BenWoods.com

September 07, 2009 - There are numerous ways to get people's attention in an email, although, let's face it, people would rather watch YouTube videos than read emails. But if you work at the New Zealand firm ProCare, you may want to avoid anything other than basic black text. Two years ago, the company fired Vicki Walker for sending an email that highlighted a specific date and time in red, as well as an important message in all caps.

August 23, 2009 - I meant to do this a long time ago, but I wanted to determine how many states I've covered with "The Developers" reviews. By this count, it looks like 18 plus Washington D.C. It would be pretty cool to hear from someone in every state, but let's face it, how many copies of my book are lying around in South Dakota?

August 18, 2009 - It happens to everyone ... you're trying to finish some work, but that crazy guy/boss/stalker chick/cougher/obnoxiously loud lady keeps pestering you every five minutes. How do you solve this crisis?

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to CubeGuard. It's essentially a banner you stretch across your cube entrance to keep out unwanted souls, which enables you to "Protect Your Productivity." Choose from a few standard messages or even create your own custom message?

August 10, 2009 - Rupert Murdoch, the only reason I can think of that you would change all of the News Corporation websites to a pay-for-content model is that you got your hand stuck in the intertubes.

Are you trying to limit the amount of traffic to your websites? Would you prefer that only rich people read your content? Do you think people will pay not with money, but with Coke Rewards points?

August 07, 2009 - I've made a few adjustments to my new book, "Corporate Ties." While almost completely factually accurate, I have decided to change the names of most of the people involved with the story. Because a few years have passed since the happenings, I think I can be a little more open with people's responses to certain things that occurred. The story line involves following a few individuals through a corporate relocation/layoff process, mixed in with a love story and a large amount of shenanigans. I'm hoping to have the first copies out by Christmas, if plans go accordingly!

July 30, 2009 - The news of my engagement should really not come as a surprise to those who know me. I have been contemplating asking my dear Lena for at least a few months, although I could never be sure it was the right thing to do. I also did not want to make the engagement trivial, nor did I want to partake in the request in any typical format. I devised pieces of a plan long ago in an attempt to be both surprising and unique, and I'm proud to admit now that I succeeded in these tasks.

July 28, 2009 - I wouldn't imagine a non-baseball fan would actually pick up a baseball book and read it from cover to cover. If there was a book I would recommend to a person who was interested in history but not a huge baseball buff, it's "Crazy '08" by Cait Murphy. And for a baseball fan, this is one book you wouldn't want to be without.

July 13, 2009 - I haven't quite made the New York Times best-seller list just yet, but copies of "The Developers" are getting their places in the sky. I've secretly placed a few books on Southwest airplanes, so if you are flying Southwest anytime soon, make sure to check the seat pocket in front of you. Sorry, I didn't include any drink coupons!

July 02, 2009 - Where do your tax dollars go? What data is being collected in this country anyway? Previously, these were difficult questions to answer, but the new administration appears to be making headway toward real answers.

At USAspending.gov, site visitors can see who is receiving federal funds, what industries are benefiting the most from the dough and which contractors are winning contracts. At Data.gov, users can check out numerous types of data catalogs, in numerous formats as well.

June 17, 2009 - I found out the other day through an internal company email that AOL has recently purchased two companies as part of its local strategy initiative. I was immensely surprised when checking out one of them, Patch, which is essentially a community-based website geared toward providing info with a small-town flavor. It's quite remarkable how similar this site is to .comU, the original website built by "The Developers."

May 29, 2009 - Bing, Microsoft's new search engine, is finally here. OK, well, as of May 29, 2009, it's not actually here yet. However, people are already raving over the name "Bing." It does have a nice ring to it, and it goes great with Crosby. But, what's in a name?

May 24, 2009 - I remember reading or hearing something a few years ago that said only 10 percent of all books published ever sell 1,000 copies or more. I cannot seem to find exact numbers anywhere, however, I found a boatload of other statistics on the Para Publishing website. The self-publishing numbers are pretty low ... only 3.4 percent of Xlibris copies have sold more than 500 copies, for example.

May 23, 2009 - Traveling to new countries is a great opportunity to see customs and cultures that you may not find in your own backyard. While it can be an exhilarating experience, it can also turn into a problem when not properly prepared for the journey. To make sure you have everything you need, I would suggest reading "Healthy Travel: Don't Travel Without It!" by Michael P. Zimring and Lisa Iannucci.

April 26, 2009 - I have a subscription to Harper's Magazine, and I try to read it as regularly as possible (although that's tough when we're all in similar boats with a million things going on). In this year's February edition, I came across a pretty good article titled "Sick in the head: Why America won't get the health-care system it needs" by Luke Mitchell. As the title suggests, the article is an in-depth review of multiple organizations, insurance conglomerations, and individuals who are essentially trying to "help" fix a broken system. Of course, all entities involved seem to understand that money, not people's health, drive the system, regardless of which side or what opinion you have.

April 16, 2009 - Taking a quick glance at your inbox and/or junk mailbox, I suspect you'll see plenty of email messages that you'll be deleting immediately. According to computer security company McAfee, there are about 62 trillion of those messages sent each year, and they consume enough electricity (33 billion kilowatt hours of electricity) to power 2.4 million homes.

April 12, 2009 - In 2007, I had my first taste of the Baltimore book scene at the CityLit Festival. Last year, I was a part of the event, so I figured I might as well join in again! The festival takes place 10 a.m.-4 p.m. April 18 at the downtown branch of the Enoch Pratt library.

April 03, 2009 - The distinction between reality and not reality has intrigued society for thousands of years. When I say society, though, I suppose I'm discussing only those individuals who actually want to discern the difference between the two, since it is readily apparent that a great deal of people rather enjoy the blur between the two worlds. In the past, "unreality" could be considered anything from a dream sequence to joining a secret cult to playing/cheering for your favorite sports team. However, with technology at the helm, we have another life available: one that is virtual.

March 28, 2009 - A few glaring items came to mind as I finished reading Roszak's "The Cult of Information:"

1. The second half of this book is much, much better than the first
2. I wish I would have known about this book when I was writing "The Developers"
3. This guy seemed to predict or at least know about so much, but how could he have not seen the usefulness of syncing data online?

March 16, 2009 - What constitutes an American tradition? It probably depends on who you ask. When I think of traditions of this country, I think of baseball, apple pie, and freedom (not necessarily in that order ... ). Holiday traditions in the U.S. are a little easier to define, only because they are recognized by a large number of people who live here. Religious traditions can be seen in the same vain, although few religions were actually created in this country. Tradition can be defined as "an inherited pattern of thought or action." But let's take a step back and ask: Does tradition, especially when it comes to daily activities and technology, even exist in America?

March 06, 2009 - We are to the midpoint in Theodore Roszak's "The Cult of Information," and up until now, I have experienced mixed emotions based on what I have read. On one page, I found myself thinking, "Yes! Why do people think computers are the cure-all for today's society?" However, on the next page, I reluctantly thought, "Wow, has this guy been out of his house in the last 20 years?" Granted, the book was originally published in 1986, and republished in 1994. I had the feeling that there were certain passages that probably would have been better rewritten, but I suppose I'm not here to critique what I didn't read, only what I did.

February 18, 2009 - It's apparent how much of a stronghold social networking has on U.S. society when a story about Facebook changing its terms of service appears as the main story on baltimoresun.com. That would be equivalent to seeing a story about a credit card company changing the fine print in its terms and conditions, or your favorite cereal changing the order of ingredients on its new packaging.

February 07, 2009 - There are a couple of different ways to look at the recent reports that the computers used by Maryland's General Assembly can no longer retrieve Facebook or MySpace pages. Is it really necessary for these individuals to be wasting their time on social networking sites, chatting with their friends, throwing virtual snowballs, and gathering a team for Mafia Wars? On the other hand, Facebook and MySpace are great places to reach out to the masses with key updates, as well as offering a forum to contact a legislator, which is not always easy to do.

February 05, 2009 - Google recently announced a new product available for a number of cell phone devices called Google Latitude. The program allows you to see other people, assuming they have opted into the system, on a Google-generated map. Users have the ability to allow access to their location to only certain individuals, and while the product isn't quite ready for the iPhone, it should be functional already for Blackberries and Windows Mobile 5.0 devices.

February 04, 2009 - If I were tasked with the chore of educating an alien race about earth's culture, it's pretty obvious how I would start. I would create an online slide show of the 2009 Super Bowl commercials. After all, what better way is there to show a foreign species how humankind has evolved into tech-hungry, commercialized beings? From finding a job using multiple websites to online car and airline flight shopping to graphically enhancing advertisements in general, it's apparent that society is enamored with any imaginable amount of technology. Well, at least, that's what the marketing industry want us to believe.

January 20, 2009 - Regardless of your current view of the Bible, specifically the Old Testament, it would be difficult to argue that every single passage ultimately displayed a God of complete compassion to all mankind. Many assume that various actions taken during this period were necessary "evils," while others do not think so highly of destroying some beings for the benefit of others.

January 17, 2009 - While I do not consider myself an expert in many things, one thing I feel a bit knowledgeable about is the genre of business-related books. I haven't read all 540,495,317 books in this field, nor do I plan to do so, because most are written by authors who think that because a company made billions of dollars by having its employees wear Hawaiian shirts on Fridays, the CEO of said company is a genius.

January 14, 2009 - Things seem to be getting more hectic as each year passes. I suspect some day, we'll have 26 hours in a day, but until that happens, we'll have to settle with getting everything imaginable taken care of in a normal day. As for me, I have a few new projects going, which is why I haven't had as much time lately to write articles and respond to comments. Have no fear!

January 08, 2009 - I would never recommend reading every single message that appears in your junk mailbox, but every once in awhile, there's a golden nugget of hilariousness. Here's one I received a few days ago:

December 22, 2008 - If you've had enough of Christmas music being played incessantly throughout your region, just be thankful you are not a shark at Loch Lomond Sea Life Centre in the United Kingdom. There, scientists are examining sharks' reactions to Christmas tunes.

December 07, 2008 - These days, most people are content to watch "CSI" or "NCIS" to receive their fill of criminal investigations. While the shows are entertaining, they are obviously not real, and as we all know, usually the truth is stranger than fiction.

Take, for instance, the Kitty Genovese and Barbara Kralik murder trials, which are both covered in "Twisted Confessions" by Charles E. Skoller. Both instances were particularly gruesome, and both had a bizarre twist. The most bizarre thing about the Genovese occurrence is that no one came to her aid, in spite of numerous neighbors hearing her screams for help. With the Kralik case, two people confessed to the murder, which sort of makes it difficult to prosecute either one separately.