In my continuous effort to declutter my life of the myriad of spare electronics laying around, not to mention earn a few dollars, I have decided to put some of these items on sale on eBay. The first is my XO OLPC One Laptop Per Child Notebook.

This barely used machine was bought more for good intentions and curiosity of the hardware rather than my intent for using it as a day-to-day computer. It is designed for kids in rural areas, thus the rugged case and small keyboard. I would occasionally use it to surf the Web, but now that I have my Nokia E70 with WiFi I use that as there is no boot time required.

Here’s your chance to get your hands on an XO laptop if you are curious yourself – bidding starts at US$.01!

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What is a TLD and why should you care? If you have anything to do with the Internet or are a businessperson, you should know what it is.

TLD stands for “top-level domain” and is the last part of a domain name. For example, in the domain name thehotiron.com, the TLD is “com.” Where those who register and manage domain names use the acronym frequently, many others do not. As I plan on using it in many future blog posts on domain names, I wanted to define it ahead of time.

The acronym is sometimes used by itself or it can be prefixed by other letters to further quality a type of TLD. A gTLD is a “generic” top-level domain, and generic means anyone can register a domain name with a gTLD. Examples are .com, .net and .org. A ccTLD is a “country-code” TLD, and are ideally for entities which reside in a specific country. Examples are .us, .au (for Australia) and .dk (for Denmark). An sTLD is a “sponsored” TLD and they are only available to certain groups or classifications. Examples are .aero (for the air transport industry), .coop (for cooperative associations) and .museum (for museums). For a complete list of TLDs, view the list from the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for all global TLDs.

Knowing about other TLDs is helpful in choosing domain names to register or in analysis of a URL with a TLD you may not be familiar with. Each TLD is managed by an organization which sets the rules for registrations. For example, some ccTLDs require the registrant to be based in that country, and others do not. If you are a business and have operations or sales in a country, it may be of interest to register the name of your business or brand with a specific ccTLD or sTLD as appropriate.

TLDs of all forms are approved and assigned by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). There have been cases where a TLD was requested but not approved, and a notable example is .xxx and .sex. Some TLDs have been retired, such as .cs (for Czechoslovakia), which were replaced by .cz (for Czech Republic) and .sk (for Slovak Republic).

Of interest to many is a move by ICANN to open the floodgates on any gTLD. For example, .pizza, .beer or .gum. This has been met with much controversy, as it would require an effort for a company to register its name and brands with all new gTLDs, and the opportunity for violation of trademarks by entities who may register domain names with their brand for some random gTLD. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which is a staunch defender of its brand for the word “Olympics” globally, has already contacted ICANN with its concern over open gTLDs and to “take action” as required. My guess is the IOC would have an issue with a name like olympics.beer?

In the future, I will reference this document on TLDs in other posts here at The Hot Iron as well as follow-up on news and activities surrounding TLDs, especially the opening of gTLDs.

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Over the weekend it came to me – there is a need for collaboration and networking space in Chicago. Two things came into my field of vision to that were unexpected and probably coincidental, but led me to this conclusion. Let me explain, and tell me if you agree.

The Need for a New likemind Location

As my family was walking home from brunch at Lou Mitchell’s, we walked by The Spa Cafe on Monroe Street, where just a few days earlier on Friday was the monthly likemind meetup. There were people coming in and out of there though it is closed on Sunday. Then I noticed The Spa Cafe is no longer; the signage now read Lunch Rolls. The restaurant and cafe changed its concept over the weekend, as well as its hours, and opens at 10 am, which is about the time likemind ends. Of course I wish this locally-owned business all the success in the city.

Now we need a new place to meet once a month for likemind. The ideal location would be in the Loop or close-by, and a space where about a dozen or so people can meet and talk… and of course have a cup of coffee. The Spa Cafe was ideal as it was in the Loop and a locally-owned business, but we can be flexible. Any suggestions are encouraged and very welcome.

The Need for Space Beyond a Monthly Coffee

As I was catching up on reading blogs this weekend, I saw this one from Micki Krimmel about seeking a space to work and collaborate with others, calling it Operation Nerd Immersion. Then it hit me, we need this here in Chicago as well as they do in LA. Where networking events are awesome, it is the time in between them where the real activity – dare I say magic – happens.

There’s no shortage of available space in Chicago, as seen by signs all around the city. But in the traditional model, you make a long-term commitment to X amount of space for yourself or your company. Sure there are virtual offices where you can rent much smaller spaces, but again, it is with some consistency. What about a scenario where it is almost ad hoc, where you go to your collaboration space a few times a week, or whenever it is best appropriate, to either work alone and feed off others or to collaborate with colleagues?

Think about this for a bit. For myself, I could use such a space once or twice a week at most. For others who are traveling through Chicago, it could be their office away from their office. Some may even decide to be there every day. And I am not talking for free. People can pay by the day or month. As for the space itself, it could be anything from an empty office to a large conference room in an existing office. What company couldn’t use a few grand a month for unused space?

So I put this out there to the tech and creative community of Chicago. Perhaps the folks at the Chicago Tech Report or WindyBits could pass this along to others? Maybe folks like Jeff Pulver and Justin Chen who are in Chicago on occasion have a thought as to if this would work? Or maybe people who are more connected than me like Liz Strauss, Jason Jacobsohn, Daniel Honigman or even Ron May could chime in? Am I onto something here, or is this just a half-baked thought?

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It was 6 months ago today that I, along with about 35 others, arrived in Helsinki, Finland for the very first Nokia OpenLab. This 3-day event was a gathering of people from around the world - from musicians to nuclear scientists to photographers to, well, me – who had a passion and interest in how mobile technology can have a positive impact on the future.

If you are a regular reader of The Hot Iron, you will know I have written about OpenLab many times before. It truly was a unique event and I am proud to have attended it. The following video is the official video produced by Nokia of the event, which us attendees first viewed at OpenLab’s conclusion. If you can’t see it in this post you can view the Nokia OpenLab video here.

So what’s happened since? For myself, the biggest change is I have shed my frustration with the Palm brand and am now a loyal Nokia owner, touting the E70 while I determine which model I am going to buy next. The biggest impact for me has been conversations with other attendees. Some are just in passing, following their blogs and tweets. Others I have engaged in more direct conversations, some who I spent a lot of time with when I was there and others who I didn’t, but have made up for it since I left. Even though there were only about 50 people (including Nokia people) it was hard to spend time with everyone. I also had the good fortune to see Steve Lawson and his lovely wife Lobelia when they performed in a house concert in Chicago last December.

In the hectic pace of how our days go, it’s nice to reflect on great experiences. Now back to strategizing and building that future.

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The next likemind will be Friday, March 20, 2009 in dozens of cities around the world.

In Chicago, it will be at Spa Cafe, 112 W. Monroe, between Clark and LaSalle Streets in the Loop at 8:00 am. Check out the Spa Cafe Web site for more information, and you can find your way with a Google Map to Spa Cafe here.

I call likemind a gathering of creative-minded people, from various disciplines including Internet, advertising, art, social media, et. al. For more information on likemind, you can read this great article on likemind from the New York Times.

No RSVP is required. You are also welcome to join the likemind Chicago Facebook group.

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