CircleCount helps you better understand Google+

2013-04-04 19:06:29 (10 comments, 2 reshares, 5 +1s)

Facebook Unveils Solution for Overcrowded Prisons—Home
As many in this forum with an interest in privacy, or the increasing lack thereof, I have been waiting with bated breath to see the spin that FB would apply during today's launch. Honesty. Insidious but refreshing.

" The app will make your phone a Facebook "home" less in the sense of a comforting shelter than in the sense of a house-arrest ankle monitor." Well said Kevin Roose.

As we enter the fully mobile third round of the Triple S —Search, Social, Subscription—Titans' fight for the critical and complete ownership of their subscriber base, I expect to see a little more cunning displayed by Google, Amazon, and even Apple. At this point I'm not sure whether to applaud Facebook for their complete transparency, or to weep at the naiveté of those who will pay for the total loss ofthe litt... more »

2013-04-01 21:07:07 (15 comments, 2 reshares, 12 +1s)

If it Ain’t Broke, Fix it—100% of Smug Google Utopians Agree
It has been my feeling for a while that we are being denied dramatic and productivity-enhancing developments in the online sphere. The cause appears to be twofold—corporate anti-competitive venality on the one hand, and the protectionism exhibited by individual managers within otherwise ethical corporations on the other. How many times can the wheel be re-invented? 

In this increasingly dystopian world we really need a challenge to keep the mind active and prove that there are those out there with the intelligence and critical thinking skills that exceed those of the average gnat. Those of you for whom there remains a vestige of doubt that the lowest common denominator is becoming the norm—please forgive the tautology—just read the Google support page here: http://goo.gl/6lvQm. 

Just the first linemakes the p... more »

2013-03-29 22:45:23 (5 comments, 0 reshares, 6 +1s)

Weekly roundup and the Who's Who of Google Plus !

#sharedcircles       #top500       #ff       #euromaestrocircles
#euromaestro       #sundayseven   #weeklyreview  

The top gplussers in the world this week  
http://www.circlecount.com/euromaestrowhoswho/

Did you know ...
Did you know you can filter any of these lists to see the top women or the top men only ?

Many thanks to +Circlecount for making this possible.

See who has page rank 5
https://plus.google.com/u/0/107040353898400532534/posts/GJEGrShRT5B

Check out the updated page rank 6 circle.
https://plus.google.com/u/0/107040353898400532534/posts/LBgBVHD3aCZ

Do you enjoy hangouts and especially hangouts on Air ?
Then you should probably join +the hangout community created by+eric Law
more »

2013-03-29 00:25:14 (17 comments, 3 reshares, 18 +1s)

Spring is sprung—Da grass is riz...
I wonder where dem boidies iz. Da little boids is on da wing. Ain’t dat absoid. Da little wings is on da boid. OK, in the case of this particular Steller’s Jay, I can state categorically that the wing is on the bird whilst the bird is, evidently, on the wing. The wings are not that little either. 

For those of you who have seen the aggression of Jay’s once Spring is sprung, it will come as no surprise that ‘James’, shown here, was caught on camera just now as he drove ‘Simon’, featured in yesterday’s post, away from the feeder. Suet, it seems, is for da boids.

#wildlifephotography   #birdphotography  

2013-03-28 23:11:38 (9 comments, 3 reshares, 11 +1s)

Amazon Prices Hike—Time for Main Street to Dust off the Bike
What wonderful news as we head into a long week-end. For bricks-and-mortar businesses, from ‘Main Street USA’ to the U.K. ‘High Street’, the fact of Amazon taking a leaf out of Apple’s squeeze until the pips squeak philosophy and applying it to third-party traders is just brilliant. This move will do more to slow the decline of non-virtual retail SMB’s than any amount of Government inaction action.

It is an interesting twist to see Amazon applying pressure to the online merchant community in the same way that Apple exploits its loyal integrated—Apple TV, iPhone, iTunes, iCloud, Mac—user base. Well done Amazon, you’ve just saved/created many hundreds of thousands of jobs. You've doubtless increased your margins and made your shareholders happy too.

Currently one small business fails everyhour in the U.K., a... more »

2013-03-27 23:46:06 (15 comments, 1 reshares, 24 +1s)

Hold That Thought—I Must Snap a Squirrel
Life is strange. Photography—certainly where squirrels are concerned—is simply a matter of timing. Having worked through the past two weekends, and suffering from the consequences known all too well to many of those in this forum, I decided to take advantage of a deferred meeting. I decided to take the day off... And rest. Gosh! I can still spell the word—r-e-s-t. Relaxation = Photography. Current target = Simon.

Those of you from whom my shameful—Friday delivered thankfully—’caturday’ post brought forth guffaws and/or on- and off-line snide remarks, I am delighted to be able to publish proof of Simon’s existence and prehensile-tail assisted acrobatic abilities. I have +Ayoub Khote to thank.

Having been walking this morning, then lurked on the decks supporting three or four kilos of camera body and lens, shot somedeer—using nothing... more »

2013-03-25 18:10:38 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Would you like to learn a little more about yourself and others?

I've teamed up with the brilliant fellow who started Ecademy, +Thomas Power who I've met in London on my last few visits.
He introduced me to the '8 Leadors profiles' you see below and I thought you too may be interested: http://www.leadors.co
Please note: I am not earning commission or anything similar from this activity just am very interested in this area. All about it here:

What is it all about?
The leadORS indicator gives you insight into your own communication style and the journey you need to lead to conduct effective "online conversations" personally, and within your organisation.

Why is this important in business today?
Attracting and engaging with customers, leading and retaining staff and staying ahead of the competition is ofp... more »

2013-03-23 01:38:30 (14 comments, 1 reshares, 17 +1s)

Pride and Prejudice—But Picture Purrfect
OK, I know, I am allergic to caturday, cat gif's, and a dog person through and through. However I am a photographer too. In a break between calls and meetings today I took a few moments to download some 'snaps' of a pet squirrel that inhabits our Santa Cruz deck. In a weird twist of fate, the better shots in the download turned out to be of 'Nellie'. Those who know me well, please don't ask. Nellie—a.k.a. 'The Cat'—inhabits the deck too.

Now, although not a cat person I can appreciate a cat that attempts to befriend not only a squirrel, but the birds and occasional rodent too. Further, her photogenic properties require that her images be retained.

Yes, shortly after the primary shot here, I did save her from the twenty feet drop to the ground. This was just after she finally sat down havingreach... more »

2013-03-22 20:43:13 (21 comments, 3 reshares, 14 +1s)

Inanimate objects are becoming sentient & everything is watching you!

Gus Hunt, CIA's CTO tells us how the CIA is using big data and where it is headed. You think Google, Facebook, and the rest of the Internet invades our privacy? You think it's a big deal that Google reads your email to serve you better ads, that Google and other search engines track your movement and behavior to sell you what they think you want? Think bigger and deeper.

How you walk, your gait, is a digital finger print. Yep, you don't even have to be on your phone anymore. How about group behavior. Every group has a unique persona. When Mary, John, Jan, and Joe are together, what do we know about them as a group and how can we use that group psychographic?   

How does this trickle down into business and education and personal social planning. This is a double edged sword.Gr... more »

2013-03-21 20:42:45 (7 comments, 1 reshares, 8 +1s)

Quantum Computing and Aliens—The Event Horizon Approaches
Quantum Computing is just around the corner. It offers the potential for Algorithms to break their bonds with humanity as Qubits cast off binary digital restraints and allow computer systems to make decisions without reference to their designers.

From the earliest days of cryptography practitioners have known that more often than not it is an anomaly, rather than a commonality, that allows a code to be broken. Like an errant thread, the pulling of which unravels a complex piece of knitwear, recognizing the disruption in a pattern is vital for success.

Yes, mathematics is important—evidenced by the core skills of Antoine Rossignol, and Alan Turing some three centuries later. However, the human brain’s ability to recognize, then parse, billions of data points without conscious effort is essential. Patternrecog... more »

2013-03-19 21:17:35 (15 comments, 1 reshares, 12 +1s)

Economy of Effort Slows Aging—For All Organs but the Brain
I thought that I would take a leaf out of the writers' guide used by the current generation of edadvertorials for the headline. This share is important listening, and critical for anyone approaching 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80 years of age. For anyone over 90, there’s a message, hope, and a smile. For those of any age who enjoy P.D. James novels, listening to this podcast—http://goo.gl/QUjdI—is an experience not to be missed.

The Challenge of Ageing is part of the BBC’s The Forum series, with this panel discussion having been recorded at The London School of Economics. Unusually for such talks, all of the participants provide excellent value—Hans Rosling is particularly worthwhile. However there is no doubt that P.D. James steals the show. At 93 years of age, Baroness James demonstrates quite what you can achievewhen you co... more »

2013-03-19 18:49:14 (12 comments, 1 reshares, 11 +1s)

Swallows and the School Bus—An Evolutionary Parallel?
I have often been impressed by the aerodynamic acrobatics of the swallows that nest in the bridges on I5 between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Their ability to avoid collisions with cars whilst grabbing a quick snack is remarkable. As such I found the report, cited below, of more than passing interest. It brought to mind an article that I wrote some twenty years ago on a possible cause for the abnormally high pedestrian accident statistics in the U.S. 

I wrote the piece shortly after I moved to America from Europe and discovered, fortunately just in time, that over here school buses have flashing red lights—many sporting octagonal wings imprinted with the word ‘Stop’. I stopped. I then watched in horror as children dropped from the door onto the sidewalk and, looking neither right nor left, shot across the street. 
A... more »

2013-03-15 01:32:30 (5 comments, 0 reshares, 10 +1s)

Under-employed—The Problem's Not the Work, It’s the Need

Buried within today’s PEW Research Center report on Modern Parenthood are some obvious, but disturbing, statistics. The gender gap is alive, and unfortunately well, although it is narrowing. That it is shrinking is good news. Less good are the underlying data.

Now although there could well be some valid discussion on the definition of the word ’prefer’, the fact that today one in three American mothers say that they would ‘prefer’ a full-time job, compared with one in five in 2007, is hugely significant. The statistic shines a revealing light on the true unemployment numbers—the rarely discussed python slithering under the table whenever the unemployed are discussed as a class. This is a 60% increase—10% per annum compounded annually—in the number of ‘working’ mothers seeking employment. 
Now although I’v... more »

2013-03-15 00:02:33 (7 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Samsung S4—Normal Service. Will it be Resumed? For Apple?
4:25 PST—Just wondering how long it will be before someone discovers quite who it was that tripped over the video feed cable. As I write, the audio has been restored. Where are the conspiracy theorists when you need them? Ah... Back on line now. 

4:45 PST—There are some seriously good features here. Home Sync is way overdue. This and other features are what you get when a hardware company, rather than a media company, or hardware/media blend such as Apple, launches a product not as a medium for bleeding the consumer. 

5:00 PST—In summary the cheesy presentation and, perhaps, Broadway's worst production in years, was painful. The product will cause Apple to re-think. Nah! Maybe?

It will be interesting to see where the revenue models from the various providers of services end up. We are wayoverdue fo... more »

2013-03-13 22:34:40 (0 comments, 5 reshares, 25 +1s)

2013-03-13 17:33:17 (8 comments, 0 reshares, 11 +1s)

Titanic Failure—A Tale of Two Economies
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It’s a wonderful opening line, but since this piece has little to do with Paris, although much to do with Dickens’ unflattering social comparisons where London–read UK–life is concerned, then rather than cities perhaps I should start with two ships—the QE II and the Titanic.

Now I mention the QE II since the letters ‘QE’ stand for Queen Elizabeth; the UK’s reigning monarch whose image graces the currency of the realm—the Pound Sterling. In the Pound’s current state, and with the UK in the longest depression–the ‘triple dip’ euphemism be damned–for over a century, perhaps it’s time to review the adjectival form of the ‘Sterling’ noun. Adjectival derivations, bring me neatly to the second ship—the Titanic. The adjective titanic is a perfect descriptor forthe failure of the UK’s Government to... more »

2013-03-13 19:59:38 (31 comments, 0 reshares, 21 +1s)

Much Exaggerated—Rumours of my Digital Demise
For those of you never yet forced by pressure of work, seclusion in a Himalayan monastery, the luxury of a well-earned vacation, or other long and absorbing pursuits to take a social media break, I have a caution. Don’t! Don’t do it. At the very minimum find time to log on from your locked office, mountain top, or beach. 798 notifications in a single sitting can be a little daunting. 

I know now that I could have found an hour or so between trains, planes, automobiles, offices, meetings, and the occasional doze, to log on. Hindsight is, indeed, 20:20. Maybe even as good as 20:15. Thankfully I don’t pretend, nor intend, to scale the walls of Facebook, restricting myself to G+ and a few specialized business and technology networks is sufficiently daunting. I’ve a lot of catching up to do.

As for those of you who werekind enoug... more »

2013-01-10 19:36:33 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Thanks Bob... Delighted to be here at the start.

2013-01-10 19:33:18 (12 comments, 2 reshares, 13 +1s)

Debt Ceiling—Heads the US Wins, Tails the GOP Loses
Much as the headline writer in me admires the ‘cleverness’ of the headline “Toss a Coin”—say it quickly Brits—in The Economist, and the tag line, “A crackpot idea to circumvent America’s debt ceiling gains currency”, neither is justified as the article itself demonstrates rather clearly. Actually this is the best idea that I’ve seen come out of D.C. in the current age.

As to the article, it’s worth reading. Indeed, I feel that the author has more than a passing knowledge of history in so far as economics, global power, and currency are concerned. I just hope that the US Fed and the Treasury are studying their equivalents across the Pond. After all, the Bank of England pioneered the concept of using the nation as collateral for paper money, enabling the reconstruction of the navy, creation of jobs, andeventually getting even... more »

2013-01-03 18:35:51 (21 comments, 9 reshares, 23 +1s)

A Broken System—A Lousy Deal—No End in Sight
The subhead on the cover of the forthcoming edition of The Economist is a perfectly crafted example of the headline writer’s art. Such a shame that it is accurate also—particularly the final phrase. The same cannot be said, however, for the headline itself. If only!

If only the U.S. would turn European in respect of money in politics. In Europe the venal and corrupt lobbying practices that enabled business to drive the agenda and the structure of yesterday’s last-minute climb down would have not been possible and/or resulted in long, and deserved, jail terms. In doubt? Just look at the corporate welfare that is now locked in for the foreseeable future and the human welfare that will be cut as the debt ceiling debate runs its course.

2013-01-03 02:37:31 (6 comments, 4 reshares, 14 +1s)

The Art of Engineering a Future—One Individual at a Time
Let’s face it, there is a groundswell building. The marketeers, the brands, the retail associations and other consumer-oriented business organisations continue their ostrich-like pose with beaks resting paralyzed on the sand while the world changes around them. 

Unfortunately for the owners of the beaks who also happen to own businesses based upon Henry Ford’s production line—or Ogilvy’s advertising—models it’s too late to cast eyes upward and read the writing writ large but unseen. Fortunately—for the majority of humanity­—unlike the sands of time contained in an hour glass, the arrow of time is not reversible. Those who have built and profited from a culture of consumerism to the detriment of a sustainable economy will eventually run out of consumers. More accurately the consumers will run out on themunless both sides u... more »

2013-01-03 00:09:05 (20 comments, 1 reshares, 21 +1s)

Closing Resolutions—Of the Photographic Kind
Much along the lines of the military axiom concerning the futility of issuing an order that it is known will not be obeyed, I only qualify as an occasional ‘resolute’ when each New Year arrives. However, given the success of last year’s resolve to quit Marlboro’s evil weed finally, I’m going to have another attempt this year... Spend more time with my photographic equipment. 

Actually, it’s not simply photography. It’s life. Spend more time smelling the roses rather than working to become fertilizer and positioning oneself to feed the roses from below. Spend more time absorbing nature rather than as ash being sprinkled upon, and then absorbed by, nature. 

Having spent much of the past month completely absorbed by business—travel and ‘screen-time’—to the extent of ignoring not simply self,but the extended ‘G+ Fami... more »

2012-12-14 16:11:41 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Thank you for the invitation +Wolf Weber. I look forward to the conversations.

2012-12-13 21:25:28 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Gosh +Meg Tufano. It would appear that I have someone's approval! Rare indeed. Thank you so much. :-)

2012-12-12 15:42:18 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Google Zeitgeist 2012 is out. 

2012-12-09 18:16:25 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 5 +1s)

The data and link posted by +Jeff Jockisch just now, together with the post by +Gideon Rosenblatt on 'Social Business' brought to mind a piece that I wrote back in September that would seem to add context to both.

Entrepreneurs & Economics—Seeding the American Dream
Yesterday [September 20th, 2012] there was a particularly thought provoking article in the Washington Post—http://goo.gl/sbE9r. In the piece +Ezra Klein provided a perfect counter to Romney’s 47% idiocy argument and made the obvious, but oft-times missed, point that access to money and personal responsibility are inversely proportional. Nowhere is this more true than in the case of prospective entrepreneurs—the job creators. 

As Ezra pointed out so succinctly: “The point here isn’t that Romney is unfamiliar with cutting-edge work in cognitive psychology. It’s that he misses even theintuitive message... more »

2012-12-07 22:23:52 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Thanks +Alexander Becker. You knew that I would not be able to resist this one.

2012-12-07 16:06:41 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Thanks +steph wanamaker. This is an absolute 'must'.

2012-12-07 15:48:14 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Thanks for the invitation +Paul Simbeck-Hampson. 

2012-12-07 15:42:41 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Thanks again +Alex Grossman. I almost missed this invitation. This is the only problem with the community approach. Too many notifications. 

2012-12-07 15:32:25 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Thank you for the invitation +Shaker Cherukuri. 

2012-12-07 15:28:39 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Now this has the possibility to become an interesting venue +Le Ambassador. Given the rapid convergence of conspiracy theory and fact, demonstrated by faster data flows, there's real potential here! 

2012-12-07 05:07:33 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Thank you for the invitation +Jeff Jockisch.

2012-12-07 05:06:37 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Thank you for the invitation +Alex Grossman. 

2012-12-07 05:04:34 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Thank you for the invitation +Gideon Rosenblatt. I would be delighted to discuss your objectives and ways in which I may be of assistance when you have a moment.

2012-12-06 00:42:57 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 12 +1s)

Thankfully Thinking’s not Tanking—Thanks Meg!
OK, so the headline’s alliteration failed at the last hurdle. Luckily, this is an end that, clearly, is not destined for +Meg Tufano's worthy effort to encourage, generate, collate, and share knowledge, depth, snippets, fun, and fundamental truths from the digital boundaries of the newly re-discovered social era—the digital incarnation.

With the able support of, and submissions from, partners including: +David Amerland, +Robert E. del Sol, +Shaker Cherukuri, +Leland LeCuyer, and/or contributions from journalists, authors, academics, or occasional commentators such as I, Meg has put together the first issue of ‘The Journal for Social Era Knowledge’. Congratulations Meg. You did it!

My intention had been to post a link on the day of issue, unfortunately I was traveling in Europe for the early part of last month andthen been r... more »

2012-12-06 00:52:57 (10 comments, 14 reshares, 15 +1s)

Corruption—A First-World Problem Too
Today’s publication of Transparency International’s ‘Corruption Perceptions Index’ for 2012 – http://goo.gl/l6qFL – demonstrates that as a global community we have a long way to go if we are to justify the Humanity collective noun. 

Reading the introduction and the sentence, “Corruption amounts to a dirty tax and the poor and most vulnerable are its primary victims.” I could not help thinking that this is a First-World problem as much as it is one of the Third-World. The introduction’s continuation, “Corruption translates into human suffering, with poor families being extorted for bribes to see doctors or to get access to clean drinking water. It leads to failure in the delivery of basic services like education or healthcare. It derails the building of essential infrastructure, as corrupt leaders skim funds,” brings thepoint into sharp focus. ... more »

2012-11-17 19:38:58 (8 comments, 1 reshares, 7 +1s)

Paris-on-Thames Opportunity Ignored—Quelle surprise!
Before protesting about this week's Economist cover, I do believe that it's time for the French finance minister, Pierre Moscovici, to pay a visit to London—now, by population, a larger 'French' city than Bordeaux, Nantes or Strasbourg. A quick visit to the 'City' or the 'West End' would demonstrate the basis of the Economist's warning and the impending disaster for the French economy.

I travel to the UK three or four times each year and, over the past decade, have become accustomed to the Polish takeover of the front end of the British restaurant, cafe, and pub sector. Now it seems that the migration has moved westward. Now the migration is from France rather than Poland. This time driven by the wish to avoid ill-thought-out work legislation and/or excessive taxation, rather than a searchfor ... more »

2012-11-17 17:55:49 (6 comments, 4 reshares, 12 +1s)

Sunday Sarcasm—Superbly Spun
Since I flew to Europe the day after the election, I had fully expected Romney to have been shuffled off into an anechoic chamber by the time that I returned to California. Fortunately, it seems that he's still hell-bent on driving additional nails into the the Republican coffin, having learned little from his serial gaffes during the campaign.

On the bright side, certainly for the blues, greens, and others with a sense of humour, he's still providing value. This NYT piece from Gail Collins is well worth a read.

"Then this week Romney told some of his donors that while he was pursuing the “big issues,” President Obama had purchased the support of blacks, Hispanics and young people with goodies like college loans and health care reform. College-age women, Romney claimed, traded their votes for “free contraceptives.” _Showthem a bi... more »

2012-10-30 19:39:40 (23 comments, 5 reshares, 22 +1s)

Climate Change & Politics—The Silence and the Science
I know that I’m not alone in being frustrated at the total absence of Climate Change becoming an issue in the presidential debates and campaigns. At the same time the reasons are clear. For the Obama camp, any focus on the global impact would be used by Romney and the Right’s PAC’s to demonstrate that the Democrats are more worried about the world and the future than they are about Americans here and now. For the Romney campaign... Well, this is obvious. Climate Change isn’t happening—it’s simply a massive Liberal conspiracy. For both campaigns, the topic is Kryptonite when courting most corporate donors.

This I understand. The perspective of the politicians is clear. What I fail to grasp is why the electorate and the media are remaining silent for the most part. Even with the event of Sandy and its domination ofthe news for ... more »

2012-10-15 22:17:51 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 9 +1s)

The Scale Pearson doesn't want you to Share

Beck’s Hopelessness Scale and other Dickish uses of DMCA

And today, our hosting company, ServerBeach, to whom we pay $6,954.37 every month to host Edublogs, turned off our webservers, without notice, less than 12 hours after issuing us with a DMCA email.

Because one of our teachers, in 2007, had shared a copy of Beck’s Hopelessness Scale with his class, a 20 question list, totalling some 279 words, published in 1974, that Pearson would like you to pay $120 for.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20121013/18332220701/textbook-publisher-pearson-takes-down-15-million-teacher-student-blogs-with-single-dmca-notice.shtml

2012-10-15 15:17:16 (12 comments, 2 reshares, 15 +1s)

Debates—Image Trumps Reality & Symbols Beat Facts
It is impossible to argue with the logic and verisimilitude of this HuffPost commentary. As to the solution, it's simple in concept. Unfortunately, until money is removed from the political equation, the solution remains a mirage.

"...It is even more difficult to lead a nation when the very definition of reality is for sale through Super PACs, when distortions go viral on the World Wide Web, and when a candidate's public position is either "walked back" by his staff or simply denied during a debate. The average person trying to navigate this complexity is looking for a way to simplify and understand the world they see. Our contemporary campaigns do the opposite."