Google Earth Santa

When we were kids, man we had it rough.  Not only did I have to walk to school in blistering Phoenix heat, uphill both ways (actually, it was rather flat, and I typically rode my bike), but our belief in Santa had be based on very little evidence, and shady at best.  Try believing in something when you are surrounded by really terrible Santa impersonators, the best cartoons we had were rough clay animation, and the best source of actual, cold hard data was a crappy NORAD radar tracking broadcast from a local news channel on Christmas eve!  I never could figure out why an event of this magnitude only warranted 30 seconds of coverage during the weather report?

Kids nowadays have it great.  Not only are their lives filled with authentic, caring Santas at every mall, but they have "proof of life" at their fingertips!  Take MagicSanta.ca, for instance.  With a few clicks on your computer (or for those more mobile souls, using the convenient iPhone app), you can have a completely personalized and authentic YouTube video produced with all the information and factual evidence to satisfy even the most curious child.

Our five year old, who already shares the namesake of Mr. Kringle (Christopher), recently mailed a letter to Santa via his Elf on the Shelf, Santo.  Within 24 hours, he had received a YouTube video, courtesy of MagicSanta.ca, which nailed exactly the circumstances around sending the letter.  The actual video can be found HERE.

And, although this pretty much solidified it for him (and even me a bit), there was more.  Santa also went social this year, with UK-based company O2.  By simply tweeting a message to @O2, and using the hash message #O2Santa, Santa will produce a short YouTube video reading the message you sent.  Of course, he looks slightly different and now has a British accent, but as a kid, who cares?  He's a believer.



And, as if that wasn't enough, NORAD has partnered with Google Earth to provide state of the art Santa tracking.  Growing up, this was the best we could get:

Now, you can track Santa on Google Maps or on Google Earth.  With all of this evidence, I have to admit ... I'm sorta starting to believe.  Which, based on his location over the Phillipines right now, means I have to get all my stuff done today before he gets here!

Merry Christmas!

@magic_santa
@O2
@elfontheshelf

Junior Achievement Pledge

I am proud to serve on the Board of Directors for Junior Achievement USA and for Junior Achievement of Coastal Carolina.  For those of you not familiar with JA, it is the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students about workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs.  With the challenges facing our educational system, JA also offers schools support in filling a skill training that is greatly deficient.

So far in the 2011/2012 academic year, JA of Coastal Carolina has connected volunteers with 4,950 Students in 198 Classes in 31 Schools in South Carolina, well on their way to achieving the goal of 10,000 students reached this year.

As 2011 quickly draws to a close (and those tax-deductable donations are burning a hole in your pocket!), I ask you to please consider donating to this great cause.  While any amount is appreciated, I have provided the following guidelines so you can see what your donation will provide our children.

SUGGESTED JA CLASSROOM SPONSORSHIP LEVELS

• $20.00 — Sponsor 1 JA Student
• $100.00 — Sponsor a Whole Row of 5 JA Students
• $250.00 — Sponsor Half of 1 JA Classroom
• $500.00 — Sponsor 1 JA Classroom
• $2500.00 — Sponsor 5 JA Classrooms
• $5000.00 — Sponsor 10 JA Classrooms
• $10,000.00 – Sponsor 20 JA Classrooms, often a whole school

(Support totaling $10,000 or more is recognized nationally in the JA Free Enterprise Society)

I have made it my personal goal to raise money to support at least two classrooms ($1,000), but you can help me do more!   The easiest way to contribute is by pledging online at Click &Pledge.  Otherwise, contributions may be mailed to the JA office (please include a completed Personal Giving Form) to the following address (a receipt will be mailed back to you):

Junior Achievement of Coastal South Carolina, Inc.

2430 Mall Drive, Suite 120, 

North Charleston, SC 29406

Please note that JA also needs volunteers for the classrooms, so if you are unable to make a donation of money, maybe you can make a donation of time ... both are equally appreciated!  To find a classroom need near you:

Link: JA Near You

Phone: 800-THE-NEWJA

EM: NewMedia@JA.org

If you are in the SC Coastal area, you may contact:

Phone: 843-745-7050

EM: CoastalSC.Programs@JA.org

Thank you to all for your support!  

Have a very merry holiday and a prosperous 2012!

Ho Ho Hum - 2012 Worst Gifts

Recently, I found an article from Esquire that listed the top items to buy men for Christmas.  For the most part, they nailed it!  Lots of electronics (grunt), power tools (grunt), electronics (grunt), and even a Ford Mustang Boss 302 (grunt grunt).  Did I mention electronics?  Of course, picking items for men is easy, because for the most part, we generally don't read into gifts and simply enjoy the fact that we received something for free.  With that said, I wondered about the WORST gifts to give this year (you can add your list in the comments below), and I was quite surprised (and entertained) at some of the items I found.
CNN Money lists the top 15 worst items to put on your Christmas shopping list, as found on Amazon.com recently.  They are worth summarizing:

1. Pre-Need Cremation Plan: For the  measly price of $1,189, you can purchase a loved one a kit covering the cost of an urn, transportation and cremation.  Nothing says "Merry Christmas!  Hope you don't die too soon!" like a loving cremation gift set!
2. Fresh Whole Rabbit: For $46 (plus $19 shipping), you can send the delicious gift of a freshly skinned rabbit, described as "lightly flavored (with) a nutty aftertaste", to all your vegetarian, PETA card wielding friends.  
3. Automated Ukulele Band Machine: Why give an authentic PacMan or pinball arcade game when you can give a fully functioning and fully entertaining 900-pound one-piece band for a man cave?  It will, however, set you back $20,000 ... probably easier to take banjo lessons.
4. Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank: I don't even know how to describe this ... and given they are sold out, not sure I need to.
5. Uranium Ore: Not the best choice for a necklace or accessory, but quite handy and affordable ($39.95) when trying to establish your own sovereignty. 
6. Geiger Counter: A government grade device that makes a great addition to the uranium ore!  For just $15,999, you can play "find the uranium ore" in your backyard and encourage your aspiring children to one day become an international nuclear weapons inspectors! 
7. Bag of Bones: And not the kind you accumulate at the Christmas party and stash in your closet.  A real, authentic, bag of human bones.  Great for regifting at Halloween.  ($50.96 ... discounted from $59.95!)
8. Playmobil Security Checkpoint: Allow your kids to simulate the same embarrassment endured by mommy and daddy each time they are asked to disrobe in front of impatient travellers.  Of course, for the same $190 you would spend here, you can buy a real airline ticket and at least enjoy the vacation end of the deal.
9. Wolf Urine: 100% pure wolf urine from Deer Fence.  When just regular urine just won't do.  $31.95 gets you one quart ... or call me and I can work you a better deal!
10. Yodelling Pickle: From Accoutrements, $10.80 buys you relief from the frustration you have from "trying to teach your pickles to yodel".  It's so real, the company boasts that "you'll think you're in the Swiss Alps listening to a yodelling pickle".  I'm just angry I didn't think of this first.
11. Pole Vault Landing System: For $13,961.86 (quite an exact number), you can order from PORTaPIT your very own pole vault system and relive the disappointment and failure of your high school track years.  Note, the price does not include hospital and rehabilitation costs, so budget accordingly.
12. Duck Carcass Press: From the master chef supply company, Mafter Bourgeat, comes the one item that all home chefs should have.  For $2,500, enjoy the convenience of pressing your own ducks at home.  Hopefully the instructions point out that no live ducks should be used.  This, like the rabbit carcass, would make a great gift for your PETA friends.
13. Live Lady Bugs: Already have your daughter's room accessorized in red with adorable black spots?  Well, why not add 1,500 live lady bugs to the mix?  For just under $20, from Orcon Pest Control, you can add these cute, little, disease infested bugs throughout your house!  What a deal.
14. Catholic Monstrance: For $25,000, purchase your own, one-of-a-kind monstrance, which, according to Wikipedia, "is a vessel used in the Roman Catholic church to display the consecrated Eucharistic host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament".  Okay, so this is a little more specialized than most gifts, but if it suits your fancy, better hurry ... only one left!
15. Tuscan Milk: When paying $8 a gallon for organic milk just doesn't cut it, now you can buy real Tuscan milk for $45 a gallon.  Of course, it's vitamin D enriched at no additional charge. 

I scoured the internet for bad gifts, and this list just did a great job for me.  I believe in simplicity and not reinventing the wheel, so thank you to Julianne Pepitone, who writes for CNN Money Technology for accumulating that entertaining list.  You can follow her on Twitter at @CNNMoneyTech.

So, how about you ... what do YOU think are the worst gifts to give this year?

Why Not Wi-Fi Cars?

Recently, on a commute to work, I heard a story on NPR  about a 22-year old inventor named Meredith Perry, who out of college started a company called UBeam around an invention she and a co-founder developed.  Essentially, her concept would allow users of cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc. to charge their devices through Wi-Fi ... eliminating the need to plug in.  As the story goes:

"(T)he idea came to her when she went to class with a dead laptop and no power cord.  She wondered: Why can't I recharge without a cord?"  

While the story centered on this talented young woman and her trials and tribulations as she led  her company through shark infested (aggressive venture capitalists and competing technologies) business waters, I couldn't help but think of the larger implimcations for this technology.  If we are able to charge devices via Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi is becoming increasingly available ... everywhere ... does it not seem logical that we may someday drive a car that charges on the 4G (or xG) network while we drive?  Forget plugging in ... as long as you have Wi-Fi at home (and an unlimited data plan), your car would always be charging.  It's a cool concept to think about ... no more gas, no more plug in.

And in case you were thinking that this may be too good to be true, Ms. Perry describes the process as follows:

"What happens is, the ultrasound, which vibrates the air, vibrates what's called a piezoelectric transducer," she says. "And what happens is the ultrasound will vibrate the piezocrystals, and the crystals will move back and forth, and that will generate an electrical current."

Okay, so that didn't probably quench your underlying suspicions.  Regardless, this could potentially be a first step in a future where we begin to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.  Sure, we still need to generate electricity to power the Wi-Fi towers, build the cars and roads, etc ... I get it.  But this would be a nice step in the right direction.

UBeam demonstrated at D9 this summer, and like anything else, it's only a matter of time before the concept is infused with ungodly amounts of capital for development. 



And with cars like the Toyota Fun-Vii, using Wi-Fi  for our vehicles seems almost inevitable.  The uses are quite awesome!

And for a glimpse of how this car could look and function, see the video below.  Note at 00:58, the vacated parking place has a sign that appears to say "Wireless Charging" ... so, I'm not the first guy to think of this idea??  The crazy thing is ... we aren't that far from seeing something like this come to fruition:

People of Walmart.com.com?

In a previous post, R.I.P. Strips Malls, we theorized why traditional brick-and-mortar stores will someday disappear in favor of online shopping, for specialty items as well as for general merchandise.  Future generations of consumers continue to be more connected and rely on technology, and the convenience and price advantages of online shopping will become increasingly more difficult to ignore.  In order for stores to survive (if really possible), they need to innovate and change with the times ... or get crushed by those who do.  Walmart seems to see the writing on the wall, investing heavily in technology and now setting Amazon.com in its cross-hairs.

Currently, Walmart's revenues are 10X that of Amazon, but top line growth has stalled (really, how do you continue to grow at that pace when you already have 3800 stores and 1.4 million employees??).  Meanwhile, online Walmart.com's revenues represent only 1/10th that of Amazon's, which reached a record $34B through 3Q 2011.  Amazon is the clear leader in online retail, but the growing market will create room for competitors, and Walmart's strategy to capture more of this lucrative and growing market is smart (if not survivalist).

According to AdAge, Walmart does not intend to shift focus from its physical stores to its online stores, but instead integrate the two closely.  For instance:

• Walmart store managers are now credited with online sales in their area, encouraging employees to encourage customers to shop at Walmart.com.
• Shipping and pickup of online orders at a Walmart stores are not charged for shipping (Walmart also knows that order picked up at stores generate on average $60 additional per visit).

Also, Walmart has introduced a smartphone app for iPhone and for Andriod and extended its Facebook presence with My Local Walmart Facebook app, all in an effort to allow its customers access to its catalog of products and "low, low prices" (and closely resembling Amazon.com's practices).

Amazon is not sitting idly by.  Their strategy and understanding of digital shopping experience is how they intend to stay ahead of competitors, namely the encroaching Walmart.  In fact, AdAge points out that Amazon is actually going after Walmart shoppers, who are more than likely scared to find their pictures on PeopleOfWalmart.com.  Amazon has already expanded its general merchandise options through its acquisition of Quidsi, Diapers.com, and Soap.com in 2011, after a successful $928M acquisition of Zappos.com in 2009.  The company also launched "Amazon Mom", a free membership program for parents.   Clearly, they are aggressively looking long term at holding their position while attracting the consumers migrating from stores to online.

But Amazon.com is not the company at risk here.  Walmart is saddled with its 3800 stores (and growing), so it cannot just turn the behemoth on a dime.  Unfortunately, their online sales haven't seen the same growth as Amazon's, which is up 40% over 2010.  Regardless, it's clearly a strategy that is needed, and although most people look at Walmart as stalworth, it is taking a leadership role in pioneering change and innovation that even small companies should take to heart.

NOTE: I believe the marketers at Walmart are missing an ideal slogan for their online shopping experience:

Don't Be "People Of Walmart", be People Of Walmart DOT com (trademark!)