Archive | January, 2010

Invention is the easy part

I’d like to call your attention to this Network World article called “Stop inventing mobile phones.” To be brief, there’s a huge market for mobile phones – the physical devices that is – and the operating systems and applications for them. But in this rush to develop a better box, it often seems that the infrastructure to operate them – the network – hasn’t kept up with that innovation.

Does this sound familiar?

It often seems like we come up with the applications first, then try to develop the infrastructure to support it – not just in mobile technology but in all of technology. The car was built before the highway system, for example. RealPlayer tried to show video back in the day of the 56.6k modem.

But as Network World points out, there are so many competitors in the crowded mobile phone marketplace. This is great for innovation, but all of these mobile phones have been hamstrung by a lack of innovation in the mobile infrastructure.

Generally, it’s not a good idea to deploy apps until you verify your network can handle them.

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Take This Job And Love It

ComputerWorld is saying that “IT job statisfaction plummets to all time low” in an article by Patrick Thibodeau. Hagan said there is a lot of pent-up dissatisfaction in the IT workplace, as well as a backlog of people who normally would have moved to a different job in a stable economy. The recession has resulted [...]

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CES la vie

The Consumer Electronics Show is about to begin in Las Vegas; and it’s interesting to see some of the technologies that are coming out – and speculate on how they might impact the enterprise IT environment. First, there’s the Phone Wars, heating up with Google coming out with the Nexus One, which is an open [...]

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Skype goes 720p

It seems less like “news” and more like an eventuality, but Skype is putting forward an HD version of its software. In addition to two-way video teleconferencing at 720p on computers, Skype is teaming up with LG and Panasonic to produce TVs with Skype built in – including webcams and connection – no computer required. [...]

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Bono is the new Lars Ulrich

There’s a joke about how Bono, once, while performing at a gig, asked for total silence, then, slowly, started clapping his hands. Once. Then Twice. Then three times. And, still clapping, he said to the crowd: “Every time I clap my hand, a child in Africa dies.” At which point, the crowd yelled back in [...]

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