The future comes, in some ways, quickly...

In some ways, the world is becoming very advanced.  I have to admit to being a computer nerd/geek/pundit since I can remember.  If you want to see my history with computers, here is the story. The things that we have seen in the last few years really amaze me sometimes.  We are catching up with science fiction in so many ways, even though we seem to be earth-bound without hope of exploring space anytime soon, but that is a rant for another day.

Think about it, we have communicators from star trek, we're starting to get tri-corders and I work for the company who will one day bring you the death star :)  (I work for the DOD in the Missile Defense Agency's Directed Energy program, we just successfully tested the first Airborne Laser against a bad guy Missile.)

Well, if you're like me, you watched the movie Minority Report and saw Tom Cruise using that amazing computer interface, where he just gestured and things moved around on the screen.  I know I loved that interface, even more than Hugh Jackman's computer in Swordfish. Well, here is the news... it's real.  That interface from Minority Report was, and is real.  The guy who did the tech consulting for the movie is really a Professor who does this for a living.  He recently gave a talk at TED which I will link for you here.



John Underkoffler points to the future of UI

If you think we have a future that isn't filled with civil war, zombies or alien invasions, watch this and be impressed, then wait, like me, for this to happen :)

God I can't wait for the future... oh hell, it's here now.  my iPad is calling, gotta go.

Just when you think humans are all too evil...

You come across a story like this.

Forget the inner city vs suburban slant, this was a group of young ladies, coaches and fans that realize there is more to High School Sports than winning and losing, sometimes, it really is all about how you play the game!

I'm not going to drone on about it, read the article and you decide.  For me, I'll go to be a little more peaceful tonight!

We live in a world where Peyton Manning walks off the Super Bowl field without shaking anybody's hand. Where Tiger Woods leaves the Masters without a word of thanks to the fans or congratulations to the winner. Where NFL lineman Albert Haynesworth kicks a man's helmetless head without a thought.

So if you think sportsmanship is toast, this next story is an all-you-can-eat buffet to a starving man.

It happened at a junior varsity girls' softball game in Indianapolis this spring. After an inning and a half, Roncalli was womanhandling inner-city Marshall Community. Marshall pitchers had already walked nine Roncalli batters. The game could've been 50-0 with no problem.

Yes, a team that hadn't lost a game in 2½ years, a team that was going to win in a landslide purposely offered to declare defeat. Why? Because Roncalli wanted to spend the two hours teaching the Marshall girls how to get better, not how to get humiliated.

It's no wonder. This was the first softball game in Marshall history. A middle school trying to move up to include grades 6 through 12, Marshall showed up to the game with five balls, two bats, no helmets, no sliding pads, no cleats, 16 players who'd never played before, and a coach who'd never even seen a game.

One Marshall player asked, "Which one is first base?" Another: "How do I hold this bat?" They didn't know where to stand in the batter's box. Their coaches had to be shown where the first- and third-base coaching boxes were.

That's when Roncalli did something crazy. It offered to forfeit.

Yes, a team that hadn't lost a game in 2½ years, a team that was going to win in a landslide purposely offered to declare defeat. Why? Because Roncalli wanted to spend the two hours teaching the Marshall girls how to get better, not how to get humiliated.

"The Marshall players did NOT want to quit," wrote Roncalli JV coach Jeff Traylor, in recalling the incident. "They were willing to lose 100 to 0 if it meant they finished their first game." But the Marshall players finally decided if Roncalli was willing to forfeit for them, they should do it for themselves. They decided that maybe -- this one time -- losing was actually winning.

That's about when the weirdest scene broke out all over the field: Roncalli kids teaching Marshall kids the right batting stance, throwing them soft-toss in the outfield, teaching them how to play catch. They showed them how to put on catching gear, how to pitch, and how to run the bases. Even the umps stuck around to watch.

"One at a time the Marshall girls would come in to hit off of the [Roncalli] pitchers," Traylor recalled. "As they hit the ball their faces LIT UP! They were high fiving and hugging the girls from Roncalli, thanking them for teaching to them the game."

This is the kind of thing that can backfire with teenagers -- the rich kids taking pity on the inner-city kids kind of thing. Traylor was afraid of it, too.

"One wrong attitude, one babying approach from our players would shut down the Marshall team, who already were down," wrote Traylor. "But our girls made me as proud as I have ever been. ... [By the end], you could tell they were having a blast. The change from the beginning of the game to the end of the practice was amazing."

Roncalli wasn't done. Traylor asked all the parents of his players and anybody else he knew for more help for Marshall -- used bats, gloves, helmets, money for cleats, gloves, sliders, socks and team shirts. They came up with $2,500 and worked with Marshall on the best way to help the program with that money. Roncalli also connected Marshall with former Bishop Chatard coach Kim Wright, who will advise the program.

"We probably got to some things 10 years quicker than we would have had without Roncalli," says Marshall principal Michael Sullivan.

And that was just the appetizer. A rep from Reebok called Sullivan and said, "What do you need? We'll get it for you." A man who owns an indoor batting cage facility has offered free time in the winter. The Cincinnati Reds are donating good dirt for the new field Marshall will play on.

"This could've been a thing where our kids had too much pride," says Sullivan. "You know, 'I'm not going to listen to anybody.' But our kids are really thirsty to learn."

And they are. Marshall never won a game, but actually had leads in its last three games. In fact, it went so well, the players and their parents asked if they could extend the season, so they're looking to play AAU summer softball.

Just a thought: Major League Baseball is pulling hamstrings trying to figure out how to bring baseball back to the inner city. Maybe it should put the Roncalli and Marshall girls in charge?

Anyway, it's not an important story, just one that squirts apple juice right in your face. And who knows? Maybe someday, Marshall will be beating Roncalli in the final inning, realize how far it has come, and forfeit again, just as a thank you.

Rock on!

Here is the link to the ESPN Original Story...

Print is Dead, Long live the iPad!

Or how I learned to love the computer that isn’t a computer after all…

Ok, so I have lived now with my iPad (named Ruth) since the release date.   (Yes, I was an early adopter who convinced himself that he didn’t want 3G.   I still stand by that conviction.  This thing is dangerous enough with just Wi-Fi.  But read on.) Now, a while back, some of you may recall, that I blogged about how Print was dead when the Kindle came out.  I stand by that assertion even more now.  But I do intend to amend my earlier stand on the big newspapers.  The reason, the iPad may just end up saving them??  This little device is amazing!

I have learned one huge thing about the iPad in the months that I have had it.  That is, quite simply, I would be lost without it anymore.  The reason?  It truly is all things to all people.  I know, I know, that’s a pretty heady thing to generalize.  How can I make such a blanket statement?  Easy.

This device is going to change the world.

That’s right, I said it.  I feel better too.

Why will it change the world?  (please Bill, tell us why you think this.)  Ok, I’ll tell ya.

#1 It will teach people that it is ok to be a content consumer and not a content creator.  It is my belief that that too many people and companies have believed for too long that in order to be a part of the “internet society” you have to add to the miasma of stuff that is out there on them interwebs.  The sheer number of blog-o-sites that used to infect the internet has finally calmed down, the cream risen to the top (i.e. Huffpost, Boing-boing, Mashable…) and the rest have fallen away.   The iPad will demonstrate to people that it is ok to just view, consume and use the internet, you don’t always have to contribute to it. (Disregarding FaceBook, twitter and baby-blogs (like me!))

#2 It is an internet enabled application device.  Notice I did not say it was a computer.  In my view, it really isn’t a computer at all.  Oh sure you can do word processing and spreadsheets, even presentations, but is that really it’s focus?  I think not.  There is a great video on YouTube of a guy that put Velcro on his iPad and then stuck Velcro all over his LIFE.  When he was in the car, the iPad was his navigation device, on his motorcycle, it velcro’d to the tank, giving directions again.  In the kitchen, it was stuck to the cabinet letting him read recipes.  In the bedroom it was stuck to the wall to watch movies.  Although this was a funny video, it drives home my point.  It is not so much of a computer as a useful application device.

#3 It will not replace your laptop on trips, or will it?  Let’s be real for a moment here.  When you pack your laptop for the trip your taking, do you take it to do a) lots of business related spreadsheet and document creation or b) solitaire, e-mail, twitter, YouTube, CNN, more solitaire, a movie, a TV show stream etc?  I’ll bet most of us answered B.  I know I did.  Here’s why, if you’re on the plane and the spreadsheet you’re working is still not done, chances are your too late to get it done right anyhow.  I know, I know, some of us are always working and that time in the plane is perfect to get a lot of office stuff done.  (I think you’re the exception, but then again?)

#4 It will manage and consume as much of your life as you let it.  Trust me on this one.  It will handle your calendar, your to-do lists, your shopping and everything else that you download the app for.  You could conceivably run your entire digital life from it.  Or, you can just use it to make the things you enjoy a bit more enjoyable.  It’s your choice.

#5 Don’t listen to the Nay-Sayers who whine about the no flash memory slot, the lack of drives, no output connectors etc.  Computers need those, and this is not a computer.  Get over it!  It is NOT A COMPUTER. It will do a myriad of things that a computer will do,  but it is not a computer.  The Apple Haters will continue, but I don’t care, because it is immaterial to my point.

I said this device will change the world, and it will.  I have not said that it will be the first/last of its kind.  As I write this, every silicon valley company is desperately rushing a tablet to market.  In Taiwan I hear you can buy tablets by the dozen,  cheaply.  Who knows what the offerings from Micro$oft, Google and HP will be like?  They might be lame, or they might be better, but here is the deal.  One way or the other, Tablet computers are here to stay and there is now a bar to aim for.  The iPad may end up the winner or the whiner, but it certainly has changed the face of computing for everyone.  Everyone is now forced to make a competitor.  Who knows, something may come out that is way better, but we all win, no matter what happens.

Cases in point.  I just had to do an online class for business.  I did it all, almost exclusively on my iPad because it was web based.  My friend Mark and I play war-games (The board game type, not the shoot-em ups on computers).  I have been able to put most all of the rule sets we  use on the iPad for reference during the games.   It is incredibly handy as a reference during the game.  Using GoodReader to view PDFs, I can search for the terms we need to look at.  It’s a huge timesaver.

So, in summary, this pseudo-review ends by noting the last great thing this device does.  Read books.  It has completely replaced my Kindle, not in the least because Amazon made that happen.  They released their book reader software, made it completely compatible with the iPad and then made it so that all my books magically appeared from my Kindle onto my iPad.  Do you think Jeff Bezos at Amazon see’s something coming too?

I think so…  The iPad has changed the world.  The computer is personal again... Now let’s all sit back, watch and enjoy.