All Entries in the "Web/Tech" Category
Did Victor Borge Predict Voice Recognition Software?
Although it has been around for more than decade, speech recognition software has never really lived up to its hype. As someone who has dabbled with various incarnations from the major providers, each offering has been one disappointment after another. Consequently, I didn’t think much of a video review entitled Speech Recognition for Bloggers – The Ultimate Guide but I’m glad I took the time to watch, and so will you… (more…)
Damn You Alex Ross!
For years now, I’ve been enjoying the benefits of seatguru.com, which until it was picked up by TripAdvisor.com in 2007, was a fairly well kept secret. After that, the associated spike in traffic meant more travelers with inside info but for whatever reason, the handful of business colleagues I tipped off to seatguru had never heard of it before. Well, that’s all gone now since cultural uber-blogger Alex Ross posted a little something in praise of the service a few days ago at The Rest Is Noise… (more…)
The Untapped Revenue Beyond Required Registration
Since the onset of the Orchestra Website Reviews, the issue of requiring users to register in order to explore ticket information and/or make a purchase has generated a great deal of heated debate. Unfortunately, most positions boiled down to hunch rather than anything supported by quantifiable data but an article by Jared M. Spool published on 1/14/2009 titled The $300 Million Button that was originally published as part of Luke Wroblewski’s book, Web Form Design: Filling in the Blanks, provides some invaluable resource material for this issue… (more…)
Marc van Bree’s Big List of Classical Music Twitterers
There’s nothing quite a satisfying as a good resource list and the world of cultural blogging has a new entry they can be proud of thanks to Marc van Bree, author of the Dutch Perspective, a self described “levensbeschouwing (a Dutch word, by way of Germany, meaning “world view”) based loosely on two themes: public relations and cultural affairs.” Marc’s resource list compiles classical music individuals and groups on Twitter… (more…)
2009 Orchestra Website Review: US and Canadian Comparisons
The final article in the 2009 Orchestra Website Reviews will compare and contrast US and Canadian results. Both groups made advancements but the Canadians, on average, once again made greater strides. This article examines exactly which components had the most impact on these developments… (more…)
Here’s Hoping Berlin Enjoys Some Success
Ever since the Berlin Philharmonic launched their digital concert hall feature last season, subscribers to the complete season of webcasts have been steadily growing. Adaptistration reader Michael Brewer provided a first-hand review of the Philharmonic’s initial offerings back in January, 2009 and based on that perspective it seems like the folks in Berlin might be on to something. It will be interesting to see how several months of planning have helped iron out technical wrinkles but I find myself wondering more about the business plan behind the venture… (more…)
That’s Good Soup
Thanks to blogging compadre Joe Patti, I discovered an enormously useful resource called TechSoup.com. The organization describes itself as offering “nonprofits a one-stop resource for technology needs by providing free information, resources, and support. In addition to online information and resources, we offer a product philanthropy service called TechSoup Stock. Here, nonprofits can access donated and discounted technology products, generously provided by corporate and nonprofit technology partners. At Joe’s suggestion, I spent some time digging through the site and although the interface is a bit dated the content is useful for a wide variety of budget size nonprofits… (more…)
Adaptistration Is Now Officially Mobile Friendly
Last week, I finally joined the denizens of web enabled Smartphone users with the purchase of a BlackBerry 8330. As such, I’ve noticed that a number of web pages and blogs are rendered by the browser are done so with less than desirable results. Granted, iPhones and the newer touch-screen BlackBerry’s don’t seem to have any problem rendering pages since they are designed more with that purpose in mind but I enjoy using my the online capabilities of the BlackBerry 8330 and appreciate web pages and blogs designed to work with the device. As such, I’ve made some upgrades to Adaptistration’s blog template so it automatically detects mobile phone visitors and displays a customized mobile blog theme… (more…)
Increasing Earned Income Without Selling Your Soul
“Psssst…hey you…yeah, you der…c’mer…over here. Yeah, dat’s right, over here…I hear youse been lookin’ for a new revenue stream. Say, buddy, I’se got just what youse need…” That might seem a bit melodramatic but the reality is that some managers are so desperate for revenue they would be willing to talk shop in a dark alley. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to reach that extreme, but you will have to continue reading this blog post to find out more about how to tap into a sustainable revenue stream that can be developed without sacrificing other revenue performance resources … (more…)
I Just Might Throw My Dictionary Away
Over the past week I’ve been up to my eyeballs in writing reports and anyone who is used to tossing out tens of thousands of words in a short time span knows that after awhile, a traditional thesaurus or online synonym resource can feel awfully limited. Enter visuwords.com, a refreshingly useful online resource that functions as a sort of graphical dictionary/thesaurus. What I found particularly useful is how it uses diagrams to illustrate word relationships that actually helped me break out of the tunnel vision writing style instigated by marathon writing sessions… (more…)
Who Doesn’t Like Timelines And Big Audiences?
I always enjoy it when an orchestra website includes some worthwhile info about their history at their website. Case in point, the New York Philharmonic recently released a fascinating searchable database of their performances going all the back to 1842 (BTW, they performed Beethoven’s fifth but it was only 35 years old at that time). Another recent entry is the Grant Park Music Festival’s (GPMF) interactive timeline that coincides with the release of the 75th Anniversary book… (more…)
Top 10 Ways To Annoy Your Orchestra Website Visitors
What started out as pet peeves eventually turned into the annual orchestra website reviews, a resource that has contributed to improved website design throughout the entire orchestra business. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean webpage annoyances have gone away, they’ve just become more refined. As such, I’ve compiled a Top 10 list of the recent offenses… (more…)
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patty wrote:
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Adaptistration is authored by orchestra consultant Drew McManus and since its launch in 2003, the blog has become standard reading for arts administrators and arts administration programs throughout the world.
