Wade Rockett › Comments

'[Ogilvy concluded] that messaging and relevance had to have highest priority. Everything else – creativity, design, layout – should be subordinated to the end goal of conveying a salient message in as persuasive a manner as possible. In print, this took the form of what has come to be known as “The Ogilvy Layout.”' - Wade Rockett

Essential reading for significant others of nerds and other creative types who are simultaneously obsessive and distracted. The distinction between the Zone and the Place is especially useful. - Wade Rockett

Mike and Jerry receive a game for review, along with a Nintendo DS. They discover that the DS was meant as a Child's Play auction item. Jerry ruminates on the quandry this created, and on PR and ethics. - Wade Rockett

'Each of the speakers who gave a prepared presentation to the audience of mostly developers dropped some surprising factoid that I typed into my BlackBerry. I checked with attendees, “did you know this?” Eleven of my bullet points proved to be new info to app developers as well.' - Wade Rockett

D&D magazine Kobold Quarterly launched a contest to help spread the word about its Adopt-A-Soldier gift subscription program. Grand prize includes dice from Q-workshop, books on RPG design, an opportunity to work with professional designers on an RPG adventure, and a copy of an upcoming 4th Edition D&D military sourcebook. (Plus a special prize for whoever signs up the most soldiers and/or civilians in December.) - Wade Rockett

A report detailing the results of Dan Zarrella's content-sharing survey. What factors make people want to share online content with others? - Wade Rockett

Very neat online tool for creating presentations that consist of one huge slide, and you zoom in and out and around it as you speak. - Wade Rockett

Step by step how-to on customizing a Facebook page using FBML. - Wade Rockett

Microsoft launches MSN Juku in China, a Messenger feature that is actually more like Plurk than it is Twitter. Users can do other things besides post and read short messages, such as play games. Microsoft has no plans to roll it out anywhere else at this point. - Wade Rockett

Andrew Sullivan eloquently explains why he has left the Right -- the occasion being a similar post by Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs. - Wade Rockett

A Very Good example of a First Edition Lord of the Rings with original dustjackets. Lovely. - Wade Rockett

A quick guide to the operators and restricts supported by Wave search. - Wade Rockett

Sean McNally is a Chaotic Good, Orcish Artist and Animator who worships Caffeine and does 1D6 damage with his Wacom tablet. - Wade Rockett

"A chap named Ben Firshman ported a NES emulator called vNES into JavaScript, creating JSNES. Yes, it works in Firefox 3.5 and in Safari 4, but thanks to its JavaScript optimizations, it runs about 10 times faster in Chrome." - Wade Rockett

"We desperately need to ask ourselves, and those around us, to revisit the purpose of email. Given what we know about the importance of flow to productive work, and how multi-tasking is largely a myth, is it worth the constant stream of minor interruptions?" - Wade Rockett

"Pee-wee Herman is inviting you – and all your friends – back to Puppetland. Come join Pee-wee, Miss Yvonne, Cowboy Curtis, Jambi, Chairry and all your favorites, live on stage. Re-imagined, re-invented, and nuttier than ever, The Pee-wee Herman Show will be LA’s theatrical event of 2009, with its live-action cast and puppets galore!" - Wade Rockett

Top tech companies in Silicon Valley - Wade Rockett

This job seeker turned her resume into a mind map. Neat. - Wade Rockett

A study conducted in the Seattle-Tacoma area by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the average age of an adult video game player is 35 - higher than previously thought - and that gamers are less healthy and more depressed than non-gamers. - Wade Rockett

Nice review of the Kobold Guide to Game Design by WIRED;s John Baichtal. - Wade Rockett

"You can use [social media] however you like. You can have purely social interactions. You can do business. You can help the greater good. You can just listen if you like. Are there techniques you can implement to maximize your efficiency, and better meet the goals you have? Absolutely. But it’s YOUR experience." - Wade Rockett

"That's not to say I don't have influence. And that's not to say we couldn't one day be friends. It simply means I am not a vehicle sitting around idly waiting to SPAM my friends no matter how 'awesome' this piece of PR news is. " - Wade Rockett

Some useful guidance on creating space in your day for engaging in social media. (I expected this to be more about setting up a workflow in a business where more than one person is involved in managing the company's social media presence. Not so much.) - Wade Rockett

Links to local mailing lists, game stores, and conventions. - Wade Rockett

Choose an event and almost.at will display real-time streams of posts and photos from people attending that event. - Wade Rockett

"One creates a kart racing fairy chef who, when not playing with kittens, explores mines while building decks for a magical card game." - Wade Rockett

Posts Craigslists ads for job openings that are best avoided. Recent posts include a full-time babysitter job that pays less than $2 an hour, an ad for an HR professional that relentlessly uses tortured circus metaphors, and a hostile ad for experienced salespeople that promises danger and possible death...if you have the STONES to apply! - Wade Rockett

Ever since Apple accepted variable pricing in the iTunes store, there's been talk of the potential for bundling songs. Now iTunes is launching the Digital 45 section: two songs bundled together, an A-side and a B-side. Rhino is set to release 25 digital 45s a month, many of which haven’t been digitally available before. (That bit is really exciting.) - Wade Rockett

"Verizon Wireless is restructuring the way it works with some application developers, which will be important as handset makers launch their own storefronts and form direct relationships with developers. Verizon will unveil the new program at the end of the month at its developer conference on July 28 in San Jose" - Wade Rockett

"Did you ever want one of your toys to come to life? Well a lifesize Gundam robot has risen in Tokyo. It stands 59 feet tall (18 meters). So if you were standing on the 6th floor of a building, you would be at about eye level with it. This thing is enormous and the detail amazing." - Wade Rockett