Dan's Digs - pachecod's Blog - Bakersfield.com

Printcasting: Our Knight News Challenge winning idea

Wed, 14 May 2008 14:20:51 PDT

Well, the cat's finally out of the bag. For the next two years, I'll be working on a Knight News Challenge grant-funded project for The Bakersfield Californian called Printcasting. And I can't wait to get started!

The idea, proposed by myself, Justinian Hatfield and Mary Lou Fulton (my colleagues in the Californian's New Products group), is called Printcasting. We think it's the next logical step in the evolution of local news, and has great promise to revolutionize how local consumers and advertisers relate to local media.

Printcasting will make it possible for anyone to create a local printable newspaper, magazine or newsletter that carries local advertising – all for free -- by pulling together online content from existing sources, such as blogs, and combining it with local advertising that matches the content.

Through web software that we will build, an aspiring print publisher won’t need any technical knowledge, design skills, software or even content to create printable publications. If you’re passionate about a local interest – which could be anything from a local sports team to a local hobby like fishing – and you have an Internet connection, you’ll be able to set up your own publication in minutes.

New editions will automatically be created as PDFs (Adobe's Portable Document Format) and sent to readers in e-mail. This is similar to a Podcast, which uses RSS feeds to send out new MP3 files -- thus the term Printcasting.

The beauty of this idea is its simplicity. All a publisher will need to do is choose which blogs to feed into his or her publication, pick a publication template, and choose how often new editions should be sent out. Local readers will then be able to search and browse for Printcasts that match their interests, read and subscribe. Every template will be optimized to look good on both home printers, and larger-run presses.

From a purely gee-wiz, altruistic level, I'm hoping that we can use Printcasting to bring back the Zine explosion of the 1990s. The desire for ordinary people to create their own print products has been around for decades, and in my opinion the first real push into what we call "user contributed content" today started with the advent of desktop publishing tools. The Internet and, eventually, blogging, eclipsed that movement, but it never went away. I see Printcasting as an effort to bridge the gap between local user-generated content online and local distribution through print -- a logical evolution of what the Californian started with The Northwest Voice. But now, instead of just letting people contribute to our publications, they can participate in the role of the publisher themselves.

But there's another motivation for doing this. At the Californian we've discovered that even though consumers are moving online and using social networking tools -- both those provided by us, and others like Facebook -- the local advertisers aren't moving as quickly. I used to think this was a matter of education, but I think it's more than that. Local advertisers like to see their ads in the physical world, with people coming into a store with a printed coupon in their hand. And they like to walk down the street and pick up one of our various niche publications -- many of which contain content which was contributed by regular people online -- and see their ad on page 3. This is why The Northwest Voice, which is powered by stories readers post online, still generates most of its revenue from its print edition.

So this creates a conundrum for us, and most local media companies. We know that most of our revenue growth as a company is in niche publications. We have 10 print-online hybrid brands in Bakersfield now about everything from young downtown hipsters to local parents. The challenge? There are thousands of other niche interests that we haven't even begun to tap into.

For all these reasons, the other aspect of Printcasting is about revolutionizing local niche advertising in print. We will give local advertisers a way to find Printcasts that match their target demographics and interests, and then create targeted print ads online. They’ll only pay for the ads that run in Printcasts that we know are delivered.

This is exactly what many local advertisers who can’t afford the one-size-fits-all daily newspaper are looking for. They want to get a specific message out to a specific type of consumer, and they only want to pay for the ads that reach their target users.

Who Gets That Money? We plan to share ad revenue with everyone who contributed to the success of a Printcast publication.

For example, if content from your fishing blog appears in a Printcast about fishing that has a $10 ad in it, you’ll get a portion of that $10. And if you’re the one who decided to create a Fishing magazine, you’ll also get a cut. The rest will go toward the bottom line and ongoing maintenance of the network.

A lot of this may sound far-fetched, but we've done our homework and we know it’s possible . All of the content is out there already thanks to the explosion of user-generated content in recent years. In Bakersfield, California, where this concept will be road-tested, we’ve already identified 1,000 locally focused blogs, and we know that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Each of those blogs has an RSS feed that allows content to be extracted and used elsewhere. RSS allows us to capture and flow content into PDF templates on the server without any ongoing work by the publisher. This is similar to how a Podcast works, but instead of sending out MP3 files, we’ll be sending out PDFs with fresh local content.

Then, there are several open-source tools that can generate PDF documents on the fly on a Web server.

It was only a matter of time before someone decided to bring those tools together and market it to local consumers. Call it reverse publishing, rss-to-PDF, or something else, but we believe it's the future of print publishing.

We plan to allow other types of advertising to appear in Printcasts, too. There are already a few experiments out there that let businesses create self-serve advertising in print, including Google, Yahoo and others. And we know that there’s a lot of remnant ad inventory – both national and local – that is looking for targeted placement. We hope to find ways to feed ads from other platforms like these into Printcasts.

The other advantage for a newspaper company in particular, but which really applies to any company that has printing capabilities, is that it's a more efficient way to create and monetize local niche publications. Printcasting will make it possible for newspapers to serve many more niche audiences in print without needing to dedicate staff to every niche interest. Considering the thousands of niche interests in any one city, leveraging a local community's desire to participate in media is the best and, in some case, only way to do this effectively.

We also think we can use revenue sharing as a carrot to improve quality. Several times a year, The Bakersfield Californian will choose a set number of Printcasts to mass-print and distribute. This will be in our best interest because we'll be able to run our own ads in them, in addition to any other targeted advertising we may find. Contributors to those specially chosen Printcasts will get a cut of that revenue, too.

Among the people who may want to use Printcasting are people with an idea for a new local publication (now they can get one going for free); community organizations that want an easier way to produce their newsletters; or even a local newspaper like The Bakersfield Californian that wants to create niche publications from existing content. In phase 2 of this experiment, we'll reach out to these audiences and promote the Printcasting concept.

We have two years to complete this project, but it will roll out in three phases. Our first major deadline is roughly 9-10 months from now, when we plan to launch the first version of Printcasting in Bakersfield, California. We will spend 9 months promoting the product and fine-tuning the tools. Then, in the last six months, we will sign up five other sponsors (newspapers, print shops, etc.) in other cities to launch Printcasting there.

And after that? You will be able to help decide where Printcasting goes next. Under the terms of our grant with the Knight Foundation, all News Challenge projects must be developed as an open source product, meaning that anyone will be able to download and use the software for free. All of the tools, documentation and learning will be available for anyone to use under open source GPL and Creative Commons licenses.

For more information, please see this presentation, which was submitted along with the original proposal. Or go to Printcasting.com, an interactive space we'll use to solicit and share ideas and provide updates on the progress of this project.

Dog Eats Iguana

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:25:09 PDT

This is actual footage that I took myself of a dog hunting, catching and eating an iguana. It happened at Seven Seas Beach in Puerto Rico (near El Conquistador Hotel if you know the area). Iguanas, not native to Puerto Rico, have escaped as pets and their population is exploding on the island. We think the people who run the beach bring this dog in to keep the Iguana population under control (either that or they let the stray dog do its thing). The dog couldn't be happier!

Easter bunny outed by daughter. Help!

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 18:18:33 PDT

Help! My very smart, very self-assured 4-year-old daugther just spilled the beans on the Easter Bunny to her entire preschool class.

The teacher tried to brush over it, but after the class she pulled my wife to the side and implied in the nicest way that we need to get with the program and buy into the idea of supporting this myth.

And the real clincher: she's at a Christian preschool run out of a Methodist church! So basically it's a church telling us that we need to lie to our kids about something that we know they will eventually figure out and resent us for.

I think we'd just forget about the whole affair if it weren't for the fact that our daughter is traumatized by the experience for reasons that she refuses to talk about. We tried to explain that sometimes other people believe things that you don't, or that you don't want to ruin the "surprise" for the other kids (which is a strange way of putting it, since I have vivid memories of learning The Truth at the tender age of 6 and feeling deeply betrayed by my own parents.)

We asked her if the teacher, or some of the other kids, said something to her and she won't even have the discussion. To directly quote her: "WHY DO YOU KEEP ASKING ME THIS OVER AND OVER? I don't want to talk about it!" (Yes our 4-year-old often sounds like a 14-year-old).

And before anyone jumps on my case for being the bad guy for telling her the truth, we didn't. We simply didn't make a big deal about the easter bunny. We figured others would tell her about it, and they did. She came to her grandma and asked if there was really a bunny that brings a basket of eggs to your house with candy, because that didn't make sense to her. She'd never seen a bunny carrying a basket, and not with eggs, so it seemed silly to her. Her grandma, a former second-grade teacher, responded in the most tactful way: "Maybe you should think about that through Easter and then tell us what you think!" Well, my daughter had already made up her mind. She decided that either her grandma or parents dressed up as a bunny and that they brought the eggs early in the morning. Instead of outright lying to her, her grandma just smiled and said "Maybe!"

This is such a new thing for us, so I have to ask:

1) If you're a parent, did anything like this happen to you? If not with the Easter Bunny, maybe Santa Clause or Tooth Fairy?

2) How would you recommend dealing with this problem? In particular, how do we get our daughter to talk about what happened at school?

3) How do we help her not continue to let other kids in on the secret while also respecting her keen intellect at having figured it out at such a young age?

4) And finally, do you think parents are lying by continuing the myth of the Easter Bunny, especially with kids who are smart enough to know better?

Galactica finale reactions? SPOILERS WARNING!

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 20:54:37 PDT

OK, so for any of you Battlestar Galactica fans out there (yes, even those of you who are still "in the closet"), I want to hear what you have to say about last week's season finale. And just so I don't annoy anyone: SPOILERS FOLLOW!

So first: The leaders of the resistance on New Caprica against the Cylon occupation were ... Cylons themselves? What do you make of that? And how about the president's right-hand woman (and colonel Tigh) being Cylons? They're the two most trusted advisors on the civilian and military sides. As Tigh said when he learned his true identity .... whoah ....

And what about Roslyn getting a headache right when the other Cylons were feeling like "there must be somewhere out of here?" Was that an indication that she is the last of the final 5?

I don't even know what to make of Starbuck showing up again. It seemed like she was depicted in a way that could make her a figment of Lee's imagination. Or how about this. Was she an apparition like the 6 that Baltar sees?

And my final thought: maybe the 6 and Baltar-in-head-of-6 and the new Starbuck apparition and the supposed Cylon who lead Starbuck to her apparent death in the nebula are all A THIRD POWER that is neither Cylon nor human. In the original Galactica, there was a third species of angelic beings in "ships of light" and they showed up in an episode not uncoincidentally titled "The Return of Starbuck". This was after the original Starbuck (in that series, a dude) supposedly died.

So if this makes any sense to you, post a comment with your theories. And if it doesn't -- why aren't you watching Battlestar Galactica yet? It won a Peabody for Athena's sake, so get with the program already.

Map it!

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 10:31:13 PST

Now when you post a blog entry, you'll see a little button at the bottom that says Add Location. Click that, throw in a street address, and your entry will show a Google map! This is helpful for content that relates to a specific place.

For example, I've included a map of The Bakersfield Californian below.

In Colorado for Christmas. BRR!!!

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 15:23:58 PST

I'm in Colorado for Christmas this year. And in case you haven't seen the news, there's a major blizzard underway. We're getting 2 feet of snow up here! I've uploaded a few photos.

Maybe some other holiday traveler can share some more soothing pics. Anyone in Fiji by chance? That would be a nice change!

National Goofing Off at Work Hour

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 13:01:11 PST

It's that time again -- National Goofing Off at Work Hour. So here's my contribution. This little Flash-based game called Line Rider lets you draw a sledding hill for a little penguin-ike man. After you draw it, click Play and off he goes! You can waste minutes of valuable work time making tracks that send him around in loops, off sweet jumps and -- of course -- into spectacular wipeouts.

Check it out here! http://www.official-linerider.com/play.html

You can watch a video of one of the more professional tracks in this post.

Have any other fun mid-day diversions? Put them in a comment here.

Salsa Bunny!

Thu, 14 Dec 2006 20:58:38 PST

So as I mentioned, I'm going to Puerto Rico in February. Puerto Rico is the birthplace of Salsa dancing. So in honor of that, I give you ... Salsa Bunny.

Found my dreidel video

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 15:38:20 PST

Wow, this person is REALLY into Dreidels! What an amazing costume.

OK people, so help me find some other holiday videos. We need something for Kwanzaa. And while we're at it, maybe something for the Winter Solstice too.

Get down, Santa and rudolph!

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 14:51:09 PST

I find myself watching and rewatching this little ditty WAY too much as we get closer to Christmas. And just so nobody feels offended or excluded, happy everything else too. I just can't find anything this fun with a Dreidel or Kwanzaa or Ramadan themes. But if you do, share it because I'd love to see more!

Puerto Rican National Anthem

Fri, 08 Dec 2006 10:23:25 PST

Puerto Rico is neither a state nore a country, but it has its own national anthem. How do you explain that?

Vieques

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 12:58:48 PST

Here are some photos and videos of Vieques in Puerto Rico.

Pictures of Flamenco Beach

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 11:40:45 PST

This is what Flamenco beach on the island of Culebra looks like. Paradise!

Puerto Rico

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 11:13:31 PST

I'm going to Puerto Rico in February and will be going to Flamenco beach in Culebra. Can't wait! Has anyone else been there? It's my favorite spot on earth.

Virtual Bakersfield

Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:47:24 PST

If you use Second Life and are interested in checking out a virtual version of Bakersfield we're building, please contact me! Or if you already have a Second Life account, go to this SLURL: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Maroon/228/25/23/

You can IM me as user Eusebio Holt.

A few small changes

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 13:33:45 PDT

We made a few small changes today that I hope you all will enjoy. Here are a couple of them.

First, if you use Internet Explorer, what you see in your blog entries and comments as you're writing them will more accurately reflect what you get after you post it. If you hit the Enter key once there will be one space in the editor, and you will see one space in your post. If you hit the Enter key twice, you will see a full line break between lines.

Second, we now show the title of a blog entry and the blog itself underneath the comments on the New Comments page.

Please let us know what you think!

Spellcheck is here!

Tue, 01 Aug 2006 21:05:08 PDT

I have some good news for those of you who blog a lot. But if you're as nitpicky as you seem to be, you have probably already noticed. (And if not -- gotcha!)

The next time you post a blog entry or comment, look in the little text toolbar that shows above where you write. You'll see a little ABC image. Click it to see a fully functional spellchecker!

It's possible that you may need to clear your browser's cache to see this new feature. Here's how to do that on various computer and browser types:

PC, Internet Explorer
- Go to the Tools > Internet Options menu
- Click "Delete Files" under Temporary Internet Files
- Click "Delete Cookies"
- Click OK Close the browser and restart it.

PC, Firefox 1.0
- Choose Tools > Options
- Click the Privacy button
- Click "clear" next to Cache and Cookies
- Click OK
- Close the browser and restart it.

PC, Firefox 1.5
- Choose Tools menu > Clear Private Data
- Make sure "Cache" is one of the checked options and click Clear Private Data Now.
- Close the browser and restart it.

MAC, Firefox 1.0 and up:
- Click on Firefox, then choose Preferences. Click on the Privacy icon (second one down) then click the Clear button next to Cache (last one on the list)

"If you can do it in Bakersfield, you can do it anywhere"

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 14:48:04 PDT

As you may or may not be aware, what we're doing with these blogs and profiles here on Bakersfield.com is getting a lot of national attention.

As I talk to more people about it, I'm hearing the following phrase more and more:

"If you can do this in Bakersfield, you can do it anywhere."

One person preceded that with, "No offense, but ..."

So what do you all think about this statement? Does it speak highly of us and how innovative we are, or is it a slam in disguise? We need to come up with another city to use as an example, I think.

On the flip side, I have also personally received e-mails from people as far away as the UK saying that they want to visit or move to Bakersfield because of the interesting people who live here. And how do they get to know those people? Through your blogs and comments, of course! You all are famous.

How do you deal with the heat?

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 07:30:05 PDT

OK, I just have to say -- no matter where you're originally from, how long you've lived here, or what kind of climate you like -- it is too dang hot for words to describe! Am I the only one who walks outside and wonders if someone set off an atomic bomb? I take a breath and the air the comes into my lungs is like the air in a sauna.

If I walk anywhere outside, I'm like a fountain of sweat 10 minutes later. For the first time in my life I'm bringing a stick of deoderant to work to apply liberally between outings. I'm sorry, but that's just too hot!

How do you deal with the heat? Post a comment here.

Choppy Audio in iTunes or QuickTime 7.1? This worked for me.

Sun, 16 Jul 2006 18:01:59 PDT

A group of good friends just banded together to get me a Video iPod. They must have been reading all of my posts about getting TiVo shows onto my Treo smartphone and felt sorry for me or something. (It's actually a little more complex than that, but I won't get into it in this post).

At any rate, I've been playing around with it and iTunes this weekend. I ran into a problem with the audio track in videos and traced it to QuickTime 7.1, which is required for the latest version of iTunes. iTunes 6 or higher is in turn required to use all the features on the Video iPod. And to complicate matters further, you can't even use the latest version of iTunes without QuickTime 7.1 since it installs them together.

Videos were playing fine, but the audio tracks were choppy. After about five minutes of playing any video in iTunes or QuickTime -- including any QuickTime movie, such as a movie trailer from a web site -- the audio would kick in a-a-and i-i-it-w-w w-wo-would s-so-sound l-li-like t-th-this. It was beyond annoying. QuickTime movies, and all videos played in iTunes, were useless on my computer.

I did a little research and found this help discussion on Apple, and it solved it for me:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=560352&tstart=0

To be specific, I did the following:

Right-click on the QuickTime icon in the Windows taskbar.
Choose QuickTime Preferences.
Select the Audio tab
Next to "Rate," set it to 44.1 96 khz
Next to "Size," set it to 96 khz
Click the Apply button
Click OK
Go to either iTunes or QuickTime to play a Video.

The exact settings may be different depending on your sound card, so if that doesn't work play around with different combinations of Rate and Size and see what happens.

If you have this problem and this solves it, please post a comment here. Also, let me know if you find other solutions or have tips for optimizing audio and video in QuickTime.