I’m currently reading Russ Olsen’s new technical book, “Eloquent Ruby.” It’s an excellent book. I particularly like its focus on what it takes to be a truly good Ruby developer, rather than just teaching Ruby syntax. It’s a great “next book” for the developer that has learned Ruby, and now wants to learn how to use it properly and effectively.
WordPress and Zombies
This is a an excellent WordPress presentation from Brad Williams, the author of “Professional WordPress Design and Development.” The presentation provides detailed examples for creating custom post types and custom taxonomies in WordPress 3+, but with a distinct and humorous zombie flavor.
Washington Business Journal on AirBanking
The Washington Business Journal interviews Main Street Bank exec Jeff Dick about his AirBanking initiative. AirBanking mixes online banking, blogging and social media to attract young professionals. David Keener is the architect and social media expert assisting Main Street Bank with their strategies.
I Have No Klout
Twitter Problems
I just got “rate-limited” doing a search on Twitter for #RubyNation. This was the first time I’ve used Twitter in the past week because I’ve been busy with multiple projects. It’s also, by extension, the first and only search I’ve done in the past week. I have to say that either Twitter’s search is broken, or their algorithm for identifying people who need to be rate-limited is totally FUBAR.
Note: It turned out to be a widespread Twitter problem.
Awesome Computer Accessories
Here are some great, steampunk computer accessories. Totally pointless, but amazingly different in a bizarre sort of way. Must see it to believe it.
Social Media Stats
HubSpot is a great site for collecting statistics about social media. Here’s a link to more stats than you would believe possible.
New Toy: Final Cut Express
My new toy just arrived, compliments of Amazon.com: Final Cut Express. So, I’m now armed and dangerous when it comes to video editing. OK, ok, so it’s not Final Cut Pro, but it’s got a solid subset of features for video editing (and it was MUCH cheaper), and I’m working with two other editors who have Final Cut Pro (so they can do the extra heavy lifting if needed). Onwards to the editing of RubyNation conference content!
Two External Drives and Final Cut Express
I just spent $641.16 on equipment to accommodate the video editing needs of RubyNation 2010. Specifically, I ordered two 2TB Western Digital external drives with FireWire800 support to handle our video storage needs. The FireWire800 support also ensures that the drives can be used as scratch drives during video editing. Additionally, I ordered Final Cut Express for myself (my other editors both have Final Cut Pro, so we’re covered).
On Media Convergence
Here’s an interesting video perspective on media convergence. Quite nicely done,by the way.