Life in the 21st century
Nov 04 2008
Last week, we saw Kobe Bryant, Michael Phelps, Tony Hawk, and Alex Rodriguez doing Tom Cruise in Risky Business to promote the release of Guitar Hero World Tour. This week, we get another version of this commercial with Heidi Klum.
Clearly a step-up in quality!
Oct 31 2008
Exciting news for Beatles fans:
According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple Corps Ltd (the Beatles’ recording company) and MTV Networks are expected to announce today that the Beatles have licensed songs to the popular video game Rockband, a 4-person game which allows you to emulate your favorite bands with 2 guitars, drums and a microphone.
There are a lot of missing details, but it sounds interesting:
“This game is not just a Rock Band expansion pack. It is a new, full game title production built from the ground up,” Harmonix co-founder Alex Rigopulos said during a Thursday morning conference call.
Giles Martin, son of Beatles’ record producer Sir George Martin and co-producer of the Beatles Love project, will serve as music producer.
The songs will be based on the U.K. versions, Giles said. “The thing we’re trying to keep to is for people to play the songs as if they’re playing the originals [and] preserve the sound quality as much as possible.”
I love the fact that they are planning to stay “true” to the original versions of these songs. I hate the ones that are butchered in some games systems. Even the two surviving Beatles are getting into the mix:
Starr and McCartney, the two surviving Beatles, talked up the game in a press release. “The project is a fun idea which broadens the appeal of The Beatles and their music. I like people having the opportunity to get to know the music from the inside out,” said McCartney. “The Beatles continue to evolve with the passing of time and how wonderful that The Beatles’ legacy will find its natural progression into the 21st century through the computerized world we live in,” said the fan-averse Ringo Starr.
You have to admire a band whose music remains relevant even after 4 decades. I know from experience what Guitar Hero has done for reviving old songs; this Rock Band Beatles version will undoubtedly extend The Beatles’ music for generations to come.
Oct 31 2008
Guitar Hero World Tour has been released and they have hired some big name stars to promote the game. Kobe Bryant, Michael Phelps, Tony Hawk, and Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez all do their best Tom Cruise:
Can’t say this makes we want to buy the game more, but I’m sure it will be a hit with others!
Oct 24 2008
Twitter fans unite! While social networking sites continue to grow at a rapid pace, Twitter is growing the fastest
Twitter’s audience has shot up 343 percent since September 2007, making it the fastest growing social network in the U.S., according to the latest report from Neilsen Online.
343% is impressive. The report indicates Twitter grew from 500,000 users to over 2.3 million in one year. Why? What is the attraction? Twitter is like text messaging, but you can share your messages with a group. Still not sure what Twitter is? Try the “In Plain English” series of videos for a very good explanation:
I’ve seen the benefit of Twitter from a personal perspective during Hurricane Ike. Twitter kept Houstonians connected and allowed us to share information in the midst of the storm and during the weeks of clean-up. Twitter is also playing a key role in the presidential election with the addition of a dedicated Election 08 round-up section. This tool allows you to view tweets on candidate-related information at a glance and helps to break news items with amazing speed.
Twitter also keeps you in touch with friends by allowing you to see what is going on in their lives. You only share what you want or what you are comfortable with and you can select whom you follow. You can even protect your updates and make the available by invitation only. However, that approach defeats the fun of the site, meeting new people.
If you don’t yet have a Twitter account, you should get one today and see what all the fuss is about. When you do, be sure to folllow the misunderestimation Twitter account and see what is new on this blog!
Oct 21 2008
Just when you were sure that all the time spent texting, emailing, surfing, blogging, chatting, and generally being plugged in was a bad thing, a new study from the Pew Internet & American Life Project has produced some interesting results:
A national survey has found that households with a married couple and minor children are more likely than other household types — such as single adults, homes with unrelated adults, or couples without children to have cell phones and use the internet.
The survey shows that these high rates of technology ownership affect family life. In particular, cell phones allow family members to stay more regularly in touch even when they are not physically together. Moreover, many members of married-with-children households view material online together.
So, technology is connecting families to each other and improving the quality of the family unit. Interesting. Wait, it gets better.
Technology was found to be beneficial for family life, according to the study, since families using the most technology are also more likely to share more moments with family members when they are online.
On the other hand, technology can also kill family time in some cases, as dual-income households have reported less family time, and more work, partly due to the use of internet. They are also less likely to participate in family leisure time or eat family dinner, a percentage that rises with the rate of technology ownership.
However, we can’t ignore the fact that technology enables new ways of communication: 70 percent of couples who both own a cell phone contact each other at least once a day, to say hello or chat, compared to just 54 percent of couples who own just one or no cell phone.
OK. So you have to be careful with too much tech time and put the phone down when you are eating or having leisure time. I’ll buy that. My son will back me up on this one, “Put that phone down at the dinner table!”
If the increased technology time is not coming at the expense of family time, where is it coming from?
The survey also found that the Internet has affected family television viewing habits — one-fourth of respondents reported that they are watching less TV.
Another blow to the networks. We have heard about the evils of watching too much TV forever. Now, it looks like we may be listening. Of course, we are texting while driving, or fumbling with a cell phone in traffic, or stepping off a busy curb while reading email, or being awoken at all hours by an incoming text message, or …
Oct 17 2008
I know this is not a new story, but it illustrates another sure sign of the impending apocalypse .
WOODFIN – A 23-year-old man who police said was listening to an iPod suffered severe injuries after being struck from behind by a freight train on Tuesday.
Aaron James Parker V, of Asheville, was walking on a stretch of track between Flynn Branch and Farm Roads, authorities said.
“The engineer blew the air horn several, several times, and then the boy turned around right before the train hit him, and he tried to jump out of the way,” Woodfin police officer Charles Robinson said.
Parker landed about 20 feet from the tracks, Robinson said. He was in Mission Hospitals’ intensive care unit late Tuesday and in stable condition. Parker suffered several injuries, including broken bones, broken ribs, shoulder injuries and head injuries, West Buncombe Fire Department deputy chief Randy Ratcliff said.
Hit by a train! How loud is your iPod if you can’t hear a train? That level of volume can’t be good for the ears. I found an interesting article on the FDA site:
“One of the things that bothers me is that [young people] are aging their ears before their chronological time,” says audiologist David Lipscomb, who has researched hearing loss in students at the University of Tennessee.
In the fall of 1969, he tested the hearing of entering freshmen and found about 60 percent of them had hearing loss. Fourteen percent of the young men tested had hearing similar to the average 65-year-old. By comparison, only 3.8 percent of sixth-graders had hearing loss, suggesting that something–probably noise–was damaging hearing during the teen years.
“We know that the average 70-year-old will have some impairment from aging,” says Lipscomb. “But for young people [exposed to loud noises], the aging process is speeded up. They’re blowing their spare tires.”
Well, how do you know if you have it too loud? The article suggests this:
The rule of thumb for listening to music is to keep it low enough so that you can hear other sounds above the tunes. If you’re listening to a Walkman portable radio or similar headset, no one else should be able to hear your music.
I like the sound of that. At the risk of ridicule and scorn from my teenage son, I think iPods have become a bit of a nuisance. I love listening to mine when I want tune out the outside world. I use it on the bus, when I’m working on a deadline, or just vegging. What drives me nuts are people who wear them constently and expect to have conversations with you by removing one ear phone. What’s even worse are those who have the volume so loud that all around can hear. Let’s face it, when you are in your late 30s, jamming Michael Bolten on the bus does not make you cool. Seriously.
Oct 14 2008
You knew it was only a matter of time before your little escape from the world was invaded by politics. While driving in Burnout Paradise, gamers get hit with a political ad from the Obama camp
“I can confirm that the Obama campaign has paid for in-game advertising in Burnout,” Holly Rockwood, director of corporate communications at Electronic Arts, the game’s publisher, told me via email, noting that EA regularly allows ad placements in their online games. “Like most television, radio and print outlets, we accept advertising from credible political candidates,” she continued. “Like political spots on the television networks, these ads do not reflect the political policies of EA or the opinions of its development teams.”
Great idea, but this seems to be a little bit over the top. Most gamers buy games to escape from every-day pressures and now those games are being invaded by politics. Seems to be bitting the hand that is feeding Obama and not a very wise strategy.
Jun 11 2007
It looks like Coca-Cola has stepped-up their Internet marketing campaign:
The Coca-Cola Company is redefining the relationship between consumers and their sparkling beverages with the launch of the Sprite Yard, a real-time digital “on-the-go†community that provides social connections and downloadable content via their mobile phone anytime, anywhere. This mobile marketing breakthrough launched in China on June 1st and will go live in the US later this month.
The Sprite Yard creates an entertaining social experience beyond the value of traditional online destinations by providing consumers constant mobile, social and brand connectivity through mobile devices such as cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs).
Coke is definitely on the right track. The marketing money being spent on Internet will boggle the mind:
Studies have predicted that mobile marketing will increase sharply in the coming years, and Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have all introduced mobile-friendly search interfaces.
Mobile advertising could account for 25% of global internet advertising spend by 2011.
But what are they really trying to accomplish?
“The brand becomes the enabler of mobile social connections,†Mark J. Greatrex, senior vice president of marketing communications and insights at Coca-Cola, told a gathering of the nation’s leading mobile marketing executives. “The Yard users literally have their friends in their pockets.â€
The mobile marketing effort is part of Coca-Cola’s plan to “create, connect and customize on-the-go experiences,†according to Mr. Greatrex.
Sprite’s “usage over-indexes with mobile phone usage,†Mr. Greatrex said. “This is Generation C and they’re right at the center of the mobile target audience.â€
Genius. In case you have not heard, this is how Wikipedia defines Generation C:
Generation C could be said to comprise the people who use Web 2.0, create user-generated content and participate in the co-creation of products and services.
It’s getting harder and harder for marketers to reach Generation C and this effort means users will go to the Sprite Yard to interact with their peers. What could be easier? Only one question remains, how long will it take Generation C to see through the marketing campaign and declare the Sprite Yard as lame? There is a reason why it is hard to reach Generation C, they are at least a couple of steps ahead of the marketers.
Apr 04 2007
The 2008 presidential election already promises to be on like no other; diversity in the candidate field, no clear inside-track nominee, insane levels of campaign spending, and a campaign that will be won or lost in the Internet. MySpace is stepping-up the Internet pressure and bringing in a new class of voters who ONLY get their information online.
First, MySpace has announced a partnership with Declare Yourself:
MySpace has partnered with Declare Yourself, a national nonpartisan, nonprofit campaign to energize and empower you. In 2004, DY registered over a million young voters - this year, MySpace and DY are working together to make it easy for millions more to make a difference.
Encouraging kids to become involved is a good thing. Traditionally, the 18-25 crowd is the lowest voting segment in our country. When kids ask, “Why do we always get the short end of the deal”, the response is, “Politicians don’t worry about you because you don’t vote.” Well, now at least the registration process is right in front of them.
After you register, you need to know about the issues and the candidates, so MySpace has also announced MySpace Impact; a page launched last week featuring candidate profiles and information. Of course, the Internet will be full of blogs on every possible aspect of the 2008 campaign, so the MySpacers will have a lot of information at their fingertips.
What’s missing here, the instant poll to see where users stand. MySpace is planning to adress that piece by holding their own presidential primary:
MySpace, the social networking site, will be holding its own presidential “primary†over the first two days of January 2008. (We’d call it more of a straw poll, actually.) All registered users will be eligible to choose their favorite candidate, and they can track the results of the two-day poll as they come in.
“Iowa and New Hampshire may be selecting delegates, but the MySpace vote will be the first test of where candidates stand in the election year,†said Tom Anderson, president of MySpace, in a release.
Talk about undercutting Iowa and New Hampshire. The MySpace vote could have a huge impact on a candidate’s campaign. You can be sure that the press will be all over the “election” results and the political experts will be weighing the impact of this poll for a long time.
What does this mean for the MySpace universe? Get ready for candidate appearances, more online political ads than you can stand, and every campaign camp wanting to know what’s on your mind. In other words, get ready to be noticed.
Jan 23 2007
The much-maligned social networking site, MySpace has taken an important step in repairing its image:
Popular online social network MySpace said on Tuesday it will begin sending online alerts to users in certain U.S. regions to help find missing children as part of an expansion of plans to expand safeguards for users.
MySpace struck a partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to enable MySpace AMBER alerts, a program between the media and law enforcement to issue early warning broadcast bulletins in serious child abduction cases.
It is part of an upgrade by News Corp.-owned MySpace of safety features designed to address concerns of child safety advocates, some of whom say it has been slow to keep its many teenage members safe from adult predators.
Now this is an arrangement that makes complete sense. Consider the volume of MySpace users:
With 150 million profiles, MySpace is seen as one of the Web’s fastest-growing properties in terms of users. More than half of U.S. teens with online access use sites such as MySpace to stay in touch with friends, a recent Pew survey found.
Issuing missing child alerts to targeted areas via MySpace could be a huge help in recovery efforts. The question on my mind is, just how visible with these alerts be?
The Amber alerts, named after 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped and murdered in 1996 in Texas, will appear in a small text box at the top of a profile, MySpace said. The alerts give MySpace users the option to get more information about the case, such as photos and information on suspects.
As a father, this news makes me very happy. While some may debate the potential success of issuing Amber Alerts on MySpace, the more you get the word out, the more likely you are to recover the child. With MySpace, you can reach millions of targeted users instantly for little or no cost. This one is a no-brainer.
