Entries in the GTD / Lifehacks category:
Why I pay for content - and you should too
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The idea that 'information wants to be free' is the driving force behind so much content delivery on the Internet. It sounds good, right - progressive and egalitarian? But it's a tenet that's bankrupting newspapers, impoverishing photographers and redrawing the media map. And if we don't start paying for online content soon, we'll all be the poorer.
My first job in the Internet industry was in 1995, when I went to work for fledgling web consultancy Nua. Gerry McGovern (or 'guru Gerry' as we called him not quite to his face), had this weird idea about 'making free information pay'.
We created a bunch of free email newsletters about web stuff, and became very successful as a result. But for us, successful meant getting paying web development jobs.
This approach is still valid and valuable - you spend time blogging, tweeting and the rest to show how much you know, connect with people and (hopefully) get some paying gigs out of it. Professional content creators - individuals and organisations - can and should do some of this, too.
One traditional way to fund this give-away is by advertising, but since that's never really balanced the books online, we need another plan. Which is why I unfashionably pay for content.
A solution to GMail’s ‘On behalf of’ problem
Monday, April 06, 2009
Like many, I use Gmail as a clearing house for my 'real' addresses. In other words, when you send a mail to , it sits on my mail server only until Gmail comes to collect it, and pull it into its non-evil embrace.Then I check my actual Gmail account (using IMAP so it syncs with my laptop, iPhone and the GMail web interface). I get to use their giant amount of online storage, so there's always a copy in the cloud, and I can get to all my mail (sent and received) from pretty much anywhere with a cell phone signal or an internet connection.
Gmail lets you set things up so when you send mail, it appears to come from your 'real' address, not from gmail.com, so you can be all professional, like.
Not in Outlook
Except in Outlook (and some other mail packages, too, but Outlook is the biggie). What those corporate types see is 'Sent from: Bob Bobbins () on behalf of Bob Bobbins ()' or something like it.
Suddenly you don't look very professional at all. But there is a solution that should work for some people.
It’s the App Store, stupid
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Last year, I resisted the temptation of the first generation iPhone. This year I’ve succumbed, and my iPhone 3G is on the way (my cunning plan to wait a week after the launch and just walk into an AT&T store and pick one up as been scuppered by the strong demand).
So what’s changed? Part of it is that my resistance has been worn down by the many reports and sightings of people happily using (and raving about) the phone. Also, we’re now just out of contract with Sprint, so there’ll be no early termination fees for jumping carriers.
But the 3G version of the phone also offers some solid reasons to jump on board now.
Pilot Precise V5 - my weapon of choice
Friday, November 02, 2007
For a technologically-involved person, I spend a lot of time interested in analogue devices. Like pens and paper. This week, one of my trusty Pilot V5
I buy these pens in boxes of twelve, for fear they’ll stop making them. They’re reliable (they work perfectly up until the point when they meet their maker), smooth and very fine - allowing you to write neat tiny lines quickly.
At any one time probably four or five are divided between home, the office and my bag, so I’m never too far from one. When I left Dublin, my generous employer gave me a very nice Montblanc fountain pen, but that’s sitting in my pen mug at home because it doesn’t cover the paper so smoothly and precisely.
iPhone? No thanks
Sunday, July 01, 2007
it might seem an unlikely thing for a devoted Apple fan like myself to say, but I really don’t want an iPhone. I’d take any number of products from Cupertino with no bother, but there are 2 main reasons I’m holding off indefinitely on the phone, cute and all as it is, and as impressive as the touch-based UI seems to be.
I don’t need one
This is the boring but true reason - I carry my laptop with me most of the time, when I’m largely at the office (within striking distance of several wi-fi enabled cafes if I want to wander), or at home. I don’t have a long commute, I don’t travel on business (except riding my bike to visit clients), and I often carry a real camera with me in addition to the computer.
What’s a GTD boy to do?
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
So I need a new GTD solution. Christmas came a day or two early, with the arrival of my shiny new 15” MacBook Pro (a refurb bargain that cost me only slightly more than the black MacBook I was looking at). This simplifies my life greatly (as well as looking very nice on my desk), as before I had a Mac Mini G4 at work, and an old first-gen Titanium Powerbook at home (where I probably do about a third of my work).
Now I can just carry the MBP back and forth and have all the files (and processing speed) I need, wherever I happen to be. But it creates a GTD problem for me (especially with this being the New Year, and I’m all keen on setting up good working practices for 2007).
New life for old SLRs
Monday, September 18, 2006
The move to digital SLR cameras is gaining pace, as prices drop and enthusiasts look to improve on the sturdy but not spectacular results they're getting from their point-and-shoot digitals. But this is also good news for people still shooting film.
Joining the Fon Movimiento
Thursday, September 14, 2006
While many cities across the US and elsewhere are grappling with the free wi-fi for everyone issue (and telcos and cable companies giving out stink about it), one company has an alternative plan - call it citizen-powered wi-fi.
Spanish-based Fon, with some big-money backing from Google, Skype and others, offer the firmware and/or hardware to let you safely share out some of your broadband access. Fellow Foneros (who are sharing their broadband at home) get to log in to your access for free, while others (aliens) can pay. You can choose to get free access wherever you roam (being a Linus - after Torvalds), or you can get a cut of the money from people logging on through your router (being a Bill - after Gates). With 87000 Foneros around the world, that might be very handy.
Two screens good
Friday, August 25, 2006
I’d read all the stuff about efficiency being improved by having more screen real-estate, but I wasn’t sure I believed it.
For some things (like graphic design) I could see the benefit - arrange your palettes and toolbars as you like, having a scratch pile of raw images or sketches off to one side, and then the main area you’re working in - less scrolling, less window shuffling.
But for other things, like article writing, I figured too much stuff going on would be a distraction. You just want to focus on one thing, right?
But I took the plunge and gerry-built a 2-screen solution for my Mac Mini using the unfortunately-titled Dual Head2Go.
Blinksale and Tick - Web 2.0 and the small business
Friday, August 04, 2006
There’s been lots of talk about Web 2.0 - an amorphous collection of ideas and functionality that is supposed to change the way the world works (and make VC firms lots of money again). It’s mash-ups, ruby on rails, AJAX, 37 Signals’ quick and dirty approach to development, and sites like Flickr and YouTube.
That’s all great, but I want to look at some practical examples of sites that do real things that work. Close to my heart (and my bank balance, as a small business owner), is anything that helps me do the admin stuff I can’t pay anyone to do.
Blinksale - because getting paid is good
Basecamp handles the project management side of things admirably - and the added Chat feature could be useful (but I’ve not tried it yet, because I’m too busy Skyping everyone - particularly the folks in Dublin I work with regularly).
But two more recent additions to my armoury (bearing more than a few similarities with Basecamp) are also helping out. They each do one thing, and do it well at a reasonable price (nothing, in my case). Blinksale handles my invoicing elegantly and flexibly - making it quick to create, send and manage the happy documents. It handles Euros and Sterling effortlessly (for my Euro clients), and sends nice thankyou notes when the money comes in.