Be Proud Canada!

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure to listen to a speech by Chris Rudege,.CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee! He told us about all of the effort that had been devoted to ensuring that the Winter Olympic Games will be a successs - fror Canada and for our athletes. An "Own the Podium" programme was created 6+ years ago and the real fruits of this effort should be seen in our performance! USA Today's lead front page article tells the story! We going to do great! Be proud Canada!

.http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/2010-01-29-canada-host-win_N.htm

Apple's Real Invention: A Revolutionary Retail Experience

Apple's real invention is not really the Mac, iPod, iPhone and iPad but their almost obsession with the customer to make the whole process of buying an Apple product an unforgettable experience And I mean the Apple retail stores. There are 15 in Canada - 6 in the GTA! The experience is amazing - as different more a normal electronic store as black and white.
First you book an appointment on the internet for the store of your choice. A knowledgeable representative spends an hour showing you the Mac and telling you about the Apple philosophy.. It's fascinating!

At the end if you buy, the transaction is done right where you are sitting and your invoice is magically produced from underneath the table we are sitting at! No cashier, no wait and it's actually produced on the same machine that has been used to demonstrate.
Next you can bring your PC to them and they will transfer all your files and upload any extra software you might have - all in less than 48 hours guaranteed! So your machine is ready to be used when you get it home.
And when you go to pick up your purchase  - they offer to carry it to your car but if you choose - you are welcome to attend an a 1 hour instruction - at 6:00 pm every day - with the others that have purchased a machine.
And they offer a one to one instructional class - for $99.00 a year - you book an appointment and have one on one with an Apple tech for one hour - as many times in the year as you want at any Apple store in the world!
I have visited the store say 12 times - my wife double that and we have never waited more than 2 minutes before someone has apporachs us and asked - not what can I sell you - but how can I help you!
They want to to get the most out of your purchase and become a convert. Certainly I have!
This is the future of retail!

A Sad Time and A Very Moving Video

As I was collecting my thoughts for today's blog, a wonderful Mexican friend emailed me this very moving video. Somehow, with the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Haiti still at the forefront of our minds, it seemed just right to be today's posting.

The world is so interconnected and intertwined that all of us have a responsibly to help in any way we can when there is a disaster like this. It impacts all of us!

Our Sympathies To Everyone In Haiti

I was overwhelmed this morning - as were all of us - at the devastating earthquake that happened yesterday afternoon in Port-au-Prince,Haiti. I can't imagine what it must be like to be there now. On behalf of my family, all the employees of Interwood and their families, I would like to extend our condolences to everyone that is affected by this tragedy. Our thoughts are with you.

Facebook Users Are growing Dramatically: 55 & Older

The Canadian Press reports that Amy Webb, a consultant and chief executive of Webbmedia Group that "Facebook users now are people who are much older, people who are retirees or who are in their 50's, 60's and they're starting to use Facebook as a primary means of communication". Users aged 55 and older grew by an astounding 514 percent in the previous 6 months according to iStrategy labs" That's another indication of the revolution that continues to take place in communication.

I remember when Interwood was founded in 1974, we started with a telephone, a typewriter and a telex machine. Soon the fax machine was invented and eliminated the need for our telex machine. Then came the personal computer which eliminated the typewriter. And next the internet and email enabled everyone to talk on equal grounds to everyone else!

Then the social sites were invented and we are where are are today with Facebook, Twitter and a host of other social sites! And it's early days yet! I can't imagine what's to come!

Imagine What Will Happen with Technology in the Next 5 Years

Technology, lead by the digital revolution, is changing so quickly that it's virtually impossible to stay on top of everything that's happening! Last week's CES Show in Las Vegas is a great reminder of this! In our business, video viewing will continue to evolve - different sized screens will be almost everywhere so we be able to be on the "net" and doing whatever we want whenever we want! One thing for sure as we all become more comfortable with the web and it offers, we'll be shopping more and more on it!

Recommend That You Read This Post

This post was copied verbatim today from an email I received from a good friend. Normally, I tend to ignore communications like this but I believe there's a lot of truth to what is said and an excellent proactive suggestion at the end! Let me know what you think!

Subject: Israeli security vs. North American Security

Juval Aviv was the Israeli Agent upon whom the movie "Munich" was based.

He was Golda Meir's bodyguard -- she appointed him to track down and bring

to justice the Palestinian terrorists who took the Israeli athletes hostage

and killed them during the Munich Olympic Games.

In a lecture in New York City a few weeks ago, he shared information that

EVERY American needs to know -- but that our government has not yet shared

with us.

He predicted the London subway bombing on the Bill O'Reilly show on Fox

News, stating publicly that it would happen within a week. At the time,

O'Reilly laughed and mocked him saying that in a week he wanted him back on

the show. But, unfortunately, within a week the terrorist attack had

occurred.

Juval Aviv gave intelligence (via what he had gathered in Israel and the

Middle East) to the Bush Administration about 9/11 a month before it

occurred. His report specifically said they would use planes as bombs and

target high profile buildings and monuments. Congress has since hired him as

a security consultant.

Now for his future predictions. He predicts the next terrorist attack on the

U.S. Will occur within the next few months.

Forget hijacking airplanes, because he says terrorists will NEVER try and

hijack a plane again as they know the people onboard will never go down

quietly again. Aviv believes our airport security is a joke --

that we have been reactionary rather than proactive in developing strategies

that are truly effective.

For example:

1) Our airport technology is outdated. We look for metal, and the new

explosives are made of plastic.

2) He talked about how some idiot tried to light his shoe on fire.

Because of that, now everyone has to take off their shoes. A group of idiots

tried to bring aboard liquid explosives. Now we can't bring liquids on

board. He says he's waiting for some suicidal maniac to pour liquid

explosive on his underwear; at which point, security will have us all

traveling naked! Every strategy we have is reactionary.

3) We only focus on security when people are heading to the gates. Aviv says

that if a terrorist attack targets airports in the future, they will target

busy times on the front end of the airport when/where people are checking

in. It would be easy for someone to take two suitcases of explosives, walk

up to a busy check-in line, ask a person next to them to watch their bags

for a minute while they run to the restroom or get a drink, and then

detonate the bags BEFORE security even gets involved.

In Israel, security checks bags BEFORE people can even ENTER the airport.

Aviv says the next terrorist attack here in America is imminent and will

involve suicide bombers and non-suicide bombers in places where large groups

of people congregate (e.g. Disneyland, Las Vegas casinos, big cities (New

York, San Francisco, Chicago, etc...) and that it will also include shopping

malls, subways in rush hour, train stations, etc., as well as rural America

this time (Wyoming, Montana, etc.).

The attack will be characterized by simultaneous detonations around the

country (terrorists like big impact), involving at least 5-8 cities,

including rural areas.

Aviv says terrorists won't need to use suicide bombers in many of the larger

cities, because at places like the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, they can simply

valet-park a car loaded with explosives and walk away.

Aviv says all of the above is well known in intelligence circles, but that

our U. S. Government does not want to "alarm American citizens"

with the facts. The world is quickly going to become "a different place",

and issues like "global warming" and political correctness will become

totally irrelevant.

On an encouraging note, he says that Americans don't have to be concerned

about being nuked. Aviv says the terrorists who want to destroy America will

not use sophisticated weapons. They like to use suicide as a front-line

approach. It's cheap, it's easy, it's effective; and they have an infinite

abundance of young militants more than willing to "meet their destiny".

He also says the next level of terrorists, over which America should be most

concerned, will not be coming from abroad but will be, instead,

"home-grown" -- having attended and been educated in our own schools and

universities right here in the U.. S. He says to look for "students"

who frequently travel back and forth to the Middle East. These young

terrorists will be most dangerous because they will know our language and

will fully understand the habits of Americans; but that we Americans won't

know/understand a thing about them.

Aviv says that, as a people, Americans are unaware and uneducated about the

terrorist threats we will, inevitably, face. America still has only have a

handful of Arabic and Farsi speaking people in our intelligence networks,

and Aviv says it is critical that we change that fact SOON.

So, what can America do to protect itself? From an intelligence perspective,

Aviv says the U.S. needs to stop relying on satellites and technology for

intelligence. We need to, instead, follow Israel's, Ireland's, and England's

hands-on examples of human intelligence, both from an infiltration

perspective as well as to trust "aware" citizens to help. We need to engage

and educate ourselves as citizens; however, our U. S. government continues

to treat us, its citizens, "like babies".

Our government thinks we "can't handle the truth" and are concerned that

we'll panic if we understand the realities of terrorism. Aviv says this is a

deadly mistake.

Aviv recently created/executed a security test for our Congress, by placing

an empty briefcase in five well-traveled spots in five major cities. The

results? Not one person called 911 or sought a policeman to check it out. In

fact, in Chicago, someone tried to steal the briefcase!

In comparison, Aviv says that citizens of Israel are so well "trained"

that an unattended bag or package would be reported in seconds by citizen(s)

who know to publicly shout, "Unattended Bag!" The area would be quickly and

calmly cleared by the citizens themselves. But, unfortunately, America

hasn't been yet "hurt enough" by terrorism for their government to fully

understand the need to educate its citizens or for the government to

understand that it's their citizens who are, inevitably, the best first-line

of defence against terrorism.

Aviv also was concerned about the high number of children here in America

who were in preschool and kindergarten after 9/11, who were "lost" without

parents being able to pick them up, and about our schools that had no plan

in place to best care for the students until parents could get there. (In

New York City, this was days, in some cases!)

He stresses the importance of having a plan, that's agreed upon within your

family, to respond to in the event of a terrorist emergency. He urges

parents to contact their children's schools and demand that the schools,

too, develop plans of actions, as they do in Israel.

Does your family know what to do if you can't contact one another by phone?

Where would you gather in an emergency? He says we should all have a plan

that is easy enough for even our youngest children to remember and follow.

Aviv says that the U. S. government has in force a plan that, in the event

of another terrorist attack, will immediately cut-off EVERYONE's ability to

use cell phones, blackberries, etc., as this is the preferred communication

source used by terrorists and is often the way that their bombs are

detonated.

How will you communicate with your loved ones in the event you cannot speak?

You need to have a plan.

If you believe what you have just read, then you must feel compelled to send

to every concerned parent or guardian, grandparents, uncles, aunts, whatever

and whomever. Nothing will happen if you choose not to do so, but in the

event it does happen, this particular email will haunt you...."I should have

sent this to.....", but I didn't believe it and just deleted it as so much

trash from old Bill Jones!!!

Always Be Positive: The Best Way To Live your Life

Being positive, particularly when times are tough, is very hard to do. Yet, just by being positive, one's mind is opened to the possibility of a solution! If one is negative, there can be no solution. One's minds is "closed" to even think that the problem can be solved! One of the life lessons that I have learned is to "play it out" when you're in a difficult situation! Be positive - things have a habit of working themselves out! Think about it -this is really true and the best way to live one's life

Communicate In Any Language: Google Translate

Google Translate is a neat tool in the Google repertoire! Just set the from and to language that you wish, copy what you want, and paste it in the translate box - automatically, it's translated into the language you have designated! It's not perfect but it's good enough for day to day use! For example it would be a great way to communicate back and forth with a pen pal that speaks and writes a different language! It removes one of the most significant barriers in communication! Try it!

A Great Example of the Digital Age: Smart Electrical Meters

Toronto Hydro installed a smart meter at our house some time ago! The smart meter lets Hydro charge more for electricity in peak periods and, of course, less in non-peak times! One fascinating benefit is I can see every day what my hourly electrical use by kilowatt per hour! I just log into my account on the internet and a whole array of information is available to me. It costs me nothing! Here's my chart for yesterday! It's divided into low, medium and high cost prices. Our peak was the 6:00 PM hour! What will be fun is to see if we change change some of our habits and reduce our consumption or move it to off-peak times! This is a great example of the usefulness of digital information.

2010 - What Will It Bring

2010 - a new year and a new decade for all of us! Best wishes to everyone for a fulfilling, peaceful and prosperous year AND decade. For anyone interested in technology, it's a fascinating time! The CES (Consumer Electronics Show) that opens on this Thursday in Las Vegas is going to be full on new and fascinating "stuff"!I can't wait until the week is out to see what's new! I'll give you my thoughts on the highlights as they unfold. As we say in our business, stay tuned!