ShareThis, not that

// April 9th, 2009 // 2 Comments » // Fun, Technology

Ahhh, the joys of Facebook.  You know, you get all those friends from High School and college wanting to reconnect.  You message back and forth a few times and then get busy with life again.  Well, I got reconnected with Tim Schigel last fall.  He and I were fraternity brothers at Case Western.  We used to play in a band we founded called Skydiver because we actually went skydiving during out first couple weeks of college and couldn’t really think of a better name. We played a lot of Rush classics and other party tunes of the day. We opened for cover bands in the Cleveland area.  Good times… Good times… 20 years ago.

Tim would go on to create ShareThis, a really cool sharing app that actually has some real usefulness outside of just being a fashionable widget.  Me… I would go on to… hmmm… nothing quite so glamorous.

Tim calls me every now and again and tells me that he just met so and so at ESPN or MTV or House of Blues and that they are implementing the ShareThis widget on their site.  I saw the widget appear on FoxNews.com one day and realized he’d made it to the big time.  Tim is one of those humble guys not just chasing a dream but grabbing it by the horns.  He and his family had a nice write up in Family Circle about the trials of running a huge multi-million dollar internet company while trying to keep family a priority. He does both well and because of that Tim is one of my heroes.

So what is ShareThis anyway and why should you care share? ShareThis is more than just an easy way to get social media content from one place to the next.  And if there is one thing that is certain: we are bombarded and overwhelmed with managing the information we see on any given day. ShareThis is like a platform for managing this information you find during your travels online. If you’ve seen the ShareThis icon on a website, that site owner has recognized the benefit to its readers by making the article sharing process a one-click event. In the past, you’d see an article you like and you’d have to copy the URL, paste it into an email, find the person or persons you’d like to send to, and then send it on its way. Or you find something useful for yourself and you’d like to save it to read later. You create a word document or notepad for “useful links” or just bookmark it.  If you are like me the bookmarks on the browser can get large and unorganized quickly.  Or suppose you want to Twitter something useful to your tribe.  There’s a better way.

ShareThis comes in and saves the day by making these multiple keystrokes and clicks a thing of the past.  First, you create a free account. Next you get the widget for your blog (easy with Wordpress).  Next you get the free add-on for your browser of choice.  Then you go have some fun with it.  With Wordpress, it just shows up below each post by default.  The admin area provides customization of location and color themes.  A visitor clicks and sees the following:

As you can see, there are a host of options available to you. From facebook to twitter to email to texting.  And it takes your page info and passes it along automatically when you Send or Post.

One of the neatest features I really like is the ShareBox.  I’m constantly putting articles in there that I want to read later.  These can be shared or deleted directly from within your sharebox after you’ve had a chance to review them.

Curious which pages are being shared the most on your site.  ShareThis provides reporting capabilities of sharing activity on a per page basis.

So, there you have it.  I’m leaving out a whole lot more of what it is capable of.  So why not give it a try.  Just click ShareThis below and see how much fun sharing can be.

Mysterious ways

// February 16th, 2009 // No Comments » // Art, Beauty, Fun, Mind, Nature

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed. - Albert Einstein

Missing demo track found

// December 10th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Fun, Music

It requires an open mind, but if you are a music afficionado like me, this will likely become your official Christmas song year after year.

Christmas Demo Track

A little Google Earth halloween fun

// October 31st, 2008 // No Comments » // Fun, Holiday, Maps, Technology

The Google Earth blog posted about how you can turn your google earth experience into this special halloween edition.  Download this kmz file and open it up in Google Earth. You’ll see the earth in a whole new way.  Make sure to use the ShareThis button below to pass this around to others.

Some friday fun

// October 3rd, 2008 // No Comments » // Fun

Broken Escalator - The funniest videos are a click away

Quotes for the times

// August 20th, 2008 // No Comments » // Fun

Democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts and murders itself. There was never a democracy that did not commit suicide.
– John Adams (1735 - 1826)

Anything will give up its secrets if you love it enough. Not only have I found that when I talk to the little flower or to the little peanut they will give up their secrets, but I have found that when I silently commune with people they give up their secrets also - if you love them enough.
– George Washington Carver (1864 - 1943)

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation.
– George Washington (1732 - 1799)

Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
– Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)

Advertisements… contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper.
– Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826)

When 900 years you reach, look as good, you will not.
– Yoda

Wordpress update

// August 5th, 2008 // No Comments » // Blog, Fun, Technology

I recently updated my Wordpress software to 2.6. This last few months have seen a flurry of updates with the latest and greatest. The update process is pretty easy now. The biggest change that affected me on this one is the image add/edit area. I have to manually type in a float style because my template was written before some of the latest W3C standards were written. It only affects new image inserts.  That’s about all though. I’m liking the interface. Template modification is a breeze too.

So if you are updating Wordpress, don’t forget to backup your mySQL database. And whatever you do, don’t overwrite your config.php file. I did once and trust me, it’s not a happy day when you do that.

Eat This, Not That - See how well you know your foods

// July 11th, 2008 // No Comments » // Daily Life, Fun, Health, food

Curious about some of the fast food you eat and whether there’s any difference between Mickey D’s and BK. Go HERE and do the Eat This, Not That game. You’ll be amazed at what you don’t know about the foods you eat.

I’ve changed my eating habits based on a book by the editor of Men’s Health called The Abs Diet. I’ve lost about 20 lbs with a combination of better eating and strength/cardio training. The interesting thing about the “diet” is that it’s not really a diet. It’s selective eating. I’m eating pretty much the same as before, it’s just that I’ve stopped eating foods and drinks with some very specific ingredients:

• Any food with “partially hydrogenated oils” of any kind are out
• Any food with “High Fructose Corn Syrup” are out
• Soda’s are about 90% out - even the diet ones. They are only treats now.
• Any food that has > 0% trans fats
• Any high sodium foods are out
• Refined sugars are out

Getting rid of some of these food additives means you’ll feel better during the day and be more awake come that 2 pm afternoon doze time.

Some of my favorite foods come from Kashi Foods which you can get at you local supermarket. I bought a set of free weight dumbbells and a basic bench for home. Rowing machine. No gym membership yet. All before 6:30 am. I feel great.

Maine trip

// July 7th, 2008 // No Comments » // Daily Life, Fun, Holiday, Travel

We had a blast this past couple weeks visiting my original home of record. Actually we didn’t visit my hometown, but did spend a week at the lake where I spent several weeks every summer growing up. All my siblings were there with nieces and nephews. We’d gathered for my cousins wedding, so I got to spend time with many cousins and other relatives too.

A couple of days we spent touring the historic places in Boston, including Cheers. Well, it’s kind of historic. My generation is probably more familiar with “Norm!, Normy!” than “the British are coming, the British are coming!” First stop was Lexington where the first shots of the Revolutionary War took place. The following monument shows the quote from Captain John Parker who commanded the Minuteman militia on the famous day of April 19, 1775 after which eight militia lay dead.

Next it was off to Boston and a ride on the “T” which is the primary means of transportation for all Boston citizens. When we lived here we hardly ever had to drive anywhere because you could get most places on the T. Took the girls for a ride out to Brookline, our temporary home while Mary was at Boston Conservatory.

We then met up with my sister to eat lunch at Cheers.

Of course, no trip would be complete without a trip on the swanboats, made famous by Make Way For Ducklings by Robert McCloskey.

Then, its off to Maine for lots of water fun.

Some beautiful sunsets.

Back through Boston stopped in at some Freedom Trail locations ending up at the USS Constitution, the oldest and still commissioned warship in the US Navy.

Then it was back home to reconnect with our dog Abby.

Elf Yourself

// December 14th, 2007 // 1 Comment » // Fun, Holiday

Every year someone comes out with a fun way to share your photos with others. This years funniest is from OfficeMax. it’s called Elf Yourself and you can find it HERE.

Also, don’t forget to vote for Denver and the Mile High Orchestra tonight on FOX. Vote, vote, vote.