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SOB Business Cafe 08-25-2006

August 25, 2006 by Liz

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking–articles on the business of blogging written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the title shots to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Lorelle at WordPress celebrates by remembering when she told us how to get started. Happy Anniversary!

Manage To Change has a series that reminds us weird ideas often work the best.

I Can’t Say That! offers counsel that silence is not more than silence.

Ramblings From A Glass Half Full gathered the wisdom of a community to find the secrets of success.

Solo Business Marketing knows the importance of timing as a decision-making tool.

Related ala carte selections include

Blogging Pro can show you the way to make your site load faster for FREE.

Ensight has a list of fixes for folks moving to IE7.

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like.
No tips required. Comments appreciated.

Have a great weekend!

–ME “Liz” Strauss

PH3: How Are You — Good or Well? Could You Be Advertising Your Soft Skin?

August 25, 2006 by Liz

Life-Changing Information

I am about to tell you something.

If you don’t already know this, the information will probably change your life.

The change will be a small one — it may not change a thing you do. It will change you nonetheless, because . . .

I’m about to do the grammatical equivalent of sticking a song inside your head.

Every day people ask and answer the question, “How are you?”

The answer I most often hear uses the word, good, in something like “I’m good, and you?”

Good is a tricky word. It’s always an adjective, except when speaking about health. Then it becomes an adverb, which means when speaking of health, good is not the right word to choose. You might instead try well.

Here’s the picture. The conversation is

ME: How are you?
IT Man: I am good.

He could be saying he is good at gaming, good at talking, good at what most husbands are good at, or even saying good for nothing, but he’s not talking about his health.

And oh my, should the conversation be

ME: How are you?
IT Man: I feel good.

Now he’s commenting on the softness of his skin.

That’s a picture, isn’t it?

Know that it is good to say that you feel well and all will be fine in the end.

Of course, if you have soft, smooth skin, I have no problem with you advertising . . .

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Net Neutrality 8-25-2006

August 25, 2006 by Liz

Net Neutrality Links

I’m adding this link to the Net Neutrality Page.

Welcome to the neutral net

We pointed out the other day that net neutrality fiends want public ownership of the Internet access network. HereÃ¢â¬â¢s a report from Broadband News on what that looks like:

Culver City, California was the first Los Angeles municipality to offer the public a free all-access Wi-Fi network. TheyÃ¢â¬â¢re also the first to ban all porn and p2p from that network, according to an announcement made yesterday.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related
NET NEUTRALITY PAGE

Editorial Makeover 3 — A Simple Story

August 24, 2006 by Liz

Simple Is Lovely

Hi Liz,

I was considering sending in a piece when you first mentioned the makeover but had forgotten about it. Since getting your reply I’ve picked out a piece and would like to submit it. The little girl in this story taught me something so I’d like to do the story justice.

Thanks in advance,

Tim

Hi Tim,
This is such a lovely story. I was inspired by the Buscaglia book, too. I also hold high respect for the perceptions of children and what they can teach us. I understand what you mean about doing this story justice. The little girl you tell about is a special one.

With those thoughts in mind, I made my edits. I worked to the spirit of the story, and that led me to alter some facts to put things in order that people might imagine them.

I removed many words to make the story simpler and more powerful. That was to underscore your respect for this young child as a teacher.

I tried to stay close to your writing voice. Only you can judge whether I succeeded at at that.

I may not have made all of the choices that you would have made, but I hope this points you in the direction you’re looking to go.

Remember, as always, this is only one way to edit it! Every editor edits differently.

Smiles,
Liz

Turn the page to look over my shoulder as I do the editorial makeover. It’s called, “A Simple Story” [Read more…]

10 +1 Sure-Fire Ways to Get My Best Work — and the Best Work from Everyone — Every Time

August 24, 2006 by Liz

How to Manage Me While I Manage You

I snuck into publishing through the back door. I freelanced first. People asked me to do things. As fast as they asked was how fast I would learn. I was sure that everyone else already knew them.

Then I got my first job as an Executive Editor, and a whole new world view came with it. I had been learning things few people knew. . . . It worked for me. I kind of liked it.

I also saw that most freelancers weren’t like me.

What I saw was that folks who had full-time jobs did more accurate work than freelancers — even when they were the same people. As soon as we hired a freelancer, that person’s work improved to the full-time work standard. That’s when I knew it was us, not them. There was something in what we were doing.

It wasn’t the work. It wasn’t the people.

It was how we put the two together.

I know how you can get my best work every time. Do 10 things, and I can’t help but do a great job for you. Really. [Read more…]

Net Neutrality 8-24-2006

August 24, 2006 by Liz

Net Neutrality Links

I’m adding this link to the Net Neutrality Page.

Federal Trade Commission examines net neutrality
Move welcomed by consumer groups

“We certainly look forward to the analysis of an agency that exists to protect competition of the broadband market in which 98 percent of customers receive their service from either the telephone company or the cable company, if they have that choice at all,” Public Knowledge President Gigi Sohn said in an email. “There are no market forces at work here, much as Chairman Majoras wishes there to be.”

The FTC will host a conference, from 6 to 8 November, focusing on protecting consumers in an era of converging technologies, Majoras also announced. The conference, named “Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-Ade”, will focus on emerging trends, applications, products, services and tech issues in the next decade, she said.

The preliminary agenda can be found here.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related
NET NEUTRALITY PAGE