Drudge’s latest attack against Bill Clinton includes looking back on a 1998 article by Sally Quinn in the Washington Post. He misreads it real bad. Turns out, according to Eschaton, it’s “the biggest self-indictment of the beltway kool kids ever written”. Makes Clinton look all the more appealing if you ask me.
Memorial Day in Philly: Not just another cookout
Read Howard’s post at Philly Future.
Thank you to all the soldiers and their families who have sacrificed so much to secure what me and so many of the rest of us take for granted – our freedom.
It occurs to me that the greatest way to honor that sacrifice is to use our freedom to the fullest: Have you made a life altering choice in the past year? Have you voted in the past two? Do you read the news to stay informed (this one is easy considering my readership!)? Do you take part in debate over the course of the country, of your town?
Amazing How Little Attention This Has Got
Times Online: Read the secret Downing Street memo. It’s shocking in the context of the time it was written. The major news media doesn’t seem to care. No heat on this at all.
HOW-TO: Make your own annotated multimedia Google map
If time allows, I have some interesting ideas for Philly Future to apply this Engadget piece to.
Digital Theaters for Episode III
One of the three in New Jersey is where I might catch the digital version of “Revenge of the Sith” (TheForce.net). The one in PA is probably too far away (TheForce.net). I’ve heard it’s a sight to behold.
Some Simple and Difficult Financial Advice
foldedspace.org: (How To) Get Rich Slowly!
I Miss Playing Live
An admission: I play guitar and song write in a band named “My Brother’s Keeper”. I don’t talk about it much here – I’m shy what can I say?
About our name, “My Brother’s Keeper”: we are actually two sets of brothers. The drummer and bassist. Me and the singer. And no lie – both sets of brothers are brothers to each other. We are all family.
Last year “My Brother’s Keeper” was really starting to jell, we played two shows (one of which at The Sleeping Angels Music Fest) and even recorded a song in a semi-professional setting in the space of four months.
Then winter hit. Life intruded with some personal tragedies and people’s priorities change. I don’t think we’ve had a hand full of full band practices since last November.
For me this is still very important. I think my mental health requires playing guitar at loud volume with folks who have learned to play with me – as I have to play with them. There is a bond that forms unlike any other – I lack the words to describe it.
Anyway, I wanted to share with you our recording Second Chance. I think it shows off the potential of the band, given time to grow. A mix of hard rock, metal and punk. Hope you like it.
Wikis and Community
Shelley Powers started a Wiki last year that I thought had a terrific concept behind it. The effort never really took off and it has been beset by spamers and vandals. She shares some thoughts:
Lesson Two learned: One backup is not enough.
Lesson One learned: wikis updated by the general public only work if there’s enough people interested in helping to maintain it to offset the spammers, trolls, and script kiddies. In other words, the only viable public wiki is Wikipedia.
And from her comments:
True a wiki can work if you have a strongly engaged community willing to maintain it. But I think you have to start with the community and then add the wiki.
Read more in “Scorching in the IT Kitchen”
I’m feel terrible I never got around to contributing. Has it been a year already?
Salon inching towards profitablilty?
Big news if true from Wired – “Salon’s Balancing Act”.
More at Philly Future on two related Jeff Jarvis posts in which he defines the news editor “of the future” (hint – it’s already here!) and of possible business models to support news reporting.
Relevant quote from Wired article:
…whether there is a subscription requirement or a Site Pass, there is still a wall around Salon’s content — and that means the blogosphere ignores it. Without this persistent cross-linking, relatively few read its words, and as history is being made — or Googled — every day, Salon’s footsteps in cyberspace become fainter and fainter.
Salon’s experience is important to this discussion. Once you lose mind share – people stop talking about you. Salon needs to get it back somehow because the digerati are overlooking what are probably a host of lessons already learned. At least their stories don’t fall into a for pay archive and break permanent URLs.
OJR included Salon in a roundtable on the future of magazines. via Jeff Jarvis.
Q & A With CIO of Philadelphia, Dianah Neff Now Complete
Great questions were posted by the community and Dianah Neff came by to give detailed answers to each and every one of them. Thank you to all who participated.