By Justin Elliott, ProPublica

News organizations cultivate a reputation for demanding transparency, whether by suing for access to government documents, dispatching camera crews to the doorsteps of recalcitrant politicians, or editorializing in favor of open government.

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By Andy Marken

Eons ago, the wife and I were in Carmel and found a metal sculpture of Don Quixote we really wanted, but we didn't have the cash with us and she hadn't replaced the checks.

The shop owner reached in a drawer and brought out a counter check – fill in the bank name, the amount, sign it.

That was it...done.

By Andy Marken

Awhile back, a friend's kid proudly showed us the sheep he had bought for his farm on Zynga's FarmVille game. Actually, he bought it with his dad's money.

It made us wonder how many people buy stuff that only exists in pixels.

By Andy Marken

Unless it was just yesterday, it's probably tough to remember your first day on your job.

You know, after your HR briefing you were shown your desk, your computer and, if you did a lot of business travel, your Blackberry.

Then you were thrown in the deep end to sink or swim.

By Andy Marken

We sat on the patio of an industry analyst friend's home watching the sun set beyond the Golden Gate, talking about the difficulty of launching a company/product, getting them understood/accepted, helping them prepare for the next great breakthrough.

By Andy Marken

Did you ever wonder if we would make things better if we didn't have bad guys?

How about keeping bad things from happening to good people?

Or good people saying bad/dumb things?

Fortunately, none of those things are going to happen!

By Andy Marken

Looking back on growing up in prehistoric times – pre-DVR, dial-up internet – life was easy for a kid.

You talked to other kids, had your cliques, had the toughs and the underdogs.

Someone always made fun of someone else; and if you were new, you were automatically an "outsider."

It passed, you lived with it, you outgrew it.

Well, it wasn't quite as bad as Allison Reynolds said, "When you grow up, your heart dies."

By Andy Marken

A year ago, we were late in leaving for the office and noticed a lot of fathers were escorting their kids to the grade school.

Last week, it seemed as though the numbers hadn't changed much.

With the business community being cautiously optimistic, it made us wonder if we'll ever get back to the point where mom stays home handling the myriad of family/household activities and dad returns to the grind.

By Andy Marken

Without much fanfare, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) recently turned the lights off on their last remaining mainframe computer.

It's not like they're shutting down their whole operation; but it's a great example of the way the traditional IT model has changed.