Don't Tell Me, Show Me
May 20, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Last night at The Triple Door, I experienced the real-life power of technology. Having ditched my flip-up cell phone for a Blackberry Curve 8330 less than a week ago, I am still familiarizing myself with this powerful device and enjoying every minute of it.
The power of technology emerged when a fellow INTA Annual Meeting attendee asked me about Write This Way 2.0.
Rather than launch into my 30-second elevator speech, I took out the Blackberry, used the Browser function to get to my web site, and showed her the Write This Way 2.0 blog and web site along with my Twitter posts at davidkrell.
You're a good writer! she said.
It's a real-life example of the adage Don't tell me, show me.
In the old days, back in the beginning of the month, I would have E-Mailed her a link to my web site later in the evening or this morning. Now, instant communications.
The power of technology goes beyond texting, uploading photos, or taking pictures of yourself at Safeco Field and uploading it to your Facebook page.
At the beginning of the year, I sought to learn more about how to harness that power. My new year's resolution was to get over my quasi-phobia of technology and become immersed in the digital culture. I accomplished my goal in three steps.
First, I learned from an expert.
In February, I had the opportunity to take digital guru Shelly Palmer's Get Digital class. During the span of four hours over two nights, I learned through Shelly's real-life anecdotes how to keep pace with technology or be left behind professionally, socially, and personally.
Second, I learned from an expert.
I took a web site building class for novices at Tekserve, an authorized Macintosh sales and repair store in Manhattan. The instructor patiently listened to our concerns, answered our questions, and calmed our fears.
He suggested that I buy the RapidWeaver program when I explained my goal -- build two web sites. The first web site would have a blog with a bio page about me and an About Us type of page explaining my business. That's this web site.
The second web site would have a blog, a bio page, and 50-100 long-form articles. That's Television Archives -- Our Television Heritage.
I can honestly say that the two-hour class did not make me an adept digital guru who can immediately create web sites with ease. But it gave me enough to get started -- How to create a link within your site to another site. How to create a blog. How to download extras from Google Gadgets. For example, the Churchill Quote of the Day is a gadget provided by Google for web site owners.
Third, I learned from an expert. Initially, I encountered frustration by my lack of knowledge, familiarity, and ease with technology. But I figuratively glued myself to my seat, read the manual several times, and found that continuous trial and error eventually leads to trial and success. However, there comes a point where you have to call in the pros from Dover. When I did hit the proverbial wall, I found a Rapid Weaver expert at digitaLife Productions who revealed solutions during the course of a two-hour session.
Within two weeks, this web site was born. Because I had already been through the process once, the second web site took significantly less time to build the framework but more time to install the massive amount of content. Several of the articles only existed on hard copies, so the transfer was time-intensive. Six weeks later, Television Archives -- Our Television Heritage was born.
My embrace of technology continues at the INTA 2009 Annual Meeting. Not an extremely difficult task given the many sessions dedicated to the subject.
Attending Trademarks in Virtual Worlds inspired a conversation with a friend from The Trademark Reporter. The conversation led to my agreeing to write an article about the subject.
Industry Breakout: On the Internet -- Trademarks and the Web 2.0 gave a real-life example of the challenges in selecting domain names, purchasing keywords, and protecting intellectual property on the web.
And today, I am looking forward to the 11:45 am session Latest Developments in Internet Law and the Impact of Blogging on Trademarks.
david@davidkrell.com
Last night at The Triple Door, I experienced the real-life power of technology. Having ditched my flip-up cell phone for a Blackberry Curve 8330 less than a week ago, I am still familiarizing myself with this powerful device and enjoying every minute of it.
The power of technology emerged when a fellow INTA Annual Meeting attendee asked me about Write This Way 2.0.
Rather than launch into my 30-second elevator speech, I took out the Blackberry, used the Browser function to get to my web site, and showed her the Write This Way 2.0 blog and web site along with my Twitter posts at davidkrell.
You're a good writer! she said.
It's a real-life example of the adage Don't tell me, show me.
In the old days, back in the beginning of the month, I would have E-Mailed her a link to my web site later in the evening or this morning. Now, instant communications.
The power of technology goes beyond texting, uploading photos, or taking pictures of yourself at Safeco Field and uploading it to your Facebook page.
At the beginning of the year, I sought to learn more about how to harness that power. My new year's resolution was to get over my quasi-phobia of technology and become immersed in the digital culture. I accomplished my goal in three steps.
First, I learned from an expert.
In February, I had the opportunity to take digital guru Shelly Palmer's Get Digital class. During the span of four hours over two nights, I learned through Shelly's real-life anecdotes how to keep pace with technology or be left behind professionally, socially, and personally.
Second, I learned from an expert.
I took a web site building class for novices at Tekserve, an authorized Macintosh sales and repair store in Manhattan. The instructor patiently listened to our concerns, answered our questions, and calmed our fears.
He suggested that I buy the RapidWeaver program when I explained my goal -- build two web sites. The first web site would have a blog with a bio page about me and an About Us type of page explaining my business. That's this web site.
The second web site would have a blog, a bio page, and 50-100 long-form articles. That's Television Archives -- Our Television Heritage.
I can honestly say that the two-hour class did not make me an adept digital guru who can immediately create web sites with ease. But it gave me enough to get started -- How to create a link within your site to another site. How to create a blog. How to download extras from Google Gadgets. For example, the Churchill Quote of the Day is a gadget provided by Google for web site owners.
Third, I learned from an expert. Initially, I encountered frustration by my lack of knowledge, familiarity, and ease with technology. But I figuratively glued myself to my seat, read the manual several times, and found that continuous trial and error eventually leads to trial and success. However, there comes a point where you have to call in the pros from Dover. When I did hit the proverbial wall, I found a Rapid Weaver expert at digitaLife Productions who revealed solutions during the course of a two-hour session.
Within two weeks, this web site was born. Because I had already been through the process once, the second web site took significantly less time to build the framework but more time to install the massive amount of content. Several of the articles only existed on hard copies, so the transfer was time-intensive. Six weeks later, Television Archives -- Our Television Heritage was born.
My embrace of technology continues at the INTA 2009 Annual Meeting. Not an extremely difficult task given the many sessions dedicated to the subject.
Attending Trademarks in Virtual Worlds inspired a conversation with a friend from The Trademark Reporter. The conversation led to my agreeing to write an article about the subject.
Industry Breakout: On the Internet -- Trademarks and the Web 2.0 gave a real-life example of the challenges in selecting domain names, purchasing keywords, and protecting intellectual property on the web.
And today, I am looking forward to the 11:45 am session Latest Developments in Internet Law and the Impact of Blogging on Trademarks.
Short Words
March 06, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Winston Churchill was right.
The British Prime Minister who inspired the world with his words during World War II said, “Broadly speaking, the short words are the best, and the old words best of all.”
As an example, let’s take an excerpt from his famous speech to Britain’s House of Commons on June 4, 1940.
“The British Empire and the French Republic, linked together in their cause and in their need, will defend to the death their native soil, aiding each other like good comrades to the utmost of their strength.”
Clear. Concise. Purposeful.
But what if we changed it to the following:
“The British Empire and the French Republic, because of their common connection in their cause and in their need, will take the appropriate and necessary measures to properly protect and defend their native soil, even if their actions lead to death, providing the required assistance to each other like good friends to the absolute capability of their strength.”
Wordier. Clunkier. Tiring. (Ok, ‘clunkier’ is not really a word. But you get the idea.)
A writer’s choice of words is a prime factor in a document’s effectiveness. In this excerpt, Churchill makes three choices that strengthen its message.
First, “linked together” conjures an image of an unbreakable chain, unlike our weaker “common connection” phrase that sounds like something we might find on Facebook.
Second, the word “defend” implies that one will both protect and defend something. There is no need to use the phrase ‘protect and defend’ when ‘defend’ suffices. Why use two words when you can use one to make your point?
Third, the word “comrades” is often used in a military setting, the exact reason for the speech. Churchill is letting the world know that France is more than a friend, it is a comrade with whom Britain will shed blood on the battlefield to secure freedom, if necessary.
david@davidkrell.com
Winston Churchill was right.
The British Prime Minister who inspired the world with his words during World War II said, “Broadly speaking, the short words are the best, and the old words best of all.”
As an example, let’s take an excerpt from his famous speech to Britain’s House of Commons on June 4, 1940.
“The British Empire and the French Republic, linked together in their cause and in their need, will defend to the death their native soil, aiding each other like good comrades to the utmost of their strength.”
Clear. Concise. Purposeful.
But what if we changed it to the following:
“The British Empire and the French Republic, because of their common connection in their cause and in their need, will take the appropriate and necessary measures to properly protect and defend their native soil, even if their actions lead to death, providing the required assistance to each other like good friends to the absolute capability of their strength.”
Wordier. Clunkier. Tiring. (Ok, ‘clunkier’ is not really a word. But you get the idea.)
A writer’s choice of words is a prime factor in a document’s effectiveness. In this excerpt, Churchill makes three choices that strengthen its message.
First, “linked together” conjures an image of an unbreakable chain, unlike our weaker “common connection” phrase that sounds like something we might find on Facebook.
Second, the word “defend” implies that one will both protect and defend something. There is no need to use the phrase ‘protect and defend’ when ‘defend’ suffices. Why use two words when you can use one to make your point?
Third, the word “comrades” is often used in a military setting, the exact reason for the speech. Churchill is letting the world know that France is more than a friend, it is a comrade with whom Britain will shed blood on the battlefield to secure freedom, if necessary.