Sujatha, an acclaimed writer in Tamil recently recommended http://www.ted.com as a MUST VISIT site ! I was stumped by the sheer variety of topics discussed !
Well, TED ( Technology, Entertainment, Design) challenges thinkers and leaders to give the talk of their lives and has archived more than 200 videos, which can be shared and reposted for free !
How do they do it ?- They have a generous sponsor in BMW !
Talks are indexed according to theme speaker and title.
I just watched an engrossing video by David Pogue – When it comes to tech, simplicity sells !
This talk is about being simple in design and delivery and is largely aimed at the software industry. There’s a lot of Microsoft ( read Bill Gates) bashing. But the one liners and barbs make it thoroughly enjoyable !
He opens with a song inspired by Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sounds of Silence” . ” I call customer support, I follow instructions and am put on hold and all I hear is the sounds of silence !!”
He makes a compelling case for simplicity in manuals, product design and tech support.
Even if you are not a techno geek, you will enjoy this all the way !
This just a sample ! there are other videos like ‘The Paradox of Choice”by Barry Schwartz in which he argues that too many choices have messed up lives in Western societies. I found it riveting !
Also, check out a three minute talk by Rives on ” If I controlled the internet…” (a poem), a delightful take off on the all pervasive influence of the Net in our lives !
After listening to Rives, I was reminded of a cartoon strip in which two schoolgirls are discussing and one of them says ” I don’t want to get married when I grow up. I hear it takes nine months to download a baby !!!”
I recommend a dose of TED every day !
Interestinghtr post
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