virtualDavis

I heard Brad Inman give a speech at O’Reilly’s Tools of Change conference, and he said trying to get stuff done in book publishing is like trying to swim through a jar of peanut butter. I nearly stood up and screamed “EXACTLY!” I have had the good fortune to work with a lot of entrepreneurs and tech people, and they are doing circles around my publishing colleagues because they don’t put up the roadblocks and draw the lines in the sand. If I had to guess, the peanut butter people have no idea what that means.

Here are 10 signs you might be……….The Peanut Butter:

1) You can’t think of anything to show for your work in the last six months.

2) You think your job is to prevent mistakes from being made.

3) You believe that the more people invited to a meeting, the more successful the meeting will be.

4) Meetings take months to schedule.

5) You would rather be “politically correct” and “cc everyone” than make something great happen.

6) You’re paralyzed by the concept of “scalable.”

7) You think you have the upper hand in nearly all business dealings , but deep down inside, in those quiet moments late at night, you know you’re losing “control.”

8 ) You resort to bullying tactics to get your way without ever considering what might benefit everyone.

9) You spend your days trying to figure out how to gain control.

10) You’re an information hoarder.

via theharperstudio.com

This is a great posting by Debbie over at HarperStudio. I’m especially drawn to numbers 8 and 10. Tip: Consider what benefits everyone, and share (don’t hoard) information. Win-win!

via dailycognition.com

Although the idea underlying the twenty five photographs in this posting isn’t terribly innovative, the visual impact of the hand holding the old image is compelling. It adds a subjectivity, diminishing the clinical feel of the exercise and provoking the curiosity of the viewer. An interesting scrapbooking concept that I’ll continue to explore further.

via drewsmarketingminute.com

Need to explain social media to your grandmother? Tip: print out this PDF first.

Google graphic via OPEN Forum

If you’re a Twitter “power user” (i.e. you update your status frequently; monitor your brand, business, etc. on Twitter; and/or leverage Twitter’s massive userbase to search for prospects) you should read John Jantsch’s article at OPEN Forum. Here are the highlights:

1) Target by occupation: “you can create a search that plows through Twitter and gives you a list of all the users” that include your specific keyword (attorney, quarterback, etc.) for their username and/or real name in their Twitter profile pages.
2) Target by biographical information: If you want to scan more than just usernames and real names, Google can hep you search for key phrases in Twitter users’ intext attributes.
3) Target by location using http://search.twitter.com
4) Use Google Alerts to track new Twitter sign ups

Learn more about these smart Twitter search techniques and three more at OPEN Forum.

Image via toxel.com

Brainstorming a clever, minimalist logo, and these unique, creative logos appeared out of the ether. Maybe they’ll inspire me…

Have you used picnik? It’s an online image-editing software that’s free, easy and powerful. And it integrates nicely with flickr, facebook, etc. It’s no PhotoShop, but did I mention that it’s free?

image via mashable.com

The earthquake that killed more than 700 people in Chile on Feb. 27 probably shifted the Earth’s axis and shortened the day, a National Aeronautics and Space Administration scientist said.

via Bloomberg.com

Are NASA scientists pulling our legs? Wow!

via theatlantic.com

Related articles

• Publishers still missing the point on e-book prices (gigaom.com)

In the emerging world of e-books, many consumers assume it is only logical that publishers are saving vast amounts by not having to print or distribute paper books, leaving room to pass along those savings to their customers.

Publishers largely agree, which is why in negotiations with Apple, five of the six largest publishers of trade books have said they would price most digital editions of new fiction and nonfiction books from $12.99 to $14.99 on the forthcoming iPad tablet — significantly lower than the average $26 price for a hardcover book.

But publishers also say consumers exaggerate the savings and have developed unrealistic expectations about how low the prices of e-books can go. Yes, they say, printing costs may vanish, but a raft of expenses that apply to all books, like overhead, marketing and royalties, are still in effect.

All of which raises the question: Just how much does it actually cost to produce a printed book versus a digital one?

via New York Times

3D Sidewalk Art (via huffingtonpost.com)

3D sidewalk art makes the best graffiti ever!

Maybe these fellows will come to my town and chalk up a canyon across the road in order to slow down speeders. 30mph and cars routinely double the speed limit! But strategically selected 3D sidewalk art could change that quickly…

The example above suggests all manner of similar concepts because our road skims the lake shore. Imagine three dimensional chalk art creating the illusion of a vast chasm washed out in the road. Or 3D sidewalk art (in this case it would be more appropriate to call it 3D road art perhaps?) depicting a freighter crashed into and through the road. Or a flock of sheep blocking traffic…

3D sidewalk art to the rescue!

3D Sidewalk Art & Law Enforcement

Instead of punishing the creators of 3D sidewalk art, lumping it together with graffiti and categorically assuming that it is all destructive vandalism, what if we shift our thinking in a more positive direction? What is we deam 3D sidewalk art part of law enforcement’s tools to deter high speed traffic? Instead of pitting law enforcement against the 3D sidewalk artists, law enforcement could become the most vital patrons of the public displays. The art form might get catapulted into its heyday, with municipalities all around the world celebrating the intrepid creators of sidewalk and street illusion. Traffic would slow. Accidents would diminish. Road rage would vanish. The driving and walking public would swap stress for joy, assertive myopia for panoramic vision… Just imagine!

Related articles

• 3D Art on Sidewalks (virtualdavis.com)
• 3D street painting (gpcartappreciation.wordpress.com)
• There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk (rredwildroses.wordpress.com)
• The Skrapan 3D Street Art Easily Conquers Your Fear of Heights (trendhunter.com)
• Street Artist ‘Bored’ Leaves Life-Size Monopoly Pieces on the Streets of Chicago (inhabitat.com)
• Woman Starts A Kindness Campaign By Leaving Nice Messages In Chalk On Sidewalks. (thepuffington.com)
• Nationally Acclaimed Chalk Artist Jennifer Chaparro to be Featured at Two South Florida Festivals (prweb.com)