Friends, I know many of you know that I am moving to Chicago in September for a few months. Now that everything is in place I am delighted to announce that I will be working on Barack Obamarsquo;s campaign! Irsquo;m not quite sure exactly what Irsquo;ll be doing down there yet, it could range to anything from blog strategy to community building. Irsquo;ll post more info as I get it, but all I know is Irsquo;ll be right in there at headquarters!

Itrsquo;s going to be pretty awesome: new city, new friends, new project, new experiences, heck- Irsquo;ve even got a new roommate! Hilarity is bound to ensue. Irsquo;m inviting all of you to come on this trip with me as I tweet, blog, and Facebook my way towards one of the most historic US presidential elections.

Disclaimer: I have to confess that part of my reason for embarking on this adventure is the pursuit of what Irsquo;m pretty sure is the HOLY GRAIL of Facebook profile pictures. WILL I ACHIEVE THIS GOAL?

Stay tuned to find out!!

Obama surpasses Kevin Rose on Twitter

Wired reports that Barack Obama has surpassed Digg founder Kevin Rose as Twitterrsquo;s most followed person. Over 56,000 follow the tweet updates from the campaign, and more are expected as the announcement of Obamarsquo;s running mate is announced.

In celebration, I also give a ldquo;well playedrdquo; to the guy who made this video. Well played sir, well played.

ldquo;Unnecessary Quotationsrdquo;

My friend Dan Smith over at Smithereenrsquo;s Blog shared this with me the other day. Itrsquo;s a blog that tracks and shares the wonder of people who use unnecessary quotations. Itrsquo;s laugh out loud funny, and I can see this becoming the next stuff white people like.

A sample:

]]> Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:08:00 EDT http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/459037 43.6666667 -79.4166667 43.6666667 -79.4166667 http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/457263 I was on CBCrsquo;s Arts amp; Culture show Q a a few weeks ago talking about technology and its impact on youth. It took me a while to figure out how to splice the hour long podcast into the easy listening piece for your enjoyment. And, Irsquo;ve been told Irsquo;ve gone over my bandwidth in terms of uploading images for the month, so until I get it resolved, itrsquo;s going to be ugly text posts. Sad, I know, but we all face these challenges in life and we just have keep going and persevere.

Apparently, according to Professor Mark Bauerlein technology is making Gen Y dumber, and hersquo;s not holding any punches when it comes to saying so. Herersquo;s the description of his book ldquo;The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Donrsquo;t Trust Anyone Under 30.):

For decades, concern has been brewing about the dumbed-down popular culture available to young people and the impact it has on their futures. At the dawn of the digital age, many believed they saw a hopeful answer: The Internet, e-mail, blogs, and interactive and hyper-realistic video games promised to yield a generation of sharper, more aware, and intellectually sophisticated children. The terms “information superhighway” and “knowledge economy” entered the lexicon, and we assumed that teens would use their knowledge and understanding of technology to set themselves apart as the vanguards of this new digital era.

That was the promise. But the enlightenment didn’t happen. The technology that was supposed to make young adults more astute, diversify their tastes, and improve their verbal skills has had the opposite effect. According to recent reports, most young people in the United States do not read literature, visit museums, or vote. They cannot explain basic scientific methods, recount basic American history, name their local political representatives, or locate Iraq or Israel on a map. The Dumbest Generation is a startling examination of the intellectual life of young adults and a timely warning of its consequences for American culture and democracy.

Drawing upon exhaustive research, personal anecdotes, and historical and social analysis, Mark Bauerline presents an uncompromisingly realistic portrait of the young American mind at this critical juncture, and lays out a compelling vision of how we might address its deficiencies.

In short my arguments:

1) Technology is a neutral tool

Blaming technology for a generationrsquo;s ignorance makes no sense. Technology is not by itself inherently good or evil. It all depends on the intent of the person using it. Someone could go online, surf only celebrity gossip sites, watch endless videos of skateboarding accidents on YouTube, bully their classmates online and then call it a day. In comparison, another person could go online, read interesting opinions from thought leaders all over the world, catch up on news events, engage in lively debates and strengthen friendships. Itrsquo;s the same internet people, and blaming it is pretty illogical.

2) Blanket statements donrsquo;t make friends

Now, Irsquo;m not arguing that our generation faces immense challenges. In an era of education budget cuts and an evolving technological landscape, there are some of us (a third in fact) that are struggling. That being said, to blanket an entire generation with one derogatory term is not only an insult, but itrsquo;s small minded and petty. Itrsquo;s like calling all boomers sellouts or all Gen Xers disaffected. Gen Y is the largest demographic since the baby boomers, and the worldrsquo;s first global generation. Wersquo;re complex.

3) That evil rock and roll

Every generation seems to think those coming after it are crazy, lost and stupid. Itrsquo;s natural. Sure maybe the majority of kids arenrsquo;t going to museum but which Boomers did that when they were 16? Furthermore, the web has created a platform for unprecedented levels of collaboration and creativity. Social networking platforms are being leveraged to mobilize youth around issues such as climate change or the US presidential elections.

What do you think?

There are some interesting points on both sides, and you can listen to the interview here:

RahafHarfoush-TheFoushReportsAreWeTheDumbestGeneration759.mp3.

My Two Cents

Personally, while I welcome all viewpoints, I found it a little hard to take him seriously when he kept referring to ldquo;social networkingrdquo; as thought it was a cult that eats babies and worships the devil. Clearly he had never actually been on Facebook or MySpace and had simply made a bunch of assumptions based on technology he didnrsquo;t really understand. Which is a shame.

So Mark, if you read this and want a tour of MY web, let me know. Irsquo;d be more then happy to show you the interesting people, great debates and creative sites that I visit.

Update: When I posted this on twitter I forgot the link! LOL. Irsquo;m hoping that the ability to laugh at ourselves is a sign of maturity and intelligence otherwise, wersquo;re all in trouble.

Oh China, where do I even begin? In the first ever Foush triple whammy, China is not in my good books this week.

1) Faking fireworks with CGI

Some of the fireworks viewed in the television footage were computer generated images. The thought behind this move was that the real fireworks (that did go off live) wouldnrsquo;t translate appropriately on camera so the Chinese government took the liberty of ldquo;enhancingrdquo; our video experience.

2) Replacing cute Asian little girl with CUTER Asian little girl

It was also discovered that the little girl singing the above song in the Opening Ceremonies was actually lipsynching to the voice of another little girl who was deemed by a Chinese official as not having the ldquo;right look.rdquo; Her cheeks were too chubby and her teeth were too crooked, so she was replaced at the last minute by a cuter little girl. This is really awful. I thought they were both cute, and did not approve of the superficiality of that stupid decision. That poor little girl. I wonder what shersquo;s going to happen to her self-image when shersquo;s old enough (if she isnrsquo;t already) to realize that she didnrsquo;t have ldquo;the look.rdquo; Or the message that move sends to the millions of other little girls that donrsquo;t have that ldquo;right lookrdquo; either. In an era where women are already hyper-aware of their image, this decision could have some sad consequences.

3) Deporting Bloggers

As mentioned in my previous post, Noneck, a video blogger was deported from the country after capturing a protest in Tienanmen square.

Am I the only one really disturbed by these events? I know China is under tremendous pressure and scrutiny from the world especially in regards to their human rights record, but honestly, faking it/sweeping it under the rug only serves to highlight the issue. Even small incidents can hugely detract from other positive efforts. The internet is a place of transparency and openness. Itrsquo;s not as easy to fool people anymore, and with all eyes on you, you can bet someone is going to notice if yoursquo;re up to no good.

Coke

Coke employees fired for following managementrsquo;s instructions

Shel Holtz recently shed light on a really bizarre situation happening over at Coke, not to mention hugely questionable management decisions.

I quote:

According to workers who got the ax, they had been asked by management to participate in the ”My Coke Rewards” promotion, that lets registered consumers exchange points for merchandise. The outreach to employees was designed to boost a disappointing number of visits to the promotion’s website. More visits would lead to higher search visibility and more attention. Frank Grant, an 11-year employee, said the request came about six months after the program was launched, when employees were expressly told not to take part in it.

When the company changed its mind and asked employees to help boost site traffic, nobody bothered to point out the fine print, which said employees were not allowed to accumulate more than 2,000 points in a year. When Grant became aware of the limit—which he had exceeded—he offered to return the merchandise he’d acquired or pay the company its value. Instead, he was offered the choice to resign or get fired.

If yoursquo;re scratching your head, yoursquo;re not the only one. You read it right: Coke asked employees to participate in a contest, employees unknowingly accumulated too many points, they offered to give them back since they were following management orders in the first place, and were told to either resign or get fired. Once again, Coke has spectacularly demonstrated itrsquo;s lack of understanding of not only social media, but of treating its workers (some of whom have been with the company for over a decade) with respect and dignity.

When he was spotted filming the protest, he found himself shoved up against the wall and detained by Chinese security. Five hours later he was deported, with the flight home credited on his credit card courtesy of the Chinese Police. Here is his video below, which already has over forty thousand views. As you can see, the protest seems pretty tame with some of the other events that have unfolded over there, but apparently, it was enough to make the Chinese police nervous.

I had the chance to speak with Noel about his experiences, particularly the four hours spent with Chinese police officials (the topic of human rights comes up) as well as some rather odd technological glitches that have plagued him since his return. His Facebook and twitter updates have been mysteriously replaced with some cryptic codes.

Some notes before you view:

1) This is raw footage, I was going to play around with it and make it all shiny and new, but I chose to upload the information in a timely manner instead. So apologies in advance for the gritty quality that is iChat.

2) Itrsquo;s a bit long at just under 13 minutes, but I also wanted to dig deeper into some questions that would not have been addressed by other sources. I think Noelrsquo;s story is an excellent highlight of the situation over in China that is getting glossed over in favor of Olympic news, and thatrsquo;s itrsquo;s really important to educate ourselves about the state of human rights in countries all over the world.

If anything, this incident shows me the actual scope of how important it is for China to keep these incidents under wraps- a troubling realization. Wersquo;re all on this rock in space together, so we might as well make an effort to make the ride more pleasant for everyone.

Ironically, once again it seems that trying to suppress an issue will in fact, only highlight it. I wonder how many of us would have seen the protest video had Noel NOT been deported?

When he was spotted filming the protest, he found himself shoved up against the wall and detained by Chinese security. Five hours later he was deported, with the flight home credited on his credit card courtesy of the Chinese Police. Here is his video below, which already has over forty thousand views. As you can see, the protest seems pretty tame with some of the other events that have unfolded over there, but apparently, it was enough to make the Chinese police nervous.

I had the chance to speak with Noel about his experiences, particularly the four hours spent with Chinese police officials (the topic of human rights comes up) as well as some rather odd technological glitches that have plagued him since his return. His Facebook and twitter updates have been mysteriously replaced with some cryptic codes.

Some notes before you view:

1) This is raw footage, I was going to play around with it and make it all shiny and new, but I chose to upload the information in a timely manner instead. So apologies in advance for the gritty quality that is iChat.

2) Itrsquo;s a bit long at just under 13 minutes, but I also wanted to dig deeper into some questions that would not have been addressed by other sources. I think Noelrsquo;s story is an excellent highlight of the situation over in China that is getting glossed over in favor of Olympic news, and thatrsquo;s itrsquo;s really important to educate ourselves about the state of human rights in countries all over the world.

If anything, this incident shows me the actual scope of how important it is for China to keep these incidents under wraps- a troubling realization. Wersquo;re all on this rock in space together, so we might as well make an effort to make the ride more pleasant for everyone.

Ironically, once again it seems that trying to suppress an issue will in fact, only highlight it. I wonder how many of us would have seen the protest video had Noel NOT been deported?

Now Irsquo;ve never been to Chicago and was faced with the daunting task of figuring out a place to live, etc. Thankfully, the Internet came to my rescue, and I found some pretty great sites that I thought Irsquo;d pass along to anyone who finds themselves destined for an unfamiliar city.

Irsquo;m going to be writing about my experiences in moving to a new city in terms of leveraging social media to find a place, meet new people, get informed, etc. So stay tuned for more of those posts as we get closer to September, Irsquo;ll be tagging them with ldquo;My 2.0 Liferdquo;

1) Housing Maps.com

A great mash-up combining Craigrsquo;s List with Google Maps. You can filter search results by price and search for properties to rent or buy. This was how I found my new place within a few days. For someone who doesnrsquo;t know the geography of a city that well, this is a great insurance policy to ensure yoursquo;re not responding to an ad thatrsquo;s out in the boonies somewhere, and saves you the effort of having to Google Map each individual listing.

2) WalkScore.com - The Search for a walkable neighbourhood

Since I wonrsquo;t have a car in Chicago, it was important for me to find a place that had all the amenities I needed close by. Herersquo;s how it works: you input your address and it calculates the ldquo;walkabilityrdquo; based on the availability of nearby stores, restaurants, bookstores, cafes, schools amp; parks. Scores range from Car Dependent to Walkerrsquo;s paradise, and the map helpfully points out all the amenities by name and distance.

A neat feature about this mash-up is you can use Googlersquo;s Street view to virtually check out your new digs. Especially useful for those of us that canrsquo;t go down beforehand in real life.

3. Chicago Explorer

This one is city-specific but Irsquo;m sure similar things exist for whatever city yoursquo;re looking for. Irsquo;ve been really impressed by how some realtors have upped their game in terms of providing potential buyers with the right information needed to make a decision. This mash-up contains the city of Chicago with various options that you can overlay on the map including transit routes, hospitals, pharmacies and more. It also provides some great demographic maps that break down the types of people living there (young professionals vs. families)

I also found a great Google Map showing the Chicago with an overlay of neighborhood boundaries. This helped me out as it gave me a visual idea of the different areas within each city.

4) Every block - Crime Mash Up

Again, you can find these for pretty much any city (Everyblock also has maps for SF, Charlotte, New York City and Philadelphia) but Chicago was one of the first cities to do this, and very helpful for a certain New Media Maverick in making sure she stays out of Murderville and finds a nice place in Hipamp;Ecclectic Town. It was a pretty close call actually, I was about to choose a place and then I realized that there had been a little too many murders/assaults/robberies/house invasions for my liking.

5) Walk/Jog/Run

Another Google Mashup if you like to walk/run/jog or in my case stroll/skip/saunter this is a great site that can help you find the best routes. You can map your own route or check out routes that other people have created. It even has a nifty distance filter that lets you pick search for routes that are a particular distance.

I think this would make a great Foush Reports Episode! Maybe Irsquo;ll have some time to shoot it tomorrow, wersquo;ll see.

Herersquo;s the latest installment of CommandN with my friend Amber Mac.

Direct Downloads

• H.264*


• MPEG4


• iPod Video


• AVI


• WMV


• MP3

headLINES

• NBC takes the Olympics online
  
  


• Paris Hilton for President?
  
  


• Sweet deal for Daily Candy


• Sony bets on Rocketboom
  
  


• Wifi in the sky


• Twitter targeted by malware attacks
  
  

techTIPS

• YamiPod


• Senuti


• Winamp iPod Plugin


• Lifehacker

webPICKS

• Freedom


• cookthink

Last week, Canadians were shocked to hear about the tragic death of Tim McLean, 22, who was on a Greyhound bus headed to Winnipeg when he was attacked and beheaded by another passenger. I was particularly chilled by this crime as during my university years I frequently commuted on Greyhound buses, and like McLean would get on the bus, turn on my iPod and catch a snooze.

The PETA ad (seen below) compares McLeanrsquo;s slashed throat with the slaughter of animals. I, personally think this was bad taste, and while shock value is often effective in catching consumersrsquo; attention, this time it was coupled with deeply negative associations with the PETA brand.

What to do you think?

Herersquo;s some more to think about it. Thanks to the vast knowledge base of Twitter, someone sent me this link that shows a similar stunt being pulled down in the states, which makes me realize that this isnrsquo;t just a bad call on the part of a communications manager, but a really poorly thought out strategy.

Is this a case of any publicity is good publicity? Or is the lack of sensitivity to this case overshadowing the cause they are trying to promote?

My thoughts and prayers are with Timrsquo;s family.

As usual, I had a really fun time, and there are some funny outtakes at the end. Enjoy!!

H.264* Direct Download (*BEST QUALITY DOWNLOAD)

MPEG4 Direct Download

iPod Video Direct Download

AVI Direct Download

WMV Direct Download

headLINES

Cuil launches

Perspectv uses top web apps

An earthquake on Twitter

Scrabulous

Dr. Horrible

Your biz trip to social media experience

hotSTUFF

Drobo

webPICKS

Alltop

JibJab

Thanks to Amber and Will to let me come out and play with the CommandN team.

This video is great because it letrsquo;s you upload a picture of yourself which gets turned into a character in the clip! So use it, and send it to all of your friends, especially around November time!

What do you think about this video?

The thing Irsquo;ve realized is that while we may disagree on a lot of things, our overall impressions of these last 8 years is pretty much the same. Someone over on Twitter sent me a link, depicting Anti-Bush graffiti in over 25 countries.

I guess wersquo;re not all that different after all.

It was a great learning opportunity, and definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone, which is a good thing.  This video is for Adam Montandon who reminded me to post this video in a timely manner and to Richard from Edmonton who was nice enough to give me some great advice.

So Irsquo;ve been trying them out for the last few days and I have to say, itrsquo;s definitely changed the way I look at my iPod. They are a great device for techies as well as early adopters who want to get a jump start on the future of portable video viewing. Irsquo;m not going to spend a lot of time regurgitating specs and what not, you can find that information here.

Instead, Irsquo;m going to talk about my experience with the device and my overall thoughts.

Things I liked:

One of the biggest complaints Irsquo;ve heard about the video iPod (and similar devices) is the inability to truly enjoy watching movies on such a little screen. Even TV shows can be a bit of a strain on the eyes. These viewers readily tackle the problem by providing a bigger screen and surround sound. I definitely see a lot of potential as the technology improves. I watched three movies on the viewer and after a short initial adjustment period, I was completely used to them and enjoying the videos.

The device is light weight and easy to carry around, which is a huge plus since Irsquo;m usually a little tight on purse space, lol.

The pictures were bright and the sound was crystal clear, and thanks to the sample media reel that came with my device I was able to see a wide variety of footage from an animated movie (The Incredibles) to television episodes and sports.

I also liked that you can plug these bad boys into any video iPod or portable dvd player. I tried it out on several of my devices and it worked flawlessly each time.

Battery life was more than I expected, I watch almost eight hours before having to recharge the unit.

The Glasses sit on your face in a way that lets you still see your complete surroundings, which is great because you can use them on the subway without being worried about missing your stop or becoming unaware whatrsquo;s going on around you.

Things I didnrsquo;t like:

There were a lot of wires, which made it annoying at times, and when connected to by Classic Video iPod the entire system seemed a little clunky. Itrsquo;s not the worst flaw in the world, and you easily adapt, but Irsquo;m hoping the next few iterations will include a wireless set, because that would be awesome and way more convenient.

I would have also liked to have been able to adjust the glasses. Apparently, my head is a little small, and I would have preferred a tighter fit. Maybe thatrsquo;s just personal preference and Irsquo;m being too picky, either way Irsquo;m just giving you all a heads-up. (Pun unintended, although thoroughly enjoyed.)

You canrsquo;t really walk around with them unless you want to be called Gordi Laforge, which depending on your perspective might be the best or worst thing ever.

Overall yoursquo;ll like these ifhellip;.

If you travel a lot, or have a long commute to work (note: NOT WHILE DRIVING) then this might be a good investment for you since it really heightens the enjoyment of watching videos on smaller devices. I really liked test unit and am currently debating getting my own set because I often find the selection of movies available when I travel to be limited, and the last time I watched Sex and the City on a plane, the guy next to me kept looking at my screen during the umhellip;intimate parts, and it made me uncomfortable! Irsquo;m sure he thought I was watching porn or something, lol.

If yoursquo;re a college student who has to share a dorm, or travel from school to home, these are great as you can watch movies in bed without disturbing your roommate. If you wanted to be really practical (aka nerdy) you can upload your teacherrsquo;s powerpoint presentations on to your itunes and use it to review your class material! And from personal experience, itrsquo;s less clunky than watching a movie on your laptop and the battery life is way better.

I also discovered an interesting and untapped demographic: senior citizens. I showed the unit to my 86 year old grandfather and he loved it so much he almost wouldnrsquo;t give it back! The screen allowed him to view content without having to squint and ear buds let him listen at volume 1000 without driving the rest of us up a wall.

All in all, a very solid effort by MyVu, and Irsquo;m really excited to see what they come up with next! I canrsquo;t wait to get a pair!

Specs:

]]> Wed, 23 Jul 2008 10:07:00 EDT http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/437521 43.6666667 -79.4166667 43.6666667 -79.4166667 http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/431917 A friend of mine just sent this video my way, and Irsquo;m ever so glad he did! I get really excited whenever TV genius Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly) comes up with anything because it is unfailingly witty and funny while still being a social commentary.

Itrsquo;s called Dr. Horrible, and itrsquo;s a three act video series made specifically for the internet. Each act is around ten minutes long and star the incredibly adorable Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day. Harris is Dr. Horrible, a low-rated super villain whorsquo;s attempts to be inducted into the League of Evil is continually thwarted by his nemesis Hammer Man. Hersquo;s also working up the courage to talk to Penny, his laundromat crush.

Oh yeah: THERE IS SINGING! Awesome.

Herersquo;s the trailer:

Changing Show Business:

Herersquo;s where it gets interesting. The content has been made available for free for now, but as of tonight at midnight, yoursquo;ll have to buy them off of iTunes if you want to watch them. Each act costs $2.  Whedon came up with idea during the writerrsquo;s strike, as he was frustrated by the current system which circumvents a writerrsquo;s ability to create, publish and share professional content.  He started looking for a new way, and this is apparently part of his exploration.

He says :

It is time for us to change the face of Show Business as we know it. You know the old adage, “It’s Show Business – not Show Friends”? Well now it’s Show Friends. We did that. To Show Business. To show Show Business we mean business. (Also, there are now other businesses like it.)

Welcome to Hollywood 2.0!

The age of show friends is the next wave of creativity as professionals begin to embrace the content creation and distribution platforms available to everyone online. Personally, I also feel that despite the billions of videos available online, there is really a demand for well-written, well-produced pieces specifically made for the web. That means shorter videos, smaller budgets but all the creativity and humor you can jam pack in there.

The Foush Says:

Please support Joss and donrsquo;t pirate this content! $6 is what you would pay for a coffee and muffin at starbucks and is a small price to pay in helping to change a closed industry for the better. I have been a ldquo;Whedonistardquo; ever since I discovered Buffy the Vampire slayer back in 1997, and Joss has not led me astray once!

Irsquo;ve watched all the content and am still going to purchase it as a show of support. Letrsquo;s vote with our wallets and help Joss out!  Show Friends sounds much nicer than Show Business doesnrsquo;t it?

You can find the necessary links here: www.Drhorrible.com

]]> Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:07:00 EDT http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/431917 43.6666667 -79.4166667 43.6666667 -79.4166667 http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/428901

Hi All!

I know yoursquo;ve probably noticed a Irsquo;ve been a little lax in my posting, and yoursquo;d be right! Thanks to those who emailed, it kicked my butt into gear! Just wanted to let you know that the regular post frequency will resume in a few days! Irsquo;ve been really busy wrapping up research for Leonard Brodyrsquo;s book ldquo;Everything I Needed to Know about Business I Learned from a Canadian.rdquo;

Man, is it shaping up to be a cool book! Wersquo;re doing the last of the interviews right now and I am finding them so interesting, that Irsquo;ve been wrapped up in the process and neglecting my blogging a little

I had a really good chat with Craig Kielburger founder of Free the Children about Non-Profits and the necessary changes we need to make in order to live in a more ethical world. He really blew me away with his vision, and I canrsquo;t wait to share (in a few weeks) his insights on what businesses can do RIGHT NOW to make the world a better place.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Craig, he started Free the Children, the largest organization of children helping children when he was 12, after reading a story about a young boy in Pakistan who had been murdered for speaking up against slavery.

Wersquo;re also going to talk to Graydon Carter, Editor in Chief of Vanity Fair about the social values around reporting on issues when the media landscape is owned by a few key players. In particular, Graydonrsquo;s choice to use his voice as Editor in Chief to speak out against the Bush Administration even when it was unpopular to do so. He has diligently researched and recorded some of the atrocities committed by this government against the environment, womenrsquo;s rights, and health care. Irsquo;m really looking forward to what he has to say.

So Irsquo;ll be posting every other day, and then will be back to my daily routine in no time!

I hope yoursquo;re enjoying the summer!!

NanoGaming is a technology platform that lets viewers interact with live television and steaming video. Basically if yoursquo;re watching a certain show, you log on to the portal via your computer and  instantly join a live community of other users who are watching the show at the same time as you. You can meet new people via chat,  answer trivia questions, predict whatrsquo;s going to happen next, and test your memory recall. The questions and answers are live and flow with the content. So if yoursquo;re watching a game and a really unfair call is made by the ref, you know that LiveHive community will be over it- instant debating! The more questions you answer correctly the more points you can win, which you can later redeem for prizes ranging from game tickets to cars!

Theyrsquo;ve worked on everything from Hockey on the CBC, Big Brother and even the Much Music Video Awards! (Someone has to keep those preteens occupied, otherwise things like this happen. Seriously, LiveHive is doing us all a public service.)

I like it because it creates an instant social community around content and provides sponsors with an unobtrusive way for users to interact with their brand without interrupting the viewing experience.

On ldquo;tacklingrdquo; their newest venture:

(pun totally included because Irsquo;m awesome like that. )

RR: That project, wersquo;re working with Nissan Canada and in conjunction with Capital C wersquo;re working with all them to provide an interactive experience for the CFL (Canadian Football League). Wersquo;re offering it for all 70 games plus playoff games, itrsquo;s CFL.NISSAN.CA and they can engage in online competition. At the end of a contest you can win a trip to the Grey Cup with some spending money.

On false Interactivity:

I mentioned that on a recent trip to the States, I had seen some interactive capability through television digital cable boxes, where viewers could participate on live polls during their local news. I asked him how this interactivity compares with LiveHive.

RR: I think thatrsquo;s a great example of interacting just to interact. People see that, and itrsquo;s sort of cool and then you try it. You have a $600 box, so they want to do more with it. They give their opinion once on a poll. How much fun is it to be counted in the poll? The fun comes in the chance that they used the new technology, but thatrsquo;s a one shot deal. After that, they stop doing. With our platform itrsquo;s about creating value during the experience, where they are in a social environment, meeting people and winning prizes.

RR: We have tons of metrics behind our stuff, they come back and do it again and again and again. Not everyone is there every game, but other people come back every second or third game, but we do see high return rates compared to an on-air poll.

Why Two Screen Viewing is the Way to Go:

RR: If you look at typical interactive, people think of your typical set up, where you press the button on the set top box, but there are so much limitations. Limited functionality and real estate mean the interactive experiences are basic or light weight. How deep can you go by pressing up, down, left or right?

RR: When you get on to a two screen environment, you have a dedicated, powerful machine to provide a graphically rich experience and great content. Suddenly you can communicate via keyboard and talk to other people, meet and make new friends.

On live television and the battle over PVRs/Tivorsquo;s

(Although, Canada doesnrsquo;t have Tivo up here, just one more little snubs in our rich history of technological shafts. I know Irsquo;m feeling sassy this interview!)

RR: We actually work to combat those things [PVRs, timeshifting], where we draw people back to live content because that experience is only available when itrsquo;s live. Especially the real-time components. Outside that window we do provide a limited experience for people. Before each event/show there are a series of questions that are trivia related so that people can jump on during the day, check in and comment on what is going to happen.

RR: So with PVRs and DVRs, this is something that the broadcaster has seen as positive because you can use this to ensure users are watching live, and for the full duration of the show. We glue people to the tv and to the computer. On average people are playing for 45 minutes for every hour of watching. So they can participate live.

On the Future of Television, and what LiveHiversquo;s Future Mission:

RR: In five years, wersquo;ll be the center point to interactively enable every show on TV. Instead of thinking which shows are interactive itrsquo;s just assumed, all shows are interactive. So no matter what show yoursquo;re watching you can just jump on, connect, and socialize withp eole who are watching the same show. Creating a central spot for every program

The Future of TV Advertising

RR: If you look at the advertising, itrsquo;s definitely clear, that the traditional 30 second spot are becoming less effective and you can see that most of the dollars are going online. So that does open the opporutnity for us to be a great advertsing platform. And thatrsquo;s what we are, all of our projects involve a sponser, because they can get a lot of data as a result of peole sitting with your brand for a long time. So if therersquo;s a touchdown, you can say ldquo;touchdown brought to you by nissan.rdquo; You can do other things as well, you can ask questions about the viewers themselves, you can ask in a poll ldquo;are you thinking about buying a car? rdquo; Thatrsquo;s hugely powerful to be able to extract those questions, thatrsquo;s highly valuable to the sponsers in volved in our porjects. You donrsquo;t overload them with questions, but you can definitely ask one or two questions per game to get that extra information about preferences or buying status.

Why I like it:

1) Making TV social again.

There used to be a time when we would all gather around the TV to watch our favorite prime time shows. I remember in University we used to reserve one of the lecture halls so we could watch LOST in agonizing suspense. Somehow it was always better when it was in a group. Then, we got the Apple Store, and time-shifting and PVRs so people got less inclined to get together and started watching TV in a more isolated way. I think LiveHiversquo;s technology is cool because it brings some of that real time social elements. This could make watching live TV engaging again, because itrsquo;s the social aspect of the community that is drawing you in. Very cool.

2) Evolving the User/Brand experience

This is a much better way to interact with users, because you can target show demographics more precisely and be engaged with a large amount of people at once. So if yoursquo;re a car company targeting men, what better place to have them engage with your than through a hockey game platform? Forget a 30 second spot, they will be looking at your Logo for 45 minutes per every hour watched. Now therersquo;s some bang for your buck!

3) A better TV Experience

This is the first step in eliminating commercials completely. One would hope at least. If the networks got involved - and they should- then they could shift interactivity with content online and use the sponsors to facilitate interaction. Everyone wins. Networks get people to watch their content without the temptation of channel surfing, viewers get engaged on connect because itrsquo;s a topic they care about, and advertisers get access to valuable information without interrupting. Win/Win. If they did this properly I bet you could make the same amount of money if not more via advertising maybe causing the evil Viacom to back off on all this copy righted material crap, allowing everyone to make funny Youtube videos in peace.

[Photo from Endgadget.com]

Well, it seems that Rogers has heard the large outcry regarding their ridiculously over-priced iPhone data plans and released a new promotional offer.

RuinediPhone.com, an online petition started a few days ago has already gathered 58,000 signatures protesting the old data plans. While it might not affected Rogers, it apparently irked Apple enough to warrant a behind the scenes smack down. Apple takes itrsquo;s branding very seriously and was not amused at the backlash, including the negative press and blog coverage warning consumers to pass on the sleek gadget.

THE JUICY GOSSIP - Tracking the Rumor:

The web has been buzzing with rumors about a potential fall out that occurred between his Majesty Steve Jobs and the suits at Rogers which could shed some light on the timing and introduction of the new promotional plan.

According to blogger Daniel Smithrsquo;s Smithereenrsquo;s blog, he reported on July 5th that there had been some interesting conversations taking place via SMS between Rogers, Apple and Rim employees: [unconfirmed as of now, but makes sense when you consider Rogers actions]

Apple Canada Employee sends text message to source stating something along the lines of ldquo;You guys are screwed on the iPhone.rdquo; No responses are given when asked for clarification










Soon after, a RIM (Blackberry) employee sends another text to source asking about the Apple/Rogers fallout rumors that are surfacing.










Source receives a call informing them that several stores have decided to release some of the additional help they had hired for the iPhone launch immediately and without notice. [Note: this decision was made by the dealers and not by Rogers]










Senior Rogers rep confirms to source that Apple has decided to divert a large percentage of planned Canadian shipment to Europe! Some stores may now be getting as few as 10-20 units! The wording from head office claims the number of units will be ldquo;significantly reduced.

On July 8, the usually reliable Apple Insider claimed that Apple was sanctioning Rogers by announcing their Canadian retail stores would not be supporting Rogers in selling iPhones. Subscribers will have to go to a Rogers retail store in order to pick their unit up. Keep in mind that this was released before the new Rogers plan was announced so it might no longer apply.

On July 9th - Canadian Consumers declared it National Call Rogers day, and urged people to call and complain to rogers about the pricing. A Facebook group was created. (Of course)

July 10th - New Rogers Plans announced.

Itrsquo;s a promotional offer along with the iPhone where subscribers can get 6GB of data for $30/month (which is probably as closed to unlimited as yoursquo;re going to get.)

The good news:

• The data plan can be added to any voice plan. (DUH- I canrsquo;t even believe they didnrsquo;t offer this from the beginning.

The Bad News:

• The promotional plan will be on only until Aug 31st.


• You have to sign on with a three year contract.

So with all this buzz there are some claiming that the much hyped iPhone release will be more lukewarm than hot, while others have faith that the new plan will help soothe outraged consumers.

I guess we will have to wait and see!

Here are some of the other Rogers pieces related to this topic:

Canadian Consumers to Rogers: Stop Being Jerks, Part 1

Canadian Consumers to Rogers: Stop being Jerks, Part 2

I found myself, underwhelmed with the whole experience. There are several differences between Identi.ca and Twitter and I found myself leaning more in Twitterrsquo;s favor.

1) No Searching for Friends

Despite my best efforts, I couldnrsquo;t seem to find a search box to search for people who I might know or would want to follow. This sort of boggled my mind, as I realized that I had to scan the public timeline in order to see who was on. I happened to come across a few familiar names and then added them.

2) No Direct Messages/Nudges, etc.

I was also disappointed to see there was no option to send private (aka Direct Messages) to your contacts. This didnrsquo;t sit well with me as I often use that feature on Twitter to quickly get in touch with certain people in my network.

It just seemed a little clunky to me.

3) Not as many cool applications

There arenrsquo;t as many sophisticated applications to use with Identi.ca and Irsquo;m currently curious in monitoring the development on Twitter anyway. For now.

Twitterrsquo;s Woes

I like Twitter. I think their problem is that they got too big, too fast and werenrsquo;t prepared for the strain on their systems. Big Deal. They are good people and Irsquo;m sure are working diligently to fix the problem. I think people take the whole ldquo;system down-timerdquo; thing a little too seriously. A few months ago (itrsquo;s funny how a short period of time can feel like ages in terms of line news) Twitter developper Alex Payne wrote a Qamp;A post on the Twitter Developer Blog in which he answered some users’ questions about Twitter’s recent woes. When asked if users could do anything to lighten the load he had an interesting reply:

The events that hit our system the hardest are generally when “popular” users - that is, users with large numbers of followers and people they’re following - perform a number of actions in rapid succession. This usually results in a number of big queries that pile up in our database(s). Not running scripts to follow thousands of users at a time would be a help, but that’s behavior we have to limit on our side.

Robert Scoble, one of the sitersquo;s more prolific users was quick to take this a little personally and blogged a post, blasting Twitter for blaming itrsquo;s users. (Scoble close to 30,000 followers and has sent out more than 12,000 tweets) I have to say that after reading Paynersquo;s statement, I didnrsquo;t find anything worth getting upset over. He was just stating the facts and not really blaming anyone or telling users to stop. In fact he says that it is something his team will have to address. Quickly. Techies are not known for their patience in terms of under performing software and with the alternatives out there, Twitterrsquo;s first in market advantage will surely start to fade as people migrate to a more stable system.

On the Lighter Side

For now, I am content with Twitter. Yes, occasionally I get that while whale and how can you be mad at it? Itrsquo;s so cute. I think we should all lighten up a little and take a page from FailWhale.com. The sitersquo;s mission is simple (and amusing):

FailWhale.com is the groupie | PR | Fan Club for one of coolest whales we knowhellip; you knowhellip; the handsome whale and his birdie entourage who show up occasionally on Twitter to let you know that itrsquo;s time to push back from your keyboard and to go take a break. Yup! that one.

This site is here to poke fun at the people who seem to take online social network downtime a little too seriously. Itrsquo;s a love letter to the hard working folks at twitter.com and is not affiliated in any way with Twitter.

You can even get mugs and t-shirts of ldquo;Fail Whalerdquo; and his entourage as well as of his newly designed girlfriend Eve Whale. LOL. I think itrsquo;s hilarious. You can also search Fail Whale and become a fan on Facebook.

Viacom is alleging Copyright infringement, as they estimate there are currently 160,000 unauthorized clips of the companyrsquo;s material that have been viewed 1.5 Billion times. The ruling is being called a ldquo;set-back to privacy rightsrdquo; by the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

But wait, therersquo;s more. Privacy experts at lashing out at the usually benevolent internet giant for continuing to use IP addresses when they can be tracked back to users.

A Snippet from the Article:

lsquo;Erroneous rulingrsquo;

Leading privacy expert Simon Davies told BBC News that the privacy of millions of YouTube users was threatened.

He said: ldquo;The chickens have come home to roost for Google.

ldquo;Their arrogance and refusal to listen to friendly advice has resulted in the privacy of tens of millions being placed under threat.rdquo;

Mr Davies said privacy campaigners had warned Google for years that IP addresses were personally identifiable information.

Google pledged last year to anonymise IP addresses for search information but it has said nothing about YouTube data.

Mr Davies said: ldquo;Governments and organisations are realising that companies like Google have a warehouse full of data. And while that data is stored it is under threat of being used and putting privacy in danger.rdquo;

The EFF said: ldquo;The Courtrsquo;s erroneous ruling is a set-back to privacy rights, and will allow Viacom to see what you are watching on YouTube.

ldquo;We urge Viacom to back off this overbroad request and Google to take all steps necessary to challenge this order and protect the rights of its users.rdquo;

The body said the ruling was also potentially unlawful because the log data did contain personally identifiable data.

The court also ruled that Google disclose to Viacom the details of all videos that have been removed from the site for any reason.

What this means:

If lsquo;ol Rupert wanted to, hersquo;d be able to figure out exactly which videos a particular user has viewed. While thatrsquo;s not enough to reveal your identity necessarily, privacy experts worry that this information might be easy to extrapolate given that many people have personal a YouTube id that is personal, or might even include their name. Mix that in with your computerrsquo;s IP address and someone who was interested enough could probably put the pieces together and figure out who you are.

Keep in mind, that IP addresses are provided by your ISP, and usually change over time, which means that Viacom would have to call up Rogers to get that information, and that will usually mean needing to have a court order. Plus, Viacom hasnrsquo;t declared any intent to hunt down the culprit youtube users. (Hey Viacom, herersquo;s a hint: itrsquo;s all of us.)

And over at the GooglePlexhellip;

Somewhere on that beautiful campus, there are a team of Google lawyers meeting in a room full of plastic balls to discuss the situation. Currently, Google doesnrsquo;t think they should hand the log over because of the aforementioned privacy concerns. They will most likely challenge this order.

Privacy associations like the Electronic Fronteir Foundation is demanding Vicaom ldquo;Back off this overbroad requestrdquo; To which Viacom cackled evilly and resumed their plans to build the death star.

Instead of the War on Terror, CNN should be monitoring the War On Privacy. Itrsquo;s eroding right beneath our noses if we donrsquo;t all wake up and do something about it.

Dimitri tried to seduce Olga on the street and she gave him her card.  She had no idea that Dimitri was an expert on women. Oh yes my friends, he teaches courses in Toronto on how to meet women. He started the ldquo;Real Men Club,rdquo; to preach his teachings, and has a diverse range of products for sale including a ldquo;Make Women Worship You,rdquo; series.

Anyway, as Torontoist reveals, he is clearly disturbed, a former doctor whose license was revoked because of inappropriate behavior towards female patients. He calls Olga up and leaves her the following two voice mails:

Now, when you listen to these two messages imagine that this is from a stranger yoursquo;ve met briefly on the street: *shudder*

I canrsquo;t even believe what he says. After not hearing back from Olga he calls back again to question if shersquo;s playing games, however he is quick to point out several scenarios that might explain her silence. ldquo;Maybe you were abused in childhood? Or maybe your mother has cancer and yoursquo;re going to chemo?rdquo; Wow.

Welcome to the Internet:

Thanks to the wonders of social media, these calls are now everywhere. Digg, Break, Youtube, Facebook, not to mention an mp3 circulating via email which was sent to me four separate times today! Dimitri was also named the internetrsquo;s #1 scariest seducer by Gawker and dlisted, to name a few. It never ceases to amaze me how comfortable some people are sending hugely private messages via voicemail and email. Have we learned nothing from the Alec Baldwin fiasco? (In a similar move of class, Alec leaves a disturbing message for his young daughter when she doesnrsquo;t pick up his calls.

Whether yoursquo;re a corporation or an entity, in todayrsquo;s technological everything is recorded, and once released on to the internet, nearly impossible to contain. My father used to always say ldquo;keep your words soft and sweet because you might one day have to eat them.rdquo; These days, you never know who is watching or listening.

]]> Thu, 03 Jul 2008 10:07:00 EDT http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/403969 43.6666667 -79.4166667 43.6666667 -79.4166667 http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/400751

As news of the Rogers iPhone data plans continue to disappoint Canadians everywhere, Irsquo;m sad to say that I am unsurprised by these events. The plans offered are total garbage and useless to anyone who actually wants to use the iPhone in the way that Steve Jobs intended it to be used. It didnrsquo;t seem to bad at first, until you started tallying up the costs:

So for starters, the data and the minutes are bundled together so you canrsquo;t add a data plan to your existing minutes plan. Which is part of the master plan, because yoursquo;re going to have to resign for a three year contract if you want to get your hands on an iPhone. So even if yoursquo;re heavy on the data and light on the minutes, Rogers doesnrsquo;t really care.

Even at the maximum end of the data plan available yoursquo;re only talking about 2GBs, and while Rogers is quick to point out how many tens of thousands of web pages that allows you to view, no where do they say anything about videos. Which means if yoursquo;re planning on watching YouTube, even on a semi-regular basis, be ready to shell out $0.50/MB for the first 60MB, and $0.03/MB afterwards.

Ok so, so far wersquo;re at $115.

Moving on. Yoursquo;re probably going to want Call Display, etc. You have to choose one of the bundles, which includes a bunch of crap that I personally donrsquo;t want, so letrsquo;s go with the $15 a month plan.

So that takes us to $130/Month.

But, thatrsquo;s not all! Oh no, therersquo;s more to come my friends.

There is a $6.95 monthly System Access Fee and a $0.50 911 Emergency access fee. There is also a one time $35 activation, although Irsquo;m not going to count that in my calculation since Irsquo;m a Rogers Customer so that fee is waived.

So now wersquo;re at 138$/a month.

That means:

1 iPhone = $199

3 yr. Plan= $4,968 (138 * 12 months * 3 years)

Total before tax: $5,167

So thatrsquo;s the price tag yoursquo;re going pay if you want to get an iPhone. Unfortunately, I think that this wonrsquo;t stop a lot of people from paying this amount. I really wanted one, but now Irsquo;m not so sure. I would love to use the iPhone but without unlimited data to enjoy full video capabilities itrsquo;s just another phone.

In the wake of the new Rogers iPhone data plans, there is an online movement afoot, imploring Apple God Steve Jobs to please intervene on the behalf of 20,000 Canadian consumers who are being bled dry by high cost. As I mentioned in Part 1, if you canrsquo;t get full internet/video capability then itrsquo;s just another crappy phone. Irsquo;m disappointed in Rogers who should have taken this opportunity to endear themselves to customers by providing them with the best iPhone experience ever.

Instead, people are getting annoyed and turning to the web. RuinediPhone, has started an online petition that has gathered over 28,000 signatures since it was launched on June 27th. The petition will be sent to Steve Jobs amp; Rogers on July 11th and is a protest against the fees.

The open letter states:

Dear Steve,

My name is James and I would like to thank you for creating the wonderful iPhone device. We really think that you will change the world with it, just as you changed the world with the iPod. We were so happy to learn that on July 11th, we would finally be able to buy the iPhone and legally use it in Canada.

To our great disappointment, Rogers Communications Inc. has announced VERY unfair rates in comparison to ATamp;T in the United States and to other authorized wireless service providers around the world. As a result, a consumer movement was born yesterday (June 27th) in protest against these rates.

More than 20,000 people have signed an online petition to help make a difference and the list is growing rapidly. In the last 72 hours, the website has had 150,000 unique visitors from around the world supporting Canadian consumers. There are a vast number of Canadians that would take the opportunity to buy an iPhone at $199CAD but these new plans have put it out of reach for many.

I would like to invite you to take a look at all these disappointed people at www.ruinediphone.com.

I was going to buy an iPhone for me, my girlfriend and my family.

Now, sadly, I cannot afford the plan.

I hope you can do something Steve; we are loyal customers and trust that you will. We donrsquo;t want to lose faith in Apple.

Thank you,

James Hallen

Representing more than 20,000 Canadian consumers

Sign the Petition. I donrsquo;t think Rogers will care but it might make us all feel better!

Join me in a prayer:

If yoursquo;re out there, and you can hear me, save us Google!!

Huge Kudos to the team that put this together:

This is actually how things go down in certain companies!

Itrsquo;s a pretty interesting way to raise awareness about this cause because it doesnrsquo;t really push the issue in your face, but rather leaves it up to you to get more information or continue with the planner. There is a discreet ldquo;Covenant Houserdquo; logo at the bottom that gives you the option to donate.

I had one issue with the whole thing.  When you click it takes you directly to a form you can fill out in order to contribute directly. I would have preferred to be taken to a page that outlines some of the programs conducted by Covenant House and some more information about where my contribution would go. I felt a bit of disconnect between the ldquo;shock factorrdquo; and the ldquo;ask.rdquo;

What do you think about it?

Herersquo;s how it works. You click on the url, which takes you to a video of a shoelace (LOL) who tells you the word you need to spell.

Once you hear the word, you have to open a search engine in a new window and type in the word. If you get it right, yoursquo;ll see a Google Ad link which will take you to the next video and the next word. Irsquo;m not sure if yoursquo;ll be able to make it out below, but the first word was ldquo;ludicrousrdquo; and the link can be found on the top right hand side of the screen.

Very clever! What a unique way of using search engine links to generate interest. I wonrsquo;t tell you the rest of the answers- you should go and try them yourselves, but you end up at the converse official site. Now, whether or not the campaign sells any shoes has yet to be determined, I can guarantee you that they are getting a lot of brand exposure and buzz online. Besides, as my sister pointed out, after you play and yoursquo;re on the site, yoursquo;re probably going to take a few minutes and have a look around. I know I did.

I love seeing campaigns like this because it illustrates that untapped space still left to explore and the opportunity for innovation. As the social media space continues to evolve, I am very curious to see how viral campaigns will tie in other tools like SEO to create a unique web browsing experience for their consumers.

]]> Sat, 28 Jun 2008 07:06:00 EDT http://Rahaf.tigblog.org/post/398699 43.6666667 -79.4166667 43.6666667 -79.4166667