RSS feed update – 11 August 2007 and Amatomu ranking

First, the Amatomu flash ribbon display the wrong ranking on my site (This has now been fixed). Here is what is displayed at the moment
and this is the actual ranking . Anybody else has the same problem?

On to today’s tidbits:

To go with the Perfect City Challenge — Cape Town from Robben Island.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

RSS feed update – 10 August 2007

I am on leave at the moment so these might come out more frequently since I will have some time to scan through my feeds.

Today’s links:

The launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour lit up the sky at sunset as it lifted off on time at 6:36 p.m. EDT on mission STS-118, is the 22nd shuttle flight to the International Space Station. —

Image credit: NASA/Ken Thornsley

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

RSS feed update – 5 August 2007

Today’s interesting tidbits:

No Cape Town pics today but one from Astronomy Picture of the day

The Dotted Dunes of Mars

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

RSS feed update – 30 July 2007

Yes I know I said that I will do this on a weekly basis but my list is getting long so here it is.  In future it will appear when I have a critical mass (whenever that may be).

First an update on the F1/McLaren story — see that Ferrari did not like what the FIA ruled — http://www.news24.com/News24/Sport/Formula_1/0,,2-9-2183_2154714,00.html and http://www.news24.com/News24/Sport/Formula_1/0,,2-9-2183_2154714,00.html

Now for the new stuff:

Until next time.

    Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

    Facebook and business

    Having read a posting by Duncan McLoad, asking the question whether Facebook is a thread to business, I want to share my views and opinion. 

    Facebook is a tool just like any other tool and cannot just be banned because some decision makers do not understand the technology and the value it might add.  Yes there must be controls and guidelines around the use of it and what employees may or may not publish on it.

    I am fortunate to work for a company, IBM, that operates in this space and make tools and technology available in this Web 2.0 environment. We have a similar tool inside IBM called Bluepages which is of great value in finding people with particular skills.  IBM is now selling this same technology in the form of Lotus Connections.  However this tool provide for internal community building inside a business.  How does a company build communities with it suppliers/customers and this is where Facebook has a role to play.

    And not all big companies is against Facebook.  I was in a customer meeting a week or so back where the CIO of this customer promoted the use of Facebook and other Web 2.0 technologies and tools like blogging.  In his opinion, via these technologies, companies can get an idea of the pulse of their workforce.  What is the morale of the people etc?  What are the employees talking about, what are their concerns?  Some might view this as spying, I do not.  Each and everyone decide for themselves what we divulge via Facebook and why should our employers not read this?

    On a similar vain.  Facebook has also helped me to get in contact with a fellow employee in a crisis situation.  Being away from my office I could use Facebook to get the telephone number of this employee, yes he was part of my friends list and luckily for me he published his phone number for his friends.  In the end I was able to contact him and he was able to resolve a crisis situation with a customer.

    I have used Facebook not just inside my company to build valuable networks but have also used Facebook to get in contact with groups outside my company to add value to the work that I do.

    And lastly we must also remember that Facebook is a social networking tool and work/life balance should be important to each and every company.  Employees that have a good work/life balance also tend to be happy and more productive employees.  Facebook plays a role in the social happiness of people.

    See you on Facebook 🙂

    Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,

    10pin bowling — And the winners are ..

    Yesterday afternoon a bunch off us (about 40 – 8 teams) from work went 10pin bowling at TygerValley.  After some fierce competition there was a winning team.

    In the photo from left to right is Tertia (yes the one and only from So Close), Fouche, Adam, Cobus and myself.  Now it must be said that we probably had a slight unfair advantage with Tertia in the team. What she lacked in 10pin bowling she made up in disrupting all the other teams with clicking photos of them and just getting in their way.  Thanks a lot Tertia.

    In the end it was a great gathering which carried on till late in the evening for some of us.  Kevin, hope you made it home.

    Thanks must go to Tertia and Andre for organizing a great afternoon/evening.

    Technorati Tags: , , , ,

    IBM announces Quickr

    We knew this was in the making but Quickr has now been officially announced by IBM … the Quickr Blog has all the details.  The date for General Availability is 29 June 2007 which happen to be the same date Lotus Connections will be available.

    So what is Lotus Quickr .. I quote

    an open standards-based team collaboration tool that helps teams inside and outside the company firewall easily and effectively work together across geographies, working styles and operating systems.

    Lotus Quickr provides a rich set of team collaboration capabilities, including blogs, wikis and team space templates supporting a variety of business processes to get a collaboration project up and running quickly.

    Now I just need to get my hand on using these tools.

    Technorati Tags: , , , ,

    Back home ….

    After a week away in sunny warm Denmark, I arrived back in South Africa early Saturday morning.  It only happens in South Africa when they have to delay the take-off of a flight to make sure that the airplane does not arrive early in Cape Town.  You see, they were working on the run-way overnight and the flight was not allowed to land before 5am.  They delayed the flight by 40 minutes in Frankfurt just for this. 

    It was my first visit to Copenhagen and what an eye-opener.  No crime to talk off, actually I almost never saw the police or heard any sirens.  Once an alarm went off in a shop and within a blink of the eye a policeman arrived. 

    Bicycles, this is everywhere.  No wonder since Denmark is very flat.  The highest point in Denmark is a pilar on a bridge that goes from one island to another. Since they ride on the wrong side of the road I almost took out some bicycle riders a couple of times. Getting out of the bus I always looked in the wrong direction and then just started walking just to hear some calls from my right from a couple of bicycle riders pedalling down on me. 

    And nobody lock their bicycles when they get off it.  Hours later that bicycle will be just where they left it.

    Talking of busses.  It is always on time, clean and get you on time where you need to be.  And cars do not drive in bus lanes.  It just does not happen.  Also if a pedestrain crossing is red nobody walks, even if there is no cars and/or  bicycles. It just does not happen.

    Technorati Tags: , , , , ,

    Copenhagen- photo report

    As promised, here are some photos from my visit in Copenhagen.

    Views from my hotel, not my room but the room of a colleague of mine who is here with me. Had dinner yesterday evening on the benches you see. Burger King burger and chips — and that cost 55 Danish Krone, about R72 .. yes you read correctly, R72 for a burger and chips.

    While we are talking about my colleague, here is he (Andre) lying on his bed.  We have this joke about him staying in a real pimp room.  I am staying in the new renovated part of the hotel where the rooms are ultra luxury. Last night while beer drinking from pub to pub we came across this traffic light — The small green light on the right is a traffic light for bicycles.  Yes, they have their own lanes with their own traffic lights. 

    We also met this “alien” that was dancing every time  somebody threw some coins in her tin .. she was actually very entertaining.  When she was not dancing then she was standing dead still like a statue and would not move even if people tried to make her move. The moment some coins was thrown she started dancing with her flags.

    Technorati Tags: , , , ,

    Copenhagen, Denmark

    Arrived in Copenhagen at the Palace Hotel very late yesterday evening after 18 hours on airplanes and in airports.  Was touch and go in Frankfurt when I had to get from one airplane to the next one in under 30 minutes.  Assisted by a security guard through some back allies we eventually made it.  The fact that my luggage arrived with me in Copenhagen was a miracle.

    Also the take-off in Cape Town in that stormy weather is not something I want to experience soon again.  Talking of the weather, it is a great sunny 22 degrees here in Copenhagen.  Eat your heart out, Cape Town 🙂

    I have taken some photos and will upload as soon as I have some time.  It is beer drinking time so until later.

    Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,