Tom on Community Writing

Grok Headline matches for Tom on Community Writing

Newbury Street community network
possibly only commercial/community
freenet

Newbury Street community network
possibly only commercial/community
freenet 03/13/2003 10:15 AM

Newbury Street community network possibly only commercial/community freenet: Leander Kahney of Wired News writes about Michael Oh's efforts to offer to free wireless networks across an increasing area of Boston's Newbury Street to promote his business while doing good. Oh seems to have a single backhaul, which radically reduces his cost in offering this kind of service.

Bad Writing = Good Writing?

Bad Writing = Good Writing? 10/30/2003 11:56 PM
Bad Writing = Good Writing? The academic journal Philosophy and Literature used to hold a "Bad Writing Contest" to ridicule dense, unreadable academic prose... but a new book argues headache inducing sentences are necessary to express subtle theoretical points.

Writing XML

Writing XML 09/03/2002 04:40 PM
This article shows you how to create XML documents using manual writing, DOM and SAX. It provides you with some excellent learning material, but using either DOM or SAX for creating XML still looks like overkill to me.

"zeldman.ming"

Writing for the Web

Writing for the Web 03/13/2003 10:15 AM
One of the things that traditional journalists find unsettling about the weblog medium is the notion that you're "working without a net" -- i.e., without an editor. In fact, everybody edits your stuff, albeit after the fact. The other day I wrote a column in which I asked:

How do we tune networks to deliver the right information to the right people at the right times?

The triteness warning bell sounded in my head, but not loudly enough to force me to find a better way to express that thought. And sure enough, somebody calle d me on it. (How do I know? I found that URL in my referral log.) I really enjoy this kind of thing. Writing is infinitely improvable, and too often mine goes unchallenged. Partly, that's because of my brain wiring. I have an unusually strong built-in editor, watching everything I do as I write, and complaining loudly. As a result, what I write for print publication is very close to what you see in those publications. If you added up the diffs, over the many hundreds of articles I've written over the years, they wouldn't amount to much. ...

On Writing XML

On Writing XML 01/18/2004 12:24 AM
In a recent essay I offered, given demand, to author some XML-writing software. There’s been quite a bit of feedback, and the consensus seems to be that the Java community is fairly well-served with XML writing software, but that this would be real useful at the C level. So that’ll be my coding fun for the month of February. The rest of this essay lists some of the Java options that people told me about, and introduces some issues around the C implementation...

Not writing about war

Not writing about war 03/19/2003 10:44 PM
My guess is that now and in the coming days some people will be looking for more news and opinion about the war in Iraq—and other people will be looking for less, they’ll be looking for other things to read about.

So, just so you know, I don’t intend to write about the war either here or on ranchero.com.

Writing RSS 1.0

Writing RSS 1.0 01/09/2004 09:54 PM

Writing

Writing 03/13/2003 10:23 AM
My writing leaves much to be desired. I've been thinking about it lately and I have to say that I didn't start blogging to become a writer as such, let alone a good one. It just helps if you can string together some sentences with a semblance of meaning. Technically speaking, there's much room for improvement. Vocabulary wise I'm circumscribed (like it?) by a short attention span that causes me to spend too little time searching for suitable, uncommon words.

But beyond possessing a good technical ability when it comes to writing well, I suppose that being a good writer all-round must surely mean writing about things that also interest people. There has to be a middle ground, a balancing act between mono-syllabic grunting about albeit very interesting subject matter and writing exquisitely well about excruciatingly boring things.

I can't help but think that it would be a hell of a lot easier to maintain this blog if I wasn't confined by the limited range of source material I choose to be confined by. Perhaps I need a specialism? I can't talk about my work, well I could but it wouldn't be very interesting and I chose not to talk about it early on. Perhaps one day. I envy those that can and do. Nothing wrong with professionals blogging. Speaking of which, the bag lady's new blog design is the best I've seen. Seriously, it looks the cat's pyjamas.

On a different note, World of Ends (World Offends?) strikes me as not only a very cool and necessary thing to do but it inspired me to think about what else we, the people of the Web, should be doing to help outsiders understand, integrate and take part in it more effectively. Surely this honourable responsibility doesn't only lie at the feet of the likes of Doc Searls and David Weinberger, however qualified and bang-on about it they happen to be? Who are the new thought leaders on the Web? Where can I find them?

More On Writing for the Web

More On Writing for the Web 03/19/2003 10:28 PM

[VBB] Manifesto writing

[VBB] Manifesto writing 12/17/2004 06:31 PM
Joi Ito and Jim Moore are leading a discussion of what could be in a "manifesto for a better global conversation." The first comment is that generally we care about our families and towns before we get to worrying about the world. Alex Steffen from WorldChanging says that our goal should be to expand our notion of family. Ethan says that we should start from the common ground: All of us are trying to reach out beyond where we are. The conversation meanders a bit into more abstract topics. (I am guilty of contributing to it.) Ethan slaps it upside...

Writing in the Margins

Writing in the Margins 02/11/2004 07:35 AM
Our new monthly roundup of indie publishing: Junko Mizuno's deranged manga, Disney's war against the underground, Flann O'Brien on life during wartime, lefty theorist Mike Davis' children's book (set in Greenland), and William Upski Wimsatt bombs the 2004 election.

Writing about your friends

Writing about your friends 08/09/2004 10:24 PM

Over the years I've become quite friendly with many professional journalists. It's interesting that two of my best friends are journalists and they both have told me, "the only bad thing about becoming your friend is that I can't write about you any more." As a blogger, I don't think I have any trouble writing about my friends if I explain my relationship. The issue of professionalism aside, I think the first person tone of blogging makes it easier to write about your friends in the context of providing information. It's probably much harder or impossible to write about your friends objectively in third person.

Comment - TrackBack

Writing an end to the bio of BIOS

Writing an end to the bio of BIOS 12/30/2003 07:21 AM
Intel and Microsoft are set to start pitching "EFI" as an improved way of starting up a PC's hardware before its operating system begins loading--a task that's been handled by the BIOS for a quarter century.

The Writing Fields

The Writing Fields 01/11/2004 11:16 AM

People of a certain age — mine — will remember Prince Norodom Sihanouk as the incumbent leader of a neutral and relatively peaceful Cambodia, before the war in Vietnam spilled over Cambodia's borders, leading to the rise of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, the fall of the Cambodian government, and the killing fields.

Now Sihanouk is an expat king in his eighties, writing a blog by hand with his queen, from France. Sources: Stuart Hughes, The Guardian, Yahoo News.

Writing, Briefly

Writing, Briefly 03/29/2005 04:35 PM
Writing, Briefly:

paulgraham.com/writing44.html
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Writing a Mailbot in PHP

Writing a Mailbot in PHP 11/08/2002 11:10 AM
Interesting article on writing a mailbot in PHP. It's surprising to me that the author avoided using PHP's IMAP classes and just focused on parsing mail as sendmail files. [ Go ]

Writing an End to the Bio of BIOS?

Writing an End to the Bio of BIOS? 12/30/2003 10:55 AM
An anonymous reader writes "Intel and Microsoft are gearing up to move toward the first major overhaul of the innermost workings of the personal computer. The ...

Useful Writing Tools

Useful Writing Tools 04/10/2004 02:29 AM
Let's face it, we all get stuck for words from time to time. I'd like to take a moment to recommend a couple of tools that can help you create more diverting dispatches. By Christopher Breen, Macworld (via MyAppleMenu)

Writing For the Web (Sales)

Writing For the Web (Sales) 03/19/2003 10:28 PM

Writing for Google

Writing for Google 05/11/2004 04:33 PM

Tips for writing articles that answer questions posed to search engines.

Writing Genx

Writing Genx 02/15/2004 08:58 PM
In between beach time and rainforest time, I’ve been coding away on genx; herewith some impressions with one important lesson and an interesting bit of history...

Help keep the Bird writing

Help keep the Bird writing 09/14/2004 03:51 AM
Shelley of BurningBird is broke and needs a little help paying the hosting bills to keep BurningBird going. Shelley is one of the earliest weblog writers, and she has a distinctive, original and beautiful writing voice. She catches a lot of flack because she is often the one to turn over the rock that everyone would rather leave lying there, revealing a truth that people don't want to see. Truth be told, she probably also catches flack because she can be a bit cranky at times, but she only turns her rhetorical guns against powerful people, and she is incredibly generous with her time and expertise. The web would be a much poorer place without her presence and that of BurningBird, and if you can spare a bit of change, drop some in her Pay Pal jar. If you can't spare a bit, at least help get the word out....

Web writing a whole new experience

Web writing a whole new experience 10/31/2003 01:56 PM
Canadian Press via Canada.com Oct 31 2003 12:22PM ET

Collaborative Novel Writing

Collaborative Novel Writing 05/09/2004 12:45 PM
The Great Mahakali Write-A-Thon.

so i have this cool new writing gig . .
.

so i have this cool new writing gig . .
. 02/01/2005 09:52 PM

Do you ever have something really exciting that you want to share with the world, but you're not allowed to talk about it? It drives you nuts that you have to keep it to yourself, so you quietly mention it to Janet, but Chrissy overhears you from the kitchen, and thinks you're dying, so she tells Larry, and pretty soon you're attending your own wake down at the Regal Beagle. You think this could be a chance to get Mr. Roper to give you a break on the rent, and maybe get a little something-something from that Kaylnn girl who passes out skates at the roller rink, but Mrs. Roper finds out the truth, and somehow you're learning an embarassing lesson in front of all your friends, rather than getting lucky on the waterbed in your cousin's van conversion.

In other words, I've been sitting on this big news for weeks, and I just got the green light to announce it. So pay attention, Chrissy:

I am writing a weekly column for The Onion A/V Club! Yeah, that's right! The Onion A/V Club! Wooo!

Check out the spiffy announcement:

The Onion A.V. Club also extends a hearty welcome to a new contributor who comes to us from Hollywood via the Internet. Each week, actor/author/gaming enthusiast/icon/renaissance man Wil Wheaton, who maintains an online presence at wilwheaton.net, will take a look back to games past with his Games Of Our Lives column, reaching beyond Pac-Man and Donkey Kong to find the dusty arcade games and worn-out cartridges that paved the way for the games of today.

(When I read that, I told my editor, "I love it. Can I just tell you how happy I am that it's not all 'Star Trek Star Trek Star Trek Star Trek (tiny font: writes some stuff too.)'?"

He said, "Well, the original draft referred to you as 'the spunky lad who saved the universe' and then went on to say 'Star Trek, Star Trek, Star Trek.' Then I had second thoughts.")

Can you freakin' believe that I get to write for them?! Holy shit! Writing this column is as much fun as doing Love Machine at ACME each week. I get a chance to be funny, add something pretty prestigious to my resume, and I finally have an excuse for playing so many classic video games. I mean, how many people do you know who could deduct an X-arcade Controller? :)

I did an interview with The Onion A/V Club in 2002. If you haven't seen it, you can read it here.

My first Games of Our Lives appears tomorrow. Check it out, and let me know what you think!

Online writing with my sister-in-law

Online writing with my sister-in-law 07/19/2004 09:53 AM
My sister-in-law the novelist (and general prose-ist) is offering an online writing class. Here's the pitch: New Online Writing Class With Meredith Sue Willis The Back-to-School Special Are you or someone you know looking for a short online prose writing class? The Back-to-School Special, a private online writing class taught by Meredith Sue Willis, author of more than twelve books of fiction and nonfiction, is a four-session online writing class starting in September for people who would like some feedback from an experienced teacher on a prose project–fiction, memoir, or personal narrative. The cost is $160, and classes start September...

Just Plain Good Writing

Just Plain Good Writing 02/05/2005 09:50 PM

I linked to Luke's wonderful new site before but moment 9 and moment 12 reminded me why I need to send his URL to all my friends.

The Snowflake Process for Writing a
Novel

The Snowflake Process for Writing a
Novel 08/08/2004 05:13 AM
The Snowflake Process for Writing a Novel

rsingermanson.com/html/the_snowflake.html
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Commentary - Writing on the Brain

Commentary - Writing on the Brain 04/19/2004 03:12 PM
Incompetence, contempt, lunacy—once you have these in place, you are set to go .. Commentary .. more»

commentarymagazine.com/article.asp?aid=11704039_1
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After writing that last post I got to
thinking: th ...

After writing that last post I got to
thinking: th ... 03/13/2003 10:22 AM

After writing that last post I got to thinking: that didn't end on a very positive note, did it? What would I recommend if you want to add some security to your Mac? That depends on what you want to do.

For securing files on your computer I suggest using Disk Copy (from Apple) to create an encrypted disk image upon which you then store your files. It basically takes a chunk of your hard drive, treats it like a separate drive and encrypts everything in that chunk.

For encrypting email the MacGPG project is coming along quite nicely. It does, however, require some comfort with the command line and the UI of some of the elements leave a lot to be desired. I'd recommend installing MacGPG and then the following email utils and then forgetting about it. There's also quite an active maili ng list available.

To use GPG with Mail.app you'll want GPGMail.

To use GPG with Entourage you'll want EntourageGPG. Note that in both cases, for Mail.app and Entourage, you need to have installed and configured MacGPG first.

For securely shredding files under X... I don't know. If you've got any suggestions for an app that works well, securely and doesn't causes file system trauma let me know. Discuss

9:45 AM | Chris Cummer

Resume Writing Advice

Resume Writing Advice 04/11/2004 10:19 PM

The Rockport Institute has a six-part series on how to write a resume. (hat tip to Angie McKaig for the pointer.)

Their advice is fantastic, and capitalizes on the idea that you should do "active personal marketing" with your resume:

THE NUMBER ONE PURPOSE OF A RESUME

The resume is a tool with one specific purpose: to win an interview. If it does what the fantasy resume did, it works. If it doesn't, it isn't an effective resume. A resume is an advertisement, nothing more, nothing less.

A great resume doesn't just tell them what you have done but makes the same assertion that all good ads do: If you buy this product, you will get these specific, direct benefits. It presents you in the best light. It convinces the employer that you have what it takes to be successful in this new position or career.

It is so pleasing to the eye that the reader is enticed to pick it up and read it. It "whets the appetite," stimulates interest in meeting you and learning more about you. It inspires the prospective employer to pick up the phone and ask you to come in for an interview.

I would recommend this series of articles to anyone looking for a job change or career change.

Part two of the series says that resumes are scanned, not read. I'll agree with that point completely. I generally spend less than 15 seconds with each resume that I receive on the first pass. If nothing in the resume grabs my eye, I throw it away. If something catches my eye, I put it in a pile of resumes to follow up on later.

Parts three and four give a lot of great tips on writing a resume, some of them are especially powerful:

• To write an effective resume, you have to learn how to write powerful but subtle advertising copy.
• If you are applying for several different positions, you should adapt your resume to each one.
• The resume is visually enticing, a work of art.
• All the basic, expected information is included.
• A resume should be targeted to your goal, to the ideal next step in your career.
• Shorter is ususally better.
• Telephone number that will be answered. (I'd add that your email address better be a good one that won't bounce too.)

Part five covers 'choosing the right job' and is an advertisement for Rockport's services, and part six is a great list of power words that should be used over other passive words that might crop up in your resume.

Get It in Writing: Travel Info

Get It in Writing: Travel Info 12/08/2003 05:49 AM
Thousands of travelers still buy printed guides listing every flight to and from each city. Far from being driven out of business by the Internet, airline and auto guides are still popular with frequent travelers who want an edge.

IBM DeveloperWorks: Writing Efficient
PHP

IBM DeveloperWorks: Writing Efficient
PHP 02/13/2003 09:14 AM

I'm writing for Digital Web Magazine

I'm writing for Digital Web Magazine 03/14/2005 06:08 PM
I'm now a columnist at Digital Web Magazine. My first column is about the relationships between web design in the traditional sense and IA in the modern sense.

Textpattern: web writing tools

Textpattern: web writing tools 05/14/2004 12:23 AM
Textpattern is a weblog publishing tool manufactured by Dean Allen .. Textpattern : A new XHTML based content manager .. Textpattern finally sees release .. Textpattern 1.10 gamma released .. find

textpattern.com
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php-editors.com: Writing Classes in PHP

php-editors.com: Writing Classes in PHP 07/13/2004 08:40 AM
If you've outgrown the simple PHP (procedural programming) and want to get more into the meat of things, classes just might be the way to go. Object-oriented code can help you with speed, code reuse, and even make your code more well structured. So, with all of these advantages, what are you waiting for to learn this information? Why, the right resource, of course. php-editors.com has their own new tutorial posted to aid you in your quest.

"the movie?s bl0g that he?s writing
himself"

"the movie?s bl0g that he?s writing
himself" 08/01/2004 03:22 AM

Dialog vs. Exposition and Saying vs.
Writing

Dialog vs. Exposition and Saying vs.
Writing 12/16/2003 02:06 AM
I realized something the other day. When it comes to explaining things, I really need a good mix of dialog (2 way communication) and exposition (1 way communication) to really get it right. The problem is that I tend to be quite bad at balancing the two. The same appears to be true for the acts of saying something and writing it down. I need to do both. For the last 6 months or so, I've been attempting (off and...

Writing letters for Dean

Writing letters for Dean 11/16/2003 10:28 AM
Halley wonders if the letter-writing event I'm hosting is still on for this Tuesday. And how! It's at 7pm and if you're in the Boston area and feel like coming by to write letters to undecided voters in Iowa about why you're supporting Dean, you're invited. Send me an email for the details....
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Tom on Community Writing

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