments will be deleted by my assistant Kat, and will not count towards winning. A good comment is one that contributes and even adds more to any discussion within a post. Show me with your comment that you took the time to really read my post, and want to discuss it. Don’t just say “HI THERE EVERYONE!”, or “I want to win!”.

So, anyway.. let’s talk about this amazing machine sitting on my desk! The Dragon comes with an Intel Core2 Extreme Processor X9000, and 4GB of Ram. This baby is more of a portable PC than it is a notebook. It has a 20.1″ High Def monitor, and a 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800M GTS video card. Wow, eh? Wouldn’t you like to be the proud owner of this notebook?

HP is giving away 31 of these, can you believe it? The 31 machines are distributed amongst 31 technology blogs - some you probably read already and some you might not have heard of. Each blog will draw a winner on each day starting from May 9 to June 8. How each blog will pick a winner is unique but they will only accept entries starting from 7 days before the draw. Going to each blog to submit an entry is allowed and encouraged.

So to recap, get those comments rolling in, and you can be the winner of my Dragon giveaway!

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