http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/01/ap/strange/main3227143.shtml

Don't know who Akamai is?  You should.  According to some reports, a majority of internet downloads and audio/video streams run through their content delivery network (CDN).  GigaOm has a solid writeup on Akamai's new HD delivery network for the Web capable of delivering the highest level of commercialized HD - 1080p to the masses.  Realistically, I don't expect we'll see a lot of 1080p content floating around for a matter of years, but certainly within the next five it will become commonplace for commercial  content. 720p will work for a lot of short-form content, with many movie trailers already being offered up in HD on sites including the new Halo 3 HD Mini Movie done with Weta digital (Peter Jackson's outfit).

Ever wonder what a warthog or brute would look like in real life?  Neill Blomkamp's new gritty, live action short film based on the Halo franchise can be found here on MSN, powered by Silverlight.  Standard Def version here.

Now if only there was a feature-length movie to accompany...

NYTimes writer Eric Pfanner notes the increasing number of airlines advertising to their captive audiences.  I get offended by Alaska Airlines flight attendants giving me a minute-long spiel on their credit card.  Where does it end?  There are all sorts of opportunities.  Want to target the mommy and new parent crowd?  Perhaps I should start selling ad space on my newborn son's onesies:

Hey, it worked for Chris Pirillo :)  How about, "Powered by Pampers" or "Spit up provided by Gerber"?  Then we could branch out and put advertisements on the dark UV blocking film you put on the kids car window so they don't burn and look like George Hamilton.

Oh and comments should be back on if anyone dares.  Any other slogans. :)

Time magazine has an interesting article on why Facebook is the future of the Web.  I wonder if Lev Grossman was reading about how Scoble is completely off his rocker (again)?  Scoble has such affable charm though.  As Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb would say, "I like his energy". Scoble isn't afraid to be wrong in a very public venue (especially if it brings him more traffic).  Shrug.  But back to the Time article.  Facebook's ignition hinges on the simple "sociomathematics" dating back to the BBS era, updated for the Web:

                             Bozo + Bandwidth = Troll

It all reminds me of the movie "Gremlins".  If memory serves, there are two things you never do to a cuddly Mogwai (sp?).  1)Don't feed them after midnight and 2) Don't ever get them wet.  Facebook operates on the same principles - People are congenial and know the rules - feed your community with positive contributions and don't be a wet blanket.  The repercussions can be swift.  As Time notes:

Unlike the Internet, Facebook is structured around an opt-in philosophy; people have to consent to have contact with or even see others on the network. If you're annoying folks, you'll essentially cease to exist, as those you annoy drop you off the grid.

The quality of the connections is what matters. Even the features focus on positive aspects of relationship building - sharing TV and movie tastes, music, and more.  Want to know what people really think of you?  Try "applications" such as the Honesty Box.  Or if you're a real fan of the office, trade Schrute Bucks.  I love the Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey app. There's even a site for rating these fun little apps called AppRate.  These are all basically Widgets or Gadgets realized in a useful way.

The question is whether they can continue their phenomenal growth without succumbing to the fickle interests of a bite-sized society. Already some complain about the thirty-something's and beyond that are descending on Facebook.   Time makes a point that communities will self-select, regardless of age.  It will be interesting to see how Facebook evolves over the next year.

I've discovered certain new games for Xbox 360 require that you do NOT have a "strict" or "moderate" setting in order to player match games.  Overall, you may see a performance increase in online network play if you follow the instructions found here.  They helped my situation quite a bit with a new Wireless Router.

I just caught wind that the MSN Election Guide, powered by Microsoft Silverlight is now live.  You can browse through the latest news, up to date positions on the issues and even video clips with results powered by Windows Live Search.  My favorite feature is the ability to compare candidates positions interactively.  This is a tool I will definitely be using.  My only wish is for an RSS feed for each of the issues. 

Hot on the heels of Tafiti powered by Silverlight earlier this week, there are some very interesting things happening.   Congrats to the MSN and Windows Live teams!

My wife just sent a link to the funniest entry I've ever seen on Ebay.  A mom with six kids recounts her story of going to the grocery store only to have the kids sneak Pokemon into the basket.  A sampling:

Shipping is FREE on this item.  Insurance is optional, but once I drop the package at the post office, it is no longer my responsibility.  For example, if my son decides to pour a bottle of glue into the envelope, or my daughter spills a glass of juice on the package, that's my responsibility and I will fully refund your money.  If, however, I take the envelope to the post office and a disgruntled mail carrier sets fire to it, a pack of wild dogs rip into it, or a mail sorting machine shreds it, it's out of my hands, so you may want to add insurance. 

If you're a parent, you'll understand.

For fellow road warriors, I came across SeatGuru.com for finding the best seats on airplanes for comfort.  There's even a mobile version.  Bookmarked!

Some of you have noticed my summer hiatus.  I was going to lose some vacation at the end of the year and negotiated an extended leave of seven weeks (5 down, two to go).   We're off learning to live as a new, nuclear family with our newborn son, and just finished a marathon four weeks of family visiting.  I have tons of pictures to upload to Flickr and have also spent some time with Expression Web and Photoshop helping some fellow BBQ'ers create the Pacific Northwest Eggfest site.  Home improvement projects a plenty, and we just did our first major (10 hour) road trip with geek toys which I'll blog about later.

Thanks to all for your inquiry emails- I'll be posting a lot more often here once I've finished recharging!

Taking 5 minutes from new baby time tonight to check in on Peter Moore's press event at E3 - apparently Disney is releasing movie starting tonight in HD on Xbox live. My wife approves a little more.  No word on title(s) yet.

A few of our friends at Jackson Fish Market just launched their first web app- a virtual florist service called, "They're Beautiful".  My wife and I both worked with founders of the company and were elated to receive virtual flowers from multiple friends this weekend from the service.  While I'd love to see a Silverlight version (we're still in beta), the Flash DHTML UI is very nicely done. Each flower was created from paper and was artfully scanned. There's also a tamagotchi-style feature where you can plant he flowers in your greenhouse and have to water them regularly. Thanks to everyone for the flowers and congratulations to Hillel, Jenny and the team at JFM and their sponsor Vosges Chocolatier. 

Introducing a new addition to the ADM family - Tristan Alexander, born July 6th 2007, a whopping 10lb 3oz.  He arrived a day early as mom went into labor instead of waiting for the planned 7.7.07 c-section. He's already asserting his independence. Both mom and baby are doing fine as is little brother.

Ready for my Closeup

Big Feet

A big brother moment

All pictures were taken with a Nikon D200. The surgery was filmed on a Canon HV20 1080i HD camera (ok, there's the gadget part).   Thanks to all for their well wishes via facebook and email (sean_alexander on that hotmail site) - I'm sharing with Mom.  We're likely to leave the hospital today -

This AM, the meme is buzzing about Skinkers and Silverlight.  Matteo Berlucci the CEO of Skinkers is one of the most impressive people I've met in a long time. Matteo gave an excellent presentation during my keynote at Streaming Media East and I'm encouraged to see the great coverage they are getting for LiveStation, which uses MSR P2P technology and Silverlight to enable stream-slinging.  No, they are not a competitor to Joost, and are more complementary than anything else in this emerging market.  Don Dodge has more over here.

Whoops gotta go- our son apparently wants to arrive a little early (c-section was scheduled for tomorrow and things are happening) so off to the Dr to check it out.

It seems everyone needs to post their thoughts on the iPhone.  I think I saw it in the license agreement actually.  So here are my thoughts, composed as haiku:

Activation pain;
Where is Exchange ActiveSync?
Best iPod ever.

Feel free to contribute your own.

My wife and I like to play Guitar Hero II as a family event.  Our son loves to rock out, dancing and jumping around while we do. It's the first Xbox 360 game where my wife is better than me.  Not by just a little bit- she's significantly better than me, chalking it up to her classical cello training.  Well I've marked down what I'm going to get her for Christmas already- Rock Band.  Adding wireless drums, a mic, and wireless guitar/bass to the mix and this could be the ultimate party game.  Check out this video. "Welcome to the Jungle" is a good start- now if they'd just license more music for both games, I'm ready to buy.