Griffio has been building AJAX functionality into our sites and databases over the past several months. It’s powerful stuff. It’s also arguably the biggest challenge for Microsoft, even more so than Google. Google, however, are very big proponents of AJAX development along with Snapfish, Flickr, Writley and the list goes on. If you’re not sure what it is, it’s basically a way to make web programs behave more like desktop programs. That is, more powerful programs running on a website.

From the article: “Web developers are beginning to push its limits in terms of creative uses and new applications.” It should be interesting to see how far AJAX can go and what challenges to MS it can bring. Web development tools just keep getting better.

(Source: Wired)

How can you do that as an entrepreneur? Easy. Get an advisory board. From the WSJ article: “These advisers, of course, aren’t to be confused with a board of directors, which bears a fiduciary duty and legal responsibility. Rather, these are advisers, generally unpaid, who have agreed to be associated with your business. The experience they bring can be the key to your growth. They can offer you gritty business advice, such as who to go to for a particular legal problem or a good source for some bit of inventory.”

We have yet to formed an advisory board for my company, but it’s sounding like it couldn’t be a better time. Any SH readers out there worked with an advisory board?

(Source: WSF)

Although I grew up on the goodness that is 2% milk, my wife and I switched to 1% early in our marriage. However, we’ve recently discovered Skim Delight also known as Skim Supreme that is basically skim milk with the same thickening ingredient used in ice cream (no not lard). It has the consistency of whole milk but the low fatness of skim. In this the beginning of my struggles to stay fit while enjoying good food, bring it on!

What do all the SH readers drink out there?

While Google makes the best search engine around, their customer service department sure is lacking. I’ve sent several emails regarding my AdWords and News Source questions to which I always get the following response:

“We are unable to provide specific information at this time.”

That’s all they ever say. Sure they have to share financial data now that they’re public, but I guess they still don’t want to share helpful information with their customers. Maybe I could try that with my company’s customer service department: “Why isn’t my database working?” to which I would reply: “I’m sorry, we’re unable to provide specific information at this time…” Brilliant!

I used to think Google might be able to overcame the casualties of becoming a huge corporation. It’s looking like I was wrong.

If you haven’t been able to tell from previous posts, I love baseball. I guess I like it for several reasons but the one that is most fascinating, is that a team is never down and out in a game. In football and basketball, which I also enjoy, you can pretty much tell when a team is beyond winning.

That’s not the case in baseball. Last night Lindsey and I were watching the National League Championship Series between the Cardinals and Astros. The Astros were up 4-2 in the 9th inning with one out away from getting to the world series. It looked like it was all in the Astros favor, until a couple of batters got on base, to which Albert Pujols knocked them in on a monster home run.

It’s never to late to come out on top in baseball. You can always come back, no matter how late in the game. I find that inspiring in my personal and professional life as well. Never give up.

The rich sure don’t do much to help out. Chevy is donating a measly $1000 to charity for every postseason baseball game played this fall. That’s about a whopping $25,000 from a corporation that makes billions. How generous of you Chevy…

Also, the sports world doesn’t seem to do much for philanthropy either. When Hurricane Katrina hit, Dion Sanders proposed that all NBA, MLB, NFL players each donate a wimpy $1000 each. That’s like me donating less than a penny to charity. Way to go guys…

And don’t even get me started on celebrities. Save a tree and fly my own private jet across the world while burning through tons of natural resources. Sponsor groups to solicit donations rather than giving to them. To be fair, there are those that are very generous in giving, but it’s sad to say that a vast majority don’t share that conviction. It’s just insanely ironic that those with money make up less than 10% of charitable donations.

It’s good to have the little people in the world, and I hope to always be a little person in that regard.

I loves me some cheddar, especially sharp. Though my wife and I both grew up on mild, we decided to try sharp early into our marriage and have never looked back. We’ve even ventured as far as extra sharp but it tends to crumble a bit so we stick with the sharp.

If you like a little bite and some extra flavor in your cheese, sharp is the only way to go. Which version of cheddar do you prefer?

What is it with being easy? Are we so obsessed with the idea that we miss out on some of the finer things in life? Here are some behaviors I think we’ve adapted because of our infatuation with making everything easy:

• Assembly line eating. Please, let’s eat it family style. I can’t take this informal soup kitchen style anymore. Let’s gather ’round the table, set everything, and converse for about 2 hours without disruption. Easy makes dining a process, not enjoyable.
• Our weight problems. Fast food? How about well prepared, non-processed, non-preservative food. You know, the good stuff. 70% of our weight is nutrition. Easy causes us to be fat.
• Work ethic deterioration. We’re so obsessed with making things easy, we don’t appreciate hard work and the accomplishments that come from it. Easy makes us lazy.
• Increased sit time. If easy is doing it’s job, we should have ample time to just sit around and acknowledge, “That was easy.” It then becomes the talking point for about 5-10 minutes. Talking about what’s easy? Boring.

I’m not asking to make things more difficult ’cause I do believe in better living through technology. But not at the expense of the little things we might be missing out on because of our fear of difficulty or putting in overtime. Little things that add up to an enjoyable life. Little things our grandparents enjoyed. Little things that fill our lives with meaning.

Has easy gone too far? What’s missing from this list?

Apple announced a video iPod yesterday. C’mon now. Who wants portable video? Sure, the company has the best portable MP3 around by far, but this move is just cocky and presumptuous. Explain to me how you can multi-task while watching a downloaded tv show on a 2 inch screen? It just doesn’t make sense. Music, however, does.

Even more convincing, CNN ran a poll today asking if people would buy an iPod for video. An astounding 82% said they would not. Did Apple do any market research? It’s looks like they didn’t. And who was buying iPods for photos? No one.

Would you buy an iPod for video?

Funny how something gets repackaged and then becomes a fad. Prediction: podcasts are going nowhere. Maddox put it best when he said:

“Podcast: Someone had the revolutionary idea of taking a compressed audio file and putting it online. Yeah, doesn’t sound so sexy when I describe it for what it is, does it? It would have been a great idea if streaming audio wasn’t already around for over a decade before the word “podcast” entered the lexicon.

Podcasting: It’s snob for “streaming audio.”

(Source: Best Page in the Universe)

About A Boy is one of my favorite movies. But its message is even better and applies to all aspects of life: You need backup.

Backup as in friends, family, colleagues, associates, and coworkers. Basically surrounding yourself with people you like and appreciate. If you do so it can make life that more enjoyable. It can mean finding a great job (via networking) or landing a new account for a growing company. It can mean staying sane when the tough gets going. It can mean having a blast with others. The more the merrier.

Backup is what it’s all about. If you have good backup, everything will work out. You can’t live life alone and enjoy it to its fullest.

FC: “Although sales of self-help books have doubled in the past four years, mental illness, obesity, drug addiction, and alcoholism are very much on the rise. Is the craziness fueling the literature or vice versa? Comedian George Carlin captured it when he said, “If you’re looking for self-help, why would you read a book written by somebody else? That’s not self-help, that’s help! There’s no such thing as self-help. If you did it yourself, you didn’t need help.”

Self help you make me money. To be fair though, coaching has it’s place and can help. Think of how beneficial a personal training can be for fitness. But to the point it’s gotten, it’s a little overboard.

(Source: Fast Company)

This picture really captures the overall feeling in the house of us new parents right now. Lindsey and I are slowly getting more sleep but I think this is one of my favorite/artistic baby shots as of yet.

I’ll get back to more regularly scheduled postings once the baby novelty starts to wear off (if it ever does).

Lindsey and I became the proud parents of Sadie Anne Snow yesterday, October, 4, 2005 at 6:09 pm. From our window, it rained all day long but just after her birth the sun broke out across the Mountains. It was a very special time.

This is our first born child and I’m happy to report that baby and mom are recovering nicely. She was a whopping 9 lbs and 20 inches long. Here’s the little rascal in all her new-born glory along with some other pics:

Less than 3 hours old…

Three’s company!

Taking a nap with momma.

The work-a-holic! Many thanks to you Lindsey. You were great and I love you!

Run a good business, and your brand will follow.

Branding Companies, like self help gurus, are very big business. They’re basically the same though. Like personal coaches help insecure individuals, Brand companies do the same for insecure CEO’s. They’re selling point: “we’ll help your company and customer’s know who you are.” Whatever that means… Could you be anymore vague in a making a buck?

Fast Company writes: “Consider that some of the most successful brands do little overt “branding” to achieve their status. Chelsea Milling Co. hasn’t changed the packaging on its well-known Jiffy mix boxes in more than 50 years. Though the company has never advertised, it dominates the muffin-mix category with a 55% market share by unit sales. Betty Crocker and Pillsbury have spent decades and untold millions trying to catch up.”

Not Convinced?

The article continues by saying that In-N-Out Burger dominates burger sales in comparison with McDonald’s. Yet the company spends almost nothing in advertising. McDonald’s spent an estimated $1.5 billion on branding efforts last year alone, producing little more than one day’s worth of sales more per store than In-N-Out. “Have you ever met anyone who’s had an In-N-Out Burger who doesn’t believe it’s one of the best burgers they’ve ever had? Meanwhile, just who, exactly, is really ‘lovin’ it.'”

If you build good products and/or offer competent services, you’ll have a strong brand. Instead of paying someone to tell you who your are, work hard in serving your customers and they’ll do it for free. Think of your brand like your own personal character. You can’t buy one. It takes work to get one.

(Source: Fast Company)

Who ranks the worst when it comes to customer service? Well according to a recent Fast Company survey, Wal-mart, Cingular, and Sprint PCS are the top three offenders. How much longer can wireless companies keep treating it’s customers poorly? Oh I know. When VoIP and other new technologies make them get their act together.

Until then, here’s to crappy cell phone service!

(Source: Fast Company)

I’ve just topped the 500 post mark in just under 6 months of active blogging. That’s the most writing I’ve ever done in that short of a period. I enjoy it so much, I think I might try to be a writer someday. Lindsey seems to be okay with it too ’cause she thinks of it as “less dorking around” which is a good thing (although I still dork around).

My gaming blog, has been getting considerable attention over the past little while. It got just under 40,000 unique visitors for the month of September and is now averaging 2,200/day. Little compared to big sites, but big compared to going from 0-40,000 readers in five months. It’s still growing and it should be fun to see where it could go from here.

I’d like to consider myself somewhat creative. Credit my mother for that. But never in my life have I expressed that creative side like in the basic form of writing. I’m used to using a guitar, dreamweaver, photoshop, and other tools. With writing though, the tools used are rudimentary in comparison like a keyboard, pen, or pencil. It’s an enjoyable, yet challenging experience that I hope to get better at it.

The following items should come and go as quickly as Vlogs did:

1. Podcasting. seems like anything with “pod” in it will do well. This should die off soon though due to no business model whatsoever.
2. Space Tourism. Maybe someday, but this ain’t happening anytime soon.
3. Outsourcing. You have nothing to fear as long as you keep learning. Local workers are always more valued, even with the internet.
4. China Rules The World. Yeah they’re getting big and that’s okay, but remember even Japan didn’t surpass the US economy in the 1980’s like people said they would.
5. HD-DVD’s. Sure, let the manufactures fight over which technology will be used next (Bluray or HD). Only problem; customers haven’t been asking for it.
6. Celebrity Clothing Brands. Yawn. This isn’t going anywhere.

(Source: Business 2.0)

I just read an article on how the biggest US disasters since the San Francisco earthquake in 1989 have actually helped municipal economies. In under three years, all affected cities, including Miami, Los Angeles, and New York, the per capita income has rose, total employment was up, and the home values go up. Here’s hoping for a repeat in New Orleans.

Now if we can only do something about those levees.

(Source: Forbes)

Every needed to write something but didn’t have access to a word processor on your desktop? No worries, the open-source Writely will help you there and will even allow you to file share, blog, or collaborate with your online writings. You can even import your word files.

Very cool. Not sure if it will replace word processors, but it could definitely have it’s place.

(Source: Writely)

They just might be able to. I don’t know about huge sums of money but blogging might just be one of the best wages per minute out there. I currently run two blogs in my spare time. This one and a gaming site that that keeps me young at heart. Dubbed Infendo, the site is averaging close to 35,000 unique visitors per month (around 1,200/day) and growing very fast. While this is small peanuts compared to larger blogs, it’s a start.

According to the below Wired article, it takes about 10,000 visitors per day to make decent money off ad sales. By decent I mean around $2,500 per month, which isn’t bad considering blogging only takes about an hour a day but you gotta be consistent with postings. The Wired article is very insightful and highly recommended.

Weblogs inc salaries – said to be the Walmart of blog salaries.

Gawker Blog salaries are said to be anywhere from $3,000-10,000/month due to their very high traffic. Some of their blogs get close to 6 million unique visitors per month though. That means lots of ad sales.

(Source: Wired)

I just came across a nice little pop band call The Pernice Brothers. The music is soft, easy going, and very relaxing. I purchased their first single “There Goes The Sun” off iTunes, but you can download it free and legally by right clicking here and “save target as.” It’s a really great song.

Always nice to find a new little band.

How good is your eye for design? Head over to the Fake of Foto test to find out. I got a 7/10 in deciphering if an image was computer generated or real.

Take The Test!

JetBlue passengers that were on Wednesday’s flight 292 were able to watch their emergency landing via on board satellite TV. JetBlue says they have a policy of not censoring their TV. Would you want to watch live TV of your plane’s crash landing?

(Source: ZDNET)

In an effort to chase iPod Shuffles and Nanos, Dell jumps into the low-cost flash MP3 market with DJ Ditty. Here’s a news flash for you Dell: you’re not hip enough to name a product “Ditty.” Actually, that name isn’t even hip, it’s too forced kinda of like bling. And you lost any street cred you may have had way back with your played out “Dude…” campaign.

Their product design and marketing teams should be fired.

(Source: Tom’s Hardware)

How is it going to end? You can ask that about a lot of things in life. Books, business ventures, ball games, and… ballets? Enough of the b’s, my point is that great endings can really change the outlook of an entire event.

For example, I really enjoy watching baseball. Yeah, yeah, I know a lot of them are juiced up cheaters, but for the ones who aren’t and for the shear genius that is the game of baseball, it has very exciting moments. It also has very dull ones. The other day, I watched a game between the Nationals and Mets. It was a very boring game until the last inning. It had such a good ending that I was even glad I watched the first 2 1/2 boring hours. It made it seem worth it.

And what about a great endings? About Schmitt starring Jack Nicholson has one of the greatest endings I’ve ever seen. The majority of the movie is very dry, sad, and at times embarrassing. But what an ending. I’d like to say more but I don’t want to ruin it.

The take away from this, is that I hope whatever it is you are doing today, tomorrow, or even this year has a great ending. Put forth your best efforts and when you come out on top, it can make the gray days you experienced seem brighter. Here’s to good endings.

It has been said that a good salesman needs to show potential buyers the value in what they are buying. While this may be the case, I’ve recently tried to rethink this methodology.

I work in sales. I’m constantly struggling to show potential clients the value in what I sell. I’m passionate about my product otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten into the IT business. Over the past year, every one of my clients already knew to some extent the value of databases and websites prior to my closing the sale. Now I helped them see additional value and overcome any concerns, but for the most part they understood.

So does a good salesman just help rather than sell? Or is it really up to him to show the value of the product? I would appreciate your thoughts.

If you’re not reading this post through an RSS reader, you’re missing out. RSS has completely changed the way I use the internet. Not since instant messaging took off in the late 90’s has something changed the “information super highway” quite like the way RSS feeds have.

Rarely do I “browse” sites anymore unless they don’t publish RSS which is common with business sites. But when it comes to news, sports, and blogs, all updates come conveniently to my desktop via Sharp Reader in a nice little pop up. I know to the second when something new is posted.

If you’re not sure how to setup an RSS reader, it’s as easy as email. Just click on the Sharp Reader link, install the program, and start inputting your favorite websites into the URL, then hit subscribe. That’s it.

I went to the Doctor today to get some relief from this nasty cold. That was okay, but was better was the excellent pharmacist at Rite Aid. He was a very funny, congenial, and jolly man. I even got to use the fancy massage chair in the waiting room while I got ripped off on over priced medication.

At least it made the experience a little more enjoyable.

I’m sick with a cold, my internet is down and my ISP is saying it could take several days to repair (i’m at a store posting this). Without a connection, I can’t do my job. Murphy’s law really does work and when it rains, it really does pour.

Hopefully I can be fully operational very soon!

If you ever wondered how people came up with those clever little blogger buttons, the wait is over. Although I still prefer to do them manually in Photoshop (see the three I have below) you can now use a simple website for all your button making needs. And you don’t have to know a thing about graphic design.

Check it out!

Networking: leveraging your family, friends, and associates to drive new business. We all know that, but what about executive networking?

Executive networking takes traditional networking a step further. Rather than soliciting a name and contact information from your friend, why not have them contact the referral on your behalf. I recently did this with an existing client of ours. He was happy to email his referral on my behalf. Call it an introduction or icebreaker, and it’s a lot easier entrance in the door that way.

Thanks Robert.

We’ve all heard about asking for referrals, what about putting a system in place to increase the number of those referrals? I’ve recently been developing a system where I’ll offer a discount at signing if the buyer will provide some names of people they feel could benefit from our services.

I know this is big in the financial services industry, but have any out there put this into action with good success?

(Source: Business Know How)

Denver was a really cool place. I had been there before, but never saw the sites like I did this time. A friend and I walked the 16th street mall, chilled at ESPN Zone, and went to a couple of Rockies games. Very fun indeed.

My goal to visit all 30 Major League Baseball parks: 6 down, 24 more to go.

Well, I’m off to Denver to catch a couple of Rockie’s games with a friend. It should be exciting. I think I’m only going to eat hotdogs! I’m also going to try and catch up with an old childhood friend that starts at left field for the team; Matt Holliday.

To all those that stop by, thanks. It’s nice to know a few of you have taken interest as I speak my mind and try to become a better writer. Hopefully that can happend soon. Have a great weekend!

Robert and I are developing a new internal project management system so we can better track and manage our clients. The system will help us become even more organized and allow us for more timely delivery of our projects. It will also allow our existing clients to find out where their project stands in real time, and share critical information and files.

It will also automate our sales pipeline which will make my job a little easier. Better working through technology. (Thanks Robert!)

Why is it that graphic designers always try to complicate things? Architects and product designers generally adhere to fundamentals and commonly accepted practices. But it always seems like graphic designers go off the deep end the majority of the time. (see Intelligent Design)

Design Observer obviously gets it.

(Source: Design Observer)

More Google speculation. This is probably just some linux desktop or concept art, but you gotta believe this could be a reality. I’m cool with Google and all, just don’t like how they’re starting to act like a Microsoft company.

A computer monitoring system saved a drowning little girl in Whales. Better living through technology.

See the pictures

Get ready for GoogleNet. That’s right, expect the information giant to step into the ISP industry and really mess up the model ’cause their likely to offer the service for free. Why would they do that you ask?

Simple. Google makes money off advertising. If they know where users are going on the internet, they can become a better advertising company, charge more money, and control more content. They’ve already purchased some wi-fi companies and it could become a reality in the very near future.

(Source: Business 2.0)

Funny story: I went to the post office today at noon to ship a package. I had the guy put a “fragile” sticker on it, to which he immediately threw the box rather hard down below the counter!

Blake, meet 11,800 feet. 11,800, meet Blake.

I had the chance yesterday to hike the 11,800 foot Mount Timpanogos in Utah County. It was quite the hike. It was a great feeling to make it to the top and get away from all these electronics I usually like to play with (had to bring the iPod though).

See Photos

As with many of you, the situation in New Orleans has weighed heavily on my mind over the past few days. My father-in-law who works as a naval officer recently provided good insight as to why the federal relief took, and is taking so long.

1. Command and control. He said the federal government waited for Louisiana to ask for help which they did not do until late in the week. The federal government should have taken the initiative though after seeing the images of New Orleans that I saw on Tuesday night. He even says a lot of officials still don’t know who’s in charge of what.
2. International priority. He said that the federal government seems to care more with foreign aid when the “world is watching” than if a disaster happens in our own backyard. If this is the case, then that is very said. We elected these individuals to care for US citizens first, then the rest of humanity.
3. Social prejudice. He said he also felt the sense of “we told them to get out.” Only problem is the poor couldn’t and still can’t get out. This isn’t the first time in US or World history for that matter that the poor have been left behind, irregardless of their race.

I feel the government, especially President Bush is to blame for the delay. However, I do not feel this situation is similar to a terrorist attack like many reporters are saying. Terrorist have nothing on the havoc that Mother Nature can render. If you still feel the need to blame someone right away, blame the category 5 Hurricane Katrina and the civil engineering of a city that’s 10 feet below sea level, yet right next to the sea.

Hurricane Katrina was bad. The flooded wasteland of New Orleans is even worse. My wife and I had a chance to watch some news coverage tonight on the status of the city. I can’t believe my eyes, and it feels eerily similar to how I felt after 9/11. What makes it even more difficult though is that the water hasn’t receded, impeding evacuation efforts.

The city is now a lake, 80% of which is submerged in water. Looters are everywhere. They are even firing shots upon helicopters, police officers, and hospitals. It’s simply chaotic. It’s like Lord of the Flies only it takes place in a drowned, once flourishing metropolitan area. It’s been four days since the storm hit, and I’m perplexed by not seeing images of military convoys entering the city with food and supplies, then exporting individuals to safer ground. It just appears that very little is being done. When will we see these images?

Will people move back? Who can wait 3-6 months even years to rebuild a city that’s already well below sea level? What will the future hold for New Orleans? Even more important, when will the government be able to evacuate all the refugees. It looks like a Battle of New Orleans for a third time. Only much worse.

(Flickr Images)

The American Red Cross as well as local religious and civil groups are now taking donations for relief efforts in the gulf coast. The New York Times is reporting that Hurricane Katrina is the most devastating natural disaster in US history. Thousands are said to be without a home for several months in New Orleans. Our help, even if a little, goes a long way.

DONATE NOW! (Red Cross)

You can get your name sent on the first voyager mission to Pluto. Although it’s not scheduled until 2015 (who schedules stuff 10 years in advance?) the flight will send a compact disc full of submitted names to Pluto.

I hope we’re not still using CD’s in 2015 but I’m sure NASA still will be. They’ve been using the same suites, jets, and food since like the 80’s. High Tech!

Send Your Name!

My thoughts and prayers go out to all those in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and any others that have suffered or experienced personal loss due to Hurricane Katrina. We look forward to having you back up and running and wish you the best.

Thanks also to the US Coast Guard and other rescue teams.

Project Management is a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling time, resources, and people. It’s basically either a manual or computerized process that a company or individual uses to deliver a product or service on time. This could be completing a task at work, building a house, or developing a large database.

Project management is ideal and extremely useful for projects that take two months to several years to complete. Its primary goal is to better track and save on scarce resources such as time and money.

This is an area that has a lot of potential for us. Especially in the IT sector given that roughly 95% of IT projects are overdue and over budget.

If I still can’t have a Labrador retriever, this will have to do. Nintendo just released a new video game/ simulation where the player takes care of a pet puppy. Sounds straightforward enough (Tamagotchi anyone?). But the real enjoyment comes from the interaction you take with man’s “digital best friend” in the form of voice commands. You can give you dog a name, call it by name, and on cue, it will “roll over” “lie down” and “sit.” Very clever and fun.

I’ve never interacted with software quite like I have with Nintendogs. The creators of Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, and Zelda really make the game come “alive” and it is a pleasure to play.

Now if I can only get that real dog… Honey?….

Designing sites differently for men and women may strike some as sexist or old-fashioned. Choosing designs or designers based on gender raises even more issues. Nevertheless, gender differences play a large role in the way men and women design and view websites.

Researchers at the UK’s University of Glamorgan have identified many differences in the website design preferences of men and women.

Men prefer:

• Straight lines and shapes
• Simpler and darker color schemes
• Formal or expert language with few abbreviations
• Images featuring motion

Women prefer:

• Rounded forms
• Brighter and more complex color schemes
• Casual language and tone
• Informal photographs

Good to know for designers and psychologists around the world.

(Source: IT World)