Human Interaction
Trusted Networks
11/08/08 11:22
Now that the Olympics are well and truly underway, one has to consider the practical nature of information distribution. China is not going to allow unfettered access to everything, nor will they allow uninspected export of information from the “mainstream” newsgatherers. But if Something Big happens, how will the rest of the world know? Will they? And who is going to be the principal backbone of information should something occur?
Where this information comes from will color how we perceive and interpret it. A network of “independent” gatherers using cell phones and ad hoc distribution may have more of a story, but less of an impact. A “major” broadcaster from overseas has more impact, but less ability to tell the story.
Of course I hope that nothing “Big” happens. I want to see and hear only that people competed and contests were close. But still I wonder about the inevitable small stories that we will never hear.
Where this information comes from will color how we perceive and interpret it. A network of “independent” gatherers using cell phones and ad hoc distribution may have more of a story, but less of an impact. A “major” broadcaster from overseas has more impact, but less ability to tell the story.
Of course I hope that nothing “Big” happens. I want to see and hear only that people competed and contests were close. But still I wonder about the inevitable small stories that we will never hear.
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Making Sense
24/07/08 10:29
Plowing through information in search of patterns is fascinating, in its own way. Sort of like looking at all the data points available in baseball to determine where to put fielders, when to make a pitching change... only that the information I have has yet to be codified and established in the way that 100+ years of baseball information has been.
Looking through all the materials I have, assessing what is there and inferring what is not, all in an attempt to create a plan that has a destination and enough flexibility to change as the environment changes as well as interpretations change... this is where the fun really lies. A plan of battle exists up to the moment of first contact, and then one has to adapt.
Adopt, adapt, improve - isn’t that what Dennis Moore said?
I’ve also had the fortune to do a bit of driving across a small section of the country, and I’ve kept an eye open for tendencies of expression: how homogenous are we, really? what passes for ‘sameness’ and how do we recognize it? what use is made of that information?
Looking through all the materials I have, assessing what is there and inferring what is not, all in an attempt to create a plan that has a destination and enough flexibility to change as the environment changes as well as interpretations change... this is where the fun really lies. A plan of battle exists up to the moment of first contact, and then one has to adapt.
Adopt, adapt, improve - isn’t that what Dennis Moore said?
I’ve also had the fortune to do a bit of driving across a small section of the country, and I’ve kept an eye open for tendencies of expression: how homogenous are we, really? what passes for ‘sameness’ and how do we recognize it? what use is made of that information?
Understanding Limitations
08/07/08 09:04
I’ve been working with a client and his plans for the future. He wants to add a level of service to his business, but right now the best way to implement things is unknown. There’s no rush to action; care will make this work better than haste.
What’s most interesting to me is that the project is predicated on the idea of fixed size, at least to start. The client has a significant, but essentially small, client base. Though he’d like to increase the size of that base, he knows better than to try to do it overnight. The preference is to attend to the ones already in the fold, as it were, and then see about bringing in new business.
And this is why I think the plan will succeed - by paying attention to his current clients, by making them benefit from a few small added services, he’s going to reap far greater rewards down the line.
Details count, and it’s a good idea to pay attention to them.
What’s most interesting to me is that the project is predicated on the idea of fixed size, at least to start. The client has a significant, but essentially small, client base. Though he’d like to increase the size of that base, he knows better than to try to do it overnight. The preference is to attend to the ones already in the fold, as it were, and then see about bringing in new business.
And this is why I think the plan will succeed - by paying attention to his current clients, by making them benefit from a few small added services, he’s going to reap far greater rewards down the line.
Details count, and it’s a good idea to pay attention to them.
Social Media is what, now?
29/06/08 11:09
What is the value of Social Networking, Social Media in terms of getting things done (just basic gtd, not the GTD system)? I can see a value in having access to and participation in Social Media, but I wonder if there is a further point to it.
Well of course there is, I just can’t see what that point is right now. Something will grow in the soil of Social Media. But right now, there are conversations flying concerning the financial (yes, it always comes down to that) practicalities of the medium. The purpose of a retail site is to make money. What is the purpose of ancillary social sites? To generate “buzz,” or perhaps develop a potential “brand loyalty?”
To bring the thinking out into the sunlight, I’ll make a fast analogy of a bar as a social media site. I have a network of people from that bar, and from others, and they, too, have their networks, a vast three-dimensional fractal puzzle that interlocks and shifts in a dynamic best understood by the fictional Hari Seldon.
But those networks, what do they do? They generate a certain amount of intangible revenue of emotional content, but does that invisible content then spur greater, actual transactive content/interaction?
I can get a recommendation for a mechanic from a guy I know at a local bar. Perhaps I’ve known this guy for a while, and I have learned that his judgements fall pretty close to mine. So I’ll take his recommendation. But if it’s a virtual community, do I feel the same about that recommendation?
And is my hesitation about accepting the ephemeral a measure of my age?
Social Networking/Media (and the whole damn 2.0 thing) are in their infancy. Something will grow from it. But who benefits? Who profits?
Well of course there is, I just can’t see what that point is right now. Something will grow in the soil of Social Media. But right now, there are conversations flying concerning the financial (yes, it always comes down to that) practicalities of the medium. The purpose of a retail site is to make money. What is the purpose of ancillary social sites? To generate “buzz,” or perhaps develop a potential “brand loyalty?”
To bring the thinking out into the sunlight, I’ll make a fast analogy of a bar as a social media site. I have a network of people from that bar, and from others, and they, too, have their networks, a vast three-dimensional fractal puzzle that interlocks and shifts in a dynamic best understood by the fictional Hari Seldon.
But those networks, what do they do? They generate a certain amount of intangible revenue of emotional content, but does that invisible content then spur greater, actual transactive content/interaction?
I can get a recommendation for a mechanic from a guy I know at a local bar. Perhaps I’ve known this guy for a while, and I have learned that his judgements fall pretty close to mine. So I’ll take his recommendation. But if it’s a virtual community, do I feel the same about that recommendation?
And is my hesitation about accepting the ephemeral a measure of my age?
Social Networking/Media (and the whole damn 2.0 thing) are in their infancy. Something will grow from it. But who benefits? Who profits?
Hiding. Seeking.
22/06/08 11:22
A house full of kids all about the same age leads to certain universal activities. At some point, a game of “hide-and-seek” erupts, and it amazes me that the difficulty level is set so low: instead of having the “seeker” count to an agreed-upon number, the “hiders” announce when they are ready to be sought.
As the game is being played indoors due to inclement weather, the “seeking” process is fast. The average life of a hider is something like fifteen seconds, which does have an interesting side effect - everyone feels like a winner.
It brings back a lot of memories, having games like this taking place on a sultry afternoon. And there is nothing so wonderful as pure child laughter.
As the game is being played indoors due to inclement weather, the “seeking” process is fast. The average life of a hider is something like fifteen seconds, which does have an interesting side effect - everyone feels like a winner.
It brings back a lot of memories, having games like this taking place on a sultry afternoon. And there is nothing so wonderful as pure child laughter.
Customer Satisfaction
15/06/08 09:03
At Sears, I was treated like an irritant. At the Apple Store, I was treated like a welcome customer. Why the difference? The first experience made me feel like I was intruding on the salesman’s day; the Apple Store made me feel like I was entering some room of my house that I hadn’t known about.
Sears used to to be the standard of the shopping experience. What cultural changes have occured to cause it to change? And why would the Apple Store be so completely different? Is it a question of clientele? Of need?
Making the person who’s about to part with their money feel good about it makes them want to repeat the process. I don’t know that I want to go back to Sears if my mower should break again. I do know that I’ll go back to the Apple Store if my Mac breaks again.
Sears used to to be the standard of the shopping experience. What cultural changes have occured to cause it to change? And why would the Apple Store be so completely different? Is it a question of clientele? Of need?
Making the person who’s about to part with their money feel good about it makes them want to repeat the process. I don’t know that I want to go back to Sears if my mower should break again. I do know that I’ll go back to the Apple Store if my Mac breaks again.