How Not to Use Twitter
Today, I recieved notification that I was being followed by “agus3anto“. I always check the Twitter page of the person who follows me to see if I might want to follow him or her back. If you’re new to Twitter, please follow these instructions to ensure that nobody of value ever follows you.
1. Choose a login that makes little or no sense. Don’t bother customizing the display name.
2. Follow as many random people as possible as quickly as possible. Hit that 2,000 follow limit or die trying.
3. Feel free to fill out your Bio in English, but make sure you misspell the name of the country you’re in (Idonesia) and your primary reason for using Twitter (bussines). For extra points, ignore grammar - ‘i want make bussines’ is perfectly acceptable.
4. Protect your updates so nobody can read what you write before deciding if you’re worth following back.
5. Use the default Twitter background and color scheme. Nothing says “I’m worth following” like a lack of personality.
Follow these five simple rules, and you’ll likely get bored with Twitter and give it up in no time. Thankfully.
[UPDATE - January 2, 2009]
Two things happened which make this entry look like the ramblings of a madman. First, whilst switching this site to a new web host, I somehow lost two images. One was a picture of my son, Ian, which accompanied another recent entry, and I was able to get that image back. The other image was the one that went with this entry, and without it, #3 above just doesn’t have as much punch.
The second thing that happened was the suspension of the “agus3anto” account. Twitter nailed him. Bummer, huh?
The Friday Podcast with Andrew Wee
Earlier this week, I was a guest on Andrew Wee’s Friday Podcast, which was posted to his website last night. Andrew is an internet marketer and blogger and one heck of an interviewer as well. I had a great time, though I think that once you start listening, you’ll get that I don’t have any experience being interviewed - I tend to ramble a bit 
I had a great time though, and learned as much as I taught, that’s for sure. I’m definitely looking forward to following up with Andrew at a later date!
Who knows, maybe I’ll even ask Andrew to be a guest on my podcast. What? I don’t have a podcast? Not yet I don’t…
Check out Andrew’s website here, and listen to the podcast right here!
Yugster.com Surprises
I wrote a while back about giving up on Woot.com and my introduction to Yugster.com, a similar, deals-based site. Yugster’s primary difference is that three (sort of) deals are going on at any given time. Registered members get the daily deal, a purchasable preview of the following day’s deal, and the Yours-Until-Gone deal, which is a single item that remains available until it sells out.
I’ve made three purchases from Yugster since August 25th, shortly after I discovered the site:
1. Pair of four-port USB 2.0 Mini Hubs for $9.98 (shipping included).
2. Ambico 32-CD Cobra Series Media Wallet for $5.95 (shipping included).
3. Yugster Surprise Bundle for $15.00 (shipping included).
It’s that last item that I really want to talk about. Read more
Twitter: Google Killer?
Okay, maybe not a true Google killer, but allow me to share what just happened to me.
I installed the new version of iTunes earlier today, and I noticed a little while ago that the annoying little store links were showing up again in the tracks. Even more annoyingly, it seems Apple has removed the option in the Preferences to not display those silly arrows. My first instinct was to go a Google search, which, (probably since iTunes was just released,) turned up nothing. Then I thought, maybe someone on Twitter is talking about it. I went to http://search.twitter.com and searched for “itunes link store” and the second tweet I was showed had a link to a web page that described how to get rid of the stupid arrows.
Twitter, FTW.
Incidentally, if you’re running iTunes 8 on a Mac and want to get rid of the store links, it’s a one-line copy/paste into a Terminal window to take care of it. Check out http://bit.ly/3gBJ2V (thanks to @pjbeardsley).
The New iTunes 8 - Genius
Although I dig the new display options in iTunes 8, I’m going to talk about the Genius function here by giving a few examples of what it’s offering me.
Upon installing and launching iTunes 8, the program will scan your library. It will upload your library specifics (nothing personally identifiable) to Apple and use the data to make recommendations. When you select a song in your library and push the Genius button, iTunes will create a playlist of 25, 50, 75 or 100 related songs from your library. How related is related? Let’s find out.
Generated Playlist (first 10 entries, based on the first song listed):
- Rush - Far Cry
- Robert Plant - In the Mood (Live in Houston)
- Van Halen - Mean Street
- Judas Priest - Electric Eye
- Dream Theater - Pull Me Under
- Joe Satriani - Surfing With the Alien
- Iron Maiden - Wasted Years
- Accept - Balls to the Wall
- Smashing Pumpkins - Tarantula
- Sammy Hagar - There’s Only One Way to Rock
Other artists on the 50-song list include Alice Cooper, Led Zeppelin, Scorpions, Foreigner(!), Queensryche, Tesla and Asia. With the questionable inclusion of Foreigner, I’d say that these artists match Rush fairly well, if broadly.
One thing that I noticed right away is that Genius does not take into account ratings or anything else. It really looks at your entire library. I’d like to see a way to limit Genius to only 4 or 5 star-rated items, but maybe there’s a way to do that that I’m not aware of.
I did run into one snag. The second time I tried Genius, I was looking for matches for John the Baptist, by the Afghan Whigs. Genius couldn’t generate a playlist. The message that came up suggested clicking the Update Genius menu item in the Store menu and trying again. It seemed to only repeat the scanning/sending action from the beginning of the process, and Genius still wasn’t able to generate a playlist when I tried again. Perhaps as more people upload their library data Apple will be able to find some matches.
Final verdict: I like it, and I’m hoping that there won’t be many instances where a playlist can’t be generated.
So, that’s it… here’s a few more lists here for those that are interested.
Generated Playlist (first 10 entries, based on the first song listed):
- Angels & Airwaves - The Adventure
- 30 Seconds to Mars - From Yesterday
- Jimmy Eat World - Pain
- The Used - Under Pressure
- Eve 6 - Here’s to the Night
- Vanessa Carlton - White Houses
- Angels & Airwaves - Everything’s Magic
- Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps
- blink-182 - Feeling This
- The Killers - Smile Like You Mean It
Not bad. Vanessa Carlton might be a stretch.
Generated Playlist (first 10 entries, based on the first song listed):
- The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary
- New Order - Blue Monday
- The Cure - In Between Days (Live from Festival 2005)
- A Flock of Seagulls - I Ran
- Peter Murphy - Cuts You Up
- U2 - I Will Follow
- The Psychedelic Furs - Pretty in Pink
- Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls
- Ratt - Round and Round
- The Clash - London Calling
This was the most bizarre list I generated. How the Pet Shop Boys and A Flock of Seagulls related to the Cult, I’m not sure. Apparently, Apple thinks they’re New Wave.
Generated Playlist (first 10 entries, based on the first song listed):
- Motorhead - Ace of Spades
- Judas Priest - You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’
- Motley Crue - Shout at the Devil
- Twisted Sister - I Wanna Rock
- The Ramones - Havana Affair
- Foo Fighters - Monkey Wrench
- Megadeth - Hangar 18
- Blue Oyster Cult - Godzilla
- Warrant - Cherry Pie
- Faith No More - Epic
I don’t know what’s worse, that Warrant is on listed based on Motorhead, or that I’m admitting that I own Warrant albums. Probably the latter. One last list, I’ll try this based on a comedy track.
Generated Playlist (first 10 entries, based on the first song listed):
- George Carlin - Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television
- Robin Williams - Childhood
- Chris Rock - Blacks Aren’t Crazy
- Bill Engvall - Here’s Your Sign Christmas
- Lewis Black - Congressional Correspondents Dinner
- Ron White - They Call Me “Tater Salad”
- Mitch Hedberg - Three Easy Payments
- Al Franken - President Bush Drops By
- David Cross - Flying on a Mexican Plane
- Demetri Martin - Some Jokes
Well done, Apple.
I want a computer that is moist like cake… wait, what?
I just watched the new Microsoft ad featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld buying shoes. Submitted for your approval (or mocking):
A computer that’s moist like cake so you can eat it? What the hell? I understand the goal here is to get people talking about Windows, but it’s not working. People aren’t talking about Windows, they’re talking about the commercial. Google it, you’ll see what I mean. While there is some truth to the notion that there is no such thing as bad publicity, this commercial isn’t going to make anyone respect Microsoft, Windows, Bill Gates or Jerry Seinfeld any more or less than they already do. To me, that’s what makes this commercial a failure.
Rediscovering Music with iTunes
I’ve been a music junkie for a long time. It started pretty much as soon as my parents started giving me an allowance. I’d save up ten or twenty bucks, and then go to the bowling alley with my friends. Instead of bowling though, I’d go to the record shop next door and buy two or three cassettes. When I was old enough to get a job, a lot of the money I made went into buying music. These days, I’ve got thousands upon thousands of songs on my computer, all organized neatly by iTunes. Between music I’ve ripped and music I’ve bought online, my digital library is quite large.
iTunes makes is really easy to create playlists. When I first bought my Mac in late 2006 and got all my CD’s imported, I went through and put a 5-star rating on whatever songs I felt like listening to, several hundred of them. That’s pretty much how I organize my everyday listening, but it’s a pretty small percentage of my total library. Today, I had an idea. My plan is to spend a week listening to songs that have never been played on this computer - and since I don’t bother dragging out my CD’s anymore, that pretty much means songs I haven’t heard in almost two years or more.
I created a “smart playlist” in iTunes with the condition that the Play Count is less than one. Then, I turned on Shuffle and hit play. So far, I’ve heard some songs I remember, some that are vaguely familiar, and some songs I’ve never heard (because of those fantastic one-hit-wonder artists whose entire CD I bought before online purchasing of one song was available). It’s fantastic. Right now I’m listening to Billy Idol’s “Dancing with Myself”, which I probably haven’t heard since I was in high school. Right before that was “Left of the Middle”, by Natalie Imbruglia, which I’ve never even heard before because I bought that CD specifically for the “Torn” single years ago. One pretty cool aspect of using a smart playlist is that once a song has played through, its play count goes to one, and it’s removed from the list. I’m guaranteed to hear nothing but tracks that haven’t been played on my Mac before.
The list also introduces me to new artists because I imported all of my wife’s CD’s as well. Songs from artists like Authority Zero and Muse are getting a listen for the very first time, because I just never really gave them a shot before. Some of it I like, some of it I don’t - but isn’t that what music exploration is all about? Between this and Pandora.com, I’m having a lot of fun.
This should be a very interesting week.
Changes at CafePress
The following is a word-for-word reprint of what I wrote in the CafePress forums regarding changes to the CafePress volume bonus and the resulting discussion. I’m not saying I’m posting it here in case an over-zealous moderator decides to edit me, but… okay, that’s exactly what I’m saying. I have a great relationship with the majority of the moderators. Here we go.
Good-bye, Woot
Call it sour grapes, but I can’t help the way I feel. A few days ago, Woot.com turned four. Yep, four years of a daily deals, Photoshop contests (one of which I took 1st place in) and Woot-Offs. Four years of the Bag of Crap, or BOC: that elusive “treasure” that a few thousand lucky people can order periodically. Why is the BOC so special? For the low price of $1 (you can order up to three at a time, max), Woot will send you a package (not actually a bag) containing a few random items. By random, I mean really, really random. You might get a calendar, a stuffed monkey, or a 52″ HDTV. It’s the promise of a chance at things like a giant TV that gets people worked up over these things.
On the days that Woot offers a BOC, the servers get slammed. On most days, the BOC just sort of shows up unannounced and the server hit is significant. Can you imagine how the servers would get pounded when all Woot users expect it to show up?
Here’s my problem. On Woot’s birthday, they offered a BOC. I logged into the website shortly before 11pm, which is the time of night (in my timezone) that Woot updates the website with a new daily deal. I refreshed the page after the deal went live, and I actually saw the BOC and the “I want one” button. Usually, I show up after it’s sold out, so I eagerly hit that button. Then I waited… and waited… and waited. The order screen eventually came up, but the quantity selection isn’t a dropdown or text box, it’s a javascript-powered button. I pressed the “I want three” button many, many times before it finally changed the quantity. After twenty one minutes of wrestling with the server, the site finally accepted my order - and then kicked me back to the beginning with an error message saying the item was sold out.
I was furious - furious that the site wasted my time, got my hopes up, and then dashed them against a rock. To make matters worse, in Woot’s message board, long time members were openly hostile and insulting toward anyone who complained about the poor site service.
After four years, Woot couldn’t figure out how to prepare for an event that they must have known was going to be extremely stressful on their servers. After four years, they still don’t have any moderation in their forums that is willing to tell people to keep the personal attacks and insults out of the discussion. After four years, they’ve managed to prove that they’re just not up to the task of running this type of service. It’s a damn shame, too. I’ve been a fan for a long time. From here on out though, Woot will not receive my business or my attention.
I do like my daily deals, though… so what’s a guy to do? I looked around and found Yugster - a Woot competitor since 2006 that not only offers a daily deal, but gives members a preview of the next deal plus a side offer called Yours Til it’s Gone. In the years that I spent checking Woot on a daily basis, I only ever bought a handful of items. In the few days that I’ve been checking Yugster, I’ve already purchased something - a computer screen cleaning kit for $6.95 + $4 shipping. Unlike Woot.com, where refurbished items are the norm, refurbs at Yugster are rare, according to their FAQ list. Yugster even has their own version of a Woot-Off, called a YugDown, where new items are posted as soon as one sells out for a period of time.
I will be keeping an eye on Yugster and will report back my opinions in the coming weeks - but at first look, this might just be a Woot-killer… for me, at least.
Giving Up on Adobe Contribute
I’ve tried. I’ve really, really tried. I’m a big Adobe fan - Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign… and I tried to use Contribute CS3. I tried for months. Here are the problems:
- Takes forever to load - longer than any other program on my MacBook Pro. I timed it at a minute and ten seconds, from launch to actually connecting to a blog.
- Can’t edit a post’s source code. I tried to work around this, but man, what a hassle. This is a no-brainer, Adobe. Give me access to my own source. There is absolutely no reason to make it inaccessible.
- Takes forever to switch from one blog to another. I can’t explain why, and I don’t even have a theory, but it takes 20 seconds to switch from editing one blog to another - without any drafts open.
- Takes forever to upload a draft. I tested a very short, all-text blog entry and it took Contribute just over 60 seconds to upload.
- And the worst thing of all? There is no real way to tell that the program is actually doing anything half the time. During the long startups, the long uploads… the program will just sit there for ten or fifteen seconds without a status bar.
So, what am I using to write this very blog entry?
Ecto.
It loads in under 5 seconds, I can edit my posts’ source code, switching from editing one blog to another is instantaneous, uploading an entry takes less than 10 seconds, and it’s responsive (and it tells me it’s being responsive).
So long, Contribute. I can’t say it was nice while it lasted, but maybe Adobe will make you a contender in version CS4.
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