BayArea
Here Comes Another Bubble
In case you have not seen it yet. This brilliant YouTube Video makes the round today in the Blogosphere. It is so funny because it’s true (like Dilbert). Also thought this is a perfect fit for my Blog theme “Straight out of Palo Alto”.
Enjoy!
My Two Upcoming Events (Somewhat Related)
There are currently only two entries in my Upcoming.org event list, but both are very special and I am looking forward to attend them. They are also quite different, but somehow related (I cover that later).
Next week Monday I will participate in the third Web Monday Silicon Valley in Palo Alto. This informal meeting which allows participants to cover all aspects around Web 2.0 originated in Germany and is now established in the Bay Area as well. If you are interested to learn more about the Web 2.0 scene in Germany and discuss or present your ideas make sure to sign up. I attended the first meeting and presented Flex development on top of SAP. If time permits and people are interested I might even talk a little bit about Apollo and show some demos.
If you are interested in chameleons or reptiles in general you might want to visit the San Jose Reptile Show on Saturday, November 11. If our baby boy is not born by then I will certainly be there and discuss chameleon breeding with the experts. Last time when I attended the show they had an amazing variety of reptiles on the showfloor.
So how are these two events related? Well Web Monday discusses technology innovations in Germany… SuSE Linux is from Germany and has a chameleon as a logo… Chameleons are being shown at the San Jose Reptile Show… and now I feel kind of stupid for writing that. Time to go to the gym.
WVP-PL Economic Indicator at All Time High
In case you have not noticed the good times are back, at least here in the Bay Area. Web 2.0, GoogleTube and Tech Parties helped jump starting our micro economy. But even more important is the WVP-PL indicator, meaning the number of exotic cars in the Woodside Village Pub parking lot. The VP is Karen and my favorite restaurant South of San Francisco. We have been going there for five years, sometimes more often and then if the money is thight less often. On my last visit about a week ago the number of expensive cars in their parking lot reached an all time high… Lamborghini, Ferrari, Mercedes SL 65 AMG, Porsche 911 Turbo and finally even an Aston Martin with a “007” number plate. Let’s enjoy the good times while they last.
Book Arts Jam Video
While flying to Amsterdam I finally had a chance to play around with the new Adobe Premiere Elements 3.0. My first little project was a Book Arts Jam video. Since I work for Adobe I am obviously biased, but I have to say I was very impressed how easy to use the software is. I have had no previous experience with video editing software and yet it was very easy and fast to create this clip from my recordings, pictures and music.
So here it is. The Book Arts Jam video featuring a demo of the Letterpress printing process.
Book Arts Jam – Oldskool Geeks
I visited today the Book Arts Jam at the Foothill College in Los Altos. It was great. A lot of interesting artists showing and selling book art.
Take for example Carolee and Jennie from Pod Post.
In the age of email they are demonstrating that paper, envelopes and USPS are cool.
Make sure to check out their website and buy some badges.
My favorite part of the show was the exhibition of letterpress printing machines. I used the opportunity to print my own custom Blog business cards. First step is to set the type.
Did you notice the word “blog” reads mirrored “gold”? Hmm, I leave the interpretation to the reader.
And here is the final result. My custom card, guaranteed limit to 13 prints!
Next time I see Robert Scoble I need to give him one. OK, it is not as cool as Woz’s but it is unique.
Obon Festival in Palo Alto
Just came back from the Obon Festival at the Buddhist Temple in Palo Alto and had a lot of fun. We admired the Bonsai demonstrations (I started to raise some Japanese maple trees from seeds a couple of months ago)
Had to take a picture of these cute girls in Kimonos playing with their Tamagochi (or whatever the latest generation is called)…
The highlight was the Taiko performance
2nd Web Montag in Silicon Valley – Unite German and American Techies
I attended the first Web Montag in Mountain View in June and really enjoyed the opportunity to exchange various technology ideas. I presented a Flex 2 application integrated with SAP web services. About half of the attendees were Germans or Swiss and the others Americans with an interest in Germany. I was really intrigued by the presentation of Stefan and Felix who build Plazes, a web site which keeps track where you last logged on to the Internet. I became addicted and use it a lot (as you can see from my Plazes batch on top of the Blog).
David Hornik (VentureBlog), just wrote about Entrepreneurship In Europe. I agree with him that it is even harder to build a successful start-up in Europe. What is important to understand however is that Europe is not one country. Each individual European country continues to have its own culture and therefore also deals differently with technology and start-up businesses. A lot of activity is actually going on in Ireland, but as you can tell from initiatives like the interest in Web Montags all over Germany other countries have grass roots efforts as well. As we discussed at Web Montag a major hurdle of starting a company in Germany is the fact that in case you fail (which is very likely) your reputation can be ruined. Therefore fewer entrepreneurs take the risk of starting a company. Interestingly several Silicon Valley executives came to the same conclusion in a meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The 2nd Web Montag in Silicon Valley will take place on August 14. Now you have the opportunity to join the discussion and help foster American German technology relationships around Web 2.0. I hope Shel Israel reads this and has a chance to attend since he is doing research for his next book “Global Neighborhoods”. Unfortunately I cannot attend since I will be in Los Angeles for a short vacation. But I certainly will come again next time.
More Heat News – 121!
Today we decided to try to escape the heat and head over to Santa Cruz. It was clear that we would end up with thousends of others on Highway 17  in a traffic jam, but it was worth it. But the heat outside was unbelievable. When we left Palo Alto at 12:30pm it was about 90 degrees (32 C), near Los Gatos the Audi measured a record temperature of 121 degrees (49 C).
Even acknolwedging that this was in a traffic jam in the sun it was pretty scary. Up until the summit the road was lined with cars which broke down from overheating.
In Santa Cruz the temperature was about 90 F when we arrived but it cooled down in the evening to about 70 F (nice!). Now (10:15pm) we are back in Palo Alto and it is still 85F…
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Heat = Insomnia
The heat this weekend is unbearable. It is 1:00am and without airconditioning and a fan there is no way I can sleep. This reminds me of the heat wave in Europe when I lived in Heidelberg three years ago (and apparently also this year). Humid and it does not cool down in the night.
The record heat wave comes two months after San Jose suffered through one of its coldest and rainiest Aprils ever. And if that isn’t driving your inner thermometer wild, consider the unusual spike in humidity that’s turning Northern California’s pleasurable summer nights into sleepless tosses and turns. Tormented by the heat, many have resorted to sleeping in briefs or buck naked.
MercuryNews.com | 07/22/2006 | Unusual mugginess makes heat feel worse
Well I guess I am not alone…
So I figured out I head to Santa Cruz or half Moon Bay tomorrow to cool down …
“It’s not even really that cool out on the coast,” said Half Moon Bay State Beach park assistant Amy Riley. “It’s 74 degrees, which is better than the other places, but usually we’re fogged in.”She said hundreds of people filled the parking lot at Francis Beach in Half Moon Bay by 11 a.m. Saturday. The CHP reported bumper-to-bumper traffic along Highway 92, right now the Peninsula’s only major link to the San Mateo coast
MercuryNews.com | 07/22/2006 | Heat records set as misery rises
So much about that idea, but at least I can go to the local Rinconda Park swimming pool…
There was a backup of a different kind in Palo Alto, though, where parents and children lined up for about a block outside Rinconada Park swimming pool Saturday morning, waiting to get in. The place was nearly full within 30 minutes of its 11:15 a.m. opening.
MercuryNews.com | 07/22/2006 | Heat records set as misery rises
Thats it I give up.
