August2010

Ning’s recent announcement that it will be doing away with the free portion of its social networking service was one of the hot topics at last weekend’s WordCamp in San Francisco. Ning, for those who haven’t messed with it, is a social networking platform that’s ranked in the top 150 by Alexa and has millions of users who use the service to “explore and express their interests, discover new passions, and meet new people around shared pursuits.” The Ning move, whether you agree with it or not, brought up a good question: What do you do when your favorite...

When I first made the jump from Microsoft Word 97 to Word 2007, it was just that … a giant leap. Going a decade between software updates is as dumb as it sounds, but when you’re used to a solid word processor like Word 97, you tend to stick with what you know. Word 2007 changed all that. XML file formats and a revamped interface drove me crazy for the first couple weeks (months?), but after time (and a few patches that made ’07 files compatible with older versions of Word), I became a fan. Luckily for Word 2007...

I don’t know how the idea came up – it was probably the volatile mix of WordCamp L.A., Disneyland, NFL Opening weekend and Week 2 of the college football season – but on the way back from SoCal this week I started thinking about how WordPress needs a mascot. Yeah, that’s the kind of stuff I think about while waiting for WP presentations or in long lines to meet Goofy and Co. at the Happiest Place on Earth. WordPress needs its Mickey. Its Albert the Gator (University of Florida). Its own Tux the Penguin (Linux). Something cool, yet somewhat...