Flickr Maps - Geotagging Rocks!

It takes a lot of work, but Geotagging with Flickr (aka Flickr Maps) is pretty cool. Here's the map of the photos I've geotagged so far. It takes a while for the photos you tag to show up with everyone elses, so you have to be patient.

They do have a way to parse embedded GPS information from your photos, if present... but you have to turn it on.

Be careful about Geotagging your home, etc.

Thanks to DocSearls and ThomasHawk for pointing this out.

Bullshit driven genius

Today's idea, straight from the Web 2.0 bullshit generator

integrate data-driven weblogs

Actually... it might be usefull to have a data logger create a web log, then use a google local search to index it for debugging and long term tracking purposes.... creativity comes from strange places... even bullshit generators.

Just found another one

disintermediate standards-compliant web services

If we can build a DLL or library which can link Excel or Access to web services, we could make a mint.... this thing is starting to look like a really good source of ideas... (spooky, isn't it?)

Here come the activists mobs!

While its possible that Doc might be a gatekeeper... consider the alternative... activist mobs!

We face a future of politically driven activism similar to that which has the FCC censoring on the basis of "hundreds of complaints" which turn out to be from one source. This politically charged devisive form of astroturfing needs to be nipped in the bud.

I for one, think that a bit of careful gatekeeping might be in order!

Oh... the irony of it

Slippery slopes - the 1st Amendment

Josh Wolf now sits in jail, and I think he's trying to defend the 1st amendment. I gave $20 to help his defense, I hope it helps.

Ryanne Hodson gives a good summary of my view:

Why should any of us care?
For us, it’s important to support journalists or anyone with a camera being harassed by the government to turn over recordings of public events that each of us has every right to record. We don’t want the government, local or federal, to make it a habit of asking for anything we happen to record. Then we each might question: “Do I want to

record this and be harassed later on?” This is especially true during controversial political events.


In the comments to Scoble's post which is where I first read about it, the comments seem to be running toward the blogospheric default... quick reaction without digging in for details. The critical matter in this case isn't the tape, it's the federal attempt to override the states rights. The people of California have made a law to protect journalists from fishing expeditions, a shield law. The federal government is using a very flimsy argument about tax money to try to bypass the States right to self-govern.

Bad Marketing, 101

I found a very good distillation of bad marketing, from Melinda, via way of Shelley in her critique of BlogHer:

At another point, I was sitting in the audience waiting for a presentation to start, when a woman came up and knelt down by my side. She seemed friendly and I thought perhaps she'd seen my presentation on Day One, and wanted to chat about it. Or maybe she was familiar with my BlogHer posts…

I realized with a sinking feeling, as she handed me her card and a book, that she was making a one-to-one sales pitch. I politely accepted her "gifts", sensing she'd then move on to the next customer, and she did.

I came to BlogHer to meet other bloggers, not get tricked into a conversation that then turned into a sales pitch.

(emphasis mine)

Bad marketing is rude marketing. The abuse of trust demonstrated in the incident above, is exactly what drives people to generalize and hate all marketing. We need to stamp it out!

When it's done right, its all about condensing your message into a small gift, the gift of condensed truth. The lower the bullshit content, the more valuable for all. It saves time and effort for everyone.

Bad marketing is about trying to substitute bullshit for substance.

well.. that's the wandering for now

--Mike--