Geeks Work Hard and Play Harder

Being a tech blogger, social media guru and overall geek in general is loads of work. Technology changes at break-neck speeds and unfortunately in the 'always on, always connected' era never rests. So it should come at no surprise that we work hard. That however comes with a wonderful upside, we get to play hard as well.

There are always new gadgets to checkout, new sites and services to review, conferences and meetings and then of course the occasional LAN party or hack-fest to keep us busy. The great upside to that is access to some of the newest and best tech on the market, without which I doubt I could get through this hustled life unscathed.

With the many devices I have available to me the one that I always have in my geeks toolbox is my #Intel2in1. I've found, after much trial and error, that trying to fulfill my daily requirements was going to be more than most devices could handle. So I have decide an #2in1 device best suited my overall needs. It is portable enough for on the go use, yet still fill all the functionality and productivity requirement of the demanding geek lifestyle.

Being a blogger means needing something that not only hands the fast paced on the go lifestyle but something that meets our rigorous productivity needs when typing out articles or reviews. While being a geek means needing a device that can handle the demands of a few games, some photo editing and maybe even a few more demanding tasks.

Over the course of the next few weeks I'll be putting my new device to the stress test that is the everyday life of a blogger. Which will be followed by a post with a comprehensive review sharing my hands on experience. So be sure to check back for more!


#spon: I'm required to disclose a relationship between our site and Intel This could include Intel providing us w/content, product, access or other forms of payment.

Google Shows Off Coming Blogger Updates

 According to Google blogger will undergo a major overhaul in the coming months with a major redesign of the user interface, some added features in the user dashboard and a move to the Google Webkit for rich text editing.

The video above was recently posted on the Official Google Blog showing off many of the new features including the cleaner more modern UI which now uses the Google Web Toolkit. In addition to a new blogging interface there will be an updated dashboard that features a similar modern design.

According to the video it looks like there will be several functionality changes as well as a new content discovery feature that lets you uncover interesting and related content based on the topics of the blog you’re currently reading. Blogger finds topic keywords and features them in a drop-down menu, allowing users to quickly jump between different Web sites posting similar material.

The video also promises some yet unrevealed changes that "could not be mentioned", I guess we'll have to wait and see what those are.

I for one can't wait to see the new changes in affect. The old blogger UI is getting rather stale and is flat out boring. The rich text editor is decent but lacking in several areas and the dashboard is just flat out dated beyond reason.

Kmart Is Looking For Gamers To Send To E3

The Consumer Electronics branch of Kmart is giving a few lucky blogging gamers the chance chance to attend the E3 expo on the company's dime. So if you are a gamer, can write a good blog post and want the chance to attend E3 listen up!

Beginning today through March 30, KmartGamer, an online resource and community for video gamers, is seeking submissions from gaming bloggers interested in attending the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) which takes place June 7 – 9 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

You will attend the gaming trade show on behalf of KmartGamer and will be reporting on all the E3 action for the site. Foe consideration you must

• Be a skilled storyteller that's both passionate and knowledgeable about gaming, or a specific platform or genre. This passion must shine through clearly in your writing, photography, video -- everything you do that's gaming-related. In addition to being a general gamer and gaming enthusiast, you also have a clear passion in a specialty. This could be a platform, or a genre (e.g. sports, FPS).
• Bloggers must be actively involved in gaming forums, sites or other channels (e.g. Twitter) where they talk about gaming. They're a recognized, trusted name on those channels and have a following. (Meaning they didn't just sign up for CAG yesterday.)

To be considered, video-game bloggers must follow the simple, two-step submission process:

• Step One: Write a blog post that states why KmartGamer should select them for participation, including providing the following information within their post:
  • Why are you interested in going to E3?
  • What would you be excited to see and cover at E3?
  • Why do you want to go to E3 with KmartGamer?
  • Describe your experiences with KmartGamer, such as how you learned about this call for submissions or how you discovered the various KmartGamer online resources.
• Step Two: Link their individual blog submission as a comment on the official KmartGamer.com blog announcing the call for submissions, located at http://www.mykmart.com/mykmart_blog/KmartGamer-bloggers-e3-2011. Bloggers are also required to supply their e-mail and mailing addresses in the necessary entry fields found on the KmartGamer.com blog by Wednesday, March 30.

Following the submission process, a team of Kmart Consumer Electronics representatives will review the applicants and select three bloggers to attend E3 on its behalf and blog about their experiences. KmartGamer will also provide bloggers with travel and hotel expense and a daily per diem for the three-day expo.

Gaming enthusiasts can also follow KmartGamer on Twitter at twitter.com/kmartgamer or on the KmartGamer blog at www.kmartgamer.com. Additionally, to learn about the latest Kmart consumer electronics offers and news visit, www.kmart.com/electronics.

For more details checkout the KmartGamer blog post "KmartGamer is going to E3 2011 -- and you can too!"

Move Your Blogger Posts Anywhere With Google Blog Converters 1.0

Announced yesterday on the Google Open Source blog the Google Blog Converters project provides the ability to easily move blog posts and comments from service to service. This initial release provides Python libraries and runnable scripts that convert between the export formats of Blogger, LiveJournal, MovableType, and WordPress.

In addition, the source code includes templates for hosting these conversions on Google App Engine. Future additions to the project will include support for BlogML and synchronization tools between various services that do not provide a import/export feature but do provide APIs for accessing and modifying blog contents.

To test out the blog converter download, the 2.7 MB zipped file, for feedback join the Google discussion group.

Read Write Web Shows Glimpse Of How Much People Make In Blogs & Social Media

Read Write Web conducted a survey amongst 20 "top tier" bloggers and social media consultants (that they claim to know and trust) to find out what kind of money they make with their blogging gigs. The agreement was for RRW not to disclose their names, or companies they work for in exchange for the bloggers themselves to be honest about their earnings.

Unfortunately only 10 of the so called "top tier" bloggers responded, giving us a very small cross section of the blogging community.

"We hope that no one will be too angry with us if these numbers lead their employees to feel newly shortchanged and protest," says RWW's Kirkpatrick. "These folks are at the top of their field."

So, How Much Do Top Tier Bloggers and Social Media Consultants Get Paid? According to RRW's survey the low end of the scale was $10 per post for what respondents considered very short posts, with $25 per post being the going rate. One person said they were paid $80 per post! One respondent said they were paid $200 per item of long-form writing; bloggers often do other kinds of writing as well.

In-house/Full-Time bloggers reported annual pay rates ranging from $45k and $55k with benefits (!) up to $70k, $80k and $90k with bonuses. While Social media consultants reported hourly consulting rates from $150/hr to $300/hr or monthly rates of $2k to $4k per engagement.

The survey was limited to bloggers who write for other blogs and not blog owners which was a little disappointing. I'd like to have seen a larger cross section of the blogging world, as well as seeing a little insight into what some of the "top tier" blog owners make. But it is interesting to see some of the numbers that came out.

John Chow, created a similar post to this one on his blog. As always John is nice enough to share with his readers his monthly earnings and noted that he averaged $543 per blog post last month.

Six Apart Launches Cross-Platform Facebook Blogging App

Six Apart Ltd., the creator of the widely used Movable Type blogware and TypePad blog hosting service, unveiled its new Blog It tool today. The tool allows Facebook users to post to multiple blogs or micro-blogs across the Web from within the social network.

"Blog It is one of the few applications that takes content created inside Facebook and makes it available for use outside Facebook," said David Recordon, open platforms tech lead at Six Apart, in a statement. "Blog It users are able to update their personal blogs, business blogs, online journals, Facebook status, or Twitter or Pownce activity all from one central environment. This is a concrete step away from the silos and walled gardens of the past and toward the open Web of the future."

Blog It supports about a dozen services, including Blogger, TypePad, Twitter, Movable Type, Vox and WordPress. Facebook users can add Blog It here.

Why use Blog It?

• Update all your blogs from within the Facebook environment.
• It's a free Facebook application.
• Blog It is powered by TypePad, one of the best blogging services available.
• Update all your blogs and web services. Blog It supports TypePad, Twitter, Blogger, Livejournal, Movable Type, Wordpress.com, Wordpress.org, and more.
• Increase the number of people who see your posts.
• Keeps your friends on any network informed of your activities.

For more information checkout the Six Apart press release or the Blog it features page.

Blogging A High Risk Occupation?

According to a recent report from the New York Times the stressful lives that us bloggers lead may put us into the same "dangerous jobs" category as coal miners and Alaskan crab fisherman. The article says the stress accumulated from long exhaustive hours of blogging can lead to serious medical conditions, even death.

Recently well know tech blogger Russell Shaw died at the age of 60 of a heart attack. In December, another tech blogger, Marc Orchant, died at 50 of a massive coronary. A third, Om Malik, 41, survived his heart attack.

Other bloggers complain of weight loss or gain, sleep disorders, exhaustion and other maladies born of the nonstop strain of producing for a news and information cycle that is as always-on as the Internet. I can attest first hand that I often find myself spending hours reading through news and information looking for stories to post however I've never seen the types of stresses they are implying.

The NY Times is quick to point out there is no official diagnosis of death by blogging, and the premature demise of two people obviously does not qualify as an epidemic.

Michael Arrington, the founder and co-editor of TechCrunch is quoted as saying he has gained 30 pounds in the last three years, developed a severe sleeping disorder and turned his home into an office for him and four employees. “At some point, I’ll have a nervous breakdown and be admitted to the hospital, or something else will happen.”

Popular blogger John Chow has a different take on things. He writes "The only thing I have to say about this story is, you got to be kidding me? No wonder the mainstream media is losing ground so badly to the Internet. Some 60 year old has a heart attack. It must be caused by blogging! I guess the fact that Om Malik weighs something like 400lbs has nothing to do with his heart attack, right?"

Travis Hudson, from PC world writes "I'm not too surprised by this report, but it's pretty obvious. Most bloggers have the opportunity to work out of their home, which many would assume is stress-free, but it's quite the opposite. Working from home lets you work all day and all night. There is no way to easily separate yourself from work."

I would in know way put my experiences up there with Pro-Bloggers Michael Arrington or Om Malik, I don't have deadlines, I don't have advertisers breathing down my neck, I don't have any outside influences in the way I blog. The opinions of my readers is the only concern I have.

But work is what you make of it, it doesn't matter if you are at home, in the office or on the road. As John Chow once said "One of the best things about being a blogger is it gives you the option to do it from anywhere in the world." If working from home starts to be stressful find another place. If you need to get out of the office, visit a Starbucks

John made $31k in March so if it works for him it'll definitely work for me.

Top 15 geek blog sites

Lifehacker took our top spot because of its great time-saving tips
Computerworld staff

May 01, 2007 (Computerworld) -- Some blogs educate, help people collaborate, spark ideas and just plain expand our thought universe. Others stir emotions and anger us or make us laugh. The editors of Computerworld got together and offered up a list of their favorite blog sites. We pared down more than 50 submissions to the top 15 technology blog sites based on breadth of information, newsworthiness, design, frequency of updates and entertainment value.

Sure, the list is subjective, but we think this is one of the best catalogs of blogs that has ever been published. The entries ran the gamut, from serious technology news and reviews to commentary on games and the latest tech gadgets. We included some honorable mentions at the end because the competition was so close.

Of course, not everyone will agree with our selection. If you think a blog site that's not on our list deserved a top 15 spot, share it with us in the comments section.

1) Lifehacker
www.lifehacker.com
Lifehackers' motto says it all: "Don't live to geek, geek to live." This blog offers timesavers of just about every stripe, from Firefox shortcuts to tips from the "Getting things done" faithful.

2) IT Toolbox Blogs
http://blogs.ittoolbox.com
IT Toolbox has a number of "in the trenches" IT pros who talk about technology and management issues. There are specialist blogs dealing with security, databases and project management, among other subjects. It's a versatile site.

3) Valleywag
http://valleywag.com
Bring in the noise, bring in the snark. Valleywag is for those who believe that the tech industry lives or dies by the scuttlebutt pinging around Silicon Valley. And it's amusing for those of us who prefer that the lotus-eaters of Northern California stick with the dishing and tongue-wagging, leaving the rest of us to get the real work done.

4) Kotaku
http://kotaku.com
Kotaku is the snarky, gamer uber-blog. It has everything from reviews and gossip to cheat tips. Just about anything you'll ever need, including which game to buy and how to play it.

5) Danger Room
http://blog.wired.com/defense
Wired's military and defense blog writes about some of the coolest and scariest military technologies -- not to mention scandals, debates and other military news. Lots of video and imagery are included.

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