Hansville community leader Mary Ellen McCaffree, co-founder and treasurer of the Great Peninsula Conservancy and Anne McNamee Corbett, Kitsap Land Trust co-founder and founding editor of Silverdale’s Central Kitsap Reporter, have teamed to write “Politics of the Possible.” The book retraces McCaffree’s path inside the gears of governing during Washington State’s most productive decade.

“Politics of the Possible” charts the overhaul of the state during the 1960’s, culminating in a stunning 1970 special legislative session that capped a sweeping program of progressive, bi-partisan reforms. read more »

If you keep up with technology to be more productive, you probably already know about tools like GoogleDocs and Microsoft OfficeLive. If you’re due for some “upgrades” in your toolbox, here are a few more ideas for free online tools that could make your job a little easier.

Prezi.com: Need to make a presentation but don’t own PowerPoint? You can create a presentation at prezi.com for free (up to 100 MB storage) then either share it online or download to share offline. read more »

Like many small business owners, Bryan Garrett tries to take advantage of as many networking opportunities as possible. Which is why the owner of Bremerton-based Kitsap Errand Runner has been building up his Facebook friends list to nearly 700 so far.

But like many other service-oriented providers, Garrett wants to build relationships that go beyond the surface.

“As a business owner, I need to meet as many people as I can. I have all these friends on Facebook but I don’t know them,” he said. “…As a service business, people need to meet me to build trust. I know this is a marathon, not a sprint.” read more »

Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna recently warned consumers about a text-message trap to capture financial information and drain credit card and bank accounts. Such text message scams are called “smishing.”

“If you don’t wish to be smished, ignore text messages that look like they’re coming from your bank or credit card,” McKenna said. “Flip over your credit or ATM card and call the number on the back. If there’s a problem with your account, that’s the best way to find out.” read more »

As a teacher at South Kitsap High School, Sean Duttry can testify first-hand how prolific smart phones have become even among the youngest generation — he estimates that as many as half the students in his business technology classes own iPhones and Androids. As the owner of Gig Harbor-based Emblematic Web Designs, Duttry also knows what that means read more »

The four counties of Kitsap, Pierce, King and Snohomish comprise the Central Puget Sound Economic Development District (EDD) — a regional economic district designated by the Economic Development Administration of the US Department of Commerce. EDDs across the country are charged with convening regional business and government leaders to design, develop and implement comprehensive, integrated five-year economic development strategies to advance job creation and commerce throughout the designated district. read more »

A new generation of decision-makers and consumers is entering the market, and sharp businesses are paying attention. Born into the digital era and raised during prosperous times, these young adults are far different from their parents — though, of course, that’s been said of any new generation.

Called the millennial or the digital natives generation, these young people are the “always connected” crowd — sleeping with their smart phones by their bed and living online. The millennials are generally considered to be those born after 1980 (also known as the Y generation), but many view that age group as only the first of two waves (the second wave being born to Gen-X parents vs. baby boomers). read more »

When Lisa Weiss volunteered as PTA president at one of her children’s elementary school about eight years ago, she wanted a tool to keep organized while overseeing a fundraising auction. She couldn’t find any cost-effective software, so instead she created a database to manage the flow. Her husband, Sam, offered to use his computer science background to take the database one step further, integrating into a program that could be used during the auction’s checkout.

The auction was a success, and the efficient cashiering system received many praises. That feedback gave the couple an idea read more »

Long before identity theft became a well-publicized concern, Bill Wildprett was looking for ways to secure vulnerable data. As an “information system architect” for the state of Washington, he was part of a department that oversaw home-energy assistance programs for low-income individuals.

“Before identity theft was a big media topic, I was worried about protecting social security numbers and looking for ways to protect that information,” he says. read more »