Blake Schwendiman's Blog and Blook

If you want to know the title of the 7th (and final) Harry Potter book, you'll have to play a little game of hangman on the Official J.K. Rowling website.

To start, go to the site, choose your language, then click on the eraser on the desk. If you've never been to the door before, you'll probably be confused. You need to click around on things until you find the right sequence to locate the key. It's there. This is the most complicated one I've seen. Once you open the door, there's a game of hangman.

If you're not adventurous at all, someone has already posted the instructions to locate the key. Merry Christmas.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

My daughter has been probing me on the subject of Santa Claus recently. She's nine. In the past few days, she's been pressing me for a more direct answer to her question. I'm still in the "what do you think?" phase.

The question of Santa Claus is simple. The answer is complicated. There were obviously times in my life that I had a simple answer. When I was a child I had one perspective. When I was married without children, I had the opposite simple perspective.

As a dad, I definitely believe in Santa Claus. He sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good, etc. When you see the absolute delight on Christmas morning, when you watch them having fun with gingerbread houses in preparation for Santa's arrival ... you can't help but believe.

Santa Claus is about kids and as far as I'm concerned, so is Christmas. So, for as long as I have kids in my life (which I hope will be the rest of my life), I'll definitely believe in Santa Claus and I'm happy to admit it.

Finally, for clarification, I don't care if you're offended that I only mentioned Christmas, because if you are, you missed the point. It doesn't matter how you celebrate the holidays if you focus outwardly. I celebrate Christmas and I'm happy about it because I focus on my kids and my wife.

Merry Christmas!

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 03:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Bloggers take note. Today there is a great buzz about Word of Mouth Marketing and how it may impact bloggers. Seth Godin, Darren Rouse and Brian Clark all wrote about this topic in the past day. When I see everyone talking about the same thing, I take note.

I'm not sure how this is all going to fall out, but just to set the record straight for this blog: I use affiliate programs. Most all of my links to Amazon.com are affiliate links -- that usually includes any book or movie reviews. I'm also a Google affiliate via their AdSense program and I am an affiliate with Netflix.com, just to name a few.

So when I mention any of the above and many of the times I suggest buying an iTunes gift certificates for me (or anyone else on your list), I'm probably using an affiliate link.

That's my disclosure. You've been enlightened.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 02:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My brother recently met Kurt Muse, the subject of and the co-author of the book Six Minutes To Freedom and after that meeting my brother called and suggested I read the book. I ordered it immediately, but had other books in my queue ahead of that one, so I didn't get to it until this weekend.

I have not read a lot of books like this. I'm not sure how it's officially categorized. It could be a historical novel or it could be broadly categorized as non-fiction. In a nutshell, it's a novelization of the events surrounding Kurt Muse's involvement in the invasion of Panama in 1989. The events primarily center around Muse's arrest, imprisonment and rescue, but there is a great deal of general historical information in the book. The author clearly states in the afterword that many of the names were fictional, the conversations were generally created from generalities and that some of the characters were amalgams of various people in similar positions (such as the prison guards). So, I don't know what category this falls in, but I haven't read much of anything like it.

I loved it. For a book with so much political and historical information, I found myself unable to put it down. I read it in basically two sittings because it was so enthralling. It reads like an action/suspense novel, but it feels deeper because you know that it contains a large amount of reality. If you're currently looking for something new to read, this is one I would recommend highly.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 01:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Oh how I wish I had a camera at lunch today. When I was pulling into the parking spot, I misjudged the distance from the front of my car to the concrete parking thingy and I hit it hard. I hit it so hard in fact that I rolled it forward about 45 degrees and pulled the rebar up out of the ground. I tried to get a picture with my phone, but it didn't do justice to the impact. No damage to my car (that I know of), but what a sight!

As I was pulling out of the same lot after lunch, I saw a man in his late 60s or early 70s riding a pocket bike. You can't make this stuff up. Too bad I couldn't capture it for the world today, but soon I won't let those opportunities pass me by.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was recently invited to upload my books and short stories at a new web site called scribd. It's basically an online place to upload, share and read short stories and books. I've seen similar concepts in the past, but I like this one best. It's easy to get started reading and participating and its interface is very clean.

I've only uploaded one story, Fat Kid Instincts, but I'll be adding more soon.

If you publish something there, let me know!

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Crazy Gadget Developer seeks Entrepreneurial Advertising Partner...

I'm the CGD. I find it somewhat ironic that I haven't been able to find what I need in the vastness of cyberspace yet. With all of the advertising happening, with all of the discussing of creative marketing, with the rapid pace of technology ... you'd think I could find it, but I can't, so I'm asking for a little help.

I'm a gadget developer. I am currently supporting two gadgets for the Google homepage/desktop. They've been very well received. Currently my traffic gadget generates about 180,000 views per day from about 10,000 unique users. It's killing my dedicated server. That's a good thing. That means that I have a useful gadget. It also means that I'm outgrowing my server, though, so I need to figure out how to grow.

I've been placing text ads on my traffic widget for a long time now. They generate click-throughs at a rate consistent with the industry averages, but right now I'm not monetizing these ads directly. The main reason is that I don't have time to build the infrastructure. So I've been looking around for an online advertising agency to help me. So far ... nothing.

Most places are not responding to my queries because I don't have a web site on which the advertising will live. Gadgets are new, they're not web sites, they're not AdWare, they're something new. I would think that with the explosion of gadgets on the Internet -- they're becoming more prolific every day -- that I'd be able to find an advertising partner that can meet my specific needs:

1. The ads must be text. I don't have a lot of real estate and I don't want the ads to overwhelm the gadget.
2. The advertising agency/service must be able to describe the gadget idea to advertisers.
3. The ads cannot be generated by JavaScript because the gadgets are JS and there are too many conflicts. I need basic HTML -- text, a link and maybe a tracking image.
4. There should be a lot of fresh content in the ads. I have a core of users that isn't changing quickly and they're very consistent users. They check the traffic every day, many times each day. If they've seen an ad, they've seen it.
5. Preferably these would be CPM or CPT (time) ads, but CPC could work if the ads are very well targeted.

I can't use AdSense. Those ads must be placed on a web page. I can't use many of the other programs because they're based on JavaScript or there's no way to sign up without a web page.

My gadget provides a lot of interesting value to an advertiser. First, it's only useful in the US because it's a US traffic map. Second, I have precise geographical targeting because I know where the user is looking for traffic data. Third, I know the industry that's most relevant to the users: automotive, travel and similar. Forth, the users are consistent. They check the gadget for updates several times throughout the day.

Seems like a good opportunity for an entrepreneurial advertising partner to me. I just can't seem to make the right connection. They say it's not what you know, but who you know. I think it's more like It's not what you know, but what who you know knows. I need someone who knows what I'm talking about to get this thing heading in the right direction.

You know?

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 03:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Have you ever been a clone trooper?

A friend of mine let me wear his brand-new clone trooper helmet today. Originally I wasn't going to try it on, but then he reminded me that this may be my only opportunity ever to wear a clone trooper helmet. Good point. As soon as I put it on, I started shouting "TK421, TK421, why aren't you at your post?" Unfortunately there was no microphone in the helmet, so my friends couldn't hear me.

So, have you ever worn a clone trooper helmet?

Oh, and yes I know, TK421 was a storm trooper, not a clone trooper, but you have to be a Star Wars ubernerd to care about that nuance.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 02:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

With Christmas approaching I spend some time wondering what in the world to get for the people on my shopping list. A few years ago I was not a big fan of the gift card. It seemed so impersonal, it seemed so last minute, and it obviated the amount spend on the gift. These factors used to really turn me off to the idea of a gift card.

These days I'm not so sure how I feel. I've received a fair number of gift cards -- everything from movies to restaurants to clothing to generic. I'm converting. The great thing about receiving a gift card is the additional choice. I'm not subject to the taste of the giver (thinking of the shirts I've rarely worn and the DVDs I've never opened) nor am I required to make an immediate decision. I can hang on to the gift card until I can identify something I really want or need.

Amazon.com gift certificates (aff) are available -- which I think is a great idea particularly for people on your list that you really don't know well enough to determine their personal tastes. iTunes has gift cards (I could make use of one of those!) and most of the places I like to eat now have some sort of a gift card program.

So, what are your thoughts on gift cards? Do you like to give them? Do you like to receive them?

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

You may have noticed that I've been reading (or listening to) a lot of business-related books lately. It's just the mood I'm in right now. I'm thoroughly enjoying these books.

The Wal-Mart Effect is a very interesting book. It's not as generally captivating as Blink or Freakonomics, but it's a great read if you have any interest in trying to understand the biggest retail company in the world. If you're like me, it's impossible to comprehend the scope of a business like Wal-Mart with its thousands of stores, millions of employees and billions of dollars in revenue. But if you're like me, you'll find the information in this book insightful, exciting in some ways and a little scary in others.

The Wal-Mart Effect is the kind of book that I think anyone in business should read. Partially because Wal-Mart is changing the old rules and standards of business and partially because there are business insights that can apply to anyone in this fast-paced economy. Wal-Mart is a place that you either love or hate. No matter your opinion, you'll find something interesting in The Wal-Mart Effect.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 09:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've been working a lot of hours on some side projects recently, but things are starting to normalize. You should expect to see much more here in the upcoming days and weeks.

Posted by Blake Schwendiman at 09:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)