the concept that reality can be a "wedge issue" is powerful. But even scarier is the idea that fact-checking a politician has come to mean "taking sides."
- Stephen Winkler
Uh, friends? This is the New York Times and one of its reporters talking: http://fort-greene.blogs.nytimes.com/2009... They have gone pro-am in at least one part of the site: The Local, a neighborhood blogging initiative.
Your Big Chance: Be the Journalist: We are about to get a lot more serious here at The Local about our mission to turn all of you into community reporters. Next week, over on the right side of your screen, we will launch our Virtual Assignment Desk. Through this mechanism, you will ask us to cover things and we will do it. We will ask you to cover things on a regular basis and, we hope, you will do it. More and more important neighborhood things will get covered. The blog will grow. It will be beautiful...
- Jay Rosen
The Local, New Jersey version, gets into the act with Be the Journalist: Gibbons Hearing http://maplewood.blogs.nytimes.com/2009... We are looking for someone to do a headcount of the turnout, and tell us your reactions to the points he makes. We are particularly looking for South Mountain parents who are planning to attend. We ask that you e-mail...
more...
- Jay Rosen
Lets hope they get useful submissions from many people and quash David Simon's fear that blogs can't cover community meetings.
- Stephen Winkler
I'm @scobleizer and you should follow me if you want tons of interesting tech news. I watch thousands of friendfeeders and Twitterers and am always looking for the most interesting stuff before @techmeme gets it. (UPDATE: I AM FOLLOWING EVERYONE ON THIS THREAD)
- Robert Scoble
Isn't a better way to get followers by engaging on their thoughts and getting attention through engagement? I NEVER follow anyone who begs the way you describe.
- Ken Camp
That's an example of what I'd like you to do. I will follow anyone who answers on this thread.
- Robert Scoble
Well because we cannot compete with Scobleizer...and we are desperate for a following to launch our own blogs. :-)
- Tarun Chachra
Ken: the problem is that on friendfeed and Twitter you need some seed followers.
- Robert Scoble
I agree with Ken - I make a point of not following people who ask for followers (and ESPECIALLY not if they call themselves "social media experts" or "SEO experts"... retch)
- Chris Taylor
I'm not sure about begging but it's difficult, especially when you're overwhelmed by inspiration about what you're working, to feel like you're not connecting with enough people. Then again, I don't want a bunch of robo-followers, but people who I can engage and engage with me. Twitter is weird.
- Remote Revolution
A friend of mine joined Twitter a month ago and he already has more Followers then I gathered in two years!! Please Help! thank-you very much @moon http://twitter.com/moon
- paul mooney
Hmm, I thought who you followed was more important....
- Scott Breakall
I guess getting on with some friends on Twitter is most important. They already know people. This adds to better quality content as opposed to just random following people which most of the time creates noise. I however love it that @scobleizer creates is great in creating a stage for interesting people :)
- Michiel Sikkes
I personally don't need THAT much but I desperately need FOLLOWERS for XDBE project, to spread the idea behind it! To bring the Internet to the next level together! Global Social Graphing http://xdbe.com/faq/
- Elmira Gazizova
If you don't follow me my gf will lock me in the basement without food and water.
- rob
Only follow me if you like tech AND religion . A dangerous combination!
- Dan Walters
begging is annoying. I guess you have to engage by following and slowly build an audience. A lot of my followers ( though not much ) has been by engaging on other tweets etc . Good use of hashtags doesnt hurt either
- Kashif Khan
I rarely have anything to say myself that doesn't require engaging in conversations with others, so I don't want ANY followers. I follow those who I believe I may want to engage in conversation with, or those whom I desire to know more about.
- Larry
@jpelegrin. When I do say something on Twitter, it's usually very insightful. O.K., not really, but I need some peeps. This is embarrassing!
- Jeremy Pelegrin
i ain't going to beg, but i will make a note that those interested in computers, programming, science, and humor might find FriendFeed just a little bit more enjoyable if you follow me.
- Rishabh Mishra (p248)
Breakall: It's a moving target. Whatever serves the purpose of the conversation at hand. For the real story: most ppl care, including Scoble.
- coldbrew
I agree you need seed followers. I just think the way to gain them is by engaging people who interest you. Be proactive. To me,this approach sounds, not disengaged, but not terribly engaging or proactive. I realize I'm an engagement fanatic, but if someone wants me to follow, a witty response to something I've said will lure me in, especially if there's an interesting interchange. Someone who follows me and has a post like you describe, I simply ignore (or block if appropriate for me).
- Ken Camp
Hmm, you should follow me if you'd like to keep a pulse on grassroots tech organizing going on locally to nationally, and because I'm looking for more #scifi fans to chat with. (@deannecuellar)
- DeAnne Cuellar
Quite simply this is all an exchange of ideas, thoughts and information. I want to follow and be followed by those whom I can learn from, as well as to receive input/advice/insight from.
- Ted Bradford II
I'm actually culling what few followers I do have to get to a conversation that makes sense for our "marketing" business. Um, yea, guess that's not a "pitch".
- Glen Group
Ken: this is my way of finding interesting new people to follow who I might otherwise not know about. Also, anyone who answers here IS engaging.
- Robert Scoble
you should only follow me if you like Star Wars, baby photos, web design, gadgets, random weirdness, memes, and music that makes you nod your head to the beat
- Nathan Chase
@coldbrew You're exactly right, they do care. Just a little reminder of advice that's come before when OTHERS were trying to ratchet up the follower numbers. /cold brew coffee rawks
- Scott Breakall
follow me, because i would get more active with more followers. :)
- Alexander Rode
I try to be interesting, but really we are starting 2 new businesses here and I could use as many followers as possible. And I follow back.
- Audrey
Nathan: if anyone ANDs that list you won't get any followers! I choose to OR it and am now following.
- Chris Taylor
@Wordful: [I'm not above begging, so please oh please follow me.] Follow me because I'm someone who can help you understand and implement an editorial strategy on your blog. I'm also a no-BS deep thinker who doesn't like to conform.
- Charles
You can follow me - @michiels on twitter - if you're interested on how a European internet startup works and what differences there are with for example SV startups. Also how Dutch schools combine entrepreneurship and studying.
- Michiel Sikkes
if the follow isn't two-way, well it's not much of a conversation is it?
- Sean O'Brien
@Alexander, sounds like chicken and egg problem. Do the followers come before the comments and content or after? :)
- Paul Wade
The problem here on FF is that the majority of potential subscribers are in the USA so the site is most active when I'm in bed here in the UK! I think the key to getting subscribers is to engage with others' content and make sure you share interesting things yourself. That way you become a 'valued' member of the community. You have to put some 'work' in though.
- Martin Bryant
Getting that starting mass is an absolute nightmare. I think i hace about 9 followers and all but 4 of those are spammers. I haven't been that prolific so far but i'm trying and will hopefully trigger some interesting thoughts in your head
- Jamie Vidamour
Rather than begging for followers, I'd like to tell you all how I've learned to use Twitter to engage like minded aviation related folks in a time when my industry (business aviation) is under fire from all sides. Twitter has allowed me to build meaningful relationships with those that write about and/or care about the future of our industry. Follow @BizAv if you're interested in joining the conversation or check out http://tinyurl.com/GJetTwitter for other business aviation related Twitters.
- Mike Mikolay
I've actually noticed I've had a few more followers lately than I've had before. Hopefully they're getting some interesting tidbits from me.
- Paul Wade
audrey, i personally believe in quality over quantity. one needs numbers of course to get the message out (when you aren't giving of course. i.e., signal to noise) but I find no benefit in having 5000 followers if 4000 of them have nothing in common with me/my business/my interests etc.
- Ted Bradford II
@Chris - right, it was a little tounge-in-cheek, but that's the majority of subject matter you'll see crawl across my feed
- Nathan Chase
I don't beg for followers. If you want to follow there is a 98% chance I will follow back. I like to think I bring interesting news to the table.
- John Flynn
The whole idea of "followers" plays to our inherent need of not being alone or feeling important. Gaining followers is like gaining money. You find the excitement of gaining followers and once you are loaded with "followers" so what? It doesn't make you happier, doesn't make you more successful. What's 25 thousand followers if your conversation on twitter is about how many beers you are drinking on happy hour? I find that people who are very zealous about gaining followers have EMPTY conversations.
- Bo Lora
You should follow @jeremybogdan for thoughts on the latest gaming and tech/social media news, in addition to updates on the gaming podcast I run and daily observations. I think that wraps things up in a nice package, but honestly, I enjoy the conversations most. Really more "followers" would just make it possible to carry on conversation and meet people I might have never been able to talk to/meet otherwise.
- Jack Bogdan
Every so often, the world changes, sometimes quickly,sometimes very slowly but sometimes unnoticeably fast. Change is constant and constantly changing. There is no timetable and you cannot predict or trend the unknown but you can change with it as quickly as it evolves. That's what my blog is about..its located at http://newnewstory.blogspot.com
- Iggy Kin
Ok...so I'm here and I absolutely want people to follow me, but why should I have to beg to be followed? I'm doing great work, just like the interview I did with you Robert, and have other cool guests slated to join me. Begging makes me feel dirty somehow. I'd rather have followers slowly work their way into my life than to have them show up en masse one day simply because I begged here. I'm with my pard. Ken. Begging? DO NOT LIKE.
- Sheryl
Mona: I'm looking for new people to follow and there's a lot of newbies here, so figured I'd help.
- Robert Scoble
I'll do it! I provide a weekly podcast for IT pros which provides interviews, views, and tech tips. You can listen to it here even. I also post self amusing thoughts and comments that are only funny and witty to me. Follow me and have a richer life :) If you are interesting I'll find you here too.
- Eric @ CSTechcast.com
I'm John Wright and I'm building web applications under the name Wright Labs (@wrightlabs). You should follow me if you want to be the first to know about new apps I've built or updates to existing ones.
- John Wright
If I'm followed by those who follow in huge numbers(e.g. @scobleizer), I'd like to be included in one of their "special" friend list or filter. It sucks to have your voice drowned out by the masses. I guess there's always DM. But that works only if the recipient is following you. OK, just follow me already :)
- Edmund Tay
I've already tried to get my current high profile followers engaged in a conversation here: http://friendfeed.com/shaynor... with my GAME which was actually going to provide a fun way for me to gather some usage data to elaborate on a point for further discussion here.....NO COMMENTS from my FF peeps!!!!!
- shayne catrett
also this can relate to the fresh blood tech bloggers discussion a while back
- Kashif Khan
I am @harscoat and this is a test ;) on the Scoble power!! - I am on friendfeed thanks to him to be honest and thanks to friendfeed & Brett Taylor feed I discovered SANTIGOLD (Lights Out in particular) and in the end this feed/twitter thing and collaboration led to value for my ears :) so this feed thing works for me
- Harscoat
Follow me because I'm just too awesome! :P But, in all seriousness if people think I'm interesting then they should follow me. I'm not going to beg for followers. They have to decide on their own if they want to follow me or not.
- Mathew™ one of a kind
I get followers when they see me post on topics they search for; I get the most interaction that way too. So maybe if one wants more followers, one should talk about stuff people care about :-) Other than that sometimes folks I actually know comment on my tweets.
- Emil Sit
Follow me for the occasional humorous comment and pretty photo. And maybe because you got curious, looked at my profile, and figured that, yeah, I'd like to follow that guy. (And I'll do the same for you.) PS: Nice way to kickstart newbies like me into following others.
- Andy Bold
Robert - promoting and begging strike me differently. VERY differently. Promoting myself is easy. I think I'm a fabulous podcaster, fabulous interviewer. I Would LIKE to interview YOU again and want you to let me know when you have something really cool to talk to about, ie Building 43. That's self promotion. Are you buying it? :)
- Sheryl
PLEASE follow me. My mom is the only one commenting on my stuff and it's making me look like a dweeb.
- Christina Henderson
Sheryl: I was already following you! :-)
- Robert Scoble
lol Christina. On another note, do not follow me, I cannot handle the responsibility.
- Christian Collins
Wow this feed has just started and already produced a wide variety of comments. Desperate for followers or power of FriendFeed ;-)
- Michiel Sikkes
Me @smohkim.. why? just to get a bit more than just regular tech news
- Sardar Mohkim Khan
I'm pretty new to FF, so I'm not sure my content is worth following. But I'm trying to learn socmedia while working on video game news at gamingangels.com. So, yeah. :)
- Elizabeth Parmeter
Yes Robert didn't mean beg literally, follow his example which is his first comment. He's really asking a for a concise answer to the question "Why should we follow you?"
- John Wright
I want people who are worth following back. I really could use some interesting thought provoking input.
- Mary Wehrle
Speaking of follower numbers, what's the minimum to shoot for before decent engagement can start to happen?
- Edmund Tay
Robert you make me LAUGH! WTG! And to all my NEW followers, thanks :-)
- Sheryl
I follow back on Twitter @nencetti - to get followers I follow people and wait. (i guess that is sorta begging) to lose followers i tweet too much. I am starting to use FriendFeed, it grows on you, like a fungus...
- Mike Nencetti
Ha, funny Christina! I just jumped into the follow-a-thon here. I want everyone here to follow me because I want to learn from you and hope I share some knowledge to enlighten you some day :-)
- Jason Cronkhite
Robert: Is that based on the assumption that all 4 followers share a common interest in what you have to say or share?
- Edmund Tay
Edmund: yeah. But all you really need is one with other followers who also like what you have to say. The second I post a comment or "like" one of your items it gets shown to thousands of people.
- Robert Scoble
Please, please, please. Why? Because I'm begging.
- Willem (@wim66) ☠
I do hope we can get you along to a #tuttle the next time your in London. In the mean time feel free to follow me @robocallaghan
- Robert O'Callaghan
Robert: I'll be in London in early July!
- Robert Scoble
Willem: you link to cool applications. You should have both begged and explained that.
- Robert Scoble
Take a look at my current FF homepage and if any of the entries engage you on an emotional or intellectual level, then follow!
- Sam Grover
i am begging for followers here for two reasons. 1) my money was wasted in trying to get 19,000 followers in five days and the free snuggie 2) If I get each of my followers to donate one dime to me, i can easily afford the big green hands like scoble has, then EVERYONE would follow me.
- Ted Bradford II
You're already following me Robert - please, only follow me if you want good content. That's the secret to gaining quality followers. I do like to follow others with good content though.
- Jesse Stay
I started with this social networking thing because I miss discussions with fellow scientist when I was one. Not all conversations here are so "eggheaded" but engaging. With more followers I could start more conversations.
- Robert Hafer
samgrover anyone who puts Upcoming.org geeky events in here is good enough for me (like you do).
- Robert Scoble
I see this as a community service thread - no problemo rs :)
- mike "glemak" dunn
i lack focus. my links lack focus. i am the hybrid vigour in your friendlist.
- dromologue
No begging. Look at my feed and subscribe if you like it. It's a mixed bag of tech, marketing, politics, business, food and humor. http://beta.friendfeed.com/ajkohn
- AJ Kohn
Jesse: actually I've gotten quite a few good quality followers by doing crappy content. It's true. The stuff I think is good quality content often doesn't get people to follow, even the smart ones. Of course I learned that by using your tool! :-)
- Robert Scoble
dromologue: you linked to treehugger.com. You can't be half bad.
- Robert Scoble
i am in the same boat. I would love to have followers but i don't have time to focus in on one topic.
- Zach Scott
Jon: my brother will probably enjoy talking to you then!
- Robert Scoble
I probably wont ever beat you or @techmeme. I'm a pretty nice guy though. Plus, I promise to only post a few pictures of cats a month- none of which with be tagged with Obama!
- metalerik
You SHOULDN'T follow me (@supermoose37) because I don't want you to. Anyone currently following me, should stop right now. Follow me, and you'll regret it.
- Marcus Beagley
I can't imagine being interesting enough to follow.
- Peter Kruit
metalerik: I liked the Google Mars images you had up.
- Robert Scoble
Ooos, I forgot to beg and give a reason why I'm begging. So here goes: Follow me because I try to post and share items that I think will be of interest to some if not all of my followers. That and I will also follow you back :)
- Edmund Tay
Peter: you are running the iPhone 3.0 beta. That makes you interesting, didn't you know?
- Robert Scoble
Usually I'll browse the other FF'ers shares and discussions to get a feel for that person's share/insights. I tend to follow people who have an equal number of interesting ORIGINAL items/posts rather than just retweets/reshares. I admit, I'm one of those people who doesn't get a lot of Likes *sad* or Comments
- Glenn Batuyong
PBJ is pretty compelling, and dromlogue's hybrid vigor comment cracked me up. This thread is making me laugh, and keeping me busy!
- Kathy Fitch
I like pictures and stylish things and these you will find in my feed. I usually follow back and I comment too (I know!), especially if I don't have to be serious about it.
- Mark H
Follow @frodeste for tweets on tech, crm, project management and life :)
- Frode Stenstrøm
FF and others have given me the opportunity to engage with people from all over the world from my quaint little town
- Steve
Follow @keithbarrett - I've been in IT for 30 yrs and am just as excited by the possibilities today. I've been involved in all aspects of applying technology to business from software coding to infrastructure design/support. Past employers include DEC, IBM, Red Hat & Disney. Living though the computer->Internet->Social Media changes helps me see a bigger picture of how we got here & where we might go. Like @scobleizer I read TONs of news regularly and share the more interesting bits when he's late :)
- Keith Barrett
Robert: Ideally I like to do at least one of those a week :)
- Sam Grover
Steve: what little town? Update: looks like it's Billings Montana, right? Love that town!
- Robert Scoble
And for those that don't get it - Robert is creating significant content about the people he is engaging. This makes you more than a number or a bio. I should have said follow me because I'm not an SEO or marketer :)
- Keith Barrett
Well, boo. Why isn't the pop out page working for me?
- Kathy Fitch
Makes sense for me to comment here, so that I can get Robert's attention when I need it in future. Plus I follow him anyway.
- Ashish Rangole
Adrian: I'm already following you. :-)
- Robert Scoble
I'm @thepuck. You should follow me for a mix of tech news, stuff on coding, social media, and writing, plus whatever fun stuff catches my fancy. I sift through tons of content each day and share and publicize the best of it (IMHO). I also have lots of awesome friends who you can meet through me. Thanks for the opportunity, Robert!
- Neal Jansons
You should follow me if you want to live a truly boring life vicariously thru me. :D Serious;y, I am the worlds most boring tech enthusiast.
- Gunny doesn't side-hug™
Robert: What are you favorite filters these days? :/
- Christian Collins
OK, on a more serious note, you should follow me (@supermoose37) if you are a fan of either "Transformers" OR "Doctor Who"
- Marcus Beagley
Christian: I have a filter that shows me all items with one like. That's my most used one.
- Robert Scoble
I won't beg for followers but if you are interested in social media, security technology, networking technology, politics, or economics I'm sure we would have alot to share together. I'm on twitter as @tsudo but prefer conversations on Friendfeed.
- Keith - @tsudo
Marcus--How about VR-5? Anyone remember that one?
- Kathy Fitch
When I'm not trying to corral my 2 little boys (4 & 1) I hop on FF to keep my sanity!!
- Kevin Whalen
Christian: it's not that bad, actually. I am building more and more filters, though, on companies in tech industry and terms I see get popular here.
- Robert Scoble
You should follow me because I know where the main cable is for the whole internet and have a saw. I also adore tech, don't own an iphone but would like a Segway. Hopefully enough said :)
- tech pops
If you don't follow me, how else are you going to know which Air Force 1's I like the best? This knowledge could come in handy in the future, you never know.
- Richard Lawler
"I also have lots of awesome friends who you can meet through me." - Gee I'd like to be able to say that someday! Can I meet some? :-)
- Keith Barrett
Okey doke--now following tech pops, strictly for self-preservation, dontcha know.
- Kathy Fitch
Kathy: Sorry, the only thing I watched with VR in the title was "VR Troopers"
- Marcus Beagley
I'm kuckoo for Co-co Puffs and have a few screws loose, so sort of like that box of chocolates: you just never know what you're gonna get tweet-wise (@tweric) or ff-wise. But, man, do I spell good.
- Eric Matas
I noticed some people are actually recommending people in this thread to follow. There's a room you can do that ;) http://beta.friendfeed.com/ff-subs... Although if you want to follow me - feel free I follow 11.6k people and have a river of noise following through constantly so I can find the latest goings on ;)
- Nicholas James
Sigh, it's hell being old. I also loved that short-lived horror dealie, "The Others" I have a tendency only to watch tv that all others apparently (and oh so wrongly) hate.
- Kathy Fitch
DeAnne: I'm following, though for the #nptech, alas not for the scifi!
- Eric Johnson
Follow me because I just came back to FF from a social media vacation, and I have just had time to read some really good (dead wood) media I want to put to good use in future comments and posts:)
- Thomas Bøhm
Robert, point well taken - I guess I'm still trying to figure out why I have gotten the followers I have then. I don't think I've ever begged for followers. Maybe my content is crappy? ;-) I guess most of my audience is probably SocialToo users, which may have something to do with it.
- Jesse Stay
Now I'm wishing it wouldn't default to top of page after every follow. How spoiled am I?
- Kathy Fitch
My little brother just signed up for Twitter (http://twitter.com/aaronmatas) and I'd love for legions of people to follow him just to scare the sh*# out of him...by showing him the POWER of the social web. Bru-ha-ha-ha-haaa. Oh yeah, he's a TV sports journalist, so he kinda needs to know. Thanks -- please tell others!
- Eric Matas
Follow me for tech info related to graphics, web programming, browsers, iPhones, and natural language processing. And, maybe I'll fill you in on my next big project :-)
- Charles Ying
Charles: your page is the most interesting I've seen yet (to me).
- Robert Scoble
Follow me for site feedback ideas (and thoughts about UI in general), programing advice (to come), an introduction to the game of Go (to come, in a separate feed), (re)shares of interesting and/or depressing political blog articles (note: I brand myself "moderate socialist" policitally, though I'm assuredly not opposed to meritocracy), and random philosophical musings.
- Karl Knechtel
Well, my knee-jerk reaction to "beg" lingo notwithstanding (you'd think my knee would learn to behave after all this time), this is a fun follow party. I'll be back later to see who I missed. (Because, here, you *can* come back later, which is awfully nice.)
- Kathy Fitch
Oh yeah also, you should follow me because I'm an application developer and ultimately I want to build what YOU want and what YOU will use. (and I need your feedback to do that :) )
- John Wright
Because I just started FF when the beta came, and needs a kick to get started :)
- Erik Gulliksen
I like to express and pass on info about: Tech, Flyfishing, Architecture and remodeling construction. I am a freelance Architect Draftsman in Wisconsin.
- Frank Sant'Agata
I'm IT hitman working in The Bahamas. I tend to follow Foreign Policy/Defense Blogs and dabble in political satire.
- Adi
Frank: What areas of Tech do you tend to talk about most? Do you photograph Architecture too? You need some feeds into your FF my friend.
- Paul Wade
Though I don't post a lot of native FF entries, I like likes and comments as a way of filtering stuff. I'll share with you; you share with me. And I love FF's real time features, particularly when combined with live video.
- Tom Landini
Ah, I'm a mom, so I'm used to the wide-eyed beg. Dogs and kids--there's some real smarts there that we could all learn from. Besides, this whole thread made me laugh out loud right at my keyboard more than I have in a long while.
- Kathy Fitch
beg is an odd thing. Yes - I want followers - not for the sense of feeling oddly popular - but like @scobleizer I like being able to search through massive amounts of data that users create, and without followers, i'm limited.
- Courtney Engle
<--cracking up. This couldn't possibly have been a less subjugating experience for anyone. The "beg" term got hackles up, but also grabbed perfect gobs of attention, so there you go. It's a fun and funny thing, and my bberry, for one, is all abuzz about it! (Humming a Temptations tune and smiling, here.)
- Kathy Fitch
Wow, amazed at the semantics debate over "beg". Report just in... all net oriented sarcasm/tongue-in-cheek/parody must come with obligatory semi-colon parenthesis to indicate jest (even if to a minor degree). ;-) Would much appreciate the follow Robert, I always enjoy your posts. As a consultant I work on finding simple solutions to complex problems... my tweets are all over the place.
- SAM
I have about 280 "hand picked" followers. That might not be all that impressive, but I have a quality stream at least.
- Rutger Blom
Rutger: I find that the best quality you can get is to stick to under 200 people you're following. I do that with Friendfeed's lists.
- Robert Scoble
Back so soon :-) The London #tuttle is on a friday at the moment 10-12 at the ica in London.
- Robert O'Callaghan
Because I only joined Ff because of Scobelizer, therefore he should have to watch me flounder around trying to do something unique.
- Gregg Le Blanc
1up Scott, Begging has the well deserved connotation of supplication. Hence, the semantics. I would like to find more people that are interested in the Semantic web. Wordpress hacks and plug-in development, Designers, Coders, Innovators that need Beta testers. Companies with products that I may be interested in. My interest's are becoming more diverse as a result of my participation here. TY
- Eric Logan
I talk about library stuff, volunteer and service stuff, social media stuff, and Drupal as a versatile platform. If you're interested in any of that, you'll be interested in me. I also like food and kids.
- Laura Norvig
I am sort of feeling like Oliver asking for more gruel, May I please have more followers sir, I promise if your not educated at least you will be entertained and amused.
- Kim Landwehr
Well, sure, but I'm thinking back to the days when the listserv was a main mode of discussion. The subscribers were a kind of built in audience that posters to the lists didn't really have to fight for (though list founders had some work to do)--the challenge (and the fun) was in engaging people *despite* not having a handpicked audience. Some self-selection because of list themes, of course, but the audience was there, and anyone could join. Some of the best discussions actually flowed from difference.
- Kathy Fitch
Because I want to become more involved and participate as a connector.
- Trish Ridgway
Bill: followers are overrated. But I'm following you now.
- Robert Scoble
Are you testing whether there's a limit to the number of comments in FF? ;)
- Janek Mann
I'm trying to straddle journalism, tech and sports all at once (can you straddle three things, by the way?). Looking for ideas and feedback ... @jondenunzio
- Jon DeNunzio
Forget followers, I would like just ONE comment on my FF! (BTW, your already following me Robert)
- David
I have nothing for you to read of any importance just random thoughts.LOl just wanted to throw my two cents in for what it is worth.
- stan fogo
Follow me if you like games and insights about game studies. I'm a game designer studying how to use game design to improve the experience of web applications. @kurai
- Federico F.
Not sure there are any limits on number of comments in a thread. Ffundercats used Friendfeed as live chat while recording an episode and got over 1500 http://beta.friendfeed.com/ffunder...
- Tom Landini
David - you should import more things then just Twitter then ;)
- Nicholas James
Someone should follow because of an affinity for either the subject matter, interests, or attitude someone else shows in other comments. I don't see it as a need, so much as a desire for company, interested in similar pursuits but different viewpoints and perspectives to contribute. I have been in tech for 30 plus years, yet have published my poems & fiction for just as long. I always have an articulate opinion and love to chat. I don't have as much time as I'd like 2 come to FF to engage with others.
- Phil Boiarski
My views are different than everyone else’s, that is the only good reason to follow anyone at all.
- John D Reasor
Hi, i'm a french student in management. I'm mostly interested in IT, media, newspaper crisis and other stuffs (sometimes in french :s). I intend to be more and more active on FF in the future, so one day to another, you might have to follow me. Why wait ? :P
- Stanislas Jourdan
Interesting. I'm not sure that I'm a high contributor. I follow to feed on information. In doing so, I find people to engage.
- Valley
OK, I'm throwing my hat in. I've started contributing by linking all my accounts, and finally having a reason to use the share feature of Google Reader. It's awesome to add my voice to the conversation. But after a while, when none of my posts get any likes or comments, it can feel like you have to be super popular to get in on this. I'm a relatively new user, but it would be nice to have a few more followers at least.
- Matthew
beg? seriously? I'd rather not engage people If it requires begging. Well I see you used "beg" to spur engagement.. But I still don't like the word even if it resulted in the desired effect. I guess I'm just not that desirous of conversation simply for the sake of it but rather to expand my thought processes and to alleviate my biases
- Bill Rawlinson
Cuz I'm the last and newest person to post a comment here. Bananers.
- Harry Wolff
This reminds me of back when torrents first came out and I'd post stuff to see if anyone would download it. We're throwing stuff at the wall and seeing if any sticks. Friendfeed is a useful addiction.
- Matthew
LOL! Amazing how many people take offense to the words "beg" and "need" -I "need" more people to engage my thoughts. (What a great way of putting that) It would be nice if more people would see the things I post and comment on so that I would get out more from this little (but expanding) corner of FriendFeed. I have plenty to say, but only a handful of active people to critique it. Tech, SM, Dogs, humor. #funhashtags. Please help Robert, Louis and Jesse take a break from me ;) Introduce me to your friends!
- guruvan (Rob Nelson)
I am far less interesting than @scobleizer... I am an early adopter with a private-beta-testing-program addiction. I offer loads of insight to developers, designers (and users at large alike) on this new stuff. I'm the one you want testing your app, service, nifty super cool product of the now. Follow me pretty please with microchips on top, I'm @tinym
- t i n y m
I don't want more followers, I want more engagement from existing followers. More subscribers is great and all - but if they're not going to engage, it doesn't excite me at all.
- Anthony Citrano
Nice idea! I'm not one to beg, but seeing as I could do with some more engaging followers, this is a bit of an experiment. Follow @daveinthecloud for predominantly tech, Apple and science-based updates.
- Dave
I use FriendFeed more to read interesting things I wouldn't normally see. I'm not always around and I don't always participate. Does that make me a bad person? (@elroy)
- elroy
Fun post! Lots of cool people to follow. Marketing and tech geek who happens to make wine in her basement. @bsmntbootlegger
- Karrie Sullivan
An impressive list of comments already. And I have found a few interesting people to follow here already. I guess it is all about "give and take".
- Mike Hellers
Ok, I'll bite: Why should you follow me? Because I post about science, math, music, programming and geek stuff with wit, style and panache.
- Chris Taylor
lol! I was making wine in my backpack on my bike trip this summer :)
- guruvan (Rob Nelson)
Follow me. Help make media history by reaching the first 10 million follows. ... Well I guess that won't work anymore.
- Keith Barrett
There is a lot of talk in the comments about "audience", "SEO" & the "need" for followers, this all appears very $ orientated to me, maybe someone "influential" should start a conversation along the lines of "how can I make you happy on friendfeed"?
- William
if you are a geek into getting stories related to social media, geeky stories, pics, videos, tech related stuff, like bacon or lego or star wars. you will probably like my stuff. check it out....and hope to see you soon!
- (jeff)isageek
Unless you like NSFW stuff and LOLCats stuff, really nothing to see with following me. :P
- Christian (Simply X)
I'm game for more followers. I run research boats for a living and sometimes like to blog about that, my bad ass dog Jake (Silky Terrier) and other things I find interesting...tech, cool photos, hikes, etc...on my personal Posterous blog. I've been active on twitter for quite awhile but am fairly new to Friend Feed. I get a real kick out of most members of the Gillmor Gang and like following their conversations...maybe I'll start to engage more.
- Scott Schanke
William: I think ur missing the point, it's about being new to ff and having a voice.
- Frank Sant'Agata
Praise @Scoble for once again "starting" a conversation
- William
For me, the whole tech deal has always been a love of the game issue. It's like writing, that way, and teaching, too. Interesting how perspectives differ. I just thought of this as fun, and as an opportunity to learn and connect. Also, my inner English prof always thinks of "audience" as a matter of rhetoric first. A thing like this, for instance http://tinyurl.com/cxkzpo is its own reward: great chance to meet people, and it made me *really* hungry.
- Kathy Fitch
Lindsey - surely meeting more serial killers is not the answer. ;-)
- Brian Sullivan
See, there? Lindsey not only spells her name correctly, but also likes horror! Lindsey, I spent quite a few years teaching horror film! (The *best* students in those classes, oh my gosh--such an interesting mix.)
- Kathy Fitch
I just subscribed to everyone in this thread that I wasn't already subscribed to. Why? I love participation. People commenting here participate.
- Thomas Hawk
Good plan Thomas I think I will do the same.
- Brian Sullivan
Hi. I'm Simon, i post a mashup of stuff from all sorts or genres. Photo's, art, tech, videos, games. I'm a bit of a 'i like everything' kind of guy. I try to get in on lots on convo's, and i never really leave FF, sometimes i just sit here idle and watch the world pass me by :)
- Simon Wicks
"That's an example of what I'd like you to do. I will follow anyone who answers on this thread" is that a promise robert ? :)
- goutham
that are some interesting question to address here...will people be more likely to get into friendfeed if more people follow them? or are people more keen on just sharing their thoughts and feelings with a select few? should there be a way to algorithmically increase the visibility of a post ? is that "fair" ?
- goutham
You should follow Pax Stereo Tv (www.paxstereo.tv) because we represent something NEW and DIFFERENT! While we lack the full sophistication of a traditional network, our "NeoUrban Internet Television" network is at least original and edgy, and we are streaming live Monday through Thursday every week! All this with only 3 full time staff! We represent YOU, the new breed! We are not perfect, but we keep it coming, and we are getting better. Peace. - Mario Hemsley CEO
- Pax Stereo Tv
What's the easiest way to go through and follow everyone here? I don't really have to go down the list one by one do I? I started to but thought there must be an easier way...
- Scott Schanke
Initiatives to free the world economy in ways that benefit the poor @openworld
- Mark Frazier
Scott: I had to add each one of my 14,377 subscriptions by hand, so so do you. Sorry, there isn't a way to "follow all" here. Which is a good thing, in my view.
- Robert Scoble
goutham: I am following everyone who has participated with a comment in this thread. Scott: you can see if you are following someone already by looking at the little icon to the left of their comment. If you are already following them, it'll be bluish. If you aren't, it'll be white.
- Robert Scoble
Ok thanks Robert...I'm just a bit frustrated that it keeps collapsing the conversation after each follow and therefore I have to find where the hell I left off...I'm plodding along though.
- Scott Schanke
Scott: I have this thread running in a popup Window. Here's how to do that. First, open this item up into its own Window by clicking here: http://beta.friendfeed.com/scoblei... Then click the time stamp (it says "5 hours ago" right now) and then it'll open up its own little Window. That makes it "live" and like a chat room. Scroll to the bottom and watch new items pop in.
- Robert Scoble
I follow smart, funny people, and I post/pass along all kinds of stuff. I never know what I'll come across next, anything from the effects of cancer treatment on IQ scores, to vintage cocktails, to news on weird fiction writers, to updates on the latest and greatest zombie games, to random questions and ideas that occur to me in the wee hours. I'm always looking for posts that have me saying, "Hmmmm, that's interesting...and here's why..."
- Heather
I'm not sure begging for followers is in our self interest, Robert. I find that the people who hawk themselves loudest aren't the people I make the best connection with. And it's that connection that matters whether it's a personal or professional.
- Susan Reynolds
Not sure if I need any followers, but I think people follow me because I'm so freakin awesome. Oh, you haven't heard of me? Find me on The Google. :)
- Rahsheen ™, Coach Rah
Oooooo.. Choose me. Choose me. Choose me. Oh wait. You already follow me. But anyone else is welcome to read my nonsense about whatever is on my mind. Lately - dissertation, teaching chemistry, thinking about some technology, and just fun family items (mainly my dog)
- LPH™ and his dog P™
Susan: that's fair. But in friendfeed you can put people into lists. So you can subscribe to all the "beggers" and put them into "begged for follow" list. That way it won't mess up your other followers.
- Robert Scoble
nicefishfilms: I'm already following LPH. Weird, I've met both him and you in real life, too!
- Robert Scoble
I'd rather people follow me because I said something or posted something interesting.
- CAJ, somewhere else
Rahsheen: if you are on "the Google" then you MUST be awesome! I'm on "the Google" too. Search for "Robert." :-)
- Robert Scoble
Yep - I'm being followed - (looking behind me) - wait - why are you always in front of me then Robert?
- LPH™ and his dog P™
Alan: you must have posted something interesting, because I'm following you. Either that or I thought you were that country singer! :-)
- Robert Scoble
LPH: you actually passed chemistry on the first try. I did not. ;-)
- Robert Scoble
Any interest in visiting Alaska? Find out why you should plan a trip to Fairbanks @insidealaska
- Inside Alaska
Robert: You're the first to mention it, actually. I wondered if the same thing was happening on Twitter. ;)
- CAJ, somewhere else
Inside Alaska: that's always been one of my life-long dreams. Interesting, I'm noticing more marketers setting up shop in friendfeed. Next come the celebrities! Alan: heh, probably!
- Robert Scoble
this thread is officially to long to follow on an iphone
- mike "glemak" dunn
mike: it's too long to follow on a 24-inch Apple display, too! :-)
- Robert Scoble
We are always striving to be the best. @abounding
- Abounding Media
Thanks for the "Hot Tip" Robert!! Much easier.
- Scott Schanke
Follow me for posts about social media, the publishing industry, online communities, funny pictures, and my coffee addiction. Oh, and babies. I run a baby site and have a baby so...expect some babies. I also enjoy swearing so there may be some of that.
- Kate
Follow me (@abbashaiderali) if you like a mix of tech, finance, cars, random, and personal content. Variety keeps me interested & you're cut from the same cloth, we'll get along just fine :)
- Abbas Haider Ali
You can't be shy. You need to have a voice and use it.
- Russ Jackson
I promote the issues that are important to those I follow. But follow me because I took the time to read through ALL of these responses... :) @rbucich
- Rick Bucich
I dunno about begging but new followers are always nice
- Angela P.
I will have to say, I found several new people this way, so thanks Robert. I know I need to get better at finding more people myself, a la the FFundercats podcast Louis Gray discussion.
- Eric @ CSTechcast.com
you better be following me .. Im a fireman and I haz an axe ..
- johnpiercy
I don't want 'followers' - vanity is my least favourite sin. I want stimulating conversations & interesting stuff to read/watch/etc.
- Ahsan Ali aka. Slick
I'm @ryandadey and I love the internet and would like to be more engaged with people who feel the same. I like to share through FriendFeed and Twitter interesting tech, science and environment articles from Google Reader, as well some of my own thoughts. It would be more fun if I knew people were seeing my stream!
- Ryan Dadey
I'm just this guy whose life has been revolutionized by the social web. I'm no "guru" or "expert," but because I live here so much, many people and even companies and organizations have asked me to guide them into this landscape, a responsibility that both scares and energizes me. Because of that, I seek to share, give, and help anywhere possible. Trying to make tons of connections; if you want to be one, thanks!
- Mark Traphagen
Martin Bryant is right - now that the US is asleep, this thread has died down. Onward Europe, Middle-east, Asia ! :)
- Ahsan Ali aka. Slick
Thanks for the offer to follow us commenters Robert. I subscribe to all friendfeeders who leave comments as well. It's a great way to get to the heart of who's really participating in the trenches here on FF. BTW about me.. I started writing and acting when I was seven. I'm a musician/singer/songwriter and freelance writer/journo. I help others use the web to build an audience for their passion.
- Jesse Newhart
hmm, so it is quiet when the US are offline! Too bad, I'd love some more people to follow, be followed and have conversations with from the rest of the sphere. Widen the horizon.
- Joelle Nebbe (iphigenie)
nice idea - unfortunately friendfeed gets unreadable with so much comments. btw: i'm friendfeeding mainly about technology, consulting, personal productivity, gtd...
- Alexander Benker
You should follow me because I tend to find interesting programming articles on the topics of: Django, Python, key-value stores, and more.
- Eric Florenzano
I don't care if people follow me or not. I've been writing online (Usenet) since 1989, before the web, but Google's index only seems to go back to 1992. Most of my stuff isn't even on my blog, it's in email lists and discussion threads such as http://tinyurl.com/df5kc2 and http://tinyurl.com/3gfqzj (better than anything I've written here). A sample will give you some idea: "By what...
more...
- Victor Panlilio
I like talking to people and having conversations. It's no fun being on the social web if I'm not engaging anybody, and I need followers and people to follow to do that.
- Jon, the Chilled Beartato
No question about it, people should at least attempt to read new and different drummers daily because following the followed will always leave you in the follower camp. They laughed at Bob Dylan, they laughed at Gary Vaynerchuck, where are *they* now?
- randulo
I tend to follow the people that interact with me on my imported items, if I am not already following you I apologies. Just drop me a DM and I will happily subscribe to your feed :)
- Joe Dawson
That's a tough one, Joe -- you can only DM folks who have subscribed to you...
- Eric Johnson
I don't give a crap about the other comments here - I need to make sure I have the Scobles following me. I mean, I think they are already. But still. Gotta cover my bases. As to WHY anyone should follow me: I like to think I take a humorous outlook on things, and can make you giggle at least once per day. Snark is my tool. Also, I'm earnest and naive, and I'll treat you with the respect you expect and deserve from the Internet. Also, cats flushing toilets: http://bit.ly/2Lx2w
- Mike Nayyar
A retail designer by day (mainly customer experiences for consumer electronics shoppers) and a geek by night. If you want to brainstorm about how you'd like to shop and find cool new products, I'd love to hear from you.
- Jason Goldberg
Hi, @cantor there, i'm an It Systems Specialist and a student (Computer Engineering in Pisa). I think you can follow me because i have ideas and opinions and i want to express them, i like to find & share and I'll do the best in "extreme multitasking mode" :P.
- CantorJF
follow me because scoble told me to beg =P
- Zafarali
@robbell You should follow me because you lack the motivation to follow more inspiring individuals :)
- Rob Bell
I just started on FF and find it very interesting because of the focus on interaction arround subjects... FB is mostly talk about nothing, and I'm the only one in my friend group posting articles that interest me. Follow if u like... that will kindda help out on the interaction part!
- Kevin Nordmand
Over 280 comments. Advantage of FriendFeed. Nice. Follow me for some interesting stuff online and offline. Geeky and non-geeky
- Kannan
I am @alexisbellido and you should follow me to find more about teleworking, the Web and online businesses. I recently started using social media to support good causes and make your opinion matter. Currently supporting fight against hemophilia
- Alexis Bellido
People should follow other people because something is said that rings true. Not because someone BEGS for it. Please don't take this comment as an invitation to follow me, thanks.
- Vincent van Wylick
@Vincent: Well said. Truth is like gravity: you can pretend it doesn't exist, but you can't ultimately escape from it.
- Victor Panlilio
cool self help group here! social media anonymous! :D
- Dieter Schwarz
Nearing 300 comments, the Scoble Effect indeed. Is that FF comment raffle over by the way?
- Adi
For me at least, it's not as important that you follow me as it is that I follow you. You are very likely not to be interested in the stuff in my feed (and that's ok with me, please don't follow me unless you really find my crap, interesting), but you might like me commenting in your threads, which is where I get the most enjoyment from friendfeed..in the conversations on other people's posts. I am not that good of a conversation starter, but I am very good at jumping in when someone else does the starting.
- April Russo (app103)
Follow me because I find unique interesting content before most people, I read allot and am subscribed to allot of popular and interesting feeds not many people know about!
- Kyle Weller
Most of my feed activity revolves around various creative, social, and mobile technologies. Usually my own ideas and experiences with my own projects, and not so much link sharing. I like to think of myself as a quality over quantity kind of guy, so I won't overload your stream. I plan on hiking the Appalachian Trail next year and documenting it on the web as I go, so that should be interesting. I'm 5'9'' and I weigh... wait... what is this for again?
- Daniel Sims
I often hear I am hard to follow. Maybe it's the Dutch. Maybe my wandering spirit.
- Ruud van Wijngaarden
Ruud: That's why I don't twitter in Dutch. In fact we should just all talk English ;)
- Peter Kruit
Well I already follow the green guy (Scobelizer) on Twitter and FriendFeed and he follows me. But since I'm just an average guy, working in the Nonprofit field, I've found it a bit difficult to acquire followers on FriendFeed (not nearly as difficult on Twitter). So if anyone is interested in following someone who shares an eclectic mix of thoughts and interests, please feel free.
- John A. Taylor
It does feel good to have activity on your feed. Makes me feel like someone is listening to me.
- Christian Burns
I'm just getting started with friendfeed and already find the discussions great. I'm looking forward to being able to contribute some of my own thoughts to the conversations. After all, there are a lot of great things happening based off the idea of a person and the energy of a group.
- John Spyers
I'd love to connect with more marketers here on FriendFeed - not just social media types, but business and marketing strategy peoples... Small business owners would be great, too.
- Dennis O'Neil
I don't beg either, but since you asked...I'm good for some silliness, the occasional deep thought, encouragement of discussion of any kind (mostly political), and a good song or two. I'd like some musicians and poets to get on board as well.
- Helen Sventitsky
I like art, music, 3D, electric guitar, analgog synths, puppets, making stuff, my family, metaplace. I blog about artsy process and put up sweet flickr images.
- sergiooo
I have 9 followers, one is Robert, but virtually no discussion. I'm one of the few people on FF that works with the government, works in a non-IT startup, and will recommend great economics and sustainability items.
- Chris Stevenson
I just don't buy it yet. There is still way too much noise, and I'm not one of those guys with the time to go through posts with 300 (mostly uninteresting) comments. I have to filter extensively to get just a simdgeon of the interesting articles I pull off of GReader with Feedly and comments from the blogs themselves. Friendfeed would be great with Real Life connections, but they are all on Facebook. Friendfeed has a major uphill battle ahead of them, despite their superior interface and technology.
- Phil Ashman
FF is a good twitter client though..;)...
- Phil Ashman
Begging time. Follow me and SherylBreuker here (@kencamp & @SherylBreuker on Twitter. Please follow us and check this post Sheryl & Ken: Project Denmark (for 48 hours) #48hoursindk at http://stardustglobalventures.com/2009... We'll take you on the road to Denmark via social media. Help us win!
- Ken Camp
Great thread! Found some goodies in here (and some crazies)
- Daniel Morgan
Counterpoint: The Associated Press Is Necessary and More Important Than Ever - The Eyeball Economy - A Blog Blog by David Weiner - http://www.eyeballeconomy.com/2009...
"Chris Lynn and I were going back and forth a few days ago about the Associated Press and the state of the newspaper industry. Chris followed up our twitter conversation with a solid post on why he thinks the "AP is outdated and losing relevancy." Here is my counterpoint. What's your take?"
- David Weiner
I have been asked that question in several interviews. It shows that you are actually INTERESTED in your field to read about it in your spare time.
- Fa La La La Lindsay
Yes...I don't read trade publications.
- Alex Scoble
No and that matters not whether it's what I'm educated in (PR/Marketing/Advertising) or what I do now (Telecommunications). Every PR job I've interviewed for has asked me to reference at least one article in a trade publication that guided me. In my portion of telecom, everyone expects you to read certain publications, if you don't get the reference, people sort of question your ability.
- Admiral Anika
Uhm, I read all of the trade publications. All of the ones that are put in front of me.
- Mike Doeff
Lindsay - I'm very interested in my field and spend most of my spare time reading about it. But that has nothing to do with trade publications. It's all about the blogs and vendor documentation and even Friendfeed. Printing things on paper just forces information to be old.
- James (@willia4)
One potential fallacy of this question, as well as the similar question posted to Sarah Palin, is that there's an underlying assumption that the items worthy of reading are printed on paper and come out once a day/week/month. I read a ton of stuff, but I do not subscribe to any printed newspapers, and the only printed magazines that I receive are Sports Illustrated and InformationWeek. InfoWorld doesn't have a print edition any more, and (insert name of your favorite blogger here) never did.
- Ontario Emperor
Perhaps a better question would be, "What have you read lately?"
- Ontario Emperor
Ontario - "How do you keep abreast of news and information in [INSERT FIELD]?"
- James (@willia4)
Every job interview I've had has included a question about what I read, and how I stay informed in my field.
- Trish R
+1 James, because I don't think anyone would care about someone's frivolous reading habits.
- Heather Solos
Trish - I think our point is just that staying informed in a field and trade publications have less and less to do with each other.
- James (@willia4)
James, you're right. I meant staying informed in your field, which includes, but is not limited to, trade publications.
- Trish R
Alex: FriendFeed is a trade publication. More info about IT comes through here than goes through eWeek.
- Robert Scoble
Yes. Previous employment field's publications were nothing more than advertising rags.
- Paul W. Swansen
Seriously, I would have to have at least a passing familiarity with other journals like ours. I'm sick of below-average... oh ugh, too tired to complete the thought.
- Ayşe E.
What does reading trade journals have to do with knowledge in one's field? If someone asked me this in an interview I would actually be offended as it's not a question that tests my knowledge, but rather infers that there are better ways to get the knowledge than how I get it...and I'd say there is NO better way to get knowledge than first hand.
- Alex Scoble
i don't think there are any trade pubs for web development. but "how do you keep up with industry trends?" or "how do you keep your skills up to date" or the like came up in my last 3 interviews. would i have been hired otherwise? perhaps. but not likely ... WRT palin or anyone running for congress / VP or presidency: you should read/skim the washington post DAILY, at least one foreign policy journal, and you should pay attention to the congressional quarterly ...EDIT: and by "read" i'm including web sites.
- tiffany
@Alex I wouldn't hire you. The trade pubs are so you're aware of whats going on in your field. Please note that blogs do count.
- EricaJoy
I agree with Alex. Nothing's wrong, and could still be a boon, with reading about stuff in your field, but anyone who uses that question in an interview is taking the wrong approach. I'd be more interested if the interviewee was tinkering with some new tech instead of reading about it. Even if s/he hasn't mastered it, I would prefer that person over one who just "reads."
- Arlan Koizumi
I would say yes. Because I don't read magazines about design. I get everything from the internets.
- Mathew™ one of a kind
Arlan: is right. If I were answering such a question I'd talk about how I used something I read to improve what I was doing. For instance, today I saw a blog that had 10 tips for Django programmers. If I were interviewing for a Django job I'd mention that blog and demonstrate how I used something I learned to improve the thing I was building. In the media business I'd do the same thing. "I learned how to do a new kind of trend analysis from an article I read in NewTeeVee." etc.
- Robert Scoble
I'm in web development and in my last interview I was asked how did I become such a clean coder and how do I stay abreast of current development trends. I named reference books, conferences and blogs.
- jbrotherlove
I had to prove I had knowledge of HTML to get my job, much less know about publications. But then again tech support is probably harder than VP anyway.
- Aaron Krug
Here's the thing, you would get a much better understanding of what the person knows by actually asking a technical question that they should know to do the job, or to ask a question that they would have to read a lot to know. And even then those aren't the best questions to ask for most jobs. The biggest things, in my opinion, to find out for an applicant 1) how do they think? Are they competent in the field? 2) do they fit in with the team...asking if you read trade magazines doesn't answer those
- Alex Scoble
@James - I didn't say how recent those interviews were... these days I'd expect to be asked what blogs I have in my RSS feeder. :) The spirit of the question is still important. As far as Palin is concerned I'll be surprised if she even knows what a blog is, much less RSS or a feeder. @tiffany there are magazines about web development. I usually browse through 2-3 of them whenever I get the chance to go to Borders. @Alex I'm sure that wouldn't be the ONLY interview question you got asked...
- Fa La La La Lindsay
It's not a matter of trade magazines. What if you were asked what publications and what networks you were involved in to keep abreast of what's going on. If she doesn't read papers, what news services does she keep tabs on? Naming something is better than nothing. Even we can say that we keep up with certain things informally via FF/Twitter/gawker, what have you.
- Archangel ωαřмaiden
I don't get any trade publications. I have subscriptions to Time, and PC World, mainly because I still enjoy reading printed matter sometimes, the subs were real cheap, and I find interest in at least some of the content. I know I could read it all online though.
- Ian May
I think a better way to ask the question (and this is how my QA Manager friend asks it) is "How do you keep up to date in <insert your field name here>?"
- Alex Scoble
Not essential topic for Project Management folks, there's only a few magz out there. But for Palin's newspaper quote, that was just plain avoidance of answering the question for fear of being pegged a nimrod
- Susan Beebe
A great post Robert. Speak to people about something they can aspire to, stop treating them like you think they are inbred sheep and jsut maybe Obama can get momentum back.
- Soulhuntre
from twhirl
I agree with you on the point of what has to change. But you are saying that Republicans are more liberal than Democrats are, which is stupid. So much of America is more conservative than the Republican Party is showing today. And what the government should do in the next 4 years? Nothing but repeal the idiotic laws and regulations causing so many problems like high health care costs. PS-Religion is not taking over our society/government, look at our social habits and all forms of media.
- Randy
@Robert: Thanks for the thought provoking post.
- imran
Weren't you smitten and totally tricked by the pretty guy who cheated on his wife?
- Douglas Karr
from twhirl
I wish one day KBR subcontracting awards/terms/prices are released/leaked.
- imran
Douglas: yes, I was smitten and totally tricked by John McCain who cheated on his handicapped wife. Thanks for noticing.
- Robert Scoble
The same cultural and intellectual arrogance that Democrats displayed in 2004 is back again in 2008. Point well made to get focused on things that matter before Democrats are left stunned on November 5th wondering what happened, empty threats to move to Canada, buying bumper stickers that say "don't blame me," etc...
- Peter Kim
Haha - awesome Robert! I bow to your snarky rebute. :)
- Douglas Karr
from twhirl
Great post, Robert. I've been seeing the same actions from people around me, and it's sad to see Democrats take the easy way out and give up hope for the future. I feel like the nation is at a turning point and to pass up on this opportunity will just continue to further our slide from one of the greatest nations in the world. We don't want to just be "ok" as a country, we want to be "great" and that's not easy. (Also, don't be so quick to blame religion, we're not happy with the situ either.)
- Sam Dodge
Or perhaps high tech jobs are leaving for the same reason low tech jobs are leaving...wages are higher here than in other countries. You can improve U.S. education and loosen immigration all you want, but if doing business in China improves your bottom line, companies will hire in China.
- Ontario Emperor
from fftogo
Ontario: the CEOs tell me that it's not just the high wages here (which have gotten a lot lower due to the weak dollar, actually). They tell me they can't bring over here the smartest workers. They can't deal with the high medical costs. They can't deal with the uneducated workforce that's not ready for jobs in science and technology. They can't deal with the infrastructure here (bad transporation systems for moving their workers around, and bad broadband into the home so they are less able to work at home)
- Robert Scoble
@Robert: I always wondered what if our government spent one trillion dollars on a new Global Marshall plan to develop the troubled areas after 2001 as a reaction, just imagine, where economy of the world would be today, remember oil barrel price was at mid 20s at start of war.
- imran
Weren't we told by the Dems a while back that cheating on your wife in the Oval office was just fine and not a cause for concern? McCains history is not an issue for me - the guy is flawed but human. I can accept that about people. I am not a brittle moralist.
- Soulhuntre
just posted this - http://tinyurl.com/yesman - needless to say i think there is a place for concentrating on the shortcomings of the incumbent administration, especially if a candidate is so obviously shaping up to perpetuate them. that said, i will answer Robert's call for something positive, and I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiments behind it. important post.
- Dan Light
Great post. I think the key to this election may very well be the economy. In middle America - where the Republicans dominated 4 years ago, people are tired of watching their retirement accounts shrink, as the price of day to day living: gas and groceries continues to rise. If the democrats can come up with a specific plan of attack, this may very well be the point that tips the election.
- Lorraine Ball
Actually, Soulhuntre, I think the Dems said that having a consentual affair with one person wasn't evidence of illegally pressuring someone else to bestow favors.
- MiniMage TKDteacher of FF
Obama should propose temporarily lifting the costs for bringing money into the US. They did this after 9/11 and billions were brought back into the country by all sorts of corporations. Those dollars went into Domestic investment and really helped things out. He could win over a lot of business votes with that move.
- Andrew
Soulhuntre - No one said it was fine for anyone to cheat on their wife. Just that it shouldn't be the subject of a congressional investigation and impeachment.
- Andrew
@MiniMage - some did. But many, many more went on and on about how character doesn't matter, only policies matter. They never really understood why folks might care about the core of a persons views. Am I thrilled McCain had an affair? Nope. Am I happy to take that flaw over a personality that lets someone cut a shady deal with a guy like Rezco and hag out will Bill Ayers? You bet.
- Soulhuntre
Coastal elites want to talk about education, science and technology and infrastructure; hillbillies (like Soulhuntre) are fixated on extra-marital affairs. Exhibit A -- America is in major decline as the world's leading economic superpower.
- Sean McBride
Great essay. The main problem -- declining education, declining literacy, declining science and technology, declining generation of intellectual capital vis-a-vis our competitors -- all the other problems flow from those core problems. And the current Republican Party is pandering to a fundamentalist base which seems to hate intellectual activity. We may well be at the end of our run as the world's leading economic superpower.
- Sean McBride
@Andrew Burd - many, many dems here in the NYC area (since that is where I meet the most people) didn't care about it at all. They simply denied that it shoudl be a factor in how they saw the man at all. The impeachment stuff was a whole other deal I was not a big fan of.
- Soulhuntre
Interesting how this started with me asking Democrats to avoid aiming at Republican groins, but now Republicans are aiming at our groins. Damn, can't we do better than this? I guess not.
- Robert Scoble
Most of the problems you cite stem from cultural anti-intellectuallism. I'm not sure what any government or person can do to make America value intellectualism more - we're simply a nation that's become too complacent in our success, and hasn't been able to think for ourselves to solve a problem in a long, long time. Republicans exploit it, but they didn't create it. And I don't think the Democrats can do anything to change it.
- Eric P
Scoble - love the post. One thing I'd like to ask. Why is that many republicans love to call anyone that is a Democrat a "liberal" or "socialist?" It's like their two year old only this is their new way of calling someone a "poopie head?" I'm always up for healthy debate over the good and bad of both parties but geesh, when the other party can't talk like an adult, it makes it awfully hard to have a productive conversation.
- Aaron Strout
I'd vote for any candidate who built a platform around improving the US based on your 6.5 points. Democrat or Republican, these are all extremely important issues. The Reps have already picked which side they want to be on (http://bit.ly/17CClx). I'd like to see the Dems stake as a strong a position.
- Chris Rogers
Robert - The one problem I had with the post was the lumping legal and illegal immigrants together. America is not mad at legal immigrants. It's the ones who intentional break our laws to get into the country. Come one, come all, but do it legally. Immigration is one of the things that makes our country great.
- eyeonpower
while I agree 95% with your post, just a minor not: Reagan didn't ask German's to tear down the wall, he asked Gorbachev - but in the end, it was us Germans who tore it down with the tacit understanding that Gorbachev would let it happen - I don't think Reagan's speech had a lot of influence over the millions of protesters in Eastern Germany :)
- Frederic
I think it's BOTH AND. I think we should both be talking about the issues dear to us AND pointing out the most newsworthy facts about Palin as President in Waiting because no one in her position has been as woefully prepared. That's not pot shots. That's fact. And too many would forget Keating Five in favor of focusing on the positive. In the end, humor and satire (i.e. wit and intellect) will take down the GOP, not blogging. Tina Fey and Sarah Benincasa, I love you.
- jeneane sessum
On the show The Communicators on CSPAN rtsp://video1.c-span.org/project/de/com091308_mcdowell.rm The FCC speaks to the point of the US not really being 19th in the world for broadband. It's not as bad as people make it to be. Check it out. He speaks to net neutrality as well.
- Lee Bautista
Wow, everyone has very good comments to Robert's great post. Robert, let me just say that while I'm a republican, I would echo your call to arms... While I do not necessarily agree the Democratic candidates are the correct recourse - a change in direction is most assuredly necessary. Unfortunately, the collective 'we' continue our in-fighting to such a degree we miss the important things such as horrendous medical costs and anti-immigrant sentiment (what happened to the great melting pot?).
- Ken Stewart | ChangeForge
You know what I hate? I hate that Robert felt he had to say "My fellow Democrats" rather than "My fellow Americans". Personally, I don't identify with either party, but I can promise you there are Republicans who care about these issues too and even are on the same side as Robert is on some/most of them. The far right pollutes the Repulican name, just as the far left pollutes the Democrats - but Americans are mostly bunched up around the center - and it's only by working together we'll make real changes.
- Don MacAskill
good post robert. unfortunately, most americans tend to vote with their heart, not with their head. karl rove has a much better sense of what gets votes than the dems, altho i hope that obama can ris above. still, i agree the issues you selected are pretty much the ones i care about too (particularly: education, immigation, infrastructure... healthcare too, but that needs a hell of a lot more work)
- dave mcclure
Robert, as I stated in my previous post, your own candidates admit the are not the right choice for the country.http://twurl.nl/h51657a... last but not least:http://twurl.nl/ezgmeoThis is your own candidates and your party speaking.Hard to beat your own facts.
- Thomas Capote
from twhirl
Other countries always did a good job in many fields, the difference is now Americans are paying attention to that. Big world out there.
- Adriano Gonçalves
Really good post. For a moment, I actually thought we'd have a policy debate this election, but we're back to celebrities, moose burgers & lipstick. I'd love to see a push to discuss these issues. (Of course, I also think the Democrats have better answers, but I'd still like to hear the debate anyway.)
- Paul Rodriguez
Education will never change under any Democrat. The Teachers Unions will see to that. Obama has already had to back off from any talk of vouchers, merit pay, and allowing capable people to teach whether or not they have a four-year education degree. Teachers Unions have crippled our educational system for decades and Democrats are the cause of that, not the solution.
- Dawn
Very well said. I immigrated to the US with the impression that this country is home to socially broad minded citizens who lead the world by breaking new frontiers. However the last few years of extreme social conservatism has disappointed me. We as a country seem less tolerent, race is still a major factor in almost everything, education is put down by using such words as "elite" etc. I hope we come out of this social nose dive and once again be world leaders we once were.
- Balakrishnan Satyamurti
Balakrishnan: "last few years of extreme social conservatism"??!! Are you kidding me? There are over 1 MILLION babies being aborted every year in the U.S. Gays and Lesbians are starting to marry. Animal rights are going up. Property rights are going down. Genetic engineering is increasing. What the country is most less tolerant of is religion. Yes, race is still a factor, but we've got...
more...
- Dawn
Wow theres a lot. ...a lot of a lot ... the likely cause was the other day when what's his name pointed his Nokia at his monitor, giving an infinite picture-in-picture of the stream he was running on qik
- Dan Covington
All: an API client malfunctioned or intentionally spammed with these comments. We disabled that API client to prevent the problem, and we are reaching out to the developer.
- Bret Taylor
"There has been much talk of Twitter users moving over to FriendFeed since Twitter replies were down for the majority of last week. Twitter announced that they were back on Saturday in their blog, but seeing as the outage may have inspired some users to flock to FriendFeed, I decided to take a look at the 3rd-party applications and scripts that enhance the FriendFeed functionality. For those of you moving on to FriendFeed’s greener pastures, here are 13 essential tools for an organized, “noise”-free experience."
- Russellreno
from Bookmarklet
I thought about making NoiseRiver a closed alpha (by invites) actually. But then told to myself: to hell with hesitation, let's make it and face bugs together! ;-)
- directeur
from NoiseRiver
Directeur: Have you check you inbox for all your new followers lately?
- Russellreno
@Russellreno : ouch! It's full! I'm subscribing to many of them, maybe I'm skipping some but I'll definitely see that again :)
- directeur
from NoiseRiver
Thanks Patrick! Actually without the great feedback from you folks that wouldn't happen... The first 20 minutes of the launch were really HOT :)
- directeur
from NoiseRiver
D: BTW there is a GM script that will help you subscribe. Google "Better Friendfeed Subscribe to me". After you load it you go into your "People who scribe to me" tab. It adds a superscribe button.
- Russellreno
Thanks for the info Russellreno! I'll download it now :)
- directeur
from NoiseRiver
"A visit Wednesday evening to a West Coast distribution center of Apple contract manufacturer Quanta Computer shows a company hustling to get mysterious boxes of, well, something, on the move."
- Steve Rubel
I wanted to see it but it wouldn't load - maybe a bad time to try it? ; )
- Marco(aureliusmaximus)
would be good if twitter made this easy to do on their site. but thanks for the workaround
- Stephen Winkler
It's a good idea. My method was to use Summize and set my Advanced Search Options in a similar fashion. You'll notice on the right side of the results it gives an RSS feed button you can click. Problem solved :)
- CannonGod
from twhirl