big: 148 pages
diverse: Articles come from Europe, the US and Asia
fun: with LOTs of instructions
inspiring: with a story on FIRST LEGO League and a story on a person setting up MINDSTORMS classes in Jamaica.
The issue is in final proof, with release set for this week.
Woo hoo!
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Yep, I should be working.
am doing some almost final stuff for the Journal - I say almost because I have to paginate the whole thing.
But I have to stop and rest for a moment...I have done about 80 pages of layout in the past four days...and there's a bit more coming in.
There are going to be some different articles in the Journal this time around. We got a display article from China and FLL in Jamaica, and some really nice and longer than usual articles from some events. There are some articles on builders and building, and more instructions!
Am I excited? Yes I am! Tired, but excited. The layouts are falling into place, and I got some last minute pictures for a story and am writing up a report...always to the wire.
But I have to say I completely love it!
PS The MINDSTORMS NXT Idea book is out, and I plan to review it!
But I have to stop and rest for a moment...I have done about 80 pages of layout in the past four days...and there's a bit more coming in.
There are going to be some different articles in the Journal this time around. We got a display article from China and FLL in Jamaica, and some really nice and longer than usual articles from some events. There are some articles on builders and building, and more instructions!
Am I excited? Yes I am! Tired, but excited. The layouts are falling into place, and I got some last minute pictures for a story and am writing up a report...always to the wire.
But I have to say I completely love it!
PS The MINDSTORMS NXT Idea book is out, and I plan to review it!
Monday, September 17, 2007
banging my skull on an article...
So I am working on an article for the Journal..and it's been a tough one.
It's pretty odd how I ended up writing - I started writing because I had some contacts I wanted to have in the mag. Now, it's because I am the forward edge of the magazine and as a result, the one finding different things than the expected community articles.
There's a lot more out there about LEGO building than we know, and I want to find those things. I want to touch on as many aspects of the community as I can - there's something for everyone to see and if they want, join.
My article is about an educator who is creating robotics labs in Jamaica using LEGO MINDSTORMS. I have been online with him and talked to him on the phone, and he's a great person to talk to. His name is Marvin Hall.
This story is different from the usual article, but I feel strongly that the Journal show how our hobby can inspire people. What Marvin has done is use MINDSTORMS to teach technology to at-risk children in the Jamaican inner-city. Where there are guns and war, he is giving hope. And he doing this using LEGO sets.
The bad thing about writing these articles is thatI have to get a lot of information and then find the voice of my article and put everything off topic aside. And that's unfortunate. Talking with Marvin was a very secial moment for me, as he's got enthusiasm and passion in what he wants to do. He's a person that wants to give hope and pass what he has learned to the next generation. I was moved to tears on some of the stories he told me. He is a person of vision, and one that has become a ray of hope to his country.
In searching online for information on him, I found many articles and his blog, and there were some wonderful things that I got to read. One was an article in www.jamaicans.com. he has an interview, and he has some advice to students - and they are things that I try to keep in mend when I am writing and looking for stories:
From Marvin:
Whatever your field of study, make sure you love it. Act in spite of fear, take the risk annd immerse yourself in whatever you beleive in. you will not find your passion without exploration. most importantly, beleive in yourself at all costs. Some say that the most powerful force on earth is knowing how to be yourself. Five specific points for the students would be:
1. Keep on learning and never think you know enough
2. Develop your logic, critical thinking and problem-solving skills
3. Find a procedure to learn anything in the way that suits you best
4. Maintain your enthusiasm from failure to failure, and learn from your mistakes
5. Collaborate with, and value the opinions, ideas and expressions of the community of learners around you.
It was very humbling to listen to him. But it also was inspiring. There's so much more to do, and so much to pass on.
Such as hope. We can make tomorrow better.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Whoa - long time!
Been busy as of late, so it's been quiet at the ol' blog.But there's a story on ABC about LEGO animation here:
http://i.abcnews.com/icaught/story?id=3580374&page=1
Take a look!
http://i.abcnews.com/icaught/story?id=3580374&page=1
Take a look!
Friday, August 24, 2007
To those at 1000steineland -
Have fun - I wish I was there!
Things didn't quite workout for me to go there this year.
But Mel is there to get some reports and interviews, so that's cool - she's getting some great information for all of us.
So hope everyone in Berlin is having fun - I'm thinking about all of ya!
Things didn't quite workout for me to go there this year.
But Mel is there to get some reports and interviews, so that's cool - she's getting some great information for all of us.
So hope everyone in Berlin is having fun - I'm thinking about all of ya!
Some odds and ends...
Am starting up BrickJournal 9 now, so things are getting busy again for me - as in production busy. THis is different from usual busy, because I focus, which means that I disappear from the local scene while I write, correspond, and otherwisie set up the mag.
But I need to get back to telling about some stuff at teh Billund visit....
On Monday, I was to talk to Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, LEGO CEO for a video interview. At that time, I still hadn't gotten my lost luggage, so I was wearing the same clothes from Sunday...but I did shower. That morningI talked with Jens and Nate (as mentioned earlier) and then chatted briefly over lunch with Nate, Jamie Berard and some other designers.
Jamie is a designer in the Creator team, and he has done the Fast Flyers set and the Cafe Corner set. He's also a really cool person and is easygoing. I sent him a note about my luggage predicament, and he offered some clothes if I needed them.
I also told him about the pending video interview and he suggested borrowing the company video camera - LEGO *does* have video resources on hand. I didn't think about that because, well who let ME borrow their equipment? Then again, they haven't seen me use equipment before, so that may be a good thing.
The discussion was good, and I had some ideas on how to pull this off - and I had to go back to my hotel 30 minutes away by foot - mainly to get my notebook I left and also so I could ask about the luggage. My notes from JEns and Nte's interviews were on various papers I had in my bag - not good form.
Once I got my notebook, I went to the checkout desk and had them ask about my luggage...and after a few calls, I found out - they were found! And better yet they were ontheir way to teh hotel! The luggage was to come in late afternoon - too late for the interview, but still a great piece of news!
So I packed my bag and headed off to teh corporate office. This is a nice facility, with a large lounge and reception desk. I came in thirty minutes early to ask for the camera and hopefully get it.
However, the receptionist didn't quite understand my English very well, so I explained that I was to meet Jørgen Vig Knudstorp (and had to write his name because my English pronounciation apparently mangled his name beyond recognition) and I was early to see if I could borrow a video camera. The receptionist smiled when she saw the name and thought for a moment, then directed meto a lounge to wait.
There was some movement at the receptionist's desk, and then the glass doors to the Corporate Management opened, and one of the admin assistants greeted me. She expleined that teh receptionist didn't quite understand what I wanted, so I explained it out and what had happened to me. The admin thaought for a moment and told we (with a smile) that she would go to Corporate Communications to see about getting what I wanted. She went to the other side of the lounge to another office.
A few moments later, another woman greets me from the other office - she's from Corporate Communcations and asks me what I need - I just need a camera and tripod - no lights. She goes a different direction and disappears.
When she returns, she has a long bag that is zipped closed. It's long, and I am a little surprised - I had completely forgotten that what they have most likely will be professional-level equipment - far beyond what I am used to using.
The bag held the tripod. A big nice tripod. She went back and returned with a smaller cube shaped bag. Andin it was a camera that was better than mine...she explained that she didn't know how to use it, so I was a bit on my own on figuring it out.
Hm. New tripod, new camera, need to figure it all out in 15 minutes or less. A typical challenge for me:-)
The camera, after looking all over it, turned out to be a big brother of the camera I have, so while everything was in different places, I could run the cam. Once I found the remote, I was okay - it looked just like the remote to my camera. The tripod was easy too. I took a look at the mic which was connected to a box and a matching boxwith an antenna...wirelss...Nice, but that was a new item to me. I turned them both on and plugged in the reciever tothe cam, but couldn't get it to work. no time to figure it out either. I only had thirty minutes to talk.
By this time there about five minutes left, and Jamie and a friend of his wander into the building, and we meet very briefly - just in time for JVK to open the corporate management office to greet me!
So I got in all the equipment and go to his office and start setting up - he's busy, but also very friendly. And in chatting before the interview, I found out he's a Train fan. I had forgotten my questions that I was going to ask him, but he had them on hand and gave me a copy (really cool!)
Before I knew it, the camera was started and in a flash, thirty minutes passed and I got an interview...and I took everything down and returned the camera to the admin assistant - and I owe them a tape:-)
DId I use my questions? Not all of them. Did I ask any hard questions? Not really. I asked questions about him and how he looks at his responsibilities - I wanted a conversation with him about the company, his part in it and community.
I need to edit the video, but assuming the sound is good (which is a question) you will see this online soon!
But I need to get back to telling about some stuff at teh Billund visit....
On Monday, I was to talk to Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, LEGO CEO for a video interview. At that time, I still hadn't gotten my lost luggage, so I was wearing the same clothes from Sunday...but I did shower. That morningI talked with Jens and Nate (as mentioned earlier) and then chatted briefly over lunch with Nate, Jamie Berard and some other designers.
Jamie is a designer in the Creator team, and he has done the Fast Flyers set and the Cafe Corner set. He's also a really cool person and is easygoing. I sent him a note about my luggage predicament, and he offered some clothes if I needed them.
I also told him about the pending video interview and he suggested borrowing the company video camera - LEGO *does* have video resources on hand. I didn't think about that because, well who let ME borrow their equipment? Then again, they haven't seen me use equipment before, so that may be a good thing.
The discussion was good, and I had some ideas on how to pull this off - and I had to go back to my hotel 30 minutes away by foot - mainly to get my notebook I left and also so I could ask about the luggage. My notes from JEns and Nte's interviews were on various papers I had in my bag - not good form.
Once I got my notebook, I went to the checkout desk and had them ask about my luggage...and after a few calls, I found out - they were found! And better yet they were ontheir way to teh hotel! The luggage was to come in late afternoon - too late for the interview, but still a great piece of news!
So I packed my bag and headed off to teh corporate office. This is a nice facility, with a large lounge and reception desk. I came in thirty minutes early to ask for the camera and hopefully get it.
However, the receptionist didn't quite understand my English very well, so I explained that I was to meet Jørgen Vig Knudstorp (and had to write his name because my English pronounciation apparently mangled his name beyond recognition) and I was early to see if I could borrow a video camera. The receptionist smiled when she saw the name and thought for a moment, then directed meto a lounge to wait.
There was some movement at the receptionist's desk, and then the glass doors to the Corporate Management opened, and one of the admin assistants greeted me. She expleined that teh receptionist didn't quite understand what I wanted, so I explained it out and what had happened to me. The admin thaought for a moment and told we (with a smile) that she would go to Corporate Communications to see about getting what I wanted. She went to the other side of the lounge to another office.
A few moments later, another woman greets me from the other office - she's from Corporate Communcations and asks me what I need - I just need a camera and tripod - no lights. She goes a different direction and disappears.
When she returns, she has a long bag that is zipped closed. It's long, and I am a little surprised - I had completely forgotten that what they have most likely will be professional-level equipment - far beyond what I am used to using.
The bag held the tripod. A big nice tripod. She went back and returned with a smaller cube shaped bag. Andin it was a camera that was better than mine...she explained that she didn't know how to use it, so I was a bit on my own on figuring it out.
Hm. New tripod, new camera, need to figure it all out in 15 minutes or less. A typical challenge for me:-)
The camera, after looking all over it, turned out to be a big brother of the camera I have, so while everything was in different places, I could run the cam. Once I found the remote, I was okay - it looked just like the remote to my camera. The tripod was easy too. I took a look at the mic which was connected to a box and a matching boxwith an antenna...wirelss...Nice, but that was a new item to me. I turned them both on and plugged in the reciever tothe cam, but couldn't get it to work. no time to figure it out either. I only had thirty minutes to talk.
By this time there about five minutes left, and Jamie and a friend of his wander into the building, and we meet very briefly - just in time for JVK to open the corporate management office to greet me!
So I got in all the equipment and go to his office and start setting up - he's busy, but also very friendly. And in chatting before the interview, I found out he's a Train fan. I had forgotten my questions that I was going to ask him, but he had them on hand and gave me a copy (really cool!)
Before I knew it, the camera was started and in a flash, thirty minutes passed and I got an interview...and I took everything down and returned the camera to the admin assistant - and I owe them a tape:-)
DId I use my questions? Not all of them. Did I ask any hard questions? Not really. I asked questions about him and how he looks at his responsibilities - I wanted a conversation with him about the company, his part in it and community.
I need to edit the video, but assuming the sound is good (which is a question) you will see this online soon!
Saturday, August 18, 2007
LEGO Serious Play Released!
One aspect of LEGO building that is starting to become noticed is the process behind it.
I'm not talking about the simple "how I do it"process, but the play that goes into the building. We as builders do amazing models, and there's a process behind it that can be applied to our work environment.
I have been exposed to this in college on a broad sense - I have a degree in a creative field, so I have been taught the value of play in brainstorming and idea creation. for me it's called ideation. It turns out t hat LEGO building is a more 3-D way of doing this ideation. I have been trained in sketching and drawing my ideas - LEGO lets me build my ideas.
The use of LEGO building in professional environments is now a growing idea - and LEGO Serious Play does training sessions and workshops for people and companies interested.
They just started a newsletter last year called Pl@yground, and the newest issue can be found here:
Issue 2
For me it's interesting because LSP makes a bridge between the 'serious' work ethic (that most companies seem to have - you MUST work 37 hours, and you HAVE to do it the corporate way) and play. If more companies did it, there would be a bit more positive work environments, and that leads to good things for companies.
I'm not talking about the simple "how I do it"process, but the play that goes into the building. We as builders do amazing models, and there's a process behind it that can be applied to our work environment.
I have been exposed to this in college on a broad sense - I have a degree in a creative field, so I have been taught the value of play in brainstorming and idea creation. for me it's called ideation. It turns out t hat LEGO building is a more 3-D way of doing this ideation. I have been trained in sketching and drawing my ideas - LEGO lets me build my ideas.
The use of LEGO building in professional environments is now a growing idea - and LEGO Serious Play does training sessions and workshops for people and companies interested.
They just started a newsletter last year called Pl@yground, and the newest issue can be found here:
Issue 2
For me it's interesting because LSP makes a bridge between the 'serious' work ethic (that most companies seem to have - you MUST work 37 hours, and you HAVE to do it the corporate way) and play. If more companies did it, there would be a bit more positive work environments, and that leads to good things for companies.
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