Brandon Moon

Taking Time to Reply

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:51:00 -0700

Recently I had a friend decide to deactivate her Facebook account in favor of Twitter. This kinda interested me, as its a fairly unusual thing for people to do (hmmm, that’s a whole other interesting topic right there). I asked her why she had decided to do this, and she told me that a social network is a two way thing. You have to put energy into it in order to get something out of it. She felt like she wasn’t getting that much out of Facebook, and consequently was putting less and less into it. Finally she decided to just give up on it altogether. Twitter, for her, was a more interactive social network.

As I thought about it, it kinda sunk in. A social network is a two way thing. I don’t always feel like this is true with my networks. I feel like I put a lot into sharing things that I find interesting, and few people let me know that they appreciate it. Conversely, I spend a lot of time reading other peoples stuff, but rarely show appreciation, even for the things I really like. This isn’t really socializing, its more like shouting loudly at a group while they’re all shouting back at me. Nobody is really listening, and there’s no real interaction going on.

As ironic as it may seem, one of the best examples I have of actually interacting on social networks is my mother-in-law. Her interaction on Facebook is way more personal. I know that her reason for using Facebook is to keep in touch with her daughters, who are both married and far from home. They swap stories, share pictures and fun links, and generally catch up with each other on Facebook. It’s a subtle but effective way of saying “I love you” without being embarrassing. And since I’m now a member of the family, I get to be included too! I appreciate that she takes the time to click on and check out my weird and ridiculous links, and even comments on several. It makes me feel like my efforts to share on Facebook are validated. And that’s just cool.

And so, ironically, the big problem with social networks is that they often aren’t social enough. I guess it’s no surprise, but as it turns out: socialising takes effort, whether online or offline. Guess its time to go comment on more of my friends posts…

Big brother is watching you

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:36:00 -0700

Big brother is watching you:

This sorta cracks me up. Microsoft has patented a software that monitors and ranks your behavior. In short, it monitors things like whether you are getting into a monologue in a meeting, or if you use too many hand gestures, or other forms of interaction. It even monitors communication patterns, such as cutting people off in a conversation and recognizing negative phrases and words. All of these combine to give you a score on your behavior at work.

Ummm… Big brother anyone?

Why does Microsoft think we need this? It seems to me that if you trust your workers and keep them happy (i.e. reward them for success), they will work harder. If you crack down on them and monitor behavior, it will only discourage them, and you’ll end up with mindless drones that will probably avoid any interaction at all.

I sincerely hope this software isn’t put into practice.

Social Network Reboot

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:10:00 -0700

Social Network Reboot:

(Click the link above for context)

Have you noticed how in real life, “friendship” is sort of a vague term, but it’s an extremely solid one online? Either you are friends with someone on Facebook, or you are not, right? And somehow this entitles you to knowing all sorts of things about this person, whereas in real life it’s much easier to pick and choose what you share with whom? And then what happens when you don’t care to be that person’s friend anymore? In real life, you simply fall out of contact (and this can happen for any number of reasons; it’s rarely an explicit action), but online you have to explicitly say “I don’t want to be your friend anymore.” Or perhaps you just hide them. But maybe there’s too many to do that to. Or maybe you just don’t like an empty news feed.

At it’s core, that’s what this article is about. It’s comparing fundamental similarities and differences in social interaction, both online and in real life. The similarities are usually pretty obvious and intuitive. In real life, we all have a little bit of vanity or ego. We do count friends, just not with numbers. When we are bored, we call up our friends. There’s always a bit of awkwardness with establishing and avoiding friendships. And everyone likes and dislikes different things about everyone else. It stands to reason that social networks—both offline and offline—essentially accomplish the same thing. It also makes sense that both are susceptible to the same follies.

Because both are so similar, I think we probably tend to focus too much on the differences. This is not a bad thing in and of itself, but it does cause us to develop a negative attitude towards social networks. The truth is, those differences probably aren’t so bad. As human beings, we have an express need to communicate, and we always find a way. Maybe it means adapting how we use social networks to communicate, but we still do it. We create our own “social norms” around our social networks that makes them more useable for all. Pretty neat huh?

And for some reason, I find this all so fascinating.

"I think that I shall never see a billboard lovely as a tree. / Perhaps, unless the billboards fall,..."

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 15:44:00 -0700

“I think that I shall never see a billboard lovely as a tree. / Perhaps, unless the billboards fall, / I’ll never see a tree at all.”

- Ogden Nash

So I discovered this video somewhere on my facebook news feed,...

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 20:47:51 -0600

So I discovered this video somewhere on my facebook news feed, and I really like it. It uses a really fun animation style called kinetic typography (which is just a fancy term for saying “animated word art”). It’s not really all that amazing, but it’s oddly super fun to watch. Also, it’s Stephen Fry, who is just a really fun guy anyways (Jeeves & Wooster anyone?).

The main reason I love this video, however, is not just because it’s super fun. It’s because Fry has a point, and a good one at that. He’s not just talking about language, although that’s a perfect example for it. What he’s really trying to teach us is that it’s time for us to grow up a little bit, move past the tiny critic in all of us, and really enjoy life instead of dragging all the details through the mud.

Too often I am tempted to make light of others misunderstandings simply so I can prove my superiority. But really, that’s a very vain thing to do, and more often than not, it gets in the way of enjoying and understanding the true message. If I can understand them well enough, why do I have to be so critical? I’d much rather live my life the way Fry describes:

“…do [we] bubble and froth and slobber and cream with joy at language? Do [we] ever let the tripping of the tips of [our] tongues against [our] teeth transport [us] to giddy euphoric bliss?”

Even as I write this, I have to acknowledge that I am not very good at following this principle. Too often I am far to critical of people for thinking differently than I do. (Apple, anyone?) This video has inspired me to do better. I hope you like it too!

Overloaded!

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 12:12:06 -0600

So I’m feeling extremely overloaded right now. It’s been a long, amazing weekend; I had a lot of fun listening to General Conference and visiting my parents. By all means, I should be relaxed, but I’m not. I’m having a hard time focusing on anything. Kinda started up end of last week, and has apparently carried on into this week.

Hence, I have not written much lately. Once I get things under control, I will get back to this blog thingy.

But I wanted to ask, what do you guys do when you are overwhelmed? How do you calm yourself down?

A decision

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 18:03:27 -0600

P.S. I decided to stay with Tumblr. Though it doesn’t have a good mobile posting option as much as Wordpress, it does have a really spiffy way to email in posts, and it turns out that works good enough for me. Plus, it’s just so darn customizable, and I really like that.

You might see a different look on my blog in the future, if I can ever muster up the time to really write a theme that I like…

This is kind of a silly post, but I wanted to write it...

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 17:54:56 -0600

This is kind of a silly post, but I wanted to write it nonetheless.

What you see in the picture above makes absolutely to sense to me. I see this about every morning and every evening, and I just have to wonder why?

Situation #1: I pull into my spot normally. It only takes a second or two. Pulling out after that only takes maybe five or ten seconds.

Situation #2: I parked backwards in my spot, and it only takes a second to pull out. Getting into my spot, however, takes me about thirty seconds or so to back in (or at least, that’s what I’ve seen it takes my neighbor).

Situation #2 obviously takes more time. The only reason I can fathom for backing in is so you can get out fast. Only… You can only get out about four seconds faster than I can backing out. That time is quickly lost just pulling out of the parking lot.

So why on earth do people back into their spots?!

I will probably die never knowing the reason…

To switch, or not to switch?

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 08:49:00 -0600

Well, I’m facing a bit of a conundrum. I’ve been playing around with WordPress, which is a pretty sweet blogging platform, and I can’t decide if I should make the switch or not.

Pros:

better interface for blogging, comes integrated with comments, site stats, etc.
my wife just switched, so both of us being on the same platform would allow us to guest post on each others blog.
better mobile blogging support (the apps are way better)
way better themes (more professional, better design, etc.)
more flexible design layout options (I can better specify what’s in the right column, rather than editing the raw html).

Cons:

WordPress charges $12/year to point my domain name at it. That would mean either coughing up more money (which I don’t think I want to do) or… Giving up my custom domain (no more brandonmoon.com)!
WordPress also charges you for custom theme development, so I couldn’t tweak themes like I’ve gotten used to.
there are also other media limits and restrictions, though they’re not really that bad; I think I could live with them.

Well, that’s kinda what I’m facing. Lots of pros for WordPress, but the cons are kinda biggies. What do you guys think? Would you stop coming to my blog if I didn’t have the brandonmoon.com domain anymore? The new address would be brandonmoon.wordpress.com, so it wouldn’t change that much.

Go check it out here and then let me know what you think (either here or over there, it doesn’t really matter).

Update: Since no one is commenting, I’m leaning towards dropping the domain name. Doesn’t seem all that important to anyone.

Utah Business | Articles...

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 10:55:10 -0600

Utah Business | Articles...:

Here’s a cool article about Utah startups, also featuring my company, Pixelture!

"The truth is, those who diligently seek to learn of Christ eventually will come to know Him. They..."

Fri, 26 Aug 2011 13:25:00 -0600

“The truth is, those who diligently seek to learn of Christ eventually will come to know Him. They will personally receive a divine portrait of the Master, although it most often comes in the form of a puzzle—one piece at a time. Each individual piece may not be easily recognizable by itself; it may not be clear how it relates to the whole. Each piece helps us to see the big picture a little more clearly. Eventually, after enough pieces have been put together, we recognize the grand beauty of it all. Then, looking back on our experience, we see that the Savior had indeed come to be with us—not all at once but quietly, gently, almost unnoticed.”

- Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Waiting on the Road to Damascus” General Conference, April 2011

Life Unplugged

Mon, 15 Aug 2011 11:03:13 -0600

Well, I made it through my Internet fast!

While it was a good experience, it wasn’t exactly what I thought it’d be. What surprised me most is that it wasn’t really that different. I didn’t have compulsive urges to get online or anything. But it was surprisingly difficult to cut the Internet out of my life entirely. Something I pretty much failed at doing.

First of all, I allowed email during the fast. Basically, there was too much of a chance I could miss an important email from work. I also had to check things like mint.com or my bank, since I do my money management online. And, well, I have a pretty pitiful music collection. I tried for the first half of the week to only listen to my music, but eventually I broke down and went back to Pandora. Oh, and I left my weather widget running…

In short, I had a surprising amount of interaction with the Internet in spite of my fast. There’s a good portion of my life that does rely on the Internet. I don’t consider this an unhealthy thing though. Finances, email, etc. are all very good uses of the Internet in my mind.

What I did succeed at was untying myself entirely from my social networks. No Facebook, no Google+ (I do check it from time to time), no Twitter, no blog, no socializing of any kind on the Internet really.

Frankly, staying away from social networks didn’t really change things much for me. It was kinda nice to not worry about finding cool links to share, or having to compose a blog post, or anything like that. But that’s fun stuff I do with my free time, so it wasn’t that big of a deal.

Also, I wasn’t left with a bunch of free time and not knowing what to do with myself. Turns out I just read a lot more, and took up some old hobbies, like origami (which is a lot of fun actually).

The place where my Internet fast made the biggest difference was at work. First of all, I have to make a point here. A bit of browsing during work hours is actually a good thing. To be hyper-focused on one thing can actually be counterproductive sometimes. It’s good to take a break once in a while, and browsing is a perfectly good way to do that.

Unfortunately, I think I’ve wasted quite a bit of time browsing when I should be working. Not to excess or anything (I do get my work done), but it can be a bit of a distraction. I found that during work hours, if I took my breaks doing other things (like origami), it fulfilled that break without being too distracting. It was much easier to get back into the flow of work and get stuff done. This is something I’d like to keep doing.

And so, I’m back online. Without too much damage (either from being away, or from coming back). And I’m pleased to say, I think I’ve already found a pretty good balance.

Challenge Complete!

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 20:38:00 -0600

Well… I did it. I made it to the end of my 30 day challenge. And quite frankly… I’m amazed I made it this far. There were a few times I almost gave up. And there were a few times I struggled to get a post out that day. But here I am, at the end, having completed it… and it feels good!

The more important part, however, is what I learned from this experience:

I learned that I actually have a little bit of talent at this. I’ve been surprised by the number of people who have expressed appreciation for and interest in my writing. Is my style perfect? No. Do I have awesome structure to my posts? No. But at least I can communicate my ideas (at least somewhat clearly). And it’s helped me to appreciate my own writing a lot more than before.
I learned that there is so much to say, and so few people who care. This may seem contrary to the last post, but let me explain. While I truly appreciate the people who read my blog (that means you), I know that compared with the readership of a lot of other blogs out there, mine is in the minority. I’d be willing to wage, however, that most of you have a blog of your own. Maybe you don’t post much on it, maybe you do, but either way, most of us are generating content online. Amazing amounts of content, really. And sometimes I wonder… are we generating more content than we can consume? I can’t possibly keep up with everything out there that’s being published online every day… nobody can. So why do we get upset when so few people pay attention to what we write? It’s a funny conundrum.
Some topics are more controversial than others. My apple posts and my Harry Potter post drew a lot of attention. Yet others, such as my posts about Tasha didn’t seem to draw much attention. I find this a little sad, really, that we express more interest in things of less significance, and less interest in the more meaningful things. It’s not that I don’t doubt you read them, and maybe you really did appreciate them, but I didn’t always see it (though I did see it from my wife—love you honey!).
It’s hard to come up with something interesting to post about every day! I’ll admit, a lot of those posts I didn’t spend a ton of time on, and they were kind of grudgingly finished. I also learned that if I open my eyes, I can find something interesting to post about fairly often. And I definitely enjoy posting about something I’m interested in much more than posting about less interesting things.

I’ve enjoyed my adventure. Now it’s time to think up another 30 day challenge!

(Also, this is my 100th post on this blog. How’s that for awesome timing?)

A Bit of a Break

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 22:38:00 -0600

Well, I’m nearing the end of my thirty day challenge. It’s been an interesting adventure, and I’ll have more to say tomorrow (the last post of the challenge), but I wanted to discuss my plans for the week after I finish.

I’ve always heard of people doing such things as a “Facebook fast” or “Internet fast” and always thought that a little strange. I guess I assumed I was good enough at managing my online life that I didn’t need something like that. Since starting this thirty day challenge, I’ve reconsidered. I still think I’m capable of managing my online life, but I can see some positive benefits from being offline.

First of all, computers have made it so easy to distract ourselves. The Internet is so gosh darn ubiquitous nowadays. The recent trend of “apps” has made it even worse. Now not only is there more content out there than we can possibly consume, but we also have so many different ways of consuming it! “Should I check Twitter through my phone or my computer? The website or a different app that also brings in Facebook and Foursquare and LinkedIn? Oh my goodness, there’s a new Twitter app out there. Is it better than my current app? I’ll have to try it.” We almost can’t help ourselves.

My friend wrote a rather cool blog post about how enabling the Internet is. Specialists have been brought down a peg, due to the vast amount of knowledge available—free of charge—on the Internet. We will never be held back for lack of knowledge. We assume, however, that knowledge and wisdom are the same thing. While knowledge can be enabling, it can also be encumbering. It seems that with so much information out there, we end up losing our passions. We hop from one idea to the next, never really delving deep into any one, and consequently not benefiting that much. I myself am guilty of this all the time.

I’m not sure how or when it happened, but somehow I put more importance on the Internet and social networking and “cool things” that I have missed out on some of the things I’m most interested in. Guitar, piano, hiking, building stuff with my hands, enjoying the people I’m with, and most of all… being satisfied with where I am. The incredibly fast pace of the Internet has me always feeling antsy, like I’ve got to get on to the next big thing. I want to enjoy now.

And so, I’ve decided that next week I will take an “Internet fast.” I will turn of data on my phone (my phone becomes surprisingly boring without data), I will restrict myself to work related browsing while at work (something I should be doing more of anyways), and I will stay offline wherever else I am. I will find other ways to enjoy my time, and I will catch up on the things I should be paying more attention to.

I’m excited!

(Don’t worry though, I’ll be back to post more. Maybe not as much, but I’ll be here.)

Five Low-Hanging UX Tips

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 09:40:09 -0600

Five Low-Hanging UX Tips:

This is a very good piece on the basic elements of design. I wish more people knew how to do this. Technology has somehow estranged a large number of artists. It’s sad really, cuz they are the ones we really need to make technology truly beautiful.

My wife showed me this video a while back. It’s from...

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 20:21:13 -0600

My wife showed me this video a while back. It’s from Mormon Messages, and I love it.

This summer has been an incredibly crazy summer. My wife and I made a list at the beginning of the summer, and so far I don’t think we’ve accomplished a single thing on it. You may have heard of some of the things we have gone through though: the IRS asking for $4000 in miscalculated taxes, both of us going to the doctor several times for different health concerns, my mom breaking her hip and helping her out, an unbelievably hot apartment, family vacations and reunions, my wife blogging for BYU WSR and changing jobs, previous boyfriend drama, school, work, the list goes on and on. Not to mention being newly married and just trying to adjust to that. We’ve had a little bit of a hard time keeping up with it all.

Which is why I love this message right now. It reminds me of the things I should be focusing on. So without further ado, here are some of the moments in the last few months that have mattered most to me:

An amazing open house for our wedding down in California.
Watching ridiculous Disney movies
Late night conversations about nothing in particular
My wife’s absolutely adorable smile
Laid back Sunday mornings (now that church is at 11:00 instead of 8:00)
Skyping with the Hintons
Going out to eat at Costco
Reading the Remembering Isaac series
Snuggling with my wife every night :)
Sweet sweet compliments

I could list many more, but these are just a few. I love my life!

"Moments are the molecules that make up eternity."

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 20:02:37 -0600

“Moments are the molecules that make up eternity.”

- Neal A. Maxwell

The most recent issue of the Ensign has a cool article featuring...

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 17:25:19 -0600

The most recent issue of the Ensign has a cool article featuring letters people have written to their moms and dads, thanking them for the lessons taught and the examples given. I wanted to write my own letter to my mom and dad, so they know how much I appreciate them.

Dear Mom and Dad,

Thank you so much for being such wonderful parents. As I look back at my life, I realize that so much of who I am today I owe to the example you set for me and the lessons you taught me. I have to thank you for never giving up on any of us kids. I know raising eight kids isn’t easy, but I’m so grateful for the way you’ve dedicated your lives to us. I’ve never doubted that family was the most important thing for the both of you.

Mom, thanks for being such a great example of loving everyone. No matter what I did, or what I was going through, or who my friends were, you were always there to love me. I’ve always admired the way you were so willing to serve anybody; I’ve tried to be that way myself.

Thank you for teaching me through your example the kind of woman I should look for as a wife. I know that part of the reason I ended up with someone so wonderful as Tasha is because you helped me to see what was important. Thanks for always encouraging me to be a good example and to help my friends. I love you so much!

Dad, thanks for teaching me the importance of hard work. I still hope someday that I can be as hard a worker as you. I enjoyed every opportunity I got to “help” you with a home improvement project. Because of those experiences, I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, open things up, and figure out how to fix things.

Also, thank you for teaching me the value of humility, and for appreciating my strengths. I remember one time you came to ask me for some help with your computer. It’s not easy to admit you need help, but you still did it anyway. I love you!

Above all, thank you both for teaching me the gospel. Thanks for teaching it not only with words, but also by example. I remember coming up to your room at night to tell you I was home, and finding you both on your knees in prayer. That’s something that has always stuck with me.

Thanks for always holding FHE, even when sometimes we wanted to do something else. I don’t remember the lessons so well, but I do remember how much fun it was, and I remember the spirit that was there.

I love you mom and dad! My patriarchal blessing calls you “wonderful” and “of the salt of the earth,” and I know it’s true. Thank you so much for being such great parents!

Apple Bias

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 23:00:00 -0600

I admit, I’m biased against Apple. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you’ve probably already noticed this.

I’ve also been fascinated by the idea of fanboyism and brand loyalty.

So here’s my question: Why do I dislike Apple so much?

I love my webOS phone, but if I had to give it up, I’d be willing to give WP7 a try, or maybe even an Android phone. Anything but the iPhone really. But when you think about it, Apple is the one out there with the best specs on their iPhone, and the most polished OS. So why do I avoid it like the plague?

I’ve been wondering about this lately. The brand loyalty articles say that faced with a choice between equally valued options, choosing one will decrease your opinion of the others, right? I still think webOS has awesome potential, and I’ll admit… I’m a little bit of a fanboy. But why do I dislike Apple so much more than the other options?

The only thing I can come up with is that I dislike Apple’s policies so much that I refuse to buy their products, even if they are better. The more ground Apple makes in the technology market, the more frustrated with them I become. Am I the only one that thinks Apple is becoming a bit of a bully? They remind me of Microsoft as they began to face their anti-trust lawsuits.

Am I being irrational here? What do you think?

(I missed a post yesterday, so I post-dated this one. I’m not trying to fool anyone.)

"We live, in fact, in a world starved for solitude, silence and private: and therefore starved for..."

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:52:04 -0600

“We live, in fact, in a world starved for solitude, silence and private: and therefore starved for meditation and true friendship.”

- C. S. Lewis