Magritte at Whole Foods
Ceci n’est pas fromage.
Back from BarCampNYC2
I’m back from New York City where I attended BarCampNYC2, the unconference where everybody is invited, everybody presents, nobody wears shoes, the rules change at least twice a day, people understand what you do for a living, and you get to spend the night in a Microsoft conference room.
Barcamp is highly equalitarian: not for political reasons but for geeky effectiveness. Things work when ideas flow freely and build on each other without obstacles. The rules (everybody presents, no shoes, sleep-overs, and the “two feet rule” or “If you’re not interested, change the conversation or use your two feet to move to another one”) conjure a social environment where barriers between individuals and social hierarchies crumble down and the flow of ideas is nurtured.
The BarCampNYC2 discussions were about coding, privacy and openID, social software, open source, the future of web apps, and entrepreneurship. But they were also about creating humane work practices (such as coworking) that allow smart and independent young individual to work, earn money, and have a career without selling their souls or renounce beauty and freedom.
Thanks to the organizers who did an amazing job keeping things going, finding sponsors, and feeding us; and thanks to Microsoft, that graciously and generously accepted Barcamp’s friendly takeover and let us sleep on the grey carpet.
[Read blog posts on BarcampNYC2, see what was discussed, look at pictures. Chris took pictures of my presentation and Tanya immortalized my fashionable socks.]
Technorati Tags: barcampNYC2, New York, technology
The TED Conference is online
Every year, the brightest and most influential gather in Monterey for TED. The theme of this year’s TED, which stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, was The Future We Will Create….
Google Video has a set of video recordings of some amazing 2006 TED conference talks. Al Gore was there and you can feel his presence in many of the videos. If you only have time for one, watch Majora Carter, MacArthur “genius” grant winner and founder of Sustainable South Bronx, talking about environmental justice and explaining why green is the new black.
For more videos, visit the TED site and YouTube; you can also find photos from the TED conference on Flickr and visit/subscribe to the TEDblog for more information and video updates on the conference.
No, you cannot attend TED 2007. The conference is by invitation only (although anybody can apply for an invitation) and it seems to be already sold out.
Technorati Tags: TED, conference, TEDconference, 2006
From Usability Engineering to Experience Design
A few days ago, while reading a book on a traditional user-centered design (UCD) methodology I caught myself thinking: “This is sooo engineering!.” It was solid UCD, but it felt old fashion. It made me realize how radically my concept of usability has changed in just a few years. It made me also realize that if many people in web and software design have pushed new ideas and evolved, the traditional view of usability and interface design is still very much alive.
World Cup fever and the beauty of scarcity
In Italy, professional sports are played once a week, with few exceptions. Among the sports, soccer is The Game. On Sundays, people watch the game. The rest of the week they talk about the game, argue about the game, read about the game, fantasize about the game, and plan for the next one.
Each soccer game lasts 90 minutes (with a few, rare, exceptions). Forty-five minutes of uninterrupted bliss, nothing to break the totally focused attention on the 22 players and the white-and-black leather ball. Fifteen minutes of half-time for the commercials and to check what’s going on with the other teams, then other forty-five minutes of game. That’s it. A blink of an eye and it’s over, and all you can do is waiting until next Sunday.
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