Wet October

Normally this is Fire Season
Typically the first two or three weeks of October are hot and dry, very dry. This is normally our fire season. But, not this year. We have had a very wet and cool October. Heavy rains at times have caused spot flooding on campus. If this is any indication, it will be a long winter this year. That is good, we need the rain.

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Major outage at the King library today

According to informed sources, "there has been a major blackout in the data center of the SJSU public library." Both their data and phone communication systems have been affected. Students have not been able to use the computer labs there. Students can go to the Clark Hall computer lab or the AS computer lab in the student union.

Update: 11:04am
Reportedly their phone system is back up, but data resources are coming back online a few at a time. It is not known when all systems will be online.

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Boy

Jacob was born when we were away
Then all last week we were sick. So, our first meeting with this cute guy, our grandson, had to wait. Well, the best part of being well was meeting this sweet guy. Jeff and Nicole are lucky parents. First Madison and now Jacob. He is a sweet baby!

[Click here to see more photos]

Yesterday at JACC

We had a great time presenting at JACC
What a thrill and honor it was for Cynthia McCune and I presenting at yesterday's Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC) Northern California conference at SJSU. It was standing room only in the room. We had a limited amount of time so I had to rush through this PowerPoint. If folks would like to view it at a slower pace, here it is in PDF format. To save file space I have not encapsulated the videos. Links to them are in this PDF.

Some folks asked, how do I get started using emerging technology? In my opinion the place to start is to start a blog. No matter what it is about, start. It can be about your friends and family. It doesn't matter (in fact that can be the best place to start) blogging is as easy as doing email! Set aside a couple of minutes every day. You have to use the tools regularly in my humble opinion (IMHO). Besides, sending a daily email to the world every day can be a real gift to your future generations and to yourself a few years from now.

Then, I recommend you start reading. Here is a brief reading list to get you started:

• We The Media; Dan Gillmor
• The Innovator's Dilemma; Clayton Christensen
• The Cluetrain Manifesto; Chris Locke, Doc Searls, David Weinberger
• Naked Conversations; Robert Scoble, Shel Israel
• The World is Flat; Thomas Friedman
• Smart Mobs; Howard Rheingold

Enjoy, and thanks for reading!
~Steve

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I am at JACC Norcal

The Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC)
The first JACC meeting I attended was in 1975, as a student. Well, in a sense I am a student again. Justin Beck, the multimedia guy from the San Francisco Chronicle is doing a presentation on podcasting. He is a former radio guy and an early podcaster. He is talking about how newspaper podcasts differ from traditional newspaper reporting and how radio journalism is and is not like podcast journalism. His focus is audio podcasts, not on video, and I am really enjoying his great presentation.

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Apple and Success

Is Apple facing issues dealing with success?
According to this posting in Business Week:

By broadening its share of the computer market and diving into whole new businesses, the company has become a case study in the challenges of taking a cherished brand with a devoted (some would say cult) following into the mainstream. "The customer base is now more diverse, including students and mainstream consumers, and it's harder to satisfy as a whole," says Lopo L. Rego, a marketing professor at the University of Iowa who studies the impact of customer satisfaction on financial performance.

The article goes on to talk about issues other companies have faced dealing with success and growth.

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The heart of the union

The heart of the union
While it is easy to get caught up in hearing the wonderful speeches at the big union meetings like General Council by labor leaders like Andy Stern and politicians like Dennis Kucinich. Yes, that is all great, but the real heart of our union is those many many activists who donate their time and do the hard work without fame or monetary reward. It is folks like Frank and Kathryn and our SJSU labor reps like Jeff, Dennis and Vera and so very many more other unpaid volunteers at all our campuses that make our union work. It is these folks who are the heart of the union and who we all owe a huge debt to. They all deserve our thanks and our admiration because they are all good people who give us so much. Because they all care about us; we have a union.

[See More General Council Photos here on Flickr]

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iPod Touch as Thin Client Mac

iPod Touch as Ultra Mobile Portable Thin Client Tablet Mac
This post was done from an iPod Touch. This is what I call an ultra mobile PC. Or, should I say, an Ultra Mobile Thin client Tablet Mac. With its ability to use AJAX Web apps (and it's lack of local apps for doing "work") the iPod Touch is really a cross between a tilt iPod and a wireless only thin client. This it seems to do very well. Considering the fact that it uses a light version of Mac OS X. It is not out of line to think of this as a thin client Mac. Or, the UMPTCM!

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Steve's birthday today

Son Steve's Birthday
Today my eldest son, Steve turned 31. It seems amazing to have a son in his thirties. Steve is doing well and is living just east of Seattle with his wife Luci and their kids. Steve is working at Boeing. I wish we could be with them today. They are all very much in our thoughts. Happy birthday son!

Dreamworks Animation SKG CEO to visit SJSU

From the President's Office:

President Don Kassing will moderate a conversation with Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO and director of DreamWorks Animation SKG, on Thursday, October 11, from 2 to 3:15 pm in Morris Daily Auditorium. The campus community is cordially invited to attend and get an inside view of the company and movie-making from this undisputed giant in the industry; there will be a question-and-answer segment for the audience at the end of the conversation.

A pioneer in computer-generated animation, Dreamworks is the creator of Academy Award-winning Shrek, Shark Tale, and Shrek 2, the third-highest grossing movie of all time. Upcoming new releases include Kung Fu Panda and Madagascar: The Crate Escape.

Jeffrey Katzenberg co-founded and was a principal member of DreamWorks Studios from its founding in October 1994 until its sale to Paramount in January 2006. Prior to founding DreamWorks Studios, Katzenberg served as chairman of the board of The Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994. As chairman, he was responsible for the worldwide production, marketing and distribution of all Disney filmed entertainment, including motion pictures, television, cable, syndication, home entertainment and interactive entertainment. During his tenure, the studio produced a number of live-action and animated box office hits, including Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King. Prior to joining Disney, Katzenberg was president of Paramount Studios.

Katzenberg's visit is hosted by the Animation/Illustration Department of the School of Art and Design. As part of his visit, Katzenberg will lunch with department faculty, students and invited guests, tour the Animation/Illustration facilities, and review students' work.