Year of the Cheap Laptops?

Sam Harrelson on March 5, 2008

I have to wonder how close we are to a “cheap computer” revolution when linux based laptops start eating into the non-Apple laptop market.

I know personally that the Asus eee is a fantastic little piece of tech. I’ve said more than once that it is my favorite laptop ever (even more than the high end Dell I had for a few years and my new MacBook Pro).

So, the thought of Windows moving into this territory and squishing some of the linux momentum scares me…

Asus and Microsoft working an Eee-targeted version of Windows 7? – Engadget: “Given the Eee’s ‘other requirements,’ Asus and Microsoft ‘couldn’t go the Vista route,’ presumably because the Eee doesn’t really have the horsepower for it. Sure, but what caught our interest was that Microsoft is ‘in close discussions with Asus [regarding] how to take that forward… in regards to the Windows 7 Europe timeframe.’ Windows 7, you’ll recall, has that lean new kernel, which would presumably make building a stripped-down version specifically for Eee-class machines easier — but the last we heard, Windows 7 wasn’t due until at least mid-2009 (and possibly not until 2011), so either Microsoft is planning to continue shipping XP after June or Windows 7 is coming much earlier than we thought. Our money is on XP continuing to soldier on, but here’s hoping.”

What does this have to do with online marketing? A great deal, I believe since the machine that people use to access the web or get things done has a great deal of influence on how they view online products or services. The more people that wise up to linux and open source products, the more people become web and savings savvy.

Affiliate or CPA Spam?

Sam Harrelson on March 5, 2008

Looks like the “affiliate spammers” are starting early at Penn State University.

Although, this is more of a CPA network offer (email/lead based) than an affiliate offer, but few people in online marketing can actually cite the difference between affiliate and cpa, let alone innocent bystanders who get creamed with this sort of unsolicited garbage.

Penn State Affiliate Marketer Spamming Fellow Students: “I can’t believe someone on the PSU domain is spamming me with an affiliate offer. I received this email from the President of ‘PSU Free Student Offers.’ This character named Samantha Volley is obviously fake, and I confirmed it because the name is not in the Penn State Directory or even Facebook.”

Again, this raises the Calacanis Keynote question of how to “clean up” the affiliate industry but also brings in the interesting component of how affiliates should kick their often less-than-honorable lead based cousins to the curb…

New Bible Discussion List: The Biblicalist

Sam Harrelson on March 5, 2008

I came across a great new email discussion list that I promptly joined this morning called The Biblicalist.

If you’re a student of the Hebrew or Christian Bible, it looks like a fantastic resource. This isn’t for everyone, but could grow to become something very valuable…

biblicalist : The Biblicalist: “Welcome to The Biblicalist, a biblical studies list of academic emphasis open to all who wish to approach the Bible in its wider context, past and present. All viewpoints and perspectives which draw on the work of scholars in biblical studies and cognate disciplines are welcome.

Topics of discussion include the interpretation of particular texts of the Bible and related literature, the background of ancient Near Eastern and Classical cultures, theological and philosophical reflections on relevant issues, and the Bible in art and literature, including the reception of the Bible from ancient times to the present. “

Do We Really Know How to Teach Ancient Languages?

Sam Harrelson on March 4, 2008

In order to make sure that future generations appreciate and understand our historical legacy, we have to ensure that we are teaching ancient languages in the most appropriate manner possible.

Here’s a thought provoking piece from the SBL site…

Society of Biblical Literature: “Even if not as ‘useful,’ and proportionally much less popular than modern languages, in absolute numbers there is still a considerable interest in learning ancient languages. The demand is answered with a plethora of popular as well as academic textbooks, programs, and courses, some of them attempting to exploit the latest information technologies.[1] This recent supply of IT based programs should not, however, mislead, us into assuming that the emergence of real new approaches in imparting ancient languages has occurred. Students’ achievements, their facility in accessing the classical texts, and their overall satisfaction have not necessarily improved.[2] Moreover, there is hardly any research to be found dedicated specifically to ancient language pedagogy.[3] In spite of this apparently thin layer of modern technology, the teaching of ancient languages is usually characterized by conservative pedagogical notions and methods in need of reexamination and much change.”

I remember initially hating Attic Greek due to the insistence of memorization and vocabulary. Hopefully, new paradigms from other disciplines will inform how ancient languages are being taught in colleges and universities so that students will continue to be intrigued by the lure of the past.

Is the Lizard Man Back?

Sam Harrelson on March 4, 2008

The Lizard Man sightings first popped up in my native Pee Dee region of South Carolina around 1988 when I was 10 years old. I remember buying a “Lizard Man” t-shirt at the I-95 Speedway outside of Florence, SC and wore it almost daily with pride. Perhaps that’s when my love of all things cryptid began.

Anyway, there are new Lizard Man sightings in the Pee Dee according to WIS tv out of Columbia…

WIStv.com Columbia, SC: “Lizard Man” returns?: “Dixie Rawson of Bishopville sent WIS News 10 an e-mail about a big surprise she got at her home Thursday morning. ‘The whole front half of our van is chewed up. There are bite marks right through the front grill. Both sides of the van above the wheel wells were bitten and the metal is bent like a piece of paper.’

It reminded Dixie of the local legend of the ‘Lizard Man’ that stretches back for decades. Now some are wondering if the Lizard Man is back.”

You can read more about the Lizard Man of SC here at Wikipedia:

The Lizard Man is described as being seven feet tall, bipedal, and well built, with green scaly skin and glowing red eyes. It is said to have three toes on each foot and three fingers on each hand which end in long black claw-like nails.

Thanks to Jon for sending over!

Sharing is Caring

Sam Harrelson on March 4, 2008

I use Google Reader to plow through about 500 or so RSS feeds everyday. If you’d like to subscribe to a feed where I share things that I feel are interesting or useful, feel free to bookmark or grab the feed of my Shared Items page:

Sam Harrelson’s Google Reader Shared Items

At the behest of Tris Hussey, I’m strongly considering switching to NetNewsWire full time. Here’s the shared items feed for that:

Sam’s NetNewsWire Shared Items

Best Blogger?

Sam Harrelson on February 26, 2008

I was beyond honored to win the “Best Blogger” award last night at the Affiliate Summit. The Summit is a gathering of about 3,000 affiliate and online marketers and there were two very deserving guys also nominated for the award.

I’m here at the conference until tomorrow afternoon, so I’ll be posting some fun pics when I get a chance.

Another Marketing Legend | ReveNews: “I will note that our Revenews leader, Sam Harrelson, took the Best Blogger award and I applaud him on the gargantuan task of re-working almost a decade of commentary on this site into something usuable.”

Crazy!

More soon.

I miss my baby, btw. This is the longest I’ve been away from her and didn’t realize how much that would affect me.


I’ll be home soon, MH!