Gamification

I have been hearing a lot about gamification lately. For those that don't know, gamification is using ideas from games in non-game context. The classic example is adding a typing speed display inside a word processing program. Then you can see how fast you are typing and it spurs you to get faster and be more accurate.

This last week I started the Global Corporate Challenge with a group of people from work.  When we signed up, they sent us a backpack, a pair of socks, and 2 pedometers. The idea is to walk 10,000 steps every day for 6 weeks. If you decide to swim or bike, you can enter those distances and it converts them to equivalent steps. The GCC takes a page from gamification in that you compete with other teams around the world. Every day you enter the number of steps along with any biking and swimming and you can see how you stack up against other groups. There is also a virtual trip from London all the way around the world and you can see your location every day, which is another gamification idea.

When I am in the office in California, it is easy to get the minimum number of steps. I have the 4 mile ride each way to work. Also any time I want to get food, I walk. I can hit the 10,000 step mark sometime after lunch. At home it is a whole different story. I only end up walking about 4,000 steps in a day. My office is only 30 steps from my bedroom. The kitchen is half-way between the two.

As I am working from home this week, I had a very difficult time getting my 10,000 steps yesterday. Thursday was easy as I did a 15-mile bike ride, which came close to the 10,000 step requirement all on its own. But yesterday it was raining and I didn't want to ride in the rain. At lunch I took the dog for a walk and cracked off 2,500 steps. Towards the end of the day, I was still another 2,500 miles short and so I started doing laps around the kitchen. My wife told me to take the dog for another walk and that is how I was able to get my minimum steps for the day: walking outside in the dark with the dog.

Once again it is raining and so I am not about to take a bike ride. I'm thinking about connecting the pedometer to a paint shaker to help me get the required steps. That is probably cheating though. Besides the whole point of of the program is to get some daily exercise and watching a paint shaker doesn't count.

Virtual Private Networks

Recently I worked a deal with my current employer that allows me to work from my home in Utah one week a month. While my home is in the Salt Lake area, my office is in the San Francisco area and requires that I travel every Monday and Friday. This is the week I am home and I have to say it is a welcome change.

Computers greatly facilitate working from home. Since I spend most of my time in front of a screen in the office, it only stands to reason that I could just as easily spend that time at home in front of a similar screen. The only thing missing is the interaction with my co-workers. Fortunately for this week, that is a bonus as I have some software development to do and really don't want to be bothered by anyone.

Security is a key part of my job and so one of the technologies that allows me to work from home is a virtual private network or VPN. When I first start my computer in the morning, I have to run a simple program that asks for 3 different passwords. One is the usual password I use to log into the network when I am in the office. The other two are groups of numbers. The first number is a personal identification number that I have memorized and the second comes from a small electronic device I keep on my key chain. It generates a predictable-random number every 30 seconds. Once everything is entered, I click the connect button and my computer looks like it is part of my work network. My connection is only good for 8 hours. At the end of that time period, I get automatically logged off.

I like being able to work from home one week a month. It gives me more time to do those things that are normally done in the evening, like playing catch with my son, or replacing the fog light bulbs in my car. However there is a weak link with my VPN configuration, if I ever forget any of my passwords or lose my key chain FOB, I won't be able to work. OK, I don't really worry about my passwords, but I do worry about that little FOB. So far it seems fairly indestructible as I have accidentally taken it swimming and discovered it is waterproof. For the record, it wasn't an accident that the FOB was in my pocket, it was an accident that I went swimming wearing my street clothes. Sometimes that happens when you live part time on a boat.