Thursday, November 29, 2007

internet

During last BBW class Martin explained us two main concepts of internet information tracking. Since the terms were new for me, I decided toput a note on this.

There are two main concepts of information tracking - pinging and crawling.

Crawling is what Google does - indexation the change in Internet. To provide personalized advertizing, forexample, Google datacenter machines register the changes made evey second. If you ned thoroughness, you take this method, which has two main disadvantages: expensive (computer consumes a lot of energy) and perception issue (they are spying).

Pinging idea was used by David Sifry for Technocraty - blog searching engine. The source of change reports to a server automatically if he made a change and want it to appear in search results of the server's engine. You go for it if you need speed.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

BBW last class

Just went from one of my favourite classes (I even dedicated a separate blog to this topic. I have a bunch of insights from this class also, but will revise and post them later.

What I have to say.

First, we were talking about Martin´s current business Fon a lot. I even used 15 minutes of free Fon access to send the results of 2nd round of investments. And Martin brought a Fonera to each of his student as a gift. Well, I can ensure that they will have the first fonera in Russia, cause the first thig I'm going to do is to connect my father's appartment to ADSL and guess which router I will use? Quite a good reason to get into several countries at least to get first early adopters.

And second. Recently Martin has written about ASUS Eee PC - open-office linux-based portative PC with 4Gb flash memory. It is really nice, taking into account that in China it is sold at the equivalent of 180 eur (around 350 usd at Amazon in the US). What I have to say about it? User-friendly, fast, compact (a bit heavy - almost as heavy as Sony Vaio i've revcently borrowed from my friend to use). But the biggest discover for me is Linux, which is quite friendly (as my friend told me - until you open the console:). I feel like they were cheating on me about the only possibility for user - MS!

Well, hoping to get my Acer back as soon as possible (it is like renting an appartment forme when you use someone's laptop). And come back with results of last class soon.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

hate full stops in the heading (full stop here!)

My proofreader's past poisons my life - I can't read cheap books and newspapers cause I pay too much attention to details of layout and formatting; that distracts me from the content. And more important - while making ppt's of presentations I usually kill my group by paying the attention to "unsufficient details". Like full stops in headings - I hate this and I have this hate in my proofreader's DNA.

Seth Godin just posted the list of eye tracking rules. Now I'm going to use them during my next arguments. Unfortunately, this doesn't solve the full-stop issue, but allows to avoid other discussions (as logo positioning and picture backgrounds).

Here is the list (in alphabetical order):

* Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the most eye fixation.
* Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.
* Bigger images get more attention.
* Clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.
* Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.
* Formatting can draw attention.
* Headings draw the eye.
* Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.
* Large blocks of text are avoided.
* Lists hold reader attention longer.
* Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.
* One-column formats perform better in eye-fixation than multi-column formats.
* People generally scan lower portions of the page.
* Readers ignore banners.
* Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.
* Show numbers as numerals.
* Text ads were viewed mostly intently of all types tested.
* Text attracts attention before graphics.
* Type size influences viewing behavior.
* Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right.
* Users only look at a sub headline if it interests them.
* Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.
* White space is good.

Source:
Seth Godin shortlist.
Visual hosting blog explanation.
My russian post and translation.

Friday, November 16, 2007

story of success

Today is one-year anniversary of Russian regional (meaning it is not from Moscow) company "Sila uma" (Force of mind). Their weblog must read for russian speaking entrepreneurs as a success story and a resultof thoughtful markting.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

education

It's very important for people to have their first education at home.
Bibi Russell, the founder of Bibi Production (Bangladesh) during 2nd Social Responibility Forum at IE.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

little triumph

Our Venture Lab project has just qualified for semi-finals in IOP day (investment oriented project). In a week we're going to present the business to comission.

I'm really happy cause the work done is great.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

tools vs aims

People sometimes get lost between understanding the aim itself and the tool. The tool is just something that can get you to the aim, not the tool defines the aim, but vice versa.

Recently I subscribed to a rss from making presentation community in russian. I can see the trend of copying those fancy styles from western presentatios - pictures with a shortslogan on the slide. To be hones, I still prefer to have presentation only forthe sake of illustration of my words. Or sometimes when I don't have a time to get ready or don't have passion to tell people - this is the case when I put some schemes in PPT.

What I can also see, that some of consulting companies just buy techniques and then copy-paste slides from other presentation. Because nobody is going to pay you for several drops of essence, they need oceans of information, spreadsheets, fancy tools.

I really want to find a place where I can distill and deliver - I really love this formula from my entrepreneurship professor Julio de Castro. Cause the tools is not that really matters, it is how good you can use them. Or even the result of using them.

Anyway, while people buy tools but not the results, this marketwill exist. And of course it is easier to just copy and paste. Forget about reputation, they only tend to speak about it.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

can't stop, really)

Since I have a break with my entrepreneurship project, one more thing to be posted.

The theories often come to my mind during my MBA studies are:

1. Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
2. Sunk cost theory.
3. Customer oriented behavior.

Will develop the idea later.

Friday, November 9, 2007

English

Studying in multinational environment has its advantages and disadvantages. Main advantage is diversity. But sacrifice is the level of English.

You need to express yourself. You care about letting people know your idea. You talk to the guys from 37 different nationalities. And different levels of English, of course.

Well, I've got fluency and freedom of expression, but grammar went down obviously. And since the speed of thoughts now is incredible - I'm fixing everything I need, there is no time for revision.

Put the grammar note on todolist and sighed when was looking at her grammar book.

Dream Yacht

I worked a bit and added some explanation about one of my classes - building businedss workshop with Martin Varsavsky. Please, consider, that business idea I develop is no more than class exercise and I put as much efforts for it as necessary. In real life the overall aproach is also implemented, but the depth of details and work are at another level.

All the updates are in Building Eureka blog.

what a small world!

Playing with social networks actually shows you how the world is small and connected. What really differs Xing from other nets I use is that they show the whole conection chain between existing connections and a person. Even when I had 1 connection (guy whom I met randomly in friends feed of my livejournal friend and afterwards met in Munich when I visited Friedrichshafen Outdoor trade show), all my IE contacts were connected with him through network. Random guy with my IE network! Well, Xing is the first system I saw that shows the whole chain (not like "somebody from your friend's network"). And even when I find my ex-colleagues from Norway, they are somehow connected with my IE contacts. Lovely!

By now:
Xing - 19 connections within 4 days (most from my university, 1 ex-colleague, 1 poutdoor contact, 1 from groups I added).
Odnoklassniki (Classmates) - 104 connections within 7 days.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

to sell or not to sell

Talking to potential buyers about your company is the only way to know how much is worth. There´s nothing wrong with that as we all need to make informed decisions.

Martin Varsavsky quotation

Small business success.

Three things you need:
1) the ability to abandon a plan when it doesn't work,
2) the confidence to do the right thing even when it costs you money in the short run, and
3) enough belief in other people that you don't try to do everything yourself.

seth godin quotation

x-posted to building eureka blog

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

first result of netvibes feeding

I really liked the post of Seth Godin.


I was at a gala a few weeks ago (featuring no less than ten speakers). At least 80% of them began their talk by saying, "I know you're hungry, but..." or "I know it's late, but..." or "I know you want to go home, but..." and then apologized for giving a speech.

If your speech needs to be prefaced by an apology...

don't give it.

That's why they call it giving a speech. It's a gift. If you have to apologize, it's no longer a gift, is it?

Our collective fear of public speaking has created a host of awkward situations and events. It's pretty simple: Be brief. Or don't come at all. Don't do anything you need to apologize for.

(and brief means sixty seconds, usually. That's enough to say hi, to say thanks and to move on.)


Seth Godin, Nov 07, 2007 16:37:46 GMT

tech notes

Well, you really understand the opportunity when you need it. I become aware of RSS idea a year and a half ago when bumped into discussion of its necessity. I started using it a year ago when during our Informational System class we mentioned it. At that time I was choosing between downloading feed with a special program or having it online. Since I didn't have connection at home, I went for FeedDaemon - to download and then read later. At that time it seemed to be a perfect thing - I had all my feeds atr one place, read them when I had time. I wondered: why people need online rss-combiners.

My laptop now is on mainteinance (to make a long story short, I had a flaw at the top cover and went to service for a change, they promised to fix it during one month, when the block got stuck, when they decided to change the screen because of spots and now they are waiting for a motherboard - I don'tknow really why, but the laptop is 2 months delayed). I'm using my friend's machine - she was very kind to borrowit to me until December. And I really can't using a lot of programs - the capacity doesn't allow me. I gave up Outlook (to export messages then and to sort - too much time), stopped using Skype for calls (I rarely used it, mostly for messenging), reordered all the links and folders I use, but it's getting messy, because it is just not my laptop!!!

Since my networks are not requiring that my time, now I decided to build my rss feed place. Thanx to Marin Varsavsky, whose class again inspiredme to do one more crazy thing online. I really need the easy updateness on news. Later on I will duplicate all the feeds to my FeedDaemon, but now...

Welcome to the wonderful world of netvibes.com.

networking again

With all networking activities the main thing is consistency. If you're building a network,youneed to do it regularly and on contstnt basis, since you stop, the processgoes backwards. Within 3 days I built 2 networks - private and business. Or, let say, started building that. I'm going to cut my activities within facebook (after december, when I come back to Russia) and russian nets and pay attention to LinkedIn and Xing.

The steps to build it are the following:
1. Register and check ytour closest network - University and Business School.
2. Check network of each member added you. Add those you know.
3. Check groups, choose, be a member.
4. Participate.

Now I'm at 4th stage with Xing.
;)

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

social networks

I'm playing with social networks now. There is a huge variety of ones, with different aims and coverage, but all of them require a lot of time and don't use in full.

I've understood several stages of relationships with the net:
1. Awareness - somebody lets a person know, may be describes main features and advantages.
2. Interface test - here a person registers for a network (by invitation or through automatic process) and makes first steps on the building networks through checking invited friend's connections.
3. Network building - (s)he uses search tools, matching possibilities, checks colleagues, classmates.
4. Additional services check - the most useful and user-frienly are adopted, others are ignored.
5. Network modration - after a certain effort the network is updated automatically. User just moderates it.
6. Intensive use of the network - most of users rarely come to this stage.

The aims of creating a social network are the following:
1. Stay in touch with friends - network here is an interactive adressbook or messenger.
2. Active participationin social life - creating and attending different networks, groups.
3. Job search engine.
4. Professional network creation - for knowledge sharing.

Well, each of the type has its own target users, I can't say that my nets are not important. some of them are not just developped to be useful.

Most probable trends are:
1. Entertainment (social life) nets will merge, since it is hard to manage several ones.
2. Professional nets are on contrary will intimidate and increase entrance barriers due to the level of sharing of information rise.

I participate in the following nets:
* Facebook - social, entertainment, mostly to stay in touch with my IE classmates and spanish friends.
* LinkedIn - social+professional, since most of the contacts business related (IE + some external).
* Xing - entered today, job search + professional.
* MoiKrug - russian net, started as a contact book, now I use for professional purposes - job search + stay in touch with russian professionals.
* Odnoklassniki.Ru (Classmates) - I'm using it since two days ago. Curious to find elementary school classmates and see them now. While surfing thru it, I understood that I started forgetting even university friends. Just to stay in touch.
* Vkontakte - russian clone (copycat?) of facebook (even design). Non developped forme, just in case, cause I have a good friend there. Plus, making an experiment of networking building.

Well, when building, networks require a certain effort and a lot of time. When buit, they save time through providing quick answers and help a lot if correctly used.

As my friend Mauricio says, network should work, when it worths the time spent for building it.