Jeremy Tanner

The Fun Returns

Jeremy Tanner — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 22:51:20 +0000

After a hiatus with both Andrew and I being out of town, Where The Fun’s At is back. We have to relearn our setup using a new camera (1/20th the cost of the last one) We’re a bit rusty, so please forgive us…

Notes:
South by Southwest
30 Hour Day
Jeffrey is now at Digg
Jake & Shondi’s baby Dash
Ignite Boulder
Ken Block will be racing a Fiesta in Rally America and a Focus in WRC
Ironman AZ
Domino’s
PodCamp Boulder is January 22nd & 23rd
TechStars
Tahoe Snowcial
Andrew, Hammer and Jeremy
Graphic.ly
Boxee

Fiestatistics

Jeremy Tanner — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:56:00 +0000

My full Fiestamovement recap is still brewing, so here’s my fiestamovement experience by the numbers…

Final Mileage: 20,452
Longest road trip: 1,370.7 miles one way
Days with Fiesta: 215 ( Avg 92.125 miles per day)
Fiesta Riders: 51
Fiesta Riders on Twitter: 30
States: 12 (CO, WA, OR, MT, WY, ID, NV, UT, AZ, NM, TX, OK / Every State west of Denver except California)
Horsepower: 11 less than this
Missions completed: 6
Tires used: 5
Animal Impacts Avoided: 4
National Parks Visited: 3 (Rocky Mountain, Grand Canyon, Monument)
Oil Changes: 2
Kegs Transported: 2
Hidden GPS Tracking units discovered: 2
14ers: 1 (Pikes Peak)
Keys lost at SDF: 1
Times run out of gas: 1
Wheels Destroyed: 1
Nights slept in Fiesta: 1 (2 if you count Andrew wimping out in Crested Butte, 3 if you count 2 4hr naps on the way to and from Seattle)
Hitchhikers Picked up: 1
Speeding Tickets: 1

PodCamp Boulder

Jeremy Tanner — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:50:58 +0000

What seemed the most popular question after Boulder’s first PodCamp 10 months ago was, “When’s the next one?” … It’s back!

PodCamp Boulder 2 will be held January 22-23, 2010 at the skinnycorp / Threadless office (1468 Pearl St, Boulder)

How’s it going down?

Starting at 7:00 Friday night we’ll get together over drinks and in front of a whiteboard to hash out the Saturday schedule. Knowledge to drop? Things you’ve been curious about? So long as it’s in the realm of creating / posting (Audio, Video, Photos, Blogs/Microblogs) , it’s fair game. We’ll wrap at 9:00 having decided both what sessions / panels / discussions will be happening, and when we want to be back in the morning. (9:00-5:00 Saturday) All are welcome. Invite a friend. Bring your gear, bring a good attitude.

Still not sure? Check out PodCamp in the words of last year’s attendees.

Awesome sponsors making PodCamp happen:

Questions? Comment below or contact jeremy at jeremytanner.com / 248-990-3862

RSVP to PodCamp Boulder via Facebook

Looking for the PodCamp Boulder 2009 page?

Three Years in Boulder

Jeremy Tanner — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:14:22 +0000

This weekend I fired up the motorcycle and rode until the sun fell behind the flatirons, 65º and sunny the day after Thanksgiving, I pretty much HAD to. But temperate winter isn’t much of a surprise here, I was reminded of why I moved out three years ago; wearing shorts hiking the foothills in mid-November, the trailhead starts a mile from my house.

While working in Detroit three years ago, I was invited out to Boulder by two friends who had made the move from Michigan 6 months earlier. It was time for a break, so I took a week off and flew into Denver. We drove into Boulder at night, I didn’t see the mountains (foothills) until I woke the next morning. Years later, waking up and seeing the mountains still puts a smile on my face, I wondered if it would fade. It has not. That week I attended Boulder’s New Tech Meetup (it was still 25 guys in an unused conference room) and the first Barcamp Boulder. I met startup founders, freelancers and others who liked to talk tech on the weekends. There was interesting work to be done. I took a few interviews. I was back 2 weeks later.

By living in Boulder, I can take a better vacation on my lunch break than I could in a weekend. Canyon ride to a mountain town, mountain park or just a bend in Boulder Creek that I can have to myself for a while. A little further out, Snowboarding, Mountain Biking, National Parks and Rafting. And a lot of people who’ll join you. As a small town, Boulder has short commutes; allowing one more time to spend with friends or family. A small land area allows for serendipity, running across friends while walking the pedestrian mall or the ease of getting a few people together for dinner / drinks, downtown is always just a few minutes away. Everyone here is from somewhere else. There’s not the same lock-in you find in towns where most have been friends since grade school. You become a local once you’ve been here longer than half your friends.

Wether it’s a girl, a job or a university; what brings you here won’t be what keeps you here, but that’s fine. If you want to be challenged and grow as a result of it, stick around a while. You’ll have either found new reasons to stay, or gained experience that allows you to go be awesome somewhere else. Myself? I’m still closer to the beginning of my time here than to the end.

Fiesta at Pikes Peak

Jeremy Tanner — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:21:28 +0000

While looking back through photos and videos from the summer, I found a video that wasn’t posted yet from the Pikes Peak Hill Climb down in Colorado Springs. The night before I’d stopped by Cameraworks looking for a good way to mount a camera to the outside of my car. I ended up with a suction cup they gave me a great deal on. As for the racers, conditions werent ideal, so no one broke 10 minutes, maybe next year. Here for your viewing pleasure is the trip to the top of Pikes Peak, cut down to about 30 seconds…

Off to Seattle

Jeremy Tanner — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:27:50 +0000

Blogworld may be sending me to Gnomedex this year… This October will be my third Blogworld Expo, a solid conference in 2007 and even better in 2008. This year I’ll be moderating the “Blog as a Community Springboard Panel” with Jenn Van Grove, George Smith Jr, Bryan Elliott and Keith Burtis. Very much looking forward to it. Today I’m packing up the Fiesta and heading to Seattle to meet with Project H, a non-profit that uses industrial design to make people’s lives better. After that Gnomedex will be on… I sometimes do, I procrastinated on buying a badge, it looks like my procrastination may have just paid off. Blogword just offered up a badge at the last minute. I’ve intended to go, but this is the first year that the timing has worked. It’ll be good to catch up with my friends in Seattle and those that are in for the conf. See you in Seattle!

20 Hours to Seattle…

Five Weeks with a Dell Mini 9

Jeremy Tanner — Tue, 05 May 2009 19:11:22 +0000

After seeing how well OS X ran on the Dell Mini 9 and how easy it was to install, I decided to buy one. I ended up with 3, but that’s a story for a different day. It costs about a 1/10th of what a MacBook Pro does so it’s an excellent 2nd (or 3rd or 4th) computer. Audio in and out works, WiFi works, external monitors work, it reads SD cards and has 3 USB ports.

Software
I’m not going to discuss the OS X install as that’s been done here, here, here, and here. OS X is well suited to small screen use, I’ve gained a new appreciation for Dashboard, Spaces and Exposé. Safari 4 beta has a few new features that help keep you from typing urls all the way out; such as the new Top Sites view and they way suggestions and recent searches are laid out in the search box. 1password helps to keep from having to type out (or even remember) complex passwords. Shovebox stores notes and grabs webpages for offline viewing, I usually switch long articles to print view and then store them to read on the plane. Dropbox is an easy way to move files back and forth to your “real” computer. Using MobileMe or Google Sync keeps both computers in lock step.

Hardware
Inspiron Mini 9n (‘n’ is the “Meant to be sold with Linux” variant)
Intel® Atom Processor® N270 (1.6GHz/533Mhz FSB/512K cache)
Obsidian Black
2GB DDR2 PC6400
16GB Solid State Drive
Glossy 8.9 inch LED display (1024X600)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 950
Wireless 802.11g Mini Card
Integrated 1.3M Pixel Webcam

To install OS X you’re going to want the 16GB SSD, I’ve found it works just fine with 1GB. Black and White are the standard colors, others cost a bit more. The webcam is only really of any use in well lit rooms or outdoors. The computer is spec’d abut the same as one of the first White MacBooks. The main limit is the screen size. I’ve been using the Logitech VX Nano, the small receiver and overall size make it easy to keep with the netbook.

Music
Most of you are already using Pandora and Last.fm. For listening to music while an interenet connection is present, I’ve been on the hype machine and thesixtyone lately. Both excellent sites with tons of new music.

Video
While Hulu and other streaming sites will work, I find I mostly watch video off of a SD card, USB drive or plugged in iPod; and then mostly on airplanes or airports where I don’t have a decent internet connection.

I’ve used the MacBook Mini for the past few weeks as a travel computer, it saves on space, it fits on an airplane tray, it’s easy to grab and hop onto your flight as there’s nothing bigger than a paperback book to snap shut and run. I’d like to see Apple make the same thing, but I doubt they could do it for the same $325.

Try it. You’ll like it. If you don’t like it and have to sell it off, you’ll only be out $20 or so.

The Fiesta Makes it Across the Pond

Jeremy Tanner — Fri, 01 May 2009 22:31:30 +0000

So begins my Fiestaventure. I picked the Fiesta up at the track Wednesday with 150 miles on it. We were able to familiarize ourselves with the car in the paddock area and get the feel of the standard gearbox. My last 2 cars (VW GTI, Audi 4000 Quattro) both featured a standard transmissions. It’s not like riding a bike, but it does come right back to you. Ford brought out instructors from some of the top driving schools, I had the good fortune to be paired with Jay Tischler for a few laps around the track at High Plains Raceway. I found myself smiling when I wasn’t concentrating too hard on cornering… the inline 4 only produces 119 HP, but it’s a fun little car. (A 60HP version is available in Europe, I shudder to think of it’s 0-60 time.) Speaking of Europe, though the car was manufactured in Germany I think that who it was designed for made a larger impact than where it was assembled. To drivers in Europe, small doesn’t mean cheap, it just means better on gas, easier to park and possibly, more fun to drive. These Fiestas have leather steering wheels, the keyless system found on the more expensive Lincolns, USB ports, some have heated leather seats. I favor the European style, I’d give up cup holders and cruise control to get a tighter suspension, a standard gearbox and summer tires.

Thoughts from the first 48 hours:

The fuel system is capless it makes a funny “Woosh” noise when you put the nozzle in and it unseals.
Being able to leave my keys and phone in my pocket is somehting I could get used to.
This green is VERY green.
A rear foglight is nice when driving up into the clouds out here
I can see ~~how~~ why this car ~~could be~~ is outselling every other car in Europe

In conjunction with the Fiestamovement there’s a ride and drive tour coming across the states with the goal of giving 100,000 test drives. A fleet of Fiestas will be downtown Boulder next Wednesday (May 6th) and around Colorado through the 10th.

Ride and Drive Dates

I’ll be driving mine around the Front Range and out to different motorsport events; I’m most excited for Rally, American Le Mans, MotoGP and the Pikes Peak Hillclimb… what else shouldn’t I miss?

Fiesta Countdown now at 10 days

Jeremy Tanner — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 20:42:03 +0000

I got the call(s) last month form the Fiesta Movement, for the next 6 months I’ll be a Ford Fiesta Agent, test driving the Euro-spec Fiesta, providing feedback for the Americas version being developed and talking about my experiences. Out of 560 or so, my application video was one of the 100 that the selection committee liked, paired with my love of cars from Germany (This Fiesta is put together in Cologne) and a promise to write and make videos. I’ve been a small hatchback fan for quite a while, my last car was a MkIII VW GTI VR6. Last month the Fiesta beat out the VW Golf in sales to be Europe’s best selling car. Many of the best cars never make it across the Atlantic, I’d like to see more of this going on.

I’ll be picking up a neon green one in Denver next Wednesday, then driving it up for Ignite Boulder. I’m unsure what else the summer holds, likely a few road trips and a Rally America event or two… I’ll keep you updated.

Another Jeremy enjoyed his time piloting the Fiesta on Top Gear:

Looks like fun, Who wants a ride?

Disclosure: Ford will be providing a Euro Fiesta, Insurance and Gas for 6 months.

Where The Fun’s At Episode 5: Post SXSW

Jeremy Tanner — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:36:24 +0000

I’ll be posting a full wrap-up or rather some thoughts on the conference / festival soon. Until then, enjoy 9 minutes of Where The Fun’s At…

Show notes:

SXSW
Interactive, Film, Music.
RiP a Remix Manifesto
Number One with a Bullet
Jake and Jeffrey Show
Threadless TV
BJ Novak
Where The Fun’s At
The Ill Doctrine with Jay Smooth
Baratunde
Paul Stamatiou
Startup Weekend
Skribit
Mugasha
BizSpark Accelorator
Gary Vaynerchuk
Slingshot Wine
Laughing Squid
32 Bit Party
Shout Now
Kirtsy
BlogHer
Rediscover
These United States
Shirock
the Wrens
Shout Out Out Out Out
Silversun Pickups
Decemberists
Startup Weekend Detroit
Web 2.0 Expo SF
Kegs and Kites
My Ford Fiesta Movement video application
-Jeremy and Andrew