Squidoo Boing Boing Challenge

Squidoo is hosting the Boing Boing challenge. Check it out; gifts on standby for winners.

The Persian Garden

San Francisco's Asian Art Museum recently had a film screening on The Persian Garden, which is a behind-the-scenes look at the largest and most ambitious art exhibition in Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

It was a fascinating film, with interviews of renowned Iranian artists about a theme that is paramount to Iranian history and culture: the Persian Garden.

Says one of the narrators: The garden has become Iranian's archetype. And another: the most significant thing about the Persian Garden is order and symmetry.

I vote that there is something magical about a 'garden.' My grandfather taught me this early on; we would plant tomatoes, zucchini, squash and herbs in our own garden as well as on some land nearby.

There's something very settling and relaxing about being so close to the earth.....and watching something you planted grow into something beautiful.

When I moved west, I was dead set on finding a place in the city with a back garden area - a place where you could go to escape urban life, be surrounded by nature and colorful flowers....a haven to think and be inspired.

It was interesting to see a snapshot from another culture's perspective. The Persian Garden is the embodiment of an ideal---a paradise on earth.

The interviews cover footage of artists at work and allowed us to see their creative process, hear what the Persian Garden represents to them, adn the role that these gardens have played in their lives. Live music was performed by Nanos Operetta.

Stirr Mixer for Demos & Networking

New industry pal Sean Ness is starting a new technology mixer in the South Bay that includes product demos and networking. The first of a series will be on April 5, starting at 6 pm with demos starting at 8.

Stirr mixers provide a forum for entrepreneurs from recently-launched startups to present new products and services to their peers, as well as an opportunity for everyone in the community (stealth-mode folk, journalists/bloggers, connectors and investors) to socialize and swap thoughts and ideas.

It will be held at the Fanny and Alexander, 412 Emerson St., Palo Alto.

There will be 3 early stage companies presenting demos on-stage at 8pm. Demos are 420 seconds long. There will also be 2 Demo Tables running during the evening.

Stage Presentations From:
Meetro, Paul Bragiel, CEO
PlaceSite, Sean Savage, CEO
Prosper, Andrew Martinez-Fonts, Prod. Manager

Tango Anyone?

I had an informal Tango lesson last weekend, followed by a discussion about dance, one's connection to dance and how that translates over into your view of the world.

Tango is fascinating, yet as I thought about tango's movement' versus swing, which I've been doing for years, I am still more inspired by swing. Yet, perhaps its because I don't know enough about tango and we naturally gravitate to what we are more accustomed to rather than something which is harder to relate to.

My justification, however was connected to personality and energy, meaning 'swing' says more about who I am as an individual than tango ever could. So I thought.

Swing is all about energy, it's both an 'open and a closed' dance, and is extremely playful, whereas tango is mostly closed and you are nearly always connected at the hip, but torso-to-torso.

My friend Maxwell, who is a top notch west coast swing dancer, has been studying tango for the past three years and while he still loves other forms of dance, he asked me an interesting question.

What other dance is this physically connected, where you can feel the breath and energy of your partner throughout the dance?

Think about it. The waltz perhaps, but it has 'open moments,' and it is harder to 'feel' each movement, even if your partner is a strong leader. Cha-cha and the Rumba are open dances and while Salsa and Samba are connected, they are more rythmic, fast moving and almost at an angle rather than torso-to-torso. (based on my experiences).

So, as I closed my eyes, I quickly learned that I could feel when and where he was going to move me before it happened, mainly due to the ever so subtle energy shifts in his body. Like most experiences that are worth treasuring, when you move your head out of the way, replace it with heart and simplicity, the experience moves from great to truly remarkable.

The first word that came to mind was deliberate. Rather than dishing me move after move (for techies, I could replace this with feature after feature), the tango experience seemed to be more about 'movement' rather than the move.

In other words, walk me 'deliberately' and 'passionately' around the room; the combined experience is remarkable.

With grace and intelligence, and at times, precision. Without exchanging a word, I can read you, feel you, understand you. Yes, remarkable.

While there's definitely a rush to feeling the spray rise above me as my slalom ski cuts into the water below me, and feeling the snow hit me on both sides as I speed down a mountain, dance is without a doubt, the art that reminds me what it means to 'feel alive' more than anything else I've ever experienced.

Waves In Your Life

Have you ever read a Mitch Albom book or listened to one of his radio shows?

From the author in "Tuesdays with Morrie", Morrie told a story about waves, and how when they hit the shore they ceased to exist - unless you realized that, in truth, they weren't really waves at all, they part of the ocean.

Morrie saw himself that way, as part of something connected to a bigger humanity. The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a well known 'read' that suggests we're all connected to each other in ways we don't even realize, and that perhaps, when your life is over, you may discover other "waves" in the ocean that you affected without even knowing it.

Tech Journalism Webinar

Check out a free webinar event on what the top technology media have to say about 'what's next in tech." Tune in online Friday, March 31 at 12:00 pm noon EST.

Journalists will cover what topics do they see on the horizon, what kind of responsibility do they feel to educate businesses and the public, and how did they get where they are today to have their ideas and opinions sought after in the marketplace.

Panelists include:
Walt Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal, Personal Technology Columnist
Steven Wildstrom, BusinessWeek, Technology & You Columnist
Kevin Maney, USA Today, Cyberspeak Columnist
Rob Pegoraro, The Washington Post, Technology Fast Forward Columnist
Stephanie Stahl, Streaming Media (formerly of InformationWeek), Editor-in-Chief

Moderator - Mark Bisnow, Publisher, Bisnow on Business newsletters

The Making of a Guitar

A friend announces that a guitar is being designed for him and is currently in progress. I never thought of a 'before and after photo' of the birth of a guitar before.

Companies Building the Next Web

Client Sharpcast is included in a Newsweek round-up of companies who are 'building the next web," by Brad Stone and Steven Levy.

They end with this: "Ultimately, Thomas hopes to integrate Sharpcast into every software application, so that users never have to think about backing up files or synchronizing devices again."

GuideWire Group Launches I of Innovation

GuideWire Group is starting a podcasting initiative. They announced the I of Innovation today, a new, weekly podcast talk show that dives deeply into the ecosystem of emerging technology markets.

Based on a series of recurring themes, they plan to introduce the entrepreneurs who are leading teams and trends, profile top venture and investment experts, and deliver insights and analysis. They're starting with Palm and moving forward, they will also offer audio whitepapers focusing on key markets and corporate trends.

Higher Prices, Less Service

I swore I would never fly Frontier Airlines again after four back-to-back experiences that range from lousy customer service and delayed flights to lost luggage and everything in between.

When United cancelled a recent flight to Denver, I was stuck on a direct flight to SFO. I sat there thinking of itunes……everyone still complains about inappropriate pricing for music downloads, yet people still indulge big players like Apple and others by paying for it.

We’re such an immediate culture that we must have things early, so much so that we pay for it in the long run. If we waited and didn’t download at prices they dictate early in the game, they would be forced to respond to the market.

But, since we’re all about ‘NOW,’ we are being rewarded with rising prices, declining customer support and a country full of mediocrity, strip malls, fast food chains, large bland apartment complexes with less and less amenities, not to mention department stores that look and feel the same nationwide.

A few examples worth thinking about:

For older tunes, I used to be able to buy a single for cheaper than I can today….hmmm, I could be wrong but isn’t there more cost involved with going through the middle guys? A retail chain? The packaging? Today, I pay the same price regardless of the age of the song.

Then there's the wonderful experience we've all had buying technology and electronics products? I could write a book about one HP experience alone. And dealing with the maze of SBC Global’s and Comcast’s customer service is enough to send anyone into therapy.

On my Frontier flight, there’s a cool mini-screen in the seat in front of me, you know, similar to the ones that non-American owned Virgin Airlines offer their customers for free. They offer a ton of compelling content and I leave the flight feeling ‘taken care of,’ the feeling you'd hope your customers would feel after ever corporate exchange.

On Frontier and many other airlines, they charge you for what you view. If I want to watch TV, its $5 a pop, to see a movie, its an outrageous $8, higher than on-demand in the comfort of your own home without the interruptions and double what airlines were charging for headphones.

United is now offering their movie service for free and yet Frontier, a lower quality airline (in my opinion) gets away with charging each person $13 a pop should they choose to watch a movie and TV after the movie, which is what many people do on a longer flight.

Am I missing something here or is this "just plain wrong?

While flights in the 60s and 70s were slightly higher than they are today, travel was a great experience. Airlines would give you socks, a branded deck of cards and pens, a hot meal with real silverware, drinks on the house, free movies and fabulous customer service.

While they have clearly taken a hit post 9/11, the financial knock isn’t the only issue here. Customer service began declining long before 9/11.

Today, our travel experience goes something like this: if a flight is delayed or cancelled, instead of a Sorry, what can we do to help?, the customer is made to feel guilty for asking them to fix the problem. Sometimes, its as easy as “I’m so sorry about the cancellation, we’re going to do whatever we can to accommodate you on another flight or give you a voucher…..or something.

My modern enhanced traveling experience offers me a couple of boxed choices to eat, full of chips, cheese that doesn’t resemble cheese, crackers, peanuts, a cookie and something else that is processed, like the rest of the box. I then have to pay for a movie and the prices to view keep going up, service is worse than its ever been, most flights are crammed because of consolidation and there’s definitely no freebees of any kind. It makes me feel ‘special’ – a customer they want to keep.

Am I missing something or is this "just plain wrong?

My choices on the thruway are McDonalds, McDonalds and McDonalds. More processed food.

When I looked for a flat, agents took a cut yet I did all the legwork. When I sold a house, agents took a cut and yet, I did the bulk of the work once again. Whatever happened to real service?

Am I missing something or is this "just plain wrong?

I have been using Microsoft Word for over a dozen years. Word and other applications have added a lot more complexity but not more beneficial features that help me reduce my time spent on my PC or increase my productivity. Frankly, I found Word ten years ago easier to use than I do today.

At a recent geek fest, I asked six engineers a ‘format’ question and none of them knew the answer or could figure it out. And I should? Did I mention that I use the exact same features in Word today than I did ten years ago. Why add more complexity and features? Simplifying my experience would be a godsend. Microsoft, do you ever listen?

Speaking of complexity, does anyone own an Olympus digital camera? While I love my 5x zoom and the design of its exterior, learning how to adjust the settings is so complicated that you would need the guy you created it to make it work.

At another recent geek fest, I couldn’t find one person out of 13 engineering types who could figure out how to change the camera defaults. All I wanted to do is lower the resolution size and it will not -- for some odd quirky reason -- default to a lower resolution despite my changing it in settings.

Two hours on the phone waiting for Olympus tech support and I still don’t have this resolved.

Am I missing something or is this "just plain wrong?

If we – the consumer – don’t stand up for how we deserve to be treated and what we should pay for something, who will?