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Understanding tech and the next boom



John Dvorak wrote a fascinating article in Marketwatch, about the technology world's potential for a crash, and explains why the tech sector isn't as recession proof as many investors believe. The story actually comes in a perfect timing with the funny video about bubble 2.0 from last week.

Any company in the sector can have a burst of phenomenal growth because there is a fashionable aspect to technology, whether at the base semiconductor level or the consumer-electronics level.

Fact is that the real appeal of tech is the potential for hypergrowth by any company, at anytime.

2007 internet woes

2007 definitely felt like it had its share of Internet woes.

There was the mundane, such as Twitter’s frustrating downtime. And there were more dramatic moments, like when a truck slammed into a power transformer and brought down a significant part of the Internet. Through it all, Pingdom was there to quietly monitor when sites were live or not.

Today they summarized the major incidents on the Internet in 2007. In addition to the Twitter and Rackspace outages above, the report also mentions the multi-day Skype outage in August (it was Microsoft’s fault), the 365 Main outage in San Francisco, and other major Internet problems.

By the way, if you don’t recognize the image, it’s because you were never a Bloglines user. That guy, the Plumber, popped up whenever Bloglines was down, which was quite often back in 2005/2006. They may still have a lot of downtime, but we, along with a lot of other users, moved on to Google Reader last year.

(Techcrunch)

gPhone debut in February?

Google powered phones could be debuted as soon as February, according to speculation by APC.

It’s an interesting exercise in drawing the dots together to get to a completely unsupported conclusion, but there are some interesting facts APC has reported that are worth taking a look at:

You can bet that if Google’s handset partners lift the covers on their Android phones during the Mobile World Congress expo, which kicks off on February 11th in Barcelona - or if Google itself trots out a flock of phones to impress this annual powerhouse gathering of the global mobile industry (the company has booked two stands on the expo floor) - that these will be shiny snazzy models endowed with a very high ‘cool’ factor.

The emphasis is mine but it’s the key line: why does Google require two stands at a mobile conference?

There is some logic in the conclusion; it would be an ideal time for Google, manufacturers, or both to show off Google powered mobile phones, but still this is awfully quick, despite the shot recently of a GPhone in the wild. In 7 weeks we’ll find out one way or the other.

(Techcrunch)

Happy Holidays!

Hello friends, I just wanted to drop off and give you my best wishes and blessings for the holidays.

May your holiday season be as beautiful as a winter wonderland !


And remmber, be Bold!



Happy Holidays

Popular desktop apps and their online alternatives

Hello folks, Invesintech.com has made a fascinating list of 25 most popular applications and their online alternative.

Outfitting your computer with the latest software can be expensive. Time and money aren’t things to be wasted. With sky rocketing prices for desktop applications, you need to arm yourself with the right alternatives.

Fortunately, there is a great alternative out there: the Internet. As hard as it is to believe, just by surfing around online, you can access most of the desktop app functionalities you need without shelling out a cent.

Best web designs of 2007

Webware has elected its top website designs and redesigns of the year.

These are some of our favorite new designs, and redesigns from 2007.
We don't often blog about outstanding design as much function at Webware, but it's a very important aspect of how we interact with Webware, and what people see when they first come to a site. All of these sites were either new in 2007, or received major redesigns.

Highlights of the winners are: Twitter, Apple .Mac, Google Docs and Spreadsheets, and Pownce.

Are we heading towards bubble 2.0?

Hello folks, I've just watched an hilarious video that boldly states that we're living in a bubble 2.0 time, and what's really funny is that it is quite true as it shows. You really gotta watch this.
Its The Bubble video, watched over a million times since it was uploaded to YouTube and other video sites in early December, is back.

It was down briefly when photographer Lane Hartwell complained via her attorney that one of her photographs was used without her permission.

The creators blog about the new version here, and give credit to all source material here.

(Techcrunch)

Is recession on its way?

Hello folks, I've just read an interesting story over at Prieur du Plessis’s international investment blog, about the possibility that a recession is under way, its a unique perspective and a good writing.

“In the stock market hope gets in the way of reality, hope gets in the way of common sense. If the stock market turns bearish and you’re staying put with your whole position, and you’re hoping that what you see is not really happening, then welcome to poverty city.”

Not since buying my first stocks in 1968 have I experienced the stock market outlook to be as murky as we are experiencing today. The fears are well documented and, in short, include lingering concerns about the financial system, a US economy on the doorstep of recession, and mounting inflation worries.

And the 700MHz bidders are

Yesterday, the FCC announced the list of applicants to the upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction. Of the 266 applications submitted, only 96 were accepted, and another 170 were deemed incomplete (but these will be given a chance to provide the required information and participate). You can download both lists, along with the announcement here at the FCC’s Website. Some interesting names popped up in both lists, not least of which is Paul Allen’s Vulcan Ventures and (as expected) Google Airwaves, both accepted bidders. Most of the names are obscure holding companies or regional telecom companies.

What is even more interesting is the list of incomplete applicants, which is filled with major telecom companies who should know how to fill out these applications by now. They include:

Alltel Corporation
AT&T Mobility Spectrum
Chevron
Cox Wireless
Frontier Wireless
Qualcomm

Verizon Wireless was not listed under its own name in either list, although Reuters reports that the company did file an application.

(Techcrunch)

Vista the biggest tech disappointment of 2007 - PC World

First PC World gets all up on the soapbox that (until a certain date) the MacBook Pro is the fastest PC the mag had tested, but consider the next step taken: PC World has boldly declared Vista #1 with a bullet in in their Biggest Tech Disappointments of 2007. Ok, sure, we get that it's "disappointments" and not "crappy products" -- the two imply very different things, and it's hard not to be somewhat disappointed by any product that took the better part of a decade to come out -- but if PC World harshing on Vista this bad doesn't smack at all of linkbait, well, we don't know what does. Oh, and here's that link.

(Engadget)

Googling for the clouds

Businessweek wrote a great cover story about Google's next big thing: Cloud computing, and it's going to change everything and put incredible computing power in the hands of many.

What is Google's cloud? It's a network made of hundreds of thousands, or by some estimates 1 million, cheap servers, each not much more powerful than the PCs we have in our homes.
It stores staggering amounts of data, including numerous copies of the World Wide Web. This makes search faster, helping ferret out answers to billions of queries in a fraction of a second. Unlike many traditional supercomputers, Google's system never ages. When its individual pieces die, usually after about three years, engineers pluck them out and replace them with new, faster boxes. This means the cloud regenerates as it grows, almost like a living thing.

The story follows Christophe Bisciglia, an angular 27-year-old senior software engineer who landed at Google 5 years ago, and decided to use his 20% of time Google's offers it employees for personal projects to launch a Google course. It would introduce students to programming at the scale of a cloud.
"I had an itch to teach," he says.

He pitched the idea right to Google's CEO Eric Schmidt (who had known him for years), and two months later Google 101 was born.

Schmidt offered one nugget of advice: Narrow down the project to something Bisciglia could have up and running in two months.

Eventually it would lead to an ambitious partnership with IBM, announced in October, to plug universities around the world into Google-like computing clouds.

Its a terrific piece which gives us a little clue of how things are going around Google these days, and of course it gives us a glimpse of what Google has in store for the next few years and where's the tech world is headed to.

Stereo Sanctuaries

Hello guys, Virginia Heffernan has posted a fascinating article in the NYtimes about men's crave for consumer electronics, usually high fidelity audio video systems.



What exactly do men do in their tricked-out electronic hideaways? You know, when they’re “working.”

Men have always had personal retreats — antiseptic or wood-paneled — filled with concert mementos, career trophies and esoteric collectibles. And women have always been mystified by them. After all, they lack the red-currant candles and yoga paraphernalia associated with true Me Time. The classic male hideout is a musty captain’s quarters, all brass and wood polish, featuring billiards, tobacco, brandy, books and maps. Another perplexingly mundane pastime of the unwired study is solitaire — Bill Clinton’s tray-table indulgence and the chief diversion of John Pierpont Morgan, the robber baron who ignored the rare volumes and priceless prints in his exquisite Manhattan private library in favor of hand after hand of solo card games.

Its an interesting insight at the men's world, that we all know of and love.
Ladies its in our blood, we love gadgets and loud home theater systems. (better be with a rich sub woofer).

Google launches iPhone interface for Picasa

Google has launched a new interface for its Picasa photo sharing service, optimized for the iPhone and iPod touch. The interface lets users “quickly see all your albums that you’ve uploaded to Picasa Web. If you click on any of the albums, you can get a full view of your picture with comments from your friends.” Other features include a Slideshow view, a search mode that lets users search for photos in their albums or through community photos, and the ability to view your friends’ albums through favorites. To try out the new interface, visit picasaweb.google.com from an iPhone or iPod touch.

(iLounge)

Amazon+Bill me later

Buying stuff on Amazon is about to get even easier. The online retailer took an equity stake in a Maryland-based company called Bill Me Later that lets people shop now and pay later at more than 700 Websites, including the Apple Store, Overstock, Walmart.com, and ToysRus.com. Amazon will be offering the payment option as well. (It competes with PayPal’s Pay Later service).

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Bill Me Later raised a whopping $72 million last quarter and has raised $200 million in total from Azure Capital Partners, Chase Paymentech, Crosspoint Venture Partners, First Data Corp., and others. It also secured a $640 million debt financing a year ago. That is a lot of capital, but as a financial firm, it is taking on a lot of risk.

The way Bill Me Later works is you enter your birth date and last four digits of your social security number online, and it does a credit check on you in three seconds to determine whether you are worth the risk. Bill Me Later pays the merchant, and sends you a bill. According to the Baltimore Sun, about 3 million people have signed up so far, and the company is on track to pull in over $100 million in revenues this year. It must have some really sophisticated algorithms to make that credit risk decision on the fly. For people still not comfortable using a credit card to pay online, this type of service removes any remaining friction in e-commerce.

(Techcrunch)

Steve Jobs 2.0?

Hello guys, I've just read an excellent article, which try to convince us that Jonathan Ive, Apple's design chief, could be a serious contender as CEO Steve Jobs replacement, as the pressure grows for Apple to name a successor to Jobs as chief executive.

Could Jonathan Ive, the publicity-shy Essex boy who started his career designing toilets and combs, be close to performing one of the most extraordinary coups in American business history? “I think Steve Jobs has found somebody in Jony who knows how to complete or even exceed his vision, and do it time and time again,” said Chee Pearlman, who hosted the event at which Mr Ive spoke four years ago.

I think its an unlikely possibility that Ive will succeed Jobs as CEO, there's no doubt he is a brilliant designer and a visionary, but I think heading a company like Apple requires much more then a vision and a sense of style (even a terrific world changing one).

I think Apple will hire an outsider to run the company or chose the COO Tim Cook or Phil Schiller Apple's VP worldwide product marketing.

Personally I can't imagine Apple in a post Jobs era, and I think (and hope) we won't see his departure any time soon.

Top 8 Macworld predictions

It's that time of year again, when the entire tech world is gearing up to start speculating what's going to come up over at Apple's annual conference next month in San Fransisco. The guys over at Applegazette, have gathered a nice list of their top 8 predictions for Macworld 08, which starts January 14-18.

• iTunes Update

HD video, rentals, possibly video pricing hikes.

• AppleTV Update

Higher capacity AppleTVs

• The Strongest Holiday Season Ever

Strongest shopping season in company's history, powered by new Macs, iPhones, and iPods.

• Updated Macbooks

Aluminum Macbook with a BLU LED screen and updated specs.

• No iTablet

The rumor of a tablet Mac, will probably not come to see daylight.

• iPhone and iPod Touch Software Updates

Bug fixes, some new features

• iPhone SDK

• One More thing…Mac Nano

Completely redesigned, and insanely small, Mac Mini replacement.

The Burger Guy, Jim Skinner: CEO of the Year

Hello folks, Jim Skinner, McDonald's CEO has been elected as CEO of the year over at Marketwatch.

He still drives his own car most days to the fast-food giant's corporate headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., and tells new acquaintances that he sells hamburgers for a living. He eats McDonald's food every day, and while he mixes up his choices he manages to sneak in french fries most days, for "testing purposes."

Coming into his own in his third year at McDonald's helm, Jim Skinner has made a deep impression. The evidence is on the bottom line, on the menu and on employees' lapels.

Microsoft is gearing up to get XP running on OLPC!

Microsoft is serious about getting Windows XP to work on One Laptop Per Child's low-cost laptop, but the company still isn't sure it will be able to make a go of it.

In an interview, James Utzschneider, the general manager of Microsoft's emerging market unit, says Microsoft has devoted about 40 employees and contractors to work on its effort.

However, there are plenty of technical hurdles, he said. One of the biggest is the fact that the XO has no hard drive and only 1GB of built-in memory. The company concluded it needed at least 2GB of memory just for Windows and Office, so it convinced the OLPC folks to include an SD slot on the laptop's motherboard.

Microsoft's current plan is to get its low-cost Windows and Office bundle to fit on a 2GB SD card that can be added to the laptop. It also has to write new BIOS software to ensure that the operating system can boot directly from an SD card.

Just to get ready for a planned trial in January, Microsoft must write about 10 different hardware drivers to support things like the XO's special screen, its mesh networking, camera, and other unique features.

"To support all of that takes time," he said, noting that Microsoft has been working with OLPC for a year, but until recently, the software maker only had a handful of machines with which to do its development and testing.

Utzschneider said Microsoft normally wouldn't have even talked about its XO effort this early, but was concerned by statements made by Nicholas Negroponte that suggested Windows was ready to go on the XO.

"We wanted to come out and say flat out that's not the case," Utzschneider said. "Despite all of the rhetoric, we don't think we can have a production version until the second half of 2008."

Only after the trial, Utzschneider said, will Microsoft make a decision of whether it will commit to releasing XP for the device, though it certainly has that as its goal. And even if it does create such a version, it has no plans to allow those taking part in the Give One, Get One program to add Windows to their machine.

"It's clearly our goal to ship a release," Utzschneider said. "But we are not confident that the combination of all of this will work with the quality people would expect with Windows XP running on a laptop.

(Ina Fried, Cnet)

Google fastest growing search terms!

Hello guys, Google announced yesterday its list of the fastest growing search terms, VP of Search and User Experience Marissa Mayer revealed the “fastest rising U.S. search terms” on the Today Show.

Last year Google described how they came up with the list:
“we looked for those searches that were very popular in 2006 but were not as popular in 2005 — the explosive queries, the topics that everyone obsessed over. To come up with this list, we looked at several thousand of 2006’s most popular searches, and ranked them based on how much their popularity increased compared to 2005.” That sounds a lot like how this list would be compiled.

So without any further introductions here's the list:

1. iphone
2. webkinz
3. tmz
4. transformers
5. youtube
6. club penguin
7. myspace
8. heroes
9. facebook
10. anna nicole smith