Apparently, it’s not just me. In today’s Washington Post, sportswriter Tom Boswell talks about the sudden surge of enthusiasm for the NHL’s Washington Capitals.
Boswell chalks up the interest to the Caps strong performance this year, which has them owning the fourth-best record in hockey.
Maybe. But don’t discount HD TV.
Either way, Go Caps!
I took my Tablet PC along with me to a client meeting today to take some notes and provide ready access to the hundreds of pages of reference documents associated with the project we're working on. As the meeting progressed, we started scribbling ideas on the white board in the room. Although this particular white board is interactive with capture/printing capability, it wasn't hooked up, so we couldn't "replay" the ideas we put on the board.
Instead, I grabbed my HTC Touch Pro Windows Mobile phone and snapped pictures every few minutes to capture the thoughts. As I did this, I put "tags" in my notes in OneNote to mark where I was in the discussion when I took a picture. Later, I emailed myself the photos and dropped them into OneNote adjacent to the section of the notes they relate to.
Both my handwritten notes and the pictures are text "searchable" by OneNote. It does a pretty good job with my writing (about 95% correct), but it had a tough time with the scribbles in the pictures.
Here's screenshot of part of my notes page from today. (If parts look blurry or unreadable, that's because they are. I've masked any identifying info from the picture.)
But, now that I have HD TV, my priorities may be changing. After watching the thrilling (and well-broadcast) NHL Winter Classic on New Year’s Day, I’ve caught several Caps games – and I feel a new obsession coming on.
Couldn’t come at a better time. The Caps are off to their best season ever, and they have the best player in the NHL with Alexander Ovechkin.
At this minute, they’re about to go into an overtime shootout with the Flyers. Now that I can see the puck, maybe I’ll even be able to tell who won without checking online.
The SmarTrip cards are getting integrated into all parts of D.C. transportation. Aside from the subway and buses, you can also use a SmarTrip card to pay for parking at lots near Metro stations. For the last year or so, parking meters in Georgetown have also been taking SmarTrip cards.
The transportation gods keep promising new features that will let users add value to the cards online and combine SmarTrip cards with other credit cards, but these have yet to materialize. Personally, I'd like to see them introduce a version of the SmarTrip card that works like the new electronic boarding passes, so you can move through the system or park just by flashing your phone at the reader.
I’m grateful to the Yahoo GTD group for turning me on last fall to OneNote Journal Power Toy, a OneNote add-in from TabletDev. Through a single click or by pressing Windows-J, you can create or access a OneNote page with today’s date on it, organized in a notebook by month.
I’ve never been one to keep daily journal-style notes, but the convenience of this power toy has made me rethink how I approach note-taking and using Outlook. Every day, I launch a daily notes page using the power toy. As I take notes all day -- from calls and meetings, from stuff I’ve read, or as thoughts occur to me --I jot them down on the daily notes page. This turns my daily notes page into a “virtual” inbox, where I can capture everything from that day.
Here's a sample of notes from this morning (changed to protect identities, of course):
Combining OneNote and Outlook makes it easy to process and track my notes. When I complete the note, I also "tag" it with an icon that associates it with a specific client. Later, by going into "Show tagged notes," I can pull up all references to any specific client or category, regardless of date, creating a handy way to revisit notes during a weekly review or flag stuff as reference.
If I have time after I make the note, I process it immediately. Depending on what it is, I can create a "project page" in OneNote (which links to my projects list in Outlook) or I can create new entries on my next actions lists in Outlook. (Pressing CTL-Shift-K in OneNote creates a linked task in Outlook.)
If I don't have time to process the notes immediately, I flag the entry with a custom check box I've created with the name, "Process." Just as I can sort by category or client tag, I can also pull up all items marked, "Process," which gives me a way to pull up all things I still need to process on one screen. It also helps me ensure that I don't forget to process something as I move from day to day.
By turning on the Tags Summary, I can get a quick view of all the items I've tagged:
If I want, I can even toggle a few options and collapse some categories to show only incomplete items on my "To Process" list and/or incomplete items I've sent to my next action lists in Outlook:
All of the items in the Tags Summary box are clickable, so I can jump directly to the original note where I created them. By clicking on the red flags in the tasks, I can open the item in Outlook or mark it complete via OneNote. The "Process" check boxes are interactive, so I check/uncheck them, as I complete processing.
(BTW, the list of tasks above does not reflect the wording of the next actions as they appear on my NA lists. I usually tweak those to make them true next physical actions when I put them on my NA lists, but OneNote and Outlook don't sync that change.)
One thing I'm still trying to adapt in a more seamless way is integrating daily notes with Windows Mobile. I found a Power Toy on the OneNote Power Toys blog that lets me send any OneNote page to OneNote Mobile, which is a handy way to keep daily notes current on my Windows Mobile phone. But, I haven't found a great way to get note FROM my phone back to the daily notes page. I can type notes in OneNote Mobile and sync them through ActiveSync, but I typically take handwritten notes in the WinMob Notes app. Right now, I'm emailing myself the notes I take, pulling them up on the desktop, and pasting them into my daily page. It's more than a little clunky, especially since OneNote 2007 doesn't read handwriting from WinMob. (Stupid move, Microsoft...)
The post-Christmas sale prices for electronics didn’t strike me as being all that good this year – especially in light of the sluggish retail sales – but I took the plunge anyway and picked up an HD, widescreen TV last week: Samsung Series 5 32-inch 1080 LCD.
I had wanted to a new TV in my bedroom, and this sleek, unobtrusive, full HD set seemed to fit the bill without breaking the bank.
I hadn’t been especially gung-ho about going to HD TV, since switching basically makes my Tivos and Slingboxes all but obsolete. But, after having this set for a few days – and watching HD broadcasts like the NHL Winter Classic on New Year’s Day – I was sold. In fact, I went out the other day and picked up a second Samsung (same model), so I could watch HD without having to sit in the bedroom all the time.
I’m using the second Samsung as my main TV right now, but I can see already that I’m going to want to move that to my office and get a 46-inch as my primary viewing.
When I get some time to play, I also want to try hooking a computer to these sets. Aside from the appeal of being able to use them as additional computer access, I’m thinking more and more that direct streaming from a PC may make more sense than media sharing through Tivo.
Interesting story in today’s Washington Post about Vivek Kundra, the CTO for Washington, D.C. The D.C. government has long been a bastion of bureaucracy, ineptitude, laziness, and backward thinking, so it’s encouraging that someone with some vision is pushing the tech side forward.
As a native Washingtonian, the passage that impressed me most was the part about Kundra and his colleagues emailing each other at 2 in the morning to discuss policy details. This is almost certainly the first time the Post has ever reported on D.C. officials doing anything at 2 a.m. that didn’t involve a drug deal or a dead body.
Among his solutions: Foundation-based funding and deep-pocketed investors. (Hope there’s a “Plan C” out there…)
As I was reading the story, I was musing about the future of the New Yorker, too. I had subscribed to the magazine (in print) for a long time, but gave up about two years ago when I decided: a.) I didn’t actually get around to reading most issues and b.) 95% of the articles I wanted to read were available online for free.
Although I find value in the articles, I must admit that I probably wouldn’t be willing to pay for them, if the New Yorker went to a “paid” access model, nor would I consider going back to a paper-based subscription.
I may be their biggest fan and worst nightmare rolled into one. Tough business to be in…
Last year around this time when I was doing a year-end computer backup and paper shred, I thought it would be interesting to find out just how much paper comes into my life in a year. So, I decided that instead of shredding it throughout the year, I'd save it in an expandable file this year to see just how big the pile would be after a year.
The results are below:
After 12 months, I ended up with a 3-inch pile of paper. It includes everything I wasn't able to "avoid" -- receipts, insurance forms and policies, tax packages, a few things from clients, and credit-card offers. Except for the credit-card junk, I scanned everything as I received it, so as soon as I do my year-end computer back up, I'll shred the pile.
So, what did I learn from this? Well, I think I've reached the point where I'm as "paperless" as possible right now. I've checked with several of my "paper sources" to see if I they can turn off the stream, but the answer, for now, is no. For example, probably half is comprised of insurance policies and statements of benefits, but my insurance companies say that state law requires them to provide this stuff on paper. On the plus side, with the economy tanking, the flow of credit card offers ought to be slowing down soon...
I use a mix of wired and unwired on my own system, and I can’t say that I notice a major speed difference from device to device.
Wired:
Unwired:
After switching to a draft N router, I saw enough of a speed improvement that I can stream video with no drops or glitches (standard, not HD) among any of my devices, so I’m satisfied with wireless speed right now.
Is it fast enough for HD? Time will tell.
Blogger, GTDer, and digital fellow traveler Howard Robson has posted on his blog a very interesting response to my comments about the end of Mygazines.com. Howard makes a strong case for why magazine sharing through a site like Mygazines is detrimental to the magazine business even beyond the outright piracy issues, noting that the circulation of these journals can't be audited. That, in turn, can erode a magazine's advertising base -- and even drive it toward bankruptcy.
These are good points, and I'm very sympathetic to the arguments, being a copyright holder and magazine writer myself. There's no doubt in my mind that copyright violation is wrong, and I have seen firsthand how dwindling ad revenue can break a magazine.
But, as a digital cheerleader, I have to ask: Wouldn't it be smarter for publishers to change their model to meet the needs of the age than for them to protect a dying approach that can't be secured?
Rather than comparing magazines to newspapers or music -- although they obviously share some attributes of both -- I'd argue that a better comparison is with commercial television. Most magazines -- at least ad-supported ones -- operate much as commercial television does, by presenting a product that attracts and holds a reader's attention long enough to expose them to advertising images. But, unlike television, magazines charge both the advertiser and the consumer for the service. Ironically, rather than creating two income streams, this has left magazines doubly vulnerable -- as readers abandon ship for other information and entertainment options, advertisers are willing to pay less to reach smaller audiences.
My sense is that publishers ultimately will have to choose what business they're in: Are they creating content that readers value? If so, they need to find new ways to monetize the value -- and limiting access probably won't work. Or, are they selling advertising opportunities? If that's their business line, they face even bigger challenges, since the very platforms where they propose to place the ads are rapidly disappearing.
Tough business to be in, Howard...
Heading back to work after giving myself a few days off during the Thanksgiving break. Well, almost "off"...
I'm refreshed and ready for the new week.
As much as I enjoy having a 24/7 system in the kitchen, one thing that has continued to bug me is having my flatscreen sitting on the kitchen table. It's a small table, so even the small monitor took up a lot of room. Plus, it made the kitchen look too "office-y" -- I wasn't going for a second desk, just a way to access electronic data and info instantly.
I found a clamp-on swing-arm for the monitor, but, alas, the 2001-era 15-inch HP flatscreen I was using wasn't VESA compliant, so I wasn't able to attach it to the swing-arm.
Time to give up? Not a chance! Last week, I got a 19-inch Samsung Syncmaster 920NW. Fits great on the swing-arm and the wide screen makes viewing multiple windows (and the Windows Vista Sidebar) much more pleasant. Getting it up off the table also lets me re-claim all the table space, too.
Tonight when I was cleaning up, I snapped a couple of pictures. Here's what it looks like when I have the monitor turned so I can sit at the table and view it:
Here's what it looks like when I push it back to the wall so it's out of the way. (BTW, the cable you see in both pictures is actually a power cable, not anything to do with the monitor. For some reason, the kitchen outlets in this building are all halfway up the wall, rather than in the normal position closer to the floor. All the monitor and system cables are hidden.)
All in all, I'm pretty happy with it. I think I've been able to avoid an "office" look pretty well. What do you all think?
The other day, a client and I were talking about how economic and social uncertainty might affect the way some of our target audiences perceive messages. The discussion turned to how needs and personal status affect perception and action -- the same ideas that psychologist Abraham Maslow first offered in his Hierarchy of Needs theory.
Maslow envisioned a five-level pyramid that represented how an individual's motivation changes depending on various needs:
1. Physiological -- basic needs, like food, water, sleep, and shelter
2. Safety -- feeling secure in terms of health, employment, personal safety, etc.
3. Love and belonging -- having friends, family, intimacy
4. Esteem -- confidence, achievement, respect from others, respect of others, etc.
5. Self-actualization -- where an individual is "growth motivated," rather than "deficiency motivated"
As we were talking about some of the traits and needs related to people at various stages, it occurred to me that many of the factors that define self actualization are also good predictors of success in using GTD.
Maslow and others noticed some specific identifying traits in people who are "self actualized:"
Sounds like a great description of a successful GTD user to me.
I've seen people comment that GTD is only applicable "for executives" or "for people who can control how they work." Others suggest that it doesn't have enough innate "motivating tools" or that it isn't "structured enough."
Although I believe these criticisms are off base, the more I think about it, the more I wonder if what GTD's critics are actually getting at is the degree to which a user is self actualized. After all, if someone is at a point in life where they need approval or they don’t feel comfortable being autonomous, they may not be entirely comfortable with operating in the self-sustaining way GTD requires.
The good news is, using GTD could put someone on a path to self actualization by offering a framework where they can learn to operate in a new way. For example, it’s a lot easier to “transcend” your circumstances and embrace reality if you’re experienced in casting your activities in terms of “context” and taking action based on current reality.
Similarly, GTD supports spontaneity and flexibility by weaning users off the artificial structures of task scheduling and teaching them to assess their options in the moment.
I’m curious to know: How do GTD users feel about their own efforts and the degree to which they are self actualized.
Woody Allen once said that “80 percent of success is showing up.” I was reading a thread in the Getting Things Done Yahoo group today and thinking that 
Getting Things Done (GTD) is the personal productivity system management spelled out in the 2001 book by management guru David Allen.
Allen’s process has users plow through everything in their lives, distilling their commitments and projects (both big and small) down to two questions:
Allen also offers some guidance to help keep the flow going and leverage efficiency, such as organizing your next actions according to the resource you need to do them (such as having a “calls list” for the phone calls you need to make).
Seems simple enough, and, for most people, it is. But a noisy few complain that GTD’s approach doesn’t work, because of their “unique situation.” They make very elaborate cases for being “different” and sometimes create complex “alternative” or “hybrid” GTD systems to accommodate their “needs.”
A casual observer might be inclined to say that’s understandable, since everyone’s different. But, as someone who has been more than a casual observer for a few years now, here’s the fact: About 99% of these complaints are a total cop-out by people just can’t or won’t own up enough to their own commitments and actions to succeed.
GTD asks users to cut through all the systems, structures, piles, and debris they’ve built around them to confront basic truths about their lives:
Reaching those truths requires a fundamental willingness to face life with “no bull” and an openness to finding out that, when it gets down to bare metal, your desired outcomes may not be what you’ve been telling yourself they are.
Then, once you do sort out your desires and commitments, it’s time to do the work. Since you’ve already identified the resources you need and the actions you’re going to take, you have no excuses for not acting.
I believe that’s why some people are so dedicated to maintaining the myth that GTD’s two fundamental questions – what do I want and what’s the next action – don’t apply to them. Their systems complicate what they do just enough to give them a way to avoid thinking or acting in a new way. Their approaches subtly sidestep facing reality. And, if all else fails, they fall back on blaming David Allen for not (somehow) accommodating them in his book.
So, for those who passionately defend their flawed (and failing) approaches to GTD, here’s some advice: Cut out the all the approaches, tweaked systems, and other nonsense. Just ask yourself what you want and what’s the next action to get there. Then, try showing up.
(Hmmm…now that I think of it, I wonder if David Allen and Woody Allen are related…)
Last week, I got a message from Wachovia (soon to be Wells Fargo) that they’ve added the ability to download securities account statements automatically in Quicken and Money. Banking and credit card customers have been able to do this with Wachovia for years, but Wachovia's securities side has lagged behind.
This made me think about how much banking has changed in recent years. For Wachovia and the rest of the financial se
Yet, discussion about the banking crisis has included almost no mention of changes brought about by the electronic-based banking model. Although the upfront costs for online services is high for the banks, they should be seeing consider able benefits now, as customers shift away from paper and away from transactions that require human interactions.
They also should have access to more information than ever before: about one another, about their customers, about their holdings, and about the entire sector. Plus, with electronic communications, they have unprecedented options for conveying messages to customers, the markets, regulators, and the rest of the industry. Despite this, t
Before Congress starts pulling apart and re-regulating the banking industry, I hope they'll look at this: Why hasn't the banking industry been able to use the information it receives through electronic innovations more effectively? What role can electronic commerce play in ensuring better transparency throughout the sector? In a world where any amateur can Google someone for an hour and get at least a *sense* of whether they're nominally creditworthy, the banks should not be in the position they are today.
Similarly, Congress should take a look at how technology can drive operational improvements across the auto industry before even considering a bailout there. We're hearing a lot about encouraging Detroit to make more energy efficient cars, but they could save a helluva lot of a resources just by reducing the paperwork involved in shipping, selling, and/or buying a car.
Rather than propping up 19th-century commerce models to keep these sectors limping along, use this crisis as an opportunity to turn them into the 21st-century successes they could be.
Ah, Comcast, you find new ways to annoy even when you're trying to please.
The day after my recent post about the lousy Internet and TV service I've been getting (for several years), I got a very nice message from someone at the company saying that they'd like to get the issues resolved.
I was impressed. Obviously, they're making a pro-active effort to look for customer issues mentioned on on the Internet and taking fast action to get them resolved.
So, I responded with details about the problems I've been having. The Comcast rep immediately responded that he'd put me in touch with a local rep, who would get back to me that day.
At 5:30 p.m. that evening (Wednesday), I received an email from the local service rep, who asked me to contact her to set up a visit for a technician to come out.
Since I didn't get home until quite late Wednesday night, I didn't have a chance to answer the message, much less think about when I want a technician to come out.
Thursday morning, I left my house at 7 a.m., didn't return until around 5. As a result, I missed the local rep's 4:30 phone call, which she pointed out in a 4:32 email:
"I just left a message on your answering service as I have not heard from you. If you are still experiencing service issues, please contact me. I will schedule a visit with our Technical Resolution Technician at a convenience [sic] time for you to resolve the service issue."
(Sounds like the technician will be coming out to watch me resolve the issue, doesn't it?)
Although I was a little annoyed at the "if you are still experiencing service issues" -- I mean, did she think they miraculously resolved after four years? -- I figured I'd call her today (Friday) and set something up.
But, life intervened, and I was out most of the day and didn't have time to call. At 5:05 today, I received the following email:
"Thank you for contacting our executive office with your questions and concerns. We value your business and would like the opportunity to resolve your issue as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, our attempts to contact you have been unsuccessful.
"Please contact our office, at [phone #] at your earliest convenience if we can be of assistance, between the hours of 8am and 5pm. In the event that we do not hear from you by 11/21/08, we will consider your issue resolved. We look forward to hearing from you."
So, now Comcast puts me on a one-week deadline because I didn't respond to THEM within two business days? Gimme a break. I'm still waiting to hear back from them about an billing error in 2004. Heck, I've spent 48 hours ON HOLD waiting to talk to Comcast service reps over the years.
(OK, I'm exaggerating. My record was 3 hours, 22 minutes on hold with Comcast in January 1996. I'd have hung up, but after the first hour, I became fascinated to see just how long it would take to reach a service rep.)
Just for fun, let's parse this model of customer service a bit:
1. "Thank you for contacting our executive office with your questions and concerns."
Actually, YOU contacted ME. And, it wasn't a "question or concern," it was a complaint about lousy service.
Moving on...
2. "We value your business and would like the opportunity to resolve your issue as quickly as possible."
Mmmm-hmmm, I'm listening...
3. "Unfortunately, our attempts to contact you have been unsuccessful."
Your attempts to contact me have indeed been successful; your attempts to get an immediate response from me have been unsuccessful.
4. "Please contact our office, at [phone #] at your earliest convenience if we can be of assistance, between the hours of 8am and 5pm."
How should I know if you "can be of assistance?" (The track record is not good.)
BTW, my "earliest convenience" is unlikely to occur "between the hours of 8am and 5pm." But whatever...
5. "In the event that we do not hear from you by 11/21/08, we will consider your issue resolved."
You're giving me a deadline and a threat? Guess you don't value my business that much.
It's no wonder that Verizon trucks have been circling this building like hungry jackals for months now...
Just wanted to note the passing of mygazines.com, the magazine uploading site that appeared to aspire to become the YouTube of magazines. Turns out that legal woes and financial troubles got the best of the service, just a few months after opening its doors.
Too bad, because it was a great idea, despite its copyright problems. I wish more publishers would catch on to the idea that many of us would prefer to read magazines electronically -- and might even pay a little to do so. (Ask Zinio -- we really do!)
Below is the message now posted on the service's homepage.
The Times also noted that several major publishers, including Penguin, are looking at new ebook models, including monthly subscriptions that would allow electronic access to best sellers. Sounds a little like Netflix for books.
The article also notes that while traditional book sales are falling, ebook sales are up 55% over the last year. It suggests, probably accurately, that Amazon's Kindle and Sony's Reader are responsible for at least part of this increase.
Despite this, my bet is that tying texts to a specific device or platform won't prove a sustainable model. Ultimately, the device -- whether it's a Kindle, Reader, mobile phone, iPod, laptop, or whatever -- is merely a storage tool and viewer. Users are going to want to be able to move their data to wherever it suits them, just as they do with music.
The faster the publishers and ebook vendors realize that the same unfettered access that has made digital music work applies to texts, the faster the ebook market will grow.
Posts
All Comments
