My first month with the Nike FuelBand: Stay out of my way and we’re cool

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Past the TV. Through the hallway. To the bathroom. “2,484″ fuel points! Past the bookcase. In the den. Back to the TV. “2,492″ fuel points! I turn again, steps muffled by the carpet. Did I make it? Yes, thank God, and just in time; it’s 11:56 p.m. I stop. Catch my breath. Trudge upstairs. It’s… Read More…

Ask the Productivity Geek: 6 questions, 6 answers

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Editor’s Note: This is the first installment in a periodic column where we’ve asked Matt Heinz, who has been writing an occasional column on productivity for GeekWire, to answer questions on topics related to productivity, work/life balance and time management practices.  If you have questions, email Matt directly or leave them in the comments below. When taking… Read More…

3 ways digital media is turning us into 2nd graders

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We are all regressing. And I have proof from an authoritative source: the state of children’s books. The underlying reasons lie in the digital means by which we communicate, forcing increased — and often unreasonable — expectations of speed and brevity, no matter how complicated the concept. My evidence for declaring this probable cause and… Read More…

Hope, heartbreak, recovery: How our big NFL playoff game played out online

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Seattle hearts hurt Sunday. It happened around 1 p.m. In about 31 seconds. Maybe you remember. The Seahawks had just made a stellar comeback, leading the Falcons in the divisional playoff game, 28-27. I was in my friend’s living room, dying. You were at a bar. At home. Wherever. If you were watching TV, you… Read More…

That kid’s viral iPhone contract: 3 things mom got right

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Sometimes the lessons parents teach kids about technology feel like the kinds of things us adults could learn ourselves. Maybe you’ve heard about this: On Christmas Day, 13-year-old Greg Hofmann of Sandwich, Mass., got something he craved — an iPhone 5. The next day, he got the contract. Not the one that got him his… Read More…

New Years Resolutions: 11 ways to increase your productivity in 2013

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We have a specific, measurable set of objectives to drive our business in the New Year, plus I’ve developed with my wife a set of goals for our family in 2013. The 11 resolutions below sit somewhere in the middle. Most are work-related, but together they represent an effort to work smarter and more efficiently,… Read More…

Hey, ‘disrupt’ this! 5 tech terms to banish in 2013

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The New Year is a time for us to reflect on the past, make adjustments for the future and — in tech — to clean up our language. Every few years, I whip myself into a linguistic frenzy and create a list. In writing (as well as marketing), the most-effective words are specific, staking a… Read More…

GeekWire’s Gift Guide: 13 great geeky gifts from Seattle

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We asked, you answered, and here’s the result. From cheap to whoooooa pricey, here are our picks for 13 great local gifts for geeks … Geocaching premium membership – $10 for 3 months If your geek is the adventurous type, she might appreciate being introduced to this growing community of treasure hunters. Geocaching, powered by… Read More…

America’s unmet tech challenge: the public radio pledge drive

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This is my favorite time of the year. Because it’s the only time when there are no public broadcasting pledge drives. But wait. While I was typing this sentence my mainstay NPR station announced it was beginning its “December celebration” of a “Favorite Things” weekend. They don’t say “pledge drive,” but there it is: the… Read More…

Hey, Seattle – want to wiki?

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So. Seattle. Do we wiki or what? Seth Vincent thinks it’d be fun. The recent Olympia transplant started SeattleWiki and has spent the last couple months knocking on digital doors, asking for help, support, collaboration — whatever it takes to make this Seattle city wiki the that finally, actually, works. Why? Because maybe we’d like… Read More…