There’s an interesting post by Ben Balter on why government doesn’t use open source. It’s a good read, in which Balter presents all the reasons why government doesn’t use open-source software for its web sites, from the demand for enterprise solutions to a desire to avoid transparency (really). Why is government so bad at buildingRead… Read more »
Matt Mullenweg is a very dangerous man. At the inaugural WordPress in Government meetup, the co-founder of WordPress & founder & CEO of Automattic, discussed the amazing journey of WordPress from a home-spun blogging tool to the world’s most successful enterprise content management platform. Mullenweg believes in democracy. He believes in competition. He believes inRead… Read more »
This recent post by Vocus – Every Communicator Needs a Real Camera – highlights how important photography is for business. We depend on photos for blogs, web sites, brochures, tweets, Facebook posts and other kinds of marketing collateral. Photos are a kind of shorthand, selling a product more effectively than a hundred lines of copy.Read… Read more »
Cherry blossoms blooming on the Tidal Basin. This was the winter without end, days and weeks worth of single-digit temperatures that made me want to curl up with a bottle of bourbon and stay inside forever. I’ve never had to wear so many layers. It was a real winter, the kind I thought that DCRead… Read more »
Two men walk toward the Capitol in a snowstorm. If I have learned anything from this winter, it’s the importance of taking pictures while the snow is still fresh. It’s when the white stuff is at its prettiest. After a few hours, it starts to melt, get shoveled and become begrimed with city filth. MondayRead… Read more »
If you’re a writer, that first blank page can be daunting. The blinking cursor awaits. What do you have to say? Do you really have what it takes to write a whole book? Yet, the same writer, when put in front of a friendly blog interface, will immediately start writing. After all, it’s just aRead… Read more »
The 21st Century is a really bad time for control freaks. – Alec Ross, former Senior Advisor for Innovation to the U.S. Secretary of State The State Department trusts its employees to tweet – why doesn’t yours? The above quote was mentioned by Graham Lampa, State Department Office of Public Diplomacy, at the SocialGov Summit,Read… Read more »
14th Street NW in Washington is one of the hottest corridors in the country. This once beat-up strip lined with auto repair joints is being transformed into blocks of condos, micro-apartments, restaurants and high-end retail. Very high-end. This is one of the construction cranes that Mayor Gray touts as proof of the city’s growth. He’sRead… Read more »
Those are some expensive boots, pardner. How can I get you into a pair of $398 boots? Perhaps an evening of beautiful people, interesting photos and delicious cocktails? On Thursday night, I attended the Frye Company Popup Gallery in Georgetown. It’s a beautiful store, a virtual temple to leather on Wisconsin Avenue. The evening, curatedRead… Read more »
For the second year, I’m going to be a screenwriting mentor at DC Shorts Mentors. I’ve been a judge for the DC Shorts Screenwriting Competition, won the Film DC screenplay competition and interviewed filmmakers for On Tap, so I’m glad to share my knowledge with budding screenwriters. I’ll be speaking on a panel on MarchRead… Read more »