Reviews and Rants
Yesterday, Umoove launched The Umoove Experience. Two questions I get quite often and especially in the last 24 hours are:
What the heck do you do?
What is your connection to Umoove?
Before I begin, let me just clarify something. I have never launched a startup. There, I said it. I have insane amounts of respect for someone who can have an idea, execute on that idea, deal with all the struggles involved in that execution, and last all those years not sleeping, barely eating, until that idea becomes a success.
I am a huge believer in content. Seriously, no matter what you are trying to accomplish, writing or generating good content for people to consume is generally a good strategy. I am of the opinion that there are very few exceptions to the rule that every human being should have a blog!
I know, such a dramatic title, but really, this Snapchat phenomenon has been boggling my mind for months. Hold up a second here. I am not talking about Snapchat the business and why Facebook and Google want to buy it for billions. I am not even talking about why Snapchat was actually brilliant to turn those offers down.
If you follow me online, whether on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ (Don’t go there!), I want to apologize for bombarding you with pictures over the past 24 hours. But, I mean, can you really blame me? I mean, I got the Lumia 1020!
I think it is safe to say that if you spend any time on the social web, in the VoIP industry, or most recently, in the world of personal fitness, you have heard the name Jeff Pulver a zillion times. To explain and describe Jeff in a blog post is practically impossible. In fact, even to cover all his accomplishments alone in a blog post would be quite difficult.
Every once in a while, I feel the need to expand my horizons by connecting and learning from new people on the social web. So I turn to my Twitter followers and ask for some recommendations on interesting people to follow. A few months back, someone recommended I follow a mobile analyst by the name of Benedict Evans.
Over the years of blogging, there have been a few defining moments. Not many, but each was pretty significant to me. The decision to leverage my personal blog to interview some of the most amazing people with whom I have connected was such a moment. People like Alyssa Milano, Guy Kawasaki, Walt Mossberg, David Pogue, and many more.
Blogging is serious business. At least that is what many bloggers would have you believe. The truth is, everyone just needs to chill out a bit. That is why I am a huge fan of Jay Yarow of Business Insider. In fact, that is why I am a huge fan of Business Insider, in general. While the site has been recognized as a very serious publication for years, Jay doesn’t take himself too seriously.
OK, let’s jump right in. I had a chance to test out Google Glass last week. I have to admit, I can’t remember the last time I wanted to try a new device as much as Google Glass. The first thing I noticed about Glass is that there is an unprecedented amount of Buzz surrounding its existence. Everyone was staring, asking questions, pointing, and snapping pictures. It’s as if, someone had sat with every person in my vicinity five minutes before and explained to everyone that “In a few minutes, there will be a man wearing something on his face that represents the future. You are going to want to take pictures because you won’t get another chance”.
It has been over 6 years since I picked up my virtual pen to start my first blog post. Throughout those years, there has been a small group of elite journalists who have served as a role model and inspired me to keep writing. This group includes names like David Pogue, MG Siegler, Joshua Topolsky, and Robin Wauters. I have been following Robin for years and I believe I first encountered his work when he was just getting started at TechCrunch.
