Umami
type: channel
date: 2007-07-14T17:17:43+12:00
generator agent: http://www.movabletype.org/
items: Change your feed!
items: Farewell for now
items: This is why I haven't been posting much lately
items: So what is forking then...?
items: Battery charged, check. Camera, check. Stack of memory cards, check.
items: User Experience & Usability Session
items: So!? Who cares?
items: Mid-April update
items: Christchurch traffic worse than Auckland? Yeah right!
items: Let's make this a contest
items: I'm moving!
items: ...
items: Introducing Web 2.0 concepts tomorrow
items: 75 grams of fat... and 75 grams of carbon
items: How to find us

Change your feed!
type: item
description: I have been neglecting my blog lately, and there really isn’t any excuse. Maybe we needed a little space from each other for a while… Well, hopefully, that time is over and I’ve got back around to thinking of things to post about. Not that my lack of posts seems to have affected my visitor numbers or Technorati ranking… odd. Last month I took the time to upgrade from Movable Type to Wordpress (I was probably the last person in Wellington still using MT…). So far I’m reasonably impressed but I still feel like Movable Type is a more polished product. Anyway, I need you to please update your feed reeders to my new RSS feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/Umamiblog If you’re subscribed to any of my older feeds, this is the last post you’ll receive. C’mon, you know you want to update it right now Thanks!
subject: Life
creator: umami
date: 2007-07-14T17:17:43+12:00

Farewell for now
type: item
description: 2 and bit years ago I started my journey with Intergen. Today, this particular part of that journey comes to an end. Today is my last day at Intergen. I've really enjoyed my time here at Intergen; the work I have done, the relationships I've made, and the opportunities I have been given to develop. I know and can recognise how much I've grown personally in my time here. I'd like to give a big shout-out to all the people at Intergen, past and present, for making it the experience it was. I looking forward to see what you crazy cats get up to! So where am I going? About a month ago an opportunity came up to work with the crew at Ponoko that was too good to pass up. This means getting to work with one of my most favorite persons in the world again, Miss Sally Coe, as well as getting a chance to work with Dave ten Have (aka Dave5). If you haven't heard of Ponoko, do check out their website. Next week I'll post a bit of an intro on it. Otherwise, changes are afoot.
subject: Life
creator: umami
date: 2007-06-22T11:56:10+12:00

This is why I haven't been posting much lately
type: item
description: Introducing ActionThis. Fun, exciting, stressful and interesting times. :o) More to come soon.
subject: Work
creator: umami
date: 2007-05-21T10:17:43+12:00

So what is forking then...?
type: item
description: My father popped up on MSN today to ask this question: Craig says: Hey there is a Tui adv up here that says "We just spooned" Yeah right. Craig says: What the hell does that mean? john.lewis says: LOL Craig says: I have no idea john.lewis says: you know what spooning is? Craig says: Nope. I am 54 soon..... john.lewis says: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spooning
subject: Life
creator: umami
date: 2007-05-16T21:32:44+12:00

Battery charged, check. Camera, check. Stack of memory cards, check.
type: item
description: This looks intensely cool and intensely fun. Flickr are running a "24 hour of flickr" event whereby you: join us in 24 Hours of Flickr, a day-long global photo project. On May 5 2007, grab your camera and whatever else you need, and chronicle your day in pictures. You just need to join the 24 hours of flickr group and take some photos on Saturday. You can upload them from 6am Pacific Time on the 5th of May. For us in NZ, that means 1am on the 6th... So, Jeff, Trey, Dave, Ari, Marksy, Pablo - you guys keen?
subject: Images
creator: umami
date: 2007-05-03T21:07:49+12:00

User Experience & Usability Session
type: item
description: Tomorrow (Wednesday May 2nd) we're running a user experience and usability twilight session at work. Speakers include Trent Mankelow from Optimal Usability, Natasha Hall from Trademe, and our very own Eamon O'Rourke. The details: When: 4.20pm, Wednesday 2nd, May Where: Ground Floor Theatrette, 20 Customhouse Quay, Wellington More info | Register me! See you then!
subject: Work
creator: umami
date: 2007-05-01T22:33:16+12:00

So!? Who cares?
type: item
description: The question of who cares is easy to answer: anyone who has complained about the general shortage of developers. If we want to increase the number of capable developers out there, not cutting out half the population is probably a good starting point. Jo Chapman, Intergen developer, pondering on "developing girls" in IT
subject: Work
creator: umami
date: 2007-04-19T22:18:14+12:00

Mid-April update
type: item
description: A couple of things have been happening lately I've wanted to blog about. I thought I'd combine the lot of them for good-measure. My most important value in life? We have a stock-standard normal old land phone line at home. The only reason we have one is the historical legacy of Telecom forcing you to have a landline if you wanted to get DSL/broadband. S and I both live from our cellphones so we almost never use it and only two people ever call us on it, S's parents, and telemarketers. I have a habit of saying "thanks for calling, I'm hanging up now" to any telemarketer but I've been putting up with a few calls lately to listen to the odd survey and how they're conducted (there is an ulterior motive). Last week the New Zealand Chamber Music Society called and from what I gathered they're trying to work out why no one cares about chamber music and consequently why no one (except themselves) ever goes to their concerts. Now for whatever reason they thought relevant, they asked me a number of questions about my values. Such as: How important is world peace to you? How important is it for people to like you? How important is it to you that you reach your potential in life? Uh, quite important... but it doesn't mean I'm going to spend any of my over-taxed dollars to watch chamber music. I felt like saying "Go fish!" as they were asking the questions. Maybe they need to read Seth's "I'd ignore him too" post. Why don't they advertise this? Air New Zealand's grabaseat promotion/feature is pretty cool. They update it daily with some very low fares to and from domestic and internation destinations - today I could have booked a ticket to Taupo for $39. Their offers are always getting emailed around the office and it stuck out to me as a sitter for an RSS feed, it's incrementally updating content! It is in Flash, I thought to myself, so it wouldn't be that easy to scrape the page for that days offers to mash into an RSS feed. Hmmm, I wonder if the Flash app imports the offers as…
subject: Web
creator: umami
date: 2007-04-16T10:38:07+12:00

Christchurch traffic worse than Auckland? Yeah right!
type: item
description: People use statistics as a drunken man uses a lamppost; for support, not illumination. If you needed further proof of Andrew Lang's quote you needn't look further than reports in the media this week proclaiming "Christchurch traffic worse than Auckland's?" The basis of such a statement? The statistic that Christchurch drivers average 36km/h during peak time versus Auckland drivers who enjoy an average speed of 39km/h. What a load of complete bollocks if you're not going to take into account any other factor. How about the average distance that each city's average commuters have to drive during peak times at average speeds? I bet Christchurch's drivers spend less time in their cars each day compared to their Auckland counterparts. We could (moderately unscientifically) compare the journey from each city's airport into the central city. For Christchurch you'd travel roughly 10kms, for Auckland you'd travel roughly 18kms. Average time travelling at average speeds would bring you to an almost 17 minute journey in Christchurch versus a 27 minute journey in Auckland. Media people! Please please please explore an issue with just a tiny bit more balance. Especially when you're dealing with one-eyed Cantabs!
subject: Rants
creator: umami
date: 2007-04-11T15:28:09+12:00

Let's make this a contest
type: item
description: Today a project manager said something to me that I didn't think I hear (from a project manager) in a thousand years. What do you think it was? Win: A random prize to the person with the first correct answer (NZ only). Update: Winner announced! As much I wish it was Stu's remuneration (I could do with the moolah) or follower's "realisation" (too funny) or sal's fries (now I'm hungry) the award goes to mase for his "don't worry about the budget". Yep, it's true. It took a moment to sink in when they said it, and then register what that actually meant in terms of the mouth it came out of... shocking! Prizes? I had a loose idea in my brain about what the prize could/would be. If you were Wellington based it was going to be my shout at some local establishment. If you were elsewhere in NZ it was going to be some random conference schwag I'd picked up, maybe a t-shirt, maybe a laptop bag, maybe even a thermos.. So Mase, you've won a drink with me at some stage bud! Cash it in when you want. To everyone else who left a comment; thank you! I laughed uncontrollably reading them as they came in.
subject: Work
creator: umami
date: 2007-04-04T20:48:02+12:00

I'm moving!
type: item
description: I've decided to leave Intergen and move on over to Provoke. It wasn't an easy decision to make but the offer to work on Provoke's new "Lirpa Loof" project was too good to pass by... Provoke's "Lirpa Loof" project works over Google's new TiSP service which in turn was built upon the work of early inventor George Washington. Wish me luck! Update: Ok, I've had my fun :-) Do have a look at the date this post was written. Thanks for playing.
subject: Asinine
creator: umami
date: 2007-04-01T12:00:00+12:00

...
type: item
description: I have no idea if I'll ever post again. I suspect I will. But for now, I have a lot to rethink. - Kathy Sierra
subject: Web
creator: umami
date: 2007-03-28T10:22:58+12:00

Introducing Web 2.0 concepts tomorrow
type: item
description: Tomorrow I'll be giving my "Introducing Web 2.0 concepts" presentation here in Wellington. There are still a couple of spots left if anyone would like to come along and enjoy a drink and some nibbles: When: 4.20pm, Wednesday 28th Where: Intergen, Level 7, Plunket House, 126 Lambton More info | Registration See you then!
subject: Work
creator: umami
date: 2007-03-27T11:43:59+12:00

75 grams of fat... and 75 grams of carbon
type: item
description: I'm more than a little giddy to see this appear on the Celsias blog: Carbon Labelling is Born into the World A humble packet of crisps has apparently become the first product in the world to have a genuine CO2 label. In December I posted about food labelling with regard to the environment and so I'm very happy and encouraged to see it happening. This is huge, I hope we see more of it!
subject: Environment
creator: umami
date: 2007-03-26T11:36:57+12:00

How to find us
type: item
description: The absolute best "how to find us" directions I have seen on the web. Ever. Once you load the page, click on "Contact us". Seen any other good ones?
subject: Web
creator: umami
date: 2007-03-23T10:39:47+12:00