de.tech.ting

Archive for the ‘tech’ Category

startup’ing, month 1

Posted by andreaitis on August 1, 2008

well, it’s actually month 1 + a day.  i’m on the train, all geeked out with my laptop and mobile air card and ipod and bleary glazed eyes.   i’m getting into a routine.  i know for sure because the guy at the shine deli knew what i was going to order this morning.  plus which, he smiled at me as if he remembered me.  i like that in a corner deli.

it’s been a good month.  we’re in an office near union square.  fred wilson is in our office building.  i haven’t met him yet, but i’ve been threatening to ride the elevator up and down and up and down until i do, um, accidentally meet him.   he’s a techebrity.  and i like his taste in music.   and he’s smart.  and it would be kinda cool.  i know what you’re thinking, but i won’t hit him up for funding.  we’re lucky enough to already have some funding.  besides, that would be tacky.  as opposed to, y’know, my elevator plan.

startup office plants

hello, office plants

there are just 3 of us so far.  until today.  it was a big day today.

we hired a cto and bought 3 plants for the office.
see?   i think i might have to name them.

we’re stealthy right now, but- to recap – here’s what i can tell you:   we have some funding…we’re building something in the news space…our office is near union square…we just hired a cto….we have one plant that needs water every day, another that needs water twice a week, and a third that needs water once a week.  and i can’t remember which is which so take a good look at the office plants now while they’re still green.

oh, and i think i’m officially a regular at the shine deli.   those are all the facts for now.

factually yours,
andrea

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icahn ready for prime time?

Posted by andreaitis on July 21, 2008

carl icahn just played the tech version of Let’s Make a Deal.    he agreed to end his yahoo proxy fight in exchange for 3 board seats.  techcrunch has the details, of course…. but what struck me even more was that, in this extended silicon valley soap opera, carl icahn sorta looks like blake carrington from dynasty.   of course, icahn’s ego is bigger than linda evans’ shoulder pads.  and his temperament is frostier than joan collins.  but he’s got the cat fight down pat, and…well, see for yourself:

blake carrington (aka john forsythe)

billionaire and corporate raider blake carrington (aka john forsythe) and the dynasty dolls

carl icahn
billionaire and corporate raider carl icahn

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jew knew?!?

Posted by andreaitis on July 17, 2008

we all feel big brother breathing down our necks these days, with the court case featuring google / youtube vs viacom, loopt’s gps privacy fumbles, and the aclu taking on the foreign intelligence surveillance act (fisa).

and then, just when i thought i could fear no more,  i stumbled across david berkowitz’s blog post.  it was prompted by this ad on facebook:

facebook using jewdar targeting?

facebook using jewdar targeting?

david jumped right on this schmear campaign….sorry, couldn’t help myself.   ;-j   but it’s good reading.

he asked the penetrating question: does facebook know i’m jewish??  see the answer in his blog post, and more in his column on the chutzpah of facebook’s jewdar.

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that’s some cookie, monster

Posted by andreaitis on July 16, 2008

sesame street is launching a redesign that cost $14 million.

fourteen.  million.  dollars.

for a website.  yep.  no theme park, no movie, no dvd.  just the website.

what, is  kermit blogging in hugo boss?  miss piggy doing virtual reality in diamonds and dolce & gabbana?

ok, to be fair it’s $14 million over two years but, um, does $7 million sound all that much better?

let me put this in perspective:

mariah carey’s engagement ring = $2.5 million

cast of desperate housewives annual total salary = $10.1 million

total population of zimbabwe = 13,349,000
give everyone a dollar, and you’d still have enough left over for a redesign.

my real concern is this:  by the time kids are somewhat self-sufficient on a computer, they are typically past the sesame street age and into dora.  sesame years are lapware years — the parents are right there, child on lap, navigating the mouse.  which is all fine and good…but it doesn’t replace the much needed parental time-out when you can comfortably plop your child in front of the tv knowing sesame street is on the guilt-free list.

so, money well spent?   here’s the ‘before’ … we’ll see when the new site launches august 11th.

ps — you can buy this for $14 million, too.

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bitter trousers

Posted by andreaitis on July 9, 2008

ben and rich heidorn, a father-son team, have launched Treehouse Media Project to help educate journalists about new media.

news flash:  it’s not ‘new’ media anymore.  and if you’re a real journalist, you sorta shoulda seen this coming.

journalists are, in essence, story tellers.  and the medium shouldn’t matter.  i like reading the newspaper as much as the next geek, the feel of the paper, the ink smudges, the intricate folding patterns when on a cramped commute.   but the story is the story, and it’s all about finding the audience.

funny that so many journalists seem to be approaching this story with such grudging reluctance to change.  where’s the renegade spirit?  where’s the fight for the new frontier?

c’mon.  let freedom ping.

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strategically seating

Posted by andreaitis on July 9, 2008

i’ve been around the wifi block a time or two.  panera, cosi, starbucks, greenberry’s….even the local library.  i know where the electric outlets are, what kind of music they’ll play (and at what volume), i know what time to go to get the best table, i know how to stalk covertly until people leave the best table, and i know the snacks that won’t get as many crumbs on my keyboard.

but, a-ha! i just said to myself.  have i just stumbled on a key strategic differentiator?  a short-term decision that could have long-term implications?  for i am sitting here at greenberry’s, wifi-working, on a wooden chair.  no cushion, no pillow.  just wood.  and, y’know, it’s not really all that.
there is no upside for my backside.

is this a purposeful decision?  if i’m uncomfortable am i likely to stay for a shorter time, thus increasing turnover?  or will i leave for serene-er pastures at cosi, my current favorite wifi hotspot spot?  cosi of the comfy corner armchair.  where weary working bones can rest, cushioned from the hardships of the wifi way of life.

actually, so far it’s just made me try to find more creative sitting positions.  and they have yet to kick me out, like panera.  but that story’s for another blog post…

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