iPhone Lesson #1 - Less Laptop Time

That's right...I am now enjoying less laptop time as I integrate the iPhone into my life. One task I have shifted to the iPhone is my gmail usage. While I still respond to some email via my IBM Thinkpad. I read 99% of my emails via the iPhone.

When I do respond to email via iPhone I make them brief and to the point. Shouldn't all our emails be like that already? Laptops give us so much space to write I guess we think we should fill it.

Social Software Story Video

My main responsibility inside IBM is currently to help the sellers in my organization adopt social software. To do that I've created several Social Software Story videos that show the business value of tools such as blogs. This one is of Luis Benitez:

Enjoy the show!

30M Powerpoints per year?!

While listening to a YouTube video on presentations from Mani Sandher I learned that Microsoft claims there are over 30 million Powerpoint presentations created every year.

I just received one of these 30 million in my inbox this morning and I am going to propose to the author that we move all the content to a wiki. We have so many other options now (including blogs and wikis) that I wonder if there is EVER a time to create a Powerpoint presentation?

Email Love Affair

Oh, Email! Just when I thought you and I might have something special here. You with your big beautiful attachments, comprehensive distribution lists, and slick signatures. The thing is, . . . well . . . I think it would be better if we went back to being just friends. I mean, we both knew that I wasn't interested in anything long-term. I've always been upfront about that. It's not that I don't think you're great. I just feel like we're not meant to be together forever. In time, I hope you see that this is the best thing for both of us. But, hey! We can totally hang out! Maybe I'll see you at a Web 1.0 reunion or something.

(Adapted from the blog post of my friend, Melissa Maxwell)

Kill the "Urgent" option

(From my IBM internal blog posted 15 August 2008)

Today I received an "urgent" email. The more Luis Suarez doctrine I digest I more I am thinking like him (I hope).

Does anyone find the term "urgent" email funny? If it was so urgent, why didn't I receive a sametime? I am green and available and will respond to all urgent questions promptly. If you are on BlogCentral reading this I am probably preaching to the choir.

Maybe the Lotus team would be willing to take away the "Urgent" functionality in Notes?