"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer, in the long run, than outright exposure. Life is a daring adventure, or it is nothing."
- Helen Keller
I have had a couple of strangely unrelated conversations recently pertaining to the concept of risk. If you look at anyone who's accomplished anything of note in this world, risk was involved.
People love to stand on the sidelines and criticize risk takers. It happens in countless ordinary situations - a girl taking a chance and violating social norms to ask a guy out, for example - as well as in the most extreme situations, such as a daredevil jumping the Grand Canyon or something. There is no shortage of people ready to line up and ridicule someone who takes a risk, and (gasp) fails.
I'd prefer to use a more established business person as an example, but in this case, let's go young: the guy who created Facebook.com now stands to have more personal wealth than he can possibly ever spend because he went out on a limb and followed his intuition in building the Facebook concept and pursuing a passion. And he's only 22 years old.
I love stories like that. I really enjoy hearing about people pursuing what they enjoy, as it usually ends up successful. On the other hand, people who simply don't get it are cancerous. Negativity is like a virus...it spreads and kills everything it touches.
Of course, you have to love those people who confuse reality with pessimism. Those are absolutely not interchangeable terms. Those people are also to be avoided.
Why not face this world with confidence? We were all put here by God. And for a reason. We were all given unique talents which we use to face the world. We were all given the ability to conquer demons and pass tests in front of us.
The greatest reward I've received for taking on risk was meeting my wife. She is so special and incredible that I can't imagine life without her ... but looking back, it was just one lazy decision (among hundreds) that could've altered the future.
There's another individual I know who is working right now to open up his own bar / restaurant / coffee hangout type of place, and I always make a point to ask him how he's progressing. This is a guy who seems to me to be incredibly determined, so I always know there's progress to hear about. And one day, if that's what's meant to be, I know that will happen for him.
The bottom line point I suppose I'm trying to make here is that there is no one on the face of this planet who should stand in your way of making your dream a reality. It doesn't matter what relationship someone has to you - if they are negative and preventing you from realizing your vision, your aspirations, your great huge super-big plans for the world - then ELIMINATE them from your world, either permanently or temporarily, and get back to being and thinking positively.
You are worth far too much to tolerate interference in living a fulfilling, gratifying life. Take a risk ... and another ... and another ... and one day you'll be wondering how it all got started.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
I remember the day back in March of 2004 when I first conceived of what an online math competition might be like.
On September 16, 2006, I experienced it.
The first two years of the iTest, while successful by any reasonable measure, were not true to the vision of the project. They were temporary stopgaps - a training-wheels version of the real deal.
After the 2005 test suffered some critical typos and received a fair share of criticism, it was back to the drawing board for me. Those first couple of months were difficult, but they were important...I had to re-commit myself to a project that had suddenly soured.
The long-term vision of the company has been to deliver a suite of educational competitions across a variety of subjects all for free, augmenting the US educational system through competition. A unique approach, but one that got us distracted: toying with expansion prevented us from doing what we should've focused on all along...nailing one subject cold before we expand.
So 2006 was like I was having to re-invent the company all over again. The key was to get "back to basics" - eschew designs on artificial growth and get back to real, organic expansion through word-of-mouth built around a core product. And like any good sports team, after a lackluster season, what do you do? Go out and get yourself some new talent.
Enter Thomas Mildorf, the MIT student with a profound gift for dreaming up math questions, and a highly regarded individual among the national math community. He became the 2006 iTest's heavy hitter overnight. I structured an incentive-based deal for him to write over half of the contest, and he accepted, and that was the first step in the right direction.
Next was fast-forwarding our technological capabilities in accordance with our long-term strategy. Here, I turned to Dave Cowart and Evan to get the job done. Evan handled the upkeep of content on our informational (corporate) page, while Dave built from scratch the software that would later be used to run the 2006 iTest in a way that no academic competition has ever been run EVER. How awesome is that?
Next after that was the step to change our marketing approach to a more practical, slimmed-down version of the 2005 marketing campaign. In 2005, we bombarded schools early on (in April before the September competition) with a massive folder of information that included a mousepad. The mousepad did succeed in getting us eyeballs by teachers and students using it next to their school computers, but it was too high of a cost...and it was eventually outweighed by the fact that teachers simply forgot about the competition come September, even with that mousepad sitting there, since it had been months since receiving the packet and thinking about the event.
This year, we hit schools with a nice oversized postcard with our key messages more clearly communicated than before, and we hit them right before the event. As in just 2-3 weeks before.
The result? Doubling of the number of teams that submitted tests, doubling of the number of schools signed up, and an explosion of the "reach" of the competition from 31,000 students to 55,000 students nationwide.
Those three decisions - upgrading the test, upgrading our technology, and tweaking our marketing - have helped completely redefine the brand, moving the iTest closer to the immovable object that it should become in time.
I took a lot of pride in writing the test for the event. That was probably the hardest thing about the past 12 months was ceding such a chunk of the testwriting - a big ego hit. It hard letting go of something you enjoy doing and take pride in, even when you know its for the best. I was able to write part of the test - still hanging on, at least symbolically, to part of the testwriting process - while turning over the keys to the real meat of it all to a more capable hand.
As we got students registered and logging on to our system in the days leading up to the competition, the excitement and hype surrounding the competition was palpable. And I don't think we disappointed anyone. I invented the idea of the iTest Warmups on the spot, helping us build an early buzz and get more registrants into the system quicker, and then we delivered the main event: the 2006 exam.
Students collaborated on the exam using our software, sharing their answers with their teammates and leaving ideas, thoughts, and directives for each other on the blog on each team's main page. And even better, the blog on the main page enabled students and teachers alike to correspond from all over the country, as if the entirety of the United States were congregated in a massive auditorium somewhere sharing one common experience.
As someone close to academic competitions for most of my life, I understand the sea change this represents, for better or worse: THIS SIMPLY HAS NEVER, EVER BEEN DONE BEFORE.
Now, as I prepare to restructure the company to better prepare us for the repercussions of our turnaround, I get to pause just for a brief moment and say thanks to the people who made this possible.
The iTest is an idea that has come to pass that now has tremendous value to the educational system - precisely where we wanted to go. Now as long as we don't take a step backward in '07, we should be in excellent position to capitalize on our turnaround.
On September 16, 2006, I experienced it.
The first two years of the iTest, while successful by any reasonable measure, were not true to the vision of the project. They were temporary stopgaps - a training-wheels version of the real deal.
After the 2005 test suffered some critical typos and received a fair share of criticism, it was back to the drawing board for me. Those first couple of months were difficult, but they were important...I had to re-commit myself to a project that had suddenly soured.
The long-term vision of the company has been to deliver a suite of educational competitions across a variety of subjects all for free, augmenting the US educational system through competition. A unique approach, but one that got us distracted: toying with expansion prevented us from doing what we should've focused on all along...nailing one subject cold before we expand.
So 2006 was like I was having to re-invent the company all over again. The key was to get "back to basics" - eschew designs on artificial growth and get back to real, organic expansion through word-of-mouth built around a core product. And like any good sports team, after a lackluster season, what do you do? Go out and get yourself some new talent.
Enter Thomas Mildorf, the MIT student with a profound gift for dreaming up math questions, and a highly regarded individual among the national math community. He became the 2006 iTest's heavy hitter overnight. I structured an incentive-based deal for him to write over half of the contest, and he accepted, and that was the first step in the right direction.
Next was fast-forwarding our technological capabilities in accordance with our long-term strategy. Here, I turned to Dave Cowart and Evan to get the job done. Evan handled the upkeep of content on our informational (corporate) page, while Dave built from scratch the software that would later be used to run the 2006 iTest in a way that no academic competition has ever been run EVER. How awesome is that?
Next after that was the step to change our marketing approach to a more practical, slimmed-down version of the 2005 marketing campaign. In 2005, we bombarded schools early on (in April before the September competition) with a massive folder of information that included a mousepad. The mousepad did succeed in getting us eyeballs by teachers and students using it next to their school computers, but it was too high of a cost...and it was eventually outweighed by the fact that teachers simply forgot about the competition come September, even with that mousepad sitting there, since it had been months since receiving the packet and thinking about the event.
This year, we hit schools with a nice oversized postcard with our key messages more clearly communicated than before, and we hit them right before the event. As in just 2-3 weeks before.
The result? Doubling of the number of teams that submitted tests, doubling of the number of schools signed up, and an explosion of the "reach" of the competition from 31,000 students to 55,000 students nationwide.
Those three decisions - upgrading the test, upgrading our technology, and tweaking our marketing - have helped completely redefine the brand, moving the iTest closer to the immovable object that it should become in time.
I took a lot of pride in writing the test for the event. That was probably the hardest thing about the past 12 months was ceding such a chunk of the testwriting - a big ego hit. It hard letting go of something you enjoy doing and take pride in, even when you know its for the best. I was able to write part of the test - still hanging on, at least symbolically, to part of the testwriting process - while turning over the keys to the real meat of it all to a more capable hand.
As we got students registered and logging on to our system in the days leading up to the competition, the excitement and hype surrounding the competition was palpable. And I don't think we disappointed anyone. I invented the idea of the iTest Warmups on the spot, helping us build an early buzz and get more registrants into the system quicker, and then we delivered the main event: the 2006 exam.
Students collaborated on the exam using our software, sharing their answers with their teammates and leaving ideas, thoughts, and directives for each other on the blog on each team's main page. And even better, the blog on the main page enabled students and teachers alike to correspond from all over the country, as if the entirety of the United States were congregated in a massive auditorium somewhere sharing one common experience.
As someone close to academic competitions for most of my life, I understand the sea change this represents, for better or worse: THIS SIMPLY HAS NEVER, EVER BEEN DONE BEFORE.
Now, as I prepare to restructure the company to better prepare us for the repercussions of our turnaround, I get to pause just for a brief moment and say thanks to the people who made this possible.
The iTest is an idea that has come to pass that now has tremendous value to the educational system - precisely where we wanted to go. Now as long as we don't take a step backward in '07, we should be in excellent position to capitalize on our turnaround.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
2006 iTest is underway ... I'll have a long blog post about it here after it has concluded. This year's event is going extremely well and has been improved in several significant ways from last year...but we've still got a long way to go. Students and teachers have been emailing me with praise for this year's competition and I hope that continues! Obviously people are enjoying themselves, the test, and the online software, which is great.
On another note, this story just disgusts me. I've seen some disgusting human beings, believe me, but this is just pathetic and really pretty sad.
On another note, this story just disgusts me. I've seen some disgusting human beings, believe me, but this is just pathetic and really pretty sad.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Ne-Yo - "Sexy Love"
I first heard this song driving to work one morning here back in Nashville ... you know when you hear the way certain songs open, and you know its just going to be a great tune? BIG, driving beat, with Neptunes-esque synthesizers bouncing around...and a very simple, memorable vocal melody. Love this tune ... download it!
Students are getting registered, creating teams, and getting ready for the 2006 iTest. This is a big year for us, because even though participation may be unpredictable this year because we're trying out some new marketing tactics ... we have a brand new piece of software developed in house and a much more polished test than last year. The word of mouth after this year's event should be much better than it was last year. The emphasis on driving the core business and building the foundation of the iTest back after last year will pay off.
Enjoying a peaceful Labor Day weekend, watching some college football yesterday and getting in some Saint's Row, Dead Rising, and Enchanted Arms. Went out with Lori the past couple of nights to a couple of my favorite restaurants, Five and Diner (in Cool Springs) and Logan's, in honor of my birthday on Monday.
I'll be 26 on September 4. That's old! Since my last birthday, I've worked a solid year at the same company and have spent six of those months in Beaufort, SC ... away from Nashville. I've begun to reposition the iTest as a much more technologically-intensive enterprise, a strategic move that is not even half complete yet. And I continue to mull pulling the trigger on another opportunity that's out there.
By the time I turn 27, Lori will have passed the bar and begun work here in town, which will be a whole new adventure to add to everything else going on right now. What else will have happened by the time next September rolls around? It'll be fun finding out.
I first heard this song driving to work one morning here back in Nashville ... you know when you hear the way certain songs open, and you know its just going to be a great tune? BIG, driving beat, with Neptunes-esque synthesizers bouncing around...and a very simple, memorable vocal melody. Love this tune ... download it!
Students are getting registered, creating teams, and getting ready for the 2006 iTest. This is a big year for us, because even though participation may be unpredictable this year because we're trying out some new marketing tactics ... we have a brand new piece of software developed in house and a much more polished test than last year. The word of mouth after this year's event should be much better than it was last year. The emphasis on driving the core business and building the foundation of the iTest back after last year will pay off.
Enjoying a peaceful Labor Day weekend, watching some college football yesterday and getting in some Saint's Row, Dead Rising, and Enchanted Arms. Went out with Lori the past couple of nights to a couple of my favorite restaurants, Five and Diner (in Cool Springs) and Logan's, in honor of my birthday on Monday.
I'll be 26 on September 4. That's old! Since my last birthday, I've worked a solid year at the same company and have spent six of those months in Beaufort, SC ... away from Nashville. I've begun to reposition the iTest as a much more technologically-intensive enterprise, a strategic move that is not even half complete yet. And I continue to mull pulling the trigger on another opportunity that's out there.
By the time I turn 27, Lori will have passed the bar and begun work here in town, which will be a whole new adventure to add to everything else going on right now. What else will have happened by the time next September rolls around? It'll be fun finding out.
Monday, August 28, 2006
Been about a month since my last post ... a lot has happened since then.
Returned from Beaufort on August 1 to Nashville. Miss the guys at Tri-Command, but Nashville's my home. Went down at visited shortly thereafter, for a couple of days in the middle of August, and will head back again to coincide with their project review in the middle of October.
Attended Ben Stark's wedding and even got to play a song there. Great stuff. The wedding was beautiful (once again at Benton Chapel) and it was a very joyful event. Saw Mike and Jeff and Jacob, and got to talk everything from Jeff's wedding next year to Jacob's aspirations of opening up a coffee establishment in DC to Mike's new job in Tampa.
The iTest approaches and we are ready. A mailer goes out this week to schools and we unveil the new piece of software we've been developing to handle the test and student load. It will be a transitional year but one that will well position the iTest for the next few years to be a fulfilling, enjoyable experience for students and to really penetrate into hard-to-reach low-income markets to get more students learning math.
My brother has picked up an XBox 360 and the world just isn't the same. He has already trashed my records in Marble Blast and is reaching untouchable status in Geometry Wars. He hasn't yet picked up Capcom's campy zombie game Dead Rising yet, but like him, you should go get it and play it if you've got a 360. One of the best games to date for the system.
That's it for now...I'll try not to make it another month before posting again.
Returned from Beaufort on August 1 to Nashville. Miss the guys at Tri-Command, but Nashville's my home. Went down at visited shortly thereafter, for a couple of days in the middle of August, and will head back again to coincide with their project review in the middle of October.
Attended Ben Stark's wedding and even got to play a song there. Great stuff. The wedding was beautiful (once again at Benton Chapel) and it was a very joyful event. Saw Mike and Jeff and Jacob, and got to talk everything from Jeff's wedding next year to Jacob's aspirations of opening up a coffee establishment in DC to Mike's new job in Tampa.
The iTest approaches and we are ready. A mailer goes out this week to schools and we unveil the new piece of software we've been developing to handle the test and student load. It will be a transitional year but one that will well position the iTest for the next few years to be a fulfilling, enjoyable experience for students and to really penetrate into hard-to-reach low-income markets to get more students learning math.
My brother has picked up an XBox 360 and the world just isn't the same. He has already trashed my records in Marble Blast and is reaching untouchable status in Geometry Wars. He hasn't yet picked up Capcom's campy zombie game Dead Rising yet, but like him, you should go get it and play it if you've got a 360. One of the best games to date for the system.
That's it for now...I'll try not to make it another month before posting again.
Saturday, July 22, 2006
On a blogging kick here for a while ... and it will get back to this way more and more as I transition back full time to Nashville out of Beaufort ...
GameSpot featured this piece asking the editors of the site if there were only 5 games they could take with them to a deserted island, what would they be?
They give some pretty interesting answers, so you ought to check that out. Mine are:
1. Halo 2. This is a pretty simple choice. The number of hours I've spent playing Halo 2 with friends online, if I actually had access to that number, has got to be really scary. Like Michael Jackson scary. The game just doesn't get old. Easily the best first person shooter of all time, and a contender for best multiplayer game ever in any genre.
2. Baseball Mogul. The Baseball Mogul series (particularly the 2007 version) is incredibly addictive for anyone who's ever wanted to be a general manager of a baseball team. Another game that simply does not ever get old. From grabbing a critical piece of a playoff run at the trade deadline, to adding a team option or a player option for a 5th year to a big contract to a marquee player in order to get the contract negotiated, to finding out that when you signed Randy Johnson, he went and taught a couple of your double-A players his slider and made them better ... the game is really easy to grasp and hard to turn off.
3. Civilization 4. Again, a game that doesn't get old (which is a theme, cause I'm on a desert island for forever!) and is a total masterpiece. The strategy behind whether you try to win through sheer might, or try to take over the world through economic strategy or diplomatic tactics, along with the completely customizable set of game conditions, provides for infinitely many ways to play the game. The whole franchise is awesome, but Civ 4 really moves this series closer than ever to perfection.
4. The Final Fantasy series. I'm cheating here by taking an entire series instead of one game, but what a series of games we're talking about. The epic, timeless stories that these games weave have always been what has made me such a fan of them, but the gameplay on top of the story is what makes them accessible to such a large number of people across the world. Anyone who has ever completed a Final Fantasy game understands what I'm talking about here. They are definitely coming with me to this island!
5. SimCity / Metal Marines / ActRaiser / Super Mario World. Again, I'm cheating (sue me), but I've got to take all of them. These were my four favorite games (by far) on the SNES, and while most people are familiar with the first one and last one, Metal Marines and ActRaiser were two lesser-known games that I played the hell out of when I was younger. Forget that the graphics are dated with all the PS11's and XBox 36,000,000's coming out ... back in the day of Nintendo and Super Nintendo, the graphics weren't what sold games. These games were genuinely unforgettable to play and were extremely creative in how they approached storytelling and often fused different genres together in ways that hadn't been done before.
An honorable mention goes to Brain Age for Nintendo DS. There have been no shortage of people giving me weird looks as I do Sudoku puzzles and the speed-based "100 Simple Math Calculations" mini games on there while I sit on a plane waiting to leave or head back to Nashville. Incredibly fun game with a number of actually useful, intelligent mini-games to play.
GameSpot featured this piece asking the editors of the site if there were only 5 games they could take with them to a deserted island, what would they be?
They give some pretty interesting answers, so you ought to check that out. Mine are:
1. Halo 2. This is a pretty simple choice. The number of hours I've spent playing Halo 2 with friends online, if I actually had access to that number, has got to be really scary. Like Michael Jackson scary. The game just doesn't get old. Easily the best first person shooter of all time, and a contender for best multiplayer game ever in any genre.
2. Baseball Mogul. The Baseball Mogul series (particularly the 2007 version) is incredibly addictive for anyone who's ever wanted to be a general manager of a baseball team. Another game that simply does not ever get old. From grabbing a critical piece of a playoff run at the trade deadline, to adding a team option or a player option for a 5th year to a big contract to a marquee player in order to get the contract negotiated, to finding out that when you signed Randy Johnson, he went and taught a couple of your double-A players his slider and made them better ... the game is really easy to grasp and hard to turn off.
3. Civilization 4. Again, a game that doesn't get old (which is a theme, cause I'm on a desert island for forever!) and is a total masterpiece. The strategy behind whether you try to win through sheer might, or try to take over the world through economic strategy or diplomatic tactics, along with the completely customizable set of game conditions, provides for infinitely many ways to play the game. The whole franchise is awesome, but Civ 4 really moves this series closer than ever to perfection.
4. The Final Fantasy series. I'm cheating here by taking an entire series instead of one game, but what a series of games we're talking about. The epic, timeless stories that these games weave have always been what has made me such a fan of them, but the gameplay on top of the story is what makes them accessible to such a large number of people across the world. Anyone who has ever completed a Final Fantasy game understands what I'm talking about here. They are definitely coming with me to this island!
5. SimCity / Metal Marines / ActRaiser / Super Mario World. Again, I'm cheating (sue me), but I've got to take all of them. These were my four favorite games (by far) on the SNES, and while most people are familiar with the first one and last one, Metal Marines and ActRaiser were two lesser-known games that I played the hell out of when I was younger. Forget that the graphics are dated with all the PS11's and XBox 36,000,000's coming out ... back in the day of Nintendo and Super Nintendo, the graphics weren't what sold games. These games were genuinely unforgettable to play and were extremely creative in how they approached storytelling and often fused different genres together in ways that hadn't been done before.
An honorable mention goes to Brain Age for Nintendo DS. There have been no shortage of people giving me weird looks as I do Sudoku puzzles and the speed-based "100 Simple Math Calculations" mini games on there while I sit on a plane waiting to leave or head back to Nashville. Incredibly fun game with a number of actually useful, intelligent mini-games to play.
Everywhere you turn right now, whether its the business press, popular press, mainstream TV, whatever, they're talking about environmental issues and the importance of taking action in the face of an incredibly hot summer and other visible evidence of global warming. Its been interesting to see an issue that has been muted and ignored for so long finally become credible in what feels like overnight.
Random thought: US education will be that next "overnight" issue of importance sometime over the next 5 years.
Random thought: US education will be that next "overnight" issue of importance sometime over the next 5 years.
Friday, July 21, 2006
Candidate wants to be 'None of the Above'
Interesting idea. And the guy's from Tennessee. Major points for actually taking initiative to do something and try to effect change instead of sitting on the sidelines and just complaining...even despite the futility of it...
Interesting idea. And the guy's from Tennessee. Major points for actually taking initiative to do something and try to effect change instead of sitting on the sidelines and just complaining...even despite the futility of it...
Thursday, July 20, 2006
iTest registration postcards head out in about 30 days to hit schools right at that critical beginning of school year time. And I'm cutting back on physical mailout material (from those nice, big folders from last year) in order to invest in some online advertising that will go out at about the same time and leading into September.
Seattle managed to pull out a win against the Yankees yesterday. Gil Meche has really turned a corner in his development and might be a legitimate #2 starter behind Felix Hernandez. Assuming Felix keeps progressing back to that dominant starter he was a year ago....he's nearly there.
Bush used his first veto of his entire presidency to overrule the stem cell bill?? I would think he'd have something better to use that on than this. I don't particularly want to die to a disease that could've been cured through stem-cell research while these embryos we put up on a pedestal stay intact sitting in some refrigerator somewhere. Thanks, but no thanks. Can we get back to discussing tax reform please, Mr. President?
And in a final note in this blog of random musings, MSNBC reports that more than half of bloggers are under 30 years old. The interconnectivity of our generation is really pretty incredible. For people my age not to be taking advantage of the time we live in, to use any of the various social networking tools at our disposal to express yourself and to stay in communication with friends across the world, is an incredible loss.
And don't give me the complete BS of "I don't want to be out on the internet lest I lose my job." Like I've blogged before, as our technological generation continues to exit school and invades the workforce, that misperception that "social internet presence" = irresponsibility will change completely. On the other hand, I have seen two separate instances of drunk/drug pictures out on the internet costing two different people jobs this week though...putting pictures like that of yourself out on the 'net will probably remain a really stupid thing to do!
Seattle managed to pull out a win against the Yankees yesterday. Gil Meche has really turned a corner in his development and might be a legitimate #2 starter behind Felix Hernandez. Assuming Felix keeps progressing back to that dominant starter he was a year ago....he's nearly there.
Bush used his first veto of his entire presidency to overrule the stem cell bill?? I would think he'd have something better to use that on than this. I don't particularly want to die to a disease that could've been cured through stem-cell research while these embryos we put up on a pedestal stay intact sitting in some refrigerator somewhere. Thanks, but no thanks. Can we get back to discussing tax reform please, Mr. President?
And in a final note in this blog of random musings, MSNBC reports that more than half of bloggers are under 30 years old. The interconnectivity of our generation is really pretty incredible. For people my age not to be taking advantage of the time we live in, to use any of the various social networking tools at our disposal to express yourself and to stay in communication with friends across the world, is an incredible loss.
And don't give me the complete BS of "I don't want to be out on the internet lest I lose my job." Like I've blogged before, as our technological generation continues to exit school and invades the workforce, that misperception that "social internet presence" = irresponsibility will change completely. On the other hand, I have seen two separate instances of drunk/drug pictures out on the internet costing two different people jobs this week though...putting pictures like that of yourself out on the 'net will probably remain a really stupid thing to do!
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Back in Beaufort...here until August 1, at which point I'll be spending a week every month here, but will no longer have an apartment or anything like that. It'll be back to normal in Nashville. Lori has been great about dealing with a potentially difficult situation and I am looking forward to being back for her. I will miss Tri-Command's staff a lot but I will look forward to my trips back down there to visit. Its one of the best groups of people, in terms of both talent and personality, that I've probably ever seen anywhere.
On a lighter note, Xbox Live Arcade has finally announced a release schedule for the rest of the summer, so I can have some additional gameage to play while I'm down here. Frogger was just released today to download for $5 so I've been playing that for a while. Its the way I unwind...now I think I'm going to get back to it.
On a lighter note, Xbox Live Arcade has finally announced a release schedule for the rest of the summer, so I can have some additional gameage to play while I'm down here. Frogger was just released today to download for $5 so I've been playing that for a while. Its the way I unwind...now I think I'm going to get back to it.
Monday, July 10, 2006
I am up way later than I should be for a 6:22 AM flight out of Nashville...
I paid a Vandy student to do some computer work for me while I was out of town, the major part of which was to rescue the data from two old computers and combine it on a new 250 GB drive he was to install.
I got the computer back from him today and am completely intrigued by the contents of the old drives, which are probably in the neighborhood of 5-7 years old. I've got plenty of old music, which I have spent serious time importing much of it into my current iTunes setup to get on my iPod. But I also have plenty of MY old music, from dual or 3-track keyboard instrumental pieces to piano+vox 1-minute song ideas to full demos of songs like "Black and White" that are pretty crazy to hear after all these years. It really tells a story, but interestingly, some of it is actually good and might be usable someday in the next album I'll record.
Plenty of old assignments from college were saved, including an interesting WWII report that was the only document I bothered to open while sorting through some of the stuff earlier tonight. An old journal of mine, running through the first years of college, is on there...now THAT was interesting. All my NES and SNES emulated games are there, as well as a full version of the one and only Duke Nukem 3D too. All sorts of Vanderbilt Music Society material is there, as well as mp3s from a Pub "Battle of the Bands" event. VMS not making a compilation CD of that stuff and selling it on the Card is still a huge mistake.
It is pretty insane to look back at that stuff, have it come back so clearly to me where I was then, and then see what's happening now and what God had in store for me. I am MARRIED to my beautiful wife. I have a nice little business with the iTest, as well as a great full-time job. I actually draw a revenue stream (modest as it may be!) from JBF500 royalty payments (as well as my instrumental disc obviously). And I've got my sights set on another album sometime in the next 5 years which might actually display some talent!
Looking back then, it was such a time of uncertainty for me for so many reasons. Family reasons, personal reasons, non-existent only-in-my-head reasons ... all sorts of reasons.
Which of course lead to plenty of excuses. Yeah, lots of excuses for why some things happened and others didn't.
So where I might have had a night of horror by going back and subjecting myself to some of those memories, much like it might be for someone to look back in a high school yearbook decades later...its not really like that at all. Its a feeling of understanding how blessed I am to be here and able to do precisely what it is I want to be doing...understanding how great it is to not take life as it is now for granted, and really seeking to help other people get over the stuff I went through.
Anything I can do to instill that invincible feeling of confidence in other people, I do it. Mainly, convincing people that hey, we live in a world with 6 billion people in it ... someone will ALWAYS have something negative and nasty to say about what you're doing. Someone will always take offense when others figure out how to express themselves and gain that personal identity everyone looks for. If someone's going to disapprove of your actions NO MATTER WHAT, then why not do what you want to do in the brief life you've got?
OK, enough of this late-night rambling! Off to Beaufort tomorrow morning (actually, THIS MORNING!) to begin about a week-and-a-half of work down there, including the TCMH project review. I'll see you later...
I paid a Vandy student to do some computer work for me while I was out of town, the major part of which was to rescue the data from two old computers and combine it on a new 250 GB drive he was to install.
I got the computer back from him today and am completely intrigued by the contents of the old drives, which are probably in the neighborhood of 5-7 years old. I've got plenty of old music, which I have spent serious time importing much of it into my current iTunes setup to get on my iPod. But I also have plenty of MY old music, from dual or 3-track keyboard instrumental pieces to piano+vox 1-minute song ideas to full demos of songs like "Black and White" that are pretty crazy to hear after all these years. It really tells a story, but interestingly, some of it is actually good and might be usable someday in the next album I'll record.
Plenty of old assignments from college were saved, including an interesting WWII report that was the only document I bothered to open while sorting through some of the stuff earlier tonight. An old journal of mine, running through the first years of college, is on there...now THAT was interesting. All my NES and SNES emulated games are there, as well as a full version of the one and only Duke Nukem 3D too. All sorts of Vanderbilt Music Society material is there, as well as mp3s from a Pub "Battle of the Bands" event. VMS not making a compilation CD of that stuff and selling it on the Card is still a huge mistake.
It is pretty insane to look back at that stuff, have it come back so clearly to me where I was then, and then see what's happening now and what God had in store for me. I am MARRIED to my beautiful wife. I have a nice little business with the iTest, as well as a great full-time job. I actually draw a revenue stream (modest as it may be!) from JBF500 royalty payments (as well as my instrumental disc obviously). And I've got my sights set on another album sometime in the next 5 years which might actually display some talent!
Looking back then, it was such a time of uncertainty for me for so many reasons. Family reasons, personal reasons, non-existent only-in-my-head reasons ... all sorts of reasons.
Which of course lead to plenty of excuses. Yeah, lots of excuses for why some things happened and others didn't.
So where I might have had a night of horror by going back and subjecting myself to some of those memories, much like it might be for someone to look back in a high school yearbook decades later...its not really like that at all. Its a feeling of understanding how blessed I am to be here and able to do precisely what it is I want to be doing...understanding how great it is to not take life as it is now for granted, and really seeking to help other people get over the stuff I went through.
Anything I can do to instill that invincible feeling of confidence in other people, I do it. Mainly, convincing people that hey, we live in a world with 6 billion people in it ... someone will ALWAYS have something negative and nasty to say about what you're doing. Someone will always take offense when others figure out how to express themselves and gain that personal identity everyone looks for. If someone's going to disapprove of your actions NO MATTER WHAT, then why not do what you want to do in the brief life you've got?
OK, enough of this late-night rambling! Off to Beaufort tomorrow morning (actually, THIS MORNING!) to begin about a week-and-a-half of work down there, including the TCMH project review. I'll see you later...
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Teacherspayteachers.com is a website where teachers post lesson plans, homework assignments, and any other proprietary material they have spent time creating for their classes and can earn money by selling it on the open market. The prices are very reasonable (a WWII history document detailing the entire war was available for $2.00) and it seems to be sprouting up a little community around the economy they've built there.
I have been looking for a platform to use to sell old iTests without incurring physical reproduction costs and this might be it. But I posted about the website here simply because I am fascinated by the determined route the internet is taking toward micropayment items that will payback over a large volume of consumers. One knock on the internet is that while you've got all this free information at your fingertips, the quality sometimes isn't there ... but when you introduce capitalism to the mix, the quality gets restored. So resources like this teacher website above are effectively bridging the gap between readily-available information and accuracy in reporting, moving the internet to a better place than it was 5 years ago.
Separately, you need to hear "Balancing The World," the new major-label debut single by Birmingham native Eliot Morris. John told me about this guy a while back and just today in Beaufort I hear the DJ on the radio talking up this guy in introducing his single. His MySpace page is here and his single is available for purchase on iTunes.
I have been looking for a platform to use to sell old iTests without incurring physical reproduction costs and this might be it. But I posted about the website here simply because I am fascinated by the determined route the internet is taking toward micropayment items that will payback over a large volume of consumers. One knock on the internet is that while you've got all this free information at your fingertips, the quality sometimes isn't there ... but when you introduce capitalism to the mix, the quality gets restored. So resources like this teacher website above are effectively bridging the gap between readily-available information and accuracy in reporting, moving the internet to a better place than it was 5 years ago.
Separately, you need to hear "Balancing The World," the new major-label debut single by Birmingham native Eliot Morris. John told me about this guy a while back and just today in Beaufort I hear the DJ on the radio talking up this guy in introducing his single. His MySpace page is here and his single is available for purchase on iTunes.
Monday, June 26, 2006
I read an interesting article the other day about the current generation of high-school and college students. While benefitting greatly from social networking and all sorts of other inventions designed to keep people connected, they also are apparently the "most unhappy" generation according to some sort of statistical finding or survey or something.
It makes sense, in a way. All those experiences you DON'T want to remain connected to are made permanent, from the jackass who beat your lunch money out of you to the clique that never accepted you to those crushes that ignored you. At the bare minimum, all those people have online avatars/profiles, and often pictures, letting you know they are happy somewhere living life and couldn't care less about their violations years ago. At the worst, detailed descriptions of events gone awry are out there for permanent public consumption via search engine.
Its all there, on the internet, somewhere. There isn't any running away anymore and forgetting about all that stuff in order to start over.
So what happens? Insecure 20-somethings either continue down that vicious cycle of failure and self-doubt and get lost in it all, or get used to the new internet-based transparency we live in now. There's not a whole lot of middle ground. You either conquer it mentally or it just beats you down.
The reality is that we're in the infancy of this entire phenomenon. The further we get into the internet age, and particularly with more and more bandwidth available to even the poorest of Americans, we'll start getting to the point where every single bad decision a person makes will be catalogued and archived somewhere on the internet. Perhaps an enemy will blog about it. Or somebody will post a comment on your "wall" about it.
And we wonder why antidepressants are consumed like candy. We can't ignore the impact of the internet, and its ability to often record the past in an unfavorable light, on the human psyche.
I can't imagine what it must be like to be a high schooler right now. I mean, seriously. Fail to make first chair in band? Everybody's blogging about how much you suck. Have the girl reject you when you ask her to the dance? Now there's a website out there about it.
Either the whispers on the 'net become the impetus behind positive change, or they become deafening and paralyzing. Its a fascinating thing to think about, and a struggle I see with myself and others on a daily basis.
It makes sense, in a way. All those experiences you DON'T want to remain connected to are made permanent, from the jackass who beat your lunch money out of you to the clique that never accepted you to those crushes that ignored you. At the bare minimum, all those people have online avatars/profiles, and often pictures, letting you know they are happy somewhere living life and couldn't care less about their violations years ago. At the worst, detailed descriptions of events gone awry are out there for permanent public consumption via search engine.
Its all there, on the internet, somewhere. There isn't any running away anymore and forgetting about all that stuff in order to start over.
So what happens? Insecure 20-somethings either continue down that vicious cycle of failure and self-doubt and get lost in it all, or get used to the new internet-based transparency we live in now. There's not a whole lot of middle ground. You either conquer it mentally or it just beats you down.
The reality is that we're in the infancy of this entire phenomenon. The further we get into the internet age, and particularly with more and more bandwidth available to even the poorest of Americans, we'll start getting to the point where every single bad decision a person makes will be catalogued and archived somewhere on the internet. Perhaps an enemy will blog about it. Or somebody will post a comment on your "wall" about it.
And we wonder why antidepressants are consumed like candy. We can't ignore the impact of the internet, and its ability to often record the past in an unfavorable light, on the human psyche.
I can't imagine what it must be like to be a high schooler right now. I mean, seriously. Fail to make first chair in band? Everybody's blogging about how much you suck. Have the girl reject you when you ask her to the dance? Now there's a website out there about it.
Either the whispers on the 'net become the impetus behind positive change, or they become deafening and paralyzing. Its a fascinating thing to think about, and a struggle I see with myself and others on a daily basis.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Back in Nashville til Tuesday midday...
Dave and Britney came up to Nashville for a wedding and stayed with me and Lori last night. Great having them here. Dave and I played some Halo and WoW, of course, and Lori showed Britney around our place here and got caught up.
I've found a Vandy student to assist in a variety of personal and iTest-related technology fixes I need done around here for both me and Lori, and he's heading over in a while. Later this week, we have the annual iTest Board of Directors meeting (via conference call) which ought to help provide clarity to the direction the organization will head off on the rest of the year.
And one more thing ... just one more recent example of how crazy it must be to be a high-schooler in this high-tech age we're in.
Dave and Britney came up to Nashville for a wedding and stayed with me and Lori last night. Great having them here. Dave and I played some Halo and WoW, of course, and Lori showed Britney around our place here and got caught up.
I've found a Vandy student to assist in a variety of personal and iTest-related technology fixes I need done around here for both me and Lori, and he's heading over in a while. Later this week, we have the annual iTest Board of Directors meeting (via conference call) which ought to help provide clarity to the direction the organization will head off on the rest of the year.
And one more thing ... just one more recent example of how crazy it must be to be a high-schooler in this high-tech age we're in.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Pistons are up right now 63-51 in the 4th against the Cavaliers in Game 7 of the series...the split second Lebron exits the playoffs, I will cease caring at all about the NBA Playoffs, or the NBA as a whole.
David Stern was asked the question during an in-game interview on whether he thought Lebron was as good as Michael Jordan. David Stern didn't like the question at all, saying "one player isn't going to carry the league anymore." Uh, hate to break it to you Commish, but Lebron is a lot bigger than you or the entire league. He's the show. Not the Pistons, arguably the best team in the NBA and certainly best defensive team. Not the Heat, with the other game-changer in the league, Shaq, on their team. Only Lebron matters in a league that continues to be as irrelevant as the day Michael Jordan stopped winning championships with the Bulls.
In fact, I'd be willing to bet that you could go back in time a few years and find that the rapid rise of the NFL's popularity has come largely at the expense of the NBA. And if Stern thinks he can get away without acknowledging the larger-than-the-league status of Lebron, and how important he is to the success of the league over the next decade, he better just go ahead and retire.
And that's enough words wasted on that!
David Stern was asked the question during an in-game interview on whether he thought Lebron was as good as Michael Jordan. David Stern didn't like the question at all, saying "one player isn't going to carry the league anymore." Uh, hate to break it to you Commish, but Lebron is a lot bigger than you or the entire league. He's the show. Not the Pistons, arguably the best team in the NBA and certainly best defensive team. Not the Heat, with the other game-changer in the league, Shaq, on their team. Only Lebron matters in a league that continues to be as irrelevant as the day Michael Jordan stopped winning championships with the Bulls.
In fact, I'd be willing to bet that you could go back in time a few years and find that the rapid rise of the NFL's popularity has come largely at the expense of the NBA. And if Stern thinks he can get away without acknowledging the larger-than-the-league status of Lebron, and how important he is to the success of the league over the next decade, he better just go ahead and retire.
And that's enough words wasted on that!
Monday, May 15, 2006
Back from a whirlwind tour of Chicago (for a work conference), Nashville (for Evan's graduation), and Dallas (for Melissa's graduation). Got to see Gaurav and Noah up in Chicago and go to a White Sox game, which was great. Noah gave me an autographed Imogen Heap disc, addressed and made out to me personally, from Coachella that he got ... which was really cool.
Ready for what should be an interesting week here in Beaufort before heading up to Nashville for 5 or so days.
"We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action." - Frank Tibolt
Ready for what should be an interesting week here in Beaufort before heading up to Nashville for 5 or so days.
"We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action." - Frank Tibolt
Monday, May 01, 2006
Been a while since I posted here ... I tend to blog a lot and then not blog at all, so I guess I'll be getting back into a routine of blogging a lot for a while.
Let me say something about blogging and social networking and how they reconcile with a workplace environment. First of all, anyone who's seen my piano website (www.bradleymetrock.com) has access to this blog, as I am pretty sure it's linked through there. Even if it isn't, this blog comes up in the first page of results if you Google me, so there is no doubt that there are people from work (and who knows where else) reading this.
We are in an interesting transitional period where you have older folks accessing the internet who a) don't understand the internet itself and b) don't understand the internet culture. The meshing of this older group and people like me who are younger and fluent in technology is 99% of the source of the perceived problem of employees having a "private" life out there on the internet.
The way it is now, somebody my age has a blog, or has a MySpace account, or has a personal website, and that is viewed as a liability at work. I've seen it numerous times and already at my current job I've seen online "stuff" (have to keep this vague) negatively affect multiple people.
For me, I don't say anything in this space, or elsewhere on the internet, that I wouldn't say in person. I'm just as honest here as I would be in person, and while I don't blog about people I don't like or that really suck to deal with, those people pretty much know who they are. No there's not really any secrets to be unearthed by reading this.
And that's the way this whole internet/blogging/social networking stuff needs to work. Honesty in person, and honesty online. No two-faced stuff, no talking behind somebody's back, none of that. If you say the same things online as you do out there in the "real world," you shouldn't have any problem. If you don't, you can bet the internet's going to come back and bite you.
Consequently, I don't like to see people my age avoid the internet and avoid creating their own "online footprint" simply out of fear. This temporary time of aging baby boomers casting aspersions on younger folks who use the internet to blog and to have a voice outside of work is something to be cognizant of ... but also something that will be over within the next 5-10 years.
Let me say something about blogging and social networking and how they reconcile with a workplace environment. First of all, anyone who's seen my piano website (www.bradleymetrock.com) has access to this blog, as I am pretty sure it's linked through there. Even if it isn't, this blog comes up in the first page of results if you Google me, so there is no doubt that there are people from work (and who knows where else) reading this.
We are in an interesting transitional period where you have older folks accessing the internet who a) don't understand the internet itself and b) don't understand the internet culture. The meshing of this older group and people like me who are younger and fluent in technology is 99% of the source of the perceived problem of employees having a "private" life out there on the internet.
The way it is now, somebody my age has a blog, or has a MySpace account, or has a personal website, and that is viewed as a liability at work. I've seen it numerous times and already at my current job I've seen online "stuff" (have to keep this vague) negatively affect multiple people.
For me, I don't say anything in this space, or elsewhere on the internet, that I wouldn't say in person. I'm just as honest here as I would be in person, and while I don't blog about people I don't like or that really suck to deal with, those people pretty much know who they are. No there's not really any secrets to be unearthed by reading this.
And that's the way this whole internet/blogging/social networking stuff needs to work. Honesty in person, and honesty online. No two-faced stuff, no talking behind somebody's back, none of that. If you say the same things online as you do out there in the "real world," you shouldn't have any problem. If you don't, you can bet the internet's going to come back and bite you.
Consequently, I don't like to see people my age avoid the internet and avoid creating their own "online footprint" simply out of fear. This temporary time of aging baby boomers casting aspersions on younger folks who use the internet to blog and to have a voice outside of work is something to be cognizant of ... but also something that will be over within the next 5-10 years.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Not to go crazy with links, but this GameSpot column discusses the fascinating Gamerpoints system Microsoft has built into the XBox 360. There is nothing like competition to motivate people and bring out certain behavior...in this case, buying lots of games. And even with the highly-publicized shortage in 360 systems available in the US, games are just flying off the shelf at a rate of 3-4 per system AT LAUNCH. By now, that's probably up another whole game or two with the release of Oblivion, Ghost Recon, Top Spin, and other quality titles since the start of 2006.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
And another huge surprise: Our President, known for strength on national security only because he continues to throw unconscionable amounts of money toward Iraq and Afghanistan, still hasn't even secured his own backyard.
Edit: This is my 100th blog post. Not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing but looking forward to 100 more.
Edit: This is my 100th blog post. Not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing but looking forward to 100 more.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Surprise, surprise: There are more Virgos on the Forbes billionaires list than any other astrological sign. Virgos are known to be "hardworking, determined, detail-oriented, and analytical," according to the article. Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett and Oracle's Larry Ellison are among the Virgo billionaires.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
The iTest just received substantial corporate funding from the Alabama Power Foundation, marking nearly four months to the day of receiving word the IRS accepted our non-profit application.
The 2006 iTest is going to debut a variety of new technologies that will improve the test-taker experience by allowing online collaboration and communication. Combine this with a flawless actual test and we're going to be in great shape by the end of the year.
The 2006 iTest is going to debut a variety of new technologies that will improve the test-taker experience by allowing online collaboration and communication. Combine this with a flawless actual test and we're going to be in great shape by the end of the year.
Friday, March 17, 2006
5 songs you need to download. The sooner, the better.
1) "Cab" - Train. Their new album is really different than anything they've ever done, in a good way, and this single (which is really doing well at radio apparently) is great.
2) "Touch the Sky" - Kanye West. Don't just download this song, but this video is a MUST-SEE. This guy is as hilarious as he is musically talented. The song is just awesome and better than anything else I've heard from Kanye West's Grammy-winning album. Oh, and also features some random guest rapper doing an actually-decent cameo appearance, something that doesn't usually happen unless that guest rapper is LUDAAAA.
3) "Who Says You Can't Go Home" - Bon Jovi w/ Jennifer Nettles. Bon Jovi isn't the highest on my list of quality acts but this song is really good. Bon Jovi does usually have great melodies and this song is one of the better ones I've heard, and Nettles really is a nice choice complementing him. DOWNLOAD NOW.
4) "The Real Thing" - Bo Bice. Another Alabama boy winning American Idol...but who cares unless you deliver some good material after the fact? This is a great song that Bice was performing back on Idol a few weeks ago. I play this song all the time, love it.
5) The entire "See the Sun" album by Black Lab. Led by amazing talent Paul Durham, this band has been around since the 90's delivering moody, spirited albums. This entire album that was recently released is just awesome.
STOP READING AND GO DOWNLOAD NOWWWWWWWWWWWW
1) "Cab" - Train. Their new album is really different than anything they've ever done, in a good way, and this single (which is really doing well at radio apparently) is great.
2) "Touch the Sky" - Kanye West. Don't just download this song, but this video is a MUST-SEE. This guy is as hilarious as he is musically talented. The song is just awesome and better than anything else I've heard from Kanye West's Grammy-winning album. Oh, and also features some random guest rapper doing an actually-decent cameo appearance, something that doesn't usually happen unless that guest rapper is LUDAAAA.
3) "Who Says You Can't Go Home" - Bon Jovi w/ Jennifer Nettles. Bon Jovi isn't the highest on my list of quality acts but this song is really good. Bon Jovi does usually have great melodies and this song is one of the better ones I've heard, and Nettles really is a nice choice complementing him. DOWNLOAD NOW.
4) "The Real Thing" - Bo Bice. Another Alabama boy winning American Idol...but who cares unless you deliver some good material after the fact? This is a great song that Bice was performing back on Idol a few weeks ago. I play this song all the time, love it.
5) The entire "See the Sun" album by Black Lab. Led by amazing talent Paul Durham, this band has been around since the 90's delivering moody, spirited albums. This entire album that was recently released is just awesome.
STOP READING AND GO DOWNLOAD NOWWWWWWWWWWWW
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Project budget and business plan due very soon ... so its starting to get tense around the TCMH office...
Actual conversation from earlier today from when I was about to go to lunch:
"I'm going to head out and get lunch now, and then come back and work more on the business plan."
"No. Haven't you already eaten lunch? Here, go have a donut (points to donuts from early morning meeting) ... donuts are good..."
LOL...
Actual conversation from earlier today from when I was about to go to lunch:
"I'm going to head out and get lunch now, and then come back and work more on the business plan."
"No. Haven't you already eaten lunch? Here, go have a donut (points to donuts from early morning meeting) ... donuts are good..."
LOL...
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Whoa...big news....Bonds cheated!! What a surprise! This upcoming book about Bonds' steroid usage in the late 90's and early 00's ought to be pretty interesting, but as you know, some of us predicted this fall from grace a while back. (cough, cough, BondsCheated.com!)
Anyway, Bonds is an idiot but an idiot who will likely end up with the all-time home run record. Like I've said before, I'm really counting on him winning it because I look forward to watching the firestorm of backlash and outrage that will erupt when it happens.
I'm now blogging from the strange world of Beaufort, South Carolina. I haven't had cable TV or internet for days now (rough, I know) which has cast this strange silence over my apartment when I get home from these long days at work at Tri-Command (tri-command.com). Its given me time to think...and to breathe...in peace. And I've been able to spend more time just reflecting on life over the past few months than I've had in a long time.
I have avoided blogging about the negative aspects of my job situation and will continue to do so, but certainly I have dwelled on it while being down here. The project director here, Peter Ross, is just a magnificent managerial talent and has really re-energized me. His energy is infectious and he just flat-out gets things done. That's my kind of person.
Enough about that lest I wander into a topic that I would rather not discuss.
The fantasy baseball draft is coming up next Monday. That's going to be insane...one of my favorite times of the year. This year, we're drafting for a league that will run for the next 3 years, making this draft even more important. Better start preparing now ... signing off. Catch you guys later.
Anyway, Bonds is an idiot but an idiot who will likely end up with the all-time home run record. Like I've said before, I'm really counting on him winning it because I look forward to watching the firestorm of backlash and outrage that will erupt when it happens.
I'm now blogging from the strange world of Beaufort, South Carolina. I haven't had cable TV or internet for days now (rough, I know) which has cast this strange silence over my apartment when I get home from these long days at work at Tri-Command (tri-command.com). Its given me time to think...and to breathe...in peace. And I've been able to spend more time just reflecting on life over the past few months than I've had in a long time.
I have avoided blogging about the negative aspects of my job situation and will continue to do so, but certainly I have dwelled on it while being down here. The project director here, Peter Ross, is just a magnificent managerial talent and has really re-energized me. His energy is infectious and he just flat-out gets things done. That's my kind of person.
Enough about that lest I wander into a topic that I would rather not discuss.
The fantasy baseball draft is coming up next Monday. That's going to be insane...one of my favorite times of the year. This year, we're drafting for a league that will run for the next 3 years, making this draft even more important. Better start preparing now ... signing off. Catch you guys later.
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Prince just KILLED it tonight on Saturday Night Live. Twice. The guy is getting older but he is still a world-class talent. Luckily, I recorded SNL on the DVR so I can watch it again tomorrow. His new album, "3121," comes out in March, and Tamar, his protege, has an album coming out in May. Good stuff.
Today marked eight months since Lori and I got married. Seems weird, doesn't it? It doesn't seem like that long ago. Marriage is a good thing, and if you're willing to work at it, it can become a great thing. Man is not meant to go through life alone.
Oh, and one last thing, before I forget....Pittsburgh 23, Seattle 21.
Today marked eight months since Lori and I got married. Seems weird, doesn't it? It doesn't seem like that long ago. Marriage is a good thing, and if you're willing to work at it, it can become a great thing. Man is not meant to go through life alone.
Oh, and one last thing, before I forget....Pittsburgh 23, Seattle 21.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
I am beginning to change my mind on Google as both a sound investment and a viable, sustainable corporation.
This is a company with one competitive advantage, their search engine technology, that they have parlayed into a massive explosion of services. The thing is, what other services do they provide that are either a) essential or b) differentiated within their respective markets?
They are beginning to remind me of the 35-year-old guy with umpteen graduate degrees but no real-world experience. Pick a direction...take one of these ideas you've got to the next level already. Stop creating more breadth, and add some depth to what you're doing!
For example, I had been wanting to see Kobe Bryant's 81-point extravaganza for a week or so now, and I knew Google had it on there. So I go to Google Video to download it, and discover that Google's video site is one of the most unorganized, thrown-together hack jobs anywhere. (Go take a look at it for yourself.) Anyone who has dealt with iTunes knows what a good media store interface looks like. Google ought to go check that out for themselves, actually. The clunky site made me register before I had the luxury of downloading a grainy video that actually didn't really "download" at all ... it still makes me stream parts of it and actually be online to watch it. And, of course, trying to put it on my video iPod didn't work at all.
Who knows what videos are actually on the site...the ability to navigate around Google's video site effectively is basically nonexistent. Oh, but they do have MacGyver episodes...
So now we're back to the 35-year-old grad student metaphor, except now we also find that this guy can't dress himself. The sense of aesthetics on Google are a complete lost cause.
Technology companies should understand this by now: aesthetics are everything. Look at the evolution of the GUI and the history of Windows, for example. Or look at the success of the iPod over similar, if not technically superior, rivals in that marketplace.
The place where they REALLY didn't get the whole aesthetics thing is in their handling of their stock price, where the decision to not split the stock as it appreciated up into the $300+ realm for the first time was terribly misguided. Even tech companies can be victims of just plain bad advice.
And hey, I still like the company. I like their strategy of hiring smart folks, as hiring PhDs has never been cheaper. But they aren't adequately capitalizing on the big, bright ideas their labor force is providing them.
Their push for an advertising-subsidized, entirely online suite of productivity software sounds like a trainwreck waiting to happen. Their questioning of "why should I ever carry my most important documents around under my arm" shows a complete misunderstanding of why laptop computers evolved from desktops in the first place: security. Yeah, maybe your laptop can get stolen or something, but its a hell of a lot better than the document being permanently online.
Microsoft is one example of a company that broadens its horizons, and then immediately moves to dominate the field. What they've done with their XBox brand in such a short amount of time is pretty spectacular, and its clear they understand what it will take in an incredibly competitive market to continue to succeed.
But if there's one company out there that's squandering an opportunity perhaps even to a more tragic extent than Google, its the folks at Wikipedia. The concept of a free encyclopedia that is open to editing by any member of the general populace never was meant to be sustainable. Marketing is too important of a corporate weapon to be defanged by some silly website, and instead of working with major corporate entities to give them increased control over their own Wikipedia entries, they have steadfastly maintained a philosophy of neutrality. Which, of course, should give them comfort long after they've been violently shoved out of business by some corporation that has just had it with dealing with them.
A final lesson to be gleaned from some of these tech companies is that there most definitely is such thing as a bad customer. Apple has been a long sufferer of the "bad customer," with their ridiculous ideologues preaching the gospel of Apple, iMac, and all things not called PC on every street corner for decades now. Google and Wikipedia both suffer from this problem, to a lesser but still significant extent. No one wants to hear overly aggressive nerds spew forth some diatribe about why everyone should use X service or Y website. Indeed, this is one of the best ways to speed up public backlash for a successful internet venture.
Part of this problem is inherent in the use of technology: companies with a niche (Wikipedia) or a dominating technology (Google) will draw these tech-savvy consumers. The key is adopting the appropriate brand image that constantly works to draw in the more normal members of the population as well. (An image we conscientiously employ with the iTest, as you may have noticed from previous blog entries on the topic.)
So sayonara, Google. By the time I turn 30, you'll be gone*. Wikipedia, you practically never even existed, that's how gone you are right now.
* "gone" = acquired and gutted. The brand may remain, as a highly-specific reference to either innovation in R&D efforts or search engine superiority, but the company won't. WRITE IT DOWN!
This is a company with one competitive advantage, their search engine technology, that they have parlayed into a massive explosion of services. The thing is, what other services do they provide that are either a) essential or b) differentiated within their respective markets?
They are beginning to remind me of the 35-year-old guy with umpteen graduate degrees but no real-world experience. Pick a direction...take one of these ideas you've got to the next level already. Stop creating more breadth, and add some depth to what you're doing!
For example, I had been wanting to see Kobe Bryant's 81-point extravaganza for a week or so now, and I knew Google had it on there. So I go to Google Video to download it, and discover that Google's video site is one of the most unorganized, thrown-together hack jobs anywhere. (Go take a look at it for yourself.) Anyone who has dealt with iTunes knows what a good media store interface looks like. Google ought to go check that out for themselves, actually. The clunky site made me register before I had the luxury of downloading a grainy video that actually didn't really "download" at all ... it still makes me stream parts of it and actually be online to watch it. And, of course, trying to put it on my video iPod didn't work at all.
Who knows what videos are actually on the site...the ability to navigate around Google's video site effectively is basically nonexistent. Oh, but they do have MacGyver episodes...
So now we're back to the 35-year-old grad student metaphor, except now we also find that this guy can't dress himself. The sense of aesthetics on Google are a complete lost cause.
Technology companies should understand this by now: aesthetics are everything. Look at the evolution of the GUI and the history of Windows, for example. Or look at the success of the iPod over similar, if not technically superior, rivals in that marketplace.
The place where they REALLY didn't get the whole aesthetics thing is in their handling of their stock price, where the decision to not split the stock as it appreciated up into the $300+ realm for the first time was terribly misguided. Even tech companies can be victims of just plain bad advice.
And hey, I still like the company. I like their strategy of hiring smart folks, as hiring PhDs has never been cheaper. But they aren't adequately capitalizing on the big, bright ideas their labor force is providing them.
Their push for an advertising-subsidized, entirely online suite of productivity software sounds like a trainwreck waiting to happen. Their questioning of "why should I ever carry my most important documents around under my arm" shows a complete misunderstanding of why laptop computers evolved from desktops in the first place: security. Yeah, maybe your laptop can get stolen or something, but its a hell of a lot better than the document being permanently online.
Microsoft is one example of a company that broadens its horizons, and then immediately moves to dominate the field. What they've done with their XBox brand in such a short amount of time is pretty spectacular, and its clear they understand what it will take in an incredibly competitive market to continue to succeed.
But if there's one company out there that's squandering an opportunity perhaps even to a more tragic extent than Google, its the folks at Wikipedia. The concept of a free encyclopedia that is open to editing by any member of the general populace never was meant to be sustainable. Marketing is too important of a corporate weapon to be defanged by some silly website, and instead of working with major corporate entities to give them increased control over their own Wikipedia entries, they have steadfastly maintained a philosophy of neutrality. Which, of course, should give them comfort long after they've been violently shoved out of business by some corporation that has just had it with dealing with them.
A final lesson to be gleaned from some of these tech companies is that there most definitely is such thing as a bad customer. Apple has been a long sufferer of the "bad customer," with their ridiculous ideologues preaching the gospel of Apple, iMac, and all things not called PC on every street corner for decades now. Google and Wikipedia both suffer from this problem, to a lesser but still significant extent. No one wants to hear overly aggressive nerds spew forth some diatribe about why everyone should use X service or Y website. Indeed, this is one of the best ways to speed up public backlash for a successful internet venture.
Part of this problem is inherent in the use of technology: companies with a niche (Wikipedia) or a dominating technology (Google) will draw these tech-savvy consumers. The key is adopting the appropriate brand image that constantly works to draw in the more normal members of the population as well. (An image we conscientiously employ with the iTest, as you may have noticed from previous blog entries on the topic.)
So sayonara, Google. By the time I turn 30, you'll be gone*. Wikipedia, you practically never even existed, that's how gone you are right now.
* "gone" = acquired and gutted. The brand may remain, as a highly-specific reference to either innovation in R&D efforts or search engine superiority, but the company won't. WRITE IT DOWN!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Monday, January 16, 2006
OK, its been a while...I'm going to make a more concerted effort to blog more in 2006 as I approach my 100th post! (What a huge event that will be ... lol ...)
Looking back at 2005, it was a fantastic year. Finished business school at Vanderbilt, got married, accepted new job, moved to a bigger condo, began work on a new album (though delayed for the past couple of months in making any further progress), and made big strides in my personal favorite investment, the iTest.
The iTest received its non-profit status earlier this year, coinciding with a gigantic increase in participation across the United States (and even internationally, with us allowing a school from Poland to participate as an experiment). Participation rocketed over 500% as the event moved closer to my goal of the largest high school academic competition in the United States. Griffin Technology signed on as the sponsor of the event, paving the way for significantly increased sponsorship interest from a variety of sources as we enter 2006. This will be the year we become as much of a financial success as we are a popular success...and don't forget about the iTest CS, either, which I am leaning heavily toward restricting participation to only a handful of students as we pilot the event. I've appointed Evan to run the event, which is cool because he'll do a great job.
2005 saw the release of the XBox 360 and the continued mainstream acceptance of video games as an acceptable medium of storytelling and social gathering. The sheer horsepower of the system is something to behold, and I can't wait for Nintendo's Revolution and the PS3 as well. I NEED TO FIND A WAY TO INVEST IN THIS INDUSTRY ASAP.
Last thing here is that 2006 will see the launch of a couple new web ventures for me, particularly the launch of NCAATournament.TV. More on this later but it's going to be cool.
Until next time...
Looking back at 2005, it was a fantastic year. Finished business school at Vanderbilt, got married, accepted new job, moved to a bigger condo, began work on a new album (though delayed for the past couple of months in making any further progress), and made big strides in my personal favorite investment, the iTest.
The iTest received its non-profit status earlier this year, coinciding with a gigantic increase in participation across the United States (and even internationally, with us allowing a school from Poland to participate as an experiment). Participation rocketed over 500% as the event moved closer to my goal of the largest high school academic competition in the United States. Griffin Technology signed on as the sponsor of the event, paving the way for significantly increased sponsorship interest from a variety of sources as we enter 2006. This will be the year we become as much of a financial success as we are a popular success...and don't forget about the iTest CS, either, which I am leaning heavily toward restricting participation to only a handful of students as we pilot the event. I've appointed Evan to run the event, which is cool because he'll do a great job.
2005 saw the release of the XBox 360 and the continued mainstream acceptance of video games as an acceptable medium of storytelling and social gathering. The sheer horsepower of the system is something to behold, and I can't wait for Nintendo's Revolution and the PS3 as well. I NEED TO FIND A WAY TO INVEST IN THIS INDUSTRY ASAP.
Last thing here is that 2006 will see the launch of a couple new web ventures for me, particularly the launch of NCAATournament.TV. More on this later but it's going to be cool.
Until next time...
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Added some more domains to the portfolio today...last ones for a while, most likely!
AllMyShows.TV
FantasyHQ.TV
BradleyAndLori.com
LoriAndBradley.com (obviously, these two will go for a TON...lol...)
NFLChampion.com (love this one)
MarinersWorldSeries.com
PrivatizedHousing.com (gotta have Actus represented)
StarWarsSeven.com
GoogleStalker.com
USIMC.com
USIMO.com
I'm really starting to enjoy this domain stuff...there's so many different possibilities in turning these investments into revenue streams that its easy to get excited about it!
AllMyShows.TV
FantasyHQ.TV
BradleyAndLori.com
LoriAndBradley.com (obviously, these two will go for a TON...lol...)
NFLChampion.com (love this one)
MarinersWorldSeries.com
PrivatizedHousing.com (gotta have Actus represented)
StarWarsSeven.com
GoogleStalker.com
USIMC.com
USIMO.com
I'm really starting to enjoy this domain stuff...there's so many different possibilities in turning these investments into revenue streams that its easy to get excited about it!
Saturday, November 26, 2005
Back in Nashville after spending Thanksgiving in Birmingham. Of course, even before heading down to Birmingham, I was one of the brave souls camping out for an XBox 360 outside of the Best Buy down in Cool Springs. I arrived at 8:15, after my weekly tutoring session with the 8th grader I tutor in Algebra, expecting to survey the scene and report back home to grab what I needed and maybe catch some Z's before heading out in the early AM.
Unfortunately, didn't happen that way. When I arrived at Best Buy, I discovered a crowd of about 30 people were already there...and with rumors of only 40 units to sell, I couldn't go home because that 30 people could have easily become 60 by the time I could get back. So I called up Lori, who graciously brought me extra clothes, water, and food ... and the 13 hours of waiting began.
It didn't take me long to realize it was REALLY REALLY REALLY COLD (about 20-25 degrees) and so I came up with an idea on how to beat the system. I ordered two pizzas ("Yeah, I need you to deliver to the Best Buy PARKING LOT. Yes, I am one of those XBox camper people.") and I sold the first pizza for $15 to immediately make my money back. I ate four pieces myself (half of the remaining pizza) since I was really hungry, and I took the remaining four pieces and gave two to the person in front of me and two to the person behind me in line. In exchange, I got them to agree to hold my place in line until the store opened at 9 AM the next day. I then went and got in my car and slept an incredibly-comfortable-in-comparison-to-the-alternative 5+ hours before getting up around 5:15 to make sure I was there when the Best Buy management arrived to distribute vouchers. When I got the voucher that officially marked my space in line, of course it was back to the car until the store opened just before 9.
The system itself is incredible. I picked up NBA Live '06 and Perfect Dark Zero, which are both titles I have enjoyed so far. I've started a season as the Cavs in Live and LeBron's dumping in 40+ per game in highly-realistic fashion...and the Perfect Dark game is great too. I want to get more into the multiplayer of that one on the newly revamped XBox Live...
Naturally, I've heard how crazy I am from all sorts of people for waiting out there for that long. Of course it's crazy! That's what made it so enjoyable. I like getting caught up in events like this every now and then.
It was certainly abundantly clear how far the demand for video games has come just in my lifetime. After observing the rabid fans in Nashville that were in line with me, to reading online about everything that happened across the country that day for the system launch, I'm convinced the XBox 360 will go down as a key event in video game history as the day that video games took over the living room for good.
The complement of "simple games" for people who aren't hardcore gamers can be had on Microsoft's innovative XBox Live Marketplace for a couple of bucks apiece, with current launch offerings of a dead-on port of Joust, as well as Robotron, Smash TV, and other old-school titles for cheap. Somebody in Seattle's been listening to the marketplace, obviously.
And for those hardcore gamers, the games are about to take a big step up. Perfect Dark Zero is one example of a game that has so many different gameplay options that it will make your head spin. The complexity of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, which will be the first major RPG to hit the system and will arrive in Q1 '06, will be staggering compared to any current title on any system or even the PC. The return on consumer investment stands to be much greater than before, in terms of hours of gameplay per dollar, despite ratcheted-up cost per game from $49.99 retail to $59.99 for most titles on the system.
I could go on and on about video games and the game industry, so I'll cut that off there and address some other topics quickly:
- Headed to New York next week for Fortune's Innovation Forum. All sorts of big-time speakers there (Fred Smith of Fed Ex, Billy Beane of the A's, Starbucks chief that was the one who made the decision to bring music into the chain, #2 at Target, etc., etc.). I am EXTREMELY excited about this event. I'll also be paying a visit to the Darwin exhibit at the American History of Natural Museum (the one that's been in the news a lot lately) which Ellen, Ben's girlfriend, helped create. Toss in a critical iTest fundraising meeting on Thursday before my flight out and you've got a packed three-day period.
- Speaking of the iTest, I wholeheartedly welcome John Hart to my Board of Directors, effective immediately. (I also am simultaneously installing myself as Chairman of the Board of AHSIMC as we expand into computer science and debate over the next year.)
There isn't anybody I'd rather have participate in this thing than John. Though quite obviously brilliant, I can find brains anywhere. It's his passion and heart that will hopefully rub off on our operation and make it better. There isn't anyone I know or am even aware of that lives at a greater deficit between what he deserves and what he has had happen to him, and it's his persistence and rare degree of fortitude that I so crave to make a characteristic of our fledgling enterprise.
After all, what I seem to fail to communicate to people I discuss this project with is the fascinating reality that the subject matter of our tests is increasingly peripheral to what we do. Our goal of opening up the world of competitive academics to every single student in the United States - FOR FREE - is so unprecedented that in order to position ourselves for victory, we've got to have the right personnel in place to shape the decisions that will guide us to becoming the organization we can, and will, become.
This is a step in the right direction. AHSIMC is instantaneously a better organization with John aboard.
- The Titans take on the 49ers Sunday in the "Battle for Matt Leinart." The loser of this game will likely draft at or near the top in the 2006 Draft, and will be able to select the consensus #1 pick out of USC. (Assuming, of course, the Texans luck up and win another one before the end of the season.) The Titans have been steadily improving throughout the season (though not visible in their record) and should wipe the floor with this flimsy, undisciplined group of West Coast also-rans...as long as penalties don't kill them.
- After reading an article earlier tonight on web aggregators and the profit some folks have made from portfolios of domain names by getting click-through revenue this way, I have opened up some of my own portfolio to one of the more well-known aggregators, Sedo.com, to see if I can make any money this way. Sedo.com opens my domains up to a wide market of buyers who might be interested in purchasing one of my domains (the biggest domain sale of the year, of website.com, was done through these guys earlier this year for $750,000)...so I look forward to seeing what becomes of this.
The domains I own that are listed through the service and populated with ads are:
LeBronVsTheWorld.com
Number1Pick.com
Number1OverallPick.com
NumberOneOverallPick.com
StatusQuotient.com
Sphyramid.com
ItsSanAndreasFault.com
TenYearReunion.com
TheToyTest.com
WorthAMillionBucks.com
Oltomato.com
Myoltomato.com
SanFranQuake.com
USInvitational.com
LetTOPlay.com (no ads on this one)
VGHOF.com (stands for Video Game Hall of Fame)
myVGHOF.com
TheseThingsAreSellingLikeHotcakes.com
UnitedStatesOfMath.com
UnitedStatesOfScience.com
Off to bed. Until next time...
Unfortunately, didn't happen that way. When I arrived at Best Buy, I discovered a crowd of about 30 people were already there...and with rumors of only 40 units to sell, I couldn't go home because that 30 people could have easily become 60 by the time I could get back. So I called up Lori, who graciously brought me extra clothes, water, and food ... and the 13 hours of waiting began.
It didn't take me long to realize it was REALLY REALLY REALLY COLD (about 20-25 degrees) and so I came up with an idea on how to beat the system. I ordered two pizzas ("Yeah, I need you to deliver to the Best Buy PARKING LOT. Yes, I am one of those XBox camper people.") and I sold the first pizza for $15 to immediately make my money back. I ate four pieces myself (half of the remaining pizza) since I was really hungry, and I took the remaining four pieces and gave two to the person in front of me and two to the person behind me in line. In exchange, I got them to agree to hold my place in line until the store opened at 9 AM the next day. I then went and got in my car and slept an incredibly-comfortable-in-comparison-to-the-alternative 5+ hours before getting up around 5:15 to make sure I was there when the Best Buy management arrived to distribute vouchers. When I got the voucher that officially marked my space in line, of course it was back to the car until the store opened just before 9.
The system itself is incredible. I picked up NBA Live '06 and Perfect Dark Zero, which are both titles I have enjoyed so far. I've started a season as the Cavs in Live and LeBron's dumping in 40+ per game in highly-realistic fashion...and the Perfect Dark game is great too. I want to get more into the multiplayer of that one on the newly revamped XBox Live...
Naturally, I've heard how crazy I am from all sorts of people for waiting out there for that long. Of course it's crazy! That's what made it so enjoyable. I like getting caught up in events like this every now and then.
It was certainly abundantly clear how far the demand for video games has come just in my lifetime. After observing the rabid fans in Nashville that were in line with me, to reading online about everything that happened across the country that day for the system launch, I'm convinced the XBox 360 will go down as a key event in video game history as the day that video games took over the living room for good.
The complement of "simple games" for people who aren't hardcore gamers can be had on Microsoft's innovative XBox Live Marketplace for a couple of bucks apiece, with current launch offerings of a dead-on port of Joust, as well as Robotron, Smash TV, and other old-school titles for cheap. Somebody in Seattle's been listening to the marketplace, obviously.
And for those hardcore gamers, the games are about to take a big step up. Perfect Dark Zero is one example of a game that has so many different gameplay options that it will make your head spin. The complexity of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, which will be the first major RPG to hit the system and will arrive in Q1 '06, will be staggering compared to any current title on any system or even the PC. The return on consumer investment stands to be much greater than before, in terms of hours of gameplay per dollar, despite ratcheted-up cost per game from $49.99 retail to $59.99 for most titles on the system.
I could go on and on about video games and the game industry, so I'll cut that off there and address some other topics quickly:
- Headed to New York next week for Fortune's Innovation Forum. All sorts of big-time speakers there (Fred Smith of Fed Ex, Billy Beane of the A's, Starbucks chief that was the one who made the decision to bring music into the chain, #2 at Target, etc., etc.). I am EXTREMELY excited about this event. I'll also be paying a visit to the Darwin exhibit at the American History of Natural Museum (the one that's been in the news a lot lately) which Ellen, Ben's girlfriend, helped create. Toss in a critical iTest fundraising meeting on Thursday before my flight out and you've got a packed three-day period.
- Speaking of the iTest, I wholeheartedly welcome John Hart to my Board of Directors, effective immediately. (I also am simultaneously installing myself as Chairman of the Board of AHSIMC as we expand into computer science and debate over the next year.)
There isn't anybody I'd rather have participate in this thing than John. Though quite obviously brilliant, I can find brains anywhere. It's his passion and heart that will hopefully rub off on our operation and make it better. There isn't anyone I know or am even aware of that lives at a greater deficit between what he deserves and what he has had happen to him, and it's his persistence and rare degree of fortitude that I so crave to make a characteristic of our fledgling enterprise.
After all, what I seem to fail to communicate to people I discuss this project with is the fascinating reality that the subject matter of our tests is increasingly peripheral to what we do. Our goal of opening up the world of competitive academics to every single student in the United States - FOR FREE - is so unprecedented that in order to position ourselves for victory, we've got to have the right personnel in place to shape the decisions that will guide us to becoming the organization we can, and will, become.
This is a step in the right direction. AHSIMC is instantaneously a better organization with John aboard.
- The Titans take on the 49ers Sunday in the "Battle for Matt Leinart." The loser of this game will likely draft at or near the top in the 2006 Draft, and will be able to select the consensus #1 pick out of USC. (Assuming, of course, the Texans luck up and win another one before the end of the season.) The Titans have been steadily improving throughout the season (though not visible in their record) and should wipe the floor with this flimsy, undisciplined group of West Coast also-rans...as long as penalties don't kill them.
- After reading an article earlier tonight on web aggregators and the profit some folks have made from portfolios of domain names by getting click-through revenue this way, I have opened up some of my own portfolio to one of the more well-known aggregators, Sedo.com, to see if I can make any money this way. Sedo.com opens my domains up to a wide market of buyers who might be interested in purchasing one of my domains (the biggest domain sale of the year, of website.com, was done through these guys earlier this year for $750,000)...so I look forward to seeing what becomes of this.
The domains I own that are listed through the service and populated with ads are:
LeBronVsTheWorld.com
Number1Pick.com
Number1OverallPick.com
NumberOneOverallPick.com
StatusQuotient.com
Sphyramid.com
ItsSanAndreasFault.com
TenYearReunion.com
TheToyTest.com
WorthAMillionBucks.com
Oltomato.com
Myoltomato.com
SanFranQuake.com
USInvitational.com
LetTOPlay.com (no ads on this one)
VGHOF.com (stands for Video Game Hall of Fame)
myVGHOF.com
TheseThingsAreSellingLikeHotcakes.com
UnitedStatesOfMath.com
UnitedStatesOfScience.com
Off to bed. Until next time...
Sunday, November 13, 2005
From: Gaurav K Guliani
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2005 4:39 PM
To: bradley@ahsimc.com
Subject: Re:
did you even watch the games? the white sox went 11-1!, tying the best
postseason record ever since the introduction of the wild card. they
swept the boston red sox and the houston astros. they had 4 complete game
victories in a ROW in the ALCS with 4 different pitchers (which has NEVER
been done). they didn't lose a single road game from the end of
freakin september on. they led their division from opening day to the
playoffs and won the world series, only the 5th wire-to-wire team in major
league baseball history.
you can use the fourier series, the fibonacci sequence and goldbach's
postulate all you want, but there is something to be said about dominant
pitching, clutch hitting and solid defense. if this team had more than
20,000 fans at the beginning of the season and a real star player along
the lines of derek jeter, albert pujols or even steroid monkey bonds, you
would be seeing "Fever Pitch II" at a theatre near you starring john
leguizamo as ozzie guillen. in fact, whether or not they are the luckiest
team, they certainly might be the most underrated world series winner in
the history of baseball, because no one outside of chicago or houston
watched the world series.
(by the way, i can't believe i just defended the white sox...)
On Fri, October 28, 2005 12:58 pm, bradley@ahsimc.com said:
>
> here at work eating lunch...
> i've already seen one article on it, but you'll likely see more...stating
> that the White Sox are the "luckiest team in the history of baseball."
> the basis for saying this is that their actual win total during the
> regular season (99) was 11 (!!) wins more than their "Pythagorean"
> estimate of 88 (nothing to do with triangles or anything, but its a
> predictor of wins based on team runs scored, team runs given up, and other
> factors).
>
> also, i would argue they got extremely lucky by facing the astros and not
> the cardinals, which matched up a lot better against them.
> so why not revel in it? the cubs will win it someday, long after the
> Mariners run off a dynasty of 6 or 7 World Series titles in a row.
> starting next year.
>
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2005 4:39 PM
To: bradley@ahsimc.com
Subject: Re:
did you even watch the games? the white sox went 11-1!, tying the best
postseason record ever since the introduction of the wild card. they
swept the boston red sox and the houston astros. they had 4 complete game
victories in a ROW in the ALCS with 4 different pitchers (which has NEVER
been done). they didn't lose a single road game from the end of
freakin september on. they led their division from opening day to the
playoffs and won the world series, only the 5th wire-to-wire team in major
league baseball history.
you can use the fourier series, the fibonacci sequence and goldbach's
postulate all you want, but there is something to be said about dominant
pitching, clutch hitting and solid defense. if this team had more than
20,000 fans at the beginning of the season and a real star player along
the lines of derek jeter, albert pujols or even steroid monkey bonds, you
would be seeing "Fever Pitch II" at a theatre near you starring john
leguizamo as ozzie guillen. in fact, whether or not they are the luckiest
team, they certainly might be the most underrated world series winner in
the history of baseball, because no one outside of chicago or houston
watched the world series.
(by the way, i can't believe i just defended the white sox...)
On Fri, October 28, 2005 12:58 pm, bradley@ahsimc.com said:
>
> here at work eating lunch...
> i've already seen one article on it, but you'll likely see more...stating
> that the White Sox are the "luckiest team in the history of baseball."
> the basis for saying this is that their actual win total during the
> regular season (99) was 11 (!!) wins more than their "Pythagorean"
> estimate of 88 (nothing to do with triangles or anything, but its a
> predictor of wins based on team runs scored, team runs given up, and other
> factors).
>
> also, i would argue they got extremely lucky by facing the astros and not
> the cardinals, which matched up a lot better against them.
> so why not revel in it? the cubs will win it someday, long after the
> Mariners run off a dynasty of 6 or 7 World Series titles in a row.
> starting next year.
>
Sunday, November 06, 2005
One of my favorite investments are internet domains. I use them with the iTest as a weapon, claiming domains that we might presumably use someday, but until then they help direct traffic to our site while warding off others who might try to copy what we do. I consider some of these domains some of AHSIMC's most prized assets as a business.
I haven't mentioned BondsCheated.com here in a while, but I hope to get around to renovating and updating the site before the 2006 MLB season. Bonds picked up where he left off in the last month of this past season, and he should be good to break Aaron's record next year...and I would love to see our site get some substantial traffic as a result of the rioting that will ensue!
I bring all of this up to say that I just picked up two new domains that I intend to build websites around sometime before the end of 2006, when I get a moment or several:
VGHOF.com will become the Video Game Hall of Fame. While GameSpot kinda has a Hall of its own, it doesn't really emphasize it at all and the games are nominated basically whenever they feel like putting a new one in there. Other than GameSpot's half-attempt at it, a Hall of Fame doesn't really exist. Ideally, I'd like to get a core group of industry professionals that could vote every year to decide which nominated titles would get in, but a more realistic approach would just be for me to decide...lol. It would certainly be quicker! Either way, its a nice domain and a project I will enjoy putting something together for at some point, as I still maintain that one day I will be a major creative force in putting together a video game.
OLTOMATO.com is the weird one so let me explain. Lori's alarm clock woke me up the other day to two radio guys talking about an ULTIMATUM, but then started calling it an "ol' tomato." I have no idea what in the hell they were talking about with this, but I then thought about the domain and putting together a site of some sort. I can see the tagline being something like "Click Here Or Else" or "[Fill In The Blank] Or Else," which would of course be the ultimatum...or ol' tomato...or something.
I mean, if someone can turn the GOOGLE domain into a gigantic billion-dollar juggernaut, you gotta think that Ol' Tomato has to be worth maybe a million or two. :)
Seriously, though, I need ideas for this site. I probably won't get around to doing anything with it until (at earliest) January '06, but fire me an email at bradley@bradleymetrock.com if something hits you. If its good, I'll cut you in, promise!
I haven't mentioned BondsCheated.com here in a while, but I hope to get around to renovating and updating the site before the 2006 MLB season. Bonds picked up where he left off in the last month of this past season, and he should be good to break Aaron's record next year...and I would love to see our site get some substantial traffic as a result of the rioting that will ensue!
I bring all of this up to say that I just picked up two new domains that I intend to build websites around sometime before the end of 2006, when I get a moment or several:
VGHOF.com will become the Video Game Hall of Fame. While GameSpot kinda has a Hall of its own, it doesn't really emphasize it at all and the games are nominated basically whenever they feel like putting a new one in there. Other than GameSpot's half-attempt at it, a Hall of Fame doesn't really exist. Ideally, I'd like to get a core group of industry professionals that could vote every year to decide which nominated titles would get in, but a more realistic approach would just be for me to decide...lol. It would certainly be quicker! Either way, its a nice domain and a project I will enjoy putting something together for at some point, as I still maintain that one day I will be a major creative force in putting together a video game.
OLTOMATO.com is the weird one so let me explain. Lori's alarm clock woke me up the other day to two radio guys talking about an ULTIMATUM, but then started calling it an "ol' tomato." I have no idea what in the hell they were talking about with this, but I then thought about the domain and putting together a site of some sort. I can see the tagline being something like "Click Here Or Else" or "[Fill In The Blank] Or Else," which would of course be the ultimatum...or ol' tomato...or something.
I mean, if someone can turn the GOOGLE domain into a gigantic billion-dollar juggernaut, you gotta think that Ol' Tomato has to be worth maybe a million or two. :)
Seriously, though, I need ideas for this site. I probably won't get around to doing anything with it until (at earliest) January '06, but fire me an email at bradley@bradleymetrock.com if something hits you. If its good, I'll cut you in, promise!
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
This has been a very, very good day. Put to rest a task at work that had been particularly difficult to accomplish for the past 3-4 weeks, which is great, and then the flood of emails coming in regarding today's 2005 iTest Nationwide Awards Announcement.
I don't have nearly as much time to pursue media attention as I did last year, but unfortunately last year we didn't have nearly as much of a compelling story as we do this year, with a team of 5 students across multiple schools and states claiming the championship, etc. The media will catch on eventually if we keep doing the right thing.
Which brings me to the most exciting news of all: the iTest franchise will be expanding AGAIN in 2007 with the launch of the iTest Debate. Not giving away any details just yet - not that there are many - but I'm extremely excited about the proposed format and the implementation of technology into yet another domain of academic competition. More to come.
I don't have nearly as much time to pursue media attention as I did last year, but unfortunately last year we didn't have nearly as much of a compelling story as we do this year, with a team of 5 students across multiple schools and states claiming the championship, etc. The media will catch on eventually if we keep doing the right thing.
Which brings me to the most exciting news of all: the iTest franchise will be expanding AGAIN in 2007 with the launch of the iTest Debate. Not giving away any details just yet - not that there are many - but I'm extremely excited about the proposed format and the implementation of technology into yet another domain of academic competition. More to come.
Monday, October 31, 2005
“The Dominators” earn first perfect score in iTest history, win
(
Zhou Fan, the team’s captain, attends
The 2005 iTest took place from September 16 through September 20, and was free to all participating students and schools. Over 31,000 students from hundreds of schools nationwide participated in the second year of what educators call “a groundbreaking educational experience.” The winning team members will receive iPod Nanos and a package of iPod accessories, courtesy of Griffin Technology.
The 2005 runner-up was a team of students from
The 2005 iTest Sponsor’s Award for Leadership was awarded to Leona Penner of
The 2005 iTest Sponsor’s Award for Exceptional Teaching was awarded to Dr. Alan Vraspir of the
Winning the 2005 iTest iNvention Award, a side contest in which students proposed new accessories to build for the iPod Nano, was Garrett Goss of
Winning the 2005 iTest Art Award, which required students to design the 2006 iTest logo for use next year, was student Nash Spence of Montana’s Billings West High School, beating out over 30 other contestants to win an iPod Nano of his own.
The iTest is free to all participating students and schools, thanks to funding provided by iPod accessory manufacturer Griffin Technology. The national event was founded by Bradley Metrock, a
“The iTest is the fastest growing high school academic event in the
For more information on the iTest, please contact Bradley Metrock at Bradley@AHSIMC.com or 615-972-8833, or visit www.theitest.com.
Monday, October 24, 2005
Titans lost to the lowly Arizona Cardinals. This year is going south in a hurry.
Almost wrapped up the work on the 2005 iTest, with Solutions Guides getting shipped out on Friday. Big time increase in submitted exams, thanks to huge increases in overall nationwide exposure as well as our random iPod Nano giveaway to a random student on a team that submitted an exam for grading.
I'll post a copy of the 2005 iTest Nationwide Awards Announcement press release here when its sent out on Tuesday, Nov. 1.
Almost wrapped up the work on the 2005 iTest, with Solutions Guides getting shipped out on Friday. Big time increase in submitted exams, thanks to huge increases in overall nationwide exposure as well as our random iPod Nano giveaway to a random student on a team that submitted an exam for grading.
I'll post a copy of the 2005 iTest Nationwide Awards Announcement press release here when its sent out on Tuesday, Nov. 1.
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Quick thoughts:
- Back from Beaufort, South Carolina (for the second time) and likely not heading back again anytime soon. Scenic place, but if my cell phone doesn't work, its not going to endear itself to me. Got some good reviews from Actus superiors on the work I did there, but you can chalk that up to a talented cast of characters that were already there.
- How dumb are the Braves to allow Leo Mazzone to run off to another team to be pitching coach? The real error was not locking him up to a nice, fat long-term contract years ago. That streak of 15 straight years of winning the NL East? Adios.
- Speaking of Atlanta, spent Friday night with none other than Mark Presley. Went to see Doom (if you played the game, go see it...just enough creativity on top of all the action/horror to make it worthwhile) and then saw Mark dispatch some helpless duo of clowns on the tennis court in his last regular season league doubles match of the year, 6-1 and 6-2. I'm looking forward to seeing if Chik-Fil-A, his employer, continues to recognize what an asset they've got in their IT department with him and gets him into a position of wide-ranging authority as quickly as possible.
- The Titans will be sending Billy Volek into the fray in their effort to dispatch Arizona tomorrow. I'm ready for the Titans to start beating the living hell out of some people, and it might as well start now, guys. If Tyrone Calico doesn't turn his season around tomorrow, with the strong-armed Volek cannoning balls to him throughout the afternoon, he ought to be cut.
- One person that ought to be cut RIGHT NOW is Daunte Culpepper. Yeah, yeah, talk about his salary, but this pretender has been revealed to be a talentless hack now that Randy Moss has headed west. The Vikings are going to continue losing with or without him, so why not send the scathing message to the team, if you're Zygi Wilf, the owner?
- Heading to Fortune Magazine's Innovation Forum in New York City on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, and may stay Friday, December 2 if I decide to take a day off from work that day. I've already used up 3-4 of my 16 vacation days, and I'm going to need a substantial amount for planned Christmas and summer '06 vacations, so it's not certain yet if I'll take that Friday off. If I do take that Friday off, it'll be to accomplish a couple of key iTest-related tasks. The Innovation Forum is full of huge names and will be great to help me consider new possibilities within my role at Actus. I love events like this!
- I have been getting some spam-bots or something leaving automated messages in my "comments" area of this blog lately, so as of right this second, comments are now disabled on this and subsequent posts. I already know who comes in and out of this blog, and as ought to be apparent, I post what I feel like posting regardless of the audience. If you have a comment, email me or something.
- I have plans to get a week's worth of Guest Bloggers to blog for this Online Travesty in a week coming up real soon. Stay tuned.
- Back from Beaufort, South Carolina (for the second time) and likely not heading back again anytime soon. Scenic place, but if my cell phone doesn't work, its not going to endear itself to me. Got some good reviews from Actus superiors on the work I did there, but you can chalk that up to a talented cast of characters that were already there.
- How dumb are the Braves to allow Leo Mazzone to run off to another team to be pitching coach? The real error was not locking him up to a nice, fat long-term contract years ago. That streak of 15 straight years of winning the NL East? Adios.
- Speaking of Atlanta, spent Friday night with none other than Mark Presley. Went to see Doom (if you played the game, go see it...just enough creativity on top of all the action/horror to make it worthwhile) and then saw Mark dispatch some helpless duo of clowns on the tennis court in his last regular season league doubles match of the year, 6-1 and 6-2. I'm looking forward to seeing if Chik-Fil-A, his employer, continues to recognize what an asset they've got in their IT department with him and gets him into a position of wide-ranging authority as quickly as possible.
- The Titans will be sending Billy Volek into the fray in their effort to dispatch Arizona tomorrow. I'm ready for the Titans to start beating the living hell out of some people, and it might as well start now, guys. If Tyrone Calico doesn't turn his season around tomorrow, with the strong-armed Volek cannoning balls to him throughout the afternoon, he ought to be cut.
- One person that ought to be cut RIGHT NOW is Daunte Culpepper. Yeah, yeah, talk about his salary, but this pretender has been revealed to be a talentless hack now that Randy Moss has headed west. The Vikings are going to continue losing with or without him, so why not send the scathing message to the team, if you're Zygi Wilf, the owner?
- Heading to Fortune Magazine's Innovation Forum in New York City on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, and may stay Friday, December 2 if I decide to take a day off from work that day. I've already used up 3-4 of my 16 vacation days, and I'm going to need a substantial amount for planned Christmas and summer '06 vacations, so it's not certain yet if I'll take that Friday off. If I do take that Friday off, it'll be to accomplish a couple of key iTest-related tasks. The Innovation Forum is full of huge names and will be great to help me consider new possibilities within my role at Actus. I love events like this!
- I have been getting some spam-bots or something leaving automated messages in my "comments" area of this blog lately, so as of right this second, comments are now disabled on this and subsequent posts. I already know who comes in and out of this blog, and as ought to be apparent, I post what I feel like posting regardless of the audience. If you have a comment, email me or something.
- I have plans to get a week's worth of Guest Bloggers to blog for this Online Travesty in a week coming up real soon. Stay tuned.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Warning: amazing tune below. Go get it for free on iTunes through tomorrow, or after that, use any means necessary. Rare that I get into the whole "playing a song over and over again" thing, which is what I've been doing with this tune for days.
"Over My Head" - The Fray
I never knew.
I never knew that everything was falling through.
That everyone I knew was waiting on a queue...
to turn and run, when all I needed was the truth.
But that's how it's got to be.
It's coming down to nothing more than apathy.
I'd rather run the other way than stay and see...
the smoke, and who's still standing when it clears.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head.
With eight seconds left in overtime, she's on your mind, she's on your mind...
Let's rearrange.
I wish you were a stranger I could disengage.
Say that we agree, and then never change.
Soften a bit until we all just get along...
...but that's disregard.
Find another friend, and you discard.
As you lose the argument in a cable car,
hanging above as the canyon comes between.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head.
With eight seconds left in overtime, she's on your mind, she's on your mind...
And suddenly, I become a part of your past.
I'm becoming the part that don't last.
I'm losing you, and its effortless...
Without a sound, we lose sight of the ground,
in the throw around.
Never thought that you wanted to bring it down...
I won't let it go down till we torch it ourselves.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head...
"Over My Head" - The Fray
I never knew.
I never knew that everything was falling through.
That everyone I knew was waiting on a queue...
to turn and run, when all I needed was the truth.
But that's how it's got to be.
It's coming down to nothing more than apathy.
I'd rather run the other way than stay and see...
the smoke, and who's still standing when it clears.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head.
With eight seconds left in overtime, she's on your mind, she's on your mind...
Let's rearrange.
I wish you were a stranger I could disengage.
Say that we agree, and then never change.
Soften a bit until we all just get along...
...but that's disregard.
Find another friend, and you discard.
As you lose the argument in a cable car,
hanging above as the canyon comes between.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head.
With eight seconds left in overtime, she's on your mind, she's on your mind...
And suddenly, I become a part of your past.
I'm becoming the part that don't last.
I'm losing you, and its effortless...
Without a sound, we lose sight of the ground,
in the throw around.
Never thought that you wanted to bring it down...
I won't let it go down till we torch it ourselves.
Everyone knows I'm in over my head...
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Back in Nashville, at least for the moment. Great to be back!!
Got the paperwork for the iTest's tax exemption. Sweet.
I was scheduled to begin an audio Podcast for the iTest this month, but I've been thinking now about skipping that and going directly to video Podcasts after the recent announcement by Apple of new video functionality. The videos could obviously be downloaded off the Web as well by people who don't have an iPod or those who would just rather download it to the desktop instead of to the handheld.
Like everything else, a work in progress...
Got the paperwork for the iTest's tax exemption. Sweet.
I was scheduled to begin an audio Podcast for the iTest this month, but I've been thinking now about skipping that and going directly to video Podcasts after the recent announcement by Apple of new video functionality. The videos could obviously be downloaded off the Web as well by people who don't have an iPod or those who would just rather download it to the desktop instead of to the handheld.
Like everything else, a work in progress...
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Flying out of Beaufort tomorrow back to Nashville, only to return next Wednesday through the rest of next week.
This is one of the first places I've been that has ZERO CELL PHONE RECEPTION. Maddening, as you might imagine.
Lori got her first job offer today, which is huge. Takes a lot of stress off of her. Its with one of the top firms in the city, and while its going to mean a lot of work...I told her that she's going to be working hard wherever she is, so she might as well make as much money as she can while she's at it, right? Congrats, L, for rocking a tedious and intimidating interview process.
I am looking forward to being home for the weekend, a privilege I had to negotiate as things down here at Beaufort are beginning to turn a corner. It has been an interesting time down here, and certainly a strong learning experience as the "strategic initiatives" I come up with have immediate and tangible outcomes for the company. I can't tell you how gratifying that is. I always have to wonder in amazement how I got an MBA in both finance and "human and organizational performance" (gotta love that one) and then end up in strategy. God has put me in a position to make an impact which is all I ever asked for.
There has been plenty of time to sit around and contemplate things down here, as I have no cell phone reception (as I mentioned previously) as well as no TV or (until two days ago) internet reception in this Actus house I'm staying in while I'm here. I'm staying in this house by my own request to save company costs and learn more about our property, but I'm missing my creature comforts!
Though grading is nearly complete for the 2005 iTest and I have begun planning for the iTest CS, I still am forced to contemplate a major decision for the 2006 iTest. We know we are either one of many competitions that students at a given school may take, or the only national one they will participate in for the entire year. Do we improve our participation numbers by imitating other national competitions, or by attacking them and going on the offensive?
Its a major branding question. It seems logical to take a more rebellious stance, which aligns us with the natural course of being a teenager like our customers. Both the title and prestige of winning the National Championship, as well as the continually-escalating prize structure of the iTest, will pull students in regardless, so its not as risky of a move as it may seem though.
Several readers of this blog took what was known as the AHSME back in the day, which is now called the AMC when they switched names a few years ago. They constitute the only thing standing in the way of the iTest claiming the title of largest national math competition in the United States, which isn't the most necessary of titles, but would make for an unambiguously good way to describe the iTest in the future. They offer a well-written exam (for a price), but as I've noted before in this space, the "prize" for winning is getting to advance to a harder competition for which you get to pay more money to take. And, naturally, the prize for winning THAT exam is taking a multiple-day proof-oriented contest, which could result in you getting to spend your summer doing math. Sound like fun?
They have improved their capital flow slightly out of stagnant to declining growth, which is admirable, but still are standing relatively still.
We aren't going to win the game of "highest level of mathematical respectability" as I don't hold a PhD in math and certainly never will, though the quantity of education behind the test-writers of the AMC exams is at a remarkably high level. Thus, we have changed the rules of the game - we are going after the largest number of participating students.
Since the AMC will never be able to match us in cost (free, baby!) and is too established to take any risks in marketing, we are now playing a game we can actually win.
If our shaping of the iTest brand going forward is done thoughtfully, we will indeed emerge victorious.
This is one of the first places I've been that has ZERO CELL PHONE RECEPTION. Maddening, as you might imagine.
Lori got her first job offer today, which is huge. Takes a lot of stress off of her. Its with one of the top firms in the city, and while its going to mean a lot of work...I told her that she's going to be working hard wherever she is, so she might as well make as much money as she can while she's at it, right? Congrats, L, for rocking a tedious and intimidating interview process.
I am looking forward to being home for the weekend, a privilege I had to negotiate as things down here at Beaufort are beginning to turn a corner. It has been an interesting time down here, and certainly a strong learning experience as the "strategic initiatives" I come up with have immediate and tangible outcomes for the company. I can't tell you how gratifying that is. I always have to wonder in amazement how I got an MBA in both finance and "human and organizational performance" (gotta love that one) and then end up in strategy. God has put me in a position to make an impact which is all I ever asked for.
There has been plenty of time to sit around and contemplate things down here, as I have no cell phone reception (as I mentioned previously) as well as no TV or (until two days ago) internet reception in this Actus house I'm staying in while I'm here. I'm staying in this house by my own request to save company costs and learn more about our property, but I'm missing my creature comforts!
Though grading is nearly complete for the 2005 iTest and I have begun planning for the iTest CS, I still am forced to contemplate a major decision for the 2006 iTest. We know we are either one of many competitions that students at a given school may take, or the only national one they will participate in for the entire year. Do we improve our participation numbers by imitating other national competitions, or by attacking them and going on the offensive?
Its a major branding question. It seems logical to take a more rebellious stance, which aligns us with the natural course of being a teenager like our customers. Both the title and prestige of winning the National Championship, as well as the continually-escalating prize structure of the iTest, will pull students in regardless, so its not as risky of a move as it may seem though.
Several readers of this blog took what was known as the AHSME back in the day, which is now called the AMC when they switched names a few years ago. They constitute the only thing standing in the way of the iTest claiming the title of largest national math competition in the United States, which isn't the most necessary of titles, but would make for an unambiguously good way to describe the iTest in the future. They offer a well-written exam (for a price), but as I've noted before in this space, the "prize" for winning is getting to advance to a harder competition for which you get to pay more money to take. And, naturally, the prize for winning THAT exam is taking a multiple-day proof-oriented contest, which could result in you getting to spend your summer doing math. Sound like fun?
They have improved their capital flow slightly out of stagnant to declining growth, which is admirable, but still are standing relatively still.
We aren't going to win the game of "highest level of mathematical respectability" as I don't hold a PhD in math and certainly never will, though the quantity of education behind the test-writers of the AMC exams is at a remarkably high level. Thus, we have changed the rules of the game - we are going after the largest number of participating students.
Since the AMC will never be able to match us in cost (free, baby!) and is too established to take any risks in marketing, we are now playing a game we can actually win.
If our shaping of the iTest brand going forward is done thoughtfully, we will indeed emerge victorious.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Sometimes, I just have to stand back at accomplishments of others in admiration. When this happens in the music realm, its especially sweet, as I then have a song I can listen to for the rest of my life!
Mike Doughty's "Looking at the World from the Bottom of a Well" is just SICK. The groove is amazing. His beat-poetry lyrical style on top of it just rocks. Very catchy and melodic - accessible to the mainstream, which is important.
As a musician, you just sit back in awe at where this guy pulled the inspiration for this song from. Obviously, the entire Soul Coughing catalog is an incredibly unique contribution to recent (past decade or so) popular music, but I am really excited about hearing Doughty's upcoming full-length solo disc after hearing this single, which is also being featured this season in "Grey's Anatomy."
And, oh yeah, AHSIMC is now a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. A lot more on this to come.
Mike Doughty's "Looking at the World from the Bottom of a Well" is just SICK. The groove is amazing. His beat-poetry lyrical style on top of it just rocks. Very catchy and melodic - accessible to the mainstream, which is important.
As a musician, you just sit back in awe at where this guy pulled the inspiration for this song from. Obviously, the entire Soul Coughing catalog is an incredibly unique contribution to recent (past decade or so) popular music, but I am really excited about hearing Doughty's upcoming full-length solo disc after hearing this single, which is also being featured this season in "Grey's Anatomy."
And, oh yeah, AHSIMC is now a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. A lot more on this to come.
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Lori is 25 today. Going to PF Changs (her favorite place) and then to the Vandy law library, where she's got some work she has to do and wants me to keep her company. Hey, when its your birthday, you call the shots.
Deep into iTest grading, easily the most tedious part of the whole thing. Some of the team names are hilarious, and some teams came up with fairly "creative" answers for questions they couldn't solve...which makes it much easier to deal with grading this many tests.
Certainly, this won't be happening next year. We'll be pulling out all the stops on automating the site, which will also eliminate another annoying aspect of running this thing: teachers that haven't configured their spam filters to let iTest emails through on a regular basis. Everything will run through the website, so there's no risk that we won't receive an exam or that everyone won't get the test on time.
The response to the iTest iNvention contest (sponsored by Griffin Technology, where kids submit ideas for a new iPod Nano accessory) and the 2006 iTest Logo Contest have been amazing. The Griffin folks and I will sit down soon to determine the best iPod Nano accessory, but I have to admit that several of these things would be cool if they built them. I have no idea who will (or should) win, but I do know we have demonstrated a major success with our first corporate partner.
The 2006 iTest logos I've been getting have ranged from uninspired violations of various copyrights to amazing works of art. Either way, its fun to see what folks have come up with.
These winning entries, along with excerpts from the email we've been getting, will be great additions to the press materials we send out on November 1 as part of our 2005 iTest Nationwide Awards Announcement.
Deep into iTest grading, easily the most tedious part of the whole thing. Some of the team names are hilarious, and some teams came up with fairly "creative" answers for questions they couldn't solve...which makes it much easier to deal with grading this many tests.
Certainly, this won't be happening next year. We'll be pulling out all the stops on automating the site, which will also eliminate another annoying aspect of running this thing: teachers that haven't configured their spam filters to let iTest emails through on a regular basis. Everything will run through the website, so there's no risk that we won't receive an exam or that everyone won't get the test on time.
The response to the iTest iNvention contest (sponsored by Griffin Technology, where kids submit ideas for a new iPod Nano accessory) and the 2006 iTest Logo Contest have been amazing. The Griffin folks and I will sit down soon to determine the best iPod Nano accessory, but I have to admit that several of these things would be cool if they built them. I have no idea who will (or should) win, but I do know we have demonstrated a major success with our first corporate partner.
The 2006 iTest logos I've been getting have ranged from uninspired violations of various copyrights to amazing works of art. Either way, its fun to see what folks have come up with.
These winning entries, along with excerpts from the email we've been getting, will be great additions to the press materials we send out on November 1 as part of our 2005 iTest Nationwide Awards Announcement.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Though my team in the fantasy baseball league that I ran this year was easily the worst team I've ever had in years of playing, largely due to my first round draft pick not playing all year (Bonds) and poor choices in other rounds in selecting players whose time hasn't quite come...
my team in Evan's league is tearing it up. The "Mariners" are up 13-0 in the championship round with 6 days left to go, all but securing a fantasy championship in his league. For posterity, the members of the team (which have pretty much been intact all year, since I haven't changed it much) are:
Mike Piazza - C, New York Mets
Mike Sweeney - 1B, Kansas City Royals
Luis Castillo - 2B, Florida Marlins
Joe Randa - 3B, San Diego Padres
Jose Reyes - SS, New York Mets
Manny Ramirez - OF, Boston Red Sox
Carl Crawford - OF, Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Lance Berkman - OF, Houston Astros
Jason Bay - OF, Pittsburgh Pirates (in my first Util slot)
Pat Burrell - OF, Philadelphia Phillies (in my second Util slot)
Jake Westbrook - SP, Cleveland Indians
Jae Seo - SP, New York Mets (neither of these guys were in my lineup til later in the year)
Kyle Farnsworth - RP, Atlanta Braves
Duaner Sanchez - RP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Derrick Turnbow - RP, Milwaukee Brewers
Yhency Brazoban - RP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Felix Hernandez - SP, Seattle Mariners
my team in Evan's league is tearing it up. The "Mariners" are up 13-0 in the championship round with 6 days left to go, all but securing a fantasy championship in his league. For posterity, the members of the team (which have pretty much been intact all year, since I haven't changed it much) are:
Mike Piazza - C, New York Mets
Mike Sweeney - 1B, Kansas City Royals
Luis Castillo - 2B, Florida Marlins
Joe Randa - 3B, San Diego Padres
Jose Reyes - SS, New York Mets
Manny Ramirez - OF, Boston Red Sox
Carl Crawford - OF, Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Lance Berkman - OF, Houston Astros
Jason Bay - OF, Pittsburgh Pirates (in my first Util slot)
Pat Burrell - OF, Philadelphia Phillies (in my second Util slot)
Jake Westbrook - SP, Cleveland Indians
Jae Seo - SP, New York Mets (neither of these guys were in my lineup til later in the year)
Kyle Farnsworth - RP, Atlanta Braves
Duaner Sanchez - RP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Derrick Turnbow - RP, Milwaukee Brewers
Yhency Brazoban - RP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Felix Hernandez - SP, Seattle Mariners
Jeff's latest blog entry discusses the Wright amendment, which has been a frequent problem of Lori's and mine when we fly to see her family in Dallas. Articulate, as usual, and insightful.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
This is insane...Lori gets these emails from Gee through the law school listserv, and forwarded this to me...
From: gordon.gee@vanderbilt.edu
Reply-To: gordon.gee@vanderbilt.edu
To: vanderbilt-students@list.vanderbilt.edu
Subject: Urgent Message from Chancellor Gee
Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2005 20:15:15 -0500
vanderbilt-students
From: gordon.gee@vanderbilt.edu
September 25, 2005
Dear Students,
I am writing tonight about a very serious matter.
Earlier today, you received a Security Alert regarding a shooting in the Morgan House residence hall. Although the incident is still under investigation by Metro Police and VUPD, we can share with you the latest information.
At approximately 2:00 a.m., a female Vanderbilt student brought several non-student individuals into Morgan to attend a party onthe 10th floor.
These individuals were asked to leave the party after they made a disturbance. When the non-student individuals, and the Vanderbilt student, got on the elevator on the 10th floor, two of the individuals--both men--pulled out handguns and fired several shots into the hallway, hitting a male Vanderbilt student in the arm. The assailants--along with the female Vanderbilt student--then rode the elevator to the ground floor and fled the building. In addition to the student who received the gunshot wound, two other students received minor injuries in the ensuing confusion. All three were treated and released by
We are confident that this incident--as horrifying as it is--represents a very unusual occurrence. However, as you know, campus safety has been an issue of intense discussion in recent weeks. Working together, we have made great progress in educating and informing students about the programs and services that are in place to ensure the security of our University community. Every residence hall has card readers to limit access to students and residents. Vanderbilt has a large and well-trained police force that patrols the campus 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and there have been increased foot patrols and bike patrols in recent weeks. Security cameras are installed in many locations on campus, including a number of elevators, and have been particularly helpful in the investigation of this incident. Student Life staff are holding meetings in the residence halls to give students an opportunity to discuss the recent incidents with VUPD officers, and student leaders held a town hall meeting to talk about campus safety. Staff and students have conducted a review of lighting in the Greek Row area and have identified dark areas to which additional lighting is being added. Five additional Blue Light Emergency Phones have been added in locations across the campus, including the Greek Row area. We have also added another van to the Vandy Vans escort system to provide an increased number of campus escorts.
Together with continuous education and information about personal security, all of these measures help create one of the safest college environments in the region, if not in the country. But there is one element of campus security that requires the cooperation, participation, and vigilance of every student: responsibility for guests that are brought to campus. In this morning's incident, security cameras indicate that the assailants were let into Morgan and accompanied to the party by a Vanderbilt student. This was not a random shooting or "home invasion." Rather, the perpetrators were given access to our campus by a current student.
We pride ourselves on being part of an open community that values constant interaction to the extent that it is neither realistic nor desirable to create unwieldy barriers. At the same time, we must ensure that our University remains safe, and that every member of our community understands his or her responsibilities and rights. For these reasons, I am appointing a special Task Force of students, administrators, and security specialists to review campus security, with a special emphasis on our policies and procedures for access to residence halls and other student areas. The members of this Task Force will be announced tomorrow (Monday, September 26). I will direct the Task Force to provide an immediate analysis of both our current procedures and the mechanisms for enforcement, and to make recommendations for changes that will address our twin imperatives of openness and safety. I expect this process to take weeks, not months, and for there to be vigorous and informed discussion among students about the alternatives, which will then be presented to the University community for implementation.
There is no question that the safety of our students, faculty, staff, patients, and visitors is our highest priority. Incidents such as the one that occurred in Morgan House remind us that senseless violence can occur in even the most protected and comfortable environments, surrounded by friends and colleagues. We must work together as a community to prevent a recurrence.
I am making a personal pledge to you--our students--that I work tirelessly to ensure our campus remains one of the safest.
Cordially,
Gordon Gee
Titans couldn't quite pull it out against the Rams in one of the worst games I've seen Steve McNair play. Bulger and Holt made Pacman Jones look like the inexperienced rookie he is. Haynesworth was out and while that certainly made a difference in the game, can't really worry too much about that with the toughest game yet coming up next week against Indy at home.
Time to get a jump on some of these legal documents that I'll be spending my week here at home reading before heading out to South Carolina.
Time to get a jump on some of these legal documents that I'll be spending my week here at home reading before heading out to South Carolina.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Good new song by Ben's brother's band, Belerian, which is comprised primarily of Vestavia students and is based here in Nashville. Josh attends Belmont, as I think the majority of the band does.
Song is called "Siren" and the recording is raw in a good way. Josh's guitar is sounding good as usual but its the bass really letting it rip and the vocalist letting loose that make it memorable. The groove is great and I think its cool these guys are obviously getting a feel for playing together.
If you're here in town, check 'em out. I know I will when I return from Beaufort. (Oh yeah, I'm getting dispatched to Beaufort, South Carolina, by Actus to assist in the crisis management going on there. I'll be gone from October 3 through Oct. 15.)
PS...MySpace page for Belerian is at www.myspace.com/belerian.
Song is called "Siren" and the recording is raw in a good way. Josh's guitar is sounding good as usual but its the bass really letting it rip and the vocalist letting loose that make it memorable. The groove is great and I think its cool these guys are obviously getting a feel for playing together.
If you're here in town, check 'em out. I know I will when I return from Beaufort. (Oh yeah, I'm getting dispatched to Beaufort, South Carolina, by Actus to assist in the crisis management going on there. I'll be gone from October 3 through Oct. 15.)
PS...MySpace page for Belerian is at www.myspace.com/belerian.
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Continuing my prolific blogging re: the iTest...
I have had to play my reluctant role of kindergarten teacher in restoring sanity to the artofproblemsolving.com AHSIMC forum. The kids were irritated at typos (which I was too, a lot) but also with some of the answers. Of course, like any forum over time, this place has degenerated into the same people posting over and over again, and unfortunately for us, its some people with an axe to grind.
I am disgusted at the lost potential of working closer with the site folks, as Mathew's a good guy and a Vestavite. But just when I think I've brought the forum back under control, along comes an inexplicable post from the site creator condoning the high school rudeness and general belligerence on the forum, as well as telling us how to market our own competition! (They don't like us calling ourselves a "premiere" competition. They probably won't like it when we actually are one, either!)
I don't mind kids running their mouths on an online forum - that's what this outlet is there for. And of course they are going to lack discretion. But when some middle age guy who is supposed to know better comes along and doesn't unequivocally denounce rude, insulting behavior on his own forum, where he is viewed as a figurehead, I wonder what on earth I'm doing as part of it.
I can't explain it. Maybe you can. Go to the site yourself and check it out and give me your thoughts at some point. I really don't have time for this type of stuff. I had no idea this guy ran his business like this when I signed on, and now its probably too late.
In another oddity, some random student decided to email us his half-finished college admissions essay, calling it "the answer key."
Looking at the plethora of Griffin iPod Nano accessory ideas and 2006 iTest logos that have been coming in has been a blast, but there's been several bizarre ones too.
We are full-speed-ahead on pursuing the iTest trademark, and I gave the go-ahead today to the legal team to lay waste to another party that's challenging our trademark instead of moving us to the Supplemental Register. Simultaneously, we await the IRS' final word on our tax exempt status, a decision that will definitely affect us one way or the other.
I have had to play my reluctant role of kindergarten teacher in restoring sanity to the artofproblemsolving.com AHSIMC forum. The kids were irritated at typos (which I was too, a lot) but also with some of the answers. Of course, like any forum over time, this place has degenerated into the same people posting over and over again, and unfortunately for us, its some people with an axe to grind.
I am disgusted at the lost potential of working closer with the site folks, as Mathew's a good guy and a Vestavite. But just when I think I've brought the forum back under control, along comes an inexplicable post from the site creator condoning the high school rudeness and general belligerence on the forum, as well as telling us how to market our own competition! (They don't like us calling ourselves a "premiere" competition. They probably won't like it when we actually are one, either!)
I don't mind kids running their mouths on an online forum - that's what this outlet is there for. And of course they are going to lack discretion. But when some middle age guy who is supposed to know better comes along and doesn't unequivocally denounce rude, insulting behavior on his own forum, where he is viewed as a figurehead, I wonder what on earth I'm doing as part of it.
I can't explain it. Maybe you can. Go to the site yourself and check it out and give me your thoughts at some point. I really don't have time for this type of stuff. I had no idea this guy ran his business like this when I signed on, and now its probably too late.
In another oddity, some random student decided to email us his half-finished college admissions essay, calling it "the answer key."
Looking at the plethora of Griffin iPod Nano accessory ideas and 2006 iTest logos that have been coming in has been a blast, but there's been several bizarre ones too.
We are full-speed-ahead on pursuing the iTest trademark, and I gave the go-ahead today to the legal team to lay waste to another party that's challenging our trademark instead of moving us to the Supplemental Register. Simultaneously, we await the IRS' final word on our tax exempt status, a decision that will definitely affect us one way or the other.
Watched the premiere of The Apprentice with Lori tonight...
If the show has a low point, its that Trump is quick to fire people who don't play by his rules. He fired Bradford last year early on because he refused his exemption, a move designed to motivate his team. For whatever reason, the Donald doesn't seem to be too fond of moves like that.
Tonight, the team leader (I forget her name) did a decent job, and there was a clear loser who needed to go from the women's team after they lost and had to face the boardroom. When the team leader elected not to bring the customary two people into the boardroom - opting only to bring Melissa, the nasty girl who couldn't get along with anyone - Trump once again took offense. Fortunately, he appeared to have learned from his previous mistake and fired the right person this time! So the show is off to a pretty good start.
If the show has a low point, its that Trump is quick to fire people who don't play by his rules. He fired Bradford last year early on because he refused his exemption, a move designed to motivate his team. For whatever reason, the Donald doesn't seem to be too fond of moves like that.
Tonight, the team leader (I forget her name) did a decent job, and there was a clear loser who needed to go from the women's team after they lost and had to face the boardroom. When the team leader elected not to bring the customary two people into the boardroom - opting only to bring Melissa, the nasty girl who couldn't get along with anyone - Trump once again took offense. Fortunately, he appeared to have learned from his previous mistake and fired the right person this time! So the show is off to a pretty good start.
Now that the iTest has concluded and I've had a chance to actually breathe for a minute (!) as well as return to work, I think life may be returning to normal for a while. The iTest CS development is underway and if early indications mean anything, its going to be a monstrous success filling a much-needed demand for computer science competitions in the US. But where do we go after that to continue to grow? That's going to be a huge question.
We've got to take the final step in eliminating typos from next year's test, as well as get our new online infrastructure in place so we can begin testing it for next year. The work, quite simply, never ends.
We've got to take the final step in eliminating typos from next year's test, as well as get our new online infrastructure in place so we can begin testing it for next year. The work, quite simply, never ends.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Friday, September 16, 2005
Our sponsor had a change of heart all of a sudden...and just like that, Griffin Technology is once again the 2005 iTest's Corporate Partner. Check them out if you have an iPod and buy their stuff at www.griffintechnology.com.
The 2005 iTest launches in 10 hours to 240 schools across the country, with huge groups of students slated to participate at many schools. Our participation will be way, way up. This is gonna be big.
The 2005 iTest launches in 10 hours to 240 schools across the country, with huge groups of students slated to participate at many schools. Our participation will be way, way up. This is gonna be big.
Monday, September 05, 2005
Decide for yourself...(from the New York Times, taken from Gaurav's blog):
As the levees cracked open and ushered hell into New Orleans on Tuesday, President Bush once again chose to fly away from Washington, not toward it, while disaster struck. We can all enumerate the many differences between a natural catastrophe and a terrorist attack. But character doesn't change: it is immutable, and it is destiny.
As always, the president's first priority, the one that sped him from Crawford toward California, was saving himself: he had to combat the flood of record-low poll numbers that was as uncontrollable as the surging of Lake Pontchartrain. It was time, therefore, for another disingenuous pep talk, in which he would exploit the cataclysm that defined his first term, 9/11, even at the price of failing to recognize the emerging fiasco likely to engulf Term 2.
As the levees cracked open and ushered hell into New Orleans on Tuesday, President Bush once again chose to fly away from Washington, not toward it, while disaster struck. We can all enumerate the many differences between a natural catastrophe and a terrorist attack. But character doesn't change: it is immutable, and it is destiny.
As always, the president's first priority, the one that sped him from Crawford toward California, was saving himself: he had to combat the flood of record-low poll numbers that was as uncontrollable as the surging of Lake Pontchartrain. It was time, therefore, for another disingenuous pep talk, in which he would exploit the cataclysm that defined his first term, 9/11, even at the price of failing to recognize the emerging fiasco likely to engulf Term 2.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
I am now 25 years old.
Halfway to 50.
I thank God for allowing me to reach this point. He has brought a wealth of opportunity to my life, including the opportunity to be happily married. I sit back and think of everything that has happened over the past year of my life and am very grateful.
I am emotionally drained from watching footage and reading stories from the Gulf Coast over the weekend. It is extremely difficult, actually, for me to watch the footage - I can read the stories on the internet a bit easier. I am angered by President Bush's actions over the past week and disgusted at both the response of our government as well as its failure to act years ago to mitigate the risk involved for New Orleans after an internal FEMA report predicted this disaster 5 years ago. As I've noted in this space before, President Bush is well on his way to a legacy as one of the worst US Presidents of the modern era.
However, I am equally disgusted by the politicizing of Katrina by various individuals and groups with their own agendas. Does everything have to be political these days? It gets tiring. The anger and vitriol in the current political climate needs to go, and the successful 2008 Presidential candidate will likely be the individual best able to de-claw the debates on various issues.
This world of constant flux and viewing everything through political lenses simply can't sustain itself. And yet, its the world in which I find myself at the start of a potential watershed year for my own aspirations in a variety of fields.
Let others complain and groan about the state we're in. I'm in too much of a hurry to whine.
I pray to God to influence my life and help me live a fulfilling life. Thankful to be happily married and in prime position for the first time to seize opportunities I have been given, I move into yet another year of my life with optimism and determination.
Halfway to 50.
I thank God for allowing me to reach this point. He has brought a wealth of opportunity to my life, including the opportunity to be happily married. I sit back and think of everything that has happened over the past year of my life and am very grateful.
I am emotionally drained from watching footage and reading stories from the Gulf Coast over the weekend. It is extremely difficult, actually, for me to watch the footage - I can read the stories on the internet a bit easier. I am angered by President Bush's actions over the past week and disgusted at both the response of our government as well as its failure to act years ago to mitigate the risk involved for New Orleans after an internal FEMA report predicted this disaster 5 years ago. As I've noted in this space before, President Bush is well on his way to a legacy as one of the worst US Presidents of the modern era.
However, I am equally disgusted by the politicizing of Katrina by various individuals and groups with their own agendas. Does everything have to be political these days? It gets tiring. The anger and vitriol in the current political climate needs to go, and the successful 2008 Presidential candidate will likely be the individual best able to de-claw the debates on various issues.
This world of constant flux and viewing everything through political lenses simply can't sustain itself. And yet, its the world in which I find myself at the start of a potential watershed year for my own aspirations in a variety of fields.
Let others complain and groan about the state we're in. I'm in too much of a hurry to whine.
I pray to God to influence my life and help me live a fulfilling life. Thankful to be happily married and in prime position for the first time to seize opportunities I have been given, I move into yet another year of my life with optimism and determination.
