My editor at Network World Microsoft Subnet, Julie Bort, posted this video parody of the movie The Matrix that pokes fun at Microsoft Windows. No matter if you're a Linux fan, Mac user or you use Windows regularly, I think everyone will enjoy this video.
I'd heard through many different paths about Prof. Randy Pausch's Last Lecture given at Carnegie Mellon, but like so many things I want to do, I just hadn't gotten around to checking it out. I remember hearing about his lecture on TV, seeing the book The Last Lecture when it came out, hearing others talk about it... even a good friend gave me the book to read but I hadn't read it.
Tonight, I saw an email sitting in my junk mail folder, which I check every once in a while, and saw an email from Carol Ross's blog. It was an email saying "Your turn" to share about something you're grateful for. That's an easy and a hard question for me because there's tons of things I'm grateful for, and there are 10x more things I should be grateful for but probably go on blindly not recognizing them.
Anyway, I popped over to Carol's blog, made a comment on a post and took a quick scan to see what she'd been writing about. For whatever reason, I saw a link referring to a project Carol worked on for a friend who'd passed away a while back. She'd told me about it, so I decided to pop over there and check it out.
At the bottom of the site is a small YouTube video (246x140) and for whatever reason I had a feeling it was Randy Pausch's talk. It was 1 hour and 16 minutes long, it's late, and I'm behind on the project I wanted to get done tonight. All good reasons, again, not to watch this video... just like I hadn't read the book. Not sure what possessed me to take a different path, but I decided to watch a little bit of it. It's on YouTube, I figured, so I can always go finish watching it if the video's that good.
Well. I just finished the video 10 minutes ago and it has to have been one of the best talks I've ever seen. What caught my attention first is that Randy was a leader in the virtual reality field, something that speaks to that geek and video gamer in me. But more importantly, he was born in 1960, the same year I was born. He went through some of the same childhood experiences I had, like being fascinated watching men walk on the moon on TV in real time as it happened, and experiencing a family "driving" vacation out to Disneyland, something my family did too when I was nine or so. Hearing about his gaming the system to get to ride on the "vomit comet" in order to experience weightlessness set the hook so I had to watch the rest of the lecture.
Today, I had lunch with two friends who I've partnered in business with, worked with, worked for and visa versa. During our lunch, one friend, Donald, kept referring to and quoting things he said he'd learned from me over the years. I guess if I squint real hard I can kinda-sorta remember telling him those things, but not really. I told him he was giving me too much credit. I just didn't remember saying any of that to him, but I did agree with the things he was espousing. Maybe those are things that just came across in observation, I don't know. Donald's very observant that way. If I did really help him in the things he said he learned from me, well... then I'm flattered and honored he'd consider them important enough to pick up and use again. What he doesn't realize is I know I've learned 10x from him compared to anything he learned from me. At least that honestly is how it feels to me.
So, in the spirit of sharing what we're grateful for (back to Carol's email), I'm grateful for friends and colleagues who I've worked with and grown from in the process. I'm grateful for the long but completed path to Randy Pausch's Last Lecture video and I’m grateful for what he shared with me in that lecture.
If you haven't watched it, here's my opportunity to pay it forward and share Randy's talk with you.
Seems like we don't hear very much about HIV AIDS anymore. Maybe we're over saturated with news reports, we're just numb to it, or we thought the problem went away. If you're like me, you recall hearing we've made progress and HIV AIDS isn't growing as fast as it once was. If you think the HIV AIDS problem has gone away, think again. It might not be the biggest "killer disease" in the US but it is very much a world epidemic scale problem, with AIDS killing 1.5 million in Africa and 340,000 in South-East Asia in 2007. Worldwide there were over 2 million deaths from AIDS.
Today, December 1, is World AIDS Day 2008, a day set aside some eight years ago to help continue worldwide awareness of AIDS and the impact it has on countries and people across the world. Part of my business is working the companies and individuals on social media strategies to help them become contributing members of the online world where they can reach and build relationships with customers. My own further exploration into social media caused me to get into doing more things with video. I video tape and post conferences, do online product demos and reviews, and I've also dedicated some time to creating video assets for social causes I'm involved in or believe in.
This week I created a video, and posted it on YouTube, about the global impact of AIDS to help increase awareness about the disease. Once the recording project I'm working on is close to wrapping up (in the next few weeks) I'll recast the video with one of the songs from that CD.
I would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to watch this 3 minute 35 second video about World AIDS Day 2008 and an organization I support that works with orphan children in Romania and more recently Africa, called Global Hope. You can watch the video here or check out a few of my other original videos I've posted on my Converging Network YouTube channel page.
Here's a link to a document from the Joint United Nations Programme On HIV/AIDS if you would like to see more information about HIV/AIDS statistics across the world.
I love irony, qwirky humor and interesting things that bring a unique twist or different perspective to our world, which you can probably see in many of my blog posts. At my core I’m a very positive, optimistic person and I believe in the possibilities in life. I love people, helping people succeed and seeing the great things that can happen when you combine ideas, people and passion. Is this all some type of blog confession or something? No, stay with me for a minute and you’ll see where we’re going. Lately, we are all bombarded by messages about troubles in our economy, frozen credit markets, home foreclosures, failing banks and businesses, and more hard times ahead. Those are all euphemisms for saying that many people are dealing with some tough financial situations, have been laid off and are looking for work. It effects all of us in IT and technology.
My message this Thanksgiving is to keep our eyes on the prize, be hopeful for the future and thankful for all each of us have been blessed with. Markets, businesses and jobs grow and retract. That’s a natural part of an economy and sometimes that means we might have to tighten our belts, focus harder on doing our best at work, or look for work if you’ve been laid off. But don’t let the messages in the press and on TV be what dominates your thinking. Like the saying, you are what you eat, well... I believe you are what you think. In so many ways you get what you give back... oh, that’s so true. Let those external things get you down and you’ll be down. Be positive about the opportunities and challenges in front of you and guess what, you’ll probably break through them faster than expected.
I’m so thankful for many things this Thanksgiving holiday. But notably as I’m reflecting back now, none of them are really “things”, as in possessions. First and most important in my life is my wife who is doing very well and had some very good news about her health. That’s an amazing gift, as she is to me. Next is the birth of my grandson, Jonas. Yes... I’m too young to have a grandson, at least that’s what I tell myself. Remember about that “thinking positive” thing I was just saying? I love my two kids and enjoy every chance I get to be with them.
I’ve been fortunate with my business, Converging Network LLC, this year. And we are blessed with a wonderfully supportive and vibrant church, BUMC, where I work part time leading the contemporary music ministry while our leader is on sabbatical. I also play at a larger mega-church, SECC, where I’m able to play, grow, and bring back new ideas and experiences to help our church up north. I get to play my guitar nearly every week and I’ve been a part of a new recording recording project this summer and fall. I’m thankful for my wonderfully supportive friends and business partners.
So much of what I’m thankful for aren’t things I’ve sought or earned, like a position in a company or a new car. They are things that have been given to me, most of the times unasked or I couldn’t acquire by asking. They are gifts, blessings, acts of friendship, faith and love. I only hope I’ve been even close in equally giving these things and more to others. And I thank you for following and participating as part of this social community of bloggers, readers, security professionals, etc. Whether two people or 200,000 see and read what I write, it’s still about sharing ideas, debating them, and moving the ball downfield. I’m very thankful for you too.
So next time you get in front of your computer or pick up the phone, do something for someone else. Do it unsolicited and without expectation of anything in return. Make an unsolicited introduction for someone looking for a job. Write a recommendation on LinkedIn for a friend or co-worker. And most important, let those around you know how important they are in your life, and how thankful you are for them.
Joe Biden's kind of been left in the dust as Obama's begun putting together his cabinet team. So, I thought I'd put up this little post to brighten all of our days. One of the funniest comedians I like is a ventriloquist Jeff Dunham. His main puppet is an old crotchety guy named Walter. Walter likes to say it like it is, not holding back much. Kind of like...ah... Joe Biden, and he looks like Biden too!
As evidenced by this side-by-side picture, it's clear that Job Biden and Walter are one in the same. No wonder Biden was so good at mouthing Obama's talking points during the presidential campaign. Also, Biden's pretty good at "rhetorical flourishes", similar to Walter's no-holds-barred, outspoken behavior. Yep, they're one in the same.
Okay, I'm a totally knock-kneed, bad body odor, greesy haired, pizza eating nerd when it comes to Star Trek. I've been to Star Trek conventions, I watch the shows and have all the movies. When it comes right down to it, I'm really a fan of the classic Star Trek, more so than the other series (though I've watched and enjoyed them too.)
I remember when I watched the original Star Trek TV series on my parent's black and white TV on Friday nights. I was nine. I loved the show but it of course went away, forever I thought at the time. Next I was to rediscover Star Trek around 1975 in syndication while on vacation in Colorado Springs, CO, when we checked into a hotel room and turned on the TV. My brother, who is 5 years younger, thought Star Trek was a scary show and continiously cried unless I changed the channel. I wasn't about to, so I smacked him and made him watch it. After a few minutes he stopped crying and discovered Star Trek wasn't scary but was a cool show. From then on Star Trek was back and something I'd watch on TV and see in the movie theater many years since.
I'm excited about the next movie in the Star Trek which takes us back to earth before James T. Kirk was in the Kirk we knew on the U.S.S. Enterprise. Young Kirk was a renegade, someone who didn't feel like he fit in on earth and who was somehow destined for more. Spock was of two worlds, human and Vulcan, and left his family to make his mark. Both meet up in the Academy and the story takes off from there.
We'll have to see where the story line takes us but just like Batman Begins restarted the whole Batman story by taking us back to its roots, Star Trek looks to do the same for the Star Trek world.
So sit back, enjoy the trailer and cross your fingers it will be a good (hopefully great) movie. You can also visit the site website at www.StarTrekMovie.com.
I had an interesting ah-ha happen this morning. Last night I had emailed my editor because I had blogged about Jerry Yang stepping down as CEO of Yahoo!. I caught the news Monday evening and had blogged about this pretty early in the news cycle so I thought there might be a chance I’d get some “link love” if Network World had something on the home page about Jerry’s news. That’s the kind of story that would usually get some attention on the home page, and being a promoter type of personality, I’m always looking for ways to get ideas, thoughts and stories out. Last night I checked the NWW home page and there was big picture of Jerry Yang but I didn’t see a link to my blog post in the list under the main story link. Thus, my email to my editor Julie, who is always great about helping get the word out about what I write.
This morning Julie emailed me back both saying she’d check to see about getting a link to my post about Jerry, and then I had a second email back from her letting me know that I actually was already linked to on the home. The main storyline was a link to MY blog post, not the usual article that might be written by a reporter. Doh on me! And wow for me too! I’ve got the lead article on the NWW home page. Sweet! That’s cool but I’d almost missed it. I’d set my sights too short, only looking below the story to see if my blog post had been linked.
It’s so easy to look short and come up short sometimes in life. I’m realizing how often I look below the storyline for my story (in the proverbial sense) and not shooting for the stars. I should have set having a lead story on the NWW home page as a personal goal for me, and I never had. And that’s only a little goal. There are much, much bigger things I want to create and accomplish (and I’m working on some of those now!) I’d been thinking too small… I had been thinking too small, expecting my post would only ever fall under the main lead article. I hadn’t considered having the lead link a possibility, and it was, as is so much more.
So, note to self: Think big, shoot high and set big and even scary goals. You’ve accomplished great things and you will continue to accomplish great things in the future because you are will to dare and think big.
And a note to Jerry Yang: Thanks for thinking big, shooting high and setting big and even scary goals. You’ve accomplished great things and you will continue to accomplish great things in the future because you dare to think big.
Enjoy this video. Will Farrell with Tina Fey as G W Bush and Sarah Palin is a hoot!
I don't write about national politics much on this blog, but as soon as I heard Obama chose Biden for his VP, it was obvious to me why. All the issues the media raises about Biden's negatives (he's old, been in Washington too long, was an Obama naysayer, etc.) are simply missing the point.
My view on the strategy behind why Biden is Obama's VP pick: Biden is basically the democrat version of McCain. Biden’s got the foreign policy experience, senate experience, he’s outspoken, he has a temper he doesn't always control, has foot-in-mouth disease, has that independent, hard to control spirit, and is seen as a maverick. Very much like McCain.
Biden neutralizes McCain – Why cross over and vote McCain when you can get the same thing in Biden. If you’re a Democrat, don’t cross over to McCain because you’ve got Biden. If you’re a Republican considering going for Obama, it’s “safer” now because you get most of what you liked about McCain in Biden. (Except the national hero, POW hero factor.) And the knock that Obama’s not ready to be President? Well, Obama must be if Biden changed his mind enough to be Obama's VP. Biden left that door open in the Democrat debates when he said "[Obama] could be ready".
It's the neutralize McCain strategy by taking away most of the differentiating reasons you'd vote for him. Personally, I believe Hillary would have given Obama the best chance of winning, even though she would have made the run up to the election more like a Bill-ary turkey shoot for the Republicans.
The media isn't buying into Obama's Biden VP pick but I think this is the real strategy behind it.
Yesterday I recorded a podcast about Power IT Down Day. I'll be posting
the podcast to my Network World Converging On Microsoft
Podcast first part of next week. Power IT Down Day is an initiative set up
by Citrix, HP and Intel, to get everyone to fully power down their desktop and
laptop computers, and associated monitor, printers, powered speakers,
etc. during the off work hours on August 27th. I say fully power down
because even hitting the power button on monitors and laptops, for example,
doesn't mean they aren't sucking up juice through their standby modes and
transformers. Better yet, power it all down, by hitting the power switch on the
power strip plugged into the wall.
The idea behind Power IT Down Day is to help all of us be aware, and also to try and start some behavior changes, to save electricity consumed by our individual computers while we're not working at our desks. According to my podcast guest Tom Simmons, area Vice President Federal at Citrix, many are projecting we could see electric power costs soar in the future similarly to how gas prices skyrocketed this summer. California already suffers rolling brown outs and a lack of power for data centers. The seemingly unlimited low cost power we take for granted today, like the low cost gasoline of the past, could become a scarce and expensive resource in the future.
I'll save some of the specifics behind the program for the coming podcast, but until then please visit http://www.hp.com/go/poweritdown and sign up for the program. Based on the estimated power savings from powered down PCs at participating companies, Citrix, HP and Intel will donate an approximated savings amount the Red Cross. (Personally I wish they were donating the money to help us build more wind farms, or create hydrogen powered cars and fueling stations in the U.S.) I think this is a great program and I hope you'll participate.
Power IT Down Day is a socially conscious conservation effort: Help users, through their company's participation, understand the impact of needlessly leaving computers running during off work hours. That's good stuff, and well worth doing. I hope we change some habits and conserve power as a result. I've already started changing some of my power munching habits just after hearing about the program. But, I think we should tackle something closer to the heart of the problem: designing greener products.
Do monitors, printers, computer motherboards and power supplies, etc., really need to operate in standby mode where they continue to consume power? What's it save us, 10, 5, 3 or 1 seconds to start up our devices faster? Are we that pressed for time or that lazy? Why can't laptop power supplies (bricks) have a built in sensor that determines when laptop batteries no longer need charging, and then fully turn off the transformer? I'm sure those are just a few of the obvious examples and there are many more that could save even more energy.
I have the same beliefs about network security. Educating users only marginally helps the problem. The real issue is designing products that are fundamentally more secure or can automatically configure themselves securely rather than relying on end users to deem what programs should/shouldn't talk through a personal firewall, for example. Same with conserving energy. Fix the problem of creating greener products.
I call on product designers to design products than consume less or no energy, including periods when they might experience light or almost no use, rather than relying on end users to know and act to conserve energy. If you need help understanding how product design decisions impact the "greenness" of a product, and want to know how to design greener products, check out a company called Sustainable Minds (I'm an advisor to this company), their Okala methodology and their green product design industry expert blog. Help us all by starting at the source, creating greener products from the get-go.
And remember to sign up for Power IT Down Day, and most importantly, turn off all that computer equipment when you leave work on August 27th, and every day for that matter.
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Byron Acohido: Zero Day Threat: The Shocking Truth of How Banks and Credit Bureaus Help Cyber Crooks Steal Your Money and Identity
"Rushing in to profit from online commerce and banking, financial institutions knowingly put our personal information and identities at risk -- the digital-age equivalent of tobacco companies making sure cigarettes have highly addictive properties." - Mitchell Ashley, security consultant, The Converging Network
