It is available in print and kindle editions from major book sources, including Amazon.com. I appreciated it so much that I also added it to The Information Technology Thought of the Day Webstore, permanently.

I will try to get a full review up in the next couple of weeks, as I finish it.  I can already tell though that it will be a modern day classic for the niche that it is targeted at as well as statisticians and current event geeks.

The opening chapter alone is worth the price of admission and really demonstrates well how much the world of warfare has changed in the past 20 years due to the Internet and Information Technology.  I especially appreciated how the author makes the case that Cyber War is real whether you think that it is or not.    I also valued the parallels that were drawn between the dawn of cyber war and the coming of naval aviation and nuclear weapons.  Considering that the author is a leading expert on Nuclear War policy, I figure that he probably knows what he is talking about.

Image Credit: Tesco Books

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I often times get asked how I manage to keep up with all of the happenings in the Information Technology (IT) field. My recommendation to most is that you need to invest time in a range of media – magazines, websites, blogs, and podcasts – to really do it correctly. I have written before about my recommendations in this last category – podcasts that I recommend.

For those of you unfamiliar, Podcasts are downloadable audio files that you can play on your computer, iPod, or portable media player. Like blogs, they range in quality from amateur garage-bands to completely professional mass media productions.

The Pipeline sits firmly in the professionally produced, expertly moderated, and featuring superb guest choices camp.  I have listened to two episodes already – one welcoming Merlin Mann and a second with Gina Trapani.  Both were engaging interviews that stayed away from clichés and boring retreads and really allowed the guest to shine.  The host was very well prepared and very engaging.  The length of each was just over 30 minutes – just right for this format and most commutes!  He also provides expert level show notes at his homepage.

This is how Dan describes his own production:

The Pipeline is an interview show hosted by Dan Benjamin, talking with people who create things. Guests include Zeldman, Kottke, Vaynerchuk, Coudal, Mann, Siracusa, and more.

You can check out The Pipeline:

• At its homepage
• On iTunes where it has a five star rating!
• Via his feedburner RSS feed

I cannot say enough good things about this show and recommend it enough to my readers.  The host is talking about Information Age topics of interest, featuring guest who are luminaries in the Info-sphere, and producing it expertly.  A real find.  Please give it a listen and visit his web sites.

If you would like to read another post like this, here is a link to podcasts that I recommend.

That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for April 9, 2010 by Scott Coughlin.

Image Credit: The Pipeline

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• Someone sends you a link to a long web article, or
• Your RSS Reader only gives you a synopsis or an article with a link to the full version, or
• You start reading a long web story, but you won’t hold your online connection long enough to finish it, or
• You wish there was some way to save a great web article that did not depend on the source to stay static, or
• You just wish that you could save some great, long web content for later reading on your laptop, smart phone, or Kindle

Well now you can!  And, best of all, the service is free!

The service, that I use dozens of times a day, is called Instapaper.  It is designed by By Marco Arment.  They self describe themselves as, “A simple tool to save web pages for reading later.” But, I have to say that I believe they are being overly modest.  You can read their own description via their Frequently Asked Questions page, here.

In a nutshell, you:

1. Open a free account with them.
2. Install a bookmark in your browser and/or a bookmarklet app on your tool bar.  This works with all the major browsers including mobile safari on the iPhone.
3. You surf to a page that you like or copy a link.  You then go to their bookmark or hit their bookmarklet and Bam!  It gets saved.  You can also go to your Instapaper Account page and manually paste the link.
4. To access the saved pages you can use their website, download an iPhone/Android/Blackberry application, or tie it to your Amazon Kindle Account.

That is it!  What is really cool is that:

• It is smart enough to grab the story and not the page on a blog or news site.
• It is smart enough to grab the “for print view” rather than the web view, meaning that you get the whole article and not the first page!
• On the very very very few pages that don’t work, it is smart enough to self-detect the error and give you a clean link to go back to it.

I tell you, this is the way to read web pages, blog articles, and news stories later when you have time.  Plus, the saved links last forever, giving you a clean way to reference them in the future.

I have to say, Bravo, to the developer.  This is master level work that I whole heartedly recommend to my readers.  If you are an Information Technology Professional, then you have to be using this service.  It is a game changer!

That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for March 29, 2010  by Scott Coughlin.

Image Credit: instapaper.com

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The first thing that you need to know is that, at its core, Google Reader, is nothing more than an online RSS Reader application.  What is RSS you ask?  Let’s check Wikipedia –

“RSS (most commonly expanded as "Really Simple Syndication") is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format. An RSS document (which is called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel") includes full or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship. Web feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically. They benefit readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from favored websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place. RSS feeds can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader", or "aggregator", which can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. A standardized XML file format allows the information to be published once and viewed by many different programs. The user subscribes to a feed by entering into the reader the feed’s URI or by clicking an RSS icon in a web browser that initiates the subscription process. The RSS reader checks the user’s subscribed feeds regularly for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor and read the feeds.”

The above description of RSS, refers to RSS Readers.  Once upon a time that meant a desktop application.  Today, that means Google Reader.  Besides being one slick RSS Reader, the fact that it is fully API supported and Internet based means that you completely avoid the challenges of syncing your reading across multiple platforms!  You can use Google Reader via any web browser, any mobile Smart Phone, and use any operating system to do it.  There are even tons of full applications that use its back office support for their database meaning that you can read items wherever you are and never lose track of what you have and have not read!

Of course, Google Reader, is free.  You can use it now.  Give it a try.  They have an awesome help and support page here.  They even offer video lessons to get you started.  If you are looking for an RSS feed to try with it, you can subscribe to this blog here.  Then just look for the symbol in this post on other sites.  You will start to notice them everywhere!

Come back later this week and I will discuss how I use Google Reader and RSS to do all the tasks that I mention in the opening paragraph.

Do you use RSS?  How often?  Do you use Google Reader or another RSS Reader?Please share your ideas below.  Also, if you have recommendations on other tools that you use, please let us know.

That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for March 17, 2010  by Scott Coughlin.

Image Credit: Learn.com

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You can also follow it on Twitter at @ignitebaltimore. 

This is a great opportunity for artistic and technical people in the local DC/Baltimore Metro area to interact in person and I always enjoy meeting everyone.  The fourth event was even better than before and I expect that tonight will continue the improving trend.  The new venue is better, the food was great last time, the drink is always fine, and the speakers look encouraging. 

If you are here because of Ignite Baltimore, I sincerely thank you for taking the time and investing your attention in my content.  If you leave me a comment with your link or send me an email using my contact form, I would be honored to return your favor.  I welcome your feedback on my blog.  Please seek me out on twitter @Scott_Coughlin or @ITThought so we can meet at the event, too.

Ignite is a tough event to describe so I will direct you to the global Ignite site instead.  This how they describe it there:

What Is Ignite?

If you had five minutes on stage what would you say? What if you only got 20 slides and they rotated automatically after 15 seconds? Around the world geeks have been putting together Ignite nights to show their answers.

 

Ignite was started in Seattle in 2006 by Brady Forrest and Bre Pettis. Since then 100s of 5 minute talks have been given across the world. There are thriving Ignite communities in Seattle, Portland, Paris, and NYC.

Ignite is exciting because it attracts a very diverse audience of artists, technorati, and thinkers to see presentations and engage in cerebral discussions led by other local artists, technorati, and thinkers.  Plus it features local foods, deserts, and drinks.  Great time for all.

My IT thought for the day is "what is it about now that there seems to be a growing number of convergence events happening just like this?”  I believe, though I cannot find the words to explain it, that art and science and technology are coming together in many places because of our Information Age and it all has something very profound to say about the maturity of its glue – Information Technology.

What do you think?  Have you ever been to an Ignite event near you? Please share your thoughts.

That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for March 4, 2010 by Scott Coughlin.

Image Credit: Ignite Baltimore

Today’s post is licensed under the creative commons license.  All are free to share and use so long as credit is given for original or derivative works.

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