Lime Ribbon Launch Party

The Great Lakes Geek was on hand at the LimeRibbon.Com launch at the Cool Cleveland party at Crop Bistro.

LimeRibbon.Com is the result of a group of local entrepreneurs who challenged themselves to exploit the growth of social media by tying it to a shopping platform.

Details and photos from the LimeRibbon Launch


Tech Czar Michael DeAloia and Franchise King Joel Libava

Newspaper wars - Cleveland Press vs Plain Dealer

If you are too young to remember June 17, 1982 then you probably won't understand what all the fuss is about.

Likewise if you grew up getting your news from the Internet or Cable TV or even the Daily Show on Comedy Central, you can never fully understand what the golden era of newspapers was like.

In the 50's through 70's (the time frame of Gimme Rewrite, Sweetheart: Tales from the Last Glory Days of Cleveland Newspapers Told by the Men and Women Who Reported the News ) there was real competition between the morning Plain Dealer and the afternoon Cleveland Press.

And believe it or not, Cleveland was big enough for 2 daily newspapers.

This book is a collection of stories from 54 Cleveland reporters, editors and photographers that John Tidyman interviewed.



You will recognize a lot of the names and the stories will bring you back to a time that seems ancient (manual typewriters, smoky newsrooms, boozing reporters, etc) but is really not that far off.

Read my review of Gimme Rewrite, Sweetheart

Steal this Book!

According to the New York Times, this is the most shoplifted book in the modern era:

The Virgin Suicides: A Novel




Lots of teens sure get into death and goth and the macabre. Cheer up! Wait till you become an adult. Then you can complain (grin)

Here's a blurb from Publishers Weekly

Eugenides's tantalizing, macabre first novel begins with a suicide, the first of the five bizarre deaths of the teenage daughters in the Lisbon family; the rest of the work, set in the author's native Michigan in the early 1970s, is a backward-looking quest as the male narrator and his nosy, horny pals describe how they strove to understand the odd clan of this first chapter, which appeared in the Paris Review , where it won the 1991 Aga Khan Prize for fiction.

Santa has a big night coming up

Shhhh!

Let them sleep. Santa has a busy night coming up

More Christmas pictures

Cavs Dance Team, Tsingtao Dancers and beer!

Sometimes I love my job.

Last Monday I got to witness history as Tsingtao Brewery Co. signed a multi-year agreement with the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers to become the exclusive Chinese beer of Quicken Loans Arena.

The partnership is the first between Tsingtao (pronounced CHING dow), China’s most popular beer company, and an NBA team and arena in the United States.

Of course, as I explain in my postings at greatlakesgeek.com this is much more than a contract to sell beer. It opens Cleveland up to China and China up to NE Ohio.

There are a lot of photos and videos, including Cavs players and the Cavs Dance team and award-winning Tsingtao Dancers so be sure and check it out.

To top it off, free Tsingtao beer was available to everyone!

Cleveland Cavaliers Christmas

Sometimes you are lucky and sometimes not so much.

I was frustrated last year when I had an equipment failure during my interview with former HP CEO Carly Fiorina. Of all times for a breakdown!

But I got lucky with a photo of Cleveland Cavs center Anderson Varejao. I was at the Cavs and Monsters Christmas event at the Q last Monday.

I shot a lot of pics and video and posted the best on ClevelandWomen.Com.

Andy Varejao was a popular player to pose with so I shot a lot of pics of him with kids. This one picture of him with a tiny baby is a classic IMHO.

Classic Christmas Song

To me, the classic Christmas song is Silent Night. Sure, I love Run Run Rudolph by Chuck Berry (and the Keith Richards version) but Silent Night is the best.

It was great to hear the song sung, in German, at a party held by the German American Business Association on Monday.

In German, Silent Night is Stille Nacht.

Check out the short video and photos/videos of other German Christmas traditions such as cutting the stollen with a sword at ClevelandPeople.Com

Win Jim Brickman CDs

Jim Brickman was born in Cleveland and began playing piano at the age of five. He lived here until he was 28 and he says "he loved it."

He attended Shaker Heights High School after which he simultaneously took music classes at Cleveland Institute of Music and business classes at Case Western Reserve.

ClevelandWomen.Com has a contest for free Jim Brickman CDs including and autographed copy of Beautiful World.

Enter to win Jim Brickman CDs

Santa must be Polish

A classic Bobby Vinton song for the holidays

Listen here

Get invited to the Party

What began as the secret Tin Fu group has evolved into an annual lunch event hosted by the Great Lakes Geek. It's strict invite only and an eclectic group of business people, techies, sports figures, media types and others make up the annual mix.

If you want to be invited, we are raffling off 2 invitations to people who purchase the Cleveland Cooks cookbook at the special $10 holiday price (normally $15).

Proceeds from the cookbook go to Computers Assisting People (CAP).

Check out and order the cookbook in the next few days for a chance to be invited to next Thursday's bash.

Thanksgiving Miracle

I'm not sure if the miracle is getting the dog and cat in those clothes or to have them pose like that.

Either way, Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours

Enjoy these Thanksgiving recipes, facts, history and advice.

MSNBC used our content sans permission

I am used to small websites taking content from one of ours and posting without authorization or credit. What can you do? But it always irritates me when one of the big players does.

MSNBC took direct quotes from our profile of Paige Palmer and posted it on their site without any credit to us.

That’s just wrong.

Do your own work! Or at least ask for permission (we would have given) or give credit.

When the NY Times quoted our Dante Lavelli story, they gave proper credit.
But MSNBC is far from the NY Times.

Paige Palmer

Television Pioneer, First Lady of Fitness and Fashionista Paige Palmer passed away in her sleep early Saturday (11/21) morning.

She was a true pioneer and legend and a very classy lady. I only met her a few times but she was always very gracious. My sister Debbie met her many more times and wrote her story and they had a close relationship.

Paige was one of a kind and will be missed

Paige Palmer profile

Cat Scratch Fever

IBM scientists, using an ultra-powerful supercomputer, have just replicated the cerebral cortex of the average house cat. The simulated cat brain uses 147,000 CPUs.

Insert your own cat joke here.

More details on the IBM cat

Raffle for Macy's gift bags

Friday at 6PM is your last chance to enter the raffle for one of three gift bags from Macy's. The bags are loaded with fragrances and other products from Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren and more.

As a reader of this blog, enter the following code ATFF6 in the Secret Code field to increase your chances.

Good luck.

Sandy Alomar's back

The Cleveland Indians and Manager Manny Acta today announced the hiring of Sandy Alomar Jr. as First Base Coach.

Alomar, 43, spent eleven (11) seasons catching with the Cleveland Indians from 1990-2000 where he was a six-time All-Star selection and last summer was the 33rd player to be inducted into the Indians Hall of Fame.

During his tenure with the Indians, Alomar hit .277 (944-3409) with 194 doubles, 92 home runs and 453 RBI in 985 games and was the Tribe's field leader behind the plate on club's that won five (5) American League Central Division titles and two (2) American League Pennants.

Welcome back Sandy

No recession at Fab Food Show

Recession? What recession? People were spending like sailors on leave at the Fabulous Food Show this weekend.

And the celebrity chefs (Bobby Flay, Michael Symon, Sandra Lee (in photo above), Tyler Florence, Guy Fieri, etc.) were treated like rock stars!

Photos and more from the Fabulous Food Show

Mr. Gorbachev, Tear down this wall!

I just love that quote from Ronald Reagan's 1987 speech at the Brandenburg Gate in Germany.

With the 20 year anniversary of the Wall's demise last week (11/9) I grabbed a series of podcasts to refresh my memory and learn some new stuff about the 2 Germanys, the Cold War, the Berlin Wall and Reunification.

Of course the collapse of the Wall affected much more than Germany as the entire Iron Curtain enslaving Eastern Europe began to unravel.

I posted some info and videos of parts of Reagan's speech and the celebration as the Wall came down in the German section of ClevelandPeople.Com

Greatest Ohio State Buckey player ever

No surprise in this poll.

When we asked ClevelandSeniors.Com visitors:

Who was the greatest Ohio State Buckeye football player of all time?

It wasn't even close.

Archie Griffin - 78%

Hopalong Cassady - 8%

Randy Gradishar - 3%

Chris Spielman - 2%

Also receiving votes were Bill Willis, Vic Janowicz, Paul Warfield, Jim Houston, John Brockington, Rek Kern, Jack Tatum and Tom Matte.

Comments and more results

Windows 7 - what you need, what to buy

Hopefully the last 3 Great Lakes Geek podcasts about the features and benefits of Windows 7 have convinced you to give it a try.

But there are still so many questions.

What version of Windows 7 should you buy?
What hardware do you need?
Should you get 32-bit or 64-bit?
Do you need a new PC?
Is it easy to upgrade?
What about my Windows XP legacy apps?

The latest podcast covers those important questions. And remember, you can always Ask the Geek if you have more questions.

Win a pair of FREE TICKETS to the Fabulous Food Show

Win a pair of FREE TICKETS to the Fabulous Food Show. November 13-15 at the IX Center. See Bobby Flay, Sandra Lee, Tyler Florence, Gus Fieri and Iron Chef Michael Symon and lots of great food stuff!

More details and enter here

RIP Incandescent Bulb

Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor of ECNmag.com has a terrific article about the forced obsolescence of older technologies such as the incandescent light bulb.

As Lomberg says, "Just as government shouldn’t prop up legacy technologies, nor should they take the opposite approach—ban them. The European Union and the US government have taken the latter approach. The first phase of the EU’s ban, covering 100 W bulbs, went into effect September 1st. 75 W will get the ax in 2010, followed by 60 W in 2011, and closing out with 40/25 W in 2012. "

The bans are just leading to lots of purchases and hoarding.

"The ban has proved to be massively unpopular. In one poll, 64% of Austrians found the legislation “nonsensical.” Holger Krahmer, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Germany's FDP party, declared the ban “light bulb socialism.” Czech President Vaclav Klaus is apparently urging consumers to buy up incadenscent bulbs in droves.

And the public is responding—with their wallets. Der Spiegel reports a huge increase in incandescent sales across Germany. For 100 W bulbs, sales rose by 80-150%. Clearly, the market has decided against CFL’s."

In the US, the "100 W bulb will be the first to go, meeting its untimely demise in 2012. By 2014, incandescents will be completely eliminated. What happened to consumer choice? Fair competition?"

Read more of Lomberg's column

Not the college type?

It's been a looooong time since I had to decide on college but I do remember that many of my friends did not attend. They were "not the college type" or so they thought.

Some eventually headed to higher ed, some went into business or military and some have just been hanging out (you know who you are!)

A reader wrote to Ask Cathy (Cathy Horton's advice column) that she is not the college type but wants a secure, lasting career (not just a series of jobs)

Ask Cathy gave some pretty good advice as to a hot area that should be immune to economic woes. IT in health care. Hard to argue. You can read it at the above link or listen to the podcast version.

Corn maze for blondes

On Rt 6 between Sandusky & Fremont, OH.

Come on Apple - it's getting old

I prefaced my latest podcast on Windows 7 (this one features some of the new cool and fun stuff in Windows 7) with a short rant about Apple as follows:

Before I get into some of the cool and fun new features of Windows 7 I have to complain about Apple's latest attack ads. Instead of trying to demonstrate why they believe their products are better, Apple is again attacking Microsoft, trying to make the PC and PC users seem uncool.

Frankly it is starting to reek of desperation. It displays Apple's insecurities about their paltry 3% of the PC market.

It's getting old Apple - give it up. Use you marketing to convince us why we might want to choose your products, not to just attack.

Windows 7 Whopper

Burger King in Japan has released a 7 pattie Whopper to celebrate the launch of Microsoft Windows 7. Urp!

Swine Flu (H1N1) and pregnant women

Health officials have revealed that the H1N1 virus has hit pregnant women especially hard. There have been over 700 cases of H1N1 in 2009 in pregnant women since late April or early May, 100 pregnant women admitted to intensive care units and 28 pregnant women have died from H1N1 this year.

With the H1N1 vaccine just recently made available, one of the first “high-risk” groups to have the vaccine available to them will be pregnant women. As only 15 percent of pregnant women get vaccinated against the seasonal flu each year, even more are nervous about getting the H1N1 vaccine.

If you know someone who is expecting, please have them read this article so they do the right thing for them,selves and their baby.

10% off all Microsoft stuff till Tuesday at midnight

10% off everything and anything (XBOX 360, Zune, Windows 7, Office, Games, Hardware, etc) until Tuesday at midnight.

Click on box below and use the code OFFMSSTORE

Windows 7

Windows 7 launches on Thursday October 22.

So is this going to be another version like the troubled Windows ME or Vista or more like the robust and popular Windows 98 and Windows XP?

The Great Lakes Geek has been testing Windows 7 for several months and will give you the scoop in a series of podcasts on the new OS.

This first podcast deals with the 3 main problem areas of Windows Vista and sees what Windows 7 does to correct them.

We're # 2!

HP is still the number one PC maker with about 20% of the market. Dell is still #2, right? Not so fast.

Strong netbook sales have pushed Acer at 14% past Dell at 11% into the # 2 spot.

Lenovo and Toshiba come in 4th and 5th.

Sorry Apple fanatics. The Mac is still less than 4% worldwide despite their great marketing.

Batman

Sometimes it's good to be the GreatLakesGeek. Like when you get to preview a new Warner Bros Batman Animation.

A new Batman: The Brave & The Bold episode, "Mayhem of the Music Meister!," airs next Friday, October 23, at 7:30 p.m. on the Cartoon Network.

Supported by a 28-member orchestra assembled on the famous Eastwood scoring stage at Warner Bros., special guest-star Neil Patrick Harris voices the Music Meister - Batman's newest villain who is able to exert powerful mind-control through song.

Let's face it. For many of us, our first exposure to opera came from the Bugs Bunny classics. This episode has great color and animation but the sound is really impressive. In fact, the soundtrack will be available after airdate on Amazon, iTunes, etc.

The Music Meister controls both heroes and villains when his voice hits a certain pitch. He makes them sing and dance and do his bidding.

It's not your typical Batman episode. It even has a romatic component (with canary). Kind of like Batman on Broadway.

Free Firewall - Today only

ZoneAlarm will giveaway its popular security software "ZoneAlarm Pro
Firewall" for Free. The promotion will be good for 24-hours, starting
today, October 13 (Tuesday).

http://download.zonealarm.com/bin/free/sum/index.html

I must be hungry

Another food post!

I thought the Cleveland Indians did a tremendous job in one area at least this summer. Their new food options were terrific.

They teamed up with some Wellness chefs at the Cleveland Clinic for some tasty and healthy ballpark fare such as baked sweet potato "fries," guacamole with whole grain chips, vegetable chili, Waldorf salad, salmon sliders, grilled chicken breasts, chocolate bars and frozen banana chips dipped in dark chocolate.

Watch a short video with Executive Chef Jim Perko from Cleveland Clinic

But the Cavs may have trumped them - and hopefully their season will be much better too.

Quicken Loans Arena has a deal with Cleveland's own Iron Chef Michael Symon for food for Cavs games and other events. Bar Symon at The Q and The B Spot will both offer Chef Symon's award-winning fare.

How about some Pork Pastrami – a sandwich with coleslaw, stadium mustard and Swiss cheese on rye bread while watching Lebron James dunk?

Or Michael Symon's Mac & Cheese – made with rosemary, goat cheese and roasted tomatoes during a Shaq Attack?

Can't wait for tip off!

See more of the Michael Symon- Cleveland Cavaliers deal

Don't miss Iron Chef Michael Symon's first ever cookbook!
Michael Symon's Live to Cook: Recipes and Techniques to Rock Your Kitchen

Mmmmm Apples - Top Ten Varieties

The last several peaches I ate were brown inside. I guess their time is over for the season. But that means it's apple time!

When apples are in season you just can't beat them. I usually eat the entire apple - even the core. I started that as a kid even though the seeds contain a little of the poison cyanide.

I usually eat Delicious apples. I've tried a few other varieties - the green Granny Smiths. Golden Delicious and others but a good old Delicious is still my favorite.

But after reading this list of Top Ten Apple varieties I am eager to try a few others.

And I am always open to accepting apple pies and other dishes. Here's a couple books of apple recipes (Hint, hint)

Apple Pie Perfect: 100 Delicious and Decidedly Different Recipes for America's Favorite Pie


A Is for Apple: More Than 200 Recipes for Eating, Munching and Cooking with America's Favorite Fruit


The Big Fat Red Juicy Apple Cookbook

Olympics in Rio

I think this selection makes sense.

Sure it would be nice to have in the US again but it is such a drain on the local economy. Montreal is still in debt from 1968!

Plus I was in Chicago years ago when princess Diana came through. The city basically shut down. You could not travel (drive) a few blocks in less than an hour - really. A Chicago Olympics would be gridlock.

Tokyo didn't need it. Spain has had Barcelona recently but there has never been an Olympics on the continent of South America. That's crazy!

Rio is supposedly very corrupt (like Chicago is not?) but Beijing pulled it off and I am sure they will too.

Geek Test

Infoworld came out with their annual geek test. It's 20 questions ranging from net admin stuff to pop culture to computer history.

It's not an easy test.

I had to guess on a few and still did poorly.

See how bad I did and try it yourself.

3 apps enter, 2 apps leave

No this isn't Thunderdome.

But what if you had to give up one of your trusted office applications (or their equivalents)

Would you give up Word, Excel or Access?

The Great Lakes Geek wants to know

Vote here

Hail to the Chief

OK, it was the Chief of Serbia but it was still exciting.

Before his trip to speak at the United Nations last week, Serbian president Boris Tadic made a side trip to Cleveland.

A reception and private dinner were held in his honor Sunday evening at the Marriott at Key Tower. Sen Voinovich, Congressman Kucinich, ambassadors and other dignitaries attended.

Thanks to Alex Strmac for getting me in to the exclusive private dinner afterwards.

On Monday, president Tadic visited the Serbian Cultural Garden. Check out the pictures and video from his visit.

Talk like a Pirate Day

Has it been a year already? Saturday September 19th is the annual Talk like a Pirate Day.

Which means that Walk like a Pirate Day will be on Sunday

More info and some word and action suggestions

Mickey Mantle or Dr. Phil?

Let's face it. Men, in general, are less apt to talk about our health and feelings than women. And we often pay the price for ignoring health and lifestyle issues.

Maybe if a sports star discussed it with us, we would do better.

That's the gist of the book - What Would Mickey Mantle Say:
Coaching Men to Health and Happiness By Michael Samuelson.



Six men from a company softball team are described in detail and we follow them through the season via post-game get togethers. The men are of various ages and situations so they cover most of the issues that men face today.

Each chapter focuses on a particular issue, such as stress, rage, depression and suicide and after the guys "discuss" a problem we get feedback from a "virtual" Professor Edwards and Mickey Mantle.

There is some voyeuristic fun in reading about the guys problems and having #7 weigh in adds to it.

Check out my review and read more about the book (and Mickey)

Big Ben?

It hasn't been easy being a Cleveland Brown's fan for the last 15 years or so. Especially when our arch-rivals in Pittsburgh and Baltimore have had such success.

But at least we don't dress like this!



Thanks (I think) to Gary Baney for sending it

Strange Buildings

I saw the Basket Building in one of Neil Zurcher's One Tank Trip books and I'm pretty sure I saw the Ripley Museum when I was in Niagra Falls years ago.

But the rest of these strange buildings were new to me.

I love the House Attack from Austria and the Kansas City library.

Here's "The Crooked House" from Poland

Never Forget

We get so busy sometimes with our daily lives that we don't have time to reflect on things. None of us will ever forget the events of September 11, 2001 but it takes a jolt from the calendar to remind us.

Greatest Ohio State Buckeye Football Player

The latest vote at ClevelandSeniors.Com is to identify the greatest football player ever to wear the Scarlet and Gray.

Listed are Archie Griffin, Hopalong Cassady, Rex Kern and Randy Gradishar but we expect votes for Jim Houston, Jack Tatum, Paul Warfield, Chris Spielman, Tom Matte, John Brockington and others.

Note we say football player so coach Woody Hayes doesn't qualify.

You don't have to be a senior to vote. It's easy and anonympous. Vote early and often.

Otto Graham and Jim Brown

When ClevelandSeniors.com (for the 50 and over crowd) asked its visitors who should be immortalized with a statue outside the Brown’s Stadium (a la Bob Feller at the Pro) Hall of Famer Jim Brown led in the voting from the beginning.

In the last few days of voting a surge was made for Otto Graham and in the final tally, the QB beat the RB.

With almost 1000 votes, Otto Graham got 50% of the vote while Jim Brown came in 2nd with 42%. Paul Brown received 5% and Lou Groza got 3%.

Also receiving votes were Bernie Kosar, Dante Lavelli, Clay Matthews, Leroy Kelly and Gene Hickerson.

Umberto Fedeli at Corporate Club

Today's Corporate Club at Landerhaven topic was 'A conversation with Umberto Fedeli.'

It was moderated by Inside Business and Cleveland Magazine Editor Steve Gleydura.

Fedeli is the President and CEO of The Fedeli Group, one of the largest privately held insurance brokerage firms in Ohio. Of course if Fedeli was just an insurance firm officer, the room would not have been packed with a dozen or so local mayors, State Senator Tom Patten and former US Senator Mike DeWine.

Gleydura, and later the audience, asked questions on a variety of topic but when the topic of healthcare came up, the room came to life. Fedeli has strong opinions about healthcare and other issues and the business audience was supportive.

Read more about the event.

Squires's Castle

When is the last time you visited Squire's Castle?

It's one of those things where if we were visiting another city we'd make sure we went to see it but since it's close to home, we forget about it.

It's a great place to picnic and hang out. The Federation of India Community Associations(FICA) recently had their annual picnic there and it was a blast.

Squire's Castle has a lot of history and of course legends have spring up around it. Especially about the ghost of Rebecca Squire haunting the Castle.

There is more info and some pictures here on ClevelandSeniors.Com.

But if you are local, take the short drive and visit it in person. It's worth it.

New Slovenian Consul

It may not seem like big news but it is a big deal.

Did you know that Cleveland has the largest population of Slovenians outside of Slovenia?

Because of that, we get a Consul General of the Republic of Slovenia hosted here in Cleveland, with consular jurisdiction over the states of Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

On August 22, 2009, The Republic of Slovenia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs relieved Consul General Dr. Zvone Žigon from his official duties in Cleveland, OH. Dr. Žigon completed his four-year diplomatic term. Dr. Žigon was a great guy and will be missed.

Taking over is Mr. Jure Žmauc. Get more details in the Slovenian section of ClevelandPeople.Com

What heritage are you?

I am always surprised when I do the monthly web statistics for ClevelandPeople.Com

From the population of Cleveland, I would expect the most visited groups would be German, Irish, African-American, Italian, Jewish, Hungarian, Polish, etc.

But it often is completely different.

In August the most visited groups were

#1 Filipino
#2 Irish
#3 Korean
#4 Indian (Asian)
#5 Bavarian

I guess I can understand why. We have some great videos of dancers at the Filipino Festival, pics and video from the Indian Picnic at Squire's Castle and it's almost Oktoberfest for the Bavarians.

Not eating properly?

I may not always eat the right things but I have no problem eating a lot of things. (grin)

But many older people do. If you have older relatives or are a caretaker for someone, you may be interested in the 10 Signs That Older Adults are Not Eating Properly

As the study says, "When it comes to healthy aging, good nutrition is the first line of defense in keeping seniors strong and independent, according to the results of a recent study about the effect of nutrition on older adults."

Oktoberfest

It sure feels like October out there!

Next weekend is Labor Day already and we have some free tickets to give away to the Oktoberfest at the County Fairgrounds in Berea.

Fill out the simple form at your choice of websites below.

Good Luck



ClevelandSeniors.Com

ClevelandWomen.Com

ClevelandPeople.Com

Cleveland People

It's official!

After over a year of "soft" releases, ClevelandPeople.Com has officially launched.

We had a terrific launch party at Margaret Wong's offices and a diverse and representative group of people attended.

Some great photos

Here's one I like of Councilman Mike Polensek and Mansfield Frazier.



Nice spread (from Pearl of the Orient) too!

Jessica Biel is dangerous

McAfee Inc. reported that searches for the 27-year-old actress are more likely to lead to online threats such as spyware and viruses than searches for any other celebrity.

McAfee said fans searching for the actress have a one-in-five chance of ending up at a Web site designed to damage one's computer. Its the third annual report on the subject from McAfee, which last year found that Brad Pitt was the "most dangerous" celeb online.

"Cybercriminals are star watchers, too," said Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee's product development. "They latch onto popular celebrities to encourage the download of malicious software in disguise."

Following Biel in the report, in order, were Beyonce, Jennifer Aniston, Tom Brady and Jessica Simpson.

McAfee noted President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama are curiously safe searches, ranking no. 34 and no. 39, respectively

Steak 101

OK, I can tell a T-bone. It's got a T-bone (duh). But I must admit I don't really know a Delmonico from a Porterhouse.

But Ed Jesse from Old World Meats in Euclid does. He and his wife Sharon explained the different steaks (including why some are more expensive) in a short video for us.

Check it out.

Anyone else getting hungry?

Valdis Krebs - a different view

Valdis Krebs is a smart guy. Not only that, he brings some different opinions and strategies to the whole Social Media discussion.

While many are busy collecting followers (as if there was an award for it!) Valdis is very selective and even purges followers occasionally.

As a scientist working on network maps, Valdis' ideas can give a productivity boost to your Twitter and other Social Media strategies.

Watch some highlights and learn more in a short video from the CoolTwitter Conference.

CAP Milestone - Volunteer Video

Computers Assisting People (CAP) has refurbished and donated over 15,000 PCs to over 380 Cleveland schools and non-profits.

To celebrate, we created a short 3 minute video featuring some of our volunteers.

Pretty in Pink

I just got my driver's license renewed and - gulp - it's pink!

Of course people are never happy about their driver's license photo but this is the first time I've had a complaint about the background.

This Bud's for You

Some e-mails have been going around saying that now that Budweiser has been sold, the beloved Clydesdales will be phased out.

My friend (and horse lover/aficionado) Judy Lococo wrote to Budweiser and here's part of the reply.

Hello Judy,

Steve here with Budweiser. From one fan of the Budweiser Clydesdales to another, I am honored to hear that you rank the gentle giants up there with the symbol of our country.

I’m also glad that you wrote to us to get to the bottom of any rumors you may have heard. I can tell you first that in November we did merge with a global company. Here in the U.S. we’re still Anheuser-Busch, and the core elements of our business will remain the same. Some examples:

Anheuser-Busch beers will continue to be brewed by American workers at our 12 local breweries.

Budweiser will continue to be brewed according to the recipe laid down by our founder in 1876.

The World Famous Budweiser Clydesdales will continue to represent the Budweiser brand, and will be a key element in helping grow the Great American Lager in new markets all over the globe.

The ancestral home of our company’s founding Busch family, Grant’s Farm, will remain open, and continue to provide enjoyment for St. Louisans and visitors to our city as it has for the past 50 years.

Not only will we continue to support the Clydesdales, but we ran three new spots featuring the horses in the 2009 Super Bowl (you can see them on Budweiser.com), and we also just built them a new home and breeding facility.

Glad to hear it!

Business Networking event draws 1000

People are hungry. Why else would almost 1000 people venture out on a Tuesday night in July and pay $5 to mix with other people in their situation.

Drew Grdina used LinkedIn to organize the event at the Shaker Hts Country Club. It seemed that most of the crowd was looking for work and a large percentage had IT skills and/or background.

I don't know what the results of the meet-up will be. Lots of business cards were exchanged and people were aggressive in their introductions. This was not a shy, wallflower, hang-with-your-friends event.

See a video and/or listen to a podcast of event organizer Drew Grdina at the event.

If you were there, please comment with your impressions.

Is LeBron James a rat?

Well, if he doesn't re-sign with the Cavs he will be. But I mean an actual rat.




Near the new Ox sculpture at the Ohio Technical College on East 51st street was a rat sculpture that I had missed before. Yes, it was the Chosen One - LeBron James.

See more pictures of NBA MVP LeBron James rat

Not happy with laptop direction

I have a problem with the trend toward sealed batteries in laptops and other devices. Instead of the removable and replaceable batteries that we have seen, some are moving to sealed in batteries that you can't replace or carry a spare.

Dell has a new high-end laptop with sealed in batteries and of course the iPhone, iPod, etc. are sealed in. Apple seems to be converting its entire line to sealed in batteries. The new 13" and 15" MacBook Pro laptops have sealed in batteries.

They have a longer life and Apple claims they can be recharged up to 1000 times. That would last about 5 years for the average user which they say is all you need.

If the battery dies you are in trouble. You'd have to go to the Apple store for repair.

And forget about carrying a spare battery for a long trip or 'just in case.' That may be a moot point though as Walt Mossberg said less than 5% of consumer laptop owners have bought a spare battery. I have spares though and think that number is low.

My biggest problem with the sealed in battery is the planned obsolescence of the laptop. What do you do in 5 years when the battery is dead, dispose of it? Buy a new one? Many will want to buy a new device and can afford to. But many cannot.

At Computers Assisting People we get old laptops donated that are perfectly useful for the schools and non-profits that we help out. Usually the battery is dead or dying and we scour eBay and other websites for replacements to make them useful again. This could not happen with sealed in battery devices.

The people on the wrong side of the Digital Divide will again suffer.

Please let us know (vote at GreatLakesGeek.com) if you have ever bought a spare battery for a laptop or other device. Also, please leave comments about the prospect of sealed-in batteries either there or on this blog.

Cleveland's sister city in France

Did you know that Cleveland has a bunch of Sister Cities around the world? The idea is to boost trade and tourism but I'm not sure how active the relationships have been.

Mayor Frank Jackson visited one of the sister cities, Rouen France, last year and a delegation from Rouen visited Cleveland the week of the 4th of July.

The delegation met with peers at Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, Lubrizol, CWRU and more.

See more including a video of Mayor Fourneyron's spech

Statue at Browns Stadium

The Bob Feller statue at the Cleveland Indians ballpark is a popular meeting place and photo op. It's hard to argue with the choice of Rapid Robert as having this honor. His skills and character made him an easy choice.

It's not so easy with the Cleveland Browns. Jim Brown is probably the greatest running back in the history of the game. But some people are concerned with his brushes with the law.

Otto Graham was a revolutionary quarterback and deserving of his place in the NFL Hall of Fame. But he played so long ago (as did other worthy candidates such as Dante Lavelli, Marion Motley, etc) that generations of fans don't know him.

Paul Brown revolutionized the game but it may be hard to honor someone who started a rival franchise in Cincinnati.

Lou 'the Toe' Groza merits consideration but a kicker/lineman isn't as vital to a team usually as a QB or running back.

Younger people may vote for Bernie Kosar, Brian Sipe, Leroy Kelly, Paul Warfield and others from the Kardiac Kids days through the present.

I'm not 100% sure yet but I think my vote would go to Jim Brown. And my choice to never be honored? Art Modell of course.

Who do you think should be honored. Vote here

#1 Milestone Document in US History

OK. This one is predictable. Its the Declaration of Independence, followed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights as #3.

The People's Vote, co-sponsored by the National Archives and Records Administration, National History Day, and U.S. News & World Report, invited Americans of all ages and educational backgrounds to vote for 10 of 100 milestone documents drawn mainly from the holdings of the National Archives.

The rest of the Top 100 are interesting.

Hot enough to melt gold?

To keep the little kids happy and safe, parents often hand them a sparkler on the 4th of July. It seems like a safe way to give them the thrill of firecrackers.

I just learned from Prevent Blindness Ohio that sparklers actually burn at 1800 degrees which is hot enough to melt gold!

Sparklers also cause one half of fireworks injuries in children five years old and younger.

So let's be careful out there this weekend.

Some more interesting fireworks facts and advice

Social media - legal concerns

Many of us have been so wrapped up in social media - Linked In, Facebook, Twitter and the like - that we haven't really considered how they change things from an employer's perspective.

Can you screen job prospects by what's on their Facebook page? Can you ask an employee for their social media password?

Though we sometimes tend to think that social media is so dramatically different that it requires new rules, that is not always the case.

In this new podcast at GreatLakesGeek.com , two expert attorneys from Brouse McDowell answer some of the legal questions of social media

Year of the Ox Public Art in Cleveland

Have you seen the Ox yet?

They are spread around Asia Town (St Clair/Superior/Payne/etc) in Cleveland

Great public art to celebrate the Chinese Year of the Ox.

Look at the pitures and vote for your favorite.

Cleveland Cooks

Debbie Hanson discusses and signs Cleveland Cooks Volumes 1 and 2

Tuesday, June 30

7:00PM at Joseph Beth Booksellers at Legacy Village

Cleveland Cooks is a great compilation of fantastic recipes submitted by local celebrities and residents that give the best of Cleveland, as well as, old-world ethnic dishes grandma used to make. Food samples will be given to those in attendance!

More Information

Save our libraries

I have never been one to vote a straight party ticket. That seems ridiculous to me. But there are 2 issues that I think I have always voted for: Funding for Mental Retardation/Special Needs and the Libraries.

Our library system is the most democratic institution we have. Anyone can get a library card. Anyone can learn all that they want. It's only in recent history that books have been available to the masses and we take that for granted.

Yet we still can't purchase all the books and other information we want. Libraries are the great equalizer.

My old pal Joe was born in a poor neighborhood and he practically lived in his local branch. One summer he began reading every book in the library, one after the other.

He has the best vocabulary of anyone I ever met and is today a government lawyer in DC.

We all have our library stories.

Read Amy Kenneley's story and then get out there and let the Governor know not to cut library funding.

Don't follow that link

Lots of people have been getting the Microsoft Outlook/Outlook Express Critical Update e-mail. It is a fake. DO NOT click on the link even though it appears to be going to Microsoft site.

Spread the word

Juneteenth Celebration at African American Gardens

The 4th Annual Juneteenth Celebration was held in Cleveland Friday evening June 19, 2009 at the Cozad-Bates House and Saturday June 20, 2009 at the African American Cultural Gardens.


An explanation of Juneteenth along with some great pictures and videos are at ClevelandPeople.Com

Do NOT miss the last video of the youngsters from Peace in the Hood. I still have the "Don't fight it out..." chant in my head

Thrilla in Manila at TECHnic

Boundless Flight morphed their annual summer picnic into a joint Gathering of the Geeks on Saturday June 20, 2009. CEO Gary Baney invited other companies, user groups and various tech people to join the Boundless Flight team at the picnic grounds at St. Sava's in Parma.

Food, drink, music, raffles, networking and camaraderie were plentiful. One of the highlights was the 'Thrilla in Manila' 100 yard dash challenge between Baney and Boundless Flight Engagement Executive Heidi Hooper.

Watch the grudge match dash at TECHnic - the video does not lie!

Burning the US Flag

No, this isn't a call to anarchy. I'm talking about the respectful retirement of faded and threadworn old American flags.

For almost 20 years, Boy Scouts have been gathering at Lake View Cemetery on Flag Day with a huge pile of flags they have collected. Then they go through a process of cutting, burning and finally burying the ashes. It's fascinating to watch

Check out pictures and a video of the 2009 Flag Day retirement.

Cleveland's Madame Curie

While scientists respect Madame Marie Sklodowska Curie for her pioneering work in radioactivity, discovering the elements radium and polonium and other accomplishments, women scientists especially revere her.

Even after her first Nobel Prize, she was denied entrance to the French Academy of Science because she was a woman.

Curie was one of only two people to win 2 Nobel Prizes in 2 different fields. Linus Pauling won in Chemistry and then a Peace prize. Madame Curie won in Chemistry and Physics. Wow!

A statue of Madame Curie was dedicated Sunday in the Polish Cultural Garden in Cleveland. Several hundred people came to the event. Photos and videos from the event.

Adding to the event was the keynote given by Dr. Marie Siemionow from the Cleveland Clinic. In 2008, Dr. Siemionow led a team of six surgeons in a 22-hour surgery, performing the first face transplant in the United States.

There are many parallels between Dr. Siemionow and Madame Curie.

Watch video and see more from Dr. Siemionow's presentation.

Packy Hyland Sr.

I’d like to express my condolences to the family and friends of Packy Hyland Sr. who passed away last week at the too young age of 67.

I first ran into Packy at a meeting of the John Carroll University Private Sector Group back in 1990. He knew I was in tech and asked me a few questions about what I thought of this idea his kids had for a business.

Later he stood up at the meeting and said that his kids had an idea for a business and they thought it would be a big success. He (self-deprecatingly) said he didn’t understand it 100% but they thought it would be big. He asked the group for our opinions and support.

Of course, Hyland Software has become the most successful software story in the region. Sure the products and culture are terrific but the quality of the people, like Packy and his family, are what made Hyland succeed.

I’d run into Packy at events several times each year and he always had a good word and an interest in what would happen next. He could have easily rested on his Hyland Software laurels but he stayed active in working on new ventures. It was in his blood.

I last saw Packy when he stopped in at my church (St. Philomena’s in East Cleveland) for Mass one weekend. I was surprised to see this Westsider in my neighborhood but Packy was always trying new things. We had a good chat about business and life and went our separate ways.

I will miss these meetups with Packy. He was truly one of a kind. Heaven just got themselves a heck of an entrepreneur and a heck of a guy.

Get Well Bobby 'Bingo' Smith

Bobby ‘Bingo’ Smith is one of only 6 Cleveland Cavaliers to have his number retired and hanging from the rafters at The Q. The Cavaliers retired his jersey on Dec. 4, 1979.
Bobby Smith, played 10 seasons and over 700 games with the Cavaliers, helping to shape and mold the young expansion team into playoff contenders.

Bingo’ sweet rainbow jumpers were often the highlight of many dismal games for the young team. Fans will remember announcer Joe Tait’s cry of “Bingo!” after another swish from Smith.

In the “Miracle of Richfield” season, Bingo was a key piece of that scrappy team. In Washington for Game 2, Smith scored a team-leading 17 points and made the game-winning shot with just seconds remaining to secure the 80-79 victory. The win served as the first playoff victory for the franchise and propelled the Cavaliers past the Bullets and into the Eastern Conference Finals.

“Bingo” ranks in the top 10 all time in franchise history in nine different categories [Games Played (2nd), Field Goals Made (2nd), Field Goals Attempted (2nd), Minutes Played (3rd), Points Scored (4th), Assists (10th), Free Throws Made (10th) and Free Throws Attempted (10th)].

Recently, Bingo Smith has been fighting some health problems.
We want him to know that the Cleveland fans support him and wish him the best.

We will be at FanFest at the Q Saturday night before the game with a giant card for you to sign. You can also appear on a video greeting to #7.
If you can’t make it to the Q, please send us your messages and we will get them to Bingo.


Cards can be mailed to
Bingo
3150 Payne Ave.
Cleveland, OH 44114

Or you can send them via e-mail to qa@clevelandseniors.com

Or join the Facebook page (get Well Bingo Smith)

Memorial Day Cookout for Geeks

You have to love this special grill accessory for bean counters, geeks and their ilk. See another at GreatLakesGeek.com

Always be prepared

That's the boy scout motto. Of course I was not a boy scout so things happen.
For example, I was at the terrific CWRU CollabTech last week.

At the lunch keynote there was a small cake on each table. Also a baggie with a candle, book of matches and a note not to do anything till asked.

Near the end of the keynote, speaker Larry Johnson had us all light the cakes and everyone sang Happy Birthday to CWRU CIO Lev Gonick, host of CollabTech.

Johnson sprung the announcement pretty fast so by the time I fumbled around and got my videocam out, I only caught the end of the song.



See more from the event

Horse Fest 2009

There's a lot to do this weekend but one of the coolest things is HorseFest 2009 at Lake Metroparks Farmpark.



Horses, contests, horses, demonstrations, horses, saddle demos, horses, jumping competition - and horses!

Not bad for a few miles outside the city in Kirtland.

Details of HorseFest 2009

Best and Worst countries for Mothers

An organization called Save the Children has been reporting for 10 years on the best and worst countries for mothers.

I expected the US to be in the top 2 or 3 but unfortunately we don't because of our high infant mortality rate. The US ranks # 27!

The Mothers' Index ranks the best and most difficult places to be a mother among 158 countries. Among the top 10 best places: Sweden ranks first, followed by Norway, Australia, Iceland, Denmark, New Zealand, Finland, Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands.

Among the bottom 10 places: Niger ranks last, followed by Sierra Leone, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen, Sudan, Angola, Eritrea and Djibouti.

Check out more details

Snow Bunnies in new Convention Center

It's refreshing to hear some new and innovative ideas. Jim Gilmore offers several for Cleveland in his interview with Team Geek columnist Tim Zaun.

For example, he says, "What we ought to do is invent the world's first convention center specifically designed to host winter events. Never-been-seen-before outdoor meeting space ought to created, ice bars ought to be integrated, venue-issued parkas provided, sled rides from one level to another built into the place, and so on. Make meeting planners want to come here in January for the wonderful winter-based experience. "

I love it!

Or how about, "I'd like to see us re-think Public Square. It's been cleaned up but needs a Wow. Think something radically different, like hiring Jon Jerde to enclose it under some uniquely designed dome."

Cool! Check out some more ideas

Do you get Twitter?

There are two kinds of people out there - those who get Twitter and those who don't.

It's easy for someone to grasp the usefulness of a social network like LinkedIn or Facebook but a lot of people have a problem understanding the value of frequent 140 character messages on Twitter.

So I asked Jason Therrien of Thunder::Tech about Twitter and he gives some good advice in this podcast.

Like you should only tweet with about the same frequency that you eat each day. 3-4 times. Listen to some more good ideas.

BTW, you can follow me at Twitter at

http://twitter.com/DanHanson for general stuff

http://twitter.com/greatlakesgeek for techie/science biz stuff and

http://twitter.com/clevelandpeople for info about the many different cultural groups and heritages we have in town.

Barbecue for Bean Counters

You know they type. Maybe you are that type. CPA's and other bean counters sometimes just can't relax - even while camping or at a summer barbecue.

Now they can order up a special grill accessory.



More Geek Fun

The way things work

The current economic conditions are forcing companies to make hard decisions. There is a risk we may have to lay off Andre.

Employee Happiness Kit

Due to the hard economic times and otherwise depressing state of the world today, all personnel will now be required to at least look happy while working.
Company-approved supplies will be provided to each employee at little or no cost.


Check out the Employee Happiness Kit

Cleveland Cavaliers spoof Heineken commercial

The Cavs are sure having fun this season. Just don't let it interfere with the One Goal (like in the 4th Q of Game 2!)

Mike Brown - NBA Coach of the Year

Cleveland Cavaliers Head Coach Mike Brown has been named the winner of the Red Auerbach Trophy as the NBA Coach of the Year for the 2008-09 season, the NBA announced today.

Brown received a total of 355 points, including 55 first-place votes out of a possible 122, from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Coaches were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote received.

Brown directed the Cavaliers to an NBA and franchise-best 66-16 (.805) record. With the 66 victories, Cleveland became just the 12th team in NBA history to win 66 or more games in a season. The Cavaliers also posted a 39-2 (.951) record at The Q, which tied for the second-best home record in league history. Their 27-14 (.659) road record tied for the second-best road record in the league this season.

“Mike Brown is one of these rare people that has nearly every tool in his tool box. He is smart, hard working, and selfless. He is curious and hungry to learn. He is philosophically driven and derives his decision making from his strong philosophy. Mike is a man of character and integrity. He is a natural leader and has a ‘magnetic charisma’ which automatically attracts people to him and his message. He has stuck to his ‘defense first’ strategy when it would have been much easier not to. As a human being, Mike treats everyone with respect no matter who they are or where they come from,” Cavaliers Majority Owner Dan Gilbert said.

“Mike Brown is a critical element as to why our franchise is growing into the kind of success we all envisioned and hoped to achieve. I believe I speak for the entire Cleveland Cavaliers organization from players, to Mike’s staff, to our front office, from the business side and the people that work the games themselves, in conveying how excited and thrilled we are for Mike Brown and his family that he has been awarded ‘Coach of the Year’. There is no man more deserving and it proves to the world that, yes, nice guys CAN indeed, finish first.”

Cleveland improved its win total by 21 games from 2007-08 (45-37), tying the 1971-72 L.A. Lakers in NBA history for the second-largest improvement in wins of all teams that won at least 45 games in the previous season. Brown also oversaw NBA bests in terms of improvements in field goal percentage (from .439 to .468), three-point percentage (.358 to .393) and defensive field goal percentage (.455 to .431). The Cavs upped their points per game average from 96.4 to 100.3, the fifth-largest improvement, and lowered their points allowed from 96.7 to 91.4, the fourth best, in 2008-09.

For the first time in franchise history, Cleveland led the NBA in points per game differential (+8.9). The Cavs defense also allowed the fewest points per game in the league (91.4), the lowest opponent three-point percentage (.333) and the second-lowest opponent field goal percentage (.431). The Cleveland defense held opponents under 100 points an NBA-high 63 times (the Cavs were 56-7 in those games).
On the offensive end, Cleveland’s three-point field goal percentage (.393) ranked second, their field goal percentage of .468 ranked sixth and their 12.7 turnovers per game were the sixth-fewest in the NBA and lowest in franchise history. The Cavs won an NBA-best 41 games by 10 or more points.

Brown earned Eastern Conference Coach of the Month honors on three different occasions this season: in Dec. 2008, in Feb. 2009 and in March 2009, when he led Cleveland to 16 victories, tying the NBA all-time record for most victories in any month. At 39 years, 24 days old, he became the fourth-youngest coach to lead a team to 60 wins in a season. He joins Bill Fitch (1975-76) as the only head coaches in franchise history to receive the coach of the year award.

In four seasons as the head coach of the Cavaliers, Brown has a .643 regular season winning percentage (211-117), the best in franchise history and third among active coaches (Phil Jackson and Gregg Popovich). The Cavs are one of just four teams (Dallas, Phoenix and San Antonio) to have won at least 45 games in each of the last four seasons. Brown has led the Cavs to the postseason in each of his four seasons in Cleveland and reached at least the second round of the playoffs in each of the previous three seasons (one of just three teams to accomplish the feat along with Detroit and San Antonio). With a 27-20 (.574) record in the playoffs, Brown has the highest winning percentage and most wins of any head coach in Cavaliers history.

Wearing High Heels

I have never understood how women are able to walk around in high heels. I know we all do things to conform to societal standards but high heels seem incredibly uncomfortable and unstable.

Yet I continue to see women running (!) through downtown to make an appointment or catch a bus in these long pointy contraptions.

Women get it. Guys don't.

That may be the selling point of the book The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels by Elizabeth W. Gordon

The tagline ‘Learn how to take your business from flats to stilettos’ is a good summary but the book is not all girly-girl fluff. The author says you have to “combine style with industriousness.”

Read a review of the book from ClevelandWomen.Com

Healthy Food at an Indians game?

Hot dogs, nachos, popcorn and other such foods are common at the ballpark. But they aren't the most healthy food choices you can make.

Until now you didn't have a lot of options if you wanted healthier snacks while watching the Cleveland Indians.

In 2009, you are able to choose healthy, and delicious, food items at Progressive Field as the Tribe teams up with Cleveland Clinic.

Go Tribe and pass the Baba ghanoush!

See more & Listen to Cleveland Clinic Chef Jim Perko

LeBron James and the Cavs - this is the year

First time in my long suffering Cleveland sports lifetime that we have the best team in the league as we go into the playoffs. OK, a case could be made that the 1995 Indians were the best but this is clear cut.

Lots of good banners/murals at the Q. Take a look.

Go Cavs!

Hidden Cleveland Treasure

As a born and bred Clevelander (still have the 'Cleveland - you've got to be tough' T-shirt) I am always surprised when I discover some place I've never been or even heard about.

That's what happened when I found the very cool Ukrainian Museum-Archives in Tremont.

The Pysanky (beautiful, intricate Ukrainian Easter Eggs) are cool of course but there is so much more than that at the Museum.



And it's free!

Check it out at ClevelandPeople.Com