Ionrock Dot Org

The other day I took the plunge and updated my blog with feeds from del.icio.us and my Google Reader shared items. First off, it was really easy to put together. jQuery is a great library that has done an excellent job providing a huge bang for the buck.

What is more important though about this bit of work is my decision not to include the items in my main feed. I thought about it and felt that each feed deserves its own context and resource. I also think it suggests the value of RESTful design. By providing different resources for different contexts, I give you, the reader, the ability to tweak what feeds you want to follow. Likewise, if I had twitter feed (don't hold your breath), I would definitely keep it off of my primary blog because the context is so different.

If you normally view my blogs from a feed reader, please take a minute to visit the actual site and possibly subscribe to my other feeds. In all honesty, I usually post more and they are shorter. Being a rather long winded writer at times, I hoping the brevity is considered a feature. Thanks for reading!

A friend from my old job sent a friend request to me on Facebook . This was a kind gesture that presented a slightly odd situation. You see, I've never really used Facebook and only have an account because of a one time plan to build a Facebook application. The awkwardness is when a friend does try to give me a friend request. I could go along and accept, but that sends the wrong message, namely that I pay any attention to Facebook. If I ignore it, then I look like I'm a jerk for not accepting the friend request. I can't win for losing!

Fortunately, none of my friends really use Facebook, so it is really not a big deal. When I do get an occasional friend request, it is either spam or a friend of a friend, in which case I go ahead and accept it (if I remember my password of course). While it doesn't really affect me, I could see this sort of "cyber shunning" become more of an issue in the future. Caller ID had a similar affect in that it opened the door for accusations people were screening calls, which in turn made people wonder if the person they called simply was not interested in talking to them. I could see this sort of situation become more stressful with kids, but I also think kids should stay the heck off of social networks. Either way, I'm glad my own social circles and mediums are a bit more tame in terms of expectations. If I don't say hello on IRC or Jabber, it is nothing personal.