*michael parekh on IT*

ON OVER THE TOP PRODUCTS

WHAT NEXT?

Every once in a while one runs into a product that makes you shake your head at the height of our consumerism. 

This item, called the "Slipper Genie", that I saw at the local Bed, Bath and Beyond, is one such product.  Solutions Inc. describes it as follows:

"As seen in "O" Magazine!

Dust your floors by simply walking across them!

Wood, tile, and vinyl—virtually any floor is easier to dust when all you do is walk across it. Just think how much easier it to maneuver your foot around than a cumbersome mop."

I guess we'll try anything to avoid a little extra physical activity. 

Oh well, at least it requires a bit more physical exertion than a Roomba.  And at $ 9.99, it's hundreds of dollars less expensive.

ON YOUR SUGGESTIONS FOR POSTS

BESPOKE BLOG POSTS HERE

As I highlighted a few weeks ago, I've been blogging here consistently for over three years now, and it's been a terrific experience thus far. 

I've tried from the beginning to hopefully have something interesting to say and/or point to in a post every single day.

That's been easy on some days and distinctly hard on others. And in most cases, I've been governed in my choices with what piqued my interest at the time.

A new site called Skribit thinks there may be an additional option for bloggers.  Here's what they're about:

"Skribit is a user-generated content suggestion application for blogs. Effortlessly assemble what your readers really want to hear."

And it offers bloggers an easy way to add a widget to their blog in order to drive this reader democracy.

It may not be a bad idea, and I'm game to try it if you are.

I've added the Skribit widget on the far right column, right under "Recent posts".  Would be happy to entertain suggestions on topics for this blog, or for that matter, my Twitter blog (www.twitter.com/mparekh).

A resulting blog post may not come immediately, but all suggestions will be most welcome, not to mention read and considered.

Happy Skribiting to us all.

ON A MILESTONE OF SORTS

THANKS FOR ALL THE FUN

I missed this in the hustle and bustle of the past few days, but last Friday the 15th marked the fourth anniversary of this blog.  It's been a long road, and I didn't think this exercise in public communication would last this long.

It started humbly enough, with the following objective outlined in the very first post:

"This blog reflects my personal views and thoughts on topics, mostly about the Internet and Technology and its effects globally, but sometimes about media, the arts, politics, and the goofy, marvelous and always surprising world around us. 

It's an experiment, and the blog is likely to have its fits and starts, but I'll try and keep it going and hopefully interesting.

So, welcome to mp.blogs.com.  It started as a lark, inspired by Fred Wilson's VC blog with the ultra-cool, and ultra-early avc.blogs.com...Checked out and saw mp.blogs.com was available. Thus, I homesteaded the  URL, knowing that the site may lie fallow for a while."

Well, the blog did lay fallow for a year, despite the best of intentions, and I didn't start posting again until a year later, on February 22nd, 2005.

And I haven't stopped posting almost every day since, with over 1,300 posts made in the last three years.  Of course  you're the best judge of whether that's a good thing or not, but it's been a blast from my perspective.

I've made lots of new friends along the way and become re-acquainted with quite a few more.  And it's been helpful both personally and professionally to be able to connect with folks on issues large and small that interest me.

So thank you all for indulging me, and as usual, suggestions on how this whole exercise can be improved upon, are always welcome.

ON LESSONS FROM VIETNAM

A DIFFERENT TAKE

This post from the Wall Street Journal's "Informed Reader" blog, titled "The Real Lesson Vietnam Teaches about Iraq", is not the political partisan piece one might expect.  It actually offers a different twist on the subject:

"Vietnam offers guidance for the challenges facing Iraq, but the lessons are economic, not military, says historian Stephen Kotkin in the New Republic.

In a review of a new Ho Chi Minh biography, Mr. Kotkin credits Vietnam’s entrepreneurialism, falling poverty and rapid economic growth to its trading ties with China and South Korea. In the long aftermath of the war and U.S. withdrawal, both countries provided capital for businesses and a large market for Vietnamese products.

There are of course vast differences between Vietnam in the 1970s and Iraq in 2008. But Vietnam’s post-war experience suggests that regional economic shifts might have more impact on Iraq than anything the U.S. does there now.

Mr. Kotkin says there are some countries that might serve as Iraq’s China and South Korea. Turkey is growing fast and is close enough to fill the bill. As India’s economic influence broadens, it might become a key trading partner with Iraq. And China itself could be an important player in Iraq’s future.

Mr. Kotkin, a professor of history at Princeton University, makes no guarantees that these countries will serve that role.

But, he notes, the U.S. has become Vietnam’s biggest trading partner, which has the political side effect of encouraging reconciliation between the two nations. “Who foresaw such a turn of events during the apocalyptic 1970s, or the 1980s,” says Mr. Kotkin of Vietnam. “Impossible as it now seems, such a future may one day await Iraq.” – Robin Moroney."

Definitely thinking different.

ON FUN AND GAMES CHRISTMAS DAY

HO HO FUN

How could I not comment on an article with the headline "Joysticks to the world" from USA Today? Especially on Christmas day after I've opened my presents to find not one, but three games from the article?  (There go the productivity resolutions for January).

The article is a good video games guide to the latest and greatest just out for the holiday season, and a good list to peruse if you're scrambling for that last-minute stocking stuffer.

In the meantime, I'm going to try and find time at least boot up one of my three games for a few minutes of gaming fun today.

Which of the three should I crack open first?  See list below*.

Merry Christmas and Happy holidays all!!  Take it easy on the Christmas feasting, but not the fun.

*Activision's Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, from $49.99), Valve's The Orange Box (PC, Xbox 360, PS3, from $49.99), EA Games' Crysis (PC, $49.99),

ON A CHOCKERBLOCK FLYING SEASON

FEELING STUFFED

Flew on a red-eye on USAir last night to Pittsburgh last night, en route to my in-laws for the holidays.  Heard the following announcement before our flight boarded (image source):

"Ladies and gentlemen, tonight's flight is severely oversold.  We're looking for volunteers who would be willing to fly to Pittsburgh on our first flight out tomorrow.  In exchange you'll receive a round-trip voucher for travel anywhere within the 48 states, or $200 off on a flight to Hawaii or Alaska".

Now we've all heard announcements like this from airlines, especially around the holidays.  What made this one unusual is that they repeated it half a dozen times before boarding, plus two more times AFTER we'd boarded.  They were really trying to get volunteers.

Arriving at our hotel this morning, I picked up a copy of USA Today at the counter.  One of the lead stories titled "Higher fares don't deter holiday fliers" caught my eye, especially this bit:

"The price for flying home for Christmas has jumped nearly 14% in the last two years, but higher fares haven't put a dent in robust holiday demand for air travel...
A major reason for higher fares:  More passengers will be squeezing into roughly the same number of airplane seats on domestic flights as a year ago. 
To boost fares and make the most of every tank of jet fuel, U.S. carriers have scheduled the same amount of domestic flying capacity as last holiday season despite stronger passenger demand."

Guess we're going to hear more beseeching calls for volunteers to give up their seats on flights across the nation this season.

ON A NEW LATE NIGHT SHOW

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

This two and a half minute promo for a new, late night comedy show, Frank TV, on TBS made a good enough first impression for me to check it out. 

The host is Frank Caliendo, a terrific comedian who does great impressions.  The trailer off YouTube gives a sense:

It's a skit-driven show that seems promising.  This Seinfeld 2027 skit is a good example:

The show is likely affected by the Writer's strike like most other late-night shows, but think I'll have to Tivo it.

ON LOSING MARC ORCHANT

REST IN PEACE

I'm saddened like so many of my fellow tech bloggers by the passing away of Marc Orchant (see this Techmeme thread--picture source).

I've known and followed Marc only through the tech blogging world.

Although I didn't have the pleasure of meeting him personally, I've enjoyed getting to know him through his writings online both on ZDNet, and his most recent venture, Blognation.

He was only fifty years old, and passed away  suddenly after a massive coronary.

As Robert Scoble puts it so aptly upon hearing the news, "Damn..."

My deepest condolences to his wife Sue and their family.

His last post online was one of his most passionate, titled "Hey Facebook:  Buh Bye".  Ironically, he ends his departure from Facebook with this:

"According to Facebook:

Wrong!

I still have all my friends. The only friend I don’t have anymore Facebook is you!

Here’s my parting shot…

I feel so much better now…"

I remember reading this post vividly, since I shared his frustration with the company's Beacon adventures.   His act of leaving Facebook elicited some admiration for having followed through on his convictions.

Goodbye, Marc Orchant, you were right. 

You still have all your friends, both online and off. 

And you will be missed in both places by us all.

P.S.  Check out this post by Marc from last year, to get a better sense of what he was about. 

ON GIVE A GARMIN CAMPAIGN

PITCH PERFECT

Don't know about you, but this 30-second Garmin commercial for the holidays hits just the right notes of the warm and fuzzies for me:

Here's a darker version of the ad with the same musical theme.  How many of us can't relate to this one:

Garmin's previous ads have not all been great (see this Superbowl ad as an example).

But this holiday season, they've found their stride.  Well done.

ON A HOLE IN THE UNIVERSE

SOMETHING OLD BUT NEW

Hope everyone's having a great Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends.

This bit from New Scientist is one mind-bender for me this evening, especially as I, like so many others, deal with a two-day Thanksgiving food coma:

"The void: Imprint of another universe?

IN AUGUST, radio astronomers announced that they had found an enormous hole in the universe. Nearly a billion light years across, the void lies in the constellation Eridanus and has far fewer stars, gas and galaxies than usual.

It is bigger than anyone imagined possible and is beyond the present understanding of cosmology. What could cause such a gaping hole? One team of physicists has a breathtaking explanation: "It is the unmistakable imprint of another universe beyond the edge of our own," says Laura Mersini-Houghton of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

It is a staggering claim. If Mersini-Houghton's team is right, the giant void is the first experimental evidence for another universe. It would also vindicate string theory, our most promising understanding of how the universe works at its most fundamental level."

Going to have to keep track of this, as the experts try and get their minds around this.
Happy Thanksgiving weekend, all.