The biggest winner was Barack Obama (though the RIA technologies definitely shined on the news websites).

Every major news site seems to have caught the RIA bug.

Check out http://www.cnn.com and http://www.foxnews.com for some electoral map Flash fun. On Fox News the electoral vote count below the map re-tallies in real team, right before your eyes as the new numbers come in. Can’t tell if its just animation or if its actually counting it up.

NBC News has got the desktop pegged with RIA Widgets they call Newsware Widgets.

Fun stuff.

The schedule has been confirmed for the CFML Language Development Bird of a Feather (BOF) session. It will be at 9.30 pm on Monday night.

It is right after the Meet the CF Team BOF which will be at 8.30 pm on Monday and in the same room.  So its double the fun -without having to leave your seat!

Among the participants at the CFML Language Development BOF will be:

• Jason Delmore - Senior Product Manager, Adobe
• Hemant Khandelwal - Engineering Manager on the CF Team
• Gert  Franz from Switzerland via phone - Railo Main Man
• Matt Woodward (tentative via phone) -speaking for OpenBD Steering Committee

And many other illustrious names from the CF Community.   

I’m still taking suggestions on topics. If you have any, send them in or post them below.   Hope to see you there.

I’ve been asked to host a birds of a feather (BOF) meeting at MAX on CFML Language Development.

The session will cover topics related to the future evolution of the CFML language itself (ColdFusion Markup Language).  UPDATE: The session will be on Monday night, at 9.30 pm in room 2008.

I’d like the the session to address the needs of

• the CFML Community -including CF developers, Blue Dragon users and Railo users;
• developers who are thinking about using ColdFusion and;
• CIO’s, CTO’s and entrepreneurs who are researching development platforms.

To that end, I’m looking for input on:

1. Specific topics you’d like discussed
2. Concerns on the future of CFML
3. Wish list for CFML’s direction and
4. Specific speakers you’d like to hear from at the meeting.

Post your feedback here or email me at mark@vertabase.com. 

Even if you can’t make to MAX, send me your ideas. I’ll be posting the session online afterwards.

The tickler file is a classic time management tool. But it has its limits.  Understanding how a tickler file works, and its drawbacks, is a great way to appreciate the benefits of an online project management system.
 
The classic tickler file is a filing system used to keep things in order by due date.  A conventional tickler file consists of 43 files: 12 folders for each month of the year plus 31 files for each day of the month.  The files are organized by month and then by dates of the month.  Your tickler file can be created using anything from a box to a crate, or you can buy a plastic file box from your local office supply store. This classic format generally allows you to plan for tasks up to one month ahead.  The difference between a tickler file and a planner is that the tickler file allows you to place documents in the file.

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Since the start of the talk of bailouts, I thought that $700 billion was low. The price tag will likely be around $3 trillion dollars.

Several recent factors appear to lend credence towards that estimate.
1. The US Government appears to be moving towards taking direct stakes in banks;
2. Despite falling gas prices, the pain on US consumer may increase - if so, the government may decide to directly help the consumer and pick up a portion of the consumers mortgages/debt -much like Mexico did after the collapse of the peso in 1994.

Once the full cost of the bailout is known, their might be another short term buying opportunity in the market as retail investors re-evaluate the stability of the market and the US’s ability to pay. But I believe that most institutional investors have already factored in this size of a price tag and would be buyers at lower prices.

Altria (Philip Morris), Diageo, McDonalds and Microsoft.

A long time ago I used to work on Wall Street. For many years, I’ve thought stocks were way too expensive to be an interesting asset class. For better or worse, they are starting to look attractive again and I can’t help but write about some of the stocks I think are worth keeping an eye on. With the market down as far as it is, stock prices are starting to reflect the reality of underlying fundamentals. But keep in mind that the downturn in the market may have a ways to go -driven by people being spooked or needing cash and therefore pulling money out of the market.

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If there is one skill that needs to be mastered in order to utilize your time more productively it is delegating. It is easy to get overwhelmed with our personal and professional tasks. We often forget that there is only one of us and a million things we need to get done. We can’t possibly do it all or be everywhere we need to be.  In order to get things done, we have to learn to let go and let others assist us. It is the only way we can focus on those tasks to which we uniquely add value - versus tasks that one does well but that others are able to do.

Letting go can be hard at first. We sometimes feel like the tasks or projects in front of us our are babies or our special challenge to overcome. Initially, we may feel like we are the only ones who can do the job properly. But, other people can get the job done. It is hard at first but as time goes on it gets easier.

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Europe has been unable to put together a comprehensive, continent wide solution to their credit crisis. Each country is acting in their national interests and standing behind their own banks. This makes sense. That’s what those governments were elected to do. However, this could have several important, long ranging consequences -all of which should benefit the US Dollar and the US Economy.

1. Global flight to quality -people will move their money to the banks with the highest amount of credible quarantees on their deposits. These guarantees come from the government. People will be voting with their feet as to which country they believe is most capable of standing behind the quarantees and actually paying out if it becomes necessary.

2. Currency values will reflect people’s perceptions of a country’s ability to pay. Since this is ultimately a measure of the productivity of an economy this should benefit the US Economy. There is still no other country in the world that can match the US’s ability to innovate, create and produce. Nor one with the same track record of doing so over long periods of time and through the troughs and values of brutal economic cycles.

3. European unity and the viability of the Euro could suffer. A single currency makes commerce and travel convenient. But there are two facets to a currency. One is as method of exchange. The other is as a store of value. Not every country in the Union has the same resources to support its banks. This will create tangible differences in the value of a Euro in a German bank versus in a Dutch bank. This should further benefit the US dollar in the long term.

Interruptions are the monster of time management.

How many times have you been sitting at your desk trying to get your work done and in pops someone to talk? They’re not talking about anything major or important. It’s just idle chit chat. So, you chat, you get them on their way and then the phone rings. You stop and take time to handle the call, which is also not that important. This happens so often that your work just gets further and further behind. If it weren’t for these constant interruptions you might actually get something done.

It is true communication is important. But these kind of communications can hinder your work and can easily get you off track -unless you know how to handle them. 

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