monstro! // lane becker

by the time you finish watching this video, you'll want to run a marathon.

2008-05-06T11:30:00.001-07:00

slides (with audio) from my recent ignite talk entitled: "by the time i finish this talk, everyone here will want to run a marathon."

only 5 minutes long! so worth watching. and if you like it, don't forget to donate to the aids marathon organization care of me and of courtney.

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Once more unto the breach.

2008-04-22T18:20:00.001-07:00

Hello, my fine, deep-pocketed friends. Courtney and I are running the San Francisco marathon for a second time this coming August, and once again we're doing it with the help of the National AIDS marathon training program. In fact, this year we're doing the "advanced" training program, which means longer, faster runs up much higher hills.

And once again, we could use your support. We've set our goals at $2500 each, so whatever you can spare to help out will be much appreciated. It's a fine group of people and a totally worthy cause.

* Donate to Lane
* Donate to Courtney

Thanks for your support!

An open letter to Bob Buckter, color consultant, San Francisco.

2007-09-20T13:11:00.000-07:00

from my lovely wife, and so entertaining and impassioned i had to share:

From: Courtney Skott
Date: September 20, 2007 11:57:31 AM PDT
To: DrColor/at/DrColor.com
Subject: building at McAllister & Pierce

Hi Bob,

I live across the street from the building at McAllister and Pierce that's currently being re-roofed, repainted, etc. I stopped by today to ask the workmen what color it was going to be, and they said they didn't know, but that there was a great color consultant working on it. "Not Bob Buckter?" I asked; and indeed, it was you. Are there even any other color consultants in the city?

So, as a concerned neighbor, I decided to write and make this request: Please don't make it brown. Please don't make it beige.

I've watched over the last 3 years as building after building in this neighborhood has gone brown or beige. There's that unusual one on McAllister - the mid-block one with the corner bay - that was run-down and mint green. When the scaffolding went up a year and a half ago, I was so excited because that house deserved to be beautiful. And now it's beige. The one on the corner of Scott & McAllister just went beige. There's that horrendous dark brown one with red trim on the same block. A bunch of places along my running route to the park in the blocks north of the Panhandle have recently gone brown and beige.

Bob, stop the madness! This newest one is already right next to a big brown brick behemoth. Just Say No to Brown! Brown is the color of default; the color of fear and indecision; the color for people too cowardly to do anything else. You have it in your power to do so much more! Please use that power responsibly.

Thanks very much for your time.

A concerned neighbor,
Courtney Skott

PS - Love the new navy one on Scott right on Alamo Square.

testing out a satisfaction widget.

2007-08-23T21:36:00.001-07:00

Active customer service discussions in Satisfaction Unlimited

Service and support by Satisfaction

where i'm @.

2007-05-31T14:50:00.001-07:00

got a nifty new startup called satisfaction, and i'm entirely posting over on its weblog @ the moment.

we're building "people-powered customer service for absolutely everything." which means this.

hoping to launch in the next month or so. having a disturbingly fun time. and that's what's important, right?

i'm running a marathon, but only if you help pay for it.

2007-04-01T15:50:00.000-07:00

courtney and i are in training to run the san francisco aids marathon at the end of july. we figured the structure of the program will get us through 26.2 miles by race day, since group expectation and guilt are truly fantastic motivators.

for the marathon, we're participating in a fundraiser benefiting the san francisco aids foundation. established in 1982, the san francisco aids foundation is one of the oldest and largest community- based aids service organizations in the united states. they provide direct services to thousands of people living with or at risk for hiv/ aids, promote hiv prevention and awareness in the community, and advocate for sound hiv/aids policies at all levels of government.

speaking of group expectation and guilt, here is where you, our friends, come in. we've both set our personal fundraising goals at $2500 each -- we have to raise $1800 each to participate, though if we can raise more, that's great! -- and we have to do it by april 27th. so whether you are motivated by the cause, by the prospect of me running a marathon, or just by the prospect of seeing courtney (who's way faster than me) kick my ass, please help us meet our fundraising goals and donate today!

it's (theoretically, if the web site wasn't such a clunker) easy to make your tax-deductible donation by credit card online:

my donor page

courtney's donor page

or if credit cards on the internets scare you, you can instead download a form from the link on our donor pages or just mail a check to:

national aids marathon training program file #7409302
po box 60000
san francisco ca 94160

if you send a check, please reference our names and participant numbers: courtney skott #7167; lane becker #7168.

finally, please pass this link along to anyone else you think might want to support hiv services and prevention programs. donations of any amount to either of our campaigns will help us reach our fundraising goals.

thanks so much for supporting us in this undertaking. we'll keep you updated on our progress! (coming up next: 14 miles. ouch.)

follow me.

2006-10-06T15:39:00.000-07:00

trying this out:

Download Flash plugin

relocating.

2006-07-06T08:14:00.000-07:00

i'll be over here for the next little while.

the high cost of dying.

2006-06-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

hey, anybody out there own the complete set of all five seasons of "six feet under," and if you do, couldja loan 'em to us? (it's either that or join netflix, because the full set from amazon's $350!) i'll be your best friend forever. promise!

about time.

2006-05-15T16:16:00.000-07:00

5 years in, adaptive path finally launches a weblog.

courtney graduates!

2006-05-04T15:36:00.000-07:00

and she built a big bed to do it. you can see for yourself at the opening reception for her and her classmates' thesis works: "through the woods," friday, may 12, 7pm. if you love her, you'll show up!

also, the bed? awesome!

top ten sources.

2006-05-02T15:44:00.000-07:00

top ten sources asked me for my top ten sites, and i told them. i even say nice things about peter and jeff.

my favorite part, though, is the "related top 10 sources" links at the bottom, because they totally match up to the version of myself i've got in my head: "geekstars | web2 | thinkers of the web | gossip | fashion trends."

life lesson #14.

2006-05-01T16:22:00.000-07:00

e: yeah - so the remarkable thing about him
is that he started a company in college
and then got a vc job right after college
through his frat brother
so, in case you were wondering how the world works

l: oh, i already knew that
i mean, that it worked that way
it took me 30 years but i figured it out eventually

e: yeah - like you hear that the whole time you are growing up right
it's all who you know
but actually putting that consciously into action takes either:
1) a privileged background or
2) a couple of decades

reality has a well-known liberal bias.

2006-05-01T16:07:00.000-07:00

liked colbert's performance? buy the t-shirt!

the new venture continues.

2006-04-20T16:22:00.000-07:00

more information about it now up on the adaptive path site, for those of you who are curious about such things.

with a smile.

2006-04-08T17:14:00.000-07:00

on the very kind recommendation of uberpodcaster leo laporte of this week in tech, this morning i ordered up a semiprofessional usb microphone, the samson c01u, complete with fancy fancy shockmount stand.

more interestingly, i ordered the equipment from sweetwater sound, which is a speciality audio company somebody recommended to me a while back, and not long after i received the order confirmation i got the following message, which i am reproducing here in its entirety because i think it may be the nicest email message i've gotten in a very long time:

From: Brandon McSwain <xxx@sweetwater.com>
Subject: Hey Lane
Date: April 8, 2006 3:48:30 PM PDT

Hi, Lane. My name is Brandon McSwain and I will be your Sales Engineer here at Sweetwater Sound. As you may or may not know, Sweetwater is the leader in the Music Technology industry primarily because of our focus on customer service. I, as your personal contact here, am committed to taking care of you no matter what....from service to technical support, from great deals in equipment to information on the right gear, I will be here to serve as your direct liaison to the manufacturers in this ever changing industry as well as just being a great resource in your search for the hottest new gear. One way that I can stand behind everything that I sell is by working on a relationship basis. As I get to know you and your ambitions in this feild, I will be able to confidently make suggestions towards your future purchases and utlimately guide you to achieving your musical dreams! Because I work on a one on one basis, it's only fair that I take a moment to tell you a little bit about me.

Like I mentioned before, my name is Brandon McSwain and I am a Sales Engineer here at Sweetwater. I have had a engrained passion for music and technology for as long as I can remember. I went to Appalachian State University on a Vocal Scholarship in Opera, and graduated with a degree in Recording and Production with a minor in business. I am a classically trained pianist and vocalist. I am currently working a full length solo album. I have done commercial recording work in various studios for the past 6 years. I have toured the US, Canada and Europe as a professional musician. I have an extensive background in live sound. I have engineered for many national acts on tour as well as been on staff at a the Holmes Convocation Center in North Carolina (an arena venue) and a few large Houses of Worship as the Head Sound and Lighting Tehnician. Now that I'm here at Sweetwater, I find that the experience that I have gained in this industry has not only helped me fulfill my commitment to my clients, but has also helped me to help them in their struggles in this industry. I would love the chance to help you as well.

Please feel free to give me a call at anytime if you have any questions or issues concerning recording gear, live sound gear, post production, video, acoustics, guitars, instruments, etc. My normal business hours are from 9:00am-6:00pm EST, Monday-Friday, but I am typically here later and sometimes here on Saturdays as well. I am on the phone all day, and so if you have trouble getting a hold of me, please leave a message on my voicemail. I check it regularly and will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you for your time and I truly look forward to speaking with you soon!

Brandon McSwain
Sales Engineer

Sweetwater Sound Inc.
5335 Bass Rd.
Fort Wayne, IN 46808

that, my friends, is customer service. thanks, brandon!

(and, yes, this does mean, despite previous reservations, i'm inching ever closer to starting a shiny shiny podcast in the very near future. just as soon as the mic arrives and i can figure out the sound editing software. oh, the suspense.)

perception, meet reality.

2006-04-04T12:15:00.000-07:00

this is the best news i have heard all week.

adventure capital.

2006-04-03T11:56:00.000-07:00

proof that i'm actually up to something with the new job. more to come! very exciting!

update: more on the setup at thedeal.com. though it's inaccurate about the number of sierra deals we're planning on doing — 1-2 this year, out of 3-4 total. the other relationships we'll be developing on our own outside of this partnership.

podcasting, redux.

2006-03-27T15:46:00.000-08:00

talking is something i'm always happy to do. here i am being interviewed for the web 2.0 podcast show, for example.

the guys who run this were a lot of fun, very animated, and we talked for over an hour. i'm sure they cut it down, though i can't say that with any certainly — i haven't listened to it because i can't stand hearing myself talk. so, if you would, try it out and let me know how i did.

now's probably as good a time as any to mention that i'm planning to start my own podcast real soon now. figure if i tell enough people i'll have to actually do it.

you can make it anywhere.

2006-03-18T09:36:00.000-08:00

i got my own category on valleywag. i have finally, finally made it. though why this post isn't included is beyond me.

turntablist, tx.

2006-03-17T07:25:00.000-08:00

back from sxswi and, while there's a lot i could say about it, the most memorable is this: dj mel is the greatest dj i have ever seen. and i come from san francisco, a city lousy with talented djs.

but there was something about dj mel — the way he combined wildly eclectic and unpretentious song choices with serious scratching skillz; they way he combined men without hats and 50 cent, and kept it working much longer than it had any right to. all of which kept everybody, everybody dancing; micki comes up to me around 1am, grabs me by the shoulders, and screams over the thumping: "i really want to go to the next party, but this dj is so fucking good!"

we're definitely flying dj mel out for the next ap party.

adaptive headache.

2006-03-03T07:17:00.000-08:00

funny thing, it's also the five year anniversary of this hangover.

ocean boiler.

2006-02-23T07:55:00.000-08:00

@ the bar the other night, i was subject to an informal, napkin-documented peer review by everybody gathered for our regular tuesday night @ nova. discovered upon waking that it had made its way to flickr.

i think my friends know me a little too well; it's distressingly accurate. props to greg veen for coming up with my new motto, "ocean boiler." because, occasionally, it works.

number five with a taco.

2006-02-20T14:03:00.000-08:00

adaptive path's turning five on march 2nd, and, naturally, we're having a party. any excuse, you know, and this one's better than most. plus, i can personally guarantee that it will be even better than last year's, and that was a blowout. lights, djs, alcohol — and the taco truck will, of course, be parked out front. free tacos for all!

details: 363 brannan st., sf, ca, march 2, 6pm until late. wear something office-inappropriate.

listed on upcoming, if you feel the need to semi-rsvp.

back from below.

2006-02-19T11:03:00.000-08:00

i had a 3 continent month in december, bopping from san francisco to beijing; back, briefly, before heading out to santiago, chile, with erika and courtney; then making our way down through patagonia all the way to tierra del fuego, about as far south as you can go (excepting antarctica) before you can't help but start back north.

i mention this because, hello, way fun, but also 'cause we took pictures, i finally managed to post them all (164!) to flickr, and i wanted to share.

quite a trip. highly recommended to anyone who likes meat and/or mountains, since there was quite a bit of both.