randallCbennett[dot]com

The rebirth of blogging

So I had about a two year stint where I didn’t really write anything in my blog. I just let it sit here, sort of stagnant, while I moved on to more useful tech for updating my friends and family like Facebook, Twitter and for my geeky nerd friends who want to know what I think is funny, I started using Tumblr. About a year ago, when I started writing longer form pieces for Obsessable, I wanted to start writing more on my blog than just a journal. I even started writing in an ACTUAL journal. (Yes, fellow snobs, it’s a Moleskine.)

I think I’m going to have something to say on a more regular basis now, which means I’m going to try to keep my daily polyphasic sleeping updates going as long as they’re relevant (guessing till maybe day 45-60?) but in addition, I’m going to try to ask and answer questions I find interesting on the web. Not as some sort of douchey wannabe blowhard (resisted linking to examples there…), but more to challenge myself as a writer, and to ask/answer questions that could actually help someone out there at large. Most of the questions are going to be technology related, simply because that’s what I eat and breathe, but I’ll likely mix in some biz and personal items as well.

I seriously want to change web video for the better, and while TechVi in its current incarnation isn’t the answer, I’m going to mockup some stuff that I think could be a step in the right direction.

I also plan on writing things on live production, and things I’m doing in my studio to create some crazy crap. I’m sure everyone who’s reading this won’t necessarily stick around, but the people who do will actually find it somewhat interesting, instead of just, well, dormant.

Polyphasic sleep: Day 3 — The backslide

So yesterday I went to bed at about 10pm because I was so tired… and slept till 6am. That’s a full regular nights sleep… aka I backslid. I’m not sure what happened to my alarm, though I think I vaguely remember turning it off without looking, which is a real feat since I use an iPod touch which requires the slide of a finger to turn it off. Desperate times, I guess.

Tonight I plan to go back to the same schedule as before… with my tail between my legs. Here goes nothing.

Polyphasic sleep: Day 2.

So as part of our west coast move, I’ve decided I need to basically keep my exact same sleep schedule from New York. As some of you know, I tend to wake up pretty friggin’ early, since I have to get a lot done to try to make TechVi successful. As a result, I don’t want to sleep from 8pm till 2am to maintain my schedule. The solution? Polyphasic Sleep.

Wikipedia has a good rundown of polyphasic sleep. Essentially, I’ll be sleeping from 11pm to 2am, and then taking 20 minute naps at 6am, noon, and 6pm.

So far? Things have been going well. I’m sort of tired right now, but not in the way that you are when you don’t get enough sleep… it’s a different sort of tired. I’m definitely aware I need some sleep, and it’s about 3pm, but I’ll deal for the next 3 hours till my next nap.

I intend to document the experience somewhat to give you an idea of how it evolves along time.

Kottke: My weekend reading

One quip I’ve always heard in almost every media company that I’ve been apart of is the question: “How can we be more like ESPN?” Whether its the speed, production value or infotainment aspect of ESPN, newsrooms across the country from local TV affiliates, to large websites (CNET!) and even other national sports broadcasters all aspire to produce as quality a product as ESPN. One of my earlier childhood memories is watching my dad watch Berman era Sportscenter. He was catching clip after clip of a baseball came, and my slightly-more-than-toddler brain couldn’t parse if he was watching a whole game, or the magic involved in getting the best parts. He explained to me the concept of highlights, and that since sometimes he didn’t have time to catch up on an entire Red Sox game, he could see the best plays and feel satisfied.

I think someone else has mastered the highlights aspect of the web, but it’s not any video producer… it’s Kottke, and the other linkbloggers like him (fimoculous, Waxy, etc.)

I started reading the Wall Street Journal this week, giving an honest try at reading the morning newspaper. I found I simply couldn’t do it. It was too much stuff I already knew about by the time I picked it up off of my door step, and in a format that feels, frankly, uncomfortable and unfamiliar. I’m sure there are some great nuggets of wisdom in that mass of compressed tree fiber, but I’m not going to be the one to sift through and find them. Likewise, the weekend paper wasn’t much better, though since I also now subscribe to Barron’s and some other magazines, they’re a format I’m somewhat more willing to accept.

Kottke, on the other hand, does a great job at giving me the highlights of internet sites and topics that are sometimes current, sometimes just random, and has a way of adding a Stuart Scott level of highlight presentation mastery. He doesn’t tend to make himself the focus, but lets the work speak for itself and punctuates it with his own form of “booyah!”-esque laser on the most important parts of the article. Add in the fact that he’s reading sources that I’d never read, (sorry, no matter how hard I try, I just don’t care about most New Yorker articles) and I’m picking up more than I could ever hope to do on my own.

I know this is sort of an old hat concept to most web-savvy people, but for the subscribers of my blog who are my friends and family, and who sort of look to me as a filter for what they should be doing online, check out Kottke, Fimoculous and Waxy.

With these three sites, unlike highlights on Sportscenter, sometimes I’ll actually go and read the full article whereas watchers would never watch a full game after the fact. Also, unlike ESPN, these guys have created an art form that isn’t largely commercialized, it’s basic discovery of interesting nuggets of wisdom that take the effort out of finding cool things, with none of the Sharebuilder.com ads.

I feel like another component to these blogging-gods’ mastery of the shortform linkblog might be the fact that they don’t overpost. I feel like Engadget and Gizmodo in their Rojas-ian (heh!) form was more linkbloggy and a pointer, but has somehow evolved into a parody of that style which instead focuses on some sort of cohesive voice between authors that entertains the reader. Sort of like a PTI-style show to Sportscenter, if you will. Add in the fact that there can be sometimes 50 posts per day, and its easy for casual readers to feel overwhelmed like they might have missed something.

My solution to the gadget-blog overload? Two fold. One: Engadget’s featured and breaking news feeds seem to be the ticket to finding the most interesting nuggets of gadget goodness that you can’t overlook. And two: the site I’m trying to create over at TechVi. The front page is the need-to-know stories of the day, while we’re working on creating sections that are useful for exploring the more deep parts of the interwebs. The video shows should feel like clips featuring tech news highlights and brief commentary that keeps people up to date without the investment in reading every news story out there.

I wish I could say that TechVi was the real answer, but as it stands right now, we don’t have enough resources and people to really do the job that I dream of doing. (AKA, we need more than just me working full-time on the project. I seriously think if I had two people, we might be able to get it done.)

Regardless of how I’m trying to fix it, I think Kottke, and the other peeps should know that they are my source of weekend reading… not some magazine or newspaper that tells me what’s important by their front page or cover… it’s the people who’ve cultivated voices and perspectives that focus on the highlights that I care about.

More companies and media outlets should look to Kottke, et. al, for inspiration, the same way they aspire to be ESPN.

TechVi

Seems like I only do blog posts when I launch new projects… probably because I have way too many places to vent my voice now, and my personal blog hardly seems worth keeping up.

So TechVi… its been around for about four months. Today, Rich DeMuro, my former coworker, started producing a show that I think you should all check out. It’s really good stuff. He’s so pro, it’s awesome he’s on board. It’s called The5 or The Five, and it’s basically five tech things you need to know about right this second. Seriously. Totally worth checking out.

Three years.

This is my third draft of trying to write something that adequately captures how i’m feeling today. The last two have tried to be overly introspective, and capture some sense of “lessons learned” after three years w/o my brother.

Instead of trying to capture some nugget of wisdom onto paper (or bits, as it were) let me just share this with you.

My brothers, both of them, have inspired every aspect of my life. My career choices, specifically, reflect the strengths of my brothers as manifested in me. I’m a post-modern remix of my older two brothers.

To lose one was absolutely heartbreaking, but fortunately, I feel like my family and friends have really been there for me to help me deal. Do I feel completely whole again? No, like anyone who has lost a family member will tell you, an irreplacable piece of me has stopped growing, and there’s nothing I can do to replace it, or stimulate its growth again. That being said, luckily other parts of me have grown to help cope, and one HUGE part came out of nowhere (my wife) to help put me back together again.

I definitely take my family for granted, and before I have to have another chaotic unexpected event to put me back in line, I want them to know I love them. Take some time right now to do the same.

Star Trek: Why competition is good for everyone

It’s odd that watching the latest Star Trek film has me in a particularly contemplative mood. Not just because I’m a total closet trekker, but more because of the reflection it causes upon various cultural movements that have sprung up because of the original series, and the cultural movements that made the original franchise even exist. To be honest, the thing I’ve been thinking most about, after my nerd-overload of yesterday, is the cold war implications that led Star Trek to be created in the first place.

The space race didn’t produce much in the way of tangible life forms, but us traveling into the great beyond has brought us, as any space supporter will eagerly tell you, countless innovations in modern life like Velcro, freeze dryed foods, and other worthy adaptations. More to the point, the real reason why people found the space race so enamoring was because of the possibilities it created. I’d posit that modern cell phones are more a direct result of the space race’s unintended consequences, like the creation of the star trek communicator, than the actual act of putting a man on the moon.

Why were we involved in the space race? Both as a national security measure, ie Star Wars, and as an international badge of honor. Why have people claimed “America has seen its best days,” and “we’re heading downhill?” I think, its largely due to a lack of competition.

To be clear, I don’t want another cold war, nor do I want a mortal enemy like Al Qaida, and I don’t think we need a military enemy at all times to have a purpose. I do, however, think we need to have economic “enemies” in order to spur proper competition. Right now, as we’re in the basement of a dire economic circumstance, it’s clear to almost any outwardly looking American that based on amounts of pure human capital, America’s financial dominance is in trouble. China and India stand as two HUGE growth areas, both with populations multiple times the size of America. Instead of having mortal enemies, we should have economic competitors who are on equal footing with our country, and instead of having people dying, we should have people fighting for their economic life.

I say this mostly figuratively, but it’s clear to me that the biggest innovations and the most exciting cultural forces come from healthy doses of competition. LeBron James would be nothing if all he had to do was beat his high school counterparts. Now that he has something to prove, his 6+ years in the league haven’t yet crowned him Jordan-level hights of amazement. I expect it to come. Why? Kobe Bryant. I don’t personally feel that Kobe is as good as Jordan, though I’d definitely place him somewhere in the starting squad or first string of all time greats. Lebron hasn’t even made it there yet– primarily because he hasn’t been around long enough– but once he proves himself, his impact will be greater, simply because he had more competition to defeat.

So back to America for a second. If LeBron was dunking over China’s LeBron (and a true LeBron, not a Yao) I think the eleveated level of competition would be healthy for everyone. With my startup, TechVi, I expect that once more people catch wind of the idea of 24-hour video news on a small scale, TechVi will start to improve and become something more special than it is now.

I used to be mortified of competition. Now, I revel in the thought of it. To be sure, I haven’t had to experience a knock down drag out fight ala Engadget and Gizmodo, but should the day ever come, I can’t wait.

America needs to get ready to fight to be the best in the world once China and India’s infrastructure and globalization aims start reaching the shores of North America.

LeBron already embraces competition, now he needs to win a championship to prove his spot on top (and then follow it up with six more to top Jordan.)

You need to do it in your job, so you’ll be irreplaceable should the layoff hammer swing your way– and if it hits you, you’ll need to do it to find your next job especially when looking at a bunch of other average joes surrounding you.

Being number one without competition isn’t really being number one; it’s being the default.

Becoming my best me

I’m about to enter a three month stress stasis.

Most of my life I’ve felt a conscious need to keep trying to hit a goal. Typically, with that goal-oriented nature, I’ve also placed a copious amount of stress on my plate.

My goals weren’t simple “get an A in school” or “make the basketball team,” instead they were “get an associates degree before graduating from high school,” and “be the star of the basketball team.” Some I succeeded in (associates degree) some I failed in (basketball star) but regardless of where I landed, the journey helped me grow.

Now as I land in North Carolina, my goal oriented nature hasn’t changed but my goals have. For the first time in as long as I can remember, I’ve got three full months where I don’t have a professional goal to achieve. That doesn’t mean I’m taking a three month vacation, that’s what the last three months have largely been, but instead it means that my goals are going to be a bit different.

Now, my biggest goals are to be my best self, and set myself up for future goals. What does that bit of polyanna sounding mumbo jumbo actually mean? Well, without looming professional or personal goals, I’m going to set up my own goals.

Best self #1: Physical fitness.

I, like most new year’s resolution setting Americans, set my goal to lose weight. So far, so good. I’ve knocked off about 15 pounds since January, most of it coming in January. The good? I hit a minor goal. The bad? I’m still really fat, at least in my eyes anyway. Right this second I weigh around 264 lbs, depending on day/time it can range from 260-268 or so. That puts my BMI at around 33 (I’m 6′3″) which is in the category of “obsese.” To get down to “overweight,” I’d have to hit 240 lbs, which is definitely doable. Normal weight for a 6′3″ guy is right around 200 lbs or less. I haven’t weighed 200 pounds or less since I can remember, at least since I was 16, so I’m going to go for somewhere in between 200 and 240. 220 sounds pretty good.

To get there, I’m lucky enough to live in an apartment complex that has a pretty complete gym. No free weights, but to be honest I wouldn’t know how to use them even if they were around. There’s some treadmills and some machines, so I’m going to try to do a full body circuit two times a week, alternating days between core / upper body and lower body. On top of that, the place has a basketball court, which I love to do, and a running trail. I’m going to try to give my full effort in cardio for as long as possible before I start doing machine workouts. Right now, I’d estimate that means running for no longer than three minutes, but I’ll start there and work up. I figure I’ll full out run for 5 minutes, do a machine routine for about 20-30, and then finish up with as much basketball as I want. I’m going to try to do this all before 8 AM, which seems pretty realistic, especially considering my freelance obligations are mostly based on the west coast, giving me a few hours ahead of them.

I’ll also be keeping a log in a google document and on a tumblr, to track my progress. I’ll write up things here occasionally when I feel the need, but the tumblr will be the weigh-in place. Oh yeah, I’ll be auto posting a daily picture of me (face / workout clothes, most likely) to my tumblr every day as part of the experiment to see how I change.

Any significant musings that are more than one liners will show up here, on the main blog. That should segment the three main audiences (friends, family and listeners/readers of my work) and people can pick which part of me they like best, or all of it.

Best self #2: Personal life

I’m striving to actually balance my life, whereas in the past it’s segmented periods of extreme excess in one of the areas of my life. To that end, being the best me in my personal life means putting family first, ahead of other goals even if it means they’re not as strong as they could be. Sad? A bit, but I think getting in the habit will be something everyone else can appreciate as much as me.

Best self #3: Professional life

Right now I’m freelancing, which means I’m basically working part time for anyone who will pay me. I’ve got goals of where I’d like to end up, and since I’m not putting 40 hours in at any one location, I’m going to work on some new ideas that I’ve been kicking around. I’m going to be starting a new show that’s sort of like an Around The Horn meets Tech style, but it’s not quite ready to launch yet. I’ll be working on that site as much as possible, and trying to get some content on there. I’ll be striving for one show a day on the site, and one written piece per day as well. Right now I don’t have the means to do it (left my mics in California), but when I do I’ll be trying to do one video story per week.

Oh hi there.

So it’s been a while since I updated the site, mainly because my life has been so turbulent. I’m now freelancing for some people, but most of my energy has been spent moving across the country. Right now, I write from sunny SoCal, but within 13 days or so I’ll be heading to the middle of nowhere (aka Fayetteville, NC) to follow my Wife’s travel nursing career. She’s the stable one (with the insurance) so we go where she can get work. We’ll be in NC for three months, where I’ll be bunkered down without distraction, and when we emerge, the plan is to end up in SF.

In the work hopper? You know I’m always one to be working on something in the background. Right now I’m building a new video show that’s sort of an Around-The-Horn meets tech style show. I’ll have more to share on that once it’s ready to go (aka once we get a bit settled.)

TV networks: Foolproof way to defeat piracy

I’ve had a pretty fun week. I recently turned one of my laptops into a media server, and am ditching my Cable service from Time-Warner Cable. I realized something after I hooked it all up: Why would I bother to bittorrent TV if I could get it from available online sources? I don’t think commercials are all that bad, and since most of the shows I watch are available online streaming, it’s much easier for me to watch the shows via the websites of the TV networks rather than pirate.

If the music industry would have caught on like the TV industry is, they wouldn’t be in the sorry state they’re in now, relying on Ringtone revenue.