Congrats to Purdue University for blowing out the record for the largest Rube Goldberg Machine!
Instagram.. The Next Gowalla or Beluga?
Remember Gowalla?
They were that “other” geolocation company that had set themselves apart by creating really cool high quality badges and a separate check-in experience from Foursquare. I began my geolocation journey began with Foursquare, transitioned to Gowalla for quite a while then found my way back to Foursquare after Gowalla changed and a few dabbling in Path and Sonar. I never jumped onto the Facebook Places check-in craze, other than to check into the Gap to get a free pair of jeans.
Near the end of 2011, Facebook purchased Gowalla for an “undisclosed amount”. Some of the team were folded into the Facebook offices and it was rumored that they pulled a number of the team into the Timeline team as they prepared to roll out this feature to users and eventually to brands. After these reports came out, it wasn’t long until your ability to use Gowalla disappeared and their offices in Austin, TX were closed (march 10, 2012 to be exact).
Remember Beluga?
Beluga was that app where you could hold group messaging conversations through SMS style. Belugua was not as widely known as Gowalla but in its short life, it made a strong impact with its technology around group conversations. It wasn’t too long after the acquisition that the messaging features on Facebook increased and then eventually the service was shut down.
Remember the Other Companies?
It is a pretty common move for companies to acquire other companies, keep the teams and technology, and then shut down the initially purchased company. You can see a list of the companies purchased and shut down by Facebook on this Wikipedia page.
So, now we get to Instagram
Today, reports came out that Instagram will be purchased by Facebook for $1,000,000,000 (yes that is 1 Billion Dollars). So what does this mean for Instagram? Will we see this app take on the same departure as the other companies? Will our photosharing experience be forever changed, which will cause us to seek out other sources? My prediction is that we will see Instagram get folded into a photo application built within the Facebook app. My other prediction is you will see Path take off further, as we see Instagram disappear into the Facebook family.
While this is a disappointment for avid Instagram users, this is part of the technology game. I have huge respect for Kevin Systrom (CEO of Instagram) as he followed his heart and intuition as they created Instagram. Now he is receiving a huge reward for his hard work, as well as the other 14 employees of the company. The people and companies who invested in Instagram will also receive a large payout for their belief in this little app. This is why they got into this business and handle some losses; all while celebrating the ones that reap a large ROI for their efforts in supporting this startup.
Congrats to the Instagram team! It has been a fun time being and avid user!
You have shaped how people build apps for photos and video sharing. Thanks!
Project Glass by Google
If you take a moment to search any of the tech news sites or blogs today and you will see an overwhelming number of posts about Google’s latest project called “Project Glass”. In my browsing this morning, I saw posts from Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and a handful of other tech leaders regarding this new project that they are running. Basically, Glass is a set of Augmented reality glasses that navigate your world with you.
Before we dive too deep into this, lets take a moment to see their video showing you how Project Glass works.
Pretty cool huh? So what is Project Glass? Here is an explanation from their Google+ page:
We think technology should work for you—to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don’t.
We started Project Glass to build this kind of technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment.
Follow along as we share some of our ideas and stories. We’d love to hear yours, too.
As someone who is a complete gadgethead and loves new technology, my first reaction was split. One the one side, I love the idea of how you use a piece of technology like this to navigate your world, but on the flip side is that it is another tether to keep you from truly unplugging. I would be one of the first, if I had the opportunity, to try this technology out, but it would take great discipline to make sure that I am able to pull away from it all to re-charge and find new inspiration.
Today, FastCompany had an article where it dove into this subject a bit. The core of the message is that you need to pull away from what keeps you busy to find new thoughts and inspiration. Have you ever realized that some of your best ideas come when you are not actually doing that type of task? I can’t tell you the number of times that I am in the shower, mowing my yard, or driving to Minnesota; that I have huge idea sessions. I am not forced to come up with ideas, yet out of my “pulling back from the situation” the ideas flow.
I am a GIANT fan of Google and what they bring to our world. The devices and tools that are infront of us can help us to strive ahead in productivity and innovation, yet it comes at a cost to be disciplined to not be ruled by such tools. Have fun. Enjoy. Innovate. Be you in every situation and don’t get so lost in what others are doing that you don’t create too. And yes, if you wear these, you will look like you are from Star Trek! hahaha
Side note: If this becomes a reality, I have a feeling my “oversharing” mentality will become a real problem for everyone else! 
Living Without?
Have you ever looked at all that we have and wondered what you could truly live without? We can often talk about it but we don’t really do much about it. Why is that? If we know that turning off the TV would allow us to pursue other dreams, read a book, talk to your spouse, etc.. but we still click on the power button.
Moving away from tech products, how about different types of food. Could you live without sweets? I have learned this of myself lately as I love sweets! Am I willing to give them up?
This is just a pondering thought of the night!
The Treadmill Made Me Cry
This makes me incredibly happy to bring you the joy that I experienced tonight watching this video. Call me sick and twisted but I found such humor in watching people wiping out on a treadmill. I was laughing so hard that it brought me to tears. Some of the people on here deserved to get hurt but either way, it is hysterical!
Building Bikes with Customer Connection
Today we can do a lot of our tasks online. We can go grocery shopping. Do our banking. Shop for furniture. Essentially, most tasks in life can be done so without the true human interaction. Even buying a bike. I love “window shopping” online for bikes, but I have to be honest, as I go back to the times of managing a bike shop, I loved the one on one interaction with people to help them find the right bike for them. Nothing can take away the true, genuine human interaction.
718 Cyclery in Brooklyn, New York has found this touch to connect in with people and help them find the perfect bike for their needs. Their approach to open communication as they go through the process is inspiring and we could all learn a bit from them! Check out this video featuring their shop!
The Inverted Bike Shop from Show Love on Vimeo.
The Car Shopping is Completed!
Lately, I have been looking to replace my 1999 Jeep Cherokee with a new(er) vehicle. I have been searching around various websites and also looking at some of my favorite auto manufacturers. In all this searching, I think I have narrowed it down to one vehicle, the Marauder. Ok, stepping back to reality, it will not happen due to the incredible price tag, but this was sure fun to watch!
