DISQUS

This is good news. I hope Rogers, Fido, and Telus get on board soon!

Jenn, as a guy I think of myself as outgoing and willing to try new things, but I would never want to meet a random stranger through a dating site or even over some social network for that matter. There is the matter of safety and trust. I want to meet the person in real life first to size them up, find out what we have in common, our similar interests. Meeting in the real world provides a totally different perspective than a profile page or IM chat. I'm social with my friends on Facebook and find that there are alot of opportunities to meet people in the city through clubs, cafes, and events organised by friends.

Jenn, your articles are always well-written and informative. Thanks.

As a student that has had my blackberry since last Spring, I have found it to be indispensable for everyday life. I am able to respond to emails via gmail, I can plan meetings with the calendar which can be synced with google calendar, I use it as an alarm clock to wake up in the morning and to time food I put in the oven.

I don't buy newspapers as I like to read google news when I'm on the bus or working out on a bike at the gym. I also like being able to have a true keypad to send text messages to friends as I hate to talk on the phone as I have very limited minutes each month.

It is also cool that I can use google maps to point out my location and find an address when I'm on the way there on the bus. I have also used google maps to help a tourist on campus find a location.

It is easy to put in a URL to find a website or to click on a link in twitter to read someone's blog. I like to keep the images off though to save on the amount of data I'm receiving.

I also like how I can take pictures and send them to friends. I haven't used this feature too much though. Although, I was in Safeway once and took a picture of the bulk bin number for some peanuts I bought, so that I would remember it when I went to checkout.

I also use the notes feature to keep track of the location where I meet people and their names (I have a bad memory). Also, sometimes I will be sitting down trying to organise my thoughts and I find that jotting notes in my BB, really helps organise my information.

Basically, the value of a Blackberry won't be understood until someone has it. I was given mine by a friend and it just sat on my shelf for a couple of months because I didn't think I would have a use for it. I really like my Blackberry and don't regret not having an iPhone. I don't have wifi at home, so having an iPhone wouldn't be of much use here.

Phillip

As a graduate student, I am interested to try out Refseek to search for relevant academic papers and links of interest. I absolutely love using google.scholar.com because I am able to find papers and journal articles of interests. For me to use Refseek, it would at a minimum have to have similar value to what I get from Google Scholar.

http://www.nowpublic.com/tag/US+Election

NowPublic (crowd powered media site in Vancouver) would like people to share their thoughts on voting and the election.

We have a parliamentary system so it would make sense to look at the prominent people in a party, to see who has a likely chance of becoming leader of the party, and possibly PM. As it is only likely the Conservatives or Liberals will be in power we should look at those 2 parties. Although Canada is a nation of immigrants, it is only really since the early 60s thanks to Pearson and Trudeau that Africans and those from the Caribbean were allowed into the country. I can't speak for the Asian population in Canada. It is more difficult to see who the future leaders are in the Conservative party since Harper doesn't seem to be grooming a successor, nor does he appear to be leaving anytime soon as leader.

Since the Liberals have been in government most of the time, I would look towards that party to help understand why there have not been a non-white PM and look towards that party to explore the possibility in the future. It seems that being fluent in French is a requirement to be the Liberal leader - Ujjal is not fluent he will not be leader, at least in the next race come May. If you look at where the Liberal leaders have come from, a significant number have come from Quebec. Therefore, it may be that for a non-white to become leader it would help to be from Quebec or to at the very least be fluent in French.

Rather than say there have been any non-whites as PM, I would want to know how many have ran in a leadership race, how many have been in cabinet or part of a shadow cabinet. Leadership races cost alot of money. Are non-whites willing to go into debt for the campaign (look at how many of the candidates from the last leadership race are still in debt)? Are there any socio-economic factors that are preventing non-whites from making a leadership run and having a serious shot? Are there issues regarding networking, getting caucus/senator support and fundraising? In the last Liberal leadership race (2006), there was only one non-white candidate and she was considered a long-shot.

It is easy to look at the US system and say why not here but would Obama be elected PM of Canada? Would he be able to be elected as an MP, then get chosen for the cabinet/shadow cabinet, then win a leadership convention, and then have his party win the election? It is a much tougher road here to PM, than it is become president, because we don't elect a PM, we elect MPs with the leader of the party with the most seats becoming the PM.

So what does the future hold? Does the possibility exist of a non-white PM in the next 5 years, next 10 years? Doubtful. Who in the caucus of either party would fit the role as being a contender. Who could it be and would they be Conservative or Liberal? And more importantly why does it matter? The Canadians I talk to are looking for qualified leaders and not concerned about their race. We haven't had any PMs that haven't been Christian either.

I don't get upset if people unfollow me or don't accept my FB friend request or ignore my @'s. I figure everyone has their reasons for following/not following someone. I am only following about 1/4 of the people that are following me and don't follow more because I simply can't keep track of too many people.
Qwitter isn't for me anymore than FB Qwitter is.

As these social media tools become more immersed in our everyday lives we have to address issues related to social behaviour, privacy, and awareness. Some will embrace the ability to receive additional information about others, while other people will shun it. I like my social media world the way it is and don't need any new knowledge about my twitter followers.

Great post @jbruin

Robert,

For me, it was fun watching you and Thomas Hawk on Ustream through the night as you chatted with random people walking by and answered questions in the chatroom. I just googled and found Brian's blog on the Palo Alto experience, I wish I had been there - It looked like a fun and magical experience. http://bub.blicio.us/?p=248

What a difference a year makes!

Coming down from Vancouver, Canada for the party. Should be fun.

Glad to finally meet you outside Champions. One of the highlights for me was hearing Jane McGonigal do the keynote. She is an awesome and engaging speaker.

Great advice. As a guy I prefer homemade gifts that involve time and effort. A girl I went backpacking through the Canadian Rockies with, sent me a calendar she created with pictures (the non-digital kind) of places we'd travelled together. It was incredibly touching and a gift that hasn't been replicated since.

I hate being sick. Get lots of rest and drink lots of water. Stay positive and you'll be better in no time.

I would like an invite. I remember when I got my gmail invite back when people were offering Porsche rides for invites. I wonder whether anything will match that feeling again?

I would like an invite. I remember when I got my gmail invite back when people were offering Porsche rides for invites. I wonder whether anything will match that feeling again?

I didn't really understand what the Silicon Valley culture was like until I was fortunate to attend Tagcamp in October 2005. I was introduced to alot of Tech Doers (e.g. Tara Hunt, Chris Messina, Rashmi Sinha) that were on missions to bring their ideas to others.

I feel incredibly fortunate to live in Vancouver in which I am exposed to part of the Canadian Tech scene as I learn about OpenID, open ideas, and freeing wifi for all. As a grad student eager to be an early adopter, I feel that my desire to try new things is being hampered because I am north of the 49th parallel (no unlimited dataplans, SMS limits by Twitter, limits on the types of mobile phones available to me).

Props to the Canadian Tech people that are staying here, organising meetups, starting companies, and telling others about cool people and companies here.

On this day, I think it is appropriate to share the words of Martin Luther King Jr. that also have relevance to our circumstances.

"We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity."

I didn't really understand what the Silicon Valley culture was like until I was fortunate to attend Tagcamp in October 2005. I was introduced to alot of Tech Doers (e.g. Tara Hunt, Chris Messina, Rashmi Sinha) that were on missions to bring their ideas to others.

I feel incredibly fortunate to live in Vancouver in which I am exposed to part of the Canadian Tech scene as I learn about OpenID, open ideas, and freeing wifi for all. As a grad student eager to be an early adopter, I feel that my desire to try new things is being hampered because I am north of the 49th parallel (no unlimited dataplans, SMS limits by Twitter, limits on the types of mobile phones available to me).

Props to the Canadian Tech people that are staying here, organising meetups, starting companies, and telling others about cool people and companies here.

On this day, I think it is appropriate to share the words of Martin Luther King Jr. that also have relevance to our circumstances.

"We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity."

Sorry to hear about this accident. Thankful that both of you are unharmed.

I wish you luck with this big change in your life and I will follow your successes online.

Phillip

Cool that you are interested in Social media. So am I. It you hear about any cool apps/betas I should try, let me know. Would love to hear your opinion about Facebook today vs. 1 year ago or 2 years ago (if you were on it then). I liked it when it was student-only although I value the NewsFeed information I gather from my social media/emerging tech friends in the city.

Don't know if you are into conferences, but you may want to look at Northern Voice. I submitted a speaker proposal earlier in the week. I have attended the last 2 years and it is one of my favourite meetups of the year.

http://2008.northernvoice.ca/

Phillip (tyfn)

For me, as a Canadian, the key question is whether the content can be viewed outside of the US. I can't watch Heroes on the NBC site, but I used to watch Seinfeld on YouTube. Which model will they follow?

Awesome presentation at Northern Voice. Glad you made the trip up. Didn't get a chance to chat but hope to see you here next year.