AllThingsD » spouse

Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen Talks About Giving 2.0

Kara Swisher — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 23:31:36 +0000

There are a lot of things to like about Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, who works by day as a lecturer focusing on strategic philanthropy at Stanford University, and also is the founder and chairman of the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society and the founder of SV2, the Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund.

But my recent favorite was when — before being interviewed with her husband, well-known tech legend and now powerful VC Marc Andreessen, about her new book, “Giving 2.0: Transform Your Giving and Our World,” at a big fancy dinner honoring them — she called the Netscape creator her “trophy husband.”

That was what you might call a good one.

Actually, there are a lot more weighty, serious good ones to take note of in the book, which was recently released, in which Arrillaga-Andreessen tries to find new ways to think about giving.

Interestingly, given her spouse, the answers are not all about digital solutions, and do not require being a gazillionaire geek, either.

Here’s a video interview I did with Arrillaga-Andreessen — who hails from a prominent Silicon Valley family, and was inspired by her parents to focus on philanthropy — talking about the book, and where the sector is going:

[ See post to watch video ]

Don't Read This While Driving: T-Mobile Launches Safe Driving App

Ina Fried — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:10:59 +0000

If technology created the problem of texting and driving, it is only natural that we look to technology to solve the problem.

After all, we can’t just put our cellphones out of reach and just not answer the things for five freaking minutes. No, we can’t. Trust me. I’ve been to L.A.

In any case, there is a cottage industry developing for products that help those who want to stop texting and yammering on their phones, but need some help.

In the latest such move, T-Mobile plans to start offering a program for Android phones called DriveSmart Plus that allows subscribers who opt-in to have their phones automatically tell when the user is driving and put the phone into a driving mode that disables most texting and calling features. Calls can be set to go straight to voicemail, and a text message can be sent to people who are calling or texting to let them know that the recipient is driving.

Of course, all of this requires users to opt-in, so it will only help those who recognize that they have a problem and actually want to do something about it. And there are ways to override it, which is useful if there is an emergency or the cellphone user is a passenger in a moving car.

But, hey, it is a start. T-Mobile will offer DriveSmart Plus initially only for one phone–the LG Optimus T–but said it plans to expand the service soon. DriveSmart Basic, a free version of the app, is available for free on some T-Mobile phones, although that app requires users to tell the app when they are driving. DriveSmart Plus, the new premium program, will cost $4.99 per month and covers all lines on a subscriber’s account.

DriveSmart Plus is from a venture-backed start-up called Location Labs. T-Mobile is also launching another Location Labs-developed service, dubbed FamilyWhere, for tracking children or family members via their cellphones. It’s apparently useful for monitoring an elderly family member or keeping tabs on school-age kids (or perhaps tracking that cheating spouse, if they are foolish enough to opt-in to the service).

Cellphones: Better Than Your Spouse and/or Alcohol

Andrew LaVallee — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:26:34 +0000

Two new surveys on cellphone use show that Americans love their handsets, possibly to the detriment of their spouses and social lives.

According to a survey of 645 U.S. women commissioned by shoe retailer Zappos.com and payment service Bill Me Later, 31 percent of respondents ranked their phone or PDA as “most important” in managing their work and home lives, ahead of their significant other and hired help.

One reason is that it helps them bridge professional and personal responsibilities.

Read the rest of this post on the original site