Try walking in our shoes!
March 31, 2010
Look at the new, slick Amazee sneakers which Gregory got! He ordered them a couple of weeks ago, they are customized shoes and they show his pledge to his platform quite well! What do you think, would you wear them if we mass-produced those kickers?
Winning the game
March 28, 2010
10 months ago I posted a short review of Casanova’s book Exodus to the Virtual World. A week ago I came across another book that’s centered on the question how multiplayer online games impact our real life: Total Engagement by Byron Reeves and J. Leighton Read. Whereas Casanova takes a broader view on the social impact of MMOs, Reeves and Read focus on the question how game mechanics can be implemented in our work places to foster human motivation and productivity. Don’t expect a ready made implementation guide, but a good analytical framework on how your work could change.
Announcement: Short downtime of Amazee this morning
March 25, 2010
UPDATE: Everything went fine and Amazee is back online again. Thank you for your patience and sorry for any inconveniences!
Just as we at Amazee do not have superpowers, our material is not made to last forever. This morning, a hard drive on one of our servers is going to be replaced as part of a standard procedure, to ensure that Amazee runs properly.
However, this means we will have to take Amazee off the Net for about half an hour this morning, starting at 8 a.m. CET. We hope to be back soon and shall be running smoothly forever after. Please excuse the inconvenience!
Working on the future
March 23, 2010
Some of you might know it: We regularly go on team retreats to the beautiful town of Gstaad in the Bernese Oberland. Usually we spend the weekend together with various in- and outdoor activities (this time it was merely long strolls and a short swim) and afterwards work for two and a half days on the future of Amazee, reviewing and readjusting strategies and tactics.
Last year, I had written a few thoughts on the importance of such off-site events. This time we have a pretty tight schedule but we are confident that all important topics will be taken into account and we’ll return from the mountain top with fresh ideas to further spur your happy collaboration. So, here’s some impressions from us working hard and eating even harder (with me having turned quasi-vegetarian, this is a pretty much meat-free workshop).
Michael & Marco working away.
CEO Greg, clearly reflecting his position in the number of computers.
Marco, Dania, Lucas & Mathias discussing.
The well-earned dinner.
For more pictures, which will be uploaded over the next days, check out our flickr account!
Amazee science @ PolitCamp10
March 21, 2010
This weekend “Amazee science” feat. Ana is in Berlin at the PolitCamp10. A two-day conference where politics meets the internet community. The schedule looked very promising including sessions around the topics of data security, politics and Web 2.0, e-participation, campaigning on the internet and more.
The event is taking place in a nice old industrial building right next to the Spree. Unfortunately the weather is quite awful… so no enjoying the sun outside. But I’m here for the sessions anyway!
Looking back at the sessions held on Saturday “Myth e-Participation?” attracted me the most. Matthias Trénel and Klas Roggenkamp approached the question whether e-participation is in fact happening already or not. A lot of interesting questions aroused during the session like: Who are the people participating on the existing e-participation platforms? Does e-participation really have an impact on politics? Should there be more direct democracy and can e-participation platforms encourage and inspire also citizens who normally would be abstinent from politics?
Of course the 45-minute session was much too short to answer all the questions in depth, but it has been a great inspiration and I think it’s absolutely worth investigating time to look at these kind of questions. We will do so, since with the Zurich based Politforelle there is the perfect event for this!
So long, Grüsse aus Berlin!
The food crisis and how to solve it
March 21, 2010
Here’s an interesting animated short about the current food crisis the World is facing, its inherent inequalities in distribution, complete with suggestions how to solve it. Food for thought!
(Via Kraftfuttermischwerk.)
Viral Loops
March 20, 2010
Don’t miss Penenberg’s book Viral Loop if you’re interested in an easy (and don’t mind a fully US-centric) read on the “viral” dynamics and patterns of the Social Web. Beginning with viral models like Tupperware and Ponzi schemes he gives an overview of a selection of viral Web businesses such as Hotmail, Facebook or Ning. Their success builds on common factors like free basic services, a simple concept, intuitive use, built-in-virality (user spread the product out of self-interest), network effects (the more the merrier), stackability (synergies between two or more networks) or exponential growth (in average every user brings more than one new user to the network). He ends his piece by taking the reader back to flesh world concluding that the most viral element of all is our DNA – and that viral loop businesses is just a small part of what we do and who we are.
The end of publishing
March 19, 2010
Quite an amazing little spot from publishers Dorling & Kindersley here. Is it really the end of publishing as we know it?
(Thanks to @romeroabelleira for the hint!)
