October 2008
62 posts
Netflix API Launch →
September 2008
56 posts
“If you’re going to break the law, do it in a boring car.”
– NYT article on the perils of owning a Smart Car.
Sadly, not beckoned →
I feel compelled to react to Littlejohn’s most recent post, in which he points a big arrow to Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s latest project to make a film comprised of “lovely things” submitted by everyone…
Played 18 today in aptos. 60 degrees and foggy. Nice relief from hot weather in the valley.
My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2008-9-28) →
NPR
Broken Social Scene
Junior Boys
The String Cheese Incident
Moe
Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz
smart clothing: passively monitoring your body's...
I’m excited for the day (and it’s getting closer) for when my clothing actually monitors my vital signs and daily activity (including sweat, gas, heat production, etc.) Wouldn’t it be great if this was all passively measured and then you could look at it over time to see how your body reacts to food and different situations or how many miles you walk / run, the altitude...
Weekend Sherpa dot com →
weekend pursuits in the Bay Area.
“The fact that human adults consume huge quantities of dairy products made from...”
– PETA, in a letter urging Ben & Jerry’s to replace the cow’s milk in their products with human breast milk.
“The very people who have spent the past several years assuring us that the...”
– Ron Paul
WatchI’m testing out PollDaddy.com with a question related to entertainment and the tightening economy.
Ever noticed how hardcore cyclists often look like they could be dressed up as a super hero on halloween?
WatchBest analysis of the financial crisis yet.
The Beckoning of Lovely. →
In advertising, we get to make a lot of stuff: videos, posters, websites, widgets, booklets, characters, sometimes even new inventions. Making stuff is my favorite part of advertising. I…
“Have a vision. Make decisions quickly. Launch, see if they work. If they work,...”
– Dmitry Shapiro (founder of Veoh) via The Street
“Unemployment in Silicon Valley reached 6.5 percent last month, up from a revised...”
– Digital Daily
narcissists & facebook →
interesting study on facebook users and the prevelance of “narcissists”.
“electric cars use relatively little power — the average car recharging draws...”
– time.com
Just had a colleague opening mail durring a meeting. A tad offended.
I’m Joe Blow and I approve this message. →
Now that this silly waste of time has become well-established in political advertising, let’s take a moment to examine it. I guess its original intent was to help viewers distinguish between an…
1 tag
Aware Consumers
After watching The Century of the Self I was struck by how easily manipulated we can be and also how quickly we will actually take advantage of this vulnerability.
The goal of the 4-part documentary is to show how Freud’s theories regarding the ways people are controlled by subconscious forces and (in his view) need to be protected and taught to suppress these forces. Then in the 70s,...
My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2008-9-21) →
Andrew Bird
of Montreal
NPR
Animal Collective
Junior Boys
Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz
Driving into the sunset on our way back home. Should arrive around midnight.
Is IHOP an apple product?
Pitstop at a fruitstand in gilroy, the city of garlic.
About to drive to LA. Last long drive for a while. Upside: I get to see my family again.
My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2008-9-14) →
Arcade Fire
Beirut
Feist
Assembly of Dust
Magnolia Electric Co.
Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz
sidetaker.com →
fairly ridiculous site that allows one to vote on relationship issues and decide which “side” is right and which is wrong.
“Your wealth is not how many paper assets you have. It’s not even how much land...”
– Douglas Rushkoff
In the Morning by Junior Boys
“A world of perfect justice is a world of love. It is a world with no rules in...”
– Miroslav Volf
hidden desires →
I only have time for a quick post today to point you to a fascinating documentary (The Century of the Self) about Freud’s theories and their influence on politics, marketing, advertising, and how…
workplace weirdness
Why do people bring their laptop, a blackberry and a notebook to every meeting? Isn’t that completely redundant?
Perhaps the reason is because people feel more secure having everything with them or perhaps most people only pay attention 1/4 of the time so this way they have other things (toys) to distract them.
Either way, it seems silly to me as 1. you don’t need that much...
“Earlier this year Amazon bought indie movie distribution site Withoutabox, with...”
– Paid Content
thoughts on a long drive
I drove today from San Diego back up to the Bay Area. It took about 6.5 hours, which is much faster than I expected. Along the way I couldn’t help notice that people seemed to drive just as you would expect them to given the car they drive. If someone drove a huge truck they were very aggressive and didn’t care if they cut me off (which happened pretty blatantly). If someone drove...
Work drama. Such a waste of time. And especially hard to deal with over BlackBerry. New attitude: care about work; ignore drama
Left Los Gatos at 7pm last night and arrived in San Diego by 1am. Not bad. But I don’t appreciate the jackhammer out my window at 8am.
“There are two kinds of people in the world: those who divide the world into two...”
– David Pogue in the NYT.
Guide to watching TV episodes online →
This is a decent run-down of the network and cable tv websites and what they offer in regards to programming.
Beg High The Roof Beam →
In advertising, it’s important to have a grasp of how and why language is used, so that we can use it appropriately and effectively with whichever audience we are having a conversation. To that end,…
Full day of travel ahead. On my way to NYC for focus groups.
My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2008-9-7) →
The Beatles
Yo Yo Ma - Morricone
The String Cheese Incident
NPR
Vampire Weekend
Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz
WatchI watched part 1 of the Century of The Self documentary yesterday and it was both very interesting and very disturbing.
Are we really as controllable as this film suggests in part 1? Are we really as easily manipulated as this film suggests?
If you’re interested, this film is available for free on Google Video and documents the influence of Freud’s theories on politics and...
vanity search management
If you are at all active online (uploading photos, writing blog posts, commenting on other blogs, uploading video, monitoring your Facebook account, creating baby / marriage registries, managing your resume on LinkedIn, listening to music, etc.) then your vanity search has exploded.
As more of our lives are being spent online so to is it easier and easier for people (strangers, potential dates,...
word of mouth marketing presentation today made me wonder if marketers and magicians are of a similar nature?
“To be blunt, the cost of licensing music is so significant that I don’t...”
– This would make me sad. Via: Wired