(T+A #29) Technology and the Arts: 2/20/2008

(T+A #29) Technology and the Arts: 2/20/2008

In this installment of the Technology and the Arts podcast, we’ll share some interesting news, web sites and online resources we have come across recently, including ratebeer.com, the new forms feature in Google Docs, ImprovEverywhere.com, and the demise of the HD-DVD format. Plus, we’ll talk more about Microsoft’s bid to acquire Yahoo! and a Flickr users group that has emerged to protest the proposed deal. Hosts: Brian Kelley and John LeMasney. File size: 14.5 MB. Time: 30 min., 22 sec.

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Show Notes for Technology and the Arts Podcast #29

In this installment of the Technology and the Arts podcast, we’ll share some interesting news, web sites and online resources we have come across recently, including ratebeer.com, the new forms feature in Google Docs, ImprovEverywhere.com, and the demise of the HD-DVD format. Plus, we’ll talk more about Microsoft’s bid to acquire Yahoo! and a Flickr users group that has emerged to protest the proposed deal. Hosts: Brian Kelley and John LeMasney. File size: 14.5 MB. Time: 30 min., 22 sec.

• Subscribe to podcast via RSS feed
  
• Subscribe to podcast via iTunes

Related Links:

• crumb.tumblr.com – John LeMasney’s tumble log.
• bktandem.tumblr.com – Brian Kelley’s tumble log.
• John talks about visiting the casinos in Atlantic City, N.J., for the first time in his life.
• John also promotes some future talks he has coming up: Brookdale Computer Users Group talk on open source software (especially GIMP, Inkscape and Scribus) and server technologies in March, Trenton Computer Festival in April, and Princeton Public Library Tuesday Tech Talk on using technology to lose weight.
• Brian talks about ice skating at Mercer County Park and his first-ever attempt at skiing, which took place Feb. 16 at Blue Mountain Ski Area in Palmerton, Pa. You can see a few photos here.
• John’s newfound passion for beer has led him to set up an account on RateBeer.com.
• Google Docs has introduced a new sharing feature…Forms!
• Want to generate a tag cloud from any document or Web page? Check out TagCrowd.com.
• Improv Everywhere strikes again…this time in Grand Central Station.
• The WebTrendMap for 2008 is now available.
• Artist Shepard Fairey has created remarkable, visually striking posters for the Barack Obama campaign.
• Yahoo turned down Microsoft’s bid…but it’s still only a matter of time before Yahoo! succumbs to the pressure.
• John urges you to check out the Jasper Johns: Gray exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• Best Buy and Netflix say “no” to HD-DVD (which was later dropped by Toshiba, basically handing rival Blu-ray the victory in the format battle).
• Flickr users have started the “Microsoft: Keep Your Evil Grubby Hands Off Our Flickr“ group to protest Microsoft’s bid to acquire the photo-sharing Web site, which is owned by Yahoo! Check out the pictures (like the Microsoft-Flickr “screen of death” above).
• Check out the Technology and the Arts Events page.

Finally, here is a YouTube video of Christian Beach peforming “Open Spaces” at Paul’s Tavern in Lake Como, NJ, on Feb. 2, 2008. I appear from about the :35 mark to about 1:04 playing accordion (although you can only really hear it in the second verse of the song). Enjoy! – Brian

“Open Spaces” © 2007 C.J. Beach

MacBook Nano

MacBook Nano

Originally uploaded by dadaev

Oh how I wish.

pissoff

Yeah, Flickr is not taking well to the idea of Microsoft ownership by way of Yahoo!

pissoff

Originally uploaded by wojofoto

(T+A #28) Technology and the Arts: 2/6/2008

(T+A #28) Technology and the Arts: 2/6/2008

In this installment of the Technology and the Arts podcast, we discuss the Qtrax debacle and Microsoft’s bid for Yahoo! Plus, we’ll take a look at whiteboard application Skrbl.com, instant messaging site Meebo.com, and Library of Congress images on Flickr. Hosts: Brian Kelley and John LeMasney. File size: 13 MB. Time: 26 min., 20 sec.

Show Notes for Technology and the Arts Podcast #28

In this installment of the Technology and the Arts podcast, we discuss the Qtrax debacle and Microsoft’s bid for Yahoo! Plus, we’ll take a look at whiteboard application Skrbl.com, instant messaging site Meebo.com, and Library of Congress images on Flickr. Hosts: Brian Kelley and John LeMasney. File size: 13 MB. Time: 26 min., 20 sec.

• Subscribe to podcast via RSS feed
  
• Subscribe to podcast via iTunes

Related Links:

• This podcast was recorded at Triumph Brewing Company in Princeton, N.J. Thanks, Triumph!
• crumb.tumblr.com – John LeMasney’s tumble log.
• bktandem.tumblr.com – Brian Kelley’s tumble log.
• John promotes some future talks he has coming up: Brookdale Computer Users Group talk on open source software (especially GIMP, Inkscape and Scribus) and server technologies in March, Trenton Computer Festival in April, and Princeton Public Library Tuesday Tech Talk on using technology to lose weight.
• Brian talks about his return to the stage as he played organ and — believe it or not — accordion for his friend Christian Beach on Feb. 2, 2008, at Paul’s Tavern in Lake Como (formerly South Belmar), NJ. Watch the video at the very bottom of these show notes to see Brian playing tambourine and organ (far left…I show up every now and then) during Christian’s performance of “Poet of the Great Plains” at Saturday’s show.
• After something was misstated in the last podcast about timeline Web site Viygo.com, John and I are hoping to talk to viygo.com’s Matt Collins and Duncan Meech for an interview to appear in a future podcast.
• Microsoft has officially made a bid for Yahoo! John and Brian are among the many who are not happy about this.
• John loves these Vibe Body Sound Headphones.
• Periodic Table Printmaking Project – another topic discussed by John and the reason for the image above.
• Martin Sargent of TechTV fame has a new show…Internet Superstar.
• John discusses a few applications he has implemented on his blog at lemasney.com: whiteboard application Skrbl.com and instant messaging site Meebo.com.
• WWI: Experiences of an English Soldier – This blog features letters written by a World War I soldier that are posted online exactly 90 years after they were written, according to the dates on the original letters.
• The Library of Congress is putting 3,000 public-domain/copyright-free images on Flickr (let’s just hope Microsoft doesn’t screw that up if it gets its hands on the Yahoo-owned photo-sharing site).
• BBC Worldwide has opened up its MySpace and YouTube videos to the entire world…Brian has already posted a “Doctor Who” video on his MySpace profile.
• The similarly named “Technology in the Arts” blog writes about JotYou.com, an SMS service that takes geography and time into account.
• Finally, read all about one of the legendary tech-related disasters of all time…Qtrax! This P2P file-sharing service spent $1 million to announce it had struck deals with all four major record labels to distribute free DRM-encrypted tracks through an ad-supported service. Hours after the announcement, it became apparent that Qtrax had deals with NONE of the major labels. The Globe and Mail’s Matthew Ingram called Qtrax “one of the most bungled launches in Web 2.0 history.” Meanwhile, Ken Fisher of Ars Technica writes: “I can’t recall a launch this hyped that failed so miserably in recent years. None of the key pieces are there—the licenses, playable music, well-tested client code, the web site itself—yet they opened it to the public.” And GizmoRepublic.com referenced a famous Monty Python sketch by saying this about Qtrax: “It‘s like opening the doors to your new cheese shop, without stocking any actual cheese.”
• Check out the Technology and the Arts Events page.

And, as promised, here is the YouTube video I found of Christian Beach peforming “Poet of the Great Plains” at Paul’s Tavern in Lake Como, NJ, on Feb. 2, 2008. I enter the frame every now and then playing tambourine and organ. Enjoy!

“Poet of the Great Plains” © 2007 C.J. Beach

ICA: Programs and Events

This looks like an interesting discussion for our listeners.

John.

ICA: Programs and Events
The Business of Art

Has money ruined art? Find out as acclaimed critic Jerry Saltz and maverick dealer Jeffrey Deitch discuss the mood, the moment and the marketplace of today’s art world. Jeffrey Deitch, a graduate of Harvard Business School, was a Vice President of Citibank’s art advisory business before opening his own firm in 1988 and starting Deitch Projects in 1996. Jerry Saltz, art critic for New York Magazine, was the senior art critic at the Village Voice, where he was twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

Recording night [at] Triumph Brew Pub in Princeton

John and I recorded the Feb. 6 podcast tonight (Friday, 2/1/08) at Triumph Brew Pub in Princeton, NJ.

Let’s just say it’s a good thing we got the recording finished earlier tonight. Actually, I’m not too sure the end of the podcast has anything to do with technology and/or art.

I’m going to be doing some heavy editing on this one.

UPDATE (2/4/08)…By the way, after we finished recording Friday night, a band called The WMDs took the stage and were pretty good. Check ’em out.

– Brian

UPDATE (2/6/08) … By the way, Brian always does heavy editing on the podcast, whether we’re at Triumph or anywhere else. How about a round of applause for Brian?

– John