Today is: Monday, 5th January 2009
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Gmail hits a Home Run.
Here’s another link to the Gmail Blog.
Folks - you can now synch your Google Calendar with your Outlook Calendar.
My life has officially changed. Now, if they could just make it where I could synch my date book with Google Calendar. A USB planner anyone?
12 Mar 08 | Awesome Mashed Potatoes
I’m feeling kind of bad about all the folks coming here for GourmetDudes recipes - so I’m going to try to post a couple a week. From now on, any recipes you would have found at GourmetDudes will be in the Cooking and Recipes category page.
Ingredients
* 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes
* 1/2 cup butter
* 2 cups Parmesan cheese
* 1 cup chopped fresh chives
* 1 1/2 cups cream cheese
* 1/2 medium head garlic, peeled and minced
* salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes; cook until tender but still firm. Drain and return to stove over low heat to dry for 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add butter, Parmesan cheese, chives, cream cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper. Use a potato masher to mash until smooth, and serve.
That’s all there is to it folks. My aunt actually tried to fight me over the holidays to get this recipe. You think I’m kidding…but I’m not. They are that good.
Facebook Ads Interface - Yech.
So, I tried to set up a Facebook Ad last night. Several things went wrong, which happens. My problem is how things get handled, and how the entire process goes down.
Maybe I should have titled this - “Facebook Ads User Experience - Worse than Overture Was”
Step one - I want to remove the old credit card from when I was running an ad for a client (pretty miserable failure, by the way, cheap but uneffective). I can’t….why? Apparently I have a payment pending. Of course, I haven’t run the ad since December, but there is still something pending. Whatever.
I figure I’ll step around this little hiccup by adding in my card, and making that my primary card. I added in my credit card, but after looking around some, couldn’t find how to make it my primary card. Great.
So, I set up my new ad - get an image, set up the landing page - submit…and - nothing. No confirmation, no notifications, nothing. Ugh. I figure it’s going through an approval process, so I patiently wait till this morning.
I log in - nothing. No new ad campaign running. I finally stumble my way into the payment methods interface - and figure out I have to click the “?” to make my card the primary card. Turns out, that card was “unverified” because I typed in the number incorrectly. The issue with that - IF I HADN’T STUMBLED ACROSS THAT, I’D HAVE NEVER KNOWN!!!!!!
What kind of shoddy UI designer lets something HUGE like that get through? If the credit card number is wrong, tell somebody. Thank goodness this wasn’t some amazingly time-sensitive project I was working on.
End Rant.
Thoughts on Fallon’s Resignation
When I read this a few moments ago, I was taken back to a few days ago when I read the aforementioned article in Esquire. (The link to the article is down).
First of all, anyone calling something in Esquire “News” obviously doesn’t read the magazine. If I want a self-loathing short story (Read ‘The Last Days of Heath Ledger”), select a fine wine, or know how to knot my tie, it’s a pretty good resource.
But, let’s be real guys, Esquire is nothing but a classy tabloid. It’s Cosmo for Men. It’s not “Real” Journalism, and any attempt to pass itself off as that is shameful.
The fact that this ridiculous (I thought it was asinine as I was reading it) “story” forced a situation in which Fallon felt compelled to resign angers me. Then, as I look at so many media outlets that play to sensationalism and meaningless stories, I start to become very worried about our values as a country.
When Paris Hilton is more important than improving our education, when congressmen are more interested in millionaire athletes swilling HGH (arguably, something that isn’t even bad for them) than 14 year olds slinging crack, and more people know who Britney’s Spears’ 18th illegitimate child is than who our Secretary of State is - I feel I have cause to be concerned.
Startup Life and Work Balance.
Alternate Title: Calcanis and I actually agree on this one.
I was especially excited to read Jason’s Blog today (although he is taking a bit of heat) - as I am one that is neck deep in startup life (except when I’m neck deep in agency strategy or consulting) - and he makes some really good points in his previous post, How to Save Money at a Startup.
There are a few points I’m iffy on (like, I think you can make a case for PC’s saving you money as well - guess it depends on your personality type). However, there are some that are absolutely brilliant, and I’d like to add a bit of my flavor to each of those:
Buy Second Monitors for Everyone - HECK YES! Go one better - by HUGE extra monitors for everyone. Especially for your coders. I can’t tell you how much time I save having an email window, browser window, and “work” window (DreamWeaver, Photoshop, etc….) open. Plus, I’m just happier.
Cheap Tables, Expensive Chairs - Really good point here. I figured this out for my home office long ago. Currently, we have pretty nice versions of both, but the deal on the desks was silly. Thanks to Sam’s Club Closeout sales!
Use Google Email - this is a no-brainer. However, depending on your host, you can do xyz@yourdomain.com on the cheap as well. Thanks to Gmail - you can connect the two pretty easily. Avoid exchange server at all costs.
Avoid People that don’t love their work - originally, this was fire people that don’t love their work - but if you’re doing your job, you shouldn’t have hired them in the first place. Around here, we keep a pretty strict time line - people don’t stay too late or work too much on weekends - or at least they are expected not to. Most of them still do. Because we love what we’re doing.
Stay away from meetings - a recurring theme. Meetings typically are a gigantic waste of time, unless there is some sort of deliverable coming out at the end. If you’re just meeting to talk about what you’re doing - you’re wasting everyone’s time. If you’re meeting to go over a report - you’re wasting time, stuff like that can be discussed over IM. If you’ve hired smart people who love their work, they should be able to move forward without too much hand-holding. In short- you need less talking, more doing.
Go over there to read the rest - I actually have to get to work!
Cool Stuff you can do with Gmail
Here’s a link to some cool things that you can do with gmail. I especially like the thought of adding the plus to my address…i.e. scottrandolph+work@gmail.com. Then, I use that address to sign up for work related newsletters, and have those filter into the right place upon arrival in my inbox.
Randy Pausch - The REAL Last Lecture
The last video I posted was from Oprah - this is the full, 76 minute version. Thanks Clayton.
Learning about Search Engine Science
So, I’m currently running around the web, learning as much as I possibly can about the science behind how search engines work - and how their API’s interact with partners. While I consider myself a pretty darn talented SEO, I’m not a computer scientist - so this is interesting to me. It’s also very important to a current project I’m working on.
Reading the existing patents that some search engines have out there is great fun - although it’s similar to reading long, convoluted contracts.
I’m feeling very academic today. 
Randy Pausch - The Last Lecture
This is absolutely amazing. Watch it.
Proper Running Shoe Fitting
This is advice you should take - from a guy who, back in November, couldn’t run 5 minutes non-stop at once, and is now running 3.5+ miles 3-4 times a week fairly easily - and that’s not because I’m super talented, dedicated, or anything of the sorts.
It turns out, I was wearing the wrong running shoe for a long time. I finally analyzed my stride, and found some styles that worked for me…and, what do you know? I started running with a LOT less leg/foot pain. So - if you’re not comfortable when you run, you need to get fitted.
Now, there are a few options you have here - one is that you can simply guess. That’s bad.
1) Use Zappos’ Running Shoe Fitting Guide. It is at least a good place to start.
2) Go to a running shoe store that has an electronic analyzer (I went to Dick’s)
3) Best Option (if you can afford it) - get professionally fitted.
I went the #1 route, then confirmed it via #2. It led me to getting the best shoes I’ve ever owned (and they weren’t hundreds of dollars).
By the way, if you’re a 200 pound plus guy, who is a mild pronator, I’d like to suggest the Diadora Mythos Ultimate. They are pretty hot shoes. Zappos has free shipping too!
(disclosure - none, Zappos and Diadora didn’t pay me for this post, I just dig them both)
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