Python or Django, which is the better programming language?

So, those of you who clicked to read this post flabbergasted and ready to "set me straight", please relax, someone already has.

Well, the web has.

I am working on a project with a friend, a web application, and he recommended using Heroku as a development platform and that we'd likely be using Python and/or Django.  So, hours later, I texted him, "Hey, are we using python or django?"  (Obviously, he is the programming and IT specialist).

Because my patience scores about a one out of ten, I looked up the "difference between python and django" and found a very helpful eHow article summarized by this:

"The purposes of Python and Django are significantly different. Python is a programming language and, as such, is at its most basic a method for creating programs. Django, on the other hand, is a web-application framework and has a more focused purpose, which is to assist programmers in the creation of web applications. Python is a programming language, and Django is a support system for Python programmers."

After this discovery I quickly texted my friend back, "Nevermind...".  

Things that I understand include (but are not limited to) sales, marketing, baseball, and surfing.  I lack significant understanding in programming and IT (currently).  But, with this discovery today, and the subsequent download of Python 2.7 and Git Bash, I'm interested to see where I stand in a few months.

Learn something new everyday.


Read the full eHow article at http://www.ehow.com/info_8450257_difference-python-django.html. 

Amazon, please don't deliver my stuff too quickly all the time

Yesterday, when I got home from work, I found that smiling cardboard box on my front porch. It was an awesome surprise for a few reasons: I felt a rush of excitement because I had forgot which books I ordered, matter of fact, I forgot I ordered something altogether!

It shouldn't have really been such a surprise, I had ordered those books just four days ago...three cheers for Amazon Prime!

Amazon has always worked very hard to create an online shopping experience as much like the real thing as possible and better on several other accounts. And with the more recent additions of features like Amazon Prime, delivery "lockers", and same-day delivery*, it is obvious why ecommerce is socking retail in the mouth.

Amazon and Mr. Bezos, I like the enhancements, but please, never remove the option for at least two-day delivery. By doing so, you'd also be taking away the joy and serendipitous feelings I get when enough time has passed for me to forget about my order when I get home.



*Learn more about Amazon's 2012 changes by reading this great article by Slate's Farhad Manjoo, www.slate.com/articles/business/small_business/2012/07/amazon_same_day_delivery_how_the_e_commerce_giant_will_destroy_local_retail_.html.

Business Model Canvas Template

What is great about the web is that you can search for nearly anything and find resources that someone has made available to you so that you don't have to start a project from scratch.

When a friend told me that I should apply Alexander Osterwalder's Business Model Canvas to better evaluate a business strategy I was looking at, of course, I Googled looking for a template.  Not finding anything to my liking, I made the Template below in Google Docs available for all to copy-paste into their own docs.  Thank you to the Wiki-page creator at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Model_Canvas and Business Model Alchemist whose resources are available on the wiki-page (in my template, I added BMA's very thought-provoking category questions).

Keep in mind that most advocates of competitive strategy analysis like Osterwalder (or Michael Porter) would probably recommend that this analysis be conducted with a few people hand-writing their ideas on an actual canvas - much like 'lean principled' folk...

Anyways, here is the G-Doc version of the Canvas.  Enjoy and please continue to build a better one, and share yours with me.

Business Model Canvas Template in Google Doc Spreadsheet

Business Model Canvas Template in Google Doc Word