No More Time Off For Me

internet

It never fails. I decide to walk away from the computer for one day and all heck breaks loose.

I needed to focus on a project for a client. I checked all my emails and other vitals, then went into seclusion building a website for a new client. When I was done I stayed unplugged and helped a friend put together a Haunted House for next week. I ended up going out with friends and enjoying the night.

Little did I know, on another site I work on a fire was brewing. It wasn’t a big deal, but really made me scramble when I finally got back online. I (hopefully) put out the fire and continued about my business. It did, however, take me a good 30-45 minutes to take care of – in which it takes up time so I can get other things done.

The funny thing is every time I take time off, something happens. The last time I unplugged, my main website (geekazine) went down. An errant program rewrote my htaccess file and I was down the whole day. What was worse about that was I just posted a big article that was getting higher – than-normal traffic. AUGH!

I have set up some fail safes, though. I put in a couple scripts to email me when certain things happen. It did save me on another issue – I got a site up and running in a matter of minutes.

Site monitoring is a daily thing for me. I have over 10 different sites I have to go to before I even move on to other tasks. It doesn’t bother me – I enjoy what I do. It just seems that things want to go awry when I walk away.

There are a lot of tools out there that can tell you if something goes south. I get emails when the Database has issues or when a site didn’t ping for over 15 minutes. Still, nothing is better than the friend that messages you and tells you what’s going on. For that, I thank everyone that looks out for it.

I am a PC – And a Firefighter. Well, at least one without a cool firefighter uniform. Oh and also no cool red ladder engine to drive around town in. Maybe someday…

Tear Down Libraries

Info, , ,

I like libraries as well as librarians who are generally some of the nicest, most helpful people I have met. However there is not much of a need for libraries anymore. The internet has more information than all the libraries in the world can provide and is widely available. I know it is not free in most places though like the library. Free is not exactly correct as they are paid for through taxation. Now I am not suggesting hurting poor people by taking away the “free library”. I think it can be done differently if it has to be done at all. It is not only a place to get free books but also a place to get online for free but you do have to drive to the physical location. Why not take the library budget and use it for free wi fi hot spots in the city?

Now I know everyone does not have a computer so free wi fi does not help them. But there are ways to to get this done also. OLCP is one avenue but there could be plenty more ideas and I am not suggesting giving out free computers through taxes. I think most taxes are unnecessary but I don’t have time to delve into that. Another point is that not everyone uses the library currently so not everyone should get a computer just because they cannot afford one. Separating people in search of knowledge from people looking for a handout is a task indeed. Maybe local business could sponsor kids or a single mother to get a computer in exchange for some volunteer work in the future. The point is a centralized location for knowledge is an outdated idea so other ways of accessing that information has to be achieved.

We live right behind our library and rarely visit it. We get online everyday. That may be different if they had more current books but that is likely a problem in most small towns. If there was free wi fi in our miniscule town we could save $40 per month. At least then we would get something for our taxes. I just think more people would benefit from free wi fi than currently do from brick & mortar libraries. If I could save $480 per year on internet service then I would gladly contribute (voluntarily) a percentage to a fund for the less fortunate in my town to get low cost computers. I put a link to a library website with a study showing increased use at libraries but the study was done by The American Library Association so take it with a grain of salt. If I ran a bakery & did a study on whether cakes were necessary or not, do you think the result would benefit me?

http://www.statelibraryofiowa.org/archive/2007/07/07ala/

Podcamp Hawaii this Friday and Saturday

Information, Podcast

Podcamp-hi-speak-200If you have not been over to the Podcamp Hawaii website in the last few days you need to.

I am really excited as this is going to be an amazing event. With over 500 people registered and two days of some very impressive tracks on WordPress, Podcasting, Social Media and a Business track the event is shaping up to be unlike anything ever seen in Hawaii.

It is not to late to sign up I think they have like a 100 tickets left! Come on down to Podcamp Hawaii and joing me in one of my three sessions. I will be doing a Podcast 101, Podcast Geat and Podcast Monetization.

Using Digital Video To Coach Sports

Info, ,

If you have a kid involved in sports, which is likely since there are so many options available now from golf to fast pitch softball to traditional football, you need a video camera. They are great for training or coaching. You can point out mistakes and strengths that cannot be noticed in real time. Plus the kid cannot watch themselves live they need video evidence, especially the hard headed ones! Our child takes fast pitch softball lessons and when working on it home we use video to show her how to improve. It really works if you take the time to do it. You can break down each motion to get rid of bad mechanics or habits.

Of course if you are a coach you can use video for the same purposes. I know football coaches use game film to prepare for each opponent but they could go further and record each practice to get exact details on their own players. Specialty coaches that train on an individual a basis are crazy if they don’t record their training sessions. It would be a tool for the player to get better and also a way to differentiate their service from the completion not to mention a way to create a training dvd to market to the masses. These personal trainers make great money if they know what they are doing by the way. People will pay all kinds of money to help their kids excel.

The NFL has their system set up for each team to be able to download any video they want for an upcoming opponent. In the old days they used to mail the tapes! They have paid employees that break down every aspect of the opposing team’s games. Some of those guys’ sole purpose is to know every single tendency of the adversary’s quarterback in order to defend against him. If NFL teams see the value in video of players then it is obvious how important it could be for your child. They would not spend the money or time unless it paid off. I think it can pay off for a kid wanting to get better at their chosen sport.

Is a recession good or bad for Apple

Apple

Apple is scheduled to release an earnings report today, and the general feeling tends to be that they will have a good quarter. In the wake of the financial crisis, their stocks are down considerably at the moment, the inference in this is that the growth potential of Apple is lower. As with most things stock market though, emotion has a lot to do with this. As of Monday close Apple was sitting at just under $100 per share which is less than half it’s $203 peak. At this new level Apples price per earnings ratio is still almost 20 (which is moderately high).

Realistically Apples share price probably had little to do with real growth prospects for Apple. Apple is known for having a premium price point in the market though, and will this hamper its potential to maintain its market? I am not sure that it will. The last downturn was due to the Internet bubble and saw larger than normal numbers of IT workers out of work. Before this downturn though, the IT sector was actually in a pretty good state and even in the entrepreneurial areas there is very little bloat. There is very little chance that there are going to be many IT professionals out of work. As this demographic is a large part of the Apple purchasers it may not hit Apple to hard.

I am also seeing some anecdotal evidence from my friends in the IT industry is that Apple is starting to make its way into corporate environments in a limited way. While large corporates are not adding Apple into their SOE, with the iPhone and good looking laptops that can run corporate Windows images, the executive jewelry market is running hot with Apple now. Regardless of how tight belts get in companies, the VP’s will still get the laptops they want.

In the end there is a good chance that Apple, and many other IT companies won’t feel much from this downturn

GNC-2008-10-21 #418 Lots of Podcast Stuff

Podcast

Lot’s of Podcast Stuff to share at the beginning of the show. Huge Thank You to all of the Podcast Award reviewers from the show. I would not have been able to do it without all of you!

Please Support my Show Sponsors!:
[Save 10% off on any order at GoDaddy.com!] Use Code Todd
[Try GoToMeeting free for 30 days at GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts. No credit card needed.]

Twitter Me http://www.twitter.com/geeknews
My Facebook Profile
FriendFeed GNC Room!!
Comments to 619-342-7365 e-mail to geeknews@gmail.com

Listener Links:
Dod Ears Emit Radio Sounds
Consumer Reports Health Interview
A Story of Medical Travel
Journler
$10,000 Student Blogger Scholarship
BWebCentral Listener Blog
McCain Complains
Google Phone Reviews
Photo Plus Expo

Show Notes:
5 Secrets about DirectTV
40 Gmail Hints
Yahoo to let 3000 Go!
Saturn by Cassini
More Doom and Gloom
Astronauts DIY Concrete on Moon
Gut Bacteria and Weight Control
Inspiration at 10:04PM?
More UFO Files Released
Second Power Peak
Comcast Cranks up the Speed!
Bloglines Band-Aid plus For Sale
ScreenToaster
Glitch with Hubble
MPAA calls out EFF
Apple and Psystar go Mediation Route
Mars Sky Crane
France President Bank Cyber Attack
Case why ISP do not need to be Copyright Cops
More Gmail Outages
The Sun (Not to be Missed)

BLOCKBUSTER Total Access click to activate coupon for $10 off your first month.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Blubrry | Email | TuneIn | RSS | More

Podfade

Podcast, ,

Update Written by Contributing Editor

Why do so many podcasts just end after a while or experience “podfade”? Obviously it takes time to do podcasting so since time is scarce in our culture you can only do so much in the 168 hours you have each week. I imagine the reason people start a podcast is they want to make money, they have always wanted to be in “talk radio”, or they are truly passionate about the subject they are discussing. Making money at podcasting is not easy or immediate so that ends the dreams of most. It can be done but you better hold that day job …… for a while. Secondly people just don’t realize how much time it takes to do a regular podcast. They think you can just fire up the microphone, start jabbering, and hit upload. They don’t think about show prep and getting their facts straight so they don’t come off like a moron. They also find it hard to have a quiet time to do a show when the family is not going to be heard in the background. They try to keep it up but fall behind on doing their show, eventually giving up.

I speak from experience as I did one for a while but podfade hit & it was over. I did it on a subject I really love, sports, but was still unable to keep it going. Part of that is from my not being organized enough at the time but I am turning that around currently. I am trying to work out a “zero based time budget”(Dan Miller idea) to keep me focused on important stuff. That led to always feeling the pressure to do a show because I wanted it to be on schedule. Like Todd says, if you are not uploading a show on time on a regular schedule your listeners will leave. I have started podcasting again but on a different subject in hopes of creating an extra income connected to my small business which I am passionate about and enjoy. Another thing I am doing is creating the show early to have in the can to upload on the scheduled day. I am not waiting to do the recording on the night I need to upload since things can come up with the family that needs my attention. I like this way better plus it is a show that does not have up to the second industry news so recording a day early is fine. I think this show will have a long life but I know I have to make it a priority or podfade will attack me again!