Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Subconscious Desire to Watch USA Match? (Managers Prohibited to Read :)

If either Tim or Jon are reading this, don't worry, the title is just a joke, mostly ;)

This morning I struggled with, what developed over the last 24 hours, a pulled back. Yesterday was quite uncomfortable shifting around in my office chair. The strain of the ill fitting high back exec chair sent me through the roof yesterday. Adding to my misery was a nigh spent in an easy chair as I fell asleep and couldn't wake up (until a 3:45 accident where my feet were pointed to the ceiling as my head and the back of the chair hit the floor - try picturing it). I put off my daily P90X workout in favor of a run (in the DFW heat) hoping to stretch out the pull and recover before heading off to work. No luck and I felt more miserable than before. To top it off, allergies are doing a number on my throat. All in all I concluded that working from home today would be a nice option.

Having resolved to begin the day at home, I went in search for my laptop bag en route to the easy chair, assuming a posture of work and watch as the USA Men's World Cup contingency work their magic against the bottom of the group Algerian team. Then it hit me: the bag with both PC and Mac were in the back of my wife's vehicle on its way to the Dallas LDS Temple and was not returning until lunch time.

So with only my iPhone (original and waiting for my new iPhone 4) in hand, and my corporate e-mail Inbox not functioning properly, I sent a note off, periodically checked my Inbox (no movement) and settled in for a nail-biting match.

I'll let the pro's tell the full story, slanted or not, but let's just say that I was on the edge of my seat as the US came away with the win 90 seconds into extended play in the 2nd period. While Landon Donovan put the "nail in the coffin" it was the offensive pressure from Dempsey and Altidore that pushed Algeria the whole game. You also can't deny DeMerrit's defensive prowess as he shut down attack after attack, giving US their first shutout match in World Cup since 2002.

All the while I watched the game, it was incredibly enjoyable to keep tabs on the England v. Slovenia match via the iPhone GOAL.com app and for those of you that know me you'll know why.

So if my management is still reading this, note that I'll be working a bit later than normal and hopefully a little marketing can hide the sins of my subconscious.

Friday, June 11, 2010

World Cup Comes to Mobile

Many of you know that I work in the mobile app biz and I thoroughly love futbol (soccer for the colonists on this side of the pond ;). With the World Cup 2010 in South Africa kicking off (yes, that was a pun) today, I'm ecstatic that Handmark is bringing the mobile industry's premiere mobile app for the World Cup, downloadable from your mobile device at http://m.goal.com/app or from your desktop. Here's my review.

Pros:
  • Free - those of you that know me understand this is a must.
  • Multi-platform support - iPhone, Android, Window Mobile, BlackBerry, JME devices
  • Free - didn't I already mention that ;)
  • Up-to-date news from GOAL.com, not only for World Cup, but EPL, MLS, UEFA, and many others
  • Free - can't get over that one
  • LIVE SCORES - this is huge. Mostly large pay-for-models give you live scores but this is, again...FREE
  • Fixtures and Results by day
  • Group Stage w/team standings
  • Knockout Stage w/final tournament schedule
  • News coverage provided by team of 550 reports, including 10 based in SA for the finals
  • Social - Twitter, Facebook, Delicious and more for sharing articles and the app itself
  • Offline reading capabilities when mobile network is down (does this happen anymore?)
Cons:
  • NONE - see first bullet point in the Pros section ;)
Here's what others are saying about the app.

"Goal.com Mobile application delivers
everything you need to know about football. With provocative
commentaries, exclusive interviews and vivid photos, Goal.com mobile
keeps you in the know no matter where you are. Delivering instant,
real-time access to breaking Goal.com football news.
" -- Antonio Wells of Androidtapp.com

"...mobile app such as Goal.com gives me a quick World Cup fix when I need
an update.
" - Kevin C. Tofel of GigaOM

"IMHO, the Goal.com application is top of the bill." - Robin Walters of TechCrunch

Here are some screenshots.





So what are you waiting for? Go get yours today. It's FREE!!!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Contextual Ads Strike Again: Comic Relief to a Tragedy

Contextual ads are a given in today's world of web, mobile and advertising. Unfortunately, filters for context revolving around tragedies don't exist, or are exploited by advertisers and ironic combinations often occur. Here's an example of one such irony for which I see the comic relief around the apparent tragedy.

For another example of previously noted irony, see this post. And for a final taste of irony, notice that both articles are from Desert News.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Class of 2022 Kindergarten Graduation: My Baby is Growing Up!

Here's a few video clips from today's Kindergarten graduation. Yes, the video is a bit rough (blame the camera guy, me), but they're sweet. Hope you enjoy!