You can post pictures or documents and then talk about them. No, not as in write about them--as in talk about them. One person starts the discussion, and then others can join in.
If you want to see it in full screen, you can click on this link. http://voicethread.com/#q.b692014
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Twitter Project
Greetings, friends and readers.
I'm starting a project and I think it's going to be fun. I'm looking for volunteers and I expect the time commitment to be very small. I'm thinking 15-30 minutes a week, for maybe 15-20 weeks.
This summer I tweeted the Battle of Gettysburg. I found journals of fifteen Civil War Soldiers, and I followed them in 'real time', tweeting as I wen. I did this for about two and a half months. The end result for those that followed was the opportunity to experience history in 'real time', from original sources.
The Gettysburg project attracted attention from folks in the LBJ Presidential library, the National Archives, and historians from around the US. We ended up with almost a thousand followers.
I spoke with my brother the other day and he mentioned how the first pioneer group (those that came with Brigham Young) was by far the best documented. He said that the people who came over knew they were involved in an historic event,and so they kept good journals.
What I would like to do is recreate this pioneer trek in real time, on the right day. So by next July 24, Brigham Young will 'tweet', "This is the right place,drive on."
Anybody who volunteers will be given a journal of a person or family; they will be responsible for coming up with tweets for that person for each day of the trek. However, we will do this in advance in a Google spreadsheet. This way you can sit down, come up with tweets for a week or two, and then I will take care of it from there. You do NOT need to sign up for or know how to use twitter. As I mentioned, I suspect that it will only take 10-20 hours to do a complete journal, and you can spread it out over the next several months.
If anybody is interested, leave a comment here, and I'll be in touch.
I'm starting a project and I think it's going to be fun. I'm looking for volunteers and I expect the time commitment to be very small. I'm thinking 15-30 minutes a week, for maybe 15-20 weeks.
This summer I tweeted the Battle of Gettysburg. I found journals of fifteen Civil War Soldiers, and I followed them in 'real time', tweeting as I wen. I did this for about two and a half months. The end result for those that followed was the opportunity to experience history in 'real time', from original sources.The Gettysburg project attracted attention from folks in the LBJ Presidential library, the National Archives, and historians from around the US. We ended up with almost a thousand followers.
I spoke with my brother the other day and he mentioned how the first pioneer group (those that came with Brigham Young) was by far the best documented. He said that the people who came over knew they were involved in an historic event,and so they kept good journals.What I would like to do is recreate this pioneer trek in real time, on the right day. So by next July 24, Brigham Young will 'tweet', "This is the right place,drive on."
Anybody who volunteers will be given a journal of a person or family; they will be responsible for coming up with tweets for that person for each day of the trek. However, we will do this in advance in a Google spreadsheet. This way you can sit down, come up with tweets for a week or two, and then I will take care of it from there. You do NOT need to sign up for or know how to use twitter. As I mentioned, I suspect that it will only take 10-20 hours to do a complete journal, and you can spread it out over the next several months.
If anybody is interested, leave a comment here, and I'll be in touch.
Saturday, October 03, 2009
Moving
When I came to Logan 4 years ago, a group of my co-workers came to help move me into my house. I didn't know any of them that well, but I was very grateful for the help.
During the course of the move, Justin Ball, one of my new coworkers, dropped a box of bottled tomatoes, breaking one of the jars.
I felt bad.
Not because of the lost tomatoes. Those are cheap; probably 10 cents for the bottle, and maybe 12 cents for the tomatoes.
No, the reason I felt bad was first, he dropped the box after he tripped down our cement stairs. He hurt his ankle pretty bad. The second reason I felt bad was because I hardly knew all of these people helping me move. They pitched in because it had become 'tradition' to help the new member of the team get adjusted into their home. I didn't want Justin to feel bad because he had dropped my tomatoes. I was going to work with these folks for who knows how long, and I wanted to get off on the right foot.
Last night, I went to a party. It was held at Justin's house. If he has any ill feelings toward me for making him carry my tomatoes, he's hidden it well these past four years. Justin, as well as every other member of COSL, including their spouses, have become very dear friends.
The members of COSL have played many a board game. We've ran many a raid. We've rocked out together, and shared lunches, dinners, and even an occasional breakfast. We've built things, and attended and presented at conferences. I can brag about what we've done, only because I feel I was a small part of it.
But as I've blogged before, my time at COSL has come to an end, and today my family moved. I hired movers because...well, because I'm getting old. And hiring movers isn't as expensive as I thought.
But just as the movers were finishing up, I walked into the garage. There on the floor was a lone box, with liquid pooling around it. I opened the lid, and couldn't believe my eyes.
It was a box of bottled tomatoes. And one of the jars had broken.
My time in Logan was christened with a bottle of tomatoes, and it appears my exit is heralded with the same.
My only hope is that second break does not mark the end of my Logan years, but only a pause.
During the course of the move, Justin Ball, one of my new coworkers, dropped a box of bottled tomatoes, breaking one of the jars.
I felt bad.
Not because of the lost tomatoes. Those are cheap; probably 10 cents for the bottle, and maybe 12 cents for the tomatoes.
No, the reason I felt bad was first, he dropped the box after he tripped down our cement stairs. He hurt his ankle pretty bad. The second reason I felt bad was because I hardly knew all of these people helping me move. They pitched in because it had become 'tradition' to help the new member of the team get adjusted into their home. I didn't want Justin to feel bad because he had dropped my tomatoes. I was going to work with these folks for who knows how long, and I wanted to get off on the right foot.
Last night, I went to a party. It was held at Justin's house. If he has any ill feelings toward me for making him carry my tomatoes, he's hidden it well these past four years. Justin, as well as every other member of COSL, including their spouses, have become very dear friends.
The members of COSL have played many a board game. We've ran many a raid. We've rocked out together, and shared lunches, dinners, and even an occasional breakfast. We've built things, and attended and presented at conferences. I can brag about what we've done, only because I feel I was a small part of it.
But as I've blogged before, my time at COSL has come to an end, and today my family moved. I hired movers because...well, because I'm getting old. And hiring movers isn't as expensive as I thought.
But just as the movers were finishing up, I walked into the garage. There on the floor was a lone box, with liquid pooling around it. I opened the lid, and couldn't believe my eyes.
It was a box of bottled tomatoes. And one of the jars had broken.
My time in Logan was christened with a bottle of tomatoes, and it appears my exit is heralded with the same.
My only hope is that second break does not mark the end of my Logan years, but only a pause.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Killer Bees!
Today my family and I went up Green Canyon. We've loved living so close to such a beautiful area, and we will miss it when we are gone.
We decided to take a pleasant stroll along the single trail. We enjoyed the leaves, saying hello to other hikers, and finding the extra special rock that must be taken home and placed in a treasure box.
My oldest son was leading the way when he gave out a cry of alarm.
"BEES! RUN!"
He came tearing down the trail, "It's a nest of bees!" he called over his shoulder as he ran past us and quickly disappeared up the trail.
I could hear some angry buzzing coming from up the trail. Now, I don't like bees as much as the next person, but I was curious. I walked cautiously down the trail. There was buzzing, yes, but I couldn't see bees. What I did see what a bunch of large flies.
And then I spied the 'nest'.
"No bees here!" I called out.
The rest of the family came up the trail. My oldest was at the rear. "What is it?" he asked.
What my son had thought was a nest was actually what we in the business call canine excrement. It was covered in flies, and when my oldest son walked past, the flies scattered; he assumed the worst and ran.
Needless to say the rest of the family got a kick out of the 'bees nest', and my oldest son still hasn't heard the end of it.
We decided to take a pleasant stroll along the single trail. We enjoyed the leaves, saying hello to other hikers, and finding the extra special rock that must be taken home and placed in a treasure box.
My oldest son was leading the way when he gave out a cry of alarm.
"BEES! RUN!"
He came tearing down the trail, "It's a nest of bees!" he called over his shoulder as he ran past us and quickly disappeared up the trail.
I could hear some angry buzzing coming from up the trail. Now, I don't like bees as much as the next person, but I was curious. I walked cautiously down the trail. There was buzzing, yes, but I couldn't see bees. What I did see what a bunch of large flies.
And then I spied the 'nest'.
"No bees here!" I called out.
The rest of the family came up the trail. My oldest was at the rear. "What is it?" he asked.
What my son had thought was a nest was actually what we in the business call canine excrement. It was covered in flies, and when my oldest son walked past, the flies scattered; he assumed the worst and ran.
Needless to say the rest of the family got a kick out of the 'bees nest', and my oldest son still hasn't heard the end of it.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Technological Generation Gap?
We may be witnessing a serious gap in technology. One that spans thegenerations. But I'm not talking about those wacky old people who don't know a bit from a byte. I'm talking about the youth. That's right, people are starting to wonder if these young kids are using technology like they're supposed to.
A recent report gives us some shocking information. Sixteen percent of people on Twitter are under the age of twenty. While twenty percent are older than 55.
What!
That's right, there are more people tweeting about their dentures than there are tweeting about acne medication. Today, kids use technology to goof off. In my day, we used technology to hack into government computers and start fake nuclear wars. Oh, and goof off.
I'm fine with this. I'm part of the 60+ percent of twitter users between the age of 25 and 55. I'm starting to think that my generation, the one labeled only with an X, is the greatest generation when it comes to technology.
But you see, this is a real problem. I write books for kids, and the internet gives me a never-before-seen opportunity to reach an very wide audience. I can write a blog post and it can be seen by millions of people. Ok, it's only seen by a few hundred, but that is not the point.
But all these new-fangled technological ways to reach my audience aren't coming to fruition because my audience is doing things like...reading actual books. Or playing outside. Or talking with other people. What are they thinking?
Think about it. I can post my book as an e-book, and it can be downloaded onto a kindle or iPhone. But I doubt many 10-year-olds have a kindle or iPhone. I can relase it as an audio book, but again, how many of them have mp3 players? Or for that matter, how many of them even have a commute on which to listen to it? I can let them listen or read it right in the browser; but as good as my book is, it's not going to be more interesting that something like...Keyboard Cat. Seriously, now; how am I supposed to compete with a cat in a blue leisure suit? I'm not, that's how.
So, I need a different medium. I need to find a way to get my stories in the hands of my target audience. A medium they are already familiar with. I could try to go the book route, but then I have agents, editors, publishers, and large bookstores standing between me and my audience.
Ah well, back to the drawing board.
A recent report gives us some shocking information. Sixteen percent of people on Twitter are under the age of twenty. While twenty percent are older than 55.
What!
That's right, there are more people tweeting about their dentures than there are tweeting about acne medication. Today, kids use technology to goof off. In my day, we used technology to hack into government computers and start fake nuclear wars. Oh, and goof off.
I'm fine with this. I'm part of the 60+ percent of twitter users between the age of 25 and 55. I'm starting to think that my generation, the one labeled only with an X, is the greatest generation when it comes to technology.
But you see, this is a real problem. I write books for kids, and the internet gives me a never-before-seen opportunity to reach an very wide audience. I can write a blog post and it can be seen by millions of people. Ok, it's only seen by a few hundred, but that is not the point.
But all these new-fangled technological ways to reach my audience aren't coming to fruition because my audience is doing things like...reading actual books. Or playing outside. Or talking with other people. What are they thinking?
Think about it. I can post my book as an e-book, and it can be downloaded onto a kindle or iPhone. But I doubt many 10-year-olds have a kindle or iPhone. I can relase it as an audio book, but again, how many of them have mp3 players? Or for that matter, how many of them even have a commute on which to listen to it? I can let them listen or read it right in the browser; but as good as my book is, it's not going to be more interesting that something like...Keyboard Cat. Seriously, now; how am I supposed to compete with a cat in a blue leisure suit? I'm not, that's how.
So, I need a different medium. I need to find a way to get my stories in the hands of my target audience. A medium they are already familiar with. I could try to go the book route, but then I have agents, editors, publishers, and large bookstores standing between me and my audience.
Ah well, back to the drawing board.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Crowd Source Your Game Design
I find the idea of crowdsourcing interesting. Crouwdsourcing is the idea of getting a large group of people to help you out in a project. You pay them a bit of cash, or give them a promise of possible cash, and they do the work for you. Examples might include the X-Prize, or the Netflix Prize. If you want to get in on the money side of crowdsourcing, you can check out Amazon's Mechanical Turk.
Anyway, I'm a big fan of boardgames, and Days of Wonder, a top notch publisher of some very good games, has either knowingly, or unknowingly, started crowdsourcing their game design. They held a contest to see who could come up with interesting characters in one of their games. One person had such an interesting idea they are making an expansion to the original game.
Maybe we need a few open-source games, just to see what the wisdom of the crowds can come up with.
Image Courtesy of masmad.
Anyway, I'm a big fan of boardgames, and Days of Wonder, a top notch publisher of some very good games, has either knowingly, or unknowingly, started crowdsourcing their game design. They held a contest to see who could come up with interesting characters in one of their games. One person had such an interesting idea they are making an expansion to the original game.Maybe we need a few open-source games, just to see what the wisdom of the crowds can come up with.
Image Courtesy of masmad.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
The New Group
I've had a lot of life changes in the past few months, and those changes have rippled to other aspects of my life. One change is that I've no longer been able to meet with my old critique group. Since I'm staying down in SLC, it's just too hard to go to the meetings.
Through pure chance, I happened to go out for frozen custard at this year's storymaker conference with a great group of folks. I got chatting with a few up and coming writers, and over the months I've exchanged e-mails and followed their blogs. Through the course of the discussion we came up with the idea of starting our own critique group.
Tonight was our first meeting. Or rather, the first time we got together to talk about a book. And that book was mine.
It was a great experience. They started off by telling my how much they loved my book. They went on and on until my neck muscles were straining, trying to keep my big head upright. "Tomorrow," I thought. "Tomorrow I'll have agents beating down my door, trying to get me to sign up with them".
And then they tore my book apart. Not the kind of tearing that makes you give up and feel discouraged, but the kind of straight-to-the-point, useful, hard-to-hear-but-exactly-what-you-need-to-hear kind of tearing. The feedback was incredible. They didn't pull punches, but those punches were precisely placed. Everything they said rang true.
I came away with two things last night. Five talented writers think my book is really good, and five talented writers told me how my book can be even better.
Time to get working.
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