My cold is temporarily overpowering my long form blogging muscles.
If you’d like to check out some stuff I’m reading, you can have a look at my Google Reader Shared Items. Some interesting stuff there today.
Have a good day, all.
Archive for November, 2008
In lieu of
Friday, November 21st, 2008The Web is like the biggest amusement park in the world
Thursday, November 20th, 2008Here’s a little snippet of a project that I’m working on:
The Internet is like the world’s biggest amusement park. Amusement parks are full of attractions: rides, games, shows, and lots of people. Picture Walt Disney World for a moment. It has four major theme parks, a major shopping and entertainment area, and a number of hotels and resorts to stay in, plus many stores, rides, eateries, and other attractions.
Imagine one hundred million Disney Worlds and you start to get an appreciation of the size and complexity of the Internet. There is no way that you could visit one million Disney Worlds in one lifetime!
The Internet and the World Wide Web are a lot like one million Disney Worlds. There’s a staggering number of websites for you to explore, devoted to almost every topic imaginable. You can buy, sell, learn, or talk about almost anything on the Internet.
If you’d like to get a sneak preview of the entire document, you can either sign up for the Thought Radiation newsletter E-Mail list (email markdykeman at gmail dot com to register; no need to register again if you’ve already sent your information to me) or you can subscribe to this blog by E-Mail (E-Mail is the only way I’m distributing the sneak peak; ergo I need your E-Mail address).
I have a privacy policy in place if you’re worried about giving out your E-Mail, so please rest assured about that.
How to deserve an audience
Wednesday, November 19th, 2008
One thing that bugs me about Twitter is that the term followers, the people who elect to see your microblogging updates, sounds like a cross between a group of zombies and a collection of cultish fanatics that you might want to keep at arm’s length. We use other terms like friend, contact, colleague, and buddy to refer to these different kinds of people who pay attention to what you do and say.
Image by toprankonlinemarketing
A lot of people (including both you and me?) like the idea of building up these follower numbers for several reasons. It can come across as being selfish, ego driven, or manipulative. Or, with a more positive spin, maybe you’re just looking for a group of great people to share stuff with. Maybe you feel you’ve got important things to say THAT THE WORLD NEEDS TO KNOW. (more…)
How to throw traffic at another blog when you are stuck
Tuesday, November 18th, 2008Over time I’ve worked up a simple little workflow for writing blog posts.
Typically I’ll do the draft, if not the complete post, the evening before. If I don’t complete the whole thing the night before, I have a window of about 20 minutes in the mornings before breakfast in which I can either write or complete a post.
This all kind of fell apart last night when, for some odd reason, I couldn’t access my own blog from home! Even though other people could. Which is really weird. So, since I was feeling a bit under the weather anyway, I packed it in for the night.
When I tried to work on it this AM from home (I’m in the Atlantic time zone, one hour ahead of the Eastern US seaboard), I still couldn’t get to my website.
Argh.
I’m at work now, typing up this meager little offering to you, dear reader, to tell you that the dog ate my homework. Actually, the dog didn’t even get to eat it. Bummer. At least I can connect to the blog now.
The lesson: probably a good idea to write blog posts in advance. Days before, even. Or have a backup plan to get access to the blog.
Now, please don’t get upset and go read Lateral Action instead, no matter how good it is or how intriguing their article was about the nature of creative genius and how it ties in to climbing Maslow’s hierarchy, building esteem and achieving self-actualization (hint: the last three links actually go back to this blog… 
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Unless you want to, of course. And, if you do, you’ll find that their article in the nature of genius and creativity really is pretty good.
The outstanding source of microblogging information
Monday, November 17th, 2008I want to point you toward what is becoming the definitive resource about Twitter and microblogging in general: Pistachio Consulting and the Touchbase Blog. Disclosure: I am an occasional volunteer contributor to Touchbase and I happen to have a lot of respect for the team that Laura @Pistachio Fitton has pulled together there.
I may be biased due to my involvement with Pistachio Consulting, but I’ve also seen the work that’s going on behind the scenes, so I can say with authority that this is (and will continue to be) the place to keep up to speed about microblogging. In addition to the regular blog posts and coverage of what’s going on out there, Pistachio is also creating longer, more detailed guides (eBooks) for business and individuals. You’re going to want to check them out.
Go check out Touchbase! And, if you or your organization needs help on how to use microblogging tools well and to meet your goals, Pistachio Consulting specializes in just that practice. Check it out.
I’m Mark Dykeman and I approve this blog post.
Twitter really IS my other blog plus a microblogging tip
Sunday, November 16th, 2008Continuing with verse 2 of yesterday’s Twitter riff…
Twitter has become my personal blog/link sharing system/babble stream/socialization tool. It really IS my second blog. I still have my old semi-personal blog lying around but lately I’ve only been using it for emergencies like when my hosting company lets me down.
Broadcasting Brain isn’t a personal blog, not by a long shot. It’s my flagship, my fortress, my embassy, and my broadcasting station.
Twitter, on the other hand, is… (more…)
