Lee Dunbar

Aug

23

The Round-Up

August 23, 2008

From the, ‘They aren’t buying what you are selling’ department, ComputerWorld is reporting that a full third of PC buyers are downgrading to Windows XP. Even when stripping Vista down to core components to make it as close in functionality to XP as possible, Vista was 40% slower, Barth claimed, citing recent tests Devil Mountain has performed. “Vista’s performance had been an ongoing problem, and the only thing that’s saving Microsoft’s bacon is the faster processors and more RAM on today’s PCs,” he said. “Moore’s Law is always on their side.” I have to admit that since I do a lot of video and photo editing, that a downgrade to XP would be the option I would go for as well.

I guess this is kind of old news, but Ottawa’s 20Q has a Disney version of their 20 questions game, a very addictive game I would add. Think of a place, thing or character that has something to do with Disney and see if you can stump the application.

Speaking of Disney, if you visit their webs site, you can now create your own Disney page. On a side note, when are they going to get rid of the failed go.com part of the URL?

I’m a big fan of Michael Geist. CTV reports, “Critics of the Harper government’s proposed changes to the Copyright Act have launched a cyber crusade to fight the controversial bill. They’re using everything from Facebook to YouTube to Wikipedia to blogs to get their message out. They want the government to either scrap or make serious amendments to Bill C-61 when Parliament resumes next month. At the helm of the digital movement is Michael Geist, a professor at the University of Ottawa who specializes in Internet and e-commerce law. In addition to his own blog, Geist runs a Facebook group called Fair Copyright for Canada that boasts 90,000 members.” I am also a big believer in the effectiveness of social media tools, so I will be interested to see how effective this campaign is.

The Daily Show and Colbert Report are two of my favs. The American Political Science Association has posted an article about what is coined, the “Colbert Bump“. Democratic politicians receive a 40% increase in contributions in the 30 days after appearing on the comedy cable show The Colbert Report.  In contrast, their Republican counterparts essentially gain nothing.  These findings appear to validate anecdotal evidence regarding the political impact of the program, such as the assertions by host Stephen Colbert that appearing on his program provides candidates with a “Colbert bump” or a rise in support for their election campaigns.

Tags: Design Stuff, Marketing Stuff, Neat Stuff, Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff, Web Stuff
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Aug

12

The Round-Up

August 12, 2008

“Honey I’m headed over to Sams Club, back in a few minutes.”
“Don’t forget to pick up some solar panels, I hear there is a coupon!”
All facitiousness aside, retailers and other businesses are starting to pick up on consumers’ desire for clean, sustainable energies. An article in CNET gives an overview of some of the green projects being developed and products being made available.

On that note — could solar power be reaching the magical $1 per watt?

I’m a fan of the Indiana Jones series, and after watching the last installment I thought that there was a possibility that the torch could be passed onto the next generation. This was recently dismissed by none other than Lucas himself. “George Lucas says he’s already identified the one person who can keep the “Indiana Jones” franchise going: Harrison Ford. The filmmaker scoffed at the possibility of passing the famed fedora from Ford to Shia LaBeouf, the 22-year-old actor who played Indy’s son Mutt Williams in this summer’s “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.”

Tags: Community Stuff, Retail Stuff, Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff
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Jun

17

A long, long time ago I was working my first job after college at an advertising agency. One of the projects I worked on was designing the first ever, and subsequent issues of “Just Fishing”, Big Jim McLaughlin’s newsprint magazine. It was a lot of hard work, a lot of fun and it was great meeting Big Jim. He’s a big man, with a big heart, big stories and a big sense of humour.

Big Jim, recently diagnosed with prostate cancer, faces the toughest battle of his life, and now his old friends at Muskie’s Canada have set up a raffle to assist the big guy in his fight.

“Everybody knows Big Jim and what he has done as an ambassador for fishing,” said Matt Clay of Muskie’s Canada. Four awesome prize packages have been put together with the help of local vendors and are being raffled off at $5 a ticket. Each package is valued at more than $1,200 and each ticket offers a chance to win some great tackle, with proceeds going to help Big Jim with his cancer treatments. It is a small price to pay for a guy who has helped so many in the outdoor community, so I urge you to dig deep.

To purchase a ticket, please call Clay at (613) 723-9234 or e-mail him at mattclay@rogers.com.

Tags: Just Stuff, Sports Stuff
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Jun

2

When Luc Bourdon took off his jersey, signed it and gave it to a fan as part of the ‘Nucks’ “Jersey Off Our Backs” promotion — no one could have known that it would be the last time. At just 21 years of age, he died tragically in a motorcycle accident last week. Seemingly with the world in the palm of his hands, his bright future was cut far too short because he lost control of his new motorcycle and collided with a transport truck.

Amidst this most sorrowful time, and as more than 2000 people turned out to show their final respects for this Shippagan, N.B., native, news circulates of a considerable act of kindness. The person who won Luc’s signed jersey at the Canucks’ final home game anonymously sent it to Luc’s family. While nothing can relieve the pain of losing your child, I am sure their will be some comfort in having the jersey he wore in his final NHL game.

To the person who sent the jersey to Luc’s family, a thank you for showing what class hockey fans have — and for showing such compassion for the Bourdon family. That’s an example what being Canadian is all about.

Tags: Sports Stuff
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May

14

News is that Versus wants to use puck tracking technology. Fox did this. It was a joke. By way of ‘guilty by association’ the NHL was seen as a joke. Using cheap parlour tactics that were more of a distraction than enhancement to a person’s enjoyment or understanding of the game.

Anyone who understands hockey will tell you that what is important for viewers to understand and watch is how a play develops, the position of the players on the ice. Not — “Versus’ senior vice president of programming, says puck tracking could be a great tool to trace the pinpoint passing of NHL stars. “You could see how they thread the needle,” he says. That’s obviously a guy that doesn’t get it.

The time a player has the puck on their stick during a game can be measured in seconds. Of the average twelve or so minutes players are on the ice, (as little as a couple of minutes for role players to the high twenties for first defence pairings), most is spent without the puck. To put such focus on the puck would lose the very essence of the game. What every coach should be teaching children learning the game — what you do without the puck is the most important part of hockey. If you aren’t in the right position: a) you likely won’t get the puck; and b) you will be out of position to do anything with it if you do receive it.

What would be far more effective is to have someone with a telestrator immediately review a play during a stoppage — a tracker might work here — just not live. That’s how people will learn to appreciate the game. Not with glowing pucks that show “pinpoint passes”

 

 

Tags: Experience Design Stuff, Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff
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May

12

Monday Round-Up

May 12, 2008

Will fuel surcharges added to airfare force Canadians to vacation closer to home? That’s one thought — but this could be offset with the strong Canadian dollar. But then again, disposable income is disappearing fast! “It’s going to increase the cost of travel and will eat away at discretionary income of Canadian households, which will have an effect on leisure travel,” says Randy Williams, head of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada.

The Emergency Management Office is cautioning Nova Scotians that 911 calls placed over the Internet may not be as safe as emergency calls over a land line.

Are you being watched when you’re online? Odds are good that you are. The National Post writes that the Privacy Commissioner is launching an investigation into whether Canada’s telecommunications giants are breaking the law when they use technology that allows the companies to monitor the online activities of their Internet customers.

Over at bloomberg.com, Kevin Hassett questions whether the humble polar bear could cause oil to go over $200. If the polar bear is declared as a threatened species, it could cause some serious side effects.

Are regulations getting in the way of the adoption of green fuels? Yet another reason to shake your head.

What’s wrong with the NHL? Here’s just one thing.

Tags: Business Stuff, Community Stuff, Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff, Web Stuff
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May

9

Seems Andrew Brash is encountering some surreal moments on this expedition. Below is an excerpt from his May 6, 2008 dispatch …

Yes, as if any year on Everest wasn’t weird, I’ve had to make special mention that this year really is peculiar. Guns, army, ambassadors, foreign secretaries…admittedly there hasn’t been much else to do but read while we wait for a certain group of people to summit this mountain on a certain route, carrying a certain piece of flaming hardware to the top. A tall order they’ve given themselves, let’s face it, and it’s the reason we’re now waiting the strangeness out in the teahouse village of Dingboche. I have to say though, that I’m glad I’m here giving this a go and not sitting on the sidelines at home. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, as they say.

You can read the rest of this and other dispatches as he climbs to the summit.

Tags: Just Stuff, Sports Stuff
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May

5

Monday Round-Up

May 5, 2008

Ottawa Festivals launched the commencement of festival season this week at a ceremony held at City Hall. The organization represents 43 different festivals, events and fairs in Canada’s Capital Region.

Is Disney recession proof?

And then there were 4. While the Pens will take on Philly in the East, the Stars will meet the Wings in the West. What has been odd this season, is how short the first two rounds have been — the majority of the series have gone only 4 or 5 games.

Tags: Brand Experience Stuff, Community Stuff, Just Stuff, Sports Stuff
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Apr

16

Live from Everest!

April 16, 2008

You can read live dispatches from Andrew Brash has he climbs Everest.

Read the live dispatches from Everest here.

More about Andrew Brash here.

Tags: Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff, Web Stuff
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Feb

26

It’s NHL Trade Deadline Day!

February 26, 2008

There is no more proof than the NHL trade deadline to show just how deeply hockey has woven itself into the fabric of Canadian culture. The McGuinty Liberal government may just as well have declared the NHL trade deadline a holiday instead of the new Family Day. In office settings, the water cooler chat is centred around the trades or non-trades, people have their ear close to their desktops listening to online reports from radio stations and some people even get a mysterious 24 hour virus.

It’s addictive. It is amazing how your ears perk up, a chill climbs your back and the hair on your neck stands up when guys like Dreger, McKenzie or Duthie utter those magical words, “We have a trade.”

I remember two years ago I was in Florida for the trade deadline, and I was going through serious deadline news withdrawal. I knew that news wouldn’t be forthcoming at Disney’s MGM Studios, and quite frankly watching ESPN when we got back from the park really didn’t shed a light on things either. The next day I picked up a copy of USA Today from a box outside the restaurant at the Disney resort where we were staying – and not a whole lot of news there. It wasn’t until we were in Downtown Disney the next night that I stumbled upon an Internet cafe in DisneyQuest and was able to go to TSN’s web site to view a quick overview of the trades.

That all said, I am not expecting a very busy trade deadline this year. There are far too many teams in the hunt for a playoff spot – a result of the parity that the cap has created. There will be a few ‘rental players’, but there is more chance of good old fashion ‘hockey trades’ as more teams are trying to improve themselves at both ends of the deal.

In any case, it will still be an interesting day.

Updated 7:30PM: Hmmm, I guess I read that one wrong. Lot’s of teams stocking up on players for their playoff run, resulting in 25 transactions today. Some of the surprising buyers were teams that are currently out of the playoffs and looking for some muscle to help them get in.

Tags: Sports Stuff
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