I am currently moving my blog from this address to my new blog home at KendallSchoenrock.com/blog

This page will redirect you my new blog in 60 seconds.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2006/07/30/ariel-atom/


Doing some late night surfing, I came across a car that really caught my attention. The Ariel Aton, which looks amazingly fun to drive, is actually faster on the track than a half-million dollar Porsche GT. As a guy who enjoys fast cars, this one made me drool… check out this video.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2006/07/17/garmin-forerunner-205/
Garmin Forerunner 205

I received this sleek personal trainer as an MBA graduation gift in May of this year. The GPS receiver will track you on your runs and tell you how fast, far, and hard you are training. The included software is easy to use and I've found the mapping features interesting and fun. This is one of those classic devices that I would probably have never purchased for myself, but now that I have it, I truly enjoy it.

From the Garmin Website: Designed for athletes of all levels, this running partner and personal trainer has one goal in mind - to better you. It continuously monitors your speed, distance, pace and calories burned so you can train smarter, more effectively. It tracks your every move with a super-sensitive GPS that even works on tree-covered trails and near tall buildings.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2006/07/14/self-incrimination-online/

Self-Incrimination Online

It’s easy to look back at college with a sense of nostalgia and to pine for the carefree days of our youth. It is more difficult, however, to realize at the time that your actions may follow you for much longer than you anticipate. There has been a lot of talk recently about how it is important for students to protect their online information from the prying eyes of potential employers. I’ve even come across an article that claims some organizations have gained access to more secure areas of facebook.com citing the Patriot Act. While all of the images on my facebook.com account are things I would share openly; many of them are from my mission trip to Peru, this started to make me think about other information that I’ve posted here. While this blog is updated on a very sporadic basis, I did start it many years ago and have actually back logged a few random journal entries. Upon further review, there is content here that mentions activities, and friends full names, that could potentially portray them in an unprofessional manner. While it is hopefully reasonable to assume that my meager postings probably wouldn’t negatively affect anyone that I’ve previously posted about, I do believe that it is unfair of me to include them in this weblog.So as of this post, I am re-editing my previous posts to remove any information that I believe could be harmful to my own or others online reputation. I can only hope that those who also participate in such online activity will realize that the web does not easily forget. And those pictures of you dancing on the bar may not be as funny when people are making snap judgments. I would also ask those potential employers to base their decisions on the merit of the candidates and to remember that they probably did things in college that they wouldn’t want to talk about either. I’m sure they will argue they weren’t dumb enough to post it online and I would say that is a pretty fair point. In any case, I hope you enjoy my blog and will forgive me of any of my actions in college if and when I ever run for political office.

Cheers,

Kendall

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2006/05/05/bench-press/

Bench Press

For the past few months I've been hitting the gym with a degree of consistency. Today I accomplished a new personal best in the bench press: 285 pounds.

If you have lived under a rock, the bench press, as defined by wikipedia, is where "the athlete lies on a bench and a loaded barbell rests on stands built into the bench above the eye level of the lifter. The athlete removes the bar from the supports with the aid of a 'liftoff man', lowers it to the chest or upper abdomen and then presses it up to the full extension of the arms and carefully returns the weight to the rack."

This year at the NFL draft, " Ohio State defensive end Mike Kudla tied the Indianapolis Combine record in the bench press with 45 reps of 225 pounds Sunday. That tied a mark set by University of Texas-El Paso defensive tackle Leif Larsen in 2000." It's obvious that I'm not quite at that level, but it's interesting to see just how strong some of the people are out there.

I've also been trying to increase the number of total miles I run per week. This has trailed off recently as my school obligations have increased with finals just a few days away. I've been keeping my totals with an online log with coolrunning.com. This is useful because it keeps track of not only my weekly, monthly, and yearly totals, but also things like total number of miles I've completed in my Grey Nike Airmax shoes.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2006/03/24/ipod/

Podcasts

For Christmas this year my big bro got me a black video ipod. This is one of those gifts that I had resisted getting on my own because I have a hard time spending a good chunk of change on something that I viewed as pure entertainment. What I've come to find out is how wrong I was. The video ipod, and the huge list of business related podcasts has allowed me to access information that I find interesting and relevant at nearly any time of the day. Currently I subscribe to podcasts such as ABC World News Now which is a video downloaded to my ipod of current news stories for that day. I can now watch the news on demand and it is very rewarding.

I'm also a big fan of Knowledge@Wharton Audio Articles. It makes the Wharton newsletter much more entertaining.

Other podcasts in my list:
NPR: Story of the Day
Photoshop TV
Diggnation (videos)
Daily SearchCast - Search Engine News Recap

I also have a couple of German Podcasts like MyGermanClass. I'm always striving to keep my German skills sharp.

And I've totally overlooked the primary reason I was interested in owning an ipod... my music collection. I've started to master the art of playlists and my new ipod makes all of the time in my car much more enjoyable.

Blog Interruption

I am alive, however I've been distracted due to school work and social events. I will post here soon, I promise.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2005/12/24/71/

Exams are over and now I'm back in Kansas for the Holidays!

Exams went well and I'm please to have only 15 hours left for my MBA. Next semester will be interesting. I've applied for an independent study course to work on getting an article published. The subject that I've chosen for possible publication is based around information on mobile devices. Although this might change, the title in the application is; "Analysis of On Demand Information via Mobile Devices."

Purpose or Objective: There is substantial backing by cell phone and mobile computing manufacturers to include full QWERTY keyboards on mobile devices. Greater acceptance and usage of these devices will create a need for an easy way to access relevant information, on demand. This will be of significant importance in the near future. This independent study opportunity to produce an academic document that explores further the current trends in accessing information on mobile computing devices with specific focus on email enabled mobile devices.

Areas of Focus:

• Speed of interaction, response, and the flexibility of the system to share information (possible sources: The Tipping Point and Viral Marketing).

• Easy of Access. Is the information service platform independent, device independent and sensitive to the users location?

• What are the issues relating to size of return of relevant information? As Google has proven, less is often more, and compact and relevant is ideal.

• Enterprise Interaction. Do trends show a continued unity between the enterprise application and its heavy reliance on specific platforms?

• Information Overload: push data versus on demand. Analyze user replacement of on demand information for pushed information example: newsletter pull when you request it versus when the author sends it to you.) This section could also be broken down to include the extraction of user specified relevant information from formerly pushed systems.

• Costs: Application Development, Mobile Web Interfaces; duplicate, trimmed down versions of the web for access via mobile devices. Device Costs.

• Mobile Constraints. Analysis of display changes on mobile devices and constraints of text messaging versus email versus wireless web.

• The Konfabulator Model: How can an advanced user build a system to deliver information to a shared interest group?

I am pretty excited to get this project underway. I also believe it will be great to work with my sponsoring professor Steve Andriole.

http://www.kendallschoenrock.com/blog/index.php/2005/12/08/blackberry-8700c/

A week ago I was able to get the new blackberry 8700c. So far, I have been extremely pleased with the device and the quality of the bundled cingular service. I am writing this update on an airplane and typing on the tiny screen has not been a problem for me. It has taken me a little getting used to typing only with my thumbs, but the number of typos has decreased with my usage of the device. The keyboard is designed with a good slant for easy usage and the key spacing has not been a serious issue. I was frustrated initially with the dual numbers and letters, especially when I am attempting to spell a traditional phone number like 1-800-free-411. (This is a new free service I heard about from my old TurnTide co-investor Josh Kopelman.)
It is difficult to compare this model with the older ones because I have limited usage of the older models. I can, however, tell you that the screen has a wonderful resolution and it makes internet browsing fun and easy. I enjoy hitting a fast Google search from the sofa to win friendly bets with my roommates during Sunday football. Most recently I pulled up the total number of popes and on another occasion I found some obscure information on movies from the internet movie database (imdb.com). I enjoy my new business toy as hz allows me to check stock quotes, weather info and movie listings with ease (hz.com). Perhaps it’s the ability to access information where and when I want it. I believe this is the future of mobile devices…

One Book Villanova Program

"I became what I am today at the age of tweleve, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975..."

This is the opening line of the gripping book I just finished called The Kite Runner, by Kahled Hosseini. I found this book becasue of the One Book Villanova Program.


From Villanova's Website:

This year we are starting a new project called “One Book Villanova,” a campus-wide effort to engage all members of the community (students, staff, faculty, alums) in reading and discussing a single contemporary book.

The book we have chosen for this year is The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini. Many of you have read this book already; you know that it is an incredibly powerful book. Set both in Afghanistan and in California, the plot engages you from the first page. The book gives a powerful perspective on some of the most pressing national issues of our day. At the same time it raises important personal questions having to do with friendship, loyalty, prejudice, and intercultural communication. It is particularly relevant to the experience of our students, which is why it is a best seller in college bookstores across the nation.

The year’s events will begin with a gala celebration on Wednesday, September 28^th. Every Villanova undergraduate will receive a free copy of the book, and many departments have already ordered copies for their staff.

Many campus events have also already been scheduled dealing with this book and some of the issues raised by it. In fact, the author himself will be addressing the campus on Tuesday, February 7^th. Look for announcements here and elsewhere about these Kite Runner events.

I am excited to see the author when he comes to campus in February. I strongly suggest you pickup this book. It's gripping and haunting and something that had me deeply moved on a number of occasions. I can only hope that this program introduces me to numerous other books of equal calibar. The bar has been set very high...