Disqus - Latest Comments for stevenimmons

Re: Distractions Are Yours to Manage

Steve Nimmons — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 13:09:26 -0000

The Digital Revolution has brought many benefits and profound societal changes. As we endlessly skim the web seeking “information rewards” like crazed lab rats, we are in danger of losing cognitive function, the ability to read and think deeply. Distractions caused by 'the daily skim' are re-wiring our brains. I expand with a brief critique of Carr's book "The Shallows"...

http://iblog.stevenimmons.o...

Re: RSA Animate – Empathic Civilisation

Steve Nimmons — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 15:42:51 -0000

Empathetic extension is an interesting topic, it seems to me there is a curious dynamic and interplay though between tribalism, theological consciousness and the nation state. For example, the identity of a secular state may negate the theological consciousness or indeed it may amplify such in ‘minority communities’. The ‘empathic embrace’ created by Social Media is clearly a very interesting phenomenon and extends that which we have understood to be generated through traditional media.

Re: Elder care needs to be the ‘new health’

Steve Nimmons — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 10:58:17 -0000

I like the idea of taking equity in the residential care facility and agree with many of the points in the article. I do find it difficult to reconcile this statement “By creating such confusion, care at home is frequently portrayed as being more cost effective whereas in fact the converse is true.” I interpret this to mean that costs such as food, electricity, gas, and council taxes etc. must be deducted from the total charge to provide transparency as to cost of (and degree of value for money of) the care “package”. The overall cost is however indivisible, the recipient of those services or their family or indeed government must meet the total cost. In this sense full pricing transparency and regulatory control of such is perhaps warranted?

Re: Is a science career open to anyone?

Steve Nimmons — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 04:30:43 -0000

As a technologist, engineer and scientific community member I can certainly attest to the fulfilment a STEM career provides. I think there is a lot of validity in the argument that certain subjects are perceived as ‘dry’ and ‘more ‘complex’ and that this affects the decision making process at a time (fairly early in life) when effort and the risk of failure are prominent concerns. This is a great shame; the life of a technologist, scientist or engineer is certainly not dull. There is also a life-long requirement to stay current with developments in the field; such innovation and intellectual discourse continually refresh the challenge (which I find leads to greater career satisfaction).

Re: Ten top Israeli business ventures that inspire peace in the Middle East | social-action

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:36:40 -0000

Excellent article. Isn't it true that technological and commercial innovation often provides the true leadership in social evolution. Let's hope there is a political stimulus to match these excellent efforts.

Re: Your Blog From the Prospect’s Point of View

Steve Nimmons — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:34:20 -0000

I completely agree. Constructive criticism or juxtaposing a "what if we did or thought differently" is a much more compelling and engaging narrative style. Negativity can be quite a bore, and overdone will just read like an endless cynic and naysayer. I think some people are taking "be controversial" advice too far and are losing a sense of basic manners.

Re: Twitter Client War: Twhirl vs. TweetDeck

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 08:09:24 -0000

It's TweetDeck most of the time for me, although I also use Friendfeed as a 'kind of client'. I hadn't realised Twhirl had gone to Seesmic - interesting.

I'd pay for the tools if they provided inbound semantic filters. The first one I want is a 'platitude blocker' :-)

So I guess given your listening triggers the ultimate Scoble alarm Tweet would be:
"Hi #Ted, read on #TechCrunch that #Scoble aka #Scobleizer is seeding #Google #Cloud? Darn rain-makers!"

Re: Who Should Tweet?

Steve Nimmons — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 06:54:18 -0000

@samir
I think on Twitter a persona does need an edge and something slightly differentiated. That's why I claim to be the "Jackson Pollock of IT" - and if space permitted I would also be 'an ice-cream shaman'. It's about standing out, without playing the village fool. I think instead of Tweeting one account from multiple people, it would be better to just have one account per person. This gives wider spread and more chances that someone will have the right mix in terms of 'engaging personality'.

Re: Creators Take Note

Steve Nimmons — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 10:01:09 -0000

Cool video - certainly makes you think! I just re-themed my blog, and now I'm wondering if I should try and create a nostalgic carousel template for Drupal! Nostalgic Carousel would also be a great name for a blog.

Re: Fix the Paper Hole

Steve Nimmons — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 07:51:55 -0000

It does seem rather unwieldy and archaic. I guess that's many years of legal tradition. In the future - non-repudiation through digital certificates...

Re: Why Yahoo’s announcement today won’t get as much hype as Google’s

Steve Nimmons — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:30:34 -0000

I just checked out the Yahoo! 'sneak peek' video for Search Pad. It looks pretty good to me, and I could certainly see uses. Maybe the 'availability' of the launch isn't terribly savvy, but I think the "don't care" comment is maybe just a tad harsh? This looks pretty reasonable, so let's not be too quick to kill it off. As for Latitude, I don't think it should scare anyone. It's an opt-in service, and it tracks the phone not the person (i.e. I don't see Latitude location being viable for alibis).

Re: Encouraging Post Development and Links

Steve Nimmons — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 11:23:58 -0000

I enjoyed Michael's article and ideas - thanks for sharing. I think there is scope for expansion, and there are some really interesting philosophical questions around the definition of presence. Web2 seems to fragment as well as unite and the ability to over-arch presence across Web2 'silos' is really quite interesting. I also hereby claim the term 'gravitas engineering' :-)

Re: Subscription Drive

Steve Nimmons — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 04:32:46 -0000

Chris,
This is one of a handful of blogs that I read every day, and advise others to do likewise. For those not using feedreaders as part of their daily life, I would recommend getting one ASAP. Google Reader works great as a Web based client and there are a bunch of others that sit client side. The convenience of pulling all the content 'to you' (a feature of feedreader + RSS subscription) is really something, especially when processing volumes of news and other sources.

@stevenimmons

Re: Serving Suggestions

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:03:45 -0000

Bring solutions, not problems is a wise approach. I would add a cautionary note however, appearing to 'suggest' too early or 'have an answer' too quickly can play badly in certain cultures. I know it is not the intention, but in the 'stiff upper lip' world of England it can appear somewhat gauche to be presumptuous. I often find that clients want to feel a bespoke solution is coming their way, even though in all other realms of sense a proven 'cookie cutter' solution 'from the menu' is a lot more appropriate (and cost defined!). Understanding global restaurant culture might well be a first step to understanding successful globalisation!

Re: Mike’s mood improves when Paulo Coelho arrives

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 13:25:16 -0000

What happened to Mike Arrington is simply unbelievable and certainly unforgivable. Let's hope the lunatics get rounded up and the talented people can get back to work.

Re: The Importance of Nurturing

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:18:46 -0000

Wise advice. It's the third great example in as many days as to why Dale Carnegie had this nailed back in the 1930's. Genuine altruism has many rewards.

Re: How to Translate Vendor Talk into Plain English

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 05:39:42 -0000

There seems to be a kind of communications fallacy amongst vendors that using such terminology portrays sophistication and credibility. Once plain English has been deviated from I usually suspect someone is hiding amongst the detritus of jargon. Sometimes the 'odd metaphor or two' can add colour (I quite like turning spaghetti into lasagna when discussing layered architectures), but a metaphor-fest turns into stand-up comedy all too quickly. Any time I ever see a draft internal presentation I always ask for citations on any charts / graphics. Dry running presentations with an internal 'prove it' audience really tightens this stuff up and removes unsubstantiated claims. Then again, we are all children of the era of political and media spin and some people just get swept along with their own optimism and rhetoric.

Re: The Goal is the Interaction

Steve Nimmons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 04:53:01 -0000

I was talking about Dale Carnegie on Twitter the other day, and I wish he were around now to write a book on modern communications. Oh wait, it probably wouldn't differ much from his existing masterpiece. The focus on others is paramount. 'From the pulpit' communications seems simpler for people though, and I would admit this is a bad habit I fall into more frequently than I would like to. Review of approach and tools is very wise, I recently cut back on quite a number of sites to enrich discussion on sites where I was more active. No point simply having a bigger field if the crops are failing.

Re: Opinions Are Every Bit as Important

Steve Nimmons — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 16:20:32 -0000

Opinions are (hopefully) the application of wisdom and are vital. Sadly there are a lot of 'big personalities' (generally rather ignorant ones) that want to brow beat any dissenter into submission. Wise opinion that disassociates from the 'masses' can often be vital - remember when the world was flat! Be right, be wrong, but please don't be on the fence...

Re: Rate the Superbowl Ads: How To Participate

Steve Nimmons — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 12:10:52 -0000

This is where the psychology of participatory / interactive advertising will probably take us. I will likely hit the 'snooze button' when the ads run, but this kind of competition could prove a boon to advertisers as people engage - actually watching / discussing / consuming their content. This is at the crux of where I see advertising eventually going - i.e. into non-interuptive inline content (yes, a dream!).

Isn't anyone running the same thing to discuss the half time show?

Re: Not Just The Web

Steve Nimmons — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 07:55:10 -0000

Some of the power of Web2 is removal of hierarchy (although I would also argue a counterpoint that Web2 is creating its own hierarchy). I have something of a theory that the 'Web2' power brokers are becoming the new 'A&R' men spotting and promoting talent in the digital pool.

Back on point :-) - self-belief and availability of 'reinforcing' examples of others' success is a great motivator. This is where Web2 has really revolutionised the 'opportunity space'...

Re: Guest Post – Handling Negative Comments On Your Blog Post

Steve Nimmons — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 07:44:27 -0000

I think there are a lot of overlaps with sensible communications approaches to email, face to face conversations, phone calls etc. When someone goes on the offensive I try to deconstruct their motive, usually someone has rattled their cage, or they perhaps feel very emotive on the subject for deeply personal reasons. If their 'acting out' is in someway cathartic, be happy that you have provided the service of an Internet 'punch bag'. It may save them from manifesting their frustration in the direction of 'the cat'.

I'm also sure Oscar Wilde would have preferred any reaction to no reaction!

Re: Guest Post- The SanDisk Story

Steve Nimmons — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 07:37:02 -0000

Very interesting narrative. The 'feedback loop' from consumers to producers / manufacturers has never been more vibrant, and the 'smart ones' will be utilising all communications channels for their (and naturally their customers') benefit. It is a sad footnote to read of the loss of Rachel to the company as this hints at a internal conflict as to the true value of quality and 'instant' PR. Hopefully the visionaries will win out.

Re: Guest Post-Want To Catch The Next Big Idea? Use Your Hand As Bait

Steve Nimmons — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 12:43:05 -0000

Some lovely metaphors there, I guess you should also ensure you can identify cat fish - i.e. big mistake to confuse cat fish and crocodile.

I was out for a 'pointless drive' this afternoon and the question came to be "are guest posts the Botox of Social Media"? The question is not pejorative, I just think a guest post every now and again removes some of the wrinkles of a 'furrowed blog'. The imagery in this post made me smile...

Re: Interactive blogging experimentation

Steve Nimmons — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 09:49:38 -0000

Yes, good idea. You could have a scratch-pad version as described, a pro version (where as you say you fully elaborate the article), and perhaps somewhere in the middle a fully-interactive wiki-blog style for collaborative authoring. Attribution for the best contributions to that style might be kind of interesting? You'd want to avoid moderation bun-fights though as that can be a big 'energy sucker'! I shall term it "Wisdom of Crowds Blogging" :-)