Wonderosity » Geeking Out Loud

A geeky week for me: Iphone 2.0, meeting Scoble, Thingamajiggr, & BarcampSeattle

sparklife — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:50:28 +0000

It’s looking like a geeky week. First I watch the iphone 2.0 drama unfold (not much drama, more let down really…gotta wait 3 weeks for the really good stuff.) Then last night (Tuesday) for ‘Tertullia’ (a Seattle guy’s group I’ve been a part of for a couple years now) Buzz brought in Scoble for ‘the [...]

Can I resurrect the fun of blogging and podcasting?

sparklife — Mon, 26 May 2008 21:35:33 +0000

It’s funny, well, sad actually: I really used to love blogging and podcasting. I enjoyed the creative act, the experiments I conducted, the excitement of being heard by others, and the pleasure of getting feedback on my thoughts and creations. Then something happened. Certain factors crept in and killed the joy. [...]

Why Twitter Matters –my response to business week article by Steve Baker

sparklife — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:19:57 +0000

Twitter in Business Week today. Article and my response here: http://tinyurl.com/69u3l3 Follow LeifHansen on twitter. Sphere: Related Content

Spark Interviewed by Conscious Living

sparklife — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 22:13:19 +0000

I hope you enjoy this fun, power-packed interview by the wonderful ladies (Wendy Garrett and Sandy Jorgensen) over at a new Talkshoe.com show called “Conscious Living“. While we (mostly me, caffeinated ) talked about many things, we focused on: How Soul Tech received so much press and what the workshop is about The various projects and [...]

3, 2, 1.5 -Almost Launch: Spark Social Media Site Almost Live

sparklife — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 02:58:48 +0000

Well, I’m almost ready to let this site go public. There are a number of important additions I need to take care of (as mentioned in the forum), but I think that the Spark Social Media site will be ready to launch within a few days. Our site will be featuring: A collection of social media tutorial [...]

iPhone Hype Holds Up…

sparklife — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 20:20:31 +0000

Check out the new iphone usage stats at m:metrics (from 10,000 adults.) And with the new iPhone SDK just released, the iphone will be eating an even bigger piece of the pie when all the cool new native apps are released. Sphere: Related Content

52 Nights Unplugged, an inspiring project by Ariel Meadows

Leif — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 22:32:06 +0000

One of my favorite outcomes from the Soul Tech workshop is that one of the participants, Ariel Meadows (a Tech Savvy Microsoft Employee, Author, and insightful blogger) decided to commit to one night a week of no ’screen technology’ (except snapping a few digital pictures to record her process.) She’s documenting her experiences on her blog under the tag (and registered domain name) “52NightsUnplugged“. [...]

Experience your life in 5 minutes, play “Passage”

Leif — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:29:33 +0000

If you haven’t played the game (or had the experience) of “Passage” yet, download it now (Mac, PC or Linux) and see what you think. The game/experience takes 5 minutes and I thought it was a fascinating and artistic way to express much of what life’s ‘about’. I won’t say much more, but will let [...]

Odiogo, Cool new service turns your text blogs into high quality audio podcast!

Leif — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 01:13:22 +0000

I discovered (and, as you can see…um, I mean hear, have implemented) on a friend’s great blog (Full Circle Associates) a powerful new service that turns the text of anybody’s blog into an audio podcast and then even adds that feed to iTunes. Why is that so cool? Well, I don’t know about you, but I [...]

Part III, Modernity’s Myth (The Ring, The Stone, & The Pool: Exploring the Nature of Technology through the Magic within Tolkien’s Myth)

Leif — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 22:25:07 +0000

Part II Part I Modernity’s Myth In order to understand the relevance of Tolkien’s story to us today, and in order to better understand how technology has taken such a prominent place in our society, we will now need to examine another myth, a myth which wants us to take it a little more ‘literally’. I call it a [...]

Breaking: Cat Figures Out iphone, “My Mother’s Cat Molly Figured out the iPhone UI in Minutes!”

Leif — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:58:06 +0000

Wow. The heart of wonderosity, caught in living color. At first Molly’s fur hindered the the touch-screen interface, but soon she was pawing her way around the coolest cat and iphone-friendly sites Safari could summon. Tags: wonderosity, sparknw, leifhansen, cat, funny, humor, iphone, cute Sphere: Related Content

Part II, The Ring, The Stone, & The Pool: Exploring the Nature of Technology through the Magic within Tolkien’s Myth

Leif — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:26:24 +0000

We continue from the last entry exploring the nature of technology through Tolkien’s myth… My Story As early as about 1978, when personal computers were just beginning to make their way into many North American middle class homes, I was already spending a lot of time with them. Using a computer was one of the few things [...]

The Ring, The Stone, & The Pool: Exploring the Nature of Technology through the Magic within Tolkien’s Myth , Part I

Leif — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 04:51:14 +0000

“As the servants of the machines are becoming a privileged class, the Machines are going to be enormously more powerful. What’s their next move?” –J.R.R. Tolkien (in a letter to his son, at the close of WWII) Have you ever had the odd experience of re-reading a paper you’ve written, even just a few years back, and feeling [...]

LA Times catches Spark’s fire about Soul-Tech

sparklife — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 23:51:35 +0000

Check out the recent article from the LA Times on Spark Northwest & 8020Vision’s Soul-Tech workshops! Too wired, techies regroup, reach out - Los Angeles Times Too wired, techies regroup, reach out Leif Hansen, shown at Gas Works Park in Seattle, coordinates workshops in which self-described technophiles look for ways to relinquish high-tech and find a balance between the [...]

Dilbert Gets it: Soul Tech Needed

sparklife — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 22:08:32 +0000

Again, Soul Tech: Restoring balance to our Tech-intense lives Powered by ScribeFire. Sphere: Related Content

Soul Tech -Restoring balance to our tech-intense lives

bleedingpurple — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 22:55:12 +0000

Exciting News! Spark Northwest is teaming up with 8020Vision to offer another Humanity 2.0-ish workshop in Seattle, entitled: Soul Tech -Restoring balance to our tech-intense lives You know how when going on a vacation it takes a few days to relax and get in the vacation mind? It is like that with our [...]

My iphone video mentioned in London Times…

sparklife — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 17:56:36 +0000

Some lady emailed me this morning to tell me that my experimental video of begging for an iphone on the street was mentioned in the London Times. It was listed (as #3) in an article entitled “50 reasons not to buy an iPhone“: “3. If you’re still determined to get an iPhone, you could of [...]

Are we outsourcing our memory to technology, and thus losing ‘employment’?

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 23:07:01 +0000

Read an article in wired today about our memories being ‘outsourced’ to technology, something I have surely found true in my life. I’m concerned at the *lack* of concern in the article. What do you think? ———–the first snip, rest at link above——– We’re running out of memory. I don’t mean computer memory. That stuff’s half-price at Costco [...]

Humanity 2.0 -Orcas Island, a great success!

Leif — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 18:29:00 +0000

Well, I was planning on writing up a more detailed summary of our Orcas workshop, but to be honest I am POOPED with the process of creating the new H2.0 social site, so hopefully you’ll get a general sense of things by checking out the pictures, etc. Pictures are only from me so far (thus [...]

Some crazy stats supporting our increasing technological dependence…

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 00:05:55 +0000

I was surprised how hard it was to find research and stats related to our culture’s technological use and consumption, but eventually I did find some good stuff. This site has some great up-to-date nuggets of info, for example: “2007 MEDIA HABIT PREDICTION It turns out that in 2007, American adults and teens will spend an estimated [...]

Internet Addiction Test

GeekingOutLoud — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 21:50:43 +0000

Just stumbled across this interesting “Internet Addiction Test” while I was trying to find some good info/stats for the Humanity 2.0 workshop. For the record, I came out “above average.” Tags: internetaddiction, geekingoutloud, leifhansen, wonderosity, addiction, screenaddiction, skeptech, survey, test Sphere: Related Content

Workshop: Humanity 2.0 -where the tech are we going, and do we want to go there?

GeekingOutLoud — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 03:30:09 +0000

Humanity 2.0 Where the tech are we going, and do we want to go there? A Spark Northwest Experience As technology permeates our daily lives, it helps, and it hurts. How does our increasing use and dependence on tools such as email, cell phones, iPods, or social networking sites effect our desire for human fulfillment and spiritual [...]

A few suggestions for avoiding the regret of living a ‘virtual life’

GeekingOutLoud — Sat, 26 May 2007 15:05:31 +0000

Since one of my originally intended goals for this blog was to ‘geek out loud’ about my tech struggles, I’ve been wanting to share with folks some of the things I’m doing at this time in my life to try and not let technology play too central of a role - to not become [...]

Upcoming Seattle BizJam event -I’m going!

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 16 May 2007 02:31:33 +0000

In anticipation of our new business (Spark Northwest) publicly ‘coming out’ sometime in June, I’m excited to say that I’ll be attending Biznik’s first big event –BizJam. It looks likes its going to be a jam-packed day, so my only concern is figuring out what to choose and not being overwhelmed. If any [...]

Get your free number at Grand Central…the ultimate, and perhaps last, phone number you’ll need

GeekingOutLoud — Sun, 13 May 2007 04:28:06 +0000

If you guys haven’t checked out Grandcentral.com and gotten your free phone number, I highly suggest doing that asap…who knows how long they’ll be in beta and what might change. You get a free phone number; you can add any of your numbers (home, work, cell, skype, whatever) and have it ring some or all [...]

Some recent cool finds: Jott, DandeLife, RememberTheMilk, Ning and More

GeekingOutLoud — Sun, 06 May 2007 15:01:32 +0000

Some of my favorite recent finds: Jott.com Call in for free and have your voice notes transcribed as a note to yourself or an email to someone else. Pretty good transcribing ability. You can also set it up to email your online todo list (I use RememberTheMilk.com, see below.) In the car, remember something [...]

DandeLife Personal Timeline Storyboard

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 03 May 2007 01:02:08 +0000

Mucho going on, but no time right now to share about it all. However, I did want to point some of you over to what I think is a very cool free site. I’ll put a widget for it here, click on it and head on over there to Dandelife. Powered by Qumana Sphere: [...]

Audio Twitter?

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 02:40:55 +0000

I’ve had thoughts of various versions of a simple website that you can record 15 seconds for free (maybe more for pay?) and all the recordings (perhaps call-ins as well) get pasted together for a constant audio stream. Perhaps you could choose your rant by topic and/or language. This would be cool. [...]

Shut down day report

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 21:17:12 +0000

Well, I successfully avoided my computer during “Shut Down Day”, but I must confess that it was somewhat of a lucky accident. I had remember the day or so before, but forgot that morning. Thankfully it ended up being a ‘date day’ with my wife (our first overnight without our 3 1/2 year [...]

Still Distracted…How to stay creative and focused while in front of the screen?

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 23:53:55 +0000

Poop. Getting connected back at home again hasn’t been going so hot lately –there are just too many cool, distracting apps and widgets and crap to test out; too much infotainment to consume; too many people to meet and connect with. I know I’m not the only one who struggles with this, but [...]

What Mac OS X Widgets are on your Dashboard?

GeekingOutLoud — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 23:43:36 +0000

Well, my Dashboard may be cluttered as hell now, but I’ve I’ve found some pretty cool widgets of late. Here’s my widget lowdown: What are your favorites?Tags: geekingoutloud, leifhansen, widget, dashboard Powered by Qumana Sphere: Related Content

Compromise or Seasonal Change?…we’re reconnecting at home

GeekingOutLoud — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 20:31:37 +0000

Many of you know the odd fact that, despite my geekiness, our family has chosen (at least for the last year) to not be connected to the net at home (see below for why.) So, for the past few months (since leaving my place of work, and thus my net access) I have trotted [...]

Excellent resource for “Technology and Human Responsibility”

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 19:20:47 +0000

A friend of mine, John Clancy from Orcas Island, tipped me off on an excellent resource that some of you may already be familiar with -its the “Technology and Human Responsibility” section of a site called the Nature Institute. I’ve just started reading some of the articles, but really like what I’ve read and [...]

Frustrations with gadgets, PIM systems, notes, etc

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 18:58:40 +0000

If your reading this blog then you likely, like me, have a number of unused or half-used gadets lying around your house waiting to find their usefulness in your life. Its hard to ignore them because they must have SOME use right? Its hard to sell them because they’re now outdated or scratched [...]

Top 10 Free Mac Apps & Widgets I’ve found so far…

GeekingOutLoud — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 23:20:12 +0000

Well, the rapidly shrinking size of my 120 GB hard drive tells me its time to stop sucking down freebie mac apps from the net, and to take a break for a while. Here are my favorite finds so far, let me know if you know of any others. I’m leaving out a [...]

GarageBand Fun -Geek Rap

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 23:53:40 +0000

I’ve been having a blast with my new Macbook, especially with GarageBand. Though I haven’t produced a podcast yet (laziness), I did manage to take an old school rap of mine (yes, I rapped in HS in the late 80s) and add some funk. Check this out and tell me what you think. [...]

Hot Idea: Self-Organizing FAQ

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 20:13:30 +0000

This one I’m sure exists in various forms already, so if you know about where -let me know. The idea would be a FAQ (Set of Frequently Asked Questions) that re-orders itself according to use. Top clicked questions float to the top, etc. Perhaps there could even be a feature where the [...]

Hot Idea: Bird’s Eye Journal/Blog with nested layers

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 01:54:36 +0000

On that note, I’ll start with one I was thinking of this morning (the other I’m not willing to give up yet!) While I do like to journal in detail, I RARELY ever go back in read those ramblings –there are just too many entries and too many words, much of which is annoying rambling. What I [...]

Journler & Ecto -sweeeet!

GeekingOutLoud — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 14:35:25 +0000

Testing Journler –if this works, wooooooh, this is probably the coolest thing I have EVER seen for offline blogging and journaling! Looks like this will be the best option for keeping a journal, and then choosing to blog that journal (if simple). Downside is that there is no ability to republish/edit past blog [...]

Hasta La Vista (Windows) Baby-switch to mac, the apple through my Windows

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 03:13:50 +0000

I know Vista is coming out next week, but from what I’ve heard so far, this isn’t exactly something to get excited about. However, if you, like me, have been considering a switch to Mac (after about 15 years!), this might just be the perfect time to jump ship. Yes, jump before you [...]

Great free goal-tracking tool for all your new year’s resolutions

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 05:04:29 +0000

Though I see it has the potential to be just ‘one more thing’ I need to update, I’ve created various goal-tracking programs of my own (mostly paper), and Joe’s Goals looks like it has lots of cool potential…best of all is its simple interface and ability to tag all your goals. And, as [...]

Cool New Free Desktop and Windows Manager

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 22:47:23 +0000

I’ve found a free desktop management app that is so cool, its tempting me not to make the inevitable switch to mac that I’m planning on making. Its called Dexpot. If you like the Mac OS X’s ability to quickly switch between different desktop views, to get a snapshot of all desktops, and [...]

Happy Geeking New Year!

GeekingOutLoud — Sun, 31 Dec 2006 21:26:18 +0000

Well, apart from dealing with family crises over the holidays, here’s some of my geek doings from this last week. I’ve continued playing and posting my various life adventures over at reality all starz. Check out my page if you haven’t yet. There’s no way I’ll win the prize by the end of the [...]

Here’s a little christmas geek treat…

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 17:38:53 +0000

Check this out… Sphere: Related Content

Interview with Peter Davenport, Director of NUFORC, Part II

wonderosityshow — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 23:57:49 +0000

This episode continues the interview with Peter Davenport, director of of the National UFO Reporting Center. In this show we talk about: How does the NUFORC reporting process work? Why might be some reasons humanity has not had a more overt UFO/Alien encounter? Why does the traditional media seem to run from these kind of reports? How often [...]

The black-hole of keeping up with whats happening on the net…

GeekingOutLoud — Sun, 17 Dec 2006 17:57:22 +0000

I just realized that I’ve rarely been using this blog in two primary ways that I originally intended -to share my tech struggles (SkepTech entries) and to log my geeky explorations. As you might guess, the two of those topics are highly correlated. The net is mind-bogglingly massive and the new and frequently [...]

Interview with Peter Davenport -Director of the National UFO Reporting Center, Part I

wonderosityshow — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 19:16:37 +0000

I think my favorite thing about doing wonderosity shows is that I get to literally follow my curiosity to any place that I might not have previously followed it without the excuse of recording the conversations and interviews for a podcast. Today’s show is an interview with Peter Davenport, the 12 year director of [...]

Reality All Starz Site/Service -VERY COOL and VERY WONDEROSITY!

wonderosityshow — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 00:28:53 +0000

I blogged a little about this over at my Geeking Out Loud blog (from my recently attended IgniteSeattle event), but for you wonderosity listeners who really want to LIVE out your goals, challenges and dreams (or want to be inspired to do so by others’ dreams) --you have just GOT to go check out this [...]

Ignite Seattle

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 18:52:02 +0000

I attended Ignite Seattle last night and, overall, had a good time. The “pre-event” first hour was a social mixer, involving creating a a bridge with popsicle sticks and glue guns. We had1/2 an hour and it had to support the weight of one of your team members. Here was my team [...]

New Wonderosity show/podcast and social networking site up and running

GeekingOutLoud — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 22:53:56 +0000

Well, I finally started my new podcast (taking over Bleeding Purple) Wonderosity last week and (besides a redirect to an amazing Wisconsin public radio show called “Electrons to Enlightenment” I had to force on peopl), have so far put out two shows. Of more relevance to this blog, I have also created a social [...]

There.com vs. Second Life

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 06:39:04 +0000

If you are truly a geek, you have more than likely heard of Second Life. You’ve probably tried it out and either got bored with it (like moi), or have been hanging around trying to fill your aching social void with virutal relationships (ouch!) However, though you may have messed around some with [...]

Some Great Web 2.0 Apps/Services: TalkShoe, Ning.com and more

GeekingOutLoud — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 05:29:43 +0000

Well, one good side to not getting sleep (at least when at someone’s house with net access) is that I had more geek hours than usual in the last 24 hours. From 3:30 in the morning till 8:30, I have (from lame to coolest): Learned the basics of the cool, opensource CMS (Content Management System) [...]

Some Personal Problems with the Art of Podcasting

GeekingOutLoud — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 15:02:32 +0000

I love learning and meeting new people through interviews. One of the things that excited me most about podcasting when I first got into it is that I realized I now had an ‘excuse’ to call anybody or stop them on the street and ask them the questions that I always am full of. [...]

Cool Free App: Break Reminder, calling all screen-addicts

GeekingOutLoud — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 15:10:33 +0000

(Note: My copy says “free for personal use”, site recently seems to say otherwise -unclear?) Have you ever found yourself sitting in front of a screen for hours, almost as if your eyes and brain are addicted to some kind of screen candy that they are being fed through its glow? Part of you knows you [...]

PPME 2006: Podcat & Portable Media Expo 2006

GeekingOutLoud — Thu, 12 Oct 2006 14:28:07 +0000

Though its old news by now (hey, I just started this blog!), I recently attended the Podcast and Portable Media Expo (PPME) in Ontario, CA. In short, I had a great time meeting some of my favorite podcast hosts, networking and partying with other podcasters, learning how to put together a better show, [...]

Why Geek Out Loud? A personal introduction and blog explanation

GeekingOutLoud — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0000

(From original “GeekingOutLoud.com” site) “Next please.” “Hello, my name is Leif Hansen and I’m a geekaholic.” Have been for about 25 years. Throughout those years, technology, particularly computers and the net, has been something I’ve taken great pleasure in and yet deeply struggled with -more on that confession later. I’ve been involved in the tech industry [...]

For all who have wondered what podcasting truly is…ask the ninja

bleedingpurple — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 00:22:00 +0000

Tags: ask a ninja, askaninja.com, humor, Sphere: Related Content

World’s First ShowerCast?

bleedingpurple — Mon, 06 Feb 2006 04:33:00 +0000

World’s first showercast? Perhaps you were hoping it was Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt, but its not that kind of showercast. No, this isn’t podporn (though I hear that that new wave of slavery is marching in quick), but come on in… In this show: Wade in the water baby! You create the next show! Answer the question [...]

Aliens, Angels, & Artificial Intelligence

bleedingpurple — Fri, 28 Oct 2005 04:27:00 +0000

A fun, fascinating and thought-provoking conversation with Ron Stephens, host of the AwareTek Podcast. We explore the connections between the supernatural, scientific and extraterrestrial phenomena. Tags: interview, angels, aliens, God, supernatural, paranormal, artificial intelligence, AI, podcast, spiritual experiences, vineyard church, awaretek, reductionism, scientific limits, , Bleeding Purple, Theology, Podcast, Leif Hansen, Hope, Wonder Sphere: [...]

Hell’s Kitchen w/ Mendozza: A dad’s night out on T-town.

bleedingpurple — Sun, 07 Aug 2005 13:43:00 +0000

And now for something completely different. Check out this interview with Mendozza, a “heavy stoner-rock” band from Vancouver, BC. I like to stretch myself with new experiences –keep your mind open for some fun surprises! Here are some pix of the evening. Tags: interview, interviews, Musical, musician, band, mendozza, vancouver, british columbia, canada, tacoma, hell’s kitchen, stoner-rock, [...]

Screen Addiction: Are we becoming too dependent on tech?

bleedingpurple — Fri, 05 Aug 2005 06:16:00 +0000

This turned out well! A somewhat brief summary of my personal struggles with technology, and my thoughts on how it is effecting our culture. Read my paper “Exploring the nature of technology through the magic within Tolkien’s myth“ through the if you’re interested in more. Tags: screen addiction, Musings, technology, technophile, culture, cultural criticism, struggle, honesty, [...]