Who cares about your product?

These are the days of online advertising, and ad-funded online business models. In the midst of all this excitement, how does a traditional marketer think about advertising and marketing? Who should a product be marketed to? And how?

Seth Godin, whose blog I read regularly, speaks at TED back in 2003. The subject is, if anything, more relevant today, especially if you're in the Silicon Valley echo chamber. I recommend watching it. And do check out Seth's blog as well.

It's Christmas already?!

On Ask Metafilter, somebody asked a brilliant question: "What single book is the best introduction to your field for laypeople?"

People in all sorts of fields answered. Then the link got passed around, and it landed in my feed reader this morning. I checked out the link, saw that people in EE were recommending "Art of Electronics" and CS people were recommending the Wizard Book. I am now reassured. All the recommended books are going on my reading list, and this should keep me busy for the rest of the year. Yes!

Check out the full list.

When is democracy a threat to culture?

The last Shangri-La, Bhutan. The country is taking its first very hesitant steps into democracy. The monarch recently dragged the country kicking and screaming into the 20th century - they will continue to be in a bit of a time warp, even with democracy and the advent of television. The people are not sure democracy is a good thing, and the recent changes have left them uneasy. They worry that their way of life is being threatened. After all, government policy has been guided by Gross National Happiness for the last century or so.

Props to Current TV and Christof Putzel for doing this piece.



I'm hopefully back after the unintentional blogging break. The last month has been busy work-wise, but also S and I have been looking for a new place to live. Happily, we have now found said place, but the always untantalizing task of moving still remains.