Author: Joe Wilcox

Google by Joe WilcoxAug 26, 20149:30 am

OK, Google, That was Easy

For my summer “Microsoft All-In” experiment, which also meant for a time giving up Google, I moved my main email domain from Google Apps for Business to Office 365—the latter through my registrar rather than Microsoft directly. I had used the domain on Apps for five years.

The registrar did all the setup for MX records and such, and I expected to do it all for myself when switching back to Apps—that was my experience half-a-decade ago. My how things have changed. Setup was scarily easy—much, much more than expected.

News Media by Joe WilcoxAug 23, 20147:57 pm

Twitter betrays You

Today, over at BetaNews, my colleague Mark Wilson asks:
“Twitter may be within its rights to block ISIS beheading content, but is it right?” The social service did more—suspending accounts for some users who shared the gruesome video depicting the slaughter of front-line journalist James Foley, who was held in captivity for about two years. Mark writes:

Twitter has a responsibility to allow events to unfold without intervention. The sheer number of people using the site means that it is possible to get a fairly balanced view of what is going on in the world—do a little research and you should be able to find supporters of every side of just about any story or argument. But for this to work, censorship just cannot happen.

I agree but see far darker implications with respect to news reporting.

News Media by Joe WilcoxAug 10, 201412:18 pm

The Difference Between Nixon and Obama News Reporting

The Atlantic offers an astute assessment of Richard Nixon’s media machine and how other presidents adopted or adapted the playbook. The story, one of many during the 40th anniversary year of resignation, is a must-read for journalists, particularly those covering politics.

I am a long-standing critic of the current administration’s aggressive, anti-media tactics. The Nixon and Obama White Houses share in common a general disregard for the Fourth Estate. Interference in the newsgathering process is commonplace and extends beyond the White House.

ebooks by Joe WilcoxAug 9, 201410:30 am

With Whom Should Authors Unite?

That’s the question on my mind since I started self-publishing ebooks about a year ago. Falling ebook prices and rising number of cheap reads—an increasing number of them serials built around single characters—offer readers bountiful choices. What’s good for consumers may not be best for producers, though. If 99 cents is the value of all books, who can make a living writing them? The answer to that question makes Amazon the savior of publishing or the great Satan destroying it.

I write about this today because overnight Amazon sent long email “Important Kindle request” announcing Readers United. But the letter didn’t come to me as a reader but as an author, from Kindle Direct Publishing. Amazon and publisher Hachette are engaged in a dispute that, long-term, could affect future ebook pricing. Hachette Authors United seeks resolution from Amazon, which calls on readers—and writers—to respond in kind.

ebooks by Joe WilcoxAug 7, 20147:30 pm

Take ‘My Blood’, and If It Satisfies…

So you may know that I’m about half-way through a flailing crowd-funding campaign to raise seed money for my first fiction book. Here’s the campaign page But don’t go there. Go here instead. I started the campaign by offering a free, condensed preview of the book, My Blood. Read it. If you enjoy the 8,000-word teaser, and want to read the book, go to the campaign page and contribute. The more mullah I raise, the faster the book arrives.

If you don’t think much of the preview—or it’s just not your kind of story—contribute another way. Tell me what’s wrong or what you would rather read instead. I mean: that you would pay for.

Music by Joe WilcoxAug 7, 20149:52 am

I Gave up TV for This

On Tuesday we sold our TV, streaming boxes (Roku 3 and Apple TV), and Blu-ray player to a couple of law students (he wants to prosecute criminals and she protect kids). They don’t have cable TV service, just Internet, so the setup is just ideal.

Yesterday I went from being a Craigslist seller to a buyer, using the Tellie bounty to buy a Korg Concert 4000. I don’t play but will learn (this time). We once owned the Korg SP-250, a much newer and more sophisticated model, to a missionary family. A daughter died in Indonesia, and they were returning after nearly two years stateside.

News Media by Joe WilcoxAug 6, 201411:11 am

WTF is the Right Domain Question

I must thank Todd Bishop, whose tweet about a GeekWire story alerted me to the then forthcoming .wtf domain extension, which is now available. Generally, I think these dot-com wannabes are just plain stupid, but someone wants them—or ICANN decision-makers believe so. I ignored every domain registrar solicitation to grab one until .wtf.

My first concern is brand protection. I’ve pissed off more than a few fanboys over the years and I worried about someone snagging joewilcox.wtf and using that as a platform against me. You should worry, too, if you have any kind of brand to protect. “What the fuck?” is right. If your name is your brand, grab .wtf before someone else does.

Living by Joe WilcoxAug 5, 20143:12 pm

First We Cut the Cord, Now We Sell the Tellie

I got this knot of tension today for the stupidest reason,. My wife and I decided to take cord-cutting to another step. We’re selling our 42-inch Sony TV, Blu-ray player, Apple TV, Roku 3, HDMI-switcher, and stand. We’ll keep Amazon Fire TV and Google Chromecast, for future time when we might buy a 1080p PC monitor for streaming.

I posted to Craigslist and several buyers responded. One of them comes by in about three hours. OMG! There’s no TV tonight!

News Media by Joe WilcoxAug 4, 201410:20 pm

RT News is Punchy, Aggressive, and Provocative

For the summer I’m doing this “Microsoft All-In“, which makes Windows Phone my mobile platform. The app ecosystem improves, but the gaps range from disappointing to perplexing. Choices often aren’t as good as Android or iOS. Windows Phone is the third world of operating systems. You live in envy and make do with less.

There are ridiculous gems, some of which I look and wonder: “Why is that one available?” There are no official BBC or NPR apps, but RT.com—known during another era as Russia Today—is there. The app is pretty good, too. But given Windows Phone’s low global sales share, I wonder why the news service would even bother. Not that I mind.

Gear by Joe WilcoxAug 4, 20145:11 pm

Smartphones come of Age

Wired hits a homer with an incredible August issue on smartphones. As battery life and utility expand, so does my device’s use as secondary—and sometimes primary—device. Nokia Lumia Icon is all the digital device I carried to San Diego Comic-Con 2014. Snap. Edit. Share. And I took notes during the panels. It’s not a question if my smartphone replaces a PC but when.

Five years ago (this month) I asserted, perhaps a bit prematurely, that “Your Next PC is a Smartphone“. That was before the tablet craze sidelined attention, but I’m convinced the smartphone’s day is come—and so do Wired editors.

Music by Joe WilcoxAug 4, 20142:39 pm

Grados Grab an Earfull

I am not big on selfies, but Grado Labs headphones require visuals to appreciate, because they’re like none other. I cleaned out all my birthday money and added Craigslist sales (e.g., my Sony Premium Bluetooth headphones) to buy a pair of RS1e. About 18 months ago, I sold my RS1i for the wireless convenience of the Sonys and regretted right away.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 4, 201412:31 pm

Neko Naps

The Nokia Lumia Icon is consistently one of the best dSLRs I have ever used. You read that right. I don’t desire a big-ass camera carrying this little beauty. I shot all of San Diego […]