Odds & Ends from Tammy Worcester

The Importance of Feedback

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:13:05 -0500

One of my friends and I recently went on a vacation to France. We wanted to be able to share our travel experience with friends, relatives, and colleagues, so we maintained a blog while we were there. Several times a day we would post photos and narratives that showcased our adventures.

The trip was great and there were many highlights, but one of the most exciting parts of the day was returning back to our hotel, getting online, and reading comments on our blog from folks at home. I can’t tell you how disappointing it was to see the words, “No New Comments.”

How many of you read blogs? And how many of you take the time to add comments? Can’t think of anything constructive or creative to say? Don’t worry - even a note of “I enjoyed your post” or “Thanks for sharing” can be enough to encourage the author.

Too scared to add a comment? Don’t know how? Here’s your chance to practice. Just click the “Add a Comment” button below to get started.

And the next time you’re reading a blog post, think about how much it will mean to the author if you leave a comment. It doesn’t matter whether the blogger is 8 or 80, feedback is still fulfilling...

Top 10 Travel Essentials

Wed, 5 Dec 2007 14:35:55 -0600

My friends have told me that I’m the most organized traveler they know. I don’t think that’s entirely true, but I have honed a system that works well for me. Below is a list of my top 10 12 travel items along with my comments.

Mouse over an item for a larger view. Click the item to see more details (including pricing information) at the Amazon website.

Choosing the Best Airline Seat

Wed, 3 Jan 2007 09:52:08 -0600

If you fly first class, you don’t need to read any further. For the rest of us...

Ever find yourself in a seat that is right beside the bathroom? It is noisy, smelly, and you have a constant close-up view of the backsides of those who are standing in line.

Or -- the flight offers a movie, but you can’t see the screen unless you tilt and turn your head just the right way.

Or -- you just want to settle in and sleep and you discover your seat doesn’t recline!

You can easily prevent these things by using the Seat Guru website. Here’s how to use it:

1. Book a flight through any airline’s website (or use Expedia, Travelocity, etc.).
2. Follow the on-screen instructions to get to the “Select Seats” option.
3. This page will show you a diagram of the airplane and will tell you the type of plane. Here’s an example from an American Airlines flight:   
4. Open a new window in your browser and go to www.seatguru.com.
5. Use the menus at the left to choose the airline and airplane. This will show a diagram of the plane, color-coded to show desirability:    
6. Mouse-over any seat to read a detailed description along with pros / cons:   
7. Return to the airline website, and choose the best seat you can!  

Thankful for Technology

Sun, 26 Nov 2006 09:30:56 -0600

A few days ago I hosted Thanksgiving dinner for about 20 relatives. Other than providing the house, my main job was to make the mashed potatoes.

As I reflect on it now, I’m amazed at the role that technology played to enhance this traditional event. How did our ancestors survive without these resources? :-)

I’m thankful for:
• allrecipes.com - a website that provides recipes with ratings and reviews I found a great recipe for make-ahead mashed potatoes! 
• cell phone - a call to Mom from the grocery store to find out how many pounds of potatoes to buy. 
• google.com - Through a search for “best mashed potatoes”, I learned about the potato ricer... 
• potato ricer - a low-tech way to mash potatoes. The potatoes stayed fluffy, even when re-heated for supper!   
• CrockPots - an arsenal of different sized crock pots allowed us to keep the food warm until dinner time. 
• Dishwasher - made cleanup SO much easier! 
• Microwave - We’re still working on the leftovers! 
• Laptop computers with wireless Internet connections - Websites like hotwheels.com, legos.com, crayola.com, and prongo.com kept my young nieces and nephews entertained and out of the kitchen! 
• iTunes - I was able to download a variety of Thanksgiving music. 
• iPod - With my iPod connected to speakers, everyone could enjoy the music. 
• Guitar Heroes - a video game that kept the teenagers entertained - even Grandma tried it!  
• Digital Camera - used to capture the fun!

Clever PowerPoint Example

Fri, 3 Nov 2006 09:51:24 -0600

Last week, I gave a plea for the support of the PowerPoint tool. This week, I’d like to share an example of the tool being used in a creative way to enhance a presentation. (Note - I’m not sure whether this presentation was created with PowerPoint or with Apple’s Keynote, but it really doesn’t matter -- it is a good example of ether one.)

This video clip shows a small portion of a keynote address given by Dick Hardt, Founder & CEO, Sxip Identity. To see the entire presentation, go to: http://identity20.com/media/OSCON2005/

Please be patient while the video loads: