A-List Bloggers get Free Tech Support
I’ve seen this before, but I’m growing keenly aware that A-List bloggers are putting out their seemingly confused musings about some issue (like Doc Searls here) and then get tons of smart people telling them how to perform some task.
Case in point: a guy at least 1,000 times more technical than I am — Dave Winer, the Godfather of RSS and other technical innovations — wonders out loud today about how another A-List blogger, Robert Scoble, will be able to come to his house and connect his Thinkpad to his Apple Airport Express.
Huh?
Geez…even *I* have setup WPA encryption on an Apple Extreme with two Airport Expresses in order to wirelessly blanket my house with internet connection in a WDS fashion; have six machines in my house connected (five Mac’s and one PC…the latter running WinXP and Ubuntu Linux) and all machines and operating systems are connected.
Was connecting all of these machines and OS’es trivial? Not really…but it’s not that tough especially for someone with the technical acumen that Winer seemingly possesses. That’s why most people just plug in their wireless router when they buy it and leave it wide open and unencrypted. Also, anyone that is 1,000 times more technical than I am oughta know better than to use WEP encryption that has been cracked.
Doc Searls’ issues with Verizon are equally as confusing. He’s wrestled with the same Treo and network provider (Verizon) that I’m using…with virtually no troubles (though I’m pissed at Verizon Wireless too as evidenced by some of my recent posts). I simply don’t understand how a guy that’s been in-the-game as long as he has wrestles with technology like his experiences with his Treo and Verizon.
Trust me. I’m a propellerhead but the propeller on my beanie is kinda small and has to spin really fast sometimes to keep up with technologies. Two guys whom I have admired for some time are showing tiny propeller guys like me a side of themselves that, quite frankly, give me some pause about their other musings.
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About Steve Borsch
Strategist. Learner. Idea Guy. Salesman. Connector of Dots. Friend. Husband & Dad. CEO. Janitor. More here.
Connecting the Dots Podcast
Podcasting hit the mainstream in July of 2005 when Apple added podcast show support within iTunes. I'd seen this coming so started podcasting in May of 2005 and kept going until August of 2007. Unfortunately was never 'discovered' by national broadcasters, but made a delightfully large number of connections with people all over the world because of these shows. Click here to view the archive of my podcast posts.
JWZ (the lead developer on Netscape Navigator) calls this the “Lazy Web” and posts highly technical questions on his blog all the time.
First, I’m the least technical editor at Linux Journal. The only code I know is Morse. I do have a *few* technical chops (more in radio than computer engineering, but even there, nothing special). My stock in trade is observations and insights about technology and what it does in our lives. Whatever notoriety I have comes from that, not any technical ability.
Second, I’ve long since dropped out of the Technorati Top 100, and the daily readership of my blog has run in the high hundreds or low (single digit) thousands since 2000. If that’s “A-List”, the pond is a lot smaller than most of us would like to admit.
Third, my accounts of my experiences with Verizon have little to do with technology and everything to do with a monopolist carrier that sticks “billing events” between everything it can. I only use Verizon for its EvDO/coverge combination and nothing more. And, frankly, I’m still close to saying fuggit and going back to Cingular. Especially since several keys in the Treo keyboard now barely work, for no reason.
Fourth, I don’t get “tons of smart people” to help with tech support. When I ask for help I generally get something from a handful at best. And it’s not always useful. (But I’m grateful for all I can get.)
I salute your good luck with the Treo/Verizon combo, and your ability to encrypt your home wi-fi network — something I’ve never tried, and probably never will.
So I’ll betcha your propeller is a lot bigger than mine!
Truth is, we’re all fumbling our ways through the tech world. Some of us just talk about it more than others, I guess.
Keep up the good blog!
Best,
Doc
Reading your comment and then re-reading my post…it comes across as harsh. Wasn’t my intent surely and hope you didn’t take offense.
About your not being an A-List blogger, I guess you’re still front-n-center on my list and I don’t pay much attention to rankings…so consider you a thought leader and just place you up on top. I also see you as a small propeller guy but — based on the connections you have in techdom — it’s clear that I placed you in rarified air (i.e., connected to highly technical people) that I’m not breathing.
Yep…we’re all fumbling. I feel like I’m almost always living right at the edge pushing against the membrane of the future. It’s fuzzy and opaque, but just pliable enough that I’m just a bit ahead of most others. I’ve just ended up with my head in a place that lets me figure out just about anything technical (though I too am NOT a coder). I do, however, have a two hour rule: if I can’t figure it out in two hours, I’ll seek help. Fortunately that happens infrequently.
Thanks for stopping by…