Star Wars… Cliff’s Notes Edition

Andrew Riley — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 05:12:59 +0000

Flutter… The New Twitter.

Andrew Riley — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:08:17 +0000

Snatch Wars!

Andrew Riley — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 00:34:57 +0000

How Silkscreen Stickers Are Made

Andrew Riley — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:48:47 +0000

StickerGiant

50 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do

Andrew Riley — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 22:39:40 +0000

Self-reliance is a vital key to living a healthy, productive life. To be
self-reliant one must master a basic set of skills, more or less making
them a jack of all trades. Contrary to what you may have learned in
school, a jack of all trades is far more equipped to deal with life
than a specialized master of only one.

While not totally comprehensive, here is a list of 50 things everyone should know how to do.

1. Build a Fire – Fire produces heat and light, two basic necessities for living. At some point in your life this knowledge may be vital.

2. Operate a Computer – Fundamental computer knowledge is essential these days. Please, help those in need.

3. Use Google Effectively – Google knows everything. If you’re having trouble finding something with Google, it’s you that needs help.

4. Perform CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver – Someday it may be your wife, husband, son or daughter that needs help.

5. Drive a Manual Transmission Vehicle – There will come a time when you’ll be stuck without this knowledge.

6. Do Basic Cooking – If you can’t cook your own steak and eggs, you probably aren’t going to make it.

7. Tell a Story that Captivates People’s Attention – If you can’t captivate their attention, you should probably just save your breath.

8. Win or Avoid a Fistfight – Either way, you win.

9. Deliver Bad News – Somebody has got to do it. Unfortunately, someday that person will be you.

10. Change a Tire – Because tires have air in them, and things with air in them eventually pop.

11. Handle a Job Interview – I promise, sweating yourself into a nervous panic won’t land you the job.

12. Manage Time – Not doing so is called wasting time, which is okay sometimes, but not all the time.

13. Speed Read – Sometimes you just need the basic gist, and you needed it 5 minutes ago.

14. Remember Names – Do you like when someone tries to get your attention by screaming “hey you”?

15. Relocate Living Spaces – Relocating is always a little tougher than you originally imagined.

16. Travel Light – Bring only the necessities. It’s the cheaper, easier, smarter thing to do.

17. Handle the Police – Because jail isn’t fun… and neither is Bubba.

18. Give Driving Directions – Nobody likes driving around in circles. Get this one right the first time.

19. Perform Basic First Aid – You don’t have to be a doctor, or genius, to properly dress a wound.

20. Swim – 71% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water. Learning to swim might be a good idea.

21. Parallel Park – Parallel
parking is a requirement on most standard driver’s license driving
tests, yet so many people have no clue how to do it. How could this be?

22. Recognize Personal Alcohol Limits – Otherwise you may wind up like this charming fellow.

23. Select Good Produce – Rotten fruits and vegetables can be an evil tease and an awful surprise.

24. Handle a Hammer, Axe or Handsaw – Carpenters are not the only ones who need tools. Everyone should have a basic understanding of basic hand tools.

25. Make a Simple Budget – Being in debt is not fun. A simple budget is the key.

26. Speak at Least Two Common Languages – Only
about 25% of the world’s population speaks English. It would be nice
if you could communicate with at least some of the remaining 75%.

27. Do Push-Ups and Sit-Ups Properly – Improper push-ups and sit-ups do nothing but hurt your body and waste your time.

28. Give a Compliment – It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give someone, and it’s free.

29. Negotiate – The better deal is only a question or two away.

30. Listen Carefully to Others – The more you listen and the less you talk, the more you will learn and the less you will miss.

31. Recite Basic Geography – If
you don’t know where anything is outside of your own little bubble,
most people will assume (and they are probably correct) that you don’t
know too much at all.

32. Paint a Room – The
true cost of painting is 90% labor. For simple painting jobs it makes
no sense to pay someone 9 times what it would cost you to do it
yourself.

33. Make a Short, Informative Public Speech – At
the next company meeting if your boss asks you to explain what you’ve
been working on over the last month, a short, clear, informative
response is surely your best bet. “Duhhh…” will not cut it.

34. Smile for the Camera – People that absolutely refuse to smile for the camera suck!

35. Flirt Without Looking Ridiculous – There
is a fine line between successful flirting and utter disaster. If you
try too hard, you lose. If you don’t try hard enough, you lose.

36. Take Useful Notes – Because useless notes are useless, and not taking notes is a recipe for failure.

37. Be a Respectful House Guest – Otherwise you will be staying in a lot of hotels over the years.

38. Make a Good First Impression – Aristotle once said, “well begun is half done.”

39. Navigate with a Map and Compass – What happens when the GPS craps out and you’re in the middle of nowhere?

40. Sew a Button onto Clothing – It sure is cheaper than buying a new shirt.

41. Hook Up a Basic Home Theater System – This isn’t rocket science. Paying someone to do this shows sheer laziness.

42. Type – Learning to type could save you days worth of time over the course of your lifetime.

43. Protect Personal Identity Information – Personal identity theft is not fun unless you are the thief. Don’t be careless.

44. Implement Basic Computer Security Best Practices – You
don’t have to be a computer science major to understand the
fundamentals of creating complex passwords and using firewalls. Doing
so will surely save you a lot of grief someday.

45. Detect a Lie – People will lie to you. It’s a sad fact of life.

46. End a Date Politely Without Making Promises – There
is no excuse for making promises you do not intend to keep. There is
also no reason why you should have to make a decision on the spot about
someone you hardly know.

47. Remove a Stain – Once again, it’s far cheaper than buying a new one.

48. Keep a Clean House – A clean house is the foundation for a clean, organized lifestyle.

49. Hold a Baby – Trust me, injuring a baby is not what you want to do.

50. Jump Start a Car – It sure beats walking or paying for a tow truck.

From MacBook to MattBook

Andrew Riley — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 22:46:55 +0000

Todd Huish was nice enough to snap a photo of my Mac Book, which Matt Mullenweg was nice enough to sign when I met him at WordCamp LasVegas. I had a great time at WCLV and am looking forward to the next WordCamp I’m able to attend. Hopefully one here in Phoenix.

Managing Multiple Blog Contributors

Andrew Riley — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 16:42:09 +0000

Word Camp – Geoff Kleinman

WordCamp Vegas, Day 1

Andrew Riley — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 02:06:32 +0000

Had a great day at WordCamp Las Vegas today. Picked up some great information, and had some good laughs too.

I even got Matt Mullenweg to sign my MacBook. I can sense his good mojo seeping into it even as I type this. (I’ll post a pic later) I should mention, for anyone who hasn’t met Matt, he is a really nice person. He’s the guy who made WordPress what it is today. He’s created an amazing product, gives it away for nothing, and just really has a passion for what he’s doing. It’s good to see a nice person succeed by doing good work and giving away the results of it. Thanks for signing my MacBook… now it’s a MattBook.

One of the speakers today was Chris Brogan, who had us rolling in the aisles with his crazy antics. (Video of the event below).

If you’re a blogger, there were some great blogging tips and some generally good information today. You can check out videos of all the speakers at http://www.ustream.tv/vegasgeek

Lorelle VanFossen gave a great talk about Woopra (and I forgot to get a beta invitation from her… dammit) I don’t see the video on there, and it may have been too dark in the room to see her presentation. But Woopra is certainly a great tool for bloggers and worth a look.

Michael Dorausch gave a fantastic talk about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) that is packed with great information about basic SEO for your WordPress blog.

And another talk that I really enjoyed was Geoff Kleinman, who talked managing a blog that has multiple authors. Really great stuff.

Great Fun For $2

Andrew Riley — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:38:29 +0000

Gotcha | Futility Closet

As a prank, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak sometimes buys uncut sheets of $2 bills from the U.S. Treasury and has them bound into booklets. Then, when buying small items, he’ll pull out a booklet and cut off a few bills with scissors.

This is perfectly legal, but it’s caused at least one alarmed inquiry by the Secret Service.

Joy Of Tech

Andrew Riley — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:30:14 +0000

We Got Sac • Joy of Tech