Mitch Joel's Blog: Six Pixels of Separation, page 301

The New Nonprofit

Episode #337 of Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to.

It's the stuff legends are made. Good legends... about good people. Beth Kanter has always had a passion for making a difference. Meld that with her early understanding of technology and the power of connectivity and you can't mention the words, "social media for nonprofit organizations" and not hear the name, Beth Kanter, at the same moment. She has over 400,000 followers (and that's just on Twitter). Her blog, Beth's Blog - How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media, is widely regarded are the destination for nonprofit, charitable, NGO and other groups trying to make a difference in the world. Her first book, The Networked Nonprofit, is desk-table essential reading for anyone in the charitable and cause space and, most recently, she published a second book, Measuring the Networked Nonprofit, with co-author KD Paine. Both books have reached #1 on the list of nonprofit books on Amazon (which should come as no surprise). She is candid and forthcoming about the many opportunities nonprofits have to leverage social media to make a difference. Enjoy the conversation...

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via iTunes): Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast #337.

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Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #131

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Year One Labs, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, PressBooks, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see".

Check out these six links that we're recommending to one another:

Amazing: Microsoft turns spoken English into spoken Mandarin - in the same voice - The Next Web . "It took me a while to get around to watching this. At The Next Web , Microsoft demonstrated the results of research to stitch together several pieces of technology that are all now reaching maturity. Speech recognition, translation, text-to-speech dictation, and the use of snippets of someone's voice to make another language sound like they're speaking it. BabelFish analogies aside, this is remarkable stuff that might actually bring the world closer together. The fun starts at 7:30 if you're lazy, but the explanation is interesting too." (Alistair for Hugh).

Pinterest, You Are Drunk . "Nothing too serious for the holiday break. So here's something a bit lighthearted. Pinterest makes it easy to collect pictures of things. So easy, in fact, that maybe sometimes you shouldn't. I give you: Pinterest, you are drunk ." (Alistair for Mitch).

10 Timeframes - Contents Magazine . "Paul Ford muses on time." (Hugh for Alistair).

How We Think About Technology - The Atlantic . "A few weeks ago, Alexis Madrigal, senior editor at The Atlantic , was looking for a way to make an ebook. I said: try PressBooks (disclosure: that's my company!)... Alexis wanted to make a (free, giveaway) ebook of the best tech writing from The Atlantic from the past year. Here is that ebook... 334 pages of great tech writing - which you can download for free on your Kindle , or as a PDF, both formats built and published by Alexis using PressBooks." (Hugh for Mitch).

Everything Is Marketing: How Growth Hackers Redefine The Game - Fast Company . "This is the kind of stuff that I have (obviously) been preaching for close to fifteen years now. Marketing is not just advertising and, because of the nature of digital, great ideas can come from coders too. This Fast Company article looks at people they call, 'Growth Hackers' - a hybrid of marketers and coders who are simply leveraging the tools and technology to get more people to use their products. From the article: 'Run down the list of the web's biggest start ups from Hotmail to AirBnB to Groupon to Spotify and you'll see a startling fact: tactics that no one would have previously described as 'marketing' turned out to be the marketing steroids behind their business growth. For Hotmail, it was inserting an email signature at the bottom that turned every email sent by one of its users into a pitch for new users. For AirBnb, as Chen pointed out, it was Craigslist integration that allowed AirBnb hosts to use Craigslist as a sales platform. For Groupon (and Living Social ) it was the 'Refer 3 Friends, Get the Deal Free' offer that paid users to share deals with their friends. And for Spotify, well, next time you're on Facebook , consider for a second how much free 'advertising' they get by broadcasting the songs your friends have listened to.' It's a gem of a read and validates just how much marketing continues to evolve... and how many new and interesting opportunities exist to find new customers." (Mitch for Alistair).

Is Lack of Space Killing Creativity? - Dharma Bytes . "This piece came to me via the always-perfect, Nilofer Merchant . We often joke that certain people may have too much space between their ears, but this article takes that thought to a whole new level. With each and every day, we get filled with everything from work, commute, family obligations, holiday shopping, Facebook updates, tweets and blog posts (like this one) that we may, in fact, be in a position where we simply don't have enough space between our ears to let the creativity in to flow. You may call it 'daily distractions,' but we all need the physical and mental space to practice and exercise our creativity. Read this article. Think about it. Find some space." (Mitch for Hugh).

Now it's your turn: in the comment section below pick one thing that you saw this week that inspired you and share it.

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airbnb

alexis madrigal

alistair croll

babelfish

bitcurrent

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groupon

growth hackers

hotmail

hugh mcguire

human 20

iambik

kindle

librivox

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microsoft

nilofer merchant

paul ford

pinterest

pinterest you are drunk

pressbooks

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the atlantic

the book over

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year one labs

One More Thing... Before You Take Off For The Holidays...

You're going to eat, drink and be merry for the next little while, aren't you?

That's what this break is all about. Spend some time with family and friends and be thankful for everything that you have. It's the most wonderful time of the year (as the song goes). But, here's the thing: while you're abusing your body in many different, fun and interesting ways, don't forget to take some time to be selfish, self-indulgent and personal. Right before I leave the office, I make sure to grab four books that I plan on reading during the break.

Who am I kidding?

I probably won't read all four (I'll be happy to make it through one of 'em), but it's the intent that matters. I am making a physical effort to think about taking some personal time during the break to make myself smarter. The hopes are that this will bring me a few steps closer to where I want to be by the end of 2013. The books I am walking out of the office with are:

Be The Worst You Can Be - Life's Too Long For Patience And Virtue by Charles Saatchi. Not just the co-founder of famed global advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, but a better-known art collector and more, Saatchi is - without question - a very interesting fellow. Somewhat of a recluse and quirky character. This is a beautifully printed book and it was given to me today, by one of my business partners as a small holiday gift (thanks, Aubrey, veggie pad Thai on me next time ;).

Can't Buy Me Like - How Authentic Customer Connections Drive Superior Results by Bob Garfield and Doug Levy. I've been a fan of Garfield's forever, and I've become friends with Levy (who is a fellow TEDster). When Doug told that he was writing a book with Bob, I was (admittedly) jealous. This is a book about brands and real relationship building (the next loyalty marketing?). I was just sent an advance uncorrected proof (as the book only comes out on March 7th, 2013), but I can't wait to dive on in!

Contagious - Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger. Berger is the James G. Campbell Assistant Professor of Marketing at Wharton University. As if that wasn't impressive enough, his upcoming book, Contagious, is already getting crazy kinds of hype and the book only comes out on March 5th. This is also an advance copy that the publisher sent me. I did a quick glance and noticed that we share the same literary agent, so I suspect this will be the one I will get started with.

To Sell Is Human - The Surprising Truth About Moving Others by Daniel H. Pink. I've been a fan of Dan Pink since he first started writing. His latest (which comes out on December 31st) is all about how we sell... and trust me, we're all sales people. Dan's work always gets me charged up.

And with that, Happy Holidays! Feel free to share below which books you'll be devouring along with all of that food and drink over the holidays!

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bob garfield

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charles saatchi

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daniel h pink

doug levy

jonah berger

loyalty marketing

marketing professor

personal development

saatchi and saatchi

ted

to sell is human

wharton university

Is Amazon The Future Of Media?

What happens when real consumer data meets marketing?

In my next book, CTRL ALT Delete (coming out in May 2013), there is a chapter titled, Sex With Data, that looks at a the coming together of our traditional consumer information with all of this amazing social data that each and every one of us is willingly putting out into the world. Ultimately, the merging of these two data sets is going to create a very visual picture of the modern day consumer that will transcend any of the conventional demographic and psychographic stuff marketing professionals have been able to capture to date. We are having many roads converge in media, and what's becoming abundantly clear is this: consumers are going to have more relevant and highly targeted advertising in front of them that is placed and bought in both an automated fashion and in real-time. It was a dream only a few years ago, but it's a reality today. It's still not perfect, but it keeps getting better and better.

The true age of digital advertising?

Putting creative up on a digital channel is one thing, truly leveraging the power and connectivity of technology and digital channels to drive better results and efficiencies in media is going to create many new business opportunities, while destroying a lot of the traditional methods we have held so dearly to date. Yes, our sacred media cows are about to be... well, you know what I mean.

Who will be the winners? Who will be the losers? 

On December 17th, AdWeek ran what was one of the most fascinating stories about media in the modern age that I have read in the past long while titled, Amazon, Advertising's Sleeping Giant, to Awaken in 2013. While people wax poetic about the retail prowess and clout of Amazon, I am always quick to point out that they are one of the most fascinating media companies that has ever been created. Marketing professionals and luddites alike typically stare at me the way that a dog does when you try to talk to it. What the majority of people don't know is that Amazon is able to undercut so many retailers not just because they have a more streamlined or technologically advanced supply chain system, but because each and every customer also provides Amazon with a significant amount of media revenue per user that eclipses most other media properties (let alone competitive online retailers). I have no formal proof of this and Amazon is very quiet about how media is played on their site and partner sites, but industry insiders from all corners have all conferred that Amazon gets a lot of media dollars per user, and is able to optimize that number by constantly and consistently putting highly targeted and relevant offers in front of them.

Amazon will be the media company to watch.

According to this AdWeek article (and Amazon's previous announcements), this is what Amazon either has planned or is optimizing in the media world (hold on to your hats):

They have built "a proprietary real-time bidding platform that plugs into exchanges and supply-side platforms, including Google's AdX and PubMatic. This platform lets the company retarget its users across the Web based on their browsing and purchase habits on Amazon's owned-and-operated properties."

"As early as the first quarter of 2013 it will introduce a self-serve real-time bidding platform for media buyers, including agency trading desks, which will be able to use the platform to manage their own buys."

Amazon also has its Amazon Advertising Platform, which was highlighted during Advertising Week. Currently, it is a fully-managed service, run through their own, proprietary technology. The system offers two types of (limited) targeting: lifestyle and in-market functionality (retargeting, etc...), but that will likely evolve in the next short while.

"Ads served on Amazon's owned-and-operated sites have been sold on a cost-per-thousand-impressions basis, but agencies are said to be wary of Amazon switching them to a cost-per-acquisition model since the e-commerce company would then have more insight into which clicks resulted in purchases (potent data that often isn't shared with most publishers). Nonetheless, the idea of such closed-loop advertising has many media buyers excited."

"Amazon also has an opportunity to shift up the funnel, to go after demand-generation ad budgets (i.e. branding dollars) by using its audience data to package targeting segments. It's easy to imagine these segments as hybrids of Google's intent-based audience pools and Facebook 's interest-based ones."

While Amazon will not confirm the number, this AdWeek article claims that Amazon Media Group has about 600 employees.

The possibilities are endless. The data is endless.

There are other mitigating factors that make this line of thinking fascinating to the marketing industry. Amazon has a very trusted brand, consumers have a high-level of affinity for the brand and, as a retailer, Amazon's laser focus on providing great pricing, selection, relevancy and information is second-to-none in the online commerce channel. The bigger question becomes an issue of data and privacy. To date, Amazon has been extra cautious in protecting the data that they have accumulated. It is without question that there are few retailers (or even retail associations) that have the type of insight and consumer data into pricing, choice, selection, interest and more than Amazon. If they are able to pull this off into a media play (and, by all accounts, they are already doing it), 2013 could very well become one of the most interesting years in advancement of media that we have seen in a long while.

Amazon as a media empire. What do you think?

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sex with data

social data

supply chain management

The Impermanent Internet

The Internet is like an elephant: it never forgets.

Whether it's a deep cache, a like on Facebook, a retweet, a simple Google search, a screen capture or more, it seems like the Internet is a massive repository for everything that we do - in text, images, audio and video - that lives on in perpetuity (whether we like it or not). For some, that is a good thing. For others, it can be somewhat regrettable. In my first book, Six Pixels of Separation, I make the case for being both active in the online channels and careful of how you create content within it, because it will always be a part of search results, algorithms or more. As the digital age evolves, we are also allocating real value to digital items (think about the e-books that you buy or the songs that you pick up on iTunes). We pay for digital things (and value them) much in the same way that we buy physical items. But, what if the future of the Internet wasn't about that. What if the future of the Internet was no longer about creating the same value for digital items that we have for physical items. What if the future of the Internet wasn't about creating these long legacies and online diaries of our lives in multimedia? What if the future of the Internet was about fast, temporary pieces of content that are here right now and gone a little bit after that?

The temporary Internet of things.

It started with Netflix and Spotify. Suddenly, there is no need to own a handful of movies or music when - for a subscription fee - you can have access to entire libraries of content on-demand. The value of content shifted from owning stuff to having access to everything. It suddenly became worth it to not own anything in lieu of having access to everything. Ownership of content is becoming less and less important to consumers as streaming becomes more and more accessible. While some will simply glaze over this shift in consumerism, it is a massive deal in terms of understanding the new consumer. More recently, Snapchat, has been gaining momentum (hat-tip to Joseph Jaffe for introducing it to me). With Snapchat, users take a picture (or short video) and send it to friends via their smartphones. That's no great innovation. What makes Snapchat interesting is that the picture (or video) can only be seen by the recipient for a couple of seconds after they have opened it. After that, poof! It's gone (like Keyser Soze). All of the content shared on Snapchat is temporary. So, what's the point? Young people are currently driving the growth of Snapchat (which many people see as a contender to the Instagram throne) because of that very reason. They have no need to keep this stuff on a hard drive, they're creating content much in the same way we used to have conversations in the pre-Internet days (did you ever think of archiving your face-to-face conversations?). They're also probably flocking to Snapchat because it's not Facebook or Twitter (where their parents and teachers are). Sure, you can grab a screenshot of a picture sent to you (which, when done, Snapshot sends a notification to the creator of the content that this has taken place) and yes, it's also known to also have tons of porn on it (go, figure), but there is something happening here that is worth studying: perhaps this is the beginning of a new, temporary, kind of Internet that none of us ever expected.

The digital hoarder.

There's no doubt that there is a massive need for better management and storage of our digital selves (from banking and health records to family pictures and the documents that we create), but beyond that, are we moving into an era of enlightenment that doesn't require us to store, keep and manage things like a quick little chat between friends and more? Snapchat may well be a fad, but it could also be the continuum of something more. At the end of last week, All Things D ran a news item titled, Facebook to Launch Its Own Snapchat Competitor App. From the article: "Facebook is currently testing its own built-in-house version of a 'Snapchat-like' application, a messaging app that allows users to send impermanent photo messages to one another, according to sources familiar with the matter... Facebook's new app is another in a string of the company's aggressive movements into the friend-to-friend communications space." Suddenly, having content that we create with the full knowledge that it will both self-destruct and be impermanent, could well usher in a new kind of content and consumer.

I don't know about you, but I'm fascinated by this and the marketing applications and opportunities that come with it.

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keyser soze

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netflix

online banking

online channel. content creation

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the digital hoarder

twitter

Finger-Pointing, Self-Righteousness And Middle Fingers

A moment of silence, please...

While we held that moment of silence, what was happening around you? Did people respect it? Did they go about their daily lives? What about Twitter and Facebook? Did those feeds come to sudden halt? Did the feeds continue with the hashtag #momentofsilence describing the scene? Did everyone in restaurants and sporting events stop in silence? There are more tragedies and atrocities happening in the world at any given moment than our stomachs can bear. These are sensitive and disturbing times. With that, we all handle this type of news in our own way. The majority of people on social media channels and platforms are hardly media experts - able to understand the nuances of what it means to be so public and publishing our constant thoughts out to the world - and so, their reactions are visceral and personal.

Unleash the kraken!

I did not hear about the tragedy in Newton until early afternoon on December 14th. I even conducted a podcast interview that morning and probably tweeted out (or posted on Facebook) my usual slew of random drivel or curated pieces of content that caught my attention. I tend to only catch the more general news in the evening or if something pops up in my feeds. If I'm to be honest, I often post to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn without ever looking at the activity on the channels. It's ironic that I'm adding to the noise through the work that I'm doing, but I don't want to be distracted by the very same type of content. If you were following the horrors of Newton online, it would be easy to surmise that I wasn't being all that sensitive to those who were following it. Well, there were more than a few individuals who took it on themselves to advise individuals - in a very public way - how "disrespectful" they were being. How could someone be shilling for their business or cracking jokes when young children had just been murdered?

The classic one-upsmanship.

Self-righteous or not, it begs the question: how do we - as very public individuals and brands - act, react and engage when there is this kind of public attention happening on a specific tragedy? As I read the tweet stream of these individuals attacking others, I looked around. People were still eating in restaurants, football games were still on TV, the comedy station was running a stand-up special, people were still posting pictures of their cats online, party music was being played on the radio and much more kept rolling on. Does it mean that everyone in the world is insensitive? Does it mean that we all mourn or deal with tragedy in different ways? I'm no ethics professor. In fact, my general philosophy is: "too each his/her own." While the tragedy in Newton cannot be diminished, I felt genuinely bad for those that were being called out, publicly, on Twitter, for not behaving in a way that others felt they should be acting considering the circumstances.

Here's the thing:

The brands (and individuals) that find themselves in trouble are usually the ones that have removed the humanity, community and sincerity from their content. These are the brands that are the losers. Sadly, the truth is this: disaster or not, the brands that remove humanity, community and sincerity from their content will always be the losers. Whether it is during a disaster or not. As for those who were busy accusing others of being insensitive, it's important to look beyond the content and understand the context. When all else fails, the best plan of attack for an individual or a brand in the face of a tragedy is to do this: nothing. Just back away from the Twitter and Facebook until you feel that the storm has passed. This way, you're not offending anyone or doing something that could be misconstrued. Silence can sometimes be golden. The same can be said to those who feel it's important to call out and insult the activities of others.

It's easy to point fingers. Be careful where, how and when you point them.

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Dances With Robots

In 1863 something profound happened to First Lieutenant John J. Dunbar. While recovering from an injury during the American Civil War, he takes solace in the solitude of his new post out on the western frontier. During this time of personal reflection and healing, he not only befriends his Sioux neighbors, but also finds himself doing the same with a wolf that is tracking his every movement. As Dunbar immerses himself in the Sioux culture and people, they give him the name, "Dances With Wolves." Michael Blake's 1988 book of the same name would be adapted into the 1990 Hollywood blockbuster western film directed, produced and starring Kevin Costner. As strange as it must have been for the Lakota to see a person playing alongside a wolf, we humans are having a very similar reaction to how robots are changing the face of our work. Instead of embracing the pace of change and advancements, many see the integration of new robots as predators stealing the jobs of good, hardworking Americans.

Close encounters of the robot kind.

New York Times columnist, Paul Krugman, has dedicated many op-ed columns to this very issue. On December 9th, 2012 his piece, Robots and Robber Barons, states: "there's no question that in some high-profile industries, technology is displacing workers of all, or almost all, kinds. For example, one of the reasons some high-technology manufacturing has lately been moving back to the United States is that these days the most valuable piece of a computer, the motherboard, is basically made by robots, so cheap Asian labor is no longer a reason to produce them abroad." This will call for systemic and additional challenges to the US economy. If, in fact, this becomes a reality of the new world, it means fewer blue-collar jobs and fewer jobs overall (especially when a robot can be more productive and more accurate than a low-waged human). Yes, we will need a whole new slew of trained and skilled workers to produce, program and maintain this robotic workforce, but this will still leave a shortfall of jobs against a growing population that will need to be educated and trained in what is still a nascent and technologically advanced vocation. As robotic automation takes over, what are human beings going to do?   

There is another, more interesting story brewing that could change the course of robotics, work and the future of business.

It looks like a broomstick on wheels. At the top, you slip an iPad into this two-wheeled robot, turn on FaceTime and suddenly, you can attend meetings in any office or conference room in the world that has one of these thing-a-ma-jigs. Imagine that, you can be anywhere (home, the bathtub, your local Starbucks) while your FaceTime-enabled robot is in and out of status meetings, production updates, on the factory floor and more (although, these first versions won't be able to take the stairs).

Founded in 2011 and backed by the famed startup accelerator, Y Combinator, Double Robotics (operated out of Sunnyvale, California and Miami, Florida) is focused on building and bringing to market these iPad-based telepresence robots for under two thousand dollars a piece. It would be easy to see this as a unique moment in time when something as expensive and cumbersome as telepresence gets untethered, or you could see it as something more. What if the future of robotics is not about the automation and removal of human beings from the workplace, but rather about the real value is derived from the augmentation and optimization of human beings in the workplace?

The six million dollar man... and woman.

This is not about subdermal implants or bionic limbs, but it is about the integration of human beings and robots to make us work smarter, faster and more efficiently. Double Robotics doesn't replace the human with a robot. Double Robotics integrates robotic technology to make human beings more effective and more connected. It's not just the Double. Increasingly, robots are making their way into the operating room. Innovations like the da Vinci Surgical System is designed to make complex surgeries easier. So far, it has been successful with its minimally invasive approach. A surgeon using human movements and gestures controls the actual robot. The is coupled with the robot's ability to reach and create movements in the human body that a surgeon's hands cannot. Precision and miniscule movements coupled with human knowledge and skills are becoming commonplace for procedures like prostatectomies and cardiac valve repair.

We are the future of robots at work.

We worry too much about a world where robots replace us. It seems like the bigger opportunity and solution to that problem is to use robots to make each and every one of us better at the work that we do.

So, would you rather be replaced by a robot, or use a robot to make the work that you're doing that much better?

The above posting is my twice-monthly column for the Harvard Business Review . I cross-post it here with all the links and tags for your reading pleasure, but you can check out the original version online here:

Harvard Business Review - Don't Be Afraid of the Robots.

Tags:

automation

bionic limbs

business column

da vinci surgical system

dances with wolves

double robotics

facetime

future of business

harvard business review

high technology manufacturing

ipad

kevin costner

michale blake

new york times

paul krugman

robotic automation

robotic workforce

robotics

robots

robots and robber barons

robots at work

starbucks

subdermal implant

technology

telepresence

telepresence robots

us economy

work environment

y combinator

Stats, Lies And Data - The Truthiness Of Information

Episode #336 of Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to.

I've got a bit of guilt about the recording of this podcast. I tend to record as many shows as possible, stock them up and then release them as I can. In the rush of things a few months back, I wound up recording more shows that I usually do. Tom Webster (aka BrandSavant) is Vice President of Strategy for Edison Research, most widely-known as the sole providers of U.S. Election exit polling data to all major media outlets. In the race up to the last U.S. presidential elections, I know how swamped Tom was, but he agreed to be on my show to help promote another project he has called,  The Social Habit, that looks at social media research. So, what you're getting is a podcast that was recorded before Barack Obama took office for a second term. That being said, none of the content we discussed was time-sensitive. Lastly, Tom is both incredibly smart, insanely funny and has a dry sense of sarcasm (or, a man after my own heart). In short, it was a total pleasure to finally have him on the show. Enjoy the conversation...

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via iTunes): Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast #336.

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advertising podcast

blog

blogging

brand

brandsavant

business book

david usher

digital marketing

edison research

facebook

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marketing

marketing blogger

marketing podcast

online social network

podcast

podcasting

social media

the social habit

tom webster

When The Future Comes Faster

Can you really say that technology does not touch the work that you do?

We tend to see things in a linear fashion. It's human nature. The truth is that we are at an amazing inflection point where exponential growth and advancements in technology are bringing things to market in a faster and more powerful way. When I speak like this, I'm often confronted by people with a quizzical look on their face. Technology can be confusing enough, but add in the notion of exponential growth, and it's enough to make a brain (or two) explode. Thankfully, we have people like Ray Kurzweil who can explain it. In this recent talk at Google in support of his new book, How to Create a Mind - The Secret of Human Thought Revealed, the inventor, futurist and author explains the innovations in technology and just how quickly they are happening. To sum it up: the future is happening much faster than I thought.

Watch this...

(in other news: hug your kids, stay safe and if you think someone is struggling with depression or mental illness, speak to them, get them help and if we kill the stigma maybe we'll stop killing one another).

Tags:

business book

future

futurist

google

how to create a mind

innovation

ray kurzweil

technology

Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #130

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Year One Labs, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, PressBooks, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see".

Check out these six links that we're recommending to one another:

Solving The Broken Crossword Puzzle Economy - The AWL . "You guys spend a lot of time talking about publishing. But oh, the plight of the crossword creator! Slaving in anonymity, her work sitting on a shelf for years, underpaid, unloved. In this behind-the-scenes post, Ben Tausig shows how the crossword industry is changing forever." (Alistair for Hugh).

A Short Lesson in Perspective - LINDSREDDING.COM . "We live in a world where we pay extra to have someone's logo on our shirt. Marketing permeates our society; it's the right hand of capitalism. Before he died, one Linds Redding wrote about the marketing industry. It's a pretty bleak take on the world. I chose to find this uplifting and inspiring: as we're flooded with commercial pressures this holiday season, it's the gleam in my daughter's eye as she sees blinking lights, the grin on my wife's face as the streets are dusted with flakes, that matter." (Alistair for Mitch).

Funes, the Memorious - Jorge Luis Borges . "You may well have read this famous story by Jorge Luis Borges , about a young man who remembers everything, not only 'every leaf on every tree of every wood, but even every one of the times he had perceived or imagined it.' It's worth reading again." (Hugh for Alistair).

Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Leonard Cohen - NFB . "My wife went to see Leonard Cohen in concert a couple of weeks ago. The 78-year-old put on one of the best concerts she has ever seen (I missed it!). Here's a NFB documentary from 1965, when Cohen was a 30-year-old poet, famous, but not yet the adored pop star he would become. Great footage of Cohen, and of Montreal in a bygone era." (Hugh for Mitch).

Humanoid robot flexes its 160 muscles for creepy realism - FutureTech . "I'm as fascinated with Internet culture as I have ever been. That being said, I'm eyeing robots and the maker movement like nobody's business. Take a look at this video. Can you feel it? I think we'll have robots truly among us much sooner than people expect or realize. Yes, we're still a ways away, but it's happening. And I, for one, welcome our robotic overlords!" (Mitch for Alistair).

Making The Impossible Approachable: The Amazing Illustrations Of NASA's Storyboarder - Fast Company . "This falls into the 'I never even thought of that!' category. Imagine if your job was to imagine entire worlds, planets, star systems and more. Not in a science fiction kind of way, but in a way that could best be used to help the mass population visualize something as important as space exploration. This is somebody's full-time (and serious) gig. This is an amazing piece that looks at the job of Pat Rawlings, a professional space artist. Incredible." (Mitch for Hugh).

Now it's your turn: in the comment section below pick one thing that you saw this week that inspired you and share it.

Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Leonard Cohen by Donald Brittain & by Don Owen, National Film Board of Canada

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