alekkus

Do you want to stay in the zoo or get out to the wild?

Just read a blog post by Paul Graham, who discussed the cons of technology professionals working for big companies. He used several metaphors to describe the differences between working for large corporations and starting your own. I particularly liked “the zoo or the wild” metaphor: working for companies are like animals in a zoo, although safe, they can’t show their full potentials. I would certainly agree with him. Since I went out to start my own startup, the amount of the things that I’ve learned is tremendous. If I were to return to the “zoo” anytime now, I could easily considered for position that are a few levels higher than a year ago because of the amount of skills and knowledge that I poses now.

Paul’s post was pretty long (as usual). So I have decided to extract some of them out:

“Lions in the wild seem about ten times more alive. They’re like different animals. I suspect that working for oneself feels better to humans in much the same way that living in the wild must feel better to a wide-ranging predator like a lion. Life in a zoo is easier, but it isn’t the life they were designed for.”

“An obstacle downstream propagates upstream. If you’re not allowed to implement new ideas, you stop having them. And vice versa: when you can do whatever you want, you have more ideas about what to do. So working for yourself makes your brain more powerful in the same way a low-restriction exhaust system makes an engine more powerful.”

Bored with your desktop?

Are you bored with your computer’s desktop. Try out BumpTop, which aims to reinvent the way you work with your files. The “waoh” factor is certainly there, but I’m concerned about the adoption rate; making a dog learn new tricks is not an easy task.

World’s first interactive cyber figure on your screen

I agree the post title sounds confusing. That’s because I have no idea how to best describe this wonderful product released in Japan earlier this year. Named “Dennoh Figure ARis” (translated as Cyber Figure Alice), it is a virtual doll that you can interact with using some sensors and webcam. Priced at 9,800 yen (around USD100), I believe many geeks will get one.

Now, let the video do the talking.

The power of the web

There’s no doubt the internet is the best invention so far.

Greetings!

Hi there.

I’m a Flex developer specializing in the social media spaces. I have been working with Flex for about two years now, learn alot from many bloggers out there who were kind enough to show their knowledge. So I thought it’s time that I contribute my share. This blog will be dedicated to the emerging technologies of the Adobe Flash Platform, namely Flex. I hope this blog will be value-added for new flex developers as well as the social media enthusiasts.

Cheers
Alex Goh