I’ve started another blog/site specifically related to this idea of GPS related information and content. Since google doesn’t like you when you put information in two places, I’ll post a notice here whenever I blog about that. It will also be nice because if you’re thinking, “GPS what?”, you can just skip following the link.
So anyway, some thoughts on georelevant instruction can be found here.
I would be remiss if I didn’t blog about this. The reason I have not mentioned it prior to this is because it’s so freaking cool I can’t quite wrap my brain about it. It should be 10 blog postings, not just one.
I’ve always loved geocaching. This is where you use a GPS to get a specific location, find a ‘treasure box’, and then log it on the site. It’s a great way to get kids outside, get a little exercise for yourself, and be part of a really cool online group.
If there is any downside to geocaching, its the fact that you’re pretty limited in what you can do. You go to one location, you find the object, and report. I’m not saying that’s bad, just limiting.
Well, now the good folks over at groundspeak (the parent organization that brought you geocaching), has a new trick up their sleeve. It’s called wherigo. And it’s freaking mind blowing. The software is still in beta, and the builder in alpha, but for the past month I have been salivating (in my spare time) over the possibilities of this software.
Wherigo gives you the options of zones, virtual objects, tasks, characters, and more. It’s easy to use, and I’ve already created a few simple examples such as a walking tour of Temple Square and the Washington D.C. monuments and memorials. But I’ve also created a little program that could be used playing paintball. It keeps track of how many virtual ‘prisoners’ you’ve rescued. There is much more you could do in that line of thinking. I’m also working on more of a puzzle/exploring type of experience for the American West Heritage Center.
Anyway, I’ve been thinking for years about the notion of tying content to location, and the groundspeak guys come along and create a platform that allows you to do just that. In 2-3 years, when this is the next big thing, remember that you heard it here first.
Valley Games is a relatively new board game company. A few guys run it in their spare time. They take old, out of print board game that are very popular, and they update them and run a printing. So far they’ve been pretty successful, and they’ve put out some very good games.
They are currently working on an old title called Titan. Many of you have probably never heard of the game, let alone played it. I’ve never played it but I grew up on a computer game that was based loosely on the game, Heroes of Might and Magic.
Anyway, one of the owners posted the rules online. He said “because Titan is not yet at print, we can accept any errata changes that you might discover. It always helps having extra sets of eyes looking at our work!” He said these rules were ‘near-final’, so they’d gone through all the checks at their company, they just wanted the community to double check things.
Can you guess what happened? Titan is a very popular game with some very hard core fans. They are excited about a reprint, but they also don’t want to see their beloved game changed in a negative way.
So these fans went through the rules with a vengeance, posting pages and pages of errors they found. I’m sure Valley Games wasn’t expecting the level of detail, but they seemed pretty pleased at the response.
Sure, Valley Games could have hired an editor, and maybe they did. But the editor wouldn’t have been as invested, nor have the background that the community did. In addition, the community can spread the work. Instead of one person working for days, there are many people working here and there.
Check out the thread where this whole discussion takes place, and scroll down to see the amount of detail and editing that was done ‘for free’.
Behold, the power of the community.
Mitt Romney has been in the news quite a bit, as of late, but one question has yet to be answered. It’s a question that has weighed heavily on my mind. Does Mitt Romney have any hope to win delegates from Utah?
I know, I know, most people think it’s a sure thing. Mitt Romney? Winning in Utah? Is the Pope Catholic?
But this blogger says not so fast.
Deciding whether or not Mitt will win in Utah really becomes a simple matter of looking at the characteristics of past winning candidates. If Mitt shares these characteristics, then he has a shot at winning votes here in Utah. So, without further ado, let’s see how Mitt stacks up against critical Utah voters:
1- Mitt is alive. That’s right, Utah has a propensity to vote almost overwhelmingly for candidates who are currently breathing. Utah just doesn’t like the spunk of a candidate who has passed on. I personally am too lazy to do research on whether Utah has in fact ever voted overwhelmingly for a dead person, but let’s assume that they haven’t. And if some alert reader proves otherwise, then hey, I’m not so lazy that I won’t agree with them.
2 – Mitt is not a Democrat. Ah, you’re saying, why not just say that he needs to be a Republican? Because in Utah, we don’t really care what party you come from, as long as it’s not the Democratic Party. Remember, Utah is not just the only state where Bill Clinton came in third behind George Bush Sr. and Ross Perot, but Utah is the state that is proud that they are the only state where Bill Clinton came in third behind George Bush Sr. and Ross Perot. You can be any party you want, as long as you’re not a Democrat.
3 – Mitt is caffeine free. That’s right, how many other candidates can you say are caffeine free. Sure, in a pinch, Utah votes for people who drink caffeine, but they don’t like it. They like their congressmen to be drug free, and that includes Coke, Pepsi, and Barq’s root beer (unless it’s the special caffeine-free kind sold only in Utah). People in Utah are tired of compromising their values, and now finally they have a candidate who is as righteous as their beverages. Refreshing!
4 – We can’t wait to get all of the spam. You’ve already seen just the beginning of the torrent of e-mails that will soon fill your inbox if Romney is elected tot he White house. Cute little e-mails sent out to the ward mailing list that you wish to high heaven you could somehow get off. Jokes about the President who keeps the last day of the month clear on his calendar so he can welcome in the home teachers. Jokes about the President being called to the primary because with the secret service detail, there will finally be a bit of order and obedience. There will be warm and fuzzy e-mails, funny e-mails, testimony-building e-mails, all stemming from the fact that there is a Mormon in the White House. I for one can’t wait to see how many times the Three Nephites visit Washington D.C. over the next 4–8 years.
5 – Because finally we’ll be able to find Osama. That’s right. We know and love the separation of church and state, but that is only if the church that is separated from the state isn’t our church. As soon as Mitt is in the Oval Office, we know he’s going for the White Phone (a direct link to SLC), and ask the prophet where the heck (he’ll say heck, because this is, after all, the White Phone), Osama is hiding. Minutes later, a holy smart bomb will once and for all, bring an end to the Osama problem.
So, for the reasons listed above, this blogger feels confident that come Feb. 2, Mitt Romney will sweep the Utah delegates. Remember folks, you heard it here first.
I had a meeting in Kaysville, and left at 8:30 in the morning. I was going through Sardine Canyon to Brigham City when a semi lost control in front of me. To make a long story short, I was extremely lucky and walked away with only a broken nose. My van was totalled. The other driver of the truck was ok.
Nothing like a wreak to give you perspective. When I saw the trailer bed in front of me, I wasn’t thinking of any e-mails I need to send, or books I want to write. I wasn’t thinking about my meeting, or the chores that need to get done around the house. I just wanted to get back to my family. I wanted to get back to my boys.
The whole thing could have been so much worse. So many things could have been wrong, and I feel lucky to only be nursing a broken nose this weekend.
The finalists for the Whitney awards have been announced. The Whitneys “are an awards program for LDS fiction, and are sponsored by the LDStorymakers.” Nominations were taken last year, and it appears my Bullies in the Headlights made the list. Kind of exciting! The only downside is that I’m up against two Brandons. It’s bad enough to go up against one Brandon, let alone two! And as everybody knows, you never want to go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line.
Wait, wrong quote. Although Sanderson might be a Sicilian…I better keep an eye on him during the awards banquet, just to see what he is slipping into people’s drinks.
A few whiles ago I wrote a post about some legislation making its way through the congress. The basic idea is that the law would direct “the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to provide the public with open online access to findings from its funded research. That would make it so that those who recieved money from the government for resarch, must make those findings ‘open’ 12 months after they are published.
Well, I know many of you have been holding your breath. Many of you have stayed up late at nights, wondering if this legislation has passed. Or if it will pass. Or if it passed already.
Well, wonder no longer. Bush has signed it into law.
Cue the celebrating…
I’ve had a Wii since September. It’s been hiding in our closet and I’ve been counting the days until I can give it to the boys. They hadn’t asked for one, or if they did, it was half hearted. I wondered if they no longer wanted one, or maybe didn’t think it was possible.
Google is in the early testing stages of a new project that may aim to replace, or at least compete, with wikipedia. They’ve created a tool called ‘knol’, which stands for unit of knowledge. The idea is that a person can create a page about a certain topic. Others can add to or edit the page. The author may choose to place Google ads on the page.
Sound a bit like Wikipedia? There are a few key differences. First, a knol will have information about the author. Wikipedia allows complete and total anonymity.
Second, although others can add to or take away from the article, ultimately the author of the piece decides what stays and what goes. One person has control over the article. These two facts take away some of the complaints often raised about Wikipedia. That ‘experts’ aren’t writing the the articles, and there is no oversight.
The third difference is that Wikipedia has never placed ads on their site. Users contribute and Wikipedia is a non-profit organization.
It’s clear why Google would love to see the knol idea take off. Do a search for a noun on Google, any noun. Look at the first five listings. Chances are, Wikipedia is one of those links. I picked cat and Wikipedia was second. Just for fun, you should do a search for exploding coconuts, and click the I’m feeling lucky button.
Anyway, there are all of these people trying to find out about something, and they are being directed to wikipedia where they are not being hit over the heads with ads. That’s a crying shame! One that Google hopes to fix in the near future.
Subscribe to this site's RSS feed.
