Techcrunch is reporting that NBC is about to launch their new Olympics site. It will be a media-rich assault on the web user. HD video, Facebook and Twitter will be incorporated as well as blogs but one thing is missing from the announcement, user-generated mobile media at the events. I know copyright issues are in play but it would be incredible if NBC would trust the community and allow Ustream, Qik and other live streaming services to capture the excitement from the venue. The quality would never match that of what NBC could produce and maybe that is something they could argue in support for such media. I truly believe live user-generated streaming media is the future of mobile. Now comes the difficult task of managing copyright.
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Giz is reporting that Microsoft is ready to move the next iteration of their Office suite into pseudo-private beta testing. The cool thing about this announcement is the availability of lightweight web app versions of Word, Powerpoint and Excel that will allow users to edit and collaborate from netbooks or even smart phones. What will this mean for Sharepoint or even bigger, Google Docs? Regardless, this is a big win for mobile users.
Office 2010 and related products will deliver innovative capabilities and provide new levels of flexibility and choice that will help people:
- Work anywhere with Office Web applications—the lightweight, Web browser versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote-that provide access to documents from anywhere and preserve the look and feel of a document regardless of device.
- Better Collaborate with co-authoring in Word, PowerPoint and OneNote, and advanced email management and calendaring capabilities in Outlook, including the option to “ignore” unwanted threads.
- Bring ideas to life with video and picture editing, broadcast capability in PowerPoint, easy document preparation through the new Microsoft Office Backstage view, and new Sparklines in Excel to visualize data and spot trends more quickly;
As Lady Tech sits nervously waiting for the results of her pregnancy test, the doctor returns and congratulates her, “Good news, it looks like you are going to have another OS.” Oh dear, how will this one turn out? Lady Tech had so many already but a few sticks out in her mind. Her older son, Windows was on top of the world but has lost his way and now trying to create a new identity. Her daughter OS X is quite content with keeping her looks but craves attention. Linux is a rebellious teen that loves picking on his older brothers and sisters. Will her new OS be like those of her past? Lady Tech thanks the doctor and walks out of the office gently rubbing her stomach. As the doctor watch Lady Tech walk away, he hears a faint whisper, “I cannot wait to meet you.” continue reading…
Engadget is reporting that Acer is moving up as the world’s number 2 producer of personal computers. Not too surprising as I write this entry on my Aspire One netbook from Acer. Many are shocked by this and I have to wonder why? Acer reflects what mainstream consumers have long desired, just good enough quality to get the job done. The belief that the consumer only desire the best of breed is a fallacy. If that was true then MP3 audio would have been a failure, we all be driving luxury cars and shop only at boutique stores. No, mainstream consumers shop at the Targets and Walmarts of the world, listening to 128kbps sampled music and stream movies from the Internet. The reality is that if the quality is not noticeably bad, then it is good enough to be accepted as the norm. The masses do not necessarily choose the best outcome, even I balked at the idea of streaming video, yet here I am on the couch watching The Chronicles of Narnia Prince Caspian streaming from my Roku box. The point is this, the world we live in is on-demand and people are more than willing to accept immediacy rather than quality, sounds familiar. Tools built around immediacy do not slow us down and can be afforded by the masses. That is why netbooks are perfect example of this reality. They are cheap, easy to carry and are good enough to satisfy a mobile user. The tech community may balk at the idea that Acer is number 2 but the reality is, the company produces cheap products that are just good enough for the masses and me.
Over the weekend, I finally got around and place my two G1 phones up on ebay. It was sad to let them go, but I had to. Interestingly, these auctions are my first on ebay. I usually do everything on Craigslist but decided to try out ebay after all these years.
Those who know me, understand how anal I am with electronics. I am a diehard believer that your electronic device should look box-new no matter how old it is. So needless to say, these phones are mint condition. The screens do not have a scratch on them.
Those who are interested, take a look at the postings on ebay:
My Austin
