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I'm withholding all modesty here and would like to declare the pizza that my roommate Nattles and I made as top-notch. With a few more efforts I think it will be safe to say that our pizza will be tops in the Bay Area - imnsho it's already top 3.
Whereas our first efforts last week were respectable, the crust was not as consistent, lacking a bit in flavor, and the appearance of the pizza was not the greatest. This week the difference was initially proofing the dough for 6+ hours in the fridge, as opposed to an hour at room temp. Both weeks we punched down the dough and then proofed again for another 30 minutes. Here are last night's pies:
Fresh mozz, chopped garlic, watercress
Olive oil, parmeggiano reggiano, cremini mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted garlic and fennel, crispy potato, dried chopped thai pepper, capers, parsley
parmiggiano reggiano, feta, creminis, chopped thai peppers, parsley (super thin crust)
Mozz, mushroom, sun-dried tomatoes
parmeggiano reggiano, sun-dried tomato, a few leftover scraps of creminis
The wine accompaniment was a delicious bottle of 1998 Cronin Zin/Mourvedre. Bright spicy, tangy central coastal California wine which will probably go strong for at least another 3 years. It is easily the most enjoyable $10 red I have ever drunk.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Our pizza's sort of the boss.
Posted by Joe Manekin at 12/06/2007 11:48:00 AM
2 comments:
- Mateo said...
look really really good and i would bet it is among the best in the city. but SF pizza sucks! Long live Pepe's and Sally's of New Haven CT!
- December 6, 2007 at 1:21 PM
- Joe M. said...
Yes, we are all well aware of the tri-state area's pizza superiority. Especially when it comes to pizza BTS (by the slice).
- December 9, 2007 at 1:05 AM
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How is it that more than a month has gone by since I wrote? I know I've been busy but I guess I feel the way I always have. That my life is just not that interesting. There's probably only about one new thing with me.
I'm finally going to get invisalign for my teeth. I have wanted to get it for at least five years and this is the first year I feel like financially I've been able to do it. I wonder what it will feel like to have straight, pretty teeth for the first time in my life!? I can't wait. My consult is march 5th and hopefully I will start soon after.
Oh I lied. One more new thing. I have two small cavities that I am having filled next week. I've never had a cavity in my life until now! I'm not concerned about it so no big deal. It's just a first.
On the subject of life moving too fast, I'm excited to start my project life kits soon. My biggest challenge is taking and ordering the pictures. I have the kits and the pages and albums and just need to get started.
That's all I got!

subset: commoncrawl


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Hunters at the End of Cataclysm
Patch 5.0.4 information is everywhere, and it's nearly impossible to include everything, so I will point you to Battle.net and MMO-Champion for a top-down view.
We have a month between patch 5.0.4 and Mists of Pandaria to analyze the effects of the new changes. I have never been an expert in analyzing things forward, so I will analyze what has already happened. How has Cataclysm been for hunters?
RaidBots began collecting combat log data since the last days of patch 4.0.6. Unfortunately, we don't have much perspective from the early days of Cataclysm, but this will suffice.
From the data it collected, it is clear that Marksmanship dominated the combat logs for the majority of Cataclysm. It is also not a surprise for us now that Survival has been the dominant build on the raiding scene since Dragon Soul opened. What is surprising to me is how wide the DPS gap has become over the patches.
Balance is an abstract concept, but other patterns can point us to reasons why it is so hard to achieve. In an true environment of balanced talent builds, any hunter is free to choose his or her own build without impairing the ability to play the game. But what if that game is raiding? Then clearly a DPS gap indicates that the talent builds are in no way balanced. Moreover, a widening gap over a period of changes indicates that all attempts to balance the field have failed.
Patch 4.2 was seen as the nail on the coffin for Beast Mastery. It made the build's viability in raiding worse, and Beast Masters began thinking they have really been neglected. Their nominal DPS did not reach the patch 4.1 peak until it had passed the middle of 4.2. Marksmen and Survivalists continued their steady upward climb.
I spoke about Survival's silent comeback in patch 4.3 some time ago. It is obvious now that the comeback is not so silent. Survivalists came back with such a vengeance that the maximum hunter DPS was pushed higher until it reached a plateau of about 53,000. This is a 47 percent increase over the peak DPS in patch 4.2. No one would have foreseen in December.
Marksmen, on the other hand, suffered terribly. Their numbers dwindled, and hunters began switching their talent builds to Survival in droves. In the end, their final nominal DPS was only slightly higher than the patch 4.1 peak.
The surprise here is Beast Mastery. I had seen a small yet persistent group of Beast Mastery hunters continue with their talent build. They have continued against the odds and eventually overcame Marksmanship hunters in nominal DPS. The question, then, is what kept Beast Masters interested in their build that the Marksmen did not have in theirs?
Back in November, I pointed to a blue post on the official forums which should have indicated that the three talent builds are balanced. The story of the past nine months, however, have indicated otherwise. Assuming that Blizzard was correct, what changed the mathematics?
The answer should be player behavior. For reasons which I have yet to see articulated, hunters shunned the two talent builds which are not the top to a greater degree in patch 4.3. The fact that nominal DPS continued to rise steadily through patch 4.2 meant the ratio of players for each talent build and the rate at which they gained new gear remained constant. This status quo was thrown away when patch 4.3 arrived, and I have yet to rationalize how and why this happened.
We can assume that Blizzard already has this data because it constantly monitors players' progress in the game. They may already have the answer to this puzzle, and if they do, I hope they will attempt to prevent this from repeating in Mists of Pandaria.
Survival's Silent Comeback
It probably says something when six of the top ten Alliance hunters on my realm is raiding as Survival over Marksmanship. Here is how the rankings look as of this morning.
WoW Heroes is a quick way to check realm rankings because it can quickly parse guild rosters according to specific classes, so all I needed to do was update the hunter rosters of the Alliance guilds that have entered Dragon Soul on Eredar by cross-checking with WoW Progress.
Incidentally, I am ranked 22nd as of this posting as Survival. The first Beast Mastery hunter appears in 26th place. This is a marked difference compared to just a few months ago when as many as nine out of ten were Marksmanship.
RaidBots is reporting as of this morning that in the top 100 normal 25-man combat log parses, Survival median DPS is dead even with Marksmanship at just over 35,000. Although 25-man raiding is where groundbreaking progression is usually made, one should not ignore 10-man raiding data. RaidBots reports that in the top 100 normal 10-man combat log parses, Survival median DPS exceeds Marksmanship by over 1,000 — at 30,000 to 28,800. Beast Mastery median DPS rounds out the normal 25-man data at 30,600 and 27,300 at normal 10-man.
But reading numbers don't really mean anything. What conclusion can we draw from this?
The most important factor for a certain class/specialization combination to appear on these DPS aggregators is raid representation. If there are more people playing these specific combinations in the top 100 parses, the more accurate the sample will be and the higher that combination will place on the DPS rankings. RaidBots tells us just how accurate the sample representation is for these combinations.
At normal 25-man, Marksmanship appears in 1,068 samples; Survival appears in 986 samples; and Beast Mastery in 854 samples.
At normal 10-man, Marksmanship appears in 1,095 samples; Survival appears in 1,064 samples; and Beast Mastery in 881 samples.
Upon brief inspection of the ratio of samples for the respective raid compositions, one can estimate that Survival hunters are more likely to raid in 10-man rather than 25-man, even if only slightly. The increased representation of Survival hunters in 10-man raiding means they are also receiving more upgrades, pushing Survival median DPS higher and allowing it to exceed over Marksmanship.
Of course, there are still more people raiding as Marksmanship as can be seen from the sample sizes I previously mentioned. Why is Marksmanship median DPS not higher then?
The answer is because more top hunters are raiding as Survival over Marksmanship. For example, the Eredar realm ranking I initially posted in the beginning of this entry may not represent the entirety of the situation, and Marksmanship could still represent 60 percent of the population. But if the cream of the crop and those on the groundbreaking edge of progression are using Survival, its median DPS will skew toward a higher value.
Marksmanship may still exceed Survival DPS in theory according to ideal simulations, but live data show otherwise because of players' behavior.
The Bombardment Mess
On Tuesday, Blizzard reverted one change that had snuck into patch 4.3 without much notice from the hunter community.
Reverted a bug fix that caused Bombardment to be consumed by the next Multi-Shot. Fixing this bug proved to be a significant dps loss, so Bombardment once again lasts for its full 6 second duration regardless of the number of Multi-Shot casts. The tooltip will be updated in a future patch to reflect that this change is intended.
Why did this happen? Last Thursday, some time after the official patch, Blizzard snuck this addition onto the patch notes.
Bombardment now only affects the next Multi-shot cast.
If you don't remember, Bombardment is a fourth-tier Marksmanship talent that reduces the focus cost of the next Multi-Shot by 50 percent when you critically hit with Multi-Shot. It sounds pretty straightforward right? Well, not quite.
Judging by the wording on the initial change in the 4.3 patch notes, the developers had not foreseen the current usage of Bombardment, where Marksmanship hunters would blow all their focus with sequential Multi-Shots, regenerate it with Steady Shot, and then repeat the process.
If one were to logically read the tooltip for Bombardment, it would be assumed that every Multi-Shot has a chance to proc the Bombardment effect. This meant that if it were to proc consecutively, one could fit in four Multi-Shots before depleting all 100 focus.
Multi-Shot (original, 40 focus)
Multi-Shot (Bombardment proc, 20 focus)
Multi-Shot (Bombardment proc, 20 focus)
Multi-Shot (Bombardment proc, 20 focus)
Apparently this was not Blizzard's intention. They did not intend on allowing the reduced-focus Multi-Shot to proc Bombardment, meaning one could only fit in three Multi-Shots at maximum.
Multi-Shot (original, 40 focus)
Multi-Shot (Bombardment proc, 20 focus)
Multi-Shot (original reset, 40 focus)
Upon initial inspection, one would think this reduces DPS. Well, it did, so the change was reverted.
But the confusion doesn't end there. Why mention a six-second duration? There was no indication whatsoever that Bombardment has such a duration. Although I don't have a definite answer since I have been unable to test this, I have one speculation.
Under extreme haste conditions, one may be able to fit in as many as five Multi-Shots in a row because by the time you consume 100 focus for the initial four shots, you will have regained another 20 while under haste. Bombardment procs when Multi-Shot hits its targets, which is typically at the end of the first global cooldown. Spamming four more Multi-Shots that are all affected by Bombardment uses four 1.5-second global cooldowns, which total up to six seconds. This is the maximum duration of Bombardment because you would have to regain focus again after it is depleted by using Steady Shot.
Bombardment remains one of the least studied abilities of Marksmanship hunters, and there isn't much data available on it at the moment. However, I don't think this will be the last time we see its effect come into discussion because the ability will also feature as a Marksmanship passive ability in Mists of Pandaria as well.
Observations of Hunter Spells in Mists of Pandaria
There's something about having an official talent calculator available for us to play with to prepare for a new expansion that makes people want to try out potential builds for Mists of Pandaria. While talents are the meat of this new content, looking at hunter spells is also important because this is a dramatic change of the old game philosophy where you learn your abilities from your talent tree when you are building it.
- The first thing you will and should notice are the passive weapon skills. The tooltip on this passive trait has been reworded from the current version in Cataclysm. Instead of saying that hunters can use certain melee weapons, the new version states that "hunters perform best" using ranged weapons. Additionally, they will be able to equip axes, daggers, fist weapons, polearms, staves, and swords. This clears up any and all misconception about the removal of the ranged weapon slot. What will actually happen is that all classes will see their third weapon slot (currently used for ranged weapons, relics, librams, idols, etc.) removed. Specifically for hunters, our ranged weapons will become two-handed weapons much like the way we use staves and polearms today.
- Something we usually take for granted at level 85 is Mail Specialization. This is currently acquired at level 50, a ten-level gap between the time you are able to train wearing mail armor and the time you acquire this passive trait. That means if you are able to obtain a full mail armor set prior to level 50, you receive no benefit from it. In Mists of Pandaria, this armor specialization is automatically given to you at level one. Oddly enough, you still cannot wear mail armor until level 40.
- Another curious implementation is the Focused Aim passive trait, which reduces pushback while casting Steady Shot or Cobra Shot by 70 percent, given at level one. Why reduce something if you don't get a chance to experience the non-reduced deficit in the beginning?
Now let's look at the class-specific spells.
- Noticeably absent from the Beast Mastery spellbook is the Ferocious Inspiration raid buff. There has been no indication as to where this has gone, especially when Trueshot Aura and Hunting Party remain available to Marksmanship and Survival hunters.
- It's nice to see situational talents like Concussive Barrage from Marksmansip and Entrapment from Survival make it into their respective spellbooks.
- Another noticeable change is that Careful Aim will be now an exclusively Marksmanship hunter trait and thus no longer provides any benefit for Cobra Shot.
- For Marksmanship hunters specifically, it appears Improved Steady Shot will disappear for good, allowing for a less rigid shot rotation than the one we are currently forced to employ.
Do you have any favorite spells that missed the cut? Unfortunately, we still won't be getting Eyes of the Beast back. Next week will be a special presentation as we explore the new talent tree tier-by-tier from every day from Monday to Saturday.
Hunter "Balance" Reaches Tipping Point in 4.3
As reported by MMO-Champion, a new test build is being deployed on the PTR today. While they call it "a very minor build with almost no changes", it isn't very minor at all for hunters.
- Beast Mastery: Focus Fire now lasts 20 sec, up from 15 sec.
- Survival: T.N.T. now has a 10/20% chance to proc, up from 6/12%.
This is an interesting buff on top of what the two trees are already getting because a developer mentioned this a few days ago, with my emphasis:
Our internal 4.3 testing for hunters shows Marksman, Survival, and Beast Mastery very close. This doesn't always play out in encounters, because players often develop different strategies when encounters go live (than they did during PTR testing).
As with any vague blue post, this does not give any indication as to which talent tree is actually on top. However, the changes being deployed today might indicate that they think Survival and Beast Mastery performance can still go up a bit.
Assuming Patch 4.3 will be the last major patch before Mists of Pandaria, we can therefore observe the overall changes that have happened with hunter talent trees during Cataclysm:
- Beast Mastery has always been getting buffed, but gradually.
- Marksmanship received the strongest one-time buff and was nerfed slightly later on.
- Survival received the strongest one-time nerf and is being restored near its original state.
If you monitor the talent tree changes that occur in 4.0.6, 4.2.0, and 4.3.0, Beast Mastery's passive mastery will now be twice as powerful as it was during release of Cataclysm. For Survival hunters, the early reduction in Black Arrow damage has since been negated, and Explosive Shot will return near its original state with this new patch.
Now pay attention to the second sentence of that blue post. The takeaway message of that part of the blue post is that the "balance" they are currently seeing may not be replicated when Dragon Soul goes live next month. Therefore, the changes being deployed in the realms today may be the buffer for that "just in case" scenario.
It is likely that with this change, we'll be seeing some fights where one talent tree will perform better over the other two, and one of the other two trees will perform better on a different fight, and so on. This is true "balance", where the talent trees' strengths are played out according to different encounters, not that all three specializations perform equally for every individual encounter.
So why is this the tipping point? Because DPS can never be truly balanced. Instead, it hovers around a state where DPS will favor one specialization at a given point of time and then gravitate toward another at a different point of time. Call it a sine wave if you're familiar with mathematics, and the "balance" is what you would call convergence. If this is what the developers have in mind, it is what we will finally see after next month's patch.
(I put the word "balance" in quotes because, although people like to see that word thrown around, it's a very vague concept that has no actual meaning. Talent tree balance is a subjective thing and can be seen differently depending on the person assessing this imaginary state of affairs.)


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Well, I've decided to take the plunge and start writing a blog. As I seem to spend far too much of my time making, shopping for or discussing food, I think that is going to be the main subject here.
To get started, these photos show a delicious slice of brawn (also known as fromage de tête) that I had last night. The brawn comes from the Ginger Pig at Borough Market, and the bread is a multi-seed loaf from Flour Power City, also at Borough Market.
The brawn was lovely - really meaty, with a slightly soft andgelatinouss consistency that was really satisfying. The only thing I didn't quite like were the cornichons (the little green bits you can see in the photos), which I thought were just a touch too vinagery, and weren't quiet as crisp as I would have liked.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
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We left Shulinab the Sunday after school finished (15th December), still not knowing where we would be for Christmas. Our option for travel were either by plane or bus, so we went by bus to save money. As a result, we spent 14 and a half hours in a minibus, travelling on dirt roads that were at least 60% pothole, and reached Georgetown at 0300 in the morning on the Monday. As much as anything else, it was wonderful to meet up with all the other volunteers around the country and share stories about our projects.
|My new favourite form of transport....
|The view from my bedroom over Christmas
|An unconventional way of cooking
|Christmas dinner with the volunteers
Overall, the holidays were brilliant and a welcome break from teaching. I've now been back for one week of teaching in Shulinab, and getting back after the hustle and bustle of Georgetown (compared to Shulinab anyway, not the UK - it's population is only around 350,000) was wonderful.


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Salesforce.com has either a brilliant or unlucky sales team. Either way, they recently won a deal by showcasing their product in an innovative way.
On Friday, I had the pleasure of visiting with a software firm that helps organizations make smarter business decisions. During the informal pleasantries prior to the start of the meeting, the topic of discussion turned to their recent selection of Salesforce.com as their hosted CRM solution.
They cited a number of factors for their choice related to Salesforce.com's flexibility and ease of integration with third-party solutions. Yet, the Executive VP in the meeting explained the clincher for Salesforce.com was of all things a fender bender.
Just prior to a scheduled conference call, the Salesforce.com's sales executives working the deal were on their way back from lunch and reportedly got into a minor car accident. As a result, several of their colleagues had to step in and handle the call.
Fortunately, the replacements were able to review all of the necessary background information in their Salesforce.com CRM system. The call went smoothly and they made note of how their own use of the technology helped them better manage the opportunity. Their prospect was sold and the next step was a contract.
While I would never recommend a company misrepresent themselves or a situation to secure a contract, unexpected and convincing tactics to demo a product often make all of the difference. Even if this car accident was merely a ploy, I sure give Salesforce.com credit for their creativity.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Salesforce.com's Lucky Fender Bender
Salesforce.com has either a brilliant or unlucky sales team. Either way, they recently won a deal by showcasing their product in an innovative way.
Posted by Marc Hausman at 5:45 PM 0 comments
Labels: Salesforce.com, Software as a Service
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Winning Proposition in New Business
There was a good article in yesterday's Ad Age e-newsletter about how small agencies can effectively match up against global firms when competing for new business. The writer -- Phil Johnson of ad shop PJA -- dedicates an equal amount of editorial to assessing competitor weaknesses as he does to playing up his firm's strengths.
My take: always focus on what you as an agency do incredibly well, relating that to what you perceive to be the client's priorities and requirements. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we evaluate many new client opportunities that simply don't line up well with our core competencies.
It's tough to pass on new business. Yet, our experience has taught us that working with the right client at the right time in their maturation leads to great work. And that is a winning proposition for everyone involved.
Know Your Opponent
Posted by Marc Hausman at 6:18 AM 0 comments
Labels: sales, technology public relations
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Put Down the Blackberry, Torossian
I'd like to think that I am passionate about public relations and business…not psychotic. I sure can't say the same for Ronn Torossian, president and CEO of NYC-based 5W Public Relations.
Here are a few quotes from his most recent blog post, simply titled "Work Hard."
--In today's hungry, new-money driven world, there's always someone willing to work harder and push more, and the simple reality of life is unless one works in a minimum wage or civil servant position, they can't simply punch the clock.
--And, the truth is, no one will force you to check your blackberry, but I guarantee people who don't respond to client needs during after-office hours won't retain their clients very long. For those of you in the PR industry who compete with my firm, I'd urge all of you to not check your blackberries after 6 or on weekends, because we always will.
--I am sure the folks at NBC, CBS and other competitors are hoping ABC folks don't check their blackberries after hours… so they get scooped for their stories in this uber-competitive media world.
This morning I arrived at the office at 9:15 AM because I wanted to see my kids off to camp. And then, I left the office at 6 PM to spend an hour with my family, reading "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel" to my boys before bed.
I'm all for hard work and anyone who plays pick-up basketball with me on the weekend knows I have competitive issues. Yet, a healthy and productive life is about balance. It makes us better public relations professionals and, more important, more caring people.
Ronn, lighten up. And for heaven's sake turn off the Blackberry.
Thoughts from Ronn Torossian: Work Hard
Posted by Marc Hausman at 7:02 PM 1 comments
Labels: 5W PR, technology public relations, work life balance
Sunday, June 22, 2008
PR Lessons from the Starship Farragut
What can the Starship Farragut teach us about creativity in communications?
That's the question we posed to Mark Hildebrand, the producer and director of award winning fan films based on the 1960s Star Trek television series created by Gene Roddenberry. (For more on Starship Farragut, visit http://www.starshipfarragut.com/).
Hildebrand visited Strategic Communications Group's (Strategic) office as part of our professional development program. Past speakers had included journalists, industry analysts, publishers and corporate marketing executives. Right in line with what you would expect at a public relations consultancy.
Our request for a presentation from a film director is symptomatic of a dramatic shift in the industry. Public relations content has traditionally been constructed to educate and engage an organization's key stakeholders. It presents a perspective, opinion or corporate story, and then encourages dialogue and debate.Yet, a third "e" should be added to the measurement benchmarks for public relations -- entertainment. The ability to capture and hold an audience's attention in unique and innovative ways is now a must for any communications program.
That was the insight Strategic's staff anticipated from Hildebrand's presentation. We weren't disappointed. On a shoe string budget, he collaborated with a group of talented (yet unknown) actors to create a movie true to Roddenberry's vision for Star Trek and, in the process, garnered a following among die-hard fans of the original series.
Hildebrand's suggestions on how to create compelling and entertaining content serve as a primer for public relations and marketing professionals challenged to promote their companies in traditional PR and social media channels. Here are a few of his thoughts:
Sit in the audience's chair. Content must always be evaluated from the perspective of the intended recipient. Hildebrand explained you want to challenge the audience, yet at the conclusion leave them fulfilled (rather than confused).
Create a dilemma. When following the problem/solution format, it's critical to use anecdotes to demonstrate how the characters depicted in the content learn, thereby delivering an educating experience for the audience.
Change pace with emotional contrast. Deliver the unexpected and you'll keep an audience's attention. Hildebrand cited Starship Farragut's use of humor in certain fight scenes. The same principle can apply in public relations by introducing an unexpected writing style. Strategic client Tellabs excels at this through a creative approach to their press release writing (http://www.tellabs.com/news/2008/).
Embrace creative tension. While Hildebrand retains final creative say in his productions, he openly engages with actors and the other professionals on the set for their opinions about how to best capture a scene. The best result often comes from the resulting disagreements and discussion.
Rely on the passion. Starship Farragut is truly a labor of love for Hildebrand, the actors and production staff. It's self-funded and, due to licensing requirements, they distribute the films at no cost via the Internet. Companies who inspire a comparable passion from their employees typically produce memorable and entertaining content.
Posted by Marc Hausman at 8:30 PM 2 comments
Labels: marketing content, Star Trek, Starship Farragut, technology public relations
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Cracks in the Cloud
My head has been in the clouds today.
I'm not referring to a day off from work or even a brief mental break in the afternoon. In fact, I had to be sharp as I had three important meetings – with a client, with a long-standing relationship over lunch and then with a prospect with a world of potential.
It was during lunch that I had a fascinating discussion with a senior executive at an enterprise software developer about markets and functionality most appropriate for a software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering. There has been a lot of debate within this person's company about the viability of SaaS in their core market. Ultimately, they have decided to stick to a traditional server-side license model because of the critical nature of the data their software touches.
Fair enough…yet I argued that innovation in the software space now only truly occurs within SaaS companies because of the economic realities of today's market. Two of Strategic Communications Group's (Strategic) clients – GovDelivery and Avectra – are perfect examples of SaaS innovation.
I remain passionate about SaaS and hosted solutions as it allows a company to focus on its business (rather than the technology infrastructure), while better managing resources. However, I recognize the big fall down of SaaS is the availability of the cloud. No access to the Internet or the vendor's system…no data or functionality.
I imagine Google's application service customers were frustrated and helpless this morning.
Google's App Engine breaks down
Posted by Marc Hausman at 8:40 PM 0 comments
Labels: Avectra, cloud computing, Google, GovDelivery, SaaS
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Universities Breed Tech Innovation
The ingredients for a thriving technology community are fairly straight forward.
--Smart and experienced entrepreneurs
--Well funded private equity and venture capital community
--Deep talent pool of engineers, developers, marketers and managers
--Research universities and not-for-profits
I've called the Washington, DC region home for my entire professional career. Our technology community is rock solid thanks to the presence of the federal government -- the world's largest buyer of IT products and services. Yet, the region pales in comparison to the technology innovation in Silicon Valley and Boston.
Why? There are certainly cultural issues at work. (Hey, I'm the guy that actually showed up at the first day of the RSA Conference in San Francisco wearing a coat and tie.)
More important, the Washington, DC region has long struggled to find an educational institution to rival the innovation, talent and technology produced by Stanford and MIT.
That's why yesterday's news that Virginia Tech will invest more than $80M to build a 150-person research center in the region is so exciting. This is part of an initiative called Chesapeake Crescent in which five regionally-based universities plan to collaborate on research.
This region may never shed its dark suit and tie image. Yet, a stronger and more vibrant university network will serve as a breeding ground for technology companies with the potential for innovation and growth.
Virginia Tech to Build Ballston Research Hub
Washington Post
Posted by Marc Hausman at 6:42 AM 1 comments
Labels: MIT, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Washington DC technology
Monday, June 16, 2008
High Performer Promotion
It's no secret that success in business results from attracting and retaining high-caliber people, and then creating an environment where they can establish productive, mutually beneficial relationships with external and internal audiences. This is much easier said than done.
Like most public relations consultancies, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has had its struggles with the people issue. The typical agency model is to surround a senior team with a group of more junior-level staffers, requiring everyone to work extended hours in a high-stress environment. We followed this path during much of our 12 year history.
Recently, we've made significant changes to our business model which has led us to embrace a number of innovative employee programs, such as a highly flexible work environment and a blended staffing methodology. Everything is predicated on empowering the individual to perform and then holding them accountable for the results they produce for clients.
Something that remains a struggle for me though is when to promote. I am fortunate to have wonderfully talented colleagues who would most likely accelerate their professional development if put in a more advanced position. And I am certainly not a believer in some unwritten tenure requirement. (I launched Strategic when I was 24 years old.)
Yet, it is important to always set people up for success. It's not fair to them, us or a client to have an employee in a position in which they are destined to struggle.
Jack and Suzy Welch's recent column in BusinessWeek has me thinking about this issue. Their views on what constitutes superior results and how to evaluate whether an employees' values align with organizational priorities is a must read for any business owner and employee.
High Performers Won't Wait
Posted by Marc Hausman at 11:41 AM 0 comments
Labels: employee relations, Jack Welch, Suzy Welch, technology public relations
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
What's the deal with stealth?
I've seen a number of articles of late in which the journalist refers to a company having been in "stealth" mode. Here's an example:
Apptio, a startup partly funded by Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen, came out of stealth mode Monday to push its SaaS (software-as-a-service) offering meant to help IT shops track exactly how much their assets cost the business. More of this article at:
Does creating the perception of a company being stealth heighten interest in a start-up to support a corporate launch campaign?
Posted by Marc Hausman at 6:30 AM 0 comments
Labels: Apptio, Marc Andreesen, SaaS, technology public relations
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Time to BeFunky
Posted by Marc Hausman at 8:01 AM 0 comments
Labels: BeFunky, executive blogging, social media, technology public relations
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Take the Long View in Media Relations
A few years back Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) was selected by not-for-profit research and engineering firm Noblis (formerly Mitretek Systems) for a project to provide messaging and public relations services for the Process Control Systems Forum. This is an organization managed by Noblis (and supported by the Department of Homeland Security) to facilitate the sharing of best practices between industry and government for the protection of SCADA systems used to manage critical infrastructure (i.e. nuclear plants, water treatment facilities, etc.).
We generated a fair amount of industry and vertical market press coverage, yet interest among business journalists was tepid. Without a specific incident to demonstrate the ramifications of a poorly protected computer infrastructure, we came off as merely alarmists.
I bet that would be quite different today. As reported by Brian Krebs of the Washington Post, a nuclear power plant in Georgia was recently forced into an emergency shutdown for 48 hours after a software update snafu. Here is a link to Brian's article:
Much of effective media relations is establishing ongoing relationships with influential journalists. Even if there is no immediate story opportunity, we counsel our clients to take the long-view. Be proactive in ongoing dialogue with the media...be a resource...identify ways to provide value.
When a story breaks, you'll be top of mind and all of the time invested in relationship building will pay-off with an exceptional PR result.
Posted by Marc Hausman at 11:37 AM 0 comments
Labels: Noblis, SCADA systems, technology public relations
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
The Content Credibility Question
Perhaps my most important responsibility as the head of a boutique public relations consultancy is to anticipate client needs and challenges. Like all small businesses, we bet our investment capital, professional development efforts and staff recruitment plans on these projections.
Accordingly, I spend a lot of time speaking with corporate marketing and PR/communications decision-makers. Where do they plan on investing resources? What obstacles will they face executing lead generation and branding programs? And (most important) how will their performance be measured?
For the past six months the story from the executive marketing suite has been all about content. Companies typically have lots of it, from highly technical white papers and product slicks to more sales-oriented presentations and advertisements. The questions corporate marketing and PR leaders must address include:
● How to identify, collect and evaluate the content that already exists?
● How to best create new content that is in-strategy and action-oriented?
● How to package and deliver content to audiences in creative ways?
This content conundrum has grown in significance with the adoption of social media by corporate marketing organizations. Blogs, podcasts, social networks, Web-based video, etc. are predominantly content-driven communications vehicles.
Recently, I penned an article about the "3Es" of public relations – education, engagement and entertainment (http://attheroundtable.com/blog_post_view.aspx?BlogPostID=7af347d3cb514770b38a01e9aa47bcc0). While I stand by my assertion that content must embody these characteristics, I neglected to address one critical issue: credibility.
Credibility is simply saying what you mean and doing what you say. Following through on words and actions establishes a track record of believability.
Yet, in a business context the issue of credibility becomes a bit murky. Consider the following statements often incorporated into public relations, marketing and sales content:
● Company X is a leading provider of...
● Company Y offers award-winning service to its customers
● Company Z has long been recognized as an innovator in...
While these statements may be technically true, their credibility with and impact on influential audiences is debatable. Customers, partners, investors and employees have become appropriately skeptical and often demand third-party validation of such grand claims. It is incumbent on PR professionals to rise to this challenge to instill a higher level of confidence in our companies.
Here are a few ideas to help your company address the credibility question when developing content:
1. Back it up with numbers. BearingPoint has done a good job of this by citing an extensive portfolio of customer relationships when making a vertical market leadership statement.
2. Quote third parties. This can include customer statements, industry analyst commentary or earned media. The more credible the source (i.e. an article in the business media versus an industry blog), the greater the impact.
3. Make meaningful comparisons. A few years ago I attended a presentation from Cisco CEO John Chambers at the FOSE government IT conference. He supported a claim of industry leadership by explaining that Cisco's market valuation was greater than the combined worth of its competitors.
4. Review your writing through a skeptical lens. Are there any statements that an external audience might question? Are these comments hard to justify? If so, strike them from the text and focus on what is supportable.
Posted by Marc Hausman at 4:43 PM 0 comments
Labels: BearingPoint, Cisco, John Chambers, social media, technology public relations
Monday, June 2, 2008
Adocu, Extreme Micro-Blogging
A challenge in standing up an executive blogging initiative is the time investment required to consistently produce engaging (and entertaining) thought leadership content. That's one of the reasons why micro-blogging platforms like Twitter have quickly gained market acceptance – a comparable value proposition without such a dramatic content and time requirement.
There's a new Web-based platform called Adocu that is kind of like extreme micro-blogging. Ever post must be limited to one word for simplicity.
Is there value in this? I'm skeptical. Yet, I do see an application for Adocu in which people who elect to follow are pointed to other content sources.
Posted by Marc Hausman at 3:25 PM 0 comments
Labels: Adocu, social media, technology public relations, Twitter
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Interactive Agency Lowdown
At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we typically leverage social media as a content-driven channel to help our clients extend thought leadership, enhance executive visibility and connect with key market influencers (i.e. journalists, analysts, bloggers, etc.). It's what you would expect from a public relations consultancy.
That's starting to change though. We have now also taken steps to more closely align our social media activities with a client's lead generation and sales cycle marketing programs. This starts with a careful analysis of keywords to incorporate into our content development for organic search engine optimization (SEO). It also involves identifying groups within social communities for appropriate participation and exchange of ideas. We refer to this as social network engagement.
As part of our move to hone a more social media/lead generation offering, we've begun to explore the possibility of a formal relationship with an interactive development/SEO firm. What are the attributes of a successful interactive shop that caters to B2B clients? Are creative capabilities more important than technical competencies?
This article in Adweek got me thinking about these questions.
The Next Generation: These give up-and-coming interactive agencies are looking at the Web in a different light
Posted by Marc Hausman at 6:06 PM 1 comments
Labels: interactive agency, social media, technology public relations


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Thursday, January 29, 2009
Expect to see lots of new faces at your child's school in the coming weeks!
In the past, the ELA tests were scored by teachers over winter recess (and spring recess for math tests). Teachers were paid "per session¨ (as in over time pay) for the hours they spent scoring. Per session money for test scoring came out of the central administration budget. With this new initiative, each individual school is responsible for paying for the substitute teachers needed to cover the teachers who are pulled away to score the tests. In a grand scheme of things, DoE does save money because paying for a substitute teacher is cheaper than paying a teacher per session fees. However, this change will shift the financial responsibilities from DoE Central to individual schools, whose budget has already been cut this year.
To make matters even more absurd, in middle schools only teachers licensed in ELA and Social Studies are allowed to score while in elementary schools all grade level teachers are eligible to score. This creates a particular hardship to small middle schools with small faculty. However, this license requirement does not seem to make sense since it appears that an elementary school teacher may be assigned to score an 8th grade test while a middle school teacher may be grading a 3rd grade test.
It is bad enough we divert so much of our teaching and learning to test prep, now adding insult to injury our children will have a musical chair of teachers for three weeks (at least it needs not be the same two teachers for three weeks). So, if your child comes home and tells you about various substitute teachers in her classroom for the next three weeks, most likely it is not because your child¡¦s teacher quit (although who can blame the teacher if she did!).
Many principals are up in arms about this new requirement - which comes on top of weeks in which they have been forced to take teachers out of their classrooms for many hours, to test students for DoE's expanded Gifted and Talented Program. More testing, less learning, indeed.
7 comments:
- Anonymous said...
What about culling the substitute lists and seeing if you have appropriately licensed teachers in your ATR and sub reserve and have them mark the tests? I am one such person; licensd in JHS and HS Emglish[under the Board of Examiners], permanently state certified in English,and I am out on childcare leave. I taught for twelve years in NYC in Junior and senior high schools so I dare say could mark these exams- I marked the new regents.
- January 29, 2009 at 8:29 AM
- Anonymous said...
Using ATRs makes sense to me, but then I'm not one of the 20-somethings running the DOE.
- January 29, 2009 at 6:43 PM
- Humphrey Senegal said...
That makes sense to me at least there is a variety among teachers.
research papers
- January 30, 2009 at 2:19 AM
- Anonymous said...
A number of schools have been told to send three teachers, not two.
Apparently some principals protested and said they would only send two. The result? Letters in their files.
- January 31, 2009 at 9:20 AM
- Anonymous said...
Certain programs and licenses are being singled out in some buildings: for example, the Library Media Program is being suspended in some schools, and these highly qualified professionals are being removed for several weeks.
- February 1, 2009 at 2:20 PM
- Shino said...
The number of teachers to be sent away for scoring is apparently different depending on the size of the school. So, I am sure some larger schools are told to send three.
The early reports are alarming. Two teacher spent three days but scored only 40 tests each because the first day was spent waiting, waiting and waiting for the DoE to get it organized. One teacher spent the last 20 minutes of the first day scoring. What a terrible waste of talent.
I have also heard that many ATRs have been assigned to schools for other purposes. My daughter's small middle school has one teacher sent from the ATR. So, the DoE excuse is that there aren't enough teachers in the ATR. I don't buy it.
- February 3, 2009 at 6:25 PM
- Harding Jamie said...
First of all thanks for the post. In actuality it is remarkable post. I do resembling your rigid workings and am glad about your perception. I can refer you another site where one can dig up huge assistances with reference to teaching. To learn moiré, please click here. Thanks……
- April 18, 2013 at 9:35 AM


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Check me out on the web at Welcome to www.xixora.com.
Michael Kaplan - Bringing Windows Vista to International marketsSeems interesting as i am a learner of japanese
I need to watch the video once i get home i havent watched channel 9 since september, damned network here
Lisa Feigenbaum - Code Snippets in Visual StudioThis code snippet thing will make me a very lazy programmer. Excellent!
Can't wait for RTM now
Is the title of this this video wrong?
Feingold or Feigenbaum?
She's very pretty though
Meet the new Mobile PC Team (new Tablet PC features too!)m400? out by this or next november?
any leaked specs on this?
Meet the new Mobile PC Team (new Tablet PC features too!)but noone uses voice tech ( at home anyway )
i just wish they enhanced the hardware for tablet pc's
my m200 is long in the tooth now. toshiba seems to develop for larger screens now!
i'd love to get a speedy tablet pc with nice gfx
Anders Hejlsberg - LINQHE GREW A BEARD?!
anyway back to w\tching video, i hope this give me a clue wtf happened to object spaces
Bill Gates - A short chat with Microsoft's Chief Software Architecthmm, notice his moving around in his chair. he grabs the chair too.
odd body language dont you think?
wants to stay, wants to go? seems very nervous?
Ian Dixon (and others) - Microsoft Home in London, UKman ian doyle looks like one of my mates... quite scary the similarities!
i swear scoble looked at the spv c500/htc typhoon and noticed the orange logo on it. seemed like the camera did a double take
anyone know much about c600/tornado btw?
its funny, US and UK have adopted things quite differently.
UK seems more mobile based with text messaging etc.
US seems more entertainment based by the impression i get
Channel 9 Team - Welcome to our new designThis is AWESOME!!!
I cant believe i actually said "awesome". lol.
I'm very impressed with the new look as I hated the old design ( i'm sorry.
One thing I still don't like though ( I'm anal about standards sorry ), is the HTML used.
It isnt semantic by the looks of it, and it doesn't even have a doctype.
Maybe fixed in the future?
Lets hope so
P.S revamed input too?
Owen Braun and Chris Pratley - Talking about OneNotelol, i love the suprise... exactly like me.... ".... dude?!"
/me watches the rest of video
Joe Stegman - Building Outlook UI in 100 lines of code with Winformsout of date now
Bill Hill - A Hike Around Microsoft's Forests (Happy Birthday Video #5)i absolutely love this guy, he has so much enthuiasism about his work!
about 48 mins in, i just smiled about how proud he is about japanese cleartype font. what about chinese type? ( my ex gf is chinese and she has to read her pda and computer with chinese, it looks awful )
anyway to watch the rest of the video!
[edit]oh ok, they will help chinese too [/edit]
Alex Kipman - Building a mobile serviceHaven't watched it yet but notice the use of the tablet pc ( toshiba m200 here ).
I've noticed more tablets on this site than any other non-tablet pc site...
Do they give them free to MS engineers or something?


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1939 11:00 Pasted papier mache all morning + worked this afternoon + tonight at Gloria's. – When I collect what I have coming (Fantle's + Seven) I'll have $17 to spend for clothes. – Mentally it's already spent!! E. went to the dance with Julian
1940 10:30 Surprise! I lived through that awful first day. I think I'm going to get along okay. Every one has been very swell to me. I hope I can make them like me – I'm going to bed sans lesson planning!
1941 Tue Bob is back – he is thin + serious; I think he has grown up more, too. He was over tonight + seemed absolutely dead!
1942 WED 5 FELLAS WERE OVER TONIGHT… RATHER A STRAIN… Mother WAS OWLY… BUT WE GOT THROUGH THE EVENING SANS mishap. MISTER PAYNE, however, LEFT QUITE EARLY. I DON'T KNOW WHY; BUT I HOPE HE WAS ANNOYED.


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Monday, October 24, 2005
9th Ward Sealed
Playground, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans
"On Wednesday, the men tried and failed to gain access to Mr. Calhoun's neighborhood. Mr. Calhoun, an inspector of nonfederal airports and a Baptist minister, was stunned. He had repeatedly toured the area since the storm, both when it was unguarded and after troops began blockading the northern half of the Lower Ninth Ward. At a time when the rest of New Orleans was reopened, he never expected to find that the National Guard had sealed his beloved neighborhood so tightly that even Mr. Willie, as he calls himself, could not sweet-talk his way in.
"They're treating us like we're already dead," Mr. Calhoun said after he was turned away at three checkpoints and took his leave of a local police officer - "All right, then, brother" - who informed him that he needed an escort from a City Council member. There were no council members present."
Longing for Home in a Sealed New Orleans Ward - NY Times
7 comments:
- R2K said...
Great images as usual!
Its strange for me, a person who heard about the wards only in rap songs before katrina, to see them now in such vivid contrasts.
But what will the 9th ward be in 10 years? I just wonder.
Bathroom Review
- Vaness said...
You take piercingly beautiful pictures that seem to capture both the pain of a city lost and the beauty of future hoped.
- mercury said...
After reading the entire article, I was struck with a sense of hope, yet I see that all of this is going to take a lot of time. We can't disregard the fact that a large group of the poeple who live(d) in these demolished areas don't have large savings accounts or "big names". They are ordinary people who were (before the storm) and still are just trying to make it day by day. Regardless of their income, they are PEOPLE who have just as much right to live where they want and how they want in America as anyone. But, because they don't have the income to just go "start over" they are becoming frusterated and discouraged. My hats off to those who are trying to help their communities by taking it upon themselves to rebuild and organize their neighborhoods. This is how we will see the south be rebuilt!
- Crack Head said...
I just read on MSNBC about more flooding in the 9th ward. Just wanted let pepole know they are probably keeping people out because of this recent flooding. It seems the drainage systems are backwashing so it would make sense to keep people out for safety and health reasons.
I still think they need to let these people take stock of what they have left, if anything, so they can move on and start working on what they need to do next.
- Brandon Anthony said...
Funny how the media is already turning its eye, but when you come back and see what's still there, you begin to understand how long it will take to return these lives to 'normal'.
- Steve said...
I heard the same thing CrackHead, they said up to a foot of water had seeped back in via the pumping stations today, and that they were indeed keeping people out so they werent in danger.
- missbhavens said...
Driving and walking through the Lower 9th on 10/21, we were blocked from heading further West(or was it North) by National Guardsmen and told that this was due to home sweeps for bodies. No one mentioned more water. But then, there is a pervasive vibe in New Orleans that no one really & truly knows what's going on. The sole person we came across in the neighborhood was asking US if we knew anything. He had heard a rumor that the whole lower 9th would be razed. That's a hell of of scary rumor. It was devastatingly sad there.


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'Significance precedes momentum' is the motto of David Goswick, director of the Freedom Project Alliance.
|A worker installs Icynene insulation in stud cavities at a Design Basics home in Omaha, Neb. Within seven seconds, says Design Basics' Paul Foresman, the Icynene expands and dries, creating an air-infiltration barrier.
"Significance precedes momentum" is the motto of David Goswick, director of the Freedom Project Alliance, a collaborative industry group of home builders, designers and banking and mortgage professionals that developed the Freedom Seal.
The Freedom Seal is a third-party-verified certification that guarantees standards of energy efficiency, environmentally friendly materials and healthy indoor air quality along with a stronger, safer home. To date, four homes have been certified. The alliance is negotiating with home insurance and mortgage groups to establish special discounts for buyers.
Design Basics, a large, national purveyor of house plans, has created 24 plans designed to the Freedom Seal criteria, is gradually adapting its existing plans and has committed to designing all its future homes to the standard. Goswick says two Texas builders also have committed to building more than 700 Freedom Seal homes ranging in price from $100,000 to $800,000. He estimates the cost for certification (and the independent inspection) will be $1,000, but it might vary by region.
Two of Design Basics' Freedom Seal homes were built as showcase homes in Omaha, Neb., in September. The builder was able to scale back from a 100,000-Btu furnace to a 50,000-Btu furnace and reduce air-conditioning tonnage from 5 to 2 tons.
Design Basics estimates that buyers of the Tifton model could save $63 monthly despite the almost $13,000 price tag of the Freedom Seal enhancements.


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Director: Brad Bird
Cast Headliners: Britt Robertson, George Clooney, Hugh Laurie, Raffey Cassidy
Original Release Date: May 22nd, 2015
One always feels an interesting feeling when at the Tomorrowland section of Disneyland or Disney World. It's an idealized version of the future as seen in its day filled with some great rides (Star Tours) and some lame (Stitch). But one can't help but think we are only a part of the way to the future as seen there. We have a long way to go. That's the theme of this film of the same land. Like Pirates of the Caribbean before it, Tomorrowland is a film that capitalizes on the ambience and theme of that attraction area and turns it into a live action film.
After a bizarrely 4th wall breaking intro where Frank Walker (George Clooney) and Casey Newtown (Britt Robertson) argue how the actual film should be told we are brought to the 1960s. A young inventor Frank goes to Disneyland's Tomorrowland (how meta!) and makes the acquaintance of the mysterious David Nix (Hugh Laurie) and the equally smart as him Athena (Raffey Cassidy). Shenangins transpire that leads to him stumbling upon the titular city of the film where skyscrapers rise into the sky and robots fly around.
After its all too brief appearance this great world is dropped for a while to show how Casey gets involved in affairs. If I were to share specifics would spoil it and since this movie's prime strength relies upon the element of exploration. When they do appear, the technology and enviroments brought upon by Casey's mysterious pin are great. There is a wonderful optimistic sense of things.
However, Casey's performance falls into times cheesy and Clooney as the adult Frank isn't too far behind though it fits with his trademark charisma. The dialogue feels a bit hammy and some scenes drag out. Action is good but only in the few instances when it appears. But that's to be expected from a Brad Bird live action film; his snappy style is evident at least.
While it's a fun (and mostly family friendly adventure despite the use of "hell" a lot and disingrating robots) and bright burst of optimism it is stopped from greatness by two main things. The pacing is kind of weird and builds up very slowly to be something unique. Then once the crazy other world of science that is the titular city is reached, things take a hard dip into some hard science and a villian's motivation that is very unclear. A lot of bang and boom happens, but it's consequence is not really felt.
It's got some rough spots, but the visuals and unique setting make it not a waste of time by any means. There's some fun sequences and if one can deal with the stars and story it's a decent experience. You are better off taking a trip to the park for something truly magical however. 7.85 out of 10


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Thursday, November 11, 2010
Lemony Garlic Chicken
On my way back from the bus stop, I could smell the scent of garlic and lemon floating out to the street. We also had sweet potato fries (roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper) and peas. Kate and I give this chicken a solid thumbs-up. It was tender, very lemony, and extremely moist, even the white meat.
4 comments:
Ok, so doing this for dinner tomorrow. Ive got racks of lamb on the go for tonight already.ReplyDelete
I'll report back about whether I murdered your recipe or not.
what a great idea. I never remember to put the stuffs between the skin and meat...the smell must have been awesome as you said...the garlic...yummyReplyDelete
Mrs P - I really don't think you could mess this up, even if you tried. I can't wait to see how it turns out for you!! Even Rob (the chicken hater) liked it. And the skin - I hate to keep belaboring the point, but it was ridiculous.ReplyDelete
Nanci - it's a little gross to be digging around raw meat - but the result is worth it!
Kirsten I just made that chicken, I don't even like chicken skin and I ate some it was that good. That is THE best roast chicken recipe I've ever used. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ReplyDelete


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Welcome to Cabinlife. We specialise in inspirational bespoke log structures to accommodate all of today's modern living requirements.
The ultimate in flexible living space, a log building can be used for just about any purpose you care to name. From office space in the garden, a guest suite, games room or teenage den through to larger commercial premises or full residential these buildings offer you the solutions you need. These distinctive and beautiful log buildings fuse aesthetics with function whilst being sympathetic to today's ecological and environmental agenda. Whatever size, shape or design you have in mind we can realise your dreams of owning a unique and exciting building tailored to suit your needs.
A fully comprehensive service is offered from initial enquiry through to project completion. We are confident we can provide a design that will fulfil your dreams, giving you many years of pleasure and practical use whilst offering quality without compromise. Whether you require a stand alone log building kit or full project management and construction the choice is yours.
As a result of years of research into log building manufacture Cabinlife has now formalised a business relationship with three respected companies in this field. These companies between them provide a comprehensive range of styles and prices to suit a vast range of enquiry and need from luxurious, handcrafted log homes to more practical log cabins for the garden and small office extensions to large commercial premises. More information on these companies is available on our products page and via direct weblink.
We are confident that we can provide a design that will fulfill your dreams, giving you many years of pleasure and practical use whilst offering quality without compromise.


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You've got to stay in front of your leads, regardless of where they fall in the continuum.
"I only attended your webinar so back off" to "yes we're in the market for a new talent acquisition system but take it easy champ."
Larger HR suppliers have well-defined lead-nurturing processes and sales strategies to qualify and move prospects along.
But most smaller suppliers don't; you generate a bunch of continuum interest as stated above and then you let them sit expecting them to jump up and rabidly buy your products and services.
They won't come to you. You've got to keep coming at them to induce the tipping point.
Now, there's the broader integrated marketing strategy to generate visibility, traffic, leads and improved SEO. But many of those same cost-effective activities (and other not so cost-effective) need to continue with your sales pipeline including:
It takes a lot of leads and lead nurturing to induce the tipping point for only a few.
Make the time to make the marketing work for you.
Here are some more lead-nurturing blog posts of late:
Before the deep sales dive you gotta screen through the luke-warm jive.
You'd think someone left the water running.
Lead nurturing makes the popcorn pop
4 in 100 leads Buy. The Importance of Aggressive Marketing and Lead Nurturing.
Post by Kevin W. Grossman (join me on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn - and now join HRmarketer on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn!)
Labels: lead nurturing, marketing, social media, tipping point


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Monday, October 24, 2011
Views of New York
Obsessed with these "finger-painted" views of New York by Jorge Colombo. Don't you love how the lights just glow? I almost feel like I am taking an evening cab ride through the city.
Images via 20x200
Posted by Carissa Thilgen at 1:06 PM
3 comments:
- Mo Pie, Please said...
Color me impressed!
- October 24, 2011 at 5:57 PM
- Dionne said...
These are incredible! I love the bottom one the most. Awesome artist!
- October 24, 2011 at 9:19 PM
- Erin {pughs' news} said...
They're fab. Making me even more excited about my trip to NYC in March!
- October 24, 2011 at 9:23 PM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


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I don't even know what to say about the assassination of Dr. George Tiller. But I do want to link to this, from one of my regular blogs. It's a commenter talking about his wife's and his experience with Dr. Tiller at a time when they had to make one the most agonizing decisions imaginable.
ETA: If you're looking for something to do, I encourage you to drop some money toward Medical Students for Choice.


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How would you like to join us for a trip to the dark side of desert fauna? We're talking seriously deranged tumbleweeds. We're looking for stories up to 5000 words long that deal with tumbleweeds - feral, vicious, deadly, twisted, radioactive - we don't care what, as long as those weeds are BAD, and we mean wicked BAD.
Write up that weird west tale you've always wanted to tell. Submit it to our anthology. We want everything from science fiction to fantasy to horror to everything in between.
Deadline for submission: Dec. 31, 2010
Send your stories, .doc format, to: email@example.com
Please include your contact information and a short blurb about your story.
Submit your manuscript using standard format (word docs only, please!). We aren't too picky, as long as we can open the file and read your story, we're happy. We want stories that have been polished, spell-checked, and edited by at least the author. Proof-read before submitting, please!
We are not interested in profanity of any kind, extreme violence, or steamy sex scenes. Keep it PG-13 and you should be good. Please, no profanity. Made-up cuss words are fine.
Story length can be 1 word up to 5,000 words. Flash fiction and poetry will be considered as long as it fits the theme.
If accepted for publication, the author will receive one contributor's copy and the right to purchase as many copies as desired at the cost of printing. If you want to sell it, you can keep your profits from the sales. This is a print-only anthology.
There is a possibility of creating an ebook version, if we can work out how to be fair with the royalties. If your story is accepted, we will be in touch.
This anthology will be published through Cyberwizard Productions, http://cyberwizardproductions.com


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Early Bird Offer
Sale Date Ended
Regular Workshop Programme.
Sale Date Ended
Page Views : 269
Gone are the days of learning in silos ... WELCOME TO LEARNATHONS, the fun, agile and effective way of learning.
How does learning to code from scratch, develop hybrid Mobile apps and HAVE AN APP OF YOUR OWN to show off just over a single weekend sound? Impossible!? Not Really.
Join us over the weekend on Dec 26-27th, 2015 on a Learnathon, where we have re-designed the way of learning new technology and have also made it interesting, collaborative and fun - all at the same time.
What is a Learnathon?
A Learnathon is an event where people come together, learn and use technology to transform ideas into reality. We believe that by bringing together talented people from across Hyderabad and providing them the kickstart to learn new technology/tools along with the space to be creative, we can do AMAZING THINGS. During Learnathon, people form a team around a problem or idea, and collaboratively learn technology to create a unique solution - web app, mobile app, hardware product, right from scratch. Its a test of being a quicky in grasping technology, perseverence to compete and deliver by being an agile learner.
What am I supposed to build?
We'll provide you with problem statements on the day of the Learnathon (if you do not already have an idea for a mobile app that you would love to develop yourself). You need to develop the solution as a hybrid mobile app to the given problem statement (or your own idea) using Meteor framework.
I have not done (or have no idea) about Mobile app development. Can I also participate?
The only pre-requistes in terms of skillset are basic programming skills (any language) and know-how of HTML, CSS, and Javascript (all 3 of which can be picked up from w3schools.com within 2-3 hours in total). The rest of the technical skills (many of them) to code Mobile apps will be taught and learnt during the Learnathon itself. We will provide you with appropriate learning videos and titbits to help you at each step.
Do I need to carry anything to the Learnathon?
Yes please. Other than a energized yourself please bring in the following as this is a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) learning event:
Note: If you need a laptop for rent (approx rental cost of Rs.500 for the 2 days of Learnathon) please contact us on +91-7286830319 , we are trying to make with an arrangement external provider. You can also contact us if you have any other questions.
The 'Software Developers' icon used in the banner image was created by Wilson Joseph from the Noun project.


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OWN Refining Moisture Night Cream Review
I never wear any creams on my face at night, usually, I exfoliate before going to bed and that's about it. I realized how important it is and the difference that it makes to add some sort of moisturizer to your night routine. Not only will your skin be smoother, it also helps with the overall health of the skin.
As a courtesy of #iFabbo and #OWNAtUlta, I received a sample of the this wonderful night cream.
What is OWN ?
In Own's words
"Own is a San Francisco based skin-health company that believes in the holistic (complete) approach towards healthy skin. Own believes that there are too many chemicals that are in our everyday lives – in our food, in our environment, and even in our skincare products. Own's foundation is in developing unique, innovative formulas that are effective in improving skin's overall health, but without the need for harsh chemicals. Beyond products, Own advocates for lifestyle changes to make real improvements in their skin health. Using SF bay-area technology, Own created the first-to-market aging analysis app that empowers people to see their current aging situation. Now armed with personalized information about wellness, nutrition and beauty, people can make wiser choices for their healthiest skin. Own is the NEW way of looking at OLD." Source: http://www.ownproducts.com/index.php/about/
Product Description:
Hydrate and illuminate your skin nightly with a luxurious formula designed to fight all three causes of aging while you rest. Own Anti-Aging Refining Night Cream features clinically proven CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) technology, a plant-based ingredient designed to enhance collagen levels, improve moisture retention, and boost metabolism for softer, smoother, and genuinely younger-looking skin. 94% of women who tried Own Anti-Aging Refining Night Cream reported that it absorbs easily and penetrates the skin quickly.
- Retinol-free formula
- Does not cause irritation, redness or flakiness
- Dermatologist-tested
- Fragrance-free
- Paraben-free
- Sulfate-free
My thoughts on the product ….
Ever since I tried OWN products, I fell in love with them. It is an outstanding product, not just the night cream but the entire anti-aging selection. The texture is so soft, silky, and so easy to apply . I have found that the night cream does not leave my skin oily, but…it makes it smooth and touchable just like a baby's skin. It absorbs and penetrates into the skin quickly.
As I mentioned previously, I never, ever, ever, ever, apply any sort of lotions or moisturizers to my skin at night before going to sleep and calling it a day. I always thought that it was unnecessary, why would I moisturize my skin if I am going to lay my head on the pillow toss and turn all night?…..a waste of product? Absolutely not.
After trying OWN, I have reconsidered the idea of using night cream, I have realized the benefits that come with it. I am in love with the night cream, will never stop using it. I recommend it for anyone who has dry skin, and for everyone who wants a reliable product that works, and that is as affordable as OWN.
I encourage all my readers to try the product for themselves , I promise you that you will love it just as much as I do .
If you feel like you want to try this, there is a big promotion for the product , it's a buy one and get one 50% off. Here's how to buy:
You can copy and paste this link into your address bar:
You can also go to the OWN website and browse other amazing products at :
Note: I am not paid for the review of the product, the review is based on honest and personal experience with the product.
Thank you for reading!


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This is the sixth of my posts looking in more depth at The Foolishness of Craft, a short story that explores the impact of global production and suggests a more local, sustainable alternative. If you haven't read it yet, then it might be best to click here and do so, before reading on.
This is also the final one of three posts exploring the topic of work within the story and we are using William Morris' three requirements of meaningful work; hope of rest, hope of product and hope of pleasure in the work itself. If you missed the other two you can read the first one it by clicking here, otherwise it's on to hope of pleasure in work...
To say that work is good for us sounds worryingly like a right-wing newspaper's headline and as though it should be followed by 'and so is national service and the cane', but in actual fact it is true, albeit for very different reasons than they might like to think. Inevitably many newspapers like to focus on the discipline it instils in our lives, the structure and order, which prevents society from falling apart from too much 'free time', the income (no matter how meagre) that means the state can be convinced that it does not have to provide support and the ability for each of us to 'make something of ourselves', as though a person doesn't have innate worth whatever their position or talents.
All this is heavy baggage, to the point where I am almost scared to repeat again that work is good for us, or at least could be. We need to reclaim work from the right and draw on the positive aspects allowing us to show what work should and could be. Morris states that 'it is of the nature of men, when he is not diseased, to take pleasure in his work under certain conditions.' Work, when allowed to be undertaken in the right way, under the right conditions and within a community, can be a source of great satisfaction and even joy. It is an outlet for our innate desire for creativity and provides the ability for us to make a contribution to the welfare of ourselves, our families and our communities.
However, this is very different to the jobs that most of us do on a day-to-day basis, whose usual sole aim is make money for the company that employs us, often working under unsatisfactory conditions. Morris, in a wonderful piece of hyperbole, is categorical in his belief that work like this is a such an affront to our humanity that '…it would be better for the community and for the worker if the latter were to fold his hands and refuse to work, and either die or let us pack him off to the workhouse or prison – which you will.'
This notion that our work should be pleasurable is so countercultural that to speak of it seem as though we are not grounded in the real world and instead hopeful of some fairy-tale land. It is an accepted truism of modern life that work for the most part is a chore, and we celebrate the heroic worker who each day rises to do battle in the name of commerce. Busyness is the great virtue. Ask someone how work is and watch as their face takes on the expression of great hardship as they tell you just how and why their work life is so busy. And no doubt it is true, but we celebrate this as virtue and something to be proud of, until the breaking point comes anyway. Try telling someone you are not busy and that work is pretty relaxed when they next ask and watch their reaction. Work has to equal suffering and noble is the worker who does not shirk.
But why shouldn't work be pleasurable? What is stopping it? Morris suggests that actually true labour, as required by nature, is inherently pleasurable and satisfying and that anything less than that is distortion and corruption by those benefiting from our labour. To seek a new way of working is only to try and find the natural balance that nature provides.
Morris talks of the 'ornamental part of life' and it is easy to restrict our thinking to design or patterns or even craft, when actually I think he is trying to express something much broader; no less than the richness of life. It would be a richer experience to make a jumper than to purchase one, for all the reasons we have explored. To care about the materials and their source, to think about the design, to actually spend and invest time in making it, is all part of the ornament of life or to put it in fashionable language part of an authentic life. To engage with others in learning and sourcing or making materials, is part of the ornament of authentic communities. It is the rejection of the utilitarian, which argues with it's own logic called economics, which says that it is easier and cheaper to buy one made using labour and materials sourced from abroad, utilising the differences in expectations or tolerances of living conditions.
An ornamental life is one where we live with fewer, but much more beautiful things, endued with genuine creativity and love. In a moving passage Morris tells us that we can judge the conditions under which something was made by it's 'mark of pleasure' and that to return that to our work will shine through as a 'gift to the world' in the things we produce. This is the great gift of craft and perhaps it's defining mark.
"Now the origin of this art was the necessity that the workman felt for variety in his work, and though the beauty produced by this desire was a great gift to the world, yet the obtaining variety and pleasure in work by the workman was a matter of more importance still, for it stamped all labour with the impress of pleasure."
I think for me one of the most exciting things about Morris' critique of society and our treatment of the environment is it's ultimate positivity, which contrasts strongly with much of the current discussion, characterised (particularly by those opposed) in terms of what we must 'give up'. There is no getting around this inconvenient truth, but what Morris says is that actually much of this isn't as good as we think and that a rebalancing, far from being a negative asceticism, can lead us to a much richer future. It's this promise, this focus on the positive changes we can make, that makes his writing so attractive and I think contemporary writers and commentators engaging in these issues could learn a lot from that; we have to pull apart the status quo, but we must also present a viable and crucially an attractive alternative. Morris does this and shows that by restructuring our societies we can ensure that everyone has equal share of true wealth:
"Wealth is what Nature gives us and what a reasonable man can make out of the gifts of Nature for his reasonable use. The sunlight, the fresh air, the unspoiled face of the earth, food, raiment and housing necessary and decent; the storing up of knowledge of all kinds, and the power of disseminating it; means of free communication between man and man; works of art, the beauty which man creates when he is most a man, most aspiring and thoughtful - all things which serve the pleasure of people, free, manly, and uncorrupted. This is wealth."


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International Journal of Mathematics and Mathematical SciencesVolume 21 (1998), Issue 3, Pages 429-438doi:10.1155/S016117129800060X
1Department of Mathematics, University of Antwerp, RUCA, Groenenborgerlaan 171, Antwerp B-2020, Belgium2Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Antwerp, UIA, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk B-2610, Belgium
Received 14 August 1996
Copyright © 1998 R. Lowen and C. Verbeeck. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
This paper introduces some definitions of a concept of local compactness in approach
spaces. The basic relationships between these concepts is studied, and measures of local
compactness are defined.


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This is a repeat, but I feel an important one. Words of the illustrious Ze Frank:
"This is how I feel today. This is my baseline.
That's a trick. I learned that from an actor. I had asked her how she grounded herself, how she got rid of anxiety before she walked on stage. She said that there were certain things that were very difficult to control, and that how she felt at that moment was one of them. For her it was less about getting rid of that anxiety - less about subtraction - and more about recalibration.
She would pause for a moment to take what seemed to be her emotional temperature - a pause to feel the anxiety, the excitement, the sadness, whatever it was that day. She would try to do this without judgment, without separating out the bad things from the good things with an eye to change them, but rather taking them at face value.
Instead, she would recalibrate. The total of what she found would become her normal, the new baseline from which she would experience the world. Certain emotions can feed on themselves. It's easy to become anxious about being anxious, become more depressed about being depressed. The goal of the recalibration was to normalize these feelings, to make them things that you didn't have to apologize to yourself for, or worse beat yourself up about.
I like this idea, this idea I stole from the actor. It's the idea that you're constantly in flux.
This is how I feel today. This is my baseline."
38 minutes ago


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Baseball's best player makes yet another appearance in a pair of plain white envelopes from my good friend Jeff, of 2 by 3 Heroes fame.
So much Mike Trout cardboard goodness. There was also a pretty Getzlaf base card from UD Black Diamond, which is always appreciated (1-0 my man, 1-0 ;) ).
Thanks as always Jeff!
Saturday, November 8, 2014
PWEs From 2 by 3 Heroes: Mike Trout
Posted By Greg Zakwin @ 9:30 AM
1 comment:
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This information is provided for your convenience and may no longer be valid.
Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
Be the first OregonLive.com user to add photos or videos of Frisch Nancy W
Frisch Nancy W is located at 116 3Rd St, Lake Oswego, OR. This location is in the Evergreen neighborhood. This business specializes in Social Services.


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BankFinancial (BFIN) in Burr Ridge, Ill., is considering an aggressive plan to scrub its balance sheet of troubled assets by the end of the year.
The $1.5 billion-asset company said in a quarterly filing with Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday that its management is evaluating a plan to reduce nonperforming assets through "accelerated dispositions" during the fourth quarter. BankFinancial has not yet presented the plan to its board.
"If approved by the board, the objectives of such a plan would be to achieve a meaningful reduction of nonperforming loans and [other real estate owned] by the end of 2012 such that the future potential impacts to earnings in 2013 and future years from credit-related costs are materially diminished," the filing said.
The company also said that it had tried "accelerated dispositions" with some of repossessed assets, selling $2.4 million of other real estate owned and accepted offers for another $4.3 million. Those agreements accounted for 38.6% of the company's repossessed assets at June 30.
"Our evaluation methodology involves an assessment of the disposition strategy that provides the highest cash proceeds within a defined period of time," the filing said. "During the third quarter of 2012, we changed our disposition strategy on certain income-producing OREO assets from an ordinary-liquidation pricing model to an aggressive pricing model designed to stimulate market demand."
The company's nonperforming assets fell 16.4% in the third quarter from a year earlier, to $76 million.
Overall, troubled assets continue to drag on the company's profitability. Its third-quarter loss was 174% larger than its loss from a year earlier, at $5.2 million, mostly because of increases in the money spent to manage nonperforming assets and foreclosed properties.
The company's loan-loss provision fell 40% from a year earlier, to $4.45 million, but lower net interest income largely offset the decrease. Net interest income fell 18% from a year earlier, to $13.4 million, as loan balances declined.


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Technology Evangelist. Yes, that's right, there is a job opening right now for a Technology Evangelist. I will be so disappointed if this doesn't show up in a song on the next U2 album.
The details: George Mason University's Center for History & New Media is hiring a Technology Evangelist for their new "open source bibliographic management and note-taking tool" called Zotero – a nifty Firefox plug-in still in private beta. Everything about this job is just so COOL! Can you imagine having that on your business card? Technology Evangelist? And the job really is all about spreading the word – getting people to try out this Zotero, a "scholar's tool" for grabbing and annotating citations off the web. Heck, I wish I wish I could try it *now*. And here's the blurb about the Center itself:
"Since 1994, the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University has used digital media and computer technology to democratize history—to incorporate multiple voices, reach diverse audiences, and encourage popular participation in presenting and preserving the past."
Ach, I hope there are jobs like this available when I'm done here. Note to self: take more XML classes.
Postscript: I am transfixed by their use of "evangelist" so I looked up the word in the OED. The first four definitions all have to do with the gospels, the last of which is specifically for "an itinerant preacher having no fixed pastoral charge." In 1993, the word took on an additional definition of "a zealous advocate of a cause or promulgator of a doctrine" after being used to describe the relationships of Rousseau to the French Revolution and of John Cleese to shop assistants everywhere. How exiting and scary – that a company somehwere actually wants "zealous" people again. A new trend or an anomaly? The trouble with zealousness is having that complementary counteracting extreme to deal with, too.


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To Sign Up Paypal Account, Click Here.
Learn to create Paypal Donate Button and help your charity organization.
You could easily help your charity organization by adding Paypal Donate button at your websites to collect donation.
Your visitors can make the donation using Paypal or Credit Card.
The steps are very straightforward, you could easily embed it.
First of all, you need to have Buyer Account & Seller Account to learn this tutorial, please refer to this tutorial to create the accounts (Part 1 only)..
Once you have setup your Seller Account, select the Seller Account and ClickEnter SandBox Test Site. (ScreenShot 1)
You will be directed to Paypal SandBox, enter the username and password that you created for Seller Account just now. (ScreenShot 2)
You will access the Seller's Account, (ScreenShot 3)
To Create Donate Button.
- Click the Merchant Services Tab. (ScreenShot 4)
- Click the Donate Link
- Enter your Button Type and Payment Details.(ScreenShot 5)
- For testing purpose, I entered the following details:
- Accept payments for : Donation
- Organization name/service : Test Organization
- Currency : USD
- Contribution amount : I choose > Donors enter their own contribution amount.
- Merchant ID for purchase transactions: Use the Secure merchant account ID for security reason.
- Click Create Button
- System will generate the Donate Button Code.(ScreenShot 6)
- Copy the code.
- Open Microsoft NotePad, paste the code in it.(ScreenShot 7)
- Save the file as .html file.
Now you could ask donation for your charity organization.
Now open you HTML file which, you just created using Mozilla, Google Chrome or Internet Explorer. You will see the Donate Button in the page.(ScreenShot 8)
Click the Donate Button, you will directed to Paypal Payment gateway. (ScreenShot 9)
Enter your donation amount, click Update Total (ScreenShot 10)
Use the Buyer Account Username and Password to make the payment.
Once you have log in, Please Review Your Donation. (ScreenShot 11).
If everything is alright then , click Donate $10 USD Now
System will generate the following messages after your donation:(ScreenShot 12)
- Test, your donation is now complete
- Confirmation number: 38625471092721641.
- An email with your donation details has been sent to email@example.com and you can print your donation receipt.
To check your Buyer Donation details, Click Go to PayPal Account Overviewlink in Thank You Page of the payment. (ScreenShot 12)
You can check the donation made in the Buyer account.(ScreenShot 13)
To check whether your Seller Receive the donation, Log Out your Buyer Account.
Access Paypal SandBox using your Seller's Username & Password. (ScreenShot 14)
You will see the donation details in your account. Paypal will deduct their service fee from total donation amount.
For more details, Click the Details link for the donation.(ScreenShot 15)
Hope you find this tutorial useful and good luck trying in the real world.
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To Sign Up Paypal Account, Click Here.


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Kicking the Hobbit
Elijah "Getting" Wood
It's official: Elijah Wood is millions of years young.
Scientists have discovered the fossilized remains of hobbit like creatures living in Southeast Asia over 1 million years ago. It is not known if the hobbits could make tools, not to mention be huge ones. What is known about these tiny creatures is they can sell a movie ticket. I'm no scientist, and even I could tell you that.
Me camping out 18 days before the opening of LOTR:TFOTR, not so much a movie as it is God speaking to me through cinema.
In an unrelated story, a woman is making headlines today for driving 10 miles with her cat, Cuddle Bug, stuck on the roof of her car. Even while stopping for gas, she didn't notice the lil' guy up there. What the police didn't tell you is that her 3-year-old toddler was clinging to the bottom of the vehicle, Cape Fear like, in order to get some fresh air from the Feline Fecal palace I imagine he's growing up in.
Someone get that muthafuckin' cat some muthafuckin' earmuffs, yo! It be cold!
Finally, thanks to CBS News for the most intriguing headline of the week:
Goat Whacked For Crack
MOUNT PLEASANT, Pa. - Four men stole, killed and butchered a goat so they could trade its meat for crack cocaine, police said.
It gets a little more graphic after that, but yoy, a poor little goat, whacked for crack at the age of 3.
Hey kids, cra-a-a-ck is wha-a-a-ack. (pause) Got any cans?


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The above image shows the intricate details being lasercut.
During the inspiration process at Adorn, they discovered that the lotus flower had a really special meaning in the couple's relationship. The flower has a strong presence in new age spirituality and signifies new beginnings and luck. Jim had engraved the lotus flower on their engagement bands so Adorn decided that this detailing needed to be on the invitation. They designed and laser cut a 14k gold plated lotus flower that was hand applied to every invitation as you can see in the image below.
Clearly the happy couple were very pleased with the finished result and the wedding went well in the California sunshine. The feedback has been so favourable, that Adorn have agreed with Vanessa Williams to put her design into production which will make it affordable to everyday couples
...but without the 14 carat gold plated décor!
...but without the 14 carat gold plated décor!
You can read more about the project here:
Posted by Justin Hobson 23.05.2016