Jay Yoo

Testing a New Brand Name: The Reaction

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:15:29 -0500

I am getting ready to launch a new brand and trade name and put it to the test with friends, business colleagues and my kids. On the surface one might come to the conclusion that it is something, umm inappropriate. It could be if you leave it up to other people’s imagination, but is everyday language in general industry. Here is how people react.

When they hear it, they instantly laugh.
They immediately ask whether or not it is what they think it is (kinda sexual or taboo).
After I explain that it is general industry terminology, they laugh.
They say the trade name in response and again laugh.
They can’t stop saying it now that they have permission (and are laughing).

It’s easy to spell, sparks an emotion and immediate response (in the form of a question).

I am tired of playing things down and going along with boring, but really do care what people think.

We shall see how it is received, but so far, I could not be more pleased with people’s reaction!

Irony: Oil + Apple, Inc.

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:18:46 -0500

I love irony. Why? Still pondering this one, but I think because it exposes the truth of what is both positive and negative; it fits squally in-between and is always changing hands. Irony is never ending, nor is it an absolute. Okay, so I love irony. Here you go:

Apple, takes matters in their own hands when it comes to sustainability. This is straight from a recent Apple patent application:

“Our country’s continuing reliance on fossil fuels has forced our government to maintain complicated political and military relationships with unstable governments in the Middle East, and has also exposed our coastlines and our citizens to the associated hazards of offshore drilling,” the filings state. “These problems have led to an increasing awareness and desire on the part of consumers to promote and use renewable energy sources.”

Apple is a publicly traded company and, while they make bold claims like the above, they must answer to their shareholders and analysts; they must make money or else. If the very companies they are railing against in this patent application want Apple product, then Apple product they get.

In yet another blow to troubled Research in Motion, one of the world’s largest energy (oil & gas) service corporations — Halliburton — plans to phase out thousands of employee BlackBerrys in favor of advancing its business via the iPhone and Apple’s iOS platform

Holy Irony! Halliburton can theoretically become more efficient in Oil & Gas exploration by integrating and deploying the very technology of a company that, in spirit, seems to want to put them out of business. It is true that “Money doesn’t sleep.”

Via Apple Insider

Skydiver dancing with a plane in midair. Looks like they are...

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 12:53:43 -0500

Skydiver dancing with a plane in midair. Looks like they are swimming in water. Very peaceful.

Child's Play: Important?

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 14:17:00 -0500

This WSJ opinion-editorial by Lenore Skenazy titled “The Importance of Child’s Play” got me thinking. Is this really true? What is the appropriate percentage of play a kid should have?

“In striving to make our kids super safe and super smart we have turned them into bored blobs.”

It is hard for me to believe that kids, on average, spend only 2%-3% of their day on “vigorous activities.” I assume that the author means 2%-3% of their awake time which comes out to about 20 minutes. This definitely would not be the case with our kids, who spend at least 1 hour a day playing.

Perhaps what is more interesting is how much parents are engaged in vigorous activities. This I believe is the real problem; if kids are not active it’s because their parents are “bored blobs” themselves!

The Mayo Clinic recommends that adults get 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous aerobic activity. My guess is that, at best, 1/3 of adults get this much exercise, so kids who are “bored blobs” most likely do not have role models to show them how to lead an active life.

I workout at least 5 days a week (45 minutes each workout). I think this is about all a kid should have, as well, unless they become serious athletes. Most of the time when I workout I bring my kids along whether going to the fitness center, where they play basketball, tag, dodgeball, etc. in a kids room, or on a run where they ride a bike. We also have them in a sport in the fall, winter and spring.

Additionally, we emphasize healthy eating for ourselves and our kids mostly follow our lead. Of course we don’t go overboard and let them snack on junk food (no candy) on the weekends.

Overall, all of our kids are healthy.

Play is important for kids, but I also think it is vitally important for adults to be active, as well. The goal I have for my kids is for them to be active their entire life and not just in childhood. If your kid is a “bored blob,” the first place I would look is in the mirror.

Snow Dog

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:07:00 -0500

Snow Dog

Republicans Love Artists?

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:38:05 -0500

Tonight Mitch Daniels insisted we need to create an environment for more “Steve Jobs.” I am impressed he and Republicans seem to agree art and the intersection of technology and humanities are important!

I need the Lytro camera. Is it the next Flip?

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 12:43:21 -0500

I need the Lytro camera. Is it the next Flip?

”Fly to Japan! Project”(10,000 FREE FLIGHTS TO FOREIGNERS)

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:24:28 -0500

The Japan Tourism Agency is offering round trip tickets to “10,000 foreigners with high potential to communicate Japan’s attractions.” I think they mean bloggers and the like.

I guess all you have to do is become a fan on Facebook and you have to be a foreigner with no intentions of becoming an illegal alien.

UPDATE: Well, after a little more research it looks like it has been cancelled. It is very sad to hear about people’s continued hardship after last year’s Tsunami, but I do think “Fly to Japan” was a good idea stimulate tourism. Perhaps they could have done a pilot project with 1,000 of the most prominent bloggers from fashion, food, technology and design…

We realise that this announcement is going to disappoint thousands of people around the world, but we hope people will understand how insensitive it would appear for the Japanese Government to give people free flights to Japan when the cities, towns and villages devastated by the tsunami are still in desperate need of funding for reconstruction. We also would not want people thinking that the generous donations given from around the world to aide those affected by the disaster was being spent on giving people free flights.

The Innovator's DNA: Obvious?

Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:21:55 -0500

The Innovators DNA is an obvious read. That said, it is a really good kick in the ass when taken personally (seriously). Be sure to do a full 360 (ask other people) to see where you are on the discovery vs. delivery quotient stuff.

I still have a hard time believing that “a recent IBM poll of fifteen hundred CEOs identified creativity as the number one (#1) leadership competency of the future.”

Butter Fly

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 23:36:04 -0500

Butter Fly

Apple goes political with patent application.

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 09:29:00 -0500

This is great. Apple, with more cash in the bank than the US Treasury, takes matters in their own hands when it comes to sustainability. It’s great to think they would venture to reinvent “the battery,” or find other new ways to better power electronic devices, as more powerful gadgets require more power, particularly their displays.

Straight from the patent application:

“Our country’s continuing reliance on fossil fuels has forced our government to maintain complicated political and military relationships with unstable governments in the Middle East, and has also exposed our coastlines and our citizens to the associated hazards of offshore drilling,” the filings state. “These problems have led to an increasing awareness and desire on the part of consumers to promote and use renewable energy sources.”

It’s incredible to me that they put this in the Background / Related Art section of a patent application; sounds like something to campaign on.

Via Apple Insider

Weapons of Mass Creation Fest: June 8-10, 2012. I am there!

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 11:38:32 -0500

Weapons of Mass Creation Fest: June 8-10, 2012. I am there!

Crab and Smoked Salmon Stuffed Mushrooms

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 10:13:00 -0500

I am not a fan of mayonnaise in crab cakes and prefer them with crunchy textures. Here is a scratch recipe for Crab and Smoked Salmon Stuffed Mushrooms that are full flavored and fairly light. You can eat these as a meal or serve them up as appetizers. I prefer them with a drizzle of Alfredo sauce.

Ingredients:

18 baby portobello mushrooms.
1 egg.
5 tablespoons of olive oil (you can also substitute butter if you like).
1 handful of freshly copped parsley.
1.5 cups of chopped cabbage (you will cook this, so it will reduce down).
1.5 cups of cooked and diced crab meat.
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice.
3 oz. of chopped smoked salmon.
1 cup of crushed garlic pits chips (you can leave the bigger chucks for extra crunch).
1 tablespoon of fresh dill weed.
3/4
cup of shredded parmesan cheese (you can substitute Monterey Jack if you have it lying around).
1/4 of your favorite chardonnay.
Pinch of salt and pepper (don’t over do it as the garlic chips will add a lot of flavor).
1-2 dashes of All Spice (don’t over do this, either).
Sprinkles of paprika.
Drizzle a little Alfredo sauce for juice and flavor.

Directions:

Preheat over to 400 degrees F. Prepare 9x13 inch baking dish with 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil.
Remove stems from mushrooms. Set aside caps. Finely chop stems.
Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the cabbage and copped mushroom stems and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Remove from saucepan from heat. Stir in lemon juice, crabmeat, smokes salmon, pita chip crumbs, egg, dill weed, parsley, and 1/4 cup of cheese. Thoroughly blend the mixture.
Place mushroom caps in the pan, and stir until caps are coated with the olive oil. Arrange caps cavity side up, and stuff cavities generously with the mixture. Top with remaining cheese. Pour wine into the pan around the mushrooms.
Bake uncovered in the preheated oven 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and lightly browned.
Lightly sprinkle paprika after taking the stuffed mushrooms from the oven.
Serve warm and with your favorite chardonnay.

Enjoy!

iPhone 4 Mic Not Working: Stupid Fix

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 20:18:09 -0500

Recently my mic on my iPhone 4 stopped working properly. When I put it on speaker during a call, people could barely hear me. Strangely, when I made a voice memo, my recording was as clear as away? I thought for sure it was a hardware malfunction, but the fact that I could record a voice memo then made me think it was a software glitch.

I tried everything from restoring and backing up to bringing it in to the Apple Store, only to have them tell me I needed to, yes, buy a new iPhone.

Here is the stupid solution: Take a sewing needle and push the pointed end though the tiny voice reducing mic hole next to the headphone jack (but not all the way through). Don’t worry, the hole is so small you will not be able to get much of the needle head in.

After taking a vacuum cleaner to the hole and headphone jack, viola!

There must have been some lint buildup causing the noise reducing mic to cancel virtually everything out.

It amazes me how many useless other fixes seemed to bubble up on Google.

Jay

One of the most worthy life endeavors is fully expressing your...

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:33:21 -0500

[Flash 10 is required to watch video.]

One of the most worthy life endeavors is fully expressing your artistry; one of the greatest misfortunes is dismissing it. Great to see live music in an Airport.

Fish Sky

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:23:19 -0400

Fish Sky

Fall Ponding

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:21:27 -0400

Fall Ponding

1970

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 14:19:28 -0400

1970

Botanical Full Bloom Summer

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 23:24:52 -0400

Botanical Full Bloom Summer

Books I am Reading

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 09:40:50 -0400

Books I am Reading