Archives by Date: October 2005

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October 31, 2005

Travelogue: Budapest, Hungary

Panorama of BudapestHaving spent any time in Europe up until a few months ago, I had no idea to expect out of Budapest. But I love it!

Budapest is the first step on my three city Fall Break all this week. I wish I had more time to spend here! It's a beautiful city rich in history and with plenty of things to see, do, and look at.

We arrived last night on WizzAir (actually a suprisingly good airline) from Rome. We checked into our hostel around 8:30pm and then went off to get dinner. My first observation: it was cold. For some reason, Italy has been blessed with weather almost consistently in the 70s. And somehow I managed to leave the jacket I brought for this trip on the bus in Rome, making me one very cold traveler. Yet I persevered, as we were all pretty tired anyway and it was pretty clear last night would not be a late night. After some delicious Hungarian food (salty!), we walked along the river and went to bed.

We rose this morning at 9:30am and spent a few hours doing... nothing. It takes a group of six longer to get ready than we thought. After a late breakfast, we began our walk across a bridge into Pest (you may not know that Budapest actually used to be two separate cities: Buda and Pest) and began to climb to the Citadel, or the highest point in the city with certainly the most beautiful view. I managed to hurt my ankle (again!), so that slowed me down briefly, but we eventually made our way down and all around the city.

It should be noted that geniuses that we are, we managed to schedule our trip to Hungary during a national holiday. Today and tomorrow all museums are closed, and I'm told many of the locals have left the city entirely. But that's okay, there's still lots to see! This city is huge -- the fifth largest in the European Union.

We came back here and went to one of the city's famous baths. After testing our Hungarian trying to read all the signage, we made our way outside to the warm pools. They were packed, and while we dashed from pool to pool trying not to freeze, the Europeans casually strode to wherever they were going. "Silly Americans," I'm sure they were thinking. The warm water was incredibly relaxing -- perhaps too relaxing -- but after a few hours we headed back to our Hostel.

We got a late dinner and, as seems to happen often here, were pretty tired when we finally got back here, about an hour ago.

Tomorrow: Vienna!

· Photos from Budapest [Flickr]

Posted in Hungary, Observations, Travel on October 31, 2005, 06:53 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

October 29, 2005

Travelogue: Perugia and the EuroChocolate Festival

View from Perugia (Photo)Last weekend I took the hour and a half train ride to Perugia, Italy for their Chocolate Festival. The annual 10-day festival brings loads of people into this tiny town: it was packed while I was there, and their website says 2004 brought 900,000 people!

The weather was beautiful and the hilly town provided some of the best views I've seen this semester.

For 5 Euro they gave us some kind of membership card, which entitled us to five samples from booths scattered around Perugia. Needless to say, by the end, I was stuffed!

· Perugia's Eurochocolate Festival

Posted in Food, Perugia, Travel on October 29, 2005, 06:13 PM | Comments (1) | Permalink

October 16, 2005

Skidder Networks Relaunches MGross.com, Powered by WordPress

Screenshot of Michael GrossToday Skidder Networks launches a redesign of the website of author Michael Gross. With the help of Josh and Taylor, this site has been built over the past several months. Today's launch coincides with the release of Michael's new book 740 Park.

One really cool feature is the Cast of Characters in 740 Park. It's a database full of information about all the "extraordinary group of tenants–achievers, heirs and even a couple of air-heads" that have lived in the building. You can sort the table to suit your liking and see photos and/or relevant web links about most residents.

But my favorite thing about this site is the tight integration with WordPress. With the introduction of Pages in WordPress 1.5, there's nothing to stop you from using Wordpress as a full-fledged CMS. That's exactly what we've done here.

Michael wanted an easy way to update the site himself. WordPress does just that.

Every single page on the site is created on-the-fly by WordPress.

List of pages

Even cooler, the navigation is generated on-the-fly. So, if Michael adds a page to the 740 Park section, it will appear in the 740 Park navigation bar instantly.

Using the Templating System

The templating system was so much easier than uploading files using FTP that I found myself running everything through it! I even coded the Cast of Characters script inside of WordPress.

This was my first site developed exclusively in WordPress, but you can bet it won't be my last.

Posted in Announcements, Media, Skidder Networks, WordPress on October 16, 2005, 02:46 PM | Comments (3) | Permalink

October 15, 2005

Rome's Zi Gaetana

Zi GaetanaDuring last week's visit to Rome I had a delicious lunch at Zi Gaetana. A welcome departure from most Italian meals, I had Pasta with Seafood Ragu and a salad.

The atmosphere reminded me much more of a trendy New York restuarant than the Italian trattorias that I usually frequent. And the meal was very reasonably priced.

Zi Gaetana Ristorante
Via Cola di Rienzo 263
Tel: 06-321-2342

Posted in Food, Rome, Travel on October 15, 2005, 07:48 PM | Comments (1) | Permalink

October 11, 2005

Travelogue: Rome through Videos

The ColosseumPhotos are nice, but videos are my current obsession. Anyone who has spent any time with me recently has probably seen me whip out my camera and start taking videos. It's a much better way to remember events.

On that note, here are some videos of Rome.

Changing of the Guard


As I wrote, this was a pretty cool thing to see.


Fontana di Trevi



Advertising at the Fontana di Trevi


This was truly one of the most beautiful sites I've ever seen. To turn around a see a giant billboard was, at the least, an interesting experience.


Inside the Vatican



The Spanish Steps


Filled with people, the Spanish Steps (at night) reminded me of New York's Union Square.


Roman Ruins



Monument to King Victor Emmanuel II

Posted in Travel on October 11, 2005, 02:00 PM | Comments (1) | Permalink

October 09, 2005

LinkedIn Contractdicts Itself

Screenshot of LinkedIn Design Snafu(Click thumbnail for a larger image.)

I'm a fan of LinkedIn.

So I was surprised to log in tonight and see one of the stupidest promotional blurbs I've seen in a while. I'm told that:

You have no new opportunities — users with at least 10 connections and complete profiles are 40 times more likely to receive opportunities.

An impressive statistic and compelling reason to get more connections and complete my profile. But less than an inch to the right of this, I'm told I have 16 connections. And my profile is pretty complete.

I appreciated the tip, but how hard would it be to only show that message to relevant users?

Posted in Business, Design, Observations, rants on October 09, 2005, 07:12 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

October 06, 2005

How Many Blogs Did AOL Buy, Exactly?

"In online content that ranges from music to movies, travel to tech, food to fashion, medicine to mortgages, 85 new topical websites now call AOL and AOL.com home – providing online consumers with new micro-communities where they can connect, debate, editorialize, comment, and learn."

Or so says the press release announcing AOL's purchase of WeblogsInc. WIN claims to have 85 blogging sites, but how many do they really have?

As part of my work with Gawker Media, several weeks ago I was asked to undertake an analysis of WIN's properties. I went to each site listed on their sidebar and took note of the last two posts made on that blog. I also got rid of sub-blogs (Engadget: Wireless, etc.) and personal blogs.

My count was 31. Now, mind you, 31 is still a lot! Gawker Media only has 14 sites. But 31 is not 85.

How did they have so many "blogs"?

  • For many blogs, the most recent "post" was the "Best of WeblogsInc" posts that show up on every blog every Friday. Check out the Xbox2 Weblog to see what I mean.
  • Lots of posts were crossposted on multiple blogs.
  • They counted categories within a blog as separate blogs. Engadget appears on the sidebar blog list 5 times: Engadget Cellphones, Engadget Wireless, etc.

Jason recently claimed that they were going to "retire" some of the blogs that haven't seen posts in weeks. We'll see when that happens.

Now that WeblogsInc is no longer an independent competitor to Gawker, this data isn't really confidential. You can download the spreadsheet below and see for yourself.

· WIN Analysis Spreadsheet [Excel File]

Posted in Business, Gawker, Media, blogs, marketing on October 06, 2005, 05:32 PM | Comments (2) | Permalink

WeblogsInc Sells Out to AOL for $25 Million, Gawker Staying Put

The big news today is the sale of WeblogsInc to American Online. Good news for Jason and company, great news for Gawker Media.

I've had several people mention how Jason arguably sold out too late last time and didn't want to miss the boat again. Seems like he didn't miss it this time!

The question is what will AOL do to the company?

· Weblogs Inc Being Bought Out By America Online [PaidContent]
· AOL to buy Weblogs Inc. network [Reuters via. Yahoo News]
· Technorati Search: WeblogsInc

Posted in Business, Gawker, Media, blogs on October 06, 2005, 06:05 AM | Comments (2) | Permalink

October 04, 2005

Gizmodo Now Publishing in Seven Languages

German Gizmodo!Thanks to a groundbreaking partnership with global media powerhouse VNU, today Gizmodo begins publishing in a total of seven languages. Quoting from the press release:

Under the terms of the partnership, Gizmodo’s content will be translated from English into 6 additional languages, then augmented with local coverage for each market. Besides English, Gizmodo.com now will be available in French, German, Dutch, Spanish, and Italian and covering the Belgium market in Dutch as well.

Flags will be added to the homepage at www.gizmodo.com. Other versions of Gizmodo are accessible at fr.gizmodo.com (French), es.gizmodo.com (Spain), etc.

This is huge!

· VNU Partners with Gawker Media to publish Gizmodo, the “One of a Kind” Gadget Blog across 7 Territories in Europe [VNU Press Release]

Posted in Business, Gawker, Media, blogs on October 04, 2005, 09:28 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink

October 02, 2005

Travelogue: Thoughts on Rome

Vatican WallsMy first month in Florence has unfortunately not consisted of much travel. I went on a day trip to Lucca, and last weekend was supposed to travel to Perugia, but that fell through. So, this weekend, I decided to go to Rome. I originally was going to travel and stay with some friends, but they had to cancel because they were sick. They also cancelled the hostel reservations.

But none of this deterred me, so at 11am on Friday I walked the five blocks to Florence’s Santa Maria Novella train station, without a place to stay, people to travel with, or even a map.

It just so happened that sitting across from me were two students from Pepperdine University in California that were studying abroad for the year in Germany. Unlike me, they have traveled extensively, and had decided just the night before to travel the many hours (somewhere around 13) to Rome on the train.

They, too, had no where to stay in Rome, and immediately upon entering Rome’s giant “Termini” (train station), someone with a nametag that said “Tourist Information” came up to us and asked if we were looking for a room. He then walked us several blocks to a hostel (or, as he called it, a “bed and breakfast”) that was only €23 for one night. (And for the record, the “breakfast” aspect of the hostel consisted of orange juice and a stale croissant.)

This was actually my first time in a hostel, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. We were placed in a room with six beds (including two bunk beds). Everything seemed okay to me (they even had maps for me!), so we paid our money, showed them our passports, and went to explore Rome.

I just followed the seasoned travelers, and we saw dozens of sites, one after another. I had little knowledge of what Rome had to offer, and some of the coolest things I saw were things I didn’t even know existed!

Unfortunately, I didn’t keep track of where we went, so using my map, I’ve tried to piece together photos, memories, and names.

A few highlights, thoughts, etc:

The Vatican

VaticanI’m actually going to be spending a lot more time here when I go back to Rome this weekend for a class field trip. Somehow, our professor has gained special access to a normally restricted portion of the Vatican Museum. Regardless, I spent Saturday morning in the area near the Vatican. The plaza near St. Peter's Basilica was beautiful. The lines for the Sistine Chapel and other major tourist destinations were much too long for me to wait in, especially since I'd be going back the following week. I was surprised by the large amount of advertising in the plaza.

I tried to enter the Vatican proper, but was denied entrance by the clown-like Swiss Guards. As I approached, he made some gesture resembling a salute. I obviously didn't know the correct response, and he told me I couldn't come in. It's also possible I wasn't let in because of the bag I was carrying. I'm going to try and figure out what I need to do to get in next week.

Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II

Monumento a Vottorio Emanuele IIThis was one of the most incredible structures I've ever seen in my life. We first saw it while looking at the ruins of the Roman Forum, and it was one of the few buildings where we could go anywhere. It is difficult to communicate its size through words or photographs. It was apparently constructed between 1895 and 1911, in honor of King Victor Emmanuel II. It was heavily secured with Roman police, and every so often one would start blowing their whistle at someone doing something you weren't supposed to.

Fontana di Trevi

Fontana di TreviThey say that you're supposed to supposed to throw a coin over your right shoulder, but I'm not sure how I could have pulled that off without hitting anyone! We were walking down a street, turned a corner, and all of the sudden, there it was.

One of the most shocking things was that as soon as you turned around, you saw a giant advertisement for a cell phone. I guess that's capitalism for you.

Changing of the Guard at the President's House

I saw a surprising amount of heavily armed authority figures throughout Rome. While standing outside of what later I learned was the President's house, I witnessed a changing of the guard. Like something out of a movie, a guy comes out and starts chanting instructions. I managed to capture some of it on video.

I go back to Rome next week, so I'll have lots more to say then!

· Rome Photoset [Flickr]

Posted in Culture, Observations, Personal, Rome, Travel, mass transit on October 02, 2005, 04:01 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Italians Love Receipts

Italians Walking in RomeI'm just back from Rome, where I had an incredible time and will post more on it soon. But in the interim, I feel the need to tell you: Italians love receipts.

Italians give you receipts for everything, and when I try to refuse them, they are suprised. When I was on the train and ordered a three Euro sandwich, they gave me a receipt. When I went to the 99 cent store to get a bottle of water, they gave me a receipt. What's even sillier is the receipts are often void of the important information... such as what you bought. They just give the name of the establishment, its address, and how much money you spent.

As if I need a reminder of how much money I'm spending.

Posted in Business, Culture, Florence, Observations, rants on October 02, 2005, 07:04 AM | Comments (1) | Permalink