A few months ago I was at at GA for Startup Weekend NYC, and worked with Ryan Flynn to re-launch ClosedCapp, a continuous speech-to-text diction app that mimicked the real-time behavior of closed captioning for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. You can read the post here.

Just today, Ryan shared with me some of the feedback he's gotten from the users. One of my favorites is this one:

"With your Closed Capp...you've made a difference in my life. I was born hearing.  I've lost the majority of it after 23 years.... I'm now legally deaf and have been for about five years. I know some sign, but its not a primary language for most...and not even for me.  On the other hand, English and written English are learned hand in hand. Everyday tasks that require interactions with others can just be overwhelming.  I just got my first android phone for Christmas.  And then I got your app. Clicking your "appreciate" button just isn't enough. You ROCK.""

Awesome. We didn't win startup weekend, but we made a product that is being used today to enrich someone's life. I keep saying this, but as creatives and technologists, too many of us are working on stuff like this. It's time to change the world and take responsibility for our future and make some real, progressive impact. I hope that this is just the start for me.

A few months ago I hung out at GA for Startup Weekend NYC, and worked with Ryan Flynn to re-launch ClosedCapp, a continuous speech-to-text diction app that mimicked the real-time behavior of closed captioning for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. You can read the post here.

Just today, Ryan shared with me some of the feedback he's gotten from the users. One of my favorites is this one:

"With your Closed Capp...you've made a difference in my life. I was born hearing.  I've lost the majority of it after 23 years.... I'm now legally deaf and have been for about five years. I know some sign, but its not a primary language for most...and not even for me.  On the other hand, English and written English are learned hand in hand. Everyday tasks that require interactions with others can just be overwhelming.  I just got my first android phone for Christmas.  And then I got your app. Clicking your "appreciate" button just isn't enough. You ROCK.""

Awesome. We didn't win startup weekend, but we made a product that is being used today to enrich someone's life. I keep saying this, but as creatives and technologists, too many of us are working on stuff like this. It's time to change the world and take responsibility for our future and make some real, progressive impact. I hope that this is just the start for me.

A few months ago I hung out at GA for Startup Weekend NYC, and worked with Ryan Flynn to re-launch ClosedCapp, a continuous speech-to-text diction app that mimicked the real-time behavior of closed captioning for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. You can read the post here.

Just today, Ryan shared with me some of the feedback he's gotten from the users. One of my favorites is this one:

"With your Closed Capp...you've made a difference in my life. I was born hearing.  I've lost the majority of it after 23 years.... I'm now legally deaf and have been for about five years. I know some sign, but its not a primary language for most...and not even for me.  On the other hand, English and written English are learned hand in hand. Everyday tasks that require interactions with others can just be overwhelming.  I just got my first android phone for Christmas.  And then I got your app. Clicking your "appreciate" button just isn't enough. You ROCK.""

Awesome. We didn't win startup weekend, but we made a product that is being used today to enrich someone's life. I keep saying this, but as creatives and technologists, too many of us are working on stuff like this. It's time to change the world and take responsibility for our future.

More here.

I love maps, and James Niehues may make some of my favorite - but this map from David Imus is perhaps the most stunning map I've ever seen. Definitely going to pick up a copy.

From Slate: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2012/01/the_best_american_wall_...

Credit goes to David Walsh on this one - but its something we concepted together and decided to push out to the interwebs. Enjoy.

http://worstmessageever.com

Inspired by LoCreep:

<p>Locreep at NYTM from Misha Ponizil on Vimeo.</p>

What a great weekend working on ClosedCapp - we took home an award from Twilio!

I worked with Ryan Flynn and Mason Du to work on ClosedCapp, a continuous speech-to-text diction app that mimicked the real-time behavior of closed captioning for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. By the end of the weekend we were able to create a working prototype that we demo'd on an Android tablet. If that wasn't enough, we took home an award from Twilio for most innovative communication solution.

The biggest takeaway from the weekend was that your team is absolutely everything. So many great ideas had poor execution, and some really bad ideas had decent executions. Only so much can be done in 54 hours, but so much can be done with the right team.

I also really enjoyed working on a product that provided a real solution to a human need, with a benefit that immediately enriches lives in a positive way. That was cool.

Ryan demonstrating ClosedCapp in action before our presentation: