NorthStarNerd.Org

Google and Microsoft Translate

Toward the top of this blogs right hand column you'll now find my latest addition, the Google Translate Gadget. Thus, you may now more easily read NorthstarNerd.Org in any language.

It is interesting to note that on the same day Google announced this new service, I also received my invite and code to the new Microsoft translation service. Hmmm ... coincidence??

Nobel Prize Winners Video Lecture Search Engine

The Nobel Prize is the top honor one may be awarded for scientific research or humanitarian work. Recent years have seen a significant number of Nobel Prize Winner Lectures become available via web based video. Given these lectures are found upon many diverse web sites, the Northstar Nerd decided such an important knowledge domain should have it's own search engine. Thus, I am happy to roll out a new search engine dedicated to these lectures. You will also find a new section of my Engineering Learning Wiki dedicated to Nobel Knowledge.

Use the search box found below to try my new Nobel Knowledge Search Engine.

Nobel Prize Winner Search Engines Sites:
(index contains 359 web pages ... last updated: 10/02/2009)

• Gustavus Adolphus College Nobel Conference
• Honeywell Nobel Interactive Studio
• Mahidol University Nobel Lectures (Bangkok)
• MIT World Nobel Lectures
• Nobel Prize
• Vega Science Trust
  
• YouTube: Honeywell Nobel Initiative
• YouTube: NobelPrize.Org Channel

If you know of other Nobel Lecture Video Series, please contact me. I will be happy to add those lectures. Finally, you may wish to see my other search engines and Google Custom Search tutorial.

Managing Benchmarking Groups via LinkedIn

It has been said ... imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I discovered via Susan Scrupski and the Adoption 2.0 Council that one of LinkedIn's greatest uses is its ability to help a person manage groups where a particular focus is desired on the part of all members. Here is my recipe for group recruitment management:

1. Form a group with a professional focus
2. Promote your group via one's blog, Twitter, etc.
3. Create a LinkedIn Group with the same focus

Now here is the key point ... require everyone who seeks membership to seek membership in your LinkedIn Group. Given that most people maintain good LinkedIn profiles on their current job role and employer, you can determine if candidate members are a good fit for your group.

In my case ... we have a Corporate Collaboration Benchmarking Council; and we want to insure that potential members fit our desired profile. LinkedIn makes it very easy to obtain this information.

Mapping the Route to Your Next Big Mac

I have some friends who work for McDonalds and they will like this map, but I find it distressing (from the Map Scroll Blog). The map shows the distance wherever you are in the continental United States to reach the next McDonalds ... link to the Map Scroll for full details. The greatest distance between two McDonalds ... Between the tiny Dakotan hamlets of Meadow and Glad Valley lies the McFarthest Spot: 107 miles distant from the nearest McDonald’s, as the crow flies, and 145 miles by car! (Click upon the image to view full sized.)

Build Your Own Cosmic Star

It's been a while since I've seen a really good new site (at least new to me) that I wanted to add to my Engineering for Children section in the Engineering Learning Wiki, but SEED (Schlumberger Excellence in Educational Development) excites me. Here are just a few links:

• Build Your Own Star
• Math Puzzles
• Virtual Science Labs
• Science Festures

I've yet to explore the entire site; the amount of good content is impressive. I'm still learning how to build a good cosmic star!

Triumph of the Proletariat! (or how to bag leaves)

Well ... it's time out from my serious tutorials (Google Fast Flip and Wonder Wheel) for some fun and a new Northstar Nerd Tutorial ... Triumph of the Proletariat! (or how to bag leaves). The process shown actually does save a HUGE amount of time (i.e. mulch leaves first with a mower, than take a second pass to pick up what's left ... I only filled four bags as opposed to over 40!).

However, this tutorial has some fun with the process (and my wife, Molly). Any woman who has put up with anyone like the Northstar Nerd for over 26 years must be a saint! After watching my tutorial, and hopefully leaving a comment on Photopeach,  make certain you maximize the YouTube link and watch the Soviet Anthem Music Video. It's a hoot! Finally, you may wish to link to Wikipedia and bone up on your understanding of the proletariat.

Triumph of the Proletariat! (or how to bag leaves) on PhotoPeach

Finally ... a static screenshot is given below for my RSS Readers ... giving you a flavor for why you should watch the movie. Have fun!

Google Fast Flip Tutorial / Screencast

Google Labs just announced Google Fast Flip, and I got excited! This new service allows the user to more easily browse and decide what media content one would like to read (i.e. newspapers, journals and magazines). In fact, I liked Google Fast Flip so much that this evening I created a brief tutorial (three minutes in duration). Take a look and learn how browsing electronic media sites just got easier.

• Northstar Nerd Google Fast Flip Tutorial
  (may take a moment to load)

If you found this screencast useful, check out my other tutorials ... or Northstar Nerd TV! My other most recent tutorial is on the Google Wonder Wheel.

To help you quickly understand Google Fast Flip, I've included one screenshot below. Click to maximize:

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One item I left out of the screencast is how to order the various categories on your page. See the screenshot below for instructions:

The Best Knowledge Management Presentation I've Seen in Some Time!

I know everyone always says "I know of an excellent Knowledge Management presentation", but you really need to look at this 3 part presentation created by T-Systems, Germany's leading multimedia provider. The content really demonstrates why one should adopt Enterprise 2.0 collaboration tools; and better yet ... the presentation easily stands by itself without audio. Make certain you click to maximize the presentation via SlideShare. Here is the url ... http://www.besser20.de/english/

You may also wish to see my other post from this evening ... a Google Fast Flip Tutorial.

Collaboration 2.0

Benchmarking and Collaboration certainly has changed over the past few years. It's 7:15 a.m. in Minnesota, and this is how my day is progressing in preparation for a benchmarking meeting that starts in 45 minutes with many other large companies (both in person and virtual):

• Exchanged emails with CapGemini KM specialist ... connection made over night via LinkedIn
• Jumped onto two different Yammer networks ... one a private multi-company collaboration network ... one for my company.
• Answered Yammer questions about collaboration ROI with link to my blog post
• Used Twitter to exchange message with guest speaker (2.0 Adoption Council)

The meeting is now starts in 37 minutes. I'll still be connected to most of these resources while in the physical meeting.

Text Books & Manuals That Don't Break the Bank

Every once and a while I stumble across a site which provides manuals and texts without charge (read free), and the web service is actually legitimate! Bookboon.Com is actually one of those sites. In fact, after your tired to working through C Programming In Linux or Concepts in Electronic Circuits, you can visit the travel guides section and imagine your next trip to France! The site even notes they will soon be featured is a Facebook integrated service. As always, a site like this needs to be added to the Engineering Learning Wiki manuals section.