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Friday, 30 October 2009
g-speak Interface
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Silverlight, I think I love you
10 years ago I worked on a Flash project which connected to a back end Apache system using JSP. We had interactive client to server connection using multi-media, no page reloads, and great graphics.
What Silverlight offers is state of the art 1999. For most projects you should consider Flash first.
But Flash is Adobe now, and Microsoft could not use the best client platform in the world if it mean giving that to Adobe. So in short Microsoft rebuilt Flash, and from what I can tell in Expression Blend it made a pretty piss poor version.
BUT, the ability to lay out objects on a Grid now, and apply actions to objects in any .NET language, and the potential to connect this to SharePoint.
I think I might just be in love.
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
Host Headers Real Basic Start, for the truely lost and stressed out
You should only read this article if the prospect of host headers makes you look like this.
I have recently had to do a lot of thinking about host headers. Normally I don't like them. If you can use port numbers you can make 10,000 web applications on IIS just using XXXX. This is more than enough and I like to give teams web applications with their own port number. Let them favorite it and I find soon there is not problem.
But I was landed with a piece of work where the CISCO firewall will only allow a limited number of ports. I hate this but it happens.
The key first step is not to panic. Don't worry if you don't understand host headers, because host headers are not very well understood by anyone. Host headers are essentially a technology that allows you to extend a port. Normally you have one web application on a port. For example say your have a server at IP 10.0.0.10. You can put a web application on a port. Say you have 10.0.0.10:2000. Using ports you can add thousands of web applications on a IP address. So its like have thousands of servers with their own unique IP.
You can further load an IP by adding a host header. Say I want to add a host header to a URL test.my.host.header.com. I want everyone in my network to be able to access this URL. And I need it to be on port 80. When everything is finished the IP will be 10.0.0.10:80 with host header test.my.host.header.com and users will be able to access it on your network by typing http://test.my.host.header.com.
But you have to get network exports involved. And they will have developed their own way of managing host headers, you hope. The key thing to keep in mind is that you can't do this with SharePoint alone, so don't panic.
When you can't assign a new port number to each web application you need to load all your web applications on a single port, usually port 80. Whatever you do please don't take the easy way out and build one web application on 80 and put all the site collections under it. This is grow on you and almost always go beyond the ideal 80GB of storage per content database.
What you can do is when you create a web application you can assign a host header. The problem is that when you create a site with a host header you then can't see the URL from a web browser. IIS has a web application for the host header, but your network can not resolve the request.
This is the point where I have to be kind of lame and tell you that you need to contact you network administrators. This is not to get out of the issue, but it is because different infrastructures will use different technology to resolve this. Remember that when dealing with host headers you need to work with your network team, don't pressure yourself to do it all yourself.
I can tell you one way to do it. Get a hold of who ever manages you GSS and tell them you need a URL for your SharePoint server. When they create one for you then use DNS to create an alias mapping you host header to this URL that GSS gives you. But you will need to check this with your network administrator.
What I can tell you is my opinion. I don't think its a good idea to create a site with the host header first. The problem is you can not see the site until all the administration work is done and in a large estate this could take days if not weeks. If the site looks wrong you will have to then restart building the web application with the host headers.
Rather I would first create a web application with a port number. You can test this on your server to be sure that it works. Once you have tested the server on its port you can create a new web application with a host header. Then extend the site you created to the new site with a host header and raise your request with networks or who ever else manages network traffic.
Here is a link that explains how to do this.
Ideally you should look something like this now
The outcome, worried about Host Headers but silently confident
In closing I would invite you to talk to your network people about not blocking ports and not using host headers. I have worked with a large SharePoint that did this and it worked great.
Monday, 26 October 2009
BBC NEWS | Technology | End of an era for early websites
Yahoo, which acquired the site for $3.57bn (£2.17bn) in 1999 at the height of the dotcom boom, said sites would no longer be accessible from 26th October.BBC NEWS | Technology | End of an era for early websites
WhiteHouse.gov Goes Drupal [Updated] | Personal Democracy Forum
WhiteHouse.gov has gone Drupal. After months of planning, says an Obama Administration source, the White House has ditched the proprietary content management system that had been in place since the days of the Bush Administration in favor of the latest version of the open-source Drupal software, as the AP alluded to in its reporting several minutes ago.WhiteHouse.gov Goes Drupal [Updated] | Personal Democracy Forum
SharePoint Is Microsoft's Real Window Of Opportunity | BNET Technology Blog | BNET
So while everyone has been running to the Web in the hopes of beating Microsoft to the punch, Microsoft has, since 2003 when it first introduced WPF, been quietly protecting its interests on the Web by creating products that work on the Web, but only according to its own rules. And because so many customers already use Microsoft, and so many business processes are already etched into Microsoft stone, they will keep using Microsoft on the Web rather than reinvent their wheels.SharePoint Is Microsoft's Real Window Of Opportunity | BNET Technology Blog | BNET
Saturday, 24 October 2009
Only pleased?
Microsoft has said it is "pleased" with the "strong consumer demand" for its new Windows 7 operating system.BBC NEWS | Business | Windows sales 'please' Microsoft
Microsoft will need to announce these numbers fairly soon, and it will be key to see if the OS is having a take up. If Windows 7 is not taken up we could end up have a wide range of machines from XP to Windows 7 running Intel IV to Quad Cores in the market place, and a difficult mix of 32bit and 64 bit with IE 6, IE 7, IE 8 and all the others.
The only reason to have a Microsoft is to present a more flat and uniform space for software firms and other companies to develop and sell in. Microsoft is doing everything right so far in Marketing Windows 7, returning to its classic features, implicate confession Vista was a failure, and working as a consolidator and not an innovator.
But the buzz is everything. So far so good with the Twitter with twits coming in on Windows 7. There are a good number of complaints but they are the standard things you would expect with drivers and failed installations. If a standard story against Windows 7 that the average business user can grasp does not emerge on Twitter in the next week I think it should be clear for Microsoft.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Universal phone charger approved
A new mobile phone charger that will work with any handset has been approved by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations body.BBC NEWS | Technology | Universal phone charger approved
Friday, 23 October 2009
My Strange Dream
I dream that I was advising someone very very knowledgeable in Computer Science on a SharePoint install. Yes I do dream about SharePoint installs. I was concerned they would reject the project for all the typical reasons like lack of Enterprise functionality, blog data storage, poor UI accessibility.
But when he did reject it, which I guess I knew he would all along because it was my dream and I was having it, he said something strange. He said it was because of the lack of an installation wizard.
And when I woke up I started to think about this. Given all of SharePoint's obvious faults it still has a lot to offer. And yet the building of farms is a very time consuming process. Building a farm involves a great deal or talking, writing and guessing. You have to build SQL Servers and the SharePoint separate, one at a time. You have to estimate what you need on paper or with a tool.
Wouldn't it be great if you had a wizard that guided and controlled the entire process of installation, upgrading, patching, and solution deployment in a controlled version controlled way for the entire farm.
Maybe I am just saying Dimensions for SharePoint, but I keep thinking about the dream.
Wednesday, 21 October 2009
Too many new SharePoint 2010 SKUs
I realize there's a theory at Microsoft that product names of business software can be more unwieldy and matter less than those of Microsoft's consumer-focused products. Yes, SharePoint is a complicated, multifaceted Swiss army knife of a product, but it sure seems like all these SKUs and components would make it tough on customers trying to tread water in the SharePoint swamp.
I know it way way to early to say, but I keep getting a bad feeling about SharePoint 2010. I hope I am wrong but I think we will get a Vista or Office 2007 level consumer selection in the next 6 months. I am looking for a new killer feature that makes it worth upgrading to 64 bit?
SharePoint 2007 was a no brainer, the 2003 product was a collection of limits and frustrating features.
But what makes 2010 better? In 2006 it was pretty easy to sell 2007:
- Easier to install
- Better interface
- Better administration environment
- More templates
- Better search experience
- You probably have not implemented 2003 yet so lets start at 2007
Has SharePoint peaked???
I fear SharePoint may have reached its height. If this report that two couples getting married at the SharePoint 2009 conference are true, it is a clear sign that geek generated hype has overtaken real potential an benefit.
So it may be time to start looking for a new gig. Well right now SharePoint is still red hot, maybe a few more years until the kids take over and do it for £15 an hour.
Tuesday, 20 October 2009
CodeProject: Recreating Frogger in Silverlight. Free source code and programming help
CodeProject: Recreating Frogger in Silverlight. Free source code and programming help
The rapture of Truth and Trials of being a SharePoint consultant.
RT @McBoof: Shock, horror! RT @apoorv: Ballmer at #spc09: Internet facing websites were not in the initial design goal of SharePoint
http://twitter.com/julesdwSo its now out in the open. Anyone who actually know WCM could see that MOSS 2007 was an INTRANET DM and collaboration tool. Trying to sit in rooms as people talked about using it to face the Internet was always very very painful.
This raises an issue us techie guys have to deal with every day. You hear things you know are false or even lies. Do you speak up based on your own rational conclusions, or do listen to your mother and take it for granted you just don't know anything.
The problem with MOSS 2007 on the Internet is many users just wanted it to be true so bad they would not listen. I have told some clients that they should consider another tool, perhaps a free tool, for WCM. But after one complained about me to my former boss I became a bit shy.
I really wanted to help that client. But is helping them telling them what they politically want to hear at that moment or telling them the "truth" as you can understand it.
I got the feeling a lot of clients were looking for gurus who would somehow make it happen. That great myth of guru magic in the hacker community is used again and again to deny reality. The truth was SharePoint (an excellent back office tool IMHO) was useless for the Internet.
I will be frank here, in 99% of cases you are better of using Dreamweaver to manage your web site, or having something written in ASP.NET of JSP than using SharePoint for WCM.
Now that Microsoft has open the door it feels very good to finally be able to openly say that.
Not to be too direct about it
schu RT @sherod: RT @jthake: in #SPC09 keynote Ballmer said MOSS2007 was never intended for Internet sites, <- oh the irony, the irony!!!
Seems Ballmer has confessed what I have said since 2006. Not to gloat but I WAS RIGHT, you should never have even considered using MOSS 2007 as an Internet WCM. It didn't work.
After several years of pushing this one I am glad to see that I was right. The question is will 2010 be as good as free or cheap WCM systems on the market?
Monday, 19 October 2009
BBC NEWS | Business | Why Microsoft can't afford Windows 7 to fail
BBC NEWS | Business | Why Microsoft can't afford Windows 7 to fail
BBC consider the unthinkable, an end to Windows. But reading the article you soon see that really in this economy, even after Vista, its just not possible to imagine a Microsoft free world.
Sunday, 18 October 2009
BBC NEWS | Business | Twitter and Facebook aid small firms
From "mom and pop" diners to cupcake shops to technology start-ups, small business owners across America have been thrown an unexpected lifeline in the midst of the recession by social networking sites.BBC NEWS | Business | Twitter and Facebook aid small firms
Friday, 16 October 2009
A Warning About Forums
ScreenShot006_4a43d6e40edf47a28e5340c78b70fe3a.jpg (JPEG Image, 701x419 pixels)
A SharePoint team site provides you a discussion list. Discussion lists are standard web information tools. People can post in a discussion. Members can write comments. While blogs post the newest on top, a discussion places the newest at the bottom of the group. As you discuss a subject you work downward. New topic are stacked on the top, like dishes on a stack.
Its a simple structure to organize discussions. You see whats latest on top and you can drill down.
Technically speaking a blog with comments turned on is essentially a forum. I once created a blogging toll in PHP by simply changing the logic of a discussion group.
So this seems like an easy tool. You might think about using it to promote communication, to capture discussions.
But I ask you to stop and think: what have you seen in discussion on the internet? Two words come up again and again: "flame war"
The issue with discussion groups is that essentially they are archaic. Think of the recent town hall meetings in the United States. No matter how many rational people you have behaving themselves, you only need 1 or 2 "trolls" to ruin any forum on any subject. You might think that in a work place this won't happen, but stop and think about the reality of work. Bullying and clique formation is a key problem in any company, and a chat forum could easily digress in to a bully session. I have seen it happen several times. And people become obsessed and waste masses of time.
Forums just do this. It seems almost to be a physical law of chat groups. Think about other tools to promote communication and team building. SharePoint is not everything. VoIP allows you to get groups talking to each other. Talking provides the social cues that prevent flame wars. People feel the presence of other people and regulate themselves.
Groups need to think carefully about how they are going to create themselves as a group.
How they are going to establish members. Ideally they will spend time together, but in the modern world you need to relay on computer messages. DON'T think you need to do everything in SharePoint. Other tools are better at keeping in touch with each other. Groups can IM, VoiP, Email and just call each other.
Team making at the start of a project is essential. Once you feel confident you have a team with enough shared respect and ideas you might want to give them chat groups.
Don't open up company wide chat groups open to everyone. Don't have forums where management participates with staff. A forum should be ONLY a tool for existing groups that have enough respect they will not flame each other. Otherwise you are taking a risk.
Interview with Fujitsu on Document Scanning Systems with SharePoint-Episode 36
Click here to download the show!Interview with Fujitsu on Document Scanning Systems with SharePoint-Episode 36
In episode 36 Rob, Nick, and Brett catch up with Thomas Postulka of Fujitsu to discuss document scanning systems and how they relate to SharePoint. Thomas was kind enough to sign up for an interview as part of the Road2SPC road show and even came out during a horrific storm to do the interview!
Nicolas Georgeault's Twitt post thank you
Thursday, 15 October 2009
Sociology of SharePoint 101: Blog Bling
Blogs are light weight web content publishing.
If you have critical information to share with your organisation that must be right, use Web Content Management tools. By the way SharePoint is kind of weak on WCM side of things so you may even consider not communicating in mass with SharePoint at all. SharePoint is best at collaboration.
But if you have a number of people or teams you want to allow to quickly communicate to the greater community without the requirements of of full WCM than a blog is an excellent tool. Example cases where a SharePoint blog is a useful tool:
- Status updates for IT to the rest of the company
- Feedback from ongoing events in real time
- Sharing knowledge of an expert
- Keeping status information on the Intranet (microblogging)
But there are problems with blogging as a tool in your office. The push back I get mostly is "we don't want people to waste their time blogging." And that is actually very good push back.
Look at the side of this blog, or almost any blog, and you will notice that I have added tonnes of bling bling. I have added mashups, blog rolls, links, Flickr graphic feeds, RSS feeds, etc.
And bloggers generally form in to communities where they exchange kudos and fight it out for status. I roughly know where my Second Life blog now ranks in all Second Life blogs. I check constantly my hit rates, where my hits are coming from, and when one of my blogs once made the top 100,000 in technorati I could not focus on anything else for a while.
The problem is the the medium becomes the message, that blogging as a social activity stresses the status of its author so much that it could lead to the following negatives:
- Information created to gain attention rather than be accurate,
- Large amounts of time wasted on adding features to blog that add no benefit,
- Competition between bloggers for status.
What to do about it? Well Blogs are just too useful (unlike Wikis) to decide not to use at all. In a large company with lots of people and departments with messages to publish nothing beats a blog. Just using WCM involves too much effort and using email will further harm already stressed email usage.
I would suggest that an organisation set up a simple set of practice for all bloggers. These would include keeping blog minimal, posting only significant data, and not tracking hit rates.
It might seem silly but I find that just knowing how many people visit your what ever it is leads to obsessive economies on the Internet. On Flickr people get view counts and make contacts, so there is intense rivalry between users on these. In Wikipedia people are judged for number of contributions. Facebook people show off their friend lists with pride.
And this is the core problem, Internet technology tends to promote quantity over quality. Its up to your and your companies culture to promote quality. The tools themselves won't do that, certainly not SharePoint which though useful is far from an ideal ECM.
Wednesday, 14 October 2009
Plans for Windows 8 allegedly leaked online - Software - Technology - News - iTnews.com.au
Microsoft staffer forgets social networking is public.Plans for Windows 8 allegedly leaked online - Software - Technology - News - iTnews.com.au
An employee has allegedly accidentally leaked details of Microsoft's next operating system via his LinkedIn profile.
Robert Morgan, a senior member of the Microsoft Research team for the last seven years, posted the details on his profile at LinkedIn, a popular social networking site for business professionals.
He describes himself as: "Working in high security department for research and development involving strategic planning for medium and long-term projects. Research & Development projects including 128bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9 project plan."
If correct the new operating system will be a major jump for Microsoft, which is producing a 32bit version of Windows 7 as well as a 64bit one. The jump to 128bit suggests Microsoft is banking on machines using much faster processors and a buoyant hardware refresh cycle.
Steve Ballmer has confirmed that the company is working on a client operating system to follow Windows 7 but details were not released. The earliest expected date would be 2012 he said.
Also revealing is the planning of Windows 9, something no-one at Microsoft has confirmed before.
Socioology of SharePoint 101: Wiki, the Bad News
I guess the first first rule about first rules is never to have a first rule.
Which actually means sometimes its probably okay to have a first rule.
As for SharePoint there are a number of techie first rules from not to use virtual hardware for databases in live to always run application pools on unique AD identities.
But as for once SharePoint goes wild, what rules are there?
Companies will spend vast amounts of time and effort to lay the technical groundwork (generally being taken to the cleaners by contractors making it all seem much harder than it is) and rush SharePoint to the users without much thinking about what does or does not work. IT will find itself being hit by requests for things like Blogs and Wikis without any criteria for selection.
Well let me make one rule I think is pretty hard and fast: don't use Wikis.
This is for a number of reasons:
- SharePoints Wiki is not very good
- Wikis are not very good
- Users find wikis impossible to use
- Wikis can never be finished (you can prove this actually and its a real flaw)
Wikis have the following key problems:
- Because Wikis an unstructured media it is unclear how to use them. This means different users will go about them in various different ways. But because most wikis deploy open contribution models (there is just too much work for 1 person) this leads to endless debates on how the Wiki will be used. Look at wikipedia, which gets more press over its debates on how to govern than its freedom of expression.
- Because wikis provide for a massive network connecting all nodes, the number of missing links grows exponentially with the number of nodes added. That means for every piece of new information added to the site the amount of linking grows in relationship to the existing sites. To but it not too nicely the more you work on a wiki the more undone it becomes.
- Wikis push consolidation and power of political process on the web. There are millions of blogs out there, and only one Wikipedia. Wikis demand so much effort, and require so much time be spent on their government that they consolidate effort and thus control in a few hands, thus ruining the entire collaboration benefit of the web.
- Wikis produce unstructured code that is hard to machine read, hard to mash up, and ugly.
- Collaboration on the text, rather than follow up comments as in blogs, makes for long poorly written post that make less sense in time.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Youth 'cannot live' without web
A survey of 16 to 24 year olds has found that 75% of them feel they "couldn't live" without the internet.BBC NEWS | Technology | Youth 'cannot live' without web
Tuesday, 13 October 2009
Google Image Result for http://www.endusersharepoint.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/EndUserSharePoint-BlogsAndWikis.gif
Sociology of SharePoint 101: Team Site
SharePoint offers a set of collaboration tools. Social tools of all kinds like telephones, televisions, and trucks support certain kinds of social activities. What SharePoint really does is support kinds of social working, and to really understand SharePoint is not the technology as much as the social uses made by web pages.
In my experience the most popular SharePoint feature is the team site. A team site allows a set of members to share documents, comments, to make list items and track tasks. It includes the ability to make calendar items.
Over the past 5 years I have seen this tool more than any other used by businesses. Business is generally about project work which is what Information workers usually do.
Team sites not only support small project team working, they also avoid some of the dangers of other web 2.0 tools. Unlike Wikis its unlikely that a small team will get side tracked with arguing about how the SharePoint site should be created, mainatined or governed, or who has control over it. Unlike blogs there is little chance that producers will concentrate on status and kudoos over doing some work. Discussions among team members who work together are not likely to contain flames. Team sites are generally safe ways for busiensses to make clear use of Web 2.0 featues.
But there are also negatives to team sites. These negatives are the negatives of teams. Remember its not the tool but the kind of group that the tool is used by. Team sites are used by teams and thus the problems of teams are the problems of team sites.
Teams can develop loyalty with established members wanting to work with each other and not allowing new members to join. Team sites can produces an internet of unconnect little kingdoms that don't work together.
Teams will inherit work without a clear understanding of the history of it. SharePoint reflects these problems. Team sites are generally be created without any information about the pre-history of the project. Work is repeated. Clients get billed again and again for the same work until they have enough. It becomes hard to join up small teams in to enterprises. You get a few gurus with some people around them over a company able to form to meet new needs.
When using a Team Site or planning Team Sites you should think about how to prevent a team from becoming a clique.
How can you connect teams to a company wide vision?
I think RSS feeds that come from company wide blogs or other information feeds to put the big picture there. Using an tool like Quest's web parts will enable the business to collect data from teams. Also trying to keep standards can promote shared working standards.
I would also suggest you talk to your users and get them involved in the process of making teams that work with the company. SharePoint is only a space to do social work, you still need to work with the people.
Bob Hooker's Golden Rules of Making SharePoint Community Work
First I present a set of inescapable truths:
The Inescapable Truths
- People trust people they have worked with before
- On any network there is a value of being first
- Discussion forums almost always explode in to flames
- Wikis, no matter how advanced, always look unfinished
- When you start setting down rules you have already lost
- The Internet presents as many risks for bad behavior as opportunities for good
Accepting these truths leads to these rules
The Golden Rules
- Provide collaboration in WSS project teams sites.
- Provide access only to members with a shared folder or blog to communicate to the greater community.
- Company wide information should almost always be controlled by Web Content Management available in MOSS 2007 and not WSS.
- Open discussions and chatsshould only be allowed on project sites by project members.
- Establish a shared understanding of proper SharePoint practice. Net guides can only be of so much value. For example it is very bad form on the net to flame someone for spelling mistakes, in a business it is probably necessary to point them out.
- Do not let managers and the works in the same forums.
- Make sure you bloggers understand a shared set of rules, to not "hot dog", blogging is a duty and right.
- Avoid Wikis unless you team is highly experienced and skills, and then try to avoid wikis all the same.
Authority and SharePoint
Though the work concentrates on the Open Source web community and not Microsoft, its study of wikipedia, blogging, and project communities are very useful to anyone thinking about how SharePoint technology will impact their organization.
I find that organizations don't tend to think of the risk of Web 2.0. You get people who ignore Web 2.0 and people who think its great, but O'Neil is for those who thinks "it just is", and looks at collaboration and community on the web as a social reality with its negative and positive impacts.
O'Neil studies authority and autonomy, and these are the key issues on SharePoint systems as well. O'Niel identifies four spaces of kinds of authority on the Internet.
- Projects
- Networks
- Assembly
- Forum
SharePoint offers Web2.0 tool to provide all these spaces. Team Sites are classic project sites where experienced leaders can guide teams to produce text. Blogs provide at hand network tools, and Wiki and document libraries can provide Assembly function. Discussion forums are a standard of SharePoint.
Reading this book you can get some idea of what social impact these structures can have on your organization.
A few points, more my ideas but coming out of a third reading of this amazing book:
- Organizing your collaboration by projects will promote a community of experience, with more senior and experienced staff gaining status and cultivating sites as super users guiding new users. Team Sites are really SharePoints killer app as far as collaboration goes.
- Providing Blogs will produce a culture of competition and rankings, with key blogs and bloggers becoming more and more interested in outdoing each other, having more viewers, getting more content and being seen as more important to the organisation.
- Wiki projects will almost always become involved heavily in rules and regulations, as the leaders emerge trying to give some order to a fairly chaotic content too.
- Discussion forums are the hunting grounds of male macho bullies. I would strongly suggest to any IA or System Admin working with SharePoint to not give out discussion groups lightly, and to keep an eye on them in case they get out of hand. Discussion forums almost inevitably become full of flames.
SharePoint is a great project tool, and projects are great social structures for companies to get work done. If you are looking at SharePoint as a collaboration tool you might ask "what kind of collaboration is good", and the project structure is the best.
These are not O'Neils rules but mine, but I think they can server as a good starting point:
Bob Hookers Golden Rules of SharePoint Sociology:
- Provide collaboration in project sites seen only by project members.
- Company wide information should be provided in managed sites with managed feedback.
- Discussions should only be allowed on project sites and limited to project time.
- Establish a shared understanding of proper SharePoint practice. Net guides can only be of so much value. For example it is very bad form on the net to flame someone for spelling mistakes, in a business it is probably necessary to point them out.
- Do not let managers and the works they work with access to the same forums.
- Avoid long life sites and projects that are collaborative.
- Make sure you bloggers understand a shared set of rules, to not "hot dog"
Think about how Wikipedia works, would you really want to work like that? To have your work suddenly deleted by a more senior manager because it was not relevant or some other subject assessment? Would you want to talk with you managers in a chat room full of flamers?
My suggestion to someone thinking about the impact of SharePoint, stick mostly to collaboration by groups within groups, give projects with set life times, and keep a keen eye on what is Company wide vs. project local. Don't hand a company wide tool to users by accident.
Sunday, 11 October 2009
Creating a Web Application in SharePoint
Select Application Management and then create or extend web application
Select create a web application. To create a new web application you need to select a port number. MOSS will assign a unique port but I tend to find its best to plan this out before hand. Then assign rights. Also MOSS gives the database an impossibly long name which can make backup confusing so I assign a real name.
This process has created a Application, but a Web Application is empty. So you have the option to create a high level site collection.
To create a site collection you assign a template and administrators. If you don't assign yourself as an administrator you won't have access. In this case we make a collaborative portal.
This then create a top level site collection.
Saturday, 10 October 2009
Friday, 9 October 2009
Quantum computing may actually be useful, after all
Quantum computers are computers that exploit the weird properties of matter at extremely small scales. Where a bit in a classical computer can represent either a "1" or a "0," a quantum bit, or qubit, can represent "1" and "0" simultaneously. Computations performed on a string of qubits are thus the equivalent of computations performed on every possible value of a string of ordinary bits. Since eight classical bits can represent 256 different values, a single eight-qubit calculation is the equivalent of 256 classical calculations.Quantum computing may actually be useful, after all
Collaboration and Content Strategies Blog: Is SharePoint Inevitable for My Organization?
In an ideal world, architectural principles that optimize long-term, enterprise-wide value would guide IT decisions. And those architectural principles, in turn, would reflect the needs of the business. But years of speaking with clients about their real-life situations have demonstrated the reality of how those decisions are often made. Decision making in a sub-optimal or unbalanced environment requires a bit of extra foresight. Politics is the art of the possible, so in these cases, central IT decides to just let SharePoint in rather than fight it.Collaboration and Content Strategies Blog: Is SharePoint Inevitable for My Organization?
Well an interesting article, but one that shows gain the point why Microsoft has risen to such domination. Opposition to MS technology generally comes from a "architectural principles" concept without looking at the economics. The main point I would make for at the least doing a PoC of MOSS for ANY organisation is simple: Collaboration is a growing business need. In 5 years time most knowledge worker will have some SharePoint experience, how much do you want to spend training when it starts becoming re-training?
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
BBC NEWS | Business | EU approves new Microsoft pledges
The European Union has voiced its approval for Microsoft's latest pledges to curb its anti-competitive practices.BBC NEWS | Business | EU approves new Microsoft pledges
The technology giant has agreed to give customers a wider choice of web browser through its Windows operating system and to share information with rivals.
The EU will now consult PC makers, software firms and consumers on Microsoft's offer.
The breakthrough could see an end to the anti-trust battle that has lasted for the best part of a decade.
"The commission will formally market test proposals made by Microsoft to address concerns regarding the tying of Internet Explorer to the Windows PC operating system," said the EU's competition commissioner Neelie Kroes.
"The preliminary view is that Microsoft's commitments would indeed address our concerns," she added.
"PC users should have an effective and unbiased choice between Internet Explorer and competing web browsers."
In 2004, the EU ruled that Microsoft had abused its dominant market position by freezing out rivals.
It said Microsoft must let competitors' products run on its operating system.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Researcher Discovers Method to Fully Process Encrypted Data Without Knowing its Content
PhysOrg.com) -- An IBM Researcher has solved a thorny mathematical problem that has confounded scientists since the invention of public-key encryption several decades ago. The breakthrough, called "privacy homomorphism," or "fully homomorphic encryption," makes possible the deep and unlimited analysis of encrypted information -- data that has been intentionally scrambled -- without sacrificing confidentiality.Researcher Discovers Method to Fully Process Encrypted Data Without Knowing its Content
IBM's solution, formulated by IBM Researcher Craig Gentry, uses a mathematical object called an "ideal lattice," and allows people to fully interact with encrypted data in ways previously thought impossible. With the breakthrough, computer vendors storing the confidential, electronic data of others will be able to fully analyze data on their clients' behalf without expensive interaction with the client, and without seeing any of the private data. With Gentry's technique, the analysis of encrypted information can yield the same detailed results as if the original data was fully visible to all.
Using the solution could help strengthen the business model of "cloud computing," where a computer vendor is entrusted to host the confidential data of others in a ubiquitous Internet presence. It might better enable a cloud computing vendor to perform computations on clients' data at their request, such as analyzing sales patterns, without exposing the original data.
Download details: Office SharePoint Server 2007 VHD
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 VHD Download for trialsDownload details: Office SharePoint Server 2007 VHD
Jive to Socialize Content Across the Enterprise; Liberates Microsoft SharePoint Content in First Phase of New Strategy | Search Journal
Jive to Socialize Content Across the Enterprise; Liberates Microsoft SharePoint Content in First Phase of New StrategyJive to Socialize Content Across the Enterprise; Liberates Microsoft SharePoint Content in First Phase of New Strategy | Search Journal
With the SharePoint Connector, Jive customers can search, browse, and link to SharePoint repositories and content from wherever they happen to be working in Jive, including groups, discussion threads, documents, and blogs. The SharePoint Connector enables Jive customers to:
- give authorized users transparent, click-through access to both applications while exposing Jive SBS social features in the heart of SharePoint;
- keep track of modifications to SharePoint content and activities as well as SharePoint content that has been socialized in Jive;
- conduct unified searches that reflect both application environments, and link to and embed content in both directions;
- publish content from SharePoint to Jive SBS allowing for content to be reviewed, edited and processed prior to sharing with the entire community;
- publish content from Jive SBS to SharePoint to leverage SharePoint's storage and content capabilities to comply with company data and security policies; and
- manage corporate governance policies through a granular, semantically rich business rule language to help IT and SharePoint administrators strictly define what, how, and when content gets socialized out of SharePoint hierarchies.
Still waiting for Wave
Well I am a collaboration expert with one of the worlds largest implementer, a long term user of Google tools like Google Doc, Calendars, Maps, and Blogger and someone who could give them feedback comparing the product to SharePoint, which I would be happy to do.
So why the wait?
Microsoft made Beta's of SharePoint available to anyone in summer of 2006 almost a year before RFM. This just seem like hype.
Mashing up with SharePoint, the good, the bad and the ugly
Sadly the badges from Pipes failed all my tests on SharePoint, which is depressing because Yahoo Pipes is the best mashup tool I have ever used. The problem is that SharePoint does not like the JavaScript you use to server up pipes. So I have my pipe of Twitter posts containing the terms SharePoint and WSS but I can not put it on my WSS test machines.
Facebook | My Photos - TouchGraph Photos
On the other hand SharePoint prefers iFrames and if you are planning on mashing up with SharePoint the best way is to create iFrames to material not blocked by your local firewalls. Firewall policy can be beyond idiotic. Blocking facebook is probably like taking Internet access away in the late 1990s or not giving staff phones.
So if you want to extend your SharePoint by linking it to the Web 2.0 collaborative revolution, thus unleashing its true potential, and you want it more than just links make sure you network allows access and RSS feeds. If they don't I suggest you ask the business why Security polices are often set in a vacum.
In a very large organisation Twitter and RSS twitter feeds surfaced via SharePoint could be a major tool in keeping the company in line with its consumer base. A shared Wikispace could link a community of experts at your firm with government staff who also form policy around your clients. SharePoint could provide a major hub for information from inside and outside your company, bringing it together with secure data on sales compared to RSS feeds of Twits or blog posts about your industry.
Come on everyone, think a little.......
Going Linux but keeping your SharePoint job
Okay I am going to be very honest here. Right now Ubuntu 9.04 - the Jaunty Jackalope is far beyond Vista or XP, and its a platform that anyone would rather work on. It makes excellent use of even toy hardware like I have. I have a Pentium for God's sack. And yet running Ubuntu I have an excellent experience. And now with Sun's Virtualisation tool VirtualBox I can do a significant part of my development work inside of Ubunut by running off VHD created for Virtual PC but running in (far superior IMHO) VirtualBox
Facebook | My Photos - TouchGraph Photos
There are two truths: First Open Source is overall going to provide more innovation at less cost than anything Microsoft can make. The other truth is that Microsoft continues to dominate business computing and with the migration to service many of Microsoft's core products like SharePoint will continue to be a part of what workers are offered by management.
The danger is that the two sides could become inflexible with Microsoft people ignoring the greater universe dominated by Open Source solutions and a spirit of group cooperation. On the other hand the Linux developer can find themselves excluded by the power and wealth created by software while they develop all the best ideas and lead the entire software "project".
Facebook | My Photos - TouchGraph Photos
You can see clearly the benefit here. It simply would not be possible on this "shit" machine to run XP with Virtual Server dishing up VMs of SharePoint in a efficient way, but here you can see it does it wil little problem. Using all Open Source tools I can create a VM environment to develop and test Microsoft features. it is possible to use the two world together to profit.
Sharepoint.jpg (JPEG Image, 447x270 pixels)
BBC NEWS | Technology | New rules to end 'blogger payola'
US regulators will for the first time crack down on bloggers who fail to disclose fees or freebies they get from companies for reviewing products.BBC NEWS | Technology | New rules to end 'blogger payola'
The Federal Trade Commission, FTC, decided to update its nearly 30 year old guidelines to clarify the law for the vast world of blogging.
Offenders could face eventual fines of up to $11,000 (£6,900) per violation.
The updated policy on how advertisers can use endorsements will also apply to celebrities and research firms.
Until now, bloggers had not been covered by the guidelines - something which had concerned consumer groups. They had argued that for a long time that the links between some bloggers and companies were not always totally transparent and clear for readers.
"Consumers are increasingly dependent on the internet for purchase information," said Jack Gillis of the Consumer Federation of America.
"There's tremendous opportunity to steer consumers in the wrong direction."
There is nothing in the new rules about how disclosures must be made.
"That's left up to the endorser," said Richard Cleland, assistant director of the FTC's division of advertising practices.
"It can be a banner, part of the review. The only requirement is that it be clear and conspicuous."
No one has really ever given me anything for any of this.
Monday, 5 October 2009
Microsoft predicts 80,000 IT jobs for UK - News, Gadgets & Tech - The Independent
Almost 80,000 new jobs will be created over the next four years as thousands of new technology firms set up in business in the UK, technology giant Microsoft predicted today.Microsoft predicts 80,000 IT jobs for UK - News, Gadgets & Tech - The Independent
Research by the firm suggested more than £50bn will be spent on information technology (IT) this year and will increase by 1.8 per cent a year between now and 2013.
The IT market will drive the creation of nearly 2,500 new businesses and 78,200 new jobs between the end of this year and 2013, according to the study.
Most of the new companies will be small and locally owned organisations, and the jobs will be highly skilled and high-quality, said the report,
Microsoft underwent a "cultural reformation" when it felt the effect of the global recession, chief executive Steve Ballmer said today.
"Consumer spending was impacted, we had to decide how to cut. We suffered the first revenue declines in our company history. They were a few per cent," he said during a visit to London.
"I had a journalist say to me: 'Severe revenue decline' and I had to concede that any revenue decline felt severe if you've never had one.
"It was a cultural reformation for us," he said in the CBI annual lecture.
Microsoft "locked" its research and development budget and made sure it keep enough money to continue to establish new businesses, he said.
Sunday, 4 October 2009
BBC NEWS | Technology | Court order served over Twitter
BBC NEWS | Technology | Court order served over Twitter
The High Court has given permission for an injunction to be served via social-networking site Twitter.
The order is to be served against an unknown Twitter user who anonymously posts to the site using the same name as a right-wing political blogger.
The order demands the anonymous Twitter user reveal their identity and stop posing as Donal Blaney, who blogs at a site called Blaney's Blarney.
The order says the Twitter user is breaching the copyright of Mr Blaney.
He told BBC News that the content being posted to Twitter in his name was "mildly objectionable".
Get Online Microsoft Services Demo
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Friday, 2 October 2009
SharePoint 2010 Silverlight Web Part, and why it is not a big deal
SharePoint 2010 Enhancements for End Users: New Silverlight Web Part & Improved UI for Adding Web Parts to a Page - SharePoint 2010 - Bamboo Nation
SharePoint 2010 Enhancements for End Users: New Silverlight Web Part & Improved UI for Adding Web Parts to a Page - SharePoint 2010 - Bamboo Nation
Bamboo Software, having seen the same demo as the rest of us, has ripped a few slides to make a piece promoting the Silverlight Web Part in 2010.
Well I have only seen the video demo from which the 2 screen grabs above come from. It seems to show that you have an OTB Silverligth Web Part, but all it does is let you place silverlight applications in your sharepoint page, not create or edit Silverlight with SharePoint content.
SharePoint can already do this, not only SharePoint 2007 but 2003 and I assume 2001. Let me show.
To prove I am not cheating I use a VM of Windows 2003 with WSS 2.0 running on Sun VirtualBox VM technology on Ubuntu Linux. The ultimate 'nothing up my sleeves kind of demo'. Here you see me installing Silverlight on the VM. (By the way this took significantly less time on VirtualBox than on VirtualPC).
I actually have created hundreds of Silverlights over the past year. Most went down with Popfly. But Photosynth is still there and seems to be growing. So I rip the silverlight Photosynth from my Photosynth.com page.
Now I just edit a simple content web editor web part.
Just past the URL for the Photosynth Silverlight in to the html editor
And you have a WSS 2.0 site running a rich silverlight 3-D photosynth.
So as it stands today the entire Silverlight Web Part in 2010 just streamlines function that already exists in in SharePoint 2003 and 2007.
Very disappointing.
What I wanted was something like Popfly that would allow Silverlight mashups of Sharepoint material for projects. As of right now you don't have that.
Thursday, 1 October 2009
Event ID to track for SharePoint
Pretty exciting hum? Well I hope that help someone somewhere who has to hack together a quick project but I would really love some feedback on this one.


text:
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
A couple of days ago I was downtown and decided to head over to the Habitat for Humanity warehouse store. They have mainly old and a few new donated house items such as doors, windows, fixtures, wood, tubs, etc. at dirt cheap prices. Like $10 for a nice wood door that need some sanding and paint. I was in search of a cool looking small old window that I could knock the glass out of, put on the wall, and hang my soldered glass pieces from. I want to make larger soldered glass pieces from clear beveled glass and have family photos sandwiched between the glass. I think it would be a striking way to show photos. But, the store was closed that day. Darn.
But, as I was leaving, I saw an old warehouse thrift store...Cause for Paws...they donate towards animal care. It looked really gross but the parking lot had many customers so I decided to check it out. I found some cool white glass pieces that I scrubbed and put through the dishwasher twice (LOL), a vintage dictionary, and a vintage Asian book- both books are very old but perfect to tear up for some of my crafts. I decided a month ago after reading a magazine article that I would try to find old white glass dishware. I seem to have bits and pieces of serving dishes but nothing matches. If I go all-white, then everything will match. What I found so far can be used not only in the kitchen, but in my craft area or bathroom too. I like the holes along the edges where I can weave ribbon through or dangle things I make. And to top it off- I only paid pennies!
On the way home I spied a used book store so I stopped in to see if they had any treasures. Yes. They have a shelf full of items that are free....I picked up 18 Chess Life magazines for Hunter- all free! I didn't see any art books that I had to have but I did find several books that were only a couple dollars...2 Silver Palette cookbooks, 1990 Southern Living Annual Recipes, Martha Stewart's Gardening (a $50 book for $3), a ribbonry book, and a vintage BH&G Holiday cookbook...all so cheap and in great shape!
Last week I also found a cool black wire fruit basket for a couple dollars.
I know my friend Carolyn would be proud of me. She finds great bargains all the time. I absolutely hate to shop for anything except art supplies and groceries, so I think I did good!


text:
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text:
Remember the mad mullah who tried to build a terror mosque atop Ground Zero using the ashes of September 11th victims?
Neither do I.
But that campaign — the slandering of an imam sponsored by the State Department and the smearing of a proposed cultural center no closer to Ground Zero than pubs and porn shops — is worth recalling because America's jihadists are at it again.
First there is the spectacle of Congressmen Peter King, an IRA terrorist sympathizer who penned a novel in which he saves America from Muslim terrorist sympathizers. Since no one cared to read it, King is intent on realizing his fictional fantasy by presiding over a show trial held on the equally fictional pretext that "the Muslim community" poses "a real threat to the country" and protects terrorists.
Then there is Pamela Geller, who exemplifies the grotesque neurosis that now afflicts many American Jewish conservatives. Geller admires fascist parties in South Africa and Europe (deemed kosher because they now want to exterminate Muslims instead of Jews) and denounces Jewish moderates (read: those who don't advocate Palestinian genocide) as modern-day Nazi collaborators. Alongside her comrade David Yerushalmi, another Jewish figure who advocates white supremacy, Geller works to criminalize Islam under the pretext of banning "Sharia law" in state after state.
And finally there is "Brigitte Gabriel," the alias of Islamophobia's Oprah Winfrey. She rivets churches and synagogues by turning the complex history of the Lebanese civil war into a tale of bloodthirsty Muslims exterminating Christians — even though the war's largest massacre was committed by a Christian group backed by Israel.
These recent assaults by Christian and Jewish conservatives have outdone last year's in anger and ugliness. But perhaps the finest example is this video of Tea Party "patriots" shouting religious slurs at a Muslim charity event attended by women and children in Orange County, California. A rabbi, two conservative congressmen, and a city official named Deborah Pauly blessed the proceedings. Pauly darkly noted to her audience that she "knew some Marines" who would be "happy to help these terrorists to an early meeting in paradise."
Shameful? Hardly — "Bravely Confronting Radicals," chirps a right-wing outlet. Pauly later claimed that her vicarious death threat was actually directed at radicals in the Middle East, not anyone at the rally. Brilliant: she and her mob may soon beat up a few American Muslims and claim it as an even better way to "direct" their anger at shadowy enemies thousands of miles away.
The ugliness is bound to get uglier, because conservatives now face a serious challenge: reality. While the exponents of hate spew venom about Islam and the menace of its adherents, millions of ordinary Muslims in the Middle East are rising up in unison, showing immense courage, ingenuity, and resourcefulness as they vie for freedom against despots — most of whom rely on the United States for support.
So much for "they hate us for our freedom."
And so much for Israel-first policy. That country's American cheerleaders insist that whatever Israel's atrocities, it should be excused because Muslims are animals who must be controlled. Now, it turns out that Muslims, too, might be human beings. And when the Palestinians inevitably apply the lessons of their Arab brethren, who will be left to defend Israel when a hundred thousand human beings march against the occupation?
This is what haunts and animates America's fifth column: the lies they have so carefully cultivated to sink America in two wars and financial ruin may blow up in their face if their Two Minutes Hate cannot be extended ad infinitum.
Councilwoman Pauly, the elected official who called for the murder of her fellow Americans, shrieked at one point, "I don't even care, I don't even care if you think I'm crazy anymore."
She's right: America's jihadists don't care if you think they're crazy — they just don't want you to think the Enemy is human.
Source article is by M. Junaid Levesque-Alam with supporting links is located here. I highly recommend clicking on the link to the source article and reading the article there to be able to also read the many links to the article.
P.S. A few minor corrections: 1) America's anti-Muslim jihadists aren't on the march again. They haven't stopped marching since the false-flag terrorist attack of 9-11. They're still on the march. 2) It's not that they don't want us to think our enemy is human. It's more about our real enemies making an enemy out of any resistance to them. Our real enemies are the cause behind the false-flag terrorist attack of 9-11. Our real enemies have us fighting their enemies in the Middle East and demonizing and investigating the wrong community.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
America's Anti-Muslim Jihadists on the March Again
at 3/10/2011
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text:
Sometimes I feel like Frodo in the Lord of the Rings. Andrew is the ring, only rather than being evil, he is simply, "the Precious." And rather than deliver the ring to the Chambers of Fire, our pursuit is Andrew's health. Oh, the journey persists on and on, discouragement, exhaustion, feelings of wanting to give up, and the ever black cancer always pursuing us. Like Frodo, we have a team of warriors to help us safely to our goal. There are Andrew's parents, who are with us most of the time, his mom taking up residency in our house more than in her own home. There is Sam, my right-hand (wo)man, who organizes the church to meet all our needs for childcare, research help, food, any way she can think of to lighten the burden and free us up to focus on fighting the cancer, there's Bob, who accompanies us to decisive appointments and is shepherding us along with our whole church through this overwhelming quest, and there is my sister, who's doorstep I sometimes slump onto late at night, weak, having lost my appetite for all food. Gayle is the beautiful Erowyn who gathers me onto her horse half-dead and brings me back to her people. She and her daughters tend to me like Cinderella's mice and feed me and feed me and feed me. She and Bob speak gentle words of life, while pouring hot tea into my cup to drink. This close team of warriors are the ones who keep carrying us towards the destination when we have no more strength to walk ourselves and are not sure we can make it to the Chambers of Restored Health.
As this trial has worn on and on and on, I keep thinking I'm at the end of my rope, but the next day arrives and off to the doctor's again. How does one get further and further at the end of a rope if there is no more rope? I wonder if any of you saw me during the day to day if you would think I was anything but a waif of a little girl who lost her way in the forest and just wants to find her way back to the familiarity of home, where a warm fire is burning and nothing ever goes wrong.
Yesterday, after a full night of sleep, I woke up still tired. It was an end of my rope morning where I was like a bubbling cauldron about to explode at any moment. Just-(grunt) need-(grunt)-to-get-alone-at-the-park - (grunt) and-have-my-grapple-with-God-time (grunt).
But I had already overslept and it was time to juice for Andrew. And then the kids were up. Since we didn't need to consult with any doctors for questions, I got to take care of the kids, while my mom took Andrew to radiation. I miss the kids so much. Many weeks of meeting with doctor after doctor trying to make informed decisions, sometimes leaving the house at 8am and not returning until after 6 in the evening, it's as if I have a full-time job that the kids did not sign up for.
If what was going on on the inside were going on outside, I imagine it would look like my hand falling off on Monday. Then by Tuesday, my arm had fallen off. Wednesday my foot fell off. Thursday my leg was gone. And by Friday my neck along with my head stayed in bed while the rest of what was left of me hobbled out and made juice for Andrew.
After Andrew and my mom returned from radiation, I said I really needed some caffeine. (I know, I know. Andrew really wants me to get off caffeine and so I go on and off it, but occasions like cancer keep coming back into my life necessitating it. Yes, it is necessary). My mom and the kids came to Caribou Coffee. There is a little table, chalk board, and a little nook with a box full of toys for kids to play at. I can't remember what it was but for some reason Gracie started throwing a fit. And she has such a loud voice she could be a professional singer. Then the two ladies at the table behind us left, of course. Now Gracie kept wanting to sit on my lap. Finally, I found an American Idol toy that sang some song and made Gracie happy. A.J. showed her how it worked. I tried to take a few deep breaths and relax a little. I spilled the scaulding coffee on my hand. "Ahhhhh!!!!" Grumble, grumble, grumble.
The cauldron in my heart was bubbling over.
I went into the bathroom to wash my hands and clean off my pants. When I finished I turned off the water and threw the paper towel out. I found myself not wanting to walk out of the bathroom. I stood in front of the sink.
"Where's mama? Where's mama?" I heard Gracie's voice crying outside the door. Suddenly the door was swinging open and Gracie was making her way in. The one time I had not locked the door.
"No!" I said.
My mom pulled her back out.
"Where's my mama?! Where's my mama!" I hear Gracie crying still outside the door.
"I think she's in there," a man's voice says. Not my mother's.
I swing the door open. My mom is standing a few feet away where she can watch both Gracie and A.J., who is still sitting at his little table. But my cover is blown, and I cannot return to the bathroom.
Later, when we were back home, I found myself escaping to the bathroom again. I had my head in the corner between the two walls. Now, only Andrew and the kids were home. The kids were banging on the door. I began to sob in a way that I had never heard myself do before. It was like an animal in the forest that a tree had fallen on and it couldn't escape to save it's life. I howled long and loud almost like singing, as if every wail were a phrase communicating in some language that I could never articulate in words.
Thus my heart was grieved,
And I was vexed in my mind.
I was so foolish and ignorant;
I was like a beast before You.
Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You hold me by my right hand.
(psalm 73:21-23)
When I finally opened the door of the bathroom, the kids, who still were waiting at the door, fell at my legs. We all went upstairs, I put on some black pants and buttoned the black cardigan I was already wearing. The four of us got in the van, pulled out into the overcast afternoon, and drove to Ann Sweet, a beloved elder's wife's memorial service. She had been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer this past January.
When we turned onto the street leading to the church, it was lined with so many cars, I could hardly drive down it. I turned my face away from everyone, concealed my face with my hand, and quietly began sobbing again. Everyone loved Ann Sweet, even people like us, who hardly knew her. I dropped the children and Andrew off at the church. The three parking lots were full as well as the streets. I had to park two blocks away. She was 73 years old, but like most of the older people at church, I hardly thought of her as old. They are all so vibrant, engaging, and warm, they make you believe the 1950s was only as far away as my own college days (which I am convinced really wasn't that long ago).
I remember when we were at Bob and Gayle's the weekend before Andrew's surgery. Ann and Doug, her husband, sat at the table with us for dinner. They told us how a few days earlier, Doug's mom had taken them out to eat at Wilfire, a steakhouse. It had been raining.
"But Doug got the car and picked you guys up from the restaurant, right?" Bob asked.
"Well of course!" Ann said. "His mom is ninety-five years old and his wife is DIE-ing!"
Somehow she could make you laugh about anything, even if she herself was struggling.
When I arrived at the church, I entered through the downstairs fellowship hall. Bright pink tablecloths covered the tables with friendly, yellow flowers in clear vases. I glanced into the kitchen as I passed. As usual, a bunch of ladies were inside finishing setting up. I found myself half-expecting to see Ann Sweet among them, as she always was one of those ladies bringing food and helping some way. Even though Ann's passing felt real, she still seemed so present through all her works. She and her husband were one of the founding members forty years ago. Her fingerprints were everywhere in our church.
Upstairs, I found myself unwilling to enter the sanctuary, though I could see Andrew sitting at the back with the kids and they had saved a seat for me. Instead, I made my way into the baby cry room where they had a window into the sanctuary. I sat in a seat in the back corner where I was mostly concealed in shadow. I couldn't stop crying. I stood up, went to the bathroom in the same room, found a roll of unopened toilet paper and took it with me back to my seat. I needed a lot of tissues. I cried and cried and cried.
And yet, the memorial service ministered so much to my heart. Each one of her three sons and nine grandchildren were able to get up, talk about how they loved her so much, and made it through their speeches without being overcome with sobbing. There was such a strong sense that though they deeply mourned the loss of their beloved mother and grandmother, they were rejoicing even more that she is with her Savior.
I picture the other believers and angels in heaven saying, "Have you seen the new girl, Ann? She is just the sweetest!"
One son told of how during her last day they all were at her bedside in the hospital. They kept asking Doug if he wanted to be alone with her. They had just celebrated their fiftieth anniversary over the winter. He said, "No, no." And then in the late afternoon, all of a sudden, he said he needed to be alone with her. He had the strongest sense that angels were in the room and as if the Lord was letting him know they had come to take her now. Everyone cleared out, he shared his last moment with her, and then, she was gone.
Doug and Ann had insisted many times in the past to Bob that he absolutely must present a bold gospel message at their memorial services. He faithfully did so, despite it taking everything out of him to keep from weeping for the woman who had been as a second mom to him. Tonight, at prayer meeting an older woman at the church praised God for the message and said, "You know, pastor, I would like you to preach the same message at my memorial service." We all laughed. It made me wonder if a lot of people felt like me, that I hope my memorial service one day will be just like hers. She lived a rich and full life serving her beloved Savior.
"A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man;
the living should take this to heart."
(Ecclessiastes 7:1-2)
Death makes you take life more seriously. It makes you contemplate what you want your life to have meant. It makes you want to not waste it.
I thought, well, in the end, if I want to have lived my life for Jesus, well, trials make you more like Jesus. And being more and more like Jesus is the only way to glorify Him. I felt my heart timidly, softly whispering, what it always comes back to saying, Well, okay then, Lord. I suppose I submit if my life must be one marked by trials. Living for you is the only life worth living, I suppose.
"Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
For indeed, those who are far from You shall perish;
You have destroyed all those who desert You for harlotry.
But it is good for me to draw near to God;
I have put my trust in the Lord GOD,
That I may declare all Your works."
(Psalm 73:25-28)
One night a couple of weeks ago, when Andrew and I were talking to Bob and Gayle at their house, I said I feel like that Judas character in the Matrix. The one who wanted to go back into the Matrix and return to life within it, even though he knew it wasn't real. Sometimes I wish it were possible to go back to life being carefree and pretending death wasn't the one thing in life that was inevitable.
But you know what this trial has done? It has stripped me of all the things I really really wanted to place my hope in other than God. I remember the Wednesday we went to the Mayo Clinic a few weeks ago, and Dr. Moore said we needed to have surgery again and basically remove Andrew's head. I nearly fainted and the nurse had to bring me to another room and lay down. When we finished our appointment, she asked me if I wanted her to get me a wheelchair. The kids and my mother-in-law were in the waiting room. I thought, Oh great what a sight that'll make. The patient Andrew, walking beside me in a wheelchair! Lot a hope that'll give his mom and the kids. "Uh, I think I just need to walk around and get some fresh air," I said.The next day we didn't have any appointments at all and someone was already planning on taking the kids for the day. We set aside the morning simply to meet alone with God and pray for wisdom. As I drove down our street to pray at Starbucks, I began talking to God about Andrew, and burst out crying at the thought of losing him. I never made it to Starbucks. Instead, I drove around it looking for an empty parking lot to continue praying and crying in my car. I found myself at Hoolihans. Oh, I didn't know this was where it was. I didn't think I had been there in five years, since Andrew first visited me a month after we started dating. I remembered the picture Bob took in the booth of us while we were waiting for our food. We were sitting awkwardly next to each other. Bob said, "Come on! You can at least put your arm around her for the picture!" After that Andrew kept putting his arm around me every time we sat down.
It was so vivid and felt so recent, I looked at the entrance and could almost see us walking in.
Before I was married, Jesus' presence had been so real to me that this life and the next seemed only to be separated by a thin veil. I had no fear of death and the thought of seeing my Jesus face to face was so exciting to me. I never expected to live a long life and always expected it would be me in the very position Andrew is in right now.
And then beloved showed up. My beloved. The day we were married, suddenly I became so anchored to this earth. I must live and he must live for we must live for each other. My pendulum swung the opposite way. And now I feared death more than anyone and was terrified anytime I stepped into my car.
As I prayed for Andrew in the car at Hoolihans, what came to mind was all the suffering that was going on for so many people. Ann Sweet had terminal lung cancer. All kinds of people were physically suffering as well as in many other ways at our church. It made me long for the day when I would see my Jesus face to face and all the tears would be wiped away and death and misery and fear and pain and suffering would all be done away with and finally we would be free to worship Him as those who love Him long to do and finally be unhindered by that corpse of sin we carry rotting on our back.
When I returned home Andrew and I sat together and talked. I told him I was no longer afraid of death again, and felt a sense of what Paul had said:
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain...But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake."
(Philippians 1:21, 23-24)
Then I said, "And if I'm not afraid of death, then I'm not afraid of death for you. Then if we see death as the Bible sees it, then it's not disappointing if you die at a young age, because it's not your death. It is the beginning of you being able to fully do what we were created for - to worship Jesus with all our hearts and without sin."
I often wonder if life is like an infant in a mother's womb. Maybe she fights and fights coming out, terribly fearful that exiting is her end. But in actuality, it is her birth. But if she realized how much more colorful and real life outside the womb is, she would see how silly it would be for her to remain in the womb forever.
There are other things the Lord settled with me in my heart that morning. There are so many excuses I gave to God about my hope being in other things than Him. Come on, God, who isn't afraid of death? Come on, God, who wants to lose their husband? You're the One who gave Him to me. Come on, God, how can you give me such a sweet gift just to hurt me and take him away? Come on, God, I will die without him. He is my lifeblood. Come on, God, what will happen to the kids if they don't have a father? I can't teach them about You on my own. Oh no, their eternal destiny is at stake, oh, I can't even go there right now. A.J. needs a man to learn how to become a man from. Come on, God, You've allowed us to build a life together sustainable only together. How will I be able to take care of our family without him? But here is the truth I didn't want to hear and I wasn't sure I believed anymore. But He changed my heart and convinced me of it: "My grace is sufficient."
What about our kids, Lord? I don't want them to have to long for a father and be like that kid, Wesley, from Star Trek the Next Generation, who only had a hologram of his father delivering a message, and he seemed so real he could touch him, but then the program ended.
Come on, God, I don't want them to not even remember him or know how much he loved them - My grace is sufficient. You know I will take care of you.
How will I take care of them? You know I will take care of you.
How will I live without him? You know I will take care of you.
After I told Andrew about all the things that came to mind during my prayer time, we prayed together for the next hour. When I didn't have the words to say anymore, I turned to the Psalms and began praying through them.
In the end, I feel in my heart that we are going to get through this and that Andrew is going to live and survive this. Who knows, maybe the Lord will bless our prayers and make Andrew as good as new on this side of eternity. Who knows, maybe he will even grow to old old age.
This morning I woke up after yesterday's end-of-the-rope day. And you know what I found? I found what God has been showing me the past couple of weeks - every day is a new day and his mercies are new every morning. Yesterday I woke up feeling at the end of my rope. This morning I woke up feeling like this isn't that bad. And it was a beautiful sunny day and I got to have my time with the Lord at the park and the children and I got to spend time together outside and moments together feel like a celebration. Andrew wasn't feeling well, but Hale, Sam's husband, dropped by to sit with him during his lunch hour. Then a couple of men came over tonight to clean our gutters and fix some things. Afterwards, since Andrew felt too tired to go to prayer meeting, while we went ahead, these men sang and prayed with Andrew just like they were at church. Yes, God's grace is sufficient. And though I doubted it many times recently, He has shown me that He is truly faithful, just as He said.


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I have reduced my fee as low as possible. I am not making any money; I just want to try phone sex with a horny guy. I'm new to this, but I think it will be fun!
I have developed quite the insatiable thirst for cock in my short life...
Anytime I see a dick nearby, ready and waiting, my mouth begins salivating.
I want to taste every man's cock that I see ....like the slutty whore that I am.
I love men of all ages, but I have a soft spot for older guys. I want it in all my pretty little holes....won't you try a few of them?
Please fuck me and leave me with a cream pie in each of hole...
P.S. I've only had smaller cocks in my life, so I'm told that my pussy is really tight.
I would LOVE it if you were willing to stretch me out a little with your thick cock?


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Slander: proclaiming Megan Fox the "2nd most desirable woman of 2009."
AskMen.com is a men's lifestyle website founded in August 1999 by Ricardo Poupada, Christopher Bellerose Rovny, and Luis Rodrigues. Thanks to the collapse of their main competitor, they were able to corner the market on loser jerkoff's who are desperate to learn the shortcuts that will make them, at the most, semi-successful jerkoff's. The site claims 7.2 million unique visitors, likely unique only in that they all lacked stable father figures who were willing to teach them how to be real men. Or, since that hasn't really been unique for some time, unique in that they're all too scared to step out into the real world and learn on their own via the tried and true, all-time greatest method of breaking men in: experience.
Anyways, every year the head honcho jerkoff's get together and compile a list of 99 famous women outside of the adult film community whom they masturbate to the most and release it on their site. I checked it out to see whom these chicken chokers consider desirable.
It was the usual: ugly teens who lucked out in adulthood; C-grade starlets; braindead models who get checks outside of the physical beauty department for humanitarian work they probably delegate to assistants; Charlize Theron. No surprises, just the same starstruck fantasies I'm used to reading in Esquire, except with poorer writing and put in list-form. But there was something that did irk me - #2, Megan Fox, the T&A from that big-budget car commercial a couple years back.
I never much liked this girl. Looks-wise, her kind's a dime a dozen, but the way she's sold really irks me. That stench of the 'risque', and not even the geniune kind! It's that bad-girl shit advertisers piss their pants over, all that 'this is the girl you can't bring home to Mom and Dad' bull. On the cover of GQ in a black bikini against a red background with your tongue stickin' out; who do you take me for, a complete moron?!
I feel sorry for this man. Just Beverly Hills 90210, and 10 years later he's still at rock-bottom.
If I wanted a slut, I'd have the good sense to hook up with one who wasn't known nationwide. And she isn't even a real one! The only kind of sexuality she oozes is the committee-approved kind, aided by supportive lighting, tight costumes, and a pervert behind the camera.
If I'm going to live in a country where an AskMen.com can exist, then they had better well choose the correct women to be considered desirable! Those blowjob hacks think I'm going to fall for this ruse, to have this faux-tart foisted upon me as a goddess whom I and every American male must worship, to accept that she is desirable, up and down, no questions asked...well, they've got another thing coming. This is Scam America! That sort of horseshit doesn't fly around here.
Don't bother with her, boys. Quit paying attention to her just because the establishment says you should jerk off to her. There are adult entertainers for that; it's their job. They provide a vital service to the American economy. Your semen drives their industry! Why give it to some wannabe floozy whose self-enflated ego wouldn't let her give you the time of day? Pornographers will work for your attention.
Is there more to Megan Fox than meets the eye? No. She's basically that girl in high school you gave up on when you realized how much shit you'd have to put up with just to get the rare blowjob. Nothin' special.
P.S. If you're going to choose any starlet worth salivating over, why not go for the real Hollywood bird, the cokehead of easy virtue, the one constantly smuggling those big, freckled melons, who actually backs up her lesbian urges. You go, girl.
Men's portal? I believe that should be the tagline of a different kind of men's magazine.
This has been Scam America!, always looking out FOR YOU!
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A few of our more corageous members chose to stay among the pigmie peoples of antartica during our southern hemispherical travels.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Oh, now this was a lovely ice palace
Posted by Ozarkian Society of Steampunkery at 12:28 PM
1 comment:
- mmcelde said...
and where is this? I think I like it.
- May 2, 2008 at 3:55 PM
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text:
Granola Bars
Mix together:
1.5 cups brown sugar(or sucanat)
1 cup oil
Add in:
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 cups oats
2 cups flour
Add ins:
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnuts(or any nut)
1/2 cup coconut(or dried fruit)
a little of everything. :)
Grease 9x13 pan. Add mixture and press down with greased hands. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Cut into squares while hot. Enjoy!


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Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Gotta Cut Loose - FOOTLOOSE!
But keep on them Bellagio Shoes. Yeah, that was my attempt at channeling the song Footloose by Kenny Loggins . I did a horrible job, but I gotta tell you - Leanne Banks nails it with her latest release Footloose . Before I begin today's review, I have a few confessions to make. Confession # 1 - I actually read two other books before this for reviews but I loved this book so much I had to review it first. Confession # 2 - This is NOT the first time I have gushed about Leanne Banks and Confession # 3 - This will, much like my last review, be a total Fan Girl Squee Fest. I'm thinking I should make my own little alert symbol for that, because the list of authors who cause me to give a FGSF is getting l - o - n -g, dear readers! Plus, Leanne holds a special place in my heart because I've won one of her contests and she threw in extra stuffs for little ole me, and that was just too cool. I don't win much (can't say never since obviously I have now won sumpin') so the fact that she made it extra special for me was great! With all of that said........ON WITH THE FGSF - I mean review.
Footloose by Leanne Banks - (Back Cover Copy) Even on a tropical getaway, a girl's got to watch out for the sharks... Think working for a leading international shoe company sounds like a dream job? Not if you're Amelia Parker, an overworked, downtrodden temp working for Bellagio, Inc.'s grande dame, Lillian Bellagio. But things are looking up for Amelia. She's just been given the assignment of accompanying Ms. Bellagio to her estate in the Keys. Trading pumps for flip-flops and a cell phone for a conch shell - could be worse, right?
Especially when life on the island includes her very own misery man - one Jack "The Shark" O'Connell, dashing venture capitalist. He dares Amelia to use this time to do something wild: drink a hurricane, go skinny-dipping...Have an affair with a dangerously attractive man. Now Amelia will have to decided whether to step into that glass slipper.
Okay now, I just had to look up the word downtrodden in the dictionary, because I thought I knew what it meant, and that is a word I would not use to describe Amelia in this book. And now that I looked up the meaning, I still wouldn't use that word to describe Amelia. Heartbroken? Yes. Downtrodden? Not so much.
You all know how much merit I put into Back Cover Copy anyway (translation: I pay the stuff as little attention as possible because they hardly ever get it right) and truth be told, the first time I even looked at it was to type it above. I didn't need anything to sell me on this book, I was already sold. I loved the first books (Feet First and Underfoot ) that were set in the world of Bellagio Shoes, so I would have read this book if it simply said - Girl meets boy and BAM. Seriously.
Amelia Parker is Bellagio, Inc.'s super temp. She is assigned to whatever department that needs her and she solves their crisis de jour. She is great at turning chaos into order. This is how she finds herself in the Florida Keys working as Lillian Bellagio's assistant. Bellagio needs some one that can appease their toughest board member. Fresh from her third and final break from Will, her long term (and I mean since elementary school, long term) fiance, Amelia decides to use her time in paradise to transform her life. As she sits in a Tiki Bar drinking a Hurricane and working on her New Life To Do List, she meets Jack O'Connell.
Jack O'Connell is in the Florida Keys to wrap up some business of his own with Lillian Bellagio. As he sits at the bar sipping a Corona he sees Amelia working on her list and is compelled to meet her. Noticing her wallet sitting on the ground he seizes his opportunity to talk to the most interesting looking woman in the place. Jack is most delighted to learn that the fascinating woman with her list, just happens to work for the same woman he is brokering a deal with. What could possibly be wrong with having a little fun and getting some valuable company information at the same time?
For their time in the Key's Jack helps Amelia with her list and makes sure that most of his additions include the word naked. Amelia is different from any woman Jack has ever known. He knows that she just came out of a long term relationship and he knows that this should just be temporary. Just as Amelia knows that Jack should just be her temporary fling to get her world turning on its axis correctly again. So why is it that when Jack has to leave they both find themselves missing the other.
In fact, Jack has to leave to take his seat on the board at Bellagio. When Jack realizes how much he misses Amelia, he makes it possible for her to get a promotion and get herself back to Bellagio headquarters and closer to him. As soon as Amelia arrives back, she sees Jack and is instantly angry with him for letting her be the mole the company suspects he has. She feels betrayed and used. Jack realizes it is going to take some doing to get her back in his bed and in his quest to win her over again, they both realize they need each other.
The ending of this book was Romance at its best. Every girl will wish she had a Jack when she reads the ending of this book. Leanne did it again and I am in awe. Not only was this book HOT HOT HOT it was sweet in the sweetest of ways.
What was so interesting about this book for me was, it felt much more like Jack's story than Amelia's. The book is written in 3rd Limited (which you know I love) and most POV is Amelia's. But the growth and pain that is Jack's just stole my heart. My only regret that I read this book is in knowing it was the last book to be released that deal with the world of Bellagio Shoes. I love reading books that have ties to each other. Every book of the three is a stand alone and they indeed stand alone quite nicely. But, it is so neat to read a book and see the hero and heroine from a previous book resurface. It is like reconnecting with a good friend and getting to catch up with their lives.
I really enjoyed this book and I know you will too! So what are you waiting for? Go read it now! I know I will have it in the re-read pile!
Take Care
4 comments:
- Askinstoo said...
- This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
- Tue Sep 05, 04:34:00 PM
- dee said...
I just HATE blogger spam attacks!
About this review...I think I may have to take a look at this. And since I just got two free coffee coupons from Borders, and Shane and I have a date there THIS VERY NIGHT, I know what I'll be looking for.
Thanks, Char!
- Wed Sep 06, 11:47:00 AM
- Cherry Tea said...
If you get it, you won't be sorry. I love her books. I see that she is going to be on writerspace tonight, I'm hoping the kids will let momma have some time with the computer tonight.
- Wed Sep 06, 01:02:00 PM
- kay said...
I haven't read Banks before, but I eyed this book last time I was shopping. I'll take a second look-- I have some coupons to use before they expire.
Thanks too for being up-front about the total fan-girl status. Gushing is one thing, gushing when you gush about everything the author does is another. It's good to be aware of the difference.
- Sat Sep 23, 09:11:00 AM


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Linking up with Shannon for So What! Wednesday!
This week I am saying So What! if...
* I don't think that Jenelle is entertaining anymore now that she isn't with that douche bag husband of her and seems to be relatively clean. There goes my daily entertainment. Although...I guess I'm happy she is getting her life together...FINALLY!
* I think that Justin Bieber is a turd. Big A and I have daily discussions about what shenanigans he has pulled so far that day. Honestly, I think he is a privileged rich & famous little boy who thinks he is untouchable. Newsflash turd: most celebrities that acted like you at your age are in and out of rehab or washed up nobodys...or BOTH. Get it together.
* I apparently have strong opinions on celebrities these days.
* Speaking on celebrities. Did you see Britney on the cover of Shape this month? Home girl is getting her groove back.
Take notes Bieber, Britney cut the shit and got her stuff back together.
* I am so incredibly excited about dinner tonight. Big A is taking me out to our favorite restaurant and I can taste the lobster ravioli already. He said that I did such a good job with the cookout and working hard on the pool that I deserve a delicious meal. Can't fight the man when he's right! Haha. He's so good to me.
* I am taking a half day on Friday purely because it is supposed to be 90 degrees out and I want to sit out by my pool and day drink. Haha. And I told Boss Man this. Good thing he is so understanding...and isn't planning on being in the building anyway. Holler.
* I continuously think that we have one more week in May. I have no idea why. I keep thinking that June is NEXT weekend. I'm pretty sure I'm losing it.
* I'm kicking myself for not letting Boss Man buy me breakfast. Now I'm STARVING and I have to pay for it myself. BOOOOO!
* It legit bothers me when people stop in front of my desk and have this big, long, loud conversations. You all have nice offices. And there's like 12,000 conference rooms. Egads people, move along.
* I have a stack of surveys that I'm supposed to input the data into a spreadsheet and I haven't touched them yet today. To be fair Boss Man has been walking around the building discussing which printers we do/do not need and then deciding that they are all fine where they are. And there are blogs. Ya know. Important things.
* Big A let his alarm go off as long as I did in the morning I would probably punch him in the throat. It goes off for the first time at 5:00 AM and I usually get up around 6:15 (*cough*6:40*cough*). It goes off every 9 minutes during that time. Yesterday was apparently too much for him since he kept shoving me to turn it off. Can't blame the man. I should probably thank him for not smothering me in my sleep over the past 6 years. (But then again, sometimes he doesn't realize that what I'm doing is annoying until I point it out and then he's all, "yeah that was ridiculous"...maybe I'll just thank him silently...to myself...)
* These people from the god damn DoubleTree don't call me back today I'm going to go ape shit. Numerous phone calls, messages, emails, etc. have gone unreturned to answer questions about a charge for a hotel room that I did not use. I'm sorry people... I spent a good chunk of money at your hotel for my wedding 8 months ago...I think you could let one room slide. Assholes. (To be fair, it isn't the hotel I got married at, but STILL, they are a chain, they have my money too!)
Alright, that's enough for today. I should probably actually work. Maybe get myself some breakfast. And fix my phone that shut off when I accidentally chucked it on the ground. Whoops. (We might not be making it until August for my upgrade. haha)
Hope everyone has a lovely Wednesday!


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San Francisco 49ers Prepared to Open Up the OffenseAugust 17, 2012
There were a ton of different factors that led the San Francisco 49ers to run a watered down and conservative offense last season. They were unable to get the players comfortable with the scheme prior to the start of the preseason due to the extended labor strife between the league and Players Association.
San Francisco didn't have the players on the outside to air the ball out and wanted Alex Smith to gain confidence early in the season in yet another new system. Once this strategy seemed to work, there really wasn't a reason for Jim Harbaugh and Co. to change it.
Why alter something in mid-stream when you are rolling opponents on a weekly basis?
In short, the powers to be in San Francisco knew exactly what they had and how to utilize that talent on the offensive side of the ball.
It worked out—for the most part.
The 49ers' general manager Trent Baalke set out to fix a perceived and real lack of talent on the offensive side of the ball. He went out there to acquire two impact free agents at wide receiver in the form of Mario Manningham and Randy Moss.
Despite limitations, both are definitely upgrades over what San Francisco had last season. They also selected A.J. Jenkins in the initial round of April's draft.
In the process, San Francisco was able to give Smith weapons of a more consistent variety. Additions of both Brandon Jacobs and LaMichael James at running back are also going to help a great deal. You will not see the 49ers struggle a lot on third-and-short.
Instead, they're going to be able to sustain longer drives and have more success inside the opponents' 20.
Another shortcoming that might not have been taken into account by experts was the 49ers inability to protect Smith at times last season. The veteran quarterback was sacked a total of 44 times, including 31 times on the road. The combination of a somewhat young line and an inability to create cohesiveness along the offensive line in the offseason led to the stunning differential in pass-protection at home compared to on the road.
This shouldn't be an issue in 2012, considering Alex Boone seems to be a tremendous upgrade over what the 49ers had at right guard last season.
In Alex we Trust?
All reports out of 49ers' camp is that Smith is looking the best he has since being selected No. 1 overall in the 2005 NFL draft.
Matt Maiocco over at Comcast Sports Net Bay Area had the following to say about Smith:
Smith looks to be better at every aspect of his game. Obviously, with a year of experience working with Jim Harbaugh, Greg Roman and Geep Chryst, his knowledge of the system is better than ever.
Examining him with the naked eye -- usually from a hundred yards away, where the media is stationed during practices -- it's impossible to pinpoint any dramatic mechanical differences. But the Alex Smith I've seen through 14 practices has been noticeably more accurate with his short, intermediate and deep passes. He also appears to be quicker with his decision-making.
I filed a similar report about two weeks ago.
If reporters and armchair experts have an understanding that Smith has improved a great deal during the offseason, it obviously hasn't gone over the heads of the coaching staff.
It now appears that Jim Harbaugh and Co. are REALLY ready to give Smith the keys to the offense and run with it. Quicker decision making, in addition to better accuracy, leads to much improved performances.
We don't need to be "experts" to understand that.
An Arsenal of Weapons
San Francisco probably has its best group of wide receivers since Steve Yong was slinging the ball around Candlestick Park in the 1990s. The passing game isn't going to be limited because of a lack of consistent play on the outside. Instead, Smith is going to be able to rely on the likes of Moss, Manningham, Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree to get open and make plays down the field.
You are not going to see receivers struggle breaking the line against press or have issues finding a seam against two-deep coverage. Smith, with his improved accuracy, should be able to find these seams and hit the receivers on target.
I don't want to see draws or sweeps on third down and long in 2012. Greg Roman drew those plays up for a myriad of different reasons last year, but he wont be forced to go in that direction starting in September.
He is, and should, put the trust in Smith and Co. to gain that first down through the air.
What Does it Mean?
San Francisco is still going to be a run-first offense, and that shouldn't change. However, there is absolutely no reason for them to go vanilla with the lead or fail to open up the offense in close games. The results might be more interceptions on the part of Smith, but that is the risk you take when putting the ball in the air more.
I don't think anyone would complain about Smith throwing 10-to-12 interceptions if he is able to put up 25 touchdowns and over 3,700 yards passing.
Sustained drives coupled with the occasional quick strike offense will only going to help the defense maintain its level of excellency. In short, an improved offense will make one of the best defenses in the entire National Football League that much better.
In the process, San Francisco will be the odds-on favorites to capture their sixth Lombardi Trophy. If I notice this from my office in Sonoma County, it makes sense that Harbaugh and Co. fully understood this months ago.
Let's hope they continue to show confidence in Smith and help him lead this team to New Orleans in February. After all, if we have learned one thing in the last year, it makes absolutely no sense to question the 49ers' coaching staff.