While I love this idea and think it’s perfectly the right direction for any television studio or network to go, I can’t help thinking about rural Canada’s under served Internet service. It’s 2012 now and there are lots of places in Canada still using dial-up because the monopolies deem it too expensive to bring broadband. Even where I live —a hop, skip and jump away from Toronto— I can only get 3Mbps on a good day.

However, fortunately, digital media doesn’t only mean live streaming Hockey Night In Canada. There is a wealth of possibilities to take advantage of: apps, games, video digest clips, buffers, you name it (but proper broadband would be nice).

This idea of CBC TV going totally digital reminds me alot of the Al-Jazeera English channel’s use of Youtube to connect with viewers (started up by a former CBC head honcho). Particularly, their show, The Stream.

CBC Radio has done a great job in embracing digital media in recent years. From posting videos of their radio shows like Q to fully integrating social media like my favourite show, Spark.

The video above is part of a national, grassroots campaign of CBC TV fans brainstorming ideas.

Stutter Social is a new organization I recently co-founded with my friend, David Resnick. It connects our fellow stutterers all over the world through group video chats. Using Google Plus.

Why would we want to do that? Because it’s often difficult to meet other people who stutter in your geographical area so you end up facing your unique social challenge alone. It is said that only 1% of the population stutters. We are faced with many prejudices including bullying at school, losing job interviews and worse of all, stuttering is misunderstood as a character flaw. Science continues to prove that it is neurologically based.

So meeting other stutterers online is the next best thing! In fact, that is our goal with Stutter Social. To spread the message of the National Stuttering Association – if you stutter, you’re not alone.

Why Google+?

We decided to use Google+ Hangouts because it’s free to use, pretty easy to use and a lot more stable than Skype. When David, myself or our other Hangout hosts starts a chat, we post the link to the Stutter Social Google+ page. As well as the Stutter Social Facebook page, Twitter account and right on the Stutter Social website homepage via a great big green button. You can’t miss it.

We host three to four Hangouts per week right now and momentum is growing to include more in timezones around the world (stuttering is taboo in some geographical locations while others do not even have speech therapists!). On average we get about five to nine people hanging out at one time and our Hangouts last about 2 hours. Sometimes longer! Topics of conversation include stuttering, of course, our experiences and off topic stuff like, well, whatever happens to be on our minds at the time!

Hangout Hopping and going viral

Thanks to a brilliant Chrome plugin named Hangout Canopy, which allows users to go “Hangout Hopping”, Stutter Social even played a role in spreading awareness about stuttering. In fact, one night, David suddenly found himself educating a large number of Hangout Hoppers. The next day – blog posts about our unique use of Google+ Hangouts started popping up in G+ Streams. Such as this article written by Peter McDermott. And David being interviewed on Sarah Hill’s KOMU News program.

New website

Initially, we used Google Sites to host the Stutter Social website. But as momentum and media attention grew, we knew it was time for a new home for our organization. As creative director, I designed the new Stutter Social website with a simple user interface consisting of only need-to-know information up front and center to bring users to our Hangouts as quickly as possible. Or to find future Hangouts via an embedded Google Calendar.

David and I really like using Google+ Hangouts for Stutter Social and now with the arrival of “Hangout with extras“, we have a few more features to engage participants.

David and I chatted about Stutter Social on a recent episode of my podcast, Stuttering is Cool. You can also listen to a few snippets of typical conversations in our Hangouts.

Stutterer or not, I hope to see you in a future Stutter Social Hangout. I’d also love to hear how you are using Google+ Hangouts in unique ways. Please share your story in the comment section below.

My 4th Sketchbook Video has me flipping through my watercolour Moleskine sketchbook from sometime in 2008 or 2009 (I really should add dates in my sketchbooks).

In spite of having grown up frustrated with the medium, I was inspired by the beautiful watercolour work by Calvin & Hobbes creator, Bill Watterson. I thought perhaps I should give watercolours another try. Plus, it gave me an excuse to buy the watercolour Moleskine.

Also featured in this video is a wordless comic strip mystery. Can you figure out what is happening in the story?

My latest sketchbook video features the sketchbooks I used to draw my Snert Oh No web comic in 2010.

I’d draw a one-panel comic during the 1.5 hour wait for my Toastmasters meeting every Wednesday after work. Then I used my iPhone for photographing, post-processing and posting (until a suitable app came along) it on snertohno.com (I wanted to use my laptop as little as possible). You can read all about it on my blog from way back when.

I enjoyed the challenge of drawing in ink without means to erase any mistakes. It sharpens your drawing skills. You’ll see evidence of that in the video – I call them retakes.

I mentioned my 2007 trip to Paris in my last Sketchbook Video. So the sketchbook I used during my trip is featured in my latest episode (I like how that sounds. I guess I’m a video podcaster now).

It’s a Paris Moleskine City notebook. I highly recommend these little things. They are the tour guide you create yourself!

You’ll see quite the strange colour palette I used in this sketchbook. That’s the fault of some Japanese markers I bought in a Japanese store in Pairs (go figure!). They came in weirdest combination. Though frustrating, it did provide some creative ideas on its own (as seen in my previous video).

My second sketchbook video features my followup pocket Moleskine from 2007ish (unlike the first one, I didn’t date my sketches).

I remember this time vividly. I loved the idea of having sketchbooks full of colourful works of art however I ended up forcing myself to create works of art for each page as quickly as possible.

So naturally, that hampered creativity. You’ll see a lot of unfinished pieces among some gems that I am really pleased with.

Lesson learned.

Well, thanks home video technology in my DSLR, iMovie and Vimeo, it can happen a little more than often. I’ve begun making short videos of my flipping through my sketchbooks. So, if you want to flip through them, you’re saved a trip!

Above is my first video which features my Moleskine sketchbook from 2006. This was a time where I was trying different mediums and techniques other than my usual pencil. You’ll see how some methods worked while others didn’t. I further developed those that did work and learned a lot from what didn’t.

But not exactly a vacation it will be: I am working on a few projects to improve some skills, learn a few new things and putting the digital devices away (well, maybe not the social networks) while the weather’s still nice.

I’m already seeing some leaves changing colour (AAAUUUGGGHHHH!!!).

I drew and posted this comic on my graphic blog after suffering from a bout of social media information overload.

The tools are affordable and quite often free. Their teacher asked me if I would be willing to draw a comic for posting on the classroom blog. Certainly! But I asked first if the students can give me a few items they’d like me to add in the comic.

You’ll see the finished product (and more info about the plot) on my graphic blog.

This also gave me the idea to create a series for my niece and nephew. But a little different. I draw a page or two and they let me know what happens next. Kind of like improv comedy but taking audience suggestions during the performance.