They are NOT your friends!

Hey, not much time here because I am so busy these days, just wanted to point out how insidious the scam artists of the webernet can be, take a look at this fake “Hallmark” invite?  First off, Hallmark.org is a dead giveaway, but as I showed you guys in previous posts – if you just “mouse over” the link you can see that it is actually asking you to “click here” to an evil I.P address that willkick off what we call an “executable file” (a.k.a. “*.exe”).  I am not going to be your guinea pig here, but I bet it does something pretty awful when you click on it!!

I highlighted the evil in red in the screenshot to the LEFT – Please children?  Warn your mothers?

Don’t click on anything… Make your parents watch “Mars Attacks” repeatedly until they get it… NO, MOM! They are NOT your friends!

We all have had those clients we have to chase down to get paid by, sometimes it’s the clients we know have the money (but are bogged down by red tape) we have to work the hardest to get paid by, what are your thoughts on the matter?

Did you know:

About 40% of freelancers had trouble getting paid in 2009, according to a survey released in mid-April by the New York-based Freelancers Union, a 135,000-member organization for independent contractors across the country in fields such as media, technology, and advertising. It was the first year the group asked the question on its member survey. And more than three out of four freelancers said they’ve had trouble getting paid over the course of their careers, according to organization.

PAY ME DANG IT!

The problem could become more acute as independent contractors emerge as a more central piece of the work force. The financial crisis and the resulting high unemployment thrust many professionals into the ranks of freelance workers, which may continue to grow despite signs of an economic recovery.

Read the full article here

Resources:  Freelancers guide to getting paid, excerpts:

• Get over the embarrassment.
• Deal directly with payroll.
• Withhold work, if you can.
• Offer the company some flexibility.
• Consider adding late fees to your contract, or a prepayment clause.
• Consider working with freelance-liaison firms.
• Sue the company in small claims court.

Available from WSJ, read the full post here

Welcomed by Kevin Shively, TVWorldwide

Streaming Media East 2010 – the day after report:  What is it about technology conferences that makes them so exhausting?

The exhibit floor this year was smaller then last years and I heard from the exhibitors that real “customer” presence was light, but of course for my purposes… that doesn’t really matter.

Selfishly I have to say, I am only interested in technology innovations that are easy to integrate or deploy, that are affordable and of course, that actually work.  There was a lot of discussion around scalable technology, SD to HD workflow transitions, adaptive (bit rate) streaming… and of course, highest on the list is the promise of “unified systems” (as it is referred to in the Enterprise) or single [video] signal transmission to multiple devices, something along the lines of TVEverywhere type availability of broadcast content, but specifically one feed that can play back on any device (i.e. Mobile, Desktop, Set top box, etc.).

That’s a lot to think about, but I was able to pin-point my priorities and focus on putting together a package that would work for me and my budget… and here is that journey. read this entry »