I’m Going to WordCamp

This may sound a bit odd, being posted on a MovableType blog, but I’ve signed up to go to WordCamp 2007.

Two reasons:

1) The blog I manage at work runs on WordPress and I want to know more about how to make it do its thing.
2) The current speaker roster includes Matt Cutts, Om Malik, Dave Weiner, and a bunch of other interesting people. That’s more than worth the price of admission ($25!!!) right there.

It would be better if the event took place on weekdays instead of a weekend, but other than that, what’s not to like?

Second Life – Hype or Reality?

An article in the Wall Street Journal today reports that some companies, not content with creating virtual “presences”, are now even starting to do job interviews in Second Life.

The more I read about Second Life, the more I wonder what’s wrong. On the one hand, Second Life gets great coverage in the press and seems to have good word of mouth. For example, whenever someone asks about Second Life over at LinkedIn Answers, the responses tend to be very positive. On the other hand, I don’t know a single person in my real life who actually spends any time using Second Life. And my social circle, by and large, is in the consumer category that would be expected to at least try it out – comfortable online, “content creators,” and actively involved in other online communities and activities. Yet — I find Second Life utterly unappealing. And nobody I know talks about it. WoW, of course. LoTRO and CoH, yes. Even games like Star Wars Galaxies and Eve Online get some attention. But not Second Life.

My overall impression of Second Life, in fact, is that the vast majority of people who use it regularly are looking to get kinky in one form or another, or are there because they’re trying to make a buck off it one way or another. Now, I could be completely wrong. If I am, I’d love to hear it. But right now, it seems like there’s this significant dichotomy between what I’m reading and what I’m experiencing. Maybe it’s just me. But maybe Second Life really is a lot more hype than actual trend.

You tell me.

Where I Spent My Saturday

Learning something new.

TemperChi Glass Art Studio

Now that grad school is past and life has settled down into something approximating normal, I’ve been waning to add some new things to the mix. This weekend, it’s a class in making lampwork beads.

I don’t think I’ll kick my career to the curb and become a full-time glassmaker like Sarah did — my beads are seriously ugly — but this definitely is a lot of fun.

Unexpected Happiness: We Saw ‘The Police’ Live!

So around lunchtime yesterday, Scott IMed me with some Big News: a co-worker of his was looking to unload two tickets to The Police concert at Oakland Coliseum. Did we want to go?

HELL YES!

The Police broke up before I started going to concerts, so I always assumed I’d never have the chance to see them live. Then, when they announced their “30th Anniversary tour” I figured there’d be no way I’d manage to snag tickets. Instead, the tickets came to us. Nice how that worked out.

I didn’t have time to do much planning, and cameras weren’t allowed anyway, so this is the best I could do for a photo:

Oakland Coliseum

I’d never been to a stadium concert before, and the sheer size of the venue was definitely a drawback. But other than that — and the absolutely horribly bad opening act — we had a fantastic time. Wikipedia has a full set list, if you’re interested in that sort of thing.

Despite Stewart Copeland’s grousing, the band sounded very tight and polished to me. There were one or two moments when I thought I caught a bobble as the band transitioned into the next song, but other than that, they played extremely well for just short of two hours, including encores. Sting had to work fairly hard to get the audience energy up (I think this is where the stadium size was an issue) but the last 40 minutes or so was a big rock-out.

In short, if you get a chance to catch the tour, do so. It’s worth it.