Our Sixth Sense

November 18th, 2009

Very interesting research into technical gadgetry that can help with real time information processing and intuiting.

Although in its current state this somewhat patched together set of gadgets is a bit clunky, you can see where the technology is headed.

One group this validates are those who have, for years, been developing wearable technology. Here the value proposition is obvious vs. just offering convenience, to which most of the previous development has been limited.

You’ll notice the obvious augmented reality that they’re achieving with a projector vs. the onscreen data display employed with some of the previous iPhone posts I’ve made.

Wish I’d Said That

November 6th, 2009

Dammit, SEOGuy!  seo_guy_logo

Talking about best practices and integrity in the SEO world…

There are so many unscrupulous companies in this space who promise #1 rankings in 2 weeks or less, charging ridiculous fees and setting false expectations.

I found this while doing some research on domain name aliases, and even though this post didn’t exactly answer my question, (;-)) the principles stated were expressed about as well as they possibly could be.

Enjoy.

BTW. I found what I was looking for here.

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology at St. John + Partners.

The Next Wave of Augmented Reality

August 5th, 2009

Obviously I love augmented reality, as evidenced in previous posts. I first posted about it months ago with GE’s Ecomagination commercial on the Super Bowl, and a couple month’s later when magician, Marco Tempest, used the technology to make his slight-of-hand magic even more amazing.

Now, SPRXmobile in Amsterdam has begun exploring a practical application of this technology, as you’ll see in this demo:

Their product, Layar, is a video-mode application that works with your 3G phone and its GPS system, plus a compass and an accelerometer, also both built-in to the phone. These elements work to establish your position on the planet, which direction your phone is facing and its angle or tilt. With that information, the application is able to pull data feeds that are relevant to the environment you’re viewing through the video display.

Wonder what the reviews have been like for the restaurant you’re standing in front of? Or maybe if there are any apartments for rent in that building nearby?

All kinds of relevant data will be available, and presented in a visually appealing, 3D context relative to the environment you’re viewing through your phone’s video camera, turning that view into a detailed and highly engaging dynamic interface.

Here’s the original article on CNN that talks about it.


Lovin’ dis big time, mon.


KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

JaneNation Takes Next Big Step

June 11th, 2009

More than six-months in the making, Jane Nation is now live as a new community devoted to women.

Congratulations to the development team involved…lots of time spent and people involved to birth this baby.  Special thanks to Steven (a.k.a. “Stevie”), Mike (a.k.a. “Michelle”), Jen (a.k.a “Jen”), Erin (a.k.a. “Erin”) and Sean (a.k.a. “Shana”) who were the core development team.

jane_nation

Definitely check out the site.

It’s got a lot of information and conversations happening, geared to what may be going on in your life right now, so almost any woman would find a bunch of relevant content and a number of interesting women with whom you can connect.

Here’s the link.

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

Project Natal Re-Imagines Gaming

June 6th, 2009

It’s kind of like they were contemplating re-inventing the wheel and instead came up with the mag-lev train.

Microsoft is dangerously close to stealing the cool factor away from Apple, not for its PC/Mac war of the ages, but because it is getting ready to shift the paradigm of the gamers’ UI experiences. What’s in the offing is Project Natal, introduced to reporters and VIPs on the eve of the E3 in Los Angeles.

Not being on the guest list, I can’t make any first hand observations, but one of the guys on our team is an avid gamer and Xbox 360 aficionado, as well as being versed in all things gaming, and he had to take a few days off to calm-down after viewing the video feed from the press conference on the Xbox Channel.

This demo and presentation is pretty crazy stuff. A lot of bloggers are disbelieving that Microsoft has really cracked the code on this, at least not to this level.

Here’s another video that shows more of the gaming experience vs. the artificial intelligence that Milo demonstrated above.

That’s enough of a difference that Wii and other gaming systems should be pretty nervous. Although Wii is much easier to master than the current Xbox, and PS3, there is virtually no learning curve with the controller-free gesturing in Natal.  No “A” then flick your wrist while hitting “Trigger” style interaction here. Just do what you’d do normally if you were engaged in the activity and you’re playing. If the AI layer is anywhere close to Milo, we’re talking mag-lev trains, baby!

Can’t wait to see this unfold over the next 18 months.
KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

Holiday Travelers I Have Met Along the Way

May 27th, 2009

You never know what you’ll see next on the web.

I haven’t seen my oldest son in person since Christmas, but an email and a link, and hazaa!, reunited across the many miles.

zach_on_baltimoretv2


This is him and friend, Crystal being interviewed after returning to Washington and Baltimore, respectively, from a Memorial Day trip to NYC.

This has absolutely nothing to do with online marketing, but had to post about it anyway. :-)






KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

One Click Moms Helps Navigate the Web

May 27th, 2009

I guess some people still need training wheels to confidently navigate the Internet, at least OneClickMoms is counting on that.

Offering a free newsletter that is “a daily review of some of the newest, hottest sites called ‘One Click Daily’”,  One Click Moms provides interested “moms” an easy guide to what’s happening on the web.

one_click_moms

The site and the newsletter are pretty breezy and easy to consume, and cover social networks, virtual worlds, games and other sites moms might find of interest.

No advertisers or sponsors visible right now, so clearly still in the eyeball-gathering phase of development.

But if you’re a mom and interested in finding new sites both for yourself and your kids, and having some confidence in the appropriateness and safety of the content, this could be for you.

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

Web 3.0 Thinking is In the Clouds

May 11th, 2009

Although pretty heady stuff for a simple blog like this, the Aspen Institute recently released an eBook on cloud computing and the affects it may have on society in the coming years.

daybreak_miami

Arguably the ultimate expression of the web, “the cloud” is defined by A.I. as “a vast, always on, accessible, broadband-enabled next-generation Internet that is fast approaching.”

It will be a time where applications and data become a shared and distributed cyber-sea of information, communications and services, and with this evolution comes a huge set of issues around the idea of “identity.” Defining identity, validating it, preserving it, making it hack-proof and building reputation around it are just a few of the issues examined in the report.

You can read the report for yourself, here.

The report concludes by saying, “The cloud will usher in a seismic shift in the locus of control in our culture, and it will have ripple effects in all walks of life—energy, the environment, national security, learning, health care, business processes, emerging markets and much more. The cloud is about open access, rapid delivery of services, the ability to scale quickly and the power of networks. Ultimately, though, the cloud story is not just about computing, communication or information but about empowering citizens.”

A pretty worthwhile read, I guess….

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

Google Widens Trademarked Keyword Universe

May 6th, 2009

google_shush

Google announced yesterday that it will permit marketers to buy trademarked adwords in almost 200 additional countries beginning in early June.  This is a wide expansion of a policy currently in place for the US, Canada, UK and Ireland.  Google’s policy allows any marketer to purchase keywords of its competitors, so long as the content of the ads doesn’t violate trademark laws.

Google has battled this issue in the US for several years, and continues to do so in the case of RescueCom, a computer services firm that has a suit dating back several years.  Just last month an appeals court overturned a previous decision favorable to Google and returned the case to the lower courts.   A similar case for Louis Vitton was decided against Google in France in 2006, and France is not on the list of 190 countries that will get the new adwords policy.  It’s odd that Google has suddenly thrown open this issue, when the balance of decisions seems to be tipping against their favor, and the wider the expansion, the more likely additional suits will be filed.  Perhaps the drop in search spending overall is what’s driving them.

Needless to say, this is a huge issue.  If Google is forced to pay RescueCom for trademark infringement, it could potentially trigger a ton of similar lawsuits, and eliminate this income stream from its PPC business.

Stay tuned.

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.

Augmented Reality Updated, Magically

April 30th, 2009

Back in February, I posted about GE’s Augmented Reality commercial on the SuperBowl, and how amazing and promising the technology looked.

Magician, Marco Tempest, has taken this to another level with this interactive card trick, in which both he and the programmed animations are manipulating the environment. The trick you’ve seen before with other story lines, although he does it very well. But the augmented reality is really sweet, particularly some of the actions apparently triggered by hand movements.

Enjoy! Thanks to Mark R. for turning me on to this.

KidWithMatches is the personal blog of Pete Eberbach, VP Director of Online Marketing & Technology with St. John + Partners.