The Scobleizer

  • The Scobleizer

    Well I haven't been offered the job, but maybe someone will pull me aside at the PASS Summit and make me an offer to take Robert Scoble's place. One can only hope though I'm not sure I can make the journey to Redmond as often as I'd need to and I doubt there's any chance my wife will move off the ranch to one in the Seattle area. That's unless Bill G wants to sell me 100 acres or so of his land cheap 🙂

    In any case, I caught this interview with Robert Scoble that talks a little about his time at Microsoft and what he thinks of corporate communications through blogs.

    Using a blog to communicate is an interesting idea. That's actually why I started my blog nearly 7 years ago. It was mostly for my Mom, but also a few friends when I moved away from Virginia to Denver. Phone calls are important, but with a new baby, it was hard to find time to let everyone know what was happening in my life. So I started a "weblog" back in 2000 and have maintained it on a nearly daily basis since that time.

    Scoble brings up some good points about using blogs instead of email so the information is accessable. Most people don't hesitate to type emails, and they hate the thought of putting a report into some project management system. Yet a blog kind of marries the two. It's not as structured as some "system", but it's more open and accessable than email. Plus it's a pull technology for people rather than an email push.

    And it's always there.

    I like email and think it's a wonderful tool, but it is hampered in the corporate world. We always include too many people or not enough on the CC list. It's private and someone's always asking for a resend of information. I would have much rather had a corporate blog to make notes in and keep status information handy. Even a few simple categories, like one for every project, would have been easier to use and search than a cluttered email archive, especially with Matt the Exchange Nazi setting quotas and asking me to delete old emails.

    I'm not sure blogs are the complete answer, but they are an interesting idea for corporate communications.

  • Matt the Exchange Nazi

    Hard words...

  • Stop mentioning your ranch in every bloody editorial!

  • We use a blog for doing software design reviews. About 150 design reviewers around the world can comment on the designs at their convenience. Everyone can see the comments when and if they want to.

    It works very well and is easy to setup with a Sharepoint discussion board.

  • I hope Matt the Exchange Nazi doesn't read this.  Those are some harsh words for the mail administrator

     

  • Matt's a friend. He understands and I'm sure he's laughing about Steve the SQL Nazi.

  • Interesting ... however when you break it down to the most basic element - its just a tool. With any tool, some tools work better than others for specific purpose(s). The real trick is in knowing what tool to use to fit the job in order to complete it correctly (and efficiently).

    RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."

  • especially with Matt the Exchange Nazi setting quotas and asking me to delete old emails.

    At least he asks you to delete the old e-mails.  It could be worse, after all: he could instead take the BOFH approach. 

    (The BOFH approach, in a nutshell:  User has 125 MB of storage space.  User calls BOFH, says space is full, could they please have more.  After some key-clicking, BOFH says to user, "You now have 125 MB free space."  User says, "Oh, you increased my allotment to 250 MB?"  BOFH says, "No, that's not what I said ... "

    After a brief pause, screams of horror ensue after user checks storage space and finds 125 MB free, but previously stored data is all gone.  Finis.)

  • Please translate new acronym BOFH ... PM if it requires 'choice' verbosity ...

    RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."

  • BOFH = Bastard Operator From Hell, a famous (infamous?) cyberspace character of some vintage.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BOFH

  • Thanks Geoffrey

    RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."

  • The BOFH series is here:http://members.iinet.com.au/~bofh/index.html

    It's humorous at times, but some are over the top. My wife doesn't like it.

  • Check this out:  http://www.theregister.co.uk/odds/bofh/

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