I have migrated this blog to a new host with a new coat of paint courtesy of WordPress.
Please continue to follow An Open Forum at its new location, blog.andrewhubbs.com.
Andrew
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Throw open the gates
Over the last year I have become acutely aware of how visible my presence online has become. From Facebook to Foursquare to Twitter to LinkedIn to OkCupid and even a Myspace account I can't delete because I didn't create it, no longer have the password and it has a misspelled email address (that last one is pretty rough). What's more, I expect over the next 5 years the number of places and kinds of data on me publicly available online will balloon in size rapidly (Think Blippy. Even just 10 years ago society would have simply said "WTF guys").
My initial reaction was to reduce my exposure while I still could and carefully tailor what I kept visible. While this was absolutely a reasonable and necessary starting point, I have since then shifted my opinion almost 180 degrees. This post is to justify why I think it is in my best interest to embrace openness almost universally.
Because this topic is of immense interest to me, this will be a series of posts weakly organized as follows. Why openness online is good for me, why it is good for society, tools for maintaining yourself online and venues to express yourself, and finally the dangers in it. This is a heavily discussed topic online and I could probably link you to about 30 posts better than this exploring the topic, but then I might as well just post a lmgtfy.com link and be done with it.
Several months ago, I went through every post, message, picture, etc of myself on Facebook. This took several hours and started out as a house cleaning chore and ended as the extremely emotional task of reflecting on my life as a college student. It gave me the opportunity to make a concrete analysis of myself based on a carefully recorded history like almost no one has been able to do ever before. My personality changed so drastically over the period of 3 1/2 years I was barely able to recognize what I was really thinking for many of the early snippets I went through. While it wasn't this that planted the seed, it was definitely this that first nourished my thoughts of moving to the Bay Area. I could go into a dozen different things I took note of and how each was/is/will be valuable to me, but the point that matters here is that this is something I want to be able to do again (hopefully with more powerful metrics and more diverse data at my disposal).
You might say this is independent of openness and that I could have accomplished this with a diary but I disagree. Much of what I found most interesting was my interactions with others. Had this been documented in a diary, filtered by my biases and personality, I doubt I would have had the same reactions to it (though possibly equally meaningful ones).
While this could be accomplished in many ways, consciously maintaining an open online presences gives me multiple opportunities throughout the day to briefly take inventory of my thoughts, mood and environment. Almost daily, I find out I am in an awful mood and need to realign; or realize I am doing something amazing and remind myself to take the time to appreciate it. This impossible to quantity side effect of regularly posting a tweet or status update or foursquare check in brings tangible benefits daily. There are very few other things I can say that about in my life (and probably many more that are daily negatives in my life).
It is therapeutic for me. As almost anyone I have ever had a close relationship with will tell you, I am very guarded with my feelings and I am generally reluctant, if not down right hostile, to regular communication especially when I am the subject of conversation. In retrospect, I am almost universally disappointed in the level and quality of input I have given in every frank, emotionally charged moment shared with others. By being more frank and open to the entire world I am slowly becoming much more capable at acting the same with individuals (One rather negative caveat to this is that I often justify not contacting the people I am close to with the idea that they can just as easily keep up with me online as if that is a suitable substitute for direct communication).
I have always been in a hurry to do things. High school took too long so I left early. Same with college. I always run up stairs. I eat way to fast. I hate writing because it is so much slower than thinking. I speed in my car like I have a death wish. Being anywhere more than a few moments makes me antsy. The list could go on and on. I think (or at least hope) this is all due to me being in a hurry to make an impact on the world. The internet is the most powerful tool the individual has for impacting the world. So it makes perfect sense that if you want to get anything done, leveraging the internet is your best bet for doing it. If the internet doesn't know who you are, good luck asking it to do something for you.
Finally, whether you agree with anything else I have said or not, it is undeniable that this is the way of the future. So you can either ride the wave or get smothered by it. How long do you really think you have before you won't be able to order a pizza without your online handle? Apply to a job without an online portfolio? Vote in elections through anything but an online portal with your verified online ID? Buy a plane ticket, rent a car, book a hotel room, etc? Not to mention have any idea what anyone around you is doing. Already I decide what events I am going to attend almost entirely online.
I am of the opinion that establishing a presence in the spot light on my terms is infinitely better than being dragged kicking and screaming into it on everyone else's. So throw open the gates to your life and put out a digital welcome mat to the world. If you don't then the only people that will have all of your information will be the ones you don't want to but that already do. Namely, the Googles of the world, the Government and the creepy guy with binoculars across the street.
Part II: Why it is good for society coming soon.
Andrew
If anyone is wondering, all of my online profiles are configured to be totally public. The only exception is for content about me not posted directly by me, but most of this is also available.
My initial reaction was to reduce my exposure while I still could and carefully tailor what I kept visible. While this was absolutely a reasonable and necessary starting point, I have since then shifted my opinion almost 180 degrees. This post is to justify why I think it is in my best interest to embrace openness almost universally.
Because this topic is of immense interest to me, this will be a series of posts weakly organized as follows. Why openness online is good for me, why it is good for society, tools for maintaining yourself online and venues to express yourself, and finally the dangers in it. This is a heavily discussed topic online and I could probably link you to about 30 posts better than this exploring the topic, but then I might as well just post a lmgtfy.com link and be done with it.
Several months ago, I went through every post, message, picture, etc of myself on Facebook. This took several hours and started out as a house cleaning chore and ended as the extremely emotional task of reflecting on my life as a college student. It gave me the opportunity to make a concrete analysis of myself based on a carefully recorded history like almost no one has been able to do ever before. My personality changed so drastically over the period of 3 1/2 years I was barely able to recognize what I was really thinking for many of the early snippets I went through. While it wasn't this that planted the seed, it was definitely this that first nourished my thoughts of moving to the Bay Area. I could go into a dozen different things I took note of and how each was/is/will be valuable to me, but the point that matters here is that this is something I want to be able to do again (hopefully with more powerful metrics and more diverse data at my disposal).
You might say this is independent of openness and that I could have accomplished this with a diary but I disagree. Much of what I found most interesting was my interactions with others. Had this been documented in a diary, filtered by my biases and personality, I doubt I would have had the same reactions to it (though possibly equally meaningful ones).
While this could be accomplished in many ways, consciously maintaining an open online presences gives me multiple opportunities throughout the day to briefly take inventory of my thoughts, mood and environment. Almost daily, I find out I am in an awful mood and need to realign; or realize I am doing something amazing and remind myself to take the time to appreciate it. This impossible to quantity side effect of regularly posting a tweet or status update or foursquare check in brings tangible benefits daily. There are very few other things I can say that about in my life (and probably many more that are daily negatives in my life).
It is therapeutic for me. As almost anyone I have ever had a close relationship with will tell you, I am very guarded with my feelings and I am generally reluctant, if not down right hostile, to regular communication especially when I am the subject of conversation. In retrospect, I am almost universally disappointed in the level and quality of input I have given in every frank, emotionally charged moment shared with others. By being more frank and open to the entire world I am slowly becoming much more capable at acting the same with individuals (One rather negative caveat to this is that I often justify not contacting the people I am close to with the idea that they can just as easily keep up with me online as if that is a suitable substitute for direct communication).
I have always been in a hurry to do things. High school took too long so I left early. Same with college. I always run up stairs. I eat way to fast. I hate writing because it is so much slower than thinking. I speed in my car like I have a death wish. Being anywhere more than a few moments makes me antsy. The list could go on and on. I think (or at least hope) this is all due to me being in a hurry to make an impact on the world. The internet is the most powerful tool the individual has for impacting the world. So it makes perfect sense that if you want to get anything done, leveraging the internet is your best bet for doing it. If the internet doesn't know who you are, good luck asking it to do something for you.
Finally, whether you agree with anything else I have said or not, it is undeniable that this is the way of the future. So you can either ride the wave or get smothered by it. How long do you really think you have before you won't be able to order a pizza without your online handle? Apply to a job without an online portfolio? Vote in elections through anything but an online portal with your verified online ID? Buy a plane ticket, rent a car, book a hotel room, etc? Not to mention have any idea what anyone around you is doing. Already I decide what events I am going to attend almost entirely online.
I am of the opinion that establishing a presence in the spot light on my terms is infinitely better than being dragged kicking and screaming into it on everyone else's. So throw open the gates to your life and put out a digital welcome mat to the world. If you don't then the only people that will have all of your information will be the ones you don't want to but that already do. Namely, the Googles of the world, the Government and the creepy guy with binoculars across the street.
Part II: Why it is good for society coming soon.
Andrew
If anyone is wondering, all of my online profiles are configured to be totally public. The only exception is for content about me not posted directly by me, but most of this is also available.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Blog: Act I Scene I Take VI
After at least half a dozen false starts, half written posts and pointless junk I am going to make an honest attempt to put up what I feel is meaningful content over the coming months. I already have several series planned. Most posts are going to focus in one of several major topic areas. Namely, the internet, programming, philosophy, humor, emerging technology, politics, health and media reviews. How this breakdown ends up being is going to be a reflection on my day to day life and any feedback I get from readers.
I hope some of this content will be found compelling, interesting or at least worth a decent chuckle at my expense to whatever readership develops. I thought about deleting the couple of posts before this one, but they should provide that chuckle I was talking about.
Also, a major face lift is coming to the page over the next couple weeks. This will most likely be transfered to a Wordpress blog at andrewhubbs.com/blog.
Expect NYT's headline tomorrow to read "NERD ANNOUNCES BLOG, AGAIN"
Andrew
PS This will hopefully be as close to meta-blogging as you will see me go. Should that start to happen, abandon ship ASAP. The last thing the world needs is another meta-blogger.
I hope some of this content will be found compelling, interesting or at least worth a decent chuckle at my expense to whatever readership develops. I thought about deleting the couple of posts before this one, but they should provide that chuckle I was talking about.
Also, a major face lift is coming to the page over the next couple weeks. This will most likely be transfered to a Wordpress blog at andrewhubbs.com/blog.
Expect NYT's headline tomorrow to read "NERD ANNOUNCES BLOG, AGAIN"
Andrew
PS This will hopefully be as close to meta-blogging as you will see me go. Should that start to happen, abandon ship ASAP. The last thing the world needs is another meta-blogger.
Monday, March 01, 2010
10 Best Picture Nominees
This year the Oscars have changed the Best Picture category from 5 back to 10 nominees. There has been a small amount of debate about whether this is good, bad, or meaningless for the award, so I figured I'd throw in my two cents. About a month ago I heard a story on NPR while driving home from work that came to the defense of the additional nominees. You can find the online version of that story here. Essentially the argument was that it opens up the category to include movies that most Americans have had an opportunity to see and not just the small indie films that have dominated the category in recent years. Thus expanding interest in the awards in general and giving a nod to some of the big blockbuster successes of the year. Besides, there is no harm in recognizing a few more titles that aren't going to win anyways.
As you might of guessed, I don't agree. A huge number of films come out each year, both big and small budget. The majority of Americans are only exposed to a small number of them and actually see an even smaller slice. Of those, it is always disproportionately swung in favor of the blockbusters with advertising budgets larger than most films entire budgets. These films are heavy on special effects and stars and usually light on story, character development, and dialog quality.
The Best Picture category is for the films that really excel to have a chance to be singled out from the year's huge junk pile. By expanding the category back to 10 films with the express purpose of including big budget crap heaps like The Blind Side, you are destroying that distinction. A Best Picture nomination, rather than confirming the average American cinema goer's opinion, should provide a quality list of movies to expand a movie watcher's horizons. Now you are going to see The Blind Side sitting on a shelf advertised with the same claim to quality as A Serious Man. This further reduces movie watchers chances of seeing the best movies of the year. When a small film is nominated for Best Picture it usually receives a wider, extended theater release as well as expanded DVD distribution and therefore increased exposure to the American masses. Expanding the field to 10 will be pushing lower quality movies up at the expense of the very best.
When I was a kid and played sports at the YMCA my dad would always be angry that they gave trophies to every kid and not just the champions because it made that trophy meaningless. While it is absolutely absurd to make this distinction in a league of 8 year olds who spend more time picking flowers than paying attention to the soccer ball, this is a serious consequence worth noting for an award toted as the ultimate accomplishment in film. What would you think if the IOC added a 4th, 5th, and 6th place medal to the Olympics so smaller countries would be more interested in watching them?
While there are countless examples of great movies that have been left out over the last 65 years, this year is a perfect example of how this change won't fix that problem. In my opinion the change is a shameless attempt to boost ratings and in turn advertising revenue for the awards show at the expense of the awards themselves. While it is easy to say doubling the field at worst doesn't hurt the award and at best creates a stronger list of great films everyone in America will enjoy, I think this is short sighted and just one more way the American film industry is conditioning viewers to accept worse and worse films at higher and higher ticket prices.
Andrew H
Backups
Last night I had quite a scare when I thought my external HDD, where I store all of my media, important documents, and past work, was corrupted. I spent about 20 minutes frantically trying to find my files while cursing that I hadn't backed things up to another location. Eventually I managed to get everything to show back up. Still not sure what the problem was but I am counting it as a blessing and a second chance to learn that I should back things up before I lose them.
So I thought why not write a small list of things people can do to keep their important files from being lost and give some links to some good resources.
So I thought why not write a small list of things people can do to keep their important files from being lost and give some links to some good resources.
- If you have a laptop and you treat it like a bombproof Frisbee like me then it is definitely a good idea to have an external HDD that you regularly backup your system to. Mine sits on my desk and runs an automatic backup once a week that keeps everything necessary to replace my whole OS installation. This is really easy to do and there is a variety of tutorials and free software to help. My only recommendation here is to automate the process so you don't need to rely on yourself to do it regularly. This is a pretty good free piece of software to do backups with. SyncBack
- Save the things that really matter to multiple places. For me that is bank records, the lease for my house, password information, photos, past projects, important emails, and other assorted documents. These were the items I was devastated about losing last night. I took all of these things and burned them to a DVD and a spare flash drive the moment I found them again. Then I took one copy and buried it in an unmarked location somewhere in the DFW area... No, but the safe where you keep your passport, SS card, gun, money, and drugs is probably a good place to put a copy of this stuff as well. (Remember to put at least some kind of password protection on this as you definitely don't want your trusty backup full of bank records and passwords being picked up by anybody else.)
- Back up your data online. There are almost an infinite number of websites that provide this service and LifeHacker already has a great post on this so check it out for what to do. This is the best means for protecting your files and easy to do. You can get a decent amount of space for free or unlimited space for quite cheap.
I hope this leads at least one other person to back up their files before it is too late. This is one of the most preached topics on the internet and I'm sure that like me you have been aware of this for years. Also like me I'd guess you don't actually heed this warning either. Maybe today should be that day you change your mind. Remember that on a long enough time line all HDDs will fail and that that time line is probably shorter than you think.
Andrew H
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