Spot-On: Hot Spots

Before the semi-official summer break from politics begins - that's July 4th to Labor Day - take a few minutes to consider the fall political season.

The folks who have put together the National Presidential Caucus are already on the job. Scheduled for Dec. 7 - six months away - the NPC is hoping to get voters involved in thinking about the "national primary" on Feb. 7, 2008, by warming up with a series of meetings starting just after Labor Day.

This is an interesting idea that's not too earnest or idealistic. That's why the National Presidential Caucus is today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 11:04 AM | Permalink

The Internets aren't just for serious stuff. Oh no. Particularly when you can build a "game" that makes people think they're fooling around when they're actually doing your work.

For example, Google image gizmo - officially known as its "Image Labeler" - in which participants label what they see, trying to match up choices with another user somewhere out there in the ether. Google says this is so it can create better labels for images in its library. Uh, yeah. Right.

Play the thing for 10 minutes. If you can. Then bookmark it for those really dopey conference calls. It's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 1:02 PM | Permalink

When life gives you lemons....you know the rest of that saying.

Here's a new take: When life gives you breast cancer, create a work of art. That's what Melissa Barron is doing this year at the annual Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert.

Last year Barron made this video - Crowning Glory - as the start of an art project that continues this year as she collects the hair of other women - cancer survivors and others - to weave into a tapestry then burn at the annual gathering.

Art, good works and fire? Of course it's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 1:20 PM | Permalink

Almost any conversation about the environment these days is harshly political. So it makes sense that the National Wildlife Federation would have a lot to do and say for themselves these days.

And, like all good political interest groups, they've got a website to help with that chore. We like this site 'cause it ain't nothing fancy. The latest entry is a run-down on Senate votes on the energy bill. But it's also upfront about the NWF's agenda and what it thinks can and should be done so it's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 1:47 PM | Permalink

In his debut blog post for CNET.com, former candidate for chairman of the Democratic Party, Donnie Fowler, smacks down - somewhat gently - that group calling itself the "political blogosphere." They're not as important as they think they are, he says. But, well, it's hard to ignore them, isn't it?

This is yet another go 'round in what we here at Spot-on think will be an increasingly pitched war of words between those who blog and those who, well, call it writing and reporting. And it's far from over. So we'll be watching Donnie. He's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 12:06 PM | Permalink

Her husband gets most of the attention - some of it not-so-nice - but Elizabeth Edwards is a gifted politician in her own right and her power to move crowds with a detail-oriented and low-key populism should not be set aside casually.

In what we hope will be a series (hey, send suggestions), here's a link to YouTube videos (and transcript) of a speech she gave to The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, which gave her its Philip Burton Award for public service. It's a fundraiser for the Santa Monica-based outfit, of course, but Edwards' speech is a solid political and policy statement that reflects much of what Matthew Holt's written here at Spot-on.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 12:07 PM | Permalink

It's a blog. No, it's art. It's another social network group. No, it's a web-based collaborative performance work. It's a gimmick. No, it's art.

Whatever it is or whatever you want to call it, the idea of getting millions of people using Facebook as a kind of on-line homage to this month's "grand tour" of major art festivals (the Venice Biennale, the Muenster Sculpture Project, Art Basel, and Documenta) has triggered a cool idea: Blogumentum which really is using Facebook to start a kind of open virtual-air exhibit of photos and other work.

If you're a Facebook user - and we know you are, it's okay, we are, too - you can go here to join in the fun.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 6:53 AM | Permalink

Spot-on founder Chris Nolan likes to smile and say "I don't do that anymore" when she's asked about goings-on in Silicon Valley.

Last night's event in Palo Alto held by Silicon Valley's No. 1 wiseacre, Mike Homer, now suffering from a lethal brain disease, is the rare exception. Any of you who have ever heard of a company called "Netscape" or made a buck off its products, might want to think about opening your wallet. Homer, one of Netscape's founding executive team, is very ill and last night's event was a fundraiser for research into the disease he has: Creutzfeldt-Jakob.

Former Wall Street Journal columnist Kara Swisher has more details, including video and address of various funds where donations can be sent so, with a heavy heart, that's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 12:09 PM | Permalink

It never hurts to remember where you came from.

On this day 56 years ago, the Univac, a computer - a small-room size computer - purchased by the U.S. Census Bureau was fired up for the first time. Today, a computer with that power is called a cell phone.

Now, 56 years is well within the lifespan of your average American. Think about that. And then think about computers 56 years from now.

For all these reasons, today's HotSpot is the Computer History Museum. Geek out!

Posted by Chris Nolan at 10:43 AM | Permalink

Clear, sharp writing on how to conduct business, run a company or organization isn't easy to come by. Yeah, there's a lot of it, more than one shiny magazine, a dozen or so "blogs" and endless amounts of kibbitzing by all sorts of interested parties particularly in and around the tech business.

Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen has recently wandered into the fray. The former wunderkind has a clear style, a sharp eye and a sweetly deprecating sense of humor that make his observations and advice - check out this post on hiring - worth reading, remembering and following.

Blog.Pmarca.com - a take on his long-time personal email address - is today's HotSpot. Go, learn.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 1:24 AM | Permalink

Before there was blogging there was pirate radio. Oh, wait, there's still pirate radio: guerrilla stations that set up and do what they want - for the enjoyment of those lucky enough to get the often-weak signals - until they FCC or its overseas equivalent finds 'em and shuts 'em down.

Someone's made a movie about all this. And it's not bad. So the promo site for Pirate Radio USA - in honor of folks who don't believe the government can always tell you where you can make a statement - is today's HotSpot. For the rebel in you. And us, of course.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 10:49 AM | Permalink

Soprano insanity - nutty speculation about the television show, its ending, its creator, its actors, its writers - is at an all-time pitch. Next week will be worse.

To prepare yourself, we have two recommendations. One is a piece in The Economist, yes, that's right, the Brit-based bidness magazine, about the HBO TV show and its final season which ends Sunday. The other is a blog by WashingtonPost TV editor Michael Cavna, Scripting The Sopranos, that provides a bunch of different looks at how things might unfold.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 9:16 AM | Permalink

There's not enough YouTube in your life, is there? Not enough political chat either, we bet.

Well, Patrick Ruffini, advisor to Rudy Giuliani is here to help. He's launched the 2008 Video Wire - a screen-sized video "wall" of political madness. When we say "wall" we mean 24 little boxes playing political videos, shorts and clips pulled off YouTube. It's pretty cool. And kinda overwhelming.

As the evil genius who created this thing says: "For total chaos...try clicking on all 24 play buttons."

Posted by Chris Nolan at 9:41 AM | Permalink

This weekend, Blue Planet Run kicked off an around-the-world foot race to "raise awareness" of the water crisis.

What crisis? You ask sipping from your bottled H2O. The drinking water shortage plaguing much of the developing world, that's what crisis.

Blue Planet has corporate sponsors and high-tech backers galore but a look at onewater.org, a site that's been chronicling the issue for a while now is also a great place to catch up on your water politics. Designed to support and expand a documentary of the same name, OneWater, produced by the University of Miami professor Sanjeev Chatterjee, it's today's HotSpot.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 1:00 PM | Permalink

It was 40 years ago today, Sgt. Pepper taught us all to play....

We at Spot-on can find no better place to begin your contemplation of the Baby Boomer reminiscing surrounding the anniversary of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper than pointing you to San Francisco radio station, KFOG and it's morning show host Dave Moray, a guy who refers to the band by what he clearly believes is it correct and full title: "The Beatles, yeah!"

Moray is marking this historic occasion by playing, on the air, his own copy of the record - that's right, kids, vinyl - in his usual 10@10 blast from the past show. It'll be rebroadcast over the weekend as well.

Posted by Chris Nolan at 10:11 AM | Permalink