"It's all about the British financial institutions," said the female Lyndon LaRouche supporter. She was talking with a woman in front of the Holden post office.
Read the rest of A quiet visit with a LaRouche supporter on my TelegramTowns.com blog.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Obama, Romney Go Mobile for Money
The Obama and Romney campaigns are using mobile technologies to collect political donations.
Both campaigns will use Square. Additionally, Romney supporters can download a copy of the candidate's Believe in America jobs plan by tweeting about the book via Pay with a Tweet. The book is No. 9 on the Amazon Kindle best-seller list.
Read the rest of my blog post, Obama, Romney Go Mobile for Money, at The CMO Site.
Both campaigns will use Square. Additionally, Romney supporters can download a copy of the candidate's Believe in America jobs plan by tweeting about the book via Pay with a Tweet. The book is No. 9 on the Amazon Kindle best-seller list.
Read the rest of my blog post, Obama, Romney Go Mobile for Money, at The CMO Site.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Crime in suburbia
From The Landmark (subscription required):
[Editor's note: there were 25 suspicious items this week.]
5:36 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, running unattended, Main St.
4:07 a.m. Disturbance with prisoner, covering camera with toilet paper, spitting and banging on floor
10:43 a.m. Police out with loose dog, Malden St.
4:28 p.m. Police out with two skateboarders, Princeton St.
5:13 p.m. Skateboarders on Princeton St. refuse to leave property
10:01 p.m. Suspicious vehicles in lot, Holden St.
12:58 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main/Reservoir Sts.
2:30 a.m. Suspicious vehicle sitting outside house on Oakwood St.
6:32 a.m. Police check on individual wanted by Boston PD, Princeton St.
10:14 a.m. Loose dog complaint, Highland St., library
1:06 p.m. Persons report they paid for tree service that wasn’t rendered, Main St.
1:51 p.m. Sex offender registration renewal, Main St.
4:06 p.m. Caller reporting dispute with employee, Boyden Rd.
8:26 p.m. Teens smashing bottles on the side of Princeton St.
9:22 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
9:24 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
1:30 p.m. Two kids on ice, Main St.
4:13 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, person videotaping neighborhood, Brentwood Dr.
5:10 p.m. Chainsaw left beside Malden St.
6:04 p.m. Person took bottle out of pile of rubbish and began walking around, Reservoir St.
7:34 p.m. Young female walking down Dogwood Cir. with no coat on, picked up by brown van
9:37 p.m. Police check on suspicious vehicles in parking lot, Highland Ave.
11:23 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked behind business, Wachusett/Manning Sts.
11:34 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Manning St.
7:59 a.m. Small gray dog running loose, Causeway St.
9:13 a.m. Checking on vehicle regarding road rage incident, Industrial Dr.
12:08 p.m. Downed line repaired without detail officer, Pleasant St.
1:44 p.m. Police assist person locked out of home, Malden St.
7:21 p.m. Group of youths walking through neighborhood, causing disturbance, General Hobbs Rd.
7:32 p.m. Caller reports youths back, causing disturbance, Nichols St.
10:07 p.m. Large animal in Cranbrook Dr.
10:25 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main St.
10:32 p.m. Police check suspicious person, Main St.
11:53 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, police move people along, Old South Rd.
12:00 a.m. Suspicious person dressed in black walking, Main St./Park Ave.
10:11 a.m. Dog ran away, Main St.
3:41 p.m. Vehicle lockout, Reservoir St.
5:31 p.m. Large group of kids harassing caller, Nichols St.
11:29 p.m. Suspicious white van in Union St.
6:38 a.m. Private investigator in area of Colonial and Edgewood
7:29 a.m. Male in woods raking, Paugus Rd.
9:46 a.m. Caller reports large box in travel lane of Pleasant St.
10:17 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer about a collection box for the Heart Association, Pleasant St.
6:54 p.m. Assist person locked out of vehicle, Tanglewood Rd.
10:12 a.m. Person at station reporting suspicious activity on his property, Pleasant St.
12:30 p.m. Police go to business on Maple Ave. to speak to person about suspicious activity
11:40 a.m. Person at station for car seat inspection, Pleasant St.
10:28 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked in driveway, Pleasant St.
3:59 p.m. Police assist person locked out of vehicle, Pleasant St.
6:13 p.m. Two suspicious vehicles in area of Richards Ave.
Princeton
2:24 p.m. Two men approached caller’s house and tried to get information from her neighbors, Esty Rd.
11:09 a.m. Two loose boxer dogs, Main St.
10:23 p.m. Caller reports “very strange sound” similar to jet engine, Willson Rd.
11:02 p.m. Caller reports loud “jet engine” sounds, can’t sleep, Gregory Rd. Found to be mechanical issue with ski area snow guns
4:04 p.m. Hubbardston PD reports car into guardrail, Rte.
62. Found to be in Hubbardston
6:45 p.m. Caller hit coyote, Goodnow Rd.
2:27 p.m. Horse caught up in rope, Wheeler Rd.
7:36 a.m. Loose dog, Carly Cir.
9:53 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer regarding the Internet, Main St.
11:25 a.m. Caller reports someone in business parking lot is doing drugs, Maple Ave.
12:51 p.m. Caller’s neighbor is burning trash in fireplace, Kosta Ave. Referred to fire dept.
2:48 p.m. Dead cat on Rte. 68
5:20 p.m. Suspicious white pickup truck in area all day, Birchwood Rd.
2:20 a.m. Assist Barre PD with Breathalyzer during booking, Main St.
8:29 a.m. Male sitting in silver pickup parked on sidewalk, John Robert Dr.
5:27 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at end of driveway for long time, Barre Paxton Rd.
9:22 p.m. Suspicious vehicle pulled onto property, Glenwood Rd.
3:36 p.m. Person at station to speak with officer about phone she received, Main St.
11:32 p.m. Black Lab tangled up in bushes behind house, Mary Way
7:13 a.m. Suspicious van parked in front of residence, Forbes Rd.
11:51 a.m. Person at station to return GPS that does not belong to her, Main St.
8:32 p.m. Suspicious vehicle following female, Central Tree Rd./Naquag St.
9:51 p.m. Police assist person looking for lost dog, Glenwood Rd.
3:27 p.m. Three dogs running in caller’s yard, Campbell St.
4:06 p.m. People yelling and screaming for two hours, Main St.; officer wanted
8:58 p.m. Snowmobiles and four-wheelers on lake causing lot of noise, Pommogussett Rd.
11:18 p.m. Report of gunshots, Rolling Ridge Rd.
10:55 a.m. Suspicious pickup truck parked on Maple Ave.
12:51 p.m. Caller reports receiving a call from a person from Las Vegas. Person bringing money and carrying a gun. Advised possible prank call, Rowley Hill Rd. Known scam call
7:56 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, School St.
7:58 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, Cole Rd.
4:50 p.m. Noise complaint, chain saws used for three hours, Flanagan Hill Rd.
8:03 a.m. Car “stalking” neighborhood.
Found to be private investigator, Bean Rd.
9:29 a.m. Person found tool box/tools all over Justice Hill/Upper N. Row Rds. Appears to be electricians tools
7:26 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Clinton Rd.
4:52 p.m. Person arrived home to find back door kicked in, property missing, John Dee Rd.
9:12 p.m. Truck went down Colby Rd. and knocked over people’s lawn markers
9:53 p.m. Vehicle drove up road toward cell tower, Pine Wood Ln.
8:05 a.m. Report of dead dog beside Redemption Rock Trl./John Dee Rd. Found to be fox
9:02 a.m. Report of female looking for address, confirmed home health aide, Clemence Ave.
12:59 p.m. Scam call from person claiming family member needed money in Mexico, Worcester Rd.
1:28 p.m. Scam caller advised person she had won $5 million and only needed $250 for delivery of money, Birch Dr.
3:58 p.m. Moped and helmet inside fenced area Heywood/North Row Rds.
8:08 a.m. Suspicious male, Princeton Rd.
8:46 a.m. State police report male went to side of building with pipe or object in his hands, Chocksett Rd.; all set, worker shutting off trucks
12:36 p.m. Person found stray dog, Laurelwood Rd.
[Editor's note: there were 25 suspicious items this week.]
Holden
Monday, February 6
5:36 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, running unattended, Main St.
Tuesday, February 7
4:07 a.m. Disturbance with prisoner, covering camera with toilet paper, spitting and banging on floor
10:43 a.m. Police out with loose dog, Malden St.
4:28 p.m. Police out with two skateboarders, Princeton St.
5:13 p.m. Skateboarders on Princeton St. refuse to leave property
10:01 p.m. Suspicious vehicles in lot, Holden St.
Wednesday, February 8
12:58 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main/Reservoir Sts.
2:30 a.m. Suspicious vehicle sitting outside house on Oakwood St.
6:32 a.m. Police check on individual wanted by Boston PD, Princeton St.
10:14 a.m. Loose dog complaint, Highland St., library
1:06 p.m. Persons report they paid for tree service that wasn’t rendered, Main St.
1:51 p.m. Sex offender registration renewal, Main St.
4:06 p.m. Caller reporting dispute with employee, Boyden Rd.
8:26 p.m. Teens smashing bottles on the side of Princeton St.
Thursday, February 9
9:22 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
9:24 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
1:30 p.m. Two kids on ice, Main St.
4:13 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, person videotaping neighborhood, Brentwood Dr.
5:10 p.m. Chainsaw left beside Malden St.
6:04 p.m. Person took bottle out of pile of rubbish and began walking around, Reservoir St.
7:34 p.m. Young female walking down Dogwood Cir. with no coat on, picked up by brown van
9:37 p.m. Police check on suspicious vehicles in parking lot, Highland Ave.
11:23 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked behind business, Wachusett/Manning Sts.
11:34 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Manning St.
Friday, February 10
7:59 a.m. Small gray dog running loose, Causeway St.
9:13 a.m. Checking on vehicle regarding road rage incident, Industrial Dr.
12:08 p.m. Downed line repaired without detail officer, Pleasant St.
1:44 p.m. Police assist person locked out of home, Malden St.
7:21 p.m. Group of youths walking through neighborhood, causing disturbance, General Hobbs Rd.
7:32 p.m. Caller reports youths back, causing disturbance, Nichols St.
10:07 p.m. Large animal in Cranbrook Dr.
10:25 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main St.
10:32 p.m. Police check suspicious person, Main St.
11:53 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, police move people along, Old South Rd.
Saturday, February 11
12:00 a.m. Suspicious person dressed in black walking, Main St./Park Ave.
10:11 a.m. Dog ran away, Main St.
3:41 p.m. Vehicle lockout, Reservoir St.
5:31 p.m. Large group of kids harassing caller, Nichols St.
11:29 p.m. Suspicious white van in Union St.
Sunday, February 12
6:38 a.m. Private investigator in area of Colonial and Edgewood
7:29 a.m. Male in woods raking, Paugus Rd.
Paxton
Monday, February 6
9:46 a.m. Caller reports large box in travel lane of Pleasant St.
10:17 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer about a collection box for the Heart Association, Pleasant St.
6:54 p.m. Assist person locked out of vehicle, Tanglewood Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
10:12 a.m. Person at station reporting suspicious activity on his property, Pleasant St.
12:30 p.m. Police go to business on Maple Ave. to speak to person about suspicious activity
Thursday, February 9
11:40 a.m. Person at station for car seat inspection, Pleasant St.
Friday, February 10
10:28 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked in driveway, Pleasant St.
3:59 p.m. Police assist person locked out of vehicle, Pleasant St.
6:13 p.m. Two suspicious vehicles in area of Richards Ave.
Princeton
Monday, February 6
2:24 p.m. Two men approached caller’s house and tried to get information from her neighbors, Esty Rd.
Tuesday, February 7
11:09 a.m. Two loose boxer dogs, Main St.
10:23 p.m. Caller reports “very strange sound” similar to jet engine, Willson Rd.
11:02 p.m. Caller reports loud “jet engine” sounds, can’t sleep, Gregory Rd. Found to be mechanical issue with ski area snow guns
Thursday, February 9
4:04 p.m. Hubbardston PD reports car into guardrail, Rte.
62. Found to be in Hubbardston
6:45 p.m. Caller hit coyote, Goodnow Rd.
Saturday, February 11
2:27 p.m. Horse caught up in rope, Wheeler Rd.
Rutland
Monday, February 6
7:36 a.m. Loose dog, Carly Cir.
9:53 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer regarding the Internet, Main St.
11:25 a.m. Caller reports someone in business parking lot is doing drugs, Maple Ave.
12:51 p.m. Caller’s neighbor is burning trash in fireplace, Kosta Ave. Referred to fire dept.
2:48 p.m. Dead cat on Rte. 68
5:20 p.m. Suspicious white pickup truck in area all day, Birchwood Rd.
Tuesday, February 7
2:20 a.m. Assist Barre PD with Breathalyzer during booking, Main St.
8:29 a.m. Male sitting in silver pickup parked on sidewalk, John Robert Dr.
5:27 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at end of driveway for long time, Barre Paxton Rd.
9:22 p.m. Suspicious vehicle pulled onto property, Glenwood Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
3:36 p.m. Person at station to speak with officer about phone she received, Main St.
11:32 p.m. Black Lab tangled up in bushes behind house, Mary Way
Thursday, February 9
7:13 a.m. Suspicious van parked in front of residence, Forbes Rd.
11:51 a.m. Person at station to return GPS that does not belong to her, Main St.
Friday, February 10
8:32 p.m. Suspicious vehicle following female, Central Tree Rd./Naquag St.
9:51 p.m. Police assist person looking for lost dog, Glenwood Rd.
Saturday, February 11
3:27 p.m. Three dogs running in caller’s yard, Campbell St.
4:06 p.m. People yelling and screaming for two hours, Main St.; officer wanted
8:58 p.m. Snowmobiles and four-wheelers on lake causing lot of noise, Pommogussett Rd.
11:18 p.m. Report of gunshots, Rolling Ridge Rd.
Sunday, February 12
10:55 a.m. Suspicious pickup truck parked on Maple Ave.
Sterling
Monday, February 6
12:51 p.m. Caller reports receiving a call from a person from Las Vegas. Person bringing money and carrying a gun. Advised possible prank call, Rowley Hill Rd. Known scam call
Tuesday, February 7
7:56 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, School St.
7:58 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, Cole Rd.
4:50 p.m. Noise complaint, chain saws used for three hours, Flanagan Hill Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
8:03 a.m. Car “stalking” neighborhood.
Found to be private investigator, Bean Rd.
9:29 a.m. Person found tool box/tools all over Justice Hill/Upper N. Row Rds. Appears to be electricians tools
Thursday, February 9
7:26 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Clinton Rd.
4:52 p.m. Person arrived home to find back door kicked in, property missing, John Dee Rd.
9:12 p.m. Truck went down Colby Rd. and knocked over people’s lawn markers
9:53 p.m. Vehicle drove up road toward cell tower, Pine Wood Ln.
Friday, February 10
8:05 a.m. Report of dead dog beside Redemption Rock Trl./John Dee Rd. Found to be fox
9:02 a.m. Report of female looking for address, confirmed home health aide, Clemence Ave.
12:59 p.m. Scam call from person claiming family member needed money in Mexico, Worcester Rd.
1:28 p.m. Scam caller advised person she had won $5 million and only needed $250 for delivery of money, Birch Dr.
3:58 p.m. Moped and helmet inside fenced area Heywood/North Row Rds.
Saturday, February 11
8:08 a.m. Suspicious male, Princeton Rd.
8:46 a.m. State police report male went to side of building with pipe or object in his hands, Chocksett Rd.; all set, worker shutting off trucks
12:36 p.m. Person found stray dog, Laurelwood Rd.
Problems of a first-world suburban shopper
Signs in the store are informing customers that the Greendale Sam's Club will close and the new club off of Route 146 will open this spring (no date specified).
For most folks in the city, this is a good move. The store is easier to reach once you figure out the on/off ramps. For folks in the northern 'burbs, though, it doubles the distance one has to drive to pick up a year's emergency food supply.
From Holden, it's about equidistant to the B.J.'s in Leominster. Market Basket is in nearby Searstown Plaza, in the case that I'm buying less than a year's worth of something. Of course, there's a B.J.'s near the new Wegmans in Northborough.
But, Bill Randell has been reporting that Market Basket may be coming to the former Diamond Chevrolet in Worcester, which makes in-city shopping viable again.
All this is necessary, of course, until robots are ready to do our bidding:
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="469" caption="Kroger debuts kiosk concept at area college campus"]
[/caption]
For most folks in the city, this is a good move. The store is easier to reach once you figure out the on/off ramps. For folks in the northern 'burbs, though, it doubles the distance one has to drive to pick up a year's emergency food supply.From Holden, it's about equidistant to the B.J.'s in Leominster. Market Basket is in nearby Searstown Plaza, in the case that I'm buying less than a year's worth of something. Of course, there's a B.J.'s near the new Wegmans in Northborough.
But, Bill Randell has been reporting that Market Basket may be coming to the former Diamond Chevrolet in Worcester, which makes in-city shopping viable again.
All this is necessary, of course, until robots are ready to do our bidding:
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="469" caption="Kroger debuts kiosk concept at area college campus"]
[/caption]
Page left blank
I thought that we were done with this.
For years, in technical manuals, we'd left a blank to make the pagination work out properly. Standards and conventions dictated that the first page of a chapter or section should be on a right-read page (recto). If the previous chapter ended on a right page, we'd need a filler.
Somewhere along the line, people got worried that someone would think that something had been left out of the manual. To make sure that we dealt with that hypothetical catastrophe, we started putting "This page intentionally left blank." on blank pages that were, thus, no longer blank.
Fast forward a couple of decades. Few people care that technical manuals have chapters starting on a right-read page. We're also more conscious of dead trees.
I was wrong. Google Ngram, which scans books for occurrences of pa phrase or keywords, shows that we've been increasing our usage of this tree-killing practice.
So, I guess I should be surprised to find that UBS sent us a four-page Form 1099 with printing one side and this on the back:
For years, in technical manuals, we'd left a blank to make the pagination work out properly. Standards and conventions dictated that the first page of a chapter or section should be on a right-read page (recto). If the previous chapter ended on a right page, we'd need a filler.
Somewhere along the line, people got worried that someone would think that something had been left out of the manual. To make sure that we dealt with that hypothetical catastrophe, we started putting "This page intentionally left blank." on blank pages that were, thus, no longer blank.
Fast forward a couple of decades. Few people care that technical manuals have chapters starting on a right-read page. We're also more conscious of dead trees.
I was wrong. Google Ngram, which scans books for occurrences of pa phrase or keywords, shows that we've been increasing our usage of this tree-killing practice.
So, I guess I should be surprised to find that UBS sent us a four-page Form 1099 with printing one side and this on the back:
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Laptops, the next generation
We've heard that tablet computers may overtake laptops in sales by 2015, plus or minus a year. I mentioned this in a conversation the other evening. Everyone over the age of 15 said that they'd have a difficult time working without a regular keyboard.
Fortunately, this be the era of technological bedazzlement, there is no need for which a silly product cannot be invented.
Therefore, we have jeans with a keyboard woven in the fabric and a USB wireless connection. (Tablet users may need a special adapter. At this point, however, an extra dongle should be the least of your concerns.)
The designers have yet to make manufacturing deals that would allow for mass production.
Let the "mouse in your pocket" jokes begin.
Fortunately, this be the era of technological bedazzlement, there is no need for which a silly product cannot be invented.
Therefore, we have jeans with a keyboard woven in the fabric and a USB wireless connection. (Tablet users may need a special adapter. At this point, however, an extra dongle should be the least of your concerns.)
The designers have yet to make manufacturing deals that would allow for mass production.
Let the "mouse in your pocket" jokes begin.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Did Linux miss its moment again?
This morning's news includes a note that preorders are available for Spark, the open KDE tablet. To which the tech press, behaving like political reporters responding to the next not-Mitt, proclaims that ebruary seems to be shaping up to be the month of Linux tablets.
Um, no.
Unless you think that two Linux tablet announcement is a big deal.
Linux users have been saying for years that this is the year that companies and civilians will adopt Linux for desktop systems.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="580" caption="Google Trends for Linux desktop"]
[/caption]
Even with new, slick renditions of Linux from Ubuntu, Mint, and others, it just never got the respect or traction that Linux advocates sought. It's too bad. Linux is a very good, solid, secure desktop operating system. It runs well on older, less powerful systems. It just never made it to your aunt's computer.
And, then came the iPad. The tablet runs a deeply proprietary operating system from Apple. It owns the mind share, even if its market share is slipping. Some forecasts suggest that tablet sales will pass desktop/laptop sales within three or so years.
Android, Google's tablet and phone operating system, is Linux-based and open source, but the interface is defined by Google and the hardware manufacturers. There are options to load various custom ROMs on tablets, of course. All the same, it's all still the province of hackers and hobbyists.
Linux still owns the server environment, including pretty much everything that makes the web the web. The story remains, however, is that not only did Linux miss the chance to claim the desktop, the desktop computer itself may be moving to the back of the pack.
Miss a minute, miss a lot.
Um, no.
Unless you think that two Linux tablet announcement is a big deal.
Linux users have been saying for years that this is the year that companies and civilians will adopt Linux for desktop systems.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="580" caption="Google Trends for Linux desktop"]
Even with new, slick renditions of Linux from Ubuntu, Mint, and others, it just never got the respect or traction that Linux advocates sought. It's too bad. Linux is a very good, solid, secure desktop operating system. It runs well on older, less powerful systems. It just never made it to your aunt's computer.
And, then came the iPad. The tablet runs a deeply proprietary operating system from Apple. It owns the mind share, even if its market share is slipping. Some forecasts suggest that tablet sales will pass desktop/laptop sales within three or so years.
Android, Google's tablet and phone operating system, is Linux-based and open source, but the interface is defined by Google and the hardware manufacturers. There are options to load various custom ROMs on tablets, of course. All the same, it's all still the province of hackers and hobbyists.
Linux still owns the server environment, including pretty much everything that makes the web the web. The story remains, however, is that not only did Linux miss the chance to claim the desktop, the desktop computer itself may be moving to the back of the pack.
Miss a minute, miss a lot.
More on law schools and job prospects
The latest in the War on Law Schools comes in the form of a Tennessee student who said that her law school was negligent because they admitted her to the school. Because she hadn't completed her undergraduate work, she won't be eligible to take the bar exam, get a job as a lawyer, and eventually shed nearly $80K in student loans.
A few thoughts on this:
Further, claiming that you aren't qualified and that it's your school's fault may not be a great career-building strategy.
A few thoughts on this:
- Law students have been suing their schools for misrepresenting career prospects. Simply put, there are too many law school graduates chasing too few jobs.
- As we see in ‘Students Employed As Strippers’ Should Be Part Of A Law School’s Ranking, jobs for law school students aren't always what you'd expect.
- Many of jobs available for lawyers (URL may be NSFW) not only won't pay for a three-piece suit; you might not even be able to pay for a three-piece KFC dinner.
Further, claiming that you aren't qualified and that it's your school's fault may not be a great career-building strategy.
Monday, February 13, 2012
I wonder why Huck didn't have one of these
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Car Stove, via bookofjoe"]
[/caption]
[/caption]
Happy Birthday, Michael
[caption id="attachment_3226" align="aligncenter" width="590" caption="Mike, Lindsey, and The Count"]
[/caption]
One of Mike's favorite Sesame Street characters was The Count. We'd had this jack-in-the-box Count for a long time and gave it to him for this birthday. Within a few minutes, the littler kids in the party had grabbed the toy and were using it to scare young Billy (age 18 months).
[/caption]One of Mike's favorite Sesame Street characters was The Count. We'd had this jack-in-the-box Count for a long time and gave it to him for this birthday. Within a few minutes, the littler kids in the party had grabbed the toy and were using it to scare young Billy (age 18 months).
Sunday, February 12, 2012
About the political friends of Tim Murray and Deval Patrick
It's pretty rare for the Globe editorial team to deliver such a devastating takedown of a Democrat. In Lt. Gov. Tim Murray’s patronage politics show deeper problem in Mass., the Globe not only slams Murray, but also reminds us that Gov. Deval Patrick's continued support of Murray is bad for government in general.
Tim Murray earned this long before his early morning car crash. His aspirations to make it outside of Worcester brought him to people who, legally or ethically, should never be near a political campaign.
The Globe editorial concludes:
Long-time students of Massachusetts politics and government shouldn't be surprised by any of this. All the same, we had hoped that we were better than this.
Tim Murray earned this long before his early morning car crash. His aspirations to make it outside of Worcester brought him to people who, legally or ethically, should never be near a political campaign.
The Globe editorial concludes:
Tim Murray has shown, through his relationship with McLaughlin, that he lacks the judgment and character to make these decisions. And Patrick, who controls all the levers of the executive branch, still sees fit to keep Murray as his personal liaison to municipal government.
Long-time students of Massachusetts politics and government shouldn't be surprised by any of this. All the same, we had hoped that we were better than this.
Friday, February 10, 2012
The Obama and Romney campaigns have announced that they will be using Square to collect political donations. Romney's Believe in America jobs plan is #9 on the Amazon Kindle best-seller list; supporters can download a copy by tweeting about the book via Pay with a Tweet. These moves signal an embrace of new technologies and new social ways of engaging with the electorate.
Simplifying donations Obama campaign volunteers have started to receive Square readers for use on iOS and Android devices. Campaign spokeswoman, Katie Hogan, said that the Obama team is developing a branded app that will send funds directly to campaign headquarters, eliminating the need for the volunteer to collect and record donor information. With the donor information, campaign headquarters can make follow-up solicitations in the succeeding weeks and months. Zac Moffatt, digital director for the Romney campaign, planned a few tests of Square in Florida this week. Moffatt hasn't yet reported on the results of those tests.
Neither Google Wallet nor other NFC solutions from major credit cards are in play. The only candidate to accept PayPal is Ron Paul. In what might be a related story, PayPal founder and early Facebook investor Peter Thiel gave $900K to Ron Paul SuperPAC.
Targeting local users Moffat tells Fast Company that geo-targeting makes the messages more effective, bringing endorsements by local politicians into Google ads. Mobile users in the same area receive an ad that directs them to a local campaign contact or event.
It is always about money Small donations are the still the base of the Obama campaign, with 71% of the contributions at $200 or less. Donations in this amount could fit well with the Square deployment. Sixty-percent of Romney's donations are at the $2500 per-person maximum, more likely to be checks. The other three Republican candidates are raising money in small, medium, and large amounts in roughly the same proportion. In order to collect the money, in whatever denomination, you need to know who your supporters are.
It's not just the money in hand Using Square or other mobile payment options are less about being able to generate large amounts of money in the field and more a means to help with paperwork that generates mailing lists. Clay Johnson, who set up the Obama fund-raising mechanism for the 2008 election, reminds us that donor contact information is nearly as valuable as the currency itself. He reports on some of his experiences in his new book, The Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Consumption. Online petitions, he notes, are a familiar way to rally supporters to a cause. "[O]nline petitions that you sign are not meant, primarily, to cause change. They’re meant to get your email address so that you can later be bombarded by emails asking for money."
Square eliminates paperwork and generates cash. A Twitter promotion can put a political tract at the top of the Kindle best-sellers. The few sparks in social media political advertising and solicitations are bringing fresh perspectives to political operations. These changes aren't as dramatic as we saw in 2004 with MoveOn.org or 2008 with Facebook and YouTube, but they're very real in an election that is likely to exceed $6B in spending.
Simplifying donations Obama campaign volunteers have started to receive Square readers for use on iOS and Android devices. Campaign spokeswoman, Katie Hogan, said that the Obama team is developing a branded app that will send funds directly to campaign headquarters, eliminating the need for the volunteer to collect and record donor information. With the donor information, campaign headquarters can make follow-up solicitations in the succeeding weeks and months. Zac Moffatt, digital director for the Romney campaign, planned a few tests of Square in Florida this week. Moffatt hasn't yet reported on the results of those tests.
Neither Google Wallet nor other NFC solutions from major credit cards are in play. The only candidate to accept PayPal is Ron Paul. In what might be a related story, PayPal founder and early Facebook investor Peter Thiel gave $900K to Ron Paul SuperPAC.
Targeting local users Moffat tells Fast Company that geo-targeting makes the messages more effective, bringing endorsements by local politicians into Google ads. Mobile users in the same area receive an ad that directs them to a local campaign contact or event.
It is always about money Small donations are the still the base of the Obama campaign, with 71% of the contributions at $200 or less. Donations in this amount could fit well with the Square deployment. Sixty-percent of Romney's donations are at the $2500 per-person maximum, more likely to be checks. The other three Republican candidates are raising money in small, medium, and large amounts in roughly the same proportion. In order to collect the money, in whatever denomination, you need to know who your supporters are.
It's not just the money in hand Using Square or other mobile payment options are less about being able to generate large amounts of money in the field and more a means to help with paperwork that generates mailing lists. Clay Johnson, who set up the Obama fund-raising mechanism for the 2008 election, reminds us that donor contact information is nearly as valuable as the currency itself. He reports on some of his experiences in his new book, The Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Consumption. Online petitions, he notes, are a familiar way to rally supporters to a cause. "[O]nline petitions that you sign are not meant, primarily, to cause change. They’re meant to get your email address so that you can later be bombarded by emails asking for money."
Square eliminates paperwork and generates cash. A Twitter promotion can put a political tract at the top of the Kindle best-sellers. The few sparks in social media political advertising and solicitations are bringing fresh perspectives to political operations. These changes aren't as dramatic as we saw in 2004 with MoveOn.org or 2008 with Facebook and YouTube, but they're very real in an election that is likely to exceed $6B in spending.
The continued Awful Awful saga
We learn from today's Boston Globe that Harsha Agadi, CEO of Friendly's, is, um, stepping down. Just a few weeks ago, Agadi was featured in the Globe's Sunday business section, where he outlined the ice cream and restaurant chain's path to something like success. The company is, or was, developing a new concept for its stores, as well as improving its french fries.
Read the rest of the blog at my TelegramTowns.com blog, The continued Awful Awful saga.
Read the rest of the blog at my TelegramTowns.com blog, The continued Awful Awful saga.
Thursday, February 09, 2012
The challenges of a site editor
There are a couple of good stories out on the Fast Company website. One profiles Nancy Lee Gioia, Ford's director of Global Electrification and her views on leadership in an business that is in an innovate-or-die mode.
The other story shows how a young British bartender is financing a startup from his own earnings.
Good stories that, when placed on the same page, remind us that many bloggers never quite outgrow their smirking adolescence.
[caption id="attachment_3193" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="via Fast Company on Leadership"]
[/caption]
The other story shows how a young British bartender is financing a startup from his own earnings.
Good stories that, when placed on the same page, remind us that many bloggers never quite outgrow their smirking adolescence.
[caption id="attachment_3193" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="via Fast Company on Leadership"]
[/caption]
Problems copying and pasting HTML links in Chrome browser
The release of Chrome beta for Android has led to, once again, try to use Google Chrome as my preferred web browser. It's fast, secure, and has a number of slick features that make it an enjoyable resource.
The biggest problem that I've had, and one that continues, is the way in which it handles copying and/or pasting of HTML and other rich text elements. Lemme explain:
When I am writing a blog post, I often need to link to other stories or sites. The Make Link extension for Firefox allows me to copy the page address and either selected text or the page's title. I can then paste it into my blog editor.
For example, if I want to include a link to a story on The Onion, I go to the page, use Make Link to grab the title and URL, come back to this window, and paste it so it looks like this: New Biography Reveals Einstein Devised Theory Of Relativity On Paper Because He Wasn't Smart Enough To Invent Microsoft Word | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
Doing the same thing with a comparable extension, such as Create Link, in Chrome results in this:
<a href="http://www.theonion.com/articles/new-biography-reveals-einstein-devised-theory-of-r,27313/">New Biography Reveals Einstein Devised Theory Of Relativity On Paper Because He Wasn't Smart Enough To Invent Microsoft Word | The Onion - America's Finest News Source</a>
When I use a clipboard viewer, I can see that sometimes the info is created as an HTML fragment and, other times, it's just text. I'm not sure why Create Link or similar extensions aren't creating true HTML links.
Chrome on Android, I should note, is an excellent replacement for the stock browser on my phone.
The biggest problem that I've had, and one that continues, is the way in which it handles copying and/or pasting of HTML and other rich text elements. Lemme explain:
When I am writing a blog post, I often need to link to other stories or sites. The Make Link extension for Firefox allows me to copy the page address and either selected text or the page's title. I can then paste it into my blog editor.
For example, if I want to include a link to a story on The Onion, I go to the page, use Make Link to grab the title and URL, come back to this window, and paste it so it looks like this: New Biography Reveals Einstein Devised Theory Of Relativity On Paper Because He Wasn't Smart Enough To Invent Microsoft Word | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
Doing the same thing with a comparable extension, such as Create Link, in Chrome results in this:
<a href="http://www.theonion.com/articles/new-biography-reveals-einstein-devised-theory-of-r,27313/">New Biography Reveals Einstein Devised Theory Of Relativity On Paper Because He Wasn't Smart Enough To Invent Microsoft Word | The Onion - America's Finest News Source</a>
When I use a clipboard viewer, I can see that sometimes the info is created as an HTML fragment and, other times, it's just text. I'm not sure why Create Link or similar extensions aren't creating true HTML links.
Chrome on Android, I should note, is an excellent replacement for the stock browser on my phone.
Whelmed is an archaic word
A VP at a former company used to say, "The easy stuff should be easy." The idea was that our energies, time, and money should flow toward the hard problems. Sandra has another way of phrasing it, creating a Jetsons type of life. The ordinary things can be automatic. Sounds great, until we remember how the show ended, with George shouting, "Jane, stop this crazy thing."
This, as you might have guessed by now, has been an odd week. Some things have gone quiet well. My course on social networking started yesterday. The class is interested, engaged, and fun. (Reminder: if you are going to do a live demo of your Facebook page, expect the unexpected. The people in the class were good-humored about the picture of the swearing cat that showed up in one FB post.)
Other work has been a struggle. A couple of writing assignments stumbled and needed rewrites. A web project is stalled. I'm overdue on a couple of reports for another project. Stuff like that. Nothing really bad in and of itself, but, the whole is more than the sum of the parts.
So, today I'm feeling whelmed, which, I've learned, is a word we don't use unless we need it.
This, as you might have guessed by now, has been an odd week. Some things have gone quiet well. My course on social networking started yesterday. The class is interested, engaged, and fun. (Reminder: if you are going to do a live demo of your Facebook page, expect the unexpected. The people in the class were good-humored about the picture of the swearing cat that showed up in one FB post.)
Other work has been a struggle. A couple of writing assignments stumbled and needed rewrites. A web project is stalled. I'm overdue on a couple of reports for another project. Stuff like that. Nothing really bad in and of itself, but, the whole is more than the sum of the parts.
So, today I'm feeling whelmed, which, I've learned, is a word we don't use unless we need it.
Tuesday, February 07, 2012
Cloud Solutions Help Third-World Banks
Coupled with local mobile systems, cloud services are bringing innovative banking to the most underserved markets of the world.
Read the rest on Cloud Solutions Help Third-World Banks at Better Bank Systems - The Community for News and Analysis about Banks' Core Systems
Read the rest on Cloud Solutions Help Third-World Banks at Better Bank Systems - The Community for News and Analysis about Banks' Core Systems
Monday, January 30, 2012
Bad Usability, Bad Customer Attitude
Usability studies of banking kiosks and interactive displays revealed some tough news. Customers may believe that automated services are more for the bank's convenience than for the customer's.
You can read the rest in Digital Draw blog - Bad Usability, Bad Customer Attitude
You can read the rest in Digital Draw blog - Bad Usability, Bad Customer Attitude
GOP Fumbles Social Media
Through inattention and tone-deafness, the GOP has failed to capitalize on a good start using social media for political campaigning, ignored an essential constituency in Florida, and missed chances to address local issues.
Read the read on The CMO Site - Karl Hakkarainen - GOP Fumbles Social Media
Read the read on The CMO Site - Karl Hakkarainen - GOP Fumbles Social Media
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Hello world again!
Because I have several projects due and overdue, I thought it would be a great time to move RoasterBoy again. Because the blog is now on my own host, I have access to many more work-avoidance features and widgets.
Thanks to all who've stayed with me for all these years. I hope that I continue to be worthy of your time and attention.
Thanks to all who've stayed with me for all these years. I hope that I continue to be worthy of your time and attention.
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