I can’t help but enjoy doing interviews. Frankly, most of the tech scene interviews these days are just painful to watch. I like to inject my own style and keep the interviewee on their toes. I guess you could say its a mixture of what John Steward and Howard Stern both do so well.

So I’m going to put together a small list of individuals I want to interview before the year is over. Hopefully some of you will find this via an ego search and setup a time. Those that don’t, well sorry I can’t let you off that easily. Just remember if you see me, the red light on my flip camera means its working.

The List:

• Allen Stern
• Duncan Riley
• Calley Nye
• Eric Rice
• MG Sieger
• Robert Scoble
• Tony Hsieh
• Mike Arrington
• Jason Calacanis

An earthquake measuring 7.8 has hit south-west China, according to the US Geological Survey. Reports said tremors could be felt as far afield as the Thai capital, Bangkok, and Hanoi in Vietnam. The quake struck 57 miles (92km) north-west of Sichuan’s provincial capital, Chengdu, at 1428 (0628 GMT), the survey said on its website. Via: BBC

As in previous cases news broke very quickly on Twitter, Scoble even become some type of hub of information from the scene (Twitters local to the quake).

Check out Summerize’s search for earthquake right now.

I see Twitter having its own natural disaster and crashing any moment now. Sunday nights are notoriously bad for any server/data center.

Official details via the USGS

Update: The following day seems there is lots of talk about Twitter and the Earthquake, see Danny and the BBC again.

Thomas Beatie was born a woman and had sex reassignment operation to become a man. Now it seems she (or he? so confused) is pregnant? He recently appeared on Oprah to share his story as seen in the below clip. His wife Nancy could not conceive so through the use of artificial insemination Thomas became pregnant from an anonymous donor.

At Mahalo.com we are playing around with the idea of using Ustream to create content and engage. This gave me a chance to try out interviewing. This is actually something I’ve wanted to do for awhile, but hey who has the time. I thought it would be a little more interesting to toss out a few odd ball questions to notable tech folks and see how they respond. Watching the playback I can see I need to work on a few things, although thankfully I don’t think I pulled a Sarah Lacy.

Here is the interview with Pete Cashmore of Mashable.com:

Thanks Pete! I noticed we don’t have have a page for you yet on Mahalo. Feel free to submit your favorite Pete Cashmore related links.

I can’t help but notice someone from Canada is really looking for me online the last 24 hours. I can see my web sites traffic in real time and this site (along with my others) keep getting hit from Canada usually with my name as the search term.

So what are you looking for? Drop me a line and say hello!

Originally from here (currently off line due to “Digg Effect“). Although I can say I’ve experienced the same many many times. Treat your geeks with love people!

Reason #10 - Most Of Your Accomplishments Are Invisible

The computer guy never hears anyone tell him, “I just want to let you know … everything is working fine!�

The reality is that people call the computer guy when something is wrong.

As a computer guy, if you work really hard to make everything work the way that it should, and things work fine, then people believe you don’t do anything. Everything you manage to get working correctly or do perfectly will forever remain unnoticed by computer users. They’ll only ever notice that you do anything when something isn’t working correctly, and you are called upon to fix it.

Reason #9 - Every Conversation You Have Is Roughly The Same

When the computer guy dares to mention what he does for a living, the typical response is, “I have a question about my home computer…�

Or when the computer guy first hears about a widespread problem within the computer network he’s responsible for, he can barely begin to assess the problem before a dozen other people call to report the same problem.

Or when the computer guy explains a certain process on a computer to a user who is incapable of retaining the process, he will inevitably need to reinstruct the user of this same process — indefinitely.

Reason #8 - You’re An Expert Of Bleeding-Edge Technology Products, Aren’t You?

The computer guy often finds himself in situations where someone is asking him for advice on a pending investment of the technological variety.

“I heard about (some hardware or software product) that can do (something desirable) for me. I brought you these (advertisements/reviews/printouts) because I wanted your recommendation. Which would you buy?�

Although the inquiring person sincerely trusts the computer guy’s judgment over their own, in almost every instance the real objective of these meetings is to ensure their own immunity from making a risky purchase.

If it turns out to be a bad investment, and they cannot get (the hardware or software product) to do (anything desirable), then you will be their personal scapegoat — “But honey, the computer guy said I should buy it!�

Reason #7 - Your Talents Are Forcibly Undervalued

Thanks to the constantly declining price of new computers, the computer guy cannot charge labor sums without a dispute. If he asks to be paid what he is worth, he will likely be met with the “why not buy new?� argument.

That is, desktop computers are always getting smaller, faster, and cheaper. It’s possible to purchase a new desktop computer for under $400. If the computer guy spends five hours fixing a computer and wants $100/hour for his time, his customer will be outraged, exclaiming “I didn’t even spend this much to BUY the computer, why should I pay this much just to FIX it?�

Reason #6 - You’re Never Allowed A Moment’s Peace

The computer guy is so prone to interruption that he rarely finds an opportunity to work on his own problems. This is because:

1. Computers never sleep.
2. Computer problems aren’t scheduled.
3. Every problem takes time to diagnose.
4. The computer guy can only give one problem his full attention.
5. Each user believes their problem deserves attention now.

Consequently, the computer guy has a 24/7 obligation to keep critical computer systems running, while simultaneously juggling everyone’s problems. He’ll often need to forfeit any opportunities to tend to his own needs for the sake of others — because at any moment, of any day, he can be interrupted by someone who wants to make their problem his problem.

Reason #5 - People Ask You To Perform Miracles

The computer guy is often mistaken for someone who possesses the combined skills of an old priest and a young priest. I’ll sum this up easily by example:

“No, I really can’t recover any files from your thumb drive, even if you did find it after it passed through your dog.�

Reason #4 - Your Assumed “All-Knowing� Status Sets You Up To Let People Down

There is no common understanding that there are smaller divisions within the computer industry, and that the computer guy cannot be an expert in all areas. What makes things worse, is when the computer guy attempts to explain this to someone asking for help, the person will often believe that the computer guy is withholding the desired knowledge to avoid having to help.

This is somewhat related to the next reason:

Reason #3 - You Possess Unlimited Responsibility

The computer guy is expected to solve problems. It is difficult to determine the boundaries of that expectation.

Some of the oddest things that I’ve been asked to do include:

1. Use pirated software to undelete important company files.
2. Create an Intranet, after explaining I didn’t know how to.
3. Teach someone how to hide their pornography collection.

Solving problems can range from replacing batteries in a wireless keyboard to investigating why the entire building loses power at the same time every morning. Resolutions can necessitate weaving a 50-foot cable through a drop ceiling, or wriggling under a house on your belly to add an electrical outlet.

Reasons #4 and #3 boil down to this: no matter how often you want to play the role of a hero, there will always be circumstances that test the limits of your ability to be one. It’s difficult to judge when helping someone means doing something immoral, and it’s even harder to admit you are unable to solve someone’s problem — and chances are, that someone will view you as incompetent because you were unable to help them.

Reason #2 - A Life Of Alienation

People only talk to the computer guy when they need him to fix something. Also, when the computer guy approaches a user, they’ll hop up out of their chair under the presumption that he’s there to fix something — as if it would never be expected that he only wants to strike up a conversation.

The fact that the computer guy never gets a moment’s peace can also practically force him to withdraw into solitude. His co-workers don’t understand that he doesn’t want to hear about their computer problems during his lunch hour — he does that every other hour of the day. That’s why the computer guy eats lunch alone with his door closed, or goes out to eat every day — not because he’s unfriendly, but because he needs to escape the incessant interruptions.

Reason #1 - You Have No Identity

It’s an awful experience when the computer guy shows up at a neighbor’s doorstep with a plate of Christmas cookies, only to have the child who answered the door call out, “Mom, the computer guy is here!� He begs for an identity that is not directly associated with computers, but “the computer guy� label walks ahead of him — it simply cannot be avoided. I was given a name and I’d love to be addressed by it.

Yes, I would still rather be in prision than have a 9-5 job again. Here is why:

IN PRISON: You spend the majority of your time in a 10X10 cell.
AT WORK: You spend the majority of your time in an 8X8 cubicle.

IN PRISON: You get three meals a day.
AT WORK: You get a break for one meal and you have to pay for it.

IN PRISON: You get time off for good behavior.
AT WORK: You get more work for good behavior.

IN PRISON: The guard locks and unlocks all the doors for you.
AT WORK: You must often carry a security card and open all the doors for yourself.

IN PRISON: You can watch TV and play games.
AT WORK: You could get fired for watching TV and playing games.

IN PRISON: You get your own toilet.
AT WORK: You have to share the toilet with some people who pee on the seat.

IN PRISON: They allow your family and friends to visit.
AT WORK: You aren’t even supposed to speak to your family.

IN PRISON: All expenses are paid by the taxpayers with no work required.
AT WORK: you get to pay all your expenses to go to work, and they deduct taxes from your salary to pay for prisoners.

IN PRISON: You spend most of your life inside bars wanting to get out.
AT WORK: You spend most of your time wanting to get out and go inside bars.

IN PRISON: You must deal with sadistic wardens.
AT WORK: They are called managers.

Look at all the great press I’m getting! Last year it was Forbes and Time’s Person of the Year. Now its the cover of WIRED! Wow…

Ok, Ok, so those last 2 might have been a stretch but if you would like to create your WIRED cover visit:

http://www.condenet.com/promo/xerox/

It’s not like I need another blog in my life but here goes nothing! This one will serve more for personal notes or announcements.