Having a blog is a great thing, it lets you write, get things off your chest and most of all share your knowledge with the world. However having a blog also runs the risk of using it to vent on occasion. One thing I have always been very careful not to do is write a venting post while enraged then regret posting it later.
This is one of the key reasons I have not been around on either of my blogs in recent times, university this last semester had me up in arms almost daily and to remain professional I decided to steer well clear of writing anything on my blogs. I am still pondering with the idea of actually posting about it all however at this stage I choose to wait until marks are released prior to taking that plunge.
Soon I will be getting back into things now that my life is returning to some level of normality.
Stuart
Today I had the wonderful pleasure of getting a slice of Pecan Pie… delivered to my workplace… by courier… I kid you not 
Thanks to a message from the lovely @RosemarySlade from Twitter (which I have to admit I originally thought was a joke) and a donation I made to her Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Research breakfast I was lucky enough to get a beautifully packaged slice of Pecan Pie to have for breakfast at work today.
It was the first time I had ever enjoyed Pecan Pie, however I can happily say it won’t be the last. If you can spare a few dollars I would also say, if you can donate to the cause for breast cancer research you can do so at the official Pink Ribbon Breakfast site –> http://fundraise.pinkribbonbreakfast.org.au/modern_wedding_.
So I would like to give a huge shout out to @RosemarySlade and say a big, BIG thank you, she is a gem and YAY for the awesomeness of Twitter.
If you don’t follow her you should and also if you don’t follow me, give me a shout out as well @StuartCRyan
Now for the pics:
OK So we all know of the iPhone 4S and the wonderful humor that Siri has been providing the world. Thus far I have had quite a few humerous interactions, therefore I thought I would share a little gallery with you with my current favourites I have encountered.
The gallery includes some Siri Star Trek, Siri Star Wars and general banter with Apple’s latest invention. I look forward to seeing how Siri progresses in the future.
Twitter is often referred to as the place of peoples mindless thoughts in 140 characters or less… However it does in fact have strong benefits over more traditional mediums of communication. Therefore today I thought I would look at a couple of the positives of Twitter and the two key changes in means of communication that I myself have recently experienced. These include the use of Twitter by companies as a customer service medium and also the ability for Twitter to enable groups of people to discuss a common topic in realtime (more on this later).
In recent months I have found myself turning to Twitter more and more often as a means of communicating and engaging with companies both large and small. The short nature of messages has allowed me as a consumer to provide quick and easy feedback to large companies. This in turn has allowed companies to get my feedback in realtime and manage it more effectively due to the nature of the short 140 character medium rather than a five page long email.
Lets take the first case I had which was with @Telstra, I was experiencing issues with my account and had become fed up with waiting on hold. A simple tweet to the Telstra customer service team and my problem was being worked on. Rather than having to use the phone I was able to discuss the issue over a period of several days with DMs (private messages) directly to the Telstra customer service team. The greatest thing was that there was no waiting on hold, and I could do things in my time and on my terms. I can say that Telstra actually has an entire team dedicated to managing the Telstra twitter account and they do a smashing job of this (so kudos to Telstra for a solid Twitter based customer service implementation).
The second way in which Twitter has changed the way we communicate is something we are seeing in increasing numbers of TV shows at the moment. TV shows such as @CanOfWormsTV have begun embracing the medium as a way for viewers at home to interact with the show as it is airing on TV. Never before has the viewer been able to sit back in the comfort of their own home and join in the debate and provide input and feedback to the show as it goes on. I have found myself actively being more engaged in a TV show such as Can Of Worms through my ability to join in the debate on Twitter and and more importantly engaging with other viewers at the same time.
Lastly the use of Twitter hashtags such as #Masterchef or #canOfWorms has enabled viewers to discuss a show as it goes to air. Just two nights ago I was voicing my strong opinion about theories about a certain TV show as I was watching it live. Twitter provided me a platform to voice my opinions and to hear and discuss others opinions regarding the same topic, it has provided a simple easy and flexible platform for anyone around the world to discuss any topic they wish and this doesn’t just extend to TV this includes events, performances, movie releases, holidays and the list just goes on.
So while some may view Twitter as 100% junk when used correctly it can be a very powerful tool both personally and professionally. I have some more stories of great twitter companies on my Technical Notebook blog if you are interested in a few more kudos as well.
So next time you look at Twitter and think “Oh really not this again” perhaps take a look outside the square and see how it might be useful for you too and if you aren’t already following me on Twitter you can give me feedback right now, shout out a hello or flame away on @StuartCRyan
Stuart
This is what happened to me on Friday night, I took a long walk off a short pier *literally* speaking rather than figuratively 
To cut a long story short, I walked out of the Visitor’s Centre at the Manly Quarantine Station and due to insufficient lighting, lack of fencing, lack of any warnings whatsoever I walked a few paces forward and ended up in the harbour . I have safely learned that seawater and electronics don’t go together and unfortunately learned this the hard way (although I will happily admit that I did know this before hand).
Luckily for me I could stand up as it was only up to my chest but I can safely say the following:
- iPhone – dead (thanks to Apple for replacing it for free as it was a first offence and I was a nice guy)
- Bluetooth Headset – dead
- HTC Magic – dead
- 16GB SD card – dead was in my wallet, just found it now
- iPhone battery case – dead
- Leather Jacket – pretty much ruined
- Boots – pretty much ruined
- White Shirt – now a shade of icky grey from the leather jacket
- Garage Door Opener – Still working that is one plus I guess
So here are some photos, enjoy (and let me know if you have had any similar experiences)
