No Passport Required

No Passport Required by Jorge Quinteros

I became more aware of who Marcus Samuelsson is through Bourdain, specifically the episode on Parts Unknown where Bourdain traveled to Ethiopia with Samuelsson and his wife Maya, to the towns they were born. There's not better way to become aware of a place and it's customs than from someone who's lived it. I highly recommend that episode!

 

To my surprise, Marcus Samuelsson has come out with a show of his own titled No Passport Required. It's difficult to see the show and not see where the inspiration for a show like this came from which I love because it almost feels like it's picking up a torch that needs to be carried, especially because it feels as if it's a show which America needs right now.

Created a TiVo OnePass for this show.

Why decentralized social networking never makes it — ever heard of Crossing the Chasm?

Why decentralized social networking never makes it — ever heard of Crossing the Chasm? by Remove term: Johannes Ernst Johannes Ernst

Every now and then, the “why hasn’t decentralized social networking succeeded” discussion pops back up. And inevitably, that motivates somebody who thinks they can do better. They proceed to design a new set of decentralized networking protocols, write lots of code, and get early adopters to enthusiastically adopt the New Thing. Which then, inevitably, never grows beyond a certain size.

 

Rinse and repeat.

 

How many times has that now happened? And keeps happening?

 

Has anybody considered that perhaps the protocols weren’t the problem? Or whether the code was written in one language or another, or did or didn’t use HTML5 or other cool new tech?

 

The problem — and it is the same problem that is never being addressed — is that your decentralized social networking app doesn’t actually solve any of your users problems that haven’t already been solved! And often fails to solve problems that the centralized guys have solved and that their users depend on.

I’ll be pleasantly surprised if anyone on micro.blog reads and responds to this.

James Shelly abandons blogging

Thus endth the blog by James Shelley

My writing priorities are shifting to long-form book projects. In the immediate, my focus is on completing a treatise on the nature of simplicity. As this thought project evolves, I am becoming evermore addicted to the intoxicating liberation of discarding as many superfluous, distracting and complicating concerns as I can. I have realized that maintaining an ‘online presence’ is one such extra and needless worry — a burden ripe for jettisoning! Ergo, I am abandoning the compulsion to fulfill a weekly production cycle of online material. The decision to jump off this hamster wheel is a necessary step in my pursuit of living more simply.

I will miss Jame's thought-provoking articles but I wish him success in his offline endeavours.