Sorgatron.com

UPDATE:  I’ve taken down the “donations” in light of Google’s interesting “no sharing” policy we’re seeing with the latest batch of Google Glass’ers.  But this isn’t over yet….

 

I’ve been offered a bit of a proposition, it seems.  I was sitting down for a Wheeling Nailers game with my buddy Saturday night when I received an @ reply on my phone.  Always interested at my flashy device, I found this…

While there’s plenty of debate on the validity of these responses, and even some ridiculous entries being disqualified after the fact, I did get one, and needed to prepare myself.  I mean, this was a chance to get my hands on something game changing long before the masses.  And I do love tinkering with new, bleeding edge, technology.

Right?

Sure, I can’t really afford the $1500 on a struggling empire builder’s income.

After a chat with Norm and Chachi on AwesomeCast this week, I was convinced I had to give this method the good old college try, though.

The Deal:  Donate to help me aquire a Google Glass

What’s in it for Me?  A few things can be done.

• Are you local to Pittsburgh?  If you donate $50 or more, I will schedule a lunch, coffee, etc meeting with you to try it out too.  Maybe several.  Anyone putting that much green on this becomes a partner in this venture.  It beats dropping $1500 or waiting until who knows when, right? 
• Not local?  Let us entertain you.  We’re going to push this thing.  Once we get our hands on Google Glass, I’m going to employ everyone interested to help test this thing out in every situation that doesn’t mean imminent danger for the device or the wearer.We’ll put this thing through it’s paces and report back right here at Sorgatron.com in blogs, videos,

What if we don’t reach the goal?

• If it’s close enough I can cover the gap, we’re going to do this thing.   
• If we’re too short, I will refund everyone’s donation. 
• How can you trust me?  You’re protected under Paypal’s dispute service.  I’d be screwed.

What do I want to do with it?

• Hangouts:  Where can we reach out from?  We already do Hangouts from our phone from airports, football games, and more with our Mayhem RAW Hangouts.  Where could we go with this thing?  What sort of presentation perspectives can we use this for?  Live feed from Podcamp?
• Lifecasting?  iJustine had a giant camera on a hat with a companion laptop.  What can we do with this?  Walk around and get live responses right into your eye.  Could be boring.  Could be interesting.
• Get kicked out.  How will the general public react?  What happens when we walk into a bar?  Will the police pull me over?
• Represent Pittsburgh.  As always!  How many of these things could be floating around town?  We could be part of the first!

Can we do this?  Who knows?  Do you want to help?  Who knows! Help sponsor!

Any questions, leave a comment or email me (mikesorg@gmail.com) and help me hash this out!

 

Let me tell you about a friend.  This friend was a kindred spirit.  We encountered each other in a chance seating arrangement in a history class of some sort I was put in when I switched to a new school.  He could have been classified as peculiar.  But I always gravitated to the fellow peculiars in high school.  And I was brand new to this shinier, bigger school.

He was really smart and showed me some computer stuff that made my head spin.  Linux.  Custom scripts.  Ascii video players.  Squeezing the juice out of a 200 Mhz Gateway computer way longer than should be legally allowed.  I thought for sure he was going into the computer industry.

But he loved to drive.

“I’ve learned after all of these years that I don’t really care about money (I’ll always owe somebody)”

So he drove.

He drove frozen burritos across country.  Gas generators to people in need stricken by Hurricane Sandy.  All manors of goods all across the country.

And he experienced the sports he loves.  High school football, AA Hockey, Baseball, in little known stadiums all across the country.  A welcome side effect from servicing every state you can get to on wheels.

He has his own truck.  He is on the road where he belongs. Seen more of our country than I could even dream of. He’s living.

And I love hearing about every minute of it as he told me, as I described it, and requested, “A review of the United (48 contiguous) State”

My successful friends don’t wear suits.

 

One of the things I say time and time again is that I could not think of how I could do all of the independent work that I do without technology as it is today. The smoothness that we can share files of great sizes across high bandwidths has opened up the clouds (heh) to a lot of oppurtunity.

And while everyone is talking about this cloud, and implementing it in different, and sometimes unsuccessful, ways, I’ve been doing what I can to find the right tool for the job.

So where is Sorg’s Cloud?

Dropbox – My main storage for online.  This is where I share files, sync folders, and integrated our Digital Downloads option for the IWC and DVD DVDs in my store.  A fairly successful upgrade to the operations.  I’ve always hated when clients had MegaUpload, YouSendIt, and other services that I tend to question.  This way I know the file is there, how it’s going to be received, and can narrow down any issues I tend to have.  The only issue we’ve found is an unspoken bandwidth limit.  If you share, say, a 2 GB file of the last show to the talent involved, you’ll hit that ceiling quick if you sent a share link.  They claim it’s an effort to curb piracy.  Understandable.  So instead I have to invite everyone to a share folder.  Somehow, Dropbox probably considers that “in the network” and will take the bandwidth if people have to sign in to get at it.  And the 2 GB makes it easy for others to start sharing with me if their project isn’t too large.  Just dropping a file into the dedicated folder for uploading in the background also ensures I keep working.

Google Drive - I’ve been using “Google Docs” for ages as my Office place in the cloud.  The change to Drive had me curious.  It felt like it wanted to replace my Dropbox, but didn’t have the installed base for apps like the PalDrop for my digital sales.  But the spacious 5 GB free and lower prices for upgrading space has me keeping an eye on this as a future option if it fits in the rest of my needs.  It continues to be my “place for documents”.  Show documents, spreadsheets for tracking expenses that don’t fit in my Freshbooks system, and other tasks go here.  With the inclusion of a Dropbox-like folder install, I’ve also been putting files and notes for my PTI classes in here to have them handy in class if something goes wonky with Blackboard, or so I can have my notes come up on my iPad with the finally-functional app for iDevices.

Evernote – I’ve attempted to go paperless.  I could go into this more with a “Getting Things Done” post later down the road, but basically any important mail, bills, business cards, or receipts get digitized and kept in here under a category and/or tag.  With it’s text recognition, it makes it easier to find that Verizon bill or Staples ink run to put into my expenses later.

iCloud – Yes, I use iCloud.  But very specific portions.  Document sharing doesn’t work on a whole, but my Teleprompt+ syncing scrips (again, downloaded from Google Drive).  The biggest use is the Notes app.  I’m often taking notes in meetings or at shoots with it on my iPad, and sometimes my iPhone when that’s all that’s handy.  It’s my scratch pad, basically.  As soon as I’m back to my computer from a meeting, I sit down and my notes are already there, ready for my to parse into to do lists, emails, etc.  All this and iDevice backups, itunes and app purchases, it’s becoming more handy.

Adobe Creative Cloud - Ok.  I’m new to this one.  I haven’t gotten into storing things online, but that ability to drop a Photoshop install on all of my computers without tracking down my old CS 4 disc is super handy!  And I have all of the random Adobe programs I’ll need for PTI classes in the future for proper prep.  (because why would I have Flash?)

BackBlaze – I’ve been preaching this and other services like it to my students.  Back that a$$ up!  $5 a month and it uploads files from ALL of my connected drives, Drobos, etc.  Last check has over 10 TB of info up there.

They hate me. That’s why I pay for two accounts.  Needed less on my laptop, but I feel better about it.

Freshbooks – Self proclaimed “cloud accounting” people.  A HUGE advantage in figuring out how to invoice clients, expenses, and the like.  The only issues I’ve had is fitting the square peg of DVD sales into this, but that’s being handled respectively with PayPal and Square, at least for now…

So that’s a glimpse of where I spread my little digital empire to stay mobile, backed up, and accessible to my clients and projects.

What are you using to get your stuff out of your computer and in the cloud?

From the Sorgatron Media Newsletter from March 14, 2013. 

So you need a new RSS Reader?

The big news this week was the abrupt announcement that Google Reader was going to disappear this summer.  This had already setup out for a flurry of replacements stepping up, and most that I tried the night of the announcement overrun most servers to a crawl.

So, as an long time Google Reader user, where am I looking?  Here’s what I took a stab at:

Flipboard - Actually, I’ve been using this as a Google Reader interface along with Facbook and Twitter reader on my iPhone and iPad for a while.  It would be an easy fit, but I personally need a service to spans across my iDevices and the standard laptop web browser.

Pulse - It was almost a nice bridge between the visual stylings of Flipboard and web version access of having a Google Reader.  The issue come with bulk.  I was inputting feeds manually from my collection, and had to actually use their internal search, which didn’t work well with many of my lesser known and friend blogs.  This is for people with only a limited number of feeds they follow.

Feedly - Winner!  Not only do they have a nice web and iDevice app version, but it rides on your Google Reader, so you’re going as soon as you grant access, plus they’ve announced their intent to clone the API (the language that lets Feedly talk with Google Reader) so that when Reader is shut down in July, you won’t know the difference.  At least that’s the promise.

In the meantime, if you’re worried about where your list of feeds goes, make sure to export your information, a process Google makes easy!

And aside from that, remember: The only constant on the internet is change.  

Have any topic or questions you would like covered on the Tip of the Week?  Drop a line toinfo@sorgatronmedia.com with the subject :TIP OF THE WEEK!

 

 

 

In the past I’ve written posts on what I use in my podcasting and production environments.  This is continually evolving.  Here’s the latest from my view Tuesday nights! So how does it break down?

 

1. Macbook Pro (2009) – This is my general day to day machine.  Brought down, seen sitting on a stack of older PC laptops I’ve been attempting to get usable with Ubuntu installs.  Used for the show notes, chat interactions, and showing images and videos we broadcast through Desktop Presenter as a camera in WireCast.
2. iMac (2007) – It’s been limited in performance, so it’s been relegated to just having the chat up consistently so I can react live with the chat during the show.  Recently did a clean reinstall to see if I can get it up to snuff for a dedicated Hangout machine or other task.
3. Videonics switcher.  This guy is the same model I used in my high school media class.  This one was acquired as the former live switch for the International Wrestling Cartel for many years.  Serves as a switcher for any real cameras I may have in studio.
4. Behringer mic.  Always a good brand.  Delivers my Sorg Voice.
5. Sony A1U. A small HD camera that served well on the set of the Baristas.
6. Sony HDR FX-1000 – My general use camera.  Both of these cams are swapped in and out at will depending on if there are any other projects that need them in the week.  I do my best to attempt to double any equipment that we have to pull from the Podcasting setup, but there’s always something.
7. That’s Chachi on the couch.  Hi Chachi!
8. Panasonic AG-HVX200.  It’s an HD camera, but only if you grab a $600 P2 card.  In this setup, I’m testing it as a passthrough to get the S-Video based switcher and cameras through to Firewire for the Podcast.  I had been using an older, smaller Sony HandyCam, but have been trying to solve an issue to retain the widescreen nature of the video even though we’re transmitting as SD/DV resolutions.  Feel this solution could lead to better captures for the live switching we do for wrestling and event productions.  Still working on this one.
9. Sound board. Not the Behringer I usually use.  But a thankful donation.
10. Around the corner you can see one of the three monitors setup for our Skype guests.  This is so we can have a bit of an “in the room” feel with the guys, which I think helps our interactions.
11. Controls for Skype Machines.  Cramped, but I only ever need to load Desktop Presenter and Skype on each machine.
12. Lots of PCs.  Including the 3 Skype machines, and various other machines I’d been experimenting with Linux and Windows unitasking to break out tasks in the studio.
13. Wirecast.  Running off of the Mac Mini (2011) in the foreground  This machine is my main editing deal, which I transfer from my office to record the show weekly.  I love the portability!

A lot of what you see has been recovered, second hand, or repurposed.  Podcasting doesn’t have much of a budget in my world.  I use it for a bit of “proof of concept” that we can do something with quality and regularity.  It also serves as an experimentation ground (hence all of the extra equipment).  I could get into a bit more about the hows and whys I still do the Podcasting after all of these (7) years.  But that’s a post for another day… *Isn’t that panorama cool?  I love the feature on my iPhone.

From the Sorgatron Media Newsletter from February 28, 2013. 

Sometimes, a service doesn’t work out.  Sometimes they change their policy.  Or remove a feature that you rely on to communicate with your audience effectively.  When we’re uploading videos, sending info snippets, or creating a community.   The only thing consistant in the online world is that change.

This week, without much warning, Facebook unveiled a change to it’s Facebook Events to include a cover photo banner, much like you see in Timeline or over on Google+ everywhere.  Do a lot of events?  Time to change up the template.  When a video service decides it wants to realign it’s features to maintain a certain audience, you may find yourself without the features that brought you to the service in the first place.

Both are situations that colleagues and I have encountered since Monday alone.  One aspect of being a “good at” Social Media is being aware.  Always have your eyes up and don’t expect to do the same thing week to week.  It comes with the territory.

Have any topic or questions you would like covered on the Tip of the Week?  Drop a line to info@sorgatronmedia.com with the subject :TIP OF THE WEEK!

From the Sorgatron Media Newsletter from February 7, 2013. 

Social Media Makes Money…for art programs…  This weekend, we endeavor on my favorite endeavor of the year.  Chachi Plays for Kids!

It’s 24 hours of my buddy Chachi playing video games to raise money for charity for the third year.  While the feat is a little nutty and tongue in cheek, the accomplishement is quite real.  In the past, we’ve raise thousands for Make Room for Kids and art programs for underprivileged youth.

And it’s all due to social media.

In the past two years, we didn’t do too much in seeking big media coverage.  We tweeted every day and posted videos online, doing what we can to spread the word.  And I still think it’s a testament to what we can do online for good.

So what goal do you have?  Can social media help make it happen and grow even bigger?

Have any topic or questions you would like covered on the Tip of the Week?  Drop a line to info@sorgatronmedia.com with the subject :TIP OF THE WEEK!
Updated Take:

It’s funny that I wrote this before we embarked on Chachi Plays this year…and ended up on all three network news programs over the weekend.

From the Sorgatron Media Newsletter from February 14, 2013. 

Podcasting is still alive and kicking, and getting even bigger with household names like Kevin Smith, Adam Corolla and Chris Hardwick getting in on the action.  But it’s still a tremendously accessible thing for anyone to get into as a platform.

When it started, iTunes was the de facto standard for Podcasting.  And it still is.  But more and more, Podcasts are getting spread across platforms.  Stitcher has been growing to become the better, easier platform for Podcasts on any device.  Others are using SoundCloud to grow their audiences.  Both have a built in audience that’s already on board with the concept.

But don’t forget video.  If you are developing something that’s going to be more visual, make sure to get it on YouTube, Vimeo (for more control), or even Blip.tv, which distributes to so many platforms, including the hot Roku boxes.  We see about half of our hits for AwesomeCast coming from Roku boxes, showing us that it’s a viable platform for home-made content!

Have any topic or questions you would like covered on the Tip of the Week?  Drop a line to info@sorgatronmedia.com with the subject :TIP OF THE WEEK!

Another year, another Chachi Plays!  I’m hoping that’s what I get to say for a few years now.

Last weekend, my bud Chachi sat for another 24 hours playing video games for a good cause at the Toonseum.

 

Once again, the power of social media was compelling.  I had said in front of City Counsel when Chachi received a proclamation for the first year’s Chachi Plays that this was a testament to what can be done with it.  This year, we collectively raised $10,000 in the course of Chachi Plays for programs for kids since it’s inception.

Throughout the year, Chachi is continually among the most active person I see on Twitter.  People know who he is, for better and worse. Whether he realizes it or not, he’s building a brand for himself and the equity that goes along with it.  The best part is, that’s him.  It’s not a calculated or planned.  Chachi plays in public  And come January and February, he harnesses that good will for this.  And it’s amazing.

The other thing that I enjoy was seeing everyone just enjoy being around games.  An obscene amount of games.  The expansion of tournaments, organized by Chris, were a huge success, and largely competitive.  It brought people in and out throughout the 24 hours, helping to keep things lively, especially in that home stretch through Saturday afternoon.

 

Of course I did a little bit of talk about Podcamp Pittsburgh 7 a few weeks after, but most of my work has been trying to get all of those videos up on YouTube we recorded.

So this year, I had a good mix of solo, panel, and the usual AwesomeCast recording…

First was the “Podcaster’s Toolbox” where I got into a little bit of the tech and tools I use to do Podcasting.

 

Then we brought back another “We’re Still Here” panel with our friends from Burgh’s Eye View and Comic Book Pitt.

And of course our usual AwesomeCast Live presentation…

And our InsertCointoBegin.com crew with a break out session about social video games…

And beyond that, there are TONS of videos on the Youtube from this, and past Podcamps. Enjoy!