Be there!

Dates: Friday, March 9 to Tuesday, March 13
Website: http://2007.sxsw.com/interactive/

http://groups.drupal.org/sxsw-interactive-2007

Contribute to the SXSW Drupal events wiki.

I was in a long discussion yesterday with some peers about this subject. In general, few organizations that I work with, most of which are under a core of 25 or so staff people, produce data apckages with processes that require more than a few total steps while including a couple of iterated steps.

Document (Artifact) Creation Process:

1. Initial Proposal Draft
2. Proposal Review (Version Control) (Some Group Permissions/Roles/Control here)
3. Proposal Update (IIterate from "2" - Review) (Change Review Group)
4. Proposal Decision (Often New Group Permissions/Roles/Control here)

Then:

1. Initial Implementation Draft
2. Implementation Review (Version Control) (Some Group Permissions/Roles/Control here)
3. Implementation Update (Iterate from "2" - Review) (Change Review Group)
4. Final Implementation (Often New Group Permissions/Roles/Control here)

A lot can be added to this, but generally speaking, what I have found in my work is that without clear guidelines from the first set, and sustainable resourcing for the second, things don't get done.

Also, from my experience, the actual 'density' or capability+resilience of a group/organization/individual/(entity) is the total strength of these processes as the backbone of the entity in concert with the use of technology for scale effect.

As an excercise, I will offer to you what I offer to a host of my clients: if we focus on doing something really really well, and the processes that underlie successful, replicable execution of an operation, then replicate the process so as to execute on an expanded operation, another that we really, really well, we will succeed and stay focused without becoming spread too thin. In fact, most of the successful folks I work with have started to look at the entity functions as 'campaigns' for this reason. Campaign meaning the true definition of a 'project,' from the "Project Management Body of Knowledge" book, " A Project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service." A "campaign" definition adds in, I believe, the social aspect, saying in effect, that the project contains some amount of exposure and interaction with or expectation from the public/market/"outside"/non-"i" entity. The unique product or service then becomes a component of 'operations' which are distinct from projects because they are ongoing and part of the transcendant mission and prupose of the organization.So, an entity has a buildout something like the following.

Entity Buildout Process:

1. Definition of general mission and vision with outline of Targeted Operations and Projects in process to achieve them.
2. Outline of initial (1st) unique service or operation to be achieved (and operationalized)
3. Project plan to accomplish unique operation's repeateable performance (operationalization)
4. Execution of Project

Then:

1. New definition of Mission and Vision to include new operations and new Project Directions
2. Iterate from "2" above

These may seem simple, but agreement on the simple structures leads to the ability to make more complex ones.

I would not recommend needless complication of these, but instead move forward with simply "filling out the form" and and on into project fulfillment which leads to expanded operations. Right now, accomplishing massive amounts of work on a website will not 'solve' anything, but having some clear expectations on which usable pieces will need to be built into the first project so that everyone can feel like saying
"Hey, we have executed our project project, and now we have an operation we are committed to fulfilling on regularly (daily, weekly), this is happening, let's invite others in and maintain focus on our next project which will expand our operations."
Isn't what what we are looking for, anyways?  Why not focus on what we want to happen, then?

Skype 3.0 Beta is now available for download. This is a groundbreaking release, and I highly recommend getting started with it so as to become familiar with the new features.

http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windows/skype3beta.html

Here's a collection fo 3 videos documenting the 48 hour League of Tech Voters Code-A-Thon in Austin TX. So many people in the world get a little flummoxed with technology, but this video shows the human side of the nerds who write the code that makes yourfuzzy logc microwave cook a baked potato just right, or perhaps the guy who wrote the script that backs your school's database up so that the 25,000 records in it aren't deleted accidentally to be lost forever.

Not only are they human, in fact, but just like most humans, they can be enticed to work for a good cause with simple things like appreciation, good music, and food.

LOTV (League of Tech Voters @ http://www.leagueoftechvoters.org/drupal/ ) is making a powerful statement by putting together this code-a-thon solely for the benefit of citizens and non-profits. It's really amazing. Why not get your church group to organize one in your town? I'm not kidding. It's in the public's best interest.

So, what do I see? How could you do this yourself? Let's see here:

Get in touch with a cause that needs software; i.e. everyone and everything on the planet.

Help that group by finding out a few of the things they need, in common.

Set a date.

Find a location. You'll need coffee, power, bathrooms, and wireless internet (or wired). There's a few other things that will help, too, but this is a start. (Check the end for a list of desires, and why this event was so great!)

Let your local community know. Publicize on Craigslist.org, and Barcamp.org, as well as finding local connections throguh Meetup.com (don't likey much).

Watch these videos for additional hints on what to do right! Leave comments at the end please! Let's get this going in Washington DC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccDORj0syyE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf8rtfrAeME

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKhURJXgE40

It's true...IE7 has been released and is being pushed to Windows Desktops worldwide by the ever invasive Windows Update. I swear, every time Windows pushes an update my machine gets slower. It's amazing! It's like an anti-progress engine!

At any rate, you probably didn't realize that something so radical could come from Windows Update. A Browser upgrade? It's really been years since the last time, and it really, really really is about time. IE6 is quite possible one of the longest overdue pieces of software the web has ever known. It has LITERALLY been slowing the development of the internet itself because of the tremendous burdens Microsoft has placed on developers andesigners by issuing such an incomplete, poorly implemented, and all around lousy product. If you don;t know what I'm talking about...just be glad. If you know what I'm talking about, then you know what I'm talking about.

Oh, BTW, in casy you didn't know, you can only get IE7 if you are running Windows XP.  BTW, this is a really bad idea. 

So, IE7 is here. And for eevryone in the webdesign business, you might have been wondering how this is a good thing when in fact all it really means is that there is yet another crappy Microsoft product that will have 85% deployment that we have to support even though it doesn't work correctly.

Well, I just installed the new 14mb IE7, and I am also running Internet Explorer 6, because, for the next couple of months at least, until I stop hearing "IE7? What's that?" I have to assume that I will be designing for 3 browsers now, Firefox, IE7 and IE6.

This is a special slimmed down version of the browser. It doesn't do everything. You can't accept IE6 cookies or anything like that...it's literally just there so you can preview your designs and web coding in IE6 and 7 and Firefox, 'cos you know you love your work, and you want everyone to see it.

1) Install IE7, say bye bye to IE6.
2) Reboot.
3) Make a new folder: C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer 6\
4) Visit Evolt.org: http://browsers.evolt.org/?ie/32bit/standalone
5) Download ie6eolas_nt.zip: http://browsers.evolt.org/download.php?/ie/32bit/standalone/ie6eolas_nt.zip
6) Extract the Zip file you download in #5 into the folder you created in #3.
7) Create a shortcut to the executable you extracted in #6
8) Contain excitement at how much work Microsoft makes us do in order to clean up the mess they have made of the browser.