Freelance Business Management
I am starting a company next year in which we will be able to help facilitate the needs of the freelance professional in both the music and technology sectors. We are pleased to announce
Hyper Super Mega!
The idea is to give
free tools to those who freelance occasionally and premium services to those who use it more often. We want to provide project management, invoicing, and tools like CRM and Insourcing™ to network members.
We're more than just Web 2.0 - we're
project managers for hire that will make your freelance jobs go smoother and faster; so you get paid sooner!
Pownce: First Impressions
I have been contemplating how best to do a review of Pownce. I have decided to post it to this old Blogger account for availability purposes instead of posting to my Wordpress site and having it crash under the load of Diggers that will read this story.
Firstly, I am a tech junkie who likes to try just about every online application there is. I blog often (but not here on Blogger) and the thought of a micro-blog has always intrigued me. Leo Laporte has been praising Twitter (and more recently Jaiku) for months on TWiT now as well. I also have been following Adobe Apollo (now Air) so it just seemed like the perfect time for me to jump into micro-blogging. And, like most Diggers, I have been a Kevin Rose fan since the TSS days and, thusly, was overjoyed when I got that wonderful email that I had been invited to Pownce.
The online interface is sleek, and is sprinkled with humorous aphorisms and quips (like the option to pick 'dude' or a 'bloke' as your sex.) It's very simple to sign up and to post to - and is incredibly attractive to look at. It has the markings of Daniel Burka's elegant design and use of AJAX. If you think Digg has an intuitive user interface then you'll find Pownce effortless to use.
The desktop client is lovely as well. It installs easily and very very quickly. Both the Air framework and the Pownce application are very lightweight and installed in mere seconds. You can post new messages, links, files and events via the interface - but beware - you cannot reply to existing posts via the desktop app. Doing so will open a new browser window prompting you to reply via web. This is likely to change, however, as Pownce is only in Alpha 2.
The feature set is small and is markedly Web 2.0. The entire success of the end-user experience depends on the size of his/her social network that you build through Pownce's interface. You invite 6 friends, they invite 6, and so-on. You can become a 'fan' of another person's Pownce postings - or they can add you as a friend as well and you become 'friends'. I like this distinction, though I can't express why. Who has the most fans on Pownce? Kevin Rose, naturally. My only complaint is that the only people who can see your posts are your friends and fans. And therein lies the sole drawback with Pownce.
Though heralded as an IM client the desktop application is anything but. It is little more than a dedicated RSS reader that you and your friends publish to. On the Windows side you are unable to minimize to your system tray; on the Mac side you can at least hide it out of your way - though it doesn't remind you that you have a new message. The automated system emails you alerts when you have new messages which feels very 1998 to me. A simple alert from the desktop app would suffice. I would also like to see more than 20 of the last posts on the desktop client; so in future builds more options for this sort of functionality would be nice.
Listening to mp3's on the Pownce file viewer is atrocious. Though I like the idea of having the Flash player built directly into the chronology of posts it requires me to buffer the entire mp3 into memory before it begins playback. I also do not have the option to protect mp3 files that are uploaded from being downloaded to the desktop. Essentially, if you share it on Pownce you had better be okay with all of your friends grabbing it. And that's okay! Isn't that why we use these apps to begin with?
I want to keep using Pownce, but after my second failed attempt to explain to someone why they would need another blogging utility to post their hourly goings-on -- and the failure to convince them that, yes, indeed, people
are interested in hearing what you're doing at the moment -- I gave up. Of my 6 invites only 2 people accepted and I'm saving my last one. I have 4 friends and 0 fans.
Though there is room for improvement it seems that the Kevin Rose magic hasn't worn off just yet. Between Culver, Rose and Burka there is a sense of personality and elegance to Pownce that you just don't get from other Web 2.0 apps. From the moment you sign-up to your latest daily musing it is a very enjoyable, but not perfect, experience that has the potential to give Jaiku and Twitter a run for their money.
Thanks guys!
Labels: bloggers, blogging, Daniel Burka, Digg, Jaiku, Kevin Rose, Leah Culver, Micro-blog, Pownce, Twitter, Web 2.0
Stealing Microsoft
Hey look! My favorite store has a TV that I kinda like but I don't think I will ever buy one so I'm just going to take it and walk out the door.
Hey look! This car is way too expensive, and the locks don't work perfectly. I'd never pay that amount for a car that is that insecure, I'm just going to take it and drive away.
Hey look! This OS is too expensive and insecure but I want to play games with it so I think I will just download a cracked copy and use it anyway.
The Fanatic Cook: UPC Look Up
The Fanatic Cook: UPC Look Up
The Megapixel Myth
This article takes apart the cooler-than-thou argument we've all heard about how more than 3.2 megapixels is just stupid, since that's all you need for an 8x10 print.
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digg story
Furthermore...
Furthermore,
Which was the witch that was wished the wicked wish?
Card-carrying member
Card-carrying member
I am a Member AAAAAAAA American Association Against Acronym Abuse And Also Ambiguity.
To the Faithful Departed…
Well, we’ve done it. And I’m glad that we did. What is
it, you might ask? As of Thursday, December 15th, 2005, Phillip and Jaci Jackson will be no longer gainfully employed with Tommie Zito Ministries.
It was hard to hand in our resignation – just so everyone knows. It was a difficult decision that we came to most certainly with a lot of prayer and quite a bit of counsel. God has been so faithful to us in this time and we are more than happy – nay, glad – nay, overjoyed – at what He has for us in the future. This is in no way an ending of a relationship (and a long one, at that) but more of a
change in the status of one. Tommie and I will remain good friends for years to come and he is more than happy to see us fulfill the will of God for our lives.
We have had a couple offers to go other places but truthfully we’re just seeking God for now. We’re praying and reading the Word daily to find His will in this situation. So we ask that you agree with us and lift us up in prayer that God speak to us in our time of need. We still have another 2 weeks before we depart so our transition has the opportunity to be smooth one.
As for family, both sides (Jacksons and Turners) are elated to see us make a decision for the betterment of our family unit. As most of you know earlier this year we purchased a 2005 Acura TSX – and we made the upgrade in anticipation that we just may have an addition to the family within the life of the next car loan. This brought me to the stark realization that, although it’s felt quite short, the last 7 years of my life have
flown by me. I’ve graduated high school, attended bible college, worked various jobs, seen all but 5 states in this magnificent country of ours, and dated, engaged and wed the woman of my dreams. My, how fantastic life is and all its joys and beauty! We are happy that this job status change will no doubt be for the improvement of us, as a couple.
So, from the Jackson Family to you, we wish you all a warm holiday season! Our prayer for you is that no matter what it is that God has called you to do; no matter how hard the decision is to make or how difficult life may become at any given point, He is always there with you.
