Comments on: Fiasco http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/ Chris Brooke's Weblog Thu, 20 Nov 2008 07:45:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Michael http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-19162 Michael Fri, 19 Jan 2007 23:17:50 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-19162 <i>Did Franks do that PowerPoint thing of having a handout that’s exactly the same as the slides, and reading out the slides v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y (as if the audience were illiterate) in lieu of an actual presentation?</i> I once saw a presentation by a university student in which the entire script was written out on an OHP slide in spidery handwriting and he stood with his back to the audience reading it out loud off the screen. It was so bafflingly bad it almost qualified as deliberate performance art, but as he was the class dimwit this seems unlikely. Unless that was part of the act too. Did Franks do that PowerPoint thing of having a handout that’s exactly the same as the slides, and reading out the slides v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y (as if the audience were illiterate) in lieu of an actual presentation?

I once saw a presentation by a university student in which the entire script was written out on an OHP slide in spidery handwriting and he stood with his back to the audience reading it out loud off the screen.

It was so bafflingly bad it almost qualified as deliberate performance art, but as he was the class dimwit this seems unlikely. Unless that was part of the act too.

]]> By: Chris Brooke http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18957 Chris Brooke Fri, 19 Jan 2007 09:52:59 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18957 I think it's safe to say that Tommy Franks has often been in the presence of somebody armed, so I'm going to infer that he doesn't do the slow reading thing that you don't like. I think it’s safe to say that Tommy Franks has often been in the presence of somebody armed, so I’m going to infer that he doesn’t do the slow reading thing that you don’t like.

]]> By: Lorna http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18955 Lorna Fri, 19 Jan 2007 09:49:59 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18955 Did Franks do that PowerPoint thing of having a handout that's exactly the same as the slides, and reading out the slides v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y (as if the audience were illiterate) in lieu of an actual presentation? Because if he did that in the presence of anybody armed, it's a miracle he's still alive. Did Franks do that PowerPoint thing of having a handout that’s exactly the same as the slides, and reading out the slides v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y (as if the audience were illiterate) in lieu of an actual presentation? Because if he did that in the presence of anybody armed, it’s a miracle he’s still alive.

]]> By: Michael http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18831 Michael Thu, 18 Jan 2007 21:46:29 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18831 Yes, absolutely. Bill Gates is entirely to blame. Yes, absolutely. Bill Gates is entirely to blame.

]]> By: Meade http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18646 Meade Wed, 17 Jan 2007 23:21:34 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18646 So would the Iraq war either (a) not have happened, or (b) turned out "better" if Rumsfeld had been using Apple software?! So would the Iraq war either (a) not have happened, or (b) turned out “better” if Rumsfeld had been using Apple software?!

]]> By: Michael http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18590 Michael Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:42:38 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18590 My major beef with Powerpoint is that the term has become as ubiquitous as Hoover or Walkman, which makes it next to impossible for other presentation packages to get much of a look-in. And even when other packages are used, the end results are invariably credited to Powerpoint. For a particularly good recent example, Al Gore's <i>An Inconvenient Truth</i> was constantly described as "a Powerpoint presentation", yet Gore was, of course(*), using Apple's vastly superior Keynote software(**). (*) Gore's on the board of Apple, so he could hardly have done otherwise. (**) which I insist on using for my own professional presentations, much to the annoyance of my colleagues (jealousy rather than inconvenience: they can't run it without changing their hardware!). My major beef with Powerpoint is that the term has become as ubiquitous as Hoover or Walkman, which makes it next to impossible for other presentation packages to get much of a look-in.

And even when other packages are used, the end results are invariably credited to Powerpoint. For a particularly good recent example, Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth was constantly described as “a Powerpoint presentation”, yet Gore was, of course(*), using Apple’s vastly superior Keynote software(**).

(*) Gore’s on the board of Apple, so he could hardly have done otherwise.

(**) which I insist on using for my own professional presentations, much to the annoyance of my colleagues (jealousy rather than inconvenience: they can’t run it without changing their hardware!).

]]> By: Nick Brooke http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18324 Nick Brooke Tue, 16 Jan 2007 14:04:44 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18324 Chris, I'd be delighted to lend you Edward Tufte's rousing diatribe against PowerPoint, "Pitching Out Corrupts Within: The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint," next time it's convenient. You will like the front cover (cf. Amazon). Cheers, Nick Chris, I’d be delighted to lend you Edward Tufte’s rousing diatribe against PowerPoint, “Pitching Out Corrupts Within: The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint,” next time it’s convenient. You will like the front cover (cf. Amazon).

Cheers, Nick

]]> By: Chris Brooke http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18184 Chris Brooke Mon, 15 Jan 2007 23:46:23 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18184 <I>Chris, I hope it improves for you.</I> It does: the sections on the US military's response to the insurgency are extremely interesting. (About 300pp in now.) Chris, I hope it improves for you.

It does: the sections on the US military’s response to the insurgency are extremely interesting. (About 300pp in now.)

]]> By: Richard A http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18146 Richard A Mon, 15 Jan 2007 18:45:56 +0000 http://virtualstoa.net/2007/01/15/fiasco/#comment-18146 Chris, I hope it improves for you. If it's frontline reporting you want from Iraq, Cobra II by Michael Gordon (chief military correspondent for The New York Times) is a rip-snorter, but it stops at the end of 2003. Chris, I hope it improves for you.
If it’s frontline reporting you want from Iraq, Cobra II by Michael Gordon (chief military correspondent for The New York Times) is a rip-snorter, but it stops at the end of 2003.

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