Dear Friends of Noneck,

If you haven't heard, in two short months, I will depart from my beloved city of New York to explore this planet. On 7 July 2007, and traveling for seven months, my feet will wander the earth, while I contemplating seven topics of freedom. On the way, I'll be documenting the experience on the "Luck of Seven" travel site (Lo7). While on the way, I'll be blogging on seven topics of freedom: free culture, free and open-source software, couchsurfers and bloggers, agents of progressive social change, happenstance, and our environment.

Yesterday, I sent out a message to my beloved donors, facebook and flickr friends. Much to my surprise, several previous donors chipped in a few extra bucks, forwarded my email around the globe and blogged about the Lo7. Luck of Seven is now at 24% of the way to fundraising USD$ 7,777. THANK YOU!!!

With 07/07/07 quickly approaching and my first month planned out, I see a wealth of opportunities to explore, BUT I can't do it alone.

1. A small donation of USD $11.11.
Thank you donors!! In return, I promise you an autographed copy of the book. In the meantime, luckofseven.com will continue to tell the story though rich media. < http://luckofseven.com/donate >

2. Spread the word and connect me with your other friends.
There is nothing more important to me than my friends. Though my past years of traveling and countless workshops, I know that we can make this a better place. Regardless if it's just a smiling face, a pint of beer or a hard floor to sit on, I want to visit your friends and say hello. Forward this message to your friends! Then, if you have a blog or social networking site, spread the word. I really need the link love ;)

3. Organizational sponsors for equipment and travel.
In Prague, Transitions Online has asked me to teach on new media journalism to former Communist countries. While "on the way," I look forward to teaching, conversing and interviewing citizens of this earth. If you know of an organization that might be a good fit, please don't hesitate to forward this email or make a formal introduction. I'm quite keen on helping organizations adapt technological frameworks for their own uses, elevate the seven topics of freedom, and share my experiences as an organizer. Otherwise, I'm looking for sponsors to acquire equipment: an HD Camcorder, a GPS device, an GSM cell phone, etc... I have a list and would love to entertain any ideas. Have your people call my people!

... and with that, I hope you place your luck on seven and at least give a donation.

be seeing you...
noneck noel

it's been a while since i've seen a steady paycheck. as of this morning I will start to see one again. after the new york state senate and trellon debacle, i really didn't want to find myself in a world dependent on other people's whims. now after 140 days from my last employer, countless conferences and after digesting a gazzilion journals and books, i have found my calling.

this week, i embark on a research project with NewAssignment.net investigating open-source journalism. this project will take the tools built for assignment zero and migrate them to a multi-story/social networking system. picture NYtimes.com or any other online publication giving ANY reader the ability to comment on EVERY article and asking them to dawn a series of tasks to enhance articles. i originally pitched this idea to a few print publications, but they didn't bite. then after some pro-bono advice to David Cohn and a recommendation from Fred Benenson, Jay Rosen gave me a call.

honestly, i'm overwhelmed by the opportunity to change our perception of participatory culture. after last week's salzburg seminar, the world of web 2.0 died. no longer should we view participatory culture through the eyes of one's web browser. if you think i'm crazy just look at twitter and google's mobile apps... our new world is about convergence - convergence in the mind, convergence in data, convergence in action, convergence in governance and in policy. as these four principles converge on each other, i promise you a resuscitation of a true democracy. bringing profound change into the hands of everyone.

Technorati Tags: assignment zero, economy 2.0, freedom, newassignment.net, open government, salzburg seminar, twitter, web 2.0

i'm packing my bags and heading to SXSW interactive. if you haven't heard of SXSW, it's kinda a Mecca for technologist, programmers, and anyone who's into socializing with notables who like to party. i'm going to promote a few things i've learned, learn a few more things that i don't know, talk incessantly about of on the luck of seven project, hang out with some friends, catch up with old friends at Barcamp Austin, and figure out a thing or two about life.

last year, i learned quite a few things... most of them too personal to tell here (it might make it in my book), but this year... i feel things are different. i'm not sure why, other than i'm 100% more adventuresome and well... i've got a nifty little vlog project! also, if you haven't noticed, for the month of march, i'm vloging every 7 days. on 14 march, my next video will be sent from austria.

YUP! on monday, i'm departing austin and spending a day in the air to attend a salzburg seminar - The New Information Networks: Challenges and Opportunities for Business, Governments, and Media. once on the ground, i'll be moderating a roundtable entitled: Participation, Community, Governance and be on the roundtable Communication, Networks, and Political Impacts. i'm really stoked to be in the same arena as yochai benkler, viktor mayer-schonberger, kenneth cukier, and jo twist.

in the meantime, i'm changing my fundraising tune and for the next three weeks will attempt to rase $2222.00. i'm not sure how i'm going to accomplish this step, but one thing is for sure... if i don't push to rase $2222.00, i'm not going to make my fundraising goals. if you can't donate money, give me a suggestion on were to go or what to see and whom to visit or interview.

well.. if you're looking for me, check out my twitter and my conferenceer profile, otherwise i'll see you around AUSTIN!

Technorati Tags: around the world, blogs, conferences, couchsurfing, coworking, global change, luck of seven, salzburg seminar, sustainability, SXSW, SXSW interactive, twitter, vlog, web 2.0

Where the Coffee Shop Meets the Cubicle by Kerry Miller
Coworking facilities blend the appeal of an independent environment with many of the advantages of the traditional office.

brief excerpt...

Over the past few years, coworking facilities—both grassroots, co-op-like versions and for-profit models—have started popping up across the country and the world, from Seattle to Copenhagen. A CoWorking Wiki hosts pages for dozens of other cities with coworking initiatives in progress. And while the concept of shared office space is nothing new to entrepreneurs, an increasing number of them are signing on and finding that the community-building and networking benefits outweigh even the virtues of a shared fax machine.

photos & profiles of some coworking spaces

ps - please note that the original article in ms miller's article is wrong. it is not co-working it is coworking and you can find more information at http://wiki.coworking.info or http://coworking.pbwiki.com

personal opinion - i guess i have a gripe. ms miller totally gave off the impression of being institutionally blind, asking me many questions, and requesting formal introductions to everyone in the coworking community... and to my surprise there's not a single quote! instead she found others to represent my statement. maybe i should just accept this and be happy. despite the fact she has the wrong URL, i'm glad she featured the hat factory and 116 west houston.

....going back to the drawing board to sketch out a bigger picture...

this article, sans my personal opinion is cross posted on blog.coworking.info

Technorati Tags: business week, coworking, kelly miller

ah, in this day in age, photos are very much a disposable luxury. since the invention of the Polaroid, we've seen the cost of photography drop to the point that every single device has the ability to snap an image if not record a movie.

it's been ten years since i sat for a portrait. ok, that's a lie... my mom likes to have the whole family in front of a professional camera once in a while, but we haven't done them in a few years. it's been ten years since i sat for those nasty senior photos... now with the help of my good friend, Lucia Rollow, we revisit what my senior photos should have looked like...

ps - i love this red blazer!
pps - B&W are coming...

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Technorati Tags: lucia rollow, nonecknoel, noel hidalgo

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five months from today, i'll be placing my luck on seven... thank you, i just had to celebrate the moment.

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Technorati Tags: luck of seven, around the world, travel

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while i'm in geneva, i'm going to be posting back and forth between this site, noneck.org and my open-source travel project, On the luck of Seven. there's already one juicy story, and once i find a higher speed connection, i'll be flicking some pictures up. Until then, I'll see you on the luck of seven!