Google Chrome Experiment with Arcade Fire

On a recent road trip, I became entranced by the new Arcade Fire album, The Suburbs.  After listening to the creative and evocative tracks, I was even more excited to see the song "We Used to Wait" brought to life in Chris Milk's Google Chrome experiment, The Wilderness Downtown.

Photo credit: The Wilderness Downtown

The Globe and Mail's article on the experiment, "Plug in your postal code and pull out a hankie" aptly describes the nostalgia and sense of awe one gets from seeing her neighbourhood in the video.

While the Google Chrome experiment's use of many browser pop-ups can prove somewhat annoying and un-user-friendly, it's still worth catching out this interactive online music video.

Handling Bad Press

In my Blogging for Business and Non-Profits course this weekend, there was some discussion about how to handle bad press.  Air Canada recently faced fierce Twitter rage with this story:

Air Canada fixes wheelchair; Family credits viral outrage

Photo credit: the Globe and Mail

I think that this Globe and Mail article on the 5 Social Media Lessons for Air Canada shows the importance of making your social media timely and relevant, especially when facing "Twitter rage" from your customers.

Rule number one: don't abandon your Twitter or other social media account.

Blogging for Business Resources

I'm really excited to be teaching a course on Blogging for Business and Non-Profits for the Faculty of Extension this weekend.

Here are a few great resources I've found on the topic:

Introduction to Blogs

• Clay, R. (2008, May 15). 5 reasons your business needs a blog from Fast Company.
• Common Craft. (2007, November 30). Blogs in plain English. 
• Common Craft. (2008, May 28). Social media in plain English.  
• Des Jardins, J. (2005, Aug 1). Business blogging for beginners from Fast Company.  
• Yao, P. (2010, July 6). The art of business blogging from Today Online.

Basic Web 2.0 Features & Functions

• Google. (2007, May 11). Blogger: How to start a blog 
• Google. (n.d.). Blogger help.
• Madia, S.A. (2010, August 16). Five social media land mines companies must avoid from The Globe and Mail. 

Effectively Using Blog Technologies 

• Nielsen, J. (1997, October 1). How users read on the web. 
• Bellamkonda, S. (2010, July 6). How to blog effectively to market your small business from Small Business Trends. 
• Brooks, R. (2010, May 10). A blog won’t help your business from Fast Company.

Blog Technology How-To

• Gunelius, S. (2010, July 5). How to use your business blog to get people talking about your brand from The Business Insider. 
• Steinberg, S. (2010, May 3). 10 ways for your business to make headlines from The Business Insider.

Evaluating Your Blog

• Brooks, R. (2009, Aug 20). 25 ways to promote and market your blog from Fast Company.
• Cowgill, D. (2009, January 29). How to install Google Analytics on Blogger.
• Carr, N. (2006, July 18). Lessons in corporate blogging from Bloomberg Businessweek.

iPad circa 1988

The buzz surrounding Apple's iPad continues to grow, especially since it's become available in Canada this week. Reportedly, Apple's surpassed the 2 million mark in iPad sales. But is this really the "game-changer" people are touting it to be?

Photo credit: Rego on Creative Commons

It's amazing to think back to the roots of the tablet -- it's worth reading Harry McCracken's post on "The iPad. Of 2000. As Envisioned in 1988," in which he compares what some keen, contest-winning students in the late 80s told Apple a tablet launched in the year 2000 should do.

This Youtube video on Project 2000 (1988) from Apple is worth revisiting:


After reading McCraken's article, I can't help but still ponder whether the iPad is truly the "game-changer" that many imagine it to be. Sure, it looks cool -- the large screen is certainly a great asset for eBooks and eReading, amongst other things.

But, in 2010, long after the y2K mark, does the iPad really deliver on the tablet promise?

Video: The End of Publishing (?)

Worth watching and very creative -- too much said here might give it all away, but I recommend taking a look.

Dancing with a Machine

Here's a little something that might spark reflection on creativity and technology for the week's end:


Can you imagine the concept map that went behind the plans for this machine? Doesn't it make you think of a life-sized version of the game mouse trap (did you play that game as a kid?)?

The WIRED article How OK Go’s Amazing Rube Goldberg Machine Was Built is interesting too, and points out that this was done in a single, unbroken shot. There are also some interesting points about YouTube and the music label's views on this kind of online distribution.

Study Bus?

CC attribution: image by Allie_Caufield

When I ride the Red Arrow coach down to Calgary, I love the fact that there is wireless on-board. Now, a new initiative in Arizona is letting students study during their commute:

Wi-Fi Turns Rowdy Bus Into Rolling Study Hall

It's a nice change to see pictures of students quietly studying on their laptops -- many of the usual iPod/smartphone shots focus on excessive student multitasking (and I'm not saying they're always wrong...). It's refreshing to instead focus on the quiet study time that devices like laptops can foster.

Digital Curators

Digital curating -- sifting through the pieces of our technology puzzle...

Image from the George Eastman House Flickr Photostream

A colleague passed along an article called "The Content Strategist as Digital Curator" by Erin Scime (December, 2009). I like the term "digital curator" for people who work with digital artifacts of all kinds, since so much of our culture is now online and/or digitized.

There seems to be great possibility in using the curatorial process in our Information Age, when there is such a glut of online information -- it's difficult to sift through it all, but perhaps considering the value of how as well as what we curate as digital artifacts will help us make meaningful connections.

Open Access Concept Map, OERs

Laura Briggs has posted a comphrehensive concept map illustrating connections in Open Access initiatives. I recommend checking it out.

I'll be presenting with Richard Hayman at the upcoming Alberta Libraries Conference on Open Education Resources (OERs) and libraries -- ALC 2010 promises to have an interesting program.