WSJ: You Can Ditch Your PC Now

Sam Harrelson on November 10, 2014

Completely agree with the main idea of this article… Chromebooks (and tablets to some extent) are mature platforms and great devices for both creating and consuming content for personal and business use:

In short, I’m done with PCs—at least as they are conventionally defined. And I think the majority of long-suffering PC users would be too if they weren’t so accustomed to thinking of computers in the same way they have for decades. Building new technology is easy compared with changing the habits of those who use it.

via You Can Ditch Your PC Now – WSJ – WSJ.

Why Blogs?

Sam Harrelson on November 8, 2014

Yep…

Blogs are — or at least were — different. They are an individual’s place for speaking out loud, but the relationships that form around them were based on links among posts, not social networks that link among people. I’m all for social networks, but we also need networks of ideas.

via Joho the Blog » The Blogosphere lives!.

What is a Computer?

Sam Harrelson on November 8, 2014

Fun Sesame Street video from the 80’s, but I wonder how kids today would answer that last question… “can a computer think?”

The Next Printing Revolution

Sam Harrelson on October 21, 2014

Having access to a 3D printer at Hammond has definitely changed the way I think about design, production, and consumption (in a school environment at least).

I greatly look forward to the concept of printing to continue to extend from hand written manuscripts to the printing press to 3D printing to this type of molecular crystal printing…

But the most interesting application has to be the potential for 3D-printed pills and medications. The technique could be adapted into a consumer-friendly machine allowing patients to simply print their own medicines in the exact dosages they need.

via Scientists Produce Rounded Crystals That Could Lead To 3D-Printed Pills.

Posting to Social Spaces Instead of Blogs

Sam Harrelson on October 20, 2014

I’ll admit, there are times when I think it would be much easier to share links, ideas, and posts via something like Google+ or Facebook or Twitter rather than my blog.

Then I take a deep breath and step back. I realize the instant amount of traffic that is offered by those services doesn’t equate to the feeling of having my own space on my own blog.

Just a late night feeling after a long day.

My Favorite Albums

Sam Harrelson on October 16, 2014

My friend Royce challenged me to list my favorite albums on Facebook.

I love music, so this is hard. But here we go…

– Nirvana: Nevermind (the album that made me like music and changed my life and my generation.)

– The Beatles: (The White Album) (sure, Abbey Road is a/the masterpiece, but I’ve always loved the chaotic underbelly of the Beatles…for me, this is pure music perfection.)

– Willie Nelson: Spirit (the best Willie album… “it’s been some of them days, Lord.”)

– Flaming Lips: Soft Bulletin (cause “It’s getting heavy…”)

– Ryan Adams: Heartbreaker (even if it is named after a Mariah Carey song.)

– Wilco: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (Reservations is my anthem and this is the best album of the century so far.)

Not too far away from my list in 2008.