Mostly Muppet

You know, today’s morning commute was much like all the rest. Unremarkable except for a slightly less congested ride no doubt due to the gas shortage in the Metro Atlanta area.

And then this conversation started from the back seat.

Jenn: Neigh
Owen: [Unintelligible]
Jenn: Hey Seth, how do you neigh
Me: Excuse me?
Jenn: You know; how do you make a neighing sound, like a horse. (She was reading Owen a farm-animal-themed book and needed creative direction)
Me: RRRheeeeeeherrrrrrrr! Phffffffffffffff!!!!11!!!Eleven *Gums Flapping*
Jenn: Yeah, but that doesn’t sound like “Neigh”
Me: But neither does a whinny. I don’t think it’s an onomatopoeia like “quack” or “bark”
Jenn: And neither of those sound exactly like the noise.
Me: Like “meow”.
Jenn: Right.
Me: Right.
Jenn: So how do you neigh again?

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

If only every morning were illuminated with the light of such discourse.

Thursday!

In honor of National Punctuation Day (Thx, Buzzfeed!), I’m going to ignore the topic altogether and focus on more vocabulary fun. Besides, I butcher commas and quotes anyhow.

I was never a big believer in either “when in doubt, leave it out” or “less is more”. More is, empirically, more. Just check out that last sentence: two.

I digress.

Here’s long-time reader, second-time emailer Mel and her contribution suggestion:

What is the real verb form of the word “incentive?” Per dictionary.com, “incentivize” entered the lexicon around 1965. What did we say before that? Doesn’t “incite” pretty much mean the same thing? Do you think people moved to “incentivize” during that era because “incite” was associated with the word “riots?”

I’ve never been a fan of the verb “incentivize” because it seems like so much marketing-speak and I try not to use my buzzword/work vocabulary in a private, personal space. Also, the auto-spell-check in Firefox chokes on it.

I prefer “incent” but that’s not really a word either; it just sounds less made-up. I suppose I need a digital file now for imaginary words that should be actual words.

In any case, Mel makes a good point and poses an interesting question. I’m inclined to nod my head and agree with her without too much digging or research because the answer feels right, but keep in mind I say “incent”. ;-)

Paul Brians, whom I’ve mentioned previously, has this to say on the whole incent/incentivize/encourage continuum:

Business folks sometimes use “incent” to mean “create an incentive,” but it’s not standard English. “Incentivize” is even more widely used, but strikes many people as an ugly substitute for “encourage.”

Couldn’t have said it better myself, but I still think the component that incent/ivize possesses that encourages lacks is the understanding of some kind of exchange - not necessarily money, per se, but some form of equity or currency - in exchange for a positive outcome/preferred behavior.

In that case, maybe incent/incentivize aren’t poorly-formed constructs, since their connotations are the sole ownership of business and marketing folks and that’s the whole point.

As to Mel’s larger socio-political question, I’ll leave that research and debate open to comments.

Happy National Punctuation Day!

For a long while, I’ve had this crazy idea about private spaces - theme parks and sports arenas, mostly - utilizing Google’s mapping technology to provide people with rich, interactive experiences whether in the planning stages, at an event or just re-living an experience.

Well today the Official Google Blog revealed cool new features of their Maps & Transit products, namely metro transit information for the New York City metro area. Google Maps Mania has more info, including a video:

All of this is well and good until you start thinking of all the ways it could be so much cooler.

Like mobile access via your iPhone or Android phone.
Or combined with photos and videos pertinent to your location(s).
And to think about how you’d aggregate those kinds of things (I don’t want to say “assets” or “content”) from both individuals and corporations.

My head is going all fuzzy just thinking about these implementations (present AND future) as being the more natural outgrowth of those creepy eyeball-targeted ads in Minority Report. There you were targeted based on what you’d made public; here you target for yourself based on your needs.

Subtle, to be sure, but isn’t the evolution of Facebook’s Beacon typical of the differentiation I’m making here?

Anyhow, I just think it’s a cool day for the data. I say we ought to let it co-mingle and play more often.

Here’s hoping I dream up some fun way to engage fans in ways they’ll *want* to use in the flow of their lives. We should be so lucky and so humble of our successes.

Happy Mappy (unrelated) Tuesday!

So now that I’m deep into month two of the iPhone I thought I’d give you an idea of what I really like and dislike about the device, especially as a gaming platform.

Here’s the clear winner in my hands: reMovem free:

Let it be known that of all the software - especially games - that I’ve downloaded for the iPhone thus far, I’ve spent a grand total of nothing.

That’s right:
Zero.
Zip.
Zilch.
Nada.

What do I have to show for it? By my count, 15 free games and a few, meaningless, goofy, game-like apps.

Obviously, having played (now) over 1,000 games of reMovem, it’s my clear favorite and a good candidate: brief, easy, straight-forward. It’s the ultimate casual game for iPhone: little ventured, less gained or lost (except time).

Here are the other games that are currently eating up my free (and not-so-free) time, all for free:

• Fuzzle

Fantastic, colorful, easy-to-learn/play game. A real puzzler.

• Tris

No longer available, but a great Tetris clone for the iPhone.

• Brain Tuner

Not quite Brain Age, but the iPhone isn’t a DS. Plus, it’s FREE!

• Puzzloop Free

Like Zuma or Bubble Bobble, complete with all the happy sound effects.

• CannonGame

Based on the Discovery Channel show Future Weapons, an iPhone version of their flash website game.

GREAT Marketing idea!

So there’s my “Top 6″ list of the moment.

I may soon drop some cash - just a buck - to buy some nostalgia in the form of an LED Football game.

I’m also waiting on a super-secret game to be released, but I’m bound not to say anything about it. Yet.

Happy iPhone Gaming!

Ephemera
Detritus
“Stuff”

My day has been beset by a seemingly open calendar going all to hell with tiny, inconsequential tasks and “to-do” items.

In return, I give you the blog post equivalent of chewing gum.

First, I would make it longer than 60 seconds were I chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor. Cold comfort, since I’m still lunch, but still:

I could survive for 1 minute, 25 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

If you’re asking yourself, “Has the Large Hadron Collider destroyed the world yet?” well, multiple things are wrong. Thankfully, you didn’t buy a domain devoted to answering your question.

Lastly, you’re no one if you’re not on Twitter! Which must be true since there’s a song involved.

Bonus Link: The Terrible Crossover Fanfiction Idea Generator. Further proof that some people are in worse shape, from an Author perspective, than I am.