Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Putting video on stardem.com, further expansion of the internet store
If you have a high speed connection, you might want to check out the sports area on the website. We are experimenting with video clips. I took some sample clips of a couple of wrestling matches at North Caroline High School when Cambridge-South Dorchester came to compete.
The clip posted was of the third period of the match between NC’s Mike Hernandez and C-SD’s Matt Pender. It lasts just a bit over 2 and one half minutes. I used a small digital video camera I recently acquired for just such an experiment.
If you size down the window a bit, the image appears sharper. I also recommend you not try to view it if you only have a slow dial up connection. It really does need a high speed connection to work comfortably. Send me your observations.
I do intend to develop this feature on the website. We want to make it more than just a mirror of the print paper.
I write this on the day after Christmas. I understand this week is the least productive week of the year. It is hard to keep your focus when many of your colleagues are off relaxing at home.
Reports are already filtering in on the Christmas shopping season. Some say it is tracking slightly behind projections at about 3.5 percent growth verses the 4 percent suggested. While store visits are slightly below projections, the Internet has once again experienced growth.
Reports are that Internet shopping increased 26 percent during the season from Thanksgiving to just before Christmas when compared to the same period last year. Our little highly unscientific poll on the stardem.com website has 49 percent of people saying they are using the internet more than before while 44 percent said they were not. The remaining seven percent said they do not use the internet to shop.
I did the lion’s share of my shopping on the internet this year. I made UPS, FedEx and the U.S. Mail happy with my steady stream of package deliveries. And, yes, they all came on time. Each company also had a mechanism in place for me to keep track of my order or kept me notified at each step in the delivery process.
None of my purchases were for items that had to be sized. There is still a place for trying something on before you buy it. But, ordering on line is no different from going to a store, guessing your wife’s size and buying with your fingers crossed. Just like your favorite department store, be sure to know your internet company’s return policy when you buy something.
I am confident the internet stores will be as aggressive in making their return policy as convenient as possible. This will remove one of the remaining concerns of people who choose shopping if a physical store over the online one. They know that a convenient return policy is one of the hallmarks of the more popular department stores.
In a recent column I put forth the prophecy that the internet will bring on the demise of the big box store. With more high speed connects and sophisticated websites, shoppers will prefer the convenience of shopping online to the hassles of traffic, parking and crowds.
To carry this thought a bit further, internet websites also make it possible for the mom and pop store to compete with the big boys down the street. The problems of metered parking in many downtown areas and the difficulty of access, are no longer a problem. A small store with a little effort and the help of a professional web designer can have a site look as good as one put up by a big box store.
That leaves price as one of the only remaining factors to consider. Consumers want the best price for their buck. They don’t have to rely only on the stories in their neighborhood or town. They have the world at their door. They can access the little unique shop downtown just as easily as they can the big box two counties over.
As a consumer myself, this is a winning situation for people like me.
So Happy New Year, next year at this time, I predict we will revisit this topic and find we are farther down the road to internet shopping dominance than we image today.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also check out my blog accessible from the home page of the stardem.com website.
The clip posted was of the third period of the match between NC’s Mike Hernandez and C-SD’s Matt Pender. It lasts just a bit over 2 and one half minutes. I used a small digital video camera I recently acquired for just such an experiment.
If you size down the window a bit, the image appears sharper. I also recommend you not try to view it if you only have a slow dial up connection. It really does need a high speed connection to work comfortably. Send me your observations.
I do intend to develop this feature on the website. We want to make it more than just a mirror of the print paper.
I write this on the day after Christmas. I understand this week is the least productive week of the year. It is hard to keep your focus when many of your colleagues are off relaxing at home.
Reports are already filtering in on the Christmas shopping season. Some say it is tracking slightly behind projections at about 3.5 percent growth verses the 4 percent suggested. While store visits are slightly below projections, the Internet has once again experienced growth.
Reports are that Internet shopping increased 26 percent during the season from Thanksgiving to just before Christmas when compared to the same period last year. Our little highly unscientific poll on the stardem.com website has 49 percent of people saying they are using the internet more than before while 44 percent said they were not. The remaining seven percent said they do not use the internet to shop.
I did the lion’s share of my shopping on the internet this year. I made UPS, FedEx and the U.S. Mail happy with my steady stream of package deliveries. And, yes, they all came on time. Each company also had a mechanism in place for me to keep track of my order or kept me notified at each step in the delivery process.
None of my purchases were for items that had to be sized. There is still a place for trying something on before you buy it. But, ordering on line is no different from going to a store, guessing your wife’s size and buying with your fingers crossed. Just like your favorite department store, be sure to know your internet company’s return policy when you buy something.
I am confident the internet stores will be as aggressive in making their return policy as convenient as possible. This will remove one of the remaining concerns of people who choose shopping if a physical store over the online one. They know that a convenient return policy is one of the hallmarks of the more popular department stores.
In a recent column I put forth the prophecy that the internet will bring on the demise of the big box store. With more high speed connects and sophisticated websites, shoppers will prefer the convenience of shopping online to the hassles of traffic, parking and crowds.
To carry this thought a bit further, internet websites also make it possible for the mom and pop store to compete with the big boys down the street. The problems of metered parking in many downtown areas and the difficulty of access, are no longer a problem. A small store with a little effort and the help of a professional web designer can have a site look as good as one put up by a big box store.
That leaves price as one of the only remaining factors to consider. Consumers want the best price for their buck. They don’t have to rely only on the stories in their neighborhood or town. They have the world at their door. They can access the little unique shop downtown just as easily as they can the big box two counties over.
As a consumer myself, this is a winning situation for people like me.
So Happy New Year, next year at this time, I predict we will revisit this topic and find we are farther down the road to internet shopping dominance than we image today.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also check out my blog accessible from the home page of the stardem.com website.
Monday, December 18, 2006
Time acknowledges the impact of the World Wide Web
Merry Christmas everyone.
Did you notice who has been named “Person of the Year” by Time magazine?
You. That’s right. You or us collectively have been named Person of the Year.
I should be a bit more specific. The “you” is anyone who has participated in the expanding world-wide community known as the World Wide Web. The magazine chose 15 people as examples of us to personify the typical user of the Web. These people were not the founders or rising celebrities or entrepreneurs of the new Web. The represent the average person who has come to make the web a daily part of their lives.
I have often spoken on how the Internet is creeping into every facet of our culture. It has become a major instrument in commerce, information exchange and social networking. Old media and business models are being tested. They are finding the Internet revolution is moving at a pace not anticipated. They are having to scramble to ride the wave let along keep pace with it. It be only a matter of time before we see some drown as the wave sweeps over them.
Do not be deceived by the memory of the “dot com bubble” the burst at the turn of the century. It destroyed the dreams of many early entrepreneurs in the early days of the Internet. Investment is proceeding with much more caution. Plans are more practical. Business models are being based on realistic goals.
Anyone who was active on the Internet back then knew the medium had vast potential. That potential is beginning to be realized. Unfortunately, the burst of the dot.com bubble in the last decade gave skeptics ammunition to allow them to turn away from the Net. At the time, they probably believed the net would not have an impact on their businesses for some time to come.
Time’s acknowledgement of “You” as the person of the year is in reality an acknowledgement of the distance the Net has already traveled. It is the 800 pound gorilla that no one dare ignore.
The Web has made the exchange of information and ideas instantaneous. Your friend in Bangalore, India, is as easy to access as your neighbor next door. You may even find you have more in common with your friend in India than you do with your physical neighbor.
The World Wide Web has allowed us to establish communities that span the globe. They are not tied by geographic or political boundaries (though some governments are trying hard to stop that).
News media outlets are struggling with ways to use this new kid on the block. Television that once was supposed to have been the hammer that would put the final nails in the coffin of the print media, is itself scrambling to meet the challenge of the Net.
The entertainment industry be it movie or music also beginning to quake in the face of direct internet delivery of high definition films and top quality digital music right to the customer’s home. The home computer with its high speed internet connects is becoming a home media entertainment center. This is not your father’s email device.
Cell phones with digital cameras and video capability make the average citizen his or her own news gatherer. When the London underground was bombed several years ago, where did the first images come from? They were transmitted by private citizens using their own video telephones. Website like YouTube and MySpace make it possible for individuals to post and distribute their own stories and videos.
The news media is scrambling to adapt. The news is being democratized and the traditional media outlets are trying to keep pace.
Where will it all end? The World Wide Web is only 15 years old. What will the next 15 years bring? Time is acknowledging the affect the Net has already cast on our world. What this means for 2021 is anyone’s guess.
It gives us all something to ponder as we enter the new year.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also send me comments at my blog that you can access from the homepage of stardem.com.
Did you notice who has been named “Person of the Year” by Time magazine?
You. That’s right. You or us collectively have been named Person of the Year.
I should be a bit more specific. The “you” is anyone who has participated in the expanding world-wide community known as the World Wide Web. The magazine chose 15 people as examples of us to personify the typical user of the Web. These people were not the founders or rising celebrities or entrepreneurs of the new Web. The represent the average person who has come to make the web a daily part of their lives.
I have often spoken on how the Internet is creeping into every facet of our culture. It has become a major instrument in commerce, information exchange and social networking. Old media and business models are being tested. They are finding the Internet revolution is moving at a pace not anticipated. They are having to scramble to ride the wave let along keep pace with it. It be only a matter of time before we see some drown as the wave sweeps over them.
Do not be deceived by the memory of the “dot com bubble” the burst at the turn of the century. It destroyed the dreams of many early entrepreneurs in the early days of the Internet. Investment is proceeding with much more caution. Plans are more practical. Business models are being based on realistic goals.
Anyone who was active on the Internet back then knew the medium had vast potential. That potential is beginning to be realized. Unfortunately, the burst of the dot.com bubble in the last decade gave skeptics ammunition to allow them to turn away from the Net. At the time, they probably believed the net would not have an impact on their businesses for some time to come.
Time’s acknowledgement of “You” as the person of the year is in reality an acknowledgement of the distance the Net has already traveled. It is the 800 pound gorilla that no one dare ignore.
The Web has made the exchange of information and ideas instantaneous. Your friend in Bangalore, India, is as easy to access as your neighbor next door. You may even find you have more in common with your friend in India than you do with your physical neighbor.
The World Wide Web has allowed us to establish communities that span the globe. They are not tied by geographic or political boundaries (though some governments are trying hard to stop that).
News media outlets are struggling with ways to use this new kid on the block. Television that once was supposed to have been the hammer that would put the final nails in the coffin of the print media, is itself scrambling to meet the challenge of the Net.
The entertainment industry be it movie or music also beginning to quake in the face of direct internet delivery of high definition films and top quality digital music right to the customer’s home. The home computer with its high speed internet connects is becoming a home media entertainment center. This is not your father’s email device.
Cell phones with digital cameras and video capability make the average citizen his or her own news gatherer. When the London underground was bombed several years ago, where did the first images come from? They were transmitted by private citizens using their own video telephones. Website like YouTube and MySpace make it possible for individuals to post and distribute their own stories and videos.
The news media is scrambling to adapt. The news is being democratized and the traditional media outlets are trying to keep pace.
Where will it all end? The World Wide Web is only 15 years old. What will the next 15 years bring? Time is acknowledging the affect the Net has already cast on our world. What this means for 2021 is anyone’s guess.
It gives us all something to ponder as we enter the new year.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also send me comments at my blog that you can access from the homepage of stardem.com.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
There it was, moving a crossed the sky….
It has been almost 50 years now, but I can remember going out in the backyard of our house in Oak Harbor, Washington State and peering up into the sky. I was told to watch for a faint blinking light that would travel across the sky right over our heads.
At first all you could see was the blanket of stars that filled the night sky. Then, there it was, a dim light that tracked across our field of vision. The Russian satellite sputnik was passing overhead. The sky would never be the same again.
I thought about that night many years ago as I drove down Rte. 313 last Saturday night to find a clear view of the eastern horizon. I had just heard that the Space Shuttle Discovery as indeed going to launch from Cape Canaveral. It had been delayed several days by bad weather. Now it would take off with a rare night time launch. Its path would take it up the East Coast and make it possibly visible on the eastern horizon.
I found a spot, pulled off the road onto the shoulder and waited. The sky over Caroline was a lot more active than over Oak Harbor, Washington State years ago. There were several jets heading off to Europe and lights from power lines and microwave towers blinked in the distance. I didn’t know if I would be able to see it. I was here, I thought. I might as well wait until there was no longer any hope of viewing it.
I sat in the car with the window rolled down. I tried to ignore the cars that paraded passed, their headlights either shining in my face from the front or reflected into my eyes from my rearview mirror.
Then, there it was. It couldn’t be anything else. A steady light, about a hand’s width above the tree line moved a crossed the sky from south to north. It moved more rapidly than a plane or helicopter. You could tell it was at a great distance. It was the space shuttle.
The blinking light I had seen many years ago had been the size of a basketball and weighed about 183 pounds. The Discovery was the size of an airliner and weighed 4.5 million pounds at liftoff (including fuel) with a crew of seven men and women astronauts.
Back in 1957 my imagination didn’t let me dream that I would casually watch as seven people took a ride into space on a late fall night. I sat there for a moment after the light had passed into the distance up the coast. I was reminded again of cars making their way up and down the road with their own missions in mind. I started the car, turned around and went home.
You can learn more about the shuttle mission by going to the NASA website: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html
They also have information about sputnik at http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/
A copy of this article will be in my blog and the links will be hot if you want to access the NASA site that way.
Back to more Web related topics next week in our Christmas Eve issue.
As always you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also leave a comment on the blog.
At first all you could see was the blanket of stars that filled the night sky. Then, there it was, a dim light that tracked across our field of vision. The Russian satellite sputnik was passing overhead. The sky would never be the same again.
I thought about that night many years ago as I drove down Rte. 313 last Saturday night to find a clear view of the eastern horizon. I had just heard that the Space Shuttle Discovery as indeed going to launch from Cape Canaveral. It had been delayed several days by bad weather. Now it would take off with a rare night time launch. Its path would take it up the East Coast and make it possibly visible on the eastern horizon.
I found a spot, pulled off the road onto the shoulder and waited. The sky over Caroline was a lot more active than over Oak Harbor, Washington State years ago. There were several jets heading off to Europe and lights from power lines and microwave towers blinked in the distance. I didn’t know if I would be able to see it. I was here, I thought. I might as well wait until there was no longer any hope of viewing it.
I sat in the car with the window rolled down. I tried to ignore the cars that paraded passed, their headlights either shining in my face from the front or reflected into my eyes from my rearview mirror.
Then, there it was. It couldn’t be anything else. A steady light, about a hand’s width above the tree line moved a crossed the sky from south to north. It moved more rapidly than a plane or helicopter. You could tell it was at a great distance. It was the space shuttle.
The blinking light I had seen many years ago had been the size of a basketball and weighed about 183 pounds. The Discovery was the size of an airliner and weighed 4.5 million pounds at liftoff (including fuel) with a crew of seven men and women astronauts.
Back in 1957 my imagination didn’t let me dream that I would casually watch as seven people took a ride into space on a late fall night. I sat there for a moment after the light had passed into the distance up the coast. I was reminded again of cars making their way up and down the road with their own missions in mind. I started the car, turned around and went home.
You can learn more about the shuttle mission by going to the NASA website: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html
They also have information about sputnik at http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/
A copy of this article will be in my blog and the links will be hot if you want to access the NASA site that way.
Back to more Web related topics next week in our Christmas Eve issue.
As always you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com. You can also leave a comment on the blog.
