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Moving my desk at work
Jun. 20th, 2006 11:40 amWe’re shuffling desks around at work because we’re run out of space, and we’ve leased another floor of the building. The space used to be used by “Seventeen” Magazine. No, it doesn’t smell of perfume.
However, an an homage to the previous tenants, the conference rooms are being named after fashion magazines: Cosmo, InStyle, GQ, Vice, People, YM, Elle, Marie Claire, Vogue, and so on.
I love this place!
However, an an homage to the previous tenants, the conference rooms are being named after fashion magazines: Cosmo, InStyle, GQ, Vice, People, YM, Elle, Marie Claire, Vogue, and so on.
I love this place!
Google plans to release a Web-based spreadsheet application, in the search giant's latest foray into territory dominated by Microsoft.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB114954419577771854.html?mod=home_whats_news_us
BusinessWeek ranked the most ideal places to work for undergraduates and they were (1) Disney, (2) Google, (3) U.S. Department of State, (4) FBI, (5) CIA, (6) Microsoft, (7) Apple.
A co-worker responded:
> I’m actually more horrified that so many undergrads apparently want
> to work for the government.
Working for the government is a great way to serve ones country.
If I may go off on a rant...
The middle part of “Of the people, by the people, and for the people” means that our government is made up of people (like Soylent Green, but better.)
That’s a fairly radical statement when you consider that historically governments were made up of deities (or people that told everyone they were). It also means that (despite public perception) the government isn’t made up of “someone else”. It’s made up of us!
The U.S. government is as good as we make it. Whether that’s by voting, running for office, or by being employed by it. You can’t just say, “it’s beyond fixing... I sure hope someone else fixes it” or worse, “
Think about the Google culture of openness that lets us take 20% of our time to fix/improve the things that we care about here. Citizens have that 20% with respect to the U.S. government. Being on your local school board is usually a 2-nights-per-month commitment. Certainly less than 20% of the average person’s spare time. There are plenty of other ways to get involved too. Undergrads that want to work for the government are usually looking to dedicate 100% to improving things. That’s something we should all encourage.
Yes, government workers have a stereotype of being “clock watchers”, lacking creativity, or special skills. If you want to fix that, do something about it. Don’t have time? I recommend the following: Figure out how much you make per hour (hint: there are about 2000 hours in the work year) and donate twice that to a candidate or organization that believes the same way you do. That’s a lot like donating 2 hours of time each month.
Just like at Google, problems don’t fix themselves so “don’t wait for someone else to act”.
A co-worker responded:
> I’m actually more horrified that so many undergrads apparently want
> to work for the government.
Working for the government is a great way to serve ones country.
If I may go off on a rant...
The middle part of “Of the people, by the people, and for the people” means that our government is made up of people (like Soylent Green, but better.)
That’s a fairly radical statement when you consider that historically governments were made up of deities (or people that told everyone they were). It also means that (despite public perception) the government isn’t made up of “someone else”. It’s made up of us!
The U.S. government is as good as we make it. Whether that’s by voting, running for office, or by being employed by it. You can’t just say, “it’s beyond fixing... I sure hope someone else fixes it” or worse, “
Think about the Google culture of openness that lets us take 20% of our time to fix/improve the things that we care about here. Citizens have that 20% with respect to the U.S. government. Being on your local school board is usually a 2-nights-per-month commitment. Certainly less than 20% of the average person’s spare time. There are plenty of other ways to get involved too. Undergrads that want to work for the government are usually looking to dedicate 100% to improving things. That’s something we should all encourage.
Yes, government workers have a stereotype of being “clock watchers”, lacking creativity, or special skills. If you want to fix that, do something about it. Don’t have time? I recommend the following: Figure out how much you make per hour (hint: there are about 2000 hours in the work year) and donate twice that to a candidate or organization that believes the same way you do. That’s a lot like donating 2 hours of time each month.
Just like at Google, problems don’t fix themselves so “don’t wait for someone else to act”.
Yes! Google Press Day!
May. 10th, 2006 08:19 pmI *love* Google Press Day! It's like Christmas... except we release products, not presents. What does it mean to the average Googler? It means I find out that I'm finally allowed to talk about products that have been "under wraps" for a while.
For example...
The humor opportunties are boundless: Roe v. Wade, and oh this just makes my eyes hurt.
For example...
Google Trends
Find out how many people have been searching for a particular term (the results are relative, to keep things private). So, you can finally find out who is winning: Star Wars vs. Star Trek, Good vs. Evil, and Republican vs. Democrat. Wait, there's more. If you are a geek you can find out: Windows vs. Linux, Emacs vs. VI, and Battle of the *BSDs.The humor opportunties are boundless: Roe v. Wade, and oh this just makes my eyes hurt.
Google Co-op Beta
Better than sharing bookmarks, you can now augment Google's search by marking pages that you like and letting other people subscribe to the list.Google Desktop 4 Beta
Now with widgets that can live on your desktop docked or undocked. Favorite feature: Google Personalized homepage widgets can now appear on your Google Desktop bar!Google Notebook from Google Labs
Soon to be released. A way to 'take notes' about web sites. It will make sense more when it is released in a week.http://video.google.com/nara.html
Me? I'm going to spend this weekend watching hours of NASA footage! :-)
Me? I'm going to spend this weekend watching hours of NASA footage! :-)
Why Google is in China
Jan. 30th, 2006 02:31 pmPeople bitched to me about www.Google.cn and I didn't want to respond until the official Google response was published. Here it is.
Now that www.Google.cn (Google China) is up, I thought I'd search for pages within China that mention my book. Since I have a very unique last name, it's an easy search. (Oh, and if you hadn't heard, my first book was translated into Chinese a few years ago, though I've never seen it for sale. I assume its only sold in China.)
Google translates this page into English:
Read the whole thing here
Google translates this page into English:
In addition, Limoncelli and Hogan used for the specific method which managed also emphasizes was advantageous to programmer's subject. Their explicit terrestrial reference poured the management design and the support six essential factors: Simple, is clear, is general, the automation, the communication and " the foundation first ". Programmer at least with manager same need these essential factors.
Read the whole thing here
