Disqus - Latest Comments for MarkDykeman

Re: Did I Just Join The Ranks Of The Internet Trailer Trash?

MarkDykeman — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:09:11 -0000

Steven, I like and admire your work; same is true for Robert Scoble. His post may have a slightly elitist tone, but to me his words would be similar to any maven who is raving about something that appeals to a small audience, whether it's:

-wine
-sporting goods
-automobiles
-camera equipment
-designer clothing
-power tools
-gourmet cookware

There's going to be mass-market versions of these products AND high-end stuff for passionates (or enthusiasts, or whatever else you want to call them). It doesn't particularly bother me if a lot of that stuff is outside my price range, skill set, and interest level. I don't need a $3,000 digital camera and if someone told me that it wasn't for me, especially someone who WAS a maven, I'd probably take that at face value as long as they didn't imply that I was stupid or inferior for working at a different level. Did Robert mean to imply that? Who knows? And, even if he did, big deal. We all know our own skills, knowledge, and sense of self-worth and it doesn't matter if someone happens to reach a bigger audience to make their opinion heard. If people are willing to follow someone's preachings without getting the facts themselves, then buyer beware. Meanwhile, you make your own decisions about what's right for you.

For what it's worth, based on what I just read, I think that Robert's right, at least in the earliest stages: Ubiquity's functionality isn't for non-passionates because a lot of people won't have the necessary frame of reference to use it. This is also true for something as deceptively simple as Twitter. For some reason this talk of Ubiquity makes me wonder if this is how developers and enthusiasts sounded when they first started tinkering with technologies like OLE. Or HTML. Or TCP/IP. Or RSS.

On the flip side: if I understand the plans for Ubiquity and similar products, we'll ALL be using it in 5 - 10 years, although it will be in the form of tools that are easier to use.

At any rate, I think many of us know better than to read too much into what Robert writes. It's quite possible that he'll trash this technology within six months anyway OR he'll love it even more. He is who he is.

Now, another point of clarification: my Twitter/FriendFeed conversation streams did address the tendency for a number of bloggers (myself included, on occasion) to write about the same topic almost in unison. I get a little frustrated, especially of late, because I don't feel that there's anything else that I can add to those conversations. Maybe there isn't anything more to be said. But, you know, this is how groups of passionates work. They (we) talk about the same topics over and over because we love them and we are pleased when we uncover some nuance that we can share with other people. That's perfectly fine!

You know, maybe this is all a good thing. Maybe we all need to remember that we're multi-dimensional beings with many different talents and interests. One might be a non-passionate about technology while being a passionate about hockey, NASCAR, fishing, chess, or.... well, fill in the blanks. And that's OK, as long as we acknowledge that we have the right to varying levels of interest about the things we love, like, tolerate, or hate.

Anyway, that's enough for my first-ever WinExtra guest post. :)

Re: Break Writing Blockage Like A Master Detective

MarkDykeman — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 09:45:02 -0000

Hi Jen, thanks for visiting. Had a quick look at your blog - looks interesting.

Re: Break Writing Blockage Like A Master Detective

MarkDykeman — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 09:34:47 -0000

Thanks Ava, nice to get some feedback from a journalist.

Re: rizzn's personal blog

MarkDykeman — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 21:50:32 -0000

You mean it didn't (won't) hit Techmeme?

Re: Break Writing Blockage Like A Master Detective

MarkDykeman — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:47:30 -0000

Yes, that's been my problem with this eBook project - being unwilling to jettison or otherwise modify the official hypothesis. Hopefully it goes better this time!

Re: Break Writing Blockage Like A Master Detective

MarkDykeman — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:51:37 -0000

Good points, Phil, and thanks for bringing up Columbo, who I'm not that familiar with.

Re: Break Writing Blockage Like A Master Detective

MarkDykeman — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 12:43:09 -0000

James: As I recall, you've also written about the value of looking at situations from all angles, as within the following: http://menwithpens.ca/how-to-write-about-old-ne...

Re: Sarah Lacy on Blogging

MarkDykeman — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 22:07:55 -0000

Duncan, thanks for fixing the link.

Re: Sarah Lacy on Blogging

MarkDykeman — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 21:02:37 -0000

Duncan, what is the "a mixed reaction" link supposed to be pointing to? Right now it points to Technosailor, but I don't see relevant content there.

Re: http://broadcasting-brain.com/2008/08/21/promotion-ide-repetition/

MarkDykeman — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:02:23 -0000

Keep saying that, RemarkaMichael - maybe it will sink in. :)

Re: rizzn's personal blog

MarkDykeman — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:10:55 -0000

I've got a Green Lantern power ring and a Legion of Super-Heroes flight ring, so I'm more of a geek than you. :P

I mean, cool. What other comic book stuff do you read?

Oh, and my avatar was inspired by Dr. Manhattan, but you probably figured that out already.

Re: louisgray.com: The LDS/Facebook Rumor Didn't Pass the Common Sense Test

MarkDykeman — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:35:23 -0000

Louis, I've been turning this around and around in my brain all morning.

The only thing that I can come up with is that the bloggers that you note above either noted that the story was a rumor or felt that there was some kind of credible source confirming that something was going on. But this sort of thing happens a lot with many people. It's unfortunate that this type of story involved something that you (and a number of other people) obviously care about a lot.

On the other hand, I could be typecast as a beer drinking, hockey loving person who says "Eh?" more than normal. And only about 1.5 of those things are true.

That being said, it is interesting to know that there is a lot of LDS information available on the Web. To be honest, at this point I'd be more likely to ask you if I have a question about the LDS faith than to look it up on the Web. Why? Because I have a tendency to be skeptical about the information that large organizations put out on the Web, but I put more trust in what someone I know will tell me.

BTW, I never seriously believed that the LDS church organization was bidding for Facebook. In fact, I forgot about the rumor until I saw your and Steven's posts. That shows you how much I believed it.

Re: Apple can fail like any other vendor

MarkDykeman — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:39:32 -0000

You've got some good points there.

As far as readership goes, Arrington's was already pretty large before this article. He's generally not afraid to share a negative opinion, either.

Re: Mormon Or Not It was Still News

MarkDykeman — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:47:05 -0000

Actually, although you probably do realize this now, Louis did mention Duncan Riley in his post, as per the following:

"While Duncan Riley of the Inquisitr was good enough to have a little fun with it, many of his sources were of course from anti-Mormon sites or incorrect material, which he's not faulted for finding. And others didn't even do the basics of a simple Web search to understand how to contact church authorities and find the truth."

Re: http://broadcasting-brain.com/2008/08/19/google-reader-addiction-revisited-a-blog-rises/

MarkDykeman — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:06:27 -0000

Hah, well done Louis!

Re: Efficiency versus effectiveness

MarkDykeman — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 19:26:36 -0000

Fair point, Urs: effectiveness depends on achieving the right goals.

Re: BusinessWeek Readying Beta Launch Of Social Effort

MarkDykeman — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:40:14 -0000

I think we're of similar minds about this, but I'll be curious to see what else BW comes up with.

Re: Efficiency versus effectiveness

MarkDykeman — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 09:38:10 -0000

@Hypotheek - agreed!

Re: Carrying on with the improvements – Contributors

MarkDykeman — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 00:50:23 -0000

Cool idea, Stephen - I look forward to seeing what happens next.

Re: Could there be another Star Wars?

MarkDykeman — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 19:53:54 -0000

Hmmm.... will there be more movies or books about LOTR, though?

Re: Could there be another Star Wars?

MarkDykeman — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 14:44:23 -0000

I think you've got something there.

Re: Must we define blogs again?

MarkDykeman — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 02:32:14 -0000

I hear there's a pill that you can take for it...

Re: Space Shuttle Launch from Air Canada Plane

MarkDykeman — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 02:29:59 -0000

Kind of odd that anyone would let any air traffic near Canaveral during a shuttle lunch...

"Oh well, it's only an Air Canada flight, go ahead and launch."

Re: One of them thar blog design refreshes

MarkDykeman — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:15:18 -0000

I like it!

Re: Must we define blogs again?

MarkDykeman — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 16:50:37 -0000

Thanks, andhrizz, but if you do refer this post to anyone, it's best to say that it's just one person's opinion.