Tag Archives | About Technologizer

Technologizer: The Guardians of Knowledge?

Posted by Jared Newman on March 26, 2009 at 4:52 pm

typealyzerthinkerDo you, our readers, think that Technologizer is resistant to innovation? Organized and efficient? Respectful of authority? Loyal team players?

These were the analyses bestowed upon this blog when I punched the URL into Typealyzer, a free Web tool that reads the text of a blog (though any page will do, really) and determines a personality to match. Apparently, we’re “The Guardians.”

“The Guardians are often happy working in highly structured work environments where everyone knows the rules of the job,” the description reads in part. It also says we “listen to hard facts” (good, as far as journalism goes) and “can have a hard time accepting new or innovative ways of doing things.” For a tech blog? Yikes.

Typealyzer was created by Mattias Östmar of the Swedish media analysis R&D group PRFekt. An article in BusinessWeek says his site uses word frequency analysis to come up with a blog’s personality type, based on the Myers-Briggs model.  Östmar’s goal, according to the site’s manifesto, is to “learn more about what motivates and gives us a sense of meaning on a psychological level.” Aside from learning about each other, Östmar hopes providers of goods and services can better reach their audiences.

I’m not thrilled with the analysis we got, so I plugged my personal blog into Typealyzer, and I’m apparently one of “The Thinkers.” Can’t argue with that. Ed Oswald, judging from his blog, is a “Mechanic.”

And Harry? For some reason, typing in HarryMcCracken.com, no joke, confuses the algorithm. “The only supported languages are English and Swedish,” it says. Sorry boss! (Okay, it’s because the URL redirects to another address. He’s actually a “Doer.”)

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Got a Few Minutes to Take a Survey?

Posted by Harry McCracken on March 26, 2009 at 8:42 am

technologizer-logoMind if ask for a favor? Federated Media, Technologizer’s advertising partner, is conducting a survey to learn more about the demographics of Technologizer’s community. The information we collect won’t be used in any personally-identifiable manner–just to do a better job of targeting ads to the type of folks who visit the site, and therefore making them more relevant and useful. If you can take the survey, I’d appreciate it.

Click here to begin the survey.

Thanks!

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Technologizer’s RSS Feed: Try It Again For the First Time

Posted by Harry McCracken on February 3, 2009 at 10:56 pm

Just a quick note: By popular demand, the Technologizer RSS feed now features the full text of posts rather than brief teasers. If you’re already a subscriber, you’ll probably like this news. If you’re not a subscriber, it’s a reason to check the feed out. Here it is.

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Introducing Technologizer’s Digital Media Central

Posted by Harry McCracken on February 3, 2009 at 3:32 pm

Technologizer's Digital Media CentralI’m tickled to announce a new Technologizer section: Digital Media Central. It’s entirely devoted to a topic that’s near and dear to my heart and utterly core to our beat: the crossroads of the digital world and entertainment and other forms of content, from iPods and other media players to satellite radio to Internet TV to DV camcorders to media-savvy smartphones. The section will include news, reviews, and commentary by me and my Technologizer posse, plus guest posts by some big-name bloggers you know from elsewhere.

I hope you’ll contribute to the discussion, too, by jumping in via comments to share your experiences and opinions, especially when they differ from ours–and just to make participating even easier, we’ll throw some silly little polls your way as time goes on.

[Note: Digital Media Central is sponsored by HP’s MediaSmart Server; as part of this sponsorship, HP is holding a contest that lets you submit your favorite videos, songs, and photos in return for a chance at winning a MediaSmart Server. As with all of Technnologizer, however, the buck stops with me when it comes to the editorial content; HP doesn’t see it or control it.]

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We Need Your Predictions, You Need a Big Hard Drive

Posted by Harry McCracken on January 4, 2009 at 10:41 am

Technologizer PredictionsQuick reminder: We’re still looking for tech-related predictions for 2009 from members of the Technologizer community. And we’ll give away a cool Seagate 1TB external drive at random to one person who submits a prediction. We need ’em by 12pm PT on this coming Wednesday, and will compile the best predictions into a story we’ll publish soon thereafter. Full details and a submission form here. Thanks, and hope that 2009 is treating you well so far…

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Technologizer’s Top Ten Stories of December

Posted by Harry McCracken on January 1, 2009 at 7:39 pm

Last month was a wonderful one for Technologizer from a traffic standpoint–we had more big hits than in any month to date. But in case you missed any (or all!) of ’em, here are the top ten, in order of total page views to date:

1. Apple Patentmania: 31 Years of Big Ideas: I discovered that you could use Google Patents to look up old Apple patents, and found the drawings they contained fascinating. I thought other folks might, too. They did!

2. Patentmania: The Golden Age of Electronic Games: I couldn’t stop digging up old patent drawings, so I collected ones for Simon, the Atari 2600, Vectrex, and other old games into a gallery.

3. iFrauds: The Fakest iPhones Ever: I went to a lousy liquidation sale and wanted to kick myself until I saw that it was rife with weird imitation iPods.

4. The 13 Greatest Error Messages of All Time: A story from back in September that seems to be the closest thing Technologizer has to a timeless classic so far.

5. State of the Browser Betas: A Technologizer Cheat Sheet: A quick rundown on what’s up with the next versions of Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, and Safari.

6. Is Swoopo Nothing More Than a Well-Designed Gimmick?: Ed Oswald’s musings on an oddball auction site turned out to instigate an ongoing discussion that just keeps going and going.

7. The T-Grid: BlackBerry Storm vs. iPhone 3gG: A quick spec comparison between two leading touch-screen phones.

8. The 13 Other Greatest Error Message of All Time: A sequel to top story #4, based on nominations from folks who read the first article.

9. The Best of Frenemies: A look at tech players who can’t live with or without each other.

10. Windows 7 First Impressions: Hey, This Looks Pretty Good!: My take on the first prerelease version of Windows 7 to escape from Redmond.

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Technologizer’s Fifteen Most Popular Stories of 2008

Posted by Harry McCracken on December 26, 2008 at 6:44 am

It’s the time of year for year-in-review pieces–or, in Technologizer’s case, for a 5.5-months-in-review one, since the site only really got rolling in mid-July. So here are our fifteen most popular article so far, as gauged by page views. Enjoy ’em again for the first time!

1. The Thirteen Greatest Error Messages of All Time (September): Who would have thought that error messages could be so popular? To date, this article has generated more than twice as many page views as Technologizer’s second-biggest hit.

2. Apple Patentmania: 31 Years of Big Ideas (December): I found myself fascinated by the drawings that Apple created to docment the Apple II, the Mac, the iPod, and a lot of stuff that never went anywhere, so I shared a bunch of them in a slideshow.

3. Is the New MacBook Expensive? (October): My follow-up to my earlier stories comparing the prices of Macs and vaguely comparable Windows machines turned out to be an even bigger hit than previous installments.

4. Are Macs More Expensive? Let’s Do the Math Once and For All (August): If you conclude that Macs cost more than similar Windows boxes, you’ll provoke debate. If you say they don’t cost more, you’ll provoke debate.

5. FireWire Isn’t Alone: A Brief History of Features Apple Has Killed (October): When the new MacBook’s lack of FireWire prompted controversy, I thought back to earlier examples of Apple eliminating features before all of its customers were ready to see them go.

6. Is Swoopo Nothing More Than a Well-Designed Gimmick? (September): Ed Oswald’s story on an oddball auction site started a conversation among Technologizer readers that just keeps going and going.

7. The T-Grid: BlackBerry Storm vs. iPhone 3G (October): A quick feature comparison of RIM’s first touchscreen phone and the most famous touchscreen phone of ’em all.

8. Needed for Chrome: The Google Toolbar (September): I was sorry to see that Google’s Web browser didn’t support Google’s otherwise pervasive toolbar. So were a heck of a lot of other people.

9. Apple’s New MacBook Pro: The Technologizer Review (October): I used the “unibody” Mac notebook and mostly liked the experience (hey, the machine I bought to review became my primary laptop).

10. iFrauds: The Fakest iPods Ever! (December): I wasted time and money by attending a liquidation sale that was rife with sleazy iPod knockoffs, and turned lemons into lemonade by turning it into the experience into a Technologizer slideshow.

11. Windows 7 First Impressions: Hey, This Looks Pretty Good (October): I took the preview edition of the next version of Windows for a spin, and found that it feels like a Windows Vista with fewer major annoyances.

12. The 13 Other Greatest Error Messages of All Time (October): So many commenters on our first roundup of error messages brought up additional ones that their submissions made for a popular sequel.

13. Ten Questions About Google Chrome (September): The moment I heard that Google was releasing a Web browser, I recorded my initial musings about what it might mean for Google and for the Web.

14. State of the Browser Betas: A Technologizer Cheat Sheet (December): Upgrades to every major browser are on the way, so I quickly summarized what’s new about the new versions, and how to get them.

15. The First $1000 iPhone Application (September): Many iPhone apps are free; some are 99 cents; ones that are ten bucks are on the pricey side. And then there was the one that cost a cool grand.

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Last Chance! Tell Us Your Wish List, Get a Chance at a OLPC XO Laptop

Posted by Harry McCracken on December 19, 2008 at 10:39 am

whaddaya2I’m telling you this for the last time: We’re working on a wish list of cool tech products that members of the Technologizer community would love to get for the holidays, and need your submissions. We’ll choose one person who contributes and send them a snazzy One Laptop Per Child XO laptop.

Oh, and there are less than ninety minutes remaining until the deadline, which is noon Technologizer (ie, California) time.

If you’d like to help out, head here for more details and the submission form. Thanks!

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Help Us With Our Tech Wish List, Get a Shot an XO Laptop

Posted by Harry McCracken on December 13, 2008 at 10:36 am

whaddaya2Just a quick reminder: Technologizer’s Whaddaya Want? is our attempt to compile an entertaining roundup of cool tech products which members of the site’s community are hoping for this holiday season. We’d love for you to contribute ideas for the list–and one person who pitches in will win a One Laptop Per Child XO laptop. Full details and the submission form are here. The project is open for entries through Friday. Thanks!

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