We’re doing the best we can, we’re fixing mistakes. But what happens is — people lie. And then they run to the press and tell people about this oppression, and they get their 15 minutes of fame. We don’t run to the press and say “this guy is a son of a bitch liar!” — we don’t do that.
Steve Jobs’ candid thoughts on ‘app store’ backlash at D8 (via Engadget)
Here’s a little known secret: you can add footnotes to a tumblr blog by switching your Account Preferences to use the Markdown[^1] editor. I looked at Marco’s blog[^2] and, after reviewing the markup, realized there had to be an automatic way to generate his footnote links. After extensive searching to no avail, I realized Markdown Extra[^3] has a few extra syntaxes (like footnotes). Nice!
[^1]: Markdown is my favorite syntax for plain text documents (and now blogging). I use it almost all day at [Crowd Favorite](http://crowdfavorite.com).
[^2]: [Marco](http://marco.org) is the co-founder of Tumblr and a very smart developer.
[^3]: [PHP Markdown Extra](http://michelf.com/projects/php-markdown/extra/) adds all the nicities you sometimes wish [Markdown](http://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/) had.
On multitasking during a conference call:
Well, I sent the client the message. Then I had to send him another one, this time with the attachment I had forgotten to append. Finally, my third email to him explained why that attachment wasn’t what he was expecting. When I eventually refocused on the call, I realized I hadn’t heard a question the Chair of the Board had asked me.
I see this (and do it) on a daily basis. It’s about time to consciously put destructive multitasking to an end.
Most books I read are non-fiction and are related to technology, business, or life in general (much like this blog). The “Sh*t My Dad Says” book was a pleasantly-surprising story of Justin’s life with his irreverent and crass father. I was chuckling and laughing throughout the entire thing. It’s a quick read but if you’re looking for something light, I highly recommend it. It was the first book I read on the iPad using the iBooks app. Overall, I’m pretty pleased with the experience (but I still learn towards the Kindle as the better platform).
No. I will not fan you, your brand, or your blog. I find it funny that quasi-famous bloggers feel the need to create a Facebook ‘Fan’ page for themselves. Sure, many people are well-respected, followed by hundreds of thousands of individuals, and want to interact with them all (Matt Mullenweg and Gary V), but the majority of you do not; a few hundred or few thousand ‘fans’ are worthless (prove me wrong?). Jeff may disagree, but I see no purpose in becoming a ‘fan’ of a friend’s blog, or their brand, or their product, or whatever on Facebook. That only serves that individual’s own ego and their desire to grow some metric that rarely translates to value (monetary, goodwill, etc.). Social media: don’t just do it because everyone else is. (I realize this is not new thinking, but I wanted to publish it so my stance is clear. Feel free to point your friends here when you get a ‘Fan’ request.)
Like Alex, I’ve had a post on NDAs ready to draft up any day now. But many people have said it better than I could: NDAs are, in most cases, unnecessary; as if I had the time or energy to implement your idea, assuming it’s even a good one. As with RFPs, NDAs are often a good litmus test: some of the best projects and ideas come without one.
The folks over at 37signals have put out a request for firms to apply to redesign their blog. This is a simple request with everything I need to evaluate the project: budget, timeline, scope, deliverable, and expectations. All of this is brilliantly captured within 324 words. Every day I wade through 30-slide PowerPoints and 12-page RFPs I truly wish more people were this straightforward. Frankly, in my experience, some of the simplest project requests work out the best.
Whilst the Google Street View snowmobile is incredibly cool and innovative, I worry for the small companies that are building guides, videos, 3D trailmaps, and augmented reality applications for ski resorts. Once Google Maps introduces a new feature, it almost instantly becomes the de facto standard.