Minute Tech podcast

Pghbloggers Blogfest 13 - Blog it, 'Cast it!

2008-02-24T05:09:00.000-08:00

Hey, folks. Did the PghBlogggers Blogfest 13 at Finnegan's Wake in Pittsburgh's Northside this past Friday evening. A wet, slushy, sleety, blowy evening in Pittsburgh did nothing to dampen the spirits of the various bloggers and podcasters who showed up. A few of the cast:

Susan Courtad, of the One-Woman Show blog;
Dawn Papuga of Lyrique Tragedy Reviews;
Jim & Amy Shireman - Jim does Sportocracy podcast on Talkshoe;
Elwin Green of the Post-Gazette;
Karamagi Rujumba of the Post-Gazette;
Dayvoe of Two Political Junkies;
Bob from Masters of Gilligan;
Father Spoon;
Norm Heulsman of the new Strom Huelsman podcast;
Sickpuppy and Father Spoon of the Should I Drink That brewcast;
Cynthia and Brother Anthony Closkey of Big Big Design;
Mike Woycheck of Have a Good Sandwich blog;
...and many others.

Why weren't you there? Oh, yeah, the snow. :-)
check out Pghbloggers.org for future events...and start blogging!

..alex.

Blogging - You Either Are or You're Not

2008-02-09T06:05:00.000-08:00

After a bit of blogging and podcasting hiatus, I read these two uber-perceptive statements by, or through, Jeremiah Owyang:

1st, Jeremiah links to Seth Godin's blog post in which Seth says that blogging is fun, and done, because it's something he "gets" to do, rather than has to do. This is a hugely important statement and realization.

2nd, in Jeremiah's blog post about CEO blogging, he states that the only exit strategy from blogging is simply to stop. To stop means perhaps, like the podfade, that the lack of interest, time or impetus, or some blend of the three, has impeded the act of communicating through blogging. In any case, this is disheartening to any readers you've picked up...and presents a loss to the world of another stream of an author's consciousness transcribed.

I twittered this morning for the first time in days...well, for the first time in over a week. Why the stop? Who cares? The point is to pick up again and continue.

Frodo didn't carry the ring because he had to. He carried the ring because he could. And, he cared.

..Alex.

Testing Seesmic and Ustream.tv this morning

2008-01-27T08:53:00.000-08:00

I'm testing streaming video via Seesmic and Ustream.tv this morning, with bionicle and lego building episodes with my son. I've read/viewed/heard that Seesmic is to video as Twitter is to blogging...but hadn't yet put that to the test. This morning I see that it forces production to about 5 or 6 minutes max. I made no alterations to original settings, so I don't know if that's expandable...but with my current content, that's not a big deal. Ustream.tv I believe has a different limitation...but also is more about streaming longer shows & content than just short bursts, as is Seesmic's specialty.

Below is an embedded video from Ustream.tv. Go to Seesmic and search on "alexlandefeld" for the 5 short vids posted there this morning.

..alex.

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Alternatively, link here for this morning's recording, and here for the Ustream show

Minute Tech 066 - pre-production iMovie video

2008-01-26T17:20:00.000-08:00

I record the Minute Tech podcast via iMovie. This is the first time I've exported the recording to an uploadable format - not quite as pretty as the post-production audio file...but it's the real mccoy...er...macrae. And, yes, I read from the transcript. :-) I find that I throw in too many ums and ah's otherwise, which really pumps up edit time. A goal is to get beyond transcript talking!

..alex.

Click To Play

Minute Tech 066: How Do You Organize Information? Databases.

2008-01-26T07:15:00.000-08:00

- HBO's got milk and India's going orbital;
- How do you organize information? Databases.
- Seesmic is setting itself apart by micro-vlogging.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

1st week at Elliance, Inc.

2008-01-25T03:55:00.000-08:00

Okay, folks, this has been my first week as a Customer Support Specialist at Elliance.com, a web development, strategy, SEM/SEO & SaaS company in Pittsburgh. While the week has been very awesome in terms of learning new things, doing new things, meeting a great team of people...I also have not been putting out Minute Tech episodes!

But that's fine - we all adapt to new environments, new stimuli, etc.

One big event I attended this week: the preliminary meeting about Podcamp Pittsburgh 3. More on that and other things shortly.

..alex.

Minute Tech 065: How Do You Organize Information? Computers.

2008-01-18T05:33:00.000-08:00

- Batteries Get A Charge Out of Silicon Nano-wires;
- How do you organize information? Computers.
- and, Stephen Hawking's Popular Book Moves Forward in Time.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Logos #7 - Farewell to Wheeling

2008-01-17T13:45:00.000-08:00

After working for six years with wonderful teams of client-focused people, how do you say goodbye with any effectiveness? With just an e-mail to include your e-mail addres...or do you include them whole-heartedly into your ongoing community? I prefer the latter. Please see some of my favorite past images and understand that they define me and help to formulate me for future experiences and interactions.

..alex.

Click To Play

Minute Tech 064: How Do You Organize Information? The Book

2008-01-16T05:32:00.000-08:00

- Google Crunches Petabytes daily;
- How Do You Organize Information? The Book.
- Dawn Papuga & the Stage Representation of Scar.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 063: How Do You Organize Information? The Brain.

2008-01-14T16:50:00.000-08:00

- An Einstein Ring is Not a Berliner;
- First in a Series: How Do You Organize Information? The Brain.
- Recent Posts by Three Prolific Bloggers.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 062: What is Tatting?

2008-01-11T05:32:00.000-08:00

- Trading CES for MacWorld;
- Minute Tech Guest Carol Burrows on What is Tatting?
- Career Anchors - Discovery Your Real Values.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Thoughts on Improvement

2008-01-08T08:46:00.001-08:00

How to move up, how to move forward, how to organize, how to prepare?

These are all questions streaming through at an unbelievable clip.

Three primary things to work on here: my life, my podcast & blog, my learning. By discussing this process with myself, perhaps you'll glean something for yourself. :-)

I seek to organize the information that I've created, the information I see on a daily basis, the information I need to move forward and the information I'll be picking up on tomorrow. I'm thinking of various ways to do this: via a spreadsheet, via a database, via a wiki, or simply on this blog. The solution needs to be in part open, so that you can see the process I'm working on, and in part closed so that private info can remain private.

A key part of this need & movement to organize is discussing my premise for the Minute Tech podcast. I believe that all things impact our lives: temperature, humidity, negative or positive attitude, the carbs, fats and minerals we take in for sustenance or perceived pleasure, the presence of our solar system in the galaxy, the ability to reach out and learn every day, everything. Because of this, I believe that all that we interact with, all that aids us in interacting with our environment much like the construction and design of the hardware and software that the rover Opportunity uses to explore the Martian environment, can be considered technology.

There are those who agree on this issue and others who disagree that technology can have such a broad definition. How do you define technology?

Organizing (or the attempt, at any rate) is in itself the use of technology to get from point A to point B - from a point of less organization to a point of greater organization.

I will be starting with a new employer later this month. The role which I presently perceive that I'll be fulfilling will require much learning in a relatively short amount of time. How I manage this learning of both techniques and realms of information organization may well consume me (a portion of me) and take me in totally new directions of learning and development.

Or, I could sit on a couch and wait for oblivion to take hold. Uh, right.

How do you manage the incredible diversity of information thrown at you on a daily basis? Do you manage by, well, managing by natural ability? Or have you devised a method for handling the informational fire-hose?

Tomorrow morning I must push out the final needle-craft interview with Carol Burrows. After that, I will seek new topics for my weekly sets of Minute Tech discussions.

ttyl,

..alex.

Moving Forward!

2008-01-07T08:20:00.001-08:00

Episodes 47 through 50 of the Minute Tech podcast dealt with mourning, due to the fact that my mother, the mother of 7 and the grandmother of 18, had died on December 8th. This past weekend my family laid her to rest beside her husband, Charles W. Landefeld, in a cemetary in Cleveland, Ohio. This burial activity allowed me to put into action some of the things I talked to you about in those 4 podcasts.

In some of the family's eulogies, I learned more about my mother than I learned from her. Often this is the case, that you learn more from others about someone close to you than you do from the person him or herself.

Most importantly I learned that my mother had brought up her kids in a spirit in which she'd been brought up: to continually learn, to seek to do the right thing for everyone, to be open to the world of ideas, thoughts and beliefs that our fellow humans hold close to their hearts and wear on their sleeves and to be assured that those who traditionally had been led to believe that they had a set role in life...were always in a position to set their own course.

Are you in a position in which you feel the path has been laid out for you? Do you not feel that you can guide your own ship through the waters of time? Please consider waking up to the idea that there are only certain parameters that are set in stone: the universe appears to be continually expanding, we each are governed by the force of gravity while on a planetary body, and we each must convert matter to energy and waste to survive within our environment.

No other parameters hold you down.

Now, what can you do? What should you do? What will you do?

..Alex.

Tech Marches On!

2008-01-03T04:00:00.000-08:00

Is Apple priming for a leap from sub-orbital to orbital?
Is Oil building to $150/bbl?
Will anyone build a sporty two-seat convertible that's economical and fun to drive?
Will the OLPC supplant the PC industry?
Are all cellphones destined to have visual voicemail?
Will iTunes and AppleTV wrest control of the one-eyed babysitter from the networks?
Will I enjoy working in a small web 2.0 company?
Are we going to see sensible presidential politics this year?
Will religion rise in popularity as uncertainty and volatility rise?
Who is the next Microsoft, Google, Apple, Nokia, Toyota, Sony or Facebook? Will you recognize it when you see it?
Where are the job opportunities?
Where are the housing opportunities?
Where are the fine and perfomance art opportunities?
Should you begin thinking about longevity, or continue hedonistically?
Should you learn continuously?
Should you write your will?

All these questions, and more, are the thoughts at the outset of a new year. Think about them. Write to me at Minutetech@gmail.com about your answers - I'll include them in an upcoming show.

Note: MinuteTech will be off the digital airwaves for a few days due to family events. I may squeeze one off, but don't expect one until Mon., Jan 7th.
:-)

Happy New Year...and start questioning the future!

..Alex.

Minute Tech 061: What is Knitting?

2008-01-03T03:52:00.000-08:00

- Axiotron Releases the Modbook Tablet Mac;
- Minute Tech guest Carol Burrows on "What is Knitting?"
- and, My Single New Year's Resolution.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 060: Greetings and Salutations to 2008

2008-01-01T08:48:00.000-08:00

- iJustine, iPod, iRentals and iStocks;
- 2008: The Year of Health, Wealth, Religion and Work;
- Learning to Tune the iWeb RSS Settings.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 059: What is Embroidery?

2007-12-31T06:31:00.000-08:00

- The 40-year Mortgage and Will Smith's Quote Malfunction
- Minute Tech guest Carol Burrows on "What is Embroidery?"
- Embroidery Books for Suggested Further Reading.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 058: What is Crochet?

2007-12-29T06:08:00.000-08:00

- OnStar Down, Egypt's Intellectual Property, and Mars Flows;
- Minute Tech guest Carol Burrows on "What is Crochet?"
- Books about Ancient and Modern People.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..alex.

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

The Rosetta Stone

2007-12-27T19:48:00.000-08:00

I look at podcasts as a translation from one view of the world to another. The following paragraph from the as-yet-to-be-recorded episode 58 of Minute Tech podcast is classic "Alex" - focusing on something extremely far from present-day reality in search of a reflection of present-day reality.

"The first is something of an antique, having first been published in 1915 with reprints in 1933 and 1943: "Countryman's Edition of Morey's Ancient Peoples", by William C. Morey and Irving N. Countryman. This interesting exploration of humanities past is full of inaccuracies in light of all the new scientific discoveries of the past 50 years....but also full of very good information and insights - it is a pleasure to read through and see some of the old pictures. The book covers pre-historic peoples up through the fall of the Roman empire. My favorite references are to translation aides, such as the Rosetta Stone, which gave a path to translating Egyptian hieroglyphics, and the Behistun Rock, which gave a first peek into translations of ancient Babylonian cuneiform inscriptions."

58 Show Transcript

We humans are constantly looking for ways to "translate" from culture to culture. Why do some political systems allow for the assassination of opposition leaders while others merely throw mud at one another? Why do some cultures expect a quick cup of espresso in a tall white paper cup while others allow for a 20 minute ceremony to serve tea? Why are some cultures so open to women and minorities moving to the top of culture, while others can't stand such heresy?

Let's keep looking for answers, keep looking for translations, keep looking for areas of similarity.

..alex.

Minute Tech 057: What is Needle-craft?

2007-12-26T12:16:00.001-08:00

- The Moon & Mars Dance, While the Ursids Shower;
- Minute Tech guest Carol Burrows on "What is Needle-craft?"
- Facebook, Tabloids and Baboons - "Baboon Metaphysics".

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

December 8th, 2007 - The Cycle Continues

2007-12-24T04:33:00.000-08:00

December 8th of this year was the day my mother died. A strong woman, a strong human, until her end. Her strength lives on within us. Her spirit lives on within us.

An end, of course, is also a beginning. Those of us who survive her in the family are reminded of the cyclicality of life on this geothermal speck of dust in the Milky Way galaxy. We're born, we live, we have families, we die, our families hopefully live to continue their own cycles.

This, of course, describes the cycles enjoyed by all living being on this planet, so what makes us so special? Why, that we can blog about it! :-)

The Minute Tech podcast, episode 57, will be a Monday/Tuesday podcast, focusing on the moon and other celestial events. On Sunday I mentioned the Winter Solstice, which occurred at 1:08 am, December 22nd. This whole holiday season revolves, as it were, around the solstice. How does this winter event impact your life? That's probably like asking a skeptic how the Moon affects his or her life...but in reality, all major and minor human cultures celebrate the solstice...so I'm sure it impacts it in some way.

Let me know if it doesn't! :-)

ciao, bella.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 056: Is Video the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-23T07:19:00.000-08:00

- The Sun is Coming Back and LED is Beginning to Shine;
- Are Videos the Best Communications Medium?
- Lawrence Lessig describes the Remix Generation.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

Minute Tech 055: Are Pictures the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-22T06:39:00.000-08:00

- New Zealand quakes, ThinkSecret crumbles & DoubleClick is Gobbled;
- Are Pictures the Best Communications Medium?
- Anna Farmery asks Mark Sanborn to describe confidence.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

10,000 Steps to a Better You

2007-12-20T10:27:00.000-08:00

Okay, so the creative juices didn't fully jell this morning...but we're a heckuva a ways along. The show transcript for Show # 55 can be found here. The elipses show the gaps in the transcript...and without a full transcript, I won't record, cause I tend to do too much umming and ahhing through out. I can really well read my writing...and it's sounding more and more natural...I think.

Do you agree? e-mail me to vote yea or nay!

But 10,000 steps? What does that mean?

When you do a daily podcast, what is your goal for number of shows, or is it foolish to even have one? I think the latter....but kind of like saying "shoot for the moon", starting a journey of 10,000 steps is better than saying "oh, well, you know, I guess I'll do it for awhile. If you need to (and I need to) build constraints and constructive edifices into your life and see how quickly things build up. :-)

So, show 55 will be out either tonight or tomorrow. :-) Thanks for listening!

..alex.

Minute Tech 054: Is Audio the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-19T07:32:00.000-08:00

- The iPhone Tsunami;
- Is Audio the Best Communications Medium?
- Jon Morrow guest-writing on Penelope Trunk's Careerist.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 053: Is Text the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-18T04:37:00.001-08:00

- A Galaxy Gets Cooked, FireWire Heats Up, & Late Night Warms Up;
- Is Text the Best Communications Medium?
- What's a Ninja Crayon, and what's in a Logo?

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 052: Is Your Voice the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-18T02:14:00.000-08:00

- Twitter Takes a Break, & Pew Spews Percentages;
- Is Your Voice the Best Communications Medium?
- Minute Tech Blog Seeks Redesign.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis
Show Transcript

..alex.

Minute Tech 051: What's the Best Communications Medium?

2007-12-16T06:25:00.000-08:00

- David Letterman seeks relief;
- What's the Best Communications Medium?
- Recent Shows of VentureVoice and The Engaging Brand.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

..Alex.

Note: contrary to my oft-spoken mistakes on this show, "Pixelcorps" is not pronouced with a final "s"! ;-]

A Must-read: Google and the Wisdom of Clouds

2007-12-15T03:58:00.000-08:00

If you read just one article this year (though I don't advocate just one), read Business Week's Google and the Wisdom of Clouds, by Stephen Baker.

That's all I'm going to say. Go, read that article...then tell me what you're thinking. Were you bored stiff? Were you excited? Were you scared of mega-maniacal capitalists?

Just tell me what the article make you think of -- there is no right or wrong response.

..alex.

Minute Tech 050: Mourning - What are Burial Customs?

2007-12-14T05:36:00.000-08:00

- Mars Rovers and Orbiters find white;
- Mourning - What are Burial Customs?
- and, how do you brand a podcast?

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music by Apple & Bre Pettis

Show Transcript

Developing the Conversation, Internally

2007-12-13T10:14:00.000-08:00

Whether you realize it or no, blogging and audio/video podcasting is about developing a conversation, both with yourself and with your community. First you have to converse with yourself.

If you're not comfortable conversing with yourself, you many not exhibit comfort conversing with others. So one must strike up a conversation with oneself. To do that, find out what you like to do for personal development...and then put that into the public eye. If for instance you like studying Tai Chi, learn to do it with others. If you like podcasting, learn to push yourself in production...and then reach out to others. This idea of reaching out to others may sound counter-intuitive if we're talking about self-conversation...but to really learn, you have to put yourself into more challenging situations...and you may not be able to challenge yourself in ways that are sufficient for growth. By interacting with others, you are faced with external challenges which will help you learn how to deal with your own internal questions.

Once you find yourself being challenged by your own activities, you can begin to reach out to help others and/or work with others toward common goals.

This podcast is the beginning of my self-conversation. I'm pushing myself to produce on a constant basis, and putting the result of that production into the public eye so that I can learn from comments, criticism and the internal fire that comes with continual production.

As I produce, I see ways that I can grow more rapidly. Is this true for you in your situation?

I saw this with video blogging, which is why I began interviewing people. Have you seen those interviews? Please check them out here.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 049: Mourning - What is the Obituary?

2007-12-12T16:24:00.000-08:00

- Laser Etch that Holiday Gift;
- Mourning: What is the Obituary?
- Bre Pettis provides interstitial music.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Interstitial music from Apple's GarageBand & Bre Pettis.

..alex.

Minute Tech 048: Mourning - What Are Your Customs?

2007-12-11T12:21:00.000-08:00

- Le Web launches Social Media in France
- Mourning: What Are Your Customs?
- and, Chris Brogan suggests paper cut-outs to educate.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Transcript

Interstitial music snippets by bre pettis, of the I Make Things podcast.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 47: Mourning: Are You Being Creative?

2007-12-10T08:37:00.000-08:00

- Atlantis grounded until January due to Package Deliver conflicts;
- Mourning: Are You Being Creative?
- Are you an Early Adopter, using Google Reader...or roadkill???

Show Transcript

Show Archive

..Alex.

Minute Tech 046: What is Sledding?

2007-12-07T13:33:00.000-08:00

- Morgan Stanley, Atlantis and the Evil Empire;
- What is Sledding?
- and, Seeking Stylistic Cues from FAP and BizTech.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 045: What is Tobogganing?

2007-12-06T04:46:00.000-08:00

- Intel's Penryn and ESA's Columbus make debuts;
- What is Tobogganing?
- Listening to my earlier shows...for enjoyment.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 044: What is Ice Skating?

2007-12-05T05:14:00.000-08:00

- Oil is up, Oil is Down, Imus is up, Apple is Down;
- What is Ice Skating?
- Toyboxcar Leads Me to Scribd.com.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

..alex.

Minute Tech 043: What Are Snow Sports?

2007-12-04T03:11:00.000-08:00

- Snow, hadrosaurs and Apple all on the rise;
- What are Winter Sports?
- HangBoarding may be in my future.

MT 43 finally got out the door this morning, one day late...but the news still has a hint of freshness. After all, how stale could a 65-million year old carcass get in one day?

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Transcript

..alex.

Not together enough this a.m.

2007-12-03T04:01:00.000-08:00

What with news reading, mail reading and nemu-nemu.com comic reading, the show didn't come together this morning, considering I may need to hit the road early due to snowfall. I had resolved to get going earlier today...so here is what I'm thinking for this week: Winter Sports. I had a blast getting my sea legs back on the ice rink Saturday afternoon...and I want more! :-) Stay tuned.

..alex.

Minute Tech 042: Why Do I Like This Book?

2007-12-02T07:11:00.000-08:00

Researching this podcast was fun (as they all are), though I wasn't sure what the main topic would be right away. I'm surrounded at home by books...but often us humans can't see the forest for the trees. I'm trying to help clean up around here, and I was searching for a gift for Larry, who's my long-time tai chi teacher and friend. The Light on Yoga book has been lurking around for many years...and while I want very much to read it...I also want very much to read many books. So, the best thing to do with top quality books that you know won't get read? Give them to somebody who you know will, uh, encourage you to make use of the contents! :-)

For the show today:

- iClone meets iPhone, and Columbus bumps the AMS;
- Why Do I Like This Book?
- 37Roses.com leads to a web journey.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

Minor Changes to Recording Minute Tech podcast

2007-12-01T07:34:00.000-08:00

The minor change to recording the Minute Tech podcast is the use of my iSight webcam to record the show, extract the audio track from iMovie and paste into GarageBand. I knew that this capability existed, but hadn't tried it yet...this worked exceptionally well this morning. Only downside perhaps is greater susceptibility to ambient noise...but far less mouth noise and moving-the-mic-wires noises.

Oh, and also...GarageBand seemed unwilling to export the episode picture for the AAC file, with the inclusion of the iMovie audio import...I have no idea why... :-(

This change, in addition to improving the audio quality of the podcast (you can let me know if you agree), this change will put off the additional expense of purchasing a standard microphone setup...which makes the budgeting department here at home far happier...more important to budget for heating the house this winter than for podcasting equipment. Of course, the budgeting department just sprang for a second Drobo as a home NAS drive...but, well, there you go. ;-)

..alex.

Minute Tech 041: What Is A Call Center?

2007-12-01T06:36:00.000-08:00

Pushing forward with another segment about the technology surrounding a Help Desk, What Is A Call Center asks about the general notion of a bank of phones and people awaiting calls, and touches upon Asterisk, the open source PBX software.

- E*Trade and Morgan Stanley suffer Subprime issues;
- Why use a Call Center?
- TechBurgh, Pittsburgh's tech video podcast.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

Minute Tech 040: How Do I Track Those Calls?

2007-11-29T10:39:00.000-08:00

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

- AT&T - did they deep-six iPhone sales for the holidays?
- How Do I Track Those Calls?
- Yahoo's Experts get slammed.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

Minute Tech 039: What are the Three Most Important Parts of a Help Desk Call?

2007-11-28T05:33:00.000-08:00

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

- Black Friday and Cyber Monday;
- What are the Three Most Important Parts of a Help Desk Call?
- my apology for audio quality, and more on short podcasts.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

Minute Tech 038: How to answer a Help Desk call?

2007-11-26T05:15:00.001-08:00

On Today's show, we review:

- the youtube video "the office is closed"
- How do you answer a Help Desk call?
- the short-format podcast - listening to others.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes/Transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 037: Who were the ancient Africans?

2007-11-25T05:45:00.000-08:00

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

- Explorers in Ocean & Orbit?
- Who were the ancient Africans?
- Twitter news from Ihnatko and Mann.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes.

Note: some static occurs in this recording. Not sure why, I think it may have some thing to do with either the furnace (unlikely) or my wi-fi net connection... Hmmm. Had to re-record a signicant portion of the podcast.

..Alex.

Thanksgiving Day After: Introspection

2007-11-23T03:55:00.000-08:00

How did your Thanksgiving go?

I attended a very nice family gathering, replete with turkey, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie and a bottle of Sierra Cantabria 2005 Rioja. Conversation was congenial, food was well prepared and plentiful, Lego figurines stayed off the table until the restless 6-yr-old elements couldn't take it anymore, and a viewing of BeetleJuice rounded out the evening.

Today, Friday, I'm taking a minor break from producing the podcast. It's a holiday, or the day after a holiday, so I'll kick back, relax and type up a non-episode blog post. I'm researching some info on ancient cultures in Africa - Africa is the world's stealth continent - we all came from there and we don't want to admit it. Let's admit it and help Africa to become the world's happening place.

Good conversations yesterday included comments from my twin bro' who suggested that the 10 minutes of Minute Tech #36 was rambling and didn't say anything until 5 minutes into the podcast. I'm seeking your input, but also reviewing other podcasts to see how they handle these things: perhaps, similar to Christopher S. Penn's Financial Aid podcast, and Alex Lindsay's This Week in Media, I'll put in an intro "table of contents" so that people know the structure of the show.

My brother suggested that nobody would know that the primary topic of my podcast comes in the middle of the show. My response is that anyone who listens to podcasts knows to listen to several podcasts to pick up the "structure" of the subject podcast. Perhaps I'm different...but when I find a new podcast, I go back and listen to many if not all of the previous episodes. Do you too? Perhaps putting in the TOC will assist first time (and impatient) listeners. :-)

Just watched @cspenn's Financial Aid Podcast FAP667 video: "Podcasting 101session from MASFAA" :
Two important points:
On branding: ze frank-"brand is emotional aftertaste";
The components of a podcast: (1) Content production, (2) Distribution, (3) Marketing, & (4) The Conversation

Chris also mentions Mitch Joel's Twistimage.com blog, fronting his "Six Pixels of Separation" podcast...just listening to episode #78, which includes an interview with Avinash Kaushik, author of "Web Analytics: an hour a day". I'd first heard of him when reviewing Lunametrics.com - Lunametrics had advertised for a web analyst position - reviewing that job description lured me into the world of Google Analytics, which is a wondrous world indeed!

Avinash says: crime against humanity to not measure bounce rate! Uh...what does that mean? Oh...this allows you to fix the content of your web pages to alter why people are bouncing. "Every person who comes to your website is a potential purchaser/subscriber", as long as you're capturing them for the correct products.

Yesterday, before traveling to Cleveland, I remembered that some of my relatives aren't as computer oriented as I, so burned my 36 episodes to audio format on CD's. This is the listing of how the tracks fit on the CD's...unfortunately, the audio tracks leap from CD to CD, and I hadn't configured iTunes to name the tracks with the names of the individual epidodes, Track 01, etc.:

disc1: episodes 002-014
disc2: 014-026
disc3: 026-036
disc4: 036, 001 (not named like the others) & The Halloween special.

I know I rambled here: guilty. People are hovering as I type! :-)

..alex.

Minute Tech 036: Who were the Minoans?

2007-11-22T05:26:00.000-08:00

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

- David Pogue's Kindle review & MPG;
- Who were the Minoans?
- daily podcasts; Mary Cassatt.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

..alex.

Minute Tech 035: What is Civilization? Quants and Quanta

2007-11-21T05:22:00.000-08:00

Show # 35 was supposed to go out Tuesday, Nov. 20th...but technical issues, timing and a set work schedule interfered...plus an unweildy topic that was too broad to squeeze into my transcript. So, here's 35, on America's Thanksgiving Eve:

- MT ad’s, Amazon’s Kindle and Quants;
- What is civilization? Quants and Quanta;
- Encourage; Rachel Carson.

Show Notes

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 034: Who were the Etruscans?

2007-11-19T05:12:00.000-08:00

- the Adenovirus AD14 is making the rounds;
- Who were the Etruscans?
- Nemu-Nemu.com & Petrarch.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes

..Alex.

Minute Tech 033: What is Nunavut?

2007-11-18T06:08:00.000-08:00

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

- Apple’s monopolistic tendencies?
- What is Nunavut?
- Pistachio, Brogan, MacBreak and VentureCast.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show notes/transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 032: What is In Flanders Fields?

2007-11-16T05:14:00.000-08:00

Minute Tech for Friday, November 16th, 2007:

- Text Gmail and BPO
- What is In Flanders Fields?
- Paul Grahams essays and CacheFlow.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes for Minute Tech 32

"Move with the motion of the planet - move with Taiji"

Minute Tech 031: Veterans Day Revealed.

2007-11-15T04:07:00.000-08:00

- Wizzards, one and all;
- Veterans Day Revealed.
- Use tinyURL to enhance your twittering.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes/transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 030: Empathize your Hero

2007-11-14T05:16:00.000-08:00

Androids, Apples, Empathy and Search Engine Optimization:

- Android in the making, and Apple stages a comeback;
- Empathize your Heros.
- Focus on three ideas; elliance.com.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes/transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 029: Emulate Your Hero

2007-11-13T05:12:00.000-08:00

Learn to Emulate your hero today. Also, when was the last time "market capitalization" and "australopithecus" were mentioned in nearly the same breath? Mentions of IBD and Quirks and Quarks are strangely unrelated to the first two items. ;-)

- Apple and China Mobile?
- Emulate your Heros.
- Quirks and Quarks - from the Macro to the Micro.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes/transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 028: What is Veterans Day?

2007-11-12T04:22:00.000-08:00

The calendar, all its simplicity, brings us around again to Veterans day - what is this calendar thing anyways?
How do we best deal with Veterans Day?
...and, of course, Twitterverse.

- The Calendar;
- What is Veterans Day?
- How to you experience Twitter-verse?

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Notes/transcript.

..alex.

Minute Tech 027: What is touch-screen glass?

2007-11-11T05:52:00.000-08:00

Apple's iPhone has started halo'ing in Europe, we touch on touch-screen technology, and review Semi-Coherent Computing podcast #9.

- Apple's iPhone sells 10,000 units in Germany;
- What is touch-screen glass?
- Pittsburgh computer companies; Semi-Coherent Computing podcast.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Minute Tech 27 show notes/transcript

..Alex.

Minute Tech 026: What is lampwork glass?

2007-11-09T05:21:00.000-08:00

Cisco Systems rocks the Nasdaq, magma may rock Yellowstone, and all the while you're seeking to maintain perspective.

In today's show:

- The iPhone's European debut; Yellowstone rises;
- What is lampwork glass? Jennifer gives us an intro;
- Cisco's earning estimates yields 9.5 Richter scale quake.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 025: What is glass to a modern Human?

2007-11-08T03:50:00.000-08:00

Confession of a tech stock junkie, art glass wouldn't have been liked by Mr. Gratgrind, and what do you say to a U.S. President?

- Don't Panic: I sometimes talk tech stocks;
- What is glass to a modern Human?
- Pistachio and Seesmic.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

Show Note/Transcript

..alex.

Minute Tech 024: How is glass made?

2007-11-07T05:15:00.000-08:00

Have you had your flu shot for the 2007-08 flu season? Do you have access to flu shots? Are you concerned of the flu shot's impact on your health? Be more concerned of your impact on others if you contract the flu.

We're each carried of the battlefield of life at different times, in different ways. May you, as my father did, have it happen at then end of a fruitful span...and make your span fruitful, no matter it's length

- Happy Birthday, Dad; Flu shots - pass it on;
- How is glass made?
- Charles Dicken's Hard Times.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Minute Tech 023: What is glass and how did it get to this house?

2007-11-06T04:22:00.000-08:00

When was the last time Tai Chi, the Second Foundation and CitiGroup were discussed all in the same podcast?

- Chinese lunar orbiter and STS-120 - Discovery;
- what is Glass - how did it get to this house?
- Translation: be careful of the "truth".

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 022: What is glass?

2007-11-05T05:09:00.000-08:00

Dale Chihuly's glass sculpture is incredibly beautiful; when juxtaposed with natural plantings, or as natural as you can get in an oversized terrarium, they seek to mimic CBLF's with SiBLF's:

the outline for todays show:
- Space shuttle set for daytime landing; Chinese lunar orbiter;
- What is glass?
- Jeremiah Owyang describes his use of Twitter.

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 021: How do you distribute your video?

2007-11-03T05:46:00.000-07:00

Have you thought about your relatives lately? I don't mean the ones living next door, I mean your furry predecessors. Now if you're of the school of thought that the earth and it's inhabitants were brought into being 6,000 years ago, then this DNA stuff is just of academic interest - the rest of you can listen with a bit more interest.

Now that you've produced video on your PC, be that Windows, Mac or Linux, now you can think of distribution. And finally, emulate your leaders: start something in your community!

- DNA sequencing leads to primate relatives;
- How do you distribute your video?
- Emulate your leaders: Start Something Today!

Go to the Minute Tech iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

First 40 Minute Tech episodes

2007-11-03T05:43:00.000-07:00

Minute Tech 020: How can I produce this video on my Mac?

2007-11-02T05:12:00.000-07:00

The not-so-proverbial war on terrorism may last five more decades...but so will the new-media war of social media networks. Google and Microsoft square off on either end of the Quidditch pitch, pooling their resources and teaming with partners.

Meanwhile, the lubricant for all of this, fossil fuel, continues to make itself heard, while it is pumped from the ground and into the tanks of waiting Humvee's in our suburban driveways.

- Oil may surpass $100 per barrel, but winter may usher in lower prices;
- How can I produce my video on my Mac?
- Social Media wars heat up as Google and Microsoft form sides.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Am I a "media" company?

2007-11-01T16:16:00.000-07:00

Check out Jeremiah Owyang's checklist for corporate media strategy in his So you're a "Media" Company now post. Admittedly, a podcast does not a company make...but at what point does a publishing push like this begin to blur between a personal outlet for ideas and style and a company-like push for attention in the global media industry? At this point I have not desire to make this a "corporate entity", but I'm pursuing many of the things that could:

A regular push of informational content into the world's marketplace;
Pursuing the collection of statistics via Google Analytics;
Developing and pushing the podcast "brand" into many of the social media markets;
- Do you have a strategy? Let’s start with the start. Why create media? What story are you trying to tell? Don’t just do this because it’s hot, understand how it can impact your company.
- What story are you telling? Sometimes, media doesn’t have to be just a product demo, but could ‘go up a level’ and tell a story. Relate to your customers life style, understand and relate to how they work and live, rather than just push features.
- Got legs? Does your player of media (audio/video/webcast/powerpoint/images) have ‘legs’ so it can spread to other websites? Is it embeddable? Do you want it to be?

Where is this all taking me? Initially, I'm seeking personal growth in both the tech of putting a podcast and media presence together, and in the community that this may engender. Eventually, who knows?

..alex.

Minute Tech 019: How can I produce this video in Windows?

2007-11-01T05:16:00.000-07:00

Now that you've shot that first video, and assuming you're still using Windows, how can you produce that digital footage? Various options are open to you: Adobe's video products, numerous lesser known 3rd-party options (just browse the shelves at CompUSA or some similar store) as well as Microsoft's built-in MovieMaker.

On today's Minute Tech, we discuss:

- Is the recent earthquake in San Francisco plate tectonics, or Apple's Leopard?
- How can I produce this video in Windows? Mark Dolgonos, Sr. Communications Coordinator at Orrick, gives us his report.
- Minute Tech is now in the iTunes catalog.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 018: Halloween 2007

2007-10-31T03:53:00.000-07:00

A Minute Tech podcast, reading from Ruth Edna Kelley's "The Book of Hallowe'en".

THE BOOK OF HALLOWE'EN

CHAPTER I

SUN-WORSHIP. THE SOURCES OF HALLOWE'EN

"IF we could ask one of the old-world pagans whom he revered as his greatest gods, he would be sure to name among them the sun-god; calling him Apollo if he were a Greek; if an Egyptian, Horus or Osiris; if of Norway, Sol; if of Peru, Bochica. As the sun in the center of the physical universe, so all primitive peoples made it the hub about which their religion revolved, nearly always believing it a living person to whom they could say prayers and offer sacrifices, who directed their lives and destinies, and could even snatch men from earthly existence to dwell for a time with him, as it draws the water from lakes and seas.

In believing this they followed an instinct of all early peoples, a desire to make persons of the great powers of nature, such as the world of growing things, mountains and water, the sun, moon, and stars; and a wish for these gods they had made to take an interest in and be part of their daily life. The next step was making stories about them to account for what was seen; so arose myths and legends.

The sun has always marked out work-time and rest, divided the year into winter idleness, seed-time, growth, and harvest; it has always been responsible for all the beauty and goodness of the earth; it is itself splendid to look upon. It goes away and stays longer and longer, leaving the land in cold and gloom; it returns bringing the long fair days and resurrection of spring. A Japanese legend tells how the hidden sun was lured out by an image made of a copper plate with saplings radiating from it like sunbeams, and a fire kindled, dancing, and prayers; and round the earth in North America the Cherokees believed they brought the sun back upon its northward path by the same means of rousing its curiosity, so that it would come out to see its counterpart and find out what was going on.

All the more important church festivals are survivals of old rites to the sun. "How many times the Church has decanted the new wine of Christianity into the old bottles of heathendom." Yule-tide, the pagan Christmas, celebrated the sun's turning north, and the old midsummer holiday is still kept in Ireland and on the Continent as St. John's Day by the lighting of bonfires and a dance about them from east to west as the sun appears to move. The pagan Hallowe'en at the end of summer was a time of grief for the decline of the sun's glory, as well as a harvest festival of thanksgiving to him for having ripened the grain and fruit, as we formerly had husking-bees when the ears had been garnered, and now keep our own Thanksgiving by eating of our winter store in praise of God who gives us our increase.

Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit, lends us the harvest element of Hallowe'en; the Celtic day of "summer's end" was a time when spirits, mostly evil, were abroad; the gods whom Christ dethroned joined the ill-omened throng; the Church festivals of All Saints' and All Souls' coming at the same time of year--the first of November--contributed the idea of the return of the dead; and the Teutonic May Eve assemblage of witches brought its hags and their attendant beasts to help celebrate the night of October 31st."

Happy Halloween!

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Minute Tech 017: What do you shoot video with?

2007-10-30T05:02:00.000-07:00

What do you shoot video with? A professional level cinema camera, or a webcam? Do you have a nice DV camcorder, or a basic level digital snap-shot camera? Whatever you have available to you, you can make video, a.k.a. moving pictures.

Today we just touch on the camera possibilities, as well as some news items from the world of blogging and Space, the other final frontier.

- The X-prize and light sabers on the Space Shuttle;
- What do you shoot video with?
- Pghbloggers.org and Podcamp rules.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 016: What is a vlog?

2007-10-29T05:29:00.000-07:00

Apple has released OS X 10.5, Oil is pushing up to new heights and Halloween blossoms at Phipps Conservatory. This week we'll be talking about video, starting off with a brief discussion of vlog's, suggesting that you check out Justine Ezarik's recent vlog about Apple's Leopard, and I've found another tech podcast...which faded last fall.

- Apple’s Leopard out; Oil at $93 bbl; Halloween upcoming;
- What is a vlog?
- Investopedia.com

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Sunday Morning Tai Chi - reverse breathing

2007-10-28T04:54:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite technological activities is Tai Chi. I've been studying with my current teacher in Pittsburgh for about 20 years. It's interesting to see both how people change and how attitudes/styles of teaching change over that period. But more importantly, what things remain the same. The Tai Chi.

One of the more interesting aspects of Tai Chi is reverse breathing. Studying this assumes that you've studied breathing at all, and have internalized it into your practice in a big way. This is generally referred to as abdominal breathing, focusing on the abdomen as the principal breathing muscle, and on the abdomen (or, lower, the dan tien) as the target for inhales, pooling of chi. Yang Style tai chi emphasizes breathing with movements: yin movements are associated with inhales, yang movements are associated with exhales - always breathing, always moving.

In beginning to learn Wu style from Larry, my teacher, he says that breathing is less emphasized than in Yang. But, interestingly, in the warm-up exercises (which I'll list later for you), one set of four exercises emphasize reverse breathing: inhale on a yin movement (turning inward), exhale on a yang movement (turning outward). Okay, now I've confused myself. Which is the reversal? Time to admit this to my teacher later today! :-)

Some of my Tai Chi links for your perusal:

My Geocities RainForest page.
My teacher's current blog.
A nascent blog started earlier this year in prep for a related (but unstarted) podcast.

..alex.

how about a little Technorati?

2007-10-27T10:16:00.000-07:00

Just posting to "stake my claim" to this blog for technorati.

Click this link, Technorati Profile, to see my Technorati profile.

One thing (of billions) I'm missing from my portfolio of new media skills are all the technorati & digg style link sites. I'll be working to correct that. ;-)

..alex.

Minute Tech Submitted to iTunes this a.m...

2007-10-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

FYI: Minute Tech has been posted to the iTunes site catalogue this morning. Let's see how that boosts stats in Google Analytics. :-)

Minute Tech 015: What is a Help Menu?

2007-10-27T04:58:00.000-07:00

Where have all the podcasts gone?

No, seriously, there are some excellent podcasts out there, some of which I listen to and some of which I hear about newly each week, variously from Twitter posts, other podcasts or the blog/websites related to those podcasts. Today, I talk about two extant podcasts, MacCast and This Week in Media, but also lament the potential fade of VentureCast, an excellent random walk down Sandhill Road.

The outline for this Sat/Sun podcast:

- GIMP 2.4 loosed on the world;
- What is a Help menu?
- MacCast; TWiM’s Ninja; VentureCast?

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Learning Accelerates - addendum 1

2007-10-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

Now that I think about, now that I'm sitting at work at my "Windows" PC, using "IE", I wonder how much of my GA stats are due to my PC at work, in addition to my Mac at home???

On the way in to work today, I visualized a good way to avoid adding to the stats inadvertantly -- only interact from behind the scenes: copy URLs from links in the Blogger edit utility, never from the actual page. Perhaps this'll not impact the GA stats as they accumulate day-in & day-out. I'll have to revisit stats in a few days to see how they are adjusting, if at all, to this theory.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 014: What is an Excel formula?

2007-10-26T05:15:00.000-07:00

A slighly more full podcast this morning, scrunched (that's a technical term) into about 8 min 50 sec.

- Podcamp Boston this weekend;
-- the podcamp that started it all!

- Apple Leopard today at 6 pm;
-- Apples newest OS, coming to the masses and the servers, finally.

- What is an Excel Formula?
-- we dissect why to & how to create an Excel formula.

- Infinite Mind on NPR;

- Jennsbl’s blog.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Learning Accelerates Itself - GA & this new venture.

2007-10-25T20:08:00.000-07:00

I don't yet know what my audience feels about this podcast...but I'm glad I instituted Google Analytics on day 1 of the podcast, as I can begin to see traffic patterns. From reviewing GA this evening, I can see:

I've had, in the past ten days these raw stats:
- 92 pageviews;
- 61 unique views;
- 52.08% bounce rate
- 68 pageviews of the root (or index) level
- from 3 to 8 pageviews of non-root pages
- a peak amount of 14 visits on Monday, October 14th.

-- from this (specifically the 68 views of the main page) I can see that when I post URL's on Twitter, Facebook or MySpace I should probably give the specific blog URL rather than the main page URL. Also, what accounts for the 14 visitors on Monday? I think alot of that could be due to an e-mail I sent to colleagues at work about the Williamsburg podcast from the just-past weekend.

Fun stuff (does this mean much?):
Browser & OS - % of visitors:
- IE on Windows - 45.8%
- Safari on Mac - 39.6%
- Firefox on Mac - 8.3%
- Firefox on Windows - 6.25%

My main concern: how can I tell how much of this is from me checking my blog site, or from me editing the blog, and then "viewing" the results? Any of it? I'll have to cross-check my browser, OS, ISP and screen-resolution (all data that GA tracks) and try to weed out the effect of my own visits.

So...learning about analyzing stats on a website. What does this do? It allows one to see how the web industry is gauging itself, how it might be doing various things to optimize it's collective or individual presence on the web, and how a business might spring up from the need to interpret these Delphic wisps of vapor for the general business user who may be missing some very important statistics about his or her company's impact via their web presence.

More later as I learn it. :-)

..Alex.

Minute Tech 013: What is a Table?

2007-10-25T05:33:00.000-07:00

This morning brings you Minute Tech's first wine recommendations, a discussion of the types of tables that you can put numbers into rather than plates onto, and two Google search recommendations.

- Beaujolais Villages and Orange Muscat;
- What is a Table?
- Nassim Taleb & Avinash Kaushik.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 012: What is Page Setup in Excel?

2007-10-24T05:17:00.000-07:00

Today's 'cast has stretched beyond my desire of 3 to 5 minutes to 00:11:22 - my apologies on that...but the subject demands care in explanation. :-)

- Timeline of learning;
- What is Page Setup in Excel?
- Why the apparent simplicity of podcast topics?

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 011: What is the Data Menu?

2007-10-23T05:34:00.000-07:00

Apple shocked to the upside...and life goes on. When using Excel, sometimes the Data menu will get you out of binds most quickly...unless you're just trying to format for print output, which we'll cover in a future episode. And I came across an excellent Fast Company article this morning:

- Apple disappoints only short sellers;
- What is the Data menu?
- Search Google for “Alex Frankel Magic Shop”.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 010: What is stock?

2007-10-22T05:27:00.000-07:00

Apple's 3rd quarter earnings release is after the NASDAQ market close today, so several pertinent topics for this mornings Minute Tech podcast:

- Apple, Inc. earnings release 4 pm EST;
- What is stock?
- My intro to social media sites.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 009: What is Colonial Williamsburg?

2007-10-20T22:11:00.000-07:00

There is not surprisingly far more about a well-reconstructed educational historic site such as Colonial Williamsburg than one short podcast can introduce you to...but please take a few minutes to see what this wee corner of America's history can do for you, through:

- the emergence of tea in European (and American) society;
- What is Colonial Williamsburg?
- printing pamphlets - the original podcast.

How can we push ourselves forward in thinking about technology without thinking about how our forebears conceived their levels of technology? I find it fascinating to look back at these times of hardship...and how easy they made life appear.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Minute Tech 008: What is a dinosaur?

2007-10-19T05:16:00.000-07:00

What is a dinosaur? Is it a terrible lizard, or someone still using a casette-based Sony Walkman?

The original use of the name for terrible lizard probably refers to the idea that humans couldn't bear to think about co-existing with such animals on today's Earth. Of course, those people haven't seen Dinotopia, have they? :-)

The topics for episode 8 are:

- Apple’s iWork ’08 is out and being used;
- What is a dinosaur?
- Give a kid a microphone, & historic Williamsburg, Va.

The podcast was delayed a day due to a family trip to Williamsburg, Va, a town where even the buildings are essentially re-enacters. Many of the houses may be original, but the larger buildings are all re-built versions of those that were susceptible to fireplace-derived structure fires. There's one good thing to be said for modern gas furnaces...and eventually, solar or fuelcell home power & heat.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Williamsburg, VA

2007-10-18T06:06:00.001-07:00

We'll be wandering around Williamsburg, VA, today, to see the types of technology used 400 years ago in pre-America. Full report tomorrow. My tour guide is my 6-yr-old son, who's been here 3 times before, 3 times more than me! :-)

Minute Tech 008 should be posted later today.

..alex.

Minute Tech 007: What is a personal computer?

2007-10-17T05:50:00.000-07:00

Whaddya mean "what is a personal computer"? Doesn't everyone know that? Well, perhaps for the sake of argument, anyone's who's in the audience for this podcast would know the history of the PC...but I feel it's always instructive to know something of where you've been to understand when you are now...and where you're going to be tomorrow.

The topics for today's Minute Tech podcast:

- Leopard with to-do’s & Notes; Buzzword;
- What is a personal Computer? Mainframes to Wii’s;
- Podfade - has it struck a podcast near you?

The time for this podcast is longer than I like, at about 00:08:30, but lets see if it sounds more natural and less scripted.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 006: What is a star?

2007-10-16T05:30:00.000-07:00

There are stars...and there are stars.

The outline for today's Minute Tech podcast:

- The celestial dance of the moon with Saturn and Venus;
- What is a Star? The sky and Hollywood both pertain;
- CBC Radio’s Quirks & Quarks

and related links:

Amanda Bauer's blog "Astropixie - Things and Stuff Astronomy and Life";
Lisa Dale Miller's article about the New Moon in Libra;
Mark Apsolon's site on youtube;
Wikipedia's article on the heavenly version of the star;
Bob McDonald and the Quirks & Quarks radio show.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Chris asks about podcast workflow

2007-10-15T08:40:00.000-07:00

Chris Brogan asked recently if podcasters could point him toward their workflow. Chris, here's mine.

When first working up my podcast, I was thinking that a workflow would be a good thing to have. Being a typical geek (I think!) I usually just dive right in...but knowing myself as well as I do, I though that this time I'd surprise myself with a wee bit o' planning.

Although I don't follow this daily, I have it open as one of two TextEdit windows when prepping and recording the podcast - the other TextEdit window contains the outline or partial script that I'm using.

Workflow

1) get outline from show listing - a file in which I've identified possible future topics - copy show title & 3 subject headings:

- tech item
- tech question & answer
- podcasting news

2) fill out outline with current news and short paragraphs of script: I can write well, but extemporaneous speaking well is another issue;

3) post transcript to http://phyllostachys.blogspot.com; reference on MinuteTech and iWeb pages;

4) record show via iMovie/iSight USB camera, copy to Garageband:

(a) open previous show's GarageBand file;
(b) remove previous audio recording and save as new filename "Minute Tech 00#";
-- this is necessary as later export to iTunes will label the audio file with GarageBand filename.
(c) record show via iMovie and copy to GarageBand;
(d) edit audio, removing or muting ums, ahs, extraneous noises. :-)
(e) make sure associate image(s) files are inserted in picture track
(f) save GarageBand file
(g) export to iTunes - export to iTunes converts to .m4a (AAC) format - will convert to .mp3 from iTunes.
(e) when export complete, go to iTunes and create .mp3 copy

5) While exporting, open iWeb:

(a) create episode page
(b) insert .m4a and .mp3 files to episode page
(c) save iWeb and Publish to .Mac account

6) Post to Minute Tech Blogspot page:

(a) Create new "Minute Tech 00#" post
-- outline of show
-- links to sites if possible/relevant
(b) save post and copy "a href"link to iWeb from previous post
(c) re-open post, paste in html, and publish post

7) update Blogspot sidebar:

(a) get newly generated iWeb page address through RSS feed
(b) edit Blogspot sidebar to include direct link to .mp3 file
(c) work in progress: troubleshoot flash mp3 player.

8) advertise publication, manage analysis:

(a) I haven't planned this yet, though will publish to iTunes when I've done 10-15 episodes, having pushed myself beyond that 1st invisible podcasting "fade" barrier [Note: posted to iTunes after 15th episode as "Minute Tech"]
(b) have applied Google analytics to:
- minutetech.blogspot.com
- phyllostachys.blogspot.com
(c) trying to figure out how to apply Google Analytics to iWeb - learning more about iWeb structure, editing capabilities.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 005: What is a spreadsheet?

2007-10-15T05:30:00.000-07:00

tech news - Hitachi announces new GMR hard drive head tech for 1-4 TB hard drives;
tech question - What is a spreadsheet?
podcasting news - Blog Action Day - blog about the environment. We talk about podcasting's reliance upon coal-fired electricity.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 004: What is a document?

2007-10-14T04:12:00.000-07:00

Only 4 episodes in, and a weekend occurs. What to do? Is this daily or every day? I'll take a cue from the Wall Street Journal, a daily paper with a Saturday, or weekend, edition, and USAToday, which has a Saturday/Sunday edition: Episode 4 will be the Saturday/Sunday edition of Minute Tech. In the cast itself, I got the dates wrong. Sat/sun are 10/13 & 10/14...but I said "October 12th & 13th". Hmmm.

Also, Christopher Penn, of the Financial Aid Podcast & Marketing Over Coffee, suggested "Feedplayer" as a flashbased mp3 player for this blog site. I tried it, as you can see to the left...but for some reason the mp3's are not feeding through from Apple's iWeb. I'll continue troubleshooting this. Other podcast sites have similar feeds...

Here're brief notes from the show:

Tech item - we discuss the uses of Youtube: watching vids of Lego figurines, Bungie's Halo 3, and Wu Style Tai Chi.
As in any other social site, you're going to have people flaming one another. Martial arts stylists are legend for this behavior...and the comment sections of YouTube are not spared. :-)

Tech question: What constitutes a document? writings on paper, bamboo, clay, stone....or vi. ;-)

Podcasting: podcasts can be aimless, or highly directional - in this way, they are similar to the media forms that preceed them: newspapers, magazines & television.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Saturday, October 13th - no show

2007-10-13T07:51:00.000-07:00

Really is a "no show"! Trying to determine if weekends are "showis non-gratis" or what. Trying to get "Feedplayer" to work - Chrisopher Penn suggested it, since iWeb requires the use of Quicktime to play the tracks it puts out there. But...Chris' suggestion got me to start looking to see how iWeb puts items on the site...now I can link directly to the mp3's! :-)

more later. Perhaps a Sunday show. So much to talk about!!! :-0

..Alex.

Minute Tech 003: What is a Tool?

2007-10-12T05:10:00.000-07:00

What is a Tool? Ask your favorite local 4 or 5 year old. Help to expand his or her imagination with that question.

Links for this podcast:
tech news:
From Apple's iPhone approved apps list: reQall.

tech question:
I didn't research the "what is a tool" question...just thought about it. But, check out wikipedia's entry about "tool". You might be surprised by what you read!

podcasting news:
Talking about blogs today:

Two favorites from finance.yahoo.com:
- Seeking Alpha
- The Brazen Careerist

And, two insightful Pittsburgh women blogging:
- The Mac Muse
- Lyrique Tragedy

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech.

..alex.

Minute Tech 002: what is a blog?

2007-10-11T03:41:00.000-07:00

tech news - RAID - the old acronym for redundant array of inexpensive disks is being redefined, in a sense: Panasas, Inc is releasing an extension to the RAID paradigm that they call Tiered Parity Architecture. go to Panasas for more info.

tech question - what is a blog? a web log, a place to write your daily, weekly or just periodic thoughts, ideas, plans, gripes, etc.

podcasting tidbit: MacCast PME episode, along with various blog snippets from Chris Brogan and Christopher Penn, are the influences for my creating this podcast. If you have something you can say, take the initiative to say, say it well and say it enthusiastically.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech. I publish in AAC and mp3 formats.

..Alex.

Minute Tech 001: Word Processing

2007-10-10T09:04:00.000-07:00

What is a "word processor"? This can define either a person, insofar as his or her role within an organization, or it can define a software program designed to take words or symbols entered into it and format them in some user-desired formatting system. We'll discuss each of these.

Go to my iWeb page to subscribe or listen to this podcast: Minute Tech. I publish in AAC and mp3 formats.

Minute Tech 00: The Minute Tech podcast

2007-10-09T03:44:00.000-07:00

What is technology? How can this be described in a few minutes? Let's find out!

In the Minute Tech podcast, I'll give you some information about a technology item, and answer one question about technology. The two, the item and the question, may be related, or they may not.

You may notice noise or background sound - that depends on the environment of the recording - the first few episodes may be done in my car, as I'm testing the use of a Sanyo voice recorder while I drive my commute.

Send me your questions, comments, complaints and suggestions to "minutetech@gmail.com".

..alex.