Net Gens own the world?

I'm reading Don Tapscott's Grown Up Digital and feel quite related to the Net Gen in some ways although I'm Gen X'er myself. I love many of the great social networking services and other nice stuff on Internet. I love to both consume and share things there. I want my Facebook, Last.fm, Flickr, Twitter, You Tube, Spotify etc.
But then again in many ways the Net Gen is so alien to me. I'm not as fast, I'm not as social with my working practices etc.
But if they are so damn efficient and clever, what is left for us Gen X'ers and baby boomers to do in the work life? Should we just retire and let these guys and gals take care of the business? ;-) Or is there something we're better at? Maybe the answer is there in the book, I just need to finish it first and digest it for a while.

Last.fm on Fring

I installed the latest version of Fring client yesterday once I saw the blog post about Last.fm integration to it from TechCrunch. I had been using Fring before but once we got our own Nokia Chat (now called Contacts on Ovi) out last summer I ditched Fring.
Now I played around with the new Fring client a bit and it is pretty nice...they have done quite nice job integrating Twitter, Facebook etc.
But the point for me to check the new client was to see how they've done the Last.fm integration. As I assumed Last.fm is one item on your buddy list. Basically all the main features are supported. You can create channels by a band name, listen to your friends' channels, ban and love music etc. The playback does continue in the background even when you're chatting f.ex. with a Gtalk buddy. So everything is cool otherwise but the UI could be better. It's a bit ugly and moving between the playback, ban, love, etc buttons and artist info field is a bit clumsy because the tab order is weird.

So will I start using Fring again? Well, not for chat as Contacts on Ovi does the trick for me. But I'll keep the client installed for the rare occasions I want to listen to Last.fm on my E71.

Spotify is cool, but that's it

I've seen a lot of discussions in blogs, emails and Twitter bracing Spotify. Some say after using it for a couple of days that they love it and couldn't live without it.
The laggard that I am, I only subscribed to and installed the Spotify client a few days ago. Right now I'm listening to the new Bruce Springsteen album on Spotify (quite a nice album...basic stuff from the Boss).

I'm not totally blown away by Spotify. I don't see it that revolutionary at all. I mean it's nice and all and surely I will keep using it, but I don't quite see what it brings that I didn't already have with Launch.com (later Yahoo! Launch), Last.fm etc. Being able to access your playlists on every computer you have the client installed on isn't a big thing to me as I don't even store playlists for later use 'cause I want to pick the songs for my playlist each time I'm listening to music.

But bringing social aspects to Spotify, scrobbling your music history and playing your friends' stations or stations based on a band name etc, would make Spotify my one and only player on connected computer. Ahh, yeah I'm also looking forward to a client for S60 phones. :-)

Status messages for life

It's kind of boring to see people update their status on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Bebo, Orkut or whatever social network with the stuff that is just normal routine part of their days, like "Mette Mannonen is at work forecasting the weather" (no, I don't know her but would love to :-) ).
I'm guilty of doing this myself also sometimes when I can't think of anything clever to say but I feel like my lates status update is way pass its' expiration date.

Now I thought I'll write here status messages for the rest of my life...well at least until I'm retiring. These are valid unless otherwise stated in my status message in Facebook and/or Twitter.
MON - FRI
11:45 pm-6:45 am: Marko is sleeping.
6:45 am-8:00 am: Marko is getting ready for the day at the office ie. yawning, washing, shaving and eating.
8:00 am - 8:15 am: Marko is driving to the office listening to Radio Rock morning show (the car might be different depending on the day but who cares).
8:15 am- 4:15 pm: Marko is working, which means boring meetings, boring emails and boring document reading and writing while hoping to be somewhere else doing something else
4:15 pm - 4:30 pm: Marko is driving home and listening to Radio Rock again
4:30 pm - 5:30 pm: Marko is cooking dinner or helping with it and eating it with the family
5:30 pm - 6:00 pm: Marko is trying to rest on the couch while reading a magazine or surfing the web
6:00 pm - 8:30 pm: Marko is taking his kids to their hobbies and/or doing his own stuff like gym, skiing, floorball
8:30 pm - 9:15 pm: Marko is getting ready for the night ie. eating and washing (note: in the morning washing comes before eating), putting younger kid to bed and reading a bed time story etc.
9:15 pm - 11:44 pm: Marko is watching TV, reading emails and maybe working on some work related document, surfing the web or reading a book or magazine
11:44 pm - 11:45 pm: Marko is being gentle to his wife

SAT - SUN
11:57 pm-8:45 am: Marko is sleeping.
8:45 am - 10:30 am: Marko is getting ready for the day ie. yawning, scratching, washing, shaving and eating.
10:30 am - 11:45 am: Marko is taking it easy at home, watching TV or playing with kids or something
11:45 am - 3:00 pm: Marko is fixing or building something at home OR shopping downtown AND/OR taking kids to their hobbies
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm: Marko is cooking and eating late lunch with the family
4:30 pm - 6:00 pm: Marko is again watching TV
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm: Marko is excercising (either gym or skiing)
8:00 pm - 9:00 pm: Marko is in sauna
9:00 pm - 9:30 pm: Marko is having evening meal, putting younger kid to bed and reading a bed time story etc.
9:30 pm - 11:45 pm: Marko is watching TV or a rental movie
11:45 pm - 11:55 pm: Marko is getting ready for bed, washing and stuff
11:55 pm - 11:57 pm: Marko is being gentle to his wife double as much as on weekdays

There you have it. If there's nothing special mentioned in Facebook or Twitter just check the list above and you'll know what I'm doing.

Mun kelkka on museokamaa!

Wau, ajoin eilisellä reissulla lyhyen pätkän kaverin uudella Lynx Rave RE 600 E-TECillä! Täytyy sanoa, että nyt minun -06 -vuosimallin Lynxin 600 SDi X-Trim on ihan museokamaa. Moottorista en osaa sen ihmeempää sanoa, mutta kyllähän sekin pitäisi juttujen mukaan olla paljon parempi ja vähäpäästöisempi kuin toi SDi. Kaverin kellkka vaan on vielä sisäänajossa, joten kulutus oli kovempi kuin minulla tuossa X-Trimissä eikä toiminta muutenkaan ole vielä niin notkeaa kuin se tulee olemaan ensihuollon jälkeen. Mutta se ajettavuus ja ajoasento! Korkeampi ja kapeampi penkki tekee ajamisesta lapsellisen kevyttä. Alusta tietysti on myös paljon parempi, vaikka se on ollut kyllä jo pari talvea käytössä Lynxillä, mutta se ei minusta niin iso asia ole kuin tuo ajoasento ja keveys. Uusi X-Trim:kin on parikymmentä kiloa kevyempi kuin minun X-Trim puhumattakaan tuosta pätkästä sport-mallista.
Kun sitten palasin oman kelkan sarviin ja ensimmäisen patikon poikasen tullen nousin ajamaan seisaaltaan, tuntui penkistä ylösnouseminen aivan hirveän työläältä. Niin paaaljon alempaa siinä joutuu itsensä ylös hilaamaan. Kelkan ohjaaminen tuntui aivan uskomattoman työläältä...shit. Täytyy sanoa, että kyllä tekis mieli päivittää omakin kelkka, mutta sinnittelen kuitenkin vielä tämän kauden tällä nykyisellä. Mutta iskarit on kyllä pakko simmittää...niin paljon tulee iskuja läpi etupukista.

Kelkkakauden avaus, Juustola - Syöte - Juustola

Tuli sitten kelkkakausi avattua eilen Pudasjärven maisemissa. Kaverin kanssa pakattiin aamulla kelkat Oulussa kärryn kyytiin ja nykäistiin ne Juustolan pihaan. Siitä sitten rykäistiin kelkoilla Syötekeskukseen ja takaisin. Aika rankka lenkki kauden aloitukseksi, kun matkaa tuli reilu 200 km ja koko matka aika patikkoa. Iijoki oli aika pahasti vesillä, joten päätettiin kiertää sillan kautta sen yli. Lunta saisi olla tuollakin reitillä reilut parikymmentä senttiä enemmän, että alkais ojat täyttyä. Syötteen ympäristössä kyllä lunta on jo ihan riittävästi, mutta siellä taas patikko oli ihan järkyttävää. Liikennettä on ollut paljon ja lanauksen tarpeessa reitti todella olisi. Minä hyydyin menomatkalla patikkoon niin, että viimeiset kolme kilometriä ennen kelkkojen ja kuskien tankkausta ja takaisin kääntymistä ajelin siinä turistipatikossa ihan turistivauhtia. Ei vaan jaksanu enää edes puristaa kaasua niin, että olis kelkka kulkenu nätisti patilta toiselle. Kaveri kyllä jaksoi paremmin.
Ainoa varsinainen vastoinkäyminen menomatkalla oli, kun minun takalaukku oli auennut ja yli puolet kamasta oli levinnyt jonnekin välille. Osittain tästä johtui myös hyytyminen patikkoon, kun ei ollut nestettä juotavaksi.
Kun sai sitten kahvilassa vähän lepäiltyä ja ravittua itseään, oli patikko paremmin ajettavissa ja se sujui hiukan joutuisammin, vaikka ei vieläkään jaksanut koko ajan pitää vauhtia, vaan aina välillä piti vähän hengähtää. Paluumatkan iloinen yllätys oli, kun Pudasjäven Nesteellä kyseltiin, että oliko meiltä tippunut reitille kamaa. Joku rehellinen ja avulias moottorikelkkailija oli kerännyt kamat reitin varrelta ja jättänyt ne Nesteelle. Mahtavaa, minulla yli 20 vuotta ollut leuku oli pelastettu ja takaisin onnellisella omistajallaan :)
Tämän reitin pahimmat ojat ovat Juustolan ja Kuusamontien ylityksen välillä. Täräytin paluumatkalla pariin ojaan sen verran reilusti, että kroonisesti kipeä oikea ranne rusahteli ja niskan fasettinivelten jumit taisi paukahdella. Kaasuvipukin kääntyi sen verran hankalaan asentoon, molemmilla kerroilla, että piti sitä väännellä takaisin. Kaveri sitten ajoi parisen kilometriä ennen Juustolaa yhden mutkan leveäksi ja otti hiukan kontakti puuhun. Kelkka kellahti siitä kyljelleen, mutta kumma kyllä vaikutti siltä, ettei isompaa vahinkoa tullut. Suksi saattoi vähän vääntyä, mutta ainekset tilanteessa oli kyllä pahempaankin vahinkoon. Noh, jokatapauksessa tärkeintä on ettei kaverille käynyt mitenkään.
Oli kyllä hyvä reissu ja kelkkailu maistui taas herkulta pitkän odottelun jälkeen. Nyt kyllä tuntee lihaksissa, että olisi kyllä puolet lyhyempikin matka riittänyt näin kauden avaukseen.

Working through life or living it

There was an interesting post in TechCrunch couple of weeks ago by Mr Arrington about his presentation in Le Web conference that caused even more interesting reaction from the Le Web organizer.

"Conference organizer Loic Le Meur (a French entrepreneur who moved to Silicon Valley for his most recent startup Seesmic) says that Silicon Valley moves too fast, and that Europeans enjoy a good two hour lunch just to experience the joy of life.

My response, at about 17:40: the joy of life is great, but all these two hour lunches over a bottle or two of great wine and general unwillingness to do whatever it takes to compete and win is the reason why all the big public Internet companies are U.S. based. And those European startups that do manage to break through cultural and tax hurdles and find success are quickly gobbled up by those U.S. companies. Skype (acquired by eBay) and MySQL (acquired by Sun) are recent examples."

As a response to Arrington's statement Le Meur put up a poll to conference participants on whether to invite Arrington to Le Web next year or not. Touchy, if you ask me.

But all this got me (again) thinking of how important it is to succeed in business (or sports or whatever it is you're doing) at almost any cost in comparison to having a good balanced life. I'm sure it is not good to be too obsessed by the success. On the other hand if it makes you happy then just work 14 hours a day and always think of what's the most effective way of doing things. Personally I think life's too short so you might as well stop and smell the roses while you're here.