Veggie Out

Run | Blog | Eat | Lake (Yes I am making fun of something)

On blogging hiatus until post Padre (what will the world do - snicker)

Ciao

Tap That App

...title liberally "leveraged" from the annoying video podcast from CNET but its funny anyway...and other spurious digressions

(btw when did CNET become the new online radio shack where they used be a source of information on specific things HW, and more about MTV style engadget info - guess the money wasn't there...).

CNET is literally an online version of the first time I walked into the "Shack" to get a diode or a connector and all there was was crappy cell phones and a pushy sales tool. More here about the RS "lost tribes" but enough about that digression...

Cool Apps...

• Soundcloud App - worth every one of the 99 pennies. Discover the world of unreleased music from known and unknown artists on your phone. Great interface design using all the standard UX paradigms offered in Objective C
• Netflix App - Stream your instant queue on your iPhone - enough said. Tons written about it already, and blockbuster has a lame version that requires you to DL the whole movie first (weak). I found even 3G to be mostly responsive wrt bandwidth. Wish I could manage my meatspace queue in same app though...
• Siri App - My own personal iPhone assistant (Also bought by Apple recently - very interesting)
• Dragon Dictation - Not as handsfree as I'd like but somewhat useful for free
• NightStand - You don't need no stinking alarm clock
• Foodspotting - What's good around here?
• Evernote - Eliminate brain-farts and keep your ideas fresh and clean no matter where you are
• Tweetie - Just got bought by Twitter - migrating away from Twitterific

Have an idea for an app but don't have the time or the skillzzzz...? Are you a company that needs to get into the game?

A new take on the outsourcing, vendor, design agency is springing up for app development. Some players below.

1. SourceBits
2. PointAbout
3. Zumobi
4. NellyMoser

Do Something Huge

Refreshing view of a smart guy who is his own person and is running the company through competence and an innovation focus

Specifically interesting to me:

• How he motivates his own design thinking (see his office and his notes)
• How he feeds his geek/design by savoring the time he spends in the lab with his guys
• How he kept at it even when passed up via politics the first time around
• How he motivates people...

For my buddies who are Penn Staters - Nitney Lions in the house...

Ever Look At A 20$ Bill

...On Weed...

It seems like over the last 30 Days tons of pot related stories have popped up my radar via RSS and magazines. Some are quite interesting, being a non smoker myself but also being a "live free or die" kinda guy in terms of mind set.

Quite simply said, its historical hypocrisy that alcohol and cigarettes are legal and pot isn't in the US. One only has read the history of drugs in America overall, and the history of how some families became insanely rich and turned into elite dynasties from alcohol and tobacco to see the obvious connections. I don't care either way but facts are facts.

IMHO as long as individuals don't hurt others they should be able to do whatever they want as long as I am not affected (including paying for their healthcare post their personal choices). This is why lawsuits from people who smoke cigs are equally ludicrous.

I was discussing the geeky business model/supply chain mgmt side of this (of course) with some folks at work a few months back. We think that the whole cottage industry of independent dealers would over time become extinct and consumed by companies who already have the several of the pieces in place today (e.g. tobacco companies). Switch out the leaf and essentially its the same pipeline/distribution/manufacturing model. It would be interesting.

Interesting Stories...

• Personal Chef of Pot via Chef Nesbitt - high cuisine for cancer patients
• My Kushy Job via Wells Tower - where he basically describes selling weed in Amsterdam as another low wage menial service job. Also debunks the policies of Amsterdam.
• Just Say Now - via Rolling Stone - Interesting round up in the focus of needed tax revenues vs. histrionics
• Marijuana America via Rolling Stone - interesting figures in the magazine and article shows the "less than ideal" lifestyle of the Northern California experience going on right now

Both sides represented below

1. Fact & Myths
2. Reefer Madness

Strange Trip

...Lots of traffic going into some meetings this week and as result had to zigzag around the Metroplex to get home. In the process what did I see? A truck with Zombie Outbreak Response Vehicle Sticker on the back window. Awesome. Inspiration for track below...enjoy. Blood Red...

Zombie Disco (SuperFlow Mix) by 5321Studio

Dog Days

Rippin' It Sunday Style...with Don, Nater Tater, Tammy, & Pinto

Followed up with homemade blackened salmon, garlic broccoli, & coconut cake

Sleeping Void

Pinto taking some ZZZ's with his new baby which look a LOT like Hugh's Blue Monster (I went home).

Support Hugh here btw...

Act Like You Know

"Straight from the heart I frame the art
Tune up my class, real fast, very smart
Dictate the technique, wait a minute, I speak
Loved by my son and a kiss on the cheek
Stutter-step the concept, blueprint, or pro
Steady as we go so act like you know" - Pete Rock



Latest installment from the Economist  + Scott McLeod who I find personally interesting especially for his views on education.

He provides the professor side of the equation (a good connotation here) while Cal Newport provides the student side.  Both push the boundary of conventional thinking.

T-Minus

...10 Minutes until 2 meat 3 cheese lasagna

...17 Days until Padre

...40 Days until Black Keys

...78 Days until Thievery Corporation + Massive Attack

2010 Rules...



Postscript...Burb...

S Doesn't Mark the Spot

MMMM Doughnuts...

The middle bottom one is the best

Back from recent Strategy Meeting in SEA and missing the Top Pot Raspberry coated old fashioned.

These doughnuts are serious business and turned a few people onto them while we were there.

While there are non redeeming qualities in SEA (hint: weather), it has lots of place to grub if staying in the city (our SEA office is in Belltown).

Went out with friends to Post's Wednesday night and had Petra for lunch Friday. I didn't get a chance to to go Lola's for dessert which a "foodie friend" of mine recommended. It's on the list for next time.



Good quick trip & glad to be back home and a few mins away from homemade lasagna.
Nosh Nosh...

iAd = Effectiveness

"Users who viewed Nissan's Leaf electric car Apple iAd spent 90 seconds with the interactive advertisement -- ten times longer than customers will spend with a traditional ad."

Fluttering About

Interesting pieces of data fluttering around my chosen twitter-space this week

1. Defy authority through technology via hiding files in Flickr
2. Rusko's Bandpage on Facebook - See also DJ TechTools discussion wrt Bandpage (love to be at Stubb's but traveling for work)
3. Free Best Coast song from AMZN
4. Pop Tarts around since 1963 (mmm sugary treat...)
5. Dude You're Getting a Mac (Remember that guy)?
6. Why Apple is undervalued - How many products inspire this?
7. Blowing in the Wind - Urban Style Innovation

Tweet...

Give The Drummer Some

The Inspiration

?uestlove's Joint

For Marvin Baby...for Marvin

Mind Eraser + Reboot

Step 1: First blow out the cobwebs and production based bits, strap on a guitar, and RAWK :)

Step 2: Existential Mind Exercises via music video

Blowing In The Wind

For a friend of mine who travelled to Austin and Oklahoma in one week to see both shows

Have You Got a Video

In honor of The Young Ones, I have now aggregated all the videos (~200 and counting including some bonus ones not posted) on the site as a playlist last weekend. I'll probably keep the Young Ones Clip at top for master reference. I need to figure out a permanent home for this feed shortly but enjoy for now ;)

"Fifty-seven MILLION channels and nothin' on"
I can see by your eyes friend you're just about gone
Fifty-seven MILLION channels and nothin' on...
Fifty-seven MILLION channels and nothin'

Augmented Bruce Springsteen

A Rose By Any Other Name

...Would Smell as Sweet

Which basically means names don't matter only what they are. In this vein duplicate Jason Hamilton's on the web are cool...

Food and photography - mmmm

You Tube Remix

Messing around looking at videos and double tracked the ambient/dub track from D-Queue track and switching back & forth between the 2 chemistry/physics videos

Think I'll use these video in an upcoming dreamscape track...

The "1s and 2s" Safari Tab style...

False Expectations

Inspired by the video below it....a hefty banger for your Thursday night

False Expectations (Stutter Stop Mix) by 5321Studio

Andre 3000 and Thom Yorke are fans, which reminds me I need to dust off the Speakerboxxx album. I was talking to a friend about a month ago who was saying that there is only room for one: Outkast or Black Eyed Peas. I'll take Stankonia...

In this vein..."You can call this Monopoly..."

Give Snow a Chance

"All we are saying..."

Eno'esque music + Super 8 = an interesting documentary/art/political stance for peace mash up

"Get back...get back..."

The inspiration

"Close My Eyes..."

Bonus ditty..."outside" is calling.

Street Song

Love the road noise and her voice combined...

Jumping the Shark

Trolling for "sample bait"... This gem plus Zombieland will make excellent samples for upcoming 5321 Studio productions

The original product placement?

Hot Potato

...and additional industry nuggets o' opinions

1. Hot Potato better fit for Facebook - another case of talent is persistently more valuable than one idea. Has some good insight into brand and maturity of Foursquare being tougher to assimilate (unless you're MS and you just buy and bury)
2. Apple Sells More phones than Moto - I think this is a larger trend of the android growth curve "beginning" to flatten (this does not mean I don't think Android wont be one of 2-3 top Mobile OS's in the future. Also related to this is customer satisfaction/retention numbers between iPhone and Android. (this is the true information from Yankee group vs. re-quotes)
3. Yosion's Apple Peel Hack - Gotta love CHS
4. My pontification/opinion is this is the alternative network carrier to offer Apple products going forward

Hi...Ho...Hi...Ho...

Hey Jack Kerouac

A lil' Seadoo action then off to WS for a few days of work....

High Plains Grifter (Kerouac Mix) by 5321Studio

500 Million Friends

I read about this movie a few months back and expected that it might be crappy. Jury is still out but looks interesting because:

1. David Fincher is directing (Panic Room, Fight Club, etc...)
2. Trent Reznor is scoring the film
3. The kid Jesse Eisenberg who's in Zombieland, The Hunting Party, The Squid and the Whale is in it. (What do you think? Zombie kill of the week?)
4. The trailer uses a modified version of a Radiohead Song

Sweet...

Brazilian Hospitality

Pictures from the business trip a few weeks back... I had a great time, with the team hosting me & showing me around Sao Paulo; Brazilian Pizza (unique), Cafe and drinks al fresco, good Brazilian style buffets, and a great steak house. Productivity wrapped in fun like a pig in a blanket :)

First impressions architecturally, the city reminds me of a mash-up of Seoul and LA. At the density and skyline level its very much like Seoul, but at the street level the architecture turns more towards LA with a bit more room than Korea at this level for such a large city. The infrastructure suffers the history of capitalism and recent politics. There are some interesting pictures of nature vs. the infrastructure in the stream.

Also saw some interesting street art. Specifically I was drawn to the old and new juxtaposition of graffiti art which is very analogue, with the tag including the flickr URL being very digital.

Noshing

..and not the urban dictionary definition. Found this site looking up an address yesterday. For 40% of my audience (thats 2 out 5 TL readers :))... Going "native" below.

Fort Worth Hole in The Wall Blog is a good blog for finding new places to grab a bite. Site has decent links and maps as well.

More local flava...

1. Startlegram Blog Kingpin Of Cowtown
2. Ft Worth Weekly Online (for those who don't want the dirty fingers of cheap print)
3. Dallas Observer - like the weekend guide specifically + they have good write up like when Badu took her clothes off for the video, minus the super-christy "fake crisis" filter

Plus for those who want to take their dog everywhere, use the Happy Hour free iPhone App to find places with outdoor seating in a town supported by the app.

I mean with a mug like this who wouldn't.

Pinto Emulation, originally uploaded by jasonham.

Kudos to the Love Shack on 7th for being super cool with Pinto on the patio bringing him water and rubs.

Hipstamatic

Emulation is the "new old" these days (that and D.I.Y. fabrication but that's for another time).

Over the last few years the innovation in emulation has been nearly exponential. Native Instruments (possible fan boy alert ;-)), has been killing it, and I was blown away last weekend (again) when testing the Guitar Rig 4 Update when installing Konplete 6 in the studio. The sound was unbelievable.

This emulation is spreading to video as well as pictures. A cool new app to emulate old analogue cameras is out Hisptimatic.

Want to take a Polaroid or a Leica pic with your iPhone? Yes there's an app for that.

Hipstamatic Portrait, originally uploaded by jasonham.

For a fun freebee check out the Stanley Bostitch Level App for your iPhone. Brilliant convergence of marketing, D.I.Y., and emulation of the real world.

Telco Nuggets

• Ad Mob's Mobile Metrics May 2010
• Clive Thompson's The Phone Call is Dead article in the August Wired (as of this moment not online)
• Fred Vogelstein's Bad Connection: Inside the iPhone Network Meltdown

Design of Design

While @ GHQ in Sao Paulo a few weeks back I saw a book I had been referencing being handed back and forth. Its the famous Mythical Man Month book by Fred Brooks. Mr Brooks has a new book out that definitely needs to be put into the queue. The Design of Design.

If you think this is no longer an important topic in 2010 with the great designs of Apple, ask yourself this (from Don Norman)

“Imagine you’re on the first slide of your powerpoint presentation and want to move to the next slide. Your remote control has two buttons. They are unmarked, but one button points up and one button points down.

“Which button do you press?”

Interaction paradigms are important to actual usage, user desire & effectiveness, and ultimately a company's reputation and sales.

I was discussing backwards compatibility with our CTO briefly yesterday on a particular mobile platform who's press release says "we're backwards compatible even-though we re changing the interaction paradigm to multi-touch". I had a friend on my old team who has forgotten more about touch interaction models and technical design than I can remember. We worked on changing the app layer on a mobile OS to a cludged version of multi-touch and it was time consuming to say the least. So lets just say I have some healthy skepticism around the claim.

Technicolor Rainbow

Nice...Nice...Nice... work done by 4 AM Sounds on Soundclound

Trip on this... by 4AMSOUNDS