Can't we all just get along?
This paraphrased quote from Rodney King back in 1992 still echoes 28 years later. Think of how much has changed in that time. How much has stayed the same?
Wars have been waged, the internet and mobile phones have transformed communication and how businesses operate, 5 U.S. presidents have served, reality TV shows (or unscripted dramas) have shifted the entertainment landscape, hip hop music has become mainstream music, and much more.
One of those presidents was our first African American president, and the hip hop music that has dominated the last couple decades was created by and is primarily still performed by people of color. But where has that really gotten us?
More and more people of color are killed in the streets. Riots break out across the country as part of protests against racial divisions and atrocious acts committed by police and everyday citizens. Perpetrators are rarely brought to justice. White America is barely aware of the existence of our own privilege.
A pandemic seems to have lowered defenses, opened doors, unified us against a common enemy, and squeezed out all but the essential from our lives. And in the middle of the pandemic with no end in sight we have race riots and protests, burning police cars, looting, a president who seems to provoke more than promote calm, and more to come as the disadvantaged are stressed by an economy in shambles. Race continues to divide us as the pandemic should be uniting us.
Can't we all just get along?
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Virtual Campout
Our scout troop had a campout planned for this last weekend. It was going to be a district event at a BSA camp. It was cancelled, but we decided to hold our own event anyway. Some suggestions in BSA's weekly newsletter were to have each scout help cook dinner at home, hold a virtual campfire program, and then have everyone sleep in their own backyard.
So that's what we did.
We planned in our regular virtual troop meeting on Thursday, through Discord, what the campout would look like and made assignments for the campfire. We decided to let everyone plan their own menu based on what individuals preferred and had available at their houses to cook. We cooked hamburgers at our house. We also planned what time to meet.
At 8:30, we jumped online and had a pretty good turnout of people calling in. One family actually had a campfire in their backyard and showed it on video, while another turned on their fireplace inside, so that was nice. It started a little slow, with nobody really sure who was doing what. But once they got going, telling jokes and even one funny skit from a family who had enough people there to do a full skit, we went through 45 minutes like it was nothing. It was honestly a lot of fun, just sitting there in the dark, looking at the glowing lights of a campfire in someone else's backyard, a few moments of silence where people just sat there waiting as you normally do around a campfire, and other moments of laughter and fun as we shared funny stories. It was just nice.
I slept in my hammock and my son on the trampoline. He had a closed cell foam pad and a mummy bag and stayed warm. I had my underquilt wrapped around the hammock which made it nice and toasty. It was a fairly warm night, although I think it did get into the upper 30s for a low. I unzipped my sleeping bag about 3/4 of the way and turned it 90 degrees so the end formed a footbox and the unzipped portions just laid around me like a blanket. It was not constricting light a tight sleeping bag can be. Usually the bottom of the hammock will be cold, which is nice on a hot summer day, but not so good on a cool night. I was able to move around without having to worry about keeping my pad under me or getting all twisted around in the sleeping bag.
This week, there is a national virtual campout with some merit badge classes taught through Facebook on Saturday. Don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to being able to camp for real again, but this has been better than expected.
So that's what we did.
We planned in our regular virtual troop meeting on Thursday, through Discord, what the campout would look like and made assignments for the campfire. We decided to let everyone plan their own menu based on what individuals preferred and had available at their houses to cook. We cooked hamburgers at our house. We also planned what time to meet.
At 8:30, we jumped online and had a pretty good turnout of people calling in. One family actually had a campfire in their backyard and showed it on video, while another turned on their fireplace inside, so that was nice. It started a little slow, with nobody really sure who was doing what. But once they got going, telling jokes and even one funny skit from a family who had enough people there to do a full skit, we went through 45 minutes like it was nothing. It was honestly a lot of fun, just sitting there in the dark, looking at the glowing lights of a campfire in someone else's backyard, a few moments of silence where people just sat there waiting as you normally do around a campfire, and other moments of laughter and fun as we shared funny stories. It was just nice.
I slept in my hammock and my son on the trampoline. He had a closed cell foam pad and a mummy bag and stayed warm. I had my underquilt wrapped around the hammock which made it nice and toasty. It was a fairly warm night, although I think it did get into the upper 30s for a low. I unzipped my sleeping bag about 3/4 of the way and turned it 90 degrees so the end formed a footbox and the unzipped portions just laid around me like a blanket. It was not constricting light a tight sleeping bag can be. Usually the bottom of the hammock will be cold, which is nice on a hot summer day, but not so good on a cool night. I was able to move around without having to worry about keeping my pad under me or getting all twisted around in the sleeping bag.
This week, there is a national virtual campout with some merit badge classes taught through Facebook on Saturday. Don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to being able to camp for real again, but this has been better than expected.
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
COVID19
March came in like a lion and went out like a tornado this year. The big news is the virus sweeping the world. We all were hearing about it back in February and how it was growing quickly in China and Northern Italy, as well as on a cruise ship. Even then, it wasn't taken seriously by anyone, as people I know still traveled to Southern Italy the first part of March and were still planning trips to Japan or other places near the outbreak.
Gucci, Prada, and other glamorous fashion clothing brands come from Northern Italy. They have outsourced much of their production to Wuhan, China. As the people in China have become rich off the Italian fashionista companies, they have started buying some of those companies and moving to Italy. The world truly is flat.
Bringing it home, some of the things we have had cancelled include: public school, university classes (all gone online), Sunday church services, school and comp soccer games (and practices), volleyball tournaments (and practices), piano lessons, scout meetings, weeknight church youth groups, going out to eat at restaurants, spring break trips, NCAA basketball tournament, dentist appointments, kids playing with friends, horse riding lessons, orchestra practice, and probably some other things I'm not remembering right now.
Some of the things that go on include: homework sent out virtually from teachers, piano lessons via FaceTime, hikes and walks around the neighborhood with the dog, getting takeout from restaurants, our first virtual scout meeting will be this week through Discord, one of the kids had a church youth group meeting through Zoom, I work remotely from home already, home church, orthodontist, kids playing video games, texting and social media to connect with family, grocery shopping, and snow well into Spring.
What does the future hold? In some places, it is more isolation. In others it is spreading pandemic. It is anxiety about the summer. It is fear about next year?
It is a change and a new normal. Some people claim there won't be a new normal - we'll be back to the old normal by the end of the year. I hope we have all learned something from this. Families, businesses, and other organizations will hopefully be a little more prepared, will have trimmed a little bit of the unnecessary, more people will be working from home, fewer people will live in big cities, and what else? Probably some things we still can't foresee. Hopefully we take advantage of the changes and make them be positive ones.
Gucci, Prada, and other glamorous fashion clothing brands come from Northern Italy. They have outsourced much of their production to Wuhan, China. As the people in China have become rich off the Italian fashionista companies, they have started buying some of those companies and moving to Italy. The world truly is flat.
Bringing it home, some of the things we have had cancelled include: public school, university classes (all gone online), Sunday church services, school and comp soccer games (and practices), volleyball tournaments (and practices), piano lessons, scout meetings, weeknight church youth groups, going out to eat at restaurants, spring break trips, NCAA basketball tournament, dentist appointments, kids playing with friends, horse riding lessons, orchestra practice, and probably some other things I'm not remembering right now.
Some of the things that go on include: homework sent out virtually from teachers, piano lessons via FaceTime, hikes and walks around the neighborhood with the dog, getting takeout from restaurants, our first virtual scout meeting will be this week through Discord, one of the kids had a church youth group meeting through Zoom, I work remotely from home already, home church, orthodontist, kids playing video games, texting and social media to connect with family, grocery shopping, and snow well into Spring.
What does the future hold? In some places, it is more isolation. In others it is spreading pandemic. It is anxiety about the summer. It is fear about next year?
It is a change and a new normal. Some people claim there won't be a new normal - we'll be back to the old normal by the end of the year. I hope we have all learned something from this. Families, businesses, and other organizations will hopefully be a little more prepared, will have trimmed a little bit of the unnecessary, more people will be working from home, fewer people will live in big cities, and what else? Probably some things we still can't foresee. Hopefully we take advantage of the changes and make them be positive ones.
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Music
There are a lot of shows out there about finding talent and in particular talented singers.
The Voice has a unique spin (pun intended), where the judges don't see the singers until they choose them for their team. They often comment on how appropriate the name of the show is, because that is all that is important.
The problem is that once the chairs turn, that no longer holds, as they work to teach them and are biased to members of their own team. They go with the next best thing other than another chair turn, which is hitting a button, which is the exciting part (aside from the singing). New actions beyond the chair turn include a steal, a save, and a block. But there's no way to turn the chair back around.
The Masked Singer partly solves this issue, because the participants stay behind their ornate costumes until they lose. The gimmick there is that it is a celebrity. It is someone we and the panel know, and while it is important who wins the singing competition, that part is mostly overshadowed by the discussion of their identities, followed by the actual unmasking.
What about a combination of the two? How about a reverse reality show trend where instead of a celebrity version, we do a non-celebrity version? This takes away the excitement of the guessing and unmasking, but it puts the focus where it should be - the music.
The Voice has a unique spin (pun intended), where the judges don't see the singers until they choose them for their team. They often comment on how appropriate the name of the show is, because that is all that is important.
The problem is that once the chairs turn, that no longer holds, as they work to teach them and are biased to members of their own team. They go with the next best thing other than another chair turn, which is hitting a button, which is the exciting part (aside from the singing). New actions beyond the chair turn include a steal, a save, and a block. But there's no way to turn the chair back around.
The Masked Singer partly solves this issue, because the participants stay behind their ornate costumes until they lose. The gimmick there is that it is a celebrity. It is someone we and the panel know, and while it is important who wins the singing competition, that part is mostly overshadowed by the discussion of their identities, followed by the actual unmasking.
What about a combination of the two? How about a reverse reality show trend where instead of a celebrity version, we do a non-celebrity version? This takes away the excitement of the guessing and unmasking, but it puts the focus where it should be - the music.
Friday, January 31, 2020
Social Media Fatigue
Awhile back I had posted about the problems with Facebook. It's not just Facebook, though. I won't list all the different social media sites, but I think very few don't suffer from the same issues of being designed to lead to addiction and brainwashing.
Mark Zuckerberg has just been quoted as being for free speech or freedom of expression. I get that. One of the most powerful tools for the oppressed under totalitarian regimes is the ability to use social media to get their message out to the world.
Cory Doctorow's After the Siege paints a different picture of broadcasting an oppressed society gone wrong. He also talks about how awesome it would be to put the power of technology and smart sensors into the hand of the people and not the other way around.
Why is it creepy that when I go to The Guardian's website to read Doctorow's column about corporations and the government surveilling us I get a warning about the cookies being placed on my computer to track me as I visit the site?
As important as it is to work through the issues of all the data constantly tracking everything we do, backing it up a minute to the original, less complicated thought, there's just a fatigue that sets in trying to keep up with everything.
Going back 20 years, when email was pretty much the only thing close to what you could call a social media tool, I was always on top of my email, answering any message quickly and reading everything that came to my inbox. As spam clogged things up and a variety of other options popped up, whether that was Twitter or Facebook or Instagram or just about anything else, I have found that I will generally have a primary or favorite platform at any one time. If I'm staying on top of Instagram, Twitter suffers, and vice versa. Email suffered to where I don't read most of what comes in my email and what I do read is usually days later, because I was staying on top of something else.
So 5 months ago, while on vacation, I just stopped dealing with social media. It wasn't really on purpose. I wanted to enjoy the vacation. I meant to post some pictures from it but never did, and all of a sudden it's been 5 months. When I mention it to people (sparingly, not in a vegan or crossfit way of mentioning it to people), I've not heard kickback from it. It's generally been positive, as I got the feeling they wished they could give it up, too.
I was aware of the social media fatigue before and my behavior of switching platforms and not being able to keep up with all of them at the same time, but I hadn't realized how freeing it would be to just give it all up together.
Mark Zuckerberg has just been quoted as being for free speech or freedom of expression. I get that. One of the most powerful tools for the oppressed under totalitarian regimes is the ability to use social media to get their message out to the world.
Cory Doctorow's After the Siege paints a different picture of broadcasting an oppressed society gone wrong. He also talks about how awesome it would be to put the power of technology and smart sensors into the hand of the people and not the other way around.
Why isn’t it creepy for you to know when the next bus is due, but it is creepy for the bus company to know that you’re waiting for a bus?
Why is it creepy that when I go to The Guardian's website to read Doctorow's column about corporations and the government surveilling us I get a warning about the cookies being placed on my computer to track me as I visit the site?
As important as it is to work through the issues of all the data constantly tracking everything we do, backing it up a minute to the original, less complicated thought, there's just a fatigue that sets in trying to keep up with everything.
Going back 20 years, when email was pretty much the only thing close to what you could call a social media tool, I was always on top of my email, answering any message quickly and reading everything that came to my inbox. As spam clogged things up and a variety of other options popped up, whether that was Twitter or Facebook or Instagram or just about anything else, I have found that I will generally have a primary or favorite platform at any one time. If I'm staying on top of Instagram, Twitter suffers, and vice versa. Email suffered to where I don't read most of what comes in my email and what I do read is usually days later, because I was staying on top of something else.
So 5 months ago, while on vacation, I just stopped dealing with social media. It wasn't really on purpose. I wanted to enjoy the vacation. I meant to post some pictures from it but never did, and all of a sudden it's been 5 months. When I mention it to people (sparingly, not in a vegan or crossfit way of mentioning it to people), I've not heard kickback from it. It's generally been positive, as I got the feeling they wished they could give it up, too.
I was aware of the social media fatigue before and my behavior of switching platforms and not being able to keep up with all of them at the same time, but I hadn't realized how freeing it would be to just give it all up together.
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
What is real?
As we have been planning for the coming year, we have asked our scouts what life goals they have or what they want to do when they grow up. Now, I know that no one really knows what they want to do at 12, and many of us will be doing things that don't even exist when we are in high school. We want to support them in our activities. So what do a couple of them have in common? They want to be YouTubers.
I guess that makes sense, as that is the media that people connect with. I don't see their personalities fitting that model, but it's all acting and production quality.
The ironic thing is that I was at the Wal-Marts a couple weeks after this conversation, and we happened to see some local actors and YouTubers. On their channel or on Instagram they are polished, smiling, and traveling the world. From what they have shared, I know they have had some crazy trials to work through, but it is always still poised. Not at the Wal-Marts, though. This was real - unshaven, no makeup, no show.
I guess we all put on a show in whatever we do. Here's to being more real in 2020!
I guess that makes sense, as that is the media that people connect with. I don't see their personalities fitting that model, but it's all acting and production quality.
The ironic thing is that I was at the Wal-Marts a couple weeks after this conversation, and we happened to see some local actors and YouTubers. On their channel or on Instagram they are polished, smiling, and traveling the world. From what they have shared, I know they have had some crazy trials to work through, but it is always still poised. Not at the Wal-Marts, though. This was real - unshaven, no makeup, no show.
I guess we all put on a show in whatever we do. Here's to being more real in 2020!
Saturday, November 30, 2019
Triple Constraints
Seth Godin got in on the action a bit, in making fun of Elon Musk's fancy new truck.
Regardless of what his choice to throw a ball at a window of his brand new truck says about his showmanship skills, the big technology development of the future is related to transportation. As well as mass transit works in places with high population density and a large number of tourists such as New York and San Francisco, most places don't have enough of either of those two items to make mass transit really work. This means self-driving cars will be the real growth area.
I was reading the following article...
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/613399/the-three-challenges-keeping-cars-from-being-fully-autonomous/
...and realized not too far into it that we were just talking about the triple constraints. The three big challenges are that they must be safe, usable, and affordable. They go on to discuss that you could make a vehicle so safe that it would be unusable, since it wouldn't drive very fast or be fuel efficient. This is similar to how the most secure computer is one that is not connected to the internet and with no keyboard or monitor.
But for a vehicle to be useful/usable, some safety constraints have to give way. If we push on both the usability and safety levers at the same time, the cost will be through the roof. Cheap and usable? Not safe. Cheap and safe? Not usable. Safe and usable? Not cheap.
Regardless of what his choice to throw a ball at a window of his brand new truck says about his showmanship skills, the big technology development of the future is related to transportation. As well as mass transit works in places with high population density and a large number of tourists such as New York and San Francisco, most places don't have enough of either of those two items to make mass transit really work. This means self-driving cars will be the real growth area.
I was reading the following article...
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/613399/the-three-challenges-keeping-cars-from-being-fully-autonomous/
...and realized not too far into it that we were just talking about the triple constraints. The three big challenges are that they must be safe, usable, and affordable. They go on to discuss that you could make a vehicle so safe that it would be unusable, since it wouldn't drive very fast or be fuel efficient. This is similar to how the most secure computer is one that is not connected to the internet and with no keyboard or monitor.
But for a vehicle to be useful/usable, some safety constraints have to give way. If we push on both the usability and safety levers at the same time, the cost will be through the roof. Cheap and usable? Not safe. Cheap and safe? Not usable. Safe and usable? Not cheap.
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Dual Specialties
Or is it duelling specialties?
Growth is good. Being stretched and challenged is good. But sometimes we can be pushed into something that is actually more of a shift than growth.
If someone is an excellent server at a restaurant - they make good money from tips, their customers are happy and ask for them by name, and the restaurant makes more money due to their upselling skills. So what's the best course of action? Promote them to managing the servers or to managing the entire restaurant? When do those skills translate to management and when are we taking someone out of a win-win-win situation and changing it to one where everyone loses?
If someone is a good programmer, does that automatically mean we should promote them to be a project manager or product manager as a reward? What if they don't like the new job, or worse yet, what if they are bad at it?
Is the best cellist in the orchestra a perfect fit to replace the conductor when they retire? Or did we just lose the best cellist in the orchestra and gain a mediocre conductor?
Is a faculty member who is a good researcher by default also a good teacher? Should we promote the best teacher to department head or dean in the name of personal growth?
Managing people, operations, and projects well is a skill. It is its own specialty. You don't have to be a good programmer to specialize in managing programmers or a good cellist to be able to conduct cellists. A project manager may focus on a certain industry, but at the end of the day a good PM should be able to manage any project.
The biggest issue it seems with most "good" managers is that when they see people under them who are good at what they do, they want to promote them to be a manager just like them. It's time to flip the conventional wisdom on its head and start rewarding people for being good at what they do and helping them achieve true growth in their lane rather than convincing them that it is a reward to shift into a completely different lane.
Growth is good. Being stretched and challenged is good. But sometimes we can be pushed into something that is actually more of a shift than growth.
If someone is an excellent server at a restaurant - they make good money from tips, their customers are happy and ask for them by name, and the restaurant makes more money due to their upselling skills. So what's the best course of action? Promote them to managing the servers or to managing the entire restaurant? When do those skills translate to management and when are we taking someone out of a win-win-win situation and changing it to one where everyone loses?
If someone is a good programmer, does that automatically mean we should promote them to be a project manager or product manager as a reward? What if they don't like the new job, or worse yet, what if they are bad at it?
Is the best cellist in the orchestra a perfect fit to replace the conductor when they retire? Or did we just lose the best cellist in the orchestra and gain a mediocre conductor?
Is a faculty member who is a good researcher by default also a good teacher? Should we promote the best teacher to department head or dean in the name of personal growth?
Managing people, operations, and projects well is a skill. It is its own specialty. You don't have to be a good programmer to specialize in managing programmers or a good cellist to be able to conduct cellists. A project manager may focus on a certain industry, but at the end of the day a good PM should be able to manage any project.
The biggest issue it seems with most "good" managers is that when they see people under them who are good at what they do, they want to promote them to be a manager just like them. It's time to flip the conventional wisdom on its head and start rewarding people for being good at what they do and helping them achieve true growth in their lane rather than convincing them that it is a reward to shift into a completely different lane.
Monday, September 30, 2019
Local News
Over a decade ago, my old hometown paper was downsizing, but my new hometown paper seemed to be doing okay. Over the past several years, my small town has apparently caught up with the big town trends.
The local paper has been struggling for years, going from 7 day delivery to 6 day delivery for subscribers and a minimal ad-filled paper on the seventh day for non-subscribers (TMC or Total Market Coverage was the product).
My kids delivered papers, up to three routes at once at times, but the TMC products which they had been getting paid for eventually just sort of stopped showing up at our house. At one point, one route wasn't getting it at all and the other was getting twice as much as we needed.
Then they moved to ditching Sunday for a big Saturday paper, so down to 5 delivery days per week.
Near the end of that, they did a big push for the Saturday-only subscription - a one day paper that was fairly inexpensive. A couple months later, they got rid of the one day subscription, so bumped everyone who had subscribed to it up to a regular subscription. Bait and switch.
Now they are delivering three days per week, through the mail. They claim there have been issues with finding enough carriers due to low unemployment. I think they lost good carriers due to a reduction in a quality newspaper and issues with getting them out on time to the carriers (which I suppose could be back to a low unemployment thing).
It's not a good day to be in the newspaper business. I don't have the solution for it. I'm a fan of the local interest story. I like community traditions and letters to the editor from local crazies. It used to be you paid for something that was scarce, because someone had to produce and deliver it to you. Now there is no physical production, and distribution is free electronically, so how do you still make enough money to create something no one is willing to pay for?
More and more of what is delivered to us electronically is in the hands of just a few massive media conglomerates, meaning the independent voice is being stifled. I have a feeling those free stories are being sold by someone who has something more than a nice story to tell.
The local paper has been struggling for years, going from 7 day delivery to 6 day delivery for subscribers and a minimal ad-filled paper on the seventh day for non-subscribers (TMC or Total Market Coverage was the product).
My kids delivered papers, up to three routes at once at times, but the TMC products which they had been getting paid for eventually just sort of stopped showing up at our house. At one point, one route wasn't getting it at all and the other was getting twice as much as we needed.
Then they moved to ditching Sunday for a big Saturday paper, so down to 5 delivery days per week.
Near the end of that, they did a big push for the Saturday-only subscription - a one day paper that was fairly inexpensive. A couple months later, they got rid of the one day subscription, so bumped everyone who had subscribed to it up to a regular subscription. Bait and switch.
Now they are delivering three days per week, through the mail. They claim there have been issues with finding enough carriers due to low unemployment. I think they lost good carriers due to a reduction in a quality newspaper and issues with getting them out on time to the carriers (which I suppose could be back to a low unemployment thing).
It's not a good day to be in the newspaper business. I don't have the solution for it. I'm a fan of the local interest story. I like community traditions and letters to the editor from local crazies. It used to be you paid for something that was scarce, because someone had to produce and deliver it to you. Now there is no physical production, and distribution is free electronically, so how do you still make enough money to create something no one is willing to pay for?
More and more of what is delivered to us electronically is in the hands of just a few massive media conglomerates, meaning the independent voice is being stifled. I have a feeling those free stories are being sold by someone who has something more than a nice story to tell.
Friday, August 30, 2019
App Proliferation
I'm about done with apps.
Don't get me wrong - I like software on my phone that gives me useful functionality, such as being able to tune my ukulele or cello, send email, and take pictures.
I also like appetizers.
But what about all the apps that every company wants you to install? You have to install the Kohl's app to get the best discounts. You order Little Caesar's through their app so they can put your pizza in a special box that only you can open. Facebook lets you use their IM function through the browser on a standard computer, but if they see you're on mobile, they disable IM and push for you to install their Messenger app.
I saw an ad somewhere recently that was touting how amazing it now is that you can place your order through their app instead of online. Guess what - you're still going online. Try accessing the app when you aren't in cell coverage.
A well-designed mobile webpage in your browser can do everything you do in an app without installing the app, that is without giving every company access to all your contacts and whatever other permissions it asks for, and without taking up extra storage space or having to create a bunch of extra screens to store all the icons.
Don't get me wrong - I like software on my phone that gives me useful functionality, such as being able to tune my ukulele or cello, send email, and take pictures.
I also like appetizers.
But what about all the apps that every company wants you to install? You have to install the Kohl's app to get the best discounts. You order Little Caesar's through their app so they can put your pizza in a special box that only you can open. Facebook lets you use their IM function through the browser on a standard computer, but if they see you're on mobile, they disable IM and push for you to install their Messenger app.
I saw an ad somewhere recently that was touting how amazing it now is that you can place your order through their app instead of online. Guess what - you're still going online. Try accessing the app when you aren't in cell coverage.
A well-designed mobile webpage in your browser can do everything you do in an app without installing the app, that is without giving every company access to all your contacts and whatever other permissions it asks for, and without taking up extra storage space or having to create a bunch of extra screens to store all the icons.
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