If You Liked That Video, Try THIS One: "Amazon and Netflix work well because their sites attract large audiences" [AdAge]
No, not the sites as such - but the recommendation engines, the algorithms matching preferences, interest and behavior over time to increase the "findability" in huge libraries of offerings.
And that is the challenge for a lot of the numerous web tv players - not big enough scale to give meaningful recommendations. Even Amazon can tend to get stuck in a track, making it hard to change the direction of the offerings "mistream" with out either manually ignoring a large chunk or just using the "similar" reccomendations from one nugget.
Maybe you should have different profiles and tracking for differnet moods, or uses? One for light comedy relaxing after work, another for meaningful insights before bed - and a third for mutually acceptable weekend fare.
Monday, December 29
Bandwidth meltdown?
BBC Ditches Kontiki P2P: "Because its P2P technology simply wasn’t needed anymore."“[O]ver the past year the cost of bandwidth has decreased by 90 percent, making direct HTTP downloads a viable alternative" [NewTeeVee]
- shame the same can't be said for end-user prices, despite financial markets taking a dive and gas prices jumping all over the map, the cost for home connections have stayed stable here at least.
- shame the same can't be said for end-user prices, despite financial markets taking a dive and gas prices jumping all over the map, the cost for home connections have stayed stable here at least.
Xmas in march
CoffeeGeek - Baratza Vario Grinder: "Baratza partnered with Mahkonig to produce the burr set and burr housing on this grinder, and it's unique to the Vario - 54mm flat burrs made out of ceramic"
As I've learned today while looking around for the euro relaease and pricepoint, Mahlköning is a maker of professional grade grinders - and will be pushing out the Vario under their brand with a 220V set-up - listed now as march 2009.
At a bit over €300 it will take some time to "sell it" internally, but by the time easter arrives I hope to have one to play around with - for doppio, presspot and the huge presspot.
...and the sun is coming back...
As I've learned today while looking around for the euro relaease and pricepoint, Mahlköning is a maker of professional grade grinders - and will be pushing out the Vario under their brand with a 220V set-up - listed now as march 2009.
At a bit over €300 it will take some time to "sell it" internally, but by the time easter arrives I hope to have one to play around with - for doppio, presspot and the huge presspot.
...and the sun is coming back...
Sunday, December 21
playtime
More on georss - blogpost led me to google blog- then a bit of copy paste work around in flick made my images pop up on the map. Just like magic. Loving it. And that was released in march 07...
Also found a fun part of flickr related to camera useage - drilled down to the 450 page. (Chart (c) yahoo/flickr and so on) - it is now ranked 4th of all Canon cameras in terms of volume and popularity "28,784 items uploaded yesterday"
http://api.flickr.com/services/feeds/photos_public.gne?
id=17766908@N00&format=rss_200&georss=trueAlso found a fun part of flickr related to camera useage - drilled down to the 450 page. (Chart (c) yahoo/flickr and so on) - it is now ranked 4th of all Canon cameras in terms of volume and popularity "28,784 items uploaded yesterday"
Beta'est
Not a word yet? Well, it should be when you need to describe Google - always another beta and labs around the corner. The latest one I just got a heads up about when posting the last post, was Blogger in Draft: "the official blog for Blogger in draft"
- so I'll be swapping my dashboard over and hopefully having as much fun and use from that as from the labs extensions to Reader.
First up? Geotags and learning more about GeoRSS.
Impressions;
snazzy new toolbar for the compose tab - easy to add in location, hopefully it will have a default/common list along the way to avoid searching each time. Increase the textfield - is that new or draft? Nice anyways for those longer posts
Impressions 2:
reverting the code for the widgets also fixed up the impressions widget, and got the location span in place - but it "killed" my tag-cloud edits to the frequent labels. Oh well, there should be a backup nearby.
- so I'll be swapping my dashboard over and hopefully having as much fun and use from that as from the labs extensions to Reader.
First up? Geotags and learning more about GeoRSS.
Impressions;
snazzy new toolbar for the compose tab - easy to add in location, hopefully it will have a default/common list along the way to avoid searching each time. Increase the textfield - is that new or draft? Nice anyways for those longer posts
Impressions 2:
reverting the code for the widgets also fixed up the impressions widget, and got the location span in place - but it "killed" my tag-cloud edits to the frequent labels. Oh well, there should be a backup nearby.
Friday, December 19
News or media?
"Mark Glaser, of PBS's MediaShift... offering up alternative business models" [SFN blog]
"mixing business models for journalism with business models for newspapers" - from the comments on the 'guide'
It is a (by web standards) interesting and broad piece - but I agree with some of the commenters; Glaser is mixing it all up and could do with a bit more structure and defining some terms.
Most magazines offer some sort of "journalistic content" - but the form and process differ across titles and genres (compare a games magazine to a fashion title, and then with a journal like Nature)
Many (most?) television channels offer only a small share of news - and even for those that do it makes up a small percentage of total time spent viewing. And yet some of the core tenets of objectivity and presenting a story are well taken care of on channels like Discovery and National Geo. (Mythbusters rather than American Chopper - but even the latter serves as a human interest story and presents both details on the production as well as the cause of the bike in question)
Turning back to Glaser - blogs and video are tools for spreading online content, not a business model as such, but a vital part of any broader or more niche offering. Hyperlocal and niches are targets or user needs - but still need to be supported by revenues.
That narrows down the list to subscription (walled garden), classified (ie business and private ads), philantrophy (crowdfunding, nonprofit) - with the last one being the only "alternative" to the two most common for newspapers today, but still as well known media solution in terms of NPR, PBS etc.
Does that make the piece thin? No, because the main conclusion is delivered up front before the different models - and it is one with which I for one wholeheartedly agree with;
"a successful online newspaper will need a mix of many different revenue streams to survive in the digital age" - Glaser
...and the sun turned around today - heading towards summer as of a little past noon local time...
...and yes - I intentionnaly did not define the terms or link extensively to wikipedia and so on - as this is a short musing and not a "guide" :)
"mixing business models for journalism with business models for newspapers" - from the comments on the 'guide'
It is a (by web standards) interesting and broad piece - but I agree with some of the commenters; Glaser is mixing it all up and could do with a bit more structure and defining some terms.
Journalism, publishing and media - are they entwined, and do the need to be?
Looking across from newspapers into print in general, television and online services - the answer is a partial yes, and clearly no.Most magazines offer some sort of "journalistic content" - but the form and process differ across titles and genres (compare a games magazine to a fashion title, and then with a journal like Nature)
Many (most?) television channels offer only a small share of news - and even for those that do it makes up a small percentage of total time spent viewing. And yet some of the core tenets of objectivity and presenting a story are well taken care of on channels like Discovery and National Geo. (Mythbusters rather than American Chopper - but even the latter serves as a human interest story and presents both details on the production as well as the cause of the bike in question)
Turning back to Glaser - blogs and video are tools for spreading online content, not a business model as such, but a vital part of any broader or more niche offering. Hyperlocal and niches are targets or user needs - but still need to be supported by revenues.
That narrows down the list to subscription (walled garden), classified (ie business and private ads), philantrophy (crowdfunding, nonprofit) - with the last one being the only "alternative" to the two most common for newspapers today, but still as well known media solution in terms of NPR, PBS etc.
Does that make the piece thin? No, because the main conclusion is delivered up front before the different models - and it is one with which I for one wholeheartedly agree with;
"a successful online newspaper will need a mix of many different revenue streams to survive in the digital age" - Glaser
...and the sun turned around today - heading towards summer as of a little past noon local time...
...and yes - I intentionnaly did not define the terms or link extensively to wikipedia and so on - as this is a short musing and not a "guide" :)
Monday, December 15
Poynter column on the news as a part of a process rather than as a goal in and of itself;
"News doesn't always have to be a finished story. In some cases, a launching point might be even more intriguing and engaging."
Isn't that the "holy grail" or great promise of online journalism? Giving the reader everything they need in order to go as deep or far as they need, want and have the time for?
By tying in information both from internal and external sources, you can provide a much bigger picture - just like Silobreaker - thereby broadening the options for the reades.
Previous articles about the mayor and his campaing finance? Check. Previous tv-segments from the debate last fall? Check. Google or Archive versions of his blog posts? Check.
No, it doesn't make sense for a lot of stories - but the more automated the core is, the easier it becomes to add some insight quickly by highlighting one of five possible stories - or by removing one that is out of date. When there is between a hundred and three hundred articles on the taliban in silobreaker, it is a pure necessity to be able to filter further, zoom in on a timespan (use the chart) And the same policy should be core for any news organization.
Bring the reader everything they might need or want - and then make it easy for them to do their filtering.
"But then, "most people" don't care about any particular story you can find in a mainstream news venue. The "general audience" is a myth. When you get down to the story level, news has always been about niches. Every piece of news has its own community of relevance -- and every news topic offers myriad potential stories." - check for further comments
"News doesn't always have to be a finished story. In some cases, a launching point might be even more intriguing and engaging."
Isn't that the "holy grail" or great promise of online journalism? Giving the reader everything they need in order to go as deep or far as they need, want and have the time for?
By tying in information both from internal and external sources, you can provide a much bigger picture - just like Silobreaker - thereby broadening the options for the reades.
Previous articles about the mayor and his campaing finance? Check. Previous tv-segments from the debate last fall? Check. Google or Archive versions of his blog posts? Check.
No, it doesn't make sense for a lot of stories - but the more automated the core is, the easier it becomes to add some insight quickly by highlighting one of five possible stories - or by removing one that is out of date. When there is between a hundred and three hundred articles on the taliban in silobreaker, it is a pure necessity to be able to filter further, zoom in on a timespan (use the chart) And the same policy should be core for any news organization.
Bring the reader everything they might need or want - and then make it easy for them to do their filtering.
"But then, "most people" don't care about any particular story you can find in a mainstream news venue. The "general audience" is a myth. When you get down to the story level, news has always been about niches. Every piece of news has its own community of relevance -- and every news topic offers myriad potential stories." - check for further comments
Hey hoo hulu
Hulu came in sixth with 24.0 million unique viewers,... considering the duration of the average online video was three minutes, and its average was 11.6 minutes instead. [comScore stats]
Monday, December 8
Scale, test and improve
The EU is building a digital library - "direct access to some 2 million digital objects, including film material, photos, paintings, sounds, maps, manuscripts, books, newspapers and archival papers"
The prototype was launched November 20th, but quickly take down - due to excessive traffic reported as "more than 10m hits per hour". Comparing that to the official stats here in Norway with VG.no clocking in some 350m PI last week - should equate to 2m per hour over the whole week, and a bit more during peaks.
So the conclusion? Great idea - to bad about the miscalculation on the interest. looking forward to the re-launch!
Might have been a better idea to get things going with just some of the content types - those not needing a lot of server prowess for pushing out. Seems like the partner list is a bit thin in terms of high tech and hosting - no Akamai or Cisco here.
Can't imagine YouTube and Google seeing anything less with their expanded HD offering over the last few days...
The prototype was launched November 20th, but quickly take down - due to excessive traffic reported as "more than 10m hits per hour". Comparing that to the official stats here in Norway with VG.no clocking in some 350m PI last week - should equate to 2m per hour over the whole week, and a bit more during peaks.
So the conclusion? Great idea - to bad about the miscalculation on the interest. looking forward to the re-launch!
Might have been a better idea to get things going with just some of the content types - those not needing a lot of server prowess for pushing out. Seems like the partner list is a bit thin in terms of high tech and hosting - no Akamai or Cisco here.
Can't imagine YouTube and Google seeing anything less with their expanded HD offering over the last few days...
So says who?
While waiting for the next BSG season to hit the local dvd window, I'm spending some thoughtful time with the essay collection "So say we all"- with the highlight so far being a piece by Charlie W. Starr ('personal' site seems to be either down or moved) on Galacticas Gods and their "real world" potential reflections. Adds another layer or two to the show, so I guess it's time to start over once more. So many angels and connection to reconsider or discover. Long-form storytelling at its best.
One of the main cases is RvB - and I have a minor gripe considering that they also have a subscription/sponsor model, and do a brisk trade in dvds of the show - thereby actually also getting income on the "product" as such. So while it might be correct that the t-shirt put them in business, as a case it is more suited for their versatility both in terms of productions, distribution and income.
So how does this compare to the discussion of "free" [C.Anderson] - or 1000 true fans [K.Kelly with follow-up]?
There is a way for people to make (enough) money doing what they love. The web makes it possible to gather enough dedicated fans or followers to cover costs and then some. BUT - it is a way out for a few, just like there are quite a few "would-be Britneys" out there.
Just because it is feasible and might be gaining traction doesn't make it a sure thing. PBS has been doing it for years. And here in Norway it is 'down by law' - as everyone who owns a television gets to contribute a bit to the NRK (public broadcaster). At just over 2 million homes we are a niche unto ourselves. (and it might be more akin to the ransom model :D)
For two more pieces from Clive T - head over to OTM - from february (on conncetors and Gladwell) and november (reccomendations and Netflix)
Wipeout when the fat lady sings?
Also in the [16.12] was a spread on the new Opera house in Oslo. It is a stunning piece of architecture, and a bit of a gamble considering the threat of increased sea-levels. But the urban angle tying it into skating and cross-use is good branding.
...and the sun is sneaking away, but I'm caught up with Wired - just a bit of backlog to clear out...
T or dvd?
The latest issue of Wired [16.12] has another good read by Clive Thomspson - on the t-shirt economy, how niche sites and creators can support themselves by selling basic merchandise like t-shirts to their fans.One of the main cases is RvB - and I have a minor gripe considering that they also have a subscription/sponsor model, and do a brisk trade in dvds of the show - thereby actually also getting income on the "product" as such. So while it might be correct that the t-shirt put them in business, as a case it is more suited for their versatility both in terms of productions, distribution and income.
So how does this compare to the discussion of "free" [C.Anderson] - or 1000 true fans [K.Kelly with follow-up]?
There is a way for people to make (enough) money doing what they love. The web makes it possible to gather enough dedicated fans or followers to cover costs and then some. BUT - it is a way out for a few, just like there are quite a few "would-be Britneys" out there.
Just because it is feasible and might be gaining traction doesn't make it a sure thing. PBS has been doing it for years. And here in Norway it is 'down by law' - as everyone who owns a television gets to contribute a bit to the NRK (public broadcaster). At just over 2 million homes we are a niche unto ourselves. (and it might be more akin to the ransom model :D)
For two more pieces from Clive T - head over to OTM - from february (on conncetors and Gladwell) and november (reccomendations and Netflix)
Wipeout when the fat lady sings?
Also in the [16.12] was a spread on the new Opera house in Oslo. It is a stunning piece of architecture, and a bit of a gamble considering the threat of increased sea-levels. But the urban angle tying it into skating and cross-use is good branding.
...and the sun is sneaking away, but I'm caught up with Wired - just a bit of backlog to clear out...
Thursday, December 4
Ads work
And so does free stuff. Along with some other stuff for xmas I put in an order for season 1 of Dexter today- two things that helped push it into my basket were the ad in Wired (800px wallpaper), styled up just like a Wired cover and a co-worker using another image as a wallpaper at work. Combined with the weekly ads for the previous season running on local television it was just enough to consider it. With a full season on dvd at less than $30 it makes for a good supplemental 'gift' for the season ahead.
The other item from 16.10 worth a note was a quote by Zucker from Hulu; "the best way to combat piracy is to make your content available". Not too far off from the NRKbeta doctrine and good words to take to mind in turbulent times
The other item from 16.10 worth a note was a quote by Zucker from Hulu; "the best way to combat piracy is to make your content available". Not too far off from the NRKbeta doctrine and good words to take to mind in turbulent times
Forget me - or not
Facebook Friendonomics: "friendships, like long-forgotten photos and mixtapes, would distort and slowly whistle into oblivion, quite naturally, nothing personal." [Scott Brown, Wired 16.11]
Love the point about a "Fade Utility" - sort of the same way your rss reader could do with a "sort by actually reading" button. There is too much information, too many posts, tweets and articles to have any chance of seeing it all - never mind responding or reflecting on it.
Social overload as the next disorder? ADHD taken to the next level? Do we need to loose touch with some in order to maintain touch with ourselves? Or is the net helping us expand our social capabilities and the ability to fade people in and out?
testing blogthis bookmarklet, still missing labels, but otherwise fair enough
witcher enhanced out on tuesday - and a console version announced, time to get playing
Love the point about a "Fade Utility" - sort of the same way your rss reader could do with a "sort by actually reading" button. There is too much information, too many posts, tweets and articles to have any chance of seeing it all - never mind responding or reflecting on it.
Social overload as the next disorder? ADHD taken to the next level? Do we need to loose touch with some in order to maintain touch with ourselves? Or is the net helping us expand our social capabilities and the ability to fade people in and out?
testing blogthis bookmarklet, still missing labels, but otherwise fair enough
witcher enhanced out on tuesday - and a console version announced, time to get playing
Wednesday, December 3
wORD - open
Via NRKBeta; a short post from Make - links on to the interesting thing - the base .fla file used for making the video. Have to download it again tomorrow and have a quick peak at work, see if we can't get something up and make a plug out of it. [like this...]
(and the Guild s2e2 is out - 'buff me' :D)
(and the Guild s2e2 is out - 'buff me' :D)
Keep going, keep improving
A wonderful and inspering post on how you need to keep on going in order to improve your skills as a photographer.
Doesn't matter if it is "just" a hobby - the way to improve and get better is to do it, over and over. Get the basics inside and on automatic. Digital means endless supply of "film" - so there is no need to skimp. [Found by tweet from f.day]
And if you need some more inspiration or guidance, there are several good podcasts on photography out there (Tips from top floor, photowalkthrough, martin bailey,...)
Not to forget a recent post on eirikso - gives some visual aides for different ISO, aperture and shutter. Now get out there and make your own test and flip thorugh them in picasa.
...and the sun fades fast this time of year...
sidenotes;
-finished Rep.Commando - True Colors today (good yarn, fun stuff, need to get Order66)
and picked up the Clone Wars dvd along with Kung Fu Panda
for some nice animated fun over the days ahead
Doesn't matter if it is "just" a hobby - the way to improve and get better is to do it, over and over. Get the basics inside and on automatic. Digital means endless supply of "film" - so there is no need to skimp. [Found by tweet from f.day]
And if you need some more inspiration or guidance, there are several good podcasts on photography out there (Tips from top floor, photowalkthrough, martin bailey,...)
Not to forget a recent post on eirikso - gives some visual aides for different ISO, aperture and shutter. Now get out there and make your own test and flip thorugh them in picasa.
...and the sun fades fast this time of year...
sidenotes;
-finished Rep.Commando - True Colors today (good yarn, fun stuff, need to get Order66)
and picked up the Clone Wars dvd along with Kung Fu Panda
for some nice animated fun over the days ahead
Monday, December 1
Bit by little bit
What is next and now in terms of streaming video? The Adobe Media Player looked really neat when it arrived, playing up CSI episodes full screen even over here in Norway. But now it seems to be a bit quiet on that side of the aisle.
Several companies are working on changing the underlying logic, much like bittorrent did for distirbution of files. Here are some notes and thoughts on tow of them - BitGravity and Move Networks.
Bitgravity caught my notice due to a nifty "multiview" experiment one of their people put up, and I think it was CC who tweeted it.
They got a bit of funding back in august (2.5m)- and uses a flash interface making them at home on most computers;
"challenged conventional methods for delivering content" - "automatically detects end-user bandwidth quality ... adjusts the stream’s bitrate to optimize it for the user" - sure sounds nice and comfortable.
Move on the other hand got their hands on quite a bit of funding this spring (46m), they have a solid roster og clients ( ABC, FOX, ESPN, the CW, and Discovery.) - but have been based around a dedicated player.
However, there was talk of the solution becoming a part of Silverlight (v2 most likely?) - and MS also put up some cash. But little readily available info on what has happened since march. A good sign that they are doing a solid job, or another case of times moving on?
With MS partnering with Akamai; "Smooth Streaming (SmoothHD.com) from our partner Akamai. Smooth Streaming will be available in a public beta in Q1 2009. " - and that ties into the Open Player initiative.
...and the sun, oh the sun...
Several companies are working on changing the underlying logic, much like bittorrent did for distirbution of files. Here are some notes and thoughts on tow of them - BitGravity and Move Networks.
Bitgravity caught my notice due to a nifty "multiview" experiment one of their people put up, and I think it was CC who tweeted it.
They got a bit of funding back in august (2.5m)- and uses a flash interface making them at home on most computers;
"challenged conventional methods for delivering content" - "automatically detects end-user bandwidth quality ... adjusts the stream’s bitrate to optimize it for the user" - sure sounds nice and comfortable.
Move on the other hand got their hands on quite a bit of funding this spring (46m), they have a solid roster og clients ( ABC, FOX, ESPN, the CW, and Discovery.) - but have been based around a dedicated player.
However, there was talk of the solution becoming a part of Silverlight (v2 most likely?) - and MS also put up some cash. But little readily available info on what has happened since march. A good sign that they are doing a solid job, or another case of times moving on?
With MS partnering with Akamai; "Smooth Streaming (SmoothHD.com) from our partner Akamai. Smooth Streaming will be available in a public beta in Q1 2009. " - and that ties into the Open Player initiative.
...and the sun, oh the sun...
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