Space: Now That is Cool
Sunday, February 27th, 2011This is just amazing. Space Shuttle launch from an airplane. I bet everyone was jammed over on one side of the airplane to see it.
[MSNBC]
Archive for February, 2011
Mother Nature Drops In On A Cruise Ship
Monday, February 21st, 2011Anyone who has ever been sailing, or took to the open seas in any type of marine craft knows mother nature often has plans of her own when you are out there. This video is a testimonial to that.
Watson to Humans: Just a matter of time…
Thursday, February 17th, 2011
SWAT Team Called to Dell:When Marketing Goes Awry:
Wednesday, February 16th, 2011
A Dell exec Bryan Chester ran around the Dell Campus dressed as a biker in a face covering skull bandanna yelling for people to “go to the Lobby” carrying metal objects(Probably the new Streak) Unfortunately instead of a morale boosting product announcement it caused mayhem and 911 calls and ultimately the arrival of the police. It is hard though to criticize someone since ideas often look great on paper. For example I knew another company that came up with what seemed to be on the surface a great marketing idea. Summer sale with packs of suntan lotion sent out to clients. All was well until the packs ruptured inside the envelopes and leaked gobs of sun tan oil all over the clients mail. Basically it went down like this, Post-person shows up, “Here’s your box of oily mail,” followed by lots of pissed off people on the phone. Moral of the story: Just because it seems like a great marketing idea, doesn’t mean it is.
McDonalds will handle your wedding?
Tuesday, February 15th, 2011
Ok. Believe it or not, McDonald’s restaurants in Hong Kong will give you an out the door wedding package so you can tie the knot with your sweetheart and get a Big Mac at the same time. Of course I can see the inevitable…Burger King, not to be outdone will have to quickly announce its all inclusive divorce package. “Divorce, the King says have it your way.”
[Rueters]
Rally Dev Software: Organize Your Code and Plan Your Wedding
Monday, February 14th, 2011
In software having great tools is the key to a good workflow. A while back we realized our previous systems of managing software projects weren’t cutting it. We have always been junkies for exploring solutions and tried many Open Source applications, and even down to the god awful spreadsheet method way back in the day. Nothing really quite cut it. One day though we stumbled into Rally Dev, a snazzy piece of Agile Development Project Management Software. Quite simple to setup and deploy and coupled with a sales and support staff at Rally Dev that actually cares about their clients successes. It has powerful reports and many features that make us feel like Lord Vader walking around on a Super Star Destroyer. We had heard someone actually planned his wedding in Rally Dev. Sounds insane, but if you see the software it actually makes sense.
Oblique Strategies: Over 100 Worthwhile Dilemas
Monday, February 14th, 2011
Originally published by Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt in 1975 this deck contains 100 cards which are sort of a set of working thoughts designed to refocus or open up creativity which is often squashed by a variety of factors like time deadlines, being to close to the problem, etc. The idea is fairly simple, shuffle the deck, pick up card, read it, and act on the idea it presents. There are also numerous computer versions out as well. Hey Cold Play used it on La Vida La Viva and look what they did. Ooo rah!
Here is a small sampling of some cards:
Steal a solution.
Describe the landscape in which this belongs.
What else is this like?
List the qualities it has. List those you’d like.
Instead of changing the thing, change the world around it.
Sylvester Stallone: Saint?
Saturday, February 12th, 2011
The next time you happen to be in the Northwest part of Connecticut particularly in a town called New Hartford don’t forget to drop by St Johns Episcopal Church and see Sly Stallone in all his glory forever imortalized as a saint in a stained glass window. My stepfather is retired from his craft as a stained glass artist now and since moved on to writing, but his Sly still stands. How did this come about? When I was a teenager I was watching the third Rambo movie when my stepfather was working on a new window and he knew I always loved the Rambo movies when I was younger so he decided as an inside joke to take Sly’s face and add it to a window. When you walk in the door it is on the right side. I won’t tell you which one, but you can’t miss it when you look for it. Adrienne we made it!
Texas Fire Frame: Can’t keep a good engineer down
Saturday, February 12th, 2011
Engineers it seems are filled with an overwhelming desire to solve problems no matter what they might be. Whether it is Tony Stark building the Iron man suit, or a physicist working on the Manhattan project, or making a set of logs in a fireplace deliver better heat to a room, it is all the same, problem solving. Here is just such an engineer, Dr Cranberg who, no didn’t build the Iron Man suit, but yes did work on the Manhattan project and you guessed it, invented a way to deliver better heat to homes from fireplaces, along with many other notable accomplishments. Here he is his device. Houses rejoice!
Coca Cola and Henry the 8th
Saturday, February 12th, 2011
Like anyone I spend a fair amount of time thinking about time travel. Going back to a period in history etc etc with lots of different scenarios, like a plot for any time travel movie. Was also thinking if it would be possible to take back anything into the past as in objects etc(lets forget about screwing with the space time continuum and any paradoxical issues for a moment) what would you bring? Obviously there are so many different choices like, cures for major diseases, technology items, a good shotgun like Ash would carry. Was thinking though what if you were to bring back a case of Coca Cola to let’s say 16th century England? It would probably blow peoples minds. Soon of course you would end up on the radar of the King of England if you weren’t beaten over the head and had your case stolen before hand. “Bring the man before me who would possess this sweet black bubbly drink called “Coca Cola” “I command you as a servant of the King to produce more of this elixir.” “Ahh yes your Majesty…ah… about that…” Personally I don’t know where I am going with this but it still is an interesting idea none the less.
