November 16, 2009

In Which I Am Promoted: Meet ReadWriteWeb’s First Ever Community Manager

 

(cc) Kenneth Yeung - www.thelettertwo.com

 

Hey, gang!

So, That Other Blog has hired me to be a full-time bucket of awesomesauce. Officially, the title is Community Manager. I’ll be examining what users do on the site, what they like and don’t like, and how we can add more value and make ReadWriteWeb a more engaging and useful resource.

Go Team Red!

October 28, 2009

On Reading, Sharing, Oversharing, & Value

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Howdy, friends and neighbors!

So, I was going through  my poor, poor feeds today. When I neglect them for a few hours, I get the sense that they’re like untended gardens and neglected children put together. They’re overrun, unmanageable, and just too much damn noise. But when I skim and read them at least once an hour or so, they are fresh, valuable, and intensely enjoyable. Keep reading →

October 8, 2009

I Loved Tinychat So Much That They Hired Me!

Hi, friends!

If you obsessively stalk follow me on Twitter or FriendFeed, you might know that over the past few months, I’ve been lurking around the video chat service Tinychat. Although I’ve never written anything about them on That Other Blog, I’ve enjoyed playing around as the site has grown and improved.

I mean, y’all know I love video. And y’all know I love to chat in a real-timey, Internety kinda way. So how was I not going to love the massively multiplayer video chat-gasm that Tinychat is? Keep reading →

September 30, 2009

A Kiva Story, Or, The Best Thing I’ll Do This Year

I wrote a post last night about a good friend.

I’m very fortunate to have this friend: A lady who outstrips us all in big-heartedness, pure momentum, action, dedication, and love. She’s a vulnerable, human powerhouse, and I love her and what she believes in.

Last night, she let me interview her and help tell a story. With her words and pictures, she gave me a story worth telling – a hard thing to find in the sea of Facebook nonsense, iPhone apps, startup scrambling, and general tech-related noise.

Sloane Berrent gives us a real-world connection. She tells us that, as Internet people, we can still make a real-world difference. Read this, and please share. Keep reading →

September 22, 2009

Word to My PR Homies: The Jolie O’Dell Non-Exhaustive List of Meaningless Words

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Buzzwords!

You use them. We (journalists, VCs, and users) hate them. Keep reading →

September 11, 2009

The Turing Machine: A Chris Merritt Tribute to Computer Science’s Godfather

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So, let’s get you up to speed, in case you don’t know how to use Wikipedia: Alan Turing was the father of computer science. Before computers even existed, he was writing chess programs, hypothesizing about AI, and – on top of it all – decoding the Nazi Enigma and saving us all from the German menace during WWII.

In the early 1950s, the British government chemically castrated Turing – Turing the genius, Turing the war hero – for being homosexual. Shortly thereafter, Turing committed suicide at the age of 41. Keep reading →

September 10, 2009

Check Out Me Totally Pwning Jason Calacanis & Robert Scoble

And by “totally pwning,” I mean mostly listening in deferential silence, then responding when (mostly) appropriate.

Thanks to Cathy Brooks for hosting another thrilling edition of Social Media Hour on BlogTalkRadio! We loves you, Cathy!

September 10, 2009

Interview with Matt, CEO of Musician-Friendly CultureJam

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Matt MacNaughton is CultureJam’s CEO and a very bright young dude. He’s got all the answers for the not-so-age-old question: If music is free, how and what should musicians be promoting online? And how and when should music fans be paying? Listen and learn!

Keep reading →

September 4, 2009

RVA Shout Outs To My Richmond Homies

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In which I call out a few of the attendees of tonight’s Social Media Club event in Richmond, Virginia. Also – MUSTACHE MANIA! Keep reading →

September 2, 2009

The Google Store: How Did I Miss This?

TOESOCK!

Somehow, I missed that Google had an official store. Share my wonder as I peruse the items there and lust for the 2009 YouTube collector edition jacket. Also, this is something of a practice video for me. Pay no attention to the bad camera angle, crap lighting, pathetic sound, etc. Kthx! Keep reading →

August 30, 2009

My Personal Favorites: Top 5 YouTube Videos

Over the past couple years, I’ve seen my share of YouTube videos. There are a few I to which I return with regularity when in the seemingly common peeing contest newly introduced geeks often enter, wherein each party takes his turn and shows the other a sick, awesome, hilarious, strange, or awkward video that the other has never before seen.

Here are my personal favorites. They’re not the freshest, meme-iest clips out there, but they mean a lot to me. Hope you enjoy. Keep reading →

August 29, 2009

Princess Playdate: The Revival

Two years ago, there was a Dimebag Darrell halter top. There was a cello, and a girl to play it. There was a toy piano, a 1970 Stratocaster, a collection of brass horns, a drum kit, and five conservatory dorks who knew each other back when.

With wildly different aesthetics but a passion for music that no one else could stomach, let alone match, the kids started jamming. First two of the girls wrote a silly song about sex & cheeseburgers on a couple toy instruments. Then, gradually, they got the other kids to pitch in their talents. A couple weeks later, a friend was having a birthday show in Hollywood, and this group of conservatory kids were faced with prepping and promoting their first (and last) on-stage appearance. What started out as a joke became a legend. I give you… PRINCESS PLAYDATE. Keep reading →

August 19, 2009

In Which I Share My Texture Images

One of my favorite things about the graphic design I do is texture. I usually use a liberal crap-ton of images layered together to create old, crackly, weird, fusty designs, and I’ve had a few people look over my shoulder as I explained how each layer adds a certain depth or nuance to the final product.

Heck. Sometimes I like my designs, too. So I’m sharing all the images I stored on my old laptop as textures. Keep reading →

August 19, 2009

The “Eyelash-Batting Space Cadet” Speaks

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Six weeks into this road trip, I’m so exhausted I could melt away entirely.

The negativity and hate coming at me from all sides is almost overwhelming, and I want to give up very much these days. I feel like I’ve worked hard to be where I am, but every single day, there are those who point out my shortcomings (as if I could possibly be unaware of them, myself.) I guess I’m just sick and tired of being sick and tired. Keep reading →

August 6, 2009

Protected: @Chamillionaire Got Me Thinking

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July 31, 2009

Twiistup, LA, Reunions, Exhaustion, Happiness

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Photo credit: (cc) Kenneth Yeung, thelettertwo.com, Jolie O’Dell with @DowntownRob

The past week has been a tornado. A wonderful tornado. Keep reading →

July 21, 2009

Free Alternatives to Photoshop, Bells & Whistles Included

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Over at the Are Dub Dub, I’ve written a monster post reviewing and comparing seven web and desktop apps that might help drive down the cost of Photoshop – or at least give the warez-cracking outlaws among us a legal alternative for our image-editing needs. Please read, digg, comment, tweet, and let me know what you think about it! I worked super hard on this one.

July 17, 2009

Old Houses, A Series of Photos

Samples from a series of photos I took of a group of old, dilapidated houses in rural southeastern Virginia in early 2008. Keep reading →

July 13, 2009

Change of Plans: Life, Death, & the Unexpected

mary

Well. My Toledo visit has just been cut very, very short. As soon as it’s feasible, I need to leave town and hustle down to Texas to be with my family for a very sad occasion.

Keep reading →

July 13, 2009

Word to My PR Homies: A Brief Compendium

1. Don’t lie.

2. Don’t call more than twice without a return call.

3. Don’t call at odd hours.

4. Don’t pretend it’s news if it’s already on TechCrunch.

5. Grrrrrrr.