Exercising around the World

A while back I posted about the 'Where in the Hell is Matt?' video's.  Ran across this video today and found it mildly interesting.  Probably more jealous than anything...

Talk about Recycling!!

Ran across this today and thought it was worth posting to the rant. Enjoy!!

RSA Animate

Thanks to a friend of mine on FB - I ran across this video from an organization called 'RSA' Animate'. Interesting thoughts on our educational system.




Enjoy!

Literal Video Versions!

OK - had to post this one. They take a song and put words that match what they are seeing in the video. Really funny. Totally cracked me up!! Enjoy!

Magic Show

Found this one a long time ago and never put it on the rant. Enjoy!!

Fluteboxing

Thanks to a friend from church for this one.  It is 18 minutes long, and if you don't feel like watching the whole thing, make sure you skip to the middle and start watching where 'Beardyman' comes on. Enjoy!!

Food Inc.

This new movie is coming out to theatres in bigger markets called 'Food, Inc.'. Every time I see some sort of documentary about this topic, I do a little 'hanging my head in shame' that I am still eating like I am and allowing my family to do the same. In a round about way this led me to a 'TED' presentation by a guy named Mark Brittman on the same subject. Check it out:




Then when you are finished watching this - check out the trailer for the Food, Inc. movie.

Time Lapse Across China

I ran across this video today and thought it worthy of the rant. It is about this guy that walks across China and take a picture everyday. Pretty cool indeed...

Stuff White People Like - Macs

My friend Dave pointed me to this blog and I had to rant on it! Especially the one about Macs. As a white person who uses a MacBook Pro (dual-booting with Vista 64 and Leopard, and drives a VW Jetta) I think this is totally hilarious and all to true! I have often thought the same thing. I see people hanging out in coffee shops, checking their emails, looking at their pictures and surfing the web. All on a machine that costs at least $500 more than a PC laptop that could do the exact same thing (especially when the email is gmail). I have come to the conclusion that having a Mac is a status symbol more than anything else. I bet that 90% of the people who own Macs use them for the three things I just mentioned and not a whole lot else. Steve Jobs is a genius in the fact that he has created a brand that sells based on the guise that it is 'more intuitive to use' and gets away with charging 50% more. Anyway, check out the blog...

Adoption Story

I ran across an interesting article today that caught my interest enough that I thought I would rant on it. Since adoption is near and dear to my heart any time I see a story like this I pause and read it. This is truely incredible what these people have done. A small church of 200 or so adopted 72 'of the most abused and neglected foster children in Texas'. Talk about walking the walk. Although they are having hardships, those kids are way better off than what they would have been, due to the sacrifice of a church. Amazing... Yet another confirmation of what I need to be focusing on. Quite simply 'not me'.

Hurricane Video

I met a new guy at work last week. His name is Darren Howard and he entered this video in the 'Jimmy Needham Cover Contest'. I thought it was pretty cool and really enjoyed the fact that he did most of it by himself. Anway, check it out....




Oh yeah - he won....

The Advent Conspiracy

Ran across this today from a friend on facebook.  Not only did I think the message was appropriate, but it really appealed to me from a presentation (visualization) point of view.  I think that Garr would like it also...  Anyway, enjoy!

The next evolutionary step of the mobile device

iPhone, step aside, there is a new device in town.

;)

Enjoy! dv

More Visualizations on the how we got to where we are..

As I continue in my desire to learn more about effective communication, one area that I like to learn about is how to best use visuals to get a point across. Getting rid of bullet points etc. is becoming a war cry for me. I have recently been observing the power of simple drawings to obtain this (somewhat lofty) goal.

Along those lines I have run across a few interesting visuals on how the economy got to where it is at right now. If you are offended by foul language, you may want to skip the first one (it drops the f-bomb a few times), but it does do a really good job of simplifying how we got to where we are.

Visual 1 - 'A Subprime Primer ' - a slide show that utilizes stick people

Visual 2 - 'Uncorking CDO's', - A video that does a good job of explaining the same thing utilizing a slightly different but yet simple delivery method.




Enjoy!

The Rise of the Machines!

A friend sent this article to me today and I thought it was interesting enough to rant about. It has to do with the current financial crisis and the fact that nobody can really pipoint how it happened. With movies like Terminator and The Matrix floating through our heads we usually think of computers taking over the world as battle. Maybe they already have and we are doing it willingly in the name of speed and efficiency? Here is an quote from the article:

"But we are suggesting neither that the human race would voluntarily turn power over to the machines nor that the machines would willfully seize power. What we do suggest is that the human race might easily permit itself to drift into a position of such dependence on the machines that it would have no practical choice but to accept all of the machines’ decisions. ... Eventually a stage may be reached at which the decisions necessary to keep the system running will be so complex that human beings will be incapable of making them intelligently. At that stage the machines will be in effective control. People won’t be able to just turn the machines off, because they will be so dependent on them that turning them off would amount to suicide."

Read the article to find out who originally wrote that statement in their manifesto. It will blow you away. - dv

Google 'Chrome'

It appears that Google has introduced a beta of their new web browser called 'Chrome'.  I thought I would give it a whirl and have to say that is very fast.  Not available for the Mac yet, but apparently they are working on it.  Since it is still in beta (does Google ever take software off of beta?) you may run into a few bugs now and then. So, if you are running Windows - take a gander. It has a few cool new features that I think are intuitive and in true Google style, they have a different take on the UI. Check it out and see what you think!  Enjoy!

Hacking your Coffee Maker

OK - been away for a bit, but I am back now and loaded with lots of topics to rant about. You should see the rants pick up in the near future. Here is the first. I have developed a real interest in data visualization and for that matter visualization in general. It all started when I went to an Edward Tufte seminar and then started working on data visualization for a project at work. It has since passed into most areas of my life. I tend to look at things a little more critically now and am always asking the question 'what is this visual trying to get across' followed by 'how successful is it at doing that'. Maybe it is the long repressed creative side coming out - or maybe just a passing fancy...

I have ranted about data visualization in the past and this one was too good to not pass along. Not only does it apply to data vis., but is also has to do with coffee. Something that is near and dear to my heart as well as the hearts of my readers. Actually, according to Wikipedia's definition of addiction - 'a state in which the body relies on a substance for normal functioning and develops physical dependence', I am 'slightly' addicted to coffee and the caffeine that flows through its (coffee) veins. To the point where I get headaches when I don't get my 'fix' for the day. Tried to quit a few times, but that would only last for a few weeks. What, I ask you, is the point of drinking decaffeinated anything? Anyway - back to the rant...



Some folks figured out how to hack their coffee pot to measure their coffee (caffeine) consumption. Check out the article, it is worth the read. Maybe a few certain people at a certain church that I know of should install these on their coffee machines? The article also brought up a good point, would I actually curb my consumption if I knew how much I drank? That's all for this one ~ Enjoy!

Cool Web App For Finding a House

Once again, my friend Larry sent me a link to a website that is worthy of the rant. A company called 'Trulia' (which helps you in searching for homes) introduced a new tool today called 'Snapshot' which has a very cool UI design (UI = user interface). It allows you to select a price range and shows all the houses that are for sale within that range. Pretty common I know, but it also shows you where they are on the map and includes a little picture of the house (if available). In the words of Larry, 'simple, elegant and it works'. The perfect tri-fecta! Until later, Enjoy!

Career limiting moves...

I ran across this article from Baseline and thought it was interesting enough to rant about. The jist of the article is that you need to be careful about what you put on your 'myspace' or 'facebook' site due to the fact that recruiters and HR folks are using these as a way to screen potential employees.

Imagine, a future employer visiting your social networking site and finding out something about you that is very different from the way they think about it. For example, you like to 'Party like a Rock Star' every night and you are applying for a job working for a high school as a guidance counselor. Although it may not be right (and maybe it is right) that they use that in their decision process, the fact of the matter is that it will influence their position on whether or not they hire you. Kind of like tattoos that creep up your neck and stick out when you are in your 'interview' suit. Like it or not - the interviewer is going to form an opinion about you. (I call these types of things - career limiting moves...)

Another thought is that you can use these sites in a purposeful way to promote yourself. It also talks about the site 'LinkedIn', which could be equated to a 'professional' version of myspace/facebook. Using sites like these, might be a good backup to a resume. On 'LinkedIn' you can create a lot of content about yourself and the potential employer could learn a lot more about you with out having to create (and read) a 5 page resume.

So, I am not sayaying to hide who you are, just be aware of the ramifications..... Until next time - Enjoy!

New Graphic!!

OK - let me know what you think of the new header! My friend Dan Powell whipped this up for me and I think it looks pretty cool. Who is that goofy dude shouting anyways???

Thanks Dan!

Enjoy!