QuantNet Swags

[Andy Nguyen]

@Ken Abbott suggested a great idea that we provide QuantNet-branded swags to members who help answer questions on our site.
This is something we definitely should do given we have many wonderful members here who are now practitioners in finance. It's good to help out fellow members but it's better to have a system to reward good answers. We have a points, trophy system in place and will look to incorporate that into a rewarding system.

In the mean time I'm open to what kind of swags are most useful to you.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

"Swag" has multiple connotations and is not a common term.
What is a swag, precisely?

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Small items like pens, coffee mugs, mouse pad, etc that you put your company brands on and give away as promotional items.

 

[Paul Lopez]

Anything Andy, Prof Duffy, and Avi approved works for me. I'm terribly biased though. :D

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

In the U.S., swag means branded merch - stuff with a company logo that it gives away or sells to employees. Shirts, bags, umbrellas, stationery, snacks, tchotchkes, etc.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

The only swag I can offer is this

Mortal Coil, by Dödsrit

4 track album

dodsrit.bandcamp.com

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

I think the term "swag" may be dated - my kids call it "merch".

 

[Daniel Duffy]

I think the term "swag" may be dated - my kids call it "merch".

Do they like metal music?

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

I hope they outgrew it!! but at one point our youngest kid dragged us to a live Metallica concert... And we used to hear very loud Rammstein lyrics from car stereo... and had a bunch of corresponding T-shirts.

That made me think of 2 more U.S. usages of the word "swag":

Kids come to someone's birthday, bring cards and gifts, and every guest receives a "swag bag" with identical small gifts

Celebrities gather for en event, and some people receive gift bags with free samples - example.

As to Andy's question, which promotional merch was most useful to me, that would be a Bloomberg-branded high-quality black umbrella that had wind vents, lasted for years, and looked good too.

Other examples of promotional merch that displayed someone's promotional logo and that I appreciated and found useful over the years:

* clothes such as t-shirts, baseball/golf hats, or vests (Patagonia no longer does corportate vests, but there are much better choices out there)

* drawstring knapsack / tote bag / duffel bag / banker bag, beach or gym towels, lunch bag, luggage tag

* pocket protector / card holder

* touchscreen stylus . Fancier ones include flashlight or a laser pointer.

* squeeze balls / fidget toys

* mugs and bottles

* mouse pad with wrist support. Maybe even a wireless charger

monitor mirrors

* folding purse hook / hanger

* Tide To Go stain remover pen, lip balm, hand sanitizer

* I am not a fan of anything electricity-related, although something like a popsocket, or a USB powered light or fan, or an external battery, might work

* tchochkes that are less useful, but may look cute: pennants, decals, lapel pins, stickers, fridge magnets, stationery

(this is a working Galileo thermometer)

(this is a working abacus)

(Newton's cradle)

(brain teaser puzzles)
Basically, much of what thinkgeek used to sell before they closed.

The above merch might be great to given away to everyone who shows up to an industry event, or is willing pay a few dollars for mail order.

But, in the context that Andy and Ken first brought up - rewarding people for good answers in the forum - I think an even better reward might be an autographed book. Something like "Volatility Cube" (book title made up), inscribed by the author - "this book was presented to (recipient) for a good answer on QuantNet". I'm not sure how expensive this might be, though. Another possibility might be a glass "tombstone" engraved with the Q&A.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

I hope they outgrew it!

my son started learning Irish fiddle music, then he became a drummer with Dodsrit.

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

mine actually started university as a music major. But then he decided that other things are more fun to study in class.
We do have a piano and a formidable collection of guitars, all of which he practices sometimes.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

All of our family are/were into music,
My grandad was a drum major in a pipe band. His son emigrated to NYC and worked in Wall St. A few times played with NYPD pipe band.

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

This band (different people now of course) performs on September 11 events and some police officer funerals.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

This Dutch chap repaired my uncle's bagpipes from 1945 a few weeks ago.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

A word from our sponsor QN T SHIRTS?

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

This might look good on a hoodie

 

[Paul Lopez]

I'd want C++ syntax on any swag/merch/stuff that gets created I say.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

This might look good on a hoodie
View attachment 47209

Of course, this is a terminal value problem! Like discounting metaphor, which is fine.
Some work with initial value problem PDE (minus - V_t)

Risk of Littl Endian/Big Endian schism

// TYPO should be S^2

 

[Daniel Duffy]

I'd want C++ syntax on any swag/merch/stuff that gets created I say.

C++20 Concepts?
// no lambda

 

[Dimitri Vulis]

There are already some C++ shirts out there, for example

or https://www.zazzle.com/c_programmer_light_bulb_joke_t_shirt-235989008558862545