Category: professional experience

These are profession related experiences that I wanted to bring to light for your perusal.

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consulting insights professional experience technology

On making great passwords.

 

You may have heard how important it is to consider security while using technology.

Image from 1928 US patent 1,657,411 (Enigma ma...
Image from 1928 US patent 1,657,411 (Enigma machine) by Arthur Scherbius (died 1929). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is rather abstract. A more concrete example of technology security is to choose great passwords. If you choose a great password and keep it in your head and not on paper or in anyone else’s head, you immediately offer yourself more security against someone using your devices and services as though they were you. You might be tempted to write it down on a note in your office, or share the password with a trusted friend, but the minute you do that you immediately offer a chance for the password to get into the wrong hands, eyes, or ears. Also, if you believe that you are not important enough to be targeted for password theft, or that it’s about money or fun, you are overlooking the possibility that your account might be used to simply disguise the activities of the person who uses it, making it seem as though you did something illegal, immoral, or sinister instead of them.

Make your password hard to guess, hard to crack, and easy for you to remember.

English: This is a screenshot of windows passw...
English: This is a screenshot of windows password unlocker, which is a professional windows password reset tool (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For example, let’s look at creating a great password from a not so great one.

‘06011960‘ is a horrible password. It’s a birthday, and anyone who can find out your birthday (not as hard as you might think) can try to log in with it to your accounts.

‘jimmy‘ is also a very bad password, for a few reasons, namely I probably chose it because it is significant to me, and anyone who knows me might be able to guess it. Even if they don;t they might use what’s called “brute force attacks” with dictionaries of common words, names, and strings used for passwords to automatically get into my account. With simple passwords like this, they emphasize the ease of you remembering it, rather than the difficulty of bypassing it.

‘JimmY‘ is a better password, because I have introduced shift characters (capital letters), which extend the time that someone would need to brute force attack and discover the password. It’s still kind of short and common, though.

‘JimmY&jAne‘ is better yet, because it is longer, uses shift characters, and uses a non-alphanumeric character.

If we take this to an extreme, we might choose ‘!32%tRuH&k*9‘, which would be incredibly hard to guess, and difficult to crack, but there’s a problem in that there is little chance that you will remember it.

A good compromise, and a great password, is something like ‘The4WallsOfMyR00mAreFriends‘ which introduces some great features.

German / Deutsch Enigma Machine: World War II ...
German / Deutsch Enigma Machine: World War II Museum, New Orleans, Lousiana, USA (Photo credit: Bogdan Migulski)

It’s both memorable and nonsensical. It’s long, which makes it harder to crack. It has alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters, making it harder to crack. It mentions a personal keyword (friends) for the site that I am using the password for (facebook), because I am choosing a different password for each site or service. This is a good thing for when someone guesses one of my passwords, they would not necessarily know my other passwords. It uses many shift characters. This password would be very hard for others to guess or crack, but very easy for you to remember. You might choose a favorite song lyric, quote, or statement as the basis for your password. If you are a Rolling Stones fan, perhaps ‘DidY0uGuessMyName?’

HTTP vs. HTTPS

One last point: If you are using public WiFi, such as at a Panera, you should be extra careful about logging into important sites (e.g. banking, email, social networks) unless the URL for the site begins with https:// because otherwise someone could capture your password as it travels to the site over http:// using what’s known as ethernet sniffing software. https:// is an encrypted protocol, and provides some (if imperfect) protection from password capture and other activity.

If you want to know more about how you can stay protected while you are using technology, please contact me at lemasney@gmail.com. The first session with new clients is always free.

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affiliations brand consulting insights libraries professional activities professional experience

On a New Jersey library technology assessment

Conversation
Conversation (Photo credit: Rohit Rath)

Today, I did one of my favorite consulting tasks: library technology assessment. I sat down as part of a team with the administrative and technology staff of a New Jersey library system to help them to find out where they’ve been, where they are, and where they want to go with technology in the next two years. It’s a fun discussion, especially after we get past the point of discovery and move to solutions.

We begin by asking about what it is that they hear is missing or insufficient from patrons. In this particular case, we learned that the public use computer systems needed updates and renewal, the printing and copying system was less than ideal, and that the web site needed to move from one engine to another. Noting those, we moved on to a structured list of discovery items, such as asking about the speed, price, and coverage of wireless access. We learned that the phone systems were sufficient and reliable, but that better methods of communication, such as those found in unified messaging systems and intranets might be a great addition to supplement phones.

We talked a lot about social networking and communication and how to use them more effectively to support and inform stakeholders of new systems, updates, and programming. We talked about internal development and training to support external development and training. We discussed a lot of things, discovered a lot of truths, and began to develop new plans for forward movement. We discovered a lot of points for discussion aligning with 20 points of technology assessment, with many short-term, intermediate, and long-term solutions. I often get a little charge out of explaining how easily the issues at the top of the list of patron feedback and needs are going to be met, how the awareness is the toughest part.

Many libraries have not had this discussion, and some have never had the discussion. Those who have are taking part in the conversation about the ways that libraries are changing, moving from being media distribution points to development centers, community life and work spaces, and collaborative, making, and incubator spaces.

Libraries that are thriving are meeting new and different needs than they were 5 years ago. They are creating comfortable, enabling, rich work spaces for people to grow in the ways that they wish to. People want to meet, develop themselves, organize, and extend themselves, and the best libraries today are helping them. Books and movies are a part of it, but just a part. Decreases in physical media circulation is being countered by an increase in foot traffic, participation in programming, increases in digital circulation, and increases in specialized meeting services, co-working, and knowledge sharing. I wonder what the conversation would be like with your library?

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Recent work – ALA Battledecks 2013: Chicago Showdown

I was very happy to be asked for the fourth time by Janie Hermann to create what has become a tradition: the visual branding for ALA Battledecks, a fun contest in which presenters present interesting, funny, and sometimes shocking slides that they’ve never seen until they present. This year, in Chicago, Janie asked me to design something that called up the ideas of gangsters, flappers, the 1920’s and the glitz of Chicago, and so I focused on a fedora, Art deco, and marquee lights for the design. Thanks for the opportunity!

ALA Battledecks Chicago Showdown by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
ALA Battledecks Chicago Showdown by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
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10 things you can do with Dropbox (video)

Image representing Dropbox as depicted in Crun...
Image via CrunchBase

I was fortunate to talk as part of the Library Link NJ Technology Speed Dating session today at the Mullica Hill branch of the Gloucester system. I decided to record the talk and give a link to the slides in the event anyone who was at the session or who is interested in Dropbox might want to learn what I shared. Thanks to Library Link NJ for the platform!

If you are interested in using Dropbox, please consider using my referral link to help us both gain a bit of extra space! We’ll both get 500 MB extra space as soon as you install from this link.

http://db.tt/w6TJZD3

Here’s a link to the presentation:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Djryk8B-htslEK_BaEoLK9d_VKFMirJ383w-ZstbO1Y/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000

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On the Space between Art and Design: 5 differences for me.

on the space between art and design cc-by lemasney
on the space between art and design cc-by lemasney
on the space between art and design cc-by lemasney
on the space between art and design cc-by lemasney

It may interest you to know that I have worked in the field of Instructional Technology and Design for 14 years, but that I have an undergraduate degree in Sculpture. This is the point at which people usually crinkle up their face and say “How did that happen?” I sometimes mention that I followed it up with a MA in organizational leadership, and I can see their hand twitch, ready to scratch their head.

A man with roots, firmly planted by John LeMasney via 365sketches.org #creativecommons #design #cc-by #tree #roots
A man with roots, firmly planted by John LeMasney via 365sketches.org #creativecommons #design #cc-by #tree #roots

The answer is that I love technology, especially in organizational use. I am passionate about it. I adore the ways in which technology is an extension, a tool set, a solution to problems. My undergrad sculpture degree taught me about creative problem solving, visual structure and communication, and things like space, color, texture, planning, and their intersection between the arts, including graphic design. I started off studying drafting and architecture in high school, and through a series of events that will be its own post later, I went into the fine arts, but continued to use electives and other channels to learn about computers, design, printmaking, food, business, and networking. Those skills have made it possible to go in lots of different directions in my career, including graphic design, as much of a passion for me as technology itself.

A primary color study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
A primary color study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com

I thought it would be interesting to look at the ways in which my workflow, choices, methods and outcomes change when I’m either working in the fine arts or graphic design. Others may have their own differences, and may even disagree with my divisions, but these are mine.

  1. Graphic design is typically digital, the fine arts is typically analog.
    I do most of my work in Inkscape and GIMP for graphic design. I create most of my fine arts work on paper. This fact informs the rest of these points pretty directly. 
  2. Graphic design is precise by nature, the fine arts are typically more chaotic.
    I have always colored outside the lines. My sister used to tease me about it. My painting and drawing teachers encouraged it. My graphic design work allowed me to make choices about precision in my work.

    Ampersand by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
    Ampersand by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
  3. Graphic design is typically more direct and less ambiguous, the fine arts may create more questions than it answers.
    Usually if I am working on a graphic design project there is a clear deliverable point that I am trying to get across, such as “Our name is Spacely Sprockets, and we make great gadgets”. When I work in the fine arts, I am typically looking to answer more fundamental questions about humanity, the act of living, or the experience of a moment. There is sometimes an overlap of these kinds of ideas between the two disciplines, but even then, the design work has less ambiguity.

    Glasses off by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
    Glasses off by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
  4. Graphic design work is highly portable, the fine arts typically create a storage issue.
    All of my graphic design work is sitting in its original state on various hard drives, cloud storage services, and other portable media. Except for a show or two of my graphic work in which pieces were printed, framed, and sold, and a paper portfolio of some of my best graphic work, and excluding the prints, fliers, signs and other versions of client work, the work exists online. Most of my original fine arts work sits hidden in portfolios, discarded in moves, or only in photos where the work does not exist anymore. The photo is typically a sad facsimile of the work itself, and hardly ever captures anything of the experience.

    A fiery line by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
    A fiery line by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
  5. Graphic design work is easily shared in its original form, and represented well in copies. Fine art is best taken in with all the senses.
    My design portfolio shows you the work in both its original and final forms. There is no need, in my opinion, to see it printed to see the work. My fine arts work, as well as most art, really should be felt in the way that a sculpture affects the air, tasted and smelled in the way that oil paint can activate the back of your tongue, heard in the sense of the way the sound of the space changes with the work in it, and seen in such a way that you can sense the texture of brushstrokes, the bend of a piece of metal in space, the thousand points of view in a site specific piece.
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Recipe: A well-balanced, whole food, delicious meal in 5 minutes or less.

Basic granola template by lemasney
Basic granola template by lemasney
Basic granola template by lemasney
Basic granola template by lemasney

I have tried to find an especially easy meal to get about 500 calories in a good balance of fat, carbohydrates, and protein. It should accomplish the following:

  • local food
  • variable and extensible according to seasonality and availability
  • whole food
  • organic
  • delicious
  • well-balanced nutrition
  • raw food

I think I found it.

Fruit with granola and nut butter:

In a 2 cup bowl, combine granola and peanut butter into a paste, dice and add apple, add raisins and mix.

It is addictive. It’s so delicious that I crave it, and have had it every day since I first made it. The fruit adds a bright sweetness, the raisins add a chewy licorice depth, the granola brings a crunchy texture, and the peanut butter holds everything together. At 8 grams of fat, 10 grams of protein, and 87 grams of carbohydrate, it is very close to my nutritional percentages that I try to get for the day. The sugar is all fructose, and it has no refined sugars. The ingredients are local and organic. I could make the raisins myself, and have a plan to start drying fruit this season. It’s raw food, whole food, good food. 440 calories for the whole bowl.

Apple, granola, peanut butter, and raisins, by John LeMasney via Diary of Calories
Apple, granola, peanut butter, and raisins, by John LeMasney via Diary of Calories