Collaborative Filtering

Del.icio.us provides us with an immediate picture of how people categorise valuable links online and how they label those categories. Are the labels key-terms ?

If we could look at the tag set X and then match that to the tag set Y then we could have some new exciting way of categorising the web. This applies when the tag set X is from a group of users and the tag set Y is from a target set an individual or group identifies with.

Hypothesis

This could take the form of a business knowing what tags (key-terms) they know or suspect to be of value to a product or page, and then applying those tags to the greater tag set of del.icio.us users to identify a commonality.

The next step would be to harvest the intersection of the tags via an rss feed and inserting the result set into a database.

The database then provides a reference for a set of key-terms that are human edited. The DMOZ project is trying to achieve this but with the huge growing uer base of del.icio.us users.

More on this subject at :

Jon Udell: Collaborative filtering with del.icio.us

Card sharps

Card sharps - Technology - smh.com.au

It is not clear whether data stolen from CardSystems Solutions, the payment processor reported in recent weeks to have exposed 40 million credit card accounts to possible theft, has entered this black market. But police and security experts say it is a safe bet the data will eventually be peddled at sites such as iaaca.com - its name shorthand for International Association for the Advancement of Criminal Activity.

City of Sydney Homepage

The City of Sydney has launched a new look web site.

 

City of Sydney Homepage

Top 100-200 Quotes

This is phunny.

QDB: Top 100-200 Quotes

Private Blogging - Public Blogging

I read an interesting article and comments on the subject of anonymous blogging today. Many people think that your blog life and your private life should be kept separate. I can see thier point of view … theres so much to contend with.

But if you are truthful to yourself and to others then why shouldn’t you blog publically, using your real names and contacts details. You have nothing to hide right ? As long as it’’s legal …. no problem.

On the other hand if you do, then … it’’s time to close up shop and make it private.

For a fee, some blogs boost firms

For a fee, some blogs boost firms - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Business

Yes, corporate America has discovered the blog and found that the grass-roots medium for supposedly unadulterated opinions is also a powerful marketing tool in a country where about 37 million Americans read these online journals.

 

Cruel to be kind?

Guardian Unlimited | Arts special reports | Cruel to be kind?: "all that is required is 'for good men to do nothing' (a favourite quotation of Kofi Annan's)"

I wonder what Kofi is thinking now it appears theres a rat amongst the good ? Could it be that he still subscribes to this but only in reverse .... ie. "all that is required is for bad men to do nothing" .... wheres the money from the oil for food program Kofi ?

The United Nations seems most unaccountable for thier inactions.

peterkonnecke
live8

Dial in to the Olympics

Dial in to the Olympics ...: "Geneva - The European Broadcasting Union said on Thursday that it would seek bids from companies interested in offering viewers the chance to watch the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin and the 2008 Games in Beijing on cellphones."

IBM dominates world's top500 supercomputer ranking

People's Daily Online -- IBM dominates world's top500 supercomputer ranking: "The world's Top500 supercomputer rankings list was unveiled on June 22, 2005 at the International Supercomputer Conference in Heidelberg, Germany. IBM's Blue Gene/L supercomputer holds the number one position on the chart again."

EXPO 2005

The Australian pavillion at World Expo 2005 looks very impressive. Lots of Australian companies are represented and the State and Federal Governments have chipped in as well. Let's hope it's as sucessful as World Expo 88 in Brisbane (I'm sure it will be).

It's got me thinking.
Isn't it time that we held it in Australia again ?

EXPO 2005

Organisers request more money for Games

Organisers request more money for Games: "Commonwealth Games organisers have requested more money from the Federal Government for next year's event."

TagCloud

Very very cool. I like this. All we need now is for Blogger to come up with a categorisation and tagging mechanism and we're all set.

TagCloud - Home: "TagCloud is an automated Folksonomy tool. Essentially, TagCloud searches any number of RSS feeds you specify, extracts keywords from the content and lists them according to prevalence within the RSS feeds. Clicking on the tag’s link will display a list of all the article abstracts associated with that keyword."

Millions threatened by Mastercard breach

Anyone maxed out and looking for a way out ?? I'm joking of course :-)

Millions threatened by Mastercard breach: "The names, banks and account numbers of up to 40 million credit card holders may have been accessed by an unauthorised user, MasterCard International says.

The credit card giant says the security breach involves a computer virus that captured customer data for the purpose of fraud and may have affected holders of all brands of credit cards."

Sydney - City of Lights

DSC00704
Originally uploaded by Peter Konnecke.

I decided to start experimenting with the exposures on my Digital Camera (Sony W1) to see if I can do as well as some of the other people taking nightshots on Flickr.

Here's my first effort. I don't think it's too bad a try. :-)

You can also view my nightshots set on Flickr.

Samsung SGH-X810 : Gizmodo

Samsung SGH-X810 : Gizmodo: "Another day, another Samsung phone. "

Still I'm happy with my D500.

Wolf Moon

Wolf Moon
Originally uploaded by notraces.

I loved this shot so much I went out tonight and decided to play around with some exposure settings on my Sony W-1.

Whilst nowhere near the quality gotten from the Nikon D70 used for this shot, I think I got some good results. Watch for the post later on, as I'm about to send them all up to Flickr.

Searching for gold

I'm not so worried about privacy with Google but rather whether we're going to get all the great functionality that Google has for the US and the UK. Australia is desperately in need of a fully functional (lat long) based mapping/search solution like Google Maps or MultiMap.

Searching for gold - Icon - Technology - smh.com.au: "Once simply a little engine that could, Google is today a diverse, mighty and seemingly omnipresent force. It is the brand name for finding stuff on the web, a master of infusing itself into our lives and is constantly rolling out innovative services to keep us hooked."

IE finally picks up the tab Archives

uh ... oh yeah .... ummmm ... I'll stay with the Fox thanks :-)

The Sydney Morning Herald Technology: Razor - IE finally picks up the tab Archives: "Anyone tried out Microsoft's MSN Search Toolbar With Windows Desktop Search [PUFF, PANT!!] belated bolt-on to Internet Explorer and Windows XP?"

Oversight Sought After Disney World Death

Oversight Sought After Disney World Death - Yahoo! News: "ORLANDO, Fla. - If state inspectors who regulate Florida's thrill rides want to look into why a 4-year-old boy died this week after going on 'Mission: Space' at Walt Disney World, they're going to need permission from the theme park. That's because Disney World and the state's other big theme parks are exempt from most Florida laws governing carnival and amusement park rides."

Classic Jewish Food Recipes

I'm interested in trying some of these recipes from the Jewish Food Recipe's site. Theres a certain mysteriousness in trying new food, it all sounds good but ya just dunno about the taste until you try it. See more at Classic Jewish Food Recipe Categories

New York City Walk

Thanks to the folks at ABC NewsRadio I found this really interesting site about New York City. Featured here, is just one of the dozens of pages showing pictures of the city and details of historical events. The author walked every street in Manhattan over the past 3 years to put the site together. Well Done !

New York City Walk - The Weathermen: "11th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues is a quiet, leafy block in Greenwich Village. At 18 West 11th Street, one house juts out towards the sidewalk, breaking the continuity of the mid-19th century townhouses that line the rest of the street."

Google map hacks make data come alive

Google map hacks make data come alive: "Tracking sexual predators in Florida. Guiding travellers to the cheapest petrol nationwide. Pinpointing $US1500 ($A2000) studio apartments for rent in Manhattan.

Geeks, tinkerers and innovators are crashing the Google party, having discovered how to tinker with the search engine's mapping service to graphically illustrate vital information that might otherwise be ignored, overlooked or not perceived as clearly."

Compromise on detention policy reached

Compromise on detention policy reached: "Prime Minister John Howard says he has reached a compromise agreement with rebel Liberal MPs over changes to the Government's mandatory detention policy.

But Mr Howard said the framework of the Government's policy was intact.

'Mandatory detention will remain,' he said.

'We will maintain our strong position on border protection, that is the excision of islands, the maintenance of offshore processing, and ... the policy of turning boats around.'"

Hail storms batter eastern China

Hail storms batter eastern China: "At least eight people were killed and hundreds injured when a hurricane and hail storms whipped through parts of China, destroying nearly 200,000 homes, state media reported today.

The worst-hit province was Jiangsu in China's east where seven were killed and 'several hundred' injured when torrential rains and hail accompanied a hurricane on Tuesday night, Xinhua news agency said."

Lake Parramatta

DSC00544
Originally uploaded by Peter Konnecke.

Lake Parramatta reflects the winters sky on a clear afternoon.

This post is my first which combines the power of Flickr, Podcasting and Blogger.

Motion Picture Post

This is an attempt to post motion picture files (MPEG) to the blog.

I hope to use this extensively next year when I'm in Melbourne.

Olympic bid has outside chance

Newsday.com: Olympic bid has outside chance: "Amid significant confusion over where New York City's Olympic bid goes from here, and with NYC2012 officials remaining incommunicado Tuesday while exploring their options, a few things were clear:

Even if the West Side stadium deal is dead, NYC2012 is required to appear in Singapore on July 6, when the five candidate cities will make final presentations and the full International Olympic Committee membership will vote to award the 2012 Summer Games."

--------------

Sadly I'm not so sure theres even the remotest of a chance now. The stadium is a clincher in any bid.

Podcasting Now On-line

I've decided to join the ranks of broadcasters and started up a podcast. I've only posted a very small test post right now but I plan to broadcast a weekly news round-up over time. I'll let you now when thats ready.

This is not entirely all for play. I see benefits for business activities. Imagine being able to humanise personal contact with customers. Imagine being able to personalise voice contact with customers. You might see a few tests here for that over the next week or so as well.

If every customer had thier own personalised feed, the script of which was based on thier tripwire statistics and purchasing patterns, then the customer could receive voice communications to thier desptop and better still iPod or other MP3 device.

The challenge is to add value and to keep it personal. One size doesn't fit all in this case and the more it's personalised the better the impact.

It's worth a thought.

The feed link is at http://www.konnecke.com/podcasts/konneckenews.xml

konnecke
peter konnecke
podcasting
podcasts
konnecke podcasts

Olympic Bid Hurt as New York Fails in West Side Stadium Quest

Olympic Bid Hurt as New York Fails in West Side Stadium Quest - New York Times: "Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's nearly four-year quest to build a Manhattan football stadium that could spark the redevelopment of the West Side and lure the Olympic Games to New York was defeated yesterday when two of Albany's leaders refused to approve the $2.2 billion project. The decision threw into serious doubt the city's bid to bring the 2012 Olympics to the United States."

I can only describe this as being tantamount to economic treason. How these people can honestly say they are representative of the people of NY State, I really don't know.

I strongly doubt that NYC will be able to maintain it's bid given that the stadium, at the location outlined in the bid document, is doomed.

Mississippi Delta's Economy, Way of Life Fading

NPR : Mississippi Delta's Economy, Way of Life Fading: "The alluvial plain that is the Mississippi Delta was once home to a thriving cotton plantation economy. It has also been fertile ground for American culture, giving birth to the blues, gospel, soul food and such writers as Eudora Welty, Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner."

This is one of those places that I've always wanted to visit. I've added it to the list ... the story is enticing and real. It would be interesting to see the old way of life in the deep south before it's all gone.

The year ahead

Today I got a bit of a taste for whats in store for us in the year ahead. The main theme for this year is technology, how we use it, and how it can help our business.

This is a good thing, and is more than welcome in my opinion.

There are a few rough edges that need sorting out but I think this is a move in the right direction. Once again the spoils of my ideas have surfaced to line the mindspace of others. Yippee :-(

konnecke
peterkonnecke
business

On-line Google Sitemap Generator

On-line Google Sitemap Generator: "On June 2, 2005, Google announced the beta of their new service, Google Sitemaps. This provides webmasters with a method to map site URLs into an XML based format. On some regular interval, Google will read the sitemap .xml file, to better understand the exact content of the site, and what has been recently updated on the site."

The Top SEM Hitlist Tasks

I mentioned earlier that I wanted to get some tasks completed so that I can start reaping some benefit from business blogging.

Here's the top tasks I need to complete to make the business blog take off and start delivering new customers to our site.

Create blog header

Deliver blog header and save to site

Write articles about this months offers on the EDM's

Write articles so I can start using product landing pages

Promote software like crazy in the new blog

Prepare a report and introduction to business blogging

Present the report at the next site meeting

I think that's enough for now but I bet theres "a million" more things I can think of once I've had enough sleep tonight. One things for sure about blogging if the mood takes you and the inspiration is there .... Go for it .... before the urge leaves and the though is lost.

konnecke
peter konnecke
google adwords
blogging

Google Adwords Reporting - Valuable Knowledge

I've downloaded a batch of stats from Adwords to my system and I'm beginning to piece together the information into something that can be easily digested as valuable knowledge.

I've been meaning to restart this for weeks but theres been a lot of hold-ups with our site, which prevents the conversion code from being deployed. I sincerely hope this goes into production soon because I think from a business financial perspective, people are going to want to know sooner rather than later that theres a decent return from all of this.

I'm convinced that this is working for us and subsequently I have developed a hit list of tasks which need to be done to start further promoting this site. I'll discuss those in a later post. I think it's time to put up much promised and seldom recognised SEO / SEM deliverables.

konnecke
peter konnecke
Google Adwords