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Surprise! Senators with Huge Campaign Contributions from Media Support SOPA/PIPA [Sopa]
![medium 8da334bb062cda05830eba01dde3b047 Surprise! Senators with Huge Campaign Contributions from Media Support SOPA/PIPA [Sopa]](http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2012/01/8da334bb062cda05830eba01dde3b047.jpg "Surprise! Senators with Huge Campaign Contributions from Media Support SOPA/PIPA")
It’s an old cliché in politics to “follow the money.” Unfortunately, it’s almost always true when it comes to the support of controversial bills. In fact, all you need is $100k per senator to buy support for PIPA, the Senates version of SOPA.
It’s a small price to pay for controlling how the Internet works in the United States. If you’re still unsure what exactly SOPA is, check out our comprehensive article on the bill. Above are the senators that received in excess in $100,000 in campaign contributions from the Movie, Music, and TV industry. Oh hey, they all support PIPA. These numbers were compiled by ProPubilca.
If you live in the states governed by these public servants, be sure to give them a call and tell them that SOPA/PIPA will destroy the Internet. Mat’s right, we really do need an Internet Lobbyist. [ProPublica]
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Switching to Private Label Products is Accelerating and Irreversible
See the charts below from comScore, Nielsen and Symphony/IRI. The percent buying branded products of past has dropped to 43%. The percentage switching (2nd graph) is most in OTC drugs and apparel. And even if the economy improves, consumers would continue to buy private label. Whole Foods has been offering their 365 “house brand” for many years and Trader Joe’s also has great private label products that are often equal to or arguably higher quality than branded alternatives.
Related Article: Spend Polarization – consumers save money in the down economy by buying more from Costco, Sam’s Wholesale, and BJ’s but when they splurge, they buy ultra-high-end.
"Success Comes Through Rapidly Fixing our Mistakes Rather than Getting Things Right the First Time" [Quotables]
![500x 1230 quotable tim harford 01 "Success Comes Through Rapidly Fixing our Mistakes Rather than Getting Things Right the First Time" [Quotables]](http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/17/2011/09/1230-quotable-tim-harford_01.jpg "\"Success Comes Through Rapidly Fixing our Mistakes Rather than Getting Things Right the First Time\"")
This quote comes from Tim Harford, who argues that success is really just a product of failure. He believes we have to try, fail, and quickly correct our mistakes in order to properly succeed. Because failure is just an inevitability, no matter who you are, the key is to get better at recovering from it rather than trying to avoid it altogether.
Harford suggests that there are a few key things we need to pay attention to when dealing with failure. First is avoiding the denial that we’re wrong. He says, “It seems to be the hardest thing in the world to admit we’ve made a mistake and try to put it right. It requires you to challenge a status quo of your own making.” Sometimes we’ll go so far as to chase our losses just to avoid failure, as if accepting the failed situation will make all our effort worthless. In the end, we can’t predict what’s going to work. We can only experiment with trial and error. Failure is an important part of this process, and accepting it makes us capable of actually finding success in the long run.
For more information, check out the full article on The 99 Percent. For another take on the same idea, check out this article in the New York Times.
Why Success Always Starts With Failure | The 99 Percent
You can follow Adam Dachis, the author of this post, on Twitter, Google+, and Facebook. Twitter’s the best way to contact him, too.
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iOS has a bigger dev army than Android, but will cross-platform apps rule the day?
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/05/ios-has-a-bigger-dev-army-than-android-but-will-cross-platform/
We oftentimes hear raw numbers of apps bandied about in mobile OS comparisons, but we rarely get any idea of just how many developers are behind the scenes working for each platform. This is the void of knowledge filled by AppStore HQ today, who have gone to their dev directory — claimed to be a complete listing of all 55,000+ coders whose work is currently available for consumption in the Apple App Store or Android Market — and stacked them into neat piles of Apple, Google and Gapple programmers. It’s immediately apparent that single-platform development is the norm (with Apple holding the predictable edge), but AppStore HQ also provides a list of some of the most well known (and well funded) apps doing the cross-platform dance, and suggests that a movement is afoot toward making software available for both sets of users. Then again, the BNET article below points out the difficulties faced by smaller outfits, who might struggle to find the resources required to port their content over and maintain the skills required to be multi-platform, resulting in them sticking to one environment, irrespective of what allures others might throw their way. Give them both a read, we say.
iOS has a bigger dev army than Android, but will cross-platform apps rule the day? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Jul 2010 04:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
What do I see? Utter, Unfathomable Inefficiency – that is retail as we know it
Have a look at the 2 pictures below taken at a mall-attached large chain retailer. Not a SINGLE customer in the store. Practically every rack had a red and white sale sign on it. Look at the multiple sizes of each item that have to be made available.
Now consider this.
What is the probability of someone walking through the store to this location, finding an article of clothing that is subjectively pleasing and desirable enough for the person to pick it up and consider the price. Consider if this is a nice to have or need to have item. Further consider the price and whether it is higher or lower than the clearing price — the price at which the user (in that particular user’s mind) thinks it is a good deal and decides to buy it. What is known is the quantity of work needed to inventory, merchandise, display all the products. What is not known very well is the probability of a sale for any or all of the items in the store.
Further consider the redundant inventory of similar (or the same) generic products — redundant because multiple stores attached to the same mall carry pretty much the same generic stuff. Even brand names provide little differentiation or value add. And celebrity designers and endorsers such as Kimora, Cindy, Kathy, or even Jaclyn Smith don’t help. The entire Kimora section was just as deserted as the second photo in this bunch.
A sure sign Facebook’s already in trouble – meteoric rise and meteoric fall coming
Facebook Suicide is on the rise (people leaving Facebook and not coming back)
According to SAI sources, the following exchange is between a 19-year-old Mark Zuckerberg and a friend shortly after Mark launched The Facebook in his dorm room:
Zuck: Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard
Zuck: Just ask.
Zuck: I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SNS
[Redacted Friend's Name]: What? How’d you manage that one?
Zuck: People just submitted it.
Zuck: I don’t know why.
Zuck: They “trust me”
Zuck: Dumb fucks.
Source: http://gizmodo.com/5537408/the-devolution-of-facebook-privacy
Google Suggest — top searches starting with “how do i… “
Ecosystem of Apps for Facebook is already overtaken by iPad Apps as evidenced by search volume around the 3 terms.
NYTimes: chart of Facebook Privacy Options – too complex for most people to figure out and use appropriately.
Charlie O’Donnell: “By the time of this post is done, Diaspora, the web decentralization play from four NYU/Courant students in New York, will undoubtedly have $100,000 raised on Kickstarter. Over and above that, it seems like they’re on a clear path towards a million dollars. Think I’m poking the bear? I’m dead serious. You watch. A week from now, they get to seven digits. Why? Because the ire over Facebook’s privacy issues, platform aggression, etc. is real. If you’re concerned about Facebook, these guys are your heroes.”
AdAge Poll from May 19, 2010.
My Previous article: Facebook is going down in unique users, visits, and time spent
How many users does Blippy have now?
In the wake of the PR nightmare/stroke-of-genius are there only 23,700 exhibitionists left for blippy.com (the site that lets users publish every single transaction from their credit card statement live)?
http://bit.ly/93Kpdy
NYTimes Article: http://nyti.ms/9ZK0M9
AdAge: AOL to Sell or Shut Down Bebo in 2010
Move Comes Just Two Years After Portal Spent $850 Million to Acquire Social Network
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — AOL will shut down social-networking service Bebo if it can’t find a buyer, the company said in a memo to staff on Tuesday.
FULL ARTICLE
AdAge: Web-Tracking Research Emerging From Surveys’ Shadow
As Social-Media Continues to Grow, Marketers Place More Emphasis on Listening to Consumers
BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — Replacing “asking” with “listening” has been a hot topic at market-research conferences for the past couple of years. But now some researchers are finally doing more than talking — they’re taking steps toward replacing surveys with web tracking.
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Dr. Augustine Fou is Digital Consigliere to marketing executives, advising them on digital strategy and Unified Marketing(tm). Dr Fou has over 17 years of in-the-trenches, hands-on experience, which enables him to provide objective, in-depth assessments of their current marketing programs and recommendations for improving business impact and ROI using digital insights.
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Source: http://lifehacker.com/5887326/create-your-own-bokeh-camera-kit
Check out the original article and the reader comments for a discussion of the techniques used to create the effects in the photos, such as setting your camera to the lowest aperture value. Enjoy making dazzling, beautiful photos!
DIY: Circle of Confusion Shape Modifier | DIY Photography
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