My family leaves Saturday morning for a driving vacation to Mount Rushmore and the surrounding area. Should be a great time, and I won’t be checking this blog or any of my other usual haunts. It will feel great to be unplugged (cellphone excluded).

I regularly head over to the PR Conversations blog, because the authors provide great ideas and information. The latest post by Frank Ovaitt, “Linking Trust and Transparency,” provides some new research that further supports the evidence of the link between trust and transparency.

Well worth a read.

This is a short post that I’m typing with one hand while packing my suitcase with the other. Before coming to New Orleans for the IABC International Conference, I decided not to spend a lot of time blogging. I wanted to aborb as much of the environment and sessions as possible.

I’ll be adding posts here within the next couple of days. The “Quick ‘n Dirty New Orleans” answer to whether my experience has been positive is: Most definitely!

I can’t compare today’s New Orleans with the place some of you experienced pre-Katrina. This was my first visit. Some things are different; how couldn’t things have changed in the aftermath of that huge of a catastophe? But the things that matter to most of us outsiders: The accommodations, the entertainment, the “touristy things to do,” and–most importantly–the people–did not, and will not, disappoint.

More to come. I hope that also is what we can tell the New Orleans office of tourism.

I’m in New Orleans for the annual international conference of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC). I’m going to be busy attending the conference and conference-related events, as well as meeting up with colleagues as much as possible.

I expect to have a lot of content for blog posts, but may have to keep them short until I return home.

I have recorded two very short podcasts that I’m calling “Quick ‘n Dirty New Orleans.” These will be unedited podcasts recorded during my stay here in the Big Easy. My work computer doesn’t have any audio editing software installed, and you have to be an administrator to do so–which I am not.

But what’s wrong with spontaneity and a rough edge?

If you are in New Orleans, leave me a message here, or at the IABC Message Center. I’d like to meet as many of my readers as possible. Maybe we’ll record a podcast together?

UPDATE: I’ve posted some newer podcasts, including one regarding a fundraiser for the New Orleans Contemporary Arts Center. If you read this on Saturday, June 23, head over to the CAC for a fun adult event.

The Attention Crash, a recent post on Steve Rubel’s blog, Micro Persuasion, addressed the struggle to absorb all of the information coming at us. Here is one part of his post:

We are reaching a point where the number of inputs we have as individuals is beginning to exceed what we are capable as humans of managing. The demands for our attention are becoming so great, and the problem so widespread, that it will cause people to crash and curtail these drains.

This isn’t a new topic; I’ve commented many times about the need to find balance in work/life situations. Most recently, I said that the new online social networking sites are adding to the demand for my time and attention–and I will choose how to spend that time based on value back to me–along with my level of emotional energy.

I left a comment on Steve’s post, pointing out that people not only look for more efficient ways to handle the flood of information and commentary coming their way; they also seek ways to take a ”mental break” from the activity. That’s part of the allure of computer games like Solitaire and both paper- and electronic versions of Sudoku. I checked back sometime later and left a second comment that led to this post.

We have to remember that it isn’t enough to manage the side of our brain that processes data. We also need to balance that activity with the side of our brain that is intuitive and creative.

To that end, here is a conversation string that I and Judy Gombita shared recently. I read her messages and replied during mental breaks, and the fun exchanges sharpened my creative thinking somewhat. If you need a break from your information processing, feel free to add to the string as a comment to this post.

(Me) Will be tied up most of today with some internal desk shuffling (we’re moving desks and cube walls around). Of course, everyone checked each time to see who had the window, and now, everyone hates me.

(Judy) What a sad cube tale. I don’t hate you, although now I’m a little afraid to meet you, knowing you are “the guy with the window.”
(I have a window, but it looks directly out to the wall of the building next to us. Those churlish people have not painted me a mural as yet.)

(Me) I’ll ship some taggers (graffiti artists) up your way. The wall will get colorful very quickly.
Don’t fear me because I have a window; fear me if I close the door to my soul.—Anonymous

(Judy) The one with a window can see opportunities. But an open-door policy sometimes leads to a drafty soul.—Confusdcious

(Me) The glass window lets in the light. The glass ceiling keeps out the bright.—Oparahparah

(Judy) Star light, star bright. Sometimes the moon goddess must tail behind the mighty Tom kite.—Concededefeaticus

Any others?

I was fascinated this morning to read a news item on Yahoo! regarding how a 13-year-old in the United States came across a 2.93-carat diamond lying in the rough. I can draw a comparison to social networks.

One of the facts that I learned from the news story was that anyone can walk into the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas and look around for diamonds. More than 25,000 diamonds have been found there in the years since the site was designated a state park in 1972, with about 600 diamonds being found each year, on average. These are “real” diamonds, varying in size and quality, with some being quite valuable.

My perception of diamond mining was more along the lines of the movie, Blood Diamond, so I was thrilled to learn that I could join a diamond hunt without worrying about being shot. That might make the process too tame for some of you, which is fine–more diamonds for me.

I feel the same way about those of you who have not joined one, or both, of two free new social networking sites for communicators: Melcrum Publishing’s The Communicators’ Network and Ragan Communications’ MyRagan. Fine–more “diamonds in the rough” for me and the others who have decided to join.

I understand a reluctance to give up more precious time to explore and participate in these sites. I’ve already found, however, that the time that I’ve spent hunting through each site has produced some valuable nuggets of information.

Now today, as Melcrum’s TCN has surpassed the 1,000-member mark, the publishing company’s managing director, Robin Crumby, made the following announcement on the site:

We have just changed the ‘News’ section on your ‘MyHome’ page to include news and free resources from Melcrum. This will include free articles from Strategic Communication Management and The Hub for Internal Communicators, together with news items, blogs posts and executive summaries of Melcrum reports to download for free.

It’s a great bonus to TCN members, and I applaud Melcrum for doing it. Tired of hunting around for ideas and ways to improve communications within your organization? The answer might be laying in open sight on one of these two free open sites.

Today is the one-month anniversary of the official launch of MyRagan, Ragan Communications‘  social networking site for communicators.  In contrast, Melcrum Publishing’s The Communicators’ Network, has been “live” for less than one week. Is it too soon to compare the two? Yesano (yes and no).

MyRagan (MyR) and The Communicators’ Network (TCN) share some common functionality that can be compared and contrasted. In addition, both offer (or plan to offer) features that are distinct from the other. Finally, the tone of the site designs and writing are dramatically different, and well worth discussing.

Both MyR and TCN have to be considered works in progress–each site has its share of items that will require tweaking or repair. TCN co-owner Robin Crumby has provided some glimpses into new features that will be added to TCN in coming weeks and months. MyR, perhaps because it is more of an “out-of-the-box” solution, has announced less to add in terms of features. Both sites need some tweaking, in my opinion, in terms of the user-experience.

Here is a quick listing of features that both MyR and TCN offer:

1. Site Home Page
2. Member Profile Page
3. Forum for general discussion threads
4. Groups for discussion specific to topic or interest
5. Blogs
6. Message notifications
7. Ability to invite others to join the site or a group within the site
8. Calendar for member’s events

With a couple of exceptions, most of the above features are available through the navigation bar at the top of each site’s pages.  The calendar feature (events) is more useful on TCN because it allows a member to see all public events posted, not just the member’s own events. Also, MyR’s calendar is accessible only through the member’s profile.

Each of the two sites promises functionality that the other does not offer. MyR has an audio/video chat button on the main navigation and within the member profile; but it did not work when I tried it. Sometime within the next few weeks, TCN plans to open a “Knowledge Center” where members can catalog and link to their favorite content (e.g., case studies, white papers, and articles), saving fellow communicators search time. When TCN also implements a rating system, its members will be able to rate the usefulness and quality of that site’s content catalog.  

One feature that MyR offers that I really like is the ability to set up RSS feeds and to link to the member’s external blogs through the profile. TCN allows a member to set up RSS feeds on the member’s home page, but it does not offer the easy way to link to the member’s external blog; its blog is strictly for content posted on TCN.

The final comparison points that I plan to cover in this blog post are site design and writing tone.  I asked myself if I would be comfortable having these sites visible on my work computer when a coworker or boss would stop by. The answer is a strong “yes” with TCN, and a strong “maybe” with MyR.

TCN reflects the appearance and tone of its “parent,” Melcrum Publishing. It is clean, clearly professional and expects more “proper” (my word) behavior by its members. For example, one of TCN’s rules for its forums is presented this way: “We are all adults here so we should be able to debate issues without resorting to bad language or insults. Depending on the context/nature, posts containing offending copy may just get edited.”

MyR reflects the design and writing tone of Ragan Communications–which is more in-your-face. The home page includes videos that poke fun at communication issues and situations. Headlines and captions such as, “We unstick heads from asses” and “Ragan writer/comic Kevin Allen shows us the King of Cocky, Mr. Sensitive, Suck-Up Sam and Larry Lazy Bones,” share space with amazing free content, including eight pages of tips related to intranets, written by ”intranet gurus.”

MyR has attracted thousands of communicators, while TCN is just getting started, and has several hundred. The larger community can be both a blessing and a curse, in my experience. MyRagan has a lot to offer, but it also feels congested, with too much coming at me all of the time.

Certainly the conversations within MyR’s forums and groups are constant and full of energy. David Murray is doing a terrific job as forum moderator/editor, and demonstrates the value of having someone leading conversations when necessary, or moderating discussions that become TOO lively.

However, I have noticed how my personal desire is waning to wade through the ever-growing list of topics. Search helps, but the search results for more common words or phrases can still be daunting. TCN has less conversations happening, but nearly all of the forum posts offer valuable input.

Do I plan to pick one of the two sites over the other? Yesano.

TCN and MyR are distinct enough to make it worthwhile for me to continue to participate in each community. Because I have to budget my time and energy, I’ll spend more time in whichever of the two communities provides me with the greatest amount of “value.”   

During breakfast this morning, my 13-year-old son asked me how those phone numbers work–the ones where you spell a word to dial, like 1-800-mattress (with one “s”), or 1-866-plumber. My 11-year-old daughter also was curious.

This stunned me, because my son text messages with his friends all of the time–when he isn’t playing an online game like World of Warcraft, or playing some sport like baseball, basketball or football. He is tech-saavy, so why is this simple dialing scheme a problem?

Turns out that modern-day technology has to take some of the blame. Kevin tried dialing one of the numbers like he would text message. For example, to get the letter “s”, he tried pushing the 7 on the phone four times (to cycle along “p,” “q” and “r,” to get to “s.” But he kept getting recorded messages that “the number you are dialing is not in service at this time.”

He is an honor-roll student–honest! Anyone else have an example of a youngster not being as proficient with technology as we might assume?

Kevin hopes so.