Chip on Tech

Recently I attended a Band Spirit night at a local restaurant.  For those unfamiliar with the concept, a local business agrees to give a portion of the proceeds from orders during a certain period from those who mention a charity or club.  In this case, we were supporting the South Forsyth High School Marching Band in which my son is a freshman Sousaphone player (no, not a Tuba).  I had a yummy turkey burger, some pretty good Brussel sprouts and my favorite item on the menu there, a Bourbon and Caramel shake (yes, an actual milkshake with actual Kentucky Bourbon).  But this post isn't about food or band, this post is about technical sales. I was speaking to another set of parents there, some folks we have known for a number of years as we have 2 kids in the same grades.  The dad asked me what I did and I told him I am a "Software Architect for IBM."  He said that sounded interesting and that he wished he'd studied more about computers in school.  He then asked me wh

If you're trying to run a blog and you don't have the budget to hire a team of developers and coders, you might be trying to figure out some options for how to best get your message out there.  I can't claim to be an expert on blogging (yet), but here's a briefing on my, current, state of the blogging art. First, the tools in question: Google Domains Blogger Rebrandly IFTTT Twitter Tumblr HootSuite With the exception of Google Domains, all of these services have a free tier that can make your life much simpler when trying to get your message out.  Let's look at them one by one Google Domains I've used a few domain registrars and none of them are complicated.  But, Google just brings the whole process together simply into a single interface.  You can search for and buy a domain in just a few clicks.  Once you've picked the perfect name, you can manage all the standard settings.  DNSSEC, Mail Servers, Name Servers, etc.  You can also choose to

It's a busy time for myself and my fellow IBMers.  Not only are we preparing for our Sales Kickoff (this week for the US/LATAM) but we're making sure our customers have all the information they need when they attend IBM's premier conference:  THINK.  This year, for the first time, we're holding it in San Francisco at the Moscone Center.  We'll have over a thousand sessions, numerous customer and expert panels as well as hands-on labs and design thinking workshops.  Attendees can take a free (!) certification exam and visit the Expo Hall to explore the exciting ways IBM and our partners are expanding capabilities every day (1 or 2 people might have free stuff to hand out, too). Think starts off on Monday, the 11th, with a series of events for our business partners and Inner Circle clients.  There will also be the exciting "Community Day" where you and leading Coud, Data, and Security experts will discuss the best practices of today and the outstanding i

Well, it's that time of year again.  The time every person in a sales role loves:  Sales Kickoff!  Those who knocked it out of the park will be celebrated, and everyone will be working hard to get the info they need to help their customers recognize the value their solutions can provide. In that spirit, I am kicking off a new blog:  Chip On Tech. My goal here is to discuss many, varied, topics on the subject of technology and what they make me think about.  I'll discuss my (personal) thoughts on the current offerings from my employer and others in the market.  I'll discuss thoughts on upcoming technology in other areas and how I use my own technology.  I don't promise to be bleeding edge.  I do have 3 kids to put through college, after all.  But I do like to keep up to date.  Hopefully you'll find it useful and entertaining. Since this is my first effort at a blog, I'm sure there's a lot to learn and it will take me a while to find my writing style.  I