i’ve always avoided programming, i did some html and css stuff a long time ago but got frustrated with all the cross browser guff that you had to do. that just killed my creativity and wanting to build desire. i do not get off from finding out why something didn’t work in another browser especially as they change so much or at least did back then. these days, things seem to have calmed down a little at least from where i can see these new frameworks.
i’m excited to learn electron for one reason only, so many great applications exist already, programs that i use, programs that i can integrate into what i want to do and i can finally see me realise one of my project ideas fairly easily and build upon my initial ideas, heck i can see it being a useful service in general for streamers and transmedia people alike - i think once i get started it will be a flurry of activity.
aside from learning i’m also going to be doing a little cross purpose show for inspiration to keep me focused and make me realise what can be built so to keep my eyes on the prize, i also think you’ll get a lot from it too because i want to start using some of these tools and i know you will too.
the birth of /electron_steem show
a little screencast, voice over type show with a skillshare course (free to steemians) going over five utils or applications found that have been built using the electron platform. the intention is to unearth and share some really neat open source, freeware tools but also to inspire you to consider building out your own dreams.. . i’ll record the first one tomorrow morning.
- five applications or services per episode recorded with soapbox from wistia and embedded into a steemit blogpost
- eventually a link in the comments to skillshare course going into each of the apps and services and actually showing you it running and what it can for you and why you should use it, i’ll try and give you a use case study.
developing my own app(s)
for the longest time i’ve wanted to build a transmedia portal that brings together what a digital content creator looks like today, maybe over time that can be powered in a decentralised way (because you know, script kiddies and hackers wanna ddos your streaming services and shiz) but i need to make the portal itself a centralised focus to make it easier for the masses to consume firstly.
i’m absolutely certain that a fast blockchain could work really well in this instance as well as media and platforms converge to make different experiences that are joined together in a transparent way, you only have to look at the way software, hardware and api/ai machine learning is bonding together to remove some of the ‘steps’ that made is frustrating. that’s being removed and it’s becoming a playground for the consumer.
transmedia dashboards then. .
so we have different audiences spread out in different places, i want to bring them all together in an easier way and build out some creative interfaces in the process - this is just one project, i’m sure their will be a lot of steem platform projects down the line as well because i certainly see this becoming my new basecamp. heck, if i didn’t need facebook connect for a few sites that i use i would have deleted that bloody social network by now.
i’m interested in at least nine areas in my life that i can breakdown and quantify, those are the list below, in this list i believe their is opportunity in these niches to make them easier, more engaging, better organised than the existing software in place. i’m not looking to make a business as such and be only directed by business intent (money) i’d like it to mean more than that, being digitally creative means i need it to work on many levels for me instead of just focusing on what might just be a sole business goal.
crypto currency
we already have so many currencies, so many platforms, so many ways to interface with it. the programers here at steemit, people like 
people are absolutely desperate to share an experience that they have had — steemit should have that locked down. together with my virtual working other half across the atlantic ocean (who is awesome at VO) we should be able to make some simply and easy videos and tutorials. this is an area i’m keen to pursue.
interactive live video
no brainer tbh, you only have to look at e-sports to see where this is going, this is going to be the new normal and they won’t need tv stations, networks and middlemen to reach audiences, the brands are flooding in and the marketing money from tv is going to shift overnight. prepare for the new breed of digital advocates - realtime and on demand. there will be a lot of players in this arena and it will change often! :)
transmedia storytelling
the winners will be the ones that can not only wield all the features of a platform but understand the need to be on all platforms, natively, in a strutured way that communicates and storytells who and what they are, warts and all, can’t be scripted, gonna be accessible for that audience looking in - you’ll need to be savvy at reputation management, redudancy, in control of your data silos and be able to adapt quickly. it’s gonna be a big new job out there to be a digital pa or producer.
brand advocacy
hopefully a lot of the current brand advocates will get dumped and the industry will wake up, views don’t always make a customer, impact will be better tracked, brands will get behind the faces of regular communities and spin off brands will take more risks. did you know that mcdonald’s has a social media manual that has been run passed legal for a bunch of canned responses that can be looked up even it’s 3am somewhere their 24/7 social media team is on it. they reply to well over three million tweets a month, it’s probably more now. this is a fast moving ship.
income streams
huge scope here with crypto and jobs changing in general, legacy, skills and ‘where you are in the world’ will have an impact on your earnings and income. everyone needs finances and income, being positioned to give advice, sell your services will be all linked together to the brand of you (i realise how marketing that sounds but it’s true) people see you as a peer or a brand (at least if your doing it good enough to stand out)
nomadic lifestyle
people are ditching the cube, they don’t want the water cooler, they don’t want the commute and they don’t wanna talk to brad about his weekend at star wars camp. they want freedom, to keep it moving yet be digitally connected to the grid from the outsides. it’s true modern day tron in action and it’s fucking wonderful — check out tynan.net for an awesome digital nomad that’s doing his thing and keeping it moving. i’d love to invite tynan to steemit but i’m not sure how that would go especially with him having his own blogging platform. maybe he should build a blockchain! :)
e-residency estonia
i got the e-residency card for one reason, i wanted choice on where i could do work and business in the EU after brexit. it’s gonna be a clusterfuck whatever way you look at it with old men in grey suits talking about stuff that was last generation and has no correlation with what’s happening at ground and street level. it’s gonna be a mental energy bloodbath out there. i want to be able to work and commute to europe, i’ve scared of losing access to countries and people i’ve never spoke or worked with before. so i’m making headway into doing that, this too will need some power tools along the way i’m sure.
online teaching
i’ve loved doing this over the last year. i’m not a fully fledged official teacher in the sense that i’ve learned how to teach i just love sharing and i’ve done my best to make a nice layout, good audio and good video and try to put out advice in a clear way, my income on skillshare and udemy have kept me going so far with the help of my partner stateside. time to level up.
settee podcast
pulling together all these areas and sitting on a sofa somewhere in the world from the back of the van i’ll wanna be bringing you updates about all of the things above for your aural consumption. it’s taken me an age to really hone down the areas i care about.
that pretty much covers my intent, nine areas, all things i’m interested in my life that i want to optimise. i’m an obsessive optimiser i love for something to run faster, cleaner, easier that more people can understand so we don’t have to go over things over and over. it just works, it’s easy to use. that’s what i want from my technological life. ease of use that fits around the better parts of life and living, enjoying the moment not being distracted from it, creating that physical mental memory with the digital just as a backup for others to reflect on.
make no mistake, i know learning about GitHub and Electron at my age might be a bit of an uphill struggle (and i will struggle i’m sure) but i’m willing to give it a go and learn, if for nothing else that i can build out some tools to share and use myself. that’s what keeps my creative juices going, building and making things that fill me mad excitement of flexing my grey matter!
what about you, what get’s your grey matter flexing? :)
p.s - i realised that to create activity, i have to visualize it, i have to see it and i have to put it out there in the world. i'll be doing my first episode tomorrow morning, reason i'm using soapbox is that it's easier than setting up for a video for youtube so i should be able to do it quickly, i may record the clip playback with something else to put on youtube after, let's see how it evolves eh? any electron people out there or might wanna help with this transmedia dashboard idea get in touch! :)
TRUST AND AUTHENTICATION. .
http://socialgandalf.com/legacy → pinterest epic wins pinboard → i was a brand advocate for nokia, 1000heads, verisign → won a vloggie for involvement in node666 (san francisco 2006) → on television for time team history hunters 1999 (burton on trent) → sold me.dm to evan williams (twitter) in april 2011 for 5 figures → went to phil campbell, alabama to help repair/recovery/help raise money month after a tornado ripped through the town (was on sky news, bbc news, al jazeeza, nightly news, alabama weather channel?!) → CNN for sxsw 2013 about austin south by southwest event → video chat with robert scoble from rackspace → i was in a music video can you spot me? → won the digital derry contest for 5k euros to kickstart web tv studio → did project work with sleepydog indirectly for nesta (responder) → crowdfunded digital signage concept called the pi street (do it for steem?)
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