While this one is a bit off the beaten track, I had to post about Carl Malamud and his efforts to become the new US printing chief. His efforts (like a lot of things) made it on my radar screen thanks to Techdirt.com and Mike Masnick's post, "Time To Make Carl Malamud Head Of The Government Printing Office".
The domain name used by Malamud's campaign, yeswescan.com, was enough to get my attention, and the one-pager readers will find after clicking there offers some interesting insight into the history of the US Government's printing office, including for me the whole idea how synonymous the terms "printing" and "information dissemination" are. As we debate the future of printing, in our much narrower terms, it's very useful to think more broadly as well.
One direct quote at the yeswescan.com site deserves a call-out. It's in reference to the future of print shop jobs and the need for workers to be trained in other skills:
No doubt very true, but it also brings to mind opportunities closer to home -- I bet the GPO needs a heavy dose of MPS!
The domain name used by Malamud's campaign, yeswescan.com, was enough to get my attention, and the one-pager readers will find after clicking there offers some interesting insight into the history of the US Government's printing office, including for me the whole idea how synonymous the terms "printing" and "information dissemination" are. As we debate the future of printing, in our much narrower terms, it's very useful to think more broadly as well.
One direct quote at the yeswescan.com site deserves a call-out. It's in reference to the future of print shop jobs and the need for workers to be trained in other skills:
As commodity printing goes the way of the PDF file and the copy machine, GPO must retrain and refocus its workforce, working with the unions and the employees so we may face the challenges of the future.
No doubt very true, but it also brings to mind opportunities closer to home -- I bet the GPO needs a heavy dose of MPS!
Comments
In the past 4 months I have put together 6 RFPs for government(city, county) copier deals.
The night after I attend the mandatory "Pre Bid Meeting", I chase the bottle of Jack around.
The disorganized plan and often pompous attitude of some of our employees (we pay the taxes, they get a paycheck)irks me to no end.
Rarely is there a Green initiative or a plan to clearly determine how much is being spent now and how much can be saved.
Cost reduction goes no further than "...the lowest price possible..."
Its the same old story, different decade.
If the GPO is just an eighth messed up as the local stuff I have seen, the phrase "Managed Print Services" may as well be spoken in Latin (no offense intended to those who actual can speak Latin)
Not there is plenty of good reason to go in there with an MPS Axe and hack away for decades...