Category Archives: Uncategorized

I have been experiencing problems accessing web sites from home. My ISP is Comcast.  I have discovered the problem.  Comcast has recently implemented DNSSEC – Domain Name System Security Extensions.  DNSSEC validates web site domain name settings with a fine tooth comb. In many cases this fine tooth comb is filtering out sites which you would think should be a-ok.  Sites like portal.microsoftonline.com (the Microsoft Exchange Online web site or www.mass.gov (the State of Massachusetts web site).

It all has to do with DNS Servers. A DNS Server is like a phone book that gives you the number associated to the name. If you can’t associate the name (URL) to the IP address (Phone Number), it can’t make the call.

In researching the problem, I discovered that DNS could not resolve these URL’s.  That means that when the computer looks up the URL in the DNS Servers to get the associated IP address to call the web page, it can’t find the IP. It can’t find the IP because access has been denied by Comcast’s DNS servers.  It has been denied because Comcast now uses DNSSEC to validate URL’s – theoretically for improved security.

The problem is that many web sites do not yet comply with DNSSEC validation rules.

If you are experiencing issues accessing certain web pages, check out the site using this tool: http://dnssec-debugger.verisignlabs.com/ and enter the web site in question. If you see all green lights, the site is ok, if you see red lights, the site may not be in compliance with DNSSEC validation rules.

Feel free to call Comcast, but get yourself to a supervisor quickly, the underlings, as nice as they are,  don’t have a clue.

If you are interested in the view out one of our windows, have a look at http://livecam.trif.com.  It is a real-time video feed from our conference room window into our parking area looking East and Route 12.

We have a Dunkin Donuts in our plaza, so it can get pretty busy.  This cam is especially helpful in the winter to see the conditions during a storm.  It also tells us something about our offices.  It tells if we have power, if we have Internet connectivity and if the office is in tact. 

Lastly, it lets us see the healthy people using the handicap parking spot.

Ok, I unsubscribe from emails almost every day. I might accept mass-marketing emails for a while, but then cyclically I go on the rampage and kill everything I can.  The latest is this new fad Groupon which provides local deals not unlike those coupon booklets you receive from your kid’s school as a way of earning extra money for your school.  Groupon negotiates discounts and passes the savings along to their customers.  Well, the next time I need an herbal spa treatment, I just may have a peek, but for now, I want the emails to stop.  So I go to the bottom of the email and find the word unsubscribe and click it.  Usually it goesthrough a process of selecting what you are unsubscribing from and why you are unsubscribing, but Groupon does one additional thing.  They apologize and tell you that Derrick is at fault and ask you to click the button to punish Derrick.  So of course I did.  And you can see Derrick get scolded by a superior and then assaulted.  It catches you off guard and makes you think twice about unsubscribing. 

How do they do this?  They make it personal.  They make you feel as if someone was harmed as a result of your actions.  And of course, they give you the opportunity to resubscribe. This is a great way to provide an easy, non-offensive way for your audience to stay connected with you.  Maybe you can’t reproduce this little video clip, but you might think out of the box and consider another ploy.

Many use Constant Contact which provides an easy way to unsubscribe, they call it safe unsubscribe.  It is instant and respects the wishes of the recipient, but it doesn’t provide an opportunity to think twice.  That’s all you want to try and accomplish. Provide an opportunity to reconsider without annoying.

SketchClub is an App and a Community.  It provides ANYONE with the desire to express themselves artistically to create beautiful art.  No artistic training is required. However, for those that do have training, it is an exceptional way to create and share your works with others. 

As an example of that, pictured here is a drawing by artist Vermeer who happens to be one of the most able and prolific of the SketchClub artists.  This piece is astoundingly beautiful. The program allows the artist to render extraordinarily accurate portraits such as this, or expand your horizons with imaginative abstracts.

SketchClub provides all the tools and advanced drawing capabilities of applications such as Photoshop but is actually more intuitive and fun to use.  It has a wide array of tools, brushes, colors, layers, copy, merge, and more.  As you complete a piece of art, you can save it, push it to Facebook, email it, and share it with other SketchClub artists.  You might get a thumbs up or maybe a nice comment, or, if your work is outstanding in the eyes of another, you may receive a heart.  Special works will be featured by the site operators (fondly calling themselves Gloperators) which will earn your art a bigger audience.

In the end, it’s all about finding peace and pleasure in creating and the comradeship of sharing your efforts with other like-minded artists.  Yes, we are all artists!

How do you improve your connection to your customer?  How do you make that connection unique, distinct and difficult for others to replicate.  One way is introducing a customized software application into the mix.  With a special program you can impact information, communication and service in such a way that you become an integral part of your customers business.  More than providing excellent service, you can provide a distinct service.  Maybe something that hasn’t been done before, maybe a link that no one else has conceived. 

TRI is presenting a one-hour webinar presenting some ideas, concepts and custom applications that may give you something new to consider. It is our intention that you will leave the webinar with a new vision for improving your connection with your customer, becoming an even more important partner in their business cycle.  We will be discussing communication, information and service and different ways you can impact those areas in a special and distinct way.

The webinar is free and will be held on Thursday, July 21, 2011 from 2:00pm to 3:00pm. Register here.  http://www.eventbrite.com/event/339075183

What is a webinar?  Think about a webinar as a way you can attend a conference without leaving your desk. Using your computer and telephone, you can hear a presentation (like a conference call) and also see the presenter’s slides (watching over an internet connection) and you may be able to see the presenter as well.

If you want to live in a 28,000 square foot home like this, take the job as CEO of one of our health care companies. Could the regulations be questioned? The law states: “Compensation is not excessive if reasonable”. Read it for yourself here.

New temporary regulations for non-profit health care compensation were issued in 2001. How is it working? Judge for yourself. Here are some annual compensation figures from 2008 for the CEO’s of our nations largest health care providers:

• Aetna – $23 Million
• Caremark RX – 78 Million
• Cigna – $25 Million
• Coventry – $14 Million
• Humana – $10 Million
• United Health – 13 Million
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts – 3.5 Million

In the case of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the compensation represented a 26% increase when net income fell49%. Add to this the options available to these executives and you can see pretty clearly that something is broken. Bill McGuire of United Health has $1.6 billion in options. Ron Williams of Aetna has $174 million. Ed Crawford from Caremark Rx has $249 Million, Joel Gemunder from Omnicare has $110 million.

I’ll leave the commentary up to you.