Several weeks ago, one of our designers took a stand at work, literally.  He took an old computer box and set it atop his desk so he could raise up his keyboard; he propped up his monitor on some programming books and toner cartridge boxes; and then he eighty-sixed his office chair.  His new stand-up work station was met with some laughter and of course an immediate Photoshop comparison to a fellow mustachioed stand-up work stationer, and, I think, most of us wrote it off as just another workplace fad that would wane.  But he’s still standing and going strong.

He explained that after searching for solutions to his lower back pain he decided to give standing up at his desk a try.  That was roughly fives weeks ago.  Then last week an infographic entitled “Sitting is Killing You” circulated through the office stating “sitting for 6+ hour/day makes you up to 40% more likely to die within 15 years than someone who sits less than 3.”  Another designer quickly decided to give standing at work a try.  And what I thought to be a silly fad suddenly aroused my curiosity.  Could I stand all day?  Would it really make a difference if I did?  What are the real dangers of sitting down all day?

Well, if you consider that you spend the majority of your day, a normal 9-5 workday, seated (except for your occasional bathroom break and lunch time jaunt to the kitchen) and then another 8 hours lying down while you sleep, that leaves 8 hours (probably less if you have a long commute to work) for exercise.  But are you spending those other 8 hours at the gym, doing yard work, running marathons, or are you a couch potato when you get home?  Prolonged periods of sitting can lead to some pretty serious health problems like an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, back pain, and blood clots to name a few.

According to EmaxHealth.com:

Periods of standing throughout the day can improve circulation, muscle tone and vitality. The increased weight bearing on the skeleton is good for maintaining bone strength. You may even lose weight. Standing for just two hours during an average workday can burn an extra 280 calories. In one year, that could potentially provide a weight loss of around 20 pounds. Research has also shown an improvement in the metabolism of fats and sugars, which results in an improved lean body mass to fat ratio.

How can you take a stand?

If you want to convert your desk into a standing work station you want to make sure that you customize your station to fit your specifications.  If you don’t want to spring for an $800 GeekDesk then use some found objects to create a standing work station like cardboard boxes or a stack of books.  Whatever you use, make sure that you customize your work station to your standing height.

Monitor height: One of the benefits of standing at work is decreasing back and neck pain.  If you’re standing at work, you will want to make sure that your monitor is in line with your eyes.  Make sure that you’re not looking down with hunched shoulders or looking straight up like you’re in the front row at the movies.  Raise your monitor to a comfortable level for your height.

Keyboard/Mouse height: Once you’ve got your monitor set, you want to raise your keyboard to the appropriate level; you’ll want your arms to be at about a 90 degree angle when you place your hands on the home keys.  Stretching your arms to reach your keyboard or mouse can cause back, shoulder, and neck pain.

Finally, I polled the office to find out what everyone else thinks about standing while they work.  Here’s what they said:

Matt, our designer who took a stand:

You were the first to take a stand at work.  What prompted you to make your desk a stand-up work station?

I actually noticed when I first started working here that I had some discomfort with my back.  The only thing that was different in my life was this job, and I realized that sitting all day was already starting to bother my back within only a few months.  At the time I believe I was 22 and was surprised that I wasn’t indestructible and that somehow sitting would bother me.  I started brainstorming about how to help my back and standing was the easy solution.

Do you think you’ve benefited from standing at work?  What are the benefits?

Standing has significantly helped my back and I feel more awake at work.  Plus everyone has been sending me these emails about the other health benefits so I felt very reassured.

What are the drawbacks (if any) to standing while you work?

Standing up took a little getting used to.  The only drawback is occasionally feeling the need to sit and rest, but I feel like I’m building more stamina.  I also need to make some modifications when we move to the new space so that my monitor is raised a bit higher.

Do you think that your productivity has increased or decreased at all since you’ve started standing?

Well, they call me the Crusher, Haha.  And while I can’t say if my productivity has actually increased I feel more awake.  On a side note, I have had to ask Ben for more work, which I think is a good thing.

Do you think that you will continue the standing trend for a long time?  Why or why not?

I’m definitely going to continue standing.  I spend at least 8 hours a day here, and I was concerned about the health issues of sitting (especially with my back).  I exercise, but I still sit a decent amount when I get home.  Standing up makes me feel better and I don’t even think about it most of the work day.

 

What did you think the first time you saw Matt Wetter standing up at his desk to work?

Jason:

Why is Matt standing with a box on his desk?

Chris:

He’s a loon…

Jena:

I thought his setup was a bit odd at first, using old boxes from the office.  But, I had read an article a few days before on Yahoo about the pros/cons so I wasn’t confused or surprised that he was doing it.

Joel:

Did he break his chair already; it was only a couple months old?

Ben:

Chuckled, then went looking for some boxes…

Angie:

The first time I saw Matt standing at his desk, I thought he had restless leg syndrome & he was trying to avoid driving himself crazy.

Lee:

When I first saw Matt standing at his desk, I thought it was just temporary.

Dan:

This won’t last long.

Kelli:

I thought it was a joke since Eric had sent me a link to an article about it that morning, asking me why I wasn’t standing at my desk. Because standing at your desk is all the rage with hipsters, and apparently, I’m a hipster. Ha.

 

Have you read about stand-up work stations?  If so, did the side effects of sitting down all day/every day scare you?

Jason:

Yes, and no they do not.

Chris:

I have heard a lot recently about this topic, and I am not frightened by the side effects.

Jena:

The side effects didn’t scare me but it was interesting to read.  Doing anything all day/every day, no matter what it is, is bound to have side effects.

Joel:

I haven’t read anything, but talking with fitness people, they have told me personally how bad sitting all day can be.

Ben:

Yes and yes.  I sit for the majority of my day and suffer regular back pain.  It made me wonder if changing my work environment would help.

Angie:

I have read about it, even before the work emails were being circulated. The side effects DO scare me and I do think everyone would benefit from a stand-up desk option. Obviously it’s not perfect for every situation but I think it will help most people a majority of the time.

Lee:

Years ago at a LAN party, I had a makeshift workstation above a treadmill.  I was walking and playing Unreal Tournament, but I had very poor mouse control so it was short lived!

Kelli:

I’ve read all of the articles that have been going around the office; they don’t really scare me. However, I’m all about burning more calories.

 

Would you consider switching to a stand-up work station?  Why or why not?

Jason:

No.  Benefits aside, I am too fidgety to attempt this.

Chris:

Yes, I’d try it.  I’m up to try anything once, twice if it’s fun.

Jena:

I would like to have the option of rotating between standing up and sitting down while working.  Standing all day isn’t good for you either so I think it would be good to find a comfortable balance.

Joel:

I now walk between offices and meetings enough that I am not actually sitting full days anymore… when I write code, I don’t think I could stand for a long period though.

Ben:

I would love an adjustable desk that I could stand or sit at easily.  Moving my monitors, keyboards and mouse around with temporary supports is not feasible.

Angie:

Yes. I’d like a convertible work station. So I could switch it up, depending on the task at hand. I think it makes for a more energy-filled day in catering to your body’s natural reluctance to sit still.

Lee:

A standing workstation looks like it would have a positive effect in both my work and personal life.  The side effects of sitting down all day don’t really scare me as I believe they are quite embellished. Still, I’d be for switching to a stand-up work station.

Dan:

Yes, a desk that was meant as a standup work station would be awesome. Having a makeshift setup has its downfalls, i.e having a giant box on your desk that props up your keyboard kind of sucks.

Kelli:

Yes, because I’m all about any fad that helps you stay in shape.

 

What is one pro (one way you think you can benefit) of standing while you work?

Jason:

You will look cooler than those around you.

Jena:

I tend to sit in the same position all day so it would be good to stretch my back, arms, and legs.  I’m sure my chiropractor would appreciate it too.

Ben:

Simply changing things up (standing on a phone call) already helps keep the blood flowing.  I imagine standing while working would help as well.  The articles you mentioned do a great job of explaining the benefits.

Angie:

Decreasing cardiovascular issues come with sitting more than 3 hours in a row each day. Feeling more alert because you are standing. Better posture, less neck/back issues.

Lee:

One pro of standing while working is preventing the tightness in my legs and back from sitting all day.

Kelli:

All day dance party while I work?

 

What is one con (one way you think that it would hinder your work) of standing while you work?

Jena:

I don’t always make the smartest choices when it comes to my footwear (in terms of style over comfort) so that would probably be an issue.  Also, working in the front office customers may find it weird to walk in and see me standing.

Joel:

I would worry about the concentration on the details when not “as comfortable”.  I think it would be tougher to get into a “groove”.

Ben:

Not having a simple/fast way to adjust my desk would make it very cumbersome to adjust my preference throughout the day.

Angie:

The only negative would be if you HAD to stand at your desk for 8 hours. That’s only causing fatigue and body injury in other ways. There needs to be a balance. Just like everything else in life; diet, alcohol, fun – everything in moderation equals a healthy life.

Lee:

On the flip side, standing is typically not the preferred position for computer work.  Leaning forward could cause discomfort in the shoulders and neck.

Dan:

Your feet can tend to hurt if you’re not wearing the proper kicks. I tried flip flops and bare feet, that didn’t work.  Going the boring route… shoes.  Proper stretching every once and a while helps.

Kelli:

I’m pretty broken and standing all day may actually do me more harm than good, in terms of irritating old injuries.

 

How active are you before and after work?  Do you exercise daily?  For how long?

Jason:

Very.  I exercise daily for at least 45 minutes.

Chris:

Not very.  Yes, I do pushups, so less than 20 minutes.

Jena:

On average I exercise about 3-4 days per week.  It’s always after work or on the weekends for about an hour at a time.

Joel:

I try to exercise (mostly cardio) before work each day, if possible 30-45 minutes.

Ben:

Not as active as I should be.  I probably spend 12+ hours a day sitting. : (

Angie:

I usually do at least a little workout before work, when I get up in the morning. It usually consists of push-ups, crunches & stretches. Some mornings I fit in a 20 minute pilates workout. I don’t exercise daily but I wish I could/would. I lift weights about 3 times a week (if my neck allows) and it usually takes about an hour to do my full routine. I enjoy running when the weather permits but probably couldn’t do more than 30 minutes at this point.

Lee:

I try to stay very active outside of work.  Most evenings I attend the gym when not busy with fire training.  Workouts are usually 2 hours at the gym and often longer for fire / rescue drills. As for the mornings before work, I enjoy riding my bike to the office, weather permitting.

Kelli:

Before work, I’m dead to the world. But I do try to be active after work… I just don’t always succeed. If I make it to the gym or park it’s usually for about an hour or so.

Are you considering standing while you work?  Send us your thoughts in the comments section below.

Can music help us be more productive?

Although there’s no evidence that listening to music while we work can increase our productivity, a research team from the Stanford University School of Medicine found that “music engages the areas of the brain involved with paying attention, making predictions and updating the event in memory. Peak brain activity occurred during a short period of silence between musical movements—when seemingly nothing was happening.”

*The study was conducted using short symphonies by an obscure 18th-century composer, so I can’t promise that listening to The Number of the Beast will elicit the same results.  You can read more about the study here.

Music does play a role in our days at 360 PSG.  It energizes us (or in some cases, like on stressful days, relaxes us), makes us happy, and motivates us during the workday.   So we decided to share what we listen to and what devices and applications we use to listen while we work.

When do you most often listen to music?  (at work, in the car, at home, etc.)

Ben:

At work.

Chris:

At home.

Kelli:

My favorite place to listen to music is in the car. If it’s not raining or snowing my windows are down and the music is turned up.

Matthew:

Well, technically I listen to music the most at band practice, but that’s more participation I guess. Other than that I listen to music most while driving around in the car.  Nothing like a good tune while driving around.

Lee:

At the office and at the gym (Gotta get my swell on!)  LOL!

Angie:

Getting ready for work, on the drive to work, at work, drive home, and almost always at some point at night while doing chores. I don’t like complete silence for the most part unless I really have to read something thoroughly.

Jason:

In the car and when working out.

Jena:

In the car and in the mornings when I’m getting ready for work.

Jeremy:

On the ride to and from work and in the office.

 

What is your weapon of choice when listening?  Do you listen via iTunes; iPod or other MP3 player; a computer app like Grooveshark, Rdio, Pandora; record or CD player; or just a good old-fashioned-radio?

Ben:

Pandora

Chris:

Computer apps (YouTube and Pandora).

Kelli:

I generally listen to my music on some type of Apple product… iTunes, iPod, iPhone, or my laptop. However, I also really enjoy Pandora; it’s given me a lot of new music over the past couple years.

Matthew:

I listen to Pandora and my iPod all the time.  I barely listen to the radio for music any more.

Lee:

Usually on my iPod, but my phone, computers and iPod all tie into my Pandora account.

Angie:

I usually use my Rdio account, as I’m a channel changer. I can’t stand listening to something I don’t enjoy. I’ll put iTunes on occasionally to listen to a station or podcasts to mix it up; mostly Adam Corolla podcasts.

Jason:

iPod Shuffle and XM radio.

Jena:

Depends where I am, but usually iTunes, the radio, or Pandora.

Jeremy:

I listen mostly on my computer either through iTunes or Rdio.com.  When I’m not at my computer I use my iPhone to listen.

 

Do you listen to music while you work?

Ben:

Occasionally.  I haven’t really made it a habit, but I enjoy it when I do.  I think I need to spend more time setting up playlists that I can really look forward to and get excited about.

Chris:

No, it would be too distracting as I’m on the phone all the time.

Kelli:

I like to. Though, there are many times when half the day has gone by and I’ve just noticed that I never put my headphones on.

Matthew:

Listening to music at work gets me pumped up and can help give me energy when the day is dragging or pick up the pace when I need to power through a project.

Lee:

I prefer to listen to movies as I work.  Typically, I’m so ‘zoned-in’ that I don’t even hear them. This could be due to the fact that I typically fall asleep with the TV on at night to serve as a background noise.

Angie:

I listen to music at work to get my day going, to keep my energy up. Sometimes I pause the music while keeping my headphones to insure the most silence when it’s needed.

Jason:

It sometimes, tends to distract me.  If something is already distracting me though, I prefer to have music.

Jena:

I have tried but I can only make it through a few songs before getting interrupted (phones, etc) so it’s easier not to listen. Instead, I listen to Bryan and Nick’s competitive banter.

Jeremy:

Yes.  I love to listen to Radiohead, The Postal Service, or LCD Soundsystem while I work; those bands have upbeat songs that help me concentrate on the task at hand.

 

Imagine it’s summertime, you’ve got the top down on your Mustang or the sun roof open on your Beemer (or maybe your car is old and doesn’t have either of those first two things and your air conditioning doesn’t work but you’ve got those childproof windows that only go down two thirds of the way but that’s the best that you’ve got so you’re forced to suck it up and actually work up more of a sweat using the manual-crank handles to get them down…), and you’re cruising down the highway without a care in the world (unless you’ve got that last car, then you’re a little cranky). What’s your favorite summertime jam to blast through your speakers?  (Bieber’s “Never Say Never”? Canned Heat’s “Going Up the Country”? DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince’s “Summertime”?)

Ben:

My Spring jam, when the sun finally comes out and things start warming up, is “Cliff’s of Dover” by Eric Johnson.

Chris:

Black Keys “Keep Me,” Queen “I’m in Love With My Car,” Grateful Dead “Space”  and Frank Zappa anything off of “Shut Up and Play Yer Guitar.”

Kelli:

You can never go wrong with some pop punk in the summer… Well, let’s be honest, you can never go wrong with pop punk, ever

Matthew:

I can’t really pick a favorite tune to crank, there are so many options.  Most of the time I go for new stuff because its fresh and peaks my interest.  Classic tunes are good for casual rides, most of the time I like to crank up the metal and throw up my rockfist haha.

Lee:

Tim McGraw – Something Like That; It reminds me of the summer I first had my license cruising around in my old beat up truck looking for… never mind what!    lol

Angie:

My favorite summer time jam always changes but it’s usually something upbeat. Pop, R&B, rap, pop rock… this summer – it’ll probably be Bieber. let’s be honest. Anything that makes you want to dance & celebrate the nice weather since the winter lasts sooooooo long here in Buffalo!

Jason:

Summertime extended long play remix (but only in the summer time, I hear anyone playing that before May, it’s a beat down.)

Jena:

I’ll listen to anything as long as the weather starts becoming more like summer!  It doesn’t seem possible at this point…

Jeremy:

It changes every year for me.  But I think this year, the jam of the Spring/Summer for me will be “The Buffalo Morose” by Louiston; a catchy new  tune with an old school vibe.

What do your web professionals do in their off time?  Sure we read books, play video games, and surf the web, but we also watch a lot of TV and movies to unwind from a long day of work.  And believe it or not, now there’s an app for that.

The app is called IntoNow, and it listens to whatever TV show or film you’re watching and then gives you information about it like the title, episode and season number, and cast.  You’re probably thinking, “Why can’t I just hit the ‘Info’ button on my remote control to get information on what I’m watching?”  Well, IntoNow not only gives you information, it allows you to socialize within the app.  Just like Twitter and Facebook, you create a profile, follow others to see what they’re watching, and then you can discuss your favorite shows with other fans.

IntoNow also integrates with your Facebook, Twitter, and Netflix accounts to keep all of your social networks up to date.  To find out more information on what your friends are watching, select a title in your network, hit the Netflix button and IntoNow will tell you if your selection is available for instant streaming or only on DVD.  There’s even an IMDB link so you can find out even more information about your favorite films and TV shows.  So next time you’re standing around the water cooler, you might bea able to actually help explain what the heck happened in last night’s episode of Lost (okay, Lost is over, but you can still watch it via rerun, on DVD, or Netflix instant).

So how does IntoNow work?

In case you’re not familiar with IntoNow’s musical-predecessor Shazam, it’s an app designed to listen to songs being played anywhere (on the radio, jukebox, a TV commercial) and then report the name of the song, the artist, and album information.

According to Shazam’s CEO, Andrew Fishcer, Shazam creates a “fingerprint” (comprised of a numeric code) of each performance.  Shazam takes a song’s fingerprint and matches it against their huge database of saved codes to find your song.

Slate.com’s Farhad Manjoo spoke to Avery Wang, Shazam’s chief scientist and one of its co-founders.  Wang explained, “Shazam creates a spectrogram for each song in its database—a graph that plots three dimensions of music: frequency vs. amplitude vs. time.”  *You can get more information on how Shazam works in Wang’s academic paper “An Industrial-Strength Audio Search Algorithm” here.

Shazam is remarkably accurate and comes in really handy in those “who the heck sings this song?!” moments.

Like Shazam , IntoNow saves the soundbites being pumped through the speakers and into your mobile device and then matches them against a huge database of movies and television shows to find out what you’re watching.

IntoNow is a fun new way to socialize about your favorite shows, and I definitely recommend that you check it out.  Not everyone has an iPhone though, so we’re sharing what 360 PSG watches in our downtime the old school way: we’re blogging about it.

Do you watch more during the week or on the weekend?

Lee

Weekends, so busy during the week. Usually fall asleep during the week watching TV

Angie

I don’t discriminate.

Chris

on the weekend, no time during the week.

Ben

Week

Joel

Both I spend most nights writing code on my laptop with the DVR playing in the background. Weekends, I watch TV mostly with the kids.

Matt

I tend to watch more tv/movies over the weekend, there is just more free time then.

Kelli

During the week. Hands down.

Jena

I watch more TV during the week and tend to watch more movies on weekends.

Matt W.

About the same, I can usually get a good deal of work done with a TV show on in the background.

 

Favorite TV Show that you currently watch?

Lee

Rescue Me

Angie

Modern Family, Parks & Rec

Chris

The Office, Sons of Guns, Orange County Chopper, 30 Rock, Pawn Stars, American Pickers, An Idiot Abroad, Sabres games, Bills games, Tosh 2.0, The Graham Norton Show, I love PBS on Saturday morning for the cooking shows and home improvement shows.

Ben

Modern Family & The Office

Joel

Oh so many. House M.D. has been a favorite for years. My wife and I make it a point to watch Survivor together each week (on DVR of course so we can pick the time). I have a couple recent favorites… Chicago Hope (yes, another police drama), Fringe (which has filled my x-file void from years past), and Shameless (on Showtime) where William H. Macy is excellent (But definitely not a show for the kiddies).

Matt

I’m not really keeping up with current TV shows right now, but I’ve been watching a lot of the Cosby show on Netflix.  I wish they still made shows like that.

Kelli

Probably Dexter or Gossip Girl (don’t hate ); friday night lights, even though the final season just wrapped.

Jena

I mostly watch sitcoms and reality shows.  Currently, Modern Family is my favorite.

Matt W.

No real favorites, I’d rather be watching baseball or a Sabres game.

 

Favorite TV Show of all time?

Lee

Rosanne & Everybody Loves Raymond

Angie

Family Ties

Chris

Gilligan’s Island

Ben

Rocko’s Modern Life

Joel

Again… too tough a question. Favorite Drama : West Wing, Favorite Sci-Fi :Ties between Star Trek Next Generation and X-Files (except exclude x-files final season which sucked), Favorite comedy : Ties between Family Guy and The Office with a very close second of The Big Bang Theory.

Matt

Favorite TV show of all time, hands down is “Boy Meets World.”  I grew up with that show and was addicted.  Every Friday night and when I got home from school I would be watching that show.  The writing was just awesome, funny, wholesome, and relatable.

Kelli

I got really sucked into One Tree Hill a while back… and I still love the West Wing (Aaron Sorkin is genius).

Jena

That’s tough- it depends on my mood.  Probably Friends.

Matt W.

Easy … Lost!

 

Why do you watch the shows that you watch?

Lee

Usually Funny

Angie

They’re hilarious, a super interesting murder mystery (Dateline), or pop culture infused (20/20).

Chris

Escape

Ben

I watch very little TV, when I do, its only for a short period of time and I’m usually  looking to laugh

Joel

I have two DVR’s and record everything on the major networks. Sometimes 6+ shows a night. Then as I work on the recliner, they just play in the background. I do stop to working long enough watch the favorites mentioned though.

Matt

I watch shows for lots of different reasons:  humor, intrigue, even for reminiscing back to childhood.   I’m down with “Man vs. Wild” and “River Monsters” because they are just awesome to watch and manly, haha.  Netflix is awesome because I can watch things like “Ahh!!! Real Monsters” or “Fraggle Rock” and feel like a kid again.

Kelli

If I follow a show, it’s generally because I’m intrigued by the storyline… I need to know what happens next. That, or it’s just really funny.

Jena

They’re entertaining and different from things that happen in my own life.  It’s a nice way to relax at the end of the day.

Matt W.

Mind numbing breaks & a little bit of entertainment

 

Favorite movie of all time?

Lee

National Lampoons Xmas Vacation

Angie

Steel Magnolias

Chris

Saving Private Ryan

Ben

Roll Bounce…   (Just kidding, its probably a toss-up between The Shawshank Redemption, Forrest Gump, and Stand By Me)

Joel

Tie: Braveheart and Fight Club

Kelli

Empire Records

Jena

Again, it’s hard to choose just one.  A League of Their Own is a movie I have loved since I was little and can watch it over and over.

Matt W.

The Godfather (both 1 & 2)

 

Netflix, Redbox, or Blockbuster?

Lee

Neither, download instead so that way i can watch them any time i want

Angie

Redbox then Netflix

Chris

On Demand.

Ben

Netflix (although if Blockbuster offered FREE streaming I’d go back to them)

Joel

Netflix 5+ years now

Matt

Netflix is one of the best investments I’ve ever made!  There is so much stuff on there that is streaming and available to watch.  I can watch old shows and newer shows with no commercials and sort through tons of movies.  I’ve found a lot more stuff I like to watch and enjoy because its so easy to access.

Kelli

Currently, Redbox. But I’ve been leaning towards Netflix for a while.

Jena

Netflix.  Although I will miss browsing through the movies at Blockbuster when I’m not sure what to watch.

Matt W.

Redbox now for the sporadic weekend movie, Netflix after I get back from our honeymoon for the streaming video on the new TV’s built-in Netflix App.

 

Anything Else:

Joel

I used to write a blog and swear I will get back into it again someday! I only wrote for 3 or 4 months, and it hasn’t had a new post since 2007, but I thought my colorful commentary and quick show summary writing was kinda fun… http://www.tubetalker.com – My one post on CSI:NY drew links from hundreds of forums that picked it up either agreeing or blasting my take on the character backgrounds. Hope sometime I can get back into writing on the movies and TV that I love… and hate.

Kelli

I just downloaded IntoNow yesterday.  So far it seems like a pretty solid app.

(…Or how Matt’s affection for his girlfriend makes all other gentleman suitors look really, really bad. *You’ll see.)

Making a good first impression with your website is crucial for your business or organization. Of course, making good impressions in person is also very important, especially around Valentine’s Day. At 360 PSG, some of us spent Valentine’s Day 2011 with someone new and some of us with more familiar acquaintances. I tried to find out how far some of us went to make those good impressions…

What did you do for Valentine’s Day this year?

Jason:

We attempted to go bowling but ended up just going out to dinner.

Lee:

We kind of took it easy with the soon to be Mrs. Dubs; we had a little dinner at the house.

Dan F.:

Spent time with my girlfriend and daughter, and exchanged gifts.

Dan B.:

Hung out at the crib.

Kelli:

I went to the gym (GREAT if you’re unattached on V-day!) and then out for a bit to meet up with some other friends.

Matt W.:

Dinner & wine at home, nothing special.

Matt: (SPOILER ALERT: This is the sappy part…)

Well, I did a lot of Valentine’s Day this year.  It was my first Valentine’s Day with the love of my life and I decided to take the day off.  I went to her work for lunch and brought her a teddy bear with chocolate roses.  She gave me a love letter with song titles scattered throughout and a CD with all the tracks.

After lunch I went to her parent’s home and decorated her door with 14 heart shaped notes with reasons why I love her.  Then on her bathroom mirror I put gel stickies that spelled out “I love you”.

When she got home from work I picked her up for dinner at Sean Patrick’s restaurant.  Then we headed over to my parent’s house and we exchanged the apple pies that we made for each other.  Great minds think alike I guess.  I capped off the presents by giving her a picture of the two of us in a gorgeous frame.

Then it was off to the basement where I had built us a blanket fort with a starlight projector casting onto the ceiling of the fort.  I read her a poem I wrote for her and we did devotionals.  (**Told you it was sappy…)

Ben:

Drinks, dessert and dancing at The Irregardless the night prior, then Oven-roasted Dungeness Crab and Roasted Beet Soup followed with a Chocolate Souffle made at home on Valentines night.

Chris:

Ever the hopeless romantic, I gave my girlfriend time to herself.  I did training at my firehall, and played regular Monday poker game.

Did you get your significant other a gift?  If so, what?

Lee:

Yep, a white gold necklace with a diamond heart charm.

Dan F.:

Her favorite perfume, a hand-made box for keepsakes, and a card (she loves cards).

Dan B.:

Homemade breakfast and dinner.

Matt W.:

Just flowers, saving for a wedding … and weddings are expensive.

Matt:

As mentioned above: A bear, chocolate roses, and a picture frame with a picture of us.

Ben:

Just a rose.

Chris:

One long stem rose.

Joel:

A purple Snuggie and a special date night event with wine and an art painting event.

Did you do any Valentine’s shopping online?

Lee:

NO, when it comes to jewelry I stick with the brick and mortar.

Matt:

Yeah, I bought the starlight projector online from eBay.

What did you get?

Jason:

Lots of candy and a gift certificate to Oogie Games.

Lee:

Ha ha, the love of a beautiful woman!

Dan F.:

Tickets to Drop Kick Murphy’s!

Dan B.:

Chocolate covered peanut butter filled pretzel nuggets and a popcorn bucket!

Kelli:

I got my first, 100% handmade valentine! And WAY TOO many cookies and chocolates.

Matt:

A beautiful letter, a great mix of songs on a CD, and some home-made apple pie – Yum!

Ben:

A chocolate and she helped me with the dinner this time.

What was your best Valentine’s Day?

Jason:

They are all about the same… awesome.

Lee:

A few years ago, we went out for an expensive dinner and stayed out at a hotel for the night.

Matt:

This one, for sure.

Ben:

When we had this same Valentine’s Day dinner way back in 2005 when we were only dating.

Chris:

I think this was.  I got a great new job and really enjoyed the whole day as a result.

Joel:

7 Years ago on Valentine’s Day I proposed to my wife. We spent the weekend in Toronto. We went to Medieval Times and in front of the whole king and court, she thought she was getting “knighted” but instead the king asked me to get down on one knee and she started crying. She had no idea.

What was your worst?

Jason:

Not necessarily the worst, but one year I decided to be spontaneous and take my girlfriend to Toronto and didn’t plan anything.  Who would have guessed that EVERY hotel in Toronto would be booked on Valentine’s Day?   We ended up driving back an hour towards Buffalo before finding a place to stay the night.

Dan B.:

Never had a bad one

Kelli:

It involved breaking up, Jim’s Steakout and watching Scarface (great flick, though!).

Matt:

I don’t know. I haven’t really had a bad V-day.

Ben:

Hugegram

Did you use any social media (Facebook/Twitter) to wish anyone a Happy V-Day? Or send your significant other some love?

Kelli:

Of course… Because I spend entirely too much time on Facebook.

Matt:

Nope, but a lot of my friends did.  My girlfriend posted her excitement up there on Facebook.

Joel:

Of course… you have to post on Facebook to be “part of the crowd”… The social pressures.

Anything else to add?

Dan B.:

Ultimate Manilow

Ben:

I’m always torn between obligation and earnest desire to do something on Valentine’s Day.  I hate that the holiday is so Hallmark, but it’s a good reminder of how I should be treating my loved one the other 364 days of the year.

Let me take you back.  The year was 2008.  Bush was in the White House, gas was under three dollars, and the Blackberry Storm was sweeping the nation.  (Yes, you should probably read that last bit in an old-timey newsreel announcer voice.)  And no wonder, as Verizon had just unleashed the first ever touch-screen Blackberry; no roller ball scrolling or stylus for this generation.  Since then, phones have continued to evolve; there’s a new iPhone, the Droid is gaining popularity, and of course there is a slew of new touchscreen phones dominating the market.

If you remember, two years ago half the 360 PSG office got Blackberry Storm smartphones, and a few of us either still had “old-fashioned” flip phones or iPhones.

Two years later, after contracts had expired, Blackberries had been cursed, and iPhones broken, lost, stolen, or replaced (thanks Apple Care), I thought I’d see what the office was using now that smartphones dominate the market.

Since that last blog, Kelli, Dan, Eric, and I have all upgraded to the iPhone 4, Jason and Ben both got the Samsung Fascinate, and Joel upgraded to the Motorola Droid X.  No matter the make or model of phone, every 360 PSG employee loves his or her phone.  So what makes them so great?  Most of us split work and personal time on our cell phones, and we all love to have our email at our fingertips.  Since phones have become extensions of ourselves, here’s what some of us had to say about our phones:

How does your phone help you with work?

Dan:

It’s a mini computer, good while on the go.

Jason:

Allows me to easily check my email and see and update my appointment schedule on the fly.

Kelli:

It let’s me listen to my entire music collection while working

Jena:

I don’t have the internet on my phone so I don’t use it for any work purposes.

Ben:

Constant internet access, email and calendar

Joel:

All my email, meeting schedules, task list, browser… basically can perform company-wide communications anywhere, anytime.

Eric:

I have all my ims, e-mails and server notifications going directly to my phone so I know what’s going on at all times.

Favorite phone feature?

Dan:

Touch Screen

Jason:

App store and the ability to quickly search and download new apps.

Kelli:

Who needs a GPS when you have an iPhone? I’ve driven all over the Northeast using just the Maps app to guide me.

Jena:

I didn’t buy this phone with any specific features in mind.  I just use it for calling and texting.

Ben:

It’s FAST and I haven’t had any annoying lockups or anything yet.  GPS app is awesome and so is the browser.

Joel:

The app store makes it easy to find tools and apps that help organize and streamline processes all the time.

Eric:

The beautiful screen.

Least favorite phone feature (or bug)?

Dan:

Keyboard

Jason:

No cancel button on the phone itself.  Blackberry has one, the Android phones have a ‘search’ button instead.

Kelli:

The inability to remove default applications.

Ben:

Bing as the default search engine (unchangeable).

Joel:

No real complaints. Early on, it had some software boot up hiccups/delays… but a patch they released in Nov/Dec of 2010 cleared it up and booting quickly since.

Eric:

Notifications. When you get a lot of them it’s hard to keep track. Androids notification pull down is a far superior method than anything we have on the iPhone (without jailbreaking).

If you already have an iPhone, have you ever considered switching to a different phone?  Why?

Kelli:

No. Why would I? It’s like having an extension of my macbook on me at all times. I don’t need anything else.

Eric:

Windows phone looks rather interesting.  It’s nice Microsoft came up with a fresh idea rather than the same old crap.

Joel added, “As these phones become more and more robust and fast… many of the common tasks like customer communication, time management, and remote collaboration will become easier and faster. We will see a major shift in user adoption of the smart phone as a major work-life everyday asset over the next few years.”

Another holiday season has come and gone, and while last-minute gift ideas bounced around the office as shopping days diminished, one of our employees pointed out that this year was the biggest Cyber Monday to date.  So I did a little research and found out that he was right.  According to comScore, 2010’s Cyber Monday was the first ever $1 billion online shopping day.

Curious about the world-wide shopping trend, I asked the office about their shopping habits this year.  Did they shop primarily online or do they prefer brick and mortar locations?  Here’s what they said:

Did you shop online this holiday season?  If so, what were some of the things that you were looking for?

Ben:

50% of my shopping was done online.

Kelli:

I have browsed items online, but have yet to purchase. Mostly snowboarding related items such as bindings and jackets. Nothing big ticket so far.

Jason:

I did most of my shopping online this year.  I typically do a large Amazon order and then look at specialty online merchants like ThinkGeek for unusual or fun gifts.

Joel:

I shopped online for video games for my kids and shoes for my wife.

Jena:

Yes, I shopped online this holiday season and many other years in the past.  I used it this year to look for gifts for my family.  I ended up buying some DVDs, CDs,  and iPod accessories.

Matt Wetter:

I did online shopping for two of my gift items this year.  Only one of them was a cyber Monday purchase.  The two purchases I made was a devotional book and the second was the Star Wars Triology DVD.  The Star Wars was a Cyber Monday purchase from Family video.

Bryan:

I usually use a combination of brick and mortar and online shopping.  It is a tradition for me, fighting the crowds, finding parking spaces, the cold weather, going shopping with my wife/family, walking in and out of dozens of stores to find the right gifts.  This enhances my Holiday spirit.  Although, it is not as efficient as shopping online.

Dan:

I shopped for a TV, Blu Ray Player, and TV mount.

How did this year’s online deals compare to other years?  Did you find any deals on Cyber Monday vs. Black Friday?

Jason:

I keep a close pulse on electronic deals and it is interesting that sales on Cyber Monday are not really much different then ongoing sales from Black Friday until Christmas.

Joel:

I didn’t really do much with the two special days this year. Seems like a lot of the deals carried on past just the two days.

Matt Whelan:

I actually bought a TV on Amazon about a week before Black Friday and the price went significantly UP after I bought it.  I made out by not waiting for Black Friday.

Jena:

I didn’t notice specific differences.  I did not shop on specific days like Cyber Monday or Black Friday, just days I had time to search.

Matt Wetter:

There is no way I was going to go out on black Friday and get trampled at Target.

Dan:

Yea, there was a TV online that was a better deal than in stores but it was sold out online by the time I found it.

Have you found better deals online or in brick and mortar stores?

Ben:

I’ve found that the best deals are online (probably because they are easier to find for me).

Kelli:

Almost always online, which is really hard because I would really like to support local business. Half of the time, I end up supporting local business in other parts of the country because they have a retail outlet online.

Jason:

A mixture of both.  Some stores have unadvertised sales that are lower than anything you can find online.

Matt Whelan:

Always online, though I’m such a last minute shopper I usually don’t have a choice. Most places can’t deliver on Christmas morning after ordering on Christmas Eve.

Jena:

I usually find better deals online.  The only thing that can have negative impact on online deals is the shipping and handling fees.

Matt Wetter:

Shopping online gave me the ability to compare prices right in front of me.  I will often do online shopping for that reason, so I can get the best deal.

Do you prefer shopping online or in brick and mortar locations?  What are the advantages to your preference?  Convenience? Price? Availability?

Kelli:

I prefer shopping in brick and mortar stores to online because I like to see items up-close, but I generally use a combination of the two. I research online and buy in-store or check it out in-store and buy online. Price is usually the determining factor.

Jason:

I like to do a little of both.  Online is easy, but sometimes you don’t know what you want to buy until you find it and simply ‘browsing’ for unknown items is a lot easier at a brick and mortar than online.

Joel:

Browsing the aisles in a store, it is easy to see things that catch your eye.  But knowing that nothing is ever out of stock online is much better. So if it is something I know I want specifically, I go online. For example, my wife wants a new coffee maker, so I am going Target locally so I can see and touch even if there is more selection online.

Jena:

Normally, I prefer to shop at brick and mortar locations.  Especially if I don’t have specific ideas in mind, I like to browse and enjoy the shopping experience.  During the holidays, when the stores are a lot busier, I prefer to shop online.  When I know exactly what I’m looking for, I always check online sites first for prices.

Ian:

I prefer brick and mortar so I don’t have to worry about shipping.  There’s less chance of buyer’s remorse and a better browsing experience.

Matt Wetter:

I was happy with all my gift purchases this year.  I find that the advantage of going to a store is that you can browse and find something when you don’t have a clue what to get someone.  Online is king if you know what you want and want to get a good deal and not have to fight off other people to get it.

Bryan:

With online shopping, I can browse 10 times more stores than at the malls and do it from the comfort of my home.  Plus, with Cyber Monday, I found great deals online.

So this year, I only purchased gifts at the mall that I planned a head of the time.  I left the browsing and research for online shopping.

Dan:

It’s nice to shop online because it’s so much easier to compare with the help of customer ratings and reviews.

What was the one essential gift that you tracked down this year?  Did you find it online or in a store?

Ben:

A 5lb Gummy Bear was the gift I wanted to find.  I’ve only ever seen it online.

Jason:

Oversized T.V. trays, and a local store on Black Friday had the best deal.

Jena:

My dad wants an electric train to go around my parent’s Christmas tree.  I did research online but ended up finding one in the store for a great deal.

Ian:

Wait, I should have started shopping already?

Dan:

I bought a 42″ LG T.V., in store, at Walmart.

We’d like to hear from you.  Use our comments section to tell us where you prefer to shop.

Project Titan, Facebook’s “modern messaging system,” is not a Gmail killer; at least it’s not according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Monday November 15, 2010 that Facebook plans to roll out the new project piece by piece (probably as an invite-only to start) over the coming months.

Zuckerberg stated, “I think Gmail’s a really good product…we just think that this simpler kind of message is how people will shift their communication.”

Project Titan has its sights set on three key areas: seamless messaging, conversation history, and social inbox.  Seamless messaging encompasses all of the ways you communicate: Facebook, IM, chat, SMS, e-mail, etc.  Project Titan aims to combine all of your communication on a single platform: Facebook.

Conversation history with each user (e.g. all of your Facebook messages, IMs, SMS, and e-mails) will be displayed in a single thread rather than broken up into individual ones for each service.

Finally, according to digitaltrends.com, your Social Inbox will work as “a spam filter. It’s a tiered system, ranking message importance by the amount you interact with another Facebook user.  Your list of priority contacts is automatically created.”

Titan will also attempt to recognize a user’s messaging preferences, and that’s where it gets a little confusing.  How does Titan decide what kind of message to send your desired user?  If a user mostly communicates with a Facebook friend via chat, but attempts to email that friend and they happen to be on Facebook at that very moment, will they actually receive the message as a Facebook chat instead of the intended email?

While some features remain speculation, as surely all of the kinks haven’t been worked out yet, Facebook’s Project Titan looks to be promising evolution of the social network’s services.

The Tide is Turning

Last year Google rolled out Wave, a web-based computing platform that, like Titan, merged email, IMs, and social networking.  However Google has since stopped developing Wave as a stand-alone product due to confusion from users and usability criticisms.

Perhaps what Google Wave neglected to do (integrate with its already existing product, Gmail), Facebook will improve upon by expanding their already-existing services with new features rather than trying to reinvent the wheel.  It’s still up in the air whether or not it will actually work and how users will respond.

@facebook.com

Finally, it looks like Facebook will compete with Gmail after all, even if it is “indirectly”, as it plans on giving users the option of adopting an @facebook.com domain.  Will businesses buy into a Facebook email address?  And how will Facebook’s email compare to the features of Gmail and other email services?  We’ll have to wait for more announcements from Zuckerberg to find out.  It will be interesting to see what Facebook’s Project Titan has to offer over the coming months and how it could potentially revolutionize the way we interact online.

The Fission Web System has already started integrating with Facebook with its Social Media component and future development is certain.  Click here to get more information on 360 PSG’s Social Media Component.

This Halloween 360 PSG’s creative team got clever with costumes ranging from a Free Credit Report.com Pirate to a Space Invader to our very own Joel Colombo.  Employees donned the costumes the Friday before Halloween rounding out a busy work week with some fun.

Be sure to vote your favorite 360 PSG Halloween costume in the comments section!

Photos:

And 360 PSG programmers Ian and Eric came dressed as 360 founders Matt and Joel:

Did your office dress up for Halloween?  Share your Halloween costumes with 360 and let us know what you think of our costumes.

Happy Halloween!

Whenever anyone asks me what I do, I like to tell them “I work for the Internet.”

That’s usually sufficient to garner some laughs, maybe an uncomfortable pause in anticipation of a “real answer,” and inevitably a few completely warranted but extremely rare ‘okay-well-if-you-didn’t-want-to-tell-me-then-why’d-you-say-anything-at-all’s’.  Of course I only say that to be funny and break up the happy hour monotony of business card swapping and work-related word vomit, but in all honesty I do essentially work for the Internet.  And I love it.  It’s fun and rewarding, but let’s be honest it’s not necessarily a glorified profession.  At least not until someone made a great movie about it.

Last Wednesday the 360 PSG team attended a late-afternoon screening of David Fincher’s latest opus The Social Network at the AMC Maple Ridge 8 in Amherst.  The Social Network (written by Aaron Sorkin) examines the inception, development, and legal troubles of Facebook as developed by Mark Zuckerberg, Co-founder, CEO and President.

Call it research if you will, or possibly just the desire of a thriving web development company to examine the life of a 26 year-old billionaire made rich by, what else, the Internet.  Maybe, just maybe by attending we’d learn the secret of striking it rich on the web and be sent on our ways, back to our offices ripe with knowledge ready to build our empire.  Or maybe we’d just see a really awesome movie about the Internet…?

The tagline of the film is: “You don’t get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies.”  And in the film we see Zuckerberg  (Jesse Eisenberg) do just that.  From the “antagonistic” identical twin Winklevoss brothers (Armie Hammer and Josh Pence) to Zuckerberg’s close friend and business partner Eduardo (Andrew Garfield), Zuckerberg is portrayed as a socially inept genius incapable of making or retaining real friendships and quite possibly becomes the true antagonist of The Social Network.

Honestly, it’s hard to root for anyone in this film save Eduardo, Zuckerberg’s wealthy Harvard roommate who puts up the original funds to kick-start “The Facebook”.  Zuckerberg dreams up The Facebook after he’s approached by the brothers Winklevi, star crew athletes at Harvard, to create an exclusive social networking site for them; any member of the site would be required to have a Harvard.edu email account (a major difference from Zuckerberg’s idea).

The film manages to be enthralling by intricately weaving two lawsuits against Zuckerberg, one filed by Eduardo and the other by the Winklevoss brothers, with flashbacks of Facebook’s development, power struggles, and ultimate public success.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering why I keep referring to the popular social networking site as The Facebook, don’t worry, that’s covered in the film as well; that was the site’s original moniker until Zuckerberg befriended Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake), co-founder of Napster and eventual 7% owner of Facebook, who suggests, “Drop the ‘the’. Just ‘Facebook’. It’s cleaner.”

Can we believe everything we see on the silver screen?  Of course not.  Zuckerberg refused to have anything to do with the film and has spoken out publicly about its inaccuracies.  But one lesson to take away from this film, and I can only speak for myself, is that knowledge mixed with determination and perseverance can pay off, big time.  (That and possibly befriending Sean Parker…) 

I asked the 360 PSG employees who attended The Social Network screening a few questions about the film.  Here’s what they had to say:

Do you have a Facebook page?  If so, how long have you had it?

Eric: yes, around the time public registrations were open (Sep 26, 2006).

Joel: Yes. 2 years.

Ian: Yes.  Not sure when exactly I got it, my earliest email is from August 2005,
but that is when I changed my email

Kelli: Yes.  As soon as UB joined the network… sometime in early 2005?

Matt: Yes, a couple years now.

Jena: Yes. I created an account in the Spring of 2005 when you had to have .edu email address.

Do you like Facebook?

Eric: No.  It’s too busy for my tastes and I can’t stand all the “Games” and applications.  Twitter is where it’s at.

Joel: Yes, but only on every few days.

Ian: It’s a love-hate relationship.

Kelli: I liked the old Facebook better.  It was simple and didn’t hoard all sorts of personal data.

Matt: I don’t like it for personal use, yet I end up using it a couple times a week.  I like it as a business networking tool.

Jena: Yes. Great way to connect with/stay in touch with friends and family.

Has your opinion of Facebook changed since watching The Social Network?  If so, how?

Eric: Nope.

Joel: No. Nice to see where it came from, but it is still the same product it was before the movie.

Ian: Not really.

Kelli: Not really.  If anything, it made me nostalgic for the old version.

Matt: No, but nice to know more of where it came from.

Jena: No. It was just interesting to see how fast the site took off and how much it’s changed since the beginning (I forgot about the blue guy that used to be in the header).

Did you like the film?

Eric: Yes, because Trent Reznor is the man! (Trent Reznor scrored the film)

Joel: Yes. Reminded me very much of “Pirates of Silicon Valley” that had the same styling but told the parallel stories of the formation of Microsoft and Apple. I highly recommended for those that haven’t seen it.

Ian: Yes.

Kelli: Yes.

Matt: It was ok.

Jena: Yes. Again, good to see the history of something that’s so huge right now.

Would you see it again?

Eric: Yes, but just for Trent.

Joel: Yes, on DVD.

Ian: Sure.

Kelli: Yes.

Matt: No, generally I don’t watch movies more than once.

Jena: Yes. Will probably just rent it.

Did the film inspire you in any way?  How?

Joel: It is great to see someone with an idea and passion take off.

Kelli: It actually made me think about how I’m not willing to sacrifice friends for success.

Matt: I want to have a “1 millionth Fission Customer Party” … still working to get there.

Jena: No. But it did remind me that I know nothing about programming and that I am not smart enough to attend Harvard.

360 PSG has a Facebook page.  Will you be our friend?

Should you be concentrating your online marketing efforts on Twitter over Facebook?

According to an ExactTarget study, “Subscribers, Fans and Followers,” businesses are seeing more return from their Twitter followers than their Facebook friends.  However, just having a Twitter account isn’t the easy fix for making more online conversions.

In a study of 1,500 consumers, 37% of Twitter users are “more likely to purchase from a brand after becoming a subscriber, fan, or follower,” as opposed to only 27% of email subscribers and only 17% of Facebook fans.

So why Twitter?

It could all be in the process.  Facebook friends are likely to casually “like” a product or service, whereas on Twitter they tend to go the extra mile if they like a product.  When someone chooses to follow a specific brand on Twitter however, they must take an extra step to make that commitment, which, in turn might solidify their loyalty to that brand.  Often times, when a Twitter user comes across something they like, they will start following an account and probably even RT (reTweet) something that they like when they read about.

While, according to the study, Twitter has a higher return, Facebook still remains a valuable marketing tool helping to advertise products and services to thousands of people daily.  That’s something that every business or organization should “like.”

However, Jeff Rohrs, principal, ExactTarget’s Marketing Research and Education Group did say, “Consumers don’t isolate their communications to email, Facebook or Twitter and expect brands to communicate consistently across the channels.”  He added, “Marketers should focus on developing and implementing an integrated strategy that combines—not isolates—the powerful strengths of each of the online channels.”

Tim Kopp, ExactTarget’s chief marketing officer, added, “The Collaborative Future report provides marketers key insights and recommendations to develop effective online marketing across all three channels.”

The idea is to spread more information to a wider audience by combining your marketing powers.  For example, promote Facebook contests through an email marketing campaign to leverage more Facebook fans from your current mailing list.  The same goes for Twitter.  Want more people to sign up for your newsletter?  Tell your Twitter followers about exclusive deals only available for email subscribers.

Remember it’s all about how effective your marketing campaign is when it comes to social networking.  Combine your efforts to include communication via all three platforms (Twitter, Facebook, and email) to reach a wider audience.

360 PSG offers their Social Media Plugged-In Package which integrates Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn seamlessly with every Fission Web System website.  For more information on how you can start utilizing Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or to set up an email marketing campaign, contact 360 PSG today.

You can learn more results of the ExactTarget study here.