Tue 09 March, 2010
A couple people had told me off to the side that Brimstone Howl was playing at South by Southwest this year, but I wasn't able to confirm it, until now. Though the gig doesn't appear on their Myspace or Alive! Record pages, it does show up in the Sched Unofficial Guide to SXSW 2010 -- the ultimate must-have online scheduling tool for official and unofficial gigs at SXSW. According to Sched, Brimstone Howl has an official gig Thursday, March 18, at 11:30 p.m. at Jaime's, 802 Red River St. The listing also appears here on sxsw.com. That brings to eight the number of Nebraska bands playing at this year's festival. Not bad. I'll be interviewing three of those bands -- Little Brazil, Digital Leather and It's True -- in tomorrow's column, which is part one of a two-part series previewing the festival.
* * *
Tonight at The Barley Street Tavern Lincoln singer/songwriter Ember Schrag plays with Midwest Dilemma and a couple other acts. $5, 9 p.m. Check it out.
--Got comments? Post 'em here.--
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add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlClient: "I googled my name and there is some nasty stuff about me on the Internet. There is this guy saying in his blog that I am an idiot. I want you to remove that blog and block the Internet if they write shit about me." Us: "We cannot do that." Client: "Well, get someone else to do it then. I want every nasty stuff about me removed from the Internet today, and make sure nobody can write bad things about me. I want you to control the Internet." Us: "We can't control it and neither can you." Client: "Right, if you won't do it I'll find someone who will." Us: "Good luck, let us know if you succeed."Wow, I love stories like this. It really puts whatever struggles I might be having with a client into perspective.
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Naturally, those formerly known as Plaid are very excited about the development, maybe a bit too excited:
Living proof that small is the new big, and that Humongo is the new ginormous. We built the greatest agency in the land to be nimble, smart and filled with awesomeness. And then we backed it up with the strongest marketing agency on the planet and the coolest network of agencies in the creative industry. No matter how gigantic your challenge, Humongo is here to save the day.Friend of AdPulp, Bill Green, works with Humongo, so I want to be kind. But when I read copy like that, I have to ask, is Humongo an agency or a Super Hero? Of course, there are plenty of people who think confident copy is good copy. UPDATE: Let's hear from the Humongoids themselves...
Meet Humongo from Humongo on Vimeo.
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According to Clickz, Houston-based Men's Wearhouse is using social media marketing to boost its referral program and encourage tux rentals for the prom.
Last year "prom rep" participants had to visit a local store to enroll. This year, the entire program can be executed at a dedicated Web site, MWTuxonline.com. The site gives registrants a prom rep ID number to distribute to their friends via more than 200 social media channels, most notably Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and SMS messaging. Successful referrals then lead to free tux rentals, cash and the chance to win a car.
"We saw some of the kids promoting themselves on Craig's List [last year], or as part of their blogs," Matt Schow, VP of online marketing and e-commerce at Men's Wearhouse said. "There was a lot of activity as we monitored the social space. It led us to believe that if we enabled it [more], it would really take off."
New York-based agency 360i created the materials and is coordinating outreach to teen-focused blogs.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlAhh, but of course. The agency here is Mother, whose Swedish principals pioneered Devo-ish ultra-postmodernism at Paradiset back in the mid-'90s, for Diesel and roboticothers. If ever a client and an agency were better suited, we'd be hard-pressed to recall it. The campaign is the perfect product of the perfect marriage ... unless ... Unless it is all too clever by half. Is it possible to satirize market research, corporate-speak, focus-group-speak and most of all consumer manipulation when you are actually trying to manipulate the consumer? Is the cult of Devo so hip that it will actually resent being played like the clueless research subjects, for schmucks?But wait, there's more thumbs in the ribs of corporate culture where that came from: The idea that a punk band would hire an ad agency that would in turn ridicule advertising is part of the weirdness of it all and its own statement about the times we live in. But when you've gone 20 years without releasing an album, it does seem like a decent way to build some buzz.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlI have a presentation that I give on SQL Server Consolidation Strategies, and in that presentation I talk about a few links that are useful. Here are some that I’ve found – feel free to comment on more, or if these links go stale:
Consolidation using SQL Server: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee692366.aspx
SQL Server Consolidation Guidance: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee819082.aspx
More references for SQL Server and Hyper-V: http://www.sqlskills.com/BLOGS/KIMBERLY/post/Virtualization-with-SQL-Server.aspx
Quick overview of Virtual Server licensing implications: http://www.microsoft.com/uk/licensing/morethan250/learn/virtualisation.mspx
SQL Server and Hyper-V best practices: http://sqlcat.com/whitepapers/archive/2008/10/03/running-sql-server-2008-in-a-hyper-v-environment-best-practices-and-performance-recommendations.aspx
High-Availability and Hyper-V: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/2008.10.higha.aspx
Virtualization Calculator: http://www.microsoft.com/Windowsserver2008/en/us/hyperv-calculators.aspx
May not be current, but here’s a whitepaper from VMWare for SQL Server: http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/SQLServerWorkloads.pdf
More information on SQL Server and VMWare: http://blogs.msdn.com/cindygross/archive/2009/10/23/considerations-for-installing-sql-server-on-vmware.aspx
Server Virtualization Validation Program: http://www.windowsservercatalog.com/svvp.aspx?svvppage=svvp.htm
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlBelieve it or not, Husker fans, football is just a few weeks away. Well, spring football, anyway. Nebraska's spring practices start on March 24th. While most of the attention thus far has been placed on the opportunity for a budding competition at quarterback, there are other little items that might prove to be more important (if not quite as interesting) as that battle. Spring is a vital time for the team's development. So, it is worth paying attention to all of the comings, goings and position switches that are made among the NU roster.
Arrivals
When players arrive on campus in time to participate in spring football with the rest of the squad, it can be a real help to their development. It allows them to get a feel for the speed of the college game as well as begin learning the schemes and techniques the coaches teach. So, keep an eye on early arrivals Jermarcus Hardrick, Chase Rome and Jay Guy.
Hardrick stands to gain the most. He is widely considered a candidate for playing time this fall along the offensive line. And, as a junior college player, could be a bit more ready to adapt to the top level of college. Coming right out of high school, defensive linemen Guy and Rome don't appear to be in line for playing time in 2010. But, still, getting more acclimated earlier could pay dividends later on in the season and their careers.
Departures
It's a hard truth, but things don't always work out for players. It could be for any number of reasons but there is the inevitable truth that some players leave the team or can't play any more. So, every spring and fall, there is some roster turnover. This spring is no exception. When the new roster was released last week, Quentin Toailoa's name was not on it. Toailoa was a part of the 2008 class and has not participated the last two years. So, his not being on the team does not deal an immediate blow, but it does cut in to the team's depth.
Also, a few other players are rumored to be leaving the team due to medical issues. Offensive lineman Cruz Barrett and defensive tackle Ben Martin are both still listed on the roster. But, I am hearing more and more that their careers as Huskers may be over. While both players would be seniors this season, neither constitutes a major loss on the field. Barrett has not played a meaningful snap for NU. Martin contributed some early in his career but has since all but disappeared. Still, the loss of all three players represents a lot of big bodies. Maybe the three early arrivals cancel that out in some way.
Switches
Finally, position changes are often good to get done in the spring. It gives players more time to adjust and adapt to a new role, without the pressure of game preparation and competition. Spring is primarily about learning.
Reviewing the Husker roster and comparing to last year's tells me that the coaches feel pretty solid about where they have people positioned. Maybe my memory is failing, but it appears that only redshirt freshman Cole Pensick has made a move, going from defensive line to offense. Pensick now appears to be slotted to play center for NU.
I suppose that is an important switch, when you think about it. Nebraska loses 36-game starter Jacob Hickman at center and replaces him with Mike Caputo. There wasn't anyone listed behind Caputo before that I could tell. Enter Pensick. And, despite the fact that the book and movie "The Blind Side" characterize the importance of a left tackle (Sandra Bullock won an Academy Award? What?), center is arguably the most important spot on the line.
Hello! He touches the ball on every single play. But seriously, the center makes the most line calls and is responsible for almost as much as the quarterback. It is a vital role. And, if Caputo gets nicked up the way Hickman did last season, the development of young Cole Pensick merits a close watch.
No doubt, there will be some interesting story lines that develop for Nebraska this spring. But, mostly it starts with who is on the roster, who is off of it, and where they are positioned on the team.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlMon 08 March, 2010
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlIn SQL Server, the cost of a particular plans is based largely on I/O, which makes this post a good candidate for this month’s T-SQL Tuesday, hosted by Mike Walsh who, like me, walks a straight path.
In considering I/O – the movement of data generally In and Out of disk and memory – my thoughts come very much to query cost. If I run set statistics io on, I can see the reads and writes, both logical and physical, of the queries I run, and I can use this information to gauge the impact of my query on the system.
I can also see that the Estimated Subtree Cost as indicated in the Execution Plan seems to grow with the number of logical reads. This makes sense, as the number of logical reads required by a query can really make a query costly. A logical read implies that the read might only involve examining a page of data that is already in RAM, but it should always be remembered that if the required page of data is not in RAM already, it will need to be pulled in off disk first, being shown as a physical read.
The standard line with measuring cost in terms of I/O comes down to the impact of a physical read on the system. When a physical read occurs, this involves getting data off the actual disk(s), which I liken to the process of picking a track on an old vinyl record player (the records were vinyl, not the record players). Of course, the disk controller lines up the tracks far quicker than I ever could, but the principle still applies. Compared to shifting bits in RAM, it’s incredibly slow. Much less so with Solid State Disks, but that’s another matter entirely.
But the impact of I/O is certainly not the only factor on query cost. I remember some time ago having a discussion about string splitting with a friend of mine. I had seen some posts discussing the different ways of splitting strings, with the conclusion being that CLR functions are the best, as SQL Server generally isn’t very good at string manipulation, but it led to an interesting discussion.
Take one of the standard approaches to splitting strings, such as using a table of numbers. For the purposes of the experiment, I have a table called dbo.nums(num int primary key), populating to at least 50.
with
table_of_strings (string) as
(
select 'This is one string' union all
select 'And here is another' union all
select 'a third...' union all
select '...and a fourth'
)
select substring(s.string, n.num, charindex(' ',substring(s.string, n.num, len(s.string)) + ' ')) as word
from
table_of_strings s
join
dbo.nums n
on n.num <= len(s.string)
and substring(' ' + s.string, n.num, 1) = ' '
;
There are obviously other methods that can be used – this is just one. But now compare it to the following:
declare @qry nvarchar(max);
with
table_of_strings (string) as
(
select 'This is one string' union all
select 'And here is another' union all
select 'a third...' union all
select '...and a fourth'
)
select @qry = stuff((select replace(' ' + replace(string,'''',''''''),' ',''' as word union all select ''')
from table_of_strings
for xml path('')), 1, 20, '') + ''' as word'
;exec sp_executesql @qry;
Here I’m constructing a query using dynamic SQL to split strings, making a query which performs a UNION ALL of all my queries. And when I look at the cost of a batch that runs both these methods (by asking Management Studio to show me the Plans), I find that the second one is incredibly cheap. In fact, if I turn on statistics io, I can see that there is no I/O at all for the second method, whereas the first requires 12 logical reads – presumably to get at my table of numbers.
Clearly my dynamic SQL method of splitting strings is fantastically fast, and this is completely true. It is fantastic – a thing of fantasy. It’s actually really awful.
You see, as I mentioned earlier, SQL Server isn’t particularly good at string manipulation. So much so that creating this piece of dynamic SQL is very costly, won’t scale, and should never be implemented in a real environment. You can have a look at it to verify what I’m saying, but if you try to do this on a large set of data, you will very quickly find out just how poor it is.
To test it, created a table called table_of_strings (string varchar(1000)) and populated it with those four strings. I then doubled its size ten times using:
insert dbo.table_of_strings
select * from dbo.table_of_strings
go 10
Using the table of numbers to split the strings involved over 12,000 logical reads, but the elapsed time showed 289 milliseconds to provide the 13312 rows of results.
The dynamic SQL method used a total of just 26 logical reads, but took 34 seconds to run on my (old) machine.
I’m not suggesting you ignore the I/O-based cost of execution plans, but you should most definitely consider more than just that – particularly as Solid State storage becomes more and more commonplace.
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add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlHere’s a quick question for you. Do you abbreviate the names of schemas in SQL Server? I ask because I see that a lot of people do and quite frankly I don’t really see a justification for it. Let me show you what I mean. What is more meaningful? This:
Or this:
Personally speaking, I would rather deal with
- [product], [reconciliation], [report], [sales]
than
- [prd], [rec], [rpt], [sls]
because they’re easier to understand (and that’s vital when introducing newcomers to a project] yet I’m clearly in a minority because most places I go people seem to prefer to use abbreviated three letter schema names like I show in the first screenshot above.
I asked the same question on Twitter and here are some of the responses that I got:
Adam Machanic raise a very good point in his tweet (above) about intellisense – it negates the only justification I can think for abbreviated schema names, that being that they are quicker to type.
The consensus from those tweets seems to be that abbreviating schema names isn’t commonly practised but that doesn’t jive with what I see in my work day-in day-out. So, dear reader, how about you? Do you use abbreviated schema names or not? Note that there is no right or wrong answer here, I’m just interested to know.
P.S. You do USE schemas, right? ;)
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Design for sustainability was almost unheard of a decade ago, but as green goes from niche to mainstream, businesses of all types are beginning to take it seriously. Whether to respond to customer demands or to express their own ecological values, companies are re-examining product lines and business practices, using terms that recently sounded sci-fi themselves. Carbon footprint. Lifecycle analysis. Design for disassembly. Sustainable design is a specialized skill, and it thrives in unique places, like the Pacific Northwest, that combine a culture of innovation with environmental awareness. What's surprising is that this culture arose in the absence of many traditional innovation catalysts: we boast no internationally renowned design schools, no enormous government-stimulated research parks, and while the regional arts scene is vibrant, it's far from the global spotlight. Rather, the Pacific Northwest is innovative because innovators move here -- permanently -- from all over the world. Of Ziba's 115 employees, fully 30 percent are foreign born, creating a world-class team of 18 nationalities fluent in 24 languages; most dynamic companies in the region quote similar numbers. Quality of life is a primary reason for such spectacular talent retention, proof that our sustainability focus yields more than one type of commercial benefit.Sadly, the article doesn't give any working examples of PNW companies using sustainable design to benefit their bottom line and reduce their impact on the environment. So, I did a bit of research... One good example can be found at Courtyard by Marriott - Portland City Center. SERA Architects designed the rehab to achieve gold certification in the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. The 256-room hotel was redesigned to use 28 percent less energy than a conventional building, saving the equivalent energy use of 42 household a year. And thanks to dual flush toilets in guest rooms the building reduced water consumption by 26 percent below industry standards.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlI had mentioned to the guy next to me in the crowd at the Fishbone/English Beat show Friday night that it was one of the biggest crowds I've ever seen at Slowdown, and he pointed out an interesting scientific fact of physics and biology: Old people are just "bigger" than young people.
Or as someone else in the crowd put it, "Tim, tonight you're the young, skinny guy."
I knew the gig would draw an older crowd, but I wasn't prepared for the overall vibe, which felt like a mix of, say, a suburban Omaha wedding reception with a Council Bluffs casino. Lots of folks in their 40s, 50s and even a few in their 60s, but you know what? -- all of them were having a great time. They loved this music and they weren't afraid to show it (unlike too many crowds at Slowdown these days). That meant giant guys dressed like Yogi Bear dancing a grind alone back by the bar. It meant lots of older New Jersey-looking women in leather jackets and pumps rushing around with whiskey sours in their well-manicured paws. It meant a night when the line out of the Men's Room far exceeded the line out the Woman's (Maybe it's growing problem, not a going problem). You know the story.
Fishbone was onstage when we got there at around 9:15. They looked older but sounded the same as I remembered from MTV in the late '80s. I've never liked Fishbone, and last Friday night's set didn't change my opinion, but I have to admit they put on a great show, and the band sounded tight, especially when they pulled out that bari-sax. The highlight was when frontman Andre jumped off the stage for a brief crowd surf -- it's been awhile since I've seen one of those. Click the thumbnail on the left to see a larger picture of Fishbone at The Slowdown, taken by photographer John Shartrand.
After a long break, the English Beat were next. Blond, trollish frontman Dave Wakeling still had that sandpaper voice (that's beginning to slide into Colin Hay territory). The band also sounded good -- that's what months of casino tours can do, along with playing the same catalog night after night for decades. I waited through five songs for "Mirror in the Bathroom" before giving up.
* * *
I ran into Jake Bellows outside The Brothers Lounge on Saturday night, where he told me his new website, jakebellows.com, has just launched. From the site, Bellows will release new songs -- one per month. "I'm going to sell them for $1.29, and then take them down and replace them when they've been up for 30 days," he says on the website homepage. You can find this month's song by clicking on the "Music" link in the top nav. It's "Should You Ever Change Your Mind," a gorgeous track that features Jake's guitar and swaggering croon. So is jakebellow.com the way all music will be sold in the future? Maybe.
* * *
Also, here's an early heads up for a rare show at The Brothers Lounge this coming Friday night. Conchance, Her Flyaway Manner and Broken Spindles will be performing on the Brother's "stage" as a fundraiser for the Donut Hill Skatepark Project. $5, 9 p.m. More info on the Donut Hill project page in Facebook.
--Got comments? Post 'em here.--
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add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlOf the $368 billion marketers plan to spend this year, 32.5% will go toward digital; 30.3% to print. Digital spending includes e-mail, video advertising, display ads and search marketing. "It's a watershed moment," says the study's lead author, Outsell vice president Chuck Richard.Outsell's annual advertising and marketing study, collected data from 1,008 U.S. advertisers (both consumer and B2B) in December 2009.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlThe Muse is a geek to be sure but he's also eclectic in the breadth of his knowledge. In between banter about object instantiation and thread management I manage to go to the movies with my wife and kids. I even read a book now and then. My 19 year old daughter Jasmine forces me to stay up on enough entertainment news so I can have more interesting conversations with her at Sunday Lunch. So naturally I was interested in the Oscars. I did indeed watch the whole thing with my wife (actually I watched while I continued my reading of the 19th edition of the "Complete PC Repair and Upgrade Guide"... but it still counts). Here is the Muse review of the 82nd annual Oscars:
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Our friends at Husker Hype have breathed new life into the ole Big Red Blogger Roundtable (pictured).
In this edition we predict winners of the competition for starting quarterback and running back and a quick look at Huskers in the NFL draft.
Who do you think will come out of Spring Practice as the Offensive and Defensive MVP?
Steve Hanway: The Offensive MVP would be Cody Green. You might choose a running back, but you'd think they're not going to give Helu 20 carries or even Burkhead for that matter. You'd love to see what Dontrayevous Robinson will do, but Green's sure to get a good number of snaps and they might turn him loose in the option game. You'd expect the ball to be shared around, which is why I wouldn't choose a receiver.
The Defensive MVP will be Prince Amukamara. Crick would seem an obvious choice but without Suh next to him (or you'd guess even Suh's replacement, given how these Red-White teams are selected) he could be a force without standing out as a playmaker. Amukamara was a close second in solo tackles to Crick among returning players but also makes plays in other ways (interceptions, breakups, sacks, fumbles forced and recovered).
Nebraska appears to be switching to a spread-option style offense. How do you think this will effect quarterback and running back rotation and play?
Steve Hanway: In the fall the starter will play until the game is not in doubt. You'll continue to see at least 2-3 running backs in every game. The option switch would improve the likelihood that someone other than Zac Lee could start, but these contests generally go to the incumbent.
Who do you think the starting QB will be coming out of Spring Practice and do you feel that his spot is safe until Western Kentucky week?
Steve Hanway: With Lee not participating, anyone named as a starter post-spring will only be the starter until practices begin in August. So the best quarterback this spring will not be safe. Lee may not be a fan favorite, but it's still likely his job to lose, no matter what happens this spring.
Who will be the #1 Running Back coming out of Spring Practice? Some have questioned Roy Helu, Jr.'s durability and Rex Burkhead busted out on the scene showing he can do impressive amounts of damage himself.
Steve Hanway: A similar answer here. They may give Helu a lighter workload (particularly in scrimmages), but he's still the best back on the roster unless the injuries are more persistent than we've heard.
Which defensive unit will look best coming out of spring ball and why?
Steve Hanway: It may not be evident in the box scores, because your secondary is so dependent on the front seven to get some pressure, but the almost gaudy depth in the secondary is clearly the strength of the defense. The linebackers could impress, but there are too many good defensive backs not to pick the secondary.
Ndamukong Suh, Phil Dillard and Larry Asante all are likely to be chosen during the draft. Does Matt O'Hanlon get picked up in one of the later rounds, go undrafted and sign as a free agent or another route not mentioned?
Steve Hanway: Undrafted free agency seems likeliest for O'Hanlon. It could go like it did for Joe Ganz where he essentially gets only a matter of weeks or months to make an impression, but it seems unlikely that a team would need to spend a draft pick to get him.
Now for the obvious question on everyone's mind: What does St. Louis do with the #1 pick?
Steve Hanway: I'll say Bradford. Unfortunately, the economics of the NFL (even in an uncapped year) make teams inclined to reach on quarterbacks even with other players that are better at other positions available. Now if some of those rumors come true about a quarterback trade, you'd say it will be Suh or McCoy (in that order). But where we stand today, Bradford seems like the guy.
Around the Horn
Read responses from other round table members: Corn Nation | Husker Hype | Double Extra Point
Our fancy round table is open to all. Leave your responses in the comments below and grab a party favor on your way out.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlI was working this weekend with a fairly simple Excel spreadsheet, and I had to decompose one cell in it out to three columns in a SQL Server table. There are tools within SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) that should be able to do that, but I just couldn’t find my way around them properly.
I’m not as familiar with SSIS as I would like to be – it’s just not my day-to-day tool. I was struggling with the split of the cells, since it had several different types and kinds of delimeters for the data. I knew how to do it with regular expressions, I knew how to do it with Transact-SQL, I knew how to do it with lots of programs, but I just couldn’t figure it out in SSIS. I’m sure that’s my fault – not the fault of the tool, by the way.
I spoke with the person that created the spreadsheet, and it turns out that he had combined those fields from his source to begin with! In other words, he could split them out for me. What a relief! Yes, I need to come back some time and figure out how to beat this, but right now I just needed to get the work done. He split the cells out for me in the spreadsheet (took him about 3 minutes) and then I had the three discreet cells I was looking for.
Sometimes it’s OK to take a shortcut. As long as you think it through, you can safely do things the “easy way”, when you’re careful and understand what the ramifications are. The key here is that this was a one-time import, I understood both sides of the data, and had done my research. The data itself didn’t change; just it’s cell location. And that was all OK.
So don’t make it harder on yourself than it needs to be. Consider the alternatives – and take the help where you safely can.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furl add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlWhen making predictions about the future, it's often helpful to look to the past for guidance. When circumstances were similar, how did things play out? Interestingly, when looking for a season in which Nebraska returned an all-conference defensive tackle and an all-conference cornerback, you have to go back to the 1994 season. And that's hardly the only parallel between the 2010 Cornhuskers and the 1994 squad.
Terry Connealy was an All-Big Eight defensive tackle in 1993, playing alongside a star pass-rusher in Trev Alberts. Connealy wasn't a household name (even in Nebraska) though. Rather, there was some thought about how much the defense might suffer without Alberts. Not a far cry from the relationship between Jared Crick and Ndamukong Suh, though arguably Crick has been more acclaimed than Connealy. In the secondary, Barron Miles was beginning to make a name for himself as an All-Big Eight cornerback in 1993. Ditto that for Prince Amukamara this past season. The only other returning All-Big Eight player from the 1993 team was offensive tackle Zach Wiegert. Having a player like Wiegert returning certainly would be an asset for the 2010 squad. Then again, NU fans might have traded Wiegert in 1993 to get a kicker like Alex Henery to make the fateful field goal to win the naitonal championship that Byron Bennett missed.
The memories of that near miss are another thing that the 2010 team has in common with the 1994 version. Nebraska was in position to win the national championship when they took the lead with just over a minute remaining. But then Florida State drove the length of the field (assisted by a penalty) to kick a field goal with 21 seconds remaining to win the Orange Bowl. That disappointment fueled an offseason where the team worked themselves into national championship form. With a minute and change remaining against Texas in the Big 12 championship game, Nebraska took the lead only to see Texas drive down the field (assisted by penalties) to kick a game winning field goal. Will the disappointment from that contest again fuel a championship run for the Big Red?
By season's end, the 1994 season had seen a number of other playmakers emerge on the roster. Ed Stewart, Brendan Stai, Lawrence Phillips, Troy Dumas, Aaron Graham, Donta Jones, and Tyrone Williams were all honored as All-Big Eight players in addition to the returning standouts. Only Ed Stewart had received even second team All-Big Eight honors in 1993. So the key for the national championship team wasn't just riding the returning stars but developing a whole crop of new ones. Roy Helu could be poised to rise to the All-Big 12 level. The same could be said for Mike McNeil and Niles Paul. But NU may go even deeper to players that hadn't yet fully reached their potential in Dejon Gomes, Eric Hagg, Ricky Henry, and Keith Williams.
That's not saying Nebraska will make up 10 of the 22 first team all-conference roster spots, but then making all-conference in a 12-team league is a bigger task than doing it in an 8-team league. The point is that even with the departed Suh, Phillip Dillard, and Larry Asante, Nebraska still has the raw material to do something special provided the offseason work gets done and things break right for the team. What more can you ask for in year three of the Bo Pelini era?
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlSun 07 March, 2010
The highlight of the weekend was Dan Swanson swatting a Bowling Green attempt to clear the puck out of midair, gaining control of the puck, then burying the puck in the back of the net faster than you could chant "Where's My Sharpie?" (That and my inability to track the score Saturday night as we chanted after every goal...)
Next up for the Mavs will be #13 Ferris State in a best of three series in Big Rapids, Michigan. Ferris swept the Mavs back during the December slump; I get the feeling the Mavs are playing a wee bit better now. Win two games this weekend, and UNO not only earns a trip to the CCHA semifinals at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit...but also moves closer and closer to an NCAA berth. UNO is currently on the wrong side of the bubble, currently sitting in a four-way tie for 16th place in the PairWise. 16 teams make the NCAA tournament, and with the Atlantic Hockey Association an autobid, the best case scenario is the top 15 teams in the PairWise will get an invite. If UNO makes it to "the Joe", the Mavs should be very close to that Top 15. They'd probably pass Ferris, and if Alaska defeats Northern Michigan, that might open up another spot. Add in more upsets elsewhere in college hockey, and you just never know.
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I do find sports boring and dull, a waste of time when there are so much more interesting things to be doing. But it’s sports’ fans bizarre obsession with their favorite games, teams and players that is really sickening.
Do golf fans love Woods because he’s a fantastic, gifted golfer, or do they love him because he’s faithful to his wife? I would think they adore and admire him for the way he plays the sport, so, going on this line of thinking, why does his personal life matter? Why does anyone care whether he cheats on his wife? That doesn’t affect the way he plays golf, nor does it make him any worse on the golf course.
The Tiger Woods ordeal has brought into focus the fact that Americans spend far too much time idolizing athletes and celebrities. Not only do we want athletes and movie stars who are great at their trade, but we also want them to be perfect in every way so that we can hoist them upon pedestals, worship them and pay them stupid amounts of money. Then, once we discover that they are merely humans making human mistakes and living human lives, we feel they’ve let us down. And if those nasty rumors turn out to be true, then we will snatch away our love for them as quickly as we gave it to them because they are no longer worthy of our worship.
But were they ever?
Why can’t Americans be happy simply admiring someone for their gifts and talents? No, we must become involved with every aspect of the person’s life. We pay paparazzi to invade celebrities’ homes and their lives and their families so we can feel like we know them, like they are close personal friends. We spend millions of dollars every year on celebrity rag magazines that strive to make us feel like we’re entitled to know everything about this celebrity or that athlete. But they aren’t our friends, and their lives aren’t our business.
After Christmas, Amazon.com gave me a free two-month subscription to Us Weekly, a notorious rag celebrity magazine. I do like to look at the pretty dresses that stars wear, and sure, the “Fashion Police” section is a guilty pleasure. But I could finish an issue of Us Weekly in 15 minutes flat because I didn’t read it. I’d flip through the photos and throw the magazine in the trash. By contrast, it takes me a full week (or more) to get through a copy of The Week and about three weeks for National Geographic. I noticed that Us Weekly has a section that shows stars acting “just like us.” That feature lasts two or three pages, so it must be popular. People want to see stars toting around their kids or shopping at Target, yet they get pissed off when stars really do act like real people and get fat, cheat or get a DUI.
A decade ago, Americans weren’t satisfied merely probing into the lives of celebrities and athletes. TV producers decided we should get an inside look at real people, too, and reality television dawned. But rather than giving insight into the lives of real people, reality TV sets up a stage — like 10 very different people from very different walks of life living together in one house — and transforms these regular Joes into mini-celebrities. Now, we’re obsessed with people who have earned our admiration on the big screen and on the field, as well those who are willing to do anything to experience their five minutes of fame on reality television.It’s sick, really.
So when an athlete like Tiger Woods is found out to be a cheating scoundrel, we have idolized him so much, taught our children to be just like him, that we become angry with him for letting us down and teaching our children bad habits.
In reality, we should be teaching our children to value themselves, to strive to be their own best, to make their own dreams come true — not encouraging them to become just like Tiger Woods or the actor or singer of the moment.
Sure, Woods could be a young golfer’s inspiration, but he shouldn’t be a young golfer’s obsession. He should never have been idolized and worshipped. He should have always been viewed as a human with an extraordinary talent for golf. Whether he cheats on his wife should be looked at as just another human who fucked up. It never should have been made national news. I, who have absolutely no interest in sports or the lives of celebrities, should not know as much as I do about the Tiger Woods scandal merely through osmosis.
Something is wrong with people who obsess about celebrities and athletes rather than looking at their own lives and selves. To sit around and discuss celebrities as though you just talked to them on the phone, calling them by their first names and gossiping about the supposedly intimate details reported in trash magazines, is a sad existence. I wish people would put so much effort into improving themselves, teaching their children respect and responsibility, or improving the way they treat others.
Americans need to consider their obsession with athletes and celebrities and get a grip on reality. Hollywood isn’t reality. Rag celeb magazines aren’t news or journalism. Reality TV is garbage. And celebrities aren’t gods and goddesses worthy of worship. They are human. Some might deserve to be appreciated for their talents, but they also need to be allowed to make mistakes and live their lives in peace.
add to del.icio.us. look up in del.icio.us. add to furlWe needed to gain and keep the press' attention, so we deployed digital paid media to target media employees specifically. The Facebook feature "workplace targeting" was our primary weapon. We targeted all CNN/AOL-Time Warner employees with 500 points per day (the Facebook max). We ran dozens of different ads, testing message hooks from "Why did you let Lou Dobbs broadcast from a hate rally?" to "Why is CNN profiting off racism?" We even called out CNN's on-air talent by name: "Hey Soledad O'Brian, why don't you ask Lou Dobbs what it's like to be Latino in America," to ensure the CNN staff was sending screenshots between departments. We also workplace targeted the staff of the 25 biggest political and national news outlets in the country. To those CNN employees, it must have seemed like we were making massive ad buys when, in fact, what we did cost us about $1,750. In a matter of days, about 900 mainstream media employees (one in four from CNN) had seen the TV spot and knew what we were up to. We also leaked the story of the digital buy to ClickZ--one of the most well-read digital advertising publications. We choose them because an editor named Kate Kaye is the foremost journalist covering political digital ads, and they are exceedingly well yndicated and search engine optimized. (Anything that they post triggers dozens of Google Alerts.) This post led to a post by MediaBistro--the insider rag for journalists--and the story exploded from there. Soon, we were the top return for Google, Google News and Google Blog Search for the phrase "Lou Dobbs."Get ready for more of this type of active advocacy advertising. Consumer companies will get into the fray too when they need to make a persuasive case about issues affecting their brands. They'll need savvy marketing partners who don't care about big-budget TV spots. Instead, the focus will be on getting the attention of the real influencers, and traditional ad agencies may not be the ones who'll get the job done.
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